#i mean it's not like harsh criticism. we often do the same here. it's just that i didnt expect it

[kurp-stuff]

I'm watching the Tintin Spielberg movie in english and im losing it at the fact that they translated the names

[mochinomnoms]

What do you think would happen if Floyd were to meet Riddle's mother?! Cuz I just read your Mama/Papa leech Headcanons about meeting their sons crush. But what if it’s reversed? Riddle's mother Meeting Floyd? (I would also say Yuu's parents meeting Jade, but unfortunately, that won't be happening)

“Wow, I thought Lil Goldfishie was a stick in the mud, his mama has a whole branch up her—” *gets kicked in the groin*

I have very mixed feelings about Riddle's mother, in that with the context we have right now she's a bitch and if I ever see her it's on motherfucking sight. But she must love her son still, right? Is she harsh because he wants to set Riddle up for success, but only knows the way she was raised? Is she scared of her kid getting hurt or failing, and so she tries to shield him from all possible harm? Is she so hyperaware of all the dangers in society that she feels the need to keep him in a little bubble, knowing in the back of her mind that making mistakes and getting hurt is part of growing up? A good mother would never want to see their child ever get hurt if it were up to them. I mean, she must care for him in some way, but how? In the manga or novel (not sure which) they mention that she fought back against the school to keep him in, but was that because she wanted him to have the prestige of NRC in his background or because she wants what's best for him? She homeschooled him herself to the point that he's an immensely powerful mage already as a teen, so she could've hypothetically kept doing the same thing, right? Is she a mother that truly cares for her son but suffered the same childhood, but she “turned out fine” so it must be fine? Or is she just a bitch, lol. Either way, she is emotionally and affectionately neglectful and doesn't realize it at best, and emotionally and psychologically abusive at worst.

I have a lot to say on the topic of Mrs. Rosehearts, about her parenting, the cultural differences of child-rearing that EN players and JP players might have. This post talks about it in depth, but I can say more on the topic later.

In regards to Floyd meeting Mrs. Rosehearts, probably against Riddle's wishes or while he's distracted, the poor guy is set up for disappointment. While it's implied that Mama Leech is overprotective and that she calls very often, if not daily, to check in on her sons, they still had enough freedom growing up to get into shenanigans and hijinks. I mean, they beat up a sturgeon and took some of its scales to fashion into earrings like a trophy. And they both speak very fondly of her, so Floyd is going into meeting Mrs. Rosehearts with the expectation that she might be a bit stuffy. But, she raised Riddle, his crush and favorite human! He's strict and mean at times, but he cares a lot for his dorm and is super diligent, she must be like that too!

But she's so…critical. She looks at him unamused, very standoffish, but is polite. He guesses. He can see where Riddle got his strictness from.

“Hello. Who might you be?” She probably didn't expect to have some random student, not even from her son's dorm, come up to her. He was...tall. Towered over her, and based on the color of his hair and sharp teeth, most likely wasn't human.

“Huh, you're not as red as my Lil Goldfishie is.”

She blinked and frowned, resisting the urge to chastise the strange fellow for his informal tone and rube behavior. Not her son, not her problem.

“Pardon? Do you often speak to your elders like this?” she asked, eyeing him as she turned away to watch her son give orders to his dorm as they managed an informational booth.

“Yeah, why not? They're just people. Not like I'm being rude or anything” She would strongly disagree. “You're kinda prickly, like a lionfish.”

“W-what?” She changed her mind, someone needs to put him in her place. “Now listen here, young man, it's quite rude to call people anything other than their na—”

“They're real mean, ya know. Venomous, a nuisance, can't even mess with it cause it has a bunch of spines—oh! Imma call you Mama Lionfish.” The young man snapped his left fingers like he made a revelation.

Mrs. Rosehearts had learned to control her temper, but she still had her moments, Her face been bright red, her lips thinned, and she opened her mouth to start berating the young man.

“Floyd Leech! What did I tell you about calling people names?” A tall, slender women came up to them, pale skin and hair hue similar to the man in front of her. She wore a cream-colored dress and matching blazer, adorned with gold and pearls, and a matching wide brimmed hat. She was followed by Riddle, who looked a mix of anger and concern.

“Never do it in front of people, yeah, yeah.” The man named Floyd pouted, but brightened at the sight of Riddle. “Oh hey Lil Goldfishie! What's uuuup?”

Floyd jogged over to Riddle, halting him midstep as Mrs. Rosehearts noticed Riddle almost bristle, trying to sidestep and get around Floyd. He was failing.

“I apologize, you know how boys can be!” The woman in front of her also towered over her, though not nearly as much as her son did. “My Floyd doesn't mean anything by it, he just a silly boy.”

The blue haired woman laughed, then abruptly stopped, narrowing her golden gaze as she thinly smiled.

“You're the man's mother, I assume.” Mrs. Rosehearts replied, smoothing out her skirt and clutching her hands together. “He's very...spirited. He's from the Leech family? Is it safe to assume that your the Leech family matriarch?”

The other woman's sharp toothed smile grew as she nodded. “Yes. It's not often that I come to the surface. But it's wonderful to know that I'm as—oh—well-known, on the surface, as under the sea.”

Mrs. Rosehearts wouldn't use the word 'well-known' as much as she would infamous.

“Yes, well. I would just remind your son to not so blatantly call people names to their faces.” she said, clenching and unclenching her fist in an attempt to sooth herself. “I'm not sure what your customs are under the sea, but up here he would be considered a riffraff.”

For all her talk about politeness, Mrs. Rosehearts forgot herself at time and let things slip out of her mouth faster than she processed. She knew she pressed a button when Mrs. Leech's smile disappeared.

It was only for a moment, but with the blank face and the way her gold eyes bore into her, it felt like her body and soul were being grasped by something dark and violent.

Then that feeling was gone as Mrs. Leech smiled again and closed her eyes, tilting her head.

“He'll be fine, I'm sure he'll find his people. After all, it seems he's already found someone in your son.”

Both women moved their gazes to the pair, now bickering. Well, Riddle was, the one called Floyd, was just swaying on his heels as he grinned and make a comment here and there. Each one after the other seemed to fluster her son further, his cheeks growing in color as they spoke. Most people who knew her son would assume that the red was attributed to his rage, and it mostly was. But (fortunately or unfortunately, she couldn't decide) her son was much like her. It wasn't rage that made his eyes dart away each time their eyes met for too long. It wasn't rage that made him scuff his foot every so often. And it most certainly wasn't rage in his eyes.

Mrs. Rosehearts cleared her throat, turning away from Mrs. Leech and walking to her son.

“I don't know what you're implying, but I must be going now. My son and I still need to tour his dorm.”

Mrs. Leech watched the other woman walk away, sighing.

“Oh, what a disdainful woman. And her son is so lovely too…she really is like a lionfish.”

“Yeah, it's a good nickname for her, right Mama?” Floyd came bounding over, stretching his arms. “Is' too bad she's a stuck-up, gonna real annoying if she's my mother-in-law.”

“Hm, I'll just have to overcompensate then and be the best Mama for you and the little Riddle!” Mama Leech clapped her hands excitedly, sighing in bliss at the thought.

“Oh, it will be so wonderful to see the family grow big...oh! By the way, Floyd.” Mama Leech walked away, Floyd following after diligently. “I might have mentioned a little 'something' to him about your cute rambles about him. He was so cute, all red and flushed when I said you're positively infatuated, calling him cute and—”

“Aw what! Mama!”

[thepersonperson]

Thoughts on the tragedy of Gojo Satoru and narrative cruelty towards him as of JJK 261.

Some notes before we start.

1) This originally was going to be an analysis about how Gojo is Megumi's dad. Then JJK 261 came out and shattered my heart into millions of pieces.

2) This analysis will briefly deal with suicide.

3) The light novels are canon and provide critical insight to characters and their motivations. I would go as far to say they're the equivalent of Bleach's CFYOW for JJK. I will be citing the official translation from my own copies. There is a fan translation (Book 1 & Book 2), but the syntax is a bit clunky to read. Either version is fine, I just highly encourage reading them.

4) I will be mainly using the TCB scans for the manga because of their accessibility. 

5) Read the light novels.

(Click pictures for captions/citations.)

Preface

Umineko no Naku Koro ni (When the Seagulls Cry) is a visual novel about a person who is fundamentally misunderstood by those around them. They desperately want to be loved without being perceived, believing themself to be unworthy due to trauma and immutable characteristics given to them at birth. Instead of telling anyone these feelings directly, they play games akin to torture. They torment the ones they love over and over in hopes they'll see through their actions and understand them.

"Without love it cannot be seen."

If you've ever heard of Umineko, you've probably seen this quote. It's the lens in which you are supposed to view the contents of the novel in order to understand the heart behind the actions.

Keep this all in mind as I attempt to answer the following question:

What's wrong with Gojo Satoru?

Short Answer: Being the Strongest. He never got over the trauma inflicted by Toji that was worsened by Geto. And because he's the Strongest, he never sought help for these problems. I’m not going to explain why this is the case here—we’re just accepting this as canon for this analysis. How this trauma manifests and affects his interpersonal relationships is the focus here.

Regardless of trauma, Gojo Satoru is a fascinating character in that he is simultaneously a egotistical arrogant dickhead and a deeply caring individual. He's not one or the other, he is both at the same time at all times. Allow me to explain how he pulls this off.

2 Birds 1 Stone

Gojo Satoru is a 2 birds and 1 stone kind of guy. What I mean by this is that Gojo will do 1 thing and have 2 reasons behind it. The reasons often seem contradictory which leads fans and characters to have a polarized view of Gojo based on how they feel about him. If you hate Gojo, you will only see the bad/selfish reason. If you adore Gojo uncritically, you will only see the good/selfless reason.

