everyone is a trans guy? it's more likely than you think

I would summarize by saying there's an inherent disconnect between Percy and his experiences and what wielding a trident would represent.

Some of my reasoning comes from a comparison with Thalia and her character. Thalia certainly has a rocky relationship with Zeus, and goes as far as believing he may be the cause of her death, yet she still holds a level of respect and honor about being his daughter. Primarily seen with how Percy describes her yelling “For Zeus!” when charging into battle. Could you ever see Percy doing that with Poseidon? Absolutely not for me. Similarly, Thalia wields Aegis (a copy at least) which was carried primarily by Zeus in mythology.

Percy wields riptide, which never had any connection with Poseidon. It was very important in the PJO books that this was initially Zoe's weapon which gained her disdain after being used by a hero who betrayed her.

The point being that having this weapon solidifies Percy’s whole “build it from scratch” arch, and emphasizes the rough, bloody, and hands-on nature of his character. Yes, he wields the water as a weapon and can use that power in hurricanes and earthquakes just like Poseidon. But it’s always been just that — a weapon, a way to survive using that which is at his disposal. The trident would be a symbol of power, but it would be a symbol of Poseidon's power. It would be the power of Atlantis, of the court, and the “undersea family”, of which Percy honestly never had a connection to. Riptide however Percy carries with him as a symbol of the costs of being a hero, and becomes a representation of what Percy is actually fighting for. Not Poseidon's glory, not because he is a prince of the sea, but because he was entrusted to do the good thing over the heroic thing as his dying friend told him she was proud he carries her weapon.

1899 was practice

1899 was practice

Reading it these days is different from reading it 30 or 60 years ago; I have a computer and internet access and I can immediately just look up whatever the hell the Elves are talking about when they thank some mythic figure; I don't recall how much of this was in the Hobbit, and of course if you read really far back you certainly didn't have the Silmarillion.

One thing I'm noticing this time, because of the preocupations of the time in which I'm reading it, is the immediate focus on Bilbo's pity for Gollum, and for that matter the pity felt by the elves and Gandalf for him as well.

Somewhere buried deep beneath it is one of the central tensions of modern Christian theology, which is that God provided us with wills of our own, and the capacity to act, in some small way, against him, and then immediately became infuriated and filled with rage when we used such things.

I'm not well familiar with the textual history of the Silmarillion, but if you read it it's hard to explain how Illuvitar and Morgoth are different; Morgoth seems merely to want Illuvitar's position.

One wonders why Illuvitar gave the Ainur the capacity to create disharmonious music in the first place.

I feel like there is something in this impulse that perhaps might be somewhat embedded in British culture, but I kind of felt it as a kid and never much liked it, which equates disharmony with wickedness. I think there's a lot of this in Chronicles of Narnia as well.

Actually, as a child I often thought the description of heaven in the Book of Revelation sounded profoundly unpleasant. Constant chanting, constant light, all aimed at satisfying the ego of a being which, quite frankly, should not need such things, no time to be alone and think your own thoughts, it just sounds unpleasant.

I guess Tolkien was a bit divided on the nature of Orcs and Trolls in his private writings? He would sort of have to be, because there is this kind of fundamental tension between the Christian belief in a universal pity and forgiveness, and the Christian belief that disharmony with God is inherently a form of wickedness.

I guess really what I kind of chafe at, and I think this is a constant tension in Lord of The Rings even in the first few chapters, is the sense that one should listen to and admire one's betters, and that to disagree with them, or resent them, or rebel against them is a sign of wickedness rather than, frankly, a fairly natural set of impulses (Particularly in the Children at whom these books are aimed!)

In a pleasant meadow-land,

The watchers watched him as he slept,

And could not understand

How one could sleep so sweet a sleep

With a hangman close at hand.

But there is no sleep when men must weep

Who never yet have wept:

So we—the fool, the fraud, the knave—

That endless vigil kept,

And through each brain on hands of pain

Another's terror crept.

Alas! it is a fearful thing

To feel another's guilt!

For, right within, the sword of Sin

Pierced to its poisoned hilt,

And as molten lead were the tears we shed

For the blood we had not spilt.

Realized I never posted my recipe for Zzoup on tumblr! It's up for free on my soup patreon, and if you like it you could possibly subscribe to get 100+ other soup recipes, and a new one every month!

"The colour: old blood on snow. The taste: paprika, mushrooms, irony. The recipe: winewound chanterelles, exile's rose, paprika, pork stock, lament-onions, hanged men's tears, and some salt."

over 800 species of Bus

the concept of the "stock market" has been excised, using the Red Science (and possibly irrigo)

maps are not allowed, & the streets shift constantly. cabbies still know exactly where they are at all times, and have formed a semi-secret society

the Subway Takes guy is still there

someone lied to the Masters and told them the city runs on a barter economy. this has been a challenging adjustment.

(Most of) Long Island got left behind

The subway still takes you to all the same stops, just different names

occasionally, for the first six months, there would be an unexplainable burst of cell reception. the delayed time displacement becomes obvious as residents briefly enjoy MySpace being popular again. The next burst brings back UseNet, and then everything goes dark.

nobody can find the mayor, but everyone is sure they *just* saw him around the last corner

members of the Roadworker's Guild are perpetually seen wearing welding masks; while members will often have the face lifted, requests to remove it entirely are met with either fear or outright hostility

nobody can seem to remember where all the worst potholes used to be, but many streets are now scored with a number of glowing sigils. it is not recommended to dwell on this.

several of the Masters have attempted to enact a travel ban between London and Neath York, which has resulted in city-wide protests York-side. London's zee captains appear to either not have been informed of this ban, or, more likely, have simply refused to care.

@mourningcandles I was enamoured by this tag i could feel it and hear it so vividly in my mind

1)when he meets Jorah he would immediately behead him for being a slaver and fleeing his sentence

You could have had such an interesting dynamic with Basri and the others, improve or destroy the long standing relations between him and Salim, or let him become a vampire hellbent on the blood of the characters and won't stop for love nor money. A character arc that ends in respect, revenge, or death.

BUT NNNNNOOOOOOO

No we get a love triangle that infects every other sentence, characters that are barely tolerable, an exhausting "He said she said" mentality, mid tier story telling, and worst of all?