#Buy 20 Google Reviews

[netherworldpost]

With the various rumors and releases of Tumblr possibly changing how they do things... (gestures to the vague rumor mill)...

Zines.

I really think we as Folks Who Make Things and Folks Who Like Art Writing Poetry Music Comics Other Things need to explore zines. And I mean ZINES. Nothing glossy. Nothing fancy.

Very. Cheap. Zines.

I've been threatening mentioning I was going to create a guide on how I'm going to approach this -- and I'm going to -- but I am also realizing in the writing I Do Things Highfalutin because I am who I am + had a career in graphic design.

Let's talk about how you can make a zine very cheaply and very pretty.

STEP ONE: SUPPLIES

Very bright paper. I like "Astrobrights" because they are absurdly bright. Here is a link in a store I like. I buy a lot of paper and envelopes from them. You can generally find Astrobrights in big box office stores. It prints on laser printers and ink jet and photocopiers.

Very bright envelopes. What's that? Astrobrights has envelopes?! AM I SOLVING PROBLEMS let's not get ahead of ourselves.

Letter paper is 8.5" x 11" and is the most common size in the united states (overseas folk will have to use this advice with a grain o'sea salt and search yer own waters).

A9 envelopes are a letter sheet folded in half.

A2 envelopes are a letter sheet folded in half, then folded in half.

#10 envelopes are your common long envelopes, letter paper folded in thirds.

Pick the size you like.

If you want to get big and fancy, Tabloid is 17" x 11" -- so double a letter sheet. This gets tricky to work with but is neat in sizing.

STEP TWO: ZINE CONTENT

Do you know how to use InDesign or similar program? Use that.

No? Use Google Docs or Word or whatever other program and ramble.

Want something special? Write out some or part with a sharpee or pen.

Mix and match both.

If you are feeling fancy, design it like a booklet -- mock up a sheet of blank paper as if it were a brochure. If not, just design it straight up and down like a letter. There are no zine laws.

STEP THREE: ZINE PRINTING

Print at home on your home printer.

Don't have a printer at home? Print it at work (don't get fired)

Can't? Your local library may be able to help.

You need 1 copy on white paper.

FedEx Office has photocopiers. Your local library may too. Or your job.

Print 1 copy of your zine on white paper and then photocopy the rest onto colorful paper (or white paper, it be yer zine seadog).

Or print everything on the color paper if you have access to free printing, that's fine too.

The photocopy setup is purely "printing tends to cost more than photocopying."

If you want to slash prices, print 2 per sheet and have FedEx office cut them for you, this will cost $1 - $5 depending on how many sheets you are dealing with. This is for when you're doing a LOT of zines at once.

Or use their manual paper cutter yourself for free.

STEP FOUR: ZINE STAPLING

"Long reach stapler" is what I recommend. There are a few varieties. They tend to be $20 - $30.

Or just use 1 sheet!

STEP FOUR: ZINE POSTAGE

A single first class stamp for 1-2 pages. If you get up to 3+, go to the post office and ask them to weigh a comp you have assembled.

This is a guideline.

It's a really good idea to check at least once how much your zine weighs just in general. Post offices have scales. And are pretty. And have stamps.

OKAY ENOUGH LUSTING FOR THE POST OFFICE FROM THE GHOTS POST OFFICE BLOG BACK TO WORK

STEP FIVE: ZINE MAILING

This is actually the most difficult part. Label printers exist with various costs -- if you're starting out? Go with printable labels.

Your office supply shop will have them and they'll have templates you can drop in the customer addresses.

Save yourself time by using this label as the thing that seals the envelope -- don't lick envelopes.

A key tenet to staying in business is constantly reviewing physical (and mental) labor and stressors and reducing them as much as possible.

Return address labels are intensely cheap in literally every online printer, google "return address labels." Make sure you have this because at least a few of your shipments will come back to you.

STEP SIX: ZINE PRICING

Okay here is where we get uncomfortable because we're talkin' coins.

Prices are based on above links. You can get whatever paper you want, so this is guidelines. All numbers rounded up.

Payment processing ($0.30) + $0.05 sheet + $0.15 envelope + $0.66 first class postage = $1.16 base cost

$1.16 + 2.9% of $1.16 payment processing = $1.20

Plus taxes. I'm not getting into tax figures YOU DO THAT (just say 30% for easy math, this is not saying "your taxes are 30% or that mine are" I am saying "I am going to factor 30% for this equation to complete this guide".)

I did not include the mailing label (it will be $0.01 - $0.05 depending on how fancy and how many you buy) because you have the option to just write things and also it fits into the rounding of the above.

If you use Patreon, include your fees. Probably replace the above processing fees with your patreon processing... fees? I don't use patreon I don't know how it works.

Retail option 01: $1.50 - 1.20 = $0.80 gross - 30% = $0.09 / net / zine.

Retail option 02: $2 - 1.20 = $0.80 gross - 30% = $0.56 / net / zine.

Retail option 03: $3 - 1.20 = $1.80 gross - 30% = $1.26 / net / zine.

Should it be $1.50? Should it be $3.00? MORE? LESS?! That is for you to decide. Base it on what your zine contains, how long it takes you to write/draw/etc. it and how you want your flow to be.

STEP SEVEN: ZINE FREQUENCY

When my shop launches, it'll have a zine once a month. We are going to offer a subscription option + a "I just want 1" option.

You can do a zine monthly, or every few months, or whatever.

Keep in mind that the purpose of doing this is to break the dependency on social media marketing.

KEEP IN MIND AS AN AUDIENCE MEMBER TO A CREATOR YOU LIKE THAT THEY ARE DOING THIS TO BREAK THEIR DEPENDENCY ON SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING.

If you have a lot of energy and an audience that comes to your shop a lot? Consider doing a zine monthly.

If you do not have a lot of energy and/or your audience is tapped for cash frequently? Considering doing 1 zine per season.

Consider 2 zines a year if that works better for you!

NO RULES ONLY JOY

Not sure? Experiment! Be upfront! "This is new. I'm figuring this out. Billionaires are tinkering with these things and we gotta figure something else out."

BONUS STEP: NETHERWORLDPOST.COM

so hi I'm atty and I'm your loud long rambler today

Netherworld Post Office used to be @evilsupplyco and now we are rebranding in prep of relaunching. Same person behind the rambles and comics, new name with a more focus (mail instead of mail + seemingly everything else in experiment)

if you enjoyed this ramble and/or like ghosts, monsters, witches, mermaids, and fun stories and projects focused on cozy Halloween, you may like us when we finish the rebranding and relaunching in autumn 2023.

email sign up (the zine will come when we are open)

WHETHER YOU JOIN MY LIST OR NOT

I really, really, really hope you consider doing a regular, or irregular, zine. Something outside of email, something outside of social media, something that connects I MADE A WEIRD THING and the people who say I LOVE THIS WEIRD THING YOU MADE.

The walls are closing in on free social media as a platform for people who make weird things to build audiences for free or very cheap.

And with that...

netherworldpost.com as one final hat pass

good luck folks

thanks for listenin' to the ol' ghost

[scrumptiousstuffs]

Review lol2024 (via Google Translate, so it might not be 100% accurate)

The shared part is very fun. I have made a show with many brothers and sisters. Everyone is very focused. It's like getting on the same boat. The atmosphere is very diverse, full of warmth from everyone around me from the actors and the team. I'm excited for both days. The second day is even more excited, but overall, it's very fun.

Part with @Firstkpp, thank you again for holding hands to fight together in everything. The song I have chosen is never too late because I take this song to sing in other countries. And everyone want us to sing this song in Thailand. So I proposed to First that we come to sing together. Maybe it's not a music genre that First is an expert at. However, my friend was dedicated and did his best. But to intend and do it out very well. It is the favourite song of both of us, so I chose this song. And the warm voice of First is very compatible with this song. I mean this with my heart. Don't be shy.

Part where I hurt myself - the first day, slip on the stairs. The second day, kicking the light, still hurt the foot. Very embarrassed, but I saw the clip through the line. Please don't tease a lot. 555555

But whatever, thank you gmmtv, P'Tha, for always giving me a chance. Thank you to all the adults, including the brothers and sisters who are always going together and always teaching things. Thank you to the dancer team (who have a class friend to play together for so long time. I'm very happy), the technicians, the clothing team behind everyone. Thank you very much. Thank you to the fans of all sectors. Everyone who always supports each other. Whether it's every dish, screaming, waiting to buy various products, make give away and to be cute each other. Thank you from the heart. Hope everyone will be happy with every show. Get laughter, get happiness, get good energy, get good memories and good back. See you again. Love you again. Love 🧡🤍✨

Such a sweetheart 🥹🧡🫶

And First’s respond to his bestie (as expected!);

Source: First and Khaotung Twitter

20/05/2024

[unhinged-diaries]

Business Guide:

How to get started

When you have a business name in mind look up the domain name to see if it’s taken. You don’t want to spend money on an LLC just to find out that your name is taken. Thats a waste of money because you also have to pay to dissolve it.

If the name is not taken, great, don’t file an LLC yet. Go online and get a virtual business address. Why? If you’re running your business out of your home like I am, just know that it’s public information if you use your address to file your LLC. A virtual address should cost like $10-$20 a month. Use that to file your LLC.

