#giving this poll 1 week so it ends after I finish my exams

[sserrafeim]

🗣️MAASVERSE PEOPLE🗣️

Comment if you want something specific 🥰

[addierose444]

A Typical Week: Spring 2021

Before getting into the actual content, I thought I would just point out that this is my 100th blog post! You can check out the full list here. 

As noted in my fall 2020 version of this post, my week is primarily dictated by my current course schedule. (To check out all of my past courses, click here). Furthermore, the way I write these posts is to focus on academics as they're a big part of my life, but also the most natural thing to write about publicly. This post should give you a realistic sense of the structure of my week and courses. I thought it may be useful to contrast expectations and reality when it comes to productivity. Early in the semester, I mapped out my idealized homework schedule around my meetings and assignment deadlines. The first row lists deadlines. The other rows are split by my meals (lunch and dinner). Even if I don’t strictly follow the schedule, spending the time to map things out is quite useful. To write about my real schedule, I actually looked back through data from my time tracking application, Toggl Track. I know this is a very long post, but it wasn’t really interesting enough to become a two-parter. 

A typical school day starts off with my 9:00 (or 9:10) alarm. I also often have a second alarm set for 9:15 as a backup. Here at college, I simply use the default clock app on my phone and have it play from my favorites playlist on Spotify. I very occasionally need to wake up earlier to finish up an assignment as midnight is my strict cutoff for doing work. I know a consistent sleep schedule is very important, but it’s definitely something I struggle with.

Monday:

My week begins with a 9:20 math class. The specific course is math methods which as previously explained is an applied math course from the physics department that is required for physics and engineering majors. We usually start off by going over the pre-class check in (PCCI) and/or other questions students have. This review is followed by a lecture on new material. Throughout the class, we work through example problems in breakout rooms (on Zoom whiteboards) and answer multiple-choice questions using the poll feature. (The poll questions are anonymous and ungraded). Partway through the class, we get a 4-minute break. One nice thing about this class is that we actually thoroughly go through the example problems when we regroup as an entire class. This is important because, without feedback, practice is of limited utility. Furthermore, going over the problem gives me a chance to get everything into my notes. The integration of lectures with practice is something I really appreciate about this course. In past math classes, the format has been a lecture followed by a worksheet of practice problems. While that model sometimes makes sense, I much prefer this integrated approach.  One issue with leaving practice until the end is that you sometimes run out of time and don’t catch knowledge gaps until the end of class. After math methods, I get a 20-minute break during which I often listen to the latest episode of The Daily (a short new podcast from the New York Times). 

Next up is my philosophy of logic class which starts with a few minutes of breathing and stretching. On the first day of class, I thought this was a really strange thing, but have come to appreciate it. Afterward, we go over any relevant announcements and sometimes debrief the previous class. This class is different from my other classes in that it is reading and discussion-based. We spend most of the class in the main room strengthening our understanding of the reading through full class discussions and mini-lectures. Even though the class is already very small (13 students), we also make use of breakout rooms to work through study questions. Our tests are pyramid style which means we spend one class period working independently and another class on the same questions in a small group. We also have short quizzes, called mini check-ins,  every few weeks. Next up is lunch during which I sometimes listen to a podcast or audiobook. You can check out some of my favorite podcasts and books of 2020 at the associated links.

After lunch, I have my computer systems lab. The teaching assistant of my lab section starts off with a quick introduction to the assignment. We then work independently and ask questions as they come up. Even though we don’t really work collaboratively the lab is sort of fun because it’s less formal than a regular class. For the first part of the semester, the lab assignments often took way longer than the allotted time (and sometimes longer than our projects) so I often spent more of the afternoon finishing up the assignment. Fortunately, the course staff was made aware of this issue and adjusted accordingly. Just for some context, this course is a UMass class which is why there is a whole course team and teaching assistants. To read more about Five College course registration click here. At Smith, while some classes have teaching assistants who help out during class, all of the classes are taught and run by our actual professors. We also have student tutors as an academic resource outside of class. To read more about academic support systems at Smith, click here. 

After finishing up my lab assignment, I start in on my math methods PCCI. A typical PCCI consists of reading a section or two of the textbook (written by our professor) and completing a short practice problem or so-called discovery exercise. Depending on the week, I either start in on my reading assignment for my computer systems class or logic class. At 4:00, I have my weekly one-on-one meeting with my supervisor for my ResLife job. Following the meeting, I relax by listening to music or an audiobook. At 5:00, I order, pick up, and eat my dinner. After dinner, I complete any remaining readings for my computer systems and logic classes. If I haven’t yet completed my lab assignment or have an exam the following day, I devote some of the night to circuits. Otherwise, I may work on a computer systems project or theory of computation assignment. 

Tuesday:

Tuesday’s are my busiest day of the week in terms of class hours. With that said, it’s nothing compared to my Thursdays last fall. I start Tuesdays off with my circuits class. During class, we learn new circuit theory and circuit analysis techniques. We also go through example problems. While we often run out of time to fully work through the extra practice problems in breakout rooms, fortunately, my professor posts videos going over those problems. After taking our feedback into account, we now get a break partway through the class. Each lecture covers a lot of material, so the brain/screen break is much appreciated. To check in on how the class is feeling about various concepts, our professor has us use the annotation feature on a scale from totally get it to totally lost. 

