#do you not want them to graduate??? to develop into functioning members of society????

[turkey-sandwich]

By some weird turn of events that Yumenosaki does shut down, I feel like some idols might transfer to Shuuetsu/Reimei

Like, I'm sure the Himemiyas wouldn't just let Tori, their first born son and all that high class jazz, have unfinished education and might send him to a prestigious school like Shuuetsu or smth (yuzuru would flip if that happened tho lmaoaoao), same with tsukasa and they might send him to Reimei with Kohaku (SUOU-OUKAWA COUSIN BONDING SUPREMACY)

Hell, maybe the twins going to Shuuetsu bcs of ibara (he'd also probably say smth across the lines of "it'll benefit him when the time comes" lmao ok ibaba, we know you care abt the aois)

Idk maybe I'm just wanting for more Shuuetsu/Reimei content and lore

This is just a bunch of my random thoughts abt the possible aftermaths of the event that don't make much sense. They won't abolish Yumenosaki for reals, right??? Right?????????

#ensemble stars #ensemble stars!! music #enstars #ibara saegusa #tori himemiya #kohaku oukawa #tsukasa suou #hinata aoi #yuta aoi #ok but like. who made that decision of abolishing yumenosaki what the fuck #why would you #do you not care abt the education of these children??? #do you not want them to graduate??? to develop into functioning members of society???? #is that it???? #but also ik for a fact that aira would Not Survive reimei actually #but also imagine the soon to be third years/second year in shuuetsu/reimei uniforms #im having a lot of thoughts abt the graduation again

[raleighliving]

Interview with NCSU Staff Member

This was an interview I conducted April 22nd of 2021. I've tried to eliminate as much personal information as possible (including the initial "about yourself" question) since if any attitudes or opinions have changed I wanted to respect the individual while still showing I did in fact talk to people about this.

RL: How do you feel, personally, about the NCSU physics department and the work you do there?  Do you particularly enjoy it, have things been rough due to the Pandemic, etc.

Staff Member (SM): The department is very collegial and a great place to work.   Our faculty are performing research that will have direct impacts on the future.  We have faculty working to develop transparent plastics for greenhouses that can let appropriate light through for plant growth while using the light that is not needed to generate electricity to power the facilities, faculty using physics techniques to probe  how biological macromolecules self-organize to exert mechanical force and accomplish biological function, information needed to understand cancer, birth defects, and miscarriage, and faculty who initiate discussions with the general public about the end of the universe through popular science books.  On the teaching side, we have many faculty who have received teaching awards such as the Board of Governor's award, the Alumni Outstanding Teaching Award, NC State's Academy of Outstanding Teachers, and even national awards such as the American Physical Society’s Award for Excellence in Physics Education.  We take both teaching, research, and service very seriously.

As with everyone else, we have pivoted with COVID as everything has moved online.  I'll comment more below on specifics.   

RL: on to the fun stuff here, I've talked to a number of your students from a plethora of graduating classes and they all echo this similar belief that "The NCSU physics department operates on a 'fail to pass' mindset where class averages sit at the low sixties until a curve is brought in". 

SM: The first thing needed is to understand what we teach.  You had comments in your thread from both physics majors and non-majors.  

We teach physics to a very large number of students each year; approximately one out of every 10 students at NC State is currently taking a physics class.  The vast majority of these students are not physics majors, with about 60% of them taking the calculus-based classes (205/208) and 40% the algebra-based ones (211/212).  Loosely speaking, PY205/8 are primarily filled with engineering students and PY211/2 are life-science majors.  The total numbers of students taught in 2020 are Fall 211/2/05/08 (2131), Dept. Total (2819), Spring 211/2/05/08 (2416), Dept. Total (3158).   Multiply this by 4 to get a rough number of credit hours.  Note physics majors take PY201/202 which is a similar class, but taught at a higher level than PY205/8.

To summarize more accurately from what I've gathered, many seem to think that the Physics department at NC State operates in a way that is purposefully obfuscated/overly complex and then saves itself by fiddling with homework weights or by curving every assignment.  How would you respond to these statements?

Although I don't know, I would guess that most of your comments arise from students taking PY205/208.  There are multiple sections of each course and they are taught with a common syllabus so that everyone has the same homework, tests, etc. regardless of the section they take.  Exams are common across all sections and are given in the evenings.  We have one one faculty member make the first draft of the test each time, but they are thoroughly vetted by all faculty teaching the course.  Very few of the initial problems remain exactly the same after each problem has been reviewed by multiple faculty members. 

We put out practice tests for the students based on tests from previous years.  We provide the students many ways to test their knowledge, including a set of representative problems with only answers available.  There are an ample number of worked out solutions provided throughout the chapters in the book and other resources and this tool provides a way to test their knowledge prior to the test.  If someone is struggling with the practice test, they will not be able to learn it from there, but need to step back to more structured problems with explanations before revisiting the practice test again.  We do not provide practice tests that completely mirror the actual tests because we are asking the students to learn the material as opposed to memorizing how to work a small subset of problems.

All courses are taught by faculty, with the graduate TAs overseeing the associated one-hour laboratory courses (PY206/9).  During the pandemic, we have had to introduce more technology into the course since everything had to rapidly switch to online, which has caused a few hick-ups, but overall it seems to be going well given the rollout to such large numbers of students with little time to vet the technology.

When it comes to tests, we do evaluate them and in many cases either apply a curve for each test or one for the class as a whole.  Student performance has changed during the pandemic as a result of not being able to discuss problems with their peers, not having group study sessions, no in-person tutoring, etc.  We have tried to account for this by reducing the difficulty of the tests, but that is not always sufficient.  I will note that many students are doing incredibly well and the averages have been running lower recently because the tail of the distribution is much longer now than before.  The median for the tests however is higher than the average.

While not part of your question, over the past few years, the numbers of students cheating has unfortunately significantly increased and we have been forced to put measures in place to help ensure the integrity of the course for the majority of students who are spending many hours preparing.  Pre-COVID, these measures included assigned seats during the tests and randomized numbers/answers across tests.  Post-COVID, early indicators showed significant increases in cheating (~15% of students).  This is a nationwide issue and I have seen multiple discussions by department heads across the country.   We thus needed to put structures in place in this new reality.   

These have evolved over the past two semesters based on both faculty and student feedback.  They include Respondus Monitor, which was chosen by the University/DELTA and they purchased a site license.  Due to the large number of students, other monitoring options are not really viable.  We are also using ~30-minute segments for the tests, which is aimed to allow one to take a short break between parts.  This also helps the student continue should they have temporary connectivity problems or technology failures.  The test uses randomized numbers and numeric questions, which is the same format as their homework.  There is only one chance per question and the questions are presented in a fixed ordering that is unique for each student. This minimizes opportunities for collaborative work during the test. In a test setting, we want students to work on problems individually, not in groups.  We understand that this presentation of questions is not ideal, but this has been implemented for integrity reasons.  Students may bring several pages of your individually prepared notes – on paper.  We would like them to be able to access resources, but we want it to be resources that they created and hope it will help alleviate some of their anxiety.  The test is not open book.  Electronic versions of the textbook are cumbersome during a testing situation, and provide a significant advantage to students fortunate enough to own a second device or a printed copy.   Students must submit their handwritten work for each problem. This is required, as it will help us verify that they did the work themselves.  

RL: Do you feel like the Physics and engineering courses use "weed out" courses? What are your thoughts on weed-out courses in general? 

SM: We teach the material at a level that is consistent with norms across the country and we do not consider our role to be a weed-out course.  We do cover a lot of material in class and it moves quickly.  It requires significant work outside of the classroom and for many, it is the first challenging course (of many) that they take at the University.  Our syllabus is consistent with almost all similar engineering-based courses and we are regularly reviewed as part of the College of Engineering's ABET accreditation process.  I meet regularly with administrators from the College of Engineering to make sure we are covering the appropriate material for their students.  We also have active collaborations with engineering faculty teaching higher-level mechanics and statics courses developing tools that can be used across the two colleges in multiple courses.  In addition to university resources, there are many local opportunities for students to get extra support - either from their professor during office hours or from our graduate students who work in our own tutorial center.  

RL:  Do you have any statistics for your department's graduation rates that you could share? Searching through public information it looks like the average failure rate for physics students teeters between ~22-25%, and according to College Factual [Data May have changed since 2021] NCSU only awarded 29 BA's in the last year, and the school has an overall on-time graduation rate of 44%.  Compared to notoriously difficult Physics and Engineering schools like MIT, which holds an 85% graduation rate comparatively, this is troubling data, to say the least.  If you could provide any statistics or data contrary, however, that'd be greatly appreciated. 

I'm not sure where the numbers they quote come from.  Per the University's Institutional Data Profiles, the current numbers for physics are: 

Retention and Graduation Rates

Data Element 2020-2021

Four Year Graduation Rate 60%

Five Year Graduation Rate 67%

Six Year Graduation Rate 78%

First Year Retention 91%

Note that these numbers only include freshmen who started at NC State.  This excludes all transfer students from the community college route.

We produce about 30 bachelor degrees per year which is par for a department of our size.  You can see national statistics here:  https://www.aps.org/careers/statistics/upload/bachdegree1115.pdf [Numbers may have changed since 2021]. This number is also consistent with the size of our incoming class which also runs about 30.  Note that about 1/2 of our graduates started in physics as a freshman.  The other half of the class (both incoming and outgoing) change their major in the process.  Much of this happens as students see a much broader set of options when entering the university and there are many that move between different areas in sciences and engineering.  Our program as a whole has about 140 physics majors across all years and about 120 graduate students en route generally to a PhD.

Again, a mix of data here in that our majors do not take the engineering sequence where you are quoting the ~22-25% failure rate.  For these classes, I looked at the pre-COVID PY205 DWF (#'s of D's, F's, and Withdrawals) rates and how they compared over eight spring semesters (averaged over all sections of PY205 taught not including honors).  Note that a D is not considered failing the course, however the College of Engineering requires a C or better to move forward with their curriculum so I have included it in this analysis.  Also during COVID, the University introduced additional S/U grading options and allowed withdrawals much later, so it has been almost impossible for me to get meaningful statistics on student success during this time.  Pre-COVID, the DWF rate across all sections over the previous eight years was 22.8% and with a median of 25.1%.   I looked in detail for the spring semester prior to the shutdown where the rate was 24% across all sections.  Here, almost half (11 of the 24%) were either W's or students who did not show up for the final exam.  Of course there will always be variations from year-to-year and also from instructor-to-instructor, but we try to keep these reasonably small.

RL: Overall, what message would you like to send to the students in your department?  What sort of takeaway do you want people who enter these courses and feel they were given a purposefully twisted challenge to have instead?

SM: The physics department takes our teaching responsibilities seriously and works hard to deliver classes aimed to set students up for future success.  We stress building critical thinking skills and understanding of why as opposed to just identifying what formula to use to solve the problem.  

RL: I thank you for your time, and apologize for taking so long to reach out to you.  It has been super hectic with my own personal life and I hope that you have a great afternoon.  

Additionally, if there's anything you'd like to say otherwise feel free to include it outside the interview guidelines.  Or if you have any questions for me, etc. etc.

SM: As a side note, with the very large numbers of students that we teach, there are quite a few that struggle.  Much of this is not the physics itself, but lack of math skills.  We have been creating resources for students to help fill holes in that knowledge, but this is taking time both to identify them and to put them in place.  For example, we found out a year or so ago that matrices were removed from the NC high school curriculum.  We have now shifted gears to include that foundational math knowledge into what we teach.  More and more students are not taking trigonometry in high school which makes solving problems with angles incredibly difficult.  The list goes on.  With the pandemic now, I worry about what additional deficiencies we will be seeing.  We are actively reaching out to high school physics teachers to assess where students will be and will be meeting to determine if we need to make additional adjustments in the course for the fall.  

I'm happy to talk more about any of this in detail if it would help.  We do care and are not out for the students as many would think.  It's generally their first "real" course at the university and it catches many by surprise.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If the staff member I spoke with is okay with me publishing his name and the first question, I'll be more than happy to. You know who you are, and if you reach out to my email again I'll respond to your wishes within my ability and make edits where needed.

More content™ to come, especially when I can complain about people complaining about the rezoning or whatever else is going on around town.

#Interview #NCSU #nc state #nc state university #nc #raleigh #northcarolina #north carolina #Carolina #school #education #weed out #weed out course #old interview #old news #returning post

[taanisha862-blog]

Blog - Sage University.

Sanjeev Agrawal Global Educational (SAGE) University Bhopal with its impeccable academia, colossal campus, leading-edge educational framework and extensive façade in the beautiful city of lakes Bhopal has created a world-class setup for transforming passion into a profession. With its thought-provoking learning and exceptional infrastructure, the university offers the best-in-class facilities for students to secure their future. Sanjeev Agrawal Global Educational (SAGE) University,Bhopal strive to achieve the goal of providing students with a world-class education and bringing them into accord with the fast evolving society. The education innovation for which we have a drive is to make Sage University, Bhopal the top university in MP, Central India.

It aims and visions to eflect on their pedagogy which highlights the overall development of every individual.They aim towards nurturing their talents through excellent and innovative academia to foster their all-round development. We want to shape India’s future with extraordinary talents and uplift our society from giving the best education possible.

The vision of the Sage University Bhopal resolves to help learners to assiduously pursue and achieve goals. We have the vision to provide the highest quality education to the seekers, nurture their talent to promote their intellectual growth and serve the community through the creation of skilled and socially responsible global citizens.

