hey sweetie i'm popping by again & just wondering if you have any tips about writing deaf & hoh characters?? what would you classify as good representation? what are your biggest pet peeves in the rpc's portrayal besides the obvious lack of hoh muses!! obvs feel free to ignore me but i'm really interested in your observations!! :')
oooh boy. i feel like i always have a lot to say about these sorts of things. i wrote THIS POST a few months ago, and attached are some really helpful links, and thereâs a few posts in my deaf tag.
good rep in media is difficult, but itâs slowly getting better â deaf/hoh stories are much better told by deaf/hoh actors rather than hearing actors ( the same way trans stories are told better by trans actors, and not just cis actors ) because theyâre more authentic. but with so few deaf actors in the media, resources are hard to come by, and so whilst itâs most certainly preferable to have a deaf fc play your deaf character, it can be very difficult to find a certain aesthetic to match.
when it comes to hearing people playing deaf/hoh characters in the rpc, i donât mind it so much, as long as itâs done respectfully. iâve heard of hearing muns be rejected from rps for playing deaf characters â now, i could be wrong, but iâve never seen that with trans muses or muses of colour with cis or white muns. as long as youâre being respectful and exercising resources, i think itâs perfectly fine for hearing muns to play deaf characters.
some insane pet peeves, though, since you asked:
â sign language, no matter where from, is a language. so why do people italicise it ?? put it in âquotation marksâ, just like you would any other language. also, something iâve noticed with american muns â asl is for americans. it is american sign language. thereâs over 300 more strands of sign language.
â disability is not a personality trait, please do not write it as one. deafness is more than hearing aids and sign language !! involvement in the deaf community is a good thing to write, and i encourage you to write about and explore it.
â you wanna know what really shits me in the rpc when playing a deaf character ?? being blatantly ignored because the character is deaf. if the fc is deaf, theyâre likely an underused and unpopular fc, and the rpc hates those. iâve been excluded from rps because the character is deaf. iâve been in rps where people love the deaf rep. it just depends on the people youâre surrounded by.Â
of course, these are just my experiences in the rpc, other deaf/hoh folks might have other experiences. but, iâm always open to discuss this stuff, though, so thank you for asking !!Â
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jack, my friend!! i hope all is okay. i'm wondering about your experience as a barista?? are there things about its portrayal in the rpc that are inaccurate or annoying to you?? being a barista is probably the most popular job characters have on here!! what impact does being trans, ace, queer have on your workplace environment if you don't mind talking about it?
oh man olivia, oh man. youâre gonna have me GO arenât you?? iâm doing better ilusm bb
okay so disclaimer that iâve only been a barista at sun-dollars (think of synonyms) for a year now. iâve never done it at some fancy, privately owned shop, and my experience isnât that of everyone else!! iâm also pretty damn low on my totem poll, too, so keep that in mind
so when i was hired, i worked at a small cafe store for a few months; small outside patio, small parking spaces, located in a tiny strip mall off a main road, maybe a max crew of 20 or less?? but now we all relocated to one of the busiest drive thru stores in our district; large outside patio, giant inside seating, one of the only stores with a conference room in the CITY, a drive thru that pretty much⌠never stops, and a stand-alone building on the same main road. and wow what a difference there is
this thing ended up being super long so itâs under a cut
note:: this is really for people looking to portray accurate, non-dramatized versions of barista life, and the whole thing is largely fueled by personal experience. hope it helps??
