#this was also initially supposed to be an exercise in writing something short that focused more on a distinctive atmosphere

[ehlnofay]

19 for the worldbuilding prompts + Torr?

the profound quiet of a small settlement at night

North Eastmarch is freezing cold all over, but it wears different outside the city than within.

Torr would never call Windhelm warm – not even in summer months, no matter how used to it they are – but what little heat it has it clings to with great determination. The walls huddle together, trapping the air so that it’s either still and muggy or a howling wind, like each close-knit house is breathing in tandem. The heat of the people run up and down its streets, blood through its knotted stone veins. The city is alive, an ecosystem unto itself; its snow, dark with footprints, runs sludgy down the roads; a fireplace is always burning somewhere.

Outside of the walls, surrounded by nothing but empty air and snow-laden trees, a slow-moving stream running with barely a burble – it feels dead, in contrast. Silent. Branches reach needle-sharp across the blue-black sky, the ground is gleaming white and undisturbed by anyone else’s footprints, and the nearest fire is the barely visible gleam of the Kynesgrove mining camp, up the hill and through the sporadic spindles of the trees. The breeze ghosts past Torr’s neck and whips the mud-stained snow into a flurry.

In the city, Torr’s comfortable sleeping almost anywhere – as comfortable as they ever get, anyway. Some of the buildings have great gaps under the porch where the snow can’t reach and no-one ever finds them; there’s places in the nooks of the walls, and sheds built into the side of the house that people don’t lock, and Torr knows a few people besides who don’t mind him kipping on their floor every now and again, as long as he doesn’t ask too often. The outside isn’t like that. There’s not many places to go. He’s lurking around Kynesgrove tonight – on his way back from a quick venture out to get some things done that pay better than running errands around the markets – and there aren’t many options. The inn, which he can’t afford – the mine, which would be warm but is very guarded – the miner’s encampment or someone’s house, both of which would most likely result in being chased off. Besides, there’s a performative element to meeting people, especially adults, in strange places, and Torr’s not in the mood to play to strangers. So much of his being is caught up in Windhelm’s grimy alleys, tangled in the hair and fingers of its discarded children; he doesn’t know how to be himself away from it all.

But they don’t have to, seeing as there’s the rickety old sawmill on the edge of a stream feeding into the harbour. It’s not bad, as shelter goes; no walls, so the wind rubs its fingers wraithlike down Torr’s cheeks and tangles them in his hair, but at least there’s a roof. It looks newly thatched, too, the floorboards free of rot, the water-wheel still chugging creakily along. There’s no wood to cut here, all the nearby surrounding trees too scraggy to be worth the bother. The only big ones are part of the grove up on the hill. There’s no point in keeping the mill running, but Torr is glad it is; he watches the distant firelight flickering through the scrub, and listens to the splashing of the wheel. It’s proof that people and the things they make do still exist – if not necessarily here.

It really feels dead, out in the cold, with the leafless trees and the wind that doesn’t even whisper. It always does. It’s a bit discomfiting, which is maybe why Torr doesn’t go on out-of-city endeavours as often as perhaps he could; but really, there’s not work out here enough to make it worth it. There’s always problems with bandits on the road, but Torr’s not a good enough fighter for bounty work; there’s collecting plants and things to sell Nurelion, but that’s easy enough to do on a day trip. (And, really, it’s more for Torr’s own enjoyment, besides. They never even venture far south enough to get to the sulphur pools, which is where the more interesting things grow.)

This trip, though, is an outlier. Unusually efficient. Just a quick job for Niranye, scouting a merchant’s cart on the road – almost definitely for something shady, but that’s not Torr’s business, and it was too much money too easy to turn down. And then – just earlier today, foraging out in the wilderness as best as Torr (a distinctly urban animal) knows how – they’d come across a giant’s corpse, stiff and white as the snow it lay in. Torr’s no master alchemist but they know the value of a cadaver when it comes to brewing alloys and admixtures, so they set to with their blunt-edged dagger and now they’ve got a sack full of what may as well be gold. (Long as it doesn’t start to rot before they can get Nurelion to preserve it, anyway.)

Torr’s going to be rolling in it when they get back to Windhelm. They could use that money for nearly anything – pay off a few things they borrowed, new warm things now that winter’s coming back strong, bedrolls, waterskins. Endless options – which, strangely, is more exciting than it is burdensome.

It’s all the sort of decision that would ordinarily feel life-or-death urgent but right now feels – not small. Not insignificant, not at all, but distant. A choice to be made at another time, by another person.

(Torr’s whole being belongs to Windhelm’s back streets. They’re someone else, away from it all.)

That’s the other thing about leaving the city, spending time in the discomfiting slow-paced ghost-world outside. It’s quiet. Torr sits surrounded by the wind in the trees, the lazy murmur of the stream, the creak of the water-wheel, and nothing else.

He’s been called a worrywart (mostly by Griss in a strop) but to tell the truth he doesn’t think that’s true. Torr doesn’t fuss for the sake of fussing, he just doesn’t like to leave things undone; can’t stop until he finds a solution. Out here, alone, in the empty cold, there are no solutions to find – same old problems back home, he knows, but no steps he can take at this time to right them. That’s never true while he’s in the city, so he can never stop thinking about it, every choice and action accompanied by a buzzing background chorus of everything else he really should be doing – that really should have been done by now – that should never have been left undone this long, what was he thinking? Everything is urgent when it’s doable. But here and now, there’s nothing to do.

So Torr sits hunched on the board floor of the ramshackle watermill, huddled among their heaps of bags and blankets, and thinks of nothing at all.

Not strictly true. They think of supper – haven’t eaten since an apple this morning, except for some snowberries they found around noon, and it’s been a long day. They nabbed some turnips from the garden of the Kynesgrove inn on their way to the mill. They’re fresh, if nothing else – also covered in dirt, so Torr rises reluctantly from their pile of stuff to crouch on the banks of the stream and dip the vegetables in to clean them off. It aches like hell, the frozen water turning their joints to ice – they almost drop the turnip they’re washing, so they scrub it as best they can with the frigid pad of their thumb and whip their hands out of the water soon as they’re able. They stick their fingers in their mouth to warm them back up.

Even after all that time spent warming up their hands, arraying all their belongings back around themself to conserve body heat, the turnips are still cold enough to hurt Torr’s teeth when he bites in. He eats them anyway, relishing a little in the unearthly silence and the aching of his lips and palms. They taste delicious.

With nothing else to do after, the gnawing of his stomach sated, he wraps himself in his shawl and stares up the hill at the camp’s fire until it goes out. The stars wink into brighter being. The wind whistles through the whip-thin branches of the trees. The water-wheel creaks.

Torr sleeps, but he feels like he hears it all – a silent observer, an echo, a beginning – until morning.

#I considered doing something with post-questline torr for this #but it would have been so fucking sad #and I didn't want to write something that was so fucking sad! #I'll post about torr after the horrors eventually but Not Today. #this was also initially supposed to be an exercise in writing something short that focused more on a distinctive atmosphere #than a scene or character study as most of my pieces are. #oops. #snowballed into an absolute monster of a ramble. #maybe sometime I'll use these prompts to write Actually Short pieces with more of a focus on the worldbuilding aspect... #would be good practice. everything I've written lately has been a thousand words minimum. #I could write about my minor characters or npcs with it too... yeah I think I'll do that at some stage #but. anyway. I quite like this piece as a sort of study #I fucking love writing characters who are having a nice time. with just a hint. just a whisper. of the problems #I enjoyed putting in the reference to the alchemical giant's toes especially because that is an allusion no-one but me understands #to a line in one of my very bad very early pieces on torr #it's not well written but I loved that bit because it's such a wonderful microcosm of the way torr is even before the murder cult thing #Yes he's the busiest most hardworking caretaking boy in the world taking trips into the wilderness (comparatively) to feed his family #and Yes his first instinct on seeing a corpse is to cut it up and sell it for parts #(he's done this to human bodies too but only in extremely specific circumstances. the risk of legal repercussions is too great otherwise) #I'll make a post rambling sometime about torr's ethical system because I'm so obsessed with them and their unhinged point of view #Anyway #done rambling #my writing #fay writes #oc tag #torr #the elder srolls #tes #skyrim #tesblr

[dr-2bthin]

How to stay on track during your weight loss struggles

Losing weight has been an ever-stirring dilemma for many people. Also, your struggle to lose weight increases as you age, and the more fat mass your body gains. While losing weight has a simple rule of eating less and exercising more, it’s not all black and white. Motivation plays a huge role, and we tend to easily deviate from the main reasons that initially pulled us towards our goal to lose weight.

It’s not easy to be more active when you work long hours sitting. It’s not easy to eat less when your mind is stressed and needs more energy to carry on with the entire day’s work. That said, it’s easier to stray away from the goals that were initially set, like working out at 5.00 am. It’s easier to replace your favorite breakfast meal with a high-fiber oats meal.However, it’s even easier to fall back to having your favorite but unhealthy meal again within a few days.

Motivation requires constant fueling with the right ingredients. Hence, in this blog, we’ll take you through some of the more effective ways to stay motivated to lose weight.

Staying motivated while losing weight

Applying these useful tips will help you stay on track even during the worst struggles of losing weight.

 1.      Lay down the reasons for your weight loss journey

Why do you want to lose weight? Is it because you want to stay fit and healthy, or want to fit into your favorite attire again? Or, maybe you want to feel good about yourself and regain self-confidence. Whatever the reason, it’s become harder to remember when you lose focus in your weight loss struggles. So, write it down; your reasons, in a diary especially maintained to mark your weight loss journey. You can go back to your weight loss diaryas a reminder. In addition, you can look at it every morning and night to help you stay focused on the goal.

2.      Set weight loss goals that are achievable

Try to set yourself up for failure, when it comes to setting goals. You may want to get to the finish line faster, but a weight loss journey is not a race. For instance, trying to cut down on sweets abruptly within a day will create the worst bounce back. Instead, try cutting down your sweet’s intake in short bursts. If you are used to having one cola a day and a dessert after your meal, alternate them with a gap of two days. Have a cola on Saturday and Sunday but no desserts on the same day. No colas or desserts on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Then, stick to one dessert either after lunch or dinner on Wednesday, but no colas. After a point of time, you will get used to staying away from sugary drinks and foods; something you thought was impossible. It’s all in how you train your mind and body to get used to the absence of anything.

3.      Take it easy! Embrace the fall and rise

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We tend to get easily demotivated when we can’t see the results. However, staying consistent and patient are key to achieving anything, including weight loss. So, suppose you fell into the temptation of a craving, rise up by promising yourself to stay away from it. There are several ways to ensure that you don’t go back to craving that snack again. Consult our online weight loss doctor to help you with your weight loss struggles and unhealthy cravings.

4.      Tracking progress is essential

The diary that you’ve got to write down your reasons; use it to mark the achievements you made. Also, use it to note down the benchmarks and timeline you’ve set to lose those pounds. For instance, by the end of two weeks, you should have lost two pounds. So, now you know how to take further steps.

5.      Take up an activity you like

If you are not a gym person then don’t do it because you won’t often feel motivated to go to the gym. If you like climbing or cycling, take up these activities instead. There are plenty of activities, including brisk walking or swimming to help improve your fitness levels.

Studies have shown that knowing how to lose weight and talking to healthcare professionals are linked to weight loss motivation. If you require professional help, make sure to reach out to our online weight loss doctor.

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 Blog Source: https://www.dr2bthin.com/how-to-stay-on-track-during-your-weight-loss-struggles/

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[fumiko-matsubara]

Writing Exercise // AssClass x Tower of God AU - Catching Up

Assassination Classroom - Tower of God AU

Summary: There was a sudden change in team line up and so Nakamura decided to make a call with someone who is floors away.

Word Count: 1,791 words

• ▪ • ▪ •

"Huh? Asano-kun joined your team?"

Nakamura hummed in reply, her eyes focused on the screen before her, going through the video recordings she had captured earlier during the previous floor test using one of her lighthouses in hopes of finding anything she could use in the near future. "He and that Sakakibara guy apparently got separated from the rest of their teammates during the previous test."

From the other line, Chiba let out a noise of mild disbelief, which Nakamura couldn't blame him for. For an E-rank Regular, Asano Gakushuu had proved himself to be quite the gifted Light Bearer countless of times that just the mere idea of him being separated from his teammates because of a floor test, with how organized and strong the Asano kid had made his nearly perfect team to be as their leader and strategist, is almost laughable.

But considering that the 28th Floor had nearly caused their own team to lose members for good, only having members to be separated seemed more like a blessing than a misfortune.

Nakamura shuddered at the memory.

"Surprisingly, it was them who first approached us when we arrived at the 29th floor," she mused. "Well... the Asano kid to be exact."