After circuits is my 20-minute break followed by my theory of computation lecture. The theoretical nature of the material means that it really is a lecture. While we obviously go through examples, there aren’t really practice problems as there would be in a math class. We use the chat to some extent in all of my classes, but to a greater degree in this course. Next up is lunch and a COVID test. At 1:40 I am back to circuits for the lab. Most of the labs are virtual with physical lab equipment, but a few have been in-person so that we could use special equipment. Ironically, one of our in-person labs was actually fully virtual in terms of lab equipment. (We were sitting on the lawn outside of Ford together and running circuit simulators on our laptops). Fortunately, we don’t usually need to stay until 4:30. I tend to just collect my data, ask some questions about the material, and then finish up the write-up at a later point in time. This time block is also the one used whenever we have an exam. 

I always start by doing the textbook reading for circuits. I don’t read super closely, but it’s still a good primer for the next class. In terms of other work, Tuesdays are a bit more unpredictable and really depend on how much I got done over the weekend. Specifically, while I usually finish my math methods assignment over the weekend, occasionally I need to finish it up on Tuesday evenings. Likewise, for circuits, I sometimes finish the last few problems on a Tuesday evening. At 7:00, I have a staff meeting with the other community advisors in my neighborhood and our supervisor. Our meetings usually take place over Zoom, but our most recent one was in-person with ice cream from Herrell’s which was a lot of fun. You can read about some other Northampton food locations (restaurants, cafes, and more) here. In weeks where I haven’t yet started my computer systems work, I do what I would usually have done on a Monday on a Tuesday. 

Wednesday:

Wednesdays are similar to Mondays without the computer systems lab and ResLife meeting. In the afternoon I often attend office hours for my theory of computation class to ask questions about the weekly assignment. Even though I don’t have my logic class until the following Monday, I usually just do the reading on Wednesday afternoon. On Wednesday evenings, I typically work through my circuits revisions. I also tend to do a good chunk of my computer systems coursework. This consists of watching lecture videos, taking notes, and taking lesson quizzes. Furthermore, I have definitely spent some Wednesday evenings working through computer systems projects. 

Thursday:

Thursdays are like Tuesdays without the circuits lab. Even though I have the whole afternoon free, unfortunately, I am sometimes having to finish up my theory of computation assignment. It’s also common for me to start working on the new math methods problem set. In the case of this Thursday, I played some guitar and then started writing this post. I also do my circuits reading for Tuesday and take the quick lab quiz. If I have any remaining computer systems coursework, I do that as well.  

Friday:

This semester I only have one class on Fridays, math methods. After class, I get a COVID test and an early lunch. I know it seems crazy how many free afternoons I have given that I am taking 22 credits and am a double STEM major. However, part of this is explained by my UMass computer systems course being asynchronous and the fact that I completed the one-credit companion course in C programming before my Smith semester started. My computer systems class was originally scheduled to meet Monday, Wednesday, and Friday afternoons. Even though I wish the class was synchronous, the flexibility of an asynchronous class has been much appreciated. Furthermore, the class was in a terrible time block that would have caused me to miss most of house tea. Back to what a Friday afternoon looks like! After completing my PCCI for math methods, I often rewatch the lecture videos for computer systems (on double speed) and then take the weekly quiz. I next pick up tea snacks from Cutter-Z and attend house tea at 4:30. After tea, I order dinner and often eat it in the living room with housemates. Fridays are definitely my least productive day and I have definitely taken a few weekly quizzes on Saturday after having planned to take them on Friday. Instead of doing real work, I often spend Friday afternoons writing blog posts. As for this post, I wrote most of it yesterday but spent a good chunk of Friday afternoon on it as well. 

Saturday:

Despite my best efforts to have a consistent sleep schedule, I often sleep in on Saturdays until 10:00. I then have a leisurely hour or so of listening to an audiobook. At 11:00, I get an early lunch. As mentioned in the Friday description, I sometimes end up taking my weekly quiz for computer systems on Saturday. When I have tests in math methods, I typically take them on Saturday night. (The tests are timed but are self-scheduled over the given weekend which includes Friday). When there is not a math test, I often work on my math problem set in the afternoon. Every few weeks, I host POCheese at 4:00. This week we are actually going to be meeting at 5:00 for a ramen night! At 6:00 I have a uke club meeting over Zoom. In weeks where I have already finished my math problem set and don’t have a test, I start in on my circuits problem set.

Sunday:

Sundays start like Saturdays in that I often have a leisurely morning. At 11:00 I get a COVID test and an early lunch. Sundays are almost always devoted to my circuits. This includes working through the problems set, the lab writeup, or studying for an upcoming exam. If my Saturday wasn’t as productive as intended, I do the homework described in that section. At 6:00 I have a Society of Women Engineers (SWE) board meeting. At 7:00, I either lead a community meeting (part of my ResLife job) or attend house council. Afterward, I fill out my weekly report (also part of my ResLife job).

[thorne93]

The Softest Fire (Part 1)

Prompt: Rosaline Vaughan had it all: fame, money, power, glory, a high status job. Until, one day, she woke up, and realized something was missing from her life.

