#I'm wondering whether I should make an art category on that blog or not

[septembersghost]

hi!! so i’ve been lurking on your blog for a minute and i love how much you love elvis!! it’s super sweet and interesting to me and you’ve inspired me to start learning about him, but i just have no idea where to start. there are like 20,000 albums on spotify 💀 so i was wondering if you could help me out by recommending certain songs/albums you really love/think are essential as a starting point? and i’d love to know if there are any specific books or documentaries you think are really good too. thank you so much!!!

hi!!! anon this is so lovely and kind of you. 🥺 and you're welcome here any time, whether that's to lurk and peruse or to say hello! it's extraordinarily touching that anyone ever looks at my silly posts, or if they can inspire you to listen or learn more in any way (about anything!, but it warms my heart with elvis particularly...he deserves it). i know his discography is staggering and very hard to navigate because of the way it's laid out and the amount of albums/compilations/live recordings/sessions there are.

there's honestly not a wrong place to start, but the obvious is his first self-titled record with RCA in 1956, he's just this young, enthusiastic talent and all pure potential. my beloved is the 1969 album from elvis in memphis, you can hear the passion and invigoration he was feeling creating that music in that time and space. it has a sister album with back in memphis. there are honestly gems across so many records for various reasons, it makes it difficult to narrow down! if starting with compilations/overviews is easier (and sometimes it is!), there's the #1s (this was the first album of his i had, long ago!), the essentials, or if i can dream (which is long but has a lot of great cuts). a bunch of songs will overlap between these because they're the Iconic Tracks, i secretly cherish some of the lesser known music even more, but the famous songs are well-known for a reason! i also really love the compilations they did with the london philharmonic - they added the orchestrations over the original tracks, but the arrangements are so beautiful and full and (to me) highlight his vocals rather than overwhelming them, and i just know he would've loved to perform them in such a lush way. if i can dream (they reused this title, but i cannot blame them. that song is so important, i could wax on about it forever), the wonder of you. if you want a feeling of his live electricity, it has to be the recording of the '68 special, and/or that's the way it is. i have to mention how great thou art, gospel music was particularly dear to him and this album won him his first grammy (his only grammy awards were all in the sacred category). it's interesting too because they split the album into an "a" side, with slower hymns, and a "b" side, with uptempo songs, which is the same concept they utilized on something for everybody, "a" side ballads, "b" sides rock and roll. also i would be remiss not to mention the movie soundtrack (i am linking the deluxe for Reasons!!!), it's not all elvis himself, but the other performances, from austin and from modern day artists, are a really fun experience and speak to the way his music still resonates and can feel really timeless. there's still so much i'm leaving off of this, but i know it's a LOT to sort through.

the '68 comeback special (the file labeled "disc 1" should be the full performance itself, the other two are outtakes/other versions of the session and such!) is a must. there's also a documentary upcoming from producer/director steve binder (who also published a book on the special) in may! the documentary/concert that's the way it is from 1970 is so good and highlights not only his skill as a performer but a lot of his personality, and 1972's elvis on tour is fun too! there's an HBO documentary from 2018 called the searcher that i personally thought was beautifully done and presented. i know there's tons of stuff out there and it's as confusing to parse through as the music, and the books are even harder to navigate. the ones considered the most comprehensive are peter guralnick's the last train to memphis and careless love, they're more scholarly/journalistic than personal. the personal memoirs can all be very tricky and subjective (as other anons and i have discussed recently), though i know a lot of people enjoyed his friend jerry schilling's book me and a guy named elvis (i have read many bits and pieces of it, a bad habit of mine with books recently, but need to read it properly!). elvis: the legend is SO gorgeous and officially released from graceland, so it doesn't delve into the harder struggles or gossipy stuff, it traces his career/music/accomplishments, but that's what i love to learn about and prioritize in many ways. also, on instagram, walking in memphis is a fan page, but she shares really nice stories and photographs that delve into his humanity and character (there are many fan accounts, and good ones!, but hers might be my favorite that i've found). if anyone else has recommendations they'd like to add to this, please do!!!

i don't know if this helps, there are likely better people to ask than me and i'm honored you'd trust me to try. 😭 i hope it does give you a beginning, if you want any more information/clarification, please feel free to come back! this brightened my day (well, night! so you are a star!), thank you again for being so sweet and sending this to me. 💖💖💖

edit: elvis is back!, from the comments <3

also this is how i feel every time anyone asks me about him:

[ambiguouspuzuma]

Before I incriminate myself, let's make two things clear.

I do not believe that anybody is obligated to reblog other people's writing. We're all on here to do our own thing, this is a free webbed site, scroll and let scroll. There is no reblobligation. Reblogation. Whatever.

It is nice to reblog other people's writing. I know how great it feels to get a reblog with a lovely comment, and I try to do the same when I see the opportunity. I would like to be the sort of person who does that more often, because it's an easy way of spreading happiness in the world.

