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'Ello. I like reading and writing, video games, animation, and mcyt things. I've been officially a part of Tumblr since April 2013, and though there's been months here and there where I didn't come visit, I've always come back.

[kaijufluffs]

She's being so big and brave.

[kaijufluffs]

The long awaited sequel.

[tedthetalk]

I actually do think it’s better for abusers and abusive characters to realize the harm their past actions caused and seek to do better than be literally or metaphorically executed for their crimes

[tedthetalk]

I think it’s better for abusers and abusive characters to realize the harm their past actions caused and seek to do better than be literally or metaphorically executed for their crimes.

[tedthetalk]

I think it’s better for abusers and abusive characters to realize the harm their past actions caused and seek to do better than be literally or metaphorically executed for their crimes.

[dogletantte]

Reading comprehension test:

1. Does OP mention an obligation on victims to forgive abusers who have learned from their past actions?

2. Does OP mention any work on the part of victims to educate their abusers?

3. Is there any mention of “redemption” or “forgiveness” at all in this post?

[fandomsandfeminism]

Something about how society cares more about punishing the wicked than about making the world a better place, and how many people really struggle to shake that.

[jacobwren]

"But AI can't do your job. It can help you do your job, but that doesn't mean it's going to save anyone money. Take radiology: there's some evidence that AIs can sometimes identify solid-mass tumors that some radiologists miss, and look, I've got cancer. Thankfully, it's very treatable, but I've got an interest in radiology being as reliable and accurate as possible. If my Kaiser hospital bought some AI radiology tools and told its radiologists: "Hey folks, here's the deal. Today, you're processing about 100 x-rays per day. From now on, we're going to get an instantaneous second opinion from the AI, and if the AI thinks you've missed a tumor, we want you to go back and have another look, even if that means you're only processing 98 x-rays per day. That's fine, we just care about finding all those tumors." If that's what they said, I'd be delighted. But no one is investing hundreds of billions in AI companies because they think AI will make radiology more expensive, not even if that also makes radiology more accurate. The market's bet on AI is that an AI salesman will visit the CEO of Kaiser and make this pitch: "Look, you fire 9/10s of your radiologists, saving $20m/year, you give us $10m/year, and you net $10m/year, and the remaining radiologists' job will be to oversee the diagnoses the AI makes at superhuman speed, and somehow remain vigilant as they do so, despite the fact that the AI is usually right, except when it's catastrophically wrong. "And if the AI misses a tumor, this will be the human radiologist's fault, because they are the 'human in the loop.' It's their signature on the diagnosis." This is a reverse centaur, and it's a specific kind of reverse-centaur: it's what Dan Davies calls an "accountability sink." The radiologist's job isn't really to oversee the AI's work, it's to take the blame for the AI's mistakes. This is another key to understanding – and thus deflating – the AI bubble. The AI can't do your job, but an AI salesman can convince your boss to fire you and replace you with an AI that can't do your job. This is key because it helps us build the kinds of coalitions that will be successful in the fight against the AI bubble." - Cory Doctorow, The Reverse Centaur’s Guide to Criticizing AI

[rubyvroom]

This was the crossword puzzle in the New York Times yesterday. 

Tausig’s crossword is a so-called Schrödinger puzzle, named for the physicist’s hypothetical cat that is at once both alive and dead. In a Schrödinger puzzle, select squares have more than one correct letter answer: They exist in two states at once. “Black Halloween animal,” for example, could be both BAT or CAT, yielding two different but perfectly correct puzzles. Only 10 such puzzles have now been published in Times history.

It’s the theme of Tausig’s puzzle, though, that makes it special. Four entries in Thursday’s crossword can include either an “F” or an “M.” Both are correct; neither is wrong. For example, “Part of a house” can be either ROOF or ROOM. The long “revealer” answer, tying those select entries together and spanning 11 squares smack-dab in the middle of the puzzle, is GENDER FLUID.

This puzzle, with “M”s and “F”s that aren’t fixed, is a masterful blend of subject and structure. “It potentially really evokes what gender fluidity is, which is not moving back and forth between two poles, but actually not being committed to either pole, and potentially existing in many states at different times,” Tausig said.

[mournjargon]

This is … really cool.

