86 posts
Old-papercuts - Why Are You Stil Here? - Tumblr Blog
Find the perfect theme
Finding a good new theme can be hecka hard so here’s a thing to make it easier
HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE are a bunch of easy, clean themes
HERE and HERE are whole networks of theme makers you can look through
HERE is a blog that makes themes and has a bunch of helpful tips and tutorials and has a bunch of other resources
HERE is where you can search for themes with specific aspects (lots of links, different sidebars,etc). It also has tutorials and other resources
HERE and HERE are a ton of updates tabs
HERE and HERE are masterposts of awesome sidebar/updates tab images
If those fail, go to your favorite blog/s and click on the credit (usually located in the bottom right corner). It will take you to the theme creator. Then look through their other stuff. If you liked one of their themes, you’ll probably like another!
Go forth and find a perfect new theme!
Why Sirius Black is So Important
From a purely utilitarian point-of-view, Sirius is not the person who does the most for Harry. He’s also reckless, far from a perfect role model, and has enough latent issues to play mental health bingo.
But he’s the one adult in Harry’s life that prioritizes Harry’s safety and happiness over literally anything else.
Sirius has spent years in Azkaban knowing Pettigrew is still out there. But what pushes him over the edge and prompts him to stage an escape? Finding out that Pettigrew going to be at Hogwarts with Harry.
So he breaks out of Azkaban. He evidently goes straight to Little Whinging to check on Harry, since he turns up in Surrey only days after he had escaped from a prison in the middle of the North Sea. Not to speak to Harry, not to explain himself. Just to “catch a glimpse of him.”
For his part, Harry is far more open with Sirius than with any other adult. He feels as though he can talk to Sirius. Despite his reckless tendencies, Sirius listens to Harry’s thoughts and feelings patiently and without judgement.
It’s Sirius who Harry chooses to tell about his scar hurting at the beginning of GoF and about seeing Mr. Weasley’s attack from Voldemort’s perspective. Sirius is also privy to mundane things like Harry’s life with the Dursleys and Harry’s fight with Ron.
In the Department of Mysteries battle at the end of OP, Sirius speaks to Harry three times. And all three times are variations of “get out of here.”
Sirius Black would throw himself under the Hogwarts Express if it meant that Harry would live a long and happy life. Not because Harry is the boy-who-lived and his continued survival is the only way to defeat Voldemort, but because Harry deserves it.
Hello Mr gaiman. How old were you when you started writing stories ? I'm 14 and I try and try but they are all awful. I always give up in the middle and I can never finish what I wanted to write.
I know. I found a pile of papers of mine from my teen years and into my early twenties recently, and there were so many stories begun, so many first pages of novels never written. I’d start them, and then I’d give up because they weren’t as brilliant as Ursula K Le Guin, or Roger Zelazny, or Samuel R Delany, and anyway I wasn’t actually sure what happened next.
I was around 22 when I started finishing things. They weren’t actually very good, and they all sounded like other people, but the finishing was the important bit. I kept going. A dozen stories and a book, and then I sold one (it wasn’t very good, and I had to cut it from 8,000 words to 4,000 to sell it, but I sold it). I probably wrote another half-dozen stories over the next year, and sold three. But now they were starting to sound like me.
Think of it this way: if you wanted to become a juggler, or a painter, you wouldn’t start jugggling, drop something and give up because you couldn’t juggle broken bottles like Penn Jillette, or start a few paintings then give up because the thing in your head was better than what your hands were getting onto the paper. You carry on. You learn. You drop things. You learn about form and shape and shade and colour and how to draw hands without the fingers looking like noodles. You finish things, learn from what you got right and what you got wrong, and then you do the next thing.
And one day you realise you got good. It takes as long as it takes. So keep writing. And all you need to do right now is try to finish things.
i have moved! if you follow me here and want to continue seeing my content, you'll need to follow me at the url in my description. see you soon!
french resources masterpost
i don’t even know where to begin with french…i love learning languages so much, i really wish my parents had started me when i was younger. i started taking french in seventh grade but i really hope to spend a semester abroad in france & visit senegal when im older. however, french can get super crazy with accents and hard pronunciation and fancy vocab, which can get really confusing, so here’s a masterpost w all of the french resources i’ve gathered :)
where to start
duolingo aka the most amazing free language learning program ever
rosetta stone- i’ve heard really great things about this program, but it is not free
bonjour- this website is rlly helpful & even if you’re already in a french class like me, you can find lots of resources for when you’re confused :) plus it’s free!!