Whenever I see these viral "artists are discouraged when you like and don't reblog" posts, I contest whether that is true (I let people have their own say here, and I can tell you the 'discouraged' option didn't win), but I also wonder about the people who endorse them.

How much do these people actually practice what they preach? A lot of prominent art and writing blogs are filled with their own material, self-reblogged to maximise engagement, but little of anybody else's. Do they believe that they, as creator, are not included in the audience? When they support this urge to reblog, do they mean that they should do it too, or just that we should all reblog from them?

When they do reblog, how many of them have a separate side-blog for those purposes, so as not to sully their main or expose their followers to these pieces? What fragment of their followers, if any, do these reblog-only side-blogs have? Is their rationale for quarantining writing into these containment blogs the same as people give for liking rather than reblogging? If they are unwilling to endorse the writing with their whole chest, not wanting to share it with their followers, is there any real difference to the impact on the author?

I don't think that it's many. Some, yes, and fair play to you if that's you, but I see an awful lot of people complaining about the absence of reblogs who are part of the problem. I see such complaints, but I almost never see them actually share somebody else's writing. When they talk about 'readers' and 'writers' it's clear that they only put themselves into the latter category, not subject to the same rules they prescribe.

Would it be nicer if there were more reblogs flying around? Yes. Would I like more reblogs on my writing? Of course. Will I still continue to criticise attempts to guilt-trip people into doing so? Yes. I'm not going to embrace that hypocrisy. Nobody owes me anything that I wouldn't do for them, and that's the way I think that it should be.

[millennialxletters]

A cute siblings' portrait at one of the few Hunter balls that the Guild organizes once in a while ! Taken 2 years prior to the beginning of VK (-and before Anya loses her legs-). Hence why they look so happy and united... The older sibling is Helene. 21 years old. She is well known for her beauty that rivals the vampires' own good looks (Vampire genes make wonder on the Hunter's appareances :') ). She works as the Guild's ambassador at the Senate. She is not that skilled in fighting, but if she has to, she will pull out two daggers to save her life! Anya "Phoebe" Darkwing is the oldest of the twins here. 18 years old, she has an unhealthy skintone because she is the weakest of the twins. She is specialized in sharpshooting, so she can still fight for the Guild's cause while putting herself at minimal risk. Kai (previously known as Anju) "Hector" Darkwing is the youngest of the pair, however he is way stronger than Anya. He has a hot-tempered personnality and seriously need an anger management program. Touch his twin, and you'll never see the daylight again. He fights with a two-handed axe. Sarah "Pyrrha" Darkwing is the youngest of the siblings, yet she is the heiress of the Guild's throne. Usually kind of stoic, she lets her guard down when she is with friends or family, revealing a sarcastic, playful girl. She fights with a spear that's retractable into a gladius. She owns a shield also made out of the anti-vampire metal. As you may have already guessed, it's a redrawing of an official VK illustration! Helene, Anya, Kai, Sarah belongs to me. VK belongs to Matsuri Hino

[meichenxi]

Hi!! I'm a college student about to graduate and my dream is to teach English in China and I was wondering if you could somehow help me and give me some advice. I have been studying Chinese during my years at university (and I love your blog!), along with my physics degree. I don't know if any of this is relevant but my level of Mandarin is not very high (HSK3), I study in the UK and I'm planning to get a TEFL 120 hour certification in June. Is this a solid plan? Love your blog, Isa

Hiii! Sorry it took me so long to get to this, I have my final exams at the moment and am on semi-hiatus. First, what an amazing dream!! You'll have a wonderful time :D

SO in general having a degree not in English language and a TEFL certificate is most definitely enough to secure you a job, but at the moment it is a rather 'special period', as every job advert says, and so finding a job is a little trickier because of visa problems.

Basically, there are no work or study visas available at the moment for people from the UK. The only people who can get into China are those who the Chinese Embassy deems 'foreign experts' and therefore 'crucial to China's progress', and your company or school will have to provide something called a PU letter. This grants you the ability to actually apply for the work visa, though itself doesn't grant it. At the moment there aren't that many companies available who can offer that.

Because of this, I'd recommend going through a recruitment company. I do not necessarily mean a graduate scheme (the ones advertised as such are not very well paid and you don't have much control over where you go), but a recruitment company. You can find these on any general site if you google 'ESL jobs China'.

In terms of actual jobs - generally speaking there are three categories, private language schools, state schools, and international schools. International schools are by far the best in terms of packages, but they rarely take graduates without 3 years of teaching experience. The good news is that if you do find somebody who is looking for recent grads (if you go to a particularly prestigious university like Oxbridge, for instance), you might be able to teach Physics or Science rather than English language. International schools will also be the easiest to deal with in terms of communication and visa applications, but the competition is quite stiff, and most people who apply will be teachers in their home countries already.

