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[monstrousproductions]

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[victoriareyloficlists]

Single Parents

Updated 10 November 2021

Rest of the Masterlist.

A Beautiful Mess by MizuPhoenix (AO3 2018  Rated E Complete, 5 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Ben/Kylo is a new dad, left with a baby and note from a one night stand. Rey is his flighty loud neighbor, who always has way too many friends at her house and doesn't make things easy on his new lifestyle. They argue relentlessly, until one day an emergency calls for her help with the baby and spawns them into the path to something heated in a different way. ) Baby Fever by HerSistersKeeper (AO3 2019  Rated E Complete, 6 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Single dad Ben Solo is fine staying single, even if he does find Rey, the teacher who lives a floor up from him and his son, attractive and charming. His toddler, Matt, has other ideas.) Baby Shark by Melusine11 (AO3 2020  Rated G Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Ben Solo, kindergarten teacher extraordinaire can handle a lot. Fights over who is the leader in line for the day, crying over not getting the right color crayon they want, puke after gym time, but the one thing that consistently raises his blood pressure is one damnable song.) Bearers and Builders by AverageEpaulet (AO3 2021  Rated E Complete, 10 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: In which Rey needs a nanny for her daughter Hazel and Ben happens to be the just right for the job. TW: previous infant death.) Butter Crisp Sandwich by DarkMage13 (AO3 2021  Rated M Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: “Mr, I insist you join me for a tea party today, at precisely noon. My teddy will be there.” Ben glanced at the boring clock on the wall. Ten minutes until noon. He swallowed in fear. There was no escape.  Or: Ben Solo cannot say no to an adorable hazel-eyed little girl's request for tea.) Choreae Lucis by Shestoolazytologin (AO3 2020  Rated E Complete, 3 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Ben Solo takes his daughter to her ballet classes and forgets his heart there.) chosen dreams by blessedreylo (AO3 2020  Rated M Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Single dad Ben Solo is struggling with a fussy baby that won't stop crying. Ben's new neighbor Rey hears the crying and knocks on the door to see if she can help.) Close Enough to Kiss by Somewhere_overthe_Reylo (AO3 2020  Rated E Complete, 2 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Rey's daughter comes with her to take a final exam. Dr.Solo ends up being soft for babies.) Expanding The Family Tree by WaterlilyRose (AO3 2018  Rated E Complete, 9 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Life didn't turn out exactly the way Rey imagined but she never imagined she could be this happy. Ben and herself were a good team with their daughter and proved themselves to be good parents.So if it worked once... why not again?) Father Knows Best by American_Punk_1990 (AO3 2016  Rated M Complete, 20 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Ben Solo is doing all he can to be the best single father that he can but he is in desperate need for a good baby sitter. Rey needs a new job and the absurdly tall, kind of goofy looking guy with the world's cutest baby seems to have a perfect solution.) Go And Catch A Falling Star Chapter 17 by Ayearandaday (AO3 2020  Rated G Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: As a child, Rey is mesmerized by ballerina Leia and grows up to become one. Single dad Ben and his daughter Stella fall for Rey.) Goodnight Moon by LittleAndikin (AO3 2020  Rated M Complete, 2 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Ben's 3 year old daughter Lily won't go to sleep without listening to the library's podcast reading of Goodnight Moon. When she's in the elevator with her father & a neighbour, she recognises Rey from her voice as the person who reads to her every night.) Halloween Wishes by danceinmystorm (AO3 2020  Rated G Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Ben Solo tries his best to make sure that his daughter gets to trick or treat and get candy for Halloween. Just as the night feels like a bust, their next door neighbor invites them in for a fun surprise.) Have My Everything by MotherofScavengers (AO3 2020  Rated E Complete, 2 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: After months of convincing, teacher Rey is at last dragged by her friends to a strip club and gets gifted with a lap dance. When she's alone and waiting, she finally meets the dancer: Usually shy Ben, the single father of her favourite student. ) Hot Cocoa and Cinnamon by ABeautifulBreakdown (AO3 2020  Rated E Complete, 2 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: When a trip the the park leads to her child wandering off Rey is left in a state of panic. Distraught and over run with emotions she hunts down her little boy only to find him standing with a strange man who upon closer inspection doesn't actually seem so strange.) i found love where it wasn’t supposed to be, right in front of me by Lutrosis (AO3 2020  Rated T Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Ben’s the sweetheart nanny to Rey’s twin daughters. When her new boyfriend is frustrated that he’s lower on her list of priorities than her children, he dumps her. Rey texts Ben and comes home early to find her kids tucked in, and Ben, ready with ice cream.) I need a teacher by kyoloren (AO3 2020  Rated E Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Single dad and photographer Ben Solo sets up to take photos of fashion model Rey at her place and accidentally stumbles upon her massive dildo collection. Rey, forever sexually unsatisfied, decides that maybe she should try the real thing…) I Was Lost (For You To Find) by LadyReylo (AO3 2020  Rated E Complete, 19 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: “On Friday we received a visit from a man and his lawyer.” Mr Kenobi opened the folder on his desk. Rey instantly recognised it, her eyes widening, dread filling her. “What... what do you mean? What is going on?” She said, her tone firm. Whatever this was, if it involved her son, she needed to know the truth now. “His name is Benjamin Solo. And he claims his son was illegally put up for adoption eleven years ago without his consent.”) In Full Bloom by deedreamer (AO3 2019  Rated T Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: When high school teacher Rey Kanata gets flowers with a cryptic message, she freaks out, thinking she's being hit on by one of her students. On a mission to find out who sent the flowers, she meets Ben Solo -- single dad and owner of the little florist down on Main Street. When the flowers turn out to be a delivery error, Rey knows her job's no longer at risk. But what she doesn't know is that she's about to fall head over heels for the man who keeps sending her flowers day after day because he's a goner for her, too...) In the Bleak Midwinter Came a Rey of Light by Reylo_of_light (AO3 2020  Rated M Complete, 2 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Rey's luck had run out. No purse. No phone. And now her car had broken down and her toddler is crying. Lucky for her, her knight in a shining Tesla is about to pull up. Perhaps there are miracles at Christmas.) Island Holiday: A Reylo Christmas Story by Rey_KnightofRen (AO3 2019  Rated T Complete, 2 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Violinist Rey Niima is traveling to Hawai‘i to perform in her best friend Finn’s destination wedding the week before Christmas. She’s supposed to be playing a duet with cellist Ben Solo. Although Rey and Ben were rivals back in college, several years have passed since then and Rey discovers that Ben is now a VERY attractive and VERY eligible single dad. She starts to hope that her suitcase isn’t the only thing she’ll be bringing back with her from Hawai‘i…) Liam's Friend by Lady_of_Haven (AO3 2020  Rated T Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Neighbor Maz watches Rey’s son Liam while she works and goes to school. Maz pushes him in his pram at the park everyday at 12, which is when Ben walks his dog Kylo. Little Liam loves Kylo and Ben. One day, Rey is out with Liam at a coffee shop when he recognizes and reaches out for Ben.) Lizzy Solo by Hellyjellybean (AO3 2020  Rated M Complete, 3 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Its bring your kids to work day and little Lizzy Solo meets Rey for the first time. "Are you the same Rey that my dad told Uncle Hux he was half in love with?") Locked Out by INTPSlytherin_reylove97 (AO3 2020  Rated M Complete, 2 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Single mom Rey has never accepted help from her neighbor Ben. But when she gets locked out of her apartment with a crying toddler, Ben is there. And Ben wants to continue to be there for them.) Love is Strange by SpaceWaffleHouseTM (AO3 2020  Rated M Complete, 7 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Or the one where Rey lies and tells her coworkers she has a loving husband and a son. Now the annual picnic is coming up and she needs a fake picture-perfect family. Fortunately, her friend Ben fits all the requirements.) Love's Mystery by Hartmannclan (AO3 2020  Rated G Complete, 14 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Ben Solo only needs one lady in his life; his daughter, Hope. So he is surprised to find himself intrigued by the masked woman who just spilled a drink down the front of his costume. Maybe this year the company Valentine's day dance won't be so boring after all? And what happens when he has to leave suddenly.....) lunch thief by thisismelodrama (AO3 2020  Rated E Complete, 34 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: In which Rey’s son steals Ben’s daughter’s lunch and chaos ensues.) maybe we're from the same star Chapter 4 by INTPSlytherin_reylove97 (AO3 2018  Rated M Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Living together was supposed to be easy. Another person to help with the kids, they already spent most of their free time together anyways.) My Dad Will Not Date Miss Palpatine (But Maybe He Can Marry Her) by AnneAnna (AO3 2021  Rated T Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Annie Solo is perfectly happy with her Dad and brother and the last thing she needs is her dad's high school sweetheart coming to town and ruining everything. But maybe just maybe Miss Palpatine will be far better than she expected.) Neighborly by Blueyedgurl (AO3 2020  Rated T Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Rey and her son move into a new apartment and meets her new neighbor Ben and his cute dog.) Now I'm In It by crystanagahori (AO3 2020  Rated E Complete, 6 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: So Rey might have accidentally told her boss that she was bringing her loving husband and sweet two year old son to the fundraiser. She does not, in fact, have either. She does, however, have her neighbor Ben and his two year old son Noah.) Off guard by TheReadingNook (AO3 2019  Rated M Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: The last thing Rey is looking for is love. As a single mom, her plate is as full as she wants it to be, but her son seems to think otherwise. And when he sets out to fill that void, they learn some interesting things about life, love, and the bonds of family and friendship.) Our Karate Kids by Theyna_Shipper (AO3 2020  Rated G Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: When Rey drops in on her daughter's karate class for Halloween, she meets Ben Solo, another single parent, and watch their children spar.) Overboard by Biekewieke (AO3 2020  Rated M Complete, 10 Chapters, Overboard AU, Quick Synopsis: Ben Organa-Skywalker is a rich snob who hires her to clean his party barge, making her life difficult and fouls her mood. After a freak accident throws him overboard and Rey ends up saving his life. When he wakes up, it turns out he has amnesia. Rey sees it as the ultimate answer to all her prayers. She gets to take his arrogant ass down a peg or two AND she has someone to help around the house and with the kids for a while.) Please be my Daddy! by erney007 (AO3 2019  Rated E Complete, 5 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Raising a child while having to do such demanding job is hard. Rey, an ICU nurse, accidentally finds out that her asshole neighbor, Ben Solo, is quite good at babysitting. After plaguing her child with Elsa obsession, Obiwan starting to call him “Papa”. And Ben kind of likes it.) Raincheck by Hormonal_Trashbag (AO3 2019  Rated T Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Ben's 7 year old son tries to ask out his teacher Miss Rey on behalf of his father.) Rey's Braids by Magdalane (AO3 2021  Rated M Complete, 6 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Ben's little girl falls in love with braided hairstyles. He watches video from the popular YouTube channel in which Rey teaches different braiding techniques. After weeks of failure, he DMs her on Instagram, desperate...) Say It With Feeling by amybeegood (AO3 2018  Rated E Complete, 18 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Meet Rey, the Maid/Escort who really needs a solid day job and Ben, the reclusive, virgin billionaire who doesn't have a clue about real life or how to hire household help.) Something About November Chapter 18 by SpaceWaffleHouseTM (AO3 2019  Rated G Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: When Ben's adopted daughter finds a box of love letters he wrote and never sent, she decides she wants him happy for Christmas. With help from her Aunt Gwen, she sends her the letters.) Something Missing by Hellyjellybean (AO3 2020  Rated M Complete, 3 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: An angst-free AU where Ben takes his kid to work and loses track of him only to find him eating contraband candy with Rey from IT.) Take Me Out To The Ball Game by empirestrikesben (AO3 2020  Rated T Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Rey is sitting with her daughter next to Prince Ben at a baseball game. Her daughter sneaks popcorn while her mom's distracted. The video goes viral and Queen Leia invites Rey and her daughter to the palace.) that's where you take me by blessedreylo (AO3 2020  Rated E Complete, 2 Chapters, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Single dad Ben asks his daughters nanny Rey to live with them during quarantine so she can help take care of her while he works remote. Lots of domestic proximity and mutual pining ensues.) The Ties That Bind by Telcontarian (AO3 2020  Rated G Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Professor Ben Solo rules the classroom with an iron fist and he is not generally known for his kindness or for his understanding. However, when Rey approaches him to ask for help with her daughter, Kira, Rey finds that Ben is more gentle and caring than she originally thought.) To Play Pretend by SuchaPrettyPoison (AO3 2020  Rated M Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Single dad Ben Solo is tired of being hit on by some of the mums from his daughter's kindergarten class. He asks his friend Rey to come with him to pick up his daughter as his pretend fiancée.) To Say Good Night to You by dawninthemtn (AO3 2020  Rated T Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Ben is living a lonely quarantine when he gets a FaceTime call from a random toddler. He makes friends with the child, and eventually, her mother.) Violet Solo Turns 5 by hellocienne (AO3 2021  Rated G Complete, One-Shot, Modern AU, Quick Synopsis: Little Violet Solo is Ben’s entire world. His daughter is the most precious person in his life, and he is adamant about doing anything it takes to keep his little girl smiling. Despite Violet’s obvious charm and charisma, not even one of her invited classmates went to her 5th birthday party, and she is about to get an intense meltdown that not even Ben—super dad extraordinaire—could keep under control. Enter Rey Niima—Ben’s coworker who he might or might not be in love with for the last three years. She’s Violet’s (other) favorite person in the whole wide world, and this woman will truly do anything for Ben’s precious little girl. Even if it means sending a group text to her friends who all live in different parts of the city, and inviting their children to attend a spontaneous birthday party.)

[lovelikeelena]

Song of the Sirenas Review 2/4

Again, muchas gracias to everyone who helped me with the visual aspects of the movie-including my best friend, Rebecca and DisneyNerd andDisPrincess3!  I also wanna give a big thank you to the hosts of the MagicWithIn podcast!

  Here is the second part of my Song of the Sirenas review!  I hope everyone enjoys it! 

  Part 2

  When we last left our girl, her familia, girlfriend and amigas, they were travelling to nueva vista to visit a cousin who hadn’t contacted them since Elena was released from the amulet and Isa and their abuelos from the painting.  Hmmm, there’s no way this could go wrong…

  Arriving in Nueva vista, Elena and co hear welcome bells.  They admire the palace and Elena is happy they have finally arrived.  Just wait a few hours, Elena.  You’ll be wishing you had declined Christobal’s invitation.  A few miles away, the sound attracts the attention of Shuriki and her minions.  Shuriki is annoyed and demands to know what the sound is.  Fiero explains and deduces Elena must have arrived.  Shuriki declares this will be a familia vacation the crown princesa will never forget.

  Back outside the castle, Elena, her familia, girlfriend and friends are greeted by Christobal.  Elena receives flowers and is shocked to see how her cousin has aged.  She starts to remark on it when Esteban throws in a jab while throwing Elena under the carriage in the process.  Thankfully, Christobal takes it like a champ.  Esteban, they can still leave you in nueva vista when they go home.  Just keep that in mind, dude.  Elena is swept up into a hug and spun around by her cousin.  She tells him she missed him, and he returns the sentiment.  He explains they’re throwing a festival de liberdad to honor Elena for defeating Shuriki.  Elena painfully reveals the truth about Shuriki still being alive.  Elena is assured by her primo that she has her familia to support her.  They sing a song about times past and how they’re happy to be together now, “Familia Forever.”  Too bad Christobal is lying through his teeth.  Afterwards, they all sit down to a feast.  Elena sits next to Naomi, hoping to patch things up with her girlfriend.  Christobal asks about their voyage.  Esteban doesn’t waste any time in telling their cousin about their run in with the sirenas.  Christobal asks if they attacked their ship.  Naomi answers confidently,  “They were about to!”  Elena gently puts a hand on her girlfriend’s shoulder in a gesture of forgiveness and counters with,  “We don’t know that.  I don’t remember them ever being a problem when I visited.”  Christobal tells her that’s because her parents protected her from the truth.  He explains that his Papa, Elena’s Tio was aboard a ship that was capsized by sirenas.  Elena is surprised and saddened by the news.  Christobal vows that if he could, he’d lock every single sirena up in the tower.  Keep that in mind for later, guys.  He then offers everyone a snack.  Don’t eat it!  It’s probably poisoned!

