cipheramnesia:

deliriumcrow:

biggest-gaudiest-patronuses:

erinunu:

biggest-gaudiest-patronuses:

saltyvsparrow:

biggest-gaudiest-patronuses:

biggest-gaudiest-patronuses:

TIL that not only do deaf cats tend to purr & meow louder than hearing cats, they also enjoy shrieking loudly bc of the vibrations it causes

also they often have a favorite room to shriek in, such as a bathroom or kitchen with tile floors the sound can reverberate off of. that’s right, deaf kitties have their own Private Screaming Rooms

This is so relevant to me holy shit

So I need y’all to know we had a cat growing up whose name was Whisper.

Whisper had a seizure that left him with some temporary motor difficulties and permanently deaf.

Whisper proceeded to scream at any time he felt like it, specifically anytime he was inconvenienced ever. He became infamous for it. He would wake us up damn near every night.

Whisper had a lot of health problems so he died pretty young, around the age of 7 or 8.

But, Whisper had housemate, Snickers.

Snicky ended up being a solitary cat not liking having any other animal in the house, a thing that was only discovered after Whispy died. In the wake of Whisper’s death, Snicky became more dominant and interacted with us more.

Do you want to know what he also did once Whisper was gone? Can you guess what habit he picked up?

Thing is, Snickers wasn’t deaf. Cat was in near perfect health for his 18 years of life until his kidneys just gave up last December. So he knew how loud he was being. He just saw how much attention it got Whispy and copied the howl wholesale.

I’m not even joking. First night I spent in a house with him after Whispy died I heard him howling and was absolutely petrified for a moment because it sounded exactly like Whisper but Whisper was dead.

This is such a nutty story but I have to ask, did Whisper get his name before or after he developed the habit of screaming the house awake???

This sweet angel, this darling baby child, this eternal kitten, was found at 4 in the morning when I lived in Las Vegas because she was the loudest thing on the block. I dont think she was always deaf, I think it may have been a result of the respiratory infection that she was almost dying of when she landed on my head (and home). She screamed loud enough to wake my room mates, and cute enough at about 8 weeks old that they instantly forgave her. I loved her instantly, we saved each other’s lives. She screams louder than any cat I’ve ever met, she snores, she breathes audibly when she thinks she is being stealthy. We used to call her Air Raid, because she sounded like the Luftwaffe were coming. So far the other two cats are not picking up her terrible habits, but give them time.

I love her so much. 💖

Lucius Vorenus has perfectly decent hearing (he can hear the soft ‘click’ of the button on the laser pointer from across the room when he wants to)

He just enjoys yelling. Yelling because he found something and wants us to congratulate him on his hunting skills, yelling because he wants fed, yelling because he wants petted, yelling because he doesn’t want the fountain water he wants someone to follow him upstairs and turn the bathroom tap to his exact preferred drip rate…

Behold.

A Screaming Goblin Boye

(via annethecatdetective)

plaidadder:

I’m doing my best to inoculate PJ against conspiracy-style thinking. I mention Occam’s Razor every chance I get. I also told her this story from my first years on the job, when I and everyone else at my level was really worried about promotion.

There was a colleague who had come in a year ahead of me who was very nervous about whether she was impressing the higher-ups enough. She absolutely did not need to be; she wound up getting a better job at a better place; but for whatever reason, her thinking about promotion had taken on a paranoid cast. Every year they held a reception for our section which a lot of us blew off. She told me never to blow it off because of the name tags. They made name tags for us, and if you didn’t go, you wouldn’t pick up your name tag, and then when they looked at the name tags left over after the party, they’d know you hadn’t been there, and it would be a held against you later.

I was like, well, she’s been here longer, maybe this could be true…and then I asked myself a question that I think would kill most conspiracy theories if you could get people to ask it:

Whose job would that be?

