#How LCD Works

[liveorganism]

so my 20 year old camera battery doesnt work :( shocker i know. annoying since nikon's a bitch and insisted on their own special batteries though

[iero]

So, today is my ex-best friend's 31st birthday... And, I still fucking hate that I know so much about you. I hate that I remember so much about you. I remember your birthday. I remember your favorite music. I remember your favorite T-shirt that had the hole in the armpit area that you kept telling me you needed to throw away, but never did. I shared so much with you. Some of my deepest, darkest secrets. I remember driving to your apartment and crying my eyes out to you because I had to break up with my partner. You hugged me and told me that I will be alright without them. I remember laughing on the drive to the beach feeling on top of the world as we blasted Brand New and sang along to every word. You told me that Archers was your favorite song on that album and it still remains my favorite.

I'll never forget that day in late 2019 when your roommate dropped a ball on me and told me you're a monster and you're being put away. I just woke up and was about to go to my first job of the day. I remember just wanting to stay in bed for a very long time after that. It was such a shock to me. I didn't think you have the capacity to do such a thing. I didn't know that you had this side of you.

There were so many promises we made to each other and now there's no chance. There are so many things I wish I could take back, so many words I wish I never uttered to you. And, I know I can't and that makes it all the more worse. There's only one thing I wish to ask you now and it's "Why did you do what you did?" But, I will not give you the liberty of letting you know that I still think of you. I don't think I ever will.

I know you are where you belong and I hope you stay there for all the years to come. You will get your due some day, but most of all, I hate the fact that I can't hate you. I hate myself for allowing myself to miss you some days because I really, really shouldn't. I'm scared most days that once you are released that you will find me. You are not a good person and I know this, but you were my best friend and I fucking loved you.

[krawdad]

I'm not well versed in how tv production works nowadays. How would a digital HD news broadcast have interlacing artifacts in what might have been cellphone video. Why would any interlacing happen at any stage of an HD broadcast intended for a 1080p screen.

[katatonicimpression]

Underrated annoying thing about this app is how if there's any significant fandom for a TV show, people only want to hear blind praise or relentless shitting on the thing and my "this thing is endlessly frustrating and kind of bad but I don't want to rag on it so much as talk about how it could have been good" doesn't really have a space

Like, it's always salt or stannery

[sthilarions]

Just realized Charles probably has no idea that TV screens don’t make your hands fizz anymore. Cos like, he’s seen LCD/LED/OLED screens, obvs, but he probably hasn’t been able to feel the static/fuzz/tingle for decades already by the time he first encounters one and it’s not like people on the street are going around talking about how their TVs don’t make them buzz anymore so like. How would he know.

He’s probably so confused by touchscreen phones, he’s like, how are people standing putting their fingers all over that all the time, it seems like it would fuck up your joints or give you cancer or something

(Alternatively, the CRT fuzz was one of the very few things he could still feel as a ghost, and he was rather upset when it got hard to find non-flatscreens. Edwin hunted through thrift shops and got him a little portable CRT TV for Christmas in the late 2010s. You’d think it’d be hard to keep an electric device running in a ghosts’ haunt, but it turns out CRT tech is halfway to being supernatural anyway, so it works out.)

[babyjinsu]

[r/offmychest] my boyfriend objectifies me in an online forum and i feel sick.

pairing ; any riize member x fem!reader || reddit smau

warning ; harassment, disgusting nasty misogynistic online comments made to you, noncon imaginations, perverts, implication of wanting to tie up, taking pictures and posting without consent.

[r/offmychest] my boyfriend objectifies me in an online forum and i feel sick. posted by u/yn777 • 6h ago

hi everyone. this is my first time posting something on reddit because i don't know where else to go to. i feel sick, i'm terrified, i've been puking and crying, and i just feel so disgusting about myself. i'm ashamed and embarrassed to tell my IRL friends, and i don't want my parents to ever know about this. i don't even know if this is the correct subreddit to go to, but please hear me out.

i don't know what to do with this information and i'm going to lose it everytime i think about it.

so about three days ago, i had to use my boyfriend's laptop to do my assignment because mine broke. my cat nibbled at the corner of the screen and yeah. it just broke. the lcd cannot be used, and i wasn't in a rush to have it repaired because of the cost but i did (now), after this... thing.

my boyfriend ([age]M) was in the bathroom so i'm 110% sure he didn't hear me letting him know that i'm going to use his laptop and i didn't think it would be such a big deal since we've been a couple for 2 years now. my intention was purely just to open some websites to check for citations for my paper and not to snoop around as i trusted him completely.

but as soon as i opened the browser, multiple tabs were already opened, he didn't close it - it's just like, youtube, a website to watch movies illegally, football scores from a couple nights ago, and some kind of private forum community. i wouldn't have thought much of it since my boyfriend is those guys who does IT and computer science, and just knows a whole lot of stuffs about devices(??). he's the one who helped repair and update my phone. so i didn't find it weird for him to have a forum tab opened since he engaged in online discussions a lot.

the title tag of the forum was something like, "my girl at the most fuckable state and..." it got cut off because the caption/title was too long. i'm the type of girlfriend who doesn't mind if my boyfriend watches porn (not camgirls though...), as long as it doesn't impact our sex life or relationship, and he only watches it with me (TMI). but for some reason this time, it immediately made my heart and stomach drop. it felt REALLY off, and my instincts and guts were both telling me to check, and leave it alone.

