#screw you higher education and career plans aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

[chiisana-lion]

[gayestnerdsinfiction]

Rivalry

requested by @micapearls (ed hearing jon full body laugh for the first time)

Ever since he first met Jonathan Crane, Edward has had an unshakable fixation on eliciting any type of emotional expression from the other man. To the untrained eye it would appear Jonathan was unable to experience any human emotions beyond displeasure and annoyance. Jonathan doesn’t cry, he doesn’t shout when they argue, he doesn’t allow any facial expression to inadvertently cross his stoic features. Over time, Edward has been able to get a better feel for the subtle cues that indicate his partner’s emotional state, but Jonathan still makes an effort to hold his feelings and opinions close to his chest. Edward wants so badly to break him of this habit. He’s lost count of the amount of meaningless arguments he’d blown out of proportion in the hopes of making Jonathan visibly angry. But perhaps that’s just trauma reenactment.

It was after one such failed attempt to goad Jonathan into an argument that Edward finally got what he was looking for. He had unsuccessfully tried to get a rise out of the other man, throwing out the cruelest, most spiteful things he could think of. Things he didn’t mean, things he doesn’t want Jonathan to think he meant. Unfortunately, this only resulted in Jonathan disappearing off into the lab, leaving Edward to sulk alone in the living room. He’s sitting on the couch, staring absently at the television when Jonathan finally reappears from the basement, his expression as austere and unreadable as ever.

“I’m having a drink,” the older man announces, breezing past Edward and into the kitchen. He removes a bottle of whiskey from the cabinet and holds it up for Edward to see. “Do you want one?”

Edward doesn’t particularly care for whiskey but he can recognize a peace offering when he sees one. He nods wordlessly, sliding to one end of the sofa to make room for Jonathan to sit if he wanted to.

Jonathan pours the two drinks, bringing them into the living room and handing one to Edward. He accepts. Takes a small sip, trying to ignore the unpleasant taste.

“What are you watching?” Jonathan asks as he sits down a respectful distance away from Edward.

“News,” he says. “I’m looking at it more than I’m really watching it.”

Jonathan studies the screen for a few moments, sipping his own drink steadily. “Turn up the volume,” he says abruptly.

Edward obliges, directing his own attention to the TV as well. The reporter onscreen is standing in front of the Gotham University campus. There are cop cars and officers crowded around the building, many of them with heavy tactical gear and weapons.

“Shit, I hope whatever this is doesn’t screw up the heist I had planned for next weekend,” Edward mutters as he puts his drink down on the table.

“…As you can see the police are behind me attempting to negotiate the release of the thirteen hostages currently being held on the University grounds.” The camera cuts away from the reporter to show a closer shot of the police officers at the scene. Edward can make out commissioner Gordon speaking into a walkie-talkie at the front of the group. Bullock stands beside him, looking generally burly and gruff but otherwise not contributing much. “The location and condition of the hostages is unclear; all we know is that those thirteen students and faculty members are trapped somewhere in the Joker’s sadistic maze. More updates on the way as we continue to document the most recent criminal exploits of Gotham’s most fearsome criminal.”

“Ouch,” Jonathan says dryly. “Seems unfair that I’m not the most fearsome criminal in this city but I suppose there’s no accounting for taste.”

Edward, in the meantime, is too busy trying to navigate the mixture of anger, surprise, and jealousy that has begun burning in his chest to even register Jonathan’s comment. “He—I feel like I’m having a stroke, I mean, did that reporter say what I think she said?” he splutters, standing up from the couch to gesticulate wildly at the screen.

“What’s your problem?” Jonathan asks. “Joker does something like this every week, you can’t be surprised at this point.”

“You don’t understand,” he snaps, ignoring the heat he can feel rising into his face and ears. “I was going to do a sadistic maze at the university. Me! That fucking clown stole my idea! I mean, am I the only person with any goddamn integrity in this vile city?” He collapses back onto the couch, throwing his arms up. “I had the whole thing planned out, all the pieces built and ready to be set up and he just swoops in with his dollar store makeup and awful dye job and ruins everything like he always does. I mean, do you know how hard it is to build a maze from scratch and make it appear with fully functional traps and people in it before the cops show up? It’s not easy, I’ll say that. And it’s not cheap either!”

Jonathan watches Edward’s hysterical monologue in silence, takes a few moments to digest the entirety of the rant, and then bursts out laughing.

Edward’s jaw drops. Usually when Jonathan laughs it’s little more than a sharp exhale or the hint of a smile. But this laugh is a loud, unrestrained cackle, so raspy in places it almost sounds like a wheeze. It’s the first time he’s ever seen his partner seem genuinely tickled by something and he can’t even enjoy it because it’s at his own expense. He can’t tell if he’s more shocked to see his partner’s entire body wracked with laughter, or more indignant that he’s being laughed at in the first place. He snaps his mouth shut, his face screwing up into a scowl. “It’s not funny.”

“It absolutely is. Your whole thing with the Joker is hilarious.”

“It is not! He’s completely destroying my reputation, my career in this town. I mean, now I can never do that heist I had planned because the Joker already did it and everyone’s already accusing me of ripping off his costume and gimmick. If I even mention that I had the same idea, then people are going to try and accuse me of stealing his fucking intellectual property too.” He gets up again, pacing almost frantically around the room. “It doesn’t even make sense for him to do something with a school, I mean, I’m the one whose whole aesthetic and MO has to do with knowledge and learning. He should go terrorize a fucking comedy club or something, leave the higher education to those of us whose brain cells haven’t been fried by a vat of acid.” He glares at Jonathan who is still doubled over with laughter. “Stop laughing at me, I’m serious.”

He raises a hand to cover his mouth, though it does nothing to soothe his amusement. “I’m sorry. But you have to admit, you sound ridiculous right now.”

“I fail to see how this is ridiculous.”

“You’re demanding artistic integrity from a man who dresses like a clown and kills people for fun.” Jonathan manages to stifle his laughter a bit, but Edward knows he’s never going to let him live this down. “Besides, neither of you went to college so I don’t see how you have more of a right to a university based maze heist than him.”

He rolls his eyes. Jonathan loves to point out that Edward never went to college because it’s the only real accomplishment he has that Edward couldn’t easily replicate. Just because Jonathan suffered through nine years of higher education that would have driven Edward into a murderous rage doesn’t mean he’s better than him. “A maze is a type of puzzle is it not? Last time I checked I was the prince of puzzles which, in my eyes, makes me more entitled to use mazes in my traps. I also think it makes me sound cooler. I mean, ‘clown prince of crime’? How pathetic is that.”

“They’re both pathetic,” Jonathan says. “I don’t know why people keep trying to call us princes like we’re not all broke psychopaths.”

“I’m not broke.”

“But you don’t deny being a psychopath?”

Edward continues to glower at the other man who is still fighting against a smile. “I can’t believe you’re not on my side right now.”

Jonathan shrugs. “I mean, you have to admit your costume color schemes are remarkably similar.”

“They are not! My preferred color scheme is green and purple, his is purple and green, okay, they’re distinctly different!”

“Edward,” he says, using that tone he always takes when Edward is acting irrational, “Don’t you think you’re taking this a bit too seriously?”

“Not in the slightest,” he insists, knowing that this is arguably a stupid thing to care about. “You’ll never know what it’s like to always play second fiddle to everyone’s favorite costumed criminal. At least people are scared of you. Everyone just thinks I’m some kind of joke thief.”

“Well, maybe you need to give them something to be scared of. Show them you mean business.”

“Oh yeah? And how do you propose I do that in a way that is both on brand and not derivative of the Joker’s own crime sprees?”

Jonathan’s smile changes, becoming less humorous and more devious. Edward can see the familiar gleam in his eye that indicates the Scarecrow’s mind is hard at work. There’s the Jonathan he’s used to. “I bet I could give you a few ideas,” he says slyly, finishing the rest of his drink in a single swallow. “If you don’t have any qualms about torturing people.”

Despite the fact that he’s still annoyed with Jonathan for making fun of him, Edward can’t help but flash a smile back at the other man. There’s just something about those clever, sinister eyes that always draw him right back in. “What did you have in mind?”

[tester2080]

The Leaving Cert is an awful system.

09/09/21

In case you are not from Ireland, the Leaving Cert(ificate) is the exam system that determines which uni we can get into. Rather than having a GPA via continual assessments or any sort of entrance exam or letter of application we simply have one set of exams. There are obviously other exams (such as the christmas and summer exams in other years), however, the Leaving Cert exam is the only one that matters.

When you take a subject you can either do ordinary or higher level. Ordinary level is easier but rewards less points, and higher level is more difficult, but rewards more points. A H1 is worth 100 points (except for HL maths which is 125) and is given if you get between 90 and 100%. A H2 is 88 points and 80-90% and so on. An O1 is 90-100% in an ordinary level subject but only 56 points. There are some weird changes to the system when it comes to medicine but I won't get into that right now. Universities award places based solely on the points you receive. This leads into the first problem.

Whilst the education experience is a multi year process (6 years in secondary school in our case), what determines your uni course is a single event, often just a single week out of many years of learning. This is insanity and leads to so many obvious problems. A person could be getting H1s throughout the year and forgot to study just one topic and end up with a H3 in the leaving cert at the end, and a H3 student could get lucky and study a topic that happens to come up and get a H1. Even a single grade can be the difference between getting into the uni you want and losing out. The leaving cert does not measure you abilities as a student, your effort, or even sometimes your ability. The leaving cert measures your memory and how well you can perform on the day. You getting 100% in every single subject for the past 6 years and a family member dies a few days before the exams and it absolutely ruins your mental state? Too bad. In the eyes of the university you are not a good enough student. You are a perfect student but got a bit nervous and stayed up a bit late the night before to get some extra study in and are tired the next day? Too bad. You've been getting 625 in every set of mock tests but on the day your mind goes blank with the incredible stress, the knowledge that one test will determine the rest of your life? Too. Bad. There are no exceptions to the hand of the points system and claw of bad luck. You cannot explain to the uni. They. Will. Not. Care. Nothing else is taken into account. Students will have bad days. That's just life, we're all human. However that must be accounted for. Nobody should miss out on their life's dream because of a single day. That is absolutely absurd.

When you ask someone what education is about t. There is a filter type system for different categories of posts and all that, so if you're interested in what I have to say, I'd recommend going there for the better experience. I also have no fucking clue how to use tumblr sof you ask them what the leaving cert is about they will say it's about getting into uni. Clearly there is a disconnect here. Where has education become so distorted that now it is nothing more than a way for universities to quickly and easily judge us? Education must be about teaching children, not for some uni test, but simply so they can become more knowledgeable, so they can get a thirst for information, so they can locate their strengths and weaknesses, so future generations can live better lives than we will. University selections must be nothing more than an afterthought. It is even worse when the leaving cert is a horrendously stressful system. We put ourselves through sometimes 6 years of stress and bad quality of mental health to make it easier for universities??? What a ridiculous idea.

The leaving cert isn't even a fair way to judge students. Here, I'll be able to determine how good you're likely to do in the leaving cert with two simple questions. Do you have a good memory? Are you good at maths? If you answered yes to both, the chances of you doing well are very high and if you answered no to both - well - the chances aren't quite as good. A huge amount of the leaving cert is simply a memory test. I know the state will talk constantly about how rote learning is discouraged and all that, but realistically that's not the case. Take for example the English paper. You get to know which poets might come and which poems you can use before the exam. This mean your teacher can simply write you a good sample answer and if you can remember it, that's at least a H2 for that part of the exam. And as for being good at maths - if you're good at maths you already have 3 subjects which you can say with reasonable certainty you will be good at - maths, physics, and applied maths. Students who aren't good at maths have nothing like this unless they are fluent in several languages. A big problem when you arises most of the non maths subjects are based on memory, and the ones not based on memory are based on maths. History? Memorising essays. Irish? Memorising poems. Biology? A lot of memorising. Physics? A lot of maths. Accounting? A lot of memorising. This continues throughout basically all the exam subjects, with only maybe one or two exceptions. I know someone who hasn't even started 5th year, and yet they already know they're screwed and have basically given up on their first choice course because they have dyscalculia and a terrible memory. They can try as hard as they want, study as hard as they can, but realistically, they aren't going to come close to someone with a good memory and are good at maths who put in the bare minimum effort. It's bizarre too, given the amount of jobs that don't require either maths or a good memory.

The subjects you can study in the leaving cert is also extremely limited. You have to study Irish, English, Maths, and a third language. In public schools you then basically have the option of History, Geography, Accounting, Business, Economics, Art, Music, Religion, Chemistry, Biology, Physics and DCG. There are no electives to try out things similar to careers you might be interested or anything like that. Now those that plan to go into business will be happy I'm sure, however, for most other people, the subjects have very little in common with the career you want to do. You're doing law? I suppose a business subject might somewhat help??? You're doing computer science? Maths is kinda related. Medicine? Biology sure, perhaps a little bit of chemistry? But at most 2 out of your 6 subjects will actually be any way relevant to your career. To make it even worse, public schools have subjects in blocks. This means there will 3 blocks of subjects and you pick one from each block. You're super good at both physics, chemistry, and business? Well too bad, there's a very high chance you won't get to study all 3, and you'll have to pick up geography or some other subject you have no interest in. In some cases all 3 of the subjects you like may be in the same block, meaning you'll have to pick up 2 subjects you have no interest in and will likely be worse at. Once again, simple luck plays a huge part in the leaving cert. Going into 5th year, the subjects you're allowed pick will likely change your eventual points by around 30 or possibly more. Furthermore, private schools provide a massive advantage, often with your chance of getting good grades being around 4 times higher. You were born with well off parents? Congrats, here's an extra 100 points have fun. Absolute insanity. The leaving cert is really just determined by luck every way you look at it. Now obviously luck plays a part in everyday life too, but the leaving cert basically caters to the lucky, and a whole lot could be done to reduce the benefit they have based on luck alone, rather than quality of character, or time studied, or effort put in, etc.

I suppose I've reached the stage where I should stop complaining and start giving actual suggestions for improvements then. Fine. Firstly, remove the idiotic one exam process. Instead have some sort of GPA system with continual testing, so it shows how good a student is on average, not just on their worst/best day. Increase the amount of uni places available so that getting into the uni and career you want becomes more of an afterthought, rather than a constant stress looming over you. Add more subjects and electives that will be relevant to the career the student is planning to go into. Make learning and discovering your strengths and weaknesses and just enjoying life in general a main focus. Give students time to relax and do sports outside of school, even in 6th year (which is something basically impossible to do under the current system). Allow the tests that determine the GPA to be open book. Make understand more important than simply memorising. Remove the subject block system so students can do all the subjects they actually enjoy and are good at. I believe that the single test system is one of the reasons that private schools perform so well, by removing that, I believe the scores wouldn't be so far apart. However additions restrictions, or even total banning, of private schools could be implemented. After all, surely everyone deserves the same quality of education. These are children and teenagers for gods sake. There shouldn't be a heirachy of education based on their parents wealth. All students should be given the same opportunities. Private schools largely do better due to having better teachers. There currently isn't a large enough supply of very good teachers to go around, and the private schools can simply buy up the majority of good ones. We should pay teachers more, a lot of people thinking about careers may be dissuaded from teaching, despite having a passion, due to the low pay. Many good teachers also go to places like Dubai thanks to the better pay. Overall in society, teachers are sort of dismissed as a profession, and if we wish to improve the lives of the next generations, this must change.

