a large cat, or possibly the shroud of turin

I have to say that I appreciate Tumblr showing me all the lesbian adverts this month and I’m...

Tue, 26 Jun 2018 01:19:51 -0400

I have to say that I appreciate Tumblr showing me all the lesbian adverts this month and I’m going to be really sad when June ends and the lesbians will, most likely, disappear from my dash (or at least from the ads).

For the ask... stars. 😁

Tue, 26 Jun 2018 01:09:21 -0400

Haha, I only have three WIP documents and ‘stars’ doesn’t show up in any of them. Try again? 😆

Fanfiction Work-In-Progress Guessing Game

Tue, 26 Jun 2018 01:01:13 -0400

lokincest:

Send me a word, if it’s in my wip document I’ll answer your ask with the sentence that it appears in

Amnesia and Oreos (174)

Mon, 25 Jun 2018 22:34:09 -0400

my-one-love-is-music:

Tim shifted from foot to foot, clutching the package of oreos tighter in his grip. He bit his lip and stared at Jason’s closed door. He let out a sigh and raised a hand, ready to knock when the door was pulled open.
He blinked and stared up at Jason who was looking at him expectantly, eyebrow raised. Tim’s eyes drifted down and found Jason without a shirt. He sucked in a breath at the scars littering Jason’s chest, something twisting uncomfortably in his chest.
“Oh, sorry,” Jason mumbled, taking notice of his change in demeanor. “I guess I should’ve expected you’d forget about the scars.” He stepped back into his room and pulled open his dresser, throwing a shirt over his head. Even when the fabric came down to cover his skin, Tim couldn’t pull his eyes away, imagining how much pain or how many fights Jason had gotten into to get so many scars.
As far as Tim knew, Jason was a skilled fighter who’d been ready to knock him on his ass down in the Cave. He couldn’t imagine how Jason could ever lose a fight even though he said Tim was able to win against him when he remembered how to fight.
“Hey,” Jason said, softly. “Hey, Tim? Are you okay?” He reached out and touched Tim’s arm lightly and he jerked, eyes snapping up to Jason’s face.
“Sorry, I-sorry,” he said, shoving the package of oreos against Jason’s chest before he turned on his heel and hurried down the hallway.
“Hey, Tim,” Jason said, following after him.
Tim wrapped his arms around himself, pushing into his room.
“Tim, what’s wrong?” Jason asked behind him.
He didn’t respond, gaze fixed on the floor as he tried to make sense of what he’d seen.
“Come on, Timmy,” Jason said, voice soft. “You can talk to me. What’s wrong?” His hand was gentle as it came to rest on Tim’s arm. He turned him around, but he didn’t look up.
“You…your scars…” Tim whispered. “You have so many scars.”
“It’s part of being a vigilante. We don’t win every fight.” He let out a breath. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed and I’m not sure if I should tell you, but you have scars marking your body, too.”
Tim hunched his shoulders. “I haven’t looked yet. But you’re such a strong fighter. You’re so strong. How…how did you get so many scars?”
“Believe it or not, Tim, there are fighters better than me in the world. Bruce is one of them and he’s gotten just as many scars as the rest of us.”
Tim stepped forward, closing the distance between them. He rested his head against Jason’s chest and shut his eyes. Jason’s arm wrapped around him and pulled him close, hand running up and down Tim’s spine.
“Are you gonna be okay?” he murmured.
“I guess…” Tim said. “It was a bit of a shock.”
Jason patted his back. “Did you need something before you ran off at the sight of my…because of that?”
Tim’s face heated. “I wanted to apologize. For getting you in trouble with Bruce.”
Jason’s body shook underneath him as he laughed. “You didn’t get me in trouble. He’s a bit of a hard ass, but that’s not being in trouble, so don’t worry about it. Anyway, how do you know I wasn’t just using your amnesia to get his spandex in a twist?”
Tim’s stomach turned. “Were you?” he asked.
“No,” Jason sighed. “No, I wasn’t.”
“Okay.”
“Hey, do you want to do something? I’ve got a whole package of oreos I can’t eat on my own. I could sure use some help.”
Tim laughed and stepped back out of Jason’s hold. He looked up and gave him a smile. “Sure, what were you thinking?”
“Let’s see…we have endless movies and T.V. options or the latest gaming consoles. We have a fully stocked library and probably a hundred rooms in this place that could be explored.”
“Games?” Tim asked.
“Oh, you’re going to love this,” Jason said, grinning pulling at his lips. “Let me just go grab the oreos,” he said, rushing back down to his room.
Tim stepped into the hallway and Jason didn’t even bother slowing down as he hurried back. He grabbed Tim’s hand and pulled him down the hallway. Tim grinned, laughing as they hurried down the stairs and into the entertainment room they’d been in the other night while watching movies.
“Go ahead and take a seat,” Jason said, shoving the oreos into his hands. “I’ll get things set up.
Tim sat cross-legged on the couch and pulled open the oreos, biting one in half as he watched Jason fiddle with cases and disks. He carried two white remotes over to the couch and handed one to Tim.
“What are we playing?” Tim asked.
Jason grinned. “Mario Kart.”
The screen lit up with the start menu and Jason quickly flicked through the settings, queuing their game before Tim could even read the words on the screen.
“Go ahead and pick your character. You’re the blue box,” Jason explained.
Tim nodded and scrolled through the characters until he settled on a green dragon looking thing.
“Yoshi, nice,” Jason commented.
The screen changed and Jason flicked through different pictures of race tracks before clicking one.
“So, you’re going to hold the remote sideways, like that,” Jason said, showing Tim his own hands. “You press the ‘2′ button to go and tilt the remote back and forth to change direction, got it?”
“I think so,” Tim said, uncertainly.
“You’ll get the hang of it,” Jason said, popping an oreo into his mouth as the stoplight on the screen started to count down. Tim bit his lip as the race started and he belatedly pressed the button to make his character move, leaving him in last place.
Jason leaned forward, eyes intent on the screen. He’d easily pulled ahead of all the other characters. Tim fumbled the first turn, jerking his remote too far to the left. He struggled to get back on course and kept going, intent on making it through the course without letting it get the best of him.
Tim fought to keep his eyes on his own character, wanting to watch Jason expertly drive around the course and use the shining mystery blocks to throw weapons and attacks at the other drivers who tried to pass him or make him fumble. Tim ran over more than one banana peel because of it.
The other characters were halfway done with their third lap when Tim was starting his. He hit a mystery block and blinked when a blue shell started spinning around him. He frowned and released it.
“No, Tim, no, no, no!” Jason said as he watched what happened.
“What?” Tim asked. “What did I do?”
“Shit, shit, shit,” Jason cursed. “Come on, come on…”
Tim watched as the blue shell he’d fired showed up behind Jason and hit him, causing him to stop dead a few feet from the finish. A few players streaked passed and claimed the first few places while Jason fought to get his character moving again.
Tim laughed, sinking back into the couch cushions. Jason glared at him when he crossed the finish line and Tim couldn’t care less that the game ended before he could get to the end.
“You think you’re funny, don’t you?” Jason asked.
Tim grinned.
“If that’s how it’s going to be, let’s see how well you handle Rainbow Road,” he muttered, flicking through the race tracks.
Tim chuckled, not caring if he was going to end up coming in last place again because he was having a great time watching Jason give this game his entire focus.
If you enjoy my work, please reblog or consider buying me a ko-fi!

