#and it was full of dutch people and a toad.

[kuroimarzipan]

in the middle of a desert realm lies the industrious town of middelburg. and in that town resides a spirit of artifice and greed named mister toad. one day he found an orphan of flame in the bin. "wow, those are incredibly rare! Who would throw a perfectly serviceable baby away like that?" he exclaimed, and took it for himself.

[twistednuns]

May 2023

An unexpected pizza party! I briefly thought it smelled like a pizzeria when I walked down the stairs and when I arrived at the dining hall two huge tables with many different pizzas were set up for us. We ate ate all together at a huge table like a family.

The first self-guided yoga practice I actually enjoyed. An asana plan and pre-programmed bells wth Insight Timer really help a lot.

Stepping outside after my yoga session, seeing a double rainbow in the sky.

Deep talk with Robert. Hard hugs.

The story about Kali appearing as a black cat.

Seva Day. Getting to sit in the Karma Yogi common room (sitting behind Ashley, giving her a back massage). Tarot and oracle cards everywhere (drawing a card suggesting to "bring joy to what you're doing"). Sanding and oiling two wooden benches in the workshop (a place where I felt at ease right away). Alexius gave me his scarf. Then I removed some masking tape from the floors on Clair Joie. I love practical work.

Picking flowers for the library.

Feta cheese, green olives, pink sauerkraut and leftover pizza for lunch.

Helping Judith set up and clean my room. Having a nice and easy conversation. Relating.

Another dream after which I woke up crying - sobbing, really. Ringing in my ears, seeing a bright white and purple light behind my forehead. So real I had to open my eyes and check if the light was coming from outside. Spooky. Happened twice now, Almost as if a portal has been opened and now all the stored sadness is just flowing out freely.

Conversations with Nana over lunch and nestled into a dark corner one night. About finding balance. Making decisions. Astrology and energies.

Turning the Karma Yogi lounge into a Berlin night club ca. 1998. Light effects, group hopping, Hadi DJ-ing.

A magical night with a bright waxing moon. Clear sky. The stars and the moonlight shining through the leaves, sitting in a swing. Listening to the sounds of the forest. Owls, toads, rustling leaves. Everything in full bloom. The smell of the lilac in the air.

A long talk with Maya. About everything and nothing. Meditation. The mind. My Vishudda chakra. Our families. It's so much easier to bond when there's not a ton of people around!

Spontaneous back massage for Ashley when I sat behind her at the Seva meeting.

A rebirthing breathwork session with Maya. I had a mainly physical reaction, feeling my whole body vibrating and pulsating - especially the hands and solar plexus. My channeled my inner child and all her sadness, hurt feelings, fear of connection. Afterwards I felt really good and had a long nap.

Sitting under a tree after lunch. Sunshine. Verima playing the guitar, singing for us in her beautiful voice. Robert, Lucie and Verima's friend from Berlin were there, Maya, Caroline and Alexius joined later. I made daisy crowns for every one and a few daisy rings as well. The hippie alternative for knuckle tattoos. It was a beautiful image, everyone singing, decorated with flowers. And it was so sunny. I was only wearing a short dress and had to be careful not to get sunburnt. Felt like the first summer day. A big ant ran over my arm and I decided to let it tickle me and play a little.

Stephen brought me sea salt chocolate from the bio shop and didn't even want money. I paid him with a big hug. What a cutie.

Blessing our food together (at dinner with Robert and a Dutch couple). Holding hands, singing Amour, Shanti, Sagesse.

My roommate during the three day retreat smelled extremely lovely. Probably her laundry detergent? Her clothes made the whole room smell fantastic.

Big buzzing bumblebees. Eating all my meals in the hammock or the swing. Watching the birds come and go, feeding their babies, whizzing from branch to branch. I even saw a robin a few times. Porridge and fresh bread for breakfast.

A blissful meditation on the second retreat day. Merging, blending, expansion. The eternal now.

Being fascinated with Thando's hair. My mat was right behind hers in Shiva Hall so I had plenty of time to admire her gradient dreads adorned with little seashells, coloured thread and metal cuffs.

Writing little goodbye notes for everyone. Closure.

The bright full moon reminded me of the little rituals I'd sometimes do during lockdown. So I felt the need to write down what I wanted to let go of and burn the note under a chestnut tree in the middle of the night.

Leaving Hridaya. Nice conversations with Paul from Colorado on the way to Lyon (he's a nerd, HSP, possibly on the autism spectrum... We found a lot of ways to relate to each other) Buying a bunch of local cheeses and lovely soft chocolate-walnut biscuits. Making my way to the airport, sitting down in "my" corner at gate 01. Meditating to the sound of crackling winter fire, tuning out as much of the noise and busyness as possible. It turned out to be an absolutely fantastic meditation. Feeling kundalini energy, realising which steps I have to take to work on my self-love. Crying quietly.

Getting fresh bread and orange juice, some tomatoes and the traditional "butterbreeze-upon-arrival". Hugging Frank for a very long time. Kissies. He told me everything about Marie. His problems with motivation, and finding a therapist. It's good to be here with him. I hope I'm not overstaying my welcome.

Meeting so many friends. Pub quiz with Margit, Raphael, Dennis and Frank. Lunch with Helga and Marlies, eating strawberries on the rooftop. Drinks with Peter. Snuggling with Manu, learning about his "dream guardian", an animal he sees whenever he realises that he's dreaming, basically preventing him from enjoying a lucid dream.

My energy seems to have changed. A woman asked me for advice on which pair of sunglasses to buy. Others were asking for the way. Perhaps I'm more open and approachable? More examples: racing a guy down the escalator. We both had fun! And discussing the strawberries on display with a random lady to find out which ones were the most beautiful.

60min Thai massage. So good.

A guest appearance as Sphinx in Frank's DnD group. I prepared riddles and anagrams. Pretty cool! And I just love Carolina and Kevin. Visited them the next day for lunch and a Kundalini yoga session. Caro and me have so many shared interests! We need to become friends.

Checking out the dice collection in the board game store. The cashier specifically showed me the cat edition. Good intuition.

Kinder Happy Hippo is back! Creamy hazelnut filling. Fantastic.

Colour-coded thrift shopping. I only bought orange items.

A variety of Indian food to share, watching Hunger Games movies together. Yanch being vulnerable, talking about his weight gain. Sash's mum sending me a big box of beautiful, homemade macarons.

Meeting Valeria and Mark (and their little son Misha) at a café. Talking about equanimity, my studio/Heilanstalt idea. Buddhism, our jobs, finding the right community.

Meeting Marie for the first time. She seems lovely!

Spending more time with Raphael. Letting him write down the quiz answers. Asking for advice about Peru. I think he thrives when he feels useful.

Brand New Cherry Flavour - a random Netflix find. It has everything I want from a TV program: magic, kittens, lesbians, an amazing title, 90s vibes.

Building the little Lego forklift with Frank. It actually works! It was in the Schultüte I made for him when he went to work for the first time in months.

Spending exactly €22.22 at the store on my birthday. Of course I'll take it as a sign!

More birthday treats: going swimming, but I didn't force myself to swim for a very long time (a bit uncomfortable without goggles). Getting a Baba Ganoush wrap at Beirut Beirut. Instead of birthday cake: a pot of strawberries with whipped cream and a few Raffaellos on top. Ordering a few new piercings and earrings on Etsy.

Playing Kicker and pool with "my men". Frank, Manu, Raphael. It's a little pathetic but it made me feel special. I don't know what it is - a mix between the princess position and being one of the dudes. But I could definitely feel the love.

Spending more time with Raphael. I've missed him.

Realising how many amazing friends I have (and that I know most of them from school or met them on OkCupid). I feel very grateful. My Goldmarie/FLEX birthday was lovely.

Frank stepping up his game: he got me three big pink roses and strawberry cake with a box of Raffaellos for my birthday! Manu also told me that he'd almost organised an airport pickup for me. Maybe he actually meant when he told me that I was really important to him when we were in Amsterdam. Also, I'm so glad he's doing better. I really like his new girl Marie and watching him play his saxophone solo at the Jazz Night made me feel like a proud mum. We make very good flatmates, too! Feels like home.

Speaking of which: the Independent Women vocal ensemble was fantastic. Great voices and they chose pretty cool songs, too! Some of the girls wore great outfits as well (even though it was all black some of them really managed to put together something special and unique).

Seeing Bordeaux through fresh eyes. Jasmine growing up the walls in the alleys. So pretty in the evening light against the blue doors. Ramen noodle soup. Waking up in my little coffin, overlooking the sunlit rooftops. Meditation. Journalling, enjoying a coffee and a croissant on the rooftop terrace.

Orangina gummy candy.

My Ajna Chakra started tingling like crazy during my first meditation at Plum Village.

There is a cat house at Plum Village. I definitely came to the right place. The curious young kitten that regularly joins the walking meditations and makes somersaults whenever it's trying to catch a flying bug brings my a lot of joy. And I befriended Tiéu Nhi, a 17-year old senior cat. Super gentle, shy, plays like a young kitten. I gained her trust with sweet talk and good scratchies. She purrs when I pet her, even lets me hold her sometimes and accepts head boops. I'm honoured.

Very nice Vietnamese food every day. I especially love the half moon-shaped soup tofu and the amazing fresh baguette we eat with margarine and plum jam every morning. Fruit with tahini. Vegan spring rolls. Sweet bean soup with coconut milk. Even the soup broth is always delicious.

Sharing circles. I often relate to everyone so much more afterwards and I realise that I'm not alone with my feelings (something I just naturally assume). The sharings about ancestral trauma and the practice of "touching the earth" were super interesting. And when the sister talked about running away from home during her Dharma sharing I really felt her pain. Emotional contagion, compassion, a trigger?

Looking out the windows of the big hall, seeing the bamboo forest and the reflection of the lights in the glass. It looked like a fairy meadow with glowing lanterns between the leaves.

Getting to know Nora, Jade's friend. Talking about our experiences at Hridaya. The girl who handed me a tissue at the sharing circle (which means she noticed I was crying... ugh, why is vulnerability still so hard) Learning about languages in Madagascar from Sandia. So many lovely people around here.

Sweetened English Breakfast Tea as a regular substitute for dessert.

Practicing mindful eating. Eating slowly, stopping between bites, chewing really well. Giving thanks for the food. Waiting for the table to fill up before starting to eat. Bowing to each other. At one point during breakfast, I had this very clear feeling that I was full. It was amazing to see that my body is sending me signals all the time, I just have to be still enough to notice them. Tuning in. I'm going to experiment with smaller portions from now on to see if they'll already satiate me. Perhaps my way to stop overeating?

Walking meditation with all the monks and sisters, volunteers and short-term visitors. Quite the procession.

My little corner in Dharma Nectar Hall. Writing nook. Yoga mat. Cat nearby. All I need. Performing Ardha Chandrasana (half-moon pose) under the skylight which looked very much like lunar surface with the moos and dirt resembling craters.

A lovely Lazy Day. Talking to Lanting (she's got a master's degree in Buddhist studies, I love people who allow me to pick their brain) and Adele. Yoga in front of the Buddha statue. Dinner outside by the lotos pond. Painting while listening to podcasts. A walk to Happy Farm in the afternoon sun. Imagining holding hands with my parents. The orange poppy-like flowers. Daisies. Language tandem with a Sister. Partnering with Yara from Basel during the "Beginning anew" presentation (I really feel like I should visit Basel now, I keep meeting amazing people from there), relating to her sharing. Anne talking about an interesting educational program. Standing with Julie in the dark kitchen, listening to her stories about finding her practice.

