Things Tumblr Taught Me

Profile picture courtesy of @calisotalatina Advice posts I find on here Main is @godfrey-the-chaos duck

[lessonsfromthehellsite]

Hey-o!

This blog is being run by @godfrey-the-chaos-duck

I'm basically here to collect any Awesome Tumblr Advice you guys have!

I'll accept it in ANY form

Asks

Submit a post to me

Tag @lessonsfromthehellsite in a post

And any good things I just happen to stumble upon, or come up with myself, will also go here!

This is mostly for myself to go back and look at if I'm ever in a sticky situation but I really hope I can help at least one other person.

[ao3org]

What to Do If Your Password Is Insecure

If you are receiving a warning that your password has appeared in a data breach from another site and is no longer secure, you will need to change your password to a stronger one before you can log back in.

If you are still logged in on any device, please make sure your email address is up to date before logging out or resetting your password, or you may lose access to your account.

Check below the cut for information on how to check or update your email address, and how to change or reset your password.

Posted: 20:45 UTC 31 July, 2026

Please follow these steps to check and update your email address. If you don't know your password, or if your password is insecure, you will need to reset your password – which requires you to have access to your account's email address.

How do I check what my account’s email address is?

If you are logged in:

Go to your Preferences page (Select "Hi, [USERNAME]!" at the top of the page, and choose "My Preferences" from the drop-down list)

Click on the “Change Email” button at the top of the page

Your email address will be listed on that page, next to “Current email”

If you are not logged in:

Check your email account for recent emails from AO3, such as subscription notifications or kudos and comment emails.

Look at the “To:” field to see what email address is associated with your account.

You will need to enter this email address exactly as it is listed here in order to receive a password reset email.

How do I change my email address? What if I don't have access to my old email address?

You don't need access to your old email address to change it to a new one, as long as you also know your current password.

Log in

Go to your Preferences page (Select "Hi, [USERNAME]!" at the top of the page, and choose "My Preferences" from the drop-down list)

Click on the “Change Email” button at the top of the page

In both the “New email” and “Enter new email again” fields, enter an email address that you have access to

In the “Password” field, enter your current password

Click the “Confirm Email” button

On the next page, make sure that the banner displays the correct new email address

Click the "Yes, Confirm Email" button

Check your new email address for an email titled “[AO3] Confirm your email change”

Click on the confirmation link in that email, making sure to open it in a browser where you are already logged in

Go to the “Change Email” page and double-check that your “Current email” has been successfully updated.

If you still see the banner saying your email change is pending, the most likely reason for this is that you were logged out before you clicked the confirmation link. Make sure to log in to your account before following the email confirmation link, or open the link in a browser where you are already logged in.

I know my current password, but I'm afraid my password is insecure. How can I change my password to a stronger one?

First, refer to the above instructions for checking or updating your email address, so that you can receive a password reset in case your password is insecure. Then:

Log in

Go to your Preferences page (Select "Hi, [USERNAME]!" at the top of the page, and choose "My Preferences" from the drop-down list)

Click on the “Change Password” button at the top of the page

Enter your current password into the “Old password” field

Enter your new password into both the “New password” and “Confirm new password” fields

Click the “Change Password” button

You will be automatically logged out on all devices.

If, upon logging in, you receive a message saying your password is insecure, then the new password you chose was insecure and you can't use it to log back in. You will need to reset your password (refer to the below instructions) and select a more secure password this time. You can use a password generator to choose a stronger password.

I don't know my current password/my password is insecure, but I know and have access to my account's email address.

In a private/incognito browser, go to the Reset Password page: https://archiveofourown.org/users/password/new (also available by clicking the “Forgot Password?” link on the login form)

Enter the email address associated with your AO3 account

Check your email for the password reset email

Click the “use this link to create a new password” link in the email

Enter a new, secure password

You will be automatically logged in on this device, and automatically logged out on all other devices.

If you continue to receive the message that your password is insecure, then the new password you chose was also insecure. You will need to reset your password again and select a more secure password this time. You can use a password generator to choose a stronger password.

