#Adrian Teacher and the Subs

[gloomzi]

RULES ☆

key:

italicized if it's a preference

asteriks if there is a note at the bottom with further context

what i will write :3

canon x canon, canon x reader (if you send a request and want your reader to have specific attributes, tell me, or i'll make it as neutral as possible), canon x oc for friends

readers of any gender (request specific pronouns please! neos, any pronouns, he/they, she/they, whatever floats your boat! if you give no pronouns and no indication of a gender for your reader such as f!/m!/gn!, i will default to they/them or dm you if you're off anon)

queer relationships, het relationships*, polyamory, monogamy, open relationships

dom, sub or verse readers/dom, sub or verse canon characters

most kinks are okay (including stuff like blood, impact play and weapon play) so feel free to get specific in my inbox

neurodivergent or disabled readers (if it's something i'm unfamiliar with i will do research and try my best, but please feel free to leave me pointers in your request to help me!)

oneshots, short series (think 2 or 3 parts), drabbles, headcanons

what i wont write :3

no rape (dubcon is on thin ice), drugging, abuse*, yandere, pregnancy, pedophilia, student/teacher (even if its a college student) or large age gap pairings

nsfw for underage characters

no scat/piss/emeto, no cnc

no comfort works for csa/sa, self harm or eating disorders (writing this would probably trigger me, sorry)

long x reader series

further info :3

you must be +18 to request nsfw or interact with nsfw content (you will be blocked if i catch you breaking this rule)

i wont write verbal/physical abuse between the main pairing but i wouldn't mind doing it as something the reader or the canon character have dealt with in the past (whether that be from a parent/ex partner/friend doesnt matter, you can specify in the request). if the canon character has been abused in their source material i will also include this ofc.

i wouldnt mind writing stuff like codependency or like kill for each other type shit, but there's a fine line between like. guy who kills somebody in defense of their partner bc it makes sense for the story/their character (think characters like adrian chase for example) vs making a character who doesn't rly kill people do that bc then it comes across more ooc and sometimes even yandereish...if that makes sense.

please give me an idea of what you want in a request, don't just send "character x reader" (give me a scenario or at least say like "fluff with [insert character]").

im not the fastest writer unless im really excited about a prompt, please be patient. thanks to adhd i can be a bit of a procrastinator, but if you sent a request please feel free to ask for progress updates (just give me the specifics of what you asked for so i know it's yours). depending on how busy i am irl, if i have writers block and how many requests i have, writing might go faster or slower.

i'll try to do things first come, first serve, but if somebody sends in a new idea that really excites me i might write theirs first even if yours came before theirs bc i have adhd brain and i can write things faster when i'm rly hyped about em

erm idk if anyone cares but im a self shipper so yeah perhaps fics with my f/o's will deranged (in a loving way), if you want a list of my f/o's for those concerned with stuff like sharing, here is a list of mine, i don't mind sharing tho <3 my content is aimed towards selfshippers and i wouldn't wanna exclude anyone who shares so much love for the same lil guys as me

some characters i wont write x f!reader/m!reader for, please check this list before requesting (this is not an issue with any straight/bi/other interpretations of these characters, it just has to do with my comfort level and how i interpret that character)

like i mentioned before, i have adhd and i am specifically unmedicated at the moment, which means sometimes i'll write a lot more of one fandom than the others i'm into. this does not mean you can't request a different fandom! i will always be multifandom, i will always love my past fandoms, it just might take me a bit longer to write your request.

at the end of the day i just wanna keep things fun, writing has been a hobby of mine for over a decade now, so pls try to be kind to me and i'll be kind back! if any of these rules are unclear just send me an ask and i'll try to clarify!

#icky.info #icky.txt #icky.fics

[virtualbunny]

Miller's squad: dom, switch or sub?

listen this is my first time attempting to write so don't go bonkers on me for having a bad imagination. Anyways, let's gooooo

John Miller: Dom, he's a high school teacher and a captain which means he basically has to be a dominant person (i suppose) and maybe that goes for in the bedroom also.

Mike Horvath: Also a dom, he's second in command which also means he's also quite dominant if i'm correct. I mean, he litreally threw Reiben onto the ground and pointed a gun at him.

Timothy Upham: A sub, i know i know it's a popular opinion but his aura ( idk lol ) screams that about him.

Daniel Jackson: And again, a dom. Maybe i'm just biased but the way he grabbed Steamboat Willes shirt makes me crumble.

Richard Reiben: For the fourth time also a dom. Again, maybe i'm just biased but the way he yells and his nonchalant attitude makes him seem that way.

Irwin Wade: Here's an unpopular opinion, he's a switch with a dom lean. Why? you may ask, well the way he scolded the guys and the way he scream cocksucker etc at the beach made him seem that way.

Stanley Mellish: To me he seems like a switch with a dom lean, idk why but he's a litte aggresive but also kind in a way but mostly harsh. Again, idk it's hard to tell. Or maybe he doesn't have lean.

Adrian Caparzo: Unpopular opinion again, he's a switch with a sub lean. Don't know how to explain it well but it just seems right.

Okay people i'm done, my mind has found it's inner peace (not really). Also i'm very sorry if this was bad my brain lacks knowledge. ALSO AGAIN i need feedback pls give me some but don't be harsh i'll cry myself to sleep again. HAVE A GREAT DAY/NIGHT xx <3

#saving private ryan #private jackson #private reiben #medic wade #captain miller #sergent horvath #private mellish #private caparzo #corproal upham #daniel jackson #richard reiben #irwin wade #stanley mellish #adrian caparzo #timothy upham #john miller #mike horvath

[bandcampsnoop]

1/30/22.

I can't really recall when I first heard Apollo Ghosts (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada) or even when I bought "Landmark", but I remember thinking that Adrian Teacher is a great songwriter (also check out the amazing band Adrian Teacher and the Subs)

"Pink Tiger" - Apollo Ghosts first physical release in nearly 10 years only serves to reinforce my impression of songwriting genius. I immediately think of The Spires, but there are softer moments (check out "Pink Tiger") that can recall similar sounds from Yo La Tengo.

This is released by Vancouver based label You've Changed Records.

#Apollo Ghosts #Vancouver #British Columbia #Canada #Adrian Teacher #Adrian Teacher and the Subs #The Spires #Yo La Tengo #You've Changed Records #Bandcamp

[bandcampsnooper]

1/30/22.

I can't really recall when I first heard Apollo Ghosts (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada) or even when I bought "Landmark", but I remember thinking that Adrian Teacher is a great songwriter (also check out the amazing band Adrian Teacher and the Subs)

"Pink Tiger" - Apollo Ghosts first physical release in nearly 10 years only serves to reinforce my impression of songwriting genius. I immediately think of The Spires, but there are softer moments (check out "Pink Tiger") that can recall similar sounds from Yo La Tengo.

This is released by Vancouver based label You've Changed Records.

#Apollo Ghosts #Vancouver #British Columbia #Bandcamp #You've Changed Records #Adrian Teacher #Adrian Teacher and the Subs #The Spires #Yo La Tengo

[yo-adrian]

NEW INDIE CYBERSIX RP ACCOUNT

Just made this account and hoping for some RP partners. *fingers crossed* I'm playing Cybersix from the show of the same name. It's kind of a dark superhero story about a genetically engineered, leather-clad heroine who spends her days posing as a (male) literature teacher, Adrian Seidelman, and her nights fighting against creatures her creator sends after her. Her love interest is a biology teacher at the same school who is best friends with Adrian and has no idea he's really Cybersix. While some familiarity with the series helps, it's not a prerequisite. Crossovers with similar genres are welcome. The link to my first starter is:

Or I can make a starter just for you if you'd like. Hit me up and we'll plan something out!

Edit: I can't find the ask box for this account, so it may be a sub account? Not sure. But try the ask box @sparklezoi if there's not one here. Sorry for the inconvenience!

Edit on edit: Never mind. I found the ask here, so we're good to go!

