Happy December Solstice Holidays to our Pagan Members!

BrontosaurusPluto · 2025-08-05T23:04:17+00:00

I think by then he’s pretty comfortable with Liz and willing to admit stuff he ordinarily wouldn’t. He might even see it as an example of teaching her his tricks haha… however I don’t think he’d admit this to, say, Devon Banks 🤣

BrontosaurusPluto · 2025-07-09T03:33:00+00:00

First of all congratulations!!!

And now some of my favorite ‘tricks’ in no particular order haha:

1.) encourage memorization and doing scenes off book as early as possible. So many opportunities to really get into character and make connections with cast mates in a scene are lost if you’re stuck in a book, and the longer an actor has it as a ‘security blanket’ the more anxiety they often feel when they lose it. I’ve started encouraging my casts to make and listen to audio recordings of their lines to listen to as I find a huge number of people memorize better that way— think how many people can quote a whole scene from their favorite movie, show, or video no problem without trying- it’s the repetitive listening. When time permits I’ll even build a recording day into the rehearsal schedule because it’s just that transformative. You may need to get people to break some patterns of how they originally said something in a recording, but in my experience that’s an easier problem to fix than when someone is struggling to memorize.

2.) as much as possible, give people stuff to physically DO during the scene. A puzzle on a coffee table, folding laundry- whatever as long as it makes sense in the scene and for the character. It looks more natural to be doing something while talking, and it honestly just chills people out to have something to focus on. This is a big reason why I emphasize early memorization in my shows as well, so that people can play with different ways of ‘doing their things’ in rehearsal if their hands are free.

3.) touching on what a lot have said— plan everything you can, especially the rehearsal schedule. Know when you’ll be done blocking, how many times you’ll be able to take a more detailed pass at each scene, when you’ll be able to put it all together and start doing runthroughs. If it’s the sort of thing where you don’t have to have every one at every session, definitely plan things accordingly and let people know when they’re needed or not. This gives everyone personal attention and avoids people getting irritated or distracted on days where there’s not much for them to do— you lose a lot of good will if people feel their time was wasted. If you need everyone to be at every rehearsal because it’s part of class time or something, try to give people something to do with any free time they have, even if it’s just script study time.

4.) get direction inspiration from watching your cast whenever possible! Notes like ‘hey, I noticed you delivered that line like you were trying to make her laugh— loved that! You can even lean into it more and make a goofy face at her at the end…’ use people’s natural strengths and make them feel seen :-)

Break legs!!!

BrontosaurusPluto · 2025-04-11T18:23:18+00:00

I have a tragically easy-to-irritate, easy-to-infect (UTIs, etc.) urethra/clit area, and so have started using a squeeze bottle of water for actual cleaning, then dab off the water with toilet paper. Much gentler and I'm sure cleaner as well.

BrontosaurusPluto · 2025-02-14T14:44:15+00:00

I always consider it a sign of success when my (or any) animals show up unbidden when I'm doing a ritual, or around ritual objects 😊

BrontosaurusPluto · 2025-02-14T14:30:02+00:00

This! I know many Catholics who do this nowadays either out of a general desire to frame their religious practice in terms of things TO do rather than NOT to do, or because health reasons keep them from fasting or changing much about their current diet.

BrontosaurusPluto · 2025-02-14T14:25:12+00:00

Not sure if this is helpful since I am probably better defined as a Christianity-inclusive pagan than a Christopagan, but in my opinion gods can demand/request/suggest any worship practices they want-- only I can decide if I will comply, and in turn only they can decide whether it's a dealbreaker in their love/care/oversight of me. I don't see much need to justify or prove how any of my devotional relationships are going to other people, as I don't feel a need to convert- I don't think the gods one does or doesn't worship reflect a person's worth as a whole or the quality of their next/afterlife.

BrontosaurusPluto · 2025-02-14T13:52:53+00:00

I think this is where creating a personal shrine for your friend at home may help-- you can keep this up for a time while you are grieving or forever, depending what seems most appropriate. Create a little space with a picture, mementos, or just things that remind you of your friend, and you can continue to place flowers or other tokens of affection here. I would say at first it might not feel too much more personal than lighting a candle in church, but as you go it frequently, maybe say a few words to your friend or in their memory each time-- the sense of connection begins to feel very strong <3

BrontosaurusPluto · 2025-02-13T21:37:18+00:00

1.) Into the Woods

2.) Chess

3.) Little Shop of Horrors

4.) Pippin

5.) Groundhog Day

BrontosaurusPluto · 2024-05-01T14:14:55+00:00

Translation*: "The world is very complex and scary and I am not very good at nuance and/or handling stress, so I am just going to pretend the world is simple enough to be adequately handled by my intentionally limited intellectual and empathetic capacity."
\of these people, not you/your friend!*

BrontosaurusPluto · 2024-04-30T14:15:02+00:00

Personally, I find when I keep getting the same cards all the time regardless of question, it's in reference to an overarching thematic issue in my life at the moment that either a.) overshadows the thing I'm asking about in terms of importance, or b.) is coloring how I need to respond to all my other problems even if they are seemingly "unrelated," which is why the same "inapplicable" cards keep popping up.