The mission of SAGE University is

To create globally competent graduates and postgraduates who are fully aware of their roles in the quest for a better tomorrow for their communities, countries, regions, and the world as a whole.

To condition a mindset for addressing local, national & global issues and to felicitate humankind with better livelihood, while impacting the society in a transformative way.

To cultivate an environment that will welcome and support students and scholars from all over the world and contributes knowledge and expertise locally, nationally and internationally to produce global leaders by inculcating leadership and innovative abilities.

MESSAGE TO THE STUDENTS

The great revolutionary Nelson Mandela said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” My perspective is highly influenced by similar views. The world we live in today has been modeled such due to the diligence of our visionary ancestors. They have paved the way for raising the beacon of research in the fields of Management, Science, Arts, Humanities, etc. Our endeavour at SAGE is to pass the baton of educational brilliance sagaciously to ignite young minds. We as a university take great pride in doing something for the future of our country, for the younger generation. Education is one of the key tools that shape and change the way of one how thinks, behaves, and acts.

ABOUT SAGE UNIVERSITY

At Sage Group, we focus on grooming young minds as the pillar of advancement of a nation and hope of the future. Every member of our group aims to promote education and culture in all aspects in order to achieve and fulfill the mission statement that we believe in. We try to maintain the academic standards which help our students to achieve remarkable and excellent results. As a Sageian, we believe in humanity, discipline, punctuality and regularity. We nurture our students to become world-class professionals who can achieve the affirmed purpose of our great late President, Honorable Abdul Kalam, to make our nation a "SUPERPOWER".

They build their students for the future.”

Sanjeev Agrawal Global Educational (SAGE) University Bhopal has reached many milestones and is emerging as an institute of quality education with integrated academic programmes in central India. The University in pursuance of its vision works in the direction of academic expansion and diversification for widening the academic canvas. By now, we have developed a deep understanding of the current industry to fulfil the intellectual requirements of the society in the areas of Sciences, Arts & Humanities, Commerce, Management, Journalism and Mass Communication, Designing, etc. Our University puts in innumerable efforts to create brand equity by way of divergence in all its cognitive pursuits. The prime focus is on developing of the contemporary curriculum; meeting and beating various benchmarks of quality; developing healthy and happy academic governance.

Features

On behalf of our every individual at Sanjeev Agrawal Global Educational (SAGE) University Bhopal, we welcome you to enter the new era of learning with us. At SUB, we are making collaborative efforts to integrate a high level of education competence to a dynamic, yet resource environment. We are preparing the future of our country by harnessing the maximum resources through innovation, entrepreneurial zeal and efficient technology. SAGE has a simple mission, which is to nurture excellence and promote leadership quality in every student. We strive to achieve eminence in every endeavour by modelling knowledge, imparting and augmenting the practice through experiential learning. We understand that flexibility and responsiveness are the two most important skills required to lead. Therefore, our mission embodies dynamism. We are building skilled professionals who can rise and shine in the midst of uncertainties.

Why join SAGE University?

Sage University Bhopal, ranked as the best university in central India, is the hub of educational innovation. Here, they are passionate about grooming future leaders with the best of academics. We imbibe not only wisdom but values as well. Their each and every student learns both professionally and culturally. This is just one of the many reasons, why our alumni are consistently getting placed in various private and public-sector giants.

They are working diligently to become the benchmark of quality education with a world class infrastructure. Their experienced faculties are imbibing the global standards for laying a strong foundation for learning. We know the importance of providing talented students with the right platform of learning. Thus, we have several workshops, seminars, events, and functions going on throughout the year. They have infrastructure and amenities equivalent to the international standards.Ranging right from apple labs to an amphitheatre, from air conditioned classes to a well-housed library, we have a very conducive atmosphere for a student’s overall development. Their advanced labs and well-maintained sports ground will help groom student’s personality on the whole. We believe in enabling our students to live the university life to the fullest. Thus, they have invested in building a campus, which is packed with facilities and is also a power-house of knowledge and opportunities.

Salient Features of our University:

A world-class education in research/real-world environment.

Best academic set-up promoting student-driven course choice.

Advice, guidance, support and mentoring for its students.

Well-defined academic programs and assessment.

Attractive scholarships and financial support.

An up-to-date framework for study, learning, and research.

Respect & contribute to the SAGE community as well as the society.

A wide range of co-curricular activities to choose from with appropriate infrastructure.

Highly scrutinized, clear and fair academic regulations, policies and procedures.

That's why, in this way, SAGE University has become one of the most emerging Universities in the Central India.

By :- Taanisha Mukhopadhyay

http://collegetips.in

https://sageuniversity.in

#CollegeTips #SAGEUniversity #SUI

#CollegeTips #internship

[helloamhere]

Hi! I don’t know anything about X-men. Will I be able to follow your story? Everyone seems to be liking it so much and I want to be one of the cool kids 😩

<3 I was actually thinking that once I’m through posting it I might write a little primer to X-Men/this universe, for people having this thought!! But, I also feel like it’s a pretty stand-alone story by itself? Perhaps other people can weigh in if they disagree. I can tend towards slightly complicated, nonlinear writing (especially in fic where I’m just having fun and not putting a lot of *work* towards exposition, you know), and I’m not always the best judge of whether I’ve written something that stands up alone by itself. I think you could happily read it without knowing much about X-Men. But here’s an absolutely minimal framing to understand the setting of the story (I’ll put a cut cuz this got long):

- in this universe, there are people (known as “mutants”) who develop special powers/abilities as a result of a gene mutation (”the mutant gene”) that’s...really not very well understood. It can happen to anyone: so, parents can have a child who unexpectedly has powers. But there does seem to be some science to it. It’s basically the ‘magic explanation for why some people are superheroes’ (or villains)

- mutant powers are basically completely chaotic and follow no defined rules. I have a bit of commentary on this in the fic so you don’t need to know much. But you can assume they are mysterious, and not super well understood. They kind of follow general superhero “tropes,” like “oh I have a superpower of controlling this particular element”! Truthfully between the two of us....not a lot of it makes sense in canon. That’s part of why I love it. It’s ridiculous. In my fic, I think a little bit about the ‘biology’ of powers but there’s nothing you need to know in advance.

- the X-Men are a superhero team, made up of mutants, who fly around taking care of “bad guys” (generally defined). In my fic, I spend a decent amount of time thinking about what that means, so I don’t think you need to know more than that’s what they are.

- in the X-Men movie canon (and more generally in the comic books) there’s an initial period where mutants are “secret” (it’s like, recent history...IIRC in the movies it’s like, Cold War era when mutants become known). During this time in my fic, that’s when the “classic X-Men” were formed, so there’s a backstory (that doesn’t come up much) about the early emergence of mutants and the fact that human society is still getting used to the whole idea. There are a LOT of X-Men characters, who are NOT active members of the “X-Men” superhero team as I’m imagining it (they are all off doing….important political things, having graduated away from being one-off superheroes themselves). I have nearly none of them in my fic, the main ones I mention are Storm and Xavier. I think that they stand alone in the fic and you don’t need to know much. Xavier is the person who founded the X-Men, he’s a super rich telepath, one of the most powerful mutants in the world, and the “mansion” they live in is his. Storm is the functional head of the mansion. She is an absolute badass who has super weather powers. You will get enough context about her from my fic, I think.

- this brings us to the “mansion” — this is the setting for my fic (mostly). The X-Men all live in the X mansion, which is also a school for mutants (or “gifted youngsters”). Sounds ridiculous because it is, I love it, it is a ludicrously absurd, lovely idea. How is a place supposed to be a boarding school and a superhero training ground all at once? Well, this idea is also explored in my fic, l o l. So, mutants who are 1) too powerful or 2) don’t have another safe place to be in the world can live in the mansion.

- the mansion has a lot of sophisticated technology, technology is a running theme in X-Men universe too.

- this brings us to the world’s reaction to mutants: mostly, negative but tilting towards progress. The world is very uncomfortable with the existence of people with these powers. So you’ll see a lot of political dialogue about how to react to the existence of mutants. In X-Men canon, there are outright oppressive violences against mutants. In my fic, you can imagine that mutants have advanced politically and have won some hard-fought-for civil rights, but they are still very much treated like an “issue” by society at large. There is a large amount of bigotry against mutants, and fear of what they’re capable of. tangential point:  - in this universe people tend to hide the fact that they are mutants, and can experience a lot of discrimination for it. It has been compared, in commentary on the X-Men, to queerness. Direct analogies are made in X-Men canon between other identities too, like Jewish identity, racism, and other marginalized experiences. I am personally of the belief that fantasy and sff are enormous aids in the processing of trauma around marginalized experience. That being said, I do not think that a fantasy analogy (even one as fun as ‘mutants’) is ever a replacement for work that simply...actually talks about marginalized experience. So I don’t think it’s correct to “swap in” any single identity (especially on issues as complex and real-world important as racism) to this fantasy world. But you’ll recognize the concerns, because oppression operates along certain dimensions no matter what universe it’s in. So you will see a lot of stuff around X-Men on the idea of people who have to hide their experience, who are born with “difference,” and who have to navigate a society that is often punitive and bigoted against them. To me, it’s a matter of harmonic resonance with things that I experience in my life...not a direct mirror. But X-Men tends to ask: in a world very much like our own, what if one of the main differences confronting humanity was something like this? How would we react? I have tried in my fic to make the point that even this kind of categorization would have its own intersectionality within it (so, being a mutant who is not a citizen of the United States could look very different compared to being a mutant who is). I think it’s one of the points of this story. 

This is more than you asked for. But if any of this sounds interesting, I wish you very happy reading. :)))))

#long post #this multiplicity of powers #xmen au #reference #ask #save you from the world fic #for the record nothing about anything that I am super into is particularly cool

[geekclubroc]

Bezos: I avoid taxes, donate less money, and squeeze employees, but I am a good boy who invests in space for human civilization

In 10 minutes, how to make the world’s richest man spend 180 million?

Last night, Bezos and his manned rocket did it.

Swish and go up

10 minutes later, he came back with a smash

Bezos’ dream finally came true, thumbs up with satisfaction

But the audience who watched the live broadcast for an hour and a half was not satisfied.

Everyone has a long history of dissatisfaction with him. Before the launch, some netizens wished him a failure in heaven.

Someone initiated a joint online petition. As of the day of launch, more than 160,000 people did not want him to return to Earth.

There are even reporters asking questions during the mealtime before the rocket launch: Will this be your last meal?

What kind of hatred is this?

People complain about the richest man in the world, and it’s mostly about money.

The media ProPublica exposed Bezos’s fancy tax avoidance methods, and his actual tax rate during the five years of 2014–2018 was only 0.98%.

Other points of controversy are the news that Amazon continues to squeeze employees, such as not giving warehouse employees time to go to the toilet, using in-car cameras to monitor delivery drivers, and so on. And Bezos lags behind other rich people in charitable donations.

Regarding the latter, he responded generously: his main contribution to mankind is not reflected in charity, and investing in space is more conducive to human civilization and development.

Bezos is serious about investing in space.

He once claimed that he would sell Amazon stocks worth about $1 billion every year and invest his money in Blue Origin.

At the press conference after this short space trip, Bezos thanked Amazon employees and customers: I want to thank every Amazon employee and every Amazon customer, because you paid for this trip.

This remark was ridiculed by an American congressman: They did pay, Amazon employees paid the price of low wages, obstruction of the union, inhumane workplaces, and lack of medical insurance during the epidemic.

What Amazon customers pay is Amazon’s abuse of its dominant market position to harm small businesses.

Another senator, Elizabeth Warren, also choked: He forgot to thank those who really paid taxes to keep society running.

Launched at 21 o’clock, Bezos personally enters the battle

This time, Bezos’s entry into space is divided into two stages.

First, a rocket launches a spacecraft with four members to an altitude of 100 kilometers (Carmen line) close to the ground. This is also considered to be the edge of the atmosphere, above which is space.

Then, the spacecraft disengaged from the rocket and relied on inertia to enter space, after which the cabin will experience zero gravity for about 3 minutes.

The rocket on the other side also entered the atmosphere, turned on the engine to slow down when it was approaching the landing recovery field, and slowly landed on the ground.

At the same time, the spacecraft opened the parachute to slow down, and finally Bezos and the other four people returned to the ground safely.

Because the flight time was too short this time, netizens murmured: Although the time spent in space is a bit short, the environment in the spacecraft’s cockpit is still very impressive.

The passenger compartment will be pressurized to ensure the comfort of passengers, and the surrounding large windows allow passengers to observe the environment well.

Since all operations are fully automatic, there is no pilot in this crew cabin, and the seats are still very spacious: the safety measures for the crew cabin are also very complete, and three escape tests have been successfully carried out so far. According to Blue Origin, the escape system can be activated at any stage of the flight.

No wonder this time Bezos seemed to be able to do the whole thing.

Who else goes to heaven together?

Joining Bezos to complete the trip is his brother Mark Bezos, 82-year-old retired pilot Wally Fink, and 18-year-old high school graduate Oliver Daymen.

The age of the latter two allowed this flight to simultaneously break the two historical records of the oldest person in space and the youngest person.

Oliver, the youngest Dutch guy, just graduated from high school last year. To receive the training needed to go to space, he postponed his day of going to university by one year.