Once you’ve filed that LLC get your Ein. That’s your Employee Identification Number. It’s your businesses tax id. It’s free to file on the IRS website. Don’t fall for the scam websites you guys.

Once you’ve gotten your EIN go to Google domains and get your website name aswell as 3-4 emails. An email for your social media accounts, an executive email for yourself, an ecomm@businessname.com for things like your business bank account, Shopify account, etc; and maybe a customer support email. I use the social email as a customer support email. All of this should be like $50/month.

Once you’ve don’t that get on Canva and make that logo bookie. Personally I paid someone on Fiverr to make mine because I’m a “soft business life” kind of girl and I’d rather pay the professionals. Thats just me though.

Once you’ve got your logo go ahead and get them social media accounts going. Instagram, tiktok, Facebook.

Alright now this is where it gets specific to clothing brands because that’s what I own.

Time to find a manufacturer. Head over to alibaba and search what kind of product you want to sell. Be sure to add “oem” if you want a manufacturer that customizes. Look for the amount of orders they’ve gotten on that product. If it says zero orders that’s ok. Some styles are new and thus haven’t been ordered yet. Check any reviews they have for other products. Also check the total revenue they’ve done. It’s on the store profile. I can’t tell you what the sweet spot is yet bc I’ve only used one manufacturer so far but I’d look for mid six figures and up if you wanna be real safe.

Chat with them and order a sample. Even if you buy from a vendor list you’ll need your own sample to make content with. I suggest buying one and first. It’s worth the wait because if you buy multiple and end up not liking them you’d have wasted money that could’ve gone into testing a different manufacturer.

Do not launch with more than 2 products. Even 2 is a stretch, wallai start with one.

This is because if you’re doing the preorder, which I suggest, you’ll be depending on customer orders to pay for the bulk order. Manufacturers do their moq by color or style. If you have too many options in your website and customers order a mix of things, you better pray you have enough money to cover the bulk for all those different styles. Stay safe and give them 1-2 options to choose from.

Pre order method is great if you don’t have a lot of cash to start with because the orders pay for themselves. Bulk orders start to wrack up. Especially if it’s a custom style or material. You don’t want to break the bank for something that might not sell.

Once you’ve gotten and approved your samples choose a launch date. 2-3 weeks before that launch dates post consistently. At least once a day but remember quality over quantity. Now don’t be tricked. Quality doesn’t mean a full cinematography. It means connecting with your audience and relating with them to a point where they’re like “this business gets it”. Either that or attaching yourself to an identity they want to have. “It girl ig influencer”, “feminine soft life babe” “clean girl Pilates princess” whatever the fuck it is embody ur as best as you can. When customers attach your product with an identity that is aspirational to them they will buy it without rationalizing. It’s why the luxury market makes so much off of ppl who can’t afford to buy it twice.

Focus on the backend

If you have a goal of getting an influx of orders and making a lot of sales, be sure that your business is structured in a way that can handle it happening at any given time. You know those tiktok businesses that get one viral video and sell out over night? That could be you but if you’re not prepared ppl are going to be upset. I suggest working backwards:

A customer service platform/inbox so that you can answer them right away with frequently asked questions.

Have stock so that you have something for customers to buy once they finally land on your website.

Have a well presenting website so that ppl don’t think you’re a scam. I’m going to do a post on this bc some of these business websites drive me fuckin nuts. Color theory ppl, color theory.

A social media page with some kind of social proof ie reviews from customers in some way shape or form. Ppl are going to be looking for what others have to say about your brand. Hire UGC creators to make videos that you can post on your page. They’re cheaper than influencers but still know how to convey the message well. You’ll have to have extra samples and items on hand to send them. Also check out their usage rights. Some will allow you to use their videos in ads but you have to pay extra and it’s only for a certain amount of time. But if they do it right, you’ll get a great return. Scared money don’t make no money.

A social media page that shows the products in movement and different lighting. I need to be able to imagine myself in the item before I buy it. Where would I wear it, how will it fit on me. Even when I’ve already ordered something I stay going back to the businesses social media page just to see the clothes again. I might even search it up to see other ppl wearing it.

Packaging

No need to go crazy with the packaging in the beginning. Don’t get me wrong, branding is important but as a beginner you may not have the money for that yet. You need to focus on spending money on what will give you the best return. Just get regular poly mailers from Amazon in your brand colors. You’ll also need:

A stack of 6x4 shipping labels

A thermal printer

A scale

When your manufacturer sends you the clothes they will most likely be in their own little bags. If not you can get those from Amazon too.

Later on you can go to alibaba and find a manufacturer to print you custom poly mailers for that extra edge. Put your logo, a cute message, and your social media handles on the bag and that’s it. Good to go.

You can also design your own thank you cards as well. I won’t be doing that.

Little things to remember

Don’t feel like you have to keep up with big brands. You don’t need to launch something every two weeks. As a matter of fact I advise against emulating super fast fashion brands. I only launch a new item once the pre ordered items have been shipped out to customers.

Be nice to your customers. You’d think this was obvious but it’s not. Some ppl are rude, ghetto, and uncouth. If you hate authority and have a smart mouth I think you should either take a customer service course or hire a virtual assistant from the Philippines to do your customer service for you because no customers = no money.

I’ll update this as I learn and grow:

12/18/2023

Influencers

Not every influencer with a mass follower base is going to be your influencer. It’s possible that you pay $5000 for an influencer with 75k followers to post your product on her page but that post makes you less than $3k. That means you’ve net negative $2k. What a fuckin waste of money.

This is why it’s important to develop a persona for your brand. What is your brand identity? Who is your target audience? What are their psychographics?

Where do currently shop? What are there favorite social media apps?What is their race? Their age? Their ethnicity? Are they in college or highschool? Do they have parents that support their lifestyle or are they hustlers? Are they concerned about price or quality more? Are they married? Do they have children? Are they environmentally conscious?

You need to embody Joe Goldberg and peer at them through their window. Acquaint yourself with every part of their life.

Also, you might not be your target demographic yet and that’s ok. The girls that shop with my brand have social lives. They go out with their friends and need outfits to wear. I don’t have a social life. The only clothes I wear are my work clothes to go to work and my robe when I’m at home.Or a sweat set and a bonnet to run errands.

Don’t think to yourself “ I would never wear that.” “I would never buy something at that price point”. That’s fine cuz someone else will. A lot of people will.

Another thing is your demographic could change once you start your business. It might be that you create content that attracts a different type of person than what you originally planned and that’s cool too. We don’t live in a perfect world. As long as they’re close enough to what you had predetermined it’s ok. Sometimes our business comes out different than we hoped but it’s just as good if not better. It’s like child. Don’t destroy its greatness trying to turn it into something it doesn’t want to be.

User generated content

Love, love, love her down. She’s that sweet spot between making content yourself and having an influencer with a large following make the content for you. UGC is a form of social proof which is something you need for an e-commerce brand especially. Ppl can’t just pop into your store and try on your stuff so they need the opinions of “regular” people to sell them on it. They want to see that person try it on, do a close up of the fabric, wear it to a social setting, etc;

What I like about UGC is that I can pick someone who fits into my brand persona to represent my brand even if I don’t. Someone that appears aspirational but still relatable. Like I said previously, you yourself might not embody your brands persona but you can pay someone who does.

A little translate for yall: I do not live in a nice apartment. My room is small, and dark, and filled with boxes. My living room has mix matched decor and I myself am not the body type I’d like to be (pls don’t hit me with body positivity babe). What I can do is pay a girl with the opposite of all those things and knows how to sell a product.

I have a girl right now that I’ve inquired to make posts for me and she’s got it all. Her rate for one video is $100 with an extra $30 for 90 days of usage in ads. $100 is the new 50 and for the return I’ll get on her, THATS A STEAL.

If you need to find a UGC creator search it up on tiktok and Twitter. Most of them have a portfolio of past work they’ve done. If you feel like they match your brands vibes, keep their info for when you’re ready.

I suggest to have a roster of them because if ppl keep seeing the same person over and over, the thought that that person is just a regular degular customer leaves their mind and you lose the magic of UGC.

Update 12/21/2023

I’ve been sick but yall ain’t paying me so it’s ok. Here’s the update.

Website

Your website is your home babe and when you’re preparing for guest you can’t have your home looking any type of way. Not only does it need to be clean but it needs to be cohesive and inviting.

You know how many times I’ve opened someone’s booking page on Instagram and I click off. Not only am I not reading through all of that small ass text but my head hurts cuz you’ve got a black font on a hot pink background.

Some of yalls websites to not comply with accessibility guidelines so pay attention to that bc you can be sued. Ppl should be able to read what you have on there without getting a headache.

Good rule of thumb is to have one primary color, and then black and white. Don’t over complicate it. Your primary color will be your logo, think twitters blue, then your secondary colors should be black and white, for your text. You might have an accent color like gold or silver, this should be used sparingly for a little dazzle.

If you’re a clothing brand like me, keep the text short and sweet. Think about it, when you go shopping on your favorite website are you bombarded with a soliloquy on how the collection came to be? And even if you are do you stop and read the whole thing? I don’t bc I don’t care. That’s what your Instagram story is for.

All I want to see is the attention grabber and a short,but convincing, tagline.

Example: Ski Resort 2023-“Stun the slopes and stand out on the ski lift with best sellers spotted at St. Moritz”

Let you images tell the rest of the story.

