It’s Crazy And Fucked Up That Being Yourself Is Actually The Solution.

the funniest thing about conclave is the photocopier not working at a pivotal moment. that’s the kind of realism we need in film

earlier this week Twitter user ppuccin0 tweeted about a fashion article that advised against tops with large floral patterns, saying the wearer was in danger of looking like a "ロマンティックおばさん," or a "romantic auntie." the tweet went viral with many agreeing that a "romantic auntie" sounded like a very nice thing to aspire to be, and some even posted illustrations or photos tagged with the trend

illustration by Toyota Yuu (author of Cherry Magic)

illustration by 141shkw/Sora Midori (author of Beautiful Curse)

photos by Takinami Yukari (author of Motokare Mania and Watashi-tachi wa Mutsuu Ren'ai ga Shitai or "We Want A Painless Romance")

illustration by m:m (mangaka of Matataki no End Roll)

illustration by ooinuai (mangaka of Onikui Kitan)

illustration by ma2 (mangaka of The Reason We Fall In Love)

BONUS:

It’s wild to me to see transvestigator conspiracy theories online that could be so easily explained by natural human variation. That woman has a deep voice? Yeah, sometimes they do. A woman has broad shoulders?? Maybe she plays rugby or hits the gym a fuckton. There’s a “bulge” in her tight pants?? Maybe her vulva is just fat. All the “markers” of trans woman that transvestigators use to harass any woman aren’t even things unique to trans women.

Tree color study by MZ

@grabyourpillow did you know that

Watching the mummy 1999 for shits and giggles, thought it'd be fun to bitch abt the inaccurate hieroglyphs now that I know smth abt all that. Disappointed and disgusted to find out that they hired an egyptologist consultant and the hieroglyphs are actually well done. Night ruined

@grabyourpillow I'm not listening to you, library gremlin! 🙉

I can behave normally around books

how do you do, fellow Creatives™

The best thing I ever learned about queerness after I came out as bi is that you don't need to apply the same rigid structure of straightness to it. Like, heterosexuality is pretty narrowly defined as "this not that" so when you come to terms with your queerness it's very easy to get caught up in the same paradigm but with different genders. You can get trapped in this lens of feeling like your sexuality has to be based on exclusion, and has to follow certain rules like your straightness did.

Queerness is about rejecting those rules! Not about tying yourself up in new rules. When you think you might be less-than-straight try not to rush to find a label. You might end up with a new set of rules you box yourself into.

People get really hung up on the labels side of things- "Wait, am I still a lesbian if I only like dating girls but I have liked one guy and I have crushes on fictional men?" "am I bisexual if I'm a guy who only likes girls who look like boys or am I gay if I like that and I like anal sex??"

Just experience for a moment, the freedom to see yourself as you are. Go through the world with an openness to your feelings. Gradually you can unlearn the "this not that" strict mentality and learn what you actually like. You'll start to see the world with fresh eyes. Maybe you find someone attractive who you had never considered before. Maybe you notice, as I did, that you find certain traits attractive regardless of gender or sexuality. The way someone speaks, the way they move, the way they treat others. In time you'll start to define your unique sexuality.

Try on labels like clothes. They're not who you are. They're just tools to speed up communication between you and others. Eventually you may find one that fits well enough to tell others about, and remember you can always change it later. Queerness is about the freedom to be yourself, and to take time to experiment and learn what that really means to you. That's kind of the beauty of 'queerness' that those in the community are always going on about. The freedom of getting to know yourself without restrictions.

just a handy little info chart on the spectrums of sexuality.

Watched Conclave last night. The emotional journey I went through thinking "oh this is just like Mean Girls haha" to "this is just Mean Girls" was insane

bonus: