#i live in the southern hemisphere and i’m sick of the winter :(

[im-totallybuggin]

dreaming of summer

[magaliemagpie]

The Wheel of the Year

The Wheel of the Year is celebrated (usually) by Pagans and looks at the annual cycle of seasonal festivals. It includes the solstices and equinoxes, as well as the midpoints between them. As the festivals are based on British Paganism from the mid-20th century, there are Celtic Fire Festivals (or “Cross-Quarter Days”) which count for 4 of the festivals altogether - if you don’t want to celebrate these, then it’s perfectly alright not to. The Wheel of the Year is cyclical and so follows the idea of life, death and rebirth. Also, just because you practice witchcraft, doesn’t mean that you have to follow the Wheel of the Year - Witchcraft is not a religion, but a practice.

However, I follow the Wheel of the Year and so that’s why I’m putting this out there!

So to start, we’ve got our Solar Festivals;

Yule (Winter Solstice)

Ostara (Spring Equinox)

Litha (Summer Solstice)

Mabon (Autumnal Equinox)

The Solar Festivals celebrate the peak of each season and are decided by where the sun is in relation to the Earth.

And then there’s our Celtic Fire Festivals;

Imbolc/Bride

Beltaine

Lughnasadh/Lammas

Samhain

The Celtic Fire Festivals are the “entry” to the season and are seen to have tons of seasonal energy. This energy is usually released with a bonfire being lit. They’re like the midpoints between the Solstices and the Equinoxes, and can be called “Cross-Quarter Days”.

The Wheel of the Year isn’t the “End-All” or “Complete Collection” of festivals that you can celebrate, but it gives structure to the year and so most witches adapt to it. If there’s a holiday that you have and love, add it in and have some fun!

Samhain

"The end and the beginning of the Celtic Year” - L. Lister

In the Northern Hemisphere, it’s celebrated from October 31st to November 1st

In the Southern Hemisphere, it’s celebrated from April 30th to May 1st

So, I pronounce this like “sow-en” but I am Irish so it’s that Gaeilge accent coming out of me. This is also known as “Halloween” to those that don’t follow the Wheel of the Year, or “All Hallow’s Eve”. When we look at the cyclical nature of the Wheel of the Year, it stands for that in between moment where we stare and anticipate death. During this festival, the veil between the Living and the Dead is thin, and so it’s about remembering those that have passed before us.

Typically, witches will work with the dead and try to communicate with spirits and wandering ghosts.

Yule

“Festival of rebirth, midwinter, the shortest day and longest night of the year” - L. Lister

In the Northern Hemisphere, it’s celebrated from December 20th to the 23rd

In the Southern Hemisphere, it’s celebrated from June 20th to 23rd

Pronounced exactly how it looks, Yule is also called “Midwinter” commonly and “Alban Arthan” within modern Druid traditions. It’s the turning point of the year where we celebrate the fact that the sun is coming back and with it the life of the Earth. Basically we’re sick of winter and want summer back.

Typically, witches celebrate with warm drinks, Yule logs and evergreen trees decorated for the spirits of winter.

Imbolc/Imbolg/Bride

“The Earth’s awakening” - L. Lister

In the Northern Hemisphere, it’s celebrated from January 31st to February 2nd

In the Southern Hemisphere, it’s celebrated from July 31st to August 2nd

This festival has a lot of names, in case you couldn’t tell. Pick whichever you prefer and vibe with it - it honestly doesn’t really matter which you choose because they all mean the same festival in essence. So Bride isn’t pronounced how you think it is, it’s “bri-ja” like the word “bridge” but stretched out. It is not pronounced like a groom and bride!

Imbolg celebrates the return of spring, and is originally a festival that celebrated the goddess Brigid, later turned into Saint Brigid through Christianisation.

Typically, witches will light torches and celebrate using fire in every form, symbolising the light that is coming with Spring.

Ostara

“The first day of Spring, day and night are equal” - L. Lister

In the Northern Hemisphere, it’s celebrated from March 21st to 22nd

In the Southern Hemisphere, it’s celebrated from September 21st to 22nd

This festival is attributed to Eostre (an Old English Goddess/ Anglo-Saxon Goddess). Basically, it’s about how excited everyone is now that spring is here. Ostara is now Easter - hares and eggs are the symbols of Eostre. The Equinox is all about fertility, new life and the idea of harmony and balance. Light and dark are equal, and the light is only growing stronger. Bluntly put, Ostara is the run-up for Beltaine (the prep work kinda?), since it’s all gaining the favour of a fertility goddess which is then put to the test at the next festival .

Typically, witches will paint eggs and basically dedicated the festival to celebrating fertility.

Beltaine

“ Heralding Summer, festival of fertility” - L. Lister

In the Northern Hemisphere, it’s celebrated on the 1st of May

In the Southern Hemisphere, it’s celebrated from October 31st to November 1st

So I’m cheating on this one..... Beltaine (”bell-ten-aah”) can be spelt Bealteinne, Bealtaine and Beltane, but I’m Irish so I use the Irish/Gaeilge spelling and pronunciation.

Beltaine is the first day of summer and was celebrated by people jumping over fires to ensure their fertility - it was symbolic and the idea that if you cleared the fire with no problems, then you’re definitely gonna be fertile and conceive super easily. The veil between the world is thin during this time, and so it’s perfect to communicate with spirits - human and not.

Typically, witches have a lot of sex and go for nature walks.

Litha

“Summer’s height, the longest day and the shortest night” - L. Lister

In the Northern Hemisphere, it’s celebrated from June 20th to the 23rd

In the Southern Hemisphere, it’s celebrated from December 20th to 23rd

At the Summer Solstice, the sun is high and bright in the sky and is at its peak for the year. It can be called “Midsummer” as well, as after it the dark starts to creep back into our days.

Here’s a fun fact, so June is blessed with the Mead Moon or Honey Moon, and as June was considered super lucky, couples would get married during it. Newlyweds would have to drink mead all day for a month after their wedding for tradition and so this period of time was known as their “honeymoon”, and is where we get the term from!

Typically, witches will eat fresh fruits and experience the power of the sun through meditating outdoors, going for a walk, and charging spells, crystals, and herbs. Divination is practised at night during this time!

Lughnasadh/Lammas

“Festivals of gratitude and marriage” - L. Lister

In the Northern Hemisphere, it’s celebrated from July 31st to August 1st

In the Southern Hemisphere, it’s celebrated from February 1st to 2nd

So this is a bit different..... this festival has two names coming from two different origins and this can affect how you celebrate (you can also choose to just not care about that too, either-or really). Lughnasadh is an old way of spelling it, but the modern Irish way is spelt Lúnasa (”loo-na-sah”), if you prefer one way of spelling over the other then choose that one (they’re pronounced the same btw!).  Lammas is the Anglo-Saxon version and translates to loaf mass, whereas Lughnasagh was dedicated to the Celtic god of fire, Lugh.

It’s the festival of the first harvest, so things like baking bread and eating fruits, handfasting and just having a great time on a hill or a mountain (this is something people did for Lugh but I’ll go over that another time).

Typically, witches will bake bread in the shape of a man and eat it, drinking wine (personally, I like rosé) and all around just doing things that relax you.

Mabon

“Festival of harvest, when day and night are equal” - L. Lister

In the Northern Hemisphere, it’s celebrated from September 20th to 23rd

In the Southern Hemisphere, it’s celebrated from March 20th to 23rd

This.... This right here..... This is my favourite festival. It’s also known as Meán Fómhair (”man” - “foh-er”/”fore” - depends on dialect) in Irish/Gaeilge and is about sharing the last of the harvest amongst others. There’s a lot of bread baking for this holiday as well and I am absolutely enthralled about that. It’s got all the vibes of spiced apples, cinnamon sticks and pastry pies rolled up into one.

Typically, witches will bake apple pie and bread, do some autumn house cleaning, and decorate using acorns and corn.

And that’s the Wheel of the Year! I’ll have a more in depth post where I go over each festival to the point of tears, but for now this is the bare bones of it all!

Thanks for coming to my Witch Talk xx

[llama-of-pangea]

COVID-19 myths to beware:

(last updated April 24, 2020; links to sources)

There is not yet a vaccine or official treatment for COVID-19, though work is in progress around the world.

The FDA briefly approved the drug chloroquine to treat COVID-19, but there is no hard evidence that this drug will actually work for treating this virus. The drug is no longer being studied as a treatment [source 1], as several people taking it daily for COVID-19 experienced heart problems and some died [source 2]. This drug is an anti-malarial that is sometimes used to treat autoimmune conditions such as lupus. There is one study suggesting it could inhibit COVID-19, but this study was small and had serious methodology concerns. ***4/24/2020 update: the study has since been retracted, due to lack of proper vetting and serious methodology issues.*** It’s not a reliable (or even safe) treatment for COVID-19; it might also create a life-threatening shortage for people who need this drug for other conditions. Do not take chloroquine unless it is prescribed to you by a doctor, and definitely do not self-administer this drug.

Injecting disinfectants will not help you, and may cause serious harm. Do not consume or inject disinfectants of any kind.

No, summer weather or living in a warm climate does not mean you’re safe from COVID-19. Likewise, winter weather does not kill COVID-19. In either climate, the virus lives in the human body, which is fairly consistent in temperature -- so, what the weather is like doesn’t affect it much.

On that note, the approach of summer will not inherently kill off the virus. It can live in hot, humid weather. Also, just because it’s no longer cold and flu season in the US doesn’t mean it’s not cold and flu season elsewhere (like in the southern hemisphere).

Also, no, trying to raise your body temperature (by taking a hot bath or by some other means) will not stop you from getting sick. Again, your internal body temperature changes very little, so this won’t help you. But washing your hands or showering after going out can! So do those instead!

No, 5G does not spread COVID-19. Viruses cannot travel on radio waves, and we’ve seen the virus spread in areas without 5G mobile networks. COVID-19 is spread through respiratory droplets (from talking, coughing, sneezing) or touching surfaces that have been exposed to these droplets.

No, you can’t protect yourself with a detox treatment, detox supplement, or detox “tea” of any kind (and shame on the influencers pushing this).

No, you cannot “self-test” for COVID-19 by holding your breath. The claim that you can self-test by attempting to hold your breath for 10 seconds is a social media hoax which gained traction when it was shared by Fox News. It has been completely debunked. Also, plenty of people who have COVID-19 are asymptomatic and can breathe normally.

Be skeptical of home tests. Produced primarily by Everlywell, they are expensive, and the chance for a false negative is very high (they require swabbing VERY far up your own nose, which is difficult to do on yourself if you’re not a medical professional or someone with experience doing this). If you’re worried that you may be sick, call your doctor; there are also lots of drive-in testing locations around the country.

Hand sanitizers made with only essential oils do not work -- essential oils do not disinfect. Beware of DIY hand sanitizer, as it is easy to make an ineffective one. Soap and water are the most effective means of disinfecting your hands. DO NOT consume essential oils unless it is specifically a food-grade product; most are not and are harmful if consumed.

It’s unclear if ibuprofen can worsen cases of COVID-19 -- this information was circulated by the French Health Minister, but there is no scientific data to support their claim. Ibuprofen is probably still safe to take. If you have any doubts, you can take Tylenol instead.

COVID-19 has nothing to do with beer or eating meat.

Beware of conspiracy theories in general.

Beware of phishing scams pretending to be official press releases. Many appear from fake CDC emails.

Facebook, Twitter, and other social media sites are struggling to stop misinformation campaigns. Don’t consider these sites a reliable source of information -- look for the primary source to confirm what you see online, and do what you can to report or remove false information.

Beware articles or sources that use the current situation to excuse discrimination or prejudice. It is wrong to blame Asians and Asian culture for COVID-19 -- that’s just racism. Similarly, stories blaming migrants are just as wrongly biased.

---------------------------

How to determine if something is bullshit (a short guide): ask the following questions:

(1) Are there sources included with the statement? (2) Are the sources credible (namely, are they from a primary source, such as a research group, recognized health agency, or other medical institution)? (3) Can I find more than one account of the information? (4) Is the statement objective (meaning ‘based on fact’, rather than subjective or ‘based on emotion or feeling’, which creates a bias)?

If the answer to any of those 4 questions is “no”, there’s a chance the information could be bullshit, OR, at the very least, it may be incomplete.

