#and having that happen over and over is. discouraging

[corseque]

clair obscur spoilers, thinking about Alicia from a strange and unpopular angle

my pretty firm belief is that because Verso and Alicia could not figure out who were the actual favorite children were, it means Aline and Renoir were actually surprisingly good and successful at not showing favoritism to their children. I firmly believe that if Alicia was the one who had died, Aline would have reacted the same way. She will always be her princess.

I keep thinking about the small painting that Alicia painted that went on the wall, and there are several details about it that make even that a not-straightforward thing to me.

the painting is actually not that small. It's smaller than the others, but it's still a full canvas. It's just the others are much bigger. This actually seems to me like another sign of Alicia's lack of ambition, because even if it wasn't the best painting, why didn't she try to paint something like the size of Verso's painting? Why did Alicia START small?

Alicia never painted anything into Verso's canvas as a child - at least, not that we are told about. She didn't even play with them except occasionally enough that Monoco would recognize her. She really had no interest in painting for fun or for expression.

Alicia has so little interest in and practice at painting that Painted Verso had to teach Maelle how to do it........... and Alicia could have painted miracles if she wanted at any point, she just... didn't even know how

Like, I fully believe that Aline was stern and discouraging and overbearing in some way and perhaps the pressure and comparisons with Clea's perfectionism turned Alicia off from painting forever, like I do fully believe that. That's really unfortunate and it's unfair and that isn't good parenting. All of Alicia's terrible paintings should be on the wall.

BUT AT THE SAME TIME, it's also kind of telling to me that Alicia showed no interest in (or tragically lost interest in) painting and did not spend time at painting and seemingly didn't really have a passion for painting even in the innocence of childhood and she knew less about painting than even Painted Verso.... and yet she still felt bad that she didn't have 100 big paintings up on the wall. It's like the Reacher, she stays in place and wonders why she isn't getting anywhere.

Like I feel you, girl, because I'm that exact same way, but.... what did you expect to happen. I'm sorry, I think have a really strangely stern viewpoint on Maelle/Alicia because I am extremely VERY VERY similar to her in personality and character weaknesses, so I'm like... well yeah, that sucks. Sometimes you're discouraged before you even start. Sometimes your first baby attempt at something you don't care about isn't the best thing in the world. Get over it or you're going to die without having moved from the spot you are now, girl. Or at least, don't be surprised you're not moving. Lol

In a kind of related topic, it's so interesting to me that Alicia has such anxiety and low self-confidence, but she's in NOTHING BUT trousers in the year 1905 (extremely unusual) when even Clea wears a dress. And she fought with her mom about her passions. And she feels utterly confident in her father. Idk it seems like she wasn't actually that messed up until the fire happened, and that affected her confidence in everything. And I think Renoir's painting of the Reacher would have been very different if he painted Alicia before the fire.

Like what is the truth, is Alicia so cowed by her parents' expectations that she create great art that she can no longer try? Or is she an extremely unusual trouser-wearing trail-blazing writer who won't be cowed even by the head of the painter's council?

I would love to see more about their life before the fire because the unreliable narration here is so thick. I actually like... do not completely believe a single thing Alicia says about her family because it seems to be so self-defeating. It takes Verso being in the same room challenging almost every sentence she says about her family to make you realize just how biased her viewpoint is.

[hivemindscape]

im a big fan of esper powers slipping loose in harmless ways when they're happy

[lyricwritesprose]

Something came to me the other day while noodling around on a discord server, which is that the throuple is tied thematically to Preservation society, in that—as a society that values cooperation and interdependence—the ideal is that nobody has to be anyone's Only Support or Only One Who Can Help With That and they certainly don't have to be anyone's Only Savior.

(Is this another way in which Gurathin is Doing It Wrong why, yes. Yes, in fact he is. You have to understand that when I say that at this point I find Gurathin a deeply compelling character and perhaps even one of my faves, it is partly in sheer fascination at everything this Disaster Man is doing wrong and all the ways he needs to be slapped with a fish. Anyway.)

