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minecraft ~ happy
Feb. 25th, 2026 07:30 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kossai14 month anniversary of this minecraft world ! not that count to this specifically , but happen to start on 2024/12/24 , so basically 14 month anniversary right about now . this world is genuinely so much fun to build and play in . right now work on some fairly big projects - forest of hunt and oakhurst memorial - but also start to play around with little candy island project .
this world was inactive for several months actually , but vampires SMP in september 2025 really kick inspiration back into gear - most of work in this world come from these past few months , with road networks that reach across total of 4k by 4k world , 2k for each direction . also learn more about how to code command functions and resource pack json , and just ... have so much fun again .
would love to be able to put some sort of interactive map on website , but have no clue what kind of setup that would take ... way too much ? :P
this world was inactive for several months actually , but vampires SMP in september 2025 really kick inspiration back into gear - most of work in this world come from these past few months , with road networks that reach across total of 4k by 4k world , 2k for each direction . also learn more about how to code command functions and resource pack json , and just ... have so much fun again .
would love to be able to put some sort of interactive map on website , but have no clue what kind of setup that would take ... way too much ? :P
The Importance of History
Feb. 25th, 2026 11:57 amlb_leeRogan: we grabbed Radically Gay: Gay Liberation in the Words of Its Founder Harry Hay from the library because Hay said some things that caught my eye in the 1987 anthology Gay Spirit: Myth and Meaning in his piece “A Separate People Whose Time Has Come”:
( Read more... )
( Read more... )
small gripe
Feb. 24th, 2026 11:59 amkossaiseveral times now , see complaints from non-physical nonhumans that physical nonhumans say things which inherently invalidate non-physical experiences . try to look for any of that , and always come up with ... nothing . some of this stuff would honestly be " generic therian post " if not for also include physical nonhuman and other community tags - which , crosstag is whole annoyance in self , given some of this come from non-physical nonhumans .
like ... where is this at , genuinely ? is this something that fail to see because just not in right spaces , or do some of these people take existence of physical nonhumans as personal threat ? feel like there is no way to ask anyone directly without seem like aggressor , so might never really get answer to that .
like ... where is this at , genuinely ? is this something that fail to see because just not in right spaces , or do some of these people take existence of physical nonhumans as personal threat ? feel like there is no way to ask anyone directly without seem like aggressor , so might never really get answer to that .
Pluralstories Hits 300!
Feb. 24th, 2026 11:07 amlb_leeSneak: we have 301 entries on ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
pluralstories now! I’m really happy and proud of that! I feel like it’s becoming a nice mix of us finding older books, readers submitting the new stuff we don’t hear about and some really neat surprises! It’s especially the “weird” submissions I feel most excited about!
When I started the project three and a half years ago, I didn’t know how it would go. I’m very pleased with it!
... I also want to make a user poll to see how people use the catalog, but that’ll have to wait until we’re less sick.
pluralstories now! I’m really happy and proud of that! I feel like it’s becoming a nice mix of us finding older books, readers submitting the new stuff we don’t hear about and some really neat surprises! It’s especially the “weird” submissions I feel most excited about!When I started the project three and a half years ago, I didn’t know how it would go. I’m very pleased with it!
... I also want to make a user poll to see how people use the catalog, but that’ll have to wait until we’re less sick.
Reminder that this is a community-run blog
Feb. 24th, 2026 10:32 amframeacloud posting in otherkinnewsThis is your community, and Otherkin News has always been meant for many voices. Don’t assume that regular posters here are the only ones meant to write for it. This space is for you to share about current events too! If you find a scoop, you’re welcome to go ahead and write about it here for yourself. Our moderators check to make sure that submissions are on topic. If it’s your first post here or your submission doesn’t get approved on the same day, notify a mod by email to make sure they see it soon.
During the past few years, moral panics about therians have been spreading all over the world. We’re seeing urban legends of that kind in the US, last year in former Soviet nations, and this year in Latin America. Especially if you’re fluent in relevant languages, I encourage you to please post to here with your own article, a round-up of news links (cite your sources properly!), or your own clearly-marked opinion piece.