Don’t overwhelm them with options

Guys this is so important. The more options ppl see the less they buy or the less likely they are to buy. Why? This is the thought process.

“Omg the stuff on this website is so cute! Let me go through their catalog and add to my cart as I go”

5 minutes of scrolling

“Ok I have too many things in my cart let me just save to a wishlist instead”

Another 5 minutes of scrolling

“Ok I’ll just stop here and go back to my cart and decide what I’m going to get rn”

Goes to cart

Spends 10 minutes deciding what she’s gonna get bc there’s so many good options

Takes 10 items out of her cart and only buys two basics bc she knows those are less likely to disappoint.

And scene

That is if she didn’t leave after the second five minutes of scrolling. Nowadays five minutes on a non stimulating website is a lot, don’t let it take that long.

Obviously this also depends on the customers budget. Some people have the money to just buy everything in their cart (I wish- one day), but most are just window shopper you hope to convert with your nice styles, images, and prices. Don’t make it harder for people to give you their money.

I have more but I’m tired of writing so I’ll update yall tmrw.

[angeltannis]

Imagine there’s a small local place you like to go to when you feel like wandering around for a few hours. It’s got nice parks and some little shops full of kitschy knick knacks. None of the shops have really changed since you were a kid, so you never really buy anything, but it’s nostalgic to walk those same, unchanging streets, to reminisce on when you used to spend every day of the summer there with your family, eating pizza and opening Pokémon cards.

Now imagine that, for one random month out of the year, over 100,000 people a day descend on that little place. Suddenly the little old cobblestone streets transform into a mass of human bodies pressed from the walls of one side of the street to the other, unable to move as anything but a living wave. There are lines 50 people long to get into these shops with their shelves of dusty, overpriced knick knacks. People are yelling and pushing to get into these places that have been selling the same stuff for 20+ years. The town eventually puts out a statement begging people to stay away, because the town is literally out of space to hold any more cars.

Then the month ends, and everybody disappears. The only evidence they were there in the first place is the excess of trash on the streets and the appearance of 1-star google reviews that read “BORING AND TO CROWDED!! NEVER AGAIN”

That’s Salem in October lol

[20dollarlolita]

Describing some wigs

Many years ago there was as site called Amphigory.com, and while it's still up, the Amphigory that 16-year-old me spent days browsing is not the Amphigory that still remains. They're still cool, but they'd really scaled back the scope of what they sell. There used to be cosmetics, jewelry, hair dye, a few more things, and wigs.

One of the things that they did about their wig sales that really set them apart was the level of description that they gave every wig. This wasn't just a single stock picture and a name. They took their own pictures of each wig, inside and out, and described each one's strengths and flaws. They weren't like Arda, who designs their own wigs from scratch. They were more like a normal costume reseller, who had a collection of vendors that they'd order stock from. But, unlike most costume wig sellers, they had multiple pictures and a detailed analysis of each wig. You knew what you were getting, which was really important for cosplayers who might need to restyle a wig. If you've never restyled a wig before, you might not be aware, but the wig can make it very easy, or the wig can make it impossible.

Amphigory's wig section is long gone, but I do still buy wigs from a similar company, one that has a collection of wig vendors whose products they sell. This is a shop that I go to is in person, and I love that. I know that I can find some wigs cheaper elsewhere, but I absolutely love that I can go to a small business, roll up to a counter, and physically touch the wigs before I buy them. I can look at them, turn them inside-out, and touch them. I also get to take the wig home that day, instead of waiting for shipping.

But not everyone has this opportunity, and on the offchance that people are considering buying a wig online and google the wig to see worn photos or reviews, here's me making a compilation of wigs I've recently bought and what they actually look like in person. Even with wigs from the same seller, some might be garbage, but some might be hidden gems. So, in the interest of making more information about which wigs are like what, here we go:

California Costumes Pink/Gray Ombre with Star Clips:

First of all, California Costumes gets 0/10 for creativity with names. I love me a good little nickname for a wig. The Costume Mansion, where I bought this, called it "Harmony," and I think that's a better name.

Yes, my wig head is cosplaying its Naruto OC. Let it do its thing.

This is a textured, ombre wig. The actual fiber is ombre, so an individual strand will go from gray color to pink, and the gray is a little bit softer than the pink. Some wigs that are tipped with another color accomplish this by having the color on the ends be longer hair than the top color, but this is a true ombre. I have not tested this for colorfastness, but it's possible that the pink tips won't age super well. The skin top is about 3" wide and does not go all the way to the front of the wig. This means that you can change the part a little bit, but it will always have bangs.

The whole thing is sewn onto a continuous cap, which isn't as forgiving of larger head sizes than one that's just wefts and elastic. It has the built-in net that you sometimes see with cheaper wigs, which is where your hair would go if you want to wear this wig without a wig cap. You, however, don't want to wear this wig without a wig cap. You know better. There's hooks in the back for resizing.

Wefts in the back are about an inch apart, but when I was shaking it around and trying to make it show the mesh, I couldn't actually make it show the mesh without physically parting it. Depending on how you put your hair up under the wig, you might have problems with the mesh showing in the back (lumpy hair will show mesh, hair that's smoothly under a wig cap won't). This is probably a wig you want a matching or light colored wig cap for if you have a larger head.

Overall, cute wig, stock pictures don't do it justice. Available for $20 on Amazon, in case you don't have a local costume shop to support. This item tag reads "ITEM # 7022-068 FTY # 346 HK2203" and I don't know what that means but if someone's googling the tag to look up the wig then hopefully that'll lead them here.

Yuki by Characters:

At least this one has a wig name. And boy howdy is that some big hair. The place I bought this from called it "Cupcake."

I tried on this wig because I really wanted to see how it was constructed, and I bought it because, when I tried it on, it was way cuter than I thought it'd be. It's a rougher fiber, which makes the curls hold their shape really well, but you're going to be fighting to keep the bangs and long forelocks looking smooth. There's no skin top, and the hair radiates from a sort of u-shaped blob at the top. There's so much going on in this wig that it's not particularly obvious, and also you will convince absolutely no one that it's not a wig, so that's not as much a priority to me on this style.

As for how it's actually constructed, there's no teasing in the wig to keep it that big. Instead, the actual cap of the wig is sewn into the shape of the big faux twintails, and then the hair is attached to that structure. Wigs are not hair. Anyway, that means there's pretty much no major restyling that can be done. It's just curly hair about 5" long on a funky structure to make funky big hair. Anyway, because thew cap of this wig is so oversized, it's really comfortable to wear, and it's really accommodating of large head sizes or a lot of hair.

Also because of the cap size, if you don't pin the temples on, it can slide back and make your bangs shorter. You can see that in my picture there. Mine did not come with the little rose clips, but it is supposed to come with the rose clips. It's much curlier than the stock images imply it will be.

This wig would be great for embellishing, since you can sew things directly to the funky shaped cap and not worry about where to support it. It also can handle a full sized BTSSB headbow, if that's a concern.

Someone's selling it on Amazon for $60 and you absolutely should not spend that much for this wig. I see other wig shops selling it for about $30, which is the upper limit on its real fair price, unless you really need the specific shape for it. I'm not going to link any specific shop since I don't have experience buying from them. "Yuki wig" and "Characters Yuki wig" are good search terms.

Characters Peggy Sue wig:

Okay so please be forgiving that my detail pictures are going to be of this wig already styled, because I didn't know I was going to do this post when I started working with it. I'll make a point to spell out what's stock and what's been done. Top pictures here are the most un-styled that I have.

This wig's got a coin-shaped skin top that all the hair radiates from. It comes with long, blunt bangs. The fiber is really shiny and is very easily reshaped by low hair dryer heat. High heat on my hair dryer, too close to the scalp, was how I made the frizzy spot in the back. The cap is a closed mesh cap, but it's nice and stretchy.

The weird boogers on the top of my wig are the orange hilights that I put in (they were just chopped from another wig), but that picture's there to show the size of the skin top. You can also see where I sewed some orange wefts into the wig for all-over recoloring. I re-parted the skin coin so that the hair has a linear part instead of radiating from the center, and then painted it with liquid foundation to make the parted area larger. Mine also has a LOT of baby powder dispersed through it to combat the shine. I spent like four days to try to make this $20 wig look like it's maybe a $35 wig. (The process was: "oh hey I'll be taking my wheelchair to the comic convention. I should cosplay Barbara Gordon because that will be fun. This will be easy and I don't need to put a lot of money or time into it." and then four days passed and I'd spent hours manually highlighting a cheap wig).

And it really needs a bit of love to get it to be less frizzy. Right out of the bag, my wig did not have that outward flip. Unlike the other two, I don't see this being a really usable wig for lolita fashion in pretty much any context, but hey, I'm on a roll with this post.

This wig is listing online for like $30, and that's a bit much IMO. If you have a local shop selling it for $20, well, that's a different matter.

If you want a wig just to change your hair color so that your bright pink hair doesn't clash with your coord, I once bought this wig (according to Amazon in 2015 so it's been...almost a decade...nice to know they're tracking that) and was pretty impressed with the quality for a $17 wig. So, you know, buy that instead of this Peggy Sue wig.

