#covid Discord Group

[varietysky]

It's funny how Ghosts s1 + s2 are fused in my mind as one thing, and same with s4 + s5 together. Then there's s3 in my head that's its own separate lil thing.

[quarkscooljacket]

maybe embarrassing to post this but i have exhausted all the avenues i can think of. is there!!! anyone in the whole of melbourne, australia who is still coviding and wants to bone. i fucking. i am dieing. sorry

[iliveinprocrasti-nationn]

there’s a group on my campus supporting palestine that i think i’m going to join, but i’m also.. really nervous. if i show up publically i risk being ostracised by my jewish community which has made it very clear they are firmly in support of israel. but i also can’t just sit to the side anymore and not do anything when there are resources for me to help

[nylarac]

the way this is the top result

killing and violence

second result seemed promising but not many ppl seem to use this site and it's mostly just like parents w young kids looking to set up playdates in my area 😭

[tacticalhimbo]

covidsafehotties , a blog dedicated to covid pandemic resources run by a trans* woman, was deleted for "harassment" after mentioning that her abusive, tme roommate had drawn a knife on her. she simply mentioned that this roommate was tme (which does not mean inherently mean transmasculine; iirc this roommate was cisgender), received threatening and harassing anonymous asks for simply stating that she was a victim of transmisogyny, and SHE was the one banned.

edit: here is a [link] to the covidsafehotties discord server; and here is a [link] to a follow-up post i made about certain recurring comments/questions!

edit 2: here is a [link] the new tumblr blog, covid-safer-hotties! in case this one also goes down; to find a better archive of information, make sure to check out nadica's proboard dedicated to covid safety, which can be found at this [link] !

while nadica (blog owner) has privately stated that she is attempting to go through the appeals process, tumblr's email from @staff has made it clear that she as a transgender woman is not welcomed on this site.

just as they have numerous trans* women in the past week.

in fact, she received the exact same email as them, stating that "automatic means were not used to make this decision or identify the content at issue", meaning that real. human members of staff saw a trans* woman being harassed, talking about her experiences as a trans* woman, and banned her for daring to say so.

they even went as far as to state that she "[should not] engage in the unwanted sexualization or sexual harassment of others".

how in the FUCK is her sharing these experiences sexual? how in the FUCK is her being harassed by transmasculine folks on this site sexual??

just a reminder: here are details surrounding tumblr’s NYCCHR Settlement, which is publicly accessible information

Summary of NYC Gov. Settlements [ LINK ]

NYCCHR Settlement Documentation [ LINK ]

in case y'all really want to raise a stink over the "queerest site on the internet" raising their transmisogynistic paws (again). and from nadica herself:

" Can we all appreciate that even beyond the transmisogyny of the likely scenario, that this person disliked a single acronym [re: tme] I used so much that they got the most [active] and interacted-with covid blog on the site banned. i can't imagine being so cruel and thoughtless about any resource "

as a tme person, i stand with every fucking trans woman and transfem that tumblr has banned from this site for existing within the content guidelines. i stand with every fucking trans woman and transfem who has been harassed, stalked, and booted from this site because the moderation staff refuses to do SHIT about it.

and i stand with every other group who faces the same treatment. the dozens of black bloggers. the dozens of indigenous bloggers. the dozens of palestinian bloggers.

tumblr is not the queerest corner of the internet. it is not a safe space. and if i get banned for saying that, then fuck it and fuck every one of y'all who let it happen.

[reasonsforhope]

Article

"The Democratic Party largely coalesced around Vice President Harris as its likely new presidential nominee on Monday [July 22, 2024], as she kicked off her campaign by promising to prosecute a forceful case against Republican nominee Donald Trump and defend the legacy of President Biden.

Hours after she delivered remarks laying out some of the themes of her campaign, Harris secured pledges of support from a majority of Democratic National Convention delegates, a forceful show of unity behind her presidential campaign that signals she is likely to officially become the party’s nominee next month.

“Over the next 106 days, we are going to take our case to the American people, and we are going to win,” Harris said during a visit to campaign headquarters in Wilmington, Del., where she was greeted by a group of energized staffers for Biden’s now-abandoned candidacy. Harris accused Trump of wanting to “take our country backwards to a time before many of our fellow Americans had full freedoms and rights.” She added, “we believe in a brighter future that makes room for all Americans.”

Biden dialed into the impromptu meeting, using his first public remarks after dropping out of the presidential race Sunday to thank his staff and ask them to support Harris with “every bit of your heart and soul.”

“The name has changed at the top of the ticket, but the mission hasn’t changed at all,” said Biden, who joined remotely from Rehoboth Beach, where he has been recovering from a case of covid. “We still need to save this democracy. Trump is still a danger to the community. He’s a danger to the nation.”

The high-energy, highly unified setting reflected the broader sentiment across the Democratic Party, in which Harris’s swift ascendancy has upended an already tumultuous and unpredictable presidential race. After being exhausted by weeks of turmoil and infighting over Biden’s prospects, relieved and newly energized Democrats across the country rushed to embrace Harris’s candidacy and unite around the goal of defeating Trump.

Less than 36 hours after Biden abruptly exited the race and endorsed Harris as his successor, hundreds of state delegates, the majority of Democratic lawmakers and governors, a group of state party chairs, and several influential interest groups threw their support behind Harris, as other potential candidates said they would not challenge her. Top congressional leaders followed suit, with Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.), House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and former House speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) expressing support for Harris on Monday.

While a small number of Democrats have advocated an open, competitive process, Harris appeared to have an inside track Monday to quickly securing the nomination ahead of the party’s convention next month...

After celebrating the extended infighting and discord that plagued Democrats in the aftermath of Biden’s halting performance at the June 27 debate, Trump’s allies watched Monday as Democratic leaders quickly fell in line behind Harris.

“I’m excited to fully endorse Vice President Harris for the next president of the United States,” Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D) said Monday on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” program. “The vice president is smart and strong, which will make her a good president, but she’s also kind and has empathy, which can make her a great president.” ...

Democratic Govs. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, J.B. Pritzker of Illinois and Wes Moore of Maryland also endorsed Harris on Monday, joining a growing list of potential rivals for the nomination that instead opted to endorse her candidacy. Govs. Gavin Newsom of California and Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, each considered potential candidates, both endorsed Harris on Sunday.

