Who is Aphrodite?

Aphrodite, her name meaning “from the seafoam”, is the Greek goddess of love, beauty, passion, pleasure, lust, among other things. She is a fiercely protective deity, a majority of her myths relating to protecting her children and guiding them.

As you can probably guess, her birth was from seafoam. I believe everyone has seen “The Birth of Venus” by Sandro Botticelli, a painting in which a beautiful woman rises nude from a seashell.

Well, yep. This is the birth of Venus, Aphrodite’s Roman variant. The birth story, and overall creation myth, is typically the same between the two groups. No standing on chairs or shedding genuine tears this week, guys.

Aphrodite’s birth is one that I enjoy a lot, but it has quite a bit of misconception around it. In Hesiod’s account, Aphrodite was born when Kronos castrated his father, Uranus. There was this whole thing with the Titans holding the primordial beings’ legs and arms, while taking a scythe and yada yada yada. Not important. What is important is that when they were done doing the do Kronos, this big genius, threw the separated bits into the ocean. The blood of a primordial being (and in some version other excretions as well) mixed with seafoam and ocean water and boom! We got a goddess of beauty!

(This I really like, because literal BEAUTY and LOVE came from a guy’s junk being cut off. More specifically blood from a violent, necessary act mixing with another primordial force.. Greek Mythology is so chaotic and then such good things, like the mother of eros, THE god of love, come out of it.)

Well, we technically got her a long time after that. Some myths suggest that she was actually residing in the ocean for a long time, which would make sense. She needs time to mature, because like she was still born at some point, just like the goddess Athena (though where Athena got her armor is beyond me). She was born during the time in which Kronos overthrew his father, but there is a long time between that and Zeus throwing over his father. Theres a lot of dads eating their kids in Greek mythology. Seriously. Like it happens a LOT.

Aphrodite actually spent a long time in the ocean, even after the Olympian gods were like.. coming into power??? Question mark question mark question mark??? Look I never claimed to be an expert (don’t listen to anything Nick says). There is a myth around the early days of the Olympian gods’ rule, before they became the Olympians, that goes something like Poseidon had a lover Nerites, a young sea-god. He was also known as Poseidon’s charioteer, or the guy that drove him around. In other versions of his myth he was a lover of Aphrodite (potentially he was both), who refused to go with her when she was invited to Olympus. Which, she only really rose from the seafoam WHEN she was invited. Both versions of Nerites’ myth ends with him being turned in to THE first shellfish, though in his myth where he is the lover of Poseidon (because the gods were raging bisexuals, the lot of them) the god of requited love was actually born from.. their love. I guess. In other myths Anteros, the God of requited love and avenger of unrequited love, is a child of Aphrodite and Ares.

(This is like THE statue of Poseidon btw)

Nerite Snails: Your Guide To Lifespan, Care, And Reproduction | SnailPedia

(NERITEs was turned into a NERITE snail i actually havent ever seen any pictures of the snail he was turned into this is great)

While, yes, she did rise fully grown from the seafoam (it would be weird if the incarnation of pleasure and sex rose from the ocean as a child, would it not?) she actually spent quite a bit of time in the sea, and there are several myths involving her IN the sea. Love my girl. Aphrodite you mean so much to me. That’s this week’s blog, I SWEAR I’ll get back to the ATLA blogs soon guys I miss them Greek mythology is driving me insane

Crush season:

Guys, I love the feeling of having a crush. It’s been quite some time since I’ve had a serious crush on someone, but we are SO BACK!

Theres this boy that I’m so interested in. He likes a lot of the things I like, and he’s so sweet. I don’t have to pretend to be someone else around him, like at all.

Even if we don’t talk romantically, I’m okay, he’s one of the greatest people I’ve ever met. He’s respectful, and so so so so so so nice, but he’s also funny, and unserious.

He doesn’t pretend to be someone he’s not and always keeps it real. I know I’m so obvious about liking this boy, but I don’t know if he hasn’t said anything because he messes with it, or because he doesn’t want to hurt my feelings.

There is ONE thing he does that kind of irritates me, but it’s too specific to state here. Anyways, yes crushing season is afoot. I think at the moment, why I’m not saying anything to him about it is because: 1.) I don’t want to mess anything up, 2.) I’m 99% sure it’s one sided, and 3.) It’s too early to tell.

I feel like if I was to tell this individual, and he for some reason does feel the same, I would be lost on where to go after that. How do we even progress from there. I just haven’t been in something truly healthy in so long, that it’s like how do I do this?

