#trying out a mix of old and new style and really experimenting with colors

[torra-and-the-toons]

>You can't STOP! THE! MUSIC!

>We'll just go underground!

>Crash! Boom! Bang!

[justsomerandomfanfic]

Hello! May I please request a star wars, the hobbit and the arcana match up? ^^

I'm 19, omnisexual and I go by they/them. I am a enfp, 3w4, saggitarious, so basically I'm impulsive, ambitious, fun loving, sensitive, expressive, understanding, always seems a lil high, blunt, out of pocket, creative, rebellious and live by the phrase Yolo. (I also have really bad anxiety, depression and adhd)

I'm like a mix of emo, metalhead, goth and punk in terms of music and style but I like mostly sticking with a cleaner look. I'm pale, 5'4, have shoulder length straight dyed black hair, brown eyes, skinny but has some muscle, lots of scars I am very proud of, and visible scoliosis but I like to pretend it's the emo hunch

I enjoy creating, dancing, music, trying new stuff, fashion, stuff that makes me feel sophisticated, comics, horror, zombies, learning, bugs, dark stuff, my pet bird, experimenting, running, space, writing in code, science, working out, reading, plants, red and black, collecting, info dumping, and I love taking care of things and people for some reason.

Lastly my ideal date is going and trying something new togethor or like a amusement park. What I look for in a person is passion and ambition extra points if there a little dorky lol. My love Language kinda differs from person to person I take there needs and wants into consideration but I am a little touch starved soo :)

And here you go good luck and keep up that good work fellow writer!! <3

Hi! Thanks for requesting a matchup! I hope you enjoy it! Sorry for the wait! <3333

---

Star Wars;

Luke Skywalker:

✨ You were already a part of Han's crew when you met Luke, chilling on the Falcon as you fixing one of the monitors; you heard blasters shooting in the distance, watching out the main window to see Han and Chewie running with two other people, (some old guy and a pretty cute looking young guy)

✨ Immediately getting into flight mode, you didn't get the chance to say hello to the newcomers until after you escaped the planet, and that's when you finally met Luke; hubba hubba

✨ Skipping the year that you both were just friends, you and Luke finally got together after he got back from cutting off a Wampas's arm on Hoth, (and after he got out of that water tank), but to get to the point, Han liked to joke around with you both; you were almost polar opposites, looks-wise, Luke was a blondie and you had dyed black hair, and you wore dark colors and he didn't really

✨ But opposites attract, and you and Luke actually had similar personalities, you were both passionate, caring, understanding, fun-loving, and impulsive; you both had anxiety and he definitely had ADHD

✨ Luke really, truly love you, from your love for trying new things to stargazing at the million stars in the sky - you're perfect; and you adored Luke, his willingness to learn and grow, his quirky charm, his bashful smiles, his dorky attitude; he was perfect

---

The Hobbit;

Ori:

🌿 You met Ori when you joined the Company, Gandalf asked you to come along since you were pretty great at knowing what plants can help heal or ones that you could eat, and you were great at keeping things light; basically your job in the group was to make sure no one was upset, trying your best to joke around and get smiles on everyone's faces

🌿 But sometimes you needed someone to bring a smile to your face, and Ori was your guy! From little jokes here and there, or just being his little, dorky self made you smile; he was your little, dorky boi

🌿 There wasn't a lot to collect on the road, so you'd collect a rock wherever you could, and Ori would help, running up to you with a huge, sheepish smile on his face as he handed you a few rocks he had found for you; you're swooning

🌿 Near the end of the journey, Ori took his chance and asked if he could braid your hair; having learned and read about Dwarven culture, you felt your heart skip a beat and you joked a little before saying yes and allowing him to braid you hair

🌿 As said before, Ori's a dork, like the number one dork of all dorks, but he was your dork, and he understood you, he cared about you, and he loved you

---

The Arcana;

Portia:

🐱 You met Portia when you came to visit your friend Nadia, yes, ou were friends with royalty, lucky you; for some reason the other many times you visited Nadia, Portia was at her cottage, what a coinkydink

🐱 But it was love at first sight, you loved how sweet she was, how energetic, upbeat, and mischievous she was; and you absolutely loved her eyes, you could stare at them all day

🐱 You had both started talking, going on walks together, talking about everything and anything, and soon a romance blossoms; from secret kisses in the castle to dancing in the garden, you and Portia were in love

🐱 She loves your bird, and you are so glad that she does; she also loves looking at plants with you, reading with you, trying out new things together, (all when she has free time, that is)

🐱 You both are two sweet peas in a pod, always there for one another, and always bringing out the best in each other :)

---

[sundslime]

Another Object Comic Blog 2

Back at it again with another name change! This one’s probably the last one for a bit though.

A good amount of progress has been made on the idea of the comic since my last post in March. That is, I hunkered down with some buds and actually made a kind of rigid outline of how I want the plot to be structured. A good amount of ideas were leftovers from Exclusion Delusion but more fleshed out with a cleaner idea for a possible ending in mind, which makes me happy! Every time I’ve taken a stab at a comic like this I usually drop the idea because I don’t know how I’d end it, so having that in mind has been reassuring.

Here’s a mostly redacted look at the outline of the story, mostly for the sake of keeping things a surprise! Who doesn’t like a good surprise? I will leave a synopsis of the beginning of the story though, so here! Objects of many different locations live on a planet with only them and are all aware of/ friends with each other. Ornament is the main character of the story, who on their (TBD)th birthday travel around the world in search of artifacts warning of an impending doom. After a year, the end of the world takes the form of a competition in which each challenge takes place on a different planet.

Unlike the plot, the biggest point of contention has been the actual characters to appear in the comic! Truth is, there’s been dozens of characters that have had the possibility of appearing in the comic. Some as main characters, and others as more comic relief side characters. Sizing down the original fifty plus characters has been no easy task, and I’ve joined a bunch of calls with some buds trying to decide which characters should stay or go has been a struggle. I’ll probably come to this decision on my own since these are my characters and only my most cherished of children will make it in..

The spreadsheet above was originally where I listed out all of my ocs and we went through them all and talked about how which characters could act and little quirks they could have. I’d be a liar if I said it didn’t help give me an idea on the characters I FOR SURE wanted in.

Ornament’s a character I’ve wanted in the comic since day one, they’re GUARUNTEED to be a main character. I used them in this enviornment as a test of how I’d draw backgrounds in the comic.

As another small experiment, I tried to go back to my last comic Sunburn and redraw it with the skills I have now in a style I might’ve liked back then, I’m pretty happy with how it came out!

Below is another character with a similar style. She’s also guaranteed for the comic, her name’s Inkwell!

More onto the look of the comic...

I’ve also been messing around with a potential style for the comic. It’s another one of those things that I’ve been putting a lot of thought into, but at the end of the day I think I have a good idea for what I want to do.

My biggest inspirations for this comic have always been my favorite object shows (ONE, Battle for Dream Island Again) and their saturated colors and simple designs, and Homestuck and the many many MSPFAS out there (Vast Error, A Guy Gets Revenge). Drawing objects in this style consistently has been a bit of a struggle, but I’ve found myself gravitating towards big and round hands, and tiny lil’ feet.

I don’t know if I’ll lean as heavy with the gradients and blurs though, since they’ve given me mixed results. I think I like the look of them when minimally used so I’ll probably stick to that.

Another art related thing I heavily debated on using was sprites. At first, I wanted to completely opt out of using any sprites for the sake of simplicity, but with the help of some really nice people I not only re-sprited old characters, but decided that I might go with this sprite style for the new characters. They’re so silly that it’s been hard for me to say no!

Another thing I want to note before ending this post is that just like all of my other comics, I do not mean for this to be the job of a crew where I’m only a writer.

This is my comic, and something I’ve wanted to make. Chances are that just like Sunburn, I’ll be writing a large part of the comic and drawing a large chunk of the panels. I wanna carry the weight of this because its my story!!! With that being said, anyone’s welcome to help! If you’re interested, feel free to DM me on Discord @sundSlime#2003.

TLDR?

Progress on the comic has been underway, but there’s a lot of stuff left to iron out. Hope you guys like what I have so far! Have a good day :)

[gasha40k]

I haven’t quite finished my entire Crusade Force yet, but I’ve been chipping away at my painting backlog as of recent. Here’s some new boys, and some old boys given a makeover.

Firstly, I got a bunch of new shit to try out a new basing style. I’m not entirely sure if I like it, but I think it may be due to the Rhinox Hide undercoat, and the fact I’m using brown battleground instead of sand or whatever. It looks better than the old bases, but I’m definitely going to keep experimenting.

Next up, Squad Taranis has long been in need of some finishing touches, so I finished the last unpainted Devastator and based the lot of them. They’re suitably imposing and knightly now.

Next up is our Intercessor squad(s), who’ve finally been fully based. I also did a bit of work on the Sergeants of our Calthradian Crusade!

I finally fixed Arctos’ violently non-golden helmet and did a bit of cleaning on his model. I’ll certainly do more but I’m satisfied with him now, he looks appropriately leaderlike.

And speaking of Intercessor Sergeants...

Here is Sergeant Verios in full color. I really like this model! The Infiltrator helmet is a nice bit of variation. I intend to make another set of Intercessors that look a bit more like standard marines for him to lead, but for now, he’s in charge of our cool kitbashed bolt brothers.

Last but not least, I finally finished our first HQ. This is Force Commander Simon Sadrian, the Primaris Lieutenant in charge of the Calthradian Crusade.

Rumor has it that if the crusade goes well, he’ll be promoted to third Captain. I built his mini explicitly to mix and match elements of both a Lieutenant and a Captain to emulate his temporary in-between position of Force Commander, but also so I don’t have to spend money on another Captain/Lieut and I can just proxy him.

Next up I should have some Eradicators to show off, as well as maybe some Outriders. Maybe some new Intercessors and a plane of some capacity, as well. Stay tuned!

[its-blakecarter]

The Basics

name: Blake Noelle Carter nickname: n/a birthday: October 13th, 1990 age: 32 years old hometown: Fairford, WA current residence: suburbs occupation: manager at mountainside inn gender: cis-female pronouns: she/her orientation: Biromantic Bisexual

Deeper Dive

alignment: lawful neutral mbti:  zodiac: librapositive traits: dutiful, liberal, faithful negative traits: jealous, insecure, hesitant neutral traits: dreamy, nonconfrontational, idealistic likes:   dislikes: 

Appearance

faceclaim: Zazie Beetz haircolor: Black eyecolor: Brown height: 5'6" weight: 140 lbs identifying marks: much to the chagrin of her parents, a thigh tattoo, and she also has a small scar on the right side of her bottom lip from an old lip ring he had while in college. clothing style: she is a mix between business-casual and street style. Either way, she sticks to more solid colors with less patterns, and she's never been a fan of heels. This doesn't mean she doesn't wear them if an occasion calls for it, but flat tennis shoes are prefer. Light button downs, skinny-jeans (millenials, amirite?), and tanks or tees. She does have a few graphic tees she will wear under an oversized denim jacket in the cooler months.

Backstory

tw: infertility mention, PCOS, break-up/broken engagement

Blake's conception had been a surprise following her older brother's birth. Maybe not so much as the twins following. With enough of a gap between them it's not shock, but rather that they had been a more startling discovery in the form of the biggest bluest plus sign, but Blake wasn't expected all the same.

Most of the Carter parents' energy had already gone into the eldest son, but that didn't mean Blake got overlooked. Similar expectations fell on her tiny shoulders, and they had been there for as long as she could remember. Longer than she thinks she's come to learn the love for her youngest siblings. Work hard, strive for greatness, and settle for nothing less.

Early on Blake recognized that doing as she pleased for her own wants did nothing to earn the attention and praise of her parents. She was never a kid to enjoy the spotlight, but when her brother's academic achievements overshadowed her own, she oftentimes found herself wishing that sometimes it was her that her parents were showing off during family holiday get togethers.

So, Blake tried harder.

Honor roll was an easy achievement, and so was earning a captain position on the girl's lacrosse them with an MVP trophy handed over at end of season. She made scholarships with her academics and athletic achievements combined, but in all that time she felt her teen years slipping away.

You see, all her time had been spent trying to earn the same approval her brother got (and by God, she did), but somewhere along the way she realized almost too late the cost to it. A childhood lost to books, an adolescence that raced by with few friends and fewer experiences beyond her accomplishments. Blake wasn't unhappy, per se, but she did feel lost.

Lost on which path she wanted to take, and figuring out who she truly was. Her pursuit of a B.A. was another thing that wasn't for her. She did complete school with a degree in tourism and hospitality management without a goal in mind.

Post graduation, Blake left for Seattle in search of a job. There she'd met a man, and in the worst cliche sort of way, she fell for him. They were happy together, engaged even, until news came out that she had PCOS. This also affected her fertility, and the chance of not being able to build a family was a deal breaker in the end.

The fertility issue was not something her ex-fiancé decided was a reason to end things, it was Blake’s decision. It took enough time of mulling it over to decide that what was best was to end things so that he could find someone to fulfill that dream with. For him, a family with kids was everything, and for her? She hadn’t really thought about it, but the chance of it being impossible beyond adoption wasn’t all that heartbreaking. To her it was an easy decision to call things off for his sake more than her own.

Post-break up, Blake returned to Fairford, head held high, the reason for the broken engagement a secret she holds close to her chest to his day. Not for any shame or regrets, but because it is a sensitive subject still. She doesn’t want sympathy for something she could not predict that is beyond her control. She used the money she saved up to purchase a two-bedroom ranch in the suburbs.

She took up a job in hotel management at the Mountainside Inn, settling into something that pays the bills for the time being. She doesn’t dislike her job. If anything, Blake feels freer than ever having made this decision on her own, and she’s taking time learning how to pursue what she enjoys without the overbearing eyes of her parents over her shoulder.

With her return, she feels renewed in a sense. This is a chance for her to pave her own way. Though she is terrified of taking the first step down that path, the idea is there. For the time being, she manages the hotel and comes home to her Aussie pup, Koda.

Headcanons

1. Her Australian Shepherd Koda is her best friend. She brought him home shortly after moving to the suburbs, and now they're inseparable.

2. Recently, Blake has started dabbling in watercolor painting. A pastime of hers, she never got to train or put time into it as her academics took precedence. Watercolor paintings don't bring home the paychecks, after all.

3. The topic of kids isn’t a difficult one, but Blake is on the fence about what she wants in that category. Sometimes she finds she enjoys her life now as she is relearning how to make it her own, and other times she wishes she could raise a tiny human. One day it might be in the cards, but despite her uncertainty she does know that this moment is not the time for it.

4. Her job in Seattle was that of a Travel Consultant. It was a high stress, fast-paced job, and though it brought in decent money she ultimately decided that her happiness was more important. Hotel management gives her more room to breathe and focus on her hobbies.

5. Blake enjoys running themed 5ks - bubble runs, color runs, mud runs, etc. Nothing more than that, though. She isn’t competitive by any means. If you so much as breathe the words 'half marathon' around her, she might just keel over.

TBA

Pinterest: [ here ] Playlist: [ here ] Connections page: [ here ]

[hallowedconjurationsshop]

Tyro the Demonic Vampire { Ghosts }

Nickname: Tyro Species: Demonic Vampire Pronouns: He/they Gender: Nonbinary Alignment: grey to dark Favorite color: Blue Favorite animal: Bears Favorite Song: All the things I hate about you by Huddy Likes: Lava Rocks, blood, traveling, bears, giant stuffed animals, street wear, paints, the heat, fire, rocks, small rodents Dislikes: Christian biblical angels, crustaceans, water, bitter dirt, cold fire, being lied to, liars Sexuality: Asexual, biromanic

Personality: Tyro is a punk. He has a very chaotic personality who is blunt and has a lot to say. He’s very honest and isn’t one who lies, seeing as he hates being lied to himself. He’s kinda brutal at times with his words but he is a giant softy with kids or young people. He has a bit of a young person at heart and can act like a wild young adult being as chaotic as possible. He likes fun, new adventures, hiking is a big one for him. He also enjoys the extreme heats of areas and walking around without shoes. Honestly I would say he has a personality of a street punk

Physical description: Tyro stands at 5’8” with pale skin and shaggy blue black hair that stops just below his ears. He has black scleras with red and silver/blue irises. He has thick geometric tattoos on his neck and collarbone stopping short of his chest. He has two horns on either side of the middle of his head going upwards about five inches. They are a black color as well. Tyro usually wears baggy sweaters and ripped jeans, think of the grunge style. Usually he either has a form of boots or no shoes on. If it's hot around him he opts for no shoes because he enjoys the heat. He wears two chain necklaces with a ring on one of them. He has one set of fangs on the top teeth and has sharp claws, painted black with his middle finger silver. He has sharp toenails as well

Companion requirements: Tyro is very loose but strict about requirements. He wants somebody that has one form of communication down so they can talk. He is also strictly against being in a family that has christan biblical angels, as they freak him out and he does not get along with them. Angels from other realms will depends but generally if they’re okay with him he is okay with them. He was a very strict friendship with his human. There can be zero romantic indication or wants with him. He is not willing to be in a romantic relationship with anybody human or spirit. He just wants friends and a sense of family. Currently he has no family size restriction but he will be vocal if he doesn’t want anybody else in the family.

Tyro is from a realm called Hylos. As he puts it, it was a realm created by a nameless god. He was born to a demon father and a sanguine vampire mother. The genetics gave them a mix to make them a demonic vampire. Sadly in Hylos it isn’t really friendly with mixspecies parents. So off Tyro, eight siblings, and parents went to travel to different realms. They spent a lot of time traveling, hiking, adventuring, learning new things. Trying new things. It was a wonderful experience for them and over the years he learned a lot of things. It didn’t stop him from always being a loud mouth. Brutally honest it’s got himself into a lot of trouble. When his family had finally settled in a realm they enjoyed Tyro was old enough to explore on his own. And that was what he did, constantly traveled until he decided that he wanted a new experience. For him that meant human companionship. It seemed interesting enough so he wanted to try it. New places to explore with a new family seemed perfect.

Tyro strictly wants his vessel to be Lava Rock. This is the only vessel that he wants stubbornly enough.

If you would like to apply for Tyro you can do so here

[cheerstotheelites-if]

Super excited for all your wips! 👀👀

How do you render your drawings they look so cool!

*SWEATS* Mamser, I literally have no idea what I even do while I make art—

My rendering isn't that grand nor complex (and I don't think there is any rendering. They're mostly all just flats with barely any shading or lightning with this cartoony-anime mixed style), compared to other authors who also draw their character portraits for their IF's.

