Kore Yamazaki : My Newest Idol

Black Panther: Pride

“So this is the blacks’ Coco.”

That was the first thing my papi said when I asked him what he thought of the movie. He’s not the best when it comes to being sensitive (he tends to say all the politically incorrect terms just for the fun of it, actually). So when I got past the bluntness of his statement, I realized what he actually meant.

Pixar’s Coco is a movie that is very dear to me because I am a Mexican-American. My papi immigrated to the U.S. and thus my family grew up with a different set of culture values and traditions; I grew up as part of a minority. 

So when Pixar came out with Coco, I was one of the first to see it. And what pleased me more than the homages to Mexican culture was the reaction it received worldwide. It became a source of pride for me that people loved a film that was based on my culture; a minority culture.

And what my papi had said summed up Black Panther: it is a movie based on a minority culture and people love it, they praise it because it is different and captivating.

I don’t wish to presume, but as a fellow member of a minority, I think it’s wonderful that those of African heritage (wherever they are from now), can look at Black Panther, see how much others love it, and take it as a point of Pride.

This + Him

Results in this =

You cannot change my mind

Inspired by the great and might Starhorse. You can see her original brilliance here http://the-starhorse.deviantart.com/gallery/1060568

Back in the day…

…at the dawn of the internet, there were authors that got mad at people for writing fan fiction of their work. To the point where they would send lawyer backed cease and desist notices.

Which to me is such a strange response.

For many reasons, some (but not all) being: they (the author) thought they could control the masses, shouldn’t they be flattered that people like their work so much they want to be part of the stories in some small way, and it’s basically free publicity why would they shut down free publicity?

I have a feeling that it came down to money. Which is still illogical. Because:

Author: How dare you profit from my hard work!

Fanfic writers: But we’re not??? We’re posting it on the internet for FREE

This flag is not racist.

This flag represents the “Thin Blue Line”.  

The blue line represents law enforcement standing between the people and anarchy, criminals, and violence.

It does not stand for anything hateful, racist, discriminatory, homophobic, sexist, or anything other _ist, _ism, _phobia, or _ation you can think of.

Those who utilize this flag or symbol and derivatives of do so because they are expressing solidarity with law enforcement other first responders, respect, gratitude, and simply support to the men and women who come from all varieties of creeds, races, and beliefs. It is also not uncommon to use it to express mourning over the death or murder of someone in law enforcement. 

Before the flag, the symbol was simply this:

And it would later expand to include other aspects of law enforcement and first responders.  Red for Firefighters, Silver for Corrections Officers, Gold for Dispatchers/Communications Officers, White for EMS, and Orange for Search and Rescue.

There are versions which include many “Thin Lines” to show respect for multiple agencies.  I for one have this one on the back of my car.

Before all this PC nonsense, people used these symbols as a means of support, respect, and encouragement.  “We see you, we appreciate you, we are thankful to you.”  It never had anything to do with race, hate, power, control, or anything negative. 

 These symbols have existed long before the mobs called them racist or symbols of ‘white power’ and no matter how you attempt to make them represent something evil, it will not work or change what it stands for:

Family. Brotherhood. Sisterhood. Family.

If you ever work as a first responder or in that community, be it law enforcement, EMS, firefighting, SAR, dispatch..you see hell, sometimes daily. You see your own hell, the hell of others. You see blood, death, torture, cruelty and evil. Lives are risked. Lives are lost - sometimes it could be your own, or someone you were tasked with protecting. Someone you worked side by side with. It’s a calling, and it’s both heaven and hell for those involved.  All of us are a family, and this is how we reach out to each other to tell each other something simple:

“Brother or Sister, I have your back.”

If you choose to see that as racist, demeaning, hateful, or anything else negative, especially after being explained otherwise, then there is no helping you - unless it’s someone from our community.

Regardless of what you think of us, how you hate or love us, we will always come to help you even if it means getting hurt to do so, or even killed.

That’s our family, and this is our symbol. It will never mean hatred.

For those who still think otherwise and believe yourself good and honest people, I have a challenge for you.  The next time you see someone, be they IRL or online and they’re sporting the thin blue line, ask them calmly to tell you what it means to them.  Why it’s important to them. What they think of it.

I think you’ll live happier knowing that something you believed was hateful is actually out to do good.

