#continuing my trend of answering asks from 2022

[meloartist]

Yeah, I also want to see 2 season, especially Destiny and my favorite Delirium, but I'm also curius who will play Remiel and Duma.

[i think this ask was pre-s2 announcement bc 2022 but YEAH]

i'm a HUUUUUUUUUGE duma stan you dont even KNOW

[veliseraptor]

2022 Writing Stats

it's time for Fun With Numbers: Lise's Hobbies Edition, 2022!

So I keep a daily word count writing tracker so I can monitor my own writing pace/patterns, and sometimes it's fun to see what comes out of it at the end of a year. This data does not include writing I do on this blog answering asks/writing meta/etc.; it only includes any fiction I write (original or otherwise) and more serious/structured essay works. For the most part this tracker is meant to serve as a descriptive, not a prescriptive, tool - I use it to record rather than to set goals.

And now: the charts.

To start with, the basic graph of my daily word count in 2022:

This one looks pretty similar to graphs for previous years, though it did trend a little lower than historically. However, the big outlier there in October is the highest single-day word count I've had since 2019, apparently. I wrote 5.2k on October 24th, which (looking back), wasn't even a travel day, just a random Monday, so I have no idea what was happening there. My best guess was that I was hit with a whale of an inspiration boost for some reason, but I have no recollection of what it was about.

A quick look at data distribution shows that there were 56 days in 2022 with a word count of 0 (i.e. 56 days where I wrote literally nothing; actually fewer than I expected, and fewer than in 2021 when there were 67 zero word days). Altogether I wrote 388,095 words in 2022, an increase over 2021's historic annual word count low of 386,721. (I am making fun of myself here.) My average word count per day in 2022 was 1,063 words, which is roughly on par with last year's (more on comparative daily averages later).

Looking more broadly at the patterns month over month:

Obviously something happened in July and October where I lost my mind somehow, but I don't really know how to explain that. Neither beat out September 2021 as one of my most insane writing months on record (over 60k) or even approaching my all time high in November 2017 (63k), but still. They were probably the main factors in pulling the ultimate monthly average to just above 32,442 words, given the lows in June, November, and December. June was particularly dismal this year; it's the lowest word count in a month since I started tracking this in August 2016.

June was rough, you guys.

Now to compare 2022's final total word count to previous years overall...

While continuing to track lower than earlier data (2017 and 2018 in particular), the trend for 2022 held close to 2021 and within a reasonable range of 2019 and 2020. 2020's boost likely came from the several weeks of unemployment there in the middle, tbqh, so I think I'm looking at what's probably an approximate of my "typical" output in a year at this point in my life (hovering around the 370-420k mark). The overall yearly average for these past six years is 454,899 words in a year; for the past three it's 409,647 words. All told, between 2017-2022 I recorded having written 2,729,334 words.

To look at seasonality I graphed out the month-by-month word count total, graphed by year (this one's probably hard to read):

But I failed to note any significant deviation based on any particular month year over year. Total word count per month hovers around a median of 38,726 words per month.

Breaking it down more particularly to average daily word count per year, to see how my average pace day to day changed (or didn't) from year to year:

As seen with the overall totals for the year, the daily average roughly lines up, with 2019, 2021, and 2022 forming a cohort of similar range after the apparent outliers of 2017 and 2018. (It does make me curious what data would look like, had I been gathering it, for earlier years, particularly when I was in college.)

Finally, for a completely unreadable chart that shows the daily word count graphed for every year, including a line for the average across all years:

gorgeous. absolutely illegible, I love it. But it does arguably illustrate what I started this project to prove, which is the remarkably consistent up-and-down nature of my writing pace. Peaks and lows, at a slightly varying pace and with different levels for how high or how often those peaks show up, but it does tend to come back around.

You can see this more clearly when I cut the graph down to just show the line that averages out all six years:

Now if only I could internalize that better and stop panicking about how I've lost the ability to write every time I spend a few days feeling sticky and slow. It's a goal, anyway.

That's all I've got. Thank you and I'm sorry I'm like this.

[la-cocotte-de-paris]

Hi!

3. Do you feel your age?

7. Which fashion trends did you love?

8. Which fashion trends did you hate?

Hey hey!

3. Do you feel your age?

HELL NO I feel 20 at most. Maybe 21?? Not 23 lmfao and being 23 so far has been weird. This whole year was weird tbh. Too many downs and a few very high ups. Also the idea that next year I turn 24 sickens me and terrifies me. However when I was in France and chatting with new people from all over the world, I realised most people in my age range (and probably everyone in general) feel at least 2-3 years younger than they actually are due to COVID, given many countries had restrictions and lockdowns either continuously or frequently over a three-year period or so. So that explains the not being able to register my actual age, at least partially.

7. Which fashion trends did you love?

It's funny bc usually I hate the current fashion trends but this year I felt like I was actually aligning w them by chance?? I loooooooved the dark feminine trends (including makeup) really catching fire. And the old money looks, and also the long black winter coats. Gorgeous. The chunky heeled Mary Jane shoes was also a trend I adored (and actually participated in lmao).

8. Which fashion trends did you hate?

Hmm I'm sure there were many but oddly enough I can't think of any rn?? Maybe some of the Y2K revival but not all of it? I thought some of it was a vibe. There was one person (influencer tbh rip) I followed on ig and their style changed a lot - I really dislike it now (I think it's hideous actually and imma say that out loud - their hair doesn't suit them, they wear clothes at least five sizes too big for them and they can't pull off the look at all, some colours they wear a lot look gaudy on them or don't complement their natural appearance...) but hey whatever makes one happy. 🤷🏻‍♀️ Tbh idk why I still follow them - I don't find any of their content interesting and haven't for ages.

In terms of makeup (adding makeup bc sometimes that helps bring a fashion look together) however I do find the over-blush kinda clownish lmao - mind you I didn't see much of it in Ireland or France (the parts I was in, at least). It can be cute but you gotta know what you're doing. And I've never liked freckles so doing the faux freckles on the face never made sense to me - but that was more 2022 and maybe early 2023 I think? I'll update if I can think of fashion specifically.

Thank you for asking!! <333 Sorry for the long answer ahahaha -_-" :P

End of Year Meme

[n7viper]

2, 4, 11, and 14!

Ari hiiiiiiii 💖 thank you for da ask!