This is why without love, it (Gojo's heart) cannot be seen.

I will now provide examples of this 2 birds 1 stone action.

Ijichi Kiyotaka

Ijichi and Gojo’s relationship is the best to start with because it teaches you how to read Gojo’s words vs his actions/results. We all know Gojo is very blunt in an rude way. This is at its extreme when he’s with Ijichi as seen in the following panels.

Gojo straight up tells Ijichi he’s useless as a sorcerer in a way that makes him cry. It’s definitely bullying, but it’s not to torment Ijichi even though it seems that way. Ijichi comes to understand Gojo was just trying to make sure he wouldn’t die. This particular scene took place right after Haibara died, Nanami quit, and Geto defected. The harshness is how Gojo is choosing to say “Hey I care about your life, but don’t get too close to me, I can’t handle that.”

Gojo was even kind enough to offer a productive alternative that let him participate in Jujutsu society without risking his life—driving a car and putting up veils.

Still, Gojo’s bullying of him is a lot. It makes Ijichi doubt that Gojo even likes him. Gojo has to spell it out that he trusts Ijichi the most. Ijichi being weak means he cannot betray Gojo like Geto did, therefore Gojo can fully trust him. Still, Gojo is aware his weakness is other people, so as The Strongest, he can’t let him in all the way. This leads to him showing affection/care in the most insane ways possible. (It’s not really a surprise people don’t understand him when he uses this plausible deniability model.)

ENTER: JJK Thorny Road at Dawn, Chapter 3 Asakusabashi Elegy

As stated in CFYOW, Gojo is aware of Ijichi’s stress and went out of his way to help him deal with it.

Not only does he recognize the stress and notice he hasn't taken time off for it, but he also pinpoints the reason so well that it moves Ijichi to tears. (Summary of Pages 75-77: He feels guilty for failing Yuji twice. Gojo assures him it’s not his fault and flicks him on the forehead.)

But! Gojo can’t be too affectionate. The very next day he piles a good deal of work on Ijichi’s desk he is aware will be stressing him the fudge out. (See Pages 78-79 for full context.)

It should go without saying that treating Ijichi like this is not ok. My point here is to demonstrate that despite being a massive asshole, Gojo does care.

So what did we learn here?

1) Gojo is aware of people’s emotional problems to some extent.

(IDing Ijichi’s stress source accurately.)

2) Gojo is aware he is unable to deal with emotional problems on his own so he enlists outside help.

(Having Shoko and alcohol help cheer Ijichi up while he talks to him.)

3) Gojo’s bluntness and flippant behavior is both rude and serves a purpose for the recipient.

(Gojo bullying Ijichi to keep him out of harm’s way.)

4) Gojo packages his affections with cruelty to keep people at a distance.

(Gojo flicking Ijichi on the head while telling him to take it easy. Taking Ijichi for a night out and then burdening him with extra work the next day.)

5) Other people do not understand Gojo and misread his intent all the time.

(It took Ijichi about 10 years to realize Gojo cares deeply about him.)

Nanami Kento

ENTER: JJK Summer of Ashes, Autumn of Dust, Chapter 2: Resurrection Doll

This chapter is so good at fully fleshing out the Gojo Nanami dynamic that I will not be using manga citations for most of this part. Please read it. Or listen to the official audio drama which has been fan translated.

Gojo spends the first half of this chapter messing with Nanami, forcing him to try unique foods and drinks and generally enjoy himself. You know the typical purposeful Gojo bullying. (See Pages 33-38)

Then it gets rather serious when they arrive at their mission’s destination. They have to deal with a grieving mother. Gojo is blunt. Nanami is comforting. (See Pages 47-50)

What’s interesting about this interaction is how Gojo reflects on it. He acknowledges how bad he is at dealing with attachment issues that come from grief.

Gojo and Nanami find the culprit and the both of them are quite pissed at how he’s exploiting grief to make a profit. They kind of let him be tortured by the curses that eat his body for a bit before killing him. Gojo makes Nanami do it because he can make him die a human death. (See Pages 50-57)

Even after he has expressed hatred of his man for preying on grieving parents, Gojo still ultimately wants this person to have a proper death. This captures the duality of his inhumanity (torture) and humanity (merciful death) quite well.

The following bar scene ties this all together nicely. (See Pages 58-60 for full context.)

I want to note that it is constantly drawing attention to the sentimentality the both of them feel as they converse about how this particular mission messed with them.

As stated in CFYOW, Gojo believes adults treat their stress with alcohol and conversation. And yet, he denies himself the alcohol.

Gojo denying himself this stress relief seems to be a combination of him being too wary to let down Limitless and not believing he needs it. He's the Strongest and he has to be the Strongest at all times, otherwise someone like Toji will get him.

As stated in CFYOW, Gojo recognizes his students will face trauma similar to himself and Nanami and that as adults they must look out for them.

What's so heartbreaking about this interaction is how Nanami is painfully aware Gojo isn't following his own advice of stress relief and says nothing. In a way it almost reads like Gojo, who knows people see him as a giant child, is asking Nanami to help him too in the most roundabout way possible.

As stated in CFYOW, Gojo deliberately paired Yuji with Nanami because he recognizes he is unfit to keep him emotionally stable. (Also note he refuses to have Yuji’s humanity denied as Sukuna’s Vessel. His concerns are explicitly about Yuji as a kid and nothing else.)

Not only is this for Yuji’s benefit, but for Nanami’s as well.

As we know, Nanami and Gojo have one thing common: they lost their best friends because they couldn’t be there for them. This guilt motivates both their actions as adults. Using that connection through shared grief, Gojo is trying to help Nanami heal from that wound with Yuji.

Why Yuji? Nanami’s best friend, Haibara, was a cheerful, friendly boy with a big heart—just like Yuji. He may not be able to replace Haibara, but that familiarity helps Nanami move on. We know this worked because Nanami dies without regrets thanks to Yuji. (All while seeing Haibara too.)

This is called the Nanago Bible for good reason. We have Gojo being an absolute annoying dick to him and then doting on him so targetedly it kind of makes your head spin. Just like Ijichi, Gojo cares but he’s got to bully you first before he shows it. (Totally sane and healthy behavior. /s)

That's why this hurts so much.

This is so cruel. Gojo does all this for Nanami only to be misunderstood by him in the end, and learn that everyone else is the same way.

However, Nanami still cares for him. Like Gojo, Nanami doesn't show affection unless he's being kind of mean. The best example of this is Yuji calling him Nanamin. And to be honest, his whole stern father dynamic with Yuji.

Nanami puts on a show here. He pretends this is pissing him off but he ultimately accepts it.

We've already established that Gojo is unable to fully understand other people. Nanami calling him a pervert/weirdo/self-satisfier was affection and Gojo too misunderstands him. So we're left with that panel of Gojo looking very hurt.

Iori Utahime

Similar to Ijichi, Gojo trusts Utahime because she is weak. And just like Ijichi, Gojo doesn’t say “I trust you won’t betray me like Geto”, he says this:

Not ignoring the misogynistic stint to his bullying of Utahime, Gojo has been doing this for so long that Utahime flat out hates him. It’s in her official character description. And Gojo is unaware of this because he can't read people well. But you want to know what else is? Her love of sports. (Baseball is one she's really into.)

After the disaster that was the first half of the Goodwill Event, Gojo makes the second half enjoyable for the students and Utahime specifically. 2 birds and 1 stone. Baseball means kids get to enjoy their youth and Utahime gets to have fun with something she genuinely enjoys. And Gojo gets to piss off Principal Yaga and Gakuganji as a treat.

Hopefully you can see the pattern now. Gojo cares for people while also being an absolute menace to keep them at a distance for what he believes to be their own good. And still he craves a direct connection with them. All of it is him failing to cope with Toji and Geto in a healthy way and being The Strongest.

Gojo's Heart

Now that we've established how to read Gojo's actions and words, let's take a look at his heart. What kind of person is Gojo Satoru really under all the posturing?

Other People

Though Gojo likes to act like he's above it all, other people are his weakness. This is not limited to other sorcerers, but the non-sorcerers as well. His attachment to people is so strong that it has been used by each major villain as an exploit. Toji used Gojo's fondness towards Riko to catch him by surprise, both Geto and Kenjaku used his sense of duty towards complete strangers to trap him, and Sukuna used Megumi to throw him off guard.

The Hidden Inventory and Shibuya Incident arcs in particular echo each other in set up and outcome—Kenjaku's plan being a finessed version of Toji's. Gojo panics over Riko and strangers potentially dying with the same expression as his weakness is exploited until he comes up with a solution on the spot. And these solutions ultimately fail to stop the villain from obtaining their goals. The difference between them is how Gojo follows up on the collateral damage. Post-Geto fallout, he starts more directly checking in on the people he potentially hurt.

The follow-up with Ijichi about Shibuya is illuminating. It reiterates that unconsciously Gojo created a domain on the fly that wouldn't be lethal to strangers, and it reveals that his cursed energy itself is hellbent on protecting others. What this indicates is that Gojo's soul is devoted to others. If he didn't care, none of this would be possible.

That being said, Nanami also isn't wrong to call Gojo a Jujutsu Pervert. Gojo does very much get off on fighting to the point where he starts disconnecting from other emotions. Just as the Hidden Inventory and Shibuya Incident showcased how much Gojo cares for other people, the same arcs showcased how unhinged Gojo is when left to his own devices.

He's both caring and a freak at the same time. Polarizing behavior included.

Gojo’s Students

Gojo cares a lot about his students, their enjoyment of life, and their futures. He also wants to change Jujutsu society without senseless bloodshed so he goes out of his way to recruit strong children with potential as his allies (Megumi, Yuta, Yuji, Hikari). Some may think he’s only using the youth for his own purposes. Others may think he just wants to help troubled youths. But it’s both. Gojo is doing both of these things. And boy does he feel immense guilt over it when it goes poorly. See how he handles Yuji "dying".