See, I happen to be monogamous, but I am also aware that modern monogamous relationships can deeply fuck people over, and part of that is because many people are not encouraged (men especially are in many ways outright discouraged) to seek and build support structures beyond that, and as a consequence? As a consequence we lean too hard and break each other. Our cultural roles tell us that women need to be endlessly capable of support and emotional management, that men need to be endlessly capable of competently repairing the situation, because you only ever get one person for that task. (Unless you break up and designate a whole new One Person.) Does it work? No the fuck it does not.

Preservation is not supposed to work like that.

And the throuple absolutely cannot work like that. Arada is not capable of endless emotional support because she's frankly kind of oblivious to where said support is even needed. Ratthi is not capable of endlessly competently repairing the situation because, um… *gestures frantically at Ratthi and hopes this is self-explanatory* For that matter Pin-Lee is not endlessly competent, nor an endless font of emotional wisdom, nor anything in between, and if you switch the roles around they don't work either. However. However, they don't have to be. It is not necessary or even desirable for any one person to be another's everything. The load gets distributed. Is it going to work in the long run, I have no idea—although the throuple scene last episode did seem like they were actually going to communicate a bit, which is a step. But I'm actually kind of rooting for them, because I like the idea of the three of them imperfectly propping each other up and it coming out to enough.

Which brings another thought, which is: given the degree to which the Corporation Rim have, not just a hyper-capitalist economy, but a hyper-capitalist ethic—how different will Corporate relationships be when we see them?

I think we got a hint with LeeBeeBee. "You buy it, you own it." I think relationships are either transactional—which is actually the better option—or possessive, and I don't mean that just in terms of jealousy, I mean in terms of someone "owns" or at least is set up as inherently superior to another. And not just in a kinky way.

(Yeah, Gurathin, you wet cat fuckup man, you're screwing that up too: deciding that you love someone because you see them as your superior and your leader is also not a Preservation value, have you in fact used your fucking therapy modules for anything besides staying off the sauce? What in fact is a therapy module? Does it help? If it does help, how bad off were you before? Many questions.)

So basically, I do believe that there is a great deal of thematic worldbuilding being shown by following the throuple—not just basic surface worldbuilding (like, group marriage is a thing, bisexuality is either normative or completely unremarkable, etc) but also stuff about how people are "supposed to" relate to the world around them and the people in it.

Unpopular opinion (I think), but I'm actually quite fond of Murderbot's disaster thrupple. I think it really shows us a lot about Preservation's cultural baseline. Lots of what we see them dealing with is new or life-threatening, and they're trying to adapt to it. But the thrupple is a slice of life sort of problem.

It gives us a window into how casual sex is allowed to be on Preservation (you can jump into bed with a coworker with no apparent fear on anyone's part that it's going to make work weird). Similarly, they're confident in the emotional communication to make sure everyone's okay.

In ASR, Murderbot mentions that pretty much all of PresAux is into someone else in PresAux, and it likes that this doesn't lead to any fights, but it doesn't really come into the story. The show brings it in. They can handle these weird relationships. They can deal with whatever the fuck this thrupple is, they can deal with Gurathin's feelings for Mensah, they can have all these very messy feelings right out there in the open and it's not going to ruin everything.

IDK, I just think it's a neat bit of insight into how much Preservation's people-first culture really does make their lives better and happier, even when they still have all the messiness inherent to being human.

