#and I think that should be a problem

[geeky-nightphilosopher]

I'm not gonna lie, my comfort characters definitely escalated- and yet stayed the same...

Like; it went FROM;

Robin Hood, Pevensive Family, Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase, and Thalia Grace, Primrose Everdeen, Peeta Mellark, Steve Rogers, and Wolverine

TO;

Robin Hood, Bucky Barnes, Eliot Spencer, Alex Walker, Peter Parker, Dick Grayson, Barry Allen, Din Djarin, Kate Bishop, and Yelena.

[creekfiend]

something that drives me insane on a relatively regular basis as a body jewelry understander is talking to people who have sensitive skin who are like "oh well I just can't wear any earrings without my ears getting inflamed" and I say "well what have you tried" and they say "well I've tried sterling silver and I've tried gold..." and it's like. ok. I don't know how gold and sterling somehow got spun by the jewelry industry as being especially good for sensitive skin but whenever I'm like "well have you tried implant grade titanium" they're always like "no....... but I've tried sterling silver... and it didn't work ..." like. I don't know how this narrative about sterling silver somehow got so strong but when they put pins in your fucking legs when you snap your leg in half are those pins made of sterling silver or are they made of implant grade titanium or surgical steel????????? HELLO. HI. YOU MIGHT BENEFIT FROM TRYING IMPLANT GRADE TITANIUM I AM JUST SAYING

[cryptocism]

big fan of daniel going completely off the rails while shouting "im nORMAL i am NORMAL im A NORMAL MAN" the whole time

i got commissioned to do another excerpt from the Devil's Minion chapter of Queen of the Damned and it was So Much Fun these two are insane

chapter excerpt under the cut:

[qoldenskies]

i think its so funny when people take the way donnie acts at face value even though its a horrible lie because he's a horrible liar, while understanding leo is bullshitting very well despite him actually being GOOD at bullshitting. many such cases

[ruporas]

how to guide your mossball (ID in alt)

[forgettable-au]

FORGETTABLE-AU (page 82-85)

THAT LAZYBONES!!

[BEGINNING] [PREVIOUS] [CONTINUE]

[screambirdscreaming]

Something that peeves me whenever I see another post going around with some variation on "autistic people take things literally which means we are the only people who communicate Clearly and Directly" is that - for any given statement, there is not one singular, agreed on, universal Literal Interpretation. If there was, none of this would be a problem!

The nature of language is that there's always some degree of interpretability. Words have several different meanings, often overlapping, and there's nuance of context, cultural references, and so on.

Faced with a statement, most people will quickly come up with an interpretation that to them makes the most sense. But if you asked a roomful of people to explain in detail their interpretations, everyone's would probably be a little different, even for a pretty simple statement. Regardless of whether those people are autistic! Everyone conceptualizes the world a little differently, and everyone has a unique personal history of all the language they've encountered, and these things effect our interpretations.

In order for communication to be workable, given this slosh in interpretability, there's another couple of processes that go on. As conversation goes on, people reassess if their initial interpretation matches up with additional context. If it doesn't, they revise it, or ask clarifying questions. And on the flipside of this process, the other person in conversation is tracking if your reactions make sense with *their* understanding of what they're trying to convey to you, and offering context or rephrasing things if it seems you're out of alignment.

These processes are social skillsets that are, like most social skillsets, not ever directly articulated or explained. Many people are bad at one or both. Sometimes you encounter someone who is really, notably good at it - the vaunted "good listener", who puts in the effort to really understand what you're trying to say, or that really excellent teacher who engages with you back and forth until you really get it. But a lot of the time, it's a sort of passive social friction - people just not getting each other.

Sometimes, you encounter someone whose brain works so much like yours that talking to them feels almost effortless - you just get each other. But that's a pretty rare occurrence for anyone. More often, as you get to know someone, you start to understand the shape of the way they interpret things and learn to account for it, so over time it's easier to make sense to each other.

