May you be filled up with hope, again and again and again. Slowly but surely, assured no matter how tenuously so, like the waiting out of the flood in the rainfall. As many times as you need, as many times as you are knocked down and emptied of it, as we human beings often are. May the patience to hold out for the hope to fill you always prevail, and may it return to fill you up, indeed.

the threshold has been crossed, it is now springtime!!

i love u butches who work in factories i love u butches who work in warehouses i love u butches with jobs as mechanics and machinists and glass blowers and package handlers and bakers and electricians and welders i love u butches who do physical labor because we've managed to carve out a niche for ourselves in these industries.... i love u working class butches!!!!

A sketch of Replica Leo immediately after his EPF Interview in this scene, but before being reunited with his brothers here. I hope to dive more into the fallout of such a defining moment in Leo's young life and how it would go on to affect him once I get my Patreon up. In the meantime. Enjoy the little angsty sneak peek.

absolutely wild that out of all the possible ships the NATLA team decides to go all in on Zukka. kaatang and zutara in an all-out twenty year war and they decide yeah. we want the insane queer red and blue weirdos . saw voltron do it and were like YES LETS RECREATE THE QUEERBAIT OF ALL TIME

Good Monday morning! Make sure to get yourself a treat today to make up for the start of the week 🐱🧁

It's honestly kind of jarring being one of only two queer people at my job, because sometimes I'll see people who are obviously, visibly, unabashedly queer and mention it to one of my non-queer coworkers and they're like "why does it matter?" or "i don't care if someone is gay or straight or whatever" or "okay, and?" What they don't seem to understand is that I'm not being judgy when I point it out. That's nothing but queer joy babey.

A trans boy who's experimenting with hair dye and oversized hoodies and new names and has currently settled on a video game character? We love to see it.

A gay elder who has never explicitly told me that he's gay, but wears rainbows all the time, has a little pride pin on his hat, paints his nails, and mentions his gender-neutral "beloved" who loves Rocky Horror and Priscilla Queen of the Desert? Makes me want to cry from sheer happiness.

A woman and her daughter coming in to get library cards, and when I asked how many she'd like on her family account, she replies "three, for me, my daughter, and my wife"? Catch me trying not to burst with euphoric squealing at the circulation desk.

When I point these people out, it's because I'm happy to see them! I'm glad these people can live authentically and contentedly and that we can run into each other. I"m glad there are closeted people who can see the visibly queer folks and maybe get that little extra bit of confidence to live the way they want. I'm glad we don't have to hide!

Basically, I live and breathe that panel from Fun Home.

happy earth day 🌎 🍀

I hope you are learning to find comfort, healing, and joy in your own presence. I hope you truly feel the magnitude of your own worth.

butchfemme joy is so pure and sacred and special and beautiful and-

i can’t believe those photos exist, it’s like a movie scene

A character reference based on all four Steps of Our Life! It's only "sort of" a height reference as well since obviously they're not 100% accurate (the devs don't have specific heights for everyone to my knowledge).

I did dig into the code to try and get characters at their "normal" heights but there are other matters at play too (example: Nicolas is obviously "taller" than he should be because he needs to be pushed upwards to be visible enough above the game's text box; likewise with other very short characters).

Still, this should serve as either a nice reference guide for every character or a "height reference" in the sense of getting an idea of which characters are shorter/taller than others.

I'm also going to detail some extra notes below the break, including posts from GB Patch's Tumblr that reference any defined heights (with Cove being the obvious one) or general height things, as well as some more stuff about the MC's height in comparison to the three love interests depending on what you pick.

Cove's height is listed on GB Patch's FAQ as 4' 1" in Step 1 (also stated as "mostly average, perhaps a bit on the short side"), 5' 4" in Step 2 (in-game this is defined as "very tall" on the MC's potential height spectrum, as that is the only option considered on par with Cove's height), 6' 0" in Step 3, and 6' 4" in Step 4. A fun fact is that Cove's final height was originally 6' 3" (191cm) instead.

Derek in Step 2 is under five feet tall (this post also lists Cove as "around 5 and a half feet tall" which you could take as either close enough to 5' 4" as stated above or a potential original height he had that got changed). In-game, he's "short" but not "very short", as having your MC be "very short" will prompt narration telling you that you're shorter than Derek, whereas "short" only has you relate to him in smolness generally.

Step 4 Derek is "mostly average." He wouldn't be considered tall nor would he be considered short. His youngest brother Nicolas will "probably end up as a similar height to him" once he's more grown up.

Step 4 Baxter is "taller than average, but not especially tall."

I've been informed that, on the Our Life Patreon Discord, Step 4 Derek's height is listed as 5' 9" (175cm) whereas Step 4 Baxter's is listed as 5' 11" (180cm), so those are their defined heights. Before that, both of their heights had jumped around somewhat. A post from 2019 said that Derek was 5' 11", but a post from June 2021 said that Baxter was 5' 11" and Derek was 5' 9" (so consistent with the Discord). Then there's also another post from July 2021 (you'll have to scroll down for this one) that listed Baxter at around 5' 10" while Derek was 5' 8"/5' 9". If you're insane enough to try and use the character reference too, then Baxter would actually be around 6'1" at minimum since he's taller than Step 3 Cove (though you could also make the same argument that this means the mom trio of Pamela, Noelani, and Kyra must be decently tall as well since they're so close to Cove on the character reference).

