*texting*

james: HI regulus: hey james: HOW ARE YOU regulus: good, but why are you texting in capital? james: YOU SAID THAT YOU HATE SMALL TALK SO I MADE IT BIG JUST FOR YOU james: REG? james: LOVE james: WHY AREN'T YOU REPLYING regulus: james, this is pandora, reg is currently crying, i think you broke him

I LOVE when authors write James so personally like you can see they put all their happiness and love and care and positivity AND insecurities into this one character… they TRULY cherish him and there’s nothing better to be able to read their characterisation and envision the sun itself!

in love with the way spock politely hands kirk his own glass he's so gentlemanly and courteous hhhhh

I will never recover from the knowledge that thymoma generally has a very high survival rate, and in most cases that it becomes fatal, the patient has unknowingly lived with the cancer for years. There's a chance that Wilson was sick for half the series and didn't even know it.

James: why don’t you have a bf?

Lily: cause my parents aren’t really cool with that yet

Lily: what about you? Why don’t you have a gf?

James: cause your parents aren’t okay with it, yet

This is an excellent article by astrophysicist Dr. Adam Frank and theoretical physicist Dr. Marcelo Gleiser about how information from the James Webb Space Telescope is changing physicists' perceptions about the standard model of cosmology. 😱

Since how we understand the universe seems rather important, the link above is a gift🎁link to the article, so that even if you do not subscribe to The New York Times, you can read the entire article. Below are a few excerpts:

Not long after the James Webb Space Telescope began beaming back from outer space its stunning images of planets and nebulae last year, astronomers, though dazzled, had to admit that something was amiss. Eight months later, based in part on what the telescope has revealed, it’s beginning to look as if we may need to rethink key features of the origin and development of the universe. [...] But one of the Webb’s first major findings was exciting in an uncomfortable sense: It discovered the existence of fully formed galaxies far earlier than should have been possible according to the so-called standard model of cosmology. According to the standard model, which is the basis for essentially all research in the field, there is a fixed and precise sequence of events that followed the Big Bang: First, the force of gravity pulled together denser regions in the cooling cosmic gas, which grew to become stars and black holes; then, the force of gravity pulled together the stars into galaxies. The Webb data, though, revealed that some very large galaxies formed really fast, in too short a time, at least according to the standard model. This was no minor discrepancy. The finding is akin to parents and their children appearing in a story when the grandparents are still children themselves. [...] Working so close to the boundary between science and philosophy, cosmologists are continually haunted by the ghosts of basic assumptions hiding unseen in the tools we use — such as the assumption that scientific laws don’t change over time. But that’s precisely the sort of assumption we might have to start questioning in order to figure out what’s wrong with the standard model. One possibility, raised by the physicist Lee Smolin and the philosopher Roberto Mangabeira Unger, is that the laws of physics can evolve and change over time. Different laws might even compete for effectiveness. An even more radical possibility, discussed by the physicist John Wheeler, is that every act of observation influences the future and even the past history of the universe. (Dr. Wheeler, working to understand the paradoxes of quantum mechanics, conceived of a “participatory universe” in which every act of observation was in some sense a new act of creation.) [...] The philosopher Robert Crease has written that philosophy is what’s required when doing more science may not answer a scientific question. It’s not clear yet if that’s what’s needed to overcome the crisis in cosmology. But if more tweaks and adjustments don’t do the trick, we may need not just a new story of the universe but also a new way to tell stories about it. [color emphasis added]

Image caption: "These six galaxies may force astronomers to rewrite cosmology books. (Image credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, I. LABBE)"

___________ Gif source (before minor edits)

Sometimes a family can be just a dad and his seven giant steam locomotive children.

Bonus James-centric screenshots because I have a favorite child (clearly):

february 23, @jegulus-microfic prompt: alley. word count: 519

crackfic. enjoy!

James Potter was not known for making very smart decisions. In fact, on any given day, it could be said that James Potter was undoubtedly, one-hundred-percent, certainly making bad, bad, very poor choices. His very loving friends knew to keep an eye out for his dangerous shenanigans. Mostly, his dangers were accidental. He was clumsy or did something stupid—by accident. He was labeled as a local hazard. 

Unfortunately for everyone, today was no different. 

James took a shortcut home—through a dark and dingy alley; none of its grim qualities raised any alarm bells in his head. He was skipping alone, minding his own—when he came across a miracle. 

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜。.

Regulus was having a peaceful evening—a rare occurrence, being the boyfriend of one local hazard named James Potter. Regulus was relaxed, curled up sitting with a book by the window, watching the rain pitter-patter away.