Democratic leaders on Monday unveiled a new virtual process for selecting a nominee to replace Biden that would conclude by Aug. 7, ahead of the nominating convention in Chicago next month. The dates for the virtual process will be announced on Wednesday.

The private doubts about Harris’s vulnerabilities and less-than-impressive polling numbers largely remained unspoken Monday as Democrats appeared eager to consolidate around a candidate and head off a messy competition for the nomination 106 days before the Nov. 5 election. During her visit to campaign headquarters in Wilmington, Harris was greeted by more than 100 staff members who gave her a standing ovation. The room was covered in newly printed signs that read “Harris for President,” though at least one lingering “Biden-Harris” sign stood as a testament to how rapidly the presidential race had shifted.

Campaign aides said more than 28,000 new volunteers had signed up to lend support, more than 100 times the typical number. Harris, who has been traveling around the country, planned to continue her campaign travel this week.

Trump had built an advantage in polls of key swing states and has at times appeared frustrated with Biden’s exit from the race, lamenting Sunday that he had to “start all over again” after long focusing on Biden...

Harris’s operation raised a record $81 million in the first 24 hours after Biden dropped out and endorsed his vice president, aides said. A group of tens of thousands of Black women gathered on a virtual call Sunday evening to showcase their support for Harris’s bid to become the first woman of color to be president...

Harris has already begun leaning into her background as a prosecutor and state attorney general as she began to cast the race against Trump in a new light.

“In those roles I took on perpetrators of all kinds,” she said. “Predators who abused women, fraudsters who ripped off consumers, cheaters who broke the rules for their own gain. So hear me when I say I know Donald Trump’s type.”"

-via The Washington Post, July 22, 2024

[lilyblossoming]

.

[freckliedan]

i know TIT shows don't start until next month, but i want to start posting about this early: what covid safety precautions are you guys planning on taking?

this community prides itself on being a welcoming and safe place for neurodivergent and mentally ill fans, which rules! phannies are one of the kindest groups of fans i've known, and that's a lived type of kindness—people act on it, we aren't just talk.

so that's why i'm mentioning this now! there are a lot of physical disabilities that both frequently co-occur with neurodivergence and that make potentially getting covid more dangerous. and covid cases are at an extreme high right now.

it would suck very bad if going to TIT caused people to get sick or die. it would suck if dan and phil got sick from being around us, both because of the impacts on them and because of any potentially cancelled shows.

so how are we going to take care of each other? i have several points of action i'm planning on, but i hope you guys are thinking about it too.

my longer term steps: i still wear a kn-95 every time i leave the house, and i still have not caught covid. even though i know my level of caution has good success rates i am planning on minimizing risky behaviors for the week/two weeks before my show. + i'm up to date on my boosters.

my personal steps day of: i'm planning on using a preventative nasal spray before TIT too; with the nasal spray, i may be comfortable with removing my mask for a picture during my m&g. i might not; i plan on decorating my mask to match my outfit—possibly decorating a cloth mask to wear OVER my kn-95.

i think it would be very cool if we started decorating masks and posting about that the way we've been doing bracelets!

my community-focused steps: i'll be bringing extra masks with me, too, to hand out in case anyone wants them; might have half of those include cat whiskers as decoration. i'm also making this post, and i'm going to talk about it in the discord servers i'm in.

in conclusion.

wearing a mask is an easy way to make us disabled phannies feel safe and cared for and included in this fandom! please consider it even if it's not something you find important in your day to day life. (though it's never too late to start masking for the protection of disabled people in your day to day life, too).

[harsh-lites]

backshots here

(aka horny after stream shenanigans between damien and f!reader)

meme made by @haasmaxxing

an 18+ damien au headcanon made with all the naughty ideas my twitter chat group and i shared inspired by that one time damien said “backshot” unprompted during his recent Sunday stream 😀

i can't believe had enough spare time to do all of this 😭 enjoy, i guess

(full hc under the cut!)

“backhand blades, backshot blades. s-sorry. we can all forget that that happened”

although damien shyly told his twitch stream audience to forget whatever he said as he was picking the weapons for his elden ring character to use, he knows they’ll certainly never forget the events that transpired a little after the stream a few days prior.

after last thursday’s stream had ended, damien got to relax a bit from the interaction. this was when he would usually set down his equipment - he'd turn off the camera, give the harsh lights a break, and take down the green screen to keep for another stream.

as he unrolled the green screen, he found you waiting at the doorway to his surprise.

you asked him how he was feeling now that the stream is over. "feeling a bit fatigued," he replied, "but i'm curious to see what you've been up to!"

(gentle reminder btw that this is set in an au where damien didnt end up sick with covid post con shhhhhhh)

that's funny, you thought. "i'm glad you said that, because i do have a proposition."

"okay... i'm all ears."

"there's not a lot to do on a sunday, right?"

"this sunday? no, not really. why"

"i've been thinking about having some of the free time today to ourselves."

eventually, damien detected hints of teasing and playfulness in your tone. "yeah, sounds like a great idea." a smirk forms across his lips, and that lit up the flame inside you.

that flame in you somehow increased in intensity as he leaned to touch the bare skin that hasnt been covered by your oversized shirt - you have yet to tell him that you weren't wearing anything else underneath.

"so, what's your plan?" he whisperes into your ear

"we could start here, perhaps," you answered. the tension between you and damien is so sharp, it could cut a big block of paper clean.

"my streaming room?" damien chuckled lightly. "well, if we were to start here, i can lend you my gamer chair."

