#and that the product itself is not the problem per se

[thesiltverses]

Hi! I have been working on early stages of a Silt Verses conversion for print. My husband binds books, and I plan to request that he print and bind TSV for me when I am finished. The current draft is near 1:1 with the transcripts for Season 1, though I'll need to take more artistic liberties I get to the parts that have less narration. The motivation for this is that I don't want a "novelization" per se, because most novelizations are not faithful enough for me. I want the podcast itself in a form I can put on my bookshelf, and the transcripts don't capture it well enough on their own.

I was hoping to publish my conversion online, since TSV is Creative Commons, but I've just found out about your book deal. Would publishing my conversion project online cause any trouble for Eskew Productions?

Thanks for a terrific story, in all senses of the word. It's going to stick in my mind for years to come.

If it's non-commercial, it doesn't sound like a problem! Good luck with the project, it sounds awesome.

[probablyasocialecologist]

The problem with using value-added as a proxy for productivity is that value-added represents a combination of output (tangible and intangible) and prices/wages. ‘Productive’ employment in the tertiary sector, for instance, is as much a reflection of wage rates in that sector as any notion of productive output per se (for example, what is the output of a lawyer or a bureaucrat?) Hence, the use of value-added as a shorthand for productivity leads to absurd logical implications, such as the suggestion that a barber in the United States is 30 or more times more productive than a barber in India even though they both ‘produce’ the same number of haircuts per hour (according to the tastes and expectations of their clients), simply because the wage of the barber in the United States is 30 or more times higher. Or else, within the United States, that the ‘productivity’ of a lawyer is 20 times higher than that of a barber. The lawyer’s labour is certainly more valued than the barber’s, whether or not for good reason, but this has little to do with productivity (unless we consider that the power to leverage higher value for one’s labour is, in itself, a form of productivity). In other words, much of what we are picking up in most conventional measures of productivity actually amounts to price or wage differences, not actual effort or output, especially in economies that are increasingly based on services.

Andrew M. Fischer, Beware the Fallacy of Productivity Reductionism

[olderthannetfic]

The main problem that I have with Youtubers who attempt to approach media analysis and fandom through theory and academia is that the vast majority aren't academics. Just being in undergrad isn't actually enough, contrary to the thoughts of many. Reading a Wikipedia article and reiterating what one may find in some Google, even Google Scholar, searches. Ideally, these would be topics approached by people involved in academia as a profession, people with doctoral degrees, who can discuss complex topics in a way that is easily understood by the masses. "What is the negotiation between gender and sex in BL?" "How does CMBYN articulate/complicate hierarchal roles within the gay novel?" "Could SnK express an alternative reading of the formerly isolated Japan?" These are complicated questions they attempt to answer in their video essays when they seldom ever understand the theories they employ.

Yes, I understand this can sound elitist, but as a Black afab person who is currently in a doctoral program for literature, there aren't "easy" answers to any of the questions they attempt to pose, and many Youtubers who primarily make long-form video essays lack the life experience and expertise to sufficiently discuss anything. They're usually too set in their thoughts to answer or explore the broader implications of their claims. Defending a dissertation forces you to do this. Forming a committee of experts in various fields and convincing them to aid you in the development of your dissertation forces you to do this. Being in academic and cordial communication with your peers from all over the world in your field forces you to do this. It's not easy to constantly intake new information from various eras and nations (depending on your topic), meld this information into a coherent essay, and continually make edits as you learn new information, thus changing your outlook on things. Also: it's really petty of me, but it's also incredibly annoying to grade poorly researched undergrad essays who, after some prompting in office hours, say they got these ideas on books, movies, and shows from breadtubers like Somerton, SZ, FD Signifier, or hbomberguy. Cue: me going to watch their videos and realizing they have no idea what they're talking about 88% of the time in terms of theory and application of said theory. Even the ones who frame themselves on being educators in real life, like Signifier, lack any nuance, depth, or media literacy to make a compelling argument if you know even the slightest bit of information. On the bright side, I now know why I've encountered several students with ideologies that are basically conservatism with a veneer of progressivism, or "conservatism in a queer hat."

This concludes my long-winded way of saying "Don't turn to Youtubers for media analysis. You're better off just reading articles by people who have to actually know what they're talking about. The majority of Youtubers (especially the breadtubers) don't have the bandwidth to discuss anything more complex than an episode of Blue's Clues."

--

I mostly agree, but I'd point to a slightly different problem. I'm hesitant to say that the PhD itself is the deciding factor, but I do think a lot of video essayists are insufficiently prepared.

I'm a big fan of Folding Ideas who does have some formal schooling in film, but I don't think it's that education per se that makes him great. He sets himself apart from other video essayists by actually doing his research and having an in-depth approach to his subjects. He doesn't resort to clickbait, and—here's the key—he often takes months or even a year to work on something.

Honestly, I think that's a big part of it: the hoops most youtubers who want to make a living at it have to jump through involve a lot of clickbait and pandering and a fast production schedule. They don't involve reputable peer review except by the court of shriek-y public opinion on twitter.

They'd like to present themselves as documentary filmmaking (which is essentially what Folding Ideas' longer videos are), but they don't actually live up to any of the usual standards of that either.

I think it can be elitist to say that someone needs to have certain letters after their name, yes, but what really strikes me about your average youtube media analysis type and the fanbase is that they want shortcuts.

Exploring the whole history of the gay novel so that you have enough background to talk about CMBYN means reading quite a few novels. Even if you decide to throw out all past scholarly opinion on the topic (which you shouldn't), if you're going to have a meaningful personal theory, you need to have read a lot of novels first. How can you hope to be the person providing the neat overview of the whole genre if you haven't familiarized yourself widely with said genre, and not just through a summary by someone else? That amount of reading doesn't happen overnight.

The trite, surface-level media analysis online is often from people who want to be hailed as great intellectuals but who aren't willing to put in the years it takes to do all the background reading and to develop their skills in argumentation, writing, etc.

Grad school is a convenient and probably faster way to go about all that, but I think you could do it outside of a formal framework... But you would need to actually do it.

I think it's driven by a bunch of people who were The Smart One in grade school and never learned how to work hard on long-term projects instead of pushing through in a sprint. They're used to relying on being the smartest to cut corners and do things before they get bored, only they probably aren't the smartest anymore anyway, and they mistake being smart at one thing for being smart at all things.

There's a real lack of respect for the entire concept of expertise.

[mask131]

So you want to know about Oz! (4)

Now that we got the topic of the Oz books out of the way, let's talk about... The MGM musical! The 1939 movie "The Wizard of Oz"!

Or rather, let's NOT talk about it. Let's talk about... its alternate continuity.

"Alternate continuity" or "alternate Oz" are terms cherished by Oz fans and scholars, because they allow one to navigate through the maze of Oz adaptations.

I don't want to talk here about the MGM movie per se, because A) there's way too much to say and B) everybody knows it or saw it, so I don't need to explain what it is as thoroughly. But I want to insist on a specific and given point... The 1939 musical COMPLETELY changed the game.

It is an adaptation of "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz", yes. And it is the most famous and acclaimed Oz adaptations that ever was - to the point it is a landmark of American cinema, and a key part of American popular culture. But, and here's the important part: it is also not at all a faithful adaptation of Baum's novel. It is a very loose adaptation that omitted, reinvented and added MANY, many things - and the problem is that, since the movie is much more famous and well-known than the original novel, it created its own "alternate continuity" of Oz works, completely dissociated from the original novels by Baum (and other authors). These are two different worlds, that start from the same story-point but diverge in many, many ways.

