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cotccotc · 3 years

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☆ content creator year in review !!

tagged by the exquisite @avocadomin ! <3

although i’m both a fic writer and gfx maker, i’ll be filling this out for gfx/art ! i might rb a fic ask game that’ll ask some similar questions later today/tomorrow in case that’s smth y’all want idk kdfj

my first creation in 2020: guys... this is Weird dskjf i have no idea if anyone remembers my first stuff (which was literally my first tumblr creations EVER) but uh... i started this blog with these txt wallpapers,,, eek

most recent creation of 2020: this felix moodboard from my oddly specific series :))

one of your favourite creations from 2020: tbh i really love these black n white hyunlix edits! they took a lot longer than expected bc i had a really specific tone and grain level in mind and i pulled it off! which is nice!

a creation you’re really proud of: i had to make a digital painting for my graphic design class so i drew hyunjin :DD and then i ended up posting it!! the hair is kinda Wack but i’m super proud of the face coloring n stuff! woohoo

a new style that you tried this year + a work that shows it: i was really into making txt icons n layouts for a while! i really liked these huening kai layouts where i edited some selfies and added a snow to some headers. i imagined they’d look really cute on tumblr with a background that matches the color of the sky n blends in,,, kdsfsd idk

a creation that took you forever: THIS FREAKING MOODBOARD oh my gOD i think the only motivation i had was the fact that it was hyunjin <///3 but! i did it~ uwu

your creation from 2020 that received the most notes: all hail the best thing i’ve ever done Ever, the light of my life, the pinnacle of my Career, the infamous hyunlix dazed edits :DDDDDDDD

a creation you think deserved more notes: i was so salty when these dynamite moodboards (hyung line, maknae line) got Nothing bc i used up some of my favorite film pics and i vowed never to use the same pic in two posts so <//3 rip

a new fandom you joined and the creation you made for it: whel. stray kids dfjhd and uhhhh i guess these season’s greetings edits! i really like how the coloring turned out yee yee

a creation you made that breaks your heart: i made this little star edit while crying over the song so i guess i have to choose it

a “simple” creation that you really love: these hyunjin cyber icons loot Shit on desktop but idrc. it was a quirky ten minutes of my life.

a creation that was inspired by another one: i feel like a lot of people like to emphasize cyan tones on their gifs n edits, so my 4 am post-virtual-concert-depression brain was just like Must Edit okokok djfhdfjd HH HH HH **cyAN**

a favourite creation by someone else: BOY OH BOY i recently started a favs tag! so this isn’t all of my favorites but it’s the latest ones! i cannOt choose 1 no ma’am-

some of your favourite content creators of the year: i’m essentially copying a lot of tessa’s list and there’s a more thorough one in my end of the year post but uh @lovestay, @mr-jisung, @realstraykids, @hyunjinz, @chrisbangs, @seungminhos, @leeminho-s, @914m, @creker, @jeong1ns, @jypestraykids, @yangjeongin, @chogiwow, @innielove, @inracha, @minhos, @itsdanidee, @avocadomin & @youngke !!

i won’t be explicitly tagging anyone since i know this has been going on for a while n stuff but anyone who wants to do this n hasn’t already been tagged: here is ur invitation 😎

#tag game #woohoO #i'm a smol creator guys this isn't too deep <////3 but ty for the tag tessa! and i'm honored to be on ur list of fave creators 🥺🙇🏻‍♀️#<3

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hchan · 3 years

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(pt.1) ahahaha aww! :’> that’s so great to hear and no worries about when you get back to me ahaha we all got lots of other things on our hands i’m sure of! ^^ and AHHH!! a very happy birthday to him! ^^ I hope he and you and your family all had a great time celebrating together! :’) and I absolutely agree! All the joy and love going around is always a pleasure to be around ^^ And aw having a lot of your family owning farms sounds really lovely!

HIIIIIIIIIIII💖

(pt.2) There’s a lot of farms around where I live and seeing them whenever I’m commuting is really like, there’s something about them that makes my heart really warm if that makes sense! :’DAND AHH did I shadow write this bc 👀👀👀 THAT’S A BIG MOOD AHAHA I’m a big introvert myself as well and in a way I’m a bit thankful to have so much time away from things to kind of mentally recharge I suppose? LIKE HAHA don’t get me wrong I absolutely love my friends but I’m also a bit of a homebody as well

(pt.3) and in a way I’m a bit thankful to have so much time away from things to kind of mentally recharge I suppose? LIKE HAHA don’t get me wrong I absolutely love my friends but I’m also a bit of a homebody as well >< and!!!!! I’M AN INFP AND A SCORPIO AS WELL AHHhHhh??? what a coinky dink! I also just did a couple things to find out my life path number and it’s 4! (from what I’ve read about so far I can’t say it’s 100% accurate to myself though! ahaha maybe 50/50 😂I’ll definitely look into

(pt4) it a bit more though!)AHH ME TOO they’re kinda dangerous for me 👀 but I can definitely say that more about stationary stores! 😂😂😂 atm I’m not working on anything specific in particular but I’m an art student and so you can definitely say that craft stores are kind of a second home to me LOL but I was mainly just checking out different kinds of mediums I can add to my paint! ^^ I’m definitely a big window shopper so I didn’t make any purchases this time haha :’D And AHH I feel that!

(pt5) That’s definitely a hard decision! >< I remember being curious about when they were dropping their season’s greetings this year and they had literally dropped them later that day and i was like!!!! 👀 I stayed strong and held off for this year since I was saving up to buy both versions of pt.2 (which pleasantly arrived today woohoo!!) But OOF if they had released an nct 2020 season’s greetings...... consider my bank account empty LMAO And yes I love playing games! Ooh I’d say ac is

(pt6) definitely a favourite since I’ve been playing the series since I was a kid but hMM at the top of my head, I also really like botw, undertale, earthbound, maplestory and osu! ^^ hbu do you like any other games? (and ooh if you ever get ac, feel more than welcome to add me! ^^ I’ll gift you some cute stuff on there hehe ^^) AND OOOOOH HORROR!!! horror’s a lot of fun! do you have any favourite horror movies? I can’t say I’ve watched a whole lot of horror recently (I actually watched Eli

(pt7) around Halloween and it was alright! Definitely worth a watch with the slow unravelling of everything! ^^) but my favourites would probably the two It movies! I’d also definitely recommend anything from A24! I haven’t watched a whole ton of horror from them other than Hereditary but they do have a pretty solid selection and from what I’ve seen from some of their non-horror titles, their film quality is just 👌👌 (I also watch this really great horror movie based youtube channel and they do

(pt8) mainly film summaries/reviews and they’re a lot of fun to watch since they do a lot of lesser known films too ^^) I’ve also been meaning to watch the original Suspiria movie! The cinematography in it is super beautiful 🥺 I’m also a big chill/r&b/lofi fan as well! 🥺 perhaps to go with your gift, I’ll also throw in a playlist of recs for you! ^^ and I’d absolutely love to hear some of your favourites! Ahh absolutely! Cooking for others is always such a sweet gesture :’D also here’s a

(pt9) recipe for you! Unfortunately tumblr won’t let me send links but! if you google betty crocker cake mix crinkle cookies, it should be the first result! It’s my go to recipe for everything whether it’s someone’s birthday, there’s an event going on at school or if I just feel like making something easy and sweet! There’s also only 4 ingredients (plus vanilla if you want but it’s not necessary) and you can use any flavor of cake mix or even add additional chocolate chips/fillings if you want! ^^

(pt10) I’ve tried it with red velvet cake mix and white chocolate as well as with vanilla cake mix and crushed oreos and they always come out super great! ^^ And aw that’s okay! :’))) What song drew you to them? Oof personally I feel like an nct granny LOOOL I remember the day smrookies dropped jeno’s teaser photo and I thought he looked SO YOUNG (jokes on me tho bc I’m only about 6 months older than him HAHAHA) and yeah for sure!!! it’s so wholesome to see! ^-^ AND!!! absolutely xiaojun this era

(pt11) just.. let’s say he reALLY rode up my bias list in the shortest amount of time AHAHA and yesss 90s love was super cute! (my inner Canadian is thriving at the whole hockey concept LOOL) and AHH when everyone else joined in and theY ALL SANG FROM HOME TOGETHER I JUST- a single tear definitely escaped HAHA AND AHH OF COURSE Faded in my last song definitely takes the cake too and I’d say the same with Music, Dance and Deja Vu too!! Honestly their whole album is such a great time ahh :’) AND!!!