The tiny snail attached to the glass door at eye level before morning meditation.

Tiéu Nhi walked up to me in the morning when I was sitting in my usual spot meditating. "I'm here now! Come cuddle!" So I followed her to her sofa to cuddle. I left for breakfast and returned with a cup of water to paint. On a whim, I offered her the water and she drank out of my hand! I'm in love. / The next day she meowed again in the morning and I picked her up, lying down on my sofa with her. She sat on my belly and seemed super content. Peaceful moment.

Vegan Pho with gluten/"vegan ham". A lime wedge. Tasty mushrooms and fresh herbs.

The Queer Sangha Dharma sharings, offline as well as online. Confirmation that my gaydar is on point. Gentle, open and aware people. So much love and respect. Feels very special.

I googled Jula and Frieda (yeah, I've definitely got a crush) and their CVs kinda confirmed my intuition that I really need to quit my job. One look and I was like... I am so much more. I want that for myself as well. Cried a tear into my porridge bowl upon this realisation.

Sister Spring sharing the Touching the Earth practice with us. Powerful.

Meeting Kati from Austria. Interviewing her about what's it like to have a psychiatrist and psychotherapist as a mum (apparently good).

Finding a cool "Breathe/Aloha" sticker for my water bottle.

Mark still sending me long voice messages (and a selfie of him and Tom, I think they met up in Berlin or Vienna!)

Jade. Her hugs, generosity, way of speaking. Learning from her, being more mindful, trying to speak in a more respectful and considerate way. I appreciate her a lot.

I'm really happy with the Caring Cacti family here at New Hamlet. Lots of lovely people. We've got a lot in common and the Sisters are lovely, too.

The moment I noticed I could actually listen to the Dharma talk in French and take down the headphones with the English translation. Practising French with my roommates (also I'm grateful that our room has been drama-free so far and we're getting along very well).

Bamboo stick exercise does wonders for my back. It feels SO good.

[calamity-unlocked]

Just woke up (dont judge me, its weekend), and got a couple of questions for the ask meme in my inbox! To avoid clogging y'alls dash up with answers, I decided to put em all here.

@pix-pres-wuz-here

⚔️ - How do you think Andrias will die? :D

I added this question so people could get creative, but as y'all might know I absolutely adore this goofy tyrant with my whole heart. I don't want him to die! hjdgsasdfg my real answer to this is what i did to him in atobaoi so i can't tell you, but a good second alternative is for him to get betrayed by the Core and cast aside like he never mattered at all. The heroes encounter him as he's rotting in prison, and he gives them one piece of vital information so they can free Marcy and kill the Core. No redemption, no forgiveness - he stays in that jail until he's forced to do community service - but a satisfying resolution nevertheless.

@eeveearoace

😏 - Thing you just want to rant about

Okay, so I'm the Grinch. I... don't like Chrismas. Sorry folks! It's not something I celebrate, I'd rather be away from my family than be with them, and the way holiday-themed American consumerism is getting shoved down my throat is endlessly annoying to me.

So I was mentally preparing myself for Froggy Little Christmas, bc i thought it would just be jolly cheer all around and I wouldn't be able to relate. But then the Plantars had absolutely no clue what Christmas was! Their kind confusion and inability to relate was very refreshing and I enjoyed watching them "learn the meaning of Christmas" - and still being very confused at the end of it, but happy other people were happy. That really struck a chord with me.

Also, Dr. Jan mentioned Sinterklaas and I lost my shit. Dutch culture mention, in my frog show? More likely than you think!

✍ - What is your favorite piece of Amphibia fanwork that you made so far? fic/art/shitpost/meta, etc

I mean, A Theory of Butterflies and Other Insects is rapidly consuming my life. It is as long as a full-on novel right now - which means I'm sorta writing novel! That is so cool! I'm so happy I was inspired enough to make this happen and am so grateful for the support the fandom has showed me.

🏡 - Wartwood, Toad Tower, Newtopia or LA?

Gotta say Wartwood. It's where most of our adventures have taken place, and it just kinda feels like home, y'know?

[gasolineweirdo]

I love creeks I love larches I love email I love my friends I love going outside I love country roads I love sumac stands I love the preservation of endangered languages I love people who are really good at identifying shiners I love catching redside dace I love the sound of flowing water I love floodplains I love cassette tapes I love the bassoon I love finding a new local native fish I love endemic species I love the great lakes I love climbing trees I love old websites I love checking the mail I love thoughtful correspondence I love watching everything unfold I love escaping modern life if only for a few hours I love that people like me I love my pet leech I love those who vehemently defend bugs I love extraordinarily small fishing hooks I love right triangles I love phylogenetics papers I love the resurrection of Centrarchiformes I love that Wikipedia finally recognized the resurrection of Centrarchiformes I love pygmy sunfish I love fishbase I love the biodiversity of the American south I love the burgeoning tolerance in rural areas I love meticulously organized file storage I love open source software I love walking barefoot til my feet hurt I love chopping up stuff just for fun I love showing off cool fish I love minnow traps I love natural snow buildings I love emojis I love looking out the window I love the time we have I love headphones I love washing my hair I love putting on cute clothes I love cool rocks I love caddisfly larvae I love aquatic plants I love clay soil I love moss I love floating bogs I love carnivorous plants I love purple comforters I love looking at a word until it doesn't look like a word I love incomprehensible people I love feeding my fish I love the Allegheny pearl dace I love soup I love sustained noises I love the sound of frogs in spring I love tadpoles I love flipping toads on their backs I love the command line I love ricing my PC I love soulseek I love the fact that it just doesn't matter I love Wisconsin I love Eau Claire even if I don't get down there enough I love the Northwoods I love canoeing I love fishing for trout but just catching creek chubs I love seeing something new I love understanding my surroundings I love amoled screens I love the sun I love seasons I love that Tumblr doesn't seem to have a length limit on text posts I love short animations I love woodwinds I love that American chestnuts might come back soon I love the ice age trail I love escarpments I love big hemlocks I love spotting a tree I don't see too often I love wild plums I love unicode I love kale I love growing chives I love Dutch black metal I love permanently excising things I don't like from my life I love learning to live with things I can't excise I love very large and heavy hammers I love warm water I love floating on a lake on a makeshift raft I love free pallets I love weird things in beaver ponds I love true bugs I love bristle worms I love Hydra the genus I love crabs I love mustelids I love beavers I love getting out in the country and seeing the stars I love going to sleep I love getting out in the morning while it's still real dark I love cool jackets I love pins I love extreme noise records in the twin cities I love handnumbered music I love the cool rock I have on my shelf I love ignoring things I love leftovers I love writing down movies to watch even though I haven't watched a movie in years I love commissioning fish art I love killing upsetting conversations I love not having the metal eating post circulating I love researchinf before buying I love tenkarabum I love planning things that won't come to fruition I love plans coming to fruition I love pruning apple trees I love tree houses I love my car I love conifers I love just leaving and heading somewhere else without knowing where I'm going or what I'm going to do there I love minecraft with buddies I love full sized keyboards I love interrobangs I love laying on the moss I love birds singing I love the nighttime I love cold air I love just sitting in the woods

[slovenlyrecordings]

We got some super hot new repros of some seriously rare 60s r&b and garage killers in stock

These are always pressed in limited quantities, and are rarely repressed. Get ‘em so you don’t have to shell out for the originals that you won’t find anyway! THE SPITS 6th album is back in stock at the USA and Berlin stores, and has arrived at Slovenly Mexico, too! Exclusive to the USA store, we just got more copies of the first album by The Muffs. Our love for this record can’t ever be overstated. Check out this new LP by THE TOADS featuring members of MIDNITE SNAXXX / LOLI & THE CHONES + ICKY BOYFRIENDS / HANK IV and a couple punxxx from the staff of MRR. Can’t get better credentials than that. For you CD hounds and bump ‘n grind music aficionados out there, there are new versions of Las Vegas Grind and Jungle Exotica that have been remastered and now include deluxe booklets AND in swank digipak cases! Last, and definitely not least, we’re giving our HIGHEST RECOMMENDATION to the new single from Dutch band THE VANCOOTHS on Certified PR Records. We also have a few copies of their self-released LP that is extremely limited and inexplicably slept on. We’re the only place in the USA to have the LP, which is criminal. Get it now and thank us later!

SPEND $15 AT THE USA STORE AND GET A FREE HEAVY DUTY CANVAS TOTE BAG WHILE SUPPLIES LAST! (Olive aka Dog E. Fresh not included)

NEW ARRIVALS (USA)

MISFITS "12 Hits From Hell: The MSP Sessions" LP (GREEN vinyl)

13th FLOOR ELEVATORS "Psychedelic Sounds Of" (YELLOW vinyl) LP

NERVOUS EATERS "Eaterville Vol. 2" LP

VARIOUS ARTISTS "The Crazy Rhythms Of Mata Hari: DJ Set Vol. 1" (2xLP)

VARIOUS ARTISTS "Trashcan Records Volume 5: Cha Cha Bop" 10"

VARIOUS ARTISTS "Trashcan Records Volume 6: The Natives Are Restless" 10"

THEM "Angry Young Them" LP

MISFITS "Walk Among Us" LP" (CLEAR vinyl)

MISFITS "Walk Among Us" LP" (GREEN vinyl)

MISFITS "Walk Among Us" LP" (BLUE vinyl)

CRAMPS "Bad Music For Bad People" (YELLOW Vinyl) LP

CRAMPS "Bad Music For Bad People" (WHITE Vinyl) LP

JACQUELINE TAIEB "7 Heures Du Matin / 7 A. M." 7"

LITTLE DADDY WALTON "I'm Leaving/ Highway Blues" 7"

JASPER WOODS "Hully Gully Papa" / BARRY LEE "The Way I Like 'Em" 7"

JOHNNY WATSON "I Say I Love You/ You Better Love Me" 7"

OTIS RILEY "The Zebra/ Goodbye Love" 7"

DIRTY SHAMES "I Don't Care/ Makin' Love" 7"

CANDY HAYNES "J-E-A-L-O-U-S Woman / My Love Is Real" 7"

SONNY MOORE "Erase And Replace/ At The Crossroads" 7"

JIMMY PHILLIPS "She Belongs To Me/ Show Me" 7"

HENRY ROE "If It's Loving You Want" 7"

BACK IN STOCK (USA):

NUNS "CBS Demos 1977" LP

ANGRY SAMOANS "Too Animalistic: The 1978 Demos" Mini-LP (RED vinyl)

CRAMPS "Songs The Lord Might Have Taught Us" LP

VARIOUS ARTISTS "Universe Rocketin'" LP

VARIOUS ARTISTS "Rockin' Nightmares" LP

VARIOUS ARTISTS "Music From Planet Earth Vol. 3 - Moon Tunes, Signals

From Saturn & The Full Martian Experience" 10"

VARIOUS ARTISTS "Trashcan Records Volume 1: Wild Safari" 10"

VARIOUS ARTISTS "Trashcan Records Volume 4: House Of Horrors" 10"

UNDERTONES "First Album Plus Bonus Tracks" LP (RED vinyl)

MORGUS & THE 3 GHOULS "Morgus The Magnificent" 7"

ABANDONED "Come On Mary" 7"

JADE OF STONE "Little Girl/ Mercy Mercy" 7"

KEN AND THE 4TH DIMENSION "See If I Care" 7"

