#200 channels and nothing but cats

[searsage]

Fushi: The Obscure Scale (OTA Open!)

A fickle beast that resides outside the currents of time and space, once a gaurdian of a long dimmished universe, Fushi now trickles in and out of existence leisurely weaving in and out of worlds judging the scale of fortune and misfortune forsaking those who would take its benevolence for granted and nurturing that deserving.

It's godlike form was lost long ago, slain for the blood of the galaxy and it's magical properties, a baseless prophecy that lead to the corruption of its own universe eons ago.

Reborn out of time, Fushi is afflicted with an unstable form often diminishing into a fluffy kitten like form called Fhu where most of its fearsome powers were channeled into simple raw cuteness.

It longs for a world to adopt but its fickle wanderlust has this beast straying much like a cat leaving a superstitious trail of blessings and curses in ita wake.

Fushi's influince directly governs the scale of death and life, pinching it's delicate strings with its claw as it pleases, those who experience 'a brush with death' were more likely then not the unknowingly ferrying Fhu around with them that day and were subsequently spared their dismal fate.

This god takes normal sacrifices of VARY expensive goat milk and cat nip cat treat ( not because they like them.. Of course NOT)

And strings lots of strings (other gods find them annoying because they often misalign constellations because they keep playing with strings of stars.

Fushi represents all that out lies and does not conform.

Fushi's gender is as fickle as a cat.

Fushi while ancient is young compared to other gods of the universe.

Fushi is polydactyl and can be drawn with six or more toes!.

Despite their regal stature Fushi can't roar…just meow like a kitten ;v;

They are needy kitty and constantly lonely…until you give them attention And they dont want it.

They are capable of shapshifting!

AN: its done..finally, this is my submission for Year of the Tiger It took half a year but damn its finally done! Hope you guys into this floofy poof ball! ;v;

As always lore is suggestable and up to the buyer's discretion!( They dont have to keep)

Open to offers: Autobuy: $200

[Bic]❗️I'm only accepting paypal USD offers! [Bic]❗️ NO Amino coin offers please!

I'm only interested in USD via PayPal or Da Points ·This is not First come first serve. ·Payment is due 24 hours after purchase or it'll be reopened for sale. ·Don't offer what you don't have. ·Don't remove watermark ·No refunds

AND PLEASE USE YOUR CHARACTER! 😱

THERE IS NOTHING MORE GRATIFYING TO AN ARTIST THEN SEEING THEIR ART PUT TO USE! 😳 👉👈

I do not condone or support tracing or referencing off my work, for any purposes, find someone's else art who allows that. I do not.

Please do not use/trace/reference of/repost my art without my permission, do not use this art unless you buy it, this is not Free to use, for rpg, oc, refs, ect

[mouselobite]

The demons are winning against me. Why am I trying to make a PMV?? Did I not realize my brain cannot comprehend this yet??? No?? ok, we continue-

Exactly!!! The only Clan I have that made it past the 200 moon mark is my very first Clan that exists on the August 10th release download. It got to 1.2k moons. Never did that again lmao- Though, it's so fun to watch Clans struggle and to shove them into character arcs

Warriors neurodivergent brainrot is forever. None of us can escape it. Sorry, you don't like the newer books and the trash writing? No, you can't move on!!! You gotta MAKE IT FOR YOURSELF. Why??? Because it's here. It is immortal. Hnng- I love taking ClanGen ocs and smacking them with my brain to create totally polar things. I have several ClanGen ocs turned into Guardians of Ga'hoole and Wolves of the Beyond ocs which turned into its own universe. I went from pixel cats to owls and wolves to so many other animals. It's so fun

Hey, I'm WikiHow anon from this burning planet and you're not watching Disney Channel

NO I FEEL THIS!!!! i looked at my clangen ocs and went "maybe.... maybe I need to dust off sony vegas after all these years..." like please I dont even remember how it works!!! this is taking me back to my roots!!!

real!!!! like I have some that survived and ended up at like 300 moons but once the character(s) im focused on finish their arc im like "alright!!! new clan time!!!" i have so many clans and lore for them all

AND IT REALLY IS!!! everyone I know who was a warrior cat kid has yet to escape it even if they havent touched a book in years it changes your brain chemistry forever!!! nothing I can do now besides accept that warriors will always be in my brain!!! AND REAL!!!! my clangen ocs either stay clangen or end up as inspo for another random character!!! like please keep existing pixel cats youre so fun!!

[atlanticcanada]

'Get out or be in the fire': Nova Scotians detail the moments when they fled their homes

Katherine Tarateski was only about 20 minutes away from her home, but police had already blocked off the neighbourhood.

The Nova Scotia resident had just been at a community potluck at a local park when she received the first emergency alert about the wildfires on Sunday.

Tailor the news you receive straight to your inbox by signing up for our newsletters

Download our app to get breaking news alerts delivered right to you

Currently staying at a hotel in Halifax with family, Tarateski says she doesn't know when she will be able to return home.

Her home in the Tantallon area, a community in the western end of the Halifax Regional Municipality, is gone. Her pets, a dog and a cat, remain missing.

"I just couldn't deal with the thought that they were inside, so I just chose to believe that they are out somehow," Tarateski told CTV's Your Morning on Wednesday.

The ongoing wildfires in Nova Scotia have burned thousands of hectares across the province, destroying an estimated 200 structures in the Halifax area, including approximately 150 homes.

'This is going to be a prolonged operation': Halifax-area wildfire grows to 837 hectares

'For God's sake, stop burning': N.S. premier bans all activity in forests, urges residents to abide by burn ban

Eyewitness accounts: A glimpse inside N.S. fire damaged neighbourhoods

As of Tuesday morning, the Nova Scotia SPCA (Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) said it had more than 100 animals in its care.

The organization says it is in the evacuation zone working with the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources to provide care for animals and reunite them with their families.

'IF YOU’RE BURNING ON YOUR PROPERTY THAT IS STUPID'

A province-wide ban on open fires, including in provincial parks, private campgrounds and backyard campfires, brush burning and fireworks is in effect in Nova Scotia

On Tuesday, the province also announced a series of restrictions on activities in wooded areas.

Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston has urged residents to adhere to the burn ban, saying six illegal burns came in Monday night. The cause for the fires is under investigation but are likely human-caused, a Department of Natural Resources official said.

"For God's sake, stop burning. Stop flicking cigarette butts out of the car window. Just stop it. Our resources are stretched incredibly thin right now fighting existing fires," Houston said.

Halifax Mayor Mike Savage told CTV News Channel on Wednesday that the situation is "dynamic," with a change in wind potentially putting more homes, firefighters and lives at risk.

Savage also called on Nova Scotians to stay away from the evacuation area and to not burn.

"If you're burning on your property that is stupid, that is selfish and that is putting people at risk and if nothing else, it's taking attention away from the areas where we really need it," he said.

'I THOUGHT OUR HOUSE WAS GOING TO GO DOWN'

Kelly Laurin was driving back to her home in Tantallon with her fiancee when they noticed smoke coming from behind a local community centre.

After getting an evacuation notice, they packed their belongings and cats in their car.

At one point, Laurin says they could see the trees in their backyard burning.

"Honestly, I was in shock, I was terrified," she told CTV's Your Morning on Wednesday.

"I thought our house was going to go down, I thought the whole street was going to go down. I didn't really know what to think other than I had to get out of there as soon as possible."

Laurin says a neighbour managed to take a picture of her home, which showed it still standing, but with some fire damage.

She considers herself "extremely lucky," especially since there were a number of sentimental items that she wasn't able to bring or forgot to take, including pictures and her father's urn.

"It was just get out or be in the fire," she said.

Mary Wolfe, who is at a hotel with her family and dog, says while she couldn't see any fire at the time, a neighbour did advise her to leave due to the developing situation.

It wasn't until she was stuck in traffic trying to get out of her subdivision that the evacuation order came in.

Soon, she says ash began to fall on the cars and that is when it became real for her.

"It looks like a really hot, hazy summer day," she told CTV's Your Morning on Tuesday.

"The sky has smoke all through it and it smells, but we're about 10 kilometres from our house, so we're about 20 kilometres from the origination of the fire. So it's not as intense as it was at home but certainly you know something's going on."

Wolfe says, with the help of group chats and her neighbours' home security cameras, she learned that her street is safe.

"We were closer than we would have liked to have been," she said. "We don't know when we're going to get back in. We're still very much in the evacuation zone."

With files from CTVNewsAtlantic.ca Digital Co-ordinator Lyndsay Armstrong

he Nova Scotia SPCA has over 100 evacuated animals in care as of Tuesday morning, and are making room to help more. With the Department of National Resources we are inside the evacuation zone providing care and family reunification.

— Nova Scotia SPCA (@NSSPCA) May 30, 2023

from CTV News - Atlantic https://ift.tt/D1ja64O

[im-invisible-erased]

So for like the past two days this person has been messaging me on twitch whispers. giving me “advice” on what to do with my channel... and like the advice makes sense but I had to hit them with the “This is too expensive right now, and I’d rather not cheap out on emotes/starting screens/ending screens etc.”  Them: Its not expensive you can find cheap. You can always just get cheaper ones to start out with.  (my internal perfectionist screaming... if you’re not gonna do it right the first time just don't’ bother, like I had emotes that I made sloppily and didn’t keep any of them except one that I just genuinely like.) But obviously I’m in the process of trying to get to a point where I could commission a friend to do all these things.

