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liskantope · 1 year

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I'm getting pretty irritated at how Freddie deBoer is discussing and handling the issue of large proportions of his comments sections revolving around vaguely anti-LGBTQ views. I'm sympathetic to him in having to deal with the general dilemma of attracting an audience whose views on certain culture war topics tilt in a direction that he finds offensive, or that he doesn't want to have on the face of his blog. (Scott Alexander also had to struggle with this, at least in the earlier Slate Star Codex years.) But I find myself shaking my head at the way FdB is scolding and disciplining his audience about this and right now am inclined to say that it's the wrong approach and that a good bit of FdB's framing is unfair here.

First of all, there's a stigma in general against talking too much about culture war stuff, one which I've internalized myself and struggled with, and in the end I'm not sure the stigma makes sense. Certain topics become culture-warlike in the first place precisely because people care a whole lot about them, because they stoke strong emotions, so why should we be shamed for continuing to care and be emotional about them? I'm tempted to posit that the stigma is a subtly misplaced aversion to getting bogged down in toxic discourse where debaters because of their emotions too often in practice argue in a really low-quality and unconstructive way.

Secondly, FdB himself blogs a ton about culture war stuff! He just avoids certain issues and prefers others. One of the main issues that he's passionate about now is the recent boom in youth mental-illness-happy, diagnosis-happy culture (or at least, that's what he might call it). In his earlier months ranting about this on his blog, a number of commentators chose to take note of some very obvious parallels between what he was pointing out and what appears to be happening with a boom in young people identifying as transgender (note: by "very obvious parallels", I don't mean "absolute parallels" or "without room to rebut by pointing out very salient differences"). Many of the commentators, by being pretty passionately on the side of those issues that is most analogous to FdB's side of the mental illness cultural issue, chose to devolve the comments threads into long discussions about it. FdB decried it as creating an unfriendly environment for trans readers, made vague blanket statements about supporting trans and other LGBTQ rights, ducked addressing the parallels others noted between the opposing views and FdB's views on mental illness stuff, and forbade the topic of transgender youth culture from being discussed going forward.

Commenters mostly stuck to this rule. The comments section of the recent post about drag culture seems to be an unfortunate flagrant exception (you have to dig into the comments a bit, but not terribly far). So I do get why FdB is upset.

But... his characterization of commenters ranting about gender culture war issues -- that they have an unhealthy obsession and would turn any debate about any topic at all however dry into an excuse to rant about gender stuff -- seems way off base to me in multiple ways. First of all, he's angry because commenters started talking about gender stuff in the comments section to a post about the normalization of drag culture which discussed the recent trend of taking kids to drag shows. There is not exactly far for them to reach to get to their favorite topic! And I've never seen them reach from, say, tax cuts for the rich to trans issues (as FdB likes to claim they would when mocking them).

Secondly, I think it's pretty mean to insinuate that they (and conservatives in general, which he lumps them in with, even though my impression is that many of them aren't particularly conservative) are obsessed with gender to the point of it being a mental health problem. His general way of framing it takes only one side's behavior into consideration. You would think that the segment of youth culture in favor of focusing on gender-as-whatever-you-feel-it-to-mean and tons of gender identity labels and so forth is passionate about this in a "proportionate" (to use Freddie's term) way. Has he seen Tumblr? Has he considered the trans activist segment of the current "woke" social movement and its push to incorporate it into our culture? That's a dumb question, of course: he just wrote a post on it, or the part of it having to do with drag shows becoming normalized/sanitized/corporatized -- that is a part of basically said movement promoting trans activism (again, it wasn't exactly a far reach for commenters to jump within it). There is a major subset of the "woke" culture warriors who are visibly passionate about gender issues to the point that the more extreme ones seem obsessive, and there is a major subset of the "anti-woke" culture warriors who are visibly passionate against what they feel are harmful changes the other side is trying to impose to the point that the more extreme ones seem obsessive. (For example, Hasbro bothered to decide and announce that Mr. Potato Head is gender nonbinary, and conservative outlets took the trouble to sneer and whine about it. To me, this is a clear instance of both sides being obsessive. I'm not saying equally in the right -- I'm much more on Hasbro's side here -- just obsessive. I would have to argue that Hasbro has closer to the right idea rather than just point at the Fox News side and say, "Look how freaked out they're getting over a stupid potato toy, lol!".) It's pretty narrow-sighted to point to one side appearing obsessed without realizing that a culture war, or any war really, is about actions and roughly equal reactions happening on both sides.

(Also, more minor point: if you look at individuals in these comments section back-and-forths, rather than considering the comments section as a whole, I find it easy to empathize with them as each simply writing a few long comments thoroughly expounding a point of view, then naturally wanting to respond a couple of times once someone has pushed back on it. Which is... all pretty normal behavior for someone who cares enough and has thought enough about a topic to feel like commenting on it under a blog post and responding to pushback. It doesn't, on the individual level, come across to me as an unrelenting obsession, at least not with most of the commenters?)

I get that FdB wants to be an ally of LGBTQ people and doesn't want his comments sections to turn into a place that might feel hostile to many or most of them. I'd like to feel that my attitude would be similar if I ran a blog like his. I don't know exactly how someone in this position should deal with this, given that a lot of the controversial-among-progressives views he does espouse have, as I've said, pretty obvious parallels to certain other views that run counter to today's LGBTQ-activist model of gender and society. Naturally a lot of his audience is going to make those connections either way (and even some LGBTQ members of his audience might also be unorthodox in their views on some of their community's activist rhetoric and gender views, I'd tend to imagine some would be!).

One thing that occurs to me he could do is ban all comments that he deems unnecessarily aggressive, hostile, sarcastic, sneering towards LGBTQ issues, etc. -- in other words, gross, mean comments. When banning discussion of trans issues, for instance, he cited a commenter calling women's prisons an "all-you-can-rape buffet" for trans women. This comment is really gross, and in a way that's completely unnecessary to the discussion. So ban those comments and the commenters who make them. In other words, follow Scott Alexander's original maxim that SSC comments should satisfy at least two of the qualities of being true, necessary, and kind. The "all-you-can-rape buffet" comment, even if true in the mind of the commenter, very clearly was neither necessary nor kind. Sure there will always be some subjectivity in what "kind" entails, so it's not a perfect system. And ironically, Scott did eventually have to override this criterion for admitting comments and just start banning people who turned every single discussion into an excuse to propagandize neoreaction (remember when that was a thing?). So I don't know.

What I do feel fairly sure about is that FdB is not ultimately doing his cause favors by avoiding addressing what much of his audience sees as parallels between some of his views and the views he's banning on in his comments section. FdB just characterized his views on all LGBTQ issues and the current standard progressive ones as having no daylight between them. Yet, for instance, when asked about teenagers being put on gender-related medical treatments, he says things like he has to be agnostic because he doesn't know enough about that type of medicine, reversibility, etc. Which, fine, I'm basically agnostic too, for similar reasons. But he can't with a sweep of his hand declare himself completely in line with today's progressive Left on gender stuff (while being extremely critical of that same subculture on other, not entirely unrelated, things) and keep being vague when pressed on what he actually thinks about the gender stuff, without coming across as disingenuous. His occasional repeated proclamations of "I'm completely supportive of all transgender and queer activist issues [with a few extremely vague embellishments and minor qualifications]" in place of engaging in a discussion about why, say, his views on the social contagion aspect of the youth's mental illness culture do not imply an analogous criticism of the subculture focused on gender identity, honestly makes it appear that he is hiding something about his true views. In fact, it looks a lot like FdB doesn't feel like dealing with the backlash that would come his way if he fully exposed what his true views are.

Or to put it another way, I would like to see FdB actually address the reasons why young people over-diagnosing themselves with mental illnesses is distinct in a salient way from the boom among young people in identifying as transgender. Presumably he thinks such a rebuttal to the alleged parallels exists, so why does he appear to be strenuously ducking the question? I'm genuinely curious as to how he really makes these distinctions. And who knows, maybe whatever arguments he could put forth would nudge some of his more devoted readers into being more pro-trans-rights!

Instead, it really sort of comes across that ironically, the man who recently wrote "Be Independent -- No, Not Like That!", who happily embraces one side of the political spectrum while strenuously criticizing much of the rhetoric/narrative that comes out of the associated tribe and even celebrates his intellectual right to do this, is also someone who shuts down his commenters from strenuously criticizing a different strain of the rhetoric/narrative that comes from that tribe because, you see, he disagrees with and is offended by that other form of criticism. ("Be critical of today's progressive culture even if you're otherwise progressive yourself -- no, not like that!")

Uncharitable, I know, and looking at it another way I want to see FdB as just someone who likes the LGBTQ community and is simply concerned about not alienating it. Gaah.

#freddie deboer #culture war #transgender issues #drag culture #mr potato head #lgbtqa issues #slate star codex #transphobia cw #nrx #mental illness awareness culture #comments sections

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thewoodbine · 1 year

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Hello there,

I have come to you before and you always gave me the best of advice.

I am female, unhappily married, I have a small kid, and I began an affair with a woman almost 5 months ago. We had our fair share of drama, she is 23 and I am 30. I wanted to leave my husband but I am from a small European country where the life of a woman that divorces her husband for another woman would not be easy. I would most surely lose custody of my kid...

After I asked for a divorce my husband made a 180 turn and has become so affectionate, so attentive... but I feel as if I lost all love for him. I battled with a bad case of post-partum and he was also depressed as life changed with a New born kid...

I invited her over recently, and we were not intimate in that instance because I don't feel I could do it in his and i's home... but I had a moment when she was sat at his chair in the kitchen when it all became real to me... the posibility of losing my family if it all came out... how small she is... how in that moment I missed him so much. And it did not make sense to me. I thought I hated him since he was so absent in my time of need... how selfish he had been...

Ever since that moment I kept feeling this: get out of this affair.. and I keep hearing in my head: this is your Last chance... As if someone is holding something from crashing but the weight is wearing them down ... This morning I woke up at 5:55... numbers don't catch my eyes most of the time but this time... it just felt different. This morning my husband informs me he would like to switch from a 3(mornings, noon and nights) shifts to 2... so we would be always opposite shifts and be able to enroll the kid into kindergarden... if he doesnt work nightshifts I will no longer be able to swing by her place once a week. The kid would be starting in the fall but I jumped the gun and told her and basically called it quits...

I dont understand myself... if I hate him and love her... why do i keep getting the fealing that I need to leave her... like... like I am on a sinking ship but no one else is seeing that... she is lovind and carting and protective and all I could want in a partner ..she has flaws, we all have... but why? Could it be something leading me...?

Please help me... any piece of advice... I always listened to you.

Well, I can't pass any judgment here. I don't know what your experience is like...but I'll do my best to try to give my opinion. Remember though that you already have all of the answers you need, and this is a choice you have to make. I only have this little piece of your life story and this tinnnyy bit of information is the only thing I can weigh in on, so I speak without the full picture. Use your own compass here.

