#Starter for a great blog

[decepticon-no-more]

Not All Scars Heal Easily

Blaze had been driving through the deserts of this weird planet for days without end. He was tired. Exhausted in fact. Over the short period of time he had been on this rock since he crashed, He had seen the creatures that called this world home. "Humans" As they called themselves. He had avoided them as much as possible. And tried to blend in using his vehical form to some success. There was a much larger problem with this world however. Decepticons. And many of them at that. He had seen them, And their great warship. He did not want his former brethren and comrades to find out that there was a deserter here now. So he stayed away from all cybertronians too whenever he came across them. ------- After hours of driving through the dusty plains. Blaze finally spotted something that might be worth checking out. On the cliffside high above in the far distance. He spotted something that looked like a strange structure. Curiosity got the better of the flame trooper. Causing him to drive up the hill to investigate. Upon arrival. Blaze transformed in to his normal form and approached what he had seen. He was a skinny mech. around 15 ft tall. Black in color with purple optics. Before him was a pile of rocks that was not naturally made. Someone seemed to have built it. Unknown to him, This was the memorial shrine of the fallen autobot Cliffjumper. As he kneeled down to get a closer look. He did not notice that he was not alone here. @twcwheeler

[front-facing-pokemon]

[bughusbands]

Hi! could you draw a Emboar? please

I went a LITTLE too hard on this but Emboar is SO WORTH IT. I love these guys so much

[braskide]

formal apology post for disappearing & lurking most of the time as for the last weeks — life has gotten chaotic and unforgiving at times, so i'm trying my best to perservere and use my energy only for things that make me feel content to be alive. i am focusing on my uni work and life obligations at the moment, but i'm still around to write and will possibly pick up activity in a few weeks, when my exams are done. ♥

i appreciate the patience with me and i'm wishing everyone a good february!

[explodcor]

Starter Call for new followers...

"Oi! Next time, bring me a fuckin' challenge, got it?!"

OOC: I'm probably gonna regret this later, but I've noticed a lot of new rp blogs following me so let's do the thing. If you've never had a proper thread with me (or have only done crack related shit with my Bakugou), like this post! Please DO NOT interact with this post if you are not running a rp blog. It clutters the notes.

[turbokline]

heyo. give this post a little boop if you want a lil starter from wesley.

[flovverworks]

wasnt gonna make a post here too since ive alrdy made them on the other blogs but<3 im very thankful to everyone who continues to interact w me despite me always choosing the most niche fandoms.....T_^ im rly touched when ppl listen to me ramble about akira & mhyk, it truly does mean a lot

[angelic-din-mortem]

Like for a proper starter. Stopping at three.

[the-multiversal-shrink]

It’s a shit day in LA.

Open rp starter/warmup piece -

-

Asa has been working at Lux for nearly a month now, she’d dealt with her fair share of unruly customers and drunken flirts, but tonight has been the first time she’d been scared. The trek back towards the station had been fast, she’d nearly broken out into a full sprint twice, anxious to get home. She lets out a sigh as soon as she passes through the turnstiles, heading straight for the ticket booth. The woman in the booth smiles at her, Agnes. She’s on shift every Thursday and Saturday evening, Asa recalls. She’s rather friendly with the elderly woman.

“Agnes,” she greets her. “One to Gotham, same universe, please.” The grey-haired woman nods, tapping away at her computer. Asa waits quietly, the feeling of eyes on the back of her head, the faint jingle of keys and—

It’s dark, the stench of rotting hay and mildew never quite vacating the barn. Her arms burn, eyes blown open; trying to see what’s scratching at the wood, clawing at her legs. Blinding pain shoots through her thigh, she’d scream if she could. It’s her own fault, really, she had forgotten they had teeth.

