#owlie has too much power...

[jgvfhl]

Count Vega comparisons:

I'd like to thank all those who worked to bring Wolf King to netflix, bc that series has single-handedly smacked my tail feathers out of art block. SO!!!! I am comparing my interpretation of Count Vega from the books and the show's portrayal. Why? Because it's an excuse to draw my absolute beloved book character of all time, thank you.

Main points:

I fucking miss his cape and long hair. Those losses are tragic. The books also mentioned his sword having a basket hilt, and those are fancy as shit, but it tracks cuz he's a pirate prince and a sword master.

Show!Vega has shinies!! Necklaces! Rings! Cunty hoop earrings!! All good things, all very piratical. I love the added pops of color on the show's design in general.

FINNED BOOTS??? J'ADORE TELLEMENT!! TIT WINDOW????? give whoever thought of that a raise.

The facial hair threw me, I'll be honest. Still not sure about it, but also Vega in the books remains my only fav in any fandom who is clean-shaven, so maybe it was time lol

In brief: Owlie read these books at the same time Owlie's hyperfixation on the Atlantic Golden Age of Piracy began, and the books are quite... Eurocentric, in a way? So my Vega has much more inspiration from Atlantic pirates, where the show clearly draws from Arabic and Mediterranean influences in fictional pirates. Fabulous.

SO what does an Owlie do with this information? Put them both in a blender, obviously:

I uh... um... waow.... uhm...

@banananutloaf4life @soranatus @holyrunawaychild @angstybreadstyx @the-witch-forever-lives uhhhh yeah those are all the Wereworld folks I know off the top of my head :P

[bma-2020]

tbh i keep during series mally’s actual basis off who im writing w bc, obviously shes noncanon (in the miniseries in mY HEART nick willing or whatever his name is had her and burton did not) but if i did have it my way, and this is the main basis i came up with awhile ago but… dont really get to use;;;

1: definitely been in the room when hatter let alice in, cause shes a little shit and rarely leaves his side.

2: wouldn’t join them going to the resistance. In series it seems like he leaves Dormy in charge of things when he’s gone, jn my canon Dormy is Mal’s relative and introduced them, and Mally’s been by his side enough that he probably left her in charge while he took Alice to the resistance. She wouldn’t come to the resistance because since she was a former assassin, she doesn’t know who she’s killed. But she does know someone killed Dodo’s significant other. Doesn’t want to risk it having been her, even though that happened after she left the Casino.

3: He probably thought she was taken in when March ransacked the casino, cause Hatter definitely probably knows that she knew March at least, probably also knew they were partners. Hatter’s never seen March’s soft side (cause lbr… he doesnt have much of one) and probably figured he’d catch mally and run off. How this event would happen in the event this is the ‘canon’ i go w when writing w people differs, but either mally saw what was going on and not just transmutated her face, but probably ran off. The otherwise is she transmutated her face, but march saw through it, but like how he left dormy he pulled the suits away from mally and ignored her for the most part.

4: either event, Hatter thinks she’s been caught, which is what leads to him taking Alice to the forest. Mally lived in there, and she tamed the Jabberwock. He knows it won’t listen to him, but he also knows how dangerous it is. Alice could be safe, even if he has to sacrifice himself, though part of him also probably hoped mally got away and would be with her pet.

5: Thanks to Hatter and Alice leading Marchn co into the forest of Wabe, Mally couldn’t go back to her home, but she wanted to find Hatter and make sure he was okay. Much better at covering her tracks than him, she honestly probably would use her tracking skills to find him.

6: at this point it would be heavily thread dependent, cause obviously not everyone is gonna wanna diverge from series canon this way, but if Mally was looking for Hatter she’d definitely find him, and even if she was holding Alice H responsible for this mess, she’d still help out. Probably grow to like her too, especially when she sees her beat the shit outta people. You know she’ll throw in some comment about how she ‘likes your wrong Alice there, Hatter. Though, she’s still not Liddell.’ A symbolism to the fact that, although fractured, some memories of the old wonderland remain. Hatter would probably get upset at the remark, mainly because he gets sullen everytime the old alice is mentioned, potential hints towards him having vague memories of the time as well.

7: Mally definitely would have helped Hatter during each of the saving Alice moments. Tbh I’m sure the only reason Alice would have managed to sneak off in the first place w mally around is bc Mally would have been off collecting something for Hatter, probably returning around the time Hatter woke up.

8: During the second time when they get caught while trying to save Alice, Mally would definitely get caught too. Not by a suit or by a mistake, when Hatter gets nabbed she makes a go and takes down two or three of the suits, mostly trying to give Hatter a chance to get away. That would be the event in which March has no choice but to grab her too. They knew each other well enough that he’d know her weak points and probably kept one of her weaknesses on hand, so she’d knock out quickly (albeit, every quick method of taking her down gives her a great deal of pain.)

9: when it comes to taking down the casino, when Hatter escapes the Tweedles and takes down March, Mally’s probably locked in with another doctor and her not father. She just barely escapes, likely running into Hatter after he escapes. She uses her senses to tell him where Alice is, after he tells her not to heal him yet cause he can’t be dragging two people out of there. He goes to help Alice, she goes to release the refuges and resistance members kept as prisoners.

10: when the casino blows up, mal would join up with the rest of them outside. Gets to see the downfall of the Queen of Hearts. Actual respect for alice h arises, still claims she’s not like liddell.

11: She’d see Hatter’s reaction to Alice talking to Jack, probably realize he’s fallen for her. Trust me, she’s not happy about it. She wants Hatter to be happy, but he’s all she has, he’s her best friend, (and, lbr, she’s got a lot of unrequited love for him too). When Alice leaves she’s more upset at her for choosing Oysterland over Hatter. She knows Hatter’s upset when he refuses to let her heal him.

12: the three months in wonderland that pass happen, and its likely during this (natural for hatter) healing process that occurs, mally probably suggests he go after Alice. ‘Their time doesnt pass like ours does, you’ll probably get there within the same day she left.’ Encouraging him to go before she brushes them off as a dream or moves on, because even tho Mally doesn’t want to be alone, she doesn’t want him to be unhappy either.

13: Hatter leaves, and even tho it was Mally’s idea, the abandonment definitely strikes her.

14: at this point its open, as either the underground will snatch her up because she’s got enough power that they can convince her to overthrow Jack so the Hearts lose power altogether, probably after Jack makes the mistake of trying to use her as well

in the case of my verse w owly she finds Mad March and gets back w him after helping fix his head (the mainverse w owly is the only time mallys relationship w march became romantic)

and thats the.. short version…

[poisonappletales]

king Barium my life is yours if even a hair is misplaced you have my word, no harm shall come to bo-peep. lady bo-peep let us question the local wildlife around the hotel, the mask shops and then we shall go form there.

(Note: This response is part of the Love Hotel Mystery series! If this is your first time hearing about it and you want to know what it’s all about, look here.)

“I’m trusting you.” [Touching Bo-Peep’s shoulder, he draws her close for a quick kiss.] “See you soon, Bo-Peep.”

[giggling] “I’ll be back faster than you can say ‘peek-a-boo’!” [She trots off with a wave.] “Byeeee!”

[She speaks with the wildlife around the hotel, one of which was a crow that had flown past Arsenik’s window.]

“Hmm? I see, I see.” [Her head bobs with each “I see.”]

“It seems like Horsey Head and Owly flew away with Ambrosia in some biiiiig…thing.”  [She spreads out her hands to emphasize “big.”] “A thing with spinning blades on top.

I wonder what that is…it sounds like some kind of weapon!”

[She heads down the street towards the mask shops. She occasionally stops to chat with the chipmunks and birds when a resounding thump, followed by a rattling scream, draws her attention.]

“I think it came from that mask shop over there!”

[She points at its doors and then rushes into the store before anyone can stop her.

Inside, X is standing on the chest of a bloodied and bruised worker. He has the cash register in his strong hands, the steel sides smeared in red.