I tried resetting my password, but it didn't work. Help?

The most likely reasons the password reset didn't work are:

You are entering the wrong email address for your AO3 account. Refer to the above instructions on how to check what your account's email address is.

Your email provider is blocking emails from AO3 or sending them to spam/social folders. Search for an email titled “[AO3] Reset your password”.

Your email account doesn't have enough storage and can't receive new emails. You'll need to delete old emails, photos, or videos to empty your storage before requesting a password reset.

You requested multiple password resets in a short time period, resulting in either a “Retry later” page or the link in the first password reset email becoming invalid. Please wait at least one hour before trying again, only submit the form once, and make sure you are using the link in the most recent password reset email.

The new password you chose was insecure, so you can't use it to log back in. You will need to reset your password again and select a more secure password this time. You can use a password generator to choose a stronger password.

I don't know my password/my password is insecure, and I don't know or have access to my account's email address.

You will need to submit a Support ticket containing the following information:

your username

your account’s current email address (if you know it)

an email address that you can access and would like to update your account's email to (enter this email into the Email field so we can contact you)

Support will begin the account recovery process with you, which will ask you for further proof of account ownership. Please be patient, as there are many AO3 users who are also submitting account recovery tickets right now.

[theprofessional-amateur]

link to bluesky post

[theprofessional-amateur]

In addition to how to turn various things, it includes:

Other useful AI Removal/Detection links

How to spot AI Hallucinations like a Reference Librarian (originally on Substack)

Library Freedom Project has a lot of handouts about AI on their Resources page

[walmart-the-official]

Hey, don’t cry. Free online database of Japanese folk lore

[bleu-guacamole]

Might I add, free database of mostly European folklore and myths

[bogleech]

A Book of Creatures by @a-book-of-creatures doesn't update these days but is another thing along these lines, really huge, fully illustrated all by the author and cites all sources

[st-dionysus]

Free database of Native American folklore, sorted by tribe.

[unheardoracle]

Your dialogue is stiff because everyone is being too honest

Great dialogue can come from radical emotional honesty. But in most real conversations, people

dodge questions

answer indirectly

lie (badly)

change the subject

crack jokes to avoid serious answers

lie (convincingly)

say half of what they mean

tell the truth but get so anxious/angry/defensive others now think they're lying

If your dialogue feels unnatural, it might be because everyone is saying exactly what they think, or articulating their thoughts too well. Try letting characters hide things instead.

Subtext is where tension lives.

[dopedyk]

more so,

people don’t always speak in full sentences,

slang can change depending on age range, demographic, etc. &

don’t be scared of vocal pauses (uhm, uh, err)

[the-tired-tenor]

So uh….some dude apparently recreated Adobe Photoshop feature-for-feature, for FREE, and it runs in your browser.

Anyway, fuck Adobe, and enjoy!

[adv3nturelust]

Give credit to the 30-year-old who worked on this for free and offers this service for free!

[marsh-mallow-adopts]

WHAT?!

[triona-tribblescore]

I study graphic design and my tutor recommended and used this in his classes at art college last year, it’s so good it has SO many features for free, I really recommend it, even if you’re just trying to learn the basics of PS, such a wonderful thing <3

[naamahdarling]

I use this and it’s fucken great. No bullshit. Really works. Sometimes the world is kind.

[goodluckclove]

Photopea has saved my ass on numerous occasions. If I’m doing anything more in depth than what I could get away with on Canva, this is what I end up using.

[starblightbindery]

My personal goal is to try and make fanfic binding as accessible to everyone as possible, so here are some resources on how to make a fanfic hardcover for under $25.

This is a barebones bind for the broke college students and such. Happy to field questions, too!

Here's a proposed budget breakdown:

Loosely organized thoughts:

Fanfic bookbinders often share typesets amongst each other. Never pay for a typeset for a fanfic.