[stilldani24]

Seize the Day - Newsie!Bucky x Journalist!Reader - Chapter Four

Summary: The Newsie Strike of 1899 made the world stand still for two weeks. For one kid and his bum-legged best friend, it meant The World was watching and they needed to make a difference. Based on Disney’s Newsies.

Warnings: Disabled character, violence, fluff (it’s a lot there at the end)

Word Count: 2028

A/N: Holy shit, so sorry everyone. Didn’t mean to leave y’all high and dry for two months. But here we go, chapter four and let’s hope I don’t wait another two months for chapter five. But I might be moving soon, so no promises. 

PROLOGUE//CHAPTER ONE//CHAPTER TWO//CHAPTER THREE//MASTERLIST

As you got back to your home, you sighed and ran your fingers through your hair. As hectic as this day had been, it had been the best day of your journalism career so far. Not only did you have a lead to the greatest strike in history possibly happening the following day, but you were promised a front-page story if this rally went well. Write it good, he had said.

“Write it good,” you repeated yourself in a deep tone, chuckling to yourself about the lame imitation of Bucky’s voice. You then sighed as you plopped down in front of your typewriter. “Write it good or else it’s back to wheezing your way through the flower show. No pressure.”

You then cracked your knuckles, craning your head back and forth before focusing on the device in front of you. After a few moments of pondering, you began to type. “‘Newsies stop The World’,” you paused, thinking over what you had just written. “A little hyperbole never hurt anybody. ‘With all eyes fixed on the trolley strike, there’s another battle brewing in the city’.”

You stopped dead in the middle of your typing, groaning to yourself as you ripped the page from the typewriter. “Now if only I could write something good about it. C’mon, Y/N! Those boys are counting on you…oh, those poor boys. This is big, lady, don’t screw it up. This is not some little vaudeville I’m reviewing.”

You thought to yourself, leaning back into your chair as you tried to think of words to string together to make a coherent, yet interesting story. Poor little kids versus rich, greedy sourpusses. Huh. It’s a cinch. It could practically write itself.

“And let’s pray it does,” you murmured as you continued to type, rip, think, and type again. Were you insane? This is what you’ve been waiting for. Well, that, plus the screaming of ten angry editors. You laughed to yourself as you remembered their reactions to the news of you joining the newspaper crew as a journalist as opposed to a receptionist.

“A girl?”

“It’s a girl!”

“How the hell?”

“Is that even legal?”

Not only that, there’s a story behind the story. Thousands of children, exploited, and invisible. The only way for this to get better was for someone speak up, take a stand, and have someone write about it. That someone being you. You sat up, shaking your head to yourself before going back to writing.

“‘The modern-day David is poised to take on the rich and powerful Goliath with the swagger of one twice his age, armed with nothing more than a few nuggets of truth. Bucky Barnes stands ready to face the behemoth Pierce’,” you finished, sitting back in your chair and grinning at your work once the typewriter dinged, indicating it was ready to be pushed and another line written. “Now that’s how you turn a boy into a legend.”

Now to put Bucky into words to make him sound larger than life. Picture a handsomely, heroically, charismatic, plain-spoken, know-nothing, skirt-chasing, cocky, little son-of-a – no, that was a little too praising. In order to get a raise and a promotion, one has to lie down with dogs. So, he’s a flirt. A complete egomaniac, in fact. Well, facing the facts of the matter, he’s also the face of the strike.

“What a face.”

Why you had said that aloud baffled even you, but his face could save you all from sinking in the ocean. Shaking your head to clear your mind of that Cupid reincarnate, you tried to think of anything else you could fill your piece with. Like someone had once said, power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely, meaning that as someone’s power increases, their morality decreases.

“I’m a genius.”

Just look around at the world your generation was inheriting. It was a flaming garbage can under the Brooklyn Bridge. But, on the brighter side, think of the one you could create. As you had written on the page in front of you, it was David and Goliath. Do or die. The fight was on for the rights of the working class, child labourers, and everyone in between. Nothing happens if you just give in, and it can’t be any worse than how it’s been. So, whatever happened, you had to set the ball rolling. You grinned to yourself, cracking your knuckles once more before typing faster than you had ever typed a piece in your short life. This was going to be one for the history books.

 Bucky paced nervously in front of the World’s gates. Earlier that morning, he had sent his fellas out to ask different neighbourhoods to join in the strike. He had somehow convinced Scott Lang, a kid from the Bronx, to go over to Brooklyn. He was a funny kid, had wits to spare, and always seemed to convince Rumlow and Zemo to give him papes for five cents cheaper. If anyone were to convince Pietro to join in the cause, it was him. One by one, newsies returned with the same news. Every neighbourhood of newsies were onboard with the cause, but only agreed to join if Brooklyn gave the go-ahead. Bucky looked around for Lang, sighing when he heard the twin doofuses unlock the gates. Finally, when the others began filing into Newsie Square, Scott came running up.

“Okay, so…” he began, wringing his hands together. “Brooklyn’s in if we show ‘em that we serious. They wanna see how we act today.”

“For Chrissake,” Bucky murmured, looking between the newsies and Sam, who gave him a look. Every newsie was beginning to doubt their cause, wanting to perhaps wait a few days, or give up completely. The look Sam gave was for Bucky to do something.

“Hey, hey!” Bucky yelled out, calling every newsie in the Square to gather around them. “We can’t back down now, a’ight, no matter who doesn’t show. You like it or not, now is when we take a stand.”

“How’s about we jus’ don’t show up for work?” Clint then asked.

“No, stupid, that’s jus’ what they want!” Bucky replied. “They can jus’ replace us! They need to see us stand our ground. Sam, you tell ‘em, c’mon. They ain’t gonna listen to me.”

Sam sighed, looking to Steve, who just shrugged. He then turned back to the crew, looking over each one of them. “Carpe diem.”

One by one, each boy got the most confused look on their faces. Sam shook his head, forgetting that few to none of these boys received the education that he had. “It means ‘seize the day’,” he clarified, making the boys now nod in understanding. “We do what we have to do. Even if it’s just us, we have to go through with our plans. If we back down now, or at all after we start, they’ll never take us seriously ever again. Minute by minute, that’s how we’ll win it.”

He then looked back to Steve, noticing what he had draped on his crutch. Some time during the previous night or that morning, he had found a piece of scrap cloth and had written on it with a piece of coal, STRIKE. He smiled, looking at a small gesture of the much bigger picture. The paper bell then began to ring, Tony Stark exiting the adjacent building to the Square to begin his shift on paper duty.

“Alright, none of the strike business. Step up and get your papers or you’ll be removed for trespassing,” he spoke to the awaiting boys, getting right down to business and letting Rumlow and Zemo take control if these boys got rowdy. Three completely unfamiliar boys stepped up, pushing past the newsies to gather papers.

“Hey, who the hell are these guys, ey?” Bucky called out to the three higher powers standing across the courtyard to them. “You pay them extra cash to sell papes for ya? Well, that just ain’t right. We been out here for days, months, years, slavin’ away for ya’s when we could’a been goin’ to school or playin’! But no, we havt’a support ourselves ‘cause no one else is gonna! All we ask for is a square deal. Fellas,” he spoke to the three unknown boys now. “Drop ya papes. For the sake of all the kids in every sweatshop, factory, and slaughterhouse in this city. I beg of ya’s, join the strike.”

One boy walked right up to Bucky, looking like he was about to throw punches, but with one look back to the two other boys, he threw his papers down. “I’m with ya!”

One by one, each boy was persuaded to throw down their papes and join the Manhattan Newsies in their cause by the boy before them. With their numbers now grown by three, their rally in the Square fully commenced by tipping over the paper cart and scattering papers absolutely everywhere. Rumlow, Zemo, and Stark hurried into the World building.

You finally rounded the corner, seeing the boys throwing papers every which way. Following you was your closest buddy, a man by the name of Phil Coulson, who was the photographer for the Sun. He snapped a picture of the scene in front of you two, of all the boys standing in front of the stack of papers and throwing other papers into the air. That was front page material for sure. Bucky then noticed you, grinning and spinning you in a hug amongst the falling papers. Before any of you could celebrate further, you heard the familiar call of a police whistle. Amongst the officers were workers of the Refuge, lead by Snyder, and every boy began scattering in order to avoid arrest and time in the Refuge. Newsies began using stacks of newspapers as weapons against the advancing officers, Bucky obviously leading the charge. He immediately grabbed you by the arms, leading you away from the action so you wouldn’t be hurt or arrested for simply being there.

He hurried you to a tight spot in between two buildings, making sure you were hidden from plain sight. “Stay here, a’ight?”

You nodded as he hurried back off to find Steve. Sam had picked up Peter Parker, shoving him into a barrel and pushing his head down so he too was hidden. Bucky was soon chased by two police officers but evaded them by climbing up a fire escape and pulling the ladder up after him. What he hadn’t seen was Rumlow and Zemo grabbing Steve until it was too late. Zemo, wearing brass knuckles, punched Steve so hard against the face that he immediately crumpled to the ground. Even though the crippled kid was obviously not going to fight back, Rumlow grabbed his crutch and began beating the kid with it. Bucky finally noticed Steve’s cries for him, but by the time he was starting to get back down to save him, Snyder had grabbed the badly beaten kid and hauled him off to an awaiting carriage, taking him to the refuge. Thankfully, all others had escaped. You were safe. But his brother was hurt, in pain, and heading to the worst place in New York City. Bucky hopped from the fire escape, starting to chase after the carriage to hopefully save Steve. But from your hiding place, you grabbed his hand and hauled him into the space.

“You’re wanted man number one, stay here,” you told him quietly while covering his mouth. Bucky was crying, panting, and still calling out for Steve when you had pulled him in. Police were still milling about, trying to catch anyone they could. Once they saw that everyone had run from the scene, they dispersed and left Newsie Square a wreckage of the attempted strike that day. You uncovered Bucky’s mouth once the scene was bare, about to leave your space when he grabbed you. He hugged you close to his chest, burying his face into your neck and letting out one sob after another. You gave him a sad smile, embracing him in return.

Upon your first meeting, you would have never expected Bucky Barnes to have such strong feelings for anyone else. But here he was, sobbing and still calling out for Steve while clinging to you. So you let him.

 Permanent Taglist: @buckysmischief​ @captainscanadian​ @thingsthatkeepmeawakeeveryday​ @this-kitten-is-smitten​ @wtfisachoncexx​ @jllngls02​ @abrilkatz123​ @writeturnlove​ @buckysgirls-stuff​ @tomhollandenthusiast​ @sebastian-i-stan​ @farfromjustordinary​ @imma-new-soul​ @lumar014​

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[seminalstudy]

Hi everyone! I’m currently in the process of transferring to a new university and one of the biggest parts of that has been planning out and scheduling which classes to take my first semester, in hopes that I can graduate at the same time as people my age :’) As someone who’s planned how to graduate in three years not once but twice now, I figured I could share my experience and/or advice with anyone looking to maximize their college academics!

1. Establish a timeline: Ask yourself how many years you’re giving yourself to complete your degree as this will help you figure out how heavy your course loads will have to be to graduate at your expected time (this could be anywhere from 2 years to 5 or more). At my first college, I planned to graduate in three years in order to save money and because the school had easier academics, so I was confident I could handle the extra work. My new plan to graduate in three years is so I can graduate with other students my age, set your goal!

2. Now that you’ve established a broad timeline, it’s time to start looking at potential majors/minors and career tracks: Hopefully, this is something you’ve started looking at before applying to college, but don’t worry - it’s not too late! As someone going into college with the knowledge that I’d be taking out max loans each year, I tried to figure out what I wanted to do early on so I could maximize my credits ie take as many required classes as possible and not ‘waste’ credits on classes that wouldn’t really contribute to my degree (ofc I ended up changing my mind 3/4 of the way thru the year but that’s life). I narrowed my options down to 3 or 4 majors and managed to eliminate 2 of them pretty early on.

3. With at least one track in mind, research all the requirements to earn a degree in that area: Universities often have “general education requirements” regardless of your major, so you take classes in multiple disciplines and broaden your perspective. Course catalogs/general bulletins/college websites are where you can find info about your gen-eds and major-specific required courses. It’s really helpful to map this out by hand or in a spreadsheet program (I did it both by hand and with Excel to stay uber-organized). This is also where you can narrow down the majors you’re interested in by looking at the required courses and course descriptions. I considered a Data Analytics major early on, but after seeing how much coding was required (not a strong suit or interest for me) I could comfortably eliminate it.

4. Reach out to your advisor/navigator/registrar to clarify any questions: If you’re confused by any of the requirements for your major/gen-eds, talk to someone at the university. I feel bad for the numerous advisors I’ve had because I pestered them with questions so I could have a complete understanding of everything - it really helps in the scheduling process and I’ve never had a staff or faculty member be irritated by the questions - they love to help (plus it shows initiative and starts forming connections which is A+). Seriously, reach out if you’re confused, don’t just sit in the dark!

5. Map out required courses and pre-requisites: This is where Excel or Google Sheets can be your best friend - they make it really easy to keep track of what needs to be taken when. Some courses require a certain academic standing (sophomore, junior, senior) for you to take them, others require you to take several classes before you can register for it. Certain progressions of classes can really limit what your schedule looks like, so this step is incredibly important (and somewhat time-consuming).  

6. Generate a slightly less vague timeline: Based on pre-requisites and required class standings, begin to assign classes to fall and spring semesters. Let’s say you have to complete a senior capstone in order to graduate, and you can only take it senior year, write it into the timeline. Maybe you need to take Math123 and Math124 for your major, but Math124 requires you to complete Math123 first. Place 123 into a semester and 124 in the semester following that. This doesn’t have to be exact, but it’s good to be aware of what your future schedule will look like, and what classes you need to take sooner rather than later (this is also time-consuming because you’ll find numerous variations in potential schedules). 

7. Determine the courseload you’ll need to take: Some people luck out and have lots of AP/IB or like credits that will transfer into real college credit, helping to eliminate the number of classes you have to take (I was not such a person). You’ll generally receive a credit evaluation during the summer before the first semester so you can plan accordingly. Most advisors recommend taking 15-17 credits, but if you need to take more so you can graduate faster or less so you’re not overwhelmed, do what you need. I ended up taking the max credits allowed then over that, but that’s only because I was pushing so hard to graduate faster. This kind of ties into the last step, but you also need to evaluate your personal strengths and weaknesses.

8. Determine the courses that will maximize your first semester: Fun fact, your major requirements can often double-dip and count for your general education requirements too! Look at the pre-reqs for your higher-level classes and try to choose those that will open up the most classes, see which of your major required classes could count for gen-eds, such as humanities or science courses. If you’re between a few majors, look for classes that a required for them. For me, I was between a Business Administration or Sustainable Business major, so many of the requirements were the same. I took classes that could count for both, but if I wanted to go one way or the other, I wouldn’t be screwed over.

9. Try to balance the courses you NEED to take with those you WANT to take: I’m a humanities kind of gal (science has not been mon ami in the past) but both of my colleges require science and math classes. So, when I have to take a math and science course simultaneously, I try to add in some of the subjects I’m stronger in (history, english, etc) so that my GPA wouldn’t die. If you’re fortunate enough that affording college isn’t a concern, I’d personally say take as many courses that interest you as possible, but when financing a higher level education is more of an issue, complete your requirements but leave some space to explore your interests.