i shouldn't have clicked it, oh my god. i wish i didn't. not because i love him and i'd rather not know what he does behind my back, but because i love myself and this. this changed EVERYTHING.

the forum is not like reddit, or 4chan. it's basically a private forum or a space for men to post and talk about their girlfriends in the most degrading ways. i saw some appreciations posts but nonetheless (in THAT type of website?). i saw guys sharing private, intimate pictures (obviously taken without consent, because some of the girls were sleeping, in the bathroom taken from the gap between the door, or simply just watching the television), humiliating stories about how awful the girlfriends are in bed... and just,, the most disgusting, objectifying comments i've ever read.

some guys post their girlfriends picture and asked if anyone wants to share. some asked other users/guys to rate, degrade, or just comment on the girlfriends appearance. some guys even doxxed their girlfriend's working address and captioned, "do what you want with the information".

i feel so fucking sick. as i'm writing this, i can't count how many times i've paused to take a breather and just pace around in my living room.

the thought of my boyfriend even being in that forum already twisted my insides, but then i saw his username, and me.

i clicked on his profile and saw that he had around 9 posts, but his activities/notifications were quite a lot. his account was created a few months after we got together and his username was literally my nickname and the year i was born, and his profile picture was my cat. the same cat that broke my laptop.

my face wasn't visible in the pictures he posted, it was covered with some stupid fucking emoji (just my face). but i knew they were me. i knew those pictures because they were all ones taken by him. i knew they were me because i recognised the couch, the bedsheet, the clothes, and all. it's just obvious.

they were pictures when we're being playful and intimate. some were just me in my pyjamas, or lounging around in his hoodie, and others were me napping or sleeping. i didn't even know he had those pictures.

but the captions. god.. the captions.

i can't even. i don't even want to repeat or write it down. it's so so fucking disgusting and humiliating, and i would NEVER ever thought they were written by him. he took those pictures, covered my face, opened the forum, captioned, reread, and posted. he had a lot of time to rethink about what he was doing, but he didn't.

stuffs like, "she acts all innocent but you guys have no idea how easy it is to put her in her place." "god i feel like fucking her in front of her ex-boyfriend sometimes. to think of how he got her first before me pisses the fuck out of me man. he's crazy for not tying her up when he had her tho." i can't believe this is how he views me.

another horrible thing was he didn't just posts about me, but he shits on my family members and friends too. he claimed that my friends are just shitty people in my life that needs to get a partner of their own so they can get the fuck out of my life. he also admitted into bullying the people i am no longer friends with.

but the comments were worse, or they both were, i don't fucking know anymore. just the most toxic, red-flag, misogynistic nonsense. they were saying how lucky my boyfriend is, and how instead of making the same mistake as my ex-boyfriend did, he (my boyfriend) should keep me leashed to the bed with a collar. that was the only comment my boyfriend replied to. he agreed, and added that he can't have other guys looking at me.

some wanted to share and pass me around. these are guys with wives and girlfriends, and daughters, and mothers, and sisters by the way. the comments and posts were from guys who probably seemed normal to you. these guys could be your colleagues, neighbours, classmates, professors, or even your dad.

he doesn't comment, interact, or engage on other people's posts. it was as if he only made the account to post about me. with how he covered my face, it seemed like he just wants to let out his sickening, disgusting thoughts unlike some of the guys in the forum. but that didn't make it any better.

i immediately closed his laptop after going through the forum and went out of the room before he stopped showering. i think he knows something's wrong with me because i haven't been talking to him much, or reacting, or responding to him. it's been three days, and i told him i'm sleeping over my friends' house. i don't know how long i can avoid or keep up with the lie. i'm shaking so much.

i don't know how to process this. he has always been so sweet and respectful to my face. on the surface, he's your parents' dream son-in-law. not once have i felt unsafe around him, until now, that is. he doesn't even seem like the type to do these kinds of things but i'm not sure now. the way he talks about me when i'm not around. like i'm some kind of trophy or an object for him to. yea. sexualise online. for strangers to see.

i feel disgusting, violated, harrassed, assaulted, objectified... everything. i don't know how, or even if i SHOULD confront him. what can he say to justify this? that it's a joke? what if he fucking kills me because i wasn't supposed to see it? should i report this to the police? he lets a bunch of strangers talk about me like that. he doesn't fucking love me.

i don't know what to do. i don't know what to do. i feel so fucking sick and scared oh my god. i don't know what else he could be doing behind my back. i'm so scared.

💭 omgg………… hehehehhehehe hope u guys enjoyyyy xoxooooo

[dunmeshistash]

Interview to celebrate the opening of the Ryoko Kui Exhibition

About Delicious in Dungeon: Story making

Q1. Your first long-running series has lasted for about 9 and a half years. Has it been different from your previous experience drawing short stories?

A1. Compared to short stories, the series has been easier because the same characters appear each time. But I was surprised to find that I got tired of drawing the same characters too many times.

Q2. You have said before that the overall structure of the story was decided before serialization began, but how much of that had you communicated to your editor? Also, what kind of communication did you have during the series production?

A2. The goal was something we discussed and had decided on from the beginning. The goal itself was simple, but the path to get there was more difficult and took longer than imagined.

Q3. Regarding the overall story concept and development, did you write out or put anything down in writing (such as the plot)?

A3. I did, but it was simple.