"sounds like a great plan to me."

you two got closer and closer, until his lips reach yours. gentle kisses turn into passionate open-mouth clashes, and the rest is history.

that's where you both ended up - hot, steamy sex in the place where your boyfriend freely interacts with much of the outside world.

the thought of you getting railed in damien's stream room was that of pure naughtiness. although it wouldn't fly in reality, you got more turned on by the potential that anyone out there could be hearing the whimpers of profanities, titles, and damien's name, as a way to show them that you're his and his alone. and you were certain as hell that he's sharing the same sentiment.

but, little did you two know that his stream hasn't actually, fully turned off yet. YIKES.

luckily, the camera was already off by then, but somehow, unbeknownst to his twitch moderators, an error unknowingly happened while they were trying to close. it caused the audio to still be on - and, consequently, the chat feature.

in other words, while you and damien were moaning and panting through each rough fuck, some of the audience that hadn’t left yet were bewildered by what they were hearing in real time.

others even left comments as his chat was also on! the reactions range from “ayo 💀💀💀” to “WHATS WITH ALL THE MOANING”

damien, however, seems to not give a care, even as the chat (and eventually his discord) was blowing up. his focus here and now was you and the way you wrapped so tight and nicely on his cock.

he enjoyed in particular how you were taking his sharp yet languid thrusts so well - you got your legs spread and your back pressed well into the chair, greedy cunt welcoming him and begging to be fucked until you couldn't take it.

he’s holding on to the chair for dear life as he pounds into you, but the more rough the fucks get, the more difficult it was to keep you still.

despite the obstacle, you were enjoying the feel of him so much that you wouldn’t mind anything that may come in your way. you’ve craved for his cock for long now, and you were glad now that the craving came true.

damien was floored by the euphoric look of your face, no matter how rough his poundings could get. that's just one of many reasons why he loves you.

midway, he asked how you were feeling so far. your response: “i’ve never felt so much better; fuck you feel so fucking good; need you like this until i cum, until you cum” - basically a litany of praises out your mouth that have a twinge of horny.

meanwhile over at the chat, the audience was practically in shambles after what they heard from you. one of the mods took wind of what was happening at the moment, so in panic they immediately reached out to their fellow mods to help fix this whole issue.

on the chair, damien leaned you in on a kiss, which quickly evolved into sloppy frenching, teeth clashing, tongues dancing and open mouths slotting into each other.

as he pulled from such an intense kiss, he saw that the position both of you were in was making the chair pull a bit further from where you originally were.

he suggested another position where both of you can stay still even with all the intense movement. as agreed upon, you come down and lie your head on the seat cushion while your ass is up. he followed by kneeling behind you shortly thereafter.

he teased your now wet entrance with his cock, swollen head sliding up along your folds and to your throbbing clit, which gets sensitive everytime the tip touches it.

you illicit a whiny moan, and from there you were begging him to play with your pussy, even while he’s buried deep inside.

damien obliged, setting out to do exactly what you were hoping for. his dick fits into you like a glove, and one of his hands snakes its way into your clit and folds.

you instantly fold the moment you feel the pads of his fingers, every touch making you melt like putty.

as you two were enjoying the new position, the mods were frenzied in trying to mute damien's mic feed, but ran through a deluge of errors! ultimately, they had no choice but to wait for him until whatever freak shit he was doing was over and done.

your hands hold tight onto the sides of the chair as his cock drags so swiftly within your walls, hitting the most sensitive spots that are guaranteed to make you cum faster.

the noises coming from both your mouths get increasingly louder upon each thrust, and it would reach the loudest the moment you feel like cumming onto his cock - fuck if the chat cares, anyway.

when you do cum, you feel your walls tighten, and that’s enough for damien to lose control and reach his tipping point.

keeping up with the momentum, he haphazardly pulls out of you and fists his now throbbing cock until dribblets of his cum spurt out from the tip to your ass and back.

the position you were in may not look as ideal, but God, the backshot imagery here looked as astounding as ever.

the drippings have even reached within your ass cheeks - the view of your rim like this is in and of itself a much naughtier sight.

as you both wind down from the high, damien stood up to his stream deck to a shocking revelation.

a barrage of concerned chatters and clever coop members reacted to all the strange, unhinged noises coming from his mic during the stream, which he thought should have ended already almost 30 minutes ago.

he was also sent a stern warning note from his mod group, stating that they ran into a lot of errors in trying to mute his mic, but it was ultimately up to him to turn it off... at this rate, he definitely had a lot to explain. whoops!

glitches aside, he was too light headed to deal with all of this. he went to turn the mic and chat feed off. then, he turned to ask ask if you were up for another go - "but in the bedroom, please i can't deal with so much embarrassment - it's k!lling me!"

without a doubt you said yes, and with his sheer strength he lifted you there. in damien's point of view, sex in a private bedroom is a million times much safer and less prone to unwanted visitors.

the fun certainly didnt stop as soon as you reach the bedroom, though. now with all thr pressure of the concerned clever coop out of his way, damien now got to have you all by himself - he eats you out while you savor the feeling of his thick fingers thrusting in and out of you.

at least here, he’s satisfied that the loud, incriminating moans you made are contained within these four walls. fuck if the chat cares! it’s just him and you against the world.

------------------------------------------------------

it’s been a while since the incident during his last stream. with the help of his mods, damien has become strict on banning anyone within the clever coop or outside who may clip the moment.

he also collaborated with the mods to edit all of the leaked audio out - that way, he hopes, nobody can see let alone hear how you and damien have been to each other.

even while he tries his damndest to erase any evidence of his one big oopsie, he sure knows he’s getting teased by everyone who’s aware of the incident - his friends included.

(one of his friends, who works in the sex industry, suggested he try out recording audio porn or set up an onlyfans page filled with audio porn content)

(damien kindly declines, but given the curious buzz that incident had created, plus the profit that comes with nsfw content in general, he thought it wouldn’t be much of a bad idea after all)

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

WIBTA For Snitching On My Brother?

tl;dr at the end, the submissions a bit long. sorry if this sounds like stupid teen drama, but i needed outside opinions. (tw for mentions of attempted suicide)

so for a bit of context here, me (14nb) and my brother (14m) both have Parental RestrictionsTM on our phones. In my opinion they are way more severe than they need to be. i am not allowed to have any social media at all, my mother barely tolerates discord. I cannot text anyone who is not my direct sibling or parent from 9pm at night to noon the next day and i cant use any "nonessential" apps during that time frame too. my brother has the same restrictions on his phone, but he has safari removed because my mother said he was playing "random internet games". however, he has found ways around this and ways around the app restrictions. i know how he does it. i really dont have any intention of telling our mother, its none of my business and i honestly dont care that much.

