d20 and art class
Kugrash (but rat size) after a Sophie Lee makeover.
Quote: Brennan Lee Mulligan, offhandedly in an IGTV stream, 20 May 2020

titsay
"I'm Dorothy Gale from Kansas"
Claire Keane
DEAR READER
KIROKAZE

❣ Chile in a Photography ❣
almost home
let's talk about Bridgerton tea, my ask is open
Not today Justin
Misplaced Lens Cap
Keni
$LAYYYTER
One Nice Bug Per Day
Cosimo Galluzzi
I'd rather be in outer space 🛸

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will byers stan first human second
dirt enthusiast

@theartofmadeline

Love Begins

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@d20and
d20 and art class
Kugrash (but rat size) after a Sophie Lee makeover.
Quote: Brennan Lee Mulligan, offhandedly in an IGTV stream, 20 May 2020
d20 and European history
Church and crown have gone to war in Dimension 20′s A Crown of Candy as Pontifex Brassica, Heirophant Rex of the Bulbian Church, has outlawed our favorite royal family. (Catch up on dropout.tv!)
It isn’t surprising to learn that church and crown often clashed in Medieval Europe, as powerful men attempted to control extensive lands and large populations of tax payers. One of the most heated struggles was between Pope Gregory VII & Henry IV, King of Germany, Italy & Burgundy. Gregory excommunicated Henry not once but twice!
d20 and music appreciation
In the cacophonous lull between a live premier of a new episode and the livestream of the Adventuring Party talk-back, Dropout’s Discord servers shimmer with activity from fans. Theories, complaints, compliments, laments, and cheers all flash up as members express their feelings to the people who will understand them best.
In the midst of this enthusiastic yammering after episode 7, Amy (aka CthulhuMermaid) gave us an assignment: listen to the second movement of Beethoven’s 7th Symphony and compare it to the episode. At the time, I was annoyed and researching medieval laws of succession, but I made a note to complete her task. What an enjoyable bit of homework it turned out to be!
Those of you who read music may see the solemn tone in the opening A minor chord and the simple pace of the strings playing the symphony’s counter-theme. For anyone like me who doesn’t read music, a lot of Beethoven’s genius is inaccessible (as I understand it), but all of us can listen to the Vienna Philharmonic and immediately grasp the melancholy of the piece. Especially here at the beginning, the steady but relentless rhythm underpinned by sadness aligns with the footfalls of the escaping survivors.
But this is an allegretto, not a requiem, so Beethoven brings in the theme, and the music swells during 8 minutes of moving, victorious life. The sadness is woven into melody and counter-melody as the somber beginning gives way to action, rising energy and quiet reflection, with the persistent rhythm almost always present as the heartbeat of the movement. This is a song of struggle and its aftermath: victory at a cost.
How excellent of CthulhuMermaid (Amy) to share her insight with us!
d20 and anthroponymy
Names are cool. “Jawbone” is an excellent name for someone who can rip out a throat with his bite and heal a shattered heart with his words. “Misty Moore” is poetic, fanciful, and melodious—much like the grande dame herself. One of our newer heroes, “Sir Theobald Gumbar,” has an extremely good name, and I suspect Brian Murphy chose it precisely. I have found three things that make it satisfying, and since I notice and value names, I enjoy learning where they are from, why they were chosen, and what they mean. It turns out there is an entire branch of social science that I did not know existed until this week: anthroponymy.
Anthroponymy is the study of human names. Linguists, anthropologists, historians, genealogists, and other experts all lend their talents to uncovering the origins and implications of what we choose to call ourselves, from casual nicknames to broad reaching national identities. Anthroponymy can tell us more about who has lived in an area, how a human group organizes themselves, or what a certain people value most.
Cursed with the curiosity.
The world is my warren, And I shall delve.
It beckons me to deep mysteries; it calls me from soundless caverns; it quickens my soul.
It leads me in curving paths for curiosity’s sake.
d20 and elegant scars
spoilers for A Crown of Candy
(c) tsugi.de
Kintsugi (金継ぎ, "golden joinery"), also known as kintsukuroi (金繕い, "golden repair")
Hunter #namegate (They/Them) posted beautiful art of Lapin on Twitter recently that seems to include the ancient Japanese art of repairing ceramics using lacquer (Urushi) and pure gold. Considering Zac’s heritage and Lapin’s fate, including this small detail is especially fitting.
Kintsugi is not simply a repair using gold dust in glue or gold paint over a noticeable crack, which might not be obvious if you’ve only seen it as a fun decor option or craft project. Unfortunately, a lot of items labeled kintsugi are quick fixes that achieve the appearance but not the strength or safety of the true craft.
The traditional and authentic repair process uses expensive materials and labor-intensive techniques. First, the lacquer comes from a unique natural source: the sap from the Japanese lacquer tree (Urushi) that is difficult to work with, in part because most people are allergic to it. After all, the lacquer tree has several cousins that you may have (unfortunately) met: poison ivy, poison oak, and poison sumac all contain urushiol oil.
Once you have the proper materials, the process is extremely meticulous. Thin layers of lacquer are applied and allow to cure, one at a time over many cycles. When hardened, the lacquer is extremely durable and won’t break down from acids or heat. Adding fine gold powder in the final layers creates a food-safe finish since this precious metal is non-reactive and easy to clean.
Awareness of kintsugi outside of Japan has blossomed over the last decade or so, for many reasons.* First, as an art form, it creates beautiful and unique pieces which command attention in a perfected and over-produced world. Most items in our world are identical and impersonal, so a bit of sweet disorder can bewitch us.**
As people have moved away from disposable lifestyles into more sustained ways of living, we have also rediscovered old values in repairing items instead of buying new, cheap ones. Traditionally, kintsugi-repaired items were intended to return to their former service; although many likely become art pieces today, they are still restored to work as before.
Finally, more of us are living out: demanding respect for who we are, honest about our imperfections, and unashamed of our scars. An ancient practice that values broken items and takes the necessary time and effort to heal them? You can bet that’s going to be our cup of tea.
* that is, for reasons other than Death Cab for Cutie’s 2015 album Kintsugi
** thanks, Herrick
d20 and agricultural geography
While the Dairy Islands of Calorum may be home to pirates and political intrigue in Dimension 20 A Crown of Candy, the real world islands of Jersey & Guernsey in the English Channel are home to the best dairy cattle in the world. Channel Island milk is creamy golden, rich, & very nutritious! It’s a true treasure!
d20 and food science: Pop Rocks!
King Amethar of House Rocks is a great pop to his licorice twin daughters. His Majesty explodes in rage if his family is threatened, but real-life Pop Rocks explode when their sugar melts in your mouth & a 600-psi carbon dioxide bubble bursts on your tongue!
The signature pop! from Pop Rocks isn’t caused by a chemical reaction in your mouth. What you feel is an intense version of soda bubbles bursting when you drink your favorite soft drink. Pop Rocks is made by carbonating hot liquid sugar under high pressure and then allowing that bubbly hot sugar to cool and solidify, trapping the high pressure bubbles of carbon dioxide inside hard shells of sugar. Once it is cooled, it shatters into variable size pieces when pressure is released, but tiny bubbles are still captured throughout the sweet treat--until it touches water and dissolves. Then all that pressurized & trapped carbon dioxide gets released at once, and you enjoy a loud sugary sensation!
Dimension 20: A Crown of Candy premieres new episodes on YouTube each Wednesday (through June 2020). Catch up anytime on Dropout!