Distant Worlds

At long last! I have finished Distant Worlds by MooeyDooey, a hilarious OFMD fic where Stede thinks Ed’s lonely and appoints himself as Ed’s matchmaker, to predictable results. I cannot count the sheer number of times I laughed out loud. This was the first fic where I thought “I need to bind this” before I was even 25% of the way through.

The fic actually starts off with a beautifully dreamy poem that juxtaposes with the absolute hilarity of most of the fic, so I tried to go for a more whimsical theme. The author requested blues and golds, so color-shifting Duo Dragonfly bookcloth and the celestial-themed Lokta paper was a great fit. I don’t have photos, but I custom-dyed a bright teal thread for sewing the textblock.

Some of the neatest endbands I’ve ever done!!

Continuing with the ocean theme with Craft Consortium Ink Drop endpapers. I incorporated some scrolly text ornaments throughout the fic.

Because Stede is so very Extra™ throughout the story, the chapter headers and drop caps also needed to be Extra. I colored in all the dropcaps to match the overall teal theme. If I were going to do this again, I would probably try foiling the chapter headers as well, but this bind took me a year to do (!!!) so I think we’re good where we landed. :)

Gentle reminder that very little fandom labor is automated, because I think people forget that a lot.

That blog with a tagging system you love? A person curates those tags by hand.

That rec blog with a great organization scheme and pretty graphics? Someone designed and implemented that organization scheme and made those graphics.

That network that posts a cool variety of stuff? People track down all that variety and queue it by hand, and other people made all the individual pieces.

That post with umpteen links to helpful resources, and information about them? Someone gathered those links, researched the sources, wrote up the information about them.

That graphic about fandom statistics? Someone compiled those statistics, analyzed them, organized them, figured out a useful way to convey the information to others, and made the post.

That event that you think looks neat? Someone wrote the rules, created the blogs and Discords, designed the graphics, did their best to promo the event so it'd succeed.

None of this was done automatically. None of it just appears whole out of the internet ether.

I think everyone realizes that fic writing and fanart creation are work, and at least some folks have got it through their heads that gif creation and graphics and moodboards take effort, and meta is usually respected for the effort that goes into it, at least as far as I've seen, but I feel like a lot of people don't really get how much labor goes into curation, too.

If people are creating resources, curating content, organizing the creations of others, gathering information, and doing other fandom activities that aren't necessarily the direct action of creation, they're doing a lot of fandom labor, and it's often largely unrecognized.

Celebrate fan work!

To folks doing this kind of labor: I see you, and I thank you. You are the backbones of our fandoms and I love you.

reblog if you’re obsessed with imagery and symbolism and also are a homo

happy birthday dishonored!!! love u lots <3

You gotta write for funsies sometimes. Everything doesn’t have to be groundbreaking. Like. Who cares if it’s a little silly it is made out of love

women should lift weights because it prevents osteoporosis in old age and makes you a more capable person in everyday life please shut up about butts and waists and hourglasses i'm going to fucking kill

;___;♡♡♡♡

genuine question from someone who would rather chew their arm off than go to a public gym, and also doesnt have a lot of money: how do you safely get into strength training? are there youtube channels, apps (android), etc anyone recommends that makes it approachable and don't lean into diet culture / body shaming?

also the biggest thing that keeps me from working out is that I already have joint and spinal issues and moving the wrong way can fuck up a knee or a shoulder or my spine for days. I really don't want to injure myself, and have unwittingly done so before. resources that are extremely clear on exactly how to move and offer gentler / alternative ways to move for people with limited range are vital.

Okay, so this may not technically be strength training, but muscles are dumber than bricks and cannot tell the difference between your own bodyweight and actual weights.

So, may I recommend:

He runs a YouTube channel where he goes over how to work your way up to more complex exercises (for instance, his pull-ups videos start with using a door jamb and moving your weight back and forth) so it's good for easing yourself into things.

You also don't have to fork out for expensive weights and such if you don't want to/can't. Substitute with stuff you either already have at home or can get from the supermarket and build up the weight you can exercise with. 500 gram cans of butter beans then 750 gram bottles of pasta sauce. 1 litre drink bottle then your 1.5 litre milk bottle. 3 litre bulk-buy bottle of laundry detergent. Etc. One of my dogs weighs 13 kilos and I pick her up on the regular (to her delight). One weighs 16 kg and I pick him up too (to his consternation and mild disapproval). You don't have to fit out some fancy home gym before you can start strength training.

I second Hybrid Calisthenics, that's the program I use. It's run by one guy who's taken it upon himself to make exercising more accessible and it's completely free! Each exercise has different variations based on your ability and each variation is further divided into different levels of difficulty so you can work up to where you want to be. If you can't do a single push up for example then this program will help you work up to the point where you can, and if you're a master of push ups then there are more advanced body weight exercises you can tackle so you can keep moving forward in your training without stagnating. The routine offers a full body workout with absolutely no equipment required for the beginning levels. The only reason you would need to buy anything is if you want to work up to a full pull up, at which point you would need actual pull up rings

Here's his actual website which I feel is easier to navigate than the YouTube channel on its own and organizes things in a way that's easy to understand. He explains everything you need to know about the routine and each individual exercise has both a text description and a video tutorial

Let me also recommend this lady and her mom!

https://youtube.com/@yes2next

My mom is a sort of recovering orthorexia/diet culture victim? I suppose? And she really likes these work out routines b/c you get the version for seniors and the version for Healthy Young Exercize Freaks and imo - I just do the seniors one. Also the mom and the daughter have a light comedy back and forth going on that makes the videos entertaining!