But like I said, he’s the sweetest ever, so I don’t have a doubt in my mind that we won’t be able to be friends after whatever happens happens.

Look, me personally, I’ve learned to let God take control, and I’ve been praying about it. Somehow, without fail, every time I pray about this situation, the next morning something happens that makes me want him even more. Maybe it’s a coincidence, but The Artists Way said not to believe that.

I just am kind of stuck on where to go. Here’s the possible outcomes I’ve thought of:

1.) I don’t tell him, and he’s not interested in me- Saves our friendship, makes me lead myself on.

2.) I don’t tell him, and he’s interested in me- Throws away my shot, leaves me with “what could have been,” leads us both on.

3.) I tell him, and he’s not interested in me- Possibly ruins our friendship, hurts my feelings, embarrassing.

4.) I tell him, and he’s interested in me- We get together, get married, and live in a house with a garden holding 1,000 ladybugs.

5.) He confesses to ME- Same outcome from #4.

To the normal, untrained eye, this may seem a little… much, but trust me guys…

Either way it’s I get hurt, or I have the best time of my life. I mean feel free to leave your advice, or opinions in the comments.

Well, that’s a wrap on today’s blog, I’ll probably be back with an update next week. Thank you, guys, for reading! Bye!

moonlight

movie overview

moonlight is an amazing coming-of-age story that follows a young man Chiron through childhood, adolescence, and early adulthood. the film explores his journey with his identity, sexuality, abuse and self-discovery as he navigates the challenges of growing up in what’s considered the ghetto Miami neighborhood. “moonlight” is a poetic-type movie with lots of emotional depth, avoiding stereotypical black prejudices and offering an 1st person look into chrions life showing not just his skin but his sin, love, and family. I believe moonlight had a major impact on the black community specifically black boys and men moonlight offers rare and much needed representation of black male vulnerability and emotional complexity. Moonlight challenges traditional stereotypes of black masculinity like the need to be “gangster” or “hood” ad “homophobic”. I know a lot of people found this movie deeply moving and relatable to their experiences growing up. Hopefully it sparked conversations about how most aren’t taught empathy and acceptance and self love within the black community. now let’s talk about Chiron the main character in the movie Chiron is bullied a lot leading to his self confidence issues and his problems at home are even worse he’s taking care of his addict mother and struggling to keep going. when he gets older, he tries to connect back with his “long lost love”. Their reunion is filled with unspoken words and confused feelings not knowing who they are or what they want.

my personal thoughts

moonlight was a cool, emotional movie to watch I see why many people recommended it. moonlight is down to earth and an accurate depiction of what life is like for many people. I highly recommend watching it inspired a lot of creativity in my stories also for certain characters. it’s definitely not a childhood memory type of show but it does give a great outlook on certain topics. (I talk about this movie a lot!!)

random questions for your brainnnnnn!!!!!!!!

have you ever experienced a feeling similar to the main characters?

how does being in love affect you?

if you could ask a past love a question, what would it be?

how do you react when face with pressure?

if you could make a poem based off this movie what would the first line be?

in a world where what seems normal to you is seen as unnormal to other how would you navigate your life? what steps would you take to hide it or show off your “normalness”? how does it relate to the life your currently live?

Witchcraft: The Misunderstood Practice

When you think of witchcraft, what do you think of? Magical, fantastical sorcerers from popular media? Or perhaps evil, animal-sacrificing women who defy the rules of morality? Neither is correct when looking at witches in our real world. So what is a witch?

Well, despite the sexism that history holds, anyone, regardless of age, religion, or gender identity, can be a witch and practice witchcraft. Witchcraft, or the practice of magick, is at its core, performing rituals to connect with spiritual and unseen energies to achieve a desired outcome. Typically, it is associated with folk magic and can be a part of certain religions, such as Wicca or Paganism. While people often think of rituals as being evil and malicious, many are just everyday things we do for good luck or prosperity. For example, praying to angels, praying for your dead ancestors, and manifesting things through positive words like “I will get this job” are all examples of magick and rituals. They are just listed under different names and religions.

The reason why the practice of magick is so frowned upon is because of old, misogynistic beliefs and popular media. Due to women questioning Christian teachings and outrage about how women were treated, influential people saw this as a challenge to their authority and thus claimed the Devil had possessed and influenced these feeble-minded women. Media, even today, depicts female casters as evil and powerful. Think of the Wizard of Oz, or witches in Halloween culture. All of it is just a way to put down non-Christian beliefs and women.

