#I know technically post covid could also be considered one but it’s such a small part of it decided to leave it off

[shijiujun]

on the danmei twitter fight

okay guys i didn’t wanna say anything about this and yes it’s that hot danmei twitter translations saga thing that’s going on, because honestly i feel like there’s nothing much to say but when i see dumb posts on tumblr taking about that, by people who present a misleading hot take and their friends or moots run off with it without even knowing what exactly is going on - it really pisses me off.

and also if you shit talk translators for not continuing their translations or locking their translations whatever - the door is that way on your right and left, but anyway here’s a rundown on what happened because i am seeing people make comments without two brain cells put together, without the slightest bit of consideration for the people who bring them translations

here’s my hot take and thesis: if you enjoy english translations made by fan translators, you don’t, in any way, no matter happens, shit talk fan translators. fan translators do this for free, and whatever their intentions are, whether genuine sharing or like some of you like to say, for clout, if you consume, and you enjoy these translations, i’m sorry, you’re not uninvolved, and you don’t get to sit on a high horse and say translators should or shouldn’t do something. you should just keep quiet, honestly, because someone else is doing you a favour, a favour that you are enjoying and taking. that’s what respect is.

i’m presenting both sides or i guess three sides of the story as objectively as i can, altho my support is still for fan translators who were just minding their own business before this blew up.

===

🔺 what happened:

so it started because one of the bigger translators in the fandom did this poll - i’m not blaming her at all, i doubt she had any intentions of shaming anyone or causing any controversy and was plain curious, but her poll asked english speaking danmei twitter how many people buy the digital, print copies of the danmei they read, and who did not. 

in my honest opinion, it’s not strange at all for her to have created that poll, considering just how much work she’s put into making sure things are accessible for the eng-speaking danmei fandom. i mean i’d be curious too, to know out of my thousands of readers, what the reading and buying behaviour is like. do yourself a favour and don’t read too much into it.

obviously in an era where a lot of people do consume content for free whether the underlying content is profit-making (like anime, donghua, manhua, manga etc.) or not (fanfiction etc.), it was unsurprising to see that the last option - the ones who consume danmei without paying a single cent, came out as the majority. i don’t think this is a surprising result at all, for all sorts of reasons that i will not get into now.

anyway, this is obviously kind of a sore point in the fandom especially for translators who want a wider audience to support their fave author’s works - i won’t get into that for now, but the issue began because other translators or fans started to criticize the majority of people who don’t pay for objectively rather affordable danmei and just consume things for free. 

and yes, i don’t deny that the argument on both sides got really heated and emotionally charged with both sides calling each other names which i believe is uncalled for, but it totally derailed the crux of the issue, which basically is that the majority of english-speaking danmei fandom - consumes danmei for free.

anyway this whole thing escalated and fan translators were brought into this for no fucking reason at all except that the people who didn’t want, or were unable to pay for the danmei they usually consume, made what i call a LOGICAL FALLACY in argument by going to the extremes, i will explain why later.

the end result is that fan translators were brought into this (most of them, the bigger ones i know at least) without even participating in the direct crossfire. and obviously, you can see why they’re hurt and decided to lock their translations. let me explain why

===

🔺 kind of like four camps:

(1) translators and fans who criticized those who consume danmei liberally but do not pay for them in any way - no merch, no digital copies, no physical copies, no audio dramas whatever

*** their arguments:

danmei is so cheap right, that technically people should be able to pay for it in one way or another, even if not all

danmei and its authors are, at the end of the day, out here to earn a living, and the industry, like any money-making industry, is a for-profit enterprise - and unlike public goods, if you cannot afford danmei, then there is no obligation for others to make it free for you (fan translators or otherwise, it wasn’t super clearly stated while this shitshow happened) when it is inherently a for-profit industry

yes, i don’t deny that some of them did call the peeps who don’t pay at all, “leeches” and other sort of names. personally, i wouldn’t go that far or even like venture there to be honest because in general, if it’s something that i’ll get punched in the face for if i called someone that in real life i tend not to do it, but i’ll leave my opinions, whatever they’re worth, for later

(2) the readers and fans of danmei who do not pay in any sort of way for them

*** their arguments:

some of them really cannot afford, even the dollar or more, to spend on danmei for several reasons: upbringing, culture, money-spending mindsets, real poverty, struggling to make ends meet etc. - some definitely more valid than others (and when i say not valid, it’s because SOME, a minority or like those few stragglers, say they cannot afford and then you see them like idk, throwing $50 on other merch on kpop and stuff - i’m just bringing up ONE example. not shaming anyone for spending more money on one aspect rather than the other, but yeah you can see why some of them, when making this same argument, are a little invalid, that’s just a small number of them tho)

if translators are blaming them for consuming free of charge, then the fault lies, at its foundation, fan translators who translate illegally, which i mean, in that definition, all of them including me 

did i mention that we were called illegal translators like you know in response to being called leeches? anyway-

(3) others translators who literally were just minding their own fucking business before some smart alec dragged them into it

i don’t think most of us had an argument. we were just quietly munching on popcorn and staying out of it and yeah, can you imagine, we provide a service, however illegal it is, for free on our own time, we don’t even check whether people support legally or not, we just... provide, and pray that those who are able to, at least support in some small way or another do so, on their own time. i mean i don’t check, most of us don’t, not the bouncers at your local club before COVID happened do, and then suddenly, to be used to derail an argument, we were called illegal translators. and that we should stop translating, and that it is our fault that there are free riders in the fandom

(4) people who offered to provide JJWXC credits to those who said they couldn’t afford it etc.

honestly i think they were just trying to help - no different than a gofundme. there’s no shame in taking a free thing that people already weren’t intending to pay for. it’s there, just take it!

===

🔺 the shitshow that led to fan translators locking their stuff up:

i would provide some actual examples in the form of screenshots but i’ve blocked most of them, and i don’t want to direct any sort of traffic to them so i guess you’ll have to take my word on it or go search on twitter yourself but-

(1) the affordability issue: i can understand the frustration at being called leeches, and some if not a majority of people, do have valid reasons for not being able to afford something or anything and end up pirating content they enjoy. hey, i am not about to crucify anyone for pirating at some point in their lives. we all have done it at some point, or for example hate disney+ and that $30 they were trying to rip off us for a subpar Mulan live action. i don’t have anything to say about that. inherently, is it wrong and illegal? yeah sure of course it is. do we call people leeches? i wouldn’t go that far.

if anyone cannot afford, cannot access for whatever reason, fine, i’m not gonna go check if jjwxc truly is banned in your country, or is your postal service so terrible that you definitely won’t be able to receive a hard copy of the book you like at affordable rates.

and if you have to pirate? go ahead. i mean it’s always been a rampant thing. the only thing fan translators and fans can do is encourage, motivate and incentivise as much as possible to get people to support legally. they can only put up REALLY COMPREHENSIVE guides as to how to access jjwxc or taobao or whatever. 

and if you still cannot afford it and pirate, honestly no one cares about the story behind it. you owe no one justification, just as how no other person is obligated to take it into consideration or understand you or empathize with you. i don’t say this in a malicious way - i do think that in general, you just do you. 

(2) the poor people don’t deserve nice things argument: honestly, this was not the point of this entire debacle, altho yes, people were rude to those who could not afford to support legally. but this is not the point of this whole thing.

main point - there are free riders who can support but choose not to because they choose to just consume it for free and if you are able to you should support

everyone going off on a tangent - you guys hate poor people / you guys are leeches

well guess what, no one wins in this argument. 

there were a lot of people saying “reading danmei is our only source of happiness, are you saying poor people who can’t access legally don’t deserve to read danmei” (this is just one example i’ve seen, there are other variations), and it wasn’t put across perhaps in the right way, but the other camp of people were saying “you’re not entitled to it for free if you cannot afford it”, which raised a lot of hackles and anti-poor yellings 

altho i do not deny that there are those who mean it maliciously, i think what everyone is trying to say is - the danmei industry, like any other profit-making industry, is looking to make profits. the people working in the industry, the authors even, are looking at numbers - traffic to jjwxc or other legal platforms, how much revenue they’re making from their live actions etc., comments, rankings, etc. i think @/hunxi-after-hours made a really succinct post on this aspect which yall should read.

it’s the same as - if you wanted to purchase a standee which costs $20 USD, but you cannot afford it = you don’t get it. there’s no way you can get this standee unless some gifts it to you for free. what the camp trying to ask people to support legally is saying, is that danmei is NOT A PUBLIC GOOD. it is a private, for-profit product. it might be intangible, but it is a PRODUCT that has a price that needs to be paid.

if you cannot afford it, you either don’t get access entirely (i’m saying this objectively and honestly from an economic standpoint). if someone gifts that standee to you for free, count yourself lucky - if someone makes a danmei accessible to you for free, COUNT YOURSELF LUCKY. you don’t have to be grateful and treat them as gods or like obey their every word, but it’s not rocket science. someone did you a favour that you accepted and consumed, show some respect. 

if you cannot afford to buy the standee - you do not go on twitter demanding that someone ensures that you have access to the standee for free. do you see how ridiculous this sounds once it’s a tangible product? and danmei novels ARE PRODUCTS. they are not FREE CONTENT. if someone cannot afford the standee, this is the equivalent of people going “we didn’t get the standee for free because poor people don’t deserve nice things”

totally missing the point. i don’t even know how it got to this. once again, i do admit that some users were unnecessarily mean, but going to the extreme of this is ridiculous. in argumentative essay writing we call this a logical fallacy:

e.g. “if you cannot pay for merchandise or danmei, it is a fact that you might not have access to it” morphing into “if we cannot pay for food, does this mean we cannot have access to it?!” - this is a slippery slope, and factors are not equivalent!!!! do they not teach people anything in school

don’t confuse fanfiction with danmei - danmei novels ARE PAID PRODUCTS unless for free chapters, just because it’s released online doesn’t mean it’s free public property, and also selected novels (did you guys know the WHOLE of SCI novel is free? about 500 chapters sorry, random, just a tidbit)

there are of course nuances right, like if anyone told me they were pirating disney+ content i’d be like yeah hey get one over those bloodsuckers, they take enough of our money and produce shit content anyway. the difference is that danmei authors, and the danmei industry itself can still be considered a nascent and not-yet matured industry, with a majority of authors if not all, depending on monetary flow, likes, comments, virality on the sites their content is hosted on, for a living, unlike hugeass MNCs trying to squeeze us dry for content that isn’t even interesting.

danmei is priced rather reasonably - and this brings me to another argument that was made, that the value of money is not the same for everyone. i don’t want to make comments on this because yes this is correct to a large extent. a $6 book might be cheap to most of us, but might be expensive to someone else. i’m not gonna comment on how cheap or whatever it is, if you gotta use your money for other things, definitely! i still maintain however, that a novel less than a dollar should be affordable to most people, a majority of people. and i definitely side eye some users who obviously have money but are just creating noise because they wanna continue free-riding

(4) the “they’re losing out on their international audience” argument: honestly, i feel like english-speaking danmei fandom gives themselves a bit too much credit. danmei has long thrived in china in its domestic market - sure the international audience is a plus to have and i’m sure the authors are grateful and flattered that people who don’t understand chinese love their content and love it a lot, but do they and their companies care about fans who basically don’t bring in money? i’m not sure (okay i’ll get to the fan translators doing illegal shit later okay i got it don’t be impatient)

and international fans are great, i don’t deny that - but when i see arguments like “oh but it’s their loss if they don’t cater or deny access to us, they get more popularity and sharing overseas”, i honestly think they don’t care as much as you think. once again, hunxi made a really good argument regarding non-sinophone audiences, but it really irks me, because this is the same as:

an instagram influencer saying they’ll give a restaurant exposure for free to their followers, if they get a free meal

it’s par for par - danmei authors wants earnings, popularity, tangible results that show that they are succeeding. this is life. if i put something out there for sale, i better be getting returns, simple economic logic. they probably don’t care that a non-paying reader is bringing them greater ‘exposure’ - once again, i mean this objectively. 

and yes if they’re thriving without the international market then why should it matter that people are pirating right? which brings me to the next point~

(5) it’s fan translators faults for so many people pirating, and fan translators are the ones doing the “illegal” work: this one is like... wow where do i unpack this and how-

firstly, we are talking about assholes who can pay but decide to free ride and not pay for danmei, and we assume that if you really cannot afford and have to pirate, no one’s saying anything as long as you don’t go around spreading how to pirate, how the hell did it get to fan translators from “you guys are anti-poor” and whatever

yes, fan translations are indeed illegal, i don’t deny that, and i also don’t deny that there are translators who translate for clout and popularity but putting these aside - here’s what i have seen from people who ran their mouths and made this argument

“if you guys care about us pirating the book so much than fan translators shouldn’t have translated in the first place” and “if you wanna come after us for reading illegally, then fan translators, you guys should go get the copyright for the book and then translate it cuz what you guys are doing is also illegal”

hooooo i’m telling ya, i am all for translators locking up their translations at this point. see how fucking hurtful that is? you eat from my hand and then now you biting at the hand that fed you the gays in love?

honestly if you’ve made this argument or supported this, you can basically go to hell. yes this is personal because what, you think fan translators don’t take out their personal time and effort and hard work to make translations accessible to you? if you’re ever consumed and read translations, don’t be a hypocrite and make this argument. you benefitted from it, now you wanna say it’s their fault? 

most translators want to share and spread the love they have for a novel right, want to show you how wonderful all these authors are, how much enjoyment u get from reading these wonderfully thought out stories of gays in love. yes we all know we are illegally translating, which is why on top of sharing we first, purchase the novels legally ourselves first, and then we try to encourage people to buy etc. and actually put their money to use. it doesn’t make it any less illegal, but we are bridging the gap between danmei and basically the english-speaking fandom, albeit illegally

we aren’t that self-important to ask for gratefulness but some respect would be nice. like i said, you read it, you consumed it, you enjoyed it, you can only access it because of illegal translators - a bit counter-intuitive to yell at these translators, who are simply telling you, if you can, please support. and none of us went “if you cannot afford, begone!”

===

🔺 some people tried to help by offering jjwxc credits so people who cannot afford as they say, can get legal access: honestly, just take it right, guess what some of these users did in response

they said the people giving away credits are trying to redeem themselves for their comments by giving away free stuff

they also said that we are trying to shame the people who cannot afford it with this handout to them, to show that they are the bigger person - the fact that they think this is a handout to them is TELLING. the people offering this is giving their money not to these readers, but to the authors! that’s the point of this exercise!!!

one of them even said “instead of trying to do these giveaways, here, there are greater world problems out there, donate instead to these causes” - love the initiative, but how did we get from being able to afford danmei and entertainment content to saving the world? i just- i cannot

===

🔺 so why i get why fan translators are locking up their translations, because wow, so hurtful:

you have no idea how many fucking assholes went “sure, lock up your translations, deal with the consequences” - ermmmm firstly, thanks for making a threat. like who the fuck do you think you are?

the consequences is... the authors still don’t get the money these free riders weren’t going to give them anyway, so no loss, and they weren’t reading on jjwxc anyway so you know, the authors don’t lose or gain any readership numbers or traffic they didn’t already have. instead, it WILL push and force people to pay for the PRODUCT. once again, it’s a product.

this works, and i’d say Word of Honor’s payment model worked marvellously for Youku, because they fucking forced everyone to pay to access content. ALL OF THEM. sure ok some people still pirated it, but how many MORE people paid on Youku, on Youku Youtube, watched on Viki etc. than if they didn’t? even english-speaking fandom were wracking their brains trying to purchase a Youku pass even if there were no subs initially - and other examples that lovely hunxi brought up in her amazing piece

and for translators?! honestly me for one, i’m glad i don’t feel pressured anymore to churn out a chapter every week since we get called names etc. most of us are glad to have a break to be honest. we’ve lost all motivation to translate because it’s a free service, at the very least we don’t expect like hate, or rudeass fuckers. for those who are doing a proof of purchase thing - go for it honestly! 

hopefully it’ll minimize the free rider problem - some people for whatever reasons really cannot buy or support legally, that’s totally cool and they don’t have to justify it, i get that. but for others making the same argument but obviously are just unwilling to pay because they can’t read chinese, think it’s too troublesome when there are guides and translators provide it for free anyway so what’s the point - we all make concessions and make decisions to grab what we like (not talking about the ppl who have their various troubles and difficulties!)

===

🔺 and those who are saying why is it the ‘rest of us suffer’ from locked translations just because of a few bad apples:

IT ISN’T ABOUT YOU. where the hell were all of ya when we were getting called illegal huh? it’s about us fan translators getting shot at for no reason, and then people still demanding things for free. i don’t see any of the people i’ve seen on tumblr complain about fan translators stopping or locking translations defend any of us in any way. instead, you’re complaining.

it is the translator’s prerogative to start, stop and end translations, unless of course the original author starts to sue i suppose. i see people on tumblr going like if they were gonna do this, they shouldn’t have started in the first place etc. - i don’t what world you live in, but when i do something for free, then get called names and am attacked or get dictated on how i should do something that’s already like free, i tend to be less generous.

i’m sorry, do us illegal and free translators owe ANY OF YOU? i wasn’t aware any of us were being paid for this hobby. readers, especially those who CAN and just refuse to support, don’t get to say SHIT. translators deal with so much shit and so many entitled readers, i say they get to lock whatever they want as long as they aren’t profiting off of this monetarily.

let me give you an example - nan chan, which is translated by lian yin, completed translations by the way for all chapters. it is all free for viewing, and she only locked up one extra and asked for proof of payment. some dumbfuck quotes that locked up extra chapter tweet and said “honestly, this turned me off reading this novel because they restricted access”.

the. fucking. entitlement. the whole of nan chan is free, that’s like what more than 80 chapters. she locked up the EXTRA and the money goes to the author, she doesn’t earn anything. AND HERE THAT BIJ is (yes, i’m going to call them names because you know, fucking asshole who didn’t bother to check) going “yeah i didn’t wanna read because 1/80+ chapters were locked”. 

