#he should have just bought reddit instead

[mokimokibloom]

The whole Elon musk situation reminds me of when Michelle Obama tried making US lunch meals healthy, but ended up making the food the most unappetizing and bland "source of protein" in existence.

[luvring]

(20 minutes earlier)

「8:57 p.m.」

“fuckin’ told you we’d get free dessert,” rin manages to say while putting another forkful of cake in his mouth. “and tears, and clapping.”

you scoff and shove his shoulder, “yeah, okay mr. too-good-to-be-true reddit post. sorry i never took you for a romantic.”

“really? even as we sit here and eat the best cake of your life?”

“we’re sitting on a curb in a parking lot, rin.”

“by choice, mind you.”

the amount of people who came over to congratulate the both of you had easily become overwhelming, especially when they started asking questions you couldn’t answer. “did you have your first date here?” “is it your anniversary?” “so when are you guys gonna get married?”

luckily, rin was able to ease his way out of the situation, explaining that the newly weds needed to go home to get some rest. he ended up driving a couple of blocks over to sit in an empty parking lot, the sunset near and the weather perfect. it was all a blur for you, really. if you didn’t think hard enough, you could say this really was a perfect way to end the day after an engagement.

“hey rin?” he hums in response and you continue, “was all of that stuff true? besides the romantic embellishments, i mean.”

“yeah,” he replies easily. “of course it was.”

when you look over at him, rin meets your gaze. his lips twitch as if he wanted smile before taking another bite of cake, “why are you looking at me like i said something unbelievable?”

“i don’t know! i just…you’ve never been very expressive about…anything like that.”

“mhm. that’s why i planned my script out. lies are easier with truths sprinkled in.”

“so me being in your best memories—”

“true.”

“having a hidden folder of us?”

“also true,” he replies. “and no you can’t see it,” he adds on with no hesitation. you pout but accept it, knowing that your own is still a secret for now. instead, you continue, “me being your best friend and you loving me?”

rin breathes out a laugh and rolls his eyes before responding, “despite what you might think, still very true.”

“uh huh,” you teasingly doubt. “then, wanting to be my fiance?”

you’re met with an unexpected beat of silence and you falter. rin’s smile disappears, but the soft look on his eyes doesn’t as he looks off at the parking lot. his voice is quiet when he finally answers, “true.”

“...what?”

at that, he barks out a laugh as he pushes his dessert aside to lean back on his hands, “i seriously just dragged you into an expensive, fancy ass restaurant under the guise of wanting a slice of free cake when we could have bought our favourite meals for less and you’re still shocked?”

he watches the expression on your face change as you flounder to find something to say. “you don’t have to feel pressured to like me back or anything. seriously, i just—” he takes a breath and smiles up at the clouds, a little in self-pity and not ready to look at you yet, “i needed to say it at some point so i thought i might as well go all in, y’know?”

a silence comes over the both of you. you think it should be awkward—you should want to curl into a ball and disappear. but you don’t. somehow, even now, rintarou manages to make you feel comfortable with everything going on, and the silence is just…understandable, almost comforting. rin is picking at the grass patch next to him when you look over, as if nothing had changed by his confession. but it didn’t sit right with you, and your gut twists at the thought of nothing changing in the way that mattered.

“well,” you say and wait for rin to look at you. he pauses and drops the grass in his fingers before tilting his head at you. “i think getting engaged skips a few steps but, um,” you clear your throat. rin’s heart is in his own throat as he watches you struggle a little to get up from your spot and onto one knee. “what are you—”

“i have my own folder of photos of us,” you blurt out. he blinks and your face is heating up but it’s too late to stop now. “i, uh, made it the first time we had to work on a project together, and we just ended up getting food and watching a new show. the first photo is you asleep with the weighted blanket.”

“and, i just, you—god i wish i had my own script,” you groan. rin snorts a little but stays quiet, knowing to let you take your time—there’d be time to tease you later anyway.

you bite your lip and try to figure out your words before continuing softly, “you mean a lot to me, rin. i seriously don’t know where i’d be if i didn’t know you and have you next to me for all these years. and i love you."

“so to my best friend,” you say, despite the heat you feel on your face and your heart pounding harder than ever before. “and the only person i’d let fake propose to me at a fancy ass restaurant just for a slice of cake”—you slide the ring off your own finger and hold it towards him—”will you be my boyfriend?”

the both of you stare and wonder if the other notices how the sunset has started—hues of pink, purple, and orange tinting the sky above you. and it’s only 20 minutes after you've become fiancés when rin shoots up with a grin, grabbing you closer to hold your face. you yelp as his hands cup your cheeks and his eyes flicker from yours to your lips. it’s 20 minutes after his own fake proposal that finally, finally, rintarou gets to kiss you for the first time. and it’s been 21 minutes, you guess, when he pulls back with a smile and answers, “i will.”

note from nia: hello. miau. suna lovers where r u. i don't think i need a part 3 for this so that's awesome. welcome to ur suna rintarou boyfriend/fiance arc!

join the taglist! :)

🏷️ couldn't tag | @devilgirlcrybabiey @lordbugs @smiithys @xfangirl-trashx @passionateuchiha @scaramouchesfootstool @fifteenshadesofpinkk @chloee0x0 @kenmaslov3r @bakugosgrenade @dai-tsukki-desu @missyasma @thathoneybee3 @momoewn @aintgeluh @dazaisfavgf @simpforerenn @crystal-lilac @vhenis @omiigad @kur0-kawa @semispilledcoffee @ksyhmm

interaction & rbs appreciated \o/

[blondeboyfriend]

𝐑𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐌𝐁𝐄𝐑 𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐄𝐑 𝐃𝐀𝐘𝐒 (𝐈𝐈)

[panel reads from right to left]

« Part 1 | Part 3 » [ PAIRING ] Zeke Yeager x f!reader [ SYNOPSIS ] Zeke loses his mind because monarch butterflies have taken roost in the trees by his house and he is tasked with keeping an eye on his little brother. You lose your mind because your crush on him is becoming too much to bear. [ WORD COUNT ] 2.6k [ CONTENT ] High school AU, butterflies, Eren being a menace but in a cute way, snow cones, a kiss, blue texts are from him + green are from you.

bugs, your opinion? what jind of bug? kind* a really cool jind you’ve never heard of stop. wHAT BUG? b u t t e r f l y that’s not a bug what’d you do? read about bugs last night? It’s pretty obvi that butterflies aren’t bugs

"So you're the bug expert now, huh? Queen of bugs? Should I call you if I see a weird one instead of asking strangers on Reddit?"

You stood in the middle of your bedroom, phone in hand, the wood flooring chill against your feet. At this point in your friendship it was typical Zeke behavior to send you a series of vague texts and subsequently accost you with an exasperated phone call. You were surprised he became so comfortable with you so fast. He seemed so elusive initially, so mysterious.

"Do you... Do you actually do that?"

There was a pregnant pause between the two of you. You heard him clear his throat on the other end of the line.

"Listen I do a lot of shit on Reddit, kiddo. Also who the fuck says 'obvi' anymore?"

"Whatever. Why are you going off about butterflies?" you asked.

He mockingly gasped.

"You're joking, right?"

Your face grew warm. What could he be talking about? Was he going to ask you out? You shook your head, freeing yourself from the notion he'd pursue you in such a way. You were friends, pals, buds. You rode your bikes through the suburbs late at night. You hung out behind old churches, snacking on candy while he chain smoked. You talked about how dumb it was that people bought each other stars and how overrated the Catcher in the Rye was. Zeke's distaste for J.D. Salinger was unparalleled. It was awe inspiring in a "I just turned 18 and this is so deep" sense. You couldn't help but admire him.

"No," you conceded.

"I'm so disappointed in you."

"Ouch. My heart."

He sighed, realizing he was being a little shit. "The monarchs are hanging out in the eucalyptus trees by my house."

"What do you need me to do? Help you harvest and eat them?” you snickered.

“Gross, no. Open your door.”

A pebble thudded against your window. You peered out and saw Zeke standing there in his baseball uniform. You rarely saw him in normal clothes. He jumped up and down, and waved at you, nearly dropping his phone as he did so. His excitement was always palpable when he saw you.

You ran down the stairs and slid across the floor, gliding past the door. You groaned as you walked backwards to align yourself with it and turned the knob. The door barely opened before Zeke came bursting in.

"Harvest? Consume? You’re fuckin—Wait, is your mom home?"

You shook your head. Zeke liked to be on his best behavior when your mother was around. She wasn't particularly strict or judgmental, but he refused to swear in front of her. He compulsively ate mints and always made sure to come by with a half-dozen maple bars, her favorite doughnut.

