#and I don’t want them to resent me

[sunflowervol69]

in an awkward professional situationnnnnnn😂

[shugthedug]

obsessed with your tags under the @marisatomay 's magnolia ask. please, for the love of god, bring the master into this

Quite a widely held belief, and certainly predominant amongst press at the time of its release, is that the master was PTA ‘taking on’ Scientology, creating headlines of a rift in his relationship with Tom Cruise. He notably got less patient in his responses to these questions as the promotion for the film went on, and understandably so. Firstly, to read the master as a film about Scientology in the way that consensus would want there to be such a film (critical, ridiculing, bizarre) is a very reductive way of approaching it. The master uses aspects of Scientology, particularly dianetics, to delve into the romantic wistfulness of a post world war II America that found itself in an intensely unsettled and anxious state where the culture leaned towards dreaming and longing, for other times and other places. Dianetics basic concept of transportive power, of past lives and earned wisdom and second chances, is employed powerfully in the film to create an almost transcendent bond between Freddie and Dodds that is thematically in keeping with a certain post war psyche, a bond that is ever moving and multiplicitous: the fulfilment of an absent father figure, the purposeful and inevitable entanglement of souls, wrestling between pressure and power, vulnerability and manipulation, cruelty and healing, love and harm. Its inclusion was a device within which a story could unfold. Questions searching for the journalistic TNT of ‘PTA wants to expose Scientology!’ betrayed that the questioner had probably not understood the film.

But also: The Master is a work of great empathy. In that way, it aligns beautifully with magnolia. It’s not the fanged, critical expose of a cult that many hoped it would be. Instead, it demonstrates a compassion and respect towards both Freddie and Dodds, but particularly Freddie, that derails the tabloid friendly notion of PTA creating something with intent to shame, embarrass, mock or belittle, especially someone he knew personally and had shared a notably brilliant creative experience with. Freddie is taken quite seriously as someone exposed to brutality who reverts to states of animalism, someone who can neither function within nor be tolerated by society. His volatility exiles him from the peace he went to war for, his vulnerability to an external promise of freedom and purpose is clear as a bell. How the cause ingratiates itself to him, the resultant play of power between his need for Dodds attention and Dodds need for Freddie’s independent will, and the genuine bond they develop within Dodds unconscionably harmful structure built to maintain his own power and influence, displays a nuanced and careful understanding as to why people may become victim to cults, why they may perpetrate that harm upon others, and why they may fail to see it as harmful upon themselves. Ultimately, people will contort themselves into painful and twisted shapes in an effort to avoid suffering. It’s a human reflex. The film is full of that humanity, without the moral condemnation many would have sought from it. It’s not really about the structure of the cult, but the way two men find each other within it.

The response to the master, the general willingness for it to have been a direct hit against the ghost of L Ron Hubbard and the papers favourite cult freak tom ‘it’s illegal to look him in the eye’ cruise, is revealing, I think, of a tendency to other those within cults in a way that undermines their intelligence, morality, and personhood instead of recognising that all of these things can be suppressed if a person is vulnerable enough in a way that a cult can target, manipulate, and exploit. It also smacks of not caring about what PTA wanted to say, preferring instead to fabricate ill feeling and contention that likely never existed. I don’t know how you can watch Magnolia - which reminds you if nothing else that Cruise and PTA have a very human relationship to pain and trauma - then the master, with its incredible understanding of pain and trauma, and go for the read that so many people wanted to make that the master was a stealth attack. When applied against the film PTA made, it’s ridiculously off the mark.

[calloohly]

heeheehee

[fullparttime-writer]

Goodbye, Mother (For Now)

Another summer has passed, and as Helios makes his slow descent, the time has come for mother and daughter to say goodbye. They have been doing this for thousands of years, and yet it has never gotten easier for either of them.

“You will be okay, Mother?” the Queen of the Underworld asks as she looks at her fellow goddess. Demeter looks at her with a side smile, reaching out a hand to brush a cheek.

