#where there is a local Pride group I work with

[genderqueerdykes]

How can i find queer spaces irl? clubs arent really my thing, but its all i can find thats around me

good question!

this one can be tough, as bars/clubs are usually what come up the most readily when searching on google maps and social media. they can and do have days where the atmosphere is calmer but i still don't like being in bars. i think there may be some options for you, depending on your area

i would recommend checking your library if you can, a lot of the time they will advertise queer events if there are any going on in the area. if not they often times have information on local queer organizations. if you are unable to do this, universities usually have good lists of local queer events and spaces. usually people are going to say LGBT (event) so phrasing it that way may help a bit. but regardless universities often have groups that are open to the public so you may be able to find support there, or at least suggestions on where to look

you may have transgender resource or gay or lesbian resource centers in your area. you may have some type of organization that helps local queer folk get in touch with things like HRT, top surgery, drag shows, art/zine nights, when local queer businesses are hosting events and so on. if you use instagram or facebook, they are very good for finding these types of events if you search for lgbt (your area) and "local lgbt events", those kinds of things

you can also try to take a look at if you have a pride parade/event in June, you can try to find the information about who is organizing it and what types of organizations and businesses show up to those kinds of things. you may be able to find local social media pages that post about local queer events. sometimes it's something simple like a queer operated coffee or ice cream shop holding socials with reduced prices, for example. in a lot of places, there are spaces for queer minors who need somewhere to go away from alcohol, drugs, uncomfortable contact with adults, and so on

it can be harder to find spaces for adults that don't involve or contain alcohol which makes it difficult for someone like me who has a lot of trauma with that and bars. however, sometimes you can find small political organizations or even art collectives, who use parts of their buildings as queer hangout and event spaces. it's going to depend heavily on your area, so the best you can do is search for "lgbt events in my area" and "lgbt (your city)", things of that nature, as well as trying to keep an eye out for businesses you see when your'e out and about who have LGBT flags inside or outside. if they have even 1 progress pride flag it's worth asking if they can tell you about other LGBT businesses in your area or if they do any collaborations with other queer places and events

i hope any of that helps or makes sense. some places, people can find queer spaces very easily- in big urban cities in California like San Francisco, for example, has a lot of queer historical locations, political organizations, casual hangout spots, advocacy groups, resource centers, and more. some places may only have one or two spots where they can safely meet, and a lot of people are somewhere in the middle. good luck, i know it's not easy, but i hope you find something that works for you

folks are welcome to contribute any ideas they may have. take care for now!

[urne-buriall]

https://at.tumblr.com/kingcasanuva/what-if-i-dont-want-to-leave-texas-the-only/fqnsirguz2h4

Is this not dean from spirit of the west. Sawry I’m obsessed

no it is! in reference to this post about wanting the south to be safe for LGBT+ folks and not just shuffling us all off into the liberal cities

this is a HUGE part of "spirit of the west" and I'm really glad you shared it because it's on purpose that it's there. because there's this narrative of "oh you poor country queer who isn't like your peers, one day you will go to The City and maybe they won't hate you there?"

but you love your fields and animals and 200 acres between you and your neighbours. and yes the city has drag nights and spacetime lectures, but you don't actually Belong there more

and there are good people in the country. there are queer people in the country. and you don't have to give up your queer identity to be here and you don't have to give up your rural identity to be queer because neither of those things is ALL of you anyways

in "spirit of the west," this was really important to me. it's a coming-of-age story where Dean learns a lot and loses a lot. there are some things he has to let go of, even if they aren't easy, but it's all so that he can be MORE himself than he was before. when he's talking to Cesar about it, there's an undercurrent of fear in him that if he's gay, he'll have to change who he is to fit this stereotypical mould of metropolitan queerness. but he doesn't! he's gay and he's who he always was

this came up in "our lights in ashes" as well because, again, this topic is kind of important to me. when I was writing about Morgan and Loretta, a trans couple living in small-town Tennessee, it was important to reflect that "the South" isn't one monolithic cesspool of bigotry. it was also important to me that these are older trans people, both into their fifties or sixties, because being trans wasn't invented by today's young people

like, Morgan literally says: “Some people asked why she didn’t leave and go to a city where she wouldn’t be so noticed, wouldn’t get talked about. But I think she was like me. I never could leave the small towns behind; the quietness, the country. Couldn’t help wanting a little bit of farm to look after.”

what I'm saying is that I have Many Feelings on this topic so thank you for the ask, my friend

[dandelionsresilience]

Good News - May 15-21

Like these weekly compilations? Support me on Ko-fi! Also, if you tip me on Ko-fi, at the end of the month I'll send you a link to all of the articles I found but didn't use each week - almost double the content!

1. Translocation of 2,000 rhinos in Africa gets underway in “one of the most audacious conservation efforts of modern times”

“The 2,000 rhinos - more than are currently found in any single wild location in Africa - represent around 12-15% of the continent’s remaining white rhino population. […] “Rhinos perform an important ecological function in the environment as a large grazing herbivore,” says Dale Wepener[….] “The protection of rhino is far more than just looking after rhino; other species that occur in the protected areas will benefit from the protection,” explains Jooste. “This will lead to an increase in diversity and result in much healthier ecosystems.”

2. Florida Corridor Buffers Effects of Climate Change on Wildlife — And People

“A massive multi-partner effort that has conserved 10 million acres for wildlife in Florida over past decades will help buffer wildlife—and people—from the effects of climate change, a new report says. […] Protecting these corridors is important for wildlife genetics, demography and connectivity […], conducting prescribed fires in the corridor can reduce the risk of more intense wildfires [… and] they can provide buffers against hurricanes and seasonal thunderstorms.”

3. Global life expectancy to increase by nearly 5 years by 2050 despite geopolitical, metabolic, and environmental threats

“Increases are expected to be largest in countries where life expectancy is lower, contributing to a convergence of increased life expectancy across geographies. The trend is largely driven by public health measures that have prevented and improved survival rates from cardiovascular diseases, COVID-19, and a range of communicable, maternal, neonatal, and nutritional diseases (CMNNs).”

4. Valencia has Spain’s longest urban park

“Jardin del Turia (Turia Garden) is the green spine of the City of Valencia and Spain’s (and possibly Europe’s) longest urban park stretching for a length of 8.5 kilometres [… and] the current administration plans to make Jardin del Turia Europe’s largest city green space by extending it to the sea[….] Almost all Valencia residents (97 per cent) live within 300 metres of an urban green space. […] Jardin del Turia is a true urban oasis that provides exceptional thermal comfort, with a temperature difference of up to three degrees compared to other areas of the city.”

5. This Paint Could Clean Both Itself and the Air

“When an artificial ultraviolet light source shines on [photocatalytic] paint, the nanoparticles react with pollutants to make them break down—theoretically removing them from the nearby air and preventing a discoloring buildup. [… R]esearchers developed a new photocatalytic paint that they claim works using UV rays from ordinary sunlight, making its self-cleaning properties easier to activate. They’ve also shown that they can effectively produce this paint from recycled materials [including fallen leaves].”

6. Planting Seedlings for a Cooler Rockingham

“A dedicated group of volunteers recently planted over a thousand native seedlings in Lewington Reserve [… and] re-established canopy cover to areas of the reserve to create cooling shade for the local community and provide homes for native wildlife. […] Planting lots of trees and shrubs in urban areas can help create shade and cool cities, mitigating the impacts of climate change, contributing to biodiversity conservation and building greener, more resilient communities.”

7. Sydney’s first dedicated affordable housing for trans women designed to deliver ‘positive outcomes’

“Community housing provider and charity Common Equity NSW, […] which is for people on very low to moderate incomes, prides itself on creating inclusive living and promotes the independence and well-being of people and communities […, and] will deliver the first-of-its-kind social housing in a bid to provide a safe place to live for transgender women seeking an affordable home.”

8. Rewilding: How a herd of bison reintroduced to Romania is helping ‘supercharge’ carbon removal

“170 European Bison reintroduced to Romania’s Țarcu mountains could help capture and store the carbon released by up to 84,000 average US petrol cars each year. […] By grazing a 48 square kilometre area of grassland in a wider landscape of 300 kilometres squared, they helped to capture an additional 54,000 tonnes of carbon each year. That is around 10 times the amount that would be captured by the ecosystem without the bison.”

9. World’s biggest grids could be powered by renewables, with little or no storage

“[…] 100% renewable supply can then match the load by putting surplus electricity into two kinds of distributed storage worth that [an energy expert] says are worth buying anyway – ice-storage air-conditioning and smart bidirectional charging of electric cars, and recover that energy when needed, filling the last gaps with unobtrusively flexible demand.”

10. Supporting the Long-Term Survival of Copper River Salmon and Alaska Native Traditions

“With $4.3 million in NOAA funds, the Copper River Watershed Project and The Eyak Corporation will remove fish passage barriers, opening more streams for salmon spawning and subsistence fishing. [… As part of this effort, o]ld narrow culverts that constrict water flow will be replaced with “stream simulation” culverts wide enough to fit the full stream, including its banks. They are also deep to allow contractors to place stones and other material inside to mimic a natural stream bottom.”

May 8-14 news here | (all credit for images and written material can be found at the source linked; I don’t claim credit for anything but curating.)