I recently moved to a new school. My brother and i were homeschooled prior to this during covid. And it was fine. We went to a homeschool co-op twice a week. A year ago we were both enrolled in Local Community College as dual enrollment students. A semester into that i was Not Vibing Well and ended up having a breakdown and getting a therapist. I would talk to her directly about this but i havent been able to see her in weeks due to scheduling conflicts. The workload seemed too much to me, there was no longer a distinction between School and Home. i felt like i was constantly on the clock, and i barely saw my friends. In addition to other factors at my co-op, I got very lonely. At that time the limits on my phone were 9pm-3pm (it was later edited to 9am to noon) . I cant remember exactly what happened, but i asked my mother to at least change the communication limits so that i could talk to my friends during the day. She said no, stating that I Do Not Need to Communicate With Friends During The School Day. i do not have a real “school day” i am at home basically 5/7 days of the week. And normal kids see their friends every day at school. The argument got dropped then.

Fast forward half a year, i felt increasingly lonely, out of place, bothersome, etc, at my co-op and have decided to try going to Local Public Highschool. This meant leaving my best friend (14f)  whom i love dearly (for the purposes of this post i will call her Z). Z is one of my favorite people in the whole world, we got platonically married, I lovingly refer to her as “my wife”, and i would genuinely die for her. She got a phone over the summer which means we have a better way to communicate, replacing discord as the primary communication system. Also at that time one of my best online friends fucked up their discord account somehow and the whole online group moved to text. there's about four of them? J, Other J, B, and L (ages vary from 12-16). I believe only B is directly relevant to this story but the others are worth mentioning. Additional context (tw for mentions of suicide from now on), all of those four are varyingly suicidal. B has attempted before, at least twice I believe. out of the group i am probably the most mentally stable.

School starts! I am already feeling a bit lonely due to leaving Z but we stay positive. I wake up for school at like 530 and check my phone at like 6:45. Woohoo a message from B! It was sent at 4 am. This is concerning. There is a glitch that i can use in order to view texts for between half a second and four seconds, it depends, and i use it. B’s message reads “Bye”. theres no fucking reason that they would be texting me goodbye at 4am in the morning unless they were going to kill themselves. I cannot properly view or respond to that text until noon, so eight hours. I wait to know if my friend is ok for eight hours, and at noon i check my phone again. In that time i’ve received messages from the groupchat. J, Other J, and L all received “bye” texts from B at around the same time period. After a few messages, we know B is ok, i dmed them privately and they responded both in ims and the gc. So they are ok. But i had to wait for eight hours to know that. Later that day i asked my mom if she had considered my proposal (i asked her a day or two before if she would at least turn off communication limits because it is also rather embarrassing to be honest to have to tell other people that oh i cant respond to your message right now, sorry my mom has limits on my phone :D. In addition i get anxious when i send a message that im nervous abt and it doesnt get responded to for hours so i hate leaving messages for longer than two hours). Once again, she said no. it goes against her Views As A Parent for me to have “unrestricted access” to my phone. She offered to add only Z to the list of people i can contact during the limits. This is better than nothing but Z texts more in the groupchat than she does in private messages so it wouldn’t work that well. We argued, it didnt work out, i got pissed off and we both went to bed. i very strongly feel that for like my mental health i need to be able to communicate with my friends better than i can at the moment. And i dont want to wake up to a message from a friend, have it be the last one they ever send, and not be able to respond for hours. 

Heres where the part where i could be an asshole comes in. (so sorry that that was really long i didnt know what parts would be needed as context and what were not so i just typed everything i think might be relevant). This isnt something that i am very strongly considering, as i truly dont want to fuck up my relationship with my brother and i love him a lot. I just want opinions on whether it would like be going too far i guess. I am considering offering a trade. I tell my mother how my brother has found ways around his limits, and she turns off the communication limits on my phone. WIBTA if i did that?

TL;DR: would i be the asshole if i snitched on how my brother got around some restrictions in exchange for me being able to communicate with my friends?

What are these acronyms?

[creepling]

modern!au sawyer/slaughter family headcanons

nubbins

anarcho-capitalist discord modder with nitro

addicted to arizona tea

funk-pop collecter

wears a fez unironically

desk-setup is covered in cigerette buds and ash even tho he has 10 ash trays in eye sight

reddit user

closeted furry

had an incel phase but didn't wanna black pill bc he quote "loves tiddies".

drayton

facebook mom

always bidding on ebay

falls for scams like "hot asians near your area"

will deliberately cause fights with workers in hospitality

not afraid if say if someone has an ugly baby

refers to minority groups in plural (ie. the gays)

parasocial relationship with donald trump

thought covid was a conspiracy but loved lockdown.

bubba

works at walmart stacking shelves

weekly attender of adult trampoline parks.

down time involves getting high and watching baby sensory videos

likes anime but never finishes a series.

feeds stray cats then wonders why they follow him home

special interest is super mario bros and WWE

cosplays on tiktok and accidentally became a meme.

johnny

hooks up with his friend's moms

snapchat score in the millions and infamous among dating apps

can't drive bc of multiple DUIs

thinks porn is useless and calls people who watch it "bitchless", but will beg for nudes

wants a "crazy girl" then gets scared at said crazy girl.

has dropped his phone in the toilet more than once. multiple times actually

will jump on online comms for nubbins when people are bullying him and cuss them out.

unironically calls himself a sigma male and/or alpha chad.

sissy

kleptomaniac for small items in supermarkets

has an OF and charges crazy amounts for feet pics

her mugshot is her finsta pfp

is the girl in nightclub bathrooms that compliments everything about you, but wil glass a guy at the bar and get kicked out

gets the villain edit as an x factor contestant

does vlogs of her crying on the kitchen floor, trisha paytas style

goes to sleep listening to true crime podcasts

has insane road rage to the point she will get out and smash your car window.

[i-still-mask-because]

I still mask because it's what I can do to protect myself and others.

I still mask because I don't trust the people at the grocery store and on the train to stay home when they're sick, or to stop themselves from spreading COVID.

I've recently learned that the masks I was using are no longer recommended, and have ordered some N95s! I'm doing my best but it's frustrating that I see people masking less and less. 😷

I have also felt the social pressure to go without masking and have given in sometimes, which I'm not proud of. Even my doctor made comments about it. I would love to know what you do/say in these situations!