[half-ace]

i never really thought of crossword puzzles as an art form, but like… this is art.

[painless-innit-colourful]

@nemonoon

[dredsina]

Ive said this before but swear the biggest skill to learn as an adult is how to resist high-pressure sales tactics. You do NOT have to answer questions with anything other than "Sorry I'm not interested." No matter how nice they are or no matter how many follow up questions they ask or even how agitated they get when you stand your ground. Just keep saying I'm not interested. Don't answer their questions. Don't give them an opening to try to push back on your reasons. Be a fucking brick wall of I'm not interested.

[sweaterkittensahoy]

When we bought our car, I told Sean to let me handle it. I walked in and said "We have X for a down payment and cannot pay more than Y in monthly payments." My Y number had some leeway, but I didn't mention that.

First thing the sales guy did after I laid down the rules was turn to Sean and go, "What's your number?" And Sean said. "Oh, no, you negotiate with Gayle."

So, strike one for the sales guy. Could not divide and conquer us by implying THE MAN would not surprised at what I laid down.

Sales guy then had to confer with his manager and left us at his desk for several minutes. I have a vague recollection (this was 16 years ago) of Sean and I amusing ourselves doing bits about the other people there to look at cars. I am sure we did not give off the stressed or nervous energy they were hoping for.

Guy comes back. His first offer is fifty dollars a month more than I told him we could pay. I looked at him and said "I gave you our upper limit."

"Well, but what's another 50 bucks a month?"

"Something I can't afford."

He didn't know what to do with my open and unashamed admittal that I had a budget because my money was finite.

He went back to talk to the manager again.

It took two more rounds of "I told you what I can afford" before he finally came back 20 bucks under what I'd stated as my max.

The trick to resisting high-stress sales tactics is doing the math at home, knowing exactly what you can afford, and then walking into the room and stating that number minus 15%. Then refusing to budge from that number. Never, ever, meet then where they want. Always meet them where you want. Because at the end of the day, you can walk away and go somewhere else and say "I told the people at Z what my terms were, and they refused to work with me. Here are my terms. Meet them, and you make a sale today."

[orcboxer]

Things that work in fiction but not real life

torture getting reliable information out of people

knocking someone out to harmlessly incapacitate them for like an hour

jumping into water from staggering heights and surviving the fall completely intact

calling the police to deescalate a situation

rafting your way off a desert island

correctly profiling total strangers based on vibes

effectively operating every computer by typing and nothing else

ripping an IV out of your arm without consequences

heterosexual cowboy

[orcboxer]

This post breaching containment has taught me that a lot of people seem to think they can accurately profile complete strangers. For the record, no the fuck you can't.

[beardedmrbean]

perfection

[fluxephemera]

sniles so sneetly at you

[twinklecupcake]

Magical girl who had wanted to be one so badly but never had that magical mascot/mentor encounter so she summoned a demon to contract with instead.

It's not a dark story or anything, the magical girl is just as cute and cheery and friendly as factory standard and never loses that faith and optimism, she's just Pact-bound to a frightening demon from the underworld instead of a cute teddy bear mouse.

[twinklecupcake]

“What if he’s manipulating her to evil-“ No.

“What if she needs to eat souls to survive-“ No.

“What if she becomes horrified with what she’s becoming-“ No.

[writingamongther0ses]

Demon being viewed as weird for making a pact with a cute, cheery schoolgirl.

At every demon party where they show off their pacted there's evil, terrible, and frighteningly beautiful and then there's this teenager in a cute magical girl dress.

[pb-dot]

"I don't get you Goragog." "Listen, it's nice. Just nice! Can't things be nice? Is it a sin for things to be nice?" "No and that's part of the problem..." "You're just jealous Samantha created a "bffs forever" blingee with me. When was the last time one of your warlocks did something like that for you?" "*on the verge of tears* it's been DECADES!"

[twinklecupcake]

Meanwhile on the other side of the room...

"So what do you get in exchange? I get eternal youth and beauty."

"Yeah, and I get all my enemies smited."

"And my guy gave me immeasurable wealth. What'chu got, kid?"

"This super cute compact! Isn't it pretty? The heart-shaped jewels are so sparkly, and the mirror is always spotless!"

"...."

