God Gave Me Social Anxiety Cause He Knew I’d Be Unstoppable Without It

biden signed a whole bunch of executive orders today, all of which aiming to undo damage done by trump. i’m by no means a fan of biden, he’s a centrist at best and has a history of sexual assault and i despise how he’s pushing for “unity” instead of accountability right now, BUT here’s the full list of executive orders, because a little good news is good for you sometimes (but mostly because the news sites with this stuff are behind paywalls):

Completely abolishing the “Muslim ban” travel ban, which had blocked travel to the US from several Muslim-majority and African countries 

Restarting visa processing for people from the affected countries from the travel ban, and focusing on “addressing the harm caused to those who were prevented from coming to the US because of the ban”

Reinstating ties with the World Health Organization (after Trump withdrew the US’s membership and funding last year) and making Dr. Anthony Fauci the head of the American WHO delegation

Rejoining the Paris Climate Agreement and ordering federal agencies to start reinstating more than 100 environmental regulations that were weakened/rolled back by Trump

Stopping the Border Wall construction and immediately terminating the national emergency declaration that allowed Trump to redirect billions of dollars to the wall

Revoking the permit for the Keystone XL pipeline’s construction

Overturning Trump’s executive order that had stopped federal agencies, contractors, and other institutions from holding diversity and inclusion training

Immediately ending Trump’s 1776 Commission, a committee that aimed to give American students “patriotic” history lessons, which were widely criticized by historians and civil rights leaders as being “racist lies” and “nationalist propaganda” that whitewashed history and greatly downplayed how bad slavery was

Protecting the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA) and keeping Dreamers (people who were brought to the US as children) from being deported

Extending the national ban on evictions

Overturning a Trump executive order that had pushed “aggressive efforts” to find and deport immigrants

Blocking the deportation of Liberians, a group Trump had targeted specifically

Reversing the rollbacks to vehicle emissions standards

Designating Susan E. Rice as the leader of a “robust, interagency” effort requiring all federal agencies to make “rooting out systemic racism” central to their work, and requiring federal agencies to submit detailed reports on equity in their ranks within 200 days

Reinforcing Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, to require that the federal government does not discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity, a policy that reverses actions by Trump’s administration

Undoing Trump’s orders that slashed the size of several national parks (Trump had wanted to auction off parts of national parks and protected land, primarily to oil companies) and halting the oil and natural gas leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

Restoring the directorate for global health security and biodefense at the National Security Council, a group Trump had disbanded, and requiring social distancing. A mask mandate would be met with significant legal opposition, but this order also requires masks on all federal property and by all federal employees

And lastly: immediately freezing all of Trump’s recent regulations he’d tried to sneak in at the last minute, so that the new administration can examine them much closer

also, this wasn’t an executive order, but in case anybody missed it: biden also chose rachel levine, a transgender jewish woman, as the assistant health secretary! from what i’ve seen, rachel seems great and has done a lot of good as pennsylvania’s health secretary, so that’s very exciting

thinking about “you haven’t met all the people who will love you” and like!!! you also haven’t found all the things that will make you happy!!!! there will always be new authors and musicians and artists whose work you will one day discover and love!!!! there will always be new hobbies and skills for you to learn and feel fulfilled by!!! there will always be new things around the corner that will bring sudden and unexpected happiness!!!!!!!!!!!

Omg you read regency romance??? I got hooked after bridgerton and thought it such a guilty pleasure as radleaning (I mean romance as a genre can be steeped in misogynistic tropes but there are some good eggs there) 😭😭😭 I was surprised to see you recommending devil in winter though I HATED the male lead in that book though he's generally a fan favourite.... kidnapping Lillian, calling Evie a bitch etc (in general I'm not much of a keypas fan, her male protagonists can be a bit too possessive alpha male for my taste)

I read all romance - historical, paranormal, urban fantasy, contemporary, etc.

Romance novels aren’t something to be ashamed off - it’s like being ashamed of enjoying watching Love Actually at Christmas. Romance novels are the largest genre of fiction.

Do romance novels contain things that are anti-feminist? Yeah. So does 99% of all other literature. I don’t read any with bdsm or other things that normally extreme pain, limited mobility, punishment, etc for the heroine. But just don’t read those. You’re actually more likely to find libfem stuff than anything like in an Eggers novel.

As for Devil in Winter - it is quite literally the best villain to hero trope in a historical romance ever. Second to being the best example of the trope in the genre in general only to Kresley Cole’s Lothaire.

He’s my fave Kleypas hero because he has the best hero’s journey - he goes from being a total lout to coming into responsibility. But I understand why he’s be hated!! If you want to find more books you’d like try keeping date of publication in mind:

Kleypas started writing before 2000 - which means her heroes are always going to be influenced by Julie Garwood, Johanna Lindsey, Kathleen Woodiwiss, Jude Devereaux, etc. This is the period of the OG alphahole heroes. During the 70s-80s women were facing significant economic challenges, workplaces actively hostile to their interests, backlash from men on a personal and professional level, and were being told they would never be able to get married. These heroes ALL: provide economically for the heroine, protect her from physical danger, give her elevated status, drop their backlash against women for the heroine, and marry and sexually satisfy the heroine. So these heroes had to be literally strong enough to “pull” the reader from the real world.