ADKINS, HASIL "Chicken Walk/ She's Mine" 7"

DAY, SONNY "Beyond The Shadow Of A Doubt" 7"

DIDDLEY, BO "Bo Meets The Monster / Willie And Lillie" 7"

REVEREND CHARLIE JACKSON "Wrapped Up Tangled Up In Jesus / Morning Train" 7"

WILSON, DUSTY "Can't Do Without You" 7"

NEW ARRIVALS (WORLD)

PRISON AFFAIR - 2nd EP

NANCY - Nancy Goes Country LP

VARIOUS - Exotic-o-Rama vol. 3 LP+Cd

NUNOFYRBEESWAX - Stratotoaster LP

IMPOSITION MAN - Resilience 12" EP

VARIOUS - Sweet Times Vol. 3 7"

VARIOUS - Sweet Times Vol. 2 7"

VARIOUS - Sweet Times Vol.1 7"

SWEET CHARIOT - Lean Into The Breeze LP

LES ROBOTS - Big Trouble In Outer Space 7"

VARIOUS - TABU! Vol. 5 LP

THE DOGS - Teen Slime LP

THE VIBRATING BEDS - Sing The Blues 7"

THE ANGRY DRAGONS - Hex 7"

[firstginger]

hello, i loved the hdm quiz and i'm curious: what was the full list of possible daemons??

hi, i’m so glad you liked it! :D so there are currently ~320 possible outcomes and i will type them up because i’ve gotten this question so many times! however i do add more periodically — about 50 have been added since the quiz was first posted

domestic doghusky, pug, golden retriever, cocker spaniel, german shepherd, bulldog, bloodhound, afghan, westie, poodle, chow chow, pomeranian, australian cattle dog, rottweiler, st. bernard

domestic catbengal, sphynx, persian, maine coon, tabby (DSH), siamese, lykoi, bobtail, russian blue, abyssinian, turkish angora, norwegian forest cat, cornish rex, oriental shorthair

viverroidhyena, aardwolf, meerkat, mongoose, fossa, fanaloka, binturong, african civet, genet

bovidbison, domestic cow, muskox, yak, water buffalo, cape buffalo, kudu, bongo, nyala, gaur

bearbrown bear, polar bear, black bear, sloth bear, sun bear, panda, spectacled bear, moon bear

xenarthrapichiciego, armadillo, sloth, silky anteater, anteater, tamandua

raptorvulture, osprey, hawk, falcon, secretary bird, eagle, caracara, goshawk, gyrfalcon

foxgray fox, arctic fox, fennec fox, red fox, bat-eared fox, simien fox, andean fox, corsac fox, rüppell’s fox

marsupialopossum, wombat, tasmanian devil, kangaroo, koala, bandicoot, quokka, pygmy possum, brushtail possum, sugar glider, tree kangaroo, wallaby, cuscus

owlbarn owl, snowy owl, screech owl, great horned owl, burrowing owl, eagle owl, great grey owl, little owl

primategorilla, chimpanzee, mandrill, gibbon, capuchin, tamarin, spider monkey, ring-tailed lemur, squirrel monkey, colobus, sifaka, howler monkey, orangutan, tarsier, loris

wild cattiger, lion, snow leopard, cheetah, ocelot, caracal, cougar, serval, jaguar, clouded leopard, lynx, jaguarundi

waterfowlheron, pelican, gull, goose, duck, swan, albatross, booby, shoebill, stork, puffin, sandpiper, flamingo

batflying fox, disk-winged bat, vampire bat, little brown bat, ghost bat, yellow-winged bat, sac-winged bat

musteloidraccoon, kinkajou, skunk, red panda, coati, ringtail, olingo, olinguito, cacomistle

perching birdsparrow, blue jay, raven, cuckoo, magpie, cardinal, dove, parrot, robin, blackbird, mockingbird, manakin, thrush

wild dogwolf, african wild dog, jackal, coyote, bush dog, dhole, maned wolf, dingo

deerwhite-tailed deer, moose, reindeer, mouse deer, fallow deer, elk, water deer, pudu

serpentblind snake, shieldtail, python, file snake, viper, cobra, boa, corn snake, garter snake, rattlesnake, milk snake, hognose, vine snake

mustelidstoat, badger, wolverine, polecat, marten, ferret, sea otter, river otter, tayra

antelopegazelle, duiker, impala, wildebeest, oryx, waterbuck, addax, reedbuck, dik-dik, eland

rabbitholland lop, cottontail, jackrabbit, snowshoe hair, pika, flemish giant rabbit

cavitavetoucan, woodpecker, hornbill, hoopoe, kingfisher, kookaburra

eulipotyphlahedgehog, shrew, mole, moonrat, desman

rodentrat, mouse, squirrel, hamster, beaver, capybara, guinea pig, porcupine, flying squirrel, kangaroo rat, gopher, chipmunk, gundi

insectant, beetle, mantis, ladybug, moth, butterfly, cockroach, bumblebee, firefly, wasp, grasshopper, dragonfly

arachnidharvestman, tarantula, black widow, orb-weaver, scorpion, horseshoe crab, trapdoor spider

reptilecrocodile, tortoise, chameleon, gecko, iguana, skink, komodo dragon, gila monster, tuatara, caiman, bearded dragon, snapping turtle, horny toad, tegu

caprineibex, domestic goat, bighorn sheep, domestic sheep, serow, mountain goat

swinedomestic pig, warthog, babiursa, wild boar, pygmy hog

equine (i’m such a horse girl there are so many horse options LMAO)arabian, friesian, thoroughbred, fjord, shetland pony, clydesdale, donkey, zebra, przewalski’s horse, akhal-teke, dartmoor pony, dutch warmblood

pinnipedharbor seal, leopard seal, elephant seal, sea lion, walrus

amphibianpoison dart frog, pond frog, glass frog, fire-bellied toad, common toad, bullfrog, salamander, axolotl

flightless bird (SO many people have commented that some of these birds aren’t flightless… i Know i just needed more birds for this category)kiwi, emu, ostrich, cassowary, kakapo, penguin, chicken, turkey, peacock

i’m considering adding camelidae and montreme to the main section but as of right now it’s just these 34 😊 for fun, the least common daemon is the pygmy hog — 5 people or 0.0002% of people got it!

[kimabutch]

Critical Role fan playlist masterpost

Based on an anon request, here are the songs that people have sent in for Critical Role characters (and groupings/pairings.) Apologies if it’s a little confusing — I figured that if you were looking to see who a certain song’s about, you could CTRL+F to find the song. 

I’ve put almost all the songs — all the songs that I could find! — in the Spotify playlist. I will update the playlist and this masterpost as I answer asks, although I can’t promise I’ll answer the asks in the most timely manner!

CAMPAIGN 1

Vax

Immortals - Fall Out Boy I Knew Prufrock Before He Got Famous - Frank Turner Bargain Store - Dolly Parton Two - Sleeping at Last  Dinu Lippatis Bones - Mountain Goats Fortune 500 - Everything Everything The Parting Glass - The High Kings

Percy

Spirits - Strumbellas Dust Bowl Dance - Mumford & Sons Bad Bad Things - AJJ There’s Something Dark - Dustin Kensrue In Fantasia - Kishi Bashi

Keyleth

Overgrown - Machineheart

Scanlan

You’re Gonna Go Far Kid - Offspring

Vox Machina

Noah - Amber Run Windmills - Toad the Wet Sprocket In the Embers - Sleeping at Last Which to Bury: Us or the Hatchet - Relient K

Percy & Vex

Meet Me in the Woods - Lord Huron Shrike - Hozier Surrender - Stephanie Mabey

Vex & Keyleth

I Do Adore - Mindy Gledhill

Vax & Keyleth

Photographs & Memories - Jim Croce NFWMB - Hozier Save the Last Dance for Me

Keyleth, Vax, Gilmore

Love Love Love - Of Monsters & Men In the Middle - Dodie

Percy & Cassandra

Malinda Kathleen Reese - Surrender 

CAMPAIGN 2

Caleb

Glitter and Gold - Barnes Courtney Arsonist’s Lullaby - Hozier This Night - Black Lab OK - 8 Graves Welcome to the Family - Watsky Burn It Down - Daughter Bad Luck Charm - Jeff Williams Evil - Interpol Outer Scorpion Squadron - Mountain Goats Overgrown - Machineheart All These Things I’ve Done - The Killers אם אין אני לי מי לי - Yonatan Razel  Sunny Came Home - Shawn Colvin Gallows - Shelby Merry You’re Gonna Go Far Kid - Offspring Bury a Friend - Billie Eilish Running Up That Hill - Placebo Play With Fire - Sam Tinnez Icarus - Jason Webly The Village - Tuung Losing Control - Nell Beekper - Keaton Henson Home Alone - Ansel Elgort An Act of Kindness - Bastille Micro Cuts - Muse Library Magic - The Head and the Heart Believe - Hollywood Undead Bullets - Tunng I Have Made Mistakes - Oh Hellos

Molly

Dead Man's Party - Oingo Boingo Last Ride of the Day - Nightwish  Moondance - Nightwish  The Only Thing - Sufjan Stevens JOYFUL - X Ambassadors Youth - Daughter Remain Nameless - Florence + the Machine Blood on My Name - The Brothers Bright Hopeless Opus - Imagine Dragons Dying in LA - Panic! At the Disco Black Dirt - Sea Wolf Dog Days are Over - Florence + the Machine Rather Never Know - Bronze Radio Return Amy aka Spent Gladiator 1 - Mountain Goats Help I’m Alive - Metric Still Feel - Half Alive Old You - Madison Cunningham

Yasha

Last of the Wilds - Nightwish Thousand Eyes - Of Monsters and Men Stormbringer - Deep Purple Chasing Twisters - Delta Rae Misguided Ghosts - Paramore Breath of Life - Florence + the Machine You Won’t Feel a Thing - The Script Carry You - Ruelle Saint Claude - Christine & the Queens Good Grief - Dessa

Fjord

In All My Dreams I Drown - Devil’s Carnival Everybody Wants to Rule the World - Avantika Broken Crown - Mumford & Sons Ship in a Bottle - Steffan Argus Notos - Oh Hellos Pacific Blues - Sleeping at Last

Jester 

Song of the Traveling Daughter - Abigail Washburn Don’t Leave Me - Regina Spektor Breaking Down - Florence + the Machine Something Wild - Andrew McMahon Boy Crazy - Dessa Velodrome - Dessa Lollipop - Jester Brand New Key - Melanie Shallow - Carys Selvey

Beau

Wild Things - Alessia Cara Somebody to You - BANNERS Firedrills - Dessa Say When - Dessa You Won’t Feel a Thing - The Script Overgrown - Machineheart 5 out of 6 - Dessa All These Things I’ve Done - The Killers Handmade Heaven - Marina & the Diamonds Sky Full of Song - Florence + the Machine Breaking the Habit - Linkin Park Nobody - Mitsiki She - Green Day Get Up - The Blow Come With Me Now - Kongos The Biggest Disappointment - Missy Higgins Dutch - Dessa Fighting Fish - Dessa Solemn Oath - Band of Horses Fille de Personne II - Hubert Lenoir

Caduceus

In a Week - Hozier Sound the Bells - Dessa Follow the Sun - Xavier Rudd

Nott

Reflection - Mulan Drown - Seafret Bottom of the River - Delta Rae Absolutely Smitten - Dodie Watertight - Zero She Flies Brave as a Noun - AJJ