babbel- they have programs for beginners + advanced
grammar + spell check
bonpatron- grammer + spell check
languagetool- grammar + spell check
reverso- grammer + spellcheck
how to change the spellcheck language on word
dictionaries
collins
word reference (this is my personal favorite, i highly recommend it + it is so much better than google translate & much more reliable!!)
larousse
linternaute
linguee (this one is probably my second favorite)
you can get word reference (free!!) on the app store, as well as linguee (which i think is free as well??)
phonology
french vs english phonology
french pronunciation for beginners
pronunciation chart
guide to french pronunciation
exercises you could try
+ more practice
the ultimate guide to french pronunciation w videos!!
10 pronunciations you won’t learn in school
ok so i just found out the other day that if you’re on flashcards on quizlet & you press the little speaker icon it will say the word for you!! this has been super helpful on my auditory quizzes + generally getting a feel for the pronunciation of words. but i wouldn’t say it’s too reliable so definitely check out these other resources (link to quizlet)
grammar
passe compose help (past tense)
passe compose w/ avoir
passe compose w/ etre
passe compose practice (+ more)
imparfait vs passe compose
a helpful post explaining imparfait vs passe compose
intro to accents
type french accents w/o a french keyboard (just copy/paste into your document)
how to put accents on letters
noun gender
7 tips on learning french grammar
grammar practice
conjugation practice
how to conjugate
french grammar masterpost
music
these are a few of my favorites:
stromae- hip hop//electronic but i still like his music
maitre gims- rapper but he sings quite a bit in his songs
joyce jonathan- omg her songs are so cute please go listen
christophe mae-can we just talk about his song “tombe sous le charme” i love it + he sort of reminds me of jack johnson
vianney!!- guys “je te deteste” is my favorite song on my french playlist right now. the sophomore that sits next to me in our french class recommended him to me & i can’t stop listening
christine & the queens
also check out these links for more music:
universal music france
this post with french music recommendations
my post on music//podcasts for learning languages (lots of people have been recommending artists which has made this post so much better so please message me if you have any other recommendations or questions!!)
8tracks- french music
other stuff to listen to//watch
french youtubers
10 podcasts for french learners
the ten best tv shows to watch for french learners
ok don’t throw anything at me but watching peppa pig in french is actually a good method (i don’t remember who suggested this to me but thank you so much @ whoever it was)
easy to understand french movies
news + culture
savoirs
euronews
1jour1actu
l’humanite
multilingual books
some blogs (not on tumblr) in french + about french culture (frenchcrazy, i learn french, oui, c’est ca, french together, fluentfrenchnow)
my tips
definitely keep a vocab notebook where you can either paste vocab lists or write them in on your own
listen to french music. find your own favorite artists. and tell me, so i can put them in here. but seriously, go do it & get those phrases + pronunciations stuck in your head!!
making quizlets for vocab will benefit you more than just using someone else’s
find friends in your class to help (if you’re in highschool, upperclassmen are a blessing pls go ask them questions if you’re lost in class), the senior that sits next to me is really good at conjugating, and i’m pretty good at remembering vocab so we make a great team
find/join a study group!! the freshman girls in my french class made a group chat & we all send links to quizlets/other resources & help each other with homework 24/7
ask questions/do speaking exercises during class. trust me, you will benefit from it. plus, having your teacher correct you on your pronunciation during class is much less embarrassing than getting an F on that speaking test
french help on tumblr
this french idiom masterpost
more french resources
french grammer masterpost
if you’re still looking for help, definitely check out the tag #langblr
or ask me a question here
or send me a message
or ask any studyblr studying french :))
my posts
essay masterpost
studying when ill masterpost
music resources for language learners
studying a foreign language
i hope this helped!! :)
@david cameron
stop sexualizing
my ham sandwich….I left it in the break room clearly marked “My sandwich DON’T EAT”, didn’t really think I’d have to write “DON’T FUCK IT” on it as well but I guess that’s where were at
the amount of notes on this has got to tell you something
the most unrealistic part of harry potter was that nobody asked to try on harry’s glasses and make fun of how blind he was
Source Material It was fine morning. I woke up, ate breakfast, and headed to work.
Fantasy AU It was a blessed new dawn. My eyes cracked open, I drank a potion at the tavern, and headed to the local guild to grab a quest.