[raycatz]

okay more on the loz-LU fandom shit today

here's the post that started it https://www.tumblr.com/candycain2356/787048612501880832

and the other https://www.tumblr.com/ovegakart/787066660591976448/you-know-what-it-is-fucked-up-so-many-artist-have

Someone: asks a clarifying question about whether or not alttp Link and Zelda are related. Responder: Gives a well rounded answer. One of the examples and additional context given is that asker may have heard of this hc since it's popular in LU, but that it's not canon. Ovega: I hate that LU is so prevalent. Ovega's fans: WOW THE LU FANDOM SUCKS WE HATE THEM Ovega: *joins in*

this is really similar to what happened when Ovega expressed humor and exasperation over some interpretations of Dark Link and Volga in one of her comics.

https://www.tumblr.com/ovegakart/765696907391664128/the-lu-fandom-is-maam-this-is-a-hyrule

Ovega: People keep commenting they think it's father-son. It's romantic lol Commenter: Only a LU fan would think it's father-son Ovega: STOP MAKING THIS ABOUT LU Ovega's fans: WOW THE LU FANDOM SUCKS. LOOK AT THE LU FANDOM MAKING IT ABOUT THEMSELVES AND FORCING HEADCANON ONTO US. THEY'RE SO ENTITLED.

In neither of these cases did a LU fan come in policing things. It's the people providing context or dissing LU who are making it about LU, and yet Ovega has been adding onto and encouraging hatred against the LU fandom. She's angry with the people answering questions but her and her followers are blaming the LU fandom for it. It's not fair.

I thought something people wanted from the LU fandom was to provide context to those who think it might be LU. However, in both these cases, it didn't start out as people thinking it must be LU, and yet that's what most of the anger in the reblogs and comments are about.

Nowhere did a LU fan come in saying anything had to be a certain way because it's like that in LU. Why is the LU fandom being blamed for this one??? (why is it that someone asking a clarifying question (or sharing a "bad" headcanon) is assumed to be a LU fan?)

here's my post from earlier, now with more conversation in the comments https://www.tumblr.com/raycatz/787099204091772929/peaks-into-the-lu-tag-oh-drama-tries-to-find-a

What's really frustrating is that she has a large audience of people eager to bash the LU fandom. It doesn't matter what the reason is and it doesn't matter if it makes sense.

[mitamicah]

Zagreb!Bojan my beloved :3 <3

Entry to big Joker Out collab on IG hosted by aroxarts

[happyk44]

[ID: 1. Quote from Let July be July from Morgan Harper Nichols: You don’t have to fix everything. You don’t have to solve everything. And you can still find peace and grow in the wild of changing things.

2. Tweet from trash jones @/jzux dated August 16th 2024: sometimes when I’m scared about a decision or feeling regret or wondering what might have been, I pull up this note I wrote once on my phone and it actually really helps.

Attached to the tweet is a screenshot from their notes app, reading, “The versions of my life I didn’t choose are none of my business”

3. Quote from Ask Polly: Why Should I Keep Going: You are not lost. You are here. Stop abandoning yourself. Stop repeating this myth about love and success that will land in your lap or evade you forever. Build a humble, flawed life from the rubble, and cherish that. There is nothing more glorious on the face of the earth than someone who refuses to give up, who refuses to give in to their most self-hating, discouraged, disillusioned self, and instead learns, slowly and painfully, how to relish the feeling of building a hut in the middle of the suffocating dust.

4. Digital illustration from @/lizormianillustration. Two panels. A person sits in a doorway looking out to the water. The illustration pans out to show the grassy hills, a parallel dirt path and the house. The sky is a soft yellow. Text across both panels reads, “and if you missed a day, there was always the next.”

5. Text reading: You are not damaged. You are not socially handicapped. You are young and you are learning how to live. Write that down. [all caps] I AM VERY YOUNG AND I AM LEARNING HOW TO LIVE. [end all caps] Tape it to your wall by your bed and read it every morning.

You are very, very young. You are learning how to live.

6. Quote from Mitch C. Clark: You’re overthinking because you really care what happens next – you don’t want to fail, and you don’t want to let people down. But no amount of planning, worrying, or overanalyzing can give you control over what happens next. Breathe. Loosen your grip. Experience life as it comes.

