as in, stop quoting the fucking daily caller, for the love of god. we are all gross liberals/progressives/socialists here, so if you see any political post on your dash that uses any news outlet in the first list as its source, then there is like an 80% chance you’re about to reblog hyperbolic conservative propaganda with very little basis in reality. don’t do it, guys. don’t do it. check sources. save a life.
Hot Air: doesn’t vote the straight conservative opinion ticket, some columnists have more liberal social views, but still. on the top 10 list of popular conservative blogs. don’t do it.
National Review: tbh if you gotta cite a conservative news source, go with TNR. the print magazine and policy institute especially do some high quality pieces, but like as a rule, you’re probably not gonna like the conclusions they come up with. online-only content can be a bit more opinionated. maybe do it.
Wall Street Journal: so center-right the right has actually started to disown it. you’re not gonna like their economics, but they’re not scandal-mongering drivel like some of the blogs on this list. maybe do it.
The Washington Examiner: very good local D.C. reporting, actually, but like, the opinions section is still not gonna be anything you wanna read. maybe do it.
The New York Post: conservative AND a tabloid, do not look to for unbiased reporting or anything except like vile exploitation of tragedy. don’t do it.
Special Mention:The Daily Mail: do not cite the Daily Mail for any goddamn reason, i will come to your house and rub your nose into your keyboard like an untrained dog.
GOOD HEARTY LIBERAL STOCK:
The New York Times (plus Magazine): american paper of record and probably deserves it. will surely be too white elite new york liberal center-left for most of your commie asses, but still excellent.
New Yorker: i mean it’s not breaking news and it’s frequently so pretentious you get sucked up your own ass turning the page, but they do know their investigative journalism.
The Washington Post: on average, best political/policy reporting of any paper in the country. their wonkblog, even after Ezra Klien &co’s mass exodus, does excellent daily roundups of domestic political news.
The LA Times (and most other city papers): LA’s great, p much everything is center-left, some of them are gonna be better at covering national issues than others (looks pointedly at SF Gate). good for local, double-check for national.
Huffington Post: PROCEED W/ CAUTION, their news reporting is fine enough but the sheer number of bloggers attached to the site means there’s not always so much quality control. double-check that shit.
BuzzFeed: PROCEED W/ SLIGHTLY LESS CAUTION: be on the watch for bloggers here too, but tbh their staff reporting is some real good shit. they have a white house correspondent now and everything.
Mother Jones: some good liberal shit. older than you.
The Guardian: actually does some great US reporting, had reporters in Ferguson last summer.
Al Jazeera: also has an american bureau, good stuff, and, of course, international coverage unlike almost anything in the US.
BBC: doesn’t care as much about the US, but more foreign policy coverage worth reading.
Vox: where Ezra Klien and his crew all ran off to. unfortunate tendency for clickbait headlines, but their explainer cards do an excellent job of breaking complex news stories into easily digestible parts. i’m biased, but i love them.
SORTA INBETWEEN, THIS IS A SLIDING SCALE AFTER ALL (look, a graph):
The Economist: technically has a majority center-left readership, but you’re not gonna like their economics. they love themselves some free markets.
AP/Reuters: about as neutral as it possibly gets. all facts, no opinion. (pronounced roi-terz btw, impress your friends)
USA Today: well i guess making every hotel guest in the country step over it on their way to breakfast qualifies it as the most popular print paper in the country.
CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC, etc.: all technically left of center (by maybe a milimeter), but watch out for sensationalism. they are 24-hour networks after all.
The Daily News: i have no opinion on the daily news and i doubt any of you do either.
TIME magazine: i mean like, not objectively unreliable, but you could be making better choices.
I’m so glad there’s a link to that Jon Stewart tears into Crossfire video my soul needed that
A note on the BBC: they bust their asses trying to be neutral. If you need a source with little bias, the BBC is usually a good place to go, especially if you’re a UK person. I usually use it as a barometer of ‘this is story actually a thing’.
Reblogging mostly for the comment on the Daily Mail, but also to suggest ProPublica as another good liberal source, primarily for long form reporting.
If/when you soak thru ur tampons or ur pads or whatever you use, keep a roll/packet of unscented baby wipes next to your toilet or in whatever bag u carry ur stuff in and use em after u wipe. I know this is a “gross” topic but we all know it can get pretty gnarly down there when you soak through.
