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I’m working on some beginner materials to put out…eventually. But I think my advice is pretty much summed up with: 

give thanks/offerings to your ancestors - even if you didn’t like the ones you knew, I promise you’d like someone back there; doesn’t have to be daily but regularly and water counts

give thanks/offerings to the land - I don’t care where you are or if you like where you are, you’re only there because the land allows it; doesn’t have to be daily but regularly and water counts

pick a divination tool and use it - ideally pick 2; it’s very fashionable to study things in witchblr but expertise rests on a solid foundation of use; tarot, geomancy, dice, bibliomancy, and scrying are all great

pick a guiding philosophy/source of wisdom - a lot of paganism consists of practices which do not in of themselves guide how you should move through the world or make decisions; can be a philosophy, motto, or other religion

these are to me is what I’d consider the bare minimum but here’s the bonus round:

on each planet’s day, give thanks/offer to that planet - moon on monday, mars on tuesday, mercury on wednesday, jupiter on thursday, venus on friday, saturn on saturday, sun on sunday - water counts but they do love frankincense

track the moon - a lot of people are big into phases, I prefer tracking what sign she’s in; each month she will conjunct with every planet in the sky so tracking her a good way to stay aware of those influences

learn a method of cleansing self + space - fav instructions here; physical cleansing should always be a part of it if at all possible; smoke (incense, bound herbs), sound (clapping, snapping, singing, ringing), and energetic scraping are all good options

learn a method of warding self + space - go beyond visualization; witches bottle, salting, symbols of protection above a door, creating or appeasing a guarding spirit are all good options

learn a basic method of petition or spellcasting - a simple way to start is asking the spirits you’ve already been working with like your ancestors and the land and giving them a little extra back

decide on a small tradition for holidays - as you add in holidays, pick one small tradition to try to replicate next year; eating apples at Mabon, leaving an extra plate out at Samhain, lighting a candle on the stove for Imbolc, etc

doing these sorts of things for a year will honestly get you a lot further than most in my experience. these are a solid foundation from which to build in basically whatever direction you want. earnest practice beats passive theorizing and consumption any day. 

Every time someone reblogs or likes this it gives me a little more strength to finish the zine I’m working on with this as a basis. 

Which is just to say thank you to everyone who has. 

First draft is done! Printed out kind of light - gotta fix that. Hoping to have it edited soon. Digital copy will go up on my patreon when that’s done. Physical copies will be in the shop once I’m able to reopen it.

"what does kim even see in harry" Imagine you've spent 43 years on this earth becoming a jaded, bitter man who has come to the conclusion that good things just don't happen to people like you. you lock yourself into your own body and mind in order to just be able to get by and to get the slightest bit of respect from the people around you. you're completely resigned to your own fate as an unhappy, lonely little man. and then the weirdest guy you've ever seen, a complete disaster of a human being parachutes in from the moon and looks at you with absolute wonder in his eyes and tells you with complete sincerity that he thinks you're legitimately the coolest person alive, and he wants to know everything about you, and instead of being repulsed or thrown off by what he finds he's endlessly fascinated and just wants to know more. And also he has huge biceps. Would you not lose your mind a little

if kim is wish fulfilment to harry (someone who doesn't judge you despite how low you've fallen and who will help you back up to your feet regardless of what you've done), harry is, in some ways, wish fulfilment to kim as well (for the reasons stated above). they fit. the green goes with the orange. You know how it is

A Knight in shining armor is a man whose metal has never been tested.

Or one who regularly cleans it…but yeah, “Black Knights” were called so because their armor was in terrible condition, and they were usually much more experienced, so they usually won tournaments.

@we-are-knight Am I correct? Anything to add?

I’m curious mainly where you got this concept from…

“Black Knights” need to be distinguished by context. I’m on my phone right now so I can’t link you all the sources I’d like to use, so please pardon me for that.

So, the concept of “knight in shining armour” comes from the idea of the knight-errant in medieval fiction, the sort of person who is on a quest, is all shiny and new, ready to test themselves. It also is a nod to the maintenance of equipment, or the wealth of a Knight; in the late medieval and Renaissance periods, well-off knights might have a suit of armour for warfare, a suit for tournaments, and a suit for formal occasions. These being used for different things, they were meant to be maintained well and show status and wealth.

So, where does the concept of a black Knight actually come from?

Surprisingly, most cases come from the idea of the tournament. Knights were meant to display who they were, “show their colours” (ie, heraldry), and show off their skills in combat. But if course you had some knights who didn’t want to show who they were, who they were fighting for, or which lady they favoured, etc. This sounds like a chivalric fantasy, and honestly, that’s what tournaments really became as time went by and the events became more formal.

