#mankin: humor

[koushirouizumi]

This is legit Mankin canon

Yoh: The stars are beautiful tonight Manta: WOW, you're right... ---wHO ARE YOU?!! Yoh, next to Manta, after literally stepping in and saving Manta's life: The stars are REALLY Beautiful tonight Manta, beaming: WOW, you're right!!! Manta, much later on, once Manta FINALLY Realizes what Yoh was maybe alluding to: yOH-KUN PLEASE---

[vonlipvig]

List of Youtubers You Should Check Out

General Info/Interesting Topics

Half As Interesting & Wendover Productions: Both channels are made by the same person, but where Wendover Production offers more lenghty and serious videos talking about topics such as logistics, economics, and planes, HAI gives you funnier, bite-sized 5min videos on a wilder variety of topics, covering all types of oddities and fun facts. Different styles, but both incredibly interesting and well-made. Loves planes.

RealLifeLore: Similar to HAI/Wendover, videos generally go between 6min to 12min. Lots of interesting and diverse topics with a fun tone. Geography videos and hypothetical questions galore. Super well-made, too. Loves Toyota Corollas.

Polymatter: Similar to Wendover and RLL. Videos are serious and educational, covering a big range of topics as well, including currencies, economics, the entertainment industry, etc. Some of the prettiest and smoothest animations ever.

Scary/Mysteries

Bedtime Stories: A channel producing 20-30 minute videos about a diverse array of mysteries: cryptids, aliens, disappearances, true crime, you name it. Each video features original black and white artwork to go with the narration, and the atmosphere it manages to create is impeccable. Very well-researched, and very mindful and respectful of the victims it talks about. Highly reccommended.

Nexpo: Youtuber that specializes in investigative videos about a variety of mysteries, both from the internet and from real life. He’s covered anything from video game mysteries, to reddit enigmas, to ARGs, to real life dissapearances and unsettling occurences. He has a series called “Disturbing Things From Around The Internet”, which is absolutely chilling. Super engaging and terrifying. As we say, everybody gangsta until Nexpo says “Let’s take a look...”.

Barely Sociable: Similar to Nexpo, he puts out long, documentary-style videos about internet and real life mysteries. He’s dived into varios videos about the dark web and the silk road, and is currently doing a multiple-part series about the mystery regarding the identity of the creator of Bitcoin. Really cool videos.

LEMMiNO: King of quality over quantity. He might not upload much, but when he does it’s an absolute delight. He makes 20-30min long documentary-style videos about diverse topics, mostly centering on mysteries and other curious occurrences, such as the Battle of Los Angeles, The Mandela Effect, or the Dyatlov Pass Incident. INCREDIBLY high-quality video, you really feel like watching a TV documentary.

Gaming

Achievement Hunter: A group of people who play games and are kinda terrible at them most of the time, and who are part of Rooster Teeth, the guys who make shows like RWBY and RvB. Not only do they play video games (such as Minecraft, GTA, GMod, and countless more), they also play board games, and have a variety of other live action shows you can enjoy. If you decide to get into them, it’s a one way trip, but what a trip it is!

Press Buttons and Talk: The gaming channel of Alex Mankin and SungWon Cho (yes, ProZD!). They upload every day, and have played a wild variety of games, so I’m sure there-s something for everyone. Their Ace Attorney playthroughs are perfection, as they voice all the characters and give birth to countless hilarious inside jokes along the way.

Music Industry/Celebs Analysis

Pop Dissected & GossipBoy: Different channels, but they’re fairly similar in topics and format, with their own particular charms each. Short-ish videos analysing current pop artists, why their music flopped, how a special era might have defined them, etc. Very interesting and well-researched.

Music Review/Music Reactions

ToddInTheShadows: I mean, if you like music review videos, you probably know Todd. Enigmatic, shadowy pianoman who reviews music and makes a lot of...unsuccessful predictions (we love you Toddstradamus). Has segments on one hit wonders, on bad records, on new songs, all that you could need. Plus he’s really funny. Who doesn’t love TitS?

Mr. 96: Music reviewer, whose opinions I generally agree with. He’s really funny and makes super enjoyable videos. Plus he likes kpop, if that’s your thing as well! Super enjoyable videos, don’t tell Mr. 69 I said that...