"And since we're pactbound, we're basically roomies now, so I also get a cool best friend and sleepovers on weekends!"

"...."

"Oh, and I also got my magical powers, of course."

[aroaceauri]

Er'trian, Harbinger of Eternal Night, Defender of the Shrieking Chasm, and Lord of Eight Furies stared at eir favorite rival in confusion.

"But it's a pact," ey said. "A deal. An exchange is built in! You can't just Bestow Magical Powers for nothing in return. So what are you getting out of this, Goragog???"

Goragog's dark eyes wept their endless ichor. A halo of eldritch nightmares flickered around his head. With deliberate slowness he turned to meet Er'trian's accursed gaze.

"The power of friendship."

[digitalchristian]

[digitalkiddo]

If you're writing anything involving cons, scams, heists, or morally questionable characters who are very good at lying, here are some free resources I've been using for research. Saving you the "why is this in my search history" anxiety.

1. The FBI's Famous Cases & Criminals archive (fbi.gov/history/famous-cases) has detailed breakdowns of real fraud cases, Ponzi schemes, and confidence operations. The language they use is clinical and precise, which is perfect for getting the procedural details right.

2. The FTC Consumer Sentinel Network publishes annual reports on the most common fraud tactics in the US. Great for understanding how modern scams actually work and what makes people fall for them.

3. The Smithsonian's American Art Museum has a free digital collection of forgery case studies. If your character forges documents or art, this is gold.

4. Court Listener (courtlistener.com) is a free legal database where you can read actual court transcripts from fraud trials. Want to know how a real con artist talks under oath? This is where you find out.

5. The Internet Archive's collection of old newspaper crime sections. Search for "confidence man" or "swindle" in papers from the 1920s through 1960s and you'll find incredible real stories that would feel too dramatic for fiction.

Bonus: The Psychology of Fraud section on the Association for Psychological Science website has accessible articles about why people trust, how deception works cognitively, and what makes someone a convincing liar. Essential reading if you want your con artist characters to feel psychologically real.

Reblog to save for later. Your WIP will thank you.

[mackdaddyofthecravate]

Please return us to a world where Notp and squick are used for a ship you don’t like instead of just making up a load of bullshit about how immoral it is or w/e lol 

[sazandorable]

a short selection of concepts and phrases that used to be commonplace in fandom and we’d really benefit from making that a thing again:

NOTP: the opposite of an OTP (One True Pairing). It is a ship a fan strongly dislikes. The word is a portmanteau of ‘no’ and ‘OTP’ and thus is not a contraction of any particular phrase.

Squick: anything that is a deep-seated, visceral turn-off. Squicks may be shared by many fans or be specific to one; one person’s kink may be another person’s squick.

YKINMKATO, or kink-tomato: Your Kink Is Not My Kink, And That’s Okay: used to indicate support for fannish diversity and to distinguish between disapproval or kink shaming and simply having different taste.

DLDR: Don’t Like, Don’t Read: a phrase used to warn against complaints about an aspect of fic or meta. A “live and let live” philosophy of fandom, which places the responsability for avoiding content one doesn’t want to see on the side of the fanwork consumer, rather that on the creator’s.

SALS: Ship And Let Ship: similar to the above specifically about shipping tastes.

YMMV: Your Mileage May Vary: a phrase used to acknowledge that any given individual’s personal opinion on the topic at hand may differ due to their own tastes, standards, values, experiences, etc.

As the OP points out, all of these crucially imply no moral judgment of what they’re designing.

(definitions lifted more or less wholesale from fanlore’s relevant pages)

[shatterpath]

bring the healthy fun back to fandom!

[thorst]

Co-signing all of this. Bring back the ancient texts

Also I saw someone saying they’d never use squick because it’s such a silly, made-up sounding word and I thought that this has been part of the problem. Fandom itself isn’t silly; it can be deeply meaningful (it has been to me!) however things can be deeply meaningful and silly. We (society) have got to stop acting like being childish is the worst thing you can do. Embrace silly whimsy.

Saying “this squicks me” is useful maybe because it’s a bit silly. It imparts no judgement. It’s like “this is about me” And importantly it doesn’t water down other terms which have important clinical implications that I don’t think I need to name

[pendragyn]

Squick = Squeamish + Ick.

