#the long road to the stars

[earlgraytay]

I'm looking at the Thompson index of folklore tropes because I'm writing more fairy tales for a client, and so many of the ones that are about knowing your place are things we've done.

"Don't try to measure the height of the heavens"- we've done it. it's called the Karman line, it's about 62 miles, and past that "height" has no meaning anymore

"Don't try to measure the depth of the ocean"- we've done it. at its deepest it's about 7 miles.

"Don't try to fly"- Messrs. Wright would like to have a word with you.

and the sad thing is, so many people still live by this kind of folktale-rule, and more like them. "don't try to be too wise", "don't try to be too happy", "don't stick up for yourself", "don't try to change your body to be something that feels good" - all morals of commonly told folktales on this index.

people are intemperately wise and good and happy and are fine. people stick up for themselves every day and are fine. people change and grow in ways that feel good every day, and will keep doing it until the end of the world.

these rules are all just as wrong as "don't measure the height of the heaven" and "don't measure the depth of the ocean".

every time you talk about icarus, you should remember orville and wilbur, too.

[lucabyte]

Not all who wander are lost. Some who wander, however, are extremely, extremely lost.

[hegodamask]

Andor season 2 finally completed filming today!!

[cajucrafts]

inspiration/pattern

available here

[mayhaps-a-blog]

I’ve seen a few people asking why Thrawn would attack the New Republic – shouldn’t he join them and fix the system from the inside, or just go back to the Ascendancy? Why would he destabilize the galaxy further?

But if you think about it

Really, the only reason Thrawn needs is to believe that the New Republic is a threat to the galaxy. Which, well...

Thrawn joined the Empire to oppose the Grysk, because Thrawn believes in a strong military. Thrawn’s not good at politics, and deals with everything in military terms – remember the Lioaoin's economic issues? That’s why he got along with the Empire, and why he put up with all their crap. In Thrawn’s head, big military = big victory = stop bad guys = good.

Enter the New Republic.

What are they doing? Disarming. While there are still pirates, the Hutts, Imperial Remnants, and, of course, the Grysk nipping at their heels. In the midst of a tumultuous time, they are deliberately weakening their ability to meet the challenges ahead, and opening the galaxy to invasion. Says Thrawn.

It doesn’t even matter if they’re Grysk influenced or just stupid – it’s the same result. The galaxy loses. His people lose. Says Thrawn.

What do you expect him to do? Join them? Of course not – he at least knows he’s terrible at politics. And the New Republic is all politics – it would put him at a disadvantage, in a fight he cannot afford to lose. And it would open him to attacks on fronts where he has no power: trials for war crimes, possibly leading to execution – or worse. The Mind Flayer.

You think Thrawn would risk his mind?

Besides, better to ask forgiveness than permission, as they say.

And if you want something done right, do it yourself.

Conquering the New Republic would be better for everyone, Thrawn says. It would save the galaxy from annihilation, allow him to turn the resources of the Empire against evil, bring peace and order to the galaxy and beyond. He would keep all the good of the Empire, Thrawn says, while getting rid of all of the bad, Thrawn says – whatever that means to him.

For the greater good, Thrawn says.

Everything he’s done has always been for the greater good, Thrawn says.

The tragedy is that he believes it.

[obiscribbles]

Week 50 - March 10th, 2024 'Hold On Loosely' - 38 Special Spotify / YouTube

If you recognize this one then you aren’t crazy, because this is pulled from a photo shoot of Ewan McGregor where he was absolutely young and without a care. Perfect padawan Obi-Wan material.

Enjoy!

[kingofattolia]

okay after everything Obi-Wan just riding up to Qui-Gon's ghost randomly chilling in the desert? makes no sense. unhinged. hilarious. fits perfectly with Qui-Gons eternal quest to be the most annoying man on any given planet

[my-fandom-mania]

THEY ARE ALL SO PRETTY. I LOVE THIS CREW SO MUCH.

I’m so excited to see more of their adventures in just a few hours!!!

[compacflt]

Oh to be Maverick, reading AD magazine and has a husband that will write you a blank check to buy any decor you want. Or collects expensive watches. And has the same taste. I don't know if anyone have asked this, what is your hc about their car preference? I hc that Mav likes big car because he's relatively short. And Ice likes luxury car. What do you think?

oh my god i have had this headcanon for so long thank god someone’s asking about it.

Ice will ONLY drive American-manufactured cars. like even when he travels somewhere and rents one. he will raise a stink about it.

It is a significant point of contention in their relationship & marriage that maverick is only interested in Japanese-manufactured motorcycles. Like they have had, and will continue to have, shouting matches over “why can’t you be a patriot and buy American motorcycles like harleys??!? What is with all the kawasaki and yamaha crap???” and “ice im telling you they just run better!!! the japanese just make better bikes!!!” tongue-in-cheek threats of divorce etc.

i definitely think of ice as less a luxury car and more a classic muscle car guy. back when muscle cars still were delicate and beautiful instead of hard and sharp, if that makes sense. there is a Venn diagram of luxury and muscle cars and he definitely has dabbled in the middle (see my fic’s deepthroating of the 2005 ford GT). But he won’t cross the line. (Won’t be caught dead driving a Porsche or mercedes for instance)

in the final final draft of my fic (ie the draft that will get posted before i call it quits on my top gun phase) the Dream Car is getting changed to a ‘68 Plymouth HEMI roadrunner. camaro is too mainstream i will admit. but see above for my “car preferences” hc.

[earlgraytay]

Our world is saturated with messages telling people to give up, to settle, to take whatever path will make ends meet, to expect to face a grim job market when we reach adulthood, to expect the hours from 9 to 5 to be sacrificed to drudgery, to expect closed doors. When kids are in kindergarten they’re encouraged to say they want to be an astronaut, or a race car driver, or a president when they grow up, but by the time young people reach High School the negative messages have usually won out, that the world is unfair and against them, that dreams are unrealistic, that aspiration is naive, that optimism should be mocked, that cynicism, criticism, and the realism of a pessimistic norm are the smart path. I think the best thing we can do to brighten the future is to stop telling people that it can’t be brightened, that they can’t brighten it. We can all lay down stepping stones in the long road to the stars, but we can lay down exponentially more by telling other people that they can do it too, that they don’t have to waste themselves for the present, that there are a hundred thousand paths open to all of us that let us lay the vital stepping stones. - Ada Palmer

[whatudottu]

Do y'all think object heads have a peculiar vision? Well I certainly do!

If DJSS is actually a supernova then assumption probably brings with it the idea they were a star, and being a star where it sends light in every direction and vision is directly correlated to light, what if that means omnidirectional vision?

[andyevej]

outfit ideas for The Long Road by Chifuyu on AO3

[cajucrafts]

January patterns are up on my Ko-fi Shop!

Let me know if you make them 💙💙

[ydotome]

ALKALOID - Ensemble Stars!!: Road to Show!! - Dir: Masakazu Hishida - Mar 4, 2022

[deweyduck]

barbie mermaid power (2022)

“look at how the world can open up to you when you find your power.”

[juniperika]

the downside of watching Star Trek Enterprise over a span of almost six years is that at one point I was fully convinced that there was a character named Malcolm Trip on the show and I was a bit puzzled when I googled it and the first result was AO3