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revlisrekons · 2 years

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The Forbidden Discussion: "what happens when your deity leaves you?"

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To all be on the same page, let's review some vocab: <3

Worshiping (a Deity): Worship is always invited and never frowned upon. It is essentially the idea of admiring a Deity and setting up a space for them. It is harmless and people do it all over the world with multiple Deities constantly. There is no end goal, except for becoming closer to that Deity.

Working with (a Deity): This can be considered taking Worship to the next level. This involves the “imitation” of a conversation between yourself and the Deity to which there is a mutual understanding of a mentor/mentee relationship. Typically, when one is working with a Deity, there is an end goal in mind that involves learning a new set of skills or the development of emotional growth.

To begin, I don't think a Deity will ever forcefully leave *you* because they aren't attached to *you.* Deities are powerful, limitless beings. They have other things to do. For starters, Deities, always, take time away. They are important beings with a lot to do, you can't expect them to just hang around your altar all day. There will be days, weeks, and months one could go without seeing their Deity, but that doesn't mean they've stopped working with you. In fact, most Deities will make an effort to get your attention before they stop working together so the practitioner is aware. If you feel like a Deity has left but you aren't sure, give it a while. I'd say, a good rule of thumb is three months. If you haven't interacted with your Deity in three months and you feel no guilt or any kind of feeling like you should be talking with your Deity, they have probably realized that this connection between the two of you isn't right for working together, and that's okay. Deities are allowed to say no. When Deities do severe that connection, it's because they've either realized that this working relationship isn't working, or that they've taught you all that they can for where you are in your life. The second one is probably more common than the first. In conclusion, Deities will break the mentor/mentee bond with you, but you are always allowed to worship them. They aren't going anywhere, really.

So, what does that look like? What does it feel like?

Allow me to use the very real and very raw departure of Lord Dionysus as an example of what to expect:

I had worked with Lord Dionysus since July 26th, 2021. He came into my life very suddenly but he was adamant about starting a relationship and working with me. Previously, I had only been working with Lady Freyja. She was my first Deity ever, so you can imagine my surprise when the next Deity who is coming into my life is Hellenic, let alone Lord Dionysus. He left me exactly a year later, with about as much notice as when he was arriving. I remember when I was working with only Lady Freyja, it took her months to fully come into my space and for me to feel comfortable as a spiritual hostess (think dinner party- not séance.) With Dionysus, he was very primal and instinctual and didn't let me ponder over the best offerings to give him. He was very clear that he was just going to be here for as long as I needed. This was just basic worship, but I could feel the desire to work with him bubbling beneath my skin.

When I finally wrote a prayer to him, directly asking him to work with me on specific things, he agreed to. There were about three, maybe four, categories of my life in which I wanted his aid. I'm not going to get too specific because I am a big believer in my spiritual privacy, but he agreed to help me with my desires in exchange for an altar space and devotional offerings.

He was very quick to subtly teach me the ways of Hellenic Paganism. He always made it a point to not accept my offering until he had done his side, like a true petition, even if I had never wrote one until after working with him. He taught me to stay cleanly for the Hellenic Gods, often accepting baths as a personal cleansing practice. In fact, as I was touching up on my Hellenic Paganism for my newly entering Deities, Lord Hades and Lady Persephone, I found that a lot of what I was worried about learning, Lord Dionysus had taught it to me one way or another.

The day that Lord Dionysus decided to communicate that our working relationship would be put on hold was a normal day. I started noticing signs that he was wanting me to talk with him, which these included my mind pointing out the wine, cheese, and grape stand at my local supermarket, the wine and grapes next to each other when I opened up the fridge later that day, and other, more mental signs. I decided that a good discussion between the two of us, and my spirit guides, couldn't hurt. It was, after all, only a Friday night. He probably wanted me to do a devotional act or some tarot and journaling.

When I in fact sat down to do some tarot and journaling, I found out he was leaving. The card that told me everything I needed to hear was the Page of Wands.

My question was: "I'm unsure I am ready to work with new Spirits. I'm open to the idea, I'm just not sure I'm ready." (Him and I had previously been discussing Deity work) and I pulled the Page of Wands.

Not once, but twice.

The tarot book that I have been reading for almost a year now (Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom, A Tarot Journey to Self-Awareness by Rachel Pollack) defined the upright Page of Wands to have qualities such as, "a particular announcement to the world, and to ourselves, that we are ready to begin either a 'project' (this can refer to a relationship as well as a practical plans) or a new phase of life." (169).

This completely blew my mind.

Over the next day, I began saying goodbye, which included cleansing Lord Dionysus' previous altar space and giving thanks to him by cleansing all of his offerings that weren't votives and rearranging my space. He kept his grape soap and his snacks, as well as his candle. Everything else, the playbooks, the crystals, the offering bowls, the tarot cards, where cleansed and replaced on either my altar or made to be Lord Hades'/Lady Persephone's. For example, Lord Dionysus' wine glass was one of his most precise offerings I ever gave him, and he decided that it should be Lady Persephone's chalice. (because they are homies like that, obviously.) There were no feelings of anger or sadness from him, only bittersweet energy.

This is Lord Dionysus' candle the day after his last day. I burnt it until the wick gave out. All of the devotional herbs I gave to him at the start of our relationship were charred at the bottom of his candle, with all of the wax evaporated completely. The halo of soot that descends upon the candle like a curtain serves as a reminder: our working relationship is over, but my story isn't.

I am very grateful for the experiences and life lessons that working with Lord Dionysus taught me. Working with him was definitely a challenge because there's not that many resources on how to work with him or what he likes, etc. There was a very big learning curve, but when it is all said and done I would definitely love to relive my year with Lord Dionysus.

If you are feeling called to work with him, I can't recommend it enough. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me all that you need.

Blessed Be <3

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Work Cited:

Pollack, Rachel. Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom, A Tarot Journey to Self-Awareness. Weiser Books, 1980. Accessed 17 October 2021.

#lord dionysus #hellenic pagan #deity worship #deity work #deities #altarspace #dionysus #dionysus altarspace #dionysus altar #A Tarot Journey to Self-Awareness #deity leaving #dionysus upg #pagan upg #deity altar #deity candle #deity communication

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reasoningdaily · 7 months

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Daniel Motaung, a former Facebook content moderator employed by Sama, photographed near his home in South Africa on Feb. 11, 2022. Motaung alleges Sama wrongfully terminated him in 2019 while he was attempting to start a union

In a drab office building near a slum on the outskirts of Nairobi, Kenya, nearly 200 young men and women from countries across Africa sit at desks glued to computer monitors, where they must watch videos of murders, rapes, suicides, and child sexual abuse.

These young Africans work for Sama, which calls itself an “ethical AI” outsourcing company and is headquartered in California.

Sama says its mission is to provide people in places like Nairobi with “dignified digital work.” Its executives can often be heard saying that the best way to help poor countries is to “give work, not aid.” The company claims to have helped lift more than 50,000 people in the developing world out of poverty.

This benevolent public image has won Sama data-labeling contracts with some of the largest companies in the world, including Google, Microsoft and Walmart. What the company doesn’t make public on its website is its relationship with its client Facebook.

Here in Nairobi, Sama employees who speak at least 11 African languages between them toil day and night, working as outsourced Facebook content moderators: the emergency first responders of social media. They perform the brutal task of viewing and removing illegal or banned content from Facebook before it is seen by the average user.

Since 2019, this Nairobi office block has been the epicenter of Facebook’s content moderation operation for the whole of Sub-Saharan Africa. Its remit includes Ethiopia, where Facebook is trying to prevent content on its platform contributing to incitement to violence in an escalating civil war.

Despite their importance to Facebook, the workers in this Nairobi office are among the lowest-paid workers for the platform anywhere in the world, with some of them taking home as little as $1.50 per hour, a TIME investigation found. The testimonies of Sama employees reveal a workplace culture characterized by mental trauma, intimidation, and alleged suppression of the right to unionize. The revelations raise serious questions about whether Facebook—which periodically sends its own employees to Nairobi to monitor Sama’s operations—is exploiting the very people upon whom it is depending to ensure its platform is safe in Ethiopia and across the continent. And just as Facebook needs them most, TIME can reveal that content moderators at Sama are leaving the company in droves due to poor pay and working conditions, with six Ethiopians resigning in a single week in January.

The office in Nairobi, Kenya, where Facebook content moderators began working in 2019, photographed on Feb 10, 2022. Sama was known publicly as Samasource until early 2021.

Khadija Farah for TIME

“The work that we do is a kind of mental torture,” one employee, who currently works as a Facebook content moderator for Sama, told TIME. “Whatever I am living on is hand-to-mouth. I can’t save a cent. Sometimes I feel I want to resign. But then I ask myself: what will my baby eat?”

TIME is aware of at least two Sama content moderators who chose to resign after being diagnosed with mental illnesses including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, and depression. Many others described how they had been traumatized by the work but were unable to obtain formal diagnoses due to their inability to afford access to quality mental healthcare. Some described continuing with work despite trauma because they had no other options. While Sama employs wellness counselors to provide workers with on-site care in Nairobi, most of the content moderators TIME spoke to said they generally distrust the counselors. One former wellness counselor says that Sama managers regularly rejected counselors’ requests to let content moderators take “wellness breaks” during the day, because of the impact it would have on productivity.

Workers say Sama has also suppressed their efforts to secure better working conditions. In the summer of 2019, content moderators threatened to strike within seven days unless they were given better pay and working conditions. Instead of negotiating, Sama responded by flying two highly-paid executives from San Francisco to Nairobi to deal with the uprising. Within weeks Daniel Motaung, the attempted strike’s leader who was in the process of formally filing trade union papers, had been fired—accused by Sama of taking action that would put the relationship between the company and Facebook at “great risk.” Sama told other participants in the labor action effort that they were expendable and said they should either resign or get back to work, several employees told TIME. The workers stood down before the seven days were up, and there was no pay increase.