Now, early “black Knights” , were those who did not wear dark or black armour, but in fact those who did not use their own heraldry, disguising themselves. Again, they may do this for various reasons, but the concept is they hide their identity. Occasionally, they might actually paint their shields black.

We also have the examples from the hundred years war where French and English knights painted their armour different colours: black for the French, Red for the English.

Some knights actually WOULD favour black armour or heraldry to the point they got called “black Knights”, and not as a derogative. The Polish Knight, Zawisza Czarny (pronounced “Zah-vu-shah Shar-ny”, approximately) become known for his feats of arms, and by his dark armour.

Linking back to the original quote, a Knight in shining armour could well be a black knight, as such. But more commonly, it meant he was either wealthy, or highly skilled at arms.

Or both. :P

I’ve seen enough period art to convince me that “shining armour” was often a lot darker than the chrome-plated image which the term suggests.

I’ve also long thought that the whole business of “knights in shining armour” wasn’t a medieval concept at all, certainly not the default one, but was a Regency / early Victorian fictional conceit from Romance poets and Sir Walter Scott’s historical fiction. (About 10 years ago an actual expert said more or less the same thing, leaving actual amateur me feeling rather smug…) :->

This illumination features armour that’s black or dark blue in colour, but with the carefully-delineated highlights of a shiny surface. There are many other like it.

Armour was coloured for both decorative and practical purposes; chemical blueing with acid produces a very dark, lustrous and effectively rust-resistant finish like the one in the medieval illustration. I once had an Arms & Armor rapier with that finish on the hilt: it looked like this…

Heat-blueing, which was more blue than black, was a popular treatment for Greenwich armour of the Elizabethan period, as was browning and russetting (all of which were and are used on firearms), processes which used heat, chemicals or controlled “good rust” to create colour and also prevent uncontrolled “bad rust”.

Here’s the helmet of Sir James Scudamore’s Greenwich harness, which was once blued and gilt.

The image on the left is how it looks now, after being thoroughly scrubbed with wire wool, sand or other abrasives at some stage in the 19th century to make  it “shining armour”. The image on the right is a CGI restoration of its original appearance, based on still-visible traces of colour in the grooves beside the gold strapwork.

Here’s the browned and gilt “garniture” (armour with extra bits for different styles of combat, like a life-size action figure) of George Clifford, Earl of Cumberland. I don’t think grinding this beauty down to bright metal would be an improvement…

Henry VIII’s tonlet (skirted) armour for foot combat at the Field of the Cloth of Gold now looks like this:

Originally it would have been shiny black or dark blue with gilt details and the engraved panels picked out in coloured paint or enamelling - red Tudor Roses, green leaves etc., but that wasn’t “shining armour”, so…

This detail shot shows the fine score-marks left after it was sanded “clean”, with dark pigmentation in the grooves as a memorial of how it once looked.

This Renaissance painting, “Portrait of Warrior with Squire”, shows black armour on the warrior and bare-metal armour on his squire, so it’s clear that armour in art wasn’t painted black simply because artists couldn’t properly represent burnished steel.

In this article, Thom Richardson, Keeper of Armour at the Tower of London and Royal Armouries in Leeds (the actual expert I mentioned at the beginning) comes straight out and calls Scott responsible for “shining armour” vandalism:

Scott can also be blamed, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, for creating or at least popularising that clunky, inaccurate term “chain-mail”. It cites the first appearance in 1822 (recent when talking about mail) when a character in “The Fortunes of Nigel” says:

Plate armour was also painted, either crudely…

…or with much more care (this style is actually called black-and-white armour); since the paint was oil-based, it also had a rust-proofing effect…

I have a notion that the more white there was on black-and-white armour, and thus the more work (by servants, of course!) needed to keep it looking good, may have been an indication of rank, status or success. Just a guess…

Armour left rough from the hammer - therefore cheaper than armour polished smooth, since every stage of the process had to be paid for - was also treated with hot oil in the same way cast-iron cookware is seasoned, again to prevent rust.

There were terms for bright-metal armour - “alwyte harness” and “white armour” - but the existence of such terms suggests to me that they arose from a need to describe an armour finish which needed a tiresome amount of maintenance to keep it that way. I’m betting that the last stage of a clean-and-polish was a good layer of grease, or even a beeswax sealant like the coatings used by museums today.

