#zero coding website

[cyprogirlspiteblog]

Since tumblr still hasn’t unblurred me, I’m going to take some time to tell you about one of their most secret policies:

Tumblr bans specific images. This is not a flagging thing. The image doesn’t get flagged. It gets removed from the site permanently. And I mean PERMANENTLY. There is no notification that this happens to your image because the policy is completely unofficial. There are also absolutely no guidelines to it. For instance, an image like this one is not against any tumblr community guidelines.

Yet this image when I had if as my header for my blog, to protest my previous blog’s sudden and uncalled for deletion (I had zero flagged posts, was given no warnings, and then one day I checked at two of my blogs were missing and I had a stern email from tumblr to never make a nsft blog again or else all my blogs would get deleted…yes the email said that) was removed. Not only was it removed form the posts I had made using it. They removed it from my header.

Of course, as you can see the image in no way violates the community guidelines…and even if it did, technically the official policy of tumblr is to flag the image and make it invisible to anyone but the OP. Instead this is a different far less official policy…and it seems as though it is completely within the realm of individual tumblr staff to decide what gets to count. Indeed, this is not the only image this has happened to me too. The first two blogs of mine that got deleted we’re actually nsft blogs, unlike my current blogs, they actually technically did violate tumblr guidelines…now mind you I was no longer posting original nsft content on their at time of their deletion…but still they’d previously been porn blogs. ANYWAYS…if you run a very popular nsft blog you’ll notice that your most popular post occasionally just disappear. Maybe if you’re not paying attention you presume you just can’t track it down or no one has reblogged it lately…but no, they (staff) straight up extrajudicially remove your content. I say extrajudicially because they do have official policy and protocols they should be following, aka flagging the content and/or labeling the content. But no, they fucking remove it.

And when they remove it, it’s gone for good, for everyone. For instance, the above photo, the “ew tumblr” photo…that’s not the original photo, that’s a screenshot of that photo. You can’t post the original, the code of that photo is forever banned. It’s not even just one account either. For instance, to test this, I attempted to upload an old “missing” nsft image from my original blog, which is not associated with this email, and is not even associated with my IP address. And this is what happened:

Tumblr’s transphobia runs so deep they are eager and willing to circumvent their own policies and procedures, the staff acting like thin skinned vigilantes on their own website where they held all the power to start with anyways.

eeewwwwwwwww

unblur me now staff

[ai-art-thieves]

It's Time To Investigate SevenArt.ai

sevenart.ai is a website that uses ai to generate images.

Except, that's not all it can do.

It can also overlay ai filters onto images to create the illusion that the algorithm created these images.

And its primary image source is Tumblr.

It scrapes through the site for recent images that are at least 10 days old and has some notes attached to it, as well as copying the tags to make the unsuspecting user think that the post was from a genuine user.

No image is safe. Art, photography, screenshots, you name it.

Initially I thought that these are bots that just repost images from their site as well as bastardizations of pictures across tumblr, until a user by the name of @nataliedecorsair discovered that these "bots" can also block users and restrict replies.

Not only that, but these bots do not procreate and multiply like most bots do. Or at least, they have.

The following are the list of bots that have been found on this very site. Brace yourself. It's gonna be a long one:

@giannaaziz1998blog

@kennedyvietor1978blog

@nikb0mh6bl

@z4uu8shm37

@xguniedhmn

@katherinrubino1958blog

@3neonnightlifenostalgiablog

@cyberneticcreations58blog

@neomasteinbrink1971blog

@etharetherford1958blog

@punxajfqz1

@camicranfill1967blog

@1stellarluminousechoblog

@whwsd1wrof

@bnlvi0rsmj

@steampunkstarshipsafari90blog

@surrealistictechtales17blog

@2steampunksavvysiren37blog

@krispycrowntree

@voucwjryey

@luciaaleem1961blog

@qcmpdwv9ts

@2mplexltw6

@sz1uwxthzi

@laurenesmock1972blog

@rosalinetritsch1992blog

@chereesteinkirchner1950blog

@malindamadaras1996blog

@1cyberneticdreamscapehubblog

@neomasteinbrink1971blog

@neonfuturecityblog

@olindagunner1986blog

@neonnomadnirvanablog

@digitalcyborgquestblog

@freespiritfusionblog

@piacarriveau1990blog

@3technoartisticvisionsblog

@wanderlustwineblissblog

@oyqjfwb9nz

@maryannamarkus1983blog

@lashelldowhower2000blog

@ovibigrqrw

@3neonnightlifenostalgiablog

@ywldujyr6b

@giannaaziz1998blog

@yudacquel1961blog

@neotechcreationsblog

@wildernesswonderquest87blog

@cybertroncosmicflow93blog

@emeldaplessner1996blog

@neuralnetworkgallery78blog

@dunstanrohrich1957blog

@juanitazunino1965blog

@natoshaereaux1970blog

@aienhancedaestheticsblog

@techtrendytreks48blog

@cgvlrktikf

@digitaldimensiondioramablog

@pixelpaintedpanorama91blog

@futuristiccowboyshark

@digitaldreamscapevisionsblog

@janishoppin1950blog

The oldest ones have been created in March, started scraping in June/July, and later additions to the family have been created in July.

So, I have come to the conclusion that these accounts might be run by a combination of bot and human. Cyborg, if you will.

But it still doesn't answer my main question:

Who is running the whole operation?

The site itself gave us zero answers to work with.

No copyright, no link to the engine where the site is being used on, except for the sign in thingy (which I did.)

I gave the site a fake email and a shitty password.

Turns out it doesn't function like most sites that ask for an email and password.

Didn't check the burner email, the password isn't fully dotted and available for the whole world to see, and, and this is the important thing...

My browser didn't detect that this was an email and password thingy.

And there was no log off feature.

This could mean two things.

Either we have a site that doesn't have a functioning email and password database, or that we have a bunch of gullible people throwing their email and password in for people to potentially steal.

I can't confirm or deny these facts, because, again, the site has little to work with.

The code? Generic as all hell.

Tried searching for more information about this site, like the server it's on, or who owned the site, or something. ANYTHING.

Multiple sites pulled me in different directions. One site said it originates in Iceland. Others say its in California or Canada.

Luckily, the server it used was the same. Its powered by Cloudflare.

Unfortunately, I have no idea what to do with any of this information.

If you have any further information about this site, let me know.

Until there is a clear answer, we need to keep doing what we are doing.

Spread the word and report about these cretins.

If they want attention, then they are gonna get the worst attention.

[ritesh1234]

Topic in Digital Marketing

[perfectiongeeks]

Zerocode Tools and Their Impact on the Job Market

Citizen developers are also known as zero-Code Application Developers. They use drag-and-drop tools and visual interfaces to create applications without writing any code. Developers are often well-versed in business and thoroughly understand business requirements. Zero-code tools allow users with little programming knowledge to build complex systems and apps. Zero-code tools are pre-built modules and components that can be combined and customized easily to meet specific needs. Citizen developers are becoming more common in today's industry. Citizen developers have a job at the intersection between business and technology. Some of them may know how to program, but only minimally. For example, people in roles such as business analysts, product managers, project managers, etc.

Visit us:

[traegorn]

Time to be Internet Cockroaches

So I am constantly in active rebellion of the centralized web. We're in a world where all of our online interactions happen on just a handful of sites (and this includes DIscord and Tumblr too).

SO I WANT TO REMIND FOLKS -- YOU CAN BUILD YOUR OWN STUFF, AND WHEN YOUR FRIENDS DO IT YOU SHOULD USE IT.

Now I know not everyone can pay for their own webhosting and setup their own stuff, but for those of us who can -- we should. When every major platform is at risk, we should be splintering out across the web and decentralizing as much as we can.

I host the Nerd & Tie [dot] Social forums for my friends and my stuff for instance.

It's a "slow forum" right now, but it can support a lot more -- and works well on mobile. But, like, on a lot of webhosts setting up a Flarum forum like that takes almost zero technical skill.

And you can set up your own blog on a self hosted server. Like Wordpress is incredibly easy to set up on your own site, We run the main Nerd & Tie site -- and we use it to serve up our podcasts. I also use it to power my webcomics like Peregrine Lake.

My personal website comes from the old internet, so my blog is literally run from a hand coded piece of software I hacked together originally back in like 2001.

And you might be asking yourself "How do I follow blogs that are independently run" and the answer is simple -- RSS feeds.

RSS is an XML format that breaks down items in a standard way that can be interpreted by an RSS reader. You probably already use something that touches RSS feeds -- Podcasts run entirely on RSS feeds. I don't know if it still works, but even Tumblr blogs have RSS feeds at the url [username].tumblr.com/rss.

Now I use Thunderbird for email, which has a built in RSS reader to monitor certain blogs to watch for import updates.

Is it harder to discover people to follow in this model? Absolutely. The onus is on the reader to seek out the folks they want to read and interact with. But it's safer. We see with congress's attempts to constantly ban TikTok and Musk's destruction of Twitter that centralized platforms have deep vulnerabilities. By moving across the web to multiple datacenters on multiple hosts we ensure that we're much harder to get rid of.