Are you a content moderator at Sama or elsewhere? TIME would like to speak with you. Please get in touch with the author: [email protected]

“At Sama, it feels like speaking the truth or standing up for your rights is a crime,” a second employee tells TIME. “They made sure by firing some people that this will not happen again. I feel like it’s modern slavery, like neo-colonialism.” (Sama disputes this characterization, and said in a statement that its content moderators are paid triple the Kenyan minimum wage.)

Foxglove, a legal NGO based in London, says it has informed Sama it is preparing legal action in relation to its alleged wrongful termination of Motaung. “Firing workers for trying to organize is against the law,” says Cori Crider, Foxglove’s director. “Daniel did a brave thing by blowing the whistle here—as was his legal right.” The Katiba Institute, a Kenyan public-interest law firm, is assisting with the case.

Sama denies that there was any strike or labor action. “We value our employees and are proud of the long-standing work we have done to create an ethical AI supply chain,” Shriram Natarajan, the head of Sama’s Nairobi office, said in an emailed statement. “We exist to provide ethical AI to our global customers and we are proud of the role our employees play in building new online experiences and cleaning up the internet. It’s a tough job and it’s why we invest heavily in training, personal development, wellness programs, and competitive salaries.”

Facebook says it spent more than $5 billion on safety measures in 2021. It contracts the services of more than 15,000 content moderators globally, most of whom are employed by third-parties like Sama. In response to a detailed set of questions for this story, a spokesperson for Facebook’s parent company Meta said: “We take our responsibility to the people who review content for Meta seriously and require our partners to provide industry-leading pay, benefits and support. We also encourage content reviewers to raise issues when they become aware of them and regularly conduct independent audits to ensure our partners are meeting the high standards we expect of them.”

A strike, struck down

Daniel Motaung was a 27-year-old university graduate from South Africa looking for his first job when he came across an online ad from Sama seeking Zulu speakers.

It was early 2019, and Sama had recently won a contract to provide content moderation for Facebook’s Sub-Saharan Africa markets. Sama placed job ads in countries across Africa, both directly and through agencies, looking for people with fluency in different African languages who were willing to relocate to Kenya.

Motaung, like many other moderators TIME spoke with, says he had little idea what content moderation involved when he applied for the job. He thought it simply involved removing false information from social media. He says he was not informed during his interview that the job would require regularly viewing disturbing content that could lead to mental health problems. After he accepted and arrived in Kenya, Sama asked him to sign a non-disclosure agreement, and only then did they reveal to him the type of content he would be working with daily. By then, he felt it was too late to turn back.

Several other current and former content moderators described similar experiences of not being warned about the nature of the job. Two, from separate countries, said they had answered job ads placed via agencies for “call center agents.”

Elsewhere in the world, similar working conditions have landed Facebook in hot water. In 2020, the social network paid out $52 million to fund mental health treatment for some of its American content moderators following a lawsuit centered on mental ill health stemming from their work, including PTSD.

In the U.S. and Europe, many Facebook content moderators employed by the outsourcing firm Accenture are now asked to sign a waiver before they begin their jobs, acknowledging that they may develop PTSD and other mental health disorders. African content moderators working for Sama say they are not asked to sign such a waiver.

Read more: ‘I Sold My Soul.’ WhatsApp Content Moderators Review the Worst Material on the Internet. Now They’re Alleging Pay Discrimination

According to payslips seen by TIME, Sama pays foreign employees monthly pre-tax salaries of around 60,000 Kenyan shillings ($528), which includes a monthly bonus for relocating from elsewhere in Africa. After tax, this equates to around $440 per month, or a take-home wage of roughly $2.20 per hour, based on a 45-hour work week. Sama employees from within Kenya, who are not paid the monthly relocation bonus, receive a take-home wage equivalent to around $1.46 per hour after tax. In an interview with the BBC in 2018, Sama’s late founder Leila Janah attempted to justify the company’s levels of pay in the region. “One thing that’s critical in our line of work is to not pay wages that would distort local labor markets,” she said. “If we were to pay people substantially more than that, we would throw everything off.”

Employees themselves didn’t see it that way. One day in July 2019, Motaung got talking to a group of other moderators who were hired four months previously. He recounts that many said they felt the job that they had applied for was not the one they were doing, and discussed their low pay and poor working environment.

Some said they had done research that showed content moderators in other countries were being paid far more for the same work. They resolved to group together and take action to better their conditions. Motaung took the lead, and he and his colleagues created a WhatsApp group chat to begin canvassing opinion more widely. Soon, the group had more than 100 members.

Employees who were in the group chat say they discussed the trauma of the work and how many felt they had been hired under false pretenses. Kenyan employees said it was unfair that they were paid around 30% less than the foreigners in the office, and that they had not yet received the medical insurance they say they had been promised. Other employees were frustrated that Sama had recently introduced compulsory night shifts to meet Facebook’s demand for 24-hour coverage.

Based on the discussions in the chat, Motaung drafted a petition with a list of demands for Sama’s management, including that everyone’s pay be doubled. The document, seen by TIME, said that if management did not “substantively engage” with the demands within seven days, employees would go on strike.

Kibera, the largest informal settlement in Africa, out of which Sama says many of its workers are hired.

Khadija Farah for TIME.

The Alliance, as the group of employees began calling themselves, presented their petition to Sama’s management in a meeting on July 30, 2019. Two senior Sama executives from San Francisco joined via video-conference, but they dismissed the workers’ concerns, according to Motaung and others. “They told us there are lots of people who are dying to get this job, that they did research on the wages and this is a nice wage considering what people are getting in Kenya,” says one employee who was present during the meeting. A 2021 study carried out by three MIT researchers found the average salary at Sama including benefits was approximately 2.5 times the Kenyan minimum wage. But even so, these wages only cover the basic costs of living, workers say, and don’t allow them to save or improve their financial situations.

Within days, the two executives from San Francisco had arrived in Nairobi, and Motaung was suspended from his job pending a disciplinary hearing. Sama told Motaung some of his colleagues had accused him of bullying, intimidating and coercing them to sign their names to the list of demands. He was told to stay away from the office and barred from talking to his colleagues. Motaung says the allegations that he bullied more than 100 of his colleagues into signing a petition for better pay and working conditions are ridiculous. He suspects that Sama intimidated several of his former colleagues into making statements against him. “It was just them pretending to follow a process so that they can get rid of me quickly, so that everything can go back to normal,” he says. Sama did not comment on allegations of worker intimidation.

Meanwhile, other employees involved in the attempted strike action were being invited to individual meetings with Cindy Abramson, one of the executives who had flown in from San Francisco. Two employees who were particularly vocal during the worker revolt said that Abramson flattered them in these meetings, suggesting that they had leadership potential, and dangled the prospect of promotion if they could convince their colleagues to stand down.

Three rank-and-file participants in the labor action told TIME that during their own one-on-one meetings, Abramson, whose total compensation in 2018 was $194,390, according to Sama’s public filings, intimidated them into revoking their names from the petition, saying that they must choose between disaffiliating from the Alliance or losing their jobs. Her warnings were especially stark toward Kenyan employees, according to people with knowledge of the discussions. The Kenyans were reminded in the meetings that they were more easily replaceable than foreign employees, which many of them took as a threat of being fired if they did not stand down. Scared, many people started revoking their signatures from the petition. “They threatened us, and we backed down,” says one Kenyan employee, who reasoned that it was better to have a low-paying job than no job at all.

“There never was a strike or labor action,” Sama said in its statement to TIME. “Being a responsible employer, we wanted to see our team in person, meet with everyone face-to-face and address their concerns head-on. It’s why we flew members of our leadership team to our offices in Nairobi and it’s a decision we stand behind.” The statement also said that after employees asked for higher salaries, the company conducted a pay audit and found they were already being paid double the living wage for the region. Sama said it has since changed its onboarding processes to “be more transparent about what to expect and we intensified our onboarding program by developing new training modules to ensure team members were prepared on how to handle the functions of the role.” Abramson, who has since left Sama, declined to comment.

Two weeks after his suspension, Sama fired Motaung, claiming he was guilty of gross misconduct “for engaging in acts that could amount to bullying, harassment and coercion and that led to the disruption of business activities and put the relationship between Samasource and its client [Facebook] at great risk,” according to a termination letter dated August 20, 2019. (Sama was known publicly as Samasource until early 2021, when it changed its name as part of a transformation that also included switching from a non-profit organization to a business.) The letter also noted Motaung’s leadership role within the Alliance, and said that he had advised his colleagues not to attend one-on-one meetings with management. Sama did not respond to questions about its firing of Motaung, but said in its statement that it had dismissed three employees who had “violated workplace rules.”

In the days before he was terminated, Motaung was busy drafting documents that would have formally established the Alliance as a union under Kenyan law. “I think they found out. While I was doing that, I received a letter terminating my employment,” he says. Motaung’s work permit was then canceled, leaving him just three weeks to leave Kenya for his native South Africa.

Kenyan labor law says employees are protected from dismissal as a result of “past, present or anticipated trade union membership,” and the Kenyan constitution says every worker has the right to go on strike.

Before he left Kenya, Motaung says, he handed the union incorporation papers to another employee in the movement. But the resolve of the Alliance had been broken, and the union never materialized. “We were in shock, devastated, broken,” one employee said. “And then life continued. After that, nobody dared to speak about it.”

For a time, however, a spark of resistance remained. Jason White, a former Afrikaans quality analyst from South Africa, says Sama fired him around a year later, in the summer of 2020. He had been a participant in the Alliance, and continued to ask questions even after most of his colleagues had given up. He says he regularly asked managers whether Sama was deducting too much tax from employees’ payslips, and why his girlfriend, also an employee with the company at the time, was not provided a work permit despite being promised one.