You'll hear a lot about grain direction for your printer paper, but as a newbie on a budget without your own printer, settle for some nice 92 bright paper. If you like the hobby, splurge after but expect to pay at least 2-3x more for short grain paper.

Printing is a pain because some copy shops won't let you print intellectual property smut, and it's very expensive. You are better off bartering instead or looking for a free printer on Buy Nothing.

You know the thick paper wrapping that comes with online orders? It's a good weight for endpapers if you need to scrounge. Paper grocery bags or gift bags (birthday presents) might work, too.

Ask your local library to give you covers from books they are throwing out. Ask for outdated textbooks (those covers are built like tanks) or three-ring binders that are too busted to be binders anymore.

Obtain a used book that was mass produced (so your destruction of it does not impede anyone's access) and maybe even become a little vindictive with it.

If you can afford it, I recommend the Olfa SVR knife (~$10)

If you can afford it, upgrade your ruler to a t-square.

I really hope this resource is helpful! I want to stress how possible this is and encourage people to cherish what they love through art.

If you are interested in fanfic binding and have a little more disposable income, I have an affordable Fan Fiction Bookbinding Starter Pack that I carry on my site. I pack them myself and drop them 1x/month on the 15th.

[shalottpress]

This is such a great resource for anyone starting out fanbinding!

[tightjeansjavi]

also, google is free, but pick up a textbook every once in awhile. Find articles written by POC and keep up to date with how you can be a better ally. I took a black feminist theory class in college…taught by two white women.

You heard me right. Two. White. Women.

Which is fucking insane in itself, but on the first day of class one of the professors was reading an article, written by a black woman…and decided that it was completely acceptable and appropriate to drop the n-word (hard r) and every single person in class was fucking MORTIFIED. Even in the context of education, there was no reason for a white professor to so casually and subtly use that word. (They were called out for it immediately after and profusely apologized)

My point is that covert racism is still racism, and unfortunately it is alive and well.

I also have all of the articles and works saved from this class if anyone would like to do some heavy and necessary reading! I have hard copies, but I’m sure I can find the links for the articles as well.

Just after doing a little research on google, I found these articles to be incredibly helpful on breaking down covert racism, racism, white privilege, etc.

covert racism

systematic racism

racism and health

becoming trustworthy white allies

what is white privilege

books on systematic racism, racial justice, and anti-racism

race equity tools

Bottom line, white people have no excuse to not stand up for BIPOC. There is no excuse for racism. There is no tolerance, and we have to do better. I firmly believe that the first step in becoming a better ally is to educate yourself.

[creatingblackcharacters]

Your blog is a treasure of resources! it had me wondering if other people also dedicate blogs to writing certain groups better, I couldn't really find any but I figured that you might know some/have recommendations? If so that'd be great! Thank you and have a wonderful day :)

@insertspanishhere

@vitiligo-is-not-a-trend

@checkyourasianbias

@writingnothanyu

@blindbeta

@cripplecharacters

[st-dionysus]

So much gym bro advice is bad, like a good 50% of it is wives tales (bros tales?) and another 25% is just way over thinking it and not necessary unless you're training to become a full time professional body builder competitor.

You really don't need to be "optimizing" your workout and the majority of people don't need to be massively altering their diet and lifestyle to build muscle. The human body is already optimized to build muscle.

The human body is a machine that turns carbs into energy and energy into movement and that movement creates strain. The human body is a machine that turns protein + strain into muscle growth. All you need is the correct amount of crabs, protien, and strain to develop muscle.

"But how much is enough carbs?? How much is enough protein??" 45%-65% of your calories should be carbs (preferably complex carbs and whole foods). If you're trying to build muscle you should be getting half a gram of protein for every pound that you weigh.

"But should I have protein before or after the gym???" it doesn't matter, just get the correct amount daily and avoid having more than 30grams in a meal becouse you're body will stop caring at that point. You should have carbs (roughly an hour or so) before the gym, remember the human body is a machine that turns carbs into energy and you need that energy at the gym.