Time to be the cockroach.

[withbroombefore]

I saw a poll earlier about participation in regular in-person activities, with numbers that make me wonder if a lot of people don't know what the options are or how to find them. Here are some that I have always found welcoming to new people; for me, these are ways to leave my apartment and get some human interaction without having to make much conversation (there is a reasonable amount of that if you want it, but since it's understood that you are there to do an activity, the thing you are doing is the point rather than pure socializing). A search for "[activity] [location]" should tell you what's available in your area.

Contra dancing: This goes at the top and gets explanation because it's my favorite. I grew up doing this and love it very very much; I always look for local dances when I move somewhere new. Most dances are very beginner-friendly (though there are some exceptions), and zero dance experience is required to participate. Many will include a lesson for beginners in the half-hour before the main event starts, and there are always instructions throughout the evening. You truly do not need to know anything going in. The convention is to switch partners throughout the night, and it's completely okay to attend alone and ask people you don't know to dance. Try Contra Dancing has a search tool by zip code. Typically $8-15.

Community theatre tech: Acting is an option if that's your thing, but in my experience, tech is easier if you're looking for an activity because there's not usually competition--you often can just volunteer without needing to worry about auditions or casting. Roles like run crew (where you move set between scenes and such) don't require any prior knowledge, and plenty of the other tasks can be learned with a little training. If you turn up reliably, the word will spread--good techies are invaluable. Free to participate.

Community band or chorus: Prior experience in playing an instrument is necessary for the band; for singing, it depends on the type of chorus. Some are auditioned, others are just thrilled by any participation. May require dues.

Shapenote singing: A more niche one and another of my personal favorites (I ignore the religious lyrics and treat them as poetry). This can take some time to pick up, but many places have a small monthly sing that is very welcoming to new people. fasola.org has lots of information about the tradition and where to sing. Free, optional donations accepted.

Library events: Find your local public library's website and look for a calendar or events page to see if anything appeals. Typically free.

Crafting groups: Yarn stores and other craft supply places often have regular open gatherings (typically free) and/or classes (may cost money for teaching and supplies).

Games: If you have a local game store, check their website for events. Or search "[location] [chess club]" or whatever is your thing. Usually free.

Dance: Depends on what is available in your area. A studio where I am has a monthly swing dance, with beginner lessons before, for $10.

Sports: I don't really do these but they presumably exist and can be found like the other things.

The important thing is to just go do the thing. It will probably feel awkward the first time--that's normal! These are all spaces where the point is for people to show up and participate. They want you to be there, and they want you to come back! Otherwise they can't keep existing. Several of these (contra dancing, shapenote, a lot of crafting groups) are especially excited about new people and younger participants and will be thrilled to teach you how to do the thing. And the only way to make it feel comfortable is to plow through the first awkwardness and go back until you decide if you actually enjoy it or not. When you find a thing you like, keep going, and after a little while you end up with a community of people to see regularly who share your interests. This is what humans are supposed to do.

[stellophiliac]

you should make a website!

"my favorite social media site is shutting down!"

"the CEO of the site i use just committed another atrocity!"

"i want a webspace that's all my own!"

if any of these sound like you (and if you're on tumblr, i know at least one applies) you should make your own website!

why make a website?

incredibly customizable

you can put whatever you want on it

it's, well, your own! like a house you build with your own hands

things you'll need

a computer. you can maybe get away with doing this on a mobile device, but i have zero experience there

a code editor. i like VScodium, which is a de-microsoft-ed version of VScode.

a will to learn ;)

site hosting

neocities. everyone knows neocities. at this point i do feel like it's become a bit too centralized, but it's a good option nonetheless. do note that there are filetype restrictions for free users, but that shouldn't be a huge issue for most. what may be an issue, though, is that there's a content security policy that prevents sites made after jan 1st, 2024 to use outside scripts. also, you have to pay to use your own domain

nekoweb. similar to neocities, but there's no filetype restrictions or a content security policy. some differences are outlined in the FAQ (thinking about moving here... i am a traitor...) i'm not sure if domain support is free or paid.

github pages or codeberg pages. you'll need an understanding of git for this

pages.gay: run by besties.house, uses git

teacake: free hosting is currently closed, but paid hosting starts at 2 bucks a month.

leprd.space: i know next to nothing about this.

a web server. don't recommend this if you don't know computer stuff but it is an option (you'll likely have to provide your own domain though)

gripes & solutions (?)

i'm not comfortable maintaining pages in pure HTML / templating with JS sucks!

with a static site generator, you can write pages in markdown and they'll be converted into HTML and (if you'd like) be put into a template of your choosing. my personal choice is 11ty but there are tons of options!

static site generators can be a bit of a learning curve (and you will have to write some html for templating) but if you're making a lot of pages or blogging regularly it's something to consider

there are starters for 11ty online but i might make a more beginner-proofed starter and/or guide in the future? don't count on it

i don't want to write/maintain CSS

simpleCSS is a tiny CSS file you can use to make semantic HTML ("naked" HTML) look nice. it's got decent customization options too. it's not particularly fancy or opinionated, but it's a good starting point if you need something

i don't know what to put on my website!

small list of ideas:

weblog

art/writing/music gallery

movie/show/book tracker

place to store bookmarks/links

scary! i'm scared!

my askbox/messages/e-mail inbox/etc. are open to anyone who'd like to ask for help!

[homunculus-argument]

I'm actually a big fan of warning labels. Today I had a piss sample taken, and the sample jar had a big red warning label in five languages that warned you to not stick your finger into the needle in the piss jar. My initial thought was to wonder who the fuck would be stupid enough to do that, but then I reminded myself that I only think that this is obvious because the warning label has always been there, and if it wasn't, there would be an above zero chance that I'd stick my finger in the needle in the piss jar.

I think all warning labels should have, like, a QR code somewhere in the corner that'd take you to a website that explains to you in detail what would happen if you did the thing that you were just specifically told not to do. Make it a link or a QR code or something to make it discreet so it won't distract the people who don't need to know the details, but still available for the people who would like to know what would happen if you do the thing.

With the piss jar needle it's kind of obvious. Instant combo attack of needle wound in the finger and piss in the wound. This is not a place of honour. But I'm sure there are plenty of other warning labels where the real and thorough answers would be fascinating.

[bogleech]

Also going to finally make a pinned post for all my stuff:

BOGLEECH - my tumblr blog is named after this website I created around 2002 and still update. Thousands of pages worth of content focusing on creature design as well as real biology. My review of the original Legend of Zelda monsters might be the most straightforward example of my articles.

Links to some of the most popular content:

POKEMON REVIEW ARCHIVE: - I rate and review each and every single Pokemon, in Pokedex order, on its merits as a creature design. I also do so as someone whose favorite animals are all parasites.

DIGIMON REVIEW ARCHIVE - same, but more chaotic.

CREEPYPASTA COOKOFF ARCHIVE - for several years I hosted a yearly writing contest before it grew too big for me to keep up with. There are over a thousand user submitted horror, fantasy, sci fi and surrealist stories here emphasizing unconventional, original ideas you seldom see from the "creepypasta" community!

The original "MORTASHEEN" Monster Archive - since the early 2000's I've created and illustrated more than 800 creatures and counting for my own monster-catching world, now set for release as a tabletop RPG setting.

AWFUL HOSPITAL: SERIOUSLY THE WORST EVER (page one): an interactive comedy-horror-sci-fi webcomic I started in 2014 about a medical facility that could maybe be better.

Some of my other internet stuff:

PATREON - constant work makes my patreon updates inconsistent, but the content backlog goes back years with a huge amount of exclusive art and writing. I try to put up new exclusive stuff whenever I can.

ETSY - I design all sorts of original enamel pins like these, plus I sell zero-maintenance terrarium plants (just leave them in a jar!), original books and other things!

COLOR THE ABYSS (available on the above etsy!) - a 30 page educational deep sea coloring book! Includes a few famous favorites like giant isopods and hagfish, but mostly focuses on less popular, often much weirder animals.

UNBELIEVABLE BUGS - also regularly restocked in the etsy store, 30 of the strangest and most surprising arthropods most people have likely never heard of, illustrated by myself and @revretch, written for even the youngest kids to understand (but will likely teach you something new at any age)

My Itch.io and Ko-fi - both sell digital versions of my books, including some creepypasta collections and my first novel, "Return of the Living," about a world of entirely ghosts suddenly dealing with the appearance of ghost-hunting monsters.

TWITCH CHANNEL - I now try to stream something at least monthly, sometimes weekly when possible, from horror games to books and art.

YOUTUBE CHANNEL - archives my twitch streams and other little things.

INSTAGRAM - look at pictures of my huge weird collection of toys and Halloween collectibles

BLUESKY - I'm going to put mainly just updates to my stuff on here.