  Meanwhile, we go back under the waves to Coronado, Marisa and Marzel’s home.  They enter the palace and the throne room, Marisa calling out to their father.  King Pescoro wastes no time in revealing to his children that he knows what happened on the surface thanks to Daria, their reef commander.  Marisa confirms it, but then pleads her case pretty well.  She explains the princesa of Avalor was aboard the ship and she thinks she would listen.  Daria counters Marisa’s proposal of attempted peace with Humans by saying,  “After her guards harpoon us.”  Marisa rebuffs Daria’s fears with,  “What if her guards weren’t around?  After all these years of conflict, isn’t it worth a try?”  King Pescoro concedes that Marisa’s heart is in the right place, it always is.  “But heart alone cannot change the world.”  Marisa tries again, but her father firmly tells her to leave it alone, calling her mija in the process.  “For your own good.”  Marisa nods, but then appeals to her mother, reminding her that she was once Human herself.  “You know more than anyone how much we have in common with them.”  Queen Camilla takes a gentler approach with her daughter.  “If I thought it were possible to make amends with humans, I’d try.  But I know them too well.”  She also warns Marisa to stay away from Humans and their ships.  Marisa nods, frowning in defeat.  Before leaving, Daria’s octopus’ friend, Ocho, waves at the teens as though saying,  “Bye-bye!”  LOL!  The siblings swim out of the throne room, Marzel jabbing at Marisa,  “I hate to say I Told you so.”  Marisa, being the cooler sibling, comes back with  “No you don’t.”  she then declares she’s going to talk to Elena anyway.  Marzel reminds her of their father’s warning, but Marisa dismisses him by saying,  “I respectfully disagree.”  With that, she swims off.  Marzel sighs in frustration and swims after her to make sure she doesn’t get hurt.  In doing this, he demonstrates why I Love him so much!  While Marisa is my favorite of the sirena siblings, I really love them both.

  I wanna take a second and talk about King Pescoro.  I appreciate how Silvia and Rachel made him different from another mer-king and father we know.  He didn’t scream or shout at Marisa after finding out she disobeyed him.  He was firm yet loving in the way he told her to leave well enough alone.  It’s clear he loves her and just wants to keep her safe.  It says a lot that he doesn’t scream and alienate her from coming to him in the future.  That’s the mark of a good parent.

  Meanwhile, Shuriki and Fiero are pouring over a map when Victor and Carla arrive on a very familiar looking horse according to my sighted friends.  Let’s think…did they stop over in Cordoba and steal Pedro?  I could so see Carla using her female whiles to persuade Alonzo to lend them his horse.  Carla complains to Shuriki about the time it took to get there due to the sorceress keeping Cruz to herself, but she is quickly shut down by her father.  I so can’t wait for Carla to turn on him!  Fiero declares now that they’re all there, they can get started.

  We switch to the skies where Skylar, Luna and Migs are flying across the kingdom.  Skylar exclaims he can’t wait to surprise Elena.  They run into Shuriki and go to warn Elena she’s there.  Elena thinks they should postpone the parranda, but Christobal disagrees.  He assures her she’ll be safe.  Elena reluctantly agrees but decides to scout the parade route.  Mateo offers to go with her and I groan.  Elena can handle herself.  She has her scepter.  Fortunately, Elena is soon alone on the trail.  She is walking along the canals when all of a sudden, her attention is caught by singing.  Her eyes glow blue and she starts walking in a trance towards the ocean’s edge.  Once there, it’s revealed Marisa is the one using her power of song to guide Elena to where she is.  Once Elena reaches her destination, Marisa releases her from the trance.  This proves Marisa has control and restraint.  Elena comes out of it dizzy and puts a hand to her forehead.  Glancing down, she gasps upon seeing Marisa, along with Marzel and the horse dude.  Elena raises her scepter and threatens to use it.  Marisa tells her not to be afraid and introduces herself, her brother and the seahorse dude.  She explains they just wanna talk to her.  Pulling herself out of the water, her fins turn into legs seconds later, as do her brother’s.  Elena is surprised and asks if all sirenas can do that.  Marisa reveals just her and Marzel have that capability.  Marisa almost falls upon walking and Elena catches her.  Marisa explains she hasn’t been on legs in a long time.  Marzel scoffs and asks his sister “What’s so hard about walk…”  before promptly falling backwards into a barrel.  What’s that saying?  Pride goeth before the fall, buddy.  Marzel puts on a cool air to save face and swiftly pulls a bucket off of his head.  Elena asks what Marisa wants to talk to her about.  Marisa is completely honest in her explanation, which makes me love her all the more.  She doesn’t try to paint herself or the rest of the sirenas in a good light.  She’s honest and forthcoming with the terrible things they have done, while at the same time regretful.  Through a beautiful and powerful song called “A New Tale,”  Marisa reveals her story while pleading with Elena to help her end the fighting and bring peace between Humans and sirenas.  Can I Love Marisa any more than I already do?  YES!  This song is very timely for today’s world.  Just go on youtube and give it a listen-especially the chorus.  Once Marisa is done singing, she asks for Elena’s help, but our girl is hesitant and rightfully so.  I’m glad Silvia and Rachel took this route.  It makes Elena even more relatable.  Elena explains about her tio and Marisa is sympathetic, but again also honest with her answer.  “I wish I could undo the past, but all I can do is give you my promise that those days are long gone.”  Elena guardedly believes her but lets her know they have to convince Christobal since he’s in charge of nueva vista.  Marisa encourages Elena to bring Christobal to the canals, so she can convince him.  Elena agrees and goes to get him.  After explaining to both of her primos what happened outside, she pleads with Christobal to hear Marisa out.  He agrees.  This is where I started getting the feeling that Christobal wasn’t all he seemed.  Arriving back at the canals, Elena advises the guards to stay back so they don’t scare the sirenas off.  Calling out to Marisa and Marzel, she is relieved when they appear.  She introduces them to Christobal.  Marisa holds out her hand in greeting and my heart breaks while simultaneously skipping a beat bc I knew something bad was about to happen.  Sure enough, Christobal’s true colors are revealed when he orders his guards to capture the sirena siblings!  Elena protests, ordering him to stop!  Again, someone else plainly ignores her direct order.  Seeing this, Elena takes matters into her own hands.  As a net traps Marisa, Elena frees her, allowing Marisa to swim to safety and catch up with Marzel.  Once both sirena siblings are out of harms way,  Elena rounds on her primo.  Our girl is taking no prisoners or excuses!  She is royally pissed off and rightly so!  She demands to know why Christobal tried to capture Marisa and Marzel.  She reminds him the sirenas came to discuss peace.  Christobal in turn reminds her that sirenas lie to which Elena defends her new friends by saying,  “I don’t think that’s what they were trying to do!”  Christobal states that she just met them, and he’s dealt with them his whole life.  He reminds her of his father and says he doesn’t want to lose her too, giving her a hug in the process.  Elena begrudgingly tells him she understands and follows him back to the palace. I wanna stop here and point something out.  Elena heard Christobal verbalize his desire to lock every sirena up, but yet she took him to meet two innocent sirenas?  Really, Elena.  I’ll give her a pass here bc she probably thought her primo was just angry and would calm down and see reason in time. Meanwhile, back under the waves, Marzel angrily states that Elena set them up.  Marisa defends her new amiga, reminding her hermano Elena looked just as surprised as them.  Marzel snaps at his Hermana to grow up!  “Humans hate our kind and always will!”  With that, he swims away.

  Meanwhile, later that night, Elena is tossing and turning and whimpering.  She’s clearly feeling guilty for what happened to Marisa and her brother.  I just wanna hug her!  Miel, it wasn’t your fault.  Both of your primos are selfish, pig headed jerks!  Soon you might discover you have distant familia-including a new prima and primo who will NEVER hurt you like Christobal and Esteban. The day of the water parranda has arrived.  Elena is trying to be upbeat for Isa, but she isn’t successful.  Our poor girl is extremely tired, scared to face Shuriki again, along with worrying about Marisa and Marzel.  Her grandmother asks her if everything’s okay, to which Elena lies and says she’s fine.  Christobal announces as the guest of honor, Elena will ride on the last float.  Gabe insists Elena ride with him, Naomi and Mateo in case something happens.  Christobal reluctantly agrees.  He then tells them not to get in the way of the people seeing their princess.  Elena, just hit him with your scepter.  Isabel observes that it seems like the whole city showed up.  She looks so excited and it’s sweet!  Elena tells Naomi and the others they need to keep a sharp look out for Shuriki.  Mateo assures her if the sorceress is here, they’ll spot her.  Unless Mateo spends the whole time looking for sirenas!  As the floats start to move, we see Elena has someone looking out for her.  Marisa watches and sighs sadly as the floats continue down the canals.  I have a feeling she is returning the kindness Elena extended to her the day before.  I was wrong, it is possible for me to love Marisa even more than I did before!

  Soon after the parranda gets underway, Elena is shocked to see several citizens dressed up as Shuriki!  Naomi tries to reassure her future wife that the costumes are for the parade.  Okay, Naomi, you get one point from me for effort.  Mateo asks how they’re going to find the real Shuriki and I roll my eyes.  Uh, maybe looking for someone with her appearance, sitting on a jaquin.  And LOL!  Suddenly, Gabe spots Victor and Carla in the crowd.  And this is where I get on Gabe a little.  He just said no more than five minutes ago he wanted Elena with him in case anything happened.  Clearly something’s happening, and he leaves her on her own.  She can handle herself and has her scepter, but I digress.  Elena, being the awesome leader she is tries to remain calm, so she doesn’t cause city wide panic.  Suddenly, Christobal shoots a cannon of confetti, some of it gets in Elena’s eyes.  A few seconds later, the person driving the float veers off course.  Elena asks why they’re turning into a side canal and gets no reply.  Once the float stops, the driver jumps off, leaving Elena alone.  It isn’t long before Fiero appears, followed by the last person our girl wants to see.  Shuriki informs Elena that her appearance is no mask while whipping out the scepter of night.  Elena says blaze at the same time Shuriki yells inferno!  Elena tries to make herself vanish, but it doesn’t work all the way.  Shuriki brings her out of it by yelling chaos.  Fiero gets in a good hit, which destroys the float.  What were you saying about all our city’s resources, Christobal?  That’s crappy craftsmanship if you ask me!  It’s not long before Elena is blasted into the water by Shuriki, losing consciousness and her scepter in the process!  And that’s where I leave everyone for now. Part 3 is coming soon!  Feel free to comment in an ask or send me a message!

[tipsycad147]

Yuletide Magick

By  Tia Johnson

Before there was Christmas, there was Yule. I love origin stories as it provides a better appreciation for what we do and it helps us to understand why we do what we do. So much of what we say and do has pagan roots that have unfortunately been demonized over the years. So, I figured for this blog post, I’m going to give you a brief history of this time of the year, go over some of the Yuletide symbols, the magick of Yuletide, and some of the things we can do during this time.

Side Note: I have a little bonus for you. If you’re about to travel and won’t have enough time to read this post, I did a podcast episode about Yuletide. It’s literally the same information minus my side stories that add a bit of spice to the episodes. So, feel free to head to the podcast to listen to this post at episode 292:Yuletide Magick.

Yule v. Yuletide

Yuletide is the season. Yule is the day of the Winter Solstice, which usually takes place on 21 or 22 December. However, the words are used interchangeably. Yuletide is really about the honoring of the cycles, the seasonal cycles, and bountiful celebrations. And, of course, there is the solstice, the darkest night of the year, where we are celebrating the return of light. If you remember in the previous post, Winter Goddess Magick, I talked about how Winter gets a bad rap because it’s colder and darker during this time of the year. There’s ice outside and the wind makes your skin hurt. I get it but what if we acknowledge the meaning and magick of the season instead of just seeing it as this cold and dark time of the year?

Yuletide History

Yule is a traditional holiday holding roots in various northern European traditions, namely pre-Christian Germanic peoples. As the days grew colder and the nights grew longer, people would light candles and gather ’round fires to lure back the sun. They would enjoy feasting and festivities. Dances were danced and songs were sung and all would delight in decorating their homes. This is the origins of what we do now for Christmas as Yule and other Pagan holidays and Traditions became part of a smear campaign and eventually underwent Christianised reformulation.

Juul

Most celebrations of the winter solstice in Europe involved merriment and feasting. In pre-Christian Scandinavia, the Feast of Juul, or Yule, lasted for 12 days celebrating the rebirth of the sun and giving rise to the custom of burning a Yule log, having the decorative tree, and wassailing.

In some traditions of Wicca and Paganism, the Yule celebration comes from the Celtic legend of the battle between the young Oak King and the Holly King. The Oak King, representing the light of the new year, tries each year to usurp the old Holly King, who is the symbol of darkness. Re-enactment of the battle is popular in some Wiccan rituals.

Saturnalia

The Romans celebrated Saturnalia beginning on December 17. Saturnalia is a week-long celebration to honor God Saturn, which involved sacrifices, gift-giving, and feasting. This was also a time for sacrifices, gift-giving, and special privileges for the slaves. Citizens decked their halls with boughs of greenery and even hung small tin ornaments on bushes and trees. Bands of naked revelers often roamed the streets, singing, and carousing — a sort of naughty precursor to today’s Christmas caroling tradition. More importantly, it was to honor an agricultural God.

In ancient Egypt, the return of raw the Sun God was celebrated as a way of thanking him for warming the land and the crops.

The Celts of the British Isles celebrated midwinter as well. Druid priests sacrificed a white bull and gathered mistletoe in celebration.

Here is where we are seeing the development of the modern-day practice of burning your Yule log, having a mistletoe, gift-giving, Christmas parties, caroling, and the 12 days of Christmas theme and song.

Holda, The Germanic Gift-Giving Goddess

Before there was Santa Claus, there was the Hold, the Germanic gift-giving goddess, Norse god  Odin bring gifts to children, and the Italian “Christmas Witch” La Befana.

Yuletide Symbols

Mistletoe

I think that’s one of the most recognizable items you can bring into your home. Mistletoe’s energy is feminine, which means that is a receptive energy nurturing. That makes sense as it is associated with fertility as well. The Druid priests used mistletoes in special ceremonies during the Winter Solstice because they believed that its green leaves represented the fertility of the Mother Goddess, and its white berries, the seed of the Forest God or Oak King. The mistletoe was also worn as an amulet for fertility, or hung above the headboard.

I can easily see how the mistletoe became a symbol to hang over a threshold for kissing! It represents fertility. You want to make a baby…that usually starts with a bit of kissing. That’s my footnote theory. Ha!

Yule Tree

The Yule tree is also another important symbol in pagan tradition. Originally, it represented the tree of life or World Tree among early pagans. In ancient times, it was decorated with gifts people wanted to receive from the gods. It was adorned with natural ornaments such as pine cones, berries, and other fruit, as well as symbols sacred to the gods and goddesses, and some holiday traditions. Garland’s of popcorn and berries were strung around the tree so that visiting birds could feed off the tree as well. I wonder what that your tree became over the years? Lol

Yule Log

The custom of burning the Yule Log began with an ancient Scandinavian in order to honor their god Thor. In Celtic tradition, a continual hearth fire was kept to prevent spirits from entering the home. It was also believed that the longer the Yule log burned, the faster the sun would come to warm the earth. It sounds like to me an early version of groundhog day.

Candles

Candles represented another way to have an eternal flame within the home. They symbolized the light and warmth of the sun and were used to chase away evils and lure back the returning sun.

Wreaths

In ancient times, wreaths symbolized the wheel of the year and the completion of another cycle. They were made of evergreens and adorned with cones and berries and hundreds of decorations throughout the home. They were also given as gifts to symbolize the infinity of goodwill friendship and joyfulness.