"Do I need to have lots of testosterone to build visible muscle". No, the human body is a machine that turns protein + strain into muscle, regardless of your hormones. Higher testosterone makes it easier, but it's not required.

"What about all these complicated workout routines that Instagram keeps trying to sell me or that YouTubers keep talking about?" You don't need them. Pick three days you can workout, they should not be back to back. Muscle doesn't build during exerince but during healing after the exercise. If you don't rest between workout days you won't gain as much muscle. On one of those days do 5 exerices that involve the pulling motion. On another day do 5 exerices that do pushing motion. On the other day do 3 exerices for your legs and 2 for your core. Stretch every day including rest days. Do yoga at least once a week.

"How many times do I do those 5 exercises?" 4 or 5 sets of 4-8 reps for each exercise. Start with 4 sets of 4 reps and increase the reps as it gets easier. When it's easy at 5 sets of 8 reps, increase the weight by 2-5 pounds and start over at 4 sets of 4 reps with the new weight. Between every set rest 2-4 minutes (rest 2 mins if your lifting 20 or under and 4 misn if your lifting 20 or higher), rest between sets is important for your body to understand it needs to build muscle, it needs to feel the ache to understand that the protein should be used for muscle development.

"What about cardio?" if you get less then 10k steps a day, add 10-30 mins of cardio to the end of each gym day. If you get less than 5k steps a day add 15 mins of card to the end of each gym day and add a fourth day where you do an hour of cardio. If that's difficult, don't feel like you need to do it all at once. Do 10-15 mins, then rest for 2-5 mins, then do 10-15 mins more until you hit an both of cardio. Cardio doesn't kill your gains, the gym bros are lying to you. Cardio is good for your heart health and your balance which will help you lift more in the long run.

"Do I need to loose weight to gain muscle?" No, the amount of body fat you have doesn't effect your ability to gain muscle. The human body is a machine that turns protein + strain into muscle, and that includes fat bodies.

"Do I need to gain weight to gain muscle?" Maybe. If you are in a calorie deficit (your body burns more calories then you eat and you don't have fat stores to make up for that) then you're not going to be able to gain much muscle and eventually you're body will stop developing it when it hits it limits. Remember the human body is a machine that turns carbs into energy and energy into strain, if you don't have enough carbs you don't have enough energy then you can't lift as much. The human body is a machine that turns protein + strain into muscle, if you don't have enough protien then the strain breaks down your muscle and you have nothing to rebuild it stronger, which will result in injury insta if of gains. If you are skinny and eating enough, you will develop some muscle, but probably not as much as someone who weighs more becouse if there is less body then their is less muscle. Also keep in mind that muscle weighs more than fat. When you work out the scale WILL go up, the scale doesn't know the difference between fat and muscle and bone and water and organs. The scale going up is not bad (regardless of the type of weight gain happening).

"Do I need a gym membership to gain muscle?" No, but it makes it easier becouse you have acsess to more tools, a monetary obligation to actually workout, and possibly gain a community that will push you to keep going (just be aware some of that community might firmly believe in gym bro tales about calorie counting and cardio=bad and body fat=bad. You mustn't listen to them. They have a body dysmorphia disorder and/or an eating disorder and they want you to have it to, in order to validate themself). You can buy some Dumbells and do a lot of exerices with those and a chair or a bench or a wall or your floor, no gym membership required.

"What about pre-workout?" You don't need it.

"What about protein powder? " It's an easy and cheap way to meet your protein goals, if you can't with the food available to you.

"What about creatinine?" It is the only supplement proven to help with muscle growth and has no medically known side effects, it has been highly studied and reaserched and determined safe to use. You do not need to use it or any other supplements to gain muscle, if you want to use a supplement, then the only one you should trust and use is creatine.

