I’ve been having a lot of feelings about the downfall of quality lately.
I ordered a pair of Dickies pants because pants are hard and workwear is usually reliable. When they arrived they were the scratchiest, most papery material–I can’t actually call it fabric in good faith–and fit a full three sizes too small. A week later I found the same pair in a thrift store, dated 2017. These are actual pants. They fit, they’re not made of asbestos. They’re only separated by time.
There’s no wood used in interior design unless it’s a custom build. I have a set of wealthy relatives who live in a condo. The downpayment for it was likely more money than I will see in my lifetime. The floors and the cabinets are all still laminate. I know I will never see real wood in a building constructed after 2000. Every “apartment hack” I see online has this very conspicuous, flat appearance because of all the paint and contact paper required to make these builds look personal in any way. The only natural materials are in the furnishings.
I’ve been harping on this for years, but everything is shit, nothing is designed to work, and “growth” and “profit” are just euphemisms for cutting corners until things are unworkable.
(FRANCESDERWENT)
Nice new sheets
kitchen knives
new curtains (blackout!!)
Fleece-lined anything (sweats, hoodies)
insulated cookie sheets (didn't even know these exist)
kitchen scale
coffee bean grinder (for the coffee enthusiasts)
CDs??? apparently its nice to have physical copies
(MOTLEYSAINT)
good luggage (think suitcases, dufflebags, packing cubes, etc)
nice home decor (paintings, sculptures, "bless your home" kinda things, etc)
nice new pillows and blankets!!!
office supplies (pens, markers, sharpies!!)
coffee travel mugs? or whatever their favourite kind of drink is!
(MARZIPANANDMINUTIAE)
better replacements for old things from college
good shoes
hobby supplies!! (big one! whatever your reciever likes doing, get more supplies for them!)
nice gloves, hats, scarves!
(FUTURISTICBALLOONDREAM)
lamps
bookends
storage solutions/organizers (shoe racks, magazine racks, nice shoe organizers, etc)
photo album (its nice to have physical things :) )
"non-essential" kitchenware (glasses, mugs, different sized plates, roasting tins, etc)
big box of non-date/event specific cards + wrapping paper (for the ppl who forget dates and get last minute gifts. also good for yourself!)
EXPERIENCES!!!! (TALLFORAHOBBIT)
Tickets: to a museum, aquarium, concert, theme park, escape room, Vineyard tour/tasting, Renaissance Festival, Silent disco/club
Sessions: Recording session in a studio,VR, Axe throwing, laser tag, paintball, horseback riding, indoor skydiving, photoshoot for their pet
Giftcards: AirB&B, Lyft, Spa/sauna, video game bar or arcade
Classes or 1 time lessons: Glassblowing, Ice skating, diving, horseback riding, fencing, rock climbing, circus acrobatics, Bartending
(ELENTARY)
swiss army knives/multi tool
really nice coffee/tea and accessories
plants for the green thumb and plant parents! (or people who dont have plants in general, they need one.)
scarves or pashmina. (i'd also say gloves and hats as well!)
towels!! fluffier the better!
again, blankets
tools and materials for hobbies
boxes
(MANICPIXIEHORSEGIRL)
General cleaning supplies count too!
laundry detergent
shampoo
conditioner
soap
toothpaste
spices
sugar
rice
flour
toilet paper
(MISTYDAYJUDGE)
good iron/clothes steamer
more kitchen gadgets like crock pot, waffle maker, electric can openers, etc.
a nice vacuum, mop, and other cleaning supplies
business casual clothes! (i would be careful about this because some people have peculiar tastes)
gift cards!! from their favourite shops or cool local shops!
(FOXYATLAS)
Gift giving is a great time to get people you care about frivolous luxurious. Some notes:
for college people: things that'll bring comfort or fun (concert tickets, salon certificates, pre-paid yoga, dance classes. cozy clothes, warm blankets) stuff they might have at home but not at school, or stuff they maybe used to have but grew out of
recent graduates/ppl with big life changes: they probably need necessities (see above: sheets, kitchen knives, coffee grinder
ppl who are already settled down: want single-use luxuries. Things that they've bought before, but don't want to keep buying. Think fancy lotions (get stuff from lush), exotic foods (like fancy salsas)
A scratch off map of the world for someone who loves to travel
A map to place pins in for a grandma who wants to keep track of her grandchildrens journals across the country
A Spiderman poster for a teenage guy still excited about the movie
Gift card to a movie theater to allow a teenager to go out more
Very cozy onesie
Pride flags/clothes
Also!!!! Gift giving for neurodivergent people seems hard, but I promise you is actually way easier than you think. Find out their special interest. Buy them things based on it. You CANNOT GO WRONG.
Christmas is also a great time to buy fanart / fan-made goods.