(pt12) AW I think you’re super fun too!!!!!! (AND SUPER SWEET??? I’M- I don’t know hOw many times I’ve had to stop myself from accidentally liking a post of yours (your gifs are lovely!) or following you BUT!!! expect a lot of that when I reveal myself LMAO) :’>>>> fjghdkjhfg Talky squad! ^^ And that’s great to hear!!!! My heart stOPPED when I sent each one bc tumblr didn’t give me the mssg that they sent and I FREAKED OUT AHAHAHA and that’s great to hear! and aw that’s really sweet that you guys

(pt13) got to chat! And thank you! My day is going quite okay thanks! a little downside is that my work contacted me this morning and said there were a couple positive cases at one of my job sites when I worked a couple weeks ago so at the moment I’m chilling in my room for the next few days just in case. I’ve been feeling just fine so I’m hoping all will be well soon! On the positive side, my albums arrived today and I pulled a Xiaojun pc and died aHAHA and I’m really loving all the freebies

(pt14) that came with it! Stickers are always a delight to get :’)) (even tho I’m usually too scared to use them! xD) I also got a chance to talk to some kind people at work and that’s always nice! ^^ and aw that’s so great :’000 i’m really happy you guys had a great time and got to eat yummy food!!!!! Here’s also a burning question for you! Do you possibly have a favourite hyuck era? Asking for research purposes ofc hehe 👀👀👀

(pt15) hope your day is going swell so far! p.s. will try my best to keep these a bit shorter bc i can only send 5 asks per hr :’o + also you're an infinite fan aaa!!!!! i used to be a big fan back in the day hehe - ss☃️🎄

Thank you!!! we did have a great time :>

Farms are fun, I just love spending time away from the city sometimes hahaha KJFNDVKJDNK yes, I honestly am ok with being at home for long periods of time (huge homebody here), but it’s been a year already and I just want to go out and sit under the sun for a few minutes HAHAHAH (for a few minutes only bc I usually can’t stand being directly under the sun OTL)

OOOOHHH INFP Scorpio twins eheheh, when’s your birthday??? must have been recently so I’m wishing you a late happy birthday💕 and yes, I need to look a bit more into numerology as well because I have no idea what my number means fdkjndfk.

OMG!!! an art student!!! That’s so cool :< I hope I get to see some of your art after the event! eheheh. What’s your favorite medium? Favorite thing to draw/paint? :)

I was so curious too!!! I loved NCT Dream’s Season’s Greetings concept last year! and I don’t have any NCT merchandise so I just jumped in for it this year kjdfnkdvfk I liked both concepts but I decided to get 127′s! BOTH VERSIONS OF PT.2!!! EXCITING! Whic PCs did you get??? (Also who is (are) your bias(es)??? omg dkfjnfvkjd) !!!!!!! I absolutely love botw too!! and I play osu as well :D but lately I’ve just been playing Genshin Impact and Overwatch! (OMGGG I’ll definitely let you know if I do!!!)

I know Hereditary!!! I haven’t watched it yet! but I have watched The Witch from A24 and it was really interesting! (which youtube channel? o: I love watching movie analysis videos!!) LKFDNKFDMFL and yes, please, I love getting songs recs, discovering new music is so fun! I’ll share here some songs that I’ve been listening to a lot lately!:

Nlve x Sam Kim — Like a Fool

DPR LIVE — Jam & Butterfly

SOLE — haPPiness

eaJ x Seori — It just is

eaJ x keshi — Pillows

Woosung — Face

OMG I just watched a video that showed similar looking cookies!!! they look so yummy! I’ll save this recipe and maybe I’ll try to bake some for Christmas eheheh thank you!!!!

I knew of NCT since their debut but AHAHAHA you see, I felt a bit funny because I’m older than many members JKFNDJK so I avoided them until around Superhuman/Boom when some friends exposed me to their music during a trip we made for a Got7 concert, a week with them was enough for me to go back home straight to search more about NCT, and here I am now : D

AND YESSSS when they all joined to sing From Home on the stage :((( I’m also about to cry each time I watch the MV for the rearranged version KJNVFNKD (omg!! I’ve always wanted to go to Canada! I can imagine the hockey concept was exciting ahahah) but yeah! I absolutely agree, love love LOVE the album!

Awww :< <3 that’s SO relatable LMAO I was just saying to my friends the other day “don’t you sometimes get the urge to like your own anon on you event person’s blog????” AHAHAH thank you for thinking my gifs are lovely;; I just started giffing this year and it’s been really fun so far :D

Oh god :(( I hope you’re okay! that sounds a bit scary;; please take care :< but I’m glad that your albums got there and that you got to talk to nice at work! (stickers are always great!!! yes!! though I tend to save them and never use them as well ahahah)

FAVORITE ERA? god that’s a difficult question KJFNDVKJ well, my favorite Dream song is MFAL but I have no idea if it’s my favorite era...... I also really really really liked Superhuman (his silver hair????? gorgeous) so maybe those two would be the answer kjndfkdk and yes!!! I’ve been an Infinite fan since their debut! and Sunggyu was my bias until Haechan happened hahahah (I’ve been a kpop fan since around 2008 : D hbu???) I think I asked here earlier but who’s your NCT bias/es?? o: are there any other kpop groups that you really like? :)

BIG EDIT: RIDIN’ ERA HAECHAN IS A BIG FAVORITE TOO his hair was at a beautiful length and that eyebrow piercing.............*cries*

Big edit 2: .......ridin’ is the favorite era, I stil like MFAL as a song more, but Ridin’ era haechan is......deadly

#Secret Santa anon🎄#asks

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kaywriteswords · 4 years

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Snacks are good, Self-care is better

You might have noticed the title change and that my pic isn’t just my fun socks and a scale. I couldn’t decide on a new official blog title so you can expect randomness until I land on one that I love. I’m changing it because weight is not the only thing that matters. When I first started all this, dropping pounds was the primary focus with the hope that other lifestyle changes would follow as I worked toward that goal. Tracking pounds is measurable, it made sense, but after 5 weeks, it’s kind of stale and not much fun. Some goals aren’t quantifiable, they’re just a feeling. I had way more fun this week practicing self-care by focusing on my skin care routine and attempting meditation. And guess what, while I was doing all that I had less time for snacking, YEAH! This was always supposed to be about total health and wellness, a change of lifestyle. It will take time and I’m willing to give it time, but sharing the journey with all of you keeps me focused on my evolution and accountable to working toward it.

Amazingly, my weight has trended back down in the last week. Portion control wasn’t great. I cleared half a tray of lasagna one night. Honestly, all I did was cut snacking down by about half for this result. To be clear, I still ate hot cheetos and pounded down half a pack of oreos, a few other things here and there, but significantly less than what I’ve been having in recent weeks. I gave myself a hearty pat on the back for this progress because seriously, I’m subconsciously heading to the fridge and pantry when I sit down to watch TV. It’s almost involuntary. I have to retrain my brain, dissociate watching TV and eating. Now that I’m aware boredom is guiding me, I ask myself two questions: 1. Why are you looking for food? 2. When is the last time you ate?

My workouts matched my intensity levels from the previous week so another pat on the back for consistency. I did get some exercise in 6 out of 7 days, WOOHOO! My pursuit of daily exercise continues again this week with the long-term goal being that I can get an intense, sweat filled session in 5 days/week with two days for yoga spaced accordingly. If I sweat 3 days per week at this point, that would be a win. The yoga has been hard to incorporate. For some reason, leading yourself in a flow is much harder to accomplish than following an instructor. But, there is plenty of free stuff online right now so it’s up to me to take advantage of this opportunity.

I gave my body some love this past week. Sugar scrub, lip mask, clay mask for my face and I even pumiced my feet… not all in the same day. Even though we know we should take care of our bodies we don’t always. Whether it’s because we feel like we don’t have the time, lack the motivation or just completely forget because it’s not an ingrained habit, our skin suffers. Being conscious of it helps me, because even on the days when I’m not feeling like doing anything, I at least make sure to cleanse my face, tone and moisturize to keep my natural glow on point. Love your body, love yourself.

Hahaha, the meditation. I’m mainly doing it to help reduce anxiety. I get insomnia like a m*tha f*cka so this is one thing, among many different things, that I’m trying to deal with that nonsense. I made an effort to do it 3 out of 7 days, I may or may not have just blown it off completely a couple days, but that is neither here nor there. After two days of wondering if I was doing it right, I headed over to reliable old Google… The type of mediation I seem to practice (yes, there is a variety) is breath awareness/mindful breathing. Essentially, I focus on my inhales and exhales while ignoring all other thoughts that enter my mind. The batting away of random thoughts is almost constant, but I did manage to just breathe for a few breaths. My mind wanders to things like writing this blog, food, work, cheese, the fact that the dog needs a bath, food, wondering how much time is left till the 5 minute alarm goes off. I did make it to 7 minutes one day, but that was only because I set the alarm for the next day and while I was supposed to not be thinking thoughts, I thought, it’s definitely been more than 5 minutes and checked. It is what it is. Dismissing the thoughts is a work in progress and my fight continues this week!

Despite resting on Friday, I still felt like I was running myself ragged with the to-do list by Saturday. We can always find things to do, ways to keep us busy. Maybe it’s being stir-crazy that is making me feel like I should be getting stuff done, but I already waged war on my living space last year (see the Art of Purging posted Feb. 6, 2020). Too bad that didn’t stop me from reorganizing my movies by genre the last 2 days. I think the stir-craziness is manifesting as overloading myself with personal goals to-do list items. I’m putting a stop to it today because I need to find balance. A little routine wouldn’t hurt so I’m going to plan to take my dog on a few short walks throughout the day to build some structure into my aimless days and help with balancing my time. I didn’t realize yesterday was Tuesday until almost 8pm. I’m sure some of you are in the same boat being stuck inside.