[medlilove]

(Edited to add headshots because tumblr hates detail) I've etched away at this is a lovely few weeks, so click for full res and all the little details, okay? It's my love letter to the journey I've found myself on

This is long-ish, so its under the cut (but worth reading...)

I had been thinking a lot recently about that double feature episode, you know the one? I half remembered it then, when they chased a bunch of alien spies so fast through the solar system they all got thrown back in time. Half the crew went on a little undercover adventure in Toronto in 2024. It was great because they got completely cut off from the Enterprise, so half of them, well mostly Uhura and Spock if I recall correctly, spent their time collecting as many radios as possible and worked on building their own communications. Uhura and Spock were basically taking turns constantly tweaking radios by the window with wires everywhere. Oh yeah, their base of operations was the whole top floor of a worn out old building looking over a big square. They ended up in the really arty/queer part of town full of art galleries and thrift stores.....??

Chapel and Chekov were sent out to those shops to find disguises for everyone. I loved the joke that Chekov was puzzled and slightly alarmed that Christine just knew everyone's clothes sizes and measurements with no explanation. Later on, they ended up getting separated from the rest of the group and getting held up by B story shenanigans, mostly getting lost and running into culture shocks. It was fun to see them having their own adventures and made for a pretty interesting combo. Spock and Uhura spent most of their time with the tech, accidentally listening to the times most popular music while changing frequencies. Jim and Sulu paired off to search for clues, and getting supplies and spent a lot of time talking to the locals setting up for a Pride parade. McCoy, feeling paranoid and irritable that he had practically no equipment, wandered around with Dr Alfred Nahdi, the Botanist, who kept picking random weeds and talking about how extraordinary the little dandelions were. Oh and together they stole a whole medical bag out of an ambulance?? It was pretty funny.  Anyway, the main issue was they couldn’t risk leaving the area because all these alien spies had assimilated into the population and they had to track them all down and bring them back with them so as not to disrupt the timeline or something. They had to track down the aliens while making sure the aliens didn't pick up on who they were or that they were also out of place. They ended up being there for around two whole ass months, I think. The spies were spread out all over and there were about 30 of them, but it ended up being the Botanist, Alfred (Alfie) Nahdi who found the enemy base of operations by complete accident. Alfred, who had spent most of the time studying all the common flowers and weeds that were so ordinary at that time but were extinct in their time, figured out where the aliens' base of operations was because the big plant shop at the end of the square had a few succulents that could not have existed in 2024. It was a big "woah" moment. And there was this whole thing where he had to act like he hadn’t just figured it out because the florist, who was almost certainly a spy, was watching him and McCoy. But soon after, it all went to hell anyway when a fight broke out and Sulu was straight up shot with the aliens' weapon that had bullets made from alien metal. So then Bones had to perform old school surgery on him in their HQ, with only 2024 equipment. Jim, Spock, and Uhura were out fighting and ran into Chapel and Chekov and were able to finish them off, but it got really crazy because there was a Pride parade in the square at the same time so they had to make sure no one noticed them. While Bones was pulling bullets out of Sulu, with the botanist assisting him until Chapel (who had been sent by Jim) appeared and took over. McCoy said something like, “Christine, I’ve never been so glad to see you in my life,” and they sewed him up all old school. And it worked out! But Bones was a mess because he had to do messy surgery with none of his kit, and so much pressure, and more blood than he was used to... Chapel stayed with Sulu, and Bones and Nahdi went to sit on the fire escape stairwell and had a sweet scene of Bones just full of adrenaline, his hands couldn't stop shaking. They sat hand in hand for a while listening to all the people on the streets below. Then Spock, Jim, Uhura, and Chekov appeared at the stairwell and they all had a happy, albeit exhausted reunion. After a day of everyone recovering from all the excitement, Uhura and Spock used some extra tech they got from the aliens and finally made contact with poor Scotty who was up on the Enterprise losing the will to live. Anyway, their outfits were iconic tbh.

I invented this whole thing to draw Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy in a sweater. I lost control of the situation. I spent a lovely two weeks etching away at this with the support of my lovely ST server, I love you guys. This ones for you.

[cordycepsfem]

So my girlfriend and I went to our local Pride event today, one that I’ve written about previously here.

I did not want to go. This is because I am new-task-avoidant, and Pride was on one day of my usually tightly-hoarded weekend. But she asked that I go and meet some of her friends from her volunteering group so I said sure.

Meeting her friends was great - they’re fun and welcoming people from a variety of backgrounds, and I’m glad we did that. I hope we can spend time with them again soon.

Then we go out to the actual festival part. It is loud. There are people everywhere. This is unsurprising because it is a pride event in a major city. As people we are not fond of loud, crowded events… but we made the effort to get here so we’re going to go through it.

So we start walking.

As we make our way through the crowds I realize that the two of us are some of the more conservative-looking individuals there. We’re in T-shirts, shorts, baseball caps, functional shoes. There are many, many people in what we on here are all familiar with as “queer” costuming - it’s loud, it’s ugly, and it’s adorned with pins and stickers demanding attention. Many people have giant flags around their necks.

We see booths with obviously female individuals selling merchandise emblazoned with “f*ggot” doing a robust business. Lots of apparel and accessories that scream “I have an identity and I’m here to make it your problem!!” One booth has a pin showing a mastectomy-scarred chest reading “the no-titty committee” which causes me to let out a sad noise, because sure enough I’ve seen at least ten individuals with bare chests and some awful mastectomy scars wandering around. Some have glitter or fancy tape adoring their scars. Others have very obvious “dog ears” which look sloppy and painful.

(Note: I am not saying that having scars is awful. I am saying that the way the incisions were made was imprecise, leaving scars that are larger and that look worse as compared to, like, an actually good surgeon performing a regulated procedure with a standardized course, and not a “gender medicine professional.” This is obviously my own bias from doing research and from seeing others “in the wild” and should only be taken as my opinion. I have plenty of scars; the surgical ones all look clean and well-executed. These did not.)

We keep walking. There were at least two furry booths. Lots of people in puppy masks. Plenty of trans-focused groups.

We buy a few things at some of the more relevant booths and I stop to talk to one group about a job. My girlfriend says she’s ready to go, so we cut around the rest of the park and head for a nearby bookstore.

As we’re walking she takes my hand. “That pride wasn’t for us.”

“No.”

“I don’t know who it was for, but it wasn’t for us.”

I said “I told you so” in the kindest of voices but it was really just sad. This event and so many others happening this month are no longer for actual LGBT people. They are a celebration of the commodification of “queer” identity. Were there some booths there with people doing good work for those in our communities? Yes, without a doubt. But was there a bigger contingent of people there to give a “fuck you” to the world? Yep.

The first Pride events were to show straight people that LGBT people were not sexual deviants. Now the sexual deviants have booths at the Pride events.

I would just like a lesbian event. Just women. I’m willing to start it and run it. Girlfriend was so excited to go to Pride, and I think she left more disappointed than anything else. There are no longer a lot of “normies” at Pride. They have to be somewhere, so where?

[seaslugfanclub]

Hello!! I love your Disney holo!villains, your writing style is just absolutely lovely!

Could I please request the reader fixing a meet-n-greet gone wrong with some of the less popular villains of your choice?? Can't imagine they take very well to being disregarded or unacknowledged...

No pressure and have a lovely day! 😁

It makes my day when one of my favorite Disney villain blogs asks for a request 😭 I hope I delivered!

Meet-N-Greet gone wrong

————————————————————————

It’s Meet-n-greet day at Disney! A perfect day for the resident narcissists to get their daily praise in!

(Y/N), who was assigned to supervise the event wasn’t concerned about the panel. Usually all the Villains acted on their best behavior, happy to receive any compliments from annoying millennials in $50 mouse ears.

This Meet-n-greet was a special event, where all villains including lesser known members where present. And even though they were to prideful to admit it, villains like Alameda, Medusa, Rourke, and Sykes where looking forwards to the event.

Before the panel, (Y/N) walked by their dressing rooms and noticed the extra care they took into getting ready.

Alameda pulling on a new pair of suede chaps, Medusa perming her hair as she did her nails, Rourke spritzed some of his favorite cologne, and Sykes made sure to choose some of his finest cufflinks. All minor details, but (Y/N) could tell how excited they where to receive some attention.

Unfortunately the meet-n-greet went like any other, with guests only being interested in the big bads. Cooing over their favorites, asking for autographs and photos. The whole works. All the while the other villains where cast to the sidelines, getting increasingly frustrated as the event went on.

(Y/N), taking notice of this, tried to bring a group of park goers over to the others, both as a way to keep the mainline villains from getting overwhelmed and to get some attention on the lesser known characters.

Unfortunately the guests where not interested..

“And this here is Alameda Slim! A master cow wrangler and genius yodeler from the 2004 film ‘Home on the Range’! He also tried to burn down a local Texas road house!” (Y/N) motioned up at the cowboy, who tilted his hat in pride.

“…what? Yodeling? That’s one of the worst sounds known to man, can we go back to the others, I wanna meet Jafar!” Some person in the group spoke up, with the others murmuring in agreement.

“Wuh- worst sounds!? I’LL SHOW YA WORST SOUNDS YOU LITTLE-”

The meet-n-greet dissolved into chaos as Alameda tried to lunge at the rude guest, who by some miracle didn’t get choked out as (Y/N) held him back with the combined effort of Rourke and Sykes.

