stuff that makes me happy

this side-blog is literally anything that brings me joy or makes me laugh. My queue is always loaded. If I follow it'll come from my main blog: themissarcana.tumblr

[3liza]

i dont think KNow Your Meme gets enough credit for how seriously they archive information. i use them as a historical research source constantly. i personally have never found any false information on their site, im sure they make mistakes and i just havent personally seen any because i havent happened to be well-versed in the particular event where the error was made, but the format of their research is extremely citation-heavy. this has been especially true of how they link to tumblr posts that originated memes etc. no one else is keeping track of this information in this way

[did-you-know]

The oldest living tree ever found was a pine named “Prometheus.” It had been alive since before the Egyptian pyramids were built. Some guy cut it down in 1964. Source

[aclockworknick]

he was actually a forestry graduate student who was doing research on bristlecone pines (Pinus langaevea) and got his increment borer stuck in the tree. this tool costs almost $800, so he asked the forest service if he could cut down the tree to recover the tool. after cutting it down, it became apparent that the tree was actually the oldest living organism. ever. (around 8,000 years old). so, not just some asshole. the guy feels extremely guilty and has even broken down in tears during an interview about the accident

[wellshitcaitlin]

OH MY GOD SO LET ME TELL YOU A STORY

So after the grad student cut down the tree and discovered it was the oldest tree in the world he quit studying forestry and went to study salt flats (can’t cut down the oldest trees in the world on salt flats no siree none of that happening) and he was being interviewed about his research, but in the middle of the interview the reporter just stops and says “wait aren’t the guy that…”

And he just takes off running. Literally. Turns around and runs across the salt flats away from the interview and I feel so bad for him but I can’t help but start crying I’m laughing so hard about it imagine a guy high tailing it across salt flats away from a dude with a recorder

[thoughtsofadame]

its so different to know it was an accident and that NO ONE was aware until after. its not like this was one ignorant guy cutting down a fucking relic.

[chaumas-deactivated20240115]

I have terrible news about literally all human infrastructure

[certifieddragonenjoyer]

what's up, coming at you as one of those dirty-minded smut enjoying asexuals handing out water at the orgy or whatever the fuck people say. anyway, lately i get this kind of insidious sense that people think of sex-favorable aces as the "cool" aces. like "hey don't worry man, i'm asexual but you don't have to do anything to accommodate it." And of course it's a spectrum/umbrella, people can be asexual and sex favorable, i know that from experience. But i worry it's also seen as the *more palatable* version of asexuality.

So here's the reminder that you are not weird or prudish or childish or mean if you don't want people talking about sex around you. You are not morally reprehensible or puritan or fascist if sex makes you uncomfortable or upset. if someone tries to make you feel ashamed of that discomfort, or pushes your boundaries on purpose just because they can, they're the ones in the wrong for not respecting you. Never, ever compromise yourself for the sake of people who think you're less than for how you feel and who you are.

[peppermoths]

does anyone want to see a really good picture of my kitty cat

[peppermoths]

[cheddar-baby]

not a cat, first off

[cheddar-baby]

snale

[erzvolnes]

immortal words

[breadloco]

stopppp everyone absolutely needs to see this

[jewperduper]

So my dad was the assistant music editor on Tarzan, and idk if it was Bring Your Kid to Work Day or something but one day he did just that so there I was, this incredibly small 1st grader, in an absolutely cavernous recording studio with a full orchestra and a giant screen playing the scene they were taping the score for, and my little brain couldn't handle the big music and the big movie happening all at once so I started crying and it was the first time music ever brought me to tears and it was too much to take in so we stepped out of the studio and ran directly into Phil Collins, who looked to me very much like my dad, and in my delicate emotional state I became immediately convinced that my dad had been copied and nobody had told me so I started crying harder, and Phil Collins said something that was probably meant to be calming but it was with a British accent so I thought there was a copy of my dad in every country and I absolutely lost it at the notion that other kids would get to have my dad, and my dad ended up having to carry me back to the car.

So.

Sorry for crying very loudly at you Phil Collins, your work on Tarzan was so moving it triggered my first emotional breakdown.

[ihatenearlyeverything]

the only thing that could top that clip is that story

[mug-of-beans]

“The old magic persists thanks to it’s unfathomable power.”

No, the old magic persists because the new magic can’t run the legacy spells I need to do my job, and keeps trying to install spirits I don’t want or need onto my orb.

[aqueerkettleofish]

Look, if the new magic didn't have a personality construct that kept trying to tell me which spells to use, maybe I wouldn't still be using the old magic.

[wizard-council-bureaucrat]

Yes it had a deep blood cost, but at least it was a one time sacrifice and not this monthly bloodletting nonsense new age magic has

[wizard-archivist-official]

The old magic is robust enough to survive a decade of use and it's compatible with every wand, staff, scroll, and charm in our collection.

The new magic stops working after three days and every spell uses proprietary runes.

Our preferences, as an archiving institution, should be pretty clear.

[charlesoberonn]

You try to get guidance for the new magic and the king's sorcerers maybe will answer you in a few days with an unhelpful suggestion to buy the newest orb.

You need guidance for the old magic and a dozen retired middle-aged wizards will pop up to explain it to you rune by rune if necessary.

[slowlikehoney1996]

t shirt that says “i used to be worse”

[ao3legendarium]

how the fuck does one achieve these heights

[bwaah]

due to inflation the answer to life the universe and everything is now 48

[koiagain]

I guess you could say he’s ve… he’s a very h…

[ashstfu]

they should invent a day that does not exhaust me and suck the life out of me

[lovesicklobotomy]

[metal-autistic-coven]

Happy pride month to him

[goth-queen]

[icannotreadcursive]

I feel like there’s needs to be, like, handbook for authors who post on Ao3 for effective metatext.

By metatext I mean like tagging, summary, and authors notes (especially initial authors notes at the beginning of a fic). The means by which we communicate to our readers what they’re getting into.

Because we kind of all have to learn it by osmosis and there are conventions but nobody’s really taught them at the start, so there’s inconsistencies and misunderstandings or people just not knowing things through no fault of their own.

This ends up breeding frustration and confusion and in the worst cases resentment, hurt, and aggression.

I’m severely tempted to make such a handbook and get it circulating.

I think it would do fandom a lot of good.

[icannotreadcursive]

Good news, I’m writing it

[icannotreadcursive]

Update:

I’m at 9680 words, roughly 16 pages single spaced, with two or three sections to go.

[icannotreadcursive]

Update:

First draft done. 11,100 words, 29 pages with formatting

[icannotreadcursive]

The final draft is getting cleaned up right now. I’ll probably be figuring out how to post it tomorrow.

On which note, anybody know the best way to make a PDF available online?

[icannotreadcursive]

Okay it is done!

Go here for the PDF, or here to view the whole document as a tumblr post.

I recommend the PDF.

Related note: the post length limit on tumblr is apparently more than 13,000 words.

[mikkeneko]

Worth a read; even as a long-time fandom veteran I encountered things I didn’t know were in use, like the “& Related Fandoms” tags.

[loveridden1999]

[3000s]

sometimes older people get annoyed when i say "no problem" instead of "you're welcome" but the truth is it's literally not a problem

[3000s]

and sometimes you're not welcome