In July 2020, White and a colleague took their concerns to the South African embassy in Nairobi. In a series of emails, reviewed by TIME, and then at a meeting in person, the pair informed South African officials about the thwarted strike and Motaung’s firing the previous year, and how some of their colleagues believed they had been hired under false pretenses. The officials promised to investigate, but never followed up. The embassy did not respond to a request for comment.

After that, “there was a definite change in behavior from [Sama’s] top management,” White says. Soon after, a Sama manager offered him a payment equivalent to two months’ salary on the condition that he stop mentioning the pay and conditions at Sama to anybody, he says. He declined.

Then, White says, he was called into a disciplinary hearing, charged with having unauthorized contact with a Facebook employee, forbidden under his employment contract. White says he believes this was a reference to an email that he had sent to a Facebook staffer who had previously visited the Nairobi office, in which he had revealed his pay to her and asked her whether she believed Sama was exploiting him and other employees. Although he never received a reply, he believes that the employee told Facebook, who informed Sama. “The company saw that as a good opportunity to use that against me,” he says. Sama did not address TIME’s questions about White’s dismissal or the alleged payment offer extended to him. A Facebook spokesperson said that the email’s recipient had followed protocol.

A system driven by Facebook

Once every few months, Facebook employees travel from Dublin to Nairobi to lead trainings, brief content moderators on new policies, and answer questions. Five content moderators said that ahead of these meetings, Sama managers regularly instruct workers not to discuss their pay with Facebook staff.

But satisfying Facebook is at the center of the work culture Sama has created.

When Idris (one of the content moderators cited above who asked to use a pseudonym out of fear for his personal safety and job prospects) arrives at Sama’s office in Sameer Business Park each day, he logs into a piece of software designed by Facebook.

As soon as Idris looks at his first piece of content, a clock starts ticking. He might be confronted with graphic images or videos depicting dismemberment, murder or rape. No matter how disturbing the content, Idris must make a decision within 50 seconds about whether to take down or leave up this material—a target laid down by his Sama bosses.

Every week, his average handling time (AHT) is measured against the 50 second target during a formal review process. (The target can rise as high as 70 seconds, or sink as low as 36, depending on workload and staffing, according to employees.) If Idris takes too long reviewing each piece of content, he might be reprimanded by his team leader. If the problem persists, he will be pulled off working for Sama’s contract with Facebook and put on an internal training program instead. If he still does not work fast enough, he believes, he could be fired.

Moderators like Idris are expected to maintain an AHT of around 50 seconds, regardless of whether the video they are reviewing is minutes or even hours long. Facebook guidelines seen by TIME—previously unreported—instruct content moderators to watch only the first 15 seconds of a video before marking it as OK to remain on the platform and moving onto the next piece of content—as long as the title, transcript, top comments and thumbnail of the video appear to be innocent, and no users nor Facebook’s AI systems have flagged specific points in the video.

Through its prioritization of speed and efficiency above all else, this policy might explain why videos containing hate speech and incitement to violence have remained on Facebook’s platform in Ethiopia.

TIME reviewed several examples of lengthy Facebook Live videos that contained hate speech and incitement to violence well into the body of the videos. In one example, a two-hour long video with more than 1,000 views, a man speaking Amharic says that anyone married to Tigrayans or Oromos—two major ethnic groups from Ethiopia—are traitors and enemies of the state. In a coded call for ethnic cleansing, the man says that Amharas must not live in an Ethiopia that contains members of those groups.

An Ethiopian digital rights group, Network Against Hate Speech, told TIME in March 2021 that it had reported this video and more than 70 others to Facebook. But this video was not taken down until at least three months later.

“The majority of posts that have taken [a] long [time] before removal … are videos,” Network Against Hate Speech told TIME in an email last year. In the months since, the Ethiopian civil war has only escalated, with reports of mass atrocities and murders of civilians along ethnic lines.

Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen said in an interview that the working conditions described by content moderators at Sama appear to have had a serious impact on Facebook’s ability to police content in Ethiopia. “I am entirely unsurprised that these moderators are not being treated with the dignity that they deserve,” she told TIME. “It is tragic that the consequence of this devaluing of human beings is that others, in some of the most vulnerable places in the world, are now suffering as well.”

Adding to the pressure they feel, Idris and other Sama content moderators are also expected to make the correct call at least 84% of the time: a target known as “quality score,” which team leaders track each week and use to measure what they deem to be underperformance.

Some pieces of content are reviewed twice, first by Idris, and then by a more senior “quality analyst,” who is generally a former content moderator with good knowledge of Facebook’s policies. If the pair disagree on whether a piece of content should be permitted to remain on the platform, the quality analyst’s decision is taken as final, and Idris’s quality score ticks downward. Even if they agree a piece of content should be removed, they must also agree on the reason for removal.

Facebook has put some features in place to help protect moderators, like the option to render videos in black and white or add blurring. But one Sama employee says that he does not use these options because of the pressure to meet quotas. “How can you clearly see whether content is violating or not unless you can see it clearly? If it’s black and white or blurred, I cannot tell,” the employee says. “Some people use the option, but I don’t. Because if I wrongly action that [content], I will be marked down.”

Employees say they are expected to work for up to nine hours per day including breaks, and their screen time is monitored. “I cannot blink,” one employee says. “They expect me to work each and every second.” In a statement, Sama said that it caps working hours for content moderators at 37 hours per week, however TIME reviewed an employment contract from 2019 that said workers can be expected to work for up to 45 hours per week without additional compensation. It is unclear whether that includes breaks.

TIME reviewed several copies of Sama content moderators’ performance reviews, where they were measured against target metrics for AHT and quality. In one email, a manager chastises a content moderator for spending too much time not moderating content while logged in.

Employees say that on a typical working day, they are expected to spend around eight hours logged into Facebook’s content moderation program. On such a day, a target of 50 seconds per piece of content would equate to a de-facto daily quota of nearly 580 items.

This evidence appears to contradict public statements that Facebook has made in the past about expectations it places on its contractors. “A common misconception about content reviewers is that they’re driven by quotas and pressured to make hasty decisions,” Ellen Silver, Facebook’s vice president of operations, said in a 2018 blog post. “Let me be clear: content reviewers aren’t required to evaluate any set number of posts … We encourage reviewers to take the time they need.”

A Meta spokesperson, Ben Walters, said Meta asks contractors like Sama to encourage moderators to take as much time as they need to make decisions. The video guidelines, he said, were designed to allow content moderators to use their best judgment so as to avoid wasting time on long videos that do not appear to contain policy violations. Sama did not respond to questions about its workflows or targets.

Idris says that while Sama management, not Facebook, are the ones pressuring content moderators over their metrics, he thinks it is clear that they do so because of anxieties about what it would mean if the company did not meet Facebook’s expectations. “That is always their excuse: the client has seen your AHT is high,’” Idris says, referring to times he is put under pressure by his manager. A former employee adds: “They only care about pleasing the client.”

Content moderators at Sama are meant to receive “wellness breaks” of at least an hour per week, to help them deal with seeing traumatizing content. But some employees described having to “beg” to be allowed to take their allotted wellness breaks.

A former counselor said that Sama managers, not counselors, had the final say over when and whether content moderators were allowed to take breaks. The counselor witnessed managers repeatedly rejecting content moderators’ requests for breaks, citing productivity pressures. “There is a clinical responsibility in our job to ensure that the moderators are cared for,” said the former counselor, who asked not to be named. “This responsibility is not fully being fulfilled. Sama is more interested in productivity than the safety of the moderator.”

Enter the virus

When Kenya went into COVID lockdown in March of 2020, Sama announced that it would hire out two luxury lodges in the countryside for its employees to relocate to, in order that they could continue their work uninterrupted. Many took up the offer, which was optional, and left their families behind. Dozens of Sama’s Facebook content moderators moved into the Lukenya Getaway resort a short drive away from Nairobi, where rooms typically cost more per night than an average Kenyan content moderator at Sama makes in a week.

Less than two miles from Sama's office is Mukuru kwa Njenga, one of the largest informal settlements in Nairobi.

Khadija Farah for TIME

In November 2021, Sama finally reopened the doors to its office near the Nairobi slum, Mukuru kwa Njenga. Employees, many of whom had not received a single COVID-19 vaccine, say they were pressured to return to the building even as cases of the Omicron variant rose in the city.

Some attributed the decision to a belief among managers that content moderators’ quality scores and Average Handling Times would improve if they were physically present. (Several employees said the return to the office had had the opposite effect.)

Soon there was an outbreak of COVID in the office, and many content moderators started requesting sick leave. Instead of granting all of them, a Sama HR manager informed employees via text message that they would not be granted sick leave unless they received a note from one of two specific hospitals.

As a result, some employees who couldn’t access those hospitals went to the office even if they had symptoms, two employees said.

In its statement, Sama said it had offered unlimited COVID-related sick days in response to the pandemic. “As we reopened our offices, we’ve worked to keep our team safe by following CDC guidelines, having nurses on site, utilizing 20% of the office space to encourage social distancing, and we’ve hosted three vaccination drives to make it as easy as possible to get vaccinated if employees choose,” the company said.

Outsourcing trauma to the developing world

In an era where Facebook has come under sustained fire for failing to stem the flow of misinformation, hate speech and incitement to violence on its platforms, the company is often praised when it says it is increasing the number of dollars it spends on safety.

But hiring content moderators in the U.S. and Europe is expensive compared to the cheap labor available in Kenya and other countries in the Global South like India and the Philippines.

The rise of content moderation centers in these countries has led some observers to raise concerns that Facebook is profiting from exporting trauma along old colonial axes of power, away from the U.S. and Europe and toward the developing world.