Bo-Peep gasps at the sight, covering her mouth with her hands. X’s head whips around at the sound.]

[dry sarcasm] “Sorry. We’re closed.”

[He begins to swing the register back down, clearly intending to smash it on the worker’s head again.]

“Stop!” 

[The word comes out in a high-pitched shriek that makes X wince.

Fortunately, it makes him pause just before the register can touch the trembling man on the floor.

Glancing back at her, X chucks the register at her with one hand. With a scream, she scoots to the side, the hunk of metal missing the tip of her nose by only a scant few centimeters.]

“Buzz off, lady. You’re annoying me.”

“But, but, but….”  [She raises her voice in shout.] “Help!  Help! Somebody, help!”

[He holds up a palm, an ember materializing within it.] “If you don’t stop screaming, I’m burning you and that man over here until there’s nothing left of either of you.

Now, if you want to let out your voice, why don’t you run outside and do that? Go on.”

[Bo-Peep’s gaze darts between the wheezing man on the ground and X, the brawny man splattered in his victim’s blood.

Her voice comes out just above a whisper:] “W-Why are you doing this?”

[He steps off the employee, and with fire continuing to rage within his upraised palm, he begins to stalk towards her.]

“I’m lookin’ for answers.”

[He stops in front of Bo-Peep, her eyes round with seeming terror.]

“You know anything about Horse Head?”

“H-Horse Head?”  [Realization dawns.] “T-The…the one who kidnapped Ambrosia!”

[His eyes narrow.] “You know who did it? You have something to do with it?”

[She hurries to wave her hands in front of herself.] “No, no, no! Um…it was Night and Chase! Uh, I mean, that’s who it’s been said it was, but we’re not really sure…”

“Night and Chase?” [The fire vanishes from his hand. He snatches the collar of her clothes, yanking her up and off the ground.] “How do you know this?”

“T-That’s what Ambrosia said! Uh, I mean, I don’t know if that’s what she said, but that’s what I heard from ashes-phe-”

“You heard from Ambrosia?” [He gives her a shake, nearly as if she were a rag doll, and raises his voice.] “Where is she?”

“B-Back! Back…back at the hotel! She’s all right.”

[At those words, he releases her, and she crashes to the ground with a yelp. He shoves past the doors and starts running.

Bo-Peep blinks a few times, looking over her shoulder at his retreating back.]

“Oww…” [She winces as she moves to stand, rubbing her sore bottom. She turns her attention to the wounded employee on the ground.] “Uhh…are you…okay?”

[She walks over to him and takes a quick gander.] “Oh no!”

[Anyone can see that he looks terrible beyond comprehension.] “W-What do we do? S…Somebody has to tell Ambrosia! She can help him. Uh…unless this city has other healers? Either way, he’s not looking good! Somebody has to heal him!”

[She glances back where she last saw X run out.] “Has he been doing this to all the store people…?”

[In the meantime, Arsenik and Kara enter the hallway, where they see Wind holding Livi by the throat. The sinister woman, Rayne, gets in the way and uses her powers to torment Kara.]

“Miss Rayne…don’t forget about me.”

[This was probably the worst idea, but he had no better alternative at the moment.

He charged straight towards the strange woman and reached for her fingers. If she didn’t lash out at him instantly or vanish into smoke, he would lift her hand up and swirl her around as if in a dance. He would lace his other arm around her waist and, with her palm still clasped in his, spin her around.

He would dance the steps of a waltz with her, but it would involve far quicker turns, circling around and around with the intent of dizzying her.

Then, he would lift up her hand to twirl her again. While she was mid-spin, he would press her against the wall of the corridor. With the side of her face pushed against it, he would hold her hands behind her back, effectively pinning her in place.

It wasn’t the best solution, but it was ideal for the moment. He would have even succeeded in keeping his gentleman’s code, which spoke against striking women.

If he was able to press Rayne against the wall, he would then lower his voice to a whisper:]

“Don’t touch Miss Kara.”

[While all this happens, Livi answers Wind and tries to reason with him.  He is quiet for a moment before flinging her to the side, not caring if the wall knocked her skull silly.]

“You talk too much. Who’s killing anybody? All I wanted were answers.

You should’ve made yourself clear in the first place. If you had made yourself useful, I’d have left you alone.”

[Crossing his arms, he begins to turn away. His gaze catches on Arsenik and the other two.]

“Oh, you’re awake. I can’t believe you lost the phone, you dimwit.”

“And I can’t believe I trusted you to take care of things without causing trouble. But let’s not squabble over details when we have more important matters to attend.”

“Then, stop playing around and look for Unknown. I already told your nephew what he needed to do. Ashes-pheonix thinks X knows something, too.”

“X…the criminal?”

[He looks back at Livi.] “We already know who Horse Head is. All we have to do is nail him. Find what we’re missing, and maybe I won’t kill you.”

[In Wind’s head, he has no doubt that Night and Chase are the culprits. As soon as he finishes that threat, he’s off, rushing through the hallways in search of Unknown.]

“Miss Livi -”

[Arsenik prepares to go to her side, but he can’t readily forget about Kara or the troublesome woman.

If Rayne hasn’t made it impossible, he would rush over to scoop Kara into his arms. After having her voice cut off and being levitated, he isn’t sure how steady she would be on her feet.

He would then murmur:] “Are you all right?”

[Carrying her, he would hurry over to Livi’s side.] “And you?

Forgive the Imugi. He honestly has no manners.”

[He tries to reassure Kara by smiling down at her.] “Don’t worry about what Miss Rayne said. The Imugi doesn’t trust outsiders in general. To him, what matters is results. Let’s uncover the culprit, and all will be well.”

[His gaze flickers between the two women.] “I should take you to Miss Ambrosia. She’s a healer, so she can look over your injuries.”

[His eyes continue to jump between the two of them, looking them over each for anything amiss. Even if his voice is calm, anxiety rolls off his gestures in waves. It was as if his mind was racing, searching for the most efficient means of assisting them both.

Of course, if Rayne was still present and threatening trouble, then he knew precisely what was the best course of action. Provided that Kara had enough strength to stand, he would take both of their hands and run.

His observations tell him that they wouldn’t be able to overpower this diabolical woman easily. Not only that but he had no desire to break his gentleman’s code unless it was truly necessary. Retreat was a perfectly fine strategy when the situation warranted it.

However, if Rayne had already vanished, he would still take their hands and move, guiding them to the room where Ambrosia last was.]

[clarencenicholsonata]

25 Best Promotional Giveaway Ideas People Will Love

So you're planning your next big giveaway, or you’re looking for prizes that do the dual job of rewarding your winners and bringing attention to your brand.

Promotional giveaways are one of the oldest marketing tricks in the book, and they’re still as effective as ever. Giveaways aren't just about the prize. If done right, they can:

Increase your website traffic

Boost brand awareness

Help to garner free customer reviews and referrals

Supply your brand with new social media followers

And more!

Once you have your giveaway goal and entry method, picking the right prize (especially on a budget) is the next task on your list.

If you’ve been struggling, look no further: I found some of the best promotional giveaway products you can brand with your personal logo that can fit your budget!

1.Teddy Bears

If you have a mascot for your brand, you can turn it into a full size or cute plush teddy bear to gift your loyal customers. For example, Hootsuite has a plush Owly for their brand, along with the life-size mascot!

2.Coffee Cup & Mugs

It’s a classic for a reason. Who doesn't want a new mug or coffee cup to fill up on a cup of joe? You can either use your logo or print funny, quirky quotes on your mug to give a touch of your brand personality. That's what Death Wish Coffee did for their random mug giveaway

It's Golden Ticket Day ?15 random orders placed today (7/25) will receive this rare mug in their package. Plus, every order today gets a FREE collectible Rosie the Riveter patch!

— Death Wish Coffee (@DeathWishCoffee) July 25, 2019

3.Gift Cards

Gift cards are a thrifty shopper’s dream come true. This type of promotion giveaway prize is excellent if you own an eCommerce store and you're looking for ways to boost sales. It's also a well known that when shoppers get a gift card or discount, they’re 42% more likely to add more items and pay more than the initial gift card value.

