I Dislike The Recent Changes In Fandom Culture So Much. Like, Why Do The Newer Fans Need Everything To

my take on the itoshi brothers

the itoshi brothers’ relationship is so complex and it makes me want to throw myself off a building so hard. spoilers to anime onlys, and spoilers for the u-20 arc onwards. if u dont wanna see then just scroll <//3 so anyways as i was saying, the itoshis

this is half analysis, half theory, part screaming, so like if u have anything u disagree w me on or anything u wanna add then please do

so obviously from the very start we can see how warped their relationship’s gotten ever since sae went to spain. rin focuses all his attention and efforts into getting better so he can crush sae, while sae doesnt even acknowledge his existence. 

at first, i only saw rin’s side in this. i admit, up until i reread the manga and their backstory, i was thinking ab the situation solely from rin’s perspective and ended up neglecting some details. most especially sae’s reaction to the fallout, as well as some other minor details.

we can see from the suitcase than sae had just landed, and that his first instinct was to go to rin. his first priority was to go see his baby brother, with the intention of telling him about his decision regarding his soccer career. he obviously still cares about rin here, and we can see that as he didn’t “completely” abandon their dream. 

for sae, his view on their dream shifted. after seeing how big the skill gap is between him and the world, he decided that he can’t be the best with rin as he is. especially as rin hasn’t had the opportunity to see how it actually is outside of japan. i think he shifted his view so that they can still be the best, just with him lifting up rin rather than being by his side. much like how reo shifted his view into becoming a midfielder so he can make nagi shine even brighter 

sae changed his resolve to become a midfielder, while he “entrusts” the original dream to rin. In his eyes, it’s still their dream, as he’ll still be the best with rin, just not as strikers. however, i don’t think he counted that rin would be completely attached to their original dream. well, either that or he was desperately hoping that rin would understand where he’s coming from

to be completely honest i think it's the latter. as rin expressed his discontentment with sae’s new resolve, we see in his eyes that he’s frustrated. and then it all comes boiling over when rin yells “you’re not the same brother i shared a dream with”

we can obviously see the hurt in his eyes before his face is masked by shadow. i think that deep down he already knew that rin wouldn’t accept his “new dream” but was still hoping he would. rin saying this was just the confirmation that he would, in fact, not accept it

again this post is half analysis half theory. personally i think that the brothers, in their own way, were trying to defend their relationship. rin wanted to keep the previous them, the them that were together in their dream always. sae wanted to preserve his relationship with rin somehow, seeing as how much he changed after his time in spain

sae, in his own way, is still trying to protect rin. at first, his original plan was to make rin the best striker by becoming the best midfielder. that way, rin isn’t alone when he finally faces the world. however, as rin didn’t want to give up on their dream, then sae decided that the best course of action was to destroy that dream so that rin wouldn’t get hurt any further

in my eyes this is the moment sae steels his resolve to shatter that dream. he then faces away from rin so his resolve doesn’t shatter, knowing that seeing his brother’s face in anguish will weaken that resolve

the fallout hurt both of them, but that hurt spiraled into two different responses. sae becomes completely aloof to rin, while rin begins to harbor a boiling “hate” towards sae. 

after the u-20 game, we immediately see that rin’s “hate” for sae is in fact not hate. his first instinct is to call sae “nii-chan” a deeply affectionate title that hasn’t been said since that night. however, sae crushes rin’s spirit by saying that isagi is the one that has the potential to change japan’s soccer

now here i think sae, in his own, messed up way, is trying to motivate rin into becoming the best in the world. the worst part i think is that it works, as this is one of the critical moments that causes rin’s way of thinking to change, with the other one being the fallout. here, crushing sae is no longer his “first and foremost” priority, and he’s instead setting his sights on becoming the best, without anyone or anything holding him back

i’m not very good at articulating my thoughts and there ARE some things i wanted to put here, but i couldn’t explain them in a way that’s coherent to anyone other than me. but the final thought im getting away with here is that ultimately, the brothers still haven’t given up on their dream, whether they’re aware of it or not. by inadvertently giving rin motivation to become the best, sae is still giving rin a chance to catch up to him. in the same vein, rin’s desire to catch up to and surpass sae is his desire to prove his worth to sae again

once again these are just my personal views on the relationship. i could be wrong, i could be right, i could be partially wrong or i couldve missed the point completely. either way i just needed to get that out of my brain. so if u have anything to contradict me with or anything to add, please feel free to do so! i love hearing ab other people’s thoughts anyways <33

#FreePalestine in every world, in every universe

#FreePalestine in every world, in every universe

[i've never doubted that palestine will live.

the US dropped more than 7.5 million tons of bombs on vietnam, laos and cambodia from 1965-75. they destroyed our land, used agent orange, slaughtered villages, separated families, the list goes on.

but we're. still. here.

indigenous people are still here. black people are still here. colonized people are resilient. even if you kill our people, ban our languages, destroy our homes, heritage sites and artifacts, we will always find a way to keep our cultures alive and that has always been true

so much of the west and isntreal's tactics and actions are hauntingly familiar to me as a viet person. its a colonizer's rinse and repeat. and so that's how i know palestine will be free. we've seen this film before]

Bags of Sugar in Aid Shipment is Replaced with Bags of Sand

Do any of u have decent recipes that are like 5 ingredients (not including spices) and take 45 mins or less to prepare i gotta stop eating sandwiches for dinner

Bisan Owda's call to action

eSims For Gaza

For USAmericans: Call your reps | Email your reps It takes only a few minutes and there are scripts if needed. If you call after hours, you can leave a voicemail.