“Outsourcing is a scam that lets Facebook rake in billions while pretending worker exploitation and union-busting is somebody else’s fault,” says Crider, the Foxglove lawyer who is currently preparing a legal case against Sama. “But it’s not just Sama,” she added. “Foxglove has been working with Facebook moderators around the world for years – and these people have had it with exploitation, the strain of toxic content, and suppression of their right to unionize.”

Almost all of the employees TIME spoke to for this story described being profoundly emotionally affected by the content they were exposed to at Sama – trauma that they said was often exacerbated by the way they have been treated in their jobs.

Many expressed the opinion that they might be able to handle the trauma of the job – even take pride that they were sacrificing their own mental health to keep other people safe on social media – if only Sama and Facebook would treat them with respect, and pay them a salary that factors in their lasting trauma.

In its statement to TIME, Sama said it had “revisited” its mental health processes after employees raised concerns in 2019 “and made further enhancements, and provided additional coaching to team leads.” But employees say the protections remain inadequate to this day. “When it comes to your personal welfare,” one employee says, “You are not treated like a real human.”

After returning to South Africa after being fired, Motaung, the leader of the failed 2019 strike, says it felt like everything around him crashed. He went to Pretoria to look for work, but struggled. He lost a lot of weight.

“I was not OK mentally, emotionally,” he says. He eventually returned to a village in the mountains where he has family. “When I got home, they were like, what happened to you? What were you doing in Kenya? I couldn’t even talk about it because I signed an NDA.”

Sama extended Motaung access to its wellness counselors for one extra month after his departure, as it does for all outgoing employees. But Motaung didn’t take up the offer. He had attended wellness sessions around once a week when he was in Kenya, but found them unhelpful. “Those people …It was sort of like we were there for their entertainment, or there for them simply to get paid,” he says. “Whereas the help that we really needed, we were not getting.”

Motaung says he is still dealing with the trauma he incurred at Sama, but is unable to afford a therapist. “If you do this work, it’s very hard not to experience permanent scars to your emotions and mental state,” he says.

In conversation, Motaung still avoids any specific mention of what he saw during his work, conscious that he is still bound by the NDA. What he will say is that he had a traumatic experience, and that he still gets flashbacks. He expects to carry the burden of that trauma with him until the day he dies. “That sort of thing can change who you are,” he says. “It can destroy the fiber of your entire being.”

#Inside Facebook's African Sweatshop #facebook #outsourcing #south africa #SAMA #kenya #slave wages #content moderator #trauma #emotional abuse #mental scars from content moderation #nda #sama sweatshop for content moderators

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filaantrocrowdfunding · 2 years

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First Wealth: Our Health

A healthy and balanced diet is what nutrition is all about. Food and drink supply the energy and nutrients required for good health. Understanding these nutrition terms may help you make better food choices.

Nutrition is the foundation of good health. That is why we strive to consume as many nutrients as possible through our diet. National Nutrition Week is observed every year from September 1 to September 7. It aims to promote the importance of a well-balanced diet that contains all the nutrients that our bodies require for various functions and the maintenance of our overall health. The Food And Nutrition Board of India oversees the week-long programme.

'Celebrate a World of Flavors,' is the theme of National Nutrition Week 2022. The goal is to provide people with adequate nutrition while also allowing them to enjoy the various flavours of Indian cuisine.

In the long run, a healthy diet is essential for maintaining a healthy body. It can aid in the prevention of a variety of chronic diseases and improve the quality of life for people suffering from diabetes and other non-communicable diseases. However, as people get older, their dietary needs change. This is why it is critical to understand which foods suit you and provide adequate nutrition.

As per The Federal, a well-balanced, healthy, and nutritious diet has numerous advantages. It protects against chronic illness and leads to a happy and long life.

India was ranked 101st out of 116 countries in the Global Hunger Health Index, with a score of 27.5. The country is suffering from a severe hunger crisis, with many citizens suffering from malnourishment. Obesity affects a portion of the population, which is primarily due to poor lifestyle choices.

The following are the primary goals of National Nutrition Week:

To process food intake for growth, metabolism, and repair.

To raise awareness about the importance of proper nutrition.

To raise awareness about the importance and role of adequate nutrition in the body.

As per medindia, here are some nutritional Statistics for India,

According to the National Family Health Survey (NFHS) 4 in 2015-16, the percentage of anaemic children decreased from 69.4% to 58.6%, according to the National Family Health Survey (NFHS) 4 in 2015-2016.

According to NFHS 4, the percentage of children under the age of five who are underweight for their height has increased from 6.4% to 7.5%.

The percentage of stunted children has decreased from 48% to 38.4%.

According to the Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2021, India is ranked 101 out of 117 countries evaluated.

According to their guidelines, India's rating on the 2021, Global Hunger Index, which measures hunger around the world, is 27.5, putting it in the serious category.

On March 8, 2018, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the POSHAN Abhiyaan to eliminate malnutrition in India by 2022.

It is assumed that 21 days of a healthy diet is sufficient to change bad habits and transform a person into a better version of themselves.

Importance of National Nutrition Week

People in India are unconcerned about malnourishment wreaking havoc on their lives. National Nutrition Week was established to raise awareness about the importance of a healthy diet.

Several non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have formed alliances to improve the nutrition of people living in poverty.

The campaign has inspired people to change their diet and live a more balanced lifestyle.

Nutrients are necessary for the body. The following nutrients are essential:

Gives us the energy we need to live our lives.

Keeps the body healthy Keeps the immune system strong

Reduces the risk of various chronic diseases

Increases lifespan by delaying the effects of ageing

Ways to Observe National Nutrition Week

Donate a small number of food grains or crops to people in need.

Connect with and support non-profit organisations.

Filaantro, a crowdfunding platform supports the goal of “Zero Hunger” and therefore, Filaantro along with Child Help Foundation has started an initiative to support this goal. Donating to the Zero Hunger campaign will help millions to sleep with a full stomach every night.

Substitute nutritious vegetables, fruits, and snacks for unhealthy foods.

Participate in programmes organised by the Food and Nutrition Board of India's Community Food and Nutrition Extension Units (CFNEU). During National Nutrition Week, 43 CFNEUs organise campaigns, workshops, exhibitions, and awareness drives.

Participate in the various social awareness programmes offered by the Ministry of Women and Child Development.

Raise awareness about the importance of nutrition through posters and social media posts.

Malnutrition should not be viewed as a symptom of poverty with negative consequences for individuals' health and development, but as a national issue that results in lost productivity and economic backwardness. It is now time to create a moment to improve nutrition on an individual level.

Thus, in the mission mode approach, a series of convergent and well-coordinated actions in various sectors are required to address this large network problem of malnutrition.

“To ensure good health: eat lightly, breathe deeply, live moderately, cultivate cheerfulness and maintain an interest in life.” – William Londen

Author: Lubdha Dhanopia

#filaantro #fundraising #charity #crowdfunding #raise funds #donate #donations #nonprofits

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tulsikidsschoolbalotra · 2 years

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World Population Day on July, 11th

World Population Day is an annual event, observed on July 11 every year, which seeks to raise awareness of global population issues.

World Population Day was established in 1989 by the Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme — UNDP. The inspiration for this holiday was the peaking public interest in the celebration of ‘Five Billion Day’ on July 11, 1987. This original date was decided to be set as ‘World Population Day’ by the United Nations General Assembly, and resolution 45/216 made this official in December 1990.

World Population Day seeks to draw attention to issues related to a growing global population. According to the United States Census Bureau, the world's population as of June 2019 was over 7.5 billion people. The world's population is increasing with birth rates and life expectancy on the rise. Over the last century, between 1916 and 2012, global life expectancy more than doubled from 34 to 70 years. The world population quintupled from 1.5 billion to 7.3 billion between 1900 and 2016.

The United Nations established World Population Day in 1989 to garner attention for population issues and crises. With an ever-growing world population, World Population Day serves to highlight the challenges and opportunities of this growth and its impact on planet sustainability, heavy urbanization, availability of health care, and youth empowerment. This day is observed annually on July 11th.

The theme for World Population Day in 2021 was Rights and choices are the answer: Whether baby boom or bust, the solution to shifting fertility rates lies in prioritizing the reproductive health and rights of all people.

China and India are by far the most populous countries on the globe. With 1.4 and 1.3 billion inhabitants, respectively, both countries are home to about 37% of the world's people.

The annual growth rate of the world's population peaked at 2.1% in 1962 and has since been decreasing. It is estimated that by the year 2100, the population will slow to 0.06% annual growth.

According to the United Nations, India is expected to surpass China and become the world's most populated country by 2024. Its population is projected to reach 1.5 billion in 2030.

We are in a bottle of overpopulation and wasteful consumption that could push half of Earth's species to extinction in this century - E.O. Wilson, naturalist, and biologist

World Population Day Top Events and Things to Do

Reduce your carbon footprint to slow global warming and pollution. Walk instead of driving, use energy-saving light bulbs, carpool with others, turn down the AC/heat when you are not home, and reuse and recycle paper, bottles, and plastics.

Take a shorter shower, turn off the water while brushing your teeth and avoid waste. As the population increases, clean safe water will become even more of a commodity.

Watch a documentary about the population. Some of our favorites, Don't Panic: The Truth About Population, Overpopulated, and How Many People Can Live On The Planet

Support an organization or charity that works on reproductive health education. Reproductive health education can help slow the AIDS epidemic, support pregnant women worldwide and provide contraceptive methods and education to those who need it most. Some organizations to consider include, the UN World Population Fund, International Planned Parenthood Federation, and the World Population Foundation.