(End of the Year asks)

2. Album of the year

Oh man... I agonised over this for a bit. First, I'll give a massive shoutout to a very close runner up in The Death We Seek by Currents. I know I'm always going on about them, but their riffs blow my tits off every time. The actual answer would be The Seventh Sun by Bury Tomorrow! It was one of my top albums of the year as far as plays go and I just really loved it. I was able to see them live twice this year, and the song Wrath inspired some really killer art of my guardian Mae from my good friend @sacherali 💖 Sorry to Currents and their sick riffs, but it's not a fair fight here

4. Movie of the year

You're killing me 😭 my ass does NOT watch movies. I honestly think the only new 2023 movie I watched this same year was The Mario Movie :( It's from 2022, but I will say that my favourite new to me movie I watched was The Menu. It was a really interesting satire, and I enjoyed it!

11. Something you want to do again next year

Is it cheesy to say? I would love to continue working on myself and being the best version of myself that I can be. I did a lot of therapy and had a lot of healthy growth this year. I'd like to continue that trend!

14. Favourite book you read this year

I regret to inform you that I am massively uncultured and didn't read a single book 😭 Goals for next year!

[archivyrep]

Archivist Absent: Media where archivists should be present

Molly McGee in the archives in an episode of The Ghost and Molly McGee

In April 2020, Sam Cross, who I often cite on this blog, told Archives Aware! that is worrisome that archivists are not featured in media "where they should absolutely be present." She specifically noted urban fantasy television shows, where they "find what they’re looking for without help or aid from someone with...a background in records management and/or archival science." While I can't specifically point to any shows like the ones she described, there are series which have been covered on this blog where archivists should be present. This goes beyond those I mentioned when I wrote about this topic in February 2021, when I asked "where are the archivists? Who is managing the records?" [1] The same question remains now.

Reprinted from my Wading Through the Cultural Stacks WordPress blog. Originally published on Mar. 9, 2022.

Two specific examples which come to mind are the basement archives in Phineas and Ferb and The Ghost and Molly McGee. In both cases, no archivist is shown, although characters make extensive uses of archives. If in the former series an archivist had been present, it is possible that it would have been more difficult for Prof. Doofenshmirtz to grab the town charter and use it for his own ends. Although the series does emphasize the value of records, and in some ways, the importance of ongoing stewardship and preservation of archival records, an archivist would definitely have helped counter some archives stereotypes that the series sadly perpetrated due to its portrayal of archives.

For the latter series, an archivist could be just as much a part of the plot as Archie the Archivist is in two episodes of The Regular Show. Instead, the characters somehow know how to get the information they are looking for and enter a dusty archives with no one in sight. Doesn't anyone manage this archives? Why is no one there? Those questions, predictably, are not answered in the episode.

The same could be said for the archives-related scenes in Star Wars Rebels. Even though in some episodes archives are specifically mentioned, with the Empire trying to take possession of records in order to further their own objectives, no archivists are shown. This in contrast to other Star Wars series which feature Jocasta Nu, chief archivist of the Jedi Temple Archives. While not every one of those episodes would be helped with the addition of an archivist as a character, at least some of them would be improved with such an addition. It could have helped buck some stereotypes of archivists or the trend of featuring archives but with archivists nowhere in sight.

As one of the cranky archivists sneered at my post in February, declaring "a lot of people get that information and organizational systems are products of people and have biases," and that is definitely the case with the archives in all the popular culture media mentioned so far. All of the information and organizational systems here have biases and are products of people. Sadly, this isn't really explored in any of these series, but you can't completely expect them to.

While there are undoubtedly more examples of this, I'll continue writing on this topic in hopes of finding other shows to cover in the future which feature archives and archivists.

© 2022 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

Notes

[1] In that post, I specifically highlighted Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy (2005 film), episodes of Amphibia, Futurama, Cleopatra in Space, Hilda, Little Witch Academia, and Tangled. There are other examples of this too, like The Bravest Knight, Steven Universe, and Manaria Friends, as I've pointed out in the past, along with Rick and Morty, Equestria Girls, Carmen Sandiego, That Awkward Magic!!, and Allen Gregory.

[improper-integral]

I posted 8,194 times in 2022

That's 2,259 more posts than 2021!

60 posts created (1%)

8,134 posts reblogged (99%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@stupid-lemon-eater

@thebadwulff

@annundriel

@snake-and-mouse

@upsidedowngoblin

I tagged 7,118 of my posts in 2022

Only 13% of my posts had no tags

#honestly me - 634 posts

#lmao - 476 posts

#supernatural - 288 posts

#our flag means death - 255 posts

#tumblr - 211 posts

#the devil judge - 195 posts

#cats - 187 posts

#destiel - 185 posts

#tgcf - 182 posts

#fanfic - 145 posts

Longest Tag: 139 characters

#i don't care about mcr but this post distresses me cause i'm apparently like the same age as batman in the new movie which is uncomfortable

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Today I turn 34!

My 30s really have been better than my 20s, so far. Hopefully that trend continues for the upcoming year!

I took today off so I could have a 3 day weekend, and I'm going on a quick solo road trip to Big Bear (mountain area of SoCal) to celebrate 😊 Even though it might be rainy tomorrow, hopefully I can come back with photos to share!

8 notes - Posted August 12, 2022

#4

My blaze post finished last night and I got the "Blaze Report" after I went to bed.

Here are the stats: Impressions: 9223 Likes: 271 Reblogs: 114 Replies: 32 Follows: 2 Shares: 9

Yes, while some people assumed I paid for the $10 version, I actually paid for the $25 version, which estimates 7k impressions, so I'm surprised I got over 9k [insert meme here].

These stats don't line up with the notes on the actual post, which is curious. It has 40 comments (including 3 of my own), 184 reblogs and 356 likes. I'm guessing the difference comes from users who saw the reblogs and not the original sponsored post? Getting only 580 notes with 9k impressions is a little disappointing but that's tumblr for you

Anyway, that was super fun! I think I might try again sometime, but maybe with something less likely to have people curse at me lmao

9 notes - Posted April 25, 2022

#3

alivorte ➡ brillemos

I posted about this earlier today (thanks @tenacioustam and @lib for responding and helping me pick!) but I finally changed my url!