Someone would have to be in charge of collecting the unsued nametags, making a list, and then either recording that list in some database or transmitting it to someone *else* who would record it. Whose job description would include that? The people who generated the nametags were not the same people who cleared up after the event. Getting the information about who didn’t show from the staff at the event to the people who made the promotion decisions would involve a chain with several links in it. I couldn’t see anyone deciding that it was a good idea to add any of this to anyone’s workload. 

You can try this on any conspiracy theory. For instance, that Bill Gates has somehow implanted individual microchips in COVID vaccine. OK. Whose job would that be? Who’s the Vice President for Universal Vaccine-Enabled Surveillance? Who’s their liaison at Moderna? At Pfizer? At Johnson & Johnson? How do they ensure there’s only one chip in each dose? Do they have to train the people who administer the vaccine on this? Whose job would that be?

I don’t know, I just feel like if people were more aware of the fact that every product they handle had to be created by human labor, maybe they would not buy so much of this bullshit. But then maybe I am preferring a complex solution to a simple one. 

When I worked in corporate finance, the nametags thing was my job as the admin/ office manager/ general dogsbody. I collected the unused ones & made the notes, cross-referencing with a couple of my superiors in case anyone had just swanned on in without their tag, because we would be sending “sorry we didn’t see you at Event!” emails to the people invited to said event.

Notably, despite the careful collation of name tags and the cross-referencing with people doing the actual networking stuff, we would still cock up and get a couple of “what do you mean? I saw you there!”
indignant responses. Double-printed badges, people who took the wrong badge by mistake, simple typos, etc, all added to this.

There is no huge crypto-industrial conspiracy machine wherein every single moving part is totally competent enough not to have fucked up and exposed themselves.

If the Covid 5G Gates Chip Whatever conspiracy was really happening, someone would have left their work briefcase on the train or posted from the wrong social media account or gabbed drunkenly to a journalist at an industry event or something. Nothing stays secret when you have that many people involved.

(via cosmictuesdays)

mayasynth:

Everyone Go Read The Murderbot Diaries Right Now

(via so-i-did-this-thing)

notallmensheviks:

A sci-fi writer got meta about gender. The internet responded by ruining her life.

vox.com

a great piece on the helicopter story controversy featuring interviews with the author herself

Helicopter Story has been taken down *everywhere* online, even on the Internet Archive by request, but is included in the Hugo Awards Voting Packet as it’s nominated for Best Short Story this year. I believe you can still get the Voting Packet for the Hugo Awards if you join Worldcon as a supporting member soonish (currently 04th July 2021).

That packet is now the only way to legally access & read the story. And even that is only temporary, and will be gone in a few months at most.

I read it when it was first published, and it really was a very good piece. Isabel Fall was a very promising writer, and deserved so much better than being hounded out of her own name and gender by people who refused to read past the title of her work.

(via trappedinavelociraptor)

hedwig-dordt:

prismatic-bell:

symptomofsin:

sleepbby:

PSA: no name is impossible to pronounce. no name is too hard to learn, no name is justifiably butchered. kids with ‘different’ names should be taught again and again that being called by their name is a right, not a privilege

there are over 2000 unique phonemes (individual sounds) in the world’s languages, and each language has anywhere from around 20 to 60. you stop learning new phonemes it’s theorized at around age 12. this is where accents come from – using your own language’s/region’s phonemes to speak

so no name is impossible to pronounce world-wide, but it is very easy to not have the linguistic archive necessary to pronounce a given name entirely correctly. it is a simple case of physically not knowing where to place your tongue, whether or not to vibrate your vocal chords, etc. the only one of the dictators of sound you could be shown is how to position your lips

that being said… obviously you should still try. saying a name as correctly as you physically can goes a long way for making someone feel respected and humanized, and dismissing a name entirely as too hard goes a long way to disrespect and dehumanize people. just also accept that someone’s accent interfering with their pronunciation isn’t a sign of lack of trying, but a sign of physical limits

This is very true. I met a baby at my old store whose name was Navajo. I did my best and actually got a bit frustrated because there was a syllable I could NOT get, and her dad was like “it’s very hard if you don’t actually speak Diné, but thank you. Most people won’t even try.”