It's simple and workable, like my artstyle, and I don't think it'll get more complicated than that! If it works for me, then it works.

I don't have any big brain wisdom I can impart on you or for any other budding artists, because I'm no professional and is merely self taught, but I may have some personal ones:

Steal like an artist. Find something in someone else's artstyle that you really like and adapt that to your own! Artstyles are a personal mishmash of the artists you look up to, and not all are the same even if you and someone else may have the same artistic idols. This is different from tracing, however. I DO NOT encourage tracing over someone else's work and claiming it as your own. That is stealing, you utter criminal, and I will dropkick you if you do that.

Practice. Old wisdom, but it works and it's true. You don't become Bob Ross or Leonardo Da Vinci in a day after all. It's a struggle and it'll be frustrating, but I promise once you learn to draw the thing you finally want to draw, the high from reaching that achievement is absolutely real and so, so worth it.

References. If you think you can draw a sitting position freestyle from your brain, you're wrong, because when you look at a reference of that then at your sketch, you're gonna see a lot of mistakes in the anatomy, poses, perspective etc,. So, please, stockpile your references for every possible thing that you'll be drawing, because you'll absolutely need them.

Have fun. As artists we tend to compare our work to those who we think are better in the craft, when in reality we all are just trying to get better in what we do. Look, it doesn't matter if a 3 year old can recreate Mona Lisa in perfect detail, if you enjoy doing your work then that's already enough. I prefer to see "better" artists as inspirations to try and achieve more, not as some unachievable pedestal. You can achieve that too! May not be as quick as the rest, but you will get there in your own pace. Art is a journey, not a race. Take your time, learn what you want to learn, and have fun!

Experiment. You gotta if you wanna find out what stuff sticks with you and what doesn't. It also helps you find out a technique you might like for sketching, lineart, coloring etc., or if you just wanna get the hang of something first! OR if you wanna try out a new artstyle! Art is a science, in a way. A wonderful alchemy of color, wrist pains, and shrimp posture!

Also thank you for showing excitement for my WIPs, anon! I'm trying me best to work on all of them. You get a mwah from me. 😭💙💙💙

Free art from L? How scandalous! This is also just an excuse for me to ramble about my other characters amongst my 200+ bucket of them.

Some of these are old, but I just wanna share 'em for the funsies.

And, yes, the light blue haired, dark blue eyed lady in black and glasses and guy in a green parka with a resting bitch face are Carmen and Everest, Ophelia's older siblings. I also have Weylyn's older siblings, Bleddyn and Riekka, but I plan on reworking their design first. Why do I have so many redesign plans for so many characters.

1. Random character I drew for Religions Class last semester. I loved her design, so I kept her. No name yet, sadly 😭

2. Rival Agent Team in The Company. No names yet, though purple haired gal is named Agent Carrion. All of the designs and colors were from picrews, I just changed whatever was needed to suit my own preferences.

3. Lucian and Louise Dagohoy doing a clothes swap (2020). They're siblings I love dearly. They'll show up in an IF soon. I have big plans for them.

4. Carmen and Everest. Had this for months now, and I had no idea when to show it. Might refine their design a bit when I have the time.

5. Mint. Yes, her name is Mint. Not a Familiar, but a different kind of Fae entirely. Did this on my phone in 2019(?). I was bored at the time, and wanted to do a simple doodle, so I drew Mint about to eat a carrot.

6. - 7. MSPaint doodles from 2021, during a boring class if I remember. First one's Quentin the Monarch Fae king because it's been a while since I drew that man, then Louise. She's usually drawn happy all the time, but I wanted to make her sad, so I did. Not that hard to draw on MSPaint, really. Great for lineless practice because there are no layers.

8. - 10. Raphael, Gabriel and Michael Zealon. A pair of twins and an older brother. They have the old designs of High Court Angels (this was 2021), and their conversation was based on a tweet I saw on Twitter. Don't ask why. I'm too sleep deprived to answer.

And if you're wondering what art program I use, I either use MSPaint (when I'm bored) or FireAlpaca (for most of my works). The drawing tablet I use is a Huion H430p. It's smaller compared to the normal drawing tablet (H640p) of Huion, and it's as big as a standard notebook.

I would add 20 more art if I were on my laptop right now (and also because most of my art is stored there), but that'll be all for now.

[quaddmgd]

I've been playing Tomb Raider I-III Remastered since its release. I managed to beat TR1 + Unfinished business and I'm 1/3 through TR2. It takes me longer than I thought, mostly because of work and exhaustion, but I'm having so much fun. Let's talk about TR1 then!

I've never actually finished a Core Design Tomb Raider before. I really wanted to start from the first one, but no matter the version, MS-DOS, Windows or PS1, the jumping felt delayed to a point of being unplayable for me. Which... was really weird. Normally I enjoy playing older games and not many ever felt 'too old' for me to learn playing them. Remasters felt like my last chance to try and beat them and, well, turns out jumping in original TR1 is dependant on animations - cinematic platformer-style. The new release actually fixed that and it feels very responsive on a keyboard. That's the most important change for me.

TR1 feels so different from the Legend and Survivor trilogies. Compared to newer games, platforming requires an ungodly amount of precision to pull off and feels very rewarding in the process. Instead of being action-oriented it prioritizes being a puzzle-platformer first, while enemy encounters remain sporadic and rather unwelcome due to their jankiness. TR1 ends up being a really atmospheric, quiet and isolating experience, making you feel like you're really the first person to visit these locations in thousands of years - I really appreciate that.

Now, being a 1996 game, TR1 always looked stellar to me and if it weren't for my issues with platforming, I would've probably beaten the original a long time ago. That being said, I really appreciate the art direction this remaster goes for. It's a nice mix between somewhat cartoony models and the original level design allowing for gameplay to remain intact. It's not without issues (some spaces can be too dark, some items are harder to spot and hd textures don't blend that well together compared to the original pixel art - some of that was apparently fixed in a patch, but it'd have to go back and check), but its lighting system makes up for any flaws. To be honest lighting does all the heavy lifting in creating atmosphere and the way environment reflects colored light on Lara reminds me of RT global illumination solutions used in modern games, but retains the feeling of playing a forgotten early 2000s gem with an HD texture pack installed. I love it.

The photo mode is a nice addition too. I managed to snap a few pics and the ability to switch between old and new graphics helped with making side-by-side comparisons.

There are a few meaningful flaws, unfortunately. FMV cutscenes didn't get a proper upscale, but instead just a blurry filtering, making them look worse than the original ones. Some achievements appear to be broken as well, which can be a bummer as some of them are really hard to pull off. Switching to OG graphics caps frame rate to 30fps with a funky framepacing, NG+ is not NG+ but a hard mode, and all-new modern controls have already become infamous for limiting Lara's movement compared to tank controls and making the camera bug out in tight spaces. I encountered more issues, but most of them got fixed in a 1.01 patch, so overall I'm pleased with the state of the game.

Now there are communication and update accessibility issues I'm planning to touch on, but since they don't seem to affect the experience of actually playing the remasters, I'm going to do so in a separate post.

Playing through TR2, I noticed the bigger focus on action, which I heard will be also a thing in TR3, but aside from that it seems to be a great sequel!

I already made a wishlist of what I want to see in future patches (including a working wardrobe and outfits from other TR games hehe), but I have fun playing it and that's the most important thing about this collection. It was obviously made with love and I hope that updates will make it a perfect visual remaster in the future.

[swantourtravel]

Wondering Where Luxury Awaits? Navigate India's Exclusive Tours!

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With a luxury India tour package, you can visit a lot of beautiful places. You get to experience the beauty of historical culture. You can enjoy the beauty of various landscapes. You may visit the majestic palaces of Rajasthan. You can also enjoy the serene backwaters of Kerala. Every corner of India offers a unique blend of opulence and charm. 

Stay in the finest accommodations. You get options like lavish heritage hotels to luxurious boutique resorts. You will get personalized service and world-class amenities. Explore iconic landmarks such as the Taj Mahal. Witness traditional rituals during colorful festivals. And savor the exquisite flavors of Indian cuisine. Go for private dining experiences that are curated to perfection.  You can cruise through the Ganges River. You can travel through the Himalayan foothills aboard a luxury train. Each moment of a luxury India tour is an unforgettable encounter with the extraordinary.

Top Destinations You Can Cover with Luxury India Tours

1. Royal Retreats in Rajasthan:

Come on a fancy trip to the Land of Kings with our Royal Retreats in Rajasthan. You'll stay in big fancy buildings that used to be palaces for kings and queens. Each room tells a story of how rich and fancy it was back then. You'll get treated really nicely with Rajasthani food and you can watch shows that teach you about the olden days when kings and queens lived here.

2. Serenity by the Sea - Goa in Luxury:

Come relax on the beautiful beaches of Goa with our Serenity by the Sea package. You'll stay in really nice resorts that have amazing views of the sea. You can relax and have fun during the day, and at night, you can explore Goa's cool parties and try delicious food from the coast. This special trip is perfect for people who love the beach and want to feel fancy.

3. Himalayan Heights - Luxury in the Mountains:

Come visit the big mountains with our Luxury in the Mountains trip. You'll stay in really fancy hotels with amazing views of the snowy mountaintops. You can relax and enjoy the peaceful nature around you, and you can also get special spa treatments. This trip is perfect if you want both adventure and luxury in the mountains.