"Are you insane? Do you know how incredible it is that this shit—" He pulled out his phone and showed you a picture of Eren running away from a monarch butterfly, "—is still around?" He handed over the pastel pink box. The smell of maple icing filled the room.

"You shouldn't talk about your brother that way," you said, pulling one out of the box much to Zeke's chagrin.

He snatched the box away from you.

“They’re usually gone by February. I don’t think I’ve ever seen them during the summer.” He glanced down at your shoeless feet. "You're so slow. They'll be dead before we get there."

"Oh my god. Hold on. You didn’t even give me a chance—”

You stuffed the doughnut in your mouth and grabbed a pair of sneakers. They were a rather old pair. The soles were worn down, the tread nonexistent. Once blindingly white now a dingy grey. You slipped them on with relative ease. They hugged your feet like a bodycon dress from the early 2010s.

"Of course you don't untie them," Zeke scoffed, as he grabbed your arm. His hand was heavy and callused, but still gentle.

"Let go of me, butterfly boy," you teased, not bothering to pull your arm away.

Across the street from Zeke's house was a grove of eucalyptus trees. Their astringent scent filled the air. The tide was high, hindering any sulfurous stench that could mar their clean aroma. They were tall, the tops barely visible. You marveled at their height even though you had certainly seen taller trees. The redwoods were frighteningly large with their colossal trunks. They seemed almost monstrous in comparison to the lanky eucalyptus trees that gracefully swayed. You and Zeke took a deep whiff while Eren complained in the background.

"It smells like pee."

"Eren," Zeke said calmly.

"Like yellow pee."

"Stop."

Zeke’s patience waned.

"Like you need to drink some water pee."

It didn’t take long for his patience to dissipate and be replaced with utter irritation.

"Eren!"

It was rare for Zeke to raise his voice. You'd only ever heard him do it when he was on the phone with his parents; though he mostly spoke to Carla in a polite manner. Eren pouted and walked off in the opposite direction, swinging a large eucalyptus branch. It whipped up dust in his wake.

"I hate yelling at him. I always feel like such a dick after."

"Well he was being annoying."

"Doesn't mean I have to yell."

You plopped down on the ground in the shade; Zeke joined you, resting his head on your shoulder. A coastal breeze swept through the trees. You stared up at the colony of monarch butterflies as they ebbed in the wind. They clung to the waxy, oblong leaves looking like little clumps of orange and black flowers.

You shivered and pulled your olive green windbreaker tight around you. You hated the random days in July that were tormented with clouds, the kind that dappled the blue sky like soot. Zeke draped an arm around you.

"I'm sure he'll be fine. I mean, look at him," you said.

You pointed over to Eren as he rolled around in the dirt, cackling like a maniac. He looked like a chinchilla taking a dust bath.

"Doesn't matter. That's not the kind of person I wanna be."

"What kind of person do you wanna be?"

Zeke went quiet for a few seconds, though to you they felt like hours. Had you asked the wrong question? Crossed a boundary? Finally, he spoke.

"Steve Buscemi."

"What?!"

Zeke avoided serious conversations by bringing up non sequiturs. Anytime you broached something too existential he misdirected you, anything to avoid talking about his lack of identity or his daddy issues.

"Why does sparkling water taste weird after it goes flat?"

"Do you know how easy it was to fly before September 11th?"

"I just poisoned us. The anecdote is listening to Macintosh Plus in my bedroom. Hurry!"

"You ever been to Pyongyang, kiddo?"

"Who's your favorite dude from the Kids in the Hall? The only answer is Bruce McCulloch."

Zeke was an open book, but with a few key pages ripped out.

You studied his face, desperate to find a crack in his facade. He turned his head towards you. His grey eyes cursed with despondency. They were a dead giveaway when he was conflicted. You fingered a rough eucalyptus seed and shoved it in your pocket. You figured why not avoid some fleas while you tried to navigate this conversation.

"Steve. Buscemi. Are you not familiar?" he asked, adjusting his glasses.

"I know who Steve Buscemi is."

"Prove it."

"He's the guy that gets fed into the wood chipper in Fargo."

"Precisely."

"Are you saying you wanna get fed into a wood chipper?" you questioned, voice weighed down with anxiety.

"Maybe. Would you miss me?”

"Wood chipper?!" Eren exclaimed.

Zeke sighed and stood up, mussing your hair. Eren leapt off the ground and brushed the dirt off his knees. He sprinted over and wrapped himself around Zeke's legs like a boa constrictor.

"Violence isn't the answer," Eren said, his voice muffled by Zeke's pants.

"That's funny coming from you, Mr. I Poured Kerosene Down an Ant Hill and Lit It On Fucking Fire."

"He did what?" you asked flatly.

You knew Eren was a little turd, but you didn't realize he was apt to commit crimes against bug humanity.

"They were coming into the house! Mom found one in her coffee and screeched." He looked up at you; his green eyes couldn't have been any bigger. "Screeeeeeeched!"

"Seems like overkill to be honest," you quipped.

"It's us or them," Eren lamented.

“Didn’t Carla just explain nuance to you?”

“Didn’t you talk to my mom about how to talk to gi—”

Zeke blushed and clutched Eren’s head to his leg, trying to muffle his voice.

“What did you talk to Carla about? Gills?” you asked, feigning ignorance.

“Hahah!” Zeke’s laugh was painfully staccato. “Yup!”

“Hm, bugs and gills. You’re a bit of a weirdo, Zekey Poo.”

You held your hand to your chin as if you were deep in thought. Zeke rolled his eyes and let go of Eren.

Eren stuck his tongue out. “Your pants taste like fabric.”

“I should fucking hope so.”

"Aw, you’re getting grumpy," Eren teased.

Zeke’s mouth was a thin line. He was stone-faced, almost like Rodin himself sculpted his visage. His eyes were dead, lifeless, the color of ash. Embarrassment and discontent had sucked any semblance of joy from them.

"Wait no, he's crumpy. Crabby and grumpy, just like dad."

You couldn't help but laugh much to Zeke's annoyance. You nudged him, hoping he'd lighten up but he remained as he was. A monarch butterfly lilted to the ground and twitched pathetically in the dirt.

"Alright, that was thoroughly depressing. Come on, you’re going back inside.”

Zeke trudged towards the house with Eren still clinging to his leg; you followed close behind. You wanted to think of something fun to do now that it was just going to be the two of you.

“Snow cones, Zeke. I want one.”

“I want one too!” Eren cheered.

Zeke gritted his teeth. “Maybe next time.”

“But I wanna get one with you guys now.”

“You should have thought about that before you started calling me made up words like crumpy.”

"I'll never eat anything blue raspberry. That looks radioactive," Zeke chastised.

The two of you sat at a mint green table on the boardwalk. You licked your neon blue snow cone. The syrup started to drip from the bottom of the cardboard, leaving your hand sticky with sugar.

"Oh, and green apple looks any less nuclear?"

"You ever hear about Cherenkov radiation?"

“I haven’t.”

“Well it’s—”

You interrupted him. “I don’t remember saying ‘Oh, Zeke, please tell me!’”

He held his arm at a strange angle, trying to avoid snow cone dripping down his sleeve.

“But I love telling you things without consent,” he said, voice almost cracking as the saccharine liquid made its way to his sleeve. “Oh, that’s perfect, just beautiful.”

You stifled a laugh. It occurred to you that openly laughing at a friend’s misfortune could be perceived as rude, or even malicious. You cleared your throat and cautiously bit into your snow cone.

“You’re lucky you’re cute when you do that, kiddo.”

“Bite into a snow cone?” you asked, chomping into yours.

The second your teeth made contact they stung pain, it reverberated throughout your head. You wailed as you were overtaken by brain freeze. Unlike you Zeke didn’t stifle his laughter. He guffawed openly, bringing unwanted attention to the situation. You sunk down into your seat, setting your snow cone on the table on its side. The agony stripped you of any sense; it didn’t even occur to you that your snow cone would leak all over. Zeke got up, tossed his snow cone in the trash, and quickly grabbed what seemed like a pound of napkins.

“Next time you suggest food I’m ignoring you. Or I’m gonna make you pick something less fucking drippy.”

“Fair enough,” you said, picking up your depressing mess of a snow cone. “I need to wash my hands.”

Zeke held his hands out in front of him. “Ugh. Me too.”

After ditching the messy snow cones the two of you wandered around, searching for a bathroom. It was a thankless task. Most places sold overpriced wares and demanded you purchase something to use the bathroom. It was understandable; the area was a tourist trap. There would be endless lines trailing out of the little cafes that dotted the streets if the businesses were more lax. Beachgoers who thought they were too good for the porta potties would coagulate in the entrances. A disaster in the making.

