re: tumblr

hello! I work in tech and here are some important things to know about "tumblr is going into maintenance mode." please note I do not work at tumblr, I've just worked at tumblr-adjacent sort of companies for my entire adult life and i've gone through this before.

what does maintenance mode mean?

literally what it sounds like -- Automattic is not going to be hiring new staff, investing in new product features, or doing anything new on tumblr. the staff that remains working on tumblr will be maintaining the status quo. most of the staff will be allocated elsewhere (or possibly laid off, though it looks like from that memo that's not what they're planning to do). it does not mean tumblr is shutting down. you should still buy premium, get merch, etc, because this is definitely step one of the shutdown process, but a maintenance mode designation is basically to see if tumblr will generate a revenue without putting more money into it than strictly necessary.

why did this happen?

obviously I do not know directly. from my observation, it's in part because Yahoo had absolutely no idea what to do with this platform, and then when Automattic bought it they also... struggled... but it is also in part because the user base has been so viciously anti-monetization that most attempts were killed outright.

yes, the user base is part of the problem. the absolute feral anti-premium, anti-ads, anti-tipping, anti-everything tumblr tried to do to make money is part of the problem. it's not the only part of the problem by a long shot, but I would be remiss not to mention it.

what do I do now?

use the platform. just like, keep using tumblr. do not abandon ship. buy premium, get yourself some badges, get yourself some merch, but use the platform. ad revenue is based on impressions and clicks. if a ton of the user base gives up, that revenue disappears.

--

tumblr is extremely special. I've never seen anything like it in my 20-odd years of being Very Online, and I was a minor BNF in WolfStar during LiveJournal days. I don't know that it can be recreated elsewhere. I don't know where fandom will go. I know that something else will exist after tumblr and that nothing gold can stay, but i don't think the specific kind of joy found here can be recreated. i say this not to be a downer, but to be realistic. I guess I should find a Bluesky invite.

I've been here since 2008. I'm not going anywhere as long as this site exists. hope you'll stay here with me.

Giveaway: Gift Cards to The Amazing Devil Merch Store

In TAD's recent insta post, in addition to the exciting hint at new music and the absolutely delightful pictures, they mentioned that gift cards have been added to their merch store. So, this blog is doing a gift card giveaway!

Two winners will receive a £10 gift card to TAD's merch store.

Here's how it'll work:

A dragon who decides to hoard mint and various types of mint plants (and not knowing that mint has the mushroom’s blessing of inevitability were ever its planted) can go one of two ways.

1: The dragon is absolutely horrified as the mint engulfs and takes over its den. Its gold? Mint. Its gems and goblets? Mint. Its stores of wine? Mint. No matter what they do they can’t get rid of it.

2: The dragon is delightfully ecstatic as the mint engulfs and takes over its den. It’s a self growing hoard. No matter what any adventurers or knights do, they can’t get rid of it.

✨✨✨ ヽ(✿ﾟ▽ﾟ)ノ ✨✨✨

ha?

every single person who reblogs this

every

single

person

will get “doot doot” in their ask box

HOW

I WANT TO KNOW YOUR SECRET

SERIOUSLY THOUGH WHAT ARE YOU

I GOT THIS AND I WAS LIKE WHAT THE FUCK

there are over 128,000 notes and i still got one

how

i reblogged this less than 2 minutes ago

how the actual fuck

well

do not question

ive done this before you truly do get doot doot in your askbox

Lol doubt it

Haha doubt this will work buuuut

What the hell, I’ll try it

I GOT A DOOT DOOT

I wants a doot doot

hoooowwww does this work??!

Idk man, like I don’t think it’ll work but 🤷🏼‍♀️

Hehe😏 bet

Lets try it. Idk if it’ll work

IT WORKS

What is this madness?

GIVE ME THE GOODS

hand it over

there are over 2 MILLION NOTES so I’m begging my followers not to send me a doot doot to cheat the system I have to see this for myself

won’t hurt to try i guess?

i will try ⠒̫⃝

What is this actually real-

i’m so confused, what the fu?-

Idk if it will happen, reblogging soon if it did or not :D

I want a doot doot in my inbox :3

I want a doot doot too >:0

hi

please tell me this works please tell me this works plea

Can I get a doot doot?

wait does this actually work 💀?

?

everytime I remember that lesbian couple that have a marble statue of the two of them embracing and sleeping on a bed together over where their graves will be because the artists didn’t believe they would be able to be married before they died, so what they couldn’t have in life they could have in death, I fucking breakdown

memorial to a marriage; patricia cronin

- Caitlin Doughty, on the Death in the Afternoon podcast

For those curious:

Here’s the real-life couple in 2019 💖

happy 20th anniversary (nov 3, 2002) to patricia cronin’s marble sculpture that furthered art, advocacy, and lesbian breakdowns everywhere

my utopia

The drag queen from this photo has spoken up about the photo.

The central irony is that this isn’t some hypothetical future–it’s just present day reality. This is a picture of two ordinary people going about their normal lives despite how haters want to politicize it lmao. So the underlying message is not “future liberals want” it’s “people conservatives want to eradicate”

the underlying message is not “future liberals want” it’s “people conservatives want to eradicate”

*coughs* louder for the people on the back:

the underlying message is not “future liberals want” it’s “people conservatives want to eradicate”

Just an experiment. Reblog if you actually give a fuck about male victims of domestic violence and rape.

Of fucking course

What sick bastard doesn’t

“You’d be surprised”, said Xaldien, who just lost four followers and received a lovely “men can’t be raped” anon shortly after reblogging this the first time.

Kindly block me right now if you don’t think men can ho turough this just as much as women can. Don’t unfollow, block.

Just because a certain group has been through something more than another group is not an exuse to be mean about it

Rape is rape. It can happen to anyone. And it’s awful either way.

It's not even that women experience it more just that they recognize it for what it is and report it more. The actual number of male rape victims is exponentially higher than the official count because most men/boys refuse to call it what it is because of the stigma and lack of empathy and education around the subject.

It's disgusting and horrendous.

poll time!!

please reblog with your answer and country!!

i, for example, have fired a gun, and am from canada.

enjoy!!

edit to say: air rifles, bb guns, paintball markers, etc, DO NOT COUNT. only REAL firearms (as in gunpowder powered) count.

So... I answered no before remembering that a firearm oriented guild at a ren faire let me fire a pistol during after-hours when I was like 12. They made sure an adult was helping me brace and I'm pretty sure it was a blank so not sure if that counts? 🙃🙃🙃 I just wasn't that interested at the time cause my brother and the boy faire brats wanted to do shooty things and we'd made a deal if I went along with them then they'd go along with me to the sword people.

Also country is America for like the sample size and whatever.

rb for sample size etc etc !! <3

The Crushing Weight of Not Knowing If There Is a Task

im starting to think this crushing weight is not about the tasks

The crushing weight of knowing there will be a task. But not knowing what that task will be.

The crushing weight of 🌟anxiety🌟