Hey thank you for sharing! 😷💛

Firstly, I'm happy to hear you're able to upgrade to better quality masks! I hope they're comfortable and have a snug fit!

You're definitely not alone in experiencing pressure to remove your mask. This can be especially difficult when this happens with relatives and friends.

For me personally, I've gotten in the habit of trying to think 10 steps ahead of what I could do to prevent having to take off my mask. I gave some examples of what I would do in the case of visiting a friend or visiting a restaurant in this post here.

In general, I stand my ground with my boundaries if anyone is trying to pressure me to take off my mask. My boundaries are: I will not be removing my mask around other people that I'm not confident have been masking consistently in public and/or high risk scenarios, and I will not be removing my mask around other people that have not been taking enough adequate precautions & testing, if at all, leading up to the time of our convening.

In the case of being in public spaces surrounded by a bunch of strangers, removing my mask is 1000% off the table because there is no way for me to know how covid-cautious all these people around me have been, and my best bet is not at all if they're all maskless. So in the case of if I'm with relatives and/or friends that are trying to pressure me to remove my mask in public, that is a hard no. And frankly, I treat interactions like that as moments that inform me of how they regularly go about their day-to-day during an on-going pandemic: casually & carelessly removing their masks (if they have one at all) in public, with no risk assessment or precautions at all. I know then to double down on my boundaries, and, if possible, distance myself from them. I recommend joining any "Still Coviding" Facebook groups, Discord servers, etc. for your particular state/city/town if you're looking to spend time with more people on the same page as you about the seriousness of the pandemic.

In regards to doctors; I haven't personally experienced pressure to remove my mask from the doctors I've been seeing, but I have had to ask them to put one on around me, especially if the purpose of the appointment actually requires me to remove my mask. Here's a document that has templates for what you could say to your health care provider if you're requesting them to wear a mask in any upcoming appointments (feel free to save a copy and tailor it to your own liking!). Please remember that it's 1000000% your right to demand for accommodations and safety precautions in a literal health care environment. You're not a burden for doing so, and you're not irrational for asking your health care providers to literally do their job and do what they can to protect your health. There's websites like Covid Safe Providers if you're trying to look for a covid-cautious health care provider; it's not guaranteed there's going to be one for your location (I've been having a hard time finding a covid-cautious GP near me), but it's worth a shot to look into.

Overall, here's some links I recommend to equip yourself with knowledge on what you could say in these interactions if you're put in a position to have to explain your choice to take covid precautions & require others to do the same:

How To Talk To Your Loved Ones About Covid

You Have To Live Your Life: A resource for COVID-19 research and information

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[germworms]

Etho's unexpected face reveal

A shortfic of Bdubs accidentally seeing Etho's face on call.

Wordcount: About 1400 words.

Pairing: Etho&Bdubs Platonically

RPF

---

"I'll see you guys later!"

As he stopped recording, he leaned back in his chair. Through his headset he could hear his friends chatting away, about some random topic. He heard snippets of redstone talk, and that made him zone out. He double checked to see if he had stopped recording, which he had.

"Bdubs!" Someone yelled into his ear, making him jump up.

"Argh! What!" He asked, he moved his mouse around to find whoever scared him, rubbing his eyes. "Oh, hello, Etho."

"You tired?" Etho asked, his avatar sneaking in front of him, up close. He was laughing a bit, his own voice an octave lower. A sign of tiredness from the canadian.

He yawned, "Not at all, I gotta edit my video tonight too."

"Awh, you need motivation?" Etho asked, punching him in the game, "I'll be your ear worm."

"Thanks, you are a sweetheart."

"Yeah, I'll go take a quick washroom break, be right back."

"...Washroom." He mumbled, "Crazy man." He couldn't help but smile, he never could stop smiling when talking to him.

Someone walked into the room, hovering above him while wrapping their arms around his shoulders, "I'm headed to bed, the girls are asleep."

He turned his head to kiss his wife, "I'll finish up my editing and join ya', honey."

She closed the door behind her, smiling before closing it all the way.

He turned in his chair, opening up discord to check when the next hermit meeting would be. He saw Etho in the voice channel and joined, knowing that Etho liked to listen to music through Mee6. A big picture of a room showed up suddenly, his heart dropped.

Should he tell him? How would he even tell him, he was pissing right now! No use in calling for him.

He should have turned a blind eye, gone out of the voice group, but he was a tad too nosey for his own good.

His friend for over a decade, his faceless friend who he had never met. An internet friend whom he had spent countless hours talking to.

They had talked about meeting up 5 years ago, and then again yearly since then, but then Covid spread around right as they finally started making realistic plans. Everything got cancelled and they stopped talking about it. Etho stayed in his apartment alone, and he had his family he needed to take care of.

So as he watched, silently, and listened to every sound, a door closing made him jump. Footsteps.

First comfortable black pants, then the bottom of a black hoodie, "Bdubs I'm back."

He felt his heart speed up, the anticipation, not even Beef knew about this. He felt guilty already, he had seen more than enough, "Etho!"

A face became visible on the screen, a head full of brownish blackish hair, quite skinny face, clean shaven. His eyes were tired, but nonetheless, he was handsome. He gulped, "Uh, uhm."

"What did you do, silly?" He heard minecraft sounds, forgetting all about the game. Etho was probably wondering why he was standing so still, listening to him through the game and not through discord.

He couldn't stop staring, he felt like a sinner. Like this was more embarrassing to admit than when his parents had walked in on him as a teen, than his first kiss with a girl and with that boy in elementary.

An embarrassed blush crept up on him, "Bdubs, are you okay?"

Ethos mouth moved while he talked, of course, but seeing a face to a voice he wasn't even supposed to see made him speechless. The way he said his name made his heart skip in a way he hadn't felt in a long time maybe because he could see every syllable from Etho now.

"I- uh, ugh, your-" He coughed, watching how confusion spread across Ethos face. He noticed how Ethos posture was quite poor, "You should check your posture."

"Oh, thank you."

There was a moment of silence, "Hold on."

