ghost

this is just for anything i like ♡ (but mostly anime)

[thistlepickle]

happy disability pride month to custas, qifrey, tartah, and beldaruit btw

[briarborealisart]

ive been thinking about how tartah absolutely didn't trust anyone but especially not qifrey with custas. and coco did. and it's because qifrey is (and im saying this with love) deeply fucked up in the head and a Liar. and tartah has seen that side of him frequently. like, especially with the recent anime episodes it's clearly emphasized that qifrey is specifically a liar and manipulative to/about tartah and nolnoa.

it's also colored (ha) by tartah's experiences with witches in general. they couldn't even get over his silvereyes, how are they going to treat custas? i love that tartah goes to the brimmed caps. it makes perfect sense. he's an outcast and deeply distrustful of authority and it's for a reason. he frequently forgets he's technically a witch. i think he's going to be just as wary of the brimmed caps but that's the reason why he went. he didn't trust them with custas. he didn't trust anyone with custas.

coco though. the scene where coco decides that qifrey is a trustworthy adult and asks for help. it's deeply deeply powerful. she knows that qifrey has his own agenda but she trusts that agenda isn't cruelty. he treats her kindly and with the same respect as any other witch even though she's an outsider. she knows that part is sincere. she trusts that he will do The Right Thing, not just what people Say is the right thing. if it weren't for qifrey's subtle manipulations and constant dwelling in gray areas she Wouldn't have trusted him. where tartah finds suspicion, she finds connection. it's insane to me.

witch hat atelier is a story about how Right and Wrong are always more complicated than you think, and sometimes the best thing you can be instead is Kind.

[lostenzz]

You would find me at the beach, in every life, through every door.. ✦

[stahsm]

Overlock Stitch by @clothes_reetzy

[thatisuseful]

Damn, that's useful

[fluidstatick]

Finally a hand sewing tutorial on a hemline that isn't just the ladder stitch! the ladder stitch disappears when you tighten it, but it's not meant for hemlines because it breaks really easily! The overlock stitch is more stable, so it holds much longer, and it won't pucker or warp the fabric!

[vaguely-concerned]

the way qifrey is quietly characterized in both the manga and the anime by how he interacts with the girls physically, especially the way he holds himself while he's carrying them or pulling them out of danger.

for all the mileage the story gets out of the tension around what qifrey's real motives ultimately are, you can tell how much he loves these kids by how he holds them with such infinite protective gentleness and instinctively shields them with his body when something dangerous is happening. he's got lots of other things wrong with him, but that's never really in doubt if you pay attention. like the vibes are undeniably sus but he betrays himself by his gentle hands

[insearchofsomething]

Is this anything. behold spoilerless propaganda to watch and read witch hat atelier. go. go do it right now. do it

[acheykai]

// CONTENT WARNING FOR BLOOD //

Witch Hat Atelier Manga Spoilers!

Thinking about Qifrey discribing the ink from the Silverwood tree as it's 'literal blood' and brushbuddies looove ink!

[yumeka-sxf]

The Twiyor goodness continues 🥲

First thought that came into my head after finishing this chapter was that the latter part had some parallels to the end of the mole hunt arc; in both cases, Loid not only comes home exhausted from a mission, but his interactions with Yor - that is, him being forced to acknowledge his feelings about her, ends up pushing him to his limits.

In the mole hunt arc, he realizes that he refused to shoot Yuri because it would make Yor sad. While he doesn't explicitly say this, it's obvious that he considers his actions of not shooting Yuri when it was important for his mission, a weakness.

In this chapter, he realizes his confusion about how he truly feels about Yor. Again, he doesn't explicitly say it because, well, that's just how he is, but it's clear he's conflicted about her role in his mission, and ultimately, his own feelings.

Then of course, we have Yor telling Loid that she's happiest when she's able to help him. In the mole hunt arc, she expressed this by doing the chores and such the next day so he could rest, while in this chapter, she helped support him while they walked back home.

It's interesting how Loid seems a bit less open to acknowledging his feelings in this chapter than in the mole hunt arc. While in the latter, he at least admitted to himself that he has a weakness, but in this chapter, as soon as he starts debating about whether Yor is a help or a hindrance to his mission, he shifts the blame for everything onto himself, saying that he wasn't perfect enough, etc (exactly what Yor doesn't want him to be).

If we look back at everything that happened in this arc, namely, him putting himself in danger to protect Yor and also telling the SSS officer that he loves her (without any deception apparently), such uncomfortable feelings must have been a lot for his emotional constipation to deal with. So at this point, when he's on the verge of collapsing, it was easiest for him to default to everything going wrong because of his incompetence as a spy rather than to truly confront his feelings about Yor. But of course, that can of worms is fully open now, so I'm sure he'll have to reflect on it again one way or another...something for him to think about while in the hospital after this 😅

Speaking of which, we had two character deaths in this chapter. Tragic.