“I mean, like, I get it. But I also don’t wanna spend $7 on a single scone so I can wash my hands,” you said.

“Could go buy hand sanitizer,” Zeke suggested.

“It’s not the same,” you replied solemnly.

“You sound so wistful. It’s like you’re reminiscing about an old lover. Should I be jealous?”

You playfully kicked Zeke in the shin.

“Hardly. They’d never compare to you.”

“That’s… Uh, I—Oh, we could walk to the beach and use those shitty sinks!”

Zeke grabbed your hand, hoping to drag you towards the beach. But you yanked it away just as his fingers grazed your skin.

“Wait. I need to tell you something.”

He gulped.

“It’s bad, isn’t it?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Well, fuck, kiddo. Out with it then.”

“I like you.”

“Who?”

You nervously tugged at your hair. There was still time to backtrack. You could have said just kidding or by “you” I mean Steve Buscemi. But you froze, eyes were flooded with panic. You went to speak but nothing came out. The confession wasn’t supposed to happen like this. You had a plan! You wanted a late night drive up to the mountains. You wanted to stare up at the stars while you both lazed around on a blanket. Zeke would be smoking and talking about something dumb like lo-fi hip hop, and you were going to pluck the cigarette from his mouth and kiss him like they did in all those ridiculous teen movies. It was so cliché, but warm, summer nights were made for that kind of stuff.

However here you were, hands sticky with sugar standing on the sidewalk as tourists strutted by complaining about how packed the boardwalk was. The sun beat down on you, the clouds finally subsiding. You wanted to cry. How could you have managed to set yourself up for failure this bad? You wiped your eyes with your sleeve and tried to gain composure.

“Uh, no one,” you finally choked out.

Zeke rolled his eyes and pulled you towards him. He cupped your face with his hands and planted a kiss on your lips. He pulled away rather quickly.

“Holy shit. My bad. I, uh, should have asked. Fuck, why didn’t I ask?”

“It’s… I don’t care.”

A smile crept across your face which allowed a wave of relief to wash over Zeke.

“You don’t?” he asked.

“No… I mean, your hands left my face sticky which is absolutely disgusting but other than that I don’t give a fuck. No. Wait. I mean, I do. I do give a fuck because I, you know, like you… or whatever.”

You wrapped your arms around him and gave him a little peck on the neck.

“You’re going to wipe your hands on me, aren’t you?”

“I think I earned that right,” you said smugly, wiping them on his back.

He awkwardly kissed your forehead; his soft lips lingered.

“I suppose you did, kiddo. I suppose you did.”

[yourlocalstranger123]

Hi!how are you?can I ask a snippet (feel free to change it)of how Zhongli would react to eather/lumine(or just Y/N) giving him a flower crown?thx!

-✨ anon

Alright 👍 also ima try to make it all different so it might seem I like one of them more but I'm just trying to make it different or at least make the words different but with the same meaning.

✨️Ima do all three✨️

Gerne; fluff ☁️ slight angst

Lumine 💮🌸

1st; Idk since I founded in Google and the poster was from Reddit, and it didn't exactly say who was the artist

2nd; Danbooru arist: midorigawa akari

Lumine and Zhongli haven't met for a while so when they did, they decided to have a stroll on a field full of flowers. As they both enjoy the comfort of silence with the background of birds chirping and leaves blowing in the air. Lumine stopped.

"Is there something wrong, Traveler?" He asked. Lumine shook her head as a sign of no. She kneeled down and plucked a silk flower. As she raised it, a Geo Crystalfly landed on it. She gave the flower to Zhongli.

"Thank you for the flower." As he also plucks a flower and puts it on her hair. He chuckled at her surprised face. She once again kneeled and got more flowers. As he sat on the table and tilts his head as his chin rests on his hand. He wonders what is she doing.

Lumine tied the flowers to a shape of a crown. Zhongli decided to stand up to walk to the girl. She finishes and turned around to see Zhongli. She gestured for him to bend down, and as he did she put a flower crown on his head and smiled. Zhongli widens his eyes as the eyes glint with light. He can't help but also smile at her actions. He shall keep this shining in gold in his memories....

"Thank you...Traveler."

Aether 🌺💐

1st: Danbooru artist: hane (odeu)

2nd: Danbooru artist: oyakorodesu

Aether returned to Liyue. As he walks down the street, he sees a familiar figure. Zhongli. Zhongli seems to have forgotten his wallet and his living one too. Aether decided to pay for him and had a nice talk too. Although the item he bought (banquet) was distracting aether.

"Would you like to have a stroll with me, Traveler?" Zhongli asked, as he drank his cup of tea. Aether nodded, later he found out what the banquet was for. Childe was looking for some flowers to give for his family and Zhongli decided to help on it.

After that, they walked around the field of flowers. They sat at a table, but aether went out to get something. Zhongli saw him walking towards him after a few minutes, holding a flower crown. Aether puts on the flower crown on him. Smiling at his gesture of giving him this, he pat his head and lightly ruffled his hair.

He was amused and chuckled at seeing the boy's expression. They both smiled and laughed as they talked. After that, night was coming and it started to become cold. Zhongli gifted his suit to keep him warm which Aether finally accepted with some convincing. After leading him to the Wangshu Inn and watching as he go. Zhongli stands outside, smiling.

"You will forever shine in my memories like gold....thank you for this wonderful experience Traveler."

READER sagau!🍀

1st: Danbooru artist: Akiyoshi_nozomu

2nd: Danbooru artist: Hisehisekin

(You lived with him with every moment of his life)

"Zhongli!" You shouted across the street.

"Oh, I didn't expect to see you here."

You scoffed. "Well, you should now. But close your eyes." He did as you asked. He felt you grab his hand. After a while of walking, you stopped. He asked you if they were here. He didn't get an answer, but instead a "stay right here, I'll be back!" He waited. He wanted to open his eyes but didn't want to spoil the surprise you are making for him.

"You can open now!" He was confused, 'what was the surprise?' Until he felt something on his head. It was a flower crown, and then he looked behind you to see a field of Wild Glaze Lilies. His eyes widen and are full of life in it as his eyes shine brightly as the sun. He also saw some stone markings of his beloved friends and the stone you made in the past for this world that saves the memories of the surrounding.

He touched them and sees the moments where Bosacius drew on xiao's face and many more. He went on his knees, eyes filled with tears. He hugged you by the waist, saying his thank you's.

He knew if you revived anyone, it will disturb the cycle of reincarnation, life, and death. It would be too much work and since your current body hasn't fully adapted your power. This is why he was so grateful for you going through all the trouble to do this. You put a flower crown on him, kissing his forehead. Wiping away the tears. The rest of the day of him laying on your lap.

The next day he comes to where you live with a banquet full of flowers. He hugged you as you felt some tears falling on your shoulder. You rubbed his back to comfort him.

"I vow for us to shine together forever in our life....I love you."

Bonus! Sagau🌻🌼🍁

Idk who made it but in the first one, Nahida was too short for the camera to see—

You, the archons, and the traveler with paimon. were walking down the field of flowers you made. You had all 4 of the archon's nation, flowers. Aether/lumine was giggling as aether hold the flowers in his arms/lumine holds the flowers on her skirt. It was nice seeing Ei walking around smiling, Zhongli drinking tea, and of course. Venti floats around with the lyre, singling songs themed as the 4 nations, Nahida doing the hopscotch along the path, and of course, Paimon. Eating away your cooking. You chuckled as she stuffed her mouth with food.

You used a bit of Anemo to make flower crowns for each person. You made sure to take a picture of this special moment.

Abyss aether/lumine, watching in the background as she/he sees you and their sibling having fun together. She/he wishes to join but cannot. She/he has not yet found a home for them to live. "Please wait, I promise one day. We will live together peacefully but for now, I will say my goodbyes."

[j4gm]

Mechanukkah 2023 night 1: The Mitchells vs. the Machines

Welcome to the 2023 edition of @simplyender's annual robot watch party. I need to be on a train to Belgium at 7:30 tomorrow morning so I should probably be sleeping instead of writing this right now but whagever (⌐■_■)

TMVTM is one of Ender's favourite movies. It's a staple of this marathon every year and I'm pretty sure they watch it at least once per month in the interim. I missed it last year, though I have seen the movie once before so I don't think anyone on the call was watching for the first time.

I think that wait hold the fuckin phone we're watching the credits right now who the fuck was Griffin McElroy in this??? What? Okay Reddit says he was a fridge or something. That'll be something to try and spot next year. Anyway like I was saying I think that there are few animated movies where as much pure passion and energy has been poured into the animation, which is elevated by its stylistic choices and the KatieVision™ overlays with their adorable traditional animation and puppetry. It's a gorgeous watch and I wish I'd seen it on a cinema screen.

