#i boycott + I’m too broke anyway

[maggi-cube]

There’s just so much evil I’ve learned about today I don’t know how to hold it all

[neuronary]

IN LIEU OF THE STRIKES

(which i am technically participating in but also i hadn’t had a writing job in like eighteen months before this and i was planning on breaking for the entirety of my degree anyways)

currently neither unions are calling for a boycott but if this goes on long enough, production will start grinding to a halt. personally, i am hoping this lasts long enough to get the tech crews, directors, and animators/cg artists/effects people also striking, because i am really hoping that that will get more of these fields unionised too and really scare the bosses into doing what we want. this industry makes hundreds of billions of dollars a year and those profits go directly into the pockets of shareholders that don’t fucking deserve them.

the point being: now if ever is the time to start catching up on the old shit. by which i mean anything you missed when it came out.

so my contribution here is sharing my current watchlists and also giving some recommendations for my favourite films and tv shows.

without further ado,

FILMS - HORROR

FILMS - COMEDY

FILMS - DOCUMENTARY

(there are in fact many more films but i wanna also cover my tv watchlist plus recs for film and tv)

TV

if anyone has any more recs for film or tv based on my current watchlists please let me know! these don’t even cover everything but i don’t want this post to be megalong.

as for my own recs:

in terms of horror, i will always rec everything jordan peele. he is one of my favourite filmmakers of this century and he has yet to miss. although personally i would advise grabbing some friends and keeping the lights on for us. another favourite of mine is the original scream. i’m not so big on the sequels personally, but i’d advise giving them ago because many people love the entire franchise and i have heard excellent things about the one with jenna ortega. thoroughbreds is technically a thriller but my god was it one of the most underrated and gripping films i’ve seen in years. 5/5 stars. check it out.

in terms of comedy, i will never not recommend pride (2014) it is a heartwarming film about solidarity between different marginalised communities, based on a real organisation of queer people that raised money for the striking miners in the uk in 1984. it was also my gay awakening in more ways than one and despite the somewhat bittersweet ending gave me a lot of hope for my future. i also highly recommend my cousin vinny which not only has marisa tomei giving the greatest comedic performance i’ve ever seen (which she deserved best actress for, by the way, she carried that fucking film) but also amazingly accurate legal dialogue. another favourite of mine is the spy who dumped me which has me actual pissing myself every time i watch it. also, the first kingsman film is a masterclass in successful parody and cinematic proof that the only good parodies are made by the lovers of a genre, not the haters.

in terms of documentary, now is a great time to revisit david attenborough’s work (we stan that man on this blog i won’t hear a word against him) and be reminded of what exactly it is that our conservationists are trying to save. particularly a life on this planet is a fascinating documentary about his own journey and beautifully scored. the elephant whisperers won best short doc at the oscars this year for a reason. although i have my issues with my octopus teacher’s philosophy in certain places, it is still one of the most incredible documentaries i’ve ever seen. lewis capaldi: how i’m feeling now is not what you think but is definitely worth a watch. (also mandatory watching for any american that calls shrek’s accent scottish.) chasing coral on netflix is something i rewatch whenever i need reminding of why i’m doing what i’m doing.

finally in terms of tv, this is my daily reminder to everyone to subscribe to dropout it is well worth the money and for today what i actually want to recommend is total forgiveness which legitimately broke me as a person and is also one of the most candid and grounded depictions of the impact of student debt i have ever seen. i would also, however, like to put some people on some limited series/complete tv shows that absolutely fuck. firstly, maid came into my life at the worst time possible and sent me into multiple meltdowns and panic attacks but remains one of my top tv shows of the year. the last of us is actually worth the hype, as much as it frustrates my science brain. la revolution is the best thing to come out of france since pain aux abricots but also comes with about four hundred content warnings so check yourself before you wreck yourself with that one. alien worlds is not quite what i’d consider a documentary but is one of the most creative things i’ve ever watched and a really accessible show about ecology and exobiology, which i love. russian doll is a show that tore me into pieces and stitched me back together again laughing and crying the whole way. don’t do yourself the disservice of not watching it. the ethos of the good place is too good not to put on here. yes it’s been memed to hell and back but it’s genuinely one of the greatest tv shows of the century so far and found and carried such a fundamentally good message that i rewatch at least once every couple years.

anyways, please include your own recs in the notes, yell about tv/films you love and show some appreciation for the people that brought them into existence. also note that they don’t have to be considered ‘great works’, i am just a wanker when it comes to this stuff. i want all your recs, good and ‘bad’.

[byers7wheeler]

Firstly I really, truly need you to understand you’re not a bad person for still enjoying the show and I am so sorry you’ve been made to feel that way.

I’m going to try and lay things out in a way that’s easy to understand:

Boycott - It can’t be boycott. ST is already getting made. Everyone is already getting paid. Nothing is stopping season 5’s release. People are being dramatic as hell and all you really can do to assist is cancel your Netflix subscription and not interact with posts on official pages (but absolutely post clips or screenshots etc same as usual for your own pages and enjoy them that way! For official accs it’s interaction levels people want to target)

You can also not buy merch, however if you receive merch as gifts from those who know that you like ST you are not a bad person for loving and keeping them!!! It’s not your money! I have to say that because I have seen others believe that, which is ridiculous. No logic to that.

“But then again there’s a literal genocide going on.” - Darling, it’s okay! It’s great that you show so much empathy, but there’s really only so much you can do. This specific situation is so dire, even things like donations as one normally would do to help have been discouraged because it’s not making it to the actual people! There’s a reason we sometimes feel helpless about it okay? You spread awareness when you feel you can, you go to protests if safe in your city, you write to any officials in your govt if safe to, you avoid giving to any brands you’re financially able to not support, and that’s kind of all right now. Recognizing your privilege in being able to step away when it feels mentally heavy is good too, but you’re still allowed to take a breather for a few days if needed. Nothing, absolutely nothing to do with your favorite show and your enjoyment of it.

The main thing:

A fandom is merely an extension of its source material, that is all fic writers, fan artists, video editors etc are doing. It is all fictional and removed from the streaming service. Nobody here is a marketing team - we all have SO much smaller influence than people think; we are not influencers, we are not promoters or journalists or review critics. Posting to your fandom feed does nothing. Posting to your personal Insta story about a new trailer? yeah that’s more promoting than sharing hype in a fandom space is.

If others can’t separate characters from actors, or are still at an immature stage where seeing someone’s face is enough to ruin their whole day and feel the need to change a character’s appearance because of it, or are unable to regulate themselves and step away and come back after cooling down instead of saying a million unnecessary things in the heat of the moment - that’s not my problem. It’s not your problem. They will try and make you think it’s your problem, what they’re saying and doing is truly morally correct (can’t be, they lack nuance in everything), that because they’re right you have to do exactly what they do - but you don’t. You can’t shut down a fandom and you shouldn’t. They can go away if they can’t separate things (and thankfully most are going away 🙏).

Nobody is pathetic or an asshole for still enjoying the show and everyone should keep an eye on the types of people who say things like that to guilt you (usually a fellow minor, mean spirited and often gets in random fights anyway, stans celebrities and isn’t used to a fandom where it’s understood fictional characters are not real people.).

Another big thing - it’s understandable to want opinions or talk things out with others, but I so discourage listening to anyone who tries to help but does so in a mean way (your gut will tell you). I say this because I saw you say the pressure of others is getting to you. Again I’m sorry, because that pressure is affecting so many people and it’s so good you broke free from that and asked instead of following blindly. So many of those people especially on tiktok will be minors and while they may know information, they don’t have a lot of experience and context to put it into and it’s all very surface level and performative. Not all of them, but definitely the one’s going for people’s throats. You’re 21 - find better sources and don’t listen to them. Step away from tiktok for a bit if you have to.

You’re not a shitty person. You’re not a shitty person. I hope you keep enjoying the show and when a wave of hate comes once filming starts or trailers drop I hope you stay strong! Try and find some people (preferably other mature adults) on tumblr or something to lean on! All love to you.

Omg anon you’re actually so fucking nice and sweet, I won’t even respond to all this I’ll respond more to your second one

[amandaoftherosemire]

Thoughts on Thor: Love and Thunder

Finally got around to Thor: Love and Thunder and I have some notes. As did a lot of people it seems because this feels like a movie made by committee. The tone is all over the place, making it feel like someone insisted on taking two stories that do not mesh and trying to weave them together anyway.

I thought I was in for another technicolor fever dream from infamous madman Taika Waititi. I was, but that dream was bolted to an extremely dark story about the loss of faith in the face of death. As someone who likes BOTH Ragnarok and Dark World, if this was gonna work, it would have worked on me.

I don’t even know how to rate this one. There were things I genuinely liked, even loved. Thor, as always, is a ray of adorable sunshine. I loved the Jane as Thor plot line, for the most part. *sniff* Valkyrie is wonderful, of course, as is Korg. And I didn’t hate Christian Bale or the darker plot line; I just didn’t like it in this movie. The rest of the film is so jokey and silly, but the stakes of the conflict are insanely high, as are the consequences. There are many things to love. The problem is they don’t all go together.

And then there were the things that I genuinely hated.

So I HATE Russell Crowe. I do not have a good reason. There is simply something about his face, voice, and demeanor that brings forth a rush of anger, aggression, and the overwhelming urge to punch him in the face as hard as I can. I cannot explain it, but I have felt this way since I saw him in L.A. Confidential many, many years ago. Since then, I have learned that there is a German word for this impression of someone; backpfeifengesicht, or a face that is crying out for a fist in it. For me, Russell Crowe’s face is BEGGING me to destroy it with bare knuckles. 🤷🏻‍♀️

I spent all of L.A. Confidential distracted by the hostility I couldn’t help but feel toward this actor I’d never seen before. I don’t remember anything that happened in that movie because of the adrenaline pumping through my body in anticipation of a brawl. I have not watched a movie with Russell Crowe in it since L.A. Confidential, in more years than I’m going to admit. I had an epic streak going, but I broke it for Taika. Pfft.

I am not pleased that the movie for which I finally made an exception to the Russell Crowe boycott was as disappointing as Thor: Love and Thunder. And oh so many years later, listening to Russell Crowe do what sounded to me like a stereotypically offensive Italian accent for a Greek god and wasting my time in a largely meaningless plot cul-de-sac, I still want to punch him in the face as hard as I can.

⭐️⭐️ Too much (more than zero) Russell Crowe. Cannot recommend.

[koko-bopp]

Exposé

min yoongi x jeon jungkook x male!reader

word count – 4K

genre – Angst, fluff

warning(s) – argument scene, mentions of homophobia and racism,

synopsis – An incident happened where your boyfriends had had an interview on national television, and one of them publicized your relationship with then. You're the manager of Bangtan, so your concern fell on your job, your relationship, and your life, but also what it meant for the jobs, lives and relationship of your boyfriends.

A/N – for @thatcucumberwhore :))

"Are you guys fucking kidding me?"

Jungkook accidently jumped at the tone of your voice, though Yoongi seemed less surprised. You'd come in practically throwing down the door of you and your boyfriends' apartment, and that being said, you weren't surprised that Jungkook jolted at the noise, it was unlike you.