Wishpond can help you to easily host your next Gift Card Giveaway to help you build your email list, get social shares and grow your followers on social media.

Fashion Nova decided that they wanted to host a giveaway for one lucky winner to win a free $200 gift card.

?FOLLOW & RETWEET SWEEPSTAKES? Do you want to win a $200 gift card?! ??? Here's how: 1. Follow @FashionNova on Twitter 2. RT this post! ? 3. Stay tuned to see if you’ve won! GOOD LUCK! ✨ One Winner Every Friday @ 11 A.M. (PDT)!

— FashionNova (@FashionNova) August 19, 2019

4.Portable Charger or Power Bank

If you don't have any products for customers to buy with a gift card, then try offering a branded portable charger. Some power banks come with added features like fast charging, wireless charging, built-in cables, AC adapters, or LED flashlights.

Now, this gift is a bit on the pricey side, but everyone uses a charger, and portable chargers are lifesavers, so you know they'll become essential to your winner. And everytime they pop out their power bank, they’ll see your brand’s name charging up their trusty device.

Check out Tech Radar's guide on The best power banks of 2019: portable chargers to keep your gadgets going

5. Food or Chocolates

Sweets and treats can be a good substitute when it comes to prizes for your next promotional giveaway. Collaborate with a food brand in your area or an online brand that bakes or arranges fruit baskets, chocolate, pastries or even cakes. You can add a thoughtful card with your logo as well.

6.Stickers and Bumper Stickers

From dad jokes, memes and company logos plastered on laptops and car bumpers, stickers work well for promotional branding for your company. They're affordable to print and purchase in bulk, which means you can have over 100 winners for your giveaway. The more winners associated with a giveaway, the more likely people are to enter because they feel they have a higher chance of winning.

It is also a win-win, if you're a sticker company like Stick Top

Need help with your next giveaway or contest?

Book a free call to learn how our team of contest experts can help you create lead generating contest today.

7. Hoodies & T-Shirts

Give away branded hoodies or t-shirts to your biggest fans as a prize for your giveaway. I think that this type of prize works best if you have a strong following. If your brand is not well-known, people won't gravitate as much to this kind of giveaway. Take ProPepper; they decided to give away ten free hoodies after reaching 2 million subscribers on YouTube.

I think it's about time I actually execute this giveaway... So exactly a week from today, 8/24/19, TEN WINNERS will be selected for a FREE ProPepper 2 Million Subscriber Hoodie All you have to do is like, RT, and follow me So do it lol pic.twitter.com/AvMH9sVjJx

— ProPepper (@ProPepper) August 15, 2019

8. Reusable Water Bottles

Everyone has a water bottle, or two tucked away or heavily used at work or the gym, so a branded water bottle is always a hit. You can spice things up by giving water bottles with built-in diffusers and straws, or insulated or stainless steel bottles or accessories. For illustration, here's a branded water bottle giveaway from Wawabots.

9. Tickets to Your Seminar/Webinar

If you're planning to host a seminar or webinar, whether it's a co-promotion or fully sponsored by your brand, you can give away tickets to your event to one or two lucky winners.

10. Portable LED Lights

You can hand out branded LED lights as prizes to your winners. They can be as small as keychains, embedded on the or full-fledged flashlights.

11. Beauty Products

For beauty brands or eCommerce stores, why not give the winner sample or travel-size versions of your best products. This will allow you to save on products while giving your winner a chance to experience their favorite products for free.

12. Stress balls

Mental wellness is now considered as important as physical health. Taking care of it includes having a few stress balls around here and there. Why not give away a few, or include some as part of a wellness pack for your giveaway winner?

13. Umbrella

Use branded umbrellas to help your winner weather through rain or sunshine. It's also one of the most commonly used items around. When considering any promotional item that will be in consistent contact with water, be sure to spend a little extra on the ink you plan to use for branding, so it doesn't fade out after only a few weeks of use.

14. Custom Cell Phone Stand & Grip

We've all dropped our phones, or come dangerously close to it. So consider giving away phone grips and stands as prizes. If you run an eCommerce store or a brand that sells tech or cell phones, it will complement your products well.

15. Blankets & Pillows

Sounds a bit weird, but don't knock it before you try it. Give your giveaway winner the chance to win a blanket and pillow with your logo. If you want to sweeten the deal, you can add a sleep mask as well and make it a nap package!

16. Drinkware Set

This can include, but is not limited to, metal straws and brushes, water bottles, bottle cleaners, bottle holders, and more. This type of gift works best for wellness, travel, and fitness brands.

17.Fanny Packs

Fanny packs are making a comeback, and they offer a lot of promotional branding flexibility. They can be embroidered, screen printed or heat pressed with your logo. They are also fun and practical for winners of all ages.

18. Duffle Bag

A gym bag or duffle bag is an excellent prize for the winners who are into fitness or travel. It's hard to find a good duffle bag, so consider investing in a proper manufacturer or branding company to make your prize more appealing.

19. Yoga Products

Yoga products are in the top 5 categories of best selling products when it comes to health and wellness, which makes them a suitable prize option for your giveaway. Yoga products can range from clothing, blocks, straps, mats, shoes, and other accessories.

20. Tote or Shopping Bag

Since being eco-friendly has become widely popular, you can give away a set of branded totes or shopping bags for your promotional giveaways. Choose a material that works best for you; this can be plastic, hemp, canvas, and more.

21. Bracelets and wristbands

Maybe you'd like to pick a smaller prize. Bracelets and wristbands are affordable promotional prizes. However, the idea or brand behind it is what will make it appealing. If it's a bracelet representing something like a charity or worthy cause, people will be more inclined to enter to win your giveaway.

22. Stationery Set

Don't just brand a pen set and give it away. Offer your winners a full stationery set: pens, note pads, sticky notes, organizers. This makes your prize seem more significant and more appealing.

For more ideas on stationery you can add to your giveaway prize, you can check out Orange Promotions stationery sets.

23. Travel Collection

Travellers use a variety of accessories to make journeys easier. If your customers are niche travelers, you can offer them a travel collection to help make their next trip fun. This includes bag tags, travel notepads, passport holders, organizers and more.

24. Calendars & Planners

Even with digital calendars aplenty, planners haven’t gotten out of style. You can offer your customers a chance to win a full calendar set and planner so they can organize and plan to meet their goals for this and next year.

25. VIP Product Sampler

If your budget is too tight to buy products to brand, think outside the box and give one winner the chance to be a VIP product sampler. This person would be the first to test, use, and experience your products before they hit the shelves or website.

This can allow your winner to also be a brand ambassador for you, posting positive reviews and updates on social media to help drive sales.

Summary

There you have it, here are 25 items you can use for promotional prizes for your next giveaway:

Teddy Bears

Coffee Cup & Mugs

Gift Cards

Portable Charger or Power Bank

Stickers and Bum Stickers

Hoodies & T-Shirts

Water Bottles

Tickets to Your Seminar/Webinar

Portable LED Lights

Beauty Products

Stress balls

Umbrella

Custom Cell Phone Stand & Grip

Blankets & Pillows

Drinkware Set

Fanny Packs

Duffle Bag

Yoga Products

Tote or Shopping Bag

Bracelets & Wristbands

Stationery Set

Travel Collection

Calendars & Planners

Related Articles:

20 Shopify Giveaway Ideas You Can Use Today

20 Clever Social Media Giveaway Ideas You Can Use Today

How to Run Online Giveaways Step-by-Step with Examples

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[modernart2012]

Courtship for Owls by Owls of Owls As Encouraged by More Senior Owls

(cross posted on my ao3, here )

for @abrandnewheart

“Eh, senpai?” One of the precious first-years paused Konoha as he walked past. “Can I ask a question?”      

Konoha stopped, and examined the first year for a minute. Just to see him squirm. After a long moment, he answered, “Sure.”      