Bells

Bells were rung during the Winter Solstice to drive away demons that surface during the dark time of the year.

Elves

The need to bring back the sun caused elves to be associated with Yule. The ancients knew that the Spirits that created the Sun inhabited the land of Elves. By including elves in the Yule celebrations, the ancients believed they were assuring the elves assistance in the coercion of the Sun to return.

Gingerbread

Due to strict laws during the 11th century regarding specialty breads in that time, Gingerbread was only allowed to be produced during the holidays and thus it became associated with Winter. Sometimes, the answer is just that simple! If there wasn’t a strict law, then there is a great chance that the gingerbread would not have been such a sought after holiday treat!

Wassail

This is probably my favorite origin story. Wassail derives from the Old English words waes hael, which means “be well”, “be hale” or “good health”. It is a strong drink, usually a mixture of ale, honey, and spices, or mulled apple cider. When pagans went into the forest to fell the great oak for the Yule log, they would anoint the tree with wassail and bedeck them with wassail-soaked cakes, thus the ritual of wassailing was born.

At home, the wassail would be poured into a large bowl during feast time, and the host, when greeting his or her guests, would lift a drink and wish them “waes hael”, to which they would reply “drinc hael”, which meant “drink and be well”. You’re saying, “Hey, I’m wishing you good health, and I’m wishing you a good drink during this time of celebration.” How freaking cool is that? This is literally one of the early forms of  “toasting” before a drink!

Yuletide Magick

Well, what’s the magic behind Yule? Here’s the thing, the magic is that this is a time where you get to make this season what you want it to be? Why? Because YOU are the magick, it will always be you and begin with you. And, it is because of that, that you create your world and your circumstances. Please note that this is not me talking about some things that are unavoidable in life.

For example, we can have a normal, mundane day (outside this unusual time of the pandemic). We can wake up and say, “Oh God, I got to drive to work, traffic is going to be crazy. Hope I got time to get breakfast. Oh, gosh, let me make this coffee real quick. And, I’ll just have toast for breakfast. Ugh, I got this meeting later on the day, I really don’t want to talk to Bob, he talks too long.”

Or you can wake up and say, “Ah, you know what, I’m going to make time for breakfast. Even if it’s something small. I’m going to make my coffee. I’m going to take these slow sips while driving to work. You know, I’m going to put it out there that it won’t be any traffic or at least is going to be a smooth ride where there is traffic. My meetings today will be quick and easy. Today is going to be a good day.”

Look at where you directed your energy. Look at what you are speaking into existence. Look at the visualization magick you are doing.

This is a season where darkness, endings, and shadow work applies. So, you can look at this Yuletide as a season where you get real with yourself. You get honest with yourself. What works for you What does not work for you? Who has your best interest in life? Who does not have your best interest in life? What’s your end game with your career? Is it there a place where you want to retire? Or is it just temporary until you find what you really want to do because it’s paying the bills is keeping up with your lifestyle? Where can you make commitments to yourself to do better so that come Spring you will really have that sense of rebirth/new beginnings?

You can do divination magick, use cord-cutting magick, dance magick to raise your vibration.

Things To Do During Yuletide

You can really focus on creating daily rituals, whether you do it in the morning or at nighttime. This is a great way to elevate your magick and maintain its potency. For example, can you create a Christmas music playlist and dance every day? Can you say gratitude for what you’re grateful for during this season? Can you light a holiday candle and stare at the flames to clear your mind every day? Can you wear Christmas clothes to boost your happiness level?

This is the time where things die off figuratively and literally, it’s changes that some people don’t like because they don’t want certain things to end to need to end. However, we have to make the decisions of what needs to go, accept it, and trust in our decision-making process. Also, this is a time where some things get “frozen.” In other words, we’re putting some things on the back burner to revisit later, such as during the Springtime.

Remember, it’s also about honoring cycles. So, we really can’t capitalize on this time of the year if we only want to embrace Summer or Spring because it’s warmer out. We have good days, we have bad days, we have horrible days, and we have great days. We can’t really fully dive into our lives if we’re just going to honor one cycle because that’s the cycle that we feel good in this is where we get our thick skin.

On the spiritual front, we can focus on the above. Then, we can do the fun holiday stuff like have the mistletoe and the wassail. We can do both because we are multifaceted like that!

https://blog.tiamariejohnson.com/yuletide-magick/

[john-is-on-the-rails]

Being more pirate in Bruxelles

My time in Brussels is over. I crammed a lot into two and a half days, so I’m enjoying the first class ICE inter-city experience (currently at 157km/h). Especially after sitting in the rain at Brussels-Noord station for an hour. I’ve bagged a window seat, loads of leg room, free Wi-Fi (auto-correct tried to change that to wife) and a charging point. It’s interesting how reliant we are on our phones now, making us wonder how people got about without them. I’ve heard the argument that part of the traveling experience is getting lost, asking a local who doesn’t speak English, finding your way by reading an annoying folded map upside down. I’m not entirely convinced. The amount of stress and time saved by having maps to anywhere at my fingertips, entertainment (music, podcasts, audiobooks), a camera and video recorder, GPS tracker of my journey and handy torch when my hotel room card suddenly stopped working and the lights went out, makes me feel more relaxed and reassured. Maybe at the cost of the isolation and expansiveness you feel when you’re navigating by your wit alone. Perhaps the reassurance provided by a digital connection is more appreciated if you are traveling alone. When getting lost on your way back to your hotel is less fun and more intimidating in a busy city. At least with someone else there, when you panic they might not!

Brussels was an interesting city. I stayed just off Grand Place in the city centre. Grand place is, as the name suggests, a grand square. Surrounded on all sides by beautiful gothic-style edifices. The town hall, guildhalls and the King’s House (which now houses the museum of Brussels). I couldn’t really grasp the scale or the level of craftmanship no matter how many times I walked through it. It was quite a lot to take in, especially with elderly Chinese ladies trying their best to skewer me with their selfie sticks. The French got so annoyed with it they blew Grand Place, and much of Brussels, up with cannons and mortars during the siege of 1695, no selfie sticks survived. In modern times, power has shifted away from this impressive monument to trade and across town to the Euro Quarter.

I have a theory. I often get mistaken for a local. I used to think it was my Mediterranean looks, round specs, beard and because I tan quite easily. I’m now starting to think it’s because my default facial expression is mildly pissed off. This isn’t intentional, but my thinking and concentrating faces resemble my annoyed face pretty much exactly. I think a lot when I’m walking around, and when I’m sat down to be honest, probably about whether my hat looks silly or what to have for dinner. I am also aware that tourists are annoying if you live locally. I experienced this first hand in the centre of Chester when I just wanted to get some milk and I had to push my way through crowds of Japanese and American tourists at Tesco. I forget I am a tourist when I go somewhere, so I get annoyed at all the other tourists who dared to want to go to the same place as me. (Ooo phone has just switched to Telekom.de, wish I’d kept track off all the mobile networks my phone has roamed too, just for posterity – just left Aachen soon to arrive at Cologne for my train change to Berlin HBF). My working theory is that my slight frown, plus my physical appearance equally contribute to my local-lookingness. I got asked directions a lot the last few days. There is probably a very nice German couple still wandering around the park I sent them through to get to the city centre (I checked google maps so I hope I advised them correctly). I do hope they aren’t living off berries in Parc Brussels.

Just got on my connection from Cologne station. 

One final thought. I’ve just been listening to the latest ‘Reasons to be cheerful’ podcast with Ed Milliband and Geoff Lloyd. I recommend it if you have any interest in a) politics b)sticking it to the man c)pirates. They had the author of “Be more pirate: how to take on the world and win” on to talk about his book. It sounds fascinating and is at the top of my reading list when its released on 3rd May. The general concept is that anyone interested in changing the status quo should ‘be more pirate’. This doesn’t mean stealing a boat and sailing off to Barbados to relieve the Spanish of their gold, although that’s a pretty good metaphor for what it does mean.

The author has re-imagined the story of the pirates through a contemporary lens. He compares their act of rebellion against the state to the crisis of purpose felt by many young people today, and argues that breaking rules is the most effective way to progress as a society. Simply by knowing that history is written by the victors should give you pause to re-evaluate the traditional image of the cutthroat pirate pillaging and destroying without thought. There was an amount of pillaging and destroying, but taken in the context of the time this isn’t particularly shocking, re: the British Empire. The pirates were a marginalized group, pushed out of England and Wales (Bristol channel mainly), by a combination of redundancy due to technological advancement and a confusing international situation pushing them into conflicts the causes of which they did not understand or feel invested in. I won’t go into too much detail because you should listen to it yourself: https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/h2br8-5b88c/Reasons-to-be-Cheerful-with-Ed-Miliband-and-Geoff-Lloyd-Podcast

But here is a short list of initiatives brought about by the pirate community which would take hundreds of years to be replicated in the UK:

· Dual governance (not seen in the UK until the two-chamber system in parliament) – The pirates realized that power could corrupt a single person. They gave an equal level of power to the captain (in charge of strategy) & the quartermaster (in charge of culture and cohesion on a ship).

· Pay transparency – before each voyage the crew knew what share of any bounty they would receive by shares of the total.

· Gay marriage – Think how recently that has become legal in the UK. Some pirate voyages could take months, even years e.g. Drake. It was realized that close bonds would form between, the predominately male, crews. These relationships were recognized and made formal in Matelotage, a form of civil partnership.

· Although the crews were predominately male, this was certainly not exclusively the case. Just google Ann Bonny and read some of her exploits. Race, age, gender were not seen as a boundary for the pirates. It was a true meritocracy!

· The first truly global branded image – The iconic skull and crossbones is widely acknowledged as the first globally recognised brand, and still endures to this day.

· Workplace compensation. Pirate crews were insured. Lose a leg – 600 pieces of 8. This worker’s right did not get enshrined in UK for hundreds of years.

A brief summary of a truly fascinating story. After the pirate age, the co-op movement sprung up from the very same towns and villages that many of the pirates had originated from, and returned to. And guess what the founding tenets of the co-operative movement mirror, that’s right, the pirate code.

[musicgoonmail]

Electronica

In This Edition

In this week's edition, I share 2 free eBooks from some of my favorite publishers, provide some extra resources regarding my book reviews, and highlight some articles related to my Christian and Asian American worldview.

Before we jump in, I want to highlight our work at SOLA Network, where we've tried to provide a Christian Asian American perspective on everything that's happened from COVID-19 to Ravi Zacharias to George Floyd. I hope they encourage you to pursue justice and point to Jesus.

Also, I want to express my gratitude for reading my newsletter and allowing my voice to be heard in your life. You can always reach me by replying directly to this email. Tell me your favorite section of this newsletter, what you want to see more or less of, and feel free to ask me anything.

2 Free eBooks

Book Review: Analog Church by Jay Y. Kim

Book Review: Beautifully Distinct by Trillia Newbell

More Book Reviews

Extended Play

Lightning Links

Playlists

Coming Soon

Weekly Review

2 Free eBooks

I have 2 free eBooks to share with you today. First is Christ and Calamity: Grace and Gratitude in the Darkest Valley by Harold L. Senkbeil. I have not yet read it, but his book, The Care of Souls, was one of my favorites from this year. You can read my review here. Second is Humble Calvinism by J. A. Medders. This was one of my faves from last year, and you can read my review here.

I probably spent too much time online these past few days. Getting sucked into Twitter, the constant barrage of headlines, and the never-ending news cycle is not good for my soul. I'm going to prioritize reading this weekend, and I hope these free eBooks encourage you to do the same. Of course, we also need to be spending time with the Word. Reading through the Gospel of John has been a joy for me this week.

Book Review: Analog Church by Jay Y. Kim

Virtual meetings, pre-recorded sermons, and video worship is leaving me unsatisfied. In Analog Church, Jay Y. Kim helps us understand why we need real people, places, and things in the digital age. The basis of the book is a firm grasp on the importance of ecclesiology. Christ-centered community must be an embodied reality. You can read my full review here.

Pastor Steve Chang interviewed author Jay Y. Kim for our SOLA Network Podcast. They discussed the downsides of the digital world, the importance of community and the local church, as well as what type of service Jay is planning for his church, once they can meet again. You can watch the video on YouTube or read a transcribed excerpt on our website.

Book Review: Beautifully Distinct by Trillia Newbell

This book was written by women with different stories and backgrounds, but they all excel at showing me our Savior. Especially relevant to our times are the chapters on race and loving the immigrant. Practical steps are offered in becoming aware and becoming advocates. To be a better brother, I must listen and learn from my sisters. You can read my full review here.

I highly recommend reading the article Conversations on Race: How We Can Be Beautifully Distinct, an extract by Natasha Sistrunk Robinson as part of her contribution to this book. Here is a compelling quote: "We must look at ourselves and seek the truth about how our lack of knowledge, history, or understanding, and our silence, anger, or apathy prevent the message of Jesus Christ from going forth to all people."

More Book Reviews

For this batch of books, I was allowed to receive them before they released to the public. I wanted to get my reviews out as close to the publish date as possible, so that is why I had so many this week. There's a great variety here, including a children's book focused on Paul in prison, a book of early poems by C. S. Lewis, and a book on the early church’s greatest preacher: John Chrysostom.

The Prisoners, the Earthquake, and the Midnight Song by Bob Hartman

Everyday Faithfulness by Glenna Marshall

Spirits in Bondage by C. S. Lewis

Who God Is by Ben Witherington III

The Bedrock of Christianity by Justin W. Bass

Preaching the Word with John Chrysostom by Gerald Bray

The Cross in Four Words by Kevin DeYoung, Richard Coekin, and Yannick Christos-Wahab

Beautifully Distinct by Trillia Newbell

Analog Church by Jay Y. Kim

Extended Play

The article I want to highlight this week was written by my own Pastor Hanley Liu of FCBC Walnut for 9Marks.org: As the Pastor of an Immigrant Church’s English Ministry, How Should I Relate to the Senior Pastor? It is a part of an ongoing series on immigrant churches. While I know it might not be applicable or relatable to you, I hope it gives you a glimpse into the life of my church and our Asian-American community.

In light of a certain photo I've seen on the Internet, here's a throwback article that might interest you: You Need to Read Your Bible. I'll probably incorporate this into my online Sunday School lesson to our high school students this week.

Throwback: You Need to Read Your Bible

Movie: Asian Americans

TV: Community

Article: As the Pastor of an Immigrant Church’s English Ministry, How Should I Relate to the Senior Pastor?

Book: The Character of the Christian by Tim Challies

Music: Electronica by Earth to Jupiter

Lightning Links

These quick hits are exclusive to my newsletter readers. Some struck immediately before writing this newsletter. I don’t necessarily endorse the positions or lives of these authors. Some may contain adult language.

Marques Brownlee: ‘Reflecting on the Color of My Skin’

What Did Bach Sound Like to Bach?

Iron Man vs. Captain America — The Complete Character Arcs

Peter Jackson’s LOTR Was an Improbable Miracle, and We’re Lucky to Have It

'Family Is Just Not Replaceable': How COVID-19 Ravaged One Family in LA's Koreatown

Hopes for a quick recovery fade in NYC's Chinatown

I play Anna May Wong in ‘Hollywood.’ Her invisibility as an Asian American actress mirrors my own.

Lucky Grandma Is a Love Letter to Chinatown, Its Matriarchs, and Their Rule-Breaking Style 

Playlists

MUSICGOON: 7 songs I enjoyed this week.

SVRGNLA: Jess and I love these songs.

ETJ: Music that inspires my band.

DIDD: A crowd-sourced worship playlist.

TGIF: SOLA Network friends and faves.

This is FCBC Walnut: The songs we sing at church.

Coming Soon

SOLA Network is running a giveaway for Jay Y. Kim's book, Analog Church on Instagram. We don’t have that many followers, so maybe there's a greater chance that you can win out on this one. I have several book reviews ready for next week on the blog, most from my friends at Intervarsity Press.