And I explained that it just wasn’t in my budget currently. And they just ignored it so I said “You clearly don’t understand the poverty struggle do you? When I say I can’t afford even 50 dollars right now I mean it. Between bills and rent. and Feeding myself and my cats. Without proper income to break even with these cost...I can’t invest anything else into a hobby that makes me 0 dollars an hour currently.” 

after that I found the “do not accept whispers from strangers” function on twitch.

Like I understand all these things would make my channel more appealing. Having a proper banner. Having good emotes. Having a good Starting soon/Ending Screens. Cleaning up the panels to be more streamlined. Having a proper BRB screen.  (which I actually did the panels and BRB screen downloaded from a free overlay pack)  

But realistically I understand that my channel will never even break 15 consistent viewers. I’ve been on Twitch since before it was Twitch. I’ve been a watcher since 2009 [JustinTV days]. And I’ve been a part time/hobbyist streamer off and on Since August 2013. I had to beg multiple communities to open my stream and mute the tab just to get affiliate. I did that for like 3 months streaming over 200 hours each month just to hit affiliate. If I didn’t network to do that. my stream would be forever 1-2 viewers with an average viewer count of 0.5-1. Because unless i get raided by someone else that is my statistics on most days. 

I don’t really care about low views. I don’t care that my community is basically just other peoples community that I am also a part of. I got my one goal to hit affiliate back in September and that’s all I wanted. Like I’m just a little invisible stream. which is honestly the vast majority of channels. Streaming to maybe nobody maybe 1-2 people but I still like to stream so I keep doing it. Not because its profitable or because I have like unrealistic goals with it. Just cause. 

Like if I put in more effort did more networking and stuff. I would probably grow but I cba with it all. I’m just a part time streamer and nothing more. 

sorry this was just stressing me out and needed to write my thoughts down in a place where I'm invisible. 

[nicollemakesthings]

[aqrosie]

looking at the AQ queue like

[haveyouseenthisskeleton]

Do you have goofy Dune headcanons? Does he still pun or pull jokes? Thank you, Skeleton Cat man go brrrrrrr

Let's go with some headcanons for our Dusty boy !

- All Dune read about the Surface was an old book from the XIXth century. So yeah, when he manages to get out of the Underground, that was kind of a big shock. The first day, he got so scared of a car he destroyed it with bones in front of the worldwide cameras, and while a journalist was saying he was perfectly nice and not dangerous at all.

- The first time you let him play GTA V, he took so much pleasure to KILL everything you decide it was not a good idea anymore. You can still hear his evil laugh in your worst nightmares.

- When he goes in places he doesn't know, he always needs a spot when he can observe for fifteen minutes what is going on. Like that time in this underwear shop. He stays in a corner next to the bras, looking at people shopping without blinking for a very long time. A grandma hit him in the face, thinking he was a pervert. Dust was so traumatised he never worn underwears ever again.

- Dust is very curious. So sometimes, he follows people in places he's not supposed to be. Like... in prison. He followed a bunch of prisonners and ended being incarcerated by mistake. You had to explain to the police officers for a very longtime your idiot boyfriend did nothing wrong. He still teleports sometimes in here because the TV has Disney channel and not his own TV.

- Just like a cat, he sometimes brings you gifts. Like... dead mouses, dead squirrels, dead "things you can't identify". So when he brought you a spatula, you congratalised him, to encourage him to get you not dead things. He kept bringing you spatula. You have at least 200 spatulas in your kitchen. You don't even know where the hell he is finding them. You don't know either how to stop the spatula invasion. He seems so happy everytime he brings you one you can't scold him.

- One day, you went to a pool party. When you had to leave, you didn't find him. Dust played hide and sick with a bunch of kids. He hid at the bottom of the pool. He doesn't want to leave because no one finds him yet. You had to jump in the water to get him out. He spouted all the way home because you ruined the fun.

- He loves winter. Because he can creates snowmen... AND THEN DESTROY THEM. He especially loves the destroying part of the activity. The problem is that he can't stop himself. And that neighbour with plastic snowmen ? It declares war to him. He destroyed every last snowmen in his christmas decoration. You were so ashamed you tell your neighbour a angry dog did that. You had a long talk with him about this. He understood. The next day, he was destroying Christmas trees...

- He saw on TV that mud was good for skin. He wanted to help you have a better skin. That's why he teleported a part of the park in your bathroom. Trees and pond included. You had to explain your boyfriend was experiencing a cultural shock to the police officers. You still had to pay for the renovations though.

[ghostbustermelanieking]

oddly specific memories i have of listening to tma

in honor of the finale, and because i am a sentimental asshole, i bring you this potentially uninteresting and completely pointless list. i'm gonna miss this show a lot

half my original reasoning for listening to the podcast was to motivate me to walk on the treadmill. this did not work. but i did it the first time, when i was going through the trailers and anglerfish, and i remember the room where my dad keeps the treadmill is really dark and the spooky chanting sort of freaked me out

after the treadmill, i ended up listening to the bulk of the first four episodes on the couch, and halfway through i let my oldest cat, winnie, who always lived outside (i know, i was very against actually keeping her outside) in the house. and she jumped up on the couch with me, which she literally never did. (she was very grumpy and not super affectionate.) i had that cat since i was five, and she passed last june, and i really miss her. quarantine kind of gave us the opportunity to hang out with her a lot, because we were home so much. so i'm glad these memories are kind of intersected in my mind. (below: a pic i have from that day.)

my friend sarah relistened along with me the first time around, which was extraordinarily sweet of her, and also led to some interesting interactions. for example: she forgot when it was revealed that sasha was dead, so she accidentally spoiled that for me when i asked when the others would find sasha (and i spent all of season 2 just like. anxiously vibrating over this fact). she also made this post, when i was still in like early first half of season 1, and my immediate thought was "oh no martin is dead." i hadnt even MET martin at this point

back in early quarantine, my mom had this rule that we had to do something new every day (to keep away the depression... ha ha). anyways, all i wanted to do in my free time was sit around and listen to tma (and also watch this show i was into on netflix), so i came up with some lame excuses, one of which was "i'll give myself a pedicure." this led to the memory i ultimately associate with mag 56 (trevor herbert 2) being me sitting out on our roof balcony thing, giving myself a horrendous pedicure

another time, my family wanted to go play tennis, and they brought me along and brought a hammock for me to lay in. there was this excess material from the hammock, and the sun was in my eyes, so i ended up pulling it up and over me to block the sun and creating this ridiculous hammock cocoon thing. one of the episodes i listened to that day? "tucked in."

before i ever started the show, my friend sarah stayed with me while i was pet sitting. i remember when she got there, she'd just listened to 150 and was telling me how freaky it was (she was still trying to get me into the show), and she was like "of course we're staying on a CUL DE SAC." (that was also the weekend she watched us for the first time and was very upset because i slept through the whole thing, which is scary when you're staying somewhere by yourselves.) anyways, i spent the whole show waiting for the scary cul de sac episode

while i was listening to the show for the first time, my step-dad (an artist) started painting an EYE on the door downstairs near my bathroom. a fucking EYE. he didn't finish it til i had finished the show. but still weird!!

i binged like 12 episodes in one day to finish season 4, which is not impressive at all, but it's still my personal record. i just remember staying up late in my dark bedroom (til like.... 11 i'm lame and i go to bed early), listening to like 158 & 159 & 160 and just being knocked on my ass by how good it all was... i was SUPER spoiled by this point, through my own fault, and i knew exactly what was coming, but actually experiencing it was nuts

the second week i listened live was 167, where the public release was delayed by a couple hours by accident. i spent like 20 minutes refreshing spotify, thinking it was broken, before going on tumblr and seeing what the deal was. (and 167 remains one of my favorites of s5 because i remember just going "thank god it was worth the wait.")

this one car ride where sarah and i made some of our friends listen to the first three episodes of the show. it was the middle of the night and we were just like blasting down i40 listening to anglerfish and do not open etc

the night the what the ghost episode publicly dropped was the night after my graduation, and i was sleeping out on the couch in the living room so my grandfather could sleep in a bed. it was super dark, and i am a jumpy person, and i Remember being mildly disgusted with myself because the corny sound effects were actually freaking me out. (i think i mightve actually seen something weird that night, maybe, but that's another story.)

the weekend my parents moved me into college, we couldn't get the cable in the house we were staying in, and we were all sitting around doing nothing, so i jokingly suggested starting tma with them, and they were like ok grace. my step-dad promptly fell asleep and my mom zoned out -- which is probably good, she doesn't like horror and she's super claustrophobic, so it's probably better we never got to do not open

my brief roommate in college talked about how she was into those youtube channels where people just read scary stories, so of course i was like try tma out. so she listened to the first episode on her own, and we were out one night, and she started mag 02 while i went into an ice cream place. she was into it (she kept being like open it, ya pussy) and wanted to keep listening while we went home, and even back in our room. i had only been in town for a couple weeks, and barely knew my way around, but i also didn't want to turn the gps on and be interrupted every five seconds. so i tried to find our way back on my own. it took the entirety of mag 03, and into mag 04, before i did it. so now i will forever associate across the street with all those wrong turns i took in a dark, semi unfamiliar city, trying to get back to our college without a gps

the day of the early drop for 179 was the day i moved back home from college -- a five hour drive by myself. i ended up listening to it on the final stretch of the trip, when i was super tired and it was dark and i knew it'd probably be a crazy episode. just me full blasting down i40, drinking an energy drink (which i never do) through a hole punched in the top, listening to daisy's death

