⋆ Land of Storms and Stars ⋆

It's so hard to keep a low profile when you're always overhearing awed voices whisper, "It's that nerd with a blog."

[dittography-direwolf]

Totally normal for a legitimate for-profit company to refuse to reclaim or stop running their products even after they're no longer being paid to do so. I'm sure it's very normal to just keep running your service for free when your contract's been terminated. Spending money to continue running cameras that supposedly no one is looking at is definitely not an indicator they are just run by the federal government to spy on everyone and only a wacko conspiracy theorist would think so.

[palossssssand]

Early route bird line of the Alker region! Based on peacock sexual dimorphism and royalty. They have a pompous and haughty personality.

Name: Pavolet (pavo, genus name for peacock) Type: flying Species: chick pokemon Ability: Inner focus Hidden ability: Immunity Stats: HP- 40 Attack- 30 Defense- 30 Special Attack- 50 Special Defense- 40 Speed- 60 Base total- 250 Evolves into Pompreen at level 17

Name: Pompreen (pompous + preen) Type: flying Species: royal bird pokemon Ability: Inner focus Hidden ability: immunity Stats: HP- 70 Attack- 45 Defense- 30 Special Attack-75 Special Defense- 60 Speed- 80 Base total- 360

Evolves into Peacrown at level 34

Name: Peacrown (peacock + crown) Type: flying/fairy Species: regal peacock pokemon Ability: Dazzling/Subdue-Opponent's defense and special defense are lowered when this pokemon is sent out Hidden ability: Immunity Stats: HP- 70 Attack- 60 Defense- 55 Special Attack- 100 Special Defense- 85 Speed- 110 Base total- 480

Here are the old designs! Quite pleased with how the silhouettes were refined. I wish I would have been able to keep the male Peacrown’s tail feathers splayed, but I remember not quite being able to figure out a look that I liked. It was also kind of hard to make them look different from the Pidove line from generation 5 but I think the deep blues and teals do a good job. Pompreen’s facial plumage also evokes a masquerade mask, as if it were attending a costume party.

[lesbianelsas]

Sesame Street Memory: Lucy Liu | #ThisIsMyStreet

Lucy Liu shares a heartfelt memory of learning to speak english by watching Sesame Street and finding a family within the cast. Share your favorite Sesame Street memory on social media with #ThisIsMyStreet!

[capricorn-0mnikorn]

I was five years old when Sesame Street first aired in 1969. I remember coming home from kindergarten and watching the show in the afternoon, and then, the next day, kids talking about what Oscar had said over snack time (he was the first character for children I saw that was allowed to be grouchy and not be “bad”).

[apatosaurus]

Sesame Street celebrated a neighborhood that was multiracial and multicultural. When I was in preschool, that was my reality, too. Though I did and still do have a lot of cultural racism to unlearn, the extent to which I was able to learn how to be friends and neighbors with a diverse peer group was supported by Sesame Street. To be clear, this is why conservatives have wanted to destroy it from the beginning.

[iheartvelma]

The Mississippi State Commission for Educational Television briefly banned Sesame Street in 1970 with the flimsy excuse that Mississippians weren’t ready to see racially integrated neighborhoods. And that happened in a few other Southern states, including one where the owner of a local NBC affiliate chose to air it, for free, no ad revenue, because he thought people were ready for it — or needed to get comfortable with it. And these state ETV commissions eventually relented after getting a lot of negative publicity.

[tossawary]

Rewatching the original "The Little Mermaid" animated movie while working on something else... I can't quite recall at the moment (early into it atm) if this movie ever establishes Eric as the heir of the throne of his kingdom.

I think it'd be really funny if Eric was actually a younger brother. So, like, maybe he's a duke, actually, but he still gets the title of Prince. Travels the sea a lot, unlike a more landlocked heir. Hanging out at this summer seaside palace while the rest of the family is elsewhere for some reason.