AN EXTRA. LITERALLY AN EXTRA!!!!!!

at the end of the day, translators are not like DYING to translate, not like some of you are DYING to read the translations. once again, this isn’t a “BE GRATEFUL” message, it’s a please be respectful to the people who put in time and hard work for free and share the goodness ya know? what’s the use of yelling at fan translators as if we owe you anything?

================

🔴🔴🔴 TOO LONG DIDN’T READ 🔴🔴🔴

some people may need really need to pirate - and no one needs to justify why they cannot afford to purchase etc. pirating happens all the time, translators only hope that when you can, and in whatever way you can, to support legally - in general we don’t ask and we get it! we’re just annoyed that some people think that it SHOULD BE FREE, when it is a paid product, especially for those who CAN afford it

readers are not entitled to shit on translators for what they do with their translations - once again, you’re not OBLIGATED to have it. so what if i start and stop? i’m the one doing the work, i get the only say. don’t be a hypocrite and shit on translators, whose works you’ve read - it’s no loss for translators, we read and enjoy danmei just fine

yes, fan translations are illegal, but you can’t read and enjoy them like some of you have, and then turn around and point the finger at translators - a lot of us are happy to stop translating - this isn’t a threat, but at the end of the day, shitting on translators simply decreases access, and sure, some people can indeed live with you know, MTL or shitty translations from people who’ve learnt chinese for only six months or whatever, but you’re gonna be reading an entirely different book tbh

the people saying illegal translators are at fault - funnily enough, most of them consume the translations, so what the fuck? i mean we know it’s illegal, we’re trying to share the love and trying to minimize the illegalities of it by redirecting people to hopefully support legally. it’s still illegal yes, but i think it’s hypocritical for people who have read translations, stab translators in the back. and now that translators are indeed ‘restricting’ and ‘removing’ their ‘illegal translations’, yall yelling again? and threatening?

fan translators aren’t “elitist” or “classist” - just looking for some respect in a community which seems to have taken them for granted, and also looking for support for their fave authors - and honestly a lot of us were caught in the crossfires truly, don’t be an asshole and demand things from fan translators - who are you talking about? do you know why they decided to lock? do you know know what their locking system is like and what for? 

it’s not EASY to lock the translations up - it’s more admin work, it’s putting together a whitelist of people, if given the choice i’m sure translators would prefer to share everything. but not when there are assholes who have a comment on how they should translate etc. and yeah!!! calling us illegal!! i mean we are but still!!

the last straw was seeing that post on tumblr and people in the comments going like fan translators shouldn’t or should do something, without getting the whole picture, without even considering how hard it is for fan translators being caught in this situation. 

whoever puts in the work gets to decide, and everyone else should leave them alone. 

be nice to the people who really cannot afford as they say so (or just don’t think about it), be nice to the translators feeding you content, and the people who free ride and shit on translators - honestly, i’d say ready the pitchforks.

edit: i forgot to mention this is my hot take and i’ve tried to like present all the arguments i’ve seen so far. i’m definitely not doing all of it justice and i don’t claim to speak on behalf of any of them except maybe one or two- and i’ve definitely left out stuff, but anyway, lmao we’re just tiny people doing what we love. i wish we could solve you know inequality or poverty or hunger or other pressing concerns. if i was that great i wouldn’t be stuck on tumblr or twitter or have to make posts like these like a loser.

thanks for coming to my ted talk.

[argumentl]

The Freedom of Expression Ep 20 - 'Corona Cafe' facing internet slander.

K: This is Dir en grey's Kaoru, starting this week's installment of The Freedom of Expression. Joe san, Tasai san, welcome to this week's episode. Soo, hows it going? Well, I say that, but who ever is watching this will know that we are recording three at once.

J: Yeah, they will.

T: Oh, but aren't Hanshin doing great, Kaoru?!

K:......Oh! Yeh yeh yeh!

T: They won 10 times unopposed! (*sarcastic prediction*)

K: Yeah, yeah.

J: There's a possibility this will become fake news!

K, T: Hahahaha

J: If it does we're in trouble!

T: Can you believe they turned around a ten point difference?!

K: Ahh, thats just like them. It looks like there's a chance of this event happening.

J: The possibility is rising, right? (*This exchange is dripping with sarcasm*)

*On screen note - 'As of July 2nd, Hanshin have won 2 games, and lost 10'.*

K: Is it really? Will they really be ok?

T: Yeah, I wonder.

J: Well, its important to fantasize sometimes.

T: Yeah

J: 10 consecutive wins...

T: 10 consecutive wins.

J: Its like, 'Could it be?'..In a Tokyo Sports kind of way.

T: Yeah, like with a question mark, 'Could it be?!'.

K: Well, I think I'll be buying it every day. Tokyo Sports.

J: Oh, Tokyo Sports right? But doesn't Tokyo Sports support the Giants the most? In Tokyo area?

T: Well, we support the Giants and Hanshin.

J: Ah, the Giants and Hanshin?

T: Well, what with these ten consecutive wins, Kaoru will be pretty pleased with himself.

J: Yeh, he'll be beaming. And then an event for everyone.

K: Haha

T: Yep. And if we sang Rokkou oroshi (Hanshin Tigers theme song) at the end..

K: It would be great if we sing that, right?

J: Hahaha. We can do it!

T: We can!

J: Everyone, lets support Hanshin this year.

K: Ok, well..for the topic this week, Joe san, if you will..

J: Ah, may I? This is the news of 'Corona Cafe' suffering online abuse. This cafe, located in Nagano prefecture, Saku city, is lovingly nicknamed 'Corona san' by local residents. Since the increase of covid 19 infections in March, this cafe has been suffering from harassment, such as prank calls, and an increase in heartless comments posted online. Third generation owner Sudo Hitoshi san (age 42) said, 'Covid 19 has no relation at all to the name of this cafe. All we can do is endure it'.

Well, the name sounds similar, but also the beer, Corona, has been unable to sell. I wonder if they have stopped production, I'm not sure what they'll do. But in this case, there are comments online...why would you comment online??

T: Right.

J: What are these people thinking? This cafe obviously has nothing to do with covid 19. Moreover, the people writing this have certainly never been to this cafe, right?

K: Well, yeah. It seems like that.

J: Im certain of it. But still, this problem of so-called online slandering is..

T: Its getting big, right?

J: Yes, its getting big, unfortunately. There is now the idea of changing the law in regards to this..

K: Yeh, but I have a feeling its not gonna go away. In the end, you don't know...well, actually you do know, right?....but even if there were cases of people being caught, I have a feeling that wouldn't change anything, honesty.

T: Hm, yeah.

J: If you look..you see people slandering in all sorts of places, but the ones who are writing this are people who are either really  malicious, or people who just think its ok to repeat what the malicious people write, but who are not really that malicious themselves. Its very difficult. Real bad guys, who are intent on crushing, and people who are not intending that at all. But people are just typing away, it gains momentum, and some people are influenced by it. I mean, we mustn't forgive online slandering, but its very.....Well, like you said Kaoru, people aren't really thinking of any consequences when they write this stuff, so making up rules and expecting people to change is...

K: Yeh, in this sense too...like, there are people who are just writing their opinions, aren't there?

J: Yeh, yeh, yeh.....so its like, that could even end up having consequences in the future. Its a very complex thing.

K: Yeh, I feel like this is hard.

J: There is the idea of banning anonymity on SNS and only allowing real names, but its only due to anonymity that people suffering from bullying or discrimination are able to speak out, if they were forced to use their real name, they might be too afraid to say anything, and there is also the possibility of accusations..so, its like, where do you draw the line? What do you count as a slander? For example, if you see 'That guy is meddling' as slander, you won't be able to make a good judgement based just on the text.

T: Hm, yeh.

J: Its really difficult, isn't it. Especially on SNS, like Twitter, the number of characters is limited, so you never really know whats going on.

T: You can't convey all the details, or the right nuance.

J: Yeh. Nuance is also very difficult to get across. If there are people suffering from this kind of thing, despite doing nothing wrong, well, I'm not talking about Corona cafe here...there is a need to think about some countermeasures. But at the same time, SNS are super useful, really handy...its so hard.

T: Do you remember those morality lessons in elementary school?

K: Mm

T: Online behavior or rules could be provided in those lessons.

K: Yeh.

T: About not writing things that you would never say to soneone's face.

J: Well, its very difficult to define 'slander', but you could say its being critical of someone else, moreover to do them harm. So in that respect, by definition, saying something like 'Stop it' is not slander. I think how you say it will also play a big part, but yeh, we want to stop this thing of trying to hurt people who have done nothing wrong, not broken the law, not disturbed anyone. But the difficulty arises when considering whether to implement rules, because it would depend on each situation as to whether on not slander is being used, it would be difficult to judge. However, well, i may be talking too much, but if you look at Japanese lawmakers at the moment, they are doing a lot of things, right? Like, trying to change the prosecutor general to one of thier own guys and such. This isn't classed as illegal to do, so thats why they do it. If the state is doing this type of thing, it creates an atmosphere on the whole that its ok to do something, as long as its not technically illegal.

T: Thats right.

J: Its like you said, Tasai, its not exactly morality lessons, but if you think about it rationally, even though its not written in law, if you think about the spirit in which the law exists, to allow people to live, you will realize this isn't something we should do. There are things that are not written in law that we really need to be applying the same level of scrutiny to. If people don't do that, simply because its not actually written in law, we will become unable to properly develop future laws .

T: Yeah

J: I feel like it just becomes a vicious circle.

T: If people can get away with it, they will do it, right?

Kami: Um, I want people to quit bragging about themselves.

K: In that case, what would they write about? Hahaha.

Kami: Its really hard to listen to it.

J: Ahh

T: Hm, yeah.

J: There must be people bragging around Kami? *laughs*

T: Right?

Kami: Its really tough. Like if they do it without realising, it damages the people around them. I want it to be made illegal. A ban on bragging.

J: A ban on bragging?!

K: Hahaha

T: Thats interesting.

J: Thats a new kind of rule..

Kami: I really want people to stop it.

K: *laughing* Well, you don't have to look at it.

Kami: But it inflicts damage, right? Bragging about delicious french food, or wine..its like, we can't have that. Even small stuff like that, don't you think, 'what is this guy doing??'

T: Hahaha

K: He's quite wound up about this, isn't he? Haha

J: He really is. I mean, conversely you could say that if they are doing nothing but brag to that extent, you should feel sorry for them?

T: Do you wanna get rid of Instagram from the world?

Kami: Yes, yes. I really do. If you brag, I mean...really, its really..

J: Hahaha.

K: He's saying really, really.

J: Ah, Kami, you are really taking off.

T: Havn't you ever bragged about anything in your whole life, Kami?

Kami: Not much, no. I havn't got anything to brag about.

J: But I don't want a god to say they don't have a lot to brag about! What kind of god is it who doesn't have anything to brag about? Thats the first question.

T: But bragging could also be less like some low-life saying 'I've got a million yen', but more something like, 'I love basketball and I shook Michael Jordan's hand', or that type of thing. Isn't that a bit different?

K: Ahh, if someone said they'd shaken hands with Michael Jordan, you'd think 'Wow, thats amazing!'

J: Yeah, right?

Kami: Yeah, you would.

K: He's saying 'yeah, you would'. Hahaha.

J: I bet you do brag then, Kami!

Kami: Low life bragging should be made illegal.

T: Ahh, low life bragging.

J: Defining low life is difficult!

T: Well, talking about money, and stuff?

J: Money is out...Money and food, right? Relying on the power of money is no good?

Kami: Yes, thats it.

T: So for example, if Kaoru bought a really famous, great guitar, how about that?

Kami: An expensive one?

K: Yes

T: Very expensive.

Kami: A really expensive one?

K: If I made a post bragging about it...

J: You'd make a post, yeah.

K: Im not sure if I've done that..

Kami: I would want to hear the sound of it.

J: *laughing*You'd want to hear the sound?!

Kami: If it had a good sound, I'd want you to let me hear it.

T: Ahh

Kami: I'd want to touch it.

K: Well, if its something that has more to it, it might be ok.

J: Oh right

Kami: Yeah

K: Like, if you just say 'I bought a nice car', it just ends there.

T: Ahh, but if you bought a guitar..

K: Like, if you say what does it sound like, will he let us hear it...there is more of a future to it.

Kami: Yes, yes, yes. If it made a good sound, that would be ok.

K: But the same goes for that french food. If you thought it looked nice, you might think about going to that restaurant yourself, so there is a future to that.

J: How about that?

Kami: No, it depends how its written.

J: How its written? *laughs*

K: Ah, he's back to feeling like that again.

J: He's lost that vigour he had at the end.

K: Hahaha. You know, people who are suffering from this ought to talk to Kami.

J: One time, right?

K: He would get straight to it.

T: He would.

J: Kami, don't you have an info@ address or something? For people to send in stuff.

Kami: No, I don't have anything like that.

T: I want to discuss everything with Kami.

K: I've a feeling he would be encouraged.

J: He'd get straight to the point, right? But if people are feeling gloomy, before they comment online, they could talk to Kami..

K: Should we make an appeal? People could share thier troubles or..

J: Discuss thier worries?

K: Yeh, and then get a straight answer from Kami.

J: A word from a god.

K: Shall we appeal for questions?

J: Yeh.

T: Ah, its a good idea.

J: We've come up with a new plan.

K: And, so people could send questions to my twitter...Oh, did we have any local chinese restaurants contacting us yet?...We didn't?

T: I wanna go to a chinese restaurant, soon.

J: Yeah, so do I. I wann go to Hosojimaya too.  We might get questions for Kami though, people sharing thier worries. And one answer from him.

T: What do you think of this plan, Kami?

K: Lets do it.

Kami: Well, i might end up being to well behaved.

J: Oh really *laughs*

Kami: I'll *laughs*...I'll end up making myself seem like a good person. Like I might just stop being able to talk.

J: I'm getting this really strong image that you are smiling while saying that.

K: Hahaha.

J: Kami, you are nasty.

Kami: Quite..

T: Well, lets keep this tone for it.

J: Yeah. We could also do a live  broadcast once. A live chat with Kami..

K, T: Ahh.

T: Yeah, with a live feeling.

K: He kinda got carried away on the last live broadcast, didn't he?

J: Definitely, haha. This time he'd have a specific role, discussing worries.

T: That sounds good.

J: Like ten quickfire questions.

T: Yeah.

J: And he would answer in quick succession.

T: Ahh, thats a good idea. Like, 'Next!'.

J: What do you think, Kami?

Kami: Oh, its not a big deal for me. Its no big deal for me so..

J: He said it twice, haha.

K: Hahaha. Well, its an interesting plan.

J: Well, you can be the judge Kaoru, of whether we'll do it or not.

J: Well, we'll appeal for questions. Ok, well let's finish here this time. Please subscribe. Thank you very much.

J, T, Kami: Thank you.

[docholligay]

Follow Water Down

I have been wandering around in the woods since I was a small child. My family was not particularly well off, and from the ages of probably 3 to 16, the only vacations we ever took were camping trips. We left the house for the woods nearly every weekend. I live in Montana, and so when I say camping trips, I don’t mean we headed off to the KOA with a pool, I mean if I walked away from the campsite I was in the goddamn National Forest. I was genuinely happy with this arrangement, as I was a strange child who grew up to be a strange adult, and I enjoyed the quiet, the sense of exploration, the smell of the trees. 

I began leaving the campsite nearly from the word go, and by the time I was about 8 or so, I was very much off by myself in the woods for the majority of the day, which leads us to our post today. There are people who would call my mom grossly neglectful for having allowed me to do so much on my own at such a young age, and even she gets bashful when she talks about it, but I credit it with a lot of positives: 

I have an extremely good sense of direction

I have a strong core of self-sufficiency and am not easily overwhelmed by anxiety

I can be alone in the quiet with my thoughts

I am rough and tumble as HELL, owing to many many many falls down the sides of mountains, huge gashes in my legs, being stalked by a mountain lion, and one very memorable miscalculation that ended in me falling off a (small) waterfall

When I meet my fear, I can master it*

So what I am here to present to you today are very basic survival skills such as I would teach my own child, such as I was taught as a child. This is by no means comprehensive, and if you intend to get seriously into outdoor life, I recommend both doing far more research, and taking a a Wilderness First Aid class, which are frequently offered when it’s NOT Covid, and which I take about once every 3-5 years (I am due). This is a primer for those who are young, or new, or mostly want to experience the wilderness by reading about me doing it. 

Follow Water Down. 

I cannot remember how old I was when I learned this. It’s the sort of thing that is a part of my makeup, my mother must have told me when I was only a toddler and its stuck with me so hard that it’s one of the first things I tell people. 