During the past few years, moral panics about therians have been spreading all over the world. We’re seeing urban legends of that kind in the US, last year in former Soviet nations, and this year in Latin America. Especially if you’re fluent in relevant languages, I encourage you to please post to here with your own article, a round-up of news links (cite your sources properly!), or your own clearly-marked opinion piece.
minecraft ~ redstone
Feb. 23rd, 2026 02:39 pmkossaihate redstone , post over .
... OK , not quite , but just can not understand how this stuff work . sometimes have ideas that feel incredibly simple , and yet can not even figure out how to wire up . know how to use commands , and that make sense - sure there can be awkward limitations even in commands , but actually just learn how to write datapack functions , simple but effective for purposes ! ... could not figure out how to power command blocks that would activate these functions , however .
code make sense , wires do not . not exactly advanced programmer , but certainly more of programmer than engineer . all of these videos that claim to teach redstone do not slow down or explain with depth that personally need . need to be sat down like kindergartener , slowly and carefully go through every single component with all of interactions and use cases , and that is not exactly minecraft redstone demographic .
struggle to follow " basic " block by block tutorials for specific machines , and especially struggle if need to change something simple like lever placement . understand nothing about this stuff , never have , and feel like never will because just get more and more complex every year . simple , basic , shut up . shut up shut up shut up .
fight to work through simple animation today and could not even feel proud when figure out , just utterly defeated . hate redstone - now post is over .
... OK , not quite , but just can not understand how this stuff work . sometimes have ideas that feel incredibly simple , and yet can not even figure out how to wire up . know how to use commands , and that make sense - sure there can be awkward limitations even in commands , but actually just learn how to write datapack functions , simple but effective for purposes ! ... could not figure out how to power command blocks that would activate these functions , however .
code make sense , wires do not . not exactly advanced programmer , but certainly more of programmer than engineer . all of these videos that claim to teach redstone do not slow down or explain with depth that personally need . need to be sat down like kindergartener , slowly and carefully go through every single component with all of interactions and use cases , and that is not exactly minecraft redstone demographic .
struggle to follow " basic " block by block tutorials for specific machines , and especially struggle if need to change something simple like lever placement . understand nothing about this stuff , never have , and feel like never will because just get more and more complex every year . simple , basic , shut up . shut up shut up shut up .
fight to work through simple animation today and could not even feel proud when figure out , just utterly defeated . hate redstone - now post is over .
dream journal ~ happy to say this is not real
Feb. 23rd, 2026 10:13 amkossaijust have this nightmare about shezow spinoff in which kelly was part of superheroine ensemble - and say nightmare because obie scott wade was not part of this show , all of characters just so much more mean spirited , and never reference guy as shezow . this was very much network attempt to erase original shezow as story of boy who grow to accept feminine role , and instead make " girl power " show that weaken points of original show , not strengthen .
like , important thing for kelly's character growth is that kelly realise not suited to be superhero in line of action - this administrative facilitator work is what kelly is best at . while this kind of work may be associated with women , especially in support of men who take that whole line of action , this is not because girl , given whole line of shezow and even other super women known in universe . this is because of personality and internal strengths and weaknesses . when guy take this for granted , kelly throw in towel and make guy realise just how important kelly is - not just anyone could be shezow's facilitator .
for this nightmare show to put kelly in that spotlight is step in wrong direction . while there still could be interesting commentary on how to operate as superheroine in society full of superheroes ... well ... guy as shezow do that too . what take away here is that facilitator role , and thus commentaries on how this role that is seen as feminine is so important - instead , this push kelly into that more action-based archetype , one that value only certain kinds of femininity . not all women need to be in action-based roles to still be vital to story and to have strong characters , and to think so is misogynistic expectation .