"Hyung, er–" Jungkook tried his best to speak up, but was cut off quite quickly.

"I'll get to you later," You snapped, and your attention was fixed on Yoongi. He stayed silent, which is a habit that seems to occur whenever he was nervous, but you were fuming, barely thinking about what your boyfriends' might be thinking. "What the fuck, Yoongi. What the actual fuck, you can't just announce shit without–"

"I did," Yoongi argued, standing up from the couch, looking up at you in anger, "And frankly, so did Jungkook, and you knew damn fucking well it was gonna happen anyway."

"You didn't fucking consult me, Yoongi," You grinded your teeth down, doing your best not to react irrationally, "You can't just make decisions because you feel like it, that fucking stunt could've cost us our job!"

Yoongi had no trouble talking back, "Well, it didn't."

Jungkook went in the middle of you two, clearly anxious and panicking, not knowing how to properly resolve the argument. "Guys, please can we just–"

"No," You snapped, slapping away Jungkook's hand before glaring at him. Honestly, you were so insulted by Yoongi's recklessness, and especially because you're the manager of Bangtan, you had no idea what this meant for your career, but not only yours, Yoongi's and Jungkook's too, "You do understand that our boyfriend just outed us on live television, right? South Korean. Television. Where marital relationships like ours aren't recognised by law."

Yoongi grapped your wrist, forcing you to look at him, "How long were you expecting us to keep this a secret?"

"As long as it kept us safe," You spat.

"Even if it was taking a toll on our mental health?" Yoongi said, almost too calmly, "Not everyone can keep themselves sane enough when it comes to this shit, [Y/N]."

You frowned and just stared at Yoongi.

"Mind you, your job is to look after us as well," Yoongi added.

"That requires you to fucking talk to me, Suga," The anger became evident, especially for Jungkook, because you only call Yoongi by his stage name in a professional setting, never outside of it, "Not snake around and leave things up to you."

You ripped Yoongi's grip on your wrist, taking one last glance at Jungkook before getting your jacket from the hanger.

Clearly, staying in the apartment wouldn't do your anger any good, leaving before the water begins to tip was probably the best option. You didn't look at your boyfriends', just spoke, "I'm staying at Jin's. Don't call me."

✨

"You might as well change your Facebook status to 'complicated', and start feeding my cat, bro," Jin said from the kitchen, "You've been living on my couch for four days. Four days. I don't see why you can't just talk to them."

"I don't know..." You huffed, "Bro I deleted all my social media, and I haven't even opened the television for the last few days...I've yet to cop it from PD, though. God knows what he's thinking."

"Yeah, and no offence, you and your whole, 'Im gonna pretend I'm not bothered by acting so overly professional in the workplace with my boyfriends' isn't proof that you're unbothered. It's proof that this is effecting you," Jin walked into the living room, who beers in hand as he did. He tried handing you one, though you rejected the offer, wanting to remain sober while you're still upset.

Your bestfriend, after your boyfriends, is the eldest member of Bangtan. Partly because you two are the same age, you being just a bit older than Jin, but despite that, you two understood each other well. Also, another reason that your relationship with him is so good is because it's the best entertainment to be around Kim Seokjin, the sarcasm is inevitable.

"Look, I get what Yoongs was thinking, but I also get they you may not have been ready, but I also think you just shouldn't give a shit about what people have to say about you," Jin placed his input, sitting down on the couch near you, throwing a leg over the other, taking a swift sip of the beer. "And that's coming from singer that racists and homophobes hate, those fucks on twitter are the worst."

You laughed at his reasoning, your eyes fixed on the loose string on the knee of your jeans. They're ripped jeans, they're supposed to be there, but it bothered you. "I'm still mad that they didn't ask me about it first.."

"No, that's fair. You feel lied to, I get that," Jin responded, "But, people make mistakes."

You scoffed, "Not like this, I don't put people's lives on the line," You shook your head, running your thumb on the bottom of your lip for a second, "This is Seoul, it's super hard to get a job, it's worse if you're not straight, even worse if you're not pale."

"Yeah," Jin agreed, "But in your case. What radical fan is gonna let Jungkook and Yoongi leave– no– get kicked out of BTS? You know how fucking mad people would be? ARMY would literally boycott BigHit. But let's say it's you who needs to leave, those two would quit their jobs in a fucking heartbeat, people would still be mad at BigHit, and more accepting companies would do anything to have those two in their company."

You smirked in amusement. It sounded true, those two are the biases of a lot of fans, people would pissed.

"And to add onto that," Jin continued, "Bangtan would be mad. You think any of us would put our jobs over our bestfriends' happiness? No fucking way. We're wanted eveywhere, it would take an email and two phone calls to get us a job somewhere else."

You smiled at that, but you remained silent, it was always nice talking to Jin. He was always honest. You lifted your head up to look at your best friend, a little hesitant to give a response, "Do you... Do you think I should..."

"You still got it?"

"Both of them. Always."

"Yeah. They still love you, I wasn't gonna tell you, but I'm pretty sure Yoongi was crying about it."

You stood up from your seat immediately, throwing a pillow at Jin, "You bafoon! You didn't think to fucking tell me?!"

"Ow! I still have a beer!" Jin defended in a protective, half-ninja pose to protect himself from more pillows, stretch his hand to keep his beer alive and unspilt on his leather couch. "Just remember that they need to apologize too, it's not all your fault. Go and see your mans'."

You didn't waste another moment. You throw your jacket over your shoulder and quickly grabbed the keys to your car, slipping on your shoes and racing to get into your car.

The apartment, thankfully, wasn't far, and you know the city of Seoul like the back of your hand so getting there wasn't an issue, it was more about emotionally preparing yourself.

It wasn't as if you thought about what you were gonna say, but hearing that one of your boyfriends who are always so strong broke down crying wasn't a 'think-first-act-later' moment. Jungkook, god, and Jungkook, you'd yet to figure out how he's been handling everything, but you know for Yoongi's sake, he'd try to be staying as strong for him as possible.

You'd gotten three texts from Jungkook in the last four days. One apology, a sticker, and an 'i love you', but your stubborn trait got the best of you. Now having a silent moment, you wish you'd responded.

"Hyung..?"

You didn't know what to say, but you were standing at the door of your apartment with Jungkook in front of you.

You could tell he was hoping for this, he just didn't know when.

He threw his arms around your shoulders, catching you off guard, but as soon as you'd regained your senses, you returned the embrace just as tight as he'd given it. He had his face buried into your shoulder, one hand in your hair trying to remember the feel he thought he'd forgotten, "I thought you were leaving us..." He whispered, holding back a sob.

"Jungkook, I'm so so sorry, I overreacted. I was being a jerk and–" You spewed, but was interrupted when your boyfriend shook his head.

"No, no– I'm sorry too, I thought we were doing the right thing and–" He accidently sniffled, a tear falling down his cheek, "–Ah, fuck... Jagi, I'm just so glad you're back."

You kissed Jungkook's cheek from where he was, bringing your hand up to cradle his head lovingly.

You'd do anything for Jungkook, hes your boyfriend and you love him so much.

You continued to embrace Jungkook, before speaking in a small whisper, "... Kookie, baby... Is Yoongs okay?"

Jungkook pulled away from the embrace slightly, but your hands were still on his waist. The younger wipes the tear stain on his cheek first, "He's had better days... A lot of better days."

"How bad?"

"Remember when Namjoon-hyung and him fought that one time?"

"Oh no."

"Yeah.. But this time it's more heartbreak than anger. I think you'll be fine."

You kissed Jungkook one more time, smiling at hin before hesitantly letting go to head towards Yoongi's room.

You made it three quarters of the way there, then saw the 'go away' mat in front of his door with the cat flipping the finger. It made you chuckle, knowing that then Yoongi had bought it despite the fact that nobody is allowed to walk into the house without socks.

Yoongi does things because something tells him it's the right thing to do. He doesn't act then think, he'll probably think for years and the finally act.

"Jagi..." You knocked gently on your boyfriend's door, "Yoon. It's me... Please open–"

Your request was filled before it was finished, the door swang open to reveal a rather teary Min Yoongi, and your heart didn't handle it well. But you probably didn't notice it well enough, because he threw his arms around your neck almost immediately after. He begun sobbing into your collar with his hands gripping the back of your shirt like you'd run away if he let go. He spoke through tears, "[Y/N], I'm so sorry, I didn't think about how you'd feel and," He sobbed, "But please, p-please don't leave again. I thought–"

"Shhh, baby, breathe for me," You said softly, kissing his forehead as a way to comfort him, before pulling away to look at your boyfriend, holding both of his hands in yours, "Yoongs, it's okay, I'm sorry too, and I know this is something we can work around because I love both of you so so much."

You motioned for Jungkook to come too, watching him walk over then holding his hands too.

It took only a second to exhale, but it seemed too long, "I love you two more than anything in this world. You're more important to me than my job, than my pet–"

Jungkook gasped, "Don't say that! Fluff is a beautiful pet!"

You laughed, and Yoongi didn't stop himself from giggling, but you continued, "Regardless, you two are the best thing that's ever happened to me, that I get to see your faces in the morning is a blessing enough." Jungkook was getting teary and Yoongi was holding back tears as much as he could, but you continued, "You're my heaven on earth. I want to be able to spend the rest of my life with you too."

You for down on one knee, Jungkook's eyes going wide and Yoongi's jaw unhinged to its full capacity. You pulled out the velvet box containing two identical rings, opening it carefully to reveal them.

"Min Yoongi and Jeon Jungkook. Will you steal my last name?"

[marvelmadam08]

Baby Blues 1/?

Summary: Chris and Alex have just brought a bubbly baby boy into the world. Now they have to face the most challenging year of their lives.

Chris Evans x Black Reader, OFC!Alex

Warnings: Childbirth, mentions of death (No actual death), anxiety, swearing, Chris as a new dad FLUFF!