(LUDE-N-LASCIVIOUS)
a lot of different batteries
expensive toiletries
OTC meds
first aid kits
gas cards
light bulbs
house air filters
(SCHOLARLYHOBBIT)
nicer/higher quality things you already own
a nice fountain pen for writers and note takers, or just a lot of pens for ppl who lose them a lot
refillable leather journal
cast iron pan
enamel dutch oven
nice leather bag
nice leather shoes
cashmere jumpers
real gold or silver jewellery
a nice rug
tell people, "I'm trying to use more durable things and own less, it's better for the environment, so if you want to give me something, please give me something I'll use all the time so I can think of you when I do so
OTHERS:
baked thingies :)
"art of" books for your art friends, physical copies of online things they like
subscriptions to things
good cookware, stainless steel pans and pots with copper bottoms, BPA free cookie utensils
knife sharpening block!
good quality socksss
mugs :)
hand blender
food processor
books!!!!!!!! that they like/have wanted
cool snacks
spices
a donation in your name
a nice veggie peeler
loofa
adjustable shower head
scented candles
a really good backpack or travel bag
EARBUDS/HEADPHONES (i always loose mine :'( )
tips:
make a "things I’d like but don’t want to buy for myself frivolously" list for gifts! - (MADEMOISELLESARCASME)
ASK PEOPLE WHAT THEIR FAVOURITE COLOUR IS!! I always ask this to people I meet for two reasons: 1. Great ice breaker! neutral and easy question to ask! 2. Great information for getting gifts? what better to receive anything in your favourite colour? :)
i find that gifts that get a laugh are also really good too, like i got my friend a sexy pepe body pillow and he really enjoyed it (pictured below, being braced by my sloth stuffie)
Barbara and my sloth embracing
aka possessions which are just possessions, but which have noticeably improved my quality of life: for when people ask you “what do you want for your birthday/Christmas/graduation” and you instantly transform into St Francis and pledge fealty to Lady Poverty because your mind went blank
nice. new. sheets. I cannot emphasize this one enough. if you’re still using the same sheets you had in college, you should probably get new ones. get yourself some 100% bamboo rayon sheets—they’re silky and perfect for summer and great for sensitive skin! or, if you’re cold all the time, flannel sheets!
kitchen knives. or even just one really good kitchen knife.
new curtains—blackout if you are a creature of the night like I am
fleece lined anything, but especially sweatpants and hoodies. wool lined socks are also good. if you don’t have the option of coming home after work and putting on an entire outfit that is loose and fuzzy, you should change that, because you deserve that option.
cookie sheets with a layer of air between the top and the bottom. the bottoms of your cookies will never burn again.
kitchen scale!!! no more leveling off flour with a knife and getting it all over the table!! now all your measuring is just shoveling stuff in and out of bowls like you’re at the beach. baking is both more accurate and also way more fun.
coffee bean grinder. if you want to upgrade your coffee experience, this is a great one-time purchase. just-ground beans have a much better flavor than pre-ground.
CDs!! ask for a gift card and expand your physical music collection! or a collection of the DVDs for your favorite show!
You walk into a bar after your long day at work herding cats across the great concrete plains of New Wark.
After 3 long hours of downing marmalade milk, you decide you need to head to the washroom to make room for more.
You walk down the corridor that the washroom sign points to, only to find it split into two tunnels.
One of them smells like your dad's old college duffelbag that he kept his spoon collection in, and the other one smells like Kraft Mac n cheese with a hint of oyster sauce.
Your bladder reminds you to pick quickly and you dash down the tunnel smelling like your dad's musty spoon collection.
You notice after what seems like an agonizing minute of waddling through the tunnel that the tunnel never seems to get lighter. You keep your hand to the wall to guide you through the straight tunnel, the walls getting rougher with each passing second.
Eventually you find a line of light illuminating the ground, indicating a door frame, and you open it.
It opens up to a circular laboratory with gutted machinery, glowing tanks with strange shapes, and naked wires littering tables and floor.
In the middle of it, you find a toilet. Inside a a wire cage. Upon closer inspection, you see that it is a human sized snare trap.
What really fucks with me is that they're using the same name as an actual non-profit organization :/
Over one hundred conspiracy theorists have been camping out in a farm field 40 minutes east of Ottawa for three weeks plotting to replace Canada’s government.
Not only has the group staged daily protests near Parliament Hill, resulting in several criminal charges and one man getting tasered by police, a dozen members of the group were recently invited into the House of Commons by one of Pierre Poilievre’s Conservative MPs.
Full article
Tagging: @politicsofcanada
I need people to stop blaming the death of movies on “quips”. A quip is just a funny line of dialogue. That’s all. Like I just saw a post talking about quips and the death of movies and brought up Pirates of the Caribbean as an example of a better movie and yes it is but also that movie is FULL OF QUIPS. I just rewatched The Princess Bride. It’s all quips. Every single line. And it’s a masterpiece.
Movies suck when people don’t care about the art they’re making. That includes them not caring about their quips. Which is why a lot of comic relief dialogue ALSO sucks now. But the problem isn’t that funny dialogue exists.
The first official portrait of the Duke & Duchess of Cambridge has been unveiled. Painted by award-winning British portrait artist Jamie Coreth, the artwork will be available to view at University of Cambridge’s Fitzwilliam Museum.
Water Witch 🌟
Since I’m back on tumblr I thought I’d repost my old comic from 2018. A lot of things have changed since then and sometimes a dried out ‘never give up’ doesn’t quite hit anymore. But even when burnout sometimes feels less heavy, this brings back some hope.