My goals for the next week… Keep aiming for those daily 5 minutes of meditation, continue to love on my skin, and space high intensity workouts accordingly with restorative yoga to rest and reset. I’m going to take a pause on specific goals where food and diet are concerned and just be mindful of my portion sizes and snacking habits. Oh, and I think I’m going to allow myself to just give in to those types of days where I can just lay on the couch, take naps, snuggle my dog and do nothing productive. Ultimately, this journey is about total health and wellness, a change of lifestyle, and sometimes the best way to care for ourselves is to do absolutely nothing at all.

#kaywriteswords #health #wellness #accountability #self love #self care #stircrazy

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woodywenman-hyde-blog · 4 years

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Dominique and Me: One Recipe at a Time/BLIMEY, am I actually gonna do this??

BLIMEY, am I actually gonna do this??

Dominique and Me: One Recipe At A Time is almost my love letter to the king of pastry. Dominique Ansel is the biggest innovator to ever touch the surface of sugar, and is single-handedly changing the way we eat desserts. Most well known for the much-beloved Cronut (voted one of the best inventions of 2013), Dominique has since opened shops globally, including two right here in the UK (London).

This blog series (?), will involve me creating every single one of the recipes from his book; ‘Dominique Ansel: Secrets From The World Famous Bakery’, from beginner all the way to advanced (and trust me some of the advanced ones are pretty damn scary). Each blog post will involve a different recipe and my various meltdowns along the way. ;)

If you’re reading this and thinking “Wait a second, this concept sounds awfully familiar!”, you’re not having an acid dream (at least I hope not)! I am taking inspiration from Julie Powell, the woman behind Julie and Julia (much beloved blog, turned book, turned movie starring Amy Adams and Meryl Streep). Using Julia Childs ‘Mastering the Art of French Cooking’, Julie Powell worked through the book making one recipe a day (unfortunately, I’m not quite that dedicated and will be working to a far more forgiving schedule). Therefore, I’m kind of calling this my ‘Julie and Julia pilgrimage’ (yesss, I’m a bit of a nerd).

I have been fortunate to visit both of Dominique Ansel’s bakeries in London (the flagship ‘Dominique Ansel Bakery London’ and the newly opened ‘Dominique Ansel Treehouse’), and his creativity, genius and flair never cease to amaze me. He is a French pastry-chef who began his career by apprenticing in restaurants local to him in France, before working in a Two-Michelin starred restaurant in NYC (I mean he’s French so its basically his god given right to be a pastry wizard, right?). Since then, Ansel has become the youngest ever to be named the ‘Worlds Best Pastry Chef’, which basically means he is the Beyoncé of pastry.

Obviously, Ansel is the creator of the world-famous Cronut. A doughnut/croissant hybrid which practically broke the internet upon its release. If you’re unfamiliar with the product; 1) Have you been living in a cave (I mean, it even gets referenced in Gilmore Girls THERES NO ESCAPING IT), and 2) Stop what you’re doing and Google it now! You’re bound to find a Tastemade video after a few clicks ;). However, that isn’t Ansel’s only viral product, he is also known for; the Frozen Smore, Watermelon Ice Cream Sandwich, Blossoming Hot Chocolate (and that’s just off the top of my head), the list would go on and on.

I certainly wouldn’t call myself a pastry chef, and that could be one of the reasons I’m so daunted by this project that I am about to undertake. Reading this so far, you’re probably thinking this writer is a middle-aged loser/pastry chef nerd with no social life and about a dozen pets. And, you wouldn’t be all wrong ;). I am 17 years old, and currently studying a Professional Cookery course at college (but trust me I have ZERO aspirations to be a chef, I swear to god if I have to butcher one more chicken I might just have a meltdown). Instead, I want to work in bakery and confectionary, most significantly cake design/decorating. From the age of 16, I have been running my own registered cake design business in my local area and can only hope to expand upon this in the future.

Okay, so now that I’ve kinda set the scene I think its about time to get the blog series started. Without sounding WAY too needy, I could really do with some of your help (I know, it comes off as really needy). It is super important that y’all stay engaged with this blog (please don’t let me be the blogger who’s only ready is their own mother, that’s not cool), and there are a whole multitude of ways to stay up to date. FIRSTLY, follow me on social media (@woodysbakes on Facebook/Instagram and @curtaincallcakes Instagram), plus you’ll get to see a whole load of other fun content (what could go wrong?). Also, make sure you subscribe to my email newsletter on my website, www.woodysbakes.com ! This way you will ALWAYS be the first to know when a new blog post has been published (usually in the very early hours of the morning when I should be sleeping ;)), surely that’s a win-win.

Lastly, I’d always love to hear your thoughts. Surely I’m not the only one to ever visit one of Ansel’s shops, if you’ve visited let me know what you thought! If you have any words of advice (trust me, the advice is NEEDED) pleaseeee comment down below, any help is always appreciated. Likewise, if you’ve tried some of these recipes and am sure that I’m going to big time fail, crush my heart with that news too ;).

I am planning to produce the first recipes in the next few days, meaning that there is hardly any wait until the first blog posts (woohoo) so I guess I better get back into the kitchen!

Kind Regards,

Woody.

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otterandterrier · 6 years

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ALL PROMPTS | WEEKLY POSTS | MASTERLISTS

#60 - August 4th, 2018

We start a new month and hit our 60th edition, woohoo! I know many of us are probably working on our posts for the upcoming Han/Leia Appreciation Week (so excited!!), but maybe you have all that done and ready and want to offer us something nice this weekend as well? 😊

How does this work?

- You can see the original post here. Basically, this is your weekly chance to produce Han/Leia content, post the latest chapter of your fic, finish that WIP you’ve had lying around for a while, or show some love to creators by making a rec list.

- There are no rules and no requirements other than to have fun and create something positive for the ship. You can write fic, make edits, make art, share meta; any type of Han/Leia content is welcome.

- Since you will be posting your works on your own blogs, you need to include #scoundressaturdays (copy/paste to avoid typos or the post will show up in a different tag) within the first five tags so people can track the tag and see all the posts there.

- If you aren’t a creator or you can’t work on anything this week, you can still join in the fun by reblogging your favourite posts or making rec lists!

- I do ask that since my intention is to make this a fun, positive event for Han/Leia fans, please don’t use the tag for ship/character hate, tragic or messed up content, content that includes Kylo Ren or R/eylo, or personal/unrelated posts.

Why are you posting on Friday?

In case you’ve forgotten and need to get started on making something for tomorrow!! Don’t worry, though: the post will be reblogged on Saturday too.

Will there be prompts?

If you don’t have any works in progress, I will post at least one prompt every week for inspiration. You’re welcome to use them for fic, edits, meta, fanart and interpret them however you want. You can also check and use old prompts!

This week’s prompts are…

- “I had a dream about you.”

- Unwanted attention by @artofkmricker

Happy Scoundress Saturday!!

#scoundressaturdays #hanleia #han x leia #han solo #leia organa #han and leia #sw #scoundressaturdays: wpost

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fictionfactorygames · 6 years

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Stepping Stones to Arcade Spirits

First up, I want to say Woohoo! and Thank you! to everybody who responded so positively to our announcement of voice acting. I also know a lot of you want to audition but we aren’t doing open casting calls at this time. We may open up one or more roles in the future, and if we do, you’ll hear it here first. We promise. Until then, thanks for your patience.

Now, then! I had a long blog post written up about emotional sincerity, about how our game was meant to wear its heart on its sleeve and reject “lol cringe” attitudes… but it seems I already wrote that post like a year ago, so I had to scrap it. You can read it here if you like, though.

So instead of a pathos appeal, let’s talk ethos. Let’s talk about my past experience in game development, and how it lead to Arcade Spirits. This is Stefan speaking; Aenne has her own tale to tell and I’ll see about getting her on the blog to chat about it later.

Most folks know me from two different paths I took — writing (cough) anime fanfic and then original novels, and writing Neverwinter Nights modules. But truthfully Arcade Spirits first started out as an absurd little project from 1999 called “Culture Shock,” which was my attempt to write a visual novel engine in JAVASCRIPT to be playable in a browser. …look, it was 1999, JavaScript was almost respectable at the time, okay?

It was a different time. A far weebier time.

Eventually I canned the project as I just didn’t have access to the art resources I needed to actually do it, and JavaScript was clunky at best. Although there was this new thing I’d learned about at Otakon, attending a panel about… what was it called… Ren-py or something? Which seemed viable…

…but before I could dip too deep in those waters, Neverwinter Nights was released. And that changed everything. With a strong toolkit-based approach and an excellent dialogue editor, I was able to create storytelling adventures using a popular platform. I was in on it from day one, releasing Penultima, followed by Penultima ReRolled and the more horror-based elegia eternum series. Finally, I very nearly created an official Bioware campaign named the HeX coda, but corporate miscommunication resulted in the project being dropped from their roster and instead released for free.

