howdy

YOU DO IT ON ONE OF THESE! OBVIOUSLY!!!

and that brown end? the hard bit? pencil sharpener. or sharpened with a blade. are you following me? now, attach six of those to a harpy.

I do not like this style. I will never like this style. ... My biggest criticism is that I merely dislike this [art project]. Make me hate it. Make me furious over how much fun you're having with this thing I hate.

As preamble: i am one of the proud 27% who voted “good” on the first poll (didn’t see the second in time to vote). And, in fact, I found the imagery of “claws like sharpened bananas” so provocative i just had to give sharpening a banana a go (plus i remembered i threw some ripe bananas in the freezer like five months ago and thought hey, might as well! bananas, i’m sorry i failed to use you in smoothies as intended; i hope you find peace knowing you were donated to science instead. Rest In Peels.)

For my first attempt, I decided to take the easiest though least faithful-to-the-vision route first: sharpening the banana stem.

I was delighted to discover that a banana stem does fit into a pencil sharpener, so i got grinding.

And grinding.

And grinding.

Things were looking promising at first, but i rotated that thing in the sharpener for over three minutes and after a certain point, it just stopped getting sharper. I guess it became too narrow for the sharpener to like, reach?

(Pictured: the moment my wife asked me what the fuck i was doing to that banana)

But luckily my wife appeared around this time and, after expressing extreme bemusement, she acquiesced to applying her whittling skills to the task. I bestowed upon her a second frozen banana and she got to work.

What a champ.

And…it actually worked!! That bad boy was SHARP!

Like, not “draw blood easily” sharp. But yeah, if claws looking like this ^ were to shoot towards me, i’d be at least mildly afraid. That’s not nothin’ — right? right?

(I’m so good at photoshop)

But at this point i had to admit to myself the thing i’d known all along. Sharpening solely the stem wasn’t actually @pangur-and-grim’s vision.

So i tried, i really tried to sharpen the entire outer part of the banana with a knife sharpener + knife! Maybe it’s because the frozen bananas had thawed too much at this point but. it didn’t go…all that great

Then it was time for my final attempt.

I peeled one of those half-thawed nanners and shaped its soft body (which was the consistency of melty ice cream) with a combination of the knife sharpener and my bare fingers into what i hoped would be a fine point — once it re-froze.

One of them i “sharpened” the tip of; the other i tried to kinda sharpen the side of? By making a very thin ridge all along it. Because if they’re going to be claws they shouldn’t just poke people; they need to slice

Anyway that was an hour ago so i just checked on them and…

tragically, they are not sharp.

BUT i flattened them a little thinner to see if that helps, and now i’ll be patient for once in my life and wait to check on them till morning. Maybe being fully frozen will help

So yeah! The good news is you CAN sharpen a banana stem and that’s gotta count for something. The bad news is that sharpening the actual body of the banana has proven much more challenging.

if i never reblog with an update, it’ll mean I failed, no sharp peeled bananas to present. If i do update….

Well. You’ll get a photo of a razor-sharp banana.

Try to take your promises more seriously; do your best to fulfill them

Own a weapon - be it self-defense or just one you admire

Take a walk/hike in nature; try to challenge yourself with doing a more difficult route (within reason; look after your well-being)

Have a candle that reminds you of him (no altar needed)

Wear jewelry that reminds you of him

Keep a picture of him in your wallet

Take a walk alongside a stream

Support causes you believe in; homeless shelters, humanitarian organizations, etc.

Volunteer at a homeless or animal shelter

Practice compassion towards others and yourself

Engage in random acts of kindness; holding the door for someone, offering to help someone carry something, giving to a family in need, etc.

Have a stuffed animal of any creatures you associate with justice, fairness, or courage; have a wolf stuffed animal

Keep imagery of spears/weapons, shields, scales, Viking warriors, promises/others, or self-sacrifice (specifically for the greater good) around

Practice patience and restraint, especially with people who bother/annoy you; you can also practice this towards yourself

Find healthy outlets for your emotions; martial arts, building, crafting, drawing, writing, etc.