Diamond Axe Studios Music: Another music reviewer, with the BEST filming set of all of Youtube. He makes videos ranking Billboard chart top songs for each season, so if you like Opinions, then you’re gonna have a fun time. Really funny guy as well.

Nina Schofield: Music reviewer, she’s a singer, songwriter, musician, vocal coach and the nicest, cutest angel you’ve ever SEEN. Her reviews are one of the coolest and most professional, as she tends to focus on the instrumentals and the construction of the song, which is super interesting. She’s really talented as well, so please check her out!

AJayll: I’ve you’ve searched for ANY reaction vid you’ve seen AJ. She’s SO funny, her reactions are super engaging and absolutely hilarious, and it’s super infectious to watch her having a good time. Please watch her yell at Selena Gomez (”SALINAAA!!!) and call Dua Lipa “Zua Lapeeps”, it’s hysterical.

Reacts By Ash: She’s the Honorary Straight, y’all. Ash’s reactions are so fun and cute, she is just a MOOD. Her edition is absolutely hilarious and it definitely adds to the whole experience. Please don’t miss out.

Thethirdbill: The sweetest guy you’ll ever see! He does a series called Trying To Stan, in which he reacts to a lot of an artist’s work, trying to discover why people love them (and loving them in the process). He’s super open minded and sensitive, and it’s a delight watching him discover wonderful artists.

Movies / Animated Media / etc.

Schaffrillas Productions: This guy is just so funny. So freaking funny. He mostly makes videos ranting about animated movies, like why Shrek the Third Sucks, or why Megamind is an underrated Masterpiece, you get it. Also expect videos about musical songs, or disney songs, cause he’s a theater nerd, and I love it. ADORES TAMATOA, SOMEHOW. Also, makes YT Poops, so there’s a bit of that humor if it’s your thing.

24 Frames of Nick: He makes videos about movies, and those videos end up being hilarious. Lots of videos about movies that you probably forgot existed, about movies that are absolutely terrible, and he also made a nighmare-inducing video about the world of Thomas the Tank Engine. If you need cheering up, check him out.

Funny

NakeyJakey: I can’t explain NakeyJakey. Open a new tab and go watch one of his vids right now. He’s the funniest motherfucker ever. That’s all I can say.

[spaceorphan18]

Sleeping Beauty

This movie is a goddamn masterpiece and there’s really nothing more to say about it.  The End. 

Look - if you want to shout and scream about fairy tales, and say that Aurora is the worst princess (you’re wrong), and how this is an insult to all women everywhere (still disagree) then fine.  I won’t stop you.  But you also won’t stop me from unabashedly loving this film.  

This is my favorite Disney movie (tied with Beauty and the Beast), and I really don’t want anything more than it has to offer.  So, while, yes, like all Disney films, it has its faults, but I think it’s a sometimes forgotten little gem of the early Disney world. 

Things to Love in Sleeping Beauty: 

The animation, different from any other film they’ve ever done, is based on medieval art, and gorgeous in every shot.  

The music is based on Tschaikowsky’s ballet, and while definitely not an Alan Mankin musical, it’s lush and gorgeous as the art work.  

Aurora and Prince Phillip get to have a conversation before they get married, and would prefer to marry for love instead of being forced into the roles they’re supposed to be in. 

Speaking of Aurora, while no, she doesn’t have much to do in the film, but she’s not thrilled about having to give up the life she has for all the riches in the world that she’s told she’s born into.  While, no, the film doesn’t go into it - it does at least bring up the conversation about how women’s choices are often taken from them.  

Also - the fact that Prince Philip gets some character development, and way more to do than the princes in Cinderella and Snow White. 

The three fairies are a goddamn delight, and this movie is really about them vs Maleficent.  They’re kinda terrible at their jobs, but at the same time, we’re all human.  Also, Merriweather is a ballbuster if there ever was one. She’d fight the dragon herself if she could. 

Also. Dragons! 

Maleficent is an amazing villain.  [And I just refuse to acknowledge the film with Angelia Jolie.  Sometimes villains are just evil. :P]

I kinda enjoyed Maleficent’s tortured since of humor.  Gonna keep the prince in a jail cell his entire life, and then I’ll let her go for the girl... to be ironic.  

Though, I question her not checking in with her minions for 16 years... 