Baby wipes r incredibly helpful and good for cleaning up when you can’t shower or bathe the stuff away and you can get them for $1 a pack at dollar stores or family value or whatever. It’s a lot better than just using dry toilet paper and hoping for the best.
Baby wipes are a godsend during your period. This is a great tip for those who haven’t tried it.
So for my fellow Northern hemisphere dwellers, it’s nearly summer. That means it is probably starting to get hot. Skirt season! Hot damn!
But YE GODS, THE THIGH CHAFING. Sweat plus friction equals pain, redness, and extremely unhappy legs. If you have experienced the dreaded ‘chub rub’, you know how much it fucking sucks.
Not anymore, bitches.
Slap on a pair of Bandelettes. They come in black, white, red, beige, and brown if you want lace – and trust me, you want lace – or black and beige if you want a solid fabric like the ones pictured above. But the lace is sexy as fuck. Trust me. Go with the lace. It isn’t the horrible and itchy stuff, it’s nice.
So what you do is you measure your thigh right at where the chafing happens, right at the thickest part of your leg. You compare that to the Bandelettes sizing chart, you pick your size, and you’re off. I bought a pair (Beige Onyx, size C) and they don’t move around on me. No slipping. But also, no digging in! I can wear these for hours and they’re still very comfy.
You slide them up into position and they just… stay there. And they protect your gorgeous thighs from the ravages of summer rubbin’.
They’re lightweight, so you don’t feel like you’re wearing a ton of extra fabric. They’re washable – handwash and hang dry, but still washable! Did I mention they’re sexy as fuck?
SEXY. AS. FUCK.
Seriously, if thigh chafing is an issue for you, try these. I am loving my pair so far.
Dude I got a black and a white pair and they are MAGIC. Get them now. Don’t just “like this so that I’ll always have this as a ref” or whatever. NOW. They look great with shorts too. The lace isn’t uncomfortable at all and it looks super cute. I have HUGE thighs and I am one size below the largest size so if you think they won’t fit you, they probably will. I’m probably gunna have a pair in every color by the time the summer is over. Get them get them get them. End of PSA
hello! I recently found this rad app called “CamScanner”, a mobile app for android and iOS
what does this app do? well, basically it imitates a scanner, so even if you don’t have one, you can take real cool pictures of your drawings!
for this to work, i suggest you take a picture of your entire paper / sketchbook / etc. The app will automatically crop your picture and come out with something like this:
(sometimes it wont be too accurate, but that can be easily fixed by moving the frame yourself)
once scanned, the app will make it so your drawing looks like this:
(the app will have some presets, so you might want to mess around with those. OR you can mess with the settings yourself to get a look you desire)
this can be really helpful if you plan to color your traditional piece on a computer, or something similar.
this can even work with colored drawing, if you’d like!
original:
edited with CamScanner:
if you mess with the settings yourself, i bet you could get the picture to look better, as i did this with the presets.
Hi Tumblr! Sorry for the erratic updates. I have been very busy, for secret reasons.
Soon a couple of my dear friends who have little or no experience of handling real firearms are going to be playing snipers at a new LARP game, so this week we’re going to study how real life rifle marksmen* move and shoot, and find ways to quickly emulate their skills in LARP.
This post is not about making you a better shot with functioning LARP firearm simulators like NERF, paintball or Airsoft weapons. The range on those weapons is so low that you can probably learn more by applying the principles of this post about LARP archery than from what I’m about to say here. This post is all about using real life techniques to provide body language and acting skills.
Photo by Oliver Facey, from Pioneers LARP. Kneeling or crouching supported, making good use of cover to steady the rifle.
1. GET LOW. NO, LOWER
A clean shot is a stable shot. The most stable rest you’re going to find for your rifle is the ground; an ideal marksmanship position puts an absolute minimum of the wobbly squishy stuff, i.e. your body, between your rifle and the rest. The best firing position is “prone” – lying on your front, elbows on the ground, rifle resting on the ground and supported firmly in place.
I love hearing people get enthusiastic about the SA80, particularly this excellent person. ‘Sharpshooter’ suggested as more gender-neutral alternative, but might share some of the same problems as ‘Sniper’.