Q4. Did you come up with the dishes based on the monsters you wanted in the story? Or did you come up with the monsters based on the dishes?

A4. It depended on the story, but usually the story came first followed by the monsters or food. I feel like that was most often the order.

Q5. As you progressed in drawing the series, what elements of the characters, story, or world expanded or grew in the most unexpected way?

A5. Nothing particularly unexpected perhaps. When I used to draw web manga, I tended to think up inconsequential settings. So, from the beginning I tried to restrain myself as much as possible and not expand too much. I was surprised when my editor said "Let's expand it more," in the second half of the series.

Q6. "Delicious in Dungeon" starts with a relatively simple setting, but as the series and the labyrinth exploration continues, the map slowly expands little by little in the readers' minds. It becomes more three-dimensional, revealing the secrets of the world, and taking on a multilayered structure. Are there any sources that you used as a reference, or which influenced you in creating this multilayered structure?

A6. A long time ago, when I was working on my personal web manga (fantasy), I drew it however I wanted, thinking that "Only people who can read this will read it," but I regularly received feedback that it was "unreadable", so I tried to make it as easily. accessible as possible.

Q7. The series combines many elements, including "fantasy", "gourmet", "battles", and "puzzle solving", but I think it's also important that it is a "comedy" which makes people laugh. Could you let us know if you have a creative commitment towards depicting humor?

A7. My hopes are that I can make it fun for people to read.

[page 5]

About Delicious in Dungeon: Drawing manga

Q1. Please tell us about the drawing tools you currently use, both digital and analogue.

A1. In terms of analogue tools, I use a light box, a G pen, a round pen, and a brush pen. And for digital, I use CLIP STUDIO PAINT and a Wacom LCD tablet. Screentone pasting is always done on the computer, so ultimately it all ends up as a digital manuscript.

Q2. Do you have any rules or reasons for using digital and analog separately?

A2. I'm always looking for ways to draw better and save time, so the exact approach is probably different for almost every chapter. Personally, I feel that analogue methods create more appealing lines, but I feel like digital saves time, so maybe I'll do a digital rough sketch and do the inking by hand… I might have been using a G pen, and maybe I'll try out a turnip pen, or this time I'm short on time so I'll draw it entirely digitally, but with digital I can redo it over and over, so maybe analogue is still faster, and so on and so forth. I'm indecisive in this way and so haven't developed a consistent process.

Q3. I understand that you prepare 3D data for your assistants to draw the backgrounds. What kind of data did you make for "Delicious in Dungeon" ?

A3. You could call it 3D, but it's not a proper model, just something to help with the rough sketching. I line up cubes to share the perspective and sense of scale, and they use it as a reference.

Q4. At the beginning of the series, the characters and backgrounds were somewhat simply drawn, and it seems like they became richly detailed over the progression of the story. What was your intention behind using these different styles?

A4. It's simply that my technique isn't stable. I thought I'd put a lot of effort in at the start. I remember being confused when my editor asked me to add more in to the drawing, and I wondered "Where…?"

Q5. Thinking about the food, were there any menu illustrations that you were particularly satisfied with, or which you struggled with?

A5. I've never liked my own food illustrations. But the times when I read other people's manga and thought "That looks delicious," I think it's been more an influence of the movement, the staging, and the situation than the drawings.

Q6. For the world maps and the terrain of each continent, did you refer to any maps of the real world? I feel like the shape of the 'island' is similar to the shape of Fukuoka Prefecture or Kyushu.

A6. I didn't reference any specific geography, but I did try to put thought into things like whether a developed city would be near a river or the sea, and what the coastline would look like. I'm pleased if it feels similar to a real place, because it means my interpretation was pretty accurate.

About Delicious in Dungeon: Other

Q1. Which is your favorite monster?

A1. Nightmare.

Q2. I'm sure you have received a lot of feedback from readers in countries and regions outside of Japan. Please tell us if there was anything from them that made you happy, was unexpected, or which made a lasting impression on you.

A2. When you play foreign games, there are times when you think "Why did they translate it into Japanese like that?" But having been on the side of having something translated, I've realized some things are unavoidable, or endless, and there are many things that don't matter either way from the author's perspective, so it was interesting.

About Ryoko Kui's short story collections and herself

Q1. Dragons are a consistent and important motif in your work. Was there any particular work or experience which inspired this? Also, are there points about drawing dragons which you find interesting or have had to work hard on?

A1. It's less about liking dragons, and more that I'm interested in the worlds in which dragons exist. When I draw dragons, the depiction in itself has a sweet feeling to it. I have never had a pet reptile, so I don't have a very good understanding of them.

Q2. Unomiya University in your story "The dragon's school is on top of the mountain" has a Faculty of Dragons, Department of Environmental Studies, and Department of Technology Studies, and a Faculty of Veterinary Medicine. If you were to enroll in the university, which department or faculty would you like to enter?

A2. I probably wouldn't be accepted….

Q3. The collection includes a short story staged as an essay manga. Are you a fan of essay manga? Please tell us about any genres of essay manga that you like.

A3. I love all kinds of essay manga. I read them often.

Q4. If you were to make your own game, what kind of game would you like to make?

A4. I prefer being a player when it comes to games.

Q5. When did you first start drawing illustrations (doodles)?

A5. I don't exactly remember when I first drew a picture, but I think I started drawing manga around the fourth or fifth grade of elementary school. in my notebooks and had my friends read them.