If you are lost: 

Water will always lead you back to civilization eventually. Join up with the stream. See which way its going. Go that way. This is obviously not significantly helpful if you are lost in a flat desert plain but then again, I did start this by saying I was a child of the woods and not the desert. This seems like such an easy trick that people often ignore me when I say it, but it is the simplest thing for a child to remember. 

I can’t remember how old I was when I got lost in a tangle of hills and mountains in the Little Belts, where the trail faded but I kept going in my normal bullheaded way. But I was well and truly lost by the time it was about 3 pm, and in some ways I wish I had worn a step tracker back in those days because I am extremely certain I went miles and miles, as one does when they leave immediately after breakfast and don’t come back till dinner. I had no idea where I was, where the campsite was, or what direction I should be going. 

I was not thrilled. 

But I was not a kid who sat down and cried, in that I had smaller concerns before, and so could easily grow to meet the larger ones. I simply walked down the mountain, knowing a valley was more likely to have a stream I could easily join. Lo and behold, there in that little valley was a snowmelt creek, and I followed it downstream, knowing eventually there would be a house, or a campground, or something. In a twist of glorious good luck, it actually led me back toward where the campsite was, and as I began to recognize things, I easily clipped into our campsite long before any sign of trouble. 

Follow Water Down. If you aren’t near a stream, head for the nearest valley, and follow the valley. This will generally lead you to water. People will tell you to stay put and that is WAY smarter than wandering aimlessly in circles, which is why I say to follow something. You think you won’t go in circles, but you will. By following a streambed, not only are you doubtlessly heading back to civilization on a long enough timeline, but you keep yourself from doing that. 

Your Pack: 

Before you go out for the day, you should have a simple day pack. Mine is an Osprey Hikelite 18, but I hike all the time, and you don’t need something that technical. A plain ol Jansport will work as long as it fits you well. I do however, really approve of and recommend a waist clip. I also think a pocket for a water bottle on the outside is really useful, but you’re not going to fucking die if you have to take off your pack to get to your water bottle. I just find it takes up space I don’t want. 

Gear:

More important than your pack itself is what you have in it. Again, this is according to people named Doc, who are me. This is stuff I always take with me when I am by myself, on a trail where it would be realistic to assume I would not see someone else for hours. This is like 95% of Montana trails, or any time that I am off trail. 

Compass. You can get fancy, pretty compasses, but a lot of times they lack the actual essentials you need. I like this guy, which is well made, can be clipped to you backpack easily, and is inexpensive. I don’t have the time or space to really try to teach you how to use a compass, but here’s a really good simple primer from the American Hiking Society. 

Paper Map. I sometimes break this one, admittedly, but I shouldn’t. Having a paper map of the area is always a really smart practice, and used in combination with the compass, can help you get unlost quickly, or at the very least give you an idea of how close to any given outpost you are. 

Water Bottle. Please don’t tell me you were going to attempt to leave without this. I have no preferences on one, shockingly, and I’m being serious. I’ve been given to use an old disposable one, who gives a shit. 

Water Filter. Now THIS I did not have as a child, because my parents didn’t know any better, but if I follow in the grand tradition of my people and release my child into the mountains, I will give them one for certain. I knew what kind of water to look for if one was going to drink from a stream, and I did so, which probably explains why I am not susceptible to ~tummy upsets~ to this day. However, it would have been smarter for me to have one of these. I like LifeStraw but Sawyer makes a perfectly good one. Look for lightweight, it’s a day pack, kids. 

Knife. I have many many feelings about knives, which would require its own post, but this is fairly essential for being out and about. This is not a thing I would necessarily cheap out on, though there are fine options at most price points. This is my knife:

The Gerber Propel AO. The serrated and straight blade edge means there’s a lot of options for use as a tool, I find the blade to be strong and hold an edge well. Most American-made Gerbers (be sure and check, as they have a much shittier Chinese-made division) are incredibly well made knives. Leatherman multi-tools and Swiss Army Knives are, if you ask people named Doc who are me, a waste of weight and size, but if I were to buy a Leatherman, it would be a Free K2X. I would not buy a Swiss Army Knife. 

A jacket/fleece/pullover. Listen, i am the last one who wants to carry this shit but if you get lost overnight (as has never happened to me, kinehara.) you are going to want it. Read up on what the lowest temperatures are, and rate it to that. Depending on what mountain you are in, this is going to vary widely. And for the love of god, wear pants. I know, I know, it’s in the 70s and you’re hoooooooot but seriously, you’ll be less likely to injure yourself and you won’t fucking freeze. 

Flashlight/headlamp. 

There are fancy firestarters, but honestly I just throw in a bic. 

Food! Clif bars are great for this, lightweight, high calorie, keep well. this is in addition to your sandwich or whatever you’re packing for planned eating. 

Sunscreen/bug spray. Don’t be stupid. 

Whistle. Three sharp shot blasts is the easy and international sign for help. 

FIRST AID KIT this has its own thing. A first aid kit can be very basic to very intense. Our group first aid kit is more intense, but when I’m stuffing a day pack, I want stuff that’s light. 

Ibuprofen

Bandages

Gauze

Leukotape

wound wipes/antibac

Imodium, benedryl, caffeine

Oxycontin. This is leftover from long ago and basically exists in case I break my leg and have to drag myself out of there, or, as we like to say, a Worst Case Scenario. 

That’s it! It essentially fits in a bento box. 

You will want to be wearing a sunhat of some sort, sunglasses at hand, and a watch. Not a smart watch, a watch watch. It’s good to know what time it is, better to know that after your phone dies. Attach bear bells to your pack, or your shoe, or something. You do not want to surprise a bear, that is how people die. 

You may notice that I do not have a phone, external battery, GPS tracker or anything like that listed. GPS trackers are not a bad idea if you want to invest the money in backcountry--my wife has one--but I never have and I do not consider them essential. Phones and external batteries are not useful to me, and in the places I go there’s often not service. If there IS service, I find I’m more irritated than not by the people with me, who often can’t pull their faces out of telling their audience how much of a life they have to actually have one. Be alone with your fucking thoughts for once. 

Which leads me to my next thing: DO NOT WEAR HEADPHONES TO HIKE OH MY GOD. Being able to hear what’s going on around you is key to safety, and also to allowing you to get your bearings. If you are listening to music or something, you are far more likely to sneak up on something, or allow it to sneak up on you. Don’t do it. It’s a terrible idea. 

Should I bring bear spray? This is an excellent question! We have ample bear spray, and I often wear it but I just as often wear Montana Bear Spray (a gun). It’s easier to practice with a gun, I feel more sure of how to use it, and I’m comfortable around it. That being said, this is not the story for most of America, and I understand that. So make sure you are VERY familiar with how to use your bear spray. 

I suppose this went off the rails into supplies more than “tips for survival” but honestly I would rather help you all AVOID trouble than help you out of it. It’s easier to pack clif bars than set a rabbit snare, and its easier to not get lost than it is to build shelter. Also, this is already at 2,000 words, so if you have a SPECIFIC question, let me know! 

*Apologies to Phillip Pullman, but if I were going to get anything from HDM tattooed on me, this sentiment would be it, the only problem being the actual line is “You ent afraid are you?” “Not yet. When I am, I shall master the fear.” which doesn’t look as good but damn has that resonated with me since I read it.

[princessmadafu]

Slight argument here.

Mad: No-one's going to read an article about wee-wee.

Me: It's a gardening article. About fertiliser.

Mad: It's wee-wee. You read the article to me, remember. It says to wee in your watering can.

Me: No, it says to dilute your urine 1:10 before you apply it.

Mad: Which is the same as weeing in the watering can.

Me: ...Technically yes, but -

Mad: And watering the garden with it.

Me: It's full of nutrients. Gardeners have been doing it for centuries.

Mad: And they're all dead.

Me: Urine is not yucky, it's good for the garden and people need to know these things. There are lots of first time Covid-19 gardeners who'd be interested in how to use their urine safely in the garden. I've been doing it for years. Grandad taught me.

Mad: They definitely don't want to know that. They already think we're weird.

Me: How about we compromise?

Mad: OK, you promise not to post the article and I promise not to call you creepy.

Me: I was thinking more that we could post a couple of photos of the flower garden I made for you, thereby demonstrating that urine really works.

Mad: You wee-wee'd on my flowers?

Me:...

Mad: The flowers that I put in my hair last weekend?

Me:...

Mad: You [rude words redacted]

So here are some photos of Mad's flower garden,

...followed by the article by Shannon Stonger, which you don't have to read if you're not much of a gardener. I mean we are talking gardens and allotments, here, not pot plants on the windowsill.

“A Publishers Weekly top ten pick!”

A Guide To Safely Using Urine As Fertilizer

Published: Jan 16, 2019 Updated: Oct 5, 2019 by: Shannon Stonger

What if there were a way to avoid chemical fertilizers on gardens, pastures, and orchards? What if that way involved a fertilizer that conserved water, was easily accessible to every single human on this planet, and was absolutely free? The use of this substance is also scientifically backed* as a means to increase production. If you haven’t figured it out by now, I am speaking of using human urine as fertilizer.

Before the “eww!” factor comes into play, let me explain a few things. Feces is the offending element of human waste that is considered unsafe due to bacteria. Human urine is full of nutrients your soil needs. From nitrogen to phosphorous it is a wonderful source of nutrients big and small.

Is urine sterile?

According to this study:

In our previously reported study (4), we used 16S rRNA gene sequencing to demonstrate evidence of uncultivated bacteria in the adult female bladder and we questioned the “sterile urine” dogma. Our current study demonstrates that urine contains communities of living bacteria that comprise a resident female urine microbiota.

So, no. urine is not actually sterile, but it is safe to use as fertilizer in your garden.

Urine as fertilizer: Statistically proven to increase yields

This age-old fertilization practice has been brought back by many looking to harness all of the resources close to them in order to lessen their environmental impact. This has led to research on the practice of applying human urine as fertilizer.

One such study involved smallholders in Uganda and the application of urine at two different concentrations in comparison to a controlled plot. The evidence was clear: “Compared to the control plot, all treatments show a statistically significant difference in yield.”. How much is “statistically significant”? The plot with the optimum urine volume application led to a two-fold production rate of maize over the control plot. That is significant.

Urine as fertilizer – applying it safely

Safety is, of course, of the utmost concern in fertilizing with human urine, just as it is with animal manure application to improve soil. While urine is considered sterile, there are rare occurrences of bacterial infection that can contribute to bacterial problems around your plants. The solution is simple. If it’s possible that the donor could have a bladder or urinary tract infection, do not take their samples for your garden, field, or orchard.

Along the same lines, the question of how fresh should the urine be is also of utmost importance. In this study human urine was collected and stored in covered containers in the donors’ homes for two weeks in order to protect against pathogens. There is a wide range of opinions on how fresh the urine should be but allowing the urine to sit for a couple of weeks seems the safest of all of the approaches.

The other factor to keep in mind is where to apply this homegrown fertilizer. When using urine as fertilizer, it is generally accepted that applying it to the soil away from the leaves of the plants is preferable. Urine is not applied as a foliar spray, as many organic fertilizers often are, but rather directly to the soil near the base of the plants.

The Ugandan study used the following method: “The urine was applied close to the ground in furrows along the plant rows, which were immediately covered with soil. Besides preventing ammonia losses, this practice helps to reduce the smell and avoid burning crop leaves.” (Kirchmann and Pettersson, 1995)

How much is enough/too much?

The final consideration – and it is an important one – is what volume of urine should be applied to the crops and how much should it be diluted? What is interesting about the Ugandan study is that they cited the urine application as direct and undiluted. Nearly every source out there will tell you that you need to dilute the urine with water at a 10:1 water to urine ratio. And that is what we have historically practiced in our own gardens and orchards.

However, direct application of urine as fertilizer seems to have worked well in a larger field setting where maize – known as corn in the United States – was grown. With no sprawling vines or low-lying leaves, you can see how this application is quite different than a small homestead garden. I think the lesson here is that you don’t want the urine to directly contact the plant at full concentration. If you are doing diverse crops with low-lying foliage, dilution may be your best bet to prevent any type of damage to the plant. *Source: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0959652614000948

[aloneandunreal]

march 26, 21

wow, i really have not posted in a long time. i decided to post just because i feel like ranting i suppose, and this is what that account is for. i've been thinking about things a lot, but it doesn't feel right to push it onto a friend. most of it is meaningless anyway, or at least it would probably be meaningless and stupid to anybody else. but first of all, i cannot believe i created this account last may (i think?) and that's coming up on a year!

anyway, i've just been a bit sad and anxious about school/graduating and college. i think a lot of people feel this way, so it's not like my feelings are completely abnormal. still, i wanted to rant a bit about it. i don't really know where to begin. this year started off crazy, with school being online and all. i remember the night before school began i was so anxious knowing it was my senior year, but having slight hope that maybe, just maybe, things would go back to being somewhat normal and i could finish off high school feeling satisfied. i don't really think that's going to happen. even with all of the senior activities my school is trying to set up (graduation, prom, etc), it just won't be the same. they're talking about reopening for hybrid on april 17th or sometime around then, but even so, i don't think i'd go. it's a bit too late for that now, it would be kind of pointless, honestly. i've talked about this in (many) previous entries, but i just really, truly wish i could've had more of a senior year. or just more of a high school experience in general. there were some moments where i felt like a true, reckless teenager, but that was a small amount. a very small amount.

now, i don't particularly care about high school that much. i know if everything was "normal" i wouldn't be doing anything differently, but it would've been nice to be at my school, feeling accomplished because i was finally a senior. at the top. almost done. it doesn't feel like that now. because covid began in march of my junior year, and i haven't stepped foot in that school since then, i still feel like i'm sixteen. i feel as if i haven't learned anything or really changed at all. maybe if i could've had a normal end to my junior year and senior year things would've been different. last year i was terrified of turning seventeen, but now i cannot believe i'm going to be eighteen. it absolutely feels unreal. and i also cannot believe that little fourteen year old me romanticized this age so much -- it's really not that fun at all, sorry to break it to you 14 year old me.

it's even more odd how i kind of miss this time last year in a way. there were no video calls for school and, for the most part, it was kind of nice to be away from school and not having to worry about SATs and such. of course there were things to worry about, but at the same time, i don't know. i feel like i had more time. i was a junior, and that summer would be the summer before my senior year. in retrospect, it sounded fun. sometimes i wish i could have appreciated it more, but then i think to myself... i did? or at least i think i did. it was a pretty okay summer for covid. but now, now is really my last summer before college. i'm not going to be going back to the high school i've been at for the past few years. i'll be starting somewhere new. and that's terrifying to think about.

i regret a lot of things throughout my life, but especially my high school years. i really wish i could have enjoyed things more. my freshman year i was really depressed and doing horribly in school, sophomore year i did amazing academically but i had no fun and was too anxious to do... anything, really. and then my junior year of course got cut short. i just never got to experience being in a friend group, having my first kiss, getting a significant other, etc. thinking about it, it makes me feel like a total outcast. sometimes i'll be in class (well, on a video call), and we'll be having fun or laughing, and yes, technically the whole class is included, but i... just don't feel apart of my class. you know, class of 2021. i feel like an outsider. i'm there, but i'm not. i wish i could relate to kids my age more, understand their inside jokes, whatever. there are people i know of that i know for a FACT i'd be friends with... but i never got the chance to pursue anything because of anxiety and now... this. having no contact with anyone my age because we're no longer in school. overall, it's just hard to explain. i just want to feel included in something. i've always just been a loner. i mean, i sat by myself for two years in a row during lunch. junior year i sat with one friend, so that was an upgrade i suppose. i also always hated when we had parties or "fun days" in class, because that meant no learning. people would talk to their friends and i'd be sitting alone. they'd only talk to me if class was in session because they kind of... had to. i don't know. it's hard being a loner, especially when you don't want to be one. it's a bit too late to change anything now, whether that be making new friends, getting a s/o, etc. my school actually plans to have prom, and although anxious, i'm considering going with a friend. but, really, what am i going to do there? i have no friends besides her. i know she wouldn't ditch me, but at the same time, she'll probably gather with her friend group and i'll be standing there, silent, awkwardly listening. and it's fine if she wants to talk to her friends. but i wish i had a friend group like that. or at least a friend i'm close with. the girl i'm going to (potentially) go with isn't even great friends with me.

it's always been like that with my friends. i'm their one outsider friend. not included in their group, but still friends with them. and that's fine, i never felt the urge to try to squeeze and force myself into a friend group that wouldn't want me. but it just hurt sometimes when they'd treat me differently when i was with them alone vs. with them AND their friends. i'd never be included. sometimes one of my friends might completely ignore me when they're talking to their group or with a separate friend. and i'd just be there like a total, utter burden. i never understood why people treated me so differently when they were around other friends. sometimes i wouldn't even be with them, they'd just ignore me and go with their other friends. which is fine, it's fine, no sarcasm. but sometimes i just wish i could be that other friend, the friend who doesn't get ignored and treated differently. in so many different friendships, i have to go through those types of things. and it's confusing... why me? especially since it has become a trend. i just want to be A PART of something.