Oliver’s father, who opened an investment company, paid for him a ticket for the next flight. However, the anonymous passenger who paid the sky-high price of 28 million U.S. dollars for the first ferry ticket was adjusted to the subsequent ferry due to the time conflict.

Oliver thus got the opportunity to go to heaven with Bezos.

Bezos stated on social media that he had dreamed of traveling in space since he was 5 years old. Oliver was one year earlier than him, and has been obsessed with space, the moon and rockets since he was 4 years old.

Another interesting coincidence is that Bezos announced his dream to the world for the first time in his 18-year-old high school graduation speech:

In addition to space travel, he also hopes that one-day humans can colonize space and build colonies, hotels and amusement parks in orbit.

Thanks to the efforts of Bezos, Oliver got closer to these wishes at the same age of 18.

After completing this space travel, Oliver will study at Utrecht University in the Netherlands in September this year. His major is physics.

Space travel is also Wally Fink’s lifelong dream, but she has waited for it for 60 years.

In 1961, as an airplane pilot, she passed NASA’s selection and became the youngest of the 13 female astronauts trained by the “Mercury 13” project.

But before any of them had a chance to enter space, the entire project was canceled.

Failed to get into space, Fink’s subsequent career has always revolved around airplanes. She has worked as a flight inspector, aviation safety investigator and pilot instructor.

So far, she has independently trained 700 pilots and participated in the training of more than 3,000 pilots.

In addition to Blue Origin, Fink has also bought spaceship tickets for Virgin Galactic.

As for whether she will continue her space flight in Virgin Galactic, Fink has not yet made up his mind.

Among the four, Mark Bezos is the only one who is not too obsessed with space travel.

When he first received an invitation from his brother to go to space together, Mark was stunned. He didn’t even know that his brother had personally participated in the first manned flight plan, let alone invited himself.

Mark is a member of the board of the Bezos Family Foundation, a volunteer firefighter, and his brother Jeff’s best friend.

The spacecraft has 14 “experiences”

This time, the New Shepard manned mission, named after Alan Shepard, the first American astronaut to enter space.

This reusable, vertical take-off and landing (VTVL) rocket is completely controlled by the onboard computer. The rocket is 18 meters high and has only one stage overall. It uses a BE-3 hydrogen-oxygen engine with a thrust of 50 tons.

The space capsule it carries has 15 cubic meters of internal pressurized space, which can accommodate up to 6 people at a time, and the launch escape system can allow it to be separated at any time during the lift-off process.

So far, the “New Shepard” rocket has successfully conducted 14 test flights without passengers.

△History successfully launched

During the period, the company upgraded the spacecraft, such as improving the space capsule's sound and temperature adjustment functions, the crew display panel, and each seat is equipped with microphones and call buttons. In addition, the communication and security alarm systems have been tested.

Because it is mainly used for space travel, the test flight range is not long. Although the Carmen line exceeds 100 kilometers each time, it has not attempted an orbital flight of more than 300 kilometers.

The most recent was the “NS-15” mission on April 14. After the rocket separated from the spacecraft, the spacecraft carried the “Skywalker” mannequin to an altitude of about 106 kilometers, and finally landed smoothly with the booster.

On July 20, the “New Shepard” will be launched from Texas. This will be the rocket’s first manned flight.

△Bezos himself is also very concerned about the project

However, the rocket will not enter the earth’s orbit, but will carry several passengers to the edge of the earth’s atmosphere and space, that is, suborbital space with a height of more than 100 kilometers.

Passengers can experience weightlessness for 4–5 minutes and look at the earth from the windows of the space capsule and see the arc of the earth.

Subsequently, the space capsule will return with the assistance of a power reverse thrust engine and land with a parachute.

Musk turns on “Tucao” mode

In fact, Bezos “nearly became” the first CEO to go to heaven, but the boss of Virgin Galactic rushed into space on July 11th 9 days before he went to heaven.

Blue Origin laughed at Virgin Galactic Sky: Spaceship? It’s actually a “high-altitude plane”!

The same scene “repeats” between SpaceX and Blue Origin. On the eve of the launch, Musk also turned on the “Tucao” mode about Blue Origin’s upcoming space, and he was very concerned about the dynamics related to Blue Origin.

Musk believes that the blue-origin rocket just flies out of the atmosphere and does not have the ability to enter orbit around the earth. This ridicule was also made into an emoji package that went viral on Twitter.

Musk himself didn’t mind, and happily responded to the ridicule

The two people’s grievances lasted for 17 years. Since the first meeting in 2004, the space company founded by the two rich men began to compete secretly.

Although Musk SpaceX is more advanced than Blue Origin’s technology and has successfully sent NASA astronauts into space, Blue Origin is even earlier in founding the company.

When Bezos graduated from high school in 1982, he had the dream of becoming an astronaut. Out of hobbies, he founded Blue Origin in 2000.

At that time, Musk was still creating PayPal. After that, he earned 160 million US dollars by selling PayPal and creating SpaceX in 2002.

Recently, the two have forged a beam because of NASA’s moon landing contract.

Musk’s SpaceX became the NASA’s lunar module contractor, and he also mocked Blue Moon’s lunar lander, Blue Moon, as “Blue Ball” on Twitter.

In contrast, Bezos has always wanted to “disturb” SpaceX’s plan, lobbying the US government to allow NASA to provide more funds to other bidding companies, so that SpaceX is no longer the only supplier.

However, Musk expressed his blessing to Bezos before this launch.

It seems that space tourism is indeed a hot industry, and even CEOs have personally “spoken”.

Blue Origin is expected to conduct two more manned flights this year, the most recent one in September or October.

Its competitor Virgin Galactic will wait until next year for its first commercial manned flight, but there are already more than 600 people in line to buy tickets.

#news #space #technology #internet #jeff bezos

[mbti-notes]

Is this the typical INTP behavior? I guess I've changed because of quarantine and/or my goals/projects being postponed. It's like I'm in limbo and I can't progress. I have become even more antisocial. I don't even have the energy to visit my family members or do things with them. I just want to be left alone. I surf the net, read, watch movies, work out, study. but I can't spend much time with others and don't have the energy to smile and role play. I also have become more cynical and...(1/2)

[con’t: And can't stop thinking about the things I don't have, the delay in reaching my goals, and whether I can reach my goals or not. and I secretly have gender dysphoria which makes things worse. I have graduated from grad school, but I still don't have a job yet. I wanted to work on my resume and then search for jobs. but thanks to quarantine, I'm still at home and it bothers me. my family is worried about me and my extreme introversion, but I can't open up to them.I never open up to anyone.  I sort of feel guilty for prefering solitude, and not having energy for my mom or other family members. but I can't function normally and the way they want without taking antidepressants. but I also don't want to be dependent on those. I have become a negative person, and my gender dysphoria, and my fear of missing out, and not reaching my goals have become like obsessions for me. Is there any way to get over obsessions for INTPs? Is my hyperfocus due to quarantine? How to get normal again?]

If you are uncertain about your type, then type assessment should be the first order of business. I won’t answer type assessment questions until people go through the process of writing up a detailed self-description as per the blog guidelines. If I’m not sure of your type, I won’t give type-related advice.

Why do you believe that you should be “normal” when living under very abnormal circumstances? Do you honestly believe that your environment plays no role in emotional well-being? This pandemic lockdown is hugely disruptive to everyone. I’d say that it might be the biggest disruption to society we’ve seen since the last world war (and I’m grateful that it’s not a war this time around). It’s perfectly normal to feel bad when your circumstances are bad. So, why not allow yourself to feel what you feel in accordance to the circumstances that you are in? The more you try to convince yourself that you “shouldn’t” feel a certain way, the worse you will feel, because you’re not acknowledging the legitimacy of your feelings. 

Generally speaking, if you “can’t stop” doing something, it means that you’re emotionally troubled. And the best way to deal with negative feelings and emotions is to talk about them and process them, which means that closing yourself off and never opening up to anyone is a form of self-harm. Once you’re able to process your feelings, you’ll free up mental energy to do positive things. When you don’t acknowledge your feelings properly, you create a disconnect between yourself and the reality that you find yourself in. Wishing for reality to be other than what it is, you cause yourself stress and suffering, as all of your energy is poured into the endlessly frustrating task of changing that which cannot be changed.

Generally speaking, whenever you meet any obstacle, the best approach is to ADAPT - survival of the fittest. Being adaptable nurtures a positive attitude in two significant ways: 

Confidence: You believe in yourself and your ability to get through any situation. Having confidence means that you have plenty of energy and motivation for creative problem solving and turning around negative situations.

Optimism: You know that the world is always changing, sometimes in ways that favor you, sometimes in ways that hinder you. No matter what happens, the world always offers up new opportunities eventually, as long as you remain patient and vigilant. Thus, there is no need to fret over lost chances, and lost chances may even free you up to take advantage of an even better opportunity around the corner. Life is unpredictable and throws all sorts of things at you, so it’s best to ride the wave than to fight it.

Adapting well means being able to make the best of your situation, such that you’re able to remain healthy, resilient, and productive in the face of obstacles, perhaps even leveraging the obstacles in your favor if you’re smart. In the current situation, it may involve but is not limited to: finding alternative ways to pass the time productively; working on yourself (building knowledge, practicing skills, personal development, etc); enjoying whatever activities are still available to you; nurturing gratefulness for what you still have; doing something to make the situation better for others; completing projects that you didn’t have time for in the past; etc. NPs always feel more energized by responding creatively to their circumstances due to exercising Ne, which is the opposite of what you’re doing. If you are retreating into yourself, falling into introverted loop, or obsessing/ruminating pointlessly, then you are not adapting well, because you’re not creating anything positive but, rather, amplifying the negatives. This then exacerbates the feeling of “getting nowhere” in a vicious cycle. 

I have already written about adjusting to the pandemic with patience, grace, and creativity (see previous posts). With access to the internet, there’s a lot you can do to work on yourself as a means to better prepare yourself to hit the ground running later on. There are a lot of good resources out there to help you learn, grow, or distract yourself as necessary. Also, many cities are offering low-cost or free mental health services during this time, delivered online, please look into your local area to see what’s available. If you’re really struggling psychologically, reach out for professional help. Suffice it to say that only you are able to change your mindset by always making the choice to focus on more positive things. Assuming that food and shelter are secure, living a slower, more cloistered life for awhile isn’t a death sentence, but it does require that you learn to love yourself enough to be comfortable spending more time with yourself. I think that this pandemic has revealed to some people how much they can’t bear their own company. If you suffer from gender dysphoria, loving yourself may be an issue that you need to work on. From self-love, you will always do what is good for your own well-being.

#pandemic #adapting #adaptability #attitude #pessimism #optimism #ask

[accelerator102]

The Affect Of The Lean Startup Methodology On Entrepreneur

It’s well known that industry-specific accelerators can do better on this regard. Biotech companies and scientists who begin out on the road to commercialization might have an accelerator to convey out the entrepreneurial spirit. 

The incubator and accelerator models are conflated on a regular basis in biotech, a lot to the fury of anyone who truly understands the terms. 

Culturally, Foley stated his organisation may give entrepreneurs the best support, because it understands the challenges Indigenous startups face. 

Foley is wanting around for five of the most progressive Indigenous companies and is providing AU$50,000 in grant funding at the finish of the three-month program. Foley informed ZDNet he started reaching out to anybody he could in order to learn as much as he might.

The threats that giant firms expertise offer small enterprise opportunities. In addition to receiving outsourcing requests, a small business can also compete in one other market based mostly on subcontracting providers to other corporations. Thus, entrepreneurs have, in general, a lack of control over their aggressive environment. 

And the scale of enterprise isn't an unequivocal situation of success. However, the exploitation of priceless, rare, and inimitable resources generates a sustainable competitive advantage and, consequently, a superior efficiency in the market .

The college as a reference in entrepreneurship training contributes to the preparation of future economic actors by way of the execution of programs in entrepreneurship. 

This allows you to impart information and techniques that facilitate the creation of a enterprise and simultaneously encourage students to create new business.

"People suppose you are going to be in an incubator and promote to artisanal farmers markets, however it may be a stepping stone to one thing huge." Junea Rocha, founder of the model Brazi Bites, received her start at theKitchenCru incubator in Portland, Oregon in 2011. 

Though Rocha had taken a community faculty class centered on beginning a meals enterprise, she had no expertise in an expert kitchen. KitchenCru, too, was just starting out —” there was no structured program for members. 

"What we obtained was help and coaching on how to use commercial-stage gear in a kitchen," Rocha says. In short, small companies’ ability to innovate stems from their studying of the market, recognition of the need for fast change, and organizational flexibility .

For instance, incubated high-tech start-ups can share the development of ideas and innovation. financing process  Biotech begin-ups can assist one another within the development and commercialization of innovative merchandise.

He started studying a graduate certificate in business administration at university while working half-time in retail. During that point, he got invited to an accelerator program run by the University of Queensland.

For corporations that move by way of the DARPA accelerator, “In some instances, the primary market is the protection sector, whereas in others probably the most viable path to providing know-how to the DoD requires a parallel industrial market. The final objective is to supply a brand new or greatly improved protection functionality,” reads the solicitation. 

During the day, she labored as a civil engineer; nights and weekends, she cooked in KitchenCru's industrial kitchen. Then got here nationwide distribution, retail, and a stint on ABC's Shark Tank. She notes that when she started her company, she didn't know it will ever develop to the dimensions it's right now.

