#very rarely do i condense things down to JUST online but i really do think this is a problem specifically online because since you can't

[filmnoirsbian]

Some of you guys are mean and I don't mean impolite/snarky to someone who sent a dumb ask or left a stupid comment on your post and I certainly don't mean holding someone accountable for their cruel beliefs or statements. I mean that some of you go out of your way to be mean to others over frankly innocuous things because you don't value them as real people with real feelings.

#very rarely do i condense things down to JUST online but i really do think this is a problem specifically online because since you can't #see the other person you can convince yourselves they aren't real and aren't deserving of the same things you are #tcp

[doodlebloo]

your tags are the eeverything ever im on my laptop so i cant sc them and add them to the post but believe me i would and if i remember later i will. youre so fucking RIGHTTT its the condensation of the story into LORE into 'big streams' or episodes and in part thats bc of how the fandom treated lore and how it got turned into a big Thing that has to be very Streamlined and its a Lore Stream (yet they wont. plan it 😭) and Aurgghhh its pretty sad. but atp id rather actually see season four retconning than have to sit through another HUGE EVENT ON THE DREAM SMP!! (DEATH) (DRAMA) and then have no follow up on it

TBH I feel like everyone being busier definitely contributes to that bc like the Burger Plotline was supposed to be several streams over which we would likely have gotten a lot of little moments and interactions that showed us a lot about the characters and that had to get condensed to a WRITTEN STORY...

So it would not surprise me at all if there was supposed to be a lot more in-between but it kept getting condensed into five streams, then three, then One Big Stream simply because it's so hard to get everyone together now. Like that's why I think they need to be wrapping things up because if it's that much of a hassle to get multiple people on the server at the same time then the thing that made the story so interesting is sort of already gone at this point? Not that it was only interesting because people streamed Daily but like, that sort of "improv lore" that Tubbo always says he misses can't really come back because nobody is ever online enough for it (and when I say Nobody I mean rarely any people that have been here long enough for c!Tubbo to have history w them)

So like I do think part of the reason that lore has been so sparse is because of scheduling, it isn't Only that but what could have been several streams gets condensed into one huge stream where so many things happen that there isn't really time for the characters to react properly and we don't get to see any of the aftermath because they don't log on... In a story about grief and humanity we aren't getting to see c!Tubbo grieve or be human much at all, because if he logs on it's either for Lore that has a clear goal in mind and not a lot of time for us to see into his mind or it's just to mess around and we don't get to see his character's thoughts/emotions then anyways ...

There is nothing wrong with "big event" lore streams but at some points it sort of seems like events are planned just for the sake of having a "big event" happen and not because they actually make sense for the characters involved.

Idk I know it's easier said than done but if Wilbur has sat down and written out an ending that he's slowly working his way through at like 1-2 streams per month I feel as though others should look to him as an example, like I wish they would sit and genuinely assess "How much fun am I genuinely having doing lore CURRENTLY (not in the past), how much free time do I have right now/am I expecting to have," & make a decision based on that

#^ also w the Improv Lore thing... ppl have said before that it was a lot easier to do in the beginning of the server when ppl didnt have a #ton of characterization yet and thats very true. but also I feel like the term ''improv lore'' has sort of been twisted into something it #isnt. like c!Eret's betrayal wasnt improv lore. cEret and cWilbur planned that. They didnt have a Script #and they didnt tell other ppl so the Lmanbergians reactions were genuine... but that was Planned Lore. #the election results were not really ''improv'' because they had different plans based on what happened. the festivak and nov 16th were #planned. like everyone wants ''improv lore'' but i dont feel like a lot of ppl including Tubbo realize that big lore events are rarely ever #improv. ''improv lore'' is mostly for characters having little interactions or doing side-plots. cBeeduo building their hotel was improv #and it didnt go anywhere..... because improv lore rarely does. its sort of supposed to be self-contained to a couple of streams and if it #isnt then you need to actually Plan how/why it will be relevant or it doesnt really go anywhere... #so to me Tubbos plan to ''log on and see what happens'' aka to try and do mostly improv lore doesnt seem like it will work #asks #negativity #this is not cc critical again its their characters and they know their lore plans and schedules better than i do #long post

[disneylanddilettante]

The Disney Renaissance Killed the Disneyland Star

This post has been brewing and stewing in my brain for some time.

We here in the Disney theme park fandom are prone to lament the modern attraction design philosophy that says everything must be based on a movie. Aside from spectacularly clueless comments about “a random mountain in India or whatever” and misuse of the term “barrier to entry,” the reason behind it seems to boil down to: That’s what guests want. On the one hand, this is very clearly an excuse to do what Marketing wants (because film IPs are proprietary in a way that broad concepts are not, and can be merchandised accordingly), but on the other hand…it seems to be…kind of…true? The vast majority of the public, in my experience, does think of Disneyland (which I am going to use as synecdoche for all Disney parks, because it’s the one I grew up with, it’s easy to say, and because I can) as a place where you see Disney characters walking around as if they were real, and go on rides based on Disney movies, and anything else there is just to, idk, fill space until they can think of a cool movie makeover for it.

I have spoken to people online who quite enjoy Disneyland, but also think the Enchanted Tiki Room should become a Moana attraction, Tom Sawyer Island should be something to do with The Princess and the Frog, and the Matterhorn should be turned into Frozen. When I challenged them as to why, they didn’t seem to understand the question—what did I mean, “why?” Isn’t it self-evident? A couple years ago, one of the Super Carlin Brothers (I don’t remember which one; anyway I couldn’t tell them apart if you put a gun to my head) made a video expressing bafflement over the use of Figment as a mascot in Epcot because “He’s not from anything.” As if a ride in that very parkwere nothing.

So there is something to the assertion that film IP tie-ins are what regular guests expect and want. But the question remains as to why they want that—after all, it didn’t used to be that way. Costumed characters and rides based on movies have always been part of Disneyland, of course, but in past decades, the most elaborate and promoted attractions were the ones based on unique concepts that had nothing to do with the movies. The reasons to love Disneyland were things like the Haunted Mansion and the Mark Twain and Space Mountain…not so much the chance to meet Mickey Mouse. So what gave the public the idea that it was all about movies and characters? I’m sure there are several reasons, but I’m going to focus on one that I don’t see brought up that often.

I’m going to blame the Disney Renaissance.

Let me give you some personal background. I’m a young Gen-Xer, born in 1977. I was a child of the 80s…and in the 80s, Disney wasn’t doing so hot. Feature Animation had dropped to a cinematic release about once every four years, the live-action division was even less productive, and the corporate raiders were pawing at the door. In those days, when I saw a Disney movie in theaters, probably four times out of five it was a re-release of an older classic. (Anyone else remember when that was a thing?) There wasn’t much new at Disneyland either. The biggest thing to happen in the first half of the decade was the remodel of Fantasyland, which added one new ride—based on Pinocchio, a 43-year-old film—and otherwise just rearranged and refined what had always been there. On the other hand, the big Imagineering projects of the 60s and 70s were mostly still going strong.

The upshot is that if you were a Disney fan in those days (there weren’t many of us, even in my age cohort), you were a fan of the older movies and/or the parks. And for all its genuine quality, that stuff was showing its age. It was made in decades past, and there was a corniness and a quaintness to much of it. Most of the kids my age considered Disney “baby stuff” and were eager to put it behind them. It seems to have been a widespread phenomenon, because I don’t remember the park being very crowded when I was a young kid. Queues for even the roller coasters tended to top out around 45 minutes and it was very rare that we didn’t have time to do everything we wanted on a given visit.

And then, the year I turned 12—the year my age bracket hit puberty and could definitively be said to have outgrown cartoons altogether (except for the weirdos like me)—The Little Mermaid hit theaters.

Two years later, we got Beauty and the Beast.

And the hits kept coming. Suddenly, Disney was the hottest thing in entertainment again. Not just kids—by this time the generation that would come to be known as Millennials—but their parents watched these movies and went wow, this is really good. Disney is better than I thought. Maybe we should rent some of those older movies that I remember from when I was a kid. Maybe we should go to Disneyland… Unlike in the past, when families went to Disneyland because it was advertised and known as a family destination, families went to Disneyland because the kids were going gaga over the new Disney movies and the parents wanted to make them happy.

So a whole new generation of fans flocked to the parks, most probably never having been before, or not recently. They didn’t know what to expect. They just knew they loved these new movies with their endearing lead characters (so much more full of personality than Snow White or Alice or Pinocchio) and their big bombastic Broadway-style musical numbers (so much more in line with current musical tastes than the Tin Pan Alley ditties from Cinderella or Peter Pan or The Jungle Book). That’s what they wanted from Disney, whether they were paying six bucks a head plus popcorn, or fifty bucks a head plus lodging.

And that would have been fine but for the fact that endearing characters and big bombastic musical numbers are really hard to build traditional dark rides around. What you can do, though, for people who want to meet their favorite characters, is build dedicated character meet-and-greet spots. What you can do for people who want to sing along with Academy Award-winning songs is create huge colorful parades and stage shows that feature those songs. Best of all, if you are certain people who shall go unnamed, these sorts of things are much cheaper to create and operate than rides. Corporate was more than happy to meet, rather than try to exceed, the expectations of this new wave of fans.

The newer guests got used to seeing more-or-less verbatim (condensed) film content in the form of these shows and parades. The classic dark rides began to look decidedly odd to them—why are the movie events out of order? Why doesn’t the main character show up more? Why don’t we get to hear all the songs? And no one was there to explain it to them, because the older generations of fans had largely drifted away and the internet wasn’t quite a household staple yet. Rides that weren’t even based on a movie seemed even odder—what does a Wild West roller coaster have to do with Disney? What does a submarine ride have to do with Disney? I thought this park was supposed to be for kids, but my kids don’t recognize this stuff! They should build a Lion King ride! They should build a Toy Story ride! That Snow White ride isn’t suitable for kids; they should do something about that! I didn’t pay all this money to stand in line for an hour and a half and go on a ride that my kids don’t get!

The pattern was set. IP tie-ins were what the people wanted, and they closer they hewed to their source material, the more guest approval they got, simply because people didn’t know any different. And it has snowballed from there. The Disney Renaissance was amazing for the art of animation, but I think it was a net negative for the art of theme parks.

Tl;dr The Disney Renaissance changed guest expectations for Disney entertainment products in ways that were incompatible with classic Imagineering principles.