“Okay, um, senpai. Why is Bokuto-senpai so-?” The first-year looked conflicted, then finished, “So owly?" “Aaaaa. To answer that question, we must first tell you the tale of how Bokuto won the heart of our beloved Akaashi.”      

“Eeeh?! What does that have to do with-?”      

Komi loomed from behind Konoha. “Everything, precious first year. Everything.”   

1.(“It was the beginning of second year, and Akaashi and the other first years had just joined the club.”)           “Bokuto-kun, if you finish sorting your permission slips we can be done sooner.” Shimafuku Hikari smiled at the team’s new vice captain. (“Oh, her? The previous club manager. She could put Karasuno’s Kiyoko-hime to shame. Wait, what do you mean she’s not called - hime?”)           Bokuto instead thunked his head harder against the wood floors of the gym. “How can anyone be that pretty? And nice! No one should be that pretty and nice.”    

    Shimafuku smiled indulgently as she sorted Bokuto’s forms. “Aaaah, someone has a crush!”    

    The captain, Washimimi Kyoshu  - (“yes, his name was Eagle Owl Owl Lord, that’s not important!”) raised his head from the piles he was sorting. “Aaah. It’s spring, the first blossoms bloom. Soon the young owlet will begin his first flight.” (“Oh, you thought Bokuto was owly? Washimimi was WORSE.”) He neatly stacked the forms he had sorted, then proceeded to pronounce with all the gravity of an Owl Lord (“We’ll get to that in a minute, be patient!”), “You must first begin the courtship process by expressing interest in forming a lifelong mate bond via a highly specialized and vocal mating call. Like this: ‘hooo! hooo!’”    

    Shimafuku, blessedly sanely, “Instead of that, maybe just talk to him?”

        Bokuto sits up and responds like a good kouhai, even though he very much did not understand, “Yes!”      

At practice the next day, Bokuto did the complete opposite of what Shimafuku and Captain Owl Lord said and instead stuttered out, “Hey- hey- hey, Akaashi.”      

Akaashi, cool as a cucumber answers Bokuto, “Yes, Bokuto-san?”      

“N-n-nothing Akaashi-kun! Just, uh, testing out a new catchphrase?”      

“It sounds very nice Bokuto-san. Oh- I think Washimimi-san is calling you?”      

(“So wait- that’s how?”         “Yes, young owl. That is the first time Bokuto failed to impress and woo Akaashi. It was glorious to watch.”)   

   2. (“The second time, the second time was in the middle of summer, right before Golden Week. Bokuto had been badly nursing his crush but only had a catchphrase to show for his efforts. He returned to share his romantic woes with senpai.”)           “-and just the way he sets? It’s perfect? Somehow? And he looks so good while doing it?” Bokuto laid out across the floor, staring at the clubroom ceiling, bemoaning his existence. “How is this fair senpai? I’m too young to die of heart failure!”          

Washimimi glanced down at him startled, “Did the mating call not work? I was so sure you had it then, he was very receptive. Maybe I had the wrong base action?” He fell into deep thought.          

Shimafuku carelessly patted Bokuto’s head. (“He didn’t have the hair. Yet.”), still taking perfect inventory of the supplies they had ordered (“My memory of Shimafuku-senpai is not faulty! Shimafuku-senpai was perfect!”), “Start by being friends? No one crushes on a stranger afterall.”    

    If she had been going to say anything else, they would never know, for Washimimi declared, “PREENING. You must preen your beautiful feathers and offer to preen your prospective mate’s! If you are allowed to do so, you have clear indication that you are perceived as a good mate! Get your fingers up on his person, and stroke. It actively promotes a healthy and loving relationship!”             “Eh. Eh?!” Bokuto shrieked, “Sk-skin-skinship?!” (“Yes, he shrieked. Our captain is a very pure-hearted soul. The purest.”) His poor brain was overloaded, which is why he offered no complaint when Captain Owl Lord pulled out his hair gel and set to work on Bokuto’s hair.          

Which is why when he stumbled into morning practice, his hair caused several eyes to widen, and Yami-jiji to sigh.  

      “Hey-hey-hey! Good morning Akaashi!” Bokuto triumphantly declared.          

What he was met with was a distinctly mirthful crinkle to Akaashi’s mouth, and an almost-maybe delighted, “Good morning, Bokuto. I see what you’ve done with your hair.”

         “Eh?”          

“Horns for a horned owl. It looks good.”        

  “Ah. Uh, thanks! I’m thinking of keeping it.” Bokuto promptly was useless for the rest of the day.      

(“Did he not check what happened?”         “No time, Washimimi-senapi was strict about start times. And afterwards, Bokuto was ... stuck.”         “Can you remember his face when he saw it? After practice?”         “Look, I have a picture!”)

3.(“Third time around we start the betting pool. See, Inter High is coming up, and it’s blaringly obvious to anyone with eyes that Bokuto is gone on Akaashi. He’s gotten past stumbling over his words, and can actually hold conversations by this point, but had gotten himself stuck. This was about the time that our previous setter, Aobazuku-senpai, broke his wrist falling from his bike, so Akaashi-san was moved up to our regular setter. And that meant hours of practice to learn and perfect sets and plays.  Plus hours of practice of just Akaashi and Bokuto.”)    

    “Young owl, your knee pads are completely worn out.”        

“Ah, yeah, I keep meaning to replace them, Washimimi-senpai. I’ll make sure to - “ Bokuto was forcibly stopped by a pair of kneepads thrust into his face.

        “I have a spare set on me.” Then he leaned in to whisper, “Show off your strong legs, demonstrate your ability to dig a strong burrow, young owl, and woo your chosen one!”         

“Eh, ah, senpai- what- uh,” Bokuto sputtered, holding the black pads, only to be again interrupted by Shimafuku telling him he would be late to practice.      

Later, after the in-team practice game, after Washimimi’s team had won and he was busy screaming at anyone and everyone(“He had this habit of screaming, “I AM OWL LORD, LORD OF THE OWLS!” whenever he won a point, which is why he was called ‘Owl Lord’. He had a cape and everything.”), Akaashi paused on his way out of the club room to tell Bokuto, “The new knee pads suit you.”      

(“He was so overcome, he had to lie down for a good 15 minutes before Shimafuku-senpai was able to talk him around to having feelings at home so she could lock up.”         “Bokuto-senpai had it bad.”         “It got worse.”)   

   4.(“Inter High passed and the betting pool was growing. This is important, because the total pool was something like 100 thousand yen - the whole school had gotten in on it, practically. And then the Spring Tournament was coming.”)           “In order to prepare for the Spring, we need to up the individual training schedules.” Shimafuku relayed from the coaches. “The regular club members will be keeping up with the normal practices, but in order to maximize the practice time we get, we’ll have to task players to do some individual training.”        Bokuto brightened, “More one-on-one practices with Akaashi?”          

Washimimi resettled his cape, “Bokuto, young owl, you have made great strides in the wooing of your chosen mate. It is time to take it to the next level.” He selected a prepared sheet from his stack, “Your new training schedule, 1000 pushups and crunches a day, plus 100 spikes a day. And a 5km run. This should be about the distance from school to your house.”          

“Washimimi-senpai, this might be too much? I still have exams and-”          

“Nonsense! You must show off your pure white chest and arms to demonstrate your worth as a mate!”          

“Look, it’s not like I’m getting anywhere with my crush, s-”          

“Akaashi-kun also needs to work on his abilities as a setter. That means early morning settling practice for him. As his future ace, and as vice captain, you will have to participate.”  Washimimi, the Owliest of Owl Lords, lowered his unflinching gaze to meet Bokuto’s. “I expect this shall not be a problem.” (“Yes he was actively meddling, what do you expect? He had until Valentine’s Day for a confession and it was January!”)