The theme for World Population Day 2022

Awareness about the effects of overpopulation on development and nature is emphasized. The increasing population also sheds light on health problems faced by women during pregnancy and childbirth, making the need for family planning, gender equality, and maternal health more important than ever.

Watch the complete video on World Population.

vimeo

#Internationalday #world population day

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udhyam · 2 months

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How an Entrepreneurial Mindset Development Curriculum Leads to Innovation and Creativity

A company's foundation is made up of perseverance, vision, forbearance, and—above all—the CEO's leadership and entrepreneurial spirit. According to a Harvard research published in 2021, more than two thirds of businesses did not provide investors with a profit. So where do they make mistakes? The key to making a company stand out in an environment of rapid digital transition is the leadership qualities exhibited by entrepreneurs. Let's look at the characteristics of an entrepreneurial mindset development curriculum and how to cultivate one.

An entrepreneurial mindset: what is it?

The term "entrepreneurial mindset" is a way of thinking that makes it easier to become an expert in creating, growing, and managing a firm. This kind of thinking makes it possible to accept mistakes and gain knowledge from mistakes, which enables executives to effectively navigate their companies through difficulties.

The Importance of an Entrepreneurial Mindset

Understanding the risk environment and taking a compassionate, problem-solving stance towards the world are key components of entrepreneurial thinking. By holding leaders accountable for their choices and results, it creates a continuous flow of activity to support creative ideas. Additionally, a collaborative work atmosphere replaces a competitive one, and an entrepreneurial mindset development curriculum attitude helps with organisational skills.

Entrepreneurial Mindset: Characteristics

1. Positive Inner Dialogue

Businesses develop their own mentors and coaches. This involves having a lot of self-talk that helps you navigate setbacks well, having ongoing conversations with self-doubt, and being able to rein in impulsive ideas with entrepreneurial mindset development curriculum.

2. Experimentation

It takes ongoing experimentation with new concepts, approaches to solving problems, and business models to be a co-founder or the single founder. This fosters a culture of teams capable of letting go of long-standing concepts and embracing more recent ones.

3. Accountability

Since mistakes can and often do happen, success seldom has a simple road map. Just as crucial as fostering a culture of continual improvement is taking responsibility for your choices, actions, and results.

4. Resilience

The epidemic destroyed international business networks and made entrepreneurs realise how important it is to be resilient in trying circumstances. It is the duty of entrepreneurs to quickly learn from their mistakes and move on from them.

5. Empathy

Lastly, fostering an innovative culture frequently starts with practicing kindness towards oneself and others. Being aware of the organization's mood aids leaders in boosting morale, which is crucial for startups.

How to Develop an Entrepreneurial Mindset

In a world where innovation is rife, having an entrepreneurial mindset development curriculum attitude is essential to success. How to sharpen it is as follows:

Step 1: Set Clear, Reachable Goals

Develop the skill of establishing an objective and completing it for entrepreneurial mindset development curriculum. Create more manageable, smaller goals if your vision is well-defined. If not, schedule some time each day to come up with ideas. The secret is to relentlessly pursue your objective step by step.

Step 2: Redefine Perspectives

Entrepreneurs should challenge conventional notions of success and failure and reflect on their past errors. Failure needs to be redefined, and people should see it as a chance to reflect and do better.

Step 3: Learn to be Decisive

For every novel idea to become a fully realised product, great decisiveness is required at every stage. Determination is what Cayenne Consulting refers to as a stealth startup killer. Therefore, learn to be decisive at every turn to avoid becoming overwhelmed by intense competition.

Step4: Enable a Growth Mindset

To do this, you must confront your anxieties, control your feelings, and maintain your curiosity. Growth mindsets, according to psychologist Carol Dweck, are characterised by the belief that hard work and perseverance, rather than innate skills, are what lead to success.

Entrepreneurial Mindset Examples

Using an entrepreneurial mindset development curriculum, the following are some suggestions and illustrations of ways to question popular business paradigms:

Building Customer Relationships First: While typical company strategies include product creation, author and entrepreneur Greg Gianforte (of Bootstrapping Your company) approached potential clients directly to learn about their requirements. His business, RightNow Technologies, saw positive cash flow as a result.

Approach: Entrepreneur James Altucher discusses developing relationships with potential clients without expecting anything in return in his article Help and Care as Business Strategies. Since a company's brand or image is closely associated with charitable ideals, he thinks this approach will pay off handsomely in the long run.

Value-Driven Connections: Former Docstock.com CEO Jason Nazar emphasises the significance of offering potential customers and business contacts value before requesting something from them. Value-driven relationships boost marketing ROI, in contrast to how networked venues like LinkedIn operate.

By fostering an entrepreneurial attitude, you may avoid making bad business judgements and surpass your rivals. If this strikes a chord with you, take advantage of the extensive range of entrepreneurial courses offered by Udhyam Learning Foundation, which are developed in collaboration with internationally recognised universities. You'll be more prepared for the thrilling voyage ahead thanks to it.

#organization #udhyamlearningfoundation #EntrepreneurialMindsetDevelopmentCurriculum

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brookston · 5 months

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Holidays 12.1

Holidays

Antarctica Day

Applejack Day (My Little Pony)

Basketball Day

Battle of the Sinop Day (Russia)

Becky Thatcher Day

Bifocals at the Monitor Liberation Day

Bizarre Bazaar

Chia Pet Hunting Season begins

Civil Air Patrol Day

Commemoration Day (UAE)

Crossing of the Cattle at Diafarabe (Mali)

Damrong Rajanuhab Day (Thailand)

Data Innovation Day

Day of the First President (Kazakhstan)

Day With(out) Art

First Day of Meteorological Summer Day (Southern Hemisphere)

First Day of Meteorological Winter Day (Northern Hemisphere)

First President Day (Kazakhstan)

Fishmas

Flag Day (Saba)

Freedom and Democracy Day (Chad)

Fullveldisdagurinn (a.k.a. Self-Governance Day; Iceland)

Indigenous Faith Day (Arunachal, India)

International Prisoners for Peace Day

International Sweater Vestival

James Gandolfini Day (New Jersey)

Military Abolition Day (Costa Rica)

MMMHop Beer Day

My Husband Strung the Xmas Lights and Now I Can't Open the Garage Door Day

National Biliary Atresia Awareness Day

National Christmas Book Day

National Christmas Lights Day

National Cookie Cutter Day

National Day of Courage

National Grinch Day

National I Told You So Day

National Jandal Day (New Zealand)

National Online Risk and Compliance Day

National Sabbath-Keeping Schools Day

National Transit Tribute to Rosa Parks Day

National Twin With Your Dog Day (UK)

National Water Safety Day (Australia)

National Women Support Women Day

National Zinc Day

Operation Santa Paws begins [until 21st]

Peaceful Easy Feeling Day (San Diego, California)

Playboy Magazine Day

Prisoners for Peace Day

Proclamation of the Republic (Central African Republic)

Rosa Parks Day (Ohio, Oregon) [also 2.4]

Scrabble Day

Teachers’ Day (Panama)

University Student Strike Day (Myanmar)

Wallace & Gromit’s Great British Tea Party begins (thru 21st)

Wax Day (French Republic)

Wear a Dress Day [also 6.1]

Weather Service Day

White Rabbit Day

World AIDS Day (UN)

Yukon Order of Pioneers Day

Ziua Unirii (Romania)

Food & Drink Celebrations

Dr. Pepper Day

Eat A Red Apple Day

International Maratheftiko Day

National Baked Alaska Day

National Fried Pie Day

National Peppermint Bark Day

National Pie Day [also 1.23]

1st Friday in December

Bandcamp Friday [1st Friday]

Bartender Appreciation Day [1st Friday]

Eccentric Day (Bell's Brewery; Michigan) [1st or 2nd Friday or Another Day]

Farmer’s Day (Ghana) [1st Friday]

Faux Fur Friday [1st Friday]

Gospel Day (Marshall Islands) [1st Friday]

International Sweater Vestival [2nd Friday after Thanksgiving]

National Salesperson Day [1st Friday]

Open It! Weekend begins [1st Friday]

Purple Friday (UK) [1st Friday]

Independence Days

Great Union Day (celebrating merger of Transylvania & Romania, 1918)

Iceland (from Denmark, 1918)

Portugal (from Spain, 1640) [a.k.a. Restoration of Independence]

Sancratosia (Declared; 2021) [unrecognized]

Feast Days

Alexander Briant (Christian; Saint)

Ansanus (Christian; Saint)

Barbes Diena (Sheep Fertility Festival; Ancient Latvia)

Bruna Pellesi (Christian; Blessed)

Castritian (Christian; Saint)

Charles de Foucauld (Christian; Blessed)

Edmund Campion (Christian; Saint)

Eligius (a.k.a. Eloy), Bishop of Noyon (Christian; Saint)

Evasius (Christian; Saint)

Feast for the Death of Aleister Crowley (Thelema)

Feast of Saints Kyle, Stan, Cartman and Kenny (Church of the SubGenius; Saints)

Festival for Neptune/Poseidon (Ancient Greece/Rome)

Festival for Pietas (Goddess of Devotion; Ancient Rome)

Francia (Positivist; Saint)

Grwst (Christian; Saint)

Juner (Muppetism)

Kalends of December (Ancient Rome)

Karl Schmidt-Rottluff (Artology)

Marijuana Sauce Day (Pastafarian)

Mindfulness Day (Zen Buddhism)

Mothra Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Nahum (Christian; Saint)

Nicholas Ferrar (Episcopal Church)

Ralph Sherwin (Christian; Saint)

Shiva’s Day (Pagan)

Ursicinus of Brescia (Christian; Saint)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Butsumetsu (仏滅 Japan) [Unlucky all day.]

