#and like there’s plenty of things abt him to identify with

[palms-upturned]

.

[thejacketscloset]

(@forestshadow-wolf !!! GENDA!!!) I have thoughts abt genderfluid soap okay!! I can't help it!!!

While Soap knows he identifies as genderfluid, when it comes to how he expresses that outwardly depends on vibes alone

For a long while he never really knew the term for it, so it was something he kept to himself. All he really knew was sometimes he was a she in his head, or a they, or whatever else he felt like in the moment.

Soap's ""coming out"" experience with Ghost was kind of clunky (to no one's fault but his own). He forgets that not everyone can see inside his head sometimes, and while he's rambling on about spending time with his sister and says something along the lines of " 'course, we went dress shopping together while i was over, just a little something we gals like to bond over. She's adamant that green is mah colour but ah know tha' really I look killer in blue." Ghost picks up on it of course, and goes quiet for a long while trying to figure out how to bring it up and ask Soap without making it seem like he's opposed to it or upset. Eventually he figures out a way, and after a slightly awkward conversation Soap feels a lot less nervous to express his gender in other ways around Ghost.

When they started dating, Soap explicitly expressed that he wanted Ghost to refer to him like "He's my girlfriend" and "She's my boyfriend." (He specially likes to be called Ghost's girlfriend, it makes him EXTREMELY happy. He never specifically says he likes it more than the other, bur Ghost picks up on it no problem)

Being on leave gives Soap PLENTY opportunities to switch up how he outwardly expresses gender. His wardrobe at home is stock full of skirts, dresses, and all types of alt clothes. He likes to wear long skirts the most, the flowyness of them make him feel gorgeous.

He enjoys all pronouns, but again it normally goes off of vibes. On base he sticks to he/him because its most comfortable, but has asked his small found family of the 141 to switch it up when they feel like it.

Feminine compliments can and will make him blush FURIOUSLY. he loves them the most because he's typically heard them the least throughout his life. (Ghost calls him pretty once and Soap is a MESS. Ghost then makes it his mission to find out what compliments make him the most embarassed/happy. The trend is not hard to notice)

Ghost is probably one of his biggest supporters once he finds out, mainly because he just loves seeing Soap feel good abt himself! If his girlfriend feels good then he feels good in turn

Soap will jokingly say things like "Oh nooo! I'm just a petite woman who will get blown away by the wind !!! What ever will i do" bc he thinks it's funny to say he's small when he is. Very buff.

He cried happy tears when he received an extremely thoughtful gift from Ghost that was a custom made sapphire necklace that had a note that said "blue definitely is your colour" to match a dress he had gotten with his sister. He denies that he cried but he did. We all know.

Steadily becomes way more comfortable and visibly happy with himself once he's out to the 141 and they start supporting him in any way they can

Gaz refers to him as "the people's princess" of the team. He hates it (he doesn't)

DISCLAIMER: Though I used "he/him" to refer to Soap throughout this post I did it so it was easier to tell what/who I was talking about as switching up pronouns when typed can make it a bit hard to follow. I believe Soap would like to use ALL pronouns and lean heavily towards She and He (that's me projecting bc I feel only connected to both parts of the traditional binary so that's where I'm most comfortable.)

[my-castles-crumbling]

Soooo, i’ve been following u for a while (adore ur microfics btw ❤️) and now I require advice… thankfully you’re good at that. 

So i’m straight. And i’ve fallen in love with this guy. He’s adorable and sweet and brave and honestly the best person I know. I met him about a month and a half ago at a work thing (he doesn’t work where I work tho, not that it matters) and we’ve been dating ever since. 

We haven’t done anything sex related yet (don’t worry this isn’t abt that). But the other day I decided we should talk about it, because he seemed super bothered by the idea (i had a hunch he might’ve been ace, which I was fine with) but it turns out it’s not that, he’s trans. 

He told me he transitioned pretty young, and that he’s had top surgery but not bottom. I reassured him this doesn’t change anything, cause it doesn’t, but to be honest, i’ve never really been around trans people? I know queer people but i’ve never had a trans friend or anything. So i’m worried about how to do this right. 

I assume it’s best to just be normal? Sex has never really mattered to me that much, so I guess in that regard i’ll just go with the flow of whatever. But I just thought, is there anything I should know or think about? 

I think this could be a really great relationship, we want the same things and get on so well. 

Maybe i’m being panicky, trying to make sure I don’t do anything that could hurt him. He asked me if it was okay that he’s trans because i’m straight. I told him that I love him and I don’t doubt that. And that I still feel straight. I still love a man. I wouldn’t really aline my sexuality with genitals anyway? 

I don’t know. I’m nervous I guess. I’ve been in plenty of different types of relationships. Good and bad. And I just don’t want to mess up or make him uncomfortable or not notice a hint he’s trying to give me? 

Look tbh I don’t totally know what i’m asking but like- advice? Please? Thanks Cas ❤️

AHHHH I think this is so cute. The fact that you're being thoughtful enough to ask is UGH. SO sweet.

So, you're ABSOLUTELY right. Sexuality has to do with gender, not body parts. So you're a girl (I'm assuming) and you're straight. Meaning you're attracted to boys. And this person, trans or not, is a boy. Simple! The fact that he is worried about your reaction is probably because he's experienced transphobia in the past. For this, just remind him that you see him as a boy, regardless of his body parts.

Trans people can deal with something called 'dysphoria' meaning they are uncomfortable (physically or mentally) because they feel like their expression or body doesn't match the gender they identify as. Dysphoria can be caused by anything - looking in the mirror and seeing something they don't like, a comment from someone else (even unintentional), or intimacy (amongst other things).

As far as sex, I'm going to break my rules here and give you some advice because I think it's important.

Sex could cause dysphoria. It's super important to note that every trans person is different. Some experience extreme dysphoria, others just a bit, others none at all! The same thing is true with intimacy- every trans person (just like cis people) has different preferences with intimacy. But this is especially true because for some trans people, intimacy could cause dysphoria because you're interacting with body parts that are normally not as...interacted with, lol.

Because of this, its super important to communicate. Ask him what he's comfortable with. What does he/doesn't he want you to touch? If you're going to use dirty talk, does he prefer certain terms for his body parts?

But here's the thing- communication is important for good, healthy sex anyways. And for a healthy relationship. And it's much better to just ask. Asking questions isn't wrong, and it shows that you don't want to make him uncomfortable. It could also be a great idea to make it clear what you've said to me- you see him as a boy, you don’t want to mess up or make him uncomfortable or not notice a hint he’s trying to give you.

Keep the communication open and everything will be fine <3

I'm going to name you adoring anon in case you write again!

[nhothicket]

people (american liberals) are so sick in the head abt skin color and don't realize that their fanatic adherence to drawing bdubs w the "correct" skin color is upholding this sick whiteness = purity narrative. because-- get this--bdubs identifies as white!!!! he is 1/4 assyrian, through, so I guess that means he can't be white. (btw assyrian skin tone is like. pale to olive.). his mc character has darker skin bc he wanted to have a tan. he said this 2 weeks ago!! but god forbid an artist draws him w "incorrect" skin colors or they are erasing pocs (which bdubs literally is not). i think the skin tone thing is useful when we're talking abt when ACTUAL pocs are depicted as lighter skinned then they are irl but it really falls apart with bdubs. a White Man. so tiresome!!!!! sorry youre having to deal w this.