SEE ALSO:

HUMANS-B-GONE - a science fiction animated series by my partner @revretch, about a world of kaiju-size, technologically advanced insects and arachnids to whom vertebrates like us are just pesky little "gubs." Also has a tumblr account @humansbgone

FINALLY, HERE'S MY GUIDE AND RESOURCE TO MAKING YOUR OWN INTERNET WEBSITE IN A FEW MINUTES WITH NO KNOWLEDGE OF CODING

[hms-no-fun]

you were on cohost? i guess too late now, how was it for you?

cohost had its fair share of problems and i could often find the community there a bit too tumblr-core fingerwaggy if you know what i mean. but the site's dead now so it's kind of a moot point. what i find myself reflecting on most these days are the positives.

first, no numbers. i think their no numbers policy was probably a bit over-aggressive, but it quelled some of the rat race popularity contest aspect of social media that often makes it so tedious. i liked their tag tracking system, their robust content warning options, and the absence of infinite scroll. what i miss most about cohost is that their text editor supported CSS, which led to people programming elaborate text effects and puzzles and games in-site that harkened back to the days of flash animations. there was something in this combination of elements that drew out a rebellious creativity in users.

cohost came at a time when social media was across the board feeling terrible (and it's only gotten worse hahaha), particularly as someone who makes shit that relies on you clicking links that take you away from the website or app. algorithms hate this and punish it. users also just seem kind of lazy and disinterested in using the internet so much as letting the internet happen to them passively. but when a post of mine went viral on cohost, people engaged with it. it wasn't just likes and shares, it was comments and additions. it felt like a place that (at its best) encouraged actual conversation and the development of new ideas among like-minded peers. when my posts did well and i included a donation link, people gave me money. it felt genuinely like a website that COULD support professional blog work in a way that was more customizable even than substack yet still RSS friendly, and the Following tab which let you easily see posts of specific users was a REVELATION, like a mini RSS reader within the website itself.

but the enterprise was unsustainable for various reasons (not all of them outside the dev crew's control) and the haters got what they wanted. now our big social media alternative is bluesky, a website that dares to ask the question "what if there was another twitter?" the answer is that it fucking sucks. i hate microblogs so much dude, why on EARTH are we still acting like these disambiguited 300-character-limit posts are the most preferable means of social communication online??? why would you set out to make a better twitter and then deliberately choose to replicate literally every aspect of the user experience that encouraged low-information high-drama conflict fabrication? WHY WOULD YOU MAKE A VERSION OF TWITTER WHERE YOU CAN EASILY LOOK UP THE ACCOUNT OF EVERYONE WHO HAS YOU BLOCKED AND IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE A FEATURE NOT A BUG???????? i just don't get it. i don't even get the optimism of the early adopters. i've seen people decry the post-election decay of the platform like "of course the cishets come in to ruin a community that was defined by trans & queer people" i'm sorry HELLO???????? from literally day zero bluesky was aiming to be a hands-off centrist IPO-friendly tech startup, there was never anything structurally embedded within the platform itself to keep this kind of decay from happening, you just happened to be on there when there were dramatically fewer users most of whom were curious tech enthusiasts. seriously, how have we not learned this lesson yet? you can't define a digital culture by the vibes of random user behavior! unless you have LAWS and GUIDELINES whereby you fucking BAN people for being shitheads, unless you enforce an actual code of conduct and punish bigoted speech and design a system that encourages constructive conversation, you are always always ALWAYS going to wind up at unhinged facebook boomer slop!

the death of cohost and the utterly predictable decay of bluesky are a big part of the reason why i've been posting so much more on tumblr. this is like the last bastion of anything even remotely resembling the old web, with its support of longposts and tagging and how easy it is to find random hobbyists doing cool shit you never knew existed before. like, yeah, you have to search that shit out and tailor your feed to not drive you crazy, but that's what i like about it!!! i am an adult with agency who understands that life is complicated and as such i expect to have to put some work into making my experience with a website positive! but in the hellworld of the iphone everything is walled garden apps for aggregating content where the content and its creators are structurally established as infinitely replaceable and uniquely worthless punching bags to be used and cast aside. everyone's given up on moderation and real jobs don't exist anymore especially if you happen to work in the "creative economy" IE are a writer or critic or artist or hobbyist of literally any kind. we've given up on expecting anything from the rich moneyboys who own and profit immensely off of the platforms whose value we literally create!!! especially now with the rise of "AI" grifters, whose work has ratcheted good old fashioned casual sexism and racism and homophobia up to levels not seen in such mainstream spaces since the early 2000s.

i like tumblr because i don't have to use a third party app to get & answer asks at length, and because it is a visual artist friendly platform where i won't be looked at funny for reblogging furry postmodernism or transgender homestuck OCs. it is a site that utterly lacks respectability and that's what makes it even remotely usuable. unfortunately it also sucks! partly it sucks because this place was ground zero for the rise of puritanical feminist-passing conservatism in leftist spaces, so it's like a hyperbolic time chamber for brain-melting life or death discourse about the most inconsequential bullshit you could ever imagine. but it also sucks because it's owned by a profit-motivated moneyboy who has consistently encouraged a culture of virulent transphobia and frequently bans trans women who call this out. so like, yeah, this place is cool compared to everywhere else, but it is exactly like everywhere else in that is also on a ticking clock to its own inevitable demise. the owners of this website will destroy everything that makes it interesting and will EAGERLY delete the nearly twenty years (!!!!!!) of posts it's accumulated the instant it will profit them to do so. this will be immensely unpopular and everyone will agree it's a tragedy and it won't matter. the culture and content of a social media platform is epiphenomenal to its rote economic valuation. i mean, obviously it isn't, zero of these massive tech companies would be what they are if so many people weren't so eager to give their time and labor away for free (and yes, writing a dumb dick joke on tumblr IS a form of labor in the same way that doing a captcha is labor, just because it's a miniscule contribution in an economy of scale doesn't mean you didn't contribute!), but once a tech company reaches a certain threshold its valuation ceases to be tethered to anything that actually exists in reality.

all of which is why i remember cohost with a heavy heart. yeah, it was imperfect. it was also independently owned, made with the explicit goal of creating a form of social media that actually tries not to give you a lifelong anxiety disorder so it can sell you homeopathic anti-anxiety sawdust suppositories. for the brief window of time when it was extant, i was genuinely hopeful for the future of being a creative on the internet. part of why i spend so much time on godfeels, a fucking homestuck fanfiction with no hope of turning a profit or establishing mainstream legitimacy, is that my readers actually ENGAGE with the material. what brought me back to using this website consistently was precisely the glut of godfeels-related questions i got, and the exciting conversations that resulted from my answers. meanwhile i put so many hours into my videos and even when they do well numerically, i barely see any actual engagement with the material. and that is a deliberate design choice on the part of youtube! that is the platform functioning as intended!! it sucks!!!

what the memory of cohost has instilled in me is a neverending distaste for the lazy unambitious also-rans that define the modern internet. i remember the possibility space of the early web and long for the expressiveness that even the most minor of utilities offered. we sacrificed that freedom for a convenience which was always the pretense for eventually charging us rent. i am thinking a lot these days about what a publicly funded government administrated social media utility would look like. what federal open source standards could look in an environment where the kinds of activities a digital ecosystem can encourage are strictly regulated against exploitation, bigotry, scams, and literal gambling. what if there was a unionized federal workforce devoted to the administration of internet moderation, which every website above a certain user threshold must legally take advantage of? i like to imagine a world where youtube isn't just nationalized but balkanized, where you have nested networks of youtubes administrated for different purposes by different agencies and organizations that operate on different paradigms of privacy and algorithmic interaction. imagine that your state, county, and/or city has its own branch of youtube meant to specifically highlight local work, while also remaining connected to a broader national network (oops i just reinvented federation lmao). imagine a world where server capacity is a publicly owned utility apportioned according to need and developed in collaboration with the communities of their construction rather than as a deliberate exploitation of them. our horizons for these kinds of things are just so, so small, our ability to imagine completely captured by capitalist realism, our willingness to demand services from our government simply obliterated by decades of cynical pro-austerity propaganda. i imagine proposing some of this stuff and people reacting like "well that's unrealistic" "that'll never happen" "they'd just use it for evil" and i am just SO! FUCKING! TIRED!!!!

like wow you're soooooo cool for being effectively two steps left of reagan, i bet you think prison abolition and free public housing are an impossible pipedream too huh? and exactly what has that attitude gotten you? what've you gained by being such a down to earth realist whose demands are limited by the scope of what seems immediately possible? has anything gotten better? have any of the things you thought were good stayed good? is your career more stable, your political position more safe, your desire to live and thrive greatly expanded? or do you spend every day in a cascading panopticon of stress and collapse, overwhelmed to the point of paralysis by the sheer magnitude of what it's cost us to abandon the future? you HAVE to dream. you HAVE to make unrealistic demands. the fucking conservatives have been making unrealistic demands forever and look, they're getting everything they want even though EVERYONE hates them for it! please i'm begging you to see and understand that what's feasible, what's reasonable, what's realistic, are literally irrelevant. these things only feel impossible because we choose to believe The Adults (and if you're younger than like 45, trust me, to the ruling class you are a child) whose bank accounts reflect just how profitable it is to convince us that they're impossible. all those billions of dollars these fuckers have didn't come from nowhere, it was stolen from all of us. there is no reason that money can't and shouldn't be seized and recirculated back into the economy, no reason it can't be used to fund a society that is actually social, where technological development is driven not by what's most likely to drive up profits next quarter but by what people need from technology in their daily lives.

uh so yeah basically that's my opinion of cohost lmao

[gaylor-moon]

lol without thinking I've kept my copy of NIN's 'Year Zero' album in my car for weeks and am trying to get the CD to turn all the way black again.