Premieres

Adventures of Don Juan (Film; 1948)

Alice and the Three Bears (Disney Cartoon; 1924)

Axis: Bold As Love, by Jimi Hendrix (Album; 1967)

Beebo Saves Christmas (WB Animated TV Special)

Blondie, by Blondie (Album; 1976)

The Booze Hangs High (WB LT Cartoon; 1930)

Candide, by Leonard Bernstein (Operetta; 1956)

A Charlie Brown Christmas, by Vince Guarldi (Soundtrack Album; 1965)

Christmas Vacation (Film; 1989)

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, by Mark Twain (Novel; 1884)

Dark (German TV Series; 2017)

The Floating Admiral, by the Detection Club (Mystery Novel; 1931)

Follow Me Boys (Film; 1966)

The Girl Can’t Help It (Rock Music Film; 1956)

Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens (Novel; 1836)

Happy Xmas (War Is Over), by John Lennon (Song; 1971)

Hi, Hi, Hi, by Wings (Song; 1972)

The House of the Rising Sun, by Frijid Pink (Song; 1969)

Kim, by Rudyard Kipling (Novel; 1900)

The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentlemen, by Laurence Sterne (Novel; 1759)

The Maltese Falcon, by Dashiell Hammett (Novel; 1930)

National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (Film; 1989)

No Logo, by Naomi Klein Book; 1999)

Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen (Novel; 1817) [#5]

The Philadelphia Story (Film; 1940)

Playboy Magazine (Adult Magazine; 1953)

Promises, Promises (Broadway Musical; 1968)

The Return of the King (Film; 2003) [Lord of the Rings #3]

The Shape of Water (Film; 2017)

The Simple Art of Murder, by Raymond Chandler (Novel; 1944)

Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin), by Sly and the Family Stone (Song; 1969)

The Thin Man, by Dashiell Hammett (Novel; 1934)

Withering Heights, by Emily Bronte (Novel; 1847)

Today’s Name Days

Blanka, Charles, Eligius, Natalie (Austria)

Blanka, Florencija, Kazimir, Natalija, Naum (Croatia)

Iva (Czech Republic)

Arnold (Denmark)

Oskar, Osmar, Oss (Estonia)

Oskar, Oskari (Finland)

Florence (France)

Blanka, Eligius, Natalie (Germany)

Areti, Jacob, Naoum, Philaretos, Theoklitos (Greece)

Elza (Hungary)

Ansano, Eligio (Italy)

Arnolds, Arvaldis (Latvia)

Algmina, Butigeidas, Eligijus, Natalija (Lithuania)

Arnljot, Arnold, Arnt (Norway)

Długosz, Edmund, Eliga, Eligiusz, Iwa, Natalia, Natalis, Platon, Sobiesława (Poland)

Filaret, Naum (Romania)

Edmund (Slovakia)

Blanca, Cándida, Eloy (Spain)

Oskar, Ossian (Sweden)

Bianca, Blanca, Blanche, Eli, Ely, Sherwin (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 335 of 2024; 30 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 5 of week 48 of 2023

Celtic Tree Calendar: Ruis (Elder) [Day 4 of 28]

Chinese: Month 10 (Gui-Hai), Day 19 (Gui-Si)

Chinese Year of the: Rabbit 4721 (until February 10, 2024)

Hebrew: 18 Kislev 5784

Islamic: 18 Jumada I 1445

J Cal: 5 Zima; Fiveday [5 of 30]

Julian: 18 November 2023

Moon: 81%: Waning Gibbous

Positivist: 27 Frederic (12th Month) [Francia]

Runic Half Month: Is (Stasis) [Day 6 of 15]

Season: Autumn (Day 69 of 89)

Zodiac: Sagittarius (Day 10 of 30)

Calendar Changes

December (Gregorian Calendar) [Month 12 of 12]

#calendar #Holidays

0 notes

brookstonalmanac · 5 months

Text

Holidays 12.1

Holidays

Antarctica Day

Applejack Day (My Little Pony)

Basketball Day

Battle of the Sinop Day (Russia)

Becky Thatcher Day

Bifocals at the Monitor Liberation Day

Bizarre Bazaar

Chia Pet Hunting Season begins

Civil Air Patrol Day

Commemoration Day (UAE)

Crossing of the Cattle at Diafarabe (Mali)

Damrong Rajanuhab Day (Thailand)

Data Innovation Day

Day of the First President (Kazakhstan)

Day With(out) Art

First Day of Meteorological Summer Day (Southern Hemisphere)

First Day of Meteorological Winter Day (Northern Hemisphere)

First President Day (Kazakhstan)

Fishmas

Flag Day (Saba)

Freedom and Democracy Day (Chad)

Fullveldisdagurinn (a.k.a. Self-Governance Day; Iceland)

Indigenous Faith Day (Arunachal, India)

International Prisoners for Peace Day

International Sweater Vestival

James Gandolfini Day (New Jersey)

Military Abolition Day (Costa Rica)

MMMHop Beer Day

My Husband Strung the Xmas Lights and Now I Can't Open the Garage Door Day

National Biliary Atresia Awareness Day

National Christmas Book Day

National Christmas Lights Day

National Cookie Cutter Day

National Day of Courage

National Grinch Day

National I Told You So Day

National Jandal Day (New Zealand)

National Online Risk and Compliance Day

National Sabbath-Keeping Schools Day

National Transit Tribute to Rosa Parks Day

National Twin With Your Dog Day (UK)

National Water Safety Day (Australia)

National Women Support Women Day

National Zinc Day

Operation Santa Paws begins [until 21st]

Peaceful Easy Feeling Day (San Diego, California)

Playboy Magazine Day

Prisoners for Peace Day

Proclamation of the Republic (Central African Republic)

Rosa Parks Day (Ohio, Oregon) [also 2.4]

Scrabble Day

Teachers’ Day (Panama)

University Student Strike Day (Myanmar)

Wallace & Gromit’s Great British Tea Party begins (thru 21st)

Wax Day (French Republic)

Wear a Dress Day [also 6.1]

Weather Service Day

White Rabbit Day

World AIDS Day (UN)

Yukon Order of Pioneers Day

Ziua Unirii (Romania)

Food & Drink Celebrations

Dr. Pepper Day

Eat A Red Apple Day

International Maratheftiko Day

National Baked Alaska Day

National Fried Pie Day

National Peppermint Bark Day

National Pie Day [also 1.23]

1st Friday in December

Bandcamp Friday [1st Friday]

Bartender Appreciation Day [1st Friday]

Eccentric Day (Bell's Brewery; Michigan) [1st or 2nd Friday or Another Day]

Farmer’s Day (Ghana) [1st Friday]

Faux Fur Friday [1st Friday]

Gospel Day (Marshall Islands) [1st Friday]

International Sweater Vestival [2nd Friday after Thanksgiving]

National Salesperson Day [1st Friday]

Open It! Weekend begins [1st Friday]

Purple Friday (UK) [1st Friday]

Independence Days

Great Union Day (celebrating merger of Transylvania & Romania, 1918)

Iceland (from Denmark, 1918)

Portugal (from Spain, 1640) [a.k.a. Restoration of Independence]

Sancratosia (Declared; 2021) [unrecognized]

Feast Days

Alexander Briant (Christian; Saint)

Ansanus (Christian; Saint)

Barbes Diena (Sheep Fertility Festival; Ancient Latvia)

Bruna Pellesi (Christian; Blessed)

Castritian (Christian; Saint)

Charles de Foucauld (Christian; Blessed)

Edmund Campion (Christian; Saint)

Eligius (a.k.a. Eloy), Bishop of Noyon (Christian; Saint)

Evasius (Christian; Saint)

Feast for the Death of Aleister Crowley (Thelema)

Feast of Saints Kyle, Stan, Cartman and Kenny (Church of the SubGenius; Saints)

Festival for Neptune/Poseidon (Ancient Greece/Rome)

Festival for Pietas (Goddess of Devotion; Ancient Rome)

Francia (Positivist; Saint)

Grwst (Christian; Saint)

Juner (Muppetism)

Kalends of December (Ancient Rome)

Karl Schmidt-Rottluff (Artology)

Marijuana Sauce Day (Pastafarian)

Mindfulness Day (Zen Buddhism)

Mothra Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Nahum (Christian; Saint)

Nicholas Ferrar (Episcopal Church)

Ralph Sherwin (Christian; Saint)

Shiva’s Day (Pagan)

Ursicinus of Brescia (Christian; Saint)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Butsumetsu (仏滅 Japan) [Unlucky all day.]