I do own the Lacey Costume Little Women II Wig (Amphigory's "Innocent?" wig) but it's late and I want to go to bed, and all you really need to know about it is that the fiber texture of the ash blond color is really dicey, so that's probably a case where if you need a pigtail wig you need to just get an Arda Chibi. I can still do details if anyone wants. It's just 9:30 and I have to put all these damn wigs away, so good night, everyone.

[rainbowsky]

Hi, how do you know Jackie Chan is a part of LOCH? I’ve been trying to find as much info on this film as possible and I never came across anything mentioning Jackie Chan. Also this film is already a big budget film, which is also the reason why I feel Tsui Hark chose Xiao Zhan specifically because he’s number one in popularity and with immense popularity he comes with good acting so it was a win-win but although I want this film to be released internationally really badly especially my country, I still fear being disappointed. Would they really invest in an international release? and is there a way if fans could get their messages across to them asking for an international release? because i will honestly cry if xiao zhan’s first movie (during my time as his fan) is released and i as a die hard fan can’t even watch it on big screen!! 

This is in reference to a previous post.

The full cast has not been officially announced yet, but it was all over the media at the time of GG was announced as Guo Jing. You can find articles mentioning it just by Googling. There were several big name actors mentioned in smaller supporting roles, and it actually caused a bit of controversy at the time among netizens (who, of course, always stress out over who can do justice to their favorite literary heroes).

Feng Shaofeng - Genghis Khan

Hui Yinghong - Li Ping

Jackie Chan - Hong Qigong

Official accounts haven't confirmed (or denied) these widespread rumors, but we will likely know a lot more soon. The film is slated to be released for Spring Festival, which is the second weekend in February. No doubt there will be some promotional materials, etc. coming out in the next couple of months.

As for whether it will be released abroad - I honestly don't get why fans are always hand-wringing over whether their films will be released internationally. I find that confusing as heck.

It is safe to assume that pretty much all of their movies will be released to international audiences. It would be odd for them not to appear outside China.

Keep in mind that - alongside non-Chinese speaking international audiences who take an interest in international films - there is a huge population of Chinese people living all over the world. In my region, for example, 20% of the population are Chinese Canadians. There is a demand outside of China, for Chinese films.

Legend of the Condor Heroes is one of the most popular novels in China, and is appreciated all over the world. It's an outstanding book. I urge everyone to read it (or enjoy the audiobook). I can't overstate how good it is.

GG is also very popular, and his international fame is growing. Films stand to make more money the more screens they're seen on. It's simple math.

This film WILL be seen outside of China. Any agonizing over whether it will is a waste of one's mental health. It's going to be a big release. It will be seen far and wide. It's will probably make a lot of money. It's got a good formula, a good director, etc.

And even if it doesn't come to some countries - as with all of their projects - it will eventually end up on streaming services. You will get a chance to see it.

Edit: as I said in the comments of this post, there will always be some countries where there really won't be legal options for viewing. That's just the unfortunate reality of the situation. In those cases, there is no shame in watching a pirated version. I feel that it is better to watch their projects, thereby being able to write a review and promote the project to other people, etc. than to not watch them at all.

As long as we are supporting the film financially if there is any option to do so at all. There have been people who have bought tickets for their films in regions that they are unable to travel to, just to support the film. People can also buy tickets for other fans who cannot otherwise afford to go.

There are also often official merchandise and things like that which can be purchased from anywhere in the world.

You can also contact your favorite local streaming services and request for those projects to be made available to you. The more fans who express an interest in their films, the more likelihood a streaming service will make an effort to obtain rights.

There is no guarantee, of course, but it's worth a try. I also encourage people to be patient, because it can take a while for a movie to make it onto streaming platforms. Just because it is available in some regions and not others doesn't mean it won't eventually make it on to yours.

As long as we are supporting to the best of our ability, that's all that anyone can do.

[yang2sfishkeeper]

we need a part two to the fratboy reaction thing you wrote i cried laughing ajfjahahjaka

(tosses this post like i throw bread at stray birds) there's your meal for the year

NCT 2022 as your final school presentation partner

side note: since i am the principal at this uni/college/higher education establishment I have decided that this will be for an english presentation. also i do realise that this does not count as a part two but dont worry i might do one in about seven years time!

Johnny: You stare holes into his laptop from across the lecture hall once your partner is announced. He thinks you’re just curious about what he’s watching, and turns the screen to reveal a custom car parts video. Despite your initial apprehension-and failing to convince your professor to change partners, he is a fairly decent partner (he made the google doc) and contributes his fair share (he offered to do most of the talking). Shows up 20 minutes late to the actual class absolutely hammered but takes it like a champ. 6/10, thanks for making the google doc, mate.

Taeil: Everything is fine until he tells you that he can't work in the campus library- he HAS to be in his dorm room. You nod along, already mentally reminding yourself to bring pepper spray in case you enter his room and there are star wars posters. Definitely INSISTS on playing music, and sings to it like his life depends on it. Like no babe, your life depends on these slides you're neglecting. Turns the script into a song to memorise it faster, and you can't believe it actually helped the both of you. No star wars posters, so the pepper spray was left untouched, 8/10, ♫ Good moooooorning everyoooooone today we will be discusssssing Littleee woomeeeeeen♫

Taeyong: For a party guy, he’s super nice and willing to do the work- it’s just that he has a horde of friends that tail him everywhere. It’s not exactly productive to be in the library (quiet) with ten dudes chatting up a storm (not quite) two tables away. Offers to buy you coffee because he feels bad, so at least your wallet is happier than your ears. During the presentation, his bros are attentively taking notes and roar into applause when you conclude the presentation. 6/10 The chorus of “MY BRO IS SO SMART” is oddly sweet, and you are thankful one of them added on “AND YOU TOO LADY” Because yeah, you too lady!

Yuta: Offers you a 100 dollar note to finish it by yourself, and when you decline he’s like ‘oh ok i’ll do it then’. You thought about changing your career goals to becoming a cultural negotiator, because that was easy. Does the absolute bare minimum, and flirts with you the entire time- shoes up on the library table and all. But it’s not all that bad, because he teaches you how to accessorize and shows you his cool tattoo. During the presentation you looked scared and plain next to him, mostly because he was decked out in full leather and facial jewelry. 4/10, could’ve told you there was a dress code. 

Kun: Lets you work at his nice apartment right outside of campus. How can he afford it? You don’t want to ask! Makes a plan on how to equally divide the workload, always texts you updates on his slides, offers advice if you need it and is generally a fantastic partner. Once the presentation is over, he resumes his role in your life as the nice guy you look at from two rows below you. 10/10 next project you’ll try to be his friend. Next project…

Doyoung: ACADEMIC WEAPON. Mate, you don’t even see this guy. He just randomly emails you a utterly phenomenal proposal for the project, you reply “this is great! When are you free to work on it?” He just attached the finished thing. It’s bulletproof, with great analyzes, and even has potential questions + answers for you to review. You meet for the first time AT the presentation, and when you ask him why he just did everything, he stone-faced replies: “I’m very passionate about metaphors.” 8/10 You were also very passionate about them, but clearly not as much as he was.

Ten: On his phone when your group was assigned; so you decide to approach him. Which was your first mistake, because once you enter a ten meter radius of him you begin sweating- and you’re only mildly offended asks who you are. You two work in his friend’s tattoo studio (why does his friend have a tattoo studio), and he will doodle up designs for you unprompted. You are 1) impressed at how good he is at drawing 2) forgetting that THERE IS A PROJECT FOCUS BITCH. 4/10 you failed, but got a sick tattoo that’s better than Yuta’s.

Jaehyun: In shows, the jock is usually an idiot until the last moment, where he magically develops super smart sense and aces the project. Not Jaehyun though, he’s a fucking moron. At some point, you just have to tell to shut up; he’s a good partner until he opens his mouth. Hey, at least his face is nice to look at, and you know who to call if you need someone’s head knocked in. 6/10 What do you mean you don’t know what a proposition is? You’re taking an ENGLISH DEGREE!

Winwin: Will be twenty minutes late. Will also bring his roommate’s dog over, which you don’t know if you’re thankful for or not. You two will interact with the social aptitude of two underdeveloped microorganisms; and he will combust if you look at him for more than a second. Not in the flustered, more in the apathetic introverted way. 4/10, you had never been so silent in your entire schooling years.

Jungwoo: Lovely boy, thank the stars you got partnered with him and not Jaehyun. The only disconcerting thing about him is that he has to type lying on his belly with his feet kicking in the air. But fuck it! You join him, and suddenly you two are middle school girls gossiping about academic essays. You both spend more time decorating the slides than finding information. 10/10 You do think that he is your long lost other half.

Mark: Despite this being a completely professional situation; with no romance and barely even any possibility for friendship, he still manages to have zero rizz. Zero Academic Rizz, as one might call it. But when he’s not embarrassing himself by stuttering eight times in five words, he gives you decent feedback and is surprisingly emotionally intelligent for being a man. Brought you a half-melted chocolate bar before the presentation because the day before you complained about cramps. 9/10 You go, Mark! Even if you mispronounced ‘theoretically’ in front of the theory teacher! 

Xiaojun: Right there alongside Taeil with the massive inclination to sing his heart out. I do imagine that he is also studying musical theatre, so god bless your heart. Do you know how distracting it is to hear phantom of the opera while you study catcher in the rye? To be fair, he also lets you occasionally listen to Nicki Minaj, which he turns into melodic opera. 2/10, he ended the presentation with ♫anyyyyyyyyy quueeeeeeeeestions♫ and you wanted to die.

