#on the topic of berlin…i took two of these photos when i was there last winter. anyone wanna guess which one? | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

09yards · 5 years ago

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Don’t Call Me Angel / NCT secret agent au | read on ao3 here

pairings: Kun x Ten, Johnny x Taeyong, Doyoung x Jaehyun, Mark x Donghyuck, Lucas x Renjun and small Hendery x Yangyang

note: I changed the pairings from the original ones slightly and apologies for that but I think the story will work a lot better now. Anyways, enjoy (:

“I do not need some six-foot, macho-man, babysitter, Kun. I think I’ve made it perfectly clear I can take care of myself and we both know I work better alone.”

“Ten, when I came over last night I found you crying on the sofa with an almost empty bottle of expensive white wine over Grey’s Anatomy. You cannot take care of yourself.”

“Derek died Kun, gone , dead , never coming back! He left Meredith alone, and she’s pregnant! Think of the babies! Anyone with a heart would find that upsetting.”

“Well, it’s a good thing I don’t have a heart then,” Kun tisked, “And seriously, what is your obsession with babies? Can you move on from that soon—you keep mentioning them around Taeyong and he keeps whining about how cute they are too. Babies are weird, squishy things, they are not cute . They cry and scream and you can’t just leave them to their own devices. It’s so irritating .”

“Jesus, you’re such a bitch. You’re my best friend and I love you but god Kun, you can be so mean . But we’re getting off topic—I don’t need a damn bodyguard!”

“He’s not some bodyguard or babysitter Ten, he’s going to be your partner —your equal, if you will.” Kun stood up from his seat and walked around his desk to lean against it, gaze firm and business face on. “The two of you will be working together . He happens to be extremely skilled in the combat side of things and yes, he is much taller than you and appearance-wise he seems more fitting to the role. And his looks match your work a little more than yours do. He’s ex-military, his file says a Navy SEAL if I recall correctly. He will make sure you stay out of trouble while you charm and flirt your way through missions. He will allow me to guarantee—or at least somewhat reassure—your safety.”

“I sincerely apologise that I’m disrupting your usual conduct Ten, but I won’t apologise for wanting to make sure you’re safe. After what happened with Sicheng, neither me nor Taeyong are willing to take any risks when it comes to the safety of our agents. Even Doyoung is being assigned a partner for his field work. Taeyong is letting him know later, and so I give it—” Kun paused to give a quick glance to his watch and then the clock ticking against the wall. “—about forty minutes until the coffee table in the reception is smashed into several hundred thousand pieces, again . Remind me to ask Jungwoo to order a new one when we’re finished.”

Ten let out a soft chuckle, “I’m sorry too, by the way.” Ten took a deep breath, his voice was much quieter than normal, almost as if he was embarrassed. “I get where you’re coming from, I’m just not used to working with any other people aside from Doyoungie or Hendery in my ear, let alone working with anyone in the flesh. The only person I ever had as a partner was you, way back when we were still rookies.” Kun flashed him a small smile in return, an acknowledgement of some sorts of their rookie days. The days before Kun left.

“It’s going to be an adjustment, but I think it’s a good thing. Frankly, even though you probably won’t see it at first, you and Youngho will get along great. He’s coming from a placement in Berlin. He was originally part of the European branch actually, and he’s also bringing three other agents with him—Jung Yoonoh, Lee Donghyuck and Liu Yangyang. I’m not sure what code names they’re being assigned as of yet. Youngho is fluent in both Korean and English, and apparently his Mandarin isn’t terrible so you can pick what you like but keep in mind who your in-ear is. Don’t speak in a language they don't understand. That will remain the rule.”

“You mean if my in-ear is, for some reason, not Hendery or even Mark. You do know that there’s been only one case out of the four hundred and ninety-six missions I’ve worked where my in-ear hasn’t been one of them? And while we’re on that, please never assign Jeno to me again—he was awful but , in all fairness, I think he was just scared of telling me what to do.” Kun rolled his eyes at the fact Ten has memorised his exact number of missions and watches as Ten had visibly relaxed once again, kicking his feet up onto the arm of the sofa he was lounging on. His eyes widened as he tried to remember the information Kun had told him. “Wait, European? Kun did you finally find me the hot British agent of my dreams? I’m ready for my romancing. Okay, that’s a lie, but who knows.” He shrugged.

“No. I don’t know the logistics of how he ended up in Europe but he’s American, from Chicago—the place that, according to him and a quick google search, has really good pizza and is always windy. I wasn’t really interested in his life story, I was more interested in his stats on his transfer application. If it’s any consolation, Irene and Seulgi swear by him—gave him glowing references from their time in Paris and said he’s easy on the eyes, whatever that means.”

“Ah, Kun dearest ,” his voice dripping with sarcasm at the added endearment, “How would you rate his attractiveness?”

“I don’t know, Ten, I don’t pay attention to these things. Besides, I’ve yet to meet him in the flesh. I’ve only seen the pictures from his profile that were provided.”

“Bullshit! Just because you’re all work-focussed and don’t spend time on tinder doesn’t mean you can’t objectively determine if someone is attractive or not. What do our years of friendship get me if you can’t even tell me whether or not he’s ‘future partner with mutually beneficial relations material?’”

The apples of Kun’s cheeks turned rosy at that, a light blush washing over him as he visibly stiffened slightly. Ten always found it amusing that even with their years of friendship and his own distinct lack of a filter, when it came to most discussions—particularly his nonchalant approach to sex and the attractiveness of someone—Kun would flush instantly like you’d just caught him with his pants down. Unfortunately, Ten knew exactly how Kun reacted to being seen with his pants down, a price that comes with having been friends for many years and Ten’s old habit of showing up at Kun’s apartment unannounced. It’s safe to say Ten avoided him for several weeks after the incident, and now he always makes sure to knock or text.

“He—” Kun faltered, “—I guess, objectively speaking of course, I might agree that he’s attractive. Although he seems like a romantic so don’t get your hopes up. God , I need a drink before I talk about this with you and the tantrum Doyoung is going to throw—oh dear.”

“No worries, I can help you with that!” Ten jumped up from his seat, walking over to the large bookshelf filling the length of one of the walls of Kun’s office. He rummaged behind several boxes of files before yelling, “Found it!” and returning with a bottle of soju. Kun doesn’t want to know how or when it ended up in his office, but Ten seems to have gained psychic abilities because he counters that, “It’s a need-to-know basis and you don’t need to know. But you never know when you might need a bottle. It’s handy to keep one around.”

“Have you got glasses hidden somewhere too?”

“’Fraid not. We do, however, have mugs so that’ll do. Shot glasses are a pain anyway. You have to keep refilling them and with a mug you don’t.” Ten promptly poured the soju, filling the two mugs and whispering “It’s our little secret,” before sitting down once again (with his feet up on the arm rest again, Kun couldn’t help sneer a little—he was a fan of the no shoes on the furniture policy, but Ten doesn’t agree to it at home, so why would Kun expect him to at the office?).

“Stop glaring at me, Kun. I’m not putting my feet down. Now , finish what you were saying about my partner .”

“I really don’t know much else about him,” Kun sighed, “he requested that two of the other agents also received a transfer and the third was given a non-negotiable transfer. He got into some trouble while in Berlin so they had to pull him immediately, but even I wasn’t given the details. I do know that he speaks Mandarin, so you can have someone else to practice with when you feel like, and I’m sure Xiaojun will be roping him into the Chinese-only nights in no time.”

“Kun, you’re supposed to be the source of all information. How do you know so little? Oh quit it, I know you only know what the profile tells you blah blah blah.”

“You can tease Doyoung about this partner, if that makes you feel any better. I don’t know much about him either but he’s another ex-military poster boy, Yoonoh could pass as a high-end model too. According to Seulgi they call him ‘everyone’s first love’. He has dimples that are apparently ‘ to die for ’ and if the photos on his profile are anything to go by, he has some rather... prominent abs. Taeyong described them as washboard,” when Kun had asked him to explain, Taeyong had patted the younger’s head and told him that it was late and he was going to head home. “I practically had to wipe the drool off of his face after he spent far too long looking at the pictures attached to the profile. Who even attaches multiple shirtless pictures to their profile? We only need one for identification, not multiple for Taeyong to fawn over. Jesus , pass the bottle, would you?”

“Kun it’s not even 5 pm, I think one mug of soju is enough daytime drinking while at work, especially if the new people are arriving today.”

“Need I remind you that I’m your superior, pass the bottle so I can drown out that picture. He kept making jokes about how I never date. I was young and hot once you know? I had fun, I got around, I wasn’t old and boring like I am now.”

“Kun I do not need or want to know how your sex life has deteriorated. I lived next-door to you in college—that’s all I need to know. You’ll find someone when you’re ready. Who knows, maybe you’ve already met them.”

“Have you thought about my offer to live with me or on-base yet? I don’t like the thought of you living alone… not after everything.”

Ten raised his eyebrow at the comment. “I haven’t yet but I’ll think about it. Now , tell me about Yoonoh.”

“The only other thing I was told is that he’s supposedly quite the charmer and sweet talker, however he’s always declined any advances made towards him according to Irene. He seems to have a naturally flirtatious personality, though.”

“Ahh, brilliant! Poor Doie is going to fall in love with him so quickly, I can’t wait . I hope Yoonoh’s going to flirt with him. He isn’t going to have a clue what to do.”

“What you’re saying would sound sympathetic or supportive coming from anyone else's mouth, but from yours it just sounds downright sadistic.”

If Kun hadn’t known Ten as long as he had, the eerie smile Ten is currently adorning would’ve been alarming but alas, once you’d known someone long enough, and you’d risked death together and saved one another’s lives more than a handful of times, and a large part of your job involves killing other people, it takes a lot to creep Kun out these days.

“Hey, your forty minutes are up now and no smashed coffee table yet—“

As if someone of a higher power was listening in, the sound of glass shattering echoed through the ground floor of the building along with several screeches from whoever was milling around at the time. This wouldn’t be the last time Doyoung would throw whatever piece of furniture he could get his hands on off the balcony, launching it to the floor below and consistently nailing the coffee table in particular.

“As you were saying Ten?”

Ten pouted and mumbled, “Never mind.”

There was a sheepish knock on the door and Kun yelled a quick come in as a response.

“Sorry to bother you guys, just thought I’d let you know, Kun, but I’m putting the order for a new coffee table in now and a new office chair. Is there anything else you need?”

“No that’s all, thanks Jungwoo.”

“Wait? An office chair too?” Ten sat up a little, waiting for a response.

“Yes, Ten,” Jungwoo sighed, “That’s what Doyoung threw off the balcony—may need to bring a contractor in to fix the dent in the floor, but I think a new table will cover it enough that it doesn’t need to be done anytime soon.”

“I forgot you’ve never actually witnessed Doyoung throwing various belongings off the balcony. The money he costs me is ridiculous.”

“I’ll leave the two of you to it. I doubt it’ll be long before they make their way down. You know what Doyoung’s like.”

“No worries, thanks Jungwoo.”

Jungwoo had only just made it back to his desk where Xiaojun was waiting with a fresh cup of coffee when Doyoung flung Kun’s office door open, bypassing the now sheepish looking Jungwoo and closely followed by an exasperated looking Taeyong.

“For the last time, Taeyong, no! It’s not happening! I work alone, alone ! Do I need to spell it out for you? It’s a five-letter word, of which the meaning is to be by oneself, or shall we take the definition from the Oxford Dictionary where they define alone to be: one, without any other people or two, without the help of other people or things.” Doyoung took a second to catch his breath in between sentences, “I don’t need someone looking out for me, I look out for me. I’m the quartermaster, I head up our entire technology department.”

He jabbed a finger in Taeyong’s direction, “I’m regarded as one of the best amongst all the branches of NCT. Yes, I hacked my profile again to look. You really should get someone to make it less easy—oh wait, you can’t because I’m the only one who can because it’s my job. I am not some newbie field agent who doesn’t know how to reload a handgun in less than ten seconds. You made me go through the training just like everyone else, I can tell you that I did not engage in hand to hand combat on a daily basis with Lucas for shits and giggles. No one trains with Lucas for fun aside from Renjun but its Renjun. That kid scares me, he may be pint-sized but if Ten has taught me anything, the short ones can bite and they usually have high pain thresholds but not-so high patience and I’m not ready to die just yet. Honestly, I’m getting a tad concerned at the number of people we employ that appear very cute but just happen to be capable of snapping your neck or blowing your head off.”

“Are you done yet?” Taeyong sighed, impatiently tapping his foot against the floor. He was fully aware that Doyoung wasn’t actually angry, he wasn’t death glaring either Taeyong or Kun, and aside from the coffee table no major damage had been caused. It was typical Doyoung, whine until someone gives in.

“No. No, I am not finished. Thank you, Taeyong.”

“Oh my, please continue, Doyoung. Everyone here wants to hear your pathetic complaints.” Ten’s trademark sarcasm dripping from every word.

“Oh Ten, don’t act like you weren’t whining to Kun about this less than an hour ago.”

“At least I haven’t been bitching to Taeyong for an hour and thrown a fucking chair. You can be so dramatic Doyoungie.”

“Dramatic? Me? Have you met yourself?”

“Both of you, be quiet!” It was rare of Kun to yell at someone, to be angry with them—let alone full-fledged shouting in the confines of his office. “Taeyong, please may you check with Jungwoo on when the new agents will be here? Ten and Doyoung can join the meeting as well if they stop insisting on acting like children . Apparently, they seem to have forgotten that we may all be friends here, but while we’re at work, I am their superior and what I say is final.”

“Sorry to interrupt again Kun, but the new agents are here. Xiaojun is with them in the conference room and asked me to get you as soon as possible. He seems to find them rather intimidating.”

“Right, nevermind Taeyong and thank you Jungwoo, we’ll be right there. You and Xiaojun can feel free to head home. I’ll need just one of you to round up whoever’s still hovering and point them in the direction of the dorms—I don’t want to be interrupted when we give them the tour. Have a nice evening, and I will see you tomorrow.”

“Will do, thank you. I’ll be in for the conference with Japan first thing in the morning. See you then!” With a meek half-smile, he hurried out of the office once again. Jungwoo wasn’t a stranger to the tension of the office, so he knew very well that Kun rarely shouted, and he wasn’t for testing his patience.

“Okay then. Do you two still want to act like toddlers with your whining? Or can we all go and introduce ourselves to the new agents with the manners and respect we would expect to receive from anyone else?”

“Yes, Kun. Sorry, Kun.” They both mumbled simultaneously, standing up and straightening their clothes.

“Ready, Yong?”

“After you.”

#nct #dojae #jaedo #markhyuck #johnyong #kunten #markhyuck fic #luren #yuren #yukren #rencas #i dont know #henyang #nct fic #nct 127 #nct fanfic #nct fluff #nct au

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buckylokistark · 5 years ago

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Paintings ~ Part II

Summary: Loki fled his home, too tired of being the cause of his father’s constant disappointment. With help from Heimdall, he escapes to Midgard, the last place his father would look for him. In dire need of a job, he meets Y/N, a struggling artist trying to be recognised for her work. Can they help each other or are they holding one another back?

Masterlist

previously on Paintings: “Depends, are you Y/N?” You opened and closed your mouth a few times. Having recognised his face, you realise you were standing right in front of none other than Tony Stark, former CEO of Stark Industries and billionaire.

__________

“Uhm, huh- yes, yes I am. Pleased to meet you, sir.” You held out your hand for him to shake, trying to stop stumbling over your own words. Seriously, it’s English, what’s so hard about that?!

Tony Stark then took your hand, shaking it with a firm grip before releasing it and sitting back down. Wait, when did he get up?

“So, you’re making the new artwork?”

“Yup, that’s me, I’m the one.” God, you’re still acting like a fool. Get it together!

“So modern art is your niche?” You nodded. "And you’ll do any modern style?"

“Well, I focus on expressionism, although I am not bad when it comes to surrealism, for example Salvador Dali and his melting clocks. Kubism, abstract expressionism, acrylic, watercolour, I can do almost all expressionistic art forms with most materials.” You take on a proud tone, happy to talk art. This is where your comfort zone lies, your escape route, your go-to topic for a safe conversation.

“You’re in luck, I want something expressionistic, never been one for surrealism. You had anything in mind?” He was completely down to let you handle anything, as long as he knew what 'anything' contains.

“Not really, I need to make a painting suitable for a person but also make it suitable for their home and perhaps other occupants of the room. Would you rather we schedule a time for me to come take a look or do you want to email me some photos?” You got out your agenda, having always preffered writing things down instead of typing. It might have something to do with forgetting typed things, only remembering them when on paper.