It should be noted that he still tries to maintain his jokey persona with Shoko and Ijichi while he genuinely gets upset. And he does this by bullying the tar out of Ijichi. (It's really no wonder the poor thing thought Gojo hated him.)

As stated in CFYOW, JJK Summer of Ashes, Autumn of Dust, Chapter 4: Ijichi at Work, Gojo’s style of care is one that is focused on helping the children handle the emotions he couldn’t at their age. (See Pages 116-118 for full context.)

Gojo basically finds children who are like himself and tries to make sure they don’t wind up like him. This is how he has chosen to cope with his trauma.

You could read this as manipulative and selfish if you find Gojo unbearable. It did turn out poorly in the end. But remember how he forced Nanami to speak of Yuji as a person and not a vessel. And how Gojo discusses with him the fragile hearts of youth and how he wants to prepare them for grief. Gojo is anticipating Jujutsu society ruining their lives and acting preemptively.

Gojo also postures in front of the students. As their pillar of stability, he pretends everything is ok because he's the adult in charge. Look at how quickly he buries his grief when they notice something is up.

And each time he does this, it works. He definitely believes what he says and that does make him annoying. However, the students feel secure because he's promising to take responsibility. When he fails them, he blames himself and no one else. That's the attitude of someone that cares despite most of his students not seeing through his arrogance.

Geto Suguru

It's not up for debate that Gojo was in love with Geto. Gojo 100% was gay for Geto. What is up for debate is whether or not the two of them ever acted on it when they had the chance. I lean towards the interpretation that this love was never realized in life. (Gege is a huge fan of yaoi that ends in tragedy.)

I want to make it very clear, after reading the contents of JJK 261, I believe Geto is the one who failed Gojo the most. He had a fundamental misunderstanding of his best friend so bad that he abandoned him and was shocked that Gojo still loved him in the end. It took him until the afterlife to see that all Gojo wanted was him.

Gojo checking in on him wasn't enough, Gojo not killing him for 10 years even though he could've wasn't enough, Gojo saying something that caused Geto to blush before he killed him wasn't enough, Gojo dying and immediately greeting him first wasn't enough. This is when he finally understands.

Before not denying the fact Geto saw Gojo as a self-satisfying Jujutsu pervert who cared about no one else.

Geto was too consumed by his own trauma and hang-ups to see Gojo with love. He wound up doing the exact same thing he killed non-sorcerers for; putting all the burden of their relationship on the strongest and expecting him to do all the work.

And yet somehow Geto was able to find the love Gojo also deserved. He made a family and was surrounded by people who openly loved him and even understood him. It makes me a little bitter.

At one point Geto did understand Gojo a lot. Enough to be his moral center and sense his suffering. He even accepted Gojo's awful personality when everyone else wouldn't. Since their breakup, Gojo has been mourning him. Every little thing Geto told him to do while they were together is something Gojo incorporated into his life.

Using the personal pronouns "Boku" and "Watashi" over "Ore" to be more polite? Done. Not killing ordinary people, even if they suck, because that would be pointless? Done. Even to the point where he spares most curse users or rehabilitates them. He takes care of Geto's family even after he's dead. Looking after the weak because he's strong? Done until it kills him.

Gojo is chasing after a Geto that no longer exists. These little rituals keep that ghost alive. And they turn out to be super beneficial to other people so let's make it another 2 birds and 1 stone that hides the fact he's grieving.

Gojo's Guts

In summary, Gojo does care about other people despite treating them in bizarre and unpleasant ways that aren’t ok. He may be using them as a way to work through his own trauma, but he is also determined to see that they live better lives than himself. 2 birds, 1 stone.

His status as The Strongest isolated him so severely that he was doomed to being misunderstood by everyone he loved. Both because of how Gojo treats them and how they treat his power. (Limitless being the metaphorical and literal barrier between himself and others.)

Gojo wants to give love and be loved but is denied it at every turn. His heart is that of a pathetic sopping-wet cat that pretends it's completely dry.

Narrative Cruelty

The narrative ire for Gojo Satoru cannot be overstated. This person sums it up the best.

After JJK 261, it has become abundantly clear to me that Gojo was intending to die the moment he made the date December 24th (the most romantic day in Japan and the death date of Geto Suguru). He has all this grief and guilt and truly believes that no one living will ever understand or care about him in the way he wants. The only one Gojo believes will understand him is Geto and he wants to be with him. (And that didn't pan out well either.)

Gojo is also refusing to burden the students with being a monster even though they're offering. As an adult he is in the right to do his damndest to make sure the minors in his care don't become as broken as him. He knows being a monster sucks and his whole goal is to put an end to that.

Plus, he blames himself entirely for this situation in the first place. He's taking responsibility by killing the elders to ensure that when he dies, his students don't pay for it. In a way he's correct, failing to kill Geto properly because he loved him is why they're here now. Kenjaku exploited that love to seal him and Gojo knows it.

The Gojo vs Sukuna fight was Gojo effectively committing suicide to be with his one and only love who fundamentally misunderstood him in life and barely understands him even in death. And ironically, the one who kills him is the first and only person relate directly to his suffering and acknowledge him as himself. Sukuna frees Gojo from the title of Strongest and leaves him as Gojo Satoru, appreciating him as the one who cleared his skies.

This is so unbearably cruel it makes my stomach twist just thinking about it.

It's why I want Gojo so desperately to come back to life. I want him to experience love and know that he is loved. I want him to come to terms with his grief and work through it. But we don't get that. He dies and is surrounded by people that barely understand him while claiming to have no regrets.

What's the point of this narrative ire?

Japanese society is largely Buddhist. Detachment, a kind of Stoicism, is a tenant of Buddhism. Emotions are to be let go of. Ideally when they arise, you don’t cling to or bury them. A version of this idea from Zen Buddhism manifests in Japanese culture as a mantra known as Suffering in Silence or Gaman. In summary, if you're hurting, you hide it. That's the proper thing to do. It leans much more towards repression of emotions instead of their release/detachment.

JJK deliberately draws inspiration from Buddhist teachings and imagery so I'm assuming Gojo Satoru being the poster child for Suffering in Silence is intentional. Taking everyone's burdens and pretending it's all ok because he's the strongest and that's what you're supposed to do.

He took on most of the burden for protecting Amanai Riko and they both died for it.

He took on the burden of being stronger, going on missions for both Nanami and Geto while they grieved until they both left him.

He took on the burden of raising Megumi and Tsumiki and look at what happened to both of them.

He took on the burden of every student no questions asked, money food, dealing with higher ups, etc and all but 2 of them treat him kindly.

He took on the burden of killing Geto, which Principal Yaga forced onto him when he was 17 and it came back to bite him 11 years later in Shibuya where he took on the burden of dealing with that veil.

This is a cautionary tale demonstrating just how much this kind of mindset can ruin your life. JJK has always been a massive critique of Japanese societal standards. And despite Gojo rebelling against it, the toxic ideas a part of his upbringing are ones he can't let go of for himself. He believes he can't be fixed, so he paves the way for the future generation with all his body and soul.

That's why this is so cruel.

In life Gojo was treated like an object by everyone around him. His clan saw him as a tool for their glory and pushed everything onto him. The higher ups, Yaga, Nanami wanted to push everything onto him and they did when they could. You can say whatever mean thing you want to him because he can clearly handle it. You can assign whatever mission or task because he's reliable as the strongest but not as a person. He gave his life for others and even his body, only to be scorned by those very ones he's helping. (Think back to how he forced Nanami to speak of Yuji as a person and not a vessel. He doesn't want any of his students to be dehumanized like himself.)

Yuta is only person who stopped to ask if Gojo was ok. He's the only one that noticed his status as a monster was eating him alive. He's the only one who had a problem with everyone talking about Gojo's body like a tool. And to help him be less lonely he asked for explicit permission to be the one to desecrate it.

Gojo doesn't want his students to give up their humanity and be lonely or give their lives to win. He's ok with them taking risks if it means they survive (see Megumi). And from what it looks like, Yuta will be the only one to fully understand him (obtaining his memories and all) and then die as the result of it.

So in a cruel twist of irony, Gojo will have one person know him fully as a monster and they will likely die as the result of it, further justifying his self-isolation in the first place. It's a game he always loses no matter how he plays.

Sukuna wasn't really wrong when he called Kashimo greedy for wanting Love and Strength. With how their society is structured, they really can't have both.

Note: I'm leaving Yuji out of this because he had no idea this was the plan and always saw Gojo as his teacher first, aka a person. This is also his general reaction to Gojo going things alone.

There's still more...

I also want to note Shoko's reaction here is another instance of Gojo not understanding those around him. From her first official character profile it's noted that Shoko has finally quit smoking for 5 years because Utahime asked her to.

Now what is Shoko doing in that panel and during the entire fight? Smoking. She's just mirroring Gojo's own behavior towards her. Pretending everything is ok and saying nothing of her true feelings. After getting blown off emotionally by both Geto and Gojo as a teenager, Shoko gave up on reaching them.

Gojo did this to her for over a decade and she's doing it back to him. Not because they want to me mean to each other, they just don't know how else to deal with their own trauma. To an extent the other students are doing the same. They're just being like their Sensei.

Gojo went out on a suicide mission believing only Yuta and Yuji cared about him in life as a person. (Megumi's getting his own post and believe me it's not fun.) The 2 most empathetic characters were able to let him know they saw his heart. With love it was seen. Other people cared and didn't show it or they flat out treated him like an object. Gojo is both at fault and not at fault for this.