After 2000 until about 2007 you had the intermediary period. More women were in school, economics improved, women were living alone, and fear that marriage wouldn’t happen for you declined. These heroes became slightly softer - less kidnapping, more independence for the heroines (contemporary really started using birth control, heroines had their own careers and apartments). Writers that started before 2000 kept more alphas. The height of paranormal.

2008-2012: The Billionaire Years - economic anxiety and collapse causes women to seek out novels where the heroines are insulated against economic woes. Enter Beautiful Bastard and 50 Shades. These books also were when fanfic started producing conventional authors - and they brought bdsm from fic to the mainstream. Erotica (which usually bumps it’s heat “up” with bdsm) reveals the strain on marriages and relationships resulting in an inadequate sex life. Women seek it out in books.

2012-2019: Cinnamon roll heroes. Economic situation once again improves. Women don’t want the alphaholes any longer, heroines get feistier, romcoms break out everywhere.

Devil in Winter exemplifies the 2000 to 2007 period. St Vincent is a dick, but less of a dick than his 1982 predecessors. He ensures economic stability for Evie through managing her assets - an example of economic partnership relatively absent in romance still. But Evie is able to escape her abusive family (aka protection!). The novel is written masterfully - any professor teaching about romance novel structure would do well with DiW on the syllabus.

But since you hated him - try sticking to books published after 2012, 2014 especially. Also for the next years going forward I think alpha heroes will make a return. Already we see books written in 2020/2021 have fewer children. So as economic stress gets worse I think more billionaires, more protective heroes will once again emerge.

If you like Bridgerton I’d recommend Sarah MacLean, try her Bare Knuckle Bastards series or Bombshell (and skip Ewan’s book).

yes girl you are so [if i loved you less i might be able to talk about it more] [hands are unbearably beautiful] [i'll take care of you it's rotten work not to me not if it's you] [if you are intolerable let me be the one to tolerate you] [i could recognise him by touch alone] [i love you i want us both to eat well] [on purpose i love you on purpose] [whatever our souls are made of his and mine are the same] [i am half agony half hope] [you have bewitched me body and soul and i love love love you] [he is half of my soul as the poets say] [i'm sick of people saying that love is all a woman is fit for but i'm so lonely] [i love you most ardently] [let me stay tender hearted despite despite despite] [someone has to leave first this is a very old story there is no other version of this story] [mostly i want to be kind] [tell me how all this and love too will ruin us] [you said i killed you haunt me then] [someone somewhere can you understand me a little love me a little] [i will love you as misfortune loves orphans as fire loves innocence and as justice loves to sit and watch while everything goes wrong] [sorry about the blood in your mouth i wish it was mine] [who will come into my kitchen and be hungry for me] can we kiss now

i miss them so much!!!!!!!!!!!!

no caption needed.

Defending the  Robin proposal

In the case of the storyline it worked - there’s poetic symbolism in the fact that we first see “the playbook” the episode after they break up in 5.07 and the last time Barney uses a play (I do not count the finale as existing as it is a OOC mess written back in 2006) to get the girl he wants to marry.

Part of it also is because it is Robin. It’s Robin, who has known (and has been in love) with Barney for years - but is too scared to admit it or go for it because she’s afraid she’ll lose him and be even more heartbroken. This is Barney’s way of saying “this is me, this is who I am, I love you, I hope you want me, forever now.” Robin’s known Barney for nearly 8 years, she understands this.

Also note the last step is not Barney getting the girl. The last step is “hope she says yes,” Robin has every right to say no (again, contrast this to Ted who pretty much tries to force Robin to date him in 1.24), she knows what Barney’s done, she knows which bits were a play - she knows how she’s been manipulated into this situation and can therefore separate it from the real feelings she feels. To me the proposal is saying “I want you, forever, or nothing.” (again, ignore the finale - the series doesn’t make sense with the finale) if Robin says “no,” he’ll stop going after her. The power is in Robin’s hands. All Barney has done is proven to her that she loves him and he loves her and he wants to be with her forever.

Randomabc

https://how-i-met-your-mother.fandom.com/wiki/The_Robin

-William Wordsworth

I am back. Kind of? Anyway, here’s a list of series I’ve finished that I love:

1. Sands of Arawiya by Hafsah Faizal - enemies to we’re figuring it out to you’ll have to read the second book to see, embracing our power, found family, slow burn

2. The Never Tilting World duology by Rin Chupeco - healthy romance between goddesses and mortals as in the goddesses are not 100+ years old, they are 17-19 (I don’t remember), bodyguard x royal romance, world building with commentary on climate change

3. An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir - one of the most epic fantasy series of all time, I love it because each book is so different and tied together in terms of plot, I love the main character’s arcs, the history of the world is so interesting

4. Ignite the Stars by Maura Milan - I read this one a while ago so I don’t remember all of the details, but I love the sci-fi fantasy world, I would love to see this as a TV show, also the main character is morally grey and is not just on a journey to try to take over the universe

5. The Bone Witch by Rin Chupeco - another morally grey character, the magic system is unlike any other that I’ve read, every one of Rin’s books is amazing and I think I’ve read every single one except for the sequel to The Girl from the Well

i think covid-19 is probably triggering full-blown agoraphobia and panic disorder in some people who were already susceptible to it (like people with mood and anxiety disorders). if you feel scared of leaving the house due to fear of becoming overwhelmed/having an panic attack in public, that's a problem that tends to get worse. i highly encourage you to look into therapy. you deserve to feel like you can go outside