“I think a visit would be better, right? Makes you get a feel of the room, the space, a more in-depth experience for a better result.” He was just grasping at ideas now, sipping his coffee calmly and leaning back in his chair.

“Hmm, yeah, you’re right, but some people are too busy or aren’t comfortable in letting me in their house so they email me.” It was indeed more difficult, but they weren't comfortable so you just had to work with what you had.

"Not to sound like an absolute douchebag, but my team did a background check and everything, they wouldn't let me just choose someone, they had to check them thoroughly. You're very lucky, by the way. I had to persuade them to let you do your thing. I believe you know what part made them doubt you?" You did know what he was talking about, and shame filled you to the brim.

About twelve years ago, you had an enormous fall-out with your family, resulting in them sabotaging your income by spreading awful rumours about you. Your income did decline drastically, making you nearly bankrupt. In the desperate need of money, you ended up working for Strak Industries, a company solely focused on copying and faking Stark Industrie products. From securitysystems and phones to merchandise, everything was copied. You got a job of replicating the stuffed animals as close as you could get with cheaper materials. The pay wasn't great but it got you back on your feet, ready to continue painting. Stark Industries and Strak Industries got in a huge fight, legal authorities getting involved. Because you had workes your way up to manager of the production of all the stuffed animals, you were put in a bad spot.

"yeah, sorry, I was on the brink of losing everything," you ended up saying, cursing yourself as soon as the words left your mouth. "losing everything?!" You could've said anything and you chose that?

Stark gave you a look, but thankfully didn't comment on the words.

"So, when do you want me to come by? I would prefer as soon as possible, but it's up to you." He opened his phone, looking on his agenda for a possible date. Scratching his goatee lightly, he pursed his lips before sighing and saying, "Would coming thursday work? Two days away?"

"Yes, absolutely. Any time in mind? Perhaps early morning or afternoon?"

Stark tought for a moment, excusing himself to look more thoroughly on his phone to see when he'd have time.

“How about 5 o’clock in the afternoon? would that work for you?" He tilted his head, eyes so intense it seemed as if they were looking right through you.

After finetuning the details, you finished talking and drove back to the shop, cursing yourself for taking so long.

Soon you arrived at your atelier, seeing Loki through the glass window reading a book.

You smiled to yourself. Loki was the kindest soul you've met in your life, gentle and soft like nobody else could ever be. It made you wonder if there was a possibility for something more. something intimate.

a crow, as black as the night, flew past, snapping you out of your thoughts. Your eyes followed the black bird before wandering back to the shop. Finally you moved, slowly walking towards the entrance.

the bell above the door jingled softly, letting Loki know someone entered. He looked up and smiled, slowly closing his book and moving towards you with so much grace it was impossible to look away.

“Hi Loki, I got to go, still need to finish that two window piece for Mrs. Barton and the final sketch for the mural that one woman, what’s-her-name, wanted. The blue, winter, ice-y vibe?” You rushed to the back of your shop, throwing your bags in a corner and running up the stairs to put on your older clothes, the ones that were allowed to get a bit of paint on them.

“The woman’s called Idina Menzel, the one who voices the lead character in that new movie, Frozen?” Loki has listened to you praise the trailers with such emotion, he took it up himself and researched the main characters, discovering that the woman who ordered a mural two weeks ago from your shop. The mural made more sense now, as well.

The words Loki spoke made you halt. Lead character in Frozen? She asked you, a small, unexperienced artist, to paint a mural for her? A smile began to grow on your face. Spinning around, you ran back to Loki.

“Oh my- she- she ‘s famous and bought something from me? This is huge! I will be known by a few circles of famous people now that Tony Stark and Idina Menzel ordered from me! Do you understand what this means? I can finally get recognised for my work, I can finally earn enough to buy my own place!” You barrelled full force into Loki, hugging him close. Loki himself slowly hugged back, unsure of what exactly to do.

Loki smiled. You were happier than you’ve veer been all year, even with the stress of performing good for famous people. Lost in his thoughts, Loki looked out the window. A black raven sat on the little bench across the street, looking right at him. No, he thought with a shock as his eyes grew large, not an ordinary black raven. This little bird was Diaval, loyal assistant to Maleficent, Loki’s distant relative. What is he doing here?

“Loki? Is something wrong?” His eyes flew back to yours when your words registered in his head.

“No, love, nothing’s wrong. I just realised I forgot to do something, could I be excused for a bit so I can go home and finish it?” He glanced outside, seeing Diaval still sitting there, quietly waiting. You let go of him, nodding your head.

“Of course you can, no problem. I got nothing planned for the rest of the day so the shop won’t be empty, you’re free to go.” With that, you hugged him one ast time, saying a quick goodbye before turning around and walking to your current project. One last look and wave, and Loki was out the door.

“Where is she, Diaval?” The raven flew to the right, landing in a small alley and morphing back to human.

“This way, she’s bought a new place down in Queens when she heard you were staying here.” Loki groaned. Ever since they found out about each other, Maleficent started acting as his big sister, watching all his moves like a hawk.

He followed Diaval into the alleyway, preparing for the inevitable Apparition he had to make.

“Alright, name the address, I’ll take us there,” Loki said, making his disdain clear in his voice. Diaval rattled the location, and off they were.

“Where are we?”

“The back of the diner a block away from your house, she put anti-Apparition-wards up, didn’t she?” At the last part, Diaval sheepishly nodded his head.

"Hello Loki."

"Maleficent." As was expected, Maleficent looked as stunning as the gods themselves, flaunting her body with a black. Maybe it was a family thing?

"I have come here to talk to you about important matters." As the words left Maleficent’s mouth, Loki's eyes flicked to hers. Important matters? With her resources it must be life-threatening to come to him for assistance.

"There have been... unusual sightings in Europe. It appears to be a form of magic, more powerful than I have ever seen in my entire life."

"You have any leads on the exact location?"

"It seems to be traveling. I have people running tabs on it. It started in England, then went off the radar for a while before reappearing in France, where it travelled through Belgium, into Holland. They're travelling east, getting closer to Germany as we speak."

What could there be in Germany, the northern part of it, that would be attractive to someone who possesses magic? You got the big cities, Dusseldorf, Berlin, maybe Hamburg? Or perhaps...

"Cologne. They're heading for Cologne." Maleficent looked at him weirdly.

"Why would they go to Cologne?"

"I visited this woman, truly magnificent, who took care of all mutants from Holland, Belgium and Germany. The school of Xavier was too expensive and small for mainland Europeans, so I helped set it up just outside the city," Loki admitted with a sigh. He had hoped to never see her again, one time was more than enough and he doesn’t know how she’ll react to him suddenly appearing out of nowhere after leaving her alone for eighty years.

__________

Taglist: @birdgirl90 @lunawitch19 @bird-with-pencils @shesakillerkween

#loki x reader #michelle's writings #paintings #loki

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my-world-travel · 5 years ago

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British Museum, London, England

First of several posts. I visited twice, in May with Jo and in September with Kate, and both times I took way more than 10 photos worth sharing. These are some (not all) of the top from the May visit; in September I had a different set of priorities.

1&2: If you know about one thing in the BM’s collection, it’s the Elgin Marbles (and also, you are a museum nerd). The Parthenon (Athens, Greece--post forthcoming) was covered in beautifully sculpted marble, and most of the carvings survived over two thousand years of history. But in the early 1800s, the Earl of Elgin ordered about half the remaining sculptures removed and brought to England, where they were sold to the British Government and put in the British Museum. Unfortunately for Elgin (and the BM), it’s unlikely he had Turkish permission to do this, and he certainly didn’t have Greek--now the Greeks would like them back. Archaeological rights squabbling aside (and to be clear, I absolutely think the marbles should be returned to Greece), they’re gorgeous. They’re absolutely stunning. Look at them! Despite 2500 years of wear, you can still feel the motion of the horses as they lunge forward. And the technical skill is exacting; man fighting a centaur is carved from a single piece of marble, so thin struts have to be left in place to support the limbs. Sometimes they have fallen--but sometimes they haven’t. Absolutely phenomenal.

3: From the very big to the very small. These are model clay dogs found at Nineveh (~645 BCE); they were buried to protect the property from demons, just as real mastiffs would protect the property from just about anything else. But most importantly, they were named! Loud Is His Bark, Biter Of His Foe, Don’t Think Bite!, Catcher Of The Enemy, and Expeller Of Evil. Feel free to rename as you would ;)

4. The Sutton Hoo helmet. Found in Suffolk, this helmet is one of the most iconic early English pieces--play spot the helmet with fantasy book covers, it’s a good time--despite consisting of hundreds of tiny fragments. The present reconstruction dates from the 1970s and is considered accurate. This was one part of a ship-burial dated to the early 600s of a king of East Anglia, and the helmet probably served both ceremonial and practical functions. Also, it’s gorgeous. Go ahead and look up the replications, they’re stunning.

5. This is a carving of the Royal Game of Ur on part of the palace gate of Sargon II (721–705 BCE). What makes it memorable--aside from things like “we know how to play a game first recorded 4500 years ago”--is that this is graffiti. We have game boards, and they’re gorgeous! But this was most likely carved into the lamassu statue by a bored guard looking for entertainment, and that’s delightful.

6. This, despite also being carved on the lamassu, is not graffiti, but rather a proclamation by King Sennacherib (704-681 BCE) recording, among other things, the tribute he got from King Hezekiah of Judah. It continues to absolutely rattle me every time I see an artifact that references events in the Tanakh; it reminds me of the difficulty discerning what is legend and what is history.

7. The Lewis Chessmen! I’m glad I got a picture of them in May because in September I didn’t have the time, and in between the two I was on the Isle of Lewis and biked by where the chessmen were discovered. No good historical artifact can be without its controversy; in this case, it’s over whether they are actually chess pieces and if so, how the game differed from the present. Whatever. I care that they’re gorgeous, delightful, and Scottish, and it just adds to it that they were found in a sand dune with a handful of backgammon counters and a belt buckle, and nothing else. Gotta love a good mystery.

8. First of what will be many bizarre Greek vases on this blog. This one is circa 8th century BCE and dates to the “geometric” period of Greek pottery, something I’m sure will be a relief to the ridiculously stylized horse.

9. Lion from the Ishtar Gate, which will be covered in more detail when (if?) I get to posting about Berlin, which has the majority of the gate. Artifact acquisition is a hot topic I briefly touched on above, but there are many artifacts where there is no cut and dry answer. Between the time when the Ishtar Gate was removed from Babylon and the present, the site has been damaged twice: Once when Saddam Hussein carved his name all over it (I am not joking, unfortunately) and once when the US housed tanks on it (not joking here either). It’s uncertain what damage would have come to the Gate if it had remained exposed; similarly unclear is the role of reconstructions in the modern world. What is the relevant difference between seeing the Gate and seeing a true-to-method reconstruction? Ship of Theseus writ large.

10. Last but not least, these are Assyrian lion-hunting dogs. Coincidentally (I don’t think) they look nearly identical to modern day Kangals, which are used in nearly the same area to protect sheep and goats from wild predators. I have a lot of thoughts and theories on the preservation of dog physiology through the years, but leave you with this: For 2500 years, people have been enamored with their dogs. These hunters are portrayed doing something instantly recognizable to any dog owner. Awooo!

#animals #historic dogs #artifacts #museums #london #england

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zelos-official-armrest · 6 years ago

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Seoul Limited and Forever with Babyz (Madrid)

I’m about half a year late, but I just want to share a bit of my B.A.P concert experiences both in Seoul Limited and Forever With Babyz tour in Madrid. You know, if anyone’s interested…

First of all, how did I get to Seoul? I applied for a month-long summer university program and I got a smaller tuition fee thanks to my schools being partner universities. Still, it took me about 5 years to get enough funds. I’m not going to talk much about that in here, but it was the most amazing time of my life. I do advise everyone not to ONLY go there for running after a potential Korean boyfriend tho. The culture is so much more than kpop-related fantasies.

Ok, on to the actual topic- B.A.P. While in Seoul, I did want to see the TS building with my own two eyes (so I’d know where to go to throw the tomatoes, haha). Therefore, one evening me and my fellow coursemate/ friend went to look for it, but apparently that day B.A.P and TRCNG had a practice there as it came out. When we approached the building, Zelo was chatting with someone in front of the house, but seeing us coming scared him off and he fleed to the building. I felt so sorry for him, because it must be a common occurrence for them to not get privacy even there by the way he reacted. So, I got nervous because I really wanted to have a picture in front of the building, but I didn’t want to be causing any discomfort to them. Me and my friend decided to take a picture real quick and I kinda got my two half-blurry pictures in front of the building.

Here’s potato me making TS surrender to the Matoki power:

When we stood back a bit, I saw TRCNG entering the house and we decided to leave. While we were walking away, around the corner came Himchan who was, for some reason, followed (basically cornered) by a bunch of blonde chicks (stalkers I guess?). Since I was a bit too close, for some reason I thought it would be really impolite if I didn’t say anything so I bowed and let out „annyeonghaseyo“ (It’s really weird to type it out like that). He answered me with a nod and when he had entered TS, some Korean fans who were following set themselves to wait outside the doors. That was the last we saw them as we moved further away from the place…

Before going to the summer program and buying the plane tickets to Korea, I didn’t know B.A.P would have a concert. When it was announced, I praed for the dates to overlap with my stay. I was incredibly lucky, because B.A.P’s first Seoul Limited concert was on the last day of my stay. The day itself was super-hot (38+ degrees) and I had a lot of troubles from moving out the dorms with all of my luggage etc. In the morning I managed to go to the venue to buy some merch (got myself a matoki whistle and a t-shirt). In the afternoon, there were already fansites distributing free merch (got also 2 banners, but I lost my shiny Zelo banner at the concert T_T).

The queueing was so different from European stops, where we camp in front of the venes. Here you had a number on a ticket and you just went and looked for your spot in the line and everything went smoothly. I actually had bought two tickets, because I was hoping for someone to go with me (and to get more people to appreciate B.A.P, lol). I did manage to get a friend from the program to come with me, so it was a success. The venue was really well ventilated and the sound system was great. B.A.P had a live band to back them up and they put on a great show as always. Too bad I couldn’t really understand much when they did their talking. In the crowd, there was a couple and B.A.P pointed at them and stated that „This is how you take your girlfriend out. You take her to a B.A.P concert !“, and they continued to chat for a bit. The best things from the concert- Coma rock version, Blind and small snipets from songs fans had selected as the ones they want to hear from B.A.P the most, watergun fight, new solos and tons of adlibs. Even though my ticket queue number was quite big, the stage was so well built that when idols came off from the main stage to those cat-walks, I had maybe only 2 rows of people in front of me making it the closest I’ve been at a concert.

This is basically how I saw them went they came near:

But there is one thing I found different from previous concerts. I don’t know if it was because I was really nervous about my flights and everything that day, but the crowd in Europe felt more passionate. I guess it is just in the way we cheer. I mean, their fanchants and everything was on point, but somehow it felt more calm and collected that I was used to. Either way, I loved that I could be there with OT6 and that Jongup released his cute MV for Annoying as a memory of that day. Oh, oh, and I finally got on Himchan’s fancam J. Really blurry, but I know it’s me. Thank you Channie!

Moving on to my Madrid experience. At first, I didn’t really plan to go to another tour because I’d already seen them this year, but the fact that there were tickets with best perks I never really managed to get before still available started creeping on me. I had to decide whether to wait for the mess that was Berlin ticket sale or settle for the Madrid one. I decided to save myself from the excess stress and take the Madrid VVIP. I don’t regret going one bit even though the Youngbros organisation was freaking awful. As VVIP holders, we were promised more time at the high-touch than VIP but nothing like that happened. The signed poster was actually just printed on and they had ran out of black beanies before even half the VVIPs could pass the counter.

Just a small look at the merch etc:

The worst thing was that they messed with B.A.P’s sound system so some time the microphones didn’t really work and the security guys didn’t pay any attention to people fainting in the crowd, which Daehyun and Zelo had to point out to them (Zelo tried to get their attention in Spanish, Daehyun wanted to stop the song to resolve the case) and Jongup threw his own water bottle to fans in need. The concert itself was really good (even though we still missed Bang and were chanting his name from time to time). I loved being able to hear Howler in it’s Spanish home and Zelo went wild with the butt-slaps and butt-wiggles. During Do What I Feel, he threw his towel to the crowd and guess who was the lucky one to catch it! It still has his makeup on tho :D.

Haha, towel-kun has seen some things... At this point I knew. For 5 years, I didn’t manage to choose a bias in B.A.P. That was the day my bias chose me (lolololol)

The only kind of OK clips that I got from the concert was Youngjae’s acapella “I’m happy” and Jongup’s “Try my luck”, because I was trying to enjoy the concert too much which resulted in my hands being extra shaky.

