A single candle flame joining the stars against the night
A loved ones voice calling your name after hours lost in an unfamiliar place
A hand taking yours, just when you’d given up on reaching out
Smiling, laughing again, when you thought you’d forgotten how
Knowing, despite everything, that humans are inherently good
It’s not simply blind optimism, or naivety. It’s choice. It’s taking the human race by the hand and saying, “I will love you, because I am you”. It’s facing a world dripping with cynicism and fashionable hopelessness and saying, “no, I will not give in”. It’s putting kindness out into the world, knowing you might not get it back, knowing you may be scorned for it, knowing it might not change anything, but with a certainty that kindness is what the world needs the most.
We know that a lot of what the Druids practiced is shrouded in mystery because they didn’t use written word. We know they’ve been around since at least the first century BC, but a lot of what we know now is thanks to outsiders, especially the Romans.
That being said, there are modern scholars who have done their due diligence in interpreting Ogham, and there are many theories on what the letters refer to. Of course, the overarching agreement is that each letter refers to a tree, but I think it is important to recognize that that is technically wrong.
According to scholars like McManus, only 8 of the letters actually refer specifically to trees.
While this is true, it is also important to realize that the kennings often allude to trees or possibly allude to them.
A different scholar, MacCoitir, has re-interpreted the old-irish kennings, specifically in reference to trees.
It would certainly be nice to say there is one definitive and correct way to interpret the kennings and what their correspondences are, but the cryptic nature of the Bríatharogam lists leave things somewhat open to interpretation. Unfortunately, the most common Ogham list is based on evaluations of translations of medieval Irish into modern English. This standard list has not been challenged for a long time, but that changed in 2003 with the publication of Niall MacCoitir’s work.
What MacCoitir has done is return to the early legal tracts such as Bretha Comaithchesa, cross-referencing it with the oldest extant versions of the Bríatharogaim Maic ind Óc, Bríatharogaim Con Culainn and Bríatharogaim Morainn mic Moín. He also points out that much of the terminology surrounding Ogham refers specifically to the parts of trees/bushes, which is further indication that the alphabet is almost definitely a tree alphabet.
The letters themselves are referred to as feda or fid in the singular, which means respectively ‘wood’ and ‘tree’. The consonants are also called táebomnai, which translates into ‘The side of a tree-trunk’. The druim (edge/ridge) on which the letters are written was originally vertical, like a tree trunk, with the horizontal druim coming into favour with the use of paper or vellum. The spines or lines that comprise the individual letters (on the druim) are referred to as flesc, which translates as twig. So from the above terminology it is quite clear that the alphabet has a connection with trees and bushes.
Even with this knowledge, the most common Ogham lists include plants - vine, ivy, heather, fern, reed, and honeysuckle. Reed and fern do not have either a trunk or twigs, so we can immediately dismiss them. Heather does not have a trunk, and whether you could define its low, fine growth as twigs remains something to be debated. The remaining plants are not trees. They are parasitic in as much as they need a host to climb up – either a wall or a tree in most cases.
On the basis that the plants mentioned above are not trees and do not possess the qualities associated with the Ogham terminology one is left with the task of looking for viable alternative interpretations, based on the source material – which is exactly what MacCoitir has done.
From here, I will give a simple list of what should be replaced, and what the replacement is. If you would like to read why, you can find the post below
It is not well known amongst those interested in Celtic Spirituality that the modern interpretation of the Irish Ogham alphabet is largely b
• Nin/Nuin - re-translated to ‘staple enjoyment or supply of the otherworld’, ‘boast of women’ and ‘boast of beauty’. The widely accepted tree for this is Ash, but MacCoitir replaces it with Cherry.
• Muin - re-translated to ‘Strongest in action’, ‘Most noble goodliness’, ‘Proverb of slaughter/rottenness’ and ‘Path of the voice’. Can also mean ‘neck’, ‘love’, ‘trick’ or possibly ‘thicket’. The widely accepted plant for this is Vine, but MacCoitir replaces it with Buckthorn.
• Gort - re-translates to ‘Sweetest grass’, Greenest pasture’, ‘Suitable place for cows’ and ‘Satisfaction of all’. The widely accepted plant for this is Ivy, but MacCoitir suggests Gorse.
