#i will rb this a couple times in case people dont see it

[tethered-heartstrings]

hiii! just wanted to give everyone a heads up that I am having gender-affirming surgery next week and will very likely not be on very much if at all as I recover. I will try and have memes and posts scheduled but I probably won't be able to make more when those run out. I'll also up my queue/rb my old posts. in my absence please feel free to check out my ao3/fic masterlist and older memes/metas/etc. or my ko-fi if you like what i make!

[wifiwuxians]

i realized my last ask was just a lot of information to say that i like your art. all i wanted to say is that i dont rb bc i know you draw song lan and xue yang platonically and i want to respect that (and your wishes) and i dont wanna bug you. also i do love your songxiao art as well, its very beautiful and they make an absolutely lovely couple together. i feel like i may have failed in my initial mission not to weird you out just by sending my initial ask but i promise im looking respectfully and your art absolutely has value and beauty outside of the realm of shipping and my terrible weird shipper brain aoeiuraiuoer im a multishipper so i absolutely appreciate and love your songxiao works even tho im a songxue main. also you a-qing art is peak and adorable. i never see other artists portray her as perfectly as you do. thank you again for sharing your art and i really hope my asks havent bothered you at all. i just wanted to tell you that youre more appreciated than you might see and some of us just wanna be respectful to your wishes? i guess, i dont know. i know in an ideal world you would have tons of reblogs from people who like these characters and relationships in the same way that you do. i really hope that you get a ton of fans like that because you absolutely deserve it and your art is good enough to persuade people in my opinion (i was just far too far down the songxue hole to ever escape by the time i found your work). dont give up drawing what you love! i'll prolly just make that alt account i was talking abt earlier w/o shipping stuff so i can rb your stuff without making you uncomfortable. please take care and i hope you have a really wonderful day! again, im so sorry if ive bothered you at all. please take care.

^took me so long bc i was making this and its not even good KSDHFJSK

in case you didn't see my response to the other ask: it's only certain ship tags that bother me! you are absolutely welcome to reblog my art even if you ship my notp of notps (which, again, songxue is not. it doesn't even qualify if i'm honest- yes this is probably a direct result of me drawing them so often LMAOOOOO), i love when people appreciate my work and everyone is free to take away whatever they want of it, i'm really sorry to everyone i've made feel like they can't interact with me because of something as overall trivial as shipping. it's just the tagging, guys! that's all i ask, nothing more!

thank you for wanting to respect my boundaries so much though and especially thank you for enjoying my art! even though yes it is in most cases intended as platonic it's really okay to enjoy it anyway. it means a lot to me that you do, and really don't worry about making a whole new blog, if for peace of mind you don't wanna tag it then that's ok but don't go through all that trouble for me PLEASE... you haven't bothered me at all and you're not weird, i'm just sorry if i made you feel this bad agh

(also, A-Qing is BEST GIRL i am always repping A-Qing.. . )

[newvegascowboy]

so ive been going through the reblog webs added to posts since yesterday evening, and coupled with some previous math i've done, I find it really curious that the reblog to like ratio seems to sit at about 1:3 pretty consistently. and let me preface by saying i am not scolding anyone for the ratios of rbs to likes. this is math purely for my own amusement.

I would also like to say: don't base your value as an artist or writer on notecount! do not put more personal emphasis on your notecount or engagement than is absolutely necessary! I am doing this experiment out of curiosity to see where my averages lie. If doing this same experiment is going to put you in a slump, don't do it.

The math I'm going to do here is pretty easy -- I'm just going to divide reblogs by total number of notes in order to find the percentage of reblogs : likes.

So now lets look at some of my rb/like averages!

at the time of writing this, this post has a total of 811 notes with 239 of them being reblogs. 239/811 = .29 or 29%. Easy math.

this one is 253 -> 73 rbs which gives us .28 or 28%. You're getting my roll here.

here has a ratio of 33%. pretty good!

lets get some diversity in here! i dont post solely fallout after all.

this one is 326 -> 93 rbs. 28%.

this hellboy bust has a reblog ratio of 25%.

if i scroll waaay back to one of my most popular posts, the ratio is 1172/313 -> 26%.

Even further back to my most popular art post ever, the ratio is 1686/490 -> 41%.

the average percentage for ALL my art based on these numbers is a solid 30%

so that's good for art. lets check out the ratio of text posts, since text posts seem to have a lot more notes than art posts on tumblr nowadays - lets see if numbers back us up.

this is my most popular text post ever, with a reblog ratio of 44%.

another decently popular text post (for me anyway) with a reblog ratio of 46%!

this one sits at 42%.

this sits at 32%

and this sits the lowest at 29%

averages out to 38%

finally - fics!

im going to be pretty selective here and take from fics and snippets i've written that have a decent handful of notes, just so i can get a better assessment of the ratios. All of these fics have over 20 notes

here -> 23%

here -> 17%

here -> 12%

here -> 14%

this one has the highest ratio at 31%

averages to 19%

so what does this mean?

i mean, basically nothing. all it does is give us hard numbers (at least in my case). I'm a decently popular blog and I have a decent number of followers, but at the end of the day, I am a fallout blog and I post mainly fallout content - and that's pretty niche. Take all this data with a grain of salt. I have no idea how someone else's numbers would compare to mine.

It seems to hold true that text posts do consistently better in terms of engagement, albeit, not really by that much. None of the ratios I looked at were even near 50%. Engagement for fics was the lowest, as I anticipated.

I'm not really an analyst and I don't have the knowhow (or even ability, since I'm not really on any other social media platform) to run this experiment elsewhere. I don't actually know What It Means beyond the fact that tumblr has just shifted a bit further towards being a meme website, rather than a website on which to post art, gifs, or fics. Again -- none of this is done with the intention of likeshaming. Personally, I don't care.

It's been a long running issue within the community, and no amount of likeshaming or yelling is really going to make that change. People are going to reblog if they want to and they won't reblog if they don't it's that easy. As a person who runs a fandom blog, I really can't imagine not reblogging, because well... then I wouldn't have anything to post. But there are any number of reasons why someone choses to like instead of reblog, and at the end of the day, other people out there have explained it better than I can.

[angelmonstrosity]

hey guys, reblog this and ill draw ur oc! open until dec 30 (2017) :]

i need at least 1 picture for reference, so if u have a tag or smth for them, tell me in the tags or link it, or message me if thats easier for you! 

my art blog is here if u wanna check that out

[sirius-blacks-curls]

my marauders headcanons

yall seem to like my sirius ones so i thought i’d try something a little different :)

sirius:

very allergic to cats. still attempts to pet and cuddle any cat he sees (except mrs. norris)

hes definitely colorblind

he hates dealing with his hair so when he has to actually look presentable he asks lily or remus to braid it or style it. otherwise he just leaves it down and only brushes it when it starts getting uncomfortable

he will sometimes switch to his animagus form when he has nightmares, especially after azkaban. when remus wakes up and sees a giant ass dog in his bed instead of his husband he just lays with him and pets him slowly until he wakes up

clingy as FUCK. it took him a couple years to get used to physical affection both from remus and james but once he did he could not get enough

definitely a bottom but would top if asked

he actually really enjoys reading (not that he would ever tell the others about that)

lily taught him how to do eyeliner. he wore it pretty much all the time but the last time he wore it was that halloween. then remus managed to convince him to wear it to their wedding years later because damn it makes him look good

constantly stealing remus’s shirts and sweaters

artist!!! i love the idea of artist sirius!! but instead of like being a painter or illustrator he chose to be a tattoo artist

kind of afraid of spiders, but will pick one up to make someone else stop screaming about it

remus:

i also really love the idea of artist remus but he would be more of a traditional artist

he paints on sirius’s arms and hands when hes bored and like colors in his tattoos