In health news, be skeptical of things involving very small test groups (a test on 12 people does not speak for the general public!) or that never went to human testing (things work differently in petri dishes than in our bodies). Also be skeptical of things made by for-profit laboratories. Big pharma can make great things, but it can also be misleading or skewed. Read the literature from sources that are not invested in the product (again -- the CDC, WHO, and FDA are good places to start) to get a better sense of how reliable, safe, or effective a thing is.

---------------------------

Check out the CDC’s list of COVID-19 myths here: https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public/myth-busters

*** Note: I’m not a doctor or any other type of medical professional. I am a geologist who knows a lot about source evaluation and is worried about people being misinformed

[halfgclden]

Camping and Cosmos and Crinitus (oh my) | Jordan&Caspar

Date: Late July, 2020

Summary: two bros, chilling at a campsite, zero feet apart cause they are gay

There was a certain nostalgia that came to Jordan as he walked through the woods, a small pack on his back as he followed Caspar to what he'd said was a great spot to see the stars from through the trees. This nostalgia was of course interrupted by the fact that he was with Caspar, holding a leash attached to a dog that kept straining against his harness, and in woods that he had not camped in before. This left it familiar with a slight edge of bittersweetness, which Jordan was unsure about, but still enjoyed. 

When they'd gotten to the campsite, they were eager to set everything up so that they wouldn't have to rush later. The process was not unfamiliar to them, but it still took time, and the sun was hanging low by the time they'd finished, not quite sunset, but early evening. Jordan enjoyed the fact that they were fairly far removed from camp, from deadlines and seriousness. Here it was still, and it was good. Jordan inhaled slowly as he took a seat on the ground in front of his tent. "Do you come out here a lot?"

Caspar had picked this particular spot for the clearing in the above treetops which happened to give way for a great view of the stars. It'd been awhile since he'd done camping like the way these two had planned for tonight. He had become used to opting for a cozy night-in instead, but this was just as much a part of him as taking a great nap was. Even though this little camping trip had been inspired by nothing more than clearly seeing the night sky, it began to feel like a proper holiday once everything was set up. Cas had finished poking at the small fire he'd managed to build and took a few steps back so that he could answer Jordan's question. "Not too much lately," He confessed and then joined his friend on the nearby ground. "I like being outside so much though, I should get back into it," He thought aloud and with a shrug. "Which is why it's so cool that you agreed to come out here."

Jordan watched as Caspar tended to the fire, and unclipped Crinitus from his leash when the puppy seemed calm enough not to immediately bolt into the woods. He nodded at Caspar's answer, pulling his knees into his chest and resting his elbows on them. "Ah, yeah, well, y'know." He pressed his lips together, annoyed at himself for being so inarticulate in response. "Sure love me some outside." He smiled at his friend and shrugged. "Nah, I just haven't been out camping in a long time, so you suggesting it was actually pretty cool. And these woods are different, so it's... I dunno, cool to change it up?" He laughed and shook his head. "We really said fuck being comfortable and having a mattress, huh? Time to sleep on the ground tonight."

Caspar was pleased to have the chance to be sitting there with the company they kept by their side. "Crikey, we defo did. Fuck mattresses, huh?" He chuckled lightly, but was still maybe just a bit self-conscious as well (and seemingly for no serious reason). Having listened to Jordan talk in the way he so naturally did made Cas feel better. His embarrassment was a fickle thing and he leaned back. Jordan's specific brand of humor was much appreciated. "Wait, what’s the scenery like back home for you?" He asked.

Hearing Caspar swear was always funny to Jordan. It sounded less than natural, but not exactly stilted, and combined with the Australian slang, he found it strangely adorable. He didn't seem to notice any embarrassment coming from his friend as he shrugged, watching the fire that Caspar had set up. "Depends on what you count. First place I ever went camping was in this place where in the winter we only had four hours of sunlight, and I shit you not, I went dogsledding more than once." There were few fond memories of the Yukon in Jordan's mind, but camping was some of them. "In the summer, there was all but four hours of sunlight, and that's when we went camping. When it was hard to sleep and we'd end up sleeping anyway because we were all sticky and tired from hiking all day." He smiled to himself, then looked down. "And then, where I'm... I guess from now, like, where home actually is. That's way more forest, way easier to deal with. It's in the Pacific Northwest. Got the whole temperate rainforest vibe, bears and cougars and shit. The West Coast Trail and the like. Trees bigger than you can probably imagine, half the firewood is wet." Jordan shrugged once again, feeling rather exhausted from talking so much. "What about you? How's it camping in Australia?"

Caspar listened to Jordan's answer and shifted his gaze from him to the fire and back again. "Wait, wait, dogsledding?" His interest was caught by the mere unexpectedness of it, or maybe it was only unexpected because Caspar hadn't seen snow until he came to camp. "Like that one cartoon feature where the wolf-dog saves the sick children?" He asked but then chuckled. "I love that. I didn't think people really did that. I think that's so interesting," He commented and continued on with his trailing spoken thoughts. "The vast differences in the places around the world are so..." He tried to think of the right word but he doubted he got the right one. "Astounding?" Cas shrugged. "I personally would love to see those giant trees. I bet they're nothing like I've seen," He said. "Aussieland's cool because there's... I guess you'd call them jungles? It's not wet like the Pacific Northwest. You can find firewood easily and there's so many places to walk and explore, but you gotta look where you're walking." He described.

Jordan couldn’t help but groan when Caspar mentioned the animated movie that had been etched into his memory. “Fuck off,” he snickered, shaking his head. “Yeah, just like fucking Balto.” He rested his elbow on his knee and his chin on his hand, looking at and actually listening to Caspar as he continued to speak. “Yeah. You and me could wrap around either side of some of them and have trouble holding hands on the other side.” Jordan hummed, trying to imagine a hot jungle, but just kept imagining clips from Jumanji. “Because of wildlife? Or flora? Or both?”

Caspar watched as Jordan reacted to Balto being brought up and he giggled mostly because it wasn't expected. He then leaned back and his mind began trying to visualize how big the tree would really have to be. When it got to the point where he couldn't fathom the width any longer, he reached his arm over so he could give Crinitus a few good scratches. "Oh, uh, both? There's trails back home with different rankings that're supposed to let you know how rough it's going to be. Some are rocky, some are covered in roots or vines," Cas responded and sat normally again. "There's snakes and stuff too, but if you keep an eye out as much as you can, everything's fine. If you leave them alone, they'll leave you alone..." He shrugged. "The stars must be visible all the time there during the summer though, right? I think that'd be cool, not only the stars but to live like that without sunlight."

Jordan couldn't help but smile when Caspar giggled, laughing quietly as well, happy that his amusement landed well. "I get that. Like, fuck though, I know you said the coral got you, but you ever get bitten by a snake? I feel like that shit is hardcore, especially with how much wants to kill you out in Australia." He nodded. "Oh yeah, I can kind of tell what time it is from the stars. Or... I used to. It's harder here." He shrugged and leaned forward. "It's like, you know how some people can tell time from the position of the sun in the sky? Like that. But," he said, jumping to a new subject, "you have totally different constellations, yeah? I guess you know both by now though. You know much about the myths around the ones in the southern hemisphere?"

"Nope, no snake bites," Caspar proudly announced but listened to Jordan as he talked about the stars and the sky. "I'm not the best at telling the time from the sun, but I can usually spot a constellation in no time. I'm probably better at spotting the southern ones, but I don't know. It's been awhile since I've seen them," He smiled warmly. "But, down under, I don't know if things want to kill you. There's not... psychopathic spiders out there," He snickered and began digging through his nearby pack. "But, uh, yeah, I know some myths," He focused back on Jordan and held him out a bag of marshmallows, but kept talking. "One of my favorite's is a star cluster that used to be called 'the herdsman' back in ancient times. Everyone now thinks it looks more like a kite though, so it's cool because it's adapted with the times," Caspar kept the chocolate and the crackers in his hand, although raised them to bring attention to his idea. "I can tell you more, but should we make this camping trip official?" He questioned, smiling again.

"Yeah, also using a phone or a watch works better than anything. But when you're eleven and camping, you don't really have that shit." Jordan tilted his head at Caspar and raised his eyebrows. "Wait, wait, wait. You're telling me there's not spiders that have been premeditating my murder? Bullshit. They have eight legs for a reason. Six of those hands can hold guns and they can still walk. I know they're up to something." He grinned, clearly amusing himself as he eyed the marshmallows in Caspar's hand. "It's pretty cool how shit like that develops, yeah. It's like language and sayings that we have no idea where they come from." He sat up a bit straighter and stood. "Absolutely. I'll grab us some sticks. Keep telling me about the herdsman though, unless that was it," he said over his shoulder as he walked to snap a few sticks off of a nearby tree. "Sure hope this isn't a dryad."

Caspar chuckled at the mental image of a big spider holding guns while walking around at the same time. "Those little sayings are called idioms," He casually mentioned and then opened the bag of marshmallows. He left the fetching of the sticks to Jordan. He glanced at Jordan and chuckled again. "I think a dryad might let you know, if that's the case," Caspar set up two graham crackers and put chocolate on both. "But, um, the herdsman has a supergiant star that helps make up it's constellation. It's the fourth brightest star in the whole sky and it's an orange-red color." Cas described more about the topic of astronomy.

Jordan nodded. “I’m a fan of them. I think what I like best are malaphors, though.” He pulled out a pocket knife as he returned to sit down next to Caspar again, whittling away at the sticks so that they would be pointy enough to stick into the marshmallows. “That’s when you take two idioms and smash ‘em together. Like, ‘we’ll burn that bridge when we get to it’ or...” He held out one of the sticks to Caspar, then chuckled. “A bear in a glass house is worth two in the woods.” He nodded. “Fuck, that’s cool as hell. I’ve never been big into space, but the fucking vastness of it all is crazy. Like how half of those stars are burnt out, but we’re so far away we can still see them. That sort of shit fucks with my head, you know?”

"Those are ace," Caspar giggled at the malaphors that Jordan had prattled of. "You’ve opened this can of worms, now lie in it," He added his own with a proud little smile. His eyes then twinkled as he remembered something else that had seemed interesting about space and pertinent to the conversation as well. "They actually just discovered a new galaxy not too long ago, I think last year some time? But it's bloody far away from us and kind of hard to see because of space dust but they've got the tech nowadays," Cas said. "It definitely fucks with my head, but in a good way. I like contemplating different stuff though, I guess."

Jordan grinned, his own eyes glinting as Caspar added one of his own and he chuckled along. “Looks like malaphors are our piece of cake.” He nodded as he listened to Caspar and took one of the marshmallows to skewer on his stick. “Is it visible with the naked eye? Probably not, if it’s that far, especially with how much light pollution there is now. Have you ever listened to those things that are like ‘what the planets sound like’? There’s something going on with Jupiter that is just fucking nuts, man.” He shook his head and tilted his marshmallow towards the fire, sitting far enough away that he could barely feel the heat against his legs with his pants. “You seem thoughtful a lot of the time.” He smiled, watching Crinitus chew on a stick beside him. “Can call it spacey, if we ignore the negative connotations.” He leaned back a bit, but kept his marshmallow forward. “I was thinking about taking an astronomy class next semester for my science cred. I always really liked physics and shit like that, but I don’t know if I can be bothered to deal with quite that much work with all my other classes.”

Caspar shook his head to silently answer Jordan about the newfound galaxy being visible to the naked eye. He smiled while he did so because he simply enjoyed listening to his friend speak. He took the other stick Jordan had sharpened and skewered himself a marshmallow. Cas began letting it hover over the flames. "I like spacey, we can defo ignore the negative connotations. Tai actually calls me Cosmo a lot, so its kind of a perfect fit," He casually expressed as he watched his treat with intention. "I think that class'd be a beauty. I would help you if you really did end up wanting to take it. I wouldn't want you to overload yourself though," He shrugged after his offer, Cas was still smiling, and looked over at Crinitus. "—He's being such a good boy." He spoke as his trailing of thoughts shifted to the the dog for the moment.