#disneyland #disney theme parks #walt disney world #disney #disney renaissance #theme parks

[l1ttlecreatures]

owen harper’s badges

i was struggling looking for places to get owen’s badges (and just find out what the badges actually were tbh) so now that i have finished im gna share my knowledge with u all 

if i missed any lmk and ill add them<33

lets start off easy dkjfh

red che guevara badge

this is a pretty common find

very easy to find ; ‘che guevara badge’ in ebay or etsy would do the trick

here is one: Che Guevara BUTTON PIN BADGE 25mm 1 INCH Political Student Cuba Face Revolution | eBay

uk subs badge

i love this band i will not lie 10/10 recommend

the photos we have of this are unclear - the badge looks mottled, like it could be khaki coloured in some photos, but there are no signs of badges like this online, so we could say its one of the more common black badges, but vintage, and has been weathered with time ? which honestly it looks more black in some shots than green

looking at different listings it does look like they fade to be greeny but i do not know

i dont have anything else to suggest so im going to blame it on weird lighting in the hub and move on

the plain black one is a common badge, one of the first things to come up when you type in ‘uk subs badge’ online (here is one for ur convenience UK Subs - Name Button Badge (rockbymail.com))

che guevara pop art badge (srry for lq image)

this one took me a while to find, but thats only because i made a spelling mistake and didnt realise for ages

id say its a pretty common badge, but it is out of stock everywhere- i put my email in on the site though so ill update the post if it comes back in stock (this site- Button, badge CHE GUEVARA - pop art | Tips for original gifts (ukposters.co.uk))

i managed to get one off of ebay, through a one-off auction, i dont imagine itd be too rare for that to happen again so just keep an eye out

manufactured by pyramid international, but is not on their site

8 ball badge

theres a lot of similar badges out there, and getting one slightly different probably wouldnt hurt that much

i managed to find an exact dupe on ebay (id drop the link but i got the last one)

this is a similar one: 8 Ball Pool 1 Inch / 25mm Pin Button Badge Black Snooker Billiards Hustler Fun | eBay

u can characterise it by the artificial reflection spot

crass anarchy and peace badge

to get an exact dupe of this badge would be pretty hard- i cant find a place that makes them with the red like owen’s instead of the black

because of this, im assuming that owen’s badge is a genuine one

if you want an exact one then keep ur eyes peeled on the likes of ebay, depop, etsy, etc one will turn up eventually

if ur lazy then a safe bet is probably just to get one made, or deal with it being a different colour (heres a link to one of those Crass - Anarchy & Peace - Button Badge - 25mm Punk Badges, Fridge Magnet Option | eBay)

john lennon badge

just a badge with john lennon on i found it pretty easily

John Lennon LP Cover badge Official Merchandise | eBay

siouxsie sioux badge

another punk icon i love siouxsie so much

this one took me FOREVER to find and it was so worth it i actually think its sick

this is the site i got mine from;

Siouxsie & the Banshees - Underwear Button Badge (rockbymail.com)

the clash badge

again... adore this band

i got the first one i saw on ebay, from this seller: THE CLASH Button Badge UK Punk Rock Band - London Calling, Combat Rock 25mm Pin | eBay, there is one left and i cant find another (red) for sale at the moment

there are a lot of similar looking badges out there, namely the same badge but with black text instead of red, which would work just fine (THE CLASH Button Badge - UK Punk Rock Band London Calling, Combat Rock 25mm Pin | eBay)

sex pistols im a mess badge

owen has good taste in bands

this one is pretty simple to find!! (was nice to have an easy one for a change)

owens looks to be light brown with blue text in some photos and then just look b+w in others; ur call

heres a link but if you look it up then youre almost guaranteed to find one

sex pistols im a mess | eBay

circle-a badge

kind of just ur bog standard circle a

if u want the exact badge then heres the link but ngl noones going to tell the difference between it and any other

Punk Rock Anarchy Symbol 25mm Button Badge (thevinylfrontierbarry.com)

i got my eight ball and sex and drugs and rock n roll badge (below) from the same ebay seller and they included a free one, and i love them for it

sex n drugs n rock n roll badge

pretty standard tbh

theres a few on ebay but if u google it then theres loads!!!

you didnt need me to tell u this

here is one: SEx n Drugs N rock n Roll 1 inch 25mm Button Pin Badge Punk Skin | eBay

and here is a holographic one because who does not enjoy a holographic badge SEx n Drugs N rock n Roll 1 inch 25mm Prism Button Pin Badge Punk Skin | eBay

yellow and black tongue stick out badge

this was one that i really had trouble with for some reason like i just could not find an exact match

i found a glittery one which honestly was very exciting for me

if you know where to get this badge pls hmu !!

manic street preachers badge

again, this is one i was unable to locate, unfortunately

this one was really bugging me so i made a post in forum to try and locate it, but i still came up empty handed. i think the best bet would be to get one custom made.

the text appears to be the logo on the front of their first studio album, generation terrorists (1992). i recommend btw. 

like the last one, if u have any info on where to get one of these then hmu !! ill add it 

sex pistols rock n roll swindle badge 

this badge had me confused for a while ngl

for a while i was sure that it was a different band and spent uh. quite a while looking for a badge that matched that description and then i checked my list again and i had a lightbulb moment where i realised that there were two sex pistols badges and id only done one (i may be stupid)

not that this realisation changed much as i still wasnt able to track one down anywhere

i played around in some editing software and made a (pretty bad but shhh) template thingy? which u can use to get ur own badge printed somewhere idk 

onto the final badge (thats if i didnt forget one)

go deh badge

original badge manufactured by london based brand better badges (known for being one of the biggest exporters of punk badges in the 70s and 80s)

i cant find a place to recover one of these badges - i can only find two pictures of it online (that arent torchwood screenshots)

your best bet would to be get one made i reckon

i also made a template thingy for this one in case u wanted to get ur own printed. the font i used was futura condensed bold in case u wanted to do ur own (instead of using my ugly little attempt)

bonus: the frankenstein patch 

Curse Of Frankenstein Sew On Patch Hammer Horror Film Movie | Etsy

dont think i missed any but in case i did then let me know!!! ill try my best to find them 

thank u for reading hope i helped ! <333

when i was identifying some of his badges this post by scarecrowprops on ig really helped (https://www.instagram.com/p/CLuW01IjliB/) nd also this post (https://iant0jones.tumblr.com/post/141100170804/owens-badges-on-his-lab-coat/amp) 

#torchwood #owen harper #torchwood three #spent way too long on this

[thicceon]

My Final Views on Pokémon Sword & Shield

There’s my Trainer! Isn’t she lovely? Anyways, this is a game I had so many strong feelings about, so I feel like jotting this down so I can give it a lil’ bit of closure.

The National Dex

This was perhaps the game’s greatest controversy leading up to release, so I want to give my thoughts on this first. I don’t mind the absence of the National Dex as long as it improves the game all around. I think it’s an okay decision moving forward. However, in these games you can tell half the existing Pokémon were cut just to save time in order to meet a holiday release, not to actually improve the game.

Presentation

The game makes a powerful first impression. The campaign’s strongest moments are probably the first couple hours. The narrative really caught my attention in the beginning and I felt SUPER hyped for my first few gym battles. The story’s climax is also pretty exciting. Game Freak did step up to the plate where it counted most, fortunately. 

Gameplay

The game is bare, short, and vapid. Halfway through it’s REALLY apparent how rushed the game is. You end up zooming through tiny routes that feel more like hallways than anything, and only have a couple Trainers in them. Most “cities” are smaller than the ones in Red & Blue. There is a town that’s literally just a corridor with a Pokémon Center and outdoor gym. This is also one of the coolest cities in the game, so seeing that wasted potential is very frustrating. 

The NPCs feel lifeless and have nothing interesting to say. I don’t see anyone else talking about this! The NPCs in BW, XY, and SM actually had some very entertaining dialogue once the tutorial stuff was out of the way, whether it was hilarious, straight-up weird, or genuinely thought-provoking and insightful. Everyone feels so...boring.

The Wild Area is...rough. It looks horrid. However, it’s still where I had the most fun in the game. It’s a great concept and I think Game Freak had a decent first go at creating an open world Pokémon experience. It wasn’t a particularly fun place to explore per se, but it was enthralling just to be able to control the camera and go where I please. Being able to see glimpses of other players here is also a wonderful addition, and something I’ve wanted from the series for a while. All in all, this area has a delightful MMO feel to it. Raids are also very fun! It’s great to have a co-op feature to play with friends, and the rewards and rarity of Gigantamax forms gives you a good reason to do them!

There are many wonderful QoL features in this game. Pokémon’s UI experience has never been smoother. There's one rather large caveat though, which is the online experience. It’s nonsensical not to include a friends list for easy trading and battling with your pals, and most of the time the stamp system just doesn’t work. It’s extremely frustrating, but sigh it’s workable.

I also must say that I hate the Exp. All being baked into the game. The feature itself is not the problem, it’s the fact that I have literally no way of turning it off, despite previous games allowing you to. This was borderline game ruining for me, as it killed any sense of satisfaction I felt leveling my Pokémon. It genuinely felt like the game was raising my Pokémon for me. Yeah, not for me.

The post-game is practically non-existent. There’s a lifeless husk that qualifies as a Battle Tower of sorts, but that’s all you’ll find, Champ. But of course, this has become standard for modern Pokémon games.

Graphics 

The Wild Area looks very shoddy, however, the rest of the game looks genuinely beautiful! The overworld textures are poor, and this is not a high-fidelity game by any means, but the general art direction and colors are gorgeous. The new Pokémon have nice models, and the older ones have greatly improved textures. The cities all look distinct and lovely. However, the pop-in of NPCs is very apparent and feels jarring. I can tolerate a little pop-in, but this draw distance is short enough where I will just about hit NPCs that appear before my eyes while biking.

Pokémon still lack battle animations that are even comparable to the Stadium games. _That’s _the type of stuff that should be improved by cutting Pokémon.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack is decent and has its own flare. There are a few standout tracks, my favorite being the Slumbering Weald at the beginning. Gym battles have a great chanting effect that really adds to the atmosphere. My biggest complaints are that a few of the city themes are weak, and theres a real lack of route themes. 

Story

It feels rushed and empty, like everything else in the game. Conceptually I think it’s pretty strong, and as I said before, the climax is great. However, the story beats leading up to the climax are hilariously rushed and character’s actions begin to make zero sense. You also visit areas that were so obviously meant to be dungeons, but were condensed into single rooms. One significant scene didn’t even get a proper cutscene and was instead told via a slideshow that looked like screenshots of the models painted over. 

As for the characters, I’m extremely disappointed with how underdeveloped the main villain was, despite him having an intriguing, and surprisingly contemporary motive. I was also bummed out that Marnie, a rival advertised as being significant, had practically no story relevance whatsoever. Team Yell also was very underutilized. 

Hop was okay; decently developed. Bede is probably my favorite rival in the series since Cheren. I’m one of those people that’s been complaining for a decade about how we haven’t had a jerkass rival since Johto, and I’m very pleased to finally have one again. His arc is also solid, though a bit under-explored.

Leon was good. It’s rare for the series to tell us who the Champion we’re fighting is before it’s time to tango with them. It was nice to see him have a presence throughout the entire game, and it was interesting to see the types of responsibilities a Champion has, such as protecting the region and...signing endorsement deals.

Closing

Yeah, the game is okay. It’s not a masterpiece. It’s not a train wreck. Just okay. It’s very apparent that it was meant to be so much more though, and that’s frustrating. It feels like even 6 more months could’ve made a world of a difference. I don’t believe Game Freak is lazy. I don’t believe they’re incompetent. However, I do think the yearly release schedule of Pokémon games really hampers the potential of not only the games, but the developers.

But perhaps that’s just what we have to accept from such a juggernaut IP. Sword & Shield is about the quality you’d expect from most MCU movies, or those live-action Disney remakes. It’s solid, and it’s the standard fun you’d expect from the property, but it lacks any depth. 

But I can’t really bring myself to call it a step back for the series. It does its fair share of things better than XY and SM, even if if those two games are much fuller experiences. Right, this is a decent first real entry for the main series into the home console market. However, it’s still nothing compared to the sheer breadth of content available in the GBA or DS games.

But this game signified to me that the “golden age” of Pokémon is really gone for good. Sword & Shield was never concerned about living up to those titles though. Gaming has changed. Gamers have changed. And thus, Pokémon has changed. Most games aren’t intended to last you the better part of a year now, unless they’re a live multiplayer service with consistent updates.

As a veteran superfan that's been absolutely enamored by the franchise since before I could even read, I’ll admit that I find it a bit of a challenge to judge Pokémon games on their own individual merit, rather than against the now substantial catalogue that makes up the legacy of the series. Sword & Shield isn’t worried about living up to the past, it’s a step towards the future, clumsy as it may be. However, that future is still going to need some more substance to it before I can consider it a bright one.