Premieres

Adventures of Don Juan (Film; 1948)

Alice and the Three Bears (Disney Cartoon; 1924)

Axis: Bold As Love, by Jimi Hendrix (Album; 1967)

Beebo Saves Christmas (WB Animated TV Special)

Blondie, by Blondie (Album; 1976)

The Booze Hangs High (WB LT Cartoon; 1930)

Candide, by Leonard Bernstein (Operetta; 1956)

A Charlie Brown Christmas, by Vince Guarldi (Soundtrack Album; 1965)

Christmas Vacation (Film; 1989)

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, by Mark Twain (Novel; 1884)

Dark (German TV Series; 2017)

The Floating Admiral, by the Detection Club (Mystery Novel; 1931)

Follow Me Boys (Film; 1966)

The Girl Can’t Help It (Rock Music Film; 1956)

Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens (Novel; 1836)

Happy Xmas (War Is Over), by John Lennon (Song; 1971)

Hi, Hi, Hi, by Wings (Song; 1972)

The House of the Rising Sun, by Frijid Pink (Song; 1969)

Kim, by Rudyard Kipling (Novel; 1900)

The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentlemen, by Laurence Sterne (Novel; 1759)

The Maltese Falcon, by Dashiell Hammett (Novel; 1930)

National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (Film; 1989)

No Logo, by Naomi Klein Book; 1999)

Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen (Novel; 1817) [#5]

The Philadelphia Story (Film; 1940)

Playboy Magazine (Adult Magazine; 1953)

Promises, Promises (Broadway Musical; 1968)

The Return of the King (Film; 2003) [Lord of the Rings #3]

The Shape of Water (Film; 2017)

The Simple Art of Murder, by Raymond Chandler (Novel; 1944)

Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin), by Sly and the Family Stone (Song; 1969)

The Thin Man, by Dashiell Hammett (Novel; 1934)

Withering Heights, by Emily Bronte (Novel; 1847)

Today’s Name Days

Blanka, Charles, Eligius, Natalie (Austria)

Blanka, Florencija, Kazimir, Natalija, Naum (Croatia)

Iva (Czech Republic)

Arnold (Denmark)

Oskar, Osmar, Oss (Estonia)

Oskar, Oskari (Finland)

Florence (France)

Blanka, Eligius, Natalie (Germany)

Areti, Jacob, Naoum, Philaretos, Theoklitos (Greece)

Elza (Hungary)

Ansano, Eligio (Italy)

Arnolds, Arvaldis (Latvia)

Algmina, Butigeidas, Eligijus, Natalija (Lithuania)

Arnljot, Arnold, Arnt (Norway)

Długosz, Edmund, Eliga, Eligiusz, Iwa, Natalia, Natalis, Platon, Sobiesława (Poland)

Filaret, Naum (Romania)

Edmund (Slovakia)

Blanca, Cándida, Eloy (Spain)

Oskar, Ossian (Sweden)

Bianca, Blanca, Blanche, Eli, Ely, Sherwin (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 335 of 2024; 30 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 5 of week 48 of 2023

Celtic Tree Calendar: Ruis (Elder) [Day 4 of 28]

Chinese: Month 10 (Gui-Hai), Day 19 (Gui-Si)

Chinese Year of the: Rabbit 4721 (until February 10, 2024)

Hebrew: 18 Kislev 5784

Islamic: 18 Jumada I 1445

J Cal: 5 Zima; Fiveday [5 of 30]

Julian: 18 November 2023

Moon: 81%: Waning Gibbous

Positivist: 27 Frederic (12th Month) [Francia]

Runic Half Month: Is (Stasis) [Day 6 of 15]

Season: Autumn (Day 69 of 89)

Zodiac: Sagittarius (Day 10 of 30)

Calendar Changes

December (Gregorian Calendar) [Month 12 of 12]

#Holidays

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spacenutspod · 6 months

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5 min read NASA, Pacific Disaster Center Increase Landslide Hazard Awareness Communities worldwide now have access to a powerful tool to increase their awareness of landslide hazards, thanks to NASA and the Pacific Disaster Center. A humanitarian worker from USAID observes the impacts of a landslide. USAID deployed an elite Disaster Assistance Response Team on Nov. 17, 2020, to lead the U.S. response to Hurricanes Eta and Iota.USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance After years of development and testing, NASA’s Landslide Hazard Assessment for Situational Awareness model (LHASA) has been integrated into the Pacific Disaster Center’s (PDC) multi-hazard monitoring, alerting, and decision-support platform, DisasterAWARE. LHASA allows researchers to map rainfall-triggered landslide hazards, giving DisasterAWARE users around the world a robust tool for identifying, tracking, and responding to these threats. The aim is to equip communities with timely and critical risk awareness that bolsters disaster resilience and safeguards lives and livelihoods. Landslides cause thousands of deaths and billions of dollars in damage every year. Developing countries often bear disproportionate losses due to lack of access to hazard early warning systems and other resources for effective risk reduction and recovery. Reports from the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction emphasize that early warning systems and early action are among the most effective ways to decrease disaster-related deaths and losses. The distribution of reported fatalities from 10,804 rainfall-triggered landslides in NASA’s Global Landslide Catalog (GLC) from 2007 to 2017. White dots represent incidents with zero reported fatalities and dots in the color scale from pink to red represent incidents in the range of 1-5000 fatalities. The NASA landslides team, based primarily out of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, develops the Global Landslide Catalog and LHASA with support from NASA’s Disasters program. NASA Scientific Visualization Studio “Some local authorities develop their own systems to monitor landslide risk, but there isn’t a global model that works in the same way. That’s what defines LHASA: it works all the time and it covers most regions of the world,” says Robert Emberson, NASA Disasters associate program manager and a key member of the NASA landslides team. “Thanks to our collaboration with the Pacific Disaster Center, this powerful landslide technology is now even more accessible for the communities that need it most.” LHASA uses a machine learning model that combines data on ground slope, soil moisture, snow, geological conditions, distance to faults, and the latest near real-time precipitation data from NASA’s IMERG product (part of the Global Precipitation Measurement mission). The model has been trained on a database of historical landslides and the conditions surrounding them, allowing it to recognize patterns that indicate a landslide is likely. The result is a landslide “nowcast” – a map showing the potential of rainfall-triggered landslides occurring for any given region within the past day. This map of hazard likelihood can help agencies and officials rapidly assess areas where the current landslide risk is high. It can also give disaster response teams critical information on where a landslide may have occurred so they can investigate and deploy life-saving resources. In 2021, a 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck Haiti, triggering a series of landslides across the country. Landslides can destroy infrastructure and impede the movement of people and life-saving aid. United Nations World Food Programme Partnering to Protect the Vulnerable Generating landslide nowcasts is merely the first step. To be truly effective, vulnerable communities must receive the data in a way that is accessible and easy to integrate into existing disaster management plans. That’s where the Pacific Disaster Center comes in. PDC is an applied research center managed by the University of Hawaii, and it shares NASA’s goal to reduce global disaster risk through innovative uses of science and technology. Its flagship DisasterAWARE software provides early warnings and risk assessment tools for 18 types of natural hazards and supports decision-making by a wide range of disaster management agencies, local governments, and humanitarian organizations. Prominent users include the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA), and the World Food Programme (WFP). “The close pairing of our organizations and use of PDC’s DisasterAWARE platform for early warning has been a special recipe for success in getting life-saving information into the hands of decision-makers and communities around the world,” said Chris Chiesa, PDC deputy executive director. The collaboration with PDC brings NASA’s landslide tool to tens of thousands of existing DisasterAWARE users, dramatically increasing LHASA’s reach and effectiveness. Chiesa notes that teams in El Salvador, Honduras, and the Dominican Republic have already begun using these new capabilities to assess landslide hazards during the 2023 rainy season. This screenshot from PDC’s DisasterAWARE Pro software shows LHASA landslide hazard probabilities for Myanmar in Sept. 2023. Red areas indicate the highest risk for landslide occurrence within the past three hours, while orange and yellow indicate lesser risk. Pacific Disaster Center PDC’s software ingests and interprets LHASA model data and generates maps of landslide risk severity. It then uses the data to generate landslide hazard alerts for a chosen region that the DisasterAWARE mobile app pushes to users. These alerts give communities critical information on potential hazards, enabling them to take protective measures. DisasterAWARE also creates comprehensive regional risk reports that estimate the number of people and infrastructure exposed to a disaster – focusing specifically on things like bridges, roads, and hospitals that could complicate relief efforts when damaged. This information is critical for allowing decision-makers to effectively deploy resources to the areas that need them most. DisasterAWARE landside risk report for Myanmar, showing estimated population, infrastructure and capital exposure to landslide risk, as well as the community’s needs. Pacific Disaster Center This effort between NASA and the PDC builds upon a history of fruitful cooperation between the organizations. In 2022, they deployed a NASA global flood modeling tool to enhance DisasterAWARE’s flood early-warning capabilities. They have also shared data and expertise during multiple disasters, including Hurricane Iota in 2020, the 2021 earthquake in Haiti, and the devastating August 2023 wildfires in Maui, PDC’s base of operations. “The LHASA model is all open-source and leverages publicly available data from NASA and partners,” says Dalia Kirschbaum, lead of the NASA landslides team and director of Earth Sciences at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. “This enables other researchers and disaster response communities to adapt the framework to regional or local applications and further awareness at scales relevant to their decision-making needs.” Kirschbaum and her team were recently awarded the prestigious NASA Software of the Year award for their work developing LHASA. Share Details Last Updated Oct 26, 2023 Related Terms EarthNatural Disasters Explore More 3 min read International Ocean Satellite Monitors How El Niño Is Shaping Up Article 1 week ago 3 min read All Together Now: Drill Joins Other Moon Rover Science Instruments Article 1 week ago 2 min read NASA’s Global Science Hackathon Attracts Thousands of Participants Article 3 weeks ago 5 min read NASA, Pacific Disaster Center Increase Landslide Hazard Awareness

#space #astronomy #news #science

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nathjonesey-75 · 7 months

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Where's The Awareness?

Well, here we are again. Although; I’d be very surprised - if no headline were used – if anyone knew to which “here” I was referring.

To clarify, it’s October; in other words, ADHD Awareness Month. Yep – who knew? Before the eyes start to roll with “not another ADHD whinge” whizzing over the scalps of some neurotypical and untroubled minds, if you happen to work with, or yet – have children with the condition, there may be a bit of a tremor on its way to you, as there is currently a shortage of ADHD medication around the world.

While the primary intention of this piece was to focus upon the need for more events in Britain for this supposedly supportive awareness period, if there is to be a widespread behavioural problem incoming, it may well make up for the silence in awareness promotion. Earlier today I was revising my blog site’s content. The first article I wrote following my diagnosis in 2021 (https://www.tumblr.com/nathjonesey-75/662840205569556480/all-day-he-dreams-a-work-in-progress) urged me to pen once more about my learning and experiences since the diagnosis. In-keeping with current political climate on this volatile, twisted little island in 2023 – it’s not a pleasant personal report.

