Empanadillazul

Proceeds are donated to the UNRWA, which is one of the major funding agencies providing aid to Palestine. Recently, the US and other major countries have escalated genocidal efforts by cutting funding from the UNRWA, as AlJazzera reports : Which countries have cut funding to the UNRWA and why?

Propaganda under cut

Never once missed a look

And she STILL SHOWS UP! Runs a mental health program because she's admitted to depression and suicidal ideation from her own traumas. Has really succeeded at every business venture. Coined "Hot Girl Summer" and now every dork on the planet has done a variation on it, not that they credited her. I wouldn't blame Meg in the slightest if she said fuck all y'all I'm moving to Japan to retire.

They were a continuation of the Egyptian tradition of funerary masks but rather than sculpting them and making them of precious metals, they began painting these lifelike portraits.

It’s hotly debated whether this is an example of Greco-Roman realist style imposed on their subjects, or a home grown Egyptian development of their own ancient tradition. Those who say it’s more Egyptian than Roman point out that there’s no surviving paintings in the rest of the Roman Empire that were this realistic. Those who say it’s more Roman than Egyptian point out the arid climate left these portraits intact, and beleive the others in the rest of the empire were lost.

Personally I think you can call them Egyptian because these people, whether of Roman or ancient Egyptian descent, are still the ancestors of the modern Egyptians today.

But beneath the surface, the differences are staggering.

pre-divergence Exandria, despite the gods literally walking the world in the flesh, the dominating force of mortal kind was arcane magic. A technologically advanced society, where man reaches for, and once even achieves, godhood. Meanwhile in pre-shapers war Araman, it was the priesthood that seems to be ruling. From the priestly houses of Halovar and Tachonis, to Azgra’s priests, to Sylandri’s perfect, demanded devotion being a requirement for everything, from access to magic to something as basic as reproduction.

Exandria is also a much more settled world. It had eight hundred years to recover from what was essentially an apocalyptic event. Meanwhile in Araman, the dust hadn’t even settled on the old age. There are many mortals who remember the shapers. The world is still hanging, still looking for a new balance, still with a vacuum of power trying to be filled.

There’s also a difference in the approach of the divinities themselves to the world and its people. When the Betrayers were trying to destroy the people of Exandria, the Prime Deities fought them. When they realised how much their tight grip on Exandria was hurting it, how much their wars were hurting it, they let go. They took their Betrayer siblings, who they still loved because they were, in fact, siblings

Meanwhile, when the Shapers saw Azgra wanting to destroy his people, wipe them off the face of Araman… they said they’d give him some of their own people to have. When mortals finally rebelled, the Shapers held on so tightly that even in death they hadn’t released their grip.

As a whole there is this sense, to me at least, that the Prime Deities of Exandria genuinely do love Exandria and its people. They tried to hold on, because they did love that place and didn’t want to go, but when they saw their presence was hurting it more they let it go, for its own good. They interfere minimally, lend their power to people, because they still love that place and the people. The Shapers, in the meantime, seem to have loved Araman for what it can give them. They exerted very tight control of their peoples, whereas I don’t think we have much evidence of the Prime Deities exerting much control of Exandria as a whole.

It’s no wonder that the people of Araman, oppressed under the weight of their Shapers, did away with them. Specifically the Rungjani, whose Shaper didn’t even try to hide his tyranny behind sweet words and tempting rewards. And it’s no wonder that in Exandria, the group trying to kill the gods was very much a fringe group.

In 2021, Swarovski (the company that makes the very sparkly crystals you see in certain jewelry, on figure-skaters' twinkliest outfits, on red carpet dresses), decided they didn't want the grubby fingers of small-time jewelers, clothing designers and costumers and crafters on their shiny beads and rhinestones anymore. They decided to limit their sales to "luxury" and couture creators, not girls who sell stuff on Etsy. The tenor of their press release on the subject was snide and insulting. Resellers (like your favorite bead shop) would no longer be allowed to carry their product; the average Jane on the street would not be able to purchase them. You could only get them if you had an authorized business agreement that bound you to very strict brand behavior. And those of us who still had good stock of the crystals would no longer be "permitted" to use the brand's name in our listings for sale.