Word Count: 3379

Warnings: mentions of being an orphan

Notes: First Fantastic Beast fic! I could NOT have done this at all without @arrow-guy​. They have created a counterpart to this fic, writing it from Nora Vaughan’s perspective (Rosaline’s cousin/adopted sister). Fic aesthetic done by @mrs-dragneel-stark-solo​.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A long line of wizards and witches had lived before me. Long, long before me. Our family wasn’t famous, and wasn't extremely well to do. As far as fortune or fame went, we were just like any other family. The Vaughans. I was born, in 1897, as Rosaline Vaughan. Soft blonde curls, creamy skin, and ocean blue eyes were my distinctive features.

The only difference for me was, my parents weren’t alive. When I was three, my father’s life was cut short when a horrible accident occurred. He was an auror for the Ministry of Magic, chasing down a criminal. In his pursuit, he was about to apparate… And he did, only he did so incorrectly. Something distracted him, and it ripped his chest wide open. Splinching, I believe is what they call it. He couldn't be saved…

It was only a year later that my mother had a tragic mishap with her potions. She dabbled, even thought of starting a shop for elixirs and tonics… But she’d misread a label… and the whole lab was destroyed. 

Their deaths is how I wound up in my Uncle and Aunt’s home, living and being raised with my cousin Nora. They raised me as their own and Nora and I were practically inseparable, sisters, if you will. Lovely, lovely people. My Uncle and my father were brothers, those two got along marvelously, and so did Nora and I, for being two entirely different people. 

Nora is seven years older than me. I was beginning to learn how to properly write, read, and do arithmetic when she received her first letter to Hogwarts. I was raised on magic, bred on magic. Nothing about magic was a secret in my Aunt and Uncle’s home. Nora is the adventurous one, the bold one, the dedicated, patient, and the curious one. She was creative, and sometimes pushed the envelope. 

On the other hand, I was… quiet, reserved, non-risky one. I never defied, never disobeyed, always kept my nose down.

I often studied the books Nora bought in Diagon Alley weeks before her stay at Hogwarts. By the time I attended… well I was years ahead of anyone in my class. 

Most people, including my professors, thought I would or should be in the Ravenclaw house at Hogwarts, given my thirst for knowledge and my nose always in a book. However, Hufflepuff was given to me. I didn’t complain. I had no preference on the matter. Nora had spoken of each house to me when I was younger. She had explained that Ravenclaw was for the well read, the book worms. Gryffindor was for the courageous, the brave. Hufflepuff was for the kind, the steadfast. Slytherin was for the cunning, the quick witted. Each house had something to offer the world, and so long as I got a letter, I was happy to be in any house. 

Hufflepuff seemed to suit me well though, in my time there. 

In my seventh year, my last year, I was selected Head Girl. An honor and a privilege. I hadn’t really expected it, to be honest. I was too focused on schoolwork, making top marks, working closely with all the professors before and after class. Everywhere I went, people wanted to be my friend. I supposed I was nice enough, perhaps that was the reason. Boys asked me to the Winter Ball every year, and I accepted, solely so I didn’t hear any grief from my aunt and cousin. 

Men were hardly ever on my mind. All I had ever wanted, or dreamed of, was mastering magic. Dating and socializing rather got in the way of that at times. I had friends, sure, I attended parties, dances, the like. But I never sought out more friendship than needed. The funny thing was, people seemed to gravitate towards me and my effort to interact was often very little, but somehow, I always ended up the center of every social circle. 

Maybe it was my never ending compassion, or desire for real justice that people loved about me. Because towards the end of my sixth year at Hogwarts, a peculiar event took place. 

Leta Lestrange had an incident with a Jarvey. For some reason her friend, Newton Scamander, one of my own Hufflepuffs, took the fall for her. He stated it was his. The thing was, you knew it was hers. She’d had the Jarvey a lot, she was also a Lestrange, who were known to be a … finicky bunch. Why Newton took the blame, I wasn’t sure I would ever know. Be that as it may, he faced expulsion. It was towards the end of the year however, and they let him finish his exams and would review his case before the next year. When the seventh year came, I was elected Head Girl. Along with this came many duties, one of which was helping to carry out the sentence given to Newton Scamander. 

He was allowed to return for his final year at Hogwarts under one condition: he was not be left alone on the grounds without a professor, other faculty, myself, or the head boy. This became tedious as nearly every professor was always tied up in their work, leaving it to me to follow Newt. 

The problem wasn’t carrying out my duties. The problem was I knew who the real culprit was and I had to see Newt be monitored like a feral creature held captive. In this time, I grew fond of Newt. He was a quiet, well to do, intelligent young man who I admired. It was in this time that I began to dislike Leta Lestrange more than I ever had before. 

She had a horrible reputation. Bad student, disobeyed orders, it was a wonder they ever invited her back to the school. Not to mention letting an innocent boy pay for her crimes.

But I suppose all things worked out in the end. We all graduated, and went out into the world. Newt got to keep his wand and he graduated the same as the rest of us. In fact, he worked for some time at the Ministry. 

By the time I graduated Hogwarts, life couldn’t get much better. Except that I went straight into working for the Ministry with letters of recommendations from every professor I’d had. 