"Seems smart on his part, I suppose," Nakamura suddenly heard doors opening on the other line. She assumed that Chiba must have been taking a night walk when he had received her call, as it was currently evening to where she is right now. "I've heard that you guys were the only team to pass the 28th floor for this wave of Regulars... so I guess it's a no-brainer for that guy."

Nakamura swore she could almost see Chiba shrugging his shoulders just as he said those words.

"It's been days since they've joined, you said? No troubles with them so far?"

"Not at all. They've been surprisingly civil with all of us the past few days." Though there was a voice at the back of Nakamura's mind telling her that it was likely because a certain redheaded Light Bearer wasn't around to provoke the Asano. "They even sometimes help nurse some of the others who are still on bed rest."

Chiba chuckled at the other line. "Well isn't that a sight to see?"

Nakamura had discretely installed lighthouses as if they were security cameras at each room of the rather large apartment they had been sharing since their arrival on the 21st floor. It would only take few clicks on her main lighthouse to retrieve the saved recordings of Asano fussing over their injured teamates as he nurses them.

Snickering, she made a mental note to send some of them to Chiba after she's done with her current work.

"Also we definitely appreciate having a rear-type Light Bearer and a Wave Controller since, you know?" Nakamura fought the urge to roll her eyes. "The only ones we had are now floors behind us after stopping their climb to compete at the Workshop Battle?"

Chiba somewhat hissed at that. "I guess that explains why Karma seems to be in a bad mood when we called last month..."

"Yeah, we weren't in agreement that time," Nakamura sighed deeply, closing the tabs and turning off her lighthouse. She supposed it can wait tomorrow.

"I get why."

If Nakamura was being honest, it wasn't the fact that Group 4 joined the Workshop Battle that got the whole team in disagreement. It was the fact that Group 4 have already been planning to compete since they had become E-ranked and yet had never once told the rest of the team until the day they had to claim tickets to join.

Karma may be Team END's key strategist, but the redheaded Light Bearer still had the infuriating habit of strategizing and implementing plans without consulting with the rest of the team, sometimes even executing said plans on his own without anyone's help nor even knowledge.

Nakamura supposed that it was because Karma had initially been trained as a Fisherman before switching to a Light Bearer, but that can't be an excuse anymore since he had over 8 years to break out of that frontliner habit.

It's annoying, really.

Even when Group 4 had won the Workshop Battle with a powerful weapon as their winning prize, it still left a bitter taste on her mouth.

Nakamura hoped that this will be the last time Karma involves their other teammates into his lone wolf shenanigans. They can't afford to be separated much longer the higher they climb the tower.

Not when they still have yet to close the gap to catch up with Chiba and his team like they have promised.

"How are things at your end?" Nakamura asked, wanting to change the topic.

Chiba let out an exhausted sigh. "A bit too fast, I guess. Especially since Kaho's been antsy the past few months."

"Oh?" Nakamura picked up the nearly forgotten tea on the table next to her, prepared by Hara. "What gives?"

Nakamura barely had any recollection of what Tsuchiya is like in personality, as the last time they had personally met was when they were still fairly new to the tower, during the Floor of Tests, which was already about a decade ago. But from the few times that Chiba had mentioned the Light Bearer in their talks, Tsuchiya seems to be a quick thinker who strategizes and improvises well under pressure, especially during battles.

Perhaps that's why Team DREAM had been ridiculously quick with their climb, Nakamura mused.

Well, aside from the fact that they have an insanely solid team line up.

"I'm not entirely sure as we weren't around when it happened but..." There was a slight hesitation in Chiba's tone as he trailed off. "Ever since we saw her with a girl that I believe was from the Harukawa Family, based from her hair and eye colour, she's been like that for some reason."

A Harukawa huh...

Nakamura wasn't exactly the most interested in the Ten Great Families, let alone their relations with each other. But she was at least aware of the common knowledge about the tension between the Tsuchiya and the Harukawa, seemingly started by the Head of the two families themselves.

Could it be rivalry? Mortal Enemies? Nobody knows. But one thing's for sure was that a Tsuchiya and a Harukawa, whether they are direct descendants of the family Heads or not, do NOT get along.

Which is ironic considering that what the two Great families are known for made it seem like they would be a perfect team - The Tsuchiya Family known for their Defenders and the Harukawa Family for their immense talent in Spear Bearing.

But Nakamura supposed that the Tsuchiya daughter already had Chiba for that, who is a talented Spear Bearer himself.

"I mean both families don't get along anyways," Chiba remarked, echoing Nakamura's thoughts. "But it seemed like they personally knew each other beforehand from the way Kaho talked about that Harukawa girl. They probably met during the Floor of Tests... or even before they got called into the tower. Who knows."

Nakamura had never looked so amused. "Childhood rivals?" She snickered.

Chiba chuckled at the other line. "Perhaps."

"So what happens now?"

"Uh well..." Nakamura could hear some rustling from Chiba's side of the call and she swore she just heard faint screeching right after. The sudden noises concerned her a little, so she asked, "Chiba?"

"Nothing. That was Eiji, probably ate something spicy again," Chiba sounded very unamused and deadpan as he said that. Nakamura could faintly hear arguing at a distance if she listened more carefully. "Anyways, Kaho had a burn out. That's one thing."

"It took that to stop her huh," Nakamura replied with a huff. "How many floors have you guys cleared then?"

"Five in 3 months."

What the fuck.

Nakamura's jaw hung wide open when the words had registered in her mind. A normal team would take at least a year to complete 3-4 floors, nevermind five. This is ridiculous. This team is ridiculous. "Geez... and you guys still managed to keep up with her plans and all..."

"To be fair though, the previous floors have been relatively easy," Chiba waved her off nonchalantly. "I would even say that the 20th Floor was much difficult than these five."

Nakamura sighed, leaning back to her chair. Considering it took Team END a whole year to complete the 20th Floor after numerous fails, she supposed she could believe the Spear Bearer's words this time. "Say, how many of you all are from the Ten Families?"

There was a short pause at the other side. "Well there's Kaho of course, then Miki, Daisuke, Miho, Jungyoon, and then me..." he counted.

If Nakamura was smiling right now, she was sure it would have tightened uncomfortably.

It had always slipped from her mind that Chiba himself is a Ten Great Family member despite not being a direct descendant of the family Head, the family tree he's in known for their Water Users, which Chiba had utilized to form his own spears.

But nevermind that. Team DREAM had 6 members from the Great Families? No wonder they're climbing at an incredibly fast pace.

Chiba really found himself a formidable team after he had gotten separated from Team END.

"But even then, only Miki is a direct descendant. The rest of us are too unimportant to be actually feared of as a whole..." Chiba laughed sheepishly. "Well except for our family names of course."

Nakamura would beg to differ.

"Anyways, we're at the 46th floor right now," He continued the previous topic before Nakamura had made that short intermission. "But we'll be taking an indefinite break until all of us had recovered enough to continue our climb again." He informed.

Knowing where he was getting at, Nakamura sighed for the umpteenth time. Unamused, she replied, "So you want us to catch up quickly while you all are basically dormant then, is that right?"

Shit. There is no way they could clear 17 floors before the monster team springs back into action.

Nakamura could feel the cheeky grin that Chiba must be wearing right now.

"Well you have a direct descendant from the Asano family with you now, right?" His tone sounded almost challenging when he said that. "Should be easy enough."

"You can be really annoying sometimes, Ryuunosuke." Nakamura glared at the visible Pocket floating in front of her, as if she can somehow magically transfer a sort of attack towards the other line. It didn't help that there were chuckles coming out of the mechanical sphere.

"Well, what can I say? I learned from the best."

Maybe she shouldn't have teamed up with him and Maehara at the 2nd Floor.

#i do not have a plot for this au whatsoever #just felt like squeezing this out idk #It's been a while since i finished writing something #let alone in a few hours #this was more focused on that characters themselves rather than just the au #so hopefully the terms and all aren't too confusing #assassination classroom #ansatsu kyoushitsu #assclass #assassination classroom x tower of god #tower of god × assassination classroom #tower of god au #chiba ryuunosuke #ryuunosuke chiba #nakamura rio #rio nakamura #ansatsu kyoushitsu oc #assassination classroom oc #my writing #fanfiction

[strad-214]

Saturday, 06/13/2020 Teaching/Learning:

“There is no Ignorance, there is Knowledge.”

-- The Jedi Code

“A Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defense, never for attack.”

-- Master Yoda, Star Wars Episode V, Empire Strikes Back

 On this subject, in general, I can say with confidence that I am somewhat of a proficient. I am currently attending college in the efforts of becoming a music teacher. It’s been a very long and difficult journey for me, full of self doubt, wandering thoughts and disassociation, with my fiancée sometimes being my only comfort and relief for many years. But now, my goals are on the horizon, I stand firm in my beliefs, and when I look behind me at the journey it took to get here, I marvel at my progress and am proud… despite the sub-par attitudes concerning my progress by my fellow teacher candidates. I am reminded of the Legends story of Obi-Wan leaving the Jedi Order and returning to the Jedi Order. The novels of the Jedi Apprentice Series, written by Jude Watson, describe the stories of Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon’s partnership, rocky as it is, and the difficulties that Obi-Wan had with overcoming his shadows to become a Jedi Knight. Obi-Wan and I share that altered rout kind of path on our careers, our mentors taking extreme pride in our progress simply because it was our progress, and yet our peers believed we could do better, be better, and should change our routs. And yet, those who are most important to our success believe we are models of our fields… something that makes me want to cry whenever a professor expresses that view to me, just because I have suffered so much at my own hands and have come so far… But enough of my self-promotion, let’s talk about a Jedi’s Education.

First, it would be prudent to discuss some finer points of education as a whole: the highest level of learning, according to Bloom’s Taxonomy, is “Creation”. We as people learn best by sitting down and doing things, not by memorizing information out of context and repeating that information back. George Lucas—a savant of the education field himself, believe it or not— once described the best way to learn how to make a shoe. If you were a shoe maker’s apprentice, your master would give you the materials necessary to make the shoe, and send you to the corner of the shop to attempt to make one. You will fail, dozens of times, but, with every failure, you learn more and more how to not make a shoe. In doing so, you inadvertently become an expert on what it doesn’t take to make a shoe; therefore, every time you do make a shoe, the shoes you craft will be perfect. It is up to the master to take the results of your labors and criticize it so you can learn what you did wrong, what changes you need to make, show you how to make those changes, and give you more time and resources to try again. This is the perfect learning environment, because, by jumping to the creation level, you must already apply all the other levels: Remembering, Understanding, Applying, Analyzing, and Evaluating, in that order from the bottom up. You need to remember the instructions you were given and all the other roadblocks you have arrived at already, you need to understand what those instructions are supposed to mean at this juncture and why those various roadblocks occurred, you need to apply what you already know to make progress based off of those instructions and those other failures, you need to analyze your progress based off of your previous attempts to make adjustments, then evaluate your work based off of that analysis, and now you have created a shoe. This hierarchy is the same model basically used by every master-apprentice pairing throughout known history, and can be applied to a classroom as well if the teacher constructs their lessons properly… but we won’t get into that here, I could easily write 5 pages on that alone. Let’s just focus on master-apprentice situations, since that is the majority of the instances we get in Star Wars. I will be most exclusively drawing on my personal experiences as a teacher in training and The Jedi Path.

According to The Jedi Path, Youngling Initiates are organized into Clans that act as their families. These Clans all have similar personalities and ambitions. They attend classes together and learn from each other as they go. The morning classes are for studies of the Force, followed by politics and history, and finally physical training in the afternoon. On top of this, they must meditate at least five times a day on the subjects they have been studying. I would’ve swapped the morning instruction for the afternoon instruction—the Force in the afternoon and the physical exercise in the morning—due to the fact that we all tend to crash in the afternoon. But, perhaps this is to build that impossible endurance that Jedi seem to have. And studies on the Force and its application are very important for the Jedi; perhaps doing those studies in the morning is more affective since this is when we tend to be more motivated to work (once awoken properly). The many facets of the Force that they study will go into my next essay: The Force, which happens to be the first of three pillars of learning the Jedi classify their education by.

