Vi training 

I try to generally be constructive and engaged with the show I love on here, so on this day, I’ll just say that one of the most thematically important aspects for me from the original ATLA is Aang’s emotional core of real shame for running away when he was hurt by the monk’s decision to send him away. People who feel the kind of deep-seated shame that Aang feels from this decision can understand how that kind of all-encompassing shame is not built around a simple failure or a lie they tell themselves; it’s constructed from real misbehaviors and transgressions of their own sense of ethics—lashing out, telling lies, attempting to hurt others intentionally—that then have consequences (abuses, abandonments, or deaths) which seem to far exceed their expectations or even basic logic.

The combination of the misbehavior with exaggerated existential punishments (along with a lack of support and amend-making in the immediate wake of the events) is what transforms a sense of guilt (I fucked up) into shame (I am a forever fuck-up). Then shame, that sense of being a secret monster ‘no matter what I do or how good everyone thinks I am,’ invites all the avoidance strategies (Aang puts on big smiles, makes lots of jokes, constantly tries to make everyone happy, hops from town to town without building deeper connections). One doesn’t want to acknowledge one’s true feelings or let others in to see those feelings and experiences because it’s too painful to face the grief at the same time that you have to look at yourself for being responsible—even when you recognize it wasn’t totally your fault. It’s just that if you had just been good, less emotional, less human, then maybe the world wouldn’t be so messed up. Of course, in a zen view of things, the world will always be messed up in the same way it will always be beautiful. These are constant facts that always coexist in balance, and this is the truth that Aang learns and that undergirds the whole series.

So I always loved that Aang ran away. It was his sin and his salvation. And it becomes this constant tension for the series—he gets hurt in Bato of the Water Tribe and starts to run away from Katara and Sokka, he runs away to the Guru in the Crossroads of Destiny and his best friend is attacked, he and the gaang retreat after the Day of the Black Sun failure, he runs away to meditation in Sozin’s Comet when everyone wants him preparing for war. Aang’s reluctance to be a hero and the attachments and petulance for which he gets criticized are what metamorphasize to become his most noble attributes. They allow him to empathize with others shame and, ultimately, wield the kind of compassion that can deconstruct the power and perfectionism of imperialism.

So yes, Aang ran away from his temple 100 years ago. It wasn’t the mentally healthy choice. It wasn’t the ethical choice. It wasn’t the wise choice. It was human and emotional and shameful and real. Aang is a better character for it. ATLA is a better show because of it. And we are better people when we understand these kind of tragic emotional experiences that people are trying so hard to grow through.

🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤

i don’t want to say too much because this is their life not one for us to document for receipts… plus i feel as if i might get someone in trouble - i hope not cause NDAs only last for so long 😵‍💫

my uncle worked for a security company that 1D regularly had. i can confirm- he worked with the boys often when it came to backstage crap and what not. he can still recall how strict it was- the way two of the poor lads weren’t allowed to even touch each other security was in the room because the security guards were told to remind them to “stop being touchy” as a way of practicing to not be touchy in interviews/on camera.

my uncle said it was saddening to see, but he refused to tell them to stop comforting each other after a particularly rough day. he batted a blind eye to their small touches most of the time- like the small group of people who also felt pity that were his co-workers. did i mention he were forced to sign an NDA that lasted for a couple of years after they last preform a security gig with the band? mental.

As with almost every receipt I'm sent, I have no way of telling whether this is true or not. TBH, I hope it's fake because that level of manipulation and control over them is just a horrible thing to imagine.

Messing with deersona once again 🌿🌾

i just need a mike x bi!reader. thats all. like he fr would be so so soooo supportive especially when first coming out him. (call him valentina ... iykyk!).

I’m sorry if this sounds dumb but I don’t know what you mean by “call him Valentina” 😭 pls explain

Still squeeing over these gorgeous “Phantom phlowers” and swatches made by Trista Moldovan with (not stage worn) Broadway costume fabric remnants! 🌹 Added bonus is that she donated a portion of the sales to BC/EFA 🥰

The Christine flower is dressing gown fabric/lace and the Phantom flower is PONR cloak fabric, vest fabric, and cape appliqué 🤍🖤

I started writing a fic a few months ago and I just got inspiration to continue it but change it completely and I only just noticed my typo noooo

Hiya and happy Nice Ask day! Can you tell me about your username and why you picked it? (Stole this question from someone because it was fun for me to answer!)

Hi lovely!!! thanks for your question, I love it! 💖😘

I don't know how familiar you are with the Lord of the Rings' books/movies or if they interest you at all, so sorry in advance 😅 but that's where my username comes from. When I was a kid and teen I was a huge nerd (I say, as if I still weren't A HUGE NERD) and I read the books and fell in love with the story instantly. Simbelmynë is a flower mentioned both in the books and the second movie.

Tolkien imagined it like a small white European Anemone that grows on graves and tombs. I don't know why I loved the name so much when I read the books, but I started using it as a nickname since then. Later, when 'The Two Towers' came out, it appears in one of the most heartbreaking scenes of the whole trilogy when Théoden is finally broken from the spell he was in and realizes his son died.

This is the dialogue between Gandalf and him that follows the burial.

Théoden: "Simbelmynë, ever has it grown on the tombs of my forebears. Now it shall cover the grave of my son. Alas, that these evil days should be mine. The young perish and the old linger. That I should live to see the last days of my house." Gandalf: "Théodred's death was not of your making." Théoden: "No parent should have to bury their child." Gandalf: "He was strong in life. His spirit will find its way to the halls of your fathers."

So that's where my username comes from. When I made my tumblr account the full name wasn't available so I ended up with smblmn.

Any man that’s ever played me ain’t doing so well these days

Every time I look at a picture of the ghouls, I get the terrible urge to grab them by the little horns and just shake their heads

Play with me

Pernille is not diabetic (at least what I know) but she’s partnering w this guy who runs a company where they monitor all sorts of things and she’s had a glucose monitor on her arm which I guess is related to that

Huh, the more you know

8 TV shows to get to know me

thanks to @ezrabridgerr for the tag 🥹💕

1. Schitt’s Creek

2. Avatar: the Last Airbender

3. The Last of Us

4. Ted Lasso

5. Poker Face

6. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

7. Abbott Elementary

8. A League of Their Own