US Campaign for Palestinian Rights Action Toolkit

Jan 26th Int'l Day of Action Toolkit

Google Drive of posters to print

Other infographics about the strike: here and here

I will be queuing this post for every day this week. IDs in Alt text!

how to start reading again

from someone who was a voracious reader until high school and is now getting back into it in her twenties.

start with an old favourite. even though it felt a little silly, i re-read the harry potter series one christmas and it wiped away my worry that i wasn't capable of reading anymore. they are long books, but i was still able to get completely immersed and to read just as fast as i had years and years ago.

don't be afraid of "easier" books. before high school i was reading the french existentialists, but when getting back into reading, i picked up lucinda riley and sally rooney. not my favourite authors by far, but easier to read while not being totally terrible. i needed to remind myself that only choosing classics would not make me a better or smarter person. if a book requires a slower pace of reading to be understood, it's easier to just drop it, which is exactly what i wanted to avoid at first.

go for essays and short stories. no need to explain this one: the shorter the whole, the less daunting it is. i definitely avoided all books over 350 pages at first and stuck to essay collections until i suddenly devoured donna tartt's goldfinch.

remember it's okay not to finish. i was one of those people who finished every book they started, but not anymore! if i pick up a book at the library and after a few chapters realise i'd rather not read it, i just return it. (another good reason to use your local library! no money spent on books you might end up disliking.)

analyse — or don't. some people enjoy reading more when they take notes or really stop to think about the contents. for me, at first, it was more important to build the habit of reading, and the thought of analysing what i read felt daunting. once i let go of that expectation, i realised i naturally analyse and process what i read anyway.

read when you would usually use your phone. just as i did when i was a child, i try to read when eating, in the bathroom, on public transport, right before sleeping. i even read when i walk, because that's normally a time i stare at my screen anyway. those few pages you read when you brush your teeth and wait for a friend very quickly stack up.

finish the chapter. if you have time, try to finish the part you're reading before closing the book. usually i find i actually don't want to stop reading once i get to the end of a chapter — and if i do, it feels like a good place to pick up again later.

try different languages. i was quickly approaching a reading slump towards the end of my exchange year, until i realised i had only had access to books in english and that, despite my fluency, i was tired of the language. so as soon as i got back home i started picking up books in my native tongue, which made reading feel much easier and more fun again! after some nine months, i'm starting to read in english again without it feeling like a huge task.

forget what's popular. i thought social media would be a fun way to find interesting books to read, but i quickly grew frustrated after hating every single book i picked up on some influencer's recommendation. it's certainly more time-consuming to find new books on your own, but this way i don't despise every novel i pick up.

remember it isn't about quantity. the online book community's endless posts about reading 150 books each year or 6 books in a single day easily make us feel like we're slow, bad readers, but here's the thing: it does not matter at all how many books you read or what your reading pace is. we all lead different lives, just be proud of yourself for reading at all!

stop stressing about it. we all know why reading is important, and since the pandemic reading has become an even more popular hobby than it was before (which is wonderful!). however, there's no need to force yourself to be "a reader". pick up a book every now and then and keep reading if you enjoy it, but not reading regularly doesn't make you any less of a good person. i find the pressure to become "a person who reads" or to rediscover my inner bookworm only distances me from the very act of reading.

Urgent Appeal: Support Needed to Save My Family in Gaza

Hello everyone,

I hope you and your families are all in good health and safety.

I am Dr. Tamer Al-Deeb, a dentist from Gaza, Palestine.

We have been suffering from the bitterness and harshness of war for the past nine months, and we can no longer endure it. We are exhausted and drained, with no option left but to escape with whatever remains of our mental health out of the country.

I hope you can help us preserve our lives and support our cause until the very end. You are our hope and our reliance. ❤️

Please help us by donating any amount you can. If you are unable to donate, sharing our campaign would mean a lot to us. 🙏🏻🍉

Thank you.

gofundme.com

Donate to Standing with a Family Escaping the Horrors of War in Gaza., organized by Abdallah Ghunaim

The story will be in three languages: English, German, and Ar… Abdallah Ghunaim needs your support for Standing with a Family Escaping the H

Our campaign is vetted by :

- @ibtisams 🫶🇵🇸 : click here

- @90-ghost 🫶🇵🇸 : click here

- @el-shab-hussein 🫶🇵🇸& @nabulsi 🫶🇵🇸 on Vetted Gaza Fundraiser List Number [ 191 ] : click here

@communistchilchuck 🫶🇵🇸

@sar-soor 🫶🇵🇸

@fallahifag 🫶🇵🇸

@plomegranate 🫶🇵🇸

@fairuzfan 🫶🇵🇸

@vakarians-babe 🫶🇵🇸

@palestinegenocide 🫶🇵🇸