i guess this is a bit of a topic change now. but another thing i've been thinking about constantly, like any other teenager who has applied to college, is, well, college. yes, i've probably established that i'm terrified and don't exactly feel ready. yes, i've probably established that i don't know if i'll be good enough academically. what if college is just high school all over again? another wasted four years. but that's not my top worry about college right now. instead, it's the fear of not knowing what college to go to. i want to pick the right one; i don't want to be wrong. i've gotten accepted to most colleges i applied to, except one where i was waitlisted (a whole thing in itself), another where i was rejected, and two which have not given me a response yet. i've wanted to go to new york city for school for SO LONG, but i don't even know if that's where i'm going to end up, after so much talk about going there. i might not even end up in a city!

then of course is just the sadness that i'll feel when i get rejected from the one school i've been dreaming about for forever. you're going to laugh if you're reading this, but NYU. yeah. i don't know why i fixated on it, but i haven't gotten a response from them yet. i believe that comes on march 31st. and i have a strong feeling i'm going to get rejected -- i've had that feeling even before i applied to colleges, in the beginning of my junior year. and it's so stupid, because even if i was accepted, i likely wouldn't be able to pay for it. i guess i just want to get accepted so i'll actually feel worthy. so, if that doesn't happen, my self-worth is going down the drain, sadly. i'm not as fixated on NYU as i was, say, in the beginning of my junior year, but i will still be upset if i don't get in.

i feel so pretentious saying this, but i also want to go to a school with a low-acceptance rate. it will make me feel smart. which is DUMB, because there are some amazing high-acceptance schools. but i just feel like, if i go to a high-acceptance school (which i likely will), everyone will be like "of course she went to a high-acceptance school, she's not smart." which i KNOW is irrational and dumb, but it's something that won't leave my mind. i'm so insecure about my intelligence and all of this college stuff has really just made me feel worse. even when i do get accepted to colleges, i haven't felt happy. i haven't felt excitement or joy. and i wish i could. i wish there was some sort of excitement in me, but it doesn't feel like anything special. i just wish i had more of a direction on what college i want to go to or what i even want to do in life. it's so complicated and there's so many little things i'm worried about. if i could, i would explain, but it's hard for me to. some of these worries i can't even explain, they're that minuscule and dumb. overall, i just wish i could be happy with myself and feel accomplished. i don't feel that at all.

thirteen/fourteen year old me probably wouldn't be proud of the person i am now. she imagined someone completely different, i'm sure. i used to dream of graduation and the end of my senior year, now i'm dreading it. both because it's the END of high school and because i'm just nervous about all the attention that will be on me during that time. dumb, i know, i know. the end of high school, for me, will just be clicking the red "leave call" and that terrifies me, of how i'll feel when i leave that call, sitting back, realizing that that's it. it's over. and don't get me wrong, i do in fact want to graduate. i obviously do not want to stay in high school. i am excited for this to be over with. but, of course, at the same time, it's, quite honestly, terrifying.

but, i guess that's really it for now. i'm sure i could talk about this forever, unleashing all of my worries onto this tumblr account nobody will ever find or see or read. but i think now is a good time to stop. overall, i just wish things would be different. not just high school, but my whole life. i'd do anything to start over as someone new. but, alas, that will not be happening.

so, yes, that's it. i guess. i don't know when i will be updating this. maybe in a week, or maybe 3 days before graduation. who knows. (this is not edited, by the way, if anyone is reading this, so i'm sorry for any grammar or spelling errors or just overall cringe. none of my entries are edited).

[rainydawgradioblog]

a covidsation with mary claire

For the first Covidsation for autumn quarter, here is an interview I did back in May with Mary Claire, my dear friend and one of my favorite local artists. Mary Claire is a singer-songwriter based here in Seattle who makes “sad girl rock” (see: Mitski, Angel Olsen, etc.). I first met them through the DIY scene and was lucky enough to book them at the finale Red Room show, a house venue I used to live at and help run. As evidenced by the picture below taken that very night, seeing Mary Claire play live is a magical, mesmerizing, captivating experience. Often accompanied with minimal, but tonally-rich instrumentals, their powerful and hauntingly stunning voice paired with visceral, poetic lyrics transport you into another realm. I *highly* recommend listening to their album Phantom Limb, which you can find on your streaming platform of choice or you can snag a physical copy at Everyday Music on the Hill like I did! Last month, they also just released an incredible stop-motion music video for their song off PL called “I Don’t Like Drinking”, directed, edited, and animated by Barb Hoffman, which you can find here! Thank you Mary Claire for these thoughtful responses and for creating such vulnerable, beautiful art <3

Lola Gil: Tell me about your project. How has it evolved? Which artists are you most inspired by? How would you describe your sound?

Mary Claire: Hi hi I’m Mary Claire. I was never someone who was playing music since they were a little kiddo, it was something I picked up my senior year of high school. But pretty much everyone in my family has some amazing and weirdly specific aptitude for music, so I think being surrounded by that kind of allowed me to gather an eclectic, personal understanding, appreciation, and internalized feeling for music, so I never really took lessons or anything like that. I enjoyed and still enjoy that from the start, I was okay with the fact that I didn’t know “academic” theory and I just played with what feels and sounds right. And I still do that. So I played around with all those youthful punk feelings and had an angsty band in high school that was not bad for small town Sacramento. I think I learned so much from that and it gave me a flood of unhindered and unhinged confidence for recording, performing, maneuvering stage mechanics and technicalities, etc. Also it introduced me into the world of songwriting that I did for that band and for myself that just immediately poured out of me, which led me to what I’m doing now. I am extremely lyrically-focused and write mostly about lived personal experience that I surrender to and make extremely overly-wordy. I went from a solo act, to a bigger full piece crunchier band, to me and a piano player, back to a solo set, so I’m really just kind of evolving with my resources, the songs I’m currently living in and playing, and with what would bring everything to life most fully. 

I’m inspired by everyone, even if I don’t necessarily sound like them or listen to them all the time. Like, my adoration for incredibly angry punk music is what got me started in the creation of my own music, so that foundation will never leave me. Even though I won’t sound like IDLES or Shame or Pissed Jeans, their point of view and their devotion to cramming so many words into one breath is a place I also come from. We execute similar feelings in different ways. And though I currently am not anything like Yves Tumor, King Krule, or FKA Twigs, the layers in their stuff sends me so far. But I think lyrically and melodically, I pull inspiration from and sink most into Mitski, Sasami, Angel Olsen, Palehound, Big Thief, Bella Porter, Darci Phenix, Fiona Apple, Sufjan Stevens, Izumi, and Weyes Blood. 

Someone once said my tunes are “sad girl rock” and I think that sticks in a fun, quick way, so that’s what I tell people. But more recently, the stuff on my upcoming album I think is like a sad, fucked up, incredibly fast-paced nursery rhyme book (lol). I’m really excited for this album I wrote, more than anything ever. Also my good friend and twin flame Francis is helping me record it and is giving me a lot of knowledge and challenges and affirmations and inspiration. I owe a lot of this second album’s production and complexity him. There are a lot more people involved in the recording of this one, so it’s a lot fuller in a new and exciting and scary way.

LG: As an artist, how have you been affected by the pandemic? I saw most of your tour you had booked was unfortunately cancelled-- are you planning on rescheduling?

MC: Rescheduling feels so completely beyond me right now, so I am just considering it to be cancelled until things in the world really start to settle down to some degree of safety and responsibility. However, the silver lining in all of this ‘rona stuff is that it has given me a ton of time to recenter myself with my music and devote my own energy into recording and feeling the core of my upcoming album. I think when the world is moving so fast, it’s easy for me to feel like I’m behind, like other people are getting shit done faster and in a more “impressive way”, in a way that matters more or has more inherent value. So when we are all forced to stay at home with ourselves, not only does it remind me that all of those insecurities are completely not real and are in fact a delusion borne from a capitalistic-productivity-equals-artistic-worth-framework, but I also get time to actually enjoy and fine tune what I otherwise might have just thrown out into the ether desperately and prematurely in hopes to be current and up to date and ~with it~.

LG: Have you been working on writing any new tunes? Have you been involved in any other creative projects recently?

MC: When I was recording Phantom Limb, I wrote the majority of my next upcoming album, so while those songs don’t feel incredibly new, there is a ton of stuff I have yet to share and that I am so eager to scream to the world. It feels like some of the stuff I am most proud of making in my entire life. 

But since I left for Berlin to study abroad last fall to when I came back to Seattle this January, I really hadn’t written anything new. I think I had been going through a lot of personal and immense change and hard growth that wasn’t particularly inspiring, it just sucked and was intense and necessary, but sometimes all that bad stuff is not something you can just make art out of. Plus I had to just do something totally different and invest and surrender to techno and being a gross city Eurotrash gremlin and let that out cathartically. But recently, I wrote my first super new song in what feels like ages, and I’m so happy. I was afraid maybe I’d forgotten how to do it, but it’s pouring out of me again and I feel like me again. I have also been working a bit back and forth with a friend from the project World Peace. We just keep sending clips back and forth and weaving our separate projects together a bit, which is something I’ve never done and I’m having a ton of fun, especially because our music is so different. Besides that, I have some plans to work with another good friend Izumi after having adored them the moment I moved here. 

LG: How have you personally been dealing with the pandemic and the craziness that is 2020? What has your quarantine experience been like so far?

MC: I went home to Sacramento for a month and watched more TV than I had probably in my entire life. It was really good to see my family and siblings who I miss so much. But I came back to Seattle in April and since then have just been spending my days in a limbo of online school weirdness. But I’m so fortunate that I live with so many people who are all so unique, all of whom I feel are my best friends. So I definitely don’t get too bored:)

LG: What music have you been listening to during quarantine? What has been your go-to isolation album?

MC: Okay to be honest, when I begin to think of my next album and what it feels like inside of me, I make one single playlist with like hours and hours of songs on it and it’s the only thing I listen to for like a year. So I’m prone to listening to the same stuff perpetually forever and always, but I think I’ve always sort of been like that. It makes the feeling familiar. But since I’ve felt close to the sounds of my upcoming album for a long while now, I’ve actually pretty much been listening to what is my ~album 3~ inspo playlist, because I already feel that beast growing inside of me. I’m a planner. 

Most of the artists on those playlists are the ones I listed above in regards to who I feel are my biggest inspirations. But right when quarantine started though I would pretty much only play Man Alive!, I would just go through the whole thing and then restart immediately. When I was in Sacramento, my family had a rule I could only play it with headphones because it was literally nonstop, that’s just how I consume things; I take a bath in them until I feel every single part of what was made. But other than that, I’ve been bumping Peter Campanelli’s Pesto Baby and crying a lot about it, Darci Phenix’s (my best bud from Sac) Juniper Street which is some of the best songwriting literally ever, and Francis Farmer’s Bruised Fruit which is SO expertly recorded and thought out, I am so lucky he is my friend and wants to record my upcoming album with me.

LG: Arethere any spring shows that you were particularly looking forward to attending that got cancelled?

MC: Pretty much all of them imaginable. 

LG: How do you think the Seattle music scene is going to be like post-COVID?

MC: Hopefully, this can recenter us and remind us we’re all really really and truly in this together. It’s up to us to lift each other up and get each other on bills and spread the word and create community for those who need it most and for those whose lives rely on this art. Seattle seems like it is really good at that on a small scale, but once it gets to a little bit larger stage, it’s easy for people to forget where they came from, who supported them, and what should be at the forefront of our radars. I think shedding this cool guy persona and getting back to why this shit is so important and listening to/PROMOTING smaller artists who are making The Best stuff is something everyone could be reminded to do. 

LG: In this funky era of social distancing, how do you think artists can support each other during these weird and difficult times? How do you think social media is facilitating and/or inhibiting connection within Seattle’s overall creative community?

MC: I think people’s ability to make what seemed like such an immediate switch to social media music promotion and shows was really amazing. However, it makes me feel a bit hopeless and dystopian and sci-fi in a weird way. That being said, trying to resist the change has only proven to be detrimental to me and kind has come back to kick me in the ass. Like, I should not be turning down opportunities just because livestreams kind of freak me out in how foreign and disconnected they can appear to be. I’m no better than them, and it’s important I think to accept things where they’re at instead of pretending they’re not happening. 

That being said, I think everyone has been maneuvering with such grace and empathy and compassion for others in a way that I can really feel, and I hope that sticks around forever. 

- Lola Gil

[grannygerd]

I’m Lynn from PVRIS! AMA

I’m Lynn from PVRIS. We just put out our new album Use Me which you can listen to HERE. This Saturday, we’re going to be playing our first album White Noise front to back in its entirety for the first time ever. You can get tickets for the live stream HERE.

Proof: https://imgur.com/9K4IgJf

DieDunkleFritte: Hey Lynn, would you rather have really small hands or really small feet? Best regards from germany :D pvrisofficial: Feet!!! Need normal sized hands to play instruments! haha

Nikkiestables: Lynn!!! I was in the US for my exchange and was going to FINALLY see you in person but I couldn’t:( do you think in the future you would tour Asia? Which parts would you like to explore? (Please say Hong Kong) pvrisofficial: We'd love to tour Asia more! We've loved the places we've been in Japan, Singapore, & South Korea so far! Would love to add Hong Kong!

ShadeOfNothing: Hey Lynn! I’ve been a PVRIS fan Since White Noise and I’ve loved seeing the band’s sound evolve through the years. I know you’re a huge believer in astrology, past lives, and the paranormal, so I was wondering if there were any crazy experiences you had witnessed or drew inspiration from while writing/producing Use Me. Thanks so much! pvrisofficial: yessssssss I am a nut. I didnt make Use Me in a haunted church this time but i DO think I stayed at a haunted airbnb. Food kept disappearing and then one night a giant ghostly handprint was left on my guitar case and my hand was way too small to have created it.

hinterscape: Hi Lynn! I've been following you guys since ~2014, you're awesome and I look up to you. Do you see yourself making music forever or how long do you see it if not? pvrisofficial: FOR-E-VER! It might take different forms and go through different stages but i think i will always be creating music!

imaliveunfortunately: Hi Lynn! First of all I love you and the style of music you've put out recently. I saw you at Reading last year, and in Manchester in 2017 so I'm really happy to seeing PVRIS get the exposure it deserves :) So it's gotta be asked, I understand there's issues with the label, but what are the chances of Mvdonna and Blood On My Hands being released? Whether it be as singles, on a new EP, the next album, etc? They're just damn good tracks pvrisofficial: I want them to come out SO BAD too haha. I want to make sure the production is perfect so its now a matter of finding the right collaborator for them.

CookThePasta: Do you believe in life after love? pvrisofficial: yes

OldManMalekith: Hi Lynn! How did working with JT on Use Me differ from your previous experiences with producers? Everyone that I've seen or heard work with him puts it as a really positive experience, and he helps make great stuff! pvrisofficial: He is the BEST. He was very similar to Blake in the sense that he was incredibly nurturing and encouraging, dedicated to making sure it was 100% everything I wanted and always stood up for me if the label ever tried to change it. His production style is definitely different but its extremely diverse. It's a lot punchier and crisper and a bit more minimal than in the past but i think it almost makes things more impactful that way!

villanelleinsuits: Hi Lynn! You’re a creative genius, thanks for existing. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be and why?? pvrisofficial: I would love to live in the UK countryside!!! Maybe Bath or something.

Queenio01: How are you feeling today? pvrisofficial: Sleepy but EXCITED to rehearse!

dancorcoran: How often do you get recognised by fans in day to day life? pvrisofficial: Not too often! I usually get recognized at coffee shops and starbucks though? and Lush hahaha

jessica_pasta: Hi Lynn!!! Was wondering how do you make your synth patches? What synth sounds are your favorites? Thanks so much! Love PVRIS and all that you do ❤️❤️❤️❤️ pvrisofficial: I use Zebra a lot and also use a Prophet Rev2. One of my favorite things is to throw synths through different effects to get an entirely new sound!

ImadaPC: Hi Lynn, I got a question. What inspires you to make music and why? pvrisofficial: What inspires me is wanting to hear something I havent heard! I want to hear all my favorite artists and influences into one thing so that's usually how PVRIS stuff is inspired haha.

staceelogreen: What are your stand out albums of this year!:) pvrisofficial: Great Q! 070 Shake - Modus Vivendi Tinashe - Songs For You (technically 2019 but I've been jamming it all year) They. - The Amanda Tape KAYTRANADA - Bubba (2019 but it came out late 2019 so it counts as 2020 for me!) Howling - Colure

DH00338: What are you most excited about in terms of this new era of PVRIS? pvrisofficial: More writing!! and more collaborations!

creewitch: Hiya Lynn! I hope your morning is going well. When have you felt the proudest of yourself and why? ☺️ pvrisofficial: Oooo good Q! I always think there's room for improvement so it's hard to feel pride, but I am definitely grateful for my resilience through the crazy shit haha.

liky_gecko: Because you’re from the Boston area, what are your favorite spots to eat/hang out there? I may be going to school there pvrisofficial: Do itttt! My fav spots are a little outside of the city.... the Crane Estate, Mt. Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Maudslay State Park in Newburyport, Portsmouth NH, Shedd Park Cemetery in Lowell.

goszkv: Hi Lynn! Was wondering if you'll ever consider coming to Poland :( ofc post corona pvrisofficial: yes!

cecy_db_11: Hi Lynn! Can't wait to see you guys this Saturday. How do you feel once the songs you write (your personal feelings and thoughts) are available for the world to listen? Do you get used to that over time? pvrisofficial: Still getting used to that to be honest. Once songs are out, I weirdly stop listening to them. Prior to that I listen in the car a lot and drive around testing songs out haha.

musicfan1976: Do you think the spring 2020 shows will still happen or be rescheduled again due to Covid? Stay healthy and take care. pvrisofficial: I truly have no idea.... :( you take care too! <3

yikesmiles: Hey Lynn! I hope you’re well! I’ve always been curious, what was it that inspired you to make music? pvrisofficial: Good Q! WHen I write, I try to write music that I want to hear that hasn't crossed my path yet.