"Bdubs!!!" Etho's camera was quickly turned off, "You! What! You should have told me!! I- I don't know what to say!"

"Well!" He started, "I mean! Your handsome! Pretty! I mean, you're very- what I mean- I'm sorry!" He stumbled over his words, not knowing how to react. "I'll turn- I'm gonna turn on my face cam!"

He turned it on, forgetting how his face was completely red in embarrassment, "Oh god." he noticed, "It's the lighting!"

He let his words die out. Should he hide away?

"Are you angry?" He asked in a small voice.

"Angry? I- I don't know... A bit, I guess. I trust you, of course, but this has become a big deal for me, my face. I mean, you were gonna see it one day, I wanted that time to be special." Etho said, his voice became weary. "Be happy I actually wore clothes."

"I wouldn't be un-happy so to say."

"You- You're something else, man!"

Bdubs eased up, "I know, baby."

Etho took a long breath, he could hear the gears turning in his head, not knowing what he was planning. Who knew what that man was thinking anyways.

"You get ONE time of facetime, okay?"

He hadn't expected a sudden meet and greet, "Really?"

"Just make a private call, I don't want any of the other hermits joining, Gem will be so mad at you by the way." Ethos voice quieted down.

All hope of a session of editing went out the window, as he pulled up his private chat on discord with Etho, the last message read, 'U up for mc?'

He clicked the call button, "I'm calling! Okay! It's happening!"

Etho chuckled once, "Well, you already saw my face, WITHOUT me knowing, stalker."

"I'm sorry, okay?"

The call was picked up, eyes staring directly at him, while his mind blanked out, "Uh- hi."

"You're so RED, man!" Etho laughed at him, his whole face full of laughter, a mix of nervousness and excitement.

"I am?" He felt his face, "Well, don't blame me! You're pretty handsome, not more than me, though." He lied, of course Etho would be good looking, he could feel it in his guts from the moment he met him. Beauty followed the soul.

"Don't sell yourself short... Literally." Etho began cracking up again, going off screen to laugh.

"Oh, FREAKING funny, huh! I can prove I'm 5'10!"

"Stand up for me, then." Etho said, showing back on screen to stare directly at him. Making him nervous.

He halted in his action to stand up, "I don't take commands from you! You should trust my words."

"Oh, so now you don't wanna do what I say? Sounds like someone isn't as tall as they say they are, hmm, Bdubs?"

His heart skipped a bit, "I- I uh, I am." His voice more quiet now.

"You okay?"

He had to look away, "Nothing! I'm fine! Can you uh, say my name again?" He spoke the last part quickly, too embarrassed to say it out loud.

Ethos face scrunched, "What?-" His voice high, but then he spoke, "Bdubs? BdoubleO? John? Which one?"

He coughed, "Uh! Thank you! That's all, I wanted you to look stupid! Okay, Ha! Yeah.." Hearing his name from Etho was always something he enjoyed, but from Etho AND his face was something else entirely. He was comfortable with his sexuality, of course. He had always been open to girls and boys, and he fell in love with his wife the first time they met.

When he met Etho, he started wondering how his life would be if he had married a man. A thought for the dreamers, a thought he wouldn't make a reality, because he loved his life. He loved his children, his wife, his job.

He loved Etho as much as he could too.

"You like when I say your name?"

As much as a friend could love him, perhaps he never saw them as only friends, but also not as lovers. His wife knew about Etho, how could she not? And she adored him as well. They would frequently put an Etho lets play in the background when making dinner, laughing at the commentary. His wife never had any problems with, what Cleo would call, his obsession.

"You do, you weirdo." Etho said, leaning back, "Can you say my name?"

"Etho." His eyes scanned the screen, the face for any reaction.

A smile spread across Ethos face, he scuffed, "Yeah, okay."

A small pause between them and then a strange question, "Should I buy a better webcam for you?"

"For me?"

"You're the only one who gets to see me, mind I add, maybe HD is better for you." Etho said with a slight smile in his tone, "Anything for you."

In their years together, Etho had picked up on his adorations for him, and he had never said anything about it. Slowly, after a long time, it became their normal.

"You should get some rest, Bdubs."

"I should."

His head was tilted while the two men stared at each other, Etho said in a low voice, "This is kinda nice."

"Yeah, it really is."

[clockworkdragonffxiv]

I started my D&D campaign back in April of 2020 shortly after the COVID Lockdown hit. I was bored out of my skull and stressed, and a friend had expressed his frustration with his own D&D group and I just went "Fuck it."

I hadn't played DnD since college. I had never GM'd a tabletop game. But I had nothing better to do. So I went on to Discord into, like, the three channels I'm active in and rounded up a gaggle of friends from FFXIV and from my old City of Heroes group. For my starter campaign I used the very first Eberron campaign ever published for I think 3e or 3.5e, converted to 5e, "The Forgotten Forge."

And three and a half years, multiple cases of COVID, two rounds of cancer and chemotherapy, four or five moves, three kidney stones, multiple bouts of depression, and a half dozen job changes, we finally finished the campaign at level 16, having convinced the Lord of Blades to devote his talents to building the new Warforged nation and healing the Mournlands using the unique techno-organic warforged plants and animals we'd discovered, instead of his original plan which was to absorb the power of a Creation Engine and a Demon Overlord into himself, achieve apotheosis, and drown the world in a tide of blood.

My original plan for the final battle has in large underlined letters the phrase "Biblically Accurate Chainsaw Angel" and included a speech with lines like "LET THE SEAS BOIL AND THE SKIES FALL! LET THE WORLD BURN!"

Also probably ending up with the players picking the Red, Blue or Green endings from the End-o-Matic 9000.

But that didn't happen.

So instead, the campaign that started with our little group of heroes stumbling onto the murder of a professor with the clues to a hidden workshop, ended with the wedding of Seeker the Warforged Artificer, the man who'd talked the Lord of Blades down (despite having a Charisma of 8) and now holds the title of Maestro Seeker, is an advisor to the national leadership, and is the teacher of a whole new batch of warforged, and the warforged medic Solace, an NPC whose existence began as a joke about Seeker having a whirlwind romance with a medic in the space of about 23 minutes while the rest of the party were running errands.