A/N: More of a prologue than anything.

~~~~~~~

“Come on, you got this! Just one more!” Chris encouraged

“I can’t!” Alex cried, she knew it was an ugly cry too. She was covered in sweat, muscles she didn’t know she had ached, and she had used every swear word in the book, including a few Romanian ones she learned from Sebastian “I’m fucking tired. I can’t do it anymore.”

“Yes you can baby girl.” He rubbed down Alex’s back “You’re almost there. You’re doing great.”

Two years of dating, two more of marriage and trying to a baby, nine long months of pregnancy and ten longer hours of labor and Alex and Chris were just a strong push away from meeting their son. 

Alex clutched down on Chris’s hand, and took in a huge breath before she pushed again. 

“It’s a boy!” The doctor cheered

Chris looked over to see the wailing newborn and broke out in a smile so wide his cheeks hurt.

“He’s beautiful Al.” he kissed her on top of her head “You did it.”

“Is he okay?” Alex panted 

“He’s perfect.”

“Would you like to cut the cord, Papa?” the nurse asked Chris while handing him a pair of umbilical cord scissors

“Yeah, yeah.” Chris wiped his tears away with the back of his hand before carefully cutting the cord. Once the baby was whisked away to be cleaned, Chris was back to kissing and praising his wife “You were amazing.”

“Yeah?”

“Absolutely, he’s beautiful, you’re beautiful.”

“I’m a sweaty mess.”

“So I’ll run around the block a few times, we’ll both be sweaty.”

“Congratulations.” the first nurse returned and lowered the fussing bundle into Alex’s arms

“Oh Chris, look at him.” Alex cooed, the baby began to settle a bit, only fussing when exposed to the cold air of the hospital room “Hi sweetie, I’m your momma. He’s just the most beautiful baby ever.”

“He looks like his mom.” Chris slid on the bed next to her

“Oh please, he looks like you. I don’t know why you’re so against naming him after you, a little Christopher Jamal Evans.”

Chris laughed “I think he looks more like a Levi.”

“We can’t name him after jeans.” Alex pouts 

A simple but complicated decision, Alex and Chris went back and forth between names for the last two months. Nothing sounded right to Alex, except for Christopher Evans Jr., and Chris wanted to give the baby his own, independent, name. Or whenever they did come up with a name, the initials would spell something out like “PEE”, “DIE” or “ICE” Now that their baby was here, the choice was even harder than before.

“Benjamin?” Chris tried

“No, Cooper?” Alex scrunched her nose

“Cooper the pooper?” 

“Yeah, that doesn’t work either.” Alex sighed “What is your name baby boy?”

Chris watched Alex gently whisper and rock the newborn “How about Alexander?”

“You wanna name him after me?”

“Yeah, why not?” He suggested “You did most of the work anyways.”

She paused “Alexander... Christopher Evans.” The newborn fussed loudly, Alex smiled “I think he likes it.”

“Okay then,” Chris happily agreed “Alexander Christopher Evans, it is.”

“Great name.” The nurse jotted it down “Oh how cute, his initials spell out Ace.”

Chris and Alex laughed as quietly as possible to keep from disturbing the sleeping newborn.

“It’s better than ‘PEE’.” Alex shifted him gently in her arms “You’re turn to hold him.”

Chris cradled his son close to his chest, tears threatening to fall over again. Alex laid back against her pillow and listen to Chris hum ‘Return to Pooh Corner’, a sleepy smile on her face.

“You’re a Dad now, Chris.”

“And you’re a Mom.” He smiled back at her “Get some rest, we’ll be fine.”

Alex didn’t have to be told twice, once she was comfortable enough sleep over took her, but only for about thirty minutes until she had to feed. Chris stepped out to wake up everyone in his contact list and tell them how Alex and the baby were doing.

“My Mom is gonna come by first thing in the morning.” He whispered “And your parents send their love. They’re already demanding pictures and even said they’ll sign a NDA if it makes us happy.”

The two of them had agreed not to post any baby pics until later on. The two of them weren’t comfortable with letting online trolls give their unwanted opinions on their baby. Especially not after they first came out as a couple. Most comments came from vengeful (alleged) Marvel fans that threatened to boycott Chris’ movies if he didn’t break up with Alex. Others came from Alex’s (former) fans that claimed she didn’t belong to the Black community anymore since she was dating Chris. The last thing they needed were those same hateful, comments under any pictures of their son.

“They can get all the pictures they want.” Alex softly stroked the small hairs on her son’s head

“How are you feeling?” Chris asked 

Alex sighed “Happy- and a little nervous. He’s so small, and fragile. Is it wrong that I wanna stick him in a protective bubble?”

“Of course not baby girl. I feel the same way.” Chris watched in adoration while his wife rocked their son back to sleep. He couldn’t help the small, negative thoughts that popped into his head.

When Alex first told him that she was pregnant his first negative thought was “What if there’s a miscarriage?”. Even with numerous doctor appointments, research and reassurance from his both his wife and therapist, Chris wasn’t able to shake off that fear until seeing his son in the doctor’s arms. But now he was terrified of doing something wrong. “What if he stops breathing at night?” “What if he’s allergic to the baby food we give him and we don’t catch it?” “Am I gonna accidentally drop him? Forget him the backseat of the car on a hot day?” “What if he gets kidnapped?” Chris couldn’t stop the run away train of disasters in his brain.

Alex touched the crease forming on her husband’s brow.

“What’s wrong?”

“Do you think we’re ready for this? Being parents?”

“A bit late to ask that question don’t you think?” Alex hoped her joke would ease Chris’s anxiety “When my mom had me, she relied on her instinct. Then she had my brother, and relied on prior experience. When my brother and his wife had their first kid they relied on the books. And even now, they go on about how much they were blindsided by everything within the first year alone.”

She caressed Chris’s cheek with her free hand. “We got this.”

A soft smile cleared away the frown lines on Chris’s face. The amount of love he had for his wife at this moment couldn’t be put into words. Her ability to find the silver lining in every situation was just one of the reasons Chris fell in love with her in the first place. They pulled each other out of their dark places, comforting each other and erasing any sign of doubt they might’ve had about anything.

He leaned over to give her a soft kiss on the lips “I love you.”

“I love you too.” Alex turned to their, now awake, son. He stared at them with soft brown eyes, his tiny eyebrows scrunched up “And I love you.”

“We both love you, Ace.” Chris tickled his son’s exposed foot

“Ace.” Alex tried out the nickname “Oh no.”

“What?”

“’Ace is the place with the helpful hardware folks’.” she half sang the jingle and giggled

[towerfandoms]

I don't feel forced to anything because i like to know about your day and how you're doing u.u my weekend is gonna be pretty chill i think 😌😌 got nothing planned and tbh i don't feel like doing nothing 😅 and you're right!! there's no such thing as having too many notebooks! and cute pens!! and cute stationery ( is this how its written??? i have no idea lol) anyway i love buying cute stuff jdksiwhsh I'm glad you have more time to do the homework because maths 🤢💔 good luck!!-🌸

doing nothing is amazing. I wish I had time to do nothing 🤧🤧🤧🤧 and man I’m acc gonna go broke with the amount I spend on stationary. but it’s ok it’s all for a good cause. English is a silly language don’t even worry about spelling. just write whatever you feel cuz let’s just boycott spelling. I put beads in my hair and now I feel so cool and powerful so I would 10/10 recommend doing that. did you do anything fun today ? 😝🥰

[heythere-emberhere]

I’m in Love with a Girl I Hate - Riverdale

Summary: Y/n and Sweet Pea don’t get along, and the whole crew is about to find out why.

A/n: I just finished my first semester of grad school, and I’ve gotten an A on 2/3 of my classes this semester. So, here’s a little something to celebrate. I might turn this into a series?

WC: 4681

Y/n’s POV

Growing up on the Southside of Riverdale when you weren’t a serpent’s kid was a little strange. Even as a kid, you were aware of all the secrecy, all the things the other kids understood that you couldn’t. Being Toni’s cousin has its perks; though, and you weren’t completely out of the loop. When you were younger, in elementary school, your house was the go-to hang out spot because your parents were actually home to watch you and your friends. Even now, Toni and Fangs spent a ton of time at your place, especially on Tuesday nights when your dad made his famous taco bar spread, complete with beef and chicken, three types of cheese, sautéed veggies, and his homemade salsa and guacamole. Your mouth was already watering as you walked up to them both standing in front of Sweet Pea.

“Come on, man,” Fangs said to him. “Put your differences aside for one night and join us for dinner like you used to.”

“Fangs, I only ever went because my mom made me, and she’s not here to do that now. So, I’ll just see you at the Wyrm later.”

With that, Sweet Pea left, brushing your shoulder as he passed.

“Why do you even try anymore, Fangs?” you asked him. “Pea and I have never gotten along.”

“I don’t know why,” Fangs mumbled, opening his locker. “You two have more in common than you think.”

“That’s probably why.” Toni cut in. “Sweet Pea probably can’t stand that y/n can read him like a book.”

“Still,” Fangs said with a nod. “it would probably be good for him to have someone that understands him that well in his life.”

“Are you kidding me?” You asked. “We would drive each other insane.”

Toni and Fangs just looked at each other and smiled as you walked to your first class, English, in which you had a pop quiz. After class, Fangs followed you and Toni out of class, complaining.

“That pop quiz was so brutal,” he said as Sweet Pea fell into step next to him after leaving his class across the hall. “Like, how am I supposed to remember which of the main character’s family members wasn’t in the dream he had at the end of the first chapter?”

“His mom.” You and Sweet Pea answered at the same time.

“Okay. That was creepy,” Fangs said as you and Pea eyed one another.

“Glad to know I shouldn’t have a problem with that quiz when I have to take it later today.” Sweet Pea said stopping at his locker.

Toni and Fangs stopped on either side of him while you kept walking, leaving them with little more than a nod and a wave. Just before you were out of earshot, you overheard Sweet Pea warning Fangs about not asking him to join you for dinner at your house again, and you just shook your head. Fangs was right about you and Pea having some things in common, at least. You were both stubborn as hell, and you were pretty prideful too. That’s why, at the beginning of high school, when Sweet Pea had decided that he didn’t like you anymore, you never fought back. If he wasn’t going to give you the time of day, you weren’t going to give him any satisfaction by showing any emotion about it. After a while, it stopped hurting your ego anyway.

Sure, you and Sweet Pea both hung out with Fangs and Toni, and you interacted with each other when absolutely necessary, usually only to criticize one another, but you didn’t really know each other that well. That’s why you were so confused when he was waiting for you outside your class after the bell without Toni or Fangs flanking him. Honestly, you thought for a moment that he was waiting for someone else, but you were convinced otherwise when he reached out for your shoulder and turned you around as you walked past him.

“Hey, y/n, wait,” he said as you turned to face him.

“Oh? Do we actually talk to each other now?”

“Look, I’m just here to do you a favor,” Sweet Pea said, holding his hands up with his palms facing you.

“What could you possibly do for me?” you cut him off.

“If you would fucking let me finish a sentence for once, I could tell you,” he bit back.

You crossed your arms over your chest in response nodding at him to continue.

“Mantle said something at practice the other day about planning some big thing to ask you to the homecoming dance, and I know you hate shit like that. He’s in the rec room setting shit up now, so steer clear, I guess.”

“Oh, um, thanks, Sweet Pea,” you said rubbing the back of your neck. “That’s actually really nice.”

“Yeah. Whatever,” he said looking down at his feet.

You adjusted your back pack on your shoulder and headed straight for the rec room.

“Did you not listen to a thing I just said?” Sweet Pea called after you.

“I got this!” you shouted over your shoulder, not turning around to see him let out a huge sigh.

You marched into the rec room to see Reggie and some of his jock friends hanging a huge banner on the wall. You leaned on the doorframe and cleared your throat loudly, causing the boys to whip their heads around to look at you. Reggie tried to jump in front of the banner, barely even covering up your name.

“Y/n!” he shouted, “You’re supposed to be at lunch.”

“Yeah, I was going to go until someone told me that you were in here doing all this,” you said waving your hand at the banner.