There was also a lottery where they chose a random number and a fan for every member got a small canvas bag with member’s drawing and autograph on it. And a hug. At some point, Youngjae managed to hurt his shoulder, I hope he is ok now. Them teaching us the fanchant for All the way up was pretty memorable since they almost booed Daehyun off the stage because he couldn’t contain himself and do the right thing. And Zelo just went like “OMG, it’s our song”. We also had a support project for Himchan where we held his banners and chanted his name.

My high-touch experience. While we were standing in a line, the organisers started to let B.A.P take their positions near the wall. To get there, B.A.P walked through a small bordered area which was right next to where some of us were queueing. I noticed Himchan and told him “annyeong” for which he raised his head, looked at me and just had the cutest smile ever on his face. I made Himchan smile, everyone! I don’t know if he noticed that this is the one person who never manages to greet him correctly (me in Warsaw, Seoul and now Madrid). He was also first in line at high-touch and he was still so extra smiley at me.

To sum up the high-touch experience, this is basically it:

B.A.P with their beautiful hands vs Me coming from a jungle

And then this 1 second you had to admire all the beauty

I mean, there were so many things I wanted to say (just one sentence to each member), but I couldn’t do anything because it was too fast. I tried to tell them stuff in English or Korean, but they tried to tell me stuff in Spanish and in English and it was honestly such a mess. It was so funny. Then right after we had the group photo so I fastened my steps and got next to Zelo. After everything I just had to go to him. I could tell he did something over my head while taking the picture since he was touching it, but I had no actual idea what. The picture turned out better than I expected. I am not really good friends with cameras, specially when I don’t even know, where the cameraman is or when the picture is exactly taken. Got the cutest photo ever and I will now officially present my short ass as “Zelo’s armrest” since this is what he used me as.

Tbh, I had to photoshop my face on the picture a bit, because the camera reflected on me so bad that I looked like a Christmas tree in a Colgate commercial. Literally.

Anyways, after the short time for pictures, I could pass by all of them again and thanked them, especially Zelo, when I turned around. I love them all so much and I had soft hours for days after we got to know that Zelo shouldn’t have even been on the tour but he insisted to come. Made it all 10 times more memorable and important.

I wish I could also go to Yongguk’s tour. I don’t know if it’s possible, because I have already emptied my bank account for them. So I guess we’ll see what happens. I hope he receives a lot of love and support anyways.

That’s it, folks!

#bap #b.a.p #bapinmadrid #seoul limited #concert experience

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randomnotesofmyown · 4 years ago

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Urasawa’s Monster (11-12)

Episode 11 Kinderheim 511 (Or, the place that became a taboo topic)

Dr Temma in former East Berlin to gather information on the Lieberts. At a vacant hous, he had a conversation with a property agent, who told Dr. Temma that a former GDR commercial official lived 10 houses away from the house that was formerly the residence of a political officer.

From that former official, Dr. Temma learned that the twins were not the Liebert's own children. They were adopted from an orphanage.

And that orphanage was Kinderheim 511. It was now a desolate building. People living around that Orphanage did not want to talk about it, nonetheless they pointed him to someone by the name Hartmann.

Mr. Hartmann told Dr. Temma that all orphanages in former GDR were bad, yet Kinderheim 511 was especially awful. Children sent there were offspring of convicts with political charges. The children there were subjected to inhuman discrimination. That orphanage, like other special orphanages, was run with fear and violence.

Mr. Hartmann then mentioned that an incident happened at 511 that Johan was involved. When Dr. Temma asked Mr. Hartmann about that incident, he initially said that was a top secret, and a gag order was issued. Yet so many years pass, Hartmann thought it would be okay to talk. And then he said that Johan led a revolution at 511. Right that moment, Hartmann's adoptive child, Dieter, came home. The three ate dinner, then Dr. Temma left. On his way, Dr. Temma saw a football from a shop, purchased it and headed back to Mr. Hartmann's flat. At the door, Dr. Temma heard Dieter screamed. He got in and was told that Dieter fell off a chair. Dr. Temma checked on the conditions of Dieter and was shocked to find bruises all over Dieter's torso.

Convinced that Hartmann abused Dieter, Dr. Temma took Dieter away from Hartmann's flat. Dieter said he was afraid of hospital, and went on saying that world was full of bad things, that the world was pitch black and tomorrow was full of darkness.

Dr. Temma replied that none of those was true. Dieter, seemingly surprised, asked "Really?" And Dr. Temma gave an affirmative reply.

After leaving Dieter at a hospital, Dr Temma remmebered that Anna Liebert (Nina Fortner) was sent to another orphanage, as Mr. Hartmann mentioned. And he headed straight there to ask for help. There he met a woman who looked after Anna and was told that Anna and her brother were found at the Czechoslovakia border in winter.

On hearing Dr Temma mentioned 511, that woman was angry at the idea of her orphanage (no. 47) being compared with 511, which, jointly run by the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Internal affairs, was actually an experimental laboratory.

End of episode 11.

Episode 12: Modest experiment (Or, Decide for yourself)

Episode continued with where the previous one left off. The woman said Kinderheim 511 was a place where experiments were conducted with an aim to produce ultimate warriors through brainwashing and human programming.

After the fall of the Berlin Wall, all parties involved in those experiments fled to other countries, and all records destroyed. There were rumors that one of those parties who managed to conceal his past still lived in Germany: that person was known to the public as the Minister of Health. And Dr. Temma realized that that was Mr. Hartmann.

The woman was then asked what exactly happened at 511.

Cut to Dieter. He looked okay in his bed.

Cut back to Dr. Temma. The woman started recounting the incident. It began with the unsual death of the director, which led to a fight over the top position, chaos ensued, then the staff and the children in there killed off each other. Only Johan made out of it.

Cut to Dieter again. Mr. Hartmann showed up and took him away from the hospital. He brought him to another place.

Dr. Temma finally headed back at the hospital. After he learned Dieter was picked up by Hartmann, he rushed to his flat. But there was no one in there. Dr. Temma went inside Mr. Hartmann's study and found a pile of photos in the drawer. On one of those photo he saw Johan.

Then, based on a hunch, Dr. Temma went to 511. Inside, he heard some noises, then he saw the soccer ball that he bought for Dieter.

Looked up, on the top of the stairs he saw Dieter sat on a chair that was placed next to a bon fire, Mr. Hartmann appeared from the shadow, began recounting the incident. Fifty persons died as Johan watched. Hartmann asked what Johan did, the reply:

Dr. Temma angrily pointed out Johan was like that because of the experiments. To which Mr Hartmann smirked. "There was no way we could create a masterpiece like him. He was a monster from the start." The goal of Johan, Mr. Hartmann recalled, was to become the last survivor.

Mr. Hartmann then spoke to Dieter, "tomorrow is full of darkness, you need to be more like Johan. Why you failed?" Then Mr. Hartmann pointed his gun at Dieter's head, and Dr. Temma pointed his at Mr. Hartmann.

Hartmann said he would give Dr. Temma a piece of information, in exchange for his not interfering with him and Dieter: go look for General Wolf, the person who first discovered Johan's talent.

Dr. Temma yelled to Dieter, asked him to decide on his own wether to walk down the stairs. And...

Mr. Hartmann, certain that Dieter would not left the chair, chuckled. But Dieter, after some thoughts, stood up and slowly walked toward Dr. Temma.

Hartmann kept calling Dieter to turn back. Dieter took no heed of those.

Stood next Dr. Temma, Dieter talked back, Dr. Temma told him "tomorrow is a great day".

The two left as Mr Hartmann broke down in tears.

Next day, Dieter became very determined to follow Dr Temma, despite being repeatedly told otherwise.

End of episode 12.

Comment: I would go off topic for a bit. The former GDR was a socialist country, which was supposed to exist with the aim to create a land of happiness and equality. Yet eventually it only made the everyone in it equally fearful, equally unhappy because the state demanded total submission, total control. That casted a shadow on many individuals. Mr. Hartmann was one of those. And he was passing on his grim world view to children he adopted. Luckily for Dieter that Dr. Temma showed up and told him that there existed another world view, a hopeful one. And it seemed Dieter could get the chance to live a happier live. A positive ending to an episode that started so grim.

As for Johan, that he managed at the age of ten to make fifty others kill all each other, including people who were much other than him was quite hard to believe. What a master manipulator! Turned out he toyed with hate as well.

#monster #urasawa naoki

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exydays · 6 years ago

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Excerpts

We are unveiling a new feature! To give prospective members a feel for the various writing styles and dynamics in our server, and to showcase scenes/writers that we feel stand out in some way, we’re now posting excerpts. Once a week, we will feature between 1 - 2 excerpts from roleplay posts. Beginning in April, we’ll also spotlight specific characters. For the week of March 30th - April 7th:

Sam paused at the question. He lowered his fork, carefully resting it against the edge of his plate. The movement was cautious, as if he was deliberating something. He took a second to compose himself, before reaching for his phone. He set it on the table, idly scrolling. He was silent as he searched, only to slow, tapping lightly on the screen. He slid the phone over to Koko wordlessly. The picture that filled the screen was of a much younger Sam; no more than 11, at a guess. His grin was wide, dimples flashing, deep enough to hold liquid, hair damp and hanging in limp, sweaty curls. The boy behind him was older, well into his teens. His complexion was a rich olive, shades darker than Sam's golden, vaguely summer-like skin. His hair was a mess of blonde curls, tumbling into his eyes, which were a warm shade of hazel. His arms were around Sam's chest, hugging him close. “That was taken after the fifth game of the year.” He said after a moment. “Pretty sure he was more excited than I was.”

Koko looks at picture for a moment, taking in Sam's wide smile, how happy and innocent he was with his wide dimples. Michael is close to what he'd imagined. A summer boy, with the California tan. All in shades of gold. "He must have loved you a lot." He slides the phone back to Sam and pulls out his wallet from the back pocket of his jeans. The picture inside is of him and Olli. Olli is looking at the camera, smiling wild. High cheekbones, mischievous green eyes and a rat's nest of blond hair. There's a scar on his lip and multiple piercings in his ears. Uncovered by his loose tank top, the edge of a tattoo curling around his shoulder and neck. His younger self isn't looking at the camera. He's looking at Olli like he is the entire world, and that had been mostly true back then. His hair is bleached blond, he has multiple bracelets around his wrists, a little bi flag tattooed on his cheek. He takes the picture out of the wallet and hands it to Sam. "That's me and Olli at the Berlin Pride. It was the first time both of us ever went." It was also the last time, but that stays unsaid.

The remark was not unlike packing a partially healed wound with salt. A visceral reminder that some minor part of him was still raw, still so unwilling to set aside his anger in favor of peace. He reached for his glass, taking a long swallow, before nodding in mute agreement. “I loved him,” he said simply. Three simple words. They only held a fraction of the emotion behind them. Michael had been his brother and best friend rolled into one. He’d built the foundations towards his self-acceptance and had been there to catch him in those moments of blind panic when there was only air beneath his feet. He accepted his phone with numb fingers, carefully pressing the button along the edge of the phone. It darkened, taking his warmth with it. Sam leaned forward slightly, gently taking the photo from Koko’s hand. The pair of them were visibly happy; flushed with a mixture of excitement and the sort of helpless of new romance. He almost glanced away from the look on Koko’s face. It felt invasive; too private. He half-wondered what it felt like to look at someone like that. He wondered if he ever had. (But of course he had. He did, and didn’t realize it.) “You look…” He started, and hesitated. Different. The Koko who sat in front of him wasn’t the one he held in his hand. The Samael Koko had glimpsed was gone. “The two of you were cavity inducing,” he settled on, gently, carefully handing it back.

______________________________________________________________

Reyna laughed. "Cute." A beat later, she quickly continued, "Sure. Just know you're welcome to kick me out as soon as you figure out I'm not great company."

“Not cute, terrifying.” He replied deadpan, taking a step back and opening the door wider to invite her in. “Please, I doubt that. What’s the worst you’d do?”

"Right, terrifying bedhead," Reyna agreed, stepping through the door. The bag on her shoulder was starting to feel too heavy; she let it slide off, into her hand. "Well, that's it. It's not me doing something. It's the opposite. What were you studying?"

He snorted a little, tugging his hair up out of his face and into a tiny ponytail. "I'm supposed to be studying ancient Egyptian mythology. Somehow I ended up on o forum where they're discussing what a mummy would taste like. Gotta love the internet."

Reyna's eyebrows raised before she schooled her expression. "Hm. Well, they'd probably be salty." She dug around in her bag, frowning a little as she looked for the yellow tape. "I used to like the story of Isis and Osiris. Especially when she makes a snake out of sand."

"Like beef jerky but human? Honestly doesn't sound half bad." He wondered out loud before realising maybe it wasn't an appropriate topic. "Remind me to research cannibalism in Egypt. Wonder if there are some wicked hieroglyph style wendigo pics out there..." Even better.

#aftg #aftg rp #tfc #excerpts

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mercerislandbooks · 6 years ago

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What Serves the Story: Discussing Imagination, Research, and Seattleness with Elise Hooper

Elise Hooper is coming to celebrate the release of Learning to See: A Novel of Dorothea Lange, the Woman who Revealed the Real America on January 22nd at noon. She will be signing copies of her two books as well as passing out some Dorothea Lange postcards. Read below to look at my interview with her about her writing process and newest release!

- Kelleen

Last Saturday was gorgeous, sunny, and temperate. Elise even commented later that she told the baristas, “I am going to go to the back of the shop because I am sort of blinded by this light.” I felt the same.

I arrived in a flurry, thinking I would be 15 minutes early, but she beat me there. Elise was writing in a vibrant blue notebook that she closed as I approached. I introduced myself in person (we had only talked over email). She commented that she thought she was early enough to get some writing done, which made me eye that notebook again. Learning to See is only a week from release, so it had to be something new. My first question came to me naturally…

IB: Can you talk about what you are working on right now?

EH: Sure, the new book I’m working on was sold to the same editor at William Morrow, its working title is “Fast Girls,” and it’s supposed to come out in the summer of 2020. It is about three pioneering women Olympians who are among some of the first women competing at track and field in the Olympics. Basically they all have these very interesting and different life stories which all come together at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin. It’s funny, when I tell people, they say, “I didn’t know women were there!” and I say, “Exactly.”

IB: So, you were born an East Coaster. How do you find the Seattle community in terms of readership?

EH: That’s an interesting question because I have only lived in Seattle as a writer, I haven’t come from another city with that career to compare. But, I do think that we are so lucky that we live in such a bookish place both in terms of readers and other writers. I have been delighted to build up a peer group of other writers I can chat with. Reading is alive and well here! People have come out of the woodwork to support my book. I do feel like there is a collective interest in reading and books, which is also remarkable due to that fact that Amazon is here. I would say the little novel is alive and well.

IB: You definitely consider yourself a novel writer, even with the hefts of research?

EH: I am totally a novelist. I use real people as inspiration, but I usually work with people where there is a little bit of mystery to their life. May Alcott—there was a ton of open space in which I could create her story. Louisa was an avid journalist and letter writer; her life was very well documented. From there, I could cobble together a maze through her other friends. Dorothea Lange’s life is documented very well visually, but she pretty much burned all of her letters. There is a PBS documentary about her, so that is the best way to hear her voice these days. Even with all the biographies out there on Lange, there was still some empty space that I felt like I could richly imagine her life.

IB: How do you balance research vs. imagination?

EH: That’s such a good question because that is something I grapple with every time I sit down to write. I love doing research, and I love that pretty much everyday I get to learn tons of new stuff about any given topic, but I really work hard to keep my eye on what serves the story. Research is like a big iceberg and in the book you should only see the tip of it. The author holds the rest. Your reader shouldn’t feel like they are reading an encyclopedia. They should be caught up in the action and the characters. I really work hard on trying not to let some of these finds consume me. These things are fascinating to me but may not be to the rest of the world.

IB: What is your favorite part of this writing process? Do you like your rabbit holes? Do you like the writing best?

EH: I love writing that first draft. That bad, lousy first draft that is basically just getting down the basic story. I love that because that is when you see how this whole story is going to come together and you see them. There is nothing quite like sitting down and figuring out how someone is going to approach a meal, for example. It can reveal a lot about characters. There is really a heady excitement about writing that first draft.

IB: What are you looking forward to with the release of Learning to See?

EH: I am really looking forward to reconnecting with friends and family, both here in the Puget Sound and also beyond! It’s really fun. I love doing some of these stops where I get to visit the library from the town I grew up in and see people I haven’t seen in a long time. A gift that has truly come from this whole process is that I have heard from people that I haven’t heard from in decades. I always try to send back the most grateful messages because someone took the time to read the book and the follow up with a message. That blows me away, and I cherish those so much.