Frumpkin

Plea from a Cat Named Virtue - Weakerthans

Mighty Nein

Home We’ll Go - Walk Off the Earth Shameful Company - Rainbow Kitten Windmills - Toad the Wet Sprocket Re: Scripts - Bon Iver Degenerates - I the Mighty Friends - Miracle of Sound Family - Mother Mother Abandon Ship - Steffan Argus Lost - Amanda Palmer Turn the Lights Off - Tally Halls Little Wonders - Rob Thomas Which to Bury: Us or the Hatchet - Relient K

Beau & Yasha

This Empty Northern Hemisphere - Gregory Alan Isakov Paper Bag Princess - Hello Kelly

Beau & Jester

Spell - NIKI Send Me the Moon - Sara Bareilles Paper Bag Princess - Hello Kelly

Caleb & Beau

Quite Nice People - Katla LA is Burning - Bad Religion

Marion & Jester

Altas: Daughter - Sleeping at Last Seal Lullaby - Erik Whitaker

Caleb, Nott, & Beau

It’s Alright - Mother Mother

Beau & Molly

We Were Here - Lights

Nott & Yeza

Like the Dawn - Oh Hellos Fresh Eyes - Andy Grammar

Nott, Beau, Jester, & Yasha

Honey - Kehlani

Fjord & Jester

Whiskey and Wine - Tow’rs Waterloo - ABBA

Caduceus & Jester

Laughing With - Regina Spektor

Caleb & Nott

Friend Without a Name - The Nursery No Children - Mountain Goats Two Birds - Regina Spektor

Fjord & Caleb

If I Had a Heart - Fever Ray

[definegodliness]

Touch-And-Go Questionnaire Extraordinaire

The spectacular @soulreserve, one of my all-time favourite writers on here, has tagged me to partake in a tag game. I love these things, thank you very much :)

Rules: Tag 3 people whom you’d like to get to know a little better and then answer the questions.

Name: Mark, the 'A' stands for Antonius, which is a family name.

Pronoun: He / Him

Height: 1,84m / 6"0

Hogwarts House: Whenever I get this question I take this test again. It's funny to see how I went from Slytherin to Slytherclaw, then from Raverin to Ravenclaw.... and now Hufflepuff is on the rise! Shocking development. That used to be 3% max. Now it's Ravenclaw [77.3], Hufflepuff [20.8], Gryffindor [1.4], Slytherin [0.5].

Favourite Animal: Geckoes rule. They're faces look like they're grinning and when they lick their eyeballs it never fails to make me smile. I like frogs and toads and newts and all small amphibians, they're toothless, spikeless and soft; overall non-threatening, and they eat insects so that's another plus. Owls fascinate me. And of course I love dogs. The sperm whale fascinates me as well, firstly because of Moby Dick, one of my favourite books, and secondly because of the mysticism surrounding them. They dive to great depths and the scars on their faces from eating giant squids reveal there's a whole world we don't know of in the darkest, coldest deep.

Average hours of sleep: Lately I've been doing good, getting 6 to 8 hours.

Cats or dogs: Dogs. I cannot imagine a life without them.

Dream Trip: Rome is first on the agenda, but I love all places that breathe history. Be it related to ancient civilizations or World War I & II, you'll find me there trying to learn something.

Dream Job: Secretly I would love to teach Dutch, I'd very much like to share my love for creative writing, but I feel like I've missed my chance to become a teacher so I'll put 'full time writer' here.

When did you create this Tumblr account: I can't remember the exact date when I created it, but I started posting on the first of April, 2015.

Now... who to tag, who to tag... let me see... ah! @praggya1993, @alexandraswritingblock, and @mylovaboxa makes three. As always, without any obligation to answer.

[sportsandfitnessinfo]

New Post has been published on http://fitnessandhealthpros.com/fitness/the-empathy-effect-how-befriending-your-future-self-can-impact-your-health-today/

The Empathy Effect: How Befriending Your Future Self Can Impact Your Health Today

You are not the person you were fifteen years ago. The cells that compose your tissues and deliver oxygen have been recycled many times over. Your face has changed. You move differently. You’re probably slower and weaker, or, depending on your daily habits, faster and stronger. As it becomes available, you incorporate new information into your belief system. Even the neat narrative we imagine we’re orchestrating unbroken in our heads has nightly intermissions lasting hours during which we have no real clue what happens.

Is this all just philosophical navel-gazing better suited for 2 AM in a dorm room covered with Bob Marley posters? Not exactly. Accepting the idea that past and future selves are different people can have real benefits today—and tomorrow.

A study from late last year found that disrupting the temporo-parietal junction—a part of the brain that studies reveal is consistently involved in empathy, essentially our ability to overcome self-centeredness and put ourselves in another’s shoes—led human subjects to choose smaller, immediate rewards over larger, long-term rewards. It had no effect on people’s ability to perceive time, space, or numbers. They understood that the reward would be bigger if they just waited. They just didn’t care. In other words, when people were no longer able to empathize with their future selves, they made choices that benefited their present selves while shortchanging their future ones.

We already subconsciously envision our future selves as different people. Today I’m going to argue that we should be doing it consciously, too, and that doing so can help improve our lives in the present and future.

As I go back through my time as a coach and, now, a health author privy to the trials and tribulations of people trying to get healthier, happier, and more productive, I’m realizing that the biggest successes almost always included some reckoning of the future self. They’d “write 5 year plans.” They’d see how their parents ended up and resolve not to do the same. In almost every instance, they were imagining some version of themselves in the future. Now that I’ve come across this “empathy for future self” research, I’m convinced that these people were inadvertently treating the person they’d eventually become as another person worthy of empathy.

I’m wondering if we can make this work on a conscious level. How can we leverage this “future self as being worthy of empathy” phenomenon?

I’ve got a few ideas.

Write a back blurb for the novelization of your dystopian future.

Dystopian futures are huge these days. From zombie wastelands and father-and-son duos trudging through ruined Americas to shiny high-tech societies where every whim is satisfied but the soul’s, popular culture assumes the future is bleak and horrifying. Imagine, for the purposes of this exercise, that your future is also bleak and horrifying, that someone’s writing a book about it, and that you have to write the back blurb that lays out the basics: the setting, the protagonist, the main conflict.

We all have fears about our future. We all wonder about the worst case scenario. Just how bad could it get? It’s frightening to think about the subject with any sort of depth, so we end up pulling back before it gets too visceral and realistic. With your blurb, get visceral. Imagine in excruciating detail what you don’t want to happen, and write it down. Paint the most miserable—yet conceivable—future for yourself.

Make it so bad that you feel deep empathy for that miserable wretch. And, hopefully, do everything in your power to avoid becoming them.

If you’ve got it in you, write a full-page synopsis.

Write a letter.

A common exercise among life coaches is to have the client write a letter from their future selves telling the present self how awesome their life will be. It’s supposed to help folks believe in the power of change and to see beyond their present circumstances to the glory that lies just around the bend. I’ve put a spin on it: Have your future self write you a letter requesting help with specific tasks.

It could be a positive or negative future. If it’s a positive one, your future self will make requests that ensure things go well and turn out right. If it’s a negative one, the requests will help you avoid the mistakes “you” made.

Daydream with focus.

People often think of daydreaming as reverie: a conscious float through the subconscious. And most of the time, you really do drift from thought to thought to fantasy to thought to imagery. It’s a pleasant way to de-stress, relax your racing mind, and potentially stumble upon an interesting revelation or insight.

To increase empathy for your future self, go into your daydream session with a purpose. Imagine yourself a year, two years, ten years in the future. Imagine you’re living the best life possible. What kind of shape are you in in the future? What’s in your refrigerator? How much can you squat? Don’t steer things too much in one direction or another. Just see what “you” are up to in the future, investigate the details, ask questions, and then return to waking life. Debrief yourself. How’d it look? Did you like what you saw? How do you feel about your future self? What can you do differently today to realize (or avoid) the future you witnessed?

Think of it as a mini vision quest that occurs entirely inside your head. Hallucinogenic toad secretions and 5-day-long fast in the desert are optional.

Ask “How does this affect my future self?”

I don’t suggest you ask this question before every action. You’d end up paralyzed if you had to figure out the long term ramifications of wearing the jeans or the slacks. But the ones with clear impact? The “should I get up and go to the gym or squander another hour staring at my phone in bed?” The “oh man, the salt and vinegar kettle chips are on sale” moment? Ask the question.

We probably already kinda do this on some level. And I bet those who ponder this question on a subconscious level most often are the ones who have the most success and make the right decisions. Some people might never consider doing so on their own but will after reading this. So consider this post a nudge. Ask the question.

Oh, and be sure to answer it to the best of your ability.

Try “Self-Authoring.”

I heard Jordan Peterson on Joe Rogan’s podcast a few months back, and he really resonated with me. A clinical psychiatrist and psychology professor at the University of Toronto, Peterson studies myth, meaning, truth, personality, and self-improvement. His lectures, which he posts to Youtube, get rave reviews. He’s got an extremely unique take on religion, tradition, and how it all relates to scientific facts. Peterson also has a product called the Self-Authoring Suite.

It has three components—Past, Present, and Future. For each, you complete a series of writing exercises designed to help you identify, understand, and eventually realize what you want out of life. There appears to be a good deal on the whole shebang right now, but you can also buy the components separately.

It seems to work. Ethnic minority students in Holland who tried the self-authoring program ended up erasing the academic gap that usually separates minority students from native Dutch students. Think about how it might help you push beyond current obstacles or old stories.

Try a guided meditation to meet your future self.

You probably know that I’m not big on sitting meditation. It just doesn’t work for me. So I do other things that get me into similar mind states. One of them is the guided meditation. Although I don’t listen to guided meditations very often, I’ve really enjoyed the ones I have. They seem to “do the trick” and allow me to reach that place fans of sitting meditation are always gushing over.

Turns out they have guided meditations designed to help you meet your future self. You can go long—this one clocks in around an hour long. You can go shorter—this one from Tara Brach is just over 7 minutes long. If you’re a fan of meditation and find you’re able to achieve those mind states, using a meditation to meet your future self could be extremely convincing.

When you do these exercises, do them for real. Fully inhabit the future self. Take them seriously. If you just half-ass your way through it, your temporo-parietal junction will know it. If this is going to work, you have to commit. You have to really meet and extend empathy for the future self.

That’s it for today, folks. I urge you to give some or all of these exercises a try and report back. Did it help? Do you have any other tips for achieving the same effect?

Thanks for reading and take care!