        Exactly one week after the new training schedule was implemented, (“And, yes, after 4 walks home and 1, you heard me, 1!- sleepover on Akaashi’s part at Bokuto’s house. What- yes this is important! I’m explaining the significance! Komi, quit poking me! I am telling this right!”), at the next practice game, Akaashi remarked, “Bokuto-san, your spikes are getting more powerful.” Then he smiled.          

Poor Bokuto was struck dumb. Metaphorically and literally, as he got nailed in the head by a ball and received a concussion.  

      (“In all fairness, so was everyone else. Except sans concussion.”            Komi nodded sagaciously, “I don’t think Bokuto minded though, cause Akaashi walked him home and stayed when he found out Bokuto’s parents weren’t home to keep an eye on him.”)   

   5.(“Then came the dreaded day - Valentine’s. All the senpai had bet on Valentine’s Day. All of them. The total pot had grown to 200 thousand yen; they were having strategy meetings and coaching sessions in between cram school and entrance exams. I think at one point there was a flash mob involved, but Bokuto couldn’t memorize the steps to the dance? Even Washimimi-senpai was getting antsy, he kept trying to sit in the rafters, but that might have been just him running from the future - he did that a lot, it was concerning, ow! - what do you mean, I’m perfectly on track! I’m saying exactly what I mean to - fine. Any ways, Washimimi-senpai got overt.”)

          Washimimi stops him before he gets to enter the club room the weekend before Valentine’s Day. “After school, young owl, we are going to my house to make chocolate. Presenting food to your potential mate is the ultimate courting behavior, showing you can provide for your future young!”    

Shimafuku, for once concurred. “Honmei-choco is romantic. You just have to confess too!”

Bokuto shuffled anxiously. “What if Akaashi doesn’t feel the same way? Getting rejected would suck, plus we’d still have to play together for a year and- erk.”

Washimimi slightly loosened his grip on Bokuto’s shoulder. “Young owl, we are going to make chocolate. You will give this chocolate to Akaashi-kun. Then you will be very happy, forever.”

“Senpai, that’s not how it works in humans and-”    

“Hush, owl child. If you cannot accomplish this much, how am I supposed to entrust Fukurodani to you?”  

Bokuto’s eyes went large (“Wait, no one’s explained -? Okay, so Fukurodani captainship works like this: As a second year, the team decides who would be best as vice captain. Yami-jiji gets last approval. The vice captain is then captain the next year, with some experience, unless the captain and Yami-jiji don’t think he’s suitable anymore. Got it? Good. Now where was I?”)

The thing Bokuto didn’t get around to saying to Washimimi and Shimafuku, but that was terribly important was this: Bokuto was terrible at cooking. Anything really. According to Washimimi, he had managed to nearly burn down the kitchen just melting chocolate. No one wanted to clarify if he was traumatized or impressed by the feat.      

It didn't matter, because three days before Valentine’s Day, he was still scrambling to finish the traditional honmei choco for the team, and Bokuto was still out confession chocolate.      

Even Shimafuku was perplexed, “Maybe, instead of cooking, treat him to dinner?” This kicked off a deep and philosophical discussion with Shirofuku-san about what counts as romantic for a confession, that, to this very day, still has no resolution.      

Spectacularly, while listening to Shimafuku and Shirofuku argue about this at lunch, Akaashi passed by. “Oh, hey, Akaashi! Do you want my other yakisoba pan? I bought an extra, but I don’t want it.” Bokuto grinned, then darted out the classroom door to pass over the unopened noodle bread.      

“Thank you Bokuto-san.” Akaashi glanced at the bread, then at Bokuto. “Ah, you have some - here let me get it?” Without further preamble, he swiped away the bread crumb on Bokuto’s chin, then swiftly left to catch up to his classmate. 

Bokuto remained frozen for a moment, brilliantly red and certain he was going to die, before swiftly turning around. So swiftly he ran straight into the door post. He had to be sent to the nurses to check for another concussion, but it was worth it.      

(“This, children, is why we don’t let Bokuto into the hall without supervision anymore. The end.”         “Konoha-senpai, that... that doesn’t explain why Bokuto-san is so owly? Or how him and Akaashi-senpai got together?”         “Wait, is that this story? Huh. Must have gotten sidetracked.”)

      +1.  (“So then Valentine’s Day, after we’ve all gotten traditional honmei-choco and appropriately weeped at the adorable owl designs - Washimimi only ate owl designed foods, you know? He had a aesthetic and stuck to it. Made these really delicious almond cookies in the shape of different owls and got really fancy with the icing and put in almond sliver feathers? Too good. Wait, oh yeah, Valentine’s.”)      

Bokuto finds the letter after afternoon practice lets out. It’s decorated with a tiny horned owl clutching a heart and even given the amount of catcalls and whooping behind him, he can’t help the sinking feeling in his stomach. A confession?      

It’s not signed, but merely a time and location, which turns the hooting to confused discussion about if this wasn’t Bokuto being called out for a fight and someone mixing up the envelope and the note inside. Amidst the confusion, he ducked out and rounded the corner of the gym.   There was - (“Whoa, Konoha, Yama-jiji is giving us the stink eye. We gotta go!”         “Oh shit. Okay, kiddies, we’re putting a pause here, blah blah blah, Akaashi and Bokuto get together happily ever after. The end. Shit shit shit-“)         There was Akaashi, fiddling with his fingers, as he did whenever he was nervous. Bokuto’s heart clenched, but he managed to get out (in something approximating his usual voice), “Akaashi! Hey-hey-hey! What are you doing out here?”

  “Bokuto-san. I’m waiting for you.”

        “Eh. What?!” He was taken aback; Akaashi-? Then-?    

  “Bokuto-san. I’ll be direct. Will you go out with me?”         “Akaashi- I- ah, this isn’t how I imagined it going?”  If he had never been flustered before, he certainly was now.

“That’s not a no, Bokuto-san,” chided Akaashi, his eyes glinting in the sunset.          “Ah, eh- it’s not a no. It’s- it’s a yes? Uh, even though you asked, can I take you out for dinner? Tonight?” Bokuto’s palms were sweaty. He wasn’t sure he was going to survive this.             “I’d love that.” A larger hand twined with his, just as rough from hours of practice and Bokuto was sure that there would be few and far between moments in his life to best the way his heart soared as he followed Akaashi into the twilight.   

   -Omake: “Konoha-senpai, you never did finish why Bokuto-san is so....”      

“Oh, really. Well, all the owl stuff got him the, and I quote, ‘prettiest setter ever’, so he’s not giving it up ever.”      

“Really.”      

“Really.”      

“You couldn’t have just led with that?!”

[lindarifenews]

10 of the Best Link Shorteners That Aren’t the Google URL Shortener

A good URL shortener lets you do two things

Share links that don’t use too many characters

Track performance metrics for those links.

For a while, the number one tool for this was Google’s URL shortener. But alas, all good things must come to an end.

Google officially killed the service in March 2019 (though links using the URL shortener still direct to the pages they’re supposed to).

So, where to go for your URL shortening needs now?

Below we’ve compiled a list of the 10 best URL shorteners to try besides the Google link shortener.

But first, let’s take a look at why you need a URL shortener in the first place.

Why you should use a URL shortener

There are five great reasons why you should use a URL shortener when sharing links…

1. Long, unruly links look suspicious

It’s easy to let your URL length get away from you, resulting in a jumbled mess of letters and numbers that just screams “SPAM.”

Your links can especially get unruly if you have a bunch of UTM tracking code information in it.

While it’s great that you’re tracking your social media analytics, your link ends up looking incredibly scammy as a result. This will make people much less likely to click on it and directly impact your metrics. This is where a good URL shortener comes in. You can hide all of that tracking information while providing your target audience with a solid user experience.

2. A custom URL shortener lets you brand your links

One of your most important metrics is brand awareness. This is the amount of attention your brand gets across different platforms like social media.

That means you’re going to want to seize every opportunity to put your brand in front of as many eyes as possible—including your URL short link.

Some URL shorteners allow you to customize your short link (including some below). This can help you subtly promote and spread your brand and increase brand awareness.