In this post, I want to look at all the works, movies and adaptations that present themselves as prequel or sequels to the MGM movie, and that build together this "alternate Oz continuity" that is the 1939 continuity.

How do you recognize these works, and separate them from the ones more aligned with the old novels? Simple! All you need is to look out for key details that were introduced by the MGM musical!

The Wicked Witch of the West is considered the supreme evil of Oz, and is depicted as having a green skin and being clad in black.

There is only one Good Witch, Glinda Good Witch of the North.

The magical slippers are Ruby Slippers, not Silver Slippers.

Insistence on Oz being a "dream lord" paralleling the real-world

The Wicked Witches are sisters, and not just unrelated allies in wickedness

And other details of the sort. Alright! Ready? Let's go!

Let me begin with something a bit obscure... The 1990 cartoon "The Wizard of Oz".

In 1990, a Wizard of Oz cartoon started airing on television. This animated series proposed itself as the direct sequel to the MGM movie. Dorothy, still with the ruby slippers, returned to the Land of Oz, called by Glinda due to new troubles brewing in Oz: the Wicked Witch of the West was resurrected. The series is mostly about the group of heroes travelling through Oz, encoutering various Oz folks (purely invented for the series) and defeating the various schemes of the Wicked Witch, while trying to catch up with the Wizard of Oz, whose hot air balloon is tormented by the West Wind...

Unfortunately, due to poor ratings, the series was never renewed beyond its first season. Even worse, it just... kind of stopped mid-season. 13 episodes were created (I am not even sure all were aired?) and... the show just stops. No conclusion, no ending, it just stops. Sometimes, the two-part opening episode "The Rescue of the Emerald City" is edited as one short animated movie.

Much more famous: the Disney movie "Return to Oz", from 1985. One of thes "obscure Disney movies", one of those "weird fantasy sequels", one of those "dark 80s children movies"... There's multiple reasons why this piece became a cult-classic today.

It is most notably one of the many instances of Disney trying to create an Oz product in line with the MGM movie, despite not having the rights to do so, and thus playing around with the public domain of the Oz novels. This movie presents itself as a sort-of-sequel to the MGM movie (sort-of because, since they couldn't make an actual sequel, they have things that do not match - like Dorothy's new appearance - and things that do match - the slippers are ruby). In terms of inspiration, it is mostly a retelling of the third Oz novel, "Ozma of Oz", but with various elements taken from the second Oz novel "The Marvelous Land of Oz". For example, one of the villains of the movie is Mombi, the witch from "The Marvelous Land of Oz", but her behavior and appearance are those of Princess Langwidere, a secondary antagonist of "Ozma of Oz".

Another famous attempt by Disney at gaining their ground on the MGM-Oz domain is this movie:

2013's "Oz: The Great and Powerful". Meant to be a prequel to the MGM Wizard of Oz (but stll placing itself in its own continuity, since it couldn't be an ACTUAL prequel), it tells the story of how Oscar (the Wizard) arrived in Oz, and how the power-struggle between the three Ozian witches put itself in place. And it was... it was not a great success. In term of Oz adaptations it is recognized today to be between "mid" and "failure". (It is still VERY pretty though)

Speaking of Oz failures...

Do you remember THIS movie? "Legends of Oz: Dorothy's Return"? Oh that's one messy story...

"Dorothy's Return" (2013) was an animated movie adapting one of the novels written by Roger S. Baum, L. Frank Baum's great-grandson, called "Dorothy of Oz" (1989). And it did... VERY poorly, despite the huge amount of money and advertisement put in it. But you know what's even funnier? Why does the movie has such a long title? Because "Legends of Oz" was actually a HUGE franchise project. There was this plan to create a big line of animated movies and derived products, of which "Dorothy's Return" would have been just the first step. The movie came out, did poorly... and the entire franchise was canceled. But not without a lawsuit being opened for the shady practices and financial ruins behind this project... Yeah it is QUITE a story!

Still within the domain of modern Oz movies people do not particularly like...

The Tom and Jerry Oz movies!

These animated pieces are part of the modern trend of putting Tom and Jerry in famous movies (there is also the very unfamous Tom and Jerry + Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory movie). The first movie, "Tom and Jerry and the Wizard of Oz" was basically just Tom and Jerry being present during the MGM movie. And... that was it. Oh yes, they did include the Jitterbug deleted scene but you know. It was just that.

Less known is this movie's direct sequel, "Tom and Jerry Back to Oz". It was less talked about than the first one, despite being at least more original! It is notably a loose adaptation of the third Oz novel, "Ozma of Oz".

More successful and beloved: 2017's "Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz".

Just like the 1990s series, it is a children cartoon presenting itself as a direct sequel to the MGM movie, but unlike the 1990s series it was HUGELY successful. It aired for three full seasons, and while it is placed within the MGM continuity, it notably modifies several details so kids could be able to get into the story more (Dorothy is a little girl, the Wicked Witch is replaced by her daughter), and sprinkles several elements from the novels (Ozma, queen of Oz, is a recurring character). It is mostly a... I'll say "slice-of-life" type of show, about Dorothy and her friends just... living in Oz, solving problems if they are, avoiding the various schemes of the Wicked Witch's daughter.

Now that we looked at all the most "recent" incarnations, let's take a look at an older classic: 1972's Journey Back to Oz.

This animated movie is a loose adaptation of the second Oz novel, "The Marvelous Land of Oz", but presented as a sequel to the MGM movie. Tip is replaced by an MGM-looking Dorothy as the protagonist, Mombi is depicted as a green-skinned witch and the cousin of the deceased Wicked Witches of The Wizard of Oz, and Dorothy's voice is provided by Liza Minnelli, the daughter of Judy Garland.

And to conclude it all a movie that... nobody seems to have noticed upon its release?

2000's Lion of Oz. An animated musical movie for children, adapted from Roger S. Baum's novel (yes, still him) "The Lion of Oz and the Badge of Courage" (1995) ; but still placing itself, by the characters' design, under the legacy of the MGM movie.

This movie presents the backstory of the Cowardly Lion, who, as it turns out, was a lion Oscar Diggs brought with him to Oz, and who, before meeting Dorothy, underwent a quest to fight the nefarious plans of the Wicked Witch of the East...

[dapper-lil-arts]

I watched the CXCD video about the production of G5 and I realized that G4 didn't really have a huge focus on villains (since G5 was always a good vs bad story). The villains in G4 are usually rivals or big monsters and the major villains ussually get redeemed, which is why they put a big emphasis on Chrysalis, Tirek and Cozy Glow since they never got redeemed (tho King Sombra and Storm King weren't reedemed too, yet they don't get to be as talked about as the legion of doom for irredimable villains).

Side note:

There was actually going to be a second G4 movie, where it was basically just The Last Problem but with movie lenght and a big adventure. It was cancelled early on and the movie became The Last Problem (if there was a villain, it would either be the big red dragon in the concept art or the real Grogar, assuming it was never cancelled and the writers listened to the outcry). Also, what do you think of the Daring Do villains getting redeemed?

yeah im not surprised another mlp movie got cancelled because even the first one literally just any mlp finale but at movie length, and it's pretty damn weak on that front. The pricnesses all get their assess kicked exept for Twilight hooray and the power of friendship wins! Seen it before And I don't have many strong feelings on daring do villans lmao theyre really shallow and poorly developed lmao. She doesnt even need villans per se when the adventure itself is fun! Though the narrative of taking treasures from native people is kinda fucked lmao

[haggishlyhagging]

In her book The Dialectic of Sex, Shulamith Firestone took Beauvoir as her starting point. Firestone suggests, however, that there is no primordial concept of Otherness, but that the idea of Otherness arises from the woman/man relationship. Firestone thus sees Otherness as more of a group than an individual consciousness. Rather than a collection of selves bristling with hostility, ready to dominate other selves, there were men who came to see that they could dominate women and to feel superior to them. (Without the postulate of an uneasy individual self, however, why the assertion of domination at all?)

