🌟 hi all—tbh, things haven’t been okay for me for a while now. there are reasons why you haven’t seen publications from me in years.
if you’d like to know what happened, including the latest crisis, and offer help & support, here’s my gfm:
thank you 🙏🏻
well! turns out my landlord hadn’t been paying mortgage on the house for like six months and was hiding the notices to move out and told me nothing, so the cops came by with a judge order while I was at work and I came home to find the locks changed and me evicted, what a day
ok but my hot take is that GLASS ONION wasn’t a whodunnit at all, but a thriller where the key tension driving the plot is when chekhov’s mona lisa encasement is finally gonna pay off
I can’t believe pandas all still have carnivore digestive tracts and *can* eat meat but they are like “nah I’m vegetarian and I choose this one plant that my body can’t actually digest. but nomnomnom”
if pandas were human they’d be lactose intolerant and drink milk daily
I was about to “well actually” but turns out it was a specific brand of paint (rosco) that must use a less common colorant to achieve saturated pinks, typically it’s very hard to get pantone-level saturation in a paint, as pantones are inks and paints have different formulations
fortunately I can live with my dad for the time being and I was able to get in to get my cat, meds, papers, and valuables
but if anyone has any recommendations for moving companies who can move two rooms in the one (1) day I’ve been allotted within the next 15 days, do tell
at some point when I have the time I'm going to have to test all the forms on all four of my sites to see if names break them and then fix that because *holds head in hands* I just can't with this, this is 1000000000% purely bad design, there are no longer any technical limits
literally the only reason I’m not suddenly homeless is I have parents who can support me and have room so I am not in any danger of being unsheltered
however, if anyone would like to drop some compliments, positive things, cute animal pics, now would be A Really Great Time
and this, for separate reasons (I go by a first initial and middle name; forcing me to put them together in the first name field is wrong, and many people especially from asia have mononyms):
when you’ve been dealing with brain fog and fatigue for basically ever due to ADHD and suddenly everyone starts experiencing brain fog due to COVID and you’re just like… ah… welcome… here are my maps and signposts and toolkit, there are ways to navigate through fog
sometimes I wonder if PCOS isn’t more widely considered an intersex condition because that would make being intersex even more common and people would have to reckon with that
whenever christians are like “you’re an atheist? but how do you know what’s wrong and right and what’s moral to do?”, I’m just like, “ahh, so you have only externally imposed ethical frameworks, thanks for outing yourself as someone susceptible to authoritarianism and fascism”
mostly I spent the entire movie thinking, “when is the encasement going to backfire? when is that tiny rock of klear going to show up again?”
it’s less a whodunnit and more a heist movie
a lot of people define cuisines by what they see in restaurants, but another way I like to understand people’s food heritages is “what food would your mom make for you when she’s sooooooo so tired, but still has to feed her kids?” (or whoever did most of the caretaking)
because like ok… so the thing is, KNIVES OUT is a classic whodunnit, because it opens with… something having been done!
but GLASS ONION has no such opening. instead, it follows the classic *heist* structure, of opening by gathering individuals for a mission
in fact I would say from these two data points, the KNIVES OUT IP is shaping up to be not a series of whodunnits, but a series of comeuppance/just deserts narratives that happen to have benoit blanc as a supporting character who catalyzes the underdog
IN FACT, GLASS ONION spoils its own ending in the very same opening scene, when helen just fuckin smashes open the intricate box, and it’s everyone else completing the puzzles that is the red herring—it’s “so simple” a way to open the box, yet it *worked*
I am HOLLERING, you’re telling me an entire fandom is going around harshing on people for “incest” when they DON’T EVEN UNDERSTAND 兄弟
SCREAMING
y’all this is the equivalent of calling a ship incest because either of them calls the other “bro” I am DYING
*sighs* designing charts that are accessible to colorblind people also means that you design charts that still work when users have night shift on on their display, god why do people suck at accessibility and realizing that designing for access improves access for EVERYONE
in the end, helen was successful in her heist. because actually, the goal was never to acquire the envelope itself and think that that’s enough. the true heist was stealing miles’s reputation and fuckin nuking it—and she DID IT 🔥
also to everyone trying to erase the race from this: while it’s true that some white people have one- or two-letter last names, by sheer numbers this disproportionately affects asian users at a much higher rate
and I mean—once you get to the flashback, in KNIVES OUT the same flashback structure sets up and reinforces the core whodunnit structure, whereas the flashback scene in GLASS ONION sets up the core *heist* structure, with helen presenting the object (envelope) she’s heisting
the fact that the true protagonist of both films is a woman of color underscores the comeuppance narrative structure, by positioning for maximal distance between the underdog and the top dogs to be taken down
studying linguistics is peak autistic honestly, like "I don't understand people but the way they say things seems to be important?? let me just???? pick it all apart??????? then *maybe* things will FINALLY make sense" (plot twist: it *did* end up making more sense)
anyway, the thing about this form is that (1) it was not tied to my customer profile, as my final order had my correct spelling on it, (2) it was not used to process payment, as I was redirected to another portal to use ACH that required just my chase username and password
the two most commonly cited european demographics with one- and two-letter surnames are sweden (10.4 million people of all surnames) and the netherlands (17.6 million people of all surnames). meanwhile, the most common chinese surname is li, with 100 MILLION PEOPLE ON ITS OWN
maybe I’ll contact the site if I give enough of a shit, but I’m fatigued, don’t use this site often enough for it to be an issue, and my mind is still boggled that there was this arbitrary “validation” that WAS NOT EVEN USED FOR ANTI-SPAM OR ANTI-FRAUD, it’s INCREDIBLE
also, please, everyone. I tried adding spaces and a period. do you think a system that can’t comprehend a two-letter last name would be able to handle spaces and hyphens? just check the replies and see how many people are commiserating about that
please no more tragic sad starving panda representation. please more stories about how fast bamboo grows and about how pandas’ special bamboo interest makes them nature’s lawnmowers. please give these chompers more room to chomp!!!
