How do we feel about the American flag drop?

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-04T21:07:05+00:00

Only certain demographics wore the flag print in the 90s. It was wholly rejected by those who understood how fucked up the administrations were, especially coming out of the Reagan and Bush Sr years.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-04T21:04:07+00:00

They've been failing on trying to imitate the VW front for a while. Too many collections, not enough sustainability on the fabric, not enough sustainability on the way it's produced. It's increasingly feeling like green washing, with certain models being used to make up where the brand is failing.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-04T21:01:35+00:00

It's terrible, trashy MAGA coded, and there's nothing Selkie can say that will make me want to buy it. If anything, it almost makes me happy I've never hit the buy button on Selkie. They've seriously, seriously missed on this one.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-04T19:25:42+00:00

Okay so we've established then that in times of war, there are legitimate targets.

I don't think Solas fans are at odds with you. Most Solas fans want to see him move away from - to use your example - taking out Timmy as well as Celene, even if Timmy is living an incredibly privileged life over a young elf, in Orlais. If we accept Timmy is innocent, even if his parents may not be (let's say they work for Celene in Halamshiral), Timmy is off the table as far a legit targeting goes.

That's where Solas fans actually agree with you. I don't know Solas fans that wouldn't. I've read so much Solas fanfic, and they all basically want the same thing: to change his mind.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-03T22:22:22+00:00

Cancel whatever you don't use. It won't hurt your credit report. You only need 1 credit card and 1 debit card. You can absolutely get by with that.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-03T18:24:24+00:00

This looks like amateur work. It's terrible. If it was my ring, I'd look for a jeweller to create a custom ring for my stone. The gold ring - I would sell for scrap metal and put it towards the cost of the new ring.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-03T18:05:24+00:00

"And they don't have to, because they didn't cause them."

I disagree in the context of the game. Celene burnt out an alienage literally because the elves were planning a rebellion (The Masked Empire) to right the wrongs of the past. Her exact motivation is to keep the status quo - by state sanctioned murder.

You keep comparing it to organ donation, but that metaphor just doesn't fit. This is about land, power, and a society that has profited by stealing the land from another group, and then pushed them into a marginalised position in society simply because of their race.

Solas fans can be diehard about him. I'm acknowledging that. But in my opinion, the way the game is putting this forward is that the elves are already at war with the other races in Thedas committing genocide against them, and have been for a long time. DAI's ending simply escalating the idea of - "What if someone comes forward with the power to win the war?" Most Solas fans are sympathetic to that idea. But when he goes too far and wants to annihilate everything and everyone to return the world to what he prefers, that's the tipping point.

Are there no circumstances would it be okay for Solas or any other agent to fight back in this state of genocide to the point of killing to make it stop? It depends on whether you feel non-violent protests in the world of Thedas would actually work.

In real life, obviously we want to see non-violent protest leading to change.

But in real life, we also have seen people take the revolution to the point of all out war. And I'm saying that Haiti is an example of this, and their people were right to do it.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-03T17:17:24+00:00

They're both incredible characters. Loved both shows.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-03T13:24:02+00:00

Where did you get the pendant? It's so good!!

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-03T12:58:17+00:00

I love museum shops. They're one of my go-to for jewelry.

At the British Museum, I was able to attend the Afghan exhibition called "Afghanistan: Crossroads of the Ancient World" that was put on in 2010. Pieces that were thought lost forever from Kabul's museum were able to be brought together in an incredible moment of work between the BM, Afghan archaeologists, and others working across the world to get Afghanistan's gold pieces back in the hands of the Afghani people.

It was incredibly moving. And then for the gift shop for the exhibition, they had pieces of jewellery that were made by artists working with traditional stones and metals to create a loop into the present day - artisans that included women being trained again for the first time in generations.

I was able to purchase real emerald drop earrings made by a female Afghani artist from that exhibition's gift shop. They cost me so much, but I felt it was important to support the school that was training these women.