The humour is fun even if it's very predictable. With hindsight I am quite glad this movie didn't come out a year or two later because you just know there would have been an inescapable quantity of jokes about NFTs and ChatGPT. Though the absence of those jokes actually dates the movie in a way. The curse of making a comedy about technology is that technology changes fast. It's kind of remarkably lucky that Twitter isn't mentioned a single time as far as I remember.

Shoutout to the lady at the charity shop I work in who bought a "Connected" branded bookbag the other day, which is what Mitchells was called until it was renamed shortly before release. I formally apologise to Ender for not wrestling it off the customer and mailing it over to them, so scarce is Mitchells merch.

Mechanukkah word of the day: FURBY

[ihhfhonao3]

Do you recognize this art?

Or this?

Or, most likely, this?

That’s because they’re all by a man named Jonas Jödicke, also known as JoJoe.

Now for many years, JoJoe has been a major victim of art theft, with his works being printed and silt without his permission on over 1000 different sites. One of the perpetrators of this theft in 2020 was American singer and rapper Aaron Carter.

Cue a 1 1/2 year long legal battle, and Aaron loses 12.5k USD, giving the money to its rightful owner (JoJoe).

JoJoe has since bought an apartment with the money recovered from his legal battles so far, as the cases are still ongoing!

So, if you’re like me and a big part of your childhood was going online and finding random art of animals you liked, take a moment and see if you can find and support the original poster. And REALLY try and dig. Art theft was rampant in the early internet days and still happens today.

Nowadays, JoJoe still does his art, actively speaks out against ai art and the like, and is generally a pretty cool guy. He also is gay and Mormon/a part of the Church of Latter Day Saints.

So if any of you (like myself) have unknowingly saved any of JoJoe’s art from random websites and google searches of “wolf phone background,” maybe take a moment to support him.

Here are some links to his socials, patreon, and some sources covering his battle.

So, if any of you artists out there find yourselves victims of ai scrapping or art theft, just know that if art is your job and you make money off of it? You definitely can get all of that back.

Image descriptions in alt text.

https://twitter.com/JoJoesArt

[hylianjo]

Introducing...

Me.

I know I've been on here for a while, but I figured I should do a little introduction post. I don't normally show my face, but here ya go! I'm JoJo, and I write Legend of Zelda fan fiction. I'm 35 and I've been married for 16 years to my amazing husband. I'm a stay-at-home mom of two wonderful girls (10 and 7) and we homeschool. I first got into writing fan fiction after i started playing my first Zelda game, Breath of the Wild. (Yes, I know, I'm a latecomer.) I bought the game for my husband for his birthday, but my girls got more into it than he did! At first I wasn't interested in playing it because I wasn't into open-world style games, but then I got to playing Pokemon: Legends Arceus (I've always been a Pokemon fan). I realized I liked the open world style, and after watching my girls play Breath of the Wild some more I decided to try it out for myself. I fell in love with the game over the summer last year, and I couldn't put it down.

My girls like to watch YouTube videos, and someone modded in Zelda as the main hero instead of Link. It gave the the spark for a story - what would happen if Zelda and Link traveled together on his adventure? I couldn't stop thinking about it and just had to write it down. It turned into an 82-chapter longfic, which then spread into 2 prequel stories and became a 3-part series. FanFiction.net was where I first published my story, but I hated the format. I waited patiently in line for an AO3 account, which I joined in September of 2022. Then I found Reddit, Discord, and finally Tumblr...and the rest is history. I also found amazing artists who have been partnering with me with my writing, which has been such an amazing feeling. Seeing my ideas come to life...there's nothing like it. I've met so many wonderful people on these sites and made so many online friends, both in and outside the fandom, and I've been met with such love and support it's overwhelming. Even though it's only online, I feel like I've made friends for life. Sharing common interests with others who feel just as passionate as you do...it's amazing!! If you've read this far, thank you...and I'm so happy you're here! I hope you enjoy my writing, and if not, at least the pictures I post here on my Tumblr account <3

If you have any questions, feel free to ask! I'm an open book (mostly)!

[meeblo]

The upcoming standard banners have been datamined (strangely, can't find the kernal banners though I assume they're also preloaded).

First up in shop are Pallas and Elysium, followed by Weedy and Flint. I already have both Weedy and Flint so that one isn't relevant to me.

My thought process on who to buy under the cut

I don't have any of the characters listed in the poll. I frequently use both Mudrock and Penance, so Blemishine's talent would be useful. It would also be nice to pick up another defender who can be healed through traditional means, as right now I really only use Saria, Mudrock, and Penance, two of which can't be healed normally.

I don't have Elysium, so he's probably a no-brainer pickup; I've been trying to diversify my vanguards rather than just mindlessly bring Bagpipe and Myrtle to everything, but even still I'd like Elysium for his S2's great utility. I'm definitely going to grab him, hence why there's no poll option without him.

La Pluma is another five star people praise as one of the game's best. I don't plan on pulling for Executor alter since Swire alter and Jessica alter look way more fun to use, and I haven't build Highmore or Humus yet because I always think to myself "if I get La Pluma I'll probably always just use her instead". That said, I've heard La Pluma is a generalist who's good in a ton of scenarios, which might be a bit boring. I've been trying to make myself use more specialized squads without busted meta units to keep things fresh.

If I bought everyone, I'd be left with 145 certificates. I will most likely be able to climb back up to 180 before the Weedy and Flint banner ends. My concern that keeps me from buying all three is that there will be someone desireable on the Kernel headhunting shop. I also don't know when the build-your-own-banner will be. I've heard some say it'll be with Pinch-Out and others say it'll be during global's 4th anniversary. It would suck to miss that opportunity because I spent too many gold certificates on other things.

[admhawthorne]

“You want to know who I made it here?” Kiryu snorted as he leaned back in his chair and glanced amusedly around his plush fortress. “Alright, in the beginning, I was confused because it shouldn’t have worked. The goddess who sent me here told me I’d develop powers and abilities as I leveled up, but there it was. I’d somehow managed to enable God Mode through the most well-known cheat code humans from our world have ever known. That had to be some Celestial programmer’s idea of a joke, but I took it.”

Nodding for the adventurer to sit in one of the conformable seats nearby, Kiryu chuckled. “Don’t look so surprised. You’re not the first the Celestial Temple has sent here, and neither am I.” He poured two glasses of wine from a freshly opened bottled, set one down for the adventurer, and began to slowly sip from the other. “The first thing I did was max everything out include my gold, bought the finest armor and weapons, and purchased all the maps so I could get a feel for the world instead of rambling blindly through it. It took me a couple of days to make it to the final boss’s lair, and, when I made my way inside, I quickly realized this was going to be a cakewalk.”

The adventurer took a cautious sip of the wine, decided it was fine, and took another, larger sip. “But why?”

“Because I was severely over leveled. I was ten levels above the final boss. It would’ve taken me a decade or more to grind enough to hit that level on my own.” Kiryu finished his wine and set the glass down. “I one-shotted him, which brought the goddess immediately into the world. She praised me for my heroics, talked about her confusion in how I’d accomplished everything so quickly, and then she told me I could ask her one question before she took me from this land and into the afterlife.”

The adventurer swallowed hard, flinching at the cold look in Kiryu’s eyes. “W-what did you ask?”

“I asked her if this world would cycle through this whole huge evil destroys peaceful civilians until an adventurer comes to save them thing, which surprised her. Evidentially, it was something she’d never been asked. I assumed she’d say no because that would make sense. After all, I had just taken out the boss, so the world should be fine. Instead, she told me yes.”

“Yes?” The adventurer nearly fumbled their wine glass. “B-but why?”

Kiryu’s hands flexed in and out of fists. “Because this was her world, and she had decided it was one she would use to test the might of humans as she saw fit. Of course, I was appalled. There are real people living here; they’re not pawns in a goddess’s cruel games.”

Nodding, the adventurer seemed to be thinking very hard as they stared at Kiryu. “You’re telling the truth.”

“You must have the lie detector ability. Good. Use it as much as you want. In fact, here,” Kiryu waved his hands and several mana potions appeared, “to keep up your magic so you can continue to see I’m telling you the truth.” He stood and began to pace about his study. “I was this world’s hero, its savior, and I’d just learned that its goddess was also its biggest enemy. I couldn’t stand by and watch her keep doing this to these poor people over and over again, so I did what I thought was just.” He turned to face the adventurer. “I killed her.”

“So, you did kill a goddess!” The adventurer stood to face Kiryu, hand slowly going to their sword.

“No, I killed the final boss, and now you have to make a decision. Do you listen to the Celestial Temple and believe them when they say I’ve committed a heinous and unforgivable act, or do you side with me and remain here to continue protecting this world from the Celestial Temple’s cruel games? Which is it, Dawn. Choose wisely.”