there was also again , just this general mean spirited tone about everything . these girls gossip and pick fights , and that serve conflicts more than actual premise - like , look at these catty teenage girls , catty like every teenage girl is ! what will these girls talk about next - boys , fashion , whine about chipped nails and ruined mascara ? no attempt at subversion or light hearted humour about these stereotypes , just present as utter truth - girls all mean and vain .
and yeah , no one in this show mention guy as shezow - guy was just kelly's brother who serve to be annoyance , like revert back to episode 1 , dig in heels and stay there . was so frustrate to have to watch even 1 episode in this nightmare , but feel obligation to try anyway just to show that support franchise , while make all of problems very clear .
fortunately , as this was just nightmare , do not need to worry about this ! feel so deeply relieved when wake up and realise .
like , important thing for kelly's character growth is that kelly realise not suited to be superhero in line of action - this administrative facilitator work is what kelly is best at . while this kind of work may be associated with women , especially in support of men who take that whole line of action , this is not because girl , given whole line of shezow and even other super women known in universe . this is because of personality and internal strengths and weaknesses . when guy take this for granted , kelly throw in towel and make guy realise just how important kelly is - not just anyone could be shezow's facilitator .
for this nightmare show to put kelly in that spotlight is step in wrong direction . while there still could be interesting commentary on how to operate as superheroine in society full of superheroes ... well ... guy as shezow do that too . what take away here is that facilitator role , and thus commentaries on how this role that is seen as feminine is so important - instead , this push kelly into that more action-based archetype , one that value only certain kinds of femininity . not all women need to be in action-based roles to still be vital to story and to have strong characters , and to think so is misogynistic expectation .
there was also again , just this general mean spirited tone about everything . these girls gossip and pick fights , and that serve conflicts more than actual premise - like , look at these catty teenage girls , catty like every teenage girl is ! what will these girls talk about next - boys , fashion , whine about chipped nails and ruined mascara ? no attempt at subversion or light hearted humour about these stereotypes , just present as utter truth - girls all mean and vain .
and yeah , no one in this show mention guy as shezow - guy was just kelly's brother who serve to be annoyance , like revert back to episode 1 , dig in heels and stay there . was so frustrate to have to watch even 1 episode in this nightmare , but feel obligation to try anyway just to show that support franchise , while make all of problems very clear .
fortunately , as this was just nightmare , do not need to worry about this ! feel so deeply relieved when wake up and realise .
Zine Fair
Feb. 23rd, 2026 12:41 amwho_is_pageVended at a zine fair this weekend and somehow no one noticed I had not slept in 2 days or that I skipped dinner-breakfast-lunch into it to get everything done. Got that golden retriever charisma in me babyyyyy
Also we were legit the only people with long-form fiction stuff? If you can even call 1000~ word microfiction "long form," but other people at the fair were. That made me sad when I finally got to scope things out. There was one fiction/nonfiction anthology I found at a table and that was it, nobody else was really doing it. :( A lot of tables barely had any zines or had mostly really professional stuff that wouldn't really count as a typical punk zine and I was like... I think some of the vendors are treating this like an art fair instead which is a lil strange.... The person we were next to had a publishing company that sold all the way up to the Midwest, which was REALLY cool, but iirc none of it was their own work; it was the work of artists in the publishing house. I wasn't sure the artists were necessarily even local to our state? Which ain't a bad thing, but I feel like I went into it expecting a lot more nearby artists at my skill level of "creating everything by hand at home" than there actually were. It was intimidating and made me feel kind of out of place and outclassed! But I've never let that stop me.
We did get to see some familiar faces that made our day, and I watched an older middle schooler buy and read my horror story Unfair about a mirror demon right at the table and yell in delight at everything that happened, which felt AMAZING. I think I gotta write more horror with kids in mind (so basically, just regular horror with less cursing :P), cuz that was so fun. Someone compared that same story to House of Leaves for the way I did the mirror script, which was swag as fuck. A LOT of people were totally overjoyed and screamed when they picked that zine up from our table and realized what I'd done with formatting, and it was one of the top sellers. Think we did like 10 copies? 15? And everyone wanted to trade for it or Territorial.