Firestone writes:

The immediate assumption of the layman that the unequal division of the sexes is 'natural' may be well-founded . . . Unlike economic class, sex class sprang directly from a biological reality: Men and women were created different, and not equally privileged. Although, as de Beauvoir points out, this difference of itself did not necessitate the development of a class system — the domination of one group by another—the reproductive functions of these differences did. The biological family is an inherently unequal power distribution.

She is saying that bearing children is no privilege —freedom from bearing them is. The organs don't produce the sex class system, the use of them does. Having a uterus is not the problem; being a member of the only group that bears children is.

She sees the family as both oppressive and universal.

...The biological family that we have described has existed everywhere throughout time. Even in matriarchies where woman's fertility is worshipped, and the father's role is unknown or unimportant, perhaps not the genetic father, there is still some dependence of the female and the infant on the male.

For Firestone, biology does play a part in women's oppression. Biology is not neutral: It can be painful, even oppressive, although it evolved rather than being the product of conscious decision. She speaks of the "oppressive power structure set up by Nature and reinforced by man."

For Firestone, bearing a child without conscious choice, even though biologically "natural," is oppressive for a conscious being. Pregnancy and birth are painful.

From biological differences grew the division of labor, and hence classes that were more or less privileged.

...The natural reproductive difference between the sexes led directly to the first division of labor based on sex, which is at the origins of all further division into economic and cultural classes and is possibly even at the root of all caste (discrimination based on sex and other biologically determined characteristics such as race, age, etc.).

From the creation of the first classes, women and men, grew other classes. The origins of the oppression of women are the origins of oppression per se, Firestone writes.

Women's oppression has been so tied to biology—so "natural"—that Firestone sees the possibility of ending this oppression arising only with the development of technology, such as birth control:

Though there have always been women rebels in history, the conditions have never before existed that would enable women to effectively overthrow their oppressive roles. Women's capacity for reproduction was urgently needed by the society and even if it hadn't been, effective birth control methods were not available.

If oppression was as inevitably linked to women's biology as Firestone says, how can men be much to blame? Did men have any alternative but to oppress women? But one does not generally speak of an act as oppressive if it is necessary. I am uncomfortable with the idea that this structure of relationships was necessary.

Even if biological differences were the basis of women's oppression, Firestone does not feel this means that differences between women and men are eternal. Even if they always existed, they do not always have to exist:

But to grant that the sexual imbalance of power is biologically based is not to lose our case. We are no longer just animals. And the kingdom of Nature does not reign absolute. As Simone de Beauvoir herself says:

‘The theory of historical materialism has brought to light some important truths. Humanity is not an animal species, it is a historical reality.’

Firestone then concludes, "Thus, the 'natural' is not necessarily a 'human' value. Humanity has begun to outgrow nature."

Like Beauvoir, Firestone tends to see women as not having done the most important work of humanity. She quotes Beauvoir as saying, "Perhaps, however, if productive work had remained within her strength, woman would have accomplished with man the conquest of nature..."

Firestone adds, "Thus it was woman's reproductive biology that accounted for her original and continued oppression, and not some sudden patriarchal revolution."

Also like Beauvoir, she sees the oppression of women as something that was not caused by a dramatic series of actions, but rather as something happening far back in pre-history.

Unlike some later writers, Firestone is totally critical of the idea that a matriarchy ever existed, that there was a time when women were free, or that such an alternative could be a solution for the future.

Matriarchy is a stage on the way to patriarchy, to man's fullest realization of himself; he goes from worshipping Nature through women to conquering it. Though it's true that woman's lot worsened considerably under patriarchy, she never had it good; for despite all the nostalgia it is not hard to prove that matriarchy was never an answer to women's fundamental oppression. Basically it was no more than a different means of counting lineage and inheritance, one which ... did not allow women into the society as equals. To be worshipped is not freedom; for worship still takes place in someone else's head, and that head belongs to Man.

Beauvoir and Firestone could be seen as ambivalent on the question of inherent sexual differences, although they both deny that sexual differences need to be a permanent aspect of human life. In fact, they believe it is crucial to end them. But if differences. go further back than recorded history, if the different functions or division of labor based on these differences was inevitable throughout most of human history, is this so unlike a concept of inherent differences?

-Carol Anne Douglas, Love and Politics: Radical Feminist and Lesbian Theories

[abr]

(...) Jeffrey Tucker calls it “techno-primitivism.” He describes the system as: 

"a combination of digital technology plus a rollback into previous ages of existence to a time without fossil fuels and meat, plus geographical isolation and limited choices for average people. In other words, it’s a step back to feudalism: the lords of the manor are digital titans and the rest of us are peasants toiling in the fields and eating bugs when the food runs out". 

(...) my problem with much of the commentary on the Great Reset is that it takes the Grand Plan at face value. Indeed, a group of elites have a plan. They are open about some parts of it (and most likely, less open about others).  (...)

However, in order to succeed, the laws of reality must be observed. The laws of cause and effect apply to all things. Grand utopian visions always fail in the implementation (...). Grand utopias cannot be realized because, while imagination is unconstrained, reality has limits. (...)

In this case, the utopia is the dream of psychotic elites who imagine that they can have the end products of mass cooperation without the open society (and the free market) that enables it. Much damage can be done in the attempt, but it is only a question of how far it can get before it cancels itself. 

Grande articolo, il resto qui https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/technocratic-dystopia-impossible

(il pessimismo cosmico lo lasciamo alle faighette nostalgiche terrorizzate, ma attenzione comunque all'ottimismo eccessivo. Se è vero che la cosa del Grand Reset non stia in piedi per chi SA che Libero Mercato e conseguente Società Aperta è inevitabile Legge Naturale, però è anche vero che nel lungo periodo saremo tutti morti: persino una utopia per ignoranti come il comunismo ha impiegato tre generazioni, 70 anni per venir spazzata via dalla storia - e abbiamo ancora diversi zombie in giro).

[adultswim2021]

Space Ghost Coast to Coast #70: “Snatch” | October 15, 1999 | S06E02 Alternate ending version aired January 28, 2000

Snatch is a very memorable one, because it’s pretty singular and story-driven and has a specific atmosphere AND! It had a GIMMICK that yielded variations of the episode. In fact, if you are the type of person who likes to pay attention to italicized text under headlines, you will note that I made mention of the “alternate ending” version airing a few months after this. I assume that was the first rerun of this episode. But before I talk about that, I should say other stuff. 

This one features Steven Wright, deadpan comedian who I remember loving around this time. He’s one of those very specific guys that is easy to glom onto and think is a genius. I never formally stopped loving him, per se, I haven’t seen him on my TV screen in a very long time. I don’t know why I made it sound like I was going to denounce him or something. He is a great Space Ghost guest, and plus I think he’s cute. 

A bunch of Invasion of the Body Snatchers style pods show up and threaten Space Ghost and co, including the guest monitor. Long has been the custom to treat the monitor itself like a sentient being and not just a communication tool, hence Wright being in mortal danger. They can’t flee Ghost Planet because the blob has covered the building. Also the pods are feeding off the rays!!

The interesting thing about this is that it’s a single guest episode, but they dispense with the guest roughly halfway through the episode when he is consumed by the pod, and screams for way too long about it. The rest of the episode is just Space Ghost and co. being menaced. No second guest needed, baby except for the city of New York (where Space Ghost takes place).