From what I’d heard Newt worked for the Ministry for four years. He was in a confidential program for a short while, before being moved to the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. Then, because of his unsurprising amount of knowledge in regards to magical critters, he was moved again to the Beast Division. 

The two of us hardly ever saw each other except a pass in the hall here or there, at least when it came to work at the Ministry. I began in the office of Improper Use of Magic. I found the work easy. Sentencing was swift, just, and easy. My employers saw how bored I was getting and seemed to want to make me happy so they offered to move me into the Hit Wizards division. Quite a bit more faced paced, exciting, and finally, a challenge. Or… it would’ve felt that way if I weren’t as talented and skilled as I am.

During my schooling at Hogwarts, the only professor who seemed to be able to rival my skill set was Professor Dumbledore. Even at the Ministry, no one could raise their wand to me. It was customary, for all employers to learn how their employees worked, trained, fought, defended… Every fight, without fail, I reigned victorious, and much more quickly than my peers. 

Rumors, gossip, and whispers about me floated about in the wizarding world. 

No one feared me, but I most certainly got the respect I deserved. I never had to raise my voice, give anyone a stern glare, or utter a word to get things done that needed to be done. I rather liked that, the power, the will. 

I never thought much of the level of my power, not until people started to constantly mention it. Criminals, peers, colleagues, professors, employers. It was as if people hadn’t seen what studying could do for people. 

Even when I realized that I was quite powerful, I had no desire to exploit it, to use it against others. All I wanted to do in life was have a good job, hold a secure career, and live in a humble home. That’s all. Nothing more, nothing less. 

The years went on, and Nora opened a book shop. Curious, as I was in such an adrenaline rush of a job, and she ran a simple book store. Leta Lestrange had joined the Ministry and that turned my stomach. She was in Department of Magical Law Enforcement, assistant to the head! Of all things. The very idea of her in that position had me fuming. Newt was offered a position to write a book, and he took it. The opportunity allowed him to travel the world and discover new creatures. Nora, my cousin, would sometimes join him. 

Nora, however, was one year behind Newt’s brother, at Hogwarts. Theseus Scamander. Now, he was a very well-to-do boy. Always kept, always pressed, always ready for the next promotion. Much like myself, he kept his nose down, and he followed orders, to the dot. He was someone who I very much admired. Even if I wasn’t very close with him, word had gotten around about him. Excellence was often noticed at the Ministry. 

It seemed to be though, that Theseus and I were often in the same social and work circles, while the two dreamers -- Newt and Nora -- were off in the world, discovering things. Nora helped Newt at his flat with the animals on and off, when he was out traveling and needed someone to stay behind to take care of what he couldn’t bring along. 

Things were starting to get stale around my life. No man, no real loss there. No friends outside of work. Not much but Nora and the occasional chat with Theseus, Newt, and other Hogwarts alumni that roamed the halls of the Ministry of Magic. So, my ears perked up when I heard it may be time to elect a new Minister for Magic.

The campaign began, with the blessing of my direct employer. He headed up the starting program himself. Before I knew it, the election was only a few months away. The polls were looking fantastic, with my name always 100 points ahead of anyone else’s.

But one day… It all changed.

Nothing extreme happened. Nothing dire. Nothing life changing. No mid-life crisis. Nothing extraordinary at all. I merely woke up, with an intense desire to not return to my job, or to pursue being the Minister for Magic any longer. 

It wasn’t stress. I handle stress incredibly well. Wear it like a new Chanel suit. Even if it was the stress of the campaign and the very real fact I may be the new Minister for Magic, at least for a part of Europe… I could’ve just withdrawn from the race. But no, this ran much deeper than that. 

But seeing as I never do anything hasty, or risky, I sat on it, at least for three weeks, to see if I could shake it. Yet, nothing wavered. The pull to leave a life I’d strived to built was ever present. 

So I began job seeking. 

“You… want to what?” Nora had asked while I stood in her shop.

“I want to leave,” I stated matter of factly. Why was this so hard to grasp?

“But you’re… you’re practically Ms. Minister for Magic. Why now? Is it the campaign?”

I frowned, waving her off as she filled an order, waving her wand to stack some books. “No, nothing like that. You know me. That wouldn’t bother me.”

“I do know you,” she agreed emphatically. “Which is why I’m concerned that you want to leave at all… but, if you’re serious, I do know that Newt is looking for a full time assistant.”

“An assistant?” I asked, a hint of incredulous in my voice. 

“Yes, something wrong with that?” she retorted. 

I made a slight face. “No, but…”

“If you want prestige, cousin, you may reconsider staying where you’re at,” she said with a lilt in her voice. 

In response, I sighed, my shoulders drooping momentarily in my cranberry blazer and matching silk blouse. I stood back straight and tall though, smoothing out my skirt, looking rather lean in my heels. 

“No, that’s perfectly fine… But I thought you--”

“Bookstore’s getting busy, and unless I can find some help…” She peered at me for a moment, wanting me to chime in. 

“Cousin, I’d be delighted, but I would enjoy work that took me… away from London, for a bit.”

Nora nodded, smiling gently. “I understand. He’s interviewing for the position. I’m sure he won’t mind if you drop by.”

“Oh, is he home?” 

“Just for the week. He leaves on Sunday.” 