Okay, well, I wouldn't go that far. I think there's plenty of valid concerns when it comes to Bdubs' skin tone in art, but I personally don't think my art is any sort of offender.

But I did see the clip you're talking about and I thought it was very interesting! As a mixed guy (although I'm half-mixed), I understand the confusion a lot. It's something I personally have struggled with sometimes, I mean I could never pass as white, but even then not feeling dark enough to count is something super common.

All that to say, I do think Bdubs is a poc, but if he considers himself white then its his prerogative. It's his identity in the end and it's frankly none of my business, I'm not gonna fight him on who he is. I'll say I certainly think there's a difference between him not caring about his friends depicting him as white and the fan community doing it, but it's obviously not really a concern of his.

Seemed like it was a revelation to him that people would consider him to be anything but a tan white dude, which I'll have to admit did make me chuckle the first time I saw it. Imagine that's how you find out you're not white? God bless him.

But, yeah. Whitewashing Bdubs is a weird thing to do even if he doesn't personally take issue with it. Ion think I did anything like that, but it is what it is. I'm going to use more saturation in the future, it's not that big of a deal to change it up.

[neonstatic]

my darling, beautiful, well-meaning friend told me that, while she understands that i identify as neither a man or a woman (or both?), she can't quite see the masculine in me... she says i seem feminine all-around, undistinguishable from a cis woman! and i said, "oh... well, i don't know what to say," bc don't i fkg know that 🙄 jbabfbaj like i know how i look, i have seen my reflections, and if it weren't for my features leaning towards pretty rather than handsome, the size of my badongas and my dumptruck would make me plenty clockable. i don't know why she felt the need to say this. it's not the first time too (she repeats herself sometimes, and i do it too, so half of our conversations is just us repeating ourselves lmao) and it stung just the same the first time!

she brought it up bc she was curious if i ever wanted to dress more masculine, which made me share w her my more masc/butch phase from 3 yrs ago. and also the fact that i dress masculine 90% of the time but it doesn't come off that way cus at the end of the day cis women and girls generally get a wider range of style while still maintaining their gender. it's a big advantage if you don't wanna get clocked but kind of a downer when you're trying to make a point. i'll wear a durag, a graphic tee and a loose pair of shorts, the most black boyish fit to existence, and i still just look like some tomboy. (i can't help it that i'm such a pretty boy!!!)

and the things is, i want to try dressing more masculine. in fact, i do. constantly. i feel like all of my default fits are usually pretty masc. but it's 2023, so they're also definitely unisex. i'd have to shave my hair and bind my chest to be treated differently (not properly, not w respect, just differently). my only joy rn is that most men who meet me at work give me the bro treatment (calls me dude, greets me or bids farewell w a fist bump, etc.) but lowkey treat me like a lady? like, it's gay to hug me but not gay to open the door for me. now see, that's the balance i long for.

i gotta say, my position helps. it's a labourous job and i'm the only non-men there, and most customers seem surprised to see me there. i asume they hear my name on the mic and expect some big black guy only for this tiny little bear to show up instead. it's partly why i prefer this over working the cash or the floor. no one expects me to do it. women say it's a man's job and give me heart eyes abt it and call me strong. men see me work and also get heart eyes abt it but fuck it, i work well, and i look good doing so.

it's an Ego Thing!!! there, i said it!!! i find my job gender-affirming!!! boys will be boys etc etc!!!

(tb to the dude who once got real close to me and said he wanted me to work for him. /trust/ me i wasn't reading it wrong when i say he was lowkey aroused by my efficiency. what a freak. hope he's thriving)

[commajade]

do u have any recommendations for sources on korean history? either in general, or abt a specific period/event? Or any tips on finding such sources on my own, that aren't (too) marred by imperialism, colonialism or racism?

hello!! i do!!

for korean precolonial history (not incl china) most online english sources r actually mostly correct! there's plenty of english texts written by korean ppl on basically every era of pre colonial korean history now. old korean history is amazing stuff i like the silla dynasty and joseon era the most. for joseon look into king sejong esp the invention of hangul and then admiral yi sunshin it's very fun. try to learn about peasant life cuz that's what 90% of the korean ppl always were. look at folk customs, astrology, mythology, and music more than events for more of that. also ancient korean inventions r so so cool to learn about. also korean creation myth!!

it's japanese colonialism era that things get kinda hazy and i could dig up specific readings for u if u want! for korean modern history i recommend bruce cummings but both because he's the most accurate/extensive and as an invitation for u to get mad at him with me for being an annoying writer. also translations of dprk writings r very helpful and r typically going to be the closest to correct.

u rly can't avoid colonialism in any accounts of history tho so it's much more helpful for u to identify which narratives r being pushed when and how they may be distorting the image and to read widely enough to be able to tell them apart.

also one of my fave sites is folkency! it's a huge nationally funded database of korean folktales and traditional stories/customs. and another fave resource is the national gugak center website that has tons of textbook style articles about korean traditional music. the field of studying korean music is so so so small that this truly is a gem and it's so fascinating. i've read a lot of traditional korean music articles on jstor too it rly shows u the attitude and culture of the people.

if u want more specific recommendations on any of the topics i mentioned or other ones i can look around for u p quickly!! the topics i have just on hand r korean religious history (mostly mugyo/shamanism and christianity), korean traditional music, korean art history (highly recommend looking into ceramics and landscapes and flower imagery!!), and modern history.

[pandapupremade]

✨️ ✨️ ✨️ for your crop haven char of choice :3 (dragonsmooch)

Send me ✨ for a random thing about one of my OCs! (Optional: You can specify one!)

i havent talked abt ao very much so lets try him!!

✨️ Ao is an ogre! a very pretty one mind you. im sure theres plenty of ogres who are not as pretty. variation. but he is pretty, albeit a stick. hes like 6 foot something with no muscle at all. only length

✨️ Ao is a librarian and very smart, able to identify fossils just by taking a look at it personally. he also is a huge romanticist though so yknow. theres ups and downs to him ebing a bookworm (cons including bad poetry quotation)

✨️ he likes to take long walks at night. please tell him to go to bed

[fatsmyname]

this is probably gonna sound weird but ur blog is great and um. its great to see lgbt ppl who take gender how they want to including in ways some ppl think are contradictory. but he/him or he/they lesbians are super cool. y'all kinda inspiring. i worry less than i used to abt what cis ppl think of me or what my gender is supposed to be like. so thanks for being cool. sincerely a not lesbian he/they dude

Hey!!! Not weird at all and I really appreciate ur super kind words!!!

As a queer person I fully embrace queerness in every aspect of my life including my gender fucky identity. I feel like people get really confused when they see butches and masc folk teeter between two labels and are even enraged by this! Even other lgbt people get enraged by this!!! It’s really sad honestly and just shows how much these people continue to impose binaries on others.

There are lesbians who identify as ftm and lesbianism. There are lesbians who use the men’s bathroom and to other people in society, are seen as… men! And they like that! And I think that ambiguity really bothers people. Especially when we use he/him pronouns. I mostly resonate with butch elders who want to be seen as men but are lesbians. I feel like people get scared by that sentence because they think that just because everyone else sees you as a man, you are one. But it’s more nuanced than that. And, contrary to what most people think, it doesn’t drive other lesbians away from us! In fact I think it makes us more desirable and wanted by other lesbians. The butch4fem dynamic is a beautiful one and there have been plenty of those relationships that existed with the butch being literally known as the “man”.

