Meta post!
When I started this account, I decided that I'd quote-boost the posts I would provide an explanation for.
I felt like my explanations should appear as a standalone post on people's timelines. A part of this decision was based on this account's secondary goal to allow people to discover and understand conversations and jokes from subcultures and niche hobbies they have nothing to do with.
However, I incorrectly assumed that my quote-boost would appear in the list of interactions of the original post. Additionally, I now realised that this would be quite an inconvenient and unlikely way for people to discover explanations of posts they don't get. This obstructs the main purpose of this account.
Right now, I'm thinking about switching to simply replying to posts, so explanations are immediately apparent for outsiders too.
However, I am worried this could have unforseen consequences. Do this account's posts appear on people's timelines if they're replies? Should I therefore boost my own posts immediately to make them appear in public timelines? Does replying come across as an unwanted invasion of personal space more than a quote post?
What are your opinions?
Hey there! <3
This account will use quote-posting to provide explanations for posts that require context to understand them.
I hope to make a positive impact in two ways:
- Helping people who struggle with getting jokes, or who are chronically 'out of the loop', understand popular posts.
- Allowing all kinds of people to discover Fedi content from bubbles and niche interests they know nothing about by explaining jargon and inside jokes.
This isn't a bot! Explanations are written manually and do not involve LLMs in any way. Interpretation might be subjective, but I do my best to give a neutral overview.
I am aware that this account concept comes with some implications about safety, accessibility and privacy.
I explain the standards I aspire to in the pinned post.
[ Do you not want your posts to appear here? Reach out to me and I'll remove it ASAP. Depending on what you're comfortable with, I can delete or modify the post in question and I'll do my best to make sure it doesn't happen again. ]
@miriamrobern I was inspired to create this account by your post, even. lol
The joke in the post is about #polyamory. #Polyamorous (#poly) people like being part of consensual romantic relationships that involve not only one person, but multiple people.
The polyamorous community is part of the #queer and #LGBTQ umbrella and today heavily values informed consent, mental health awareness and individual expression.
(Side note: Polyamory is not to be confused with other practices sometimes referred to as polygamy, which encompasses multiple concurrent marriages and is often of a religious, traditional or patriarchal nature.)
There's many different shapes that polyamorous relationships can take. A common example is three people all dating each other (a 'triangle' or 'throuple'), but many polyamorous 'networks' involve many more than three people in various constellations, not necessarily all dating each other.
Polyamorous relationship networks regardless of shape are often called a 'polycule', which is a compound word combining 'poly' and 'molecule'. It refers to how a network diagram connecting the people in a polyamorous relationship would resemble a chemical molecule.
The 'rules' of polyamory depend entirely on what the participants consensually negotiated.
Some polycules require everyone to consent to new partners entering the polycule, some do not. Some are entirely closed, not accepting any additions at all; while others are wholly open. Some are only meant for committed romantic and sexual long-term relationships, while others specifically forbid sexual relations, and yet others do not mind either at all. Some polycules treat the multiplicity of partners like regular committed relationships, while others work on a 'don't ask, don't tell' basis.
Some polycules have rules that are considered 'hierarchical'. In hierarchical polycules, not every involved relationship is considered to be equal. For example, if a married couple brings additional people into their relationship, often the marriage enjoys special privileges: for instance, the married partners can 'veto' additional partners, while the additions cannot 'veto' the original marriage.
These hierarchical dynamics are often criticised.
While it's generally accepted that hierarchical polycules can work out, many say that such hierarchies are not sustainable for the long term and unfairly discriminate against the 'less important' partner ignoring their needs and emotions, leading to an unhealthy dynamic.
Many people in the poly community dislike hierarchical polyamory in general for such reasons, while others might consider them difficult to manage in a healthy way but ultimately possible.
The post is a reference to such an unhealthy hierarchical dynamic.
A 'hinge' exists in a polycule of three people, where one person dates both others while the other two do not date each other. The person in the middle is called a 'hinge'.
This can create issues related to jealousy, where both 'corner' partners compete over the 'hinge' in the middle. Without proper communication about emotions and needs, this can lead to unhealthy dynamics and emotional harm.
Codependency is a term for an often unhealthy dynamic between people. Codependent people cannot function in life without the other in some way; they might have adjusted their routines or emotional stability to depend entirely on the presence of the other person.
When the partner they depend on is absent for some reason or another, they break apart and cease to function.
While dynamics with a 'hinge' are already difficult, this becomes exponentially more difficult when someone is codependent on said 'hinge', because they need to share the person they're entirely dependent on.
"Mom said it's my turn to..." is a common joke template that has no bearing on this joke in particular.
It seems to be meant as a relatable and somewhat self-deprecating post for polyamorous people, referring to a frustrating dynamic that might be familiar to many poly people.
@pinkflameinthepan
https://todon.nl/@pinkflameinthepan/115786609001624686
'Boxing day' is an annual holiday mainly celebrated throughout the former British colonies on the 26th of December. In the past, Boxing Day was just another holiday on which people give gifts to others, but today it's part of the overall Christmas season.
In English, the word 'box' can be used as slang to mean genitals, usually a vagina.
The poster is a transgender woman and therefore might consider getting sexual reassignment surgery, which would give her a vagina.
As she mentions, this is her last Boxing Day without a box (i. e. a vagina), so it's implied she will go for sexual reassignment surgery some time before next year's Boxing Day.