7. Tumblr post from @/misscrazyfangirl321: Hey, look at me: You can’t change it. I know how much you want to. I know you’d do anything to change it if you could, but it’s in the past; you can’t walk that way. The only direction you can walk is forward.

I’m not saying it’s easy. I’m not saying to be flippant, and pretend it didn’t happen. But don’t stay there. Walk forward, even if can only manage half a step at a time.

8. Quote from Mirages: The Unexpurgated Diary of Anais Nin, 1939-1947 by Anais Nin: Life heals you if you allow it to flow.

9. Tumblr post from @/moderndaymystic dated July 17th 2023: I saw a quote that said “I feel like I’m constantly worrying about the next part of my life without realizing that I’m right in the middle of what I used to look forward to.” And I felt that.

/end ID]

going through my reminders tag feeling like I’m gonna vomit

[orange-dreamzer]

being creative can be so annoying sometimes like I can do one hundred quajillion things about utmv but when I want to explore the world of a new oc unrelated to fandom? dead silence

[dailypokemoncrochet]

Have you considered making a pokemon crochet subreddit? For anyone crocheting Pokemon and for people to submit crochets they found in the wild. Maybe you'll start a community!

I did actually make r/pokemoncrochet a few years back! It was supposed to be for anything pokemon+crochet related. I just don't post on Reddit very much anymore, and the subreddit's not super active either.

[chimchiri]

Once again I'm glad I'm not on any other social media site except tumblr and pillowfort. The occasional youtube video popping up of 'fixing' some art is enough for me to be annoyed and disgusted already. I can't imagine seeing even more of that attitude on twitter, tiktok or other sites.

How arrogant can you be to take someone else's art without their consent, redesigning it and calling it a 'fix'?

This evokes the same feelings as the ca. 2000s (2010s?) trend of taking people's OCs (without their consent) and publicly "criticizing" them.

It's shitty behaviour.

[n0heart]

.

[raytoroapologist]

man. watching creators of animated shows have to post pirating links to their own series because hulu and hbo max and warner brothers keep buying the rights to the shows and then not allowing people to watch them is a huge bummer

[unproduciblesmackdown]

you Know that phil is So [lying on his bed beaming writing in his diary kicking his legs] about liking orville

[officialpenisenvy]

If you think “both sides” of ace discourse have good points then you have picked a side.

just out of curiosity did you read anything i said on the matter beyond the first two lines of that ask

[izzy-b-hands]

Instead of making a vent post abt my stupid fucking brain and mental health and the things that i absolutely have time to do/don't need to be done now bearing down on me yesterday and today like an old school cartoon train deadset on running over the main character of the piece, while the rest of my brain marinates in a soup made of every horrific thing happening in the world rn-

I'm going to go searching on ebay for stuff for my grandad for father's day (so i maybe, fucking maybe, can get a gift out on time for once in my fucking life) and try not to think abt my work shift in like. an hour and a half

[ccsainzleclerc5516]

You’re My Baby Too

Pairing: Lando Norris x reader

Warnings: none

You'd think that the second pregnancy would be a breeze. You already know everything about how it goes, how to prepare, what to expect, but in your case, your second pregnancy was dreadful.

First trimester, horrible nausea, you spent half your time over the toilet with Lando holding your hair. Your baby boy was so much bigger than Isla it made your back hurt like crazy all the time, and the worst thing of all was that your baby boy didn't wanna come out.

You prayed you wouldn't give birth before Lando finished the season, so when the season ended you were relieved. But then your due date passed, and nothing happened. Then five days passed after your due date, nothing again. 10 days after your due date - the baby just doesn't wanna come out.

You were frustrated, exhausted, and tired of being pregnant. You just wanted to be able to see your feet again and be able to get up off the couch without Lando having to pull your hand.

"It's because you make such a good home for him he doesn't wanna come out, love." Lando tried to calm you down in a nice way, not even realizing that he irritated you with that because he's been saying that for the last 10 days and your nerves have become very thin hearing it.