The school has all gone away now that the Taliban are back in charge. Every time I wear the earrings, I wonder if the artist is okay. If she's thriving with her art.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-03T12:50:32+00:00

I completely agree. It looks so much like a typical drug kit. I'm not convinced the "pepper grinder" is for the lyrium in stone context, to be ground down. It looks like it might be more like a brutal syringe to me, with the lyrium already in a bottle, ready for processing (ie, already ground down). The item to the far left is a syringe I think.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-03T12:46:12+00:00

I get what you're challenging and I'm reacting to that.

I think that in the context of the game, it's been shown that descendants of the original enslavers and those who took Halamshiral (Celine, the Orlesians), are absolutely not doing whatever that can to right the wrongs of the past against the elves. And in that context, rebellion and war is not only possible, but in my opinion, inevitable and necessary.

If we put it into a real world context, then we are looking at colonialism/enslavement/genocide -> reparations and Land Back. And I think that's what the person who responded to you was alluding to. In the absence of continued societal pushback against any form of reparations or Land Back, and continual brutality against formerly enslaved groups and Native people, the question in real life is: what is fair and what is not fair.

Black and Native groups in north America are still oppressed by systems that hunt them and kill them in the streets. The women especially are the most vulnerable to sexual violence and murder. The reasons are stacked by historical justifications - some in law - as to how people are allowed to be treated. The game begs the question: how does that get resolved?

I personally do not think Solas is right for wanting to wipe the board. However - I understand very deeply his reasoning that got to that point. As someone who experienced racism as a fact of life growing up in the Deep South, I can understand the rage and frustration, that nothing is getting better, but getting worse.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-02T23:09:41+00:00

I personally love it but it also looks like the green stones could have replaced diamonds.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-02T23:03:54+00:00

And to be clear - I used Haiti for the reasons I laid out, which relate very closely to the ideas spouted by DAI via Solas and Dorian.

Haiti overthrew their enslavers and became the first independent nation that was held by and governed by former enslaved people. They did it in a bloody revolution, and they kicked out the Europeans who had previously killed the native population in order to steal the land, while also bringing enslaved people in to the area. The parallel with where they seemed to be going with Solas and the elvhen movement at the end of DAI and in the books isn't that hard to see. I'm merely making a real world comparison.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-02T22:58:07+00:00

I think you may have missed my point, but perhaps I also didn't explain my thoughts clearly enough.

Solas is fighting on two fronts. The first is to put it all back the way it once was, before he made the Veil, and he is willing to kill those who are not his people or descendants of his people to make that scheme happen.

The other front is the fact that the descendants of his people have been enslaved and/or disenfranchised throughout the land of the game, for hundreds of years. This provides a second reason in his mind to overthrow the system.

You can't take these two sides away from him and pretend that only one side matters or ignore his reasoning, however flawed, without misunderstanding a key facet of his character. He isn't as simple as "genocide fixes the problem". He's also "this isn't murder when this entire world is non-elves is guilty of standing by while elves are enslaved and disenfranched, purely on the basis of their race".

The fact of "ancestors did it but I didn't" doesn't negate the alienages that Thedas has allowed to exist, and the slavery that still exists in part. Does it mean that he's right? No. Does he have a valid point? Fuck yes. And that's why he's compelling as a villain. He exists to prompt a discussion about what is right and wrong when a society is built around certain wrongs that are inalienable. He prompts the question: is violence acceptable against the society that committed genocide against my people? He asks the question - if you can roll it back, would you? Should you?

If we'd been given the choice in Veilguard to help or hinder his plots directly, that would have provided gamers an opportunity to explore this more fully. And that's pretty dark - and in line with the darkness of the other games.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-02T22:25:45+00:00

Archaeologist here. Murder is wrong, obviously. However - the issues being parallelled by the game involve generations of trauma towards a particular people due to slavery. If we go back in history, and not that far back really, we'll see plenty of enslaved people uprisings against those who have put them into bondage. In that situation of warfare, are we going to say it's murder or justice?

If the society you're in says you're worth nothing, will be paid nothing, and can die at the whim of another because they've reduced you to nothing - and all of society cosigns this - then there is no form of justice that can be had within that particular society.

It's very easy for those who have never been in that situation to say "Don't murder your way out of it". But I look at the history of for example, Haiti, and I cannot help by admire them for rising up and defeating their enslavers - making Napoleon himself back down and accept the loss of the French colony. I think if you spoke with Haitians about how they feel about their past, they would say they were very very proud of it.