(Interestingly, Fist of Discomfort — the game-within-a-game of Arcade Spirits — almost was a Neverwinter Nights module. I’d experimented with making a simplified brawler game out of the D&D based fightin’ engine, complete with those flashy GO! arrows you’d see in Final Fight.)

All my NWN games were very character-driven, as you can see here.

But D&D wasn’t really ideal for storytelling, because no matter how hard I tried I could never quite get the combat balance right. I could make stories featuring memorable characters, including some of the “dating” mechanics seen in Arcade Spirits, but it wasn’t quite enough to really explore narrative potential. Exploring relationships — both romance and friendship — through game systems has always fascinated me. To make that dream a reality, I needed a different tool.

For about ten years I opted to go back to writing novels. I didn’t need artists or musicians or coders to write a novel, just my own brain and a keyboard. It felt like a style I could actually work in without hitting the limitations I’d hit trying to be an entire game studio by myself. Meanwhile, the indie scene for games kept growing and growing, and visual novels started becoming more and more prominent…

Then in 2016, Aenne Schumann suggested working on a project together. She had friends who could help, resources we could tap. I had money to bankroll the venture and an idea that had been forming since 1999. Both of us combined had a diverse array of perspectives about arcades and arcade culture, which could be used to write a stronger story than either of us could have created alone. And we had the tool I’d learned about so long ago, RenPy. The time was finally right to make this work.

No more limitations. No more compromises. If I was only ever going to get one shot at making a professional video game I wanted to go all out — hire amazing artists, collaborate with them, work with a publisher, get this in front of as many people as possible. If it tanked, I’d soak the loss and at least say “I did it, I crossed that off my bucket list.”

But if it succeeds. If this grand fiasco actually succeeds…

Well. We’ll see, won’t we?

#visualnovel

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thesims4blogger · 6 years

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Behind Closed Doors: The Sims 4 Laundry Day Stuff Pack

EA.com has published a “ Behind Closed Doors” blog detailing the process of this year’s Sims 4 Community Stuff Pack vote. Check it out!

Recently, Maxis asked the community to help them create an all-new Stuff Pack for The Sims™ 4. And the response was incredible!

We sit down with Associate Sims Producer, Graham Nardone (better known as SimGuruGraham) to learn more about the process and find out how working with the community makes The Sims better.

This stuff pack was inspired almost entirely from Sims community feedback. How did they respond?

The response from our community blew past our initial expectations. In less than an hour, we received tens of thousands of votes on the overall pack theme! We’ve always fostered direct lines of communication from members of our studio to all the Sims fans out there, but we’ve never had the opportunity to discuss upcoming content so early in development.

What is the overall theme and direction of The Sims 4 Laundry Day Stuff Pack?

When we first started discussing this project within the studio, we wanted to ensure this process represented the feedback our players have sent us in the time since The Sims 4 launched. Overall, Maxis is very engaged with our community on our official forums and social media, and we noticed players continuing to request certain themes that we had no plans to address within the near future. We thought those ideas would be a great starting point for players to rally around when selecting the theme of this pack. Out of the five proposed themes (Eco Living Stuff, Starter Homer Stuff, Arcade Stuff, Dangerous Stuff and Wedding Stuff) that players were able to vote on, Eco Living was the winner.

Had the "arcade" theme been selected by players, these vibrant '80s clothing concepts were being prepared for the art style vote.

Out of the five proposed themes that players voted on, Eco Living was the winner. As further votes took place and ideas coalesced, we landed upon rustic furniture appropriate for a sunroom or mudroom, fashion in the style of country boho, and adding laundry as the new gameplay feature.

More concepts from the “arcade” theme.

What were some of the more interesting requests that came in from the community?

One of my favorites was seeing players debating the logistics of woohooing in a hamper or on top of a washing machine, and which one would be more practical to add to The Sims. Other players were requesting things like vacuum cleaners and lawnmowers as additional home chores to complement washing and drying machines.

“We've invited all of our players to have a seat at the table when decisions are being made.”

How did the team originally decide to work with the community on this content?

Back in 2012, I started thinking about a final expansion pack for The Sims 3 that would incorporate the best aspects of what excited people about crowdfunding: the opportunity for ordinary people to show their support for a project and influence what it would ultimately become. Those plans never went beyond the hypothetical, but there was a lot of promise in the idea.

A country barnyard wedding art style was prepared in case players selected the “wedding” theme.

Fast forward four years to the 2016 Maxis holiday party: our executive producer Lyndsay Pearson chatted with me about bringing the idea back in the form of a Stuff Pack for The Sims 4. I leapt at the opportunity! Not only do I really enjoy chatting with fans of The Sims, but I have a certain reverence for the seventeen-year legacy of The Sims that is made possible because of our passionate fans. I think they should have a voice in the direction that The Sims games take, so it's really exciting to include them in this pack as part of the history of The Sims.

More concepts from the “wedding” theme.

What were some of the most-requested additions that made it into the Laundry Day Stuff Pack?

Laundry was frequently requested by our players, and it draws clear lines between the segment of people who play The Sims as a life simulation, and those who enjoy it as a video game.

Players who want a life simulation welcome a feature like laundry, as it’s something very relatable to our everyday lives. Others who want to "play" a video game wonder what purpose laundry serves, and how can it add to the fun they have with The Sims 4. Ultimately I think it highlights how The Sims appeals to a variety of players who have different motivations, and how we as a studio can use Stuff Packs to serve different segments of our audience.

Had the "arcade" theme won; players would have voted between American '80s (above) or Modern Japanese (below) influenced arcades in the Art Style vote.

How important is working with the community for The Sims?

Staying closely involved with our community is so integral to what we do at Maxis. Something I really appreciate about working here is how people throughout the studio can influence our creative process, because they bring different diverse backgrounds that make us consider life from a variety of perspectives. In the same manner, The Sims has millions of fans, and their shared life experiences are vital for us to consider when making an inclusive game like The Sims. Any member of our team can choose to become what we call a SimGuru, that is – someone who directly engages with our players on social platforms, and has meaningful conversations with them about the work that they’re doing. Having this unfettered access between developers and players is pretty unique in a AAA studio, and the dialogue we have help us continue to make great games. Many of the players we speak to have been playing The Sims since it first launched back in 2000, certainly longer than I've worked on it. They’ve seen this game grow and change over time, and have important insights to share about where it could go in the future.

Early style explorations for clothing to match the eco living theme.

What part of this process has you most excited?

I’m personally very interested in providing a genuine behind-the-scenes view into game development here at Maxis. With this project being announced so early, we want to navigate each phase of development and provide context into everyday decisions. So far, that's involved discussions about our pre-production process, in-depth explanations of in-game assets, and the specific milestones along the way.

For our players who want to engage in the development of this pack, we're planning on discussing and showing more aspects of development that just aren't typically shared. Be it via blogs, posts on our forums, informal Q&A sessions on twitter, or mid-development livestreams, we have a whole lot more in the works!

The color guide for a sink concept.

In looking at how the content evolved from concept art through final renders, what were the big design choices that the team made?

Most of the design choices that we've made were to set the stage for our players to make a final decision. Something we've stressed throughout this project is that we wanted this process to be an authentic representation of how we develop Stuff Packs. We've invited all of our players to have a seat at the table when decisions are being made that will influence the next stages of development. The votes that players are participating in are the same questions that we ask ourselves.

A sink goes from initial concept art, to color guide, to orthogonal drawing, to final asset.

What are some of the small details in this update that Sims players will be excited about?

Players will appreciate the attention to detail in these laundry features, some of which is influenced by player feedback that we received over seven years ago! Players shared a lot of positive comments about laundry in The Sims 3, but one critique we commonly received was the requirement that your Sims have a hamper in every room, or they'd end up throwing their clothes all over the floor. That's something we’ve addressed this time around.

Another thing we hear often is that players in The Sims 4 are very conscious of the amount of space objects can take up, so we decided to create our washer and dryer machines so that they can be stacked - perfect for Sims who are living in an apartment in the world of San Myshuno.

Want to hear from Graham? Check out SimGuruGraham's Corner on the official forums.

#news #the sims 4 #ts4 #sims 4 #laundry day #stuff pack

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chanelnmbr3 · 7 years

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Tagged by: @endlesslyjourneying I totally forgot that you tagged me but now I’m procrastinating on homework so LET’S DO THIS

Rules: Answer the questions and tag 20 blogs you want to get to know better

Nicknames: I usually prefer to go by my full name but my mom calls me Tori, one of my best friends calls me Toria, and some of my coworkers call me Vicky. I also used to go by V and my best friend since first grade’s family calls me Jamie (because I used to spend so much time with them and all of their names start with J). Oh yeah, and my girl scout troop used to call me Vicious (that one’s a personal favorite lol).