Needless to say the panel ended early, with the excuse of the heat getting to the villains. Villains like Cruella and Gaston where pissed the praise ended so soon, while others like Hook and Hades were glad finally to be left alone.

Later that night, Alameda was brought out of his brooding when a quick knock came from his door, which revealed a smiling (Y/N).

(Y/N) dragged him downstairs into the employee break room, where he was met with his fellow villains, all sharing the same confused expression.

“Listen, I know that today was a shit show. And I’m sorry that it seems like no one acknowledges you. But I wanted to show you all something…”

(Y/N) proceeded to pull out their laptop from their work bag, opening it up as they motioned the villains to gather round.

“I wanted to show you all that there are people who love you guys, they’re entire blogs dedicated to you all from people across the world. I’m actually apart of some.”

Alameda and the others where shocked as (Y/N) shared with them all the fanart, ramblings, and imagines about them. Medusa jumped up and down in place pressing close to (Y/N) to get a better look at the screen. Rourke, who was never a fan of the internet grumbled to himself, but had an amused grin on his face.

Alameda felt the frustration of the day fade into obscurity as he guffawed at the things people where writing about him. At one point Sykes began to gag at some of the more.. suggestive content, which only led to more laughter from the group

The entire night was spent scrolling through the countless blogs, laughing and cringing until the laptop ran out of battery

————————————————————————

This was a little love letter to our community, you all are such talented creators and I’m so lucky to be apart of this small corner of the internet!

I feel like we would both traumatize and flatter Disney Villains if they saw what we write about them 🤣 Frollo would probably turn to dust

[a-roguish-gambit]

Oh goddddd. Something I reblogged earlier today has given me the best/worst x men brainrot

X-Men maid cafe.

It starts out simple enough with a need for money to help cover maintenance costs at the school. Shit gets blown up/destroyed all the time there. Tis expensive AF.

The queer community is the most mutant friendly out there and many of the X-Men are some flavor of not straight so Charles puts it up to Scott and the others to come up with a way to do a 50/50 split donation drive of sorts in combination with the local LGBT rights org for the school and the org at a local pride festival.

People are brainstorming shit and aren't coming up with anything and then morph jokes "lol what if we did that shit they do in all the super power school animes where they have a maid cafe"

The girls all roll their eyes. Most of the guys look unamused. Jean Grey telepathically flicks a paperclip at them. Then Gambit speaks up, suddenly very enthusiastic about the idea and tries to encourage the others to do the idea.

Storm immediately shuts him down. Jean grey tries to challenge him "sure we can do that...except in the spirit of pride it should be a drag cafe. Women as butlers, men as maids" hoping it would scare him off.

Gambit just looks more enthused. "PERFECT! GAMBIT LOVES DAT IDEA!"

The room is silent. Storm, jean, and rogue share surprised looks before shrugging their shoulders and voting yes. Kurt, Bobby, and morph are up for it too. With majority vote they go through with it.

Gambit and jean fight over the menu. Gambit wanting a full restaurant style menu going and Jean furiously reminding him that this is only going to be up for like a week and none of his choices are cafe food.

They some how manage to get Logan into the outfit and he looks like an angry cat some child played dress up with.

Jubilee working the kitchen and sending the items out with the gayest most sparkling presentation.

Bobby was declared the milkshake king by a group of LGBT gen Zers.

They have donation jars marked with each server's name labeled "tell us which server is your favorite" Hank and Kurt are tied for first place.

Hank is so confused people keep telling him he's amazing and wonderful and keeping asking him for hugs even if they are not attracted to him at all.

Local poetry lesbians have adopted him as their group guy friend.

Kurt: "vy do že keep calling me 'twink'? Pretty sure it's a compliment but I vish I knew vat it meant."

The bi community stanning rogue and gambit. The same group of 10 or so bi peeps coming in and stuffing their jars with ones.

They ended up coming up with x men themed treats. There's cupcakes with little red candy sunglasses on them for cyclops, and a midnight blue flan style pudding with strawberries for nightcrawler. And of course Remy beignet.

Charles is oblivious to this until they open up shop. Goes in to check out how stuff is going, sees just students in non X-Men costumes and just....processes for a few minutes before saying "good work. Have fun" and wheeling himself out the door.

Idk this is probably dumb but I love it ok let them do stupid stuff

[rip-quizilla]

Heartbreaker (Eddie Does Drag for Charity)

@corrodedcoffinfest Day 10: Pride

Tags: supportive band mates, gay Jeff, drag queen Eddie Munson, brief Rockie reference

WC: 994

Divider was created by @strangergraphics

“When does he go on?” Grant asked Gareth, leaning over Jeff from where they stood around a table in the crowded club. The music was loud enough that Grant had to practically yell for Gareth to hear him. 

“He told me he’d be going third!” Gareth yelled back to him, eyes alight with anticipation. Admittedly, Gareth had never in his life thought he’d ever be excited to be in a gay bar, but stranger things had certainly happened. 

Weirdly enough, Jeff seemed to be the least comfortable one at the table. His smile seemed a bit more forced than usual as his eyes darted around the room.

“Jeff, you good buddy?” Gareth asked, “I would’ve thought you’d feel right at home here.”

“Being gay doesn’t mean I suddenly want to hang out at dance clubs, you know.” A cringe took up residence on Jeff’s face as he took note of a nearly naked man in shiny boyshorts swiveling his hips to some upbeat song that played through the speakers. “No judgment to the people who enjoy this stuff, but it’s just not my scene.” Pink and purple spotlights illuminated the stage then, signaling that the show was about to begin. 

“God, it was nuts back there. Pun intended.” Robin sighed when she joined the boys at their table. “Do you guys know what tucking is? I didn’t. I do now. Could have gone my whole life without that mental image but now it’s burned into my brain.” 

Grant’s confusion was evident on his face, to which Gareth subtly shook his head in a silent  Later, buddy. Don’t get her started. 

“Any issues though?” Gareth asked, “ With Eddie, I mean.” Robin was about to answer before a tall, beautiful drag queen took the stage and introduced themself as the host for tonight’s charity drag show.

Robin waited about twenty seconds into the host’s introduction before discreetly whispering her answer to Gareth. “Vickie said Eddie’s look is some of her best work, if that answers your question. She’s been working with Eddie every day for at least a week; apparently he’s taking this really seriously!” 

“On behalf of the Indy Pride committee, I want to sincerely thank all of you for coming out tonight!” The host continued, “100% of tips collected tonight will be donated to local charities benefitting LGBTQ+ youth, so let’s give all our performers a round of applause!”

Grant, Gareth and Jeff may all have originally shown up tonight to bear witness to what may very well be their frontman’s most blackmailable performance to date, but at this moment they couldn’t help but feel a swell of pride for Eddie as they cheered. He took his preparations for tonight seriously because he believed in why he was doing it. He had built his friends a refuge from those that judged them, bullied them, called them freaks- Eddie Munson had always been in the business of giving outsiders a place to call their own; same show, different stage.

The host went on to introduce the first queen- a dentist who, for tonight only, had dubbed himself ‘Ruta Canal’. After the dentist was a high school theater teacher whom the host introduced as ‘Apple Bottoms’. Judging by the sheer amount of ear-splitting screams, it was safe to assume that a large group of his students had shown in support of their teacher. 

“Now folks,” the host began, “Our next queen is no stranger to the stage. For tonight only, the leading man of local metal band Corroded Coffin is… M&M!”

Gareth tilted his head toward Robin as he applauded. “Why M&M?”

Robin gave him a withering smile. “He said it stood for Munson Magic.” Gareth replied with a snort as the applause faded away to reveal a familiar progression of drums and guitar. When Eddie emerged, the boys could hardly believe their eyes.

In his unflinching commitment to the song he’d chosen to lip sync to (it hadn’t taken long for the boys to recognize it as Heartbreaker by Pat Benatar), Eddie had donned a skin-tight unitard that practically painted his every curve with purple zebra print, bright red heels and a red belt to match. He hadn’t needed a wig, since his hair was already long and luscious enough to be the envy of any popstar. Now that his locks framed a face painted with lipstick, eyeshadow, and penciled thin eyebrows that had been drawn atop his glued-down natural brows, Eddie’s haircut suddenly looked more feminine than it usually did. 

Eddie, ever the showman, left everything on the stage from beginning to end for the entire performance. His facial expressions were larger than life, bringing his infectious energy into every word Pat sang through the speakers. The audience ate up every second of it, tossing bill after bill onto the stage for Eddie to collect- each one was teasingly stashed into the fake breasts he wore under his unitard. By the time he was only halfway through his performance, his entire neckline was fringed in green.

He was only onstage for the beginning and the end of the song, spending the rest of the performance strutting amidst tables where patrons stood. Eddie saved his bandmates’ table for last, making sure to embarrass them the most- grinding up on Gareth one second and hiking a leg up on Grant the next. He didn’t subject poor Jeff to the same treatment, but he certainly couldn’t help himself from blowing him a kiss before returning to the stage just in time for Vickie to emerge from backstage with- to everyone’s surprise- his electric guitar. Eddie finished the final few bars of the song on his warlock, shredding through the notes live as the entire bar went absolutely wild. As the song drew to a close, he slid to his knees at the front and center of the stage, face contorted with focus and exhilaration until the final note rang out into the crowd’s thunderous applause.