It sounds to me like you've overthought yourself to death. You no longer see the forest for the trees. You've talked yourself into up is down and down is up and then back again and now you don't know anymore- except your gut hasn't been fooled. You already know what you should do.

If it were me, I also think you need to immediately end this affair and go back to your family- and if you're not coming clean to your spouse you should immediately. I'm sure she's very nice but you've made a family. You should think about your happiness, yes, of course, but you should think about your child and your husband too. If they are serving their roles in the family and making you happy and trying their best and you are the one wanting to have both, then that is selfish and will lead to your own suffering. I don't say this to shame. I say this because I truly genuinely believe that selfishness and expectations are the roots of all human suffering. Look how much you are suffering now because of this choice, and how much pain you have caused others. An affair is a horrible thing to do to someone else. I'm trying not to let my personal bias for women and LGBTQ couples get in the way and imagine how I feel about men who have affairs because they are unhappy without communicating that unhappiness to their spouse. I would not be very patient with that person.

Instead, I'd recommend you to speak to your husband about what made you seek out this affair in the first place and try to work on that. What needs were not being met? In what way did you fail him? How did he fail you? Fix the relationship you have if it can be fixed.

That's my two cents anyway. I really appreciate your trust and honesty and vulnerability here and I really hope it all works out for the best for everyone involved here.

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birdoutofdodge · 2 years

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So, correct me if I’m wrong, but I have a bit of a theory that’s been developing in the back of my head for a while now. I’m sure other people have said this before, but I haven’t seen anything myself comparing these couple of events/incidents so I thought I might as well get it out there.

Right now we in the U.S. are experiencing an “unprecedented” number of books that are being banned from schools and reported ---- especially in Texas and the south, and mostly books with subject matter that discusses or even mentions LGBTQ+/Queer folks, racism and anti-racism, and sex-ed. (There are, of course, notable exceptions to these three categories.)

Anyway, I’m just wondering, now that we’ve seen this trend start to rise so significantly, along with a parallel anti-intellectual movement from several different sides of the aisle (though at different intensities), does anyone else think this pattern might’ve started back more than two years ago? In fact, that it might have started much longer ago around the time of the Hunger Games popularity (by Suzanne Collins)?

I mean, all of this outrage has one central thread, and that’s the face value “protect the children” narrative being pushed by individuals supporting these mass book bans, because children are always an easy target to manipulate based on their lack of active political power and assumed/implication of innocence. But I really feel like the outrage over the Hunger Games was just one of, if not the first instance of this specific pattern occurring---not that book banning didn’t happen before outrage about this YA series, just this specific escalation of anger and protest.

Conservatives pushed a narrative that the books were endangering kids by encouraging violence, and that the gratuitous violence within them was a New Low in regards to the state of the country’s morality, and so very quickly it found itself as one of the “most complained about” books in 2011 (next to other titles like To Kill a Mockingbird). And the strategy worked. Parents got outraged.

So why not do it again?

Except now it’s been a decade since they started their national-scale attack on books, raising the issue from a district conversation to a Country-Wide decision to make. And our administrations haven’t been particularly keen on or quick to stop this spread. So these lists are in the hundreds and growing basically everyday. And now instead of parents being able to target specific books allowed in schools or being taught they can target the teachers themselves.

Anyway, I know its not the most revolutionary of takes I just thought it was perhaps something worth looking at, especially when pursuing to combat these current affairs and prevent them from reoccuring in the future. We have to treat this issue like it really is: the expansion of a long-standing strategy to undermine fair, open-access education with diversity of thought, not just a simple wave of fear bred by four or so years of influence by a single administration. They’re playing the long game, obviously. We can’t treat it like anything else.

#suzanne collins #us politics #book banning #books #ya fiction #current affairs #censorship #news #robin says things

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whysojiminimnida · 3 years

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Free Jungkook from your homophobia, more like.

Homophobic hateful behavior. That’s what it is when a man is telling you out loud who he loves and you’d rather deflect, avoid, deny and invalidate. You’d rather scream at his employer, hate his lover, and call him a liar than listen to the man you say you love. You’re wrong. It’s wrong. No argument you have is valid at this point. You believe him or you choose to deny him on the basis of your prejudice against him. That’s it. When people choose to actively denigrate, invalidate and hate on an individual due to their perceived or obvious sexual orientation and/or choice of partner, those people are not fans. Those people are by definition haters, antis and bullies. You are perpetrating homophobic abusive bullshit on two men who have done nothing but love you, entertain you and work for you and you should be ashamed of yourselves.

Does Jungkook need to be freed from shippers? I mean, it wouldn’t hurt to free him from Taekook when he has explicitly said they’re not close like that. It wouldn’t hurt to free him from Jinkook hard shippers who don’t understand platonic love vs. sexual love. But really neither of those or any other ships really give Jungkook much lost sleep, I don’t think. He’s not worried about y’all because guess what? Toxic TKKers aside, y’all affect his personal life about zero percent of the time. Idol training prepares these men – all of them – for shipping, for fan interaction and fanservice, for the duality of image they are expected to present. That duality is a learned skill, kids. The level of camera intrusion into a successful idol’s life is insane and they are taught how to handle that and what to show the public with the assumption that everything will always be shown to the public. Are exceptions made? Of course. All the time. Editing does happen. Some stuff gets left on the floor. We freak out when things make it to the public without taking into consideration the number of people it takes to sign off on those decisions. That’s why moments like Rose Bowl and 2018 MAMA are so major – there wasn’t time to edit those things. They were caught live and available globally within moments of their capture. But Hickeygate and They Look Exceptionally Close Today and Neck Stroke Holiday Dynamite were crafted products deliberately shown to us by BigHit/Hybe, in packaged products. Hell they reclaimed Rose Bowl and stuck it in DVD format and you don’t think that was a calculated move? Read that again – they CHOSE TO SHOW US THIS. DELIBERATELY. WITH SIGNOFFS ON MULTIPLE LEVELS AND ARTIST/MANAGEMENT INPUT. ONE MORE TIME IN THE BACK THEY DID IT ON PURPOSE THEY ARE NOT HIDING THIS IS AS OUT AS WE ARE GONNA GET WITHOUT A SEX TAPE OR A WEDDING VIDEO.

BUT some fans are stupid and some of us – a distressing number - are violently and virulently anti-LGBTQ+. And before you start the “my brother is gay don’t” I CAN AND I AM BECAUSE YOU ARE. You may love your gay bro. Hell you might be gay yourself – internalized homophobia is real. But let’s face it – if your problem is that Jungkook is being shipped with Jimin then why is that a problem? What makes you mad we gonna call out an actual admitted hickey from the giggling-ass involved adult parties? Why is making a hickey a romantic, sexual thing wrong? BECAUSE TWO DICKS ARE INVOLVED AND YOU ARE NOT. That’s why, kids. And not just any dicks. His dick and yep, his dick too and guess what, hard-ons happened and were likely dealt with as a result JUST LIKE IT GOES ON A REGULAR BASIS. A neck mark like that is clear evidence of sexual activity and that is what has your homophobia acting up. Because whether you admit it or not you know exactly what it means. And why you might be fine with it being with a girl JUST NOT WITH JIMIN. Denying it with “my brother does it to me” makes you look like a liar or an incest victim and I hope for your sake it’s the former. Making it a cover for a girl just makes you gross in your str8 agenda and I hope you choke on it. Does Jungkook even find women attractive? I haven’t seen evidence of that – I’ve seen more of that from Jimin, actually – but he might. Very well could. Bisexuality and pansexuality exist and as a member of the latter community it’s more common than you think. But Jungkook openly and clearly finds men – one man in particular – more attractive than anyone else. He is absolutely, most assuredly doing the sexy gay sex with one Park Jimin whether you like it or not. Is now, has been for at least four or five years, possibly longer. Stan a man who believes in true love and a long term relationship, it’s healthy for everyone. Good for you. Free Jungkook. Free Jungkook from dumbass homophobic bullshit. Free him from people who don’t love and support him and his orientation and his relationship. Free him from everybody except Park Jimin because they have a date to go to the moon, a deserted island, and their own damn bed without us. And after all this I hope they do.

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organic-guacamole · 3 years

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episode 209 spoilers below

I'm so late today but here it is

I love EJ, he's finally learning to be happy. I'm so proud.

Ms Jenn = every boomer during zoom calls, like jeez yes we can hear you stop shouting at me.

LOVE THE SUBTLE JOKE ABOUT QUARANTINE "these dark times" "you mean spring break?"

ah yes, remember when we thought covid was just gonna give us a longer spring break? good times

SEBLOS

damn the passive aggressiveness from Carlos and the absolutely over it tone from seb✋

CASWELL COUSINS!!!!! THEY'RE THE BEST!!!!

we needed more if this kind of goofiness for the first part of season 2 that only such an iconic duo can provide.

old old movies-

is it even that old, or is Nini being a gen alpha rn-

i choose to imagine EJ being scared of the movie and hiding in Ashlyn's shoulder while she keeps a straight face and then EJ pretending to be tough afterwards

aww redlyn are soulmates.... yknow, if gingers had souls

(please ignore me)

y'all saw how EJ's face *lit up* when Gina logged on? how dare you tell me he doesn't like her

ofc she's no damsel in distress, she's Gina porter, she's amazing.

so do we think she'd be the type to just glare at suspicious people? or bark at them

do they not know that Rini broke up? or is Ms Jenn just wanting Nini to suffer through her heartbreak to make her a better actress....

speaking of, why is Nini in the call? she's not in the show anymore. Unless she is, even after the rose and the song got cut, which would be so unfair to all those that auditioned properly before she even came back but whatever, she's the main character I get it 🙄

big red is a hero honestly, Nini better thank him for changing the subject like that

I can't-

i won't work you over the break-

this woman would 100% work her kids 24/7 if it was legal and idk how to feel about it.

YES GINA USE THAT CHARM

QUEEN

FRENCH QUEEN

SHE LEARNT FROM THE BEST (antoine obvi)

smh the airport lady, eavesdropping on Gina's call.

The way she was so happy to answer EJ's call, "eej"

I love them your honour.

EJ WITH PAINTED NAILS YES PLEASE

great now we need to see Gina, Ashlyn and EJ having a complete spa day and EJ getting really into it and Gina and Ashlyn take pictures of him when he's laying down in a robe with a mask and cucumbers on his eyes.

finally we get to see Gina's side of portwell

the way she considered it as flirting, this is the sign she asked for in episode 6 come onnnnn

no is Asher/jack really doing tiktok dances in an airport-

Ricky is me. I am burrito.

oh Lynne, sweetie, I'm sorry but the blonde hair is not it

is that even the same lady or-

THE BEAN

THE CHICAGO BEAN

THE BIG OLD METAL BEAN IN THE MIDDLE OF THE CITY 😭

jetlag is my go to excuse for anything... I haven't travelled in 2 years.

"welcome to the Lynne and Mike gossip show. where we talk about our depressed son that we both neglect in certain ways! And now a word from our sponsor, Nord VPN..."

