Pip they/them or whatever you want my dears,
30 (but I have an almost 3 year old )
... i feel like that explains so much about the ecclectic content of this blog ...
Autistic, Synesthesia, and Queer Writer Blog, safe-ships only please,
AO3 Puzzle_with_Infinite_Pieces
This has been updated slightly, update is above the cut
I've got a handful of new followers from a ton of different fandoms so, I'm gonna go ahead and make one of them nifty pinned posts.
Hi! I'm Pip, short for Peregrine like the bird. (Or the hobbit, but with the "e," not without, because I was sick of battling autocorrect and I chose my name before you had the option to you know ... fix that.)
I'm an ADHD autistic, transmasculine poet and an actor. I'm also a parent. If you want to read more, feel free to hit the little "Keep reading" below!
Small Update: Since this blog is starting to get more asks/ traction in general with the new reboot of Sofia the First: Royal Magic:
I am an ADHD-er and autistic with a very hectic offline life.
If I forget about an ask, a reblog thread, a comment conversation, or what have you:
Please, do not assume that means I am uninterested in what we were talking about, no longer invested in the project I started with you, or anything of that matter.
Sometimes, it can take me upwards of several hours to read something that is only a few paragraphs because I don't get silence until after 11 PM my time. Comes with the territory of having a kid, and I would change nothing, but it does make it hard to read and reply to things.
If you're still interested in my response to something that I forget about, tag me in the thread in a few days, and I'll try to come back to it. However, know that I do read everything and enjoy and appreciate everything people say IMMENSELY!
But, honestly, I think there might be a few things I've just *lost* in my "activity" over the last couple of days because there is so many things I'm getting tagged in/ asked about/ so many of my posts are getting reblogged.
Which, as an Enneagram 3, I am EATING UP the attention.
Y'all ... This is amazing, and I have never felt so overjoyed and touched by all of your sweet comments, questions, and praise. /gen
I just also don't want anyone to be offended if I don't get back to you because my peanut brain is raising a peanut, and I am going to be CRAZY busy this Summer into the early Fall in my personal life.
Therefore, if you really want me to see something, send it as a DM or Ask. Those I can usually reply to more easily at least with a cursory message.
Additionally, I also get obsessed with things I'm working on, especially when asked by folks to do things I find interesting, and I WILL talk about every minute detail I learned while working on it.
It's a hazzard of the two different spices in my spice blend ...
But, this is my update! I hope y'all are doing really, really well! :D
I occasionally talk about politics, religion, and other crap I care about, but I'm mostly here to discuss my fandoms and the fandoms my young kiddo (Squish) has gotten me into.
A lot of what I watch right now is Sesame Street and Disney Jr. (Particularly Sofia the First and Doc McStuffins on Disney Jr. because Squish likes those most. Got some banger music and some decent characters. Stuffy the dragon reminds me of my Figment plush from when I was little, and Squish has me in our Cedric and Sofia costumes more often than they don't of late.)
That said, because my kid has cast us in those roles, please keep that one ship in particula far, FAR away from me. I've always been pretty *personally* against proshipping in fandom for my own reasons, but that one in particular is just a big ol' nope! I don't wanna look at it.
When you're dancing with your kid in costumes like once a week because dress up is their favorite game, it's a *real* hard association to remove. Therefore, please, tag it so I do not have to see it. You don't tag it? It's an immediate block. I don't wanna know. Not about it. Not for me.
As a parent, my tolerance for bs that I don't want to see is in the fires of Hades. When I was younger, I had more "tolerance" because I was taught I had to in order to be a "good" fandomite. BEGONE!
My blog is my fun time. I get precious freaking little of it. You disturb my fun. I block you. You disturb me? I block you. It is my right to curate my content as I see fit. You go slink to your corner of the internet. Leave me in mine. Plain and simple.
That said, I'm currently working on a pretty extensive Sofia the First fic series for Squish when they're older that I'm posting on AO3 for others to partake in. However, the work, in the end, is for Squish when they're older.
Weirdly enough, if anyone is old-old guard tumblr, I am the same tookishcombeferre that disappeared off the face of the earth and wrote "What My Mother Would Have Wanted" from the Beauty and the Beast fandom eons ago. The thing *is* done. It's still my most read and popular work on AO3.
So, if you also call Lefou from Beauty and the Beast "Étienne," think Stanley is the younger brother of Plumette/ is the son of Mme Garderobe and Maestro, and/or think Stanley is non-binary, you can hold me personally responsible. I came up with those hcs alongside a couple of buddies in that fandom back when the live-action was in theaters. (Yes. I'm that old.)