For someone who hates writing weddings and has successfully avoided putting them into her fics for...

Mon, 25 Jun 2018 00:25:06 -0400

For someone who hates writing weddings and has successfully avoided putting them into her fics for 20 years, how am I writing my fourth one since January? >.<;

goopy-gan: doofcas: mrcleanheichou: doofcas: mrcleanheichou: doofcas: doofcas: Me: *picks...

Sat, 23 Jun 2018 18:13:10 -0400

goopy-gan:

doofcas:

mrcleanheichou:

doofcas:

mrcleanheichou:

doofcas:

doofcas:

Me: *picks up “dead” bat in my yard so my dog doesn’t eat it*

“Dead” bat: O_O

Me: O_O

Me upon realizing I am holding a very not dead bat and not dead bat realizing it has been picked up by a large creature at the exact same second: eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!

He scream

You want rabies? That’s how you get rabies

1.I picked it up with a towel and gardening gloves and never once touched it with my bare hands.

2.

3.The bat was at the bottom of my porch where I have to take my dog out but I guess I should have just left it there for her to eat right?

4.It was in a position that made it clear that it was most likely hurt from hitting my house and not just sick. It’s warming up in my area and they are just coming out from the winter and it was most likely confused because I live right next to the highway and there’s a lot of noise.

5.You can only get rabies from a bat by being bitten or otherwise getting its saliva in your bloodstream. And it was two inches long and I’m a grown ass adult with a towel and gardening gloves and a thick ass sweater.

Good thing you tagged it as “stupid people” because you obviously don’t know enough about the situation

I’m sorry I tagged it that way. That was incredibly childish of me. I’ve just had it pounded into my head that you don’t mess with sick or injured wildlife because of the risk of exposure.

I’m a registered Veterinary technician and I’ve worked with a rabid cat and it was terrifying

I’m sorry I got so defensive. I’ve seen a lot of bats killed in my area because people are misinformed about the rabies situation. I used to play with them as a kid by throwing sticks in the air and watching them swoop to get them and each year they were noticably fewer until they were just gone.

That was the most adult way I’ve ever seen an argument addressed on the internet.

topsecretespeonage: neurofancier: khirsahle: newtsckamander: suaimhneas-peace: emeraldboreas: ...

Sat, 23 Jun 2018 14:05:38 -0400

topsecretespeonage:

neurofancier:

khirsahle:

newtsckamander:

suaimhneas-peace:

emeraldboreas:

a-windsor:

mellivorinae:

a-windsor:

mellivorinae:

OH MY GOD whyyyy did no one tell me you’re supposed to send thank-yous after interviews?? Why would I do that???

“Thank you for this incredibly stressful 30 minutes that I have had to re-structure my entire day around and which will give me anxiety poos for the next 24 hours.”

I HATE ETIQUETTE IT’S THE MOST IMPOSSIBLE THING FOR ME TO LEARN WITHOUT SOMEONE DIRECTLY TELLING ME THIS SHIT

NO ONE TOLD YOU???? WTF! I HAVE FAILED YOU. Also: Dear ______: Thank you so much for the opportunity to sit down with you (&________) to discuss the [insert job position]. I am grateful to be considered for the position. I think I will be a great fit at [company name], especially given my experience in __________. [insert possible reference to something you talked about, something that excited you.] I look forward to hearing from you [and if you are feeling super confident: and working together in the future]. Sincerely, @mellivorinae

THIS IS A LIFESAVING TEMPLATE

YOU ARE WELCOME

My brother got a really great paid internship one summer. The guy who hired him said the deciding factor was the professional thank you letter my brother sent after the interview.

should it be an email? or like a physical letter?

email, you want to send it within a few hours at max after the interview if you can so it’s fresh in their mind who you are.

Confirmed! I interviewed for a job right after arriving in NY. The interview went incredibly well, and I went home and immediately wrote a thank you letter and put it in the mail. I had a super good feeling about this interview.

I didn’t get the job.

However, a few weeks later, I was called in to interview with another editor in the same company, and I did get that job. I found out later from the initial editor (the one who didn’t hire me) that he had planned to offer me the job, but since I didn’t follow up with a thank you letter, he assumed I didn’t really want it. He offered the job to another contender–but when he got my letter in the mail shortly after the offer had already been made, he went to HR and gave me a glowing recommendation. It was based on that recommendation that I got called in for the second interview.

So: send an email thank you immediately (same day!) after the interview. If you’re feeling extra, go ahead and send a written one too. OR go immediately to a coffee shop, write the letter, and return to the office and give it to the secretary.

Either way, those letters are important.

Pro tip: If you really want HR to develop a personal interest in your application, publicly thank them on linkedin. Just make a short post telling your network about how X recruiter really went above and beyond to make you feel welcome, or about how be accommodating and professional they were, or whatever. Make sure to use the mention feature so they’ll get a notification and see it.

Flattery will get you everywhere… and public flattery that might make its way back to their manager, doubly so.

Obligatory plug for one of FreePrintable.net’s sites: ThankYouLetter.ws. They have a whole section with interview thank you letter templates, and a page with specific tips for interview thank you letters. (There are also tons of other letter templates if you browse around a bit.)