"I swear, if you say that one more time.." You barked rolling your eyes at him while holding your still very pregnant belly.

"I'm sorry, I'll shut up.."

“Thank you.” You glared at him.

He didn't hold it against you for your brazen response because he understood that it had become too much for you. Lately, he's been walking on eggshells around you because everything has been annoying you, and he didn't want to be the one to contribute to that.

When the twelfth day passed since your due date, you realized that too much time had passed and you even started to worry a little that something was wrong. So Lando decided to take you to the hospital, where you very clearly told the doctor that you weren't leaving the place until you gave birth.

You thought that by some miracle, as soon as you stepped into the hospital, labor would start and you would just pop the baby out and everything would be over in less than two hours just like it was with Isla, but of course that wasn't the case with this baby.

"I think we have no other choice but to induce the labor." The doctor said.

"Okay, how long does it take?" You asked. "Is it like natural labor or?"

"Induced labor can last from a few hours to a few days, it depends. It's most often completed within 12 to 18 hours from the start of the procedure."

"Oh my God" You sighed in despair with tears in your eyes and Lando immediately squeezed your hand to offer you at least some comfort.

"Does it hurt more than a normal birth?" Lando was very concerned about how painful it would be for you. While you were giving birth to Isla, Lando was of course by your side, and even though it was much shorter and easier, he was still terribly shaken to see the pain you went through.

"I don't want to discourage you and scare you right from the start, but many women have said that induced labor is more painful."

And boy oh boy was it painful.

When they gave you the drip to induce contractions, that's when the real agony began. The drip makes contractions stronger and more frequent and you can't even begin to explain what you'd compare that pain to.

You were sweating.

Crying.

Gripping the sides of the bed and Lando's hand, which at one point you thought you were going to break.

You honestly felt like dying. What was supposed to be the most beautiful experience of your life was quickly turning into a nightmare.

Lando was heartbroken seeing you like this. He was putting cold compresses on you, hugging you, kissing you, comforting you, begging you to endure this.

"I'm so sorry baby, I wish I could go through this instead of you. I'm so sorry."

He didn't leave you for a second, except when you caught a 5-minute break from the contractions and managed to close your eyes for at least a moment and calm down. Lando said he had to go to the bathroom.

He lied actually. Instead he went to the hallway outside your room where his parents were patiently waiting. By the look on his face, Cisca and Adam could see that Lando was not well and that he himself was traumatized.

Lando didn't say anything, he just hugged Cisca and buried his face in her neck, soaking her shoulder with tears.

"I'm so fucking scared for her. It wasn't like this the first time." Lando cried quietly.

"Oh honey, y/n's going to be alright, I promise you. I know it doesn't seem like it right now, but soon this will pass and you'll be going home with your baby." Cisca comforted trying to lift his spirits. "Honey, you need to get yourself together, alright? She needs you right now and you need to be there for her."

When labor finally began after 14 long hours, you were running out of strength. You were so exhausted that you weren't sure if you would be able to push the baby out.

"Push y/n, push!" The doctor encouraged.

"I c-can't" You cried breathing rapidly. "Lando, I can't do it.."

"Come on baby, you can, I know you can. Just a little bit more and it's done, I promise. You've got this" He was pushing your hair out of your face, holding your hand, and holding your leg at the same time.

"Come on, push, push! I can see the head!"

Finally, the baby's cry was heard and soon the baby boy was on your chest. As soon as you saw him, all the pain instantly vanished.

He was so perfect. So worth it.

Lando couldn't contain his emotions as he rested his head on your shoulder, carefully observing his baby.

Later that day, when everything had calmed down, Lando was still there by your side. He couldn't be separated from you nor did he want to. His gaze shifted between you and the baby watching you both sleep peacefully.

He was tired too. He didn't really remember the last time he slept, but he knew you had it worse than him anyway, so he didn't even think of complaining.

"Lan?"