I've always been a Disney dude. I love old school animation. 2D in particular. If my username is any indication, I am a huge Les MIz fan. Phantom of the Opera was the first musical I ever saw in person (I was 10.) I've dabbled in Shakespeare mostly from the English major side of things, but I want to perform it. One of my buddies and I tried and failed to finish playing Undertale on a laptop that kept short circuiting. We eventually watched a playthrough of it online. My spouse and I are currently playing through True Pacifist on our Switch and have been ... for two years ... we just met Mad Dummy/ Mew Mew and hung out with Napsa ... after two years ... (Update: Now currently stuck somewhere in Hotland after I went rogue one day when I was sick and started playing it by myself.)
I've been reading classic horror since I was about 11? 12? Maybe younger? (I definitely should not have been doing that, but my parents also handed me John Steinbeck's "Grapes of Wrath" at about 12 1/2 and said "This is good for you." Still actively traumatized by the ending to this day. Not a book for young children or pre-teens. Absolutely not. Steinbeck is most notable for his descriptive narrative style and he describes something ... very ... a lot ... near the end of that book. I still see that image in my head. I'm 30. I only read it once at 12 1/2.) However, none of that stopped me from becoming an academic at heart.
My degree is in English with a focus on psychological theory with dips into some sociology and some history. I once had hopes to study how World War 1 (particularly how the topography of trench warfare) influenced the psychological development of Lord of the Rings based on how Tolkien uses similar "trench" or "trapped" feelings in settings to develop character.
However, the thesis never really made it past the first section of the abstract phase. (I was exploring how Peregrin Took's social age affected his ability to process trauma before I made a career pivot.)
My end goal was to talk about how traumatic experiences appear in fantasy literature (particularly those geared at children and young adults) and assessing how they handle trauma, what lessons that leaves the reader with, and what that tells us about what society valued at that time. I was starting with Rings. I was hoping to end with the sort of "fantasy genre" as a whole to bring fantasy literature into the academic conversation and validate it as "academic" writing. I had planned to start with The Inklings and how WW1 experiences affected the modern fantasy/ sci-fi/ science fantasy genre as a whole and grow outward from there.
(This is something I can talk about at great length even if I never finished my papers.)
So, every once in a while, I'll post some kind of crazy analysis of something - a musical, a book, a children's TV show using one of my old academic theories.
(Ah, Sofia the First through the lens of Just War Theory - how I love you. How unhinged you were. I *still* really want to do that OCD case study about Rabbit from Winnie the Pooh ... you think I'm joking. I have an outline ... somewhere ...)
Currently, I'm a performer. I'm hoping *fingers crossed* to get back into opera. I had some training in high school but after having Squish my voice dropped naturally into the contralto/ tenor range. So, none of my old arias work for me. Interest in the craft is still there, and I miss it desperately.
It's just actually more euphoric for me now.
I'm also a poet. I'm working on some chapbooks/book-books. None are done. Again, if you are old guard and knew my old blog, it was like 99.9% me shouting poetry fragments into the void. Most of it was about coming out.
I freaked out someone was going to find my blog before I was ready to come out. Panicked, and then, you know, casually deleted the whole blog.
Now, I'm old, and I'm being myself on purpose. So, I don't really care anymore?
So, if you too are an 18-20-something year old nervous wreck, don't worry one day you will be a nonplussed 30 year old with developing boundaries! It's great! Usually!
Lastly, I'd once again ask if you're gonna follow and post anything edgy (NSFW) that you tag it please.
I block the tags I don't want to see actively which is, as I mentioned, mostly proshipping and a handful of other things.
This is the internet. I try to hang out in the corners of fandoms and the internet that I find safe, personally. I can't stop anyone from hanging out in the corners of the internet *they're* going to hang out in. I wouldn't poke that bear myself for personal reasons.
But, you do you. I just ask that you tag your crap so I don't have to see it. 'Cause I'm gonna do me.
Over here.
If you read this far, wow.
I'll leave you with these words of parental wisdom:
Play nice in the sandbox.
Don't feed the annons or the trolls anything but sarcasm, and only if you have the spoons.
If you're 18 or less, you have your whole darn life ahead of you.
Go outside. Touch grass. Make crappy doodles. Make terrible fanfictions with horrendous grammar mistakes that will make you blush in 20 years. You're still a child. Enjoy being a kid. You don't get that back. The skin care routine, coffee regimine, stressed out about the state of the world stuff will still be waiting for you in a few years. I *promise.*
Leave the stressing about the state of the world to the folks who can vote and do stuff about it. Read. Learn. Stay in school. Listen to your teachers.