Effective investigation: strategies that actually work

Sat, 23 Jun 2018 13:59:58 -0400

whetstonefires:

scripttorture:

In modern popular culture torture is consistently linked to interrogation: to getting information from a prisoner.

Now I’ve written several times why this trope is not only wrong but also harmful and is used in the real world to justify torture. O’Mara and Rejali also cover this in depth over several hundred pages for anyone who wants more information.

I often get asked for realistic alternatives: what does actually work? How can characters, bad or good, actually go about gaining information in a realistic way?

This isn’t going to be an exhaustive list, and I feel I should state that I have no practical experience of interrogation. Hopefully though it can serve as a starting point that will help you think about how characters come by information in your stories.

The first important point is that interrogation generally isn’t very effective.

Very little useful information comes from interrogation of suspects when compared to all the other sources of information police and intelligence agencies draw on.

There are a several reasons interrogation isn’t hugely useful including:

·         Human memory isn’t that good. Even well meaning people who want to help forget important details.

·         People are much better at lying than detecting lies. Even people who describe themselves as good at detecting when someone is lying do a very poor job.

·         Memories are easily modified in stressful situations. Even someone who isn’t trying to can plant suggestions leading to false memories, directing the interrogation in a particular direction without even realising it.

Some useful information does come from interrogation (and I’ll come back to how to handle it in a moment) but, realistically the following are more important sources of information in any investigation:

Physical forensic evidence

This doesn’t just mean things like hair samples and DNA. Computer records, credit card bills, surveillance camera footage, library records and letters can tell you an awful lot about a person. Reading a character’s emails or letters and keeping track of their bills can reveal a lot of plot relevant information such as whether two characters are in contact or why a character might be desperate for money.

Gathering this sort of information takes a lot of time and hard work. It’s not as simple as collecting evidence, such as a piece of hair or a computer hard drive, the information has to be analysed and interpreted correctly.

The hair could be DNA tested and cross referenced with a database or simply identified as human and of a particular type and colour. (Identifying it as human is important, I know at least one forensic tech who was handed cow hair and told it was definitely from a suspect)

The computer hard drive would need to be poured over file by file. It’s not quite enough to suppose character A could access character B’s emails, A has to have the time and inclination to read the damn things.

An important point to consider is how dedicated your characters are. Careful collection and examination of evidence is probably the best way of finding something out. But it requires patience, hard work and a lot of time.

There’s a reason police work is a full time job and there’s a reason a lot of people in professions like policing might think torture is easier. Gathering and analysing evidence is hard.

It’s worth considering whether your character has the resources and inclination to go down this route before you decide to use it.

Observation

This is the stake-out scene from every police movie and tv show. It’s having one character physically following and watching another character for as long as humanly possible, recording everywhere they go and everything they do.

It means finding out where a character lives, watching them at work, noting where they eat lunch and who with. Finding out where they go in their free time and how often. When they go to bed. Who they visit. How long they do it for. The minute detail of everything someone does in their day recorded for a period of weeks or months to build up a picture of the person.

If that sounds creepy that’s because it is.

This is a very time consuming strategy. It requires a lot of focus and patience and dedication or the ability to hire someone who has those qualities. It’s simpler than systematically gathering physical evidence and it’s easier to do discretely.

Informants

This is probably the simplest major method of gathering information. It can be as complicated as the Soviet Union network of paid informants or as straight-forward as people coming forward and volunteering information.

This is incredibly important to police investigations. Information from voluntary informants led to the capture of the London tube bombers in 2005. The suspects were identified by their family and neighbours who went to the police.

This sort of informal reporting doesn’t just occur in police contexts. From a writing perspective the way I tend to think about it is in terms of crossing societal lines.

Every culture and subculture has ideas about what is and what is not acceptable. Every group has an idea of what’s ‘going too far’.

You might be writing a story set around a violent, criminal subculture where theft and murder of other adults are the norm. But the same characters who wouldn’t dream of reporting an enemy for killing another adult might feel differently about the murder of a child.

A religious character might excuse their priest’s affairs, but report anything they’d see as desecration or blasphemy.

A scientist might ignore a colleague harassing their lab assistants but report data fraud.

Think about what matters to the characters and you’ll be able to tell when they’d freely volunteer information.

If you can’t think of anything emotional that would cause them to inform remember that your characters could pay informants. And then consider how many people who really need some cash might be in a position to watch or steal from other characters.

Cleaners, drivers, people who deliver supplies- anyone who would be on a low wage, have regular contact with the character but only a superficial relationship could be a very valuable informant.

Interrogation

At the time of writing there is really not enough systematic research on effective interrogation. As a result I’m going to try and concentrate on things we’re reasonably sure help rather than getting bogged down in academic discussions about what might be useful. Those discussions are interesting but not much help to writers.

1)      The first important point is that interrogation takes time.

If a character is volunteering information that probably won’t take as long but somewhere in the region of 3-6 hours would still be reasonable. A witness to a crime or victim would probably need time and reassurance in order to tell the authorities what they know to the best of their ability.

Someone who isn’t really willing to talk (for whatever reason) will need much longer. A day is actually unusually short. Weeks or even up to a month is not unreasonable. Timeframes are going to vary depending on the characters and the situation the plot has put them in but I think it’s important to remember that interrogation isn’t quick and it isn’t simple.

2)      Interrogators and characters being interrogated should speak a common language.

It sounds simple and obvious but if the characters can’t communicate effectively interrogation is almost certainly going to fail.

Using translators does not seem to be as effective as using people who speak the language but there haven’t been systematic studies of speakers vs interpreters as far as I know.

3)      Good record keeping is essential for effective interrogation.

That’s straightforward in a modern setting with recording equipment but less so in a historical one.

Having a record of everything the suspect character says when interviewed means that everything they say can be analysed by multiple people, can be cross checked against what they said previously and can be stored in a legible format in case it’s needed later.

Checking what a suspect character said today against what they said yesterday or even last week helps investigators to tell the difference between fact and fiction. Lies are difficult to keep consistent, especially over longer periods of time. Inconsistencies can be helpful and consistencies can help highlight areas investigators should look into in greater depth.

Having multiple people able to analyse information also helps hugely, each individual brings their own specialist knowledge to the investigation. Which can be as simple as recognising a local’s nickname (and so correctly identifying them later) or as complex as analysing how a suspect claims they made a bomb and recognising that that process wouldn’t work.