“Who told you?”

“Doesn’t matter,” you said, walking fully into the rec room. “Look, Reggie, I really hate big displays like this.”

His face started to fall as you spoke, and his buddies let the end of the banner that hadn’t yet been taped to the wall slip.

“But,” you continued, “I would love to go to the homecoming dance with you.”

A smile spread across Reggie’s face, and you leaned against the back of the couch next to you. He closed the distance between the two of you, placing his hands on the back of the couch on either side of you. You could feel his breath on your cheeks as he leaned toward you.

“Really?” he asked.

You nodded, placing your right hand on his shoulder as you bit your lip before laying a soft kiss on his lips. Reggie smiled against your lips as he placed a hand on your hip and pulled you closer to him. You and Reggie had hooked up a few times at some parties, but you had never kissed each other sober let alone in a room full of his teammates. A couple of the guys let out hollers as he deepened the kiss and you grabbed at his hair with your fingers. From the doorway, you heard Toni let out an “aww” that caused you to pull away from Reggie. She stood leaning in the door way with Fangs and Sweet Pea behind her.

“Gross,” Sweet Pea said before turning and walking away toward the cafeteria.

You rolled your eyes at him as Toni and Fangs walked up to you. Fangs clapped Reggie on the shoulder and gave him a nod while Toni pulled you into a hug and squealed. You laughed as she gushed about how she was waiting for you and Reggie to get past the drunk hookup stage of your relationship. Reggie smiled and put his arm around your shoulder.

“I think we have enough time to dip and go to Pop’s for lunch since I don’t have to set up all this shit anymore,” Reggie said to you.

You nodded and waved at Fangs and Toni as you and Reggie walked out to the parking lot.

Sweet Pea’s POV

“Where’s y/n?” I asked as Toni and Fangs sat down at the lunch table.

“She and Reggie went to Pop’s instead,” Toni replied with a smile.

“He’s one lucky son of a bitch,” I said, causing Toni and Fangs to raise their eyebrows at me.

“Oh, yeah?” Fangs asked.

“I mean he’s lucky he got away with pulling something like that and y/n still saying she’d go to the dance with him. Don’t go imagining things that aren’t there, Fangs.”

“She would’ve said yes either way. They have been hooking up for a while now,” Toni said.

 “Really?”

“Yeah, you’d know that if you didn’t boycott every activity involving y/n,” Fangs snapped.

“Like you really want the two of us arguing at a party,” I scoffed. “I just wouldn’t have pegged Reggie as y/n’s type, to be honest.”

“And what would you think y/n’s type is, Sweet Pea?” Toni asked.

“Tall, dark, and Serpent perhaps?” Fangs added.

 I rolled my eyes and took a bite of my sandwich, shaking my head ‘no.

“Sure,” Toni said, “go ahead and avoid the question by stuffing your face.”

           Toni and Fangs spent the rest of lunch pushing the issue, suggesting that I had some sort of secret feelings for y/n.

           “Come on, Sweets,” Toni said, “Don’t you remember when we were like six and y/n broke her arm while we were climbing around the rocks by Sweet Water River?”

           “Yeah. She slipped on a rock. So what?”

           “So she didn’t shed a tear, and you cried the whole way to the hospital because, and I quote ‘My best friend’s arm is going to fall off,’” Fangs jumped in, whining as he mocked little Sweet Pea’s crying.

           “And,” Toni added, “You carried her teddy bear around her for over a month until she got her cast off.”

           “Then there was the time we had to act out ‘The Princess and the Frog’ in class, and you threw a full on fit because you thought you were going to have to kiss y/n,” Fangs said.

           “That doesn’t sound like it helps prove your point,” I said with a smirk.

           “You weren’t upset because you didn’t want to kiss her. You were upset because you wanted to save your first kiss with y/n until your wedding,” Toni reminded him.

           “That definitely sounds like a lie,” I said.

           “It’s not. You also punched Jimmy Smith in the gut in fourth grade because he told you y/n was too pretty for you.”

           “Because no one is ‘too pretty’ for me,” I spat placing air quotes around the words “too pretty.”

           “No one?” Fangs questioned.

           “Okay, maybe Heidi Klum,” I mumbled.

Toni and Fangs continued to list off every childhood memory they could think of to prove their point that I, at some point in life, had feelings for y/n. There were still fifteen minutes left of lunch by the time I got up and walked out of the cafeteria, having heard enough. I went to my locker and grabbed the books I needed to do my homework, deciding I was just going to skip the rest of the day. The front doors to the school flew open just as I was about to push them, and y/n and Reggie came through laughing and carrying milkshakes. I slid to the side to keep from running right into y/n and knocking her milkshake to the ground.

           “Oops. Sorry, Pea,” she said looking up at me and slipping through the door.

           The way she looked up at me through her bangs had me reliving each story Fangs and Toni had just brought up before I remembered one of my own. The one where y/n looked up at me in exactly the same way after both our names had been drawn to play Seven Minutes in Heaven during our first high school party. “I’m sorry, Sweets. I- I can’t,” she had whispered. I stood in the middle of the room with everyone staring at me as I watched her walk out the door. That was the last night I could remember us being friends. I pushed past her and Reggie with a wave of my hand and stormed through the parking lot toward my bike.

           “Did he look mad to you?” Reggie asked y/n.

           “Honestly, when does he not?” she asked.

Y/n’s POV

           You and Reggie walked into the rec room hand in hand and sat on the couch next to Fangs. Toni and Cheryl sat together on the chair next to the couch, looking at something on Cheryl’s phone and laughing.

           “Hey,” you said. “Did something happen at lunch? Sweet Pea looked kind of pissed when we passed him coming in from the parking lot.”

           Toni and Fangs looked at one another with wide eyes.

           “He left before free period? You don’t think we took it too far, do you?” Fangs asked Toni.

           “I mean, anything is possible,” Toni shrugged.

           “Took what too far?” Reggie asked, leaning forward and taking another sip of his milkshake.

           Toni and Fangs looked at you, then at each other, and back a few times before they started muttering and speaking over one another. You, Cheryl, and Reggie just exchanged confused glances as you tried to decipher what they were saying. It proved to be of little use because all you could here were a series of ums and wells between long, quick sentences run together so haphazardly that it sounded like they were speaking another language.

           “Wait,” Cheryl commanded. “Slow down and speak one at a time. TT, you start.”

           “Well, um, Fangs and I were just giving Sweet Pea a hard time at lunch is all.”

           “A hard time about what?” you asked, sighing and thinking you were pretty sure you already knew the answer.

           “We, um, well, we may or may not have listed all the reasons we think he has feelings for y/n,” Fangs confessed.

           Reggie choked on his milkshake and sat up straight with wide eyes. He continued to cough as you rubbed his back and shot Fangs a look.

           “Exactly how many reasons are there?” Reggie asked between coughs.

           “Well, we started with the time y/n broke her arm on the rocks by Sweet Water River,” Fangs said.

           “Dude! We were six,” you replied.

           “But he carried your teddy bear around for you for like a month!” Fangs defended, “Then we talked about the princess and the frog fiasco.”

           “The what fiasco?” Reggie asked, causing you to turn to him and place your hand on his knee as you explained.

           “I’m not exactly sure how they think that proves their point, though,” you said rolling your eyes.

           “Well, there’s another detail you don’t know about, y/n,” Toni mumbled.

           “Which would be?”

           Your cousin looked down at her hands and picked at her nails. You looked over at Fangs with an eyebrow raised, but he was avoiding eye contact with you too. Toni spoke up after you leaned back in your seat and crossed your arms over your chest,

           “The reason Sweet Pea was so upset about the thought of kissing you is because he wanted to save his first kiss with you until your wedding.”

           “What the hell, T?” you asked, unable to hold back your laughter as you spoke, “What does that prove? We were in the first grade! That’s the most ridiculous-”

           “Hold up,” Reggie cut in, “Sweet Pea said he was going to marry y/n?”

           “Reggie, we were in the first grade. Kids talk about that shit all the time like they even know what it means,” you shot back.

           “Sweet Pea?” he asked again.

           “Yeah,” Fangs said, “then he swore me and Toni to secrecy.”

           “I’m not saying Sweet Pea and I are close or anything. Really, we just play basketball together, but I know for a fact marriage is one thing the dude takes seriously.”

           “And how would you know that?” you asked.

           “Well, we have this tradition for initiating new team members where we get them really drunk and ask a bunch of super personal, embarrassing questions.”

           “If Pea was drunk, you can’t trust a word he said,” you, Toni, and Fangs said in unison.

           “That’s the thing,” Reggie continued, “Sweet Pea was the only new guy who wasn’t drunk. He told us all it should’ve been enough that he came to the initiation bull shit in the first place considering there was quote “no way in hell” it was tougher then his Serpent initiation had been.”

           “Sounds about right,” Fangs muttered.

           “Anyway, he about beat the shit out of Chad when he said the worst thing he ever did was propose to his girlfriend in front of all her friends as part of a prank. I’m talking slammed the dude against the wall and went straight for his neck while screaming about how that’s one thing a man should never joke about. When we finally pried Sweet Pea off him all he said was that playing with someone else’s emotions like that wasn’t cool, that it wasn’t okay to build up a person’s trust like that and then embarrass them in front of all their friends.”

           The room fell silent, and somehow you knew you were the only one who could break it.

           “I don’t think that has anything to do with me, though. Sweet Pea and I haven’t been friends for like two and a half years, way before we even came to Riverdale High,” you said. “And even if he did have a crush on me in the first grade, I don’t think he would’ve held onto that until now. Trust me, he hates me now.”

           “But do you hate him?” Cheryl asked.

           “That’s a good question,” Reggie said turning to you, “I know you pretty well, and from what I’m hearing, it sounds like you and Sweet Pea have a long history with each other.”

           “We grew up in the same place. My mom used to watch all the kids in the neighborhood.”

           “He’s right, y/n,” Toni said. “You’re not the kind of person to just give up on someone. It’s like one day you and Sweet Pea were super close, and the next, it was like you two barely knew each other.”

           “You’ll have to ask him about that. I just went along with it, I guess.”

           “Why?”

           “Well, because he was mad at me, and I didn’t know how to make him not be mad anymore,” you admitted.

           “Do you know why he was mad at you?”

           “No,” you said, thinking about the last time you really talked to Sweet Pea. There was a sense of guilt you weren’t quite able to place.

           “When did you stop being friends?” Reggie asked.

           “It was like the beginning of freshman year,” you said, “right after- Oh shit.”

           “Right after what?”

           “Right after our first high school party. Toni and Fangs couldn’t go, so I begged Sweet Pea to come with me, and I um, I kind of left him there.”

           Your voice started to trail off at the end of the sentence as you finally remembered exactly what had happened that night.

           “Wait. Shit. I remember that,” Fangs said. “He came to my house after you left. He was pissed.”

           “I’d be pissed too,” you admitted, “if my best friend left me at a party where I barely knew anyone because she was too afraid to tell me she had accidentally gotten really drunk.”

           “You accidentally got drunk?” Reggie asked.

           “Oh, shut up! It was my first party ever. I had no idea what I was doing, and I got drunk. Then, I got embarrassed about being drunk, and my anxiety made me feel like I was definitely going to puke, so I ran outside. Some junior girls outside said that the best way to avoid throwing up was to keep drinking, and I think I blacked out. God, I probably seemed like a total bitch the next day because I had no idea what happened.”