[conleches]

some fucking resources for all ur writing fuckin needs

body language masterlist

a translator that doesn’t eat ass like google translate does

a reverse dictionary for when ur brain freezes

550 words to say instead of fuckin said

638 character traits for when ur brain freezes again

some more body language help 

[bellero]

REBLOG TO SAVE A WRITER

[void-occupation]

YOINK mine now

[39seasofnevermore]

SNATCHY SNATCH- *Snatches it-*

[prokyon]

Remove AI garbage from your web browsing experience with the uBlockOrigin Huge AI Blocklist

https://github.com/laylavish/uBlockOrigin-HUGE-AI-Blocklist

GitHub - laylavish/uBlockOrigin-HUGE-AI-Blocklist: A huge blocklist of manually curated sites that contain AI generated imagery for uBlock O

A huge blocklist of manually curated sites that contain AI generated imagery for uBlock Origin & uBlacklist. - laylavish/uBlockOrigin-HUGE-A

Install this blocklist using the instructions on the GitHub page. For Firefox, you will need to install uBlockOrigin for this. Google Chrome no longer allows the uBlockOrigin extension, so I'm assuming you're at least primarily a Firefox user - or about to be (see browser alternatives below).

For Google Chrome or mobile browsers, this will work with uBlacklist. See the GitHub page for full details on compatibility.

Remove AI Widgets:

If you go to your uBlockOrigin Filter lists page, you can select to filter out AI Widgets - this should completely remove the 'AI Mode' widget/button from your Google search page, in addition to the work done by the Huge AI Blocklist.

Using the uBlockOrigin Huge AI Blocklist filter has made my Google searches look like they used to, and gives me genuine search results.

Look at this. It's beautiful. It's informative. It's not a heap of burning trash bloated with fake information made up by a hallucinating chat bot.

We can go even further: return to the old school search results.

Now, the above results are great and should be free of generative AI junk, but some people would rather not see any of the summary widgets or 'people also ask' box at all. Fear not! You can remove all that by using the 'Web' mode in the Google search bar. Click the 'More' drop down menu and select 'Web'.

Huzzah! Incredible. It's like a functional search engine again.

You can make this the default Google search mode in Google Chrome using Method 1 from this page (https://allthings.how/how-to-turn-off-ai-mode-in-google-chrome/). Unfortunately, I don't know if there's a way to do this in Firefox too. This is why for the most part I still use DuckDuckGo (see below) as my default search engine, and only use Google to supplement my searches on the rare occasion I'm just missing something.

Remember, if you clear your cookies, your search engine preferences will reset, including any settings you enabled/disabled to avoid AI. This applies to DuckDuckGo as well; check your settings every time you clear your browser!

Extra filters (optional):

I've also added four filters (their order doesn't matter) to the My Filters page. Full disclosure: I'm not sure they still work, or may only work on Chrome, but I'm keeping them anyway, just in case.

From https://www.reddit.com/r/uBlockOrigin/comments/1i7kg83/comment/m8lllwr/: see which solution in the list works for you, it seems to be different for everybody.

google.*##div[jscontroller]:not(:has(div[jscontroller].YzCcne)):has(.YzCcne)

From https://allthings.how/how-to-turn-off-ai-mode-in-google-chrome/:

www.google.com##.Beswgc

www.google.com##.olrp5b

www.google.com##.hdzaWe

Make sure you hit the apply changes button when you add filters.

Browser alternatives: escaping Google Chrome.

If you haven't jumped ship from Chrome yet, I'd recommend doing so. Sometimes Chrome outperforms Firefox for niche purposes or because a website doesn't bother to fully support non-Chrome browsers, but the days of Chrome being the superior browser are long gone — by about 10 years. If you're trying to escape Chromium browsers, beware that a lot of the popular Chrome alternatives are just Chrome in a different hat.

Firefox has been the most popular non-Chromium browser for years, and for good reason. However, the company running Mozilla Firefox has annoyed their users, me included, by refusing to take an anti- generative-ai stance, and even included AI features in the Mozilla Firefox browser. Most Firefox users specifically use it because they hate Google's enshittification and want a privacy-focused, clean browser that doesn't hog their RAM and CPU for no reason. So, you can imagine that Mozilla's attitude has pissed us all off recently. You can turn off the AI features in Firefox with the built-in settings, but the company has recently steered straight into the burning garbage heap by saying they want to make the browser based on AI.