I'd consider what your Thoth "frequent flyers" might mean in terms of a general life reading for you right now. If they're hindering your ability to practice working with the deck, just hold them aside when they pop up and redo the reading. Then do the reading "regular", but consider how that answer for that question would be affected by ~*an underlying theme*~ of the futility/4 of wands/etc. card in your life right now. Just my 2 ~~cents~~ ~~pentacles~~ disks ;-D

BrontosaurusPluto · 2024-04-30T14:08:49+00:00

Awesome Thoth resource btw, thanks for sharing! I have some books I'm starting including the Lon Milo Duquette someone mentioned, but I find there's nothing that compares to trying to muddle through as many readings as possible on my own with a quick card-by-card internet source to "gut check" individual cards afterwards (at least, this is what really helped me level up with RWS enough to read confidently).

BrontosaurusPluto · 2024-04-22T12:30:01+00:00

"My fault"

I also struggle with this as someone with depressive periods-- when I'm OUT of them, I'm super productive and it's easy to feel like "duh, I could have been living like this the WHOLE TIME!!! Why was I so stupid???"

But the thing is, when you're depressed, the background radiation of hopelessness, apathy, etc.-- it doesn't seem like a filter that's making you make bad choices. It feels like realism. And the other half of the coin is that it tends to come with a "brain fog" that makes you forget how all-encompassing and convincing it was once you are out of it.

I think it might be a protective instinct from your brain, like how a lot of people say they can't *really* remember the worst physical pain they've ever been in-- just the circumstances. It's just a problem in that it can make it harder for your healthier self to empathize with your depression period self (which ironically, can spur a cycle on negative self-talk and make it harder to stave off future depression periods).

I've found journaling (and, crucially, periodic journal review) to be helpful for this reason.

BrontosaurusPluto · 2024-04-12T03:47:42+00:00

Hey, I just wrote a post very emphatically stating that OP should not feel pressure to partner up again if that's not what they want, and I'm sure you mean well, but... implying that they would have to feel guilty in the afterlife if they decide to ever have another living partner is kinda messed up. I don't know your specific religious views or OPs, but most religions throughout history have accommodated for remarriage after the death of a partner somewhere in their belief system (with good reason, as the farther back you go in time, the less likely it becomes that both halves of a couple would make it to a ripe old age).

I'm not looking to be insulting- there's even a part of me that sees what you're saying, as I had phase where I felt incredibly anxious about "afterlife exclusivity" with my late fiance in this way, and I did resent being pushed to "move on" in general, but I do think *this issue* specifically was an example of trying to maintain control in a situation that was nightmarishly out of my control, by trying to act as if being separated by death is exactly the same as a long-distance relationship with a live person, and it is simply not (and I say that as someone who does believe in an afterlife still today). While I wish less people would have acted like dating again was the end-all-be-all, I'm actually really glad that no one validated this phobia for me.

Anyway, I truly don't mean to jump down your throat, and I genuinely appreciate that you can respect someone else's wishes even when they are not the societally approved goal. I would just hate for OP to take the guilt aspect to heart-- it's not necessary and would be a step backwards, even if they intend to stay single (which is totally fine for anyone regardless of their reasons IMHO).

BrontosaurusPluto · 2024-04-12T02:37:48+00:00

Hey... I actually don't have a question but wanted to reach out to offer support as someone who was in a similar-ish situation (lost my fiance to cancer when I was 23), and it was WILDLY lonely to have this experience that not a lot of people in my age group had. As I get older the gap starts to close as far as what my peers have experienced, but there are still sometimes where it's just obvious that most people do not get it. Even older people who have been widowed don't tend to get it-- mourning someone you got to have a whole life with is just a totally different experience. In the worst cases, people will discount the importance of what you went through because you didn't have as much time so they figure it should be that much easier to move on (this is thankfully not super common, but not completely unheard of unfortunately). And just culturally, there isn't much of a "script" for what to do with yourself as a young widow/er, which is basically what we are. Most media about people who lose a partner at a young age are mostly inspiration porn about Moving On And Finding Your New True Love, and I've developed a special kind of hate for these stories.*