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Originally at :Mark's Daily Apple Written By : Mark Sisson

#Befriending, #Effect, #Empathy, #Future, #Health, #Impact, #Self, #Today #Fitness

[phynxrizng]

By Karl Fabricius May24,2010 This Legendary Tattoo Artist Gave People Free Tattoos – On One Unexpected Condition February 27, 2017 10 Years After This Girl Vanished Without A Trace, A Disturbing Confession Was Captured On Camera February 27, 2017 This Tiny Hippo Was Found Trapped In A Deadly Mud Hole, Forcing Rescuers Into A Race Against Time February 27, 2017 20 Cheaters Who Got Exactly What Was Coming To Them February 27, 2017 20 Dogs Who’ve Mastered The Art Of The Photobomb February 27, 2017 20 Gifts From Grandmas That Would Be Sweet If They Weren’t So Strange February 27, 2017 This Scared Little Dog Was An Hour From Being Put To Sleep. Then A Worker Came In To Calm Her February 24, 2017 20 Times Kate Middleton Made Us Green With Envy Over Her Effortless Sense Of Style February 24, 2017 When This Woman Demanded A Tattoo, The Artist Said “What?” But Now She Gets Inked Every Single Week February 24, 2017 After People Found This Tiny Kitten Outside Their Home, Rescuers Revealed It Wasn’t What It Seemed February 24, 2017 In 1920 An Explosion Tore Through Wall Street In What Was The Deadliest Act Of Terror On U.S. Soil February 24, 2017 The 20 Most Insane Things People Have Discovered In Their Backyards February 24, 2017 Fairy Rings: Nature’s Magical Mushroom Circles ADVERTISEMENT Photo: tribbles1971 You have probably come across one of these as you walked through woodland somewhere. You will have smiled at the strangeness of those mushrooms growing in a ring shape, as though avoiding the centre for some reason. Of course, there is a perfectly logical, scientific explanation, but the fantasy is so much more interesting. Fairy rings, as they have long been called, have occupied a popular place in folklore for thousands of years. Fairies are magical beings who create the circles by dancing within them. Myths tell of mortal people entering fairy rings and suffering for it. Some believe that anyone stepping into an empty fairy ring will die young. Those violating fairy perimeters become invisible to those outside and may be unable leave the circle. The fairies force intruders to dance till exhausted, dead, or in the throes of madness. The only safe way, according to some beliefs, to investigate a fairy ring is to run around it nine times only. A tenth lap would nullify the effect. Doing this allows the runner to hear the fairies dancing underground. It must be done under a full moon, and in the direction the sun travels during the day. It is also said that wearing a hat backwards confuses the fairies and stops them from doing the wearer any harm. There are many sites in the UK where fairies are believed to be regular visitors, though always apparently at full moon. For example, “The Pixies’ Church” is a rock formation in Dartmoor surrounded by a fairy ring; and a stone circle at Cader Idris in Wales is believed to be a popular spot for fairy dances. A Devon legend says that a black hen and chickens sometimes appear at dusk in a large fairy ring on the edge of Dartmoor. Victorian society believed that fairies, elves and witches were all closely associated with one another, and malevolent toward humans. Scandinavian and Celtic traditions have it that fairy rings are caused by elves dancing, just as witches and fairies do. One Scottish woman claimed that the mushrooms were used as seats and tables for dining by the magical beings, while a Welsh girl claimed that the fungi were used as umbrellas. Twenty-first century beliefs in parts of the UK still hold firm to stories of fairy activity, and many think of them as omens of good fortune. Despite those who associate them with ill luck, some legends see fairy circles as places of fertility and fortune. Welsh folk believe that mountain sheep eating fairy ring grass flourish, and crops sown around them do far better than those planted elsewhere. Fairy rings also occupy a prominent place in European folklore as the location of gateways into elfin kingdoms, or places where elves gather and dance. They are called “sorcerers’ rings” in France, and “witches’ rings” in German, where folk believe they are most active on ‘Walpurgisnacht’ – Hallowe’en to us. According to the local folklore, a fairy ring appears when a fairy, pixie, witch or elf appears. The Dutch believe that the empty centre of the fairy ring occurs because the devil puts his milk-churn there. Austrian folklore has it that fairy rings are created by flying dragons, and once created, nothing but toadstools could grow there for seven years. French belief is that fairy rings are guarded by giant toads that curse any violating the circles. Elsewhere in Europe, entering a fairy ring could cost the intruder an eye. The truth is much less romantic, but perhaps does need to be told. Fact is that fungi such as toadstools use up a lot of Nitrogen when growing. They will therefore tend to spread their spores outward from where they are located so that the new growth has soil to grow in which still contains what they need. As nutrients are depleted the growth continues in that circular fashion. So the feet of mystical beings have no bearing on the barren nature of the ring middle. There’s just nothing left there for the fungi to feed on. Photo: greencast This can be alleviated where rabbits are abundant, because they crop the grass short but leave the toadstools alone. Their droppings are rich in Nitrogen, so over time they will replenish what earlier plant growth had taken out of the soil. In time a secondary circle of mushrooms could appear in the centre of the original, creating an unusual ‘double’ fairy ring, which folklore has it is especially magical. It is all a matter of personal taste and belief. For those who prefer the straight biology of it, the mushroom circle is still a fascinating thing to observe, but for those like me, for whom the imagined has far more appeal, the Fairy Ring theory holds sway. There is undoubtedly far more on earth and in heaven than we can possibly know or understand. Are you willing to chance violating that fairy ring boundary, or would you, like me, prefer to play it safe? ALL INFORMATION IN THIS PIECE SOURCED FROM WIKIPED ©2017Scribol.com

[spinayarnindia]

The Boy Who Wanted More Cheese

Klaas Van Bommel was a Dutch boy, twelve years old, who lived where cows were plentiful. He was over five feet high, weighed a hundred pounds, and had rosy cheeks. His appetite was always good and his mother declared his stomach had no bottom. His hair was of a color half-way between a carrot and a sweet potato. It was as thick as reeds in a swamp and was cut level, from under one ear to another.

Klaas stood in a pair of timber shoes, that made an awful rattle when he ran fast to catch a rabbit, or scuffed slowly along to school over the brick road of his village. In summer Klaas was dressed in a rough, blue linen blouse. In winter he wore woollen breeches as wide as coffee bags. They were called bell trousers, and in shape were like a couple of cow-bells turned upwards. These were buttoned on to a thick warm jacket. Until he was five years old, Klaas was dressed like his sisters. Then, on his birthday, he had boy’s clothes, with two pockets in them, of which he was proud enough.

Klaas was a farmer’s boy. He had rye bread and fresh milk for breakfast. At dinner time, beside cheese and bread, he was given a plate heaped with boiled potatoes. Into these he first plunged a fork and then dipped each round, white ball into a bowl of hot melted butter. Very quickly then did potato and butter disappear “down the red lane.” At supper, he had bread and skim milk, left after the cream had been taken off, with a saucer, to make butter. Twice a week the children enjoyed a bowl of bonnyclabber or curds, with a little brown sugar sprinkled on the top. But at every meal there was cheese, usually in thin slices, which the boy thought not thick enough. When Klaas went to bed he usually fell asleep as soon as his shock of yellow hair touched the pillow. In summer time he slept till the birds began to sing, at dawn. In winter, when the bed felt warm and Jack Frost was lively, he often heard the cows talking, in their way, before he jumped out of his bag of straw, which served for a mattress. The Van Bommels were not rich, but everything was shining clean.

There was always plenty to eat at the Van Bommels’ house. Stacks of rye bread, a yard long and thicker than a man’s arm, stood on end in the corner of the cool, stone-lined basement. The loaves of dough were put in the oven once a week. Baking time was a great event at the Van Bommels’ and no men-folks were allowed in the kitchen on that day, unless they were called in to help. As for the milk-pails and pans, filled or emptied, scrubbed or set in the sun every day to dry, and the cheeses, piled up in the pantry, they seemed sometimes enough to feed a small army.

But Klaas always wanted more cheese. In other ways, he was a good boy, obedient at home, always ready to work on the cow-farm, and diligent in school. But at the table he never had enough. Sometimes his father laughed and asked him if he had a well, or a cave, under his jacket.

Klaas had three younger sisters, Trintjé, Anneké and Saartjé; which is Dutch for Kate, Annie and Sallie. These, their fond mother, who loved them dearly, called her “orange blossoms”; but when at dinner, Klaas would keep on, dipping his potatoes into the hot butter, while others were all through, his mother would laugh and call him her Buttercup. But always Klaas wanted more cheese. When unusually greedy, she twitted him as a boy “worse than Butter-and-Eggs”; that is, as troublesome as the yellow and white plant, called toad-flax, is to the farmer—very pretty, but nothing but a weed.

One summer’s evening, after a good scolding, which he deserved well, Klaas moped and, almost crying, went to bed in bad humor. He had teased each one of his sisters to give him her bit of cheese, and this, added to his own slice, made his stomach feel as heavy as lead.

Klaas’s bed was up in the garret. When the house was first built, one of the red tiles of the roof had been taken out and another one, made of glass, was put in its place. In the morning, this gave the boy light to put on his clothes. At night, in fair weather, it supplied air to his room.

A gentle breeze was blowing from the pine woods on the sandy slope, not far away. So Klaas climbed up on the stool to sniff the sweet piny odors. He thought he saw lights dancing under the tree. One beam seemed to approach his roof hole, and coming nearer played round the chimney. Then it passed to and fro in front of him. It seemed to whisper in his ear, as it moved by. It looked very much as if a hundred fire-flies had united their cold light into one lamp. Then Klaas thought that the strange beams bore the shape of a lovely girl, but he only laughed at himself at the idea. Pretty soon, however, he thought the whisper became a voice. Again, he laughed so heartily, that he forgot his moping and the scolding his mother had given him. In fact, his eyes twinkled with delight, when the voice gave this invitation:

“There’s plenty of cheese. Come with us.”

To make sure of it, the sleepy boy now rubbed his eyes and cocked his ears. Again, the light-bearer spoke to him: “Come.”

Could it be? He had heard old people tell of the ladies of the wood, that whispered and warned travellers. In fact, he himself had often seen the “fairies’ ring” in the pine woods. To this, the flame-lady was inviting him.

Again and again the moving, cold light circled round the red tile roof, which the moon, then rising and peeping over the chimneys, seemed to turn into silver plates. As the disc rose higher in the sky, he could hardly see the moving light, that had looked like a lady; but the voice, no longer a whisper, as at first, was now even plainer:

“There’s plenty of cheese. Come with us.”

“I’ll see what it is, anyhow,” said Klaas, as he drew on his thick woolen stockings and prepared to go down-stairs and out, without waking a soul. At the door he stepped into his wooden shoes. Just then the cat purred and rubbed up against his shins. He jumped, for he was scared; but looking down, for a moment, he saw the two balls of yellow fire in her head and knew what they were. Then he sped to the pine woods and towards the fairy ring.

What an odd sight! At first Klaas thought it was a circle of big fire-flies. Then he saw clearly that there were dozens of pretty creatures, hardly as large as dolls, but as lively as crickets. They were as full of light, as if lamps had wings. Hand in hand, they flitted and danced around the ring of grass, as if this was fun.

Hardly had Klaas got over his first surprise, than of a sudden he felt himself surrounded by the fairies. Some of the strongest among them had left the main party in the circle and come to him. He felt himself pulled by their dainty fingers. One of them, the loveliest of all, whispered in his ear:

“Come, you must dance with us.”

Then a dozen of the pretty creatures murmured in chorus:

“Plenty of cheese here. Plenty of cheese here. Come, come!”

Upon this, the heels of Klaas seemed as light as a feather. In a moment, with both hands clasped in those of the fairies, he was dancing in high glee. It was as much fun as if he were at the kermiss, with a row of boys and girls, hand in hand, swinging along the streets, as Dutch maids and youth do, during kermiss week.

Klaas had not time to look hard at the fairies, for he was too full of the fun. He danced and danced, all night and until the sky in the east began to turn, first gray and then rosy. Then he tumbled down, tired out, and fell asleep. His head lay on the inner curve of the fairy ring, with his feet in the centre.

Klaas felt very happy, for he had no sense of being tired, and he did not know he was asleep. He thought his fairy partners, who had danced with him, were now waiting on him to bring him cheeses. With a golden knife, they sliced them off and fed him out of their own hands. How good it tasted! He thought now he could, and would, eat all the cheese he had longed for all his life. There was no mother to scold him, or daddy to shake his finger at him. How delightful!