4)      Even someone who genuinely wants to help will forget details and get things wrong.

That isn’t unusual and it certainly isn’t a sign that the character is unwilling or being deliberately unhelpful. In fact a story that sounds too detailed and too precise might well be a sign of a pre-scripted and pre-rehearsed lie.

5)      Very very few people refuse to talk.

Whether they talk about anything helpful is of course another matter but the stereotype of a tough criminal sitting completely silently and staring down a cop is incredibly rare in reality.

A smart interrogator will try to get their suspect chatting in the hope that some useful information will come out.

Let’s say one of our characters is suspected of being part of a larger conspiracy of some kind. And he won’t chat about any of the ‘interesting’ material the cops have found in his house, but he’s happy to talk to the interrogator about the local football team.

The interrogator might notice that he seems to go to watch the local team regularly and that he goes with the same set of friends. Friends who might not be part of this conspiracy but might have heard something useful from the suspect.

A smart suspect will try to keep up a conversation peppered with misleading hints and misinformation.

6)      Have the interrogating character establish a friendly rapport with their interviewee.

It is easier to talk to someone who comes across as friendly, interested in what you have to say and broadly sympathetic to your position.

It is much more difficult to talk to someone who shouts, screams and acts in an aggressive and confrontational manner.

The interrogator’s job is primarily to make it easy for the suspect to talk. Everything else follows from that.

A polite, engaging, sociable character who can keep calm under pressure would be a good pick. Someone who can be ‘friends’ with anybody.

Let me stress that this can be extremely difficult. We’re talking about a character who can walk into a room with the worst possible criminals and try to make friends with them; a character who is successful at doing so. Don’t be afraid to show the kind of toll that takes on the character.

7)      Don’t let suspects talk to each other before hand.

I’ve discussed elsewhere why solitary confinement is harmful- keeping characters completely isolated might well impair their memory of events.

But allowing characters to talk to each other before their interrogated also affects memory both for characters who want to mislead interrogators and for characters who want to help.

Essentially we edit our memories all the time. Discussion of shared experiences with other people is a major trigger for natural alternation of memories.

Four witnesses of the same events who don’t talk to each other in advance will give four different but broadly similar accounts.

If the same witnesses talk to each other before they’re interviewed they might well all report the same inaccuracies.

8)      Have interviewed characters tell their story backwards.

This is a pretty simple memory aid that makes it easier for interrogators to spot inconsistencies in a story. These inconsistencies don’t necessarily indicate a lie but they highlight areas a character might be unsure of or might have inaccurate memories of.

For instance if a character witnessed a car crash they might be instructed to start their account from the moment the ambulances arrived at the scene and work backwards from there until they reach the moments just before the crash.

This technique can also help remind characters of additional details as they tell the story.

9)      There is no reliable way to tell if someone is lying by looking at them.

Even people who judge themselves as ‘good’ at detecting lies perform poorly in tests.

There are no reliable ‘tests’ for lying. There are no working lie detector tests and based on how complex an action lying is short of literally reading minds I don’t think it would be possible.

The only reliable way to tell if someone lied is to double check everything they said.

10) Body language is not a reliable indicator of a character’s guilt or innocence.

A lot of people still believe that it is and there isn’t necessarily anything wrong with your characters believing that- but I’d advise caution.

An interrogator character might recognise that a suspect character is nervous, but to instantly ‘know’ why they’d need to be psychic.

The vast majority of people who conduct interrogations in real life have little to no formal training. In the USA (2013) the average was between 8-15 hours of the full training program. Consider how many hours you’d spend on a year long full time education course and you’ll get an idea of how little training that is.

We are what fills in the gap.

People with almost no training look to our portrayals of tough, aggressive interrogators who ‘always’ get results and, consciously or not, those portrayals influence them.

The truth is interrogation isn’t a great way of getting information and interrogators are only human: they don’t have a supernatural insight into the suspect or crime.

But we tend to write them as if they do. Personally I think that’s part of the problem- We focus on interrogation because of its dramatic potential. That focus warps how both the public and people involved in investigations view interrogation. It places too much focus on a comparatively poor information gathering technique and leads to assumptions that interrogators are capable of more than they realistically are.

Trust, human interaction and treating other people as human is important. Anything that undermines that undermines interrogation.

Disclaimer

[Sources: Why Torture Doesn’t Work: The Neuroscience of Interrogation. Harvard University Press, S O’Mara

Torture and Democracy, Princeton, D Rejali

The work of E Alison and L Alison, discussed in this newspaper article and listed here on their University home page papers are behind a pay wall (one specific to interviewing terrorists can be found here).

New Scientist 2015, article on evidence based policing]

Note on the record-keeping in historical circumstances: the Inquisition actually invented the basis of modern indexing, so as to be able to compare what all the people connected to a case said, or what a given individual said in two interrogations years apart.

The latter ability, to confront a guy with his exact words six years ago, was a terrifying unheard-of power in the Middle Ages. For period pieces, it could enhance your story a lot to recreate that shock.

nanadrawsrobins:LazarusOkay, but the fact that he asks/calls out...

Sat, 23 Jun 2018 13:58:37 -0400

nanadrawsrobins:

Lazarus

Okay, but the fact that he asks/calls out to the ambiguous anyone before he gets to Dick’s name just hit me and, like. Wow. Wow, that is just seriously something else when taken in context of when this is obviously supposed to happen.

stardustsherlock: spacebumble: lochnessie: Can we as millennials and gen-z’s collectively agree...

Wed, 20 Jun 2018 19:44:44 -0400

stardustsherlock:

spacebumble:

lochnessie:

Can we as millennials and gen-z’s collectively agree that NObody Cares about elbows on the table like Why was that Ever A Problem for Anyone?? We can chill right?

nobody asked for this but the origin of not putting one’s elbows on the table comes from the late 18th/early 19th century when wooden ships were still used in the navy- sailors would balance their plates between their elbows while eating to keep them from sliding around. because sailors developed a reputation on-land for being uncouth and aggressive, the placing of elbows on the table became associated with such behaviour.

some cultural historians believe it also goes back further, to the middle ages, when large banquet-style meals were served on trestle tables that had no side support. if someone put their elbows on the table, they risked bringing the whole table down with them.

so basically, there is no longer any need to NOT put elbows on the table, and there hasn’t been since the advent of steamships.