Another thing I find super interesting (and relate a lot to as someone who is also butch4butch) is that butch4butch relationships and dynamics look a lot like gay male dynamics! And I think that’s so fucking neat. Our innate masculinity and attraction to others masculinity is so strong that we perceive our love and sexuality similar to that of gay men. In fact there are butches who enter sexual relationships with transmen because of this! Does this make the butch any less of a lesbian? No! And it doesn’t invalidate the transman’s identity either. If you want to read more about this particular dynamic (because I find that it confuses people more than anything) please read Of Catamites and Kings by Gayle Rubin. It’s a great read and one that I wish more people had access to.

Sorry this is long haha but yes!!! You should worry less about what people think of your gender and just do whatever the hell makes you feel comfortable! That’s what I’ve been doing and it’s soooo liberating. There are so many intersections of the queer experience and I think we’d be horrible to continue to squeeze obviously queer people into more binaries just because people have a strict idea of what gender or lesbianism should look like (among other things too, not just lesbianism)! N ee way if u read all this thanks lol i love u

[papers4me]

Fruits Basket, Se03. ep 7 (part 1)

Just to clarify, the only thing I didn’t like abt this ep is tohru, the rest is so good. kyo’s mental state is at its lowest & you can feel for him! ugh!, surprisingly akito’s own lid was so well-done!, Ren & shigure were epicly disgusting & fascinating!, kureno was so well-written, the final scene of tohru & kyo rightfully setting for the climax! Before moving on to the good part,  I’ll quickly go over why torhu’s character was once again the most inconsistent character in the show:

Ep,6 ending showed us a completely broken kyo in full display in front of tohru, best furuba cliff hanger to date hands down, followup: tohru laughing, cooking & wondering if kyo is asleep!!!. Complete detachment & extreme insensitivity to what she witnessed earlier. Not an ounce of wonder if kyo is okay or if sth is wrong with him. Not a single inner thought of “ I hope he’s okay” or “ oh momiji don’t call him, He’s a bit tired” while flashbaking to his traumatized face. Honestly, all they needed to do was a small quick inner thought to connect the scenes. No need to write new scenes. Alas, Tohru’s complete lack of compassion struck me deep. I was told ep6 ending was an anime original scene, I don’t mind any diversion from the original since I don’t know the it, but those writers who wrote a complete new scene didn’t feel the need to transition from it to the rest of the manga? really? It’s hard to believe.

Choosing the kitchen’s happy scene after of kyo’s nightmare is not bad as it shows that nobody either care or know abt his issues, fair enough. However, choosing the kitchen’s happy scene after the PTSD in tohru’s own bedroom & not modifying tohru’s happy go lucky, let’s cook yay face to a realistic concerned expression is absurd! It really takes plenty from tohru as a character. This comes after tohru’s long awaited background ep which returns tohru back to square one.

Just last ep, tohru opened her lid in front of kyo & he comforted her, While she still yet to overcome her fears, she failed miserably in doing the only thing that she’s been doing since se01, ep1, being compassionate & thoughtful. Oh well, adding a light scene in the midst of kyo & akito’s dark sequence is more important than tohru’s character consistency & growth.

moving on from tohru~~~

-Kyo’s suffocation: (guilty or not, it doesn’t matter)

we get kyo’s nightmare really gave me chills & was visually well-done. it brilliantly conveyed the feeling of suffocation, blinding fear, & intensified trauma. The nightmare’s horror vividly showcases kyo’s deepest insecurities & trauma:

It started with his mother’s “ it’s not your fault” sth kyo craved to hear from her very badly. Yet, it contradicted her action: Choosing death over staying with him.

His mother brings salvation: the cat’s cage. The cat’s room parallel’s kyo’s real life at his parents house. In se01, eo24, kyo said, he wasn’t allowed to play outside or watch TV, while his bracelet ”handcuffs”  were routinely checked by his mom. Just like a prison. His mom sentenced him in the new prison fitting for more horrible sins. The cat’s cage for the rest of his life.

While kyo looks panicked & horrified but on the verge to refuse, kyoko appears. “I won’t forgive you” solidifying his mom’s judgement.

They both warn him of the consequences of living & be forgiven: tohru’s death. Go on, kyo. Add one more victim to suffer in your behalf while you roam free. You might think that you can escape the cat’s cage but your hands remain dirty with blood. Others might not see the blood on yoyr hands, but YOU do.

Kyo is torn between being an actual sinner or a victim, between causing intentional harm or unintentional hurt, between being guilty or not. It all doesn’t matter & kyo knows it. What matter is the punishment has been going for years now & he’s tired, broken, lost & just wants it all to end. Death. Slow death in a tiny cage is so fitting for all the pain he caused others, for all the pain he suffered.

Kyo knows (a) suffering in front of tohru is hurting her. (b) Accepting her love will lead to hurting her: confessing of kyoko’s death. (c) Abandoning her is hurting her. (d) kyo knows that he doesn’t deserve her, not after he caused all this pain. (e) Above all, kyo can’t live with himself anymore. being close to her hurt so much.

-Akito’s lid: ( broken home & broken self image):

I must say they did an excellent job of presenting akito’s past! (a) It was a mixture of narration through (shigure & Ren), (b) actual animation of her parents causing her pain & traumatizing her (the scenes of Akira’s last words, her mom’s accusations), (c) Actual animation of the origin of her parents (Ren & Akira’s relationship), (d) akito herself confessing abt her pain in front of kureno. Tohru’s own lid on the other hands was presented through (a) excessive narrative with minimum animation (the grandpa’s endless exposition of tohru’s background quickly wrapped up), (b) no real animation of kyoko actually hurting tohru or how she did it, just again the grandpa narrating that kyoko “went away”. (c) tohru’s own self recall of her past being cut into pieces & divided throughout the ep, once after running from shigure & another in the sheet scene. Tohru’s ep wasn’t bad at all, it was good, but it was evidently shortened & summarized lazily. Oh well. What both eps serve is painting tohru & akito as foils of each other:

Both are attached toxicly to their parent. Tohru: kyoko & Akito: akira.

Both were welling to create a fake persona or an image that keeps this toxic love alive & cling to it no matter what.

Both hurt themselves the most & are struggling to let go of this bond.

Both have parents that hurt them. Akito: ren & tohru: kyoko, altho it is not clear how kyoko hurt tohru but kyoko is more a ghost than a real character.

Both cling to a dead object that represent their deceased parent. Tohru & the photo frame & akito & the box.

Kyoko existed to be this perfect mother with no sins, the character that tohru embodied to “fix” & “ heal all broken kids”. She lives only in memories. Even other characters think of her as this holy being. It is alluded Kyo seemed to know her as a real person who can commit mistakes, therefore, to kyo, kyoko isn’t an angel or a holy being. However, thanks to their encounter at her death & her “ I won’t forgive you” words, kyoko now is a haunting ghost to kyo. Akira on the other hand, existed as this sickly, pale & fragile head of the house, treated with so much aura & holiness. He died but his sins remain in how he raised akito.