[genderqueerdykes]

Is there any good way to find nonbinary spaces that are open to ALL non binary? I'm an amab enby, who presents masc, mostly because it's easiest. (If my beard was like playdough and I could just, push it out, that would be wonderful, but as is, I like how long it is, so, no clean shaven for me.) The problem I keep having is running into non binary space, or spaces for women and non binary, where they treat enby as a kind of woman lite? If you are amab, you need to look androgynous, or femme presenting, or people tell you this space isn't for you. Any advice?

i'm so sorry this is happening to you- i've heard so many people report on that kind of issue- i'm a butch non binary person so i'm also concerned about these things before i attend meet-ups. i really don't understand why there are SO many of these groups that operate like this. it stuns me to see how many people are just openly using terf rhetoric in place of actually helping members of our community

i have a couple of suggestions. see if there are any facebook groups or instagram pages in your area that have a lot transfem members, and start asking around there. there's also the possibility of the app "lex" which a lot of my amab non binary friends have used to moderate success.

if you are okay with going to them, often times queer bars will have lists of events and groups going on both in town and in their establishments. sometimes they will have tamer events during the day. finding any other types of queer orgs in your area like pride groups at a local college, transgender resource centers, and so on could possibly help- sometimes local libraries also have information on local queer groups and meetups.

see what queer establishments and events are going on in town that are open to folks of all identities and work your way out from there, if that makes sense. facebook groups can really help with this- i've heard some people use their local city's reddit page if they are in a large enough place. often times, i find that in order to find groups that are more open minded, you have to draw from a larger pool of individuals.

i really hate it that it seems like a "you won't know until you get there" kind of thing with these environments. they don't make it super obvious that they don't want masc queers around until one gets there and then suddenly the atmosphere is horrid. i'm sorry you've been having that experience, if anyone else has some advice, feel free to pitch in. i wish you the best of luck infinding community that welcomes you properly

[shuugumi]

❥ 𝐃𝐄𝐀𝐑 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐓, 𝐖𝐄 𝐂𝐀𝐍 𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐄 𝐀𝐍𝐘𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆

𝐬𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐩𝐬𝐢𝐬: making up with gojo satoru after a few stressful weeks,

𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: hurt + comfort, college au (gojo & reader are seniors), pro-wrestler!gojo, originally posted on @seiueina but transferred work here !! isn’t proofread…at all heh heh may rewrite

𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐢𝐣𝐚𝐝𝐞'𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐬: i ordered the iphone 15 pro and it isn't coming in till october 31 T-T oh yeah also i am turning this into a series hehehe. reblogs r vry appreciated as it gets my works out there!

People lead busy lives, and unexpected events can often disrupt their routines. Some days are busier than others.

However, with wrestling season kicking off and your boyfriend, Gojo Satoru, making headlines in college and local newspapers as the potential winner of the S&J 2023 Belt, he was under immense pressure from his team coach to perform at his best.

As a result, this season had left him incredibly busy and stressed. Balancing the demands of completing his thesis, maintaining his weight for the competition, and practicing tirelessly, all while trying to ensure you remained his top priority.

You had always been known as an independent person, finding solace and joy in your own company. As Satoru found himself busy with his commitments, you found yourself having a hands full with the university events department, where you were deeply involved in planning upcoming events.

Between both of your hectic schedules, finding time to relax in each other's arms had become a rarity.

Your interactions had been reduced to brief moments, such as getting ready for bed or starting the day. This new routine began to take a toll on your relationship, leading to nightly arguments and hurtful words exchanged in your shared apartment. Tension between you two was palpable, with some nights ending with one of you sleeping on the couch, while the other shivered from the absence of warmth.

Neither of you had the time or energy to address the issues that had arisen between you. But, one day, Satoru surprised you by inviting you to a wrestling kickoff party hosted by his teammate, Geto Suguru. Although hesitant, you decided to accompany him, swallowing your pride as you held his hand tightly while entering one of the gathering rooms on campus.

You didn't know many people at the party, unfamiliar faces, especially numerous females, filled the room. As you sat on the couch sipping your Shirley Temple, you observed various scenes – wrestlers trying to flirt with women, groups dancing to the music, and, most importantly, your boyfriend engaged in conversation with a group of people, wearing a genuine smile that had been absent for weeks.

Amidst the crowd, one woman stood out, too close for comfort with Satoru. She was touching his arm and laughing along with him and the group. It seemed like he was giving her more attention than he had given you in the past month.

"Oh my god, do you remember the time we got lost in the park, and Kento had to come pick us up!" you heard the woman exclaimed from across the room. You couldn't bear it any longer, so you walked up to them and tapped Satoru on the shoulder, informing him, "I'm not feeling well." Your voice trailed off as you looked at the ground. His attention immediately shifted to you, and he sounded genuinely concerned as he asked, "What happened? Do you need medicine?"

"I'm gonna go outside," you replied wearily as you made your way to the front door of the house. Satoru asked if he should come with you, tones of worriedness laced in his words. You walked away without responding, finding a seat on the stairs leading to the entrance.

Satoru wondered to himself what was bothering you. He couldn't hear the woman talking anymore, as his thoughts were consumed by concern for you. As he excused himself from the conversation and headed to the front door, he found you sitting on the stairs, scrolling through Pinterest.

"Hey, Y/N. Love, did you come out here just to use your phone? I thought you weren't feeling well," he calmly inquired, taking a seat next to you. Your eyes were still glued to your phone as he moved it away, causing you to roll your eyes at his actions.

"It's nothing," you began, but Satoru interrupted, "Don't give me that 'nothing.' You know I don't like it when you say that. I can tell something is bothering you." He sighed, looking down at the cement ground.

"—I don't understand. You said you were getting fresh air, but when I came out here, you were on your phone. Did you just need to make a phone call? Just tell me what's going on because right now, I have no idea," he implored, his hands resting on his knees as he leaned closer to you.

You finally met his gaze, and with a soft and embarrassment filled irises, you apologized, "I..I just miss you!," you began, looking in his azure eyes, swallowing air before continuing, "I miss cooking for you and eating at the table with you! I miss when you make those stupid but silly faces at me when we're eating...I miss when you play with my hair when we're studying together. I miss you Satoru!"

"We haven't been doing those things in the past few weeks, have we?" Satoru tried to lighten the mood with a chuckle, and a small smile appeared on your face. You shook your head slowly in response.

"Seeing you talking to that girl made me feel jealous. I wished it was me you were talking to, smiling, and laughing at instead," you admitted as Satoru wrapped his arm around your shoulder, pulling you close to his chest.

"If you ever think that some girl could ever compare to what we have, you're completely wrong. You're the only one I think about. Even with all this happening right now, I only ever want to think about you. I am infatuated with you baby...We're both stupid for not talking about this sooner," Satoru reassured you, planting a kiss on your cheek.

"Are you mad at me?" you asked calmly. Satoru quickly pulled back, looking puzzled. "No, why should I be?" he replied. You shrugged and finally gave him the eye contact he had been longing for.

"All of this? What happened tonight and the past few weeks?" you clarified. He laughed at your words, cupping your face to make you look at him. "Never,was just a misunderstanding. Plus, even if I was, how could I stay mad at this cute face?" he said, his smile growing as yours did.

"You also aren't the only one who missed the other person. Missed you a lot as well" He continues, tucking a loose strand of hair behind your ear. "I will make it up to you...kay' sweets."

"I love you, Satoru."

"I love you more, Y/N," he replied, cupping your face before giving you the long-awaited kiss on the lips.

�� 𝐬𝐡𝐮𝐮𝐠𝐮𝐦𝐢 ; do not translate, copy, plagiarize or upload elsewhere!! all content is owned by me unless stated otherwise.

[elleryhart]

Cherish-His-Name Abernathy was called different things. To her girls or her clients, she was Mrs. Abernathy (though there had never been a Mr. Abernathy, she just thought it sounded more respectable than Miss). She allowed her friends to call her Cherish –no one was allowed her full first name besides her momma, and she passed many years back to an illness that sent Cherish out to the frontier in the first place. If she didn’t like you, you could call her Ma’am, but she would prefer you didn’t call her at all, thank-you-very-much.

Cherish had made a good life for herself once she got out here. You see, the frontier, where the men had been sent to work, wasn’t much of a place for wives and sweethearts. Workin’ women, now, there was plenty they could do out on the frontier. Cherish wasted no time building up a crew of good girls (and a few young men, truth be told, but most of them got scooped up into other work) who worked together to run a solid business and protect one another.

When she started, she hadn’t intended to put herself in charge of anything. But money had to be managed, room and board had to be taken care of, muscle had to be hired to protect the girls, and Cherish had a good head on her shoulders and a mind for money. It was a slow transition, but girls would come to her with problems to solve, disputes to mediate, and soon it was a legitimate business.

-----

Cherish-His-Name Abernathy was all of 5 feet tall, but her personality gave her a big stature. She commanded loyalty, and even though that didn’t mean everyone liked her, many respected her enough to leave well-enough alone. She made sure her girls got their dues, and the men she hired to protect them got privileges and pride in their work.

She had her share of lovers and clients, but when the question came to her settling down, she always had the same answer “When I can get me a man without the law deciding what’s mine is his, I’ll settle. Till then, ain’t gonna get with no one what can’t be content with me livin’ as I am.”