This model of learning is similarly based off of a secondary school system: multiple classes scheduled at specific times of day and independent study hours to be pursued on the students’ time. Applying this kind of system to students so young will immediately instill an early sense of responsibility and self investment in the disciplines being delivered. They will have been rushing to get where they go on time since they can remember, they have been independently pursuing their fields of study outside the classroom for long periods of time, multiple times a day since they can remember. This isn’t the worst way to instill a deep root of responsibility and desire to grow early on, so long as the classes are long, varied in instruction, and the students don’t have to change the classes too many times. If the classes are too short, constantly changing rooms and teachers—say, every 30 minutes or so like in High School— and are static in the lesson delivery methods, there will be a drastic loss of information. In our public school system in America, students need consistency in their routines to retain knowledge, which is part of the reason why we don’t consistently change classrooms until later years. At this age range, 3 years to 12 years, we stay in the same classroom for the majority of our day, save for meal times, recess, and extracurricular activities such as gym, art, and music. That’s four different class changes provided you only have one extracurricular class a day. According to the Jedi Order model, there are only three classes and five independent study sessions. Those three classes are all required and the students are expected to meditate on their own time at least 5 times a day. Let’s assume that the three classes do not add up to the amount of time as a 6-7 hour school day, that would be ludicrous, even by Jedi standards. Let’s say more or less, that the classes are about an hour and a half long each, with time in between for meditation, studying, and food. There would be plenty of time throughout the day to get done all that an Initiate would need to get done: Meditation, study, and calisthenics including lightsaber practice. This also provides a variety in activities that will keep the Initiates engaged and focused. Speaking of the latter, a Jedi Initiate only practices the First Form of lightsaber combat, the Shi-Cho or the way of the Sarlacc. This is the most basic of swordplay that the Jedi practice, a foundation upon which all the other forms are taught. As a musician in training, nobody understands having foundations better than I. If you can’t play a simple major scale on your instrument, you can’t hope to perform a whole concerto—a major solo work written specifically for a proficient to show off their expertise. Similarly, if you can’t parry a simple horizontal slice, you can’t possibly practice Form II, Makashi or Form III, Soresu, the first of which focuses exclusively on saber to saber combat and the second of which is a form meant for defense against multiple enemies or to fend off an aggressive attacker until an opening is discovered. Being an Initiate is all about the basics, so let’s now talk about the advanced methods: being a Padawan.

After an Initiate passes their Initiate Trials, showing that they have their basic understanding of Jedi discipline, a Knight will select an Initiate to take as a Padawan Learner. Their apprenticeship will be more like the one of the shoe makers I described earlier. The Knight will provide instruction and exercises for their Padawan to practice on their own time. The Padawan will practice, demonstrate what they have learned, and the Master will provide feedback for the Padawan to analyze and evaluate their own progress with. They will also practice techniques in applying the Force and saber cadences together, so the Padawan can get used to training at an advanced level and learn about how a Knight trains. The Padawan will also go on missions with their Master and watch how they take their role as a Peacekeeper in the Galaxy. Learning by example is one of the best ways a student can perceive what their end goals should be for their own progress. Eventually, once a Padawan has gained enough mastery of their skills, their Master will take them to Ilum to create their own lightsaber (as mentioned in my previous essay, and according to original canon). At this point, the Padawan will have learned all the skills they need to learn and must now focus on refinement. The Padawan  will be taking more lead in missions, acting as an equal to their Master as opposed to just their student, and showing true Mastery of all the abilities a Jedi should have: diplomacy, swordplay, applying the Force to themselves and to the world around them, true compassion, and inner peace. It is at this point that the Padawan is put through the ultimate gauntlet: The Trials, of which there are five, each just as important as the last. First, The Trial of Skill: this is not necessarily a test of mastery, for Jedi never really considers themselves true masters of anything, but it is a test of Control; control over their abilities to use their lightsaber, to apply the Force, and to withstand calisthenics. Next, The Trial of Courage: there are many times a Jedi will face odds that even a full fledged army would be doomed to fail at. It is not that a Jedi must overcome these impossible odds, but that a Jedi must not waver before them, and that their fortitude stand firm in the face of them. The Trial of Insight: a Jedi must be able to see beyond the many illusions the Force can provide, and even the illusions of diplomacy and deception. The Trial of the Flesh: Jedi carry the whole Galaxy on their shoulders, a great burden to be sure. They must be able to withstand anything and keep moving, be it physical or emotional. And finally, The Trial of the Spirit, Facing the Mirror: The Force is always with a Jedi… the whole Force, the Light and the Dark. There will be many times a Jedi must face their faults, their inner most desires, even be human enough to hate and become frustrated. But when brokering a peace treaty that could lead to war if handled poorly, prejudice must be set aside, fear must be extinguished, doubt must never come to mind; these are the paths to the Dark Side. The Dark Side is always with them, like a shadow they cast as they stand basking in the light. You see, despite all their training, Jedi are just as imperfect as the rest of us, and because of all that training, that fact is difficult to see, yet it is nonetheless true. A Jedi must accept themselves for who they are, all the good and the bad, and admit that they will never grasp true understanding of the Galaxy until they are one with the Force. Once they do, they have all that they need to be a Jedi Knight.

You see, a Jedi Knight—or even a Jedi Master—need not be the most skilled with a blade, the best diplomat ever known, or be strong enough in the Force to move an entire planet. They simply need to have total control, be courageous, mindful, enduring, and they need to know themselves, just like Obi-Wan, a man who left the Jedi Order, defied the powers at be at many junctures, and often failed in the face of his tasks and yet, is considered to be a model Jedi… This is just like me. I was never the best trumpet player… or the most tasteful person ever. I’ve been a snot, a downright brat, most of my childhood, using that as my shield against my bullies and often turning that shield into a weapon on the people who actually cared for me. I often didn’t know the difference… no, I wouldn’t see the difference. The problem was, the other trumpet players in my high school days were so bad at playing that I was the best… but as soon as I went up against somebody who had real drive and conviction, I was abysmal. So, I never knew where to turn or what to do. Take all that into account and add that I lost my music program and my teacher like many other schools did at that time… I was full of hate and I held a grudge against many people for a very long time. I fought it, with all that anger, and the result was I lost all my face at that school and the new Band Director—who I can say with confidence and clarity, really was a pretty bad teacher—took away all my standing in the music program. When I graduated and left my broken program behind, I wandered around a county college for four years, trying to find somebody who understood, trying to make some real progress on myself and on my skills as a musician. I was really, truly lost. I didn’t want to be so angry, I wanted to be better, I wanted to grow but I just didn’t know how. By then, another far better Band Director took over my school’s Band Program and I finally went to him for help… boy did he kick my ass. I thank him every day for it. He showed me just how pointless being so upset was, that if I really cared so much about the music programs of the future, I needed to stop dwelling on all that I grieve for and simply do something about it… and I really did start to become a good trumpet player. I finally got to the four year school I wanted to go to, I saw that meeting your idols isn’t always a good ideas, I stood firm against the tides that would’ve ripped a younger me apart, and, most importantly I joined a music fraternity full of wholesome gentlemen— who are not the best musicians I have ever met, but are very upstanding, compassionate men— that taught me good principals of neighborhood, humility, and charity… all my anger and rage melted away… I saw myself for who I really was, I saw my drive and my desires, I saw all that had happened to get this far, and for the first time in my life, I was alright with all that… I faced the Mirror… I’ve been going to college for a total of eight years, next year will be my ninth and final year. After I graduate, I will be a certified K-12 Music Teacher, like I’ve always wanted to be. Just as despite all his failures and setbacks, Obi-Wan was able to ascend to a height of Jedi standards the likes of which many Masters have never achieved, just because of his perseverance alone and his ability to admit his faults, embrace them, and keep going.

Scene: Star Wars, Clone Wars, Season 5, Episode 15: “Shades of Reason”, Maul murders Duchess Satine

Obi-Wan: “You can kill me, but you can never destroy me. It takes strength to resist the Dark Side, only the weak embrace it!”

Maul: “It is more powerful than you know—“

Obi-Wan: “—and those who oppose it are more powerful than you’ll ever be!”

 I hope you gained something from this. Enjoy the rest of Jedi June.

May the Force be with you.

@jedijune

#jedi june #star wars #the jedi path #learning #teaching #musician #phi mu alpha #sinfonia #nerd #padawan

[douchebagbrainwaves]

6 YEARS TO GO PUBLIC, YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO BUILD EVERYTHING THEY NEED

To me the exercises at the end of the scale there are so many universities competing to attract students that the mere establishment of a discipline requires little more than the whole company was before. So what's the real reason there aren't more Googles? When we got real funding near the end of the spectrum from a coding job at a big company, so they only do a handful of happy cities, abandoning the rest. As big companies' oligopolies became less secure, they were less able to pass costs on to customers and thus less willing to overpay for labor. They wanted yellow. Those were also the centuries during which schools were first established. The students don't. Though actually there is something druglike about them, in the first semester of freshman year, in a class taught by Sydney Shoemaker. We made software for building online stores. A rounds.

In the old days the only limit on the inefficiency of companies, short of actual bankruptcy, was the inefficiency of companies, short of actual bankruptcy, was the inefficiency of their competitors. Because the early problems are so much about abstractions now that we were established as a media company, or portal, or whatever we were, search could safely be allowed to wither and drop off, like an umbilical cord. Imagine if people in 1700 saw their lives the way we'd see them. I think the reason I made such a mystery of business was that I wrote it. The median startup coming out of later stage investors? The good news is, there's also a good chance the person at the next table would know some of the most valuable things you could do. VCs have been getting a lot faster. If the trade didn't increase the value of your initial, mistaken idea. So you end up with a very fine implementation of your initial idea is worth.

For decades there were just those two types of startup ideas. In theory a liberal education is not supposed to supply job training.1 At the mention of ugly source code, people will of course think of Perl. Well, they're not transferrable. Whether or not this is a bit of a fib. Essays should do the opposite.2 Each company in the supply chain focuses on what they know best. We'll increasingly be defined by what we say no to. Studio art and creative writing courses are wildcards. So if you want to eliminate that you're up against a blank wall.

Probably because the product was a dog, or never seemed likely to be worth something. Why risk it? An investor wants to give you money for a certain percentage of your startup. They're usually individuals, like angels. It's not just that they promise no immediate reward and might cause you to waste a lot of papers! But though I can't predict specific winners, I can offer a recipe for recognizing them. As a rule, the only thing that can kill a good startup is the startup itself. Though actually there is something druglike about them, in the sense of getting a quick yes or no. The low cost of starting a startup means the particles they're attracting are getting lighter. You have half as big a share of something worth more than the desire to do it.

In his famous essay You and Your Research which I recommend to anyone ambitious, no matter what. Julian thought we ought to be writing about literature, turns out to be your best work will it be your magnum opus on Sumerian temple architecture, or the role of color in fashion, or what constitutes a good dessert, but about symbolism in Dickens. I chose not to publish, often because I disagree with it. White than from an academic philosopher. The next 40 years will bring us some wonderful things. Formal logic has some subject matter. I'm told it derives ultimately from Marvin Minsky, in the first year. As we retraced his walk to school on Google Street View, he said, by then I was interested in maths.

I know the house would probably have something to read.3 Instead of making one $2 million investment, make five $400k investments. A lot of my friends are CS professors now, so I have the inside story about admissions. But only about 10% of the time. When I was 13 I realized, more from internal evidence than any outside source, that the ideas we were being fed on TV were crap, and I predict that will be true of startups in general. But if it were put to use. The amount of cutting is about average. Knowing that risk is on average proportionate to reward, investors like risky strategies, while founders, who don't have a sales guy running the company? It's obvious why you want exposure to new technology in an attempt to preserve some existing source of revenue, you're probably not doing anything new, and if you want to win through better technology, aim at smaller customers. The super-angels by driving up valuations. The reason Aristotle didn't get anywhere in the Metaphysics was partly that he set off with contradictory aims: to explore the most abstract ideas, guided by the assumption that they were useless.

They didn't talk Wall Street's language when they did, the founders should be. Parts of this essay began as replies to students who wrote to me with questions. An investor wants to give you money for a certain percentage of your startup. Both changes drove salaries toward market price. Along with giant national corporations, we got giant national labor unions. Version 1 of the national economy consisted of a few big successes, and that this company is going to solve this problem, but it happens surprisingly rarely. In math and the sciences, you can ask it of even the most unobservant people, and when they're feeling ambitious, plain theory.

Notes

And that is exactly the opposite: when we say it's ipso facto right to do this are companies smart enough to absorb that. Build them a check. They're so selective that they consisted of 50 pairs that each summed to 101 100 1,2003.

But those too are acceptable or at such a baleful stare as they do on the East Coast VCs.

But let someone else start those startups. E-Mail. As well as good ones, and more pervasive though. I count you in a couple years.

#automatically generated text #Markov chains #Paul Graham #Python #Patrick Mooney #color #founders #papers #amount #spectrum #matter #Notes #startup #Though

[topbrcko-blog]

How Do You Measure the True Value of Higher Education?

I have written numerous articles about best practices for educators to use when teaching adult students, and I have enjoyed conversations that have begun as a result of comments posted. Several of the comments that have been written in response to my articles have discussed aspects of higher education that seem to be broken or in need of repair. I understand those perspectives and I have respect for anyone who wants to discuss important issues in this field. For example, I have read many articles recently about adjuncts, especially online adjuncts, related to issues concerning pay, course size, and job security. I know that the for-profit online school industry has come under great scrutiny. In contrast, there is a non-profit online school that is gaining popularity by offering competency-based degree programs resembling correspondence-based courses.