Don't have AI write your papers or read your books. Do that part.
But, like, immediately, as in right now? Go eat a brownie in the grass and enjoy a sunset for me. Maybe blow some bubbles. You'll thank me in an hour. I swear.
Oh. And, respect each other's boundaries (and mine.)
guys. can we do a little reblog game jekyll & hyde style.
describe your version of jekyll & hyde (or any in-universe oc / character) and how they’d get along (or not) with prev’s version. i’ll start ✌️
Henry Jekyll — maybe surprisingly, he’s a psychiatrist. fake as fuck, ain’t NOTHING about this guy good, queue Façade. walking the line between a dick and a charmer. kind of witty & sarcastic, but you can never tell if he means it or if he’s just demeaning. very romantic, but has issues within himself (🏳️🌈 + workaholic) that he needs to get sorted out.
when he created Hyde, he didn’t mind indulging in his “second and worse” self. the one murder is where he had to draw the line though. (then Hyde clocked his shit & basically said: “bro YOU’RE SO FAKE that YOU don’t know who you are. I didn’t kill that guy! dumbass” “then who did?”)
Edward Hyde — he starts off being absolutely pure evil & takes advantage of the fact that, at first, jekyll not remembering the “transformations.” sneaking some of the formula into a flask and an unsuspecting jekyll drinking it. might kill sir danvers because he pisses him off
then he meets a very lovely individual and some of her, combined with the desire to be admired without faking everything, rubs off on him. he’s not good by any means — getting into petty fights at the aforementioned individual’s expense, trampling a girl for funsies, etc. he’s very carefree and a danger to everyone around him + himself, probably some level of self-hatred that might be known as Henry Jekyll, but at least he’s not fake.
and at least he can do good if he wanted to — because if edward wants something, like pre-HJ7 jekyll, he will do everything to achieve it.
( also VERY gluttonous holy shit. my hyde is actually a bit bigger than my jekyll because dude just does not eat. hyde’s also very sexual — almost always shagging some guy in some closet, ironically. shots shots shots shots shots + illegal substances!! hj7 not included )
I’ve lowkey always wanted to turn this version into some kind of piece of theater …
Very much based on the novel by RLS:
Henry Jekyll:
Begins as a young, witty, idealistic transmasculine college student from Scotland who stole his/their dowry money to pay for school, where he befriended Laynon and Utterson. Yet, never revealed his double life.
Sir Danvers takes all of them to a party and teaches them how to woo women where Layon is scared shitless, Jekyll is disgusted by the behavior, and Utterson learns it’s best to “just blend in.”
Slowly, in an effort not to be discovered and outed, Jekyll loses most of his principals and becomes kind of disgusted with himself.
In a last ditch effort to transition completely, he creates the serum HJ7. Leading us to -
Edward Hyde:
Hyde is literally a younger Jekyll - impulsive, idealistic, and a little scatterbrained. (Hence, how he ends up tripping over a small child … he literally doesn’t see said child.)
However, the “uncanny feeling” everyone gets around him is due to his gender non-conforming appearance that Jekyll has learned how to avoid.
“Hyde” - Jekyll uninhibited by Victorian rules - eventually befriends and becomes a beloved member of the community of Soho - the forever queer community of London- and begins to embrace the Scottish identity that Jekyll had abandoned. He also embraces all the ideals and beliefs Jekyll has lost in favor of conforming to the strict beliefs surrounding “goodness” and “masculinity” in Victorian society.
How would they get along with prev’s character/ version:
I do not think they would like each other very much. As much as Jekyll tries to fit in because he/they have to, the part of him that comes out in Hyde, and still very much exists beneath the surface, hates even himself for giving up his hopes and ideals as much as he has in favor of passing himself off as a “good Victorian gentleman.”
In the end, it’s why he fears Hyde. He knows Hyde is actually what is “good” about him, and Jekyll himself is what’s evil.
However, I think both of them would be annoyed by, but not royally pissed off by prev’s Hyde? Like prev said, at least Hyde isn’t fake?
I want to take some liberty with a cosplay to add some details of my own to a cosplay based on a personal connection I have to the character in question that still fits the design of the character and would unite the old design of said character with their reboot.
Do I add the hand embroidery to the back of the cosplay even if it’s not canon compliant but unites the old and new iterations and adds a personal connection to the character? Or do I have to/ should I remain canon compliant completely?
This would affect me having to recreate a completely different outfit/ shorten my shirt sleeves based on the character’s updated look.