SO MANY CANDLES

WHAT DEMON IS LYNNE TRYING TO SUMMON IN HIS ROOM-

is Nina becoming social media obsessed EJ from season 1? AND SHE LIED ABOUT HAVING SONGS TOO PLEASE WHY ARW THEY RECYCLING THE SAME PLOT-

Gina smiling at the picture of her family on Instagram makes me so happy, idek why.

EJ's nails are so pretty, we needed to see it more (unless he had it on for the rest of the episode and I just.... didn't notice🧍🏽‍♀️)

oh not the tiktok kid✋

yes ma'am end this strange mans whole tiktok career

sir take a hint and leave

GINA NO DONT SAY YOUR LAST NAME HE COULD BE A HUMAN TRAFFICKER

Ricky, walking in style✨

weird kid, ok then Lynne, can't you see he's this close to the edge?

not all your fault baby Ricky, Nini sucks a bit more

RICKY YOU DIDN'T COME DOWN HARD ON THE SONG-

YOU ASKED WHAT IT WAS ABOUT AND SHE SHUT YOU DOWN-

PLEASE DO NOT BLAME YOURSELF

ok but the deleting comment thing was very bad

still don't know if I like Jack honestly

hmmm so Nini's calling herself Nini instead of Nina in her little egg seat, while trying to write a song without inspiration.... Nini, honey, Ricky was your muse, he inspired you to write all those songs, even if it wasn't good for the relationship.

that doesn't mean you gotta get back with him, or that you can't write a song that not about him butttt it'll take some time

the rainbow sticker in her box and her rainbow shirt-

anyways wbk she's not totally straight

Jack are you a criminal?

quick, Gina, check his ankle for a tracker

THE YES AND PRACTICE STRIKES AGAIN

the way Gina wasn't into it in episode 6 but she's used the technique twice now

stole her grandma's Pomeranian-

Jack where the hell did you pull that out from-

the fake crying killed me, that looks like so much fun though

anyone wanna raid a first class lounge with me?

wait so is jack not gonna go in with her?

wouldn't he go in too? help look for the credit card? SO CONFUSED

the first class lounge guy was so into the drama though, watch his face when they start arguing 😭

sorry to break this to you Kourtney, but you haven't even blocked the second act yet soooo...

take that as you will

I love how all of them are totally dissing the dance off

that's the most realistic part of this show tbh

shouldn't Nini have asked how she knew....since the start? why is the fact that her best friend has knowledge of a North high secret now dawning on her...

Howie is sweet honestly, at least he's trying to help. but I stand with Kourtney, don't take him back just because he sang an amazing song, and is giving you a heads up on what's gonna happen...

KOURTNEY IS ME TRYING TO LEAVE AN ONLINE CLASS

I hate school

ooo Nini's writing a song about bad internet connection 🤩🤩🤩

I never lie, except when I do-

son that is the creepiest thing you could say to a stranger that you've been "helping"

2 truths and a lie👀

he's an Ariana fan 100%

called it.

OLDER BROTHER-

WHAT-

free spirit? damn so brother porter was in that horse movie

so has she been kissed or not?????????

I feel like she's moved more than 15 times though so possibly

but then if she's moved so much, and before east high she never opened up to anyone, she's never been kissed then?? damn

same though Gina so let's be besties please

heartbreak president is a great song title idea, give Nini a call rn

but wait

is the no strings attached feeling thing about her telling Ricky she liked him? she thought she was moving away so she thought it'd be no strings attached???

guys I think I figured it out insert the "I've connected two dots" meme

THE DUKE SWEATSHIRT

IS THAT YOUR BOYFRIEND'S

OMG I LOVE I LOVE

NOT THAT I KNOW OF???

ma'am did you just kill me

yes you did

Lynne and Ricky have such a weird relationship

YES IT DID SUCK

TODD SUCKS

LYNNE SUCKS

yeah I get that you wanted Ricky to like Todd BUT THAT WASN'T THE TIME

right so we already know that Ricky was so desperate to keep Nini cuz he didn't want to be like his parents, and now Lynne's talking about this-

Richard needs a long hug

yes Lynne, it is your fault. thank you for finally admitting it.

YES DYE YOUR HAIR

BLOND HIGHLIGHTS RICKY WILL RISE AGAIN

"sometimes the best, last thing you can do for someone you love, is let them go."

gotta admit I teared up at that point

not me thinking big red was calling ms Jenn cupcake for a hot second-

Carlos please omg, you're at the "beach" and they're leaving for the pool?

also, why not just do the call from the hotel room please omg

"don't ask me"

"Carlos"

OMG WHAT HAPPENED

big red wants the tea

O M G

SEB IS JEALOUS

JEALOUS SEBBY IS MY FAVOURITE THING IDC

I'm surprised ms Jenn knew how to give Nini permission to screenshare tbh

So lily's been stalking the East high kids and spending time editing this video while she's supposedly in an immersion trip.... right

EJ and Ashlyn's picture is so chaotic, what even is happening there

"slacking off" bestie its spring break, obviously they're confident enough that they'll get it done in time so why not focus on your own musical.

jealous seb = sassy seb

please what if those guys Carlos is posing with are his cousins or something and that's why he's so confused about Seb

6 YEAR OLD EJ I LOVE HIM I LOVE HIM I LOVE HIM

Nini saying she's obsessed with her ex, that's not weird at all 👍

I can just tell Matt had a blast harassing Julia with those puppets.

Jack please dont be like that, "yet"

chances are you'll never see eachother again 🥰

(honestly sometimes I really miss those friends I made on trips and stuff when we'd spend the day or week together, only to never see them again....those were the good days though)

Ashlyn and Nini should write more songs..... something better than this one at least

Nini: "im good"

cue the Tia Mowry (please I can't spell) crying gif

oh I forgot Ricky was in the show for a hot second

1. where did Gina get to film this without people being around

2. did she just... randomly change her clothes???

ok but the transition between Carlos and EJ

*chefs kiss*

now everyone shut up, EJ's singing

oh i think I'm pregnant

HIS MUSCLES

YES KOURTNEY

I love how big red and Kourtney went from being "the best friends™" to the couple in season 1, to kinda close themselves and having their own plots

sebby makes me so happy

props to biggies editing skills honestly

PORTWELL BEING SIDE TO SIDE I CANT

AND SEBLOS OMG

big red lives for the drama

"wow" so true Ricky

no he is not cute, stop it

"holding" ok that's kinda cute

yeah EJ's a lucky guy😌

jokes aside, it's not that hard to exchange numbers-

keep in touch if you want

ok I really like Jack now

if he comes back in season 3, maybe have him be LGBTQ+ ?

like the only out characters they have rn are Seb and Carlos and they're like the sterotypes, yk?

I'd love to see jack kinda break the mold

Ricky's breaking my heart

that song just hurts

the only thing

now I don't hate Lynne????????

HOW DARE THEY WRITE IN A PROPER REDEMPTION ARC FOR HER

UGH IM SUPPOSED TO HATE HER FOREVER

I mean I don't live her now but she's good

but honestly

"mom can I show you something"

IT WAS SO BEAUTIFUL

THE PICTURE AND EVERYTHING OMG

I'm sobbing please help

Gina saying she's just waiting for the right guy and then EJ coming to the airport to pick her up late at night without her asking, offering to bring her back in the morning so she won't have to Uber, bringing her a granola bar (WHICH IS EXACTLY WHAT SHE FORGOT TO PACK) and without expecting anything in return???

ms ma'am you've got a keeper right there

her smile at the end was so heartwarming I really can't.

this episode was great.

it felt really short but I liked it, great character development for Ricky, Lynne and Gina.

Cant wait for next episode to see more of EJ being the ideal boyfriend /hj

#hsmtmts #hsmtmts s2 #hsmtmts season 2 #hsmtmts spoilers #ej caswell #ricky bowen #gina porter #seblos #nini salazar roberts #jack hsmtmts #carlos rodriguez #seb mathew smith #kourtney greene #big red #ashlyn caswell #caswell cousins #portwell will be the death of me #guac's episode text blocks :)

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ghost0loxer · 3 years

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Imagine, a gender fluid teenager like myself has a favourite/feel-good film and that film is “Just One of the Guys,”from the mid 80s.

Picture this: theatre class, we watch “She’s The Man”, a dreamworks film from the 2000s. And yet, the social justice issues within the film are glaringly obvious to today’s society. Don’t get me wrong, it can be a funny film in a group setting - but then there are scenes that are just uncomfortable. Now, we discussed these themes in class, but I just can’t help but think about the film that came before it. Yes, StM (she’s the mans) is a modern day adaption of Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night” but I was thinking about the modern day adaption before StM, “Just One of the Guys” from the mid 80s.

I love this film. For multiple reasons, which I hope to discuss.

Number one, our main character. Terry Griffith is stubborn. If she thinks something is right, she won’t let anyone say no or get in her way. Now in some cases, this is great. It’s definitely a shift in the usual romantic comedy female lead (especially for the 80s). But it’s one of her biggest flaws. In the beginning, Terry doesn’t win a contest for a part-time job at the Sun Tribune. She believes her article was amazing, but she speaks with her English teacher and he gives it to her straight. “You don’t have what it takes to be a reporter.” Her article is boring; it’s about the nutritional value of the lunch menu in the school cafeteria, of course it’s boring. But the words her teacher tells her has her convinced it’s because she’s a woman. Thus, she leaves school for two weeks and transfers as a buy to another school who are holding the same competition. Once she gives her article, she is told almost the same thing, but this time, she’s given proper feedback to improve it. Of course, there was some irony with this scene between Terry and the teacher. “Just because you’re guy, doesn’t mean you can’t be sensitive or light.” Thing is, she doesn’t give up, she strives to fix it and finds a new angle. I love her determination, I love the way she doesn’t let others push her around. Furthermore, her transition to a man. In StM, Viola as a guy is made to be cringey and comedic, you watch and think, there’s no way a guy would do that. But Terry, having grown up with a younger brother and is actually smart, manages to nail the role. Sure, she has slip-ups, but she stays afloat and she’s not being over the top. She’s chill and convincing, yet you as the audience can tell she’s trying to appear masculine. Her lines are witty and she’s sharp. Someone has something to say, she’ll be able to backtrack and answer with a joke or sarcasm quickly. I like smart characters.

Another point, the way women are written in this film. A lot of women in this film are treated like shit, but it’s probably a realistic depiction of the 80s. Everyone is talking about dating and sex, it seems to be the only topic the women in this film speak about, unless they are Terry. Terry seems to be the only character in this film whose main goal is not romance or sex. She strives to be a reporter, she wants to prove herself, and she rejects the advances upon her frequently. Whether it’s the boys asking her on dates in halls, or her own boyfriend attempting to seduce her when her parents aren’t home, she doesn’t put them above herself, yet she still lets them down easily, unless they become more pushy (case in point, her boyfriend, Kevin, in the beginning). She can stand up for herself, but she’s not the only one. Her best friend, Denise is one of the many women looking for love, nevertheless, she holds standards. I will admit, I didn’t like Denise’s acting in the beginning; she’s not a great character, but even she manages to reject men’s advances constantly. She’s not afraid to say it bluntly and she expresses her true emotions when certain guys try to ask her out. She tells it to them straight, and I respect her for that (despite her lack of empathy for some). Terry’s brother is constantly hitting on Denise, but she stands her ground. She doesn’t hit him or curse him out, she spins words around him and always lead back to the key word “no.”