It hurts me a lot and it's very cruel, but I think this has severed its purpose. If you don't tell people how you feel, they'll never know. Emotions will eat you from the inside out and no one will notice because on the surface you look ok. There aren't a lot of people like Yuta who will take the time to look for your heart, so it's better to outright show it. Don't put off grief, it will consume you.

Gege Akutami...when I get you...

Another prominent theme of Umineko is how poorly readers treat the creators of the story they are experiencing. Often times fans will say and wish horrible things on the author when the story they like doesn't go the way they want it to. You're free to feel upset by how this story's direction and critique it to your hearts content, but please remember Gege is a person too. Don't do to Gege what everyone else has done to Gojo.

Remember: "Without love, it cannot be seen."

However JJK ultimately concludes, I make you this promise.

"This game story will not have a happy ending."

[transraccoon]

On transandrophobia and the concept of co-substantiality

I refrained from talking on this topic as it's not a debate in my french leftist circles but seeing how it's prevalent here on tumblr, I think it's a good opportunity to talk about some concepts.

First of all, on a linguistic note, people people create words to suit their needs. The etymology doesn't matter : if transandrophobia is created to description "the specific oppression that trans men suffer", it does not imply that mysandry exists. It's an opression specific to an identity.

This bring me to a critique of some interpretation of intersectionalty. That it would only be intersection of oppressions. As you can't be oppress as a man, there is no intersection between being a man and being trans (so no need to use a different word than general transphobia).

This interpretation is honestly baffling. I'll take an example that I think everybody will agree on : Black men are more often arrested by police (or killed, or put in prison...) than white people because of the racial integral state. But also more than black women, why is that, how can we explain that this police brutality is more harsh on black men ? The same reason as the stereotypes saying that black men are more violent, criminal... This is a specific oppression for black men (who may choose to create a word to describe it).

This is not to say that black men are more opressed than black women. There are differences on the kind of racism that they suffer. Intersectionality is not the addition of oppression, it is used to describe specific interactions of class, race and gender and the social relations associated with them. (even if in general men oppress women, everything depend on the social relations)

(If you'd like to delve deeper into the subject, I suggest you read up theories on subaltern masculinities.)

There are still a lot of critics of intersectionality to do. As a materialist, I prefer the notion of co-substantiality of the social relations (CSSR) (coined by Danièle Kergoat, french sociologist).

A social relation is a antagonistic relation between two social groups around an issue. it's a relation of material and ideal production.

Social relations are co-substantial : they form a knot that cannot be cut at the level of social practices (except from an analytical sociology perspective) and they are co-extensif : when deployed, the social relations of class, gender and race reproduce and co-produce with each other.

CSSR doesn't naturalized the categories for example : "workers and woman" are part of gender and class relations. Sometimes in the struggle, they can form a collectif subject, original in its practices, but a subject always in process and not reductible to that category.

This is the main issue with intersectionality "mapping the margins" this means fixing the categories, naturalizing them. This concept struggles to reflect a shifting and historical relation of domination.

Multiplicity of categories hide the social relations. But we cannot separate social categories and social relations where they were made. Working with those categories is risking to leave blind spot. Spots that can be the strongest aspects of domination, just as they can be bearers of resistance.

Co-substantiality is the complex dynamic interweaving of all social relations; each leaving its mark on the others, modulating each other, building each other up in a reciprocal way; the fact that they form a system does not exclude contradictions between them.

Refusing to reason in terms of fixed entities allows us to put the political subject (and not just the victims of domination) back at the center of analysis, taking into account all its ambivalent and often ambiguous practices.

[bunnyswritings]

ur blog is soo helpful !!!! ive been looking into writing more lately and this is like a godsend <3 i was wondering if u could do some starter tips?? like stuff to avoid as a new writer :o ps. hope ur having a wonderful week!!!

ahhh, hello!! this is such a sweet message, and thank you, i hope you have a fruitful week ahead too ♡ i'm so glad you're writing more lately- i'll def do my best to provide some starter tips (though i'm really also a starter myself 😅 so i hope you like these, and feel free to let me know what you think!) also, just to put it out there that these are what i found helpful personally / what i think will be helpful, and may / may not resonate with everyone. Also, this topic is soooo broad and there are a million things that can be covered, but for now I'll just keep it short and go with stuff to avoid (or rather, approach differently) as per request. if you / anyone else would like another post for more specific writing tips, feel free to drop it in my ask box!

Some general writing tips — stuff to avoid; little things to not overdo

over-planning

overusing fancy vocabulary

over-describing

over-criticising your work

over-comparing

more details under the cut!

Over-planning — plan the general outline, direction of your plot, message of your story, characters and their rough personalities; yes, do all that well! good planning makes for a good story, but i think it's helpful to remember that sometimes things don't pan out the way we envision them to. and it's important to let certain things go, appropriately of course. if your initial storyline doesn't quite fit the characterisation of the protagonist etc (and vice versa), then perhaps it's time to rethink things — and NOT be too hard-up about it. [tldr: be flexible!]

Overusing bombastic vocabulary — i'm sure you've come across millions of writing advice pieces that aim to spruce up your vocabulary with bombastic phrases. by all means go ahead and pick a few that fit the mood and style of your writing. otherwise, i'd say that sometimes, less is more. throwing in fancy words for the sake of it may not be as helpful as you think. there should be a fine balance between using words that add flavour + help to illustrate nuances and using words to make your piece seem complex. simplicity goes a long way, as i've learnt. but having said that, building up a solid repertoire of vocabulary / good phrases is always helpful, the key thing is using those phrases in the right context. definitely easier said than done, so i suggest reading your favourite author's works couple of times through and pick up their way of using language to their advantage.

Over-describing — narration, descriptive language are great, and can really help to nudge your story in the right direction. it helps set the scene, the mood, and all these are critical in writing... BUT! not the same can be applied to describing actions. not every single action has to be written out explicitly — an example: she walks over to the kitchen, turns around, and opens the refrigerator. she then takes out a canned drink, and places the drink on the countertop... etc — you get the point. some things can be left implied, rather than explicit.

Over-criticising your work — ahh, the age-old piece of advice. i do it all the time, and you probably do too... sometimes, being harsh on yourself and on your work may seem like the only way to better yourself and push your limits, but often times, i personally find that this is counter-productive both on the physical and mental front. it wears you down, it is a nidus for dejection and negative vibes. i think the way i try to get round this is by taking pride in my own work; telling myself that 'this is something i wrote, these are my ideas put into prose, these are my thoughts written on paper'. the caveat here is that avoiding being over-critical of your work DOES NOT and should not mean avoiding proofreading. proofreading is extremely crucial to check for grammatical and structural errors (i recommend doing it once or twice yourself, and if possible, getting a fresh pair of eyes to do the same).

Over-comparing — this ties in nicely with the previous point. take pride in your work! this is something original from you and you only, written in your unique style. having authors/writers whom you look up to is essential in moulding your writing style and habits, but should not be the sole focus when you write. remember that every writer is different, every piece of writing is different; this goes even for pieces with similar plots / tropes / character personalities. nuances, subtleties and underlying messages can come through very differently when written by different people. after all, our life journeys are all personal, which is a factor influencing the way we convey messages across through the written word.

and... that's it for now! i really hope that this helps. honestly, i'm scratching the surface here, and there are lots more i can talk about when i have more braincells >_<

feel free to drop any other requests or questions in my ask if you'd like ♡

[bailey-orphic08]

Okay, so- I have this Sander Sides AU that I've had for a long while now. And I think it would be neat to share it with you. I might also make several posts about it. So let me introduce you to:

Sanders Switched is an AU in which the sides' "roles" are switched around. To elaborate, their function (Logan as logic, Patton as morality, ect.) remains the same. Thomas' perception of them is what changes. So where Logan is the voice of reason in canon, another side would take his place. Here's all the sides in Sanders Switched:

Janus: Janus takes the role of Patton as the kind authority figure. He's seen as Thomas' self-preservation and always puts his safety and well-being above all else. He's a sort of motherly figure to the other sides, constantly caring about their well-being and acting as if he's older than them. He's much sweeter than OG Janus, but he still has a sassy side, and lives for gossip.

Remus: Remus takes Roman's role as Thomas' source of inspiration. He is seen as Thomas' comedic side and encourages Thomas to have as much fun as possible. Rather than being a Duke, he presents as a jester. He has issues with his impulsivity, and his jokes tend to be morbid and often mean, but he's overall harmless and much more tame than OG Remus.

The Orange Side: Obviously, I can't say exactly what the Orange Side will be, since we haven't been introduced to him yet. But based off what we do know, I place him in Logan's role as the voice of reason. Assuming he represents wrath of some sort--which is impossible not to believe at this point--he would probably be seen as Thomas' motivation, pushing him to get his work done.

Roman: Most people would probably switch Roman and Remus and make Remus, "good creativity," and Roman, "bad creativity." BUT YOU KNOW WHAT? I'M COMPLICATED AND UNIQUE. So Roman takes the place of Virgil as the original, "antagonist." He is seen as Thomas' pride that pushes delusions that keep Thomas from growing as a person. He arrogant and rude, and claims he is a King rather than a Prince. Because of this, none of the sides really like him at all, with the exception of Janus. But near the end of season one, we discover that Roman only really wanted Thomas to achieve his dreams, and that most of his cockiness hid his secret insecurities. And after Thomas and the other sides realize how important he is, Roman is officially accepted as part of the group.

Patton: Patton takes the role of Janus as the antagonist to all of Thomas' beliefs and the possible leader of the dark sides. He is seen as Thomas' overbearing moral code that constantly tries push harsh rules rooted in Catholic Christianity onto Thomas and the other sides. He is extremely passive aggressive and overly judgmental towards the sides he deems, "wrong." Almost everything he says is a critisism of something Thomas or the other sides do. Despite being so harsh however, he loves puns and making jokes just as much the OG Patton, and loves to torture Logan with his puns.