Some ways I like to personally practice are through color magick, tarot readings, and positive affirmations. Black, for example, is a protective color and is most used due to its protection. Yellow attracts positivity and joy, and brown is security, warmth, and a foundational color. Tarot readings help me better communicate with myself and delve deeper into my subconscious. I also love practicing stitch and knot magic, weaving intentions and goals into my work brings me a sense of fulfillment. It’s a self-care way I like to invite positivity into my life.

How Music Can Boost Your Mood and Mind.

How Music Can Boost Your Mood and Mind

Ever notice how a good song can instantly make you feel better? Whether it’s an upbeat tune that gets you dancing or a soothing melody that helps you unwind, music has a strong impact on the brain In fact, research shows that music is not just entertainment; it can actually improve your mental health.

Here’s how music can help your mood and mind:

Reduces Stress and Anxiety Listening to calming music can lower your heart rate and soothe your nervous system. That’s why soft, slow music is often used during meditation or yoga. It helps your body relax and allows your mind to calm down.

Boosts Your Mood When you hear a song you love, your brain releases dopamine, a feel-good chemical. This is why music can make you feel happier, more energized, or even emotional. It acts like a natural mood enhancer.

Helps You Focus Background music, especially instrumental tracks, can aid concentration. Some people find that playing soft music while working or studying helps them stay focused and block out distractions.

Improves Memory Music activates many areas of the brain, including those related to memory. That’s why an old song can bring back specific moments or feelings. Some studies also show that music therapy helps people with Alzheimer’s recall memories.

Inspires Creativity Music can create an atmosphere for creativity. Whether you’re writing, painting, or brainstorming, the right playlist can help you think more freely and express yourself better.

Music also brings people together. Sharing songs with friends, attending concerts, or playing instruments in a group can strengthen social bonds and create lasting memories. These shared musical experiences foster connection, reduce feelings of loneliness, and support emotional well-being, reminding us we’re not alone in how we feel.

How to Use Music in Your Daily Life: – Start your day with an upbeat playlist – Play calm music while winding down at night – Use music to stay motivated during workouts – Try lo-fi or classical music for studying or working – Create playlists for different moods or tasks

The best part? There’s no “right” kind of music. Everyone responds to different sounds. What matters is how it makes you feel. So the next time you’re feeling down, stressed, or stuck, try turning on some music. Whether you sing along, dance around, or just listen quietly, music can reach your soul and make everything feel a little bit better.

Blue is everything!!!

So, everybody wants to know why I love blue stuff so much, and why I love stitch so much. so, this blog I’m answering everything!!

I’ll start with stitch. I feel like I can relate to stitch in some ways. Stitch was made by someone and was supposed to be this bad evil little alien. He started out evil but when he met Lilo he started to change he was becoming good. Lilo was his best friend and a good one. Lilo was helping him change for the best even when stitch was making everything terrible, she still helped. Stitch found a good family and found out what a real family is. And on top of that stitch is so cute like really cuteeee and he blue. I feel just like stitch. I have good friends, and I found out what family means to me. Just like stitch we both try to make it and be happy and even make people happy. But I love him, and he is so cute. I know I said it already but OMG he is just so cute and soft. I can’t forget how soft he is, and he is blue like dang!! Ugh I JUST LOVE HIMMM!!!

Image result for stitch Just look how cute that little blue guy is, just look at him! Just make me smile every time. (BTW I was smiling while I was writing this)

Okay now about the blue stuff lol. To be honest I used to like blue stuff because of how my tongue would change color, I used to think it was cool but as I grew up, I started to love everything that’s blue. I feel like blue is a really cute color and it can mean a lot. Blue means sad to a lot of people but to me it means trust, loyalty but it really means emotion to me. Blue has its own way of seeing the world.

Image result for blue Even if it is just a color, we can see color as something good, important, or even as just something beautiful and I see anything that’s blue, important and beautiful. Blue is also a mood I’m feeling a lot sometimes.

But yea this is why i love stitch so much and blue things or food, anything that’s blue is really good as well like really good. But that’s it for this blog. I hope this helps y’all understand me better, thanks for reading TTYL!!!

Morning Doves

Morning Doves. Wowie. I wanna start this blog with talking about a series of short stories and flashfictions I’ve been working on for a while now. The start to all this was when I was writing a flashfiction for my portfolio. It had some issues and I forgot about it for a bit until later in around I want to say March or April I opened my google docs in English class to get out a little bit of creativity. “Cal” and “Buck” gained form as “Callahan Brau” and “Buck Buchanan.”

