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bbc merlin is a fun silly show that begs the question what if you were given a destiny you didn’t understand and you betrayed yourself time and time again in what you think is a selfless act of love that will serve a greater purpose, only for that to be the exact reason you fail and the undoing of the person you love most. and then the random filler episodes are like this witch is doing terrorism in camelot by sneaking magic mushroom bombs into the soup and merlin has to gaslight arthur into thinking he doesn’t like mushrooms or something idk

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what annoys me about explaining evolution to people who don’t think it’s real is that everyone’s idea of how it works seems to be from this

Whereas the reality is far more like

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I'm rewatching BBC Merlin for the hundredth time and just need to talk about The Witchfinder episode from season 2 and how this impacted Merlin's decision to keep his magic a secret.

By now, Merlin has been in Camelot long enough to see how Gaius is a trusted advisor to Uther. They've been friends for decades. Uther trusts Gaius as much as he is capable of trusting anyone.

And yet. And yet Uther STILL orders the execution of his most trusted advisor on the word of the Witchfinder.

To Uther, the years of service and trust mean nothing in the face of sorcery. Uther tried to apologize (ish) later, and rightfully so, Gaius refused to just brush the near execution aside.

Now think about Merlin. He has come to care about Arthur as a person at this point, not just part of his destiny, but they aren't as close as we know they will be later.

Merlin has been traumatized by seeing his father figure almost die because the king was blinded by his hatred of sorcery. Merlin knows it was almost his own execution here.

It's no wonder he didn't want to tell Arthur at this point. If Uther was ready to kill Gaius, we know canonically he was fine with Merlin dying.

Once Arthur became king, I believe Merlin still remembered this. We know what Merlin said: he didn't want to put Arthur in this position, to have to make the choice of life or death. But I believe there was still this deep seated fear that his years of service and council would never be enough to out weigh the death sentence of being a sorcerer in Camelot.

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GUYS GUYS GUYS. Look at this a try it!! It helps to remove ai from you Google (kinda)

I’ve tried it myself to say it works!!

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heart is full to the point of bursting. what is the cure for so much love

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i can handle one (1) Event™ per day. whether it be a phone call, an appointment, trip to the grocery store, play date with a friend, etc. only one, that's it. any more than that and i am Stressed

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huge shout out to this little kid for writing my favorite poem

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Love that thing where Shakespearean women disguise themselves as dudes.

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Women in Shakespeare

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life update: i gifted myself those earplugs

so this is going to sound like it builds up to an ad (it does not) but one of my major fears about one day becoming a parent was my sensitivity to sound. as someone who keeps the fan at a lower speed because it's too noisy at full speed during what has been declared a heatwave week in my district, i had serious reservations about my capacity to keep my shit together when my kid is crying or yelling or in any other way being noisy, as children invariably are.

and well. i saw this advert for earplugs which had a quiz to find out the right earplug for you. and it asked you, hey what is the kind of noise cancellation you're looking at. and the entire parenting thing was an option. like "i want to hear enough to know what's going on but while protecting my eardrums" or smth to that effect was an option.

and the sheer relief that washed through me. that. earplugs. reusable earplugs that don't noise cancel to the extent of cutting you off from the world exists. because honestly absolute quietness is not smth i can afford in my daily life. i have roads to cross lmao. but !! even though these earplugs are hella expensive, one day i will gift thwm to meself (cause i'm the only person other than my psychiatrist who recognizes that I'm autistic). i will save up and i will reduce my misery. one day.

and i say this as someone who routinely uses their earphones as earplugs by just not playing any music. it is...a good makeshift but it drains battery and sometimes i click it accidentally and it starts playing smth or opens up google assistant(god assistant is SUCH a nuisance) and also just. it cancels so much that i speak in a whisper and the people around me get exasperated because my sound processing is completely thrown off and yes.

i have spent the last hour staring longingly at earplugs on the internet and I can't say i have any regrets i want it rlly badly.

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— Ursula K. Le Guin, from “A Rant About ‘Technology’”

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Can I just say, uh, I’m pretty sure noticing you’re asexual is harder than noticing you’re any other sexual orientation, based on my personal experience and the numerous accounts I’ve heard from people of other sexualities. Like, I just read someone’s desciption of hitting puberty and, like, there’s nothing like that. There’s no sudden ‘boob’ moment as they described, no sudden ‘fuck, I’d fuck that’ moment that my friends have described, not sudden anything. You just, like, plod on through life as usual going ‘oooh, that’s pretty, I’d like that hair’ or ‘oooooh, they’re nice, I’d like to be close to them’ but there’s no like, ‘oh, someone would want to fuck that’ or ‘oh, that’s so damn sexy’, you know? You just- you don’t notice, you don’t realise everyone else has ‘had a moment’ but you haven’t, you just- keep going as you always have.