“—Ms. Oleandis?” Agnes’s voice is loud, her expression worried as Asa shakes her head lightly. The woman’s hand is outstretched, ticket held between her fingers like a cigarette. She takes it from her with a smile, “Sorry about that, Agnes. I’m rather tired today.” The older woman nods, and Asa sets off towards her platform, goosebumps still lingering across her skin.

It’s the first light in days, filtered in through the small crack in the door. Someone’s come in, he’s come in, to bandage the bite marks trailing across her exposed skin. Arms and legs, hands and feet, her throat and her thighs covered in tiny scratches; claws and sharp teeth, small enough that she could have broken them in two had she been able to move. The idea of him being near enough to her for him to touch her sent a shudder through her spine. The gashes could still be seen, it had been a sloppy job; they didn’t even bother to disinfect them. The wounds turning yellow and angry red with infection.

The ride home is nothing great. The train she’d gotten was an old one; the seats were like church pews, not yet traded in for the cushioned ones that were often running along the tracks. She’s so very tired, it feels like sandpaper has taken residence on the inside of her good eye; grating against her corneas with each blink. God, her eye, singular. She’d been trying not to think about it since the incident; an eye is a cheap price for freedom, but it really just seemed like another thing she had lost. Her home, her family, her job, her eye, and, somewhere along the line, her dignity.

Should’ve punched that guy, Caz’ would say when she told him what happened. If she ever told him what happened. For some reason the idea of her baby cousin finding out about something so humiliating sat wrong with her, even though he’d undoubtedly seen Asa go through worse.

Stripped bare and scrubbed harshly from head to toe with lye soap; stinging each oozing sore and scratch badly enough she’d wanted to flinch; the children being subjected to the same ‘kindness’ only a few feet away. Whispered apologies from the staff, muffled cries from her kid’s throats. He watches her, eyes burning holes into her skull; making her spine itch and skin crawl.

She nearly misses the announcement of her stop, hastily leaving the station and making her way to the top of a small apartment building. She still hadn’t saved up enough to get her own place, resorting to sleeping on rooftops between shifts and visits; showering at one of the public pools and brushing her teeth in the train station’s washrooms. Asa’s few things are strewn around the small area; her bag and a blanket sat under a tarp she’d found, while her boots and clothing attempted to dry on one of the chimney stacks.

It’s cold in Gotham, wet and humid and cold; nothing like back there. She picks up her phone, 3:47 am. It’s filled with texts from Os’, she’d promised to meet up with them today,—yesterday— her brain corrected. And that’s it, it’s done. She can feel the heavy lump form in her throat before the sting in her eyes and, god, I shouldn’t be crying right now. The cold stings her eyes and fills her senses with stinging needles of ice as she curls up under her makeshift tent, remembering the words, hands, of that customer. This can’t be what I left for.

[spoocys-glade-of-dreams]

{ Starter for @0fbakerstreet }

*The limbless man was aware that Basil of Baker Street was a talking mouse, but this was nothing strange to Rayman. He knew that Basil was a detective worth his salt and he was in need of his aide. He had just hoped that the mouse would not be intimidated by his size or his strange features.

*He knocked on the door, trying his best to not bang it to hard. When the door was answered, the limbless appeared very worried about something*

"H-hello. I'm looking for Detective Basil of Baker street...? I am in need of some help. My daughter has gone missing while we were sightseeing together here in London. I was told that Basil might be able to help me.

She's not the type to just wander off too far without me being there. I'm worried that something may have happened to her. Where I am from, a lot of bad people want to harm her."

[humanitysought]

NEW ICON NEW ME >:)

[howthesleeplesswander]

@ordonianpumpkin / @bravelink liked this post for a starter!

((AHHH hello old friend! ;u;/ tysm for requesting a starter!))

The trees whispered of a visitor: one clad in hero's garb as green as the forest itself. Their voices broke Spring's tranquil concentration where she'd been growing a bed of sunflowers, and as soon as she heard their description, she knew who it had to be.