In this way it's attainable to extend the entrepreneurial potential of the scholars, but few begin new business during and after the conclusion of the studies . Education plays a significant function within the growth of entrepreneurship in society. 

This makes room for different start-ups to start their incubator operations. The intangible benefits derive from the flexibility of entrepreneurs to behave as a help system amongst incubated start-ups. Intangible advantages usually tend to happen amongst start-ups with similar activities.

In explicit, investigate the networks of companies once they leave the accelerator. The entrepreneurial neighborhood must be led by entrepreneurs, which means people who have repeatedly dug their very own trenches. Good accelerators are staffed by experienced scientists who understand what it is their biotech startups do technically.

These valences are a help to the decision-making in the self-employment earlier than the obtained suggestions of the market. Small businesses have essential benefits that enable them to be successful, namely, their sensitivity to market situations and tendencies, which derives from their shut relationship with prospects, enabling them to grasp their wants. 

In reality, a small enterprise can set up partnerships with a wide range of suppliers masking value chain actions and thus can enter into markets it won't in any other case be capable of obtain.

[whumpiary]

I'm not sure were the bergan estate timeline was? like what happened there? I don't understand how cass came to be there or what he was doing and his propose there? I'm just a dumbass child so can u explain a bit??

Oh no no! You are not a dumbass child! I’m just a horrible little goblin man who drip feeds her readers story points and hoards the rest instead of just writing them out like a normal writer! It makes sense that you’re confused.

My writing is just… A Mess. The timeline post is just to give y'all SOME kind of hope of understanding everything that’s all mixed in my brain because there is SO much and I have No idea how to write it.

All the stuff that happens during the Bergen Estate timeline is set before the Facility, and before Cass meets Josiah (or Lou or Tucker, etc etc). It’s Cassius backstory that I got way too invested in.

It’s also like… Kind of dependent on world building stuff that is still kind of gelatinous in my brain but I’ve started sharing more of it the more solid I get on it all. I struggle to write actual world-building and #lore into my drabbles and tbh since deciding a lot of the Bergen Estate details I’ve been in a Huge publishing rut

BUT IM ALWAYS A SLUT FOR AN INFO DUMP SO STRAP THE FUck IN

Bergen Estate is owned by Christopher Bergen, a billionaire mogul who’s best known for his extensive philanthropy and charity work, and Cassius’ first major whumper. It’s essentially just a big ass fucking mansion on a huge slap of land where Christopher lives. The estate is extensively staffed, and also houses a number of at-risk young people who are a part of Christopher’s charity outreach and rehabilitation program. 

The outreach of the program is massive. Christopher only houses 38 charges at Bergen Estate, but there are thousands of people throughout the country in one of his group homes and boarding schools.

The young people who go through the program are colloquially known as Bergen Boys, although that’s a term the foundation itself tries to formally keep distance from (privately,,,,,, Christopher quite likes the term). The program has the reputation of boy scouts meets finishing school, and, formally, it’s not unlike that. It’s a really thorough rehabilitation program that really genuinely facilitates juvenile delinquents, hard to home foster kids, and other at risk youths and then offers them counselling, education, and support to make them employable, functional, constructive members of society. 

The program also takes incarcerated youth under wing by taking full legal responsibility for their actions through an indenture arrangement. All of the graduates leave the program by the age of 25 and are known for being exceedingly polite, well educated, and multi skilled. Most leave multilingual and with a bachelor’s degree in their ~delegated~ chosen field. 

The thing is. 

That’s all the public really knows.

Christopher Bergen is charismatic and charming and very Open™ about the program and his estate. He regularly talks about it in interviews, and there are some relatively well known ex-Bergen Boys who also talk about the program favourably. But nobody actually knows what goes on there. They just know Bad Young People go in and Well Adjusted Adults come out. Nobody really thinks about it beyond that. Nobody really thinks about the ones that go missing, or that quietly and seamlessly end up back in the judicial system, or that just… seem to stay under 25 for a really really long time. 

Those staying at Bergen Estate are believed by the public to be individuals of particularly high risk or dangerous behaviours, who need additional support for success back in the real world. Kids on trial for murder, those exhibiting of particularly dangerous repeated behaviours, that sort of thing. The truth of it is these are just the people that Christopher has taken a particular specific liking to or interest in. 

In this ‘verse, a number of people ( the “evolutionarily advanced”) have telepathy-adjacent powers that they can use to varying levels of success. Often, the kids that end up at Bergen Estate just so happen to have these abilities, or at least seem to develop them after a few months. It’s not a hard-and-fast rule that those at the estate will have powers, it just seems to be a high correlation. 

Christopher is a combo of pretty common whumper tropes. He’s a collector. He likes pretty things. He likes unusual things. And he likes to be loved. The Bergen Foundation and the good reputation it gives means he can have those things on a large scale. But Bergen Estate means he can have them intimately. Christopher gets what he wants. But he’s a good person and he’ll go about getting them in the right way. Eye for an eye for an eye for an eye if he has to.

As for Cass.

Cass wasn’t particularly special, compared to any of the other charges at Christopher’s estate. He did something wrong, then he did something right, then he caught the attention of Christopher.

Surprising approximately no one, Cass had a rough upbringing. He was in and out of juvie from quite a young age, and soon enough had captured the attention of Bergen Foundation staff. He was bright enough, charming when he wanted to be, and the perfect candidate for a success story down the track.

Unfortunately for them, they pretty quickly realised he wouldn’t be a success story. Unfortunately for Cass, Christopher had already taken an interest in the boy in his program who could seemingly get whatever he wanted from whoever he wanted but still hadn’t run away.

At 16 he received a personal visit from Christopher, who gave him an offer he couldn’t refuse and legal proceedings immediately went underway to transfer Cassius’ sentence to the Estate. The rest, as they say, is trauma.

As for his purpose there…occasionally Christopher used Cass the way Tucker does, to sway business deals and woo clients and friends in whatever way Christopher wanted, but frankly Christopher doesn’t need a whole lot of help with business. So mostly, he was just there to give Christopher whatever he wanted. Because Christopher decided he liked him. Simple as that.

#thanks for all the questions and the opportunity to blurt! #bergen estate #the bergen boys #christopher #about mine #answered #Anonymous #drip-feeding plot goblin #about cassius

[ilikeoldchangke]

Social sex worker

This is a work of fiction.

After years of deliberation, the government finally recognised that sex, is a basic human need. All citizens, regardless of their education and income level, are entitled to have sex if they wish to. If they cannot afford to pay for sex, a social sex worker will be assigned to them to satisfy their human needs. My wife is a social worker, a social sex worker.

…………………………………………………

The first time I saw Kaiyun, I was attached to her an a intern. I had just completed my studies in social work and landed my first job.

Kaiyun is same age as me, at 24, she has already clocked a few good years in social work because she didn’t need to serve the military. She’s really sweet looking with a warm smile.

You know, some people are just pleasant to look at. With her big eyes and girlish looks, Kaiyun has that girl next door appeal. There is an air of innocence surrounding her but I know she is much more matured than she lets on.

There are many types of social work, and I was clear from the start when I received my posting with the kind I will be involved in.

I will be working with desolate old men with regards to their sexual needs.

You see, the government recognise that sex is a basic human need in order to function as a productive member of the society. This is why they have legislate that sex be included into the spectrum of challenges social workers need to tackle.

Kaiyun and I we started right at the beginning when the policy was implemented. Since it didn’t make sense for single ladies to enter homes of old men to talk about sex, a male staff would tag along. In my case, since I’m a intern, I could learn about the job as well.

No, we didn’t start off by providing sexual service to the lonely men. It was a counselling session where we evaluate their needs.

After their needs analysis, will we then proposed the kind of help they will get.

It could come in the form of vouchers where they can walk into any Geylang brothel to hire a whore to satisfy their needs. They can do it once a month.

Kaiyun and I also conduct simple IT and hardware training, teaching the men how to surf the net for pornography.

The government has set up a special site that these men can login with their Singpass. With access granted, they will have access not only to pre approve adult films, they also have access to a site where they can watch government employees pee in the bathroom, their upskirts in the pantry, and some outright having sex.

The society has opened up in a lot of ways and the government is encouraging more civil servants to perform the sex acts in front of a camera for very simple economic reasons.

To keep paying for international porn is expensive. Why not just produce it locally with your own employees.

Civil servants who are willing to get filmed having sex, gets a fast tracked career progression on top of decent bonuses. It’s a win win situation.

The work is stressful but fulfilling. Upon implementing a scheme like this, rape crimes by local citizens dropped to less than 5 cases a year.

I would get erection all the time during the course of our work.

Kaiyun always dressed conservatively for practical reasons. Just jeans and a polo t-shirt but there’s no hiding the gorgeous figure she had underneath. She’s pretty and the way the men look at her body is obvious.

Some men would openly take out their cock and start playing with them while Kaiyun explained how to log into the government porn sites.

There was once a client we work with asked if Kaiyun’s video is available inside there.

Old man : got your video Miss…. ? have ??  you very pretty…. How to search for yours… ?

Kaiyun remained professional and said that he can just search for her name.

True enough, I saw 2 videos pop up and my cock almost burst out of my pants.

There was a video of Kaiyun peeing in the toilet and another of her rubbing herself in her work cubicle.

You might think it sound sick but these are really basic videos. Nothing to shout about.

I looked away and excused myself to the bathroom and I could see Kaiyun feeling embarrassed.

I worked really closely with Kaiyun for a few years before realising we started to develop feelings for each other.

The sexual tension between us is like a tightly drawn bow.

I could not resist it any longer one evening and I held her hand, dragged her to the staircase and kissed her after a 2 hour long session of talking to a man who was playing with his cock as he kept trying to touch Kaiyun.

Can you imagine talking to the men in their dinghy home as they feast their eyes on Kaiyun’s body ? At the same time, we need to demonstrate how to surf various porn sites to them as well.

My dick stayed hard most of the time.

The session at the staircase ended with only kisses and lots of fondling, but upon stepping into my place, we fucked like rabbits through the night and called in sick the next day to continue fucking.

There are no restrictions about employees dating one another at work but I knew it’s going to be a challenge managing my feelings and emotions. It’s no longer walking into homes of desperate men and explaining how to get sex to them. It’s doing it with my girlfriend.

The title girlfriend changes everything.

I would get jealous when I listen to Kaiyun explain masturbation to the men in a variety of languages but it was arousing to be part of it.

I would see her showing the videos of her peeing and rubbing herself to the old men while deliberately angling the tablet away from me, teasing my cock for our fuck session after work.

As the years go by, we went on from just dating, to husband and wife.

Kaiyun and I got married when we turned 30, the same year the government decided to expand the scope of services provided to the men.

To plug the gaps as they put it.

Not every men wants to go to a brothel.

Not every men knows how to masturbate properly.

And rather than paying brothel owners for their girls, the government always make the decision that is beneficial to tax payers.

Why ask others to perform the job, when your own employees can do the same ?

Within a week, newly minted wife, Kaiyun received her new appointment letter with her new job scope.

She needed to provide masturbation services to the men she visits if they ask for it.

My heart was beating really fast when I looked at that letter.

It’s not because I was still her partner at work.

It’s not because I am her husband.

It’s not because I knew I needed to see her masturbate a man at work.

It’s because I knew in my heart, it’s a matter of time before masturbation graduates into something more.

………………………………………………

11800+ words

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[jeannineisms-blog]

Teachers STAND UP!

Today I’m going to write about something I know about more than anythingggggg, my life’s joy, TEACHING! Being an educator is so special. Opening up a space for learning everyday is revolutionary. With everything that is going on right now, know that teachers are/have been on the front lines of this fight, especially Black teachers. This week I think I can speak for most of us when I say we are WEARY. 

This morning during our community circle we were asked, “What does it mean to be a teacher during this time?”

My answer was simply we have been doing this work and if you aren’t doing this work then you should begin. We have to teach students to know themselves, advocate for themselves, know where they come from and most importantly how can they advocate for change. 

I wanted to say more but you know I couldn’t go in, so I decided to come here and LET IT ALL OUT as the kids like to say lol.

Many times throughout my life I’ve heard, “Be the change you wish to see in this world.” I believe many of us have indeed BEEN the change. We’ve done all the things that respectability politics say are supposed to “ensure our safety” and prove that we are “functioning” members of society. In my opinion, FCK ALL THAT! It’s time for straight up change. Teachers its time to STAND UP! It’s time to change our approach. (even me) We need to educate ourselves with antiracist teaching and abolition practices. The reading and learning doesn’t stop after graduate school or professional development. We should be reading texts that push our thinking and make us question our privileges and identities. This way we can incorporate it into our daily classroom routines and lessons. SO READ, DISSECT, REFLECT, and ACT. Action is most important because without action there is no change.  Students need to learn about identity and intersectionality especially in Kindergarten and First Grade. As they grow they need to be exposed to more practices and ways to advocate and plan for the world they would like to live in as they grow up. We have exhausted the WHO, WHAT, and WHYs of our system, now let’s focus on the HOW. The only way we can do that is by modeling for our students what this looks like in practice. 

So I say, TEACHERS, STAND UP. We hold the keys to so many opportunities for our kids. More importantly, we have privilege and knowledge, that we can use to equip our students with the tools to change the world. We don’t want them to merely survive. We want them to thrive. We want them to know they are loved and when they don’t feel that love, how to go about changing their surroundings because this war being waged on their black bodies is effecting them in so many ways. We are doing our students a disservice when we only recognize this fact, but do not teach them how to combat it in a way that will empower and give them the tools to make the systemic change. 