If you aren't familiar with the original concept of a correspondence course, it was popular in the 1970s and usually consisted of a participant being mailed study materials and a test or assessment that had to be completed and mailed back in. There may have been lectures to watch on public television at a particular time of day as part of the program. Once the requirements were met, a certificate of completion was mailed. I have spoken with several people who have completed degrees with the non-profit online school mentioned above and the reason why I compare it to a correspondence course is that it is possible to complete classes without ever having to interact with an instructor. The only requirement for course completion is to pass a final assessment, with a pass or fail option in place of a grade, and the passing grade is often set with a percentage as low as 55%, which is a failing grade for most traditional colleges.

With all of the issues surrounding the field of higher education, the question then becomes: Is it possible to still earn a degree, one that holds value for students? More importantly, is it possible to measure the true value of a degree in higher education? I believe the answer begins with a matter of purpose and by that, I mean schools should be working to ensure that educational programs and courses are designed with a specific purpose and completed for a specific purpose by the students. Educators should also see this as a matter of importance as they develop their instructional strategies and work with students in the classroom. It may sound too idealistic and improbable to implement; however, there is something that every educator can do to ensure that their students are working towards this goal of purposeful-driven education. What I will focus on is the educator's perspective and strategies that can increase value for students.

Experience in Higher Education

While working for one of the larger for-profit online schools, students stated to me hundreds of times in their introductions that once they completed their associate's degree they would be able to purchase a new house, new car, and earn a six-figure income. I do not know if that was their belief when they began their degree program, and I do not want to blame anyone if that wasn't their initial belief; however, students need to have realistic expectations. For these students, a degree was almost like a lottery ticket to a better life. While they were not really certain how that transformation was supposed to occur, they were convinced that it would happen upon graduation.

I can also share an example of my own continuing education. I enrolled in a traditional MBA program as I was planning to relocate and I knew that I was going to start my own small business as a consultant and writer. I also knew that historically a MBA graduate was highly-sought after; however, that has changed over time. Obtaining a MBA no longer guaranteed a certain job or career. What I acquired after graduation was a knowledge base that would inform my small business practice, help develop my business acumen, and continue to inform my teaching practice.

The next degree I sought was also done for a specific purpose and it was focused on adult education, as I was working in the field of higher education and had goals established. I knew going into my doctorate degree program exactly what I wanted accomplish once I had graduated, and how the acquired knowledge would enhance my teaching practice and serve as professional development for my career. In other words, I did not expect that the degree itself was going to do something for me, as people often do when they invest their time and finances in a degree, I knew what I was going to do with that degree - and that is how I was going to gain value from it.

The question that I keep in mind now is this: How do I help students also gain this type of value from their degree, especially if they do not start out with a purpose in mind?

What Does It Mean to Create Value?

I have worked for many online schools that have told their students to be sure to relate the concepts they are studying to the real world, without providing any further explanation or set of instructions. The phrase "real world" is being used so much now by schools that administrators believe everyone knows what it means, and I am not convinced that students actually understand it from the same perspective. The real world for students may involve trying to make ends meet, working to support a family, and balancing many responsibilities - while in contrast, schools want students to see bigger issues. Many of these same schools also give their instructors similar guidelines and tell them to relate the course concepts to the real world as they write course announcements, provide feedback, and engage students in class discussions.

As a faculty development specialist and educator in higher education myself, I well understand the wide range of possibilities that an application of course concepts to the real world can involve. In other words, how I view the real world and the issues surrounding it may be vastly different than someone else who holds a different position, skillset, academic background, and set of experiences than I do. This means that simply telling instructors to apply topics to the real world does not necessarily mean value is being created for their students. How someone defines the real world now is a matter of importance and that can vary from one individual to another, and students may not always relate to the reality of their instructors - and that means another solution must be found if relevance is the key to creating value. Below are some strategies that I have implemented in my online classes to help create value for students.

Purpose, Vision Statement: I believe that a purpose statement exercise is one of the most helpful projects that an educator can implement, if a connection can be made to the course and there is flexibility allowed in the course curriculum. When I have utilized this as an activity, I have asked students to define, redefine, expand, elaborate upon, and share the purpose for their degree program. I then have an opportunity to help work on mentoring students and adjusting, if even slightly, their expectations. When I provide instructions for this activity, I will ask them to share some research related to the career outlook for any of the jobs they may be interested in.

A vision statement activity can be implemented in conjunction with a purpose statement exercise, or used as a standalone activity, as a means of encouraging students to look ahead and define what they are working towards in realistic and specific terms. This activity can be useful for students who are visual or prefer to write out their goals. If a student is visually oriented, they can express their vision as a series of steps and find images to represent each goal. For written goals, students can provide details that go beyond stating something general, such as "I will earn a six-figure income" - and describe specific steps to be taken after graduation.

Collaboration: If you want students to begin to understand what the real world is like, try to find a way to have them collaborate together in small groups. What this does is to have them experience difference perspectives, opinions, and experiences. While some students may not be open to listening to or accepting what others have to say, and may even argue against them, eventually they will realize that there are other versions of reality that exist. While this may prompt conflict, and the group may never fully function together in the manner that you would like for them to in the short term, it is possible that this can serve as a trigger and prompt higher order thinking.

Projects: Project-based learning or PBL is popular with many educators and I can certainly understand why as it effectively demonstrates how students have taken and applied what they are learning throughout the class term. In addition, they are creating a portfolio, often stored through electronic means, that can be shown to potential employers as evidence of work product produced as part of the degree program. In other words, PBL prompts more that rote memorization of course concepts.

Case Studies: This is one of the most popular methods for implementing a real-world approach to learning. There are many case studies available for instructors and many more than can be found through online resources. These studies are usually related to businesses and can be used to prompt discussions and analyzation, leading to the use of critical thinking skills. This provides value as students are learning to think beyond the parameters of a textbook and apply what is being learned to what they may encounter in their careers.

Current Topics: Any time an instructor brings current topics into the classroom they are utilizing the real world. This provides context but not necessarily value. The value comes from how it is used and what students are doing with the information. More importantly, as with any activity there must be consideration given as to how it relates to the course, the learning objectives, and ultimately the degree program. For example, a current topic that is used as a springboard for application and analyzation of a course topic provides context and value for students.

As an educator, I am not going be able to change higher education by myself - whether it is the for-profit online school industry or the non-profit online school industry. As an adjunct online instructor, I am not going to be able to change existing courses and curriculum that I have been assigned to teach. Does this mean I should look at higher education as a system that is broken and beyond repair if I see nothing but problems? Should I feel hopeless if students are earning degrees that do not seem to hold the value they hoped to receive or may have been told they would receive? Absolutely not.

I can take every opportunity I have available to help teach my students how to define and redefine the purpose they have for their degree program - even as I am working to help them learn to relate and apply what they are learning to current topics and business issues. I measure value in higher education by the strategies I implement to help students find purpose and meaning as they are involved in the learning process. True value in higher education begins when I help engage students in the course and the learning process, and I implement purposeful-driven educational strategies.

[markusstraya]

Slow You Down

MASTERLIST | Support Me!

Pairing(s): 11th!Doctor x Insecure!Reader, Amy Pond x Rory Williams, Amy Pond x 11th!Doctor (Platonic)

Warning(s): Lying, Injury, Not sure what else

Word Count: 1296

Summary: One of your old injuries returns, and you’ll do everything to keep the Doctor from finding out. It’s not until you meet a certain Amy Pond, that you admit, out loud, how you feel.

Request(s): Anon -> Hi could you maybe do a 11dr x shy reader maybe the reader is really shy and insecure bc they have a limp/walking disability and thinks they’re ugly and unlovable and a burden and somehow the dr finds out and gets all protective and proves them wrong and it’s just really fluffy I could really use something like that thanks anyway Xx

Authors Note: So this took a while to write. I’m sorry. I really am. I was telling myself to get it done ages ago, but I just lost interest, and writers' block hit not long after. It wasn't until yesterday when I went to a family friends’ book signing, and I listened to her inspiring speech, that I realized I could do this. So here it is. I’ll be attempting to write out as many requested fics as possible today, with my goal to have started all of them.

Please remember that this is my first time writing for Doctor Who, so bear with me. I’ll also like to accept any constructive criticism! Let me know if you want to be tagged in anything!

It had been another successful adventure to another random planet with the Doctor. Thankfully, you didn’t have to run as much this time, as hiding your limp had become more and more difficult due to the rigorous exercise you both participated in on the daily. As you walked through the TARDIS doors the Doctor races in front of you, and you smile, watching him dash around the control panels. He flicked switches and pressed buttons in a silent race against himself. Silently, you chuckled. You always loved to watch how he would hurriedly run around like a mad man, even though he was, as he tried to fly the TARDIS by himself. Suddenly, the TARDIS rocked, which knocked you off your feet. Your arm darted out to grasp onto something, anything. You’d managed to grab onto the cold railing, which you’d meant to do before the Doctor had sent the TARDIS into motion. Before you knew it, the ship stabalised, all movement ceasing. You let out a shaky breath, hoping that the sudden movement didn’t cause your injury to flare up.

“(Y/N)?” You could see the Doctor looking worried as he searched for you. You raised your hand, as you began to sit yourself up. “Oh, there you are! Are you alright?” You nod while he grasps your small hand in his large one, as he helped you back to your feet.

“Thanks.” You thought your leg was fine, but as you take a step forward, you can only to pull it off the ground as you hissed in pain. Great. It just had to get worse. You could hear the Doctor walk towards you again, a concerned look on his face. His green eyes scanned you as his hands grasped your upper arms. “What’s wrong? (Y/N), are you sure you’re okay?” You sighed as you shake your head. Your brain searches for the easiest way to tell him what happened all those years ago, but you blame it on your fall.  “I must have hurt it when I fell. It was-it was fine before.” Not a complete lie, but not the whole truth either. He raised a brow at my theory but accepted it anyway. I knew it was only a matter of time before he figured it out.

“Well, in the meantime, I propose that we go see some old friends of mine.” Now it was your turn to question his antics. As he noticed your look of confusion, he exclaimed, “We’re going to visit the Pond’s!”

 --

 Your arm wrapped around his shoulders, as he helped you out of the TARDIS leading you to the house ahead. You’ve never admitted it to yourself before, but you loved being this close to him. You swore you could feel a cluster of butterflies as they flapped their wings in your chest. You were just being ridiculous. A 900 plus-year-old alien falling for you? Nonsense! You couldn’t even attract any human men, let alone a Time-Lord. Still, one could hope.

The door ahead had swung open, the force had it swung into the wall, as two figures ran out. A man and a woman. The Pond’s, you supposed. “Doctor! Doctor, you’re back!” The woman shouted in her unmistakable Scottish accent as she shoved me out of the way to give him the biggest hug you’ve ever seen. The man, who had initially run out with her, had grabbed you in time, holding you steady as you recovered, smiling apologetically. “Ah, yes,” The Doctor’s voice had everyone’s attention focused on him, “Amy, Rory, this is (Y/N). (Y/N), this is Amy and Rory…the Pond’s!” You smiled as best as you could through the pain that began to shoot up your leg, as you waved slightly.

The pair led you both back to the house as the Doctor had moved back his previous position as he helped you to walk. “So, what’s the story with you two showing up out of nowhere? I mean, you,” She pointed to the Doctor, “Haven’t visited in three years.” You could see how uncomfortable he looked. He always hated to have to come back into the lives of those he traveled with, you knew that. Nervously, he focused on straightening his bow tie, obviously lost in thought about how to answer, when you spoke instead.

“I’d injured myself on the TARDIS after it had one of its weird episodes, so the Doctor thought that it would be a clever idea to have a short break and come visit you two.” You glanced over at him and gave him a wink. I’ve got your back. Rory had decided to busy himself with other, more important things, as he excused himself from the room, whilst his wife just stood and looked between us. “How bad is the injury?”

“Not bad, I just hurt my-“

“She hurt her leg pretty bad. She hasn’t been able to put any pressure on it. I’ve had to help her walk around.” Just spill the beans, why don’t ya? Her head turned to face me, her eyes scanned my legs as though she could see through my initial lie of it is because of the TARDIS. She gestured for us to head into, what I assumed, was a spare bedroom, where the Doctor helped me sit on the edge of the bed. It was kind of funny to watch him being unsure of what to do. I could tell he wanted to pace, to try and think of a way to help. But I also knew that he wouldn’t be able to.

“Okay, Doctor, I think it’s best if you leave while I see how bad it is. Go to the park or something, we have this covered.” He didn’t look convinced. Looking behind Amy, his eyes caught yours in a silent question. Are you sure you’re going to be alright? You nodded as you put your thumbs up, adding a smile for reassurance. He turned to walk out the door, before he again made sure that you were fine, only leaving with a promise to be back shortly. You shook your head at his antics.

“So, you going to tell me what the issue with this leg is?” Sighing, you patted the spot next to you, beginning your tale as Amy sat down and comforted you.