186 early dropped the day after initial u.s. election day (when we still didn't know anything). my mom had set up a "watch party" in the living room with these giant air mattresses, and we all sort of spent the day crowded around the TV watching the numbers. not much of a memory, but i remember sitting on that air mattress and listening to martin's monologue in the midst of that messy week

i had a virtual therapy appointment on the day of 187's early drop, and my dad was home, so i drove to an empty parking lot to do the session in some privacy. i was trying to listen to the episode before the session started, so i ended up listening to the last half sitting in my car, in the pouring rain, just staring at my radio in shock (187 remains one of my favorite s5 episodes)

my friend sarah had just come home for winter break the day 189 dropped, and we decided to listen together, just like driving around in circles drinking coffee and listening and speculating on whether or not that was really martin

i started my relisten right after thanksgiving and was just kind of blowing through fast as i could through the whole of december. i had to go back to college to empty out my dorm, and i went to the beach after, and i ended up listening to mag 11 while just like walking around in circles in the tide pools. the closer it got to christmas, the more christmassy i wanted to keep things, so i would like. listen in the mornings and turn on one of those Netflix fireplaces and get all cozy

my other friend went with me on a mini bagel road trip in december, and he was still trying to get caught up, so we listened to mag 169, 170, and 171 on the drive home. (by this point, i was accustomed enough to s5 and smiting scenes to automatically reach for the volume controls when jude perry and jared hopworth died.)

when i relistened to mag 47, i was sitting with my cat beezus. i paused the episode to write this big long meta, so i was in a different headspace when i pressed play again. jon immediately yelled for sasha and i immediately jumped, and beezus gave me a searing glare and just got up and left

i relistened to piecemeal while i was cooking, which i thought was kind of funny and also disgusting

after christmas, i got into the habit of bringing my cat georgia into my room in the mornings, and she'd crawl under the covers with me while i listened to tma

one story i've always liked to tell from my first listen is how when i first listened to the meat arm grinder episode, my dad asked me to help him cook hamburgers later that day and explained how hamburgers are ground up (to my disgust). i hit meat grinder in my relisten and um. you'll never fucking guess what i made for lunch that day

so i had all these arbitrary rules for myself when i started tma last april, and i've broken like all of them. i started listening to tma while virtually working -- you just pull it up on your computer and it works. (i got the life scared out of me when one of my coworkers started talking over the podcast, wondering who it was that had walked into jon's office and why he wasn't reacting and why i didn't remember it.) i also started listening a lot while driving, which led to several long meta posts i wrote being typed up in a parking lot somewhere

i spent the entirety of 194 anxious-cuddling georgia. (i tried to do this for 198 and then didn't have any anxiety to cuddle her over.) i fully plan on doing this for 200, where i am sure i will need it again

my favorite place to listen to tma probably ended up being the roof room at my mom's, and unless something goes awry, this is where i will listen to the finale. (with georgia, of course.)

this list is super uninteresting, like i said, but here it is. i'm gonna miss this show a lot. i can't wait to return to it, later in life, and make all new listening memories in the process

[purplesurveys]

1264

Who are you subscribed to on YouTube?  Oh man, I’m probably subscribed to over a hundred, if not 200. I’ve subscribed to channels relevant to interests I’ve had over the years, and since it’s not my habit to do spring cleaning on my feeds, the subscriptions have just keep piling up even if I no longer keep up with literally like 98% of them.

Do you like to go to the farmer's market?  I don’t think I’ve ever been in one yet. They aren’t very common here and the ones we do have are pricey and mostly inaccessible to the everyday consumer, I’m sure.

What will (or was) the color of your wedding dress be?  I wouldn’t want any other color than white.

What's your favorite melon?  I don’t like fruits.

What was the name of the last pet of yours that died?  Arlee. Technically my family mostly considered her as just Nina’s pet, but the sting was felt all the same when we learned she died.

When was the last time you wished the day would just get over with?  Yesterday, because it was Friday. Pretty self-explanatory, I wanted to get to the weekend so I can finally let go of work for a couple of days.

Name one person you've never had a fight with:  Andi. I think we’re both afraid of pissing the other off, which works out for us lol.

What are you currently listening to?  I can just hear the really loud whirring of my electric fan because it’s a grossly humid day today.

What would you rather have: cat or dog?  Dogs.

Who is your least favorite person in real life?  I have a lot of uncles I just don’t like.

Do you ever watch anybody's live stream of... anything, really?  Technically, yeah. I will sometimes tune in to livestreams of lofi music on YouTube, but I do it to listen, not to watch. 

Does your house have security cameras?  No.

If you go grey as you age, would you dye your hair or let it be?  I think I might dye it for a certain period of time, but I also think I would eventually reach the point where I’ll just accept it and slowly let go of the dye.

What was the last establishment you stopped going to due to bad service? What happened?  I haven’t run into much bad service, but I’ll never forget how long my order and bill took for Mad Mark’s. I never really vowed per se to never go back there again and I definitely didn’t confront the staff, but I haven’t eaten there since that incident.

What soundtrack do you listen to the most?  Not a big soundtrack listener.

Was there a family secret you weren’t told about until you were an adult?  Nah, they’re kept from us until now. The biggest one I’ve heard about was having a kleptomaniac in the family but we were never told who it is.

Do you have an opinion most people you meet seem to disagree with you?  Yeah, my dislike for fruits.

What’s something you like to have many options to choose from?  Clothes, I guess, like bucket hats. I don’t shop a lot and clothes aren’t a priority in my budget, so when I do pick out clothes, it has to be exactly what I want so that I don’t feel it was a waste of money.

What’s the strangest decorative object you own?  We have several quirky, disconnected decor in the living room from gifts we’ve acquired over the years. One object I can tell you about is the polar bear glass figurine we have on the coffee table.

What’s a thing you couldn’t imagine doing with your life right now?  Dating around.

What’s been your proudest moment?  Managing to stay alive this year and turn my life around for the better when I thought there was no hope.

What’s the filthiest non-pornographic movie you’ve seen?  Eyes Wide Shut, probably.

Do you know anyone who doesn't seem to be fond of animals?  I don’t think so. Like any animal...? I would find that quite odd, honestly. And I wouldn’t want to be friends with them if we weren’t already close .

Are you planning any outings or trips anytime soon? Whereabouts?  No, nothing set in stone. I do want to fly out to South Korea soon, though.

Do you know anyone who has a phobia of a certain animal?  I know a few people who are afraid of dogs.

Is there a particular brand of technology/electronics that you prefer?  Yeah, Apple.

Is there a singer whose voice gives you goosebumps/chills?  Hayley Williams and Jin, especially when he’s belting; and I don’t listen to her much, but I find that Billie Eilish has a unique voice that sounds really nice.

And is there a singer whose voice you simply can't stand?  Selena Gomez for some of her songs, Meghan Trainor for most of her songs.

Are there any authors that are particularly dominant on your bookshelf?  No.

Have you seen any photographs or videos that made you smile today?  Sure.

Which item in your fridge are you most looking forward to consuming? My aunt sent over this gigantic-ass slab of salmon that I can’t wait to eat as sashimi. I already had a few pieces last night and it was hea ven ly.

Has anyone you know got into a new relationship lately?  Hmm, I don’t think so. I know my coworker Dev got into a relationship a few weeks ago but it fizzled out as soon as it started because the guy was shitty.

If you menstruate, do you experience much PMS prior to it?  Only on the emotional side; I rarely get physical symptoms. I usually feel down or emotionally heavy a few days before my period.

Have you ever had a tattoo covered up or added to?  No, I don’t have any tattoos. Can you remember the last time you had a sudden change of mind?  Hmm, like last night. I wanted to stay up to maximize the weekend, buuuut I decided against it and slept instead since I had been up since 2 in the morning.

When was the last time you did something on a whim?  Two weeks ago when I impulsively dropped a thousand bucks to have cheese tarts delivered to Angela and Reena, hahaha.

Were you raised by both of your parents? If not, then who raised you?  My mom, grandma, and one of my aunts were the main people who raised me. Dad works overseas, so he was never at home much.

Have you ever began a relationship with someone you knew for less than a week?  No, I wouldn’t do that.

Has one of your friends ever tried to ‘hook you up?’  Mik tried to pair me with one of his friends just days before I finally implied on social media that I was no longer in a relationship. It was a cool ego boost but I declined, since my emotions were still super turbulent then. Andi tried to initiate sex with me once too, but I also declined.

What is your card game of choice?  I hate card games; I can never seem to understand them lmao, though that’s really more of a me problem than anything else.

What is your favourite books series?  Growing up, I really loved the Septimus Heap series. But the thing about it was that I got into it while the series was still ongoing; and with how bad my attention span is, I always forgot the events/plot whenever the newest book came out. 

So whenever that happened I had to read the entire series from Book 1; eventually the number of books I had to reread/revisit became too many (it was a seven-part series) and I simply just lost the time to read and I never got to know about the conclusion.