This one originally ended with Dave Willis as Colonial man, who, as we all know, is a the owner of Burger Trench (as well as a fascinating Colonial book). Space Ghost and company succumb to a decaf-induced slumber (not shitting on the episode but “decaf” rivals “paycheck” as one of those adult-sounding words meant to make children laugh that just hits my ear poorly), and we cut to Colonial Man announcing that the show is auctioning off the ending on eBay. This was in script form. According to the lost media wiki, the script has yet to resurface, and I don’t think anyone officially knows who won it.

The “alternate ending” version is simply a slightly animated title card reading “The End” after Space Ghost et al fall asleep and the pods begin to descend on them, clearly about to do them in. There might be variations on this, or maybe not. (Colonial Man voice) I don’t know! 

EPHEMERA CORNER: 

Dinner with Steven (Unaired episode)

Found on the Volume 4 Space Ghost DVD (or on archive.org) is this recorded, but not animated episode of Space Ghost featuring the same Steven Wright interview. In this one, it seems to be a stage production of a My Dinner With Andre style play (note: My Dinner With Andre was not based on a play). Clay and George recorded for it, but the soundtrack is unfinished. There’s a scene where it seems like somebody is walking out while Space Ghost holds everything up to glare at him. 

The problem with this one was likely that it involved too much new animation/backgrounds. Moltar plays the waiter. Zorak, as announced in the beginning, is being portrayed by understudy Kathy Kinney (aka Mimi "big bitch" Bobeck from Drew Carrey). This only comes up in one scene, when Steven demands Space Ghost fly around with Zorak on his back, and this is expressed by showing Space Ghost with a TV monitor on his back, which presumably was going to include a clip of Kinney saying something kooky (they did not include a clip in the animatic). 

This one has a really great moment: Space Ghost starts stuffing his face and asks Steven what the worst thing he ever did was. Wright claims to have “axed” somebody to death. George Lowe gasps as if Space Ghost is genuinely shook to his core. It’s really fucking funny. Then it’s followed up with Steven Wright laughing at his own ad-lib, and how it’s inappropriate for a children’s show, which I guess this sort-of is.

MAIL BAG 

I have to let the record stand on this: I'm pretty sure the DVD version of chambraigne uses all different stock footage during the chambraigne commercial, and the footage the aired version uses is funnier imo. So it's still a mixed bag of an edit.

Thank you! This was on my mind but I failed to mention it because for some reason I tricked myself into doubting myself and I just didn’t have a handy way of checking it.

[neostriatum]

Every soul its particular aspiration

[AO3] [Dreamwidth]

-

"Every age hath its own problem, and every soul its particular aspiration." - Proclamation of Bahá'u'lláh, by Bahá'u'lláh

-

The scratching of the charcoal grated on her ears. It wasn’t, per se, the sound itself. No, what made her teeth gnash and pulse thrum in frustration was the abject knowledge that such a noise was the product of an inferior product. Her teeth pulled back, An inferior product for an inferior person.

Sokka, offensive person that he was, took no notice of her snarling thoughts as he doodled on his sketchpad, tongue sticking out in concentration. Unfortunately for her, he was much more versed in big brother behaviours than Zuzu, and so needling him into compliance wouldn’t work.

She frowned at him, picking through her observations to figure out what sort of pressure would get him to bend to her will. The answer would come to her eventually, try as the healers might to dissuade Azula from her natural talents. They hadn’t succeeded in several years, and she was loathe to let anyone take away such a core tenet of her personality.

Humming interrupted her, a catchy jangle interspersed with words too quiet to be discerned. Her resolve broke into splintery fragments as she snapped, “Will you stop that.”

The Watertribesman stopped with an abrasive scratch of charcoal on paper, a baffled look on his face. “Drawing?”

“That too.” She was not pouting, she was not.

His idiotic look only strengthened, and Azula dug her nails into her crossed arms to resist lashing out. The bars of her so-called residence would be only a minor impediment, she was sure.

There was a beat of blessed silence. Then, “... Do you want to see?”

“No.”

“Aw.” He looked dejected, but she was feeling too churlish to smirk about it. Shaking the paper out, and releasing a fume of dust that made her frown some more, Sokka continued, “I mean, I kind of wanted to know what you thought.”

Azula blinked. What. “What?”

Indescribably, Sokka brightened, “Yeah! You’re like… scarily smart, and none of the others can figure out what I’m drawing.”

“I’m sure that’s because of your impeccable skills,” She drawled, but loosened her posture anyway in curiosity, squinting at the horrific mess the boy was making. Sokka helpfully displayed his creation to her, a hopeful grin on his face. Harrumphing, she arched a brow, “Perhaps it would be more useful if you drew intelligibly.”

“Hey, I’m intelligent!”

Azula drew in a deep breath, closing her eyes and counting to ten. Exhaling, and disgruntled on an entirely different level that no flames came with it, she said, “Idiot. I meant that you have no skill in accurately depicting what you’re thinking.”

There, that was helpful, yes? It followed the stringent instructions of her healers precisely.

Sokka frowned, and glanced down at his paper in doubt. Perhaps not, she thought, eyeing him warily. Zuzu was predictable when his fragile ego took a blow, but this insolent boy was relatively unknown. It irked her, idly, incessantly, that she didn’t have enough data to predict him.

“Oh.” A response that gave her absolutely zero information, and why couldn’t he be useful? Azula gritted her teeth, even as Sokka looked back up at her. “What should I fix?”

And that- that was unexpected. She huffed, lunging forward and grabbing the paper held tantalizingly loosely in the other’s hands, “Give me that.”

Obligingly, he handed over his charcoal too, watching her curiously. Azula laid the paper onto the floor, grumbling to herself that the miniature-sized desk was nevertheless too heavy to drag over, and smoothed it out over the strip of stone that laid between her cell’s bars and the plush rug Zuzu had graciously ordered to be installed. It was flat enough to be serviceable, at any rate – it’s not like Sokka’s drawings could get any worse.

She made a test scratch on one corner, making a disgusted noise at how unevenly the line was drawn. “What is this garbage?”

“Hey, I made that myself!”

“And you suck at it,” Was Azula’s tart reply as she practically threw it back at him, “What did you use to bind this, a little airbender’s hopes and dreams?”

Sokka frowned, but it was more petulant than truly offended – a part of her breathed a sigh of relief that he wasn’t hollering loud enough to bring the healers running. He squinted at the charcoal for a moment, before copying her test marks. “Well, I did make this by myself…” He murmured thoughtfully, rubbing his chin, “Usually I just nab a few off Zuko’s desk, but he’s making me buy my own because they’re for official purposes or something.”

He waved the charcoal at her, “The good ones are so expensive! Did you know that? I’m not going to waste my money when I can do it myself just fine.”

Azula leaned against the bars, bemused, “You bought the cheap binder, didn’t you.”

Sokka raised a brow at her, “Well duh. Budgeting master here, I’d rather not blow my entire budget on charcoal with how much I use it. Guilting Zuko into buying me ink blocks is enough work already.”

Despite her best efforts, Azula felt a laugh bubble up. “Zuzu’s so gullible, isn’t he?”

The boy nodded vigorously, “Oh absolutely. I have to not do it too often or Katara notices and makes me return them.”

They shared a commiserative silence. Azula used it to ruminate on precisely which face her brother would have made, and it was mildly entertaining to imagine how the waterbender would react. “Hm.”

“Hm?” Sokka blinked at her, looking away from the charcoal he had been staring so contemplatively at.

“You have too much air in your fire,” She said, instead of reminiscing aloud, “The grains are too coarse, and aren’t binding well to whatever wax or resin you’re buying.”