IB: That’s some of our favorite parts too. Being able to see authors come into the store like Laurie Frankel and Garth Stein is so great because when they come in, they become part of our community more than the book on the shelf. Readers appreciate that too; they are drawn to the people that take the time to visit the shop. There is something magical about the idea that someone has been here and also is writing in an area nearby them.

EH: It’s funny, I have had a lot of people say to me that they were reading along in the book and had a moment where they thought, “Oh my gosh, Elise wrote this!” That sounds funny, but I totally know what they mean. The magic of seeing my book on the shelf has not gone away. I am still thrilled every time I see it.

IB: What attracted you to Dorothea Lange as your next subject?

EH: Oh, okay…this is kind of a fun story. When I think about what I am going to say at these events, this is where I am starting. I had thought that I needed to do a more local project. So, initially I was interested in Imogen Cunningham. I was an art minor in college; I was sort of familiar with her photography. I think she even had a studio at one point right around here in Pioneer Square. So, there I went diving into her life. As part of that, I was figuring out her social circles and influences. It turns out, over time, her best friend became Dorothea Lange. I was really familiar with Lange’s work, but as I really started learning about her—the woman behind these photos—I was struck by this huge transformation that Dorothea went through that was different from many of her peers.

EH: She started off as this hugely successful portrait photographer and then had this total turn-around to the world at large. She started documenting life during the Great Depression with social activism inspiring her work. I was really intrigued by that. It has honestly become more and more relevant. The book sold to my editor just after the last Presidential Election, and it has become even more frighteningly relevant. During the Women’s March in 2017, all these women were finding their voices and probably marching for the first time. That was so similar to Dorothea. She eclipsed Imogen in my mind because of her interest in social activism.

EH: I liked the pragmatism in her work but her idealism too. I liked that she was interesting in more than just the art of capturing people; she wanted a real story. I could totally relate to that.

Learn more about Elise and her new book next Tuesday! Come in and say hello.

#elise hooper #learning to see #the other alcott #louisa may alcott #seattle #local author #island books #kelleen #dorothea lange #imogen cunningham #photography #social activism #great depression #historical fiction #writing process #research

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morganbelarus · 7 years ago

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Lady Gaga halts tour due to ‘severe pain’

Image copyright Brian Samuelson

Lady Gaga has cancelled the last 10 dates of the European leg of her world tour due to "severe pain".

In a statement posted on Twitter, the pop star apologised to fans and said she was "devastated", but needed to put "myself and my well-being" first.

The Grammy award-winning singer has fibromyalgia, a long-term condition which can cause pain all over the body.

Shows in London and Manchester are among those affected.

In the statement, it said the "tough decision" had been made on Friday night with "strong support from her medical team".

Ticket holders can apply for a refund from 6 February, the statement added.

Lady Gaga reveals chronic illness in new documentary

I have fibromyalgia, the same condition as Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga announces two-year Las Vegas residency

Image copyright Lady Gaga

Image caption Lady Gaga tweeted this photo of the audience at Birmingham Arena, that she took from the stage last week

"I'm so devastated I don't know how to describe it," Lady Gaga, 31, wrote. "All I know is that if I don't do this, I am not standing by the words or meaning of my music."

The announcement comes after she started the UK leg of her tour at Birmingham Arena.

Watching one of those performances, BBC arts editor Will Gompertz noted "the physicality of her performance compromised her singing at times".

Related Topics

Lady Gaga

Music

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#16 MP Just news

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didiletyouknooow · 8 years ago

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25. Factory Of Faith

Finally another chapter of Josh & Eileen!

And I finally got more than 100 followers! Thank you so much for reading and liking my story. Thank you for the feedback and comments :) I startet writing this story out of a spontaneous idea after I read @bemygetawayjz and now I wrote 25 chapters! But I got a few more ideas left!

But I can’t promise that I’ll update twice a week due to studying and all this stuff you have to do for university. But I’ll try to do it! In this chapter I mention a topic which I think is interesting for the story but can also be a problem if you’re really dating a famous person: fans. Don’t take it too seriously, when Eileen checks out social media. But I think it’s kind of realistic that she has these fears. Have fun reading!

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On Monday we took a flight back to Berlin. Yes right, Josh accompanied me. He had to be back in the states on Saturday morning. Then their North America tour would continue. I don’t have to mention that it made me feel very happy that Josh came all the way to Berlin with me.

So the next days were all about spending time together. We slept very long on Tuesday until finally leaving the bed and had a nice breakfast in the afternoon. Later we took a walk, we talked a lot, bought some pizza, went back home, watched some films and had another very nice and deeply talk until the middle of the night. He told me about their touring problems, stressful days, boring interviews but also about great moments he had on stage in the last 5 years. Over the years he had some problems dealing with pushy fans. I knew he couldn’t handle such situations very well and he kind of hated it although he was thankful for the fans the band had. But it was hard for him suddenly being high-profiled. But I guess he did it very well and got more and more confident.

We spent the other days waking up early – because of our jet lag – visiting some museums, having dinner at great restaurants and having a date night together with Lara and Leon. For the first time it felt like a typical relationship. During the holidays it felt a bit weird because of all this stuff that had happened. Before the holidays, we still had to figure out where our relationship would lead us – well we still did but in November/December everything was very new to us. Although it still felt like being in a honeymoon phase I noticed that I kind of got to know Josh a little bit more each day. I knew that he was a late sleeper just like me, that he didn’t like talking too much in the morning because he needed time for him to wake up. He always scratched his noise when we were having an argument and he kneaded his hands when he was nervous.

So on Friday afternoon we had to say goodbye for 4 whole weeks. My job would be finished on February 28 but because of Lara’s birthday on March 2 I decided to stay for a few more days until I would finally fly back to California. Back home.

Josh and I went to the airport and had some issues with leaving each other. Sure we both didn’t want to say goodbye but we had to. He had to do his job in the states and I had to do my job here in Berlin. We hugged and kissed and said some beautiful words to one another. For a short moment it felt like we were the only people at the airport, like time would stand still. “I have to go now, otherwise my flight is starting without me and the band would be very mad at me” Josh finally said and for the last time on this day he looked me in the eyes. “Okay” I sighed. “Goodbye little bird” he smiled at me before kissing me one the last time. I didn’t want his lips to leave mine. But he had to go. “Little bird?” “Yes” he grinned.

Then he went away to his gate. I watched him until he got lost in the crowd. Well there he goes I thought - 4 weeks until we would meet again.

I tried to stay positive and focused on my work. I was very productive because every night I told myself it was one day less until I would meet Josh again. Honestly, I wasn’t missing someone that much in a long time. The last year of my relationship with Steve I didn’t really miss him. Sure I thought about him when we didn’t see each other but I didn’t really miss HIM. I guess I just missed that someone was around me.

I forgot about how hard missing someone could be, like you really feel such a pain because the person isn’t around you and you want to know how the person feels, what the person does, what the person eats, drinks, reads, what’s on the person’s mind and when the person goes to bed and if the person thinks about you before falling asleep.

Thanks to the modern technique Josh and I could stay in contact via several options. Sometimes we skyped but when he was on tour he didn’t have much time to do it. Then there was this time difference that bothered us. So we skyped very rarely. Instead we wrote messages and sent photos of what we did or saw this day.

“E….

How are you? I hope you’re fine! Greetings from the road! Today we’re in St. Louis. I always have to think about this girl Jennifer Hudson played in this “Sex and the City” movie we watched – I still hate this movie! But she was called Louise from St. Louis. Well, today I had an interview and the woman was also called Louise which was very funny for me so I started laughing when she introduced herself and she looked at me with a very confused face. She must’ve thought “What a weird guy”. I guess this was the most interesting story from today. I’m looking forward to our concert tonight.

Kisses and hugs and kisses….ten minutes later I’m still wishing I could REALLY kiss you :(

J…”

“Hey my lovely Josh (does it sound too cheesy for you?)

I’m fine thanks. It’s still very cold in Berlin. It’s like the winter had his comeback after a few weeks of ugly rainy days and 10 degrees. The streets were frozen so when I walked to the subway the other day I was a way too fast so I slipped and fell to the ground. My knee hurt so bad that I had to cool it for the rest of the day. But it’s okay now. There are still some scratches but well….I won’t wear shorts in the next few weeks so everything’s fine.

Haha, sound like a funny story and an embarrassing moment for you and the interviewer! I hope your concert was great! I guess so…

Kisses back to the states (maybe they’ll arrive with a little bit of a time difference but they’ll definitely arrive, I swear!)

Love you, Bye <3”

Time flew by as always and suddenly there were only three weeks to go. Yes! It’s not that I didn’t live my life in Berlin. I even enjoyed my last weeks here but I wished that I could see my boyfriend on a regular basis like Lara did. She and Leon were the perfect couple who always had the opportunity to see each other. He was there when she had problems at work, he bought her some medicine when she was ill, he even cooked a soup for her! Leon was the loveliest of my girlfriends’ boyfriends ever. He was so cute and supporting that it hurt! He knew Lara so well, he was like the perfect guy. But one day when I came back from work they were fighting – like really shouting at each other. I thought “Okay, that’s it. Now it’s over. But they can’t break up! They’re not allowed to do it!”. But after a few hours of keeping silence after Leon left our apartment he came back, apologized and they were happily again. My heart almost skipped a beat! They can’t do that to me I!

“Josh :) How’re you doing? I hope you don’t get a cold in Milwaukee! I’ve heard it’s snowing very heavily there! Keep yourself warm and….I guess you won’t ever hear me saying this again but….wear as many layers as you can! :D

Did you visit the record store you told me about? I hope so!

Well, at the moment my life is very boring. The week was soooo lame. My boss was absent because he was sick so it was kind of relaxed at work. Next week I’m going to prepare the last event I’ll be a part of here at the museum. It’s still weird that I have only 2 weeks to go. Time flies by very fast… One year ago I wouldn’t have thought that I would be happy to come back to California because everything in Cali was bothering me. But 12 months later I can say, there is at least one person that changed my opinion. I’m counting the days. 18 days :)

Love you, KISS Eileen”

“E….

I’m fine. The snow in Milwaukee was horrible! Flea and Anthony wanted to visit a burger restaurant but the van couldn’t drive them. Chad and I preferred to stay in the hotel room. I had an important talk with Ian about some changes on my pedal board. I hope we can do it in the next days. Sadly I wasn’t able to visit this specific record store I talked about. There was too much snow! Well as you said, time flies by very fast. Tomorrow is our last concert of this tour leg. But we’ll start touring again in one week which is untypical for us but …you can’t change the schedule. I’m very exhausted at the moment. I think I’ll sleep for two days when I’m back home. But the rest of the week I’ll do some jam sessions with the Dots….so no rest for me. Let’s skype at the weekend, okay?

Love and miss you,

J…

Well, we didn’t skype at the weekend due to Josh’s forgetfulness. He forgot that he had a special meeting with Bob again. He didn’t tell me why. Well, yeah. My week was so stressful that I was kind of happy that I found some time to get some sleep and just stayed in bed for like the whole weekend – my chilling time was only bothered by some noises coming from Lara’s room. I hated it that she was so loud when she had sex. I mean, yeah we lived together in a flat, we both were grown ups and the walls weren’t that thick but, why did she had to scream so loud? Not everyone in this flat wanted to hear it – aka me.

Maybe I felt so bad and kind of pissed off because Josh didn’t text me back for three days. I knew he was busy but it couldn’t stop me from paralyzing my phone. Every time it was ringing I hoped that it was him. But it wasn’t.

Well, while I was lying in my bed, head phones on to avoid these bothering noises from Lara and Leon, I scrolled through my Instagram feed. It was kind of boring. I guessed if Josh would’ve Instagram I would’ve stal….wait.

A few minutes later I was searching for pictures of Josh on Instagram. When did I become so weak and curious at the same time? There were several photos of Josh on the app. I clicked at some of them and noticed that most of the time fan accounts were posting photos of the band members – yes I even looked up the others.

I even read some of the comments the fans posted under the pictures.

“He’s so gorgeous and cute!”

“His hair looks so great in this video!”

“I love Frusciante but Josh is really great on the guitar. Sure he plays it differently, but it’s his way of playing. We should give him a chance!”

“I don’t like that dude. Bring JF BACK!!!!!”

“What is he wearing? It’s like XXXXXXL :D”

“I liked his solo on Wet Sand the other day. It sounded soooo beautiful Oh and I love his voice <3”

“I wonder if he has a girlfriend? I think he broke up with Mia some years ago”

Well, okay. This was just a random list of comments by fans. Sure, I knew that there were still people who didn’t like him, who wanted John back. There were also still people who thought that Josh can’t play the guitar but I didn’t expect that there were so many girls who actually liked him – and not only his way of playing the guitar. Well okay, there were some girls at the hotel in Brooklyn who asked for some autographs and pictures. But I really didn’t expect that there were girls fancying him. I always thought everyone was into Anthony Kiedis? But I was wrong. Sure he was cute and gorgeous but I didn’t know how I should feel about the fact that there were so many girls out there who fancied my boyfriend? It felt weird to be honest.

I found myself clicking through some pictures and checked some accounts. I didn’t want to do it but I couldn’t stop doing it. It was like an accident. You don’t want to look at it but you have to. You can’t stop it. There were so many questions that were on my mind now. I wondered if there were fans who tried to hook up with some of the boys on tour? I mean, they’re on tour for a very long time and you can always meet new people in a new city. I knew that they had some groupies back in the day, in the 80s or 90s. But this wasn’t with Josh being in the band. Now everyone was older, grown up, clean, had family. And at least three of them were in a relationship. I didn’t know if Flea had a girlfriend or not. There wasn’t any woman around him when I met him. But having a relationship didn’t mean that you have to be faithful to the partner. When you’re on the road there are so many opportunities. It’s far away from home, sometimes even in a foreign country. You’ll never meet this person ever again you’ve met in this specific bar in Ireland. I knew that Josh said it’s not his thing, hooking up with strangers on tour and I believed him. I even believed him that he wouldn’t do it if he would be single. And I also knew that not every fan wants to hook up with a certain band member. But I knew that there could be people who would do it. Maybe I was one of them?

What would I do if I would meet my favorite singer in a bar back in the days when I was single and he would flirt with me? Would I respond to this offer? If he was hot and I was single and I wanted to do it…maybe? Maybe I had to ask it more precisely: Would I hook up with Ryan Gosling? I guess ehm….if there wouldn’t be Eva Mendes…ehm yes? This was the moment when I started laughing. What was I thinking? My mind went totally crazy. But it was also the same moment my phone ringed. It was a message from Josh.

“E…

Sorry that I didn’t answer. I was so busy. I was working with Bob over the weekend. He had this idea for another film he wants to do and he asked me to write some music again….but in the end we had to come to terms that I wouldn’t have the time to do it. I feel very sorry, he’s my friend, you know. But I don’t have time to do it. When I do something like that I want to give 100%. But at the moment I’m not able to do it due to our touring schedule in the next months.

Oh well, I hope your weekend wasn’t that stressful. How are you honey? I hope fine! I miss you so much and I hope I could skype with you right now but you’re probably asleep.

It’s like business never ends. Next week a musician from Switzerland will visit me in the studio. I have to produce some songs for her album. Do you know Sophie Hunger?

I’d like to say I’m excited to do it but….all I want to do is lying in my bed with you and get some sleep.

I love you,

Kiss

J.”

Sophie Hunger? Well, I’ve heard of her. But I couldn’t stop….I had to look her up on the internet. Ahhhhh, Eileen, what were you doing? When did you become so jealous? It was Josh’s job. He was a musician and musicians work with other musicians. That’s what they do. But nevertheless, I looked her up. She looked nice.

“Hey Josh,

Love and kisses to you! I don’t want you to feel exhausted! I hope you’re having time for some sleep in the next days. It’s sad that you aren’t able to work with Bob on his project but, you know, you can’t change it. Maybe he can start with the project a little bit later? I’ve heard of Sophie Hunger, she’s a great musician I guess. Have fun working with her :)

I love you, too!

Kiss! Eileen”

Well the lines I wrote him were totally different than the pictures that were on my mind. I saw Josh laughing and giggling with this Swiss musician. They had fun in the studio. He liked her because she was a musician, too. After recording and producing and any other things they had to do, they went to drink a beer – or two – and later….

STOP! STOP! STOP!

Eileen, you have to stop thinking this way! You can’t always be jealous just because Josh works with other women, meets other women or has fans who are actually women. This would kill you, I said to myself. You have to focus on your relationship with Josh. Otherwise you’ll totally freak out. You have to trust Josh. He’s your boyfriend. Who will you trust if not Josh?