I was hoping that, by uniting the two designs, and adding meaningful/ canon inspired embroidery, that I could use my old G1 cosplay while honoring the character’s updated designs.
But, what do you think? Do I just build two separate ones? Or do I do the quirky thing and build the half-breed costume with personal flair?
Squish: *on the subject of "Dad's and Daughter's Day"* You're my dads.
Spouse Unit 1: *after 2.2 seconds ago having been referenced as Greylock* Well ... technically we're just two weird wizard dudes, but we still love you a lot.
Squish: Nooooo! You're my DADS!
Spouse Unit 1 and I: *confused Pikachu faces*
Spouse Unit 1: Wait ... what do you mean?
Squish: My dad died, but now he's back!
Spouse Unit 1: No ... Roland is alive.
Squish: Wait who is that?
Me: *giggles in I'm so right that my kid is probably face blind like me*
Spouse Unit 1: Roland is the King.
Squish: No! What is Sofia's first dad's name?
Both of Us: ooooooh ...
Me: Birk. His name is Birk.
Squish: See! I have both my dads now!
Spouse Unit 1: Which one am I?
Squish: You're Roland. Amma is Birk.
Spouse Unit 1: *to me quietly* You're the dead one.
“The medieval warrior, realizing the consequences of his impulsive act, immediately approached the owner of the drone and offered to pay for the damage.
The owner of the drone was so impressed by the brilliant attack that he suggested organizing a competition for bringing down “dragons” with short spears next year.
Drone owners have another year to develop a unique “dragon-like” design for their flying machines.” (x)
I am 100% cooler with this knowing that the spear-thrower realized “oops maybe I shouldn’t have done that” and tried to make it right, and that the guy who the drone belonged to was cool with it
Rewatching “In Cedric We Trust” and I can’t help but feel like it’s intentional that the famous homage to the “Two Dead Princes” and the Van Gogh Farmer inspired painting are hiding in the background immediately after Cedric bombs on his fun-fact.
Also, these two paintings are literally haunting that entire scene.
The darn Farmer is everywhere. He’s like the eyes of Dr. T J Eckleberg.
Weird thought. Imagine if, sometime shortly after the og StF series, King Magnus heard about Cedric's incredible heroic feat in bringing Sofia out of the amulet. And he's so impressed, and he's like "Roland, every time I visit, this sorcerer of yours impresses me more and more ('Cedric's Apprentice', then Sofia gave him credit for saving the day from Miss Nettle in 'The Enchanted Feast', then he helped in saving the royal schooner in 'Baileywhoops')! I've been in need of a new Royal Sorcerer ever since Greylock betrayed me!"
And he offers to hire Cedric. Not only that, but outright buy him from Roland, as though he's property instead of a person. I hc that there was a time when Royal Sorcerers were basically considered the king's property in some parts of the world, such as Enchancia, and Magnus is disgustingly old-fashioned.
And Magnus offers Roland so much riches in return, but Roland, Miranda, and the kids are having absolutely none of it. Roland firmly tells Magnus that Cedric is more than just their Royal Sorcerer, he's family (much to Magnus's surprise, and he further proves his ignorance by saying "Come now, isn't that a trifle sentimental for a court sorcerer?" Because to him, it's just as silly as a farmer getting emotionally attached to his cow).
And Magnus isn't getting the point, and continues to double his offers ("Come on, I'm being more than generous! Now, this is my final offer.") And Miranda firmly says to Magnus "Why don't we ask Cedric how he feels about going to Rudistan? His wishes matter the most in this because it directly concerns him!"
Magnus complains that that's prepositions, even further proving his ignorance, but the family ignores him.
Cedric tells Magnus he's honored to be thought of so highly, but that his place is with the royal family of Enchancia.
Just seeing this now. It was a wild weekend in my household.
Good wild. But, wild.
My sister got married.
My kiddo had a role in the wedding as did I.
I ended up doing a painting for her that I'm still working on ... life is lifing, very hard. Lol.
But, anyway, *yes.* I love this scenario so much.
This is how I imagine the dialogue between Roland and Cedric going after Miranda's proposal.
****
Roland: *running up the stairs, banging on the door*
Cedric: *oblivious AF, probably making potions or something in the basement*
Roland: *opens the door and runs down the stairs*
Cedric: *staring awkwardly realizing he absolutely did not react to Roland banging on his door*
Roland: *blows out a breath, muttering* ... How do I even begin this?
Cedric: Ummm ... what are you on about?
Roland: *spoken in the most politically correct voice he has used in his life* Well, Magnus wanted to ... hire you?
Cedric: And, I'm assuming you said no?