whenever people are like “omg the children need to be protected from any mention of s-e-x including LGBTQ topics,” I’m like *dead-eyed stare in I got my period and developed boobs by the time I was 9 and you BET kids in elementary school were already making comments on them*
the references to current events reinforce this vibe—it’s an *actual* takedown of elites, versus the empty criticism of some vague “elites” that the right wing does
also, the brilliance of GLASS ONION is that it *primes* you to think it’s a whodunnit, by branding itself “a KNIVES OUT mystery,” which… is exactly what edward norton’s character does! lie to you to make you believe one thing, only to reveal the truth—it’s not intricate at all!
now that I’ve turned off my grayscale filter—yeah, those pinks wouldn’t be possible with my store’s colorants, you would need a specific colorant (article says “fluorescent”) and those types of colorants are typically VERY expensive to put in that much paint
also apparently they need multiple types of bamboo in an area to eat to get enough nutrients, where are my stories about pandas as biodiversity guardians!! pandas united against monocultures!!!!!!!!!
saw someone replying to KF-related harassment with “what did you even do to get on their radar??” and I’m just like “oh that’s cute, you’ve never been bullied, you think bullies and harassers have a reason”
now that I have this knowledge, when I watch this movie, you bet I will be keeping a running square footage estimation of all the sets to calculate roughly how much pink paint they used
it took me 30 goddamn years to realize that when people say “head voice” they mean “it resonates in your sinus cavity” and when they say “chest voice” they mean “it resonates in your thoracic cavity,” please properly describe meatbags so I know which voids to weaponize, thanks
going to mute this thread for the sake of my notifications now, but just as a brief introduction, I’m a sociolinguist who writes, edits, and translates science fiction, fantasy, and horror; my next book will be about linguistic genocide & systemic marginalization not unlike this
the fact that there is a highway to hell but only a stairway to heaven shows that while the road to hell is paved with good intentions, the road to heaven wouldn’t even meet the americans with disabilities act requirements for basic accessibility
first rule of driving thru meteorological fog is to never use your high beams, the assumption is shining brighter will make things more visible but it backfires, the fog scatters the light worse
same with brain fog, you don’t try to work extra hard to compensate, it backfires
pandas eat 26–33 pounds of bamboo daily!! they can eat up to 84 pounds of new shoots!! humans only eat three to five pounds of food per day!!!!!!!! it would potentially take 28 humans to eat the same amount of bamboo a panda eats per day!!!
this is exactly why I keep insisting that white people (1) have ethnic identities, (2) have heritages, and (3) have cultural contexts, because acting like white people are a default unmarked state with “no culture” actively enables cultural appropriation and coloniality
If you don't know you have a culture, if you think your history is all mud and brown wool, then cultural appropriation might feel inevitable. Burning herbs is an everybody thing but people don't KNOW THAT, so, smudging, for example.
yes this!!! both KNIVES OUT stories plant the proverbial bomb right in front of the viewer up front, and you stay watching for the payoff, and the satisfaction over the payoff is what makes the movie
the visible portions of this pool cabana in the foreground (roof, wall, pillars, floor, coffee table with lamp) probably took 2 gallons of paint to cover
retail price of painting just this section is about $326
with PCOS it’s less nonconsensual medical interventions like surgery, but there is a common experience of medical neglect due to ideas of how a uterus should function wrt gender (i.e., be fertile only)
you just accept the fog is happening and allow yourself to proceed with caution and eventually landmarks will become visible, and you use a map to help yourself put together the landmarks instead of expecting yourself to be able to synthesize it all as usual
if I think about it some more, the KNIVES OUT movies follow this formula:
(1) present various axes of power imbalance
(2) present goods & goals that can only be acquired & achieved with power
(3) contextualize the underdogs within the now-scaffolded power matrix
I have been so tired of how panda narratives and stereotypes have been spun and how the panda has been turned into diplomat, but this idea of climate fiction with panda bears protecting biodiversity (they MUST have at least two species of bamboo to survive!!) is HELL YEA
benoit blanc even lampshades this by saying clue is too simple for not capturing the complexities of real life—i.e., the intersectionality of axes of power that inform people’s actions and motives!