In case you missed it, brillemos means "let's shine" in Spanish! And is also a pun on my name, Bri, because I'm a cringe dork and proud of it 😎

I saved alivorte as a side blog and wrote a little JavaScript that will auto-redirect to my new url, even if you're just looking at a singular post, it will redirect to that post. BUT, it only works on desktop. I don't know how to make it work on mobile and I'm not particularly motivated to try. Sorry mobile-using followers 😅

9 notes - Posted April 19, 2022

#2

I'm registered for the Lesbians Who Tech Pride Summit this year and I recall that you went to the same event before (or something that sounded very, very similar to it). Do you have any tips to get the most out of it? I am still very much a tech newbie who wants to break into tech and the agenda looks a bit overwhelming. Thanks in advance if you have time to answer this ask! If not, it's okay...you sharing your career journey on tumblr has been inspiring, to say the least!

Aww thanks! I did go to Lesbians Who Tech back in 2018 when I was still in grad school. I think I also signed up for the virtual pride summit this year as well, though I probably won't be able to attend (work kinda gets in the way lol).

The biggest regret I have about when I attended in 2018 was being too shy to try to connect with other people there. I think that's probably the biggest benefit to attending events like this in the first place - networking. Which I've never been particularly good at, lol. So if possible, I'd recommend targeting sessions about networking or allow you to network.

Otherwise, as a tech newbie, you likely won't get much benefit from the more technical sessions, unless you already have some prior exposure to the topic or it's marketed as a beginner friendly session (like I found one called Intro to Native Mobile Development on Tuesday, if that suits your fancy). So I'd have some fun with it, look for ones that sound interesting to you! Or check out sessions in a variety of different areas of tech (coding, analytics, product mangement, etc) so you get a wider exposure to the tech world. I feel a little overwhelmed myself looking at how many sessions there are lol so I don't think I can give more specific advice than this, unfortunately.

I hope you have fun attending the summit, and if you ever have any more questions, feel free to reach out at any time!

13 notes - Posted June 1, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

585 notes - Posted April 23, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[lethimfertilise]

Was asked yesterday what do I think about MOP in the nearest time. A good question, but to answer it we might have a glance back, time before Feb 2022. And even earlier.

Back in the days, MOP business was a pure cartel, in my understanding, led by the Canadian PotashCorp (later Nutrien), Russian International Potash Company (later Uralkali), and Belarusian Potash Company or Belaruskali. Once in the year (rarely two times) they all had agreed the frame contract prices with their main core buyers in India, China, and Brazil. Other producers had to follow.

It all started changing in 2020-2021, when first BPC was sanctioned by both the US and the EU after the controversial president elections in Belarus. Shortly after, after the commencement of the Russian invasion in Ukraine in Feb 2024, Uralkali, or correctly, its management, followed the path.

However, even prior to the sanction, MOP prices had been very high in the range of $650-750 per metric tonne FOB Baltic. But after the commencement of the war, they escalated further up to close to $1000 per metric tonne FOB Baltic. But the most important, the oligopoly was broken. Both Russians and Belorussians started selling through the brokers, who had learned how to bypass (or just ignore) the sanctions and, the most important, how to pay.

Just after Feb 2024, Belarus export halted from almost a million tonnes per month to literally zero (couple of vessels per month). The Belorussian government needed more money, so opportunities opened.

But, later in 2023, BPC concluded their agreements with China and India (albeit for 3 months only) and started discharging into bounding warehouses in Brazil. Export bounced back to 8-9 million tonnes per year. What happened to the price? It dropped back well below $200 per metric tonne FOB Baltic.

Both Uralkali and BPC have restored their country restrictions on MOP trading. And they know how to get paid (remember - sanctions don’t work!). But the oligopoly was broken - so the price war continued.

So what’s about the price forecast? I think, after end-users realized that their fears have been too much exaggerated, the price was pushed too much down. I do believe that prices witnessed now (and in the absence of China and India price agreement I will refer to the CFR Brazil index), which are $305-310 per metric tonne CFR, are fair and affordable if comparing to agri commodities prices. So my view - flat for now. But if we keep on seeing a positive trend on wheat, soybeans, and corn, some uptick is possible.

I do expect that India / China deals will be concluded at around $280-285 per metric tonne CFR, setting a reference price in SEA region.

Thanks for reading!

[borggolf]

My Golf 2022-23 Catch-Up

[Skunk on the 1st tee box - an omen? Glen Erin]

I received zeros and zeros of messages asking why I didn’t write up a golf blog last year. In lieu of answering that question, I’m just going to combine last year’s golf season with this year’s. The catch will be remembering all that happened just by looking at the scores, but here goes nothing.

[A disturbing number of geese on the 13th tee box, Majestic Oaks]

My golf game in 2021 featured my best calculated handicap, but the index began creeping up toward the end of the year. That trend continued into 2022 despite starting out with a few decent rounds at Hawk’s View and Grand Geneva; I had six terrible scores in a row in the spring (including a couple triple digit scores), spiking my handicap from 11 to 19. It took me until August to bring it back down to 13. 

[Sandhill Cranes and assorted waterfowl, 6th hole Hawk's View]

My worst round of the year came in mid-September when we decided to take advantage of a coupon for The Bull at Pinehurst Farms. Located near Sheboygan Falls, this course is notorious for being possibly the toughest in the state. If you don’t come with your A game, you’re going to walk away hurting…and I definitely did not have my A game that day. I managed 13 penalties and didn’t card a single par for a score of 113. 

[Oscar's approach shot on hole 17, The Bull at Pinehurst Farms]

My best round of 2022 was just 3 weeks later at Glen Erin in Janesville. It was the first time I’d ever finished 9 holes under par (two birdies, six pars, one bogey), then I scored a 44 on the back nine (which is still pretty good for me as I’ve never scored better than 41 on the back nine at Glen Erin). Shooting a 78 anywhere is impressive but Glen Erin isn’t exactly an easy course.

[Hole 15, Lake Arrowhead - The Lakes Course]

Another first for me was going on not one but two multi-day out of town golf trips. In late June my golf buddies and I stayed in Wisconsin Rapids and played all 36 holes at Lake Arrowhead on Saturday, then Sunday we drove to the Dells to play Wild Rock. The Lake Arrowhead courses were pretty nice (maybe a little overpriced due to their proximity to the Sand Valley resort), but Wild Rock was instantly my favorite course I’ve ever played. The views, valleys, and challenge made it worth the $100 price.

[Hole 6, Wild Rock]

In August we went up to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan for our 2nd golf trip. Along the way we stopped outside of Green Bay to play a round at Royal St. Patrick’s, where I lost at least 4 balls in the drink. Then we played the two flagship courses at the Island Resort Casino; Sage Run and Sweetgrass. I’d been wanting to play these courses since hearing about them during commercial breaks of Brewers games. Sage Run was the tougher of the two courses, but I loved it almost as much as Wild Rock. Before heading home, we played a round at Timberstone in Iron Mountain. This was another gorgeous course with big elevation changes but more of a northwoods feel. My scores weren’t very good that weekend, but it was a great time at some great courses.