This is my third, and maybe final point, (because I’m not great at writing but I’m starting to get tired) the way they handle sexual orientation. It seems if you’re going to make a film about a cross-dressing woman who falls in love with a man, you have to discuss sexuality and this film is not afraid to. That was my biggest beef with StM, when Viola confessed her love to Duke, the made it blatantly clear that it was “weird” and “unusual”; the editing and music cuts. It was done for comedic purposes, but in that moment, it just made me cringe. Even when the principal marched onto the field during the big match to expose Sebastian as “the woman he was all along,” he used a big megaphone and said to the whole crowd this man is in fact a girl. If it were to happen in the real world, and this character was a trans male, that would be traumatizing and so so insensitive. I couldn’t help thinking the way they handled the reveal in StM was poor and shitty.

But with JOotG (just one of the guys)? It’s done respectfully. Throughout the film, Buddy, Terry’s younger, sex-obsessed brother (I have thoughts on this character), often refers to Terry as a transvestite or sexually confused. They make references about her dating other women and jokes. It’s not treated like taboo, but just something people normally talk about, and as a questioning kid when I first watched the film, I really needed that. Although it was used for jokes, the fact that it wasn’t treated like a silent topic made me think more of it and discover who I was; it was media like this that made me accept myself.

Even with the reveal. Kevin, Terry’s boyfriend (or ex boyfriend by the end), stomps up to Terry after she’s wrestled with the school bully and was dumped into the waves at prom. Rick, who’s been Terry’s friend (and is the male lead) throughout her time at his high school, immediately questions who Kevin is and he responds with a harsh and sure “Terry’s boyfriend.” Of course, that doesn’t expose Terry as female, but makes Rick assume she’s a homosexual. But instead of calling her weird or replying negatively, he answers Kevin’s question calmly and says he’s just a friend. There is no prejudice, no disgust, Rick is shocked, but that’s expected. Furthermore, this reveal not only does not alienate homosexuality, it puts the center of focus on the main characters rather than have the whole audience/prom witness this exchange. Sure, the rest of the school is watching but the camera never pans over to them, and even then, Terry drags Rick away from the crowds to a secluded area to explain more.

Even once they’re secluded, Rick doesn’t yell at her or is homophobic. He just says “I understand, you’re gay.” As we know, Terry is not in fact gay and she reveals this to him in a similar fashion as StM, at least it’s not flashing a whole crowd. But the thing that hits me, is the fact that it’s not used as a joke or for comedy. Throughout the film, they’ve mentioned homosexuality and being transgender, but it was used as a light-hearted joke (nothing insulting or derogatory). In this moment, it’s not a joke, and it’s the bare minimum for a emotional scene like this, but it always hits me.

Of course, Rick gets justifiably mad that he’s been deceived and he storms off. Terry’s flaw catches up to her here, as she kisses him in front of the prom guests, stubborn to make him realize how much she cares. ( I didn’t agree with this action to be frank, I cringed ). The crowd gasps and it’s the usual reaction to a homosexual kiss and Rick just pulls back, says “It’s alright everyone, he’s got tits,” and leaves with Deborah.

In true romantic comedy fashion, life moves on. Terry gets the job at the Sun-Tribune after writing her article about posing as a guy and everyone who was longing for love in the beginning has found it, except Terry. The ending, however, is Rick coming back for her after a couple (days? Weeks? Idk all I know is it’s summer by the time he comes back, how much space between prom and summer?) and they kiss, go on a date and all is good.

Now after writing this long ass post, I’ve come to realize the main reason I like this film. Sure, Terry is a good character (not morally sometimes, but she’s interesting to watch), the way women are presented also is good, but my main source of affection for this film (in comparison to StM) is the way they handle the switching of genders. I’m gender fluid, I don’t always like being a woman or a man, I switch almost daily and half the time can’t decide if I want to grow out my hair or cut it. Seeing Terry, originally a woman, manage to convince people she was a guy made me wish I could do it too. It made me realize, I don’t always like being a woman. I want to be a guy sometimes, and I want that to be accepted. It was media like this, like Ouran High School Host Club, like Bare: A Pop Opera, that made me understand my gender and sexuality. (Even media that didn’t have any relation to LGBTQ+ helped).

When I first heard of “She’s the Man”, I had hoped it would be like these pieces of media. And it wasn’t. It was an alright film, but made me feel disappointed and somewhat let down. And that’s why I just prefer Just One of the Guys. Maybe it wouldn’t float in today’s political climate, maybe I’m wrong for seeing these points as reasons it’s one of my favorites, but its still better than StM and is one of my favourite films.

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fitztragedy · 3 years

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Things I Want Changed in Fate S02

Better Costumes

Like, seriously, wth happened there? They were dressed awfully, and that's not news. The costumes were like straight out of a 90's teens movies, it was so obvious there was an adult trying do find out what teens used and maybe saw that 90s fashion was trending and thought that was the hype. Costume designer Catherine Adair has been a costume designer in 29 projects, none of them was a teen TV show (except her most recent project, after Fate, which is a disney kids mystery series) and 16 of wich were in the 90s. She has dressed TV shows before Fate but things like Desperate Housewives and The Man in the High Castle- Definitely not even close to the vibe Fate has. Hopefully she'll either do more research or they'll hire another costume designer since she's aparently working on this new Disney series. IMDb says we have a new Art Director in S02 (Justin Warburton-Brown, who apparently done The Witcher S02!!) so my hopes are very high!

New locations and sets!

I loved Alfea and the Winx Suite but I feel like we need more sets. That's not the fault of the art direction or set decoration (which were done by Karl Clifford -who isn't credited for anything but Fate- and Jil Turner who has a very good resume, having worked on Vikings and a lot of other fantasy movies and tv shows), I feel like they did a pretty good job with what they were given. Having the entire season be basically that got very repetitive and because of the number of views I'm hoping they have a bigger budged in S02 to be able to have different sets. I wanna see Magix! The cartoon did a wonderful job with the city near Alrea, it was super cool to see the futuristic town in a fairy show, which was a contrast to what me, as a kid, imagines what a magical town would look like. I don't think they'll to this for Fate but it'd be cool to see like magic being used in day to day lives. Also if Alfea is in the middle of nowhere where do the girls get like stuff? Where do they buy tampons if they need it? I MUST know!! Also it'd be pretty cool to see Solaria sometime. IMDb also told me we got a new set decorator in S02 and he's been the set decorator of Shadow and Bone (Kevin Downey) so I'M EXCITED.

More plot and Backstory for the characters

Let's skip Bloom and Sky because I think @lilshitwayne would do a better job talking about them and then focus on the others.

Aisha

WHERE IS AISHA'S PLOT??? They done my girl wrong, so wrong. Seriously, what is her backstory? What are her goals and dreams? What are her insecurities and challenges? What is her personal arc? What is her role in the series arc? I wish I could answer all these questions but I just can't. I saw @lilshitwayne and @rivusa dms about her yesterday and I want to give them the floor to talk about it so I'm not gonna say what they said, but I do want more from Aisha's character next season and I want her role to not be as suporting as she was in S01. I do think that the fact that she's a poc character had to do with her lack of development and I will HATE it if they make her also LGBTQ+ and continue with Netflix's trend of shoving all the minorities into one character. Hopefully because of the backlash they'll listen. Precious is a beautiful and great actress and she deservers better.

Musa

Musa had a pretty big part in S02 I'd say. She was basically the second most important character after Bloom, BUT she did not have a plot, let's be real. Her whole arch was basically "I hate my powers, they are useless and just make me suffer and I try to ignore them" and then she met Sam and was like "Oh he basically feels nothing so it's nice to spend time with him" and then she found out Sam was Terra's brother and wanted to keep their relationship a secret, then she told Terra and there was like too much drama for a non-dramatic revelation. Then she had to face her powers when Sam was dying but then he lived so she went back to being the same as she was but with a boring boyfriend now (I know people like Sam and that's okay because people have different tastes but I just don't see the appeal, okay? he's boring in my opinion). So like her whole development and plot was based around a guy. No internet struggle solved, no character development. Yes Musa is my favorite character but I still don't like her "plot".

Stella and Terra

idk what I'd say about them. I think one of the other girls in the fate fandom might have takes and stuff. Terra had the self-steem and body issues that basically went no where and Stella has mommy issues and issues in general that are probably gonna get more developed already so I'm not too worries about them.

I know people didn't like that they made Stella have a very different personality than the cartoons and (hot take) I kinda like it. Don't @ me. Stella was hella annoying in the cartoons and I like this very messed up Stella we got, yes she's a bitch but she's got layers and I can't wait to see them Explored.

Terra was not a cartoon character and I have no fucking idea why they didn't just put Flora. Flora in the cartoon had also a very different personality so maybe they thought she didn't fit, but then why not keep her and just change the personality like they did with Stella? Also if they had made Terra latina it wouldn't have changed anything in Terra's plot. Idk what happened behind the scenes but that's what we got. I do want Flora to appear and be this cute cinnamon roll but also badass (and latina) so *fingers crossed*

Riven

ah, Riven... He has so much potential and I can't wait to see his character development throughout the series. I can see a lot of troubles at home and internalized homophobia and fuck he's just so god damn Bi. Hopefully that little interaction with Dane about just liking whoever depending on the gender will make Riven be okay with his sexuality and I really like this plot okay?

Also, yes, as a Rivusa shipper I want that to happen and I've already done two huge post about Riven and Rivusa in Fate so if u wanna read more go and do it (here and here).

The rest idgaf about them (I do but i'm too lazy to type)

Future characters

I wanna see Brandon. They call even make Stella bi and change Brandon to like Brenda or something, I've done that in fics and I think that'd be interesting.

Flora, of course, as said above.

Helia if they bring Flora along. They should pair him with Terra, he's Flora's.

I don't wanna see Tecna and Timmy tbh, might be a controversial opinion but I didn't really care for them in the OG and with all the normal technology in Fate I don't really see a reason for them. Unless they change Tecna's powers like they did with Musa, but we don't need another white basic bitch character.

I think that's it!

If yall want to answer and discuss Fate feel free to reblog! I'd love to talk about how we could improve the show!

#fate #ftws #fate winx #fate the winx saga #winxsource

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queer-and-dear-books · 2 years

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Title: The (Un)Popular Vote

Author: Jasper Sanchez

Genre: YA Fiction | Friendship | Political | Drama | LGBTQ+

Content Warnings: Transphobia | Homophobia | Deadnaming | Bullying

Overall Rating: 9.2/10

Personal Opinion: In this microcosm of today’s society, we witness the political landscape of high school. Except, instead of a popularity contest, there are real stakes involved. Mark is trans and going stealth, he has been going under the radar ever since transitioning. However, after a homophobic bullying incident not only goes unpunished but the victim got suspended, Mark decides to run for president so he can change the school. With his wonderful found family and a whole diverse student body behind him, will Mark be able to win against his opponents? Read it to find out and see because I guarantee the results won’t disappoint.