also steals his leather jacket. he painted on one of the sleeves once and sirius didnt wash it for 2 months bc he was afraid of washing the paint off

he acts like he hates being touched (and in most cases he does) but once he’s alone with certain people he trusts enough (sirius, james, lily, etc) he becomes a literal baby and clings to everyone

warm drinks 🥰

little spoon

all his school books have doodles and small paintings in them (by both himself and sirius)

loves cats almost as much as sirius 

plant mom

literally has like 10 plants in his window in the dormitory

will read just about anything he can get his hands on

makes the rest of the marauders stay in/near the shrieking shack on full moons so he knows hes not completely alone

best friends with lily

james:

mom friend

morning person

tries very hard to make all the other marauders morning people bc their sleep schedules are all shit. only succeeded with sirius bc he lived with him over the summer

hates cats which makes remus and sirius very sad

also really enjoys reading but doesnt make an effort to hide it like sirius

makes the other marauders do chores around the dorm since none of them care enough to keep their spaces clean otherwise

that only worked on peter and still only lasted a week

gets very flustered around lily (or regulus, whichever you ship)

basically when hes around someone he likes he turns into a blushy mess

very easy to embarrass

has a weird obsession with bees that he somehow passed on to sirius too

likes to cuddle with sirius and/or remus when hes upset 

very touchy person

breaks his glasses at LEAST twice a week

thinks hes a jock. he is not

peter:

i dont have quite as many for peter but

not as shy as everyone makes him out to be

hes actually pretty much the most sarcastic marauder

he still gets flustered and shy sometimes but not as much as in first/second year

absolute meme lord

helps james come up with pranks to play on sirius

they wouldnt dare play pranks on remus

they value their lives too much to

doesnt really get along with anyone other than those three which is why everyone perceived him as shy

can be kind of an ass

the person sirius would pick up a spider to make him stop screaming about said spider

lily:

highkey super close with sirius and remus

none of the marauders play pranks on her because, similar to why james and peter dont play pranks on remus, they value their lives

except once sirius tried 

just to see what would happen

he put hair dye in her shampoo (god knows how the hell he got ahold of it)

she, with neon pink hair, charmed his favorite pair of combat boots to be the exact same color

and made sure there was no way to undo it

he held a grudge for a bit but eventually embraced it (and also managed to steal a pair of her stockings/tights and a skirt just to see how remus would react)

she and remus had weekly outings after they graduated to talk about their dumbass husbands

this was also how she told him she was pregnant

the way she told him was by not ordering alcohol like she normally would

definitely a dom

likes playing with/doing sirius’s hair

anyway uh yeah feel free to add to this! rbs are much appreciated 🥰

[pyrodigy]

hi its late at night and im hitting a pretty low point (again) as i think of my general presence here so im gonna vent a bit, dont mind me

when i was still on my previous blog and i first started realizing i didnt feel as happy and inspired there as i once was when i first made said blog and genshin rpc was new, it was pretty obvious why that was. the community had become so massive compared to those first couple of months, it had become impossible to keep up with what everyone was posting so people weren’t really engaging with each other’s content anymore, unless they were already friends with those people or those people were ~popular~ and therefore worthy of attention.

it was a completely different atmosphere and not one i was fit to thrive in as i could only display minimum activity as it is seeing as i have a full time job and live alone and providing + looking after myself can be demanding enough as it is without factoring in the fact that i also have other hobbies i wanna do and people i wanna spend time with. i felt the only way i could fix this and restore that early enthusiasm was to downsize significantly, remake my blog and only keep for mutuals people who tend to show a minimum of interest so i could also interact with their posts and ideas without feeling like i was wasting my energy on people who didnt care. so thats what i did.

but i find that cutting in half my number of mutuals so i could better keep up with all of them doesnt change the fact that the community as a whole has grown and that me being mutuals with a small portion of it doesnt spare me from the downsides of a bigger fanbase. making things more manageable for myself doesnt change that other people are too busy to (i know this sounds needy) pay attention to me if im not on the dash 24/7, doesnt change the fact that the evergrowing number of dupes makes it so people have less reason to take an interest in my portrayal, doesnt change the fact that the energy of the rpc as a whole has shifted and people dont have the same expectations they used to.

this is concerning to me as a whole but the most flagrant aspect of it is how it seems most of the rpc only seems to care about (romantic) shipping. not a day goes by that i dont see several of my mutuals make shipping calls or rb strictly romantic memes or say things like ‘someone should kiss my muse’ ‘i want my muse to be happy in a relationship’ ‘whos gonna hold my muse’s hand’.

its extremely harrowing speaking as someone who already has a main (romantic) shipping partner and would rather focus on any other sort of relationships for my muse, because it makes me feel like no matter how much effort i put into developing that with my mutuals, either they’ll always hope it can eventually evolve into romance, OR it’ll just be inherently inferior to whatever romantic ship they write with someone else.

and im not saying this to shame any of the people who prioritize romance in their writing or otherwise find more comfort in it than in other types of dynamics. im not saying that at all, i completely understand the yearning and case in point i dont think a week goes by that i dont have a few minutes of weakness where im tempted to say fuck it and have my muse become all charming or smitten with whoever’s muse happens to be on the dash. i wholeheartedly understand that craving and how comforting it can be to just write some fluff when real life can be so harsh and shitty.

i dont know. i guess i just wish i wasnt left to feel like my diluc isnt worth caring about because hes already taken. i want him to hate and love and care about so many people in so many different ways. and scrolling through this dash lately makes me feel like almost no one else is keeping those doors open.

[kanmom51]

1) For me, I dont get "insecure" when jk interacts with other members but it's a feeling more like "if he's doing this with jin/v/hobi and it's platonic, why wouldn't it be platonic with jimin too?" like, I don't really have the basis to say he's sexually attracted to jimin anymore than he is to namjoon or that he's "softer" for jimin than he is for hobi or taehyung.

2) His physical relationship, which is pretty much the only way I can judge it. with other members is the same as it is with jimin and in cases even more strained with jm. I think too that there are some things, some type of skinship he had with jm that seems special or non platonic, he could have with other members given the chance. I mean, he's kind of bit tae's ear before. I know it's perfectly normal for interactions to "overlap" in group of friends, but I'm no fortune teller either...

3) I mean, I see other couples within their group of friends and one could be squishing a different man cheeks and calling him handsome while his lover is on the side and I wouldn't think it means anything because i already know he's someone else's boyfriend. But ofc with jikook we don't know that.

4) It's not like this is a "doubt" I've always had, actually. I used to notice there were boundaries between jk and the other memebrs but i dont see them anymore. I just started looking at the bigger picture and when it came to him with jm, there wasn't much for me to say "this is so different from the way he interacts with other people". With JM I still see he treats jk way too different from other members, like I dont see him snuggling his face against jin's for example.

5) Like even jk being over jm in the BE unboxing meant little because he'd already done something like that to jin in In The Soop. And as far as I'm concerned, like that anon said, all the members mean the same to jungkook so I cant say "ah yes this same gesture is romantic with jimin but not with jin". To put it shortly, the intimacy everyone talks about, I see jungkook having that same intimacy with all the members.

6 and last) Sorry this got so long. So yeah, I might be only one person but that's what I feel. I wouldn't even say I'm "insecure" tho because I was never sure that they're together to begin with. But i guess seeing jk relating to other people is actually what holds me back from completely believing they're together.

Skinship does not make for a romantic relationship. This is something I have mentioned many times. We cannot impose our Western beliefs and culture on someone who is part of a different culture. Skinship is a thing in SK. Male friends show affection, platonic affection, in ways that would be perceived as non platonic in Western culture. That's just the way it is. So, to base a conclusion there is a romantic or sexual relationship between two men on skinship alone would be wrong.

