Help I can`t spell

I am part time college student, full time nerd and am incapable of spelling most things

[wertfi-penguin]

Maybe the most damming thing about Nolans odyssey is i haven’t seen a single gifset from it

[geekyhistoriansunite]

[ismenes]

you know those studies showing that cursing helps with pain tolerance or whatever. that’s how i feel about making my weird little noises to get through my basic daily activities. sometimes you just have to go hggblaaaah for a minute so you can find the strength within yourself to get up or wash the dishes or send an email. mmmnneh. urgh. the torments are unending but you can always make some little sounds about it.

[professional-outsider]

From last month's patreon offerings. Neassa and Cassie go on a kiss journey 💋

[hxmosuperior]

it’s me boy it’s the oath of feanor speaking to you from inside your brain listen to me boy what you have left behind you should count now no loss; needless baggage on the road it has proved. let those that cursed your name, curse you still, and whine their way back to the cages of the valar! come with me and let the ships burn! we’ll have kinslaying times in… beleriand! doo doo doo doo ye-ea-ah! you need me boy the security of valinor is an illusio-

[sturionic]

"Learn the fundamentals first" seems like really sound universal advice, and as a former classical musician, I can vouch for it. You will have a more solid foundation for increasing complexity if you put in the time to study in a structured way. If you don't, you'll have a lot of shit to fix later.

As a former music teacher, I can also say that "learn the fundamentals first" is the death knell for a vast percentage of beginners, especially adult learners.

I've run into this with drawing several times, where some well-meaning artist has lectured me on needing to study anatomy properly or not use shortcuts like CSP brushes. And oh, believe me, I know. I know exactly how to learn an artistic discipline in a structured way. I just...don't want to!

The thing is, I'm not aiming to be a professional artist. I want to draw my gay little anime guys. I would undoubtedly improve at art much faster if I approached every gay little anime guy drawing as a study exercise. But I would also have quit drawing a decade ago if I couldn't just let myself enjoy drawing imperfect fucked-up little guys with whatever shortcuts I needed to body myself across the finish line.

With my adult piano students, my approach was always "What's your goal?" If their goal was to learn exactly one Elton John songbook to play at parties, then...that's what we did. We'd put tape on the keys to label the notes, and just fuckin go for it. Learning exactly one Elton John songbook is a good and noble musical goal, full stop.

Some of my students needed and enjoyed a more structured approach to learning; if they wanted to be able to play classical music, then yes, scales were going to have to enter the equation at some point. And yet others would learn the Elton John songbook, catch their white whale, and realize they wanted to explore more of the ocean. The scales were still there for them to learn!

Often the choice isn't between "learn art well" and "learn art imperfectly" - the choice is between "learn art imperfectly" and "don't do art at all." To which I say, learn imperfectly! Or, what the hell, don't 'learn' art. Just do, and enjoy the doing of it.

You have official permission from your local pretentious classical music snob: fuck the fundamentals. You can always unfuck them later (but only if you want to).

[stuckinapril]

In every relationship or friendship worth having, there will be inevitable moments of awkwardness, anger, miscommunication, frustration, or impatience. It’s how each person decides to navigate that that determines how much they care about one another. If you internalize those moments as an overarching statement that speaks louder than all the good times you had with this person, you are practically shooting yourself in the foot. If you decide to walk away at natural moments of friction, either that person didn’t matter all that much to you, or you do care but elect to self-sabotage all moments of connection because you fear abandonment or negative reactions from people you care about. Either way this is unsustainable and guarantees a lifetime of loneliness.

[lastoneout]

I do think the Hank Green AI thing makes it abundantly clear that if you have ADHD or any other mental illness and/or you are prone to addiction you need to avoid AI at all costs. This shit will rope you in, and if you have a mental illness that say, starves your brain of dopamine, you're gonna be extra susceptible to that. I won't use AI for a lot of reasons but one of the big ones is knowing how it would fuck with my ADHD and bipolar. Like yes, it's bad for the environment and giving money to rich scumbags and runs on plagarism, but even more than all that, it's straight up not safe at all and you really shouldn't use it if for no other reason than to protect yourself from whatever the fuck it might do to you.