Territorial was, predictably, the best seller. Everyone loves cave diving horror, and everyone loves Florida horror. One person was REALLY excited about the lighthouse horror story I'm working on set at a FL lighthouse, I wish I had finished it in time for the fair. Moon Flower barely sold at all, which sucked, but people were enthusiastic to trade for it when they heard my pitch. I think I didn't go hard enough on the cover, because it's genuinely one of the best-edited pieces and is a ton of fun. Daily Dragonsbane did good, but not as good as last time; I think it held at around 9-ish copies sold. RUN DOG RUN did surprising numbers considering it's a therian story that's partially in Esperanto, while Dragon On The Court didn't sell even once iirc, despite it being a short comedy story entirely in English. They both sold for $1 so it wasn't even the price point: it's just my weakest seller. Aw well. You live and you learn.
Sometimes people would stand there and just read through an entire zine and I'd internally be like. Hey man. C'mon now. It's literally only 8 or 16 pages long and a few bucks. Please pay me if you're gonna read the whole entire thing. But I've been told that's normal for the event... Alas. Seeing everyone's reactions in real time was still a lot of fun, and people gushing over my work was really genuinely wonderful, even if they didn't buy anything. I'm just happy people like what I make! I got a surprising number of questions about my process and my writing programs that I didn't expect, but it was really lovely to share resources.
Either way. It really was a total blast. I got a T-shirt and some incredible zines about eels and cicadas, among other goodies. Wahoo! I crashed really hard right after the fair so I'm going to eat some leftover wedding cake and go back to bed now. <3 I have work later today
Also we were legit the only people with long-form fiction stuff? If you can even call 1000~ word microfiction "long form," but other people at the fair were. That made me sad when I finally got to scope things out. There was one fiction/nonfiction anthology I found at a table and that was it, nobody else was really doing it. :( A lot of tables barely had any zines or had mostly really professional stuff that wouldn't really count as a typical punk zine and I was like... I think some of the vendors are treating this like an art fair instead which is a lil strange.... The person we were next to had a publishing company that sold all the way up to the Midwest, which was REALLY cool, but iirc none of it was their own work; it was the work of artists in the publishing house. I wasn't sure the artists were necessarily even local to our state? Which ain't a bad thing, but I feel like I went into it expecting a lot more nearby artists at my skill level of "creating everything by hand at home" than there actually were. It was intimidating and made me feel kind of out of place and outclassed! But I've never let that stop me.
We did get to see some familiar faces that made our day, and I watched an older middle schooler buy and read my horror story Unfair about a mirror demon right at the table and yell in delight at everything that happened, which felt AMAZING. I think I gotta write more horror with kids in mind (so basically, just regular horror with less cursing :P), cuz that was so fun. Someone compared that same story to House of Leaves for the way I did the mirror script, which was swag as fuck. A LOT of people were totally overjoyed and screamed when they picked that zine up from our table and realized what I'd done with formatting, and it was one of the top sellers. Think we did like 10 copies? 15? And everyone wanted to trade for it or Territorial.
Territorial was, predictably, the best seller. Everyone loves cave diving horror, and everyone loves Florida horror. One person was REALLY excited about the lighthouse horror story I'm working on set at a FL lighthouse, I wish I had finished it in time for the fair. Moon Flower barely sold at all, which sucked, but people were enthusiastic to trade for it when they heard my pitch. I think I didn't go hard enough on the cover, because it's genuinely one of the best-edited pieces and is a ton of fun. Daily Dragonsbane did good, but not as good as last time; I think it held at around 9-ish copies sold. RUN DOG RUN did surprising numbers considering it's a therian story that's partially in Esperanto, while Dragon On The Court didn't sell even once iirc, despite it being a short comedy story entirely in English. They both sold for $1 so it wasn't even the price point: it's just my weakest seller. Aw well. You live and you learn.