Jordan rotated his marshmallow slowly, though it was too far from the fire to start browning yet. "Yeah, I thought that was pretty clever, actually. Very aussie of you guys." He smiled at Caspar. "That'd be ace." He squinted, unsure if the word felt right in his mouth. "I don't think it'd be too much of an overload. I hear the prof is pretty good, and we get to take trips out to an observatory." He pressed his lips together as he thought about something. "If we wanted to, we could probably look into making a trip up there, where the light pollution is less bad. Me you and Tai could all chill out and look at the stars up close." He glanced back over at his dog and smirked, shaking his head. "He's kind of an idiot, but he listens pretty well." He leaned back and grabbed his jacket from where it was sitting behind him, and pulled out a bag of jerky that made Crinitus's ears shoot up, his attention now on Jordan. He looked at Caspar and held out the bag to him. "Wanna give him a treat?"

"Ace?" Caspar repeated and lightly chuckled. "You're sounding more and more like a true blue Aussie bloke every day," He teased and bumped shoulders with Jordan, but made sure it wasn't too hard because of the fact they both were still roasting their treats. The idea that his friend had posed about taking a trip out to an observatory was too good to pass up. "I would love to do that... And with the two of you? I think that'd be a fantastic idea," He chimed back, fully agreeing to the proposition, but his eyes were on the bag of jerky. "—Oh, yeah, can I?" He asked with an excited expression but took the bag from Jordan as it was offered. "Crinitus," Cas called out even though it was redundant because the dog's attention had already been caught. Managing poorly to juggle his marshmallow stick, he opened the bag and picked out a piece. Caspar tossed it to the dog. "I think he deserved it," He confirmed to Jordan with a pleased smile. It lasted only a second longer because he then realized his marshmallow had caught fire. Caspar dropped the bag of jerky so he could tend to it before it got too burnt. He laughed as he attempted to blow out the fire and when it was done successfully, he began inspecting it. "Ah, what a fool I am." He joked regarding the state of his marshmallow.

Jordan nudged Caspar’s ankle with his foot as Caspar bumped him, keeping his stick in place as he rocked from one side to the other, an almost shy smile making its way to his face. “Shut up.” He laughed, ducking his head. “Catch me never fuckin’ saying that shit again.” He turned his stick slowly again, smiling to himself and not looking directly at his friend. “We can go some clear night or whatever, I can figure out the deets.” He reached over to grab a piece of jerky himself, smiling at how pleased his dog seemed from the snack. His eyes grew wide at the sight of Caspar’s marshmallow catching fire, and let out a small breath of relief when it was put out, pulling his own stick closer to prevent the same scenario from happening to him. He snickered at Caspar calling himself a fool. “Absolute buffoon.” He smiled, then held out his own marshmallow towards his friend. “Uh, we can switch if you want. I don’t mind burnt food,” he lied.

Caspar laughed and didn't take the other's words too hard and, when the marshmallow was not on fire any longer, he smiled over at Jordan. He realized Jordan was offering his own marshmallow and shook his head. "Oh, no, no, I can eat it. No worries," He assured him. "It's just a little bit more done than I try and go for, but I don't mind either. There's a fine line when roasting 'mallows." He said and began putting the rest of his treat together. When it was done, he took a bite and gave Jordan the 'ok' sign with his fingers and smiled with a closed mouth as he chewed.

Jordan smiled, happy that he didn’t actually have to trade marshmallows with Caspar. He’d regretted the offer as soon as he made it, but it wasn’t the type of thing he would have gone back on.  “Dope, I’m sure it’ll taste fine with everything else anyway.” He rested the stick between his knees and pulled the outside of the marshmallow off, stuffed the chocolate inside, and then put the graham crackers around that. He held it up to Caspar. “Mess-free s’more,” he explained before he took a bite.

"Whoa, you're a genius," Caspar pointed out as he observed how his friend put together his s'more. "Where'd you learn that?" He smiled, curiously as he began to eat his much more messy s'more than Jordy's. "Or did you just figure it out on the spot?" He chuckled.

Jordan brightened at the praise, and sat up a bit straighter. He took a bite of his s’more and spoke around it, holding a hand in front of his mouth. “My sister actually made it up. I was kinda fine with getting all sticky, but for some reason it seemed to bother her.” He laughed. “But she’s not here so maybe I should take the credit for being smart as hell.”

"Crikey, I'll totally give you the credit," Caspar said while finishing up his s'more. "I'll pretend I didn't hear anything but you being wicked smart..." He assured the other and, with eyes on Jordan, a smile grew warmer and wider on the pale boy's soft expression. "I want to know you more, Jordy," He commented; turning more to face the other. "Can I ask what your relationship with your sister's like...?" Caspar asked then immediately realized something. He exhaled although he barely let his content features falter. "—Sorry, I kind of assumed you weren't talking about sisters here, right?" He asked to confirm.

Jordan smiled at the compliment, dropping his hand since he wasn't eating and speaking at the same time. The sincerity of Caspar's next statement made Jordan shift slightly, turning his gaze to his dog once more in an unconscious effort not to make too much contact, though he did have to admit that such a comment was pretty funny next to what he found to be a rather ridiculous nickname. He raised his shoulders in a shrug. "Uh, yeah, not..." Jordan didn't always know what to call his relatives at camp, he supposed that someone else calling them sisters was fine, because when you got down to schematics, that's technically what they were. "Yeah, I... I dunno, I know everyone here except me is real close with their half-siblings at camp, but..." He shrugged, rubbing the side of his neck with one hand. "I don't know, me and my sister, like, my actual sister, we've been through a lot together, and I feel like counting these people that my godly parent who I haven't even met happened to also parent is... I don't know, it feels like it discounts things." He stretched his legs out in front of him and sighed, though it was somewhat of a groan. "Ugh, that wasn't even the question." He felt stupid, feeling the need to explain himself when he wasn't even being confronted, and turned his face away from Caspar. "We're close. Less now than we were, since we're... physically far, but she's one of my favourite people." His skin crawled as he thought about how vulnerable he felt, and he put the s'more down on his knee so he could pick up the sick again and dig it into the ground. "You don't have any siblings, right? Excepting your camp ones. That why you guys get along so well?"

Caspar understood what Jordan was talking about. He felt the need to assure his friend that his point of view was valued, especially after he heard him groan, but remained silent as to let him finish with all of his thoughts. When Caspar was posed with questions to answer, he smiled warmly under the crackling hues of the amber-colored fire. "Oh, no, I actually have two brothers, and a sister back home in Brissy, too," He shrugged, realizing he never revealed that information earlier. "They're all cool in their own way, I guess, but... I always felt like the odd one out around them?" With his hands free again, he dusted them off and cleared his throat. "With, um, the way you explain it, uh, makes sense..." Caspar expressed. "I was adopted so there's another reason why I felt like a black sheep," He casually added. "But I learned family's what you make of it. So, uh, we're obviously not exactly the same... But, in a way, your situation and my situation is flipped, yeah?" He observed. "I get along better with my family, or whatever, here and it's just not the same with you and I don't think that's anything to be ashamed of, you know? We're like puzzles pieces, we only fit in where we fit in." He said.

Jordan stole glances up at Caspar as he spoke, not wanting to seem like he was too interested in what the other boy was saying, though he was. He wiggled the stick into the ground and let go of it, leaning his hands back on the log as he gave Caspar a small smile. "Hard to think of you as the black anything," he quipped quietly, but let him continue. He twisted his finger around a piece of hair as he nodded at his friend, then looked down at the stick again, afraid that he was looking too long, or that Caspar might look back at him processing how well he could relate to his words. He felt somewhat bare, as though Caspar really was getting to know some part of him, and he didn't know exactly how he felt about it, but he could definitely tell that it wasn't all bad. "Yeah, that makes sense." He felt rather inarticulate after the speech, but didn't mind too much; not everyone could be a poet. "We're mirrors." He smirked a bit. "And that's not to say that I don't care about the people in my cabin. I think... I dunno, they're all my friends. It's just different, yeah." He rolled his neck. "But anyway, enough delving into my inner psyche. What about knowing you? Tell me something I don't know."

Caspar could empathize with the uncertain feeling that came with getting closer with another but, in this setting, he wasn't all that uncomfortable. He smiled at the comment about being mirrors. "Mirrors, I like that," Caspar expressed and then nodded. "And, I get it," He added with reassurance once again. He then chuckled lightly. "—But, wait, did you know my natural hair's a kind of dark brown? You can only see it in old pictures of me. I've been messing with hair colors for a long time though, and I've had tons," He described and then put more thought in regarding his past and a fact he could tell Jordan. "But, uh, let me think of something else," Caspar lightly and contently sighed. "Um, I don't know what's interesting, but I'm allergic to apricots? I believed in fairies when I was a little kid?" He offered up. "Um, sometimes when I first wake up, I think I only see in black and white? The colors come back right away but for a second, I swear." He chuckled again and shrugged.

Jordan pressed his fingers into the log, feeling the grooves as he continued to listen to Caspar. "When'd you start dyeing it?" He felt weird thinking about Caspar with dark hair; and though it was fairly obvious that his natural hair colour wasn't stark white, it felt like it suited his friend more. "Just apricots? How'd you find that one out?" He smiled. "I'm surprised you don't still believe in fairies. They seem like your vibe. And we know that monsters and shit are real, so why not?" The last fact made Jordan's eyebrows shoot up excitedly, and he reached out to rest a hand on his dog's head when he rested his head on his leg. "Does that fit into you seeing auras? Do you dream in colour?"

"I dream in black and white very rarely but, when I'm dreamscaping and in control, I try to make them all as colourful as can be. Although, I'm not sure if the lack of it when I wake is related to the whole aura thing..." Caspar explained to his friend. "It's an interesting concept to think about, it probably is related," He responded while endearingly watching Crinitus show affection to his owner. "I'm not sure exactly when I started with my hair either, uh... Maybe a year before I came to camp?" He thought aloud. "It was bloody impulsive when I chose to change it all, but ended up just sticking with it, so," With a proud little smile, Caspar's train of thought quickly shifted from colors to the next topic he wanted to reply to. "—Oh, by the way, my experience with apricot was only my worst reaction," He casually clarified. "I'll swell up and get hives if I eat certain types of nuts, kiwi, or peaches too. And, actually, a breakfast parfait got me officially diagnosed," He explained with a small shrug and pressed his palms down onto the log as well. He looked up at the stars now and leaned back slightly to do so. "Also, I think there's a part of me that still might believe in fairies, if I'm being fully transparent. There are stranger things in our lives, I agree..." Caspar then hesitated for a moment but eventually spoke again yet softer this time. "If you get tired, will you tell me?" He asked.

"I think it'd be kinda fucked up to dream in black and white. But, I guess I could do that and just not really remember. Colours aren't what I remember from my dreams. It's cool if it is connected to your aura thing. Kind of hard to see if it does though, I imagine that's hard as fuck to research." He glanced at Caspar once more. "I like the white. I think it suits you. Like a blank canvas." After a pause, he added, "or some shit" to sound less like he was waxing poetic. "A breakfast parfait?" Jordan asked incredulously, laughing. "Dude, you're telling me yogurt almost had you kick the bucket? Incredible. I would love for that to be listed as my cause of death, honestly." He nodded in agreement to the sentiment that there were things much stranger than fairies. "I dunno, why can't people with wings exist if I can just be..." He motioned indistinctly to the woods but didn't actually teleport, far too comfortable to. After Caspar spoke, he exhaled a small laugh, smiling at his friend. "I'm always tired." He didn't look away, instead resting his cheek against his own shoulder. "But yeah, I will. Same for you?"

"There's certain books on auras and such but it's hard to sift through what's real and what's just been guessed by the author," Caspar summarized but then readily blushed upon hearing Jordan's compliment regarding his bleached white hair. He tried hard not to react any further and let the conversation continue. "Crikey, not the actual yogurt," He chuckled, shaking his head but finding his friend very amusing. "Just the nuts and fruit and stuff," He clarified but was smiling nonetheless (especially as he watched Jordan rest his cheek against his own shoulder). "I'm always tired too," Caspar agreed and scooted closer to Jordan. "We can go lay down soon?" He suggested and had realized that he was probably done with snacking on s'mores for tonight anyways. He pulled his sleeves down over his hands. "You can also use my shoulder instead if you want, until then? I don't mind..." Caspar gently offered as the untended fire seemed to not be as bright as it once had.