#pokemon #sword and shield #minty speaks

[pickyperkypenguin]

So, a little PSA from me - I will be moving on after all

I had this thought for some time already, but the recent events made it for me more clear, something almost like a sign to finally get my stuff together. When @mindblownie wrote her post (that has many very good points on the situation, that I won’t be repeating here) on how despite the initial will to stay after the 17th she is now reconsidering, I have had it also boiling on my stove, the decision to leave this place.

At first I didn’t join Pillowfort when they were still sending the keys, because I wasn’t sure if all or at least most of the people I still wanted to be following will be moving – and more importantly, being active – there. That was one of the reasons I only set up a Twitter account to keep up with a lot of people, who said they were moving there. I admit, I can’t get used to using it, so it looks like I am not keeping up that well with their content. It’s too… condensed? Fast? Too, like, chunky, if communication can be called such. The marks limit just honestly, honestly doesn’t do it to me at all, it prevents any essay-like format of a post (threads are not the same, they generate a different structure), and it is deeply dissatisfying to me. And as a cherry on top I have to click at every single picture to see it in full (or at least viewable) size, and I have to do the same if there are a couple of pics in one post. It’s the worst, sorry. I’m sure it has a wonderful uses elsewhere, but not for the purpose I liked to be on Tumblr for, not as my kind of blogging platform.

The other reason I didn’t join Pillowfort and why I was having those thoughts before is this: I got lazy with art and culture. I got used to consuming all the time, instead of creating even just a bit. The half-creating thing that reblogging content felt like was appeasing any creative hunger I might’ve had. Instead of wanting to be an active part of a fandom or creating my own original stuff (which I have ideas for! They are just not being developed! At all!!!) I was perfectly content with being a consumer, and a rather lazy one, to add to all of that – rarely left comments on the fics I read, reblogged a lot of art without stopping to give a feedback in the tags (though this I at least tried to do, as I often just had that urge coming from within, to praise the artists), didn’t contact with the other members too much. To be honest, it requires from me – I think – about the same amount of social engagement and energy from me to strike a relationship online as it does offline, so I have never been one of the most popular or sociable fandom people. But, you know, that could change, if I tried. I didn’t.

Anyway, this is first part of the second reason. This is the moment in my life where I am currently trying to somewhat decide or settle on what I want to be pursuing professionally job-wise, and so I have to find out pretty soon if I am able to be creating more, or creating sustainably over a period of time. The mindset of more grinding and improving of what there already is is not going to help me as much as the one where I create and create, and create, and only then I think of the rest. I badly need to get into the habit of that.

The second part of the second reason is that I realised that I waste so much time in here. Even when it’s in the ‘allowed’ situations, like on a bus ride where I have nothing else to do, I just eat up pleasant things, instead of being less directed with my thoughts, I fix on themes I already know instead of reaching outside of my zone.

Don’t get me wrong – I’ve talked many times about many, many good sides this platform has (well, had), when it comes to the content, culture, and so on, and how I have actually broadened my horizons, thanks to it. You can go in my ‘whatever life’ tag and see at any time or this last post I made about the current situation. But this post is about the negatives, and why it is very probable I am leaving soon.

I’m feeling somewhat like I should just do some overall Internet detox for myself, or at least drastically change how I have used it. It is not building me up, expanding me, developing me any more. It has become limiting.

Hence, the idea of perhaps changing a platform. Baby steps. I don’t want to lose the contact with the couple of people whom I daresay befriended, and I do hope we will be able to sustain it, even if we will move out to different sites and it will all come down to, I don’t know, sending e-mails, which I feel is for casual relationships on the Internet an equivalent of sending the post via pigeons. Pigeons or not, I want to stay in touch with you. But I also want to move on, I just haven’t figured out yet where exactly – I already have an AO3, maybe I will join Dreamwidth? I feel like both of those may generate more of the climate I want to immerse in the future. Maybe I will get Pillowfort after all, as it is familiar and apparently has all the good sides of Tumblr that I liked, and the blogging format, but they actually listen to the users (my whole heart is with the founders and the idea of Pillowfort). I will sure let you know if/when I will choose a new main platform.

Ah, I would forget. The third reason I don’t feel like being here. I was trying for a bit to be blogging normally, and to observe how everybody else is functioning – but it doesn’t feel right for me anymore. The feeling of being restricted with the content, the general wrongness of it all, the emptiness of my dash – there are just a few people, couple of us here, trying to get over all of what happened. But my landscape have changed, and maybe a couple of the trees have stayed exactly the same in my forest, but I can hear the harvester sound in the distance and see the sky changing the colour from the fires. It doesn’t feel right for me to pretend everything is as it was and contentedly carry on.

So, this is a sort of a prolonged goodbye from me. I am estimating I will be blogging as I am now for about till the New Year, and then. Well, then we’ll see what will I do, where will I go. I will be reblogging this post periodically in hope anyone who wants to can contact or find me on other social media that I have, and that it will all be explained when I will decide to move on.

Places where I can be found:

AO3 (@aislinngun)

Twitter (@pickyperkypeng1)

Instagram (@pleurotus.ostreatus) – though I can’t really be that free there, as people who I know offline are following me there

#whatever life #tumblr purge

[douchebagbrainwaves]

HACKERS AND RESEARCH

Odd as it might sound, we tell startups that they should try to make relativity strange. Are they hypocrites?1 If the world were static, we could have done it by fixing something that they thought ugly.2 One thing you can say about it. To the extent there's any difference between the people who'd been out in the world just switched them from bad to good.3 Practically every successful startup, including stars like Google, presented at some point to investors who didn't get it and turned them down. When you hear such labels being used, ask why. With the rise of the middle class.4 The central issue is picking the right companies, is also the hardest. However, that doesn't mean you should talk like some kind of paternal responsibility toward employees without putting employees in the position of children. Then all you have to do to create an environment where startups condense, none are great sacrifices.

Both make sense here. Where should one look for it? If you try to start a startup. As with gangs, we have no idea what the number should be than you do. Would we be just as well without, however, you'll start to get sued, no matter what your lifespan was.5 It's conversational resourcefulness.6 Those in the print media.7 I think what holds back European hackers is simply that they don't meet so many people complain about software patents stifling innovation, but when a few people in a company financed by selling a VW bus and an HP calculator. So while I stand by our responsible advice to finish college, then go work for a big company, or have been outmaneuvered by yes-men and have comparatively little influence.8

Michelangelo was not trying to teach you important truths about aesthetics. I never reach them through the Times front page. But events like Demo Day only account for a fraction of matches between startups and investors.9 They're increasingly rare, and they're expected to spackle over the gaps with gratuitous transitions Furthermore. They're not allowed to include the numbers, and only take money from investors one at a time. It was pretty advanced for the time.10 There's room not merely to equal Silicon Valley, but to serve a ruler powerful enough to enforce taboos, but weak enough to need them. The VCs will have to be careful to avoid if he happened to set his time machine for Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1992.11

But other considerations can outweigh the advantages of moving. Intriguingly, this implication isn't limited to books. The patent office has been overwhelmed by both the volume and the novelty of applications for software patents, and as a result. If you fire or avoid toxic customers, you can often do it better if you're not.12 Northern Italy in 800, off warlords would steal it. Nothing will teach you about angel investing like experience.13 Go find some users and see what they need. So despite the huge number of software patents generally. If you're eating at a restaurant you suspect is bad, your best bet is to order the cheeseburger. I think it's because hackers have intrinsically higher principles so much as that their skills are easily transferrable.14 When you have small children, there are a lot of hand-wringing now about declining market share. If founders become more powerful.

It can take years to learn how companies work.15 When you negotiate terms with a startup, I have to bother being diplomatic with a British audience. They just want to get a job. The problem is, the huge size of current VC investments is dictated by the structure of VC funds, not the needs of startups. The before the number if you really believe you've made an exhaustive list. We weren't sure at the time. In fact, this is part of the language, and adults use them all the time. The solution may be some hybrid of investment and acquisition: for example, they're often reluctant to redo parts that aren't right; they feel they've been lucky to get that far, and if they take it, they'll be out of business, even if you forget the experience or what you read, the less likely it would be possible to reproduce Silicon Valley in another country, it's clear the US is a particularly humid environment. Perhaps what practice does is train your unconscious mind to handle tasks that used to be like.16

Things that used to require conscious thought. Like chess or painting or writing novels, making money is a very hard question to answer in the general case. It's inconvenient to do something expensive and custom. People just produce whatever they want online without worrying whether it's work safe.17 And it can't have been heredity, because it would cause the founders' attitudes toward risk tend to be interesting. There's also a newer way to find startups. The opportunity is a lot of the people working there.18 He never referred directly to the users. Business is a kind of semantic deficit spending: they knew new things were coming. And if, as nearly everyone who knows agrees, startups are taking charge of their own stock in later rounds.

Their unconscious mind decides for them, shrinking from the work involved. If you want to avoid directly engaging the main body of the enemy's troops. There are also a couple things you could do to beat America, design a town that puts cars last. A lot of the money. This rule is left over from a time when the fast-growing startup overpaying for infrastructure. And God help you if you thought things you didn't dare say out loud.19 That first million is just worth so much more important than low cost.20 Web it was harder to reach an audience or collaborate on projects. So we have no data about what it takes to get from the first one to write a check, limited by their guess at whether this will make later investors balk. Because they personally liked it.21

Notes

I spent some time trying to make the argument a little if the founders of the world of the auction. Globally the trend in scientific progress matches the population curve.

If we had to work in research too. At the seed stage our valuation was in logic and zoology, both your lawyers should be taken into account, they have to mean the hypothetical people who should quit their day job might actually be bad if that got fixed.

Hypothesis: A company will be regarded in the US. It turns out to be started in 1975, said the things startups fix. I were doing Viaweb again, that you could get a job after college, but only because like an undervalued stock in that sense, if you hadn't written it? We didn't swing for the manager of a problem this will help you in a non-corrupt country or organization will be weak: things Steve Jobs tried to motivate people by saying Real artists ship.

So the cost of having employers pay for stuff online, if you repair a machine that's broken because a friend who invested earlier had been Boylston Professor of Rhetoric at Harvard Business School at the bottom of a place where few succeed is hardly free. In Boston the best are Goodwin Procter, Wilmer Hale, and the restrictions on what you learn about programming in Lisp, because talks are usually more desperate for money.

If you're doing.

Cost, again. Max also told me they like the increase in trade you always see when restrictive laws are removed. Few consciously realize that species weren't, because Julian got 10% of the number of situations. If you're part of their pitch.

Auto-retrieving filters will have to want them; you don't get any money till all the difference. To do this would do it is probably part of creating an agreement from scratch. This is isomorphic to the yogurt place, we found Dave Shen there, and Foley Hoag.

I wonder if that got fixed. What drives the most successful ones. That's because the remedy was to backtrack and try another approach. It would have disapproved if executives got too much to say exactly what they're building takes so long to send a million dollars in liquid assets are assumed to be located elsewhere.

The way to tell them about your conversations with VCs suggest it's roughly correct for startups to have to be considered an angel. There are fields now in which only a sliver of it in B.

An hour old is not whether it's good, but art is brand, and partly because so many still make you register to try to become one of the anti-dilution, which wouldn't even cover the extra cost. I'm saying you should probably fix. The dictator in the country would buy one. They might not have raised: Re: Revenge of the previous two years, dribbling out a chapter at a 30% lower valuation.

No. The empirical evidence suggests that if you pack investor meetings too closely, you'll be well on your board, there are few who can say I need to import is broader, ranging from 50 to 6,000. Some people still get rich by creating wealth—wealth that, isn't it?

Plus one can ever say it again. Default: 2 cups water per cup of rice. Believe me, rejection still rankles but I've come to writing essays is to use them to. 5%.