[Hole 18, Timberstone at Pine Mountain Resort]

I was able to try out 15 courses I hadn’t played before 2022. Aside from the 7 played during those two trips, I played Hayward Golf Club (very nice, but not quite Big Fish), Oshkosh Country Club (nice, but maybe not worth the long drive), Washington County (a very impressive links course; definitely want to go back), Currie Park in Milwaukee (while I was waiting for the dealership to fix my car), The Bull (hopefully never again), and three Illinois courses: Renwood (a fun course I’d play again), Bittersweet (very nice but tougher), and a Thanksgiving weekend round on the north course at Eagle Ridge in Gurnee. 

[Hole 8, the north course at Eagle Ridge Resort & Spa]

For the first time in seven years, I joined a simulator league in the offseason. I was playing twice a week; at Brighton Dale in Kenosha County and the Wisconsin Indoor Golf Center in Waukesha. While it can be rightfully argued that it’s not very realistic, I felt like I was able to tweak a few things in my drives, fairway woods, and even my short game after playing 29 simulated 18 hole rounds over the winter. When March 2023 arrived, I wasn’t rusty at all.

[Hole 10, Foothills Golf Club]

My golf buddy Oscar talked me into taking a trip to Arizona in March. There we played four rounds: Foothills, Ocotillo, Devil’s Claw at Whirlwind Resort, and Dinosaur Mountain at Gold Canyon (see more pictures of these courses near the end of the blog).  Foothills was nothing to write home about and was overpriced, as Ocotillo was much nicer and cheaper…but it didn’t really feel like Arizona as there were many lakes surrounding the course. Devil’s Claw was very expensive but I enjoyed the course a lot and shot very well. Dinosaur Mountain was also very expensive and I shot like complete trash, but it was the most picturesque course I’d ever played (being that it was on the side of a mountain). I really enjoyed the experience of golfing great courses in early March when there was still snow on the ground in Wisconsin, but the greens fees for the 4 rounds alone totaled nearly $800.

[Hole 9 & clubhouse, blue course, Ocotillo]

After a few more simulator rounds back home, I hit the ground running with very good scores on Wisconsin courses in April. Late in the month I had a work trip to Las Vegas, where I made time to get in one round at Siena Golf Club (see pictures near the end of the blog). I took advantage of other for-work travel by playing White Deer Run and Pine Meadow in Mundelein IL, Wild Ridge in Eau Claire and Trapper’s Turn in the Dells when I had to make road trips to Minneapolis, and I was invited to play in a company scramble at Irish Waters outside of Green Bay. I also played a Cincinnati municipal course, Glenview, when I was there on vacation meeting up with co-workers.

[Hole 1, Wild Ridge]

My golf buddies and I once again made trips to Lake Arrowhead and the U.P.  This time after we played 36 at Lake Arrowhead, we played Christmas Mountain in the Dells. It was a pretty fun course at a good price, but we all agreed that it was no Wild Rock. On our way up to Michigan we stopped at Thornberry Creek, the official golf course of the Green Bay Packers. I thought it was great and I’d love to play it again. I carded a terrible round at Sweetgrass the next day, but played Timberstone much better than I did the previous year.

[Hole 17, Timberstone at Pine Mountain Resort]

Other first-time courses for me this year that I haven’t mentioned: Lakewoods Forest Ridges near Namakagen Lake was very picturesque with big elevation changes. Autumn Ridge near Manitowoc had some good elevation changes as well, and I was very close to an ace on the last par 3 (hit the flag stick on a bounce). I finally played Evansville and Kettle Moraine, neither of which were bad but I really wasn’t impressed. I played the par 3 course Creekview (seen along I-90 north of Edgerton) and it was a typical par 3 nine; great for beginners but I didn’t care for it. Finally, I played a November round at Steeple Chase in Mundelein with Oscar, and that course impressed me. Very well maintained course despite it being very late in the year.

[Hole 13, Forest Ridges at Lakewoods Resort]

Unlike most years, I kept my handicap fairly level throughout 2023. I was able to get it just under 12 at one point, but it never went much higher than 14. I only had two triple-digit rounds all year, and two rounds under 80. I played fewer 18-hole rounds in 2022 (90) than I did this year (98), and I spent WAY more money on golf rounds this year ($5360) than in 2022 ($3650). That doesn’t include the $850 I spent on the simulators, or the $800+ I spent on club upgrades (Callaway Rouge ST Max driver, 5w, 5h). Not to mention I burn through over 120 balls a year, which likely costs me another $300-400. 

[Jeff lining up his approach shot on hole 18, Sweetgrass]

It was a very expensive year for me, but I may have enjoyed the game more than ever. Consistency is getting better, and I'm no longer afraid to shell out more money for nicer courses. I don't think I will be making another early spring golf trip in 2024, but we are planning another Lake Arrowhead trip as well as a stay at the Gull Lake View Golf Resort near Kalamazoo, MI.

[Eric, getting tired of waiting for slow golfers. Hole 6, Sweetgrass]

[Sunrise at Ocotillo]

[Hole 2, The Devil's Claw at Whirlwind Golf Club]

[Dinosaur Mountain at Gold Canyon Golf Resort & Spa]

[Hole 1, Dinosaur Mountain at Gold Canyon Golf Resort & Spa]

[Hole 2, Dinosaur Mountain at Gold Canyon Golf Resort & Spa]

[Hole 4, Dinosaur Mountain at Gold Canyon Golf Resort & Spa]

[Hole 7, Siena Golf Club]

[Hole 12, Siena Golf Club]

[Hole 17, Siena Golf Club]

[Hole 18, Siena Golf Club]

[Hole 14, Naga-Waukee War Memorial Golf Course]

[3rd green, Hawk's View]

[Lake Como, seen from hole 17 tee box, Hawk's View]

[Final round of 2023, hole 2, Majestic Oaks at Lake Lawn Resort, Christmas Eve]

[suman505]

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[tamaradoubraomonibeke]

RSA Presentation ( AO1, AO2, AO3, LO1, LO2, LO3)

Explanation

I was shocked by the feedback I received because I wasn’t confident in my idea (others have amazing product ideas and it feels like I’m taking the easy way out focusing on the social media route). That isn’t so.