           You put your empty milkshake cup on the table in font of you and laid your head on your knees, wrapping you arms around it to try and hide from the room full of people who were looking at you. When you finally looked up again a couple minutes later, Fangs was biting at his nails.

           “Why are you doing that?” you asked him, knowing it was something he did only when he was really nervous or uncomfortable.

           “You still don’t have the whole story, y/n,” he said. “Sweet Pea came to me house fuming because you had ditched him right after Jessica pulled both your names to play Seven Minutes in Heaven.”

           Your face quickly turned bright red as the memory hit you like a ton of bricks.

           “Okay, now even I’m convinced that Sweet Pea has feelings for y/n,” Reggie said sadly, looking you in the eye, “The poor dude probably thought you left because you didn’t want to kiss him.”

           “That’s exactly what he thought,” a voice called from the doorway to the rec room.

It was Sweet Pea’s. Everyone slowly turned their head to look at him, all their cheeks blushing in either embarrassment or nervousness. You and Sweet Pea locked eyes over Reggie’s head, and your started to water. You were feeling a rush of guilt, embarrassment, apology, and pain. The mix of emotions bubbled up in your chest and started to push the air our of your throat. Legs shaking, you stood up and made your way across the room, stopping in front of Sweet Pea and looking up at him.

“I- I’m sorry, Sweets,” you whispered choking on your breath, “I can’t.”

Tears started pouring down your cheeks as your whole body started to jitter. You crossed your arms over your stomach as you started wheezing. The sound of your lungs struggling to suck in air in short bursts overwhelmed the room, and you suddenly realized that everyone was staring at you with concern. Without thinking, you bolted from the rec room, ran across the hall, and locked yourself in a dark, empty classroom. As you slid down with your back against the door and curled into yourself, you heard Toni call out, “Shit! She’s having an anxiety attack.”

The sounds of your friends shuffling across the hall covered the click of the second door to the classroom closing a few feet to your left after Sweet Pea had slipped inside. He waved them away through the window before sitting cross legged on the floor in front of you. Outside the door, Toni, Cheryl, Fangs, and Reggie walked back into the rec room. Once he sat back down on the couch, Reggie pulled out his phone to text Sweet Pea. The message read: Go for it. I won’t be mad.

Sweet Pea’s POV

My phone buzzed just as I took it out of my pocket. I glanced at a message from Reggie on the lit-up screen and rolled my eyes. I clicked the lock button and set it down beside me as I reached out for y/n. With a low chuckle, I tapped my knuckles on her shin as if I were knocking on a door. She pulled her feet toward her and folded her legs like mine, looking up at me and wiping her eyes. I scooted toward her and placed my hands on her knees; her body was still shaking.

“Shhh,” I whispered, “You have more of a reason to be mad at me than I do to be mad at you.”

“I’m such a,” she choked out, “such a bitch.”

“No, you’re not,” I whispered, shifting to sit next to her and pull her into my chest. “You didn’t know what happened, and instead of talking to you about it, I’ve spent the past two years being mad at you, being mean to you.”

“But I hurt you,” y/n cried into my chest, her shaking beginning to subside as I ran my hand up and down her arm and rocked us back and forth. “I was a shitty friend, and I hurt you. And I didn’t even know it.”

“You didn’t hurt me any more than I hurt myself by not saying anything,” I said honestly. “I’m sorry, y/n. I should’ve just talked to you instead of throwing our entire friendship away.”

“I would’ve done the same thing. Actually, I kind of did. I never talked to you either. I just assumed you hated me.”

“I’ve never hated you, y/n,” I said feeling a heat rise in my chest. If I could’ve stepped out of my body and kicked my own ass in that moment, I would have. “I was just-“

“Hurt?”

“Yeah, I was hurt, and I didn’t handle it well. I’m really sorry. Honestly, it’s probably the stupidest thing I’ve ever done, and that’s saying something because I shot an arrow through Toni’s tent last week just for shits and gigs.”

Y/n sat up and wiped her eyes as he laughed at me. I moved my arms from around her and folded my hands in my lap.

“I’m sorry too.”

“It’s fine. We can talk about it more later if you want, but I think you should go tell the rest of your friends that everything is ok.”

Y/n paused for a second and looked down at her hands.

“They’re still,” she whispered. “How did you?”

“You used to have anxiety attacks all the time when we were kids. If I could get you talking through it, they usually ended pretty fast.”

“I did? I don’t remember.”

“Yeah, you did,” I nodded. “Now go let everyone else know you’re good.”

I watched as y/n walked into the rec room, stopping in the middle of the hallway to wipe her eyes one last time. She walked quietly into the room and sat down next to Reggie, placing her head on his shoulder. His gaze snapped to me as I turned to leave.

“Where are you going?” he asked as the bell rang.

“It’s the end of free period,” I said, “I’m going home.”

“Why did you come back?”

“I forgot I was going to have a pop quiz in English today. I told Mr. Thomas I had a doctor’s appointment and asked if I could take it early and still get credit.”

“Why did you stop here?”

“I heard Fangs loud ass telling all my secrets and was gonna kick his ass,” I shrugged. “Timing, I guess.”

“Are you still gonna-” Fangs started, but Reggie interrupted him.

“Did you get my text?”

“Doesn’t matter, dude.”

“Yes, it does,” Reggie said, getting up off the couch next to y/n.

I started walking away, hoping Reggie would just leave it, but he jogged in front of me and cut me off before I could turn the corner. I could see everyone else spilling out of the rec room and weaving through the sea of students trying to get to their next class. Fangs craned his neck above the crowd, trying to focus in on the conversation Reggie and I were having.

“I told you I wouldn’t be mad,” Reggie said.

“I know,” I said, crossing my arms over my chest.

“So you did read my text.”

“Yeah, and?”

“And I’m serious, man.”

“Don’t worry about it,” I said right as the warning bell rang and the halls cleared out again, allowing Toni, Cheryl, Fangs, and y/n to come up behind Reggie.

When he looked over his shoulder at them, I took the opportunity to step out of his blockade and start heading for the door again.

“You and y/n clearly have feelings for one another, and I’m not going to be the one that gets in the way of that,” Reggie called after me.

“You already asked her to homecoming, bro. She likes you. Have fun,” I called back before walking out the front door of the school.

I heard running behind me as I approached my bike. Turning, ready to yell in Reggie’s face to back off, I locked eyes with a much smaller figure.

“You didn’t deny it,” y/n said, stepping toward me.

[tvcoroner]

What is your opinion on Supercorps shamelessly and blatantly telling their followers on both Tumblr and on Twitter to go and rate down the last episode on IMDB? They post and leave the link saying "make sure to show ur absolute disgust by rating this episode 1/10!" as well as linking the official promo from the account and saying "go dislike the promo". This is not exactly something new, they did the same thing literally last year, rating down the "LOLsen" eps (Karamel too) and pro-liking "SCs."

The writers, the producers, and the network don’t give a shit about that. Because the Supercorp fandom can’t ever stop whining, they made it clear to everyone involved as to why it’s happening.

This is going to hurt them more than help. I’ve always said that a big reason behind why they’re not making Supercorp happen is because of the fandom’s literal years of harassment and bullying. And their answer to that is more of the same? The people making the show aren’t stupid, they’re just going to look at that backlash, shrug their shoulders, and move on. It’s the same thing every time, what’s the point of responding to it?

When they did this stuff with “LOLsen” it didn’t achieve anything. That relationship wasn’t made to last, to begin with, it was always going to end. Of course, the more arrogant among them will believe they’re the reason James and Lena broke up, but the writers have shown time again that they don’t really care what the SC fandom thinks.

This is going to achieve only one thing, and that’s to reinforce the writer’s decision not to make Supercorp canon. Anyone with even half a brain knows this is the case, but the toxic SC shippers still do it anyway because it makes them feel good to drag other people down to their level.

I personally don’t mind being at that level because I get to point and laugh at them, but I’m glad the actors mostly stay above it.

In the interest of fairness, I’ll tell them right now exactly how to send a message and that’s to boycott the rest of the season. I’m not saying an episode or two, any weak-willed moron can last a couple of episodes, but the entire thing. Show consistent ratings drop that doesn’t fall within the margin of error and your message gets sent. You don’t need to say or do anything. You literally just do nothing.

Can they do that? I’d say it’s almost impossible, but I’ve learned not to count anyone out completely. It’s far more effective than throwing a temper tantrum online, which hasn’t EVER worked up to this point, or giving a 1 rating, which no one cares about because they know it has nothing to do with the quality of the episode and everything to do with a bunch of angry shippers.

Lower the viewers and you send a message. Up to this point, they have never once managed to impact that aspect of the show, not even a little bit. Even when they wanted to prove the show would get better ratings if they got what they wanted and encouraged people to watch Supercorp/Lena focused episodes, they’ve never actually done that successfully.

Maybe this is their time. Most likely, the following episodes won’t see any real difference, because as I said in another post, the general audience is MUCH bigger than the shipping fandoms combined and they don’t give a shit about the agenda-pushing.

[purplesurveys]

782

Your ten favorite movies

Movie number one: Two for the Road (surprise surprise) 1) Who's the main actor? Audrey Hepburn and Albert Finney. 2) When did it come out? Pretty long time ago. It came out in 1967 if I’m not mistaken. 3) What's the genre? Romantic comedy and drama. 4) Do you know where it was filmed at? Yeah, as far as I know the whole film was shot on location throughout southern France. 5) How old were you when you saw it? I don’t actually remember the exact year anymore, but it was either in 2013 or 2014, which makes me 15 or 16 when I watched it for the first time.

Movie number two: Good Will Hunting 1) Who's an actress in this movie? Minnie Driver, and she did such a fantastic fucking job with her role.

2) Out of 10 stars you'd give it? 9.5. The part where Robin Williams and the actor playing the math teacher handle their differences was a bit blah for me, but the film was otherwise perfect. 3) Did it have a surprise ending? I wouldn’t call it a surprise. It was a well-deserved ending for the main character and I’m sure everyone who’s ever watched this movie rooted for such an ending as well. 4) How long was it? Around two hours? idk I never checked. 5) Did you first see it in theatres? Hahahaha definitely not. It came out five months before I was born. Movie number three: A Clockwork Orange 1) What's this movie rated? Like, in terms of parental advice or its score? I’m not sure so I’ll put both. The film in all its unedited glory got an X rating which is real fucking understandable given that, in my opinion, this was Kubrick’s most intense work; though in my research just now they were able to tone it down to R after Kubrick edited out a certain scene. As for its score, it holds an 87% in Rotten Tomatoes and 8.3/10 on IMDb. 2) Did critics approve of it? Critics definitely approved of it as a piece of film, but I’m sure it was very uncomfortable for the viewing public. 3) Who were you with when you saw it? I watched it on my own. I didn’t know what it was gonna be about, so I was in for the shock of my life when Alex and his droogs broke into the first house. 4) Did this movie make you cry? No but it made me feel uneasy. 5) Who are five actors/actresses in this movie? I only remember Malcolm MacDowell, who played the lead character. I’m honestly not familiar with the other actors. Movie number four: Revolutionary Road 1) Is the main actor your favorite actor? One of them is - Kate Winslet. I’m alright with Leonardo DiCaprio but he isn’t my favorite. 2) Do you know how old he is? Kate Winslet? Not so sure, but I think she’s like 45. 3) Did this movie make you laugh? This movie is not to be laughed at lol 4) Last time you watched it? A few months ago before they took it out of Netflix forever, ugh. 5) Are you the appropiate age to see it by yourself? Yes. And I would rather watch it by myself, because it’s a lot to take in. Movie number five: Gone with the Wind 1) What made you mad about this movie? The racism that surrounded the film makes me angry. For example, the actress who played Mammy (Hattie McDaniel) was the first black actor to be nominated for an Oscar, but she wasn’t even allowed to attend the ceremony where she was nominated in. It took one Clark Gable throwing a fit and threatening to boycott the event for the higher-ups to finally agree on Hattie attending the Oscars. 