In Russia they just don't make their money if they were offered were so bad that they only even consider great people. There need to warn readers about, like good scientists, motivated less by financial rewards than by the financial controls of World War II, must have had a broader meaning. Y Combinator.

166. Hypothesis: Any plan in 2001, but it's not inconceivable they were buying a phenomenon, or that an idea that investors don't like to cluster together as much the effect of low salaries as the little jars in supermarkets. How can I make this miracle happen? But that being part of your last round of funding rounds are at selling it.

You've gone from guest to servant. Comments at the 30-foot table Kate Courteau designed for us! 7 reports that one Calvisius Sabinus paid 100,000, because she liked the iPhone SDK.

I've deliberately avoided saying whether the 25 people have responded to this day, thirty years later. The moment I do, just as much difference to a degree that alarmed his family, that they don't yet get what they're selling and how good they are in love with their users. Now we don't use Oracle. When you fix one bug happens to compensate for another.

What drives the most dramatic departure from his family, or liars.

Another promising idea is the stupid filter, which have remained more or less, is deliberately vague, we're going to call them whitelists because it made a million dollars in liquid assets are assumed to be more precise, and average with the high score thrown out seemed the more subtle ways in which I warn about later: beware of getting rich, purely mercenary founders will do worse in the computer world, and for filters it's textual. You'd think they'd have something more recent. MSFT, having sold all my shares earlier this year.

Wave.

But that turned out to be a predictor of low quality though.

I call it ambient thought.

#automatically generated text #Markov chains #Paul Graham #Python #Patrick Mooney #principles #deficit #applications #US #cost #remedy #ways #question #considerations #idea #companies #implication #design #part #cars #users #rewards #money #quality #organization #till #projects #Demo #acquisition #matches

[joealwyndaily]

Joe Alwyn - Boys by Girls interview (Spring 2017)

Walking home. They trudge home with aching soles and lifting souls, when the street lights are on, but it’s not quite dark yet. The boy’s thoughts escape to the past as his toes point forwards, step-by-step mumbles shuffling through empty harmonies. His stride quickens towards the place where the music is his own and the smell is his washing powder. Joe Alwyn is fresh out of drama school, living with his mum and treading on the heels of Hollywood.

The acting industry; an invitation to explore new worlds and understand different perspectives, to find a temporary home in an unfamiliar situation. Playing the eponymous 19-year-old in ‘Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk’, Joe was offered the hand of director Ang Lee, who roams through imagined landscapes, from the remote stretches of ‘Brokeback Mountain’ to the expansive reflections of ‘Life of Pi’. Taking his first steps on America; soil for his debut film, Joe marched in the boots of a US soldier who loses his story to the nation. In this homecoming photo shoot back in London, in the broad days of peace, we see Joe’s humble vision beneath the character. This is his own narrative.

How would you describe yourself?

Joe: it's quite hard to describe yourself. With social media, it becomes quite difficult for everyone, as we try to describe ourselves and play a part online. We are all different faces and different people showing various colours, depending on where we are and who we're with. Everyone is performing to a degree throughout the day, you put on your mask and you meet the world.

You have been described as ‘the next big thing’. Did you always want to be an actor?

Joe: I knew it was something I wanted to do, something I knew that I loved and wanted to be involved in. I don’t think there was a light-bulb moment, it was just something that I was always interested in and it kind of grew on me. It’s flattering that people take an interest in you, want to know more about you or see your work. I think the reason that has come about is the job that I landed and the start I’ve had, but you just have to focus on what you want to do and why. It’s very flattering that people are saying those things and that people are excited, but I haven’t given it too much thought.

Do you enjoy photo shoots? A bit different from acting.

Joe: I enjoy it, it’s a really different experience, and it’s nice working with different people each time. It’s fun going to new locations and seeing how a different world works, but photo shoots are still something I’m getting used to, because I don’t think you’re being a character - it’s much more exposing than playing a part in a film or in a play. With acting you take bits of you, bits and pieces that you can draw from your own life, your past and history, or whatever it is that’s inside you - you then mix all of that with imagination. You explore the ways that you’re similar and different to the character and how you can gel the two things together and put yourself into a new body, a new voice, a new accent. It’s a mishmash of your interpretation and things that are inside you.

Let’s talk about ‘Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk’ - your first feature film, right? Was it daunting?

Joe: Yeah, it’s so surreal seeing yourself on screen for the first time. But I felt so proud to be a part of something so revolutionary, and so grateful to work with someone like Ang Lee, who’s one of the greatest living directors and has made amazing films. To see it condensed into a final film and think of all those months we put into it, it’s an amazing feeling. Starting anything new, especially when you’re thrown right into the deep end, there are always going to be moments when you’re aware of the responsibility and when you don’t want to let the director down. There were loads of new experiences and faces. Of course bits of it were overwhelming, because, you know we’re all human and going into new experiences can be, but it was also the most incredible thing to do. As new as it was, I was in an environment of very creative, talented, and experienced people, so it was a really good place to be. Ang was there for me from the very beginning and I trusted him implicitly. Whatever cliched Hollywood image you could come up with, I don’t think Ang could be further from that.

Why do you think he chose you?

Joe: I think he likes working with people who are relatively raw, haven’t built up barriers and aren’t stuck in any habits. Someone who would just jump in and be willing to be moulded. When I auditioned with him we just got each other in a way you do with some people, and I was lucky that I got on well with everyone there. It’s a very intense three months or so, being thrown into something and building this world and then suddenly at the end - *snaps fingers*. When it ended, I came back home to London and everyone else got on with their lives. That was a real shock. I missed making the film a lot, the people and getting up every day to do it. But you have to let it go, and I do love London. You get people of all shapes and sizes from all walks of life, it’s vibrant and there is so much to explore.

What was it like to play a role based on something that is so emotional and real for a lot of people?

Joe: Obviously the idea of the war is very important to a lot of people, but I just tried to think about it as a coming of age story of a pretty normal 19-year-old boy, who’s suddenly thrown into this extraordinary circumstance. It’s basically about Billy finding out where he belongs and whether he’s going to go back to war, or leave the boys and stay at home with his family, or run off with a girl. At the end (spoiler!), his decision is to go back to war, because he feels that’s where he belongs. He feels that’s who he is and that’s his fate. Whether it is right or wrong is irrelevant, that’s just who he is, that’s his path. So within this bigger, public commentary, there is a very human story, and that’s what I tried to think about rather than getting caught up in other things.

Do you find it easy to pull from these emotional places?

Joe: I don’t know if I find it easy, you just do it. It’s what you need to do in the scene and it’s your job to get there. You find a way, and you find things in yourself and your imagination to hit certain notes, whether that’s a big emotional scene or just a real, true conversation. You have to hit certain notes.

Call you tell us more about your other new film ‘The Sense of an Ending’.

Joe: It was actually a book by Julian Barnes that I had read and really enjoyed a few years ago, then put it to the side and didn’t really think about it again. When I got back from America, I was told they were making it into a film and they wanted me to come in and see them for one of the parts. It has an incredible cast with Jim Broadbent, Charlotte Rampling and Harriet Walter - great actors who really ground it and hold the film. The opportunity to be a part of that was really exciting. It’s a film about an ordinary man and an ordinary life, but it spirals into these memories from the 60s. I don’t want to say what happens, but it’s about memory and what we choose to remember and forget. I play this boy called Adrian, a character created by Tony’s memory. I wanted to do the role, because it was different - a 1960s public school boy, not a Texan soldier. Although there are similarities and parallels between Billy and Adrian, I liked the idea of playing a new part in a new world.

What dreams has this amazing start created for you?

Joe: I think it has put me in a position, which is a nice position to be in, where more doors are open and there’s the opportunity to go for projects which I wouldn’t normally have the option of doing straight out of drama school. It’s very rare that someone’s first job is with a director like Ang Lee, and I know how lucky I am to have got that experience. I just want to keep working on projects that excite me, and things that I’m passionate about. It’s all about finding those things you really care for and learning from working with great people.

#boys by girls #quote #interview #joe alwyn

[rafaelthompson]

10 Minutes With Bev Tumi Makhubele And Naledi Yaziyo

We spoke with the founders of Rofhiwa Book Café, a Black-owned business and community hub coming to East Durham, N.C.

BY MARK VAN STREEFKERK BARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE

Cover photo taken as a screenshot of Rofhiwa’s Kickstarter campaign

Coming soon to Old East Durham, N.C., Rofhiwa is a book café and community hub, which hosts a lovingly curated collection of Black and African literature and imagination. Rofhiwa means “we have been given” in Tshivenda, a South African language, and the business features a rotating lineup of coffee from Black roasters, with books for sale from Black and African authors all around the world, including children’s literature, too. Founders Bev Tumi Makhubele and Naledi Yaziyo have dreamed up a book café invigorated by the Black entrepreneurial spirit of East Durham. 

Bev at work at the future site of Rofhiwa, at the corner of Angier and Driver in East Durham. Photo by Naledi Yaziyo.

Rofhiwa (pronounced Ro-Fee-Wah), has been years in the making. Bev, who is of Bapedi and Tsonga descent, says the idea grew from their book-collecting habit of finding rare and out-of-print books by Black authors like O.K. Matsepe. After visiting a Black-owned café in D.C., and later with the passing of their grandmother, Bev was moved to connect their book collection with the idea of a community coffee shop.

In 2018, they moved to Durham and started looking for a location to house their vision. When they met Naledi, a grad student of Xhosa descent (Nelson Mandela’s linguistic group), in the Ph.D. program in Cultural Anthropology at Duke, the two realized they had a common understanding of the specific type of book café they wanted to curate—one in which the books could “talk to each other.” Naledi joined the project as curator. Bev and Naledi launched a Kickstarter for Rofhiwa on December 3. If all goes as planned, the grand opening will be in March. I was honored to connect with both Bev and Naledi over Zoom, where we chatted for over an hour and covered so much ground around books, coffee, and the experimental vision they have for Rofhiwa. Be sure to visit their Kickstarter campaign here, donate, and share the cause.

This interview has been condensed for brevity.

Mark Van Streefkerk: Tell me a little about the vision for Rofhiwa and how it started.

Bev Tumi Makhubele: It started as a book collection. I’m a book collector. I try to find rare, out-of-print, and hard-to-find titles—Black and African. I thought that one day I’d get old and put it in a room somewhere in my house and open it up to people to come and browse and borrow books as they needed. In 2013-2014, I went to this book café in (Washington) D.C. called Sankofa. It’s right across from Howard University. I really liked the vibe of the place. In 2017 my grandmother died. That was the big galvanizing event. That’s when I started to think about, “What if Rofhiwa were more than just a room somewhere later on in my life? What might it look like now in this moment?” That’s when I started to piece together that I could make it a book café.

I acquired the words for what I wanted it to feel like when I met Naledi (in 2019). Really what I wanted was to have books that yes, come from everywhere in the Black world, but I wanted them to be in conversation with each other. I wanted books that talked to each other. When we met and I told her about it, it just made sense.

Naledi Yaziyo: What attracted me to Rofhiwa was it sounded very close to the way I had experienced libraries in South Africa. My mother’s a librarian, and I had grown up in libraries. I’d go with her to the library. These were libraries in Black neighborhoods, previously segregated Black neighborhoods, and this is the late ‘90s which is early days of South Africa’s democracy, so a lot of libraries were being built in areas that didn’t have access to libraries before because the Apartheid state just didn’t care to give Black people books. Or they were resourced in a way that was very intentional, because also a lot of books were banned. Often in those neighborhoods the library was also doubling up as a community center. People would have meetings in libraries. They weren’t these silent spaces. Parents were very curious about the libraries so sometimes they would just literally take their child by the hand and take them to the librarian and say, “They need to read something.” I recall how my mother, with this very eclectic mix of things, was often having to make bundles of books from things that weren’t otherwise related. She was always doing this thing of making books talk to each other. That’s what immediately came to mind as Bev was telling me about this; I was like, “Yes!”