Star sign: Libra

Height: 5′5″

Time right now: 6:52pm

Last thing you googled: SVA admissions (because I’m trying to get my sorry ass into art school)

Fave music artist: Taylor Swift yaaaaaaaaaaa

Song stuck in my head: New Romantics (see above response)

Last movie I watched: Duuuuuuude it’s been so long since I’ve watched a movie, I don’t even remember. Probably something in theaters. Star Wars???

Last tv show I watched: Brooklyn Nine-Nine (eyy shout out to my girl Olivia)

What I’m wearing right now: My PJs. (They have snowmen with pink bowties on them! Woohoo!)

When I created this blog: Recently-ish. Last year maybe? I started on tumblr in 2012 but I got rid of my old blog because too many people I know in real life were following me lol.

The kind of stuff I post: Things that I find funny. Lots of memes. Art. DOGS.

Do I get asks regularly?: Nah, it’s lonely over here. Send me some asks, y’all.

Why did I choose my url: Because I <3 Chanel #3 from Scream Queens. (Although it makes me sad that they made her straight in the new season. RIP.)

Gender: Female

Hogwarts House: Ravenclaw FTW

Pokémon team: I just really like the ones that look like horses tbh.

Favorite color: Green

Average hours of sleep: Not enough

Lucky number: 13

Favorite characters: Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh Spencer from Criminal Minds. Ron Swanson and April Ludgate from Parks and Rec. Spencer from Pretty Little Liars (but basically only because I love her hair and wardrobe and Troian Bellisario is awesome. Also I guess I have a thing for characters named Spencer?). Chanel #3 from Scream Queens obviously. Uhh that’s everyone I can think of right now. I haven’t really read or watched any tv shows or movies in a loooooong time. It’s kinda sad lol.

Dream job: Graphic designer!!!! / person who does CGI for movies!!!

Number of blankets I sleep with: Three. Sometimes four when it gets really cold and I need my heated blanket.

Alright I’m not gonna tag 20 people because I’m too awkward to know that many people on here. Oops. @radiuslucis @themervsays @plantcool

#about me

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killedbycorona · 4 years

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you really do not have to read my post or say anything -I need to say things. Maybe read the link. just stay inside please. and put up your protection before reading this if you can. This took 45 minutes to write and I don’t care if it means anything or not. I don’t have a blog. Be kind.

AHAH WOW THIS WORDS THIS REALLY EXACTLY MY EXPERIENCE WOW. I explained to my mom how when we went from zoom funeral to zoom shiva to zoom Passover to nothing, it didn’t feel complete or valid. She said, “of course not, you watched it over zoom.” Wow fuck I have not talked about this enough (two weeks of his passing today). I was in the funeral over zoom with others (I can’t remember the count). The day before, we had gone over writing his eulogy over Zoom. *I didn’t get to speak at my own father’s funeral because people wouldn’t be able to hear me over Zoom and they all had to be distanced and no one was going to bring a speaker.* I watched others bury my father and I did not get to. I took a screenshot that lives in the same camera roll as memes of a blurry video of his casket with his GD record on it, a trowel, our late cat’s paw print and other things that I couldn’t make out. The Zoom call ended and I was left in the dark away from my family. I tried FaceTiming everyone and started panicking. Luckily, my aunt had her phone and I called in. *I could not be alone with my father six feet under ground because I had to have someone hold the phone.* We hung up and everyone drove away and I can’t remember what I did after that.

My father, who survived 9/11 by taking the later train that morning to his job, two blocks away, died from this virus in three weeks. I’m grateful for our 19 extra years together.

I know many people are talking about the curve being flattened and going outside again. PLEASE DO NOT. Please, do not make the same mistakes we did. “What if he hadn’t gone to work that week like Harris suggested?””What if he wasn’t in a poorly insulated room and was moving more?””What if was in a different hospital?” We know nothing about this plague. We know no cure. We do not know who survived this round and gets it the next and won’t survive. Please, I don’t want any of you to experience this trauma that I am in and will be in for so so long. Maybe my frustration is misplaced. I feel incredibly angry and to see others risk themselves and others with no regard makes it so much worse. An US problem, not a ME problem. US. Take care of each other.

My mom said that when war starts, the first round of soldiers die first and eventually the war ends. My dad was that first round. I am so scared for all the feelings that will arise as I watch the world cure from this. I guess I really derailed and went off topic since this was about zoom funerals. Don’t worry, I’m finding someone to talk to about this. I know no anger will bring him back and I know I’m mixing that with anger towards irresponsible fools. Please don’t be irresponsible.

I keep trying to not backtrack it to who gave it to him because what is the use. I don’t understand my process so much. This article really triggered me. I was in this daze today of “my new reality is people are extra nice to me because they are sad in quarantine.” Nah, it’s because I’m a kid without their father’s guiding light through this pandemic and the rest of their life. I get it, he’s always with me. But he isn’t. Not in the same way and that needs to be acknowledged first or too. I keep saying “stay inside, no one deserves to go through what I’m going through.” ***I do not deserve what I’m going through. But I’m here.*** And I’m really pissed at god and the whole damn universe right about now and the cliches are hurting me to the same degree they’re helping me. I wish I wasn’t in this pain. I wish my dad didn’t die. I wish anyone understood but I’m not about to reach out to this stranger in south jersey who is in their own grief process. Everyone saying they’re bored in quarantine. God what I wouldn’t do to be just bored in quarantine. Even if I was fighting with him, I would take that. I was bedridden with depression for 7 months in 2016. I know what this is like AND I get to experience all the shit of this pandemic, too. I’m not excused of the boredom or fear or panic or helplessness or anything. I get it all! Woohoo!! My head hurts too much to scream. I ache all the time and the panic is right under the surface just waited to be poked at to come out. I don’t care about Facebook etiquette. I don’t care to be seen as brave or vulnerable or strong or any of these really nice things. I don’t feel brave for losing my dad??? Or brave for how I share my grief on the internet. If anything, I have underlying shame about the mess I’m being publicly. I guess I care about Facebook etiquette.

My dad is gone and I am a lost child who doesn’t want to talk to anyone about it. *I don’t want zoom with a therapist in the same room I had the zoom funeral in in the same room I sleep in.* I want to leave my container and be held and I don’t get that. I hate being a victim but I fucking am a victim to this horrible disgusting killing machine. The statistics look like some mindless game but they’re real. I see them and know he’s gone, but not the last person I’ll lose to it. I already lost another person to it a week later! I don’t let it out and there’s no way to let it out when you’re snowed in in a basement apartment and can’t be in a therapist’s office. I can’t go home -it’s unsafe to travel, I can’t be in his home without him there, I don’t know if the virus would kill me, too. I really want a cat. I’m happy he and Hutch are together because they really were the sweetest and most loving beings around. Every story of either of them has been positive. I hope to continue that legacy and if I give any reason to give you an ill memory of us, I’m sorry. Please forgive me.

I am grieving completely sober. I’m feeling so much all at once and the one truth remains the same: I wish I could talk to him. He wouldn’t know what to say, but he’d be here and familiar and my parent and care in his most amazing special ever growing way. I don’t want to raise myself or do this without him. I don’t want to do this without him. I don’t want to do this.

Please stay safe. Please call or FaceTime whenever. I’ll most likely call back or be too anxious and tell you I need to get off the phone. Texting really doesn’t do much for me and I won’t reach out until I’m caught in a moment and even then I might not. Take initiative with me if you can. I wake up after 2pm and fall asleep between 4-6am. I have class some nights. Can’t do Wednesday’s between 5pm-9pm my time. Sorry my brain is rotting and frying and neurotic and stupid right now. Idk if anyone has the capacity to care to the degree of what I’m feeling. Community care - a different person to hold a little rock instead of one person to hold a mountain. I can pay someone to hold a boulder though.

Everything is wrong and you won’t fix that. But maybe you can walk by my side and not have to watch me carry this all on my shoulders. Maybe we can just find a moment to not be in this or be fully in this and have it not be this fucking awful or this lonely. Maybe we can go further than lightly touching the surface so delicately and vaguely and not bullshit it. I don’t know I need help some times and other times I’m fine until I’m poked. I was poked.

Ok this is long enough. I wish harry styles or frank ocean could distract me forever or take me to dinner so I can thank them and have a hello and goodbye with heroes the way I didn’t get to with dad. I wish I had a cat and my hair was white and eyes blue and I could waterbend and I could play records and drive a moped and travel the world and be in music videos and play music and perform and dance in a class and make art and get into floral design and celebrate mom’s big birthday which we’ve been talking about since October but is in June and do everything I never got to do with him here that he believed in me to able to do and wanting me to do. I wish I did it all then so he could see how fucking cool it was and I could show him pictures and have him judge whether to frame them or not. He was learning guitar. I wish I sang with him to him playing something sweet. I wish I took him to red rocks. I was going to take him to Harry Styles but for whatever reason, I bought no tickets for anything this year. Maybe I knew. He was going to see the Grateful Dead in August. There’s nothing fair about this and nothing I wouldn’t do to bring him back and life is cruel and doesn’t work like that. Life is really fucking cruel. I’ve done so much work and maybe it prepared me to be here but it really didn’t. What sort of punishment did I ask for. What did any of us do to have this bright man taken away. What if anything. Anyways, stay inside and have a good night. I’ll be understood one day I think. See you all on zoom.

https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/04/13/999348/covid-19-grief-zoom-funerals/

#posted on facebook #4.18.2029

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comeonthinkers · 6 years

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One step forward...