2) Was it based on a true story? It was based on real historical events, but the story itself wasn’t real. 3) Do you wish it was real in any way? It kinda was. 4) So what's it about, anyways? This is really not one of those movies you can explain in one sentence lol but uh rich privileged southern belle gets entangled in the Civil War, marries thrice and never for love, everyone around her dies, and once she’s left alone we see her fend for herself and start building a life of her own. That doesn’t even do the movie justice and if you really wanna know, best to watch all four hours of it. 5) Did they make a video game out of this movie? OMG no, that would be in such poor taste. Movie number six: Room 1) Did this movie bore you at any time? Not at all. It had me invested from start to finish. 2) Was there a kiss scene? I don’t know, I don’t think so. 3) Who was the protagonist (main character)? Brie Larson plays the lead role, but I’ve forgotten her character’s name, or if she even had one. 4) Have you seen this movie more than once? Absolutely. This was my favorite film for a brief period and I watched it everyday then. 5) Last time you saw it? 2016, probably. Movie number seven: Roman Holiday 1) What is this movie's genre? Romantic comedy. 2) Are there any kid actors in this movie? Nopes. 3) Where did it all take place? A biiiiiiig chunk of the movie was shot on location in Rome.  4) Who was the biggest star in the movie? Gregory Peck. Swoon. Fun movie fact! This was Audrey Hepburn’s feature film debut, and originally the studio was to give her a much smaller billing at the start of the movie compared to Gregory. He had an inkling Audrey was gonna end up super popular once the film got released, so he told the studio to give her equal billing, which technically made her also the big star in the movie alongside Gregory. He wasn’t wrong. 5) What year did it come out? 1953. Movie number eight: Requiem For A Dream 1) Main actor and/or actress? Oh dude, a lot. This movie didn’t fuck around with its cast lol you had Jared Leto, Ellen Burstyn, Jennifer Connelly, and Marlon Wayans. 2) Is this a one-time only movie? I have no idea what you mean by this. 3) Is it a sequel to anything? Nopes. 4) How much money did it make? Bruh I don’t know lmao? I’ll have to Google that - Wikipedia says it made $7.4 million. 5) Favorite part? It’s not my favorite part because it makes me happy, but for me the most memorable scene was when the mom was at the peak of her addiction and her refrigerator came to life. The montage in the end also gave me goosebumps. Movie number nine: Carol 1) When did you first see this movie? 2015. It was one of the factors that made Gab and I reconcile as friends, so I’m super thankful that this film allowed us to bond. 2) Did it take a second time for you to like it? Not at all. I was in love with it from the very beginning. 3) Does it have a happy ending? Yes. 4) Who would you recommend it to? People who want an LGBT film with a happy ending. 5) What's its theme song? It doesn’t really have one, but its score was composed by Carter Burwell. OH I just remembered Billie Holiday’s Easy Living was featured prominently in one scene, but it’s not really the movie’s theme song. Movie number ten: Portrait of a Lady on Fire 1) Do you still have the movie ticket? I think mine is still with Gabie, if she kept it. 2) Favorite part? Everything about this movie was beautiful. I loved when Héloïse’s dress caught on fire, when Marianne was drawing Héloïse in her sleep, when Marianne finally saw her vision come to life, when Marianne attended the exhibit and saw the painting of Héloïse...and that final fucking scene. 3) Were there any songs you knew in this movie? Nope. I don’t remember if they played any songs. 4) A quote from this movie: “In solitude, I felt the liberty you spoke of. But I also felt your absence.” and “Do all lovers feel they’re inventing something?” 5) Were the main actors/actresses a perfect match or not so much? Yes they FREAKING WERE AAAAHHHHHHHH Random Questions 1) Which one have you seen most on DVD? Gone with the Wind, but only because it’s the only film in this selection that I have on DVD. 2) Which one have you seen most in theatres? Other than Portrait, I didn’t get to catch these in the cinema. 3) Did your parents like any of them? They haven’t seen any of the movies I picked. 4) Which one did you see with your best friend? Carol and Portrait hahahaha, both lesbian movies. She was the one who made me watch them in the first place too. 5) Would you see #1 again? Over and over again. I will never grow tired of it. 6) Is #4 a movie you can only watch every once in a while? Yes, super accurate. The subject matter is very heavy to begin with, so pair that with superb acting and you’ve got yourself a movie that’s hard to get through. 7) Was #5 hard to understand? Only because it’s sooooo long and there are so many plots and subplots. Also, as someone who has never actually read about the Civil War in full detail, it has also hampered my understanding of some of the events in the movie. 8) Did you see #2 the day it came out? I didn’t see it until like, 18 years after its original release. 9) Do you have #3's movie ticket still? I never had it to begin with. 10) Are there any sequels to these movies coming out? As far as I know, no. 11) Does your best friend like #9? Gabie’s very in love with it. She once kept count of how many times she had watched it when it first leaked on the internet loooool and if I remember correctly her watch count peaked at 126. 12) Did #10 have horrible special effects? No. 13) Who directed #6? Lenny Abrahamson. 14) Did #8 scare you? Absolutely. I needed a long-ass break from everything after I finished it lmao. 15) Does #7 have a better effect at night? No. The effect has been the same for me whatever time I watch it.

[0poole]

Honestly, this is getting ridiculous

This whole Dexit thing is not NEARLY as bad as people as making it out to be. It’s actually gotten to the point where you can’t talk about Pokemon without someone bringing it up. It’s legitimately annoying, since it seems like 90% of people are overreacting and spreading misinformation.

Here’s exactly what IS happening:

You will not be able to transfer Pokemon to Sword and Shield from past games/GO if they are not already in the Galar Pokedex. 

First of all, no one with half a brain thinks this is a good thing. No one. I don’t think it’s a good thing either. My problem is the people reacting to it.

I don’t remember how credible the information was, but there’s talk that there will at least be 1000 models for Pokemon in these games. That’s including forms. Again, since this is just some random tumblr post and not an essay, another possibly less-than-credible number: There’s maybe like 250 total alternate forms of existing Pokemon. Pokemon like Spinda and Silvally probably take up most of those, and most of the others are legendary Pokemon. Megas are gone, so subtract how many of those there are. Now, think about how many of those Pokemon will actually be in Galar. Legendary Pokemon seem very region-specific, so they probably won’t be in there, and we haven’t seen Spinda or Silvally yet, so unless there’s a new Pokemon with a ton of extra forms...

That’s a shitton of Pokemon. There’s about 800 as of Gen 7, and if they introduce like 100 more, that still leaves 100 extra spots for forms. There’s talk of special Dynamax forms, but still who knows. Assuming there are, in fact, 1000 models of Pokemon, we will be getting a ton of variety anyway.

“Oh, but what about the few left behind? What if someone had a special Pokemon that just so happened to not be in Galar?”

Don’t forget, this is Sword and Shield we’re talking about here. Galar will only be relevant to these games and whatever sequels they churn out after them. After that, there will be a new region, and guess what? They will have the opportunity to have the leftovers in that region. Hell, maybe in the sequel games, they’ll swap out some of the Pokemon that didn’t make it with those that did. Kinda unlikely, but who knows? It’s not like they’ve just straight-up erased the Pokemon that didn’t make it in. There’s always the future. 

Here’s the biggest thing, though: Pokemon Home. Your Pokemon will have a place to go. And, if you don’t want to pay for that, then you can still keep them in Sun and Moon. If it’s free there’s no excuse, of course, but you will be able to keep your “hard work.” You’ll just have to wait another generation (or maybe not even one generation, assuming DPPt remakes are coming) to use them in a main series game. 

Plus, Home might even have a Showdown-esque feature to it, letting us do graphically simple battles with the Pokemon we already have. We don’t know. 

And that’s another thing: We don’t know. Hell, maybe, in lieu of having all Pokemon, there will be a much larger story and post-game. Literally the only argument against that is the generic “lul but its gf” pessimeme shit. Sure, the main series could literally be better, but that’s no excuse to act like the games are in any way bad. If you’re going to get angry, get angry when we actually know what these games are like. If they do have the same scope as SuMo with a new coat of paint, then you can actually get angry. But, looks like it’s definitely not going to be like SuMo.

Also, for the love of God, stop using that stupid fucking Double Kick “””Animation””” to try and prove a point. Literally like 99% of all other moves have animations. It’s the definition of cherry-picking. Claiming they’re lazy because one move doesn’t animate means jack shit. 

But, you know... Maybe it’s just preference, or whatever. Maybe everything’s just pent up anger for things that’s happened throughout the series. But, there’s one thing that is objectively and morally wrong about this whole discourse:

Masuda is NOT the issue.

Literally the only reason why people are hating on him specifically is because he broke the news. Ohmori was there too, and is also a pretty big role in these games, but no one’s focusing on him. While he is the director of Gamefreak, that doesn’t instantly mean he wants to steal happiness away from Pokemon fans. People are acting like if they pester him enough, he’ll change is mind, like he WANTS this to be the future of Pokemon. Like I said, no one with half a brain thinks this is a good thing. If it were so easy as to just press a button and have every Pokemon in every game, he’d do it. But, people think that making a game is just that easy, thinking they can make better models in 5 minutes. Sure, it can take that long to make a shitty model, but then give it 10+ true-to-form animations, approved by the higherups, and then implemented. It’s not that easy. Don’t forget there are animations for the human characters and environments. Even apart from that shittily textured tree everyone’s passing around, you see that giant fucking city in the middle of the map? Model THAT in 5 minutes. Hell, model that in a day. Have fun working 24 hours straight on something that isn’t good enough anyway.

Literally the only possible place to throw your anger is The Pokemon Company, assuming they press Gamefreak to do things in such a way or in such a speed that means they can’t get all Pokemon in in time or in a good enough way. But, even then, we don’t know exactly what’s going on behind the scenes. There’s nothing I hate more than people making up shit like they know what the exact issue is. There’s always more than what’s shown to us.

Then, the last thing that I hate to bring up but I legitimately believe: It is, in fact, just a game. Unnecessary happiness brought up by anything, no matter how petty, is always welcome. Unnecessary anger and hatred brought up by petty things is just stupid. This change won’t affect the experience nearly as much as people are making it out to be, especially because the vast majority of people don’t even go out of their way to “catch ‘em all,” or transfer in a specific team of super specific Pokemon in a game filled with plenty of new faces to use.

Obviously, you can just not buy the game if you don’t want to support this sort of thing. Personally, I think it’s physically impossible for that to make such a large impact that Gamefreak will actually change anything for monetary purposes, unless you literally boycott every single ounce of Pokemon related content for the rest of your life. Just stop whining, and let the people who don’t care enjoy what they can.

Plus, maybe the massive response will force them to try extra hard to fix the issue in the future. Just because Sword and Shield will be like this doesn’t mean it has to be permanent forever.

I’m still going to buy the games and enjoy them, since I’ve yet to not enjoy a Pokemon game, and I like everything else about these games so far. One bad decision and some less-than-perfect graphics will not sour my opinions on these games. 

I will say that I’m enjoying all the “Pokemon disguising as a Galar mon to get past the border” memes though. They’re actually pretty funny.