#cybersix rp #cybersix #indie rp #independent rp #advertising #ooc

[anachroniisms-archived]

hhi all! so after andy and marius i realized i needed someone soft...er. here’s my poetic and peaceful soul - 

⋆ ◦ ° ☾ emily rudd + cisfemale + she/her— have you seen juliet mancini? they sure have been hanging out at city hall a lot recently. they are a twenty-five year old known as the pacifist, and they currently work for the cobras as a council member, which they’ve been doing for two weeks. a bisexual pisces, they are empathetic + intelligent, as well as idealistic + obsequious. Ink stains, lavender, strolls through the palace of versailles. × rey. twenty one. she/her. pst (antons wc)

The Pacifist; -

tw: drug use, death, protracted disease

TL;DR: A Conflict-Averse Soul and A Smart Cookie and A Hardcore Romantic. Born in New York to a heroin addict. Half-sister of Elias Duval. Adopted by her aunt when after her mother died and thus moved across the world to Romania. Her aunt was married to a surgeon in the Romanian mafia who supplied the organ black market in Europe. Like her mother and her aunt, Juliet has Huntington’s disease. She watched her aunt deteriorate and pass away because of it. 

Knows her own body and mind are just a ticking clock. 

Joined the Romanian mafia as a hacker out of familial pressure. Found a way to escape by convincing the Don to let her go find the supposedly kidnapped Anton Petran. Has been hiding in Valdez ever since. Now works for a Cobras as a council woman by night. By day, she is a graduate teaching assistant working towards her PhD in machine learning and artificial intelligence. 

BACKSTORY

Juliet was born on the first day of Spring and perhaps that’s why she was able to bloom even in such great darkness. Spring is cold in the city of New York and it was not unusual that March 20th saw chill that year. Juliet came with the spring and her mother, Hannah, began to deteriorate with the winter. Hannah harbored a terrible heroin addiction and this led to Juliet and her half-brother Elias having a troubled childhood. Juliet would later come to learn that her mother was also inflicted with a disease (Huntington’s, they called it,) that would pass down to her genetically, but she wouldn’t learn about it she was at least thirteen and she wouldn’t feel it in her blood till she was at least twenty-five.  Hannah’s heroin addiction took her long before the disease did. 

When Hannah passed away, Juliet’s brother Elias went off to live with his biological father. Juliet, went sent to Bacau, Romania to live with her mother’s estranged sister, Joana, her husband, Matthias, and her maternal grandparents. She was only 9 years old. While the family had effectively disowned Hannah, they welcomed Juliet with warm and open arms. They adopted Juliet and she became a Mancini. 

The Mancini’s though, for all their kindness, came with their own brand of secrets. From day one, Juliet became familiar with the idea of blood. Bad blood, blood money, having blood on your hands - these concepts were made quite clear to her by her uncle, Matthias. Matthias Mancini was a renowned surgeon at the Anadolu Medical Center in Kocaeli, Turkey and a prominent member of the Romanian mafia. The man spent most of his days with his hands dipped in blood. The organ black market in Europe was a dark and dangerous thing, but it saw an influx in supply thanks to Matthias’ handiwork. Despite his job in Turkey and their residence in Romania, Juliet never felt as if she had an absentee uncle. Matthias made a concentrated effort to be part of his niece’s life. He made this attempt to make up for his wife’s absense, who spent most of her days bedridden and to herself because of the Huntington’s that afflicted her.  

When Matthias wasn’t around though, Juliet was raised by her maternal grandparents. They were a kind pair, former members of the mafia themselves, but now grown soft in their old age. They found time for things like languages and literature and they brought Juliet into these spheres as well. Shakespeare. Of course Juliet leaned into the bard when she learned of her namesake. Her youth saw an artistic renaissance of sorts and Juliet would spend days holed up in the library or at her aunt’s bedside. When Joana was finally consumed by Huntington’s, it was decided that Juliet would attend preparatory school. This would be a change for Juliet as she was homeschooled for the first first few years of her life.

Juliet had to pinpoint it, she would say her first and best friend was Anton Petran. When Matthias decided that Juliet would attend preparatory school, the young girl had felt her heart sing despite the tragedy that still hung heavy over the family. She ignored the intentions behind this choice - ‘It’s never unwise to invest in the future of the Romanian mafia.’- and instead focused on the silver linings. Finally! She’d have teachers and classes and schedules, - but most of all she would have friends. This didn’t go quite to plan. Juliet’s anachronistic taste tagged her as odd and isolated student. Put plainly, the other kids found her kind of weird. But no matter. In a few weeks time Juliet had met Anton and all the superficiality melted away. He was smart and tenacious and she liked that. One of the few that could keep up with her. She knew she’d found a lifelong camaraderie in this boy.

Her grandparents heard enough about him too. She invited him over for dinner once, so that they and her uncle could meet him. It was a simple enough affair. “I want you to meet my best friend.” 

The event was the beginning of the descent.

Petran. “Any relation to Adrian Petran?”

An innocent enough question in Juliet’s eyes but she could see what it meant to her best friend. In a couple of weeks, Anton was dragged into the belly of the beast (the mafia) and all Juliet could do was jump in after him and hope they didn’t both get digested.  

Juliet joined the Romanian mafia out of deep concern for her friend (possibly, her only friend?). Matthias, who’d been steering his own daughter towards this path, was over the moon. But as she watched her friend climb the ranks, a new purpose came into existence for the young woman - she wanted to staunch the flow of blood. While Juliet had a distaste for the organization, its values, and its methods - being part of the Romanian mafia meant that she could actively do things to keep the body count low. She could, literally save lives. With her own life on a timer because of a disease that sit in her DNA, nothing felt nobler use of time.

Juliet studied linguistics at the Sorbonne university in Paris and, for the first few years, she assisted her uncle in those black market deals. Her personal work-ethic became clear: no pointless acts of violence and no killing. Indeed, she found her own disposition much more suited for cyber-crime. Juliet switched to computer science for her masters - which she would earn at Cambridge.

As it turned out, cyber crime was the right fit for her. She excelled and, as a result, gained a reputation for it in the Romanian mafia. Juliet loved it because it lacked blood. Meanwhile, she watched Anton skyrocket through the ranks. By the time she was entering Cambridge he was second in command of a clandestine sub-group within the mafia.

But this is the part where things get muddled for Juliet. Suddenly, Anton was kidnapped by another large mafia in Europe - or at least that’s what the Don told them. The Romanian mafia looked for Petran after his sudden disappearance, of course, but all traces of Petran were just... gone.

Juliet was not going to give up the search so easily. Any attempts to reach out to Anton were meeting dead ends. What if he was still out there alive? What if he was hurt?  She approached the sub-group that Anton had held leadership in and sought out membership, hoping that doing so would help in her search for her friend. It did, but it came with a price.

Anton was running with a dangerous crowd you see, and now so was she. Juliet was on the frontlines of the bloodbath once more. She despised it. In an attempt to keep the blood off her hands, Juliet suggested that her next assignment be to find Anton Petran. She lied and said she had a few clues, said she’d managed to catch his trail. The Don agreed. Juliet left. 

For days she searched. And then finally, on a cold Saturday, while on her computer in a small cafe, she found a trace of him in Colorado (of all places.) Juliet ventured out to Valdez and sure enough, there was Anton Petran, not kidnapped, not hurt, but rather…. hiding. When she found him in Valdez -- Juliet decided to stay. Maybe, she thought, she could hide here too - far away from the bloodshed of her old life. 

Now, Juliet is part of the Cobras. She’s only been here a couple of weeks. She is still a pacifist at heart.  She continues to spoof her trail so that the mafia thinks she is still searching the world for their former second-in-command. Occasionally, she even sends them false updates. Juliet is determined to keep Anton and herself safe in this town. She has been here for under a year and, when she’s not with the Cobras, she is working towards her PhD. in artificial intelligence and machine learning. She is a graduate teacher’s assistant at Valdez University.

PERSONALITY / OTHER

personification of an Anne Sexton poem

stops to smell the roses

speaks six languages including: english, romanian, french, italian, spanish, esperanto

always tinkering, always inventing

loves a good conlang challenge

pastel ravenclaw aesthetic

advocate for peace, always

Wears longsleeves or covers the romanian mafia tattoo on her right forearm.

proud cat mom to one cat named Sylvia after the poet and author Sylvia Plath.