I've been meaning to get to this, but I want to watch the 5-part PBS documentary on Asian Americans this weekend. It explores the impact of Asian Americans, the fastest-growing population in the United States, on the country’s past, present and future, told through individual lives and personal histories. It appears that the first two episodes have been removed due to an error, so I'll be picking it up on Episode 3: Good Americans.

Weekly Review

SOLA: As the Pastor of an Immigrant Church’s English Ministry, How Should I Relate to the Senior Pastor? / George Floyd Left a Gospel Legacy in Houston / Canceled: How the Eastern Honor-Shame Mentality Traveled West.

Thank God it’s Friday: Lecrae: My Thoughts on the Murder of George Floyd / The Gospel Coalition: Evangelism in the Arts

Book Review: The Prisoners, the Earthquake, and the Midnight Song by Bob Hartman

Book Review: Everyday Faithfulness by Glenna Marshall

Book Review: Spirits in Bondage by C. S. Lewis

Book Review: Who God Is by Ben Witherington III

Book Review: The Bedrock of Christianity by Justin W. Bass

Book Review: Preaching the Word with John Chrysostom by Gerald Bray

Book Review: The Cross in Four Words by Kevin DeYoung, Richard Coekin, and Yannick Christos-Wahab

Book Review: Beautifully Distinct by Trillia Newbell

Book Review: Analog Church by Jay Y. Kim

Recommended Reading: Asian American Complicity in Racism / Seeing Foster Parents as Local Missionaries / Should I Watch This? 5 Questions for the Discerning Viewer / Canceled: How the Eastern Honor-Shame Mentality Traveled West.

[steamishot]

Habits

I’ve been making some lifestyle changes lately. Most, if not all my life, I’ve done things in a rush. I tend to value speed (maybe because I find the task more challenging and more fun if I race against time lol) when I complete tasks, and I realize I’ve been quite unaware that I do this. Little everyday things, like getting ready in the morning, taking a shower, peeing, washing my hair, combing my hair, applying lotion, blow drying my hair- I realize I rush through it and just hope I show up presentable. I wasn’t that aware until Matt pointed it out a few times, and I realize it when I’m on a trip with a few other girls and how quickly I’m able to get ready and how little effort I put in. I’ve been taking small but promising changes towards self-care. I’m slowing down during the shower and enjoying my time there more instead of viewing it as task that I just wanna get over with (kinda like how I view washing dishes or doing laundry). In a sense, I’m learning to embrace my feminine side and be okay with the time and effort I spend on myself. I only get one face and body in this lifetime after all.

I’m also translating this onto my hobbies/work out goals. In the past, I’ve focused on results, and wanted results quick. I would work extra hard in the beginning and then burn myself out and then stop altogether. I’ve been listening to a podcast called GeniusBrain. The hosts are Asian American youtube entertainers, and I think they provide a lot of good life advice and insight, while presenting it in a way that is authentic and funny. In one episode, as they talked about fitness, they mentioned that it is very common for people who are new to working out to want to see results quickly. And they described the same thing I went through multiple times. Their advice for someone who was completely sedentary and wanted to become more active was – JUST START WALKING EVERYDAY. Easy enough goal right? I only realized that more important to having big goals was the ability to be disciplined and form habits. My work out endeavors in the past didn’t really work for me, in hindsight, because the routine was too complex for me to absorb. I would follow youtube videos with weight training and cardio, but without the videos, I was at a loss. Maybe around Fall 2019, I started doing a mile run after work. I remember taking like 13 minutes to run a mile, but being so out of breath and lightheaded after I completed it.

In December, I made a goal to do 10k steps at least 5x/week. This is easy to accomplish during a workday, but I don’t track it as much during the weekend. I’ve consistently been taking my two breaks each work day to walk, and my body has significant improvements. Most days (excluding the days when I’m super exhausted from lack of sleep and/or traveling) I run 2+ miles on a treadmill at home. If I have a hours of free time over the weekend, I’ll do 5 miles. This is mindless, as I don’t have to think too much about following a youtube video, but instead I get to run while watching a show, which makes exercising much more bearable and fun. Now when I get home and don’t work out, my body feels weird and craves a workout. I’m happy to have formed a habit!!! I didn’t even run this much when I “trained��� for a half marathon a few years ago. I eventually want to incorporate this ten minute muscle toning work out into my routine, but I’ll wait until my running habit has really developed. But my lesson is, doing less consistently is actually more in the long run.

This is the same with drawing. It helps when I am drawing things for other people, as it holds me accountable. At the same time, it is much more fulfilling to draw for a purpose – to bring joy to others. I know that I try harder when I’m drawing for other people than for myself. It’s only been a few weeks so far, but I’ve been drawing more consistently than I ever have since like high school. I think as an adult, hobbies can easily be seen as a waste of time if you’re not it for some monetary or health value, at least IMO. But I think illustration is a valuable skill in the design world, and it’s something I can add to my portfolio. In any case, I think doing something/building on any skill is better than not doing anything at all.

Notable events-

My bro and wife just bought a pretty expensive house in Gardena. They will probably move into it the end of the month. It is by far the nicest/biggest house in our family and they were able to do it with their parents’ help (mostly her parents). There was a joke that Trevor Noah did, about what college degree is the most useful- and the answer is rich/successful parents. I am happy for them. At the same time, I feel like there was no struggle on their part, but kinda leeching off parents. Her parents are still fairly young, so I don’t mind too much, but I get sad seeing that my parents are getting old, and they sacrifice so much just for their child to have a less stressful life. I am happy to know that my parents give what they can “for the next generation”, but they also have firm boundaries.

My grandma has 7 kids, and some send her money every month. Lately, my grandma has been giving me more money than before. She always wants to pay when we eat out, and gives me money every time I go on trips. I used to be uncomfortable accepting it, and always declined it. But now, I understand that it makes her happy that I accept her support. So now I just take it and say thank you. In my perspective, I think she thinks her time left is limited, so she’d rather “invest” in me because it’s more worthwhile.

Also, my SIL told my mom she’s pregnant.

I am leaving to NYC tomorrow! The more I go, the less ideas I have of what to do when planning out our itinerary, but I am just excited to be able to cuddle and give each other tight hugs and be there physically with each other. We had one of our worst fights over the weekend, and it spanned like 4 days, just because our free time doesn’t overlap enough to finish arguing lol. It is funny but it also is a really sucky feeling, because we both end up going to sleep upset and can’t talk about it until after work the next day. I am trying to make light of it now, but I felt pretty depressed going through it. Deep breathing helped. 

I want to document this so I can remember in the future - what happened was during/after night shifts, he just never “bounced back”. I stayed getting not as much attention (which may be the normal amount of communication in some LDRs, but it was a drastic change for me, perhaps because he used to spoil me before). We barely texted, barely got to talk in depth, and he was learning to be more efficient with his time and have more self-care (sleeping early, unwinding more, drinking less coffee) that he came off cold and distant to me. I accepted it as the norm during night shift, but was expecting that he return to “normal” afterwards. Anyway, because I was already in an insecure state of mind due to the perceived difference in behavior, I took it really personally when I was trying to plan out moving in together and he couldn’t give me an estimated timeline. I started feeling like he had some reservations about me that was preventing us from moving forward. His explanation was that - he doesn’t know what program he will be going to (will find out if he gets in on Match day), and doesn’t want to plan ahead because he doesn’t want to get his hopes up. I didn’t understand this, because to me I was just talking hypothetically. However, I didn’t really consider how emotionally heavy Match day could be to him. He did work very hard for a decade to get where he is at, and his future is still not guaranteed. So, even though I feel like my life is “on hold”, I can be patient and wait another month to find out. 

Got a pap smear done yesterday. 

Work updates: there was a period of time when things were quite slow for me. I noted in a blog post about how guilty I was feeling, and how odd I felt around my supervisor. I tended to hide in my room and not interact with my supervisor. Thankfully, work is picking up as we are preparing for the incoming and terminating housestaff. I’ve been making a bigger effort to build relationships with people, and interact more with my supervisor.

Edit: these days feel pretty sucky to me. I think I’ve been extra lonely because my best hometown girlfriend has a boyfriend now, and we barely hang out anymore. Although in the grand scheme of things, I am very fortunate. I told my coworkers I was going to NYC this weekend, and one of them responded, “you’re so lucky!”. These days have been more challenging, with more questions of “is it worth it to put up with this relationship” as I’m feeling pretty neglected and unhappy. But I know it’s the combination of things - feeling stagnant with my life, not as challenged at work (although work is sometimes quite enjoyable), not having my close friend around a lot, etc. 

Sometimes I look at how my bro and his wife just lounge and relax and go out on dates. And I think about how that different that is from my life with Matt. Everything between us is fast paced, we are always on the go, and tired. Today, I received notice that I got a speeding ticket in NOLA. I also received a fine from the car rental company. Driving there was stressful and tiring already. I was also a bit salty that I drove the entire trip, and no one offered to help out. This is my first ever speeding ticket and I’d hate to have to pay it fully. This news made me feel shittier. I tried to think of positive things, like that I randomly received a tax refund from 2016, and the check would cover my tickets almost exactly. And another positive thing was that I forgot my iPad on the plane and was able to get it back. Lastly, if these are the things I am sad about, then I have it pretty good. 

Second edit: I realize I feel better when I talk to friends/acquaintances/work friends about things. It helps put my situation into perspective. I was feeling like a victim regarding my parking ticket, but $140 isn’t bad compared to the $300-500 speeding tickets in LA. My work mom just laughed at me saying, you? speeding ticket? HAHAHA congratulations. It reminds me that I do take my life too seriously sometimes. My friends on the trip are also “donating” to this cause, so it also takes the load off and I appreciate it a lot. 

[mubal4]

“I get to………..”

 In the past two days, the phrase, “I get to (insert action here),” instead of “I have to……” came across me.  I heard it yesterday by Dean Graziosi in a Lewis Howe’s podcast and read it today in James Clear’s book, “Atomic Habits.”  I know I have had the habit, for example, of saying, “I have to go to the grocery store,” or “I have to take my daughter to the doctor.”  By just changing one little word, “have to get,” it changes the entire perspective.  “I get to go to the grocery store.” “I get to take my daughter to the doctor.”  In both of these examples, they are both things, yes, they are both things we probably should do, maybe must do. We need food to survive and it is a good idea to keep your kids healthy and taking them to the doctors is, well essential.  But how often do we see these activities, or responsibilities, as a chore, burden, or a necessary evil?  Rather, but creating new habit of simply changing that one word to “GET” it creates a new outlook on our responsibilities.  There are days that I am in the car getting my daughters from one thing to another; school, gymnastics, soccer, PT, doctor, or some activity of some sort.  Many parents are in the same boat and this isn’t taking into consideration our own things we GET to do 😊!  There have been many days, over the last few months too, where I am flustered because I HAVE to do these things.  But yesterday, after I heard the podcast, I tried incorporating that phrase when taking my girls to & from their activities.  It provided a greater sense of gratitude.  I know when I travel, I don’t get to have this time with them.  Driving in the car gives us one on one time to talk, share, engage, be present, or just listen.  Sometimes, especially with teenagers, it is just sitting their silent. There are many times when we are stopped at a light, I just look at them.  Usually, they are staring off into space likely with 100 different thoughts going through their minds.  Then I ask, “what’s on your mind,” or “what’s troubling you?”  I receive the standard answer, “nothing.”  Many times, I have gotten frustrated with that answer because I know they are thinking about something, just don’t want to talk about it. But yesterday, I just smiled because I am starting to understand it a bit.  I GET to have this time with my girls, and I won’t get that time back.  Simple moments like these are what we miss when we don’t have them.  When we categorize them as chores or “have to dos” don’t we lose sight of the gift of time we are given with them? This could be children, spouse, partner, parents, siblings, whatever.  Lately I have been becoming more aware of us, as human beings, and what we mean, or what we could mean to one another.  Yes, there are people out there that do things that annoy the hell out of me, and do stupid stuff, and if you tune into the news, folks out there doing tragic stuff. I shake my head, and feel sad for the victims, and get angry at the nonsense that does occur.  But I do wonder, many times, about not only the victims but the people driving these actions.  They are human beings and we were all created in the same.  We are all the same.  We just get programmed over time to believe different things.  Free will takes over in all of us.  Sorry, went off on a tangent there but my point is that, lately, I have been working to slow things down when I feel them getting too fast. When I do, I gain more clarity and a higher sense of awareness.  That is when some of these thoughts come in and I realize all the things I GET to do, all the moments I GET to create, and all the things I GET to experience.  When I realize the things that I GET to do are with those that I love and care for the most………. I GET to spend time with them, I am truly grateful.  Life often throws us curve balls to distract us from what is truly most important. Most of that time, with the change of one little word, we can change our entire perspective of an experience, a moment, or a life.

 Today, we GET to wake up early and start our day.  What are we going to do with it?

[celtfather]

Respect Like A Celt #453

Give respect like a Celt today on the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast. Subscribe for 34 Celtic MP3s for free!

Lissa Schneckenburger, Stringer's Ridge, Hanz Araki, Whalebone, Wolf Loescher, Norah Rendell, Olta, Innisfall, Jim McKenna, Ginger Ackley, Battlelegs, Barleyjuice, Xavier Boderiou, Ockham's Razor, Eileen Ivers

I hope you enjoyed this week's show. If you did, please share the show with ONE friend.

The Irish & Celtic Music Podcast is here to build our community and help the incredible artists who so generously share their music with you. If you hear music you love, buy the albums, shirts, and songbooks, see their shows, and drop them an email to let them know you heard them on the Irish and Celtic Music Podcast.

Remember also to Subscribe to the Celtic Music Magazine. Every week, you will get a few cool bits of Celtic music news. It's a quick and easy way to plug yourself into more great Celtic culture. Plus, you'll get 34 Celtic MP3s for Free, just for signing up today.

VOTE IN THE CELTIC TOP 20 This is our way of finding the best songs and artists each year. Just list the show number, and the name of as many bands in the episode as you like. Your vote helps me create next year's Best Celtic music of 2020 episode.  Vote Now!

THIS WEEK IN CELTIC MUSIC

0:05 - "Lamplighter's Hornpipe / Suffer the Child" by Lissa Schneckenburger from Dance

2:48 - WELCOME

4:08 - "The Cat Rambles / The Star Above the Garter / The Pipe on the Hob" by Stringer's Ridge from Handmade

8:31 - "A Kiss in the Morning Early" by Hanz Araki from Wind and Rain

12:17 - "Chalk Heart" by Whalebone from Mirabilia

16:05 - "Tramps and Hawkers from Wolf Loescher from Sheep's Clothing

21:01 - CELTIC FEEDBACK

24:06 - "Forty Fishermen" by Norah Rendell from Spinning Yarns

28:42 - "Old Maid in a Garrett / Glen Cottage / New Market Polka 3" by Olta from Step It Out

33:32 - "Song of Innisfall" by Innisfall from Innisfall

37:17 - "The Bright Lady" by Jim McKenna from Jim McKenna Uileann Pipes

41:17 - "Manannan Mac Lir" by Ginger Ackley from Elf King's Horn

44:06 - CELTIC PODCAST NEWS

47:15 - "Shoot 'Em Up, Shoot 'Em Down" by Battlelegs from Save the Humans

49:58 - "High on the Highland Life" by Barleyjuice from The Old Speakeasy

54:24 - "Gavotte Pourlet" by Xavier Boderiou from Liamm

58:10 - "The Foggy Dew / Seven Nation Army" by Ockham's Razor from Songs from Potter's Field

1:05:24 - CLOSING

1:07:46 - "Zero G (and I feel fine)" by Eileen Ivers from Scatter the Light

The Irish & Celtic Music Podcast was edited by Mitchell Petersen with Graphics by Miranda Nelson Designs. The show was produced by Marc Gunn, The Celtfather. To subscribe, go to Apple Podcasts or to our website where you can become a Patron of the Podcast for as little as $1 per episode. Promote Celtic culture through music at http://celticmusicpodcast.com/.