Logan: Logan takes Remus' place as the bad influence Thomas tries to ignore. He is seen as Thomas' inner critique who judges Thomas for everything he does. He insists that Thomas' lifestyle is, "childish," and that he should abandon it for a, "mature," way of living so that he can live, "a normal, healthy life." He is extremely judgmental and criticizes all the sides for the smallest of details, making everyone hate him, even Janus. Despite this, he generally harmless, and he can easily be ignored.

Virgil: Virgil takes the Orange Side's place as the mysterious secret side that the fandom makes a million theories about. I can't fully explain who he would be, since, again, we haven't been introduced to the Orange Side yet. But for now, he still represents Thomas' anxiety. And when he reveals himself, he will call Thomas and all the sides out on their BS.

That's all for now. It isn't fully developed, and things will surely change when the Orange Side finally does reveal himself. But there's still a lot of things I would like to share. So please let me know if you want know more!

[sirianasims]

Chapter 23

Anywhere Away from Here

Katherine took to motherhood like a duck to water. She was a natural. It seemed like she always knew exactly what to do when the baby cried. I mean Freya – when Freya cried. We named her after Katherine’s grandmother.

Or, well, Katherine named her. I found it difficult to have any real opinion on the matter. But Katherine seemed perfectly able to handle most of the parenting, really.

I wasn’t doing as well.

I could tell that it upset Katherine whenever I accidentally called Freya “the baby”. I tried my best to use her name, but it felt foreign in my mouth.

It didn’t help that I was plagued by doubt. I couldn’t see myself in Freya at all.

Why was her skin so dark? Could the tests be wrong? Maybe she was Antony’s after all.

Katherine claimed that she looked the same when she was a baby, but still. Even what little hair Freya had was dark. I had my mother’s face and my father’s colours and nose – no one had ever questioned my parentage for a second.

I couldn’t tell Katherine how I felt, but it bothered me. I was expected to love this tiny stranger unconditionally, but she was just… a stranger to me. Shouldn’t I feel different if this was really my child?

Then again, my father had told me how he adored my alien brother from the first time he met him, and he definitely wasn’t his real father.

Maybe something was just wrong with me.

My mood was generally terrible. Everything got on my nerves. If Katherine gave me the slightest suggestion, it felt like a harsh criticism.

I knew that she was just trying to be helpful – or desperate to make conversation – but I just felt angry and annoyed all the time.

I didn’t know what to do. If I told her to leave me alone, she’d get mad. If I ignored her, she’d get mad. Either way, we would end up arguing.

The fights got worse. Neither of us got quite enough sleep because of the... because of Freya.

It was becoming clear just how little Katherine and I had in common. After all, our relationship was built on lust, not love. Not even friendship. We never truly got to know each other beyond the passion and the excitement of doing something forbidden.

She’d finally found a job, but it was rough for her to start over from scratch, career-wise. From highly respected dean to “assistant to the manager” in a local business. I tried to be supportive. At least she found a job.

She told me that I didn’t understand. This was the kind of job a new graduate would get, not someone with over 15 years of experience and a PhD. She would have to work for years to make up for lost time, and in a completely unfamiliar field since she would never be allowed to work in education again.

She was right, I didn’t understand. I had no way of knowing how she felt. But even agreeing with her that it sounded tough pissed her off.

She told me that I should be grateful that I was still able to follow my dreams. According to her, this had barely derailed my life at all, I just ended up having kids a bit earlier than I’d planned.

I couldn’t exactly tell her that I had imagined having those kids with someone I actually loved.

Luckily, our arguments were often cut short by Freya.

Katherine would run off to care for her in the middle of an argument, and that would be it.

A pattern emerged. We argued, Freya cried, Katherine went upstairs. Meanwhile, I cleaned up after dinner and poured two glasses of wine.

Katherine would come back a little later, and we’d drink in silence. Sooner or later, one of us would break the silence, pretending that the argument never happened. Neither of us had the energy to continue fighting.

It wasn’t a great solution, but it kept the peace for now. I just needed to take it one day at a time.

We’d spend the evenings mindlessly watching tv until it was time to go to bed. At least whatever we watched gave us something to talk about.

Sometimes, especially after a bit of alcohol, I would forget myself and kiss her, desperate to feel something again, anything. But the fire was gone. At least for me.

Katherine would respond enthusiastically, but it never took long before I panicked. Whenever I accidentally touched her stomach, an intense fear of getting her pregnant again paralysed me and I pushed her away.

Katherine found it hard to deal with. I couldn’t tell her the truth, and I knew she had become very self-conscious about her body. The emergency C-section had left a huge scar and she was covered in stretch marks. And her 40th birthday was looming on the horizon.

I tried to explain that it had nothing to do with her body, but of course she found that hard to believe, given my behaviour. Especially since I had no other reason to give.

She begged me to tell her what was wrong, but I couldn’t. I didn’t want her to think that I was repulsed by her body, but the truth was worse – I resented her.

I felt trapped in a life that was sort of similar and yet completely different to what I had planned.

And somehow, it felt like her fault. After all, hadn’t she been the one to seduce me in her office? But I couldn’t tell her that.

I kept telling her that I was just stressed out. New baby, the vet clinic, our finances, it was a lot.

I assured her that it would get better as Freya got older and we got more sleep. She didn’t believe me, of course.

She was too smart for that.

beginning / previous / next

[mdhwrites]

Honestly It's quite disrespectful and insulting, how Dana cared more about her beef with Disney than making a good show for the fans who supported her, some even financially. I've had it with her extreme fans raging to people when she's criticized for her obvious lack of care on S3 (the story in general), spamming and blaming on Disney and the shortening. Now that's revealed it wasn't Disney's fault for "ruining S3" since there was no S3 to begin with, that just puts more salt on the wound.

And lying about having plans for S3, what was that about? Stirring more hate on Disney? I find that pitiful and pathetic. If fans are gonna get mad at her from this revelation they have the right to do so. Toh should've stayed in the drafts or be written as a freelanche comic

Edit: I do think this person is too harsh on Dana as a person. I'm curious even what they mean by financial support from her fans (her charity livestreams? Unless she does those more often for personal gain but those people would likely donate anyways as just fans of the show) but as I go into below, I do agree that her unprofessionalism is a real problem and that with the fandom she somewhat helped rile up, it makes it frustrating to learn that a lot of this was on vapor. Not lies, but just... Not nearly as much solid foundation as we were led to believe. There is a lot to be said about how Dana, from my understanding, has been one of the most available leads on a show... Period? At bare minimum, for modern cartoons. Like others will talk but Dana was extremely candid. In fact, it feels like she probably learned some lessons from it because the blaming Disney stuff actually went DOWN as the show progressed. Like at least now it's "I wish I could have done more things," rather than, I dunno, just straight up trying to say they're why episodes you're not proud/ of aren't as well regarded didn't turn out.

Which she did.

With S1A.

Before SEASON TWO was out.

Like... You just shit talked literally half of the content that is out for your show and threw your publisher under the process. Why do I think that might not have been received well?

And when I was biggest in the fandom, around the time the news of the shortening happened, you heard a LOT of different explanations from Dana, like it was one executive who made the call or how TOH wasn't a 'part of Disney's brand' or the like. When the Florida stuff came out with Disney, she pretty explicitly called Disney out for it (which is fine and I approve) but then went on to insinuate that it was hard for her to believe that the show had been cancelled for any reason besides representation, a move I DON'T approve of and makes ZERO sense with how they got to do so much more gay shit in S2B and even add new elements like confirming Masha was they/them or confirming Luz being Bi on screen in Thanks to Them. It's not a great look for a director, especially during the times these statements were coming out.

Being unprofessional admittedly doesn't make her a bad person but like... Yeah, I get upset thinking about the contradictions here too. That even in the same post Hoot that she has to admit that the shortening pushed them creatively and they had no real plans, she's still talking like she had plans. Like there was something to be missed when... No. Not for the STORY. Just your bucket of ideas for a perpetual series.

It leans into the idea that saying you were going to do X means you would have done it perfectly. That Dana doesn't understand that the only perfect work is the one never done. She's fine with being remembered for what wasn't there if it means being remembered better. As a creator myself who struggles with putting things to the page... I don't know. It hurts to some extent.

Which just a small update: I've been having real trouble focusing the past couple days. My head is not on well right now. It's why these are being a bit more emotional and late night rather than my normal posts in the morning because that's just how I've felt like doing it. Hope you're all taking care of yourselves and see you next tale.

======+++++======

I have a public Discord for any and all who want to join!

I also have an Amazon page for all of my original works in various forms of character focused romances from cute, teenage romance to erotica series of my past. I have an Ao3 for my fanfiction projects as well if that catches your fancy instead. If you want to hang out with me, I stream from time to time and love to chat with chat.

A Twitter you can follow too

And a Kofi if you like what I do and want to help out with the fact that disability doesn’t pay much.

[hazelira]

blue | HEESEUNG

Alexa, play blue by keshi on Spotify

Heeseung stood in front of the mirror, his reflection staring back at a stranger's face. He traced a finger along the bridge of his nose, feeling the subtle differences. The surgery had removed the implant, restoring his natural look, but it had also taken something from him—his confidence.

"Impatient," he muttered, echoing the words that had become his silent mantra. "Just say it."

The public had not been kind. Comments flooded his social media, criticizing the change. He wasn't handsome anymore, they said. He didn't look the same. The words stung, each a tiny dagger chipping away at his self-esteem.