While she was working the cyber-crime sector of the Romanian mafia, she used the alias “Miss Honey.” Sometimes she still does. 

Has Huntington’s Disease. Her body and her mind are a ticking clock.

Methodology: no killing. no unnecessary violence. 

A smart cookie. Undergraduate degree in linguistics from Sorbonne University in Paris. Master’s degree in computer science from Cambridge. Now, Juliet is a graduate teacher’s sssistant at Valdez University. There she is working towards her PhD in artificial intelligence and machine learning.

WANTED CONNECTIONS

[ will expand on these soon ]

Confide ! - Her doctor and confidant! Huntington’s scares Juliet. She saw what it did to her mother. This person is more than just Juliet’s doctor, they’re her shoulder to lean on.

Geek ! - come geek out with Juliet !! Maybe they’re fellow PhD candidates, maybe they both go to Valdez University, maybe she’s their TA.

Adventure ! These are people Juliet has gone on tinder dates with. Because of her condition, Juliet doesn’t think long term romance is something she’s destined for. However, she loves the idea of romance and love and wears rose-tinted glasses about the whole experience. She’s on Tinder and falls in love with everyone she matches with.

Cry ! - The one that Juliet fell a little too hard for. The one she ghosted without an explanation.

Remember ! - If you have have a character that ever dealt with cybercrime - there’s a chance you ran into Juliet’s alias “Miss Honey.” Juliet is currently hiding from the Romanian mafia for whom she was a hacker. She’s trying to bury and hide her past, but old habits die hard.

Hiss ! - This council woman loves her fellow snakes !

Read ! - Juliet runs a book club. Join it! 

#outlaw.intro #{ the pacifist } #{ the pacifist intro }

[megatraven]

If you were the substitute teacher for any fictional school setting, which class are you subbing in for and what do you do?

ohh thats an interesting question. honestly i’d love to sub in for a class in the descendants universe O: i’d love to teach a class on magic (assuming it’ll be like. unbanned at some point LOL)

that or i’d love to sub in for one of Adrian’s (Bloodlines) art classes bc he and his classmates (or what we saw of them) were really funny and cool

[inknerd]

April Wrap-Up 2019

In regards to reading, I feel like April started out really well and then kept rolling on just fine until the last week of the month; that’s when I had an exam to do and I also started my five-weeks practice at a school where I currently have a ton of things to plan and fix, aaaaaaaaahhh. Still I managed to read 11 books in April, which is fun.

ARCHENEMIES by MARISSA MEYER ★★★★☆ | 474 pages | 7 days to read | Published 2018

I have this thing with this series where I start the book and is like meh and gets annoyed at insignificant things just because and then it kicks into a higher gear and then I’m LIVING for it. I don’t know why I do this. + I like Nova as a character a lot. She has such interesting inner conflicts and argues with herself what the right thing to do is, and with the added Agent N in this book the discussion of who’s right, the Renegades or the Anarchist, becomes way more interesting than in the first book. - I still don’t like Adrian. Can’t explain it. I just don’t. I also can’t believe that more people haven’t figured out some stuff yet... 

THE COLD IS IN HER BONES by PETERNELLE VAN ARSDALE ★★★☆☆ | 288 pages | 5 days to read | Published 2019

This was a book I desperatly wanted to like. Because Medusa-inspired! That cover! Yeah, I thought I’d love this book to no end. Sadly, it didn’t really live up to my expectations, but was still a fine read. + The cover, the cover, the cover. This book is also inspired by the tale of Medusa but is set in a more Nordic setting (I recognised a lot of Swedish words okay, I’m obliged to like it). The story also has it beautiful and investing parts, and the book in general has a very nice message to it including knowledge, forgiveness, understanding etc. - I can’t say the characters were that interesting and while this book was short it felt like it dragged a bit, at the same time the ending was over very quick and felt anti-climatic.

GOODBYE, PERFECT by SARA BARNARD ★★★☆☆ | 300 pages | 1 day to read | Published 2018

+ This book dives into an interesting and disturbing subject, and it was very interesting to read while being... - ...somewhat frustrating? It feels somewhat wrong to say it but some decisions the characters did just made me annoyed rather than feel for them. In the end, this book was interesting but not really my cup of tea.

RED DOC> by ANNE CARSON ★★☆☆☆ | 171 pages | 2 days to read | Published 2013

This was another book I’d won rather than bought myself, and while I’m still interested in reading some more of Carson’s poetry, this book completely flew over my head. This was apparently a sequel to Autobiography of Red, which I haven’t read, but it’s supposed to be a standalone sequel. + I liked all the references to Proust’s In Search of Lost Time, despite not having read those books yet....lol, there’s also many references to greek mythology in general, so that’s nice. Several parts were also very beautiful. - As I mentioned... I didn’t quite get what was going on most of the time, and even when I think I got it I didn’t really like/understand it.

MIRAGE by SOMAIYA DAUD ★★★☆☆ | 311 pages | 2 days to read | Published 2018

I didn’t review this one directly after I’d read it, and while I remember liking it I have a hard time remembering it now... + I liked the worldbuilding just fine, but can’t wait to see it more realised. This book seems to spark with colour and definitely has an interesting premise. The different perspectives on a culture you can have depending on how you were raised to perceive said culture was also one of the more interesting sub-plots of this book. - There was this insta-romance that I did not care for at all, and I feel like there were different directions the plot could have taken to make it more exciting in the long run. The characters were meh.

VI ÄR ROMER by CECILIA KÖLJING & SOFIA HULTQVIST ★★★★☆ | 272 pages | 1 day to read | Published 2014

The 8th of April I went to the library to return a book and while there I found a smaller shelf they’d put up to celebrate the International Romani Day, this book being one they’d included. + It had so many nice pictures and life-stories, all of them centerering around Romani peoples’ experience in Sweden together with some general information about Romani history, culture etc. It was very educational, interesting and heartbreaking at the same time.

EDUCATED by TARA WESTOVER ★★★★☆ | 357 pages | 4 days to read | Published 2018

+ Very thought-provoking- well-written, and interesting read. It made me frustrated and sad and it was an overall emotional experience, you could say.  - It’s a bit hard to review memoirs, I think, but at times it felt very... dense? Like, it felt like I made no progress in reading it.

KRIS by KARIN BOYE ★★☆☆☆ | 214 pages | 6 days to read | Published 2012/1934

I’ve wanted to read one of Boye’s novels ever since reading and falling in love with her poetry, this book’s premise also sounded creepily appliable to yours truly; a 20-year-old studying to become a teacher in crisis? Yikes. Sadly, it didn’t live up to what I’d read of her before. + Parts of it were very beautiful and thought-provoking, and it was really interesting to see perspectives on mental illness and homosexuality in 30′s Sweden. - While thought-provoking, I didn’t really understand the full message behind it. It felt like it was digging for something and I just wasn’t getting it. Large parts of it were quite boring to read, actually.

THE WINTER OF THE WITCH by KATHERINE ARDEN ★★★★☆ | 384 pages | 1 day to read | Published 2019

The finale to the Winternight Trilogy! Nothing can really compare to the first book, The Bear and the Nightingale, even though the later two books in the series are very entertaining in their own right. + The characters, the romance, the magic...I am still completely in love with this world. - The third book definitely took some turns I wasn’t expecting, and while some of them were good there were others I wasn’t as invested in. Surprisingly, I wasn’t really interested in the more obvious blend of real russian history and this fantasy story; it felt a little clunky.

A CURSE SO DARK AND LONELY by BRIGID KEMMERER ★★★★☆ | 496 pages | 2 days to read | Published 2019

I’d heard both praise and kind of meh feelings about this book, but I was pleasantly surprised! While not having the most interesting plot I quickly got sucked in and couldn’t stop reading. Close to 500 pages just flew by. + The characters were fun and engaging and the romance had it’s charm, and while I thought the plot took some strange turns sometimes it didn’t hinder my enjoyment of this book much. - As mentioned, while somewhat investing I sometimes doubted the necessity of certain plot-points or twists, while not wanting to frown at them too hard since they might come more into play in the sequel. 