Both must let go of their toxic bonds. Tohru of her deep attachment to her mom & akito to the zodiacs.

Both must learn to form healthier relationships.

However, there are striking differences between them! tohru never abused anyone nor attempted murdering someone by throwing’ em from a terrace, or locking them & torment them or stabbing them with a knife!! Tohru’s sin is torturing herself which by consequence tortured kyo, too. Cuz there’s is a theme of a loved-one’s pain is mine as well. Kyo’s mom hurt her own self & ended her own life. This resulted in her son’s years of immense pain, trauma & self-loath & similar suicidal tendencies, se0, ep16 “ I’ will yuki & then kill myself”, & se02, e9 “ mother, if only you killed me instead”. tragic.

Side Notes:

I will say this with a broken heart....... Tohru must learn to let go of.... kyo.  She is suffocating him. Not on purpose. I want them to be together! so bad! they’re so perfect for each other, but also, right now is NOT the time for this. Kyo & tohru’s character issues is NOT abt romance. They have real traumatic issues that are hindering their growth as independent characters. Tohru’s growth might not be well-written or well-presented, but kyo’s growth is still not explored. Next ep is where his lid opened! it must be painful. A person suffering from extreme self-loath & suicidal tendencies shouldn’t be presented so lightly in favor for the love cures all fairy tale! PLZ! NO!

Tohru must learn to not repeat her mistake again & live only for one person. She must let go of kyo in order to gain kyo back. Right now, She can’t have him! kyo is suffocated by his own trauma & adding tohru’s guilt on top of it is devastating. I mean, This could go differently & kyo might accept her love on the spot, & tohru might save him again or sth. I can see this being going deeper or shallower depending on the desired theme. Which of furuba’s heavy themes will be given to climax?

why is momiji doing a rabbit burger? he’s not cursed anymore. I know he’s keeping it a secret, but I thought momiji’s whole growth was abt letting go of the past. he still identifies with the zodiac rabbit?

Ren is hella sexy! & her Japanese VA deserves an Oscar! The way she expresses sexiness, seductive, anger, hate, contempt, sarcasm, delusional screaming, pain! EPIC!

“I thought I was created to receive others contempt” ugh! this hurt, kyo.

Shigure’s line abt looking at Ren to fantasize how akito will look if she were allowed to be a woman, ewww!!!! hella disgusting! imagine sleeping wth someone & fantasizing abt her daughter or vise versa!

Honestly, this ep while not excusing akito’s crimes & abuse of others, it did paint her in a human light. I really don’t want her to end up with shigure. Akito’s whole life is abt misunderstood love. Give her time to discover herself. A guy who slept with her mom is never a reasonable partner even if he loves her for eternity. but oh well~

Shigure indirectly caused Isuzu’s near death abuse by Akito. all in his attempts to free akito from the curse. I love how disgustingly selfish he is.  I remember his “ you mom told you to not interfere, kagura” in se03, ep3. shudder!!! if hiro never met haru that day & confessed to him, if kureno never noticed the maid! Still, he went & visited isuzu after her 4 moths imprisonment in the cat’s cage her hospitals discharge & recovery!

ngl... Shigure & Ren’s sexual tension is the biggest in furuba. Eww!

I’ll talk abt kureno & akito more in part 2. but I felt nothing watching kureno get stabbed lol. this is due to the trailer spoiling it & the ED having him happily in love -_-’.  bummer!.

I love tohru & kyo’s outfit in the ep cliff hanger. lol. Tohru really dressed up to confess.

Tohru read the room! Even if you magically forgotten how sickly & out of it he was in your room earlier, remember this: Kyo always have bad mood in the rain! Then again... he did hug her for the first time & called her by her name in the midst of a rainy storm. se01, e024. >_<!

[himbophobes-moved]

its more me not figuring it out rather than figuring it out but.. recently one of my friends came out as nb and before that i never really gave thought to my gender but after that i started thinking abt it , and idk if im cis or not lol like im afab and im fine with she/her but i wouldnt mind if people called me he/him or they/them either... does this make me nb idk,, however my nb friend said they felt really happy and liberated when someone used their new pronouns and i dont feel that so?? idk

i get what you mean!! figuring out what you dont or do like better is sometimes the first step to figuring out *gestures* Everything Else

i think personally the most important thing to figuring out if you're nonbinary, since the area may be a bit more gray sometimes, is less about pronouns and more about gender itself. plenty of nonbinary n trans people are comfortable using the pronouns associated with their agab! its mostly about your relationship with the gender itself. are you comfortable with your gender? if you are, is that all there is? do you have any other Gender Feelings?

some nonbinary people identify with their agab, but also have some other gender feelings on the side that sorta nudge them into being nonbinary. like, demigender people, some bigender people, etc etc all might identify with their agab, but also with a little bit of something else if that makes sense.

and of course at the end of the day, its up to you if you're nonbinary or not! there is no rite of passage to being nonbinary, you dont have to meet any specific requirements besides like... not being cis. and that definition could change for everyone.

there are cis people that use multiple pronouns, but being comfortable with the pronouns associated with your agab definitely does not rule out being nonbinary or trans! its mostly a matter of what you personally are comfortable with calling yourself. looking into different labels and thinking about how they might relate to you is also a good way to figure out what the label that fits you best is!

what ur describing to me sounds like pronoun indifference, which i will say i know a lot of nonbinary people feel that, but like i said, its mostly up to you!!

i hope this isnt confusing im a bit tired, but i rlly hope it helps and i wish u luck in figuring it out!! mwah mwah <3

also if any1 would like to add on or anything feel free to!

[zenosanalytic]

People What Aint From Round Here Is The Problem...

So I just watched Once Upon a Time... In Hollywood and I have THOUGHTS:

Ive read a few reviews&ruminations on this film at this point and I can’t believe that none of them got(or at least, mentioned explicitly) the primary thesis of this movie, spcl given that Tarentino flatly states it out the mouth of his primary protagonist within, like, the first 15-20mins of the film: “...most important thing in this town is when you’re making money you buy a house in town. You don’t rent... Hollywood real estate means you live here. You’re not just visiting, not just passing through. You fuckin live here.” i.e., the most important thing in Hollywood, to Hollywood, is the people FROM Hollywood; Everyone else is just a filthy, trouble-making tourist or profiteer who is “Passing Through” and “Doesnt Get It” and  “Is Fucking It Up”(It being the film industry), and probably “Secretly Hates Movies”. There are places and aspects of this movie that are basically a Nativist Angeleno rant, written by a life-long Angeleno film-nerd-turned-film-maker, against Hollywood’s critics(and his critics which he just totally conflates with the former), and probably non-Angelenos(and non-Californians?) in general.

There are two ways to read this thesis: Straight and Subverted/Satirized.

The evidence for reading it straight is pretty plentiful. Lots of reviews have puzzled at where the line connecting the constant hippie-bashing, the weird focus on knocking Polanski’s Polishness & preference for shooting in London, and the inexplicable pot-shot at Bruce Lee is, and I think this is it. “The Hippies” are repeatedly presented as a corrupting force: digging through trash, living in squalourous filth at the Spahn Ranch dragging members of “Old Hollywood” like its owner into it with them, selling drugs, and using sex to “control” men. And attached to this is presenting “The Hippies” as foreign; not only from another place, but refusing to assimilate with the LA way of life and hostile to it. The Manson family are the only explicitly identified “Hippies” in the film(other than, possibly, the one who sells Cliff an acid cig). The only “positive” portrayals of Bruce Lee in the film are silent ones of him teaching anglos kung fu, which has some fairly obvs and well-understood Implications.