The fact that the two kings get trashed and try to fight each other with fish. 

FWIW, I prefer the dress being blue. 

Final Thoughts: This is my favorite, and you can take it from me.  

[newstfionline]

Four Ways to Be More Effective in Meetings

By Tim Herrera, NY Times, March 6, 2017

Meetings!

Those endless blocks of time during the workday in which we are given tacit approval to zone out but that we cannot skip.

One study estimated that American companies hold 11 million meetings daily. Another said the unproductive ones cost the country about $37 billion yearly.

So why do we bother? Well, the problem is not the meetings; we know collaboration is an overall benefit for the workplace. The real issue is how organizations, and individuals, approach them.

“An excess of meetings is a symptom; it’s not a problem in and of itself,” said Michael Mankins, an author of “Time, Talent, Energy: Overcome Organizational Drag and Unleash Your Team’s Productive Power” and a partner at Bain & Company.

That problem, Mr. Mankins said, is “either a culture that rewards collaboration for collaboration’s sake, or more commonly, an organizational structure that basically necessitates more people being involved in critical activities than should be required.”

Justin Rosenstein, who worked at Google and Facebook and was a co-founder of Asana, a productivity management tool, said even those vaunted tech icons of productivity fall into the trap.

“It was really sad the amount of time we spent not doing work, but doing work about work,” he said. “Even if a 30-minute meeting seems innocuous, context-switching is so hard, and it’s hard to get back into the rhythm of things.”

Doing away with meetings altogether would be counterproductive, so the trick is to get more out of the meetings you attend.

Here’s how to do it.

Learn the Art of the Pre-Meeting. After accepting a meeting invitation, the first thing you should always do is ask for an agenda well in advance.

Your best tool for doing well in meetings is relentless preparation, and studying the agenda will help you plot the moments for your contributions, said Jill Flynn, founding partner at Flynn Heath Holt Leadership, a consulting firm focused on training female leaders.

“Think of a couple of ways you hope to add value or your point of view ahead of time,” she said. “Meetings don’t always go the way you anticipate, but it definitely helps to be mentally prepared.”

When you are bringing a new idea, try to build support for it in casual chats before the meeting begins. If you face resistance, you will already have someone in your corner to back you up.

“Everybody knows, although women often do not, that the real meetings happen before the meeting,” Ms. Flynn said. “You need to have conversations with the key players before you ever get in the room.”

The first few minutes of a meeting are paramount, too.

“You want to get your voice in the room as early as you can,” Ms. Flynn said. “A lot of times people wait and think, ‘Oh, I have to wait because I have to have something really, really insightful to say.’”

But the direction of a meeting, including who will be contributing, is often decided in the first few minutes of a meeting, so it is important to participate early, she said.

Beware of the ‘Tyranny of the Most Verbose.’ If you must be in a meeting and you have done your homework, you can still end up being sidelined by what one former chief executive coach calls the “tyranny of the most verbose”: a meeting’s agenda being dictated by those who speak most forcefully, and often those who speak first.

“By not speaking up, you’re withholding something valuable from the team,” said Kim Scott, the chief executive of Candor and the author of “Radical Candor.”

“Silence is not an act of generosity when you have a great idea,” she said.

For timid or more junior employees--or those marginalized by a workplace’s culture--speaking up can be at best nerve-racking and at worst a terrifying experience. But expressing confidence through body language and word choice can make it easier to jump in.

To appear more engaged, sit toward the front of your seat and do not lean back, Ms. Flynn said. Think about ditching the laptop; sometimes it can set up a barrier between you and everyone else.

When the moment comes to speak up, try to use “muscular language.”

“If you’re the junior member, or the only person of color, or the only woman, our tendency is to be way too deferential and use a lot of qualifiers,” she said. “Get to the point, be factual, persuasive, use a sense of humor if you’re good at that. But be factual and clear and don’t use deferential language and filler words.”

Embrace the Uncomfortable. Pointing out obvious but uncomfortable truths is never easy, but it is nearly impossible in a setting with your peers and colleagues. But that is all the more reason to go for it.

“People bumping up against each other is what helps us not just improve our work product but also ourselves as human beings,” Ms. Scott said, noting the often-cited “obligation to dissent” at McKinsey & Company, the renowned management consulting firm.