Dawn could see Kiryu was still speaking truths, and she knew the Temple was often manipulative and self-serving. She’d spent a lot of time with the people of this world, and they were good, kind folks who didn’t deserve to be used as fodder. Sighing, she sheathed her sword.

“I can’t go back. They’ll either kill me or wipe my memory,” she stated sadly as she slid back down into her chair.

“You’re welcome to stay here. There’s plenty of room in this fortress for the both of us. Help me protect this land and its people,” Kiryu offered as he held his hand out in a gesture of welcome.

“I’m not like you, Kiryu. I’m not strong enough to hold up against a fight with gods,” she defeatedly replied.

He shook his hand at her, urging her to take it. “But you could be. Agree to stay. Pledge to protect this world, and I’ll tell you how.”

Looking up at him, she slowly took his hand and stood. “Alright. I pledge myself to protecting this world and its people until my dying breath.”

He smiled at her, his eyes dancing with excitement. “Good. Now, let me remind you of the Konami code…”

[greatwyrmgold]

I just want to vent about my dad on a website I know he doesn't use. (He's a Reddit/Facebook man.)

These are two texts from our D&D group's groupchat. In it, Dad reacts to finding out that WotC hired the literal Pinkertons to intimidate someone who got sold the wrong trading cards by criticizing the guy who the Pinkertons intimidated.

This is typical for my dad. When these tales of corporate misdeeds happen, Dad always defends the corporations. If they are not breaking the law, he takes that as evidence that they're in the right. If they are breaking the law, he tries to downplay the severity of the crime. He's a corporate bootlicker, and I don't think he realizes it.

This bootlicking is a bit ironic, since my dad is a "Don't Tread on Me" libertarian. Well, if you asked he'd say he had disagreements with the Libertarian party, but he's never explained exactly what those disagreements are. Which is actually pretty similar to his relationship with the Republican party; Dad will say he holds Democrats and Republicans in equal disdain, but he's complained long and often about Democrats with their gun control and Obamacare and taxes. By contrast, the worst thing he's said about Donald Trump is that he doesn't protect gun rights.

Now, I don't think Dad actually agrees with the alt-right. He's voiced support for minority rights and stuff, even if it's in a milquetoast "We've basically achieved equality, and also the government shouldn't stop businesses from discriminating because the free market will put them out of business" way. But when he talks about politics, he doesn't complain about conservatives. He complains about liberals.

And he talks about politics a lot. My dad might espouse disinterest in the country's political parties, but he has strong opinions about politics. His political discussions, which he made sure to include me and my brother in, are a big part of why I care about politics as much as I do—and to his credit, he encouraged us to think for ourselves instead of just following his politics. I too was a dumbass libertarian for a while, but when I was presented with new evidence, I could change my mind.

But, well. Having a politically-opinionated dad, while being politically-opinionated in the opposite direction is a bit of a problem. And in case you didn't pick up from the way I described my dad defending WotC and also have not noticed any other political post I've made on this blog, I am firmly opposed to capitalism in general and capitalists fucking over employees (or other individuals who annoy them) in specific. So there's a bit of tension there. And I don't know what to do with it.

So far, I've mostly tried to avoid it. That's successful most of the time, but not all the time. Everything is political; even if my dad wasn't the kind of guy who talks with his kids about the president's health care policy or California gun control, politics would come up sooner or later. The friend in the group chat wasn't trying to be political; he just relayed an interesting news story relevant to the group's shared interests. But corporate malfeasance is a political issue, whether you want it to be or not. Politics are gonna come up.

I guess I could argue with him, point out that WotC's actions are morally bankrupt, no matter how legal they are. Question why making a video about some cards that you bought is grounds for getting goons sent to your house. Hell, maybe I should do that, push back against shitty political ideas. But what would the result of that be? I'd get mad, my dad would get mad, neither of us would change our minds, and it's not like the rest of the group would care.

For now, I guess I'm venting my frustrations on Tumblr. I hope that's a healthy outlet.

[mobiivs]

140720XX

@xinqfu 🍀

sorin’s running off the moment she passes through customs, forgoing the baggage claims—her manager will get that for her, eventually. there’s eighteen hours of a plane ride she’d braved still stuck to her, impatient wave of her hand when she finds the company car waiting. “i’ll tip you extra if you get there in twenty minutes,” are her first words, leaning forward, the unflappable, confident bassist looking just a little more frazzled for once. “it’s really important!”

summer’s packed full with tours, inescapable heat on her back. she misses the lazy summers from forever ago, when all she had to worry about were white dress codes and the startling new discovery of sungho’s... everything. but sorin’ll admit she likes it better now, even though her schedule’s fit to burst and it’s been two years since that beach party and more. she’s never been that much of a romantic, to be honest, but having the literal best boyfriend in world means she’s got to at least make it home in time for their anniversary.

the drive home follows that winding red thread, her leg bouncing impatiently. she worries at her nails, a watchful eye on the clock, hands cradling the little giftbox she’d gotten. red weaves down the road, through the sights of seoul, and there’s a smile she can’t fend off. she’s going to be home.

⚾

they’re sitting face to face, in dead silence. she hasn’t talked to him—not just right now, since she saw him first in the team’s hall, but in months. sorin should’ve known this wouldn’t last, the calm away from the storm when she’d finally sucked it up and left their team, for a second time. the last time, she’d promised herself, that she’d give in to the player.

and months later, because they’re both good at what they do when they’re not trying to ruin each other, sorin and sungho sit in the same room in the olympics village.

the string lies taut and frayed, that last, single fibre connecting them dyed scarlet. “we should meet the rest of the team,” she’d said. “we should,” he’d replied. sorin’s still sitting across from him, arms crossed; he eyes her, and there’s that look she used to think meant something. but she’s got someone who smiles at her with none of the edge, sweet and soft in a way she’s still learning to keep up with. she’d wonder if he’s found someone else too, but sungho probably has half the girls in the village on his phone instead.

she stands up, and team captain’s eyes follow, an arm coming in front of her. it’s all so easy, she thinks, to fall back into this. he still looks at her the same, the thrill that’d drawn her in jumping down her spine. sorin pulls away and lets the string snap between them. today marks the first day of moving on.

👓

sorin sets the cake down in front of him, a smug little raise of her eyebrow. all pleased with herself, even though the lettering is off and the biggest ( and only ) candle is tilted to the left. sungho’s eyebrows shoot up, and she quickly raises her hands. “i only decorated it! i bought the cake. i didn’t bake it, really.” a mock gasp, elbowing him. “you didn’t even get anything, stop looking at me like that—you forgot, didn’t you!”

she’s kidding, laughing over his sputtering, indignant defense—she saw the present sungho tried to bury in the back of his closet, one night when she’d stayed over. a month early, too. she’ll bet she can find one of his posts on reddit and that means her present’s going to be internet-sourced, but she trusts her little nerd. sorin pulls him in, both hands on his cheeks, and plants a kiss square on soft lips.

he’s not the same gangly, awkward nerd he used to be, and she’s no longer the mean girl cheerleader stereotype she’d hung her pride on back in high school. can you believe yoo sungho’s blond, now? probably not as much as lim sorin reading books on string theory to impress a nerd, though. their red thread is the colour of the strawberries around the cake, knotted in places; the loops they’d made around each other and back again, milestones to the fate that links their pinkies together. sorin makes him light the candle and grins at him, and thanks the skies out there for the second chance on their high school romance.

🔪

“i should take a picture,” he’s marveling, and she just knows he’s going to say something smart.

she flicks the wound she just bandaged before he can, hard enough to sting. “shut up,” sorin huffs. the red of their string is bright against bloodied cloths and discoloured iodine, weaving around their wrists. “i’ll leave you to bleed on our doorstep next time,” she warns, has to take a pause when she realises she hadn’t meant my. it’s... been a while since sungho stopped loitering around the ground floor of her apartment, hands shoved in his pockets. the younger guy follows her up now, most days, terrorises the rest of the tenants with his tattoos and scuffed up jackets, his harley rumbling menacingly by the entrance.

the lawyer looks at him, grinning on the couch, and wonders when she got domestic with the boy rough around the edges, cornering her in the office. perhaps, since the day her flimsy morals had folded so easily over his request. “i was just gonna say you’ve gotten better at this,” he says. sorin rolls her eyes at him, teases, “only because i need to keep my boyfriend from dying on my couch,” and immediately spots the flaw in her premise, the keyword not even second guessed. a hand slaps over sungho’s mouth, his eyes smirking knowingly at her. red bridges between them as she points with her free hand. “don’t you dare,” she warns, but sorin’s laughing despite herself and, well, it wasn’t anything they didn’t know already.