White armour may have been a demonstration of wealth or conspicuous consumption in the same way as black or white clothes: one needed servants constantly busy with polishing-cloths, the others needed really good colour-fast dye or lots of laundering, and all of those cost money.

One thing is certain: a knight in shining armour wasn’t the one who sweated to keep it shining. That’s what squires were for…

I am a simple man: when Peter speaks, I listen.

Also! Oiling and then fire blackening is a very common way for blacksmiths to finish steel. This gives that dark almost ruddy black thats more reminiscent of what you see in the illustrations.

Also shining armour is a really shitty idea because it can be spotted a mile away, ruining any attempt at ambushing and overall making it easier for the enemy to discern your armies movements. Contrary to popular belief medieval people weren’t stupid and were would almost certainly take this into account.

Ok but like. What the fuck is there to do on the internet anymore?

Idk when I was younger, you could just go and go and find exciting new websites full of whatever cool things you wanted to explore. An overabundance of ways to occupy your time online.

Now, it's just... Social media. That's it. Social media and news sites. And I'm tired of social media and I'm tired of the news.

Am I just like completely inept at finding new things or has the internet just fallen apart that much with the problems of SEO and web 3.0 turning everything into a same-site prison?

Long collection of resources under the cut.

ALSO you should consider browsing Virtual Pet List and seeing if there are any pet sites you might be interested in playing. There is a whole genre of browser games right under your nose

Another one that I just found recently is this, which is a whole collection of blogs, organized by topic!

Look guys the real internet IS STILL THERE I'm going to cry

badly built but full of love

More twin oodles

The World Of Becca Blake

Art by Dan Schkade

For future reference

reblog to save a life in the (hopefully distant) future

We’re not making out of the cyberpunk dystopia huh

You guys really need to understand that this is not a fucking dog

This is such a good example of why we need to be very self aware about our fiction.

Sentient robots that deserve rights and love are fictional. We made them up in stories.

Now, it's my favorite kind of fiction. I love it. But it's not real. It's a metaphor for oppressed human beings.

Sentient AI doesn't exist. There are corporations, and maybe even someday governments, who will want to convince you that it does, now and in the future.

Replikas don't care about you and that robot dog is a military weapon.

This is ironic 'cause military and police robot "dogs" (and the other robots they build) are built to do harm to oppressed people.

Yeah, the very people that are represented metaphorically in fiction by robots and androids.

Fiction is fun, and I love fictional robots with my whole heart. But I am not about to let it make me stupid about real life. :)

These things are not your friends. They are machines that will be used to hurt you and to hurt others. Do not fall for the propaganda that these things are just fun little friends! The above articles are the reality. Sorry.

I made this in reference to comic/game stuff but I’m glad to see this one’s going over well with all the writers

Bringing you more Bad Books and Immodest Pictures, your Impure Thoughts Stockpile was getting low.

this is basically the show right asdfjll

based on this post

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the feminine urge to have these girlies interact 😔💖

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Fellas, is it gay to get down on one knee, ask for another man's hand, and give him a ring as proof of your vow?

I laughed way too hard at this

in case anyone is looking through the notes trying to find the original artist it’s will mcphail !! feel free to check out his site but also here are some other things he made too !!

OOOHHH CLICK ON THAT LINK THIS GUY IS FUCKING GREAT

HOLY SHIT

this guy GETS IT

As above so below

The butch lesbian/trans man "funky printed button down" stereotype is true but you must understand that the men's section of so many clothing stores is a bleak and miserable place. Clothing manufacturers are simply convinced that no one who wears men's clothes wants anything besides the most boring outfits possible. Often stripes are the most exciting it gets. If you want to wear clothing designed for men but happen to like "color" and "joy" in your life then often the funky printed button down or the hawaiian shirt are simply your only options, especially off the clearance rack.

Also if the above is you, I highly recommend @morningwitchy and @carmico 🙏🩵🩵

not to be a Brand and plug myself here but since i was tagged: i, nonbinary, make funky button downs in fun patterns that many have described as gender affirming/euphoric :^) they come in unisex sizing xs-4XL, 100% cotton, with button on the hips for extra room! also, i have tees/pants/jackets to match.

i wanna add @mayakern is doing button ups now and has preorders going on! and @irrel has some fun dnd themed button ups!

aww thank you! glad to be in good company, i adore all the artists tagged :’)

i’ve only just started my first foray into button up territory, but i have preorders open until march 31st! sizes XS-6X, polyester spandex blend, with extra hidden closures in the bust region to prevent gaping

YOU hates terfs

rb if u hates terfs

behold my masterpiece