"Hey, love" His face lit up when you opened your eyes. When he saw you smile, it brought energy back to him. He took your hand and pressed a kiss to it. "Did you get some rest?"

"I did, why didn't you?" You asked him when you saw the huge dark circles under his eyes and the same clothes from the day before yesterday. "Baby, please go home, I know you're exhausted too."

"The only way I'm getting out of here is with you two."

You didn't want to argue with him because you knew it was pointless. You were just grateful that he was there and that he was yours.

"My pretty, pretty girl. I'm so proud of you." Lando said softly caressing your cheek and looking into your tired eyes. "I love you so much you know that, right?"

"I know, I can feel it. I love you too, so much." You say before kissing him. "Where are our kids?"

"This little guy is sleeping here without a care in the world."

"And Isla? She didn't come with your parents?"

"No, I told them not to bring her because I knew you'd get too emotional if you saw her, and I wanted you to rest as much as possible."

"You should've told them to bring her, I really miss her and I can't wait for her to meet her brother." You said, but you could still see the worry in Lando's eyes. "I'm fine, Lan, I promise."

"We're done with the kids. Our family is complete now."

"Lan.." You chuckled.

"No, I'm serious. I never want to see you go through so much pain again. It's been so hard to watch you like that and not be able to do anything and I'm not putting you through it again. "

"It was worth it tho. Look at him, he's so perfect. I'd do it all over again for our baby"

"I know, I know, but you're my baby too." No matter how many children you have, his protective attitude towards you will never change.

"Oh, love.." You pulled his hand to get up from the chair and come sit on the bed next to you so you can cuddle up next to him.

"I can't wait to take you home, both of you." He said quietly kissing your forehead.

You rested your head on his chest, knowing that wherever you are, as long as he's there, everything is fine.

[aloha-from-angel]

Because it seems to be a common misconception since the Lilo and Stitch cash grab came out, I want to clear some things up about "Aloha ʻOe." It's a favorite song of mine, and one of many Hawaiian songs that are just gorgeous.

A lot of people seem to think it was written about the overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom, or that it was Queen Liliʻuokalani’s farewell to the nation—but that’s not actually true.

"Aloha ʻOe" was written way earlier, in 1877-1878, when Liliʻuokalani was still a princess under her brother, David Kalākaua. It is inspired by a goodbye between a young Hawaiian girl and a visiting officer, which she saw during her trip to Maunawili. Inspired by what she saw (and the humming of several of her fellow horseback riders at the time) she turned it into a love song.

Now, over time, especially after the illegal overthrow in 1893, the song did take on a deeper meaning and became a powerful symbol of Hawaiian identity and resistance. But it wasn’t written for that purpose. It evolved into it.

If you’re looking for a song that was a direct protest against the overthrow, check out "Kaulana Nā Pua." That one was composed during the time and straight-up defends the Kingdom and the people’s loyalty to the Queen.

Also—fun fact—Liliʻuokalani wasn’t just a queen, she was also a prolific musician, like all her siblings. The aliʻi (chiefly) class at the time were incredibly talented and deeply involved in music, and she wrote dozens of songs throughout her life. Music was one of her biggest passions, long before she ever sat on the throne

Reducing her to a figure that is only defined by the overthrow negatates her passions and her being a human being, and trying to center everything she has ever done around the illegal overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom just leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

The original Aloha ‘Oe was about not wanting to let go of someone who was leaving. But preparing for a departure regardless.

Nani was trying to get Lilo ready in the (at the time very likely) case she's taken away and put in the system. She's still going to fight tooth and nail for her sister, but she's feeling very discouraged and wants to let Lilo down slowly. It happens after Nani can't find a job and is stressing out and wants Lilo to know she's not a burden. That she's wanted.

I have not watched the cash grab yet (unfortunately I know too many people who play background characters or were in the Kamehameha schools choir that sings some of the songs) but when I can pirate it, believe me when I say I will add to this.