Q: How were clothes key to the formation of your own personal identity?
MATT: I remember for my graduation from high school my older brother gave me his leather jacket, which was my favorite thing in the world. He gave it to me in June. I went into my room, put it on, and basically waited for fall. My brother was so cool, and because I was wearing his jacket, I was cool too.
— From Matt Damon's interview for The Advocate (January 2000).
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Ben Affleck candid in the 1989 yearbook.
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[My eternal gratitude goes to the amazing mattfleck.memes on TikTok for noticing their clothes in these photos. Find my ravings about this under the cut.]
Like, how insane is this? And that we have photographic evidence of it?
Given their history of clothes sharing, it's not surprising that they'd wear the same jacket. We've seen them do it before. But this is not just any jacket. This was Matt's cool older brother leather jacket: Matt's "favorite thing in the world". Something that he identifies as important in shaping his personal identity, because wearing it made him feel "cool" like his brother.
He loved it so much he borrowed it for his yearbook portrait. This is how he wanted to be remembered. And then that summer Kyle gives him the jacket as a graduation gift. It is finally his. This piece of clothing that gives him so much comfort and confidence. Precisely what he'll need as he starts a new stage in his life: going off to university. And Harvard no less! That place with the stuck up kids, not like us townies. Now Matt will somehow be amongst enemy ranks, feeling like an outsider. But cloaked in his brother's leather jacket — now his — there's nothing that can make him feel small. With the confidence that jacket inspires in him, there's nowhere he can't go, nothing he can't do. Matt loves it so much he wears it all Summer and just waits for Fall.
But then there's Ben. Ben who's staying behind in high-school. And even if Matt is only a 5-minute walk away, it's not exactly the same thing. Matt's not there anymore. But then, sometime in that year, Ben's photographed wearing Matt's leather jacket. And he wore it often enough to show up in a candid photo in what wasn't even his own yearbook. This jacket that was Matt's favorite thing in the world, something he waited all summer to wear. This invaluable gift of confidence, of feeling good in his own skin. And he chooses to give it to Ben. He coats him with this gift, so Ben can feel cool and confident too. So Matt is there with him even when he's not.
jabercoll replied to your post “A Short List of Shenanigans My Parent’s Dog Has Engaged In:”
I just shared this with Facebook without considering an ask. Uhm...do you mind?
Ok, here’s the deal:
I’m currently unemployed, moving across the state and looking for work so my Ko-Fi and Paypal linked at the bottom of the funnier posts I make are LITERALLY my only income. Once we’re moved in I’ll get my Patreon set up. So I like it when people reblog my work or share it with thier friends BUT:
1. LINK BACK TO MY BLOG OR EITHER OF THOSE INCOME SITES PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE I REALLY NEED THAT
2. You can do so via embedded links in FB, or by adding the links in your post. If you want to share something on twitter my account there is @CryptidChicken, and I can link a specific post there for you to share.
3. Don’t just screenshot and not link back. That’s fucking rude and theft.
4. Asks before sharing are always appreicated, and I will Very Probably say yes, but there’s also a chance there’s a reason I don’t want it on a particular site.
If you see my content floating around unsourced pls tell me and tell that poster to link back, but be polite about it, Ok?
5. If you’re a “Writer” for a large commecial media site LOOKING AT YOU BUZZFEED you can probably do better than screenshotting people on tumblr. I’ve sent cease and desist notices to sites like this before and by god I’ll send one to your boss too. Hire me or make your own content.
I’m not mad at you and don’t feel bad if you did it wrong- posts are always editable and I appreciate you asking now.
Also if you’ve ever gotten a tepid chortle out of this blog and wanted to toss a buck my way I’d really appreciate that because IDK where I’m getting grocery money this month.
there are certain things I’ve made that thrill me. Just, honestly, they bring my such joy and a sense of accomplishment, but more than that, a sense that I’ve said something I thought was really important. And usually, that I’ve done it well.
often times, these are not broadly received (I started to say, ‘well received,’ but that’s not true. The people who interact with them are generally very positive, it’s only that there aren’t many of them.)
my question is : what is the ‘solution’ to this perceived problem? Should I talk them up every now and again? Should I accept that they missed and, if inspired, try to make the same point in a better way? What is a lesson to take from this?
with notable exceptions (mainly, when I’m tired and stressed) I don’t necessarily feel any lasting BADNESS that this happens. I know popularity is impossible to predict and even more so to manufacture. But I do think I executed something well, and I want to share it with people.
to be clear, the question here isn’t should I give up. I never have. I doubt I will. Its the questions above, and then…
If u ever see me reblogging stolen/reposted art without the credit and explicit permission of the artist.
Or if u ever see me reblogging ai stuff.
Let me know, please? I try and be mindful and keep my eyes open, but sometimes its also 3am and im just scrolling and filling up my queue and something slips through the cracks.
I wont mind if u tell and just delete and we can still be friends and all UwU