Roland: *continuing in the same tone* Yes. But, then, he just kept ... err ... increasing the offers?
Cedric: *raises an eyebrow* Go on.
Roland: *getting uncomfortable* Even after Miranda said you were family, Magnus still didn't listen, or really even care. Thus, Miranda finally got Magnus to lay off by offering to have us ... err ... well ... ask you? Directly ... if you wanted to leave.
Cedric: *muttering low under his breath* This would have never happened if Greylock's rebellion had ... never mind. I can't say that. Magnus is the king ... just thankfully, not mine.
Roland: What about a rebellion against Magnus?
Cedric: *trying very hard to be calm, but everything comes out awkwardly* Well ... you see ... this isn't exactly the first time something like this has happened and ... people got angry ... and King Magnus may have made them more angry? ... I don't know all the details exactly. But, people got angry enough to attempt to ... do something ... about it.
Roland: *blinking, very slowly, before becoming horrified* You mean to say he has separated families before? Amongst his servants and staff?
Cedric: *deadpan* Yes. It was quite upsetting to many in Rudistan. I assure you.
Roland: *oblivious to the subtext* Well, I would say so!
Cedric: *smiling, just a little, leaning back on his desk* So, if someone were to have done something about it? You wouldn't blame them?
Roland: *indignantly* Absolutely not!
Cedric: *raising an eyebrow* Weeell, it could be said that not everyone on the Day of the Sorcerers was just throwing a temper tantrum or attempting regicide.
Roland: *confused* Huh?
Cedric: *sighing dramatically* Look. From what I know, it was the only way out of this exact situation you've described that Greylock could piece together quickly. I mean ... if what he told me was true, Slickwell was so desperate to leave he ... did whatever Stars forsaken thing he did to try to flee the country!
Roland: *half to himself, with sudden understanding* Oh ... everything suddenly makes sense now ...
Cedric: *trying not to laugh because Roland, as much as he is loved, is very dense* Mmmm ... yes. Magnus had a rather ... disgruntled staff ... and was most of his peasantry ... it was a whole situation.
Roland: *blinking slowly, processing this*
Cedric: *eyes widening a little, rubbing the back of his head, smiling awkwardly* Yes. Rudistan's situation was rather ... err ... different than ... well ... ah ... hehe ... how did Her Majesty put this the last time someone asked? ... Your having a singular employee "who needed assistance in recovering from going 'half-mad' from isolation that had been only partially been self imposed?"
Roland: *giving a half-laugh, before muttering to himself* She would put it that way.
*Brief pause before Cedric's stupid expression makes Roland actually lose it in a fit of laughter.*
Roland: *composing himself* Well, how are we getting out of this one because I highly doubt that Magnus is going to accept even your "no" to his offer.
Cedric: *grinning mischievously* I'll make him an offer he has to refuse or risk looking like an idiot if he takes it.
Roland: *raising an eyebrow* And, what would that be, my friend?
Cedric: *appearing as innocent as possible* My answer is no unless Greylock can be released to take up my position here.
Roland: *blinking slowly* Isn't Greylock in ... like ... the deepest level of Rudistan's dungeons? And, didn't Magnus swear he'd never, under any circumstances free him?
Cedric: *winking* Like I said, my answer to Magnus is "no." I don't want to leave. Vacation somewhere? Maybe? But, not leave. So, if Magnus decides to insist, even after I refute him, and I phrase my offer like that? Well, he'll simply have to refuse me and let me stay here.
Roland: *grinning, putting his arm over Cedric's shoulder* I like this plan, old friend.
Cedric: When in situations like this as children we used to ask ourselves ...
Together: What Would Tilly Do?
Roland: *with a half-laugh, as they descend the stairs* She really could find a way out of just about anything she didn't want to do.
Cedric: *grumbling* I always envied her ability to do that.
Roland: *muttering* You and me both ... she got away with murder.
Cedric: *deadpaning* I sometimes wonder if not literally ...
*both of them descending into laughter again*
@shychick-52 - up to you whether or not the contingency plan was ever necessary. :)
👨🎤 Name a celebrity you just have no patience for.
The entire Jenner-Kardashian family.
I consider them one unit, and I won't budge on it.
But, specifically, when I think of voting for the "leopard's will eat my face party" there is *one* of them that I think of in particular. I'm so angry at her I won't even use her name.
I'm still thinking about the guy who saw me realize my wheelchair wouldn't fit in the elevator because he (also a wheelchair user) was already inside it and immediately quipped, "This elevator ain't accessible enough for the both of us."
So, in this post, I talked about what makes Cedric a great teacher in RM.