Excitement surged through her. With a mental promise to return to the sunflowers at a later time, she abandoned her task and sped off into the forest. Spring had met many people over the ages. She remembered every one of them; holding each friend close to her heart no matter how long ago their bond had formed. Normally she would be more cautious if she were meeting someone new—but such measures weren't necessary for an old friend.

Soon enough she spotted his silhouette through the foliage. "Link!" she called. Her bright grin outshone the sunlight dappling the forest floor. Unhesitatingly, Spring closed the distance between them, her wings enveloping him as she drew him into a hug. "Oh, it has been far too long, my friend! I am so glad to see you visiting the forest again."

Only then realizing she may be smothering him, Spring was quick to let go. Even the sheepishness that crept into her smile couldn't eclipse her delight. "How have you been?"

[cor-onus-grave-est]

*

[mostlysignssomeportents]

The CFPB is genuinely making America better, and they're going HARD

On June 20, I'm keynoting the LOCUS AWARDS in OAKLAND.

Let's take a sec here and notice something genuinely great happening in the US government: the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau's stunning, unbroken streak of major, muscular victories over the forces of corporate corruption, with the backing of the Supreme Court (yes, that Supreme Court), and which is only speeding up!

A little background. The CFPB was created in 2010. It was Elizabeth Warren's brainchild, an institution that was supposed to regulate finance from the perspective of the American public, not the American finance sector. Rather than fighting to "stabilize" the financial sector (the mission that led to Obama taking his advisor Timothy Geithner's advice to permit the foreclosure crisis to continue in order to "foam the runways" for the banks), the Bureau would fight to defend us from bankers.

The CFPB got off to a rocky start, with challenges to the unique system of long-term leadership appointments meant to depoliticize the office, as well as the sudden resignation of its inaugural boss, who broke his promise to see his term through in order to launch an unsuccessful bid for political office.

But after the 2020 election, the Bureau came into its own, when Biden poached Rohit Chopra from the FTC and put him in charge. Chopra went on a tear, taking on landlords who violated the covid eviction moratorium:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/04/20/euthanize-rentier-enablers/#cfpb

Then banning payday lenders' scummiest tactics:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/01/29/planned-obsolescence/#academic-fraud

Then striking at one of fintech's most predatory grifts, the "earned wage access" hustle:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/05/01/usury/#tech-exceptionalism

Then closing the loophole that let credit reporting bureaus (like Equifax, who doxed every single American in a spectacular 2019 breach) avoid regulation by creating data brokerage divisions and claiming they weren't part of the regulated activity of credit reporting:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/08/16/the-second-best-time-is-now/#the-point-of-a-system-is-what-it-does

Chopra went on to promise to ban data-brokers altogether:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/04/13/goulash/#material-misstatement

Then he banned comparison shopping sites where you go to find the best bank accounts and credit cards from accepting bribes and putting more expensive options at the top of the list. Instead, he's requiring banks to send the CFPB regular, accurate lists of all their charges, and standing up a federal operated comparison shopping site that gives only accurate and honest rankings. Finally, he's made an interoperability rule requiring banks to let you transfer to another institution with one click, just like you change phone carriers. That means you can search an honest site to find the best deal on your banking, and then, with a single click, transfer your accounts, your account history, your payees, and all your other banking data to that new bank:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/10/21/let-my-dollars-go/#personal-financial-data-rights

Somewhere in there, big business got scared. They cooked up a legal theory declaring the CFPB's funding mechanism to be unconstitutional and got the case fast-tracked to the Supreme Court, in a bid to put Chopra and the CFPB permanently out of business. Instead, the Supremes – these Supremes! – upheld the CFPB's funding mechanism in a 7-2 ruling:

https://www.scotusblog.com/2024/05/supreme-court-lets-cfpb-funding-stand/

That ruling was a starter pistol for Chopra and the Bureau. Maybe it seemed like they were taking big swings before, but it turns out all that was just a warmup. Last week on The American Prospect, Robert Kuttner rounded up all the stuff the Bureau is kicking off:

https://prospect.org/blogs-and-newsletters/tap/2024-06-07-window-on-corporate-deceptions/