"Yeah, I guess it's hard to do hard research on shit like that. Like dream interpretation. Not like there's a lot of hard science in what I do," Jordan said with a shrug of the shoulder he wasn't leaning on. "I'm gonna keep saying yogurt, I think, sounds funnier." He grinned impishly at his friend, then picked up the s'more resting on his knee to toss into the fire so that his dog wouldn't end up eating it. At Caspar's suggestion, he picked at a thread in his jeans, then scooted slightly closer, trying not to move too much as to not disturb a half-asleep Crinitus. "If you want, I can snuff out the fire, and then we can watch the stars like we planned to." He tipped his head to the side and rested against Caspar's shoulder, looking out at the woods. "And if you want, we can form a chain here. Since I'm on you and Crinitus is on me, you can get a dog pillow," he joked with a small smile.

"You need a Teleportation 101 class," Caspar snickered to himself at his silly little joke. He then playfully rolled his eyes at Jordan after hearing his comment regarding the yogurt. His expression was somehow still soft even as he rolled his eyes. He felt good in the moment his friend rested their head on his shoulder but, then again it always felt this way being there for someone. He tried to maneuver himself to get a look at a sleeping Crinitus by Jordan's feet and was pleased by the sight. "That's probably how it's going to be in the tent tonight..." He responded. "A cuddle pile, if you will," He commented "...And, I do still want to look at the stars, but we can do that whenever you're ready to put out the fire. I can wait, but I don't want us to get too tired beforehand." He explained.

"Hey." Despite trying to sound annoyed, Jordan's tone was much more amused than anything. "I'm at least in the 200s level, cut me some slack." He raised his head as Caspar moved, as well as to look at the fire. "Are you someone who just latches on to the nearest thing when you sleep? Or are you a starfish?" He raised his arms and cracked his knuckles, then wiggled his fingers in front of him, muttering a low incantation. Crinitus lifted his head to watch as the fire smoldered and went out, leaving a trail of smoke curling into the sky. "Alright, boy with white hair, tell me which planets are making me sad."

"Sorry, sorry," Caspar apologized for the silly '101' comment and bashfully ducked his head especially while Jordan raised his up once again. "I am usually one who clings to whatever's near," He smiled. "So if that makes me a starfish?" He rubbed his knees with his palms and then slightly shrugged his shoulders. "I guess I am one, watch out for my tube feet," He joked with a tone of voice where it was clear he was already becoming tired. Caspar wiggled his fingers along with Jordan in reference to their past conversation but eventually dropped his hands again. He shifted his eyes up to the stars in the night sky. He was smiling more-so now at the little nickname. "-Hm, well, you're an Aries, right? That means Mars rules you, it represents the beginning of all beginnings... It is our first breath and our first scream, being the one responsible for the body we have and the, um, incarnation we are in at the moment..." Caspar looked back at Jordan to make sure he really wanted to know this kind of stuff. "Uh, it's associated with karma and instinct, but I think it's really just an unconscious animalistic nature we don’t give enough freedom to..." He cleared his throat and quickly looked back at the stars. "I'd have to know more of your birth chart to tell you more."

Jordan laughed at the tube-feet comment and wiggled his fingers back at Caspar. “Oh my god.” He shook his head and looked up at the sky as his friend began describing what his sign meant, eyes flicking back to him after a moment. “First breath and first scream? Dude, that’s metal as fuck.” He laughed. “Animalistic nature. Dunno if that’s my deal, but the sound of it is cool.” He pressed his palms into the log and looked back to the sky. “Kendall knows my birth chart. Made me literally call my mom and find out what time I was born.”

"Oh... Yeah, I guess it is," Caspar chuckled a little embarrassed by how he had explained Aries energy. "But I meant more like, uh... Acting on impulse and doing what you want without abandon, not, um, running through the woods on your hands and knees or something silly," His palms had already been pressed down onto the log as well and he stole a quick glance of Jordan here and there as they sat and watched the stars. "That's what I would've had you done too," He smiled softly. "I can probably reach out to her to get a look at it? So I can tell you more of my, uh, interpretations?" Caspar suggested. "Unless you feel like she's covered it all with you already. If so, that's okay too..." He covered his bases in his reply then yawned but remained stargazing.

Jordan laughed at the idea of them running around the woods on all fours and moved so that he was resting on his elbows instead of his hands, more reclined as he watched the sky through the trees. “Yeah, you’ll have to find her for that. I don’t really remember any of it. I think she mentioned pretty much every sign at some point, and I don’t really prescribe to Greek zodiac and myth too much, so I didn’t retain much.” He looked at Caspar. “It’d be cool to get your take on it, though. But what made you so into Greek constellations when you were born in a place where you didn’t even see them? Unless you only started studying them here.”

"Okay, yeah, that's perfect. I'm excited to get a look at your chart," Caspar confessed and happily continued on in response. "I'll try and make it exciting for you to learn about," He explained with assurance and then shrugged because he wasn't sure of how to answer to the question that had been asked. "...Oh, uh, hmm,I guess that I was into them because I knew I was a demigod since I was young? I always have been in love with the stars too. Greek constellations came easier to me and I had already learned all the ones down in the southern hemisphere," He shrugged. "The cosmos are a constant in my life."

Jordan exhaled something that could be interpreted as a laugh. “Learning is always exciting.” He was serious about the sentiment; not entirely sure that the subject was up his alley, but willing to hear Caspar out. “Oh,” he said as he tilted his head to look at his friend. “Fuck, forgot some people just knew that shit. I didn’t know until I got here, and I was still pretty sure I was making the whole thing up or something.” He shrugged one shoulder and looked back up at the sky, covering his mouth with the back of his hand as he yawned. “That’s fucking sick. To be into something all the way from when you were young.” He let out a small “oof” as his dog put his head down on his stomach, and reached down to pat him as he yawned again. “Maybe... bedtime soon. But you can keep telling me about the sky. I promise I’m still listening.” The words seemed too sincere to leave it there, so he continued. “Maybe just slow down if you hear snoring.”

"I like that about you. You have an open-mind," Caspar complimented and sent a tired little smile over Jordan's way through the firelight. "Imagine all those feelings, but not being able to do anything about them. I couldn't get away from my family until I just turned sixteen? But I knew I was destined to come here as soon as I heard about camp... And, it wasn't getting safe in Aussieland, so, it was defo complicated all around," He shrugged as he explained a little bit more about his past and, maybe only because Jordan did, but Caspar yawned as well. He nodded before he could speak. "Yeah... I think that's a good idea. We can go lay down right now?" He stood and rubbed his eye.

Jordan exhaled a small laugh at Caspar’s observational compliment. He could his friend smiling at him from the corner of his eye, but kept his gaze trained upwards as he listened to him continue to speak. “I... can imagine.” His own perspective was much different, but he didn’t offer it, since it felt less like relating to Caspar and more like telling his own story. He finally tilted his head to the side to look back at Caspar and gave him a small smile as well. “It’s nice you had somewhere to escape to.” He followed his friend, pushing his dog’s head from his stomach so that he could stand as well, and stepped far enough back so that he felt comfortable enough to extinguish the fire. As he pressed his hands together and mumbled, it glowed bright for a moment, then smoldered, and Jordan picked up a water bottle to toss over it and put it out fully. He yawned and stretched, his back cracking as he did, and nodded at Caspar. “Crinitus doesn’t normally get to sleep with people, so he’s gonna fuckin' flip.”

Caspar moved away from the fire as well and, for the most part, let Jordan handle extinguishing the flames. He watched with tired eyes and, when it was fully out, turned to go over to the tent. "Awe, I'm glad then," He responded and the thought of falling asleep with a dog instead of several white cats made him chuckle lightly. He unzipped the entrance and climbed inside. He got all comfortable and knowing that he was going to get to dream only seemed to make him feel more tired. "Hm... I think..." He mused and, even though he had only gotten horizontal moments before, his eyes were heavy. "That today was a good day...." He managed to say before closing his eyes. For a little bit longer, he tried responding but it mostly came out as non-verbal little hums. After seemingly falling asleep, it only took a few moments before Caspar naturally nudged closer. Along with Crinitus, they cuddled up to Jordan in a warm little pile and that night Caspar dreamed of tide pools.

[miikkasakari]

tagged by @sloanemadisons thank!

Name: ari

Nickname: i haven’t had any for a while but my first ever one was probably pigeon. in like kindergarten/first grade

Zodiac: leo, sometimes i look up what my moon/rising ones are but i can never remember so what is the point !!

Height: 5′3

Languages: english, a step below semi-fluent in hebrew, also learned french/spanish in school in a more limited capacity, yiddish in an even more limited capacity, and i can count to 100 in finnish

Nationality: canadian

Favourite season: spring or fall... not only is the temperature not cold and also not hot but also the start of baseball season? or the start of baseball playoffs?? that is why i cannot say fall outright, what if the nats are not in the playoffs that year, but fall also wins some points because in spring i’m like “when am i supposed to STOP wearing a winter coat” whereas in fall i’m like “if the low is still above 0 it is not time to start wearing a winter coat”

Favourite flower: generic albertan, wild roses, on the one hand it’s bad that political party died because it stopped splitting the right vote but on the other hand at least the flowers (and our licence plates) are Free now. but also cherry blossoms !! i have tattoos of both

Favourite scent: i don’t have the best sense of smell so i’ve never really thought about this... probably something citrusy or berry-like

Favourite animal: dogs !

Favourite fictional character: you know this is likely to change based on which fandom is most prominent at the moment but i literally got one of amos burton’s tattoos so. and that’s more intimate than a tattoo of an actual character i think, of which i have several

Coffee, tea or hot cocoa? it’s a toss up between tea and hot chocolate 

Average amount of sleep: oh who even knows anymore, but definitely more on the weekends because then i get to just nap

Favourite colour: olive green i think. or a steel blue. or grey. there’s a theme here. dark red/maroon for some contrast

Dog or cat person: dogs. like. it will never not be dogs

Number of blankets: i have a top sheet and a duvet like a normal person. i also have a small handful of fleece blankets but the only one that has gotten any attention for over a year is the nats one. i wonder why. (it’s because it was baseball season and then they won the world series and even if sports weren’t cancelled it would be a while longer yet before any other sport had my real attention.) also i have a weighted blanket on my couch

Dream trip: i’m simple, i see baseball in dc, i want to go to dc. i also want to go somewhere in the southern hemisphere at least once just to look at their night sky

Blog established: apparently february 2013 was the first time i ever reblogged something

Follower count: 163, i’m sure many of them are just porn bots

Random fact about me: i inherited at least four recessive genes from my parents (grey eyes, straight hair, blood type o-, can’t roll my tongue)

Gender: cis female

Sexuality: probably ace or gay or something i don’t really think about it ever, it is not a priority in my life

Hogwarts house: harry potter is bad, we had to read the first one in grade 3 and it was trash, please read another book

Where are you from: calgary and i intend to stay here (the only other place i could really see myself living is! yup! dc. that one school trip in grade 8 had an Impact on me)

Why did you start this blog: i genuinely cannot remember, i probably just had a bunch of friends who were already on tumblr

Most recently played album: i literally have not listened to anything on purpose other than the 2019 nats’ walkup songs + take on me + el sonidito + calma since october. at one point i thought i was ready to move on but i think the trick is that there is a wide enough variety of musical genres that you don’t really get sick of any of it. ONE DAY i will acquire clipping.’s there existed an addiction to blood

i don’t really tag people on these things but go ahead and do it if you want to! i had fun!!

[irregardlessly-tish]

gimme ALL the random rants

All four seasons here fucking suck thanks to climate change. This province was humid and gross, people compare it to London but I’ve never been there so I don’t know but now we’re basically living in a sub-tropical area and the humidity is so high and it’s always like that. Fall: it rains all the fucking time, this sucks for my flowers, I can’t cover them from all the fucking rain and the water is so much they can’t drain properly and rot thanks to all this fucking water. Winter: It rains less but it still rains and it’s fucking cold, the grey days won’t allow anything to dry, this includes clothes and soil, everything feels fucking gross. Spring: Here comes another fucking rainy season, it rains a fuck ton of water and that’s not all. Hello this is a sunny day, today we have temperatures over 25°, pretty nice, huh? Well tomorrow it goes back down to 7°C and it’s fucking raining again! What’s that? Let there it be sun again! Wait, we change our mind, let it rain for two fucking weeks straight. Nothing will ever be dry again. Summer: Okay, no more rain… unless?? Yeah, it was ove 30°C but why don’t we have just a sudden fucking hailstorm? Maybe after that it won’t rain for a while but don’t make no mistakes: It’ll be hot but humid as fuck, it’ll make you sick, your head will be spinning thanks to this atmospheric pressure no one fucking asked for. You better keep watering your plants or the sun will fucking turn them into coal even tho it’s humid as hell. The heat won’t let you move, you’ll sweat like a pig just getting up from your chair.