The CD has a temperature based coating on it; default state is just pure black, when it warms up, the coating fades away to white.

The reason behind this is, once you put the default black CD in a player; then listened to it; it would come out all white due to heat, then would have a bunch a binary code (the 1's and 0's stuff) on it, when converted it would lead to a website that was part of the ARG.

[streamafterlaughter]

Soundtrack to Disaster

Chapter XXII: I’m Terrified, but I Can’t Resist

masterlist | playlist | pin board | prev. | read on ao3 | read bee’s diary

songs for this chapter: but not often, by microwave, finally // beautiful stranger by halsey, 2YL by the front bottoms, autumn dress by mat kerekes

chapter tags: fluff!, first date, swearing, drinking, smoking, adult language, flirting, making out, heavy petting?/dry humping, cumming in pants bc eddie’s pathetic. this chapter is LONG sorryyyyy love u mean it enjoy | fic tags: Angst, hurt/(eventual) comfort, (eventual) smut, slow burn, enemies to friends to lovers, Eddie Munson x Fem!OC!Reader, Modern AU | REMINDER: THIS FIC IS RATED EXPLICIT. 18+ mdni.

a/n: i really have not seen LOTR… dont be mad at me.

taglist: @children-of-the-grave @five-bi-five @kellsck @faggotinie @xplrnowornever @taccobelle @micheledawn1975 @mewchiili @dreamerjj @losingmygrasponreality @munsonburn3r @justalotoffanfiction @bl0ssomanddie @eddiesgirl1944 @longlivedelusion @aliensfeltmyjoy

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—

This time, you’re awake by nine a.m., mostly to avoid another interaction with Eddie while you’re in a towel. You stretch slowly, eyes adjusting to the sunlight streaming through your windows, the dull sound of your brother’s television floating through the walls, background noise in an otherwise quiet house. After rolling out of your bed and half making it, you dig through your dresser for an outfit. Having absolutely no idea what Eddie is planning to do for lunch, you stare at your closet at a loss for inspiration for about ten minutes before texting him.

>hey

Eddie: good morning : )

>holy shit ur awake

Eddie: what can i say ive got a hot date. too excited to sleep

>is this a date?

Eddie: i thought that went without saying! sorry. yes. i'm taking u on a date. : )

>ok smooth talker. where are we going?

Eddie: it’s a surprise

>can i at least have like, dress code parameters?

Eddie: wear something you’d wear on a date!

>ok then. guess i'll figure it out. see u soon

Eddie: cant wait : )

A date. You have a date with Eddie Munson. The word feels wrong, like a shoe on the wrong foot. You go back into your closet, sifting through the hangers of different thrifted items you’d bought without somewhere to wear them. Finally, you pull a piece from its hanger: a black, deep cut, form fitting dress that ends mid thigh. You pair it with a pair of chunky lace up boots, and a simple silver chain you clasp around your neck. You decide against taking your sweater, the air unseasonably warm for autumn lately.

Taking a deep breath, you observe yourself in the full length mirror. You look good, far too good for something that doesn’t even have a label on it. You groan, but decide against changing, and spray yourself with your favorite perfume instead before heading to the bathroom to do your makeup.

–

There’s a knock on your apartment door at noon, and you panic.

“Where you goin’ all fancy?” Chris asks, eyes not leaving his game on the screen.

“I um.” You can’t really lie your way out of this one, considering Eddie is on the other side of that door. “I have a date.”

“You what?!” Chris clicks a button on his controller, stopping the movement on the screen to look directly at you. “Is it with who I think it is?!”

This is it. This is how the entire town finds out you and Eddie are, well, the label is predetermined. You twist the knob and let the door fall open, and the sight before you is not what you’re expecting even a little bit. Eddie is dressed in a black, bicep hugging button down with its top two buttons open, and dark blue jeans with zero rips in the knees. Even his boots look a little shinier. He’s still wearing his worn out leather jacket over it, and his guitar pick necklace sits under his shirt collar, and his hair is fluffier than usual like he’s taken extra care to actually style his curls. He looks hot.

“No fuckin’ way.” Chris mumbles when Eddie hands you a bouquet.

“Holy shit. You look incredible.” Eddie’s smile stretches as he takes you in. “I um, I didn’t know what kind of flowers you’d like. I got these because I remembered you liked to pick ‘em as a kid.”

“They’re perfect. Thank you.” Little white daisies. You used to wear them in your hair during the summer, sometimes weaving them into headbands and giving them to Eddie. He’d wear them for you, every time. When you look up at him, you find him with bright red cheeks, sheepishly scratching the back of his neck like it’ll settle his nerves. “Let me put these in a vase, I’ll be right back.” Eddie nods, stepping over the threshold. “Chris, can you meet me in the kitchen for a sec, please?”

Confused, Chris pulls himself from the couch and follows you. “You’re dating him?! And you didn’t tell me?!”

“No, Chris. I am going on a date with him. One. Singular. And you’re not gonna say a goddamn word about it to anyone!”

“Why are you hiding this? Everyone already knows he’s in love with you, and we’re pretty sure you–”

“This is why I haven’t told anyone. Everyone thinks they know exactly what the fuck is going on, that they know me better than I know myself. I am giving him a chance. I want to see this through for myself without having you, Rob, and Steve breathing down my fuckin’ neck. Okay?”

“Will you at least tell me if it goes well?”

“Maybe, if I feel so inclined.” It would be nice to talk to someone about Eddie, but you’re definitely not too sure Chris is the right choice. “But don’t nag me about it. Or him, that wouldn’t be fair to Eddie.”

“God, this is so strange. Just weeks ago you two were at each other’s throats. I promise, your secret is safe with me.”

“It better be, or I’ll make sure you never know another thing about me again.” You place the flowers into a pitcher, realizing you don’t actually own a vase. “Go buy a vase for these, and your debt will be paid.”

“Debt?”

“If you didn’t live with me, you wouldn't know this information. Now that you know, you owe me.”

“Ugh, fine. Is my debt repaid with the vase?”

“Not even remotely. Thank you!” And you turn from him, making your way back into the living room. Eddie offers out his arm for you, and you take it, ignoring the stifled giggles behind you. You turn to face your brother once more. “Don’t wait up.” With that, you close the door behind you.

“Should I have waited in the car? I figured I’d come to the door, this being a date and all.” His tone is teasing, but his eyes betray the worry underneath.

“No, it’s okay. I just had to give my brother a rundown on all the things that would happen to him if he shared this information with anyone.” You scan Eddie head to toe as you speak. “You look great, by the way. Loving the hair.” You wince at your awkward delivery.

“Why, thank you. Steve helped me pick out some stuff to try.” Eddie must catch the way your face twitches, because he doubles back. “No, no. I didn’t tell him what I needed it for, he figured I was experimenting for future Coffin shows. Don’t worry, my lips have been sealed.

You give him a small smile when he opens the door to the parking lot. “Okay. Thank you, by the way. I just don’t need anyone in my personal business right now. I just wanna have something to myself.” You look up at him again, nose scrunched. “I want you, to myself.”

“I’m all yours, sweetheart.” He yanks the passenger door to his van open for you, and you climb into the seat. Before you’re even buckled in, Eddie’s stepping on the gas pedal, his tires kicking up gravel. “About those sealed lips though,” He starts, and you turn to look at him. His eyes are glued to the road, unblinking. “They’re aching to move, y’know. Wonder if there’s anything else I can be doin’ with ‘em.”

“Huh, sounds like you’re in a predicament.” You play along with his false nonchalance, keeping your tone casual like you can’t feel your heart suddenly slamming against your ribs.

“Guess we’ll have to brainstorm then.” Eddie just shrugs, and you have to look away, out the side window, not risking letting him see the way you’re grinning like an idiot right now.

–

It’s only forty five minutes outside of Hawkins, but Indianapolis feels like a distant land to you sometimes. Your parents had never taken you into the city as a kid, and Chris had never been one to invite his “baby sister” to the shows he and Eddie had frequented as teenagers.

“Where the hell are we going?” You ask finally as Eddie cuts the wheel.

“You’ll see! We’re almost there.” Eddie winks at you, then slams on his brake. “HEY, FUCKHEAD! In no goddamn universe do people turning left have the right of way!” The windows are rolled up, you know the guy can’t hear Eddie’s cursing, but you join him anyway.