The door banged open and Regulus sighed heavily, expecting chaos to ensue. James was a storm, barging into every room like some kind of natural disaster. But oh, did Regulus adore him, and every moment spent with James was worth it. James’ chaos was simply endearing, even if Regulus needed to be on high-alert all the time. 

James crashed into the room holding a—

“What the fuck?”

James positively beamed, “Regulus! I found a—I don’t even know, honestly, what this is—I think it’s some kind of miracle!” 

The furry gray thing in James’ arms was wriggling. 

James continued, “Reg, I just found it an alley, can you believe it? It must be some kind of-of miracle animal breeding, really—it looks like a cat and a dog had a baby!” He sounded so giddy.

Regulus squealed, backing away from his boyfriend, “James—” 

“Or perhaps a panda? It has weird fur lines around its eyes—” James was looking at the animal curiously, held up to his eyeline.

Regulus held his arms around his stomach protectively. “Potter! That is not a hybrid—”

James looked up, excited. “You’ve seen this before?”

He was about to have a meltdown. James just brought an alley rodent into their shoebox apartment. “It’s a fucking racoon, James!” 

James’ childish wonder did not fade. “What’s a—a raccoon?” 

“That! That thing, with the gray fur and dark mask around its eyes—and the stripy tail. A raccoon. Raccoons, James, are not friendly animals—”

James scoffed. “Please, Reg—he’s plenty friendly. I still think he’s a panda-cat-dog mix.” 

“He’s a rodent!”

James gasped. “Like Peter?”

“Yes! Just like Peter, but bigger and probably carrying more diseases from some dingy alley.” 

James was just standing by the front door, examining the rather calm rodent in his arms. The raccoon was large—James was holding it with both arms wrapped around. James looked rather put-out. He looked up at Regulus with wide eyes. “So—you won’t—I mean, we can’t—keep him?” 

Regulus blinked at him. “No, sweetheart. We’re not keeping him. Hazard behavior, James.” 

James and the raccoon said their goodbyes, but James never forgot his miracle. He kept a picture of the raccoon in his wallet. 

˗ˏˋ ꒰ ♡ ꒱ ˎˊ˗ dedicating this to everyone who fed into my raccoon fanatics the past few weeks. im losing the plot, but it's just a bit of fun <3

at first i was like mmmmmmm idk about this new scrappy skinny scrawny Jim Kirk but as I think about it as resident JTK expert (Phd) I am coming around to the accuracy of post-Tarsus massacre Commander Kirk desperate to embrace the fleeting impermance of happiness by embodying compassion (towards Uhura and La'an) and appreciation for transient silly pleasures (like cookies or hotdogs) AS WELL AS being actively hypervigilant towards his own & other's safety (La'an, The Enterprise vs the Romulans, Uhura) as a trauma response towards the horrors of genocide he experienced first hand.

Also his devil-may-care mien & deep respect towards command in TOS is replaced by a somewhat less likeable ambition to succeed in SNW... another off-shoot to this trauma. We see he has a desire to climb towards rank (for control & protection) yet does not fully embody the ability to handle it with the grace needed to become the legend just yet.

also I've ended up liking the inversion of TOS physical physique that SNW gives us with a more muscular/appearance-oriented (anxious) Spock & a small scrappy (traumatized) Jim ... it appears to be well thought out & a stepping stone to their eventual comfortable self-actualizations in TOS.

i remembered that today it’s james potter’s birthday.

i manage to forget even my closest friends’ birthdays, but i remembered that today it’s james potter’s birthday.

i’m ashamed.

Double Standards: Malfoys vs Potters Edition

It's interesting how people view the Malfoy vs Potter men. The Malfoys are often considered shallow while the Potters are lauded for befriending the "downtrodden".

James Potter befriended Remus Lupin, a disadvantaged werewolf. He and his friends became animagi for Lupin. That's great and all...but then why was Remus so hesitant to go against the status quo and speak out against the marauders - to do his job as prefect?

And James treated Wormtail like trash too.

‘How thick are you, Wormtail?’ said James impatiently. ‘You run round with a werewolf once a month –’

Nice to say that out loud where anyone can hear, Jamie.

‘Put that away, will you,’ said Sirius finally, as James made a fine catch and Wormtail let out a cheer, ‘before Wormtail wets himself with excitement.’ Wormtail turned slightly pink, but James grinned.

“Lily and James only made you Secret Keeper because I suggested it,” Black hissed, so venomously that Pettigrew took a step backwards. “I thought it was the perfect plan… a bluff… Voldemort would be sure to come after me, would never dream they’d use a weak, talentless thing like you… it must have been the finest moment of your miserable life, telling Voldemort you could hand him the Potters.”

You really don't get the vibe that Sirius or James held little Petie in high regard, do you?