10. With a handful of courses in mind, look at actually scheduling your classes: With online registration, you can generally look at which classes are full, what times are available, etc. Are you really, definitely, for sure a morning person who can handle that 8am? Do you need a definite break for lunch? Will you be more productive in the mornings or evenings? Are there multiple profs for the class and does one have better ratings than the other? (ratemyprofessor.com is a lifesaver) Is there enough time outside of class to study/do extracurriculars/have a social life? Sometimes you’ll really need to take a class and it’ll be at some ungodly hour, but sometimes you gotta suck it up. Try not to overload one day with classes and make sure there’s enough time between classes to get to your next class, especially if your school has a large campus. This part is really based on personal preference, so enjoy it!

11. Give yourself time to do all of this: Especially for a first-year college student, there’s a lot already happening, and the opportunities are endless. It takes a lot of time to thoroughly research. This is a big process if you really care about being organized, and it can set you up for great success in college! All of these steps are really tied together but you’ll need more than one day (I took several weeks lol) to plan out a college career.

12. It gets easier: After doing this for just two semesters, I was much more comfortable making these big choices. For my new university, I managed to accomplish this in only a few days, but I was already familiar with the major I’m pursuing and how to lay everything out. For those of you continuing in college, consider mapping our the rest of your time if you haven’t already, and keep track of the courses you’ve taken and still need to take! This way, you won’t be thrown any loops when graduation comes.

Disclaimer: This advice is based purely off my own U.S. college experience which is undoubtedly very different from others! Ultimately, pursuing a higher-level education is your own personal journey, and do what you need to do to find success, this is just me trying to help out others!

If you have any questions about any of this, want to talk scheduling with me, or see my schedule planning notes and spreadsheets, just message me, I’m always willing to talk and even more willing to make friends!

-B

[docfuture]

Princess, part 1

     [This story is a prequel, set several years before The Fall of Doc Future, when Flicker is 16.  There are a few minor changes in continuity from the serialized versions of Fall and Skybreaker's Call, for reasons explained here (spoilers if you haven't read Fall and Call.)  Link to the latest chapter of The Maker’s Ark is here, and links to some of my other work are here.  Planning to update this at least once a week until it's done--next update is set to be up by October 19th.]

      When Flicker had formally started her career as a superhero, Doc Future had expressed reservations about her ability in two areas.  Not her power, technique, knowledge, or motivation, but two mundane, almost trivial seeming skills.  Flicker hadn't thought they would cause any major problems.       They did.       The skills were triage and pacing.  What to prioritize when she couldn't get to everything, when to stop, and when not to even go on call for the day because she hadn't recovered enough yet.       For someone who could respond to any emergency, anywhere in the world, they were essential.  She'd eventually dealt with the triage issue by setting general priorities and letting Doc's Database handle the rest--because that let her concentrate on pacing.  Which was still a problem.  One that was manageable, but not always well managed.       Because knowing that people somewhere were dying or getting hurt because she wasn't willing or able to push just a little further... bothered her.  A lot.       The problem wasn't a lack of time--she couldn't literally make time, but she could sure stretch it.  She could think at up to a million times human subjective speed, and move even faster.  But she eventually needed to slow down again to stay sane.  So her bottlenecks were the things she couldn't speed through, like long-term memory organization and biological recovery.  She still pushed--she was fast at them by human standards.  By her own, she was glacially slow.  And biological recovery--downtime while body and brain chemistry caught up with everything she'd done at speed--often felt like shirking responsibility, even when she desperately needed it.       She'd finished her active patrol shift for the day after hitting her stop threshold.  She'd saved lives.  That helped a little.  The estimated number of lives she saved had three digits.  That helped a little, too.  Neither of those helped as much as it hurt that the number was smaller than yesterday.  But she'd learned; keep pushing too long and her judgement and health suffered.       There were other things she needed to learn, too.  Continuing her education was one of the few things that let her recover at human speed without feeling guilty, and she had access to Doc's Database, which was, among other things, the best reference library in the world.  So Flicker had picked up a wide and detailed, if idiosyncratic, base of knowledge.  Learning and recovery were what she was doing now.  While on disaster watch, because her sense of duty wouldn't let her ignore the world's problems completely.  That was an occupational hazard for superheroes.       She was reading and tracing references on some subjects she found interesting, though not particularly pleasant.  Which felt appropriate, because her new Database threshold algorithm wasn't very pleasant either.  But it let her help with the worst events even when she was on the ragged edge of burnout.  She needed the structure, otherwise she wouldn't reliably stop; it was too easy to keep going down the global incident priority list from the Database doing 'just one more thing'.  There were always more things--her speed and the Database's realtime intel gathering and analysis meant she could intervene in a significant chunk of all accidents, fires, industrial mishaps, and assorted violence in the world.  And wipe herself out in ten minutes.  So limits were necessary.       As was what she was learning.       *****       Two days ago...       "Doc, I need advice on my next research topic," said Flicker.  "It's practical, not academic.  And I got several Database warnings and an advisory about where I was going to start."       Doc Future put down the scanner and pushed his goggles up on his forehead.  They were in his lab.  It was cluttered, as it usually was when he was working.  They had their differences, but Doc always made time for her sudden interruptions, and his suggestions were often helpful.  And he rarely tried to push any topic that wasn't vital.  Flicker didn't know if that was what normal humans needed in a parent, but it was what she needed.       "An advisory?  What topic?" he asked.       "Politics," said Flicker.  "I've screwed up too much because I don't understand it, and I haven't learned better because I dislike it.  But I need to."       "Reasonable," said Doc.       "The advisory was to talk to you if you had time.  I did a Database search for a good book to start learning the foundations of applied political science from, and got a list of suggestions.  And I did another search for useful guides for someone who has power but is still naive and doesn't want to get people killed out of ignorance.  And I got another list."       Flicker paused.  "One book was on both lists.  And the first warning was about the importance of context, proper translation, and annotations."       "One moment," said Doc.  Then, to the air:  "Database, command, pizza and drinks, break room."       "Acknowledged," came from the nearest lab speaker.       "Um," said Flicker.  "You don't need to drop everything--"       "Priorities," said Doc.  He shut down the scanner and a data recorder, then headed for the door.       Flicker frowned.  "How did you know I skipped lunch?"       Doc smiled crookedly.  "I didn't.  But there will be enough for both of us."

     "How is your pacing management going?" asked Doc, after his first slice of pizza.       "It's okay when I spend at least some time working with Jetgirl or Journeyman.  But she hit a long run of stuff I couldn't help with, then went on vacation, and Journeyman has been away dealing with that interdimensional magician thing again."       Flicker looked away.  "I had to do something about that fire in Lagos.  There wasn't anyone else; Virago was in Sudan, the Saharan was in Mali, and the fire department was stuck in traffic.  I trashed the building, but it all would have burned anyway, and I got the people out, so..."       She stopped and took a breath before starting again.  "Yeah.  Pacing is still a problem.  I set the off-duty interrupt thresholds even higher.  I hate doing it, though.  It feels like turning my back on the world--I get this angry helpless feeling.  Like the last time I tried to study how politics works.  But if I'm feeling that way anyway, I might as well deal with something important that I've been avoiding."       "I've been known to do that," said Doc.  "Jumping Spider calls it cage match coping.  Not ideal, but..."       "But we don't live in an ideal world," she finished.  Doc's standard response to her unanswerable 'but why' questions when she was younger.  "So, what's special about this book?  Other than the fact that the author's name has become a synonym for scheming?"       "Well," said Doc, "you were going to run into it eventually, because I encouraged you to consult historical sources if they're useful.  The Prince is still germane in ways Newton's Principia is not, it's far shorter and more readable, and it was written colloquially, in the style of a guide.  Machiavelli had personal, directly relevant experience--and a dark sense of humor.  But it's been five hundred years.  You do need that context.  Also, later reactions to it by others, and their distortions of it, can be illuminating."       "You seem to know a lot about it," said Flicker.       "Yes."  Doc waited for Flicker to finish a slice of pizza before continuing.  "Given your current stressors, I'd like to test something, if you're up for it."       "Possibly..."       "You've mentioned occasionally your frustration with my reluctance to conduct further experiments involving your high speed mind."       "Yeah.  I get the dangerous part, but ignorance is dangerous, too."       "There are always tradeoffs," said Doc.  "So I'd like you to speed up, skim The Prince--skip the background and any translator editorializing for now--summarize your impressions, then slow back down and compare them with your normal speed reaction."       "I won't retain much more than the summary unless I reread it at normal speed."       "You were going to do that anyway.  And it's short."       "Okay."       Flicker sped up, loaded the book into her visor, linked it to the virtual keyboard interface in the gloves of her costume, and started reading. "Yuck," she said after finishing and slowing down.  "Gratuitous misogyny right near the end.  That was obnoxious."       "Yes.  Welcome to a primary source from the Renaissance," said Doc.  "Any reaction discrepancy?"       "No, it was yuck at high speed, and still yuck when I slowed down.  Initial impressions... The book reads like an overly wordy 'Dictatorship for Dummies'.  I found it kind of uneven.  The case studies of unpleasant stuff that worked, at least for a while, were interesting.  Sounded like he was arguing against people who said it wouldn't.  His advice about things you shouldn't do was a lot more convincing than most of his advice about what you should do instead--there were some pretty dubious generalizations.  He seemed a lot better at specific topics where he had evidence--I liked that his advice about building fortresses was basically 'It depends'.  Some of his generalizations were pretty good, though; sociological rules that seem obvious."       "They weren't obvious when he wrote about them."       "Ah.  There was one part where I think he was trolling, but I don't know who."       "What was that?"       "Well, there was this long sentence with eleven conditionals over whether you should use this one guy as an example.  Sounded like Machiavelli was trolling people who didn't like the guy."       "He was known to troll.  But I believe the passage in question was driving home the point that you should not ignore evidence, even if it was generated by someone you don't like.  He was quite aware his views would annoy people.  It's also worth noting that The Prince was a work in progress, and not published during his lifetime.  It's not clear how close the versions we have are to what he intended to be final.  He died rather suddenly."  Doc took a sip of coffee and studied her.  "How coordinated was your normal speed reaction with your high speed one?"       "Pretty well.  As much as with anything else.  So... What does that tell you?  What were you testing?"       "Whether there were any warning signs of ethical inconsistency between the two parts of your mind.  Reading The Prince for the first time was an opportunity to test for that."       Flicker frowned.  "But it's not about ethics, it's about how to succeed as an autocrat.  It's notably ethics-free.  I thought that was the point?"       "Well, your consistency is a good sign."  Doc paused, with the look he got when he was estimating how long a lecture she'd be willing to sit still for.       "Go ahead," she said.  "You think this is important, and I already expected it to be unpleasant.  And we have food.  I'm not going anywhere unless a crisis alarm hits."       Doc snorted.  "All right.  Keep in mind that this is my summary, based on my own experience and judgement, and I'm leaving out a lot."       "Granted.  Go."       "The Prince was written as a how-to book, and rather bluntly pointed out problems with trying to base political actions on any then-current dogma or ethical systems.  That was implicitly a new ethical position, and very controversial.  Before Machiavelli, there were two main families of ethics in Western philosophy--deontology and virtue ethics.  After him, there were three, although there was quite a bit of thrashing around while various versions of the new one got elaborated and argued about.  You didn't notice the ethics in The Prince because it's a consequentialist book, you were educated as a consequentialist, and you're more likely to spot things you disagree with when skimming."       Flicker sighed.  "I understand consequentialism, but those others only seem to get talked about in connection with philosophy or religion, and the signal to noise ratio of that stuff is so low."       "That is a problem, yes," said Doc.  "Wild oversimplification incoming.  Something bad happens because someone screwed up.  What's their excuse?"       He waved a hand.  "If they say 'I meant well', they're appealing to virtue ethics.  If they say 'I followed the rules', that's deontology.  And if they say 'My plan failed', that's consequentialism."       "Ahh.  Now that's useful.  I wish...  Hang on."  She frowned again, then sped up to think and check some references in the Database.  It was a long subjective time before she slowed down again.       "I think I have an ethical problem.  Several problems.  I'm not sure if they're ethical, but they are problems.  Is the Volunteer a deontologist?"       "You could ask him."       "Doc."       "It's not a trivial question to answer.  His views have evolved.  He was raised as one, just like he was raised as a human.  He does have certain fixed principles, but he considers taking consequences into account as a moral imperative."  Doc smiled.  "Complicates the categories a bit.  And he doesn't expect people to try to emulate everything he does.  If nothing else, because most people aren't bulletproof and can't fly."       "Here's the problem," said Flicker.  "I learned ethics from you, and you're a consequentialist.  But I've been using him as a moral example.  I assumed that was okay because you get along.  Now, maybe not so much.  Is it?"       "I thought it was likely to require adjustments on your part as you grew up.  I also thought you'd talk to one of us if it became a problem.  You weren't particularly receptive to theoretical ethics discussion, so I focused on more immediate concerns.  Like discouraging any tendencies you might have towards impulsive mass destruction."       "Yeah."  Flicker looked down.  "Can deontology, like... sneak up on you?  Can rules that you started using for practical reasons or because you thought they were good fallbacks start acquiring moral baggage without you realizing it?"       "Oh yes.  Happens all the time.  Rules are easy to teach, easy to learn, and easy to reinforce.  And most people learn some form of rule-based morality as children, so it's familiar.  That's one reason that the Volunteer is so careful about what he says.  A lot of people look up to him, but others have been trying to twist the meaning of what he does to fit their own agenda since...  Well, it started to get bad in the fifties, and has never really gotten better."       "You didn't teach me that way.  Your rules always came with explanations.  Or even stories.  And I could use the Database scenario analyzer to explore just why something would be bad."       Doc nodded.  "You were an extreme case.  I didn't see any alternative to teaching you consequentialism as soon as we could reliably communicate, because of the amount of power you have.  Database access and your ability to speed up to think helped make it more practical.  And I think, based on your negative reaction to external rules without what you view as adequate justification, that somewhere in your missing memories prior to age nine, someone, or several someones, tried to impose a rule system on you."       "Yeah..."  Flicker watched the server bot refill her pop and add an ice cube as she thought.  "But when I come up with the rule myself, like by watching the Volunteer, and it matches my consequence evaluation enough, I start just accepting it.  And if it involves an emotional reaction when I'm at human speed, but consequences that are hard to evaluate fully without speeding up, it seems to sometimes pick up a moral value; I feel guilty if I try to ignore it.  I think that's why the feeling that I'm not doing my duty if I don't help out somewhere every day, even if I'm wiped, is so hard to shake."       "That's plausible.  It may be a consequence of whatever mechanism synchronizes moral judgement between the two parts of your mind; that's why I wanted to check on it."       Flicker looked back at him.  "Is this book likely to make my problems worse?"       "I don't think so."  Doc scratched his chin.  "But I do think your history and judgement synchronization are likely to be partly responsible for why you find reading about or discussing politics or ethics so unpleasant."       "Great.  I really wish I could talk to a human psychologist without putting a huge target on their back."       "Unlikely after what happened during the Lost Years.  And for any remotely safe intervention, they would need either training in a specialty that doesn't exist or years of experience with you."       "I'd settle for a smart generalist with personal experience in human emulation.  But that rules out most humans.  And I can't do a real Database search for one because of the privacy restrictions."       "The Database is frightening enough even with those restrictions.  But..."  Doc frowned and tapped at his handcomp.  "There, I set up a Database thread to analyze what a minimally intrusive search for someone appropriate for you to talk to might look like.  You'd need to think carefully about what you're looking for, and you wouldn't be able to access any of the raw data or decision process, even by override.  It still might not be practical.  You can discuss it with the Database integrity AI."       "Okay.  I'll talk to DASI about it."  Doc strongly disapproved of anthropomorphization of the Database.  But he was willing to let Flicker talk to DASI--the Database Algorithm Security and Integrity AI--for mental health reasons, so she was careful to maintain the distinction.       Doc started on another slice of pizza, and Flicker leaned back in her chair.       "In the meantime," she said, "I'll do a proper read of The Prince, and context on Machiavelli, and see if I can figure out why a consequentialist would write a handbook for autocrats."       Another crooked smile from Doc.  "He liked Florence a lot."       *****       Now.       Flicker had found the book and background material sometimes jarring and often depressing.  But it wasn't boring, and a few bits were full of insight.  Like: "...how one lives is so far distant from how one ought to live, that he who neglects what is done for what ought to be done, sooner effects his ruin than his preservation; for a man who wishes to act entirely up to his professions of virtue soon meets with what destroys him among so much that is evil."       She did not understand how anyone could interpret that as 'The end justifies the means'.  But a lot of people apparently had.  Flicker saw it as making clear that neither the world, nor people, nor you, were perfect, and if you didn't pay attention to that you were going to get in trouble--but it didn't justify anything.  You needed to get that somewhere else, if at all.       She wondered if any of the superheroes who died during the Lost Years had thought that acknowledging imperfection was equivalent to abandoning their principles.       She jumped back to a passage she'd read over and over.  Superheroes weren't political leaders, but there was definitely something there.  Still, it seemed a little... off.       "Upon this a question arises: whether it be better to be loved than feared or feared than loved? It may be answered that one should wish to be both, but, because it is difficult to unite them in one person, it is much safer to be feared than loved, when, of the two, either must be dispensed with."       Flicker wasn't sure about that.  The Volunteer was loved a lot and feared a little.  Virago and Nighthaunt were both feared a lot and loved a little.  All were successful, in different ways.       But safety didn't mean the same thing to her as it did to Machiavelli, and she wasn't sure how much that mattered.  She was still thinking about that when a special alarm flashed.       Flicker was off-duty, and still at Yellow endurance status--she hadn't fully recovered from her most recent shift.  But she had a short list of personal priority interrupts for the Database.  At the top was 'reckless speedster'.  And a crisis analysis appeared on her visor, right after the alarm:       Event:  Shockwave generation.  Building, infrastructure, and vehicle damage.  Probable injuries, potentially life-threatening.       Location:  Rome, Italy.       Tags:  Severe, ongoing, casualties, assessment lag.       Cause (extrapolated):  83%:  Hermes.  14%:  Unknown speedster.  3%:  Other.       Flicker was already in costume, and had sped up her mind.  Now she sped up her body and virtual typed a response.       Database, command, assign event cause neutralization to me.  Alert Doc, Box crisis intake, local emergency response, Interpol.  Start continuous updates by available channels, breadth over depth, cascading priority interrupts.       Acknowledged.       She sent further queries, ones that would take longer for the Database to answer, as she headed for the equipment bay.  Duty called.