*** Also if you’re going to respond to this post, message me instead so I can actually respond. ***

[mindthebulletso]

I think I understand who you are on twitter but I don't think I understand what your opinion is on Harry and Larry 🧐

Oh. I don't think is important but Ok. Then. I must say that I’m not born with One Direction, I arrive later, with JHO, so I don’t have the same love for the two. Initially I hadn't even asked myself any questions about Louis' sexual tastes but by wandering on YouTube obviously found the videos (not FMQ which is not my favorite) and it is thought that the two of them were in love. I didn't listen to 1D and, seeing the titles absentmindedly I thought Larry Stylinson was a member of the group :-) So .. I think Louis and Harry broke up over the 10 years? Yes. I think they are together now? Some things suggest me yes, some things suggest me no. I only mean personal feeling because the famous "coincidences" that  fandom often finds for me not convince and I think they are made on purpose because Larries are still an important slice of Fanbase for both. Some are fun and cute and I can even put my heart into it but mostly I don't believe them.  summing up  Yes prevails over the No. I don't think, however, that it is a simple story especially since Harry's first tour and that some things have changed between them, as is normal over the years because, imo, the change of Louis it’s evident and whatever its meaning is for me what is important. I give a not necessarily only negative meaning to "toxic relationship" (and I don't even think Louis ever did it in his interviews) because maybe I live in one or maybe because it’s what intrudes from the outside that is toxic and in their case it’s impossible to ignore or maybe because I don't think there are healthy relationships when you really love. Don't shiver but I'm not a babygirl so I have, by force of things, a more disillusioned vision than many other people that I often have the impression they base their opinions on clichés and I also think it is very weird that many of the "no" come from people who no longer love Harry. This happens too often and seems that the reasoning is "if I don't love H anymore, Louis doesn't love H anymore" they seem betrayed girls and it's not nice to see. Is not their Life. And Life is..Another Thing. What do I think of Harry? I think he is The icon of this generation.I think he has something that really nobody else has. I think he has a really overwhelming personality, especially on stage and I think he deserves all the success he's having (although I don't often like the way, but I don't expect anything else from Azoff and Sony and be "the one” not justify how Industry treats him. He didn’t invent Nothing and he is nothing that my generation hasn’t already seen) anyway I am happy for him,I love him because I find myself in many flaws that I see in my idea of him. I really loved the first album and have not officially listened or bought the second one, it’s not my sound and I miss his natural voice. However, he made my life easier because I had already decided to boycott him anyway. Sony asked me to choose between the two of them and I chose (Louis' promo last six months is worth to me as evidence) I did this having no sense of guilt a) because as I wrote I don't birth fan of both. b) because I know perfectly well that he doesn't need me...I also think that Harry, Louis, Liam, Nal and Zayn  are tied to halter contracts and I say this to prevent the usual difference issue evident between the two. I think Harry is not in charge of his career so he can't stop or change anything about Louis' career. This in summary (ahahahahah) is what I think. But above all I would like Louis's fandom to detach from Harry and Larries because I don't think you see how much Louis is alone in the midst of foolish battles between you. I think the other questions received is also yours so I answered you in one go!

[dramarising-replacement]

Everyone: boycott buying gems and stand with Plague! Me: “But I never buy gems anyway, I’m too damn broke to be buying dragon cash, so I guess that means I stand with Plague?”

[kittywildegrrl]

MAMA CAT AND THAT TIME I GOT FOOD POISONING

Here I sit, in my room, finishing off my tea and catching up on Family Guy, while just a ten-minute walk away from here a magnificent cocktail party is going on without me.

Well, crappity crap crap.

On Thursday, my travel day into the VOAtlanta 2022 conference, I ate two chicken sandwiches. The one at the Minneapolis airport was overpriced and fantastic. The one my door dasher brought to the hotel ten hours later in Atlanta was undercooked and/or bearing tiny life forms. Personally, I think I’ve been Smote -- or is it Smitten? -- by a vengeful Creator who knows I broke my personal boycott on Thursday night by Eating Mor Chikin. Anyway, about an hour after I went to bed, I was rudely awakened by the good ol’ fever & chills & the sensation that my tummy had turned into an adobe brick, kiln-fired and hard as mahogany. Further details will not be provided, as you know perfectly well that it was all yucky.

Thank me for sharing!

So, here’s the thing: Challenges, amirite? Yes, I am, and we both know it. Challenges.

I had a challenge on my plate (and nothing else except saltines). I had every right in the world to just lay in the room and groan, and I most definitely did some of that! And yet… ALL these amazing voiceover and audiobook production professionals, right over there at the other Hilton, and I came all this way to hear and see and meet them. The challenge, as I see it, was to find the balance between the self-care I needed, and the things I came to experience: Connecting, Learning, and the inevitable Networking (hence the awesome cocktail party I’m not at, and yes you are very proud of me for staying in).

The thing is, when you’re sick, you’re sick. You have to get well. Right? Of course. But are you like me, do you have that leftover childhood trauma where you feel stupid for getting sick because there was a parent who really disapproved of children coming down with colds? I know, good candidate for therapy and don’t think I haven’t gotten some. I freely admit it, I am a terrible patient. Almost as big a baby as your typical American HusbandCat*, for example. I always like to spend part of the first day of any given cold, flu, injury or minor owie, complaining that it’s just my fault for being stupid. I’m pretty sure this Woody Allen level of neurosis is the secret to my great acting abilities.

But then there comes the moment when you have to try to pull yourself up, and get the flock out of that door, and that’s not just for this conference or me & my little big ego. It’s all of us, all through life, when we have something in our way, some obstacle, which stands between us and the thing we want. One of the kids gets sick. The car keys accidentally got flushed. A pet destroys the gift you were about to wrap while you’re looking for another roll of tape. That doctor’s appointment didn’t go well. You forgot you can’t eat hot chili peppers anymore. Whatever. You want to bury your head in the sand, or under the covers, or perhaps in Tahiti.

MamaCat is not here to give you the formula for how to face the things and get out the door and do the things. There is no formula. We’ll probably have a long post about that sometime, too. I think it’s best expressed in the wisdom of Kung Fu Panda, “There is no secret ingredient”.

I want to speak for what happens when you do go out the door and do the things.

For me, right after the Feeling Stupid phase of getting sick, comes the Not Moving phase, and some of that is good for recuperation. But Not Moving can also turn into procrastination, self-pity, and eventually, Newton’s First Law of Motion. Inertia kills the joy of life! Bad Inertia, no dessert for you.

It took me forever to get ready to set foot out the door, both Friday and today. And I mean, seriously, crazy stuff like my left eye insisted on watering – but not the right one. I looked like the opposite of a makeover, one eye lovely and one just came out of a bar fight. So… I had to re-do the makeup on that eye like four times, because one eye done prettily and one eye crying isn’t a business look, it’s a photo shoot for a tragic PSA. And please, if you do shoot a tragic PSA using this imagery, all I’m asking is 10% off the top, thanks. Contact my representation to hammer something out.

Both days I missed all the morning sessions; both nights I skipped the parties where the real networking gets done.** But both days, I managed to get to the place, take in a few breakout sessions, meet a few people, maybe get a few laughs. Not mega-fun super-networking like I had planned, no. But I did get to meet at least three of the people I specifically came to meet, and I made a few friends. I got some amazing resources and information on the changes in the business. I learned things. None of that would have happened if I’d stayed in the room.***

I may or may not have also improvised a little rock and roll singing about Living on Ginger Ale during a breakout session, to the tune of “Livin’ on Tulsa Time,” that the world might celebrate my poor wretched tummy. Word to the wise: Never, ever, put a hot mic in my hand in front of live people and expect Normal Granny to come out of the speakers. You’re only going to get Eccentric Granny in those situations. Fair warning.

The experience was Oxygen.

I want more.

I’ll write more about this weekend, about the opportunities and the people, about the things I learned, about how amazing this VO community is. But tonight, while the soup & tea & crackers & ginger ale and I are spending a little time trying to wind down and feel better before the plane tomorrow, I wanted to get these thoughts down and send them to you: you can get past the obstacle. Maybe not the way you had originally intended. But you can do it, one way or another. It will be worth it. I can, you can, we all can. Especially if we help each other.

The tea is gone, the soup is almost finished, the ginger ale is warm. Thanks for spending the evening with me, cats & kittens. I’ll write again soon. Please tip your servers, they’re working hard for you tonight.

Meow, Darlings.

*HusbandCat is not the world’s worst patient. He’s arguably a better patient better than I am.

**And all the fun, from what I am given to understand. Remember fun? How cool is fun??

***Actually, most of the material I missed is going to be available to registered participants online afterwards, which is a wonderful benefit, IMHO.

[richardpiccolo]

#107 - The Week Ending 8.17.18 in the Age of Trump

Every week in Age of Trump is a new adventure, not a Raiders of the Lost Ark type of adventure, but one in which historians will look back and find a treasure trove of rich and relevant material when they begin to document, for generations to come, how America lost its way.

Here are just a few story lines which caught my eye last week.

o The prosecution in the Paul Manafort trial rested, and the defense did too, interestingly enough, without offering a defense.   Apparently they were so tired listening to the mountain of evidence against the ostrich-wearing, tax fraud and former campaign chairman for President Trump, they just gave up.  That’s one theory anyway.   The more popular thought is that theyknow that Donny Boy will simply issue Manafort his ‘Get out of Jail Free” card less than one week after his conviction comes down and his “throw away the key” sentence is doled out. 

o By my count, exactly 11 players exhibited some form of protest during the national anthem in the first week of the NFL pre-season (3 Eagles, 3 Jaguars, 3 Seahawks and 2 Dolphins).  These 11 represent less than .5% of the 2,340 players currently on NFL rosters.  Despite this, Trump’s August 10th tweet referenced “NUMEROUS players, from different teams, wanted to show their outrage” and said they “should be suspended without pay”.  These “numerous” 11 players seem to get a lot more attention from our President, while the 565 refugee children who still remain separated from their parents don’t even rate a tweet.  Maybe the President with the big brain needs as remedial math course in order to help him focus on the larger and more important matters.

o Steven Miller, the architect of the Trump Muslim ban (yes, let’s call it by its real name) and the separation of refugee children from their parents was strikingly dressed down by his own uncle in a Washington Post Editorial entitled “Stephen Miller Is an Immigration Hypocrite. I Know Because I’m His Uncle”. Dr. David S. Glosser, a retired neuropsychologist formerly of the Boston University School of Medicine, stated that if his nephew’s ideas on immigration had been in force a century ago, his family would have been wiped out. According to Dr. Glosser, his family came to the U.S. just a few years before the fear and prejudice of the “America first” nativists of the day closed U.S. borders to Jewish refugees. And sadly he noted that only seven of the 2,000 Jews who remained in their village of Antopol, Belarus survived the Holocaust.  Before this story broke, Miller was a leading contender for the biggest scumbag in an administration of scumbags.  With his own uncle’s latest revelation, he has now vaulted into the pole position.