It can't be more obvious that Sirus and James were top dogs and Peter and Remus were just add-ons.

As for Harry, where to start with him? He shows little empathy for other people and has a nasty habit of describing people in dehumanizing ways (eg. Aberforth, Salazar Slytherin, Marcus etc). He has probably described Tom Riddle, the guy who murdered his parents, as attractive more times than his own girlfriend Ginny. He latched on to Ron because of his family and honestly, Hermione feels like a pity friend at times. Harry hardly likes being around her without Ron. Harry has another nasty habit of giving his best friends the silent treatment until they come crawling back to him, even when he is in the wrong too (re firebolt for Hermione and Ron believing Harry entered his name in the goblet of fire).

‘Hullo,’ said the boy, ‘Hogwarts too?’ ‘Yes,’ said Harry. ‘My father’s next door buying my books and mother’s up the street looking at wands,’ said the boy. He had a bored, drawling voice. ‘Then I’m going to drag them off to look at racing brooms. I don’t see why first-years can’t have their own. I think I’ll bully father into getting me one and I’ll smuggle it in somehow.’

Yet, no one seems to give Lucius and Draco any credit. These people are supposed to be snobby, pureblood supremacists. Yet, even though Harry was dressed in decrepit muggle clothes, Draco still engaged him in conversation. Draco had no idea who Harry was, had no clue he was famous at the time, and still made several efforts to talk with him and continue the conversation even when Harry was cold and aloof.

And Severus Snape moved off to the other side of the Hall, away from Lily, to where the Slytherins were cheering him, to where Lucius Malfoy, a prefect badge gleaming upon his chest, patted Snape on the back as he sat down beside him …

Lucius knows 'Snape' is not a pureblood name. He could see Snape's clothes were probably old hand-me-downs. He knows Snape is way below his class. Yet, he still welcomes Snape warmly to Slytherin. What reason would he have to fake pleasantries with a poor half-blood? I doubt Slughorn or the other bigoted purebloods would care if Lucius left his seat in disgust at Snape's presence. Even as adults, it is indicated in the narrative multiple times that Lucius holds Snape in high esteem. Draco held Snape in high esteem too despite being a halfblood.

The same Snape that James Potter tormented for no good reason - because Snape existed. Instead of targetting the purebloods like Avery and Mulciber, James and his delinquent loser gang went after Snape, the poor half-blood. Harry literally did nothing as Snape lay dying in the same shack that Lupin almost killed him in two decades prior.

Harry describes Pansy as being pug-faced...yet Draco still dated her. Even though Crabbe turned on him, Draco still grieved for him afterwards. Compared to Harry who only dates the prettiest girls and body shames other girls if they don't meet his standard and only cares about people who do things for him, like him and are loyal to him. It's only when the people he dislikes die for him that he changes his tune and suddenly they become great people.

How can people say the Potters are less shallow than the Malfoys??Draco and Lucius will always be high-class elitists who believe in sticking with their 'own kind' but give credit where credit is due.

I’m such a sucker for scruffy men with sad eyes 😭

Where is Sirius to my Remus and James to my regulus

middle aged james potter with his plethora of kids, and his outdated tiny little shorts, and his specially made apron with a pun printed onto it, and him coaching a weekend kids sport club where all the parents try to flirt with him, and his morning runs where he waves to all the other runners and old people, and his packed lunches for his kids with little notes in but for his teen kids he just sends them the little note every day, and his little grey hairs and his stubbly facial hair that he can never decide on whether to shave or grow out, and him having a cleaner come round every week but he likes to clean beforehand so the cleaner doesn't really have much to do and he just makes them a tea or coffee and has a chat instead, and his volunteer work during the weekdays where he works for a few shelters and makes food for homeless people, and having a free supply of his family's hair products even though he's not involved in the company at all, and being called a 'trophy husband' one time and then deciding to buy himself a trophy with that enscription that he proudly places on the mantel, and wearing a backbrace because he has ongoing backpain so him and sirius always do that back crack thing for each other, and trying to remember all the slang the kids now say but they just call him cringy, and getting wrinkles/prominent smile lines and absolutely loving it because it's, in his words, 'proof he's spending his life having a good time'.

There should be an arc in the campaign that starts with "Fuck you, unfishes ur Gilly" and the whole arc is Gillion talkin shit about being human while they work to reverse it

Like, it's be so funny-

house canonically having aspd is such a win.

here’s this character who’s deeply messed up, vindictive, manipulative, and in many ways amoral, but he tries. even if he’s mostly interested in the mystery, he doesn’t wish ill on his patients, he’s not sadistic.

he still loves, even if he can only form that connection with a few people.