Next: Part 2

[mr-entj]

Do you have any entries on your blog that covers student loans and how to approach them for someone who is nervous about debt? Thank you!

Combined with the following asks:

I am an avid reader and impressed your journey. I read that you came from a lower income family but I noticed that you also went to top universities which is impressive. I am in the same situation and I am, going to take out thousands of dollars loans to pay for my dream college, is it something you would advise? What is the alternative for people in our situation?

If it is not too much to ask, how did you pay for college if your family was poor? As someone who is of similar background as yours. Thank you for the time you take to write to your readers and answer their questions

Between going to a european top college, staying far from my family and going into debt for it or attending a local college, staying home, but no debt, what is your opinion? What could be the best decision?

Higher ranked college + debt or lower ranked college + no debt?

Related:

Hi Mr-entj. Do you have any advice for becoming more financially literate?

General money management advice

Mr. ENTJ can you break down how to interpret the compensation from an offer letter such as salary and bonuses for someone with multiple offers trying to weigh options? What to look for?

Student Loans 101

I don’t give personalized financial advice but 5 things to know before you take out a student loan (applicable mainly to American students):

1. Understand the financial impact of student loans on your life after graduation

This is the absolute #1 priority and where students really get screwed over. Most people see the loan numbers on paper but don’t fully comprehend the day to day burden repaying that debt will have on their lives. Here’s an easy way to ballpark impact: for every $10,000 you borrow, you’ll need to pay back $100 per month … for 10 years (The average federal loan is at a 6% interest rate with a 10 year or 120 month repayment schedule).

This means:

$20,000 in student loans = $200 monthly payment

$40,000 in student loans = $400 monthly payment

$60,000 in student loans = $600 monthly payment

$80,000 in student loans = $800 monthly payment

$100,000 in student loans = $1,000 monthly payment

$250,000 in student loans = $2,500 monthly payment

These are very rough estimates because loans have varied interest rates. Use student loan calculators for more accuracy: BankRate Student Loan Calculator, FinAid Loan Calculator, and the Federal Student Loan Repayment Calculator.

Understand what you’ll make vs. what you’ll pay. For salary, remember that, roughly:

$20,000 annual salary = $500 per paycheck or $1,000 per month

$40,000 annual salary = $1,000 per paycheck or $2,000 per month

$60,000 annual salary = $1,500 per paycheck or $3,000 per month

$80,000 annual salary = $2,000 per paycheck or $4,000 per month

$100,000 annual salary = $2,500 per paycheck or $5,000 per month

For perspective, let’s put the student loan and salary data together. This means that if you graduate with a job that pays $40,000 per year but you have a $40,000 student loan you’ll bring home approximately $1,600 every month($2,000 salary - $400 monthly loan payment). For added perspective, the average cost of a 1-bedroom apartment in Los Angeles is $2400– and that’s just for housing– that doesn’t take into account other things you need to survive as a living and breathing human being like, say, food and water, clothing, utilities, health insurance, car insurance, car payment, gas, etc.

A general rule is not to take out student loans greater than your salary after graduation. I knew my salary after graduation would exceed $130,000 so I took out the loan and I’ve been able to pay it back with relative ease but it was a long and painful process that required many sacrifices. With my $1,100 monthly loan payment over 10 years, I could have bought 2 Corvette Stingrays but I also know that I couldn’t have the career I have today without taking on that debt.

2. Research universities, potential careers, job placement, and salary before you take out a loan

Don’t be that clueless ocarina major with $100,000 in student loans and no job post-graduation.

Some people say that college is a place to learn– and it is– but it’s also a financial investment in your future. If you want to attend college just to study your passion with no regard for post-graduation salary then consider going to a library, joining a hobby group, or surfing Google for hours instead because at least those options are free and they won’t bury you in decades of debt. College is a financial commitment amounting to tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of dollars– don’t wander into it lightly.

Research:

Tuition and financial aid statistics by university. How much does it cost to attend each school? How much is housing? What other hidden fees are there? How much financial aid does the school give? What scholarships and grants are available to accepted students? What % of students receive aid? What is the average debt carried by graduates?

Reputation, rankings, and strength of programs by university. How is this school regarded in the industry, the state, the country, the world? What is the strength of the program you’re interested in? What companies recruit at your school? What is your university and program of choice ranked? Your college degree is your passport into the professional world and the more prestigious and well-regarded it is, the easier your journey will be. (Mr. ENTJ, do things like rankings, reputation, and prestige for which school you attend matter when it comes to your career?)

Career services and alumni network by university. What career services does the school provide? What companies recruit at your school? How active are the alumni of this school? How successful are the alumni of this school? Top companies recruit at top schools, it’s a very simple concept, so if you want to break into a very difficult industry this is a question to ask. Alumni are important because they’re the club you join post-graduation. The more successful and helpful alumni are, the more plentiful the opportunities throughout your journey.

Prospective careers by major. What can you do with your degree? What are the careers this major leads into? How much do those careers pay? What is the demand for those careers? How difficult is it to get a job in those fields?

Job placement and salary statistics by major. What is the average % of graduates who get jobs after graduation? What’s the average salary of those graduates? Look for salaries by major because schools often average salaries across the entire university and that’s misleading. An interpretive dancing major and a chemical engineering major will not make the same amount of money post-graduation.

I don’t give advice on what schools people should or shouldn’t attend or if they’re worth the debt but do thorough research and if the university has a prestigious reputation, strong program in a particular field, active alumni network, high job placement, generous financial aid, high salaries post-graduation, and good career support then that trends towards a worthwhile investment.

3. If you need to pay for college, remember this hierarchy: free money > federal loans >>>>> private loans

Free money includes grants, scholarships and other options that don’t require repayment. As a general rule, the better student you are (grades, GPA, test scores), the more money universities will throw at you because you’re a more attractive candidate and they know other universities are fighting for you to attend their schools. Students with bad grades and bad test scores get crappier financial aid packages because universities view you as someone who should feel lucky to have been accepted at all.

Federal loans are low-interest, fixed-rate loans funded by the government. These are preferred because they have flexible repayment methods like income based repayment (the less or more you money you make, the less or more money you pay back) or loan forgiveness (PSLF program). Still, free money is preferable to any type of loan.

Private loans are a last resort and only if grants/scholarships and federal loans don’t provide enough money to cover expenses of your first-choice school. Private loans are given by banks and banks are ran by businessmen who want to make money. They typically have high interest rates, high fees, and inflexible repayment plans. Remember that their primary goal is to make money, they are not here to help you achieve your academic dreams.

4. Never go into debt attending a for-profit school

(*People triggered by absolutes*: “Never?”) Never. Their degrees are worthless in the job market, attend accredited universities only.

The Lifelong Cost of Getting a For-Profit Education

5 Reasons You Should Avoid For-Profit Colleges at All Costs

For-Profit Colleges’ Teachable Moment: ‘Terrible Outcomes Are Very Profitable’

4 ways to avoid for-profit college abuses

My college degree is worthless

Why low-income borrowers should avoid for-profit colleges

Will a for-profit degree get you a job?

5. Above all, prepare ahead of time before you start applying to colleges

Get top grades and top test scores in high school because this will result in more generous financial aid packages.

Take as many AP courses and tests as possible because these can count for college credit and save hundreds, if not thousands of dollars, in the long run. I took so many AP courses in high school I entered college with sophomore standing.

Save money for college throughout your life from summer jobs, side jobs, allowances, etc. I didn’t have rich parents so I set aside a few dollars from each paycheck into a savings account.

Apply early for multiple grants and scholarships to accumulate as much free money as possible. This is a numbers game; the more you apply, the better chance you have of winning so search far and wide and blanket applications and essays to anything you remotely qualify for. I had so much scholarship money in undergrad that I made money going to college.

Consider community colleges. Attending community college for 2 years and then transferring to a university can save thousands of dollars in tuition and get you the same degree someone who paid 4 years of university tuition has. I did 2 years of community college then transferred to a top public university and saved $50,000 in the process (university is approximately $25,000 per year).

Resources

Grants and Scholarships

Finding scholarships

FastWeb Scholarships

U.S. Department of Labor Scholarships

Google any university’s name and the word “scholarships” for school-specific scholarships

Student Loan Calculators

Student Loan Term Comparison Calculator

Student Loan Payment Calculator

BankRate Student Loan Calculator

FinAid Loan Calculator

Federal Student Loan Repayment Calculator

Paycheck Calculators

Paycheck City Salary Calculator

Smart Asset Paycheck Calculator

ADP Paycheck Calculator

Career Salary Data

Glassdoor

Indeed

LinkedIn

Paysa

The Economic Value of College Majors by Georgetown University

2017-2018 College Salary Report by Payscale

Field of Study in College and Lifetime Earnings in the United States

There are countless statistics, stories, and articles that capture the impact of student loans:

r/studentloans

Student loans have become our modern-day debtors prisons

10 Ways Student Debt Can Destroy Your Life

The Mental Toll of Student Debt: What Our Survey Shows

Google News: “student loan crisis”

[thezodiaczone]

November Forecast for Aries

Get ready for action, Aries. The stars are in a continuous cosmic dance this November, making some major moves. Two outer planets, Uranus and Jupiter, are making zodiac sign changes, which is a big deal since they do so infrequently. Meanwhile, three other planets (Venus, Mercury and Neptune) will weave in and out of retrograde slowdowns. Stay alert because this shifting cosmic landscape can switch up the vibe without notice!

Until November 22, this is all happening against the backdrop of Scorpio season, which is intense enough to begin with. As the Sun moves through your eighth house of merging, transformation and intimacy, you might be uncharacteristically quiet. But who could blame you? There’s a LOT to reflect on and many moving parts to bring together, so you’re in “focus mode” now. You could be processing some heavy emotions or forging a deep connection, particularly near the November 7 Scorpio new moon. Even though there’s plenty going on, devote this day to finding some quiet time to meditate, tune in or connect to your inner guidance system. The powerful messages you receive could impact you for up to six months. Some Aries could make a relationship official. Considering a joint business or financial venture? This new moon favors all mergers, so let the talks begin.

The action really kicks off on November 6, when radical changemaker Uranus backs into YOUR sign for a final four-month lap. It will remain here until March 6, 2019, then it won’t return again in this lifetime. Uranus made its long trek through Aries from March 2011 to May 2018, a seven-year upheaval that could have completely reset your life trajectory. While it may have been hard at times to find your groove, you DID discover authentic new parts of your identity, and by now you’re probably wearing them proudly on your sleeve. Your revelations could have led to a career change or a passionate new life path. Uranus only visits each sign every 84 years, so hosting it in your sign is a big deal!

On May 15, 2018, Uranus moved into Taurus and your second house of work and money, helping you build your big ideas into something tangible (and profitable). But just as you were screwing in the first nuts and bolts, Uranus started its annual five-month retrograde on August 7, first through Taurus and now in Aries. The side-spinning planet will be in reverse until January 6, so the next two months are a powerful window to ensure that you don’t abandon your most innovative ideas. You’re an Aries, and that voice within will never steer you wrong. Take a break from practical details to recalibrate your GPS. In March 2019, when Uranus settles into Taurus until 2026, you’ll be ready to put your visionary ideas into practice!

And then, on November 8, some truly exciting news arrives. Lucky Jupiter, the planet of growth and expansion, zooms into Sagittarius and your ninth house of risk-taking, travel and entrepreneurship for a 13-month visit. Until December 2, 2019, your “out there” ideas could go viral. This auspicious Jupiter cycle, which only happens every 12 years, will supersize your ambitions and, if you want one, it will give you a giant platform for your message. Both Jupiter AND Sagittarius are at “home” in the zodiac’s ninth house. It’s like you’re getting a triple-strength vibration of this no-limits energy. Talk about a gift!

Higher education and publishing also fall in this domain. Over the coming months, you could return to school or spread your message through media, a book or an inspiring “edu-tainment” project. Travel is a highlight, and you could see new parts of the world, or work with people in far-flung places. Jupiter was last in Sagittarius from November 24, 2006, to December 18, 2007, so if you can, reflect on that period for clues of what might resurface.

You probably won’t be sad to see Jupiter exit Scorpio and your intense eighth house, where it’s been since October 10, 2017. Some heavy-duty soul-searching may have consumed you since then. And while all the spiritual and emotional growth was epic, it’s been a lot to take in! Now you’ll move forward with inner resilience, ready to share the transformational energy with others through bold and impactful projects.

Mid-month, there’s a retrograde “changing of the guard” to navigate. On November 16, love planet Venus ends a six-week retrograde that’s been shaking up your committed-relationship houses since October 5. If an ex resurfaced or an important bond was tested, no surprise. Venus retrograde pushed you to strengthen your partnerships or leave the unfulfilling ones behind in order to create room for a real-deal connection.