Sometimes I really hate being a manager of stuff.

Cause in the end, you’re the last line of defense. You’re the one that’s gotta come in to fix stuff, or the only one that knows how. You’ve gotta make the repair calls, receive the late calls; you’ve gotta place the orders; you’ve gotta correct the ones that are wrong, listen to their crap, and answer for their mistakes. You replace one piece of broken equipment, another gets stolen. The snake head gets repaired, a channel fries. Yeesh.

It’s nice to have control. It’s not nice to have to acknowledge you can’t control everything. This is a silly thing to complain about, but I am honestly kept awake some nights because my phone is charging in the other room and I am afraid to fall asleep because if someone at the bar needs me I won’t hear their call come through. This is my problem. I overstress and am a workaholic. And I could fix these things, and I’m working on it, but there are just some days when everything breaks and life sucks and I find myself yelling at my phone because an app takes a second longer than it should to respond to me pressing a button. Ugh.

Anywho. For now, the bills are (mostly) paid, I’ve got a job and a roof over my head, I’ve been training an assistant that’s competent and allows me to catch up on sleep, and my biggest financial concern is that it’s hard to put away money for a wedding I get to have. So it could be TONS worse. But I feel that the day-to-day reality of business is the constant feel of 5 steps forward, 4 steps back. Sometimes even 5 or 6 steps back. Maybe over the course of a few months you get somewhere. But it’s never as far as you want it to be, as fast as you hoped it would be.

On the plus side, I’ve started writing again. And I’ve got a business blog now, which I’m determined to keep updated (as well as this one), with at least a few posts every month. Last week I got 10 new unique visitors to my website because of it, too- and a few of them even checked out my rates page. So for all the steps back it feels like I’ve been taking lately, that’s one step forward. My loan applications are going well, and with help from the bank and a better approach to saving I shouldn’t have tax trouble next year or hopefully the years after that. Learned that lesson, and though it doesn’t feel like it yet that’s a step forward too.

I had a mini-break through in Capoeira yesterday: we practice this movement called “bananeira,” which is essentially a handstand, only a little bit different in the approach. You start out lower to the ground, bringing your arms down and bending at the knee (almost as if you’re starting from a lunge), and then using the straightening of your back leg you push your hips forward and over your shoulders. You don’t use momentum, you use strength and your body’s skeletal structure to support yourself. And I had been having trouble even getting my bottom leg off the ground for the past few months. But this week, something kinda clicked: and I was able to get my legs up and straight (even if not actually over my head) before coming back down in a more-or-less controlled fashion. Woohoo!

I made my breakthrough just in time to then get lazy later in class and tweak my back by twisting instead of rolling during the negativa role. Great. One step forward, two steps back...

Diet update? Progress is being made. I actually got below 195 last week, and it’s the first time since starting the diet that I’m under 200 lbs after cheat day- which means the weight is legitimately coming off and staying off. It’s slow going, but last week was a big deal for me. I went a little overboard during one of the fasting days and had a bit of an energy lapse for the rest of the week because of it- although I could have also been fighting the flu bug going around. I feel better after a weekend of re-feeding and taking care not to go below 1200 calories a day (which I had done without realizing a few days in a row last week), and I’ll try to remember that it’s okay to eat. Just because the scale says I’m losing weight doesn’t mean I don’t need food anymore. But getting weak doesn’t mean I need to completely stop, either- it just means I need to moderate.

I’ve been experimenting again with adding some foods back in- it seems as long as I still keep away from sugar and gluten I do pretty alright, which is good news for when I get to maintaining weight and would still like to eat other things. I’m still eating more vegetables and overall, still feel better. My first dress fitting is next week, and I’m hoping I can get re-inspired to keep at it for the next few months. I’ve still got a goal of 190 for the end of the month- and if I keep at it I should be able to get there- 4 pounds in 2 weeks is totally doable. Especially if I only do one cheat day between now and then, keep up on my exercises and stretches (which will also help my back), and don’t go too crazy on the fasting.

Days like these are reasons why I actually like taking the time to do my own taxes once a year. Each day, the tiny victories and seemingly tumultuous defeats make it seem like we’re never getting closer to our goals. But forcing myself to go through piles of receipts, invoices, and bank statements help me remember the ridiculous amount of stuff I got done last year- and the heaps of improvements I’ve made, goals I reached, useful tools I bought, and projects I completed. It’s not nothing, these steps forward- and even if the world's break-neck pace makes it seem like we’re backpedaling sometimes, we’re still making progress.

I’m taking a martial arts class and losing weight for the first time in years- and have been keeping it up! I’ve got regular clients that I love to work with and are helping me learn new skills. Though managing a venue is exhausting, it’s endlessly rewarding and way more fun than most other jobs, and the problems we’re facing now are nowhere near as daunting as the problems we were facing six months ago. I’m getting frickin’ married in 3 and a half months.

One step forward at a time.

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cottagenotebook · 7 years

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ssssssssh I have a secret | I Want That Wrap mini Ok, you did it you have made it through Monday and are ready for the rest of the week. I have some exciting news to share with all of you and that is my blog is Shortlisted for the #VbyVeryBloggies17 by @littlewoodsirl in the Arts & Crafts Category along with some amazing blogs. Woohoo, this really does mean the world to me so thank you all for commentating and interacting with the blog since the start. . Now for the image above, first of all, I really did consider if I could stick her to the wall in some way so that I could get her to just stop moving! Over on my blog today, is a post all about the wrap that little K is wearing in this image. So pop over and be blown away by the cuteness (okay I might be slightly biased) . Also this week I am a mod over on the @craftastherapy account so pop over there too and say hello and join in our wonderful outside theme! Thanks for checking in! Nadia — view on Instagram http://ift.tt/2xg70Rb

#Instagram #IFTTT

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adenathebean-blog · 7 years

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The Great Job Search of 2017

Hello all,

Wow, another super long break between blog posts. But you’ll be glad to hear that I’ve actually been busy over the past few weeks and not just sitting in my apartment watching k-dramas. I’d spent a fair amount of time growing accustomed to my new apartment, neighborhood, church, and friends over the past seven weeks, so naturally, my next step was to begin the daunting process of finding a job.

I’d gotten a lot of mixed reviews on being a teacher in Cambodia, some from friends and acquaintances who have experience and some from all of the online research that I’d done. Some of the pros included my status as a UK citizen and my time spent in the US, my age, the desperate need for native English teachers in SE Asia, my TEFL certificate, and the fact that I’m a female. The cons largely consisted of my age, the oversaturation of “do-good” teachers in SE Asia, my lack of a bachelor’s degree, and the fact that I’m black. Surprisingly (or maybe unsurprisingly), none of this advice was the least bit helpful. Any education standards that exist in Cambodia are rarely followed and whether you get hired or not is up the complete discretion of whoever you end up in the interview room with.

So, with high expectations and images of local flocking to me, begging me to teach their children, I did some research about the international schools closest to me. And by research, I mean that I typed “school” into Google maps and clicked on the results that were in English. I then proceeded to wade through pages and pages of information that was either incredibly vague or had nothing to do with me (that is, if the website was functioning in the first place). The foreign teachers in Cambodia pages I’d joined on Facebook were incredibly helpful during this stage and I check in almost every day to see what new positions were available in the city.

Being the planner that I am, I made a document with a list of the most promising schools, their distance from my apartment, when the next term began, and some of their requirements for prospective teachers. Then I went down my list and emailed each of the schools in turn and waited patiently for some responses. Besides a single rejection email, on the grounds that I wasn’t qualified enough (no shocker there) I got nada. And as much as I had been warned, I was finally learning first hand that Cambodia is not a country of planners and organizers and schedulers.

At that point, I didn’t really know what to do, so I waited it out for a bit, not sure what my other options were. A few days later, I did end up scheduling an interview with a small school that I had several good recommendations from people at church. The interview was online and went well, despite my webcam choosing that precise morning to stop working. Another school also called and asked if I could come in and do a teaching demo. I said yes, but the prospect of doing an hour long teaching demo with 3-4 year olds and no interview beforehand was more than a little daunting. The night before the demo was scheduled was one of the most difficult I’ve had since moving to Cambodia. I was missing family and friends and the lifestyle I’d grown accustomed to and the next morning (after I’d called my mom and finally managed to stop crying) I called to reschedule the demo. In typical Cambodia fashion, they told me they’d call back and let me know what future day and time worked best for them. As you can imagine, that was the last I heard from them. And the day after that I was contacted by the school I’d interviewed with and told that they were very sorry, but they had no positions available until the end of June. (Not sure why they interviewed me and gave me every detail of the contract if they didn’t have any vacancies, but I’m not bitter. Heh.)