She’s been known to spend her nights with men and women, but is otherwise closed up about her love life. Who’s gonna argue with the Matron of the classiest women in town, after all? Especially when one of the men in her pocket was the Sheriff himself, who had taken a shine to some of her girls?

She tried not to have favorites among said girls, but there was a clear winner among them. Cora had been with her from the beginning, and the two were like sisters. Cora was the dancing flames of the fireplace where Cherish was the embers, and their temperaments complimented one another.

When Cora died in childbirth and her man didn’t wanna claim his children? Well, those twins were Cherish’s now. Even gave them her name. Mabel and Lucy Abernathy were gonna grow up in the best damn world Cherish could give them. Marta and Lucy grew up to be great girls –Lucy had an eye for business, and Marta dreamed of finding a good man and having a mess of little ones herself.

Cherish would do anything for them.

-----

It wasn’t all good things. Some people just don’t like powerful women. She made an enemy with a local thug, one she didn’t even bother interacting with for the first few years of their rivalry. He was little more than a nuisance, and Cherish couldn’t be bothered with small nuisances. When he came around her boys kicked him out without needing to be asked, and that was pretty much that. He was pestering other people around, and became an issue for many people in town, so he wasn’t even distinctly her issue.

He lived, then, mostly on the outskirts, only venturing into the town proper to make trouble. They would have gotten rid of him entirely, but, despite his general attitude, he was a good worker… and the frontier needed good workers. It was a surprise to everyone that he had gathered up his own little band of guys unhappy with how things were being done in this quiet little town.

It wasn’t that Cherish was even a special interest of this group, but when they struck, she and her girls were among the targets. Her memories of the chaos set her head reeling –she had been knocked out near the beginning of the scuffle, and only woke later to Lucy crying at her bedside. Her leg had been crushed, the doctor had said, and had to be amputated.

Marta, sweet Marta, had not made it.

When she could walk again, she would kill that man herself.

[soobnny]

summer strike — hyunjin (teaser)

trope. strangers to lovers. comfort fic. found family. heavily inspired by the kdrama

synopsis. having had enough of your life in the big city, you head to a small town where you meet a local librarian who feels a lot like love

estimated word count. 23k words

release date. next week

warnings. drinking alcohol, curse words, mentions of feeling so alone, more to add

taglist. send an ask if u wanna be tagged when it drops :)

note. i’m so so excited for this one so i hope you’ll look forward to reading it !!

“Do you… repair all the books yourself?” You ask, looking down at the multitude of pages he’s tending to and the stack of books waiting to be repaired in a trolley parked at the side of his table.

“Yes.” He smiles upon answering, and it’s one that radiates pride in the work he does.

Your lips quaver slightly, trying to find words to say to him. You wonder if it’d be okay with him if you wanted to help out. The work looks interesting, and a little soothing. Would that make him uncomfortable?

Fiddling with the ends of your shirt, you stab your hesitance straight in the chest. “Can I try too?”

His mouth falls agape, and then he’s nodding his head, gesturing for you to take the seat adjacent to him. Hyunjin grabs an extra spatula, passing it to you before smiling shyly down at the books and pages.

“You take the spatula, and spread the glue evenly.” Hyunjin looks up at you before grabbing a page and his own spatula so you can mimic his gestures. “Then, you place the page at its original location.”

He closes up the book he’s working on, patting down at the spine so the glue sticks well. “That’s it.”

“Oh.” You look at his work with fascination, smiling as he sets the book aside. “You’re kind of like a doctor. It’s like you’re applying medicine to the books.”

He grins at your words, eyes averting from your eye contact as he shyly grins. You know he has pure love for what he does, and it warms your heart. It’s a sentiment you wish you had for your job back then.

“I think…” You fix your gaze to your hands that are propped on the table, intertwining your fingers together. “I’m in love.”

Hyunjin’s inability to look you in the eyes seem to falter the moment you speak. His mouth falls back into an ‘o’, and the tip of his ears are awfully red.

“Wait, sorry. What I mean is… I think I’m in love with the process of fixing up old things.” With slightly widened eyes, you gesture at the book he had just fixed cartoonishly, chewing on your lips a little embarrassedly.

The boy in front of you nods, fingers pausing over his task; you turn to look at him, and you’re relieved to see his smile returning.

“I see.” He chuckles, grabbing onto the pages that still need to be glued and grouping them together, tapping them lightly on the table so they align.

“Let me help you.” You reach out to the remaining pages, and Hyunjin looks at you with an expression you don’t quite recognize, but you know has no ill-intent. He always looks this way. Always natural, never forced.

As you quietly work on the task, Hyunjin can’t stop himself from looking at you from time to time. He thinks it’s to monitor your work, but does that excuse the way he stares at the small smile tugging on your lips?

“Has anyone told you how you resemble Aphrodite?”

“Me?” He asks, eyes darting you and the book he’s working on. You grin at him, nodding your head.

“Yes. Goddess of Beauty in Greek Mythology. You know her, right?”

“I do.” He smiles back easily, willing the blush that’s obviously creeping on his cheeks away.

“When I first met you, that character came to mind.” You mumble as you stare at the page in your hands, furrowing your eyebrows as you try to match it to its proper book. You pause, catching yourself before you can misplace the page, and Hyunjin looks up at the sudden silence.

“Which one was this again?” Sheepish. You think you’ve embarrassed yourself more times than none in this library.

You don’t notice Hyunjin leaving his seat, sauntering over to where you’re seated so he can peer at the page and at the books in front of you. “May I?”

His tone is kind, and it didn’t seem as if he were upset that you didn’t know where to put the page. On the contrary, he made you feel as if it was okay that you didn’t know. Quick to reassure.

“I don’t memorize all of these either. I only remember the names and places in the books, and I like drawing to keep an imagine of them in my head too..” He’s arranging the pages now, putting the corresponding paper atop the book they belong to. “Why don’t you try this one?” The way he says it is so full of expectation, leaning down to hand you a page and you can only smile up at him.

“I’ll give it a try.” You sputter out for words to say, taking the page from him gratefully.

Seungmin watches from a distance, lifting an eyebrow in curiosity as he observes his usually quiet friend speak more words than usual. Though, the observation makes his heartstrings contract.

It goes on like this for a while, silence engulfing the pair of you as you worked to repair the books together. Hyunjin showed no signs of you being a bother to him, even reaching out to help most of the time—appreciative of your time. No sound follows, just the beating of your hearts and the rustling of paper.

[deconstructingchabad]

Tzivos Hashem

One of the best ways cults and other high-control groups exert their control is through their control of the children in their group, and Chabad is no different.

Tzivos Hashem, Hebrew for "Army of God", is an organization within Chabad aimed at children's programming and education. It was founded in 1980, under the orders of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson. True to its name, it had a military aesthetic from the very beginning, with meetings referred to as "rallies" and children issued military style uniforms.

Children's pamphlets were distributed with the goal of educating Jewish children around the world, and children were encouraged to memorize the "Twelve Pasukim"- twelve passages selected by Rabbi Schneerson that he considered important in Jewish education. Often, these pamphlets employed military aesthetics, such as the iconic illustration above by Norman Nodel, which depicts a boy and a girl dressed in military uniforms carring banners reading "We want Moshiach now!"

As a child, I was most involved with Tzivos Hashem in the 2000s, after the death of Rabbi Schneerson. My elementary school enrolled each student in the Chayolei Tzivos Hashem program, and as part of the program, we were given weekly "missions" to complete in order to earn medals and rise up in the ranks. Students with higher ranks were given special privileges, and while no student was explicitly punished for not completing their missions, there was a distinct social hierchy that emerged and a fierce competition among us students. Unfortunately, the Chayolei Tzivos Hashem website is only accessable to account holders, but here is their description in their own words:

Drawing on years of experience reaching out to less affiliated Jewish Children, Tzivos Hashem turned its attention to providing inspiring programing and activities for children within the religious community. Chayolei Tzivos Hashem has been designed to give children a sense of pride and belonging, an appreciation for what they do and inspire them to want to do more. Since its inception, CTH has captured hearts and minds of children worldwide. Children feel empowered and special to be entrusted with the Rebbe’s mission to bring Moshiach. As a uniquely tailored program, each child is able to climb the levels and ladders of the Army of Hashem according to their capabilities, giving them confidence and encouragement as they grow at their own pace. At monthly international webcast rallies, recognition and honor is given to students who have gone up in rank. Participating schools also have custom made mission sheets that help students advance in Hashem’s Army. As children complete missions, they earn medals to be placed in their rank books and work themselves up towards a promotion, for all missions, global, local in full or in part, students can earn “mileage points”. They can scan mileage into their personal CTH account using specially designed and programmed kiosks. CTH hosts monthly HQ global raffles where children who have completed missions can have a chance to earn prizes. There is also an online prize store where children can use their points. Piloted in 50 Lubavitch schools, Chayolei Tzivos Hashem’s goal is to continue to develop the program in Hebrew Schools and camps for children of all backgrounds across the world. The program is sponsored in part by Rabbi Moshe Kotlarsky of Merkos L’Inyonei Chinuch and Rabbi Shaya Smetana of Anash.com

When I was in school, most of this wasn't digital, as I was part of CTH in the 2000s, in its infancy.