o Family feuds in the White House were the theme of the week as Kellyanne Conway got into a public spat with her husband over his critical comments about the President . During an interview with Washington Post reporter Ben Terris, Conway complained that her husband’s recent tweets about Trump were “disrespectful” and possibly violated their “marital vows”.  A violation of their marital vows….for having a different opinion, for not drinking the Kool Aid.  It’s  hard to make this up, but with the President now doing his level best to stifle the free speech of his opponents, it looks like Kellyanne thought she would get in the act and decided she would warm up …by dumping on her husband first.

o Omarosa Manigault Newman began the Omarosa Book Tour with lessons learned from her mentor.  The highly paid former Assistant to the President, who was fired in week 10 of the 13 episode first season of the Apprentice, was the only contestant to go 0 for 3 as Project Manager and to offer to have sex with Piers Morgan just to spice up the story line.  Impressive credentials, to say the least.  Omarosa’s first shots were to call “Trump a racist” and declare that “This is an administration where everybody lies”.  Ho-hum Omarosa, tell us something we don’t already know. The White House Office of Personnel has been sifting through resumes for months looking for an adequate replacement for the controversial Apprentice star.  Maybe Gary Busey and Meatloaf are still available. 

o Trump advocated a boycott of Harley Davidson after they announced they were moving production off shore to deal with tariffs now in play courtesy of the Trump administration. Capitalism, it’s now a crime, who knew?

o Trump sent a message to the entire national security community that dissent with him for any reason will result in personal punishment when he revoked the security clearance of former CIA Director John Brennan. The reason this is so remarkable is that it came from the White House and was never run by Trump’s own intelligence officials.  Many Trump supporters viewed it as a show of great strength from this great man.   The Wall Street Journal called it petty.  And others declared it was a way for the President to distract from the Omarosa Tapes.  If that's true, with a rumored 200 tapes still to go, we should expect to see many more revocations before the final season of this reality TV show comes to a close.

o One last interesting development, a new Gallup poll out last week showed that Trump’s approval rating has dropped to 39% while his disapproval rating increased to 56%.

Perhaps it is now beginning to dawn on a few open minded Trump supporters, that despite all of the adventures, week in, week out, and despite their own earlier desires for disruption, that the grass is not really any greener on the other side.  Perhaps they now see, that it’s turning brown.

WITH MALICE TOWQRD NONE (...mostly)

www.richardpiccolo.blogspot.com 

[maybeyoumissthisf-kingpost]

Feminism and gender equality: Why does it suck?

First of all, this article is for Feminists, and is not contraindicated for women who are drawn into the Feminism movement without understanding the political tricks of the wire-pullers behind. I respect every woman. They are half of this world. I bet you'll agree with me on one thing: Women have always been honored for their direct and indirect contributions to human civilization. Because of that, I feel I have a responsibility to protect them from the malicious conspiracy of the Feminism movement.

In Vietnam, the liars call Feminism Feminism. But what RIGHTS? Where is the RIGHT? Which word in “Feminism” has RIGHT in it?

I call Feminism the Supreme Feminism

The press, as well as the simps with their pussy on their heads, praised this toxic choleraism, making the sisters think that this was a movement to fight for equal rights for women. I say,

My body is like a drop of rain. Seeds go to the castle, seeds go to the field to plow

Even if the raindrops don't have the same starting point, how can there be equality in this world? Can anyone try to name an equal country for me? There is no right. The leftists always do not draw two words EQUALITY to attract losers in society. Gender equality, income equality, racial equality, class equality? An all-too-familiar scenario for shepherding stupid sheep.

Want to know toxic feminism? Ask the Feminists!

Going back to the Mao or Bolshevik era in the mid-twentieth century, also with the scenario of class struggle for equal rights, a series of bourgeoisie were denounced, executed and executed [1][2]. Today, gender equality has the same color. There will be a day when the men - the object of attack by the struggle group - will fade away like the bourgeois in the revolutionary era. Of course, similar massacres are hard to come by in the modern world, but it will be done more delicately, instilling slowly and killing you like a Poison Mushroom. Remember, there is NEVER a struggle for equality that stops at the balance of interests, but it is always directed towards the exclusion and elimination of that object from society. If you think I'm taking it too seriously, you can check with the hashtag #KillAllMen on social media to see if it's terror enough. Too obvious for the toxicity of the modern feminist movement!

Looking back at Feminist's harsh words to men, plus the cheers of the left-wing media, do you see the danger? They inject young girls with the image of men as scum – lustful, slutty, wretched, etc. ALL MEN ARE WRONG is the mindset you can easily see in young girls these days. .

I know many female friends who have suffered a lot of hurt, even humiliation when going through toxic relationships with some assholes. I'm not defending those fuckboys. But women, the gender that is dominated by negative emotions [3][4][5] , after the breakup of a love affair is often easily lured into movements that boycott men with extreme arguments such as :

1. Women suffer many disadvantages when getting married and having children. Men do not have pain in childbirth, so they never appreciate this sacrifice of women.

2. All men are rapists [6] .

3. Women in the past could not study, could not participate in elections, so they always lost compared to men; Moreover, women are bound by many strict dogmas, marriage must be completely dependent on their husbands.

However, NO ONE told them:

1. The man carries the national responsibility on his shoulders. He could die, be stabbed by swords, shot by bullets, burned alive, dismembered, etc. on the battlefield to protect women and their children at home.

2. Even if two people have a completely voluntary relationship, if the girl accuses the boy of raping, he will still have to go to prison to schedule a schedule [7] . On the other hand, if a man alleges that he was raped by a woman, guess what percentage of him will win the case?

3. A man is by default the one who provides and protects his family for the rest of his life, and at the same time is the one who bears all the responsibilities – that is an inescapable destiny. He will be despised by people and despised by society if he cannot afford to take care of his wife and children. More than 150 years ago, if the wife committed a crime, it was the husband who would be punished or imprisoned under Coverture laws. Also in the old society, women can't vote, and men... can't vote anyway?! In feudal times, was the potato gourd? Kings follow the tradition of passing from father to son, but there is no election. Only in Western society do women have the right to vote, but under Coverture law, the husband will be the representative of the will of both.

No school, school, or newspaper tells today's boys and girls about these things. And young people are easily attracted by the new radical movements, resulting in society spawning the following groups:

The conspiracy behind the cover of gender equality: Breaking the gender line

The interests of men and women are inherently balanced, only when Feminism movements arose, that balance gradually tilted to one side. Worth mentioning, this bias is NOT beneficial to women, but only to benefit the policies and voting of the left. By taking advantage of the image of the LGBT community, Feminists argue that there is no difference between men and women, thereby breaking down gender boundaries. What is the result? It's the FEMALE, I'm not mistaken, the WOMEN are the recipients.

When it goes beyond the limits of the laws of nature, breaking the gender line has dire consequences for women.

Typically, Fallon Fox, a male MMA fighter (transgender) allowed to compete in the women's category, caused female boxer Tamikka Brents to break her skull and brain injury in just the first round. Another example is Mary Gregory, a transgender man who broke the record of four female weightlifters in a single day [8] .

So, does this movement really bring equality to women, or does it only increase social injustice? Of course, the madness of these guys won't stop, just think that one day when the genders are no longer distinguished, men will be able to enter the women's toilets!? Oh what a disaster!

Men and women are inherently different

Back in the beginning of the world, Eve was born from the body of Adam. She was not born from the bones of Adam's head so that she would rule over Adam; nor was she born from the bones of Adam's feet to be trampled upon by Adam; that she borne from Adam's rib that the two might be equal, under Adam's arm that she might be sheltered, near Adam's heart that she might be loved.

Both men and women are born different, taking on different roles in life. There are areas for men to control, and there are areas for women to control. Although there are many studies that have shown differences in brain thinking in both sexes, Feminists still try to deny this difference. Again, this distinction is a FACT (truth). Therefore, to deny this difference is to bend the truth.

Correct. Bend the truth is what Feminist is doing.1. Feminist: “Women must be treated like men”

There's a saying that goes, "Women can do anything a man can." However, history has always shown the opposite. Women rarely choose to confront, take responsibility for key decisions. This is easy to see that even in family relationships, the wife always gives her husband the right to decide when there is an important issue. To emphasize, this behavior is NOT BAD at all. Because it is the NATIONAL, the divinity of a woman.

I am not saying that men or women are better, but since ancient times, men have been identified as the ones who take the lead. He must be RESPONSIBLE and stand to solve his own and the woman's problems.

Therefore, women need to be treated like EVERYONE, not LIKE MAN. Again, I respect every woman. But if you want to win the respect of society, you must learn to be responsible… like a man.

2. Feminist: “Women must have the same salary as men”

In fact, it is not men who are paid more, but women who always choose lower paying jobs [9] . However, how to choose a job, it is completely the freedom of each person. Feminists want to force girls to work against their wishes, it can be said that it is an unethical behavior.

3. Feminist: “Women should be allowed to do men's jobs”

Everyone is given equal opportunities, but each gender has qualities that make us superior to the other half in some areas. For men, it's physical health, hard work is naturally suitable for men. For women, it is the ability to care, so women dominate the nursing field. Such division of labor is to ensure the highest economic efficiency for society. So, women don't need to do the work of men, they just need to do the work that they feel LIKE and DO GOOD.

4. Feminist: “Women must be treated by law in the same way as men”

The law is now “favoring” women, that is the reality, due to pressures from far-left movements. Specifically, we have women's rights, children's rights, but not men's rights. Even in the US, when it comes to legal protection, men even lose to dogs and cats. That is the imbalance caused by the Feminist and the leftists.

There is a funny story like this: “Oranges look both beautiful and delicious, so they are often used as juice; and the bitter melon is both bitter and rough, so no one has ever forced it to drink. Then one day the bitter melons rebelled to overthrow Orangeism. Proponents of bitter gourd believe that oranges can make juice, so can bitter melons. As a result, after years of struggle, the government passed the Plant Equality law, according to which anyone who drinks orange juice but does not drink bitter gourd juice will be jailed.”

Sounds absurd right? In short, men and women are inherently different. Both sexes are born to DO BETTER what the other cannot be in charge of. Orange has its own application, so does bitter melon. We cannot use others to measure ourselves. Doing so only shows that you are lowering your self-worth.

If you're not equal, don't be equal

It is ironic that Feminists are always anti-men, but covet their values. Value is something that takes effort to build, but cannot be asked to be recognized or given by others. To me, the value of a person lies in their usefulness. So be useful to family, friends and society; study and work kindly; serve and love the community. Don't compare yourself to others. Also, don't put others down, because it doesn't raise your self-worth. Because only what you do shows who you are in this world.

All credit goes to trantuansang.com.