Do you prefer landmarks or street names when being given directions?  Street names – more precise. Landmarks to me can be pretty subjective – a green building might look blue to me, and I could just end up being lost.

Do you read the prologues in the beginnings of books?  Sure.

What was your favourite gym class moment?  If I genuinely like or already play the sport that was being taught. That’s why PE table tennis was a lot of fun for me.

Do you think that ocean boardwalks are fun?  I’ve never been on one but I imagine they are fun, yeah.

Do you dread when people ask you to sign their yearbooks?  That’s not a tradition here.

Do you have a favourite Scooby-Doo movie?  No. I was too young for Scooby-Doo in a sense that I do remember watching the movies as a 3/4 year old as they were kept on in the background at home, but I didn’t get any of the plots/didn’t really appreciate the films.

Do you think it’s cute when toddlers try to run away and fall down?  Sometimes, yeah. If the fall looked nasty I would obviously be concerned.

Do you enjoy listening to your grandparents tell stories of their past?  Honestly, only one of my grandparents would be the type to do this but he’s been dead for six years now. It’s a big shame he passed before I could bond with him the way I had always wanted to. My three other grandparents are either too closed off or too quiet to share stories from their youth.

Do you have a crush on someone? Nah, nothing more than a celebrity crush.

If so... what does his/her name begin with? 

What attracts you to them? 

Do they know that you like them? 

If they don't know, why didn't you tell them? 

Name two people that you miss:  Angela and Laurice.

Have you ever seen Titanic?  More times than I can count. I’m sure I memorize like 80% of the script, too.

Have you ever swam with dolphins?  No. I’m not so sure if I’ve seen dolphins, either. Maybe I have? Or maybe I’m confusing it with whales...idrk.

When was the last time you had a stomachache?  Wednesday.

What's going to bed early for you?  11 PM or midnight.

Do you want to have a big family in the future?  I used to, but I don’t think that’s the future I want anymore. One or two kids should be okay.

What was the last thing you did that gave you a rush?  Technically speaking, an orgasm, I guess?? Lmao idk

Favorite Nicholas Cage movie?  I don’t think I have one.

Have you had your Covid vaccine yet? Which one, if you have?  Yeah, I’m fully dosed. Sinovac.

If you've had your vaccine, did you experience any side effects?  I was suuuuuuper tired right after my first dose and I wanted to be knocked the fuck out, but I went right back to work after the shot because I am allergic to filing leaves hahaha. Second dose went smoothly.

What's the next item of clothing that you intend to buy for yourself?  A bucket hat or maybe one of the Fila x BTS shirts because the collection is actually quite cute!

What Facebook groups have you found the most helpful?  I join Facebook groups to be entertained, not because I actively look for advice.

Do you like your butt? Why or why not?  Yeah. It...has a good form hahahahahaha.

Have you ever personally been a victim of homophobia?  Yes, a few years ago I went to a food park with my ex-girlfriend. I was already not feeling my best that day to begin with, so having to see an old woman stare daggers at us for what felt like years really stung. I felt small under her look and almost cried, but in the end I felt angry that I momentarily felt shame about my relationship. I decided to just piss the woman off on purpose and do PDA right in front of her.

Do you think you’d be happier if you had a pet? I have two dogs at present and I know they make me extremely happy.

Who was the last person you went on a date with?  Gabie.

Were you ever hospitalized as a little kid?  No. The first and only time I was hospitalized (other than being birthed), I was about 12, I think.

What’s your favorite way to curl your hair?  I don’t do that. I rarely style my hair.

At what age did you start swearing?  I was 11.

What is something you physically can’t do?  Ride a bike.

What do like better, apples or oranges?  I don’t like any fruits; but in terms of flavored stuff, I like orange-flavored food, especially chewy candy, slightly more.

Around the holidays, do you hope for snow?  Well, no.

What are your top two favorite bands?  Paramore and Against Me!

How many people do you 100% trust?  There are a handful. I generally trust easily just because I like to believe all people are kind and loyal – but I can also take it away in the snap of a finger.

Do you care what others think about you?  Not so much.

Has anyone ever called you a bitch?  Sure.

Did you watch Teletubbies when you were younger?  Yeah but just super super faint memories. It wasn’t one of my main shows.

Do you have any licenses other than your driver's license?  I don’t.

Could you live the rest of your life without eating meat?  I doubt it. I could try, but I think I’d get cranky and start looking for meat way earlier than I would like to admit.

Have you ever had a rolling backpack?  Yup, if you mean a stroller. I think I’ve answered this on a previous survey.

Did you make any money today?  No, because it’s a weekend. What was the highest place you've ever jumped from?  Nothing dramatically high. I’ve had acrophobia-themed nightmares in the past, so even though I don’t actually have a fear of heights, the idea of jumping from a high place still makes me antsy.

Have you ever gone swimming in a river?  Not that I can recall.

What was the last souvenir someone got you?  I dunno if it counts but Andi bought merch from the AEW shop but made sure to also get a CM Punk sticker set for me :(

Do you have a favorite remix of a song?  Remixes have never been my thing. What do you think is the most saddest sounding instrument?  Piano.

Do you really pay attention to the ratings on movies?  Yeah they can definitely affect the level of appreciation I hold towards a film. For instance, if I genuinely enjoyed a movie only to find out it has average to bad reviews, it invites me to think more critically about the movie.

Do you have a favorite species of wild cat (tiger/lion/cougar/etc.)?  No.

If you had $500,000, what would you do with it?  Give half to my parents and let them do whatever they wish it. With the remaining P12,500,000, I’d probably get myself my own condo and have it fully furnished, then get braces, then get a new phone and laptop. I’ll have a bunch of money still left, I’m pretty sure – the rest of it I’ll save.

Did the last person you touched lips with have a kid?  No. I mean, I have honestly no clue what’s going on in her life now, but I know she doesn’t want kids so this is very unlikely.

"First loves are never really over." Is this true for you?  It’s true in a sense that she left me a lot of trauma and self-esteem issues that will irrevocably always be a part of me now even though I’ve worked hard to resolved most of them by myself.

Did you like Michael Jackson before he died?  Yes, because he has always been my favorite singer’s role model.

What are some things that would make you break up with someone?  I don’t know how to answer this question, honestly. All the red flags were thrown and tossed and slapped into my face and down my throat for six years yet I never left. I don’t actually know what my limits are, and I believe it’s because my coping mechanism has to just accept things and suck them up no matter how bad they get. That’s what I’m trying to change for myself now.

What was the worst breakup you've ever had?  I’ve had two breakups with the same person, and the second one was worse.

[theuniversitychallengereview]

UC 50.29 - Magdalene, Cam vs Warwick

I tweeted last week, at the height of the mania surrounding the Handforth Parish Council Meeting of Thursday December 10th 2020 (HPCMOT10D2020), that I was going to try and do this week’s review in the style of said meeting (if you haven’t seen the video, you’d be better off watching it than reading this, because it is possibly the purest nuggest of funny this side of the pandemic). 

Now, that may sound impossible - how does one write a review of a television quiz show in the style of a cantankerous parish council meeting - but you are talking to someone who has previously reviewed University Challenge in the style of the movie Tenet, and the book Ducks, Newburyport. Notwithstanding the relative success (or failure) of those endeavors, there is nothing to say that I cannot at least try to do this.

However, given that I failed to get my review out on Monday (a mere three days after the initial virality), and am instead writing it on the following Saturday (eight days after the event), it is quite possible that I have missed my moment. The meme-geist (and I have carefully considered my choice of invented word here. Given that zeit means time and geist means spirit, perhaps the more linguistically correct option would have been zeit-meme, but that doesn’t quite capture the geist of what I was going for, and is a less satisfactory portmanteau, which is where the real meaning is gleamed in English) moves quickly. 

And though I harbour hope that this meeting lives long in the cultural memory, so that years from now I can reference quotes from it in pleasant company, it will probably be lost within weeks, along with other such heroes of the Lockdown Internet as Lawyer Cat and Tiger King. 

Already we have seen the rise and fall of Jackie Weaver, the erstwhile main character of the video, who was interviewed on TV news channels all over the world, but who was later revealed to be a Tory Councillor, much to the chagrin of many of her most vociferous fans, who had proclaimed her a modern feminist icon for her no-nonsense approach to Aled’s iPad and the imposterous PC Handforth Clerk.

This volte-face from Mrs Weaver’s staunchest early supporters comes about as a direct result of the need people have for everything to mean something, and for all people to always be total good or total bad. Yes, there is a conversation to be had about men in a position of power and privilege treating women poorly and speaking over them as if they are not there. But when that conversation feels the need to place one party as angelic and the other demonic (no matter how clearly that appears to be the case) it leaves no space to examine the nuances involved in the way people live their lives (this may seem like a grand way of discussing what seems like a cut and dry case of a male superiority complex, but when, for Mrs Weaver’s actions to be commendable, she also needs to be ‘of sound character’ in every other sense, it leaves us all open to inconsistencies and illogical systems of thought), which is not something that we need to do for silly videos anyway.

In reality, it wasn’t that surprising that she turned out to be a Tory - she is a councillor after all, and a large proprotion of councillors are Conservative Party Councillors. That doesn’t mean she was wrong to kick those men out, but it is further evidence that there is nothing to be gained from painting people as heroes or villains - or at least there is nothing to be gained from acting like those paintings carry real world currency. You either die the hero or live long enough to see yourself somewhat unsurprisingly outed as a member of the Conservative party...