I don't have any experience with GB Patch's other game, XOXO Droplets, so I don't know what ages the characters are in it, but since both Shiloh and Jeremy are characters seen visibly in Our Life, I thought I'd also mention that they're listed as 5' 10" and 5' 5" (or 5' 5 1/2") respectively in XOXO Droplets. Jeremy also apparently grows to 5' 8" in his 20s and he's 22 in the Our Life Cove Wedding DLC (I don't think this is spoken of in the game specifically but he's labeled as 22 in the code).

As for the MC and how their height plays into things, "tall" and "very tall" as well as "short" and "very short" tend to be considered the same for the most part in the game's code. It's not that there isn't a difference at all (I would say it's still notable), it's just that sometimes the game may be more vague about height differences. My post about Errands references this where you don't need more athletic points due to being "very short" instead of "short" to give Cove a piggyback ride.

A guesstimate I'd make is that about 5% of the time, the game will take note of whether you're "very tall" instead of "tall" or "very short" instead of "short." Otherwise, you're either "generally tall," "average," or "generally short." There are also other instances (usually with Cove) where the game might just check if you're either generally tall (around Cove's height) or not generally tall (i.e: definitely shorter than him).

This is actually relevant to the heights because, following all above information, one would assume that Step 4 Derek is average, Step 4 Baxter is tall, and Step 4 Cove is very tall going off the MC's potential "height spectrum" of very short, short, average, tall, and very tall, but it's not entirely the case.

A "tall" MC (generally tall) will look "down" at Step 4 Baxter just as he will look "up" at them or they'll look directly at each other if the MC is "average," same as Step 3 Baxter, but--

when the game has any instance of differentiating between "tall" and "very tall" (they never do this for Step 3 Baxter so the base assumption would have to be that he's just average height), things change.

During Baxter's apology in the wedding of his Step 4, Baxter dips his chin to look at the MC if they're "short"/"very short," levels his chin to look at the MC if they're "average"/"tall," and then lifts his chin to look at the MC if they're "very tall." A generally tall MC still has to lean down to kiss him if they choose to do so though.

Also, during the intimacy scene with Baxter (either in his office or his living room), if the MC is "very short," "short," or "average," it states that Baxter is taller than them. If they're "very tall," then Baxter is shorter than them, but a "tall" MC is "almost the exact same height" as him.

This is all a really long-winded way of saying that GB Patch referring to Step 4 Baxter being "taller than average but not especially tall" might mean that he's some infuriating middle ground between average and tall where he's not quite one but not quite the other either (which honestly is very Baxter of him so I can't even be mad).

Blue - Beige // Requested

I don’t own or take any credit for any of these pics.

Hello 👋

It is week FOUR of Holiday Blues. How y’all keeping? 

Unfortunately, there is a lot more to winter than just the holidays. And the holidays are not always easy, that’s for damn sure 😩 but that is why we’ve got Self-Care Sunday, and that is where we want to give you some essential time to rest and recuperate. 

This year, we are partnering with Therapy for Black Girls, who have put together some essential resources to help YOU through the winter and ensure you get the essential downtime y’all need to truly look after yourself. This week, the theme is Getting Better At Trusting Yourself!

At work, in your relationships, during your parenting journey... you may have trouble trusting yourself. Join @therapyforblackgirls for tips and resources that will help you to get better at trusting yourself—and finally ditching the imposter syndrome 👊

🧘WATCH: Self-Care Sunday. Tumblr X Therapy for Black Girls: Getting Better At Trusting Yourself. 12/24 at 1pm EST. 🧘

okay but can we talk about how fucking good the food would be in the Jedi Temple?? and all of the absolutely fucking baller and totally unique fusion dishes that would have to exist?? they're by far the most diverse group of beings we see in star wars, with lineages made up of people from all across the galaxy. the best food in that galaxy has got to be something from a lineage dinner table that's been made and modified by generations of Jedi and no-one ever wrote down

I love it when women hate men. I love it when women are allowed to vent to each other about how horrible and creepy men are. I love it when women form friendships with and prioritize each other over relationships with men(whether they're attracted to them or not). I love it when women put men dni in their bios and on their nude photos and on posts on their blogs. I love it when women refuse to mollycoddle and accommodate entitled male feelings with "but this doesn't mean I hate all men, I know a few men who are great, I love my father/sons/brothers/uncles/male cousins/guy friends" I love it when women complain about men WITHOUT "not all men" being a disclaimer. I love it when women avoid socializing with/refuse to be around/befriend/get close to men because they know men can't be trusted. I love it when women make "kill all men" jokes. I love it when women offer absolutely no concern or care for men's feelings and if their misandry offends men whatsoever because why should we, men are the oppressor class who have raped and killed and abused us and kept us as subjugated as second-class citizens for millennia, they regularly mistreat us and the women in their own marginalized communities still every single day and make this world so much harder and more awful for us to be in, and if we choose to hate them and not spare them any sympathy then so be it, and I don't just mean "men as a class" either, you can be a woman who doesn't want to have anything to do with any man on an individual basis and completely cuts off men from her personal life too and ykw I will love and fucking support you in that because men deserve absolutely NOTHING from us. If they're so tough and strong then they can handle it just like they can handle being lonely. If you are a woman who hates men, ESPECIALLY IF YOU ARE A LESBIAN AND/OR A TRANS WOMAN, then just know that I love you. I love you, I support you, and you are safe here.