[the-gnoblin]

I was addicted to AI for a good chunk of this last year. Now I know, addiction is a really strong word to throw around, but I don't know any other way to put it. It was c.ai (I know, I know, stupid) and I would be on it basically all the time. It started off as a joke and a curiosity like "oh look at this dumb chatbot, I wonder what I could get it to say." I thought I would just be on it for a week, that it would be a funny kick and then I would call it quits, but a week turned into a month, which turned into several, which turned into me missing shifts at work, skipping my classes at school, and generally exacerbating my first-year-at-college isolation and depression. It all got so bad that I ended up having to drop out of school and go back to live with my parents.

The worst part of it was that I couldn't tell anybody about it. My public persona is so vehemently against AI that I felt like if I told anybody, they would laugh at me or judge me. "Clam, why are you using AI?? Don't you know how bad it is??" I did and I do but I couldn't stop. It was too easy. A way to shut down my brain and not have to think too hard and to not be so alone.

On top of that, I didn't think that people would believe me if I said I was addicted to AI. My whole life I've been seen as the smart one, the logical one. Only idiots got addicted to AI. Was I even sure I had a problem? It's not like I was doing substances or anything. That spiral was especially tricky to break, but I've been seeing more and more people talk about this online and it has been very freeing.

I've finally quit and I haven't used any AI for anything for the last three months (? I think). I've definitely felt really strong urges to hop back on, particularly when I'm bored, but I'm proud of myself and my self control. I'm about to start a semester at a new school closer to home, I have a lot of wonderful friends who are able and willing to support me, and I feel optimistic for the future for the first time since last year.

All of this is to say that I can't help but sympathize with Hank Green. AI, any kind, is a slippery slope that starts with fine intentions but can get so so so quickly out of hand. It's tough and it's isolating. That being said, Hank Green the Brand is damaged in my eyes. I saw somebody else in the notes compare this to concepts brought up in Plagiarism and You(Tube) by Hbomberguy, where once you find out somebody is plagiarising (using AI) it can be hard to trust even the stuff that you did like. There's been credibility lost here, and it will take a while to get over that.

I hope that nobody else has to be stuck in an AI feedback loop, but if they are: your life isn't over. It's awful, I know, but reach out to the people around you, ask for help. There are ways out and it's brighter on the other side.

[gloamses]

with love. you have to fact check shit. yes you. you still have to fact check shit. a lot of people are great at fact checking stuff they don’t want to be true, but somehow are still absolute ass at fact checking stuff that’s rhetorically convenient to them. even people my age, who I KNOW grew up doing internet/bibliography literacy workshops, and being warned not to believe anything that isn’t reliably sourced, people who DO harp on fact checking conservative output or whatever, are still kneejerk sharing unsourced shit that is partially or wholly untrue or misleading, because it suits whatever narrative they’re pursuing in that moment, without even a “take this with a grain of salt”. fact check!!!!!! look at the sources!!!!! yes it’s a drag!!! do it!!!!!

[mapswithoutwyoming]

a reminder that "you should probably fact check that" is not an attack on your beliefs. if it's true then you have nothing to lose from fact checking it. and if it's false? you have everything to gain from fact checking it

[tennesseewillams]

girl WHAT are you talking about. sorry is “maintain” too confusing for you??? are you a little baby???

[tennesseewillams]

the only solace i can take in this ai environment is that it’s teaching everyone how to suck at writing so bad. and i don’t suck at writing and i can even use multisyllabic words. so maybe in a couple of years good writers will be heralded as the most valuable members of society and i will be able to make money

[tam--lin]

(7/30/26) The Red Cross just declared the second US blood crisis in its history.

Summer sees both a drop off in donations and, at least for our trauma center, a spike in traumas. Trauma centers across the US are in danger of running out of blood for our trauma patients TODAY, which is very scary but, unlike much of the other scary national news coming across our screens these days, is something you can help fix immediately and directly.

We need ASAP donations of blood, for people to spread the word, and for manager types to help facilitate others' donations. All blood types are needed, but universal donor blood (type O) is especially dire.

[tam--lin]

Useful notes and reminders from the reblogs:

Many things that previously made people ineligible have been rolled back. If you previously thought you were ineligible, please consider checking current guidelines!

While O- is the most dire need as it can be safely given to anyone in an emergency, all types are needed! Our emergent release blood is being pulled for patients who have a high chance of death if they don't get blood within the hour. Once they're stabilized, they can have their type confirmed and get blood of a specific, matching type released to them so that O- can go to the patients who need it most.

Canada is also in a blood shortage, not just the US. Even if you're not in the USA or Canada, maybe check locally, especially if it's summer where you are.