WELCOME TO CELTIC MUSIC * Helping you celebrate Celtic culture through music. My name is Marc Gunn. I am a Celtic musician and podcaster. This show is dedicated to the indie Celtic musicians. Please support these artists. Share the show with your friends. And find more episodes at celticmusicpodcast.com. You can also support this podcast on Patreon.

I hope you’re doing amazing despite the Coronavirus and the social distancing that’s taken over all of our lives. I know it sucks, but I hope you are safe and healthy.

On the bright side, there were a LOT of opportunities to hear Celtic music over the past couple o’weeks despite St Patrick’s Day being effectively closed. And I keep hearing about more musicians going live. So make sure you check the news of your favorite bands. See who’s playing and watch one of their shows.

And if you’re able, help them out. Buy some music or merch, send them a tip. Tell them thanks for all of the music they create.

THANK YOU PATRONS OF THE PODCAST!

Because of Your kind and generous support, this show comes out every week. Your generosity funds the creation, promotion and production of the show. It allows us to attract new listeners and to help our community grow.

As a patron, you get to hear episodes before regular listeners. When we hit a milestone, you get an extra-long episode. You can pledge a dollar or more per episode and cap how much you want to spend each month over on Patreon.

A super special thanks to our newest patrons from last month: Steven R, Annie R., Linda P, Scott F, Doug K, Beth H, JOSEPH O, KIrsten N

You can become a generous Patron of the Podcast on Patreon at SongHenge.com.

Oh! And we got a bunch of new patrons this month. We hit the $700 milestone on Patreon. That means I’m gonna plan a 2-hour special of instrumental Celtic music with minimal talk and a ton of amazing music.

CELTIC PODCAST NEWS

We’re getting closer to 1000 ratings on Apple Podcasts. Yeah. I said ratings. Looks like I messed up when I said reviews. But that’s still brilliant. Just 17 left. Go give your review.

A quick additional note about St Patrick’s Day. I know it sucked that it was effectively shut down. I think we need to make Halfway to St Patrick’s Day as big St Paddy’s Day should’ve been this year. So go talk to your local pub or Celtic organizations. We have just over 5 months to plan. Let’s make it happen on September 17th!

Oh! And I want send out a huge thanks to Lady Susan of Thunder on the Plains. She organized an impromptu St Patrick’s Day virtual festival on Facebook and Instagram. Some of these concerts are still available to watch online.

Submit music to the podcast at 4celts.com.

Vote in the Celtic Top 20!

TRAVEL WITH CELTIC INVASION VACATIONS Every year, I take a small group of Celtic music fans on the relaxing adventure of a lifetime. We don't see everything. Instead, we stay in one area. We get to know the region through its culture, history, and legends. You can join us with an auditory and visual adventure through podcasts and videos. Learn more about the invasion at http://celticinvasion.com/

#celticmusic #irishmusic #celticpodcast

I WANT YOUR FEEDBACK

What are you doing today while listening to the podcast? You can send a written comment along with a picture of what you're doing while listening. Email a voicemail message to celticpodcast@gmail.com

Did you celebrate St Patrick’s Day out and about this year? I would LOVE to see your pictures from the day. How did you celebrate it? Email us.

Suzanne Marr emailed on Patreon: "Thank you for providing a far better soundtrack to my home than the news does!"

Sarah Fletcher posted on our website: “Hi Mark, I just signed up on your Patreon. I've been listening for a long time and decided it was time to pay back for all of that great music. I discovered the Gothard Sisters, who are from my town, right here on your podcast. Well, I really decided to support your podcast because you have expressed on many occasions your support for diversity in Celtic music and you have highlighted many female and LGBT artists. This touched me especially as many in these underrepresented groups struggle to find a voice. Thank you and keep up the great work. A devoted listener.”

Dwayne Butcher commented on Patreon: “It is so unfortunate people are saying SJW as a slur. Keep up the great work! Will up my per episode contribution today.”

Sterling SS emailed: “I’m dancing and listening to my freedom that my ancestors got to be in the USA”

Jason S. emailed a photo: “G'day Marc, First time writer, long time listener. Here's a picture of my quiet celebrations on St. Patrick's Day in Australia. (Having a nice black brew + watching some GAA) ??

Hope you + your listeners had a good day as well. Love the podcast, keep up the good work!”

Sean emailed; “Marc, Our band McSpillin hosted a FB live concert on St Patrick’s Day (aka McSpillin’s St Patrick Stay concert). Like many, all our gigs were canceled. The FB live concert was well received.”

Check out this episode!

[podcastcoach]

How Does Your Podcast Compete Against Giant Show?

Table of Contents

01:29 How Do You Compete Against Large Networks?

06:44 25 People Vs 1

09:42 Two Things That Kill Podcasts

11:52 Buying an Audience

15:32 Life Without the School of Podcasting

17:01 So How Do You Compete?

19:24 Jet Ski vs Cruise Ship

21:53 Downloads are only ONE way of measuring Success

24:28 Free Webinar 2/26

25:01 Golden Mic Announcement

34:23 Where I Will Be

34:45 Question of the Month

I hear this question a lot:

How am I supposed to compete?  It'll be something like I've been podcasting for three years. There are these other podcasters who I'm pretty sure are buying their audience. They're spouting their numbers, and they're gigantic. How am I supposed to compete with somebody like that?

I totally understand that question. Here are some things to consider:

You Can't Compete

Because its a good visual. How would a seventeen-year-old boxer compete against the champion who has held the title for six years? You don't put that kid in the ring. He's going to get killed. The experience, the stamina, he just isn't ready. He is completely out of his league.

But I've Been Podcasting For Three Years

But Dave, I've been podcasting for three years. You say that in some cases, you know people who are really starting to make a difference with their podcast at three years mark. To this I say"Uh-huh," but here are some things that we need to think about. We never know what's going on behind the scenes with a podcast. You might have a job (or two) and a spouse and some kids. The other podcast may not have any of those. Can you imagine how much free time you would have to promote if you didn't have any other activities and could focus on your podcast 100% of the time?

So if you look at podcasters from the outside, there's a person with a podcast here, and another podcaster over there and you think they are the same and they are not. We have no idea what is going on behind the scenes. They might have a background in selling and your background is in teaching.

Radiolab thanked 25 people at the end of their show. I am an army of one. Can I compete? In 2015ish I was up for a Podcast Movement Podcast Award and one of the shows in my category was Reply All.  I was competing against them. I've also had my Logical Weight Loss podcast compete against Jillian Michaels. Can we compete? Yes. The minute you turn on the microphone you are competing. Some of the things these teams of 25 use you don't need (original music?). While great production is like icing on a cupcake, if its all icing (and no cupcake) that doesn't work (see serial season two).

The Two Things That Kill a Podcast

BABIES

Babies are so selfish. It's all about them. All they scream is feed me, wipe my butt, I want a nap. That can really get on your nerves (kidding).

COMPARTING YOUR PODCAST TO OTHERS

When you say "how do I compete" at the hear you are comparing your show to others, and that can seriously do nasty things to your content. If you ever feel yourself comparing yourself - STOP.

STOP COMPARING YOUR SHOW TO OTHERS.

You need three things to create good content:

Your attitude

Your health

The support of those around you

(see this episode for a deep dive into this subject).

There is no competition

I am a co-host on the Podcasters Roundtable with Daniel J. Lewis and Ray Ortega. Technically both of these people are my "competition" but they are not. Why? Because you can listen to me on Monday,  Daniel on Tuesday, and Ray on Wednesday. As long as you deliver value, you're safe and don't have to worry.

You Can't Buy An Audience

You can buy an opportunity for people to hear your show, but you can't pay them to listen. Your podcast needs to provide value so they will come back because they want more.

Holly Barey is beautiful. In 2004 they put her in a Catwoman suit, spent a million dollars to my $82 million (a loss of 18 million). On Rotten Tomatoes the movie has a ranking of 9 out of 100 with 197 people voting.

In 2009 Disney worked on a movie called John Carter based on a popular book. According to Wikipedia is the most expensive movie ever created. It was a super popular book. It's kind of a sci-fi fantasy thing. It had a young, hot actor from Friday Night Lights, which was a very popular TV show here in the States.  Yeah, they lost $200 million on that movie

You cannot buy an audience.

And upon the release,  it received a mixed critical reception. In other words, it wasn't any good. There are great visuals. It had a great soundtrack. It had great action sequences. But the biggest criticism was toward the characterization and this thing called the plot that movies have, and you kind of need a good plot, you need a story.

It's the content. It's delivering value. And apparently, this movie did not deliver value because it lost them $200 million.

And I remember seeing all the ads for this movie, that all the promotion.

Before You Start Spending Money to Grow Your Podcast

I see a lot of people who say, "I'm not getting enough downloads and they turned to Facebook ads or advertising an overcast or Spotify or Castro (all podcast listening apps). They are trying to get the word out about their show. You can buy eyeballs/earholes but you can't buy an audience because an audience is someone who comes back for more.

Do What Your Big Networks Can't

Answer every email (in my travels big shows don't do this)

Get your audience on the phone. In the book Superfans (and in the Colin Morgan Interview on Podcast Juinkes) Pat Flynn and Colin Morgan talk about reaching out to random members of their audience via the phone (you can get a free Google Voice number, or Podcast Voicemail to mask your real phone number). How do you provide great content? You know who your audience is. How do you know what they want? You talk to them.

You are a Jetski, they are a cruise ship. You can change your content in record time. They can't. You are much more flexible. They are not. You need to identify your weaknesses and your strengths. You also need to identify your "competition's" strengths and weaknesses and don't try to cover the same area whey they will unquestionably squash you.

Go to where they are. In some cases, if a show is so big they can't go out in public. You can, and while you're there you can get feedback on how to make your show better.

Be sure to poll your audience. This can be as simple as "what do you like about the show, what do you wish I would do differently?" If you want to ask, "How did you learn about the podcast" so you can do more of that.

There is More Than One Way To Measure Success

Keep in mind there are more ways to measure success than downloads. These includes:

Is your show successful (are you achieving your "why?"

Comments on your website

Email responses

Social marketing interactions

Business metrics (new customers)

The Right Podcast Equipment Webinar

On February 26th there is a free online webinar at www.schoolofpodcasting.com/webinar where we will go over podcast equipment and the best option for you. If buying the right equipment has been a hurdle for you this will help you get over the hurdle. See www.schoolofpodcasting.com/webinar

Life Without the School of Podcasting

Today I helped someone who randomly contacted me on Facebook. They hadn't purchased enough storage space for their show. They were exporting their files in the wrong format. They didn't know how to export in the proper format. They were using the wrong format for artwork. Podcasting can be fun and fulfilling when you don't have to band your head against a wall to release a simple episode. At the School of Podcasting,   we show you in videos how to export your show in the proper format. We show you how to order the right plan for your podcast so your media host matches your strategy. We help you podcast frustrating free. Join today at www.schoolofpodcasting.com/start

The New Academy of Podcasting

Let's start off with the positive. Wondery, a company with 82 employees and revenues (according to growjo.com) of around 15 million per year organized a new "Academy of Podcasters" and will launch a Golden Mic awards in 2021. Per their website, "The Academy is professionally run by an Executive Director and an Account Manager.  These roles are overseen by a volunteer Board of Governors who set the strategic vision and goals of the organization. 17 Founding Members will establish the organization and guide its initial creation with a goal of 1) moving The Golden Mics into a key recognition position and 2) encouraging growth and networking of the Academy and the industry. Members are individuals in the podcast industry who are part of one of the Academy’s Peer Groups; each Peer Group will vote on its respective categories for The Golden Mics." 

So it's great that big companies with big budgets are going to be promoting podcasting. This is a good thing.

Someone Needs to Learn How to Google

The companies listed above need to learn how to do some Google searches. When you come in with a "We've arrived" mentality, you can easily offend those who have already been here working in the trenches. I mean who do you think you are the pilgrims?

The larger media companies keep saying things that seem to just ignore history. For example, an article that came out THIS WEEK stated that " Born in the halls of public radio, podcasting has emerged as one of the fastest-growing businesses in media over the past few years." Podcasting was NOT born in the halls of public radio. It was born in a hotel room where Dave Winer and Adam Curry met. In the past, I've just let them roll off m back, but I remember someone from one of these companies who stated there weren't any women podcasters in the early years (completely erasing people like Mignon Fogerty and Murr Raferty. Who can forget Steve Jobs referring to podcasting as "Amateur Hour."

So when I approached Hernan Lopez the founder and CEO of Wondery that there HAS BEEN a  “completely peer-based, not for profit, fully representative" awards show and I had won such an award he apologized.

I'm Not Saying Get Off My Lawn

Lopez was at an educational conference stating a lack of education. I'm not saying get off my lawn. I'm saying Marc Maron didn't invent podcasting (nor did Serial) and if you want me to greet you with open arms, it would be much easier if you would stop kicking me in the balls.

To the best of my knowledge, the Adamy of podcasters which controls the Hall of Fame is still in existence. It hasn't had a ceremony since 2018 due to a lack of sponsorship. This is sad. While some may feel this is just a bunch of friends slapping each other on the back, if you do some research that it's not just old white guys but women and people of color (granted the majority of the recipients is middle-aged white guys because when podcasting first started THOSE WERE THE PEOPLE WHO WERE PODCASTING.

So I look forward to seeing the spotlight the new academy will point at podcasting, and just ask them to quite saying things that make use feel invisible or worse, erase the past.

Speaking of the past, here is a link to the Academy of Podcasters Hall of Fame

New Podcasters Academy

Question of the Month

How did you get past the "Nobody will listen to me?" see www.schoolofpodcasting.com/question

Start Your Podcast Today

Go to www.schoolofpodcasting.com/start and start your podcast worry-free with our 30-day money-back guarantee 

  Check out this episode!

[thedivinefish]

TGIWednesday and a download for enjoying entertainment and play!

TGIWednesday News 

As my sweet momma would say, “Hey ya’ll”.  I still spend every Sunday with her and she's 90 now and hanging in there and always with a smile, God love her.  I hope you enjoyed the long weekend and remember those that have given their lives to keep us free. I realize we need a strong military and no one gets excited about war, but we have to remember that communications are key and meeting with folks no matter how different they may be from our own ideology - we still need to at least make every effort to find middle ground and as Rodney King famously said, “Can’t we all just get along?” Beyond that..... spirit has hammered me with the message that “they” want you to find and enjoy more entertainment in your life.  Go swimming, hiking, the gym, gardening or whatever it is that is “you doing you”!  If you stopped doing it 10 years ago, even if it was tennis, golf or building ships inside little glass bottles.... I want you to start doing it again.  I'm reminded all the time by spirit to enjoy more, be more entertained and provide more entertainment!  So please keep this in mind as we enter into the Summer months.   Know that I love and appreciate you and the contribution that you are for others and we’re all in this together!  I'm here as a guide post and way-shower for you. And as always we've got some fun things on tap that you’re going to LOVE like these upcoming audio mp3s.   One I'm calling "Fountain of Youth" likely a Summer release - re-activating your youth gene, reversing aging/anti-aging and time traveling back to refresh, restore points in your body, mind and spirit age where we had supple skin and youthful, vibrant energy.   A potential Fall release is on tap for an audio I'm calling, "Financial Windfall".  It'll be the 4th in a series of audio MP3’s on money and increasing your wealth, attracting abundance and finding what will make you truly happy!  Making it easier by removing the stuck and overwhelm blocks and allowing good fortune to find you.  

TGIWednesday Download

~ ENJOYING ENTERTAINMENT AND PLAY   ~ Show me and tell me how I can be more entertained and entertain others. Allow me to believe, think, know and feel that it isn’t goofing off, rather it is a necessary part of a balanced life. I am ready, willing and able to enjoy more of my life now (even the simple pleasures). I know by way of the creator, intuitively, when, where, how and why to work and when to play and to enjoy. I am asking for this in all languages and throughout all time lines and so it is!  