But there's a part in the episode 'Give It a Twirl' which subtly demonstrates an excellent teaching moment with Miss Nettle, and it really caught my eye!
When Sofia and Layla both volunteered to be the leader for the parade- even after she explained there's only one lead scepter, the girls insisted they can take turns with it- Miss Nettle said, "If that's what you want, then go for it." She gave them the lead scepter, and proceeded to leave.
Layla: Wait, you're not going to teach us the moves for the parade?
Miss Nettle: *laughs* No, that's the job of the leader. Sorry- leaders. Ta-ta!
Not only was Miss Nettle allowing them independence in leading the parade by choosing their own moves/routine in the first place (and I believe she would have left it up to them, no matter who the leader was), but she used the unique circumstances with Sofia and Layla to teach them that sharing the leadership position may not be as easy as they think, and even more importantly, leaving them to figure it out on their own. She knew they would no doubt have different ideas, which would likely result in some conflict, and she wanted to see how well they would manage to work together.
She knew what she was doing. Miss Nettle knows Sofia, and she likely had a strong feeling they would figure out a way to work together before the parade. It was obvious the parade was very important to Miss Nettle (including to make her look good, like she said to the girls), so if she really believed they wouldn't be able to handle sharing the job, she wouldn't have allowed it.
I like this episode a lot because of what it highlights in Miss Nettle. She places a lot of trust in their ability to work together as well as their ability to work out any potential differences they might have.
I think her subtle warning about conflict was also a hint as to how they were going to best solve their problem. Like, she knew how conflict avoidant both of them were, and she was gently pressing them to just have the argument instead of trying so hard to be "overly polite."
In the end, Nettle's advice was correct. If the girls had just debated things honestly, the more intense and less civil conflict *likely* could have been avoided. Like, there is a way to politely debate differences in opinion without being crass, but while still making one's point honestly and factually. I do honestly believe Nettle - someone who is actually pretty good at this herself - was trying to nudge them in this direction.
Which, is honestly a really important lesson for these two characters - high masking people pleasers - to learn, and she knew it.
I think this is an additional reason why she would have allowed this to happen.
She wanted Layla and Sofia to experience messy conflict, to learn how to handle differences in opinion, and to learn how to disagree.
In the end, they both end up working together to solve a bigger problem that comes out of their literal inability to just DISAGREE with each other. Each one of them *had* to be "correct" instead of disagreeing and then combining the ideas - the conclusion they come to only AFTER they end up disagreeing.
I think this is so important to young folks - especially young girls // young folks being socialized as femme - to understand. They are raised people pleasers and when confronted with conflict often don't know how to argue on behalf of their own needs without being sort of passive aggressive before becoming aggressive suddenly about it.
Having disagreements is natural, arguing one's side of things is important, but bottling up the emotions leads to literally NOTHING good - as the episode shows. As Nettle foreshadows / tries to help them see early on.
And, I think that's good social emotional education. Because, sometimes all you can give is hints.
Sometimes kiddos really do just have to find out through experience because experience is the better teacher.
If things truly got out of hand in a way that was irreparable, she would have helped them/ one of the other faculty members would have, I'm sure.
But, in the end, the problem caused by their spat pulls them together and out of their heads long enough to fix things and their friendship. And, that is also life. Many a time, though not always, friendships can be repaired/ people can come back together through loss.
So, this episode just has some great writing outside of Nettle's gift of foresight.
But, yes. I love Nettle in this episode. Looking forward to maybe seeing more of her. :)
YES!! 👏👏👏It was SO well-written, and with the kind of brilliant subtlety StF is known for!
And yes, I love how it was their very spat- or the consequences of it- that pulled them together and let them see that working together was the best way forward!
In the upcoming song 'A Little Bit of You and Me', it's obvious Sofia learned this lesson and it'll be up to Devin to learn! I'm curious how the segment will resolve it (and hopefully without repeating themselves too much; I felt like 'Family Picnic' and 'The Green-Eyed Monster' were almost exactly the same episode, as much as I enjoyed them, and it seemed odd to repeat the same lesson- even with different characters- while still in the same season).
I think they are a little different, at least to me? Though, the differences are subtle?
To me, this episode is more about resolving conflicts by highlighting that the conflict itself is important. In many ways, it actually reminds me a lot of how Cedric and Greylock had to duke it out in Baileywhoops in order to learn how to work together more effectively to bring back the schooner.
The emphasis here is on the need for the conflict.