Here’s a good example of a branded shortened link in the New York Times’ Twitter bio.

3. Link shorteners allow you to track performance

Plenty of URL shorteners will include tools that allow you to track the link’s performance. This is crucial for any marketing campaign.

If you want to ensure the success of any future marketing efforts as well as calculate the campaign’s ROI, you need to know how well the link performed.

And when you combine this with other analytics tools like Google Analytics, you’re going to be primed for marketing success.

4. They save space and save you from strict character limits

Is there anything more frustrating than crafting an awesome social media post—only to find that you’ve gone past the character limit by a few letters?

Luckily, a good URL shortener can help you save space with your post. This allows you to squeeze in a few more words or hashtags in order to help spread your brand.

10 URL shorteners to try besides the Google link shortener

Bottom line: URL shorteners are great for your brand and your audience.

Now that you know why you should be using a URL shortener, let’s jump into a few good ones you can use.

They are:

Ow.ly

Twitter URL shortener

Bitly

Rebrandly

TinyURL

SmallSEOTools

Blink

Sniply

Clkim

Clickmeter

1. Ow.ly

Owly is Hootsuite’s own URL shortener, and it’s included in every Hootsuite plan type, including our free version.

The link shortener leverages the power of the world’s most popular social media platform manager in order to track your metrics for success. Hootsuite’s built-in analytics tools will also give you everything you need to know about your link’s performance.

Hootsuite’s paid plans start at $29 per month but they of course also include all the social media management tools that the platform is known for.

2. T.co

Did you know that Twitter already comes with its own built-in URL shortener? That’s right. Any link you include in Twitter will automatically shorten to 23 characters regardless of its actual length. So even if the URL is shorter than 23 characters it will still count as 23.

If you have a long URL, though, this will save precious character space for that extra hashtag or words in your tweet.

This link shortening service is known as t.co and any user sharing a link will share it with t.co. That’s right. You can’t opt out of it so Twitter can record metrics regarding the links while also protecting users from potentially dangerous ones..

3. Bitly

Bitly allows you to track your link’s performance on their robust dashboard that’ll show you metrics like clicks, geographic and demographic data, as well as top referring channels.

Currently, if you create a free account with Bitly, you can create up to 500 branded short URLs and 10,000 unbranded URLs. A premium subscription starts at $29 per month and includes even more branded links—and the potential to add more users on your account.

4. Rebrandly

Rebrandly is a fantastic URL shortener for creating branded links with a custom domain you can purchase directly on the link shortening platform. Not only that, but you can also track vital metrics such as click-throughs, frequent clicking times, as well as demographic data—all from one handy dashboard.

Premium subscriptions for Rebrandly start at $29 per month and include 25,000 clicks tracked per month, 5,000 branded links, and 5 custom domains.

5. TinyURL

Created in 2002, TinyURL is an incredibly popular URL shortener with more than a billion redirects each month. The service is completely free and anonymous to use. However, it does come at a cost: There’s no analytics data attached to the links.

So if you want to take a look at vital performance metrics, you’re going to want to make sure you have a UTM tracking code on the link you’re shortening and that you’re tracking it with a platform like Google Analytics.

6. SmallSEOTools

SmallSEOTools offers a spartan URL shortener that compresses your link into a short unbranded URL. Like TinyURL, it’s completely free and anonymous. However, there’s no additional features like metric or demographic tracking.

It’s great for when you need to generate a simple, short URL in a pinch.

7. Bl.ink

Bl.ink is a Zapier-supported URL shortener tool with plenty of tools to track vital metrics such as referring pages, click-through-rates, devices, and demographic data.

Premium subscriptions start at $12 per month and that comes with 10,000 links, 7,500 clicks-per-link, unlimited custom domains, as well as three users to an account.

8. Sniply

Sniply is a very unique addition to this list. Not only does the service shorten links, but every link will also include a call-to-action on it (see below).

Caption: A call-to-action button is included in the bottom left side with each Sniply link.

That’s right. If you share a link to a third-party website, you can still include a call-to-action on it that redirects to anything you want— a landing page, sales page, or back to the original article from which you linked it.

A great feature for boosting conversion rates.

Prices start at $29 per month and includes 5,000 clicks a month and two brand profiles on the account.

9. Clkim

A very useful URL shortener with features like analytics, branded domains, and easy integration into any website.

One interesting thing to note about Clkim is the ability to create interstitial ads. That means you can monetize any link you want to shorten as well.

The advertisements are easily customizable with the ability to target by platform and demographics, as well as adblock fallbacks.

Prices start at $10 per month—but it comes with a 14 day free trial to dip your toes in. Definitely worth a try if only for the interstitial ads alone.

10. Clickmeter

A sister website to Rebrandly, Clickmeter offers similar features but with an even more robust set of tools to analyze and optimize your short links. It also comes with the ability to track conversion rates all on the Clickmeter dashboard.

Prices for Clickmeter start out at $29 per month and that includes 25,000 clicks per month, 2,500 tracked links, and one year of data storage.

The Dos and Don’ts of URL shorteners

Bottom line: A good URL shortener can help you track your links, save space on social media posts, and flesh out your company’s brand.

Before you go too crazy and start using your short URLs everywhere, it’s important to keep in mind a few best practices.

DON’T use short URLs when linking on your own website

If you’re creating a blog post and simply want to link to another page on your website, don’t worry about using a shortened URL. It’s not necessary to track those clicks via a short URL—especially if you’re already using Google Analytics (which you absolutely should be).

If you’re not already using the analytics tracking platform, be sure to check out our articles on how to set up Google Analytics.

DO use short URLs on third-party websites

When linking on social media or a different website, be sure to use your shortened URL. This gives you the benefit of easily tracking performance as well as saving space on social media posts.

Plus, if you use a vanity URL, you’ll be able to give a nice boost to your brand awareness.

DON’T use short URLs in personal messages and email

Unless you’re a massive analytics nerd (and if you’re reading this, you might be), there’s no reason to send your short URLs in your emails or DMs. Of course, you might be the kind of person who does want to know how the link to the adorable puppy video you found on YouTube performed amongst your grandparents.

If that’s the case, have at it.

DO integrate short URLs in your link building campaign

Using short URLs in a link building campaign is a great way to boost your website’s authority while keeping track of who is helping you get there via redirects and links. And no, contrary to popular belief, short URLs don’t negatively impact your SEO ranking. For more, check out this video from Matt Cutts (Google’s former head of web spam and SEO master) on the topic.

DON’T sleep on social media

Short URLs and social media go together like milk and cookies. Places like Twitter, Facebook, and even Instagram are perfect places to use your short link to help drive engagement, traffic, and conversions.

As important as it is to keep track of your links’ performance, you also need to make sure you’re tracking the performance of your social media accounts as well. Only then will you be able to know how your social media campaign is performing and learn the exact tweaks you need to make for it to perform better.

That’s our specialty here at Hootsuite—and we want to help.

Drive more traffic to your website with the help of Hootsuite. From a single dashboard you can manage all your social media profiles and measure success. Try it for free.

Get Started

The post 10 of the Best Link Shorteners That Aren’t the Google URL Shortener appeared first on Hootsuite Social Media Management.

10 of the Best Link Shorteners That Aren’t the Google URL Shortener published first on https://likesfollowersclub.tumblr.com/

[hanzuru-s]

rules: answer all questions, add one question of your own and tag as many people as there are questions. Tagged by @pengwenno kay I seriously love ya so much for tagging me in all these thingies hehe~

1. coke or pepsi: pepso

2. disney or dreamworks: dreamworks bc shrek duhh

3. coffee or tea: tea

4. books or movies: aghhhh both

5. windows or mac: windows

6. dc or marvel: marvel all the way

7. x-box or playstation: neither i’m sad

8. dragon age or mass effect: dragon age

9. night owl or early riser: owlie

10. cards or chess: cards

11. chocolate or vanilla: both both both

12. vans or converse: converse

13. Lavellan, Trevelyan, Cadash, or Adaar: lavellan

14. fluff or angst: angst kills me, so fluff

15. beach or forest: beach near a forest heheh

16. dogs or cats: BOTH

17. clear skies or rain: clear skies 

18. cooking or eating out: eating out since my asian food cooking skills are basically non-existant

19. spicy food or mild food: spicy

20. halloween/samhain or solstice/yule/christmas: kurisumasu

21. would you rather forever be a little too cold or a little too hot: too cold? 