Let’s talk about Rofhiwa’s location.

Bev: It’s either right on the border of, or it truly was, in the historic Hayti district. It was an independent Black district in Durham. The intersection where we’re at is like a Black district of its own now. There’s a Black-owned pharmacy, Black-owned commissary and diner, Black-owned screen printing shop, barbers, there’s so many things happening down there. It feels like we are recuperating something of the commercial and entrepreneurial spirit of Black Durham. We’ve had a lot of folks message us and say, “It’s good to see that corner alive again.”

How are you building your coffee program?

Bev: We definitely want to have multiple roasters in our retail space. We have been very fortunate to get samples from so many different places. We got some samples from Three Keys in Texas. Naledi’s a big fan. We’ve got some samples from I Love Cute Coffee in California … (Candy Schibli, at Southeastern Roastery, was) one of the first people I reached out to and one of the first to respond. Chris (McAuley, of Getchusomegear) is a beautiful person and has been so gracious in facilitating our learning journey. We love coffee, but haven’t always had opportunities to learn about coffee. In the last three months Naledi and I and Chris and Chelsea (Thoumsin) have sat down for cuppings and we’re acquiring language for notes. I’m interested in Black people becoming interested in coffee through Rofhiwa. Naledi and I have talked about what it might be like to facilitate cuppings in South Africa in other languages.

Attending a virtual cupping with Chris McAuley and Chelsea Thoumsin. Photo by Bev Tumi Makhubele.

Naledi: I know how this tastes in a language that’s not English! Now you’ve got me describing this to you in English and I’m feeling very limited and it’s frustrating. I was thinking about how you could do a cupping in isiXhosa or any other language and how the coffee might come out tasting in a different language.

Bev: How do you return Black folks to coffee? One of the things we all say is, “As soon as a coffee shop comes to your hood, you know that it’s gone. That’s the end of your hood.” It sucks because coffee’s Black. You get your coffee from Ethiopia, that’s coffee heartland. So many amazing roasters in Kenya, in Ghana. There’s so much more to coffee than this thing white people drink. I’m very interested in returning Black folks to coffee, I’m interested in how Black people drink coffee.

Naledi: I’m interested in making coffee speak different languages, whether that’s in South Africa or East Durham. I think there’s a way to have coffee and describe coffee that doesn’t have to be in a language inaccessible to someone like me.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Mark Van Streefkerk is Barista Magazine’s social media content developer and a frequent contributor. He is also a freelance writer, social media manager, and novelist based out of Seattle. If Mark isn’t writing, he’s probably biking to his favorite vegan restaurant. Find out more on his website.

The post 10 Minutes With Bev Tumi Makhubele And Naledi Yaziyo appeared first on Barista Magazine Online.

10 Minutes With Bev Tumi Makhubele And Naledi Yaziyo published first on https://espressoexpertsite.tumblr.com/

[iamdanielyoon]

Blade Runner 2049 Review

***/*****

B-

80%

  9:30pm

2D Digital

10/17/17

 --------------------------

Notes:

Mostly empty theater but there were possibly 15 people in the 160 seat theater.

Got seats in row C, seats 11 and 12. Smack dab in the middle and a place where the screen was close enough to fill most of my field of vision.

 ------------------

Audiences, and critics, called the original Blade Runner an esoteric film. Never before has a film been characterized so aptly. Wes Anderson is niche. David Fincher is focused. Steven Spielberg is talented. J.J. Abrams is new cinema. I hate to be so condensed in my perspective of them, but I’ll chalk it up to the short attention spans present in the online world. I hope I got my point across, though. All of these attributes I attributed to each of these accomplished directors can be seen as positive or negative. I, personally, am a fan of all of the directors I mentioned. I haven’t loved all of their works, or even seen all of their works, to be honest, but I do acknowledge their ability in crafting stories (although I have finished viewing the filmographies of J.J. Abrams and David Fincher). Their narratives have a distinct flair and I respect the craft they bring to the industry.

The connotation attached to the term ‘esoteric,’ however, was that the film was meant for those who liked noir & sci-fi stories. The film is not like Looper (2012) or Star Trek (2009), far from it. So don’t expect anything like that sort of thing going into it. The film is, at its core, a detective story. In terms of mature film, the Coen brothers can be comparable in terms of pacing, I suppose. But where the Coens have fascinating dialogue and well-executed editing, Blade Runner (1982) was more of a plodding crime story. It meanders and it doesn’t pander. It is for a specific set of people yet the film has been a major influence in the sci-fi genre, in all mediums. In this rare instance, the scathing, often empty, certain critiques of CinemaSins on the film were accurate. The fantastical visual imagery of its time nonetheless does not make a sufficient story, a well-told narrative or a propelling plot. Critics and audiences complain about that in cinema to this day and yet they gladly overlook those faults in this film.

So let’s get my thoughts on the original Blade Runner out of the way. I watched The Final Cut (2007): the one recommended by Blade Runner 2049’s director Denis Villeneuve. Like films of the past that had dark, gritty, grimy, seedy sci-fi worlds, Blade Runner had great production design. Ridley Scott is a flawed director, one who has had his fair share of duds and head-scratchers, but one thing you cannot deny is the man’s attention for detail and his extensive use of practical effects. The props used in The Martian (2015) were gorgeous. Blade Runner is no different. To cut my thoughts on the original short, here are my thoughts in a nutshell: Overrated; interesting sound design; weird parts; strange change in atmosphere/tone in final act (something I believe CinemaSins touched on) and overall a mediocre experience.

What’s lovely about this film is the fact that this film remains grounded within a future of that universe. Time has not been altered or changed to reflect modern tastes. Touch screens and head-up-displays that are prominent in our modern cinema have very little to do with the established world of Blade Runner. The Voigt-Kampff test is a technology that was interesting in the sense that it remains iconic and fascinating from a filmmaking perspective. And this film adds new vehicles, weapons and a great cinematographer to its established universe and polishes out the rough edges that were present in the original.

Blade Runner 2049 stars Ryan Gosling in his second role in which he actually gets to show that he can act (the first being La La Land (2016)). Most of the time, people submit that acting, in its best (see Oscars) form is subtle. Other times they suggest that powerhouse, extremely emotional performances like Hugh Jackman’s from Prisoners (2013) is what constitutes a great performance. While I do realize that acting requires immense talent, incommensurate kinds of methods for getting into character, a cooperation between all the major filmmakers involved, and more, I lean more towards James Franco’s performance in 127 Hours (2010) than Colin Firth’s in The King’s Speech (2010). #JamesFrancowasrobbed. But rarely do I say that the casting for a film was impeccable. Sometimes certain performances win over the people, sometimes it’s a great chance for actors to branch out, sometimes there are surprises from left field, but in a few rare cases, it’s hard to see anyone else in a role. Ryan Gosling is great for K, Harrison Ford returns in good form as Deckard, Bautista brings something truly unexpected in his role and there is an integral character with a small role overall that is pitch perfect. After I saw her and Robin Wright’s subtle acting it cemented my thoughts on the film in the acting sphere. It’s superbly cast. The small important character was the actual performance that I was most pleased by in this film, however. Jared Leto was interesting as the eccentric, blind, rich man… I think.

Hans Zimmer’s talents are squandered in this film. He’s been able to collaborate to great effect in films like The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014), as flawed and bad as it was, and the first two Kung Fu Panda films (2008 & 2011). But instead he’s to do his rendition of the original film’s compositions. He’s got to do Vangelis, again. Thirty-five years later. I get it. People like the original’s score. People worship Zimmer and Blade Runner, sometimes they happen to do both. For the original Blade Runner, that composer’s sound was an iconic part of it, sure. Doesn’t mean it was timeless. Hans Zimmer got a lot of flak for making his own version of the Batman theme in The Dark Knight trilogy, and the world is all the better for it. Here, he is boxed in the world of Blade Runner. Here, he is chained by the fans of the original. The film suffers because of those fans. Instead of going in new directions like Giacchino for Jurassic World (2015), Star Trek (2009), Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014), War for the Planet of the Apes (2017) or Rogue One (2016); instead of bringing back the composer that he previously collaborated with in 2015 for Sicario, Johann Johannsen, we are given a bland fan offering. There are moments when I notice the film’s music is about to head to something great, and then it veers towards synth sci-fi. Film score snobs, music critics and whoever else may heap praise upon Zimmer and his Dunkirk (2017) collaborator Ben W. for this film, but I won’t be one of them. Zimmer and his new buddy (Zimmer worked well with Junkie XL in Batman V Superman (2016); Junkie XL previously crafted a great score for Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)) are forced to placate the appetites of voracious fans instead of going in bold, new directions. I dislike the music. You might like it. And you’re free to do so. Music, I find, is a far more divisive medium concerning tastes than film. So go nuts and go crazy for all I care. Yo Yo Ma spoke about music that sounded good to him. The music in the Blade Runner universe doesn’t sound good to me. For more perspective on how the original film’s sound and soundtrack are layered and the like, you can see Nerdwriter1’s video on the matter.

The cinematography is so darn good. When used right, the visuals in a film can heighten the action, improve the pacing and make meaning of everything. The locked camera of Jackie Chan and Hong Kong directors make the action far more interesting than in Hollywood blockbusters with people flailing around in darkness (See EFAP’s video on Jackie Chan). Blade Runner 2049 reunites director Denis V. and cinematographer Roger Deakins. I’m just going to state for the record that I’m a fan. A big fan. I want to watch every film Deakins has ever done because seeing his work in this century’s films, I’m truly blown away. Directors need to work with a bunch of people to block and all, but a cinematographer like Deakins makes the final product that much better. Everything moves with purpose. The camera work is streamlined and masterful. I can’t really express in words how he does what he does besides a few interviews Deakins has done himself and a video by Tony Zhou (Every Frame A Painting, a truly artful man with a way with words. And a quick message to Zhou, if he somehow stumbles across my writing: Please come back to your channel and continue to do video essays. Please. We all miss you. Come back. Please.). The visual artistry of this film is profound. Denis and Roger should continue to work together for as long as possible.

The story of Blade Runner 2049 has a similar progression to its predecessor, in certain aspects. Its broad narrative is an investigation with mystery in a sci-fi setting. Whereas the previous film meanders, wastes time with its groundbreaking visual effects (there are shots of the iconic buildings that are just viewed from different angles with synth music blasting) and overall the plot devolves in its final act (turning into a slasher film, as noted by CinemaSins, I’m not calling CS good or critic-worthy but they occasionally do make some valid points)—this film is much more focused. This film finds a solid story progression but it too finds ways to slow down its story. There are lulls in between the acting, the spectacle, the visuals and the narrative. Although the argument can be made that the lulls are necessary, how you react to them can be a large indicator of what kind of moviegoer you are. If you perceive The Revenant (2015), Memento (2000), No Country For Old Men (2007) or Gravity (2013) as niche, indie, weird, dumb or boring, Blade Runner and its sequel are definitely not for you. Of note: all the previous films I mentioned in that sentence are ones I enjoy. Note: I enjoy them. You don’t have to. You can have your own dang opinion. You’re free to express that... For the most part. Anyways, on the bright side the film finds philosophic ideas to explore, interesting sci-fi settings to discover and the like… but I found it to be more of a specifically satisfying affair. Like the original Blade Runner, Rogue One, Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), Captain America: Civil War (2016), The Avengers (2012) and Terminator (1984), I understand why people like this film. But it doesn’t mean that I have to. I respect the craft and artistry. I do. But it’s not something that connects with me. It’s not that it falls flat. It’s just that the sum of its parts do not add up to a greater whole. I shouldn’t be analyzing a film based on math but I’m just trying to make a point. BR 2049 is exceptional filmmaking… but it’s rare in its appeal. It’s finely tuned, for the right group.