The next days we stayed in contact but he didn’t respond much.

“E…

Hope you’re fine. I’m very busy now. The recording and producing process is fun but also hard work. But she’s a great musician.

What are you doing?

Love ya, J….”

“I’m fine. Work is great. It’s like I can enjoy the last days and weeks. It’s only 1.5 weeks to go. I’m feeling very sad that I have to leave next week but well….that’s how life’s like. It was a great opportunity. Tomorrow I’ll have my job interview with this school in Pasadena! I’m so excited! Wish me luck! I found a nice record store today here in Kreuzberg. I’ve never been there before which is very strange because it’s on my way to the supermarket. Sure I saw it before but I never entered it. I was searching for some cool old cds but I didn’t find one. Well, maybe in the next days. I want a gift for myself I can take with me from Berlin. Except of you ;) Love and miss you, Eileen”

“Sounds great! Fingers crossed! Kisses J.”

Hm, I wasn’t disappointed because of his short response but….I guess I wished he would refer to my story about the record store or even respond to the “Except of you”-part. Ahhhhh. Text messaging was the devil when it came to analyzing messages. Why did I always have to analyze it? Maybe he was running out of time but wanted to write a quick respond – one day later. Okay I guess it was official. I was totally getting crazy here in my room. I had to leave to do some work out!

When I came back Lara was in the kitchen. She brought us some pizza. Well, this was typical for me: doing work out and afterwards treating myself with pizza. “What’s uuuuup?” she welcomed me. “Pizza?” “Oh that’s what I need!” I said and took a seat. When Lara and I had pizza we always shared our pizza with each other so we could try both of them. “So tell me about your day honey” she wanted to know. “Well, you don’t want to hear it I guess” “Why?” “’Cause I might have done something very unintelligent” “What did you do?” “I searched for Josh on Instagram….” Lara stared laughing. “And this is so unintelligent and bad?” she was still giggling. “Kind of….I mean, I read a lot of weird stuff there” “’Come on, give me some examples” “Like….did you know that many girls seem to be into Josh?” “What do you mean, ‘into Josh’?” “Well….they fancy and adore him” “So…what’s wrong with it? I was in love with Anthony Kiedis when I was 14. And he was 35. So it’s totally okay I guess…” I sighed and took another slice of the pizza. “What’s wrong with fancying a musician? ‘Come on Eileen, we all did it!” “Yes but….I never was in this weird situation being a girlfriend of a musician” I told her. “I mean, it’s not only these girls….so many people say shit about Josh on the internet. I just…I could punch them. I want to protect Josh” “Does he read some of these comments?” “I don’t think so” “See, you don’t have to worry.” She let me know. “After all they’re just fans who love his music and what he does as a musician and they’re happy when they get a concert ticket and see them live and sing and dance along to their music” “I know” I sighed. “But….you don’t worry about the fans, you worry about other things, am I right?” “Kind of…” I mumbled. “Tell me” “It’s not only about the fans….it’s also about people he could meet on tour” “You mean like…women?” “Right” I said and took a sip of water. “I know he told me that he doesn’t like hook ups and all this stuff ‘rock stars’ do – and I believe him! But there is always a little bit of fear that he will change his mind when he’s on the road. He’s on tour now for one month and our contact went from skyping to messaging everyday to messaging every three days. It’s so difficult and hard for me not to freak out. My mind is going crazy when I have time to think about the fact that he’s on tour and could meet other women every day. Even when he’s back in L.A. he doesn’t take a rest, instead he’s making music with this Sophie Hunger!” “Who’s Sophie Hunger?” “A Swiss musician who was in L.A. this week to record some songs so Josh can produce them. He just told me. I mean, I don’t want to react jealous but….ahhhhhh” “Well I guess it’s time for this” Lara said and put the vodka out of our fridge. “No!” “We need it. Afterwards we can analyze the situation with a clearer view, you know” “Clearer view” I laughed.

Two vodka shots later we came to terms that I had to fight against my jealousy. “You have to trust him. I mean, he trusts you, right?” “He does I guess” “Right. I mean, you could party every night in a different club – we’re in Berlin! You could meet tons of men there so you’re not the only one who has to deal with jealousy. It’s a typical problem of long distance relationships and that’s what Josh and you have at the moment. It’s a long distance. But you’re not the only one who suffers with your fears. So does Josh – at least I can imagine that he’s lying in bed and thinking about what you’re doing at the moment. But that’s okay, totally okay. As long as it doesn’t get sick. You know, like totally lost in jealousy. And I think that’s what you’re doing at the moment.” Lara explained to me. “You’re right. I’m completely suffering because of the fans, the tour, everything. It’s just because we live totally different lives. He’s always on the road and even if I would not be here in Berlin I would go crazy in L.A. because he’s away. It’s not that easy, you know.” “I know and I can totally relate to it. My ex played in a band as well – not that famous as the Chilis, but he was away very often and played gigs everywhere in Germany. So, I always stayed at home and was wondering what he was doing. Who would attend their shows. Which women….” “That’s the point. The fans can call him cute and can ask if he might have a girlfriend but….it’s the random people he meets on the road that bother me” “But honestly, how many people do the Chilis meet on the road? Most of them are journalists. They’re staying in their luxury hotels. Whom should they meet?” “Josh always goes for a walk or whatever. He is not followed around like the others” “I know but….Eileen, just stay cool. Be happy that there are people out there who like what Josh is doing. He’s always so self-critical and not the most confident person I know so it’s great that he has fans” “It is but….you know” “It’s his lifestyle and your lifestyle which is totally different I know” I sighed. Well, Lara was right. I had to calm down and relax. Josh trusted me so I had to trust him. Some days later Josh and I were skyping for the first time since he went on tour. “How are you feeling?” Josh asked me and waved into the camera. He was sitting on his bed in his hotel room in San Francisco. “I’m great. It’s Friday night, I ordered Chinese food and I’m sitting in my jammies on my bed talking to my boyfriend. Very un-lovely” I joked. “You’re the loveliest woman I know” he chuckled. “What about you? Did you find a record store in San Francisco?” “Well….I know the city very well so I’ve visited every record store I guess” Josh laughed. “I just arrived here. I was the last one who arrived here. The others left this morning because of some interviews we had but I came here at noon” “Why?” “Because I had to do the final touch on Sophie’s songs” Ah well, Sophie. “How was working with her?” I asked. “It was great. She and her band mates were very nice and we had a lot of fun but it was also very hard. We worked until night every day. So, sorry for not responding or calling. But at least I can hear and see you now” he smiled at me. “That’s the best part of my weekend!” I let him know. Suddenly some one was knocking on Josh’s door. It was Claire. He had to leave to drive to the arena. So we agreed to skype in a few hours after sound check in the arena. My clock told me that this was going to be a long night. It was already 11pm.

So while Josh obviously had his sound check in San Francisco I continued reading a book, cleaned the dishes, had a short chat with my mom on the phone and wasted my time on Facebook. At 0.40am Josh called me via Skype again. I almost fell asleep but now I was awake. “There you are again!” I smiled. “You look a bit tired. What time is it in Germany?” he still couldn’t learn the time difference between California and Berlin. “It’s almost 1am” I told him. “Oh well I’m sorry! If you want to go to bed, I won’t stop you!” “No….it’s okay. I want to talk to you. We did it rarely in the last weeks….” I noted. “I know….and I’m so sorry Eileen. But I was so busy and couldn’t find the time” I didn’t want to start a discussion about it although I had to admit that I was a bit disappointed that he couldn’t find the time talking to me on Skype or on the phone. “I have to work on planning my time. The last week was so stressful, I’m still completely exhausted” I felt bad for Josh. He loved making music and working with other musicians but he really looked very tired and thin. “Did you eat enough?” “Hm, sometimes” he said. “Josh!” “Just a joke. I love eating but I guess we didn’t eat very healthy in the last days. Always junk food” “Hm….” “But on tour we have our own cook who makes delicious food for us! Wanna take a look?” he asked and got up from his seat in a dressing room backstage. He left the room and walked with his laptop in his hands into another room where I could see a buffet full of food. “So here’s our little paradise” Josh joked. “Brian cooks everything we want” he said and took some bananas and a bun. “The only thing that isn’t delicious on tour is the coffee” “Poor Josh” I laughed. “Coffee junkie” While I was still giggling Josh was stopped by a woman. I couldn’t see her because she wasn’t in front of the camera but I heard her voice. “Hey Josh, do you wanna have some coffee? We want to go to the café across the street” she asked him. “Oh sure, when?” “In a few minutes” “Okay, I’m coming” I heard Josh saying. “Oh this is Sophie” he then told me and turned the laptop so I could finally see her. She smiled and waved into the display. “This is my girlfriend Eileen” Josh informed her. Sophie only said “Hi” before another person started talking to her and Josh went back into the dressing room where we could talk among us. “So this was Sophie?” “Yes, she’s here for the show. I gave her and her band mates tickets” “Great” “So what about work? The last week, hm?” “Right! It’s very strange because I can’t imagine leaving them. They were so nice to me, like family” “And you did a great job there I guess. Such an interesting job by the way” “Really?” “Yes, when we first met I was so flashed by all the topics you talked about with the other guests. I never heard of it before” “Well…it’s just what I’ve studied” “I know but….I think it’s great” he smiled into the camera. “Oh by the way, what about the job interview?” “It was good I think. I can’t appreciate it. But they will call me until next week” “Oh that’s great! See, as I said. Everything is going to be okay” “Yes…” At this moment there was a person coming into Josh’s room. Again it was Sophie. I couldn’t see her, just heard what she said. “Josh, we’re about to leave for the café” she let him know. He nodded. “Oh and are you coming to the bar later after the concert? We all go I guess. At least I will be there” she laughed. He seemed to think about what he should answer but in the end he nodded and said “Yes, I’ll be there” and I saw how he smiled at her. Well Eileen, calm down. She’s just a work partner. “Sorry Eileen, I have to hang up now but we talk later, okay?” he said. “Okay” “Oh and you can watch the concert online in a live stream. I’ll send you the link” he said and then we air-kissed us goodbye. Connection over. A few minutes later he sent me the link where I could watch the live stream. Well it was in about 4 hours. So here it would be 5am. Ohhhhhh. I was tired so I set the alarm clock that I wouldn’t miss the concert and fell asleep very quickly. When it awaked me I felt very tired and knackered. But my mind reminded me that I wanted to watch the concert. So I opened the link with the live stream. Well 20 minutes to go. So I read some articles on the website. There was even a link to an interview with Josh. I clicked on it.

The interview was very interesting. Josh told a lot about making the last record and how he felt as the “new” member in the band. He told that he didn’t have a problem with being the youngest member. It was quite interesting to read it because I got to know a new side of him. He was so humble and modest. But there was one part in the interview – which was from the end of 2011 – that leaped into my eyes.

“So recently you bought a new house with an own music studio? How did it change your way of living? Josh: Well, to be honest I couldn’t really settle down yet. I was always on the road so I guess my girlfriend spends more days in it than me which is funny because every time I come home from touring there is a new painting on the walls or a new light in the living room. She pretty much furnished it already (laughs)”

Wow, so he spoke about Mia furnishing his house? I wonder if it was still the same house he was living in now. But I guessed so. He never talked about moving into another house in the last years. So there was this feeling again: he must’ve loved Mia very deeply. She even lived in his house when he was absent, this was what he already told me. But I didn’t know that she kind of furnished it. I only spend a few nights in his house and I liked how it was furnished. I wondered if he changed a lot after they broke up or if he didn’t care about it. ‘Well Eileen, again, this leads you to one question: how jealous are you?’

my mind asked. On a scale from 0 to 10, how jealous am I? To be honest I was totally jealous at the moment. Jealous of the fans that were at the arena tonight, jealous of Sophie who could’ve spent the last days with Josh in the studio, jealous of every journalist who spoke to him in the last weeks and jealous of Mia who was part of his home and even furnished it. I wanted to scream but I didn’t. Instead I did what Lara told me, I took another vodka shot, went into the living room where we had this new smart TV Leon gave us – he brought himself a bigger one – and opened the link to watch the concert. It was strange seeing Josh and the band on this big screen at 5:10am in Berlin while everyone was sleeping – but I was happy seeing him again. I tried to forget about the fans, about girls he could meet on tour, Sophie and even Mia. I suppressed it and focused on the concert which was starting with “Can’t Stop”. “Are you still awake?” Lara asked when she came home from partying. It was 5:37am. “Kind of” I answered. She grabbed the blanket next to me and sat down at the sofa. “Chili Peppers?” “Yes, it’s live from San Francisco” “Oh cool!” she said and took a glass of coke. “Well, I’m not tired enough so I join you” she said and laid her head on my shoulder. There we were: two girls in an apartment in Berlin watching a live concert of the Chilis at 6am in the morning.

The Chilis ended their set with “Give It Away” – as always. Josh waved at the fans and then left the stage while Flea thanked the audience and spread some love. The camera followed him leaving the stage and for a few minutes we could see what the band did right after the gig. They were standing there, some towels on their shoulders, talking and laughing. Anthony has left with his son while Flea welcomed Clara. I wanted to see Josh but it seemed that he had left yet….until the camera turned around and I saw him talking to a woman and some guys around him. It was Sophie and her band. “Who’s that girl?” Lara asked into the silence of the room. “Sophie” “This Swiss musician?” “Yes” “Why is she there?” “He gave her and her band tickets” “For the backstage area?” “Seems like that” I took another glass of coke and tried to stop me from thinking about Josh and all the opportunities he could have while touring. “Well, sometimes he’s too nice don’t you think?” Lara asked me. “Why?” “I think he can’t say ‘no’. He always wants to make people happy I suppose…” “Well actually he can say no. He did when I informed him about this job opportunity in Roseburg” “Hm, okay….” “He’s not like any other man” “That’s true” she said. “Is it hard work being in a relationship like that? I think I couldn’t do that. I couldn’t be in a relationship with someone so famous” “I think he’s not that famous….he can walk down the streets without people noticing it. But I get what you mean, he doesn’t have a normal job, he’s always on the road. I don’t know how it will work when I’m back in L.A….I guess we’ll see” “I think you two are doing great. I’m very proud of you and I’m happy for you. Josh seems to make you so happy and that’s a good thing. When I think back….one year ago…there was this heartbroken girl in my apartment that just wanted to flee from her pain in California. She came to cold Berlin and just did it. I mean, look at you now. Self-confident, lucky in love” she smiled at me and gave me a hug. “Thank you Lara, honestly thank you. I think I wouldn’t have made it this far without you” I let her know. “Promise me that we stay in contact even if I’m back in L.A.” “We do!” she said smilingly and hugged me.

“You’re very happy with Josh, right?” Lara said while she was eating a chocolate bar. It was already 8:12am but we didn’t care. We weren’t tired. “I am. I really am” I answered without thinking about it. “But as you said, it’s not that easy. We have to manage our time together. Plus, I have to manage my jealousy” “Well, I guess if time flies by, you won’t be that jealous because you know him better and you can trust him better. Believe me” “I hope so” “Why should he meet other women if he has you?” “I don’t know….maybe because it’s exciting. It’s something new. Maybe he’s bored?” “EILEEN!” Lara stopped me from thinking such awful self-hurting things. “Don’t you dare thinking about it ever again!” “Sorry….” I laughed. “But, you know, I recently had the thought if maybe I should try something new. Maybe surprise him….” “Hm, what do you mean?” “I want to surprise him” “Ohhh!” Lara giggled and listened carefully. This was her topic! “What are you thinking of?” she wanted to know. “Uhm….you know. Instead of travelling to Los Angeles I will travel to New Orleans two days previous to surprise him on tour. But I thought maybe I can surprise him in other forms as well, you know what I mean” I twinkled. “Oh sure! Surprise him with lingerie!” she leered. “Urgh I hate buying new one. But I’ll see. Or, do you have any other ideas what I can actually DO?” I wanted to know. “I mean, you’re the girl to ask” I grinned. “Absolutely!” she said and pointed me in the right direction.

“Well ehm, and you think that’ll work?” “Sure! I tried it several times” she leered and took a sip of her coke.

___________

This song perfectly fits to the chapter I guess....

youtube

#rhcp #rhcp fanfic #josh klinghoffer #joshklinghoffer fanfiction #fanfiction #redhotchilipeppers #red hot chili peppers fanfict #fanfic #dot hacker

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keywestlou · 5 years ago

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CORONAVIRUS NEEDS AND PROTECTIONS A NEW WAY OF LIFE

I would have to guess yesterday was my first day in a true coronavirus lifestyle. It will take a little getting used to.