22. if you could have any superpower, what would it be?: endless food supplies, yeah that’s a super power

23. animation or live action: animation

24. paragon or renegade: renegade

25. baths or showers: showers

26. team cap or team ironman: cap

27: fantasy or sci-fi: fantasy

28. do you have three or four favorite quotes, if so what are they: i’m too lazy mehhhhhh

29. netflix or youtube: toob

30. Harry Potter or Percy Jackson: Potter

31. when you feel accomplished: uhh after the speaking cred but only bc it’s done with

32. star wars or star trek: neither uhuhu

33. paperback or hardback: hardback

34. horror or rom-com: rom-com

35: Tv shows or movies: movies

36. spotify or pandora: spotify

37. zootopia or inside out: HA i still haven’t seen neither of these

38. big mac or chicken nuggets: ya both

i’m lazy af so @momoi222 here ya go ;)

[zipgrowth]

‘When’ Does Learning Happen Best? Dan Pink on the Science Behind Timing and Education

As the old adage goes, time is what we want most but what we use worst. Whether it’s sleeping or studying, or sticking with New Year’s resolutions, it often seems like there is simply never enough time. The crunch is felt especially among teachers and students, as they scramble through school days crammed with ever more activities and responsibilities.

So what’s the best way to make the most effective use of our limited time?

That’s the driving theme in the newest book from Dan Pink, the speechwriter, TV producer and acclaimed author of bestsellers “Drive” and “To Sell is Human.” His latest book, “ When,” draws on research from psychology, biology and economics to explore how timing impacts every aspect of our lives—including of course, how we teach and learn. For instance, what’s the best time to take a test? Why do kids need more breaks? When the school day is so packed with back-to-back classes and activities, how can students, parents and educators make the best use of time?

Pink recently talked with EdSurge about how his insights can help educators, and why everyone—kids and grownups—can thrive with less multitasking and more recess breaks. The conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity. You can listen to a complete version below, or on your favorite podcast app (like iTunes or Stitcher).

EdSurge: There’s a saying that goes something like: “Time is what we want most but what we also use worst.” In this book you share some findings that are specific to teaching and learning. Was the education audience a group of readers you had in mind from the beginning?

Pink: It always is because teachers and in particular educators in general are strong, very avid readers. And if you think about all the industries and domains in American life, educators, I think, are really keenly interested in ideas. It’s not a book for educators only but I think there are elements in there that are very germane to educators.

One of the things I discovered is that there is a hidden pattern to our days, and we’re better off putting certain kind of work in certain kinds of times of the day. That is, all times of the day are not created equal. And if we understand this underlying pattern, we can begin to reorganize our days so that they are more in sync with when science says we’re able to do the best at certain kinds of work. And there are huge numbers of timing effects on education.

How is there a mismatch between what science knows and what education does?

There’s a really interesting study of the Los Angeles Unified School District, which looked at grades and also performance on standardized tests in math for elementary school students. And what it found was that students who had math in the morning had higher grades and better scores than students who had math in the afternoon.

Now that’s pretty amazing because when we think about scheduling, we think of it as purely an administrative task. We don’t think about it as a pedagogical task. We focus a lot, understandably, on what’s the curriculum we’re going to use? We focus a lot on who’s going to be teaching, and are we giving that teacher the proper professional development?

Teachers and schools are all very focused on what we do. But we give short shrift to “when.” When are we doing all of these things?

But just the random assignment of kids in an afternoon math class, versus a morning math class, is going to affect how much math that kid learns. And that could have a few degrees of tilt in the trajectory of that kid’s education life going forward.

There’s another study from Denmark, where students take standardized tests on computers. But there are more students than there are computers, so everybody can’t take the test at the same time. So kids are randomly organized—some take the test in the morning, some take it in the afternoon. Again, elementary school students who took the test in the afternoon did worse than those who took the test in the morning.

The difference between taking the test in the afternoon versus taking the test in the morning was akin to having missed two to three weeks of school that year. So timing wasn’t everything, as we like to say, but it was a big thing.

So perhaps there is some logic behind those dreaded 8:00 AM finals in college...

It’s interesting you say that because it’s actually a really bad idea for college students! Some of this goes to our chronotype, which is our propensity to either wake up early or wake up late, to stay up late or to go to sleep early. You sometimes hear it talked about in terms of “larks” and “owls.” Some people are larks. They rise early, feel energetic in the morning and then fade out by evening.

But people between the ages of about 14 and 24 are very “owly.” That’s a period where, because of puberty, our bodies begin changing and that shifts our wakefulness forward a couple of hours. So people go to sleep later in the evening and wake up later in the morning.

This is one reason why for teenagers and college students, school typically starts way too early. In fact, the American Academy of Pediatrics in 2014 issued a policy statement that said, please do not start school for teenagers before 8:30 in the morning. Unfortunately today, the average school start time to teenagers is 8:03 AM, so most schools are operating directly in contravention of the recommendation of the nation’s pediatricians.

The Center for Disease Control has written about how it has an effect on everything from car crashes to obesity to depression. Big reductions in dropout rates. Improvements to standardized test scores. Even things like reduced car crashes among teenagers. And so, this is another case where timing isn't everything, but it’s a big thing. It’s absolutely nuts that we start school so early for teenagers.

Let’s talk recess. What’s your finding around taking a break in the school day?

In schools, and basically every realm in life, we have dramatically undersold the importance of breaks. I was really blown away by some of this research. I am old enough to remember 15 years ago when people in a business setting would brag about pulling all nighters and how little sleep they got, and we thought they were heroes. Then the science of sleep emerged and we realized those people aren’t heroes—they’re fools.

Breaks have a huge effect on our performance, and we should be taking regular systematic breaks no matter what age we are. The big picture is that the science of breaks is telling us that we need to think of breaks not as a concession to weakness. We need to think of breaks not as a deviation from performance, but as part of performance itself.

The science is telling us very, very clearly: Breaks are essential to our productivity, to our creativity, and to our overall well being. And they have to be a more intentional part of our lives and recesses are how students and schools take breaks. One thing we shouldn’t forget is that teachers need breaks too and I don’t think teachers get nearly the number of breaks that they need.

Is there an ideal length for a break?

You know, I don’t think there is. But something is better than nothing. We know that social breaks are better than solo breaks, even for introverts like me. Breaks where people are moving are more restorative than breaks where people are sedentary.

There’s some interesting research showing that breaks that are outside and that involve nature are more restorative than breaks that are indoors. Even to the point where taking a break where you can look outside and see a tree is better than taking a break in a room where you can't see a tree.

We know that fully detached breaks are more restorative than semi-detached breaks. So answering your email on your phone while you’re walking around outside does not count as a break. Breaks should be fully detached. But they needn’t be super long. We’re not talking like half hour breaks necessarily or hour breaks. For a lot of people, 10 minutes might be enough.

Many classrooms can look chaotic, with groups and subgroups of students doing different activities at different times. Now, there’s a part of your book that explores the value of synchronization and synchronized activities...

There’s something about when we synchronize with other people that makes us feel good. I think the really cool thing from an education perspective is there’s also research showing that synchronizing with others makes us do good.

We need to think of breaks not as a deviation from performance, but as part of performance itself.

Take two groups of kids and they each play games. One group plays a synchronized game. One group plays a non-synchronized game. The group that plays the synchronized game plays kind of a clap and tap activity where they’re all clapping and tapping at the same time. And the other group plays a fun game that isn't synchronized. Afterwards, the students who played the synchronized game were much more likely to say, “I want to play with a kid I haven’t met yet.” They’re more likely to help the teacher, [and demonstrate] all these behaviors that social psychologists call “pro-social.”