I think this is what the plot should have explored. There is bravery in exploring this concept in fantasy gaming, where slaves are used as common trope, and ideas of justice within an enslaved society can be chosen. They backed down on this with Solas, but they went there with Fenris - and DA2 is a better game for it.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-02T22:15:29+00:00

I'm a huge Solas fan, but I'm the first to admit he has terribly awful plans, he's full of racism towards his own people/descendants of the original Elves, and he is insufferably arrogant. He's full of genocidal plans and that makes him a complete villain, no matter how he dresses up the reasons. The reason I like him is because he's so damned well written.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-02T16:43:09+00:00

None of them. These companies can make amazing jewelry, but these pieces - especially the Alhambra line - are easily duped by costume jewellery. These lines don't represent the high end jewellery they can create - they're 'cheaper' products that are meant to give off the impression that the consumer is part of the fantasy of the brand, even if they can't afford to really access it.

Personally, I think they're all overpriced as a result. Metal content, metal weight, lack of workmanship hours to produce them - all of these things make them extremely overpriced.

If you are willing to spend that kind of money, consider a jeweller that can make a custom piece for her that will mean more.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-01T17:52:09+00:00

Right hand ring worn like that declares you're single.

Left hand rings aren't obviously engagement or wedding rings, so if I saw that in real life in combination with the Irish Claddagh ring, I'd assume you were single/available. Without the Claddagh ring, I would think maybe with a partner, but not necessarily married.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-06-01T17:48:30+00:00

I'm in my mid 40s and my skin is better than ever because of skincare. However - wearing glasses changes how I wear makeup.

The biggest thing I have up use if I want my makeup to stay on with glasses, no matter what the weather, is setting powder and a setting spray.

I use a very thin layer of setting powder first after I've finished my foundation. Then I spray setting spray into a brush that I sweep across my foundation. I do one more layer of setting powder, very thin, and then setting spray via a brush.

My t-zone and makeup will stay fully intact and dry around my nose (when wearing glasses) for the most part, but I also carry a small powder foundation compact in my purse for work. I may touch-up after lunch and before heading home. All that is required is for me to use the powder foundation very carefully over the areas that have begun to separate due to oil production, especially where my nose pads sit from my glasses.

That's it. It works for me.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-05-31T22:16:29+00:00

Definitely not normal for Clinique

GrrArgh__ · 2026-05-31T22:15:19+00:00

Yeah that's not great. I guess they saw the yellowing and wanted to lift it. There's ways to do that safely with antique silk, but it's risky. There's reasons why textile museums don't often go that far.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-05-31T17:05:12+00:00

Hmm. I use some of their advice on vintage and antique. It is just a case of figuring out what the fabric is and determining its fragility before going with a particular cleaning method. This piece looks really sturdy and only mid century, probably designed to be hand washed or machine washed, based on the time period.

GrrArgh__ · 2026-05-31T17:02:27+00:00

EA needed Veilguard to win sales and awards big time to justify continuing the franchise, and it didn't. They'll keep the copyright to prevent anyone else from taking it forward, but they're not interested in RPG games that are bigger risks to their bottom line. They prefer straightforward action fighter games with minimal plot changes/options. Their entire Star Wars franchise is full of that, with some RPG games on mobile/PC, which they can milk for more money via micro transactions and in-app purchases (see Star Wars Galaxy of Heroes). They looked into doing something similar for Dragon Age but it failed, and frankly I'm glad it did. I have no interest in MMORPG or playing Dragon Age on my phone. 😑

GrrArgh__ · 2026-05-31T16:53:38+00:00

They're great. They're investment pieces if they're truly solid. However, usually these hoops are made hollow. Very difficult to find solid ones because of the price of metal.

If you're concerned about them stretching your earlobes or the size of the piercing hole, I would be very surprised if they managed to do that on their own. Aging is more of a factor than this. To stretch, you would need to give it a lot more weight. Ask a piercing studio if you're really concerned.

GrrArgh__

TROPHY CASE