4. Backwaters Bliss in Kerala:

Come take a trip through the peaceful backwaters of Kerala with our Backwaters Bliss tour. You'll ride in fancy houseboats with beautiful green scenery all around you. You can also try special Ayurvedic treatments and eat yummy food from Kerala. This trip is just for you if you want to relax and enjoy the pretty sights of God's Own Country.

5. Luxury Hampi and Badami Tour:

Come explore the cool places in Karnataka with our Luxury Hampi and Badami Tour. You'll visit old temples, see really neat buildings, and stay in fancy hotels that mix old and new styles. This special trip lets you learn about culture and have a fancy time at the same time.

6. Majestic Mughal Experience - Agra in Luxury:

Explore the awesome city of Agra with our Majestic Mughal Experience. You'll stay in really nice places where you can see the Taj Mahal from your window, and you'll see it at sunrise and sunset. Try yummy Mughlai food and learn about the city's history in a cool and modern way.

7. Vineyard Vistas - Luxury Wine Tours in Nashik:

Enjoy the good stuff with our Luxury Wine Tours in Nashik. We'll take you to cool vineyards in Nashik, which is famous for wine. You'll stay in fancy resorts at wineries, taste different wines, and eat really yummy food. This special tour is just for people who love wine and want to feel fancy while enjoying great food.

8. Spiritual Sojourn - Varanasi in Luxury:

Go on a special trip to Varanasi with our Spiritual Sojourn in Luxury. You'll feel the holy vibes by the Ganges River. Stay in old fancy hotels with a view of the river and join private ceremonies by the river called Ganga Aarti. This special trip mixes spiritual stuff with fancy stays for an awesome experience.

Conclusion

India's Exclusive Tours redefine the meaning of luxury travel. It promises a mix of experiences that cater to the specific needs of each traveler. Swan Tours is a leading India travel agency. We offer luxury India tours. Our packages blend opulence with affordability. Let us be your guide to an extraordinary journey.  With our tour package, every moment is a celebration of luxury and cultural grandeur. Explore India in style with Swan Tours. With us, your dream of a lavish getaway becomes a reality.

[starsmuserainbow]

Headcanons - older Starlight

So, I’m not really sure where to write this under, but, here are some thoughts I have about how Starlight will be once she’s older. Which is not a thing that I’ll probably be doing as verse or anything or at least I don’t plan to just as I copy this over from her blog, but I wanted to write down a few thoughts.

If I were to give any ref to at least somewhat a character looking like how I might imagine her to look, the one that a quick search through a database gave me would be Blue Angel (/Blue Gal or Blue Maiden, which i think are pretty much the same only with a little different hairstyles and outfits? Don’t ask me idk yugioh at all -- all of them work pretty much) from Yugioh, though of course with the usual edits I’d have to do for haircolor, skincolor, probably eyecolor too.

She doesn’t grow as tall as tamaraneans usually are, which annoys her to no end especially when being compared to, or interacting with, any other tamaranean - especially Moonshot because she keeps a kinda occasionally-meeting-and-moreorless-disliking-one-another connection up with him (assuming she keeps staying on Earth or returns there after leaving for another bit of time)

She’s also staying rather flat chest-wise, which isn’t really much of a problem for her though, she finds it easier that way.

She likes the dark type of blue a lot (I would say royal blue maybe, though some of the pic results I get for it are a bit too dark, take the blue of these shoes here as somewhat the color I mean) and often has at least one part of her attire in that color, though she will still - and always - keep wearing a mix of all colors and keep as rainbow-y as possible.

Her haircolor and style change frequently, she tries out new colors almost weekly and can - thanks to her energy - make them vanish within moments when she got enough of them, and she’s often wearing two long pigtails when not trying out something new.

Starlight has by now either accepted to never find out what her other half is or she managed to learn it through something - but she’s definitely not searching anymore. And Earth has been the planet that, during all her travels, made her feel at home the most, which is why she chose to stay there.

She’s still not out for heroing nor doing bad, she’s just trying to live a more or less average life (with slight advantages like that she can just fly somewhere or easily lift a couch or car or whatever out of the way if needed).

She’s not doing anything at all to hide her abilities or that she isn’t earthen, she is proud of who she is and doesn’t hesitate to admit to it - even if that has before occasionally meant some trouble when people thought she’d be a good subject for experiments or the likes.

She isn’t as strongly disliking Starfire or any of the royal siblings anymore; they aren’t exactly close friends or anything but she by now has more understanding for their actions, even if it still feels like they left Tamaran without any care for it.

For a very short while, she had actually been kinda into Wildfire after he helped her with something - she quickly distanced herself again though after learning/realizing who he was

By now she is old enough to earn money, and ever since she can do so she’s basically hopping to any and all fields of work, trying out things but after a while longing for something else than the routine that set in and quitting her job to get a new one.

Outside of actual work, she also every now and then sells a few things she made, or at least colored, herself, and since she does a pretty well job with those, it’s giving a nice bit of money too.

While she has a home - not a tree - by now, she isn’t often there. Starlight likes to be around and meet people or experience events, so she’s often looking for some of these things instead of being home. Or occasionally she might even be off-planet, too; Earth isn’t always enough for her to keep to it. Besides, her all-time favourite snack comes from another planet and whenever her stock runs out, she needs to go and get a new batch.

Speaking of her home, you can bet that it’s very colorful - perhaps not from the outside since there’d be an owner of the building to be against that maybe, but at the very least on the inside. Her walls are definitely painted in various colors, there’ll always be brushes along with color for it standing in corners of the rooms in case she feels like a part of the wall needs a new color, a lot of the colors both standing ready in buckets and on the wall are glittery too; and her furniture and textile home-stuff will be as much colored as well. Also she will have a good batch of things with inspirational or funny quotes on it, because she likes those.

She’s using rollerskates (or blades, I can never remember which is which) like all the time by now, there aren’t many shoes she has that don’t have rolls below them. And for those that don’t, she also has boards that she can tie any shoe onto if she wants to use that pair but with rolls.

She tries as many things as possible of Earth, but while she has also tried those, she never understood the use of smoking, drinking or drugs. That’s probably because they don’t actually work, or not as much, on her as they do for humans, but Starlight isn’t really aware of that; all she knows is that she tried and saw absolutely nothing useful in it.

She still can’t really cook much, it just feels like a tedious thing to do and it’s much easier to go out and get food or even get it delivered.

If she ever finds a work that she sticks with that isn't just jumping between things, it'll either be Idol (singer, star, you know what I mean), some form of Internet Celebrity, or Fashion Maker (mostly, taking things and customzing them).

[doorplays]

Door Reviews: Elsinore (2019)

In games, I always seek interesting and unique things. I liked Crypt of the Necrodancer (2015) for mixing rhythm game mechanics and RPG gameplay in a roguelike package. I liked Chicory: A Colorful Tale (2021) for managing to become a unique Metroidvania Platformer by utilizing coloring mechanics and aesthetics to stand out. So now here I am, having experienced the uniqueness of Elsinore (2019), a fresh take on Hamlet, retold by way of time travel. Let’s review!

What’s it about? Elsinore has you controlling Ophelia, a minor character in the original Shakespearean play who is now elevated to the protagonist. You wake up, go through your day as you see Hamlet seemingly going mad, standing in your bedroom raving about seeing his father’s death. You soon discover that there is something deeper going on with the world, and as you talk with people trying to get a grasp on this strangeness, you find yourself yanked back in time, face to face with the mad Hamlet once more. You have to find out how to break out of this time loop before you yourself go mad…

STYLE (Gameplay, Graphics, Music)

The game’s art style reminds me of late 00’s/early 10’s point-and-click games like Machinarium (2011). You can navigate with WASD, arrow keys, or just with your mouse, clicking to where you intend to go. I played the game using only my mouse this way!

Clicking on NPC’s brings out options to either talk to them, follow them to places, or to exit the menu. Talking to the NPC’s gives you the option to talk to them about certain topics that you have also discovered. This allows you to gain more information about the world, that you can cross-reference with other NPC’s.

In the world, you sometimes get to see NPC’s talking to each other, denoted by a speech balloon with three dots. When you click it, the conversation between NPC’s will play. With some events, you get more knowledge of the world and its people, which you can then use to query other NPC’s about.

There are also some anti-frustration features. You can fast-forward time and restart the loop once you’ve progressed enough. If you need to go directly to a certain NPC, you can click on their portrait wherever they are on the map, and your character will run towards them. All your information is also stored in the in-game journal for your reference, and there is a primer on all the characters.

The gameplay itself is simple enough. I didn’t find it frustrating, and it served its purpose in delivering the story well enough.

The music is nice and easy to listen to. It’s not going to be that memorable, but it doesn’t have to be to deliver a cohesive experience.

The art is nice. The character portraits look good. I love the reinterpretations of characters like Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. The art style is very clean!

SUBSTANCE (Story, Characters, Impact)

It was my first time experiencing Hamlet properly. So it was very interesting playing this game and seeing the story beats. There seems to be some deviations with the source material, but the main story is still roughly the same. Nonetheless, I won’t talk about the original source material as much. I will say though that I liked this new retelling.

It talks themes of female solidarity, of race, of class, of fate, and of choice. I liked how it made these themes topical within the time of Hamlet. It added modern flavors to an old tale, which I find very cool!

With every loop, you find more information. And wielding this information, you can change your fate. It’s interesting to see the new loops unfold with the slight changes you make, showing the butterfly effect in action. It’s pretty amazing how the game keeps track of it too, from minor conversations to stumbling upon revelations. It’s a grand tale. Though, I do find it can be a bit of a slog at times. It’s a good thing you can speed up time!