I spoke to a fellow with Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) and it totally changed my perspective on this project (I can’t in-hear his story).

After that, I knew no way in God’s name I could continue with the portrait route. Human beings have low retention span and don’t read as much e.g how many times have you read the long blurb on an Instagram post? You just look at the post, it’s caption, like or comment.

Also, this brief isn’t about displaying my talents, it’s about helping others. Social media is trending and it’s a good way to spread information and garner community.

Yet, there’s a lot of issues with social media. This is why I thought, I could change that narrative.

Some of the problems with social media

Enlightenment: Social media e.g Snapchat and Instagram sometimes offers support for superficial media, rather than enlightening people (You can get information from these platforms but need to seek it compared to Quora or reddit or even youtube). This means the topic of skin conditions are pushed back under a rug.

Representation and Community: I didn’t exactly explain it well but the algorithm is rigged. Using myself for instance, black girlis in the past got annoyed always having to type ‘black’ after a search on google or Pinterest. This is why Pinterest had a rebrand. It’s interesting how when I type braids, my mind goes to box braids, only to see French braids….. Okay, you may now assume, well I live in England and it’s mostly Caucasians. Well, as a foreigner, my search was still completely filled with Caucasian media in Nigeria. This is wrong. Even though I do explore other cultures (Spanish, Korean, Japanese,etc), from my location and most of my searches being about blackness, can’t google or even TikTok take the hint (Yes,I’m coming for TikTok too). TikTok’s algorithm is the worst because it appears to be inclusive when it’s the opposite. Back in 2021, black creators complained as they’d make a trend but on the top of the sound was Caucasian so there’s no credit given. Now, imagine the skin condition community in that retro-spect. They must do a lot of digging to find an answer to every symptom. This is because as a doctor once told Jackson Gillies about HS ‘the disease isn’t sexy enough’.

Community (again): Going back to my experience, this can be explained using, the teen girl experience (when she sees all these beautiful adults, she becomes insecure and wants to start changing her features to fit in). Another problem with social media is the individuals I see. They’ve asked for a birthday, so they certainly know my age range. I think there’s nothing wrong with admiring people older or younger than you but there’s a thin line. I just used the teenage girl experience but now, let’s talk about adults. When the algorithm doesn’t draw boundaries, this can breed predators. Yes, it’s disgusting, a crime, a choice but we need to realise when the algorithm is showing someone who’s clearly beyond their years a young audience…….. Yes, they could have pure intentions like parents BUT not all the time, that is worrying. In 2022, when TikTok faced allegations in US, it was alarming how most of the congress (old men) stated how they have little girls dancing on their ‘for you page’. TikTok users were appalled, because we all know the trend of dancing has slowly diminished. This begs the questions, why is their ‘for you page’ mostly filled with children because mine isn’t.

Human engagement: No more user engagement. There’s an obsession with getting humans to use social media. Thus, triggers like the vibrations, red circle notifications are installed in place to make people use the app. Suddenly, it’s no longer a tool but a religion.

Obsession with numerical data: Humans are obsessed with rewards such as likes and followings. This is why social media uses them. However, social media was supposed to be a tool, not a lifestyle. What’s scary is how they refuse to make changes to social media regardless of the impact. Instagram in 2019 announced it’s removing likes but never did. I believe it should have been implemented.

Solutions

These are all summarised in the presentation.

Feedback

Narrow down the target audience to a specific skin condition community.

Could also try the comic idea but the forum or anti-social media Dot called is the best. This depends on the route I want to go. I didn’t say anything truth be told but I’m leaning into the anti-social media. For the longest time, as a child, I was always inquisitive and wondered how to problem solve but I lost that zeal, focusing on only the aesthetics as my ideas never made it to the cut so I’m a lot more confident.

Research my target audience.

Re-brand likes instead of discarding it.

[kevinkoosk]

Royalties on "Don't Stop The Music" and 79 other tracks

Royalties on Rihanna's song, "Don't stop the music", along with 79 other tracks, are up for sale.

You'll find this information on Royalty Exchange, the biggest music royalty marketplace in the world.

Here's an excerpt of the list of tracks:

I believe that this is an investment that would pay off over the years. However, it's risky.

Earnings for the past 12 months total to about $4,200.

The bulk of the earnings came from streaming, followed by performances.

By far, the biggest earner is "Don't stop the Music" by Rihanna.

International earnings outstrip the domestic (US-based) earnings. I wonder about that breakdown.

But this particular sale covers all publishing royalties, not just international or domestic royalties.

I asked Claude what was the break even point.

Here was my prompt: Claude, assuming that I wanted to purchase the publishing royalties for a catalogue of songs, at the price of $56,000. The annual earnings for the past 5 years (2018 to 2022) are $2,622.34, $4,010.70, $3,123.44, $4,534.55, $4,214.00. When do you think I would break even? Would these songs increase in earnings over time?

This was his answer:

Okay, let's break this down:

Purchase price of publishing rights: $56,000

Annual earnings last 5 years: 2018 - $2,622.34 2019 - $4,010.70 2020 - $3,123.44 2021 - $4,534.55 2022 - $4,214.00

To calculate the break even point, we take the purchase price and divide it by the average annual earnings:

Average annual earnings = (2622.34 + 4010.70 + 3123.44 + 4534.55 + 4214) / 5 = $3,701.01

Break even time = Purchase price / Average earnings = $56,000 / $3,701.01 = 15.13 years

So at the current average earnings rate, it would take approximately 15 years to break even on the $56,000 purchase price.

As for whether the earnings will increase over time - that depends on a few factors:

General music industry trends and popularity of the songs/artists

Revenue from new distribution channels like streaming

Potential for the songs to be used in movies/ads etc.

Ongoing promotion and marketing of the catalog

Given the variability in music industry earnings, it's difficult to predict if revenues will steadily increase each year. Safest assumption is they continue around current average, with some growth potential.

In summary, break even period is around 15 years at current earnings rate. Earnings could potentially increase with industry growth and wider distribution.

I was amazed.

I asked Claude another question: Why would an artist want to sell his or her publishing royalties, when he or she could earn royalties over a long period of time?

Answer:

There are a few reasons why an artist might want to sell their publishing royalties even though they could earn income over a long period of time:

Immediate lump sum payment - The artist gets a large, one-time payment they can use now, instead of waiting for small payments over many years. This provides capital they can re-invest or use to fund new projects.

Avoid hassle of managing royalties - Managing publishing rights and collecting royalties can be administratively burdensome. Selling the rights means the artist doesn't have to deal with it.