Anyway, by now you’re probably thinking ‘when do we plan to start?’, and (~fUcK oFf~) I think we could start any moment. Though I will mention that if anyone if being disruptive, I will have to throw them out of the review, and if anyone has a point of order to raise they will have to wait until the episode starts.

This quarter-final was a qualification bout, between two sides who had already won one match at this stage, with Magdalene having beaten Birkbeck and Warwick taken down Imperial only last week. The winners would claim the first semi-final spot, while the losers would have to play again to make it through.

The first question of the evening was ‘what is the difference between a Clerk and a Proper Officer?’, which Magdalene’s Davies correctly identified as a trick question - there is no difference between a Clerk and a Proper Officer. At this point the recording had to be stopped to settle a dispute, as someone pretending to be the Warwick captain believed this not to be the case, and claimed that Paxman was breaking the law by accepting the answer. 

This imposter suggested angrily that Paxman should read the standing orders, and another of his sidekicks yelled out that he should not only read the standing orders but understand them also. These gentlemen went onto claim that the quarter-final was being staged illegally, but this was not the case, and Paxman was forced to remove the false captain from the recording, though they claimed that he did not have the authority to do this (you have no authority Jeremy Paxman! No authority at all). But he did have the authority, and the false captain was removed from the meeting.

This did not initially aid the smooth continuation of proceedings however, as there remained some troublemakers in the audience, who started speaking in tongues and who loudly proclaimed to someone off screen that they were ‘trying to record an episode of University Challenge, you fool’ on not one but two occasions, before trying to assert that in the absence of the false captain it was they who should take charge.

Members of the Magdalene team then raised the question of how it was that the false Warwick captain had come to be known by that moniker. Paxman informed everyone that he had simply declared himself to be the new captain, and that he, Paxman, could also, in a similar fashion, declare himself to be Britney Spears, which solicited giggles from all those in attendance. 

With these issues dealt with, the match could be continued, and Warwick, this time under the rightful and competent leadership of Andrew Rout, raced off into a hundred point lead. Magdalene looked a little stunned by all of the earlier excitement and stuggled to get into the game in the first half. 

They had a brief resurgence when Paxman asked if anyone would object to the banished troublemakers being readmitted. Naturally Magdalene felt strongly about this and buzzed in with the correct answer - no. Two more starter questions followed, and they closed the gap to forty five. 

Rout stopped the Warwick rot with the picture starter (on dressmakers) - an inspired guess of Mary Quant. In his previous episode he had guessed Mary Quant incorrectly, so he was delighted, and amused, that this time he had been right. Another brilliant guess of Versace gave them a bonus as well, but their luck ran out with Coco Chanel, who was dead by the time the next dress had been designed.

Another starter, this time from Braid, put Warwick out of reach going into the final few minutes. A quick run of back-to-back starters, with near perfect bonusing, wasn’t enough for Magdalene, who ended the match forty points adrift.

Final Score: Magdalene 160 - 200 Warwick

Jackie Weaver 1 - 0 Handforth PC Clerk

Phew! What an episode/meeting that was. Congratulations to Warwick on their win and to Jackie Weaver for keeping order. I don’t have much else to say other than to reiterate the advice from earlier than all standing orders should be both read and understood.

[languages-and-else]

Thank you @itsfandomsgalore for tagging me! I should be thinking about my master’s thesis or I wanted to write (for my own pleasure), but turns out I can neither, so here this is I guess... 

Rules: tag 9 people you’d like to get to know better/catch up with!

Favourite colour: I don’t really have one? Maybe blue? Who knows. 

Last song: Right now “You’re Mine” by Lola Marsh is playing. I listened to their two albums almost nonstop last summer, mostly during breakfast and while walking places, so for me, this song is really tied to breakfast while alone at home and walking through Vienna on hot summer days. Good times. 

Last movie: I don’t think I’ve watched anything since like autumn? In autumn I saw “Persischstunden” and “Ein bisschen bleiben wir noch” and liked both! 

Last show: Can’t remember anymore because it’s so long ago. Maybe Skam or something? If I even start something, which is rare in itself, I constantly forget that I’ve started it and then I’m not invested anymore. 

Currently reading: Dracula by Bram Stoker! I’m about halfway through and I like it! Also on and off on the side: langer transit (a poem collection) by Maja Haderlap, the Iliad, the collected Dykes to Watch Out For. Just this week I finished Et Norsk Hus for uni and I was quite fond of it. It was also great to see that I can read almost 200 pages of Norwegian with ease. Apart from that, I’m also really happy that I’ve found my way back into reading regularly. For about a year now, I’ve been reading at least three books a month and I feel very good like that!

Currently watching: Nothing. Sometimes videos containing sign language, if that is an appropriate answer? I’ve found a Youtube channel where deaf people talk about their jobs and it’s interesting and I can understand a little. 

Sweet, salty or savoury? I hardly ever eat salty food, everything else is good. 

Currently craving: A solid idea for my master’s thesis? Does that count? If not, petting a cat, seeing my friends in groups. Or banana bread. 

Tea or coffee: If I don’t get my black tea in the afternoon, expect me to be CRANKY. One of the few advantages of online uni, ha. I’ve only had coffee twice when desperate times called for desperate measures. Love the smell, dislike the taste. 

I’m not tagging anyone, because usually hardly anybody does it anyway + I talk to like three people on here. But if anyone wants to do it, go ahead!!

[sockablock]

On Thursday, Sam broke all our hearts by having Nott ask Caleb, one day, to kill her and bring her back as a halfling. That way, she could finally be who she really is, and once again reunite with her family. But what I find absolutely fascinating about this, is that, in terms of game mechanics, she shouldn’t be asking Caleb for help—instead, she should ask Jester.

Here’s why, under the cut, because this shit gets long.

In terms of the actual story, it would make sense for Nott would turn to Caleb. She’s seen him do incredible magic from the start, and they have a very close relationship and understanding of one another. Moreover, she knows that he has to power to turn one substance into another, and recently, she’s watched him transform himself and others into various other beasts. And yes, way down the line, Caleb might end up using True Polymorph to turn her into a halfling for good. But what Nott described—being killed and being brought back in a new body—that isn’t a wizard spell. Even more, it’s not even something that Wish can normally accomplish.

It’s actually a 9th Level Cleric Spell—True Resurrection. 

It takes an hour to cast, 25,000 gold in diamonds, and it does the following:

You touch a creature that has been dead for no longer than 200 years and that died for any reason except old age. If the creature's soul is free and willing, the creature is restored to life with all its Hit Points. This spell closes all wounds, neutralizes any poison, cures all Diseases, and lifts any curses affecting the creature when it died. The spell replaces damaged or missing organs or limbs. The spell can even provide a new body if the original no longer exists, in which case you must speak the creature's name. The creature then appears in an unoccupied space you choose within 10 feet of you.

As you can see, this spell would eliminate the random-new-body effect of Reincarnate, and wouldn’t keep Nott as a goblin like how Revivify, Raise Dead, or even Resurrection would. It also couldn’t be dispelled, or dropped if Nott hits 0 hit points, as is possible with True Polymorph (depending on how you interpret the wording). Of course, there’s the possibility that Caleb would attempt to use Wish, but even for such a powerful spell, there’s no guarantee that it will succeed. Wish can only perfectly replicate a spell of 8th Level or lower. If you try something outside of that scope, well: 

State your wish to the DM as precisely as possible. The DM has great latitude in ruling what occurs in such an instance; the greater the wish, the greater the likelihood that something goes wrong. This spell might simply fail, the effect you desire might only be partly achieved, or you might suffer some unforeseen consequence as a result of how you worded the wish. 

Additionally, the stress of casting this spell to produce any effect other than duplicating another spell weakens you. [...] Your Strength drops to 3, if it isn't 3 or lower already, for 2d4 days. For each of those days that you spend resting and doing nothing more than light activity, your remaining recovery time decreases by 2 days. Finally, there is a 33% chance that you are unable to cast wish ever again if you suffer this stress.

Of course, I wouldn’t put it past Caleb to try the spell anyway. We’ve seen how much he loves and cherishes Nott (even if he won’t say it, goddammit) and if he finally reaches a place where he decides that bending reality isn’t for him, taking the chance that he’ll never be able to Wish again to help his friend is certainly something that might happen. Also, there’s the fact that, as I said earlier, True Polymorph interpreted the right way also could work. Or he could even wind up doing some homebrew, Cat’s Ire-style, to craft a spell that could transform Nott for good, into her original body, with no caveats or potential to be dispelled. That, after all, is the beauty and the point of wizardry! But, barring those options, maybe due to a lack of resources or time, True Resurrection could be Nott’s best bet. Then the gang would need 25k in diamonds (which Wish can do), and even more riskier than that, they’d need to kill her. They’d need to kill her in a way that leaves no trace, and then bet on the fact that when they invoke her, not as Nott the Brave, but as Veth Brenatto, that the body the spell creates will be that of the young halfling woman who drowned in a river so long ago. 