In any case, that week ended up being a dud and I honestly wasn’t feeling very motivated to keep searching for a job in a field where those in charge seemed to be intentionally unhelpful. On the other hand, I spend most of my days stressing about running out of money and being a penniless cat woman in the middle of Phnom Penh. There were a lot of desperate prayers and even more not so useful advice during that time. The most frustrating part had to be the questions that people asked at church and other social gatherings.

Them: So what brought you to Cambodia?

Me: That’s a long story haha. Lots of things brought me here.

Them: Like what?

Me: (expiring visa, too late to apply for school, America’s kicking me out, didn’t feel like going to England, people at church from Cambodia, Asia’s cool, K-pop, Cambodia’s as close as I can get to Korea right now) I just feel like God called me here, ya know?

Them: Cool, cool. So what are you doing here?

Me: At church?

Them: No, in the country. Are you working?

Me: Ah not yet. Looking though. Do you have any recommendations for good schools?

Them: Oh, so you’re a teacher?

Me: Well, not yet.

Them: So you just finished your degree?

Me: *desperately looking for a way out of this convo* No actually, still working on that. I have my TEFL though.

Them: Do you have any experience?

Me: I tutored and worked with the teen ministry in San Diego.

Them: I see. How old are you?

Me: Twenty-one.

Them: Oh, you’re young.

Me: Yeah.

Them: Yeah

So that was fun. So much fun. Anyway, I was seriously starting to doubt my purpose in Cambodia. It’s true, I have no experience in the classroom and I spent the last twenty years of my life proclaiming to the unwashed masses that the last thing I ever wanted to do was teach, especially kids. God is funny like that. He likes to answer a few prayers and then throw us for a loop by giving us something we never asked for, but learn to appreciate later. (Maybe if I tell him I never want to marry a tall, handsome, Asian man who appreciates the fine arts, plays six instruments, and loves the outdoors…) Wow, these posts are getting more and more personal as I go along. Anyway, last Thursday I did another intensive round of applications, including making phone calls and actually visiting a couple of schools and handing over my CV. One of the schools I had the address for (and had spoken to the director of) turned out not to exist, at least not in the place that it claimed to. The encouragement was strong with this round and by Thursday evening, I had secured four interviews. One was postponed as the school had another applicant who they’d already met with express interest in taking the position.

So, feeling much more sprightly and confident, I spent Friday morning playing my part as a wedding singer. (True story. Chiara and I sang Amazing Grace at the most beautiful wedding that I have ever been to. If this teaching thing doesn’t work out, being a professional wedding singer is my next choice.) That afternoon, I had my first in person interview. It went well. The school was nice, as were the principal and vice principal and its strongest feature was the proximity to the apartment. Monday came along and I had another interview at a school that was much further away, but the campus was new and clean and the director was a fellow Brit, which earned him (and me, I think) extra points. The last interview was on Monday afternoon and it was the one I was most nervous about. With the previous two, I had sent my CV ahead of time, so they had interviewed me knowing that I didn’t have a degree of very much experience. I’d simply made an inquiry to the last school about whether they had positions and they’d asked me to interview right away (I actually had to reschedule because of the wedding).

I had no idea what I was going into and ended up at the wrong campus. There are three different campuses, one for kindergarten, one for primary, and one for high school, which is where the main office is. I showed up at the kindergarten one, but luckily all of the campuses are on the same street within walking distance. And as if that wasn’t bad enough, the director who I was supposed to interview with was fifteen minutes late. Once he showed up though, it was smooth sailing all the way through. He was the first person to conduct one of my interviews who wasn’t a westerner, although his English was phenomenal. Despite this, he had some of the most western ideals out of all of the people I’d spoken to during my job hunt. He placed a lot of emphasis on communication (which is a rarity in Cambodia) as well as parental involvement (also rare) and said that he likes to give people chances, it’s just up to them to prove they deserve it. And then he whipped out a contract right then and there. We went through it together, I asked all of my questions, and we sealed the deal. As of the 29th of May, 2017, I became a kindergarten teacher at True Visions International School!

Funnily enough, half an hour after I’d gotten home and done a victory lap around my apartment, I got a call from the school that I’d interviewed with that morning, letting me know that I’d passed the interview and they had a position for me with their kindergarten class. It was the same pay, and although I liked both schools, True Visions really won me over and is much closer to where I’m living, so I’m incredibly satisfied with my choice.

Now that the easy part is over, all I have to do is learn how to teach English to kindergarteners. Woohoo!

#job search #kindergarten #job interview #wedding #wedding singer #teaching #tefl #asia #cambodia #phnom penh #travel #travel blog #traveling bean

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type2diabetestreatments-blog · 7 years

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2011: The Diabetes Year in Review

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2011: The Diabetes Year in Review

The New Year is just around the corner, so as per tradition, we're reviewing all the things that have made 2011 a year to remember in the diabetes world and here at the 'Mine.

We've had some big moments in technology as the FDA finally approved some progressive stuff. There were some amazing times with our blogging compatriots IRL (that's Internet-speak for "in real life"). And there were some milestones of us both professionally and personally.

Here's a look at what we think stands out in 2011:

JANUARY

We rang in the New Year with some really big news from our side: DiabetesMine became part of the Alliance Health Networks family. I took on the new role of Vice President of Patient Advocacy as well as Editor-in-Chief of DiabetesMine. Allison officially joined the staff of the 'Mine as Assistant Editor.

Fresh from the adventure of a lifetime, Amazing Race winner Nat Strand chatted with us about what it takes to travel around the world with diabetes!

I also discussed the nitty-gritty of inhaled insulin with Dance Pharmaceuticals CEO, John Patton. He's a veteran of the failed Exubera team, and is on a mission to revive this product category.

We launched our series on diabetes complications with a look at diabetic retinopathy (no pun intended!). We've since followed up with 411's on heart disease, gum disease, neuropathy, gastroparesis, depression and even frozen shoulder. Not to bum you all out, but this stuff is important for us PWDs to know.

FEBRUARY

Allison covered the JDRF Research Summit in Washington, D.C., where updates on the artificial pancreas, the immune system, and prevention of diabetes were discussed. Allison also interviewed Dr. Ed Damiano about the Artificial Pancreas Project.

JDRF CEO Jeffrey Brewer publicly discussed the organization's new direction, setting off a firestorm of controversy. Some folks were very upset that JDRF is no longer focused solely on cure research, but we happen to applaud the work they're doing in developing technologies that can help patients live better now. Allison shared her personal feelings and struggles in hoping for a cure.

We were very excited to share an inspiring guest post from a U.S. Marine who refused to give up his dream of serving his country when he was diagnosed with diabetes.

Dr. Denise Faustman, one of the most controversial yet admired researchers, sat down for a video chat with us about the latest developments in her innovative research to cure diabetes. She also gave us a tour of her laboratory.

MARCH

We kicked off the 2011 DiabetesMine Design Challenge, our annual online competition to encourage creative new tools for improving life with diabetes.

Speaking of innovation, Allison took us on a behind-the-scenes tour of an artificial pancreas clinical trial at Massachusetts General Hospital, led by co-investigator Dr. Ed Damiano.

Allison also traveled to Washington, D.C., with a delegation of bloggers for JDRF's Government Day to talk about social media with the JDRF grassroots advocacy leaders from around the country, meet with Members of Congress on the Hill, and have a briefing with Jeffrey Brewer. Very cool!

At the 'Mine, we launched our new Weekend Edition, now featuring a wonderful roster of cartoonists and a very quirky, useful and fun advice column from D-author and community educator, Wil Dubois. We love you, Wil!

APRIL

Allison and I traveled to Los Angeles to take part in the first-ever Medtronic Diabetes Advocates Forum, where we discussed our thoughts on social media and patient community needs, and also learned about some new Medtronic offerings (like the MyMedtronic Connect iPhone app), and toured the facilities where they produce the Medtronic CGM sensors. That last bit was pretty eye-opening.

We also investigated some interesting rumors we'd heard in LA about progressive products currently only available in Europe: the Medtronic Enlite sensors and the Animas Vibe insulin pump.

In the midst of our Design Challenge, we took a look at one company burgeoning forward to bring innovation to the diabetes market: CellNovo. CEO Bill McKeon discussed their sleek new insulin pump inspired by the iPhone.

MAY

I flew to Las Vegas for a keynote speech to Sanofi Aventis' A1c Champions national meeting, where I was able to give these motivational speakers a pep talk about the Diabetes Online Community! What a great group of grassroots advocates the Champions are.

DiabetesSisters' semi-annual Weekend for Women conference took place in Raleigh, NC, and Allison had the opportunity to attend. She shared the stories of several "sisters" who found inspiration and hope just by spending some time with other women with diabetes.