“Fantastic. I’ll head there now,” I informed with a slight grin. 

I made my way through the city to Newt’s humble abode. As soon as I arrived, I knocked twice, and after a moment, the red-haired man appeared on the other side of the door.

“Rosaline?” he greeted, slightly confused. Typically, it’d be my cousin. Or myself and Nora, but I never arrived alone. 

“Hello, Newt,” I greeted in return, warmly. 

“I haven’t done anything wrong,” he suddenly started.

I laughed. “No, no. I’m not here for that. No. Of course you haven’t. You’re just fine, Newt, I promise,” I assured, touching his sleeved arm with my gloved hand. “Do you mind if I come in?”

“Uh, not at all.” He backed up and let me in, showing me to the kitchen, where he made some tea. “What brings you by, then, if you don’t mind my asking. You and I aren’t very--”

“Social?”

He nodded. 

I sipped my tea before jumping to the point. “I’m looking for work, and heard you were hiring an assistant.”

He peered at me with incredible shock. “You’re… you’re here about the job?”

I nodded. “Mhm.”

“Alright. Uh, let me just… get my questions,” he said before pulling his wand out. He whisked it in the air and said, “Accio interview papers.” Before long, a few papers came gliding into the room, landing in his hands. He glanced at me nervously before speaking. 

He went down a list of fifteen questions, to which I answered them all truthfully. He put his papers down and stared at me for a long time. I kept my hands on the table, my long fingers interlaced. 

“Newt? What’s the matter? We’ve known each other for nearly fifteen years…”

He nodded. “I know, I know. It’s not that.” 

“Then why are you taking so long to make up your mind. You know what I do, what I’m capable of. I know what you do, what you’re capable of. You know my cousin very well. If you can’t teach me, I’m sure she can... “

“Why do you want this job?” he suddenly asked, curiosity burning in his voice. “Why leave your job at the Ministry?” 

“I want this job because… I want something more fulfilling in life. I don’t… I don’t want to spend my entire life in politics, in police work, in… deciding who gets to keep their wand, their power? I want to do something that enriches my soul. I feel that’s needed, to have a good, happy life, don’t you?” I said. 

It wasn’t until I uttered those words, there in Newt’s small kitchen that I realized how true they were. I was afraid of giving my life over to the Ministry. Of my life having nothing more to show for it than a plaque or two, a portrait here or there. I wanted my life to feel like it was mine, that I was serving myself, as well as others. My job was never my reason to get out of bed in the morning, nor was anything else, and I wanted to change that. I wanted to wake up, and be thrilled for where I was going, and not just because of the status that job gave me. 

“I do,” he agreed with a head nod. “If you remember, my boggart was an office desk in school.” 

I grinned at the memory. “Yes. Dumbledore found it amusing.”

“And you? Clearly you aren’t one to fear a desk,” he noted.

“Newt, I left desk work a long time ago. I’m a hit witch now. My life has been out and about for some time now…”

“Then… why change? If you believe it’s satisfying.”

“Not all adventure is satisfying,” I retorted. 

He thought for just a moment, but then concurred. “This is true, I suppose. So you’re looking for the right adventure then, hmm?” 

“I suppose I am, yes,” I realized with a grin. 

“And you think you’d like it here?” he wondered, peering at me, gauging my response. 

“I do. I’ve always found your work fascinating. I love creatures, animals. Nora tells me you’re about to set off on another leg for your book, gathering information…” 

“But why… me? Why my work? You’re… you’re one of the greatest witches alive. I’ve never seen such talent. The way they talk about you at the Ministry. The way my brother talks about you… I can’t help but think you’re entirely too overqualified for this job, Rosaline.”

A tiny grin came to my face. 

“Newt… Your job is to study creatures, learn their behavior, their thinking, their eating, the way they sleep, where they live… And most people say you’re the best at what you do…”

He frowned for a moment, wondering where I was going with this. 

“How would you feel if someone told you that you were overqualified for your job? Would you step aside, and let someone else gather the information that you so lovingly gather all by yourself?”

“I think I’d--”

“Hate it? Loathe the idea of being forced to sit in an office? That’s how I feel…Being your assistant is fulfilling work, I’m sure. I wouldn’t let you down. I’d be here early. I’d read and learn all about the creatures…”  

After a second, he said, “I can’t pay you what you’re getting paid at the Ministry.”

“I didn’t even bring up salary,” I reminded with a soft grin. 

“So you’re willing to take a cut in pay, in status, all to… travel the world with me to find strange creatures?” he asked. Of course, he didn’t think the animals or critters were strange, but to most, they were, and he was trying to get to the bottom of why I wanted to leave a job I’d worked so hard for.

“There are no strange creatures, only strange people. People too dull not to see their beauty,” I noted, almost as if I weren’t answering him at all. Snapping out of my thought, I finally looked directly at him. “I know this isn’t orthodox. I’m sure if it were me, I would be incredulous too, but I’m not here for a temporary position. I’m not doing this on a whim. You know me, Newt.”

“I do.”