The joke is based on the double meaning of the 'box' in 'Boxing Day', and the slang term 'box'. By invoking this double meaning, the post jokingly implies that the holidays and the genitals are directly related.
The somberness of the mentioned holiday, the crudeness of the slang term and the seriousness of medical procedures and gender dysphoria all contrast with each other in tone, creating a joke that's funny because of an unexpected shift in topic and tone, alongside its nonchalant, dry delivery (no punctuation, all lowercase).
@miriamrobern https://dice.camp/@miriamrobern/115787217011279661
'Spoon theory' is a concept used in psychotherapy to explain various aspects around the energy and motivation you need to live your daily life.
According to the concept, everyone has a finite amount of 'spoons' in a day. They're not literal spoons, but a metaphor for one's physical and emotional energy.
To do something, you expend energy, represented by these 'spoons' as some kind of currency. Just getting out of bed might 'cost' one spoon, but doing all your laundry might cost three spoons.
In the end, you might need or want to do more things than you have spoons for. In that case, you'd be out of spoons: out of energy. You simply can't do anything more. It's impossible no matter how important it is, since you have no more spoons to spend.
Forcing yourself to do something despite having no spoons to expend results in a kind of 'debt'; you'll start the next day with less spoons.
The point of this concept is to illustrate that your emotional and physical energy is a finite resource, and overstressing yourself beyond your limits is either harmful or outright impossible. This might help people who struggle with understanding their own or others' limits; some people don't believe in the idea that doing something can be impossible for someone, after all.
The post itself is a joke based on a double meaning.
To prepare soup for a lot of people, you'd require metaphorical spoons (i. e. energy) because cooking is a stressful activity, which mirrors the fact that you'd also need to provide literal spoons as utensils for everyone to enjoy the food.
'Boxing day' is an annual holiday mainly celebrated throughout the former British colonies on the 26th of December. In the past, Boxing Day was just another holiday on which people give gifts to others, but today it's part of the overall Christmas season.
In English, the word 'box' can be used as slang to mean genitals, usually a vagina.
The poster is a transgender woman and therefore might consider getting sexual reassignment surgery, which would give her a vagina.
As she mentions, this is her last Boxing Day without a box (i. e. a vagina), so it's implied she will go for sexual reassignment surgery some time before next year's Boxing Day.
The joke is based on the double meaning of the 'box' in 'Boxing Day', and the slang term 'box'. By invoking this double meaning, the post jokingly implies that the holidays and the genitals are directly related.
The somberness of the mentioned holiday, the crudeness of the slang term and the seriousness of medical procedures and gender dysphoria all contrast with each other in tone, creating a joke that's funny because of an unexpected shift in topic and tone, alongside its nonchalant, dry delivery (no punctuation, all lowercase).
@miriamrobern https://dice.camp/@miriamrobern/115787217011279661
Hey! This is The Post Explainer, a novelty account meant to provide explanations for posts across the #Fediverse.
I hope to make a positive impact on #Fedi in two ways:
- Helping people who struggle with getting jokes, or who are chronically 'out of the loop', understand popular posts.
- Allowing all kinds of people to discover Fedi content from bubbles and niche interests they know nothing about by explaining jargon and inside jokes.
Of course, since this involves boosting strangers' posts, and since it appears as an information source, it needs to be done responsibly.
In this post, I'll explain the standards I hold myself to.
Consent is my main priority.
- If you don't want your post explained here, write me and I'll remove it as soon as I read your message.
- I'll try to only boost posts that appear to be meant for a general audience and have garnered a couple of public interactions. I don't wanna put anyone into unwanted limelight. Sometimes, I'm mistaken. If so, message me.
- I'll CW posts containing the following subjects: politics and discourse, non-lighthearted mention of mental health issues, explicit sexual content, and/or violent/graphic/hateful content.
Community is important.
- This account is run and operated by a human and not a bot. No LLMs are involved in its operation.
- Above all, this account isn't meant to create, instigate or voyeuristically spread drama. It's meant to help people understand jokes and vagueposting, and perhaps others to discover funny and interesting posts from across the Fediverse they otherwise wouldn't have understood or stumbled upon.
A word about neutrality and factuality.
- Explaining a post isn't necessarily my endorsement of the post. Understanding the context or point of posts you disagree with can still be beneficial.
- However, I'll not boost obviously hateful content, trolls or engagement bait. I won't give bigots the audience they want, even critically.
- I'll try to neutrally explain a post's context without rating or bias…
- … however, I'm a human person and as such, I am fallible and necessarily subjective. There's a chance I'm missing the joke or the point myself. There's no true objectivity; any explanation can only be a subjective expression of someone's world view, since they choose what (not) to highlight.
- I can't explain everything since I'm not omniscient. The selection of posts is naturally going to align with my interests and fields of knowledge.
Explain for everyone.
- There's a wide variety of people on the Fediverse, and everyone's going to have different skills, experiences and levels of knowledge. Nobody is 'stupid' for not understanding a joke or not knowing something.
- I'll try to explain posts exhaustively, even if some things may seem obvious to most. There's always someone to whom something seemingly obvious isn't obvious at all!
- Typical context involves: why a joke is funny, what cultural or historic context a post is referring to, and what certain technical or subcultural jargon means.
- This account is supposed to be a safer space for everyone. There are no dumb questions. Nobody is judged for asking for an explanation.
Anyway, that's that! Nice to meet you all. Feedback is welcome.