That's not to say that even then, when it comes to the physical interaction, there isn't a difference when it comes to Jikook. The funny thing is that it's the lack of assertive skinship, at times, with those two, that is louder than anything. Those hesitant light brushes, almost touches, while with the others there is no hesitation what so ever.

But, as I said, skinship isn't why I came to the conclusion they are together. It is so much more complex than that. It's the way they look at each other, it's the way they talk to each other, it's the way the act towards each other, it's the way they talk about each other. It's the big picture, studying their behaviour and changes in behaviour towards each other over the years. The sense of intimacy between them. And to all that add the big moments, those that scream out "we're together": GCFT, GCFS, RB, MAMA 2018, the Feb 2021 Vlive, the "I was with JK" at 4 am interview, the "waking up and seeing JK" is what makes JM happy etc etc.

[obeymematches]

Heya! I hope you’re not too swarmed by requests and that you’re staying healthy 💕 I was hoping for an obey me matchup if that’s okay?

I’m a cis bi girl, ENTP/ENFP, Capricorn sun, Virgo moon, Sagittarius rising (if you’re into astrology these are helpful otherwise just ignore uwu) and a Gryffindor. I have short blonde-ish hair, kind of a golden color ig, with bangs and hazel eyes. I’m a bit tanned and very VERY buff because I do loads of sports, and so I’m also not curvy at all unless you count in *cough* 🍑 My clothing style is kind of a melting pot of cottagecore, dark academia and goth, it makes no sense ik. Also I may have light autism according to my parents, but I’ve never been taken to get diagnosed because my brother has a therapist and two would be too ✨expensive✨

I have two very distinct sides to me that are complete opposites. The only way I can describe it is a goblin qkfbkafjwk. At first glance lot of people think I’m scary looking because I’m quite tall and have a light case of RBS but they dont know it’s just because I’m really tired all the time :) I can appear as a bit stuck up, emotionless and as a big pp energy type of gal, which isnt necessarily false but it’s not completly true either. I would never hurt anyone or anything and if I even see a squashed bug I will absolutely cry. Besides that I am quite emotional but i keep it to myself to my best abilities. Although when I’m happy, I’m really hyper and do little dances/ hug and kiss everything in my proximity. I’m dirty minded, subconsciously flirty and not afraid to talk to people I like. On the other hand, if someone makes an advance on me I’ll assume it’s for a practical joke or that they’re not serious because why would you do that, I’m kind of shit 💫🧚‍♀️

I do tons of sports, mainly swimming and I was close to going to junior Olympics last year (I didnt manage it because I overworked, didnt tell anyone and ended up with an injured shoulder and knee whoopsies). I also pole dance and I love high impact sports like boxing and such even though I don’t have a lot of time to practice those. Some other stuff I can do is horse riding, archery, singing, writing, drawing, stuff like that.

I actually have good grades even though I dont really study. I procrastinate every single thing and end up with better results than the people who worked hard which always makes me feel guilty. I really want to study English literature at Oxford but HAHAHAHA dream on, it will probably never happen, my family isnt exactly the rich kind lol. I’m also Slavic so it isnt even my first language. The only subject I could never do in high school was physics because what the hell is that.

Some other stuff about me is that I’m a foodie and a good cook. I really like taking care of people and comforting them. In my friend group despite being the youngest I’m the eldest sibling friend, aka I enable chaos but never join in, just stirr up a mess and observe from afar 🤠I’m really calm in situations that freak people out, for example I had an infection and was in a lot of pain but i laughed my way through it and while i had my surgery i chatted with the nurse which was overall a good time even though I was half naked and numb from the waist down oop

Relationship wise, not to be horny on main but I just wanna hold hands and make out 🥺🥺 Feelings are terrifying and I may be demi/aromantic which makes me feel really shitty about myself, but maybe I’m wrong. Although to be honest, all I really wanna do is make people happy and pamper them and maybe get some cute jewelry every once in a while because I’m a crow and I like shiny things that I cant afford ✌I’m kind of submissive (not exclusively in a sexual way) in the fact that if my s/o asks me to do something, ANYTHING, I will do it if it kills me.

Anyways, I know this is a lot but I hope it’s okay and I didnt forget anything. Take all the time you need and have a great day 💕💕

———–

Hiiii, thank you for sending in a request, i’m sorry for being like half a year late!! :( :( 

I decided to match you with Diavolo! 

Both of you being extroverted is a good combination as he is a very curious demon, meaning there is always something to talk about. Both of you enjoying others’ company is a huge bonus - no need to worry about boundaries! 

big booty couple

Don’t worry about therapy being expensive, if anyone then a prince can afford that for sure - not just that, he is as wholesome as it can get so you wouldn’t have to metion it. He wants the best for his princess!!! don’t mind the cost!!! (unless him paying for you would make you uncomfy… just be open about it darling)

You mentioned that you have a sibling. In a healthy relationship it is important that your partner and your sibling(s) can get along, which might lead to conflict in some cases - BUT NOT IN THIS ONE i mean Dia might overwhelm your family (being a prince and a demon u know) but he would really try his best for you and that is what matters!  

(i feel appearig tired all the time fghjk) 

Anyways your appearance wouldn’t like scare him off ar anything. Man is huge and strong but also a very sweet himbo

He falls for your soft side ngl. Like you crying over a bug is just so cute how could he not- 

Oh darling he knows how to deal with ppl who keep to themselves.. have you ever heard about his 2 best men? 👀 you wouldn’t have much chance at keeping your emotions from him. He wants this relationship to be healthy!! he cares for you so much!!! also who couldve hurt you emotionally i mean who wants to mess with a future queen… it’s his personal job to make your feelings be safe!!!! 

its all worth it because spending time with a happy you is the best thing that has ever happened to him 

you’re fun and he’s fun and its unlimited fun!!!!! 

your confidence when it comes to talking to ppl you like is great!! not everyone dares talking to him, which makes him lonely

but yea he is going to be the one to make the first move 

you have the range when it coes to sports which is, again, nice as he is curious. you are going to have to help him try out all that!! 

super interested in your hobbies and activities, which is a green flag! definitely indulging. 

i think he is very supportive of your studies and he is going to do his best to support your studies at RAD. you could definitely impress him with your talent!!

 hopefully studying at his academy is as good as your dreams of oxford 

he can only hope that

i think he would appraciate your calm approach to life! he is also the same, although he has some baggage hidden under the surface  - but no worries, he is going to open up when he realizes that he can trust you with his emotions. 

you beig dependable is also a nice bonus, but he will have to make sure not to ask too much from you - knowing you are going to push yourself too much if needed. 

you two would do like healthy couples do - every week there is a date; either a chat over tea which he likes and wants to share with you, or doing sports with you, or going go-karting, honestly the options are unlimited with this combination. 

its imprtant that you both can depend on the other emotionally as well 

one conflict might be because of his title, and also because you both tend to keep emotions to yourself. once you two can overcome these i think it should be a very healthy and mature and fun relationship! i think he would definitely fall for you but if you wanted to stay just friends he would be down too. he just can’t lose the one living person he can actually be himself around, can he ? 

[voidselfshipp]

The Mystery Before The Revelation

(pLZ RB WITH Y'ALLS THOUGHTS ON IT!!!IM SO EXCITED TO START THIS FIC!!!,SO OK TO RB).

Theres also some oc stuff here.

♡~♡~♡~♡

Two girls ran amok in the yard, playing tag.

--You cant catch me!-one of the girls say while runnin.

The sun is setting and its almost dinner time.

--Enola!jerico!come inside girls the dinner ready!.

Jerico and elona were the best of friends,partners in mischiefs and confidants to the other.

Elona remembers jeri as being very close, inseparable, she almost lived with her.

But when elona left looking for her mother jer also left.

She thought she never see her again.

Until a couple of years later.

Enola is talking with her two older brothers,Microft and Sherlock.

--Oh dear sister I think youll find this visit very enjoyable--microft said.