FREE Weekly LIVE Healings and Messages

MAY 30th  at 1pm EDT - THE MYSTICAL MATCHMAKER  Join me TOMORROW at 1pm EDT as I'll be the guest on The Mystical Matchmaker podcast with my friend and host Marla Martenson.  Call in (347) 215-6966 and get in line 15 mins early to ask a question because the phone lines fill up fast! Listen Here Online JUNE 5th  at 3pm EDT - SPIRITUAL INSIGHTS RADIO  Join Jimmy and host Charlotte Spicer next Wednesday June 5th at 3pm ET Call in for Free readings and healings! Call in LIVE (347) 934-0751 Listen Here Online Every Tuesday at 9pm EDT - JIMMY MACK HEALING SHOW 

Join me and my guests weekly on Tuesdays at 9pm ET/ 6pm PT Call in LIVE (713)-955-0594 It's your chance to get FREE intuitive messages on my weekly radio show. My guests are some of the best psychic readers & intuitive healers on the planet!  Tune in every Tuesday night LIVE or just catch the replay & YOU will receive changes & healings just by listening!  Check out TheJimmyMackHealingShow.com  for a full listing & all replays! 

  To listen online, click the date links below. Listen here to yesterday's replay - Guest Debbie Dienstbier June 4th - Listen here - Guest Psychic Joanne Leo www.psychicjoanneleo.com June 11th - Listen here Guest Ayla Murray Psychic, Tarot Cards, Intuitive and highly accurate computerized Astrology readings. www.themagickorchard.com June 18th - Listen here Guest Dr. Rev. Kimberly Marooney Originator of Angel Cards, world renowned inspirational, intuitive readings. http://kimberlymarooney.com/angel-expert-kimberly-marooney June 25th - Listen here Guest Rev Debbie Dienstbier Transmedium, communications with your loved ones in spirit.  Profound messages from an experienced psychic medium and healer https://www.facebook.com/Wings-of-Grace-Spiritual-Center-875388225837766/  

Check out TheJimmyMackHealingShow.com  for a full listing & all replays! 

From the Fish Box

"It was so great meeting you as well. I left there feeling very light is the way I describe it to people. It was a wonderful experience and I plan on coming back many times. I am also enjoy my daily inspiration book as well. Thank you so much!" - P. M. / Tampa "Hi Jimmy, I would like you to know that today I went to see a chiropractor; she told me exactly what you told me: the C2 is out of alignment! So next week we start the treatment! Thank you, I keep in touch with you, Much love." - H. S. / Netherlands

Live In-Person Appearances

MONDAY JUNE 3rd at SWANN HOLISTIC HEALTH CENTER TAMPA This Monday June 3rd from 10am-5pm I'll be booking sessions at Charla Tempone's Swann Holistic Health Center offices in Tampa. Please call their office directly at (813) 873-7773 in order to get on the schedule for 15-minutes 33$ – 30-minutes 65$.

39 A DAVIS BLVD Tampa, FL  http://www.ctholisticsolutions.com

EVERY FRIDAY at KODAWARI YOGA STUDIOS TAMPA

Tampa folks come see me on FRIDAYs - I'm scheduling 15 and 30 minute appointments at Kodawari Yoga Studios from 10am-2pm. Call Kodawari's front desk directly to schedule (813) 773-4017 and pay at the concierge desk... 15 minutes 33$ or 30 minutes 65$. 3965 Henderson Blvd Suite C Tampa (813) 773-4017 http://www.kodawariyoga.com/ >> Friday:  May 31st (SOLD OUT)  This week's slots SOLD OUT by Tuesday so be sure you call now for June! If you missed me this Friday, call Charla's office to get on my schedule Monday at Swann Holistic Health Center (813) 873-7773  >> Friday: June 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th

  Go deep sea "fishing" with Jimmy!

Level 1 is open to ANYONE at anytime!  

"My Liquid Fish Certification program was an amazing journey and experience.  It opens the door to three levels of healing; physical, mental and spiritual expansion and transformation!! Learning with Jimmy Mack is both fun, energizing and informative.  He takes me to new realms of possibilities where transformation is instantaneous.  - Pradeep / India

The Certificate of Mastery Program includes 2 best-selling ebooks and 2 clearing audios plus written & video instructions, AND one-on-one time with Jimmy ALL for about the cost of a single 1-hr session! This online course is for anyone who is familiar with OR new to "fishing" and is ready to dive into the deep end & get results that are beyond the ordinary! It includes The Tackle Box & Spiritual Healing Techniques ebooks PLUS 2 MP3s "Clearing Dark Energies" & "Increasing Your Intuition" to help clear, strengthen and prepare your energy field for optimal “fishing” results. This is a work-at-your-own-pace curriculum that will TEACH & CLEAR you at the same time! In under 2wks you will be finished with the program and ready to fish on your own with greater results! Level II offers Practitioner Certification for those who qualify.

LEARN MORE HERE

Receive 24/7 Daily Prayers From Jimmy

I will dial into you daily in the wee hours and make certain that you are a CLEAR YES, UNCLEAR to NO and RUNNING FORWARD before you start your day. You will send me a list of the members of your immediate household, and yes even pets, and I will add them to my daily prayers. I will arise daily before you are even awake to start my prayers and also run my intelligent computer software 24/7 deleting the negative and increasing the strength of the positive creating a higher probability of outcomes for you and the family.  Each comes with a one-time email analysis print out via the intelligent healing software that I use on your behalf.  Most clients have had amazing results and outcomes and I get emails of thanks each and every week!

                     Choose 7 days @$33              Choose 14 days @$66           Choose 30 days @$99

**Can't See The Full Email? Click Here to View Online**

Fish Food 

The Daily Bread To Feed The Fish

Tell The Fish: 365 Daily Inspirations & Affirmations

MAY 29th -   "Today I will remain childlike with my childhood friends and have a childlike state of mind. I will embrace that which is simple. I will find joy in the basics. I will breathe new life into my past and enjoy the now and know that the future will unfold with blessings."

For those who aren't familiar, here's the list of ALL clearing MP3s available. Find a topic that addresses your issue(s) & click on the link to read more. We had a lot of help downloading and channeling these over the years & they keep getting better.

Abundance Abuse Addiction Body Scan: Head to Toe Daily GPS Reset Dark Energies/Fears Decision Making Diet & Exercise Education & Learning Family & Relatives The Gold Coin Healing Physical Body Healing Mental Stress Holiday Stress

Increasing Intuition IRS & Tax Time Love & Romance Money Mindset Moving Forward Pain Relief Pet Healing Sales & Success Sex Sleep Traveling w/Ease Work & Career Weight Loss

TGIFunny

Share

Tweet

Forward

Pinterest

Jimmy Mack 727.678.0557​ EST | Appointments Skype: Jimmy.Mack55 Clearwater Florida USA Book a 15 minute session Book a 30 minute session Book a 60 minute session ​ ​​Transformational Healing of Body, Mind​ & Spirit, People, Places, Pets & Situations!​ ​ Download the My Liquid Fish® Starter Kit (*Updated May 2019) Audio MP3 Downloads​ and books​ to improve your life! Get Certified in ​My Liquid Fish® Change Made Simple® Watch Free Videos on YouTube Weekly Radio Show Archives Shop for ​Supplements ​ http://www.jimmymackhealingshop.com www.jimmymackhealing.com Copyright ©1998-2019 All Rights Reserved  

-------------------------------------------------- TGIW newsletter managed by: Sandy Bidinger Digital Marketing Specialist at SMBeConnected Solutions www.smbeconnected.com  

Stay connected!

  Our mailing address is: Clearwater Florida 33756 USA

[divinefishingtips]

TGIWednesday and a download for enjoying entertainment and play!

TGIWednesday News 

As my sweet momma would say, “Hey ya’ll”.  I still spend every Sunday with her and she's 90 now and hanging in there and always with a smile, God love her.  I hope you enjoyed the long weekend and remember those that have given their lives to keep us free. I realize we need a strong military and no one gets excited about war, but we have to remember that communications are key and meeting with folks no matter how different they may be from our own ideology - we still need to at least make every effort to find middle ground and as Rodney King famously said, “Can’t we all just get along?” Beyond that..... spirit has hammered me with the message that “they” want you to find and enjoy more entertainment in your life.  Go swimming, hiking, the gym, gardening or whatever it is that is “you doing you”!  If you stopped doing it 10 years ago, even if it was tennis, golf or building ships inside little glass bottles.... I want you to start doing it again.  I'm reminded all the time by spirit to enjoy more, be more entertained and provide more entertainment!  So please keep this in mind as we enter into the Summer months.   Know that I love and appreciate you and the contribution that you are for others and we’re all in this together!  I'm here as a guide post and way-shower for you. And as always we've got some fun things on tap that you’re going to LOVE like these upcoming audio mp3s.   One I'm calling "Fountain of Youth" likely a Summer release - re-activating your youth gene, reversing aging/anti-aging and time traveling back to refresh, restore points in your body, mind and spirit age where we had supple skin and youthful, vibrant energy.   A potential Fall release is on tap for an audio I'm calling, "Financial Windfall".  It'll be the 4th in a series of audio MP3’s on money and increasing your wealth, attracting abundance and finding what will make you truly happy!  Making it easier by removing the stuck and overwhelm blocks and allowing good fortune to find you.  

TGIWednesday Download

~ ENJOYING ENTERTAINMENT AND PLAY   ~ Show me and tell me how I can be more entertained and entertain others. Allow me to believe, think, know and feel that it isn’t goofing off, rather it is a necessary part of a balanced life. I am ready, willing and able to enjoy more of my life now (even the simple pleasures). I know by way of the creator, intuitively, when, where, how and why to work and when to play and to enjoy. I am asking for this in all languages and throughout all time lines and so it is!  

FREE Weekly LIVE Healings and Messages

MAY 30th  at 1pm EDT - THE MYSTICAL MATCHMAKER  Join me TOMORROW at 1pm EDT as I'll be the guest on The Mystical Matchmaker podcast with my friend and host Marla Martenson.  Call in (347) 215-6966 and get in line 15 mins early to ask a question because the phone lines fill up fast! Listen Here Online JUNE 5th  at 3pm EDT - SPIRITUAL INSIGHTS RADIO  Join Jimmy and host Charlotte Spicer next Wednesday June 5th at 3pm ET Call in for Free readings and healings! Call in LIVE (347) 934-0751 Listen Here Online Every Tuesday at 9pm EDT - JIMMY MACK HEALING SHOW 

Join me and my guests weekly on Tuesdays at 9pm ET/ 6pm PT Call in LIVE (713)-955-0594 It's your chance to get FREE intuitive messages on my weekly radio show. My guests are some of the best psychic readers & intuitive healers on the planet!  Tune in every Tuesday night LIVE or just catch the replay & YOU will receive changes & healings just by listening!  Check out TheJimmyMackHealingShow.com  for a full listing & all replays! 

  To listen online, click the date links below. Listen here to yesterday's replay - Guest Debbie Dienstbier June 4th - Listen here - Guest Psychic Joanne Leo www.psychicjoanneleo.com June 11th - Listen here Guest Ayla Murray Psychic, Tarot Cards, Intuitive and highly accurate computerized Astrology readings. www.themagickorchard.com June 18th - Listen here Guest Dr. Rev. Kimberly Marooney Originator of Angel Cards, world renowned inspirational, intuitive readings. http://kimberlymarooney.com/angel-expert-kimberly-marooney June 25th - Listen here Guest Rev Debbie Dienstbier Transmedium, communications with your loved ones in spirit.  Profound messages from an experienced psychic medium and healer https://www.facebook.com/Wings-of-Grace-Spiritual-Center-875388225837766/  

Check out TheJimmyMackHealingShow.com  for a full listing & all replays! 

From the Fish Box

"It was so great meeting you as well. I left there feeling very light is the way I describe it to people. It was a wonderful experience and I plan on coming back many times. I am also enjoy my daily inspiration book as well. Thank you so much!" - P. M. / Tampa "Hi Jimmy, I would like you to know that today I went to see a chiropractor; she told me exactly what you told me: the C2 is out of alignment! So next week we start the treatment! Thank you, I keep in touch with you, Much love." - H. S. / Netherlands

Live In-Person Appearances

MONDAY JUNE 3rd at SWANN HOLISTIC HEALTH CENTER TAMPA This Monday June 3rd from 10am-5pm I'll be booking sessions at Charla Tempone's Swann Holistic Health Center offices in Tampa. Please call their office directly at (813) 873-7773 in order to get on the schedule for 15-minutes 33$ – 30-minutes 65$.

39 A DAVIS BLVD Tampa, FL  http://www.ctholisticsolutions.com

EVERY FRIDAY at KODAWARI YOGA STUDIOS TAMPA

Tampa folks come see me on FRIDAYs - I'm scheduling 15 and 30 minute appointments at Kodawari Yoga Studios from 10am-2pm. Call Kodawari's front desk directly to schedule (813) 773-4017 and pay at the concierge desk... 15 minutes 33$ or 30 minutes 65$. 3965 Henderson Blvd Suite C Tampa (813) 773-4017 http://www.kodawariyoga.com/ >> Friday:  May 31st (SOLD OUT)  This week's slots SOLD OUT by Tuesday so be sure you call now for June! If you missed me this Friday, call Charla's office to get on my schedule Monday at Swann Holistic Health Center (813) 873-7773  >> Friday: June 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th

  Go deep sea "fishing" with Jimmy!

Level 1 is open to ANYONE at anytime!  

"My Liquid Fish Certification program was an amazing journey and experience.  It opens the door to three levels of healing; physical, mental and spiritual expansion and transformation!! Learning with Jimmy Mack is both fun, energizing and informative.  He takes me to new realms of possibilities where transformation is instantaneous.  - Pradeep / India

The Certificate of Mastery Program includes 2 best-selling ebooks and 2 clearing audios plus written & video instructions, AND one-on-one time with Jimmy ALL for about the cost of a single 1-hr session! This online course is for anyone who is familiar with OR new to "fishing" and is ready to dive into the deep end & get results that are beyond the ordinary! It includes The Tackle Box & Spiritual Healing Techniques ebooks PLUS 2 MP3s "Clearing Dark Energies" & "Increasing Your Intuition" to help clear, strengthen and prepare your energy field for optimal “fishing” results. This is a work-at-your-own-pace curriculum that will TEACH & CLEAR you at the same time! In under 2wks you will be finished with the program and ready to fish on your own with greater results! Level II offers Practitioner Certification for those who qualify.

LEARN MORE HERE

Receive 24/7 Daily Prayers From Jimmy

I will dial into you daily in the wee hours and make certain that you are a CLEAR YES, UNCLEAR to NO and RUNNING FORWARD before you start your day. You will send me a list of the members of your immediate household, and yes even pets, and I will add them to my daily prayers. I will arise daily before you are even awake to start my prayers and also run my intelligent computer software 24/7 deleting the negative and increasing the strength of the positive creating a higher probability of outcomes for you and the family.  Each comes with a one-time email analysis print out via the intelligent healing software that I use on your behalf.  Most clients have had amazing results and outcomes and I get emails of thanks each and every week!

                     Choose 7 days @$33              Choose 14 days @$66           Choose 30 days @$99

**Can't See The Full Email? Click Here to View Online**

Fish Food 

The Daily Bread To Feed The Fish

Tell The Fish: 365 Daily Inspirations & Affirmations

MAY 29th -   "Today I will remain childlike with my childhood friends and have a childlike state of mind. I will embrace that which is simple. I will find joy in the basics. I will breathe new life into my past and enjoy the now and know that the future will unfold with blessings."

For those who aren't familiar, here's the list of ALL clearing MP3s available. Find a topic that addresses your issue(s) & click on the link to read more. We had a lot of help downloading and channeling these over the years & they keep getting better.