Be the one who tries.

Listen, I have a French first name. I am not in France.

If you make an attempt and fail, we’re good. If you don’t even bother, you’re on my shitlist.

There is no way to get off my shitlist.

I’m learning Mandarin at the moment (it’s one of the languages with decent non-duolingo apps, so that’s where I am on avoiding the owl)

Every vowel has like four distinct tones and a neutral tone, and with some of them I can’t reliably even hear the difference between the tones. I can read a few characters and I can visually tell what the diacritics in pinyin do, but I can’t tell those same words apart when they’re spoken aloud unless I can rely on clear context.

The ‘hear and repeat’ feedback tells me I can’t reliably reproduce quite a few more no matter how many times I sit there saying something incredibly mundane like “we eat dinner at seven o'clock. What about you?”.

Still gotta try, though!

(via cosmictuesdays)

digitalisnarcissus:

I know here on tumblr.org many of you are not that into the sportsball, but I know you love righteous drama and pettiness, and oof, do we have some for you over in football land.

So Hungary, as you may’ve heard, has put out some anti-LGBT legislation that would ban the depiction or promotion of homosexuality to people under 18. It’s not quite law yet but it’s just got to get through their president Viktor Orban who is, unfortunately, a shit.

Meanwhile, football, no the other kind of football- the one with the round ball, is currently having a big European tournament. Euro 2020. Yeah, they didn’t rename it. Doesn’t matter.
Germany were due to play Hungary last night in Munich and they asked the governing body of the tournament for permission to light up the stadium in a rainbow. Like this:

But they said no. Specifically, they said no while dressed in a rainbow pfp and claiming that the rainbow isn’t a political symbol:

And Germany, bless them, looked at that and said, ooh bitch it’s on now.

Munich city hall got out the banners

Here are the fans going to the match

The German captain Manuel Neuer in his rainbow armband (which UEFA had previously made noises about disciplining him for, because they’re bastards all around)

A brief selection of the many stadiums across Germany that lit up in solidarity

And last but not least this absolute madlad who ran onto the pitch during Hungary’s anthem

Viktor Orban stayed at home and sulked, and Hungary got knocked out of the tournament.

Additional ‘fuck UEFA’ note:

Hungary has literal sieg-heiling, antisemitic, ultranationalist, black shirts known as the 'Carpathian Brigade’ amongst their fans (link is a sample of their behaviour from 2016, but they’re active & present at games in 2021 as well). They turn up in big groups and all sit together for maximum “look at us openly being neo nazis” effect.

UEFA hasn’t said shit about them. UEFA thinks that decorating with a rainbow is much worse than having hordes of open fascists sieg heiling at their football games.

(via preludeinz)

tracle0:

For more information, visit Mermaids, a charity dedicated to helping young gender-diverse people in the UK.

I’d recommend checking out Gendered Intelligence - they’re a UK charity supporting gender diverse young people, and they’re actually run by trans people and heavily involve young trans people’s lived experiences (Mermaids is run by the cis parents of trans kids, can have some blind spots accordingly, and also gets the vast share of funding and attention). GI really helped my friend when Mermaids were more interested in supporting his parents.

(via acidtygr)

wenkexiette:

wenkexiette:

someone likely already said it but the itch bundle for Palestine is ending in like 2 days and theyre only abt half their goal

if you wanna support a rly good cause and get 1k games, tools and other fun goodies i highly recommend it. i got gifted it myself, and if uve already bought it i 100% suggest buying it as gifts for friends esp since many of these games wont require a super powerful PC, and that could be good summer fun for someone who maybe cant otherwise get it

btw!! heres the link <3

There are over 1240 items in the bundle at time of posting (22:54 BST, 11/06/21), and I am making a spreadsheet so the vast bundle is actually navigable, including platform, content, genre, and item type

If anyone would like to help me with this, please let me know and I’ll stick the spreadsheet somewhere shared & editable so we can get this done.