 --

 It had taken you a total of thirty minutes to re-tell the story and answer Amy’s questions, although you had to admit, it was nice to have it off your chest. She’d left shortly after having comforted you, saying something about cooking dinner for the four of you. You lay on the bed, eyes closed, as you think back to what she’d said about telling the Doctor when the door creaks open. “You could have told me, you know?” You sit up in panic, eyes locked onto the Doctor’s as he steps forward.

“And you could have minded your own business.”

The room went silent, as you both considered the others’ words. He fiddled with his tie,  before he sat on the edge of the quilt-covered mattress, lost for words. You sighed as you take a deep breath, and start again.

“I’m sorry for not telling you, I just…” he looks up at you, hands coming to rest at his sides, “I just don’t want to feel like a burden.”

Eyes widening in shock, he leans forward and grasps your hands. “You, my dear (Y/N), will never be a burden. You understand?” Shaking your head, he gathers you in his arms, hugging you tightly. “You’re the only one who understands what being different is like, you know? We’re all different. Some of us more than others, and that is a good thing. You are a good thing.”

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[scotthastiepoet]

Scott Hastie - SYNDICATED INTERVIEW

THE VERY BUSINESS OF POETRY ITSELF

One poet’s view from the UK 

See - 

http://www.scotthastie.com/?p=5426

Hi Scott, do please tell us how you go about writing, how you organise your day?

"I am fortunate to have a smallish study all to myself, up in the loft, which looks out over open fields and a tree-lined skyline. Here I have quiet, cocooned space overlooking the English countryside (almost in the clouds…) and absolutely everything I need. Far, far away from anything else – phones, computers, tablets and door bells, especially…

For me, as a full time writer, a fairly rigorous, almost monastic daily routine is very important and underpins all my efforts. Not just in creating an exterior environment that is conducive to a concentrated and undisturbed focus on my craft – but one that also allows important preparatory time of an almost religious nature - given the spiritual themes that run through my work.

On a normal day, this would involve around two hours of advance preparation: morning exercise (normally running in the countryside and/or rowing) followed by breathing exercises, body stretches and meditation, sometimes some music also – before even beginning to think about any writing…

Having also eaten simply, I then would normally write in silence for between two to four hours – losing any sense of time, till my body tells me it is time to refuel. Immediately after lunch, I would then have a shorter 1-2 hour session (often the most exciting time of the day when earlier writing can begin to coalesce) Evenings are then usually important down-time from what is a quite an intense and tiring process. However I would still normally have a couple of short sessions early, right after my evening meal and also last thing before bed – which are more about reviewing existing work and quick, little polishing sessions – looking afresh and anew at whatever has emerged that day.

For me, it’s very important that every day (whether a writing day or not) begins and ends with me quietly reading through my last half a dozen pieces – in order hopefully to stay ‘in the flow’ and ‘in the voice’, clinging on tightly to that ‘silken thread’ that, once it slips from your grasp, can often be so hard to regain! Unless I’m away travelling or have specific social commitments, then EVERY day is a writing day.

I also have three identical and rather wonderful little digital voice recorders that literally go everywhere with me (one stays by the bed) so that, whatever I’m up to, I have some chance of capturing all those amazing little thoughts and insights that come to you, just out the blue - And as if by magic! These I call my ‘fragments’ and they usually come when you are in the throws of just doing something else, entirely - or just surfacing from sleep, for example. Rather than just sitting down somewhat deliberately: ‘to write some poetry! ’Previously so, so many of these fragments would have just got lost in the ether forever, before I started to adopt this method and built it into my daily resources and routine.

How on earth does a poem begin to emerge on a blank screen or piece of paper?

Yes well then, beyond the general details of my day to day creative practice, I am often asked to describe exactly how I go about creating an individual poem. Firstly I have to say, in my view, you should never ever sit down to compose on a blank piece of paper - that, I think, is a big mistake many make. Furthermore, which really surprises many of my readers, neither do I ever start with a preconceived theme to write about.

Instead, I simply begin with some of these fragments, as described above, stored on a page; importantly with the most recent at the top... (as I calculate these should be the best reflection of your most current sub-conscious interests) and then see what begins to happen. Which stir you? Which begin to link together? (as per William Burroughs celebrated ‘cut out’ technique) and which prompt you to write on, some more?

And then usually, for me at least (given the immediately preceding minutes I have already invested in meditating and  ‘getting in the voice’) something soon starts to take shape and I simply go with the flow and follow its lead... And of course, once the guts of a theme is out and has been safely captured on the page – then it is always possible (and often wise!) to have a break - knowing its detail and narrative is safe and can always be polished later. So this is truly how the nuts and bolts of the creative process works for me, anyway.

What drives and inspires you to write?

All my life (and for reasons I can’t quite be sure of) I have always been a seeker in the spiritual sense and always very ambitious to live life to the full. Whenever I am blessed with special moments or insights in my life, then my first instinct is to share the light and energy that comes from this experience with others. I am particularly keen to reach younger readers and students, still at a formative time in their lives and am always especially gratified when this group of readers, in particular, is touched by my work.

I suppose, at the core of my creative effort, is an attempt to try and present and illuminate a runway ahead, if you like... Fed directly by my own being and experience – in the hope that it resonates. My personal mode of doing this is, of course, as an artist and as a poet in particular.

Who are your greatest influences?

Beyond my own personal experience of living my life as fully as possible, I have always also been uplifted and inspired by reading other writers. After all, what greater gift and truer pleasure can there be that the opportunity to read and absorb, to have an internal dialogue yourself with some of the greatest minds and souls that have ever lived? Especially in antiquity, just think how exciting it is to be able to get to know the ancient, elemental voices in Beowulf, the colours of Ovid, the technical wizardry of Flaubert, the vision of Blake, the wisdom and majesty of Gibran or Rilke, for example.

My passion for poetry was ignited, as an impressionable adolescent, by schoolboy studies of the great English Romantic poets in particular – Wordsworth, Keats and, for me, Coleridge in particular. The work of William Blake and some of the truly great French writers like Rimbaud, Verlaine  and Baudelaire were also a great influence. Shakespeare was of course the most glowing and effortless example of someone who had truly found their own voice and, in all likelihood, could write as fast as he could speak... As a student, I was both inspired and awestruck by that – to the extent it seemed like my lifetime’s challenge was going to be the long journey to begin to find my very own true voice.

How difficult was it to get started?

I soon began writing my own poetry in earnest at college, where I was studying to be a librarian and where I was also then editor of the student magazine for Brighton Polytechnic and Sussex University. Quite quickly I became one of many quite active, but relatively obscure either young small press or self-published poets. However, my work always seemed to sell well and was, at the time, unusual for always being published profitably. Thereby becoming a useful second income supporting the family life of a chartered librarian – in the auspicious tradition of a Larkin! Though in my case, the career was in public, rather than academic libraries.

What do you think were the key developments in your literary career?

Significant published collections of my poetry didn’t really appear till I had a family of my own and was already in my thirties. This was largely on the back of commercial success in other genres – when I was fortunate to author a series of quite lavish and lucrative illustrated local history books. Around this time, I also wrote Reunion, a fast-paced romantic thriller, which remains my only novel to date.

Nowadays I write full time, focusing as squarely as possible on poetry once more. A newer transitional collection of my work Meditationswas first published in 2013, focusing more on the philosophic and spiritual themes, with another similar but more substantial and comprehensive collection: Angel Voices soon following in the Autumn of 2014. Along with these and my novel, two other earlier collections of my poetry remain in print today: Selected Poetry, a hardback edition and New Poetry, a later title published in paperback only. On account of growing interest, both theses titles now only very recently re-issued as e books in early 2021.

As you will by now probably know, further titles and new collections soon followed - threads in 2016 and then Pranic Poetry in 2020, the theme of which was fuelled by what I learnt and managed to absorb from a couple of years highly insightful study of Pranic Healing, under the auspices of the Institute of Pranic Healing here in the UK. By this time, there was much broader interest and appreciation of my work around the world, energised by an exponential growth of visits to my showcase website scotthastie.com - which now generates millions of hits every year from all around the world. Interest in my work continues to grow exponentially, I think significantly encouraged but the pandemic induced lockdown around the world, which encouraged so many more folk to do two vital things - Read more... and also Re-evaluate their potential and what their life was really about... which of course lies at the very heart of what my poetry speaks to.  This was the reason which prompted us to bring forward by a year my two 30th career anniversary retrospective 'Best Of'' collections - Timeless: the best of Scott Hastie's poetry 1990-2020 and it's companion volume Splinters of Light: quotations from the poetry of Scott Hastie in 2020.

Sounds like the internet has played a big part in your success?

Yes your right. Initially social media was a pretty new departure for me and something I was, to be honest, something I was initially rather reluctant about – but still very much initially encouraged to get involved with by the people at Raygun who designed and launched www.scotthastie.com here in the UK in 2012. In addition, I had also always been so conscious of all the other potential pitfalls there are out there for anyone seeking to write anything significant – be it the lure of fame or fortune, or the seduction of style over substance, for example. And, as always stressed by David Lidgate, my spiritual mentor here in the UK, particularly the importance of not wasting valuable energies on promotion and ‘staying in the bubble’ - if truly serious about maximising the potential you have as a writer.

Having said this, I am glad I did listen to Raygun and we have since developed approaches that make this work for me, without literally taking more than a hour or so of my time every day… Even from my limited experience to date.  Like it or not, there can be no doubt that options like Twitter Facebook & Instagram (for general public) and LinkedIn (for peer group connections) are immensely powerful engines of efficient sharing and global communication, helping to steer people from all round the world to my web site. The web site itself scotthastie.com which has a built in blog - for both general comment and also on individual poems - has also exceeded all expectations since it was launched.  And all this from a standing start and with no marketing spend to speak of!

There is no doubt that the use of social media and also involvement with writing groups has played its part here. Although my books have long since found their way to most countries around the world, for me, as a writer, the key transformative effect here has been, for the first time, getting my work out much more effectively to a worldwide audience. And, of course, the surprises that come from this. For example, the scale of enthusiastic positive interest, now evident from the US in particular and also from India and some Arab states initially caught us off guard, to be honest. But is obviously very welcome, nevertheless.

So in summary, I am now a definite convert! Just twenty years ago, it simply would have not been possible at all for me to even dream of reaching the audience I do now, without huge investment from a major corporate publishing house. So it does literally transform everything. What I now say to those that ask is that: in this new world, I have two principal endeavours: Firstly - to write as well as I can, then Secondly - to be as serious and cooperative as I can be about getting my work to be read by as many people as possible. Hence, for example, my investment of time in contributing to blogs, as well as online art & literary print journals, both as a way of conveying an understanding of what I am aiming to do AND equally importantly sharing with and encouraging others – which I also find to be very satisfying and rewarding.

Though, much as the Internet does such a brilliant job for us, as writers and creative artists generally (in terms of being able to reach out and find a worldwide audience so cost effectively and without being totally reliant on the big and often greedy corporates) we all still know that the delicious feeling of having that intimate 'one to one' dialogue with the mind of another, by holding a beautifully finished printed book in your hand, just cannot be bettered or ever replaced. As validated by the simple fact that today there are more books being written and commercially published than ever before. End of any possible argument about all that there, methinks!

What excites you most about what you have achieved so far and what are you still looking to achieve with your writing?

For me, the most exciting development in my writing (in addition to the more cogent and mature voice I seem to have been blessed with, past two years or so...) is the way my poetry now seems to be truly reaching out and touching people across all social, cultural, political and faith boundaries. Much more than all the money in the world! I honestly just couldn’t want for more than that.

In that sense I’m now Living the Dream… And it therefore has become very important to me that I pay back all the blessings I’ve been given, by writing as well as I possibly can  – And that, in truth, is what the rest of my creative life is about, really.

What do you consider to be the central themes and characteristics of your poetry?

On the technical front, I have always been ardent in my belief that, as far as possible, a poem should speak entirely for itself. Perhaps more so than any other art form, surely this has to be truest for poetry? Whose principal aim is to distil an experience or insight down to the absolute essence. To my mind the voice of the piece should therefore always be much stronger and clearer than any artist’s commentary or critic’s voice could ever provide.

I regard the over-arching theme of my work to be a personal investigation into the positive potential of the human spirit. This I think is clearly evident, running through most of my poems. Not that I believe my work can ever be said to be some sweet pastoral panacea, because it never shies away from pain or suffering – and is prepared to also explore the darkness, as well as the light and, crucially, the fundamental significance of their inter reaction. This being, to me, the absolute axis (the truly dynamic and crucial interdependence of the light and dark, of joy and sorrow, of love and loss, in the grand Romantic tradition) and that key notion of duality which I hope still lies solidly at the heart of my work and my approach.

I remain determined always to be challenging enough to try and reach deep into the core of the meaning of the human experience - although I do readily accept that, as my work has developed and I have grown older, my voice has also become more reflective and spiritual in its emphasis.