“JESUS CHRIST, they’ll give anyone a fuckin’ license!” He then exaggerates his breathing; inhaling deeply through his nose with flared nostrils, blowing out slowly through his mouth. “Okay. I’m zen.”

“Totally.”

“And we’re here!” Eddie pulls his van up to the entrance and you can’t help the way your jaw unhinges.

“Oh my god.” Harry and Izzy’s. “Harry and Izzy’s?!” You whip around to gawk at Eddie, and he’s already got a look of glee on his face. “How did you–” Afford it? That’s rude, Bee. “This is insane.”

“Been savin’ for a rainy day. Turns out sometimes that means a first date with someone you… um, really like.” You feel insane. Eddie Munson is making you insane. “Shall we?”

“Ed, we can’t park here.”

“My dearest, sweetest Bee,” You blush at his cooing. “They do have valet parking here.”

Oh. “Right, yeah. Duh.” Eddie throws his van into park, and immediately an attendant is opening the door to help you out. “Oh. Shit, thanks.”

“Of course, miss.” You try not to betray your disgust at the way the man– or boy, probably no older than eighteen– addresses you. You have no idea how to act in this environment, and you feel like an imposter even setting foot into the restaurant. Once you’re out of the car, he lets your hand go and circles around to the driver’s side.

“Don’t go joyriding now, I know you’ve never seen such a sweet ride.” Eddie pats the kid’s shoulder, and you swear even he cracks a smile. No one can resist the Munson charm, not even snobby frat boy waiters in the city. Eddie skips onto the curb and offers you his arm, which you lace your own through. “Shall we?”

“Why the hell not!” You attempt to keep your nerves hidden, subtly wiping your clammy palm against your thigh. Eddie opens the door, and you let go of him to enter, reluctant to let go of him even for a second. He ends up stuck holding the door for a pair of exiting old ladies, who gush with praise at “The sweet young man holding the door,” and “Handsome, too!” before finally reappearing back at your side at the host stand.

“Welcome to Harry and Izzy’s. Do you have a reservation?” Shit. There’s no way in hell he’d have been able to make a reservation for only a day–

“Munson, party of two?” He leans against the counter, as if to block the waiter’s view of you.

“I’m not seeing–” Something cuts him off, and you pretend not to see Eddie slip the host a fifty dollar bill. Before he can finish his sentence, the guy is changing his tune. “Oh, of course. Right this way, sir.” He snatches two menus from the table top and punches in a few things on his tablet screen before motioning you and Eddie to follow him. Eddie takes your arm again, and you stifle a snicker at the absurdity of your circumstances.

“Emily will be right with you.” He places the menus and silverware down, pours you each a glass of water, and speed walks away before someone can scold him for taking a bribe from two hoodlums.

When he’s out of earshot, you turn back to your date. “You are something else, Munson.”

He shrugs. “Psh, that’s nothin’. You should see me talk my way out of a speeding ticket.”

“At this rate, I’m sure I’ll bear witness to that sooner than later.” You nudge his foot with yours under the table.

“Oh, yeah? Plan on stickin’ around?”

“Well, I mean… I thought that was kinda obvious?”

“The day is young, you still have time to escape.” Though he has a joking lilt in his tone, there’s a sharpness to his words, like he believes them to be necessary. He has to give you the option, the out.

“I’ve got nothin’ else goin’ on.” You shrug, tiptoeing around his offer. “I’ll let you know if that changes. Don’t count on it, though.” The way he looks at you as you talk shakes you a little. “What’re you lookin’ at?” You nudge his foot with yours under the table. Before he can respond, you’re approached by a waitress you can only describe as classically beautiful.

“Welcome to Harry and Izzy’s, my name is Emily. I’ll be takin’ care of y’all this evenin’.” Even the twang in her voice sounds like a crystal bell. When you look at Eddie, though, he still hasn’t taken his eyes off of you. Trying to ignore the butterflies flapping in your gut, you shield your face with the menu. Emily then looks to Eddie, and he finally looks up at this stunning, radiant woman and doesn’t bat an eye. She, however, seems to notice how beautiful Eddie is, because how could you not?

He orders appetizers and drinks with ease, and Emily seems to write at a sloth’s pace, nodding her head without breaking eye contact, and you watch it all over the top edge of the menu.

“Alright, I’ll be right back with y’all’s drinks!” She has the audacity to brush Eddie on the shoulder as she walks away, her perfectly manicured fingers sliding across the fabric of his shirt. At this point, you’ve gnawed a hole in your tongue with how hard you’re biting it. There is no valid reason for the rage you feel for your waitress, you can’t even blame her.

“You alright over there?” Eddie brings you back to the present, and you meet his eyes again.

“Mhm, yeah!” You say, a little too enthusiastically.

Of course, he sees right through you. “What, her? No.” He shakes his head as he laughs, and you roll your eyes. “What?”

“Oh, please! She wants it, bad. You’re telling me you can’t see that?”

“I only have eyes for you, sweetheart.” He clasps his heart with both hands as he says it, drawing out each word, tone thick with intent. You gulp. “But enough about that. How are you?”

Still reeling from Eddie’s sudden confession, you stutter. “I– um. Hm. I mean,” He stifles a laugh with an exhale, and you join him. “Sorry, this is just so jarring. Kinda hard to do the first date small talk thing when I already know your deepest, darkest secrets.” Emily comes back, placing your drinks in front of you. You’ve chosen to go non alcoholic this time, a freshly squeezed lemonade instead, and Eddie’s ordered a coke.

“Appetizers will be right on out. Y’all need more time with the menu?” She only looks at Eddie, like you’re not even there. For some reason that seems to hurt worse than the fact that she’s hitting on your date.

“Yeah, just a bit. Thanks.” His tone is curt, and it surprises you. Emily doesn’t seem to pick up on that, though, and taps the top of Eddie’s hand this time before walking away. You take a sip of your lemonade and wish for vodka. “Okay, that’s, like, super uncomfortable.” Eddie scratches the back of his neck, averting his gaze to the silverware on the table.

“You want me to say something?” You offer, and immediately wish you hadn’t. It’s not that you can’t confront people. You’re incredible at it, in fact. What scares you is the idea of Eddie watching you do that to someone, even if she has it coming.

“I can’t ask you to do that. If you choose to, however, I will not stop you.”

“Noted.” Permission granted. “She’s coming back. Quick, hold my hand.” You put your hand out on the table, and he grabs it in his just as she returns with the three separate appetizers Eddie’s ordered without your knowledge. There’s an array of finger foods including bacon with root beer glaze, toasted ravioli, and the “world famous” shrimp cocktail. As she sets them down, you catch her staring at your entwined fingers, and her expression softens instantly. You want to laugh, but you want to give her the benefit of the doubt.

“Alright, what can I getcha?” She perks back up, looking first to you this time. Her smile doesn’t meet her eyes as she looks at you, it looks more like she’s gritting her teeth in pain. Ignoring the way her eyes bore into you, you rattle off your order in a single breath.

“And you, handsome?”

“Oh, you’re fuckin’ kidding me.” You blurt, and quickly slap your hand over your mouth to stifle a cackle as Eddie snorts. Emily’s eyes are wide with horror as she looks back at you.

“Pardon me, miss?”

“You see me, right? You know I’m here? You must, you just took my order.”

“I don’t understand–”

“Answer the question.”

“Yes, miss, I see you.”

“You see me holding this guy’s hand then?”

“Well, ‘course I do, I–”

“So what the hell are you doing?”

“My job, darlin’! Chattin’ y’all up, workin’ my charm. I don’t see a problem with that. Much easier to fake it when the customers are pretty as him, though.” She winks at you, and your vision tunnels.

“You just flirt with people that are here on dates?”

Emily shrugs. “Makes my day more entertainin’. You got a good one though. Usually they’ll break their necks to look my way.” She looks at Eddie again. “You must love her, huh? How long y’all been together?”

“Oh we’re not–” You and Eddie both rush to correct her, and she laughs. When you don’t join her, she looks between the two of you.

“Seriously? So, you’ve just been in love with her for– wait lemme guess!” She brings her finger up to her chin, tapping as she studies Eddie’s face for clues. “Decade, at least.” You pretend not to catch Eddie’s eyes widen slightly when she says it. “Oh brother, I really stepped in it this time. Sorry, darlin’.” She smiles apologetically at you. “How about a round on me?”

At that offer, Eddie looks at you again and you shrug. “Why the hell not!”

The food is incredible, and things have been sorted with your waitress. The tension has completely disappeared from your bones, save for Emily’s voice on loop in your head: You’ve been in love with her for a decade at least. That can’t be true, can it? The pair of you end up ordering a second round of drinks, and have fallen down a rabbit hole of a conversation.

“So you’re tellin’ me you’ve never seen the Lord of the Rings movies?”