(via cell113)

probablyasocialecologist:

probablyasocialecologist:

probablyasocialecologist:

One year ago today!

It has been dredged out of the river, and is now on FREE exhibition at M Shed in Bristol! They’ve kept the context of its toppling, so it is presented horizontally & still covered in spraypaint.

If you try to book in advance you may get an error that there’s no spaces available that day - that’s because a bunch of the racism fandom booked it up to prevent anyone actually going. The museum, being wise to such bullshit, allows walk-ins dependent on how busy it is at the time. So you can just go, and it’s fine.

(via cosmictuesdays)

so-i-did-this-thing:

beckiboos:

callmebliss:

Mass Effect Gilmore Girls Legendary Edition

The Terror / Don’t Starve

ಠ_ಠ

The Untamed/ Love Nikki

(I haven’t played anything properly in ages, the mobile dressup game is the closest you’re getting)

travellinghopefully:

The Glorious 25th May, how do they rise up?

(via cosmictuesdays)

k-eke:

brands marketing to gays:                                        gays:

owlpajamas:

thedatingfeminist:

jean-luc-gohard:

That other post seems to be for people with money. But you don’t have money. So what do you actually need for your first apartment?

• A bed. Not an air mattress. Not a blanket fort. Not a mattress pad with a fitted sheet over it. An actual bed. You’re going to try to avoid it, especially if you live in a city where bed bugs mean not buying a mattress from Craigslist. Beds cost money (unless you can take the one from your childhood bedroom, in which case, do that and use the couch when you visit home). But fuck it, you need one. If you’re desperate, you might go with a futon, but the futon you can afford will break with the quickness. You might also go with a mattress on the floor, which seems like a good idea until it suddenly seems really dirty, which is because mattresses need air flow to stay dry and sanitary. If you don’t have a box spring and don’t want to drop the $40 on a cheap bed frame, you can use these guys to build a platform, and if you find plastic drawers the same height, you can even build some storage in there.
  
• A dresser. You will try to find a way around this. It will end up with your floor covered in clothes within a week. Just find a dresser on Craigslist or go to your local auction (a great place to find cheap furniture in general). And don’t buy a cheap dresser to build yourself from K-Mart or Wal-Mart, because it will break and it will likely be more expensive than a Craigslist/auction dresser anyway.
• A TV. It doesn’t have to be new or huge or advanced. But you want a TV. Don’t try to skip the TV for something more trivial. You’ll regret that quick.
• A couch. Specifically, an old, comfortable couch. One you don’t mind falling asleep on or letting guests sleep on. Don’t spend a lot of money. Couches will find you. Don’t overthink it. It’s your first apartment. Nobody expects you to have a perfectly curated adult home. Just get a comfy fucking couch. And if you get two, you can use cinder blocks to make stadium seating in your living room!
• A table. You will ruin it, so get a shitty one. Learn your lessons on something cheap and disposable.
• A full(ish) kitchen set. If these things don’t appear from your parents or your roommates’ parents, you need to buy a pot and pan set, silverware, a silverware organizer, at least one sharp knife (and let’s be honest, you’re gonna want a knife block and they’re only like $11), at least one mixing bowl, a colander, a cutting board, a couple of storage containers, plates, bowls, glasses, and mugs. You’ll figure out what else you need as you need it, based on your own kitchen habits. A lot of this can be picked up at the dollar store if you have one near you. And if you don’t bake often, disposable baking pans are your friend. 
• Hand soap, dish soap, wash-your-ass soap. Nobody likes poor hygiene. You also need toothpaste and floss. And deodorant.
• Flashlight and candles (nothing fancy). In case something goes wrong.
• A plunger. In case something goes really wrong.
• A toilet brush. Your momma probably never let the toilet form rings (or let you let that happen), so it might come as a shock how quickly and easily those shits form.
• A shower curtain and liner. Or even just the liner. Don’t get the floor wet.
• Sponges. You have no idea how many sponges you’ll need.