Like, imagine Eric's parents and older brother and maybe sister-in-law and niblings getting that letter at the end of this movie. Nearly drowned. Miraculously washed ashore. Fell in love with a mysterious voice and then a mute girl. Got enchanted by a shape-shifting sea witch and nearly married her. Killed the sea witch after she turned into a giant. Married the aforementioned girl who turned out to be the beloved youngest daughter of the mythical King Triton instead and have now established a strong alliance with the merpeople. Wild summer! Wish you were here!

[ruffboi-mags]

(via @owl-librarian)

[mockva]

[wuxiaphoenix]

Ooo, useful!

[thefaultinourchickennuggets]

Hi im a librarian amd that's not now this works. If a library allows you to have a digital card and not live in the area, you are NOT taking away resources from other people, that's not how anything works. Please keep doing it!!! The more people that use our services, the more money we can get from funding sources!!! Please use us!!! We are not utilized enough, by people in or out of our community. Thanks.

[stuckinapril]

Very true

[starcrier]

and you know what? i am REALLY sick of these ads that are openly mocking people for being concerned about the products they’re selling.

Amazon’s super bowl ad where the Alexa mocks Chris Hemsworth for being worried about giving spy software control over his entire life. Waymo’s ad with the intro “the robots are coming!” mocking people who are rightfully extremely concerned about sharing the road with, or riding in, self-driving cars.

i don’t know, it’s just genuinely insane to me. “Oh, you have legitimate concerns about our shitty product? sounds like you’re just lame!!!” like what kind of “quiet part out loud” marketing is that?

[starcrier]

so this post blew the hell up — which is i’m sure a sign that things are very normal and fine and none of us are remotely frustrated by this kind of thing — but it’s given me time to think about how to articulate the SECOND thing that pisses me off about these ads, which is that they don’t even bother to address the concerns.

i feel like any normal ad would go, for example, “i know you’ve heard that this shaving cream might give you cancer. but it doesn’t! and also it smells nice!”

but THESE ads mock you, and then go “anyway, your concerns are invalid because our self-driving cars that run over children at crosswalks have heated seats!”

it reminds me, in a much less comical way, of that scene from Emperors New Groove when the angel and devil on Kronk’s shoulders are having a debate, and the devil goes “don’t listen to that guy, because look what i can do” and then does a handstand. Only these are real-life commercials. That they expect you to take seriously.

[thefairytaler]

My wife pointed out to me the other day that apparently most people were literally only taught how to say Sorry and not how to Apologize or even that they are different things so here.

If all you ever do is step 1, not only did you not apologize, but people will rightfully stop believing you and start getting pissed or hurt.

[bondboy8]

[hellenhighwater]

I forgot to eat dinner so I'm having 11 pm corn on the cob. This counts as a meal

... It's possible that I really need to do some grocery shopping

[hellenhighwater]

Okay for those of you living in pitiful ignorance, take a raw ear of corn with the husk on and cut all the way around the base (as pictured: above the point where the husk meets the cob, so that the entire husk is severed but still wrapped around the corn. Do not cut through the cob.) Then, with the husk still on, microwave it for 5-7 minutes. It'll basically steam it inside the husk. Remove from microwave --it will be hot, so use a mitt or a towel--and firmly pull the top of the husk/silk, which should come off easily in one piece, unsheathing a flawless corn on the cob. If it doesn't, you probably need to cut a little higher around the base, so all the leaves are severed. No picking off silk!

[hellenhighwater]

For the nonbelievers (and for me, a second corn)

[hellenhighwater]

This website works so well

[imviotrash]

"Kill them with kindness" Nah, fuck that, CRICKET BAT 🏏 🏏🏏🏏*SMACK* 🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏

[the-haiku-bot]

“Kill them with kindness”

Nah, fuck that, CRICKET BAT 🏏 🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*

🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏*SMACK*🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏🏏

Beep boop! I look for accidental haiku posts. Sometimes I mess up.

[bulbekuggeleh]

This opens up a lot of possibilities for what a haiku can be

[toastbutteregg]

[lurkinglurkerwholurks]

I've been thinking a lot about statements that can double as a blessing or a curse, depending. I think we're all familiar with May you live in interesting times, a statement that sounds like a blessing but over the last half decade has landed like a curse.

