#featuring her apartment

[stormbabylore]

I wanted to figure out what Aeryn's favorite foods were, so like an insane person, I stood in front of the market board for an hour reading through all the meal options. And now I'm going to ramble about food lore/headcanons. In excess.

It doesn't take Aeryn long to adapt to infrequent meals and a lifestyle of grazing, when possible, as a result of her adventuring lifestyle. In early ARR, she is too uncomfortable in her own skin to eat in public places, let alone among company, unless forced. (I suspect Mother Miounne would have some concerns about her perceived lack of nourishment and might occasionally do something about it.) As such, she develops a habit of keeping various edible foodstuffs on hand so she can eat on-the-go when hungry - or when reminded by others that she needs to eat.

Things she would keep stocked, both at "home" and while traveling: teas and coffees, various breads, dried fruit, nuts, and cheese - when she can get it.

Despite this preference, however, she will never turn down a free meal when offered. Aeryn doesn't know anything about herself as of game start, and that includes her favorite foods! Everything is new to her, and part of her quiet desperation to "find" herself includes figuring such things out as quickly as possible. As such, she has tried many, many things in her travels, enough to pinpoint she is a fan of meat-based stews, curries, and other predominantly rice-based dishes - typically anything hearty, warming, and (preferably) mildly spicy. She also hasn't yet met a form of popoto she doesn't enjoy. None of these are things she takes the time to make for herself, but she considers it a treat when she is able to indulge in meals like this prepared by others.

(Though she doesn't know it, this preference comes directly from her past life: such dishes as potatoes and stews would have often been prepared in bulk and served aboard the ship.)

She is most weak to (and might overindulge in) the following: sweet breads and pastries, coffee in any form, and tea with milk or cream.

Some of her favorite in-game foods:

Honey Croissant/Almond Cream Croissant

A couple silly food headcanons that have latched onto my brain since I put them in fic: honeyed sweetbread is a popular holiday treat in Gridania; and spiced sweetbreads/pastries are common in parts of Thanalan. (The scent of spice and baking bread is something Aeryn associates very heavily with Vesper Bay.) There are myriad other bread/pastry foods in-game she would like, but these two most closely resemble those I'd already written about.

Espresso con Panna

Any coffee beverage would suffice, but I imagine the first time Aeryn has espresso con panna, she would be delighted by the richness of the bitter/sweet flavor meld.

Chilled Popoto Soup

She's generally not a fan of soup at all. (She would quietly argue it's a beverage, not a meal, and that it's wrong to drink something with chopped up bits of stuff in it.) But the cream-based soup and the mesh of leek and popoto, well pureed, just works for her. I like to think of Thancred as the soup-making scion, and I imagine he would smirk and be pleased as pie to win her over with this particular meal. It becomes one of her favorite comfort meals, and she would like it both hot and cold.

La Noscean Toast

I imagine Baderon suggested this to Aeryn at some point, and she gladly accepted, thinking it would just be simple toast - maybe with some citrus jam from nearby Summerford. When she instead experienced for the first time what amounts to the Eorzean equivalent of French Toast, she was immediately obsessed. She makes a point of having this whenever she can stick around long enough in Limsa, because she finds it doesn't taste right anywhere else but at the Drowning Wench. (Baderon actually makes sure the cooks add orange zest to hers, because he knows how much she loves all things citrus.)

Thavnairian Chai/Masala Chai

Any latte-style tea (including Steppe Tea) is a favorite, but she especially likes the blend of spices in chai and considers it a treat to indulge.

Baguette and/or any leavened bread

It is not abnormal to see a half-eaten baguette poking out of her chocobo's saddlebag when Aeryn is on the go. Likewise, there are various forms of leavened breads available across Eorzea (of note the Crumpet and the Ishgardian Muffin) that I assume she would pack for her journeys and nosh on while traveling.

And a few honorable mentions, if not favorites:

Coffee Biscuit

Aeryn prefers pastries to cookies, but she does still love all things coffee. I headcanon she can't get this one frequently. (Maybe they're only common in one specific area she doesn't visit as frequently.) She would also prefer a stronger coffee flavor in them compared to how they are usually made.

Papanasi

I had never heard of this, but the description sounds AMAZING, and I assume Aeryn would probably love it as it encompasses quite a few of her favorite things.

Walnut Bread

The perfect travel snack, packed with nuts and just a hint of sweetness. Again, my daughter is weak to her sweet carbs.

And just in case all of the above wasn't obsessive enough, I also skimmed through the ingredients list. A few favorite foodstuffs that are labeled as crafting ingredients include:

Cheese. Mostly those of a milder flavor that won't stink up her bag. She will pack wedges of cheese to enjoy with her bread and fruit and thankfully eats through it quickly enough that it doesn't spoil. A specific favorite would be cream cheese, which she would enjoy during brief periods of rest where she can acquire it.

Oranges. I do think Aeryn is more inclined to eating dried fruits, since they travel better and tend to be less messy. That said, I think she fell in love with the various citrus fruits she was first introduced to in La Noscea, and despite being messy, they travel a bit better than some other fruits. She would likely carry oranges with her when possible and would try other citrus along her journeys, like lemons, limes, and persimmons.

Nuts. I mentioned this above, and almonds are the only one I can think of that she might keep on hand and actually snack on. But she would try to ensure she always had some form of crunchy protein on hand.

That's it! That's the food lore. \o/

Thanks for reading!

[vastwinterskies]

I love talking to people about how they draw character X because everyone has those little key features they use and they articulate them SO fondly.

[sleepynegress]

Love this interview... I have been semi-checking in on Zawe's journey since before certain stans were feeling some kinda way about her recent familial additions. I do for certain Black actors/creators especially, who seem to be moving in interesting ways in entertainment/film media...