oh man, forever a source of frustration for me coming from the fanfic world is how the vignette is lauded in fanfic but sneered at in genre; the vignette gets slightly more mileage in litfic, but overall I had to assimilate to western “something must Happen for it to be a Story”
the softer pinks would probably be doable with quin red and/or quin magenta but those really hot pinks need a different colorant
(cc
@KariDru
@munin_and_hugin
for paint nerdery!)
sometimes cis women seem to think uterine suffering is the definition of being a woman (I mean, if you follow the bible it literally is) so when you say “uterine pain is not a prerequisite of being alive, nevermind gender” they act like you’re taking their whole identity away
two characters: you’re my bro, bro. like, bro, how could I ever treat my bro with anything less than the utmost respect, bro??
if the characters are white: “wow look at their bromance, so bro”
if the characters are chinese: “this must be some mystical asian incest dynamic”
(4) show underdogs struggling to navigate mazes & axes of power while demonstrating their own forms of cunning & intellect that exist outside the standardized models
(5) invert the symbols of power, thereby inverting the entire power structure
(6) bam. underdogs on top. the end
there’s also bodily autonomy denied bc people are deemed too young or inexperienced to know they want sterilization, and misinformation about how your own body is supposed to work and what’s normal or not normal
@SamLangellier
tried a space, didn't work; tried a period, name is invalid. I ended up painfully entering "luu" and luckily the payment method uses credentials that don't connect to this form
choosing women of color protagonists whose experiences inform their outsider logics reinforces this formula bc the intersectional experiences of power inherently set up more satisfaction when *multiple* axes get inverted, instead of a simple one-axis see-saw
education in the united states is so abysmal because under christian ethical frameworks, the less you can criticize authority, the better. it doesn’t matter if the authority is moral or not, it only matters how well you obey and become subservient to authority
sometimes this means taking notes while you’re doing a task, which doesn’t mean you’re incompetent; in fact, the very act of writing improves memory, and the other person is just gonna be like “oh thank god, they really want to make sure they’re getting this right”
I am less concerned about the “authenticity” of the name “cho chang” than I am about the fact that people think authenticity of a name is the main requirement to write an asian character properly
please talk about how the only three asian characters are people’s girlfriends
but PCOS as intersex just means like… it’s a descriptor of how our organ and hormone function is in that liminal zone where there are traits read as feminine like breasts but also traits read as masculine like facial hair, and support for us is also bodily autonomy for all
do you ever think about how neopets stepped in to regulate their stock market bc people kept coordinating to buy and dump stocks and neopets was like “no. stop that. we set the prices now, this is ridiculous”
this is assuming two coats of paint (standard for best color coverage, but bright colors sometimes need more coats) and it looks like the ceilings may actually be 10ft tall instead of the typical 8ft, but it’s hard to tell without people in the picture
that question indexes Staple
other questions I like (change terms as appropriate):
• what food would your mom make for you if you’re sick? (indexes Bland)
• what food would your mom make for you when she’s just feeling so happy to see her kid? (usually indexes Fancy/Effort)
the pandas are tired of being sent places to look cute in some enclosure where they are fed bland bamboo for the human gaze. they roundhouse kick humans off their habitat and start planting more species of bamboo to reach their goal of a 25-species bamboo buffet
also, the fact that they painted the set ceilings? GOOD DECISION, fluorescents are extremely not lightfast and if this hadn’t been a closed set without sunlight all that work would wash out in like a month
you can’t run from fog, you can’t clear fog by trying to push it back; I grew up in mountains with morning fog and it makes you realize fog is just a low-lying cloud, and there is nothing you can do but wait for the cloud to lift or dissipate
the answer to “why were you bullied” or “why are you being harassed” is more often than not “because a group of pathetic people who feel empowered by disempowering others needed a target, and I was in the wrong place at the wrong time”
pain of ANY kind is not a prerequisite to being alive; bodily autonomy and the ability to make decisions about how you want your own body to function and look is are human rights of self-determination and self-expression
but good news! you can do things while you wait! all time spent beating yourself up for your brain not working could be more productively used resting or doing/thinking about something that makes you feel grounded :)
but christofascist “made in god’s image” (so it cannot be changed) / “cast out of eden, labor pain as punishment for daring to want to know a thing” (so questioning authority is forbidden) makes it such that ppl would rather cling to pain as identity than conceptualize a new way
trans people are in the crosshairs because our very ability to determine our own genders is seen under this framework as an affront to authority, who must be obeyed; the authority has assigned you a role and to deviate from it is, under this framework, a moral failing
hello east coast friends!! do not panic!! your friendly west coaster is here with tips for weathering wildfires:
• N95s filter wildfire smoke! but a surgical or fabric mask or gaiter won’t do much
text for below pic:
N95 FAQs:
the mountain fog metaphor is also apt because you come to realize that your energy levels are also cyclic: some days it’s foggy the whole day, some days it’s sunny, sometimes for an entire stretch of time the fog descends in the morning, but leaves later in the day…
@sqiouyilu
Without people for size comparison, that set looks like an actual plastic barbie playground. Impressive.
Kinda surprised they didn't just recolour stuff digitally, though (or at least touch up the vibrancy).
Also, your 'well actually' reminds me of a game show I'm watching 😂