I love this because now i can smartass the next person who tries to give me shit for it

jack-the-lion: superslugbug: sque2013: tonightshow: Good...

Mon, 18 Jun 2018 20:48:32 -0400

jack-the-lion:

superslugbug:

sque2013:

tonightshow:

Good lord.

FREE THEM

REBLOGGING TWICE BECAUSE I AM SMILING SO HARD. I WAS SAD AND NOW I AM NOT.

THEY’RE SMOL!!! X3

queer is a slur, grow up

Sun, 17 Jun 2018 21:11:07 -0400

‘Queer’ was reclaimed as an umbrella term for people identifying as not-heterosexual and/or not-cisgender in the early 1980s, but being queer is more than just being non-straight/non-cis; it’s a political and ideological statement, a label asserting an identity distinct from gay and/or traditional gender identities. People identifying as queer are typically not cis gays or cis lesbians, but bi, pan, ace, trans, nonbinary, intersex, etc.: we’re the silent/ced letters. We’re the marginalised majority within the LGBTQIA+ community, and ‘queer’ is our rallying cry.

And that’s equally pissing off and terrifying terfs and cis LGs.

There’s absolutely no historical or sociolinguistic reason why ‘queer’ should be a worse slur than ‘gay.’ Remember how we had all those campaigns to make people stop using ‘gay’ as a synonym for ‘bad’?

Yet nobody is suggesting we should abolish ‘gay’ as a label. We accept that even though ‘gay’ sometimes is and historically frequently was used in a derogatory manner, mlm individuals have the right to use that word. We have ad campaigns, twitter hashtags, and viral Facebook posts defending ‘gay’ as an identity label and asking people to stop using it as a slur.

Whereas ‘queer’ is treated exactly opposite: a small but vocal group of people within feminist and LGBTQIA+ circles insists that it’s a slur and demands that others to stop using it as a personal, self-chosen identity label.

Why?

Because “queer is a slur” was invented by terfs specifically to exclude trans, nonbinary, and intersex people from feminist and non-heterosexual discourse, and was subsequently adopted by cis gays and cis lesbians to exclude bi/pan and ace people.

It’s classic divide-and-conquer tactics: when our umbrella term is redefined as a slur and we’re harassed into silence for using it, we no longer have a word for what we are allowing us to organise for social/political/economic support; we are denied the opportunity to influence or shape the spaces we inhabit; we can’t challenge existing community power structures; we’re erased from our own history.

I’m not kidding. Cis LGs have literally taken historical evidence of queer people’s involvement in the LGBT rights struggle and photoshopped it to erase us:

Pro tip: when you alter historical evidence to deny a marginalised group empowerment, you’re one of the bad guys.

“Queer is a slur” is used by terfs and cis gays/lesbians to silence the voices of trans/nonbinary/intersex/bi/pan/ace people in society and even within our own communities, to isolate us and shame us for existing.

“Queer is a slur” is saying “I am offended by people who do not conform to traditional gender or sexual identities because they are not sexually available to me or validate my personal identity.”

“Queer is a slur” is defending heteronormativity.

“Queer is a slur” is frankly embarrassing. It’s an admission of ignorance and prejudice. It’s an insidious discriminatory discourse parroted uncritically in support of a divisive us-vs-them mentality targeting the most vulnerable members of the LGBTQIA+ community for lack of courage to confront the white cis straight men who pose an actual danger to us as individuals and as a community.

Tl;dr:

I’m here, I’m queer, and I’m too old for this shit.

Are you still accepting prompts?😊 can we have a JayTim drabble with the following line: “You’re my favorite muse.”

Sun, 17 Jun 2018 00:39:27 -0400

This can be read as a precursor to a story @themandylion is working on, which is inspired by the JayKyle AU short I wrote where Kyle is a private investigator hired by Jason to find some stolen pictures that mean a lot to him.

~*~

There are times when Tim feels as though he lives in an alternate reality, where the current moment is so surreal that it falls outside of everything he has experienced.

This is one of those moments.

He adjusts the curtains again and more light streams in to highlight and shadow different parts of Jason’s body. All that bare skin makes his mouth water but Tim reins in his instinctual response, even if it is difficult when Jason is giving him that hooded look that screams all the dirty things he’s thinking about doing to him.

“Are you done yet?” Jason asks, shifting on the bed. He’s sprawled out across their bed, laying on his stomach. The white of the down comforter contrasts starkly against his tanned skin. They’d been to the beach the week before, a private beach owned by Jason’s adopted father, and the man didn’t see much need to wear anything when there weren’t prying eyes around.

It bothered Tim a bit then, but he’s all for it now as there are no distracting tan lines to edit out of his pictures later. “Almost,” he replies to his fiancé.

Tim returns to his camera and checks the settings again. He takes a test shot, then adds a filter when he doesn’t like what he sees on the digital display. This may be an art project that Jason is amusing him on, but he’ll be damned if it doesn’t turn out perfect.

Jason shifts again, revealing the long line of his thigh, thick and heavy with corded muscle. He bends his knee and props himself up to mock glare at Tim. His hair is a disheveled mess from where Tim ran his hands through it earlier. “How naughty are these pictures going to be?”

“I’m not taking pictures of your junk,” Tim replies, taking another picture and inspecting it with a critical eye. The light is perfect and the filter softens it more, giving Jason a hazy glow. These are going to be stunning when he develops them. Black and white for sure.

“You’re the only one I’d let,” Jason replies. He rolls onto his back, revealing the chiseled lines of his torso, and a thin trail of hair over his abdomen ending in a dark nest around his half hard cock. There’s a challenging look in Jason’s eyes.

Despite himself, Tim takes a picture. “Raise the knee closest to me,” he says, finally giving Jason some direction. “I love your dick but that’s not what I’m after right now.”

“What are you after?” Jason asks, complying with Tim’s request. He pointedly stretches and Tim snaps another picture, moving in a little closer to get a different angle.

“Perfection.”

Jason snorts, trying hard not to laugh. “Tim, I hate to break it to you, but if you’re looking for the perfect body, perhaps Dick should be laying here instead of me.”

Tim lowers his camera, frowning. “Why would I want to take a picture of your brother?”

“Because he’s hot and is an actual model?” Jason retorts, running a hand through his hair.

Tim manages to catch the movement at the last second and wants to cry over how perfect Jason’s jaw appears in the shot. “Jason, do you have any idea what you are to me?”