You even see this in something like swing sets. One group swings in time with each other, the other group swings asynchronously. The group that swings in sync is again, more likely to engage in the so-called pro-social behaviors, open to outsiders, helping the teachers, being kinder. It’s really kind of incredible.

It really blew my mind because I had no idea about how powerful synchronization was, and I think it offers educators a very powerful tool that they can use to lift up kid’s lives. I don’t understand what it is, but there is something about synchronization that is meaningful to us, that lifts our spirits, that makes us act better, that is fundamentally human.

Technology is supposed to free up things to give us more time but somehow we as a society can feel busier than ever. How does this “always-on” digital age force us to reconsider our best uses of time?

I think that it goes, in part, to how we configure our days. The science of timing tells us that as we go through the day, we have a peak period, a trough period, and a recovery period. And if you are spending your peak period—the period where the science tells us you should be doing your heads down focused analytic work—on email, that’s a waste. So, what we should be doing is putting that kind of administrative stuff into our trough period.

We should be single-tasking instead of multitasking, and the constant specter of our phone sitting there on our desk, buzzing and beeping, encourages us to multitask, takes us down a path where our attention is diverted and it steers us into doing something that we’re terrible at.

What would your ideal school day look like?

It depends on the age of the kid. If we’re talking about teenagers, what I would do is I would start the school day probably around 9:30. I would offer many more breaks than we have. I think those two interventions for teenagers would be huge.

With elementary, maybe some middle-school students, I would give them more recesses, not fewer. But the other thing that I think is pretty clear from the evidence is that we should be doing analytic kinds of work, like math, reading and writing, in the morning, and other kinds of classes, like music and art and maybe even PE, in the afternoon.

I would encourage young elementary schools to really think about having a choir. Many schools do. But I think it’s actually more powerful tool than most of us recognize. But again, I find that kids in school are so, so, so, so tightly scheduled there’s no give in any case, because we think of breaks as a deviation from the school. We think of breaks as like a snow day where they’re not learning anything—when in fact, breaks are a part of their learning.

What are some of the high level takeaways that you hope that the teachers and education policy makers take away from your book?

Teachers and schools are all very focused on what we do. What are we doing to do? What are kids going to learn? How are they going to learn it? Who are they going to learn it with? What’s the right mix of teacher and classmates? Why are we doing this?

But we give short shrift to “when.” When are we doing all of these things?

The science is telling us is that these “when” questions have a material effect on people’s performance. If you look at the broader population, time of day explains about 20 percent of the variance in human performance on cognitive tasks. So timing isn’t everything—but it’s a big thing and we need to start taking these questions of “when” much more seriously.

‘When’ Does Learning Happen Best? Dan Pink on the Science Behind Timing and Education published first on http://ift.tt/2x05DG9

[bma-2020]

HC;; TOUCH STARVATION

            Mally’s reluctance to touch without her skin being covered (she’ll hug if she’s wearing a jacket, gloves, and whoever she’s hugging is covered up enough themselves that they won’t be feeling her skin at all), usually keeping a distance. She also has a habit of flinching when someone’s yelling at her, raising a hand to her, or getting too close for comfort— particularly with their hands.

            It already would have stemmed from the physical abuse she received from her ‘father’ and ‘sister’, among verbal abuse from both of them and most others in the casino during her time. People notice the backbone she doesn’t hide well, unless she thinks she needs to. There’s also the note of how often she’ll try to adjust her person to please those around her. It all stems from a pretty shattered outlook on herself.

            She’s dealt with her trainer, personally hired by her ‘father’, who would hurt or threaten her if she didn’t do as she was told. Most of her life, she was watched every second— cameras in her room (some her ‘father’ implemented, others Stayne had installed without telling Gethris at all). Stayne was fully able to touch her without getting hurt himself, but lacking a natural immunity, he injected himself with a serum that made him immune to her, before than he had gloves that held the same immunity. She can only fight Stayne physically, as none of her powers work on him (with the exception of some of her mother’s mind prowess, as Gethris didn’t have enough access to that to study it, and when Miseris was creating the injection, he ensured to only cover certain parts of her powers in the immunity— the ones Gethris would notice if they weren’t immune.)

            Most of the physical touch she’s received has already been awful, but on top of that, the only person she was aware had a natural immunity to her (besides her bloodline) was Mad March, pretty much the only other person who didn’t hurt her. (Not until closer to the end, anyways— bc even in the alt verses where she’s not romantically involved with Owly’s March, her and March were always Partners for a time, and at least friends). In fact, the only time he did hurt her was when he was sent to kill her after she’d run off, and he ended up helping her escape instead.

            Due to her powers, just hugging her can be lethal. I’ve gone over the frostbite and hypothermia before so I’m not gonna bore everyone with the same words over again, but basically there needs to be a natural immunity to at least her freezing touch for her to be able to maintain contact with her. One of the few other people with that immunity is Hatter, and she’s unaware of how he has it. (Not everyone writes Hatter and March as siblings, which is why I don’t direct his immunity directly to that, but since his family maintained part in the casino for years, a buildup of immunity from his father’s side or even just it being a gene in his system wouldn’t be out of the ordinary.). With that lack, she avoids touching him— but when they become aware, her extreme deprecation comes to light fairly quickly with how often she’s hanging around him, clinging, all that jazz. (The series shows him being pretty handsy himself, patting backs, guiding, the like. You just know he probably struggled with that for awhile himself lmao, it’s like trying to avoid something second nature so you don’t die, and with friends that can be harder)

            That’s also one of the reasons why she forms extremely personal attachments to those she can touch so quickly. She already got emotionally connected to Hatter before she learned she wasn’t able to kill him via touch, so her bond with him just intensified on her end when she becomes aware. One of the main reasons why, in my main verse, she fell in love with March came from the fact that he was A: nice to her and even protected her from people, B: the fact they could touch each other. She just craves that affection so deeply that she had a bit of a control issue once she has it, so it’s not out of the ordinary for her to fall in some type of love or just become obsessed with the affection. Mice are extremely affectionate creatures, and even tho Mouse is just another name in wonderland, she still has that trait.

            If mice don’t get physical affection, they die. That’s the bottom line. Mally can’t die, so in a way, her avoidance of physical affection and the mistreatment she’d been given have been steadily killing her over time, and her only time of truly being alive and happy are when she has that touch. Research shows that kids who experience affectionate touches growing up are more likely to grow faster and into better people, she really didn’t have any of that. Most of that childhood growing, personality wise, doesnt happen until after she left the casino. She never had a childhood, so her childish behaviours only grow after the fact.

            Part of her was also psychologically scarred from affection. When March was sent off on a longform mission, the suits and Gethris took it as their chance to incarcerate Mally for her starting to ignore orders and fight away. She was sent to murder a child, she couldn’t do it. They found the child’s mother and killed her in front of Mally so Mally would see what she caused. She was sent to the Tweedles for questioning, and spent weeks undergoing mass psychological torture that.. doesn’t have a place in this post and will get its own. Mallymkun possesses no interest in returning to the Casino, we’ll leave it at that.

            She’s a lot more open and free, thinks things over less and acts more quickly, but less violently since she joined Hatter. Despite his not really being a good influence himself, he has sort of made her a better person overall. She’s found less violent methods than just snap a neck and move on (unless the other person is behaving violently towards Hatter, in which case she wont hesitate. She’s the kind of person who stabs as a warning okay) she speaks more than she acts, though she’s usually doing both at the same time, and she’s a lot more calm than before. Especially when she’s ignoring her actual job and just hanging about Hatter’s office with him, like his friendship is extremely important to her character and his eventual leaving pretty much breaks her eheheh. Anyways, back on point, she does get a lot clingier when she realizes she can touch someone and not hurt them, and that they won’t hurt her. She’ll be hesitant at first, but grow addicted to the sensation pretty quickly.