The resulting bout of silence was long enough to make her glance in the boy’s direction, only to see the consideration with which he peered at her.

“What?” It was more defensive than she would have liked, but she assuaged herself with the haughty curiosity filtering over it.

Sokka squinted, and she frowned. When he hummed, she huffed. Right as she was envisioning her revenge in the form of a singed and properly-offended Water Tribesman, he astonished her with the simple question of, “Is that why your fire is blue?”

Azula blinked, “Well. Yes.”

He nodded, as if that answered several problems at once. She paused, and saw in her mind’s eye the path his thoughts made – yes, it probably did. Impressive.

Sokka held out his charcoal, grinning, “Wanna show me how an Azula-made charcoal writes?”

-

It took several trials and errors, but between the two of them, the perfect stick of charcoal was made. Azula peered over his shoulder as he leaned against the bars barricading her room, a peculiar feeling of peace swelling at the sight of the smooth, liquid marks being drawn on the paper.

“Success!” Sokka crowed, quietly in deference to her proximity, and she felt a matching grin tug at her lips.

“Success,” She confirmed, then leaned to the side, “Now. What was that atrocious thing you were attempting to show me?”

“Huh? Oh, that-” There was a rustle of paper, charcoal stuck unerringly behind his ear and leaving a long smudge that amused Azula immensely, before the original piece of… artistry was unceremoniously shoved back into her direction, “How much of this is from the charcoal, do you think?”

She grabbed the drawings clumsily, the angle off and her complete reticence to ruin her robes with the sub-par material creasing the paper before she could maintain a proper grip on it. Grumbling, she opened the creased mass of papers, turning it a few times before it was at the orientation she vaguely remembered.

The effort made little difference, and Azula stared uncomprehendingly at what laid before her, tongue stilled only by the hopeful look on her co-conspirator’s face. He reminded her unerringly of Ty Lee, all buoyant airs reaching for the stars, and because of that her gaze was applied a bit more ruthlessly upon Sokka’s work in an attempt to glean value from what laid before her.

Pointing at a series of miniature, delicate lines in the assumption that this was some forming blueprint, she asked, “What’s this?”

“Oh! That’s the gear shaft!” He exclaimed, quickly reaching through the bars to grab one of the other papers, holding it up with a flourish, “I drew it in better detail here, the Mechanist at the Northern Air Temple told me it’s good to have separate pages for complex things.”

“Smart man,” She muttered, mind already ticking away as she saw the array of pages in a new light. It was quick work to put them into order, Sokka intuiting what sort of big picture she was going for. “Hmm. What is this, some sort of flying machine?”

He waved the charcoal at her exuberantly, pouting only for the dramatics when she glanced up and plucked it straight from his hand, “Exactly! See, I knew that scary brainy-ness could be used for the purposes of good!”

Azula raised an eyebrow, tone dry despite the notes she was amending in the margins of the designs, “Don’t get ahead of yourself.”

“Fine, fine,” He waved his hand, settling down so he could watch her work. It was flattering, really.

She preoccupies herself with the sketches, giving them a discerning eye while she shuffles them around. The niggle of inspiration is just out of reach, but it’s invigorating, the same spark Agni shows her when the air shifts to make way for her lightning strike- “Paper,” She demands, finger poised still over a path of least resistance, “And charcoal.”

It’s hurriedly shoved into the gaps of her cell, and she wastes no time in flattening out a couple of sheets, redrawing entire sections with quick strokes, words spilling into the margins as she notes design flaws gleaned from her own knowledge of the Mechanic’s work process. Sokka has a particular approach, but it’s obscured by his dubious technical artistry.

Winnowing out the core of his ideas is exhilarating, the flow of ideas evolving from curt questions to more involved conversations as they distilled the truth of this new goal.

It was… good. After Sokka left, promising to bring more reams of paper for the both of them, it was an easy thing to slip into the jetstreams of meditation.

-

The model in her hands is rough, the wood granted only a cursory polish to not prick her skin. Oiled paper imitated windows, allowing a glossy glance into the interior. Sokka had proudly displayed a cross-section, but it was a unique perspective to view the whole.

A packet of sweets rested between the sundry spoils of their work, and the nostalgia of watching Ran-Cha fold caramelized ash bananas into a dough to make that evening’s dessert made her sigh between shuffling pages, the candied coconut a delicate crunch to the pillowy softness of the bread. Sokka echoed her sentiment, lounging against the bars of her cell with a slice in his own hand, dragon-lychee juice in his other a cool complement to the still-steaming treat.

She settled the scale model to an unoccupied corner of floor, rearranging things so that the cross-section model was aligned to the papers that borne the idea to the world. In this, Sokka’s skill shone through, for the model was a precise replica of the drawings.

“How would it look if we angled the wings, hm-” Azula tilted her head, taking an idle sip of the juice Zuko had insisted Sokka pack (it was, admittedly, her favourite, so she wouldn’t complain too much), “Fifteen degrees? Not twenty, that’s too much.”

Sokka poked his head into the gap to better see the hinge her nail was tapping on. She tilted the paper a little, not minding the perpetual chalk dust any more that indicated impromptu revisions, so the other could see what she meant. He hummed thoughtfully, pulling away to rummage into his satchel for the compass that always accompanied him.

He tweezed the angle of the instrument, squinting at the paper through its gap. “Sixteen? Seventeen, maybe?”

Azula studied the hinge briefly, taking another bite of her bread, “We’ll try sixteen, and see about the pinion.”

“Absolutely,” Sokka agreed easily, pinching the compass to the requested degree and handing it to her to chalk up the new measurement. She sketched the revision quickly, picking up the first model with its articulated wings.

“We’ll need to make a lot of these,” She mused, wondering how it would look if- when they finished this project. A blimp that followed the air to reduce its fuel requirements was surely the next step in air technology.

“I’ll bring my kit,” Sokka promised.

-

It should be odd, to be allowed not only outside, but into the palace courtyards. It should, but it wasn’t, the sight of her and Sokka’s first full-scale model taking her breath away.

She paced around it, too preoccupied with observing how the light shone through the structured, thin metal of the wings and the actual glass windows that could open on their own, so different from the oiled paper of their scale models – the glimmer of Zuko’s dragonlike qi at the edges of the courtyard was overcome by the calculations she was already running in her mind about air pressure and currents and durability.

Sokka was beside her, equally as fascinated, holding up the plans to compare the model. He drew to a stop near the passenger door, the smoothly-oiled swing of it opening its own allure. “Hey, come look at this,” He said, gesturing her to look at the footwell, “Do you think this is enough room for the pedals?”

They had calculated for a conservation of weight, but she grimaced at the cramped space, withdrawing the charcoal behind her own ear to annotate the sheet Sokka handed her. It left a smudge of charcoal blending into her hair, but it goes unnoticed in favour of discussing scaffolding to increase space.

-

Azula’s breath fogs in the crisp, early-winter air, a parallel to the slumbering coals of her qi as Sokka pulls her toward the tarpaulin-covered model that – they hope – is fully operational.

The metal of the engine is cold, but that doesn’t deter them from debating the exact seconds needed between lighting it and turning the propellers for a full start, though they manage to hop onto the aeroplane before it takes off without them, barely missing one of the spiked towers as Sokka frantically pulls on the levers for steering.

The climb to the horizon is slow, Agni still climbing to full ascent despite the fog gathered in the dips of the caldera. It’s quiet for several tense heartbeats, but as they break past the minimum height their calculations call for, Sokka whoops in excitement.

It’s startling, freeing in a way that makes the war balloons feel hindering, and Azula can’t help her own unbidden yell of happiness when they successfully climb to their own ascent amid the noisily puttering engine.