“Your fiancé?”

“No, you dolt.” Tim sits down and traces a finger between the broad planes of Jason’s chest. It is a movement he’s done many times with his tongue and he knows Jason is remembering it too as a flash of heat enters his blue-green eyes. “You’re my favorite muse.”

He punctuates his statement with a kiss, right over Jason’s heart.

“You’re a sap,” Jason replies brusquely, but there’s a faint hint of pink on his cheeks that belies his tone.

Tim kisses him again, lingering over the spot. He can feel Jason’s heart beating faster beneath him. “Perhaps, but you’re the one lying here buck-naked just because I asked.”

There’s another flash in Jason’s eyes. “Then perhaps the photographer should take his clothes off too. Might make this more interesting.”

Tim laughs as he stands and removes his shirt, humoring Jason. “This is supposed to be a photoshoot, not a porno.”

“Who says it can’t be both?”

Amnesia and Oreos (164)

Fri, 15 Jun 2018 23:26:48 -0400

my-one-love-is-music:

Tim watched in horror as the bo staff got closer and closer to him. He reached out, hoping to somehow catch the slim piece of wood. It smacked into his hand and bounced off before he could get a grip on it. He threw out his other arm, hoping to keep it from clattering to the ground. He fumbled before he managed to get a solid grip on it and pressed it against his chest.
He looked up and found Jason staring at him with a raised eyebrow.
“Okayyyy,” he drawled. “Not the start that I was expecting, but maybe things can get better.”
“What do you mean?” Tim asked. “What are we going to do?”
“We’re gonna spar,” he said easily walking closer to Tim on the mat.
“We’re gonna what?” Tim asked. “I don’t know. I can’t…”
Before he could think of any more excuses, Jason rushed at him.
Tim’s eyes widened. “Jason!” he screeched as Jason raised his staff over his head and moved to swing it down on his head. Before he could even blink, he felt his own body move to the side and dodge the blow as the staff hit the mat with a dull thump where he’d just been standing.
Tim swallowed, feeling his heart pound heavily in his chest as Jason turned and looked up at him, straightening from his stance and attack. Tim tightened his grip on the wood staff in his hands as he still held it awkwardly against his chest.
“Nice,” Jason said. “Looks like you still have some crime fighter in you even without the memory.”
Tim shook his head. “I really…”
Jason spun the staff in his hand before he caught it in his empty hand, making a small smacking sound.
Tim swallowed.
“Come on, Tim. I know you can do it.” His lips pulled into a grin as his feet spread in a wide stance. “ Just grip the staff with your hands further apart.”
Tim carefully held the staff out in front of him and moved his hands apart.
“That’s it,” Jason said. “Now I’m going to do another head blow and I want you to block it this time.”
“Why are you telling me where you’re going to hit?” Tim asked. “Isn’t that counterproductive.”
“Not when I don’t know how much you’ll actually remember.”
Without another warning, Jason rushed forward and swung his bo over his head. Tim squeaked and raised the bo over his head, Jason’s staff hitting his and sending a jolt through his arms from the blow. He let out a breath, chest heaving even though he hadn’t done more than dodge and block.
Jason smiled at him and raised his staff, stepping back. “Good. Glad to see you still have some spunk in you. Now it’s your turn to attack.”
Tim shifted uneasily on his feet, feeling the weight of the staff in his hands.
“Just aim for a hit wherever you want,” Jason said. “Head, shoulders, side, legs, take your pick.”
Tim looked over his form, trying to decide what the best place to attack would be. He settled on Jason’s side and ran forward, movements with his staff awkward as he tried to swing around to hit his side.
Jason blocked the blow easily, his foot slid out and caught Tim’s foot, offsetting his balance to where he crashed down onto his back on the mat, forcing the air from his lungs. Tim stared up at the cavern ceiling high above him. Jason came into view and grinned.
“Nice try,” he said.
“I’m starting to think you’re doing this on purpose,” Tim said as he struggled to sit up.
“I can’t help but indulge myself when you’d normally be able to beat me,” he chuckled.
Tim stared. “I’d normally be able to beat you?” he asked, taking Jason’s offered hand to be pulled to his feet.
“Not every time. Our wins and losses are pretty evenly divided.
“That’s a low blow, taking advantage then,” Tim said, stepping back from him. “I’m going to remember that one.”
Jason grinned. “Are you now?”
Tim nodded and spread his feet, trying to mimic what he’d seen Jason do earlier. The staff was still shaky in his grip and he felt awkward, but it was slowly starting to feel more natural.
Jason raised an eyebrow and Tim stepped forward, swinging the staff towards Jason’s shoulder. He blocked and Tim pulled it back, using the lower half of the staff to aim for Jason’s leg. He was blocked again and Tim narrowed his eyes, determined to land at least one blow.
“Jason what are you doing?”
The unfamiliar voice pulled Tim from his thoughts and his foot caught on his other heel as he tried to step forward and he would’ve crashed to the mat if Jason’s hand hadn’t caught him under the stomach. He rolled in the grip until his back was pressed against Jason’s chest.
Tim looked up and found a stoic man standing at the edge of the mat. His arms were crossed across his chest.
“We were just having a little fun,” Jason protested.
“How can you expect Tim to spar when he doesn’t remember anything?” he asked.
Jason sighed. “He’s fine.”
“No more sparring,” he said before turning on his heel.
Jason sighed as they watched him go.
“Who was that?” Tim asked.
“Bruce,” Jason grumbled. “Aka Batman.”
“Oh,” Tim said, voice small.
He became aware of their position and straightened, Jason’s hold falling away from him. Jason took the staff from his hand and moved over to the racks, hanging them both back up.
“Guess we’ll have to find something else to do and call this a draw for now,” Jason said, forcing a smile on his face.
Tim nodded, shivering a little as he noticed the lack of warmth around him and how cold the cavern actually was.
If you enjoy my work, please reblog or consider buying me a ko-fi!