Do I Own This Book? Nope.

Spoilers Below For My Likes & Dislikes:

Likes:

- First of all, praise to all of the diversity in this group of friends here. Mark is pansexual and trans. His love interest, Ralph, is Jewish and has severe anxiety. Ralph’s twin sister is dating a demigirl, Nadia, who happens to be Muslim. The best friends are Jenny Chu (Chinese and aro) and Pablo Navarro (Hispanic and ace). Their underclassman Benji is a high-femme gay who lives with unabashed pride in himself that he may be the coolest guy ever. We have Christian and Luis who are freshmen gays with a robot baby. Beatriz, the Latina captain of the girl’s champion soccer team. Vinh is an Asian American influencer and Kai is an indigenous dude on the wrestling team. There’s even a Korean teacher, ZP (short for Zielinski-Pak). There is such a variety of different voices and faces that it just felt so refreshing to read.

- Second of all, the intelligence of these characters is beyond incredible. Even with people like Henry McIver and Clary Cassandra. They discuss all sorts of talking points such as philosophy, theology, politics, and more. And the debates are so well thought out that even the nonsensical cringey ones rooted in white supremacy feels just so authentically real. It’s crazy that all of these characters just know so much and it’s clear that their school is for nerds but since the main characters are on the IB track, they’re like the cream of the crop.

- Mark is a good person. He struggles a lot with that view of himself as Ralph claims. And likewise, Ralph struggles to see himself as good too. But that’s probably why they have such good chemistry together. They can see past the faults and the ways they try to hide, digging deeper and holding each other’s hands through all the tough parts. They’re cute together and I love that.

- Going back to Mark, he cares so much about other people. And he believes that the world can be better if they just work toward that. So it pissed me off when his dad and Henry just claimed it was for his vanity. They made their assumptions about him because their own worldview is twisted into the mindset that people are always selfish. So I get why they acted the way they did in that sense when they called out Mark on his so-called hypocrisy. But it is just wild that they couldn’t even begin to recognize that the people they were describing were themselves, not Mark. At the end of the day, even if he chose to ran for less than selfless reasons, he is still the best presidential candidate of the three choices. Because he’s aware of his shortcomings and wants to do what’s best for others in the end. Even if he is a privileged rich white kid. He understands that everyone, no matter the differences, deserve to be treated with respect.

- Nadia is such a cool person. She kept assuring Mark that the numbers were there when the votes were coming in. She really did have her finger on the pulse of their school. She knew everyone. And she also did great convincing Mark to participate with the stoners to get their vote. His speech to them was truly something else.

- Amber Carr is an enigma for me but I respect the fuck out of her. She’s so passionate about journalism. She also doesn’t out people for a juicy headline. What she did to Jenny was so awful though and I’m glad that Mark questioned her ethics on that but I respect her because she truly does want what’s best for the school in the end and she clearly respects Mark a lot. When he was about to come out to her and she shut off the camera, my heart went out to her. I think she’s also black? Not sure but if she is, it is another check in the diverse column for this book.

- The speech Mark gave was honestly inspiring. I would’ve definitely voted for him had I heard it. About how no one should vote for him unless they believe in him, truly. I wish we got to see Henry’s smug face fall when the gym applauded for him.

- Pablo is so cool too. He’s so chill and knows how to stay in his lane and also knows how to be present for his friends when they need him. And his parents are cool too. The way they’re okay with the kids drinking as long as they stay under their roof. That’s how you raise a kid properly. I see where Pablo gets it from. I hope he finds the perfect partner for him in the future, the Swiftie sap.

- Love and respect Mark’s mom though. She really was a queen in this. Supporting and choosing her son without hesitation. And encouraging him to run. Staying in touch with the father because she knew that’s what Mark had wanted at the time. And saying Mark reminds her of the man his father once was, the kindhearted and down-to-earth politician that he used to be.

- Anyway, Mark Adams for prez of the United States of America: 2048.

Dislikes:

- Henry McIver is an enigma to me. He’s clearly not phobic in any sense of the word. He didn’t participate in verbally assaulting Benji like his teammates did. And he apologized to Mark once he found out that Mark was not, in fact, a cisgendered man. But his rhetoric is so similar to white supremacists that it makes me cringe. And he was still a bystander when Trevor and Kevin were bullying Benji. But his fanbase worships him, how can he not stop them? Is he that afraid of ruining his own popularity? I get that he’s dirt poor and doesn't have the “privilege” to be himself but I don’t get it. I don’t get why he “has to” do some of the things he does to survive in this school. If he’s queer in some aspect and Benji knows because they went out or hooked up or something, then maybe that’s it? He’s scared of the guys on his team turning on him? And maybe his parent(s) are super homophobic. Who the fuck knows. But I wish we had more perspective on him since I do not get him.

- Fuck Kevin Guo. I know Trevor is the one who punched Benji and fuck him too, but it bothers me that one of the biggest bigots in the school is an Asian dude. And the fact that h shares my name bugs me so much. How dare he! This complaint is personal and has no bearing on the overall rating of this book. I just gotta voice it.

- I mentioned that I don’t get why Amber slut-shamed Jenny like that. Is it just a commentary on the inherent sexism? How Jenny got villified while Dante Gomez, the guy she slept with and also a political candidate, continued running unaffected? If that’s it, I do think it needs to be a bit more heavyhanded in its execution.

- Jenny being all moody and mad toward Mark for like a whole week bugs me a lot too. I mean, I get it on some level and I’m glad she still cares so much for him when he wanted to quit. But girl, you need to do some actual communicating. Life is not like a television show. You told him to remove you from the ticket so he wouldn’t lose and he did! She should have been proud of him for winning, not sulking in her corner.

- I also think Ralph’s reaction to Mark revealing his father’s still alive was way overblown. Mark was clearly in distress so obviously his dad is not a good person even though Mark said he used to look up to him. Like, it should’ve been much more obvious that Mark’s whole relationship with his dad sucked but Ralph didn’t listen. I’m glad he acknowledged it though and also apologized. Plus, given his own relationship with his deceased father, I do think his reaction was somewhat justified. He’s human.

- Fuck Mark’s dad. I’m glad we know the author is transmasc but holy shit, every time Mark’s dad uttered that deadname, I actually physically cringed. It was just so bad. And overall he’s just such an entitled asshole who doesn’t get that Mark’s life doesn't revolve around him. If he had accepted his son for who he is in the first place, his campaign for governor would’ve been fine. I know it. I don’t care what he thinks. The fact that he said Mark was just playacting his gender is just so gross too. I’m glad Mark gave him a real verbal dressing down at his hotel. He deserved it. Fuck that guy to high heaven.

#Booklr #Booksbooksbooks #Book Blog #Book Review #Book Recs #The (Un)Popular Vote #Jasper Sanchez #LGBTQ #Queer Books #Queer Lit #Queer Representation

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garlicsolitaire · 3 years

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I’m getting real sick of seeing homophobia in the Ace community...

Let me start by saying I’m a very proud asexual. I love the asexual community. 99% of the aces I interact with are fantastic, intelligent, and accepting. This community is one of the big reasons I love being ace. Aces are pretty awesome!

However, I saw a post on Reddit two days ago, that just hasn’t sat right with me. Basically, this ace guy was asking if there were any other “Christian Asexuals” on the sub that he could talk to. Which, okay, cool. It’s good to connect with people where you have common ground, I guess. But he further clarified his beliefs, stating, “As a christian I don't agree with same sex relationships. BEFORE I GO ANY FURTHER I need to say that in a secular world I have NO problem with same sex relationships and I think they can be perfectly healthy and amazing, I have a number of super great friends who are a combination of the LGBTQ+ community and have healthy relationships and are happy.”

I’m... sorry??? You don’t “agree” with same-sex relationships???

I’m a little disappointed in the comments. No one is calling this guy out on his hypocrisy. Literally, no one. I’m still not sure what to say myself, if I even should.

But this way of thinking is a huge problem. I would know: two years ago, I was where this guy currently is.

When you are raised Christian (LDS, in my case) it is drilled into your head pretty quickly that homosexuality and being transgender is sinful and a quick way to become a social-outcast. Now understand, I’ve been asexual my whole life, but when queerness of any kind is treated like this, you pretty much assume you’re just really good at being a straight Christian. (I’ve got this lust thing on lock! Look at me not being the super horny teenager! Check out my holier-than-thou theological attitudes!)

But then you get a little bit older, wiser, and start making friends that actually talk to you about their experiences with attraction. These pious, devout, straight friends of yours who would never in a million years do much more than kiss before marriage and they’re getting all hot-and-bothered when there’s a shirtless guy on the tv screen.

Turns out I’m super asexual.

But I told myself it was fine. After all, I wasn’t committing any sins, right? I’m not lesbian, I’m not having nicmos with any boys, I’m still fine. God’s not mad at me! Ace is okay!

But as the months of learning to accept myself dragged on, I started running into these problems:

- Being any kind of LGBT+ is actually a sin in a christian’s eyes. Any. kind.

- Apparently, a commitment to chaste living isn’t actually considered good in the christian communities. No chrisitan parent gets excited when they’re kid says, “I pledge to never have sex in devotion to my god.” None of them. It’s a myth.

- As a mormon, it turns out that I actually can’t get to heaven and see Jesus without a spouse? Like, apparently I need a straight dude to marry me to get there, or else I will have to settle for a lesser heaven where I won’t have... genitals? (I’m not even making this up, lol.)

- Plus, when mormons learn you’re ace, (if they don’t find you disgusting) they “reassure” you, telling you not to worry, because if you’re a good little christian, god will make you straight in the next life. (No one likes it when I reply, “Why the hell would I want that?”)

- MOST IMPORTANTLY: I know I’ve been asexual my whole life. All the signs were there. I just never put it together and accepted it until college. And if I’ve been like this my whole life, then people who are gay, lesbian, bi, pan, trans, etc. must be too.

So, what does that say about this christian god, who makes most people straight, and then condemns a few people to hell or to lesser heavens because of how he made them.

One of the arguments I hear a lot in favor of keeping homosexuality out of christianity is that even if people are born gay, we all “have unique challenges in this life that we have to overcome.” This is bullshit. Why? Because then they turn around to transgender people and tell them, “God doesn’t make mistakes. Your gentials and genes match your gender.”

So, which is it? Are gay people really gay, or did god give the transgender people a “unique challenge” too? Either it’s a choice or it isn’t, and ANY ASEXUAL SHOULD KNOW FROM EXPERIENCE THAT IT IS NOT A CHOICE!

So, if you know your own queerness is not a choice, you have to apply that to everyone else’s. No exceptions. No, ifs, ands, or buts. Asexuality and homosexuality are natural and good. And if you can’t handle either one of those, then I don’t think there’s much of a place for you in the LGBT+ community.