My day involved banking, shirt laundry stop, Publix, receiving 5 boxes from Comcast, keeping groceries and Comcast delivery, exhausted, took a 3 hour much needed nap, missed TV sports, TV otherwise sucked last night.

I worried about everything I touched. Pruell delivery had not arrived yet.

Publix a disaster.

No carts. Had to wait a few minutes for one. Used Publix’s Pruell to wipe the hand portion down.

It could have been a few days before thanksgiving or Christmas. Publix packed. Aisles crowded. Jammed. Took forever to go up and down. I even ran into a woman pushing her cart. Her ankle. My apologies humbling. She thought the whole thing funny.

More shelves empty. Toilet paper not replenished. Clorox still gone. Tissues scarce. Bottled water less than half the usual supply.

I bought for tomorrow. Spent over $150. Never spend even $100. My freezer is filling up.

When I arrived home, 5 boxes from Walmart waiting on porch.

Unloading the car and bringing in the boxes an effort in itself. I’m too old for all that lifting.

Unpacked and kept everything.

My first Pruell arrived. I Pruelled everything. It came in an 8 inch tall and 5 inch wide container. One for the house and one for the car. Terrific! I smell antiseptic constantly!

I was exhausted. The shopping and keeping things too much. Hit the bed. Slept for 3 hours.

Normally, I do not mind being home evenings. Always some good sports. No more, however. Everything cancelled for the season.

I can live with movies. Especially the old ones. Not one last night any good.

Not the best of evenings! A drink or 2 would have helped.

I e-mailed Sloan yesterday to stop over. I need Sloan to set up the computer for my next Irma and Me. This one to be titled Coronavirus and Me.

Sloan always worries about me. She e-mailed this morning. Not coming. For fear of coronavirus. Not to affect her. Me.

Sloan is manager of the big sport clothing and equipment store that is part of the Margaritaville complex. She wrote she did not want to endanger me in the event she had picked up the virus.

She is going to set it up through her computer. She has access to mine. Then she will walk me through what to do.

Key West lost a giant tuesday. One of international fame.

Seward Johnson died. Eighty nine years old. At his winter home in Key West. Johnson’s home is near the Southernmost Point on South Street.

Johnson’s forte was sculpturing.

Marilyn Monroe in front of the Topic. Johnson’s. Two of the tall sculptures in front of the Custom House in years gone by, also. A couple ballroom dancing in full formal attire. The work based on Renoir’s A Dance at Bougival. Recall Unadulterated Surrender. A bronze version of the famous D-Day newspaper photo of a kiss between a sailor and a nurse.

His works will long be remembered.

May he rest in peace.

Typical Key West weather the next week. In the low 80’s each day.

Simonton Street is finally under repair. From Truman to Front. About time. Long overdue. Sidewalks to be repaired also.

Work started last week or this week. Began at Truman and will work its way toward Front.

The City responsible for the work. Selected the contractors.

I recall when the State repaired North Roosevelt Boulevard. Took forever! The reason being the construction crews did not work every day.

I sense the same thing occurring already with the Simonton Street repairs.

Saw no one working yesterday.

Everyone getting ready for coronavirus in one fashion or another. The question arises as to whether wisdom will prevail in each instance.

It was announced thursday the Lower Keys Medical Center was ready and waiting. Seven rooms had been made ready to serve as isolation rooms.

A problem from my perspective. Enough rooms? Seven a mere pittance. If isolation rooms are needed, it will without doubt be more than 7. Then what do we do?

Key West and the State’s Monroe County Director for Health have not thought the problem out sufficiently. They must think outside the box.

California’s Governor Newscom issued an Executive Order thursday. The State is authorized to take over hotels and motels to use as hospitals if so required during the crisis. Already one motel has been appropriated. The San Carlos. It is being used to care for and isolate passengers from the Grand Princess cruise ship.

One thing Key West has a lot of are hotels and motels. It would not be a bad idea to plan for their usage if necessary.

Insanity! Insanity! Insanity! Man is frequently crazy!

Pedophilia in the Catholic Church bad. No question about it.

How about a government encouraging pedophilia. It happened. In Germany from 1969-2003. The sickening and bizarre sexual experiment about to be described reflects shades of Dr. Mengele.

Lawsuits have been initiated on behalf of the children now adults who were legally placed in pedophile situations.

Specifically involved is the Berlin Senate.

The activity is described as the Kentler Experiment. Helmut Kentler convinced the Berlin Senate that pedophilia could have “positive” consequences on children who were unruly or “feeble minded.” They would benefit from “adult sexual education.”

He convinced the powers to be that children would be “head over heels in love” with their new father figures.

It cannot be ascertained whether the Berlin Senate formally agreed to the situation or approved it behind closed doors.

Whatever, the Berlin Senate has acknowledged its responsibility in these cases. All that remains is for settlements to be negotiated.

An amazing story!

I discussed yesterday the Federal Reserve Repo of $1.5 trillion. The money directed to Wall Street to insure certain banks and other financial institutions would not go under.

Appreciate that $1.5 trillion is an amount equal to the total amount of the student debt, more than twice as much as the original TARP bailout during the 2008 financial crisis, and nearly 30 times the net worth of Michael Bloomberg.

Where does the money come from? The $1.5 trillion? Simple: From thin air. The Fed simply adds some numbers onto a balance sheet and the money is created.

Scary!

The stock market went up 1,980 points yesterday. Based on Trump declaring a national emergency and $50 billion in funding.

It will go down again next week.

No matter what is done, we are heading for a world wide recession.

Many schools have been closed through out the country. New York City has declared an emergency situation. However, its schools remain open.

Mayor de Blasio has an additional problem if he closes the schools. One hundred thousand children are homeless. The only meal most get each day is the one the school system provides free. How do these kids get fed if the school system closes down?

De Blasio smart. He’ll work it out.

Tom Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson have tested positive for coronavirus and are in isolation in Australia. Hanks appears to want to keep people advised as to how he and his wife are handling the problem. I sense to make people aware as to what will confront them if they are similarly diagnosed.

Hanks and wife issued separate statements yesterday. Hanks’ second in the past few days.

Hanks reported, “There are those for whom it could lead to a very serious illness. We are taking it one day at a time. There are things we all can do to get through this by following the advice of experts and taking care of ourselves and each other, no?”

Hanks also wrote, “Not much more to it than a one day at a time approach.”

Hanks’s wife Rita exposed her sense of humor: “From here on out, the only Corona I want is from Mexico and you drink it!”

Enjoy your day!

CORONAVIRUS NEEDS AND PROTECTIONS A NEW WAY OF LIFE was originally published on Key West Lou

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micaramel · 5 years ago

Link

Artist: Vincent Fecteau

Venue: Wattis, San Fransisco

Date: September 5 – November 9, 2019

Click here to view slideshow

Full gallery of images, press release, and link available after the jump.

Images:

Images courtesy of Galerie Buchholz, Berlin/Cologne/New York; greengrassi, London; and Matthew Marks Gallery, Los Angeles. Photos by Johnna Arnold and Nicholas Lea Bruno.

Press Release:

1. These sculptures are tools.

Some artists begin with an idea or an opinion, and use it to make an artwork—first comes the meaning, then comes the object. But for Vincent Fecteau, ideas never work. His sculptures don’t come as a result of an idea but are the tools he uses in his attempt to generate ideas and make meaning.

He begins with an initial impulse or desire (the specific trigger quickly becomes irrelevant) and proceeds by folding, cutting, twisting, trimming, adding, leveling, scraping off, smoothing out, carving away, turning over, twisting back, and adding again. He ties knots into other knots. Bit by bit, he locates the sharpest edges of whatever emerges—the parts of an object that cut into meaning in a way that makes ideas nervous or that puts them on alert. Eventually, each sculpture is wound up until it can’t be made any tighter, sharpened until it can’t be made any sharper, and it is released into the wild, perhaps to become a tool for other people as well.

2. These sculptures are abstract.

Everything is abstract. By which I mean—a thick sludge of matter, energies, and consciousness is all there really is, at the end of the day. And these sculptures are simply tools that try to access the abstract. They work at getting a bit closer to it, maybe even to stick their toes in it, to get dirty with it. Fecteau doesn’t invent an abstract form as much as he learns how to find one.

These sculptures don’t believe in distinguishing the abstract from the really real. Abstraction is not a chosen style or a composition but is deeply human—it’s about the lived experience of locating and co–existing with it. Any other artwork, be it a figurative painting or a realistic photograph, is just as abstract as Fecteau’s, only differently so.

That said, these sculptures aren’t anchored to the world by being connected to a recognizable topic, message, or, worse, an instruction for how to think or what to believe. Instead, they communicate by speaking a language art is particularly good at—that of arranged shapes, colors, textures, intuitions, and intentions. I decided not to approach content directly, but to trust that it would follow me as I moved around the room. (Fecteau).

3. These sculptures are made by Vincent Fecteau.

Fecteau grew up on Long Island, went to Wesleyan, studied painting, interned with Hannah Wilke for a summer, didn’t like New York that much.He took time off from college and moved to San Francisco in 1990 to work with ACT UP. He worked as a studio assistant to Nayland Blake for a few years, handpainted ceramics, and ended up as a florist. He had his first show in 1994, consisting mostly of photo–collages of cats. When Blake decamped for the East Coast, Fecteau took over his apartment and has been making his handcrafted sculptures ever since. When I asked him what he was reading these past few months, he mentioned Now the Night Begins, a novel written by the French filmmaker Alain Guiraudie (Stranger by the Lake). He lives near Balboa Park in the Mission Terrace neighborhood. There is a great painting by Tomma Abts in his kitchen. He bikes everywhere.

4. These sculptures are necessary.

Like practically any other work of art, these sculptures are made by someone who needs to make them. The question is not to ask how Fecteau makes them but why he makes them. The answer, always, is somewhat embarrassing or humiliating, since the sculptures end up saying more about the artist than anything else. They reveal too much, because all self–portraits reveal too much. In all they say about his achievements and capabilities, they say just as much about his limitations. They contain his secrets.

But these objects also embody the contradictions that all of us are: they appear calm yet agitated, exposed but also secretive, fully formed but still formless.

5. These sculptures are traps.

Vince sends me a Youtube link. It’s a talk by the artist Don Potts, from 1981.

You go to that feeling, you work on the trap, the trap sucks the feeling in, makes the feeling a little bit more concrete, you go back to the trap, you get rid of the junk, you build a more pure version, you go back to the feeling, and you just go back and forth. And over the course of the whole process, you start sucking this thing in, sucking this thing in—the trap is starting to catch it.(…) And then, one part of this trap becomes very important. No fussing around in this area. Other areas, you know, there’s some glue hanging off it, or maybe an inch too big, it’s not important. (…) What you’re trying to catch is something you’ve never had your hands on. It’s subtler than you can think, than your awareness can comprehend. So the trap has to be subtler than any trap you’ve ever made. You can’t use old trap–making techniques. It will just get you so far, but it won’t take you that last step, to catch that thing. So you’re all alone, well not all alone, mom is always around, [laughter], but you can’t go to history books, you can’t go to past work, you have to just respond to what it is you’re trying to catch. And it gets incredibly exciting. (…) At the last moment, when you put the last touches on the trap, something will happen. It’s not a trap anymore, it is what you’ve been trying to catch. This thing becomes that awareness or that idea, or whatever—you can’t talk about these things with words, you know. And there it is. And you look at it. And there have been times when I’ve just, you know, cried. Not, you know, going– to–lie–down–on–the–bed crying, [laughter] but emotion will just pour out of my eyes. (Don Potts)

6. These sculptures are leaps of faith.

The painter Agnes Martin talked about surrendering the intellect. For many, to allow experience to precede cognition is a scary proposition. It puts us in a vulnerable place—walls need to be down, filters off. But what is art about if not vulnerability? Clicking back to Don Potts: you need to be working right at that bottom edge of your nervous system.

Fecteau never draws and never makes preliminary sketches—he jumps right in.When he makes a cut into a shape, he can’t click undo but can only allow consequences to determine his next set of decisions. There is no safety net. It’s like when you delete that sentence you’ve become really attached to, even though you don’t yet know what will replace it. These sculptures don’t know, they believe.

These sculptures are made the way kids build backyard spaceships, with meticulous attention to detail, a grudging respect for the trash he works with, and no real hope of re–creating what he sees when he closes his eyes. (Dennis Cooper)

7. These sculptures are new.

Even if they resemble others that came before it. They were made all at once, as a group, over the period of a year and a half. Decisions have migrated from one to another, making them siblings, of sorts—related but self–sufficient. They are made of carved foam, painted papier–mâché, and bits of resin clay. Some 3–D scanning and a 5–axis CNC router were also involved at one point in the process, which, for the artist, has been an experiment.

8. These sculptures are evidence.

These sculptures are the physical traces of a desire, an intention, or an impulse. They provide evidence of personal and material limitations. They capture the artist’s present state of mind, putting it on display for all to see.

They are also evidence of a battle between what is and what needs to be. They began on an open battlefield, where possibilities seemed endless. The material made a move, the artist made another, and art made yet another, each maneuvering itself away from, around, but also closer to the other. As they close in on each other, the decisions get smaller and smaller. The grip tightens.

To some of you, these sculptures will resonate, or strike a chord. They will prove that you share something with someone else. They are evidence that you are not alone.

9. These sculptures are here.

They sit on white pedestals, on display in a gallery. They claim space,perhaps even compress space. They are not models or surrogates for something else. They aren’t also elsewhere, the way images can be. They exist in the world irreducibly and uncontainably (Fecteau). Their job is to make manifest, in physical form, some of what is not here, or at least not visibly so—the psyche, the libido, and everything else that remains unsaid and unsayable.

Also here are photographs by Lutz Bacher. She and Fecteau have been friends for many years, often sharing ideas and inspirations. Sometimes, Fecteau would come across an object or a situation and would immediately know—that’s a Lutz. He would have to pull over or stop to take a picture, and send it to her. She would usually respond with an emoji or two. Years later, much to his delight, he would find out that she had turned the image or object into an artwork. Before she passed away, just a few months ago, the two artists had the idea of including some of those in this exhibition—works by Bacher that had originally been images Fecteau had found and sent her. They come back to him now, charged with life and friendship.

10. These sculptures are untouchable.

Which is ironic, because they were made by hand and consist of nothing other than the physical traces of the artist’s own touch. But these sculptures are untouchable in the way sound is untouchable—physically felt but impossible to actually hold on to. They look like what a polyrhythmic piece of music might look like, where many rhythms are made to intersect and overlap, even if they’re all happening at the same time, on top of each other.

I imagine an artwork as a fire that people gather around, Fecteau once said. His sculptures are untouchable not because they might burn your hand but because the “art” in them is located in the energy they generate and in the emotions they mobilize. And, like the warmth of a fire or a melody, these sculptures can’t be photographed. Should you try, most of the object will be absent from the image—and that’s sculpture’s great advantage over other forms of art: it’s always hiding something. As Don Potts said about his traps, if too much of the hook is exposed, the fish doesn’t bite.

P.S. These sculptures are not art.

Art is an ideal. It’s not an actual object. Objects can be evidence of an aspiration to “art,” but I think “art,” as a concept, is something bigger. It’s truth. It’s beyond museums and galleries and even artists. It’s out of our reach. How we use our limited means to try and approach this truth can be very moving. (Fecteau)

Vincent Fecteau (b. 1969, Islip, NY) has had solo exhibitions in prestigious institutions around the world such as Secession in Vienna (2016), Kunsthalle Basel (2015), The Art Institute of Chicago (2008), and The Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archives (2002), among others. His work was featured in the 2002 and 2012 Whitney Biennials in New York and the 2013 Carnegie International in Pittsburgh, among other major group exhibitions. In 2009, he curated an exhibition of works from SFMOMA’s collection. The MacArthur Foundation named Fecteau a 2016 MacArthur Fellow. He currently lives and works in San Francisco.

Anthony Huberman

Link: Vincent Fecteau at Wattis Institute

Contemporary Art Daily is produced by Contemporary Art Group, a not-for-profit organization. We rely on our audience to help fund the publication of exhibitions that show up in this RSS feed. Please consider supporting us by making a donation today.

from Contemporary Art Daily http://bit.ly/2OXcjN8

#micaramel

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businessweekme · 7 years ago

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The American Dream Leads to Canada

The American Dream leads to Canada: Why some of the most highly prized immigrant tech workers in the US are ditching their visas and moving north to Canada.