Abundance Abuse Addiction Body Scan: Head to Toe Daily GPS Reset Dark Energies/Fears Decision Making Diet & Exercise Education & Learning Family & Relatives The Gold Coin Healing Physical Body Healing Mental Stress Holiday Stress

Increasing Intuition IRS & Tax Time Love & Romance Money Mindset Moving Forward Pain Relief Pet Healing Sales & Success Sex Sleep Traveling w/Ease Work & Career Weight Loss

TGIFunny

Share

Tweet

Forward

Pinterest

Jimmy Mack 727.678.0557​ EST | Appointments Skype: Jimmy.Mack55 Clearwater Florida USA Book a 15 minute session Book a 30 minute session Book a 60 minute session ​ ​​Transformational Healing of Body, Mind​ & Spirit, People, Places, Pets & Situations!​ ​ Download the My Liquid Fish® Starter Kit (*Updated May 2019) Audio MP3 Downloads​ and books​ to improve your life! Get Certified in ​My Liquid Fish® Change Made Simple® Watch Free Videos on YouTube Weekly Radio Show Archives Shop for ​Supplements ​ http://www.jimmymackhealingshop.com www.jimmymackhealing.com Copyright ©1998-2019 All Rights Reserved  

-------------------------------------------------- TGIW newsletter managed by: Sandy Bidinger Digital Marketing Specialist at SMBeConnected Solutions www.smbeconnected.com  

Stay connected!

  Our mailing address is: Clearwater Florida 33756 USA

[365dailyaffirmations]

TGIWednesday and a download for enjoying entertainment and play!

TGIWednesday News 

As my sweet momma would say, “Hey ya’ll”.  I still spend every Sunday with her and she's 90 now and hanging in there and always with a smile, God love her.  I hope you enjoyed the long weekend and remember those that have given their lives to keep us free. I realize we need a strong military and no one gets excited about war, but we have to remember that communications are key and meeting with folks no matter how different they may be from our own ideology - we still need to at least make every effort to find middle ground and as Rodney King famously said, “Can’t we all just get along?” Beyond that..... spirit has hammered me with the message that “they” want you to find and enjoy more entertainment in your life.  Go swimming, hiking, the gym, gardening or whatever it is that is “you doing you”!  If you stopped doing it 10 years ago, even if it was tennis, golf or building ships inside little glass bottles.... I want you to start doing it again.  I'm reminded all the time by spirit to enjoy more, be more entertained and provide more entertainment!  So please keep this in mind as we enter into the Summer months.   Know that I love and appreciate you and the contribution that you are for others and we’re all in this together!  I'm here as a guide post and way-shower for you. And as always we've got some fun things on tap that you’re going to LOVE like these upcoming audio mp3s.   One I'm calling "Fountain of Youth" likely a Summer release - re-activating your youth gene, reversing aging/anti-aging and time traveling back to refresh, restore points in your body, mind and spirit age where we had supple skin and youthful, vibrant energy.   A potential Fall release is on tap for an audio I'm calling, "Financial Windfall".  It'll be the 4th in a series of audio MP3’s on money and increasing your wealth, attracting abundance and finding what will make you truly happy!  Making it easier by removing the stuck and overwhelm blocks and allowing good fortune to find you.  

TGIWednesday Download

~ ENJOYING ENTERTAINMENT AND PLAY   ~ Show me and tell me how I can be more entertained and entertain others. Allow me to believe, think, know and feel that it isn’t goofing off, rather it is a necessary part of a balanced life. I am ready, willing and able to enjoy more of my life now (even the simple pleasures). I know by way of the creator, intuitively, when, where, how and why to work and when to play and to enjoy. I am asking for this in all languages and throughout all time lines and so it is!  

FREE Weekly LIVE Healings and Messages

MAY 30th  at 1pm EDT - THE MYSTICAL MATCHMAKER  Join me TOMORROW at 1pm EDT as I'll be the guest on The Mystical Matchmaker podcast with my friend and host Marla Martenson.  Call in (347) 215-6966 and get in line 15 mins early to ask a question because the phone lines fill up fast! Listen Here Online JUNE 5th  at 3pm EDT - SPIRITUAL INSIGHTS RADIO  Join Jimmy and host Charlotte Spicer next Wednesday June 5th at 3pm ET Call in for Free readings and healings! Call in LIVE (347) 934-0751 Listen Here Online Every Tuesday at 9pm EDT - JIMMY MACK HEALING SHOW 

Join me and my guests weekly on Tuesdays at 9pm ET/ 6pm PT Call in LIVE (713)-955-0594 It's your chance to get FREE intuitive messages on my weekly radio show. My guests are some of the best psychic readers & intuitive healers on the planet!  Tune in every Tuesday night LIVE or just catch the replay & YOU will receive changes & healings just by listening!  Check out TheJimmyMackHealingShow.com  for a full listing & all replays! 

  To listen online, click the date links below. Listen here to yesterday's replay - Guest Debbie Dienstbier June 4th - Listen here - Guest Psychic Joanne Leo www.psychicjoanneleo.com June 11th - Listen here Guest Ayla Murray Psychic, Tarot Cards, Intuitive and highly accurate computerized Astrology readings. www.themagickorchard.com June 18th - Listen here Guest Dr. Rev. Kimberly Marooney Originator of Angel Cards, world renowned inspirational, intuitive readings. http://kimberlymarooney.com/angel-expert-kimberly-marooney June 25th - Listen here Guest Rev Debbie Dienstbier Transmedium, communications with your loved ones in spirit.  Profound messages from an experienced psychic medium and healer https://www.facebook.com/Wings-of-Grace-Spiritual-Center-875388225837766/  

Check out TheJimmyMackHealingShow.com  for a full listing & all replays! 

From the Fish Box

"It was so great meeting you as well. I left there feeling very light is the way I describe it to people. It was a wonderful experience and I plan on coming back many times. I am also enjoy my daily inspiration book as well. Thank you so much!" - P. M. / Tampa "Hi Jimmy, I would like you to know that today I went to see a chiropractor; she told me exactly what you told me: the C2 is out of alignment! So next week we start the treatment! Thank you, I keep in touch with you, Much love." - H. S. / Netherlands

Live In-Person Appearances

MONDAY JUNE 3rd at SWANN HOLISTIC HEALTH CENTER TAMPA This Monday June 3rd from 10am-5pm I'll be booking sessions at Charla Tempone's Swann Holistic Health Center offices in Tampa. Please call their office directly at (813) 873-7773 in order to get on the schedule for 15-minutes 33$ – 30-minutes 65$.

39 A DAVIS BLVD Tampa, FL  http://www.ctholisticsolutions.com

EVERY FRIDAY at KODAWARI YOGA STUDIOS TAMPA

Tampa folks come see me on FRIDAYs - I'm scheduling 15 and 30 minute appointments at Kodawari Yoga Studios from 10am-2pm. Call Kodawari's front desk directly to schedule (813) 773-4017 and pay at the concierge desk... 15 minutes 33$ or 30 minutes 65$. 3965 Henderson Blvd Suite C Tampa (813) 773-4017 http://www.kodawariyoga.com/ >> Friday:  May 31st (SOLD OUT)  This week's slots SOLD OUT by Tuesday so be sure you call now for June! If you missed me this Friday, call Charla's office to get on my schedule Monday at Swann Holistic Health Center (813) 873-7773  >> Friday: June 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th

  Go deep sea "fishing" with Jimmy!

Level 1 is open to ANYONE at anytime!  

"My Liquid Fish Certification program was an amazing journey and experience.  It opens the door to three levels of healing; physical, mental and spiritual expansion and transformation!! Learning with Jimmy Mack is both fun, energizing and informative.  He takes me to new realms of possibilities where transformation is instantaneous.  - Pradeep / India

The Certificate of Mastery Program includes 2 best-selling ebooks and 2 clearing audios plus written & video instructions, AND one-on-one time with Jimmy ALL for about the cost of a single 1-hr session! This online course is for anyone who is familiar with OR new to "fishing" and is ready to dive into the deep end & get results that are beyond the ordinary! It includes The Tackle Box & Spiritual Healing Techniques ebooks PLUS 2 MP3s "Clearing Dark Energies" & "Increasing Your Intuition" to help clear, strengthen and prepare your energy field for optimal “fishing” results. This is a work-at-your-own-pace curriculum that will TEACH & CLEAR you at the same time! In under 2wks you will be finished with the program and ready to fish on your own with greater results! Level II offers Practitioner Certification for those who qualify.

LEARN MORE HERE

Receive 24/7 Daily Prayers From Jimmy

I will dial into you daily in the wee hours and make certain that you are a CLEAR YES, UNCLEAR to NO and RUNNING FORWARD before you start your day. You will send me a list of the members of your immediate household, and yes even pets, and I will add them to my daily prayers. I will arise daily before you are even awake to start my prayers and also run my intelligent computer software 24/7 deleting the negative and increasing the strength of the positive creating a higher probability of outcomes for you and the family.  Each comes with a one-time email analysis print out via the intelligent healing software that I use on your behalf.  Most clients have had amazing results and outcomes and I get emails of thanks each and every week!

                     Choose 7 days @$33              Choose 14 days @$66           Choose 30 days @$99

**Can't See The Full Email? Click Here to View Online**

Fish Food 

The Daily Bread To Feed The Fish

Tell The Fish: 365 Daily Inspirations & Affirmations

MAY 29th -   "Today I will remain childlike with my childhood friends and have a childlike state of mind. I will embrace that which is simple. I will find joy in the basics. I will breathe new life into my past and enjoy the now and know that the future will unfold with blessings."

For those who aren't familiar, here's the list of ALL clearing MP3s available. Find a topic that addresses your issue(s) & click on the link to read more. We had a lot of help downloading and channeling these over the years & they keep getting better.

Abundance Abuse Addiction Body Scan: Head to Toe Daily GPS Reset Dark Energies/Fears Decision Making Diet & Exercise Education & Learning Family & Relatives The Gold Coin Healing Physical Body Healing Mental Stress Holiday Stress

Increasing Intuition IRS & Tax Time Love & Romance Money Mindset Moving Forward Pain Relief Pet Healing Sales & Success Sex Sleep Traveling w/Ease Work & Career Weight Loss

TGIFunny

Share

Tweet

Forward

Pinterest

Jimmy Mack 727.678.0557​ EST | Appointments Skype: Jimmy.Mack55 Clearwater Florida USA Book a 15 minute session Book a 30 minute session Book a 60 minute session ​ ​​Transformational Healing of Body, Mind​ & Spirit, People, Places, Pets & Situations!​ ​ Download the My Liquid Fish® Starter Kit (*Updated May 2019) Audio MP3 Downloads​ and books​ to improve your life! Get Certified in ​My Liquid Fish® Change Made Simple® Watch Free Videos on YouTube Weekly Radio Show Archives Shop for ​Supplements ​ http://www.jimmymackhealingshop.com www.jimmymackhealing.com Copyright ©1998-2019 All Rights Reserved  

-------------------------------------------------- TGIW newsletter managed by: Sandy Bidinger Digital Marketing Specialist at SMBeConnected Solutions www.smbeconnected.com  

Stay connected!

  Our mailing address is: Clearwater Florida 33756 USA

[advancedthetapractitioner]

TGIWednesday and a download for enjoying entertainment and play!

TGIWednesday News 

As my sweet momma would say, “Hey ya’ll”.  I still spend every Sunday with her and she's 90 now and hanging in there and always with a smile, God love her.  I hope you enjoyed the long weekend and remember those that have given their lives to keep us free. I realize we need a strong military and no one gets excited about war, but we have to remember that communications are key and meeting with folks no matter how different they may be from our own ideology - we still need to at least make every effort to find middle ground and as Rodney King famously said, “Can’t we all just get along?” Beyond that..... spirit has hammered me with the message that “they” want you to find and enjoy more entertainment in your life.  Go swimming, hiking, the gym, gardening or whatever it is that is “you doing you”!  If you stopped doing it 10 years ago, even if it was tennis, golf or building ships inside little glass bottles.... I want you to start doing it again.  I'm reminded all the time by spirit to enjoy more, be more entertained and provide more entertainment!  So please keep this in mind as we enter into the Summer months.   Know that I love and appreciate you and the contribution that you are for others and we’re all in this together!  I'm here as a guide post and way-shower for you. And as always we've got some fun things on tap that you’re going to LOVE like these upcoming audio mp3s.   One I'm calling "Fountain of Youth" likely a Summer release - re-activating your youth gene, reversing aging/anti-aging and time traveling back to refresh, restore points in your body, mind and spirit age where we had supple skin and youthful, vibrant energy.   A potential Fall release is on tap for an audio I'm calling, "Financial Windfall".  It'll be the 4th in a series of audio MP3’s on money and increasing your wealth, attracting abundance and finding what will make you truly happy!  Making it easier by removing the stuck and overwhelm blocks and allowing good fortune to find you.  

TGIWednesday Download

~ ENJOYING ENTERTAINMENT AND PLAY   ~ Show me and tell me how I can be more entertained and entertain others. Allow me to believe, think, know and feel that it isn’t goofing off, rather it is a necessary part of a balanced life. I am ready, willing and able to enjoy more of my life now (even the simple pleasures). I know by way of the creator, intuitively, when, where, how and why to work and when to play and to enjoy. I am asking for this in all languages and throughout all time lines and so it is!  

FREE Weekly LIVE Healings and Messages

MAY 30th  at 1pm EDT - THE MYSTICAL MATCHMAKER  Join me TOMORROW at 1pm EDT as I'll be the guest on The Mystical Matchmaker podcast with my friend and host Marla Martenson.  Call in (347) 215-6966 and get in line 15 mins early to ask a question because the phone lines fill up fast! Listen Here Online JUNE 5th  at 3pm EDT - SPIRITUAL INSIGHTS RADIO  Join Jimmy and host Charlotte Spicer next Wednesday June 5th at 3pm ET Call in for Free readings and healings! Call in LIVE (347) 934-0751 Listen Here Online Every Tuesday at 9pm EDT - JIMMY MACK HEALING SHOW 

Join me and my guests weekly on Tuesdays at 9pm ET/ 6pm PT Call in LIVE (713)-955-0594 It's your chance to get FREE intuitive messages on my weekly radio show. My guests are some of the best psychic readers & intuitive healers on the planet!  Tune in every Tuesday night LIVE or just catch the replay & YOU will receive changes & healings just by listening!  Check out TheJimmyMackHealingShow.com  for a full listing & all replays! 

  To listen online, click the date links below. Listen here to yesterday's replay - Guest Debbie Dienstbier June 4th - Listen here - Guest Psychic Joanne Leo www.psychicjoanneleo.com June 11th - Listen here Guest Ayla Murray Psychic, Tarot Cards, Intuitive and highly accurate computerized Astrology readings. www.themagickorchard.com June 18th - Listen here Guest Dr. Rev. Kimberly Marooney Originator of Angel Cards, world renowned inspirational, intuitive readings. http://kimberlymarooney.com/angel-expert-kimberly-marooney June 25th - Listen here Guest Rev Debbie Dienstbier Transmedium, communications with your loved ones in spirit.  Profound messages from an experienced psychic medium and healer https://www.facebook.com/Wings-of-Grace-Spiritual-Center-875388225837766/  

Check out TheJimmyMackHealingShow.com  for a full listing & all replays! 

From the Fish Box

"It was so great meeting you as well. I left there feeling very light is the way I describe it to people. It was a wonderful experience and I plan on coming back many times. I am also enjoy my daily inspiration book as well. Thank you so much!" - P. M. / Tampa "Hi Jimmy, I would like you to know that today I went to see a chiropractor; she told me exactly what you told me: the C2 is out of alignment! So next week we start the treatment! Thank you, I keep in touch with you, Much love." - H. S. / Netherlands

Live In-Person Appearances

MONDAY JUNE 3rd at SWANN HOLISTIC HEALTH CENTER TAMPA This Monday June 3rd from 10am-5pm I'll be booking sessions at Charla Tempone's Swann Holistic Health Center offices in Tampa. Please call their office directly at (813) 873-7773 in order to get on the schedule for 15-minutes 33$ – 30-minutes 65$.