Learn about emotional regulation; practice emotional regulation

Try to consider all perspectives in a situation; try to understand things from another's point of view; try not to immediately cast judgement

Practice not engaging in needless gossip; such things can end up being extremely harmful to all parties later on

Learn about healthy conflict resolution skills; try to implement these in your next conflict

Practice becoming more comfortable with the idea of conflict; it is only natural that we sometimes will disagree with people - that is not always a bad thing

Go outside of your comfort zone; challenge yourself by doing things/taking risks that intimidate you (to a reasonable degree)

Do someone else's chores or a task that is tough for them; offer to shovel snow for someone or do some yard work for them

Challenge yourself with some hard work; do something with your hands

Assert your boundaries; discover what your personal boundaries are; not all boundaries need be spoken

Let someone know when they've done something that bothers you; this is a kindness to both of you - a chance for them to learn

Tend to a garden - something that takes hard work or brings you peace

Feed neighborhood cats, dogs, birds, etc.

Donate supplies to homeless or animal shelters; hygiene kits are great for homeless, animal food and treats for animal

Focus on building a foundation of personal strength; know yourself inside and out; don't buy into the dumb things people may say, you know yourself better than others

Listen to your gut; work on trusting yourself

Exercise; get some movement throughout the day

Make something for someone else; make a gift yourself; a drawing/painting, a wood carving, a knitted blanket, a handmade candle, etc.

Check in with your loved ones more often, even just a quick "Hey, how are you" or "I love you"

Bake or cook something for your neighbors; hand them out; cookies, pastries, biscuits, etc.

Restore a vintage item; clean a toy or.important item from your childhood; take good care of your family heirlooms

Engage in family traditions or create your own c:

Get more comfortable with compromises; in disagreements, try to suggest them

If it's not something you're practiced at, learn to agree to disagree; we don't always have to prove our points, and that's ok

After a difficult day, take a warm bath/shower

Try your hand at a new skill or hobby

Support someone through a difficult time; support yourself through a difficult time

Know your limits when helping others; you need not sacrifice yourself for everyone you meet

Treat yourself with the same love and kindness that you treat others with

Make a list of your personal strengths; try to recognize them when they show up - maybe do this on a weekly, bi-weelky, or monthly basis

Surprise a loved one you live with by hanging up affirmational post it notes somewhere they'll see it; you can also do this for yourself

Get more comfortable with the idea that we don't get along with everyone; it's ok if someone doesn't like you

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This is my list of discreet ways to worship Tyr. I hope someone finds this helpful. I'll likely add more in the future. Take care, everyone! 🧡

Listening to a podcast about bodies and eating disorders and the body positivity movement of the last decade ish and hearing someone say (paraphrasing from memory here) "body positivity was all capitalism, there were no legislative changes, just new brands of jeans"

Legislative changes are super important but I cannot emphasize enough that jeans coming in bigger sizes and fat-friendly cuts is actually a really big deal! With meaningful impacts on people's lives (including mine)! Fat people do need clothes! And you may not realize this, but if you're over a certain size (that's not even that big a size) there's a very good chance you can go to a big box store and *not find anything that fits you*. There are towns in the US where if you're over a size 18 you need to drive an hour away or shop online to get things in your size. And they're expensive! "Just buy used" if they even have your size! Fat people want to look nice too. And we face enough judgement during job interviews (to give one example) without trying to do it in clothes that don't fit or are super uncomfortable.

Actually: If you're fat and you want to look cute/hot/masc/femme/etc I cannot recommend this website enough, you put in your measurements and it lists what brands have your size. You can filter for stuff like sensory friendly, nonbinary, masc, organic, etc. It's not AI just a database.

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Thirty-year-old Tamara Rees shows us what trans empowerment looked like in 1954. She fought Nazis, taught parachuting, and traveled the world... but her biggest challenge came when the press learned of her identity.

1950s news coverage of Tamera Rees' transition shows a time before the trans moral panic. Most stories regarded her as brave or heroic for her openness. National newspapers even celebrated her wedding in 1955.

The New York Daily News, which now hosts daily anti-trans editorials, ran a shockingly respectful series on trans people in the 1950s. Tamara Rees's narrative was among the longest and most detailed. She thoughtfully implored the public to respect not only her identity, but also other trans people like her.