You shake your head, taking the final sip of your cocktail. “Nope, not once. Chris tried getting me to watch at least the original with him, but I fell asleep. Think he was too offended to even bother after that.”

“So your Halloween costume?”

“Was more inspired by the general idea of medieval elves. And Legend of Zelda.”

“Are you, like, completely opposed to the idea of watching them?”

You are absolutely loving the way Eddie’s looking at you right now, like a puppy begging for a treat. “Not entirely. I’m sure you’d be able to convince me.”

“Careful, I am not above groveling.”

“I don’t think I’ll make you do that. This time.” You giggle, and his head falls to his shoulder, smile stretching wider, giving way for deep dimples. You find yourself having to catch your breath after looking at him for too long. “You busy tonight?”

He shakes his head eagerly. “Not even a little.”

“Okay, that settles it. Movie night at yours, maybe I can stay awake long enough this time!”

—

Eddie pays the check without letting you help.

“Oh, c’mon. This place is so expensive, let me at least pay for my food.”

“Absolutely not,” He signs his name on the receipt. “I chose this place on purpose. Had some money saved for a rainy day anyway, this gives me an excuse to splurge.” He drops another fifty in cash on the table as a tip.

“That tip is massive, Ed.”

He shrugs. “She’s the reason you held my hand, gotta thank her somehow.” He says it so casually, but you can feel the tips of your ears warm at his words. “C’mon, doll. I’ve got more planned for us.”

You leave the restaurant with your arms linked, waving to Emily with big smiles and she calls out, “You better hold on to her, baby! She may not know it yet, but she’s head over heels!” You can only smile, unable to stop your facial muscles from betraying you.

Eddie opens the van door for you when the valet brings it to the curb, and you climb in to retreat from the chilly weather. The sun isn’t quite setting yet, but the air has gained a crispness, and you realize you’ve been inside the restaurant for at least a few hours.

“You cold?”

“Little bit. Didn’t expect it to be so cold today.” You shiver, and he gives you a smirk.

“Here,” He starts peeling his jacket from his form, and drapes it over your shoulders. “It’ll look better on you anyway.”

“Such a gentleman all of a sudden?” You poke his bicep and he winces dramatically.

“I’m tryin’ my hardest. You’re makin’ it real hard to be… polite while you’re wearin’ the hell outta that dress, though.” He lowers his voice, though no one’s around to overhear. “Been thinkin’ of how nice you must look underneath it.” You’re usually rather quick on the banter, but you can’t think of a single clever retort. It’s embarrassing, really.

“Slow down there, killer. The night is still young.” You glance at the clock on his dash, blinking 3:45.

“You’re right, I still have plenty of time to seduce you. The Rings movies have a total run time of nine hours.”

“Sorry, NINE?!”

“And three minutes.” He smiles teasingly. “And that’s just the theatrical versions. The extended cuts add up to almost twelve hours.”

“And we’re gonna watch them all? Tonight?”

He shrugs. “We can see where the evening takes up. But first, it’s taking us to the grocery store. For snacks.”

“I’m gonna need a caffeinated beverage if you’re expecting me to watch this entire trilogy with you.”

“I’m sure that can be arranged.”

The automatic doors to the grocery store slide open, and you’re met with the icy cold air of the industrial refrigerators of the dairy aisle immediately to your left. You shrug Eddie’s jacket the rest of the way onto your body and wrap it tightly around your core, surrounding yourself with his scent. Meanwhile, Eddie makes a beeline for the candy aisle, not even bothering to grab a cart or even a hand basket for his goodies.

“You want popcorn too? I might have some at my place but I can grab more just in case.” He’s holding two different brands of microwavable popcorn in front of him, debating on them like he’s voting for president. “This one says extra salty, but this one says extra buttery. Why must we pin two queens against each other?”

You cackle, plucking the extra buttery popcorn out of his hand. “I prefer butter to salt.”

“Then butter it shall be.” He puts the second box back in its spot, and grabs a bag of M&Ms instead. “You want anything to snack on?” You scan the shelves, not necessarily searching for something specific, but you lock onto the brightly colored packaging and snag a bag of gummy bears. He nods in approval. “Good choice. Drinks?”

You nod, and follow him to the back of the store, where they keep the alcohol. He grabs a six pack of Red Stripe for himself, and you choose a four pack of hard seltzer. He scrunches his nose up at your choice.

“What?”

“You like that stuff?”

You shrug. “It’s light enough, doesn’t make me feel like shit afterwards. Tastes less like piss than that does.” Pointing at his beer, you wrinkle your own features in disgust.

“Well, I guess we’ll never have to worry about one of us drinking the other’s alcohol.” Your expression softens at the image of you and Eddie being in a relationship where you keep your drinks in the same fridge. “Okay! Anything else we need?”

“Not yet, but we are absolutely gonna need a few fillings after tonight.”

“Psh, bring it on.”

–

Eddie closes the door to his apartment, setting the bag of snacks on his coffee table before turning to you. “Did you, uh, wanna change? Not that you like, have to. But if you wanna get more comfortable I… have stuff.” His smooth persona seems to have crumbled in the privacy of his home, and he looks at you like you’re glowing: too bright to stare at for extended periods of time.

“Yeah, sure. That would be nice.” Finding yourself wanting to take advantage of his shyness, you follow him into his bedroom, where he motions to his dresser.

“Take anything you want.”

You nod, and yank the top drawer of t-shirts open, letting them spill over the sides of the drawer as you dig for a specific shirt you’re not even sure he still has.

“Aha!” Finally, you yank the fabric from its spot buried in the back, under a plethora of Metallica, Deftones, and Slipknot shirts. “I can’t believe you still have this thing.” Facing him, you hold the shirt up to show him. You had made the shirt for him in middle school, and he had made you a matching one: A collage of old pictures ironed on in a collage on the front of the shirt, with the words “FRIENDS 4EVER” written in sparkly fabric paint. “A relic of its time, really.”

“Jesus christ. Look at this thing.” Eddie yanks the shirt from you and examines it. “We made these for spirit week.”

“Yeah, you didn’t even wear it.” You cross your arms over your chest, pouting at him. “Killed me when you came to class in a hoodie.”

“I will have you know, I was wearing it. I just didn’t take my sweatshirt off. And I wore it to bed that night. And every night from then until, well.” He doesn’t finish, but you can piece it together.

“That doesn’t count!” You argue mostly just to break the tension. “Little me had no idea your grumpy, brooding ass was such a softy. I’m sure she would have killed to.”

“Well, consider my confession a peace offering. A way to make it up to little you.” He takes the shirt from your hands, unbuttoning his own with a quickness that sends heat through your body.

“No laughing.” You had no intention, the flex of his bare muscles far too distracting to do anything but stare. He slides the shirt, which is way too small for Eddie’s current frame, over his head and onto his body before opening his arms. “Tada!”

You know you’re supposed to laugh. Obviously, it’s funny, the shirt being way too small and covered top to bottom in silly pictures of you and him from the ages of five to eleven. But the humor seems to be lost in your throat, because all you can do is watch the way the tight sleeves of the t-shirt hug his arms, making them look bigger. You can see the outline of the tattoo on his ribcage through the shirt, the fabric stretched taut enough to become transluscent. This should not be turning you on.

He clears his throat, and you snap your eyes to his face. “You good?” He yanks his pants down and kicks them to the side, yanking on a pair of sweat pants slung way too low on his waist, leaving a gap between the waistband and the bottom of the shirt, revealing the sliver of skin you’d kill to put your mouth on.

“What? Oh, yeah. I’m great! Movie?” You’re sweating as you move back to his dresser to pick another shirt.

“You want this one?” Eddie moves to take the shirt off, but you’re not sure you can take seeing him bare chested again.

“No! No, that’s alright, you wear it. As an apology. I’ll wear… this one.” You pull a random baseball tee out and hold it to your chest. “That okay?”

Eddie’s pupils are blown wide when you meet them with your own.

“That’s my Hellfire shirt.”

“Oh, I can choose another–”

“No!” He says a little too loudly. “That one’s totally fine.” And he’s blushing. Ball’s back in your court, as easily as you lost it.

“Okay! You wanna unzip me?”

“Sorry, what now?”

“I can’t reach my zipper.” You point to it, on the back of your dress from your neck to your lower back. “Help me out.”

“Oh, right. Sure.” Eddie waits for you to turn your back, and you swear you can hear him exhale as he pinches the zipper between his fingers. He unzips your dress with gentle hands, careful not to linger on your skin too long. Once he’s reached your waist, he hesitates before unzipping it the rest of the way, to your lower back.

“Great, thanks!” You move to slide the garment off your shoulders.

“Whoa, whoa!” Eddie slaps a hand over his eyes.

“Oh, you’re such a baby. Not like it’s anything you haven’t seen before.” You let the dress fall to the ground, grabbing Eddie’s Hellfire shirt from where it lay on the bed in one hand as you unclasp your bra with the other. You’re certain you hear his breath hitch. “Something wrong?”