But no sooner does Venus straighten out than communication planet Mercury starts acting up, turning retrograde from November 16 until December 6. Mercury will back through Sagittarius and your expansive ninth house until December 1, which could interfere with Jupiter’s attempts to heat up your grand plans (so slow down a tad!). The communication planet will finish its last few days in Scorpio, a time to be mindful about everything from close relationships to holiday spending.

In the first half of November, do some “Mercury-proofing” by backing up your data, triple-confirming any travel plans and thinking before you blurt out a brusque or tactless remark. This is a time when all signals can get scrambled, technology breaks down, and conflicts erupt. The holidays are already a minefield of miscommunications for many people, so if you can prevent any breakdowns by planning ahead properly, do it!

Whether or not you observe Thanksgiving, there will be lots of gratitude and good cheer on November 22 as the Sun sails into jubilant Sagittarius until December 21. Now you can emerge from your “intensity cocoon” and reconnect with the wider world. So, what do you want to say or share? You’ll be at no loss for words on November 23, when the year’s only Gemini full moon ignites your third house of communication. You could get exciting, long-awaited news or have a powerful conversation with a friend or sibling. This also happens to be Black Friday, which gives business owners a special boost with marketing and social media. Connect to your audience with an attention-getting, relevant message.

The next day, November 24, foggy Neptune ends a long retrograde that began on June 18 in Pisces and your twelfth house of closure and healing. If you’ve been struggling to let go of a painful or addictive pattern or dealing with some old self-doubt, you might breathe a sigh of relief when Neptune finally corrects course. Feelings you’ve suppressed, perhaps some old grief or pain, could come up. If they do, connect to a supportive professional to help you process those emotions. A creative or spiritual pursuit that got sidelined could pick up speed again. And if you’ve felt disconnected from your intuition in any way, your hotline to the divine will become fiber-optic clear again!

The luckiest day of the month—and year—arrives on November 26, when the radiant Sun and expansive Jupiter make their annual conjunction (meeting). This is especially fortuitous because both are in Sagittarius and your go-big-or-go-home ninth house. What a way to end the month, Aries! If you’re considering taking a leap of faith or making a big plunge into unfamiliar terrain, there’s no better day to do it. An exciting opportunity to travel or spread your message to a larger audience could pop up. If it does, don’t overthink it—seize the moment!

Love & Romance

Ah, love—it hasn’t necessarily been the easiest part of your life for the past month. If you’ve been feeling a little shortchanged in the romance department, you can blame it on vixen Venus, who’s been retrograde (backward) since October 5, bringing back ex-flames and old dramas or just throwing obstacles in your path to partnership. For couples, well-worn conflicts could come up, pushing you to make sure your relationship feels balanced and mutual. Or maybe you just haven’t been able to get that quality time in together.

Venus has been reversing through Scorpio (from October 5 to 31) and Libra (from October 31 to November 16), which happen to rule the two most intimate and committed parts of your chart. If you’ve attempted to rush into anything serious—as your sign is notorious for doing—Venus retrograde will slam the brakes. But the cosmic love goddess is serving up some important lessons that you might (finally) want to heed. As your fellow Aries Diana Ross sang, “You can’t hurry love.” Your sign gets caught up in the magic of the chase, the courtship, the honeymoon; but maybe your staying power could use a little work?

For the first half of November, spend time soul-searching or dealing with any anxiety you might have about feeling trapped or bored in a commitment. Perhaps you’re just not voicing your needs, or you feel like you have to suppress your adventurous appetite. That “exchange rate” doesn’t always seem like one worth paying. For what: security? That’s not even a top priority for your sign. But remember: It’s up to YOU to keep the flames burning when they stop generating automatically. So instead of sitting back and expecting the magic to just happen, work on becoming a fabulous magician who can conjure chemistry anytime, anyplace—no matter how long you’ve been together.

Meantime, lusty Mars (your ruling planet) is bolting through Aquarius and your eleventh house of friends and technology from September 10 to November 15. An online match could have heated up in the past couple months, or you may have felt sparks with a previously platonic person. That could happen in the first two weeks of November, too.

With Venus retrograde, acting on these feelings could get #complicated. But maybe it won’t on November 9, when the love planets serve up a conciliatory gesture by meeting in a beautiful and harmonious trine. Friends could become lovers, couples could connect through honest conversation, and that Tinder swipe could actually deliver a winning match. Stay open to friends hooking you up with their friends, too!

On November 15, Mars will move into Pisces and your dreamy twelfth house for the rest of the year, amping up the fantasy factor. While you could get swept away in a sexy affair, don’t throw out all those important Venus-retrograde lessons! The temptation of a clandestine connection could intensify with Mars in this illusion-spinning zone. While the rash planet could find you acting first and thinking later, don’t underestimate the stress of turning your life upside-down in the name of love (or lust). For couples, this is a powerful time to work through anger toward forgiveness and closure.

Key Dates

November 30: Venus-Uranus Opposition While it’s important to keep the peace in key relationships, neither sacrificing your own desires nor resolutely insisting on having your way will lead to harmony. If you can’t find a suitable partner, look at the role your fierce need for independence may be playing.

Money & Career

With the Scorpio Sun blazing through your magnetic eighth house (until November 22), people will be eager to team up with you. Well, of course they are—but what’s in it for YOU? Actually, Aries, it could be a lot! Your ruling planet, Mars, is heating up your networking sector until November 15, which can point you straight toward a perfect collaborator. In your screening process, look for someone who shares your principles and work ethic, but complements (rather than duplicates) your skills. You might stumble on an ideal candidate around November 7, the date of the Scorpio new moon.

You’ll be feeling confident and optimistic about new ventures starting on November 8, when expansive Jupiter leaves cautious Scorpio and returns to Sagittarius and your entrepreneurial ninth house for the first time in almost 13 years! But don’t try to do everything at once. This transit is in effect for a little more than a year. Enjoy the rush of motivation it brings, but don’t get carried away by big ideas and promises—yours or anyone else’s!

More synergy could spark on November 9, when Mars forms a rare and empowering trine with Venus in your partnership sector. If you feel an instant click with someone, that’s definitely a sign to proceed—but with caution. With Jupiter making you overeager, you might not be using your keenest judgment.

You’ll get a chance to tap the brakes and process all these major developments starting on November 15, when go-go Mars downshifts into Pisces and your twelfth house of rest and reflection. While Aries IS the sign of action, even you need to occasionally take an off-ramp and integrate changes. Take advantage of this opportunity to fully recharge your batteries because when your ruler revs into your sign on New Year’s Day, you’ll want to be ready to hit the ground running!

Key Dates

November 20: Mars-Jupiter Square Letting go can be painful, but if you’re honest with yourself (encouraged by truth-teller Jupiter’s presence), you’ll acknowledge that it’s time for closure—and possibly forgiveness. Difficult as it is, when you confront these things bravely and release what no longer has a place in your life, you open doors to a whole new level of freedom and contentment!

Love Days: 27, 31 Money Days: 11, 20 Luck Days: 8, 18 Off Days: 29, 29, 16

[mubal4]

Teacher Appreciation Day & Rainy Desert Run

 Happy Teacher Appreciation Day & Teacher Appreciation Week to all you educators out there.  Know that there are many that know you are making an impact in our kids lives each day and the world’s future.  And, for one particular teacher out there, you are the definition of selfless and amazing 😉!!  That last sentence was for my wife, Robin, who has been teaching for 20+ years.  I believe she brought to this earth to teach children.  I also believe she has a special gift when it comes to educating our youth.  She has a special gift in general with children.  Whether she is teaching them in a classroom, or she is coaching them in the gym, she is consistently making an impact.  I see it each day with our kids and others, and I hear it from parents of her students and her gymnasts.  This has been the case in PA and, for the second time around, here in AZ.  Yes, there are those times when being a teacher is incredibly challenging and often times, underappreciated.  However, there are many days that I see her, and she is glowing because of what she gets to do each day.  I’ve mentioned this before but when we moved to AZ, she took a 50% pay cut and we knew that coming into it.  She didn’t back down from that challenge and she embraced it.  She could have easily said we are not moving, and this mission could have been outweighed by the decrease in income.  That didn’t discourage her from making the jump and, taking on more responsibility in a different type of teaching role working with gifted students in higher grades.  She has knocked it out of the park, and I am incredibly proud of her for the effort she has put in, not just with teaching but with coaching too.  She spends 3 nights a week at the gym working with those young gymnasts and she is in her happy place when she does.  When you have a passion for what you do, for Robin it is teaching and coaching, although there are days it is work, the joy and fulfillment that comes with it is hard to replicate.  When we were evaluating the decision to move back to AZ, we talked about if going back to teach here would be the best choice for her.  The more we discussed it, the more she……couldn’t imagine herself doing something else.  She could have shifted careers but, at least from my perspective, teaching is where she was meant to be.  In my opinion, we are blessed to have her as an educator and my guess is the kids that have came through her doors throughout the years feel the same way.  So, to my wife, know that you are appreciated for what you do as a teacher, and for me and the girls, as a wife and mom. Thank you for the work and effort you put to this family and all you do each day.  We love you!!!

 Shifting gears, a bit here, but still related to finding joy and fulfillment in situations that are not ideal.  Phoenix was hit by rain this morning.  It came to a surprise to me and Robin, but I am sure it was forecasted. Rain is rare here, especially in May, so we don’t typically look at the weather too much.  My morning was open since my Uber duties (aka: driving kids to school) was taken off my plate so I planned to hit the trails.  When I opened the door to walk out, there was quite a nice little downpour happening.  Just to paint a picture, it is typically in the 90’s in May out here and overnight, maybe dips into the 60’s, with, as I mentioned, very little rain.  It is very rare for us to have an excuse to NOT go outside unless it is over 100 degrees and your shoes are melting on the pavement.  That said, this morning it was a downpour and about 58 degrees.  For AZ, in May, ideal trail running weather.  For me, I stood at the door for about 5 minutes, watching the rain fall, trying to come up with a good excuse to skip the trail and go to the treadmill at the gym. That was the easy way out; the comfortable thing to do; completely the opposite thing Robin did when transitioning out to teach here and exactly what we are NOT trying to program our girls with. After Robin and I had a few good laughs about it, I said screw it and went off to the trail.  As I got there and started my run it tapered off to a drizzle, even a spit.  I was adventuring on a new trail, an out and back run and the first half was incredible running weather; cool, light breeze, trail was soft from the rain; couldn’t have been better really and I almost decided to run on a treadmill.  It was a great run…………lol, until it started raining again.  As soon as I hit the halfway point and turned back, well first I had a quick conversation with some folks walking their dog from Syracuse, NY, which was cool but as soon as I saw them, bang, downpour again and there was nowhere to hide.  The rain came down hard until I got to the trailhead and finished it up.  Fortunately, I had a change of clothes so rung out my wet stuff and then sat on my tailgate, watching and listening to it rain.  

 I could have chosen to take the simple route; go to the gym and run in a controlled environment, on the treadmill, getting my miles in. Instead, I GOT to experience something that doesn’t typically come about in AZ, a trial run in the rain, in May, when it isn’t 100 degrees. I have found out, may times the hard way, that taking the simple way out, yes, provides convenience sometimes, but doesn’t offer satisfaction; fulfillment.  Would I have gotten my miles in on the treadmill? Sure.  Would I have come out of that with a story to tell, a new experience, or the fulfillment of a high level of effort and something that was much more satisfying? No.  I knew it wasn’t going to be ideal out there today in the rain.  Robin knew that teaching in AZ wasn’t going to be ideal either. Looking back on both choices, I believe our level of satisfaction on both fronts is pretty good. 😊

[ill-be-istj-if-no-one-else-is]

Hi, I was wondering if you had any advice for someone struggling to find their way regarding a career path. I will be going to college in a year and still freeze up anytime anyone asks me my plans for my future, especially when I have had teachers and counselors pushing me in certain directions and essentially overwhelming me with their opinions: community/online college (which would give me time to grow as a person) vs on campus university (where I supposedly “need to go”) specifically. 1/4

I have always been indecisive (a huge flaw) and in this particular situation I struggle with feeling like disappointing my counselors who are just trying to help me. And even greater I waffle on possibly pursuing something I’m interested in and want to explore more vs choosing something safe and secure that won’t put me in a bunch of debt thanks to our crippling economy. 2/4

I do realize that a lot of people might say how the issue here is technically resolved because in reality I already know the answer and everything: go with what will make me happy because it’s actually what I want and if not the problem will still be a problem to me subconsciously or whatever. But I guess I’m too stubborn and scared to take a chance on that kind of philosophy? 3/4

As an inf Te user I assume I too “suck at sorting out my shit.” I am open to any and all criticism I’m just really lost right now as this has been a huge conflict in my life for awhile. Thanks. 4/4---

Hi anon,

So because you said ‘college’ and not ‘university’ I’m going to guess you’re American, which is good because that’s the higher education system I’m familiar with, but if not then let me know since my advice would be different since most non-American universities do require you know what you want to do going in.

Anyway - so you’re going to college in a year? So you’re like, 17? Your counselors need to shut up. I mean, they won’t, and they are just trying to do their job, but few people know what they’re going to do at age 17, and a lot of people who think they know what they’re going to do end up changing it. None of my siblings are in the jobs we thought we’d had going into college, though a couple of us are close-ish, because life is an ever-changing thing.

Also, don’t worry about the economy right now, because who knows where it will be in 5 years. Like, do you think people in 2003 knew what was coming in 2008? Spoiler: no they did not. And actually the economy is pretty okay at the moment, especially compared to say, 2009. That said crippling debt is indeed real even in a good economy because college is expensive and I’ll talk about that later.

Now, it is worth considering what you like AND how you can make money off of that in a reasonable manner, but the range of both those things is probably quite large, and you might not even know what you ultimately want to do yet because high school doesn’t teach as broad a scope as college - it can’t, because it needs to impart core classes, and college lets you start to specialize. You may find your current passions actually don’t excite you as a career, because you’re a person who will change. Or maybe they do, and you’ll find a career that fits perfectly. The only real advice I have is that ‘follow your passion’ is garbage advice that neglects that 1. sometimes the reality ends up being that you can’t make a living in your passion, but you can make a living that allows you ample time to explore your passion, 2. sometimes the reality ends up being that when your passion becomes your job, it stops being your passion because you’re now obligated to do it, and 3. sometimes your passion when you’re 17 is not remotely what your passion is when you’re 25.

Take classes that interest you and if you’re worried that you’ll never succeed in that field, take a few classes that will give you a practical back up. With the exception of the hard sciences most careers are pretty flexible in what you actually majored in anyway.

Now as for community/online vs. on-campus:

Don’t do online unless you have extenuating circumstances, at least not for college overall (a course or two online is fine). A lot of them aren’t seen as serious, and some are for-profit, which is to say, bullshit. There are valid online schools, but I do think the actual experience of going to real classes is invaluable and if you can do so, it’s preferable.

Community college on the other hand is a good option for a lot of people. The one caveat is that it can be hard to get into grad school if you only have community college, but if it’s a two-year college you can transfer to a four year college for the final years and continue on, having spent much less money, and you’ll get the same degree as people who went there for all four years.

The big benefit of on-campus is that a lot of learning in college is like, how to live on your own and interact with the world as an adult, and living at home can make that part more difficult. I find that transition into adulthood can even help you become more decisive, although it’s at times scary and you will screw things up at times. However, the community college to four year option still lets you take that option. If you’re in a state with a good state college system that’s also often a good and not too expensive option.

