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It’s my dog’s birthday btw (10th Aug)

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why do baby seals look like they're on the verge of tears constantly. they legit have NO reason to be that upset.

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So I’m planning a history lesson about the plague and I was going to compare it to covid, only to realise my year 7s were six at the time and probably don’t remember much from the pandemic 👵

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So this is a bit of an odd request but I’m looking for advice.

My sister’s friend is sixteen and homeless. His dad died when he was a child. His mum remarried but his stepfather is a piece of shit. His mum died of cancer a few months ago. He moved in with his sister and her husband, but the husband was dealing, and they decided they couldn’t afford to keep him anymore.

We found this out today. He slept on a park bench last night and is stopping with his other friend tonight. Tomorrow he is coming to ours for a meal, a shower, and a bed.

Of course, I’ve familiarised myself with what the process is, in theory, but I was wondering if anyone else in the UK has any experience of this or advice?

I’m about to start my PGCE (teacher qualification) and I live at home in our rented house, so I don’t think we could legally be granted any kind of custody, but I want to be able to offer this kid realistic advice and assistance when I see him tomorrow.

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My fifteen year old brother is 6’8 (203cm) now.

This isn’t particularly relevant to anything but I just felt the need to post this because wtf?

It’s annoying since he has the hand-eye coordination of a carrot so no career in basketball, I’m afraid.

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Perhaps an unpopular opinion, but my biggest pet peeve (as a teacher myself) is the number of people (usually US Americans) who blame their education system for their lack of knowledge.

My brother in Christ, do you think the UK education system is sitting kids down in Geography and pointing out the location of each continent and telling the kids its capital city and which language is spoken there? No - kids are learning about oxbow lakes.

There is a lot which schools are responsible for - assisting media literacy, general shaping of and understanding of politics (and let me tell you, the American brainwashing is so evident), but not knowing basic facts is something which is so easily remedied.

This is being said in the twenty first century. Google is right there. Read the Wikipedia summary. We’re not reliant on outdated textbooks anymore - the information is at your fingertips, go wild!

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I need to admit something to the US Tumblrinas. Philadelphia isn't a place to me. It's a cream cheese. You say "philadelphia" or "philly" and I immediately, and exclusively, think of the cream cheese. "Twelve people die in Philadelphia disaster" wow that must've been a Molasses Flood style event

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Original post

Poem @chucktaylorupset

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How to Successfully Study in the Library

bring all of your materials with you

find a nice quiet spot void of distractions 

make sure to take little breaks every half hour or so

maybe bring a little snack

don’t look at the giant floating baby

just don’t 

try to forget about the giant floating baby in the library 

use different colors of highlighters to organize your notes  

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By employing free indirect speech in her novels, Jane Austen ensured that there is so much humour flowing through the narrative. I love it when we occasionally get these little insight into the characters' motivations, especially when said insights are dripping with sarcasm.

One of my favourite examples is when it is used it to absolutely roast Mr Darcy in Chapter 12 of Pride and Prejudice, by letting us see into his mind and just how much he's lying to himself about how captivated he is by Elizabeth:

She attracted him more than he liked—and Miss Bingley was uncivil to her, and more teasing than usual to himself. He wisely resolved to be particularly careful that no sign of admiration should now escape him, nothing that could elevate her with the hope of influencing his felicity; sensible that if such an idea had been suggested, his behaviour during the last day must have material weight in confirming or crushing it.

It's such a subtle shift and you might miss it the first few times, as it quickly flips back to the narrative voice and to tell us what happens next:

Steady to his purpose, he scarcely spoke ten words to her through the whole of Saturday, and though they were at one time left by themselves for half-an-hour, he adhered most conscientiously to his book, and would not even look at her.

We're essentially being told that Darcy thinks this course of action (i.e. almost entirely refusing to acknowledge the existence of a woman he's attracted to) is wise when anyone with even a basic understanding of human nature can see this is a terrible idea because a) Darcy will only cause more pain to himself by repressing his feelings, as said feelings for Elizabeth are so strong they will eventually win out and b) when he inevitably cannot lie to himself anymore and seeks Elizabeth affection, she is hardly likely to offer it to a man who has ignored her in such a rude manner.

Which is, as it turns out, exactly what happens. Who could have foreseen that?!

Anyway, the opportunity to regularly peek inside the characters' minds is part of the reason I adore Pride and Prejudice so much and find it so compelling to re-read. And it will never fail to astound me that a clergyman's daughter in Hampshire pioneered this literary technique in the English language.

Jane Austen was an absolute genius.

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If you call pedophilia a kink please unfollow me and never talk to me again

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happy birthday to all the tbs in the southern hemisphere!

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Frances Mabel Hollams (1877-1963). Chargers of the Brigade of Guards Waiting on a State Occasion. Oil on canvas.