on THE JOB ITSELF :
if you think its an easy job, please get out of my face. if you think itâs super complicated and hard, thereâs a bit for you to learn here. and most importantlyâif you think fucking with a barista is fun, go to hell
firstlyâthere is a lot to remember. thereâs the drink standard; how the drink is supposed to be made without any customization. then thereâs whatever people add and change about it. then thereâs âi asked for five mocha pumps but this tastes like you didnât put five in, remake it.â and then thereâs âi think i know how a drink is made, but i donât, but iâll still tell you how to do your job.â
there is a specific routine for making drinks called SEQUENCING that weâre supposed to learn as soon as possible. it ensures that, if youâre on bar, you are always making part of a drink and finishing another. steam milk, queue shots, turn and start blending a frappuccino, while thatâs in the blender turn back and finish the hot drink, hand it out, steam another milk, queue more shots, turn and pour frappuccino, hand it out, etc etc etc
personally, iâm not the best on bar. i know people who are stunningly gorgeous at it â who can sequence without fail. but it requires a LOT of mental work. not a lot of room for talking unless thereâs only one drink or two to make. any character who is âskilledâ at being a barista probably doesnât spend their shift talking, but working in hasty silence when it is busy
being on register is my personal skill. i always work drive thru orders. yes, we have specific buttons for everything, but with as many combinations as sun-dollars has, thereâs still an infinite number of ways to mess it up if you donât know what youâre doing. and if the order comes out wrong, it gets made wrong, and then the barista on bar gets the brunt of the abuse from the customer and has to mess up their sequence by remaking it
on TIPPING YOUR BARISTA :
at sun-dollars, weâre paid just slightly above minimum wage and a huge chunk of our money is tips, which at a store of our size are still under a dollar earned an hour, then divided by how many hours you worked, and how many people worked that week and their hours too. tips donât always add up to much, because people never think about tipping us
but hereâs the thing. we make everything by hand just like someone would at a restaurant. sometimes more than once if one little thing is wrong. we burn our hands on hot coffee and water, we slip and fall, we haul heavy things around. even if you donât see it, we do it. so please⌠tip your barista because we make everything and serve it to you just like at any other food business
on MONEY EARNED :
a part-time barista position, maybe working 25-30 hours a week with included tips, is NOT ENOUGH TO HAVE AN APARTMENT ON. not anywhere outside of fantasy land anyway
take that example. if i get 10.55/hour, and work 25 hours one week and 16 the next (which is a GOOD week for me, holy shit), and my tips are⌠$15 for both weeks, then Iâve made around⌠$475~ after taxes are taken out. no. so many of my fellow partners have second, third jobs. or their spouse earns the majority of the money. or they still live at homeâlike myself. it simply isnât a job you can live on independently
i.e. this is a callout to the âbarista who somehow lives without a roommate and doesnât constantly complain about how hungry they areâ trope
on WRITING ON CUPS :
yes, sun-dollars used to write on cups. but now we have a sticker system that is ten times more efficient. yes, we still write on the cups if our machine goes down, or if we have a messed up drink, any number of things. but it isnât common for a busy store to write on cups daily anymore
that being said, letâs talk about our big fave trope: muse a writes their number on the cup for muse b because they flirted at the handoff plane. YOU CAN GET FIRED FOR THIS. it is immediately a fireable offense, no questions asked. i know it ruins the CUTESY moment but itâs a thing. best to keep your ship intact and employed by having them ask when the barista is on a break.Â
yes, we misspell names. it happens. whether your fingers slip up on the touch screen or you just didnât hear it right. but no barista i know would risk their job and security by purposefully writing a malicious name on a cup. end of
on CUSTOMER CONNECTION :
the cafe store had been around for years in a community where snowbirds (old people who come to the warmth of arizona for the winter) are the largest customer base. that, plus the small crew, meant that the partners (baristas) had a long-established rapport with many of the customers. i remember on my first official day working, so many people kept telling me âmy usualâ and my partners had to keep reminding the customers to order properly, since i was new and didnât know them yet
but once i got to know the regularsâand it definitely took a lot of timeâit showed me the incredible connection people have with their baristas. we joke that as baristas, weâre unpaid therapists with a coffee in hand. people tell their barista SO MUCH. but itâs fascinating, really; sometimes itâs just plain oversharing, but sometimes you just get to be connected to a person you see every day, even if itâs only for a minute or two
now, at my drive thru store, i have my personally labelled ânight regsâ who i see pretty much every time i work. i know their names, their orders by heart, and sometimes stuff about their family or lives. and for those who are grateful, youâd be surprised the brightening affect on someoneâs day it can be when you remember their order and ask them about something they mentioned last week
recently, a family who comes through my drive almost every day suffered a loss in their family. i could tell something was different because they werenât joking around with me. they ended up sharing and it brought us really close. they even came to visit me when i worked on christmas day. recently, they had a family bbq and actually drove all the way to the store to bring me a plate of leftovers because of an inside joke we all have. i donât give them discountsâbig no noâor free drinks. they pay like everyone else. but weâve grown really close and they make my work day nicer because i know iâm making people happy
so often when i see people writing baristas, the character is a certain archetype: the aloof one, the bubbly one, the romantic one, for examples. but i think the connection between a barista (even an introverted one like myself) and a regular is really undervalued!! the fact that we have worked so hard to maintain that customer personal connection with our regulars even though we have thousands more people a week has really shown me a lot about how people interact with one another