Of course, that’s an incredible risk. Moreover, it would require that the rest of the m9, maybe even Yeza, consent to such a process to complete the Resurrection’s ritual-part. And the caster, be it Jester or even Caduceus, would also have to agree. They would then be responsible for channeling the magic, for presiding over and completing the spell, for finally seeing it through. And, ultimately, if the Mighty Nein pursued this path instead, then it wouldn’t be Caleb  who’d bring Veth home.

Instead, he might end up serving a different purpose. True Resurrection requires that the goblin body no longer exist. That to bring back Veth, they’d need to destroy Nott, and leave no trace behind.

And you know what would be perfect for that?

Fire.

He could turn her to ash.

[recentanimenews]

OPINION: The Life and Times of an Indian Otaku

  Makoto Shinkai's Weathering With You marked a historic first in my anime watching career. Contrary to popular belief, being the first anime to be released in Indian theaters is not the historic first in question (that honor goes to Shinchan: Bungle in the Jungle). Rather, Weathering With You would become the first film I'd ever watch on opening day — "first day first show" as we Indians call it. In the mad scramble to get tickets, I'd emerged a winner. Was it worth the struggle?

An emphatic yes. It was so good I went on to rewatch it twice.

    To fans in India: I’m so happy to tell that ‘Weathering With You’ (Tenki no ko) will release in India this October! We have licensed the Indian distribution rights to PVR Pictures and BookMyShow backed company Vkaao.

— 新海誠 (@shinkaimakoto) August 10, 2019

  The Indian theatrical release of Weathering With You in 2019 marked an important moment in the history of the Indian anime fandom. The story of how Shinkai noticed (and fulfilled) an online petition by Indian fans asking for its release here is already the stuff of legend. Because access to anime (especially in theaters) was so scarce in India, even in 2019, fans sought to have the film legally released in theaters. And thanks to Shinkai, it worked. To Indian anime fans, this represented the moment Japan — and the rest of the world — recognized our existence in the fandom. But Indian otakus didn't spring up overnight. Anime has had nearly three decades of history here. It just looks a little different than the rest of the world. The origins of anime in India go back to the '90s. Prior to the economic reforms of 1991, we had one — yes, only one — TV channel, the state-owned Doordarshan. The post-1991 wave of private TV channels brought with it a flood of international TV shows, among them anime like Robotech (which aired on the newly-created Star Plus). Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Rama, the anime adaptation of the Indian mythological epic of the same name, was released in 1992 and had a long and troubled production history, but the end product was a grand success, with its all-star Hindi cast and catchy songs turning it into a TV fixture for well over a decade. It even received a US release, with Bryan Cranston voicing the lead role. The remainder of the '90s would see various anime achieve varying degrees of success, from Nippon Animation's 1989 adaptation of The Jungle Book — which became a nationwide hit — airing in India starting in 1993, to late-night anime like You're Under Arrest and Gunsmith Cats. Despite this, there wasn't yet an actual fandom surrounding anime at the time. That would all change upon the turn of the century.

  Cartoon Network revolutionized the Indian anime market when the channel arrived in 2001. The launch of dedicated anime programming block Toonami brought with it two anime that would permanently shape the future of the fandom: Dragon Ball Z and Cardcaptor Sakura (albeit in its heavily-edited Cardcaptors form). While I never watched Dragon Ball Z (compared to all my friends at school), I did watch some Cardcaptors with my sister, which would actually be the very first anime I watched. My own viewing habits notwithstanding, DBZ was very much the anime of the moment. Schoolkids would frequently shout out famous lines from the iconic English dub. We'd even invented various hand games based on attacks and moves from DBZ. In 2003, another monumental shift would come as the childhood classic Pokémon hit the small screen, followed closely by Digimon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, and Beyblade. The merchandise associated with these franchises turned them into smash hits with a younger audience. All the cool kids had Pokemon cards and Beyblade tops. Battling with them at school was the stuff childhood was made of. To this day, these toys continue to sell well. Beyblade tournaments are still very much a thing. While many of my schoolmates were avid fans of DBZ, there were other trends in anime that could be observed, trends that had to do with language. From my experience, certain anime were only available dubbed in Hindi — a language spoken largely by the northern half of the country. Coming from a south Indian city with a significant north Indian population, I could observe a clear trend wherein Hindi-speaking north Indians grew up with these Hindi-dubbed anime, while people in the south (who spoke other languages) largely grew up with titles that were available in English (or Tamil, as fans of DBZ's Tamil dub can testify). Interestingly, these Hindi dubbed anime tended to be ones that were popular in Japan but not so much in the West — stuff like Doraemon, Shin-Chan, KochiKame, and Case Closed. This gave the north Indian anime scene a rather unique flavor. An even more interesting case is that of India's northeastern region (comprised of states like Nagaland, Manipur, and Meghalaya). Being culturally different from the rest of India, these states have had a history of consuming Korean and Japanese media, and they embraced anime and manga in a way the rest of the nation had not. Anime-related cosplay is huge in the northeast, with some of the best cosplay conventions in the nation taking place there and becoming a part of the local fashion scene. The general acceptance of otaku culture in the region continues to be high.

Eventually, anime would become a little more accessible to all. The launch of dedicated channel Animax in 2004 represented another watershed moment in the fandom. The shows Animax brought over were unlike anything we'd seen in the medium. Shows like Bleach, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Inuyasha, and K-On! redefined what anime meant for Indian audiences who had previously seen anime as a childhood interest and no different from other cartoons. As the channel slowly began to shift its focus to the older teen/young adult demographic, more mature anime like Cowboy Bebop, Hell Girl, Akira, and Welcome to the NHK challenged our conservative notions of what was acceptable to air on TV, especially considering these shows aired in daytime slots rather than late-night. This honeymoon period did not last. Animax was delisted by service providers in 2012. The years to come would be some of the most frustrating for us anime fans, as availability was at its most inconsistent and uncertain. While the channel attempted to make a comeback later on in 2016, it eventually disappeared for good in 2017. Despite all these problems, I look back on Animax fondly. Thanks to it, we became aware of the existence of the entity known as "anime." We began to actively seek out anime over other forms of animation. In short, it resulted in the formation of an actual fandom centered around anime. Anime fan clubs began to pop up in major cities like Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, and Kolkata. Widespread conventions outside of the northeast region came next. Anime Con India was started in 2010, followed closely by Delhi Comic-Con in 2011. Anime conventions in India are a curious thing. They are very unlike the sprawling, sophisticated conventions of the West. The funds simply aren't there for that sort of thing. I don't recall a single Indian anime convention that was attended by a voice actor, animator, or the like. So what are Indian cons about? In an interview with The Citizen, Anime Con India founder Nitesh Rohit talked about his reason for starting the con: "like any other belief and faith they all needed a temple to congregate (at)." This statement really resonates with me, and sums up what Indian cons are about. What they lack in scale and facilities, they make up for in intimacy and a feeling of togetherness. They are more or less small-scale events for anime fans to find other fans, to network with them, and basically feel less alone. Because feeling alone was part of the original Indian otaku experience. The early fandom was largely an urban phenomenon, as going to cons wasn't an option for everyone and the internet wasn't what it is today. So, you had these disconnected pockets of fans. People around you were unlikely to share your interest in anime and may have even judged you for it. The general consensus in India was (and still is) that animation is a medium for children. And remember, for a long time, anime accessibility varied by region. So, if you were lucky enough to find a kindred otaku, there was no guarantee they were into (or had even heard of) the same titles as you. This meant that we hadn't really had the ability to develop any sort of unique culture or traditions of our own. Things like going to cons, renting anime DVDs, memes and in-jokes — these things didn't exist for the vast majority of early fans who were school-going kids or college students of little means. A culture of our own wouldn't arise until much later — when that generation grew up.

  Of course, it wasn't just us who grew up — technology did, too. The internet became more ubiquitous. Social media and forums enabled us to network with each other regardless of location, in ways we'd never have imagined. To the scattered fandom of the early days, this has been nothing short of a blessing. The other big change ushered in by the internet was the era of streaming. Until then, most of our anime viewing took place on television and as previously stated, was not always very consistent. Accessibility improved greatly with the launch of Netflix in 2016. In today's India, Netflix is a household name, with a significant portion of young adults having access to a subscription. With a catalog of over 200 anime, Netflix has been responsible for pulling in many new fans. Plenty of people "come for the movies, stay for the anime." Series like My Hero Academia, Death Note, and One-Punch Man have become mainstream successes in this fashion, with a significant following even among non-anime fans. Another streaming service that is beginning to make inroads into the Indian market is Crunchyroll, with simulcasts like Boruto and originals like Tower of God, and the fact that it is free makes it accessible to anyone with an internet connection. Most Indian anime fans I know of have heard of Crunchyroll, and as more titles get licensed it is inevitable that its popularity will rise. And us otakus are doing plenty to help it do just that.

The success of Weathering With You is a shining example of the tight-knit nature of the Indian anime fandom. All it took was one person (an anime fan named Divishth Pancholi) to create a Change.org petition asking for its release in Indian theaters. The petition went viral, getting over 50,000 signatures and attracting the attention of Shinkai and the producers, resulting in its release here. Today, that event is seen as a smaller part of a greater Indian anime movement that is pushing for increased availability and acceptance of anime in India. Hashtags like #IndiaWantsAnime frequently make their presence felt on social media. This fandom isn't without its problems — it isn't the most inclusive when it comes to non-male fans, the "animation is for kids" specter hasn't been fully shaken off, and I'd love for anime BluRays/DVDs to be more widely available here. But I am grateful for the fandom's existence for getting me into anime in the first place. Without them, I'd have never been sitting in a movie theater on October 11, 2019, watching Weathering With You.