“Yes, my daughter, I shall be okay.” Even as she says her words, the air around them has gained a noticeable chill, reminiscent of the cold loneliness a mother feels without her child. “I know you shall return safely next year. For now, you must fulfil your duty in the Underworld.”

Persephone smiles. “Of course I shall return, Mother. Nothing could ever stop that, and if Hades ever tried, you know damn well I can overpower him.” This gets a laugh out of Demeter as the ground starts to shake beneath them, the earth itself forming into the shape of a man.

“I heard my name?” The older-looking God grins as he approaches Persephone, who turns to face him. His smile turns more gentle as he brushes a strand of hair behind her ear. “Are you ready, my love? You’ve said your goodbye?”

The Queen nods. “Yes, Lord Hades. I am ready to take my seat by your side once more.”

Hades nods respectfully to Demeter, who returns the gesture as she watches the couple sink back into the Earth which she herself fertilises. The leaves on the trees around her begin to die.

It would never get easier for any of them. Demeter mourning the loss of her daughter for six months with no choice but to watch as she returns with her husband, the decaying plants and biting winds reflecting her mood; Hades losing his wife for six months, forced to rule without her by his side to comfort him and keep him warm; and Persephone, Persephone, Persephone. A woman torn between two worlds, duty to her mother and duty to her husband. And what, she thinks, of her duty to herself?

[humanransome-note]

My weekend was very productive!

Got a proper cleaner for the porch, which has black algae and is very much a slipping hazard in the rain, went to Home Depot and got a new hose and some concrete stepping stones. Dropped off 7 boxes of various sizes (all larger than a shoe box) at a charity shop, they’d been sitting in the hallway for a month at that point.

Then today, I moved some furniture and cleared up some space so the pest control guy has room to work on Wednesday.

Tomorrow I need to scrub the floor that was under the furniture, because the furniture was raised, and there have been 5 different cats in this house, so ancient hairballs have been discovered.

Now, the question is. Has this wave of activity been facilitated because the pest guy comes on Wednesday, and the looming deadline tops off my meds with extra adrenaline and I actually need a stronger dose/prescription on the regular?

Or, do I just have so much decision making anxiety that I spend most of my days in a web of long term decision paralysis, because I constantly feel like whatever choice I make in regards to my life will be massive and irreversible, so playing farming/management sims soothes and distracts me. But having clear cut goals with obviously known ends I can handle.

Or both!

Call in now to vote!!!

[crowlore]

no, dragon age 2 is not the best dragon age game. but it’s also not the worst. and most importantly, it is my favorite.

[villainsidestep]

v3 fawn ur sooo normal

[f1-stuff]

any updates on when you’ll be able to update the 2024 Chronicles on ao3? No pressure! So much has happened this season so I’d love to see how you incorporate it into the charlos universe

Hi! My plan this year was to not do a chapter for every race like I have in the past. I drafted a chapter for Australia, but then life got in the way and my inspiration kind of passed for it.

I think it’s been a little hard for me this season to come up with fresh ideas for the fic that don’t feel like dwelling on the same things as has already been gone over. I want there to be an evolution for Charles and Carlos, but I just haven’t found the direction I want to go this season yet…

[crybaby-bkg]

I fucking hate confrontation with a burning passion omg >:(

[neofelis----nebulosa]

me: warrior cats isnt really a main interest for me anymore

me at 11:00 pm:

[heartslobbf]

rgu girlies vs actually thinking about touga’s character for .2 seconds

[sab-teraa]

[ignore]

[sayaratyriea]

i am craving Creative Activity so badly but law school sucked away my spoons to write by myself… so i’m reliant on friends and rp… and all my friends want to do is play overwatch (which i don’t play and don’t want to) or watch tv shows which is fundamentally less interesting and does not scratch the itch….. the adhd gremlins are shredding my skull from the inside out at this point :( send help

[pepprs]

the mortifying ordeal of today being a potluck day.

[ryderdire]

If I fucking survive highshcool I should get like idk a dinky little trophy or somthing