But by and by, he wanted to stop eating and rest a while. His jaws were tired. His stomach seemed to be loaded with cannon-balls. He gasped for breath.

But the fairies would not let him stop, for Dutch fairies never get tired. Flying out of the sky—from the north, south, east and west—they came, bringing cheeses. These they dropped down around him, until the piles of the round masses threatened first to enclose him as with a wall, and then to overtop him. There were the red balls from Edam, the pink and yellow spheres from Gouda, and the gray loaf-shaped ones from Leyden. Down through the vista of sand, in the pine woods, he looked, and oh, horrors! There were the tallest and strongest of the fairies rolling along the huge, round, flat cheeses from Friesland! Any one of these was as big as a cart wheel, and would feed a regiment. The fairies trundled the heavy discs along, as if they were playing with hoops. They shouted hilariously, as, with a pine stick, they beat them forward like boys at play. Farm cheese, factory cheese, Alkmaar cheese, and, to crown all, cheese from Limburg—which Klaas never could bear, because of its strong odor. Soon the cakes and balls were heaped so high around him that the boy, as he looked up, felt like a frog in a well. He groaned when he thought the high cheese walls were tottering to fall on him. Then he screamed, but the fairies thought he was making music. They, not being human, do not know how a boy feels.

At last, with a thick slice in one hand and a big hunk in the other, he could eat no more cheese; though the fairies, led by their queen, standing on one side, or hovering over his head, still urged him to take more.

At this moment, while afraid that he would burst, Klaas saw the pile of cheeses, as big as a house, topple over. The heavy mass fell inwards upon him. With a scream of terror, he thought himself crushed as flat as a Friesland cheese.

But he wasn’t! Waking up and rubbing his eyes, he saw the red sun rising on the sand-dunes. Birds were singing and the cocks were crowing all around him, in chorus, as if saluting him. Just then also the village clock chimed out the hour. He felt his clothes. They were wet with dew. He sat up to look around. There were no fairies, but in his mouth was a bunch of grass which he had been chewing lustily.

Klaas never would tell the story of his night with the fairies, nor has he yet settled the question whether they left him because the cheese-house of his dream had fallen, or because daylight had come.

[euroman1945-blog]

The Daily Tulip

The Daily Tulip – News From Around The World

Thursday 14th June 2018

Good Morning Gentle Reader….  We have arrived in our summer pattern of weather in the south of Spain, mild temperatures at night and from now, progressively getting warmer in the day time.. June, July, August and September bring the heat and sunshine that Spain is the resort of choice for many families in Europe and recently China and japan, but Bella and I don’t see many people let alone people from China and Japan at 4:00am so we wander the streets alone, just an old man and his friend…

BANGOR UNI TEAM TACKLES TOAD INVASION OF MADAGASCAR…. An invasive species of Asian toad could devastate wildlife on Madagascar, according to biologists at Bangor University. They are part of an international team which says the toad's poisonous skin will kill animals preying on them. It is thought they only arrived on the African island around 2010 as "stowaways" on ships. South-east Asian predators have evolved immunity to the toxin, which animals in the closed Madagascan ecosystem lack. Whilst the toads are yet to have a major impact, the team's study has confirmed that all but one of Madagascar's native predators lack the gene which renders the toxin harmless.

SOUTH AFRICAN COMPANY APOLOGISES FOR SEXIST BEER CAMPAIGN…. A South African company has apologised for the branding of its new range of craft beers, which sparked an outcry, especially among women. Vale Bru ran a marketing campaign for the beers with names such as Filthy Brunette‚ Easy Blonde‚ Raven Porra and Ripe Redhead. Easy Blonde came with the tagline: "All your friends have already had her". After being criticised for being sexist, the company promised to remove the labels and names. The social media campaign advertised Filthy Brunette as: "When gushing and moist are used to describe something‚ then you know." While the Raven Porra was described as, "a porter with the best head in town". According to South Africa's Times Live, Porra is a derogatory term for someone of Portuguese origin. Thandi Guilherme, author of the platform Craft Geek, wrote on Instagram that Vale Bru "should be absolutely ashamed of yourselves. Crass, sexist, misogynistic branding and labelling". The Johannesburg-based company issued its first apology, which has since been deleted, on Instagram. It said: "Our attempt at making you‚ and ourselves‚ uncomfortable‚ worked. However‚ we never meant to belittle or degrade you." "If those keyboard crusaders want to carry on‚ feel free," it added. Ms Guilherme later wrote on her blog: "#Metoo, Rape culture and Trump's 'locker room' misogyny are not funny. These are real problems that society is trying to deal with. Don't go there." "I understand that sex sells‚ but these names don't hint at respectful sex," wrote South African blogger Lucy Corne. "Maybe they should have asked themselves whether these are things that they would appreciate people saying about their little sister." In a new apology, Vale Bru said it took "full accountability for our actions and we plan on making things right." "We were insensitive and wrong, for which we apologise unreservedly," it added.

FLORIDA ALLIGATOR ATTACK: DOG-WALKER FEARED DEAD…. A dog-walker who was attacked by an alligator in the US state of Florida is believed to have been killed by the reptile, state wildlife officials say. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) says Shizuka Matsuki was bitten by a 12.5 ft (3.8m) alligator. A necropsy was performed on the reptile after it was captured. It dragged Ms Matsuki, 47, into a lake in the town of Davie, 25 miles (40km) north of Miami, a witness said. The incident occurred at about 09:45 (13:45 GMT) on Friday. "The FWC believes that the victim is deceased and we will continue recovery efforts on the lake with local authorities," the agency said in a statement. "This tragedy is heartbreaking for everyone involved," the FWC added. Local media earlier reported that officers found a dog on a leash but no signs of the woman at Silver Lakes Rotary Nature Park. "Divers are searching," Davie Police Maj Dale Engle was quoted as saying by the Sun Sentinel newspaper. "Her dogs won't leave the pond. One of her dogs got bit by the gator."

CLIMATE CHANGE: POPE URGES ACTION ON CLEAN ENERGY…. Pope Francis has said climate change is a challenge of "epochal proportions" and that the world must convert to clean fuel. "Civilisation requires energy, but energy use must not destroy civilisation," he said. He was speaking to a group of oil company executives at the end of a two-day conference in the Vatican. Firms present included ExxonMobil, BP, Royal Dutch Shell, Norway's Equinor and Pemex of Mexico. Modern society with its "massive movement of information, persons and things requires an immense supply of energy", he told the gathering. "But that energy should also be clean, by a reduction in the systematic use of fossil fuels," he said. "Our desire to ensure energy for all must not lead to the undesired effect of a spiral of extreme climate changes due to a catastrophic rise in global temperatures, harsher environments and increased levels of poverty." The world needed to come up with an energy mix that combated pollution, eliminated poverty and promoted social justice, he added. As many as one billion people still lack electricity, he said. Under Pope Francis' leadership, the church has moved to confront the business world on a range of subjects from poverty to tax havens and complex financial securities.

AIRBNB CANCELS THOUSANDS OF BOOKINGS IN JAPAN…. Travelling to Japan in June? If you've made a booking with Airbnb, you may have to find alternative accommodation. The online home-sharing giant has had to cancel thousands of reservations after Japan's government put in place a new law around home-sharing. The law regulates Airbnb's most popular destination market in the Asia Pacific region. Airbnb said changes to the guidance around its implementation meant reservations would now be affected. Under the new law, hosts are required to register their listing and display their licence number by 15 June to remain active. But the Japanese government said on 1 June that any host without a licence number had to cancel upcoming reservations that were booked before 15 June. Airbnb said it would therefore cancel any reservation made by a guest arriving between 15 June and 19 June at a listing in Japan that does not currently have a licence. "We know this stinks - and that's an understatement," Airbnb said. "Japan is an incredible country to visit and we want to help our guests deal with this extraordinary disruption." Airbnb also said it had set up a $10m fund to help those incurring any additional expenses related to having to make alternative travel plans because of cancellations.

Well Gentle Reader I hope you enjoyed our look at the news from around the world this, morning… …

Our Tulips today are from the Winner of Plant and Flower Close Up - Rebecca Reeve - Tulips at the Philly Flower Show

A Sincere Thank You for your company and Thank You for your likes and comments I love them and always try to reply, so please keep them coming, it's always good fun, As is my custom, I will go and get myself another mug of "Colombian" Coffee and wish you a safe Thursday 14th June 2018 from my home on the southern coast of Spain, where the blue waters of the Alboran Sea washes the coast of Africa and Europe and the smell of the night blooming Jasmine and Honeysuckle fills the air…and a crazy old guy and his dog Bella go out for a walk at 4:00 am…on the streets of Estepona…

All good stuff....But remember it’s a dangerous world we live in

Be safe out there…

Robert McAngus

[fathersonholygore]

Starz’ American Gods Season 1, Episode 2: “The Secret of Spoon” Directed by David Slade Written by Michael Green & Bryan Fuller

* For a recap & review of the premiere, “The Bone Orchard” – click here * For a recap & review of the next episode, “Head Full of Snow” – click here We start on 1697 – Coming to America – when slaves were being transported by ship. One of them calls to Anansi who is a character from African folklore, usually in the form of a spider. The slave regrets he cannot do anything to honour him in those chains. But that if the god is merciful, he will repay him for the rest of his life. Then they’re shocked by a man in a fine suit, something they’ve never seen: Mr. Nancy (Orlando Jones). He tells them of a story where “once upon a time a man got fucked,” which is, essentially, the story of African Americans. He tells them of what awaits at the end of their journey. He gives them a quick lesson in how fucked they all are, and how bad American will be for their people. So either kill the Dutch motherfuckers, or go to the land of opportunity where they’ll be fucked for hundreds of years. He sets one man free then they’re all raging for justice. The ship starts going up in flames and everyone burns while Anansi crawls ashore. Mr. Nancy: “Angry is good. Angry gets shit done.” Who saved Shadow Moon (Ricky Whittle), at the mercy of Technical Boy (Bruce Langley) and his Children? He’s in a hospital getting stitched and taken care of, then goes straight for Mr. Wednesday (Ian McShane). They chat about what’s happened, and Wednesday knows all about the toad smoking kid. Meanwhile, Shadow isn’t pleased, seeing as how he was “strange fucking fruit” for a brief moment in time. However he doesn’t realise that Wednesday is already plotting. That night Shadow dreams of his wife Laura (Emily Browning) coming through the door. She says she isn’t dead. Yeah, that’s comforting. Of course it’s a dream, but the guy’s already been through the ringer. Nightmare land in his head won’t help a thing. The next day he goes back to the house he shared with his wife, before he went away to jail. Everything’s laid out for a Welcome Home party, only it’s now depressing and sombre. Everywhere are the memories of Laura, in each room. So he packs everything away in boxes. Finally, after staring at it all day, he opens the box from the coroner’s office. Inside is her wedding ring, her phone. He looks through her phone to find a dick pic from Robbie, confirming the worst. That’s some ugly shit. What’s next after Shadow leaves Eagle Point? He and Wednesday go on the road with CCR blaring from the speakers. Only deal: no highways. They need to go to Chicago so Wednesday can pick up his hammer. We’re treated to an excellent visual here that I won’t spoil by even trying to describe it, other than it makes the sky look WILD! The two make a pit stop. Shadow goes to pick up things on a list he’s given, everything from maps to vodka and all kinds of stuff. Suddenly, Media (Gillian Anderson) speaks to Shadow from a television screen. More of those great visuals, too. Media comes through on I Love Lucy as Mrs. Ricardo herself. She talks a good game, offering to employ him. Another one of the New Gods. Oh, this strange new world! Media: “Don‘t fight gravity, Shadow.” Shadow believes it’s all in his head. He tells Wednesday about his run in with Lucy, thinking his time in jail ripened his brain to mush. His older gentleman friend explains that mad isn’t the biggest sacrifice that might need to be made. Later he goes on a nice spiel about messages, tossing the cellphones out the window and lamenting those days of opening letters; such great delivery from the master, Mr. McShane. A journey through the universe takes us to Bilquis (Yetide Badaki), who we last saw take a man home and devour him.. sort of, yeah. She’s got a new guy. Then a new woman. And the endlessly sexual cycle perpetuates, on and on. Note: perfect cut is edited when we see the frame jump from Bilquis naked in bed to a statue of stone standing tall, breasts in hand; clever work. She is most certainly one of the Old Gods, of whom I can’t wait to see more. Wednesday goes to see several people, including Zorya Vechernyaya (Cloris Leachman), an old Russian woman. That’s why they picked up that vodka, particularly. She loves it. Then there’s the other sisters, Zorya Ultrennyaya (Martha Kelly) and Zorya Polunochnyaya (Erika Kaar). Vechernyaya tells fortunes, offering to show Shadow his own. There’s also Czernobog (Peter Stormare), covered in cow blood and not happy to see Wednesday. Zorya Vechernyaya: “Family is who you survive with when you need to survive”