Sometimes people would stand there and just read through an entire zine and I'd internally be like. Hey man. C'mon now. It's literally only 8 or 16 pages long and a few bucks. Please pay me if you're gonna read the whole entire thing. But I've been told that's normal for the event... Alas. Seeing everyone's reactions in real time was still a lot of fun, and people gushing over my work was really genuinely wonderful, even if they didn't buy anything. I'm just happy people like what I make! I got a surprising number of questions about my process and my writing programs that I didn't expect, but it was really lovely to share resources.
Either way. It really was a total blast. I got a T-shirt and some incredible zines about eels and cicadas, among other goodies. Wahoo! I crashed really hard right after the fair so I'm going to eat some leftover wedding cake and go back to bed now. <3 I have work later today
The Fine Art of Bibliography
Feb. 22nd, 2026 08:02 pmlb_leeRogan: I have apparently become the kind of person who not only reads bibliographies of my own free will, but has done so enough to develop taste and critical feelings about them.
( Please imagine me swirling fancy wine in a goblet as you read this. )
( Please imagine me swirling fancy wine in a goblet as you read this. )
"Break," by Bruce Boston (heist short story, 1974)
Feb. 22nd, 2026 07:40 pmlb_lee posting in pluralstories"We are two very different men, with different needs and desires. Yet we share the same cell and tonight we shall leave it together. Tonight we make the break for freedom."
Blurb: Two convicts plan a jailbreak. They don't like each other, but seeing as they share a body, they have to escape together...
Why is it worth your time?: This is an interesting story of two people who don't like each other, aren't kind to each other, and yet still plan and pull off a heist together. If that's of interest, give it a shot!
Plural/1+ Tags: abuse not mentioned, cofronting, fusion/integration, teamwork, visions
Content Warnings: Contain spoilers; see comments
Accessibility Notes: This short story has been collected in New Worlds 7, New Worlds #6, Jackbird: Tales of Illusion & Identity, and the New Bruce Boston Omnibus. All are/were paper only releases, and we haven't found any bootleg digital versions or audio versions; sorry!
Blurb: Two convicts plan a jailbreak. They don't like each other, but seeing as they share a body, they have to escape together...
Why is it worth your time?: This is an interesting story of two people who don't like each other, aren't kind to each other, and yet still plan and pull off a heist together. If that's of interest, give it a shot!
Plural/1+ Tags: abuse not mentioned, cofronting, fusion/integration, teamwork, visions
Content Warnings: Contain spoilers; see comments
Accessibility Notes: This short story has been collected in New Worlds 7, New Worlds #6, Jackbird: Tales of Illusion & Identity, and the New Bruce Boston Omnibus. All are/were paper only releases, and we haven't found any bootleg digital versions or audio versions; sorry!
For Sale: Nintendo Switch games + TTRPG books
Feb. 22nd, 2026 03:18 pmsettiaiMy debit card was compromised late last week, and I'm waiting for the bank to get all of the charges reversed. I've been able to cover my most urgent bills (the hotel and my storage unit), but I have a few others that are due that I'm still worried about paying. If I can come up with another $100 or so, it would make a huge difference while I wait for the bank to get everything taken care of.
So I'm going to try to sell a few things and hope for the best. 🤞🏻
First, I have a few Nintendo Switch games for sale:
Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! (example on Amazon)
Spyro Reignited Trilogy (example on Amazon)
TemTem (example on Amazon)
And then a few TTRPGs that were Christmas presents so they're still in basically like new shape:
Candela Obscura Core Rulebook (example on Amazon)
Daggerheart Core Set (example on Amazon)
If you're not interested but know someone who might be, please point them my way. It would help a lot if I could manage to sell at least one or two things from this list.
For payment, I have CashApp ($Settiai), PayPal, Venmo, or Zelle (nancy.lynn.foster@gmail.com).