Glaciator Ice Creams

I found it so interesting in S2EP9 of Miraculous Ladybug, the ice creams Andre chose for Adrian and Marinette. 

Marinette’s ice cream had a red cherry (for his lips), mint ice cream (for his eyes), and some unnamed base (which I’m guessing is supposed to represent his hair - so maybe homemade vanilla? Or pineapple or banana or lemon... Though I’d like to think it’s honey :3 ).

Adrian’s ice cream had strawberry with chips of dark chocolate ice cream (for her costume), blackberry ice cream (for her hair) and blueberry ice cream (for her eyes), and topped with a red cherry that apparently has no significance.

What I found so interesting it that Andre chose combinations that represented the version our two lovebirds are infatuated with.

Marinette is in love with the non superhero version - Adrian. So her ice cream represents the object of her affection that she perceives (AKA, not Chat Noir, so there’s no black).

With Adrian, he’s in love with Ladybug - the superhero. His ice cream flavors are meant to reflect Ladybug’s appearance, not Marinette’s (otherwise I think that bottom layer would be pink instead of red).

Though ultimately, which side is the true version of each protagonist? And are they each falling in love with the person at their core, or just the facade? Just some things I wonder about :3

Just found this browsing. Nearly screamed my head off. Good thing the action figure is on its way right now or else I would be going through cardiac arrest from lack of sexy Knockout-ness!

It's Official! I'm ASD!

And I couldn't be more happy! (which according to my family, is a strange reaction to have lol)

But all my life I've felt like an outsider looking in, and when I stumbled upon Autism, it gave me something I hadn't had before - a reason why I'm the way I am.

With each new fact I learned during my research, I grew more and more excited by how well I related to the ASD community. How their stories and tips made me feel more confident in myself to just be me, without having to constantly justify my 'strange' behavior.

And then I was finally able to get an official assessment done. I was so sure there would be no doubt that I was autistic.

But then the doctor went over her initial findings with me and it sounded like I was going to be misdiagnosed.

I was scared out of my mind.

Because I had been so sure of myself, for the first time in a long time. I had essentially laid my soul bare to someone and they were invalidating my feelings. And I wasn't sure what I was going to do if I was misdiagnosed.

Thankfully, that didn't turn out to be the case! (long story short, when sending the questionnaires out to other people, make sure you 1: give them to people you're sure know you. And 2: look over their responses, just to make sure they do know you well. Because it turns out, sometimes they don't).

I'm officially on the Autism Spectrum and thrilled to be zebra instead of a malfunctioning horse!

I have not cried happy tears of relief in soooooo long!

I just had a brilliant thought:

Anyone who saw the Derry Girls on GBBO and thought it was awesome...

WE NEED A MARVEL CAST VERSION OF THAT.

Can you just imagine some of those people in the tent?!

Even if we can only get the Brits; I would pay good money to see Tom Holland, Tom Hiddleton, Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman, Karen Gillan, Letitia Wright, Hayley Atwell, and Paul Bettany trying to make victoria spounges.

One weekend, that’s all I’m asking for.

Random thoughts on personality quizzes and types and systems:

Like most people, I’ve taken a quiz or two and read up on personality systems and even looked at my zodiac signs (Greek and Chinese-which I’m still the most skeptical on because they both so far off it’s laughable).

But I’ve come to an idea regarding the others, like Myers-Brigg and the Enneagram system, and that is:

I don’t think there is one right system, but perhaps different systems work for different people.

Because let’s face it, humans are so unique and full of nuances and there’s quite a lot of us so how could the whole fit into 16, 9, or even just 4 personalities?

I’ve taken the Myers-Brigg so many times and each time I would get a different answer depending on the day (though it mostly stayed within four choices of INFP, INFJ, ISFP ISFJ).

Several other systems labaled me as a White or from Peace Country or a Leo (which is the funniest of all).

Then I took a quiz for the Enneagram system and got a 4. And when I read the description, I was amazed to find how much it resonated with me. And then when I got an in depth book, it was almost scary how on the nose it was.

So why aren’t I advocating the Enneagram system with all my being?

Because the people around me don’t seem to fit as well into the Enneagram system as I do. (The greatest example being my dad because he seems to be an enigma to all the systems).

So if the goal is to have a better understanding of yourself and others, there’s nothing wrong with subscribing to the systems, as long as you keep in mind they are tools for improving yourself and your experience with others.