Constantly smoking, Czernobog refuses to go along with Wednesday. He doesn’t want to do any of what they used to do anymore. Whatever that was; he also has a brother (for those who don’t know he’s a Slavic deity, the Black God, considered as a counterpart to Belobog, the White God). What we’re treated to is seeing how this Old God, he’s a dangerous one, has a sketchy reputation. He doesn’t like killing the new way, either. He likes the old fashion way. Czernobog: “To give a good death is art” After dinner Shadow sits to play checkers with Czernobog. Then we discover his hammer. A massive sledgehammer he keeps on the mantle. He is a bad motherfucker, that’s for sure. He’s sad his tool doesn’t get fed the blood it needs anymore; Shadow has visions of it soaked in gore. Oh, this place is creepy. Now, if Czernobog loses chess he’ll agree to go with Wednesday. If he wins, Shadow takes the hammer to feed it some of that good “sunrise blood” in the morning. And the game is on. They play down to the last pieces on the board and poor Shadow’s not doing so well. He loses at the bitter end. So what’s going to happen next time? Czernobog is owed blood he’s promised. Next episode is titled “ American Gods – Season 1, Episode 2: “The Secret of Spoon” Starz' American Gods Season 1, Episode 2: "The Secret of Spoon" Directed by David Slade…

[cristinajourdanqp]

The Empathy Effect: How Befriending Your Future Self Can Impact Your Health Today

You are not the person you were fifteen years ago. The cells that compose your tissues and deliver oxygen have been recycled many times over. Your face has changed. You move differently. You’re probably slower and weaker, or, depending on your daily habits, faster and stronger. As it becomes available, you incorporate new information into your belief system. Even the neat narrative we imagine we’re orchestrating unbroken in our heads has nightly intermissions lasting hours during which we have no real clue what happens.

Is this all just philosophical navel-gazing better suited for 2 AM in a dorm room covered with Bob Marley posters? Not exactly. Accepting the idea that past and future selves are different people can have real benefits today—and tomorrow.

A study from late last year found that disrupting the temporo-parietal junction—a part of the brain that studies reveal is consistently involved in empathy, essentially our ability to overcome self-centeredness and put ourselves in another’s shoes—led human subjects to choose smaller, immediate rewards over larger, long-term rewards. It had no effect on people’s ability to perceive time, space, or numbers. They understood that the reward would be bigger if they just waited. They just didn’t care. In other words, when people were no longer able to empathize with their future selves, they made choices that benefited their present selves while shortchanging their future ones.

We already subconsciously envision our future selves as different people. Today I’m going to argue that we should be doing it consciously, too, and that doing so can help improve our lives in the present and future.

As I go back through my time as a coach and, now, a health author privy to the trials and tribulations of people trying to get healthier, happier, and more productive, I’m realizing that the biggest successes almost always included some reckoning of the future self. They’d “write 5 year plans.” They’d see how their parents ended up and resolve not to do the same. In almost every instance, they were imagining some version of themselves in the future. Now that I’ve come across this “empathy for future self” research, I’m convinced that these people were inadvertently treating the person they’d eventually become as another person worthy of empathy.

I’m wondering if we can make this work on a conscious level. How can we leverage this “future self as being worthy of empathy” phenomenon?

I’ve got a few ideas.

Write a back blurb for the novelization of your dystopian future.

Dystopian futures are huge these days. From zombie wastelands and father-and-son duos trudging through ruined Americas to shiny high-tech societies where every whim is satisfied but the soul’s, popular culture assumes the future is bleak and horrifying. Imagine, for the purposes of this exercise, that your future is also bleak and horrifying, that someone’s writing a book about it, and that you have to write the back blurb that lays out the basics: the setting, the protagonist, the main conflict.

We all have fears about our future. We all wonder about the worst case scenario. Just how bad could it get? It’s frightening to think about the subject with any sort of depth, so we end up pulling back before it gets too visceral and realistic. With your blurb, get visceral. Imagine in excruciating detail what you don’t want to happen, and write it down. Paint the most miserable—yet conceivable—future for yourself.

Make it so bad that you feel deep empathy for that miserable wretch. And, hopefully, do everything in your power to avoid becoming them.

If you’ve got it in you, write a full-page synopsis.

Write a letter.

A common exercise among life coaches is to have the client write a letter from their future selves telling the present self how awesome their life will be. It’s supposed to help folks believe in the power of change and to see beyond their present circumstances to the glory that lies just around the bend. I’ve put a spin on it: Have your future self write you a letter requesting help with specific tasks.

It could be a positive or negative future. If it’s a positive one, your future self will make requests that ensure things go well and turn out right. If it’s a negative one, the requests will help you avoid the mistakes “you” made.

Daydream with focus.

People often think of daydreaming as reverie: a conscious float through the subconscious. And most of the time, you really do drift from thought to thought to fantasy to thought to imagery. It’s a pleasant way to de-stress, relax your racing mind, and potentially stumble upon an interesting revelation or insight.

To increase empathy for your future self, go into your daydream session with a purpose. Imagine yourself a year, two years, ten years in the future. Imagine you’re living the best life possible. What kind of shape are you in in the future? What’s in your refrigerator? How much can you squat? Don’t steer things too much in one direction or another. Just see what “you” are up to in the future, investigate the details, ask questions, and then return to waking life. Debrief yourself. How’d it look? Did you like what you saw? How do you feel about your future self? What can you do differently today to realize (or avoid) the future you witnessed?

Think of it as a mini vision quest that occurs entirely inside your head. Hallucinogenic toad secretions and 5-day-long fast in the desert are optional.

Ask “How does this affect my future self?”

I don’t suggest you ask this question before every action. You’d end up paralyzed if you had to figure out the long term ramifications of wearing the jeans or the slacks. But the ones with clear impact? The “should I get up and go to the gym or squander another hour staring at my phone in bed?” The “oh man, the salt and vinegar kettle chips are on sale” moment? Ask the question.

We probably already kinda do this on some level. And I bet those who ponder this question on a subconscious level most often are the ones who have the most success and make the right decisions. Some people might never consider doing so on their own but will after reading this. So consider this post a nudge. Ask the question.

Oh, and be sure to answer it to the best of your ability.

Try “Self-Authoring.”

I heard Jordan Peterson on Joe Rogan’s podcast a few months back, and he really resonated with me. A clinical psychiatrist and psychology professor at the University of Toronto, Peterson studies myth, meaning, truth, personality, and self-improvement. His lectures, which he posts to Youtube, get rave reviews. He’s got an extremely unique take on religion, tradition, and how it all relates to scientific facts. Peterson also has a product called the Self-Authoring Suite.

It has three components—Past, Present, and Future. For each, you complete a series of writing exercises designed to help you identify, understand, and eventually realize what you want out of life. There appears to be a good deal on the whole shebang right now, but you can also buy the components separately.

It seems to work. Ethnic minority students in Holland who tried the self-authoring program ended up erasing the academic gap that usually separates minority students from native Dutch students. Think about how it might help you push beyond current obstacles or old stories.

Try a guided meditation to meet your future self.

You probably know that I’m not big on sitting meditation. It just doesn’t work for me. So I do other things that get me into similar mind states. One of them is the guided meditation. Although I don’t listen to guided meditations very often, I’ve really enjoyed the ones I have. They seem to “do the trick” and allow me to reach that place fans of sitting meditation are always gushing over.

Turns out they have guided meditations designed to help you meet your future self. You can go long—this one clocks in around an hour long. You can go shorter—this one from Tara Brach is just over 7 minutes long. If you’re a fan of meditation and find you’re able to achieve those mind states, using a meditation to meet your future self could be extremely convincing.

When you do these exercises, do them for real. Fully inhabit the future self. Take them seriously. If you just half-ass your way through it, your temporo-parietal junction will know it. If this is going to work, you have to commit. You have to really meet and extend empathy for the future self.

That’s it for today, folks. I urge you to give some or all of these exercises a try and report back. Did it help? Do you have any other tips for achieving the same effect?

Thanks for reading and take care!

[watsonrodriquezie]

The Empathy Effect: How Befriending Your Future Self Can Impact Your Health Today

You are not the person you were fifteen years ago. The cells that compose your tissues and deliver oxygen have been recycled many times over. Your face has changed. You move differently. You’re probably slower and weaker, or, depending on your daily habits, faster and stronger. As it becomes available, you incorporate new information into your belief system. Even the neat narrative we imagine we’re orchestrating unbroken in our heads has nightly intermissions lasting hours during which we have no real clue what happens.

Is this all just philosophical navel-gazing better suited for 2 AM in a dorm room covered with Bob Marley posters? Not exactly. Accepting the idea that past and future selves are different people can have real benefits today—and tomorrow.

A study from late last year found that disrupting the temporo-parietal junction—a part of the brain that studies reveal is consistently involved in empathy, essentially our ability to overcome self-centeredness and put ourselves in another’s shoes—led human subjects to choose smaller, immediate rewards over larger, long-term rewards. It had no effect on people’s ability to perceive time, space, or numbers. They understood that the reward would be bigger if they just waited. They just didn’t care. In other words, when people were no longer able to empathize with their future selves, they made choices that benefited their present selves while shortchanging their future ones.

We already subconsciously envision our future selves as different people. Today I’m going to argue that we should be doing it consciously, too, and that doing so can help improve our lives in the present and future.

As I go back through my time as a coach and, now, a health author privy to the trials and tribulations of people trying to get healthier, happier, and more productive, I’m realizing that the biggest successes almost always included some reckoning of the future self. They’d “write 5 year plans.” They’d see how their parents ended up and resolve not to do the same. In almost every instance, they were imagining some version of themselves in the future. Now that I’ve come across this “empathy for future self” research, I’m convinced that these people were inadvertently treating the person they’d eventually become as another person worthy of empathy.

I’m wondering if we can make this work on a conscious level. How can we leverage this “future self as being worthy of empathy” phenomenon?

I’ve got a few ideas.