First: regulating Buy Now, Pay Later companies (think: Klarna) as credit-card companies, with all the requirements for disclosure and interest rate caps dictated by the Truth In Lending Act:

https://www.skadden.com/insights/publications/2024/06/cfpb-applies-credit-card-rules

Next: creating a registry of habitual corporate criminals. This rogues gallery will make it harder for other agencies – like the DOJ – and state Attorneys General to offer bullshit "delayed prosecution agreements" to companies that compulsively rip us off:

https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/newsroom/cfpb-creates-registry-to-detect-corporate-repeat-offenders/

Then there's the rule against "fine print deception" – which is when the fine print in a contract lies to you about your rights, like when a mortgage lender forces you waive a right you can't actually waive, or car lenders that make you waive your bankruptcy rights, which, again, you can't waive:

https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/newsroom/cfpb-warns-against-deception-in-contract-fine-print/

As Kuttner writes, the common thread running through all these orders is that they ban deceptive practices – they make it illegal for companies to steal from us by lying to us. Especially in these dying days of class action suits – rapidly becoming obsolete thanks to "mandatory arbitration waivers" that make you sign away your right to join a class action – agencies like the CFPB are our only hope of punishing companies that lie to us to steal from us.

There's a lot of bad stuff going on in the world right now, and much of it – including an active genocide – is coming from the Biden White House.

But there are people in the Biden Administration who care about the American people and who are effective and committed fighters who have our back. What's more, they're winning. That doesn't make all the bad news go away, but sometimes it feels good to take a moment and take the W.

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/06/10/getting-things-done/#deliverism

[decolonize-the-everything]

Everyone asks what I read and truth be told I learned a lot of politics through experience and listening to Black revolutionaries.

There is nothing- nothing- that I say on my blog that Malcom X or James Baldwin or Frantz Fanon or Thomas Sankara or Frederick Douglass didn't say first (and much more eloquently)

Further, their words have given me the tools to think critically about not just my place, but everyone else's and what we owe each other.

I myself, wouldn't have a Lot of the politics I do had I not been exposed to the ideas they talked about with such knowledge and experience. Whether it was by following activists or looking up things up or learning about them myself, they're influential and I would even say foundational to decolonization and dismantling white supremacy.

My usual recs are Wretched of the Earth and Braiding Sweetgrass, but those are just starters since people just usually ask where to begin.

So I wanted to make this post and for them to be Very Much credited for the following I have and my politics since I don't often mention them.

For example, I talk a lot about how the comfort of the privileged is an obstacle that stems directly from their privilege. How libs who only conditionally support peaceful protests don't understand what's necessary; that challenging the status quo can't be done comfortably and it's never been "peaceful" for the oppressing classes. How it's detrimental to progress to compromise on how we fight for our rights and to have been liberals telling us we demand too much.

Frederick Douglass:

Frantz Fanon:

Privileges multiply and corruption triumphs…Today the vultures are too numerous and too voracious in proportion to the lean spoils of the national wealth. The party, a true instrument of power in the hands of the bourgeoisie, reinforces the machine, and ensures that the people are hemmed in and immobilised.

Thomas Sankara:

Malcom X:

James Baldwin:

In a way, I owe the invitation to the incredible, abysmal, and really cowardly obtuseness of white liberals. Whether in private debate or in public, any attempt I made to explain how the Black Muslim movement came about, and how it has achieved such force, was met with a blankness that revealed the little connection that the liberals' attitudes have with their perceptions or their lives, or even their knowledge—revealed, in fact, that they could deal with the Negro as a symbol or a victim but had no sense of him as a man.