Let’s bring back “Fandom Wank” as a term/tag too, because honestly calling it “discourse” is too dignified a word for the vitriolic circle-jerk melodrama and trolling that’s been going on. The flame wars never ended, it’s just sometimes wrapped up in therapy speak to pretend it’s more civilized.

And let’s be real about trollish behavior in fandom. Telling someone they are mentally ill, or that they deserve to die, solely because they have a different opinion on a piece of fiction than you, is fuckin nasty ass troll shit behavior. Sockpuppet accounts, sending anon hate, spreading unfounded rumors and straight up lies about someone, all nasty ass piece of shit troll behavior.

You don’t get to claim the moral high ground and then put the bar so low it’s a trip hazard in hell.

[wizardshark]

harry potter fans in 2025

[wizardshark]

people DESPERATE in the notes to explain why the way THEY engage with harry potter is morally pure. It's like white people talking about rap music in there! Libraries buy the books! Fanfiction maintains a conversation around the IP! There is NO WAY to enjoy harry potter in 2025 without publicly supporting JK Rowling!

[mossdftba]

Please stop fucking reading it so the library doesn't have to pay her money. I am a transgender librarian and I am not allowed to not replace old damaged HP books, people read them so we need to have them on our shelves, and what she does with the money doesn't factor into it.

STOP READING HARRY FUCKING POTTER.

I used to be into it! In-depth character analysis, wizard rock, irl quidditch, but when she outed herself as a piece of shit, I couldn't support it anymore!

ASK YOUR LIBRARY FOR OTHER BOOKS TO READ AND STOP READING HARRY FUCKING POTTER.

[steampowerednarwhal]

The (Un)official Tumblr Census 2026

This census was not written by and is not endorsed or sponsored by or affiliated with @staff in any way whatsoever. Your personal data will not be gathered by this census beyond your responses to the polls. Participating in the census is voluntary, but strongly encouraged.

[steampowerednarwhal]

1. Please select your age

< 18

19-30

31-40

41-50

51-60

60>

Voting ended onAug 5

[steampowerednarwhal]

2. Where do you live?

North/Central America (Outside the United States)

The United States

South America

Western Europe

Eastern Europe

Middle East/North Africa

Sub-Saharan Africa

North/Central Asia

Indian Subcontinent

East/Southeast Asia

Oceania/Polynesia

Voting ended onAug 3

[steampowerednarwhal]

3. Describe your living situation

Live with parent(s)/guardian(s)

Live with other relative(s)

Live with partner(s)

Live with friend(s)/roommate(s)

Live alone

Homeless/unhoused

Other

Voting ended onAug 5

[steampowerednarwhal]

4. Describe your employment status

Unemployed

In part/full time education

Working part/full time

Both working and in education

Self-employed/Freelance

Other

Voting ended onAug 5

[steampowerednarwhal]

5. Which religion do you follow?

Agnostic

Atheist/irreligious

Buddhism

Christianity

Hinduism

Islam

Judaism

No specific religious beliefs

Other religion(s)

Prefer not to answer/Results

Voting ended onAug 5

[steampowerednarwhal]

6. Describe your gender identity

Cis man

Cis woman

Trans man

Trans woman

Nonbinary

Other gender (s)

Prefer not to answer/Results

Voting ended onAug 5

[steampowerednarwhal]

7. Describe your sexual identity

Straight

Gay man

Lesbian

Asexual

Bisexual

Pansexual

Queer

Attracted to multiple/all genders

Other

Prefer not to answer/Results

Voting ended onAug 5

[steampowerednarwhal]

8. Where would you place yourself on the traditional left-right political spectrum?

Far Left

Left Wing

Centrist

Right Wing

Far Right

Voting ended onAug 5

[steampowerednarwhal]

9. When did you join Tumblr?

Pre 2010

2011-2015

2016-2020

2021-2025

2026

Voting ended onAug 5

[steampowerednarwhal]

10. How would you rate the (Un)official Tumblr Census?

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 star

0 stars

Voting ended onAug 5

[canonkiller]

I just think everyone should take a moment to consider the question "what is your visual shorthand for cruelty?" and then follow it up with a critical "and who taught you that?"

specific examples include but are not limited to

why is an evil timeline character design disabled? (why do the heroes go through equally punishing battles and never lose an arm, a leg, an eye?)

why are the futuristic scifi terrorists uniformly darker skinned? (why are the heroes so much lighter?)

why is the greedy boss fat? (why are the heroes skinny?)

why is the criminal mastermind heavily scarred? (why is the brooding, traumatized hero unscathed?)

why is the predatory creep a bearded person in a dress and makeup? (why are none of the heroes trans women?)

who taught you that this is how things are?

how long do you plan on repeating it?