And don’t even get me started on people who are like YEAAAH, SUMMER!! I LOVE SUMMER! IT’S THE BEST!!!!!!! no bitch, it’s horrible. You can’t do shit. You go outside and burn to death, your skin will wrinkle and crinkle like paper under the sun unless you cover yourself with tons of sunscreen which feels really gross. I haven’t even mentioned the bugs yet. Mosquitoes and roaches fucking love this heat and humidity and are everywhere you go. Not only you have to bathe in sunscreen more also bug repel, it’s the grossest thing ever. You don’t love summer, you just love vacation and not going to work which I get but shut the fuck up about summer, this season itself is one of the worst. Do you have any idea of how many homeless people and stray animals die because of how horrible this weather is? No, you don’t’ because you’re like HELL YEAAAAH HOT GIRL SUMMER or some shit while you’re at the beach or at some pool. You think that’s nice? You have any idea what’s in that fucking water? It’s disgusting, sea or pool, they are always gross and you’re covering your already greasy covered in million different creams body with the filth from the others before you plus all the little things that live in those waters, it’s a fucking soup of gross. You’re gross. Shut up about the summer, just say you don’t want to work anymore, none of us want to work, we won’t judge you.

Sure, this experiences may not be universal but Pandora’s box has been opened and I’m ranting about my experiences... I know most of my followers aren’t even entering summer like I do, perhaps some don’t even know the entire world is different. I fucking hate those people, I hate how everyone assume it’s the same all over the globe and you know what? I’ve never met anyone from the Southern Hemisphere that assumed that, it’s always the people at the North of the Ecuador that forget not everyone is enjoy fall and sweater season or whatever right now. I’m so done when I say something like “I can’t stand this heat” and some idiot is like “lol? it’s autumn!”, maybe for you but is it so hard for your brain to deduce that maybe I don’t live next door and maybe I’m far away from you? Maybe at the other side of the world? And maybe not everyone is experiencing things the way you do? Is their education really that bad or they didn’t pay attention in class? How stupid and/or arrogant do you have to be to assume an entire planet is experiencing everything the way you do? Do they even know the different time-zones? Or do you they think it’s always the same hour all over the world? Everybody gets up at the same time and go to sleep at the exact same moment? Do they believe Santa Claus literally delivers gifts on every single house when their clock hits 00:00 on the span of one second since there are no different time-zones and all hemispheres are going through the same?

I could kept going on different but I feel I’ve written too much already and I don’t think anyone wants to have me at a sleepover if I’m ranting the entire time.

[thrivous]

Dr. Jordan Roberts is a Thrivous science advisor and an advocate of the flu shot. He recently sat down with a flu-shot-curious mom, Blaire Ostler. Together, they discussed her questions and concerns, such as:

Should I get a flu shot? Does the flu shot work?

What is in the flu shot? Is the flu shot a live virus?

Can you get the flu from the flu shot? Can the flu shot make you sick?

When to get flu shot? How long does the flu shot last?

At the end, Jordan and Blaire also discuss the possibility of coronavirus vaccinations. Here's a recording of their discussion, followed by an edited transcript:

Blaire: Welcome, everyone. I'm here today with Dr. Roberts. And I'm really glad that you've agreed to talk to me about the flu shot because, I plead guilty, I don't get the flu shot. I don't give my kids the flu shot. And, to be honest with you, I'm painfully ignorant on the topic. And I'm wondering if you can help answer some questions and clear things up to me, so that I can make a more informed decision about whether or not I want to get the flu shot.

Jordan: Absolutely. I'd be happy to.

Blaire: Awesome. Okay. So one of my first concerns about the flu shot is: I heard that getting the flu shot is actually giving you the flu.

Jordan: That's a really valid concern. I think that makes perfect sense for you as a person and as a mother. You wouldn't want to give yourself or your kids something that could be harmful. Right? And, as your doctor, I wouldn't want to do that either. In fact, I took an oath when I graduated from medical school that I would first do no harm.

That's a very common misconception. But I think I can answer your question quite simply. No. You cannot get the flu from the flu shot. It's theoretically impossible.

Blaire: And how is that the case?

Jordan: Because the flu shot is not a live vaccine. It's not even killed vaccine. It's what we're calling "recombinant" vaccine. So it relies on a newer technology that's DNA-based. And I can explain what those terms mean, if you'd like.

Blaire: Yeah. Please. So what's the difference between a live vaccine and a dead vaccine and what we use now?

Jordan: Sure. The very first flu vaccinations came about a hundred years ago, after the great Spanish Flu pandemic that killed scores of millions of people. They were very crude technologies but a major advance in public health.

They would actually grow live cultures of the whole flu virus particle in animals or other tissues, like mice or the eggs of chickens. And then they would insert a small needle into that live culture full of the virus particles, and push that under the skin of the person receiving the vaccine.

That person was literally being given the flu, but not in the traditional way that most of us catch the flu, which is through our respiratory system. So their symptoms were slightly different. They didn't have a lot of the cough and headache and runny nose that most of us experience when we get the flu.

But they did have the muscle aches and the fevers and those other symptoms, some of the gastrointestinal symptoms. But it was typically more of a mild case. And if that person was exposed to a person who actually had the respiratory flu later on, they were immune, which was the whole point of the exercise.

This was first done in the army and other places where you have a captive audience. But once it was demonstrated that this was safe, and that it was effective, it became widespread. It was routinely recommended.

A little bit later, people realized that was maybe not a great deal, to give people a living virus. And somebody had this insight: what if we destroyed the particle? What if we exposed it to some harmful chemicals or we boiled it, to make the little flu virus particle fall apart?

We showed that to the immune system in the form of a shot. And this was the birth of the true flu shot: a fluid in a syringe that goes into your body. This is what we call a "killed" vaccine. It's all the same parts. But they are destroyed either through being exposed to boiling water, formaldehyde, or ethanol.

Blaire: But they're still effective?

Jordan: Absolutely. And it's much safer. So the people wouldn't have the flu. They would have some of the same symptoms at the injection site: redness and swelling and pain, similar to what we'd get now. But not the true flu illness, unless a few of those viral particles managed to escape that destruction process.

Blaire: But even that isn't what we use today though?

Jordan: No. It's not. That was much safer and just as effective and was the standard of care for decades until the genomic revolution, when we started to understand that DNA is the common language that all life shares. And we decoded the DNA sequences of the flu genome.

The flu has just a short string of different genes that code for its various parts. A virus is a very simple, minimalist organism. It's essentially the perfect parasite. It has just enough genes to get into your body and hijack your body's own cells to make massive amounts of itself: new viral particles.

So, for example, the influenza virus has two major, what I call, "trojan horse" proteins, located on the outside of its shell. And then it has the shell. And then, on the inside is its genome, a piece of DNA or RNA in this case. It's a very simple thing.

We know some things about what happens if we can show the body those trojan horse proteins, what we call the "H" and "N" proteins. You've probably heard of things like the H1N1 virus. And those refer to specific proteins, found on the surface of the virus particle, that trick your body into thinking it's something interesting, to take it into itself, and then it's got you.

It inserts its DNA into your cell. And that cell is going to die. That cell is going to be hijacked and become nothing more than a virus-producing factory. And when your body's immune cells discover that the cell has been hijacked, they trigger it for apoptosis or programmed cell death, or suicide to stop this threat of infection.

What we do now, with our recombinant vaccine technology, is take the DNA for those viral particles, H and N. And we put that little piece of DNA inside a vector, usually a chicken egg embryo. And we co-opt that embryo to make massive amounts of those H and N proteins. Then we purify those proteins. And that's what goes in the shot.

Knowing this, that you're only seeing the H and N proteins, does that make sense why it's impossible to get the flu from a flu shot?

Blaire: It does. But what else goes into the vaccine? Is there any mercury involved, or anything like that?

Jordan: That's also another very good point. Certain doses of the flu vaccine come in what we call a "multi-dose" vial, where you draw multiple doses for dozens of people from the same vial. Those vials do require a preservative. And, as part of that preservative cocktail, there are some mercury-containing chemicals.

Mercury is a natural element, found in nature. There are certain forms of it that are toxic to us, certainly. And we know those forms. We'd never put harmful amounts of those forms of mercury in something that I give to a person.

So, yes, while there is mercury in those multi-dose vials, in the single-dose vials, there's not. Those don't require preservative.

Blaire: How often are the different��vials used? Or how do you know if you're getting a multi-dose vial or a single-dose vial?

Jordan: It depends on the age of the patient who's receiving the vaccine, and the maker of the vaccine. There are only a handful of pharmaceutical companies that make the flu shot every year. And I can talk about how they choose which strains to go in.

Blaire: How do you even know how to make the flu shot? What are you injecting into me?

Jordan: That's a very good question. You've probably heard things like: "I've heard that the flu vaccine varies in its effectiveness from year to year." Right?

Blaire: Yeah. Exactly, because that's the point. If I'm going to inject myself with something, I want to have a good chance that it's actually going to do something. Right?

Jordan: Absolutely.

Blaire: So how does that work?

Jordan: We want it to be both safe and effective.

Blaire: Yes.

Jordan: The important thing to remember is that when it's summer, here, in the northern hemisphere, it's winter somewhere. It's flu season somewhere else. The CDC (Centers for Disease Control) in Atlanta has good partnerships with other similar organizations in places in the southern hemisphere, places like Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Chile, and Argentina. And they share information.

When it's our summer, and it's the height of flu season in the southern hemisphere, those organizations are sharing data back and forth. They're telling us which strains of the flu they are seeing that are causing the majority of disease. The CDC graciously accepts that information and shares in turn, when it's our turn.

Then they put all that information into these complex mathematical algorithms that predict human migration, based on things like shipping lanes and cruise ships and air travel. All of these other things go into the formula. And it gets better and better with every year.

It's not a silver bullet. It's not a crystal ball. This is the cutting edge of science. But there's no way to know with 100% certainty which strains are going to come north when it's our turn. We have to rely on statistics.

Blaire: So, percentage-wise, what would it be like? How effective is this going to be? Do you have a percent?

Jordan: On average, the effectiveness, meaning the correlation between the strains that are chosen to go in the vaccine ahead of the flu season and the ones we actually end up seeing, is pretty close. I'd say, on average, it's about 75% effective, which means that some years are better and some years worse.

A few years ago, there was a pretty rough year, where the correlation between the ones we saw and the ones we were prepared for was only about 25%. 25% is better than zero. And zero is the percent chance you have of being immune if you don't get vaccinated.

Blaire: But if I do get vaccinated then what are some of the side effects that I can expect from being injected with this?

Jordan: Typically, the side effects are localized to where you get the injection: things like redness, soreness at the site of the injection, pain, and low-grade fever. Those are typically mild and temporary, two or three days at most. And they usually respond really well to things like ice, ibuprofen, and rest.

The chances of having a more severe reaction, like an anaphylactic reaction, severe pain, or a more rare complication, like Guillain-Barré ascending paralysis or death, from the flu shot is incredibly small. I mean, your chances of winning the lottery or being struck by lightning are better.

Blaire: Okay. Let's say I forego the flu shot. I don't want to worry about any side effects. I'm really healthy. And I don't really get sick that often anyway. Why do I need to get flu shot?

Jordan: I hear that a lot. That's probably the most common response that I get from my healthy young patients, who just don't understand why I'm recommending it. And you're right. If you got the flu, it would be a couple weeks of misery. Have you been sick recently? Have you had the flu recently?

Blaire: Yeah. I actually did get the flu this season. And I did not get the flu shot. So I'm very curious.

Jordan: So you probably remember. It was two weeks when you felt like you were going to die.

Blaire: Yeah. It was brutal.

Jordan: Yeah. High fevers, muscle aches. You know, it's pretty rough. But you're young and healthy. So you probably will bounce back pretty quickly. Right?