Every bead shop and craft supply place and many, many small clothing makers--wedding shops, prom and dancing dress suppliers, the sort of salt of the Earth mom and pop time machines of shops that are the backbone of the field--scrambled to find something that could replace them. The last of the stock dwindled quickly, all of us grabbing what we could get while there was any chance of it, and then it was gone and we no longer had any access.

I was Big Pissed about it at the time. It was just so goddamn stuck-up, when wholesalers and indie jewelers had made them so much money, when some people I knew--when *I!*--had been brand-loyal for decades. But with no recourse, everyone pivoted fairly quickly, most of us to Preciosa Crystals. Those are Czech, quite sparkly, and considerably less expensive than Swarovski. The faceting method they use is different, but not worse; any differences are hardly noticeable when you're seeing them as a hundred pinpoints of light.

Well, out of nowhere, Swarovski just dropped this: https://www.harmanbeads.com/swarovski-brand-policy-update

"Effective June 1, 2026, Swarovski updated the distribution and brand usage policies introduced in 2021. Businesses may now purchase Swarovski Crystals without signing a Brand Control Agreement, and Authorized Distribution Partners may once again sell Swarovski Crystals to resellers, including bead stores and online retailers. Businesses may also use the Swarovski brand name when following Swarovski’s Proper Use Guidelines. Designers, manufacturers, artists, brands, retailers, and resellers are now eligible to purchase Swarovski Crystals through authorized distribution channels."

They want us back. A lot of the companies who could have kept a brand relationship with them also have swapped to Preciosa, over the last half-decade, in solidarity with indie creators and out of a sour awareness that it could be them, next. And it doesn't hurt that Preciosa was able to expand their line quite a bit now that everyone who wanted sparkle had no choice but to go to them.

And I'm not seeing nearly anyone who intends to return. The feeling is, "Y'all told us to fuck off! Off we fucked! And now, that's what you can do, too!" I'm seeing a lot of "How many of us did you stab in the back?" comments from the people whose money they're hoping to attract.

I mean imagine just after the end of the shapers war if the Lloys had made moves like the Halovars would have. They made the weapon that killed the god of war, their druids turned a wasteland green. They are heroes, practically saints. They could have been the new nobility and secured the borders of Dol-Makjar completely icing out the Sundered houses from the only non-blighted land left in Aramán. The Sundered Houses would be in absolute disaster if the Lloys decided to play the game like they do.

What are they doing instead? They are making public infrastructure for free and selling just a sword when they need the money. Thaisha wanted to be a jewelry maker and everybody thought it was a great idea. Even now her truly calling and her families seeing as her grandmother is head of the order of Ancients, is healing the world from the damage done by the shapers. This is obviously great for them and the rest of the world, not to mention that in the long run it's probably more effective. I mean just look at what Thaisha did in episode 29 with the opening of the path to the orc souls freed by the ritual. I truly believe that if given enough time they will figure out a way to fix the barrow dels.

mimicking a cat’s purr and being delighted to learn what it means

confused but accepting of the world’s most awkward church camp flirting

showing her best friend her new flowers and, satisfied: “i’m getting *quite* the collection”

“but really, are you an angel?” and emotionally, in a language she likely never got to speak with anyone else: “of sorts, i guess”

the entire advice giving/shaving scene from ep 22

petulance that the barmaid just won’t share what she’s reading!

circus acts as a distraction tactic!

“do you believe in destiny?” “no.” “but you dream of islands and then go to them?” “… I don’t think I like you.”

giving “janet” as her fake name

all of ep 46, but most notably that she tried to speak with and not fight the lightning creature, and that she chose to spill secrets and receive comfort, “i have so many flowers to bring to her”

Miming asking for a bite of the spider meat, and excitedly going back to ask for more for Jester

drawing a dick in the sand to try and commune with the storm lord, and thinking of her friends, and not raging through any of it

gardening with a friend in a home of her own, pushing her bed to be near a precious gift from a friend, getting a room with a balcony so she can be under the stars easily if need be

“i’ve seen you, beau, I’ve seen you a lot”

delighted and grateful for the gift of a handmade straw hat

“maybe i… performed”, miming whatever could be a rock harp, and in a moment of jester’s speech to her brought on by tenderness and fear, recalling the joke with jester to lighten the mood

responding to news of a friend’s terrible past with empathy, humour, and sincerity

that when she got sucked into the mirror world alone, her response to a friend coming to help was that of worry for him “why did you come over here?!”