Write a back blurb for the novelization of your dystopian future.

Dystopian futures are huge these days. From zombie wastelands and father-and-son duos trudging through ruined Americas to shiny high-tech societies where every whim is satisfied but the soul’s, popular culture assumes the future is bleak and horrifying. Imagine, for the purposes of this exercise, that your future is also bleak and horrifying, that someone’s writing a book about it, and that you have to write the back blurb that lays out the basics: the setting, the protagonist, the main conflict.

We all have fears about our future. We all wonder about the worst case scenario. Just how bad could it get? It’s frightening to think about the subject with any sort of depth, so we end up pulling back before it gets too visceral and realistic. With your blurb, get visceral. Imagine in excruciating detail what you don’t want to happen, and write it down. Paint the most miserable—yet conceivable—future for yourself.

Make it so bad that you feel deep empathy for that miserable wretch. And, hopefully, do everything in your power to avoid becoming them.

If you’ve got it in you, write a full-page synopsis.

Write a letter.

A common exercise among life coaches is to have the client write a letter from their future selves telling the present self how awesome their life will be. It’s supposed to help folks believe in the power of change and to see beyond their present circumstances to the glory that lies just around the bend. I’ve put a spin on it: Have your future self write you a letter requesting help with specific tasks.

It could be a positive or negative future. If it’s a positive one, your future self will make requests that ensure things go well and turn out right. If it’s a negative one, the requests will help you avoid the mistakes “you” made.

Daydream with focus.

People often think of daydreaming as reverie: a conscious float through the subconscious. And most of the time, you really do drift from thought to thought to fantasy to thought to imagery. It’s a pleasant way to de-stress, relax your racing mind, and potentially stumble upon an interesting revelation or insight.

To increase empathy for your future self, go into your daydream session with a purpose. Imagine yourself a year, two years, ten years in the future. Imagine you’re living the best life possible. What kind of shape are you in in the future? What’s in your refrigerator? How much can you squat? Don’t steer things too much in one direction or another. Just see what “you” are up to in the future, investigate the details, ask questions, and then return to waking life. Debrief yourself. How’d it look? Did you like what you saw? How do you feel about your future self? What can you do differently today to realize (or avoid) the future you witnessed?

Think of it as a mini vision quest that occurs entirely inside your head. Hallucinogenic toad secretions and 5-day-long fast in the desert are optional.

Ask “How does this affect my future self?”

I don’t suggest you ask this question before every action. You’d end up paralyzed if you had to figure out the long term ramifications of wearing the jeans or the slacks. But the ones with clear impact? The “should I get up and go to the gym or squander another hour staring at my phone in bed?” The “oh man, the salt and vinegar kettle chips are on sale” moment? Ask the question.

We probably already kinda do this on some level. And I bet those who ponder this question on a subconscious level most often are the ones who have the most success and make the right decisions. Some people might never consider doing so on their own but will after reading this. So consider this post a nudge. Ask the question.

Oh, and be sure to answer it to the best of your ability.

Try “Self-Authoring.”

I heard Jordan Peterson on Joe Rogan’s podcast a few months back, and he really resonated with me. A clinical psychiatrist and psychology professor at the University of Toronto, Peterson studies myth, meaning, truth, personality, and self-improvement. His lectures, which he posts to Youtube, get rave reviews. He’s got an extremely unique take on religion, tradition, and how it all relates to scientific facts. Peterson also has a product called the Self-Authoring Suite.

It has three components—Past, Present, and Future. For each, you complete a series of writing exercises designed to help you identify, understand, and eventually realize what you want out of life. There appears to be a good deal on the whole shebang right now, but you can also buy the components separately.

It seems to work. Ethnic minority students in Holland who tried the self-authoring program ended up erasing the academic gap that usually separates minority students from native Dutch students. Think about how it might help you push beyond current obstacles or old stories.

Try a guided meditation to meet your future self.

You probably know that I’m not big on sitting meditation. It just doesn’t work for me. So I do other things that get me into similar mind states. One of them is the guided meditation. Although I don’t listen to guided meditations very often, I’ve really enjoyed the ones I have. They seem to “do the trick” and allow me to reach that place fans of sitting meditation are always gushing over.

Turns out they have guided meditations designed to help you meet your future self. You can go long—this one clocks in around an hour long. You can go shorter—this one from Tara Brach is just over 7 minutes long. If you’re a fan of meditation and find you’re able to achieve those mind states, using a meditation to meet your future self could be extremely convincing.

When you do these exercises, do them for real. Fully inhabit the future self. Take them seriously. If you just half-ass your way through it, your temporo-parietal junction will know it. If this is going to work, you have to commit. You have to really meet and extend empathy for the future self.

That’s it for today, folks. I urge you to give some or all of these exercises a try and report back. Did it help? Do you have any other tips for achieving the same effect?

Thanks for reading and take care!

[milenasanchezmk]

The Empathy Effect: How Befriending Your Future Self Can Impact Your Health Today

You are not the person you were fifteen years ago. The cells that compose your tissues and deliver oxygen have been recycled many times over. Your face has changed. You move differently. You’re probably slower and weaker, or, depending on your daily habits, faster and stronger. As it becomes available, you incorporate new information into your belief system. Even the neat narrative we imagine we’re orchestrating unbroken in our heads has nightly intermissions lasting hours during which we have no real clue what happens.

Is this all just philosophical navel-gazing better suited for 2 AM in a dorm room covered with Bob Marley posters? Not exactly. Accepting the idea that past and future selves are different people can have real benefits today—and tomorrow.

A study from late last year found that disrupting the temporo-parietal junction—a part of the brain that studies reveal is consistently involved in empathy, essentially our ability to overcome self-centeredness and put ourselves in another’s shoes—led human subjects to choose smaller, immediate rewards over larger, long-term rewards. It had no effect on people’s ability to perceive time, space, or numbers. They understood that the reward would be bigger if they just waited. They just didn’t care. In other words, when people were no longer able to empathize with their future selves, they made choices that benefited their present selves while shortchanging their future ones.

We already subconsciously envision our future selves as different people. Today I’m going to argue that we should be doing it consciously, too, and that doing so can help improve our lives in the present and future.

As I go back through my time as a coach and, now, a health author privy to the trials and tribulations of people trying to get healthier, happier, and more productive, I’m realizing that the biggest successes almost always included some reckoning of the future self. They’d “write 5 year plans.” They’d see how their parents ended up and resolve not to do the same. In almost every instance, they were imagining some version of themselves in the future. Now that I’ve come across this “empathy for future self” research, I’m convinced that these people were inadvertently treating the person they’d eventually become as another person worthy of empathy.

I’m wondering if we can make this work on a conscious level. How can we leverage this “future self as being worthy of empathy” phenomenon?

I’ve got a few ideas.

Write a back blurb for the novelization of your dystopian future.

Dystopian futures are huge these days. From zombie wastelands and father-and-son duos trudging through ruined Americas to shiny high-tech societies where every whim is satisfied but the soul’s, popular culture assumes the future is bleak and horrifying. Imagine, for the purposes of this exercise, that your future is also bleak and horrifying, that someone’s writing a book about it, and that you have to write the back blurb that lays out the basics: the setting, the protagonist, the main conflict.

We all have fears about our future. We all wonder about the worst case scenario. Just how bad could it get? It’s frightening to think about the subject with any sort of depth, so we end up pulling back before it gets too visceral and realistic. With your blurb, get visceral. Imagine in excruciating detail what you don’t want to happen, and write it down. Paint the most miserable—yet conceivable—future for yourself.

Make it so bad that you feel deep empathy for that miserable wretch. And, hopefully, do everything in your power to avoid becoming them.

If you’ve got it in you, write a full-page synopsis.

Write a letter.

A common exercise among life coaches is to have the client write a letter from their future selves telling the present self how awesome their life will be. It’s supposed to help folks believe in the power of change and to see beyond their present circumstances to the glory that lies just around the bend. I’ve put a spin on it: Have your future self write you a letter requesting help with specific tasks.

It could be a positive or negative future. If it’s a positive one, your future self will make requests that ensure things go well and turn out right. If it’s a negative one, the requests will help you avoid the mistakes “you” made.

Daydream with focus.

People often think of daydreaming as reverie: a conscious float through the subconscious. And most of the time, you really do drift from thought to thought to fantasy to thought to imagery. It’s a pleasant way to de-stress, relax your racing mind, and potentially stumble upon an interesting revelation or insight.

To increase empathy for your future self, go into your daydream session with a purpose. Imagine yourself a year, two years, ten years in the future. Imagine you’re living the best life possible. What kind of shape are you in in the future? What’s in your refrigerator? How much can you squat? Don’t steer things too much in one direction or another. Just see what “you” are up to in the future, investigate the details, ask questions, and then return to waking life. Debrief yourself. How’d it look? Did you like what you saw? How do you feel about your future self? What can you do differently today to realize (or avoid) the future you witnessed?

Think of it as a mini vision quest that occurs entirely inside your head. Hallucinogenic toad secretions and 5-day-long fast in the desert are optional.

Ask “How does this affect my future self?”

I don’t suggest you ask this question before every action. You’d end up paralyzed if you had to figure out the long term ramifications of wearing the jeans or the slacks. But the ones with clear impact? The “should I get up and go to the gym or squander another hour staring at my phone in bed?” The “oh man, the salt and vinegar kettle chips are on sale” moment? Ask the question.

We probably already kinda do this on some level. And I bet those who ponder this question on a subconscious level most often are the ones who have the most success and make the right decisions. Some people might never consider doing so on their own but will after reading this. So consider this post a nudge. Ask the question.

Oh, and be sure to answer it to the best of your ability.

Try “Self-Authoring.”

I heard Jordan Peterson on Joe Rogan’s podcast a few months back, and he really resonated with me. A clinical psychiatrist and psychology professor at the University of Toronto, Peterson studies myth, meaning, truth, personality, and self-improvement. His lectures, which he posts to Youtube, get rave reviews. He’s got an extremely unique take on religion, tradition, and how it all relates to scientific facts. Peterson also has a product called the Self-Authoring Suite.

It has three components—Past, Present, and Future. For each, you complete a series of writing exercises designed to help you identify, understand, and eventually realize what you want out of life. There appears to be a good deal on the whole shebang right now, but you can also buy the components separately.

It seems to work. Ethnic minority students in Holland who tried the self-authoring program ended up erasing the academic gap that usually separates minority students from native Dutch students. Think about how it might help you push beyond current obstacles or old stories.

Try a guided meditation to meet your future self.

You probably know that I’m not big on sitting meditation. It just doesn’t work for me. So I do other things that get me into similar mind states. One of them is the guided meditation. Although I don’t listen to guided meditations very often, I’ve really enjoyed the ones I have. They seem to “do the trick” and allow me to reach that place fans of sitting meditation are always gushing over.

Turns out they have guided meditations designed to help you meet your future self. You can go long—this one clocks in around an hour long. You can go shorter—this one from Tara Brach is just over 7 minutes long. If you’re a fan of meditation and find you’re able to achieve those mind states, using a meditation to meet your future self could be extremely convincing.

When you do these exercises, do them for real. Fully inhabit the future self. Take them seriously. If you just half-ass your way through it, your temporo-parietal junction will know it. If this is going to work, you have to commit. You have to really meet and extend empathy for the future self.

That’s it for today, folks. I urge you to give some or all of these exercises a try and report back. Did it help? Do you have any other tips for achieving the same effect?

Thanks for reading and take care!