Finally, we are on the front lines everyday! WE need to be advocating for ourselves more and sticking together to push the envelope on education policies, curriculum choices, behavior management systems, and school culture. WE more than anyone know what the people want, simply because we serve them everyday. Without us, there would be no school. WE need to stand up and tell these networks how curriculum teams need to reflect the students in our schools and stop this elitist white supremacist way of disseminating material. WE need to stand up and let networks and leadership teams know that some behavior management systems are teaching our kids to be robots and feel oppressive at times. WE need to be in the rooms where policies are being made telling our stories and being heard to make change. WE need to make children a priority in schools in all that we do, ensuring we have the best teachers in front of children every day. WE need to check our peers when they deny our children the right to an amazing education by showing up to work and doing the bare minimum. Teachers, I know we already do a lot. We have so many pressures coming our way everyday! But if we don’t fight for our babies, who will?! Damn sure not the people who are currently in place. They don’t want to compromise the bottom line and are profiting off of the pain of our children and communities. So again I say (I’m talking to myself as well), TEACHERS, STAND UP! 

[canadahomeowners]

Orkin vs Terminix

When you think of pest control companies, Orkin and Terminix are two of the biggest names in the industry. Over the years, these comprehensive pest control companies have built their brand and expanded their knowledge and catalogues of pests covered. They are each solid options for pest control, whether you’re dealing with common household pests, or trickier insects like termites and bed bugs. But which company is the right choice for you? Ultimately, we recommend both Orkin and Terminix, each for their own reasons. Orkin is a thorough company that offers the most customer resources and information, while Terminix has the best customer service. Read on to find out how each compares and see which one is the right fit for your needs. If you’d like to receive a free quote from Orkin, call 877-871-4573, or fill out a simple form. If Terminix is the way you want to go, call 866-458-5559, or at this form.

Orkin vs Terminix Overview

Orkin and Terminix each have extensive histories in the pest control industry. Orkin has been in the business for over 100 years. Its pest control specialists have to undergo a rigorous, 160-hour targeted training program, and they serve over 1.7 million residential and commercial customers. Orkin is incredibly transparent about its services online, breaking down the steps and even noting specific products and treatments. Orkin stands out for its huge array of online resources, in keeping with its commitment to give suggestions and recommendations to its customers. Online, customers can find a thorough pest library, bug bite photo gallery, and many links to blog pages they’ve written about specific pests. Terminix has over 90 years of experience, and was the first company to ever obtain a termite control patent. Its pest specialists include graduate-level entomologists and certified members of the Entomological Society of America. Terminix serves over 1 million more customers than Orkin, with a total of 2.8 million residential and commercial customers. Terminix rises above the rest in terms of customer service. Unlike its top competitors, Terminix offers an online chat function. Customers can communicate with Terminix representatives in real time, asking questions and receiving immediate answers. We chatted with Terminix several times and found the representatives to be prompt, informative, and not pushy about sales. Below, you can find a table that compares Orkin and Terminix on key metrics: Terminix vs Orkin Comparison Provider Terminix Orkin Provider Terminix Orkin Our Overall Score out of 100 92 94 Superlative Best Customer Service Most Customer Resources States Available 47 47 Annual Cost for General Pest Control $550-$700 $790-$980 BBB Rating* A- N/A Online chat Yes No Website Terminix.com Orkin.com Phone number 866-458-5559 877-871-4573 *N/A signals inconsistent accreditations and ratings

Orkin vs Terminix Plans

Orkin and Terminix each offer general pest control, as well as termite control and bed bug removal. Each company also offers other specific plans for mosquitoes and ticks. General pest control—pests covered There is a lot of overlap over the common household pests that Orkin and Terminix protect against in their general pest control plans. The companies identify these particular pests online and over the phone, but note that some others may be included. Orkin Moths Crickets Fleas Hornets Scorpions Ants Silverfish Roaches Mice Spiders Centipedes Earwigs Terminix Clothes moths Rodents Roaches Scorpions House ants Silverfish Mice Spiders (non-poisonous) Centipedes Earwigs House crickets Millipedes Paper wasps For both pest control companies, the treatment plan starts with an initial visit and inspection, and is followed up by incremental scheduled visits, either bi-monthly or quarterly, depending on the plan and company. Different plan breakdowns are offered in different locations. Both Orkin and Terminix offer guarantees. The Orkin 30-Day Money Back Guarantee and Terminix 100% Satisfaction Guarantee both ensure that a technician will return to your home at no extra cost if you pests return between scheduled appointments, and they will refund your last payment, so long as you stay a customer. Termite control Orkin and Terminix each offer comprehensive, targeted termite treatment plans. Orkin Orkin follows a three-step A.I.M. process, or Assess, Implement, and Monitor. This process involves an initial, extensive inspection of your woodwork with state-of-the-art equipment like IR thermometers, followed by a treatment recommendation and custom-tailored plan. After the needed treatments, Orkin will create a Continuous Protection Plan to prevent future infestations. To combat termites, Orkin uses Termidor liquid treatments, dry foam and Orkinfoam, and sentricon bait and monitoring. If termites return, the Re-Treatment Program guarantees Orkin will eliminate them at no extra cost. Terminix Terminix also breaks down its termite tackling process into a trio of teps. First, Terminix conducts a thorough inspection of your interior and exterior, paying close attention to potential access points. Your technician will then develop a customized treatment or protection plan, then conduct annual reviews. Terminix’s termite methods include its own proprietary OnGuard Protection System bait stations and various liquid solutions. For qualifying homes, Terminix offers the Ultimate Protection Guarantee, ensuring you never have to pay for treatments or repairs from new termite damage, as long as you keep your plan. Bed bug removal Orkin and Terminix both offer targeted bed bug removal options. Here’s how they stack up. Orkin As with its termite program, Orkin utilizes its A.I.M. approach for bed bugs, subbing beds, furniture, rugs, and linens for woodwork. After your treatment, Orkin will come back for follow-up visits to make sure that bed bugs won’t return. Terminix For bed bug removal, Terminix starts with an extensive inspection before removing visible bed bugs and eradicating hidden ones and any eggs before they hatch, using a variety of methods, including its non-toxic RapidFreeze solution. Terminix’s Bed Bug Guarantee means that if you find bed bugs within the treated area within 30 days, Terminix will return for additional, free treatments until the matter is resolved. If you buy a mattress encasement for all mattresses and box springs in your house, the guarantee will be extended to 90 days. Mosquito service Depending on where you live, mosquito services can be extremely useful. Orkin Orkin protects against Zika, Chikungunya, and West Nile by implementing several treatments to interrupt the mosquitoes’ life cycle in either monthly or one-time applications. These applications include microbial insecticides, traditional insecticides, and insect growth regulators. Terminix Terminix follows an Inspect, Kill, Protect, and Maintain protocol through monthly applications of a targeted treatment. This treatment has a key active ingredient with a special polymer layer that keeps it from washing away due to weather and lawn watering, allowing for weeks-long protection. Tick Control Ticks can turn your yard into a nightmare. Luckily, Orkin and Terminix have a solution. Orkin Orkin offers its A.I.M. process, inspecting ideal tick hang-outs like tall grass and heavily wooded areas before creating a treatment plan and performing follow-up visits. Terminix Terminix follows an Inspect, Prevent, Treat, and Maintain protocol, including a monthly service. After a thorough inspection of your yard, Terminix makes recommendations to make your yard less appealing to ticks and applies liquid and granular treatments to create a barrier.

Locations

Orkin and Terminix are both available in 47 states. Orkin is available everywhere except for Alaska, South Dakota, and Wyoming. Terminix does not service Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, and Alaska.

Cost

It’s hard to estimate the exact cost comparison, because what you’ll pay ultimately depends on the type of pest you’re dealing with, the degree of infestation, the size and location of your home, and how many individual treatments you will need. In order to get the most accurate quote, Orkin and Terminix will need to perform an inspection of your home. Orkin’s general pest control cost for a 2,000-square-foot home would range from $790-$980. Terminix’s general pest control plan for a home of the same size would range from $550-$700.

Customer Reviews

Orkin and Terminix both have mixed reviews online. Each has multiple pages with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) for different branch locations. Orkin’s BBB ratings vary from page to page, while Terminix’s pages hold a consensus of A-. While Orkin has some inconsistencies, its owner Rollins’ headquarters page is BBB-accredited with an A rating. Its reviews are mixed. Christopher W. said: “Shreveport Louisiana Office Inspector Damien M******* came out at my request to perform a termite inspection. Mr. M******* was very professional. He completed a thorough inspection of my home. After the inspection, Damien presented me with a diagram of my home and termite prevention options. I elected to go with the baiting system. On the day of installation, I met with Damien and Josh. Josh performed the baiting system and was very knowledgeable and did an excellent job. Kudos to the Orkin Shreveport office!! The Termite Team is jam up and jelly tight!!!” Elmer H. said: “I had them come out to do an initial rat termination service for me, and before they performed the service they had me sign a contract for a one-year service agreement without providing me with detailed information about the one-year plan. They told me my initial service would entail at least four follow ups without a charge. However, when I later cancelled my year service contract within the 72 hour ( Washington State law gives a consumer the right to cancel a contract within 72 hours) period allowed by law; I received a call from Orkin inquiring why I canceled, and I told them why. I was informed by Orkin that I would still receive 2 free follow up visits as part of Orkin initial service. Orkin then scheduled an appointment for me and did not keep the appointment at the appointed time. I called them the next day to find out and they told me since I cancelled my service I was getting my promised free followup as promised.” Terminix’s headquarters page shares the A- rating and has mixed reviews, as well. Lisa F. said: “Terminix is a company you can depend on for quality service, professional employees, and great products that really work to kill pests around your home. I highly recommend them to anyone who needs pest control. Our technician, Ronald***** R****, has been amazing! Very courteous, informative, always explains what is being done. I was concerned about having treatment with our animals but he assured me that it is not going to hurt them. I have never been told that with any other company and it actually is true. We had an ant issue that was not on our scheduled service month and Ronald **** R**** came out as soon as possible. He was not only able to get rid of the ants but keep them away. I will always use Terminix because of the kindness and respect I receive from my technician, The service is affordable and it works!” Eric B. said: “Terminix customer service is nonexistent. I had an appointment for termite inspection on 3/16/2020, and when nobody showed up I called the service center and was rescheduled for 3/17/2020 between 8 and 10 am. Again nobody showed up so I called again and asked for a supervisor and was told there were no supervisors at that location, they would take my information and I will get a call in the next 48 hours. (Really) I guess that Terminix thinks it’s no problem for people to miss work two days in a row just waiting to see if they may show up if they feel like coming. They cant even make a phone call to let the customer know they will not be coming. With no supervisor at the call center I guess that they just don;t care about customer service.”

Orkin vs Terminix Verdict

As you can see, each company offers comprehensive services, nearly a century or over a century of experience, and money-back, satisfaction guarantees. Their general pest control plans and approach to pests like termites, bed bugs, mosquitoes, and ticks, appear similar. In terms of differences, from our sample quotes, we do find that Terminix skews cheaper, has more consistent ratings, more customers, and offers a very efficient online chat function. Orkin, on the other hand, has more experience, more nationwide availability, and a greater number of customer resources. If you’d like to get a quote from Orkin, call 877-871-4573, or fill out a simple form. If it’s Terminix that’s piqued your interest, you can reach the company at 866-458-5559, or at this form. Read the full article

[iamliberalartsgt]

Ivan Allen Guide to: Summer & Fall 2020 Registration

Registration Season is upon us and WE’VE GOT THE GUIDE TO HELP YOU PICK THE PERFECT SCHEDULE FOR SUMMER & FALL 2020. Registration is the process of signing-up for the classes you’re going to take next semester. It can be a stressful, but exciting time trying to decided what classes to take and when to take them.

If you’re new at Tech and this is your first time registering for classes, you might be confused about how registration works. But fret not, we have a full guide on how to ensure registration goes smoothly and you’re prepared for Summer & Fall 2020!

HOW THE PROCESS WORKS + KEY DATES:

3/10 – Schedule of Summer & Fall 2020 Classes posted on OSCAR

You should: Check out the courses for Summer & Fall 2020 and start planning your schedule

3/19 – Phase I Time Tickets posted

You should: Check your registration time and make sure there aren’t any holds preventing registration on your account

3/23 – 5/15 – Phase I Registration & Summer Class Registration

You should: Sign on during your assigned Time Ticket to register for your Summer & Fall 2020 classes before May 15th! 

Last day to register, make schedule changes and/or drop courses without a "W" grade for Early Short Summer, Late Short Summer, and Full Summer Sessions by 4:00pm Eastern Time.

8/7 – Fall Phase II Time Tickets posted

You should: Check your registration time if you need to make any changes during Phase II

8/8 – 8/21 – Phase II Registration

You should: Make your final class changes before the end of the first week of classes @ 4:00pm

REGISTRATION FAQS: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

WHAT IS PHASE I AND PHASE II?

Phase I is the initial registration period where students get the first chance to pick their schedules. The dates for Phase I are 3/23 – 5/15. After Phase I is over, registration will close until Phase II. Registration for summer classes end at the end of Phase I. Students will get to make changes to their schedules from 8/8 to the end of the first week of Fall classes, letting students attend and see if a class is a good fit for them before solidifying their schedule for the semester.