Vikram Rangnekar grew up in Mumbai, studied computer science at the University of Delaware, and by the waning days of the Obama administration had been working in Silicon Valley for almost six years. Through his job as a software engineer at LinkedIn Corp., Rangnekar secured an H-1B, the temporary visa for high-skilled workers, and the company began the process of sponsoring his green card way back in 2012. But he had dozens of senior colleagues from India who’d been waiting a decade or more for their green cards and still didn’t have them. “Some said it’d take 20 years for my turn,” Rangnekar remembers. “Others calculated 50 years—which is basically never.” As a young man with a global sensibility and an in-demand set of skills, Rangnekar had no reason to let the uncertainty of a green card application define his family’s life. In the early fall of 2016, he, his wife, and their two young boys made the move north, to Canada.

Their first few months in Toronto were mostly spent settling in and scouting out decent tacos. Then Donald Trump won the U.S. presidential election. Rangnekar’s inbox blew up with messages from friends and colleagues in the U.S. on H-1Bs asking for advice on how to migrate. Rather than deal with each one individually, he registered a website, MOVNorth.com—a reference to MOV, a classic coding command for copying data from one location to another—and wrote everything down there. He shared the URL on LinkedIn—of course—hoping it would help a few people. Sitting in a light-filled coffee shop in his hip Toronto neighbourhood less than a year later, Rangnekar pulls up the website on his MacBook. “That’s me,” he laughs, pointing to a selfie of him in a parka and wool beanie, both dusted with snow, smiling broadly and “freezing away.”

In its first two days online last July, MOVNorth.com got 20,000 views. He quickly set up a forum where people could ask and answer each other’s questions, and early last fall added a paywall to encourage people to commit to the community. Today, the site gets as many as 100,000 views per month—Rangnekar can track Trump’s rhetoric just by the spikes in traffic. Roughly 250 people pay $99 a year for access to the forum, almost all of whom are actively pursuing a move. He knows of at least a dozen other engineers who took his advice and have already arrived in Toronto.

Rangnekar still gets email queries daily, mostly from engineers with Indian surnames, all looking for the same information. Then there are the other emails, the ones Rangnekar calls “nastygrams.” He pulls up a sample with the subject line “Ignorant Idiot.” “You’re going to ruin your own country’s economy by making it harder for Canadians to find jobs, so for that reason we here in the US stopped foreign visas,” he reads. “We are becoming a proud independent nation again.”

There are anti-immigrant and so-called alt-right groups in Canada, but they haven’t gained the same traction as in the U.S. and Europe. The country has historically courted immigrants to propel economic growth. Now, at least 1 in 5 Canadian residents was born abroad; in Toronto, which has a thriving Indian community, more than half are foreign-born. “Canadians don’t send me any of this,” Rangnekar says, waving a hand at the screen.

Sometimes Canadians—always polite—write wondering whether an invasion of engineers will hurt the country. He writes back explaining what to him is an obvious, pragmatic reality: that tech is growing in its importance to culture and economies, and the benefits in terms of jobs and wealth are increasingly concentrated in global cities like Toronto. In short, as he sees it, the influx of migrants to Canada helps everyone.

The H-1B was created in 1990, part of an immigration overhaul signed into law by President George H.W. Bush that also created the EB-5 investor visa—the subject of a fracas involving Kushner Cos. seeking Chinese investment—and the diversity lottery, which Trump has attacked. Today, an estimated half a million H-1B holders live in the U.S. No one tracks exactly how many ditch their skilled visas for the permanent residency Canada offers, but during the first year of Trump’s presidency, the number of tech professionals globally who got permanent residency in Canada ticked up almost 40 percent from 2016, to more than 11,000.

Almost from the beginning, the H-1B system had obvious flaws. Outsourcing companies flood the application pool with jobs that barely qualify as high-skill, taking visas that could go to full-time employees at advanced technology companies. The cap on the number of H-1B visas fluctuates, but in the five-day annual application window in early April, about 190,000 people petitioned for just 85,000 spots—in Obama’s last year, 236,000 applied for the same number of visas. The lucky winners are chosen in a lottery. H-1Bs cost employers from $1,710 to $7,700, depending on factors such as their size and how much they depend on foreign staff. A chunk of those fees is earmarked for training U.S. workers in science and technology, but an analysis by the Brookings Institution found that, on balance, the money isn’t going to the areas with the highest demand for tech workers, i.e., where the greatest number of Americans could benefit.

Rangnekar received his H-1B in 2010, but his history with employment visas dates to 2005, when he graduated from the University of Delaware and wanted to start a company with two of his former classmates. The U.S. didn’t have an entrepreneur visa, so they moved to Singapore, returning four years later to present their product—Socialwok, a pre-Slack social platform for professional collaboration—to investors at the TechCrunch50 startup conference in San Francisco. They didn’t attract new cash, but all three walked away with the next best thing: a promising job offer.

Rangnekar had met his wife, Deepa Chaudhary, in Mumbai, and they married before moving to Singapore. Once they settled near San Jose, “I was seduced by the Californian lifestyle,” Rangnekar says. “The work environment, the free food, the state-of-the-art gym, a home in the Santa Cruz mountains.” Yet there were things preventing them from committing for the long haul. In Singapore, Chaudhary worked for Salesforce.com Inc.’s philanthropic foundation, but the spousal visa that comes with the H-1B, the H-4, at the time forbade her from holding a job. (Guidelines issued in early 2015 allowed certain H-4 holders to apply for work permits, but the Trump administration is reconsidering that policy.) Immigration law limits how many people from any given country can be granted green cards, and because Indians get about three-quarters of all H-1Bs, their backlog has grown. The couple began considering where they might go: to Singapore, to a European tech hub such as Berlin, or even to India. Then a friend of a friend mentioned Toronto.

In 1967, Canada became the first country to adopt a points-based immigration system. The country regularly tweaks how it rates applicants based on national goals and research into what makes for successful integration: A job offer used to come with 600 points, but now it’s worth just 200. Other factors like speaking fluent English or French—or, even better, both—have been given more weight over the years. Country of origin is irrelevant.

In 2016, Canada increased national immigration levels to 300,000 new permanent residents annually. Last year, in consultation with trade groups, it created a program called the Global Skills Strategy to issue temporary work permits to people with job offers in certain categories, including senior software engineers, in as little as two weeks. Since the program started in June, more than 5,600 people have been granted permits, from the U.S., India, Pakistan, Brazil, and elsewhere.

When he and Chaudhary decided to move, Rangnekar had an idea for a startup aimed at helping developers use advanced programming interfaces, or APIs, to build apps, but neither of them had a job offer. Still, for Canada at least, they were desirable applicants. Standing in the bright kitchen of their rented row house, their 3-year-old son slurping strawberry ice cream, they explain how simple it was to go online back in San Jose and, using a calculator provided by the Canadian government, determine with relative certainty that they would qualify for permanent residency. The hardest part about applying was taking a photo that met Canada’s specifications. “She sent them to me, and I was like, ‘This looks OK,’ ” Rangnekar says. Chaudhary cuts him off: “I was like, ‘No! It has to be centred like this!’ ” Once Trump was elected, Canadians would cautiously ask Rangnekar, “What do you think about him?” “I make it clear what side I’m on,” he says. Rangnekar watched as the travel ban triggered sweeping protests, legal challenges, and, among many in Trump’s base, red-blooded exultation. The nationalist wave hit home for many H-1B workers that February when a white man walked into a bar in Olathe, Kansas, shouted “Get out of my country!” and shot two Indian engineers.

Trump has since called for broad cuts to legal immigration and accused the H-1B system in particular of stealing jobs from American workers. He’s also advocated adopting a points-based system similar to Canada’s, but since Congress has to approve any changes to immigration law, it’s hard to see the U.S. replicating the flexibility of the Canadian system.

At first, after Rangnekar started MOV North, “People’s questions were like, ‘Tell us about Canada,’ ” he says. “That was really it.” They wanted to know the basics—jobs, schools, snow. Over time, as people began seriously considering a move, they asked detailed questions about the immigration process. “I was like one of them on the other side,” he says. Topics of interest now range from how to get fingerprinted for the FBI background check Canada requires to tips for getting letters from former employers detailing work experience.

Anand Iyer was living near San Jose when he stumbled on a post about MOV North that Rangnekar had put on the Q&A platform Quora. Iyer had an H-1B visa through his work for a cloud-services company and a house in Silicon Valley where he lived with his wife, but the uncertainty of waiting in the green card line was getting to him. “Friends in the same boat would constantly remind us that we might have to leave the country in weeks if our H-1B extension did not come through,” he says.

The couple eventually sold their home and moved to Mississauga, outside of Toronto, with their 2-year-old. Iyer still works remotely for the same company, but he took a pay cut to reflect the lower cost of living. Taxes are higher, but the government provides more, including health care and preschool. List prices for single-family homes in Iyer’s suburb and row houses in Rangnekar’s hipper neighbourhood have risen to around $900,000 (roughly C$1.1 million)—not cheap, but not Bay Area. All told, Iyer finds his quality of life has improved. “Silicon Valley is way more competitive,” he says. He’s remained active on the MOV North forums, answering questions rather than asking them. His responses have already persuaded some friends of his wife’s who were caught in green card paralysis to apply for passage into Canada.

In MOV North’s early days, Rangnekar tended to the site at night after working on his startup all day. But as the volume of questions coming in increased, so did the amount of time the site demanded. People would email to thank him—then ask for more help. “That motivated me because it tells you you’re kinda doing something right,” he says. “Very few people wrote to me about my APIs.” He began wondering if MOV North could became his primary business.

As recently as a few years ago, the kind of jobs that might interest a top engineer weren’t plentiful in Toronto, but that’s changing. Google, Uber, and Amazon are expanding their engineering outposts, and the Canadian government is pouring money into artificial intelligence research and facilities such as the MaRS Discovery District, a tech incubator whose startups have employed more than 6,000 people as of the end of 2016. There’s work to be found in other Canadian cities, too. Montreal is home to Google’s AI research lab, the e-commerce giant Shopify Inc. is based in Ottawa, and the social media manager Hootsuite Inc. is Vancouver’s hometown darling, though most people Rangnekar talks with are interested in Toronto.

For now, the differences between U.S. and Canadian immigration policies are creating major opportunities for Canadian entrepreneurs to lure workers who otherwise would have looked south. Bob Vaez was raised in Toronto, and in the 2000s, Vaez worked for Silicon Valley chipmaker Nvidia Corp. on a TN work permit, a provision under the North American Free Trade Agreement that makes it easy for Canadian professionals to work in the U.S. The TN, like the H-1B, is tied to employment, so when Vaez decided to start his own company, that was that. “To me it was, ‘This is the land of opportunity,’ ” he says. “And the next thing, I got a call from the company’s lawyers, like, ‘You know, you have to leave the U.S. in five days.’ ” He knew Canada could be more welcoming. Vaez’s engineer parents immigrated from Iran, but his aunts came over as refugees during the Cultural Revolution. “We’ve got the point system, but there is also a different situation when there is humanity at stake,” he says.

Vaez returned to Toronto and co-founded EventMobi, which builds apps for conventions and corporate training sessions. He hopes to take advantage of the uncertainty in the U.S., in part, by working with MOV North on a new hiring platform Rangnekar is building. Once it’s up and running, companies will be able to search for applicants, which his algorithm ranks based on their relevant skills and experience. “I’m a software guy. I just look for any excuse to automate something,” Rangnekar says. He knows the business well—after all, he spent years at LinkedIn. One advantage he has over traditional recruiters, as he sees it, is that people who sign up for his site have already expressed interest in Canada. So far thousands of people have registered, all saying they want to move. <BW>

The post The American Dream Leads to Canada appeared first on Bloomberg Businessweek Middle East.

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#Focus On #canada #immigration #usa

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liuglobal · 7 years ago

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Amazing Taiwan

by Julia McCoy

I touched down in Taipei at 8PM, a little worse for wear from a nearly 14-hour flight. In my travels thus far, both for school and for fun, I had yet to visit Asia, and the first two hours did nothing to impress me. It was dark, it was rainy, and I was thoroughly car sick by the time I arrived at the hostel where we were to spend the next week-and-a-half. Maybe it’s just another city, I thought, as the front desk assistant explained the nuances of key cards, maybe it’ll just be another class location. It wasn’t until I arrived at my room on the fifteenth floor and opened my curtains that I understood: the view was spectacular. People can identify major cities worldwide from night photographs of their skyline, and though my view was from inside the city itself, it may well have been a postcard photo for the impression it made upon me. A lazy river, elegant suspension bridge, and a steady stream of tail and headlights on the right, an industrial district with only a smattering of lights like fireflies, and, in the far distance, a Ferris wheel. No two nighttime cityscapes are the same, and I fell asleep excited to see the city in the daylight.

Three days later, with everyone settled in, Taipei begins to feel like an education, rather than vacation. New faces come together as students from two different LIU Global Centers, plus a few stragglers, meet and begin to compare notes. Have you had this professor before? Where did you spend your Winter break? Do you speak enough Mandarin to order me a bubble tea? What’s the best subway system you’ve been on? That last question is popular; in my personal opinion, Taipei is currently tied with Berlin, since they are equally spotless. We are all thrilled for the two classes we will be beginning here: Ethnic Minorities in China, taught by Professor Liu Wei, and Topics in Chinese Society and Change, taught by Dale Albanese. Most of our daily events are focused on Dale’s class, though we receive lectures in both. I find myself waking early again, a change from my habit at home, simply because I am so thrilled to begin my day. I also rise early to catch the free breakfast, complete with fresh juice. That’s something many students miss when they return to the States from the Global Centers, how much fresher the food tastes.

Though the food in Taipei is no exception, it is often the least exciting part of our busy days. Each day we are introduced to truly amazing people and visit impressive sites. One day we have lunch in the Legislative Yuan with KMT Legislator Jason Hsu, a charming man who tells us of his fight for marriage equality in Taiwan. The next afternoon, we are having a lively discussion on activism and politics with Brian Hioe, the editor of Taiwan’s independently published English-language magazine New Bloom. At night we are visiting the theater to view the subversive, emotional animated film On Happiness Road; later, I enjoy hot pot for the first time with my class as we compare how many times the movie made us cry. Left to our own devices, we wander through the exhilaratingly busy night market and eat every iteration of street food we can find. To my knowledge, no one had the courage to try the stinky tofu, though Dale promised us it tastes better than it smells. We rode the subway all the way out to the zoo and eschewed the animal attractions for the scenic gondola, riding it to the top of a lush mountain and rewarding ourselves with afternoon tea. Some nights, we stayed in and read, passing out at 9PM from sheer exhaustion. Every day was an adventure, but one, in particular, stands out.

In preparation for writing this, I consulted with many of my classmates. I wanted to know their fondest memories, and their takeaways, and even their frustrations. I found that all anyone wanted to talk about was Yilan; if I’m being honest, it’s all I wanted to talk about either. So much happened that day, it took three of us to piece it together. Yilan is a county in Northeastern Taiwan. That morning, Dale woke us up at a rather unpleasant hour, herded us onto a bus, and acted as our hype man all the way to the Lanyang Museum. There, we were free to wander as we learned about the flora, fauna, tribes, history, and industry of the area. From the interactive displays to the lovely pier where we discussed our impressions and ate cherry tomatoes from a nearby stand, the hours flew by. Before we knew it, we were whisked away to a beautiful temple filled with rather intimidating carvings. Dale entreated us to dry a favorite local treat of his, a small crepe filled with vanilla ice cream, shaved peanut brittle, and cilantro for the brave. We meandered over a hill and down to the beach as we waited for dinner. I have found in my years here that, for many Global students, learning is most effective when punctuated by breaks in nature; as we tugged off our shoes and ran onto the beach, I thought I heard a collective sigh. I certainly heard one when it was time to leave, but dinner turned out to be well worth it. Now, when I think of a seafood restaurant in the U.S., I imagine that they have sides and alternatives to go with the main fare. This endless family-style meal had absolutely nothing but seafood, seafood, seafood. At this point, I was regretting my personal pledge at the start of the trip to try everything, but I am not a quitter. That night, I ate at least one bite of every dish on the table: fish intestines, whole squid, cuttlefish sausage, and so much more. As we all loosened our belts, I think we assumed there was no way to top the day we had just had.