Hot damn was that a lot of work. Three and a half years, and despite it starting in modules by the second I'd decided I didn't like the story as it was written, threw it out, and told my own story. Featuring friendly little fire elementals named Phil, packs of extremely patriotic and laddish mimics named Jimmy, an eight foot robotic sweetheart named Friend whose primary weapon was an equally massive tower shield and her totally-not-boyfriend warforged druid/allosaurus/swearasaurus Din, a wrestling match with a hobgoblin that nearly turned lethal when an 18 foot tall warforged titan came in with the steel chair, an alligator with a gun, and banishing the elemental dragon powering a flying battleship while A) the team was still on the battleship and B) it was still several hundred feet in the air and C) it was the only thing keeping it there... it's done.

And it was all worth it. God I love these guys. So here's to you, Katie, Jacquie, Mike, Stan, and Will. I'll see you all next week for our next adventure.

[charmedhypno]

Charmed! 2025 Covid Policy Update

Charmed! 2025 Covid-19 Policy

Charmed! is committed to hosting the safest event we possibly can as the world continues to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic. In light of this, the Convention Committee (“ConCom”) will continue to require up to date Covid vaccinations as well as masking for our attendees, staff, and volunteers at Charmed! 2025.

In addition, hand sanitizer stations will be available throughout Convention Space (“Con Space”) and our Dungeon Monitors (“DMs”) will be extremely proactive in reminding people to clean their equipment - if you need help please ask and it will be provided!

Please read the following policies carefully! They contain several important dates and deadlines – ignorance of these policies will not result in any exemptions.

Vaccination Policy

The newest Covid-19 vaccine update has been evaluated and released for use in the United States to people aged 6 months and older for Fall 2024. People can get the vaccination if it has been at least 2 months since their last vaccination for Covid-19. People who have not previously been vaccinated for Covid-19 are considered “up to date” with their vaccinations after receiving this single dose.

This vaccine update is free under most insurance plans in the United States (including Medicaid and Medicare), but is no longer offered for free by the United States government.

Free vaccinations may be available on a state-by-state basis; so check whether or not your state has a free adult vaccination program if you require a free option. People based in the United States can search for their local Health Department here: https://www.naccho.org/membership/lhd-directory

People who have been diagnosed with Covid-19 may wait 3 months before getting the updated vaccine.

In order to attend Charmed! 2025 in-person you must be up to date with your Covid vaccination: a person who is “up to date” with their vaccinations beginning September, 2024 is a person who has received the latest updated vaccine, released in September, 2024.

Vaccinations typically take around two weeks to reach full efficacy; therefore for the purposes of Charmed! 2025 vaccinations will be considered valid if they are received by or before Monday, January 6th, 2025.

In-person attendees of Charmed! 2025 will be required to show proof of “up to date” vaccination received in good time – that is, they must show proof that they have received the Fall 2024 vaccine update by or before January 6th, 2025. Proof may be in the form of one of the following: official paper vaccine card, electronic vaccine card, photocopy or digital representation of official vaccine card, website listing your name/vaccination date, dated email for an applicable vaccination appointment, a photograph of some part of the vaccination process (eg. the vial of serum), or other applicable media. If you are unsure that your form of proof will be valid, please contact us before arriving at the event. Proof of vaccination will be verified at badge pick-up.

You can contact us using one of the following ways: Email us at: Covid@Charmedhypno.org Contact us through Charmed! social media: Twitter: https://twitter.com/CharmedHypno Fetlife: https://fetlife.com/groups/121240?sp=1 Tumblr: https://www.tumblr.com/charmedhypno Bluesky: https://charmedhypnocon.bsky.social/ Discord: DM @Noelle - I have answers!

People who are unable to get the updated Covid-19 vaccine for a three month period ending with the final day of Charmed! 2025 (January 26th, 2025) due to a previous Covid-19 infection will be considered “up to date” for the purposes of in-person attendance. Please contact ConCom if you become Covid-positive within this window.

IMPORTANT: if you have a Covid-19 infection that results in you being able to get the updated vaccine within the two week time period before Charmed! 2025 begins – that is, January 8th through January 22nd – you will not be considered “up to date” with your vaccination and will be ineligible to attend Charmed! 2025 in person.

PLEASE NOTE: the three month waiting period is a CDC recommendation and it may be possible for people to get the updated vaccine within that time period.

In-person attendees at Charmed! 2025 will be required to show proof of a negative Covid-19 test taken within 48 hours of badge pick-up, (over-the-counter test is okay), in picture form in order to pick up their badge. Please do not bring a physical test with you to badge pick up - a picture on your phone is sufficient.

Mask Policy

In-person attendees at Charmed! 2025 will be required to wear well-fitting, high quality masks, such as N95s, KN95s, and FFP2s (or equivalent) at all times while in official convention space. This includes both the private convention area and Con Suite, as well as semi-public areas such as registration and the hallway outside of the upstairs classrooms.

If you are unable to acquire an N95 or similar mask, then pleated surgical masks are acceptable as a last resort.

Examples of unacceptable masks include: bandanas, gaiters, and scarfs.

Presenters and demo-bottoms may choose to remain unmasked only while actively presenting.

There are no mask exceptions for evening social events and dungeon play.

Masks may be raised, but not removed, in order to sip water and/or eat small snacks in Convention Space as needed.

A small number of masks may be available via Convention Operations for people who need them; however, we cannot guarantee this so please do your best to procure your own.

Testing Policy

In 2024, we did not require that attendees test daily but did highly recommend that they do so. For 2025, we are again highly recommending that people test daily before entering convention space. Over the counter tests are excellent at detecting a viral load in someone who is contagious, and are currently the best way for people to determine if they need to isolate themselves.

Convention Operations may have a small number of tests available for people who need them; please do not count on this and do your best to procure your own.

Policy Exemptions

Residents of countries that do not offer updated Covid-19 vaccines to the general population may be considered exempt from the requirement to be up-to-date by United States standards as long as they have received and can show confirmation that they received the primary course of vaccinations; that is, the original shot plus the two follow up shots.

We ask that people in non-U.S. countries who are eligible to receive updated vaccines continue to do so.