We participated in Karen Graffeo's Diabetes Blog Week, where we shared what we admire about the DOC's diversity, a heartfelt letter to a former endocrinologist, and 10 things we hate about diabetes.

JDRF announced a partnership with Amylin to study the combination of insulin and symlin, something we're sure folks who dislike multiple daily injections (and who doesn't?) will appreciate if they can get the formulation to work!

JDRF's NYC Chapter hosted an evening with Dr. Sanjoy Dutta, the Director of Glucose Control Therapies at JDRF. He discussed JDRF's Insulin Initiative, a program to investigate how to make insulin work faster and better, which will help blood sugar control in the long run, of course.

D-Mom and super advocate Moira McCarthy Stanford wrote a touching guest post about dealing with her teen daughter's rebellion against diabetes and her advice on how other parents can avoid the same heartache. This post was quite controversial, with 59 comments to date.

JUNE

We were thrilled to announce the winners of the 2011 DiabetesMine Design Challenge. What an honor to be able to share the amazing talent we found through the process!

Nevermind taking the summer off: June marked the beginning of our conference-circuit tour. We were excited to reunite with our friends for the third annual Roche Diabetes Social Media Summit.

That was followed immediately by the annual American Diabetes Association's Scientific Sessions. This HUGE annual conference was a little light on breakthrough products this year, mainly because so much was backed up awaiting FDA approval. Grrr... But there were still a few juicy announcements, including research showing increased life expectancy for PWDs, new advances in the Artificial Pancreas Project, and a CGM trial in kids and teens.

We were honored to feature the story of Bob Krause, the longest-living person with diabetes! Bob has had diabetes for 85 years and is doing great. We were also delighted to meet Bob in person in San Diego at a Joslin reception at the ADA Scientific Sessions:

Plus, we both stepped in front of a Flip camera to take part in Kim Vlasnik's You Can Do This! project. Allison and I each made our own homemade video contribution.

JULY

July was a big month for Allison... she got married!

And while she was on her honeymoon and I took my annual family trip to Germany, we had some absolutely amazing folks stop by to offer guest posts:

Diabetes attorney Kris Halpern shared what you need to know about discrimination in the workplace

Author Amy Stockwell Mercer gave us her insights in what it's like to be a smart woman with diabetes

Blogger Sysy Morales listed 10 things men need to know about women with diabetes

We also published three interviews with some key leaders in the diabetes community:

IDF execs Drs. Jean-Claude Mbanya and Martin Silink shared their thoughts on the international diabetes community and the Life for a Child program

Famous endo Dr. Lois Jovanovic gave women with diabetes some useful tips on how to stay healthy before, during, and after a pregnancy

AUGUST

We hit Las Vegas for the American Association of Diabetes Educator's Annual Conference, where David Edelman, Manny Hernandez, Hope Warshaw and I spoke to a packed room of diabetes educators about the power of the DOC! Talk about your advocacy opportunities — woohoo!

Later at the AADE conference, got the inside scoop on what educators are saying about their patients, and we got a closer look at the new Spring Universal infusion set.

Scandal rocked the DOC with the discovery the insulin pumps could be hacked! Not only that, but the man who discovered this is a pump-wearing PWD himself, who began some some tenuous back-and-forth between himself and the pump manufacturer, later revealed to be Medtronic Diabetes. Although Medtronic claims they are investigating the issue, the hacker wasn't convinced they took the issue seriously. Months later, articles on insulin pump hacking are still cropping up in the news...

SEPTEMBER

We started September with the second annual Diabetes Art Day, the brainchild of art therapist and activist Lee Ann Thill, who helped us work out some of our diabetes frustrations in the form of creative expression.

September was a BIG month for us at the 'Mine, as we hosted our first-ever DiabetesMine Innovation Summit, bringing together in one room pharma product experts, entrepreneurs, designers, VCs, empowered patients and our contest winners. The resulting interactions were nothing short of revolutionary!

Then diabetes innovation came knocking on front door in the form of a test drive of the new iBGStar glucose meter, which plugs directly into an iPhone or iTouch.

But progress still floundered as the FDA continued to grapple with how to make the Medtronic VEO — a product already available in 40 other countries — available in the U.S. with its powerful low-glucose suspend feature. Geez, in the very short-term, too much insulin is far riskier than not enough!

The history-making UN Summit on Noncommunicable Diseases took place, along with a rally in Central Park. But not without quite a bit of headache before and not nearly enough commitment during and after, at least according to the folks who attended. Ann Keeling, CEO of the International Diabetes Federation, gave us her feedback on the outcomes of the Summit.

We also checked out MyGlu.org, from the Helmsley Charitable Trust, a new social network and counterpart to the new type 1 diabetes national registry they are building. Great, great things are in the works there.

OCTOBER

In October, Allison traveled to Kansas City, MO, for one of the biggest (and possibly best?) diabetes meet-ups ever! Simon, a PWD from Australia, traveled half way across the world for a "North American tour" that covered Los Angeles, Kansas City, and New York City. In case you're bummed that you missed out, we hear he's coming back in 2012 for CWD's Friends for Life conference in July!

Brilliant minds in diabetes research convened in San Diego for TEDxDelMar, the first-ever satellite TED conference focusing on the search for a cure.

Mid-October brought us LADA Awareness Week, a campaign dedicated to raising awareness about a form of type 1 diabetes diagnosed in adults. Close to my heart, this is! The proper definition of LADA is a little difficult to pin down, so I queried some top experts to see what they think.

We took a look at some of the many new diabetes iPhone apps, including the new Glooko app, which allows you to upload your blood sugar readings to your phone using a simple USB cable for easy logging.

Getting a handle on blood sugars was a top priority for Allison, who shared her thoughts and concerns on pregnancy and diabetes (it's all about planning, right?).

NOVEMBER

November is a HUGE month for the diabetes community... but it still goes relatively unnoticed by most of the world. In hopes of changing that, we launched our own Unite Behind the Blue Circle Campaign. Our petition for ADA, JDRF, and AADE to more prominently use the Blue Circle to unite the diabetes community garnered over 3,000 signatures!

JDRF also rang in November with the launch of their T1 Day and a shocking newspaper ad in The New York Times and The Washington Post stating that 1 in 20 people with diabetes will die from a low blood sugar. They're not the only national advocacy org using stats to scare up support, and Jeffrey Brewer stands behind the move.

We also participated in the 7th annual DBlog Day, this year breaking out the glue and scissors to create a commemorative scrapbook page.

November 14 was the fifth annual UN-recognized World Diabetes Day and we celebrated here at the 'Mine by taking a look at the previous 5 years of World Diabetes Day. We've come a long way, Baby.

Allison was on hand in NYC with her video camera ready to welcome members of Team Type 1 after they ran across the country. Not kidding!

Big diabetes technology news broke when the FDA approved Tandem's new sleek t:slim insulin pump, with an iPhone-like design. Suddenly, the FDA seemed on a roll — as they also approved the iGlucose, a device that wireless transmits blood sugars to a management system, and Medtronic Minimed's iPro CGM, a new continuous monitor that doctors can lend out to patients.

Nevertheless, we still have issues with progress at the FDA, and I hoped to gain some insight at a JDRF breakfast on FDA reform held in Silicon Valley. Thumbs sideways.

We closed out the month with two exciting giveaways:

We interviewed PWD chef hottie Sam Talbot and gave away a copy of his new cookbook, The Sweet Life.

We honored all our vocal readers with our 20,000 Voices Giveaway, to mark our 20,000th comment here at the 'Mine and all the wonderful folks out there who make our work worthwhile!

DECEMBER

The FDA came through in a big way with the approval of the iBGStar glucose meter, the first and only meter that directly plugs into an iPhone! This bodes well for integration of health / medical devices with consumer technology across the board.

The FDA also released its guidance on the Artificial Pancreas, and JDRF seemed pleased with what they saw initially; we're still waiting to see how it all plays out.

Lifescan also released their OneTouch Verio glucose meter (in Canada), the first-ever meter than can alert you to trends. We got some great user feedback.

I was very happy to be featured in the new anthology, My Sweet Life, a new book of essays from two dozen women living successfully with diabetes. Shout-out to author Dr. Bev!

Allison's husband chimed in with his thoughts on being the life partner of a PWD. He's a keeper, I tell you!

I chatted with Jenny Mackenzie, the successful filmmaker behind SUGAR BABIES, a new educational documentary about four families living with diabetes.

FOR 2012:

Well... we're crossing our fingers (and toes!) that the events in November and December bode well for more great new tools to pass through FDA in the new year. We also have more fun things up our sleeves here at the 'Mine, as we hope to make 2012 bigger and better than ever.

As always, your input is more than welcome.

Happy New Year, Folks!

Yours,

Amy + Allison

Disclaimer: Content created by the Diabetes Mine team. For more details click here.

Disclaimer

This content is created for Diabetes Mine, a consumer health blog focused on the diabetes community. The content is not medically reviewed and doesn't adhere to Healthline's editorial guidelines. For more information about Healthline's partnership with Diabetes Mine, please click here.

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