--What makes you think that?--they werent on the best of terms.

--Well you shall see- he said again.

But she wasnt the only one surprised by the visit...but also Sherlock.

Jerico got off the carriage,she lifts her eyes, and enola gasps.

They ran to eachother hugging the other.

--Oh my god!its you!

Jer smiled-- hey been a while.

But Sherlocks eyes are there, stuck like glue to his sisters childhood friend.

--Sherlock?Sherlock!snap out of it!-- microft yells in his ear.

--I heard you the first time brother...no need to yell.

They approach both women.

--microft,Sherlock!--jer hugs the detective with a huge smile-- there you are! My my youve grown to be a lovely Man

--And I see youve flourished into a most beautiful woman

He holds her hands, kissing her knuckles.

Enola huffs breaking the moment by grabbing jericos arm--lets get to my lodge and talk, shall we?...

--Why,of course!--the woman bows and locks eyes with Sherlock, winking at him--ill see you gentlemen around...

And so off they went.

The detective sighs dreamily as he sees her leave.

-- I heard you got into some trouble--jer said sipping idly from her tea.

--Well,the adventures of my teenage Years are behind me..

They meet their gazes and burst into laughter.

--Ive missed you--the english woman says.

--Me too..

--So,i see your people are getting ready for something big

--Yes it is...this Year is the year of the big revelation, I cant wait

--Neither does the press apparently-- Both women chuckle.--I saw you looking at my brother with bedroom eyes

--well he is quite the looker enola, what can I say?

Enolas face contorns in disgust,Rolling her eyes--i cant Belive you have a crush on my brother,youve known him since we were kids, plus hes an old Man

--Well I wouldnt call it a crush, just interest

--Im sorry to be the one saying this to you,but your taste in men is questionable...

--You dont like me being interested in your brother at all, do you?

--Can we just-- change subjects?please?

Jeri nodds--Ill take that as a Yes

Meanwhile Sherlock was back at his Office,aparently jerico Will be with his sister the whole day, well he cant blame them,they were very close and he imagines they wanted to catch up.

But what are these New feelings in his chest?,he could barely speak when she talked to him, and those eyes, they had him eating form her hand.

Maybe its just that he missed her too, or thats what he wanted himself to think;even though he was foolishly hiding the true feelings he felt.

He puts the letter down,jericos family couldnt Keep away could they?.

--Jericos dad wants me to work a case for them, why?why now?....

And somehow he decided to accept the case.

He went to their house the Next day, at the crack of dawn.

The beautiful garden was full of flowers,he could barely recall them all.

The big Stone mansion seemed to reach the Sky, plants growing on the old old house.

And of course....those sunflowers infront of the entrance.

Its cold.

--Oh its you Sherlock...

--Yeah missed you too vica

Vica wasnt a fan of Sherlock...since jericó was sixteen, but kindly made him come into the house.

--Oh Sherlock!--Illa, vicas partner greeted him with a hug--The tea is ready,master von terra is waiting for you in his study

--And jerico?

--Sleeping,the trip here left her very tired...

--going overseas is very tiring , alright could you show me to míster Von Terras study illa?

--Why of course!

The long flight of stairs Led to a long Passage way, they Turned a corner and in the end was the gloomy Office of jericos father.

Sherlock entered and sat infront of him.

--Sherlock...welcome...--the Man turns in his chair to meet Holmes--Im glad you accepted the case...

--Yes,but I have to inform you sir, that I am more of a detective, I solve crimes, not a private investigator...

Jers father was always very scary and serious.

--Yes well...I suspect you didnt accept the case because of money, did you?but thats besides the point, lets talk bussines...--he gives Sherlock a folder-- look mister Holmes,this is something very serious, something very important for humanity itself, we need to make sure it all goes smoothly,understood?

Important to humanity itself?now he was interested.

--Yes...mister von terra,I understand...

In another room jerico woke up to vica, patting her back.

--Okay wizquepu--they say--wake up, get cleaned up and rest, we have some guests over

--Hmm...--jerico said,sleepily--thanks void...

--Youre welcome sweetheart, I picked a nice dress for you to wear at breakfast

--Dress?-jer sits up on the bed-- who is it?

--Someone whose also excited to see you, come on now

Vica stands up, leaving the room.

Who the hell could it be?.

--So you see Sherlock,i cant disclose what it is...--Von terra said.

--If you dont tell me I cant help...

--Do as youre asked mister Holmes and you Will be greatly rewarded...head to the dining room,my daughter Will join Us for breakfast and I expect you to be on your best behaviour...

Sherlock bites his tongue but nodds heading outside.

Ray turns his back looking at the chimney.

Sherlock hears him mutter as he leaves the room-- the fate of humanity rests on this encounter...

[kuragin]

Likes are a private bookmark system and should not go on someone’s dash why would you want that

bc the ratio of likes to reblogs has been going steadily off kilter for years (double + triple the amnt of likes to reblogs) and it’s limiting the exposure that artists, writers, gifmakers, etc., and other content creators have to their work while maintaining original credit AND showing appreciation for that content.

heres an example of a fanwork that i reblogged back in november 2019 with 10k notes: 

notice how the ratio of likes to reblogs is 3x more?

okay now here’s a fanwork i reblogged in 2015 that has around 10k notes:

okay it’s evened out a lot and there’s only a couple hundred more likes lets go back in time some more to the Depths of my blog archive. (but tbh it was super difficult to find a fanwork that only had 10k notes and i could barely find anything that didn’t have 100k+ so i looked everywhere) a fanwork from 2013 that has around 10k notes:

there’s about 500 more rbs than there are likes. its not hard to reblog something you enjoy. in this case (if you didnt click the links) all of these were harry potter fanart (i only chose hp fanart because hp content is the reason i started this blog and i figured i would have the most amnt of it, and while you can account for the fact that Harry Potter is Bad or whatever i tried to find stuff that had the same range of ~10k notes). 

if you want to privately bookmark something you can set it as a private reblog and tag it with something so you can find it again. im sure there is a percentage of people that sparingly use the ‘like’ function as a bookmark system, but if there is i haven’t met them. i dont get why anyone needs to only like a fanart and keep as a private bookmark. imo the tagging + rbing system on tumblr is way better suited to ANY form of recordkeeping. and if youre too lazy to tag your reblogs download xkit.

im not an artist or author or anything, but it really sucks to see how back in Ye Olde Tumblr Days basically nobody used the like function unless it was for like, “oh so i know that i reblogged this already” or “im showing my support for this post that OP doesn’t want reblogged” or “i like this thing A Lot I’m Going to Heart it and Reblog It” reasons and not as a substitute for reblogging. i think a lot of this came out of ideas of “cringe culture” and the end of the superwholock era on tunglr, and that the idea that your blog exists to be curated to those that follow you for a specific set of interests. certainly i think everyone’s become too self conscious of the fact that theyre on a dying platform that relies on the curation of a unique, anonymous, and relatable identity where it’s very easy to interact with other people without being intimidated by things like amount of followers, and any slip up into “cringe” things like fandom/fanart results in alienation from other users. i’ve been on this website for 6+ years now and while im certainly not denying that i have almost 2x more likes than i do reblogs to my main (150k likes, 80k rbs), i can say that my habits of reblogging/liking things certainly haven’t changed and when i see original creations that i enjoy, i reblog it. besides, its not like anyone’s liking porn anymore. 