“You know I’m not doing this until I can figure out what I really want to do or any of that nonsense. I’ve had a change of heart, that’s all. My heart no longer seeks what the Ministry can offer me.” I stood up, taking a deep breath. “If you’d like to think on it though, review other applicants, I understand. These animals mean a great deal to you, and you can’t just hire anyone. Feel free to think it over, just keep me as a consideration…” 

I began to leave. I didn’t want to pressure him into hiring me. He had a right to think on my offer. 

When my hand hit the door handle, he suddenly spoke up behind me. 

“An hourglass, right? Your boggart… it was an hourglass, wasn’t it? Your biggest fear is time.” 

A grin popped onto my face. 

“Perhaps it was, Mr. Scamander. Let’s make sure this interview and offer wasn’t a waste of yours.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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[a-nonymousgirl]

School tips

 Everyone reaches some point in the school year when they realize they have over extended themselves, feel overly stressed, and just want to give up on themselves. I know I am guilty of this, especially over extending myself and then trying to cram as much into a day as possible. I get overly excited about all the options I have or under estimate how much time some of my commitments take up. There were times this year in college where I was up till two or three in the morning finishing up assignments after working almost ten hours straight.  It seems almost impossible to balance between being over extended and bored out of our mind. So here are some ways I help myself keep sane and organized during the year.

Before I begin I want to ask something I ask myself every year. What in your schedule can you not live without? These are the crucial tasks that absolutely must be done today. Think of how much time each of these takes up and be realistic, don’t give yourself five hours to sleep when really you need seven or eight(i’m guilty of this but try best to avoid it). Think of how to best organize these requirements so you don’t end up overlapping and find yourself stressed.

1) Use a planner/calendar

Having a easy to see lay out of the month really helps keep me on track. I like my planners to have a monthly and a weekly view. I put all deadlines, tests/quizzes, school events, siblings events, birthdays, work schedule ect here. It helps me to be able to see everything and plan out how early I need to start homework or studying for tests so I can get the best grade(In college there is a 2 week rule my friends and I use to study for tests). In the weekly Ill put a little tid bit of what was covered in class and any specifics about an assignment that gets assigned.  I know a lot of my friends have had success with using a calendar on their phone, another uses sticky notes and writes the essentials, and another uses a wall calendar. Find what works best for you and stick with that.

2) Study early

What I mean by this is start an assignment when you get it, even if its months away so the info is still fresh in your mind. It also means start studying for a test early so that you can start with studying for 30-40 minutes and work your way up to a three or four hour study session a few days before the test.

3) Find time for you

This seems like it wouldn’t have a lot to do with school and your success but stress cause people to shut down. Taking small 10-15 minute breaks after studying for two-three hours helps prevent burning out and getting overly stressed. Find a few things that make you happy and set aside some time for them. They don’t have to 

4) Read the content before its covered in class

This helps with comprehension but also allows you to ask questions about the content while it is being covered

5) Make friends

This helps out a lot when there are class projects or a big test coming up. I have a short list of people I talk to all the time about almost everything we do in class. It helps a lot knowing if you miss a class they can help cover you some and its super helpful having a few people you can depend on to study together with

6) Highlight

don’t be afraid to highlight terms, important information or key concepts in your notes. This helps give a focus to the notes and gives a little reminder of what might be important to focus on when the test comes up

7) talking to your teacher/ use professors office hours

This goes for students of all ages, don’t be afraid to ask questions or seek out help. This can be in class or outside of class, for college students this is during office hours. Usually professors have few students coming in and truly want to help if they can. Meeting with the teacher can help establish a relationship which helps with grading later on and can help with finding the best way you learn.

8) record the lectures if you are allowed

This helps if you miss a section of lecture and can help you study in times where you can’t pull out a notebook or textbook.

9) sit in the front if possible

This helps the teachers remember who you are(helps when you go in to ask for help, they are often more friendly) and gives you the least amount of distractions. My chem teacher took a poll of where people sat in class and their average test scores, even those who did not participate much in class but sat in the front did better than those who sat in the back.

10) Have snacks

I have studied with many people who have skipped meals(guilty) or didn’t bring snacks. This can make studying less productive because there isn’t as much focus on the material. The snack can also be used as a reward for reaching a certain point. I liked to bring some brain foods(help memory and brain development) mixed nuts, granola bars, pumpkin seeds, etc and then a cheat snack like cheez its that I would swap out.

11) Eat brain foods

On important days treat your brain, especially those long studying days. A few great options are eggs, blueberries, tea, dark chocolate, avocado, oatmeal, nuts, etc. These foods can really help with concentration and give a little boost.

12) Don’t pull all nighters all the time

This is hard especially when it comes to college but staying up all night for many nights in a row throws your body off, slows you down and can make it harder to remember content from class. Try to get at least 6 hours of sleep every night to keep from burning out and to ensure you get the most of your day. This is hard to do(trust me I know) but it is beneficial in the long run.

13) Color code

Color coding can help your brain associate terms together and help terms stay longer.

14) Use practice exams

If your professor/teacher post practice tests use them to your advantage. Try going through them in the amount of time you would be given without any study tools. See how well you did after and then focus on the areas you did poorly on. Often at least 4-5 questions from the practices are on the test in some form whether it be the same set up or the same kind of question.

15) Move around

Research has shown moving study spots can help with memory. moving around causes our brain to form new associations with the same information so it becomes a stronger memory.