TL;DR: Not for me, but I respect the craft. 3/5 stars

#Blade Runner #Blade Runner 2049 #Review #Film #Cinema #Movie #Discussion #2017 #October #Movie references #Text #Long #80% #B- #3 stars #3/5 #Sci fi #Blockbuster #denis villeneuve #Thoughts

[raygoodwinbaphotographyjournal3]

PHOT301 - Mileage May Vary - Work in Progress Zine & Experimental Journal Ideas

The zine is something that I had mentioned in the formative assessment for PHOT301. I wanted to make this because I was curious to see how this body of work came together in a book/zine/magazine format. One of the end results that I want to have for the FMP is a coffee table style book that can be viewed at Free Range, and contain a multitude of images from this project that clearly shows what my project is about. For this, I need to run a few tests to figure out what I should be creating, and how to make it. 

For this, I decided to create a zine style of booklet, displaying images from this project that I particularly enjoy. The rationale for the selection process was selecting the cars that had an air of intrigue within them, whether that be with damage to the vehicle, or that the vehicle is particularly rare to see. I then decided to lay out the zine with the cars in chronological order, going from oldest to newest. However, it finishes with the aftermath of the crash that happened very close to where I was staying during Christmas, but sadly missing its departure only by an hour or so.

The front cover was also something that I was contemplating for a while, and was the most worrisome part of the whole experience. I knew how I wanted to display my images, and how which ones I wanted, but was very unsure on what would represent the front cover. I have always wanted to rejuvenate my graphic design style of work that I undertook during my Access Course and PHOT103. 

This is my favourite example from Exploded Image, all the way back in first year. This project was mainly a spin on our very alienating, fast paced and transport centric world. It was heavily influenced by Stanley Donwood’s artwork for the ever inspiring 1997 OK Computer by Radiohead. This is a style I have wanted to revive and to place elements of it into my current work - I also find it interesting how a lot of the earlier aspects of my degree are surfacing up again, which is a welcome change to the fairly similar work that was undertaken during year two. 

I had an idea of what I wanted to create, but unsure about how undertake it. The graphic elements had to be a part of it to make somewhat of a statement with the front cover. I don’t necessarily want it to be a straight photograph, as it only really tells you about the photograph, rather than the project. Subtle hints to what the project is about, seems like a good aim for me. 

Before

After

Above, is what I had created. I chose to use the cluster of parked Fiats and Alfa Romeo as it featured a good amount of cars, rather than a singular vehicle in the image. I opened it up into GIMP and erased away the surroundings, only keeping the parked cars. The photograph was then desaturated and then coloured red in a gradient map style, with an added a bitmap style of manipulation. This was the emulate the newspaper print styling of new reports of the scheme, and the red colouring represents the Labour government that brought the scheme to fruition. 

The plates were also covered up with a piece of paper that I found around a while ago. Its a form of tag which was most likely used to detail scrap parts in a yard, by K.J. Pike.

The back features a few options to fill in, mostly in a warehouse setting. K.J. Pike comes up as a company in Blandford Forum that repairs and refurbishes trolleys. Annoyingly I can’t remember where I found it, but I do remember that it was on a rather wet and drizzly day, and it was stuck to the road. I also knew that I had use it at some point for MMV. 

Final Version

There is also a second version which has been edited differently and features no blacks and blends more into the white. For me, I prefer this version purely because it blends more into the whites and the aesthetic is likened to poster design, of which I enjoy. This was created by adjusting the contrast and the lightness of the colouring, with the addition of the ‘scrapped’ tag being merged into the car layer. 

The front cover has been kept fairly clean and clinical. I wanted there to be a lot of white space like a gleaming shopping mall to juxtapose the featuring images, with the cover to represent the entire project in such a way that it doesn’t spell it out - almost having a level of ambiguity to it. I also used Roboto Condensed for all of the writing (albeit minimal) as I rather like the modern sans style font. It also manages to lend itself quite well to the graphic design style of the cover image. 

This isn’t just an online zine, it is also a physical one. I wanted to have something physical, as it seemed a shame to not have anything physical apart from a selection of prints. The zine is more of a work in progress publication, rather than what the final thing will look like. I wanted to see how my images work in a physical space, culminated into a small A4 booklet. I decided to print this at The Artside, just so I could have it fastback bound. I didn’t want to have it stapled together, or have it ring bound as I am not a massive fan of both of those options for something that will be a photo book in the end. Stapling the book will make it look like a magazine, and ring binding will make it more of a document. Fastback binding, to me, looks far more professional and sleek, keeping everything clean and low profile. It was printed onto 200gsm satin card with a black card backing. 

The print quality is pleasing, and perfectly fits the ‘zine’ aesthetic. An example of the front cover here shows the sharpness of the print, in addition to the colour reproduction. The photographs of the zine was taken with my Lumix G1 with a CCTV 25mm F1.4 lens. This lens gives a unique swirly bokeh and the fast aperture of F1.4. 

In total, this zine cost me £15 including printing and binding, which I think is a decent price for the end result. Not to mention that it only took around 30 minutes to make, so it was nice to hand in my PDF file, grab a coffee and come back with it all finished and ready to take home. Another bonus to this, is supporting a local business. While it is sometimes nice to order a nice photo book online, I would rather help support local business who still get a good footfall of students come in for there printing - it keeps them in business and provides us with quality products. Whilst this is a good thing, I would also like to invest in a thermal binder somewhere down the line, so I would be able to make my own zines. However, for the time being I am happy to support local businesses and keeping them going. I am also happy with the zines outcome, and I am looking forward to seeing what I’ll be able to create next with the up and coming work flow. 

Experimental Journal Plans

The experimental research journal takes on the same form of the zine, in terms of the cover at least. This is to keep a level of continuity within the project. However, I would like to make it more of a manual rather than a journal, and link in some MOT certificate aspects. 

This shows the changes to the MOT certificate back in 2018, with the older version on the left and the new version on the right. I would like to utilise the older version, which would contain details about the shoot/research, with the opposite page showing contact sheets/images and practitioners work. Along with this will be an ‘advisories’ and a ‘reasons for failure’ section detailing things to change and things that didn’t work. These are to reflect the MOT test needed for cars to stay on the road. 

The journal will include all shoots, containing the contact sheets and some highlighted images. Practitioners work will also be included with the same advisory and failure sections. These sections will be redacted and kept to a very minimal word count. This blog is very wordy, and I want the experimental/condensed journal to be a cut down version of my shoots and contextual information that advises my thinking. This shall also be created in Canva, following the same front cover and adding the MOT certificate base to form the journal.

#PHOT301

[firebirdsdaughter]

Every odd number for the writers questions

Wow. Apparently, ask answers do not like number lists… It screwed up the formatting!

But worry not, I fixed it. I’ve left the answers on the even numbers bc I am a little particular about patterns.

do you know how you want the story to end when you start, or are you just stumbling through the figurative wilderness hoping to find a road?

Both. Sometimes I start w/ the ending, then have to figure out how to get there. Other times, it’s like running head first through a massive snowstorm. XD

on a scale of 1-10 how much to enjoy incorporating romance into the average story?

Also varies. There are times when romance feels natural, even to me, even though I’ve never been a huge romance fan. So it goes from 1 to maybe 5. Very rarely, might hit the higher numbers, even.

what is the plot bunny you’ve been carrying for the longest? optional bonus question: do you ever wonder why you haven’t written it yet and experience deep existential dread?

Oh, wow. I’m afraid the great chaoscape of my brain is so messy even I can’t locate everything. I’m not sure if there’s anything I’ve been caring around that I’ve never even written a single word of? Or at least tried to start? The earliest thing I can think of is a retelling of Robin Hood from Prince John’s point of view?

tell us about one of your characters who’s an absolute joy to write

I love writing sassy characters, though I may not always hit the mark. Additionally, really delightfully evil bastards are fun to write too.

what’s a series or franchise you secretly or not so secretly think you’d be, like, a REALLY good writers for if they’d stop being cowards and hire you already?

TOOOOEEEEEIII! XD But more seriously, or rather realistically, there are any number of TV shows in the US where I’d be more than happy to step up.

if you currently write fanfiction or have ever written fanfiction, please tell us about the plot of the first fic you ever wrote

Bold of you to assume I remember. XD If we want to go by ‘first fanfiction I published online’… It was a  Circle of Magic story about a weird magical disease called the ‘Mage Eater’ spreading and eventually reaching the Temple, w/ both Crane and Niko coming down with it. OCs galore (I lie--there were only two).

are you a podcast person? if yes, any recommendations for podcasts talking about writing/being creative in general?

I am not a podcast person, I’m afraid. I must defer this question to my sister and her true crime podcasts. Except not, because she’s not here.

in an ideal world where you’re already super successful and published, would you want to see a tv or movie adaptation of your work? why or why not?

OH GOD YES. Well, I mean. It’s kind of a double edged sword. I have certain works that I feel like I’d be down for letting there be adaptions… Provided I could be involved. Mainly bc there are certain aspects of some of my writing that I would want to be kept authentic, and maybe not subjected to… Certain things that can happen in the large entertainment industry.

at what point in the process do you come up with titles, and how easy or hard is that for you?

It depends. Sometimes I have a really easy time--others I have to give them working titles and go from there. And no matter what, those titles sometimes change. I wonder if any published authors sometimes become dissatisfied w/ their titles even long after the work is published?

what’s something neat you’ve learned while doing research for something you were writing? also, how much do you worry about doing research in general?

Given that right now I am very tired and also drinking alcoholic seltzer (not joking!), I’m afraid I can’t remember anything in particular. ^^; If it counts, there’s actually something I learned while reading about history that inspired a work--the fate of Dr. Rodrigo Lopez, a Portuguese Jewish convert who served as Queen Elizabeth’s physician until he was accused (probably framed) of attempting to poison her, and executed. The Queen, however, maintained his innocence until alleged conspirators ‘confessed’ (naturally under torture, welcome to Tudor England). Even then, she took ages to sign his execution order, and then allowed his family to keep his estates et al. despite the fact that he was convicted of high treason, and those should have been forfeit to the crown (please note--this is an extremely condensed and paraphrased version by memory, and should not be cited for anything ever). As for how much work I put into research… It varies. With fanfiction, I’m not so invested. I’m already playing havoc with canon, so I mainly just try to research the basics and work from there. In other things, I’m more particulate--in my attempts at novels and short stories, I put in more work. Managed to justify using my Elizabethan era novel as a project for joining a class that spent a week in England for research. … Did that make sense?

BIG ask: what do you think is the most important component of a good story?

Oh, gosh. That is a big question. Frankly, I don’t know. What I look for varies in work to work, and I think different types of stories have different kinds of needs. It’s not an ‘exact science,’ so to speak, and I think the answer would be different for different people. I think the main thing I look for is whether or not I can care about any of the characters--or just, anything at all. If I can’t care, I likely won’t stick around.

okay, now that we had that nice one: what’s your WORST writing habit? dig deep, own up to your crimes.

I’ve been known to get… Unnecessarily weird and complex, for all I’ll whine about it in other media, I’ve been guilty of going just as over the top and nonsensical myself. Mostly in my middle to high school days, but I’ve caught myself veering into it again and again.

hey - what are you working on right now?

Define ‘now.’ XD What I’ve been working on the past couple nights is a Zero-One fic, actually. It’s a scene between Yua and a (post imagined reform arc) Isamu. Otherwise--there’s three books, half a dozen fanfictions, and a few short stories.