LeahLNurse: Is there any unreleased songs you wish made it onto White Noise? pvrisofficial: Nope!

JRuiz1775: Hey Lynn! I remember the first time I saw and heard you guys was when you opened for Pierce the Veil and Sleeping with Sirens. I was hooked and have tried to see you guys anytime you are in my area. My question for you is what is your favourite tour experience? What is your dream tour to be on? pvrisofficial: There's SO many favorite tour experiences. I love touring the UK and Europe a lot, exploring before shows is my favorite thing and has some of my favorite memories. Our UK/EU tour with BMTH was one of my favorites.

ac-36: hi lynn! i love your music so much, it means a lot to me. if you were to remake your past music now, how do you think it would be different, and what do you think the future direction of the band will be? pvrisofficial: I would definitely approach the drum production a bit different but keep it pretty similar with the other textures/instruments! Future direction can go anywhere! Definitely want to keep taking risks and trying new things, but still keeping it dark!

staceelogreen: If you could go back in time to give yourself advice, what would you say to your past self? pvrisofficial: Take it easy on yourself.

NouveauJacques: Hi Lynn, huge fan and I love the power behind your music. Do you ever write songs that are too emotional and feel conflicted about putting into an album? pvrisofficial: usually if they feel too emotional or heavy, I know they need to be released haha

Defiant-Strawberry37: Hi Lynn, hope everything's okay with you and the band. I'd like to ask you what PVRIS' era you think is the best and why? Hope I can see you guys someday soon acting in Portugal. Love you all! PS: why so Lynnda? *portuguese pun intended, beautiful = linda in portuguese* ly! pvrisofficial: Thanks! I love every era tbh but I'm definitely always the most excited on the present moment!

pvrisbae: youre the cutest little soul ily. whats ur fav song at the moment? pvrisofficial: Brian showed it to me! It's "Too Late" by Washed Out.

agnespvris: Hi Lynn!! Have you had any good laughter when you've been looking through the #pvrismemes ?? pvrisofficial: oh you betcha.

whothefuckisrvmi: ok so im not understanding shit about this app but im here for you pvrisofficial: thank u

vioIentbounce: hi lynn! what do you think will be your favorite song from use me to play live? pvrisofficial: I think.... Good To Be Alive or Gimme A Min

jaydenc30: hi lynn I just wanted to say how much I appreciate you and everything you do! I hope you are doing well, what was the first song you wrote for use me? What’s does PVRIS’s future look like to you? pvrisofficial: First song for Use Me was Old Wounds! I wrote it before the second album even came out haha

IrlandaBDelao: Hi lynn, would you be down to open commisions for tattoos? If so, how much would you charge for a drawing? pvrisofficial: I wish! I do not have time to at the moment :( but if I have time in the future, you will be first to know so you can get first dibs!

CookThePasta: are you really looking at all of our memes?? pvrisofficial: trying OUR BEST!!

nonoplznowhy: why did your parents name you Lynn? pvrisofficial: Lyndsey* but they always call me Lynn or Lynds. I was named after my mom's childhood bestfriend named Lynn, she passed away when my mom was pretty young :(

golrip: What is your favourite song on awknohawnoh and why? That album literally changed my life and shaped me into the person I am today so I would really love knowing your opinion. also: what's your favourite the weeknd song/album? pvrisofficial: NOLA 1! It was my favorite to write and the memory around that time is magical. We wrote it in New Orleans and it's my favorite city.

bnizz95: Hey Lynn!! I saw you guys perform for the first time live in Cambridge last September and im so excited about the stream. I was wondering what your favorite song/songs off this album are? Also, do you still steal rosemary from your neighbors? Hahaha pvrisofficial: hahaha I have a little rosemary plant that I use now :)

vioIentbounce: are you still making collages? if not, have you taken up any new artistic hobbies lately?❤️ pvrisofficial: Little collaging here and there :) I've been researching a lot of interior design and fashion design lately!

fee-lixdawkins: Hey Lynn! Excited for the livestream! I know you’re an AFI fan. What is your favorite album and song(s) by them? Would you ever want to tour with them? I’d kill to see that happen! Take care! pvrisofficial: Brian is the bigger AFI fan! I cant pick a fave Im scared

ivykrvft: How does it feel to (kinda) be performing again as an entire band after all these months? pvrisofficial: Really good!! Definitely going to be weird without you guys in front of us!!

Ariana_0918: hi lynn <3 i wanted to know when you saw florence in concert what was your favorite song she performed live? pvrisofficial: Cosmic Love. She played it first and it was acoustic, I instantly cried hahahaha

TheSinger_Z: Hey Lynn! How old were you when you first started writing songs? What is the most memorable prank/joke that you have pulled or has been pulled on you while on tour? How many instruments do you play and what’s your favourite? I just want to say thank you, you’re my biggest inspiration when it comes to music (I sing and I’m learning to play guitar and hope to do it professionally when I’m older as I’m only 14 😬), and I’m really thankful for you guys. I got meet and greet tickets for November 30th for the White Noise stream, so see you then! pvrisofficial: i was in the 3rd grade. the songs were horrible. Its not really a prank but we love having our in ear monitor tech do the worm on stage sometimes. Extra points when he does it in costume. I can play 7 instruments! Looking to add more to the arsenal over time. I love piano a lot and drums. Keep it up, can't wait to see you be a star!!! ALso the livestream is the 21st! DOnt want you to miss it :)

CheezeGrenade: I missed out on a lot of concerts growing up and I couldn't make it to a concert out of state that I bought tickets to about a year ago. Will you guys play through Awkohawnoh again in anyway? Such as Half/Winter/No Mercy/Walk Alone. Litterally that album and the one before got me through alot of depressive phases in my life and Awk has really inspired alot of my writing for a series I want to create someday. pvrisofficial: I cant wait for you to start writing it! You got this! We will be playing through AWKOHAWNOH but the date is not announced yet :)

srankie: Are y'all Pats fans? Red Sox? Bruins? Cause if not the Eagles family will accept you with open arms pvrisofficial: NEW ENGLAND/BOSTON ALL DAY BABY!

macauley7: Could u please ask harry styles if u could tour with him? I need a pvris x harry watermelon sugar vibes thanks pvrisofficial: I'll call him right now.

brisbubbles: Hey, Lynn! Can’t wait for Saturday! I was wondering, how do you feel about singing old tracks from WN since you relearned how to sing? What has that experience been like? Wishing you and Brian the best! xzlinx: I am wondering about this as well. Maybe I am just nosey but I wonder about the process of retraining your voice and what exactlt happened. It must have been insanely difficult on her mental health but goddamn what a trooper bc Use Me is unbelievable! pvrisofficial: Great questions!!! Singing WN is definitely a little challenging to begin with because I'm older and my tone isn't the tone of 19 year old me anymore haha. A big thing was anxiety which caused me to choke up a lot and tense my chords. Then when i was being coached, out of fear of damaging something we had to rebuild and start small and light which we think caused the chords/muscles to atrophy, which set it back further haha. I eventually went to another coach who then was able to take my "retrained" voice and then strengthen it up and rebuild it back to where it was before!

ImOnlyHalfAlive: Hey Lynn! First, I can't express just how much PVRIS has meant to me over the last couple of years. Your music has helped me through so much, and I will forever be grateful. My question is: What's a life mantra you've always lived by? pvrisofficial: Life mantra (theres a lot but this one I always connect to when it comes to career): Patience and persistence is key.

Okosano: Hi Lynn and greeting from Germany! The one and only important question here : Whats your favorite comfort food? pvrisofficial: Favorite comfort food...... Indian food! My absolute favorite.

Ok-Personality1480: What’s your favorite tea pls 🤠 pvrisofficial: Throat coat for singing, housemade chai for joy.

CookThePasta: Do you know the muffin man? pvrisofficial: yes

LynnGvnnFvn: What were the creative differences between writing an album like White Noise or AWKOHAWNOH and Use Me? pvrisofficial: Age, time, locations, different producers and collaborators!

unit525: How are the submissions for the meme competition looking? Any front runners emerging? pvrisofficial: It's a CLOSE call for a lot of them...

LynXiger: Which song from your discography is your least favourite and why? pvrisofficial: I wont say incase it is anyone's favorite!! hahaha

lgbtiffany: do you have a tendency to incorporate spirituality into your creative processes? love the album and can’t wait for the stream ✨❤️ pvrisofficial: I think creating is spiritual in itself! You're channeling sound and melody and MAGICCC! So yes!

vessed1: hiii. I’d love to know who found the White Noise mirror ☺️ pvrisofficial: Me too

LynXiger: What is your favourite genre to listen to? And how has this changed over time? pvrisofficial: I'm a big sucker for hip hop and pop... really anything that's catchy and hits hard and has cool production!

nicthehic: Hey Lynn! Been a huge fan for a long long time and took up doing music professionally because I was inspired by you and the rest of Pvris’ rise and work ethic. I was wondering if there was anything you would do differently while recording your first album and any advice to new ish band working on their first professional project (in the midst of covid no less) and any tips to make our first album just as great and timeless as white noise Thank you! pvrisofficial: Awww this is awesome! I'm sure you're gonna crush it! I definitely would have wanted to make the production a little different but keep a lot of the same fundamental aspects/textures. Do what YOU feel you want to create and dont feel any outside pressures. Crush it! Cant wait for you to record!

minidudette106: Hey Lynn, Do you ever think its crazy that people get tattoos of your lyrics & ones inspired by your music? also wondering what your thoughts are on pineapple on pizza? lol pvrisofficial: I used to get freaked out bc I didnt think my lyrics were great but now I think its so cool! haha.

Hot-Lime3627: Hi Lynn, how is Opal and the other cat whom you took care of during quarantaine doing ? pvrisofficial: They are back with their owner! I truly miss them every single day... they were my little fluffy pals.

kelcea244: How do you keep your creative muscle flexed so you’re ready to create? And do you create every day? EDIT: Also really sad you guys weren’t able to make it over to the UK this month! We’ll be so psyched for you when you do come! pvrisofficial: We are sad too!!! We can't wait to get back whenever it is safe to play shows there. I miss it every day! I try to create every day even if it's just 5-10 minutes, always good to keep those muscles flexed!

socksgrowonbushes: first of all i just want to say how much i admire you, you’re amazing :) my question is what is your favourite song you have ever written? is it one that’s on an album? one that hasn’t even been released? i’m curious pvrisofficial: Use Me!

LadyEpicenter25: What the significance of playing in Arizona?! pvrisofficial: Resources to make the stream happen and rehearsals happen :)

bitchesonthephone: I have one question and one question only: When will we get Let’s Go Vertigo? pvrisofficial: NEVERRRRRR

Antique_Performer_45: Hi Lynn! I’ve been a big fan of PVRIS for a few years now. Which song from Use Me was your favorite to write? I love you guys! pvrisofficial: Use Me! or Good To Be Alive!

JadeAdelaideee: Hello!!! You’ve been a huge help with me realising I was gay, is there anyone who you would look up to when you were younger who sort of helped ease that journey? 💕✨ pvrisofficial: tbh i didnt have many. It was the scattered bits of magical gay representation on teen tv shows like Degrassi/Skins etc. haha

brandonjback: what song are you most proud of from AWKOHAWNOH? pvrisofficial: Anyone Else and NOLA 1!

DixieF: A question I've been waiting ages to ask. Why are you guys so awesome? pvrisofficial: We got awesome parents!!!

Emmahumphrees: Out of all yours songs what is your favourite lyric?? pvrisofficial: "On the porch the ceiling's painted baby blue dressed to the nines just like the sky in early afternoon 'cause it's midnight and the ghosts might be coming soon" Its a reference to a New Orleans superstition that the baby blue porch ceiling would ward off spirits in the night to trick them that it was the daytime sky.

lgbtiffany: what was the most difficult part of trying to regain your voice when you were having troubles with it? pvrisofficial: Definitely just getting on stage every night knowing it wasn't working and having to pretend it was... haha. Super embarrassing.

cnnrtower: Hi Lynn! MA fan here who first saw PVRIS open for A Skylit Drive at the Palladium in 2013. Super incredible to watch the journey for the band / yourself as an artist! What was the first gig/experience that made you stop and realize that PVRIS was going places? pvrisofficial: one of our first headline shows in CT back in 2015. Show was crazy!!

KimLC24: I was just wondering how you get your inspiration to do your art and music? because it can sometimes be hard to even get motivated let alone create pvrisofficial: Totally relate and understand! I won’t lie, the older I get, the more I need to hype myself up and set a tone to create, especially when there’s so much music swirling around us at all times (the internet/streaming/etc). I almost always have a moody or dreamy movie/show playing on my ipad next to me while I work so that way there’s an inspiring visual going.

deadweighttttt: Hi Lynn!!! What’s your all time favourite lyric from the album?! pvrisofficial: HII!! "Do you even notice how easy you've got this? Taking wings off a goddess if I'm being honest"

Pvffreis: Hi Lynn, I have no idea how to use this/reddit but great to see you here! Hope you're doing good? <3 Update: I figured out how to edit comments ayyy I just signed up to ask you this very important question: Red or green apples? pvrisofficial: Idk how either but I think I got it!! Red apples! W PB

dancingonslowsand: Hi Lynn!! Been following PVRIS for a while and I’ve loved seeing how your sound has evolved over the years. Do you have any idea of what direction you want the band to go in the future? Or are you just riding the wave and seeing what happens? Also what’s your fav bird pvrisofficial: Thanks so much! I definitely plan to just keep riding the wave… I feel like every album leaves some room for the direction to go anywhere so the next chapter never feels too restricted. I have been feeling pretty hyped and high energy lately so I feel like it may reflect that a bit! Fav bird is… PENGUINS (even though people debate that they are mammals.)

pvrisofficial: Okay my friends, I gotta head out and get to rehearsals! This was so much fun, sorry I couldn't get to every Q. Love yall! See you guys so soon! <3

November 18th, 2020

[ambitionsource]

wait i actually have more weirdly specific questions (if ur up to it) - how do the kids feel about poetry? do they follow any sports? what childhood tv shows were their favs? do they have celebrity crushes? fav coming of age movie? how are they doing in quarantine? what time in history were they obsessed w as a kid? have they ever been to summer camp? what type of candles do they like? what song do they cry to? how do they drink their coffee/tea sorry if u’ve answered already/too many questions

wooooo thank you for your patience iz!! we’re gonna go point by point

poetry?

charlie loves it genuinely and will read it for fun. riley likes it enough but doesn’t go out of her way to read it. farkle loves coming up with insane explanations for the metaphors and is smug about interpreting it in class. zay doesn’t care for it, neither does lucas. asher appreciates it but finds it boring; dylan likes it for the same reason farkle does, only not to look smart but to come up with something completely crackheaded to combat farkle’s interpretation (which he can’t then say isn’t correct, bc its poetry, so all interpretations are valid!). isa doesn’t like it because she doesn’t get the metaphors on paper the same way she can pick them up in film. maya hates it even though multiple people have pointed out that song lyrics are basically poetry -- she will tune you out.

sports?

sports aren’t Big at aaa (aside from dance), but there are remnants here and there. riley follows basketball of course -- even tho as demonstrated in 110, she cannot play it to save herself -- and she tried out for cheer in 9th grade at her old school but was rejected from the squad (another bad mark on a terrible year). farkle prefers wii sports over any actual sport, but will sometimes watch golf with stuart because it’s quality time with his very busy father. charlie did soccer when he was younger before it got phased out by dance and semi keeps up with it. dylan also “played” soccer, but this meant the other little league teammates getting pissed at him bc he never paid attention to the game and was just like “hey! hey, dennis, look at this!” and did like 3 cartwheels across the field. it was a smart move when randall pulled him from the team bc those intense soccer moms were gonna like beat them up fDJSKG. so now dylan is just an unofficial gymnast instead.

isa doesn’t like sports but played them a lot with foster siblings, and even though she sucks she gets very competitive. lucas liked baseball and was good at track in middle school, but he never thought about doing a sport for real because he knew he was going to quincy eventually where his dad is a coach... yeah. no. but he’s great at running fast from the police!

maya hates sports (aside from the art of dance). waste of time, waste of energy. asher has never done a sport nor ever contemplated a sport. the most Sport he’s endured is going with jade to support dave at his swim meets (where nigel also does swim) and suffice to say, asher wasn’t there to look at the swimming.

childhood tv?

dylan to this day is a spongebob squarepants STAN. legend, icon, scholar, best television show ever made, in his opinion. he also was well-versed in pokemon, adventure time, gravity falls, and phineas and ferb. asher and lucas both didn’t watch lots of tv growing up (if at all), so dylan considers it his job to give asher a thorough education in the quality tv he missed as a kid.