If the WHOLE COUNTRY'S economy cannot work without the labor that UPS workers provide, than their labor is worth their demands and more.

No other conclusion can be rationally made from this information.

05.16 - Flora

He himself opened his mouth, in order that I may kiss more deeply.

Rupert of Deutz is a 12th-century German Benedictine monk and theologian who had a mystical homoerotic encounter with Jesus. He wrote, “I took hold of him [Christ] whom my soul loves. I held him. I embraced him. I kissed him lingeringly. I sensed how gratefully he accepted this gesture of love when, between kissing, he himself opened his mouth, in order that I kiss more deeply.” Rupert of Deutz died on March 4, 1129. May we all be uplifted by his memory!

On this day, 19 July 1936, in response to a right-wing coup by general Francisco Franco, workers across Spain took up arms and launched one of the most far-reaching social revolutions in history. The ensuing civil war pitted the working class against the Spanish capitalists, who were backed by Nazi Germany and fascist Italy. In the revolutionary areas, anarchist and socialist workers and peasants took over workplaces and land and began to run them collectively. Thousands of mostly working class people came from all over the world to aid the workers of Spain. One of them was British socialist author George Orwell, who described the scene in Barcelona: “It was the first time that I had ever been in a town where the working class was in the saddle. Practically every building of any size had been seized by the workers and was draped with red flags or with the red and black flag of the Anarchists; every wall was scrawled with the hammer and sickle and with the initials of the revolutionary parties… Every shop and café had an inscription saying that it had been collectivised… Waiters and shop-walkers looked you in the face and treated you as an equal. Servile and even ceremonial forms of speech had temporarily disappeared. Nobody said ‘Señor’ or ‘Don’ or even ‘Usted’”. Western democracies, including Britain and France, abandoned the republic and enforced a blockade on Spain which stopped the flow of aid and weapons to the anti-fascists. Meanwhile, Italy and Germany openly flouted the ban, and the US oil giant Texaco supplied the nationalists with oil and other supplies without even demanding payment, while stopping any supplies to the republic. Ultimately, after nearly three years of bitter and bloody warfare, the nationalists with their superior weaponry and equipment, were victorious. In podcast episodes 39-40, we give an overview of the events: https://workingclasshistory.com/2020/06/17/e39-the-spanish-civil-war-an-introduction/ Pictured: workers’ militia members https://www.facebook.com/workingclasshistory/photos/a.296224173896073/2038006529717820/?type=3

the spikey boy returneth

In your next life.

I am in love with Clara 😭

Transcript:

Clara trusts me enough to show me different parts of her body like her belly. show me her mouth and allow me to touch all of those teeth. —right? can you turn and show them all of your teeth? good job!— So we work really hard on being able to look over their entire bodies, and progress those behaviors to things like voluntary blood draws, ultrasounds, teeth brushing, and radiographing. —right? yeah!— But the biggest thing is we find what they find reenforcing and they show us that. and that includes hugs. —right?— And Clara has shown us that she really seems to enjoy tactile, so I give her this hand signal and she will show me what part of her body she wants rubbed. So, right now she wants a big noogie —right? good.— and sometimes what I will do is I’ll make her head a little pancake. or then I’ll rub her side and then she snuggles right in. —huh? huh! good girl thats very nice, good.— And then like I said, she would climb right on my lap and allow me to continue giving her tactile.

"What will you do without new shows" I haven't watched a mainstream television show as it released in years. I'm catching up on shows my parents liked in the 90s. I'm listening to fiction podcasts with 5 fans. I'm playing a video game the creators want you to pirate. I'm watching a minecraft roleplay. I may not know what I'm gonna do but I'm sure as hell not gonna be a fuckin scab babygirl.

That's a good point actually. It won't happen right away but the shows and movies are either going to stop or start to suck big time. There's SO MUCH already out there to watch and some of it is hard to know about unless you hear about it.

Plenty of older people on this site, and we have watched a LOT of tv. Do we want to start a game of 'if you like this, try that'?

This is an international site so finding all these shows may not be easy but at least you'll have something to look for.

Did you like Boardwalk Empire? Try Wiseguy! (1987-1990)

How about Star Trek Lower Decks? Give Red Dwarf a shot!

Think Ron Perlman is cool? Try Beauty & the Beast (1987-1990)

Beauty and the Beast is so good!!!

birds have truly mastered feathers like what do you Mean they can be shiny. how fucking cool is that

glossy ibis

european starling

greater blue eared starling

nicobar pigeon

purple martin

glowing puffleg

violet backed starling

+ special shoutout to rob garren and his purple poultry project. he is breeding his chickens to be very shiny and very purple

Fashav

My contribution to the Rare Pair Roundup event held by the @everybodylovesaloy server. These two deserved some appreciation. 🧡

Bonus:

Sneaking out of the Sun-King's private chambers undetected afterward can be tricky. Aldur keeps getting exposed to the love lives of his Captains against his will.

bath time

artists will post the most profound and technically impressive work that rewires your brain to make room for what you just witnessed and then caption it like "the ploinky" or something