• Onn - re-translates to ‘Wounder/helper of horses’, ‘Smoothest of Craftmanship.’ and ‘Sustenance of warriors’. The widely accepted plant for this is Ivy, but MacCoitir suggests Ash.
• Úr - re-translates to ‘In cold dwellings’, ‘Most devoted sharing’, ‘Propagation/dripping of plants’ and ‘Shroud of a lifeless one’. The widely accepted plant for this is heather, but MacCoitir suggests Elm.
Of the five supplementary letters, used for rendering Greek and Latin words, MacCoitir disagrees on two of the commonly accepted list.
• Uilen - retranslates to ‘elbow/angle’ and ‘most fragrant tree’. The widely accepted plant for this is honeysuckle, but MacCoitir suggest Juniper.
• Emancholl - re-translates to ‘twin of hazel’. The widely accepted tree for this is Beech, but MacCoitir suggests Hazel.
This list by no means is meant to replace the current meanings, but is meant to encourage a re-evaluation of the most commonly accepted Ogham list(s).
This post is just like those "How to Study like a Harvard Student!" Things but for ND people with executive dysfunction who can't even START studying.
Listen to Music, seriously it works so well. If you speak multiple languages, listen to music in the one you ARE NOT using. Listening to music w/o words is good for things like essays and reading, but with things like math, I 100% recommend listening to anything you really like. I can leave song reccs for no word songs if anyone wants them.
Put on a movie, TV show, or video you've already seen a million times. It works the same as the music, but you're more likely to be distracted. It's important that you've already seen it. Otherwise, you'll just end up watching TV.
Buy stationary that you LIKE and ENJOY USING. If you see pens that you REALLY LIKE but the other pens are cheaper, get the ones you actually like. You will use them more. You will *enjoy* using them.
Not so much related to executive dysfunction, but I HIGHLY recommend getting folders for your classes. Even if it's only for a few, if you pull it out at the beginning, you'll have all your stuff inside and a place where you can put your papers instead of just shoving it into your bag.
Let yourself stim out loud while you do homework. Seriously, it can help you remember things and help you stay focused.
Eat your favourite snacks or drink something you enjoy drinking. It makes doing things so much more bearable, plus free dopamine.
I can't really think of anything else, but feel free to add stuff in the comments.
Disclaimer for the masses, I am not a doctor. These are from my own personal experience as someone w audhd. :)
yeah I use a lot of these, they’re helpful. I’d like to add:
If you feel really overwhelmed by all the stuff you have to do, make a list of what needs done. It gets it out of the swirling anxiety vortex in your head and shows you what you actually have to do. I often find that I’ve made out what I have to do to be bigger than it is. If it’s actually a Lot, you can look at all the things and prioritize easier. Pick an important task, or an accomplishable one.
For me, starting a task is the hardest part. Set a timer for 45 minutes or so and say “I’m going to see what I can get done in this amount of time.” Try to actually work during that time, then set a timer to give yourself a 10-15 minute break. Get a little snack, scroll on your phone, whatever. Then work for 45 minutes again. Repeat until you’re done or out of time. I find that giving myself these parameters helps me to get more done that I would if I just sat down and told myself “I Have To Work.”
Prioritizing tasks on your to do list into groups of “things that I’m pretty sure I can get done today (important/time sensitive)” and “things to do if you have time and energy, but that could be pushed to another day” helps me a lot.
This post is just like those "How to Study like a Harvard Student!" Things but for ND people with executive dysfunction who can't even START studying.
Listen to Music, seriously it works so well. If you speak multiple languages, listen to music in the one you ARE NOT using. Listening to music w/o words is good for things like essays and reading, but with things like math, I 100% recommend listening to anything you really like. I can leave song reccs for no word songs if anyone wants them.
Put on a movie, TV show, or video you've already seen a million times. It works the same as the music, but you're more likely to be distracted. It's important that you've already seen it. Otherwise, you'll just end up watching TV.
Buy stationary that you LIKE and ENJOY USING. If you see pens that you REALLY LIKE but the other pens are cheaper, get the ones you actually like. You will use them more. You will *enjoy* using them.