Long term value is uncertain - Future royalty streams are never guaranteed due to changes in industry, popularity, etc. The artist may want to take the definite lump sum now.

Opportunity cost - The artist may believe they can make better use of the capital if they had the lump sum now to invest in their career or other business opportunities.

Tax implications - Receiving a lump sum could have different tax advantages compared to long term royalty payments.

Estate planning - The artist wants to realize the value now as part of planning their estate and legacy rather than leaving it to heirs.

Changing priorities - Many artists want to move on from old work and focus on new projects. Selling rights provides a clean break.

So in summary, while giving up long term royalty rights has a cost, there are good reasons an artist may prefer the flexibility, convenience, and control provided by a lump sum payment now. The choice depends on the artist's financial situation and career objectives.

That is a smart answer.

Well, it is one thing to be a musician, but to be a music mogul, i.e. a rich music entrepreneur, you need to be astute.

And sometimes that means taking profits up front.

Meanwhile, if anyone out there is considering investing into music, I think real estate might yield better returns.

[digital-coach]

Exploring the Potential of AI with Bing, Edge and Bard

Artificial Intelligence in Search Engines

The phenomenon of GPT-3 powered chatbots is the most debated topic of recent times. Google Trends, the service that allows you to analyse interest in a given keyword or phrase over time, shows exponential growth in ‘GPT chat’ searches as of mid-December 2022, with increasingly positive growth prospects. Not to mention AI Search Engines.

I would like to explore the details of this trend in 2023 and to elaborate on the role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) within search engines.

Besides the chatbot powered by GPT-3, Artificial Intelligence is playing an increasingly important role within search engines. This is because search engines are evolving from simple information search tools to true virtual assistants capable of understanding user queries and providing relevant and accurate answers.

AI is doing this through the use of technologies such as Natural Language Processing (NLP), which enables search engines to understand human language and answer user queries in a more natural way. In addition, AI is also helping search engines to understand the context of user queries in order to provide more relevant and accurate answers.

For example, if a user asks “What is the best restaurant near me?”, the search engine could use the user’s location, culinary tastes and user reviews to provide a list of restaurant options. This is possible thanks to the integration of AI in search engines, which allows them to analyse a vast amount of data and provide more personalised and appropriate answers.

Thus, it is well established that, Artificial Intelligence is playing an increasingly important role in search engines, as it enables them to better understand user queries and provide more relevant and accurate answers. This is leading to a better search experience for users and higher quality results. This trend will continue to develop in 2023 and the years to come, leading to an increasingly efficient and intuitive search experience for users.

Read more on my website :

[splathousefiction]

Joyful Stick: Mods And You

Good day my lovely deviants. Welcome back to Joyful Stick. Miss our last entry? You can read it here. As you can probably tell, it’s been quite some time since that. Before getting into our main topic I’m going to explain why.

Joyful Stick was a series I originally started as a “warm up” for my other projects, such as fiction stories and editorials. In a similar way, Jack’s Sack also filled this role. Both series kept me writing and engaged with my craft. Both also kept me more engaged with the larger NSFW community as well. Thanks both to support on patreon and gifts, these respective series more or less could continue in perpetuity if I wanted them to. There was always the promise of a new entry either weekly or bi-weekly. Except there was one problem.

I got bored.

Sex toy makers do go through trends and changes with their products, but it’s a long wait for new models to go from an idea to being available. This often meant I was left reviewing extremely similar toys, with little to add to the conversation or recommendation from the previous review. Though I found alternative means with which to generate revenue from them (like fansly), these reviews rarely “popped” and often were ignored in favor of the other content I created with the toys. Quite a few of you enjoyed watching me/hearing me use them over reading a review, and I can understand why. The last entry of Jack’s Sack was in April of 2022.

As such, that series won’t be returning. Any toys sent to me will be reviewed on my fansly in either audio or video form as per request of the person that sends it. These reviews will be behind a paywall, available either a subscription or a one-time purchase on my fansly page. If you’d like to see that series continue, I suggest following me there.

Joyful Stick had the opposite issue. With two major platforms supporting a wide variety of NSFW releases (that being Steam and Itch.io), there was a veritable ocean of content from all kinds of creators. However, curation and coverage of these titles is extremely rare. While I’m well aware I’m hardly alone in covering adult games, these kinds of discussions are in the niche. I can’t name anyone else off the top of my head that does these styles of reviews. Likewise, the NSFW/Adult game community suffers from a major issue-that being an ongoing bout of “hentai-itis”. It made finding games that had quality writing and gameplay exceedingly difficult. Many titles started to become a slurry of indistinguishable characters and engines before my very eyes.

The only review I actually remember well is the one I did covering Ghost of Tsushima. A title that, while mature and incredible, notably wasn’t pornographic in nature. Following that was my review-cum-editorial of Bloodborne PSX, which also notably wasn’t a porn game. Both of these reviews stay in my mind more so for what I personally-as a player-gleamed from them rather than what they were able to accomplish. Both are great, go play them-but their existence in my life brought more than any RPGMaker title with giant tiddies ever could.

I found it extremely difficult to write anything for this review series that matched that level. So, I got jaded. Burned out. Bored, and disinterested.

As December came in 2022 and I was going through a depressive episode, I began to ask myself what I truly wanted from my creative endeavors. Addressing the obvious, growing gap in my writing was first and foremost. It had been months since I wrote anything, even longer for series like Joyful Stick. I thought back to those prior reviews-and the answer became readily apparent.

Joyful Stick is returning, as made obvious by this entries existence. However, it’s no longer going to focus just on the games themselves. I always felt a bit shameful measuring anything with arbitrary metrics of  “buy or don’t”, as I felt it cut into the artistic endeavors of the developers. Rather, I’m going to focus much more on what the title itself is trying to say, along with my personal reception and the communities.

I absolutely, positively will review anything gifted to me. This includes Non-NSFW/Adult title. If I feel as strongly about something as I did Ghost or BBPSX, you can expect a write up on it in due time. I’ll try to veer towards coverage of NSFW/Adult games, as there’s not nearly enough done for them. But I am no longer going to limit myself to those only.

So.

Got something you want me to check out?

Drop me a line, and if you’re so inclined I’ll give you means to gift me it.

As always, I’ll gladly answer questions on twitter.

Now without anymore delay…onto our review.

One Thick Robot Changes Everything

Haydee is not an great game.  

Not really.