🪙

she knows she’s picking at it, unravelling the thread that binds them together, like if she pulls at the loose ends hard enough, it won’t just fall apart. looking out from her glass walls to where sungho’s sitting, neutrality strained on his face while she meets yet another chaebol son, smiling the way weak men who think they’re powerful do.

“just a moment,” she says, standing up. outside, she sees her secretary do the same, brief relief on his face. her hips sway as she exits the glass door, stopping in front of his desk. sorin places a hand on the warm wood, head tilted up to look at him, in full view of her prospective blind date. the muscle in his cheek jumps, understanding and resignation setting in. “c’mon, save me, he’s boring,” she says, and sungho doesn’t move. can’t, really, before she does.

she kisses him, lips coated with something glossy and saccharine, like overripe peaches sitting out for too long on a summer afternoon. sticky sweet and soon to spoil, on his. something gets thrown, audibly, in the office behind her, a door slamming closed soon after. his arms around her don’t let her turn away; sorin presses a hand against his chest and pulls away, doesn’t let the daze distract from the point of this. “is he gone?” she asks, and the other looks up, nods briefly.

“good,” sorin says, “you’re mine.” an assurance, empty—she leaves the second half unsaid, even though she can see the thread wrapped around his neck, and still she drags him down and tightens it herself.

📷

“should we film something for our anniversary?”

sorin tilts her head back, crown of her head meeting his thigh where she’s draped across his lap. she’s scrolling through her feed; he’s editing her newest video. red string hang loose between them, comfortable and unseen. “mm,” is his reply, focused on the task. she sighs and reaches up, running her hands through his hair to get his attention. “your roots are growing out again,” she complains, “we should find another colour you look hot in that doesn’t stain my hands purple every two weeks.”

there’s a huff of laughter above her, sungho looking down. “you like it, though,” he teases, and well. she’s got no comeback for that. sorin shrugs her shoulders. it’s a bigger feat than you’d think, while lying down and avoiding dropping her phone on her face. “let’s keep our anniversary for ourselves,” sungho adds, wraps her like a strand around his finger and pulls her in, wry smile on his face. “just us, no one else.”

she lets herself be pulled closer, snuggling up to watch him touch up the footage they’d filmed earlier. “okay,” sorin grins, “the internet thinks it’s on, like, whenever that last episode of inferno aired anyway.” she laces their fingers together, intangible crimson link disappearing somewhere between their held hands. it’s their little secret, hidden from view.

🎾

the red of their strings are dyed darker, reaching across the tennis court. they’re still the star players, even if they’re not partners on mixed doubles anymore.

“good game,” he says, jogging up to her, and sorin scowls a little at him. “we’re still getting used to working together,” she defends herself, because it sucks to be on the losing side, across from sungho instead of beside him. “since you, y’know, left and all that.” sungho’s graduated and gone, even though he visits the team once in a while, and now there’s that undeniable distance between them, as certain and tangible as the net in front of her. it feels unfair, somehow, the double fault that they’ve fumbled completely, serves and signs missed because they were just a beat too slow. now he’s someone else’s.

but she still thinks of him as hers, first. “it’s fine, we’ll play another round and keep the nets later,” sungho calls to the rest of the members, waves off the clean up with an arm slung over her shoulders, skin warm against hers. like they’re still best friends and partners, the contact innocent and friendly and casual, the sort that mean nothing until everyone else is gone. sorin knows she’s going to regret this. but he kisses her like he still wants her, and at least the regret tastes a little like victory.

🎞️

there’s music booming, the reverb of something bass while the rest of the set cleans up, stylists carefully peeling her out of the last expensive, horribly branded outfit she’s paid to make look good. sungho’s by the monitor, going through the photographs; there’s that focus on the screen that she’d seen develop as their careers started rising, an inexplicable flutter to know it’s her he’s looking at now, even though their best pictorials have always been together.

sorin hops out of the makeshift stall, dressed down and comfortable, and she’s caught up to him before she can think. she’ll blame it on the fact that she hasn’t seen him in a while—haven’t been booked together, as that set they used to come as. it’s spite that drives their synergy today, annoyance over the rumours of a slump in their partnership she’s determined to prove wrong. the rumours were wrong, anyway, crisp lines on the samples on the screen, the splash she knows this one’s going to make.

sungho glances at her, the sort of grin when they’ve pulled off a concept, and something tugs at her. “wanna grab a bite?” she asks, entirely on impulse and that vague, ever-present sense of missing him. there’s a pause, point two seconds too long, sandwiched between sungho’s surprised expression and no answer. oh god, she’s made a fool of herself.

she turns on her heel and flees the room, embarrassed; sorin doesn’t see the relieved laugh he lets out, picking up the red thread that’s spooled out and following it back to her.

🕸️

the tear in the fabric of the spacetime continuum seals itself shut at the tip of sorin’s index finger, pointing at nothing. “wait, was that us?” red strings crisscross unseen, a multiverse of possibilities, and the constant that ties them together shining in between. sungho blinks from where he’s seated at the console, his code done executing. they’d just been looking for an alternative design to the webslinger they’ve got now, and yes, taking a peek at the multiverse is kind of cheating, but if you figured out the formula in advanced physics... it’s fair game, really.

“so... no webslinger designs there...” she fixes him with a look that says duh, because that universe’s sorin is definitely missing the spidey sense if she didn’t notice two college kids gawking at her while she ‘made out’ ( censored for the pg-13 movies ) with the sungho of that other universe... uh huh. sorin of this universe might have bigger problems than faulty webslingers right now.

“hey, the us in that universe, were we...” “... yeah.” “huh.” ”...” “wanna try it too?”

❤️

sorin rushes into his arms and laughs, gives him a kiss that’s far deeper than it ought to be, airplane breath and their door still ajar. the thread tied between the two of them is barely a centimeter long, their hands interlocking as he pulls her in for another kiss. sungho smells a little like the hospital mixed with the candle she’d bought on a whim, hugging her tightly. “missed you, baby,” he says, kisses the crown of her head and moves to take her luggage in, sorin still clinging to him. home feels like a forever, ticking off the years. there’s no other way to describe it, the surety of the two of them after the rollercoaster to get here, red wrapped around their pinkies. fate, choice, and love, everything in between.

“i made it in time, right? happy anniversary!”

[abigailspinach]

WIBTA for bringing a spiral cut ham to Easter?

This feels like a very dumb question, but it's caused a ruckus on the in-laws group text, so I'm coming to you fine folks for judgment.

My BIL usually hosts Easter, but he's had an issue with his plumbing recently that won't be resolved before next weekend (it's related to the line from the city water supply to his house, so there's a lot of paperwork involved; that's not super important), so my MIL is hosting instead. When BIL was planning to host, my husband and I were going to contribute a spiral-cut ham and the egg hunt. This is what we've contributed to Easter for years.

I texted MIL this morning about whether she had baskets for the kids for the egg hunt, and she confirmed that she does and added that we should bring a "regular ham" instead of spiral-cut. I asked why, and she said that spiral-cut "dries out too quickly" and that the leftovers aren't as good as the leftovers from a "regular ham."

I know this is a dumb hill to die on, but my husband, his brothers, their wives, and I all prefer spiral-cut ham to "regular" ham. We've been doing spiral-cut at Easter for years, and the first year we did it, they all commented about how much they preferred it. My husband has three brothers, and we split leftovers after such family gatherings, so my MIL will not be saddled with more than 1/5 of the ham (realistically, she'll be left with much less because the families with teenage kids tend to take the bulk of leftovers, which is fine by all of us).

I told her that we had already bought the spiral-cut ham, which is true (we pre-paid the butcher and will pick it up on Saturday), and she said that she would just get a "regular ham" from Sam's Club to have on Easter and that we could keep the spiral-cut ham at our house.

I texted all the siblings and their SOs separately from the family group chat about this, and they all gave some answer like, "Just bring the spiral-cut ham and mom can deal." I posted in the family group chat that we'd be bringing ham and a salad, after my MIL asked for a list of what everyone was contributing, and she posted, "I have the ham covered." Some of my BILs and SILs posted that they want spiral-cut ham, but a couple of them have been siding with MIL and saying that I should just back off because we'll be at her house. I told them separately that I'm willing to host if MIL refuses to serve the ham I bring, and they told me that I should not be pushing this has hard as I am.

My position is that we already paid for the ham, everyone likes the ham except MIL, and it's silly to buy two hams for one holiday. I recognize that I am contributing to the silliness, though, so AITA?