The rest, you’ll stack over time, but these are the things you need.

Thrift shops and charity shops may have silverware and pots and pans for cheap, as well as furniture, sheets, etc.

When buying used furniture: look in the cracks and under the edges for pin-sized brown/black spots. Bedbugs are tiny and they live in upholstery and any wood with enough crevices to allow it. You almost certainly won’t be able to see the bugs themselves, but they leave little spotted trails along seams and in places that don’t see a lot of light. You cannot get them out of furniture; it’s not worth the extreme measures it takes to do it.

Also, don’t forget laundry detergent and a rubbish bin and bin liners. Rubbish, laundry, and dirty dishes are 90% of the mess in a messy home and 99% of bad smells. Keep up with them and your home will always be at least clean-ish.

Oh, and bleach is a good cheap substitute if you can’t afford specific cleaners for your toilet, tub, vinyl counters/floor, etc., but test it on a small spot to make sure what you’re cleaning can handle it, dilute the fuck out of it, and never use it on wood or mixed with dish liquid. Use white vinegar or diluted Pine-sol for mirrors, glass, and sealed wood floors.

Important reminder to avoid any non-stick pans or products containing Teflon. Teflon/PFOA/related chemicals are suspected carcinogens and environmental pollutants. they are linked to cancer of the reproductive organs in human and animal studies.

Alternative to Teflon:

If you’ve bought cheap oven trays and ruined them already, or you inherited shitty ovenware from family/ housemate, or you hate having to grease a tray every time you need to use it, or you hate doing proper washing up, and you do not wish to return to a life of disposable foil trays… buy a roll of baking paper (sometimes called baking parchment, or parchment paper. Baking paper is just a treated cellulose stabilised for high temps, and is not the same as waxed paper which goes on fire in the oven).

It’s cheap, and you just lay a square of it under your food to stop it sticking to even the most tragically beaten up and ancient shitty baking tray. Unlike putting down a sheet of foil, it will not stick to your food and leave you picking bits of foil or paper out of it afterwards. Plus now you can make cookies more conveniently, and it’s compostable if that’s a thing where you live.

(Source: steviemcfly, via deathlyfandoms)

afloweroutofstone:

doomy:

thetyrannosaur:

afloweroutofstone:

afloweroutofstone:

Anyway here’s a sneak peak at my Master’s thesis

I saw this on some random meme website recently and I’m so happy imagining an entirely new set of random people getting furious at it

“Is Macklemore a Libertarian,” the greatest thread in the history of forums, locked by a moderator after 12,544 pages of heated debate,

yes yes but tell me more about the B.o.B. Exclusion Zone

Most placements on that chart are a joke. B.o.B is one of the placements that is not a joke.

Points for not fucking about with placement on Dead Prez & KRS-One. I take it The Coup & Blue Scholars are missing from this because they went way off the left side of the chart?

(via trappedinavelociraptor)

cell113:

aqueerkettleofish:

tarotforintroverts:

This is so fucking important!!

This also applies to physical health.

Several of the founders of the Pagan Movement from the sixties are dead because someone convinced them to try herbal teas and pretty rocks instead of, like, chemo. And by the time it was clear that it wasn’t working, it was too late.

FUCKING TRUTH

This happened to my da in the 1990s.

He got into new age homeopathic stuff and tried to use that instead of chemo for his cancer. And then by the time he actually gave in and tried proper medicine, it was too late to save him.

He died when I was five.

There is a place for complementary therapies, as a complement to the actual medical treatments rather than as a replacement. They can do great placebo stuff, they can genuinely improve mood & some can even have therapeutic effects, but they are not replacements for proper treatment.