TO BEST THE BOYS by MARY WEBER ★★★☆☆ | 352 pages | 1 day to read | Published 2019

This book managed to surprise me, yet not necessarily in an entire good way? + The characters are somewhat interesting and this story really sucks you in and is pretty easy to read. It also has its twists and turn and manage to make me feel invested enough in them. - The characters, while somewhat fun to read about, feel like every-book stereotypes. Most confunding is that the maze the characters are supposed to get through are almost sidelined by everything else that is going on. I think it took like half the book before they even entered the competition? To me the scenes in the maze felt like the ones most boring and predictable in this book.

#reading wrap-up #reading wrap-up: april 2019 #books #ya #book reviews #julia reads #my post #reading #booklr

[sistercelluloid]

Welcome to another edition of TINTYPE TUESDAY! This week, we’re off to see The Wizard of Oz again on the big screen, courtesy of TCM and Fathom Events. For tickets, just click here!

But before you head out, let’s take a peek at what was really going on behind the wizard’s curtain.

The tornado in Kansas was nothing compared to the blizzard of cast and crew changes—not to mention the many mishaps, including a couple of near-fatalities. Even Toto didn’t escape unscathed…

So hang on to your hamper—here we go!

Dorothy: Both MGM unit head Arthur Freed and music maven Roger Edens fought for Judy Garland, but Louis B. Mayer—who often derided the painfully insecure teenager as “my little hunchback”—pressured producer Mervyn LeRoy to do whatever it took to land Shirley Temple for the lead. Fortunately, all attempts to get 20th Century Fox to loan out the wildly popular moppet went nowhere. (However, the long-standing rumor that MGM offered to swap the services of Clark Gable and Jean Harlow for Temple is false; Harlow succumbed to renal failure in June 1937, before MGM even had the rights to the book.) Deanna Durbin, whom Mayer openly preferred to Garland, was also considered—but because the film initially had a sub-plot involving Betty Jaynes, another operatic singer, she was dropped from the running. So Mayer had to “settle” for Judy.  (Oh and her ruby slippers were originally silver, as they were in the book. But in the age of Technicolor, red won out.)

The Scarecrow: Buddy Ebsen was the first loose-limbed, lanky dancer to step into the role, which would have worked out much better for him, as we’ll soon see… but Ray Bolger ultimately carried the day (and the hay). He also carried lines on his face from the rubber prosthetics for more than a year after filming ended. For that kind of grief, you’d think they’d have left his original dance number—longer, trippier, and choreographed by none other than Busby Berkeley—in the film:

The Tin Man: Much to his disappointment, Bolger was first cast in this clunkier role. If he’d only had the heart… but he longed to be the Scarecrow, the part he’d seen his childhood hero, Fred Stone, play in the 1902 Broadway show—which is what inspired him to hit the boards in the first place. “I’m not a tin performer—I’m fluid!” he reportedly pleaded to LeRoy, who finally caved in, allowing Bolger and Ebsen to swap roles. Ebsen was an absolute peach about the whole thing, even teaching Bolger the “wobbly walk” he’d perfected in rehearsals. But no good deed goes unpunished, and this one almost killed him: after about a week of breathing in the toxic aluminum powder that covered his “tin” face, Ebsen was rushed to the hospital in critical condition. (At first, Mayer—who assumed other people’s morals were as low as his own—thought the actor was faking an illness as some sort of contract ploy. So he dispatched his minions to the hospital—where they found Ebsen strapped into an iron lung.)

When Jack Haley, on loan from Fox, arrived to replace him, the make-up artists were much more careful: they protected his face with a thick layer of white greasepaint and diluted the aluminum powder into a paste. (Oh, and they never told him why his predecessor left the film—on a stretcher.) Ebsen didn’t vanish entirely, though: his voice can still be heard in the group vocals, as there was no time to re-record them.

And given all the gruesome drama surrounding the Tin Man, perhaps it’s appropriate that they used chocolate syrup to produce his tears—a technique later used by Hitchcock for the blood circling the drain in Psycho.

The Cowardly Lion: Bert Lahr’s costume was made of actual lion pelts—and weighed almost 100 pounds. The valiant wardrobe team did their best to rinse the sweat out of the sopping-wet suit at the end of each day, but, in the words of one unlucky staffer, “it reeked.”

The Wicked Witch of the West: Initially, the witch was fashioned along the glamorous lines of the evil queen in Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. When she morphed into something decidedly more hag-like—including green skin, a long, pointy nose and a wart or ten—Gale Sondergaard, MGM’s original choice, pointed her pumps toward the exit. Margaret Hamilton was cast just three days before shooting began. Told by her agent she was up for a part in the film, she asked which one. “The wicked witch—what else?” he helpfully replied. (That 10% they get? It ain’t for morale-boosting!)

She didn’t get much more respect after she signed on: her dressing room was a makeshift canvas tent, while Billie Burke had a hideaway that MGM dreams are made of. “She had a pink and blue dressing room, with pink and blue powder puffs and pink and blue bottles filled with powder and baby oil—and pink and blue peppermints,” Hamilton later recalled, admitting that she sometimes popped in for a nap on the glamorous Glinda’s days off.

And God knows she needed the rest, as she proved to be the second casualty on the set: In the scene where she seems to disappear in a cloud of fire and smoke, she very nearly did. At the last minute, a moving platform was supposed to lower her out of harm’s way, but her cape got snagged and she was trapped amid the flames—which fed on the greasepaint and copper makeup slathered on her face, arms and hands. Before she could be pulled free, the fire had seared into her skin, leaving her with second- and third-degree burns. Wise woman that she was, she later refused to do a post-production pick-up scene that involved a flaming broomstick. So they had to make do with maiming her stand-in: the smoke mechanism exploded, burning and permanently scarring Betty Danko’s legs.

The Wizard of Oz: After Ed Wynn refused the part because it wasn’t big enough, MGM turned to W.C. Fields, who thought the paycheck wasn’t big enough. During a few protracted rounds of haggling—they offered $75,000, he wanted $100,000—the producers burned while Fields fiddled. They finally gave and offered the role to Frank Morgan.

Oh and here’s a story you might have to close your eyes and click your heels together to believe, but some swear it’s true, and if it isn’t (which is probably the case), it should be: When wardrobe staffers went scavenging through second-hand stores to find the perfect tattered coat for Morgan, they returned with an armload of samples for Victor Fleming to choose from. He settled on one he thought conveyed just the right touch of “shabby gentility”—and, idly turning out the pockets, found a label with L. Frank Baum’s name on it. An MGM publicist reportedly contacted the tailor and Baum’s widow, who confirmed it was his (he did live in L.A. for a time), and the studio presented her with the coat at filming’s end.

Toto:  Shirley Temple may never have made it to Oz, but she did meet Toto five years before Garland did. Terry the terrier appeared in 16 films, including Temple’s Bright Eyes, as well as Fury, The Women and George Washington Slept Here. In Tortilla Flat, she re-teamed with Morgan and Fleming, and in Twin Beds, she reunited with Hamilton. Her $125 weekly salary for Oz was more than double than that of the Munchkins, who each earned $50 a week. And as it turned out, Terry should have gotten combat pay: one of the Wicked Witch’s heavy-heeled henchmen stepped on her tiny paw and broke it, sidelining her for several weeks. After filming, Garland, who’d fallen in love with the dog, wanted to adopt her, but the owner wouldn’t… surrender Terry.

All of which bring us to the director. Or directors. Richard Thorpe, whose previous work consisted mainly of quickie westerns, was first at the helm, but LeRoy felt he was shooting the film more like a low-budget oater than a lavish fantasy, rushing scenes along and not giving the production the care it deserved.

While he searched for a replacement, LeRoy left the project in the tender hands of George Cukor—who, in his brief stint as caretaker, made some critical changes. First, he ditched Garland’s blonde wig and heavy glamour-girl makeup, which made her look ridiculous and feel worse.