Currently, I have two blurbs written about them. The original “Morning Doves” which has a really sad ending because I didn’t have enough words to continue happily. The second is unnamed, but goes over the relationship Cal and Buck have in the beginning of their story together and lays out their basic character tropes and characteristics. The third is also unnamed, following the development of a relationship between the pair.

My main goal at first was to get in here with something that represented me, sad queer cowboys. As it is now, the story is really just me wanting to do research on acceptance of queer peoples in the wildwest of the late 1800s. Did you know that derogatory terms for queer people weren’t very much in practice until the early 1900s? I didn’t until I was trying to find some choice words for Buck to use in his refusal of Cal’s advances and internalized homophobia. The reason that harsh terms weren’t used in that time period is because it wasn’t really something you talked about or showed off. Even if you did around an outlaw like Cal or Buck, they wouldn’t care. Most cowboys were actually people of color, queer, or any other group that you would think was excluded in that era. They had a lot more to worry about than if the guy two tents over liked kissing boys sometimes.

Some may assume based off of my love for Brokeback Mountain that it’s based off of them… NO!!!!!!!!! Completely different types of cowboys. Cal and Buck are from the 1880s-1890s and BBM is set in the 1960s-1980s. Cal and Buck are in the category of outlaws that so happened to take up work on ranches because they were poor and couldn’t get actual stable jobs because no one would hire the guys with their wanted posters all over town. Jack and Ennis were in the category of working class that needed to work where they got it; though they went out to herd sheep, they still would be lumped in with other ranchers and herders.

I am kind of refusing to talk about the plot because I want to continue writing out their storylines and develop the backstories of the pair. My current beta readers are Sarah (biggest fan of the series & most tortured soul) and Danny. I’ve started working on a fourth installment, but don’t have any ideas on how to continue further (sad face). I’m gonna lock in an write another like five pages in a few days probably. That’s enough vagueness for now. Next week I’ll do a more in depth overview for anyone who wants to read!! ByeBye!!

A Different Experience; Blog from your phone.

It’s exactly as the title states. For this blog, I decided to take a break from The Witcher and instead do a small breather so I thought it would be fun to try and blog from my phone. Needless to say, it’s really weird. BUT! You can upload more media from your phone this way.

The screens a little cramped and the words a lot bigger and easier to see. But what may throw some of you for a loop is the navigation to get to this page to start a blog. It took me a moment but I figured it out. (Clearly)

another thing is that the big edit box is just dangling above your screen the whole time instead of you having to scroll up on your desktop or laptop to click italics or bold something, you get the idea.

The biggest issue I can see with this is the fast typing. I type way faster on my phone than I do any computer or device. So I’m trying to be real careful of grammar and spelling mistakes, but thankfully auto correct seems to like me today.

(This may not have been the longest blog, but since we had to listen to the play, I decided to just go ahead and use my phone that way I’m not alternating between devices-)

I honestly recommend trying it out once, it’s kinda neat.

Things I Love

Hello everyone, this week’s blog is going to be about the things I love, simply so that I can yap about them. This post won’t include all the things I love, just a few.

First things first,

Phone Cases

I love phone cases, I love to get new phone cases, I love looking at phone cases on Pinterest. It’s kind of an odd fixation of mine; phone cases just make me really happy. I should probably start a collection. There’s really not much to say here so moving right along…

Perfume

I also love perfume. Perfume is probably one of my favorite things in the whole wide world. The ones I love to reach for are Mon Guerlain, Mugler Alien, and Good Girl perfumes are great too, Versace Bright Crystal, so on and so on. I really really want to get my hands on the Delina perfumes. Even just one singular bottle would be a dream come true.

The Nutcracker

Back when I was in ballet Nutcracker season was my favorite season, not even Christmas. Just as soon as we started practicing for the Nutcracker, I was one happy girl. Everything from Mice to the Land of Sweets is perfect in my opinion. My favorite roles were Flowers and Snowflake, I think those were the best roles I ever got in the nutcracker, but I will say that Porcelain Doll was a close third for me. The role I always wanted to get was Dew Drop, Arabian is such a beautiful role, but the flexibility required is not for me.

TikTok

Call me brain dead all you want, I love TikTok. My feed is hilarious, the edits I see are great, and you can learn so much from TikTok if you know where to look. Trust me.

Colors

I love different colors. I can’t really talk about a specific color because my favorite color is constantly changing, but I love color in general. I hate millennial grey. There is nothing that enrages me more than when I see someone buy a beautiful home and destroy it buy taking all the color, personality, all the life out of a home and replacing it with grey.