Programming Errors

Fri, 15 Jun 2018 02:52:25 -0400

chibinightowl:

I wrote this forever ago and totally blanked on posting it, probably because I knew even then that this would become something longer if I let it. Which I’m not. Unless random inspiration strikes for something that would be perfect in this AU, it’s staying as a series of short, interconnected fics. …famous last words…
~*~
Tim stares in horror at the absolute mess in front of him. His quarters are usually a disaster area, but this is crossing the line into a possible biohazard. He wonders how on earth this happened, but he then saw the red mask icon flashing on his holoscreen.
JASON.
It has to be.
His eyes dart down to the floor again, to the happily burbling little housebot dripping coffee (precious coffee) and coffee grinds everywhere, tracking it back and forth across his floor and smearing dirt, dust, and who knows what else everywhere. For such a cute looking robot, it is currently a pain in his ass.
Tim stalks into the room and places a foot in front of the droid, stopping it long enough to hit the emergency override switch on the back. The lights on the droid fade as it turns off.
Standing straight, he glares at the screen. The mask has disappeared.
Not for the first time, Tim wonders what the station’s AI has against him. Ever since he arrived on site as the new program manager and systems director, JASON has more than gone out of his way to make his life miserable. He’s never gone beyond the limits of his programming, no, but he’s shown a level of creativity in petty vindictiveness that far exceeds any other AI Tim has ever worked with.
When he downloaded JASON’s program onto a private computer to review after the first few incidents, he didn’t find anything too out of the norm. A few deviations in code, but nothing to raise any alarms. If anything, they seemed more like some creative license by his original designer, Dick Grayson, something to give the AI a bit of personality.
“JASON,” Tim calls out, waiting and resisting the urge to tap his foot. The AI will wait as long as his programming allows to answer.
“Tim,” the synthesized voice finally replies. Seriously, the man who designed JASON and gave him his voice ought to be shot. The low baritone with the slight rasp is borderline pornographic as far as Tim is concerned.
“Why was Little Red running outside his normal cleaning cycle? And where did he get the coffee from?” Both are questions the AI should answer. JASON knows everything that goes on in this station; his sensors are everywhere.
Instead of replying directly, a systems diagnostic of the housebot appears on the screen. The view splits in half a moment later and a picture of a coffeepot is posted next to the diagnostics.
Tim resists the urge to growl because these are technically answers within the scope of JASON’s programming. No one else has these problems with the AI. He knows. He’s asked. The station commander, Bruce Wayne, even says JASON is the most intuitive AI he’s ever worked with. This is why he snatched Tim out of the Academy as soon as he became eligible for active duty. Commander Wayne flat out told him that it was his work with AIs that caught his attention in the first place.
He came on board the Dark Knight with all the enthusiasm of a green noob.
JASON smacked that out of him faster than he could blink.
So here they are, three months in and Tim already wishing a transfer was possible.
“JASON, I want you to tell me verbally why Little Red is running outside his cycle and how he got into my coffee stash. Nowhere in his programming are there instructions for him to brew coffee.” Tim should know. He designed the little housebot after all. He handles his coffee himself.
The red mask icon flashes a few times before JASON finally replies. Perhaps Tim is reading too much into this, but the AI sounds sulky. “Little Red’s programing was changed at 0327 this morning. At 1830, the new program started. Part of that program included instructions to make coffee.”
Now he’s getting somewhere. “I was asleep at the time Little Red’s programing was changed. Who did it?”
JASON sounds downright petulant as he replies. “I did.”
“Why?”
Silence.
Tim’s eyes narrow. “JASON. Why did you change Little Red’s programming?”
More silence.
“Don’t make me use my override.”
“You’re here to replace me,” the AI finally replies.
Tim can’t help but gape at the blunt response. “What? No! Why would you think that?”
“You replaced Dick. He designed me. Made me what I am. When he left to go to the Titan, he left me here. Why else would Bruce bring you here other than to replace me?”
Okay. Okay, Tim can handle this. He can. Just…he needs to get over his mind being blown because he’s never worked with an AI that has developed its own sense of self-preservation before. And he can’t forget the abandonment issues. Wow.
“JASON, Commander Wayne brought me here to keep you running as you are. Perhaps to make my own enhancements as I see fit, but I’m mostly here because he likes you so much that he wants you to have the best care possible if Captain Grayson isn’t here to do it himself.”
The AI is silent for a time as he ponders this. Tim’s fingers itch to get into JASON’s program right now to see what areas are firing off, just like in a human brain.
“You’re not here to replace me?”
“No,” Tim replies in what he hopes is a reassuring voice. “You’re an asshole, but you’re the most incredible AI I’ve ever seen. I only want to make you better.”
“Fine. But if your idea of better is that brainless little bot, then you and I are gonna have words.” With that, the red mask disappears from the console.
Tim heaves a massive sigh of relief. He’s finally gotten through to JASON. Sort of. Perhaps things will get better between them going forward.
As he starts cleaning up the mess Little Red left (he’ll need to take the bot apart and clean it too), he mentally composes a message to send to Dick Grayson. Namely, he wants to know what the hell he did to make the AI such a, well, such a dick.

this pen was inked with the promise of you

Thu, 14 Jun 2018 22:08:39 -0400

ao3feed-jaytim:

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/2LPBoGE
by GLORIAW
每个人都有一个纹身与之相配的另一半。无论怎样，从你纹身出现直到去世，你总有一天会遇到自己的另一半的——这就是人生注定。

提姆的纹身是在他十二岁那年夏天出现的，不到一周之后他的另一半便死了。在此期间他并没有遇到过任何人。
Words: 3866, Chapters: 5/5, Language: 中文
Fandoms: Batman - All Media Types
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Categories: M/M
Characters: Tim Drake, Jason Todd, Dick Grayson, Bruce Wayne
Relationships: Tim Drake/Jason Todd
Additional Tags: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Victorian, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Scenting, Depression, Panic Attacks, Demisexual Tim Drake, Alternate Universe - Arranged Marriage, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Hurt/Comfort, Happy Ending, Intersex Omegas, 中文翻译 | Translation in Chinese

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/2LPBoGE

GLORIAW translated my sad soulmate/ABO into Chinese! I have no idea how it reads (I know several languages, but Chinese is sadly not one of them), but I’m told that it’s the equivalent of 50k when translated? Yiiiiiikes. :S

randomsplashes: i feel attacked lmao

Wed, 13 Jun 2018 20:07:27 -0400

randomsplashes:

i feel attacked lmao

JayTimWeek | Prompts | Fall 2018

Wed, 13 Jun 2018 00:33:12 -0400

jaytimweek:

PRESENTING: Themes & AU’s | November 12th - 19th

Day 1: Magic // Sugar Daddy
Day 2: Time Travel // Heist
Day 3: Viking // Bare Skin
Day 4: College // Vegas Wedding
Day 5: FREE PROMPT DAY
Day 6: Mafia // Bodyswap
Day 7: ABO // Nightmares & Hallucinations
Day 8: Urban Fantasy // Blood Oath

You may notice that, unlike previous JayTimWeeks, this one has eight days instead of seven. No one ever really wants the magic to end, and so we decided to stretch it out, keeping the top 14 prompts while using the Free Prompt Day as a mid-week breather.