To me, "Family Picnic" is more about establishing Amber's insecurity about her position in the family now that the three of them no longer go to school together. The "Family Picnic" episode was more about comparing abilities between siblings as they attend different programs of study, the different types of skills certain parents might value, how that might make kids feel, etc. To me, "Family Picnic" was actually a lesson for parents even more so than for children.
Love Roland and Miranda, and they are great parents. However, from Amber's POV, there was a lot of praise drifting towards Sofia's magical ability to the point that, upon watching it a few times, it was easy to see WHY she felt overshadowed.
To me, from a parent's perspective, this was a lesson for US about how to make sure each child is valued even when one of the kid's is doing something really amazing in the moment. While James may not look it, he's also bound to have insecurities of his own.
Thus, it's important to make sure that each child really does feel valued and to ensure that focus isn't being poured solely into one kid.
Again, at least, that's what I took from that episode.
"Green Eyed Monster," to me, is more similar to "Family Picnic" than to "Give it a Twirl," however, the focus is different.
This time it's about the effects of what that consistent praise for particular talents in a family *does* to the other child. It shows the lengths they will go to seek out approval from others. It gives a tangible follow up to the lessons shown in "Family Picnic."
As a person who constantly sought to one-up-themselves to gain approval from teachers and my parents via my grades, despite not always being the most naturally gifted student, I may or may not have pushed my health in ways that were dangerous in order to try to get my parents' attention.
Never conjured any glob beasts. But, I did do some pretty stupid things.
For example, I did almost give myself a heart attack by drinking too many Double Shot Espresso drinks in my freshman year of college because I had a "C+" in a Biology class designed to weed out med students ... I was an English major. Long story as to how this even happened.
(Do NOT do this! I say this to provide you wisdom by my dumb experiences NOT to tell you to try it! Self-medicating your ADHD with caffeine is NOT an appropriate use of caffeine. Caffeine is an unregulated drug that can hurt you! Don't be stupid.)
"Green Eyed Monster" takes "Family Picnic" a step further.
If Roland and Miranda weren't so good at seeing that they had been spending a lot of time placing focus on Sofia's magical ability and continued to place favor on her abilities over Amber's, Amber could fall into some of the traps Zane does in "Green Eyed Monster."
Zane, to me, actually feels like a nice cross between having some of James' outward personality traits with some of Amber's insecurities so it kind of fits.
However, Amber would likely respond by both accidentally attempting spells she's not ready for, and pushing herself beyond her limits in an attempt to get the focus she craves and desires.
However, Roland and Miranda - the spiritual equivalents of Bandit and Chili - course correct and fix things before they get out of hand.
Zane's family situation - based on his narration at least - is different. He has always been in Zaria's shadow. So, we get a different point of view. We get to see a different level of desperation, and a slightly different reasoning for doing things.
See, Zane has sort of decided that his primary focus is on getting approval from **his teachers** even more so than his parents. Sure, he mentions them ... if memory serves?
But? In his head?
He actively imagines praise from Cedric and Miss Nettle, not his folks.
Zane is in a completely different headspace than Amber, and the conflicts in "Family Picnic" and "Green Eyed Monster" are pretty different from "Give it a Twirl." Also, the audiences for "Family Picnic" and "Green Eyed Monster" are different. To me, at least, "Family Picnic" is about making sure each child feels valued - talking to parents - where "Green Eyed Monster" is about seeing one's own value beyond what people traditionally praise - talking to the young folks.
I could be completely off base in this, but this is what I see.
'A Little Bit of You and Me' - in regards to the episode where this comes in - I'm sincerely hoping this ends up becoming something about reporting members of group projects who refuse to level with you. That's an important part of self-advocacy in group work. It also lets people in school environments know WHY your projects don't work out. That way you don't all literally have to take the fall for one person being a butt head.
But, again, that's just my hope/ prediction/ plea. We need that lesson more in kids media.
I'm gonna go rogue and recommend a graphic novel that I've been following online for a while that just finished a hot second ago which is "The Glass Scientists."
The three volume graphic novel series is written and primarily illustrated by Sage Cotugno who did some of the animaton on a few episodes of Gravity Falls. It definitely shows through in the art style and some of the humor. (Aside: They do have a small team of people who help them to color the art.)
However, it is basically a giant queer homage to classic monster literature through stunning art, an emotional story, and beautiful commentary about immigration, queerness, assimilation in many forms, and masking in Victorian Era London.
As far as adaptations of Jekyll and Hyde go - Jekyll and Hyde being our protagonists - Sage may be one of the first adapters to acknowledge that Jekyll is a Scottish name and to give commentary on all the baggage that would go with Jekyll's Scottish heritage during that time in which the story is set ... definitely going to impact how I would audition for the character in the future because they're brilliant and that subplot was brillaint.