[canonkiller]

guys the point is "reflect on how you have learned bigotry through exposure and you parrot it in your own works and in the fandoms you engage with without self awareness" not "tell me, specifically, what random motifs you think are evil"

[canonkiller]

on the flipside, to everyone adding notes about hooked noses, turbans + headscarves, nonwhite features and cultural clothing in general, mental and physical disorders, and surely others I've missed in recollection: you are entirely right and should say it.

[whitepeopletwitter]

[lorem64]

I’m so confused why he would think cookie dough would give him salmonella??? What parent told him this. There’s no chicken in there!

[ankaa-avarshina]

Two words: Raw eggs.

[lorem64]

?? What kind of world do you live in where Raw eggs carry salmonella or are in anyway unsafe

[ankaa-avarshina]

Don’t ask me, ask them Americans. I’m an Asian just passing the word on

[phantoms-lair]

*deep breath* Though the risk is small, raw eggs can carry samonella.

MORE THREATENINGLY Raw wheat can carry E. Coli. However, if you don’t mind making your own cookie dough, you can easily make it safely.

Take your standard recipe. Omit the eggs. Eggs serve as a binding agent to hold the cookie together. Since we’re eating the dough raw, that’s not needed. Take the flour, put it in a pan and bake it at 350 for 7 minutes. Any E. Coli is now dead.

Just mix the rest of the ingredients together as the recipe is called for and BAM, perfectly safe edible cookie dough.

[crayyola-deactivated20220827]

Thank u so fucking much for this wisdom

[antique-scarecrow]

wait you’re telling my i can get E, Coli just FROM EATING FLOUR straight from the bag???

[kingantlion-deactivated20231130]

Why..why are you eating flour straight from the bag?

[chekhovs-raygun]

e. coli generally transfers to food from rodents, bugs, and dirt. flour is processed from grain in facilities that have all those things in em, and isn’t heat treated before it gets to you. there’s a certain amount of cleaning the process machines that *should* be happening, but you the consumer can’t track if your particular bag came from a facility that got inspected lately, and even if it did, a rat might have run over the bagging machine right afterwards anyway.

so yeah all flour has some amount of poop germs in it. don’t eat it raw.

[roseschmits]

My beautiful porcelain creatures 💕

Available for purchase on www.roseschmits.com

Free UK shipping, worldwide shipping available

[most-precious-garbage]

@elodieunderglass

[elodieunderglass]

Thank you for sharing with me ❤️

[cto10121]

Oh, it’s even better than that.

What happened was the lease to The Theatre (actual name) was coming to an end, and the asshole landlord Giles Allen refused to extend it. He even tried to argue that since he owned the land, he also owned The Theatre itself (see: asshole).

So the Burbages and/or Shakespeare came up with a very clever solution: While they did not own the land The Theatre was on, they did in fact own The Theatre itself. So they hired people to dismantle The Theatre in Shoreditch on the sly and take the pieces to set up a new one in Southwark.

Across the Thames River.

In the winter when the Thames was frozen solid.

During Christmas.

The plan was successful, and they reconstructed their new playhouse by the summer of 1599: The Globe, now famous for being the home of Shakespeare’s later plays, from Henry V or Julius Caesar on.

Definitely one of the most badass moments in Shakespeare’s actual life.

[990000]

simongerman600

[brunhiddensmusings]

i was going to say ‘i have no idea what to do with this information’ but then i realized its a handy guide to generate fake words that sound english

[holdup-andrememberthetime]

“What to do with this information”: kick ass at hangman

[dragonanarchist1155]

Also useful for simple codebreaking and decoding an unhashed simple letter cypher.

[cannibalcaprine]

the rocky wastes…