(Yuri lost his teeth again too, lol. He really should have a dentist look into that condition)

There were some good tidbits in the Japanese version of this chapter. Firstly was Chloe calling Yor "onee-san." While it's a term used for your older sister (Yuri calls Yor a more casual version, "nee-san") it can also be used to address a young woman, kind of like "miss." I'm glad that Chloe seems to like Yor after their first meeting!

The word that Yor uses when she tells Yuri she wants to "cuddle" with Loid is "icha icha," the same word that Anya always uses when the says "Papa and Mama are flirting" 😂 It means a variety of things in this context - "necking, flirting, cuddling, etc."

Yor dodging the darts without even having to think about it, she's just like 😑 And I knew it wouldn't feel like more than a mosquito bite to her!

I really thought Yuri was gonna get shot by Loid here. But in the end, it was Yor who took him down!

Speaking of Yuri, I like that he kept his development from the previous chapters and didn't revert back to hating Loid again.

I want to say that this is officially the end of the TV station/house party arc or whatever we want to call it, but I've been wrong about that for a few weeks, so who knows! I don't think we'll actually see Loid going to the hospital like Martha said, and him collapsing was just an unserious gag to end the arc with. But who knows? Maybe we'll get a short mission or something with Loid having another flashback in the hospital? Regardless, the next new chapter isn't until July 5th. Typically Endo doesn't take breaks between arcs unless something unexpected happens, so that makes it more likely we'll be starting a new arc next time.

Anyway, quite a lot happened in this arc that will affect the future of the series: Loid saying that he loves Yor (speaking the truth, if we're supposed to believe the SSS officer's assessment), Yor getting more comfortable being physically intimate with Loid, Yuri witnessing Loid's love for Yor firsthand, Chloe and other SSS people meeting Loid and Yor...it will certainly be interesting to see where all this goes!

[atelier-of-witches]

I've spoken before on here about Coco and Qifrey's dynamic, but a fascinating part of their dynamic which I think is underappreciated is the way their relationship — and the way others view their dynamic — really speaks to childhood trauma, and the way people tend to view those who have suffered intense trauma (particularly during childhood).

"Hurt people hurt people" is a relatively well known stigmatizing phrase which states that those who suffered some form of abuse or trauma are much more likely to enact that same trauma upon others. "The cycle of abuse" is a misused term which people tend to use in order to state the same thing. Traumatized people are inherently dangerous, and traumatized people *will* end up harming others — particularly children.

These are common stigmas that surround survivors, and they're stigmas we can see reflected in WHA when characters like Olruggio and Beldaruit show concern over Qifrey's relationship with Coco.

What makes their dynamic so special is the fact that, in all honesty, Qifrey is the best person to take care of Coco considering that he's the only person who can truly understand what she's going through.

WHA takes these common sentiments and disproves them. Qifrey's trauma doesn't make him a danger to Coco — his trauma is what allows him to connect with her, and provide her the comfort she truly needs during such a difficult period of her life.

Despite the concerns of those around them, Qifrey's experience with severe childhood trauma surrounding the Brimhats is exactly what has allowed him to help Coco time and time again

It's such a compassionate view of a group of people that are normally dismissed as being inherently dangerous, and I think that's a really important dynamic to have in this series.

[the-hokage-of-peace]

One of the funniest and most endearing things about is that he is able to call himself out in real time.

Like he’ll try to tease someone and then immediately implicate himself in the process.

"Pot, meet kettle."

Sir 😭💀

But the thing is—it’s not JUST funny.

It says something truly important about his character: Kakashi never really acts like he’s above other people.

Despite being one of the strongest ninja alive, despite being Hokage, despite being famous and respected, he still talks and thinks like a very human, self-aware person who fully recognizes his own flaws and contradictions.

He doesn’t carry himself like:

"I am above others."

He carries himself like:

"Unfortunately, I too am an idiot."

And if i am honest, that’s part of what makes him feel so uniquely real.

Even in the novels, there’s this recurring theme where he realizes that no matter how important he becomes, he still worries about stupid things, still gets embarrassed, still gets teased by the people around him.

And I think that’s important, because Kakashi’s humility—outside of the trauma and guilt he carries for years—isn’t self-hatred.

It’s emotional honesty.

He knows he’s capable, but he also knows he can be ridiculous sometimes.

And when he’s like that?

A little silly, awkward, self-aware, endearing?