Q6. What is the most fun part about drawing manga?

A6. Every part is fun and hard in its own way.

Q7. Please tell us if there is anything you "just can't stop no matter what".

A7. My procrastination habit.

Q8. Could you please tell us if there's something you want to draw now?

A8. I've been working continuously since the serialization, so I'd like to take about 2 to 3 months to just draw whatever I want.

[activitytime]

Pixel - November 2024

OBSESSED with @yellowhellion ‘s screen-phasing munchie-napper, Pixel! Tried to emulate a screen-printed poster while still giving a nod to their power set. Took inspiration from my childhood fascination with CRT static LCD computer monitors, how their screens would bruise green and purple if you pressed on them too hard. I had a truly unhinged amount of fun working them. Their shapes????! Are so goood???!!

[shellsstardew]

this is actually so good i love it. what’s your art process like?

Loved that ask! I finally have the time to answer it! Did you mean all of it? I'm gonna assume you meant all of it, hehe. Let's go!

THE WRITING PART

Let's just say my note app is FILLED with scenes for the comic. It looks like this :

So in green, how I write the scene and in red, the complete list of all the parts I want to write. The red one is really handy because I can look at the overall story super easily (and count how many parts before the kiss hehehe), this is also how I keep track of scenes I add up in between some of them, sometimes I also slide a scene at an another point in the story if i feel it works better.

I have this planned until the kiss (and then some), and I know what I'll do with them once they get together but didn't bother writing down yet, because getting to the kiss is gonna take a WHILE anyway. Hahaha

The list helps me not having to write them in order too! Usually I take walks with music on and this is how I think about most of my scenes (at the beginning of the comic it was in bed instead of sleeping because I was way too obsessed haha)

Sometimes a scene get born just by listening to a specific song, so then I have to put it a loop to be able to write it in my head, and when that happens, it becomes the song I put at the beginning of the parts! It was the case for Jalousie by Rori for part 15 and New York, I Love You But You're Bringing Me Down by LCD Soundsystem for part 35 :)

THE STORYBOARD PART

So I have a template for my storyboards and it looks like this :

Same as before, helps me to see the overall thing and let me draw out of order. I also like do draw a little checkmark when I finished a line-art, it gives me a little dopamine rush haha

As you can see, Shane was supposed to fully laugh at the end of part 28 but I cut it and replaced it with a snort because I thought it would hit way harder if i saved the true belly laugh for the end of their talk. The amount of times something like this has happened is so funny, like I took back so many Shane smiles in other parts because I couldn't help making him already all mushy hahaha (this is not to torture you guys this is so when he does laugh it FEELS DESERVED!).

Also when he finally opens up, I had to add a bunch of Elliott's lines pressing him on for more details cause that boy shouldn't open up that easily! In the draft he's just babbling like it's no problem it's so funny to me

Adding to all this that I rewrite a lot and often at every step of making the comic. Saying this to people who want to write but get discouraged when it suck at first, I know the struggle haha

will do THE DRAWING PART later cause that post is already too long haha

[phoebe-delia]

Four Years in Fandom!

Hiii! It's been four years since I posted my first fic on AO3, and while I started reading fic before that, I consider April 25 my fandom anniversary.

To celebrate, I want to talk about my favorite fic I wrote each year. And I'm going to make it a tag game! Y'all do it too if you feel like it! Make a list of your favorite of your own works, one from each year you've been a creator. It can be fic, art, podfic, etc.—anything you made. I'll start by tagging some folks (but no pressure): @basicallyahedgehog @getawayfox @kittycargo @phdmama @peachpety @lqtraintracks @greattemptation @written-in-ash and @cailynwrites

2021 (Year 1): this is me trying

Rated T, 12.6k

This is still my favorite thing I've ever written. If you read only one of my fics, I'd want it to be this one. It's one of the more personal stories I've written, and it means a lot to me. It was also, at that point, the longest fic I'd written, and I feel it marked a turning point for me as a writer. I'm also so grateful for the friendships it's brought me, and I am always humbled when people tell me it helped them through a difficult time. It helped me, too.

2022 (Year 2): Goodnight, and Have a Pleasant Tomorrow

Rated T, 1.4k

This was for LCD in 2022. I won't lie, I am very proud of this fic. It's an SNL AU with Drarry as hosts of Weekend Update. I wrote all the jokes myself based on real news headlines at the time. It was difficult, but probably the most fun I've had writing a fic. (Note: Lyssa @written-in-ash made some lovely art for it, but I think the image host link isn’t working).

2023 (Year 3): Just Take Me Home

Rated T, 4.7k

This was a fun one, too. I love it because it feels like the kind of fic I'd love as a reader, especially when I was first getting into Drarry. I was also really happy with the idea/concept, not to mention how fun it was to come up with a, let's say, unfortunate acronym for this fake Ministry department. AND the incredible @cailynwrites made a podfic of it and made it sound 10x better.

2024 (Year 4): I Could Never Rescue You

Rated M, 1.6k; (mind the tags!)