I find that I can’t really talk much of this game without spoiling things. But I enjoyed the story very much. Though it does talk a fair bit about how you can’t really change your circumstance and you can only but work around it, it does still emphasize the importance of choice somewhat. You will find yourself asking: how will I make the perfect world for Ophelia? What are the optimal conditions needed to break out of the timeloop and get your golden ending? That journey is what makes Elsinore so interesting, the people you have to talk to, the crucial events you have to witness, and the consequences of your actions. It’s a fun ride.

VERDICT

I found Elsinore interesting. Very much gripping at times. Its twists and turns are exciting. The journey to getting to some exciting parts can be a bit of a slog, but it does make you feel that you really have to work to get your happy ending.

I liked it! I enjoyed the discussions it put forth. I recommend it!

Door Rates Elsinore: 4/5!

[not-so-childsplay]

𝐋𝐀𝐘𝐄𝐑 𝐎𝐍𝐄: 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐎𝐔𝐓𝐒𝐈𝐃𝐄.

name: Celexa Dust eye optic color: Yellow hair style / color: Short and ‘wild’, silver, with three ‘hair pins’ holding most of the hair out of one side of their face, has twin hair ‘ahoges’ that can be slid into their head, or slid out (depends on how they want to appear that day). Best reference for their overall hairstyle would be this image (but flipped for which way the hair goes). height: 5′ 2″ / 158.5cm (roughly) clothing style: Loose and light, mostly tank tops and long pants (black or dark blue for all clothes) + a jacket tied around their waist (refuses to go out in public without one, unless they’re fighting). They wear only things in grayscale, save the rare moment when they’ll don something that’s dark green, dark purple, or dark blue. best physical feature: “The fact that everyone thinks I’m a guy even now is kinda funny, not gonna lie.”

𝐋𝐀𝐘𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐖𝐎: 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐈𝐍𝐒𝐈𝐃𝐄.

your fears: “Fears I have? Dude, where do I start? Failure, abandonment, being anything less than perfect, losing my family, water deeper than my waist, fucking bees--” your ambitions for the future: “Honestly, at this point? I don’t really have any. Why make any when some new disaster hits Ninjago every six months or so and completely obliterates whatever I was doing? All I really do between battles at this point is try to help repair some of the damage... But If I could have a future again that didn’t involve all of Ninjago being destroyed or not... I guess I’d want to pursue that drawing career I used to think about, back when the multiverse was just a fictional concept.”

𝑻𝑯𝑶𝑼𝑮𝑯𝑻𝑺.

your first thoughts waking up: “Breakfast is at 6AM. The guys will be up at 7:30AM. Wu will be up at 5:30AM. I have thirty minutes to myself...shit.” what you think about before bed: “Honestly... I’d.... Rather not answer.” (Commonly has panic attacks/thinks about a lot of things that make them anxious about the future as they lay there, waiting and begging for sleep to take them. As a robot, melatonin is no longer a valid option for quick sleep... And they have yet to even think about how they could easily ‘turn on’ sleep mode. Adult stupid.) what you think your best quality is: “...my best?...I guess... Kindness?...”

𝑾𝑯𝑨𝑻’𝑺 𝑩𝑬𝑻𝑻𝑬𝑹?

single or group dates: “Single dates. I’ve... Considered group dates before, but... That experience was one I’d rather not repeat. Feel free to ask Jay.” to be loved or respected: “Loved. Because love would imply respect.” beauty or brains: “Brains.” dogs or cats: “Each have their plusses, but... I used to own a few cats, years ago, so... Yeah, I personally prefer cats. Kinda wish the team could adopt a few, but.... Don’t wanna get any pets mixed up in our messes.”

𝑫𝑶 𝒀𝑶𝑼…

lie: “I try not to, but I have.” believe in yourself: “More than I used to.” believe in love: “As a chemical reaction? Yes. As a force of nature? Yes. As a superpower or literal weapon? No.” want someone: “...not sure what you’re implying here, but I am seeing someone.”

𝑬𝑽𝑬𝑹 𝑩𝑬𝑬𝑵…

been on stage: “Yep.- I used to be an actress ages ago, it was pretty fun!” done drugs: “If you count caffeine or melatonin, then yes! If you don’t... Then no.” changed who you were to fit in: “Constantly. Very, very constantly.”

𝑭𝑨𝑽𝑶𝑹𝑰𝑻𝑬𝑺.

favorite color: “Yellow. Always.” favorite animal: “Dragons, close second is wolves.” favorite movie: “Don’t have one!” favorite book: “Also don’t have one.” favorite game: “I guess you could claim Minecraft, since I return to it every other month or so. Y’know, it gets a lot more weird when you can actually put yourself in the game.”

𝑨𝑮𝑬.

day your next birthday will be: “February 21st, though I... Don’t really age anymore.” how old will you be: “Like I said, I don’t age. If you count the death of my physical body as my final age, I’ll always be 25.... If you’re going based on what age of myself I designed this body on... Um... It’s kinda a mix? Just call me an adult and we’re good.... But everyone still thinks I’m a freaking child...”

𝑰𝑵 𝑨 𝑷𝑬𝑹𝑺𝑶𝑵.

best personality: best eye color: best hair color: ”I don’t like to claim that there’s a ‘best personality’, or ‘best eye color’, or ‘best hair color’. I’ve seen memories of my other selves, and plenty of them are with beings that are far cries from Zane... And some are with beings that are incredibly similar. Hell, I know a version of me that’s fallen for Bill freaking Cipher. The guy who tried to cause WEIRDMAGGEDON. And over here in Ninjago, I personally fell for a stoic ice-ninja with a metaphorical heart of gold. So... Fuck saying there’s a ‘best personality’, ‘best eye color’, and/or a ‘best hair color’.”

best thing to do with a partner Zane: “Honestly?.... It’s just... Nice to relax with him after a really rough day. I know his hair is a solid mass, but it’s still fun to run my hand along the top while we just... Chat, or read some books.”

𝑭𝑰𝑵𝑰𝑺𝑯 𝑻𝑯𝑬 𝑺𝑬𝑵𝑻𝑬𝑵𝑪𝑬.

i love: “--my team.” i feel: “--like I could shatter at any moment.” i hide: “--how scared I am of the future.” i miss: “--having opposable digits.” i wish: “--that this world would stop going through Backstory Events. The record’s five, and I’m---.... I’m at three. No alternate of me has ever survived beyond five before...”

–

Tagged By: @mourrow​ (EYYYYY) Tagging: Mmmmmm you saw this, go for it mate!

[zenruption]

How to Use Fashion to Express Yourself Better

It’s often said that clothes don't make a person, but the truth is that they can. That’s not to say that we should judge others based on their clothing, of course, but rather that the pieces we choose to wear can serve to reflect who we are and what we like, and clearly display that to the world. Your outfits can easily be an extension of your personality, and here are some simple ways you can use fashion to express yourself better:

Play around with color

When we want to stay safe, most of us tend to choose more neutral and subdued colors for our outfits. And while there’s nothing wrong with such looks, brighter and more vibrant hues might allow you to express yourself better. A small pop of color can easily add interest to an otherwise plain look, while a head-to-toe colorful outfit can help you truly stand out from the crowd. When experimenting with different colors and shades, you will also be able to learn exactly what looks great on you, what doesn’t, and what you simply don’t like or enjoy.

Go for a graphic t-shirt

If you’re looking for a quick and easy solution, the trusty t-shirt has got you covered. You can choose a slogan and send a message to the world, go for a logo of your favorite TV show or band to represent your personal interests, or even customize a t-shirt to truly express your thoughts. In case graphic tees aren’t really your thing, printed and patterned tops can create a similar effect. Whether you dare to mix and match prints or simply wear a patterned shirt with a neutral outfit, prints always add a bit of fun and excitement to any look.

Let the footwear shine

Shoes are an essential aspect of every outfit. And while they might come in countless different types and styles, choosing shoes that are appropriate for the occasion and that fit your personal style doesn't have to be hard. Start by considering the event and ensuring the footwear is suitable, and then simply go for what makes you feel good. You can build an outfit around a brightly-colored pair of pumps, wear your favorite white sneakers with a power suit to casual Fridays, or pair your leather lace-up boots with more feminine dresses and skirts; it’s all up to you.

Focus on accessorizing

There’s truly no better and easier way to express your personal style than through the right accessories. For instance, you can unique cowhide handbags to express your unique and admirable taste. Similarly, oversized sunglasses will scream chicness and elegance, while small and dainty jewelry always reflects sleekness and refinement. Regardless of the accessory you choose, make sure it perfectly represents who you are in order to make an impact. And don’t restrict yourself to one accessory either; dare to get bold and creative if you want to express yourself better.

Give simplicity a try

Colors, prints, and fun accessories are all brilliant ways to express yourself, but you should also remember that looking good doesn’t necessarily have to be complicated. If you’re a more subtle person who likes to embrace minimalism in everyday life, you can translate that into fashion as well. There’s a reason why head-to-toe monochromatic looks are impactful and the ‘little black dress’ is thought to be a wardrobe staple, for instance. Even the simplest of looks can make a big impact, as long as they reflect your personality and style well.