[liquidstar]

I think I may have ocd and I think tumblr May be causing me anxiety what should I do? I’m thinking on deleting my account or at least just the app, I don’t even know how or why I get so stressful but every now and then I see myself checking my post’s notes to see how much it has accumulated on likes and reblogs and I feel like it’s becoming a vicious cycle, I got around 600 followers which might not be much but I am afraid they may worry if I stop posting (...) what should I do?

i completely understand how you feel anon. to address the ocd part, i dont have enough details to tell you whether that sounds like it or not but if youre thinking about it im sure you have a good idea of what it is and your symptoms and i really do recommend talking to a professional, though if you cant its encouraged to try to seek out your own resources and confide in people in your support group whenever you can, and if you have anything you wanna ask you can always dm me or send me another ask, i dont mind! im not a professional, but i can always share my own experience and the knowledge i DO have on it

as for tumblr... well, its really your choice at the end of the day, but if youre unhappy then dont force yourself to stay. if you dont wanna leave all together maybe you should remake? maybe having a certain amount of followers is just stressful for you and youd be happier and more calm if you had a smaller account where you mainly interacted with your friends and filtered fandom content, it could be a good chance to start over. i suggest keeping your old blog up just in case though, and if you WANT you can use it to redirect people to your new one but that might delete the purpose of going somewhere new. remember, youre in control of your own experiences online and youre allowed to make a safer space for yourself, you dont owe anyone anything just because you have a blog, you can move or delete if you want to, and if youre worried about your followers getting concerned you can just post a message and self-rb it a couple times. like i said it all comes down to what you feel is right, so this is more of a suggestion than something im saying you HAVE to do. 

i hope that helps enough anon u_u im sorry if my response is a bit subpar but like i said im not a professional, im just a random person with a blog, so consider what you think the best route is for yourself. good luck anon, i believe in u :)

[jadecringecomp]

jade, of course, is still trying to deflect rather than own up to anything at all. im too lazy for screenshots so youre going to have to deal with text for this one. you can see their post here though. and if receipts are needed they are most likely on the callout blog or you can come to me if you cant find them.

“uses their own dead grandma as leverage out of nowhere literally months after the original argument”

jade are you really that braindead. like youre still just proving my previous point. youre still practically shitting on me for it. i gave a reason as to why that night was so traumatic for me because you keep trying to make it seem “like it wasnt that bad” by your own words!

also like uh, jade. you yourself have used your aunt having cancer as a reason to just... excuse every single action youve done. so again, take that and choke.

“abuses their own bf/ex but its fine because he abused her first lolololol!!!”

jade i... honestly have no words. youre still defending a pedophile, and you even admit he abused me. like, yes, i cheated on him. but how does the fact he is a pedophilic abuser not process through your head. why are you so set on defending that. a genuine question.

“flips back and forth on whether they were actually abused or not whenever it benefits her“

theres... nowhere that even says that in the link you posted. are you posting that to still try and imply i lied about the abuse you inflicted upon me or...?

“refriends their own ‘abuser’”

ok well one jade, you still have no actual proof ive befriended broden at all. all you have is a like on a fucking post. really how braindead is it possible to be at this point.

and regarding bailey, i never called her my abuser. you were the one to do that. you said she abused me after i showed you screenshots of what went down between us. and whats worse after i even came to you and showed you the screenshots and you got involved with that mess?? you still wanna try and say what happened was fake. like you wanna call me two-faced, yet youre so quick to change your mind once you realize that person doesnt benefit you anymore. 

also! for someone whos a survivor of abuse, you sure as hell dont realize a common thing between us survivors is literally going back to those who’ve hurt them right?? like you keep bringing this up as if im fucking lying about the whole thing when im not since again, i came to you while we were friends with the proof. i can even post them if need be. and honestly it doesnt even fucking matter anymore ive broken contact with her after shortly realizing my mistake.

“denies other ppls abuse just because they doesnt like them and a few vent discord messages means they knows literally everything abt it“

i can admit to saying i denied your abuse because there is actual proof that you werent abused two years ago, not because i dont like you. do you really just think nobody will believe proof right in front of them jade??? do you think youre some perfect princess who can do no wrong???? like jade the proof is right @deeancie, @estweri, @honeykeis-callout, and even here. you really expect me to just not believe it if i didnt hate you. you honestly need some real fucking help if thats the case jade.

and really like. if you say your bf clams up when you go to him... what else am i supposed to believe. sure i can be wrong, but reading that shit can really make you wonder what is going on between you two. and jade you wanna say that like you yourself dont do that shit. remember all the times you read vague text posts and would go on a tangent as if you knew every little thing about what was going on in my life. yeah kinda what i thought.

“says grooming minors is talking to people One time“

i love how you fail to leave out the fact that these people were minors and that youre practically defending loli. so if youre still talking to these minors and since youre still defending loli, then yes youre grooming minors into thinking loli is ok.

“straight up let a minor into their porn server on discord (they can go as rabid about this as they want but they still straight up showed an actual minor graphic porn but IM a pedophile bc i rb anime sometimes lmfao)”

again its been resolved. like ive acknowledged it was wrong of me to do and ive changed it. and how can you say you just rb anime sometimes when. you literally are reblogging this kind of fuckshit. like do you not remember reblogging that obviously naked child in a collar or what. the difference is i realized my wrong and changed it while youre still rbing actual loli.

“lied about the relationship (the one where they abused each other and she cheated on him with her other abuser???) having elements of pedophilia because they lied about her age”

this is so... ive told you i forgot. the ages. i was literally an age off for the both of us. like what else do you want me to do about this.

“has sketchy as fuck ocs, including one thats physically ten who would force their adult self insert to be naked around them and also drew them being physically beaten“

while the first was true (but i dont have that oc anymore), where in the fuck did i draw them being physically beaten lole??? are you pulling this out of your ass to deflect you yourself rbing beaten children????

and i swear to god if you bring up this comic, im going to scream.

“is a stalker and an abuser. by their own logic“

ok like. a couple of things to this. jade when are you going to get it through your thick skull i didnt give a shit if you were lurking or not, it was the fact you would comment on my every move. which is stalking by the way and incredibly creepy like get a life!

and an abuser “by my own logic”. the link you shared, again, doesnt show that anywhere. also with how badly of a hypocrite you are, thats you. you told me it was abusive to call people delusional. you started doing that once i realized my wrong and stopped. you told me it was abusive. you told me making people relapse was abusive. yet once i relapse you still didnt give a shit and somehow that makes you in the clear (though i still dont give a shit we both literally did that to ourselves the point is youre an abuser too to your own logic). you said trying to gaslight people is abusive (which it is). look at the stacks of proof i have of you gaslighting me. like i could go on but all the proof if here on this blog.

“oh and dont forget they foamed at the mouth that i didnt instantly know when they changed their pronouns but has been proven to have Actually knowingly misgendered me for weeks“

jade the fact you were lurking should make it fucking obvious you should have known my pronouns. and for weeks?? jade i misgendered you in your callout, which i immediately changed once pointed out. will you please stop lying to make yourself look victim and just tell the truth for once in your life.

“also apparently i can call them rae and its not deadnaming because its not their birthname so“

oh my god youre literally fucking braindead it hurts to watch at this point. no rae isnt my deadname. but i do prefer not going my that. the whole point of that was that you tried screaming transphobia because someone called you by a previous name you went by. you fucking dumbass.

“claims to have bpd but doesnt even know what cluster b is holy shit!!!“

what do i even say to this jade?? what does the fact i didnt know what that was at first matter to me having bpd??? also are you just gonna shrug off the fact that you first claimed you got misdiagnosed with autsim, then suddenly you do? you claimed to have bipolar disorder, then later you suddenly decide you have bpd??? kind of sketchy if you ask me!

“tries to send anons under my name but forgot that their friend levi doesnt even have me blocked so why the fuck would i go on anon if i would ‘sign’ it anyway hm“

a....... are you implying i was the one to send those....? is it because you realized once you did so it backfired?? jade for someone who wanted to claim i was the one making up conspiracies, you sure make up a lot of them.

in conclusion: jade you still are just deflecting! you still havent defended any of the shit me or my friends have called you out for! the fact you still havent admitted to them or so much as even defended the claims sure does speak a lot! stop deflecting and lying and just fucking come out about it!