16) Write it out 

If possible try to write out notes as you are more likely to remember material written than you are if its typed. For college this is harder to do with lecture, often I type out my notes then go back and review them and possibly write them out later that night.

17) learn what works best

This sounds like common sense but figure out what learning style works best for you. Personally I have to read the material and take notes over the content at the same time for me to really soak up the information. One of my best friends is more auditory and likes to watch videos and listen to videos to help her study. In college you can sometimes choose whether you would like an online text book only or a package that has an online book as well as a paper copy. I find it better to have a paper copy, but some people I study with love the online version.

18) Find your weaknesses

Through out covering the material find sections that you are not as confident on or don’t fully understand. Make a list of them as they appear then try to focus on those sections when studying.

[whitebirdmagazine]

I Quit Social Media for a Week

Saturday, May 6, 2017

Life was simpler when I was younger. No job, no bills, no responsibilities except the minute amount of homework that, let’s be honest, I was excited about. I could play all day, pretending to be any number of characters from movies and books, and that’s all I really had to worry about. Even in high school and college, where the homework amounts were staggering and jobs and bills and responsibilities started to become a never-ending nuisance, things were simpler.

So what happened? I graduated college in 2008, right around the time facebook opened its doors to the masses (rather than just the college kids like it was when I signed up) and twitter became a thing. And phones got smarter.

Sure, there was myspace and livejournal and all that when I was in high school, and facebook in college, and we all carefully curated our Top 8 friends and our AIM away messages, but there was still a level of disconnect we don’t have today.

Now, there are 15 different social media apps for each part of your life you want to share, and they’ve taken over our free (and not so free) time.

As a high school teacher, I see the dangers and perils of social media on a daily basis, and realized that while I’m older and no longer subject to much of the same levels of cyberbullying these kids go through, I’m on social media entirely too much.

So I’m going to conduct an experiment: for one entire week, I’m going to stay off social media.

I want to see what happens when I don’t have mindless scrolling at my fingertips when I’m bored. Currently, my phone is a constant distraction whenever I’m trying to be productive in my creative endeavors. At work it’s not really a problem since I’m a teacher and free time is a luxury, but on the evenings and weekends, my phone battery dies faster than you can say YouTube.

For the record, these are the social media networks I regularly use (so will not be using during my experiment): YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, and Facebook. The only exception I’ve allowed is to post a video to my YouTube channel, but I’m not allowed to check comments or views until the week is up.

This will be going from Sunday, May 7 - Saturday, May 13 (at midnight, a full 7 days). I will be deleting these apps from my phone for the duration of the experiment.

Let’s see how this goes!

Saturday, May 6 11:37pm

I tweeted a “see you later” and deleted twitter, facebook, instagram, and snapchat apps from my phone so I’m not tempted by the little red numbers (or habit). I wonder if anyone will like/favorite/DM/comment while I’m gone. Will I be sad if they don’t?

Sunday, May 7 9:39am - Day 1

I woke up this morning, grabbed my phone, checked my email, and then felt lost. Normally this is when I catch up on all I missed overnight… but now? So I got out of bed, made breakfast, and checked goodreads ratings on all the books I bought at the library sale yesterday (Goodreads doesn’t count as social media!). Semi-productive already. Now… to read?

4:15pm

I finished one book (The Master and Margarita - FINALLY) and started another (The Upside of Unrequited) and am starting to do that thing at chapter breaks where I pull my phone out looking for a distraction. Which makes no sense because I’m thoroughly enjoying this book. But no distractions await me, and I open the book for a new chapter.

11:22pm

Day one: done. Also, I finished The Upside of Unrequited, but that may have also been because it was a fast read and I had a decent chunk of time to devote to it. Also, no social media distractions… I wonder what else I can accomplish this week. I do sort of feel disconnected, though. Like, I want to share my thoughts about this book and see all the Disney posts on Instagram and check twitter and get rid of the Google Plus (YouTube) notification on my email. But I can’t.

Monday, May 8 9:30am - Day 2

It’s only been a day and already I feel so much freer without being tied down to the various social media feeds. What am I really missing? Drivel. I did feel a bit weird this morning as I drank my coffee - usually the time I scroll through all my feeds - but I just opened my phone and didn’t know what to do with it. So I listened to my audiobook instead. So far, no social media equals more productivity. I want to keep this in mind when I’m back in a week.

9:45pm

I told my students about my experiment and convinced another to try it. Another told me she tagged me in something but I told her I can’t check it until Sunday. That might be the hardest part - the communication barrier. Social media is how we connect now, it’s how businesses and artists get followers, create connections. So much of the world is online. But what if I don’t want to be? (To an extent, at least - I feel like it’s impossible now to avoid the internet totally, especially for creative types because it is such an easy/cheap way to distribute your work.) But do I really need a twitter/insta/facebook/snap? No. Do I enjoy them? Sometimes. Do I feel the effects of not having them? Yes.

Tuesday, May 9 2:48pm - Day 3

It’s starting to get annoying now, mostly because

I’m bored, and

I created a poll for online lit mag titles and I can’t crowdsource, so I have to do it the old-fashioned way, which gets fewer responses.

I’ve restarted my feedly as well, in an effort to curb the planning block boredom. Does that count as social media? It’s articles - mostly from online lit mags - so it’s educational, right?