Waterfox and LibreWolf:

There are really good alternatives based on Firefox (open-source) which are not affiliated with Mozilla (the company), if you don't like how it operates. Waterfox and LibreWolf are even more trimmed down and privacy-focused than Mozilla's Firefox, and don't use AI. Anti-ai statements: Waterfox and LibreWolf.

From this page: https://programming.dev/post/42546774

In short: LibreWolf is for those who want a “locked-down” fortress out of the box, while Waterfox is for those who want a privacy-conscious browser that still feels like a normal, convenient daily driver. Choose LibreWolf if: You want the highest level of privacy without having to manually edit config files, and you don’t mind occasionally “fixing” a broken website or re-logging into accounts. Choose Waterfox if: You want a privacy-respecting browser that supports Firefox Sync, has an Android counterpart, and handles streaming sites/logins without any extra friction (it supports WideWine out of the box, which lets you stream DRM protected content (netflix, hulu, disney, etc). — [email protected]

I've heard good things about both of these browsers and will investigate them further to decide whether to personally switch from Mozilla Firefox.

DuckDuckGo:

I would also recommend installing the DuckDuckGo extension to your browsers and setting it to be your default search engine.

I've had DuckDuckGo installed on my browsers, Chrome or Firefox, for like 10 years now. It is a good search engine, it's unobtrusive, and blocks trackers, cookies, and does not save any data about you. I've also used it as my default mobile browser for years, along with Firefox mobile, which you can add the AI Blocklist to (see again the GitHub page). I haven't tried the DuckDuckGo desktop browser yet, but I imagine it works just fine like the mobile version. I think DuckDuckGo's browser is also Chromium-based, at least indirectly. I use Firefox with the DuckDuckGo extension so I can have a widely-supported, non-Chromium browser, but include all of DuckDuckGo's anti-tracking features.

Note: DuckDuckGo has included AI in its browser product, however you can opt-out of all AI features with the built-in settings and they will not push it on you like Google does. I hope they remove AI features entirely in the future, but for now I am comfortable with the barriers in place to keep AI out of my face. Firefox also has AI features like Chrome does, which you can turn off with the built-in settings.

There's also noai.duckduckgo search, an alternative version of its normal search engine which removes AI-generated images and turns off AI results/assists by default. Even though DuckDuckGo's inclusion of any AI features annoys me, its policy to make these features 100% optional builds trust with this browser/extension/search engine.

You can always use Google search if you need to, but with uBlockOrigin and the AI Blocklist filter added on, at least you shouldn't have AI-altered search results or the AI overview anymore.

Other browsers exist, probably:

There are certainly more non-Chromium alternatives out there, but Firefox, Waterfox, and LibreWolf are the top three recommended to me. That link to alternatives, plus this ComputerCity page are the best lists I could find in a brief search. If you google "non-Chromium browsers" you'll get a lot of mixed results which require a bit of digging to realise they're not really recommending you what you looked for at all.

I've heard about Ecosia over the years, and while I like the idea of a search engine that plants a tree for each query, I don't think that's actually what happens — at least, that's what they used to be reputed to do, but I believe that's an unsustainable business model which has likely changed. In 2026, Ecosia says it uses 100% of its profits for the planet and runs its search engine off clean energy. That's cool! It's still Chromium-based. And it also uses generative AI for chat bots, so I don't trust its principles on environmentalism. I need to do more reading on this to form a stronger opinion about it.

I hope this post has helped at least some of you have a better experience browsing the web and googling your questions.

The Huge AI Blocklist really has been an amazing tool to keep my internet life free and clear of a lot of generative AI rubbish. I'm not a tech expert by any stretch of the imagination, but I'm savvy enough to understand what genAI is and does, and that the more I learn about it, it's even worse than I thought. I truly hate it, and I hate the enshittification of all our experiences, even those as simple and innocent as googling "snow leopard" or "how to cook pasta" or "what is a phascogale" (go ahead and test your freshly-cleaned search engines out with that one hehe).