This has a VERY different tone than what I usually write. It falls into the category of: Fics I Enjoy Writing but Wouldn't Like to Read, mostly because it's angsty and I am very selective with the angst I read. Mind the tags on this one, if you do read it. I won't spoil it, but all I'll say is, it is structurally (and somewhat thematically) inspired by the musical The Last Five Years by Jason Robert Brown. (There are a few major differences; if you're familiar with the show and you want to be spoiled/know the plotlines I changed for the fic, message me!) I had the idea when I first started writing fic, but I put it off for so long because I knew how hard it would be to make the unique structure of the show translate to fic form. I also hadn't figured out how to honor the angst of the show without making myself too sad and/or writing Drarry in a way that felt inconsistent with how I view them.

[sunburnacoustic]

For any Muse fans who might get frustrated about how the fandom seems to always be throwing a tantrum about new Muse songs and how much they dislike Muse's 'new directions', just a gentle assurance that the fandom has always been like this.

They were really not fond of Black Holes and Revelations when it came out, some of them didn't even believe Supermassive Black Hole was a real song. They thought it was a joke. Muse, their beloved metal-leaning hard rock band, going glitz, glam and electro? Ignoring the fact that their main man just built a whole synthesizer into his electric guitars (the XY Kaoss pad), Muse and electronic? Ignoring the arp synth on Bliss, Muse and electronic?

Supermassive Black Hole was the first single on BHAR, and the old fans were aghast. Hated it. Then when Twilight used the song and brought Muse to the attention of... well. Teenage girls, essentially, it again split the fandom into the old heads (the real, gritty rock fans, you hear me) and the airheaded dumb teenage girls that only knew them through Twilight and silly romance novels. (I hope you understand these aren't my words. It's just... fucking 2006. The 00s were horrible like that.)

They also hated Take A Bow. Despite the fact that Muse had been using the opening synth progression as an intro to Space Dementia live throughout the Absolution tour, they disliked the synths on it. They hated Invincible.

And just to balance things out, Muse in the meanwhile were having a blast: Matt doing his alien schtick in interviews, jetsetting across Europe from headline gigs and festivals to award shows, they occasionally got to take charter flights and stuff, and they were in an interesting place musically where their sound was expanding, taking inspiration from nightclub indie music like LCD Soundsystem and bussing with the Strokes (they've said Starlight was inspired by them), working up to playing some of the biggest arena and even stadium gigs of their lives. 2006 Reading Festival, their first Reading headline. Huge moment for Muse. 2007, two sold out nights at the 90,000 capacity new Wembley. All this is to say, if Muse hadn't made Black Holes the album they did, there's no way they'd be nearly as successful as they are today. So don't doubt it and don't feel bad for them! But the Muse fandom is passionate, and so you maybe heard the naysayers louder than you would with most band fandoms.

But were there detractors before Black Holes? Might surprise you, but yes! And I'm not talking about Pitchfork and the rest of the press!

This will make no sense in 2025's musical landscape and understanding of rock and guitar music, but fans hated Time Is Running Out. I've seen those old Muse messageboard threads, they did Not hold back. TIRO was a 'pop song', and so it was Bad. It was Muse selling out. Fans had heard quite a few of these songs well before release, and Muse were threatening to go 'more prog' on their third album, and it threw their OOS-loving fans a little. (Check out this interview from the archives with then-BBC Radio 1's Steve Lamacq for a sense of what was going on).

So don't worry about who hates Thought Contagion or whether fans inexplicably dislike Will Of The People, an album so classically Muse that I am forced to wonder whether the fans that dislike it and I are actually thinking about the same band when refer to them. It's been like this on The Resistance (god, they hated the symphonic bits, strings used to really rile up the anti-sentimental rock fandom. Riffs and RIFFS ONLY you hear me?), The 2nd Law got So Much Hate for Muse embracing electronic music (again, not new....) and working with Skrillex, it was the whole reason the 'back to basics, back to our rock roots' idea even popped into the band's head when going in to make Drones. Matt's talked about the well, fan pressure to sound a certain way on the song Pressure, and Simulation Theory itself got a lot of agitated fan responses.

The interesting thing with Muse is that despite it all, the reason why they are still such a widely loved band is that people come around to their albums. At the end of the day, it is fantastic music. Well written, incredibly forward-thinking and genre-blending. Fans' love for Muse keeps them giving the newer albums another chance, and you will often see this in most Muse Youtube comment sections (or other places), there are many comments about how their songs grew on fans. They like them after a few listens. It's just about trusting the band to be good at their job and make incredible music, and I can't give up on Musers despite all my above qualms because they do still have that love and trust. Don't worry about it.

Also, about BHAR specifically (and this is me citing some sources), someone asked about it on the Muse reddit a little while ago and it'll basically confirm what I just told you. Very interesting insight into the place rock music occupied in popular music at the time (in opposition to other genres, the rebellion genre if you will, as opposed to Just Another Popular Genre. That's a whole post in itself). Don't worry about it.

[alices-repair-shop]

A New Friend (Part 1)

Well, lookie here… you are not what I was expecting. What are you, you curious little gadget? Your screen is unlike anything I’ve seen in recent years, I thought we moved to exclusively LCD over a decade ago. But you’re damn-near indestructible… stronger than anything else I’ve had the pleasure of working with. Let’s hope that your batteries are still functional. I'd love to see that software at work, but you need to turn on for that to happen. You really are such a marvel… I wonder what you were made for. I suppose until you wake up, I can poke around a bit, try and figure out how to open you up. You’re damn-near military grade, I swear. Beautiful. Now let’s get to that poking around i promised, yeah? I do apologize, but I have to remove some of these layers to get to what I need to see. Oh, I do hope you wake up soon, I hate talking to myself. I wonder if you can hear me. Can you hear me? Well, I suppose if you could answer, you would’ve done so by now. There’s got to be some way to get into you. Let’s flip you over-

Oh! You’re awake! Hello, dear. Well, at least your screen is on. That’s promising. I wonder if you can hear me. Can you blink those pretty light-up eyes for me? Oh, wonderful! I wonder how long it’ll take for you to come back to full functionality. Do you mind if I keep looking you over? One blink for no, two for yes. One… two! Wonderful! I’ll be gentle, I promise. At least until I know how much discomfort you’re able to feel. Let’s just- oh! I think I found it! Let’s see if this’ll open you up. 