Bonus MLK Jr quote:

Over the last few years many Negroes have felt that their most troublesome adversary was not the obvious bigot of the Ku Klux Klan or the John Birch Society, but the white liberal who is more devoted to “order” than to justice, who prefers tranquillity to equality. In a sense the white liberal has been victimized with some of the same ambivalence that has been a constant part of our national heritage. Even in areas where liberals have great influence— labor unions, schools, churches and politics—the situation of the Negro is not much better than in areas where they are not dominant. This is why many liberals have fallen into the trap of seeing integration in merely aesthetic terms, where a token number of Negroes adds color to a white-dominated power structure."

Whether your medium is a PDF, a book, movie, clips, quotes, podcast, whatever. However you digest info easiest: learn about them and their words. Think about them. Talk about it and process it with friends.

That's how you shape your politics to be similar to the ones you find on my blog.

[celestialtarot11]

Astrology Observations 🤍✨

Hi friends! Welcome back to another post 💅🏻 today we’ll be looking at astro observations! Please like, comment and reblog to help this blog grow ✨

Aries + Taurus pairing as friends/couple are the show stoppers. They draw attention wherever they go, there’s so much fire between them. Although Taurus is an Earth sign, Taurus does enjoy the finer things in life and passion! Aries helps to bring the heat in the connection and the two have a lot in common. Aries is headstrong, Taurus is as well. Both are self starters and independent. Both know what they want (taurus is a fixed sign) and both know what it takes to create + sustain it.

Aquarius sun experienced being the quiet one in group settings, especially if they were with people they didn’t necessarily understand or get along with. Its not that they aren’t smart, or capable of human interaction. They’re actually great at it, they just preserve their energy for better people/interactions.

Gemini’s love to story tell and embellish their stories! They love adding jokes, flare, and drama to their stories. They’re a bit like Leo-great at storytelling and communicating! Both Leo and Gemini love to entertain 🤍✨

Transits in your 4th house-family will require your attention more, and specifically the Mother could be around a lot more. Physically, emotionally and mentally even if you may not have a great connection. She may try to wiggle her way in your life during these 4th house transits. If you work with ancestors, they will be sending you dreams and messages day to day even more than usual. Expect the things that you need to liberate yourself from will come up in dreams, or day to day. Dreaming of your childhood for example can be triggering to some, whether the dream was good or bad.

Sagittarius are often quiet but have a lot to say when in a proper group setting. They think a lot of the world around them, and I notice they like to be in situations where they can mansplain 🤣 but offering advice and mediating conversations is their specialty. They’re blunt, honest, and get to the point.

Leo women often walk with a lot of respect, flare and spirit. Their head is held high.

Cancer women love going out and love staying home! They have their homebody moments too 💅🏻 cancers love a good time! And are not stuck in their shell as ya’ll may think

Cancer women may also be the type to have fairy tattoos, or tattoos that are delicate. They have tattoos that have a whimsical charm to them, even if it may be considered “dark.” There is an ethereal vibe to it!

Virgo women love planning, decorating and getting family together! Or who they consider family. They love setting the mood, setting the atmosphere, environment. They would be great party planners/wedding planners!

Pisces women may be into cars 👀

Scorpio moon women may get into nursing at some point or considered studying that!

Gemini women may love doing their own nails, and being proud of their art! They love to show off anything that expresses their skill.

Gemini Venus women want to speak different languages but may get frustrated at the effort required 😂 as a gemini venus myself yes

Capricorn moon women may enjoy having a minimalistic setup in their room, colors that are light and simple, but with a dash of darkness or vivid color! They love creating balance in their room and have an eye for intensity through detail

Leo rising commands all the attention in the room for themselves. But I’ve noticed if a Leo rising is not feeling confident in themselves, they can come across as arrogant, and self absorbed. It’s because part of them needs their own attention and space, but the native isn’t realizing that. Or the native doesn’t know how to meet their needs.

Thank you all for being here! I really appreciate it 🥹💗 Please enjoy the little observations I put together! Feel free to like comment and reblog ✨

Paid Readings 💗✨