I adore how she carries his head low, at her side, and not aloft in triumph. This is not a self-aggrandizing hero lauding her great deed. This is a woman who wanted to be left the fuck alone.
Also look at her body. The double hips. The asymetrical boobs. She’s thin, but she’s realistic as hell. That’s a real woman.
And the look in her eyes. Damn.
I originally saw photos of Garbati’s Medusa a long time ago, but I specifically remember this post from earlier this year. Medusa was one of those pieces that really buried into my head and heart. Sounds silly, but just looking at it gives me strength.
Today I was lucky enough to see it in person. She’s incredible. And, something that the original pictures don’t show— she’s HUGE!
I love this even better now that we can see the baffled look on Perseus’s face.
“Not all toxic people are cruel and uncaring. Some of them love us dearly. Many of them have good intentions. Most are toxic to our being simply because their needs and way of existing in the world force us to compromise ourselves and our happiness. They aren’t inherently bad people, but they aren’t the right people for us. And as hard as it is, we have to let them go. Life is hard enough without being around people who bring you down, and as much as you care, you can’t destroy yourself for the sake of someone else. You have to make your wellbeing a priority. Whether that means breaking up with someone you care about, loving a family member from a distance, letting go of a friend, or removing yourself from a situation that feels painful — you have every right to leave and create a safer space for yourself.”
Listen. Cut your own hair. Dye it blue, then shave it off when you’re bored of it. Wear that outfit with those shoes. Paint your nails with all the colors of the rainbow. Get that tattoo. Go to the movies alone. Get coffee, then drink it at that special place you like. Mouth the words of the song you’re listening to on public transport. Put that thing on your wall. Bake. Draw. Dance in your underwear. Life is so much better when you don’t give a fuck
Here’s a secret: this is exactly how you’ll feel when you get to your 50’s. So never fear getting old, it is very liberating. Even better: Don’t wait till you’re old, because you can never know what will happen
This is the best reply this post has gotten and I thank you for it.
“The squaring of the circle” is one of the most important
interpretations and definitions of the Great Work of Alchemy. The Circle
represents Unity, the First Matter of our work, and the Square
represents the Four Elements of Nature which emanate from and return to
the Circle. In Alchemy it is asserted that the metals are composed of
the Four Elements, which the ancient philosophers called Fire, Water,
Air, and Earth. The actual differences between the metals are the result
of the particular proportions in which
the elements are combined in the metals. Gold itself is the natural
result of a particular combination of the elements. The other metals of
Alchemy are also combinations of the elements. By extracting and
purifying the elements in the base metals, thereby reducing the metals
to their pure state of Prima Materia, and then by skillfully converting
the actual proportions in the combinations of the elements which
constitute the life of the metals, the metals can be transformed into
gold. By purifying an object of the Four Elements we are left with a
fifth element which we call the Quintessence and the First Matter of our
work. In WoMan this fifth element is called his/her Spirit. Now in
Mystical Alchemy the elements represent the human senses. Fire is the
sense of sight, Water is the sense of taste, Air is the sense of smell,
Earth is the sense of touch, and Spirit is the sense of sound. The fifth
element of Spirit, unlike the others, has a direct link with our True
Self, which is the Crown of our alchemystical work. To attain this fifth
element we must first purify or deprogram ourselves. Then must we
recreate or reprogram ourselves in accordance with our True Will. When
the True Self is attained through its so-called purification, or, in
other words, when we rise above the elemental senses, it is then that we
are able to properly recreate ourselves, to reprogram our systems, or
to recombine the elements to fit in with our new perspective. But first
we must purify our systems; only then are we truly fit and freely able
to properly consecrate ourselves to the Great Work, to reprogram
ourselves in accordance with our True Will, and to effect the Supreme
Transmutation. To deprogram ourselves is not really an act of
elimination but of purification. In this case the elemental senses are
to be purified. The senses, as commonly applied in the world, are
material in nature, causing an identification of consciousness with the
material plane at the expense of the spiritual. But we cannot realize
our True Self if our senses are bound to the material world; they must
become the vehicles of our True Self.
It’s hilarious watching non-Americans react to this with fear because I read it just nodding along like “yes, in fact this is How Things Are, there you go”
If you ask an American how they are and they respond “Super.” that means they want to die
ACCURATE
And if you add the F word (example: Fucking great, fucking fine, fucking awesome), it creates a feeling of seriousness. It amplifies the intention of the word. Fucking great would go in a negative way to mean “(this) is very bad.” Fucking fine would go in a negative way as well and comes to man “(this) is horrible.” Fucking awesome would be positive and would come to mean “(this) is the truly amazing/great/awesome!”
I enjoy using “fucking stellar!” to mean “horrible” and “amazing” because shit just be like that.
I feel like any of those could be good or bad, depending on if the tone is excited or sarcastic. Either way, the fucking amplifies it
oh sure when americans say forever it means 30 minutes but brits think 2 hours is a long bus ride so
I did a thing but honestly some of those things still sound too enthusiastic
People see this and they’re scared of Americans, but like, this is all because it’s deeply ingrained in our culture to keep pretending like things are fine when they’re absolutely not. “Suck it up and keep going” is the predominant mood, especially when the alternative involves anything that might curtail Productivity or inconvenience those around us in any way. We’re being systemically emotionally neglected, y’all. It’s not pretty.
Wait until you get to the west coast where we regularly say things like “Yeah, no, totally.” And conversely, “No, yeah, it’s whatever.”