But there’s also good evidence for reading it as subverted and satirized. Both Tate and Dalton are NOT from California, let alone LA, and Booth’s origins are left unclear. Dalton’s the only one of them explicitly id’d as being from elsewhere(Missouri), but Tate’s easy to google and she was a military kid who grew up all over the place. When Dalton returns from Italy, that sequence and his look in it are VERY reminiscent of the scenes introducing Polanski at the beginning of the film. The side-characters around Tate, perennially shown in a positive light, are also non-Angelenos. Doing Spaghetti Westerns revitalizes Dalton’s career, despite his disdain for Italian cinema. Tate and her crew, while not explicitly ID’d as “Hippies” and often shown in Mod and other fashion styles, are also presented in “Hippie” fashion, shown listening to “Hippie” music, smoking the “Hippie” Reefer(Im sorry, but Comedy Demanded this phrasing and I am Devout u_u), and implied to be living a polyamorous “Hippie” life.

It really is difficult for me to say which predominates. On the one entirely metaphorical hand, the ways in which Dalton’s Angeleno chauvinism are subverted and mocked are fairly obvs, but on the other emh, the film is FILLED with LITERALLY GLOWING nostalgia for this pre-Hippy, pre-Lefty, pre-70s, Conservative and Republican California&Los Angeles. Dalton’s focus on property-ownership&the film industry in the opening thesis could easily be seen as resolving these subversive contradictions to allow for a straight read(ie: Tate, Booth, and Dalton are “Hollywood People” who’ve both bought real-estate in LA, and who’ve grown up in film or film-adjacent fields and choose to center their adult lives in the film industry). So much, in fact, that I kinda started to wonder abt QT’s politics while watching it. And, if it WAS satirical, then what’s the point of the knock to Bruce Lee and focusing criticisms of Polanski on his Polishness and shooting in London? Is that just meant to characterize Dalton and Booth as nativists and racists?

It really cannot be said enough that there are REALLY MORE APPROPRIATE CRITICISMS to make of Polanski than 1)begin Polish, 2)possessing boyish effeminacy, and 3)preferring to shoot movies in London instead of LA. Which are this movie’s only problems with him(though it also takes the time to show him bitchily smoking a cigarette in an evening gown while being rude to a dog). Obvsl I dont object to villainizing an ACTUAL REAL LIFE VILLAIN like this shitstain, but I DO object to being asked(albeit gently) to participate in this film’s understated nationalist bigotry.

It’s possible that Cliff’s turning Pussycat down during the drive to the ranch was intended to be this but I highly doubt it. And if it was it’d be misrepresenting Polanski’s misdeeds enormously, considering that Pussycat, the too-young girl, is the sexual instigator in this film. Polanski liked to manipulate, drug, and rape underaged girls(he pulled the same shit with models in Europe before getting busted for it in LA, btw, then continued doing it after fleeing back to Europe); really not the same situation.

There’s another irony in that, while the film goes out of its way to call Polanski “boyish” and imply that makes him feminine and that this is Bad, there’s also a subtle under-current that... Tarentino sees himself in his youth the same way? He’s certainly never been short like Polanski and Jay Sebring are/were, QT’s 6 1, but the actors he cast to play them and the description made of the pair in-film are more than a bit reminiscent of how Tarentino looked&was discussed in the press back in the 90s when he was starting out. AAAaaand the film explicitly calls that Tate’s “Type”; leaving me with the question: would Tarentino be able to stop himself from implying a dead starlet would have been attracted to him? I leave the answer to your imaginations, Dear Readers u_u

Having said all that it IS a really good film, which I liked, I dont think it’d be very hard to set aside this political stuff while watching, the driving sequences are especially emotive&exhilarating, and there’s some seriously great acting in it. IDK if I’d say I liked it more than the recent Emma movie, tho.

I feel like each of the trio, Tate, Dalton, and Booth, were meant to symbolically Embody LA/Hollywood/California? Like Pitt especially seemed to be channeling movie characters and CJ from GTA: San Andreas throughout his performance, while I couldnt help but think of Ronald Reagan watching DiCaprio(spcl given the character’s likely politics). So there’s this sense in which the film is a fantasy of “Old Hollywood”, embodied by these three, Vanquishing its “Enemies”, represented by The Hippies(moralizing, pretentious, gross leftist) and potentially Polanski&Lee(foreign film ppl who refuse to integrate into the LA scene). Again, given the political history of Cali after this era, this embodiment raises some questions for me abt the film and QT’s politics(particularly in re: misogyny and feminism).

Also DiCaprio is totally going to get pitched a Reagan biopic off of this role and I sincerely hope he has the good sense to turn that shit the fuck down.

Circling back to the ranting at his critics, this movie was definitely and consciously a response to them. Like: up until the last 5-15 minutes of the film, and aside from a handful of too-lingering too fetishistic too on-the-nose creep shots of the female cast that Tarentino simply could not stop himself from making, OUATiH is precisely the sort of “Serious” film Tarentino’s critics have been saying he should make for decades now(of course he did Jackie Brown, which was that and which he blew Completely out of the park). And then there’s that bloody, gross-out, exploitation-movie ending. I dont actually think it was as bad as many critics were saying it was? For some reason I was thinking there was gonna be a massacre of the ENTIRE Manson family, which would have been totally out of left-field. But it WAS clearly a stinger of a major tone-shift thrown in as a Fuck You to the ppl who’ve called out his violent and exploitative preferences throughout the years. As for me I generally like his movies and think he’s a great filmmaker but he absolutely does go too far sometimes.

Rick Dalton, in an evening-gown, with a mixer full of iced-margarita in one hand, getting all up in the face of the driver of a loud exhaust-spewing jalope in his PRIVATE STREET was TOTALLY Tarentino himself :| By which I mean NOT ONLY that That’s ABSOLUTELY the sort of cameo he would have given himself 30 years ago and if it made any sort of sense at all in the film(which here it wouldnt have, obvsl), BUT ALSO that I feel 94% confident that Tarentino has actually done that at least once in his lifetime :| :|

I think the monologue&interactions T gives Bruce Lee leading up to the fight were probably more insulting to him than the fight itself. Contrary to popular discussion, it isn’t Pitt’s character totally trashing Lee, he gets in one good throw after Lee repeats a successful attack at his request(which I doubt Lee would have ever done from what little I know about him; not being predictable in a fight was his whole Deal), but rather an even duel between them(most of the fight is just the two blocking each others’ attacks). I dont think the film was trying to say “Lee was full of hot-air”, if it wanted to say that it’d have shown him getting trounced instead of showing him knock Booth down then trade him blow for blow, but more “Lee was pretty arrogant and a bit pretentious”.