Victorian England AU It was a grim and rainy night. I awoke and drank down a bottle of good ol’ whiskey and took a puff of my pipe before heading down to the precinct. Somebody’s been murdered.
Edgy AU The morning was as dark as my soul. I was already awake. I gulped down a cup of murky water and went to work, where I kick puppies for a living. If you can call my miserable existence “living”.
The AU Where That One Character Didn’t Die It was a beautiful morning. I woke up in the arms of my 100% alive best friend who’s now also my husband. We ate breakfast together and he wished me a good day before I headed out.
Highschool AU The alarm clock rang. Oh no, I was gonna be late for the first day of school! I quickly gulped down the breakfast my mom made me and headed to catch the bus.
College AU The alarm clock rang. Oh fuck, I was gonna be late for my afternoon lectures. I quickly grabbed my clothes and fucked off to class before my dorm mate/girlfriend woke up.
Medieval AU The sun did shine on that fateful day, as I woke from my slumber and walked out of my chambers and down to the court, where mine father was examining a list of possible suitors.
Space AU Captain’s log, Stardate 2217.5. It is day 1023 of our 20 year mission to explore new worlds and expand the frontier into the unknown depths of space. I’ve taken my nutrition pills and I am ready for today’s adventure.
Pirate AU Captain’s log, January 29th, 1717. Yesterday I thought would be my final log, as my ship sunk to Davey Jones’ locker. But behold, as I was having my last meal, a beautiful maiden, half woman and half fish rescued me from the depths.
Space Pirate AU Captain’s log, 29.01.3017. The galactic authority were on my tail, nearly got us last night. I didn’t get much sleep. The ship’s kitchen system is busted too, so no breakfast either. Still, I’ve got alien hotties to mack on.
Wild West AU Another sunny day in the Mojave. Five-Foot Joe is still out there. A kind lady gave me a jug of milk because I helped herd her cows. I didn’t stick around for her to thank me though. My work is never done.
Post-Apocalyptic AU I woke up today, I don’t know what day it is. It’s cold. I slept inside the remnants of an old hotel last night. We were safe from the Creeps there, but I don’t know how long I can keep this group together without food.
Prehistoric AU Gobrak find meat last night. Eat good. Gobrak find new meat today. Gobrak eat good. Gobrak go hunting.
The Really Weird And Specific AU That’s Popular In One Particular Fandom For Some Reason It was a fine morning. I woke up, ate breakfast, and headed to work. Also half of my friends are intelligent pets.
i used to think green apple was a flavor invented by the candy industry like blue raspberry bc i had never seen a green apple before I just thought all apples were red and long story short when i realized i was red green colorblind it really fucked me up
every time I hear someone talk about the actress Lily James I have to mentally take a moment to remind myself that person is not taking about Lily and James Potter
what she says: I'm fine.
what she means: Ok, but, like...who owned the Potters’ house after they died? Why didn’t it go to Harry? James and his family were wealthy, and the Potters had been well-established in Godric’s Hollow for a long time, so presumably their modest little house was not bank owned or under mortgage. I feel pretty confident that they owned it outright. And there was a war going on, they knew they were targets...there’s no way they didn’t have a will. Why didn’t their house go to Harry? Did the Ministry just, like...take it? Because they wanted it to be held in stasis as a memorial? That's creepy af. But what gave them the legal right? Is it because baby Harry didn’t pay property taxes for a few years, so the Ministry used that as an excuse to claim it? Who was the executor of the Potters’ will? Why didn’t someone take care of that and ensure the house was held in trust for Harry until he came of age? Was it Dumbledore who screwed this up? I bet it was Dumbledore. It's always Dumbledore... And what about all of their belongings??? Harry might not have wanted the house, but you can be pretty damn certain that he would have wanted some of his parents’ things...James’s old quidditch gear, Lily’s jewelry, family recipes, old photo albums...where the hell did everything go?? Is it...is it all still there....? In the house....? Oh god, that's a terrible creepy thought! Is it all just sitting there, in Ministry-owned suspension, while Hagrid has to beg James and Lily’s old school friends to send pictures because 11 year old Harry doesn’t know what his parents looked like??? What the hell is wrong with Wizarding society, and why did everyone treat literal angel child Harry James Potter this way???!!
From now on, I don’t care if my tea leaves spell ‘Die, Ron, Die,’ I’m chucking them in the bin where they belong.
why don’t we make this the new over used quote in the fandom (via siriusplack)