It's honestly not uncommon in society for people to aggregate in groups of people who interpret things similarly, and who are thus easier to talk to, rather than actually building the skills of communicating across interpretation gaps. Particularly egregious are those groups of men who talk about Women as an incomprehensible monolith, but it turns up to a greater or lesser degree on a lot of levels.

I suspect this is the root of a lot of parenting problems - people who have never built this communication skillset, and relied on choosing friends who make sense to them without a lot of effort, and who are then totally unprepared to interact with a child who interprets things in ways they don't expect.

Obviously I can't speak to The Universal Typical Experience, not least because it doesn't exist. But in general I would posit that:

Most people, give or take a few assholes, are not trying to say things that are confusing. Most people think they are communicating clearly, because the first interpretation *they* would come up with on hearing one of their own sentences is the correct interpretation.

Many people are not very good at accounting for different ways people could interpret things they're saying. However, it is normal and polite social behavior to be somewhat flexible about this and forgiving of misunderstandings. If people are being shitty to you about not understanding them, they are assholes. And I wouldn't assume that the rest of the communication they have with everyone else they know goes totally smoothly for them.

I suspect there is a bit of an unfortunate feedback loop, where people have bad experiences when someone gets mad at them for not getting something, and learn to hide when they're confused. Which then leads to larger, more complicated misunderstandings, which other different people get upset at them about, because those people think they should have asked for clarification in the first place.

Truly you can't win with everyone. No one can win with everyone. There is no monolith of "neurotypical communication" which resolves all these contradictions - all those people you're lumping in together under "neurotypical" have just as much trouble with each other.

[jodoesnew]

On the other end

A small dcaXy/n idea I had

Premis: Y/N works part time in the daycare but doesn't really interact with the dca which doesn't mean the dca didn't notice them there.

Start of the story

Y/N gets messages from an unknown number and decides to answer

They start messaging thinking that they don't know each other at all

They notice that the tone and wording in the messages switches completely throughout the day but get used to it way too fast

Y/N's life is a complete mess right now so Unknown is a pleasant distraction

They never tell each other their real names but use nicknames instead

Both share how they feel often and text about life and just anything that they think of

Someday y/n just calls their unknown friend to share some great news because they have no one else they want to share it with

They don't pick up but call back later

A male voice they have never heard answers. A pleasant one. They talk for hours.

But the voice tells them to only call at night bc he can't talk on the phone while working. But texting is fine

Y/N falls in love over late night phone calls and long text convos

They ask if they could meet up and hang out

He doesn't answer

The connection goes silent

The last thing he sent is "I'm so sorry. But I can't" written only a few minutes after their question (in the middle of the day)

Hours go by and they get no answer from him anymore

Hurt and worried Y/N is in a daze of crying and starring at nothing for the rest of the week

This is when Y/N misses their break bc they stayed in the daycare closet to cry

As they step out the daycare is dark sth that Y/N was never there to see

Then they hear it. The voice of the person they love singing from where the kids are sleeping.

Y/N stumbles through the dark until they reach the kids and lock eyes with the daycare attendant

Moon goes quiet and his eyes betray him and show his shock

Y/N is stunned

"It's you?"

Awkward

P2, P3

[includedisco]

Importance of writing the self-indulgent story that you do want to write in exactly the way you want to write it

You won't find anything weird about being your own story's biggest fan. You wrote it in a way that's exactly what you envision the characters being. So you'll click on that thing without reservation or shame, enjoy the hell out of it and pat yourself on the back each time.

Your own story will be your absolute favorite in the world because it'll be perfect for YOU.

Why wait impatiently and frustratedly for a different author to write your fantasy for you? And no DON'T you dare say it's because that other writer is better than you.

No writer is perfect. We can all learn, improve and get better. If you have an idea in your mind, go learn how to bring it to life. Ask other authors, read other books/fanfics, watch videos on writing tips etc.

But stay away from AI. That shit is unforgivable.

Loving one's own work as a writer is tough but once you do get there, I believe that's the true meaning of self love for a writer.

