started reading more today about like the way reading is taught in the US and gaps in literacy and there is absolutely nothing more like. Galling and horrifying and enraging than being directly informed why it is that so many people can’t comprehend what they read or read at all proficiently

like this shit is so fucked up.

if anyone is looking for other sources about this, the discredited theory they keep alluding to in the articles is called "whole language" (as opposed to phonics). it's the idea that exposure to reading material and visual strategies are good enough supports for kids to eventually figure out the rules of english spelling on their own. phonics is where you explicitly teach them the rules

just wanted to clarify that they do use the term whole language in the first article a bit before the midway point and then use it another two times; they didn’t just entirely ignore the term for the whole article, just close to the beginning. second one doesn’t mention it bc it’s more focused on racial and socioeconomic disparity

So many people marry people they don’t like hanging out with.

When they say to marry your best friend they’re talking about that you need to like hanging out with them. You should probably like just hanging out with the person you’ve committed your life to. Because that’s what you’ll be doing most of the time.

In most romantic relationships the sex and longingly staring into each others eyes part is a relatively small portion of it. Most of your time is gonna be reading the newspaper in silence or cooking dinner or trying and failing to do a book club with your friends.

Most of the functional long term couples I’ve met just enjoy being in each others company. Not 24/7 because anyone can get tedious if they’re your only social connection. But you know. They’re friends. It’s good to be friends with the people you live with.

And it actually helps during those times when the romance just isn't there. It happens - especially if you have young kids. Life gets in the way and the sex becomes a little perfunctory and not so passionate and it happens less. Generally those times will pass (or they have in my experience) but in the meantime, just enjoy being with your person as someone to hang out with.

Reblog and put the species of the nearest stuffed animal

i,... hate.... HUMIDITY!!!!! *starts punching the water molecules in the air around me*

Turn Left: Donna is thrown into a timeline in which she never met the Doctor. But the stars are going out and Rose Tyler needs her help…

Midnight: The Doctor is trapped on a leisure planet with a group of frightened humans and an enemy who takes the words right out of his mouth.

You all need to be reminded that Queerplatonic Relationships are long term committed relationships that originated from aromantic people who want the consistency and loyalty in romantic relationships without the expectations of performing romance. If you don't want to commit to a platonic relationship, then you don't want a QPR ("platonic" word here is used as the opposite of "romantic" instead of "sexual" because some queerplatonic partners can be sexual and others can be non-sexual).

QPR is not just a quirky term for intense emotional friendship because any friendship can have that intimacy but not all friends commit to each other in the way that makes the relationship queer. The queerness in queerplatonic means we have a relationship that's so devoted and yet platonic because we are debunking amatonormativity here that dictates to us (by society) that romantic relationships must be the priority.

If you just want to kiss and hug your friends and hold their hands or anything else intimate but you don't think you can be committed to that friendship, it's not queerplatonic relationship you want. If you're misusing queerplatonic term, you're erasing the meaning of this word that helps aromantic people communicate our boundaries, expectations and experiences as queer people. Please just respect us. Treating QPR like it's just a "friendship" is as rude as treating it as "romance lite". I want a commitment but no romo. It's that simple.