OK, that’s abt all that I can think of right now: thanks for reading ^v^

[roxannc]

❝ Girls like her were born in a storm. They have lightning in their souls. Thunder in their hearts. And chaos in their bones. ❞ AISHA DEE? No, that’s actually ROXANNE WEASLEY. A SIXTH YEAR student, this RAVENCLAW student is sided with MCGONAGALL’S ARMY. SHE identifies as CIS-WOMAN and is a HALFBLOOD who is known to be DRAMATIC, HAUGHTY, and TEMPERAMENTAL but also PASSIONATE, SOCIABLE, and OPENMINDED.

LINKS: stats, pinboard, character tag. CHARACTER PARALLELS: donna pinciotti (that 70s show), amy pond (doctor who), amy santiago (brooklyn 99), dan wilds (aftg) HELLO just a quick note from me mar, some of this is for sure up for change, mostly regarding the wotters and family in general!! besides that, here we finally Go

history

roxanne voice: i was born in an iconic family because it was my destiny to be iconic! but --- in all honesty --- she is right. roxanne is born to george & angelina one hot summer morning, waking up the whole damn hospital with her crying and huge lungs. she has a brother --- fred, who’s officially her half brother, but that’s not something that makes him anything less than her brother. and then there’s heaps of cousins, almost too many of them, and uncles and aunts and other people to call family, and from day one, it’s all good.

roxanne was a chaotic kid, growing up. a cheerful and energetic and exciting one, but a chaotic one. dirty walls and destruction followed her wherever she went. a bit of a hurricane of a girl, even then. roxanne discovered her love for quidditch at a young age, too, and how couldn’t she? it was in her blood and all around her and there was something bloody magical about flying.

a love for people and laughter and loving people was also discovered. roxanne grew up in a warm environment and had plenty of reasons to love the people she loved, even if she needed none. there was, of course, tragedy in her blood too, an awareness that there’s horrible things in this world --- an awareness that she buried as soon as she was able to.

upon arrival at hogwarts, the hat took a while to decide between gryffindor and ravenclaw but went with the latter, in the end. was roxanne disappointed? a bit, maybe. she would have liked to be sorted into the same house as her parents and brother and a lot of her family but the hat had made some solid points and heck, she wouldnt be roxanne if she looked at ravenclaw as a challenge.

was eventually sorted in ravenclaw because her mind, in the end, is her motivator. she might be a very physically active and present person, but she thinks. a lot. about everything. ( with an exception for moments where she acts on impulse. ) roxanne is a very bright individual, to be honest --- she’s able to be booksmart and she likes learning. she likes challenging herself. above all, she just has a Very open mind and is always looking to broaden it.

is a whirlwind. roxanne joined and dropped clubs like no other, switched favourite subject every month, delved into odd sections of the library to become an expert on rare subjects ... it was a lot. her grades suffered under it, too --- roxanne might be a loyal person, but she’s damn flighty. there were, of course, passions that she stuck with. quidditch, of course, but also justice. roxanne, as a queer woman of colour, has always felt very passionately for human rights issues and knows shit about it too. always down for a debate over lunch. getting on the quidditch team was one of the best days of her damn life. getting the quidditch badge later on was an even better day. roxanne loves the sport so much, wants to go pro once she’s graduated, is crazy competitive. she’s a gay jock. another cliché character by mar learned eventually how to focus and keep her grades up, but she does have trouble motivating herself for things that dont interest her. she’s just not an academic. she likes learning, loves it actually --- but hates the way she has to do it at school. hates it. she’s still working hard to get good grades, of course, because she gets that that’s part of life but she just really... wishes it wasnt. [ death, murder tw  so life was going pretty good and then her uncle was murdered and everything went to shit like that. and--- here’s roxanne’s question: how in the living hell do you deal with that? she doesn’t know, that’s for sure. she knows that she’s angry. that she’s absolutely livid and not sure what to do with the grief in her chest because damn it, that’s not her thing, not at all. she’s sickened with worry. she mostly is enraged at the world and that this is happening and that people can be like this. end of tw ]

so joining the DA was something roxanne didn’t even think about. she just did it. her studies, once again, have taken a backseat while she pushes all her energy into the DA and the team, as that functions as something ... as close as therapeutic as she can get, i suppose. leading her team, searching that snitch, hoping to win, win, win --- all things that in the grand scheme of things dont matter but do make it easier to deal.

roxanne ... she’s a lot. she’s a fucking lot. she’s a mess. 

personality & rambling

roxanne does NOTHING half heartedly; she either commits fully or doesn’t do something at all. she doesn’t do half-assing, doesn’t believe in it — this got her in a fair amount of trouble at hogwarts (handing in 10/10 homework or ,,, not doing it or barely doing it) and she knows it’s a bad attitude to have, deep down. not that she’s admitted that to herself yet, though. things have been put in perspective now, though. it’s clear that there’s no room for just doing what she wants to do and what she feels like, so she’s ... improving ( and yet completely abandoning her studies lmao )

when roxanne is passionate about something, she goes on about it for a long time. loves ranting about topics that drive her, is very vocal of her views and thoughts and hardly shuts up about it. can be condescending, at times; roxanne believes she’s always right, has little humility to her — she often doesn’t try to put herself in other people’s shoes, thinks that anyone who disagrees is simply wrong. it’s a thinking pattern she’s trying to shake, but alas; it’s easier said than done.

this is also a way for her to cope with her insecurities, tbh; she puts others down in her head so she can lift herself up. unhealthy!!! yikes! it’s something she’s pretty unaware of.

i mean, roxanne is, deep down, very fucking insecure. she has this surname that’s got a bit of fame to it and she has such high ideals for everyone around her including herself. especially for herself. her confidence is not completely feigned, i think part of it is definitely real, but part of it is definitely a mask

roxanne LOVES music. she’s into everything that either is a jam, old classic rock or has a damn good message. she’s v passionate abt it. her spotify? gold. she’s also a good singer! this video is literally roxanne im sorry aisha dee move over! honestly if she had mroe time she would try and get into music bc she would love that but yeno quidditch is the name of the game (someone show her hsm and show her that u can do both)

she’s so competitive someone please stop her from fighting everyone over quidditch

uh she’s just very... much. she’s outgoing and loud and dramatic and her emotions are like! all over the place! and change very easily! she thinks she’s a lot herself too tbh she’s constantly exhausted from herself which i think is valid and relatable on a personal lvl for me. 

possible plots

friendos roxanne loves ppl and loving ppl so let’s go and have some FRIENDS up in this building. couldve met through family things, in the library, on the pitch, in dueling club, in any other club that roxanne was in for a short amount of time, etc etc etc. roxanne is fairly easy to place at hogwarts bc she’s everywhere

quidditch competition just give me all the plots if you have a fellow quidditch pal because roxanne is ready to fight to the death for that cup!!

dumbledore’s army bros people that roxanne got to know better through the da would be v interesting because it’s a ??? weird base for a friendship or dynamic ( i mean, a tough one. like ... we’re buds because we’re fighting for a cause whihc we shouldnt even be fighting for bc the world shouldnt be like this )

idk roxanne is literally so all over the place, if your character is at hogwarts im sure we can plot something??? enemies, shenanigan pals, exes, study buddies, etc etc etc

[iokoye]

I'm struggling with my sexuality still... I came out as Bisexual last year but I don't know if I'm Bi or Lesbian. what can I do?