Last year, there was a noticeable vitriol in the press towards trans people – with regard to the particular public spike in those identifying as transsexual. While I can’t comment as to that predicament having seen any improvement in public acceptance and media coverage since, there has been a definite flurry of air-headed, entitled, right-wing finger-pointing towards the ADHD condition – for similar spikes in diagnoses. Following this surge in particularly the celebrity community, it’s not surprising that tongues have wagged. Sadly, reverting again to the current climate of misinformation and assumptions from the wider uninformed masses, shock horror – we are the 2023 witches.

On that note, let’s clarify some blatant truths and some uncomfortable facts about this neurodivergent category – and a huge thank you to #AttentionUK for these facts.

HERE ARE SOME STATS ABOUT THE COSTS OF UNSUPPORTED ADHD:

Children with untreated ADHD:

• 46% of kids with untreated ADHD have been expelled. 35% drop out • Kids with untreated ADHD have problems with peer relations and end up with fewer friends • ADHD is very heritable. If one kid has ADHD there is a 30 to 40% chance that a sibling will have it as well • Kids with untreated ADHD have 2 to 4 times more fights with their siblings than their non-ADHD peers. • They also have 50% more bicycle accidents. …and 33% more A&E visits • More than half of all parents with ADHD will have a child with ADHD

Adults with ADHD:

• It shouldn’t come as a surprise that adults with untreated ADHD have problems with low self-esteem • Young adults with untreated ADHD show 2.6 times the number of sexual partners and 9 times the number of pregnancies compared to their non-ADHD peers • Likewise, they show 4 times the number of STD and are 2.5 times more likely to have been tested for HIV/AIDS • People with untreated ADHD have 2 to 4 times more car crashes than people without the disorder. And, they are usually far more likely to be the ones at fault • In fact, people with untreated ADHD are 7 times more likely to have had multiple vehicle crashes than people without ADHD • They are twice as likely to have been fired from a job [60] and 9 times more likely to end up in prison than people without the disorder • They also have higher rates of smoking and illegal drug use as well as higher rates of divorce, unemployment and underemployment • People with untreated ADHD end up costing at least twice as much in terms of medical care than they would without the disorder

It should come as less of a surprise, given these statistics – that adults with ADHD are five times as likely to have attempted suicide than those without (14% to 2.7%). These reasons should be adequately acceptable to justify ADHD Awareness Month going ahead annually for the foreseeable future.

From the ground level perspective of adults with ADHD, while the condition is a certified disability, medication is certainly not free – along with counselling and therapy as an alternative or bolster to medication. Neither is medication available on a quarterly payment basis, as is almost every other pharmaceutical health drug in England and Wales. So, having to order repeat prescriptions each month, when it is a government-controlled drug, is not the most practical or convenient. This may be understandable as an abuse control measure, yet for those who live in solitude; with added health complications – now emphatically with the current shortage, suggests that there must be a more supportive framework.

It would be a welcome surprise if a right-wing government were to reshuffle, restructure and bolster the mental health act positively – while boosting the budget for mental health medication. I’d however expect Brighton and Hove Albion to win the Premier League before Westminster Corruption FC shows compassion to the increasingly diagnosed neurodivergent population.

As for my findings over the past two cycles around the sun, since September 2021 – while I had hoped to balance a highly active day job with my creative spare time; learning the longer, more emotionally “scenic” way of the neurodivergent – proved that consideration and support in the workplace was as hidden as the condition’s effects are in the wider labour market.

The first position seemed ideal – working with a young, exciting brand and team; and my recent diagnosis disclosed to my superiors within the first three months following some unexpectedly nervy moments. After all, the physical, hands-on role had nothing in the contract suggesting “thou shalt train to become a brewer” (and no desire from my part either – just to balance work and my music and writing career, which was clearly divulged). Yet as I was inadvertently expected to perform tasks way above my position and job description, despite being clear with one clever, yet ignorant line manager that these were things I could not do – this continued until big, dangerous mistakes were forced. Clearly, awareness was ignored and even refused, when I offered to install a work mental health safety programme. My resignation came within nine months and I was not invited to the Xmas staff function, with each and every other ex-member of staff who remained connected.

With the following role, only finished nine weeks ago – any hopes of seeing improvements to the previous chimera of work progress sadly went the way of extra business revenue for the company before the indications of support were again hot air in the cold, yet lucrative event hire warehouse. Without harping on, the conclusion of the past two years is – small upcoming company or not; modern and educated or not, the support of ADHD in the workplace is not an informed, aware and defined model. For what isn’t apparent from my description of frustration – is the overhanging, overburdening expectation of equilibrium from every person's performance – as though there is a proven physiological and biological balance between everyone. Informing people about having ADHD, then receiving tentative nods of support, in other words - has made very little difference to my work environment in the past two years.

Elements which bring and often overload pressure – and the ADHD way is very often to grind the way through the job; to complete tasks and to accomplish expectations, these invite mental health problems, which can become extreme. As in suicidal thoughts. But you couldn’t dare tell people that at work – because you’d be seen to be melodramatic, unstable and unreliable. Yet, ask many with ADHD and this will be commonly identifiable. Remember, too – the chief cause of death in men between 35 and 55 years of age – is suicide.

Which leads me to one vital piece which must be brought to awareness – burnout. As established, informing employers about ADHD has not, for me – kept me from the chronic effects of being burnt out. Again, it’s one relief that this is another side of life which is becoming increasingly common – and documented. One clear definition, published last year is from

https://augmentive.io/blog/adhd-burnout-adults

"Burnout was first coined as a term in the 1970s by an American psychologist called Herbert Freudenberger, who used it to describe the symptoms and feelings of the severe stress felt in professions which involved helping people, such as doctors and nurses. More modern studies have suggested that in the medical profession, turnover and absence due to sickness are some of the effects of burnout.

Today, the term burnout is used to refer to not only the stress felt within someone’s profession, but to describe the feeling and consequences of doing too much, or “burning the candle at both ends”, as the saying goes. This could mean doing too much physically or mentally.

Symptoms of burnout are unique to everyone; however you may notice general stress symptoms such as:

• Sleep problems • Trouble focusing • Stomach issues • Fatigue, both mental and physical • Becoming sick more often due to poor immune function • Headaches • Feelings similar to depression, such as worthlessness • A loss of interest in doing things you once enjoyed • Burnout can affect anyone, but those with ADHD may find it hits them with very specific symptoms."

Some final pivotal pieces of information which are not as widespread as they could be are - that those with ADHD do not necessarily have the same characteristics as one another. Particularly adults who have received late diagnoses. While the condition can lead to mental health struggles, not everyone is negative in outlook – it’s a common trait. Not everyone is taken by every passing squirrel, cat or bus while in a conversation they can’t focus upon – it’s the overstimulation from being too interested in many things which often distracts. Yes, ADHD is associated by creativity but the hyperfocus so widely connected to us, does not mean we can accomplish everything we attempt to create. Hence the knuckle-duster lesson of having a late diagnosis and trying to balance a creative side hustle (as promising as it may be) – and a physically demanding full-time job with overambitious; corporate-owned, ignorant employers. As liberating as it may be to find out that there’s a reason for why you’ve always felt like a square peg in a changing, morphing shaped space – is that so many are not clued up about what it all means.

To close, one inspirational point which has become clearer in recent years, since my aforementioned blog from September 2020 where I discussed balancing DJing, day jobs and ADHD; is the sharp connection between neurodivergent people and nightlife, particularly DJ culture. An upsurge in conferences, festivals and events drawing attention to; and discourse about neurodivergence, as well as marginalised social groups in music have occurred. Harold Heath, whose book “Lost Relationships: My Incredible Journey From Unknown DJ To Small-Time DJ” which has resonated with a great number of readers within the dance music community – is currently writing a book about this relationship between the dance floor and neurodivergence. In the past month, DJ Magazine published his article with recent findings.

https://djmag.com/features/why-are-there-so-many-neurodivergent-people-electronic-music

I anticipate the extra reading to come, once the book is published – it was great to meet Harold, his wife and a number of DJs speaking about marginalisation at last month’s Liberty Festival in Croydon. Thanks to Ifeoluwa and the Intervention crew for organising the discussion.

As a parting shot, I have to focus on the sublime and absurdity of life, as inspired by Irvine Welsh, Danny Boyle and John Hodge, as stated in Trainspotting and adapted in Trainspotting 2.

Choose life.

Choose your own type of life.

Choose being a hermit.

Choose being a social butterfly.

Choose being relaxed about everything, or full of energy - depending on what day it is.

Choose fitness and wellness.

Choose drinking and drugs to mask your own self-loathing.

Choose jumping between social groups in trying to fit in, but feeling that it’ll never really happen.

Choose relationships which won’t last because – they never do. Do they?

Choose late nights.

Choose dancefloors with other alternative types of people who may or may not feel the same as you.

Choose trying to act a little bit like someone else successful whom you’ve worked with, because if it worked for them – why can’t it work for you?

Choose all the personal project ideas which come to you until you run out of steam with each one - and move on to the next.

Choose trying to find the forever happy job where you are always progressing.

Choose low-paid jobs to make up for your inability to sustain the burnout.

Choose smiling bravely, as you always have - because you can get through all of this.

Choose the cycle of thinking that you're not worth it, then taking your time to rebuild your confidence so that you think you are worth it again.

Choose working as hard as you can, again and again and again - until you burn out. Again and again and again.

And then revisit all the times in your life where nothing made sense, other than you have this diagnosis – which makes you feel slightly better, but not all the time.

Choose ADHD. Choose life.

#adhd #adhd awareness #mental health #neurodivergence #burnout #autism #anxiety #depression #dyslexia #suicide prevention #dj life #dancefloor #nightclubbing #marginalisation #late diagnosed adhd #work with adhd

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