“We did it! We did it!”

-

Author's Notes

Take one prodigy and heir apparent of a nation that flung themselves at least two epochs forward in terms of technological advancement and had a fall from grace that was frankly needed, add another prodigy and potential heir apparent of a war-torn set of inter-connected tribes with zero actual resources but his imagination, and shake the bottle until a friendship comes out. Two completely (and, I argue, complementary) different sets of genius in one room ought to come up with something extraordinary, no?

Every time I think too hard about the fact that the Fire Nation has a navy made of alloyed metals with furnaces, and a burgeoning air force also with alloyed metals with furnaces, I'm blown away by how much and how complex of math they need to accomplish this. Really, how does the ATLA-verse look like, knowing algebra and the concept of zero (and possibly negative numbers!) exists alongside metaphysics such as bending and the Spirit World and a literal, physical bridge between realities in the form of a reincarnated person?

[jackhkeynes]

19th-century Espionage and the Invention of Software

collected notes on two entirely unrelated works of literature.

Men of Jet and Diamond (originally published in Welsh under the title Dynnon o Vuhuð a Diamont) is an 1890 trevold written by Hasinick Welshman Cadogan Torrior, shortly after he graduated from the University of Nadacou [capital of Hasiny, located not far from the coast on the banks of the *Mississippi] as a scholar of diplomacy.

Published by Blackburn Editions, the work is a rather late member of the first wave of masquira romance. The book was modestly popular in eastern Mendeva [North America], but became much more widely known after being adapted by a New Provence guild into the wildly-succesful 1951 film 'Jet White' (New Provincial Blanc Sabaje).

---

The Parable of the Mute Bookbinder (originally published in Burgund as Fable dew Reillour Mut) is a philosophical treatise written in 1743 by noblewoman Rachel Desselut in response to Vallakis on the problem of the bounded self-duplication of living things (in brief: how can a finite being contain within itself the ability to create a full copy of itself?).

Desselut's work lays out the separation of Form and of Method, and how they allow for the unsculpted duplication of a bounded being. She argues that in order for living matter to duplicate, the Form must contain within itself an explicit Method describing in some readable language its construction. Thus she inferred the existence of a vital language (in her own writing she called it the Divine Word; we now know it as heredian acid [DNA]) present in the cases of the body.

---

(book excerpts under the cut)

Men of Jet and Diamond

It would have been an exaggeration to say that the hotel's lobby was crowded. Nonetheless, Zoe Pentross found she couldn't take a seat without inserting herself into someone's lively conversation or another's relaxed solitude. Instead she remained standing at the bar, keys in her left hand and a gratifyingly-good Empordan wine in her right. "Are you here to see the new King arrive in Nadacou?" A tall, slender man joins Zoe at the bar, signalling the tender for a refill. "Not to see His Grace, per se," Zoe demurs, taking the opportunity to turn and look properly at her new companion. Dark hair, closely-shorn—not typical among those with long family ties in the area, though his complexion suggested he wasn't entirely foreign. "Ah, of course!" The smile that spreads across the man's face is charming and curious. Someone delighted at mystery, perhaps, or at least someone willing to humour it for the sake of conversation. "You plan to stand one street over from tomorrow's parade, I take it?"

Half an hour, far too much shockled cake and a generous glass of limmon acquetta later, Zoe strode out of the new unmanned lifter and peered at the ornate signposts. The key in her hand was helpfully inscribed with a fullaw bird and the number four in neat script, so she turned down the corresponding corridor until she found her door, set discreetly into the wall. Inside, the set of rooms (really, not much more than a small parlour and a bed in an alcove) was decorated in the latest Morrack fashions, all exposed stonework draped in tapestries and curtains. The ewer in the corner even had a handle in the shape of a viper.

The Parable of the Mute Bookbinder

And yet he could not take Marcuccio as his apprentice, for how was he to instruct a pupil in the art of bookbinding? But although Ignazo could not speak, he could write. For a year and a day he wrote, describing all his methods and arts, from the pedigree of sheep for the parchment, to the age of the oak tree for the ink. In this way he taught Marcuccio in detail the production of a book exactly like the one he had himself written, save that the copy would be utterly blank. Upon the last page, Ignazio wrote his final instruction: Et omnia hic scripta scribas illic—And all that is written here, you shall write therein. And thus Marcuccio received the book, and studied from it. And after many months did he return to Ignazio, twin books in his arms.

[industryinsightsandanalysis]

Self-Healing Materials Market: Current Analysis and Forecast (2024-2032)

According to the UnivDatos Market Insights analysis, the increasing demand for durable materials, advancements in nanotechnology, growing interest in sustainable materials, and rising adoption in the automotive industry drive the Self-Healing Materials market. As per their “Self-Healing Materials Market” report, the global market was valued at USD 2 Billion in 2023, growing at a CAGR of about 24% during the forecast period from 2024 – 2032.

Self-healing materials are slowly moving from the realm of imagination to reality and are soon going to revolutionize several industries, right from automobiles and electronics. More and more, new developments in material science are demonstrating self-healing materials’ ability to increase product lifetimes, lower waste, and improve sustainability. Read below for a clearer understanding of the prevailing trends and innovations in the self-healing materials industry.

Here below are a few basic facts about self-healing materials:

Overview of Self-Healing Materials

Self-healing materials are designed to recover their properties from a specific damage state like crack, scratch, or breakage without the intervention of any external power. Depending on the material, it can be stimulated by heat, light, and chemically induced changes in the material.

How Do They Work?

These materials generally depend on either inherent or acquired approaches. Intrinsic self–healing is self–healing that arises from the material itself and without the need for any external stimulus, whereas, extrinsic self–healing is when the material contains healing agents that are meant to be activated in the event of material damage, such as microcapsules that release when damaged.

About Self-Healing Materials Recent information

1. Of all the manufacturing sectors, the automotive sector is at the forefront of this development.

Growing Adoption in Coatings

Such types of coatings are gradually gaining popularity among automotive manufacturers as they improve the longevity of vehicle surfaces. These coatings can reverse small scratches or dents themselves thus less frequent touch-ups and repairs have to be done, and automobiles often need to be repainted. For instance, Nissan has released some models that are equipped with self-healing paint, and this is becoming a trend in the market among automakers.

Interior Applications

Besides the exteriors, self-healing material is being integrated into the interior part of the automobiles like instrument panels and seats due to high wear and tear problems. This is being driven by an ever-increasing need for long-lasting, low-maintenance vehicles.

2. The application of self-healing polymers in 3D printing

Transforming the world of Additive Manufacturing

A novel form of polymers was recently incorporated into 3D printing whereby manufacturers are now producing parts that can fix themselves once they have been damaged. Which is most helpful in industries such as aerospace or medical device production, where product longevity and reliability are key. The application of such polymers is resulting in the generation of parts that are both lighter and more durable than standard parts, a key trend in the marketplace.

Sustainability Factor

Self-healing materials in 3D printing also constitute global sustainability goals, since they decrease wastage from materials. Closeness to a circular economy is another advantage of this technology due to its propensity towards product repairing as against product replacement.

3. Aerospace Industry: Self-Healing Composites

Enhancing Aerospace Parts

Self-healing composites are gradually becoming the norm for aerospace manufacturers of structural components. These composites can self-repair from impact or stress damage, thus increasing the service life of aircraft parts.

4. Electronics: Self-repairable flexible electronic circuits

Self-Healing Electronics

In the Consumer Electronics Division, self-healing materials are being used to allow flexible and robust products. Self-healing displays for smartphones, wearables, and other devices and circuitries are now possible; gadgets can repair themselves when minor damages occur. It not only adds value to the product by making it last longer through its cycle but also to the customers by having fewer repairs.