That’s absolute cinema.

[movementnudge]

Movement nudge!

X

[atlaculture]

Do fire nation ppl actually worship fire/agni? Cuz the vedas actually also worshipped fire and a god called agni. Does that mean fire nation practices early Hinduism/vedas

It's hard to say. We only see the word agni used in their name for honor duels (Agni Kai), with agni (अग्नि) meaning "fire" in Sanskrit and kai (会) meaning "social gathering" in Japanese. The fact that "kai" refers to pleasant and non-violent forms of interaction leads me to think that Agni Kais were originally more ceremonial duels meant to express piety to the deity Agni. However, by the Hundred Year War period, it seems that the religious ceremony had evolved/been corrupted to become a form of conflict resolution with legal ramifications.

The impression I get of the post-Sozin Fire Nation is that traditional religiosity seems to be heavily discouraged. The Fire Sages seem to exist only to maintain ancient temples and conduct ceremonies; we don't see them present in any important meetings, so they presumably don't hold much real power in Fire Nation society. We see the children of the elites are taught to pledge their allegiance to the Fire Lord at the beginning of each day (or maybe even at the start of each class period), which implies that the position has developed a cult of personality that supersedes any religion in the country. The one village in the Fire Nation that seems to follow any sort of deity religion, Jang Hui (The Painted Lady village), is literally marginalized and mistreated by the Fire Nation authorities.

As for the Fire Nation of the past, it's possible they once worshipped Agni. It's worth noting that Agni is also worshipped in Buddhism as a minor deity, as well as in early Hinduism. Of course, Buddhism descends from Hinduism, so it still ultimately comes back to the Vedas. Especially with many aspects of the Fire Nation possessing a really strong Southeast Asian influence, it's reasonable to assume the Fire Nation's religious history might have went:

Early Hinduism-equivalent > State-Sponsored Buddhism-equivalent > Imperial Cult

I think it's very possible that there are small pockets of the Fire Nation that still practice an Early Hinduism-equivalent, though they probably did so in secret during Ozai's reign.

[ongoing-catastrophe]

We know from the Fire Sages and Aangs memory that dancing was something significant in Fire Nation culture before the war, and given the obvious significance of the Dragon Dance and the Agni Kai and even just dance as a form of social gathering.....could the Agni Kai have started out as a ceremonial dance?

Here me out. You mention the South/South East Asian influences in Fire Nation culture. Well within the Hindu tradition, Kalaripyuttu (the oldest martial art) and Bharatnattyam (a form of classical dance) are often refered to as brother-sister disciplines. They are said to have evolved from each other and the practise of one improves the other, and both (but especially Bharatnatyam) can be considered an act of worship.

(Also dance and martial arts often have complimentary evolutions, which is very cool to me)

Ancient Fire Nation society, where dance and martial arts are seen as complimentary and intertwined, where the Agni Kai is something akin to a Capoeira dance circle, and as the society grows mire warlike the dance aspect fall away and the martial aspect remains. Over time it becomes a rite-of-passage ceremonial duel. Except the society keeps hardening, and soon it stops being a cereminial rite of passage and instead becomes a show of skill and strength, a way to prove that you are worthy of your position.

And of course, Sozin comes along and dials up the "honor" aspect up to a hundred (especially considering the Fire Natiin borrows many elements from Imperial Japan) to the point where losing an Agni Kai no longer means you arent ready for the position you were vying for but instead a deep shame. Its a change that makes the existing heirarchy much more rigid, and rewards good fighters with high government positions regardless of other qualifications, and makes it much harder to question authority.

[atlaculture]

@ongoing-catastrophe

This a great theory. Really good insight into how a religious ceremony could be twisted to suit the needs of an oppressive society. It's also worth noting that the martial art that inspired firebending, Northern Shaolin, is the most influenced by Buddhist philosophy of all the martial arts featured in the show--- The other martial arts being Tai Chi, Hung Gar, Chu Gar, and Baguazhang.

Firebending descending from dance would also explain why Zuko loves to incorporate breakdancing into his fighting style:

I'd like to think the original Agni Kai ceremonies were once an all-day event that would feature both dances and ceremonial battles as a display devotion and respect for Agni and other spirits.

For example, there's a Thai dance known as Fawn Tian (กวางเทียน) or "The Candle Dance". According to Wikipedia, the female dancers pay homage to the divinities that protect the eight cardinal points of the Earth, asking them to pass through the candlelight. This dance could also represent a firebender's self-control and discipline over fire, as it takes a great deal of concentration and restraint to dance while maintaining a consistently sized flame in each hand. Think about how much Aang struggled to maintain just one flame with two hands.