Every single person I asked said, unequivocally, that the after-dinner entertainment was the best part of the entire Taipei segment. It was the epitome of the Global experience, in that we learned more from this incredible experience, and generated more critical thought, than a three-hour lecture in a traditional classroom setting could ever replicate. That night, we attended a performance of the Paper Windmill Theatre. Founded in 1992, their many troupes travel the length of Taiwan, and sometimes further, bringing free theater to the children of small towns. They are funded by corporate donors and sponsorships and strive to bring artistic engagement to kids and their families who would otherwise not access is. The performance was engaging, innovative, and downright thrilling. Children from babies to preteens filled the audience with their parents; the director informed us later that 500 children were present that night, over half of the youth population in the entire town. They had acrobats, clowns, and a multilingual witch. There were funny skits, moral skits, and an entire five minutes of the audience throwing giant pool toy animals around. Though none of it was in English, I had only to look over my shoulder to see my classmates faces and know that they were enthralled. The grand finale involved the innovative use of pool noodles and a blacklight; incredibly low budget, but it will stick with me for the rest my life.

The reflection conversation the class had that night was Global College in its purest form. We spoke with passion, we asked a thousand questions, and each of us left with a burning desire to keep learning. It was all of these experiences that made our Taiwan trip distinct, an exhausting but perfect start to a semester in China. As the plane took off to ferry us to Hong Kong, I knew that, although we were all sad to go, those two weeks were only the beginning to our next Global adventure.

#liuglobal #julia McCoy #taiwan #taipei #college abroad #traveling #travel blogs

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usviraltrends-blog · 7 years ago

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New Post has been published on https://usviraltrends.com/a-final-dash-across-the-united-states-updates-from-the-2018-march-for-science-science/

A final dash across the United States: Updates from the 2018 March for Science | Science

After a rally on the Mall, science supporters marched to the U.S. Capitol

Katie Langin

By Science News StaffApr. 14, 2018 , 12:11 AM

The March for Science celebrated its anniversary today. And while the turnout around the world was significantly smaller than last year, supporters haven’t lost any of their energy.

The global grassroots movement has evolved from having a million people take to the streets in 2017 in more than 450 cities to year-round advocacy for science and for evidence-based policies by government officials. But 14 April is still the big event for many local groups.

Below are some of the highlights from events around the world, including the flagship rally in Washington D.C.

In Washington, D.C., fewer marchers but still fired up by Trump policies

At today’s march and rally on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the flagship event of the day’s global series of rallies, the crowd that gathered under sunny skies was considerably smaller than at the inaugural March for Science a year ago, when attendees packed the same space, a wide expanse near the Washington Monument, in the rain.

“It’s disappointing to see so few people” at the rally, said John Cosgrove, a retired high school science teacher who traveled from Easton, Pennsylvania, to attend, as he did for last year’s March for Science. “It’s waned a little bit, but the energy is still there.”

Science organizations that partnered with today’s March, among them AAAS (the publisher of Science), aimed to promote a nonpartisan message of support for science and its use in public policy. That message was echoed by today’s speakers, who included internet pioneer Vinton Cerf; public-health expert Susan Sorenson of the University of Pennsylvania, who spoke about the need for research on gun violence; and David Titley, a professor of meteorology at Pennsylvania State University and former chief oceanographer of the U.S. Navy, who led a Navy review of the effects of global warming on the Arctic, said and said that when it comes to climate, “Ultimately the facts on the ground and the evidence win.”

But national politics and the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump were very much on the minds of many in the crowd.

“Since Trump got into office, Scott Pruitt [administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency] has been rolling back environmental regulations,” said Dianne Holland, who lives in Northern Virginia and whose husband works for a government science agency. She attended last year’s March for Science, and since then, “I think what’s been happening with the administration has gotten worse. But I think the activism for science has improved.”

For example, she said, attending last year’s rally helped encourage her to work in her state to support petitions to ban offshore drilling for oil and natural gas. “I am more aware of the details of what’s happening than a year ago.”

Cosgrove, who carried a sign reading “Science: a candle in the dark” — an homage to a book by Carl Sagan by that name —said he worries about efforts in states to remove the science of climate change from school textbooks. He also fears the Trump administration is ignoring science in decisions such as withdrawing the United States from the Paris accord to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Jenny Kolber, an eleven year-old from Point Pleasant, New Jersey, carried a sign that said “I can’t believe I’m marching to save reality.” She was supposed to attend school today, in a make-up session following a series of snow days earlier this winter. But she and her mom drove to D.C. for the march instead because science is her favorite subject and she’s concerned that scientific facts are being denied. “I love school, but I’d come here everyday.” After a brief pause, she added: “If my parents let me.”

Kids also took center stage. Max Schill, a nine year-old from Williamstown, New Jersey, who has a genetic condition called Noonan syndrome, spoke about the need for more funding to fight rare diseases. Research to find cures can cost billions, he said, and he doesn’t have that kind of money in his “big blue piggy bank.”

After the speeches, several hundred marchers walked along Constitution Avenue from the Washington Monument to the U.S. Capitol, led by organizers carrying the same “March For Science” banner as last year. The march route was packed with onlookers—mostly there to see the cherry blossoms, visit museums, and otherwise enjoy the nice weather—and many stopped to watch the marchers pass by. Outside the National Gallery of Art, one man took photos and shouted “Science is cool! Go science!” Nearby, a woman asked her companions: “Can we get in?” –Katie Langin and Jeff Brainard

Katie Langin

Jeff Mervis

Marching in the U.S.A.

#ScienceMarchNYC #MarchForScience #KnowledgeIsPower pic.twitter.com/Od8AFGZNyQ

— Teodora Pavkovic (@PsycoachTP) April 14, 2018

#MarchForScience #Oakland pic.twitter.com/FeObh6H1eY

— JJP (@phelanjj2) April 14, 2018

https://t.co/6a2oYmeaKr#marchforscience2018 #MarchForScience

Good to see all the support at the March for Science today pic.twitter.com/xGOuXvYhq7

— Steph S. (@StephSEcologist) April 14, 2018

A small but hearty group braved the Midwest weather to march for science in Des Moines today #marchforscience2018 #marchforscienceIA #marchforscience pic.twitter.com/YVmpdgHPw5

— MarchForScienceIA (@ScienceMarchIA) April 14, 2018

Antarctica and Africa join the marchers

Message of support from Antarctica: overwinterer at the Neumayer Station support the #MarchForScience @ScienceMarchDC @ScienceMarchGER pic.twitter.com/9yGPlJi0m9

— AWI Medien (@AWI_de) April 14, 2018

Uganda is ready for #MarchForScience!@nmugwanya @ScienceAlly pic.twitter.com/aLysGcpnll

— Ongu Isaac (@onguisaac) April 12, 2018

We did it @ScienceAlly #MarchForScience #Uganda pic.twitter.com/S5km901K1E

— Ongu Isaac (@onguisaac) April 14, 2018

‘Neighborhood nerds’ bring science to Berlin’s bars and cafes

BERLIN—No massive crowds at the Brandenburg Gate this year; the organizers of last year’s March for Science in Berlin—which drew more than 10,000 people and ended in a stirring song about freedom of thought—had instead invited scientists to meet with neighbors and other interested people in bars and cafes, an initiative named Kieznerds (“neighborhood nerds.”) After the 2017 success, another march might have become a “poor copy” that might even hurt the cause, says co-organizer Susann Morgner. So she and her colleagues asked Berlin’s watering holes if they would play host to scientists.

Some two dozen venues joined in, hosting talks about chemical experiments, animal communication, and viruses. One of them was La Tazza, a cafe in the trendy Prenzlauer Berg district whose owner, Delia Lemke, happens to be a professional science communicator. Some 10 guests sat at a long table for a discussion about “the importance of trust in modern times,” led by communication researcher Stefanie Molthagen-Schnöring of the University of Applied Sciences for Engineering and Economics in Berlin. (She and her husband have held similar debates at their home the past 3 years.)

To kick off the discussion, Molthagen-Schnöring cited alarming studies showing the diminished public trust in traditional media. She mentioned the work of German sociologist Niklas Luhmann, who has argued that trust reduces complexity. While trust between individuals or within organizations is a well-researched topic, trust within the public sphere deserves more study, Molthagen-Schnöring said.

The group discussed several questions, including how trust can be re-established in the Middle East as a precondition for peace talks. A student in regional management wondered how trust can be reactivated after it has eroded; a futurologist explained the limits to his predictions, which made him more trustworthy, a teacher who also took part in the discussion said. A participant working in science communication argued that researchers and scientific press officers should be clear about limitations and mistakes in science in order to build trust.

Kieznerds organizers had hoped that a considerable part of the audience would be nonacademic. But while the group in La Tazza included an artist and an au pair from China, the majority had links to science. The problem may just be that Prenzlauer Berg is home to many young academics, Lemke says. On Tuesday, Molthagen-Schnöring will lead a discussion in a low-income neighborhood with run-down highrise buildings where she might find more Berliners who have no connection to science. — Hinnerk Feldwisch-Drentrup

Kieznerds organizers worried that after last year’s successful event, another march would just be a “poor copy.”

Hinnerk Feldwisch Drentrup

Near Downing Street, a small rally focussed on climate change

LONDON— A small but enthusiastic group of about 80 people turned up today for the March for Science in London, a far cry from the estimated 10,000 last year. As the sun shone and several members of the crowd stripped down to T-shirts for perhaps the first time this year, one attendee wondered whether people had been mistakenly put off by the recent spate of stormy weather. Organizer Jillian Sequeira, a conflict studies student at the London School of Economics, had another take. Since last year “the world hasn’t fallen apart,” she said, and the feeling of urgency that characterized the previous march has dissipated.

But that doesn’t mean the issues have gone away, Sequeira said. “Even though there are fewer people, the message is just as important as before,” said rally participant Toby Olsen, who was visiting from Rhode Island. “There’s not really an excuse for being quiet.”

Those present had a variety of reasons for attending. Guy Pearce, runs the Worthing and Hove branch of Skeptics in the Pub, said that he was concerned that science funding was not a priority for the government. “Science works,” said another attendee, Duncan Rasor. “When somebody undermines that … we need to show support.” A common motivation was concern about the impact of recent policy decisions, particularly in the United States. Emma Fernandes, a visiting environmental science student also from Rhode Island, said that she was there to protest the Trump administration’s roll-back of environmental protections.

She was in the right crowd. The list of speakers this year was dominated by environmental groups such as Friends of the Earth, climate researchers, and self-proclaimed activists, so climate change was inevitably high on the agenda. “Science must play a central role in the pursuit of climate justice,” said speaker Rupert Stuart-Smith of the UK Youth Climate Coalition. Sequeira said this focus was intentional: While last year’s talks were mainly given by people from research institutes, this year she wanted to connect people with local organizations that they could get involved with—and most of those were groups involved in climate work.

There was no actual marching this year, but the 2-hour rally took place just across the road from Downing Street, the crowd mirroring the cluster of tourists hoping to get a glance at Prime Minister Theresa May. And given the focus of the day’s talks, the location seemed appropriate. Dorothy Guerrero of advocacy group Global Justice Now summed it up: “Science is political.” —Matt Warren

“There’s not really an excuse for being quiet,” says Toby Olsen (left), who attended the London rally with Emma Fernandes (right).

Matt Warren

A sign at the London rally.

Matt Warren

On the streets of New Delhi, to “keep alive the tradition of asking critical questions”

NEW DELHI—Last year, Indian scientists and science supporters didn’t march on 22 April, the day rallies were held in Washington, D.C., and around the globe, but more than three months later, on 9 August. This year, they took to the streets on the same day as the rest of the world. Marchers in New Delhi, pictured below, demanded that India’s investment in research and development increase to 3% of gross domestic product and asked for better science education and an end to unscientific thinking.

“For me the march is an opportunity to reach out to both members of the society as well as policymakers, to impress upon them the need to strengthen our scientific base,“ says Soumitro Banerjee of the Indian Institute of Science and Research in Kolkata, who participated in the Delhi march. Debabrata Ghosh, a professor at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi, had a wider audience in mind as well: “I attended the March in Delhi to keep alive the tradition of asking critical questions and to bridge the gap between scientists and non-scientists,” he says.

Marchers asked for India to spend 3% of its gross domestic product on science.

Manoj Singh

Don’t have your sign yet? Everyone is offering ideas

Last year, sign making parties were a popular pastime in the days before the March for Science. This year, a bevy of websites have put up stories aimed at giving marchers who might be at a loss for words (and pictures) a few ideas for their placards. A sampling:

At Thrillist, Joe McGauley offers “Funny, powerful and clever poster ideas for the science march this weekend.” I”[I]’s always a bit tough to figure out how best to get a message across in a sea of signs and chants,” he writes.

Don Duggan-Haas of the Paleontological Research Institution in Ithaca, New York, offers a few sign tips on the website of the National Association of Geoscience Teachers. “If science saved your life, or the life of a loved one, say it,” he writes. Then, you can “use the other side of your sign for your geoscience message.”

The website a plus has “13 awesome signs to inspire you before the march for science this weekend.”

And in case you missed it last year, STAT had “The 31 best signs people took to the March for Science.” And Bustle had “30 funny March for Science sign ideas.”

On Twitter, some folks say they are having a hard time deciding on their message:

Brainstorming for tomorrow’s #MarchForScience and I think I have hit a wall (and can’t find the rest of the markers.)

Don’t worry @FieldMuseum I will work on something a bit more, uhh, creative. pic.twitter.com/PQJ6v9dUeA

— Heidi (@heidyhoho) April 14, 2018

The marching is underway in Australia

Hours away from the beginning of the March for Science here in the eastern United States, the marching got started elsewhere around the globe. In Australia, events are planned for at least eight cities.

It was a small but enthusiastic crowd in Sydney. I look forward to updates as the #MarchforScience rolls around the world! pic.twitter.com/WgTuXYpY9F

— Lisa A. Williams (@williamslisaphd) April 14, 2018

And we’re off!!#marchforsciencesydney #sciencemarchau #sciencenotsilence pic.twitter.com/RWP2Z2oUSl

— GB-WildLyf (@MistressGeorge) April 14, 2018

March for Science in Townsville. So inspiring! #ScienceMarchTSV #ScienceMarchAu #ScienceNotSilence #KeepMarching #MarchForScience @RACI_HQ @RACI_Inorganic @RACIQld #ozchem @jcu @peterjunk2 pic.twitter.com/zB5Tz3I0hl

— Vicki Junk (@VickiJunk) April 14, 2018

Narrandera has now been added as an official #MarchForScience location! pic.twitter.com/GIxbFvB2F0

— Fiona Caldarevic (@FionaMagic) April 14, 2018

Global March for Science 2018. Kickoff in Sydney. Many thanks to organising team. Adam Spencer super MC. Focusing on need for science @iSTEMAustralia pic.twitter.com/g00WWusmCR

— Ken Silburn (@KenSilburn) April 14, 2018

In Virginia, ‘it will be different this year’

One person preparing for today’s event is Margaret Breslau, who last year helped lead a March for Science in Blacksburg, Virginia, that attracted more than 900 people. This year, she’s not sure how many people might show up, and she expects the tone of the march to be different. Instead of focusing on science “with a big S,” she says, she expects speakers and marchers to focus more on how the work scientists do affects social issues. Speakers, for example, plan to read statements from incarcerated people about the environmental and health conditions in prisons. There’s also likely to be discussion about a controversial local pipeline project and climate change.

“For me, it’s not just speaking out against the people and administrations denying science and defunding science and discrediting science,” says Breslau, who chairs Blacksburg’s Coalition for Social Justice. “I also want people to know that people are impacted every day by science, for better or worse. Science has incredible power. I think a lot of scientists probably do factor this in, but there has to be a human good.”

She credits March for Science organizers with maintaining communications since last year’s event. “They’ve been very good about it,” she says. “I found they’ve stayed engaged, and that’s really important. You have a lot of power in your hands when you do a national march, and keeping the energy up and the education is hard. I just can’t imagine. They’ve kept me engaged.”

And she doesn’t see this year’s march as the end of her engagement. “We have to keep building on what happens,” Breslau says. “As long as scientists are being silenced and cuts to education and programs [are happening] … you just have to keep going, that’s all.” —Catherine Matacic

Marches make a statement in the Philippines, Africa and Europe

Large and small, events are underway around the globe. Click here to see a map of all the scheduled March for Science events. Twitter is a good place to see what’s happening on the ground:

Not even the rain could stop science allies to ‘pour’ onto the streets of Kampala to #marchforscience @ScienceAlly @nbstv pic.twitter.com/Tah54IxPYH

— Nassib Mugwanya (@nmugwanya) April 14, 2018

Agham-Advocates of Science &Technology for the People joined other scientists in holding the March for Science Philippines #marchforscience pic.twitter.com/4dMNvKvBqr

— Agham Youth UPManila (@aghamyouth_upm) April 23, 2017

It is amazing how UKZN staff, students and various stakeholders have come in numbers to support the March for Science which starts at Durban City Hall. pic.twitter.com/alpN4EDOMI

— University of KZN (@UKZN) April 14, 2018

#Science

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