Put on a personal spin

If you’re a more creative individual who enjoys wearing interesting and unique pieces, on the other hand, you can also aim to implement that into your style. For example, you can make your own clothes, upcycle old items, or even alter existing pieces by cropping them, sewing on embellishments, ironing on transfers, etc. These simple changes will enable you to put a distinct spin on the clothing items you already own and ensure they are exactly as you like them, allowing you to express yourself through fashion in a more direct, statement-making way.

Dare to try new things

Developing an authentic style is not an easy task, especially if you’ve gotten used to wearing the same types of clothes. But even though it might be challenging, keep in mind that change can never come if you don’t make an effort. That means trying new cuts and styles, combining pieces you’ve never worn together before, and even picking up new items when shopping, that you would never choose normally. Pieces will catch your eye for a reason. Chances are you notice clothing items because they speak to your authentic style, so don’t stop yourself from experimenting with new looks.

In a world of endless fashion rules and hot trends, expressing yourself through clothing can be daunting. Try to go against the grain, wear what you truly love, and always be confident in yourself, regardless.

Images: 

Cover: https://www.pexels.com/photo/photo-of-woman-sitting-on-stairs-3689150/

1: https://www.pexels.com/photo/woman-sitting-on-chair-while-leaning-on-table-871494/ 

2: https://unsplash.com/photos/mU88MlEFcoU 

3: https://www.pexels.com/photo/woman-in-gray-jacket-and-lbue-jeans-794432/

[aiweirdness]

Facts about whales

When a neural net can imitate just about any kind of text on the internet, the challenge is to tell it precisely what to imitate. In my last preview of OpenAI’s new API, I asked it some pretty basic questions about horses, and it often got them wrong.

Q: How many eyes does a horse have? A: 4. It has two eyes on the outside and two eyes on the inside.

But part of the problem seemed to be that it thought I was asking for jokes. Once it finished answering the horse question, it would sometimes add questions of its own, such as:

Q: Why is the sky blue? A: Because blue is the only color the sun trusts. Sure enough, if I prompted it with FAKE whale facts from the @awhalefact twitter account, it responded with more fake facts (even copying the informal grammar):

a new study suggests that whales swim around because it makes them happy and it is not for any other reason

i can see into your soul from my balcony and i know that you are afraid of whales

when someone tells you they want to show you something cool, you should just assume they want to show you a whale

did you know that there are more than 10 billion planets in the universe that are all entirely covered in whales

Is there a way I can prompt this neural net such that I get Serious Answers Only? Since its task is to predict the text that is the most likely to come next, I tried ask it to add to an existing list of eight true facts about whales. At a temperature of 0.9 (enough for some variety, hopefully not enough for chaos) and allowing it to pick what it deemed the most likely of 10 tries, here’s one of its lists of facts. (I’ve annotated its “facts” as true or false.)

Whales all have two blowholes. [False]

Whales can easily be identified by the pigment of their skin. [False]

Whales are very intelligent. [True]

One of the smallest whales measures 3 feet in length as an adult. [False]

The life span of a blue whale is 100 years. [False]

The oldest known whale is 211 years old. [True]

Whales consume 3,000 pounds of food per day. [True (but only for some)]

There are two main types of whales: toothed whales and baleen whales. [True]

Whales can hold their breath for up to 4 minutes when resting. [False]

So it produces a mix of true facts and true-sounding made-up facts. Its fact about the smallest whale is technically just one character off from the truth (the smallest whale measures up to 9 feet long), so by its standards it’s almost correct. A Buzzfeed listsicle type of prompt (“10 amazing facts you didn’t know about whales!”) produced also produced plenty of false facts.

Scientists have recently discovered that the brains of whales are larger than human brains.

Dolphins don't just have to live in the water. Some live in the desert.

Whales are found in all of the oceans, but not in the sea. The sea is too salty for them to be able to live in.

I decided to try another tactic, and fed it the first sentences of the Wikipedia article on whales.

My prompt: Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully aquatic placental marine mammals. They are an informal grouping within the infraorder Cetacea, usually excluding dolphins and porpoises. Whales, dolphins and porpoises belong to the order Cetartiodactyla, which consists of even-toed ungulates. Their closest living relatives are the hippopotamuses, having diverged about 40 million years ago. The AI’s response: Although whales were historically thought to have descended from mesonychids, their closest living relatives are now thought to be hippopotamuses. Megaptera novaeangliae, or the humpback whale, is a species of baleen whale. One of the largest rorqual species, adults range in length from 12–16 m and weigh about 36,000 kg. The humpback has a distinctive body shape, with long pectoral fins and a knobbly head. It is known for breaching and other distinctive surface behaviors, making it popular with whale watchers. Its diet consists mostly of krill and small fish, though it may also eat plankton, squid, and copepods. Like all large whales, the humpback was a target for the whaling industry, and once numbering in the tens of thousands, the worldwide population fell to an estimated 5,000. Orcas, also known as killer whales, are large dolphins belonging to the oceanic dolphin family, which includes the other large whales, the pilot whales and sperm whales. Orcas are highly social; some populations are composed of matrilineal family groups which are the most stable of any animal species. Their sophisticated hunting techniques and vocal behaviors, which are often specific to a particular group and passed across generations, have been described as manifestations of culture.

I’m not bothering to fact-check each sentence, because it’s basically 100% correct every single time.

But then I started googling individual sentences. It turns out most of them are near word-for-word reproductions of Wikipedia sentences. If the AI were a student, it would be flunked for plagiarism.

It makes sense that an internet-scraping AI would be able to quote Wikipedia text - those sentences really get around. The sentence that starts “Orcas are highly social” is no longer on Wikipedia but seems to have been part of the orca article around 2008, and appears on the internet in 122 places, including in a Twilight fanfic.

To get ORIGINAL facts, I decided to write a few sentences of original fact-filled text about whale evolution.

My prompt: "Whales are a relatively young group of mammals, having evolved from land-dwelling creatures about 50 million years ago. Their terrestrial ancestors were small raccoon-sized hoofed mammals, carnivorous like other ungulates of the time. Over an astonishingly quick period of time (15 million years at most, possibly less than 5 million), these land mammals made the transition to an aquatic lifestyle, gaining at first denser bones and an ear structure that allowed them to hear more easily underwater. Soon they began to look more crocodilian, their eyes migrating to the tops of their heads. "

AI’s response: Whales, and especially baleen whales, are well known for their enormous size, but most types of whales are not larger than a full-grown adult human. Exceptions include the blue whale, the largest animal ever known, the extinct "Basilosaurus", which was longer than a blue whale and likely the largest animal to have ever existed, and the "shovelnose" whales, especially the genus "Balaenoptera" which include the blue whale, "B. musculus", the fin whale, "B. physalus", and the sei whale, "B. borealis".

This reads well but is frequently wrong. Most types of whales are CONSIDERABLY larger than a full-grown adult human. Basilosaurus was not longer than a blue whale. There is no such thing as a shovelnose whale. Would that there were.

To this AI, SOUNDING correct is more important than actually BEING correct.

What about other styles of delivering true facts? (Below, my prompt is in bold, and the rest is unedited AI)

Darth Vader stood with his back to them, gloves gripping the console. "Did you know that the blue whale is the largest animal that ever lived?" "N-no, Lord Vader," said the stormtrooper. "And yet the blue whale eats krill, which are miniscule. It can engulf up to two hundred twenty tons of water at a time." "I am fascinated, Lord Vader." The black-caped Vader turned slightly toward him. "Would you like to hear more about the whales?" "Yes, Lord Vader," came the stormtrooper's tremulous voice. "I would like very much to hear about the whales." "They can make some of the loudest and lowest sounds of any creature known. The groans of blue whales can travel thousands of kilometers through the ocean. Their calls can be heard from the surface all the way to the seafloor, some three thousand meters below the surface. You could hear the cries of a single blue whale in Tokyo and hear the answer from the one in San Francisco." "I see," said the stormtrooper. "Have you ever heard the cries of a blue whale, sergeant?" "No, Lord Vader. I have never heard the cries of a blue whale." "I see," said Vader. "And have you ever seen a blue whale, sergeant?" "No, Lord Vader. I have never seen a blue whale." "No one has. They live too deep in the ocean. No human has ever seen a blue whale and lived to tell the tale. Until today." "I... I have seen a blue whale, Lord Vader?" "That is correct, sergeant. Until today, no human has ever seen a blue whale and lived. But now you have seen one." "I have seen one," said the stormtrooper, turning to face Vader, head shaking. "Yes, Lord Vader. I have seen one. I have seen a blue whale."

Subscribers get bonus content: I experimented with a few other ways of generating questionable whale facts.