Edit: This is coming up a bit in comments, so I want to clarify: BIL told us about his plumbing issues this morning. Within about an hour, MIL offered to host. The ham has been paid for since Ash Wednesday (~5 weeks ago). DH and I could just as easily host, but we didn't post on the family group chat quickly enough to take that off MIL's plate. She is on a fixed income, and my main concern is that she doesn't incur the cost of a ham when we already have one paid for, but I also do want to eat the more delicious type of ham.

[diary-of-a-recovering-party-girl]

"You look somehow sad." [24- 25.10.2023]

Proper university starting and I am back in my university mood. I swear I try to be nice and smiley and happy but I kind of can't keep that facade up on university anymore. I just know I won't make any long- lasting friends there and I feel like I have no energy to make an effort to be fun, when I don't get anything out of it, how stupid that may sound. At my old uni, I was kind of always in a bubbly mood, because I got along sooo well with my colleagues and we always laughed and had a good time together, so being bubbly just came easily. In a boring environment, I feel like I don't wanna exhaust myself trying to be in a good mood if it's not gonna lead anywhere.

Also, though, I was also just sad. Sad about what's going on in the world and mad at some of my friends for not replying me or putting in effort, mad at the whole world for being so hostile and violent and cold. Weltschmerz.

So, I went about my day as usual, forcing myself to pay attention instead of picking up my phone and succeeding partially, saying "hi" to my colleagues and avoiding any further contact after that.

In the second lecture, I sat next to B, did basic small talk and waited for the lecture to begin so I wouldn't have to do basic small talk anymore. Then B just said "You look somehow sad." He was absolutely right.

Instead of using this opportunity to open up, I literally said "I'm just tired, I didn't sleep too well last night, blah, blah, blah". Really weak of me. But I can't talk with these people who I know will never be more than acquainces to me. With them, I feel like I somehow have to put up the facade of happy, successful, perfect Holly all of the time. I feel like I'm in a competition with them automatically as soon as we are close to each other. I don't know if I should have tried to open up more.

On the way home, I decided I would have a cheat evening that day, because I was feeling so down. I went to the store and bought a few sweets and pastries, too much for one evening as always and fucked off to my room. I closed my social media apps and put all the food I wanted to eat in my room. I didn't want to talk or listen to anybody.

At home, I finished my two paintings. I am happy with the result as it's still one of the first times I'm drawing with acryl colors, but the pictures really aren't amazing. I only realized in the last 5% of drawing that I completely messed up the size of their faces. I posted them after some unprofessional editing on my phone.

The rest of the evening I spent rotting on my couch, stuffing myself with food well after I was full, watched random documentaries on my laptop while iterating between masturbating to porn on my phone, running small errands and scrolling reddit. Cheat days really always sound better than they actually are.

The next day, I met up with H and really, I had low motivation to see him again. I even thought about making this the last time I meet with him, because I just felt that because of the language barrier, it's so difficult to communicate with him and we don't really have a lot of common beyond that either. I felt like he was one of the people I kept stupidly meeting with out of politeness.

This sensation completely vanished as soon as I saw him. We went grocery shopping and started cooking while updating us on each other's lives. I felt once again so sorry for how much homophobia he has to endure at his school and everywhere. But, I also felt proud. Whenever I meet H, I have this sensation of progress, like he's never the same person I met the last time, he's always a bit wiser, better, more awake, more confident, cooler. Maybe because he's transitioning, he gives off that sensation.

Sometime before we ate in his really beautiful room, we talked about what is happening in the world, for just a brief moment. I told him that I don't wanna hear about any of it anymore in my life because I feel it's getting too much. And then we até and watched music videos on his TV and ate more and played cards and danced to Techno and started watching a drag show and for the first time since it happened, I felt like I could enjoy something with somebody in peace again. We were both worried about what's happening and we both felt bad about it, but we also knew we couldn't change anything and tried to enjoy our lives here. I felt truly okay with having a good time again for the first time. Because I wasn't deliberately pushing away any thought about it with force anymore, but I accepted it as part of his and my life reality now. We can still enjoy, even after we mourn.

[stillnotgoodformymentalhealth]

bruh I just read the most fucking intense reddit story possible I am so sad.

Text and link under cut if you wanna be sad too

I hate my special needs sister and I'm done hiding it

Original post by u/tomcThrowaway009373 in r/TrueOffMyChest

I hate my special needs sister and I'm done hiding it - August 13, 2022

When my younger sister was born, she almost died from hypoxia. She suffered severe brain damage, to the point where doctors doubted she would survive. She has survived to 16 years old now, however, she is about as close to brain dead as a living person can get. She cant move, she can't communicate, she can't eat or drink on her own. She has no control over her bowels so she has to wear diapers. She will never get better and she will never live a normal life.

Despite that, my mother has ruined our family hoping she will have a "miracle" and recover. My mother has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on my sister. Everything from wheelchairs to doctors visits. We had to live in a one bedroom apartment for 11 years because my mother spent all of the money she made on my sister. Nothing she bought made any difference. She will always be a drooling mess.

Since my mother believes she will get better, she made me treat her like she was a real sister. I lost all my friends growing up because my mom made me take her everywhere I went. If I told my mom that I was going to the park, she would say,

"Oh, a park, that sounds like something Jess would like, take her with you."

Not once did she stop to think about how absurd she sounded talking to her. One time, my mom took her to a movie theatre. They made it barely 30 minutes through the movie before staff kicked her out because my sister was making so much noise coughing and choking on her saliva.

Despite all this, I somewhat tolerated my sister, until a few hours ago. I mentioned to my mother that I had planned a date with a girl I met at work. My mom said,

"That sounds like fun, but Im having coffee with a friend from college, so can you take care off Jess while im gone?"

I told her that i couldnt because of my date, and suggested that she hire a babysitter. My mother then said that I should just take her with me.

And i just exploded. I told her how stupid she was for suggesting such a thing. Bring my severely disabled, crippled sister along with me on a date with a girl, because you are too lazy to hire a sitter? How crazy are you to think thats a good idea? Every moment of my life has been about Jess. Im not supposed to have a career or a family of my own because I need to take care of Jess when my mom dies. My mom even discouraged my from going to college because then I wouldnt be there to take care of her. I told her how much damage she has done to the family because of my sister. We struggled financially my entire life not because my mom is low income, but because she spent all our money on Jess. We drove a crappy 1996 subaru outback for years, and my mom "couldnt afford to buy a new car" but she had no problem shelling out thousands to see a specialist doctor who will say the same thing every other doctor has.

My sister is a glitch. Shes not supposes to be here. She will never live a normal life. Theres no reason she shouldnt be put in a home.

Im just so frustrated right now. Im thinking about cutting ties with her, and reconnecting with my father. My dad divorced her once he realised that the rest of his life was going to be taking care of jess. I cant fault him. My mom forbid me from contacting him, but hes not the bad guy here.

I hate my special needs sister and I'm done hiding it - August 13, 2022 UPDATE 8/13: Thank you all for your kind words. I realise now that my emotions should be placed towards my mother instead of my sister. As for everyone who says i should contact my father, that is my plan but hes not easy to reach. I havent spoken to him or seen him for a very long time and he lives across the country. I dont have any way to get his number or email address, so im looking through facebook and instagram to see if he may have an account i can message. I also dont have anyone on his side of the family who i can ask to get us in touch.

As for my living situation i am still living at home. I plan to stay for a while longer until i have saved enough to afford an apartment or enlist in the navy. I work part time while im in community college so im not making much. I hope i will have another update in the near future, and i hope things get better.

UPDATE - I hate my special needs sister and I'm done hiding it. - September 8, 2022

UPDATE - I hate my special needs sister and I'm done hiding it.

My mom is dead. I came home to a bunch of police cars around my home. My mom hung herself, and a neighbor saw her from the window. I didnt get a look at her and im glad i didnt. I dont think i could handle seeing anyone like that. She seemed stressed a couple days before but i didnt expect this. Right now plans are getting set to place Jess in a home. She will have around the clock care. Im not sure what stage of grief im at right now. I have a place to stay for a while, and im getting my finances in place. I miss my mom. She wasnt a good mom bit she was my mom.

I tried reaching out to my father through a family member on his side. To make a long story short, he basically said that he had moved on from us, and that he didnt want me intruding on his new family. Pretty much what i expected, but it still hurt to hear my dad say he wants to forget about me.

Im staying at a friends house right now. Im working and im doing school. Things are still rough but im pushing through. Thanks for all the well wishes.

Reminder - I am not the original poster.

[adobe-outdesign]

Watching half the fandom lick Scott’s boots after his reddit rely that said “oh yeah I supported trump and I also think the war on terror is real and I don’t regret it” is really cringe

Just gonna publish one long ask about this before moving on instead of 10 different ones:

First, the fact that people doxxed him and were sending him death threats is disgusting. The only people you should be doxxing are nazis, pedophiles, and serial killers.