So I'm going to try to sell a few things and hope for the best. 🤞🏻
First, I have a few Nintendo Switch games for sale:
Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! (example on Amazon)
Spyro Reignited Trilogy (example on Amazon)
TemTem (example on Amazon)
And then a few TTRPGs that were Christmas presents so they're still in basically like new shape:
Candela Obscura Core Rulebook (example on Amazon)
Daggerheart Core Set (example on Amazon)
If you're not interested but know someone who might be, please point them my way. It would help a lot if I could manage to sell at least one or two things from this list.
For payment, I have CashApp ($Settiai), PayPal, Venmo, or Zelle (nancy.lynn.foster@gmail.com).
thoughts about behaviour and impulse
Feb. 22nd, 2026 10:56 amkossaiwonder if actually capture behaviour that want to capture , because frankly do feel very petty and rude impulses sometimes , but do try to contain even if in answer to someone who is rude . know there is problem of people who outwardly act like glittery pink flower , but then act horrible in private or with little provocation , and just . really do not want to be that !
even when someone is rude , even when have impulses to snap back and snark in return ... often can not help but step back and just ask things like why did that feel that appropriate , or to give firm , almost non-answers that ask for simple acceptance . some people genuinely have no idea that these questions rude , and need push in perspective - unfortunately some people will see all non-affirmative responses as inherently rude , because never learn how to take no , but some might at least be more receptive if spell out firmly without swear words and snark .
different story if someone say truly heinous things - will just block and cut off - or if dare to return and double down . though , funnily enough find so far with this approach , that never happen . never get any sort of apology , but neither get continuation of bullshit , so maybe can mark as win ?
... but of course , sometimes still do snark and whinge with friends - and know sometimes do fail to contain , or fail to handle things in ways that feel proud of . and know sometimes people read as hostile condescension because words can be very direct , but also can not help that , can only help actual behaviour - and do sometimes just wonder if actually succeed .
even when someone is rude , even when have impulses to snap back and snark in return ... often can not help but step back and just ask things like why did that feel that appropriate , or to give firm , almost non-answers that ask for simple acceptance . some people genuinely have no idea that these questions rude , and need push in perspective - unfortunately some people will see all non-affirmative responses as inherently rude , because never learn how to take no , but some might at least be more receptive if spell out firmly without swear words and snark .
different story if someone say truly heinous things - will just block and cut off - or if dare to return and double down . though , funnily enough find so far with this approach , that never happen . never get any sort of apology , but neither get continuation of bullshit , so maybe can mark as win ?
... but of course , sometimes still do snark and whinge with friends - and know sometimes do fail to contain , or fail to handle things in ways that feel proud of . and know sometimes people read as hostile condescension because words can be very direct , but also can not help that , can only help actual behaviour - and do sometimes just wonder if actually succeed .
Comic: Barred from Pokemon Forever
Feb. 21st, 2026 09:21 pmlb_leeThis is the winner of the comics/art poll this month! Please enjoy this goofiness... and for added bonus, I'll add the sketch as well!
This was a silly 2016 cooldown sketch from back when I did livestreams. (I have been saying for years that I'd like to start doing them again, but sorry y'all, our art program just doesn't work on Linux. We haven't been able to do digital art on this comp reliably since we got it in Thanksgiving.)
This was a silly 2016 cooldown sketch from back when I did livestreams. (I have been saying for years that I'd like to start doing them again, but sorry y'all, our art program just doesn't work on Linux. We haven't been able to do digital art on this comp reliably since we got it in Thanksgiving.)
(no subject)
Feb. 21st, 2026 03:26 pmhungryghosts(Crossposted from Reddit.)
Asian-American here. (Happy Lunar New Year!) I think I responded to one of your other threads a while back, about Buddhism.
I've been wanting to write about how our individual experience of being Asian-American has affected our plurality, but it's a surprisingly difficult topic - I think in large part because being Asian in the US has long been about invisibility, to the point that we've become habituated to ignoring our own Asianness. And Asian-American experiences are so diverse (especially when it comes to colorism, fluency, and citizen status - our experiences, being pale East Asian, US-born, and fluent in English are quite different from the experiences of a darker-skinned immigrant still learning English) that it feels fraught to write about our own experiences, out of concern that they'd be taken as Representation Of All Asian-American Experiences. But I do definitely think it has affected us, even if we can't name every way it has yet.