I hope whoever is reading this enjoyed listening to me yap and maybe even got a few solid perfume recommendations from me. Please, if you see me in the hall and ever want to chat perfume, pull me aside. I would love to.

Connie Baby

Okay so, this is a blog I’ve wanted to write for a while now, but I have been trying to wait for all the episodes of the new season to come out so I can give a full review. For those that don’t know this is the very last season ever to come out of “The Summer I Turned Pretty” ever! If you’ve never seen it before, or it’s just been a while, well obviously you should go watch it since its awesome, but here’s a quick break down, it’s a teen romance, love triangle, coming of age, and very much a summer beach movie. Now that we have a base on what it’s about, that’s jump on in.

LOTS of drama, throughout this entire series, between two brothers and theirs best friend’s little sister Isabella Cocklin aka (Belly) The brothers are Conrad Fisher, and Jeramiah Fisher their mother owns a beach house on Cousins Beach which they visit every summer. The kids have been meeting up there since they were little and have continued to since.

Conrad Fisher, Isabella Cocklin, Taylor Jewel, Steven Cocklin, Jeramiah Fisher

Season one, there’s all getting older and things and changing. It’s the summer of Belly’s sixteenth birthday, and she has had a “glow up” from last summer. The normal for every summer was to stay in with her mother and Susannah, (the Fisher boy’s mom) and watch a movie and bake brownie, but this summer was different. When stopping at the gas station for snacks she was invited to a bonfire on the beach. From there we could tell thing were changing.

Conrad Fisher, young hot, gorgeous, daydreaming, he’s the boy Belly wished for every birthday since she was twelve. Conrad is this sweet boy who always steps in from winning her the iconic Junior Mint at the fair when they were young to getting her an infinity necklace for her sixteenth birthday. This summer Conrad he was just different wasn’t himself. He found out a secret and had to hold onto it since he wasn’t supposed to know about his mother, and it tore him; he quit football and became overall different.

Conrad Fisher

Times past, the worst of all because like what AHH okay so we ended that season at Belly’s deb ball, and Jeramiah punched Conrad! This got me mad because Conrad was hurting holding onto the news by himself, but it wasn’t his information to share, Jeramiah found out that their mother has cancer when he took her phone and stared reading her emails. Mind you there at Belly’s Deb ball while all this is happing! They go home after, and the boys convinced their mom to do the cancer trail, and this was a very emotional night. Her and Conrad finally became real near the end of this season.

Susannah has passed away, when we start the next season. Conrad and Belly start dating in secret, but it falls apart as Conrad struggles with depression when his mom died and he stared pushing people away. While also Susannah’s sister is trying to sell the beach house, so Conrad is trying to stop that because that is his mother’s home. Jermiah and Belly were on the phone soon they find out Conrad is missing so they go on to Cousens to find him when they realized about the house and decide to help. Steven finds out (Belly’s brother) where they and drives down there with Taylor (Belly’s best friend) to help Belly drunk calls her mother and she show up upset with them. They explain the house, and she calls the Fisher boy’s father, and they figure out a way to save the house. Time goes by and Jermiah figures out he has feelings her Belly!!

Okay last but not least, Jermiah and Belly dating, in collage now, and Conrad is in med school in California. The perfect relationship some people think. Going well collage life, he works for his dad, she got accepted into a semester abroad in Paris. Taylor and steven together. Belly found out about Jeramiah cheating on her in Cabo over spring break when they were at a party and it struck an argument. Later Taylor and Steven got in a car accident, while they were at the hospital he confected that he cheated twice! After that he proposed to her with no ring or nothing in front of the hospital that her brother is currently in!! Even worse she said YES like bruh, Jeramiah is also having to repeat his senior year because he FORGOT to read an email, and he told Belly not to go to Paris.

After that has settle down they announce the wedding, none of the family was on board, soo yeah, Steven is the best man and Conrad is the co-best man so he flew down there they did his best to stay away from Belly but after he found out about Cabo AHHHH Belly and Jeremaiah were supposed to meet on the beach since it was the night before the rehearsal dinner but Jeremaiah got drunk as per usual and didn’t go. BUT you know who CONNIE BABY, and he was there said he LOVED HER!!!! He also did it again the day of the wedding AHHH my Conrad in finally confessing his feelings to and Jermiah ended up calling the wedding off she went to Paris to find a new life and while Shes been there for almost a year he came!!! They finally got together I was screaming, so happy literally love Connie baby. Proud to say I’ve been team Conrad since season one!