maya was all over hannah montana (miley is still a role model to this day for her), and she, zay, and charlie all remember the fever dream that was shake it up. zay especially loved it bc he was (is) obsessed with zendaya. zay and maya both also watched victorious. charlie was sharing a tv with four siblings so he just ended up watching whatever the dominant sister that day wanted to watch. riley was a disney channel girl, and farkle was a pbs scholar (arthur, cyber chase, fetch! with ruff ruff man... classics).

 celebrity crushes?

zay = zendaya (as previously mentioned). charlie = harry styles to a major degree, although his Cover Story would be zendaya if you asked (ironically). maya = britney spears (but in a I Want To Be Her way, major idolization rather than attraction) and technically the same for valerie de la cruz but like... rip to that lmao. isa = loki, yes we know, but sometimes it be that way (altho that does extend a little bit towards tom hiddleston in general). asher = logan lerman, aka the main valid white boy who dresses nice, is polite and soft-spoken, and minds his own business (not to mention he is the Same Type as dylan). dylan = had crushes more on like... personalities so like ash ketchum and percy jackson, and now its irrelevant bc he met asher and became obsessed and its like every other potential crush just flew out the window of his brain. it’s full asher territory in there nowadays.

riley doesn’t have a specific one, she thinks lots of people are Pretty but no one particularly strongly. farkle doesn’t have one because he’s insane and doesn’t have the mental capacity. lucas doesn’t have one because he’s demi and also hates most celebrities as people.

coming-of-age movie?

maya’s is mean girls. farkle’s is ladybird. zay’s is easy a. riley’s is bend it like beckham. isadora’s is eighth grade. charlie’s is dead poet’s society. asher’s is perks of being a wallflower. dylan’s is spiderman: into the spiderverse. lucas doesn’t know movies.

quarantine?

we’ve somewhat discussed this before, but ultimately es and i elected to let aaa remain in a nice, calm universe where they don’t have to endure covid. lucky them. blow a kiss to the ether for us, buds,

fave time in history?

riley is huge on ancient greece and greek mythology. maya loves the theatricality and Drama of the roaring 20s (a baby flapper at heart). zay vibes hard with the 80s. charlie likes the fashion and romanticism and music and art of the 70s (that sort of flowery positivity clashing with the rebelliousness of the movements of the 60s... yeah. that hits something in him). farkle’s is the great depression not only bc he’s an emo but also all the raw and desperate art that came out of it. isadora was a egyptian mythology kid. i know lucas sounds lame (he is), but i don’t think he cares about history -- but if pushed he’d probably say the 90s bc he dresses like he’s straight out of there, everyone was angry rocking, and he wasn’t born. asher likes the victorian era bc of the sheer elegance and Aesthetic to everything. dylan doesn’t have a favorite time period because due to being the subconscious multiverse conduit (i.e. the being that is somewhat connected to every other version of himself) sometimes he wakes up and for a minute he doesn’t even know what year it is 🤪anyway...

summer camp?

charlie has been to many a christian youth summer camp. zay went to the kossal program, but that was basically it. lucas no although he probably wished he could be anywhere else during the summer sometimes including a camp he would hate. riley went for a few years in elementary school. isa has gone to a couple of “foster kid” summer camp bonding things that she despised. farkle went to jewish summer camp One time and was like that was HORRIBLE, never make me spend a whole summer outside AGAIN. asher was more of a Enrichment courses at the rec center during the summer kid than a camper. dylan no because the orlandos couldn’t afford something like that. same for maya.

candles?

riley has a small variety of scented ones that are like... warm scents, like cinnamon and stuff. asher a couple that smell like clean linen but his fear of accidental fires keeps him from ever lighting them. maya has one and it smells like “star power,” a gift from her mom one christmas. isadora can’t have any because many of her foster homes don’t allow them. lucas legally shouldn’t be allowed anything that catches on fire. dylan doesn’t have one but similarly should not be given one. the minki have a whole collection for different things so farkle can just pluck one at any time if he needs one like for a super fancy bath or whatever the fuck rich people do.

mental breakdown song?

charlie’s are “falling” and “from the dining table” by harry styles.

riley’s is “manhattan” by sara bareilles and “rainbow” by kacey musgraves.

zay’s are “imagine” by ariana and “dear life” from the step up soundtrack (post zc breakup).

farkle’s are “vienna” by billy joel and “get it right” from glee.

asher’s is “don’t cry” by ruel.

isa’s is “you are my sunshine” because valerie used to sing it to her a lot when she was really little, so it will always make her a little emotional.

dylan’s (although rare) are “soon you’ll get better” by ts and “make you feel my love” by adele. the second one is because his mom loved adele when she was just starting out bc 19 was released the same year that she passed away so there’s a lot of like subconscious association there even if he doesn’t realize it.

maya doesn’t have one, and lucas also doesn’t have one because in the rare moments he does cry its in his closet in the dark silence alone bc he literally can’t stand the sentience of knowing he’s crying so. sensory blackout.

coffee / tea?

riley will add at least 3 sugars to anything, but she’s ultimately an iced tea gal. lucas drinks it black but only because it never occurred to him to add anything to it and so it’s a big wake up call when he realizes you can drink it and have it NOT be bitter and horrible and demoralizing ( “i thought we were all just suffering for the caffeine fix??” ). isa is a tea girl mostly, although she wishes she could drink black coffee for the aesthetic (and hates that lucas can... it’s like... he didn’t even Earn that aestheticism, smh). asher doesn’t drink caffeine bc it makes him Jittery (and he’s already jittery) so he’s like... the lemonade bitch at coffee shops which kin, and then dylan definitely drinks caffeine but not thru coffee, he’s more likely to get like a hot chocolate.

farkle lives on coffee but he can only drink it from home because they’re rich and can have like fresh ground good imported whatever the heck etc etc so he’s like spoiled about coffee. zay will hit up a starbucks now and then and will order coffee at a diner, but he’s not too attached either way. maya is a fun n free starbucks gal with her frappes and lattes and lots of cream (whipped or otherwise). charlie doesn’t drink coffee or tea bc hes hyper aware of his body and health (he doesn’t really have soda either) and it was frowned upon in his house.

[agaychristian]

Coming out... thinking again...

May 12, 2020

(Night of the 11th, but it's like 2:30 am now so it's the 12th technically)

So... like I've been thinking abt it again today. That maybe I should come out.... I would say it's the quarantine talking, but let's be honest, I didn't go out much before lol.

Tho I am really missing going to Sunday school, church, and small group (yes I said Sunday school and small group... that's how I distinguish between Sunday morning small group at the church before worship and Sunday night small group at leader's house). So that may have something to do with it, idk.

But I have also just seen someone like my post abt thinking abt coming out to my mom from March (ironically I posted that like 4 days before everything shut down in my state lol). I have also seen some people over the past 2 ish months like post any coming out and church response and stuff from like 2 years ago.... so it's not like these are knew thoughts... just more frequent I guess lol.

But I've been thinking abt it again today... and thinking abt coming out in general not necessarily to specific people.

Ok that's a lie, there is one guy I've thought abt coming out to, he was in my small group for a bit, but only came sporadically due to work. He since moved across town and apparently started going to a church over that way with some friends.

I don't even know him super well, but kinda wanna come out to him. But chatting online through a message app isn't the best place for that kind of thing. I don't have his number, and he is across town so it's not like I will see him at church even if church was open ATM (hopefully soon, governor finally said churches could open... think she finally realized she can't really say churches can't meet, tho for everyone's safety my church may still hold off a few weeks, don't know... anyway not the point).

I message him every now and then to see how he's doing kinda thing, cause I genuinely want know how he is.... but like I don't know him that well, an he isn't on this side of town currently....

So not sure how that would even work for me to really talk to him....

I can't come out via a message app... for one, then there is proof in written form that I said it lol... also I can't try and read his face when I say it.

And when things finally open back up (soon, restaurants can finally open at 50% capacity, the one he works at is closed for now tho, so he has time) but I can't just say "hey wanna meet somewhere and grab lunch or something"... I mean I don't think I know him well enough, and like one dude doesn't just randomly ask another dude he only kinda knows to have lunch... that seems weird...

Maybe it's seems like such a big deal because I do find him attractive... but that's not the point... well maybe it is, I guess if I didn't, I probably wouldn't feel like I need to tell him I'm gay... maybe by telling him, he will say he is too... ok that's just wishful thinking, I have no idea if he is gay or anything that would necessarily make me think he is.... as I don't know him well.

But I do know he has apparently had some personal/ family stuff happen and that's part of why he moved across town... so maybe I'm projecting my feelings into it and it's making me think, maybe he is gay and the personal and family drama was abt him being gay. It wouldn't necessarily be a stretch.... but it could have also been a million other things.

Again it comes down to my gaydar being more of a "I hope he's gay"dar.

Maybe hebis gay and reads tumblr and my blog and will read this post and figure out it's me and message me!... ok ok I know, more slightly wishful, slightly scariest thing imaginable thinking...

Tho I could also just say screw it and tell him I'm gay anyway and let the cards fall where they will.... which I am considering more and more.... tho that could be the isolation talking... and I don't mean Covid 19 isolation... I mean isolating part of myself and not being able to have a significant other, and considering stupid and risky things to get out of this feeling of loneliness....

Tho I'm not really in a good situation to date ATM so not sure coming out on a bigger scale or to someone I like (well think I like based on what I do know) is anything I should worry abt doing ATM...

I am jobless but have a couple rentel houses that barely pay for themselves and a few personal bills, no real money from them... yet.

But I am looking to get another one, and since all this Covid 19 shutdown stuff caused him to have reduced hours at work and now none at all, I have considered if I get another house soon, since it will need a little work (as I don't buy move in ready, they cost way too much) but I have considered at that time messaging him and ask if he wants to help with some Reno work and I can pay him. It will help him afford bills, give me some help with the house, I can even call it a business expense and add it to rehab cost of house and depreciate it with the rest of the expenses. It will give us time to get to know each other more and get more comfortable with each other and maybe allow time for opening up more. I could even offer to pay for his lunch as part of the deal with him helping me... I mean it would be the least I could do for his help. What a great way to help him out without just giving him money... that I don't really have, like I have no extra money, but I do have money I borrow for the house and any repairs and to pay people to work on it. And while he said he is taking the down time to relax, I'm sure at some point he may enjoy something to do.... but it's not like I've put much thought into this. Lol

And I think I've rambled on long enough for tonight, feels good getting some of these thoughts out.

And if the guy I'm talking abt happens to read this, feel free to message me... by the same way we messaged earlier (and the only way we ever really message, tho I did give my number to you some time back in case you ever needed a ride to small group) to see how each other was doing.

Ps: I hate that when I scroll back through what I wrote to look at something or scan over it that it sometimes drags paragraphs into a new place... serious design flaw

[theamitanand-blog]

Business Facing Challenges & Solutions for Pandemic Time

Steps to Selling Online More Effectively

I am calling this as "Pandemic times" maybe a bit of an understatement to you, or perhaps you've pivoted your marketing strategy nicely and aren't negatively affected by the COVID-19 crisis.

There's no arguing this pandemic situation has led to increased internet traffic as people work, socialize, and entertain themselves online with using online facilities

Netflix, a company that sells online video entertainment content internet backbone, has seen a traffic increase of about 50%.

But an increase in internet usage doesn't necessarily translate into increased sales for your small business.

Many consumers are hesitant to buy, either because they aren't sure when they'll be able to use the service you sell, or because they've been laid off or have had their hours reduced.

That's why I'm sharing eCommerce challenges and solutions to bring you out from this pandemic situation, maintain and even grow as an entrepreneur during this crisis.

*1st Challenge: Generate Need, Making Your Product more Essential

Many entrepreneurs are trepidation because they have a traditional business model, or selling through traditional way on eCommerce website.

And, many worries they don't have an indispensable enough product or service to offer online, like grocery stores.

Okay, so chances are you don't sell groceries. But you can still be indispensable to your customers.

Are there certain products or services you can focus on that will better serve your target audience? 

* If you have a clothing store: fabric face masks, casual outfits for working from home

* If you offer financial service, life, or other counselling services: 30- or 60-minute mental health sessions; many people are feeling lonely and isolated because of Corona

* If you sell entertainment items: create short videos highlighting games, crafts, or puzzles that will be fun for bored kids or adults

While it's not possible for every small business to pivot this way, the reality is that if you don't adjust to this "new way" as much as possible, your small business will suffer.

Changing your marketing strategy can be tough, but it's amazing how a bit of innovative thinking can transform your situation and increase your web presence.

2nd Challenge: More Queries More Business

While posting the phone number on your website or in the search results may have been enough in pre-pandemic and help your customers when they need your support now more than before.

More people online means an increased number of Queries & suggestions reaching you to improve and grow.

Surely you've been incredibly frustrated while being put on hold for a longer duration, or not getting an email revert when you asked about something. Don't let your customers have a similar experience on your products

To increase the capacity to serve your customer, consider implementing new technology to revert which is a chatbot to increase your web presence. Autoresponders allow a business to provide more solutions and even cater to generate leads.

According to #IBM, up to 80% of routine customer service questions could be answered by automated solutions.

You can outsource this objective to us, we will manage your business queries and lead generation at Aventure Corporate Solution which will improve efficiency 

3rd Challenge: Techie Issues

Let's say you already have an affiliated #eCommerce site for your great business. If your link is not routing to the right page or, #404page or slow loading times, your visitors will go choose another substitute.

Even a clever 404 page can't save you from losing visitors and qualified sales.

Also, you're not going to build trust among your audience with poor user experience. Nobody is going to enter their contact or credit card info if they don't trust your website.

Not to mention, an unkempt website is a target for hackers.

Remember: You're not only responsible for protecting your own data, but also for your visitors'. Security requirements are always changing, and no small or large business is safe.

That's why it's essential to monitor for glitches, update your software and back up your site regularly for optimal user experience.

Now, what if you have to start selling online in response to #COVID19? While there are sites out there that let you start an eCommerce #website yourself, remember that your website is your number one marketing tool.

From calls to action to the font type and images on your pages, how you present your small business to the world makes a big difference to how you're perceived.

Also, you're not going to have the same customization options if you go the DIY route.

A professional web development company will understand not only the technical aspects of the build but also the best ways to get your message across to your target audience.

Just like that, we woke up in a different world! The coronavirus epidemic has completely changed our lives and transformed the way we do business.

For many, this can be an incredibly frightening time to be a business owner. You worry about the health of your employees and the business, the bills that keep coming, your income and family obligations.

But rather than let worries overwhelm them, smart small business owners can use this opportunity to plan and prepare for future growth and success. We've created a #COVID-19 checklist to help you make the most of this uncertain time.

Whether you have to start an eCommerce website from scratch or adjust your existing marketing strategy to increase your web presence, now is not the time to sit back and wait for the pandemic to blow over.

Right now, your target audience is "living" online, so you're going to have to tackle eCommerce business challenges as quickly and smoothly as possible. Be proactive, pivot your marketing strategy, and learn from this journey!

#Happy #Selling !!!!!

Amit 

Amit Anand, a founder of the award-winning sales development and digital marketing firm Aventure Corporate Solution, is a Web Specialist, Business & Marketing Consultant, and Social Media Advisor. I am working with entrepreneurs who struggle with having the lack of knowledge, skill and support needed to create their online business presence.

As a result of working with me and my team, clients feel confident and relieved knowing their online marketing is in trustworthy and caring hands so they can focus on building their business with peace of mind at having a perfect support system in place to guide them every step of the way.

Visit http://www.aventuresolution.com and Call us any time when FREE

[webinera]

10 Steps To Create Your First Webinar

10 Steps to Create a Successful Webinar

How do you even start to create your first webinar? Which tool should I use? What is the topic?  There might be many questions in your mind when creating your first webinar. Creating your first webinar can be exhausting; especially if you are not a technologically savvy person. Webinars are often called the modern era meeting rooms. The increasing trend of modern technologies has paved the way to create communication more easily than before. The number of webinars conducted all around the world has rocketed to a great number during the Covid-19 crisis. Organizations chose to conduct webinars with their staff during these difficult times. As a matter of fact, even after the covid restrictions have been removed, organizations conduct meetings through webinars so that they save a lot of money on booking the venue, catering, etc.  There are lots of aspects to be taken into consideration when we are creating a webinar. Let us consider that you are new to the world of webinars. What are the 10 steps that you should follow to make your webinar awesome? The following advice will help on how to create your first webinar.

Have a clear idea about the topic

While deciding on a topic, make sure that you know very well about the subject. The audience must be interested and eager to know more about the topic. So, choose a topic that you are an expert at. For instance, you are an engineer, and you are specialized in the field of Designing. You could create a webinar explaining the future trends of Design and the Importance of design in engineering. Even though you are an expert in this field, you might need to research more and more in order to prepare for the Q&A session that the participants might be looking forward to. The questions might be asked in any way and the speaker must be confident enough to answer them without hesitation. If the viewers understand that the speaker does not know enough about a particular topic, they might leave the meeting and create a negative impact on your organization.

Make a Team

"If everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of itself"

The quote you see above is by a great businessman, Henry Ford. This quote is so relevant to our topic. Imagine you are conducting and creating your first webinar all by yourself. All the tasks prior, during, and post to the event are done by you. Do you think it will be easy for you? It not only takes more time but also makes you and the participants feel exhausted and the webinar won't be conducted in a perfect way. This is the reason that you have to make a team for different works to be done. The different works to be done are:

Hiring a speaker. If the organization doesn't have an experienced person in the subject chosen, the event will be useless. Hiring a speaker can be hard at times but one can find many on social media. By hiring a famous personality, the number of attendees might increase.