He also told Garland to relax and simply be herself—a lovely, vulnerable teenage girl—which was just what the part called for. Then he did something less crucial but pretty fabulous: he brought in Adrian to design the Wicked Witch’s costume. Which, if you peer beyond the black-on-black, is a real work of art, with its lace bodice, cut-out mutton sleeves, and pouch dangling fetchingly from the hip. To her pointy hat, Adrian added a long, silky-sheer scarf that floats menacingly behind her, like an ill wind.

Cukor was never meant to stay on when production began in earnest; he was due over at Gone with the Wind. Victor Fleming took the reins in October 1938, and oversaw everything but the sepia-tone scenes (including the Over the Rainbow number) that book-end Dorothy’s adventures in Oz. But the following February, he was called away suddenly… to direct  Gone with the Wind after Cukor was fired. Fleming’s close friend King Vidor came aboard to gently shepherd the crucial Kansas scenes through to completion, but never publicly acknowledged his involvement until after Fleming’s death in 1949.

And as if Fleming didn’t have enough on his mind during the shoot, he also had to protect Garland from her scenery-chewing companions on the Yellow Brick Road, seasoned old vaudeville pros who were none too excited about surrendering the spotlight to her (as she laughingly recalls in a clip from The Jack Paar Show, below). Ironically, her only close friend on the set was Hamilton, a former kindergarten teacher who gave her some much-needed mothering.

Whew! There’s enough material behind the scenes of The Wizard of Oz for a whole other movie… but in the meantime, enjoy seeing the original again on the big screen!

TINTYPE TUESDAY is a weekly feature on Sister Celluloid, with fabulous classic movie pix (and backstory!) to help you make it to Hump Day! For previous editions, just click here—and why not bookmark the page, to make sure you never miss a week?

TINTYPE TUESDAY: Head Off to See THE WIZARD OF OZ Again on the Big Screen! Welcome to another edition of TINTYPE TUESDAY! This week, we're off to see The Wizard of Oz…

#betty jaynes #bright eyes #buddy ebsen #clark gable #deanna durbin #fathom events #frank morgan #fury #george cukor #george washington slept here #jack haley #jean harlow #judy garland #louis b. mayer #margaret hamilton #mgm #ray bolger #richard thorpe #shirley temple #tcm #terry #the wizard of oz #the women #tortilla flat #toto #twin beds

[cyberphuck]

Golden Afternoon

As much time as we spent together, Adrian and I didn't actually share a lot of classes: we had different homerooms and different lunch periods and were even in different biology classes with the same teacher, like the educational powers that be wanted to keep us apart.

Or his mom did. I didn't know what kind of stuff witches could do. Adrian said she did stuff with plants, but maybe she had a plant that could warp the fabric of reality to keep that pink-haired girl away from her beloved only child. Chastity plant. Cockblock plant.

But she couldn't actually forbid him from seeing me, because even Mrs. Varsh knew that would only lead to me immediately becoming pregnant with his baby or something. So I could still come and visit him in his mom's shop after softball practice.

The best time to hang out with Adrian without his mom looking over our shoulders and making sure we left room between us for the Mother Goddess was just after he closed up the shop, around six. School let out at four, and I got out of softball practice at five thirty, which meant that after taking the bus to the library on Superior street and walking down to what some people called "Broomstick Boulevard" I only had to loiter among the foxglove and bergamot for fifteen minutes before Adrian locked the front door and we could hang out upstairs in the house, or downstairs in his mom's work room, where we were definitely not allowed to be under any circumstances. She kept a lot of cool stuff in there, though.

On a warm, bright afternoon on a day that hadn't bothered deciding whether it was late spring or early summer, I pushed open the door to Mrs. Varsh's apothecary shop, hearing the bell on the door jingle at the same time that magic prickled up my arm. Adrian called the feeling "like a spider wearing stilettos," and it got sharper the stronger the magic was. Sometimes it was pleasant. Other times not so much.

A pink-haired sophomore in dirt-smeared white pants and a Cooperhawks jersey didn't really fit in most places, but I stuck out like a goddamn pink-haired high schooler in a softball uniform in the shop, practically neon-bright in a place that was all earthtones and dusty sunlight filtering through the front window. There were three customers still browsing when I came to lean against the front counter where Adrian was marking things down in a ledger in his awful scribbly handwriting. He flashed me a "too cool and handsome to smile" look in greeting, and I gave him a "it's good to be so much cooler than anyone over thirty" nod back before turning to inspect what were considered impulse buys for a witch: bundles of sage, glass bottles, crystals of every color. Adrian was one of the slouchiest, sneering, fuck-the-system people I knew, so it was always weird to watch him stand up straight and smile charmingly at customers as they approached the counter, the piercings in his lips flashing as he said things like "Good afternoon Ms. Hemlock" and "Yes ma'am" and "Have a wonderful evening, say hello to the other ladies in your coven." I knew his mom was strict about manners, especially when it came to people who could give you crossed eyes and watery shits for a week if you pissed them off, but I still snickered at him and got a sub-zero glare in return.

A couple of sales and "Thank you ma'am, come back soon"s and insincere smiles later, Adrian was finally able to dash up to the front door and lock it, flipping the sign hanging in the window to 'CLOSED.' "I thought that broad with the purple hat was never going to decide what strain of marigold she wanted," he groaned as he came back to the counter. "For fuck's sake, if you've got a rash just get some cream for it. There's a reason western medicine exists, people, it's because it, like, works."

"It wasn't for a spell?"

"Nobody uses marigold in spellwork," Adrian snorted. "It's the main ingredient in poultices for skin conditions. She had her hands bandaged. Either she's been carving runes directly into her palms, which is stupid as hell, or she's got some kind of itch from forgetting to wash her hands after she works."

I wrinkled my nose. "Ew."

"Ew is right, and I wish they'd just take it to the clinic, because when mom finds out she's gonna make me wipe everything down with vinegar and lemon again." He leaned against the counter. "As if she isn't already piling work on me. I told her that if she wanted a slave, she should just build a Construct."

My eyebrows went up. "You said that to your mother?"

He shrugged. "Yeah." A pause. "Sort of. But she's been making me do all kinds of boring shit-- grinding down herbs, cleaning out the silk screens, poking plants."

"Grunt work," I said, stepping behind the counter and looking at the boxes of crystals lined up beside the cash register. "I bet you wouldn't have to do that stuff if you were a girl."

He throws his hands up. "I know! I'd be elbow-deep in all kinds of cool witchy shit by now if I were a chick, but I'm not even allowed to practice magic just because I'm a son instead of a daughter. I don't want to wear a pointy hat and dance naked under the moon or anything, I just want to learn to lay runes a little better. I've been looking at them, a little, and I think I can almost understand how they work. If I could just get a little training-- but if I even mentioned it to my mom, she'd freak out."

"That's bullshit." Stuck into a corner beside the register is a little white box about half the size of my hand; I winkle it out with my finger and then pull it towards me to open it.

"She hasn't found out yet, but I've been experimenting with-- oh shit, don't open that, Ash!"

I grin, already pulling the lid off. "What's in there, a horrible gooey demon? Severed finger? Used needle?" Nestled on a bed of cotton is a shiny black stone, a little chunkier than I was used to seeing in the shop. Someone's carved a simple little rune into it, rubbed with gold leaf to make it stand out.

"Don't look, it was supposed to be a surprise," Adrian whined, then shook his head. "God, I'm glad there isn't actually anything dangerous in there, I'd have a hard time explaining your stupid dead ass to my mom when she gets home."

"It's pretty," I said, staring down at it. "...Is it safe to touch?"

"Now you ask me," Adrian muttered. "Yeah, you can touch it. Just don't drop it, it's pretty fragile. I broke two of those damn things carving the rune before I figure out how to do it with a lighter hand."

I lifted the crystal out of the cotton, running a thumb over the rune. "What is it?"