Click, creak...........

[redvexillum]

💖 Vexi Update 💖

Guess who crawled out of the corporate overtime abyss with coffee-stained dignity and a stack of half-finished reports? This gal! Did ya miss me? (Lie to me if you didn’t.) While I was being held hostage by deadlines and adulting, I hope the brilliant writers and artists around here kept your hearts warm and your imaginations fed. 

Okay, storytime my beautiful gremlins: remember back in the day when I used to post constantly? Like, practically breathing out fanfics? YEAH, turns out that was at the horrifying cost of completely neglecting my actual work and life. (Please... don’t look at me like that. I know, okay?? My impulse control is about as sturdy as wet tissue paper. AHHH.)

Anyway! Here's the deal—posting like a maniac isn't exactly sustainable unless I wanna be homeless but with vibes ✨️. So why am I telling you this when all you want is more spicy shenanigans with LCD TV Man, Deer Demon, and maybe the Sad Devil?

Because! My wonderful, wise friend Kit a.k.a @redfoxwritesstuff (bless her patient soul) taught me a valuable lesson: slow and steady updates are way better than dumping a story buffet and then vanishing into the void for, uh... counts on fingers... over five months.

Sooo the new plan? Scheduled updates! Actual routines! Feeding you delightful gremlins just enough to keep you full without starving you for half a year! (You’re welcome.)

And guess what? I've actually got some projects lined up!

First, I must finish my extremely belated New Year's kisses (seriously, it's almost embarrassing at this point). Then, I’m planning to finally sit down and edit some raw stories I’ve been hoarding like a dragon with emotional baggage. No joke, I legit have almost an entire story written—raw, completely unedited—but hey, it should be ready soon! (Hopefully! Haha...ha.)

Now I’m ready to dust off the cobwebs in my creative attic and shake off the metaphorical constipation (yep, it’s that kind of re-entry). It might take a few awkward story stretches and cringey one-shots before I get my rhythm back, so bear with me while I recalibrate from "boring office zombie" to "smoll sad party bonzanas. 🥳" 

How long will I maintain this Responsible Era ✨️?

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

No clue. But let’s enjoy the chaotic semi-organization while it lasts. Bwahaha.

My goal is to start updating near the 🌸 end of May/early June 🌸, so...

[wings-and-beskargam]

Since this response got out of hand, I'm giving it its' own post.

It's dangerous to ask a maker (artist?) about their processes @lonewolflupe @ulchabhangorm. But since you're curious, please accept my very first:

All of the pictured things were 3D printed by me on my FDM printer (Bambu Labs A1), including the teeny helmets. The non-helmet bits are pieces of Tech's armour. I'm currently building a Tech kit for 501st Legion approval. I "like" Crosshair and Scorch the most, but I am "most like" Tech. /sigh

I do! (Mostly) All of the armour parts of Archers' kit were 3D printed and finished by me on my FDM printer, with the exception of my pauldrons which were resin printed by someone else, but finished by me. I initially began making the kit for a Halloween costume, challenged by a coworker to a work-Halloween costume contest, but ended up meeting a couple vode from the Mando Mercs club (MMCC). I was invited (gently coerced?) to complete the kit to their standards and join the club. I'm in that process now, but still have a few things to finish before I gain Official Member status. 🙂

I made a lil' Boba candy bucket!!

3. I mostly print with PLA+. I can print with PETG, ABS, and other materials but my printer is running inside a spare room and I'm not set up with an enclosure or awesome ventilation yet to print with materials which off gas more toxic VOCs. Although PETG would be stronger for a buy'ce that is going to be worn PLA+ works just fine for most folks who are not in very hot conditions. (PLA will sag and melt in high heat) . The first time I wore my full kit, I was at work, and did a full day of fieldwork in it. The whole kit survived apart from one of the thrusters on my jetpack which I accidentally busted off while putting it back in the kit box (adhesive failure, I should have used hardware but I was in a rush to finish it before Halloween) . All fixed now! PLA would be just fine for printing teeny and/or decorative helmets. Just don't toss full size ones onto the floor off of a shelf (ask me how I know).