Hendery: Goofy (derogatory) Silly (insultingly) Despite not knowing him before this presentation, you forcibly grew so close with him in the span of a week that you began smacking him with your laptop every time he went on a tangent. Even if you had screaming matches outside the library (you got kicked out), you two still managed to make an outstanding social commentary within the amazing world of gumball. 10/10, he got yelled at for dancing while the professor asked her question. 

Renjun: He regards you the same way you regard your friend’s 13 year old, freshly intellectually sentient sibling. Is definitely more interested in texting his friends than talking to you, but you like it that way (you think to yourself spitefully). You purposely don't decorate his slides, but his script is so good that the professor doesn't even notice it. 1/10, the one point is for when he told you that you formatted your script wrong. 

Jeno: Asks if you can come to the gym and work with him there. At first you say no, but it seems like his schedule is severely booked, and you finally relent. It sort of looks like you are his secretary, with your laptop in your hands, typing the words his grunts out between sets. All things considered, he knows alot about the topic without having to reference anything. The project is finished within three sessions, and you are forced to do some exercise 3/3 times. 8/10, the smell of sweat is horrendous, but he makes a pretty good personal trainer. One more! One more! You got this!!

Haechan: You both didn’t get anything done. Not for the lack of effort, but for the sheer amount of banter. And fighting. Lots of fighting- but your favourite colours are opposites, how were you meant to find the best slide background? The project’s pushed to the night before, and the two of you spend 5 hours straight at a McDonalds, drinking copious amounts of coke zero and ignoring the minimum wage workers trying to tell you that you shouldn’t order any more fries. 2/10, he threw said fries at you and the salt lodged itself in your keyboard.

Jaemin: Neither of you want to do the work, so he finds an existing presentation on the topic and you just… steal it. When the professor confronts you both about the obvious plagiarism, Jamein induces WW2 mental warfare to psychologically manipulate the professor into thinking she’s crazy, and that she was being unprofessional by assuming her students couldn’t produce a high quality of work. 10/10 After the presentation, Jaemin whispered to you: “Victory by any means necessary.”

Yangyang: Imagine this, 3AM, two students sitting at the library with drained faces, staring at a blank laptop screen. That’s what working with yangyang is like. Since both of you were procrastination-fueled learners, there was nothing to do but wait until the dreadful deadline approached and suddenly, you both would turn into geniuses. You moved for the first time in an hour when he offered to drive to burger king. 5/10 BURGER KING! The idea of a whopper ignites your ability to start the slides. 

Shotaro: Like Jungwoo, is a pleasure to work with, even if he is a little unremarkable. That being said, both of you had no idea how to answer one of the questions, and the two of you just exchanged concerned glances until the professor answered it for you. 5/10, both of you went to starbucks after to freak out and celebrate simultaneously.

Sungchan (I REALISED I SPELT HIM NAME WRON GIN THE OTHER POST OMG IM SO SORRY GIRL): This dude probably refuses to do work until you threaten him with either physical or mental torture (your choice, artistic interpretation) and he makes an extra effort to press each key as loudly as he can with a typing speed of half a word per minute. 2/10 During the actual presentation you two can’t stop from fighting to the point that the professor has to split you two apart. 

Chenle: You kill him. 0/10. Smack him over the head, and he still maintains the bratty disposition. He is the test sent by God, and one you cannot pass. 

Jisung: Would be super nice to work with, but surrounded by his upperclassmen, harassing him for no reason other than their preconceived role in his life. But it’s cool, because you have noise-cancelling earbuds, and also because it’s sort of funny to watch him whine and complain. When you can actually work alone, you find that he has to refill his americano at least three times per session. 6/10 Whether his hands shaking was from nerves, or a lethal caffeine overdose, you’ll never know.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

This day in history

One June 20, I'm live onstage in LOS ANGELES for a recording of the GO FACT YOURSELF podcast. On June 21, I'm doing an ONLINE READING for the LOCUS AWARDS at 16hPT. On June 22, I'll be in OAKLAND, CA for a panel and a keynote at the LOCUS AWARDS.

#20yrsago Canadian copyfight hots up: Liberal MPs on the take from copyright industries? https://www.michaelgeist.ca/2004/06/copyright-reform-needs-a-balanced-approach/

#15yrsago Digital TV’s history in America: the DTV transition nearly cost the USA its technological freedom https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2009/06/dtv-era-no-broadcast

#15yrsago Hundreds of top British cops defrauded the public for millions in phony expense racket https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2009/jun/14/expenses-fraud-detectives-scotland-yard

#15yrsago $134.5 BILLION worth of US bonds seized from smugglers at Swiss border https://www.asianews.it/index.php?l=en&art=15456&size=A

#10yrsago Atheism remains least-trusted characteristic in American politics https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2014/05/19/for-2016-hopefuls-washington-experience-could-do-more-harm-than-good/

#10yrsago Canadian Supreme Court’s landmark privacy ruling https://www.michaelgeist.ca/2014/06/scc-spencer-decision/

#10yrsago Court finds full-book scanning is fair use https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2014/06/another-fair-use-victory-book-scanning-hathitrust

#10yrsago Not selling out: Teens live in commercial online spaces because that’s their only option https://medium.com/message/selling-out-is-meaningless-3450a5bc98d2

#5yrsago Porno copyright troll sentenced to 14 years: “a wrecking ball to trust in the administration of justice” https://torrentfreak.com/copyright-troll-lawyer-sentenced-to-14-years-in-prison-190614/

#5yrsago Ukrainian oligarchs accused of laundering $470b, buying up much of Cleveland https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/ukrainealert/how-kolomoisky-does-business-in-the-united-states/

#5yrsago Empirical review of privacy policies reveals that they are “incomprehensible” drivel https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/06/12/opinion/facebook-google-privacy-policies.html

#5yrsago Beyond lockpicking: learn about the class-breaks for doors, locks, hinges and other physical security measures https://memex.craphound.com/2019/06/14/beyond-lockpicking-learn-about-the-class-breaks-for-doors-locks-hinges-and-other-physical-security-measures/

#5yrsago Hong Kong’s #612strike uprising is alive to surveillance threats, but its countermeasures are woefully inadequate https://www.securityweek.com/surveillance-savvy-hong-kong-protesters-go-digitally-dark/

#5yrago Reverse mortgages: subprime’s “stealth aftershock” that is costing elderly African-Americans their family homes https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/news/investigations/2019/06/11/seniors-face-foreclosure-retirement-after-failed-reverse-mortgage/1329043001/

#5yrsago Maine’s new ISP privacy law has both California and New York beat https://thehill.com/policy/technology/447824-maine-shakes-up-debate-with-tough-internet-privacy-law/

#1yrago How Amazon transformed the EU into a planned economy https://pluralistic.net/2023/06/14/flywheel-shyster-and-flywheel/#unfulfilled-by-amazon

[bergeronprocess]

It had been a little while since I went to Kinokuniya! Their 20% off sale for rewards members is going on right now, though, so it's a great time.

Weirdly, they've started to shrinkwrap all the English manga, even timid stuff for kids, and all the artbooks. You can see that everything is still shrinkwrapped here. It's not very well done shrinkwrap because the tops and bottoms of the books are uncovered:

This was not the case on my previous visits! I could browse through Skip and Loafer to see where the anime adaptation ended so I could pick up from there. I could flip through Precure art books to decide if I wanted to buy them. I'm forced to assume then that this is done at the store level, perhaps to discourage in-store reading, and... frankly that sucks. (I don't even think 18+ manga should be wrapped, just placed in an area with signs denoting their 18+ status.) I've made my displeasure with this wrapping known in a Google review and will also reach out to them via any corporate methods I can find on their website.

So with that said, I wanted to talk some more about the two Precure things I bought: a sticker book and an art book!

Here's the table of contents for the sticker book. As someone who still hasn't fully memorized katakana but has hiragana pretty much down pat, I do like how they have hiragana in the furigana here.

It includes stickers of literally every Precure team! Wonderful and Hirogaru Sky get more representation, but everyone has something, including stickers of every season's team in a group pose. (Of course, no Wonderful mid-season Cure/s is/are there.)

I think Prism looks so cute on this page. I have a reusable sticker book that I can put these into, as well as some spots on my laptop lid and such.

The art book has sparkly front and back covers. (This photo does not do it justice!)

There are pictures of posters that were on display throughout Japan and what city they were in, interviews with the 5 voice actors for the Hirogaru Cures, interviews with staff members on Hirogaru, plus pictures of all the toys and costumes for every single season thru Delicious Party.

The Kira Kira transformation item is one of my absolute favorites

Star Twinkle as well

Interviews with voice actors of all the past Cures follow. They discuss 3 of their favorite moments for their characters. More staff interviews are there as well.

Then info about all the OP and ED singles:

And info about each series and movie.

Finally, very nice shikishi artwork from character designers:

I also own the Ino Marie artbook for Kira Kira

I own the Takahashi Akira artbook for Star Twinkle (and also Suite, and maybe Doki Doki as well? Can't recall rn) too!

Finally, there's an interview with the Kamikita twins, who also supplied a shikishi:

And it concludes with an interview of a person on the staff for Otona Precure 23!