[buddieroommates]

I know I KNOW in my BONES that tommy is eventually going to leave after helping buck realize that eddie's the one he's in love with but god I hope we get at least a couple more episodes of buck and tommy together with tommy showing buck everything he's been missing. including more kisses. maybe even a make-out session. at the very least some implied fade out sex. show me buck getting to bask in this glow for a while longer before it gets complicated and hard to breathe again.

[spookberry]

Canonically Danny would do anything a pretty girl asked him to do if she bat her eyes at him enough

(Previous)

[odinsblog]

The crew of a massive container ship that crashed into the Francis Scott Key bridge in Baltimore early Tuesday warned of power issues before the collision, which caused the bridge to collapse into the frigid Patapsco River, officials said.

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said the warning from the ship’s crew likely saved lives.

“We’re thankful that between the mayday and the collapse, that we had officials who were able to begin to stop the flow of traffic so more cars were not on the bridge,” Moore said. He called those officials heroes.

Moore noted that the bridge was up to code at the time of the collapse. He said the collapse was a “shocking and heartbreaking” event for the people of Maryland who have used the bridge for 47 years.

(continue reading)

[poolseason]

[NINJAGELION AU]

i've had this Ninjago x Evangelion/Mecha crossover au brewing in my head for years now, felt like revisiting it

Long post under the cut: Backstories, design notes and character lore

Mechs:

Unit-01 (WIP) : Lloyd's mech, supposed to resemble an Oni. It's primarily a dark purple with glowing green panels and orange accents, with 2 horn like antannae. It's 4 eyes are actually an LCD display. Unit-01's color scheme the same as from the source material, bc purple green and gold are plot relevant colors for Lloyd specifically. The weapons this unit uses are short-swords, plasma blasters, and it's bare fists(lol). This mech is prone to going berserk a lot, possibly due to it's pilot's mental instability.

(In NGE, the mech's are possessed by a spirit of their parents or loved ones, I'm indecisive on if Garmadon is the ghost in Lloyd's mech or Misako. Last time I was thinking about this au, Misako was possessing it, but i'm sort of leaning towards Garmadon again. idk idk.....)

Unit-02 (WIP): Built to resemble a samurai with dragon like elements that glow red. This mech is built for but land and undersea combat, making it the most versatile machine on the force. It's equipped with a retractable sword and an acid blaster. It's possessed by a former scientist named Nyad.

Pilots (and Cole):

Cole is a captain, (looking to be promoted to major) and is the head of the New Ninjago City base's combat division. He sort of a silly dude and while he takes his job really seriously, he's also prone to unprofessionalism. He personally oversees the pilots training and coaches them during fights. When Commander Garmadon and Assistant Head Wu refuse to take Lloyd in when he arrives at NNC, Cole decides to take the kid in himself and be the parental figure he doesn't have. Cole's got a complicated relationship with his own family, especially after his mother died saving him the Second Impact 20 years ago, now he vows to destroy all the darkness monsters that are invading.

Zane is sort of a mysterious guy. He's an artifical lifeform created specifically to pilot any mech but he usually fights in the prototype, Unit-00. Unit-01 doesn't seem to like him, and never responds to him. His suit is mostly grayscale, white armor, and light blue accents. His neural interface comes with a visor to help him see better. His primary relationships are Cole, Dr Pixal Borg, who is his personal doctor and (almost) confidant, Wu, who he has a father-son esque relationship with, and Lloyd his first true friend. He doesn't see much value in himself because he can always be replaced with a different copy, but his time with his friends starts to teach him otherwise

Nya and her supervising officer Kai are from Ignacia and joined the NINJA-go battle mech program through their connection with their parents, who were officers of the organization. But after a terrible accident following the Second Impact, they were left orphaned. Kai was too old to qualify as a pilot, but Nya was the perfect candidate. She began training at age 13, and became the strongest fighter on the force. Now at nineteen, the darkness monsters are now attacking and she (and her brother) are transferred to the New Ninjago City base, which seems to be the epicenter of the attacks, and now the the former solo-flyer has to learn to be a part of a team. She's a bit arrogant and prickly and a kindhearted friend to the other pilots, and she's got a bit of a crush on Junior Technician Jay Walker. Nya's suit design is definitely the most personalized primarily blue with grey, and darker blue and red accents with white armor, actually she ended looking a little like D.Va lol.