The benefits here often far outweigh the risks, even if your workplace has not embraced dissent as a necessary tool for improvement. If something does not feel right to you, odds are it is not just you.

“I’ve seen meetings where I know that everyone in the room is thinking something, but no one feels comfortable saying it,” Mr. Rosenstein said. “We want to hear people say things like ‘I don’t know exactly why yet, but I have a weird feeling about this idea.’”

That will not win any debates, but sometimes acknowledging an elephant in the room can be all that is needed.

Be Selective About Which Meetings You Attend. With such a premium placed on group efforts, many organizations have reached one of two points, or both: A culture in which meeting invitations are seen as a sign of one’s prestige and importance, and collaboration happening for the sake of collaborating, a.k.a. collaboration overload.

“It’s become sort of a part of corporate culture that if you’re not invited to a meeting, it must be that you’re not important,” Mr. Mankins said. “That reinforces the behavior of wanting to be invited even if you play no role.”

The first step to recovery is, obviously, going to fewer meetings. That is easy for managers, but what about their employees?

The most tactful technique, experts said, is to acknowledge the invitation and express your appreciation, then politely explain that you are unclear about how your presence will add anything and suggest that you skip it. Frame your absence as an opportunity for others to add more to the meeting.

Another, more radical, choice: Designate one day of the week in which you won’t attend a single meeting. If you’re lucky enough to be in a position where you can decline meetings en masse, give it a shot. Even just one interruption-free day of the week can do wonders for your productivity.

[zanegreytours]

Time Out! 5 Ways to De-Stress Before the Wedding

By Paula Clark Ramirez with Historic Mankin Mansion

Planning a wedding ranks highly on any list of life’s most intense experiences. Managing details, relieving family tensions, worrying about a budget – not to mention the enormity of launching a new life with a loved one! It’s easy to end up completely stressed.

The constant pressure of wedding planning isn’t just inconvenient or uncomfortable, it can have negative consequences on your health, overall effectiveness, and even on your relationship. De-stressing is a matter of wedding survival! Luckily, there are many great ways to relax before a wedding!

Go Back to Nature Leave behind the cell phones and devices, and plan an outdoor weekend. Try hiking a scenic trail or spending the day kayaking or paddle boarding on a local river. Time communing with the outdoors offers quiet reflection, a chance to observe the beauty around us, and endorphin-releasing exercise for a healthier feeling inside and out.

Find a Festival Richmond is world-famous for its many arts, food, and music festivals. While it’s easy to feel like there isn’t the time when all of the wedding details are weighing heavily on your mind, it only takes a few hours of distraction to “reset” your attitude and allow you to let off some steam.

Plan a Night Out When was the last time you got together with the girls for dinner at your favorite restaurant, or gathered the guys at a local sports bar or pub and just relaxed? It’s common for couples to go weeks, even months without checking in with friends outside of the wedding party. A night out could be just the break you need to start planning afresh in the morning.

Do a Good Deed One of the best ways to restore personal balance and feel closer to others is to perform some kind of service together. Help a local school revive its gardens in the spring, participate in a local river clean up, or offer to prepare meals for an underserved population at your house of worship. Maybe commit acts of random kindness – buy a stranger’s coffee, finish paying someone’s layaway account, or help an elderly lady cross the street. Giving to others has a unique way of healing one’s soul – and putting stress into a perspective that makes it feel manageable again.

Take a Weekend Escape When stress hits an all-time high, it may be time for a weekend escape. A ski weekend, spa trip, or short cruise to nowhere is enough time for an escape, usually without breaking the bank. Head to the beach for some romantic walks on the shore, or check into a historic Bed and Breakfast for personal service, gourmet breakfasts, and local access to all of the best that a region has to offer.

More important than how you find peace is accepting that wedding planning and stress go hand-in-hand. De-stressing helps restore humor and unity and allows you to enjoy what’s most important…a joyous wedding day!

Paula and Martin Ramirez are the Proprietors of Historic Mankin Mansion Wedding Resort and Bed & Breakfast. They have lovingly restored this National Landmark to its original grandeur and are honored to share this treasured estate with couples and their families.

The post Time Out! 5 Ways to De-Stress Before the Wedding appeared first on Richmond Weddings.