Attendees who are offered exemptions to the 2025 Covid-19 policy will be required to test daily while in attendance in person at Charmed! 2025 and to send verification of their negative test result to a member of ConCom before they are allowed entrance into official con space.

Failure to follow this policy may result in that person’s badge being pulled and them no longer being able to attend Charmed! 2025 in person.

We will continue to assess the status of attendees with possible medical exemptions on a case by case basis. If you are affected by this policy, please contact us as soon as you can via email at Covid@charmedhypno.org or dm Noelle_8033 on Discord.

There are no exemptions to the masking policy.

Covid Infections & Isolation Policy

Attendees, including all staff members, volunteers, presenters, etc, will be required to report and self-isolate if they test positive for Covid-19 while attending Charmed! 2025.

For the purposes of Charmed! 2025, an attendee who is “self-isolating” will remain in their private room as much as possible and will not enter any shared hotel spaces with convention members, including but not limited to: official Convention Spaces (areas past our security check points), shared convention spaces (eg. the badge pick up area, the hallway outside of upstairs classrooms), and the Charmed! 2025 Consuite (the enclosed room outside of regular Con space that is across from the public fireplace seating area.)

ConCom reserves the right to expand this list during the Convention in order to accommodate the number of in-person attendees present at Charmed! 2025.

Out of an abundance of caution, an initial positive test result will be taken as confirmation of infection, regardless of subsequent testing.

**The identity of anyone that contracts Covid-19 while at Charmed! 2025 will be kept anonymous unless otherwise unavoidable, unless that person wishes to share their identity.

Failure to report and self-isolate will result in the infected attendee’s badge being pulled and potentially a ban from Charmed! in the future.**

Reporting & Contact Tracing Policy

Anyone becoming positive for Covid-19 while attending Charmed! 2025 will be required to report and self-isolate. They will need to identify to ConCom classes/areas where they have been, including private spaces, and ConCom will inform the attendee population that they may have been exposed to Covid-19.

**The identity of anyone that contracts Covid-19 while at Charmed! 2025 will be kept anonymous unless otherwise unavoidable, unless that person wishes to share their identity.

Failure to report and self-isolate will result in the infected attendee’s badge being pulled and potentially a ban from Charmed! in the future.**

Charmed! 2025 is committed to providing as safe an environment as possible for our attendees. This may mean that our vaccination/mask requirements are stronger/stricter than those of other events or organizations. We understand that this can be frustrating, and we appreciate your adherence to these policies that are for the benefit of every attendee at Charmed! 2025.

[sirwow]

back at it again with my very long au rambles. Long ramble about Logan and Hailey (and a bit of Lucia) au origin under the cut

(This is copy and pasted from discord so there may be some format issues)

this is all happening around a year before the actual events of RD happening:

Logan and Lucia were both already friends at this point since they’d basically always been in the same classes together from elementary school. They had just come back to school after suffering the online hell of Covid tm so were readjusting. Logan was hopeful that his unlucky streak in school was over since they had gotten time away from school but was already getting bullied within the first hour by his old bullies. Even when his solace of after school dance came around a week later, it was clear all the girls had made a clique, excluding him. Lucia was still there by his side but only on the sidelines since she decided dance wasn’t for her. The group did have one new girl though, being Hailey. She was in Logan’s classes but he didn’t really pay much mind to her till the first day of dance. He was dreading having another passive aggressive bully seeing she was already popular with everyone else in dance. Practice started n since it seemed the one other guy there had dropped out n Lucia wasn’t gonna do dance, Logan had no partner.

The group of girls were whispering and snickering to Hailey as the teacher tried to figure out a partner for Logan. When they asked if anyone wanted to be his partner, Hailey shyly spoke up and agreed to it as the other girls giggled. Introductions were awkward as any two 13 yrs would be but they quickly got moved off to do partner stuff together. Logan was obviously off put n Hailey was uncomfortable with what Logan thought was him. Until she broke the small talk by apologizing. The other girls told her to go see how “bad” he was but confessed she really didn’t think Logan was that bad. She thought he was really nice actually and seemed quite good at what he was doing.

So Logan is very relieved that Hailey doesn’t hate him out the gate and they significantly de-tense with each other- properly introducing themselves n chatting while dancing. Logan can feel the stares of the others when Hailey stays with him during break to meet Lucia. They do the usual hi and hellos before Lucia admitting she was worried Hailey was gonna be like the other girls to Logan. Hailey of course being the sweetheart she is tries to be a bit defensive of the people who she thinks are her immediate friends but seeing Logan’s face drop clues Hailey in on things. Before Lucia gets a chance to politely um actually Hailey, Hailey asks first meekly if they’re always like this to Logan and why. Lucia flat out tells her yes, and it’s all because he’s a guy in dance who’s a bit more introverted then most guys.

Hailey is pretty visibly angry but doesn’t say anything as break is called off to get back to dancing. Things go fine until the end of the after school class. Lucia already left a bit earlier since her dad got there so it was just Hailey and Logan. Hailey was asked to stick behind by the teacher to talk about things so Logan just waved bye before going outside pretty happy about seeming to make a friend. This was until he got cornered by the main 3 bossy girls of the dance group in a corner. They were chastising him for messing with the new girl and saying he shouldn’t get his hopes up. Hailey walked out shortly after and heard the commotion down the way. She quickly snuck up on the altercation, listening in. She was already pissed about what she was seeing but hearing Logan being told he’d never really belong there ticked her off. Breaking through the 3 girls, Hailey got inbetween them and Logan before launching into a barrage on them. They were all stunned, even Logan. The tirade ending with Hailey calling them assholes and to screw off (le gasp she said a scary curse word)

The girls backed up and ran off past Hailey n Logan when they heard the teacher coming. The teacher of course asked what the noise was all about but Hailey just played it cool saying everything was fine n nudged Logan to agree. The teacher sighed but accepted their answer n left them be. Both started walking off from school and started laughing about the whole situation. Logan thanked Hailey for helping him out there, she played it off as nothing big but Logan really made it clear how much that meant to him. Hailey was happy she could help. Logan’s house was close to school so before they parted ways, they traded numbers with each other to keep talking. Hailey had a long walk home but it wasn’t so bad knowing she had made a friend who seemed so genuine.