"Black tourmaline." He wasn't looking at me. "It's a pretty standard protection crystal, with a really simple strengthening rune on it to make it, uh, louder." He rolled his shoulders stiffly, trying to look casual and failing. "It's for you."

"For me?"

"Yeah for you, and it was gonna be a surprise but you've got klepto hands apparently," he said, cheeks pink. "I was gonna cage it in something nice, like silver, and get a chain for it so you could wear it around your neck. It dispels negative energy and stuff. I thought you'd like it."

I could feel myself smiling, the crystal warming in my hand. "I do like it. It's really cool."

"...You think so?"

"Yeah. The gold looks good too." I looked up at him. "I know you could get into a lot of trouble for making this for me. It's kind of badass. Thanks, Adrian."

"Uh." He lifted his chin. "Yeah. You're welcome. I mean, you can't have it yet, it's too fragile to just carry around. But, uh. You're welcome."

"You said that." I leaned across the counter to kiss him on the cheek. "Dumbass. Hey, do you think your mom would let you off Saturday? They're doing that music thing in the park. I think it's just a dumb local band, but there's food trucks there too."

"Uh."

"Lots of people from school are going. If you want."

"Yeah, I--" he swallowed. "Yeah, I want. I mean." He cleared his throat. "It sounds okay. I'll go if you're going."

"You can text me tonight," I said, setting the crystal back in it's padded box and replacing the lid. "How long until your mom gets home? I brought that song I keep telling you about. You've got the thing to hook up to your stereo, right?"

Adrian shook his head, as if waking up from a dream. "Somewhere. I think it's in a drawer upstairs. C'mon." - Ko-Fi Twitter: @su1cidesauce

#asshole monster hunter #witches #writeblr #writers on tumblr #my witches are fake witches

[behindthescenepress]

Behind The Scene Press Interview with Frankie Cosmos and Live Show Gallery

by Yasmin Hannah

-

Singer-songwriter Greta Kline, better known as Frankie Cosmos, is now currently on tour promoting their recently announced new record called “Close It Quietly” which came out September 6th on Sub Pop.  Her fantastically quirky and dreamy songs create the best vibes! So modest, yet so talented. Cosmos graced Vancouver with her eloquent vocals Saturday evening. With a stop in town, we thought we’d check in and pick her brains with an interview. 

 Behind The Scene Press:

Welcome back to Canada! Have you had a Tim Horton’s yet? - or a “Tims” (...would highly recommend!) 

 Frankie Cosmos:

Yes! We didn't have enough time in Canada this trip but I usually get a donut at Tim's!

 BTS:

Is this your first time in Vancouver? What were your first impressions? 

 Frankie Cosmos:

I think this was our 4th show in Vancouver. We haven't spent a lot of time there outside of playing a show, so not that much to say but we love the band Adrian Teacher & The Subs!!

 BTS:

Do you have anything you usually bring on tour with you as a “good luck charm” or a sentiment that helps you along the way? - or anything you collect whilst on tour? 

 Frankie Cosmos:

I don't have any good luck charms. My bandmates always bring their frog Douglas, that's the closest charm I can think of!

 BTS:

I’ve heard the name “Frankie Cosmos” was influenced by Frank O’Hara. How did you get into his work?

 Frankie Cosmos:

It's kind of a magical long story but ultimately this girl I kinda knew from an art class sent me his work because it made her think of me, and then she ended up becoming my good friend!

 BTS:

What is your favourite poem by O’Hara and why?

 Frankie Cosmos:

I don't have a favorite! But the first one I ever heard was "Adieu to Norman, Bonjour to Joan and Jean Paul" I didn't know who Frank O'Hara was yet and I heard a recording of him reading it, and it was out of context so I still didn't know who or what it was, but I became obsessed with the recording and listened to it over and over and tried to transcribe it so I could read the poem. It was 2008 and it didn't occur to me to google the words and find the poem online.

I only figured it out years later when Emma sent me his work, and I recognized the tone and made the connection to the mysterious poem I had transcribed.

 BTS:

So, it looks like you started out very independently. Can you tell us more about Ingrid Superstar? 

(For people that don’t know, this was Kline’s first inkling into the music scene - would recommend to head over to Bandcamp for a listen!)

 Frankie Cosmos:

It was just me messing around at home, toying with writing songs, figuring out recording and playing, and hiding in my room whispering into the computer microphone because I didn't want anyone to hear me.  

 BTS:

What was the very first song you wrote about? How old were you? 

 Frankie Cosmos:

The first song I remember writing was when I was like 11 or 12. It was called Hell In A Handbasket and I stole the format of the Jeffrey Lewis song Back When I Was 4, but made it about all the bad things I'd done in my life and how I was going to hell. 

 BTS:

Going from Bandcamp to Double Double Whammy, to Sub Pop. How was the change to Sub Pop? Any major differences in the way you do things? 

 Frankie Cosmos:

For me the biggest difference in the way I do things is the amount of time between writing a song and releasing it and touring with it. We’ve taken baby steps when it has come to working with labels, so the growth of the band has always matched up with how helpful it is to have a team working with us. We still don't have a manager and run things as much as we can by ourselves.

 BTS:

The music videos are just fab! So quirky. Who came up with the idea for Wannago?  (For context, check out the music video for Wannago!)

 Frankie Cosmos:

I think Luke and Lauren came up with it! We had been talking about doing a video like that for years and it finally made sense.

 BTS:

How did the food actually turn out? 

 Frankie Cosmos:

The stuff they were making was mostly garbage. Luke’s was maybe kinda edible. The dog-friendly cakes at the end were delicious, made by our friend Montana!

 BTS:

How would you say this album differs from the others, what do you want it to say? 

 Frankie Cosmos:

I think the songwriting, the style of recording, and the playing is pretty different from past albums. We layered more sounds than ever before, spent more time arranging and recording, used nicer equipment. I want it to say what it says!

 BTS:

What one piece of advice would you give to your past self, 10 years ago? 

 Frankie Cosmos:

Practice empathy.

 BTS:

How about your future self? 

 Frankie Cosmos:

Be more mysterious.

 BTS:

What’s on the agenda next for you and the band?

 Frankie Cosmos:

Touring touring and more touring!

#Frankie Cosmos #Ingrid Superstar #Yasmin Hannah #Fortune Sound Club

[emil1107]

Skill development

Throughout my time of studying Business Foundation program I feel that my knowledge has progressed excessively in many ways and that I have enhanced my skills in different areas and continue to do so.

Generally, if we reach our goal, for this will be needed tools. What are the tools? Tools are our skill are improved with education, trainings, and work life. For instance, the house is my goal. Just as I need the right tools to build a house, I need the right skills to build my goal. Without the right skills, I will only frustrate myself, waste my time, and spend a lot of time dealing with rudimentary issues caused by the lack of knowledge or lack of skills, as opposed to progressing in my goal.

During the course, I have developed hard skills and soft. Hard skills are relating to any specific task; they are usually easily quantifiable. They tend to be knowledge-based, such as proficiency in a subject, certification, and technical skills. Soft skills are relating to personality and tend to be transferable, such as communication, leadership, time management, stress management, decision making, adaptability, ability to deal with adversity, and networking.  

 Background

First of all, I would like to write about my background. I graduated Bachler degree within Legal Regulation of Economy where I have enriched my legal knowledge and economy knowledge. In my professional career I have worked as Financial Sales Consultant and Internal Auditor where I have improved finance skills, risk assessment, fraud investigation, and audit skills.

During the course, I have exactly improved and carry on to enhance below skills:

·       How to write a great research paper;

·       Critical writing and thinking skills;

·       How to write reflective essays;

·       Data analysis;

·       Presentation skills;

·       E-learning skills;

·       Managing online information for academic study;

·       Research planning;

·       Positivist and Interpretivist approaches to research;

·       Quantitative research: Surveys and Closed Questionnaires;

·       Qualitative research: open questions, participant observation and content analysis;

·       Evaluating research design;

·       Writing and Managing a research project;

·       Computers skills: PowerPoint, Excel and Word.

·       Time Management;

·       Reading skills;

·       English language skills.