May you have the day you deserve is another, dependent upon the quality of the hearer to determine what kind of day, exactly, they deserve.

Right now, I've been mulling over May you live long enough to understand the consequences of your actions.

Like the one right above, it can be a blessing. It does sound nice. May you live long. And there's hope there, in the idea that the things you do, how to choose to interact with the world and with others, might have an outsized net benefit that ripples out in paths you couldn't predict.

Of course, it may not be a blessing at all.

I can think of few consequences more horrifying than acting in haste, in anger, in selfishness, oblivious to the potential consequences cascading out from your choices like cracks in the earth... only to live long enough for your actions to rebound. For the solid ground beneath your feet to open up and drop you into a bottomless pit.

For instance, working yourself up into such a state that you tell another human being to go kill themselves. Over a fic. Or anything else.

It's ironic because the difficulty of articulating the bone-deep horror inherent in being outside of an interaction and seeing the radiating paths of consequences is lost on the person putting that wish out into the universe, at least right now. There is no way to adequately express the seriousness of such a statement, no way to truly impart gravity into the thick skull of a person so determined to float above their deliberate devastation, buoyed by their own self-righteous fury.

I do like to hope for growth in people. For change and maturity to rewrite toxic patterns of behavior. I want to see people who plant mines to grow into planting seeds.

So. To you.

May you live long enough to understand the consequences of your actions.

[lurkinglurkerwholurks]

hey people harassing my friends this is for you 💙 may your conscience find you before I do

[its-jesster]

The Fool: Beginnings, Freedom, Innocence

[seashellronan]

guys i’m so sorry to say this but exercising and indulging in hobbies rather than scrolling on your phone for 200 hours actually does improve your mood and overall mental health, this has deeply upset me more than anyone

[what-even-is-thiss]

Yeah I saw the lovecraftian horrors and didn’t succumb to madness. What- no I’m not a cultist, James. For Christ’s sake. What you’re forgetting my friend is that HP Lovecraft wasn’t a flexible man. His brain simply wasn’t stretchy enough to take it all in. I however, have short term memory issues. Flexibility is the name of the game when you can’t remember if you ate lunch or not. What’s the size of the universe? Big. You knew that already, James. Come on now. You don’t need to witness the terrifying ocean at the base of the entirety of reality itself to know that. Pass the brandy.

[what-even-is-thiss]

You must imagine the character I’ve created here wearing a suit and a monocle, by the way.

[thesilvertophat]

During a Eldritch Horrors based tabletop RPG my character was a young dandy who wasn't particularly interested in all this monster mystery stuff but his father (my brother's character) was a researcher who WAS very into it, so Bertie went along to make sure the old man didn't get into too much trouble. It was your average Eldritch Horrors RPG in that you don't make your characters with the expectation that they will survive for very long, both the game itself and the genre are very intent on turning your characters inside out, driving them insane, and blowing them up in no particular order.

The thing was, everything in this nightmare hellscape just seemed to keep coming up Bertie because the man was too stupid to realize what genre he was in. Every time he had to roll for a sanity check whenever he saw something crazy, the dice treated him so well that he just... didn't get it. Gee that sure is a funny costume. There's something wrong with that dog. These mean guys in stupid hats are trying to hurt that young lady, we can't have that! I had not built him this way, his intelligence stats weren't even that bad, random chance just made it so that this man was living a scooby doo adventure while everyone else was being consumed by The Horrors. The final straw was at the end of an adventure when Bertie escaped from the cultist headquarters by breaking out through the mansion's front window on a motorcycle with a hot rescued sacrificial maiden clinging to his back and leading the cultists on a merry chase through the hedge maze while the other adventurers escaped. His sanity score? HIGHER than when the adventure had begun. He had found the whole experience quite thrilling and felt very good about life in general! Bertie retired from adventuring to marry the maiden he rescued and care for his aging father and delight and bemuse his friends at the gentleman's club with stories of his 'wacky' adventures. I didn't want to risk breaking his ridiculous lucky streak.