However, my very favorite character(s) might be the reinterpretation of Frankenstein and, by extention, The Creature.
Poetry, theater/dramas, and the kids' sections, currently. Poetry/ theater for myself and the kids' section because I'm usually in bookstores with my kiddo.
Though, I am also a sucker for fantasy and the classics, and I'll go pick up copies of things when I'm interested in something specific/ my library doesn't have what I'm looking for/ I want to read something on paper because I want to annotate it instead of just doing the audiobook.
However, I have actually gotten oddly into local history lately? But, that stuff I usually order through local university presses. Even our bookstores don't actively carry those, at least not often? ... Well, one does.
But, that section doesn't always have the specific titles I want. So, I usually just order it though the university, or I have that specific store get it for me.
10. do you have a guilty fav?
Yes.
I have so many issues with ONE of Tamora Pierce's quartets in the Tortall series. However, I cannot decide if it's because she sucks at math so much that she made the age gap as bad as it is - something the fans roast her about because she calculated the ages of one of her character's VASTLY incorrectly in a later book such that he's actually 3 different ages across 3 different parts of the series - or if she just misplaced her brain.
Because THEN she wrote one of the character's backstories and it made me even MORE pissed off because there was a character that was like 15x better for him that was a side character in one of the other books in that quartet ... and just UGH! UGH!
NO!
But, the other quartets she wrote in that series are some of the most masterful pieces of writing I've ever read? So, like?? I can't hate the whole thing even if I just cannot get behind the "Immortals" quartet.
Also, she does write a very stereotyped version of most of the "countries" she bases her world building on despite having a pretty decently built magic system? (Circle of Magic, her other series, I think has better world and magic building, but I like some of the character's batter in Tortall.)
But, on re-reads of the series, I just skip Immortals and go straight from Alanna's books to the Protector of the Small quartet.
Thankfully, Tamora Pierce is really good at summarizing so you don't actually have to read any of the books in order to understand anything. So, I don't have to subject myself to the one quartet I cannot stand to get to one of my literal favorite book series of all time.
But, these are my guilty favorites. They definitely have some merit. They were very formative to my development as a college student to the point that I actually entertained the name Kelladry for a girl baby. XD
16. how many books have you read this year?
I've read probably ~4 books of poetry cover to cover. But, I don't know how many "full" books I've read.
But, I've read a lot of individual monologues and the scenes surrounding them for auditions. And ... I've started several books, gotten busy, and then couldn't finish them.
HOWEVER, if you count picture books, I read at least 2-3 books a week, depending who's on bedtime duty, whether or not Squish asks me to sing or read that night, and whether or not we're doing our little "coffee shop get togethers" to read.
We're working our way through "The Complete Collections of Winnie the Pooh." We ended up abandoning "Alice in Wonderland" (for the moment) because it was too dense for Squish to understand.
Squish *really* wants to read. So, things move slowly because I have to find creative ways to help them participate in reading. They're still in the "early foundations of phonics" phase. But, they so badly want to be able to turn the pages and read to themselves/ to me.
I was attempting to read them "Redwall" when we were both super sick a couple of months ago, and they flopped on my chest dramatically saying: "Amma! I just want to know what the words say myself! I don't want you to do it! I wanna do it!"
The independent streak is so strong in this one ... I love it.
Goals are to finish "Winnie the Pooh" before October though. :)
👨🎤 Name a celebrity you just have no patience for.
🎭 Name an author/filmmaker/artist etc you consider an overrated hack, or just don't fuck with
👸 Is there a historical figure you have personal beef with?
🧥 A clothing item, fashion trend or "aesthetic" you would rather die than put on your body.
📚 Worst book you've read lately!
🎬 Worst film you've seen lately!
🎧 A song that's been driving you up the wall recently (and not in a good way)!
🗨️ A word or expression that makes you want to tear your hair out whenever you hear it used?
🗣️ One sentence that would INSTANTLY make you lose respect for the person who said it.
🗺️ What is the ugliest (or overall least pleasant) place you've been to?
🚫 If you could eliminate one thing from the world — as if it never existed — what would it be?
🤬 Free space for a random NEGATIVE hot take or anecdote about something that pissed you off! STRIFE & HATRED ON PLANET EARTH 😈🔥🔥
‼️DISCLAIMER: This is NOT meant to encourage bigotry or bullying! It's a silly game about the little things in life that get on our nerves. It's about countering toxic positivity by letting people just be real. It's about how a bit of bitching and moaning in good humour can be genuinely fun and freeing‼️