I would like to begin with MFP/MQP Research Project lessons. Because I had never written research project in my previous life. Firstly, I had a doubt that Could I learn this? How could I write this? However, when I was starting the lessons, day by day I saw that nothing is complicated as I thought. Due to two brilliant teachers, I have loved this lessons. They always motivate me. Consequently I love to do my research project. In addition, I have read two books related to research project which are called as “Doing Your Research Project” by Judith Bell and Stephen Waters and “Research Methods for Business Students” by Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis, and Adrian Thornhill.

Research Project based on 6 chapters:

·       Project formulation;

·       Research Methodology;

·       Literature review:

·       Sampling framework;

·       Result evaluation;

·       Conclusions and Recommendation.

In project formulation stage, I have improved my decision making and planning skills because for good research project I had to determine the proper questions and objectives. If I do not prepare properly these I cannot complete my research project in a good condition and on the time. For this I prepared 10 topic and made 3 questions for each topics. Consequently, I should choose one topic from them which should be measurable because I have mere 4 weeks for completion of research project. In the same time it should be familiar. Therefore I chose topic related to insurance. Because I have experience more than 3 years and I know that what is the main problems regarding the insurance in my country (Azerbaijan). So, I can confidently write that my decision making and planning skills improved sharply.

In the second chapter, I have been doing plethora of research and been reviewing a lots of books, journals and websites. In addition, I have learnt constructed a literature review and have learnt to split my topic into sub heading linked to my areas of research. These activities enhance my reading skills and analyze skills. Also I have strengthened my English language. Because I have read a lots of material in English. In addition, I have learnt many useful internet sites related to academic research such as www.llrx.com, www.academia.edu, htts.scholar.google.co.uk, www.google.co.uk/alerts and so on. For instance, Google Scholar is a highly recommended research site which is a search engine that enables you to search for digital or printed copies of articles, books, reports, theses and other documents that are available both online and offline. It is estimated that there are over 200 million documents on Google Scholar, covering approximately 90 per cent of all articles published in English. While many of fee is required to read the article or report, there are sufficient links to freely available resources for the first time researcher. Google Scholar has a cited by feature that searches for articles that have quoted the article you are reading. This is useful, because those articles will be linked by topic, theme or research results to the one you are reading. In conclusion, these kind of websites have improved my searching skills.

In the third and fourth chapters of research project, I have prepared the first questionnaire in my life. It was very interesting, simultaneously it was a challenging. Firstly, I prepared ten questions related to my research topic. Afterwards, I designed my questionnaire. For this, I used Microsoft Word and www.surveymonkey.com. In this stage, my communication skills have improved as well because during the filling of questionnaire I have contacted many people. In addition, I have strengthened my process management skill. For instance, I prepared questionnaire for Azerbaijan and the UK. In the UK, people who filled printed questionnaire and in my hometown people filled questionnaire by using their email addresses. In that time, I followed up all process I have got all answers within two days. In addition, I would like to use interview method, because for valid data gathering we should use two or more data collection methods. Unfortunately, I do not have enough time for using more than one data collection method. If we use more than one method it is called as triangulation. However, I have already know what is it, Interviews are used to collect data from a small group of subjects on a broad range of topics. You can use structured or unstructured interviews. Structured interviews are comparable to a questionnaire, with the same questions in the same order for each subject and with multiple choice answers. For unstructured interviews questions can differ per subject and can depend on answers given on previous questions, there is no fixed set of possible answers. Therefore, I will use interview method and other methods during the Master Degree program. Generally, when I have decided on a topic, refined it and specified objectives, I have been in a position to consider how to collect the evidence I require. The initial question is not ‘which methodology?’ but ‘what do I need to know and why?’ Only then do I ask ‘what is the best way to collect information’ and ‘when I have this information, what shall I do with it’? After to answer these questions then I have made my questionnaire. I think that if someone did not answer above questions before to prepare his questionnaire or other selecting method of data collection their data collections could be useless at the end.

Furthermore, I have enriched my excel skill. So, I have rare used charts making tools in excel, before came to foundation program. I have used “Excel 2013” in order to analyze all my collected data. As I wrote above I have not been familiar before I was unsure on different tools to use and their functions; therefore when it came to creating charts process of using tools, I was not very good at it and it took me a long time to understand the tools well. Yet I feel that I have continuously improved throughout AS, as I have had more practice. MFP/MQP course has taught me how to use the program ‘Excel’ in great detail allowing me to explore and develop my skills as a student. By learning the use of the tools on the program, I have been able to analyze my data in an effective way and to a good standard that I was not able to do before I had access to the program. I have created different types of charts in excel such as pie chart, column chart and bar chart which have been used all of them in my research project. In addition, I will include them in my presentation. These charts make all of data presentable and they help us to understand the situation better. After collecting data when we go to the insert section there is shown recommended charts which gives you the best choice and you can use the chart. Then I learnt that how I can change its color.                           

How I can add elements such as axes, axis titles, chart titles, data labels, data table, error bars, gridlines, legend and trend lines.

Consequently, I will use the excel skills in my future career.

 According to fifth and sixth chapter which is related to result evaluation. Initially, I will try to describe what is it? So, data collected by means of surveys, interviews, diaries or any other method mean very little until it is analyzed and evaluated. Gathering large amount of information in the hope that something will emerge is not to be recommended in any small or smallish investigation, especially not for new researchers as me. Those of we who have a limited statistical background cannot attempt highly complex surveys involving advanced statistical techniques, but that does not mean that a worthwhile study cannot be carried out. It is all a case of working within our level of expertise, selecting research methods which are suitable for the task and which can be readily analyzed, interpreted and presented. In this stage, I have developed my situation assessment skill. This part was really challenging for me, because it has been interesting for me result of my work. This part which is proved that you work properly or not. If you show the finding you will need viable proofs for each findings. Therefore, this part taught me to work with evidences which help to support to our findings. So, I have inserted 10 charts within my questionnaires where I have analyzed my results based on the charts. In addition, I have improved my future planning skill in this section, because I have to write what I would like to improve more regarding my future research projects.

In the final stage of my research project which is the writing of the report. After all my hard work planning my research topic, using research tools to gather information and analyzing my data, I now need to shape this into a written report that summarizes my findings and does justice to my efforts. This final chapter taught me how to approach the task of writing my report step-by-step where I have learnt that how to structure the report. During the report writing I have strengthened my self-discipline because writing requires discipline, and even the most experienced of researchers needs to impose some sort of self-control to ensure that the writing task is completed on time. There are no hard and fast rules about when and how to write. Everyone has distinguish ways of working and what suits one person may not suit another. Some people are firm that it is the best to write according to a strict schedule. I have tried to do that, but I just do not seem able to keep to such regular pattern. I have to be quiet and alone to write, with all my source material around me. On the other hand, other people say that they cannot write in silence. They need music in the background.

In addition, the writing of research project has improved my planning skill as well. So, I do make plans to complete particular sections or eve paragraphs at one sitting. And if I am in the middle of a good writing session and come across an incomplete reference, I now do not stop to look it up. I make a note or highlight it, and then return to it later. If I try to correct immediately, the time it takes might break my concentration. I might then feel I need a break anyway and that is absolutely the right time to make a cup of coffee, make calls, and do some cleaning. So that, one job might lead to another and then that is end of the writing session.

As far as I can, I try to work to an agenda and if I can achieve more than one item, I have been known to give myself time off for good behavior. Furthermore, I try to set aside writing days or half days when I know I can be more or less alone  and free from distractions, but I write two hours at a time, I have learnt that if I press on hour after hour, I begin to write rubbish. Therefore, after two hours, I can have a coffee, wander around, check my messages – anything to give myself a break before I move on to the next stage.

From my MFP ASD lesson, I have learnt that how should be created online portal and how should be written academic profile. Firstly, I have opened online portal on www.tumblr.com where I have added my profile and background pictures. Also, I have added post about my academic profile. During the writing of academic profile, I have enhanced self-assessment skills, because I have written about all of my academic successes on the post such as my first job, my current job, my study and my certificates. In addition, I have to write about what learnt during the course. This part has improved my concentration and responsibilities, because if I learnt anything during the course I could not write anything about this task. And actually, I am writing now related to the task. Finally, I will learn to write reflective essay the next week. I think that it will be very challenging for me and I am looking forward to learn to it. Generally, I know that I must write and assess the journey travelled for my goals and identify a plan for future development of my academic skills.