Smartphone Revolution

With self-healing polymers for phone screens, several companies are considering tests. LG has already unveiled self-healing back covers on its smartphones and several similar products are bound to enter the market soon, making durable consumer electronics products the latest fashion statement.

Access sample report (including graphs, charts, and figures): https://univdatos.com/get-a-free-sample-form-php/?product_id=28383

Trends Affecting the Market and Key Forces

1. R&D Investments on the Rise

Focus on High-Performance Polymers.

The development of improved high-performance polymers with efficient self-healing capacities is a definite special emphasis of polymers, especially concerning aerospace and defense industries.

2. Sustainability as a Core Driver

Eco-Friendly Solutions

Self-healing shifts the need for replacement less frequently and aligns with sustainability goals across the world. Today, businesses are increasingly working on the creation of new self-healing bio-based, and environmentally friendly materials to underpin the circular economy.

3. Government Initiatives

Research support of advanced materials

Federal and state governments in North America, Europe, and Asia are providing support and funds for research related to self-healing breakthrough materials. This is speeding up the deployment of such technologies specifically in commercial applications like infrastructure and defense.

Conclusion

Self-Healing Materials In terms of the future, self-healing materials have a promising future in several sectors because no other material of any other type of system could Self-healing materials for the future of Construction Companies.

Self-Healing Material Technologies: New Industrial Revolution Changing Product Manufacturing Self-healing material technology, which has evolved at a fast pace across industries today, is revolutionizing the way products are being made today by making them Resilient, sustainable, and cost-efficient. These materials used in automotive, consumer electronics, and many industries are expected to change new product development and product life cycle management. Rising technological advancement of R&D and the increasing acceptance of smart and sustainable industrial solutions point to the fact that the market for self-healing materials will expand in the future years.

Seeing the growth in usage in high-demand industries, strategic investments backed by the government's self-healing material are poised to become one of the essential elements of manufacturing to enhance the durability and sustainability of products around the world.

Contact Us:

UnivDatos Market Insights

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[keshetchai]

Incorrect. We mean literally do not mix wool and linen, or wear wool and linen together, except in specific use cases for holy embroidery (basically).

Again:

לֹ֤א תִלְבַּשׁ֙ שַֽׁעַטְנֵ֔ז צֶ֥מֶר וּפִשְׁתִּ֖ים יַחְדָּֽו׃ {ס}        

You shall not wear cloth combining wool and linen.

Your cotton poly blend is not related, promise. Also it's not a sin. Otherwise we wouldn't have a priest in the temple (if we had one) wear a belt/girdle that is a linen/wool embroidery.

My pet theory about the exception to the rule is that the admixture is limited to items that would receive very little regular washing (not being worn against the body) and also this protects both the larger/general linen and wool producing industries of the era by banning adulteration of the fabrics.

You see this kind of thing in ancient Rome with bread and bread stamps proving the bread flour isn't like, heavily adulterated with sawdust or something. (Also partly why the FDA exists! To make sure people aren't diluting down a product with something cheaper and possibly more dangerous to the consumer but charging the same as a genuine, unadulterated product. Consumer protections! Hooray!)

Jews are just commanded not to do it. Sin has nothing to do with it.

Your cotton-poly blend performs a specific function which human innovation has created for good reasons. Polyester is a man-made textile of plastic. We can (and should!) talk about the ethics and realities of things like: reducing micro plastics, textile waste (fashion is the world's #2 polluting industry after oil!), fast fashion, the abuses of the fashion industry against workers, and how polyester can be a variety of different levels of quality and poor quality polyester creates more waste problems, whether or not it's more environmentally friendly to prioritize buying fully cotton garments when possible, BUT—

None of that is like something directly outlined in the Torah (which was for the Israelites specifically), and also none of these things are meaningfully addressed by like, declaring all textile blends are sinful.

....so your cotton-poly blend is not agnostically value neutral per se, but also my wool coat isn't either, nor is my cotton-poly blend, and it has nothing to do with "sin" from the blend itself.

((and not to be all "all choices are bad in capitalism" but I certainly didn't purchase my grey sweatpants or wool coat with any real consideration to the individual person who sewed those garments together. I would hardly expect you or anyone else to have done that! Most of us don't, unless we know garment makers or make garments. I've thought about it later. the more I learn about the modern textile/fashion industry the more I've realized that I don't have good choices I have less bad choices. Ethically, environmentally, etc. this was a whole tangent sorry.))

listen to me very very closely: the biblical prohibition against mixing linen and wool is the most SENSIBLE THING IN THE WORLD, do not write it off as silly, unreasonable, or unnecessary. g-d didn’t tell us not to mix linen and wool for no reason, g-d told us not to mix linen and wool together because mixing them is an affront to textiles

[anonymous-ventss]

It's super late, but something's on my mind that I need to type out to remind myself, it's not really necessary for anyone to read per se, so keep scrolling if you don't care.

I want this blog to be gone in a year. What I mean is, I don't want this place to just be me bitching about my problems, I want this to a be a productive place where I learn to actually fix my problems. So, now more than ever, I'm going to try to put my mental energy towards not just the venting itself, but how to find solutions to my problems, or in the very least be a little more positive. I know some things I can't just "fix", and some things are very complicated, but everyone has control of their own life, and it's my goal overall to change for the better.

This is just a little reminder for myself, nothing more. Hopefully I'll be saying goodbye to this little pocket of the internet in a year or less, but we'll see.

This is also me finally letting out things I've been holding in for years, which is partially why I think I do actually need this place right now, even if I hate talking about how I'm feeling and what I'm thinking. This might be good for me in some ways.

I guess I'm just hoping I won't even need to vent anymore by then, but things are too unpredictable to say for sure. Here's to me hoping.

[swimfaye]

2023 Wallet

so in January this year that I got into a LinkedIn conversation. There was going to be a recession. Period full stop. The problem is that the US was already in a recession. This was the first full year where Covid was actually "normal" people traveled and went out and spent money on events. I called it in January ..

The Pineapple

In March the US and EU got a first hand slap in the face at what Higher interest rates yielded ...bank failures. The high interest meant that banks that had 60% of their backstop in bonds actually lost money when a run on the banks happened. The one silent page of that story is if that run was caused by international entities. The other silent page was how much digitalmonetary was being used to back up a bank? No one has really answered that question. Unfortunately or fortunately JP Morgan was there for the US but once again I am reminded by how the US Government asked Warren Buffet in 2007 if he would loan or back up US banks and he said No. then in 2011 the US Congress failed to adhere locks and balance to the US banking industry and now we have a Fed Chair that is worth over $55 Million dollars and should have retired per se.

Micro Economy Bounces

Tom Cruise movie Maverick put people back in the movie theater seats. At $12 -$18 a seat the movie goer spent easily $100 just for the ticket to see a film. There was lots of films to see. After Maverick the Memorial Day weekend launched Barbie and Oppenheimer the year would end with Godzilla Minus One and more films that lured people back to the Theaters.

The fall saw both Taylor Swift and Beyonce also shoot people into the theater at $25 people flocked to the theaters to see a show they already saw in person or didn't get to see. This was one thing that could be stated the movie going experience was back.

The other micro economy ? Podcasts This year saw a huge jump in the production o them from literally EVERYWHERE. I still abhor the podcast because I think its noise pollution but it is. The secondary economy? Food as prices jumped serendipitously on certain food items you saw show after show farm after farm either thrive or highlight throughout the news cycle.