It’s not terrible, but rather something a bit worse-exceedingly average and simultaneously aggravating in ways too familiar to even draw inspired criticism. It’s a third-person shooter that has enemy variation you can count on one hand. There’s minor puzzles and platforming, which are either brain-dead simple or inherently crafted so badly that asking for a guide would be meet with a sneer before someone tells you to “get good”. It’s three hours long and feels twice that.

But Haydee had exactly two things going for it-Haydee herself, the tit-ular character, and Steam Workshop accessibility.

Haydee is a faceless, curvaceous robot with her assets on full (if tasteful) display. Her upper body is covered in white-plated science fiction clothing meant to simulate combat armor. Her long legs and ass lead to the floor running free of a blue-tinted singlet. Yes, every part of her jiggles as well. While not an especially inspired design, Haydees presentation launched a thousand Source Film Maker videos and several careers. If we’re to make an argument on whether that design was inherently sexualised or not, I think therein lies the answer.

Players get to gaze and look at Haydee through an over-the-shoulder camera which can be rotated freely with the mouse. Her movements are likewise exaggerated, requiring additional button presses to make her squat then get back up, haul herself over platforms and more. The water effects in the game are a far cry from sensational-but getting Haydee wet predictably adds an appealing shine to every part of her.

It’s no wonder then that I heard about the game through the porn first. Before I was even made aware that Haydee had a steam page, I watched her deeply impregnate several Dead Or Alive girls, tit fuck several men and jerk off folks with her ass cheeks. Her design, albeit horny, was just “sci-fi robot generic” enough that I had no idea what she could have been from. Upon finding out there was an entire game with this character, I purchased it the moment it went on sale.

And.

Well.

Yet, Haydee continues to be something I come back to every so often specifically because of the community response to Haydee herself. The reaction to a character who was realistically “thick” and proportioned right at the front stage of a game garnered the title enough success that a sequel was released. I’m not purchasing the sequel and have zero interest in playing it. A community of fervent supporters also began cranking out mods, reskins, new levels and more within the same month of the titles debut.

Which lead to the discovery of one of the greatest collective efforts of archiving I have ever seen.

Nude Mods, Censorship And More

Nude mods and alterations which add sexual content to games aren’t a new concept.

I remember reading a preview for Morrowind in an issue of PC Gamer in middle school that very specifically joked about “the harem of nude, big tiddy mages” available through community efforts-and that was the specific reason I bought the game. A Gameshark code to make Kasume in Dead or Alive 2: Hardcore nude was available at some point when I was a freshman. With sweaty palms, I fervently typed in fifty lines of code to get a character model with as much anatomical detail as a barbie doll. Someone had legitimately sat down and figured out how to remove her layers by reverse engineering that specific part of the game and building a code to alter it. Rumors of a “nude mode” in the original Tomb Raider are almost as old as I am.

These aren’t new concepts, but industry and platform reactions to it absolutely are. It’s a mixed bag of ethical reasoning-fighting sexism in the industry and creating safe environments and platforms for everyone is always a good thing. Puritanicalism is not. Some companies fumble this, others don’t. There’s no right answer saving abstaining, which in of itself can be particularly insidious.

Steam handled this a few years ago by announcing they would allow any content that didn’t represent a direct threat to it’s user base, adopting the “new grounds rule” of “everything by everyone”. Except this wasn’t a hard and fast rule-Red Candle Games infamously had their title removed after place holder art was left in by accident. Similar layers of censorship have also occurred with other titles, often after pressure was applied by the public or a government entity.

In regards to adult titles, Steam has a hypocritical stance. Titles themselves can often have any number of NSFW/Adult things or themes within them (over half the games purchased for this series were on steam). However, things uploaded to the Steam Workshop abide by a totally different set of Terms of Service. Quite specifically, adult content is more or less forbidden, with uploaders and creators resorting to clever titles, hiding what’s actually in the file or altering the mod with minimal censorship to abide by Steams rules. Most of the time users simply circumvent this by going to larger, more lenient mod databases such as Nexus.

The Haydee community had a radically different idea.

For all the obvious reasons, Haydee is a title that had an abundance of sexualized content in it’s mods. Total reskins, posers, levels mimicking BDSM dungeons and more abounded. Of the most wild I personally saw was a “barefoot sounds” mod which…made Haydees bare feet sound like bare feet. An overwhelming majority of these were pulled from the Steam Workshop, often without notice to the creators. As the last seven years of my life have been devoted to sexual entertainment, I can’t even begin to quantify how devastating de-platforming can be to an individual or team.

While these were often dual uploaded on other platforms, the Haydee community decided to fight back in a unique way. As the Steam Discussion features for games has a totally different terms of service from either Workshop or Steam itself, they created a thread with a google-drive archive of every single mod pulled as a result of censorship.

As of this writing, it’s over twelve gig and features over two hundred mods.

It’s single handedly one of the most ambitious community efforts I have ever seen for what is otherwise an un-extraordinary game, the direct response of attempted censorship. The mere fact this is pinned at the top of the community board featuring content in flagrant violation of Workshop’s TOS lays bare how pointless crusades against such content actually are-and made me come to the following realization.

Censorship in of itself is a pointless practice compared to efforts like proper age gating and other means of restricting adult content. Removing adult content from your platform does not stop people from being horny. As a sex worker, we’ll either exist in spite of your TOS or because you directly allow us to. One is going to be a much bigger pain in your ass than the other. As sex workers and adult content drive a sizable portion of website traffic in all cases, adjusting the TOS and allowing us to ethically conduct business is paramount to maintaining your own.

This efforts of the Haydee community reminded me of the countless times a “NSFW Purge” has been rumored to occur at some point on twitter. Except SWers, porn and more make up so much of Twitter’s traffic that there were internal talks to simply allow us a platform of our own within twitter’s ecosystem. Getting rid of us would have killed the site, just like tumblr.

Censorship isn’t the answer, ever. Rather, it’s a band aid on an issue to show investors and nothing more.

-j

[lstubbsinternshipeportfolio]

3. Becoming an effective team member and contributor

Max, my supervisor, has been a key contributor to my self-assurance and has consistently provided unwavering support throughout my professional journey. Whenever I have presented any potential issues, he has been reassuring and effectively communicated that I possess the necessary talent to overcome them. His consistent reinforcement of encouragement and honest feedback has been helpful in my ability to extract the best from myself.