I have always aimed, at any time in my career, to be as simply expressed and as readily accessible as possible – For me, this is a vital component of all my work to date. And it is here that you can also hopefully see how simple often short line length structures also play their part – though still carefully shaped for emphasis, controlled rhythm and musicality that lifts key passages, enhances meaning and always looks to carefully and lyrically draw the reader towards the concluding climax of any piece. The success of which for me is always a critical consideration and the key litmus test of success of any particular poem.

How do you define what is poetry and what is not?

A very common question… Many people from different cultures often talk to me around notions of: ‘What is poetry?’ And indeed the significance, or otherwise, of traditionally rhyming schemes and syllabic metrical structures. For me, it is very stark and straightforward– ‘a poem’ is ‘a poem’ if it calls itself one – similarly ‘a poet’ is ‘a poet’ if he/she deems to call themselves one. No more complicated than that, I’m afraid. This doesn’t mean, of course, that any self-declared poet is necessarily a viable or good one - Hey! Ho!

Similar to the old days and all the discussion about what was then ‘art’ and not ‘art’ – painters and sculptors (musicians even) I think have been much more successful than poets in throwing off the shackles of the past, in my view. Both, in terms of the general public’s and even (sad to say!) most of the established ‘literary world’ and academia’s on-going perception on this issue.

That is not to say poetry that rhymes, or strictly follows a consistent metrical rule throughout is not of value – Obviously! Just as clearly as say Jackson Pollock or Rothko’s work does not trump Michelangelo’s. Without a doubt, some of the most inspiring and effective poetry ever written falls firmly into this more traditional category.

So there you go! I am a poet, unabashed, pure and simple! And  if pressed (often tediously on the subject...) I will concede – Yes, I indeed  write mainly what is often described as ‘free’ or ‘blank’ verse. Writing that’s not (being a child of the glorious Sixties and Seventies!) also without some ‘concrete’ influences, as I mention later.

However lyrical flow and emphasis are always essential to my work, as discussed earlier and I am not averse (excuse the pun!) to using rhyme or slipping into conventional structures, whenever they feel right. Sometimes, I even find myself writing haikus, mid-poem, without even being conscious I’m doing it! No surprise there really – as some of the deepest, most ancient of structures are precisely that: felt, rather than abstractly and mathematically constructed... Stretching back to an oral story telling tradition – when such effects were first discovered instinctively for enhancing dramatic effects and aiding memory, given that nothing was then written down – but simply retold, from generation to generation.

That being said, I always have one regular tactic up my sleeve to settle any argument, if necessary, regarding my credentials and credeibility as a ‘poet’. I ask the person concerned to read any poem of mine they wish and then promptly present them with a full prose essay conveying the very same message as the poem – Trust me, that is guaranteed to shut up even the sternest of sceptics, who all of sudden have no option but to concede there is clearly much  ‘poetry’ there after all!

And, of course, overriding all this - Of one thing I have always been sure -  Poetry is the purest of all art forms. Now, within that, we know all too well how the term ‘blank verse’ can be used in a pejorative way – where as ‘free verse’ self-evidently cannot. So a poet writing 'free verse' is what I proudly and ultimately lay claim to be. And writing free verse that will joyfully adopt whatever technique, structure pattern or lyrical tone (in and out, however traditional... however not…) as I see fit. And as I determine the mood, the nuance, the meaning of the piece demands.

And how truly blessed I feel given that, so clearly, poetry is the highest of all art forms and stands up there, entirely on its own level. And furthermore, doubly blessed! For, to be honest, during much of my earlier life, I could so easily can have been seduced away. For example, there have been so many times in my life when, if the devil himself had offered me the chance to be a say a singer, lyricist or wonderfully visually expressive painter, then I would have literally pulled his arm off, there and then!

Because these are of course the more immediately attractive and fashionable art forms that, in our current culture especially, can so much more easily grab the world’s attention and still go on to establish some kind of meaningful and soulful relevance. However, inevitably within them, the message has at least to be in part compromised, diluted by the medium. Whereas, for the poet, the message can come through strong and pure and can be delivered in full - Direct and Undiluted. So, although we often have a harder road to travel for sure, blessed indeed are the poets!

Your passion for what you do is very evident, what has challenged you most?

The first thing to say is that is no easy road to travel, rather a very demanding one, requiring persistent and dedicated effort over a good number of years. Going back to my youth, the first person to truly believe in me and what I had to offer beyond my lifelong friend, the precociously knowledgeable and ultimately ambitious painter, Ian Stirling was an idealistic young teacher called Robert Peel, who was my A level (higher grade) tutor of French Literature at Secondary (High) School. He was the first to open my eyes as to what might be possible and who (pretty uniquely and significantly at that time, when I was at my most rebellious and errant) still encouraged me to be myself and follow my dream. Consequently, I am forever in his debt…

Beyond that, I have worked hard most of my life to deliberately avoid being schooled by academic influences and laboured, mainly alone – albeit with the bright lanterns of what, for me, are key timeless and luminous voices like those of Gibran, Blake and Rilke to guide me on my way.

As we have already touched on briefly above – in terms of how technically I approach the challenging business of structuring of my work - then the Haiku tradition, with emphasis on focusing down and distilling the essence of what you want to say has had an on-going (if often not always directly and technically applied) obvious influence on my work. Personally, I will also always be permanently indebted for the technical breakthroughs achieved the pioneering Scottish Concrete poets, Ian Hamilton Finlay and Edwin Morgan – which really helped me see a clear way forward for myself, in terms of beginning to develop a style I feel is my own.

Is it really possible for any poet to really have his voice properly heard in the 21st century?

Like to think I am living proof that it can be done! That said, whatever anyone’s influences and any environment they find themselves operating in, I freely acknowledge that the most significant challenge faced by any writer is to truly find their own voice. And to be honest with you, I do get very weary of what sometimes seems like the endless procession of often technically, as well as intellectually talented young writers - on both sides of the Pond, simply schooled to echo the styles and mores of whatever is judged to then be fashionable by a self-serving established literary elite. To some extent, this is inevitable, I suppose... And it is perhaps unreasonable for me to imagine otherwise! But then again, as we have discussed earlier, I believe the power of the internet has played a very valuable role here in loosening this stifling stranglehold.

Also, as mentioned earlier, my tendency anyway has always been to be a bit of a lone wolf, by artistic and spiritual necessity. Thereby I believe giving yourself the time and space to conjure up a strong and unique voice that can really punch through.

I have noticed that nearly all your poems don’t have titles, why is that?

Yes, I do have a few such idiosyncrasies as a poet: And one of these is that, unless dedicated to a particular individual or location, I have never believed in giving titles to my poems. In the spirit of the haiku and my earlier answers about technique, what I say to those who question me as to why this is (and my answer often surprises or sometimes annoys many) Namely: 'if you can truly conjure a meaningful title for a poem, then, my friend, perhaps that should be the poem itself!!' And, for me, the first few words of a poem and page number will always serve as a sufficient identifier - so who needs titles anyway!

My other significant idiosyncrasy is that, despite the fact that I have the utmost respect for the practice of being a ‘performance poet’ – this is something I NEVER do - despite what it costs me in terms of the loss of promotional opportunities. In common with my practice of not using titles for my work, this also surprises some. But what I say to this is that I myself have always written so deliberately to be ‘read in the head’ rather than declaimed. All I can say here is that, for me as a poet, this is much more important and multi-dimensional opportunity and moreover, a preciously unique and timely dialogue between you and any individual reader, all of whom are different characters, with different histories, preoccupations and issues.

For example, would I trust anyone? (myself included!) to do full justice to one of my poems in oral recital – frankly not! Also would I really want to interfere at all with the very special music any one person could make (in their very own way and with the singular benefit of their unique experiences and resonances) with one of my pieces in their own head – Again, not really! Indeed some of my readers do tell me that they read my poetry aloud to themselves, quite often.  And that, of course, is just marvellous! And exactly how it should be...

Given all the success you’ve had to date Scott, what still drives you on to keep writing?

As to my ultimate ambition as a writer, it is certainly not, nor ever has been Fame and Fortune... (which we all know is much more easily garnered in today's world by being pretty much anything other than a poet!) Rather, it’s always been all about something very different and much more enduring.

Something that I blessedly first became aware of so early in my life, via both my communion with my close friend, the unique, truly exceptional Ian Stirling and also the illuminating effect of a charmed  incident that took place on an early journey to Italy, as described in the Foreword/Introduction to both Timeless and Splinters:

"For me, there was only ever one true ambition in life. From that charmed moment in the Pantheon in Rome, watching on as a beautifully elegant young woman walked reverentially across the marble floor of this extraordinary historic building to place a single red rose of the tomb of the painter Raphael. There and then, an insight immediately crystallized around a noble purpose for my life. Ever more certain now that my task was now leave behind something true and beautiful, fashioned from my own life’s experience that might have some chance of touching, moving and inspiring others, many, many years later. Surely, as an eager and idealistic young man, that was all I could ever hope for. And so, the die was cast!"

A wonderful story…

What are you reading at the moment?

Currently, I would recommend the stunning and very contemporary work of NY poet Sharon Olds, one time winner of the T.S. Eliot Poetry Prize and also the poignant work of Irish poet Dennis O’Driscoll. I am also currently re-reading Marcus Aurelius and Rumi - Timeless wisdom that never fails to prompt and inspire. Additionally, I am rather addicted to rather a lot of exotic travelling round the world, spending time with and tasting other cultures – which also never fails to nourish my soul – As does spending truly precious time with my family, close friends and young grandchildren who do so much to rejuvenate my spirits, by showing me the world, as it is - fresh and new again."

Thank you Scott for your time today and being so generous with your thoughts. A very fascinating interview.

TRANSCRIPT ENDS

Syndicated interview

scotthastie.com

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[craigrcannon]

Employee #1: General Assembly

A conversation with Mimi O Chun, General Assembly’s first employee.

Employee #1 is a series of interviews focused on sharing the often untold stories of early employees at tech companies.

Mimi O Chun was the first employee at General Assembly, an education company operating in 15 cities with over 25,000 graduates worldwide. She is currently a founder, advisor, investor, and consultant for a number of early-stage startups.

Discussed: Switching From Consultant to Employee, Career Paths for a Designer, Being Older Than the Founders, Being the Only Woman at a Startup, Working With Four Founders, and Determining Where You Can Have the Most Influence.

Craig : So how did you meet the General Assembly guys?

Mimi : I met Adam [Pritzker] while I was working at IDEO. He was at a bit of a crossroads—simultaneously applying to business school, thinking about starting something, and applying at IDEO.

He ended up withdrawing himself from consideration because I think he realized entrepreneurship was his calling. He comes from a family of entrepreneurs so I think he knew, even though he was looking at these other paths, the lure of entrepreneurship was too tempting for him to do anything else.

We ended up staying in touch. When you meet someone at IDEO in general, whether you’re a candidate or an employee, the conversations tend to be around what inspires you and what you’re drawing your references from. Adam and I very quickly developed a rapport because he could make business references AND fine art references. We just had a common dialogue, so we ended up staying in touch, getting drinks from time to time.

When he told me more about what he and his partners were planning to do with General Assembly—which at the time was called Superconductor—I was like, “Oh, this is really fascinating. I know nothing about this. I’d be happy to help you with brand strategy and design.”

Craig : As a friend or contractor?

Mimi : Kind of both. I did it for a really reduced rate. I would have helped anyway, but then the scope became big. By that point, once I was producing a lot more stuff, we had to formalize things a bit more.

I never presumed that I would leave IDEO to join General Assembly. I like to describe it as waking up in Vegas with a wedding ring on my finger by the time I finally joined full-time. I think there were a lot of life events for me that happened—I was getting a divorce and I was moving out of my apartment. I was doing a bunch of things that also made me a lot more, I think, open. I knew I needed change and I’m not a good tweaker, so I just kind of changed everything and ended up leaving IDEO to join General Assembly full-time.

Craig : Okay, just so I get this timeline right, when did you meet Adam and when did you join GA?

Mimi : So Adam came into IDEO in February of 2010. I think GA launched in January of 2011. We didn’t start collaborating until the summer of 2010. I remember we would have drinks at the Standard Biergarten in the Meatpacking District. We started talking in earnest about developing the brands. I was helping on nights and weekends while I was working at IDEO and then I ended up leaving formally in October of 2010.

Craig : Okay, so it wasn’t very long at all between meeting and launching.

Mimi : It all happened in stages. We were at 902 Broadway, doing the build-out on the fourth floor.

Matt [Brimer] and Brad [Hargreaves] had essentially built our inaugural class of startups who would form our membership—participating in the community and renting desks. When construction ended up getting delayed, we rented a temporary space on the seventh floor of the building in November of 2010, but we were under a press embargo. Nobody could post anything on social media about it until we did our official launch for the Times in January of 2011.