By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

* * * *

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

September 25, 2020

Heather Cox Richardson

Trump’s refusal Wednesday to commit to accepting a loss in the November election with a peaceful transfer of power continues to make waves. Today the New York Times reported that military officers are worried that Trump will try to drag them into a contested election. But while people are rightly frightened about Trump’s increasing authoritarianism, it’s important to understand that he is deploying these particular threats about the election to create an impression that he has the option to control the outcome in November. He does not have that option.

Trump and his cronies are trying to create their own reality. They are trying to make people believe that the coronavirus is not real, that it has not killed more than 200,000 of our neighbors, that the economy is fine, that our cities are in flames, that Black Lives Matter protesters are anarchists, and that putting Democrats in office will usher in radical socialism. None of these things is true. Similarly, Trump is trying to convince people that he can deploy the power of the government to remain in power even if we want him to leave, creating uncertainly and fear. By talking about it, he is willing that situation into existence. It is a lie, and we do not have to accept it.

For his part, Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden recognizes that Trump’s repeated threats not to leave office are both letting him convince us that leaving is his choice, rather than ours, and keeping the media focused on him when we should, in fact, be talking about real issues. Biden is refusing to give the idea oxygen, reminding reporters that it is a “typical Trump distraction.” “I just think the people in the country are going to be heard on November 3,” he told them. “Every vote in this country is going to be heard and they will not be stopped. I'm confident that all of the irresponsible, outrageous attacks on voting, we’ll have an election in this country as we always have had, and he'll leave.” He said: “I don’t think he’s going to get the FBI to follow him or get anybody else to enforce something that’s not real.”

While the Senate voted unanimously yesterday to commit to the peaceful transfer of power in January, it was actually Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker, a Republican, who gave Trump’s refusal to commit to a peaceful transfer of power the dripping disdain it deserved. Speaking to reporters, Baker defended the mail-in ballots that Trump is saying will invalidate the election, and called Trump’s suggestion that he wouldn’t leave office peacefully “appalling and outrageous.” Baker said he would to do everything in his power to defend the results of the election.

“A huge part of this nation’s glory, to the extent it exists as a beacon to others, is the peaceful transfer of power based on the vote of the people of this country,” he said.

Trump responded with an insulting tweet, but one that suggested he was deliberately stoking the story to try to get free media coverage.

This makes sense, because there are signs that Trump and the Republicans have a real money problem. We know that the Trump campaign has run through close to a billion dollars, leaving him and other Republican candidates short of cash for the last weeks of the campaign. At the same time, Democratic fundraising in the wake of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death has been unprecedented. The squeeze showed clearly in three highly unusual appearances by Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) on the Fox News Channel begging for donations.

Two new ploys to advance Trump’s reelection, one claiming to address healthcare concerns and one claiming to address coronavirus concerns, reveal both the campaign’s attempts to construct their own reality and to do it on someone else’s dime.

The president has repeatedly promised his own healthcare bill to replace the Affordable Care Act that his administration is currently trying to kill. Under criticism for trying to end the law that protects people with preexisting health conditions from discrimination in buying insurance—the ACA will come before the Supreme Court a week after the November 3 election-- Trump on Thursday abruptly signed an Executive Order affirming that “it is the official policy of the United States government to protect patients with preexisting conditions.” The Executive Order is toothless; if the Supreme Court overturns the ACA, the Executive Order will mean nothing.

But Trump also suggested that he might be willing simply to keep the law and call it his own. “Obamacare is no longer Obamacare, as we worked on it and managed it very well,” Trump said of the law that continues to provide coverage for more than 20 million Americans. “What we have now is a much better plan. It is no longer Obamacare because we got rid of the worse part of it — the individual mandate.” “We’ve really become the health-care party — the Republican Party,” he said.

Trump also announced he would give $200 toward the cost of their medicines to 33 million older Americans. That’s $6.6 billion dollars that he will be putting in the pockets of key voters just before the election. Apparently, his plan is to take money from Medicare under a rule that allows the Medicare to test out new programs. Authorization for such a shift in funding usually requires a lengthy approval process, and the new program needs to be cost neutral. Ameet Sarpatwari, assistant director of Harvard Medical School's Program on Regulation, Therapeutics and Law told NPR’s Sydney Lupkin: I think the administration is pushing the envelope in terms of classifying this as a demonstration."

The Trump campaign is also planning a taxpayer-funded advertising blitz, costing at least $300 million, to “defeat despair and inspire hope” about the coronavirus pandemic. According to Politico’s Dan Diamond, the ads will feature interviews between administration officials and celebrities. The ad campaign was conceived and begun by Michael Caputo, the top spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services before he stepped down last week for medical leave after an infamous Facebook rant.

Caputo claimed in his video that Trump has personally demanded the advertising campaign. "The Democrats — and, by the way, their conjugal media and the leftist scientists that are working for the government — are dead set against it," Caputo said. "They cannot afford for us to have any good news before November because they're already losing. … They're going to come after me because I'm going to be putting $250 million worth of ads on the air." The White House says it is not accurate that Trump “demanded” the campaign.

To pay for the ads, Caputo requisitioned $300 million from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and $15 million from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). But he sidelined the Ad Council, which is a nonprofit consortium of advertising companies that since World War Two has worked on a nonpartisan basis with the government on public health or social issue campaigns. Instead, Caputo hired his own business partner to make the videos.

Josh Peck, the former HHS official who oversaw the Obama administration’s advertising campaign for HealthCare.gov, told Diamond that officials in the Obama administration were never featured in videos, and that the Trump administrations Covid videos sound like they are about more than Americans’ health. He said: "CDC hasn’t yet done an awareness campaign about Covid guidelines — but they are going to pay for a campaign about how to get rid of our despair? Run by political appointees in the press shop? Right before an election? It’s like every red flag I could dream of.”

Trump’s challenge to the outcome of the election is a sign of his desperation, but it is no less dangerous for all that: as they say, a cornered rat will bite the cat. While Democrats and a remarkable number of Republicans are speaking out against Trump, and while teams of lawyers are fighting his lawyers in court, ordinary Americans also have a crucial role to play in this moment. It is up to us to reject Trump's fictions and reclaim the national conversation from the anger and hatred and fear Trump is stoking.

It is time to reassert our core American values so they dominate the public realm, demanding of our representatives a free and fair vote for everyone, a free and fair vote count, and a government of our own choosing.

—-

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

Heather Cox Richardson

[takechxnces-blog]

hopefully // colby brock

A/N: this might be a little sloppy, but i had the idea and decided to sit down and write it! if you want to request anything, feel free! hope you like it! hopefully as i start writing more often, i’ll get a little better and have more ideas.

summary: the boys convinced you to go exploring with them, only for colby’s protective side to come out when it goes wrong. based on their latest video exploring the cobb estate.

word count: 1.4k

Tonight was the night. For whatever reason, Sam and Colby had convinced you to join them in their enchanted forest exploration video of the Cobb Estate with Matt and Elton. You wanted to say no, but they wanted to change things up for their new “Sam and Colby 2.0″ channel. So, you agreed, as if you would have disagreed and taken their teasing anyway. But here you are, completely dreading it the day of.

The real reason you agreed to do it was because of your ever-growing crush on Colby. Sam knew about it too, making it just a little easier to convince you to come with them that night. He even tried to trick you, telling you Colby liked you back and would “protect” you. Yeah, as if.

~

Though you don’t live at the trap house, you’re there quite a bit hanging out with the guys, just because they’re you favorite people to be around. You were chilling there in their living room editing a video, when Sam asked you to join them for their night exploration video coming up.

“Y/n! Come on, it’ll be fun! We don’t get in trouble here,” Sam pointed out to you.

“Sure, we may not get in trouble, but I bet the place is haunted. I doubt you guys would even be there if it weren’t,” you retorted back, rolling your eyes while you continued to edit your own YouTube video that needed to be posted soon.

“Matt and Elton are supposed to come with us too. Plus, if you get a little scared, you could always snuggle up to Colby for protection,” Sam chuckled as he winked at you, knowing about your very big crush on his best friend.

“Come on Sam, you know that can’t happen! We’re just friends! Even if I do like him, there’s no way he would ever feel that way about me dude,” you blushed as Sam called you out for liking Colby, throwing your empty water bottle at him from where you were seated on the couch. Knowing how you can be, Sam dodged the bottle with ease.

“You say that, but you don’t see the way he looks at you when you aren’t looking, but we all do. Come on, it’ll be fun. We really want you to be there, including Colby.” Sam winks again and chuckles as your face turns more and more red from what he’s saying to convince you.

You had never really thought about it, but maybe there was something between the two of you. He was always extra nice to you, perhaps flirtatiously, but you had always refused to look at it like that because you never believed he could like you. Perhaps Sam pointing it out may cause you to see things diffierently.

“Fine, I’ll go. But anything spooky happens and I’m booking it out of there,” you sigh, giving in to his never-ending pleas for you to come film with them. You tried to convince yourself it was no big deal, but what he said about Colby liking you may have been what got you to agree. Sam whoops in triumph, knowing his plan to get you to come had worked the way he anticipated.