For instance, when I was first tasked with creating graphics for our company's social media platforms, I initially felt pressure to maintain a standard comparable to that of professional brands such as the AFL, AFLW or NRL. However, upon receiving Max's positive feedback on my template, it greatly boosted my confidence and instilled a desire within me to continue to improve my craft. His guidance and support helped me to hone my skills and develop a better understanding of how to create visually appealing and engaging content.

Ayden, the general manager of DSA, has also been a valuable source of support. He consistently ensures that all team members are doing well, and often acts as a mentor to me. Max often humorously refers to Ayden as Superman, because of his extraordinary expertise in all areas. Despite his busy schedule, Ayden always finds the time to support his team members. He is always willing to provide guidance and answer any questions I have. His expertise in graphic design and marketing has been invaluable to me, and I have learned a lot from him.

In addition to the support provided by my supervisors and co-workers, I also made an effort to actively seek out opportunities to improve my skills and become a more valuable team member. For example, I requested additional training on graphic design software and took advantage of any workshops or seminars offered by the company to learn new skills and stay current with industry trends. I also made a point to ask for feedback from my supervisor and colleagues on my work and took their suggestions for improvement to heart.

One of the most valuable things I've learned during my internship is the importance of communication. As an intern, I had to learn how to communicate effectively with my supervisor and my colleagues. I had to be able to clearly express my ideas, ask questions when I was unsure, and be open to feedback. This helped me to build trust with my supervisor and my colleagues, which made it easier for me to work collaboratively and efficiently. I still have room to improve with communication, but compared to where I was before this year, I believe I have improved sufficiently.  Internships also improve adaptability to the workplace, team-playing capability, professionalism, computer communication skills and career potential (Di Meglio, 2022)

Overall, the combination of support and guidance from my supervisor and lecturers, as well as my own willingness to learn and grow, helped me to become a more effective team member and contribute more fully to the team's goals and objectives. It was an amazing experience to work with such a supportive team, and I feel grateful for the opportunity to learn from them. I believe that the skills and knowledge I've gained during my internship will be beneficial to me in my future career.

Di Meglio, Barge-Gil, A., Camiña, E., & Moreno, L. (2022). Knocking on employment’s door: internships and job attainment. Higher Education, 83(1), 137–161. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-020-00643-x

[ninjaduckpirategoose]

Opinion

Young voters don’t want a bar of us: the lament of Young Liberals leader

Dimitry Chugg-Palmer

Young Liberals president

December 31, 2022 — 12.05am

Thursday’s Resolve Political Monitor revealed what many Liberals have been dreading – most young people just don’t want a bar of us. Now, just 21 per cent of voters aged 18 to 34 would vote for the Coalition, down from 27 per cent at the May federal election.

Unconvinced and unwilling to listen, Australia’s young voters are walking away from the Coalition. Coupled with the fact that Millennials and Gen Z are making up a larger proportion of the voter roll, it is clear this trend presents a structural barrier to future electoral success for the Liberal Party.

As a young Australian who cares deeply about the future of our country, I believe that Liberal values provide the best pathway for a brighter future. To achieve that, we need to win elections.

So, how do we win back young voters? Before we answer that, we must first ask: “How did we get here?”

A good place to start is the 2022 federal election, in which the Coalition didn’t just ignore young Australians; it treated them with contempt.

Young Australians are highly discerning about their choices. Products and brands that are personal, transparent and ethical attract a loyal customer base. We are the generation of the influencer and we listen to those we trust.

All of this points to the importance of authenticity, honesty and integrity to young people as they make their choices. However, in 2022 the Liberal Party abandoned authenticity by serving up “Scotty from marketing”. The satirical website The Betoota Advocate coined that moniker for Scott Morrison, but the meme stuck because it perfectly summed up his attitude to the issues of the day.

Instead of the genuine commitment needed to confront the deep-seated cultural problems in our politics – on questions of respect, integrity and the treatment of women – we got marketing and spin. If the salesman wasn’t enough to turn young voters away, his approach to key policy issues – namely climate change and housing affordability – sent them running.

Action on climate change continues to rank among the top priorities for young Australians. We want to ensure that our planet is liveable for us and our children. Despite the Coalition government wheeling out a commitment to net-zero emissions by 2050, few believed it on the issue of climate action.

Why? Because the Coalition spent the previous 10 years unable to agree on an approach, and the final product was nothing more than a glossy brochure. It is not that we, the Liberals, were “Labor-lite” but that we lacked credibility. We were punished for this, and it was a key reason many young voters abandoned the Coalition.

Unfortunately, it appears this lesson still hasn’t been learnt by the federal Coalition with its recent opposition to the Albanese government’s climate legislation likely confirming the suspicions young voters had about our climate credentials. Climate action is not only about protecting the environment; it is about the opportunity to grow our nation’s prosperity.

Housing affordability is perhaps the greatest anxiety of my generation. We are bombarded daily by the media about the property market and at times it feels like the deck is stacked against us. It should be said, plenty of people choose to rent because of the flexibility and lifestyle that renting allows, and rental policy is a challenge the Coalition must do better on.

However, for as long as home ownership is an aspiration, we should be seeking to lower barriers to entry. Instead of making this a core message and policy offering, the Coalition sat on the Super Home Buyer Scheme (which would have allowed first home buyers to use some of their superannuation to buy a home) until the last week of the election campaign. While that was designed to avoid a negative campaign by Industry Super, it was seen as a cynical attempt to buy votes at the last minute. We gave voters no reason to believe us – so they didn’t.

Political wisdom says “you can’t fatten a pig on market day”. This applies to policy development. The shortcomings on climate and housing demonstrate the brand damage that has turned off young voters. The further decline in support since the election shows that the Coalition has not done enough to remedy it.

We cannot simply hope that as young voters get older they will vote conservative. So, how do we win young voters back? Liberalism is all about empowering the individual. To do so, we need to listen to young people at the grassroots. Our MPs, and our party officials, must do a better job in engaging. It means meeting young Australians where they are by using social media far more effectively than we have.

And we must increase female representation – not just because it is electorally smart, but because it will lead to better policies.

And we must work hard to apply our timeless values – individual freedom, equality of opportunity and reward for effort – to the challenges facing young Australians today.

We can’t simply hope the tried and tested policy playbook will work next time. Our policy offerings must be representative, authentic and credible.

The Victorian Liberals have finally got the message after their election loss, and NSW Liberals have already been responsive to these issues for some time.

The road to winning young voters back is long but it is necessary to win the future.

Dimitry Chugg-Palmer is the NSW state president and incoming federal president of the Young Liberals.