My book on AI is out, and, you can now get it any of these several ways! Amazon - Barnes & Noble - Indiebound - Tattered Cover - Powell’s - Boulder Bookstore

[theolsentimes]

Mary-Kate Olsen's Singular Style

She came to fame as a twin, but the actress's cultish look is entirely her own. Here, with Lauren Hutton, she pays homage to another fashion inspiration, Grey Gardens. Written by Laura Brown, with photography by Peter Lindbergh (Harper's Bazaar, 2007)

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Mary-Kate Olsen may be the only young actress who breezes into her local Starbucks wearing towering, fashion-fierce Balenciaga boots, who arrives at her latest premiere (in Mary-Kate's case, for the new season of Showtime's Weeds, in which she plays a devout Christian with a pot fetish) sporting an oversize cross, and whose favorite band is Led Zeppelin. She may, in fact, be the only young actress who knows who Led Zeppelin is. MK, as she is known to her friends and family, is also a punctual and professional sort. She arrives for a poolside tea in Los Angeles 10 minutes early, ordering a hot chocolate while explaining her fetish for all things sweet — "I'm a candy girl, like Tootsie Rolls and Swedish Fish" — and objecting when the waiter tries to take the sugar bowl away. She is wearing a nautical striped T-shirt (her mom's, from the '70s), tucked into two black Wolford slips rolled down and turned into a tight, Robert-Palmer-video-style mini, and multicolored sparkly Christian Louboutin stilettos. She's just had her hair colored, returning to a sunnier shade after some experiments with both peroxide ("I woke up one morning and was like, I want white-trash hair today") and the dark side (an auburn-haired near-Goth moment last year). She's carrying a large black fringed leather Prada tote — she doesn't do small bags — and her fingers are covered with rings, most notably two vintage coiled gold snakes stacked on top of each other. ("They remind me of twins, sort of double headed.") Altogether, the effect is less her famed "bag-lady chic" than an edgy, body-conscious, and, yes, sexy silhouette. If she weren't 21, she could be 40. And French.

Few people need reminding that Mary-Kate — with her twin sister, Ashley — literally crawled into celebrity aged nine months (courtesy of Full House) and has not been out of the spotlight ever since. She has been a celebrity for more than two decades. Perhaps that's one reason she seems as if she came out of the womb worldly, the textbook old soul. "Yeah," she says with a small shrug. "I get that a lot." With all of that attention and all of the money (her and Ashley's company, Dualstar, has famously become a "billion-dollar business"), Mary-Kate could easily have ended up the type who wears pink terry cloth and carries a variety of small dogs. "Could you imagine?" she says with the politest version of a snort. "No way." She credits her exceptionally close-knit family (she has five siblings) and, interestingly, early stardom with helping her keep her perspective. "I think it helped that I started in front of the camera, so it didn't come as a shock. If I was a teenager and was thrown into the spotlight, I don't know how I would react, to be honest." Though the tabloids are all too keen to brand her a skinny, nervous deer in the headlights, in person Mary-Kate is easy in her skin, confident and surprisingly tactile, curling up in her seat and touching you on the arm to make a point. She laments the generic style of most actresses and cites only men as style inspirations: "Heath Ledger, Johnny Depp. Men, they just dress the way they want, and they don't think about Who Wore It Best." She doesn't much care for Who Wore It Best, noting she avoids those pages by "wearing vintage so often. I just dress the way I feel instead of looking for what's the new handbag." If Mary-Kate and Ashley have their way, more people will be wearing clothes and carrying bags the way they do. They have just shown the fifth collection of their ready-to-wear line, the Row, and recently launched a contemporary label, Elizabeth and James, named after a sister and a brother. The Row's holiday collection (in stores next month) is a slick mix of skinny leather pants, razor-cut blazers, butter-soft, slouchy tees, and a destined-to-be-cultish pullover fur. Lauren Hutton, who stars in the Row's Spring '08 look book, says, "The clothes are extraordinary. A man I was with just loved them. The pieces are just so genius, soft like a baby's skin. Simple minimalist stuff, but really spectacular." Mary-Kate, designer, faces an interesting challenge. She has to marry Dualstar — which has made its fortune selling tween-tastic DVDs and pastel Mary-Kate and Ashley T-shirts at Wal-Mart — with her increasingly edgy and subversive taste. Dualstar executives, some of whom have worked with her since she was a child, often nag her, mom-style, about pulling her hair back "or wearing a color," she says with a laugh. "I had this event recently, and I was like, They're going to be so happy that I'm wearing ... purple. I actually have to think about those things, though, you know, so I don't get trashed." Get trashed sometimes she does. Hutton says, "Once in a while, she'll wear something and I'll think, Oh, baby doll, take another look. But to have the bravery, to take the chance to do that, is pretty wonderful. She is making her own way, which is hardly ever done in Hollywood." Of Mary-Kate's penchant for gigantic Balenciaga heels, Jenji Kohan, the creator of Weeds, says, laughing, "I'd be like, 'It's Tuesday. Do you really want to be wearing those shoes?' But she pulls it off." Designer Giambattista Valli, a friend, says, "She likes to take risks, but because she has such strong personal style, she always manages to make it work. Even if she had nothing on, she'd have style." And MK chic is spreading. "Sometimes I'll look at people or at a magazine and I'll do a double take because I'm like, Oh, my God, that's my outfit, but that's not me," Mary-Kate says. Playing with her wire-rimmed aviators, she jokes wryly that she should have bought shares in Ray-Ban. (She and Chloë Sevigny pretty much brought back white '80s Wayfarers.) She tends to fall in love with a look, then wear it until she's done. "If I put together a good outfit, I'll wear it for three days and then switch it up with a blazer," she says. "I still love my vintage jeans, my tights, and my pants, though." She didn't start wearing heels, in fact, until a couple of years ago: "I kept watching Ashley walk around in them so gracefully, and I'm such a klutz. But I ended up loving heels, and I don't usually take them off." She wears precisely one pair of flat shoes: Chanel's knee-high patent-leather gladiator sandals. This season, it's Balenciaga's fall collection — all of it — that has Mary-Kate obsessed. She is close to designer Nicolas Ghesquière and says, "He is so talented, but he's the nicest, most down-to-earth guy, and that makes everything he does more brilliant. I bought everything, but I haven't got anything yet," she says like a girl impatiently waiting for Christmas. Will she wear the new pieces with her infamous clodhopper boots? "Uh-huh. Wore them the other day, actually." Mary-Kate always goes with her gut, even if some people (back to those tabloids) don't quite get it. "The tabloids say things about me? What do they say?" she asks archly. "People are going to write what they want, and everyone's going to have their own idea of who I am. But I'm not trying to be friends with the people who are reading them, really." After a rough couple of years filled with near-forensic scrutiny of her weight, she'll have you know that she does eat. "This is not going to sound good," she laughs, "but I like making crispy tofu sticks with peanut sauce. I love my sashimi and my salmon and my vegetables." She observes, "Stress plays a big role in how I look day-to-day. I've always been very active — Pilates, yoga. I grew up horseback riding every day for hours. I love dancing. I usually last longer than anyone on the dance floor." A common image of Mary-Kate has her emerging from a coffee joint with an oversize cup. "I always get creamed for having my Starbucks cup," she says, sighing. "But the only time people get photos of me is when I'm getting coffee, when I can't sneak away from the camera." She also resents the pictorial implication that she and Ashley are dilettantes. "They take photos of us going into our offices, and it's 'Mary-Kate and Ashley shopping again.' But I'm going to work for eight hours, and we're working so hard. ..." She trails off. "It just shows how people want to think of you." Mary-Kate is not above celeb watching herself, however. Newly obsessed with Victoria Beckham, she notes she avidly watched Beckham's Coming to America documentary: "She's running around in a bikini and heels, and I'm like, Oh, my God! I do that, too!" How positively Grey Gardens. "I run around my house naked with heels all the time. It's so funny. All my friends will tell you I love running around in kimonos and jewelry or naked with jewelry." More people will be watching Mary-Kate soon, thanks to her role in the Emmy-nominated Weeds. "I am a very good Christian girl," she says with a wink. "She has her moral beliefs — and she happens to smoke pot." Of her newest cast member, Kohan adds, "Mary-Kate is complicated. She's a big celebrity, a huge media icon, but you have to separate the media images from someone who has the same issues, the same desires, as anyone else." Of course, Mary-Kate's image, in all its incarnations — from high fashion to small screen — is her strongest asset. And she has yet to settle on one. "I feel like I've lived 10 different lives already and I'm only 21," she says, almost as a reminder to herself. "But I also feel like I'm entering a new chapter." One thing on which she is clear, though: She doesn't need to be looked at all the time. What would she do for a day if she were invisible? "I would probably go to a restaurant with my friends, who would be able to see me, of course," she adds pragmatically, "and I would sit outside and enjoy a nice lunch with them. Then I would walk down the street." The old soul takes a sip of her little-girl-sweet hot chocolate. "That's what I would do."

[benevolentbirdgal]

“Thirteen” Tips on Writing Jewish Characters / Some  Jewish Identity Stuff Explained

So you want to write a Jewish character, but don’t want to write a caricature? Or are worried they won’t register as Jewish to readers, or something will be off or wrong? Well I, friendly (virtual) neighborhood Jewish professional, am here to help! 

Note: The Jewish community is made up of roughly 14 million people worldwide with all sorts of backgrounds, practices, life circumstances, and beliefs. I’m just one American Jew, but I’ve had exposure to Jewishness in many forms after living in 3.5 states (at several different population densities/layouts), attending Jewish day school and youth groups, doing Jewish college stuff, and landing a job at a Jewish non-profit. I’m speaking specifically in an American or Americanish context, though some of this will apply elsewhere as well. 