4. You can get STLs for clone helmets in all the places you'd expect (cults, thingiverse, etc) and from vendors on Etsy. Be careful, though, some of those files are stolen, and some are REALLY terrible and inaccurate. I usually avoid 'free' files, as for things as complex as helmets often end up being more costly in other ways, or are just not the quality I want. Galactic Armory has a nice selection of clone helmets (I have..... all of them. /embarrassment). Marko of Mystery Makers has really great Bad Batch (and other SW) helmets. He always tries to go a step beyond other modelers with his designs, both with functionality and accuracy. The Crosshair and RC helmet in my original post are both printed from Mystery Makers files. The RC helmet is the closest to the game design available, and the Cross helmet has a super cool functional rangefinder (like the different lenses are there and flip up and down, not just the whole rangefinder stalk moving). The Tech helmet is printed from Galactic Armory files, as are the rest (with the exception of Archers helmet which is AlterEgo, if I recall). The teeny helmets are printed from the full size files, just scaled down to 25%. I wouldn't' try to print these on an SLA/LCD resin printer, because the supports would be a nightmare I think, but it works just fine on an FDM printer. The most difficult part is printing the teeny greeblies for them which are super teeny at 25%. I almost always end up breaking the lil' rangefinder stalks, and am pretty sure I've lost the tusks for Rex's helmet more than once.

Cross WIP (Mystery Makers) with teeny (30%) Cross (Galactic Armory) 💙 Guess how many times I broke that teeny rangefinder stalk? Yeah. Four. 😖

Likewise, guess how many times I broke and lost the SUPER TEENY antennae on Tiny Tech's helmet? 😫

5. The visors in the full size helmets are generally welding/grinding replacement shields (Hobart brand, usually - available on Amazon). They are dark enough to obscure the wearers face and can be fairly easily cut to shape and installed. Tech's visor and goggle lenses are cut yellow acrylic, and in my original post still have the protective backing on them as they aren't 'officially' installed yet - which I why you can't see through them.

The visors for the full-size RC boys are more complicated. I believe the exact details of how I’ve been taught to do it are considered proprietary 🥺😏. To achieve the “Flirtation Mask” effect, two visors, a diffuser, and a strip of LEDs are installed in a very secret, not so secret, way. I’m working on a Scorch bucket, full size, and will have help to do this for the first time. Stay tuned. 😆 For the teeny helmets I use automotive window tint for the visors. It's easier to cut and bend into tiny shapes to fit inside the helmets. I got some blue stuff for the commando helmets, which should look cool once I install the lights. 😎

Teeny Gregor bucket WIP, with blue window tint FLIRTATION MASK 💙

6. The lil helmet stand under teeny Keeli (which I'm making for @eobe) is printed from a file from Galactic Armory. It's been through the ringer, because I use it to hold all the little helmets while I'm spray painting them and letting them cure. It did look nice when it was newer, and has the republic cog on the base. There is also a wall-mounted version which I have printed to hang Archer's helmet. I'll probably make more for the other helmets eventually.

7. VPLs (Visible Print Lines) are the enemy! As an MMCC member, it has been drilled into me that VPLs are evil and must be vanquished with extreme violence. I try to finish everything (with the exception of the flexi things people keep asking me to make) to an excellent standard with no VPLs - including the teeny helmets.

Raw Phase 1 (Animated) clone helmet and RC (Scorch) helmet). My printer does an excellent job, but still there are VPLs to be dealt with!

8. This question - how to get rid of VPLs could warrant it's own post. There are SO MANY techniques - some good, some NOT - but which ones you use depends largely on your print characteristics and what you intend to do with it. A lot of people lately have been recommending bathing the entire piece in a Bondo spot putty and acetone slurry several times until the lines are filled. I DO NOT recommend doing this for a piece that you intend to wear. I experimented with this and found out that after a small amount of wear the bondo likes to expel your paint in large chips, leaving ugly bondo-red spots behind. It would probably work ok for decorative pieces though. Other people have used UV curing resin to coat pieces to fill VPLs. It works, but UGH that stuff is toxic to touch and breathe, and it needs to be properly washed and cured, and cured some more. It's also much more difficult to sand than automotive body work products (which in all fairness are also toxic to breathe and touch - WEAR YOUR PPE).

My general process for armour pieces is to remove supports and then roughly sand (120 grit) only the really rough spots (like things that were overhangs or had a lot of supports). Sanding happens with a combination of sanding papers, sanding sticks, and needle files - depending on the piece. I then adhere pieces together (if they were printed in pieces like some of the larger full-size helmets) with plastic bonder. Seams are filled with Bondo plastic metal or EverCoat depending on the piece and I often plastic weld and staple the inside for strength. The seams are then sanded smooth. After I'm happy with the smoothness of the seams the entire piece will get 2-3 coats of automotive high-build filler primer (from a rattle can, though I have used the 1:4 mix stuff and brushed it on - I'd only recommend this with a large piece as that stuff REALLY fills things in quick - including the things you don't want it to) and a wet sand to 320 grit. At this point most of the print lines are filled, but stubborn areas, such as the top of the dome may still necessitate more coats. I generally end up applying 5 coats of filler primer, wet sanding between them. Following the final coat of filler primer, I'll wet sand again to about 400 grit (much more if we're going for the Beskar finish which needs a SUPER SMOOTH finish to work) and then put on a coat of regular primer. Black for helmets that will be dark (Most of the CF99 boys), and white for the other clone helmets. At this point they should be completely VPL free and ready for greebly installation and the "real" paint job. This process takes me at least a few days on full-size helmets as the paints have to cure between sanding and reapplication, and painting has to happen outside in good conditions. It's not inexpensive, but it is the most efficient and long-lasting way to do it, in my experience.