on RUDE CUSTOMERS :
it takes a LOT to kick someone out of a store. like a LOT. weâve only ended up kicking out one person because they were repeatedly stealing from our food display, and then we could only do it once we got proof. so no, being rude to the barista once isnât an offense that can get them removed. somehow
people are rude. collectively. some are nice, but people are rude. whether itâs the cranky person who insists they ordered their drink iced but the sticker says hot, the person who repeatedly asks âis my drink ready?â even though the sticker line is as long as i am tall, the person who demands their drink be remade for any reason valid or otherwise with a big attitude, or the drive thru car who has an attitude because they expected to be in and out but their wait time is 15 minutes because the car ahead of them ordered for their entire church. people will find a way to be rude, even if they donât know it
what do we do? we smile, apologize and take blame, and do it over. especially at sun-dollars; the customer IS ALWAYS RIGHT. welcome to the service industry
on ACCEPTANCE :
iâm very lucky when i can say sun-dollars is a very accepting environment. being a trans and queer partner, i had my identity accepted right away by my coworkers. i also make it a point to let them know that if they have any questions about my identity, they can ask it to my face within reason. this has led to some really heartfelt interactions with my fellow partners, because it was how they learned some things about identities other than theirs
customers⌠well itâs touch-and-go. i live in a primarily⌠single-minded area. but i know iâm not the only one who knows this â being trans in a workplace is a touch-and-go thing. iâve had people who only hear my voice call me âmissâ at the speaker and correct themselves to âsirâ at the window when they see my beard. iâve had stubborn old people refuse to say my name. you still have to serve them, and personally, i avoid correcting people to avoid any sort of confrontation
my specific workplace is very personal; we know a lot about one anotherâs personal lives. what else is there to talk about when cleaning? some partners have been insensitive, but we talk it out and itâs done and fixed. sometimes we snark at one another using personal jabs, but thatâs something we all participate in. and we know where the line is and not to cross it. but iâm sure many workplaces are like that
on ETC :
you will get messy. i end a time on bar with my fingers sticking together, my arms covered in fake-tan from chai or frappuccino roast pumps, and one partner told me once she went home to find mocha in her belly button of all places
you clean the bathrooms too. in all their shitty mess. and people treat public bathrooms terribly. but doing bathrooms is also a good release from the business of the bar
that drive thru headset? paid-for walkie talkies. yes, we gossip, we laugh, we trade jokes. we rag on customers out of earshot. let us have fun
WE DID NOT INVENT OR TAKE PART IN THE SECRET MENU. we cannot make your drink unless you tell us how itâs made. weâre not gonna google your weird invention when we have other things to do. you either come prepared, or you get something else
if youâre going to pay separately for a large order, TELL US FIRST
there will always be that one partner you hate working with. it happens in every job. there will always be that crew you love working with. you donât always get to choose when that happens. câest la vie
if itâs closing time, customers need to LEAVE. this is an issue of safety for when we work with money. even your best friend, your spouse, or your elderly mother cannot be inside the store during closing
at sun-dollars we have a weekly thing called the âclean play,â where people come in after the closers and do a deep-clean of the store. we rock out to music, enjoy there being no customers, and have fun. good setting for fellow workers!!
donât give us pity on holidays. youâre the reason weâre there
i once had a woman come in half an hour before closing, and she was so mad we didnât have the food box she wanted that she called corporate to complain. we now have more waste at the end of the night because we have to order so many boxes so we never run out
sometimes youâll have to run out before or during a shift to pick up product from other stores
people take it personally when you finish a seasonal beverage. really personally when youâre out of anything, really
seeing regulars outside of the workplace will always be awkward. some even ask if you remember their drink. you might
people will complain about things out of your control. smile and nod and say youâll let your manager know
when in doubt, give it to your shift supervisor
ADDITION :: my wonderful friend @morbidrpaâ wrote about her experience as a barista/manager in a smaller, single-location coffee shop. go check it out for varied experiences!!
favorite things ever series (w/ @activisthelps) [1/?]:Â
name:Â
dâarcy carden
their passions:Â
acting/comedy
where can you find them?:Â
nbcâs the good place (season 1&2 on netflix now) & hboâs barry! sheâs also still active at the LA UCB!
why I love them?:
dâarcy is honestly the kindest and silliest person iâve ever seen. her insta stories brighten my day. her dog, penny, is the love of her life. sheâs the most underrated member of her cast because she is so stinkinâ talented.Â
i am so bad at remembering dreams, holy cow, iâm still trying to remember the one i had last night! but hm, okay, a plot based with exes who broke up but no one else knows? everyone loved them together, but things fell apart so suddenly that they donât know how to continue on with things. so youâd have their friends inviting them together to events, parents asking where they are, just the slow falling out of a relationship but neither of them has the heart to tell everyone they broke up â whatever the reason may be is up to you. and theyâre just kind of trying to figure out how to carry on, whether that be as friends or total strangers. my dream had someone looking at me from a stage with a sad look in their eyes (though it definitely wasnât an ex of mine, haha.)
page 24. the last full line on the 24th page of the closest book.