My final piece of advice is if you can, to find a part-time job in college that you can use out of college if you end up either deciding to pursue a passion that makes it difficult to find jobs easily, or if you end up making a career change later in life. I think I’ve mentioned it before but tutoring paid my rent when the nature of my own job change and grad school left me with a sort of enforced unemployment for several months; I knew people who graduated during the recession whose college barista or retail experience helped them get those jobs when every industry was absolutely flooded with applicants. You’ll get paid, you’ll learn about professional expectations, you’ll be a better candidate in general for jobs when you graduate, and you’ll always have that experience in your back pocket.

[thistangledbrain]

Day 16!

“Work/school”

Well...EDS robbed me of my ability to work 3-4 years ago, but I can tell you about prior stuff.

I started off going to college right out of high school, but realized I was just burning through money, because I had no idea what to major in - I have *too many* interests, and most of them don’t really translate to a well paying job...not enough to warrant the expense of the education, anyway. If higher education wasn’t so expensive in this country, I would be one of those people who just sort of...collects degrees, though. I daydream of that often...but, thanks to my oldest son, I’m sort of vicariously gaining a bit of higher ed in Physics, one of my *favorite things evarrrrrrr* (but I trip so badly over the math, so idk if I’d ever get far, myself). He sends me pics of his notes, video clips, and when he’s home, we love to sit down while he walks me through all the equations and the processes (and when he explains them to me, it helps him get an even deeper grasp of it sometimes, so it’s good for both of us ☺️). Quantum physics/mechanics and theoretical physics are 🤯 to me, and I can’t get enough! Astrophysics is pretty damn cool, too. One of my favorite things ever is when we nerd out together on this stuff. I remember when he was in high school and first started being interested in it...I was so excited I could barely contain myself (I was already very much obsessed with these sciences), and watched with delight and excitement as his passion grew. I remember he brought home this like 10-15 question beginner physics quiz he took when he first started, that he handed to me. “Can you answer these?” he says, as he hands the paper to me. “Fuck YEAH I can!!!” So I excitedly went down the list - there was only one question I wasn’t sure about (and I think it had to do with thermodynamics but I don’t quite remember)...I just remember HE got so excited that I was already familiar with stuff (like particles and waves), and it was in that moment that we just...gained this incredible connection that still makes me feel all gooshy inside. Physics isn’t the only science that gets me excited, but I’ve written enough about that for now 🙃...

So. Yeah. Maybe someday I’ll win the lottery, go back to school, and probably just stay there LOL...

You guys have already heard me ramble about the Marines, so I’ll leave that part out...

So my work history is similar to my school history, I guess. Rather scattershot. Since I know my keenest interests won’t make me a ton of money (without a degree) or aren’t really necessarily *career* choices, I’ve been fairly comfortable with...idk. Trying things out that I wanted to do, because being rich and having “things” just doesn’t...well, I personally don’t understand the draw, and it has never been a real goal. I’m flying high if I can pay the bills on time LOL...I have to leave the rest of the financial planning to someone else, because I just...don’t...care enough. The things I care about in life *require* money (what doesn’t), but obtaining personal wealth just to have more of it/more “things” baffles me (you can do your “grind” to have your “fat stacks” - my interests lie well outside of material gain, and this is something we just won’t connect on. Your Birkin bag and sweet ride mean positively zero to me as far as how I look at you as a person...except for the fact that I think it’s bizarre for someone to spend tens of thousands on a purse or shoes, and I question their logic lmao). I’m not sure I’ll ever know what it feels like to just want to be rich, and damn near kill yourself to obtain that big house and nice cars and designer clothes or whatever. I like nice things too, but frankly I’d rather actually live my life? I’m not gonna be here long...it makes zero sense to me to break myself for the material gain of “things” (and people who do that, actually upset me a bit. I feel like they’re missing the point....or, it makes me sad to think that their existence is so empty that things like labels and status symbols are what they’re hyperfocused on, what matters the most to them). That being said, I DO enjoy the *immaterial* gains - respect, love, making animals and humans happy and whole, growing my mind, sharing my experiences and knowledge for the benefit of others. This probably sounds way too candy coated and cheesy to believe, but it’s easy to prove through my actions. This is *genuinely* what matters to me.

My first couple jobs were not my speed, but I did learn a lot about how companies run (from an administrative & bookkeeping standpoint), and that’s been sort of my “fall back on” career, since - but it makes me really, really unhappy to be stuck behind a desk, even if the work is fairly interesting or challenging. I’ve also been a horse stable manager, an exercise jockey for race horses (shattered pelvis ended that venture though), worked in an exotic pet store (I LOVE reptiles!!!!), and dabbled in nearly every trade in the construction industry (I am the quintessential “Jack of All Trades, Master of None”)...eventually landing in a position that I was very comfortable with - superintendent/jobsite manager for a smaller residential company. The job was always different from day to day, so I had little time to get bored. I guess that’s the big hangup - i don’t like being bored at my job. (I don’t like being bored, period, but rarely am...even though I live out in the middle of nowhere and don’t have gainful employment anymore. I have tons of interests involving animals, art, and building/creating, plus I love to read and learn. Or take walks through the woods and photograph tiny environments. Train and rehab dogs. Remote train and help people as far away as the UK. If I’m bored, I’m probably just being lazy.)

I’ve realized - and come to learn that many auties share this with me - that working alone or with a very small group of people is ideal. We all have our different strengths and interests, but jobs that keep our brains engaged and keeps us out of “general human traffic” are much preferred. I often wonder how many auties are also actually add/adhd, or if it’s just another facet in our prism. 🤷🏻‍♀️ It’s both a bane, and a boon, depending on the situation.

You’re HIGHLY likely to come across *a lot* of Auties in STEM fields...or lurking in warehouses and stockrooms, content to be left alone with their thoughts or music while they sort and pack. There are also a crapload of autistics in the creative arts - writing, music, acting, painting, and so on. You are UNLIKELY to find many auties in mundane tasks that require little thinking, long term.

One of my favorite bits from a Temple Grandin lecture was something about how over half of NASA would be gone without autistics, and back in caveman days, it wasn’t the social gabby gabbies around the campfire who were thinking up new tools and weapons - it was us antisocial weirdos off to one side whose brains *just never shut off*. 🤷🏻‍♀️ This is why I struggle to understand the people who think autism is some sort of ...horrible plight that’s descended on the human species. You’d be screwed without us, and I don’t care if that sounds arrogant, because it’s true. We might be weird and make you uncomfortable sometimes, but we do some DAMN cool shit. We just might prefer to do it in ways that don’t make sense to you. It doesn’t HAVE to make sense to you - WE don’t have to make sense to you (and we probably won’t anyway, so why do you keep trying? Try just accepting instead).

I’ve been slowly collecting links to Autie blogs, artistic works, scientific contributions, and so on. When I’m satisfied that it’s a broad cross section of who we are and what we do/contribute to society, I’ll share it...but in the meantime...

We might be more comfortable within certain parameters (like, “can I please keep the fluorescent lights off in my office”), but shoooo lawd, don’t sell us short on anything else. Just cut us loose and let us do our thang. ☺️

[draviisfogel0]

Dr. Avi Weisfogel DDS Discusses The DEA, Controlled Substances, and Revoked Licenses

Check out Dr. Avi Weisfogel from Dental Sleep Masters go over how one error with his license and controlled substances ended up being something that would change his career path forever. Dr. Avi Weisfogel describes how he lost his license with the DEA, the drawbacks of prescribing controlled substances, and how the state dental board can screw up a dentists career. Learn how a profession in dental sleep medicine can keep you away from those issues and making more money in your profession.

Avi Weisfogel from IAOS Discusses Controlled Substances and The DEA

Avi Weisfogel check out Avi Weisfogel's podcast

Did you understand that numerous dentists are trained to help treat and handle your snoring and sleep apnea? Dental Sleep Medicine is an area of dental practice that concentrates on making use of oral home appliance therapy to deal with sleep-disordered breathing The Entrepreneurial Dentist podcast, including snoring and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Dental experts work together with sleep physicians to determine the best treatment for each patient.

If you have trouble tolerating constant favorable air passage pressure (CPAP) treatment or prefer an alternate treatment for sleep apnea, talk with an AADSM dental practitioner today. Oral device therapy can assist you and your bedpartner get an excellent night's sleep, and it will improve your health and lifestyle. The quality of your sleep has a dramatic effect on your health, wellness and general lifestyle.

Keep in mind that snoring is a warning sign that ought to never ever be ignored. Throughout the country, numerous dentists are prepared to supply to deal with and. Speak with your medical professional and dental practitioner about your treatment alternatives. Snoring is a common indication for obstructive sleep apnea. Prior to treatment, you ought to be diagnosed by a board-certified sleep medicine physician. Dental Sleep Medicine.

Sleep Technician Course Online

If you have sleep apnea, your doctor will go over treatment options with you. The most common treatment for sleep apnea is continuous favorable air passage pressure (CPAP) therapy. The CPAP device keeps your air passage open by offering forced air through flexible tubing. CPAP therapy needs you to use a mask as you sleep.

Your medical professional should consider offering you a prescription for a sleep apnea device if you are unable to tolerate CPAP therapy or prefer an alternate treatment. Many individuals like an oral appliance because it is comfortable, quiet, portable and simple to wear. In some serious cases of sleep apnea, upper respiratory tract surgery might be another treatment alternative.

An oral device is a device worn in the mouth just throughout sleep. It fits like a sports mouth guard or orthodontic retainer. A custom-fit oral sleep appliance is an efficient treatment that prevents the air passage from collapsing by supporting the jaw in a forward position. Oral appliance treatment is a reliable treatment for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and snoring.

Oral appliance therapy helps preserve an open, unobstructed airway. Learn more about for and. Oral appliance treatment need to be supplied by a qualified dental practitioner who has technical skill and understanding in dental sleep medicine. Training in how to supply oral device treatment is uncommon in oral schools. So not all dental experts have the training or experience to provide optimal care for grownups with snoring or sleep apnea.

Sleep Tech Schools In Illinois

Clinical practice guideline for the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea and snoring with oral device therapy: an upgrade for 2015 (dental sleep medicine). Journal of Dental Sleep Medicine2015; 2( 3 ):71125. Scherr SC, Dort LC, Almeida FR, Bennett KM, Blumenstock NT, Demko BG, Essick GK, Katz SG, McLornan PM, Phillips KS, Prehn RS, Rogers RR, Schell TG, Sheats RD, Sreshta FP.

Journal of Dental Sleep Medicine 2014; 1( 1 ):51. Scherr SC, D L, Almeida FR, Bennett KM, et al., authors. Meaning of an efficient oral appliance for the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea and snoring: a report of the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine. Journal of Dental Sleep Medicine2014; 1:3950. Rogers RR, Remmers J, Lowe AA, Cistulli PA, Prinsell J, Pantino D, Rogers MB.

Are you sick and worn out of being ill and tired? Fatigue is the number one complaint heard by health professionals around the world. Fifty to seventy million Americans struggle with of sleep related issue. Sleep related breathing disorders, such as snoring and obstructive sleep apnea, are at the top of this list.

As dental practitioners, we remain in a prime position to be the first to acknowledge this disorder and to assist steer clients in the best instructions to get diagnosed. We likewise have the capability to treat much of these patients ourselves, therefore improving their quality of life in addition to potentially saving their life! Understand typical breathing and respiratory tract anatomy and the issues and variants that cause snoring and obstructive sleep apnea Find out the health threats associated with sleep disordered breathing Learn the essentials of sleep Learn the effects of sub-optimal sleep on health and quality of life Acknowledge those signs and behaviors that might show sleep disordered breathing Understand present and suggested diagnostic methods and the role of dentists in the team method Review the present treatment modalities for snoring and for moderate, moderate and serious OSA Check out the role that dental practitioners can play in the management of sleep disordered breathing Understand the negative effects of oral appliance therapy and how to handle them RICHARD B.

Sleep Apnea Devices

degree from The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, Dental School in 1989. He preserved a private practice in general dentistry from 1990 to 2001 and presently works as Clinical Assistant Professor of the Department of Comprehensive Dentistry at UT Health Science Center at San Antonio. 8:00 AM9:00 AM 5:00 PM Webinar Dental Practitioner: $220.00 KDR Receiver: $198.00 Allied Dental Worker: $190 (Dr Avi Weisfogel).00 Hours: 7.0.

Dental sleep medicine is a field of dentistry focused on the treatment of sleep-disordered breathing (SDB), or the event of breathing difficulties during sleep. SDB frequently results in sleep deprivation, which can have an ingrained impact on your physical, mental and mental well being. As oral health professionals, we work together with sleep physicians to devise the best care plan for patients suffering from sleep disturbances.

Sleep disordered breathing is identified with common oral indications and symptoms which the team at All About Smiles is highly trained to examine. Traditionally, sleep tests needed to be conducted in sleep centers, but now they can be done from the benefit of your own house. We can even offer these for you at All About Smiles.

If you have snoring and daytime sleepiness together with any of the following medical conditions: Hypertension Heartburn Headaches Large Tonsils Overweight Erectile Dysfunction Insomnia Oral appliance treatment includes wearing a home appliance resembling an orthodontic retainer or mouth guard throughout the hours when you sleep. The gadget holds the jaw in a forward position which helps unclog the respiratory tract (Avi Weisfogel).

Sleep Apnea Devices

Research study has shown that this therapy is an efficient yet non-invasive way to deal with the hazardous signs of OSA. The home appliance is easy and comfortable to wear, quiet, easy to handle, practical, and portable, which is why it is popular with clients. Oral sleep devices are easy to take a trip with and simpler to be compliant with than a standard CPAP device.

Sleep is important for your physical and mental wellness - dental sleep medicine. Without a correct sleep pattern, your body will be deprived of the rest it needs to de-stress and charge, and this will ultimately lead to life altering medical conditions if left unattended. If the lack of sleep has actually kept you far from existing in your life, NOW is the time to make that modification!.

Dental professionals who are Diplomates of the ABDSM have shown that they have the abilities and understanding essential for the delivery of excellent client care. The ABDSM thinks higher standards for dental sleep medicine translate into much better take care of clients and greater responsibility. The ABDSM credential is extensively acknowledged as the gold requirement for excellence in dental sleep medicine.

Stand apart in dental sleep medicine with a status that sleep physicians understand and respect. ABDSM Diplomate Status: Signifies to physicians, payors, and clients an expert commitment to education, understanding, and expeirence in offering oral appliance treatment for sleep apnea and snoring. Shows that a dental practitioner has the technical ability, extensive knowledge and expert judgement to deliver exceptional client care.

Sleep Apnea Devices

At SomnoMed, we strongly believe that dental professionals can considerably affect client's lives by altering their quality of sleep. Dentistry has the capability to assist enhance and save lives. An oral device is a gadget worn in the mouth only throughout sleep. It fits like a sports mouth guard or orthodontic retainer.

Snoring is a common sign or symptom for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA); nevertheless, is not always the only indicator. Prior to treatment, clients must be diagnosed by a board certified sleep medicine physician. If you have snoring without sleep apnea, your physician needs to offer you a prescription for an oral device.

from https://draviweisfogel0.blogspot.com/2020/10/dr-avi-weisfogel-dds-discusses-dea.html

[buildmethemoon]

Dirty Laundry

Rating: E

Chapters 1-5 ( chapters 6 - current are on my ao3 - still in progress) Chapter 5 is NSFW

Gabriel Reyes/ Reader

ao3

———————————————————————————————–

Chapter 1:

Commander Reyes wanted to make an example of you. He’d chastised you for not using his preferred method of throwing someone off balance then performing the take down. You knew how to do it, you could do it in your sleep. But you also knew when something worked better for someone of your stature. You weren’t a 6 foot something man. Most of the training regimens didn’t account for anyone who wasn’t a 6 foot something man. There was a serious lack of diversity in the training for and you were sick of getting chewed out for it.