WHAT’S A TIME TICKET?

Students are assigned a certain time slot in which they may register for classes depending on their academic standing and year. These are set to be assigned on 3/19 and registration will start soon after, according to your time ticket.

WHAT’S A GRADE MODE AND HOW DO I CHANGE IT?

Students are eligible to take some non-major/non-required courses on a Pass/Fail grading scale. Students should be able to see this attribute when registering for courses and can change grade modes during registration periods.

The Pass/Fail option is great for students who are taking elective courses in a topic they’re interested in without worrying too much about the effect that course might have on their GPA.

WHAT ARE “MAYMESTERS” AND SHOULD I TAKE ONE?

Summer Session Initiatives is launching a pilot 3-week summer part of term, called “Maymester.” Maymester is a three-week accelerated term, which allows students to take a 3-credit course in 15 days, or 3 weeks!

Course Dates: May 11-May 29, 2020

A few of this semester “maymesters”

ECON 4180 - Game Theory: Course covers static games of complete information, dynamic games of complete information, static games of incomplete information and dynamic games of incomplete information. (MTWRF 9:30-12:15)

HTS 2100- Science and Technology in the Modern World: An introduction to perspectives on how developments in science and technology at once reflect and influence politics and society on a global scale. (MTWRF 12:30-3:15)

INTA 2050- Introduction to Global Development: Mainstream and critical approaches to development, the role of diverse institutions and projects, and implications for sustainability in the countries of the global south. (MTWRF 9:30-12:15)

ML 2500- Intro to Cross-Cultural Studies: This course introduces students to literature and film from around the globe and teaches comparative literary and cultural studies analysis. (MTWRF 9:30-12:15)

FREN 3120: French Conversation and Culture: This class is designed to help students improve their French-speaking skills, and use French at an advanced level. Not for beginners. Conducted in French. (MTWRF 9:30-12:15)

TO WAITLIST OR NOT TO WAITLIST…THAT IS THE QUESTION:

Waitlisting is a function that academic departments may employ that allows students to add to a waitlist for a course that is closed.

Once a student has waitlisted for a course section, they will receive a notification via email if a seat becomes available in that section. Waitlisted students are notified on a “first-come-first-serve” basis, and once the notification is received, they will have a specified window of time to register for the course. The email notification will specify your window of time. Students will have 12 hours to register for the course section after notification.

If you’re interested in taking a class that is full, there’s no harm in adding yourself to the waitlist! During Phase II, students are constantly adding and dropping courses and waitlists move quickly.

OH NO, I HAVE A REGISTRATION ERROR! WHAT DO I DO?

Relax! Most registration errors are easily solved by going to registrar.gatech.edu or contacting your advisor.

WHAT SHOULD I TAKE?

Odds are this is a question you’ve been thinking about for a while, but in case you need a few more classes to meet core requirements or fill out your schedule, here are some Ivan Allen College courses to fill the gaps:

HUMANITIES, FINE ARTS, AND ETHICS:

• ARBC 1501 - Understanding Arabic Culture: Arab beliefs and values regarding topics such as religion, society, family, the dynamics between men and women, and social norms are discussed. Taught in English. (Online)

• LMC 3234 - Creative Writing: This course explores a range of creative literary genres, and combines study and analysis of existing modes of one or more forms in order to establish a basis for original creative work by class members, section focused on Environmental Writing.(TR 3:30-4:45)

• LMC 3202 – Studies in Fiction: Examines the elements of fiction and what has made fiction, especially the novel, distinctive, popular, and enduring. Readings may include formal, cultural, and historical theories. (TR 12:30-1:45)

FULFILL HUM AND ETHICS REQUIREMENT:

• LMC 3219 - Literature & Medicine: This course examines works of literature dealing overtly with illness and healing, works about or by physicians and other caregivers, and works that raise questions about ethical behavior in the face of sickness. (TR 12:30-1:45)

SOCIAL SCIENCES:

• ECON 2101 - The Global Economy: Historical and theoretical understanding of global economy, including international trade, finance, investment production; regional economic integration; economic development; environment, using micro and macro economic principles. (MW 2:00-3:15)

• HTS 1081 - Engineering in History: Uses historical case studies to examine the relationship between engineers and the larger society in which they function. Often taught jointly with engineering faculty. (MW 9:30-10:45)

• INTA 3042 - Energy & International Security: Examines issues at the intersection of national energy security and international conflict and cooperation. (W 5:00-7:45)

FULFILLS SS AND ETHICS REQUIREMENT:

• INTA 2030 - Ethics in International Affairs: Surveys the main traditions and theories of international ethics with a focus on intervention and the use of force, human rights, self-determination, and global distributive justice. (MWF 2:00-2:50)

TIPS & TRICKS ON HOW TO DESIGN THE PERFECT SCHEDULE:

1) MEET WITH YOUR ADVISORS

Meet with your advisor, I’ll repeat that louder for those in the back, MEET WITH YOUR ADVISORS!! They’re here to help and are a great resource if you don’t know what classes to take, or even if you do, they have plenty of advice to offer. Remember that this is a busy time for them so try and schedule meetings with them around peak registration times.

2) Try Course-off

Course-off is a great third-party app that allows students to design their schedules visually and helps with arranging classes in the optimal schedule.

Note: Course-off offers the option to register through the app, but is not always reliable/up-to-date so students should plan to register through Buzzport.

3) USE CREDIT BY EXAMINATION

Advanced Placement Exams, IB Exams, and Placement Exams can be used to bypass some courses, especially pre-req and core classes. Check with the registrar to see what course you might be eligible for bypassing.

4) REGISTER EARLY

Check your time ticket, set your alarm for registration time, and be ready to go with your course numbers to make sure that you have the best chance at getting your classes (I’m talking to all of you with 8 AM start times, we’re in this together.)

5) BE FLEXIBLE AND FIND A BALANCE

Most of us don’t get the exact schedule we wanted, and that’s okay! Be open to taking some different classes than you might have wanted, you might find a new topic you didn’t know you were interested in!

With that, keep some balance between the required classes and classes you’re interested in. It can be tempting to load up on your hard classes early, but try and add some courses about things you’re passionate about so you can enjoy the process!

6) MAKE SURE YOUR SCHEDULE IS MANAGEABLE

This means mentally and physically! Try and find out what the classes are like and what the schedule is like and make sure you can manage all of your classes together. Phase II is a great chance to go to classes and see what the syllabus is like before deciding your final schedule.

And one tip: Listen to the warning that Scheller really is a 30-minute walk. Take caution.

Registration should be an exciting time of finding new topics to dive into and getting closer to graduation. As long as you’re prepared and use your resources, registration should be a breeze. Don’t stress about making sure you don’t have any 8am’s or that you have all the hardest classes, just find a schedule that works for you. Don’t forget to go to registrar.gatech.edu for any unanswered registration questions!

GOOD LUCK WITH REGISTRATION JACKETS!

#campus #student #GeorgiaTech #IvanAllenCollege #LiberalArts

[theosirianischosen]

How House of Anubis helped save my life

Please be warned this is a long story, but I finally got up the courage to write this all out.  Every word of this is true.  It explains how I got into House of Anubis, what was going on in my life at the time, and how the storyline from season 1 actually helped save my life.  It’s crazy to think about HOA this way, but I honestly think I wouldn’t be here without it (and no, it has nothing to do with me drinking the elixir of life)!

Trigger Warning: Bullying by authority figures, slight ableism, depression, suicidal thoughts

Transitioning into high school can be hard for everybody, but it was especially hard for me.  As I stated before on this blog, I am a Christian.  In fact, I started high school at a private Christian school.  However, what you may not know unless you follow my main blog is that I am autistic.  Specifically, I was diagnosed at an early age with Asperger’s Syndrome.  Because of my Asperger’s, I need certain accommodations for me to succeed in school.  These include extra time on tests, projects, and assignments in certain cases, and getting a notetaker to take notes for me.  Now, in the US, it is required by law for public schools to provide these accommodations for people with disabilities.  However, the same requirements do not apply to private schools, like the Christian school I went to.

At most public schools, they have a whole special education department that helps those with disabilities, often with their own sections depending on the needs of the children.  However, as you can imagine, a private school doesn’t have the funds for a whole department.  So at the Christian school I attended, there was one teacher designated as the learning coordinator who, among other things, essentially is the entire special education department.  For the purposes of this post, I will call this teacher Marijke.  (Yes, that is in reference to the villain from HHA.)  It’s also important to note that Marijke wasn’t just the learning coordinator, but also the English teacher for every Freshman at the school.

Every child with a disability that needs accommodations in schools has what’s called an IEP (Individualized Education Program).  This document describes the needs of the child and what accommodations need to be in place for the child to succeed.  It is reviewed at least once per year.  At the last IEP meeting before my freshman year, Marijke was in attendance.  She was asking good questions and taking notes.  Based on how everything went at the meeting, my mom and I thought we would have nothing to worry about when it came time to start high school the following school year.  Boy, were we wrong!

Early on in the school year, Marijke wasn’t following my IEP, but rather the notes she took from the IEP meeting.  This might seem like a small difference, but it isn’t.  The notes were basically her interpretation of what was talked about at the meeting, and these notes didn’t 100% match up with the actual needs detailed in my IEP.  For example, she didn’t provide notetakers to my classes because she wanted to see if I could do it myself first.  Keep in mind, the need for notetakers wasn’t just a generalized instruction inserted into my IEP.  I was actually tested thoroughly before the IEP meeting.  The result of this test shows that my mind can’t keep up with taking notes and paying attention and learning what’s being discussed in class at the same time.  My mind can only focus on one or the other.

Another theme Marijke kept mentioning whenever I didn’t like how my accommodations were being handled was that I needed to be prepared for college, and she has helped people in the past and while they might not have liked her methods at the time, they later came back and thanked her after they had graduated high school.  First of all, I was a freshman in high school.  Anyone starting high school would need some time to adjust to this new environment before even thinking about college.  In fact, trying to prepare someone for college as a freshman in high school is doing so prematurely.  Most people don’t know what college they want to go to or what they want to study at that age, and even if they do, these ideas change over time.  (I was no exception to this; as a Freshman, I wanted to go to MIT and later work for IBM, but I later got into filmmaking, and I wound up going to a local tech school for an associate’s degree in digital media.)

Second, and this is most important, autism is a spectrum disorder.  No two people with the same diagnosis will have the same needs.  And I’m not just talking about those who are nonverbal and need full-time care vs. someone like me who can take mainstream classes and generally become a fully-functioning member of society.  Everyone in the latter camp will all be very different as well.  Some (like me) would need notetakers, others wouldn’t.  Some (like me) are very skilled at math and science, others are not.  And I’m not even talking savant-level stuff here.  Autism affects everyone on the spectrum differently.  So saying that her approached worked for Joe Schmo years ago does not necessarily mean she would be successful using the exact same approach on me.  In fact, odds are that it wouldn’t work, as I was pointing out.

Now, as I alluded to above, I frequently advocated for myself and explained to her what I actually needed.  However, Marijke didn’t take too kindly to that, accusing me of questioning her authority.  Marijke was essentially taking the “my way or the highway” approach, and it wasn’t good.

My mom tried to get the principal involved early on, saying that Marijke wasn’t meeting my needs.  At first, he appeared to be concerned for my needs and although a little hesitant, he appeared to be on my side.  That all changed once he talked to Marijke.  He then completely sided with Marijke on everything, saying that I shouldn’t be questioning Marijke’s methods and that I should just listen to her as an authority figure because she knows best.

This was a source of stress and depression for me.  It wasn’t just the notetakers that were the issue.  Extra time on tests and projects wasn’t being provided, and assignments were another source of issues.  For example, my math teacher established a rule that late math assignments could be turned in up to one week late and it would be given full consideration without penalty.  After that, it would turn into a 0 and couldn’t be changed.  Another thing worth mentioning is that Marijke held what was called a structured study hall, which is essentially like a study hall period except with a structure provided by her.  This isn’t uncommon in public schools, either.  But when I became behind in Marijke’s English class, in the structured study (which took place BEFORE math class), she tried to get me to work on late work in her English class, citing the rule that I had up to a week to hand in the math homework without penalty.  Keep in mind, I wasn’t behind on one or two assignments, but rather a lot of work.  While I wanted to turn in everything that was late in Marijke’s class, I didn’t want to do it at the expense of falling behind in another class, especially when I had no set time limit on turning in Marijke’s late work but only one week to turn in late math assignments.

I tried explaining this all to my math teacher.  Just like with the principal and my mom, at first, he sided with me.  He then went to talk to Marijke in hopes that he could help me, but he came back siding with Marijke completely.

Another example of her not meeting my needs was her idea of helping me develop social skills by participating in a roundtable discussion with other students.  It’s not that it wasn’t a good idea, but rather it didn’t help me with any of my other social issues (as I will explain below), and it felt like just a regular class activity as opposed something that would actually help me.

Eventually, things really got out of hand with me and Marijke.  Marijke essentially became a bully.  She didn’t care for what I had to say about my needs, insisting on doing things her way.  Whenever I talked to another teacher about my troubles with her, even if they didn’t switch sides like the Principal and math teacher, Marijke found out that I had talked to them (somehow) and said she didn’t like me doing that.