He answers too quickly. “No! I’m good! Great, even. Uh, excuse me a sec. Need to. Um. Bathroom.” And he turns on his toes, bolting out of the room and leaving you to snoop through his things.

Slipping his shirt over your head, you move to the top of his dresser, where he’s displayed a few figurines you’re positive he’d made for Dungeons and Dragons campaigns. There are plenty of scary, bloody monsters, and heroic looking knights clad in chain link armor, but one catches your attention. She was obviously painted with care, every detail on her tiny face visible and crisp. Her eyes are the same color as yours, and so is her hair. She’s wearing a dress similar to the one you’d worn on Halloween, and you swear you don’t remember seeing her the last time you were at Eddie’s apartment. Placing her carefully back on the dresser, you move to the desk, facing the window of his room, and cluttered with all sorts of shit: crumpled papers holding half written campaigns, drawings of his characters, and a massive Dungeons notebook with his name scrawled across the front. His shelf is full of vinyl records old and new, each one protected with a layer of plastic. You browse his collection until you find one you recognize, pulling it from its spot in the alphabetical order on the shelf. You carefully release the vinyl from its cover, and place it on the player with a feather light touch. Just as Eddie comes back, you’re dropping the needle on the first side.

“Shit. Good choice.” You turn to where he stands in the doorway, leaning against the frame with his arms crossed over his chest, staring at you like a lovesick puppy.

“Quit starin’, freak.” You throw the word out without any malice, and it bounces off of him with a chuckle.

“Can’t help it, y’just so pretty.” He tilts his head further to the side, eyes still unwavering. “Even cuter in my clothes, I gotta say.”

“What, my clothes aren’t cute enough for you?”

“Your clothes are perfect, doll. I just like how you look in mine. You could wear a garbage bag and still be the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”

“I’ll take note of that for our next date.” You try not to think about the implications of what you’ve said, but Eddie perks up at the sentiment.

–

Lord of the Rings is definitely not your favorite movie, but you’re willing to watch it if it means Eddie keeps looking at you like he is right now. You know he’s seen the films a million times, but he’s mesmerized watching you react to each scene, watching it play out through your lens instead of his.

At first, you had each claimed a corner of the couch, with Ethel asleep purring in the middle as you passed the bowls of candy and popcorn between each other. As the night progressed, you seemed to migrate closer to each other, eventually ending tangled together, horizontal across the length of the couch. By the end of the first movie, the world around you has gone dark, the sun long past setting as the credits roll. You’re more focused on the rise and fall of Eddie’s chest as he breathes.

“You still alive?” His voice is barely above a whisper, just in case you’ve dozed off in his arms.

“Shockingly so.” You mumble the response, senses hazy with his smell, his touch, his voice surrounding you, the thumping of his racing heart a soundtrack to the story on screen.

“Got it in ya for another?”

“Only if you can play it without moving. I’m comfy.” You nuzzle your head against his chest as if to prove your point.

Without making you get up, Eddie grabs the remote from the coffee table. A few clicks later, and the titles flash across the screen. With his free hand, Eddie traces down your back absentmindedly, fingers feather light as he taps your spinal cord along to the opening sequence. Feeling bold, you scoot your body up the length of his, positioning your head to reach the crook of his neck, where you rest your lips against the soft spot on his throat. You’re driving him crazy, and it’s emboldening you.

He chuckles under your touch. “Whatcha doin’?”

“Hm?” You peck kisses across his neck, losing focus on the movie, hypnotized by the softness of Eddie’s skin. “I’m not doin’ anything.”

He smells a little different tonight, more pine and less smoke. You melt with the sweetness in his voice as he talks to you, like honey in hot tea to soothe a sleepless night. “You’re gonna be the death of me, sweetheart.” His words sound like a blissful defeat. It’s not worth trying to convince you to watch the movie when you’re touching him like this, and it’s obvious he knows it, too.

“You can’t die on me now, I still have so much more of you I wanna kiss.”

“You cannot be sayin’ shit like that to me.” Voice shaking, Eddie speaks through clenched teeth. “Gonna make a damn fool of myself if you keep it up.”

“Yeah? How so?” You tease, feeling slightly evil, nipping at his earlobe. “You’ve been behaving pretty well so far.”

“‘M trying so hard to be a gentleman here.” He tenses each time your nose grazes his skin, breath ragged.

“Yeah, and I’m trying to break your concentration.” You peck a kiss on his jawline. “I think it’s working, too.”

“Alright. Fuck it. Jesus Christ.” The switch on Eddie’s caution is flipped instantly, he grabs you by the waist to pull you fully on top of him, completely horizontal. Giggles slip past your lips as he mouths at your neck, sucking and biting the skin there, claiming revenge for your teasing. With a careful hand, Eddie slips his way under your shirt, sliding calloused fingers up your back. “How d’you like it, hm?”

“Hm, almost as if this—,” you interrupt yourself with a sigh when he soothes a particularly harsh bite with a flat tongue. “was my plan the whole time.”

Underneath you, Eddie’s stopped his assault on your neck, his whole body now shaking with contagious laughter, loud and unabashed.

“What is so funny?”

“I’m a fuckin’ moron.” He untucks himself from your neck to look you in the eyes. He’s squished into the cushion to leave space between his nose and yours, and you poke at the skin under his chin as he tries not to laugh again.

“What makes you say that?” You’re too busy enjoying the way he’s holding you to see the way he’s looking at you, but you can feel it. His eyes are boring into yours with the weight of the entire world behind them. It’s freaking you out, honestly.

“I went way too hard on the first date, I’m never gonna be able to top this.” You try not to snort at the double entendre. “I can’t take you to fancy restaurants regularly. And you deserve to be treated like that.”

“Eddie,” You soften as you look at him finally, and you have to stop yourself from kissing the pout from his lips. “I don’t care about that shit, you have to know that.”

“Maybe not, but you should be treated like this all the time. I’m not the guy to do it for you.” The sudden sadness in his voice sends a stutter through your chest.

“You’re right. You are a moron.” You patronize, and his eyes widen, startled. “That’s not the part of tonight that made it special, Eds. I wouldn’t have cared if we sat on this couch and watched these ridiculous movies all day. It’s the fact that you planned something with me in mind. You cared enough to put something together, and you followed through. That’s what makes it a good date.” You plant a kiss on his nose, and before you can pull away, Eddie’s in motion. His free hand flies, whacking the popcorn bowl from the coffee table in the process, but doesn’t even stop to laugh and rests it on your cheek. He gently guides your face back to his, lips slotting easily into place against yours as his breath rattles his body.

“I can be your moron, if you like.” He says after breaking the kiss, and you take the opportunity to admire the way his skin has flushed, obvious even in the blue TV light.

“Ask me again in the morning. We’re both a little drunk.” Not really, but the idea of putting a label on it this late into the night makes it feel less serious, and more like sleep-induced insanity.

“Okay. I’ll set an alarm.” And he’s kissing you again with a new urgency, and you lose yourself in it. At some point it’s not enough to just be kissing him, so you slot yourself between him and the couch, pulling both of you onto your sides. In this new position, you’re able to more easily wrap yourself around him, sliding one arm underneath and the other around his waist. Taking the hint, Eddie slides his knee between your legs, notching deliciously against the thin layer of cloth covering your core. It takes everything in you not to grind against him like a bitch in heat.

“Use it.” You must be hearing things, you’re exhausted. “Get off. Use me. I wanna watch you.” He’s whispering these insane things between tender kisses, slow and lazy as the knot underneath your navel tightens. As if to daze you further, he slips his hand under your shirt again, resting firmly on your waist, guiding your hips to move against him. Your clit catches on the bone of his knee, clouding your ability to contain yourself. You kiss him again, hungrily as the lower half of your body moves longingly against his, fully out of your control.

And if that isn’t enough, Eddie moves to your throat again, marking it between whispers of sweet, dripping nothings.

“Doin’ so well, baby. You sound so pretty.” As you whimper each time your clit drags against him. His hand slides to your stomach, inching its way further up until his thumb rests just under your tit, halting as it waits for your permission.

You answer him with a broken “Please!” and he wastes no time grazing over your nipple, stiffening as he touches you, massaging it between his fingers as you moan desperately above him.

“Eddie, I’m gonna,” You don’t finish your sentence, he cuts you off, moving back to kiss your lips as you come undone, writhing against him.

“Shit. Fuck,” You huff the words between heavy breaths, coming back down only to realize the space between you and Eddie is much wetter than can be explained just by you. “Did you—?”

Eddie nods before you can finish your question. “Of course I did. That was fuckin’ hot.” Eddie’s out of breath too. “Now, as much as I’d like to stay here, I need to change my pants. Be right back.” He places a quick kiss to your forehead before stumbling clumsily onto his feet. You can only lay there, staring at his ceiling, replaying the last ten minutes in your head with a horribly cheesy smile on your face.

“I am so fucked!”