But, Chayolei Tzivos Hashem is just a branch of Tzivos Hashem. It's intended specifically for children already deeply immersed within Chabad, and it's a tool used to ensure compliance within Chabad's community norms. Some of the "missions" were simple tasks associated with Jewish observance, such as praying every morning, saying the Shema prayer before bed, etc, while others involved Chabad specific tasks, such as memorizing certain portions of Tanya (one of the theological texts of Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, the first Rebbe of the Chabad-Leubavitch movement) and reaching out to a set quota of strangers as part of Mivzoim.

Some vocabulary: Mivzoim (not to be confused with "Mitzvot") refers to the outreach missions enacted by the Chabad Rebbe. If you get stopped by a Chabad person in the street asking you if you are Jewish and would like to put on Tefillin or do some other Mitzvah, then you've interacted with a Chabad person completing Mivzoim.

While Chayolei Tzivos Hashem leans the most heavily on the military aesthetic, Tzivos Hashem as a whole embraces it full-heartedly, and predates CTH, which was only founded in the 2000s.

If you go onto the Tzivos Hashem website and try to register a child, you will be greeted with this message, for example:

While it's not, of course, an army of violence, the use of military terminology is something used time and time again within Tzivos Hashem.

One popular song that is sung at Tzivos Hashem rallies and in schools goes as follows:

From 770* we're marching out On to victory, without a doubt To corners four, we're marching happily Nation after nation we are conquering! Shluchei Adoneinu**, we'll bring Moshiach Tzidkeinu*** Tomorrow will be Galus**** no more And we'll win this Galus war!

Notes: *770 refers to 770 Eastern Parkway, the International Headquarters of Chabad Leubavitch. **Translates to "emissaries of our master". ***Translates to "Messiah our righteous one". ****translates to "exile".

I'm not even going to touch so much on the near deification of Rabbi Schneerson in this post, I only want to focus on Tzivos Hashem here, and how it primes children into obediance. Even families that aren't necessarily as "crazy" about Chabad as others are still encouraged through social pressure to enroll their children in Tzivos Hashem.

Why the military aesthetic?

Well. It is my firm belief that it because it is grooming children into being good, obedient followers of Chabad. For Shluchim especially (not all Chabadnikim are Shluchim) there is a high expectation of obedience. Shluchim, which are emissary families of Chabad (they're the ones who run Chabad houses and the like), are expected to follow whatever order the governing body of Chabad-Leubavitch International gives them. Every year, there is an international conference of Shluchim, one for the men, one for the women, and, up until around the Covid-19 pandemic, one for families. Shluchim, much like actual soldiers, are expected to pack up and move to wherever they are ordered to move to and establish a Chabad house or go and support and existing one. Except, it would be like if American soldiers were being told that their orders were coming from George Washington himself, since Rabbi Schneerson has been deceased since the 1990s.

So, back to the kids.

You may say to yourself, after seeing perhaps videos of Tzivos Hashem children, or maybe even encountering them yourselves, that they seem to be enjoying it. After all, kids do love playing dress-up and being given little tasks to do with rewards. And that's true- as a kid, I felt special whenever I earned a medal, and I liked getting to refer to myself as "Sergeant". It felt awfully grown up and important.

But there's a difference between a child having a chore chart in their own home or a class having a jar of beans leading up to a pizza party at the end of the year- and between children being pit against hundreds of children around the world. HaChoyel, the weekly Tzivos Hashem magazine, publishes all the names of children who recently ranked into officer positions.

Additionally, this kind of social stratefication at such a young age has the potential to let kids who don't meet the right standards to fall through the cracks, and a culture that already demands obedience of childrens leaves them wide open to abuse. I should know- it happened to me. While Chabad as a whole cannot be blamed for the actions of one disturbed adult in a position of power- I doubt that I would have been so vulnerable to his manipulations had I not felt so inadequate due to my inability to live up to the expectations placed upon me by Tzivos Hashem.

Not to mention, the fetishization of the military aesthetic within Tzivos Hashem only furthers the normalization of militarism and war. For all Chabad talks about wanting to bring about Mashiach and ultimate peace, the movement itself is so deeply entrenched in military emulation. It's no surprise, then, that Chabad as a whole has embraced firearms and community-based militia more so in relation to other Orthodox groups (but that's an entirely different deep dive). And while Chabad hasn't engaged in outright organized (unorganized violence such as riots, on the other hand, is something Chabad isn't a stranger to) violence yet, a high-control organization having such a military lean, certainly within their children's education, sets a dangerous precident, and if it doesn't lead to harm of outsiders yet, it certainly harms its members.

[schraubd]

Jews Against Jews Who Discriminate

This is an interesting story about a New Jersey kosher bakery who refused to bake rainbow-frosted cupcakes because the baker decided Pride-themed events violated his conception of Jewish values. This decision, in turn, has led to a furious backlash from the rest of the local Jewish community, who are livid that the baker is citing Jewish values as justification for homophobic discrimination:

Multiple rabbis have accused the baker of bigotry, and some local Jews are boycotting his shop. The area’s Jewish federation privately said it would stop buying from Mittel before publicly walking back its position. And Eshel, an advocacy group for LGBTQ Orthodox Jews and their families, announced an “ally training” in West Orange this coming Sunday in response to the incident.

[....] 

The issue blew up as other rabbis in the area learned about what happened and commented publicly.

“When we refuse basic Jewish services to members of our community who are articulating who they are, we are excluding and dividing,” wrote Robert Tobin, rabbi of the Conservative B’nai Shalom in West Orange, in a blog post on June 22. He highlighted the Conservative movement’s recent strides toward LGBTQ inclusion, and an interpretation of the Torah that holds “humans are created in the image of God with a variety of potential gender identities and with the possibility of gender fluidity.” Tobin also reportedly addressed the incident in a sermon, according to the New Jersey Jewish News.

David Vaisberg, senior rabbi at the independent Temple B’nei Abraham in Livingston, New Jersey, tweeted that he was “so disappointed” in the bakery, which is located in a strip mall next to a kosher Chinese restaurant.

“They make great baked goods but have shown themselves to be against the LGBTQ+ in canceling orders of rainbow baked goods in Pride month,” he wrote, adding that he was letting the bakery know why they had lost his business and advised followers to “please do the same.” 

This reminded me of a working paper I heard about from years back (which I don't believe has been published, unfortunately), where the author asked Jewish, Christian, and Muslim respondents to give their views regarding government accommodations for Jewish, Christian, or Muslim business owners who for religious reasons did not want to serve gay customers. The most fascinating finding, as I recall, was that Jews were least likely to support an accommodation if they were told it was a Jewish business seeking to discriminate.

At one level, that was a surprising finding -- we'd naturally expect Jews (like all other groups) to display some level of in-group bias, being more sympathetic to claims made by their coreligionists. But on another level, this result made perfect sense to me. Ask me in the abstract about whether business owners can claim a religious exemption from having to serve gay customers, and I'll generally answer no, but I'll acknowledge the important religious freedom and pluralism concerns blah blah blah. 

But if somebody asks to do that while carrying my flag and representing my people? Oh, hell no. Screw that guy. You get your ass back into line and stop embarrassing the tribe with your homophobic nonsense. And I suspect something similar is going on in this community of New Jersey Jews.

via The Debate Link https://ift.tt/MnOubxC

[dj-algy135]

God I love Chappell Roan so much. I don’t think people understand just how much she means to Midwesterners. Seeing people upset she’s performing in red states is insane when queer people exist in red states. Like the communities that are spread about here are some of the most loving, passionate, and kind I’ve ever been apart of.

I’ve gotten to speak to elders!! Elders!! Just casually!! I’ve gotten to speak to indigenous elders!! I’ve met queer people who are social workers, lawyers, farmers, firefighters, band members, activists, parents, teachers, business owners, and artists just casually. I’ve seen the bravery it takes from all of us to just collectively exist here. I admire my friends who are fighting to get name changes and HRT.

Our communities know we are all we have in these states so we fight. I live in a small city and it’s amazing the work that our local activists do. We have a local Christian church group that gives away free clothing to anyone. They also host a hobbies swap where people come together and just barter and trade items. We have a local business that does community gender affirming clothing trading. Our one singular Planned Parenthood supports basically the entirety of our community here. They started an independent sex ed program because of our school districts policies. Our local libraries fight tooth and nail to keep their spaces queer accepting. Our school district despite its issues has gone to bat for teachers protecting queer students because despite the board being entirely red they felt it was a violation of privacy and freedom of speech rights to out kids and teachers. Last year our pride event that supports basically every small town in a 100 mile radius across two states had threats made against it. The organizers got in touch with an activist group in a nearby area and moved the event to that town. It was the largest turnout they’d ever gotten.

Like it is so hard being queer out here. I’m in an open minded city compared to the rest of my state despite people publicly and proudly showing themselves as white supremacists and bigots in my own neighborhood. My city is still red but our communities here refuse to be erased and I think that’s wonderful. Our allies are so passionate. We have a Lutheran, Baptist, Christian, Catholic, and Methodist church that all proudly show themselves as queer accepting. The businesses willing to hire openly queer people and treat them well here defend them because they know if they don’t, no one else will. We take care of each other and I think that’s amazing.

Anyways, queer people exist outside of California. Have some class because a lot of y’all don’t like us because of your own personal biases against poor people, the working class, PoC and etc. It’s weird for you not to care about queer people in blue states, especially those of you saying we deserve the treatment we get by living here. White queers need to especially get a grip. Chappell Roan is an icon and please be normal about her touring in red states.