Lloyd, is the youngest pilot on the team now, but he's still a minor so he has to deal with the joys of school alongside his new life as a mech fighter. Having been unexpectedly summoned to Ninjago City by his estranged Uncle Wu and pressured into fighting the invading monster, Lloyd is apprehensive about his new double life, but this responsibility bestowed on him now means he now has friends and people who care about him, a far cry from the abusive boarding school he was abandoned at. Lloyd's a moody kid, with some anger issues and unresolved trauma at something terrible he witnessed when he was a young child, but he's also an empathetic kid who's willing to help everyone he meets. Lloyd has a sibling like rivalry with Nya, big brother(teetering on fatherly) relationship with Cole and Kai, a crush on the girl from school who punched him Akita, and really strained relationship with his parents and uncle. Beyond that he has a friendship with his mysterious colleague Zane that he doesn't really understand. Lloyd's suit is the most simple of the pilot suits, mostly green with white armor and gold accents. He didn't really think too much about it, other than asking Jay to make it green. His neural interface is also pretty simple, since he has an bizarrely high natural sync rate with his mech, which resemble little horns.

MISC Lore:

The second impact was an event where humanity fucked around and found out on the Dark Island and and entity called the Overlord awakened from hibernation, causing a near apocalypse that left Ninjago in an eternal heatwave. 20 years later these dragon-like monsters have started attacking trying to get to something being held deep below Ninjago City (source dragon? FSM as a dragon? firstbourne?? some kind of Dragon is under the base)

Zane promised Lloyd that he'll bring snowy winters back for him, and even though Lloyd thinks that was a rare moment of cheesiness from his friend, little did he know that Zane was going to cause an Ice Age during the climax.

Only people born after the second impact are viable candidates to pilot the NINJA mechs. When Kai learned of this he was furious that he couldn't be the one to avenge his family, and had to watch his sister fight and train instead. But in spite of his anger he made it a personal mission to get power in the organization and uncover the conspiracy behind the Second Impact and the attacking monsters.

Unit-00 is a prototype mech and isn't equipped for most combat scenarios, so Zane is primarily a long-range fighter and sniper. Zane might be replaceable to the force but Unit-00 isn't. Unit-00 was originally designed by Dr. Julien, but the man went mad and under mysterious circumstances, he was found dead inside it's entry plug alongside Zane's original iteration, Echo. After that incident, testing began on it, the original test pilot was a 24 year old, Morro, who was personally recruited by Wu, but the synchronization failed and disaster struck again, ending with Unit-00 going berserk, and another casualty. A similar incident happened with Zane, and later Lloyd, though they survive. Wu just needs to learn that Unit-00 really hates new pilots, and Zane is the only successful pilot for it.

Unit-01 is also a very testy machine, it only likes Lloyd, and goes berserk if it feels that Lloyd is in danger. Otherwise it doesn't respond to anyone else.

Cole and Kai might have hooked up in grad school, no one really knows for certain.

Pixal is the second Borg to join the organization, her father Cyrus Borg was one of the original researchers, and the person who designed the Geofront system that allowed the inhabited buildings in New Ninjago City to safely go underground and become a fortress on the surface. Pixal is more interested in the actual NINJA mechs and combat division research more than the civilian safety r&d, and she becomes the Head Scientist by the time the story begins.

Pixal the second in command to Cole, and her assistant is 23 year old genius Jay Walker, fresh out of an engineering degree and landed himself in the most insane secret government organization. Skylor and Dareth are the two other lead technicians. But Dareth's not too amazing at his job, admittedly.