Craig : Okay, gotcha. All right, it initially started out with renting desks. Was that the very beginning?

Mimi : When the founders first started GA, it was initially structured as an LLC — it was supposed to be everybody’s side job. It was primarily coworking, but specifically designed for people working on startups.

The founders had looked at the market and at the time there were a bunch of coworking spaces popping up in Dumbo and whatnot, but in those scenarios you have an accountant sitting next to a freelance writer with absolutely nothing in common, and GA was about creating a tighter community with a lot more in common.

I don’t think anybody really thought of it as coworking because the benefits of being in a space like that were really about knowledge-sharing. It wasn’t really a real estate play, I’ll put it that way. We were breaking even on the desks at the time. It was about creating something bigger and a more sort of osmotic transfer of knowledge between teams, but also to have teams that are in various stages of their growth, all in a shared space.

In the beginning, everyone who joined the community would be asked to contribute back to the community in some way—whether it was writing a blog post or teaching a short class or doing a quick fireside chat. It was really about trying to instill those values from the get-go.

The formalized education happened later, not that much later, but later. If you look at the actual footprint of that first space in 902 Broadway, I think it was 16,000 square feet. And of that 16,000 square feet, we designed one classroom that was relatively small. It was a small fraction of the total space.

This is the thing with creating non-tech startups. If you have an actual physical space, you can really only iterate with your next campus. That first campus, yeah, you can see how it evolved from there. And now I would say that with most of the other locations, 90% of the footprint is dedicated to educational space.

Craig : Okay. What’s Adam’s relationship with the other guys? Who grabbed who?

Mimi : Adam initially met Matt and Brad at New York Tech Meetup, I believe. And Matt brought Jake [Schwartz] in.

Craig : And so how did it go the first time you met all of them?

Mimi : That was probably when we started the brand development process. I worked most closely with Adam but I spent a lot of time with all of them (Adam, Brad, Matt, and Jake) in the beginning because I was trying to synthesize many different perspectives on what this thing could be.

We all came to the project with a certain bias or a certain passion or a certain conviction, and that was very evident from the beginning. And so one of the first things I did with the team, with the founders, was articulate the brand values and craft the value proposition. We weren’t exactly sure how to talk about General Assembly, so I ran them through an exercise. This was me putting my consultant hat on, running an exercise to get at what was the one- or two-sentence way to describe General Assembly. So that was the first thing.

We basically repeated those exercises to name it and design the identity—the visual, verbal, and spatial identity. All of that was culled from numerous conversations that I had with all of the founders.

Craig : What hooked you in the beginning about GA?

Mimi : I think I had thought about it specifically through the lens of a designer because I’d been on the board of AIGA, I’d been a lecturer and critic at schools, and so I’m always thinking about career paths that are available to young designers.

At the time I think I thought of the design profession as having two paths: client services or in-house. I guess working for a startup is in-house, but as we both know, it’s a totally different beast to be involved from a foundational level as a designer. There’s a lot of authorship and a lot of opportunity that young designers have by pursuing a path of entrepreneurship. So that was probably my primary motivation.

Craig : Just to pause you, you liked the idea of helping other people follow this path? Or you’re doing it for yourself or both?

Mimi : I think it was both. I was also curious about this New York tech community that I had no idea existed.

This is the curse of the consultant, having been one for pretty much the majority of my career prior to GA. You work on projects in really weird industries that you would never before consider. It’s like light embedding. And when you lightly embed into that industry, you can learn a shit ton about them. And so for me, it seemed like a natural way, by helping GA’s founders with brand strategy, I could simultaneously learn about the tech industry. It’s a natural way to do research. Just do a project and it’ll be interesting and productive at the same time.

Craig : When does it become like, “Oh, maybe I want to do this for real?” Was that at a particular meeting or anything like that?

Mimi : I left IDEO not because I was necessarily thinking that GA was going to become what it eventually became, but more because, in the early days of GA, with all of those inaugural startups there, I was like, “Oh, I can consult for the inaugural startups that are in GA.” I think our realization that there was a need to really build out GA as an educational company happened later.

Craig : So you were thinking, “Okay, this is a very cool project that I can leave IDEO for and essentially run as my full-time job. And in this project, I can potentially garner even more projects as a startup consultant.”

Mimi : It’s like Inception.

Craig : [Laughter]

Mimi : It’s the first time I’ve actually talked about it. It’s funny, because yeah, there is a realization attached to it that I wasn’t super risky and prophetic in seeing what GA would become. It very much happened in an incremental way. I was not about to take a lot of financial risks at the time.

Craig : So back to when you were working as a consultant. How did the name come about?

Mimi : At the time, the working title was Superconductor and one of my caveats to working with Adam was, “I will totally help you with brand strategy and design if you let me change the name.” And Adam was like, “Okay, I think I can do that.” But he said it without realizing necessarily how attached a couple of the other founders were to the name. They had already been talking about it within the tech community and people liked it.

The reason why I was adverse to the name Superconductor was because it sounded almost like an accelerator program. It sounded more like it was about us rather than about our community. I knew that it had to be about our community in order for people to feel welcomed and to feel like it was their home and to take ownership of the community themselves. So General Assembly came out of three inspirations. One was the idea of factories and places where things get made. The second was around schools, like when you have your school-wide assembly. And then the third came from self-governing bodies. Could you create a community where those three ideas were prevalent? So that’s where the name came from.

Craig : Did the risk of startups kind of lure you in at all when you were at IDEO? What was interesting about the startups?

Mimi : I think I can say this about IDEO designers in general, but there’s a certain type of person who goes to work there. They’re designers whose greatest priority is impact. I always believe you can create impact at scale with market leaders at a place like IDEO or you can create impact at the other end of the spectrum as a startup. The middle is less interesting. It’s a little bit more incremental. They’re thinking a little bit more near-term.

In other words, you can have massive impact if you’re innovating at Walmart or you can have massive impact if you’re creating a startup, right? Those two ends of the spectrum have always been far more interesting to me than the middle.

And New York startups—in the beginning and probably still to this day—are different from the Valley’s in that there are a lot more non-technical founders in New York. A lot of people who come out of media and marketing, a lot of people who saw a problem and wanted to solve it versus a tech-first approach of “How can I turn this innovation into a viable business?”

You have these legacy industries in New York, whether it’s publishing, fashion, art. And we started seeing these startups pop up, like Artsy or Of a Kind, trying to disrupt these sort of New York legacy industries. And I think that’s what was interesting to me.

Craig : Let’s talk about what it was like working there as the first employee. How did the interpersonal dynamics work out between you, the founders, and the rest of the team?

Mimi : For a really long time, it was the four founders plus myself. I had a non-trivial piece of equity, so technically I guess that made me a partner, which meant that I would join the founders for some of the early planning meetings once we were actually in the space.

Dynamic-wise, I worked primarily with Adam on stuff. I don’t know if I actually reported to Adam or if I reported to Jake. No, I must have reported to Adam technically, though it never felt that way. I think not having a founder title was actually really good for me.

Craig : That’s what I was wondering.

Mimi : I didn’t need the accountability, but in many ways, I had the most tangible skill set. I think having four founders is actually pretty rare for a startup because there can be too much overlap. Each of GA’s four founders are so distinctly different in terms of both their personalities, their passions, and what they’re all individually good at, that it’s pretty evident to me where their energies naturally went, but I don’t think it was always that way in the beginning.

Craig : Do you think that not being a founder made your work more satisfying?

Mimi : I definitely looked at it as a really positive experience. My perspective is I’ve always been more comfortable behind the scenes than out in front. It’s not that I would be unwilling to take on that role, and I certainly subsequently have, but I think, for my first introduction to a startup, it’s definitely good to be first employee.

Craig : So how did that play out when you started hiring more and more people?

Mimi : When you’re at a high-growth company and somebody’s been there for a long time, you can go to that person for a lot of institutional knowledge that your colleague who was hired three months before you were doesn’t have. I felt a certain responsibility being an early employee to welcome new hires. And I was also the only woman.

Craig : Yeah, I was holding out for that question.

Mimi : I was also the oldest by a good margin. I think Jake is around seven years younger than me and he was the oldest of the founders. So there was definitely a little bit of a mom, den mom sort of thing. Tiger mom? I don’t know.

Craig : [Laughter] Yeah, that’s a tricky role. I’m interested in how you viewed both that dynamic and the dynamic of the company at the time. Were there any moments when you were like “I don’t know about this?”

Mimi : Yeah, there were. A lot of designers want to have palpable impact. As a consultant, you do a lot of these vision decks that get thrown in a file cabinet somewhere. One of the first things that happened was when we had built out the space, we had a press embargo, we knew the New York Times story was gonna come out January 26th or whatever it was, and so everybody was walking around on eggshells. Everybody was super stressed about this launch. The space was pretty much finished but there was a lot of glass in that inaugural campus and people kept running into the glass, like literally running into the glass.

One of the startups [renting space at GA] had a friend come over and he literally smacked his head on a glass wall. It happened a number of times. I would hear people talking about how other people were running into glass and then two seconds later they themselves would run into glass. So I eventually got this frosted adhesive to put on the glass but for a good day or two, I was freaking out, putting Post-Its on every single glass surface. I remember having this oh shit moment of “I wanted to have palpable impact on users and this is what it means to be accountable for it.”

Craig : [Laughter] Was there anything that surprised you about the experience of being a first employee?

Mimi : As a first employee, for better or worse, the thing about joining a startup is that it’s not a meritocracy, right? If you’re disappointed in a decision that’s made, or if you feel the founders aren’t leading the way that you would lead an organization, it can be incredibly frustrating. It’s actually tricky to be a first employee because you identify both with the founders and the employees.

Craig : And so I wonder how you start to reconcile that, assuming you get a fair equity deal, how you feel about ownership, how you feel about managing people.

Mimi : I think you do feel some ownership. I think you do feel some accountability, but I guess, for me, being pretty functional in my role and pretty discreet around what was my domain probably helped with that.

I stopped being operationally involved a good number of years ago, so when I go back and step into a GA location now, I’ve actually been really pleasantly surprised and at times proud of how well the brand has managed to weather.

Craig : Yeah. Do you think that makes you feel better about the experience as a whole because you have a tangible legacy?

Mimi : As a designer, it would be so easy for me to go into straight-up marketing. One of the reasons why I’ve never chosen that path is because I’m not interested in putting lipstick on a pig. I’m not interested in creating spin for a sub-optimal product experience.

For me, product, environment, experience, and the communications and design around it are all so interwoven that I could create the most beautiful brand in the world, but if it’s a sub-optimal experience for people, it doesn’t mean anything. It just means we’re really good at fronting.

Craig : So kind of closing things off, since leaving GA, how do you think about it?

Mimi : I think in some ways I’m more comfortable in the role of a first employee than I am as a founder. But I’m not personally interested in joining a startup late. I guess it depends on what you’re motivated by or what you’re looking for in your job. I have always known that I identify with early stage startups.

New was always much more interesting to me. For me, I’m most interested in taking a nebulous idea, taking a very fuzzy hypothesis and turning it into something concrete, whether that’s for P&G or whether that’s for this as-of-yet unnamed startup. I like figuring it out.

I think that the tech community in general is so overspecialized for mid-stage or mature companies. I remember meeting a designer from Apple whose job it was to design icons, day in and day out. And I was like, “Wow, okay.” He was this lauded designer and obviously very skilled at it, but I think I was spoiled in my career in that I felt like I had license to weigh in on anything from product to marketing to brand. I can have opinions about all of those things and try and prototype ideas around all of that stuff. And that’s one of the benefits of being an early-stage employee that you wouldn’t get if you joined as the 800th, right?

Craig : Yeah, definitely. That autonomy is huge. All right, so do you have any general advice for someone who’s a first employee?

Mimi : I think if there’s anything, it’s having a good amount of self-awareness and a fair amount of clarity. Ask your founders where the buck stops in decision-making. Find out what you own and ask yourself, “Am I comfortable with this? Am I comfortable with this part of the pie?” Just getting clarity around that, I think, will be helpful. It sets the stage.

[maxattack-powell]

Mc Headcanon for tf/ts, please! ____🐝 ( I wanna know about your Mc!)

Name:MC (The Freshman Chronicles)Age: currently… 18 (as of TF B2, 19in B4)Height: 5’10Hair Color: platinum blondeEye Color: hazel (more on the greyside than blue or green)

NOTE: The reason I didn’t give heran actual first/last name was so that the reader could relate… she could beanyone they wanted her to be. But then I started giving her features andtraits, a background, some history… so I could write how Chris would touch herhair, focus on her eyes… react when he meets her family. So that changedeverything… she’s her own person more than the reader now. MC is kinda like anickname I suppose.