“Permission to speak, Sir?” You stood at attention in the center of the training hall. Commander Reyes gave a glance to the ceiling as if asking for some higher power to spare him from your argument. Training for the day was over, everyone was waiting to be dismissed. Your fellow agents screamed internally, begging you to just let it go. For your sake and more importantly, theirs.

“Granted.” Commander Reyes crossed his arms. When he trained with agents, he set the pace. And he set the rules.

“Commander, Sir. I respectfully disagree that the textbook version of the take down maneuver is superior to my adaptation.”

Commander Reyes stood up straighter, his brows creasing as a scowl began to grow on his face.

“It’s just that I’m small. And my body type is different. I carry my weight differently.” You rushed to get out your explanation which was much more put together in your head. But came out in a flurry short rushed sentences that seemed more like excuses. “I just think…”

“You think? You think you know better than medics. Better than the Overwatch? Better than me?” He was already on edge today. His mental coil was being wound too tight, he was going to snap. He wanted today over. But you. You prolonging this exchange. You had hit his limit.

“You’re right.”

Your brows furrowed before you forced your face back to neutral.

“Maybe we should go back to the old ways?” he continued. Now just wanting to needle you. If he was going to spend the rest of the day in a bad mood, then so were you. “Maybe it should go back to all G. I. Joes? No girls allowed.” He looked down at you, walking a slow circle around, his arms still crossed but with the weight of his words you felt like you were being punched. “Maybe you’re just not cut out for Overwatch, Agent.”

Your fellow agents had stopped shuffling the moment you had asked to permission to speak. They just wanted to go. To be absolutely anywhere but stuck in the room with you and the angry Commander. None of them risked drawing attention by moving. This was all on you.

You had worked you ass off to get here. You were a damn good agent and willing to risk your life for Overwatch. Your life for the good of the world. One grumpy bastard, commander or not, was not going to reduce that determination and hard work down to you being a small girl who didn’t want to apply outdated standards. You felt you gut tighten, your jaw clenched.

People sometimes feel a flare of anger that is nearly impossible to control. A flare of momentary fury that causes people to act out, that causes road rage and bar brawls. It surged through your veins and took control, only for a moment. But a moment can feel like a lifetime when you know you have seriously screwed up.

“Permission to demonstrate, Sir.” You pursed your lips. It was too late. The words got out. A moment of stupid vain anger and your career could be over at the Commander’s request.

This took him off guard. He stood back in front of you, crowding you. Barley a foot between you as he stared down at you his scowl now a grin. It might have looked like a grin to people from on the edges of the room, but you could clearly see it was more of a snarl.

“Granted.” He said through gritted teeth.

Chapter 2:

“You are all dismissed!” He announced loudly to the room without giving you an inch of your space back. “If anyone would like to stay and see Agent Reader get educated, by all means, stay.” He looked over you to all the agents who frantically gathered their things and scattered. He rested his hands on his hips watching the other agents file out.

You kept looking forward, having nothing else to see other than the Commanders chest. He wore a black t-shirt that clung to his every muscle. It was darker from his neck down through the valley of his chest, damp from sweat. The phase “could kill a man with his bare hands” played in your mind, but with arms like that he could have someone in a headlock and subdue them with a flex you imagined. You had a brief moment of butterflies in your stomach. Unsure sure if him being able to toss you around like a rag doll was a good or bad thing. He could try. You kind of wanted him to. Your wandering thoughts we cut off as he backed away.

The room was now empty except you two. You were alone with the Commander but both of you felt eyes on you. You risked a glance at the viewing gallery.

It was a huge window that stretched the whole room overlooking the training hall with a small walkway in front of it. The window was split in to three sections. Each section was a window in to Commander Reyes, Commander Amari, and Commander Morrison’s offices. Each Commander had a switch that could change the opacity of the glass, allowing it to go from glass window to a 2-way mirror. This way Commanders could observe training without being observed themselves. Most agents just embraced the paranoia that a Commander was always watching them at all times.

At the moment all three panels were mirrors. Commander Reyes knew Jack and Ana were watching. At this point if they hadn’t heard his raised voice, the gossip of agents had spread like wildfire.

————————————————————————–

Commander Reyes was right. Commanders Morison and Amari stood in Jack’s office watching and waiting.

“Has it started?” Jesse McCree called from the door before inviting himself in. Jack was prepared to scold him for inviting himself in to a superior’s office but Ana cut him off.

“Not yet.” She replied without looking away. She had a soft spot for the young cowboy and his commentary on what was about to unfold would probably make them laugh. Jack needed reasons to laugh.

Jack turned his gaze back to the training hall. You stood at perfect attention waiting for Commander Reyes to let you begin.

Jack sighed shaking his head. He didn’t see the point of making an example of this agent if no one else was around to learn a lesson. But it was too late now.

“Do either of you know Agent Reader?” Jack asked.

“She’s good. A great shot for someone her age. She takes training very seriously, no matter the form.” Ana said. She oversaw all snipers in training and you were indeed one of the best. But you wanted to be a jack of all trades, not based in one skill set. She respected that.

“She is a damn fine shot,” McCree added. “and I’ve sparred with her. An hoo boy, she can pack a punch.” McCree felt a phantom ache in his ribs from a kick you had landed a few weeks back. “I’m surprised Reyes is even bothering to pick a fight.”

Jack raised a questioning brow at McCree.

“She may be small, but she can put a lot of force behind her movements. It’s impressive.” Ana interjected. She couldn’t help but feel a little proud. Any woman who could put someone in their place always made her smile.

“Yeah, force.” McCree agreed. “But instead of force to slow you down, she’s more like a wrecking ball that’ll lay you flat on yer ass.”

“Reyes knows this?” Jack asked furrowing his brows.

Down in the training hall Commander Reyes melodramatically swiped his had outward in and “After you” motion. Jack wondered why he hadn’t heard all these things about Agent Reader, but he also didn’t bother with gossip till it got out of hand.

“I know he does. We’ve spoken about her. He would like to see her join Blackwatch. Which might be why he’s antagonizing her. Maybe it’s his own off the books test” Ana suggested

“I know all about Reyes and his antagonizin’. But something about Reader brings out a side I can’t quite explain.” McCree said as he scratched the back of his head in thought. He could read Reyes pretty damn well he figured. But boy howdy, did you bring the worst out in him with no effort on your part. He just couldn’t pinpoint why.

Chapter 3:

You watched Commander Reyes as you backed up. It wasn’t that you though he’d fight dirty, just that you might trip over your own feet now that you were the center of attention.

“Um. What are the rules for this sparring match?” you asked sheepishly.

“One pin win.” He said flatly. “Loser is pinned on their back for a minimum of 3 seconds. If you can pin me, you win. When I pin you, well,” He gave malicious smirk “you’ll be sorry. No need to spoil the surprise.”

“That’s it, Sir?” you asked softly. “I can’t help but ask that if I win, maybe I get to choose your punishment, Sir?”

Commander Reyes laughed. “You sure can girlie” he said almost like he was talking to a toddler.

“When you’re ready, Sir” You said as sweetly as you could manage before sounding fake. You doubted Commander Reyes had picked up on your plan. You were ready.

“Begin!” he shouted taking a fighting stance. You stood still. No stance, nothing. You clenched your fists and walked towards him.

He suddenly straightened up, unsure what to do as you stood on your tiptoes, reaching your hands behind his neck and lacing your fingers. You gave him your sweetest smile before giving a little hop and dropping your full weight while locking your arms. Using his broad frame as a brace giving you a small amount of momentum, you swung both your legs down between his open legs. Your back hit the floor as he began to topple forward his hands gripping your arms, which is exactly what you wanted. You placed your right foot directly on his crotch carrying his momentum and flipping him over. You smile never left your face, you hoped he took note of that.

Commander Reyes hit the floor with a tremendous thud. Before he could recover you were on him. You sat on his chest, a knee on either side of his face as you pinned his hands to your sides. He was too dazed to fight back you assumed, since you weren’t getting any resistance.

You heard someone scream “HOLY SHIT!” from one of the Commander’s offices. Your pretty sure your thighs saved McCree from being murdered since Commander Reyes couldn’t have heard him.

You were breathing heavily from adrenaline. You looked Commander Reyes straight in the eyes and counted.

“One. Two. Three.” Without another word you stood up, offering him no hand up. You looked to the mirrored office windows. You made a motion of dusting your shoulder off before getting your bag.

“I’ll let you know about that punishment. Sir.” You said as you cast a glance over your shoulder. The Commander still hadn’t moved, but he was breathing. You walked out the door.

He sat up. Watching the training hall door swing shut. He was flushed and breathing heavy despite doing none of the work.

“Well. Fuck.” He said to himself before laying back down.

Chapter 4:

“I…I think I’m in love” McRee said. His nose was nearly touching the glass, his hat threatening to fall off, one of his hands caught it in time. He was trying to see Reyes’ expression as well as he could from his current safe distance.

Ana had a knowing smile on her face. She knew you could do it, but she didn’t think you would take such a route. Playing in to the assumed innocence of a small woman. Changing your tone of voice to be softer and sweeter. Abusing the word ‘Sir’, men loved that garbage. You made him regret doubting a woman while using your feminine charms to topple him. It was magnificent.

Jack was doubled over in laughter, true body shaking laughter, he had to sit on the edge of his desk for support. He tried to regain his composer, wiping the tears that were forming at the corners of his eyes. Commander Gabriel Reyes was one of his closest and most trusted friends, but it’d be a flat out lie if he said he didn’t love seeing Gabe get his ass handed to him. He managed a few deep breaths, small laughs still slipping through.

“Do you think after this he’ll still want her for Blackwatch?” McCree asked hopefully.

“Oh, I assure she will be joining Blackwatch” Jack said with a huge smile. “I’ll personally see to it myself. Well, I’ll ask her of course, try and make it worth her time.”

The thought of Gabriel having to work every day knowing that this small woman could level him with a charming smile and pure force was too good. He had to make this happen.

“Boy, I sure hope she says yes.” McCree turned to face the commanders. “Cause I would like to see something like that go down as often as possible. Hot damn!”

“She might be hesitant since we don’t actually know how to classify Blackwatch. She wants to move up the ranks, that would certainly be hard in what is supposed to be a secret branch of Overwatch.” Ana said. She watched as Gabriel picked himself up from the floor a scowl on his face the whole time. He grabbed his gym bag and briskly walked out the door.

“Do you think he’s coming up here?” McCree asked eyeing Jacks desk wondering if he could hide under it. He didn’t want to be on any receiving end of Reyes anger if he caught him in here. What if Reyes had heard him yell? He hadn’t meant to be so loud but some reactions you just can’t hold in.

“I doubt it. He might need some time for his ego to heal.” Ana looked at Jack glad to see he was still smiling “I would suggest we advise all staff and Agents to give him plenty of breathing room for the rest of the day.

Jack nodded in agreement letting out a small chuckle.

“Now, I reckon we were the only people who know about this. Which is a tragedy if I’m being honest.” McCree gave the commanders his best puppy dog eyes. “I sure would like to spread the good word.”

“Absolutely not.” Jack said bluntly. McCree frowned and looked down at his feet like a kid who was just told he couldn’t have a cookie.

“I’m shocked,” Ana raised a questioning brow. “Wouldn’t it be a morale booster? It would benefit everyone, except for Gabriel.”

“I think,” Jack said standing up straight. He was making an executive decision and wanted to look the part. “she is a professional, not one to gossip or brag.” McCree and Ana gave small nods of agreement urging him to go on. “Only five people know how this played out,”

“If I could make a small request that it be four people” McCree interrupted. “ If I’m not allowed to share, I don’t need him knowing I know. I think it’d be best for all parties involved, specifically myself, if I wasn’t killed for bein’ a witness.”

“Only four people know” Jack continued. McCree gave an appreciative grin. “It would drive Reyes crazy. He’d rather get it over with and out in the open. I think it would be better for us, as the only observers of this situation, to have the knowledge about how this ended. The other Agents can wonder and speculate. But what’s more believable? That Agent Reader got put in her place and moved to a different unit, or that Reyes got his ass beat. But in reality, she’d be working personally with Reyes on a daily basis via Blackwatch. On Missions, training, and anything else.”

“To an outsider it would be hard to believe you are Gabriel’s friend” Ana snickered

“I think I’ll ask she becomes Gabriel’s right-hand man.” Jack couldn’t stop smiling at the thought.

“Pardon me, but I feel that is my position.” McCree feigned a look of hurt.

“Left hand then.” Jack rolled his eyes. “Either way, they’ll be working hand in hand.”

Ana shook her heard making a tutting sound. But Jack’s mind was made up.

“Well, this has been a real hoot an’ a half,” McCree said heading for the door. “but just puttin’ this out there. Most fellas can’t help but love a woman that can kick their ass.” He looked over his shoulder giving Ana a wink. The door sliding closed behind him.

Ana laughed, Jack tilted his head to the side in contemplation but couldn’t say he disagreed.

Chapter 5:

Commander Gabriel Reyes stomped down the hallway. His eyes looking intensely ahead at nothing. Agents scurried out of the way, plastering themselves to the walls, staying as out of the way as possible. Everyone gave him every inch hallway they could. All their eyes cast down as they busied themselves shuffling paperwork or talking quietly to each other over holo-pads.

Gabriel rounded the corner heading to the personal quarters wing. You could have heard a pin drop. They were all waiting to hear the whoosh of the door closing. A pregnant silence filled the hall for seconds before everyone broke off in to their respective gossip groups. Questions were flying from every direction.

“Who won?” was the first question everyone asked. No one had seen you leave, and not one agent stuck around to watch.

“No one stayed? No one watched?!” Carol from Finance doubtfully looking at everyone she could see, hoping one of them would have an answer

“None of us felt like getting torn a new one.” Agent Redman replied honestly. “If you’d been there you would have run too. I’ve see grown men cry after dealing with Commander Reyes.”

One Agent suggested he may have just killed you.

No one really argued, maybe he did. You had certainly set him off. They man was mysterious and could be absolutely terrifying. The chatter died down as everyone agreed only time would tell. You’d either be in the mess hall for breakfast or in a body bag.

——————————————————-

Gabe reached his door after what felt like a lifetime. He hadn’t really paid attention to anything on the way here, if was all a blur, he just knew he needed to get to his room.

His mind was drowning him in situations and vividly painted erotic scenes. All of them involving you.

He pulled off his beanie and ruffled his hair. He let his head roll side to side trying to release the tension in his shoulders, to no success. He pulled of his shirt and kicked off his sweat pants and the jockstrap that had saved him from your foot earlier.

He made his way to the bathroom, his cock half hard as he fought the daydreams his body wanted him to indulge in.

A cold shower, that’s what he needed. He’d take a cold shower and go right to bed.

Now that he was in it, the shower was doing absolutely nothing to help

He could have made it colder, but it felt like with every moment his body grew hotter he almost expected to see steam rising off his skin as he turned the water off.

He rubbed his hair with a towel till it was dry enough, he toweled off his body and put on a comfortable pair of pajama pants. He put on some music in a last-ditch attempt to distract himself. It had the opposite effect.

His brain took the music and made his daydreams into a full-blown pornography. A show just for him with every lewd detail he could desire.

With a massive sigh he surrendered, shimmying his pants down to palm his cock.