The NINJA mechs aren't just machines,, they're enormous building sized cyborgs, and are actually alive creatures being held under armor. Unit-00 and 02 are cloned only from the dragon held under the Ninjago City base, but Unit-01 is cloned from the Overlord and the Dragon, making it a hybrid.

Throughout the story Cole and Kai begin to uncover a conspiracy orchestrated by the Commander and (reluctant accomplice Wu) and a mysterious council, with plans to destroy to world and rewrite reality, and for some reason Zane and Lloyd are at the center of it.

[irenespring]

Today I would like to shout out that one random Twitter person who made up that JD Vance bragged about fucking a couch.

Imagine making a random shitpost and less than two months later your joke is being used by a major party nominee for Vice President on live television at his introduction rally, earning him thunderous applause.

That poster must be having quite the experience.

[sansculottides]

pisses me off to no end when people on reddit or whatever complain that the show wouldve been better off without the tuunbaq.....did we watch the same show? the tuunbaq is everything, it held everything together. the tuunbaq is the main transformative element of the terror. the tuunbaq elevates the text beyond mere historical fact and lets it say something about the expedition's broader context of imperialism. it hunted the british men who were trampling on its home as a mere stopover, a side casualty, to finding the northwest passage (for, you know, "trade with china" after britain beat china into submission after the imperialist opium war). silna couldnt complete a proper ritual with it because of the british men - just as british colonizers have historically intruded and disrupted the practice of indigenous culture. and in the end the tuunbaq dies, after all the injuries it's taken from the british over the course of 10 episodes and finally chokes to death on the worst of them. because there's no escaping the reality of colonial history, and there is especially no fantastical escape for the colonizer. there's no proper way for us to move forward otherwise.

good historical fiction doesnt have to limit itself to accuracy - it needs empathy to draw out meanings in history using literary craft. thats what the tuunbaq means to me.... if you wanted a straight depiction of historical record, just go watch a documentary.. TUUNBAQ DENIERS DNI

[charmwasjess]

I actually love the characterization that while Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan truly do love each other very much and end up having a successful working partnership, they are SUCH different people, and actually, really find each other fucking annoying when you get right down to it, while still caring deeply about each other. Qui-Gon is having a stratosphere-level theoretical philosophical conversation in his head while Obi-Wan is so present and practical and funny, and then Qui-Gon's reply when he snaps out of it is like "....stay in the moment, Obi-Wan." Live Obi-Wan Reaction Face: >:o

I think about two scenes I love in Phantom Menace where the film is establishing Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan's dynamic. Obi-Wan's great moment after the, uh, first attempt on their lives "you were right about one thing, Master - the negotiations were short" which is like, actually a genuinely funny observation? Qui-Gon's reaction to this? Nonexistent. We do not get a shot of Qui-Gon's expression, not even an off-camera Liam Neeson dry reluctant chuckle. NOTHING. Cut scene. Sure, this could be the fault of the scene transition, but I don't think anyone watching the scene was under the impression that Qui-Gon bellylaughed and said "good one, Padawan!" The mood is much more of Qui-Gon shaking his head, not dignifying the line with a response.

The other is Qui-Gon's "there's always a bigger fish" line after they've nearly died in another horrific way under the Naboo planet core, a scene that gives me a powerful new kind of combination of fatal levels of thalassophobia-claustrophobia. It could have easily been a "business on Cato Neimoidia" callback reference to some offscreen history together, but no. Qui-Gon just says it, incomprehensibly, while Obi-Wan scowls silently at the controls. And yet, Qui-Gon sounds contentedly amused. It's so fucking hilarious to me. He said that line for the benefit of one person in that ship: him, and he likes it.

They don't get each other's jokes, and yet, I think it's telling that they're both still making them after what, 12 years of Master Padawan partnership. They are both constantly thinking like “what are you TALKING about?” about the other one's core qualities. They both think their miscommunications are the other’s fault. It's incredibly good characterization to me, and it makes them so realistic.