The tricky thing about the flu and the important thing to remember is that it's a highly evolved thing. And it is evolved to continue to spread. If every person who got flu, on the day they got sick and started to have symptoms, would go to isolate themselves then they would prevent other people from coming in contact with them. In some sense, the virus knows this.

It doesn't have a brain. It can't really know it. But it has evolved a mechanism to get around that. That mechanism is that when you are exposed then there's actually a lapse in time between when you are contagious and when you start to develop symptoms. And it's during that time that you are shedding or spreading the virus.

Blaire: So, for a couple days, I could be spreading the virus without even knowing I have the virus in the first place. And I can be giving it to someone far more vulnerable than myself.

Jordan: Exactly. Someone who is younger, older, whose immune system is not really up to snuff, on chemotherapy or on some sort of medication for a problem like arthritis or Crohn's disease, where their immune system is being suppressed: those are the people who get very sick from the flu, people who end up in the hospital, people who die from the flu.

And God forbid if that should happen and you were the one who gave them that. In a way, you are indirectly responsible for their illness and death.

Blaire: So what I'm hearing is it's not just about vaccinating myself. It's about creating this kind of vaccinated environment in which to protect the vulnerable members of your tribe.

Jordan: Exactly. It's about being a good steward of the public health. In epidemiology, we have a term for that. And that's "herd immunity." When we have a very healthy immune herd, they create a sort of shield or protective barrier around those few in our midst who are vulnerable or unvaccinated. And they protect from and prevent these large-scale outbreaks of things that are very contagious, like the flu virus.

To get that real immunity benefit, we have to have high levels of immunity and vaccinations, levels above 75% to 80%. Unfortunately, we don't typically reach that in America. Most years, we succeed in vaccinating about 50% of the adult population against the flu.

But that's pretty good in a country of 350 million people. That's literally more than a hundred million people who get the flu shot every year. And how many of them have a major serious reaction or die from the flu on a given year? It's maybe one or two.

Blaire: How many people die of the flu?

Jordan: Tens of thousands.

Blaire: Okay. So the chances of dying of the flu shot are significantly less than dying of the flu?

Jordan: Not even in the same ballpark.

Blaire: Not even in the same ballpark. So I'm a mom. I have three kids. And, while I am concerned with herd immunity, I'm more concerned about my individual children. So could you explain to me, then, are there any differences in giving the flu shot to healthy adults, someone like myself, and then my younger children? I have a twelve-year-old, a nine-year-old, and a six-year-old. And then, how young is too young to get the flu shot?

Jordan: That's a great question. And it's changing. With new vaccines coming on the market, the youngest age possible that we can give them is going down. And we have now different strengths available for different people at different ages.

The typical flu shot, what we call "quadrivalent" shot, protects you from four strains of the virus that the CDC has identified. These are the big four that we really want to make sure that most people get immunized against.

For people who are 65 and above, we have what we call our "high-dose" flu shot, which can be for twelve to fifteen strains. Those are people who are much more likely to be acutely ill and die from the flu. So we give them a broader range of protection.

And now there's even one in the middle that's approved for people who are 50 and older. It covers about ten strains.

Now, I haven't mentioned at all the flu mist, the nasal spray. That is truly a live vaccine, what we call a "live attenuated" vaccine. It's been weakened a little bit to produce a less vigorous kind of response. But it is truly a whole particle that we give to children to avoid a shot.

It's not available every year because it's very difficult to grow in culture. So some years it just doesn't make it to market in time. In those years, we do use the shot for kids. But some years, it is available. It's not a good idea if your child suffers from respiratory problems or asthma, though. You should still give them the shot.

In general, we recommend the flu vaccination for children as young as six months old. And if a mother is breastfeeding then to continue breastfeeding through that season is really important.

Blaire: When do you recommend I give my kids and myself the flu shot? If we're going to go get the flu shot, I want it to be effective. When do I do this?

Jordan: That's a great question. Here we are, kind of late in the flu season. It's not too late. We continue to see flu cases pop up through April. But the ideal time to get your flu shot is early in the fall: September, October. That's typically when we get the flu shot in stock. So I'd say, this year, if you decide to go ahead and take the plunge and get it yourself and for your kids, go to your doctor's office or pharmacy, come late September, early October.

Blaire: What about for people who say, I already had the flu this season, so I'm going to be good the rest of season.

Jordan: I wish it were so. But it's not. We are locked in an arms race with the flu. The flu virus is constantly mutating, which is why we have to create a new flu vaccine every year to kind of play catch-up, cat-and-mouse, with this flu virus.

Now, there is real hope that, at some point in the future, we will have what we call the universal flu vaccine: one flu vaccine that you can get, either a single injection or a series, as a child and develop lifelong immunity against all strains of influenza forever, that ever could be.

Blaire: It's like super children, immune to the flu.

Jordan: And when we have that, we'll see the flu go the way of the dinosaur, the way of smallpox. It will be eradicated in humans. I'd say that vaccine, while we're making important progress towards that, it's not ready for the limelight. It's still probably ten maybe even fifteen years away. But it definitely is something that we are working on and, I think, something that we will see in our lifetime: a true universal flu shot, which is really exciting.

Until then, though, the annual flu shot is still our best defense against pandemic influenza.

Blaire: My final question, then, I have to ask. While I trust the data, and I'm trusting everything you're saying, but at the end of the day, I'm making these decisions based upon emotions. And what I need to know from you is: do you give your kids the flu vaccine?

Originally published at thrivous.com on March 14, 2020 at 07:40PM.

[s-n-o-w-p-i-e-r-c-e-r]

Something nobody talks about is how different it is in the Southern Hemisphere in the sense that no white Christmas post, autumn themed Halloween post, cherry blossoms in May post, or summer nights in June post makes any fucking sense to us, and I never see anything that represents how we live.

Show me Christmas in sweltering heat, cherry blossoms in September, Halloween in the spring, show me summer nights in January and cold winter days in July, because I’m sick of being made to feel like where I live doesn’t fit how life should be.

[wayneooverton]

A snowy road trip to Milford Sound in winter

Is there anything more beautiful than the first big snowfall of winter?

Waking up to a pure wonderland of shimmering white? When you see the blue glow from your windows and just know that yes, there is a fresh layer of snow outside. It reminds me so much of my childhood in Virginia, listening to the radio with my mom with my fingers crossed hoping to hear my school district closed, instead of just a two hour delay.

Hands up if you can relate.

Everything you need to know about surviving winter in New Zealand

I have always loved the first snowfall of the season. Before we become haggard and jaded, annoyed with the inconvenience of it all, and sick of just being cold. Before it gets all dirty, gray and slushy.

There is a simple joy to be had I think.

In Wanaka, where I live in New Zealand now, it’s rare that is snows down to ground level; the massive glacial lake keeps the surface temperature fairly warm, so the days of getting snowed in are few and far between.

Though I’ll admit it’s equally exciting to wake up see the snowline fresh and low on the surrounding mountains outside of town, knowing that powder days are coming in soon.

This year is looking to be a whopper of a winter here on the South Island. In fact, we’ve had so much early snow that my local ski resort, Cardrona, opened early to everyone’s excitement, including mine.

But by May (which I like to think is our November in the southern hemisphere), we were already getting buried in snow and the mountain passes around me were frequently closed or requiring chains, which are seriously the worst.

Towards the end of May, we had several big snowstorms in a row, and once the Milford Road reopened after being closed for heavy snowfall and avalanche danger, I decided to spontaneously take a roadie out for the day to Milford Sound – one of the most scenic and beautiful drives in New Zealand.

To be honest, a day trip to Milford Sound from Wanaka isn’t really a day trip as it takes almost 5 hours in one direction to get there. Fiordland is fairly far from anywhere but with its wild rivers, vertical cliffs and jurassic mountains, it’s totally worth it.

I’ve been dozens of times and I keep going back again and again.

And it was also the last week that Mercedes-Benz kindly leant me their brand new X-Class, the first ute they’ve ever made. And when faced at the thought of sitting down at my computer doing last year’s taxes OR going on a road trip in the snow in flash wagon, the decision was easy.

Milford Sound, I am coming for you in my hot new whip.

Merinos, Mercedes and meatballs: A 30th birthday adventure

Ever since I was a teenager I’ve owned grunty 4WDs that could get me through anything. I find it hard to drive anything less, especially now that I live in the mountains, and New Zealand’s idea of snowplowing is a joke. I like owning cars that can get me through anything.

Plus I grew up a bit of a redneck, and I particularly enjoyed parking my yellow SUV on plowed snowbanks and doing donuts in the mud, you know, because I could.

You can take the girl out of the South….

Somethings never change.

And while I had put the X-Class through its paces in glacial river crossings and in the mud on farms, I had yet to take it into the mountains in the snow. Honestly, I was doing Mercedes a favor, really. You’re welcome.

I swear it had nothing to do with the fact that anywhere I went I would get ogled and hit up by (mostly) men interested in the truck.

It’s the first ute that Mercedes has ever made, and she’s a looker. It also happened to be the very first one released in New Zealand EVER and probably one of the first down on the South Island. We are in SUV and ute country down in these parts, folks, and the X-Class got a lot of attention whenever I took her you, which, you know, I didn’t mind. Like at all.

Oh hey! *hair flick*

I just learned real quick to brush up on all my key facts around the model so when I got asked about things like towing capacity and engine size, I didn’t look like a total fool.

I had my first driving over the Crown Range at sunrise, our notorious alpine pass connecting Queenstown and Wanaka and topping out at around 1100 meters. The highest public road in New Zealand, it’s chock full of windy bends, tight turns, steep climbs and a descent with large drops that can intimidate even the bravest of drivers.

Just remember it wasn’t that long ago that it was dirt and without a guardrail and harden up!

In winter it often is closed or required to have chains for mostly 2WD. It was a veritable wonderland when I crossed over, easily flicking the X-Class into 4WD near the top.

Several strong lattes and a few hours later, I began to get a glimpse of the snowy mountains of Fiordland.

May and June while aren’t always the best weather to experience New Zealand, are the very lowest of low season which means you often have popular haunts like the iconic Milford Road all to yourself.

I find great happiness in revisiting some of my favorite spots in all weather at any time of year around the world, each visit is like seeing it with new eyes, and getting to see Fiordland with fresh snow so early in the winter was even more glorious than I imagined.

The low cloud and fog clung to the mountains on the Te Anau side of the Homer Tunnel, the dividing pass of the Milford Road that descends down into Milford Sound on the other side. It shifted in and out in the sharp winter wind, offering stunning glimpses of the peaks and with the occasional beam of sunlight bathing a slice of the world in golden light.

The cheeky kea (New Zealand’s endangered alpine parrot) were out in full force, equally excited for the fresh snow as I was. Or perhaps the more likely scenario was that they just caught a whiff of new car smell, and were ready to go in and leave their mark, as they are well known for.

One opportunistic kea took a nice bite out of the rubber around the doorframe while I was taking a video. Little shits.

Sorry Mercedes!

As I wove my way higher and higher towards the Homer Tunnel, fresh signs appeared warning of the avalanche danger and advising no stopping, quickly destroying my hopes for revisiting all my favorite photos spots.

The snowy views more than made up for it, and as I made the final leg into Milford Sound itself at sunset, all the cloud disappeared, turning the white peaks orange and gold before quickly dipping behind the iconic Mitre Peak.

Warmed up by the sea air and sunshine, I patrolled the banks of Milford at low tide, one of my favorite past times. Enjoying the disconnectivity and rejoicing in the simple happiness that comes from being alone in a beautiful place, I reflected on that day’s journey, once again glad I chose an adventure over taxes.

I mean seriously, who has ever regretted a spontaneous snow road trip?

Have you been to Milford Sound? Do you love the first snowfalls too? Are winter road trips your jam? Share!

TIP: if you’re planning to road trip around the South Island in winter (May – September), it’s a good idea to hire a 4WD and rent chains AND know how to put them on. Roads like the Milford Road and the Crown Range often have restrictions or close and are covered in snow and ice. Here are some good winter driving tips in New Zealand and you can check the Milford Rd status here)

Many thanks to Mercedes-Benz for hooking me up with the sweet X-Class, like always I’m keeping it real, all opinions are my own, like you could expect less from me. 