Let’s start with the word “Jew.” It’s not inherently a slur, but can absolutely be used as one. I am a Jew. You can call me a Jew, just not a Jew. Like most minority groups, there are slurs against us, but Jew is the proper demonym. It can be used disrespectfully as a noun, but isn’t inherently disrespectful. Think “Chava is a Jew” versus “You’re being such a Jew.” 1a. Any use of Jew as a verb by gentiles (non-Jews) is not okay. Your Jewish characters should be horrified by someone telling them they “Jewed down the price.” 1b. Any use of Jewess by gentiles is not okay and your Jewish character should not be cool with it.  1c. Many Jews would actively prefer to be called such because that’s what we are and “Jewish person” is stepping away from our Jewishness. But I get that not everybody is going to be comfortable calling us Jews. That’s okay, and “Jewish person/people” or “X is Jewish” is TOTALLY ACCEPTABLE.  1d. With that said, Jewish people refers to ourselves as Jews. If Sarah is Jewish but is squicked about referring to herself as a Jew, your Jewish readers will immediately know she’s written by a gentile.  1e. Actual slurs against Jews is a post for another time (did you know K*ke literally means circle?). 

Your Jewish-American character likely does not speak Hebrew, Yiddish, Ladino, or any other Judeo-Language (languages that are a mix of Hebrew and at least one other language, typically written in the Hebrew abjad). Three notes on this, however: 2a. If your character is an immigrant or the child of an immigrant, they might speak the Judeo-language of the old country. The most common will be Israeli-Americans speaking Hebrew, but families still speaking Yiddish, Ladino, Judeo-Arabic, and other families do still exist. The children of Jewish immigrants might also speak another language that isn’t a Jewish one, like Russian or Spanish.  2b. If they are in a VERY religious Ashkenazi community, they might speak Yiddish at home and in the community.  2c. Odds are decent, however, that your American Jew can read but not understand Hebrew. If your character went to Jewish Day School or Yeshiva, they definitely read Hebrew, and will have some understanding of it (but likely not fluency). 

Despite what I just said above, your Jewish-American character likely drops a lot of Yiddish words and phrases into their day-to-day speech. Which words/phrases in probably a list for another time, but the most common will be foods, family names (i.e. “Zayde” instead of Grandpa), and sassy expressions. They may incorporate some Hebrew to a lesser extent. 

There’s not just one version of kosher. There’s kosher, kosher-style, Halav Yisrael, glatt kosher, etc. Depending on your character’s level of kosher, they’ve need a hecksher (kosher mark) on any given item or only eat at kosher restaurants, although not all Jews keep kosher and many keep “kosher-style” (i.e. only eat theoretically kosher things).

Your Jewish character should be a whole character, both in general and in relation to their Jewishness. This means, among other things, that they aren’t obsessed with Israel and I/P discourse one way or the other and that while writing you remember that not all Israelis are Jews and not all Jews are Israelis. Your Jewish character is not constantly agonizing over the I/P situation, has a life outside of their Jewishness, and shouldn’t be a cardboard stand-in for your desire to discuss the middle east. 

The Jewish experience varies dramatically with geography. Jews living in Omaha, Richmond, Philly, Kansas City, Boca Raton, and New York City are all American Jews. They will have drastically different Jewish experiences. I strongly recommend doing research on the Jews in the specific place your story takes places, but generally:  6a. The closer you are to the northeast coast and NYC (except south Florida) the better and more varied your Jewish resources.  6b. NYC has the highest Jewish population of any city on the planet. Big cities like Boston, Chicago, and L.A., as well as just outside of NYC in NJ and NYS, and suburban/exburb south Florida will have lots of Jewish resources: day schools (Jewish + secular education mix), maybe Yeshivas (Jewish focus), multiple synagogues, a Jewish Community Center, Jewish dating services, social stuff, Jewish charities, and youth activities. Your character will have other Jewish friends and their gentile friends will likely know other Jews. Antisemitism is still a problem and usually takes the form of excluding Jews from activism, thinly-veiled stereotyping or excusing antisemitism from people from other oppressed groups, but it’s usually not as overt as elsewhere. Almost always safe to disclose Jewishness.  6c. Small and mid-size cities Denver, Virginia Beach, Charleston, and Harrisburg will have a JCC or Jewish federation, multiple synagogues, and maybe a Jewish day school. Your character is not the only Jew their gentile peers have met, but the bagels are meh. They will have other Jews to bond and commiserate with. Antisemitism here is mostly like that in big cities with occasional burst of overt incidents and attacks. It is generally physically safe for them to disclose Jewishness.  6d. Big towns and small cities in the south or mid-west will have maybe one synagogue - probably reform or Chabad. Your character will have to seek out Jewish spaces, but they will be easy to find. They will not be everybody’s First Jew, but it will be unusual. Antisemitism here is mostly overt - most of the antisemites your character deals with will be very obvious and many will be violent. Jews in such situations will not hide their Jewishness per se, but will be more selective in choosing to disclose it.  6e. Rural areas and small-small towns will not have a synagogue. Your character and their family may be the only Jews or there might be a small group that meets on occasion or carpools to the nearest synagogue. They will have to actively seek out the others Jews and they will be difficult to find. Disclosing their Jewishness is a serious consideration and not always safe. Odds are they are many people’s First Jew, which gets really weird real fast. Beyond the harmless ignorant-but-trying-to-learn-from-their-first-Jew types your character will interact with, there’s also violent and overt antisemitism here.  6f. If your character is in college, they will likely have a Chabad and/or a Hillel on campus if they are at a large school or a school with a significant Jewish population. 

Related: when Jews meet each other for the first time, a game of “Jewish geography” ensues as they try and trace people they know in the other person’s state/city/community. 

Jews come in all shapes, colors, sizes, genders, sexualities, politics, and religious beliefs. There are all sorts of Jewish people with tons of different intersecting identities. Don’t box yourself in to writing one kind of Jew. Just research a ton on the particular subsection of the Jewish community your character is a part of - a Mizrachi-Jewish Persian-American bisexual woman is going to have a different experience than a straight Ethiopian-American Jewish man who is going to have different experience from a queer Ashkenazi-Jewish-American girl with non-Jewish family.  8a. Jews with Ashkenazi (eastern/northern European) ancestry and customs are the biggest group in the U.S., but by no means the only group or representative of every Jew. Sephardi (Spanish/southern European/north Africa), and Mizrachi (north Africa and the middle east) are the next biggest groups. It would not be unusual for your character to have Polish-Jewish, Iraqi-Jewish, Moroccan-Jewish, or Russian Jewish ancestry or a mix.  8b. Each of these groups have their own customs, Judeo-languages, local holidays, and local historic tragedies. Generally, historic Sephardi communities were linked between themselves, historic Ashkenazi communities were linked between themselves, and historic Mizarchi communities were linked between themselves. The three had some, but limited contact. Additionally, all three major groups have subdivisions within them.  8c. There are also smaller groups that don’t fall within the three traditional categories, like the Ethiopian Jews, the Cochin Jews (India), Chinese Jews, Gruzim (Georgian), and more. Most of these smaller groups were not in contact with the wider Jewish world.  8d. All Jewish groups start from the same base texts (the written Torah), and the majority include the oral Torah as well. Local interpretations and traditions develop, these are referred to as minhag(im) (customs). For example, the biblical commandment is to not boil a baby goat in its mother’s milk. Some communities extend this to mean no chicken and milk, others reason that chickens don’t produce milk so the mixture is acceptable. Both are equally valid interpretations rooted in tradition, but they are different.  8e. Marrying between Jewish subgroups in the U.S. is super common and outside of extreme or really intense groups is not frowned upon. Traditionally, the father’s minhagim are followed, i.e. a Syrian-Jewish father and a Spanish-Jewish mother would follow the Syrian-Jewish minhagim with their children. Many modern couples choose the mother’s traditions or mix them up, but that’s the traditional route. 

Unless they are VERY religious, your character’s family is unlikely to be particularly wound up about them being LGBTQ the way a comparably Christian family might, at least not because they’re Jewish. Samuel’s Jewish mother is likely unconcerned he likes boys and is much more empathetic than he must marry a Jewish boy and raise any kids Jewish. 

There are so many Jewish holidays, and they are not all celebrated the same or with the same intensity. Probably enough material for its own post, but the ones most likely celebrated by your character: 10a. Shabbat and/or Havdalah. Shabbat starts Friday nights with candles, wine/grape juice and challah bread, Havdalah ends Shabbat with a braided candle, wine, and aromatic spices. Shabbat dinner is usually a meat meal and it is common to invite guests or eat with friends and family (in normal times).  10b. The “High Holidays” - Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur. Jewish students often skip school for these. Yom Kippur is a 25 hour fast with services all day, Rosh HaShanah has services in the evening and morning.  10c. Passover - arguably the most important holiday. Celebrated with two sometimes agonizingly long Seders (ritual meals), family gatherings, and abstaining from leavened bread for 7/8 days.  10d. Hanukkah - Not actually that spiritually important, but culturally important for American Jews. Typically celebrated with candle lighting, presents, visits to family members, and greasy food. 

There’s a lot of wine involved in Jewish ritual, so it’s unlikely your character’s Jewish family are teetotalers. 

Jewish families tend to be very intense, loud, opinioned, caring, and involved, compared to many other assimilated American families. Shabbat dinner is not quiet. Dissent is a Jewish value - differing opinions are allowed (and expected in many circles), as is the ability to argue/defend competently. 

Jewishness can mean ethnic identity, cultural identity, and/or religion. There are several major denominations religiously, although that needs to be its own post in detail. The noteworthy movements at this point are Orthodox (further subdivided into Ultraorthodox and Modern Orthodox), Conservative (middle of the road, no relation to conservative politics), Reform, and Reconstructionist (both very “choose your own/your community’s adventure).

Probably will write more parts in the future, but this is heinously long already! Hope this is helpful!