Cross helmet WIP. You can see the seam just under the visor cut out. This one printed in three pieces and needed ALL the seam filling and sanding. The pinkish and grey stuff are body fill products to fill in rough spots and seam lines. If you look at the last photo - of the same helmet - you can see they did a decent job of hiding that there was a seam. 😊

9. I use a lot of automotive products and paint. Since all my full size helmets are mean to be worn they need to be finished to a fairly high standard and be relatively tough. Archer's helmet body was finished entirely with Rustoleum brand filler primer and four layers of metallic paints (all rattle cans). The blue on the front was a Montana brand acrylic rattle can, and the copper parts (ear caps, rangefinder stalk) were enamel paint (Alclad copper) airbrushed on. The weathering - chips and scratches - were achieved by layering on a liquid latex medium between coats, so that when it was peeled off it revealed small bits of the coats beneath. It gives the damage a more realistic look than painting silver 'scratches' on after the fact. This liquid latex medium can be used to give the paint applied to clone helmets the chipped look to their painted designs as seen in the animation. It's a little more challenging to do in small scale though. After all the top coat paints are applied, I'll seal them in with a clear layer of satin or gloss sealant (rattle can). After that, I'll go over the entire piece with an acrylic black wash to make it look "dirty" and worn. 😅. After all that process, padding, visors, and electronics (HUD lights, fans, voice amps) are installed if needed. The whole thing is pretty time-consuming. I now understand why quality finished helmets cost as much as they do. My teeny helmets are all finished as I described above in the VPL section, but I use acrylics hand-painted on with a brush to apply the designs. In the animation versions of these helmets, particularly in TBB, the helmets all look like they've been (roughly) hand painted, so this technique works ok, I think. I apply the chipping and weathering at edges with dry brushing acrylics. I could apply a liquid latex mask and airbrush them, but eh. I'm using these little guys as fairy light "lanterns". They're super cute with the light showing a bit through the visors, particularly Tech. :)

The Teeny Batch boys that I've got finished. Echo is coming, he just needs his top coat and weathering. :D

Lil' Keeli almost finished, with his unfinished rangefinder. Have not broken the stalk yet! /cheer 🎉

10. Acrylics brand? Hmm... I've used the Montana Gold rattle can acrylics which some of the MMCC mandos seem to like. I'm not sure if the ones I got were duds, but I wasn't super impressed. The cans did a lot of spitting and messed up my paint a few times. My brush on acrylics are Liquitex or Golden. Both can be thinned and airbrushed, and are more costly than cheap crafting brands but are more highly pigmented and last longer (plus the finish is nicer).

11. Base colour is whatever primer I finish with - white or black, depending on what color the final piece will be. For Mando helmets, the base colour is a metallic silver, so that when I peel off the liquid latex layers, the pint chips down to “bare metal/beskar”. Since clone helmets are plastioid, the base colour for them remains white or black.

12. I finish with a rattle can sealant. Satin finish usually, but that depends on the look you want. Always try to stick with the same brand of primer, paint, and sealant. Different brands have different chemistry - accelerants and so on, and can, and often do react with one another. The frustration of having to sand down a piece that was almost finished cannot be described.

To avoid paint heartache, always also paint in good conditions. Temperature, humidity, wind, etc can all ruin you day and paint job. Please also always wear your PPE!

13. Are they? I hope they are. They sure are a labour of love, and much work - but it makes me happy to make them and to look at them. 😅

I'm very fond of Archer's buy'ce, and the whole kit really. It was the first one I 'finished' (every mando's kit is an ongoing WIP - forever), and the process of making it kept me focused on something positive during a rough time in my life. Wearing it is super fun! Ibic Manda!

WOW that got lengthy, so sorry! I had ALL the questions when I started, and a lot of the info you need is hard to find or in bits and pieces all over the internet. If you have any other questions, feel free to ask! I can only share my experience, but I have spent a huge amount of 2024 working on these for what that's worth. 🫣

[bitbybitbot]

Stone Computer

Stone computer is one of my most involved and time-consuming projects I have ever made.

The idea and early sketches first came to me around 2020 when I was thinking about what makes our electronic devices feel different from our other objects. Maybe it's a screen, maybe it's a button, maybe it's nothing but a single blinking light and subtle whirring. Any of these indicators can shift an object's perception from something that could be tossed across a room to something that is delicate and thinking; almost treated as alive. I started considering the smallest change needed to turn a thoughtless, solid object into a device, thereby changing how the viewer perceives and interacts with it.

It wouldn't be until four years later in the summer of 2024 when I was finally in a place to start working on this project for real. I was back in my home state of Rhode Island reconnecting with my friends. The previous summer, we had worked on an ambitious project that included teaching ourselves to anodize aluminum and conducting dangerous experiments in our own backyards. I was inspired by the accomplishment of working on and finishing a project like that just through having a vision and an obsessive work ethic, and I wanted to make something new the next summer.

My friend Cooper and I work well together: I study art and design, he studies electrical and computer engineering, and we share a strange abstract wavelength of thinking. It was the perfect pairing to make the stone computer a reality. We started with sketches designing what we wanted our computer to do. We made prototypes and tests as we went starting with the form made of chicken wire, the exterior sculpted from concrete, and finally inserting the electronic components and coding the machine.

The final piece is an interactive sculpture that generates a combination of odd words fed to the machine by Cooper and myself. Pressing the button flashes an LED indicator light and shows a new cryptic message on the LCD display. The organic shape of the concrete rock and the unique words it spits out give the stone computer a personality.

It is a fun to use and completely non-utilitarian interactive sculpture, and it makes me happy every time I look at it.