State schools are another good option if you want 'normal' teaching hours, good holidays, and older children. The position I have next year is in a good state school that has two programs, the Canadian curriculum and the GaoKao (the Chinese university entrance exam). The main disadvantage is that you may be the only foreigner in the school, and communication might be difficult. I don't just mean with Chinese but in general: you will be not told things, you will be excluded, you will turn up to your class and find someone else teaching it and be told just to go back to your office. If you can be flexible and have an open mind, state schools are great, but they may be quite exhausting especially if this is your first time in China. You will also have to teach to exams, and the curriculum might be tight. For me personally though, I would much rather teach in a state school than the next option -

Which is private language schools. These are very good - sometimes. This is the main problem: the quality of the schools, the teaching, and the ethos all vary from school to school. You may be teaching very young children, and you may be teaching exclusively in the evening. The schools may be very supportive of creativity in the classroom, or you may be literally forced to teach the flashcards they give you. The plus about these schools is that they often have competitive relocation packages, are not too bothered about how experienced (or not) you are, and that there will be a community of other English speaking colleagues (natives and not) to help you integrate.

The reason I add this is that it's so, so important. It's very laudable and easy to wish for immersion and want to make Chinese friends - and you should!! - but living in another country without easy access to internet you are used to can be exhausting at times and even the staunchest believer in immersion is going to be stressed and tired and teary far from home. Having colleagues who want to improve their English can also be a good basis for a (somewhat awkward at first) friendship.

Some general tips: brush up on your English grammar. Seriously. Because the amount of teachers who have no idea and bluff their way through it is shocking and disrespects those who try very hard to make it a proper profession. Also having students ask you when you use the present perfect continuous and the present perfect simple and not knowing the answer is a very special kind of pain!! I'd recommend bringing a reputable grammar book with you, and using it when making your lesson plans.

Re Chinese: if you already have a little, your Chinese will improve so much when you're there!! Don't stress about it because China is a wonderful environment for learning - it's literally perfect, few people speak English and EVERYBODY wants to speak to you as many people are direct and very curious - but at the same time, the more you can learn, the easier it will be. Don't neglect your characters!! Learning useful menu characters and signs will be hugely helpful too. You won't need Chinese in your job really, but you definitely will in your daily life, so well done for learning and keep at it!!

The other thing I would say is: sort out your music and your social media and your banking before going to China. This includes a good VPN. You can't download apps on the google App Store, and to make the transition to the Chinese internet easier, I'd recommend getting a Weibo account, any music app, Baidu translate and maps and so on, and accustoming yourself to that before going.

Re where you are going and the package: you should have your flight paid, help with your visa, and transparency about quarantine procedures. You should also have accommodation or an accommodation allowance of between 2000-5000 (2000 is more than fine). Public or international schools may pay for your food during school-time as well. Re cities: prioritise what is important to you. If you want to save, bear in mind that China is extraordinarily cheap and that even in places like Shanghai, you can still save a lot if you live somewhat sensibly. To give you some context: I lived in Tianjin, a second-tier city, and I got 'pocket money' of 2000 every month (with accommodation and food paid), and I managed to save enough to do martial arts for a month at an academy after 5 months. And I was living well - going out about twice a week, taking taxis, eating out almost every evening (cheap food). So don't prioritise one position over another solely because of money, and also bear in mind kindergarten teachers may only be getting about 2000-3000 a month - so regardless of whether you earn 10,000 or 15,000, it's a) SIGNIFICANTLY enough to live very well and save very well too, and b) considerably more than many of your coworkers will be earning.

Also, different cities have different costs of living: 10,000 somewhere like Hangzhou will go considerably further than 16,000 in Shanghai. Another thing to bear in mind is the air quality, and the environment, and the access to green spaces. DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THIS. If this is important to you, go somewhere smaller or in the south with access to nature - I nearly went crazy living in such a big city with such poor air quality. The positions I had to choose between were one in Shanghai, better paid and at a better school, and a position in Zhuhai in a campus in the mountains, in a third-tier city by the sea. I know now how important green is to me, how much I prefer a more relaxed pace of life, and so I chose the latter.

Lastly, don't be intimidating and don't be afraid to ask questions about your job. Make sure that everything they say is in the contract, in both the English version and the Chinese version. This is important because only the Chinese version is legal, so if you have a friend, get them to check that the same stuff is in each bit of the contract. Communication might be difficult, but don't be afraid to be direct and press for answers, don't just accept what you're told. You might be messed around with a bit, so it's important to 'shop around' for positions - don't feel bad if you do so, and don't be afraid to turn things down that don't suit. Finally, don't feel terrified if you can't find information about a school online - a lot of stuff isn't on Google, and will also be better accessed via WeChat or mini programs. Not finding information about your school or city does not mean it doesn't exist!!

So be prepared for a wild ride - and enjoy! If you have any more questions about any of this, please feel free to ask at any time!

meichenxi out :P