He was still waiting, he thought, for another round of harsh words, of critical eyes. He wasn't ready for the new faces and places he had to face every day. Photoshoots and filming sessions had become a battleground, each a reminder of his perceived shortcomings.

"I'm fine," he whispered, but the words felt hollow. He knew he’d never make it home—home to the confident and carefree person he once was.

Sixth Street stood before him, a place of solace amid the chaos. He'd come here often, seeking comfort in the familiar sights and sounds. But tonight, even this place felt foreign—the occasion marked by his solitude, a reminder of the changes he couldn't take.

The blue moon hung high, its phases mirroring his turmoil. Three hours, three months away—time blurred into a continuous struggle. He was going back, but he wasn't the same. He didn’t want anyone to see him like this when he didn’t even recognize himself.

"Do we say what we mean?" Heeseung wondered aloud, the question lost in the night. The numb fight within his bloodline was all he knew now. He was dressing up for the date night, playing the part, but inside, he was breaking.

His phone buzzed with another unknown number. "Don't hit my cell," he thought. I don't need your help." He just wanted to lie on the floor to escape the pressure and scrutiny. He didn't know himself anymore, not like before.

Impatient, say it. The words repeated in his mind. He was still waiting, always waiting, for another round of judgment. New faces, new places, but the same old insecurity. He was fine, but he’d never make it home.

Heeseung's steps led him to Sixth Street, the occasion marked by his presence alone. The blue moon watched over him, a silent witness to his pain. He couldn't take all the changes but couldn't stop moving either.

"Tear me to pieces," he thought. "I won't even feel it." The numbness had become his shield, the only thing that made sense. He knew what he needed, but it was always out of reach. Moving on with the seasons, constantly changing, never the same.

He was impatient, say it. He was still waiting for another round. New faces, new places, but the same old feeling. He was fine, but he’d never make it home.

Sixth Street stretched out before him, the occasion marked by his solitude. He couldn't take all of the changes but couldn't stop moving either. The blue moon watched over him, silently witnessing his restless journey.

As the night wore on, Heeseung knew he’d be back. The cycle would continue, the phases and places changing, but the feeling would remain. I am impatient; I am just saying it: I am still waiting for another round. I am always moving, never home.

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

I promise not to bring this up in the future, but don't come at me, I wrote this back when it happened like how some 'fans' were bashing on heeseung, trust me, 🧡🫶🏼

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

M A S T E R L I S T

[bengiyo]

Hi! I'm here for the ask game and ready for you to choose violence! I'm interested in questions #3, 12, 18, and 25. If you don't mind, I want to narrow these questions to BL only, unless you have a particularly violent non-BL answer that's too good not to share. I don't have any specific BLs in mind, but if a restriction like "only those that finished or will finish airing this year" or "not this year" is interesting or productive, have at it. Thanks!

3. screenshot or description of the worst take you've seen on tumblr

I'm just gonna keep talking about La Pluie. I saw multiple reactions calling most of episode 8 boring. I am sorry, but if you came to the show interrogating the concept of soulmates and were bored because the two romantic leads said that they choose each other even if they aren't destined to be together, I think you are too jaded and need to take a break from romance.

Sincerely, it baffles me to see people engaging with genre stories and seemingly getting mad that a show is playing around with the conventions of the drama. The spoiler culture brain rot is destroying media literacy and it really makes me sad that it seems like we're chasing the high of something new and unexpected. This on the website of the people reading the same kind of fanfic for the umpteenth time to get their fix.

I just don't get going into romance and being mad that they're doing the big romance things in a show literally about big romance.

12. the unpopular character that you actually like and why more people should like them

I am going to interpret this to mean a character that the fandom doesn't like, and not just someone that folks don't know about. I could write about Uncle Man from 21 Days Theory, and I've already written about Framboise.

So I'm going to write about Korn from UWMA. Sometimes I will say on the podcast that "y'all don't like gay men when we're not pretty, funny, sexy, or entertaining." I have to suffer through comments about how Kao is a bad actor or that Korn sucks all the time, and both are wrong. Y'all just don't care about the stoic gay boys that try their damndest to pass and quietly suffer.

Korn is a tragic character because he was trying to be the man that he was expected to be, and then Intouch came along. He was harsh to Intouch throughout much of their romance because he knew what he was going to do. You can see the pain leaking out of that man's eyes the entire time. Intouch tried to save him. Hell, they brought Perth Tanapon to cry about their deaths to hammer home how sad the whole thing was.

It just makes me really sad sometimes around here that we're only ever going to get worked up about the loud and flamboyant characters, or the especially pretty and charming ones.

I am here for characters like Korn (UWMA), Mamoru (Kabe Koji), Shiro (WDYEY), Mitsuru (EY), Teh (IPYTM), Cairo (Gameboys), Shin (3WBF), Inthawut (180DLPTU), and many more.

18. it's absolutely criminal that the fandom has been sleeping on...

Currently, I feel some kinda way about how people keep looking for reasons to hate Patts in La Pluie, as if his ideal partner signalling is somehow to be mistrusted. It's just a bit sad for me that folks seem determined to hate the lead in this.

I don't really ever get second lead syndrome that often, so everyone on the Lomfon-Tai train confuses me. Lomfon is RUDE, and I do not fuck with that boy.

25. common fandom complaint that you're sick of hearing

Not a specific complaint, but I've said many times around here that I really hate when folks abuse the tools of criticism to say that they didn't like something. Y'all really don't need to pathologize why you don't like something and reach for flaws in the storytelling or production to justify why you don't like something.

We are a niche fandom. We are not seeing the huge sums of money poured into our productions that huge setpieces are going to get. Y'all need to show a little fucking grace to the creators bringing these things to us.

🔥 choose violence ask game 🔥

[rainbowsky]

Hello, rainbow! hope you’re doing well!

i feel really silly asking this, but how do you view dd’s relationship with his fans? what do you think about it?

i’m new to the fandom so i’m kinda confused, and really don’t know if this has been addressed already.

i feel like every time i see him interacting with fans he looks really annoyed? maybe fed up?

i know lately there has been a lot of instances where he got his privacy invaded by “fans”, and that strains the relationship. but i don’t really know how it was before.

i really really like and support him in everything he does, and i know my thoughts might be misplaced. but i wanted to know your thoughts, if you’re willing to share.

Hi Anon, hope you're well too! 😊

Sorry that I'm so late in answering some of these asks. I've been very busy IRL and haven't had much time lately for Tumblr. I'm trying to get to the ones that are still somewhat relevant.

I got a few asks along the same lines of this one, after DD's recent Chunzhen live (more on that event here).

Disclaimer: This response is for all the anons who asked me this question, not just the Anon above. In fact, the above ask is the least judgmental/critical version of this ask I could find, which is why I'm answering it and not some of the others.

This question comes up a LOT whenever new fans see DD in interviews or at fan events, and especially at live endorsement event fan meets, which I believe he mostly hates (because they're boring and contrived and call upon him to be fake, and he's not fake).

Here is the Chunzhen event with Eng Subs.

People seemed to have an especially big reaction to his response (at 50:15) when he was asked if there's anything he wanted to do with his fans and he said, "Nothing." Which is just a very honest answer, quite typical of the DD we know and love.

And let's face it, what a STUPID question. What on earth would DD want to do with his fans? They don't treat him like a human being. What does he even have in common with most of them? As a star, what's he supposed to want to go camping with them or something? They'd spend the whole time screaming and fawning over him.

Anyway, this sort of response always gets negatively interpreted, and fans read a lot into it and often he gets painted as harsh, ungrateful and mean.

I think a lot of it comes from the toxic positivity that is rampant in most cultures - the idea that we have to come across as exuberantly pleasant or else we're being negative or bad.

DD is a very honest, straightforward person who tells it like it is. That means that sometimes he comes across as harsh to some people, but that's just the cultural judgments/assumptions talking - it's not an accurate assessment of who DD is or what he's really like.

There are expectations around how people should look and behave, and when those expectations aren't met, their behavior is interpreted as negative.

As an autistic person I get this a LOT in my life, and I absolutely hate it. It's one of the things I most loathe about interacting with neurotypical and mixed groups of random people who I'm not familiar with and don't have a trust bond with.

Because I don't have a lot of facial expressions, because I don't deal in subtext and I am forthright and honest, I very frequently get interpreted in negative ways - as 'harsh', 'cold', 'rude', 'blunt' or 'intimidating' - when in fact I'm just talking normally, and when in reality I'm actually happy or cheerful about what I'm talking about. People misread me entirely and take everything I say as having a negative tone, and project all these negative ideas, motives and subtext onto me about what they think I really mean or what they think I'm thinking about them. (More on all that here).

It even happens here on my blog.

It's a big part of why I identify with Lan Zhan so much. In fact, that's how I first learned about GG and DD - because my sister saw The Untamed and thought Lan Zhan was just like me, and urged me to watch the show.

We can hopefully all agree that Lan Zhan isn't a hateful, mean, harsh person. We can agree that he's actually a kind, loving, noble person with a lot of deep emotions and a compassionate heart. It's just that his way of expressing that is different from most other people's way of expressing it. Wei Ying is one of the few people who can see and accept Lan Zhan for who he is, and in return he gets the gift of seeing how funny Lan Zhan really is, how soft-hearted and kind.

DD is like this. He's sweet, charming, funny, kind. And he's also very unique, not like everyone else. He has his own way of expressing himself, and he has never been one to put on a fake face for fans - at least, not in his solo career where he's been at liberty to be himself.

We shouldn't read anything negative or judgmental into this.

Whenever DD has a live fanmeet for an endorsement brand my inbox fills with asks about his supposedly being 'off' or 'upset' or even 'angry', and I think if he is any of those things, it's not about what fans seem to assume. It's not some personal thing or some beef he has with fans. It's quite simply discomfort about being put into an event he doesn't enjoy and feels bored by.