âyou donât give a damn about me anymore, now that youâve slept with me,â she said, crying. â norwegian wood by haruki murakami
muse a is used to getting left behind, a broken bird whoâs had people leave them time and time again. theyâre used to numbing their emotions so it hurts less, despite the fact that they are sentimental by nature. they meet muse b, a friend of a friend who instantly takes a liking to them, and they grow close. muse b doesnât know about muse aâs history, but the more they hang out, the more they grow to like them as more than a friend. they spend a night together, but muse b canât sleep because of muse aâs crying. they find out itâs because muse aâs been left before, both after one-night stands and relationships, and therefore doesnât see or feel like theyâre worthy of nothing more than temporary affection. cue muse b trying to tell them otherwise and make them feel their worth. what happens to them after? thatâs up to you.
sveja, hi, you're so sweet!! how about some positivity for thegoodrph, thecanarywrites and fieryrebirth :') <33
no youâre sweet!!!!
@thegoodrph
how havenât i followed you yet!!! (sike i just did) i have seen you on the dash probably multiple times and went âhm isnât that who i think it isâ and probably forgot. but thereâs only good things i can say about hufflepuffs since iâm a dumbo slytherin.
@thecanarywrites
seven years is a long time to be in the rp community and honestly good for you?? also hope you do well (since i saw you posted about sending a resume on your blog) and go far in life! i felt so scared and anxious when i sent mine out the first five times but i ended up getting one of the jobs recently! so hopefully i can shove that luck and energy to you.
@fieryrebirth
the first thing i thought of when i saw your blog was Aesthetique⢠and iâm LIVING for it. also i see u with ur many chris wood muses. but itâs okay i have too many muses with the same face and itâs him too. why is it always him
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a pretty face, one of a kind, secret admiring, expertise!!
a pretty face: what mascots have you used in the past?
omg.. i canât keep track! candice accola was my first one JHDSJKSBDJKN. dev patel. keiynan lonsdale. umm alisha wainwright, deepika padukone... china ann mcclain.. GOD i dont even know i always use random people hdsjbhsjs
one of a kind: what about your help is unique from othersâ help?
probably nothing hajhbADBHJSBHJ. i try being nice, and explaining things as thoroughly as possible to people ?? but a lot of ppl in the rpc are nice and helpful so i really donât think iâm unique or special in that manner, i just love being Nice to ppl who need it.
secret admiring: who is someone youâve always wanted to approach but havenât?
GOSH um, @nativerpt, @hvkate, @pumpkinchairps, and @bexrps are the first i can think of when scrolling thru my dash! love their work and love seeing them and wish i knew how to speak to ppl!
expertise: what experiences have you had that would make good guides?
umm maybe how to write an australian character that isnât Dumb with stupid lingo. a proud indian girl , or anyone whoâs just Happy with their culture and ethnicity and isnât some Depressed sad Brown person whoâs family doesnât understand them. maybe things for people to NOT say to poc muns or characters??? or how to NOT write a poc character.. thereâs still a lot of passive aggression, or vaguely racist things i see in the rpc, but weâve still come a long long way and iâm forever grateful for that!
for the url positivity thing!! claurps, ruhrohrps, charleshvnnam aND of course dandelionrph <3333
positivity meme
@claurps - i wasnât following you but now i am ! anyway, this lovely person would like some positivity sent your way, so here i am ! scrolling through your blog, i see that you reblog some good goods. also i like ur theme, v simple and easy to navigate. i hope you have a great 2019 ! Â
@ruhrohrps - donât know ya but i love your theme, it is v gentle on the eyes + itâs super cute. i couldnât find much on your blog abt you or anything but if olivia wants to send positivity your way, you must be pretty darn great. i hope 2019 treats you well !
@charleshvnnam - your theme is gorgeous wow ?? graphics ? 10/10. colour scheme ? 10/10. iâm in love. you reblog some A++ content, especially this post. iâm not sure why i wasnât following you ? i looked through your tags and you seem absolutely lovely ! i hope the new year brings you joy !Â
love the new icon thal !! what do you think are you most favorite gender-neutral names in the whole wide world ?? :')
Thank youuuu Olivia !!! I absolutely adore the name Lucky ??? Even if itâs just as a nickname but I love love love it. Otherwise Iâd say Sam, Nikki, Charlie, Rory, Alex, Jean, Jesse and Tate!!!Â