“What’s going on?” Colby asks as he enters the room, having heard Sam’s triumphant whoop. 

“Oh nothing, I convinced y/n to join us exploring!” Sam exclaims, not telling him the part where he might have told y/n about his crush on her. 

“Oh really?” Colby asks, turning towards y/n and plopping himself on the couch right next to her to glance at the video she’s editing. Just from the butterflies y/n feels when their legs are touching, she begins to wonder if maybe Sam was right. Hopefully Sam is right.

~

“Well, this isn’t creepy at all,” you say as you let out a shaky laugh, glancing at the wooded area in front of you. Sam, Colby, Matt, and Elton all chuckled at you as they hopped out of the car. 

“Come on, y/n, it’ll be fineeee,” Colby laughs, exaggerate the word “fine” in an attempt to be reassuring, but realizing he failed when he sees the skeptical look you give him.

“Oh yeah, I’m sure it’ll be just dandy” Matt says with his usual scared humor. 

“I mean, hey, at least you can’t get arrested for trespassing here,” Elton says, causing everyone to laugh.

“Yeah, yeah yeah, let’s start our video,” Sam says. Lining up in the camera frame outside the forested area, the boys set up their equipment to start filming their into. 

“Hey what’s up you guys, it’s Sam and Colby!” Colby says to the camera. After they introduce you, you kind of zone out, glancing around at the surrounding trees wondering why you agreed to come with them.

Fast forward a few minutes, you and the boys are finally walking down a path leading around the ruins of an old mansion that’s said to be haunted by the man who used to occupy it. Trying to get your mind off the possible paranormal, you’re relieved when you find Colby starts walking with you. 

“I’m really glad you came with us, even if you are a bit of a scaredy-cat,” Colby chuckles as he nudges your side with his elbow, knowing you’re probably scared. 

“Me? Scared? What? No!” you exclaim, knowing you don’t sound very confident in that. Colby laughs, not believing you at all as you thump your barely-working flashlight against your hand. When you realize the state of the dim light isn’t changing, you drop your hands to your sides.

“Well,” Colby whispers, suddenly sounding serious, “if you want to admit you’re scared, you know i’ll protect you from whatever is out here,” gripping your hand with his own for a few seconds before releasing it. Though it’s dark and you know he can’t see it, you look down as your face immediately turns red. As Matt is about to call the two of you out for being close and whispering, you all freeze up as you hear a girl screaming in the distance.

“Did that girl just say ‘help me’“? Matt frantically asks, trying to make sese of what you all just heard. 

“Guys, I think we should go now,” you frantically whisper, feeling very uncomfortable. You feel Colby grab your hand and give a reassuring squeeze as he says “I don’t know guys, I think we should keep going.” 

“I don’t know guys, that didn’t sound very good to me,” Matt says nervously, agreeing with you. After several minutes of contemplation, you agree to keep going unless something else happens.

After a few more minutes of walking and goofing off, you guys hear people in the distance. “I wonder what those people are doing out here,” you think out loud. Just as you do, you see them with their flashlights just 200 yards away. 

“Guys, they’re like, really close,” Elton points out. 

“Go, go, go, go!” Sam exclaims, having seen them move closer to you guys. You all take off running, only to see them start running after you. Not being quite as fast as the boys, you struggle to match their speed. 

“COME HERE!” yells one of the people following you, causing your legs to tremble in fear, making it even harder to keep up. Suddenly, you feel Colby grip your hand and pull you with him. It isn’t until you get to the car that he even loosens his shaky grip on your hand. Getting in the car, he pulls you into his lap in his seat, wrapping his arms around you, not wanting to let go. You, on the other hand, are so shaky and scared from what just happened that you’re struggling to process all the affection coming from Colby.

Upon further discussion with the boys, you agree to go back since you believe the people who chased you have left. Though you’re not very happy about it, you understood that the boys don’t want to chicken out of their videos like this. Walking back, you realize Colby never let your hand go. Though neither of you have acknowledged it, you began to believe what Sam said. Maybe he does like you. Maybe even afraid to lose you, and not willing to let go. Hopefully.

[sarareynolds]

Random Questions: Part IV

Last one until I get mega bored. I promise.

151. Have you ever had a pet besides a dog or a cat?

I haven't ever had a pet. Yes, digest that fact. 

152. From 1-10, how well do you work with others?

6? I can play well with others but I do butt heads if I think someone is being dumb. 

153. Are you friends with any of your exes?

No. Not because I can't do it just that they weren't important enough to hold on to. 

154. Apple or PC?

PC

155. Do you collect anything?

Records and lapels

156. Have you ever seen any Broadway plays or musicals?

I live in New York and I haven't. There are so many I'd like to see but nope, still haven't done it.

157. Any missed opportunities you wish you had taken?

I should have just gone to the school I was accepted into. Wah wah, need to re-evaluate that in like a month...

158. Have you ever uttered a spoken hashtag?

I have. I am guilty of that. 

159. Do you have a pool at your house?

No. 

160. What is the longest you’ve gone without sleep?

A day. I don't do well without sleep. 

161. Last thing that made you laugh?

I laugh a lot. I don't know Nik makes me laugh a lot.

162. Disney or Nickelodeon?

Disney? But I've got nothing against Nickelodeon I just haven't watched that channel since I was like 12 or something and I have seen all the movies Disney has to offer offer save the new Lion King because that shit pisses me off.

163. Name one celebrity you wish was still alive.

Ooh… tough one… I don't know. Throw a dart at Whitney Houston, Kurt Cobain or Elliot Smith. Granted with the last two, I'm not certain their music would have been as good, or existed at all, if they weren't so tormented by the depressions that ultimately took their lives. Sad observations.

164. From 1-10, how much are you like your mother?

I really hope it's a zero… regardless, I'm more like my dad anyway. 

165. Your best physical feature?

My hair. I'm never changing this answer. 

166. Earbud or earmuff headphones?

More often than not I use earbuds but I have both. 

167. Have you ever wished you were born the opposite gender?

Not wished but I have pondered what it would be like to be a guy only to promptly conclude I can never know. 

168. Do you have any piercings anywhere besides your ear lobes?

No, but I did at one time, it no longer exists. 

169. How often do you wash your hair?

Every other day. 

170. Showers or baths?

Again both? Showers more often but a good soak is great for the soul. 

171. Have you ever been a bridesmaid or a groomsman?

I have not but I suspect with time that will change.

172. Bottled or tap water?

I don't care. Water is water. 

173. What was your favorite TV show when you were a kid?

Phineas and Ferb

174. Any guilty pleasures you’re willing to discuss?

I mean everyone has guilty pleasures but I'm legitimately just thinking of the list of tacky movies I enjoy that are super pointless. So I guess bad movies? 

175. Favorite video game?

Pokemon. Pick a generation, I love them all.

176. Have you ever gotten a New Year’s kiss exactly at midnight?

I have and the whole world saw it and talked about it for weeks. lol

177. How many of the United States have you visited?

Let me just pull up my map of the US…. More now than before. I filled up a lot of the map this summer. 

178. Have you ever given money to a homeless person?

I have not. I have given them food before. I have trust issues guys, I'm going to give the thing I believe they need but can't potentially misuse. 

179. Have you ever gotten a surgery?

Nope

180. Your least favorite food?

Oranges

181. From 1-10, how competitive are you?

9

182. Do you like wearing hats?

I don't have anything against hats but I don’t wear them often. 

183. How much of a jealous person are you?

I'm not really a jealous person at all. 

184. What was your SAT score?

Didn't take them. 

185. Have you ever voted for a reality competition show?

No

186. Does anyone in your family currently serve in your country’s military?

No

187. Snowboarding or skiing?

Snowboarding

188. What celebrity would you most want to play you in a movie about your life?

Karen Gillan. Why not?

189. Have you ever been a Boy or Girl Scout?

Nope

190. Have you ever dyed your hair?

No, I haven't. 

191. From 1-10, how good of a cook do you consider yourself?

4. I can do it if I have to but it's not going to be great. 

192. You have just opened up a web browser. What is the first site you visit?

Probably Tumblr. 

193. How many things can you do with your weaker hand?

Virtually nothing. 

194. Were you involved in any academic clubs in high school?

Academics... not so much. Definitely, was not a mathlete or a debate champion. I was, however, in the choir my senior year and I also did some of the school plays, mostly working behind the scenes making the costumes. Exactly once I was brave enough to get my butt on the stage in my last year. 

195. Have you ever played hooky from school?

Little hard to do when you're in a boarding school hidden from the outside world. Just saying. 

196. Are you comfortable with watching rated R movies?

Why wouldn't I be?

197. Do you root for any sports teams?

There are teams I root for, yes. Do I follow them religiously, no, not at all, but there are teams I favor. 

198. First thing you do when you wake up in the morning?

Turn my alarm off and try for more sleep. Depending on where I am and how early it is, it may include some minor cuddling. 

199. If you could take home any one animal from the zoo, which one would you choose?

Today I'd probably take home a meerkat. I don’t have a favorite zoo animals which I feel is the real question when this one is asked. 

200. Tell something about yourself most people don’t know.

I enjoy doing the laundry. It is my favorite chore.