[franeridart]

hi. hello. this is a bit embarrassing but i'm trying to buy my bf a tablet sort of thing so he can draw his arts. he's been wanting one forever but hasn't rly shown me which one he wants. i want to surprise him n buy a good one worth the money n was just curious if you had any suggestions. i've looked into wacom products, but i'm just such a noob to these things n was hoping you can help... i understand if this is silly, you don't have to reply! ur just so amazing, ur opinion is trustworthy 😅☺️

Okay, so, this is just my opinion and since it’s based completely on personal experiences it’s gonna possibly be incredibly different from other people’s opinions, so I just wanna make clear from the start that this is a personal preference and isn’t in any way meant as an absolute truth

Anyway, as far as I’m concerned when you’re just starting out you don’t need anything fancy at all. As an aspiring digital artist your bf might have looked up tablets and cried tears of blood over how much he’d like a cintiq or anything similar, but my very personal opinion is that fancy stuff is gonna be pretty much useless to you and be generally a waste of money? You’re just learning, you don’t need anything more than the basics. My suggestion is that you pick something simple and easy to use - I own this wacom intuos, had it for a long while and I like it a lot, but there’s also less expensive options you can go for too that people seem to like just as much! I’ve lately read on my dash about the Huion H610, they say it doesn’t cost much at all but it’s just as good as the Intuos, that could be a good option for you~

Anon said:  Hey!!! I was wondering if its ok to rb your oc art? I realized a lot less people rb those and i get anxious easily so... also i really don't want to disrespect either! But i always thought of rebloging as a way of saying "i appreciate your art" and i really really (really ) like yours (both the style and itself in general). (I hope you dont mind my bad english ha ha) i hope you don't mind this stupid ask! Im still kind of new to tumblr

It’s 100% okay!!!! *O* Thank you for liking them enough to want to reblog them ;A; !!!!

Anon said:i miss ur bokuroteru so much 😭💕 i love ur art but whenever i see ur header, i just remember ur bokuroteru comic and my heart cries storms for them to be seen again.

Aw anon I’m super happy you like my stuff for those three but as of now inspiration in that department is... super low... and tbh the haikyuu fandom is being incredibly unresponsive and non-vocal about their appreciation of fanworks in this period so even when I do have ideas for that fandom I sort of. Let them go. Or just sketch them out and never finish them.

Like, you know the whole deal about having to draw for yourself and not for others? That’s what I do 100% of the times when I’m starting a drawing, but to draw for myself I don’t exactly need to finish a drawing, you know? Sometimes there’s a scene I wanna see and I sketch it out in a super rough way and as far as my personal desire to see it goes I’m satisfied with that, and everything after that - the cleaning and lining and maybe even coloring - I put the effort in it because I want to share it with people. And the deal with the Hq!! fandom lately is that they don’t share my excitement for it. They either only like it, or don’t comment on it, or comment only to complain about this or that thing. In the worst case posting hq!! only ends up with people asking me to draw something else (ie I feel like drawing Karasuno so I draw it and post it and no one comments/rb/says anything about it but there’s 20 asks in my inbox asking me why I haven’t drawn any bok*ro lately)

When I think about posting stuff for hq lately I automatically compare it to posting stuff for bnha where I could draw a background character that appeared once 120 chapters ago and there’s still gonna be people that go “yes! that character!! I love that character!!! can’t believe there’s actual art for it oh my god!!!!” - that’s... that’s the sort of reaction that makes you wanna share stuff

I dunno, maybe I’m just expecting too much out of the hq fandom. But anyway, sharing for bnha makes me way happier and glad I decided to finish a drawing lately, so I guess that’s what’s happening there.

Anon said:Every time your soft doods art shows up on my dash I have to pause and take a deep breath and just thank god for all the good in the world because I'm blown away every single time

This is s o s w e e t oh my god ;A; thank you so much!!!!

Anon said:Johnny is a fucking angel dammit. Have you read the new DGM already?? I'm in tears. I love this manga so much. The frequency of the releases are killing me... it has such a great story and great characters. It needs more love

I did read it!!!! And yeah the fandom used to be way bigger, but honestly I’m glad it’s just the couple dozens people it is. Like a small town where everyone knows everyone else. No drama, no discourse. Everyone ships what they want and we all pass each other tissues to dry the tears. The only argument that happens regularly is people complaining about the relase schedule and the old fans telling them to let Hoshino live. A good place, this fandom’s a good place.

DGM was my playground for most of my experimenting as far as creating art goes, I really did reach in all directions with it through the years and it helped me shape myself a lot, so I really want it to stay quiet and nice and peaceful, that’s my dream for it haha smaller fandoms have a better chance to keep that freedom

Anon said: Oh man, I live for that Togata x Amajiki interaction

You talking about the color spread cause yes that was adorable!!! ;A;

Anon said:I look a little, and do you still draw Bakugo x Kirishima x Kaminari?

Sure, it’s still my main ship for Kaminari and my main ot3! Just wait for Denki to start being relevant in the manga again, I’ll probably fall headfirst into it all over again haha

Anon said:Your art is so wonderful you're wonderful everything's so wonderful i'm crying omg

SOB no anon you’re wonderful!!!!

Anon said:Due to my brain not wanting to cooperate with me (ever), Bakugou Katsuki is now Batsuki Katsuki in my head.

This is the funniest thing I’ve read today and I’m in t e a r s hahaha

Anon said:Artistic!Mina making pop art and colorful paintings :o what are ur thoughts

HELL YES that’s my main headcanon for Mina, she’s definitely an artsy girl!!! I like the idea of her sharing it with Bakugou t b h

Anon said:I'm still just repeatedly looking at your newest KiriBaku because hot damn.

I’m super glad you liked it!!!!!!! oh my gOD!!!!!!!

Anon said:Heyy please rec Kami comics please! I'm in a Kami art shortage and I currently can't find art as awesome as yours...

I’m so sorry I wish I could help you with this but I don’t know anyone who draws lotsa Kaminari either ;---;

[dragonji]

check in tag time ! thanks @transyebaiyi for the tag im sending u So many keeses<333

under the cut bc im very wordy hehe

why did you choose your url?

as my pinned states, my two passions in life are dragons and pretty boys of which lwj is the prettiest of them all so ofc i just had to combine them<3 i also Really Love dragon lwj content in general  (as for my usual url crow-n-prince it's my semi professional one! i use it for art related things and it's meant to be a play on crown prince-> crow (one of my other fave things) and prince)

any side blogs? if you have them: name them and why you have them

none that i really use anymore! i used to be pretty active on wonhostransbf for kpop stuff and i have around 30 saved urls for various themes but i gave up and just keep everything on main.. full medley soup here on dragonji dot tumblr dot com baybee ( bonus some highlights of my saved urls are wangjimp3, yanfus, poetswordsman, disconcernings, and t4tlwj)

how long you've been on tumblr?

i?? think since early high school so.. around 6 years?

do you have a queue tag?

i actually just started one like last week! it's "i would wait for q" which i felt was suitably gay longing of me (not that i really need a queue tag rn since im online constantly anyways-)

why did you start your blog in the first place?

uhh i think mainly to post art? and keep up with my interests at the time so not much different from what i use it for currently

why did you choose your icon?

all my recent icons have been lwj for ahem kinnie reasons also i figured i should use my own art sometime and since i managed to finish some lwj art for pride it just worked out :3

why did you choose your header?

it started as a joke bc i was like oh funny haha the kfc tgcf promo pic but i actually really love the colors and got too attached... it just feels warm and also means i get to look at hualian whenever i want so it stayed<3

what's your post with the most notes?

probably this nhs art for his bday a couple years ago and honestly deserved I spent So long on that thing

how many mutuals do you have?

around.. 20?? maybe 30? but only a handful that i consider true Mutuals u know

how many followers do you have?