And then, much much later, you start to wonder why people are getting so caught up in drama for romance or sex, like, why bother? It’s not worth it, they’re not worth it, why are you doing stupid things for something that’s just so- and then you wonder if there’s something wrong with you, start mentally over compensating. Like ‘uh, okay, um, who should I date? Who can I stand to date? Who could I stand to fuck?’ like- it’s not, it’s not something you want, but you want to fit it, to be normal.

Sometimes you don’t even know that you’re doing it.

Sometimes you don’t even know asexual’s a thing.

I dunno, I guess, I just feel like, uh, people should understand more?

idk sorry thank you for listening to me

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horsethoughtbarn 5 name

if horses werent called horses what do you think they should be called

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💬 Just a Small Update, and a Big Thank You

Dear friends, kind hearts, and everyone who has stood with us,

When I first opened my heart to the world and shared our story, I never imagined the amount of love and solidarity we would receive. Thanks to your incredible support, we’ve now reached $12,837—a milestone that brings real light to some very dark days.

From the deepest corners of my heart, thank you.

💔 A Journey of Loss, but Also of Strength

As many of you know, I’ve lost 25 of my loved ones during this devastating war. That grief lives with me every single day. It’s in the silence that once held laughter, in the empty spaces where we once gathered as a family.

But through your help, I’ve also felt something else: hope. And that hope is priceless.

“21/Oct/2023 Before It Reached Us: The Day Our Neighbor’s House Was Destroyed” A quiet moment of fear, filmed just before everything changed.

“22/Oct/2023 The Morning After: Our Family Home in Ruins” This is what was left behind after the bombing of our home.

🌿 What Life Looks Like for Us Now

Despite everything, we’re still here. Still surviving. Still hoping.

But things have only gotten harder.

The war has returned, more brutal than before—and for over a month now, Gaza has been completely sealed off. No food is coming in. No medical supplies. No aid. No trade. No one is allowed to leave, and no one is allowed to enter.

We’re trapped.

🏚 We live with the fear of tomorrow, every single day. Airstrikes, drones, and the uncertainty of what might happen next. 👨‍👩‍👧 Our family is forever changed—we haven’t just lost people; we’ve lost pieces of ourselves. 📉 Basic needs go unmet—even clean water feels like a luxury now. Medicines, if they exist at all, are unreachable.

And yet…

Your support reminds us that we’re not forgotten. It reminds us that someone, somewhere, is still listening. That someone still cares. That we’re not completely alone in this.

Every message. Every share. Every dollar. It tells us: You’re walking this road with us. And that gives us the strength to keep going.

💖 What You Can Do

If you’ve already donated—thank you beyond words. If you can share our story again, it could reach someone who can help.

Even $5 means warmth, comfort, and a chance to breathe a little easier.

✨ Why It All Matters

This isn’t just about reaching a fundraising goal. It’s about surviving war with dignity. It’s about believing in tomorrow. It’s about making sure my daughter grows up knowing that the world did not look away.

Thank you for your kindness, patience, and belief in our humanity. You’ve helped me find my voice—and I will use it to keep hope alive.

🙏 From the Heart: A Quiet Apology

There’s something I need to say—something that’s been on my heart for some time.

When I first began sharing our story, I didn’t know what the right way was. I was scared, grieving, and trying to protect my family in any way I could. I reached out to many people, hoping someone, anyone, would see us. In that process, I now realize I may have overstepped, and I might have made some feel overwhelmed.

If that happened, I am truly sorry.

Please believe me when I say it was never out of disregard or pushiness. It came from a place of fear—fear of being forgotten, fear of not being able to keep my family safe, fear of watching everything I love slip away in silence.

I’m learning as I go. I’ve slowed down. I’m more mindful now, trying to share our journey in a way that feels respectful of the space and hearts of those listening.

If my words ever came at the wrong time, or in the wrong way, I hope you can understand where they came from—and I hope you can forgive me.

Thank you for seeing past my mistakes. Thank you for still being here. It means more than I can ever explain.

Vetted by @gazavetters ( #309 )

With love and endless gratitude, Mosab and family ♥️

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Nothing gives the same kind of random ego boost like managing to finally clean up your home and making it nice. Like ooh look at me, I'm living like people do, I made myself iced tea and I am eating my snack from a real plate. I got floors and shit.

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Anyway if nothing else matters then I hope people remember that Pope Francis used his last public address to call for a ceasefire in Gaza and call Israel a terrorist state:

"I continue to receive very serious and painful news from Gaza. Unarmed civilians are subjected to bombings and shootings. It is terrorism."

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bat at hornets nest maybe but "there is no ethical consumption under capitalism" refers to low income communities needing to choose between survival vs being eco friendly. not you continuing to watch the harry potter movies