Similar to previous events, we have assigned two prompts for each day; feel free to choose one or incorporate both into your creative works. We’ll be sending out reminders leading up to JayTimWeek: Themes & AU’s and we’re looking forward to all of your amazing submissions!

Things to note:
-The official tags for posts are #jaytimweekfall2018 or #jaytimweek
-Please be sure to check out our RULES
-If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to reach out!

Thank you so much for your continued support and excitement! We’re looking forward to another wonderful week!!

Nonfatal Impartiality - GeneratorCat - Batman (Comics) [Archive of Our Own]

Wed, 13 Jun 2018 00:30:47 -0400

Nonfatal Impartiality - GeneratorCat - Batman (Comics) [Archive of Our Own]:

generatorcat:

Rating: Explicit

Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply

Category: M/M

Fandom: Batman (Comics)

Relationship: Tim Drake/Jason Todd

Characters: Tim Drake, Jason Todd, Dick Grayson, Stephanie Brown

Additional Tags: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Omega Jason Todd, Alpha Tim Drake, asexual jason todd, yes you read that right folks, an ace omega, how does that work you ask?, well let’s find out, Introspection, lots of chatting about wants and needs, Relationship Negotiation, Jason masturbating his way though self-discovery, Tim helps, Tim is really sweet, almost too sweet but whatever, Jason is baffled by allosexuals

Words: 10626

Summary: He’s been trying this new thing where he lets himself have what he wants without over-analyzing every little thing or what his desires say about him as a person. If he wants to spend a day literally doing nothing but reading young adult dystopian novels, that’s fine. If he wants to ride out to the country and sit on the side of a dirt road next to a cornfield, that’s fine. If he wants to spend an hour teasing himself before he jacks off, that’s fine. It’s also fine if he wants to go two months without touching himself. It doesn’t make him weird.

He’s been taking each day as it comes and learning about himself, learning that he’s different from what everyone thinks of as Jason Todd. Different from what he thought was Jason Todd.

thatfeministactivistgirl: thessalian: beekeepercain: tenadp: wotseit: s/o to aces with...

Wed, 13 Jun 2018 00:22:06 -0400

thatfeministactivistgirl:

thessalian:

beekeepercain:

tenadp:

wotseit:

s/o to aces with libido

s/o to aces with kinks

s/o to aces with fantasies

s/o to aces who experience sensual attraction

s/o to aces who like to be sensually intimate with their partners

s/o to aces who like to be sexually intimate with their partners

s/o to aces who aren’t “perfect” asexuals, you are still valid and you are all ace af

I am really not trying to be rude, I just want to understand!! If you enjoy being sexually intimate with a partner, how are you asexual? Sorry if this comes across as offensive, I’m just interested to know!

There are other reasons than specifically wanting to have sex for the sake of having sex. For example, some asexuals want to please their non-asexual partners, and it isn’t necessarily uncomfortable for them, they just don’t specifically desire that particular action. Like, asexuals can still dig the feeling of sexual stimulation, since it is meant to be pleasurable. It’s like, if there’s cake on the table, but you don’t particularly want cake at that time, or you don’t really care for cake, you can still choose to eat it because even if cake isn’t your favourite or you’re quite full already, it still tastes fine, and your best friend is eating some with you.

Alternatively, it’s possible to sort of “trade favours”; instead of sexually pleasing their asexual partner who is disinterested in receiving sexually, the non-asexual party might cuddle, kiss and otherwise be physically affectionate with their partner while making love. This’d still count as sexual intimacy, even though only one person in the act is - hopefully - orgasming.

Some asexuals see sex as a way to bond with their partners. Again, the act isn’t specifically interesting to them, but it works as a means to an end - through it, they get to feel closer to their partner.

Asexuality is the absence of sexual attraction, the “I want to bang that” trigger that most people have in response to potential sexual partners. Not the absence of sexual activity itself, which would be celibacy - the choice to not engage in sex, the act. An asexual can have sex and not feel that specific type of attraction to their partner, as attraction is passive and not based in active choice. It doesn’t mean that that partner is disgusting to them, either; they may well be aesthetically attractive to the asexual person (the same way you can appreciate a beautiful statue or a painting without becoming sexually aroused by viewing it) and the asexual person may well desire physical intimacy with them, such as hugging, kissing, cuddling and holding hands. Since not all asexuals are inherently repulsed by sex but merely disinterested in it by default, turning that desire for general closeness into sexual activity where it provides fulfillment of some form to both parties isn’t necessarily paradoxical.

Someone once brought up a fairly good point regarding this subject; non-asexual people also sometimes hook up and have sex with people that aren’t specifically attractive to them. It can still be perfectly consensual and satisfy the needs of both parties, despite the fact that the base attraction wasn’t there. For example, a person who just wants to have sex with someone might go along with a partner they would not otherwise choose, but who simply happens to be available and ready to do the deed with them. Alternatively, a woman might seek to have a baby, and have sex with a partner solely for that purpose, and whether the partner chosen is sexually attractive to them or not isn’t a big factor in the choice. (Plenty of asexual women choose to have sex to have children.) There are multiple reasons to have sex even when you’re not sexually attracted. Specifically for asexuals, the factor of having a non-asexual partner is usually a big motivator to have sex, and other reasons like the ones I explored above may additionally pop up to support that decision.

Finally, some asexuals just really dig orgasms. Most people do. We just don’t have that special someone we wish was delivering them to us, and largely prefer to take care of our own. But when you are in a relationship and that kind of comes as a package deal, some asexuals don’t feel like it’s a bad trade, or at least aren’t violently opposed to the idea. I think most asexuals who do choose to have sex are indifferent to it - it’s not their favourite thing in the world, but it takes care of business.

Best explanation EVER.

Now THIS is the ace discourse I’m here for. Yes, yes, yes! 🙏