DD isn't a salesman. He's not that kind of guy. And these events, they really call upon those kinds of skills and behaviors. They call upon the star to be a cheerful, up-beat shill for whatever ware is being hawked, and that's not something DD seems to feel comfortable with.

If it was a cool Lego set or some skateboard parts and accessories or a motorcycle helmet he'd probably light right up and knock it out of the park. He'd probably sell the shit out of those things. But drinkable yogurt or massage equipment or facial masques - not really something he's going to get fired up about.

DD isn't fake and isn't really capable of pretending to be interested in something he's not interested in. That's a feature, not a bug. That's a good thing, not a bad thing. HE'S SINCERE.

Once you've become more familiar with DD as a person you'll start to see that it's just his personality. And his fans - the ones who've been with him for a while and know him well - they see him for who he is and they love him for it. They know that he's not going to blow smoke up their ass or give them a bunch of fake sweetness. They appreciate his honesty and accept him for who he is.

Someone is likely to ask me if maybe he was upset about the way Chunzhen was handling the event/the situation with turtles, or if he was sticking it to solo fans after the fucked up demands they've been making and the way they've been abusing his team, so I'll address that here as well:

I doubt it, but it's possible.

Whether solos accept it or not, DD does care about turtles. At the very least, turtles are an important part of DD's fan base (and are not involved with the demands and other BS), and I doubt he would appreciate seeing them mistreated by one of his brands.

Turtles aside, I doubt he enjoys dealing with controversies, or with fan demands or with the way they've been slandering his team online. It's possible either one of those issues - or even both - impacted his demeanour in the event.

But like I said, I really doubt it. He was behaving how he usually does at these things - bored and eager to get it all over with. I didn't see anything unusual to suggest he was particularly upset or angry. He was just doing his job, earning his pay. Nothing more.

[aboutiroh]

I've never interacted with you before why am I blocked?

I’ve thought about whether I should answer this. I think if I were blocked by a blog I’ve never interacted with, I’d also like to know why they blocked me. I would probably not send them an anonymous ask via a different account, but now that we’re here, I think you deserve to know (assuming you really have no idea).

I usually only block bots, but I recently made an exception to that rule so there are two possibilities:

I mistook you for a bot (sorry!)

You’re the one non-bot blog I decided to block. I think this is the more likely scenario. (If you read the rest of this reply and are still extremely confused, it’s probably the former though)

We’ve never directly interacted, but you did follow one of my side blogs and we often interact with the same blogs and posts. The fact that you noticed this soon (within days) that you’re blocked while you didn’t even follow my main blog (as far as I know), just highlights how present we are in each other’s fandom space. I think this is important to point out, as this is the main reason I thought it was necessary to block.

I checked out your blog a couple of weeks ago out of curiosity and some of your posts struck me as negative - actually just plain hateful- towards Palestinians, Arabs, Muslims and anyone who criticizes Israel's current treatment of Gazans. As someone who’s two of four things listed here, I didn’t feel comfortable with the idea of engaging in fandom discourse with you. I figured I’d do both of us (but mainly myself) a favor by preventing that. I genuinely did not mean to hurt your feelings by blocking you or by writing up this reply, but I realize this may come off as harsh. Still, I hope you can respect my decision and not interact with me anymore.

To anyone else reading this: I don't systematically check out blogs I encounter, and I'm especially not actively looking for reasons to unfollow or block people, so you might find yourself thinking that you have similar views with this anon. If that’s the case, feel free to unfollow me or block me yourself. I won’t feel hurt, I promise.

[knightinink]

Please tell me you ship pipbert if, do you allow hc of that ship? If so can you do any pipbert headcanons?

Oh my goodness anon, I certainly do! Pipbert is my absolute 2nd favorite Pip-ship (haha), & I love their relationship! I am hereby opening up the asks to Herbert as well!

Now lets see...

-Their relationship is a very soft & domestic one, so much so that people will tease that they're like a sweet old married couple. This will effectively cause them both to blush up a storm.

-Aesthetic of one has a small family while the other has a huge family? Absolutely. Herbert has, like, six other siblings? Seven? Pip's a little overwhelmed when he first comes to the Pocket family home, but with some reassurances, he eventually warms up to them. They're all extremely interested in the life of a blacksmith, begging Pip to tell them stories of his time in the forge, causing him to fluster, as no one has ever been interested in his life before, aside from Herbert. The latter just looks on with endearment, but will also shoo his siblings away when he can tell that poor Pip's becoming overwhelmed.

-Herbert was the one to teach Pip the ways of being proper when it came to dining to dressing and so on, which is why, during a shared dinner in their private flat, just the two of them, Pip does a double-take when Herbert sets his spoon down (on the wrong side) & picks up his bowl of soup, drinking straight from that. When the redhead catches Pip's bewildered expression, he has to stop himself lest he choke from laughter. "Just because we must be proper in public, my dear Handle, does not mean we must do so in private. Come now, you must want to do the same; indulge yourself!" & Pip can do nothing but laugh & pick up his bowl too. He can be his blacksmith apprenticed, marsh-raised, course & common self around Herbert & feel completely comfortable & safe.

-Because Pip is a hopeless romantic, I like to think he fell first. But due to the harsh criticism of homosexuality of their time, he kept it hidden & continued on his path to Estella. Herbert would eventually catch feelings as well, especially after he mastered the art of reading Pip like an open book & noticed his longward gazes of pure infatuation. Herbert would eventually confess first, to the absolute surprise of poor Pip, who thought it was only he who harbored such feelings, throwing him for a loop. He would worry about Estella & Clara, but Herbert calms him, comforting him that Estella would've been a wretched woman regardless of whether she married Pip or not, & that Clara already knew of Herbert's feelings, & was the one to convince Herbert to say something.

-Despite both being over 6-foot-tall, Herbert is a few inches taller than Pip, which drives the blond crazy.

-Pip is physically stronger than Herbert, due to his apprenticeship as a blacksmith. Herbert never says anything, but he secretly finds that fact very hot & has to do a double-take when he watches Pip lift something that would otherwise be very heavy with ease. Pip then feels embarrassed, remembering when Estella would equate his coarseness & unkemptness to an insult, leaving Herbert to reassure him that he loves this quirk of Pips, & that he shouldn't be embarrassed about something that is so impressive. "Don't listen to what that tarter has to say about you; she doesn't know you like I do."

-Biddy & Joe absolutely LOVE Herbert. When Pip brought him to meet his little family, they didn't care who their Pip loved, as long as he was happy & was treated right. (There's actually a fic about this that I absolutely LOVE that I'll link here!)

-They often go on little trips together (that they secretly call dates but no one needs to know that but them). Whether it be as close as a place within London or a visit to Kent, or as far as Egypt, it doesn't matter; they always enjoy themselves & each other's company.

-While writing this, I've been listening to a playlist of Ruth Etting, & I can't help but be reminded of these two, especially the song "Guilty". As for other songs, they are the epitome of "History Hates Lovers". They were roommates? Oh ho, yes they were! Roommates indeed!

-When Pip's having a bad day or week, Herbert will surprise him with strawberries, fresh from the country. He always jokes, asking if Herbert had to "ram another door in" to get them.

This was so fun to write, anon, Pipbert is such a sweet ship! Feel free to send more asks about them if you'd like!

(& if you have any ask requests about dip, Pip, Damien, & their respective families, feel free to stop by & drop an ask in my askbox!)

[rastronomicals]

What do you expect from your heroes? Are they some kind of unimpeachable paragons of judgment, 50-foot beacons for whom the tough calls are easy, for you? Do you walk around wondering what [fill in your hero's name right here] would do?

Because God, that'd be fucking stupid of you.

You could probably make the case that having heroes is stupid in and of itself; hell, I wouldn't argue. Yet I do have a few.

But the thing I've noticed, especially today, I've noticed, is that these heroes, their mistakes, their miscalculations, their errors, are as glaring, and are as unmistakably apparent as any I might notice from the ones whom I call the villain.

The thing about Steve Albini, I think, was his twin directives. When he landed in Evanston, the burgeoning Chicago scene around him drove him to become a guitarist and a musician, but the nationally-recognized journalism school he was enrolled in pushed him towards becoming a critic. And obviously, because he was hard-wired the way he was, he took both potential undertakings seriously. You* might say too seriously.

The problem in treating with art, the problem with even considering to do so, is that as soon as you start, there are necessarily people engaged in making it, who treat it less seriously than you have already decided to.

And just what the fuck should you do about these people?

Should you perhaps treat them with contempt? I mean, it's one thing not to care about art, and then you let the people who do care prattle on to one another about it. But to merely *pretend* to care? To produce therefore only a semblance of it? Those are serious crimes, or so at least the young Steve Albini thought.**

We live in an era of increasing empathy, and that's not a bad thing. But the thing is, that it's quite possible that those who should be doing better should be spoken to or spoken of in harsh terms.

Albini ended up contrite over those awful things he said, about the Pixies or The Smashing Pumpkins, or about EDM, or sometimes he was only contrite about the way he said them, but either way seems to me from over here that either you soften up, or you die friendless. And that dying friendless, now that I mention it, is something critics often do.

Although I love music very much in the way that Albini did, I don't think I can be said to hate it in the way he did. If I hear a genre that doesn't click, I'll just push myself non-confrontationally away from the table, and say 'this one's not for me.' Which is the right reaction for these times, arguably any other, but doesn't necessarily push myself much, or anyone else.

So Albini's opinions didn't rankle or offend me; they just kinda left me amused, if not always dazzled by the courage it took. But I was also never the target.