Off of the top of my head, our parents (who are immigrants) always had a strongly pragmatic cast to how they approached the world. Extremely resourceful folks, saw objects for what they could do rather than what they were "supposed" to do and could jury-rig anything to their needs. They didn't believe in letting their feelings get in the way of doing what needed to be done (or so they liked to claim) and what needed to be done was defined by what concrete value it brought to the family, not some kind of abstract morality divorced from reality. (Or so they liked to claim.) They thought constantly in collective - what was good for the family, not just our nuclear unit but the extended group, the way people's actions reflected on said family, etc.
Make no mistake: our parents sucked in a lot of ways that left scars. But they did teach us a lot of things, some good, some that can't be neatly classified as good or bad. When I look, I can see traces of it running everywhere through our plurality. Our willingness to jury-rig and modify parts of our own functioning. Our focus on concrete advice on living plural. The relative ease with which we accept ideas like "people in systems can be both individuals and parts of a whole - singlets, too, are individuals who are parts of their communities." On a more fraught level: a tendency to stifle our feelings and efface ourselves for the good of the group. Being perhaps a little too comfortable with being unseen. Difficulty distinguishing looking okay from being okay. Generational trauma that manifests, among other ways, as a fear of scarcity and a complicated relationship with food. A need to Achieve Something and Be Successful. Things that kept us outwardly functional, even through incredibly trying circumstances, while also eroding our deeper well-being.
And also, for us, US-born to immigrant parents who were our main connection to our culture, who we are purposefully no longer in contact with - there is a perpetual sense of... not simply loss, but having been severed from a greater whole. When we cut away what was killing us, a lot of good went with it too. Something that was always with us, unnoticed in the background, until it was gone. Even those of us who don't quite see themselves as Asian can sense its absence. We look after each other, try to create our own little culture with its own little traditions within, but it can't ever be a replacement.
Oh, and of course, there's the topic of race and internal identity. Sure have a lot of feelings (and frustrations) about the ways people handle that subject, considering none of us Look Asian internally and a number of us don't even feel personally connected to Asian identity. But I won't get into it here. Not on the new year. Inauspicious, you see.
The Devil’s Instrument
Feb. 21st, 2026 11:54 amlb_lee(Alternate title: the Devil Went Down to Georgia... and Regretted It)
While talking with our roommates about the fiddle as the Devil’s Instrument, we got to thinking about the comparative Satanism of other instruments, ranked by how well you could make a Devil dueling song out of it.
The fiddle, yes. The banjo, of course. The harmonica would also be a good contender.
But then we got silly. The tuba would just end like that Spike Jones record where they try to play Flight of the Bumblebee on the trombone. The Devil’s Tympani? The Devil’s Theremin??? (Well, the theremin would likely work out fine.) Warring bassoons? (As a former school bassoonist, we are of course obligated to declare that bassoons can totally war, it’ll just look undignified as the thumbs fly.)
But then we knew. The Devil’s Horn. The instrument that regardless of playing ability instantly sends all listeners to hell:
THE VUVUZELA.
All other contenders go home.
While talking with our roommates about the fiddle as the Devil’s Instrument, we got to thinking about the comparative Satanism of other instruments, ranked by how well you could make a Devil dueling song out of it.
The fiddle, yes. The banjo, of course. The harmonica would also be a good contender.
But then we got silly. The tuba would just end like that Spike Jones record where they try to play Flight of the Bumblebee on the trombone. The Devil’s Tympani? The Devil’s Theremin??? (Well, the theremin would likely work out fine.) Warring bassoons? (As a former school bassoonist, we are of course obligated to declare that bassoons can totally war, it’ll just look undignified as the thumbs fly.)
But then we knew. The Devil’s Horn. The instrument that regardless of playing ability instantly sends all listeners to hell:
THE VUVUZELA.
All other contenders go home.