Sorry, but I don’t “agree” with exclusion.

#asexual #asexuality #ex christian #exmo #exmormon #apostake #exlds #queer #gay #lesbian #bi #pan #lgbt #anti exclusionism #homophobia

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bakulova · 3 years

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I Miss You...

Young!Carol X Reader

Hope You Enjoy!

It all started school. During lunch, a kid had asked for your number. Of course you said no because 1. You’re a lesbian and 2. If you weren’t a lesbian you wouldn’t hit it. He is not the cutest boy walking around. You couldn’t just tell him your a lesbian. It’s the 80′s no one is really accepting to LGBTQ+ people. So, you turn him down kindly “No thanks, I’m kinda dating someone already... sorry” You go to move forward in the lunch line and of course he doesn’t leave you alone. He steps in front of you “Oh come on sweetie I’ll be really good to you AND I’m very good in bed” You look him up and down and shake your head.

“Um have you looked in the mirror lately?” He scoffs “Give me a chance baby...” He tries to get close and wrap his arms around your waist but luckily your savior came. “Back off twat waffle, she doesn’t like ugly boys. If you’re gonna come onto her at least be attractive” You cover you mouth trying not to laugh. The boy starts to turn red but you couldn’t tell if it was in anger or embarrassment either way it didn’t matter. She smirks and drags you off. She drags you to her little hiding place under the stairs and lets her face drop into a scowl.

“What the fuck was that?” You shrug “Some desperate boy” She shakes her head “No No No. Why didn’t you walk away?” You stand still “Because I wanted food...” She hits the wall beside your head. “Food doesn’t matter when your getting harassed” You roll your eyes “Carol your over-reacting” “NO, NO I’m not” she sighs and punches and kicks the walls again. You stand there for a second trying to grasp everything that’s happening “So your mad at me for wanting food and someone hitting on me which I clearly declined?” She grunts as she hits the wall again except this time her hand started bleeding.

“Oh shit carol-” you go to grab her arm “NO stay away from me. I... I can’t do this anymore” she gives you one last glance and walks away cursing and cradling her hand. You blink and look around wondering what just happened. “Did... did she just break up with me over this one little incident” You whisper to your self. ‘what the fuck’. You get through the day still thinking about the incident.

The next day Carol wouldn’t look at you at all. She would ignore you and everything. When you tried to sit with her she just moved to another empty table. You sighed and gave up for time being going to sit with some friends. “Why aren’t you sitting with the Carol?” You shrug “She mad at me” they nod “hey do you wanna come to a party this Friday” You think about it and nod “Great! I’ll come pick you up at around 8pm” you nod again and continue eating thinking about Carol. For the rest of the week you and Carol decided to have a silent treatment war. In reality you both missed each other but the pride was just to much.

Truthfully right when Carol left you, she thought about going back and just kissing you and making up but she wanted to show you that she can last without. You’re nothing without her but from what it looks like to her you’re doing fine, great even. She looks back down at her food, pushing it around. ‘stupid stupid stupid’ she repeated in her head finally she couldn’t take it and slammed her hands on the table and walked away. You wanted to go after her but decided against it. She wanted to be alone right? You look back at your friends “yikes girl” You purse your lips and nod “She doesn’t hit you right?” You scoff “Hell no, she may be aggressive but she ain’t abusive and stop making it sound like I’m dating her shit” They all snicker “Hey tonight is the night” one girl dances.

The party was okay. It was just full of druggies and weirdos who think that they’re popular when in reality they’re all losers. Most of your “friends” couldn’t handle the liquor so they just knocked out there but you could... I mean at least better than they could. Turns out the party wasn’t far from your house so you just walked home. Once home you took a shower and laid in bed thinking about Carol. You heard ruffling in your closet. You sat up slowly and her come busting out Carol wrapped in your blanket that you had been to tired to notice was missing from you bed.

You tilt your head “Hi burglar” she twists around wrapping herself up more in the blanket, she slips and falls hard onto the floor. You laugh hard “wow not a good thief... you need to work on your thieving skills” she rolls her eyes “shut it and help me” she rolls around like a worm. she grunts and then just gives up. “How did you even get in here? My family’s home and they have never met you.” she rolls her eyes “I wanted to talk to you but seems you have other plans and... I snuck in through your window.” You turn you head and look at your window, wide open. “Shit” and quickly close it. You walk over to her getting comfy on the floor “well...” “Y/n I’m... *she looks around trying to find the words* I’m sorry for bursting out like that alright” You nod “It’s alright you sit on top of her “I understand that emotions can get a little overwhelming sometimes” she nods and closes her eyes like she’s thinking of what to say next, before look into your eyes “I miss you” you smile softly “I miss you too Care” She smiles “kiss me!” You laugh and lean down. “I love you Carol, always will” she pulls away “I... I love you too”. Even though you didn’t talk about what happened, you can ask at a later time but for now cuddles are in session.

#carol denning #carol denning x reader #young!carol denning #present!carol #oitnb imagine #oitnb #orange is the new black

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kaemulti · 4 years

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DC SUPERHERO GIRLS HEADCANNONS

i’m gonna start writing headcannons whenever i get sad/anxious for a number of different fandoms. it takes my mind off things, even if only for a little bit. this time it’s gonna be about dcshg 2019. i’m honestly obsessed with thinking about the mundane teenager things we don’t see in the show that all the superhero/villian kids go through so i wanted to write some stuff about that.

•karen is actually more popular than she realizes, people think she’s sweet even though they rarely see her/don’t have classes with her

•leslie and dorris are a thing to everyone BUT themselves; they hilariously don’t even realize they’ve basically been dating for years: carpooling together, hanging out before and after school, bullying kids like a tag team, skipping classes together, movie nights, shorting out the exercise machines at the mall to make that misogynistic jerk at the fitness store scared, buying their favorite snacks for each other without thinking much of it, etc.

•barbi not only hates diana with a burning passion but ALSO tatsu because both girls excel in both their academic and physical education classes, unintentionally surpassing barbie by a long shot whenever the opportunity presents itself

•jessica and hal hang out at sweet justice after their week day training classes and even invite barry when he has the day off

•kara is completely oblivious to the fact there are a bunch of girls crushing on her at school, she keeps wondering why they whisper about her and never make direct eye contact with her as she walks through the hallways. she only finds out what is actually going on when she opens her locker on valentine’s day and gets COVERED in cards. she doesn’t tell most of her friends about it (she knows they’ll just be annoying) but she does vaguely ask jess about how to write people back, turning them down nicely and whatnot, she’s not a monster for gods sake, she’s just not ready for a relationship.

•babs and diana like to study together the most even though barbra never really pays attention, she mostly talks about different batman articles and comics she read and new gadgets she’s created but diana doesn’t mind TOO much because she has an growing interest in modern day ‘world of man’ technology

•diana can NOT sing to save her life. the girls thought that having a karaoke night would be fun sure, but nothing would’ve prepared them for the laughing fits they had when diana started screeching into the mic. They also find out that Babs is always off pitch and Jessica refuses to sing in front of people. alternatively, however, zee, kara and karen (in that order) are the best singers in the group.

•zee keeps inviting kara to these crazy expensive-super long wait list restaurants even though she knows kara probably won’t eat any of the food. she doesn’t really know why she keeps doing it, especially after the whole giant tentacle incident, but she does know she enjoys kara’s funny comments and cute laugh enough to continue.

•when selina first saw diana she might of had a tiny sexuality crisis, no she won’t elaborate.

•tatsu helps garth work on his confidence and he helps her with her HUGE slight fear of open water. even though they don’t know the other is super, they still help each other as much as they can. tatsu will train garth to do some basic defense techniques against bullies and they’ll go swimming every other week, garth always making sure to keep as much water as he can away from tatsu’s eyes and nose.

•kara and barry like to race each other whenever they get a chance to go to the pier. kara always cheats so she never loses but barry doesn’t mind because he’s her friend and it makes them laugh.

•steve is actually really good at embroidery, his mom taught him when he was younger. he once made a wonder woman shirt for diana and when he gave it to her, she fainted.....twice.

•pam is allergic to three different types of flowers but she still nurtures them in her garden at home whenever she can. if her allergies get really bad though, she’ll ask jess to help her water them, ONLY because she needs to keep her precious flowers alive, NOT because she is actually jess’ friend...she thinks.

•the first time carol met barbie they both got into detention for loudly insulting each other’s fashion sense in the middle of math class. (they still haven’t apologized to each other so they keep acting like it didn’t happen because they both think they’re right)

•the first time harleen called pam “green bean”, pam blushed and giggled...like FULL blown diana talking to steve giggle. and then she pushed harleen off a bridge with a vine on accident. harleen thought it was the funniest thing ever and pam could only awkwardly apologize for almost killing her teammate

•oliver and zee tried to co-write a christmas play but they were so busy fighting each other on who had a better ending they didn’t actually order any props or costumes for it. leaving the main actress to perform in a pirate outfit.

•kara still hangs out with bizarro super girl every now and again and they take turns ranting about their idiot cousins, it’s all light hearted because kara still has some emotional stuff to work through.

•diana unintentionally starts a “who will come out next” contest when she asks the girls about same sex attraction. she had seen leslie and dorris making out in one of the locker rooms (yes they FINALLY got together together) and asked her friends what it meant. after a lot of confusion as kara stumbled over her explanation of the lgbtq+ community, she ends up coming out as a lesbian first, followed by babs, who is bisexual, karen, who is questioning but absolutely had a crush on kara before their food fight detention day, and zee who is trans. they end up going to metropolis pride two months after that.

•diana is still convinced there is an oracle at the pier so every other sunday the girls go so she can spend all of her money on “knowing the future”

•babs never really gets angry on the daily and the rest of the girls learn why when some jerk at sweet justice insults jess’ looks because she wouldn’t go out with him. barbra turned bright red as she let him have it, words coming out of her mouth faster than barry can make their ice cream (they didn’t think she had it in her). and if he he ended up glued to his bed the next day, well, jess will let batgirl get away with that one JUST this once. barbra will NEVER not stick up for her friends.

•kara and babs often have multiple sleepovers a week, harleen even joins them sometimes when kara doesn’t mind her LOUD presence.