To sum up, I have leant plethora of useful skills in the program. I am sure that they will be useful in my future academic career as well.      

[noloveforned]

recommended digital releases, july 27th

a large majority of the music i listen to these days is done at work through a premium spotify subscription. the hardest part seems to be trying to remember when an album i’ve been anticipating finally comes out on whatever random friday.

i figure i’m not the only one so every friday i’m aiming to post five new releases from the past week (or so) as well as five recent releases from the past couple months that are available through spotify (and presumably the other streaming platforms).

new releases from the past week (or so):

daniel bachman "the morning star" on three lobed [spotify, bandcamp] daniel bachman's latest album of solo guitar is spread over two LPs and finds him exploring field recordings and drones from bells, organs and bows. the additions (especially the field noises) make the album seem like it captures a particular moment in time rather than a fussy studio production.

clearance "at your leisure" on topshelf [spotify, bandcamp] the second clearance record is solid, power-pop inflected indie rock that is my bread and butter. i don't hear as much pavement (which was sometimes all i could hear in clearance) but the influence still regularly bubbles up to the surface.

tony molina "kill the lights" on slumberland [spotify, bandcamp] tony molina is an expert crafter of short songs (along with tierra whack, see below)- his latest album is ten power pop tracks in fifteen minutes for fans of teenage fanclub and elliott smith.

negative scanner "nose picker" on trouble in mind [spotify, bandcamp] negative scanner come to us via the ever-reliable trouble in mind with their second lp of awesome post-punk. they're led by rebecca valeriano-flores who was also in the band tyler jon tyler that i mistakenly assumed was an individual until recently.

thin lips "chosen family" on lame-o [spotify, bandcamp] on their second album thin lips blend philly indie rock with weezer-ish power pop. they head out on the road tomorrow with hop along and then slaughter beach, dog.

slightly older stuff:

dave holland, evan parker, craig taborn and ches smith "uncharted territories" on dare2 [spotify] dave holland (bass) and evan parker (tenor) have been involved together in several improvised free jazz groups in the past. you'll find them both on the sponteous music ensemble's 1968 album "karyōbin" and company's 1980 album "fables". they got together last year with craig taborn (piano) and ches smith (percussion) and recorded two hours of mostly improvised music featuring the quartet and nearly every possible duet or trio pairing (i don't see 'tenor - piano t1' or 'piano - bass t1' anywhere).

mark renner "few traces" on rvng intl [spotify, bandcamp] mark renner was a baltimore cult musician from the eighties. "few traces" collects tracks from his 1986 album "all walks of this life" and other rarities. it's split between really nice jangly tracks and even more instrumental tracks that fall somewhere between the slow patience of brian eno and the reverb-heavy, synthesized melodies of orange cake mix.

stiff love "trouble ep" on neck chop [spotify, bandcamp] stiff love "attitudes ep" on feel it [spotify, bandcamp] the first two 7"s from stiff love out of olympia, washington are crucial punky, garage rock with belted vocals courtesy of christine from beta boys.

adrian teacher and the subs "anxious love" (self-released) [spotify, bandcamp] the second adrian teacher and the subs album (which was released with no advance notice on may 9th) has finally arrived on streaming services. adrian is probably best known for his three albums fronting apollo ghosts released between from 2008-2012 during peak blog. the subs continue the formula with their indie pop songs dosed with a bit of the (wishful) arena rock of guided by voices or the strokes.

tierra whack "whack world" (self-released) [spotify] tierra whack is a philly rapper whose debut is a visual album of fifteen one minute songs. tierra's songs are playful and full of pop hooks that she rides for a minute before it's on to the next- like a day-glo, hip-hop 'bee thousand'. the video by tierra whack, thibaut duverneix and mathieu leger is a series of carefully constructed vignettes that crosses the 'serious film' aesthetics of visual albums with adult swim inanity for fifteen skits on absurdity.

more 'recommended releases' posts from no love for ned

#recommended releases

[theindependentradio-blog]

Episode 67

Tampa - Wait

https://tampabelatedlove.bandcamp.com/album/belated-love

Tampa - Bad Hangover

https://tampabelatedlove.bandcamp.com/album/belated-love

Adrian Teacher and the Subs - Hello Everyone

https://adrianteacher.bandcamp.com/album/anxious-love

Adrian Teacher and the Subs - Pop Medicine

https://adrianteacher.bandcamp.com/album/anxious-love

Adrian Teacher and the Subs - So Choked

https://adrianteacher.bandcamp.com/album/anxious-love

No Aloha - Requiem

https://no-aloha.bandcamp.com/album/cigarettes-for-optimists

No Aloha - Cigarettes for Optimists

https://no-aloha.bandcamp.com/album/cigarettes-for-optimists

Kidcombo - View of Winter Trees

https://kidcombo.bandcamp.com/album/kidcombo

Kidcombo - The Sword Went Out to Sea

https://kidcombo.bandcamp.com/album/kidcombo

Pursuit Grooves - Hide and Slick

https://pursuitgrooves.bandcamp.com/album/felt-armour

Pursuit Grooves - No Surrender

https://pursuitgrooves.bandcamp.com/album/felt-armour

Hello Blue Roses - Pretty Penny

https://helloblueroses.bandcamp.com/album/trade-winds

Hello Blue Roses - Mausoleum

https://helloblueroses.bandcamp.com/album/trade-winds

#cfrc #indiemusic #canada

[diaryofanaveragehongkonger]

26/04/2018

- Died a little while doing P.E. We had to do fitness.

- Update: we are still doing fitness.

- Another update: we have been doing fitness for at least a month.

- All of the other classes have switched units aside from the Set 3 girls, who are still doing swimming. Apparently they missed out a lot of their lessons because of rain.

- Oh, and us. We’re still stuck on fitness because of them. Why can’t we just change units??

- Our art room was temporarily changed to AS4 because of IGCSE Art exams or something.

- For some reason everyone seemed to know of this aside from me and this other girl... before they read the sign on our original classroom. Did he send an email or something?

- I think we have a sub for Art.

- Update: he just entered the room and closed the door.

- Update: He’s letting us in. So we do have a sub.

- Just remembered that our art teacher told us about this last week. Me and my poor memory kicking in at the last moment.

- Drama assessment. To be honest, I don’t like my group. They’re definitely not the group I would’ve picked.

- I asked another group whether I could join them or not. They didn’t really decline out loud, but they asked me whether I wanted to join the group I’m in now.

- I would do this assessment alone if I could, but I’m not that brave.

- We’re doing neutral masks. I wanted to do something historical, another team member wanted horror. The other two didn’t really care/mind. I wish I wasn’t pulled over to join this group.

- A girl called Anna and a guy called Adrian weren’t here today. The teacher joked that he should put them in a group and watch as ‘fireworks fly’ and that there’ll be ‘blood, sweat and tears in the first five minutes’. Directly quoted from him.

- To be honest, I agree.

- Did ‘tener’ infinitives in Spanish. Well, it was more of correcting and looking over the work we did last last lesson (when we had a sub).

- After that, the teacher sent us a document with a story called “gatos azules” which is about some guy called Carlos who wants ten blue cats. It was weird.

- We did some comprehension/answering questions on the story. Those were easy and I finished around, hm, fifteen minutes before class ended?

- While I waited for class to end, I read the South American posters on my side of the wall (internally snickered at the google translate mistakes and the fact that some people didn’t even use proper sentences for some of them) and tried to show my friend the ‘For Lease Navidad’ meme.

- She was too busy using google translate to read the story, the questions and typing in the answers to see. Serves her right for not listening when the teacher was basically reading out and explaining the story on the board.

- My brother lost his belt (which is necessary for school). My mom dragged him out at 8 PM to buy a new one in Diamond Hill.