the first thing you need to do is realize that what you’re going through is completely normal and whether you identify as bisexual or as a lesbian in the future is no one’s business but yours. i know that it’s stressful especially when you’ve come out as bi already but it’s!! okay!! you’re okay!! don’t stress!! the exact same thing happened to me and let me tell you that you only need to label yourself as what makes you most comfortable or, hell, not even label yourself at all if that’s what you wish!

it’s not my place to decide anyone’s labels but here’s what helped me realize that i was a lesbian even when i had identified myself as bi for years:

most lesbians realize that they go through something called compulsory heterosexuality at some point as opposed to not knowing and just thinking you’re genuinely attracted to men. i go through this almost every single day. comphet is basically what our society forces on us and it’s shoved down our throats so badly that we think we might be attracted to men because that’s... y’know... the “norm”. there’s a lot of ways that it can manifest itself and all of it translates to “the idea of dating a man is neat until it’s not”, meaning there are A LOT of things, even the tiniest ones, that make you want to reconsider whether dating a man is worth it or not but still you question yourself every single day (“what if i’m really just x... and not y... because i found this person attractive once... when they glanced at me for a millisecond at the bus stop...”) even when you sometimes show ZERO interest in either getting married to a man, having kids with him, living with him, cooking for him, BEING WITH HIM IN GENERAL. i once broke up with a guy on our second date just because he wasn’t a good kisser. i always think abt how if it was a girl i would’ve tolerated it, approaching the “problem” differently.

this being said, here’s a list of things that most lesbians who think they’re bi/straight go through, say and do: 

you don’t want to cook for a man ever. you don’t want to be a housewife at all. i mean if it was a woman you’d gladly cook for her and love her but men.. not really

“some guys are pretty and aesthetically pleasing so i MUST BE attracted to them. I HAVE TO.”

“i dated a lot of boys when i was younger so i can’t be a lesbian that makes no sense. i never actually felt a deep connection to them but i dated plenty of boys so ;//”

you’ve fantasized about men and didn’t feel uncomfortable by the thought, which is how you think you would feel if you were a lesbian, but when you’re actually FACED with the opportunity of either pursuing a sexual or even a romantic relationship with a guy you run for the hills or at least it makes you feel uneasy

you think you’re bi because you’re attracted to many UNATTAINABLE men, i.e. singers, movie stars, etc. which isn’t what happens with men in real life. that you can actually see on a day to day basis and you know... that you can actually touch and date 

saying that you’re bi but you’re more attracted to women as an excuse for not dating men (bisexuals CAN be more attracted to women!! but not wanting to date men at all is different) 

you have a hard time accepting/enjoying a straight ship or you just don’t feel interested by straight couples in the media as opposed to lesbian ships

you are certain that you feel attracted to women but aren’t so sure if you’re attracted to men 

you always find excuses not to like a guy when you’re faced with the possibility of dating him - “he’s not the one for me idk”; “he’s just not a good kisser” or some other excuse

“my standards are TOO HIGH for any man which is why i don’t have a boyfriend” 

flirting with a girl comes almost naturally and is easier than flirting with a guy

you don’t know if you’re a lesbian but you want to call yourself one

domesticity with men... dreadful. do not want. women are angels though 

if you think you have a crush on a guy whether it’s bc you think he’s cute etc, you can switch your attraction to him pretty easily meaning that if you were to “lose him” it wouldn’t phase you cause you weren’t that invested in whatever you felt for him anyway 

the sheer thought of a man showing attraction to you makes you very nervous which makes YOU think that that can be translated into “i’m nervous cause i like him too”

you want to subconsciously feel appreciated/liked by men but feel uncomfortable when they show that they’re attracted to you

only wanting to date a guy (or forcing yourself to) so you can prove that you can do it and that you can escape your family’s homophobia. you see them as an escape route 

you usually play hard to get with guys whereas with women it all just... flows naturally 

wanting to be a lesbian but not labeling yourself as such because you held a boys hand for 3 seconds when you were 14 which makes you not 100% lesbian ;//////

not wanting to change your label because you feel like you’re contributing to the “bisexuals are confused” and the “lesbians just need to find the right man” (if you id as a lesbian when you’re really bisexual) stereotype 

basically... knowing you’re not straight but still struggling to find the right label is pretty hard and a lot comes to play. it takes A LOT of soul searching but you’ll get there. it doesn’t matter when, all it matters is that you will. 

i honestly do hope that this helps you!! know that if you still end up identifying as bisexual then it’s okay. internalized biphobia/lesbophobia exists which only makes everything harder, unfortunately. don’t let anyone dictate how you should label yourself but my advice is something real cheesy: follow your heart and your instincts. deep down you know what you want, you know who you are. if you have any more questions please don’t refrain from sending them ♡in the meantime here are some posts that helped me realize i was a lesbian [here] [here] [here] [here] 

[ivanaskye]

hey I’ll continue posting my lotr liveblogs soon but I ALSO just started reading children of hurin and I’m dying

So I open this book and the first thing I see. “It is undeniable that there are a very great many readers of The Lord of the Rings for whom the legends of the Elder Days (as previously published in varying forms in The Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales, and The History of Middle-earth) are altogether unknown,” oh, oh honey, ahahahahahaha.

Hey stop mentioning other things I need to read (eg bolt). Stop, stop, I ALREADY HAVE A PROBLEM-

THERES A BIGGER FALL OF GONDOLIN,?

And yet I STILL cannot care one bit about beren and luthien. Sorry.

Ah yes, a forward AND an introduction. Classic

Time UNIMAGINABLY REMOTE... ohhh boy do I have bad news for u........ pls.... I’m the girl who’s used to thinking about 4.5billion years of /irl/ earth.... the first age is nothing...

Oh right Thingol’s gonna be in this book hhhhhhh ugh

WOO onto the book proper!

Ok gloredhel sounds SO SINDARIN... omg does house of hador speak sindarin.... ;-; FEELINGS.

Wait. WIAT. Waaaaaaait. TURIN AND TUOR ARE COUSINS. I. Um. How did I not knOW-

Also hurin short

Morgen was sOMEWHAT STERN OF MOOD AND PROUD. Mhmm. JUST SOMEWHAT.

Aaaaa Men ;-;. As w Rohan in rotk, I love these Men sooooo much more when I don’t feel pressured to identify as actually OF their kind

“There Turgon the King received them well, when he learned of their kin; for Hador was an Elf-friend, and Ulmo, moreover, had counselled Turgon to deal kindly with the sons of that House, from whom help should come to him at need.” Ulmo u are trying but Tuor still gets denied. Also how’d I lowkey forget these two saw Gondolin.

Maeglin stahp.

TURIN INHERITED MORWEN’S GOTH GENE

“when he returned his quick speech, full of strange words and jests and half-meanings, bewildered Túrin and made him uneasy.” This just in Turin is autistic and hurin is allistic I don’t make the rules,

“‘Fair as an Elf-child is Lalaith,’ said Húrin to Morwen; ‘but briefer, alas! And so fairer, maybe, or dearer.’” Kill m e,

....

The entire passage with Turin finding out Lalaith is dead is just. MORWEN. Morwen have u ever chilled even Once.

“‘Because Urwen is dead, and laughter is stilled in this house,’ she answered. ‘But you live, son of Morwen; and so does the Enemy who has done this to us.’”