The important thing, though, is that almost everything he said, like almost everything he did in a professional capacity, whether it were as a musician or an engineer, and no matter how foul, came from a place that sought integrity in himself and in others.

This world is so, so lackng in people of the same character, that to focus on anything except that character at this lousy, benighted, hero-poor moment in time is doing us all a grave disservice.

_________

(though not I) * and the old me, too.

[visionthefox]

I definitely think you're right about how Eclipse showed up in the dream, how Sun's mind may be trying to get him to move forwards from old Eclipse, it's also interesting that with Eclipse, unlike the others afterwards, Eclipse just walks out, if this were to happen in reality, the endpoint of development could be Eclipse learning to pave his own way without the twins occupying his mind, and the twins(Sun especially, who was the most traumatized, and Moon's right, Sun doesn't have to forgive him, but they can all still move forward) doing the same...The others...Are a lot more absurd Sun is still visibly shaken and scared of Bloodmoon, as one might expect, though it was funny that Bloodmoon sorta broke the 4th wall acknowledging the real them would probably never apologize, could the whole "maybe one day you'll see us as family" thing is in reference to Sun saying "I would've loved to have another brother" to his hallucination a while back? The Catnap one was...Weird, could Sun either still feel salty about Catnap showing up trying to live there, or conversely feel bad about absolutely going off at them? Ruin's was probably wish-fulfillment, since so far there's been no dice for actually restoring the destroyed dimensions(maaaybe Solar could be brought back in some way but so far nothing on reversing that), also could it be that Moon was functioning as a sort of moderator for Sun's emotions, since he told both Bloodmoon and Ruin, two people who Sun currently has very heightened emotions about, to leave as a way to de-escalate? Sun having no tolerance for the Creator is on-brand, and of course the whole buying Fazbear thing seems crystal clear, I think the point where the dream started going off the rails is when the Creator said he wanted to be their dad again, which is something I don't think anybody wants Then everything nosedives with KC, Sun says that they "moved past" everything but who knows if that's fully true, it's interesting that Moon dips out here, it could be that Moon leaving was the indication that the whole dream/nightmare was about to spiral out of control, with Sun's mind pulling out everybody who he's had negative interactions with in the past, if Moon hadn't woke him up would he have seen other people? I am surprised Old Moon didn't show up or was even mentioned Got a bit carried away with the analysis there, who knows if any of this makes sense What do you think?

(me seeying a long ask _ happy sounds_) oh ye ye! I feel in Sun's very organic mind- he knows he must let go, and maybe deep down he wished Eclipse to change- I mean. solar is an eclipse! Sun knows how bad Eclipse had it- but if Moon did change.. why not Eclipse? simple.. this one? is mean to be the copy of that simple minded personality.. and we saw how much this does affect Eclipse he is- while Sun is dreaming-totally having a internal crisis over what - who he is- is he himself? does he keep playing the act? does he finally break free of the chain of trauma? Sun may want Eclipse to find peace.. is why he made Eclipse be still grumpy, but honest. is what he wish- yet soon the mind ran with these "forgiveness" dream into a nightmare of nonesense- as most dream happend to be now BM! totally forgot they ever said that! maybe you be right- Sun is still deep down a good AI- maybe the guilt over "failing" to help BM still hits him- same as Eclipse, he could have step in- but didnt out of fear.. with BM- I feel is a mix of, VA having fun- but also Sun telling himself "what you want for, is this absurd- people just wont change over night" harsh like BM often is! for everyone, as mentioned, is dream going wild as dream do- Creator saying all of this way maybe some old wished Sun had? yet maybe also a bit of nighmare- having him as a dad is way worst- I think so yea- for OldMoon.. I feel if if the dream continued- he could have showed up, break the 4th wall saying all othe most critics his character had- while also being the final goodbye Sun may still need? ohh anon, I love what you bring to the dream theory~ <3 thanks you so so much!

[positivestepshealth]

New Year, New Diet…

It’s nearly January, and that time of year again when you tell yourself ‘New Year, New me’. Did you know the most common New Year’s resolutions are weight loss linked? Did you also know that up to 80% fail?

With all the right intentions, you go ‘all in’ on the latest diet and fitness trend for 4-6 weeks, but just as quickly as it started, it’s all over and you’re back to your old habits, and then say ‘I’ll do a ‘Summer cut actually’, and around we go….

Does that sound familiar? If you really want 2024 to be the year you make lasting changes to your health and fitness, please read on.

How to lose weight fast

Did you know on average 100,000 people search the ‘how to lose weight fast’ plus a whole keep of variations with the same sort of search volume?

How to lose belly fat

‘How to lose belly fat’/ ‘How do you lose stomach fat’ / ‘How to get rid of fat belly’ are other terms searched on Google by 300,000 people per month!

The above sounded a little harsh, I don’t mean to be. However, sometimes we need hard truths – the reason you are failing is because of one keyword I used ‘TREND’. These diet/fitness/health trends are not long-sustainable habits, they are there for the wow factor; the ‘magic answer’ to all your weight loss woes is a new fun and exciting way to get the body of your dreams in no time.

I am sorry to be the one to tell you, but that doesn’t exist. To achieve the body of your dreams and your fitness goals takes work. It’s made up of an accumulation of lots of health habits built over time until they are ingrained into your day-to-day life. I am also sorry to be the one to tell you, it’s nothing new or exciting, in fact, it’s often boring. The same types of exercise, the same types of food, getting good sleep, drinking water etc…

So how about a new challenge for 2024, start the new year by adding the following 5 habits into your day-to-day life. Without fail for 6 weeks, if you can do that start adding more and more until you achieve the lifestyle and health goals you set out for.

If you of course feel like you need that extra guidance we’re here to HELP, but for now, just do these 5 things and then let’s talk some more:

Walking

Get your steps in! I told you it’s boring, but it’s true. Start adding at least 1 walk into your daily routine, that could be a quick 15 minutes at lunchtime or it could be a good hour after dinner. Walk is the best thing you can add to your life, it’s free, and it can be done anywhere and anytime. It’s not only a great form of exercise but I promise you it will do wonders for your mental health too, if you are in a relationship take your spouse at the end of the day and catch up on your day – no phone, just talking – I know, a wild concept, but it works!

Don’t lie to yourself, yes you do have time!

Drink Water

Get that ‘high-quality H20’ down ya! (If you don’t know this reference, I’m afraid we can’t be friends! Unfortunately, I can’t put gifs on our website for fear of copyright, so click HERE instead please) I am actually passionate about hydration, I could be The Water Girl! You won’t see me without a bottle of water, and everyone who’s ever spent time with me will attest to my water bossiness! 

Joking aside, it’s so critical to a healthy body and mind for that matter, so your challenge in the next 6 weeks is to buy one of THESE and drink the whole thing daily. Slow and steady throughout the day.

Water facts

1 – Water & Weight: Adequate water intake may suppress your appetite and boost your metabolism, which contributes to changes on the scale.

2 – Water & Muscles: Water plays a vital function in our muscle gain because it delivers the materials required for constructing protein and glycogen structures, the body’s main sources of energy. So not only does it allow better freedom of movement, but also helps you build muscles good enough for flexing!

3 – Water & Skin: Keeping your body hydrated can reduce wrinkles, yes girl you heard that right! Water keeps your body hydrated and refreshed and helps maintain your skin’s elasticity. In fact, it’s said that people who drink large amounts of water are less likely to suffer from scars and wrinkles, looking generally more youthful!

4 – Water & Mental Health: Some studies have shown that people who regularly drink less water are more likely to develop depression and anxiety. Due to the effects of dehydration on the brain, I’m not a doctor or scientist so I’m linking out to THIS on this one!

Get your 8 hours of sleep

Again I told you this wasn’t going to be exciting, a healthy body and lifestyle isn’t complete without good rest and sleep! You’ll see those social media memes from the fittest-looking people, they are in bed by 9 pm. For years now, me and Luke have been in bed by 9, we get a solid 8 hours plus, and I’m confident it’s had the biggest impact on my mind & body. I’ve written another blog about establishing a good wind-down routine HERE, have a read.

There is actually a lot of evidence to suggest that poor sleep can reduce losing weight. There have been studies which show people with good sleep can lose more than people with poor sleep quality.

So let’s get you tucked up and asleep at a reasonable time for 6 weeks, aiming for 8 hours!

Small and achievable changes to your diet

This will of course depend on your current diet and your goals.

Firstly start using apps like MyFitnessPal which can be incredibly useful for understanding your eating habits and what your calories and macros are looking like currently to understand what needs to be changed.

Secondly establish an eating routine, whereby you eat 3 solid meals daily and regular snacks, so you don’t have spikes in your blood sugar and you don’t end up being RAVENOUS at the end of the day and binge.

Tips for weight control

1- Regular or binge drinking has no place on any healthy diet, yes everything in moderation so 1 beer or a glass of wine with Friday’s dinner is fine! Let’s really get this one in check before anything else, especially after the Christmas period where it may have made a bigger presence.

2 – If weight loss is your goal, let’s start with baby steps. Let’s start with looking at your liquid calories, more often than not people are unknowingly drinking their calories. Not even acknowledging them, they are empty and if you give me the choice of a 500-calorie latte and a filling meal I know what I’m picking.

So maybe your 6-week challenge is to only drink black coffee and water? You’d be shocked by what that alone can do.

3 – Maybe you eat too much fast food, so your challenge can be to each more fresh home-cooked meals with good quality protein and vegetables.

You know your diet, you’re not oblivious. You know where these small positive steps can come in!

Set yourself an achievable exercise plan

Once you’ve done this for 6 weeks let’s add more on!

I hope this has been helpful, as always we are here to support you with your goals. Just get in touch to arrange your FREE consultation! Wishing you all the best in 2024, thanks for reading Francesca 🧡