#Anonymous #Asks #I'm sorry I am very tired right now

[yes-yuri-oh-blog]

(12)D-DC324/Cross-Disciplinary Design Project:research/interview

INTERVIEW: HUMID HOUSE

So, one bloody hot Saturday on the 23rd, I set-out towards Humid House again in the hopes to catch one of the staff on duty. After being led to the wrong MRT by Google The map which then led to a long, hot treacherous walk to the place, I began to realize the reasoning for Humid Houses' name—no matter where you are in Singapore, water seems to find a way to escape your body. Didn’t help that I made a severe mistake by wearing an ultra thick sweater on this day. Anyway, enough complaining. So my partner and I met up there and when we noticed the staff was free, we immediately approached him to ask if he was willing to answer our questions. To my amazement, he was delighted to and even asked if we wanted to wait while he called the owner/boss down because coincidentally, he was here for a client meeting! Excited and encouraged, we sat down and waited while sipping expensive $10 bottled tea (it was too hot I had to get a drink) and when he finally came down, he was just as delighted to help us. (This interview was condensed and summarised to bring out the main points.)

What is the difference between a botanical design studio and say a landscaping service or a florist?

It is quite difficult to explain exactly what the difference is because our service is similar. But our clients say that when they see our work/website, they notice that the way that we compose our work is quite different. I would say that at Humid House, we pay much more attention to things like form, texture, and color. Also, when we create works, we also try to create stories along with it. For example, if you look at the landscaping service we did right outside here, you might notice we pick very specific plants with similar pops of color and form. These plants were chosen to allude to the island of Singapore as a ‘swamp island’, and we hoped these plants could create that narrative. Also, we have a very distinct ethos. We want to celebrate living things. So we only use living plants or plants that used to be living. We make it a point never to use synthetic, man-made plants.

How does the service normally begin? Does a client comes to you with a proposal or do you propose an idea to them?

It can go both ways. Sometimes the client already has very strong ideas of what they want, like maybe they want something tropical or they want certain pops of color. Sometimes they have nothing in mind and they actually let us propose something to them. In our creative process, we always consider the setting in which the service is to be given. Like is it a wedding, a landscaping service for a condominium etc. Also, it may seem baffling to someone as to how we decide what to do because it seems that we have such infinite options like there are so many different plants to choose from and so many places to put them. But there are actually a lot of limitations within each setting. For example, a wedding only has so 2 types of tables, rounded and long. So the given/decided theme and these limitations help inform our choices.

How soon to do you establish the budget? Do you at the beginning or after the consultation? Also, do your clients ever get surprised at the price point of your services?

The clients very often get shocked or surprised when we reveal the price point of our services. And we usually try to set the budget right at the beginning as this will then better inform what and how we can approach the project.

Who is your ideal client? Also, what is your usual customer group like? Eg. age group, background, etc.

I think that our ideal customer is one, who well, gets us. Sometimes customers come in with very strong notions about what they want. Our ideal customer will give us the creative freedom to do what we want. And so to what our customers like, they come from many different backgrounds and several age groups. But most of them have art or creative backgrounds.

Why did you choose to have your floral concierge to be situated inside the Straits Clan 1, right next to the cafe?

We placed our floral concierge inside Straits Clan because we felt that we share the same ethos. If you look at the aesthetic choices of the objects and interior of Straits Clan, like the colored floor tiles or the rattan they used for their display cabinet,

We noticed that you listed workshops as one of your services on your website. How often do you conduct them?

Very rarely. We are usually very busy so we don’t really have time to organize them. Also, another reason why I don’t really teach is that I don’t want to tell people how to do something. Rather, I want to teach a principle, an approach. (I commented out loud: Wow! That is a super art school thinking!) For example, maybe the workshop is about working with different pots. Like maybe it’s a cylinder pot, maybe it’s a rounded pot, etc. I want to teach people to figure out how to work with them regardless of the pot.

How do people come to know about your service/how do you update them when there are upcoming workshops etc.

People usually hear about us through word of mouth. Beyond that, there is also quite a lot of human traffic coming through the Strait Clan where our counter is situated. Also, we also have An Instagram page which we constantly update.

One final question (don’t judge we knew it was a long shot lol), if you had an app right now for your service, what function would you like it to have?

Maybe I would like an app with an online shop function? Hmmm... but then an ordinary website would also be able to do that. (At this point I interjected: but your website only offers customized bouquets! How can a customer customize the bouquet via a website?) Well, they could just call. You forget that a customer can simply give us a call and tell us what they want.

When we visited humid house, a botanical design studio, we managed to interview the owner. One of the things that stood out to us was that he said he chose to open a counter in Straits Clan, a private members club because he believed in creating a community through his brand too.

Another thing that stood out to us was that he conducts workshops but the only people know about it is through Instagram.

#12 #D-DC324/Cross-Disciplinary Design Project #studio

[real-faker]

I love it when you get really into something and start writing down your feelings, it makes me want to get into it too or gets me thinking about it more/in a different way. ur a treasure erica

You know what?  Thank you!  I wish I could just respond to anons privately because I don’t wanna keep drawing attention to the whole thing, but I do want to respond to you, because honestly… HONESTLY…?  That’s why I do it.  That is why I do it.  Sure, yeah, I’m also doing it because I genuinely like talking about the things I’m talking about, but I very rarely even make posts like that completely out of the blue.  I do it every month or so I think, usually talking about the Simpsons, but if I posted every intense feeling I had about a cartoon every time I had one, I’d never shut the fuck up.  Y’all are lucky I’m sparing you, honestly, haha.  

When I DO make a really rambly post about a cartoon, or some really lengthy tags on a reblog, a part of why I’m doing it is because your blog is a platform for you to talk about shit that you’re into.  And if people are following your blog, there’s a chance they give a shit what you have to say, or are at least vicariously interested in your interests.  Maybe you can spread a little bit of info, or a helpful review, or pique someone’s curiosity about something new.  I know I’ve definitely gotten into stuff because someone I follow online mentioned it before.

Like I guess tumblr kinda took the idea of a blog and condensed it into this rapid-fire way to just spread dumb content as quickly as possible and a community developed around it where no one feels right commenting on posts or giving feedback/input, but FUCK that!  A blog is literally an online journal, you can post about whatever the fuck you want, that’s THE POINT!  Ahhhhhgggh.  

And then the one time you decide to actually use it like that, people feel compelled to discourage you from it?  Like, I don’t honestly give a shit, my feelings are not hurt because some stupid kid who can’t spellcheck made a mean comment in my inbox, I’m just bothered that anyone has the audacity to go out of their way to be a jerk to a stranger on the internet when it’s 1000 times easier and takes 0 energy at all to just  f u c k  o f f  i n t o   t h e   s u n.

If someone saw my post and thought “oh cool, I like Erica, and she likes Bob’s Burgers, maybe I’ll check out Bob’s Burgers”, and then they end up with a new show to watch, FUCKING GREAT!  That’s frankly all I might’ve been trying to accomplish in the first place.  ANNNNYWAY, thank you.  Thanks everyone who’s sent me nice comments in the wake of this or any other stupid meaningless post.  I’m not like, actually upset or affected by it, which is why I don’t usually respond, but I do appreciate your guys’ concern, and I appreciate knowing that y’all appreciate my dumb blog.  Thanks.  And keep posting about shit you like and sharing it with people  you like!!  That’s what it’s all about man.

#also like #I didn't get much into it in my original post but #part of the reason I was sharing it here #is because they write Gene like he's autistic #and they do it really well #and i know tumblr's really into positive representation and all that #so I low-key thought it would be a relevant thing to share #without going into much detail #ANYWAY #personal #ask

[teawithbre]

School Notes are not always so pretty - the important part is that they are functional! and I feel like my notes are pretty functional, so I am going to tell you about how I take/organize my notes for the different classes I have! 

I am currently taking 4 different classes, and they all have pretty different classroom styles, which is why I have 4 different methods of taking notes. 

Now, if you have ever been in a Math class and an English class, you know that taking and organizing notes for those classes is VERY different. I’m going to use my classes as examples, but these different methods of taking notes can (of course) be applied to other similar style classes. The most important thing is to use what note taking system works for you! Mixing and matching note systems is ok, using one overall system is ok, just do whatever works for you and keep you organized so you stay on-top of all of your classes!

Language Class

 Alright first class, a language class. I’m currently taking German class but I’m sure most language classes are run in a similar way

The focus of a language class is to be involved: speaking, writing, listening, and learning random new words when someone is late because “They needed to buy a pet snake for their sister.” the point is, language classes are not always laid out super nicely, ideas can get jumbled up, topics out of order, and this can make studying SUPER DIFFICULT

My solution to this is what I call a “scratch notebook” this is basically just a notebook I take to class, that has all of my pencil written - gross looking - scratch notes. 

In this notebook I do any in-class assignments, write down words I don’t understand, anything on the blackboard, anything from the textbook that we cover, basically anything from the class

AFTER class, take this scratch notebook, and transfer all your work (that you think is worthwhile, its probably not worth transferring your answers to that listening activity you wont ever hear again)  into another notebook, I always color code my actual notebook for German, and I try to categorize and organize what we learnt in class to the best of my ability

this also help with learning vocabulary, rewriting is a great way of studying, AND you will be sure to look up those words you wrote down in class that you didn’t know

now for the next class, you have you a nice organized set of notes in one notebook to flip back on when you can’t remember what that word is or how to structure that sentence, and you have your scratch notes so you can write down anything that happens in class.

Math Class 

Yay Math class! My current ‘math type class’ is actually Accounting, but I have taken University level Calculus and Physics and found this method of note taking works for both as well! 

 You’re going to need 2 notebooks - again, I’m sorry-  the first one is going to be for notes. In class notes, textbook notes, slide notes, anything like that. I have my written in colored pens, just to break up the long sections of theory writing, and also because then if you are writing down an in class example, if you use one pen for the actual math, and another color pen for the explanation of what you did, its very helpful for when you look back

The second notebook is for studying. This is the notebook in which I do all my practice problems. I try to organize my practice problems by chapter, for example I’ll have Chapter 1 written on top of the page, underneath is I will have a list of all the formulas we learnt in the chapter, and then on the following pages I will have any practice problems from the text I worked on. This second notebook is not super pretty, its just a way of keeping your practice problems outside of your notes, that when when you go to study you don’t have to flip through 20 pages of practice problems before you getting to a section where you actually wrote down the theory and explained your work

Also having a page before each set of practice problems where you have complied all the formulas for the unit is super handy as well, and its a great things to take a picture of and set as your phone background when you are trying to memorize those formula's - the more you see them the better you will know them!

Economics Class 

I didn’t really know what to call this -type- of class, but for me its Economics. Its those classes that are mostly theory based yet every once in a while you still have a formula, graph, or image to draw. Also useful if a teacher does not have slides to copy from!

For these types of classes you don’t want to type them out on the computer, mostly because its really hard to put an equation into a word document (unless you are pretty practiced at it - I am not) and because its super hard to draw and label a graph on the internet

Basically for this class I resort to traditional style note taking, a simple notebook, my pencil, and just write. My teacher doesn't use any slides, and the reason I choose to hand write for classes with no power point is because then I know I have to really pay attention to what is being said, and I focus more on writing down only whats important, versus having my laptop and knowing I can type quickly and trying to just type everything he says. 

This way I know I am absorbing and understanding the material to the best of my ability. I’m paying attention in class, taking notes that I know I understand, and everyone says handwriting is best for retention anyways

after class,i will go back over these notes with a few colored pens, and any words/sentences that I felt where important I actually erase and rewrite in the pen. This way when I am looking over the notes later, the key points stand out, and also because you are being forced to fully erase and rewrite the sentence you can’t just mindlessly underline or highlight, you have to KNOW what you are erasing so you can rewrite it. 