Not so much related to executive dysfunction, but I HIGHLY recommend getting folders for your classes. Even if it's only for a few, if you pull it out at the beginning, you'll have all your stuff inside and a place where you can put your papers instead of just shoving it into your bag.
Let yourself stim out loud while you do homework. Seriously, it can help you remember things and help you stay focused.
Eat your favourite snacks or drink something you enjoy drinking. It makes doing things so much more bearable, plus free dopamine.
I can't really think of anything else, but feel free to add stuff in the comments.
Disclaimer for the masses, I am not a doctor. These are from my own personal experience as someone w audhd. :)
I just wanted to add that video game music is specifically composed to help the player focus on tasks. I can attest that listening to video game music while I study or do homework has been a serious lifesaver!
This post is just like those "How to Study like a Harvard Student!" Things but for ND people with executive dysfunction who can't even START studying.
Listen to Music, seriously it works so well. If you speak multiple languages, listen to music in the one you ARE NOT using. Listening to music w/o words is good for things like essays and reading, but with things like math, I 100% recommend listening to anything you really like. I can leave song reccs for no word songs if anyone wants them.
Put on a movie, TV show, or video you've already seen a million times. It works the same as the music, but you're more likely to be distracted. It's important that you've already seen it. Otherwise, you'll just end up watching TV.
Buy stationary that you LIKE and ENJOY USING. If you see pens that you REALLY LIKE but the other pens are cheaper, get the ones you actually like. You will use them more. You will *enjoy* using them.
Not so much related to executive dysfunction, but I HIGHLY recommend getting folders for your classes. Even if it's only for a few, if you pull it out at the beginning, you'll have all your stuff inside and a place where you can put your papers instead of just shoving it into your bag.
Let yourself stim out loud while you do homework. Seriously, it can help you remember things and help you stay focused.
Eat your favourite snacks or drink something you enjoy drinking. It makes doing things so much more bearable, plus free dopamine.
(Edit: I reblogged some of people's additional thoughts)
I can't really think of anything else, but feel free to add stuff in the comments.
Disclaimer for the masses, I am not a doctor. These are from my own personal experience as someone w audhd. :)
dear non-spanish speakers writing spiderverse fanfiction (or anything with spanglish),
in spanglish you don’t switch by word, you switch by phrase.
it’s not:
“[first part of the sentence in english], [second part of the sentence in english], mi amor.”
“[full english sentence], querida.”
it’s:
“[first part of the sentence in english], [segunda parte de la frase en español], mi amor.”
-
also miles is boricua, miguel is mexican. they have two different accents and use different vocabulary for certain words.
also miles is “nyourican” - a puerto rican native to new york - while his mom is directly from the island, so there are differences there, too, because his spanish is more influence by new york english. 
here’s some good references that aren’t google translate (which usually pulls from spain, a country that speaks vastly differently from latin america)
SpanishDict
WordReference
here have some random videos on different slang/spanish accents:
Puerto Rico
Mexico (1) (2)
-
in spanish most words are gendered, so most feminine words end in a and masculine/gender neutral words end in o. adding ito/ita makes something cuter, smaller and more affectionate.
spanish nicknames that aren’t “mi amor”
“querido/a” - darling
“cariño” - dear (always masculine regardless, of who its being said to)
“mi princesa/príncipe” - my prince/princess
“mi rey/reina” - my king/queen
“papí/mamí” - can be used in any way; romantic, sexual, familial for one’s parent or child, or just platonically
“tesoro” - treasure
also spanish is a language that uses adjectives as terms of affection both cute ones and ones that might sound insensitive in english
gordo (fat), flaco (skinny), negro (black), blanco (white), linda (pretty), bella (beautiful), morena (brown skin), etc.
and like most languages that are not english, spanish has multiple ways of saying i love you.
“te amo” - romantic
“te quiero” - familial, platonic (although there’s nothing wrong with using it romantically)
see also:
te adoro - i adore you
te deseo - i want you
te necesito - i need you
 and, of course, they can vary regionally too.
please use this because i have read a lot of really well written things that take me out of it because the use of spanglish is terrible. don’t just go on your presumptions that spanish/spanglish works in the same way that english does.
hey now that it’s disability pride month can you please remember to include people with Down syndrome and other chromosomal defects into your activism. they’re so often left behind. I literally never see anyone spreading Down syndrome awareness that isn’t close family of someone with Down syndrome. They exist and they’re living breathing humans who deserve just as much activism as every other disabled person
Hey i know a lot of fics and posts make Hobie out to be a cool chill laid back kinda guy but uhhh
Need i remind you homeboy also lived/lives under a fascist regime and police state.