Hey thanks! 😀 I love the SA-80 because it is a gorgeous heavy beautifully balanced lump of antiquated 5.56 beauty and also my bae ❤ ❤
I like “sharpshooter”! It’s a good gender neutral alternative to marksman – thank you. What would the skill suffix or noun be? Sharpshootership doesn’t roll off the tongue 😀
Every time I recommend Discworld to someone, I get asked “where should I start?” There are several reading order guides floating around the internet, but they just give the order of each series, they don’t give you any information on which to base a choice of starter novel. For that, use this handy (and very biased, okay, I admit it) flow chart!
When I send out my chapter to be read over by my beta readers, I always include a set of questions typed out at the bottom, grouped into different categories such as: plot, pacing, character, setting, etc.
You might want to tailor the questions depending on the genre or which chapter it is. For example, if it’s the first chapter you’ll want to ask them about how well your story managed to hook them, or if they managed to easily get an idea of the world you’ve introduced them to. If it’s the climax you might want to ask if the action scenes are fluid, and if the plot twist/s were predictable or surprising.
Here’s some example questions that you could use:
Opening Chapter:
What is your first impression of the main character? Do you find them likable? Annoying? Boring?
After reading it for the first time, what is your first impression? Was it cohesive and compelling? Boring and confusing?
Did the first sentence/paragraph/page efficiently grab your attention and hook you in?
If you were to read this chapter in a bookstore/library would you be convinced to buy it? Or would you need to read further before deciding? Why or why not?
Did you get oriented fairly quickly at the beginning as to whose story it is, what’s going on, and where and when it’s taking place? If not, what were you confused about at the beginning?
Does the first chapter establish the main character efficiently? Do they feel believable?
Characters:
Could you clearly imagine what the characters looked like? If not, who?
Who was your favourite character and why? Has your favourite character changed? (if this hasn’t changed feel free to skip this question)
Are there any characters that you do not like? Why do you not like them? (Boring, annoying, problematic, etc.)
Was there ever a moment when you found yourself annoyed or frustrated by a character?
Could you relate to the main character? Did you empathise with their motivation or find yourself indifferent?
Were the characters goals/motivations clear and understandable?
Did you get confused about who’s who? Are there too many characters to keep track of? Are any of the names or characters too similar?
Do the characters feel three-dimensional or like cardboard cutouts?
How familiar have you become with the main characters? Without cheating could you name the four main characters? Can you remember their appearance? Can you remember their goal or motivation?
Dialogue:
Did the dialogue seem natural to you?
Was there ever a moment where you didn’t know who was talking?
Setting/world-building:
Were you able to visualize where and when the story is taking place?
Is the setting realistic and believable?
How well do you remember the setting? Without cheating, can you name four important settings?
Genre:
Did anything about the story seem cliche or tired to you? How so?
Did anything you read (character, setting, etc.) remind you of any others works? (Books, movies, etc.)
Plot/pacing/scenes:
Do you feel there were any unnecessary scenes/moments that deserved to be deleted or cut back?
Do the scenes flow naturally and comprehensively at an appropriate pace? Did you ever feel like they were jumping around the place?
Was there ever a moment where you attention started to lag, or the chapter begun to drag? Particular paragraph numbers would be very helpful.
Did you ever come across a sentence that took you out of the moment, or you had to reread to understand fully?
Was the writing style fluid and easy to read? Stilted? Purple prose-y? Awkward?
Did you notice any discrepancies or inconsistencies in facts, places, character details, plot, etc.?
Additional questions:
What three things did you like? What three things did you not like?
Can you try predicting any upcoming plot twists or outcomes?
Was there ever a moment when your suspension of disbelief was tested?
Is there anything you’d personally change about the story?
Was the twist expected or surprising? Do you feel that the foreshadowing was almost nonexistent, or heavy handed?
Feel free to tailor these to your needs or ignore some of them if you don’t think they’re useful. Basically, your questions are about finding out the information about how others perceive your own writing and how you can improve your story.
If y’all use a decent box mix and use melted butter instead of vegetable oil, an extra egg, and milk instead of water, no one can tell the difference. I sure as hell can’t.
Also, if you add a little almond extract to vanilla cake, or a little coffee to chocolate cake, it sends it through the roof.
This concludes me attempting to be helpful.
yo I can vouch for this I’ve done this for the last few cakes I’ve made and holy crap it makes suuuuch a difference the cake is still fluffy, but it also seems more dense, and it doesn’t dry out like at all you can leave it uncovered on the counter all day after being cut into, and it won’t get all crusty and dry this is an amazing way to take your cakes to the next level
Steel Phoenix Studios 