MORWEN CALLS HIM SON OF MORWEN. Does she have drama in her veins instead f blood

“Húrin mourned openly, and he took up his harp and would make a song of lamentation; but he could not, and he broke his harp, and going out he lifted up his hand towards the North, crying: ‘Marrer of Middle-earth, would that I might see you face to face, and mar you as my lord Fingolfin did!’”

In which we find that Morwen did not take ALL the Extra in this book, there is plenty left to share. Also wait he served Fingolfin but right before he died???

Ok just everything abt the Men - who being mortal have more to lose - fighting for the elves gives me feelings

You can just FEEL the intense Second Kindred-ness on every page

THEN TURIN ASKED TO HIM, WHAT IS FATE.

I just. This family could actually compete with the Kholins on Extra-ness and THAT IS SAYING SOMETHING.

One chapter in and there’s already Mortality Discourse and I’m screaming aloud omfg

“From wounds /and griefs/ that would slay Men they may be healed;” This is. Relevant. The holding of joy closer than sorrow, to temper it....

Just. Hit home that this is like... the freakin... third, fourth generation of Edain? They so young.....

“My father is not afraid, and I will not be; or at least, as my mother, I will be afraid and not show it.’” CHECK OUT THIS BURN ON MORWEN FOLKS

AND HE WISHES HE WAS ONE OF THE ELDAR AND /FOR THAT REASON/ WANTS TO MEET THEM. Out of. Wishing. And jealousy. DRAGS HANDS DOWN OVER FACE. Reading this book is not a quiet affair.

“‘They are a fair folk and wonderful, and they have a power over the hearts of Men. And yet I think sometimes that it might have been better if we had never met them, but had walked in lowlier ways. For already they are ancient in knowledge; and they are proud and enduring. In their light we are dimmed, or we burn with too quick a flame, and the weight of our doom lies the heavier on us.’”

LIES DOWN, D I E S.

“in the year that cannot be forgotten.” Oh look the narrator is super extra too

MORWEN IS SUCH A. Such a force to be reckoned with tbh.

Wait is that THAT sword. Already???

Oh it’s not but there is foreshadowing.

An elf: is mentioned

Me: MY CHILD

Aaaa it’s so cool to see Fingon and everyone told in full prose ;-;

YEAAAA TURGON!

Wait this is quenya. Hasn’t Thingol already outlawed quenya or

I can barely read the word Angband without thinking. Angbang.

Aaaaa that classic. Bring out prisoners and mess w them mood.

BY THE TREACHERY OF MEN THE FIELD WAS LOST. /This/ is what that lyric is referencing? I think.

Ow Fingon sure dies graphically.

A NEW STAR SHALL ARISE this is definitely where these lyrics come from.

[positive-lesbian-vibes]

uhh im 15 so maybe im wrong but i think im a lesbian and ive identified as bi for a while now but to be honest i really don’t think i like boys that way and ive Tried and Tried but it’s really not working but i don’t want to be lik this so i don’t know what to do,, i can look at a boy and find him attractive but it always feel forced and i could never see me marrying one/kissing them when thinking about a future w/ a girl makes me so happy. am i messed up feeling like this

ur not messed up feeling like that at all! a lot of people get it wrong the first time around when trying to identify their sexuality, or it changes over time, but if you think youre a lesbian and not bi because you dont like boys you are just a lesbian dear it’s that simple

its okay to be scared, too. being a lesbian (being lgbt at all really but we are talking abt u and being a lesbian lol) can feel really intimidating and scary and not always appealing at first. i cried myself to sleep the first night i acknowledged that i was a lesbian, because i really didnt want to be. but being a lesbian isnt a bad thing, it doesnt make u a bad person, BUT it does mean you can get that future with a girl that you get happy thinking about! it won’t come over night and it will probably have plenty of bumps along the way, but being a lesbian is wonderful, loving women is wonderful, and you are part of a beautiful, diverse, and loving community

[gghosting]

i dont go here anymore but i heard certain parts of the dc fandom are back on their bullshit so i’m here to say some things. namely i heard that some people have decided that bc tim is/was a high school dropout that means he’s some kind of holed-up unacademic dorito gremlin who doesnt leave the house for less than a million dollars or something. which. is truly an awful and sort of lazy characterization of tim pre-52* (i won’t pretend like i know anything abt current comic canon bc i cant deal with fandom or dc itself post-completely-destroying-tim’s-character ksdjf)

so like first of all. just to get this out of the way. it’s 2017 and at this point it’s completely reductive to pit the batkids’ characterizations against each other as if any of them deserve the title of The ___ One over the others (in this case, The Smart One, but really not necessary). theyre all complex characters. theyre all shitnerds. we get it. furthermore it’s not like... new? for certain legs of the fandom to decide to completely reject what are considered popular canon and/or fanon interpretations of the characters. it’s not edgy, either-- just opposing those interpretations doesn’t add any nuance or understanding to the conversation. it’s just sort of boring and disappointing imo

but! anyway what really gets me, what really keeps me up at night is that someone, somewhere, has decided that tim hasn’t earned the right to be regarded as like? intelligent? for some reason? just kidding i know the reason it’s because he dropped out of high school but anyway

“why has fandom decided that tim is the smart/nerdy robin when...?”

here. i will tell you

1. tim has consistently been canonically identified as the most tactically-minded batkid (perhaps with the exception of barbara, who has transcended the batkid title and also bruce’s bullshit). by his family + friends, by ra’s, and by bruce himself. like... it’s there from the very beginning! the very first miniseries! he beats shiva by outthinking her, not by actually being stronger or faster than her. it’s there from his introduction-- tim is, however unbelievably, the only person to have figured out who batman and robin were and he did that at the age of nine. wrt him being regarded as nerdy... he dms a dnd group for his friends and i really think that’s all i should have to say in his defense here

2. in before “intelligence =/= book smarts”: absolutely. we see tim struggling throughout high school + the robin series. we see him attending tutoring sessions, failing history classes, falling asleep mid-lecture. tim’s not that great at school! great. imo this isn’t indicative of either Laziness or a lack of academic interest, though, because the comics also tell us why he isn’t great at school: he’s a kid who’s been doing the vigilante gig every night since he was thirteen years old. he doesn’t finish homework because he’s out on this job that reasonably no kid should have to balance with the rest of their lives. he doesn’t get sleep because this job isn’t conducive to wellness-- mentally, emotionally, or physically. he’s a teenager for pete’s sake, and one who’s dealing with plenty of adult problems

3. ok really full disclosure what bugs me most about this is characterizing tim’s dropping out as anything but what it was-- a result of burnout (from, you know, the teenage vigilante thing), grief (you know that part where everyone was constantly getting hurt and/or dying around him), and mental illness (”but that’s not canon” man... they literally put the suicide hotline at the end of one of his comics). we see tim rise above all of these things constantly-- in his work as robin, as rr, as a member of multiple teams-- and the only time he retreats from the hardworking, intelligent kid he is is in the middle of these kinds of episodes (like... kon’s death? bruce’s? one time he thought he killed someone he didn’t and he had a good weeklong relatable crisis). using him not graduating as some kind of gotcha against his whole characterization is a copout and willful ignorance of everything else we canonically know about tim and i’m SICK!