-A remnant from a period when I used to go to screenings and blog about films (and was published a few times in a major national newspaper)... So, I knew of Zawe through the grapevine of her mentorship, i.e. she is the reason why Rege Jean Page of Bridgerton fame got to work in U.S. markets, as she sponsored him. And she is known, as one of those "good eggs" who will be accessible and help/advise especially young actors of color. ...But, I have some other stuff to say. This isn't about proving that she's an amazing human being. It's about a certain brand of misogynoir that some of these people far beneath her in self-knowledge, self-love, and just plain grown-ass-woman-personhood...keep letting fly in what they *think* are compliments, but actually are just trite microaggressions. Saying things like "as long she makes [T-blank H-blank] happy then she's alright" as if he's the centered human and her attachment renders her worthy somehow. Babies, as long as SHE'S happy. Yall. He's marrying up.

WAY UP and the fact that he knows this? Actually elevates him. She's been there.

She tells a story in the above interview that reminds me of Uzo Aduba's anecdote about her name , - of an incident when she was called to an early job (at 6!) and someone there said she wasn't pretty because of her gap and her Ugandan mother took her on past this person and into the room, ANYWAY.

... She learned a specific self-knowledge and self-love, that is necessary in very white western spaces that constantly pressures a narrow sense of worthiness and beauty, especially from Black women, something a lot of these small-minded stans don't even have a notion of seeing beyond. Zawe is biracial, and her features, aside from her skin tone are very African. So while she benefits from colorism, featurism is something I've seen those bigoted stans, pick on as well. She knows those features are what makes her beautiful and knew that, w/o and before her partner saw that too. And people who aren't blind narrow-minded ignoramuses can *also* see that. This is why I assert the fact of featurism needing to be in the conversation of light/dark privilege conversations. Lips, nose, gap, and even the set of her eyes are ethnic beauty markers within quite a few spaces in the Black African diaspora... My mom was an absolute stunner because of her gap.

Even the old school white model Lauren Hutton got there because of her gap. Uzo Aduba, who I have already mentioned has a deeper skintone and has similarly large round striking eyes, gap, and a non-pinched-nose *rightly* played Glinda in NBC's production of The Wiz a few years back, with Dorothy saying she's so beautiful *because* of those features, not despite them as a very narrow white-washed gaze would wrongly assert.

And while we're here that includes sizes and shapes too. I'm saying your boy is enjoying all that plush. A lot of yall need to read or reread Maya Angelou's Phenomenal Woman, for comprehension.

Anyway... All this to say I know Zawe is and will be fine regardless.

P.S. Maya Angelou *also* had height, and gap and was very much known for her beauty/magnetism as a woman when she was alive. :

[ragsy]

[gripping the edge of the table] I need to do body horror to more of my OCs

[dribs-and-drabbles]

The Thai Communal Wardrobe item #113

That's My Candy ep 6:

Dirty Laundry ep 1:

Last Twilight ep 12:

[salsflore]

iiii remembered i used to run like two rp blogs with my buddy (who had two of her own) and oh em gee how i miss her...

[deva-arts]

No better way to end your day than to have your eye shanked by your boss' son! without any safe way of receiving medical attention! Then smiling about it to your last remaining family!

...Being a variant in this world is hard.

[evie-writes-sometimes]

And if I say they're the same?

[encrucijada]

you know maybe i should rewatch the queen's gambit and continue my dreamers au for that. and also because i just love the show and wanna watch it again

[munamania]

professor said she can’t grant a day extension for me to finish editing this stupid project bc my subject (sam actually) had to cancel kinda last min bc it’s policy and she tries to be gracious but we’re at the point in the semester where she wants to emphasize how important broadcasting deadlines are. bitch the funniest part is i don’t want to work in broadcasting like ever and this is class 1 and also i’m a student and can’t control circumstances like that and also i’m not being paid and can’t pay other people to help me it’s just a fucking favor basis. and it’s not that real i don’t need to completely blow my shit over it but i’m just soooooooo. like.

[robotpussy]

ouuuu somebody said they would like to see greta gerwig work with ayo edebiri and the usual "does greta gerwig even know black ppl exist" replies and tweets were flooding in now I'm seeing all the ppl i follow defend greta gerwig you could never get me to defend that lady over a silly statement 😭 like it is a bit annoying cause 1. shes only made 3 movies and her most recent does have more non white actors than usual (mind u shes only made 3 movies) but is it actually that deep? shes not the only director ppl "pick on" for having majority white casts.....

[cuteniaarts]

First posted piece of 2024 featuring Ghazan’s older sister Haya, take 2!!

[irishbreakfst]

Isidor and ida straus

[mysticarcanum]

auuuugh there is only skulduggery pleasant in my brain right now.

[pzos-amiserableidiot]

was watching tiktok and a video had the song michael in the bathroom playing and I was vicerally reminded of being in middle and high school and mom always mentioning how much I looked like my dad (his name is michael) and how I slowly was able to start noticing it too and whenever I sang the song it reminded me of him and I felt like we were overlapping too often felt like id never be anyone but a shadow or his mirror and then i began learning i was trans and now the song makes me think of him even more (he’s not a bad dad he tells me he’s proud of me and stuff there’s just two really big moments he unknowingly failed and one long continuous one but he loves me and he’s proud and he supports me and he didn’t mean it and ive learned to make that enough) and the weird flashback I got when I heard that song and overlapping with his face and how if I transitioned I almost fear I’d be his clone and yeah Anywyas banger song

[brittlebutch]

by virtue of the GM having to play every NPC in contrast to every player having their one, it's fascinating the relationship dynamics this sets up in character throughout the narrative