•the girls never get mad at one another when someone breaks down or blows up after holding certain feelings in for too long. whether it’s kara ghosting them for days leading up to her mom’s birthday, diana overworking herself to the point of exhaustion when she gets homesick, karen refusing to go out to anywhere except for school and tough missions for weeks at a time because she thinks she doesn’t matter, zee reading too many spells at once and giving herself an awful migraine after messing up an easy one, jessica isolating herself at lunch so she can sit in the library alone and cry to herself quietly after a hard day of training, or babs not being her normal happy self after having a heated argument with harleen, there will ALWAYS be a shoulder to cry on when someone needs it. If that comes in the form a knock on kara’s door as her friends invite themselves in with her favorite foods and a mega ‘feel better soon’ music playlist in tow, an impromptu destress retreat that they force diana to go on where she is only allowed to use a weapon if there is a direct threat, making a giant list of all the things they love about karen and reading it to her from outside her window, someone closing zee’s spell book and holding her tightly as her eyes turn back to normal from flaring pink with anger, all the girls quietly sitting with jessica one by one in the library and gently holding her hand as she lets out what she can, or buying limited edition comics and leaving them as presents for babs in her section of the hideout, there is ALWAYS someone there to make it hurt a little less.

the end :))

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excelsi-or · 3 years

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just a little sweeter (pt. 10)

HELLLLOOOOOOOO~~ are you guys still there? LOL, it’s been like a month and a half since I last posted on here. The end of the semester just really got intense with projects, presentations, and finals. But I’m here and back for at least two weeks. I wanna see if I can bosh out the rest of this series before I move onto another one.

I hope you’re all well. If you wanna update me on what’s new with you all, I’d love to know. I applied to grad school. I have one more semester left before graduation. Vaccinations have started in my area of the world. I started playing Hollow Knight (if anyone wants to talk about THIS GAME, please do. I love it.) Think that’s kinda it.

BIPOC reeeeeccccc: N. K. Jemisin’s The City We Became is EXCELLENT. Diversity, racism, feminism, LGBTQ representation. I love it so much. One of my favourite books of the year, hands down. Nicole Crowder on IG does like upholstery and interior DIYs and content. I’ve been wanting to upholster these two chairs in my home and she put up a whole 2 min tutorial on how to do it.

w.c. 3k (lol, it got really long oops! fluff and mature content, not quite smut, but it was definitely getting there. The first draft of this part was basically just smut, so I chopped and fixed it LOL. hope you guys still like it.)

pt.1; pt.2; pt.3; pt.4; pt.5; pt.6; pt.7; pt.8; pt. 9

“What do you mean you haven’t had sex with him yet?”

She rolls her eyes and sets a bowl in front of her previous roommate. Soobin had moved out months ago, shortly after she’d met Jihoon.

“It’s going really slow.” She slips into the seat across the table. “We haven’t really said I love you yet either.”

“What do you mean ‘haven’t really said’? What? Just ‘cause Woozi’s an idol he doesn’t know how to treat you right?”

She motions for Soobin to tuck into the food. “Jihoon is treating me wonderfully, thank you very much.” She pauses, her chopsticks hovering in the air. “It’s just… slow.”

“He has a whole child!” Soobin chews her noodles as she continues. “You’ve already passed the point of going slow.”

“It’s not as if Eunha is my child.”

“The kid spends more time here than any of our friends or your family.”

“Jihoon’s been busy.” She shrugs. “It’s easier for him to leave Eunha here than take her with him. Plus, you know the Terror likes her.”

Soobin chuckles. “That little horror of a brother of yours likes everyone.”

She smirks. “Okay, fair.” Then she waves her chopsticks between them. “But Eunha’s probably the reason why he’s going slow. We need to see if we’re compatible.” She meets Soobin’s gaze. “The man has a child.”

“It’s been months!” Soobin quickly cuts in before any interruptions. “Seven months to be exact. You would think that the next step at analyzing compatibility is whether you guys vibe in bed.”

She hums. She doesn’t want to admit out loud that yeah, she’s been having fantasies about Jihoon. However, she hasn’t gotten any clear signals from Jihoon that he wants to pursue anything further than making out on her couch after a date. And before she can broach the topic, he’s off to go get Eunha. If Jihoon never wanted to have sex with her, she wonders if that would be a deal breaker. But she really has no idea.

“Have you talked to him about it?”

“Sex? No.”

“So, what do you guys talk about?”

She throws her head back with a laugh. “You say that as if the only thing you and Jae talk about is sex.”

“Well, it came up a lot when we first started dating.”

“That’s because you guys started off having sex.” She sighs, turning her noodles with the tips of her chopsticks. “This relationship is really different. I don’t know how to gauge it.”

“Do you love him?”

“I haven’t told him.”

“But you do.”

“Yeah.”

“And does Eunha put you off wanting to be with him?”

She rests her cheek in her palm. “I honestly thought she would, but she only makes me love him more.”

“Then talking about sex, even if you’re not having it, is the next step.” Soobin gauges her friend’s reaction. “Even if Jihoon is the type not to want it. You should at least know that. He’s obviously done it at one point.”

There’s a pause before they both say, “The child.”

She nods. “You’re right though. We should talk about it.”

Seungcheol knocks on the studio door. “Hey. You needed me?”

Jihoon turns in his chair and nods. “Yeah. I need a second set of ears on this song. Bumzu hyung and Soonyoung are busy.”

Seungcheol nods and falls into the seat next to Jihoon. He notices the book on the desk. It’s been sitting there for a while. “You finish it?”

Jihoon glances at the book. “Oh.” Then, he resumes clicking through the excessive number of files open on his screen. “Yeah.”

And you haven’t returned it?”

“She reads it when she comes over.” Jihoon hands over the headphones and finally catches Seungcheol’s expression. “What? Is there some big meaning behind that too?”

Ever since he started dating, Seungcheol, Jeonghan, and basically everyone in the building has found various meanings in his songs and life that allude to how ‘in love’ he is. He’s not about to tell everyone he’s in love—she doesn’t even know that yet—but not everything going on is about his relationship.

Seungcheol shrugs as he adjusts the headphones on his ears. “You seem to think there isn’t.”

“God.” Jihoon sighs and turns in his chair. He drops his cheek into his palm. “Enlighten me.”

“She’s a big reader and doesn’t like to leave books unfinished. If she’s letting you hold onto it for her, for when she comes over here, that says something.”

“So does leaving my daughter in her care, but we all have something we need taken care of.” He turns back to the screen. “Now, listen to this hook for me.”

Seungcheol settles back into the seat. He bops his head along to the melody until the lyrics play clear in his ears. Wide eyed, he turns to Jihoon and pushes one headphone off his ear. “We’re not putting this on the album, are we?”

Jihoon looks over at him with an eyebrow lifted. “Why not?”

“This is such a… a bedroom… sex song.” Seungcheol shakes his head. “We can’t put this on there.”

Jihoon frowns. “What?” He looks at the file name and feels his cheeks heat up. “Whoa. Not that one.” He quickly closes the file and makes sure that it’s closed. But his checking gives Seungcheol time to see a folder with her name. There’s one for Eunha that none of the boys want to ask about, but his girlfriend? She’s fair game.

“You have a folder of songs for her?” He acts horrified. “And that was one of them?”

Jihoon tries to think of any way out of this conversation and realizes that due to his carelessness, he can’t. “Yeah. I guess I do.”

“How many songs are in there? Do they all sound like that?”

“I refuse to answer those questions knowing that everyone is going to know by tomorrow and it’s already embarrassing that you know about one of them.”

“Hey.” Seungcheol’s voice goes soft. He likes to tease, but he recognizes touchy subjects when he broaches them. “Sorry. I didn’t realize. You know you can talk to me, right?”

Jihoon side eyes him. “I don’t want to admit how I feel about her to you when she hasn’t even heard all the songs on there.”

“What’s the folder for?”

“Just… inspiration.” Jihoon leans back further in his chair. “The songs on the upcoming album have come out of there. At least the less… perverted ones did.”

“There are other songs like that.” Seungcheol tries not to sound too surprised.

Jihoon’s cheeks are so warm that he takes a sip of his iced coffee. “Lately… yeah.”

“Have you…” Seungcheol shakes his head. “No. How could you? You always come home for Eunha.”

At this, Jihoon looks at him. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Well… just that if you guys were having sex, you wouldn’t come straight home to your daughter, would you? Not when all of us would know.” Seungcheol narrows his eyes. “Right?”

Jihoon doesn’t even know how to respond to that except with the truth. “Fine. No. We haven’t yet.”

“Because of her or because of you.”

“Things are going slow. I don’t know… how to broach the topic.”

“Why can’t showing up to her door with passionate kisses be enough?”

“And what? Leave Eunha with you guys overnight?”

“Yeah, why not?”

So, Jihoon does just that and it turns out so much better than he expected.

“Why does this shirt,” he mutters between kisses, “have so many buttons?”

She giggles against his lips and steadies his hands in hers. “You’re excited. Like a child. Calm down.”

Jihoon hums, obsessed with the taste of her lips and her hands around his. She guides him through the motion of unbuttoning her shirt. Once they’re undone, he pulls away slightly. She tips her head. Jihoon is gentle with her shirt, sliding it off her shoulders. Her eyes watch him the entire time, watch him admire her body as the fabric falls to the floor. His hands start from the sides of her thighs up her body, skimming over her underwear, and holding her under the arms, hands right by her breasts.

“You’re really gonna tease,” she chuckles. She closes the distance between them, kissing him and fumbling with his shirt. His shirt is easy, his sweatpants he practically steps out of. It’s once they’re both just standing in their underwear that she stops him.

“Are you sure you want to do this?”

Jihoon kisses her shoulder and up her neck to the base of her jaw. “Why would I want to stop?”

“Eunha?” she hums. The child’s face is prominent in her mind, but becomes hazy every time Jihoon sucks a spot on her neck.

“She adores you. Which gives me permission to also adore you.”

She smirks, arms wrapping around Jihoon’s neck to force him back to her lips. “I’m glad I pass the test.”

Jihoon scoops her up and carries her to the couch. She gasps in surprise, which forces him away again. Spread along the couch are a lot of her art supplies. When she turns back to him, there’s a grin on her face.

“I wasn’t expecting you to jump me tonight. I was planning to paint, so…”

“Do you want to clean first?” he chuckles.

She shrugs.

Jihoon snorts and picks her shirt up off the floor and hands it to her. As much as he wants to sleep with her, it seems tonight may not be the night. He finds his sweatpants and pulls them on then helps her move her art stuff. He sits on the coffee table while she manoeuvres her piece from the floor to the desk.

“Do you want to paint?” he asks.

She shakes her head. “I want to spend time with you.” She moves some stuff to make space for her piece.

“Do you want to teach me to paint?”

She peers over her shoulder at him. “Really?”

“Well, I’m impossible to teach, but I don’t want to leave yet.” Jihoon glances at her bare torso, as she hasn’t bothered to button the top. “And I like the view.”

She rolls her eyes, an amused smile on her face. “Are idols allowed to say stuff like that?”

Jihoon looks around her home. “Unless you have a listening device and turn me in, I’m confident to say how I feel about you.”

A smile blooms on her face at hearing that. She pulls one of her watercolour pads off the desk and motions for him to join her on the floor. She flips past the first two pages, but Jihoon still catches glimpses of them.

He grabs her wrist to stop her. “Were those of Eunha and me?”

“Oh.” She tilts her head and flips back. “Yeah.” The first page is from the night he had come over to learn to cook. The second was their first date.

Jihoon looks to her expectantly and she can only shrug.

“I draw what I like.”

Jihoon doesn’t know why he finds that embarrassing, but his ears feel warm.