The host: A host is a person who has complete control over the webinar tool during the event. This person can unmute, mute, take any actions on the software.

The moderator: Moderator is a person who introduces, welcomes the speaker and audiences.

Create a script

If it is your first time presenting a webinar, you must be relaxed and confident. In order to be confident about yourself, you may need to devote yourself to a short period of time for practice. Making a script is a crucial part of this step. A webinar script is a pre-written set of dialogues that one is planning to incorporate into the event. As everyone says, "The first impression is the best impression", you must note down how to greet and introduce your guests without stuttering. If you are the speaker, you should take down notes while preparing the slides. This helps you to memorize the content and thereby becoming fluent. You can memorize the order of the things that you should tell but never memorize and the whole thing that you are going to say. This will be clearly evident from the way you speak which makes the audience bored quickly. Steps to create scripts are:

 Open up a word document or write down why you want to conduct the webinar.

Research more about the speaker and note down important points such as his designation, his educational background, etc.

It is obvious that you cannot create a script for a Q & A session. But noting down extra points regarding the topic and FAQs will help you a lot in surviving the most difficult part of the webinar.

A sample of a script is given as follows:

Hello everyone! Welcome to the Machine learning webinar conducted by completed her Masters in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Toronto and after her graduation, she joined our university as a professor in the Department of Artificial Intelligence. Without further adieu let's get started!

Ask opinions

Since it's going to be your first webinar, asking opinions from an experienced person will help you tackle the toughest situations. Internet search engines can also help on how to present and create a good webinar. But the most effective method is to conduct pre-event surveys from the public. These surveys can be more helpful than other methods as the attendees will be answering these. This can make you understand what topics the public wants more knowledge about, the type of webinar they want, which platform, etc.

Marketing plan

The most crucial point in any of the events taking place on the internet is marketing tricks. Marketing tricks for various events have played an important role in making a program successful. These tricks help you to gain more attendees and also increase your chance of success rate. The different marketing tricks available are:

Posting ads on social media is the key point to most successful events. People tend to check social media every now and then. Ads work in such a way that it finds interested people on the basis of search history. These people will click on the ads which redirect to a specific registration page.

When a person clicks on the given ads, the next phase is the registration link to the event. This might be incorporated on the organization's website or might be a separate link. This link should explain briefly the program, the speakers, and the benefits of attending this event. When an individual is interested, he/she applies with her email id.

The next phase is to send an email to the provided address which gives information about the organization, scheduled time, guests, and the link to join the event.

Send a reminder to this email address two days and one day prior to the event so that the participant can attend without fail.

Spreading the word is one of the most important things one should do. Tell your team members to post the ads on their social media networks with the details of the speaker so that the interested individuals enroll for the webinar.

Create a hashtag on social media and share it. People interested will follow the hashtag for updates.

Avoid Technical difficulties

Trust me, there is nothing more annoying than a person conducting a webinar asking repeatedly whether the audience can see them or hear them. This creates a negative impact on the viewers. There are certain things to be done to avoid technical glitches. Those are:

Invest a small amount to buy a good Webcam with satisfactory megapixels. The in-built webcam offers very little clarity which makes it difficult to see the person presenting.

Never use an in-built microphone. Spend a few dollars to buy quality headphones with a microphone so that the viewers can hear you without difficulty.

Use a high-speed, virus-free personal computer to host the event. Attendees do not want the screen to be blank or stuck during the presentation.

Make sure you purchase an unlimited participants bundle for the software. This improves the quality of the webinar tool and can accommodate more people.

Create a Mock Webinar

As I said before, the first impression is the best impression. If the organization is conducting a webinar for the first time, this should make an impact on the participants. They have to remember the organization as soon as they hear the same topic. To ensure that nothing goes wrong, the team members must try a dry run. This will help the team to understand what all are the problems that might occur during the event and resolve it long before the event takes place. This ensures the smooth operation of the Webinar. Factors to be checked during the dry run are:

Ensure that the microphones and webcams are perfectly working.

Make sure that the presentation slides are complete and have all content.

Set a timer and calculate the time required. Make sure you have enough time for a Q & A session.

Resolve any technical glitches if any.

Time Limit

The one thing that most of the coordinators do not care about is the time limit that most webinar tools have. This might often lead to interrupted presentations. The best way to tackle this is by purchasing a good version of the software which offers more time. Even after purchasing the bundle, you might have a time limit on some tools. So, you need to plan on how much time you should spend on a certain portion. Never make the viewers bored. If the presentation cuts in between and if you ask them to rejoin, viewers or participants will lose complete interest in the event. So, it is wiser to choose a tool that fits your requirements.

Record the event

The host has control over the recording part. If you wish to record the entire session, that is the best thing you could do. This can be taken as a reference for future webinars to understand what went wrong and where it should be improved. The recording also helps individuals who registered to attend the event but couldn't due to some reason. You can send this recording to them so that they have a positive impact.

Make inquiries post-webinar

This is often referred to as the Follow-up phase. The organization or coordinators must stay connected with the people who attended the event so that they have new updates about any webinar being conducted or about the newest offers that the organization provides.

 CONCLUSION

As I mentioned in the beginning, learning how to create your first webinar can be a challenge for a person who is not that technologically advanced. But, following these simple steps can really help you to create a wonderful and impactful webinar on any topic, and always remember, practice is the key to success. You'll get better eventually. When you are on live and presenting, you should be as relaxed as possible and this is only achievable by practicing. Make sure the presentation is branded with the organization name and logos to give a unique touch. Give opportunities to the attendees for active participation and make sure to answer all of their important questions.  The webinar isn't just about those 60 minutes that you present. It also includes the follow-up stage. Make sure to thank them for attending your webinar session with the link to the recording so that they can re watch it from wherever or whenever they want. If you can manage to do these stages perfectly, then your webinar is a huge success.

https://webinera.com/10-steps-to-create-your-first-webinar/?feed_id=16&_unique_id=615bf30d745a5

[michaelandy101-blog]

5 Native Enterprise Advertising Takeaways from MozCon Digital 2021

New Post has been published on http://tiptopreview.com/5-local-business-marketing-takeaways-from-mozcon-virtual-2021/

5 Native Enterprise Advertising Takeaways from MozCon Digital 2021

The creator’s views are solely his or her personal (excluding the unlikely occasion of hypnosis) and should not all the time replicate the views of Moz.

What a deal with to expertise three days of deep studying at MozCon Digital 2021 with a number of the world’s most revered digital marketing professionals. Whereas solely one of many classes was particularly targeted on native enterprise technique, it’s my native web optimization bias to see every part by way of that lens. I took pages of notes of ideas that I do know can have super applicability for native enterprise homeowners and their marketing companions.

The MozCon 2021 video bundle is now on sale for anybody who couldn’t make it to the convention, and in the present day I’d like to provide you a style of what you stand to be taught from a number of the most related and thrilling shows, which you’ll put to work for the native companies you’re selling.

Get the MozCon Digital 2021 Video Bundle!

1. Research start to floor Google Posts methods

Google Posts have existed for about 5 years, nevertheless it’s solely just lately that we’ve began to see research performed that establish successful techniques using them. Joy Hawkins was our one strictly-local skilled at MozCon 2021, and she or he used her speaker spot to set out a smörgåsbord of Google Posts ideas for viewers primarily based on her agency’s testing. Right here have been a few of my favorites:

Supply and COVID-type Posts acquired probably the most clicks in 2020, and posts that includes specials are clear winners.

Don’t use inventory images, however do use textual content in your photos to extend engagement.

Have enjoyable with emojis in your posts — they enhance clicks!

These are only a few of the takeaways you’ll derive from Pleasure’s session, with the general understanding that, whereas posts don’t seem to have a direct impression on native pack rank, they will affect native justifications for 60 days at a clip, and, after all, enhance site visitors to your web site!

2. Native prospects want data, even amid disruption

I picked up a operating theme within the excellent shows by Shannon McGuirk, Cyrus Shepard, and Ross Simmonds: the COVID-19 pandemic has positively not decreased the general public’s want for data from the Web. Every speaker approaches this phenomenon from a unique angle:

Shannon’s firm misplaced 50% of its income within the first couple weeks of the pandemic and needed to transition from long-term content material planning to a extra reactive model of marketing that is ready to transfer shortly with the instances. Identical to digital companies, native ones are encountering a state of affairs by which it’s more durable to plan promotional actions, particularly when there are fewer accessible native journalists to outreach to. Shannon’s presentation gives up, in extraordinarily clear element, how her firm has realized to outlive amid disruption.

Cyrus explains how the patents Google is investing in surrounding person habits set objectives for companies to be the primary click on, the lengthy click on, and the final click on for searchers. With the fitting content material, your native enterprise ought to be the useful resource the general public chooses first from Google’s outcomes, stays on longest, after which doesn’t must navigate away from as a result of their wants have been met. As Cyrus explains, “User satisfaction is the #1 ranking factor!”

Ross explains why it’s worthwhile to consider your model as a media firm, and predict what might be vital to your neighborhood to be able to spend money on related content material. It is a tenet in Moz’s Important Native web optimization Technique Information by which we urge native enterprise homeowners to see themselves as publishers.

three. Sorry, however your native enterprise web site has content material decay

It might really feel a bit such as you’re sitting in a dentist’s chair listening to this, however fortunately, Kameron Jenkins from Shopify has a treatment for this state of affairs, by which site visitors to your web site’s older pages and posts naturally deteriorates over time. In case your native enterprise depends on content material publishing to generate site visitors and income, content material decay is an enormous drawback (and a steady one) as a result of your articles are all the time getting older. The answer to that is to have an ongoing content material refresh technique by which you establish and replace growing old articles to maintain them related.

However the bigger your content material library is, the more durable it may be to perform this process. The truth is, Kameron discovered that 25% or much less of content material entrepreneurs’ time is spent on content material refreshes. The excellent news is that a mixture of free instruments could make it a lot simpler so that you can begin reversing decay. To wit:

The free “landing pages” report in Google Analytics allows you to set a date vary to see which of your content material belongings are dropping site visitors over time.

Google Search Console can also be free and allows you to see which belongings are dropping search positions over time.

Again in Google Analytics, the Aim Conversion Charge and Completions columns present you which of them of your belongings have the very best conversion charges, serving to you prioritize refreshing older belongings which have the potential to ship probably the most conversions when you replace them.

If you are going to buy the MozCon 2021 video bundle, you’ll see all of the screenshots in Kameron’s tutorial, and she’s going to stroll you thru contemplating how you can refresh a web page to provide it a brand new aggressive benefit with unique analysis, recent quotes from specialists, improved inside hyperlinks and extra! Any native enterprise that has severely embraced publishing as core to their online marketing technique ought to see significant advantages from studying to refresh decaying content material as a substitute of letting it sit unmanaged.

four. A contact of experience could make a ton of distinction in an area context

Many audio system at MozCon seek the advice of with giant enterprise purchasers and are all the time having to look onerous for techniques that may set manufacturers aside in ultra-competitive markets. The nice information for native companies and their businesses is that our markets are, by nature, restricted to native geography, which means that nifty techniques can present monumental wins for us inside a set metropolis or area!

Take a look at Joyce Collardé’s side-by-side comparability of a consumer on the left utilizing video schema markup vs. a model on the fitting with out schema. Think about how your native enterprise can command extra display house, with only a contact of technical know-how:

She additionally has a ton of nice ideas for B2B fashions, a lot of that are, after all, native!

In the meantime, Lily Ray’s phenomenal presentation is a must-watch for any native enterprise in an trade that has a direct impression on folks’s lives and funds (suppose docs, dentists, monetary advisors, and many others.). Lily demonstrates the large adjustments which have taken place in natural search engine outcomes since Google’s 2018 “Medic” replace, favoring manufacturers that meet Google’s standards for experience, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness (E-A-T). If your small business is in a your-money-or-your-life (YMYL) class, studying to bake E-A-T into your content material and marketing methods may give you a major elevate in your native market.

Rob Ousbey mentions a favourite software of mine for locating native linktations: Hyperlink Intersect. Then he turns this concept on its head with a brand new Moz alpha experiment known as Topical Hyperlink Finder that can assist you discover topically-relevant hyperlink alternatives for key phrases your opponents are rating for. Moz Professional and Moz neighborhood members are invited to play with this software, and I feel it may very well be a terrific benefit for native companies in search of trade hyperlinks. Whilst you’re at it, take a look at the alpha of the On-page Key phrase Grouper that can assist you decide when to interrupt up a subject into a number of pages as a substitute of placing all of it on a single URL.

Lastly, Casie Gillette’s reference to Recordit that permits you to customized create GIFs instantly delivered to thoughts Darren Shaw’s recent discovery that you should utilize these as a substitute of static photos on Google My Enterprise Merchandise when you save them as a JPEG as a substitute of a GIF. Don’t go overboard, however delicate animation may actually assist your native enterprise’ merchandise stand out!

5. Buck native traits and dare to be totally different

A number of MozCon 2021 audio system warned towards operating a enterprise on assumptions. There are all the time information traits in marketing and glossy new issues in the best way of tech and technique, however what really issues is what works on your prospects. For instance:

Casie Gillette, talked about above, made a terrific level in reminding us that there’s a widespread narrative that “print is dead”. Inform that to Yankee Candles, whose print catalogues performed a key position of their 122.9 million gross sales in 2020. It wasn’t way back that nearly everybody assumed the milkman was a factor of the previous. Not so! Takeaway: don’t simply latch onto fads. You could learn that your native enterprise wants to speculate hours every week on social media marketing, but when your individual prospects are telling you that what they really need is dwelling supply, or better-trained employees, or a cleaner retailer…put your money there and provides it to them!

Moz’s personal Dr. Peter J. Meyers reminds us that our brick-and-mortar opponents is probably not the identical as our opponents within the natural SERPs. You’ve obtained to review the outcomes that come up for the searches that matter to your particular prospects to see whether or not you’re proper about who is definitely competing with you there for vital phrases.

Wil Reynolds advises bringing a small ego to the web optimization course of, and a willingness to be unsuitable and query every part. He urges manufacturers to make marketing choices on the idea of knowledge, summing it up deftly: The much less you perceive your buyer, the extra you spend to amass them.

It’s my take that native enterprise homeowners have a bonus over their digital counterparts, since you dwell the place your prospects do and should even have been absorbing the tradition of your city or metropolis your entire life. Within the native context, tech is there to make speak simpler, and your highest-level takeaways from the MozCon 2021 video bundle might be a brand new degree of confidence and experience to make you a extra considerate, geared up communicator.

Your online-only colleagues must take these expertise into an enormous area, competing with everybody on this planet to be heard. However for you, marketing an area enterprise, an academic funding in your self and your workforce may give you a unprecedented enhance alongside the worthy journey of changing into an area family identify.

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[newstfionline]

Monday, April 19, 2021

As Covid Death Toll Passes 3 Million, a Weary World Takes Stock (NYT) Three million lives: That is roughly equivalent to losing the population of Berlin, Chicago or Taipei. The scale is so staggering that it sometimes begins to feel real only in places like graveyards. The world’s Covid-19 death toll surpassed three million on Saturday, according to a New York Times database. More than 100,000 people have died of Covid-19 in France. The death rate is inching up in Michigan. Morgues in some Indian cities are overflowing with corpses. And as the United States and other rich nations race to vaccinate their populations, new hot spots have emerged in parts of Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America. The deaths are the most tragic aspect of the pandemic, but they aren’t the only cost. Many millions more have been sickened by the virus, some with effects that may last for years or even a lifetime. Livelihoods have been ruined. Global work and travel have been disrupted in profound and potentially long-lasting ways.

Ontario retracts new restrictions that drew the ire of many (AP) Ontario’s premier retracted restrictions Saturday that banned playgrounds and allowed police to require anyone not at home to explain why they’re out after a backlash from police forces, health officials and the public. The pandemic restrictions imposed by Canada’s most populous province immediately ran into opposition as police departments insisted they wouldn’t use new powers to randomly stop pedestrians or motorists and health experts complained the rules focus on outdoor activities rather than more dangerous indoor settings. Ontario Premier Doug Ford ‘s government announced Friday it was giving police authority to require anyone not at home to explain why they’re out and provide their address. Ford’s Friday announcement limited outdoor gatherings to those in the same household and closed playgrounds and golf courses. The decisions sparked widespread criticism in a province already on lockdown. Restaurants and gyms are closed as is in-class schooling. Most nonessential workers are working from home.

Two blocks from the Federal Reserve, a growing encampment of the homeless (Washington Post) As he drove past the intersection of 21st and E streets in Northwest Washington, a 68-year-old man peered through the window, struck by an encampment of homeless people here that grew from 10 tents to 20 in the past year. Then 30. Now 40. The people living in those tents had no idea that their burgeoning village kept this man, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, up at night, or that he kept thinking about them as he drove two blocks south to his office. Powell doesn’t know their names or backstories, either. But what he saw was clear. A visceral reminder of the uneven economic recovery. Right there in the Fed’s shadow. It’s in these brief interludes—when the most powerful person in the economy passes some of the most powerless—that Powell grapples with one of the most vexing economic conundrums facing the central bank, and the country, 14 months into the coronavirus crisis. How can the Fed have done so much—slashed interest rates, propped up the stock market, bought up $3.3 trillion in treasuries and mortgage backed securities—yet parts of the economy remain so broken? Powell referenced the tent city three times in the span of seven days, including in a ″60 Minutes” interview and on a panel hosted by the International Monetary Fund. During a talk with the Economic Club of Washington D.C. on Wednesday, Powell mentioned the encampment again, saying the homeless should be part of any assessment of the economy’s strength.