[africanaquarian]

I thought I needed a new laptop but nope, youtube is slowing down your PC if you have adblock on on any open tab...

[astraltrickster]

To be very clear about this: CPUs aren't magical devices that can operate forever. They generate heat. They wear out over time. This happens faster when they're operating near capacity. This is not just an attempt to inconvenience you; this is an attempt to damage your property.

For the "crime" of not wanting to be tracked/have ads pissed into your eyeballs 24/7.

Even if you've paid for the "privilege" of the latter.

Fuck Google, and I hope they get sued into oblivion over this.

[fernwah-funzone]

i see everyone in the notes talking about newpipe but nobody's talking about youtube alternatives for desktop

IF YOU USE A DESKTOP PC OR LAPTOP, TRY INVIDIOUS

https://invidious.io/

it is a free, open-source alternative YouTube front-end. in addition to not having ads, it has other great QoL features like a download button. try one of the several instances on that link up there ^^^^

[saintjosie]

so i was super pissed and concerned about this but i have just discovered that while this is true, it is apparently only true for google chrome users. i just tested this by having ten tabs open in firefox playing ten different youtube videos at the same time and my cpu usage spiked to 25% as the videos were loading and then dropped back down to 10% as they played.

if you ever needed another reason to switch to a different browser, this is it.

[mikkeneko]

PSA to fan creators who don't have a lot of regular contact with children: They are almost always bigger than you think. A 1-year-old baby may already be walking. A toddler is likely already hip-high. A 10-year-old may already be taller than at least one of their parents. A 14/15 year old may already have reached their adult height.

[amarguerite]

Via @watertightvines

[wildjuniperjones]

Here's the link. It was actually not immediately easy to find, so I thought this might help.

[notastackofbooks]

Honestly, even as someone who works with 3-11yos, when I'm trying to imagine how tall kids are for writing, I have to look up pictures of children standing next to adults because I *know* they're bigger than I'm thinking. 2-4yos being half the height of an adult is something I always seem to forget.

For additional reference, if helpful, here's a picture I found with my guesses of how old the kids are.

[ryan-sometimes]

One of my favorite things about having a degree in biochemistry is going undercover at a store like Sephora. I can read the composition of the cosmetics and actually understand them. There’s no words to describe how great it feels. It’s like being in on an inside joke or secret

[ryan-sometimes]

The main thing I observe is that a lot of employees recommend makeup that is chemically incompatible. For example, if you ask them to recommend you a foundation and concealer, a lot of times they’ll pick two products that are chemically immiscible, so they’ll NEVER blend together successfully.

Generally foundation/concealer is either water or silicone based. There are upsides to each based on your needs. However, water and silicone are immiscible, and so if your foundation is water based but your concealer is silicone based, you will never get a good blend between these products. You’ll have to go back to switch to something that works.

[ryan-sometimes]

If you want to test for this in-store, mix the two on the back of your hand. If they form a uniform mixture, they’re miscible. If they separate, they’re chemically incompatible, and should not be used together. You can do this for any number of skin products. Primers, moisturizers, foundations, concealers, contour sticks, etc etc. Anything that comes in liquid or paste form.

You don’t need to understand all the chemicals on the label to run this experiment!

[nobrain-nothoughts]

As someone in pharmaceutical sciences I also experience similar things, so a hint from me: collagen is useless. In a cream it will not penetrate the skin, so doesn't do anything. As a food supplement, lemme tell you a secret: collagen is a protein. And when you eat protein, your stomach thinks its food and chops it up, so it can be used to make your own protein. Collagen is just expensive protein powder, and doesn't do anything meat or a veggie substitute does.