[rangerangel]

RA Characters as teams I've seen in the escape room I work at (inspired by @redrose-arrow 's restaurant post):

Will, Horace, Gilan

They struggle to understand that the room is a collaborative effort and want everything to be a competition. This is their first escape room, and they have booked our hardest one. They agree that they will not ask for any hints--they end up asking for 15 hints. Horace accidentally breaks a prop and is overly apologetic. We give them free drinks because they're so nice. They manage to get out with 5 minutes left and are incredibly excited about it. They huddle up in our lobby and do a chant before AND after the room. We're impressed they managed to turn an escape room into a sporting event.

Alyss, Cassandra, Jenny

They have a team name picked out and are ready to set the store record. They have dressed up in theme with the room, and have brought their own props to make the experience immersive. Halfway through the room, they get distracted and start dancing with each other to music from their phones . They cheer SO loudly every time they solve a puzzle. We know from the second they walk in the door that it's going to take them the full hour to solve the room. When they radio in, they trade bad jokes for hints. We're pretty sure they might be a little drunk, but they're a good time.

Halt and Pauline

They book our cowboy room, and are extremely quiet with the staff. We're all afraid that they are going to hate the room because they aren't interacting with our introduction at all. To our surprise, they put on cowboy hats as soon as they get in and pretend to shoot each other with the prop guns. They only ask for a few hints, but every time they get the answer to a puzzle we see Pauline throw her arms up on camera because she's been telling Halt how to solve it correctly for 15 minutes. They manage to translate the braille puzzle entirely without using the translation sheet, but get stuck on how to input three numbers into a cash register. Every time they radio in, Halt ends his sentence with "over." They tip $20 on the way out.

Duncan, David, Arald, Maddie

They come in for Maddie's birthday, and she's the only one who's done an escape room before. They choose one of our horror rooms, and we're pretty sure they have no idea what they're getting themselves into. Despite showing Duncan how to use a walkie talkie, we absolutely cannot get them to hold onto the button long enough to understand what they're saying. David and Arald are having the most fun in trying to scare Maddie, but they're really just scaring each other. Duncan ends up sitting on the couch for most of the game watching everyone else and shouting encouragement. When we drop the final jumpscare, David and Arald scream so loudly we can hear them in the lobby. Maddie solves 90% of the puzzles, but they all have a great time. They decide to book another room on the way out, and Duncan pays in full. We adore them and talk about how sweet they were all day.

Morgarath

He books our paint splatter/escape room hybrid. He comes alone, and argues about signing our waiver (he doesn't want to put his name down). When he is led to the room, he is shocked that there is paint everywhere. We explain the concept of the room again and show him the ponchos to protect his clothes. He solves the puzzles quickly and gets to the paint. He radios in and asks what he's supposed to do with it. We explain the idea of a splatter room for the 4th time. He leaves without touching the paint. A day later, he leaves a one-star Google review complaining that he didn't know there would be paint. In order to buy the tickets he had to navigate a page full of pictures of people covered in paint. We pray he doesn't come back.

[jeannereames]

Hello Dr. Reames! When you decide to read a history book on your free time - and a book completely unrelated to your area of expertise - but you know nothing about said topic, you're only interested in learning about it. How do you choose which book you'll read?

FANTASTIC question. Thank you for asking it.

Let’s Talk How to Evaluate the Quality of a Book NOT on/in Your Specialization or Field

I’m going to start with some general bullet points of advice with discussion. Then I’ll give a concrete example of a book (or set of them) that I decided not to buy after a little rummaging.

The Basics

(These may seem obvious, but a lot of folks ignore them, like they skip over reading the introduction. Always read the book’s introduction!)

Who’s the author?

Most books have, on the back cover or inside, a note about the author. Also, google the person. Do they have a professional degree or some form of special training/ experience (e.g., say, they worked on a dig)? If they’re a professor, where do they teach? (But don’t put too much on that; the state of academia today means highly respected scholars could end up in Podunk Mississippi just to find a job.)

What type of book is it and who’s the intended audience?

Is it an academic book meant for other specialists? A book intended for use as a textbook? Something marketed to general audiences: “pop” history, or creative non-fiction? These may all be well-done. Yet if I’m wanting to learn about a topic I’m not familiar with, I specifically seek out a textbook, as they're geared to teach the topic to non-specialists. They won’t go down a research rabbit hole. Specifically in ancient history, those “Companion to…” collections are great, as you get multiple experts weighing in on what they know the most about. And they're intended for interested readers but not specialists in that particular topic. Also they’re curated by an editor who IS a specialist, so you know the chosen authors are respected in the field.

When was it written?

If the publication date is 50 years ago, it’s been superseded. It might be out of date even if it’s 20 years ago—or 10. But newer is not necessarily better.

What press published it?

Princeton, Cambridge, Brill/DeGruyter, Berkeley, Peeters, Harvard, Chicago. Any would be a good sign. But the University of Oklahoma does not mean it’s a bad book. (Beth Carney’s important first monograph on Macedonian women came from UOk.) University presses can corner the market on a particular topic: Univ. of Nebraska does a LOT of native history. Also, it may not be a university press at all. Routledge is perfectly respectable, as are Bloomsbury and Penguin. For local histories or something niche, you may get publication by a historical society, not a major press at all. (I picked up a perfectly fine book about ghost stories in the city of Savannah done by the local historical society.) BUT IF IT’S SELF-PUBLISHED, that’s a big ol’ Red Flag.

Going a Little Deeper

Ask somebody you know, who IS a specialist in the field, if they’ve read the book and what they think

Depending on your personal circle, this may not be possible.

Find a review (or three)

I regularly teach my undergrads (and grad students) to look for reviews.

Look at the bibliography

Probably more important for academic books, but how long is the biblio? Yes, topics can have more or fewer publications, but it should go on for some pages. Also, is it all in just one language? Some fields may tend that way (much American history), but a well-done monograph in, say, Greek or Roman history should not be monolingual in the research.

Actually check (don’t ignore) footnotes

They tell stories. Again, this largely pertains to academic books, but you can find fun (and occasionally catty) scholarly quarrels in them. Very early in my reading on Alexander, I became fascinated by the back-and-forth in footnotes between the “Three Bs” (Badian, Borza, and Bosworth) plus Green and Hammond. BUT some red flags: 1) the author disproportionately citing themself, especially if it’s because 2) the author seems to have quarrels with a large number of colleagues. Maybe the author is just original! But sometimes that tells you their conclusions are questionable. Use your common sense.

Now, for a concrete example … as some of you know, I have American indigenous ancestry, specifically Peoria-Miami (Myaamia). While I know some things about our tribe, I’m far from an expert. On our Facebook page, one of the other members recently dropped mention of a series on the early history of Indiana, and the conflicts between settlers and natives during the French-Indian Wars—including St. Clare’s Defeat, effected by the Myaamia and led by Little Turtle (Mihshihkinaahkwa), the worst defeat [proportionally] ever suffered by American troops.

I thought, Oh, cool, maybe I should pick these up and read them in my “copious” spare time. E.g., probably years from now.

I followed the provided link, and immediately thought, This doesn’t look good. Page ran on forever, not well organized, and I had to hunt for info about the author. Although he was a retired schoolteacher, he didn’t seem to have any specific training in doing historical research; I don’t think he was even a history major in college (probably did education). Additionally, the book-covers and purchasing info made it clear all the books were self-published, and the provided text snippets contained grammar errors.

Yeah, I left that page bookless. Maybe the info in them was perfectly fine and he just couldn’t find a publisher who wanted creative non-fiction about an event most people have never heard of led by a chief with a name most can’t pronounce…. But I’m going to bet the research matched the grammar: slap-dash.

Now, that was a relatively easy one to figure out; I spent all of 10 minutes on the page. (And no, I’m not naming the author nor linking to the books, as this is an example, not an attempt to humiliate the person.) But it gives you some idea how I evaluate books in a field very far from my own specialty.

———————

* Although that said, they’re starting to scrape the bottom of the barrel to come up with new topics for Yet Another “Companion to….” Some I’ve seen would be better just sold as a collection on X topic, not “Companion to….”

[ironicsoap]

some interesting things ive learned over the past 450+ days of selling avatar bases

what people say they want ≠ what they'd actually pay for.

polls aren't fully reliable and you have to consider the people who haven't seen your poll / people voting things because they want to see them but not actually use them.

there's people who will buy your stuff who do not know or care who you are (so fascinating to me but i appreciate anyways)

taxes are a nightmare. I could understand someone quitting because they didn't want to deal with them again (I still haven't fully dealt with them due to some insane circumstances 😭 also dont give me tax advice please)

there is an incredibly loud but tiny group of people that don't know how to use google

don't let things slide because people will steamroll you if you let them off the hook too many times

the amount of reviews on something is usually <20% of total purchases (this only applies for bases that don't encourage people to leave a rating, I'm sure that it increases it a little)

[rigelmejo]

I'm still working through Glossika japanese app course. Some updated opinions:

The sentences (appear to have) less errors than the initial 400. But because I was seeing 20% errors for the first fee hundred sentences, I wpuld recommend taking anything you learn from the glossika app with a grain of salt. Treat it as if you learned from random sentences online you slapped into google translate (having in mind google translate gives like 20% errors with languages like japanese for some sentences). For a paid product, the level of mistakes is too high.