As mask mandates end, Oregon bucks trend with permanent rule (AP) As states around the country lift COVID-19 restrictions, Oregon is poised to go the opposite direction—and many residents are fuming about it. A top health official is considering indefinitely extending rules requiring masks and social distancing in all businesses in the state. The proposal would keep the rules in place until they are “no longer necessary to address the effects of the pandemic in the workplace.” Michael Wood, administrator of the state’s department of Occupational Safety and Health, said the move is necessary to address a technicality in state law that requires a “permanent” rule to keep current restrictions from expiring. But the idea has prompted a flood of angry responses, with everyone from parents to teachers to business owners and employees crying government overreach. Nearly 60,000 residents signed a petition against the proposal. Opponents also are upset government officials won’t say how low Oregon’s COVID-19 case numbers must go, or how many people would have to be vaccinated, to get the requirements lifted in a state that’s already had some of the nation’s strictest safety measures.

US West prepares for possible 1st water shortage declaration (AP) The man-made lakes that store water supplying millions of people in the U.S. West and Mexico are projected to shrink to historic lows in the coming months, dropping to levels that could trigger the federal government’s first-ever official shortage declaration and prompt cuts in Arizona and Nevada. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation released 24-month projections this week forecasting that less Colorado River water will cascade down from the Rocky Mountains through Lake Powell and Lake Mead and into the arid deserts of the U.S. Southwest and the Gulf of California. Water levels in the two lakes are expected to plummet low enough for the agency to declare an official shortage for the first time, threatening the supply of Colorado River water that growing cities and farms rely on. It comes as climate change means less snowpack flows into the river and its tributaries, and hotter temperatures parch soil and cause more river water to evaporate as it streams through the drought-plagued American West.

Australia, largely free of COVID-19, in no hurry to reopen borders—PM (Reuters) Australia is no hurry to reopen its international borders and risk the country’s nearly coronavirus-free lifestyle, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Sunday. Australia closed its borders to all non-citizens and non-residents in March 2020 and has been permitting only limited international arrivals in recent months, mainly its citizens returning from abroad. The border closure, together with snap lockdowns, swift contact tracking and high community compliance with health measures, have made Australia one of the world’s most successful countries in curbing the pandemic, limiting coronavirus cases to under 29,500 infections and 910 deaths. For months now, except for some short snap lockdowns, Australians have been able to dine out, gather nearly freely and stop wearing face masks in most places.

For Syrian refugees in Lebanon, a tough Ramadan (AP) It was messy and hectic in Aisha al-Abed’s kitchen, as the first day of Ramadan often is. Food had to be on the table at precisely 7:07 p.m. when the sun sets and the daylong fast ends. What is traditionally a jovial celebration of the start of the Muslim holy month around a hearty meal was muted and dispirited for her small Syrian refugee family. As the 21-year-old mother of two worked, with her toddler daughter in tow, reminders of life’s hardships were everywhere: In the makeshift kitchen, where she crouched on the ground to chop cucumbers next to a single-burner gas stove. In their home: a tent with a concrete floor and wooden walls covered in a tarp. And, definitely, in their iftar meal—rice, lentil soup, french fries and a yogurt-cucumber dip; her sister sent over a little chicken and fish. “This is going to be a very difficult Ramadan,” al-Abed said. “This should be a better meal ... After a day’s fast, one needs more nutrition for the body. Of course, I feel defeated.” Ramadan, which began Tuesday, comes as Syrian refugees’ life of displacement has gotten even harder amid their host country Lebanon’s economic woes. The struggle can be more pronounced during the holy month, when fasting is typically followed by festive feasting to fill empty stomachs.

U.S. embassy to withdraw staff as Chad rebels advance (Reuters) The United States has ordered its non-essential staff in Chad to leave the African country as rebel fighters approached the capital on Sunday after early election results showed President Idriss Deby on course to extend his three-decade rule. “Due to their growing proximity to N’Djamena and the possibility for violence in the city, non-essential U.S. government employees have been ordered to leave Chad by commercial airline,” the U.S. state department said in a statement. The British government on Saturday urged its citizens to leave because, it said, two armed convoys from the rebel Front for Change and Concord in Chad (FACT) were advancing towards the capital.

[differentnutpeace]

Few Facts, Millions Of Clicks: Fearmongering Vaccine Stories Go Viral Online

The odds of dying after getting a COVID-19 vaccine are virtually nonexistent.

According to recent data from the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention, you're three times more likely to get struck by lightning.  หวย บอล เกมส์ คาสิโนออนไลน์

But you might not know that from looking at your social media feed.

A new NPR analysis finds that articles connecting vaccines and death have been among the most highly engaged with content online this year, going viral in a way that could hinder people's ability to judge the true risk in getting a shot.

The findings also illustrate a broader trend in online misinformation: With social media platforms making more of an effort to take down patently false health claims, bad actors are turning to cherry-picked truths to drive misleading narratives.

Experts say these storylines are much harder for companies to moderate, though they can have the same net effect of creating a distorted and false view of the world.

"It's a really insidious problem," said Deen Freelon, a communications professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. "The social media companies have taken a hard line against disinformation; they have not taken a similarly hard line against fallacies."

Article continues after sponsor message

To date, the CDC's reporting system has not received evidence linking any deaths directly to vaccines.

And yet, on almost half of all the days so far in 2021, a story about someone dying after receiving a vaccine shot has been among the most popular vaccine-related articles on social media, according to data from the media intelligence company NewsWhip.

That includes the year's most popular vaccine story: a South Florida Sun Sentinel article, which was republished in the Chicago Tribune, about a doctor who died a few weeks after receiving the vaccine.

The story explicitly notes there has been no link found between the shot and his death, but it has received almost 5 million interactions on Facebook and Twitter nonetheless.

"This problem is not theoretical. It's not hypothetical," said Sarah Roberts, an information studies professor at UCLA. "This thorny issue directly lands in this gray area of an emergent information crisis that has really clear real-world implications."

Few deaths, many clicks

By just about any metric, it's clear stories linking deaths to vaccines have spread in such a way that wildly overstates real numbers.

Among the more than 85 million people in the U.S. who have now received at least one vaccination shot, less than .0018% of shot recipients have died sometime afterward.

Even that small number includes people who were vaccinated while also suffering from other health conditions.

Whether they have a vaccine or not, roughly 8,000 people die in the U.S. every day. And as more people get vaccinated, more vaccinated people will continue to die from unrelated causes, which the pharmaceutical company Pfizer alluded to in a statement earlier this year.

"It is important to note that serious adverse events, including deaths that are unrelated to the vaccine, are unfortunately likely to occur at a similar rate as they would in the general population," the statement said.

But UNC-Chapel Hill's Freelon said when it comes to conspiratorial thinking, stats and nuance often don't matter as much as tragic stories.

"This is something that we see repeatedly with human cognition," Freelon said. "It's the emphasis on the breathless anecdote and then the discounting of statistics that are much more representative."

The largest spike in death-related stories came at a critical time in the vaccine rollout.

In January, as the average number of shots administered quadrupled and people frantically searched for information as they considered whether to be vaccinated, it was also the time people were most likely to encounter a story linking a death to vaccination, according to the NPR analysis.

A worker prepares to give a COVID-19 vaccine last week at the Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif.

Brittany Murray/MediaNews Group/Long Beach Press-Telegram via Getty Images

Every day from Jan. 7 through Jan. 20, at least one story linking a vaccine to a death was among the 10 most-engaged-with stories about vaccines.

NPR analyzed NewsWhip's data by looking at each day's most-engaged-with stories that included the word "vaccine" in the headline, summary or metadata.

Engagement encompasses how many times an article was shared, commented on or liked across Facebook, Pinterest and much of Twitter.

On some days, such as Jan. 16 and 17, and March 11 and 12, 25% or more of the top vaccine stories on social media were about a person who died after being vaccinated.

This is not because many more people died during these periods; rather it's the result of multiple news outlets writing articles about the same small number of deaths and reaching a larger audience.

On March 11 for instance, all six of the stories in the top 20 most-engaged-with vaccine stories were about the same Utah woman who died four days after receiving her second vaccine dose.

One Facebook page with 20,000 followers posted a link to the article, with the caption "I'll pass on the vaccinations. I could care less of anyone's opinion ... this is horrifically sad."

Another page, with 10,000 followers, posted it saying, "[V]ery concerned about those getting the poke."

A few days later, however, the Utah Office of the Medical Examiner issued a statement saying that "there have been NO DEATHS caused by the Covid-19 vaccines to date in Utah."

In one of the news stories that was shared with anti-vaccine messages, the actual text of the article described how the father of the woman who died still decided to get the shot himself.

Exploiting the gray areas

The difficulty in moderating these sorts of stories comes from their truthfulness. A woman did die four days after receiving the vaccine in Utah. But there wasn't any causal relationship, according to the state's medical examiner.

Social media companies have made it clear that when it comes to sharing true-but-misleading information, they don't want to wade in.

"Content can't always be clearly divided into helpful and harmful," Kang-Xing Jin, Facebook head of health, wrote in a recent San Francisco Chronicle op-ed. "It's hard to draw the line on posts that contain people's personal experiences with vaccines."

But peddlers of misinformation, and even American adversaries, have discovered this gap in content moderation.

Russian state media such as RT and Sputnik News shared more than 100 stories linking the Pfizer vaccine to subsequent deaths of recipients, according to a recent report by the Alliance for Securing Democracy.

It's a phenomenon dubbed "lying through truth" by Bret Schafer, who wrote the report.

"The [social media] platforms look at an individual tweet from RT saying 23 people died in a nursing home after taking the Pfizer vaccine, and they can't do anything about it because it is technically true, while being wildly misleading," Schafer said. "That seems to be the new strategy."

On Thursday, the CEOs of Facebook, Twitter and Google will appear at a U.S. House hearing centered around misinformation that spreads on their platforms.

In his opening remarks, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg will tell lawmakers about the myriad ways the company is fighting to "keep harmful misinformation about Covid-19 from spreading," but the statement focuses only on false claims and makes no mention of these sorts of gray areas.

About 30% of Americans continue to express some hesitancy around getting a COVID-19 vaccine, according to a recent NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll.

Ann Bostrom, an expert on risk perception at the University of Washington, said many of these people are judging the situation incorrectly.

For people to calculate correctly the real risk involved in getting a shot, she said, they need to consider the hundreds of thousands who have died because they were not vaccinated against COVID-19, not just a random headline.

"We rarely get the contextual information we need," Bostrom said. "And it's really hard to judge the importance of something without that information."

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[senior70]

The WHO African Region Certified as Polio Free August 2020

A Word or Two to the AntiVaxx Community

It was the summer of 1954, and I as a twelve year old was looking forward to eight weeks of summer vacation and all the adventures that would bring with my friends. But, it was not to be. I and three other boys from my school were identified as having been in close contact with a boy who had developed the symptoms of Polio (Poliomyelitis), an infectious disease that left many survivors permanently crippled or damaged by paralysis in some way. The disease was initially referred to as “Infantile Paralysis”. 

In 1947 Britain experienced a Polio epidemic and every subsequent summer, a wave of infections soared, particularly targeting young people, though also adults. It was a devastating disease, often with life long and life changing consequences. Though, at first it was not known how the disease was transmitted, it was clear that it was primarily a summer season disease and that swimming pools and beaches were, in particular, associated with rapid spread. Many were closed in an effort to dampen the spread.

That summer of 1954 I was to remain confined for six weeks to my house and garden, unable to see friends and unable to swim, my favourite sport. As it happened, I did not develop symptoms and the boy in question was one of the fortunate ones who recovered without actual paralysis, though how its lingering side effects affected his adult life I do not know.

In 1955, the Salk vaccine became available in injectable form (the oral Sabin vaccine followed in 1962) and in 1956 Britain embarked on a massive vaccination programme. I still recall that my class was one day interrupted and we were all shepherded to the school nursing station and lined up as several visiting nurses prepared for us. One by one we were vaccinated. I am sure the needles in those days were not sharp, the exhortation of the nurse “this won’t hurt” being entirely a white lie. In the days that followed most boys experienced side effects and some missed school for a few days.  I recall that there followed a ‘booster dose’ at a later date. To this day I can show you the faint ‘polio scar’ still on my upper left arm. 

To my knowledge, the mass vaccination of children in Britain was mandatory and it was claimed that by the end of the mid 1950’s campaign 99 out of 100 children had been vaccinated for Polio. In the years following, the number of cases dramatically fell, the last outbreak being in the late 70’s. The UK was declared Polio free in 1984.

As a British child I was vaccinated at various times for a number of other diseases. The list reads “Vaccine against Meningococcal B. Vaccines against Meningococcal C, Hib (Haemophilus Influenzae Type B) and Pneumococcal Disease. 4 in 1 (diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough (pertussis) and polio), plus MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccine.”

Polio was eliminated in the Americas by 1994, in 36 Western Pacific countries, including China and Australia, in 2000, Europe in 2002 and India in 2014. But Polio remained a scourge in many other parts of the world, particularly in Africa (75,000 children paralysed in 1996), and as long as the disease flourished somewhere, the danger of reappearance of polio in polio free countries remained. It could be only a plane journey away. The two vaccines have eliminated polio from most of the world, and reduced the number of cases reported, world wide, each year from an estimated 350,000 in 1988 to 33 in 2018.

A global effort to eradicate Polio, led by the The World Health Organization(WHO), UNICEF and the Rotary International Foundation, began in 1988, and has relied largely on the oral polio vaccine.The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation supplies the inactivated vaccine to developing countries for as little as €0.75 (about US$0.86) per dose (2015) in 10-dose vials.     

Since the Rotary Polio Plus program started in 1988, Jenny and I, as Rotarians, have given annually to this campaign. Rotary members around the word have donated about US$ 890 million to date. The program in Africa was hugely assisted on the ground by many of the 32,000 Rotarians of the 1,400 Rotary Clubs in the 47 countries making up the WHO African Region. Rotarians, as members of a Non-Governmental Organization have been key to delivering and administering the more than 9 billion vaccine doses, especially to populations in both remote and politically unstable areas, often at some risk to themselves. 

In August 2020 The World Health Organization declared Africa free of Polio. It is a huge milestone for the Global Alliance, but the work must continue.

————

I have no patience whatsoever with the AntiVaxx community, and make no apology for it. Their minds are closed, facts, common sense, and social sensitivity unable to penetrate the barriers of selfish ignorance and the depths of social irresponsibility. That they do not want to be vaccinated is one thing, but the recent invasion and forced closing down of a Covid-19 clinic by AntiVaxx people, whose goal was to prevent others from being vaccinated, is grossly reprehensible and utterly inexcusable.  

Their common cry is that vaccines can cause the very diseases they claim to protect one from. Technically, they have a moot point, but in their fanatic ignorance, they fail to comprehend the elementary matter of probability or risk assessment. 

I quote here from an article I wrote on Vaccinations and posted on my blog in December 2017. 

“Inside a small farm, sitting in the isolation of the vast steppes of Russia, a family sat around the table at dinner. In the midst of the usual family cross conversations, father suddenly spun away from the table, crashing to the floor as if felled by a rifle shot. In fact he had been killed by a meteorite, in this case a pea sized fragment that had penetrated the roof of the building and after passing through his skull, had punctured the floor, burying itself in the ground below. 

It has been estimated that the lifetime odds of dying from a local meteorite, asteroid, or comet impact is about 1 in 1,600,000, taking into consideration that larger impacts can alone cause thousands of deaths. In comparison, the chance of being killed by lightning is 1 in 161,856. Few people sit down to dinner in fear of being killed by a meteorite. Indeed, few, probably, have even given the possibility a thought.”

World wide, many billions of doses of the two vaccines have been administered. Since 2000 there have been 760 cases of the vaccine causing polio (cVDPV), in most not overly severe. The probability of the oral polio vaccine causing a child to contract polio, based on the rounded figure of 10 billion doses, is 1 in 13,157,894. Even rounded to 1 in 10 million, the risk is minuscule indeed and is greatly outweighed by the saving of so many children from the crippling disease of polio and the real possibility of global eradication. 

The probability of dying in a road accident is 1 in 106 and in the US, the probability of dying in a gun related incident is 1 in 298.       (https://injuryfacts.nsc.org/all-injuries/preventable-death-overview/odds-of-dying/)

Rather than irrationally refuse to be vaccinated because of the minuscule chance of a negative outcome, and perhaps become a carrier of diseases that may not show as symptoms in the carrier but are infectious to others with whom they are in contact, the next time those who refuse vaccinations sit down to dinner, they should apprehensively glance at the ceiling and consider their chances of completing the meal before being killed by a meteorite. Certainly, they should never drive, perhaps never even venture out of the house. Indeed, their self isolation would be greatly advantageous to the majority of us that have knowledge, respect science, understand risk and have a sense of social responsibility.

senior70

February 2021.   117