Poison

A train derailment, A bridge collapse, A tornado hit a manufacturing plant, A literal barn full of cows exploded. The economy exposed the fragile state of infrastructure throughout the world. The US insurance companies left states refusing policies on homes, cars, and people. This along with diseases like Norovirus to now RSV attaching itself to the societal means and ways. Health was the second biggest expendenture nearly $1500 for every doctor visit.

I guesstimated that the Recession would come in October. I had spent 8 months looking for a new job and not finding one I made the decision to return to a former job. It would be less money but, I can manage better anyway. As it sits today I will end up having made $70K this year a full 10% more than last year.

Speaking of earning more that $1500 per doctor visit was because of the retail of medicine. Diabetic Medicine is now being utilized by the populace as a whole to lose weight, combat obesity and be healthier to a point. The flip side is how long can people afford a $1000 a month bill and the side effects if you don't take the medication which you have to take to maintain the weight loss.

Colon Cancer, Pancreatitus and Kidney disease are killing people in part because they are taking cosmetic drugs.

The Recession

Soft Landing, Hard? No Show Recession? Its coming. As I stated in January office buildings leases are down significantly. Real Estate brokers got tagged recently in fees. The Election is near. Even if the $55Million dollar retiree does lower interest rates in March or June the World Economy demands a recession. There are nation after nation with empty coffers, Artificial Intelligence is not the answer for generating economy and People still have to work at something.

Death

The planet is literally dying. The Earth's center slowed down or completely stopped. Heat waves and volcano's have intensified and the Winter is here. There are less butterflies, a group of Orcas have developed a peculiar specialized appetite that is unbalancing the pecking order of the ocean - Great White sharks livers. The deforestation is causing literal death to millions of animals and plants-Brazil, Colorado, Russia.

The regional wars are tempting the worst war. the war that is at the doorstep and the US is tenious to not answer it.

Yet, there is hope, rebirth, and faith.

2024 will be another opportunity to strengthen the infrastructure both financially and physically.

But 2023 is not done yet. I know because its got a vlog to do:)

[jentlemahae]

yeah I don’t think the mixxpop concept works. it could if done right but idt jyp has what it takes. personally I love experimental loud music but I understand it’s not everyone’s taste. the problem with a specific music style becoming popular is that everyone else starts following that trend which alienates a whole group of people who don’t like that style. then the industry becomes over saturated with that style and people get bored bcs everything sounds the same and they want something new. after the huge amount of noise music we’ve had in recent years, if current kpop trends tell us anything it’s that the korean gp want simple straightforward music. jyp making a groups entire concept non-gp-friendly is such a weird choice and you’re right, it’s like jyp is wasting the girls time

just bcs next level worked extremely well for aespa doesn’t mean that same success will translate into another group doing a similar style song. so making it nmixx’s whole concept is a huge risk and I don’t think it paid off. imo it immediately puts a huge barrier in the way for non fans to enjoy their music which makes it harder for them to be successful, which again is wasting their time

everytime I hear an nmixx song I always think that if they were 2 separate songs they would eat. the random 20 second change up on this new song was so unnecessary. make that a whole separate song and it would do numbers on kcharts too. tbh next level itself was a risky song but the difference is is that sm has been doing that style for over a decade so they know how to execute it. jyp does not. so atp the mixxpop concept is a hindrance to them

i don’t think the issue is that it’s noise music per se, but it’s the switch up thing itself. while that is fun and interesting on paper, i think making the switch up thing the core of the group’s discography and concept is restrictive to the group’s future because it hinders their longevity, since neither switch-ups nor noisy music have much shelf life left, and hinders any growth and opportunity of experimentation in the future. them not being gp-friendly would not be that much of an issue bcs neither were nct abd skz at their debut, but both groups cemented themselves before noise music took off in kpop, whereas nmixx debuted when the trend was already dying out

i also think the switch ups in nmixx’s songs are that well executed structurally, and the production is not great and does not do justice to the members’ vocals. the girls are SUCH great vocalists but i think oftentimes the production drowns them out a bit. u can hear their skills on songs like cool or love me like this or roller coaster (which don’t have switch ups), but most of their tts don’t do them justice. also, even aside from the music, i think also visually they lack cohesion and don’t spark interest (jyp is terrible with visuals tho so that’s not surprising)

jyp may be one of the big 3 but as a company they tend to follow other companies and their trends and rely on them, rather than setting new ones. and they do so especially for the branding of their ggs - they do market research to discover what’s the new trend of the moment and rely on that instead of fleshing out their own strategies. but while it worked in the past (with twice and itzy), i think it’s failing bad with nmixx. begging them to throw this whole concept away

[semper-legens]

136. Man vs Beast, by Robert Muchamore

Owned: No, library Page count: 295 My summary: Help Earth is back, and trying to save the world again. This time, it's animal lives which are the focus. There's an extremist group planning something big, and time is ticking before their plans come to fruition. Enter James and Lauren, undercover spies working to smoke them out. But with no clue what their plans are, can the kids save the day in time? My rating: 3.5/5 My commentary:

Back to CHERUB for some environmental extremism! This one seems topical, almost, given the climate disaster we're currently enjoying - granted, the extremists in this book are more about saving animals than saving the planet per se. Once again, James and Lauren are posing as siblings (easy for them, given that they're real siblings) along with Kyle. They're out with senior mission controller Zara, who's shown up a few times before, and a member of this vegan group who has turned police informant to try and weed out the violent members of the group. So…ready for a mid-2000s view on militant veggies?

As ever with CHERUB, most of the veggie group doesn't actually come across too badly in this. There's a clear distinction drawn between the non-violent protestors, who do things like picketing labs that experiment on animals or rescuing animals from captivity. They're also explicitly stated to be mostly middle class white old dears, the kind of people who've retired and don't really have much else to do but stand around holding placards about saving the bunnies. The real extremists, the militants, are younger and angrier…but once again, I have to take issue with how black and white the morality is. The extremist group attacks and nearly blinds a woman who seems to just work in admin for some lab and doesn't have much to do with animal abuse. The climax revolves around them kidnapping a TV chef who also sells cleaning products. Their objection to him is that he tested them on animals to see if they were toxic…but also a kid drank it and the chef's people are trying to cover it up which, while obviously bad, seems out of the animal people's remit? Almost like it's a device so the audience isn't too sorry when he gets forced to drink the same cleaning products. But it just seems like Muchamore was going out of his way to make a clear good guy/bad guy dichotomy, without much thought into the complicated issues and morality around the idea of animal abuse. Especially since James and Kyle, 2/3 of the author's mouthpieces, don't rate the veggie lifestyle at all.

Actually, let's talk characters now. I have to side-eye Lauren being the one who really gets on board with the veggie thing, as opposed to James and Kyle who just laugh it all off and don't seem to listen to a word anyone's saying. That's Lauren's primary role in this book, because she doesn't really contribute to the mission much, it's mostly the boys. And I can't help but think she gets that role because she's the Token Girl. It's not badly portrayed or anything, it's a nice little arc for her, but it does feel a little stereotypical. Meanwhile, James continues to be a pain - he's so obviously written to be a stand-in for the Typical Teenage Boy, and that's to the detriment of his character sometimes. In this book, his h0m0phobia rears its head again, as he finds Kyle's boyfriend's sock on his bed and flips because that's gross. Kyle points out that James hasn't had problem with people making out on James' bed back on campus, and that James just has a problem because he's gay. And James comes round, but it's such a bizarre little cul-de-sac. I guess the function is to tell young readers that being gay isn't a bad thing, which is fine in and of itself, but it's not particularly well-handled. Give me a solo Lauren series! I'd be way more into that.

Next up, back to webcomics, for a young fawn getting stranded in a mysterious land.