As for actual learning: its fine, now that I've gotten into the rhythm. I think Clozemaster is slightly better, because even though it ALSO uses random semtences and machine translations it also gives the option to click individual word definitions in each sentence - this feature helps you translate piece by piece to figure out the grammar a bit better and notice potentially where the translation error is (so you can ignore the error part and learm from the rest).

On the flip side? Glossika's main benefit for me, is it autoplays english/japanese sentences and automatically progresses me to new sentences. I like hands off study I can do other things at the same time with, i have poor focus for staring at an app and diligently working on it for several minutes/hours. But I can get myself to play audio and keep listening for hours most of the time. I PREFER free tools to glossika, but i do like that glossika is built to either autoplay new things, or autoplay reviews, depemding on what i pick. So i can know im making progress and control how much time i put into reviews. With free resources ive used (which were EXCELLENT) i usually almost exclusively only listened to New audio, because tje instant i was in control of my own reviewing i would waste hours replaying old audio and stop trying to progress and get obsessed with reviewing until i was perfect. So i forced myself to only use new audio to prevent myself getting into a "make no progress and only review" loop i tend to personally fall into. With glossika, i can do reviews occasionally because i do see when they "end" with a hard limit of when ive done all the the sentences audio for the day, and i can totally ignore reviews and focus ONLY on new audio if i notice im getting too focused on reviews.

As a beginner? I recommend Japaneseaudiolessons.com (free), Genki textbooks (great if you want to use a textbook), or maybe japanesepod101 (paid or some lessons free, all lessons free if you get Immersive Language Japanese through your library like on Hoopla app). I think the Glossika app is maybe intending to drill on the VARIETY of everyday basic conversation (giving say 5 sentences of how you might ask someone to hang out, or do a task), but its NOT quickly going through A1 material in terms of how to do what an A1 student should learn to do. You should be learning: my name is, i like X, i work at X, i come from X place, what is your name? How are you? Can I buy X? How much for X? Well in the glossika app it took like 1000 sentences to finally get to "she's from new york" or "i lived there for a long time." I dont think ive actually heard "my name is/whats your name" yet, and im through 1400 sentences. As a beginner, if you use glossika app it make take weeks or MONTHS (deoendijg on your pace) before you get to learning to say some basic lines a tourist might wish to use. Genki would cover those kinds of lines much quicker, even the Teach Yourself (multiple language beginner basic books) books will probably cover introduction and shopping skills in the first few lessons. Glossika both makes you spend TONS of time in A1 material (like 1800 sentences) while also taking a long time to prepare you to ssy basic shit you might need asap. You learn "the train station is near here" "if you leave soon you'll make it" "when are you coming" "i got here as fast as i could" before you learn "whats your name". Now these are still useful sentences - its a good way to learn a lot of grammar with very basic everyday topics. I think it probably is going to help me understand slice of life cdramas. I finally learned HOSHII which is like wish/want and ive heard in Yakuza 7 a ton and always look up then forget. But i think going into glossika WITHOUT those basic introduction/shopping skills? Would be incredibly frustrating. Other learning resources would prepare you quicker. And other resources would explain basic particles use, basic verb and adjective conjugations, which will help parse glossikas sentences. Glossika app's beginner A1 section is not quick about preparing beginners for the initial skills in the language. Now, if your goal is READING asap, before basic speaking topic skills? Glossika might be a bit more suited to you. But even then.... core 2k or 6k anki deck, iKnow Japanese site, nukemarine's Lets Learn Japanese Decks, would all cover more vocabulary faster which helps (and have less errors).

If i could build apps or programs. Id probably just want something that says TTS (Microsoft's since its nicest sounding) english sentence, then 2 repeats of the target language sentencence (or you can specify repeats and order you want). And it would work by having you paste in a new sentence text to "add" to your sentences collection. Or you'd import someone else's sentences collection (to get 5000 sentences from someone else). Then the app would play new sentences if you click Play New, sort of glossika style with maybe 5 repeats of the sentence in a lesson session. And if you click "play New" it would keep going down the list of sentences you havent studied yet. Or you click "review" and it would play audio of sentences you've studied. It would prioritize playing the Next sentences in the review queue (that you didnt listen to during your last review), so you dont end up revieeing the same 200 sentences each time. So that instead it plays the first 200, then the next 200, then the next until it goes all the way to prior reviewed sentences and you then do your next round of reviewing prior reviewed stuff. And only replays ALL sentences if you pick "review all" or if you just keep listening to the Review queue until it loops all the way back to the beginning of your sentences in the review queue. (This would make it better than Clozemaster which does tend to loop review only a few sentences if you used Radio mode, back when i used the app). The app i'd want would have to Machine translate target language text sentences put in (or you'd make an excel sheet with Target Language and Translations put in, and import that and have the app use Your Translations instead of making them automatically). The app would use TTS for all audio, although it would be really cool to build in the ability to import audio files for the Target Language audio if you have it (or if the sentence collection you import has it - like an anki deck with chinese audio on the chinese sentence text side). The app could even be used to turn a novel or game script into sentences to study with english/target language audio, since you'd just need to import the sentences. Unfortunately I dont know how to build an app or program like this. But it would cover some shortcomings I've seen in other apps, and be very listening focused. I suppose the app could show the sentence text like Glossika or Clozemaster too, if you chose to look at the sentences autoplayed audio, so you could get some reading practice in. And an option to repeat a sentence as its on a given sentence (like in glossika or clozemaster), so you can re-listen to hear it clearer or read it while listening a few more times.

[mediamonarchy]

https://mediamonarchy.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/20240820_MorningMonarchy.mp3 Download MP3 Social insecurity, boulder dash and shitpost prison + this day in history w/Ray Roseberry and our song of the day by Tunnelmental on your #MorningMonarchy for August 20, 2024. Notes/Links: Protests erupt, Chicago businesses board up as the DNC kicks off Day 1 festivities; Democratic lawmakers will gather in Chicago, Illinois, this week for the 2024 DNC. Vice President Kamala Harris is slated to formally accept her party’s nomination on Thursday. https://www.foxnews.com/live-news/democratic-national-convention-2024-dnc-august-19-2024 HarrisWalz.com Domain Drama Ducks Question of Cybersquatting Law https://news.bloomberglaw.com/ip-law/harriswalz-com-domain-drama-ducks-question-of-cybersquatting-law The Ledger: How Layoffs Are Showing Up in Music Companies’ Earnings Reports https://archive.is/6agGm Bad bosses are pushing Gen Zers and millennials to the brink https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/bad-bosses-pushing-gen-zers-184655830.html Biggest shakeup to buying and selling a home in a century starts today https://www.dailymail.co.uk/yourmoney/property-and-mortgages/article-13735925/Biggest-shakeup-buying-selling-home-century-starts-today.html The death knell for broker fees! Homeowners to see BIG drop in selling costs after Realtors agree to eliminate notorious commission scheme and pay $418 million damages in landmark legal settlement https://www.dailymail.co.uk/yourmoney/housing-market/article-13201833/realtors-settle-eliminate-commission.html ✂️ Big rate-cut fall? https://sherwood.news/snacks/newsletters/big-rate-cut-fall/ Video: “Most People Have NO IDEA How Bad This Really Is” – Whitney Webb’s 2025 Final WARNING (Audio) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVrWLNN-wpE Sheena Easton – “(She’s In Love) With Her Radio” (Vinyl //Audio) https://www.discogs.com/release/1799996-Sheena-Easton-Best-Kept-Secret // https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1LjFr7kOoI Here’s how to find out if your Social Security number was included in last week’s massive data breach https://fortune.com/2024/08/19/social-security-number-hack-were-you-included/ Google named their GPU Adreno…and we all know what they named their browser 😐 https://en.wikipedia.org//wiki/Adreno Classic NES Game Is Making a Comeback After 40 Years https://gamerant.com/classic-nes-game-boulderdash-remake-40-years/ Video: Boulder Dash for NES Game Review (Audio) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3_QfShxCNk Waterworld – “Map” (Inst. // Audio) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Kf_esaJUpA Man who called for asylum hotels to burn down jailed — as it happened; Defendants sentenced as prime minister pledges no let up in efforts to prevent more disorder https://www.thetimes.com/uk/crime/article/uk-riots-live-friday-latest-news-pfjb78g0v Man who encouraged torching hotels for asylum seekers in Britain gets 3 years in prison https://apnews.com/article/british-far-right-riots-sentencing-asylum-e3248eb20ea8c2c0e719e7617bc565b9 Video: Man jailed for stirring hatred on social media (Audio) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zWB2W_ADasc Alexander O’Neal – “Fake” (Vinyl // Audio) https://www.discogs.com/release/427059-Alexander-ONeal-Fake // https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_O’Neal // https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fake_(Alexander_O%27Neal_song) // https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vN1RYACiXNs #MorningMonarchy: August 20, 2018 – Actor Jim Carrey’s Art Goes Viral: “Our Missile, Our Crime” In Yemen https://mediamonarchy.com/20180820morningmonarchy/ #PumpUpThaVolume: August 20, 2018 ♬ The Holy Gasp & Death Valley Girls https://mediamonarchy.com/20180820pumpupthavolume/ #ThisDayInHistory/#MorningMonarchy: August 20, 2021 – The suspect, Ray Roseberry, has been live streaming the bomb threat at the Library of Congress on Facebook. He is demanding to talk to Joe Biden on the phone. (Audio) https://mediamonarchy.com/20210820morningmonarchy/ // https://vxtwitter.com/mediamonarchy/status/1428423030955380738 // https://twitter.com/...