As if that wasn’t bad enough, I couldn’t seem to find support from my peers either.  Some of the friends I made in middle school just thought I was using my Asperger’s as an excuse for things, and none of my other friends seemed to care.  And of course, Marijke took issue at me talking to my peers about my troubles with her.  (But come on, what high school student doesn’t complain to their friends about teachers they don’t like?)

And to top it all off, there were also a group of boys who were bullying me and wouldn’t stop (and it’s not like the principal or Marijke did anything to stop it, even going as far as saying I was making it seem like I was enjoying it), and girl troubles.  That’s a long story in and of itself, but long story short, a girl I liked didn’t like me back.  Even though she said we could still be friends, she certainly never acted like one.  At most, all I felt like I could say to her was “Hi” and “Bye” because anything more wasn’t acceptable to her and I had to keep my distance.

Now, I’m sure you’re asking me, “Why didn’t you just leave the school?”  At the time, I actually wanted to get a Christian education at the Christian school.  I kept looking at it through the lens of trying to make things better at that school as opposed to leaving for a public school.  Keep in mind, had this been a public school (or even a private school who got funding in some way from the government, such as with a school lunch program), what Marijke and the rest of the staff were doing would have been illegal, or at the very least we would have had legal options.  Unfortunately, this wasn’t the case, and so I truly felt I had nowhere else to turn.  I even started becoming suicidal.

Anyway, as I was deep in this whole situation, I discovered House of Anubis on Nick on Demand one weekend.  I remember seeing previews for it earlier.  It appeared to have a supernatural element based on the previews, and I wanted to see what it was about.  Believe it or not, the character I connected to the most was Patricia.  Early on, I saw her concern for Joy mirror my situation with Marijke.  Every teacher seemed to work together in covering up what really happened to Joy.  That’s just like how every teacher at my school was defending Marijke, even when her methods were not helpful at best and a form of bullying at worst.  While I believed Nina had nothing to do with her disappearance, I became frustrated with Patricia over how the teachers and police were involved.  There seemed to be nowhere for her to turn to, and that’s where I felt with my situation with Marijke.  And to top it all off, Patricia and Jason essentially embodied how I felt it was like whenever I tried talking to another teacher about my situation with Marijke.  My math teacher essentially was Jason Winkler.  He heard my story, sided with me, went to Marijke, and came back on her side.  Jason heard Patricia’s story, sided with her, went to Victor, and came back on his side.  Victor was just like Marijke in my book.

At the very least, House of Anubis helped save my life in the sense that it stopped me from killing myself in this situation.  I kept watching to learn more about the Joy/Patricia/Victor part of the mystery, in the hopes that maybe something could be used to help improve my situation.  Obviously, even though I did like the show, finding that miracle solution in the show didn’t happen.  Marijke, the principal, and the rest of the teachers weren’t a part of a secret society trying to become immortal.  But I truly felt it was like a conspiracy.

Eventually, my mom got involved again, talking to the music department about the issue.  Every freshman had a music class and was a part of a chorus, and I also was in Band as well as the musical, which was a production of The Wizard of Oz.  The musical was another reason why I didn’t want to leave this school.  If I left, I couldn’t be a part of the musical.  Keep in mind, I didn’t have a major role.  I was one of the Winkies, but I still wanted to be a part of the show.  This is important to note because my mom was looking to see if I could switch to a public school.  At this time, I was more open to the idea, but I still wanted to be a part of the musical.  In order for me to join the public school, I would have to leave BEFORE the musical and therefore I wouldn’t be able to be a part of it.  At this point, while I was thinking about maybe joining the public school my sophomore year, I still wanted to see the musical through and not leave during my Freshman year because of it.

The musical was another source of tension between me and Marijke.  Knowing that I was only a Winkie, she often wanted me to only be at practice when I was needed.  I’m not talking about one-on-one early rehearsals with the Winkies.  I’m talking about a few weeks prior to the show full-length rehearsals where generally everyone was expected to be there.  Her reasoning?  She wanted me to work on schoolwork WITH HER!  Again, as the learning coordinator, Marijke felt I needed more time with her so I could get stuff done.

At this point, the teachers in the music department were already aware of the situation and how my mom (and I) just wanted to keep me away from her.  Unlike the math teacher and the principal, they were a bit more helpful.  The only time it mirrored the Jason/Victor incident was when there was talk of me potentially moving my structured study from Marijke’s classroom to the music wing.  It wouldn’t have been as structured, but it would at least give me some space from her.  Unfortunately, Marijke wasn’t all too happy with this suggestion and it only happened once.  After which, I was expected to go to her classroom as usual.

However, eventually, my mom got called into a meeting with Marijke and the principal.  This time, she invited our pastor along to try to help ease the situation and be another advocate for me and my needs.  At the meeting, though, she didn’t get a chance to speak up much at all.  Instead, the principal and Marijke essentially accused her of bearing false witness to the music department for trying to help me get out of Marijke’s grasp and advocating for actually getting the help I need.  The pastor didn’t do much of anything except pray for my mom while it was all going on.  And as if that lambasting wasn’t bad enough, because of my mom’s past (which I won’t get into, but I will say she was subject to abuse as a child), her PTSD started going off because of this meeting, and now she started becoming suicidal as well.  However, something was about to change.

My mom and I usually attended at the time monthly local Autism Society meetings.  On a day of one of those meetings, my mom was slated to go, but I wasn’t.  However, I insisted on going and I did go to the meeting.  It was about bullying.  Not only did it open my eyes to what Marijke was truly doing, but after the meeting, I eventually confessed about my suicidal thoughts because of the Marijke situation.  As a result, the next day my mom called me in sick while I had an emergency appointment with my counselor (who was a psychologist).  As a result of our conversation, I realized that what I was being subjected to wasn’t worth the ability to be a Winkie in The Wizard of Oz.  Furthermore, there would likely be other opportunities to be in a musical the following year at the public school.  So, with that in mind, I decided to leave the Christian school and enroll in the public school.  Talk about perfect timing: I would have had to have known that very same day if I was going to switch to the public school in order for me to enroll.  Even pulling up to the Christian school that day to clean out my locker, I felt at peace with my decision.  I was finally free!

Needless to say, I was in a much better environment at the public school.  I wasn’t bullied by anyone (student or teacher), and all of my needs were being met.  And, of course, I kept watching House of Anubis for the following two years!  I was really glad I switched schools.

So, that was my long-winded explanation for how I discovered House of Anubis and how it helped save my life.  I’m sorry it got so long; I’m not good at writing very concisely.  If you decide to reblog it and you read this far, please mention VCRs and motor cars in the tags.  Thank you for reading this far!!

#house of anubis #mental health #autism #personal #long story

[bountyofbeads]

Students Fainting From Hunger in Venezuela’s Failing School System https://nyti.ms/37NRFHQ

Students Fainting From Hunger in Venezuela’s Failing School System

Children ask teachers at the entrance of one struggling primary school if there is food before deciding whether to come in.

By Anatoly Kurmanaev and Isayen Herrera | Published Nov. 30, 2019, 5:00 a.m. ET | New York Times |Posted November 30, 2019 |

BOCA DE UCHIRE, Venezuela — Hundreds of children filed into their school courtyard to hear a local Catholic bishop lead prayers for their education.

“We pray for the youths who are on the streets and can’t come to school,” said Bishop Jorge Quintero, addressing the Augusto D’Aubeterre Lyceum school in the beach town of Boca de Uchire on a steamy morning in October. “There are a lot of them.”

By the end of the 15-minute ceremony, five children had fainted and two of them were whisked away in an ambulance.

The faintings at the primary school have become a regular occurrence because so many students come to class without eating breakfast, or dinner the night before. In other schools, children want to know if there is any food before they decide whether to go at all.

“You can’t educate skeletal and hungry people,” said Maira Marín, a teacher and union leader in Boca de Uchire.

Venezuela’s devastating six-year economic crisis is hollowing out the school system — once the pride of the oil-rich nation and, for decades, an engine that made the country one of the most upwardly mobile in the region. These schools in the past provided children even in remote areas with a solid shot at the country’s best universities, which in turn opened doors to top American schools and a place among Venezuela’s elite.

Hunger is just one of the many problems chipping away at them now. Millions of Venezuelans have fled the country in recent years, depleting the ranks of students and teachers alike. Many of the educators who remain have been driven from the profession, their wages made nearly worthless by years of relentless hyperinflation. In some places, barely 100 students show up at schools that once taught thousands.

The collapse of the education system in Venezuela is not only condemning an entire generation to poverty, but risks setting the country’s development back decades and severely stunting its growth potential, experts and teachers say.

“An entire generation is being left behind,” said Luis Bravo, an education researcher at the Central University of Venezuela in Caracas. “Today’s education system doesn’t allow children to become meaningful members of society.”

The government stopped publishing education statistics in 2014. But visits to more than a dozen schools in five Venezuelan states and interviews with dozens of teachers and parents indicate that attendance has plummeted this year.

Many schools are shuttering in the once-wealthy nation as malnourished children and teachers who earn almost nothing abandon classrooms to scratch out a living on the streets or flee abroad.

It is a major embarrassment for the self-proclaimed Socialist government, which has long preached social inclusion. The situation is in sharp contrast to countries that Venezuelan leaders have held up as role models — Cuba and Russia — both of which have managed to shelter the primary education system from the worst effects of a comparable downturn in the 1990s.

Students began skipping school in Venezuela shortly after President Nicolas Maduro came to power in 2013. A fall in the price of the country’s main export, crude oil, combined with Mr. Maduro’s ill-timed effort to double down on price and currency controls sent the economy into a recession from which it has not yet emerged.

Some Venezuelan children are staying home because many schools have stopped providing meals or because their parents can no longer afford uniforms, school utensils or bus fares. Others have joined parents in one of the world’s biggest displacement crises: About four million Venezuelans have fled the country since 2015, according to the United Nations.

Thousands of the country’s 550,000 teachers did not show up to classes when schools reopened in September, according to the national teachers’ union, ditching their $8 a month wages to try their luck abroad or in Venezuela’s booming illegal gold mines.

In Venezuela’s most-populous state of Zulia, up to 60 percent of about 65,000 teachers have deserted in recent years, according to estimates by Alexander Castro, head of the local teacher’s union.

“They tell us that they prefer painting nails for a few dollars than work for a minimum wage,” Mr. Castro said.

To keep schools going, the remaining teachers often teach all of the subjects or combine different school years in one classroom. Nearly all of the one dozen schools visited have slashed working hours; some open for only a day or two a week.

In the village of Parmana in Venezuela’s central plains, only 4 out of 150 registered students attended school in October. The four students, of varying ages, sat in the same dilapidated classroom without electricity, practicing everything from the alphabet to algebra as the school’s sole remaining teacher tried to encourage them with a dejected smile.

The rest of the village’s children have joined their parents in the fields and fishing boats to help feed their families.

In the country’s second biggest city of Maracaibo, a sign outside a dilapidated school without electricity recently read: “Please come to classes, even without uniforms.” The children ask teachers at the entrance if there is food before deciding whether to come in.

Maracaibo’s biggest school no longer has any functioning bathrooms. It was designed for 3,000 students; only 100 now show up.

Half of the teachers didn’t return to work after the summer holidays to a school in the town of Santa Barbara outside the capital of Caracas, forcing the principal to enlist parent volunteers to keep the classes going.

On the other side of the capital, in the town of Rio Chico, most of the rooms in a local school are boarded up for lack of students and teachers. When the remaining pupils arrive, they first ask the whereabouts of the school’s cook, the teachers said.

Mr. Maduro’s mentor and predecessor, Hugo Chávez, made the expansion of public education one of the pillars of his popular “21st Century Socialism” campaign.

For a decade until 2013, the country made steady improvements in school enrollment thanks to generous school meals and handouts of food, utensils and cash to parents and children. Mr. Chavez built hundreds of new schools.

Mr. Chavez’s populist policies, however, had focused more on the quantity of students in school rather than the quality of the education. Then, as the country’s coffers ran dry, his government’s educational progress unraveled.

As attendance collapsed, Mr. Maduro continued to claim his government was focused on education spending despite the “brutal economic war” waged by his enemies.

“In Venezuela, not one school has closed or will ever close, not one classroom,” the president said in a televised address in April. “We will never deny access to education.”

To boost the ranks of teachers, Mr. Maduro in August promised to send thousands of the ruling party’s youth members to the classrooms. Education experts say few of these untrained activists will add any pedagogical value or even make it to schools.

At the same time, Venezuela’s pool of real teachers is drying up. The number of graduates at Venezuela’s main teacher training center, the Libertador Experimental Pedagogical University, fell 70 percent from 2014 to 2018.

Venezuelan teachers have been among the worst affected by the country’s economic collapse, as gross domestic product shrank by two thirds since 2013 and minimum wages fell to $8 a month.

Mr. Maduro’s de facto dollarization of the economy this year allowed many public employees in Venezuela to supplement their official salaries in nearly worthless local currency, by charging in dollars for their services.

His backdoor liberalization of Venezuela’s controlled economy, however, brought little benefit to public schoolteachers in poor communities, whose pupils’s families have little access to foreign currency.

In Boca de Uchire, the Caruto family has stopped sending its nine children to a nearby school when the cafeteria doesn’t open.

“I can’t send them to class hungry,” said José Luis Caruto, a 36-year-old unemployed father of two.

