There is a severe lack of trans masc representation in romance books
Im always on the hunt for a spicy or feel good romance book that has includes a trans masc or nonbinary mc! But i also don’t want to read about teenagers ya know? Im an adult i wanna read about adults falling in love. But also they are gay and trans! But also the whole plot isnt about transness or transphobia! Feels like there just isn’t enough of these kinds of books and it sucks!
I like Rules for Ghosting with a caveat that I'll put behind a cut.
The main character suffers from such severe dysphoria that he can't stand to be with his body enough to enjoy taking a bath unless the lights are off, but his dysphoria magically stops bothering him the first time he has PIV sex with his cis boyfriend. This is described as the first time he hasn't thought about his dysphoria at all during sex. This PIV sex is also the only on-screen sex that we are shown, despite the fact that the pair had a great deal of sex before this scene.
The rest of the book is quite enjoyable, but I found that bundle of tropes really pulled me out of the book. I had to walk away from it for a while. If these things won't bother you, it's an interesting book with a Jewish MC where his Jewishness is truly relevant.
being a podcaster that constantly goes viral when people clip you getting passionate about something. going on a rant about how that basketball guy was a fucking idiot for cheating on your favourite rapper. another clip of you saying ingenium’s new suit just looks sooooo good on him. did anyone know he was that fine?
always talking about pop culture, the fun parts about hero news (usually just outfits and faces) and little tidbits about your life.
you end up on bakugou’s 10 minute instagram scroll. everything you said about that stupid loser basketball player is true. you cuss well, eloquent with it. he doesn’t agree with what you say about ingenium’s new suit. well, it’s only recently got better because he got in contact with bakugou’s suit designer. he thinks you’re cute when you go into detail about why the suits better. bakugou still disagrees though.
but what makes bakugou take a step further is when he gets a video of you, not crying but angry. you’re speaking into a mic from your bed, or maybe it’s a set? but a bed, nevertheless, white sheets pulled up under your chin with this low lamp lighting.
“also i think i’m swearing off dating. it was going perfect with one guy and then he breaks it off because he doesn’t want his business ending up on the podcast…. i haven’t even said anything about him!” you whine, “and now it just looks like i’m proving his point because i’m talking about it but i wouldn’t have if we were still dating.”
the text on the video screams, “YN SINGLE?!”
bakugou taps on your instagram. loads of clips from your podcast pops up. he finds the next video, the one after the last.
“well dms are open if any fine men are interested. when i say fine i mean fine. you also have to be able to keep up with me, handle a little joke,” you laugh.
and bakugou thinks about it for three days. watches more videos of you talking, your goofy opinions, your educated opinions, your real opinions. scrolls through your personal instagram too.
so he does it. he dms you on your instagram because he deems himself a fine man, he can handle a little joke and well, he likes you. a lot.
you’re funny and smart. articulate yourself well. very beautiful. hobbies on your instagram, full group of friends. well travelled and a homebody and social and he’s eager to know more.
@ dynamight: Are applications still open?
it’s fun, bakugou thinks. a good slide into your dms.
but you don’t reply for a week. he thinks he’s been completely ignored. clearly not interested in him and defo not your type. even though you’re both verified so you’ve definitely got the notification. bakugou takes it all on the chin. doesn’t mention it to anybody because it’s a little embarrassing. maybe it’s been buried from all the other dms you’ve received from men.
until he gets a video on his timeline. then the same video sent to him from three different friends.
the words are captioned loud and bold on the video. straight to the point and pure clickbait. well is it clickbait if it’s true? bakugou chokes on his spit, turning up the volume in his work bathroom.
“DYNAMIGHT IN THE DMS?”
“now guys… walk with me here. if you’re dynamight, thee bakugou katsuki, one of the sexiest men in the world, PLEASE don’t watch this clip. i can’t believe you’ve even seen clips of my pod. i swear this isn’t even me!” you ramble into your microphone, tucked up with your knees to your chest for a more casual episode. “okay guys, now that he’s gone, i’ve got to tell you… after last episode when i said can fine men send me dms, why the fuck did dynamight send me one? i was so shocked by it i still haven’t replied. i’ve avoided talking about him here because i do not want to be on that man’s radar. he’s way too gorgeous for me to comprehend.”
you giggle to yourself, “but he dmed me… something about are applications open? the boyfriend ones. now i can’t reply because ive just told everybody but there’s no way i pulled him.”
bakugou watches it leaning against the sink, three times. his smile gets bigger every second till he’s full on grinning at his phone.
you’re joking a little, entertainment for the podcast because you know you’re just as fine as him. though you don’t think your worlds would ever cross?
he decides to make another move.
@ dynamight: I think you’re gorgeous too
commented underneath the video.
an onslaught of likes and comments commence. mostly your fans giving a whole load of keyboard smashes and “yn is going to go insane”.
then he puts his phone down, washes up his hands and checks his appearance in the mirror. wipes his nose and what not.
but he gets lured to his phone again, picking it up and opening instagram to find you’ve replied to his comment.
@ ynpod: @ dynamight i swear i don’t share all my business online
@ dynamight : @ ynpod So applications are still open?