[ladyshinga]

I’m sorry friends, but “just google it” is no longer viable advice. What are we even telling people to do anymore, go try to google useful info and the first three pages are just ads for products that might be the exact opposite of what the person is trying to find but The Algorithm thinks the words are related enough? And if it’s not ads it’s just sponsored websites filled with listicles, just pages and pages of “TOP FIFTEEN [thing you googled] IMAGINED AS DISNEY PRINCESSES” like… what are we even doing anymore, google? I can no longer use you as shorthand for people doing real and actual helpful research on their own.

[nyandotexe]

Time to drop some links again.

– https://searchmysite.net/ Search engine for the indie web, personal websites, digital gardens. You can also find them in websites like Neocities, Indieweb, Blogarama, and write.as. There is also a big list of personal websites.

– https://search.marginalia.nu/ Search engine that focuses on non-commercial content, and promotes websites that aren’t usually at the top of the list.

– https://www.worldcat.org/ Search engine for items in libraries (books, but also maps, articles, sound recordings, theses, etc.)

– https://scholar.google.com/ Search engine for scientific papers, reviews, etc. It’s still google, but a lot better than the normal search engine counterpart.

– https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_search_engines A list of search engines sorted by subject, area, and more. If you’re searching on a specific area, it might be worth checking if there is one focused on that area.

– https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_academic_databases_and_search_engines A list of academic databases and search engines.

– https://tineye.com/ Reverse image search alternative to Google’s. Also, P.S.: Please stop using Google, and start using more privacy focused search engines, like DuckDuckGo or SearchX (opensource; personally haven’t used it yet, but it looks promising for privacy-focused users)

[astridflies]

Adding that instead of using Google Scholar you should absolutely be using PubMed for biomedical and life sciences-adjacent research.

PubMed

PubMed® comprises more than 36 million citations for biomedical literature from MEDLINE, life science journals, and online books. Citations

(And if you need access those papers from behind their paywalls use a SciHub mirror.)

[mckitterick]

and let us not forget Sci-Hub itself!

Sci-Hub website. Get free access to academic journals. Download research papers for free from ScienceDirect, IEEE, Wiley, Springer, Nature a

Radiolab just did a great show about the founder: “The Library of Alexandra”

[yyprompts]

🌙💙🤍

Writer's block advice

Consume more media

People say this often, but when your case of Writer's Block is related to a lack of inspiration, this is the key to at least aiding it. Whether it's films, music, reading more books, or going to an art museum, find media you're interested in and try to get brainstorming for your own creative works.

2. Try experimenting.

Something I like to do a lot is research what techniques related to literature that I haven't tried yet, or research genres so I can see if I'm interested in branching out. If you're comfortable with it, writing from a new genre, new POV, or in a whole different setting than what you are used to might be able to help you out. Don't be afraid to mess it up, because that's the nature of experimenting, and the majority of authors have had to mess with their works at some point to get their fabulous books to where they are today.

3. Sometimes, don't write.

This might be controversial advice, but many writers go through periods of their life where they might not want to write, or be unable to due to Writer's Block. And that's okay! You are not a machine, you are a human being who requires breaks and will run out of inspiration or drive eventually. So if you're not too upset with your situation, feel free to just sit back and do something else, or relax.

4. Interview yourself.

This one is also silly, but a friend once advised me to make a list of 50 questions I could answer as if I were a successful author already. It did help restore my inspiration and made me rethink all my writing accomplishments. The excitement of being a writer and yapping about your works to an interviewer might be enough to get your headspace in check again.

5. Don't be critical of yourself.

It's easier said than done for many, but you need to be confident in yourself as a writer. In the event that your Writer's Block is caused by you being your worst critic, such as beating yourself up over spelling errors you made while writing or being upset when a piece doesn't come out perfect on the first try, you need to put the perfectionism aside. You will have plenty of time to go back and make edits, but at least allow the draft some time to marinate. You might wake up the next morning and decide you actually love it after all. When you're writing, just focus on getting out what's in your head, then go back and edit later, or else you'll be exhausted by the time your first chapter is complete.

Note: My advice may not help you, and that's okay! I'm just sharing tips from my own personal experience.