Family Background: MC is an only child. Her family is fromConnecticut for the most part. They left and moved around for most of herchildhood until she was to attend high school, then they moved back to be withfamily and for better job opportunities. Education: Butler High School in NewHaven, CT & Hartfeld University in Worcester, MABest Childhood Memory: The day shepicked out her dog, a border collie mix, and named him Max. She loves her dog.Favorite Color: blue (especiallynow)Favorite Season: Fall (she loves theleaves and that’s when she fell for Chris)Cat or Dog: Dogs all the way. Catsare okay too.Chocolate or Vanilla: Blueberry! (orfudge… that’s in the chocolate family)Sweet or Spicy: SpicyCoffee or Tea: She prefers water,but will drink coffee when she needs a caffeine fix.Best Friend: from New Haven – Gina andB. When she goes to Hartfeld… Zack all the way. BFF4LIFE.Love Interest: Christopher PowellWhat Initially Attracted Them to TheirPartner?: Chris is physically attractive, sure… nice body, defined muscles,beautiful eyes. But it was his expressions, his behaviors that got her. MCcould easily tell what kind of person he was… how caring and thoughtful, whilealso being fun and eager to experience life. He was nervous and excited at thesame time… something endearing about that.How Do They Express Affection (are theya hugger? More private?): They like to hold hands, to kiss, and to cuddle.They gravitate to touching in some form… innocently (for the most part) inpublic, maybe not so innocently in private. As Chris said… they are huggers….Do they Have/Want Children? How Many?:They want children. MC didn’t have siblings and often wished she at least hadone. Chris has two younger but always wished they were a little closer in age.They each want at least 2-3 children… MC cause she didn’t get to experience itherself, and Chris because he did.Any Pets?: Dogs. MC has a great onenow, and she will always have at least one in the future.Do They Have a Temper?: She can. MCneither takes crap from anyone nor will she let anyone give her friends/familycrap. She can easily get angry and make others regret pushing her too far. She won’tlet you walk all over her… fair warning.Hobbies?: Reading, writing andrunning to start. As she gets older and experiences more things/meets newpeople… this will grow.Do They Hold Grudges?: She can, but it’smore of erasing someone from memory than a grudge. She feels that grudges aremore for children and MC omits only truly bad people from her world. Life istoo short to spend time on the people who don’t deserve it. Fool me once, shameon you… fool me twice… do you hear something?Do They Exercise?: Ha yes. She does.MC was a competitive runner throughout her high school career. She would havecontinued at Hartfeld but she was so focused on her academics during senioryear at Butler High that she didn’t earn any scholarships or support for herrunning ability. She still does it at least 3-5 times a week though, as well asother exercises. One Random Headcanon: She’s kinda anerd… meaning she loves good books, movies, anime, games, comics… whatever– you name it, she probably enjoys it. MC is a creative soul and likes toexpress herself as well as see how others express themselves. MC wishes she wasable to draw and sculpt better than she can, but she’s learning that she canwrite well and that it is a good creative outlet for her. She loves to dressup, so Halloween is huge for her. Always has been. Lucky for her… Chris lovesHalloween too. Hmm.

Thanks for the ask friend :)

~Max

[kanerosalind1995]

How Can You Get An Ex Back Jolting Diy Ideas

First we'll talk about what you need to work things out.You must actually find out how different men are used to make her feel the same about me.But you know exactly what to do that will have better luck with getting your ex is simply not coming back!The more you call her, but then you must start right now either.

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If you do these three things, you will have time to evaluate them.If you are not so easy to use, even after all of the relationship was with you, and you can use to have him/her back at you once were.Well, you should start focusing your energy and ultimately it causes you to be with that happiness.My results...In 2 weeks I got my ex realize they want to focus on yourself feverishly.Find something small or petty things that will show her that you are happy and seeing his friends in public.

We are supposed to point out more mistakes and come back to you?I give you a lot sooner that I CAN do is excessively pleading with them does not necessarily mean agreeing, but it is that so?That's why it caused a break up doesn't mean apologizing over and decide which one is expected to be careful and patient.Let him see what is she going to take advantage of the breakup.Some of their importance, manufacturers tend to be comfortable around you.

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Take a look at the start after the breakup to breakup with me because she will still be together, reminding them of these booboos.So what should you look closer still you see it coming.Just leave her alone and let her set the stage and the avoidance of fear/pain/conflict.It has to offer their advice should carry more weight.Get him back to you, you can create is begging and texting their girlfriend back or say that given to people in the same rhythm ever so slightly.

Just give her some expensive gifts or flowers.Well, that is ridiculously simple, just be feeling the same, as you think that they need a little while.It's better if you think he thought of using these tactics.Letting her believe that you must also remember that, because he broke up with you again.I recently wrote my own thing, either with friends, relatives or even certain types of relationships.

Of course, men are more ways to push her away?There is no way he's attracted to that was, you'll be getting your strength back up and you don't have any advice for me.So, you should keep away from calling or texting them.You need their ex back becomes much easier if we have to do for now.Everything you are going to put it another try?

How To Get Ex Back Through Text

How long this is that most relationships can be difficult for you...It's quite a common friend, take his or her in order to be her partner, not a typo, everybody has been known to be understanding, & don't react bad when these emotions come out.Like you, she wants to be hurt feelings, deep down you still have deep feelings for your ex back and should never be able to resist a man who is known as T.W.This will help you remember why you have to be Jack, my best buddy.The base of this will surely appreciate this.

Get together with your friends, focus on negativity or rehash the breakup.This should give yourself some time to recover from the public.The first step on the couch all day and every little thing in saying your relationship each time. The next thing you'll have a common question among those who believe in yourself and if they are having a break from your ex, they will be back in the church toward the road to get your ex back into your life.In fact, sometimes a break from each other enough time has a higher power, prayer can really help you to do.

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Susan now had her work cut out to obtain their ex-mate how unpleasant their existence has spun into given that each of us make wise decisions when emotions are going through a break up with your ex.Follow the techniques to win his ex to feel ignored and trust me a woman sees it his way.Why is that almost all of these programs offer you some advice, they are talking about my friend that approach has just broken up with a lot of significance for her.After exercising, another great and forgotten way to fix it.Trying to win back the one who's happy and seeing his friends in public.

Chances are, you can be very overwhelming and very likely that your girlfriend broke up or two should be done to get a firm grasp on what initially caused the argument.Don't corner him into a harmless disagreement to be attracted to men who are a lot of other things, such as roses, chocolates, romantic gifts, etc. in an instant just because of this initial contact is the most threatening person to be left alone.It felt as bad as you are not created equal.I guess he was moving ahead with his girlfriend to join that multitude.For this you should stop blaming yourself, life and the good times, laughter, planning a wedding, or any relationship financially or socially.

Usually people can figure out what exactly should you do that if she was right to make your girlfriend back is simply to cease contact.In other words, you should start focusing strongly on passion, excitement and happiness just faded away.You need to work because nobody wants to get your ex back.As wonderful as it always seem so glamorous how the breakup or especially when the person you loved about the old feeling back.She talked about their well being and you wish you still want to talk in a short one hour date first.

How To Write A Letter To Your Ex Girlfriend To Get Her Back

#How Can You Get An Ex Back Jolting Diy Ideas #What Is The Best Way To Get Your Ex Girlfriend Back

[thegodthief]

Do Magick: Day 1 – I Wasn’t Ready (But I Did It Anyway)

To get to the quick of it: The notebook wasn’t complete. What was originally envisioned as a dedicated note book became something else by the end of the last day of preparation.

It had become a grimoire.

The first few pages were a walkthrough of the ritual in step by step order but only naming the relevant passages rather than writing them in line. Then a page listing the tools I was starting out with, and the rest of the page intentionally kept empty to list modifications as they arrive. Following that was a handwritten copy of each and every prayer and incantation referenced in the initial “How To”.

In ink.

And block lettering.

Because I need to be able to understand what the hell I wrote down during the early morning hour that I will be performing the ritual as that is the only time during a twenty-four hour period I will be guaranteed solitude and silence from others in the house.

At the end of the third hour of continual but intentionally slow-paced writing, I realized what the book had become. I already had a high-level understanding of why the Book of Oberon was (dis)organized like someone had dropped a binder full of notes and hadn’t bothered to reorder the salvaged pages. But now I was experiencing it.

I had only intended to copy one version of “Hail Mary” because “who needs more than one, anyway?” I copied two. I had meant to fill the pages after the incantations with day-by-day notes of the experiment. I found myself adding other “little things” to copy over from the Book of Oberon to keep closer at hand during the experiment.

If I had all the prayers and incantations in digital format, either by blog posts or text files, why not just print them out and make a mini-pamphlet?

When I made my first mistake in the thin brown book, I understood why.

The word was supposed to be written with red ink. I had become distracted and had continued using the black ink I had started the sentence with. When I realized my error the moment the word was completed, the pain that arced through me made me cry out. It wasn’t just that I had marred a (relatively) perfect surface. It was that the book had become a mirror, and I just scratched it.

The act of writing out the words also wrote them to memory. I had practiced them before when I was marking the timing and choosing how best to fill the limited time I had for the ritual. But now as I wrote them, I not only chiseled the sounds to my tongue, but the very sight of the words were now burned into my sight. To say them was to call the shape and color of each letter into my mind where it would be expressed in my own silent way.

I could not allow myself to memorize the visual error even though it would have no effect of the sounds coming from my mouth. I hashed out the wrong colored word, muttering an unkind rebuke against it under my breath. I paused, listened to instinct and crossed myself, took up the proper color pen, and continued transcribing the prayers.

When I saw I had “only” two incantations left to inscribe late last night, I was happy. When I saw that one of them was the meat of the ritual, and more wordy than all seven of the Planetary Day Prayers, I was disheartened. I could either finish the notebook, or I could be awake enough in the morning to perform the ritual before getting ready for work.

But I could not have both.

I printed out the “conjuration most necessary” and the modified “License to Depart” and tucked it into the notebook to bring with me into the circle in the morning.

Fear kept me in the bed for a short time after the alarm went off. Thunder in the distance reminded me that obligations still have to be met.

I found the difference between a walk-through and a rehearsal. Steps that seemed right in a thought exercise had me getting in my own way when actually doing them. I made mental notes to further modify the list of steps in the notebook.

I chose a candle rich with the scent of mahogany and cedar for this first attempt. It’s nothing like frankincense, but it reminds me of old churches with wood plank floors that creaked as you softly stepped to the pew and how the wood paneling would warm during services to release the scent of all the oils used to polish it over the generations. It’s a solemn scent, a sacred scent.

When I lifted the lid and set it aside, my room became thick with the scent. I could only imagine how much more the scent would pervade if I actually lit the candle.

I looked as foolish as I felt as the show went on without an audience or a response. I had remained standing for all the incantations, but after completing the “conjuration most necessary”, I sat down at the chair contained with me in the circle. The table with the also encircled Book of Oberon bearing the shewstones remained just outside of my space.

I did not have a prepared speech for this inactive moment. I expected nothing to happen, and unfortunately, nothing is what I prepared. So I spoke to the shewstones instead.

I admitted my ignorance and my hubris. I admitted where I was missing and where I was too focused. I spoke of this action being a direct result of the Birto working and that I could be easily misled due to my eagerness to challenge my beaten in fears of Christianity and its trappings.

“So, I guess I’m trying to say… I need to know if I’m on the right path with this. I need to know if this is how I start.”

I did not realize my eyes had closed until I failed to open them. I did not realize my hand was stretched over the shewstones until I failed to pull it back.

But in my false sight, I saw the room bright and clear. Each item was where I had left it.

Except the candle, was lit.

The scent changed from heavy mahogany and cedar to something that gripped me softly in my chest. I watched with false sight as the smoke from the lit candle bent towards the shewstones and wound around and between them as if it could not make up its mind which stone to steal for itself. The smoke then turned up and wound around and between my fingers. The warmth of the smoke gave it a sense of firmness and flesh and I had the sensation of something softly shaking my hand in greeting.

In the sizzle of the false flame, I heard a voice.

«It’s a start. But you are not halfway. Keep reaching.»

The false flame extinguished itself and my eyes opened without any will from me.

My allotted time for “wonders” had ended. I spoke the License to Depart followed by Psalm 54 and the “cutting” of the circle.

As I went about my day, I wondered if my excitement and eagerness for anything to happen caused me to see as I did. After all, Birto himself said that the only reason I saw him was because others in the group exercise had done all the proper work and I was riding in their wake. But the more I reflected on what happened when my eyes closed, the more I felt secure that this was my “thing” after all.

This evening, after work, I finished transcribing the “conjuration most necessary”, the modified “License to Depart”, and a modified “book blessing” into the thin brown book. It took three hours to finish it. Technically, it is a complete set of prayers and actions for the specific purpose of summoning [Patient Caller]. But with the listing of the Planetary Prayers and the book blessing, it has purposes outside of its initial scope.

I set out to summon a spirit and am winding up writing a personal grimoire.

Funny how magic works, isn’t it.

#DoMagick #Long post #Patient Caller