The post A snowy road trip to Milford Sound in winter appeared first on Young Adventuress.

from Young Adventuress https://ift.tt/2NCr6eL

[dentalinfotoday]

May 23, 2016

UPDATE FROM DR. BUCK AND CARILYN: The Flying Doctors of America Mission is about to begin! Carilyn and I (Dr. Buck) left MQT at 6:20 AM on Saturday. After transferring in Detroit and Atlanta, we flew to Lima, Peru (6.5-hour flight) and arrived around 11:30 PM (Lima is on Central Time).

Our plan was to stay at a hotel at the Lima Airport, however, I made the reservation for the wrong date! Thankfully, the nice gentleman at the front desk offered us a space to lie down in a side room and told us that he would let us know if some guests don’t show up. Around 1:30 AM, we were allowed to check into a room and got a nice, solid 3-hours of sleep in preparation for our early morning flight to Cusco.

Our team leader met us at the airport in Cusco (short 1-hour flight from Lima) and we began our preparation for Monday’s mission. We checked into our hotel, met the rest of the group and ate lunch. The group consisted of 20 people: 4 dentists, 2 dental assistants, 8 doctors, 2 nurses, and 4 auxiliary members. Then the medical team sorted medications and the dental team sorted dental supplies into rations for each day of the mission.

After a quick stroll around the neighborhood, we came back to meet the translators and had some questionable pizza (trust me, anywhere outside the fabulous US of A, the pizza has a high probability of being mediocre or just plain weird!).

We’ve been staying hydrated and drank some tea which is specific for altitude sickness prevention (Cusco is at an elevation of 11,000ft). We can’t tell if it’s the lack of sleep or the altitude that causes us to have a few weak moments or very slight headaches, but overall, we are doing very well. Carilyn and I got into bed earlier than we can remember (7:30 PM) to catch up on some sleep for Monday’s mission. We’ll keep you posted on how it goes—we couldn’t be more excited!

May 24, 2016

UPDATE FROM DR. BUCK AND CARILYN: For our first day of the mission, we set up at the main market of downtown Cusco. This market is the original indoor market in the city, and we were told the same architect who designed the Eiffel Tower also designed the trusses in the roof. The people of the market coordinated tents just outside for us.

The medical team setup a triage station, pediatrics, dermatology, ob-gyn, and two internal medicine stations. The dental team had a larger tent to share (maybe 10′ X 30′ or so) and we all got to work.

Working without electricity does require many adaptations from dentistry in the United States! We sterilized our instruments by washing them in water, then two changes of cold sterilization solution, followed by another wash of water. For extra visualization, we used headlamps. We were limited to only extractions, checkups, fluoride treatments and cleanings. We performed many of each of these.

Having done very few cleanings since dental school, I was out of practice, and boy, did my ring finger get sore! I already appreciate our incredible hygienists, Amanda and Kim, but that helped me to appreciate them even more. Thank you for all that you do, ladies! I did notice at one point when music was playing near the market that I was humming to it. I guess you can’t stop me from humming while I work (but please feel free to stop me from singing—it’s not pretty!).

Much of the general population in many Third World countries, including Peru, often make only a few dollars per day or per week. Toothbrushes cost a lot here, around one dollar or more, so it is understandable that many people do not even own toothbrushes. It was wonderful to be able to distribute toothbrushes to so many people (especially seeing the children smile with excitement when they received them!).

One memorable experience was having to use the bathroom in the market. It costs 50 Soles (Peruvian “suns”-about equal to twenty cents) to use the bathroom. This was a dirty room with stalls and urinals all in the same location. And guess what? There’s no toilet in the stalls! Carilyn and I had the pleasure of peeing in a hole jaggedly cut into the tile of the floor. I’ll tell you what, these Yoopers prefer the woods over the hole in a floor any day!

We did unfortunately have a team member fall ill due to altitude sickness. She was nauseated in the morning and got worse throughout the day. They tried to give her oxygen, but the hotel’s oxygen tank (which they keep for foreigners not used to the altitude) was empty due to another guest recently using it. By evening, she was starting to feel much better, but she might not be able to join us on Tuesday’s mission. Carilyn and I are doing well adjusting to the altitude (taking our Diamox for altitude sickness prevention helped us I’m sure), with very minor symptoms, at times no symptoms.

Given that we are in the Southern Hemisphere, the seasons are switched, so it is nearing winter here. The sun began to set shortly after 5 PM. We had to start wrapping up by 5:15, otherwise, without electricity, we wouldn’t be able to see enough to clean up. After a tour of the market by the workers learning about local food and products, we ate dinner and went to bed, satisfied with all we did and experienced.

Tuesday’s mission will take place in a town about 45 minutes away from Cusco. We are ready for another hard day’s work! Stay tuned for the next update of the mission!

May 25, 2016

DAY 3 UPDATE FROM OUR PERUVIAN TRAVELERS: “No comer ni beber durante mediahora por favor.” This translates as: “No food or drink for a half hour please.” We’ve been practicing this phrase mucho! Tuesday’s mission was spent in a municipality named Poroy, 20 minutes away from Cusco by bus. Since the schools were involved in organizing this event, many more children were seen this day than Monday. Over 100 fluoride treatments were done for the children of Poroy.

Each child was such an individual; some were shy, some were outgoing, some were brave, some were not. In general, the children seemed very happy. I often think about happiness and what a person needs for it, and often, it isn’t much. People might not have electricity, glass in their windows, toothbrushes, or lots of money, but happiness, a feeling that is as impermanent and fleeting as any, can be found in a sunrise, a wonderful bite of food, or in a child’s laughter. We are each the masters of our own happiness, no matter where we live.

The mission was a lot of hard work, a lot of fun, and very interesting on Tuesday. Although most people spoke Spanish, some people were not fluent in Spanish. They were “Andinos” meaning from the Andes mountains. A few people we saw spoke the language Quechua. The Spanish translators (we shared 2 among the dental team) relied on a third person to help us. Imagine, translating from English to Spanish to Quechua, and then the other way around!

Most of the treatments other than fluoride were extractions. I only did one cleaning on Tuesday and thank goodness, because my fingers were very sore from no practice! We learned phrases like “Buen Trabajo!” (Good job!) and “Muy Valiente!” (Very brave!). The mayor of the town thanked us at the end of the day, bringing us to the town building and feeding us coffee and sandwiches. Everyone was so thankful.

On the bus ride back to Cusco, Carilyn and I spoke about what we were both feeling observing the people of Peru. Each human wants similar things: Food in our bellies, a roof over our heads, the best for our children. How different would life be if I had been born here? How would my life outlook be different? What choices would I make? What opportunities would I have? We pondered this as we watched the beautiful lights from houses twinkle in the mountains as we returned from the town of Poroy.

We ate dinner at our hotel and got a chance to speak with the team about their other missions. Almost everyone had been on numerous missions previously and it was interesting to hear about them. Syrian refugees in Jordan, Israel, Ecuador, Honduras, jungles in Peru, Africa. It has me excited for my next mission already. I can’t wait to do more. So many people in this world have it tougher than the least fortunate American.

Wednesday will be spent in a village called San Jeronimo, near their market, in similar conditions as Monday and Tuesday. Carilyn and I made sure to get tons of sleep!

May 26, 2016

DAY 4 UPDATE: “Dame cinco!” This translates as “Gimme five!”

Wednesday’s mission was in a municipality named San Jeronimo. We set up inside a fenced cement soccer field. Mary, who couldn’t join us on Tuesday, is mostly recovered from the altitude and was able to rejoin the group. Many senior dental students and three of their professors joined the dental team. The students had an entire presentation for preschool children, dressed up as Olaf, Anna, and Elsa. Don’t worry, they didn’t play “Let it go.” They had a cute act and dance about sugar bugs and brushing your teeth.

They also asked the children dental questions and gave out toothbrushes for the right answer. For the third question, one little boy was so excited, he ran up before he was called. “How many days per week should you brush your teeth?” And he had the best answer! He said ten!

Many fluoride treatments were done, cleanings and some extractions. The first little girl I had, an 8-year-old, was so afraid. A dental student set up a selfie stick with her phone playing cartoons for the girl, and we got through gently wiggling out three baby teeth. At the end, when I was giving her a toothbrush and stickers, she surprised me by lunging in for a big, long hug! My favorite moment of the day!

The largest celebration of the year in Peru, Corpus Cristi, lands on Wednesday and Thursday this year. Due to all of the celebration, there weren’t as many people as we had hoped at the clinics. However, we made the most of it and helped everyone we could. While Carilyn was doing an excellent job at cleaning one woman’s teeth, we noticed that she might have lice, so we brought the dermatologist over. He said there might be louse eggs in her hair and he gave her some shampoo and instructions for her and her family. Keep your fingers crossed for Carilyn and I!

For dinner, we got a chance to try a traditional Peruvian restaurant. The goal was for us to be able to try “Cuy” (pronounced Koo-ee), which is guinea pig. Funny, but because of the holiday, it was very, very difficult for our leader to track down any Cuy in the entire city of Cusco! But with perseverance, we found an excellent place with traditional dancers and a Peruvian flute band. The guinea pig was roasted and presented to us with the head still on! Yes, it does taste like rabbit. We also got to try beef heart (thumbs up) and cold pig feet (thumbs down).

An artesian market was near the restaurant, so we had the chance to see some hand-made artwork before heading back to the hotel. There were blankets, masks, wooden carvings, trinkets, hats, scarves, purses and backpacks, all with such detail and so many vibrant colors around.

Before traveling home (a 30-hr journey), we will visit one of the Seven Wonders of the World, Machu Picchu. So, to bed early again for Carilyn and I!

The post Dr. Buck’s Experiences in Peru with the Flying Doctors of America appeared first on Northern Trails Dental Care.

from Northern Trails Dental Care https://northerntrailsdentalcare.com/blog/dr-bucks-experiences-in-peru-with-the-flying-doctors-of-america/

[viralhottopics]

CNN 10 – March 14, 2017

March 14, 2017

More than 20 million people are facing the threat of famine and starvation, according to the United Nations. Today, we’re explaining why and what the U.N. wants to do about it. Afterward, we’re examining whether the ISIS terrorist group could be completely eradicated, and we’re looking at a wintery forecast for the U.S. Northeast. Other subjects include a meeting of heroes and a dog that stole an agility show by making mistakes.

TRANSCRIPT

CARL AZUZ, CNN 10 ANCHOR: Hi. I’m Carl Azuz.

An urgent warning from the United Nations leads off today’s show.

The organization’s humanitarian coordinator says more than 20 million people are threatened by famine and starvation. They’re concentrated at four countries, the African nations of Nigeria, Somalia and South Sudan, and the Middle Eastern nation of Yemen. The U.N. says this constitutes the world’s greatest humanitarian crisis since 1945, when the U.N. was founded.

What are these countries have in common? Conflict.

In Nigeria, it’s the fighting against the Boko Haram terrorist group, combined with potential famine that has devastated parts of the country.

In South Sudan, fighting between government troops and armed groups, combined with a famine, have left more than 40 percent of the population in need of food, farming help and nutrition.

In Somalia, attacks by the Islamic militant group al Shabaab, plus a worsening drought are taking their tool and in Yemen, a two year old civil war has left roads blocked, reduced imports, left markets damaged and left millions hungry.

So, what can be done about this?

The United Nations wants funding, $4.4 billion by this summer that would go toward fighting hunger and disease in these countries.

Used of war have also destroyed parts of Iraq and Syria, and helped give rise to the ISIS terrorist group. ISIS, an acronym for Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. That’s what the terrorists wanted, based on their severe interpretation of Islam.

But their two major strongholds in those two countries are now the targets of international efforts to destroy ISIS. A battle is looming over Raqqa, ISIS’s self-declared capital in Syria, and the terrorists are losing their hold on the Iraqi city of Mosul after months of fighting there.

But will all these rid the world of ISIS? What would that take?

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It began slowly from the ruins of two groups of wars in Iraq and Syria, but when will ISIS truly began?

SUBTITLE: Can ISIS ever be eradicated?

WALSH: As U.S. and allied firepower honed on their final strongholds, they may almost fall as fast as they rose, when they emerged in 2014 and declared their leader, Abu Bakr al Qaeda, head of their caliphate in Iraq and Syria.

Their territory grew in Iraq, exploiting the suffering of the Sunni minority and in Syria, offering a savage sense of order among the indiscriminate murder of the civil war. Their brutality became ubiquitous, yet also appealed to warped minds globally.