[bagopucks]

N. Hischier - It’s My Footwork

✄————————————

Nico Hischier x Fem!dancer!reader

Word Count: 4.1k -almost-

Warnings: none?

I apologize for any typos. There’s only so many times one can read through 4 thousand words before dying inside.

—————————————

Ever since I was two, I have loved music. I blame my mother. When I was four, I saw ballerinas for the first time. My mom took me to see the Nutcracker at our local theatre. I fell in love with music all over again, but more importantly, I fell in love with dance.

I’ve danced my whole life. Ballet and Acro had been my favorite classes, but I took others. It was expensive, but my family had no issue paying for it. I consider myself lucky to have had the opportunities I did growing up. Because of that gratefulness, it fueled my dream to become a dance instructor on my own one day.

I opened my studio in the heart of New Jersey. Business was slow at first, but I had classes open for all capable ages. I loved meeting the kids and even the adults who came in curious to learn or pick up a therapeutic hobby. I was never one to offer solo classes unless it was for a child who was new and needed to catch up with their age group. But I made one exception.

The bell to my studio rang, barely audible from the room I was in. I heard a deep voice speaking to my best friend who worked at the front desk. We met through her job application. Within the year she’d been hired, we got a sizable apartment together, and I’ve loved every second of our time spent with one another.

“She’s in the back. We just had a class end.“

I’ve had parents come in before about a late payment, or more commonly, bullying that I could only so much about. I assumed that’s all it was.

As I stepped out of the studio room and into the lobby, I was met with the face of a man I had never seen before. His sharp features, thick brows and dark hair was unrecognizable. If he had a daughter or son, they certainly took after their mother in appearance.

“Can I help you?” I spoke up, smiling at the man as I crossed the floor to meet him, leaning against the tall front desk.

“I was.. I need some help?” The man sounded confused, and his furrowed brow only solidified my theory. His eyes darted between my friend and I, as if waiting for one of us to offer something- though we didn’t know what that was.

“You wanna dance?” My friend piped up, a condescending tone in her voice. She dealt with men who were too prideful to admit what they were doing there before. She had no patience for them. This one though, seemed nothing like that. Especially when I watched his eyes go wide and a nod follow. He looked relieved.

“We have different types, was there something specific you were looking for?” I try to sound nicer than my friend.

“Something.. maybe- something with strength? Or endurance. And stamina?” His accent was thick compared to an American one, and the words he used made me wonder where he’d come from. He was either looking for something incredibly specific, or trying to sound smart.

“I have ballet. It’s difficult, but it’s good on muscles. It helps strengthen your legs. Can you do some paperwork for me?” The man nodded and I looked toward my friend. She quickly handed over a clip board and a pen, which I handed off to the man. He mumbled a polite, ‘thank you,’ and took a seat to fill it out.

I watched him for the fifteen minutes it took to fill out the pages. He wore a t-shirt of the city’s hockey team, something that I found normal considering we operated in the middle of the area. There were bound to be fans. My gaze studied his posture, but at some point it shifted to the way his dark hair fell and framed his face while he leaned over the paperwork. I smiled at the sight of batting eyelashes and the way his brow would knit together every so often at something he had to think of before answering. He was handsome.

Once he finished, the man brought the paperwork back and handed it over. I looked over the basic information before my gaze turned up to him. The man’s lips were pursed as he looked rather impatient. Or was he anxious?

“Okay, Nico. We have classes for your age group on Thursdays at five-“

“No!” His outburst caused both myself and my friend to look at him in shock. “I’m sorry- it’s just… it’s for personal reasons. I need this for work, and- I don’t work well with..” I watched his expression shift into one of embarrassment, and his hand wave in a dismissive way. “People.” A blatant lie.

“Uh huh,” I immediately slapped my friend’s shoulder when she piped up.

“Jessie, please.” I tried to calm her down, but she shook her head.

“It’ll only be for a few months.. I know I’m asking a strange thing, but it would help greatly.” I’ll blame it on his looks, and the desperation in his tone. I gave in to the man’s request with a reluctant nod. Who was I to ask what his job was? If he needed it that badly, I wouldn’t turn him down. I was helping somebody, I was sharing what I loved, and there was still money involved.

“Better put an extra ten bucks on his bill.” Jessie commented as she looked back to her computer. The man made no effort to argue, but I still let out an exasperated sigh.

“Jessie!”

——

We compromised on Sundays. Nico said those were most likely to be the days he would consistently have off. I still didn’t know what he did, but he told me his schedule was often sporadic. Jessie thought it funny to suggest adult films. Saying his reluctance to work with others was merely out of anxiety not to be noticed. I told her she was crazy.

Sundays were my least busiest days. I was at the studio alone for the first few hours before Jessie came in. By the time she was heading out for lunch, Nico was just stepping in. And I took note of the way he held the door for her. And the way she still wasn’t ready to give in to the idea that he might just be a good person. Nico had on a pair of black shorts, which I was thankful for considering we hadn’t discussed the dress code or what was best for ballet.

My expression nearly dropped when I realized the absolute shit show I was about to experience. Teaching a grown man ballet on my own. One who was tall, and decently built. I’d handled this type in classes before. They usually ended up needing six feet on every side so they wouldn’t hit or kick somebody. My gaze travelled to notice he was wearing a similar shirt to the one from the week before. This one was white with a tiny thirteen on one of the shirt sleeves. So he had a favorite player.

“Kick your shoes off and follow me.” I heard the light clutter of two shoes hitting the floor before Nico followed. “Are you flexible? At all?” I stepped into the studio, the man following behind before I pushed the door halfway closed. Safety was always a concern of mine. When working with kids, or working solo with random men. The door was never entirely shut.

“A bit?” Nico’s response left me at a loss. Guess we’ll find out.

“What do you like to listen to, Nico?” I made my way across the room to the small table against the wall. I grabbed my phone and looked back at him with expectant eyes.

“Swiss rap?” He was clearly testing the water, a nervous smirk upon his lips.

“Try again.”

“ABBA is fine.” I nodded, going to pull up an album full of ABBA’s greatest hits. ‘Does Your Mother Know’ came on over the few speakers in the room. When my gaze lifted to this man, I almost lost my composure. Tall, dark and handsome liked ABBA.

“Come on,” I managed a quiet giggle as I set my phone down. Nico met me in the middle of the floor. “We’re gonna stretch. That’s step one. Just do what I do.”

Nico struggled with understanding a few stretches, but each time I explained it a little slower, or helped him contort his body in whatever form it was supposed to be in. I heard a few ‘Jesus Christ’s’, but it only made me laugh. And each time I glanced at him in the mirror, it seemed my laughter fueled a bit of his own.

The few times I had to actually touch Nico, I relished in the firmness of his muscles, and the hilariously hopeless look in his eyes while he tried to understand what I was doing.

An hour passed before I felt like I had a good gauge of his flexibility. He was stretchier than I would have assumed, and it brought me some relief to know his body was at least flexible enough for ballet. The real question was, did he have grace and rhythm?

I spent the next hour explaining basics and getting Nico further out of his shell. When it came time to actually try a few things, I remained as patient and kind as humanly possible. Until I could no longer control myself.

“I don’t understand! You’re not making this easy!” Nico’s distressed but amused voice filled the studio along with my own laughter. I was hunched over with my hands on my knees, watching him through squinting eyes as he stood in the most awkward position I may have ever seen. He looked like a three year old. “Tell me again!”

I loved that no matter how many times he didn’t understand, Nico insisted to retry it. He liked the challenge. Over the few moves we did get down, I learned that he had a nice core strength and great control over his own body. And maybe a little bit of grace. After I came to terms with that, I threw adult film making completely out the window. He was in another business. I just didn’t know which one.

“I think maybe ballet is not for you.” I teased as I stood upright, making my way over to the amused but nonetheless frustrated man. “You’re so-“ I tried to put my finger on a word. “You move like a child.” And I knew why. Because he had no prior experience. Nico’s eyes went wide as his jaw dropped and his lips turned upward into a smile. 

“What is it? What specifically is it?” Nico insisted I tell him, but there were too many things to possibly name one.

“It’s my footwork?” The question was phrased as a statement, and I was quick to nod. He hit one of the many nails on the head.

“Well then what would you suggest instead? I need this to help with my footwork.” He dropped the hint, but I stored it in my mind for later.

“I don’t even know what to suggest. I guess we just try again.” I shrugged and smiled, incredulous. That’s what I did with the kids.

Try and try again, fail and fail a little less. Nico slowly began to catch on, though I relentlessly teased him when he failed. He took it like a true champ. I never noticed when Jessi came back from lunch, or that I had missed my own. Or that Nico had been there a lot longer than he was supposed to be. Until Jessi gave a gentle knock at the door and opened it to inform me of the well overdue departure of my new friend, or student.

——

It continued like that for weeks, Nico coming in on Sundays, greeting Jessie before she left for lunch, and joining me in the studio with a bright smile. As his visits came and went, I could tell Jessie was growing comfortable with him. And I could say the same for myself. Nico was so kind, and incredibly personable. I enjoyed not only the moments when he stumbled over a dance, but also the moments when we took breaks to sit and talk. Or when he needed help with a word or two. I learned he spoke German, and very good English, but when it came to the French of ballet, his accent did not do it justice. We often giggled over the way he pronounced things.