39 A DAVIS BLVD Tampa, FL  http://www.ctholisticsolutions.com

EVERY FRIDAY at KODAWARI YOGA STUDIOS TAMPA

Tampa folks come see me on FRIDAYs - I'm scheduling 15 and 30 minute appointments at Kodawari Yoga Studios from 10am-2pm. Call Kodawari's front desk directly to schedule (813) 773-4017 and pay at the concierge desk... 15 minutes 33$ or 30 minutes 65$. 3965 Henderson Blvd Suite C Tampa (813) 773-4017 http://www.kodawariyoga.com/ >> Friday:  May 31st (SOLD OUT)  This week's slots SOLD OUT by Tuesday so be sure you call now for June! If you missed me this Friday, call Charla's office to get on my schedule Monday at Swann Holistic Health Center (813) 873-7773  >> Friday: June 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th

  Go deep sea "fishing" with Jimmy!

Level 1 is open to ANYONE at anytime!  

"My Liquid Fish Certification program was an amazing journey and experience.  It opens the door to three levels of healing; physical, mental and spiritual expansion and transformation!! Learning with Jimmy Mack is both fun, energizing and informative.  He takes me to new realms of possibilities where transformation is instantaneous.  - Pradeep / India

The Certificate of Mastery Program includes 2 best-selling ebooks and 2 clearing audios plus written & video instructions, AND one-on-one time with Jimmy ALL for about the cost of a single 1-hr session! This online course is for anyone who is familiar with OR new to "fishing" and is ready to dive into the deep end & get results that are beyond the ordinary! It includes The Tackle Box & Spiritual Healing Techniques ebooks PLUS 2 MP3s "Clearing Dark Energies" & "Increasing Your Intuition" to help clear, strengthen and prepare your energy field for optimal “fishing” results. This is a work-at-your-own-pace curriculum that will TEACH & CLEAR you at the same time! In under 2wks you will be finished with the program and ready to fish on your own with greater results! Level II offers Practitioner Certification for those who qualify.

LEARN MORE HERE

Receive 24/7 Daily Prayers From Jimmy

I will dial into you daily in the wee hours and make certain that you are a CLEAR YES, UNCLEAR to NO and RUNNING FORWARD before you start your day. You will send me a list of the members of your immediate household, and yes even pets, and I will add them to my daily prayers. I will arise daily before you are even awake to start my prayers and also run my intelligent computer software 24/7 deleting the negative and increasing the strength of the positive creating a higher probability of outcomes for you and the family.  Each comes with a one-time email analysis print out via the intelligent healing software that I use on your behalf.  Most clients have had amazing results and outcomes and I get emails of thanks each and every week!

                     Choose 7 days @$33              Choose 14 days @$66           Choose 30 days @$99

**Can't See The Full Email? Click Here to View Online**

Fish Food 

The Daily Bread To Feed The Fish

Tell The Fish: 365 Daily Inspirations & Affirmations

MAY 29th -   "Today I will remain childlike with my childhood friends and have a childlike state of mind. I will embrace that which is simple. I will find joy in the basics. I will breathe new life into my past and enjoy the now and know that the future will unfold with blessings."

For those who aren't familiar, here's the list of ALL clearing MP3s available. Find a topic that addresses your issue(s) & click on the link to read more. We had a lot of help downloading and channeling these over the years & they keep getting better.

Abundance Abuse Addiction Body Scan: Head to Toe Daily GPS Reset Dark Energies/Fears Decision Making Diet & Exercise Education & Learning Family & Relatives The Gold Coin Healing Physical Body Healing Mental Stress Holiday Stress

Increasing Intuition IRS & Tax Time Love & Romance Money Mindset Moving Forward Pain Relief Pet Healing Sales & Success Sex Sleep Traveling w/Ease Work & Career Weight Loss

TGIFunny

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Jimmy Mack 727.678.0557​ EST | Appointments Skype: Jimmy.Mack55 Clearwater Florida USA Book a 15 minute session Book a 30 minute session Book a 60 minute session ​ ​​Transformational Healing of Body, Mind​ & Spirit, People, Places, Pets & Situations!​ ​ Download the My Liquid Fish® Starter Kit (*Updated May 2019) Audio MP3 Downloads​ and books​ to improve your life! Get Certified in ​My Liquid Fish® Change Made Simple® Watch Free Videos on YouTube Weekly Radio Show Archives Shop for ​Supplements ​ http://www.jimmymackhealingshop.com www.jimmymackhealing.com Copyright ©1998-2019 All Rights Reserved  

-------------------------------------------------- TGIW newsletter managed by: Sandy Bidinger Digital Marketing Specialist at SMBeConnected Solutions www.smbeconnected.com  

Stay connected!

  Our mailing address is: Clearwater Florida 33756 USA

[iphonefmtransmitter]

Best FM Transmitter For Your Older Car Radio

The Best FM Transmitter for Your Older Car Radio

Sick of Static Noises? Are you looking for the best fm transmitter for your pre-bluetooth car? Tired of that humming noises from your janky car radio transmitter or those irritating wire from your crappy tape adapter?

Most pre-2010 car came with premium sound and integrated infotainment system, but no Bluetooth nor Aux Input. It makes it impossible to connect new headphone-less iOS and Android phones to these factory sound system.

The Gizmo Guy Gadget is the best FM transmitter for older car - a wireless solution to connect new phones to older car factory radio without the trouble and expense of a new Bluetooth compatible head unit.

This Best FM Transmitter features:

Crystal Clear with No Interference, even in densely populated Metropolitan Areas.

Plug and Play! No Installation! Connects easily without Bluetooth.

Safe to Use - Allows you to keep your eyes on the road while you listen to your podcasts, music, Siri - turn by turn directions or receive phone calls

Small and Discreet with a rechargeable battery. It will NOT spoil the integrity and aesthetics of your car’s design. No silly goose neck or mushroom thingy awkward positioned to “poke” your passenger.

Works Everywhere! Use it with your home stereo too!

Bluetooth technology was NOT an option until 2010. Most late model luxury cars 1999 to 2009 came with a premium sound system with integrated infotainment system, climate controls and digital display, but no auxiliary input. 

It is not possible to connect a new smartphone to these factory sound systems without a dealer add-on kit with an expensive professional installation. For DIYers, you may risk the danger of messing up the electrical system and disabling convenient options such as GPS, climate control display and steering wheel remote controls.

There are hundreds of different FM transmitters available on Ebay and Amazon. Popular brands - like Scosche BTFreq, VicTsing, SoundBot, GOGroove, LDesign, and IMDEN Bluetooth FM transmitters. Each of these come with a mix of positive and negative reviews and recommendations. Despite all the testimonials you might see - most of them DO NOT WORK!

Most wireless transmitters failed to work because most have a weak radio emission regulated by the FCC that gets filtered and interfered by the premium noise filter system.

I discovered this problem when I tried to connect my new iPhone to the older Mercedes Benz I inherited from my Dad. I didn't want to get a new head unit and spoil the aesthetics of the car. The old Benz had no aux connection and the only option was thru the tape player adapter which came with a long irritating wire and sounded horrible!

I tried everything available on Ebay and Amazon; the prices ranged from high to low, everything from the popular Nulaxy bluetooth fm transmitter to other big name FM modulators. Nothing worked to my satisfaction! The consistent problem was the persistence of the static noises. While some were less than others, they all had noticeable static and was unbearable for any kind of acoustic or bass sound.

I tried to mask the static noise by cranking up the volume, but that was not an acceptable solution when you switched from the transmitter back to the car radio. The radio would be so loud, it often scared me and could also damage the car system and speakers!

Through extensive research, I found the problem is NOT the strength of the radio signal. Boosting the radio strength would only result in more static and distorted sound.

Frustrated and without options; I decided to make my own Gizmo Guy Gadget as the best FM Transmitter designed specifically for today’s application with iOS and Android smartphones.

I discovered the cause of the static and humming noise problem is with the insulation of the electronic oscillator and its power source. By insulating the power source and isolating the oscillator of the transmitter, I can achieve better and near CD (compact disc) sound without compromising the quality. This allows my Gizmo Guy Gadget to tune in and connect your smartphone just like you would with Bluetooth technology. It allows you to use it as a wireless broadcaster for a media player, satellite radio, or other device in your car as a Bluetooth Alternative.

Check out How to Use the Best Fm Transmitter for Older Car Radio by Gizmo Guy Gadget on Snapguide.

Simply plug my Gizmo Guy Gadget into your smartphone (or dongle for the newer headphone-less iOS or Google Pixel 3 phones). Set your car radio - you can choose from one of the three fixed frequency 87.9 FM / 94.9 FM/ 102.7 FM. Identify the cleanest channel frequency for your local area and set it on your car's stereo. That is it!

Imagine yourself as Michael Knight behind the wheel of the “Knight Rider”! Instead of Kitt, it will be “Siri“ as your co-pilot or personal assistant who you can ask about the weather, have her read an audiobook from audible or your favorite podcast to you. You will get to stream music like Pandora, iHeartRadio or Spotify; also you will be able to talk hands-free and hear all your conversations loud and clear from your car speakers. You will also be able to use the GPS / Google Map / Waze to get turn by turn instruction thru your older car radio.

Conclusion:

Replacing the factory stereo on 1999 - 2009 model year vehicles may be more trouble than it is worth, as they are usually tied to different optioned features such as OnStar, Climate Control and Steering wheel controls to name a few.

Aftermarket stereos are an for invitation to vandalism. The Gizmo Guy Gadget is a non-invasive, inexpensive solution made for pre-Bluetooth era luxury vehicles. It will allow you to keep your cars’ aesthetics and give your sound system a new life. You can play iTune Music, Pandora, Podcast and make hands-free calls using your car’s speaker system. It works with any iOS and Android phones with no Bluetooth. This wireless radio transmitter is an unique gadget that brings modern day technology from your smartphone thru your car stock radio without Aux input.

The Gizmo Guy Gadget has been proven to be the best FM transmitter for sound quality at any price level with hundreds of amazing reviews by happy customers. (see reviews)

This gadget is ideal if your car was made after 2000 and has an infotainment system integrated with climate control and warning lights. Use

The Gizmo Guy Gadget in your luxury car! It’s perfect for cars like Audi, BMW, Cadillac, Corvette, Ferrari, Jeep, Jaguar, Lexus, Mini, Mercedes-Benz and VW.

I am so confident that you will be impressed with this FM transmitter that I am offering a 60 days money back guarantee.

Don’t put up with your local radio anymore! Make your commute more pleasant with your own music, podcast, or audiobooks. Get yours now!

Customer Reviews:

“Travelled 5000 kms and used the FM transmitter for the 1st time. It was an awesome experience with listening to my driving music. My teenage daughter is saving to buy one.” by Roy

“Thank You Gizmo Guy Westley. Thank you for the troubleshooting. Now everything is working love it. I can listen to my music from my iPhone. Highly recommended no static at all”. by Gloria Rabino Bosaz.  

“ I have a 2004 BMW with No Bluetooth or auxiliary port. I have tried other transmitters and they were horrible. This transmitter works perfectly. It is well worth the money” by Keith Blazek

“This product works great in my 2007 BMW 328xi. I’m actually amazed how well it works. With the progression of the iPhone’s they became too advanced for my car and I couldn’t listen to my music in my car. Thankfully due to this product I can now. Love it!” by Ed Fox

“I live in Atlanta metro and started using this transmitter in May and honestly it’s the best sounding FM transmitter I have ever heard and it is way better than the one that came with my expensive 2013 XM Satellite Kit that I am using for my BMW....” by Mallie Eric Preston

“....for my 2004 BMW I couldn’t be more happy crystal clear and easy my whole family wants one. Good product!... Nice job” by Anthony Gagliardi

“I have a 2008 Corvette Z06...I can finally jam out in my vet and it only cost $90.” 

“I have a 2003 Range Rover and my radio and disc player would not work, so I purchased your Gizmo and it works like a charm, with my iPhone 7..... Thank You!!!” by John Turbbull 

from iPhone FM Transmitter: Latest News http://www.iphonefmtransmitter.com/blog/best-fm-transmitter-for-your-older-car-radio/

[servaxo]

The 10 best trade show giveaways according to exhibit insiders

When exhibiting at a trade show, there’s no better way to draw visitors to your booth than with the best trade show giveaways. Effective promotional products attract attendees, while leaving a memorable impression long after the event.

Trade show guests are there to meet you and learn more about your products or services. In fact,  92 percent of people who attend trade shows are looking to see new products. The right promotional item can ensure you catch the eye of every guest. And, trade show promotional products can increase the response rate from new contacts by 17 percent!

  What makes a popular trade show giveaway?

When deciding on the best trade show giveaway for your next expo, there are a few important things to consider. First, make sure the promotional item represents your brand. In addition to featuring your logo, have it tie into your products or services so it reminds recipients of your business at a glance. If your trade show booth has a specific marketing message, choose an item that aligns with it.

Second, choose trade show items that recipients can use right away (like during the show itself) and in the future. Bonus points if you find a product with a fun or unique twist!

  The top 10 most popular trade show giveaways

With those tips in mind, here are our insider picks for the top 10 best trade show giveaways.

  1. Lip balm

This quality, personal item is useful to everyone, especially in dry conference centers. Plus, it positions your brand as one that cares about their customers’ comfort. The Aloe UP® Lip Balm features an aloe vera base and SPF 15 protection.

  2. Tote bags

Promotional tote bags are a popular trade show giveaway because they can be used during the event and long after. At the trade show, they can be used to hold materials, swag and other items. After the show, bags continue to make impressions. Bags have more impressions than any other promotional item—about 5,700!

  Built for durability, the Celebration Shopping Tote Bag easily holds all their trade show goodies.

  3. Keychain tool

With this top trade show giveaway, recipients will see your brand every time they look at their keys. Plus, it’s budget friendly! For a multi-purpose keychain, choose the Tool Around Key Light, which features a tape measure, LED light and screwdriver.

  4. Power banks

Attendees can power up at the trade show after receiving a power bank with your brand on it. Talk about useful! Plus, it’s easy to throw in a bag or purse. The Cobble Carabiner Power Bank comes with a convenient clip to hook anywhere.

  5. Calendars

Send a message every day for the next year with a promotional calendar.

You could mark each month with a small note to remind them of your brand. The practical Monthly Planner makes it easy to keep all of the important dates organized.

  6. Water bottles

With all the time spent walking around the trade show floor, attendees are sure to get thirsty. That’s why water bottles are a popular trade show giveaway. Ask an exhibit hall manager if they can fill them with ice and water for immediate use by those who grab them. The unique shape of the Curve Bottle with Flip Straw Lid makes it a fan favorite.

  7. Phone grips

Grips are one of the most popular smartphone accessories today.

These top trade show giveaways will go right from your booth to the back of recipients’ phones. The Smartphone Grip Flipper makes it easy to text, take pictures and watch videos. Plus, people will be reminded of your brand every time they use their phone.

  8. Bluetooth® speaker

Not just for fun, speakers can make it easier to take work calls hands-free. If a recipient is traveling for a tradeshow, they’ll appreciate the speaker for taking long calls at a hotel room or listening to their favorite music or podcast. With more than two hours of play time with each charge, the Jupiter Bluetooth Speaker makes the perfect giveaway.

  9. First aid kit

More than 80 percent of those who own a branded safety item can remember the advertiser who gave it to them, making First aid kits a practical and memorable tradeshow giveaway. The Compact First Aid Kit comes with bandages, an adhesive pad, antiseptic towelettes, aspirin and a first aid guide.

  10. Puzzle

Although on the surface puzzles don’t scream practicality, one that can be kept on a desk is a great tool to have at work. Taking a short break from the computer screen can help with eye strain and focus. Plus, these unique items are sure to stand out at a trade show. Both a puzzle and a wind-up toy, the Puzzle Robot is a fun display piece and a good conversation starter.

  Give a promotional item they won’t soon forget

Make a memorable impression—and possibly a new customer—by finding the perfect promotional product to make your brand stand out. With every one of these 10 best trade show giveaways, recipients will be reminded of your first encounter.

The post The 10 best trade show giveaways according to exhibit insiders appeared first on 4imprint Learning Center.

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