In Libya, a franchise on the coast, in Afghanistan, in the east, in Egypt, around Africa, even southern Russia, pledges of allegiance were made because to be part of ISIS, all you have to do was make a video or a phone call during an attack, and you were part of the global branded enterprise of horror. Paris, Brussels, Orlando, Nice, Istanbul, the lists have to be a lot longer to include all those who claimed to act on their sick name.

As they wane in Iraq and Syria, and lose their Libyan stronghold altogether, they’re not over yet. Their idea lives on. The virus of their perverted version of Islam now contagious perhaps forever for anyone on the Internet.

The challenge going forward: how do you make ISIS lose its appeal to those drawn to something so deliberately vile?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AZUZ (voice-over): Ten-second trivia:

Which of those words describe a time when day and night are about the same length?

Solstice, Allegro, Equinox or Invicta?

A vernal and autumnal equinoxes or spring and fall equinoxes are when day and night are all equal all over the world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

AZUZ: The spring equinox is on March 20th this year, less than a week away. It’s the first official day of spring in the northern hemisphere and it feels like it in many parts of the U.S. From Washington, D.C. to Massachusetts, blizzard warnings are in effect, with up to 18 inches of snow in the forecast for Boston and New York City.

Schools were closed. Thousands of flights were cancelled for airports in the path of the late winter storm, it’s already slammed the Midwest and this system could bring the Northeast its heaviest snowfall of the whole winter.

Residents stocked up on food and supplies. State governments stockpiled sandbags, pumps and generators, in case there’s flooding or the power goes out. Meteorologists say this was all caused when two low pressure weather systems came together, forming a potentially potent nor’easter.

In cold weather in general is affecting a large part of the U.S. population, almost a third of all Americans are under some sort of winter weather alert this week. Many of them live near a lake.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Let’s talk about lake-effect snow. As a boy growing up in Buffalo, New York, I knew it as a day off of school. My dad knew it as a day he may not get home from work as it was just snowing too hard.

SUBTITLE: Lake-effect snow.

MYERS: But how does it work? Well, first of all, you need a lake, because it’s called lake-effect snow. And the lake needs to be unfrozen, 35, 40, 45 degrees is great. And then the air that blows across it from the north or from the west can be 10 degrees.

All of a sudden, the moisture from the lake mixes in with the cold air from the north, and you get big clouds and you can get big snow. When it goes on land and goes uphill, all of a sudden, you get significant lake-effect snow. It can be two to three inches per hour.

And depending on where you are, if you’re just south of it or north of this lake-effect band, it can look like a wall of snow was coming down. And so, that’s why you can be anywhere from a two to three-inch snow fall in one county, and just a few miles south, you can get 30 inches in one day.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

AZUZ: Nominations are open for the 2017 CNN Heroes. These are everyday people. You may know a potential hero, who’s making an incredible impact on a community. The 2016 Hero of the Year, Jeison Aristizabal, was born with cerebral palsy and he’s helped give a brighter future to more than a thousand Colombian children with disabilities.

After accepting his award from CNN, he visited another Colombian hero who’s made it his life’s work to help others.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUBTITLE: In December, he was honored as a Top 10 CNN Hero — but that’s not all.

KELLY RIPA, HOST: The 2016 CNN Hero of the Year is Jeison Aristizabal.

ANDERSON COOPER, HOST: Jeison Aristizabal.

(APPLAUSE)

SUBTITLE: While in New York, Jeison visited fellow Colombian and 2009 Top 10 CNN Hero Jorge Munoz.

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

SUBTITLE: Every single night, Jorge brings free meals to hungry people in Queens, NY.

Jeison helped Jorge prepare meals to be distributed that very night.

JEISON ARISTIZABAL, CNN 2016 HERO OF THE YEAR (translated): I’m very inspired by how Jorge fights. His manner, his tenacity, the enthusiasm that he brings.

The food multiplies here.

JORGE MUNOZ, 2009 TOP 10 CNN HERO (translated: Yes, it’s really nice.

ARISTIZABAL: It inspires me do something for others every day.

SUBTITLE: They also got the chance to swap stories.

MUNOZ: I mean, it was very special, I felt very proud of being Colombian when I saw you there.

ARISTIZABAL: What a joy to be part of this CNN family! I’m very pleased, very proud, very happy.

CROWD: Jeison! Jeison! Jeison! Jeison!

(END VIDEOTAPE)

AZUZ: Agility events test the dog’s athleticism, its training, its connection with its owner, charging over A-frames, hurdles, through tunnels and between weave poles makes for good TV. But when an animal isn’t particularly skilled at these things but competes anyway, that makes for great TV.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look at this. Ooh, what a nose dive and he couldn’t care less.

SUBTITLE: This dog might be the worst competitor ever.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here we go! That’s one of the best shots I’ve seen in a long time.

SUBTITLE: But when it comes to pure hilarity, he’s a big winner. Olly the Jack Russell terrier has become a viral star — thanks to a comically-bad obstacle course run at the 2017 Crufts Dog Show.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, he’s a little bit confused. Some people think he sould have — oh!

Little Jack Russell here Olly with Karen from the Blue Cross, closes out the group, this last of the small (INAUDIBLE)

He’s all over he place and so he should be. Olly and Karen here, Olly was from (INAUDIBLE)

SUBTITLE: His hilarious performance is trending on YouTube.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some people think he should have stayed as lucky (INAUDIBLE). Olly is totally crazy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

AZUZ: So, maybe he’s not on course on the concourse, more energetic than synergetic and more vigorous than rigorous. But agility is not beyond his abilities. He’s still more agile than fragile, more boss than draws, and he’s super. He’s able to Olly over A-frames in a single hound.

I’m Carl Azuz.

Click here to access the printable version of today’s CNN 10 transcript.

CNN 10 serves a growing audience interested in compact on-demand news broadcasts ideal for explanation seekers on the go or in the classroom. The show’s priority is to identify stories of international significance and then clearly describe why they’re making news, who is affected, and how the events fit into a complex, international society.

Thank you for using CNN 10

Read more: http://ift.tt/2n2tjFM

from CNN 10 – March 14, 2017

[sandinz]

It won’t come as too much of a surprise to hear that blogging has taken a backwards step in our busy lives for the time being. We’re not boating until early April – instead we’re enjoying three months off, relishing the space-between-‘work’ to travel, and be with family and friends in the northern and southern hemispheres. I guess it’s a kind of self-imposed annualised hours contract!

A Nigerian adventure – and a surreal stool story

I had a fascinating and fun trip to Nigeria for ten days in January (read all about it here), to stay with my youngest daughter who is teaching there at an International School. Unfortunately this culminated with me being hospitalised, and isolated, five days after returning to UK with a possible ‘infectious disease’. Thankfully all the test results came back negative; whatever had hitched a ride in my gut worked its way out successfully (though revoltingly and painfully …). Having been a midwife for the last 25 years of my career, the ‘stool chart’ I was presented with to fill in for every toilet visit was quite an education (apologies for those of a weak constitution!).

Type 6 and 7 are in the shaded area on the chart, which is where my ticks were consistently placed.

Until Wednesday.

That morning the hospital chaplain popped his head round the door (best not to come in as you had to gown and glove up!) just to say a cheery ‘Hi‘, shortly followed by a text from the adorable Helen from Wild Side, reminding me she was praying for my health. Next minute the Gideon contact came to see if I had one of their bibles in my locker. I didn’t, so he replaced it. I thought I may take a sneaky peak as I’ve not read one for decades – but it came sealed which I thought odd. Till Helen’s detective brain suggested it’s because of the potential infection! So I opened it, and randomly picked a page – it was the story of Jesus healing the sick. That afternoon all my results came back negative, which was a shock for everyone, and from that moment on I started rising up the toll chart each day, without any medication, until by Friday all was ‘normal’ once again.

I’m not and never will be a ‘believer’, it’s just too far fetched and illogical to me. However I was impressed at the turn of events and extremely grateful to whatever force or sureal coincidences may have been on my side. I don’t do ‘ill’, and we’d got places to go and people to see …

Blacking Areandare

Barry meanwhile had remained in Birmingham while I was abroad, getting the boat ready for its BSC, aka ‘Boat Safety Certificate’ (a requirement every four years), which it passed smoothly hurrah! Once I returned we moved to Hawne Basin on 9th February, to begin the process of blacking Areandare’s hull – for the first time in three years.

It was a much-needed job. Barry had joked for a while that I’d find an excuse not to help him, and I’d insisted I would be there. I hadn’t anticipated being incapacitated and totally unable to do more than a bit of scraping on the first day! Maybe there’s some truth in the saying that “… you get what you wish for” husband lol?!

Bless him, he ended up doing it all alone – and a fantastic job he did. He totally deserves a break for six weeks.

Water blasted and ready to scrape!

Brand new anode looking smart

The new blacked bottom

Back into the water

Family times north and south

Last week we enjoyed time with our UK family at Northmoor House. As a family, we’ve gathered here many times since 1995, consequently it’s holds an abundance of happy memories and tales of times gone by. My younger sister had brought a video of two visits in 2000 and 2001, when dad was alive and energetic, which were heartwarming to watch and listen him chatting and laughing. This year there were 11 young children running around the enormous building, getting into all sorts of mischief, and loving every minute of it! I overheard my eldest grandson saying to his younger brother on their last afternoon, “I’m really gonna miss this place. Are you?” And he replied “Yes. I am.” Then they hugged each other tightly. Bless them.

#gallery-0-18 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-18 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 33%; } #gallery-0-18 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-18 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */

Tomorrow we’re flying to New Zealand, to see Barry’s family and friends – and won’t return to UK until 1st April. It’ll be the first time Barry has seen his daughter and son for three and a half years. His sister and brother who live in Australia are also coming for our last week there, I’ve lost track of when he last saw them (his other brother lives in Gisborne, where we’ll be spending most of our time).

The 2017 trading season

Our trading season commences mid-April, when I’ll be facepainting at Hadley Bowling Green Inn, then St Richard’s Festival Droitwich where we’ll both be trading for the fourth year running.

Our itinerary currently looks like this:

16th April – Facepainting at Hadley Bowling Green Inn

29th April to 1st May – St Richard’s Festival, Droitwich (Home Brew Boat and Funtastic Facepainting)

13th to 14th May – Burton-on-Trent RCTA Floating Market (Home Brew Boat and Funtastic Facepainting)

20th to 21st May – Mercia Marina Floating Market (Home Brew Boat and Funtastic Facepainting)

27th to 29th May – Fazeley RCTA Floating Market (Home Brew Boat only)

15th to 16th June – FAB Middlewich (Home Brew Boat and Funtastic Facepainting)

24th to 25th June – Chester RCTA Floating Market (Home Brew Boat only)

A bit of a break here in July, as we have some friends coming to stay from NZ, and we’re away for a week on a Scottish narrow boating holiday with a fellow trader (The Doggie Boat) and another 17 people! We’ll be doing The Falkirk Wheel twice – one of Barry’s dreams coming true).

29th July – Linslade Canal Festival (Home Brew Boat only)

12th to 13th August – Blisworth Canal Festival (Home Brew Boat and Funtastic Facepainting)

8th to 9th September – Black Country Boating Festival (Home Brew Boat and Funtastic Facepainting)

15th to 16th September – Tipton Canal Festival (Home Brew Boat and Funtastic Facepainting)

22nd to 23rd September – Huddlesford Heritage Gathering – (Home Brew Boat and Funtastic Facepainting)

Pay back time in the winter

We’ve applied to have our own ‘Calendar Club‘ store this year, which is likely to commence around the end of September/early October and will entail one or both of us being in the shop or Mall Unit seven days a week until early January. We won;t know until closer to the time where this will be, but it’s likely to be somewhere in the midlands.

While I’m away in New Zealand, I’ll do my best at some stage to continue drafting a post about our Calendar Club experiences and publish it – they’re looking for more store operators and the timings of this could suit many narrowboaters, especially traders.

Haere Ra UK – farewell for now, we’re flying south to the sun! So looking forward to being back in Aotearoa and catching up with so many beautiful people there.

Having a blogging break … It won't come as too much of a surprise to hear that blogging has taken a backwards step in our busy lives for the time being.