494 but most are inactive or from like years ago

how many people do you follow?

1300... i need to go thru bc i've never actually cleaned out my following list but thats a lot of work so i'll keep putting it off

have you ever made a shitpost?

i dont think so? i just kind of post for me if ppl reblog it thats on them

how often do you use tumblr a day?

i am quite literally always on these days unfortunately<3 during school i check whenever i get breaks and during the evenings + a good few hours before i go to sleep i'm usually hanging out while watching shows/reading other stuff

did you have a fight/argument with another blog once? who won? 

besides the anon from the other day no not really. I much prefer to avoid confrontation in general and usually just block pretty liberally to cut off that kind of thing before it gets bad. it helps that im not a very popular blog so complete strangers dont feel entitled to start shit randomly lol

how do you feel about "you need to reblog this" posts?

kind of.. greasy in general :/ if it's an important issue i would rather find informative or relevant posts without that kind of phrasing but i'll rb if im short on time or energy

do you like tag games?

i think theyre fun and sweet!! however i normally do not have much energy for them so i don't participate often sigh... i tend to overthink all my responses so by the time I finish one its like paragraphs long (case in point this one) and weeks after I first got tagged so I just dont post haha

do you like ask games?

yeah!!! theyre quick and interesting and let me do one of my fave things which is sharing little tidbits of my life online<3

which of your mutuals do you think is tumblr famous? 

oh i know a couple of my mutuals are legitimately famous on here but im not super close to them, and i know a few have had some really popular text posts but i'm not gonna name anyone haha 

do you have a crush on a mutual?

not at the moment! i have before but i'm not the type to act first on any feelings i have so usually i just crush for a few weeks and move on

i think most of my mutuals have been tagged already but if u see this and wanna say i tagged u go for it✨

[hsews]

I did it for you, folks. Make no mistake. I didn’t want to hop on a plane in late July and leave the oppressive humidity of the East Coast for a long stretch of perfect, breezy California sunshine. I did it for work. For football journalism. For the people. For you.

Everything you need to have a successful fantasy football season. Draft Kit

• Top-300 rankings: PPR | non-PPR • Rankings by position: PPR | non-PPR • Depth charts: QB | RB | WR | TE • Mocks: 10-team PPR | 10-team non-PPR • Sign up now: It’s free to play!

This year’s camp tour took me (mainly) west. I saw the Rams and Chargers in Southern California. I went to Minnesota for a day, then back to California to see the 49ers and Raiders, up to Seattle to see the Seahawks and then back to Cali for a day with the Cowboys. Seven hotels, six one-way flights, five rental cars, four days on TV, three trips to In-N-Out Burger, two hotel laundry days and one oversized, nearly spent can of spray-on sunscreen. All for you.

The point, of course, was to talk to as many of the people as possible who play for and run those teams. To learn. To educate myself so I could pass that information along to you to make you a better educated football fan and, in this case, fantasy football player.

Oh, yes. Much of the information I glean from talking to sources on these trips is especially useful for those of you who are preparing for your fantasy football drafts in the next couple of weeks. So here you go: 15 fantasy tips I learned on my 2018 training camp trip.

Cook isn’t even wearing a brace on his surgically repaired knee. He’s full-go in practice and told me his focus this offseason has been learning and applying lessons that will help him take better care of his body “because in college, you know, you just do your thing.” I got the sense around the Vikings that the offense will lean heavily on Cook, especially early, while new quarterback Kirk Cousins and new offensive coordinator John DeFilippo get to know each other. For his part, Cook says his focus going into the season is trying to start games faster: “Get on the defense early, so we can open this thing up for those receivers we’ve got. That’s why we paid these guys. But for me, I’ve always been a guy who was going out there trying to feel a defense out. Now I want the defense to feel me out. Gonna flip the script on that.”

2. What was that about Cousins again?

Yeah, sorry. Cousins obviously has a lot going for him in Minnesota, with guys such as Adam Thielen, Stefon Diggs, Kyle Rudolph and Cook to throw the ball to. I believe he’s in position to have a big year. But my conversation with him gave me the feeling that he’s still settling in.

Dan visited seven NFL training camps in 2018, staying at seven hotels, catching six one-way flights, and driving five rental cars. The schedule: • July 27, 29: Rams • July 28, 30: Chargers • July 31: Vikings • Aug. 1-2: 49ers • Aug. 3-4: Raiders • Aug. 6: Seahawks • Aug. 7: Cowboys

Now, this was a July 31 conversation, which means there’s plenty more settle-in time before the games count. But a couple of people around the league have told me they’re waiting to see what DeFilippo installs before predicting big things for Cousins. He has succeeded in structured systems run by coaches such as Kyle Shanahan and Jay Gruden, and it’s possible that DeFilippo’s system will put Cousins in a similar position to succeed. But some believe he could struggle if the system forces him to freelance too much and make plays on his own.

One of those people, believe it or not, is Kirk Cousins, who brought it up unsolicited when I lobbed him the old standby training camp question, “What part of your game are you working on?”

“I’d love to be a better quarterback off-schedule when the pocket breaks down,” Cousins said. “Although, I have been a very good quarterback, I believe, on keepers, meaning bootlegs outside the pocket, which are very similar to off-schedule plays. So I’d like to see that translate more, where when a dropback breaks down and I leave the pocket, I can have the same kind of production that I’ve had when we’ve run bootlegs and things like that.”

Seriously, a lot of guys answer that question with stuff like “everything” and “consistency.” Props to Kirk for helping us with specifics.

3. Oh, and yeah … the Vikings’ defense

I know we all say don’t draft defenses early, but when the time comes and someone already has grabbed the Jaguars … In my whole trip, I didn’t see a defense that looked better in practice than Minnesota’s did the day I was there. The pairing of Sheldon Richardson and Linval Joseph on the defensive line is going to wreck a lot of people’s Sundays.

4. What Jimmy Garoppolo did last season was nuts

I loved this nugget from my interview with Jimmy G, talking about the difference now that he has a whole offseason instead of just a couple of days to learn Shanahan’s offense. I asked, “So this year it’s really studying, whereas last year it was CliffsNotes?”

“Yeah, on a good week it was CliffsNotes,” he said. “Sometimes, he would call something, and I’d be in the game like, ‘I’m not sure what this side has, but I know what this side has, so we’re going to run it to this side. So now it’s full understanding and things slow down, which in a quarterback situation is the best thing.” If you needed another reason to like Garoppolo’s chances this season, there you go.

The 49ers’ big free-agent running back signing is going 30th on average in drafts, which means late third, maybe early fourth round, depending on league size. I don’t see too many guys behind him whom I’d rush to take ahead of him (though my hunch is Joe Mixon’s opportunity in Cincinnati might be larger than McKinnon’s in San Francisco), but I wouldn’t move him up too far, based on the conversations I had while at 49ers camp.

Shanahan definitely has a role in mind for McKinnon, but I don’t think it’s “bell-cow running back.” Before you point out that they gave him $7.5 million a year, you should know the Niners don’t think that was an overspend. They believed the running back market was depressed (pre-Todd Gurley, at least) and that $7.5 million per year for a versatile running back who can catch the ball and run it was a better financial play than, say, spending the $9.6 million the Jaguars spent on receiver Donte Moncrief. McKinnon fits in a lot of ways, but Matt Breida should have a role in this offense too, and don’t be surprised if there are weeks when Breida is the early-down guy and outscores McKinnon even in PPR leagues.