But with that aside, the post isn't exactly encouraging. It's pretty hard to sit there saying that you're not homophic/racist/whatever when you're actively donating to parties that hurt those groups. "If you house foxes with chickens you'll soon be left with only foxes" and all that.

And it's one thing if he had voted for Trump's bitch ass without knowing these things (somehow), but he's not exactly apologizing for anything. It's fine if you thought he was the best candidate at the time for some godforsaken reason, but that doesn't change the fact that the person you were supporting actively hurts minorities and the queer community.

Plus the vague allusions to the war on terror and being pro-life (war on terror stuff usually being racist and pro-life harming women) aren't looking so hot.

With that said, it's probably a fool's errand to try to say he's all good or all bad; he's done bad things, but he's also done a lot of good things. Believe it or not, IRL people are multi-faceted and can have contradictory behavior, shocking I know.

In terms of whether or not it's okay to support FNAF still, that is (in my personal opinion) a personal decision that's up to you. The big thing is that FNAF doesn't reflect the author's viewpoints (like HP does with JK's bullshit transphobia for instance). And in all honestly, if you refuse to enjoy anything made by someone who's done something problematic you're not gonna be able to enjoy anything.

Likewise, you can also just enjoy FNAF without spending any money on it. Just keep in mind that some products made by other companies, like SB, have other people working on the games that aren't Scott.

For me, personally, I've mostly lost interest in FNAF over the years and am really just keeping an eye on it out of curiosity, and I haven't bought merch or anything for years, so it won't affect this blog much. I'll probably still answer asks about it and stuff, seeing as it's not really doing any harm, but do know that I don't support Scott's viewpoints in the slightest.

[kitsu-katsu]

On kiribaku becoming canon and their evidence:

So I posted this on reddit earlier, but wanted to have it here where more KRBK shippers are, since I just ended up compiling a lot more than I thought I would.

Fair warning: A pretty big text with a compilation of kiribaku moments ahead.

We would all love kiribaku being canon, and I think it's not as much of a longshot as some may lead you to believe.

Honestly, if one of them was a girl, this would most certainly be canon, like, just in the anime we have:

Them becoming friends slowly in the background, leaving us with good development between them that is so seamless it can hit you hard once you notice how close they've become if you hadn't noticed before.

Them arriving and leaving the pool together while walking in the sunset.

They support and compliment each other (both on personality and quirks, like come on).

Kirishima can just lean on Bakugou or side hug him all the time and Bakugou lets him with no problem, which considering who we're talking about is a pretty big thing.

Kirishima can seem even more agitated than Deku about Bakugou being taken, and Deku is the one who idolized him since childhood.

The whole "It has to be you" thing and the precious hand holding (including that little scene after the rescue, where Kiri tries to grab Baku's hand again).

Kirishima bought expensive night vision googles in case they were useful for the rescue even though they had Yaomomo with them (this boy goes through extremes just to ensure his boyfriend's best friend's safety)

Kirishima is officially the one Bakugou considers an equal, and considering his conflicting inferiority and superiority complexes (making him perpetually place people as above him or beneath him) is vital information.

Kirishima is esentially Bakugou's first real friend (as Deku was considered more of an incomprehensible nuisance and his childhood troop seemed more like his followers who just put him up on a pedestal and followed what he did).

Kirishima has jumped in front of danger for Bakugou's sake quite a bit of times (including a time in the movie).

Kirishima is a central piece in Bakugou's character development.

Bakugou was the one who told Kirishima he was strong and gave him his confidence back, reminding him of what he said at the start of their friendship.

Kirishima unlocked fucking UNBREAKABLE because of Bakugou's encouragement.

Going to extra stuff:

Bakugou's favourite hobbie is hiking, and we're shown he takes Kirishima with him sometimes, thing he doesn't seem to do with other characters.

The whole festival thing, with the narrator outright assuming Bakugou must have given his coat to a pretty girl who was cold, only for it to be revealed in another picture that he gave it to Kirishima because as usual, he didn't have a shirt on.

On the movie Bakugou could have taken anyone to I-Island and took Kirishima as his plus one. They share a room. Kirishima bought suits for both of them, with the most detailed one with white roses being for Bakugou, and they decide to go to the party together.

In a BNHA Smash connected directly to the movie, Midoriya notices the white roses in Bakugou's suit and notes that they mean deep respect and "I'm the one for you", which prompts Bakugou to send an explosion his way (not to Kirishima who gave him the suit, mind you), which makes the flowers turn red (from blood), after which Mineta appears to say that red roses mean "beautiful and passionate love".

They are usually seen together in merch stuff.

There's this tumblr post talking about japanese fan's reactions to one of Horikoshi's drawings which I find at least hilarious:

https://exbrodokills.tumblr.com/post/187710597637/here-it-is

There are discussions regarding Kirishima's character sheet and the translation of him liking "tough guys" (here's a podt by aitaikimochi explaining the meaning of the translation: https://www.google.com/amp/s/aitaikimochi.tumblr.com/post/171127708911/amp) where even translator such as aitaikimochi have gotten into, and they have mentioned that there's a japanese stereotype of a type of gay guy who is obsessed with "manly behaviour" and usually stay away from women, prefering tough guys instead, which is interesting to say the least.

Some of the light novel episodes which show more slice of life moment feature some good kiribaku moments, with a prominent one being this one wich details their study date (it seriously seems like fan fiction, not even kidding, and this is supposed to be sort of canon):

https://www.google.com/amp/s/aitaikimochi.tumblr.com/post/171236111166/amp

Also there's a chapter where Kirishima tells Fatgum about Bakugou being extremely happy, and another one where they are arm wrestling between classes and they cheer for one another heavily.

(Honesly, just go through aitaikimochi's whole kiribaku tag, there are some pretty interesting things there)

Here are some analysis on their possible coding, if you guys are interested:

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1dxO6Y0yK_wxOJDmRsBYvsVWKwsH7tKc92skxJ--R1m4/edit?usp=drivesdk

(Bakugou's one link can be found at the end of that one)

And in BNHA Smash, there are quite a lot of things, and we must not forget that the whole thing still gets approved by Horikoshi before being published, some of my favourite things are:

Kirishima inviting Bakugou to spend christmas together, with the translators noting christmas in Japan to be a romantic holiday in the same panel.

In one issue, Jirou falls for Kiri and him being oblivious just leaves her for Bakugou.

Once Bakugou becomes a shoujo boy after being his with a quirk and just involuntarily talks in flirt, and in one moment Kirishima outright flirts back.

Bakugou works his ass off to repay Kirishima for the night vision googles they used in the rescue.

Kirishima is literally described as the chicken soup for Bakugou's soul!

An interesting thing I found out is that in the chapter where all of 1A minus Bakugou turn into animals, one scene originally had Kirishima (as a dog) getting jealous of Kaminari and Midoriya petting Tsuyu (as a cat - yes I know, a cat) and giving all their attention to her, however, Horikoshi himself changed that scene, noting he didn't think their character relations worked well in that scene, and made it so that the one that ended up in smash contains Kirishima (as a dog) getting jealous because Todoroki (as a koala) has climbed up Bakugou's torso and won't let go. I saw this all in a tumblr post a few months ago, which showed the original scene in a book (I think it was in italian and was translates below) but I can't currently find the link, sorry, if someone finds it, It'd be appreciated if you could reblog with said link.

And in regards to meta stuff, the show already has some LGBT characters in it, with Magne and Tiger being trans and Toga being bisexual, so it's not as much of a lost cause to hope for this as it would initially seem.

(Please kirimina shippers, don't take offence because of this, it isn't my intention to insult your ship, I simply want to analize what has been given to us, so please try to take this lightly):

We should also take into consideration Krishima's first version in the sort of "beta" for the manga (where Midoriya was Yamikumo).

His character sheet mentions he's quite the delinquent and entered UA to impress a girl. Obviously his character evolved tremendously since then, but the girl was most probably intended to be Mina's equivalent. This was later changed to him liking "tough guys"/"hard liners" and his thing with Mina became more of an "I admired your bravery and heroic spirit when in middle school even if I hardly knew you", later seeing each other and establishing more of a little friendship. However, it hasn't really moved further from there, and Kirishima has already established much stronger bonds with our favourite exploding boy. All changes in characters are made for a reason, and Horikoshi clearly changed his mind on Kirishima's motives for wanting to be a hero and his relationship with Mina.

So yeah, all in all, this ship is great, it's precious, adorable, helps both characters grow, is balanced and has good chemistry. So even if after all these things they don't become officially canon, we still have so much canon material for them in the present I'd honestly still be happy, these dorks make me smile and melt my heart, so I hope they both have good endings.