She tips her head back in a laugh. “Of everything that’s happened tonight, Jihoonie, I don’t think you need to be embarrassed to hear that I like you.” She returns to the one with Eunha on it and pulls the sheet. “I wanted to give it to you, but I thought maybe it would be creepy if you knew I was painting you and your daughter from memory.”

Jihoon stares at the paintings. He can see Eunha’s expression in them; how happy she had been with the meal and the dessert. If this is what he’d look like that night, he had been extremely relaxed. His finger traces over the skin, amazed at how seamless it appears.

When his eyes lift to meet hers, she seems surprised to see tears.

“What’s wrong?”

Jihoon shakes his head. “Nothing.”

She slides closer to him and her thumb brushes his tears away. “You’re crying.”

Jihoon sighs and his head tips back, as he tries to keep the tears in. “I… it’s just that…” Jihoon’s gaze rests on her again. “No one else has seen Eunha like this. The members do, but they helped me raise her. Which is why sometimes she’s an absolute menace.”

She smiles.

“But…” Jihoon studies the painting, at his baby so beautifully depicted. “I don’t know. This kind of reminds me that maybe I’m doing okay if she looks like this.”

“Jihoon, you’re doing great. She’s happy and she loves you.”

“Sometimes I feel like I’m failing her all the time, and…” The tears appear again. “And I feel like I lost some of who I am, because I had her.”

She eases the sheet of paper out of his hands. Jihoon uncrosses his legs so she can move between them, draping her legs over his thighs. Her hands plant on the floor between them as she leans forward to press kisses to his face. His eyes close at the sensation. “Jihoon, she is all you. Your music is who you are. You live and breathe Seventeen. Just because you became a father doesn’t mean you lost any piece of the Jihoon that was there before she existed.”

Jihoon lifts a hand to the back of her neck to pull her closer. Painting is put on the back burner, as they get lost in the feeling of kissing each other. Jihoon’s legs curl behind her to prevent her from moving away. His free hand slips inside her shirt and finds home on her hip. His thumb moves back and forth across the skin there.

Meanwhile, her hands have pulled him as close she can get him, her fingers tangling in his hair. When she gives the hair at the base of his neck a small tug, he groans. This lets her slip her tongue into his mouth. He tastes like her coffee, unsurprisingly enough. And she has to admit, it tastes better on his tongue than in the cup.

She can feel his growing hard on through his sweatpants. When she pulls away to breathe, she asks, “So we’re not painting then?”

Jihoon hums something incoherent, because she latches her lips against his neck.

“Wait,” he breathes.

She slows her assault on his neck, but doesn’t stop.

“No hickies.”

“Simple enough,” she breathes against his skin.

Jihoon finds himself falling back onto the floor as her kisses trail all over his body. Her hands explore every muscle and memorize them. Jihoon enjoys the treatment, his eyes closing while he lets his other sense take over. She wiggles him out of his sweatpants again and then returns to his lips.

“Bed?” She adjusts her body over his, putting pressure against him, which makes it impossible for him to reply.

Jihoon looks up at her and his eyes are dark, pupils blown wide. She sucks a spot on the soft skin near his jaw, but stops before it can leave a mark. He manages to roll them over.

“You’re making it really hard to think.”

She slides a leg between his, which seems just enough friction for him to grimace. “You’re thinking with something else.”

“Where’s your bed?”

Her eyes dart to her left. He helps her to standing and then lifts her. Her legs wrap around his waist. If there had been other objects in the way, he would have knocked into all of them, because she starts kissing him again. And it seems like his brain shuts off as soon as she does that. He presses her against her bedroom wall and when he ruts against her, her breath catches.

“So, you are needy.”

“Lee Jihoon, you are literally between my legs,” she manages between kisses. “Yes, I’m needy.”

Jihoon pulls away for a moment. “But you’ve seemed so calm and collected tonight.”

She rolls her eyes and gently kisses his cheeks before saying, “If I was ready to pounce on you when you walked in here, would you have wanted to fuck me?”

Jihoon jumps at the blatant term, but he pivots so that he can lay her on the bed. One of his hand sneaks between her legs, his other arm propping his body over hers, and drags his fingers over the fabric. When she squirms beneath his touch, he says, “Maybe not. But… I’ve wanted this a while.” He meets her gaze. “So I don’t think too much have scared me away tonight.”

Her head tilts back as he begins to rub his fingers in circles. He watches her carefully.

“Stop staring,” her breath hitches, “and kiss me.”

Jihoon smirks. “Make me.”

She snakes a hand behind his head to pull him down towards her. Her kisses stutter depending on the speed of his fingers. His kisses trail down to her neck and nibbles the soft skin on her collar bone. She presses her hands into his shoulders to try to keep her bearings. When he kisses back up her neck and sucks the soft spot of her jaw and she moans something beautiful, he knows that’s a sound he’s going to have in his mind long after this is over.

He slows his fingers down. “How close are you?”

Her breath is heavy; she can’t even answer him. Her rut up into his hand is good indication though.

Two of her orgasms and one of his later, he returns from the bathroom with a washcloth and gently cleans her off. Then he lies on top of her again, her hands go to massage his temples.

“So, you’re going to tell your daughter we… coloured when you came over today?” she teases.

Jihoon rests his cheek against her chest, listening to her heartbeat slowing down after the exertion. “I told her she was staying with the members because I was coming over here for a play date.”

She laughs. “I mean, you’re not wrong.”

Jihoon can’t help but smile as he falls asleep.

#woozi #woozi scenarios #woozi imagines #lee jihoon scenarios #Lee Jihoon #seventeen scenarios #Seventeen #seventeen imagines #Svt

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thoughtfulpaperback · 3 years

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In the Heights (2021 Film) Review.

Okay after four watches. And I truly mean four seperate watches. I am ready to talk about this film and address some of the controversy.

I'd like to hit the biggest criticisms out of the way before going into just my general thoughts.

1. "There are no black people in the film"

False. First addressing the main cast and main supporting characters with substantial screen time (they get names and feature heavily in two or more of the main characters storylines) there are three black actors portraying African American or afro latino characters. Obviously this is disproportionate and of all those main and supporting characters the two with the biggest storylines are light skinned or have "traditionally euro centric thought of" physical features such as light green or hazel eyes.

So this hardly is grand representation for black or even "indigenous" (usually meaning dark skinned but not black) looking peoples. But it is more than we've traditionally seen in films about latinos they skew more towards Antonio Banderas looking (he's not latino just fyi).

I think where the film actually does well in its inclusion of black people is in the background scenes/dance numbers. I tried and you cannot count the number of black background characters in the first half of the film.

The second half of the film is arguably less inclusive. That is to say that as the film progressed there was notably less black background characters/dancers. Most notably during a dance sequence in a Merengue club. I could actually count the number of black people in the scene (three black men). But if I am honest the movie/plot itself falls apart towards the end with the inclusiveity it tried to have.

I also am going to mention this as both a pro and con for the film, I loved that we had black women who were deep dark. Like Amara la Negra dark, what I dont like and I think it needs to be said is that like most film there are more dark complexed men than women and there is a disproportionate amount of lighter skinned black women than both dark skinned black men and women.

The film (at least in its first have) does try to showcase diversity in the heights and amoung latinos, but it by no means is free from the same issues of colorism and favoring lighter skin tones black or non black, because the film was also devoid of more indigenous looking peoples. And I will admit my view of indigenous peoples is skewed by my knowledge of indigenous mexican communities i know nothing of the islanders or South American indigenous communities. But i didn't see much of that in the film from what I could tell.

So overall is this film anti-black

... I dont know if I can make that call, but I would think no because it does try to include that history in film and does try to be inclusive with its casting and dance numbers, but it for sure does not escape colorism and by no means is the best form or representation of afrolatinos and arguably more indigenous Groups.

It is for sure disproportionately light skinned in the second half and again unlike the first half you can count the number of black people in the background or in dance numbers.

2. It's a completely different story from the Broadway show.

.....not false, but not 100% true. In fact I think this is why it falls apart a bit. The film keeps a number of the songs from the original Broadway show with minimal changes. It works for some songs such as no me digas, Benny's dispatch, in the heights, carnaval del Barrio, 96,000, and breathe. But it makes others such as "when the sun goes down" seem out of place.

It also, imo, minimizes the role and impact of Abuelas character. That isn't to say that the character isn't still a big part of the story they fit her in differently than in the show, but it is so minimized that when we finally get her big number (and only number in the film) "Pacencia y Fe" it is a bit out of place

It is still the most heartfelt number (and made me cry each time I've seen it) and most relatable to my families experience so I loved it but being honest it is a bit out of place with little build up to it except a scene which is in the trailers where abuela talks about her mother.

Okay so with those things out of the way I want to talk general and key thoughts.

1st: style of the film and disjointment

I personally am still unsure about the style of the film. It sort of blends campy and unrealistic with the real. So you get numbers in people's head where fabric falls from the sky, self-moving wig heads, dancing on the sides of building in gravity defying fred astaire ways, and animated gestures and moments. I think its cool for the kids, but was a bit of a choice in my opinion. I didn't hate it, but almost every time something cooky happened I was just a bit unprepared for it and I dont think that'd how the audience should feel.

In fact the whole film felt disjointed because one moment you had these grand dance numbers with lots of people and minimal effects but great use of camera work like 96 000, but then you'd have scene in a very small space that felt more "Jersey Boys" film/camera work like Benny's Dispatch.

The worst camera work in my opinion was during When the sun goes down. While the idea of dancing on the side of a building was initially cool I kept wishing the camera would have moved differently at many points. Fred astaire's dancing on the walls is still the best filmed gravity defying dance sequence in my mind.

2nd: reducing the drama for Nina and Benny.

Okay so whether its colorism or just time considerations. I didn't like how the changed around Benny and Nina's relationship and build up in the film. In fact my favorite moment for the two (and my favorite songs of the play) from the original show happen in Blackout and then Sunrise. The moment in black out was given to Usnavi and Vanessa and sunrise is not in the film.

I think the shift in the role Benny plays in the business (Rosario's Cab Company) is more complex and better in my opinion and I do love that was added in the blackout scene rather than just doing away with seeing anything of that character with the removal of relationship drama.

3rd: LGBTQ+ representation. I won't claim that there is a bunch but having Daniela and Carla as a couple was pretty cool.

4th. Representation of Latinos

Flawed as it is, I think what in the heights gets right is the telling of complex stories of latinos that don't revolve around violence and crime. I love the look at latinos as business owners and as members of vibrant communities. From my own experience, latinos in film are or tv are not usually seen as such and when you do get look at a latino business owner it is a scene where they are being interviewed by the cops, or the neighborhood is shown as being run down.

Even the usually heavily used storyline of undocumented latinos was done in an interesting way in the film.

I haven't connected so much to a film before and I cried multiple times at the feeling of relating to certain characters and feelings.

I would recommend it to others, but I would also be clear that stylistically it is a choice. I think it probably works better for someone who hasn't seen or doesn't know of the original show. The friends i have taken enjoyed it and my siblings also loved it.

#in the heights

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