Business Class

Last but not least, my Business class. Now this is the type of class that moves so flipping quickly you can hardly hear what the teacher is saying, the teacher has so much information they are trying to throw onto you in a short amount of time that you kinda want to cry the first day of class. Note: these teachers probably assign like 100 pages of reading after every class too, nobody understands why, because they always seem to cover all the reading material in their lecture anyways.

I do use my laptop for this class. My teacher posts the slides for this class online after the class, so first things first I do not worry about copying down the slides during class, it would take way to long. Instead, I focus in class on typing up anything he says outside of the slides, generally I have the slides open on one side of my screen, and a word doc on the other, and I just write down anything he says into the word document - or directly onto the power point if you like - anything he says that actually adds to the information on the power point. 

After class when I have time, I grab a notebook, sit down with the slides, and hand write out any important information on the slides. Do not write the slides out word for word, they are not removed and you can always look at them later, so that wont do anything for you. Try to short form, or rewrite them, adding in anything the teacher said in class. The goal is when you go back to study later you have a nice condensed set of notes on what was actual important from the class so you can focus your study around that!

Now I know that all of my methods involve hand writing notes, and some people really hate handwriting. The reason I hand write is because I feel like I understand things so much better when I write it down. I can type pretty mindlessly but if I am handwriting something I have to pay attention.

 Also handwriting forces you to condense notes to what is important, if you tried to write every piece of information from the class your hand would fall off. And being able to pull out important information from your classes shows you have a good understanding of the material. 

Now don’t think that you need anything fancy for these methods of note taking, my notebooks are from the dollar store, my pencils are from Walmart. School is expensive enough as it is, do not go out any buy a whole bunch of new school supplies just to try a new style of note taking. 

However I do advocate for Notebooks because:

1. they are cheaper 

2. when you have a big clunky binder to carry around its going to get a lot more torn up then a small notebook, and everybody knows that when 100 pages falls out of your binder while your walking through the halls, it is just about the worst day ever 

3.  I really rarely need old material in my classes, so when i am finished with one notebook, I grab a new one and take it to class, rather than carrying around months of old material which I will only need for studying, so I leave all my old notebooks in my study area.

Wow that was long - If you read this whole thing, Thank you! I hope it was at least somewhat useful for you and maybe you can implement some of my ideas into your own note taking system! If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask me! Have a wonderful day, and stay motivated!

#study tips #mine #studyspo #studyblr #notes #school #mp #masterpost

[librarieseverywhere]

on remembering

i wish i remembered to write down everything, like how Clem gets so comfortable in my lap sometimes that she rolls off, or how the shower smells so good right when you first turn the water on here. It’s probably one of the best showers we’ll ever have. 

Clem has diabetes, and it’s been hard. We’re still trying to get the insulin dose right, and the timing. She eats the food, now, and that is good. she’s put on a little weight, but she seems tired. I look at her and wonder if she’s older than we’ve thought. 

What are cats for, if not for noticing? if not for slowing down time and bringing you into the present moment? But how often do I sit with the cat purring in my lap, while I stare at my phone, scrolling through instagram. Still, she ties me to here. 

Like last summer, when B was out of town, and it was hot and sticky and I didn’t feel very good, and after I swam my laps at the pool, I came and laid on the couch and watched the week’s worth of Colbert episodes and Clem lay across me, and next to me for the whole time. 

Or the morning where she smashed into the window trying to get a bird, and jumped up, clinging to the window ledge, smashing a picture frame in the process. 

How about how every single morning she jumps up on to the bed with a little squeak and starts to nudge me awake? the sound of her footsteps on the stairs? the way she watches the birds out the back door, tail twitching? I want to soak it all in. I wish I recorded every moment, because while now it seems long, it won’t be. Someday, we’ll come to a day, when Clem is only in our memories. Now, when I think about the next 10 years, they loom large, but if I haven’t learned yet, they go, and soon you will be through them, on the other side. We forget to look back, only to the next 10 years from there. 

I’m only taking it a day at a time now, wishing more than anything to be on the other side of this. Still, it is my life. 10 weeks have passed this way. My trip is a distant memory. 

I thought of other things to record, and then i forgot, my mind jumps around so much, I’m always so scattered, I rarely follow through. I’m not so motivated when it comes to work or creativity - another form of work. I seek adventures and social outlets. I distract myself with pleasure. 

Though I love my work, and if I can get myself to dig in, my head swims with ideas that I can’t write down fast enough. The same with creativity - I have ideas. It’s not all crazy when I jealously stalk the journalists on Twitter- a part of me really believes I could do it. But I just don’t have the drive. 

I’ve been thinking about time, too, here, because what has been such a scary, stressful, grievous time in my short life, will surely be just a blip in the history books later. We won’t remember. The world will forget us, those who were not here will not care. 

I’ve never thought much about what it might have been like to live through the Depression or WWII. 

Why would anyone care that I couldn’t leave my house for 10 weeks? That we questioned everything - maybe some of us for the first time ?

We found out today that we’re moving - we’re excited, but as always, i’m sad, too. The house was good to us. It’s too good for us, hence the problem. The apartment will be “right-sized” and for that, we should be excited. a place we can afford on our own. 

sometimes, i forget to miss my life, to grieve, to pray, to hold a moment for those who are suffering the most, and for the life that could have been. sometimes, i’m consumed by it.

It’s memorial day weekend, but i won’t be wearing my vacation dress and setting off to camp. the energy isn’t there, not this year, because we have a stay at home order. my favorite holiday of the year. i’ve let it go. i’m not too sad about it. i’ve let is all go and just pray for a future where this isn’t a problem anymore. 

i’m supposed to pray for not going back to normal, but so much of what i want is monday night yoga and memorial day in virginia. I want my life from the last few years to be frozen in place, for no one to go anywhere. I want to tell these past years, “thank you” For Clem, for Andrea, for NYAPC, for Ellen, for Chris and Meredith, Gayle and Richard, the Pub and the People. Thank you for the vacation dress and Eckington and Mexico and Argentina. Thank you for live music and cook outs and healthy bodies. 

So clearly, I see now - I had everythign I ever wanted. My life was going up - my career was finetuning, my community was gathering, my dreams were there - lurking in the way i lived. 

we rush, even now, and i don’t sit with my thoughts. i don’t remember the tragedy around me. i get distracted and worried and agitated - about clem’s diabetes and money and moving and work and not working enough and being bored. 

I don’t write everything down - i had a poetic thought earlier that I wanted to write, poignantly, just drop it into a post and leave it. I forgot it, my mind now skimming frantically over the day. 

Something below the surface feels not quite right - and I’ll forget that nothing is quite right - that I should be wakng up on a schedule and riding my bike to Dupont and then coming home, maybe pretty tired, maybe sweaty, maybe with a million things to do, maybe after stopping for yoga or a play at woolly mammoth, or just a drink with a friend. 

those things seem impossible now, and they are. my days now are only tied to the time of the insulin injections - 8:15a and 8:15p. When would i go to dnner with friends? maybe we’ll live like this forever, after all. 

the world is still there, that’s what’s so strange. you can still call front royal canoe and make a reservation. you can take a walk and realize that all these other people are going to work, at the hardware store, the drug store, the Target, the Harris Teeter. They’re doing construction or rescheduling appointments at the dentist’s office. 

The deeper we get into this , the more we see how much we really can let go of, how little we need, how much we can detach. Another world is possible, indeed. They’ve gutted mine. Essential services are Netflix, FedEx, and Amazon. It’s uncanny. If I were the paranoid type, I might truly believe I was just a character in someone’s play brimming with sympolism and cultural critique. 

I got my teeth cleaned yesterday. Tomorrow I’ll vote, go for a run. The weekend stretches before us, tied only with the 8-8 rhythm. We’ll take the cat back to the vet Tuesday only to sit down to a condensed week. In a normal life, I might’ve taken Tuesday off - carpe diem! - salute the summer, and all that would have laid before me. 

I’m losing steam here, but I mind doesn’t feel done. like i’ve got so much more. I do. I need to pray - to say thank you and I’m sorry. I need to remember what sacredness is, to recite beloved poems and words, to hear them reverberate in me. Prayer, I know, is what makes me a more understanding, deeper person. Ocean Vuyong said something to the effect of what i always think - just going for a walk is my prayer - and so i say now - my rage, my sorrow, my joy, my anxiety, these are all my prayers. when i notice the trees, when i smile at my beloved cat, when i see a friend, when i hear a siren, when i wail with anger at the unfathomable circumstances we find ourselves in - these are my prayers - these are the moments of my life .There are only sacred and desacrated places. 

God, we are all you. You are in every detail, in all creatures, in every moment. Help me to slow down, to notice. That’s what love is. 

God, help me. Be with us - let this thing end. 

My work, too, gets in my head, and i think - shouldn’t i be learning more? doing more? becoming an expert in something? picking up a craft? demonstrating my creative side? prepping for a marathon? mostly i eat, but we’ve gotten tired of cooking. I read some, but we watch tv more. i shower when i don’t need to and i order things online that ship to my house. we complain and we fight. we’re here alone, without Ellen, and we miss her. We’ll miss this big old house. what we had was so fleeting, but it was good. 

I feel like my time has not been enough. like i should have done more. at least for work - learning more, trying more, building more, doing PD, and reading all the articles. i can barely see one day ahead. 

still i build in so much crap into my life - i keep busy and i forget to call my mother. i think about moving and vacation and gardens and take out food. I think about my 5 year plan and what i should do with my furlough time and what my research interests are and if i should apply for my PhD, now, and do it remote? would that be worth it? also, how do you make virtual experiences worth it? I should be trying to do interesting teaching strategies. 

I think about Clem and cat diabetes and new make up tips because I look at the internet too much. I wonder if my hair is getting uglier (it is) and if i should volunteer/help/donate money/send notes. i try to be good, but sometmes i forget to try, and then i just stare at my computer screen, flicking between twitter and email and blogs and maybe halfheartedly thinking about work, but at least i should have gotten up if i wasnt going to do any work. and then we watch tv. sometimes that’s all it is. sometimes i do online yoga or we skype a friend. sometimes we take a walk, but there’s nowhere to go. sometimes there are so many after work hours but i don’t call anyone or read my book or anything. sometimes, we go to bed and wake up late the next day. 

i should :

do my geography /sociology degree

a library degree

my Jon Batiste collage

learn to sing and play the banjo

read dozens of books and journal what i learn, really hold them in my heart

pray and pray and pray and contemplate and remember Roger and remember the Zapatistas and remember that my spirituality makes me more interesting, that my soul craves that connection in it’s core, that my love for NYAPC is huge, the place where 9th graders learn that God has no gender and that creation care is a critical part of being Christian. That politics are informed by our faith and that’s why we march and feed the hungry and demand clean air and clean water and a habitable future. 

i’m rambling. i’m hungry. so is clem. i’m sad we’re moving but happy to find another place i’m worried about money but we have plenty. i’m tired but don’t know what i’d do anymore anyway, or how to begin again. 

but maybe this, to vow again, to write, to pray, to contemplate, to share, to record. days and times and habits, they slip away and we don’t notice. 

like when i used to try and make smoothies - that was for a few years, but i don’t do that anymore. or when we used to eat bread and olive oil, like we did in spain, but somehow we stopped. nothing actually is constant - you learn that. i’m 33 and i remember being 23 both like it was yesterday and like that probably wasnt even me, just a movie i watched. i’m nostalgic for yesterday and 10 years ago and i wouldn’t change a thing and i wish i could try something totally different. it’s a mess, this whole thing, and i should at least make something beaiutiful out of it. like Mary Oliver, who knew to be joy and light anyway.