[cloudstation]

from a beanie baby catalogue I found

[urgetocreate]

Sergei Chudanov (Russian b.1987), The Sweetness of Doing Nothing, 2022, Oil on canvas

[africanmorning]

[docholligay]

BITCH THIS IS THE MOOD WE'RE GOING INTO THIS YEAR WITH

I'M GOING TO WRITE BADLY BECAUSE I HAVE FRIENDS WHO WRITE WELL AND I'M GOING TO PAINT BADLY BECAUSE I HAVE FRIENDS WHO ARE AMAZING ARTISTS AND I'M GOING TO EMBROIDER BADLY BECAUSE I HAVE FRIENDS THAT ARE AMAZING AT FIBER ART.

[mugiwara-lucy]

Something to keep in mind with 85 days until the midterms.

Republicans are EVIL

[seeingteacupsindragons]

”Ryland Grace’s life was valued less because he was single,” is such a weird take because it depends entirely on the idea that Eva Stratt might have hesitated if he weren’t.

Eva. Stratt. Eva Stratt is a bulldozer who takes out Antarctica and the Sahara and commanders an entire Chinese naval aircraft carrier.

Eva Stratt would have thrown his ass on that rocket if he had ten wives.

[seeingteacupsindragons]

[tiktoks-for-dead-pope]

[batmanisagatewaydrug]

hello fellow non-Black tumblr users. welcome to my saw trap. if you'd like to leave, please name one (1) Black woman author who is not Maya Angelou, Toni Morrison, bell hooks, Octavia Butler, or N.K. Jemisin. bonus points if she's published a book in the last five years.

[evegoldenwoods]

For my own future reference, and for anyone else who wants it, a list of authors mentioned in the notes. (I cannot promise this is comprehensive, there are a lot of reblogs and I might have missed some.) I've included a link for each author, where possible I've tried to find one that leads you to their books, prioritising own websites/publishers, falling back on wikipedia otherwise.

If you find any mistakes in the links let me know and I'll edit. This post will be in two parts, because I literally broke tumblr with how many authors there were. I think it's about a hundred and fifty.

Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé - speculative fiction

Marguerite Abouet - graphic novels

Elizabeth Acevedo - fiction, poetry

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie - fiction

Tomi Adeyemi - young adult fantasy

K Ancrum - speculative contemporary young adult

Lily Anderson - fiction

Ashley Antoinette - fiction

Ama Ata Aidoo - poetry, fiction, plays

Kemi Ashing Giwa - speculative fiction

Kalynn Bayron - young adult, fantasy

Malorie Blackman - childrens' books, young adult

Natasha Bowen - fantasy

Gwendolyn Brooks - poetry

Natasha Brown - fiction

NoViolet Bulawayo - fiction

Constance Burris - speculative fiction

CL Clark - fantasy, speculative fiction

Wahida Clark - urban fiction

Lucille Clifton - poetry, fiction

Alyssa Cole - romance, thrillers, graphic novels

Kamilah Cole - fiction

Claire Coleman - fiction, essays, poetry

Maryse Condé - fiction, non-fiction, plays

Emma Dabiri - non-fiction

Edwidge Danticat - fiction

Angela Davis - philosophy

Carolina Maria De Jesus - memoir

Hayley Dennings - fiction

Tracy Deonn - fiction

Nicky Drayden - speculative fiction

Tananarive Due - horror, comics

Camille Dungy - memoir, poetry

Esi Edugyan - fiction

Zetta Elliot - childrens' books, teen fiction, adult fiction

Bernardine Evaristo - fiction

Conceição Evaristo - fiction, non-fiction

Eve Ewing - poetry, fiction, non-fiction, comics

Radna Fabias - poetry

Namina Forna - young adult fantasy

Latoya Ruby Frazier - non-fiction

Stella Gaitano - fiction

Camryn Garrett - fiction, middle grade

Roxane Gay - fiction, non-fiction, comics

Nicole Glover - fantasy, speculative fiction

Nikki Giovanni - poetry, essays

Jewelle Gomez - fiction, plays

Annette Gordon-Reed - non-fiction (history)