His sister, Yuxi Caruto, 17, was the last in the family to drop out from school, discouraged by the unaffordable bus fare. She tried taking up studies again at a local community center, but its teachers stopped showing up after two weeks of classes.

She now spends her time taking care of her 1-year-old son.

“I want to learn to do the math and read and write rapidly. I’m scared that when my son grows and starts asking questions, I won’t know how to respond. But right now, we don’t even have enough to eat.”

______

Sheyla Urdaneta contributed reporting from Maracaibo, Venezuela.

#education #culture #venzuela #maduro #u.s. news #crimes against humanity #human rights #humanity #humanrights #republican politics #politics and government #us politics #politics #worldpolitics #world news #international news #latinamerica

[pagesofadiaryofagirlunknown]

Inside

    As I sit here writing I begin think that I am on to something or perhaps nothing at all. I slept most of the day. Left over Chinese was prepared with a curry spice added by my boyfriend around 3pm. We watched an old 90′s movie and fell asleep next to one another. It was a beautiful day in New York. The sun was shining and the birds hooted and chirped. I made plans to breathe in the Spring air and maybe visit the gym but that never manifested. When I awoke I reflected on my inside life. The mess in my apartment and the lack of maintenance for self. I hadn’t showered. No, my depression is the deep cut from broken glass. I am my bleeding heart trickling to the cup I drink from. 

   I’m not like most people. In fact I’d even be bold enough to say there is no one like me. I look at others, like my friends and family members. They live productive and fulfilling lives it seems. Many of them have graduated from college, they have a job, some are married with children. They play by the rules. They have security. They have stability. They are members of society. And here I stand, not proud, not boastful but ashamed that there is no piece of paper stating that I am something. Does it matter truly? Perhaps it is all rubbish and I shan’t care for others accomplishments in comparison to my own. I suppose I never gave up but lately I find myself wavering. As if I don’t exist in this strange reality known as our popular society. I have a mental illness. I am Bipolar. Often I think to myself, should this define me? Indefinitely, in many instances, since my diagnosis it has broken my spirit. A spirit that can be so passionate, so enthused, and enthralled in life. Yet despite my random excitement I am told that this is known as Mania. I am told by a doctor that my personality is based on my illness. I am told that I behave with such mannerisms and idiosyncrasy’ s because I am Bipolar not simply because I am rather unique. I have limitations. I have a disability. 

   However, there are days where I am overtly productive and accomplish the daily tasks at hand. I attend my mental health program which consists of an attendance of adult learning classes. Lessons we must have missed compared to the “normal” people along the road map of life. Assuredly comforting as it may be, to be surrounded and amongst those alike; I can not muster the inner strength to attend all five days. This is something my counselor and I squabble about which in turn creates a discouragement of interaction because I’d rather not explain my lack of attendance. My inability to properly function as an adult and to behoove a responsible manner is bothersome. Especially when most see a pretty, kind, and intelligent woman in front them; they are perplexed. Why can’t she be like me or him or even the ladder who does the 9-5 and supposedly has it all? Quite the question. Why can’t I? Surely I’ll have my excuses in front of the judge on June 21st of this year. This is the day that decides whether I be deemed permanently disabled. I’d receive a check monthly in compensation for a disease I was born with but developed as a teenager and became more serious in my adult life. However, comically it takes legalities to deem truth for what I was born with. Indubiously I will be something more, I will be something on paper; I will be disabled. It’s not something I pictured for my life. When I was eighteen I went off to college with big dreams. I wanted to teach English, join the Peace Corps, I wanted build school’ s and travel the world. I had a rigor about me, a tenacity as my father spoke once so strong and potent the Lion in the jungle might cower in comparison. But it isn’t as if I haven’t come so far and I haven’t climbed this mountain as if the mountain depended on my torn footsteps. I’ve rested many days with the lilacs and daisy’s under the Willow tree. I even reached my hand to many along the way and offered them solace and hope for peace of mind. I have been someone to so many and yet to society I am forgotten. On paper deemed by doctors, lawyers, and judges I am Bipolar, I am disabled. Yet when you look upon me and you converse with me I am no more seemingly incapable or different than any other that walks about this wretched Earth. 

    But my boyfriend, an artist, a healer, a seeker like me would only ask of me one thing, that I write to inspire. I suppose the only thing I’ve accomplished thus far in this blog is expressed torn and withered emotions. No, my goal isn’t for you to feel pain, or worry, or even pity for a searching soul. I am writing to show that I am lost in these vast woods of life. I ran into the woods blinded with excitement and now I find my foot stuck in the mud wondering how I move on to the path ahead. I am writing because if there is someone reading this who share’s the same sentiment of life, who once was so excited and so happy to live, and now only looks at the map with a question mark above one’s head. If you are reading this my dear tired friend. I want you to know that you are not alone. I want you to know that God has given you the reins and he may be afraid for his child but he all the same has an immense faith in you. And if I can inspire some hope for I know I have lost so much that hope can seem hard to come by. Hope that the sun shines even if you are too tired to step out on your porch and feel it for yourself. Hope that a rainy day is just as good as or even better as no day at all. For what would life be? What would life mean if you didn’t exist?  And dreaming is perhaps the only inkling of hope that one can have. Dreaming of a better life. A life as sweet as the forbidden fruit. We must hold fast to our dreams. For whether you be disabled or ill or down in the dumps you can never truly be there forever. The only difficult task is walking through that dreadful mud where the rain storm falls to get back to the beaten path. 

    I never thought I’d make it this far and there is so much more walking to do. There is so much fighting, and learning, and growing. I suppose that’s what you would call life. I am not the typical participant of society. I don’t have a job. I don’t have a degree. I don’t have children. I’m not married. Nor do I own a thing or even have a license. This isn’t to say that I can not and will not do these things because of my “limitations.” But I will say and I can say that I am a member of life. I am apart of life’s madness and beauty. And although I may be weary. Although I may waver I never once gave up. And that my dearest friend is my greatest accomplishment. Until next time. Remember, dreams live if hope lasts. Never give up my friend.

#mentalhealth #bipolar #depression #hope #dream #live

[drsamnewton]

Celebrate!!!                             Every achievement in your life

Every individual that is born on the surface of this earth is aspiring and working hard to succeed in life. Though the phenomenon is not limited to the humans alone, we talk only about humans in this article! We can invariably see every one trying to excel and succeed in whatever one is involved into! Every effort is aimed at doing so. And let me add here, that no effort put in, goes without giving a result, – though directly proportionate to the efforts and timing! What is missing is an eye, to see the results! All that due to lack of patience, that we the humans display from time to time.

No individual can grow without getting success at the smaller summits! In fact, it is the smaller achievements that actually are the cornerstones and the very building blocks of the monuments that we see in an individual’s life.

To understand the concept, let us take examples of the monuments, huge constructions that we see across the world, leaving a few isolated examples, all have been in fact created using the smaller bits and piece like stones, bricks, sand particles, granules of cement, pieces of wood, metal and so on and so forth. But as the human mind goes, it looks at the gigantic size and expanse of the construction and gets mesmerized, forgetting that at the core of the heart, a magnanimous structure is having a very humble piece, which we do not take into consideration and just think it is trivial. Even the reservoirs, which hold the mighty strength of the water, are simply made up of such multiple smaller granules. The weight of a moving train is absorbed by the individual pieces of gravel layered under the sleepers of the rail in unison with others. Similarly, we fail to see the smaller contributors in our life, the smaller steps, the insignificant achievements that have made us the person, that we are today, building us bit by bit, step by step, day by day, event by event into a giant of a personality that we are today! Just like in case of the monuments, we often fail to see the smaller particles that have held onto each other to make the grand structures they are today. Even when we notice the broken pieces inside the monument, we perceive them as an addition to the beauty of the monument. What makes us any different?

I don’t think, if one would not have cleared class tests, quarterly, six monthly and final exams of early schooling days, year after year, one would have been able to complete, one’s doctoral studies, post-graduation or even a graduation! The very base of the shining, gleaming career and the higher degrees that one is holding and is proud of, is the very humble class test that one has passed.

If one would not have played in the gully, with bat and ball or any other sport or game, one could not have been named on the national team! Even the people racing two wheelers or four-wheelers in various national or international events and circuits, must have started on a humble walker or a tri-cycles in their early days of life.

The best of the speakers and the orators that the world has seen, must have been warblers in their childhood otherwise todays proficiency would not have been achieved.

So, dear all, celebrating the smaller successes in day-to-day life is the crux and the mantra of the growth in one’s life, this has not to be forgotten.

We all have pitfalls, non-performing days, failed tests, alone times, frugal days, no money days but remember, whatever you are facing today, must have been faced by everybody born on this planet some or the other time in their own lives. But the shining examples that we have today must have worked up their ways once again, taking courage from the defeat, learning lessons from the mistakes, taking courage and consolations from the smaller victories or the provisions of the Lord.

As it is said that, the object which goes up, has to come down! But the fall of the object cannot take away the credit, that the object had soared in the air and had achieved a peak of its own. Even the spaceships launched after reaching the destined places have to fall town or go into ignominy in their life! So, do you not throw the object in the air, once again?

Let us understand that the life brings us, both, achievements and the failures. When you are walking through the negative trails of the life, please do not forget that some time in this very life you have been a successful person, might be as a kid, as a young person, as an individual and also have a potential to succeed once again. We can proudly learn from the examples of successful people born on this earth, be it Albert Einstein or our very own Amitabh Bachchan

Take heart from the achievement that you had and learn the tricks from yourself, of that success during those days and start applying the similar rules and efforts during these – not so great times.  Remember you have to also understand the forces and conditions that might be prevailing currently. Be an informed person, analyse the situation, make a strategy to court the issues you are facing and find a way to conquer them. If need be don’t forget to go back to the drawing boards, learning desks, empowering tracks and put in more efforts.

The issue is that we give up very easily looking at the uphill task, but remember, even the biggest of the issues are there, due to small mistakes committed by us. If we start taking corrective steps, attacking the smallest component, one at a time, start strengthening our mindset and say to yourself that you have got rid of one issue. This outlook to life will help you in getting rid of the downers in your life. As taught to the practitioners of the martial arts, when you are surrounded by a formidable strength of the opponents, who are out to beat you blue-black, take a position, look into the eyes of every individual, read them carefully, and hit with your maximum might to the weakest and most scared person among them. The person will be knocked down in just one punch or kick, part because of your strength (which was the maximum you had) and part because of the fear or lack of confidence (that the individual portrayed)! As a result, the entire group of the opponents who had encircled you with an intention to decimate you, will develop fear in the mind and take you as a stronger person than they had perceived earlier and will run away! Their mindset will not allow them to analyse the situation, that, their chum, who has been brought down by your in a single kick or punch, was the weakest among them and scared.

Life is like this, when you show stronger traits, the weak ones do not occupy your mind and you happen to win over the situation because of the mental strength alone, known as attitude.

When a long-distance runner or a homing-in driver runs or drives, he his focus on the reverse clock that he has built in his mind and keeps focusing on the distance that is remaining to be covered and not the total distance that he has to cover. Even the mountaineers, who attempt to scale the highest peaks, work on a very small height in a day (from summit to summit) and do not give a thought to the monumental height that they have to reach to!

I am sure, you also must be having such smaller successes, like the day you got your first job despite lot of struggle and a lineup of interviews, or the love of your life that you won over despite all the opposition, the admission of your kid to the coveted school that you could get despite all the stumbling blocks, the debt clearance that you could achieve despite all the odds being pitted against you, or even the love and appreciation that you get from your family members despite all the strong words or backlashes that you are subjected to in your professional life. The consolatory pat you deserve (should be given by you yourself) for taking care old parents, siblings, your distant relatives, challenged individuals in your own family or in the society, your contribution to someone’s wedding or hospitalisation or for somebody’s funeral rites! Pat yourself for taking that injured pedestrian to hospital or even putting the person into an auto-rickshaw or talking to a lost child on the platform or helping an old person cross the road. All these acts, which you must been involved should give you that positive thrust to go on.

Remember, dear, when the times are good you aim for the sky, the stars and the icons. But when you are down, look at the downtrodden, the not-so-able-bodied individuals, the destitute, the sufferers. You will realise you are the blessed one! You have more to celebrate!

If you want to understand the value of an eye (though you have two of them) look into the lives of blind people. And if you see the life of deaf and mute, you will realise the grace that the Lord has given you, by giving two ears to listen to the sound and a tongue to express yourself through sound bite and to sing! Look at a lame to understand the value of your legs and life of living torsos to value the gift of hands. Go around the hospitals to understand what your health and perfectly functioning organs within your body has been doing for you! Peep into the lives of childless couples to understand the value of the children in your life.

All the above can be considered as our achievements in our life. Once you look at them, you will get new vigor and courage, not only to stand up and give a bigger fight to the challenges in your life but to win them over forever. Once these defeating thoughts are put down by you, they will never return to haunt you!

Friends, please remember solitary life is a punishment. It is said solitary confinement in the jails are considered to be harshest of all the punishments! The other day, I heard a news report on NHK TV, it said, there are approximately 4 million Japanese individuals who are living solitary lives, no one or nowhere to go!

Think we are so lucky, that we are having our parents, our siblings, our spouses, our children, our acquaintances, our relatives, our friends, our pals, our chums, our neighbours, our society and so much! Why not celebrate all these things and remain happy and once again fight for the podium?

May the Almighty Lord bless all of us.

An effort by Dr Sam Newton (A humble servant of the Lord)

#success