As the first month passed, I began to feel the dread of losing him. While also coming to terms with my feelings for him. Nico was just getting good. Good enough even that I could dance with him. But I remembered him saying it was only a few months. I still didn’t have a specific number, but I didn’t want to lose him. By the second month, I went into each Sunday with dread that he might not even show up. Or that he might randomly call and cancel.

This particular Sunday afternoon, I got a message saying that he had to miss out on our lesson for work. I told him it would be fine, that I’d miss him and we could reschedule. An hour later I got a text back saying, ‘you can come visit me at work?’ And another after, ‘Jessie can come too :)’ he knew how much I loved Jessie. He even enjoyed her snarky behavior from time to time.

I was given an address, and perhaps at that point I should have known where we were headed. But it hadn’t dawned on me until Jessie was flustered searching for a parking spot in the middle of traffic and crowds of people, that we were attending a hockey game.

“Fuck. Jess we don’t have tickets?” It was the first thing that crossed my mind. I didn’t think Nico was a player, or maybe he was. But the bottom line was that we weren’t getting in without tickets.

“He sent them to me.” My brow furrowed in confusion, peering at Jessie with a lost look until brow shot up in realization.

“You’re in on this?” I almost shouted, but I got no response as we pulled into a parking garage. “This is why I was supposed to dress nice? God- to a hockey game? Where there‘s beer and food everywhere?”

I wasn’t wearing anything particularly fancy. Only my favorite leather jacket and a pair of white jeans, matched up with a faded grey band shirt. My converses matched the black of my jacket, and my silver jewelry was the icing on the cake. Especially my rings, which I’d always loved.

“We have good seats. I think we’ll be fine.” Jessie’s nonchalance about the entire situation had me in disbelief from the moment we got out of the car, to the time we entered the arena. It was busy, full of life. I had no problem with crowds, but this was an entirely new situation. I was lost in more ways than one.

“We’re gonna miss warmups if you keep gawking.” The sound of people talking filled my ears, along with the shouted offers of men trying to sell alcohol. Kids excited and screaming.. some girl going on about a boy named Jack Hughes. I feel like I met a Jack once? With light brown hair and too much energy for my taste. And he had a drawl in his voice that caused his words to sound slurred or unfinished. God I hated it. But he was nice.

“Warmups?” I did not understand the concept, but I allowed Jessie to drag me through the stadium nonetheless. We found an usher who helped us to our seats, and with each step down the case that led us closer to the ice, I felt my stomach turning. The atmosphere was electric. It had me excited for a sport I knew nothing about. Once we got to our seats, I discovered they were right next to the tunnel one of the teams came out of. My body was buzzing, my hand absentmindedly gripping Jessie’s arm for dear life.

“Unhand me before I kick you,” Jessie threatened, prying my hand from her arm. At one point I looked up at the Jumbotron, realizing that whatever warmups were, they happened in fifteen minutes.

Fifteen minutes later, I heard people screaming and shouting, erupting into cheers and boos as the team that wasn’t ours, entered the ice. Soon the New Jersey team did follow. The Devils. And I began to second guess my theory that Nico was a player with each face I watched leave the tunnel. I noticed the Jack boy, comparable to a jack russel terrier from the way he bounced down the hall and onto the ice. Then the last body, clad in a red jersey, and those thick eyebrows, I noticed Nico. Holy shit… Captain Nico.

“Nico!” My voice erupted with pride as I shot out of my seat. That was my dancer. My Swiss weirdo who listened to ABBA and loved Meryl Streep. It seemed he recognized my voice, or maybe he was only looking to see we made it. His lips turned up into that smile I loved so much, and I reached forward to bang on the glass like everybody around me. I never liked sports, but I certainly had the aggression and thrill to be a fan. Me excitement made him laugh, extending his stick to tap the glass where I was before skating by.

Jessie had her head in her hands, trying not to be seen by literally anybody else.

“Jessie! This is- oh my god!” I had no words. Of course I had no words. And I was lost for them for the entire game. Aside from Nico’s name, incoherent screaming, and any word that fell from my lips when the refs made any call against the Devils. Which were usually profanities.

Nico had two assists through the game, and a goal in the third period. It was an empty netter, but I was prideful all the same. The goal horn erupted seconds later, signaling the end of the game. I jumped up like everyone else, and I watched him dig the puck out of the net. I wondered what Nico was up to until I saw him skate toward the boards on the other side of the ice. He flipped the puck off his stick and right over the boards. My heart melted as some kid snatched up the rubber object and smiled.

I loved sharing my craft with young generations. It seemed Nico did as well. People began to clear out, but I noticed a bulk staying. I didn’t know why until the lights dimmed and the three stars of the night were announced. The third was Jack. The second, the opposing team’s player. The first, Nico.

“What a brilliant game played by your team tonight. I’m sure you’re all buzzing with excitement?” The announcer sounded as jovial as the rest of the crowd, who had barely finished cheering for their captain by the time he began speaking.

“It was an amazing game. We played well.. remained on our feet.. we did good.” I could sense Nico’s determination from here. His pride in himself, but more importantly his team, radiated.

“Now, after you came back from your leg surgery, there were a lot of questions about your skating ability. Can you tell us how that affected your gameplay?”

“It was.. it was hard. I don’t like to listen to what people say. It’s not always great for your mentality. But- I worked hard and, I’d like to think I persevered.” He must be used to this.

“What did you do to fix that? Your first two games back, there was definitely some weakness in your left leg there. But now you look like a racehorse on the ice. How did you manage to change that?”

A smile formed on Nico’s lips. He looked like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar. “I had somebody help me. She uhm.. she helped with my leg strength and balance and- all the edgework.”

Edgework. Footwork. That little shit. It was right under my nose the whole time! His shirts, his number- it sounded horrible, but even his nationality should have tipped me off. How many Swiss hockey fans did someone just randomly meet in New Jersey? Of all places.

“Did she get paid well for accommodating the captain of the New Jersey Devils?” The reporter asked with a playful grin.

“Yes, and an extra ten per hour.” Nico laughed.

“You really charged him that extra ten?” I whipped my head in Jessie’s direction. She was caught red handed.

“He wanted to!”

“She’s gonna get a kiss after this though.” I almost missed it. Trying to scold Jessie, I almost didn’t catch the comment Nico made. But I did catch it. And my head immediately whipped back to him on the ice. The reporter was in the midst of congratulating him one last time on his game before Nico walked off down the tunnel.

“Jessie-“ my best friend was already laughing, swatting at my leg from where she was seated. “What do we do? We should leave.” She shook her head at me.

I wasn’t running from Nico, I was just nervous. “I should go to the bathroom..” she nodded at me, allowing me to run off up the endless flights of steps and navigate my way through the crowd to find the bathroom. I checked my makeup in the mirror, my legs feeling like jelly at the disbelief of what was to come. I had to have heard him wrong. I adjusted my shirt eighty times, and even thought about leaving before ultimately deciding I could not steal Jessie’s car. I wanted to kiss him. Of course I did. It’s all I wanted.

When I got back from the bathroom, most everybody was gone, and Jessie was still seated in her place, feet up against the glass with her arms across her chest. When I returned to her side, she smiled at me.

“Hold my phone while I go to the bathroom?” I nodded, taking her phone from her and slipping it into the pocket of my leather jacket before zipping it up.

Jessie was gone in a flash, and I was left staring out at the ice, bouncing from one foot to another before I heard my name. I turned quickly, looking at the figure practically sprinting down the steps.

We both had the same thing in mind. I heard Nico’s comment, and he had that piercing determined look in his eyes. By the time he reached me, he was holding his arms out- possibly for a hug. That’s not what I wanted though.

“Can I-“

I gave him all the permission he needed by crashing our lips together. Nico tasted like cocoa pebbles, and I had to pull away to mumble something about the sweetness before he giggled and reconnected our lips. His hands held my cheeks, and mine his hips. By the time we pulled away again, we were both heaving for air. Nico more so than myself considering the marathon he ran down the steps to get to me.

“I had a snack during the second intermission.” It was like he could read my mind, answering my unspoken question while our foreheads pressed together. We smiled and laughed.

“Of course you did,” I responded softly, pulling back to shake my head at him.

Nico giggled with a nod. “Are you hungry? I could use a date to my celebration tonight.”

“Yeah.. but I’m gonna need some explanation on all this.” I gestured back to the rink, earning a laugh from him.

“Anything you want to know.”

Nico and I made our way back up the steps together, meeting Jessie at the top where she had been waiting for us.

“So.. she’s yours for the night?” Jessie asked, earning a fist bump from Nico. My brow furrowed in concern that this entire plan went over my head.

“I’ll have her back by twelve.” Nico promised as he snaked an arm around my hip. I melted into his side.

“Eleven, Romeo. Or I’ll track you down on snap map and fist fight you in a fancy restaurant.”

Nico mumbled a quiet, ‘oh boy’ before nodding.

We were not back by ‘curfew.’ Hell I never even went home, but I shot Jessie a message when Nico let me into his own place, informing her that I was safe and Nico would keep me company for the night. She sent me back an emoji with a hand over the mouth. Then one saying, ‘updating Facebook status to Aunt.’

✩ ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