Currently being drafted as the No. 41 wide receiver, right behind Sterling Shepard and somehow 23 picks later than teammate Pierre Garcon, Goodwin is — I believe — underrated. The 49ers view him as their clear No. 1 wide receiver, and so does he. Long known as a speedster, Goodwin improved enough as a pass-catcher last season that one of his coaches told me, “Now he has the mindset that he really believes he’s the best.” Confidence oozes out of Goodwin, and he’s the most known quantity among the Niners’ pass-catchers. Garcon is a reliable, old Shanahan favorite but not as explosive as he used to be. If there’s a sleeper in this group, it’s probably rookie Dante Pettis, who coaches say is showing a remarkable ability to get himself open. If he picks up the offense quickly, he could be a factor right away.

7. Multiple reasons to expect Melvin Gordon to get better

Chargers coach Anthony Lynn told me that one of his regrets in his first year was not getting Gordon more work in the passing game. He believes Gordon can help more as a receiver out of the backfield. That’s after a season in which Gordon had 58 catches (tied for eighth among running backs and 47th in the league), so if you’re playing PPR leagues and wondering about Gordon, that should perk up your ears. Lynn thinks backup Austin Ekeler showed enough last season that he feels OK about spelling Gordon in the running game if the Chargers need to do that to get Gordon more involved in the passing game.

As for Gordon, his goal is to deliver more explosive plays, and he told me that he thinks the addition of center Mike Pouncey is the key to that.

“It means everything,” Gordon said. “We had [Matt] Slauson, but Slauson’s more of a guard. Now we’ve got a true center, so I’m happy. Just a guy getting off blocks, getting downfield on a ‘backer, that helps plays go a long way. He can help with those explosive plays. It’ll be a big difference — someone who can move out there. Slauson was more of a powerful man, run you over. Pounce can get to the second level quick.”

8. Mike Williams could be a touchdown-maker

The Chargers’ first-round pick in the 2017 draft suffered through an injury-plagued rookie season but says he feels healthy now and is working in practice to develop trust with quarterback Philip Rivers. When I asked Williams what the team could do to overcome the loss of tight end Hunter Henry, he mentioned a specific way the Chargers have been working to find use for his massive size.

“I’ve got a big role in the red zone right now,” Williams said. “Henry was a big red zone threat, and that’s a spot where I can help. So we’re working on a lot of that stuff right now.”

9. Amari Cooper is the Raiders WR you want

The Raiders are a mystery team this season. After spending a couple of days with them, I’m still not sure whether they’ll be a good team, a bad team or somewhere in the middle. I’m not sure they know either. But what I did come away believing is that Jon Gruden’s offense plans to throw, throw and throw some more — and that Gruden wants the whole thing to run through Derek Carr, with Cooper as his No. 1 receiver. Gruden told me veteran Jordy Nelson was brought in, in part, to help Cooper elevate his game. It seems clear that Gruden and the Raiders coaches want to lean on Cooper as the star of the passing game and work off that.

10. The second Raiders WR you want is … Ryan Switzer?

Maybe, maybe not. But on the days I was there, Gruden was talking up Switzer as a player who has shown more than the coaches expected as a slot receiver. The WR picture in Oakland is wide-open after Cooper right now, with Gruden still not sold on Martavis Bryant and Nelson heading into his age-33 season. Seth Roberts is still on the team but is a candidate to be traded by camp’s end — especially if Bryant starts to show more consistency. But Switzer is a sure thing to make the team because of his role as a return man, and it seems that there’s a regular role in the offense for him too. If you’re in a deep league and need receivers late, this is a guy who could be a Derek Carr safety net. Honestly, it’s not as if the Raiders are going to lean on the running game out there.

11. Brandin Cooks should deliver more production for the Rams than Sammy Watkins did last season

The Rams wanted Watkins back but were outbid by the Chiefs. Then they traded for Cooks, ostensibly to replace Watkins as the “X” receiver in Sean McVay’s offense. But McVay had some interesting things to say when I asked him about the comparison between those two players:

“I think there’s a lot of ways I could have done a better job using Sammy, just in terms of getting him more opportunities and really just getting him more touches, things like that,” McVay said. “But I think, as we get more comfortable with understanding what exactly does Brandin do best, there’s a lot of ways that we anticipate using him: moving him around the formation, not necessarily just exclusively playing the X, but on the outside, in the slot … I think he’s a rare type player. He’s obviously had the deep ball production, but I think he can do a lot of other things as far as the short and intermediate game as well because he can beat bump-man, he’s got real aggressive hands, real good step to the football, and you look at the way New England used him and even New Orleans on the jet sweeps and different things like that.”

Quarterback Jared Goff said receivers Robert Woods and Cooper Kupp know all of the WR positions on the Rams’ offense already, which means the ability to move Cooks around the formation could make this an unpredictable fantasy offense week-to-week. But the Rams should run enough plays and score enough points that everyone delivers value.

12. Chris Carson is the No. 1 running back in Seattle

This is one of the first things you realize when you show up at Seahawks camp. Carson is getting the first-team reps, and everybody is talking about how great the dude looks. Seahawks linebacker K.J. Wright offered a bit of an old-school comparison that should hold particular appeal for people (like me!) who were playing fantasy football 15-20 years ago:

“He reminds me a lot of Fred Taylor. That’s a good comparison for him,” Wright said. “Fred Taylor was just all cut up and kind of stickily built. He’s just straight-ahead, man, and he can make you miss in the open field too. He’ll be fun to watch.”

Yeah, I know the Seahawks drafted Rashaad Penny in the first round (get to that in a sec), and obviously things change as the season goes along. But Carson was a hot name coming out of last year’s Seahawks camp before he got hurt, and assuming he stays healthy, the bet here is that he leads the team in RB touches in 2018.

13. But you should draft Rashaad Penny too

They didn’t take him in the first round to NOT use him. People I asked about this situation in Seattle said the reason behind the Penny pick was that the Seahawks needed another explosive player in the running game in addition to Carson and that their 2017 season was a lesson in the need for multiple options at running back. They had so many injuries at that position last year that quarterback Russell Wilson led the team in rushing by 346 yards, with 586.

A couple of things to remember here: First, the Seahawks’ program is based on development, and they usually draft players with an eye toward using them down the road. Ideally for Seattle, Carson can handle the No. 1 running back workload this season, Penny slides in as a useful backup and change-of-pace guy, and Penny is a better player for the experience next year or the year after when his role increases. Second, the Seahawks have a very unsettled situation at wide receiver, with Doug Baldwin the No. 1 but in his usual specific role and Tyler Lockett the most likely candidate for the No. 2 receiver role. There’s a pretty good chance the running backs will figure prominently into the passing game, in which case there’ll be plenty of touches to go around. Don’t reach for Penny, but don’t forget about him — especially in keeper leagues.

14. Not even the Cowboys know who’s going to catch the ball

They’re not trying to kid anybody. You ask their decision-makers, “Who’s going to catch the ball?” and the answer comes back, “Yeah, we need to figure that out. But that’s what camp is for.” They have a month until the season and need to sort out roles in the passing game, where right now they have slot man Cole Beasley set and believe they can throw it more to Ezekiel Elliott. Beyond that? Your guess is as good as mine. The Cowboys really like rookie Michael Gallup, but he has a long way to go as far as learning the offense. Allen Hurns and Terrance Williams haven’t been fully healthy. Tavon Austin and Deonte Thompson are in the mix. Geoff Swaim and Blake Jarwin are getting some attention at tight end, but there are other guys in the mix too.

The Cowboys are going to be a run-heavy team. They make no secret of that. But Dak Prescott will have to throw the ball sometimes, and it’s too early to know for sure who (besides Beasley and Elliott on the short stuff) will be on the other end of those throws.

15. And, oh yeah … draft Elliott

This should be a no-brainer, but there’s no reason to be any less excited about Ezekiel Elliott than there was either of the past two years. Given the fact that he was a rookie in 2016 and was facing suspension in 2017, there might be reason to be more excited. If you’re picking fourth and Le’Veon Bell, Todd Gurley and David Johnson are gone, you’re still fine. Don’t overthink it.

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