The ceremonial battles could also be known as war dances (wai khru ram/ไหว้ครูรำ). Imagine witnessing the sword battle above, but the blades are on fire. Being able to pull off a performance would be a display of both appreciation for fire and skill [by not accidentally burning your partner].

I'd like to think that the pre-Sozin Fire Nation valued precision and versatility just as much as power, when it came to firebending. It symbolized how the Fire Nation's values were once much more balanced.

[callese]

refseek.com

www.worldcat.org/

link.springer.com

http://bioline.org.br/

repec.org

science.gov

pdfdrive.com

[growing-yet-into-magic]

Worldcat is my bestie and my one true love!! Not only does it tell you what library a book is at, but it also price compares different used book sites against each other for easy view! It's how I got Tarot For the Master for $10!!

[growing-yet-into-magic]

Oh, and since I have your attention: z-library (books and textbooks) and sci-hub (gatekept scientific journal articles.) I just ripped a textbook for class off z-library and snatched a required reading from sci-hub. Life is good and education should be accessible at every stage and station of life.

[mckitterick]

information wants to be free

[movementnudge]

Movement nudge, for hands and wrists!

X

[atlaculture]

Do fire nation ppl actually worship fire/agni? Cuz the vedas actually also worshipped fire and a god called agni. Does that mean fire nation practices early Hinduism/vedas

It's hard to say. We only see the word agni used in their name for honor duels (Agni Kai), with agni (अग्नि) meaning "fire" in Sanskrit and kai (会) meaning "social gathering" in Japanese. The fact that "kai" refers to pleasant and non-violent forms of interaction leads me to think that Agni Kais were originally more ceremonial duels meant to express piety to the deity Agni. However, by the Hundred Year War period, it seems that the religious ceremony had evolved/been corrupted to become a form of conflict resolution with legal ramifications.

The impression I get of the post-Sozin Fire Nation is that traditional religiosity seems to be heavily discouraged. The Fire Sages seem to exist only to maintain ancient temples and conduct ceremonies; we don't see them present in any important meetings, so they presumably don't hold much real power in Fire Nation society. We see the children of the elites are taught to pledge their allegiance to the Fire Lord at the beginning of each day (or maybe even at the start of each class period), which implies that the position has developed a cult of personality that supersedes any religion in the country. The one village in the Fire Nation that seems to follow any sort of deity religion, Jang Hui (The Painted Lady village), is literally marginalized and mistreated by the Fire Nation authorities.

As for the Fire Nation of the past, it's possible they once worshipped Agni. It's worth noting that Agni is also worshipped in Buddhism as a minor deity, as well as in early Hinduism. Of course, Buddhism descends from Hinduism, so it still ultimately comes back to the Vedas. Especially with many aspects of the Fire Nation possessing a really strong Southeast Asian influence, it's reasonable to assume the Fire Nation's religious history might have went:

Early Hinduism-equivalent > State-Sponsored Buddhism-equivalent > Imperial Cult

I think it's very possible that there are small pockets of the Fire Nation that still practice an Early Hinduism-equivalent, though they probably did so in secret during Ozai's reign.

[tonysopranobignaturals-deactiva]

[tonysopranobignaturals-deactiva]

I love this post because the replies are like "for anyone who doesn't know what nestle did, they benefited from [insert human rights violation here]" but nestle has done SO many fucked up things you get a different topic in every comment

[breakingboob]

Nestle has:

Drained water from places suffering from drought for absolute pennies.

Made African mothers dependent on their milk formula, which they gave for free, until their milk dried up. Then they required them to purchase it, mothers could not afford it, mixed in too little to fulfill nutrient needs, and mixed it with polluted water. Children died.

Used slavery to produce their cocoa.

Pushed for water to be considered a “want” not a “need” and is at the forefront of arguments that water is not a human right.

Poisoned Chinese infants with melamine in their milk formula.

Demanded Ethiopia pay a debt owed to Nestle, during a FAMINE.

Price-fixed food items.

Contributed to deforestation for their cocoa farming.

The worst thing is, Nestle owns TONS of other brands, making it difficult to avoid for certain products.

[theeretblr]

Nestlé is LITERALLY the largest food company in the world and have one of the worst track records. Pls avoid their products if you can

[nyaahilism]

Flint, Michigan

[creacher-art]

They looooove draining springs and then hopping onto the next one.

They are diabolical.

[erlie]

Me and my friends were talking about how Zuko and Mai are just the worst canon relationship in AtLA, and decided that Zuko would find his true passion with Sokka.

I haven't seen the movie, so this happens at some unspecified time at an unspecified place.