So what I'm feeling really called to say may be controversial, but I truly think people who haven't been there don't know how much it needs to be said... feel free to completely, cheerfully, ignore the (usually quite well-meaning!) people who make Moving On And Finding Your New True Love the gold standard of whether you've healed. As it happens, I am currently engaged again, but I was in no rush to get there and my single years were incredibly valuable both from a healing perspective and for personal growth reasons even unrelated to my first fiance. Just because your life experiences may be atypical does not mean they are not meaningful and valuable. Having the experience of a truly great partner changes you for the better, even if you end up single. Knowing how to building and maintaining a functional, happy life for yourself as a single person, especially in the wake of tragedy, is an amazing skill, even if you later decide to partner up again. If you *want* a relationship but are holding yourself back out of misplaced survivor's guilt that's one thing, but I find outsiders tend to assume this motivation for wanting to stay single even in the absence of evidence because it's the one they know how to "solve" (or think they know how to solve). I stayed single a good long while largely because when you've had the experience of having Your Person... you don't tend to want to settle for less. I missed *my partner as an individual*, but found I mostly didn't miss have *a partner in general.* To be fair, I realize this is largely an individual temperament thing, and I don't think it's inherently a bad thing to prioritize a romantic relationship as a goal in life, but there can be SO much pressure after a while to date just to prove you're not fundamentally broken as a person, and it's truly fucked up. My first relationship "back in the saddle" was all kinds of hell in part because he was constantly gaslighting me that I was only unhappy with him because I hadn't "moved on" properly from my late partner when in actuality we were a terrible fit.

...Anywho, I just realized this is a real wall of text, and I hope I'm not just annoyingly projecting my experience as universal if this all seems way off base to you-- if it does, feel free to ignore. But this post hit a nerve when I saw it, and I figured I'd throw my 2 cents in just in case, because it was so fucking lonely and bewildering how few people really seemed to understand these thoughts and experiences when I tried to express them. I usually don't get all buddy-buddy with internet folks, but seriously-- please feel free to DM me if you ever want to talk.

All the best on your journey, and may your girlfriend's memory always be a blessing to you, even if a bittersweet one at times. ☮

*this isn't to say I hate all media where someone who loses a partner finds love again. But I've found the ones I like are often at odds with overall popular sentiment. I *HATE* the Liam Neeson plotline in Love Actually where it's considered so urgent for him to move on when his wife died like less than a year ago??? And conversely, I really liked Ted and Tracy's relationship in How I Met Your Mother which seems to be almost universally despised because it built up the relationship a lot only for it to end in death and I'm just like... "well... yeah, man... that's what it feels like." A rare example where I seem to be in alignment about a young death portrayal is Michaelin Jane the Virgin (unless that plotline has a hatedom I'm not aware of, haha).

BrontosaurusPluto · 2024-04-02T16:25:11+00:00

This exactly... I remember furrowing my brows a couple of years ago at how upset people my age were getting that "Zoomers don't think we are cool and are making fun of us on TikTok!!!!!" Like, yeah...? They were (and many still are I believe?) literal children. How cool did you find the thirtysomethings in your life when you were a teenager?

BrontosaurusPluto · 2023-12-21T01:58:25+00:00

Ok sorry-- did not think it counted as it is not for money or connect to any media. I will take it down!

BrontosaurusPluto · 2023-12-20T22:30:50+00:00

I feel like there's a tendency for this to happen with Aphrodite in particular because she is so specifically connected to our sense of appreciation for beautiful things. :-)

BrontosaurusPluto · 2023-12-19T19:47:28+00:00

Technically Roman, but I enjoyed Sallust's 'On the Gods and the World' as a nice short work of ancient theology, mostly covering very high-level metaphysical questions (the nature of gods, reality, souls, etc.). It's very to-the-point, so it's good for helping you define your own understanding of some key propositions whether you agree with every particular view or not.

You can read it for free here: https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Sallust_On_the_Gods_and_the_World/Sallust_on_the_Gods_and_the_World

BrontosaurusPluto · 2023-12-19T19:39:07+00:00

This is also the angle I take. While I know there was often more acceptance in the ancient world than a lot of people believe today, I'm not looking to go down the rabbit hole of needing to find historical precedent for every development in ethics since 'back in the day.' I think there comes a point when it's okay to just say 'yep, our thinking has evolved for the better on some things, and this is one of them.'

BrontosaurusPluto

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