—

[ralfmaximus]

After entering your email address and zip code, AmericaPAC takes you to one of two pages: If you are located in a state that leans solidly Republican or Democrat, it simply provides a link to your state’s official voter registration portal. If you enter a zip code within a swing state such as Arizona or Georgia, however, you then encounter a form requesting personal data like full name, address, and phone number. Filling this out subsequently sends you to a page that simply reads, “Thank you for taking the first step to register to vote… Please complete the form below and we will help you complete your registration.” At the time of writing, there is no actual form underneath that message. Popular Science confirmed these results using dummy accounts for Pennsylvania (swing state) and Mississippi (solidly Republican).

Clearly, this is a direct violation of FEC rules (election interference) but they'll simply claim it's a website malfunction. Maybe they'll fix it, maybe they won't.

But even if it did do what it claims, there is ZERO reason to collect all that demographic data since it has nothing to do with checking voter registration. Don't give Elon your personal info.

Instead of AmericaPAC use the official usa.gov website to check your voter registration status.

[dansemacabre]

are you stuck trying to decode the book of bill but you don’t want the keys handed to you? i was in your shoes literally three days ago! i failed and looked up codes on reddit (because a good grade in book of bill is a normal thing to want and a possible thing to get) but now you don’t have to!! here are some BOOK OF BILL CODEBREAKING HINTS designed to kindly shove you in the right direction!

my credentials are: one summer cryptography class i took in high school, autism, weirdly good pattern recognition (probably because of the autism), and a desperate need to make things make sense. sorry in advance if any of this seems patronizing. hints below the page break!!

general tips:

- A and I will become your bestest friends. like 99 times out of 100 any single letter is a or i. try those out first

- the apostrophe will also become your bestest friend- especially x’x, which will almost always be i’m (except there’s one place in the book where it is not. don’t make my mistakes.)

- themysteryofgravityfalls.com is SO so helpful. for non-symbolic ciphers u can lowkey put in codes and button mash caesar and atbash. godsend. devilsend? idk someone sent it and it’s wonderful

- call every phone number, visit every website. they bought those domains for a reason! i think!

- any list of numbers 1-26 is a1z26. like that’s simply a truth

cipher specific hints now !!!

RUNES (characters taken from norse runes)

- there is a key for this one in the book! maybe u spotted it right away but i did not lol, so look for an instance of 26 rune-y characters!

- the rune code on the inside cover is a graffiti joke- translates to a common thing people write on walls or carve into books made out of brain matter ig

THERAPESE (found in the last few pages during bills court-ordered therapy)

- bill’s picture is labeled in this section, so those characters translate directly to “bill cipher” ! once you have those, you can apply them to other instances of the code and go from there

- the rest of the names of the… things around him on the inpatients page are puns, titles, and/or weird words. they might look wrong until you have Every Character- trust ur key! use the rest of the instances of this code to find the missing letters first, make sense of it and laugh at the clever little joke later

BROSCODE (only two instances, found in journal 3 lost pages)

- the name is a hint by itself- this is stanley and stanford related! both stans use it once somewhere in the book!

NEWBILL (the most common symbolic cipher in the book)

- if you have journal three, the characters are VERY similar to a code there- not the same though, so don’t try and use that key. but like journal three, this code will (almost) always be bill speaking.

- ok lowkey i think the best way to explain this is just to give you one answer. i cracked this by randomly guessing that the small writing by the galaxy drawing on the journal three page “a voice form the past” translates to “forget the past”. go from there my loves

- that being said. everything else from journal three uses the same characters, but a different code. haven’t cracked it yet. looking for advice tee bee haych. i’ll edit this once i find it out

- also: dipper uses this code in his section. that’s pretty helpful to get most of the rest of the characters!

now some page specific hints!:

silly straw page. Oh god

- damn that themysteryofgravityfallsdotcom sure is helpful! Anyway,

- the numbers code is Weird. but the number don’t equal letters. notice the spaces between number groups- pair the groups, try and add a dash somewhere within the first group and a colon somewhere within the second group. you’ll have to use your resources a little

- if that made zero sense: “uhvrxufhv” phdqv brxu idyrulwh ghhsob ohjdo wy vkrz ylhzlqj zhevlwh. ru brxu kxox dffrxqw

- sorry for the vagueness but i really don’t want to spoil this one- i got it spoiled but i think figuring it out on your own would be really rewarding and worth your Time

messages on your tv

- there are strange boxes on the bottom of the page. gonna be so honest don’t know how they mean anything at all to anyone but allegedly it’s a code! i’ll look into it. idk man

okay. i think that’s all i’ve got? please comment if u have questions for me or other folks on here or suggestions on how to sound less like a fucking nerd talking abt this shit. idk i love that people are set on cracking this book asap but i hope this helps ppl who prefer The Thrill Of The Chase and also like to feel smart and important and so very talented

[sunwalker-evermore]

☀️ OO1 - cyber themed npts

☀️ names 01, 404, ada, ajax, astra, bit, blink, byte, cersei, circuit, click, code, cyber, dex, dot, encrypt, exe, flash, futura, gizmo, glitch, hack, hotwire, lux, mecha, mechanism, metal, minus, neo, net, one, pearl, pixel, plus, python, robot, spark, tera, tilde, vesper, vi, web, xios, xyl, xylen, zap, zen, zero

☀️ pronouns .gif/.gifs, .jpg/.jpgs, alt/alts, by/byte, cd/cds, click/clicks, code/codes, compu/computer, cpu/cpus, cy/cyan, cy/cyber, elec/electric, file/files, gli/glitch, glow/glows, hack/hacks, img/imgs, key/keys, link/links, machine/machines, malware/malwares, metal/metals, neo/neos, num/number, pc/pcs, pix/pixel, screen/screens, tab/tabs, tech/techs, txt/txts, type/types, url/urls, web/website, wire/wires, zero/one, >/>self, #/#self, !/!self, ?/?self, +/+self, ae/aem, ce/cem, ky/kyr, ny/nym, vi/vir, zy/zyr, hz/hzm, shz/hzr, thzy/thzm, zt/zts, 💿/💿self, ⌨️/⌨️self

☀️ titles the cybernetic, the encrypted one, the one born of technology, the supercomputer, the virtual one, prn behind the screen, prn between the lines of code, prn from cyberspace, prn made of binary, prn of code, error 404: [name] not available

☀️ @id-pack-archive

[hotvintagepoll]

i found this blog by accident (i think the tumblr recommendations code or whatever figured out i have a polls addiction) and have had zero interest and experience in this topic but now. now i am so here. but i was wondering where i could go to watch movies with all these actors?? like i’m sure prime video or smthg might have a few classics hanging around but is there a service/website (of any legality) that specialises in vintage films and stuff? or is it really just physical media to get a lot of them? sry if this throws off your askbox, i didn’t know where else to ask! tyia <3

Hi!! I love this ask. Thanks for being here!

I don't know of any service that specializes in old movies, though HBO had a deal with TCM for a while that meant they had several classics on Max—I don't know if that's still a thing. In the meantime, though, the following websites all have "classic" channels that will be filled with great vintage movies to try:

Tubi—free streaming service that includes:

The Manchurian Candidate (Frank Sinatra, James Edwards)

The Philadelphia Story (James Stewart, Cary Grant)

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (Dick Van Dyke)

On The Town (Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra)

House on Haunted Hill (Vincent Price)

The Adventures of Robin Hood (Errol Flynn, Basil Rathbone)

A Streetcar Named Desire (Marlon Brando)

The Maltese Falcon (Humphrey Bogart)

Hoopla—free through many libraries:

The Court Jester (Danny Kaye, Basil Rathbone)

War and Peace (Jeremy Brett)

Barefoot in the Park (Robert Redford)

Cabin in the Sky (Rex Ingram)

Wings (Gary Cooper)

Kanopy—free through many libraries:

The General (Buster Keaton)

Flower Drum Song (James Shigeta)

Roman Holiday (Gregory Peck)

Seven Samurai (Toshiro Mifune)

His Girl Friday (Cary Grant)

Wuthering Heights (Laurence Olivier)

Sabrina (Humphrey Bogart)

Paris Blues (Sidney Poitier, Paul Newman)

Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (Conrad Veidt)

Youtube also has TONS of movies that have slipped through copyright or "accidentally" ended up there:

Charade (Cary Grant)

The Gay Divorcee (Fred Astaire)

Lying Lips (Carman Newsome, Robert Earl Jones, Oscar Micheaux)

Stormy Weather (Harold Nicholas)

Rebecca (Laurence Olivier)

The Cheat (Sessue Hayakawa)

The Lady Vanishes (Michael Redgrave)

Jungle Book (Sabu Dastagir)

To Sir, With Love (Sidney Poitier)

It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (Peter Falk)

What a Way to Go! (Dick Van Dyke, Gene Kelly, Paul Newman)

And of course there are methods of other legality if you want to go searching for titles by hand :)

I haven't seen all of the movies I list here—this is just a sampling of some famous ones, and a few of my secret faves—so be careful if you have trigger warnings and things. Hope you find some great movies!