My personal experience with being asked this question and then given that line, is that the neurotypical person expected you to feel shame.
I have some slightly less anecdotal evidence to back up this anecdotal experience. I took substitute teacher training once, and we were told that the best thing to do with middle schoolers "acting up," was to shame them, to figure out how to draw attention to them and this negative attention in front of their peers would shame them into good behaviour, or at least silence. I raised my hand, having already distinguished myself as the "weirdo" of the group, and said, "Is this the reason I spent a lot of time in the principal's office for truthfully, loudly, and clearly answering questions like, 'would you care to share your thoughts with the class?'" And was told yes, that was a perfect example, but I was the rare case where it backfires.
Since then, I have responded to that type of question with, "Do you want an explanation, or was your intent simply to indicate that I need to feel inferior, right now?" and it does tend to turn the tables a little bit.
Problem with that response is that if it is a person who has any power over you, that is going to escalate the conflict. And they are going to use that power against you.
I mean, the outcome that they're probably expecting is for you to act embarrassed for a few seconds, stop whatever you had been doing, and then they can move on with their lesson while you are quiet. Annoying for the victim, but self-contained.
If you openly call them out like this, they'll lose their perceived authority unless they throw the book at you (or at least they likely believe that those are the stakes).
"Just submit to anyone being mean to you; your dignity, the truth, and morality don't matter--just give in to ANY amount of peer pressure."
How about no because I deserve basic human dignity, the truth is important, and I'm not putting up with immoral, rude, and sadistic people who get their jollies off humiliating other people.
People like y'all have a spine made of water and are like 75% of why everything is in the state it's in.
Get some fucking moral fiber that doesn't consist of "roll over and let anyone to anything to you all the time; you'll be rewarded for this after you die".
Not to be picky about it, but there already IS a tax on us childfree folk: it's called paying taxes for schools and stuff that benefits other people's children without having children of their own. AND I THINK THAT'S GREAT. Because we live in a society where supporting each other is mutually fucking beneficial!
I completely agree with you. I'd also like to point out that people with kids do get tax breaks, in the form of claiming their children as dependents on their taxes and getting the accompanying deductions.
So, this person isn't looking to make things "fair". They want to punish people who don't have kids and try to force childfree people to have kids. (They would also penalize people who might want kids but can't have any.)
Teach your children to respect animals and the world around them. Teach them that nature isn’t their toy and that their actions have consequences. Teach them compassion for other beings and creatures.
A lot of people on this post are focusing on pets, which is fair but not what I intended. Any decent pet owner would teach their children how to respect their pets, their dogs and cats and the like, but pretty much everyone neglects lessons about other animals and nature in general.
Teach your kids that:
nests are important and that they need to be left untouched and undisturbed
they should NEVER take an animal that they find outside and that if they find an injured animal, they should give it space and find an adult to help
wild animals in general need a wide berth and that ANY animal can be dangerous if it feels threatened
wild animals are not pets under any circumstances
it’s kinder and very easy to catch and release bugs outside instead of killing them
all bugs are important, even spiders and wasps and other scary ones
everything in nature has a job in general, and everything has a role to fill
something being scary or creepy does not mean it deserves to die
deer leave their fawns in places all the time and then come back later. they’re never far from their babies. stop trying to “save” the fawns since all you’re doing is ensure their mom can’t find them or won’t come back
Yes! Very important! Deer and birds were the ones I was thinking of in regards to not taking animals.
How to know if a fawn you see is abandoned/needs help:
it’s wandering around on its own in dangerous areas with no doe in sight
it’s visibly injured or sick
it’s curled up like usual but there’s a dead doe somewhere in the area
and/or it’s curled up like usual but, after a distant observation period, no doe returns to the area to take care of it or check on it
Even if it fits one of those categories, you should always call a local wildlife rescue or similar organization, explain the situation, and follow whatever they tell you to do. NEVER touch or just take a fawn you find because that is pretty much an absolute guarantee that it will die. Fawns struggle a lot in captivity and many of them die from malnutrition or can’t be released because they’ve become tamed, so taking in a fawn for rehabilitation is ALWAYS a last resort.
More info:
As you head out to find your adventure this Memorial Day weekend, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) reminds Wisconsinites
1- @Bluewmist on Twitter / 2- Roly Poly is Taken on Twitter / 3- About Time (2012) by Richard Curtis, image from Mita Park on Unsplash / 4- Sherri Turner on Twitter / 5- Cold Solace by Anna Belle Kaufman / 6- The Anthropocene Reviewed by John Green
i had a 4 hour drive today so i put on the revenge of the sith audiobook and the part where palpatine tells anakin to kill dooku came on right around the time that i saw a cybertruck and for a brief and beautiful moment when he said "do it" i had the urge to ram my honda full on into that shitty ass car
everyone who says that anakin’s fall in that movie was too sudden has never been so angry at an Elon dickrider trying to cut in front of you at a traffic standstill while a droning, pleasant British voice tells you that murder is okay and necessary. I’m sorry guys but I would have folded too