9:25pm

After work I went to Happy Hour with teacher friends for teacher appreciation week (appreciating ourselves) and at one point, the other three were all on their phones, scrolling through social media (for memes based on AP Exams, because teachers), and so as the only person not on social media (or an AP teacher, for that matter), I definitely experienced the non-social side of social media. I was left out because I wasn’t on my phone, yet we’re all leaving ourselves out by being on our phones rather than interacting with the world around us. Ironic.

On another note, my sister-in-law asked me for a picture of us from Prom, and even though I was pretty sure one existed on facebook, I couldn’t get to it, so I had to physically find all my old photos and dig through them to find one.

On a side note: How weird is it that when we share pictures now we just shove our phones in people’s faces? And then there’s no control - what’s stopping them from scrolling through your other pictures? With physical photos, they only get the stack you give them.** Invasion of privacy is the new normal.** Oh, and I downloaded two new games to my phone just to have something to do to kill small amounts of time. Distractions, distractions. Hard to get rid of them all.

Wed, May 10 9:32pm - Day 4

I almost went on facebook today by accident. I was on my computer, procrastinating writing (as one does) and opened a new tab. I was just about to type the ‘f’ when I realized autopilot had taken over, and I closed the tab.

I’ve been good, but now it’s starting to get annoying. It’s not that I miss it, per say, I just liked having the option to scroll. Though I guess that’s the problem - the option becomes the norm becomes the auto-action and we get sucked in.

I guess I Just wonder if I’ve missed anything. I know - rationally - that I haven’t. That nothing on social media is important. But it’s also how people communicate, and what if someone tried to message me? (Well, I guess if they really needed me, if it were really important, they’d find a way.) And how often do I get messages anyway? Not very. I fear that part of me expects other to have missed my presence, that I’ll come back to all sorts of messages and notifications… when, in reality, I probably won’t have any. And I’m kind of worried how I’ll feel when that happens. It would seem I’m much more in the clutches of social media than I thought.

Thurs, May 11 9:36pm - Day 5

The only time no social media really affected me today was when I wanted to check facebook to see if was my friend’s birthday (it was). I didn’t want to tell her happy birthday if it wasn’t and don’t have that info anywhere else (because that’s what facebook is for), so I had a student look for me. Yep, I sunk that low. I guess that in itself is a lesson: don’t depend on social media for courtesy and manners. That kind of thing should be kept in a safer location - what happens if the account had been deleted, or facebook was hacked and everything gone? No more birthday reminders. Old school might be the best way to go.

Fri, May 12 11:28pm - Day 6

Only one more day. I’m not sure how I feel about that. Part of me says “thank goodness,” while the other part knows how quickly I’ll probably sink back in. But I’ve been so productive this week without it, and the whole thing has been positive and freeing, so I hope I remember that.

Sat, May 13 11:03pm - Day 7

Last day! Last hour! I think today was the day I checked my phone the most, since Sunday, before realizing I had nothing to do on it. Probably because it’s the weekend and my days aren’t filled with school distractions. But, I’m going to preemptively say (because I’m going to watch a movie and go to bed), I MADE IT!

Sun, May 14 - What I missed

Facebook: 20 notifications, 0 directly for me Instagram: 1 comment, 5 followers, 14? Likes Twitter: 4 messages (some with missed threads), 27? Notifications (some of these from a group tag) Youtube: 6 comments (no new video posted) I didn’t reinstall Snapchat.

So did I miss anything super exciting or pressing? No.

I responded to maybe three of the tweets I was went, and that’s it. And honestly, I scrolled through them all for about 15 seconds before I realized I just didn’t care, and closed my phone.

Social media is great for communicating - it’s an easy way to get in contact with people on an informal level (or like, with students - two of my notifications came from them), but mindlessly, endlessly scrolling is a waste of time. There’s nothing important there, and it’s all FOMO, basically. If I quit scrolling, I may miss something important/genius/hilarious/etc, but nine times out of ten, there’s nothing there, or it wasn’t all that profound/important/funny anyway.

I also noticed that as soon as I turned it all back on and started the scroll, I started judging and comparing myself to others. Well, they got a nice note from a student I didn’t get (except I did, last week, and Instagrammed it too); they commented on that post; they’re celebrating 5 years, etc. It’s all there to put our best lives forward, but at what cost to ourselves and others? Numbers don’t matter and yet we all live so anxiously by them. By tiny digital hearts and thumbs up that mean ABSOLUTELY NOTHING.

Social media drives the world rather than talent, ambition, intelligence, creativity. It’s all about your following - it’s how Trump got elected.

And it’s terrifying.

So I’m back, but not like before. And I know how easy it is to slide back in, but I’m going to try my hardest not to. I hope this sticks, because this past week felt good, and I don’t want to get lost again.

7:55pm

Honestly, it’s been 12 hours and I’ve barely scrolled. I just don’t care anymore. The conversations are nice - the FOMO I’d felt wasn’t really about the tweets and instas, it was about the missed opportunities for conversation, through notifications and DMs. Five pictures down my Insta and I was done. I deleted most of my twitter notifications because again, I just don’t care.

And I don’t want them clogging my time, my energy, my optimism, my life.