Pumla Dineo Gqola - non-fiction

Deanna Grey - romance

Yaa Gyasi - fiction

Andrea Hairston - fiction

Lorraine Hansberry - plays

Saidiya Hartman - non-fiction, theory

Alexis Henderson - dark speculative fiction

Adriana Herrera - romance

Talia Hibbert - romance

bell hooks - fiction, non-fiction, poetry

Pauline Hopkins - fiction, non-fiction, plays

Nalo Hopkinson - speculative fiction

Jordan Ifueko - comics, fantasy, young adult

Samantha Irby - non-fiction

Justina Ireland - science fiction, fantasy, comics

Meka James - contemporary and erotic romance

Tiffany D Jackson - young adult

Beverly Jenkins - romance

Alaya Dawn Johnson - speculative fiction

Micaiah Johnson - science fiction

Mariame Kaba - non-fiction

Petals Kalulé - fiction, poetry [Petals is noted as using she/they, I'm not 100% sure of their gender identity and past a certain point it feels weird to investigate too much]

Mikki Kendall - fiction, non-fiction

Jamaica Kincaid - fiction, non-fiction

Zaire Krieger - poetry

Nella Larsen - fiction

Karmen Lee - romance

Kirsten R. Lee - young adult

Margot Lee Shetterly - non-fiction

Audre Lourde - poetry, non-fiction

[evegoldenwoods]

And here's part two:

Terry Macmillen - fiction

Robin Maynard - non-fiction

Amber Mcbride - poetry, young adult

Janet Mock - non-fiction, screenwriting

Brittney Moris - comics, young adult, fantasy

Bethany C Morrow - fiction, science fiction, young adult

Leila Mottley - fiction, poetry

Beatriz Nascimento - non-fiction

Leticia Nascimento - I think non-fiction primarily

Gloria Naylor - fiction

Zora Neale Hurston - fiction, non-fiction

Grace Nichols - poetry

Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu - fiction

Trifonia Melibea Obono - fiction

Shirlene Obuobi - comics, fiction

Nnendi Okorafor - science fiction

Melatu Uche Okorie - fiction

Chinelo Okparanta - fiction

Helen Oyeyemi - fiction

Nell Painter - non-fiction

Morgan Parker - poetry, non-fiction

Nikki Payne - romance

Koleka Putuma - plays, poetry

Claudia Rankine - poetry, plays, non-fiction

Sarah Raughley - young adult

Dia Reeves - fantasy, horror, science fiction

Kiley Reid - fiction

Stacy Reid - romance

Djamila Ribero - philosophy

Legacy Russell - fiction, non-fiction, poetry

Layla F. Saad - non-fiction

Sofia Samatar - fiction, non-fiction

Liselle Sambury - fantasy

Analeigh Sbrana - romance, fantasy

Namwali Serpell - fiction

Ntozake Shange - plays, poetry

Christina Sharpe - non-fiction

Nisi Shawl - fiction, alternate history

Jamison Shea - dark fantasy/horror

Patricia Smith - poet

Tracy K Smith - poet

Zadie Smith - fiction

Sister Souljah - fiction

Kiki Swinson - fiction

Mildred D Taylor - young adult/children's lit

Katerina Teaiwa - non-fiction

Teresia Teaiwa - poetry

Angie Thomas - young adult, middle grade

Leah Thomas - non-fiction

Spike Trotman - comics

Tloto Tsamaase - science fiction

Nikki Turner - urban fiction

Maxine Tynes - poetry

Ngozi Ukazu - comics

Shola von Reinhold - fiction

Wanjikũ wa Ngũgĩ - fiction

Jasmine Walls - graphic novels

Alice Walker - fiction, non-fiction, poetry

Jesmyn Ward - fiction

Monica West - fiction

Phyllis Wheatley-Peters - poetry

Rita Williams-Garcia - young adult, middle grade

Stephanie Williams - comics, non-fiction

Tia Williams - fiction, romance

Raquel Willis - non-fiction

Jamila Woods - poetry

Jacqueline Woodson - childrens' books, young adult, fiction, poetry

Alexis Wright - fiction, non-fiction

Zane - erotic fiction

Fiona Zedde - fiction

[bespectacledbunnys]

Attica Locke - Mystery/Thriller Fiction

Oyinkan Braithwaite - Fiction

Isabel Wilkerson - Non-fiction

[leebrontide]

Hell yeah!!!

[ahundredhundredheartbeats]

Hey non-Black people this is not an ally test! You don’t win an ally badge if you can name another author! It’s a reminder to seek out more diverse reading material AND a reminder to acknowledge the underrepresentation of Black women in the publishing industry!