[dakotakazansky]

Ghost • Two

Previous | Master List | Next

Warnings: 18+, Fluff, Angst, lots of Dumb Bitch Juice, Some Smut

Pairings: Jake ‘Hangman’ Seresin x OC & Javy ‘Coyote’ Machado x OC

Word Count: 1,246

Kota

After we had left the hangar, I went home, and changed into a pair of distressed jean shorts, a black tank top that I tucked into my shorts and a blue Buffalo plaid flannel shirt that Jake had gifted to me one year for Christmas. He had said I needed more country in my life and then proceeded to give me like 3 different flannels. I also slipped on a pair of cowboy boots that he had helped me pick out and freshened up with my cedar wood, citrus and vanilla body spray. 

Tatum was the first one to show up at my door, as she had been assigned one of the barrack rooms down the hall from me. "Please come in, make yourself comfy, while we wait for Jake to show up." I say holding the door open for Tate. I went to grab us some water while Tate looked around the room. "Really Kota, you have nothing on your walls?" Tate asked me, gesturing to the bare walls of my room. "We've got to change that!" She said chuckling, "We're going to have to stop and grab some essentials!" I laughed along with Tate after realizing how sad my room looked with nothing around other than the furniture needed to survive. 

Tate and I started planning a list of stuff we were going to have to buy at the store next time we went. We agreed I needed some art work for the walls, some photo frames and new curtains. We tried to think of more items but were ultimately interrupted by a knock on my door. I opened the door to allow Jake to come in. "You finally made it!" I say excitedly to Jake. Tate just chuckled at my excitement. "So where are we going?" I asked not really knowing of any good bars around base. 

We learned we were all pretty new to the area so we did what anyone in our day and age would do, we went to google and started to search up bars. "What about this one?" Tate had asked, turning her phone towards us. "4 stars, has karaoke, apparently drinks aren't too expensive." I read aloud from the reviews, "It seems it's only 11ish minutes away from base too so we wouldn't get in trouble with curfews. sounds like a plan to me." I say, waiting for the opinion of the two others in the room. We all agreed it sounded like a good place to go, "so uh, who's driving?" Tate asked, while I looked over to Jake before saying, "Well I can drive but we won't be taking my vehicle, I have a motorcycle." Tate chuckled and Jake shook his head at me saying, "No I'll drive, my truck is so much more safer than your bike, plus it'll fit all of us." 

We all got into Jake's truck, and drove over to the bar. When we got there we were greeted by a giant sign made up of license plates that said 'The Wrecking Bar', and a glowing neon open sign. We made our way to the bar in the middle of the establishment and were greeted by the bartender, "Good evening folks, what can I get started for you tonight?" "3 bottled beers please." I say to the mid 30's looking bartender. "And would you like to cash out now or open a tab for the night?" She questioned me. "We'll cash out now if you don't mind." I say handing her my card. She cashes us out, and Jake, Tate, and I make our way over to an empty table in the corner of the bar. 

"Kota you know I could've paid for it?" Jake says, looking towards me. "I know you could've but you drove us here, it's the least I could do." I replied back to him. "Next round is on me next time!" Tate chimes in and we all just laugh together. 

"So why don't we play a variation of 20 questions to get to know each other better?" Tate says after taking a swig from her bottle. "That's a great idea, someone will ask a question and then we'll all take turns answering." I replied, "So who wants to ask the first question?" 

Tate questions first, "where are we all from? I'm from Ohio." Jake replies "Texas" and I reply hesitantly,  "I'm from California, more specifically the Fighter Town area." Once I mention that I look over to Tate, who has a look on her face like the gears are turning in her head before she questions, "Wait, your last name is Kazansky, are you related to Admiral Kazansky?" I chuckle at the fact it's taken her this long to put two and two together and say "Yeah, he's my dad." Tate just stares at me awestruck for a moment before saying "yo, that's so fucking cool!" Jake and I burst out laughing. 

I ask the next question, "what's everyone's favorite sport to watch?" We all give each other a look that says on the count of three we blurt it out, we all waited 3 seconds before blurting out "Football!" in unison. 

It was Jake's turn to ask a question, "What's everyone's family like? My parents are still married, my mom is a stay at home mother, dad is retired Air Force, and I have 2 older siblings and one younger sibling." I nod to Tate to let her answer first. "Uh my parents are divorced, I don't know much about my father, he wasn't around much, but I do have my mom and older brother still in the picture." Then all eyes were on me, "Well my parents are still happily married, dad is obviously an Admiral, mom is also a stay at home mom, and I'm the only child." 

We continued on with our rounds of 20 questions getting to know each other well while we finished our drinks. Once we had finished our drinks and game, we all made sure to have some water and food and made sure we were sobered up before driving back to base to split up for bed for the night. Tate gave both Jake and I a hug before walking down the hallway to return to her room for the night. 

I looked at Jake "Hey do you wanna spend the night? I know your place is a little further away?" I asked while unlocking the door to my room. "Sure," he said as we stepped into my room, "so what do you think about Tate?" I pondered on his question for a moment, "I think her and I will get along just well honestly. She didn't have the same reaction that most people have when finding out the legendary Iceman is my father." I laughed a little before continuing, "She also pointed out that this room is pretty sad in terms of decorations, I think she and I are going to go this weekend to the store to pick up some much needed 'essentials', her words not mine." We both laughed, and got ready for bed. 

I crawled into bed, and started to set my alarm when I felt Jake crawl into bed next to me. Him and I are such close friends at this point that neither of us feel awkward sleeping in the same bed together. "Goodnight Sun," I say, yawning halfway through. Jake chuckles, "Goodnight Moon, see you in the morning."

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[themomsandthecity]

Are European Baby Formulas *Really* Better Than Ones Made in the US?

I live my life by the Reddit Click Theory (something I just now invented on the spot), which states: the number of clicks it takes to get to a piece of information on Reddit is directly correlated with its status as a conspiracy theory. One click? You're probably safe. Five clicks? You're in anti-vaxxer territory. Anyway, as I Googled "best baby formula" to feed my twin boys, Reddit threads professing the life-altering magic of HiPP, Holle, Kendamil, and other European baby formulas kept rising to the top. Upon further research, it became clear that there is a fairly sizable faction of parents who prefer the standards of European Union baby formulas to American recipes. "We dug into this trend in 2019, prior to the infant formula shortage," says Dina DiMaggio, MD, FAAP, medical research director at Bobbie Labs, an offshoot of the organic formula brand that supports research on infant feeding. "Our research, which focused on New York City-based parents, found that 20 percent of families were using illegally imported European infant formulas [bought through unregulated third-party websites]." Parents who utilize EU formulas regularly cite that the EU has stricter standards for baby formulas than in the United States, with non-GMO, grass-fed dairy, and organic ingredients being frequently thrown around. If you look at third-party sites, this is echoed in the reviews, which bemoan the use of corn syrup, pesticides, and sugar levels in American formulas. "The rise in this trend came while consumers were beginning to understand the difference between EU and US regulations in other product categories," says Dr. DiMaggio. "Just as people were taking a closer look at what was in the products they were purchasing for themselves, it's natural that they started to do the same for their babies." What Are the Main Differences Between EU and US Formulas? In scrutinizing labels, I found that both EU and US formulas contain the same key ingredients: a milk source (usually from cows; though sometimes sensitive formulas are made from goat's milk), lactose, vegetable oils, and whey protein. As with labels for personal care products, ingredients for baby formulas are listed with the ingredient that's in the largest quantity in the formula at the front of the label. Related: The Best Baby Formula of 2023, According to Reviewers Largely, the differences between formulas can be attributed to requirements that the Food and Drug Administration - which regulates baby formula in the United States - sets for brands to meet versus what the EU requires its formulas to meet. "Both the FDA and European Union have specific and strict standards for infant formula with nutrient requirements and labeling laws," says Anthony Porto, MD, FAAP, MPH, Chief Medical Director at Bobbie Labs. Let's take a closer look at where the regulating bodies' standards differ, shall we? 1. DHA The EU requires DHA - an omega-3 fatty acid that plays an important structural role for brain, skin, and eye development - to be between 20 to 50 milligrams per 100 calories; however, the FDA and US formulas have no DHA requirement. Though, importantly, many formula companies in the U.S. still enhance their formulas with DHA. 2. Carb Sources There are also differences in sugar in the varying formulas. "The EU also has a limit on how much of the carb source can come from an alternative sugar source other than lactose, which is the sugar found in breastmilk," says Dr. Porto. 3. Iron Most US formulas include more iron than formulas made in Europe.This is because the FDA requires US formulas to meet certain requirements for the level of 30 nutrients, one of them being iron. Formulas in the US are fortified with iron at 12 mg/dL. Okay, So What Should I Buy? Which formula to buy for your babe is a deeply personal decision. "It's important to remember that both US and European formulas provide safe and healthy nutrition for… https://www.popsugar.com/family/european-vs-american-formula-49314493?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=tumblr