That has an emotional effect!
Like he’s a black man who fights with cops head on routinely.
He probably knows police brutality more than anyone and that can fuck anyone up
You can’t tell me that doesn’t have an effect and i feel like that’s a character trait that’s REALLY overlooked in Hobie. Which sucks because his punk ideology and activism is one of the most interesting things about him YA’LL
Can we PLEASE acknowledge the trauma of the black guy whose literal job is to put fascists to sleep
Can we PLEASE talk about how living under a police state mentally effects Hobie Brown and how he’d carry that trauma PLEASE
He’s not just some punk cool chill big brother he’s also a black kid growing up under a police state who puts on a mask every night to fight for his right to exist as he is DO YOU REALIZE HOW POWERFUL THAT IS - IT’S THE REASON HE DOES EVERYTHING HE DOES
tumblr mobile has seadily become near unusable these past few updates. not just from a user experience perspective (which is important enough in itself) but also from an accessibility perspective.
examples include the new way the image viewer works (if you can call it "working"), the tumblr live button replacing the profile button, and that newly created blogs will be forced to have their main dashboard tab be the 'for you' page.
the demands of the protest would be along the lines of:
reverse the recent image viewer update
scrap the new users 'for you' page default setting
let us turn off tumblr live indefinitely
increase efforts against spam / porn bots
make reporting abuse and hate speech as easy as reporting as reporting spam
let us go nuts show nuts again... for real this time
commit to improving usability and accessibility, and listening to users!
(suggestions welcome!)
to protest against these usability issues, and inspired by the recent reddit blackout, i propose a 48 hour blackout (where you don't use tumblr at all). preferably of both mobile and web (since web has problems too) but mobile is the focus here.
I suggest the 48 hours between the 30th of June to the end of the 1st of July.
this marks the end of pride month (for the "queerest place on the internet") and the start of disability month (since accessibility is a massive issue here).
tumblr office is in San Francisco, USA, so the times and dates will be calculated using their time zone (PDT).
you can find out the times and dates for your timezone here.
i can't afford to blaze this post so please spread it around as much as possible! protests only work if significant numbers show up!
tumblr rejected the blaze campaigns for this post because they know it would hurt them. let's make this an indefinite blackout - it's the best way to get results.
Not to be that person but like I almost feel like “baby punks” are a bit too concerned about being a “good” or “perfect” punk which kind of defeats the purpose. There are no “right patches” for your jacket or pants, there are no “wrong patches” for your jacket or pants. You don’t have to listen to “punk music” or “dress punk” to be punk. You can listen and dress however you want. There are no rules when it comes to the fashion and music you listen to. No one’s going to stop you in the street and tell you you’re doing it wrong. If someone online calls you out for something it’s most likely because they’re being a bit gatekeepy. You’re not going to be labeled a “poser”. If someone disagree with you that’s a GOOD thing. We WANT to have different views and styles and tastes. We DON’T want to be a conglomeration. There are actual punk blogs on here whose views I DON’T share, but they’re just as punk as I am and neither of us are “more” or “less” punk or a poser. Don’t ask for permission, just do. Do your own thing. Make it your own. Asking for and taking inspiration is totally cool! But there’s really no wrong way that you’re going to go about it. Stop worrying about being a “poser” and just go and do it. The most harassment you’re probably going to get is weird looks and maybe a “faggot” called at you or someone trying to convert you to Jesus. Other punks aren’t going to stop and criticize you for doing it wrong. The most common remark you’re going to get is “nice jacket” or “nice pants” and then they’re going to move on. There is no right or wrong way, no hard-set rules, just go with whatever you want. And PLEASE, DO put fandom stuff on your pants and jackets! Put obscure references! Put things that other fans of things WILL get and WILL enjoy. Don’t force yourself to conform to a style of music or dress you don’t want. Just be you. The most punk thing is not giving a fuck about what other people think about you.