He still hadn’t decided what scenario he would like best. You desperate for him, begging him all doe-eyed on your knees. His cock twitched before a different setting overtook the previous one.

You sitting on his abdomen in lingerie, one hand rubbing a breast through the sheer lace, your nipples becoming hard. Your other hand reaching behind yourself slowly sliding up and down his cock, your nails dragging over the sensitive head. His hands were above his head, not tied, you just ordered him to keep them there.

Your hands move behind you back unclasping your bra and slipping the straps off your shoulders painfully slow. Enjoying the suffering on his face before tossing the garment over your shoulder.  

He swallowed hard, his mouth feeling dry. Opening one eye, not wanting to risk losing the scene, he looked at his side table and digging in the drawer before finding the small tube of lubricant. He put a generous amount in his palm rubbing his fingers into it in a weak attempt to warm it up before returning to his cock.  He ever so slightly picked up the pace as, a small hiss escaping as he sank back into his daydream.

You lean forward, letting him take one of your nipples into his mouth. Your eyes fluttered shut, a letting out a soft sigh. He switched to your other breast, watching your face the whole time, his cock rock hard and now untouched.

You pull away, a sultry smirk on your lips. You lift yourself on your knees. Letting him see your sex covered by the thin panties. He let out a puff of air, forgetting to breath in his excitement. The air causing a chill on the wet spot you had left on his abs. Your hands slid down your stomach to your hips. He watched as two bejeweled clasps glimmered in the light, and with a twist they became undone. The garment falls the short distance between you. The fabric brushes his cock as you pull forward, dragging it on his stomach till it’s no longer beneath you, letting the garment fall to the floor.

Gabe whimpered. A small bead of pre-cum sliding down and mixing with the lube.

Instead of riding him you crawl up towards his face, sitting on his chest like you did this afternoon when you had him pinned. You held your breasts and looked down at him, you were waiting.

“Permission to proceed, Madam.” Gabe asked, nearly begging.

He also asked out loud but was too far absorbed in the scene to realize he did.

You gave wicked grin before replying. “Granted.”

His arms rush to cup your ass, bringing your wet sex to his mouth. You make a keening sound before it becomes a low moan. Your nails scrape against his scalp before getting a proper grip on his short locks. You pull hard enough to hurt making Gabe growl. You shudder and begin to pant.

“Touch yourself.” You instruct him. You try and help balance your weight as one of his hands begins to jerk his cock.

“Faster.” You say breathlessly.

Gabe licked his lips, his hand frantically keeping up with his imagined self. His eye’s squeezed tightly shut.

You gasped throwing you head back, he can feel your thighs quake as your orgasm rocks through you. You pull his head back, not wanting to be too overstimulated.

Your nails dragged along his scalp again as you catch your breath. Your pupils are blown, your thighs still shaking as you look him in the eyes.

“Cum for me.” you requested, but it was truly a command which he enthusiastically followed.

Gabe arched off the bed, the muscles in his thighs clenching as he humped in to his hand, panting out your name. He did as you ordered and came. Hard. His ears began ringing as he seemed to return to his body, no longer in that blissful daydream. Cum painted his abs as he tried to steady his breathing.

He grabbed his towel from earlier and wiped his chest clean. He felt better, that tension gone and his mind clearing from the fuzziness of his orgasm.

He knew he was in trouble, he hadn’t figured out how he’d deal with you tomorrow. He couldn’t have decided if he wanted you far away working at some desk safe and out of mind. Or as close as he could keep you without causing problems for either of you.

He rolled on his side, pulling his covers over himself. He decided that would be a problem for tomorrow. For now, he’d sleep.

—————————

Please feel free to comment! I’d appreciate any constructive criticism!

[asomeone-user]

In early March, as the coronavirus pandemic forced America to contemplate a nationwide shutdown, Dan St. Louis started to get nervous. St. Louis runs a facility in Conover, North Carolina, called the Manufacturing Solutions Center, which prototypes and tests new fabrics and other materials; most of its funding comes from contracts with what remains of the American textile industry. With stay-at-home orders on the horizon, “our business just dried up immediately,” he says.

A week later, St. Louis’s cell phone began to ring incessantly: hospitals, nursing homes, and funeral homes from as far away as New York. Everyone wanted to know if he could find them masks and gowns, or tell them who could, or at least help them figure out whether the personal protective equipment (PPE) they could get was any good. “And that was just half my calls,” he says. The others were from makers of furniture, pants, and shirts, and dozens of other businesses with industrial facilities they wanted to put to use to help shore up the supply of whatever was needed. St. Louis breaks into rapid-fire gibberish trying to mimic the callers’ urgency, and then, chuckling, can’t seem to find the right words. 

“I’m telling you … It was … You couldn’t.”

St. Louis has worked at the Manufacturing Solutions Center since it was founded, in 1990, as a division of Catawba Valley Community College. He keeps a list eight pages long of every kind of test the facility has ever run to evaluate specialty fabrics: filters used in motorcycle cooling systems and clothing that dispenses pain medication, hard casts for bone fractures and nontoxic treatment for raw silk, hybrid sock-tights featured on Oprah. But they’d never worked on PPE before March: “There wasn’t anybody calling us saying, ‘Hey, will you test this stuff?’” That’s because most PPE was made overseas.

North Carolina’s Manufacturing Solutions Center prototypes and tests new fabrics and other materials, working with renewed urgency because of the pandemic.

CHRIS EDWARDS

St. Louis’s sudden education began just as governments across the world started treating the looming shortage of masks and face shields as a matter of national security. Germany banned PPE exports on March 4. Malaysia, India, and dozens of others soon took similar measures. Diplomacy eased some of this early jockeying over the existing supply—Taiwan pledged to donate 10 million masks overseas, President Donald Trump grudgingly allowed 3M to sell N95s to Canada, the EU convinced Germany to share its PPE with the rest of the bloc and then prohibited exports outside it—but by the end of April, the World Trade Organization was reporting that more than 80 countries around the world had taken steps to limit exports of PPE during the pandemic.

It was a scenario St. Louis had often thought about before: the US, abruptly forced to go it alone, discovering how little the country makes of the stuff it consumes. Usually, he imagined a war with China: “You can’t call and say ‘Our guys are cold—we need stuff.’” But the pandemic made clear that the pinch could come in a variety of forms. 

In 1990, he recalled, the US textile industry produced 60% of the “cut & sew” apparel made worldwide—that is, clothing with stitches on the seams, as opposed to knitted wool sweaters or rain gear whose pieces are welded together with heat. Today that figure is 3%. When federal and state agencies began to publish numbers about how much PPE they’d need to outlast the accelerating outbreak, St. Louis was flabbergasted. “We need a billion gowns! Good God,” he says. “We need a billion? A billion? I can’t even fathom that.” 

The sudden need for a range of lifesaving fabrics threw the handful of facilities like St. Louis’s into overdrive. In the middle of March, they began ferrying samples, performance specs, and recommended adjustments back and forth to fabric mills trying to convert their operations overnight to making essential goods. At the end of three months, St. Louis says, the Manufacturing Solutions Center had helped 28 companies begin churning out fabric suitable for hospital gowns. 

Masks and respirators are a different question. Existing worldwide supplies of the melt-blown polypropylene used in the most coveted PPE item in hospitals—the N95 respirators capable of filtering out the virus—are spoken for through at least the first few months of 2021. In March, a senior official at the US Department of Health and Human Services estimated that American health-care workers alone would go through 3.5 billion N95 masks fighting the coronavirus.

Surgical masks are not as protective as N95s, but they do shield the wearer from droplets and fluids better than the now ubiquitous cloth masks—3% to 25% better, depending on the study. To sustain any meaningful reopening of the economy, surgical masks will likely have to be made by the tens or even hundreds of billions. Outfits like the Manufacturing Solutions Center are also uniquely qualified to develop a new generation of higher-performance cloth masks, or ones that use small filter inserts to stretch scarce materials further. One model created at the facility is a knit mask woven through with copper, which is being used in medical facilities and by the US military. Thanks to its tight fit, it “doesn’t fog my glasses,” as one of St. Louis’s colleagues says, but they have no way to evaluate it more definitively than that. 

CHRIS EDWARDS

CHRIS EDWARDS

In July, St. Louis was still scrambling to raise $500,000 to buy machinery that would allow him to test the fabric used in masks. Meanwhile, he refers inquiries about mask testing to a company in Nevada—the lone private laboratory in the US certified by the CDC to perform such tests.

Meanwhile, 40 miles south of Conover, in the town of Belmont, the Textile Technology Center at Gaston College specializes in what the industry refers to as “yarn.” Give Dan Rhodes a small sample of a novel polymer, and he’ll figure out how to extrude it into a filament, and how to fine-tune the process to see whether the material can be made to work in high-speed manufacturing. Rhodes and his colleagues are working with a manufacturer of coronavirus test kits to make the fiber wicks that siphon saliva samples into a blend of testing reagents. Another client is an Ohio-based manufacturer of cotton swabs that is replacing the cotton with a synthetic equivalent in order to make nasal testing swabs uncontaminated by the plant fiber’s DNA. 

Vital work. And yet in each case, few American businesses could step up to fill a similar niche. Rhodes told me that most surviving textile companies have long since disbanded the proprietary sampling labs they used to house on site. Many of the senior staff at both centers learned their trade at companies that were picked apart and reconstituted overseas after hostile takeovers by investors like Wilbur Ross, the current secretary of commerce, who made part of his fortune outsourcing textile jobs to Asia in the early 2000s. 

That means much of the brain trust for the American textile industry—the Manufacturing Solutions Center’s website advertises “300 years of textile experience”—got its training in private-sector jobs that no longer exist in the United States. Rhodes, who is 72, plans to retire at the end of August and jokes that “half the people here collect a Social Security check.” St. Louis retired in July; every plant where he ever worked closed long ago.  

Rhodes recalls watching from afar as the town of Fort Payne, Alabama, lost its status as “sock capital of the world.” “All it takes is one financier”—he stretches the word across four venomous syllables—“on Wall Street to call somebody in China and say, ‘Send me a million dozen of those black socks with the gold thread in the toe.’ He doesn’t know how to make any socks, but he can destroy all that expertise.”

Why did the sock makers leave Fort Payne? To Jon Clark, who spent 30 years crisscrossing the country from his home in Houston to buy scrap equipment from shuttered factories, the answer is obvious: there’s money to be made shifting operations from what he calls “the 30-, 40-, 50-dollar-an-hour zone in the US” to the “three-, four-, five-dollar zone” overseas. The problem, in Clark’s view, is that the incentives driving the economy no longer distinguish between profitability and greed. “It used to be that plants closed because they weren’t profitable,” he says. “Now they close because they’re not profitable enough.” 

Clark, who is 72, began his career in 1965 as an engineer in a Texas fertilizer plant where chemically induced asthma was a daily hazard. He remembers watching birds expire in midair as they flew from one side of the plant to the other. Environmental laws transformed huge swaths of American manufacturing, but they also gave US corporations a strong incentive to relocate factories to places where they could pollute at will.  

Over the same period, seismic improvements in shipping and technology made it possible for corporations to rely on networks of suppliers that stretch across the planet. Modern supply chains are fluid and elaborate, ever shifting to account for minute changes in the price of screws, thread, or copper wire. As a result, manufacturers have continued to bring cheaper goods to American consumers even as the components required to make them come from farther and farther away. 

“Can you imagine a plant that does nothing but break a million eggs a month? That’s 500 tons of broken shells a year!”

Jon Clark, publisher of Plant Closing News

Clark began buying and selling equipment full time in the 1980s, just as these transformations were accelerating the exodus of heavy manufacturing from the US to cheaper labor markets all over the world—China, Mexico, Vietnam. In 2003, he began publishing a biweekly newsletter called Plant Closing News (PCN) as a service for the scrap industry, a way to help auctioneers and equipment brokers chase leads on bargain wire stranders and double-arm mixers across the country. Over the years, his encyclopedic knowledge of the decline—or, more charitably, the evolution—of American industry has crystallized into a kind of lament about the shifting character of the US economy. 

Each PCN listing includes the type of facility and its expected closing date, an address, a phone number, and the name of a contact person for anyone looking to move, buy, or scrap the equipment inside, along with a sentence or two on the number of displaced workers and the reasons behind a plant’s shuttering. Compiling the entries is simple, if grueling, work that usually involves extracting the necessary particulars over the phone from employees likely to be losing their jobs. By the time Clark sent out the last issue in December 2019, after a detached retina left him temporarily blind in one eye, he had chronicled the demise of 16,000 factories, plants, and mills in 17 years.

When Clark and I first spoke, he began reading his newsletter aloud to me over the phone in a rich Texas baritone, interspersed with his own idiosyncratic commentary. “Can you imagine a plant that does nothing but break a million eggs a month?” he asked. “That’s 500 tons of broken shells a year!” 

Jon Clark with his wife, Donna

COURTESY PHOTO

Clark rattled off all the factory closures he’d compiled for a stretch of July 2019: an aircraft-lock assembly plant, a scrap-metal shredding facility, a conveyor manufacturer, three plastic-bottle plants, a foundry, a glass plant, a South Carolina plant that manufactured textile machinery, a pharmaceutical plant in Wyoming (“The only one,” he interjected), a Florida plant that bent tubes into automotive parts, a paint-manufacturing plant in Missouri, a corrugated-cardboard-box plant in New York, and on and on and on. “Those are the ones that I know of,” Clark added, when he finally reached the end of the list.

The decision to close a plant often heralds a chaotic time on the ground, as a dwindling team on site shoulders the responsibility of continuing to run a facility slated for closure. There’s still inventory to track, maintenance to be done, and product to be pushed out, along with all the paperwork that goes into settling the books before closing a place down. Often, the workers themselves are the last ones to be told.

For the first five years of PCN, Clark’s daughter Kristen, then at home with her oldest child, was his main “caller.” She took the leads he gleaned from trade publications and industry chatter, contacted the plants, and coaxed the remaining staff into providing the information needed for Rolodex-like entries designed to help contractors gin up business in demolition, secondhand equipment, and environmental remediation. “We got hung up on a lot,” Kristen remembers. But there were also moments of pathos. “We got an opportunity to cry with them, and pray with them, and a lot of them got very angry,” Jon says. 

PCN’s run overlapped with a historic decline in manufacturing employment in the United States. From 2000 to 2016, the US shed nearly 5 million manufacturing jobs, or more than a quarter of the total, and one out of every five manufacturing establishments in the country shut its doors. Clark charted this decline in his newsletter, watching as globalization tugged at one thread after another in the tapestry of American industry. In the early 2000s, a wave of sock manufacturers closed, followed by food-processing plants, plastics plants, automotive plants, and lightbulb factories.

CHRIS EDWARDS

In 2013, Walmart rolled out a “Made in the USA” campaign, vowing to shore up domestic manufacturing by spending $50 billion over 10 years on US-made goods. But the company was forced to scale back its ambitions after the watchdog group Truth in Advertising found hundreds of products at Walmart stores falsely labeled as made in the USA. As Clark put it, “We still have 330 million people in this country, most of whom wear socks, but Walmart couldn’t find anybody who made socks in America.” 

Five years ago, Donald Trump campaigned on the argument that manufacturers who offshored American jobs were forsaking patriotism for profit. Fused with racist grievance and conspiracy theory, that message helped propel him to the Republican nomination and then the presidency. In the 2016 election, Trump’s attacks on corporations that “moved [our] jobs to Mexico” were a core element of his pitch to the very same voters—white, male Midwesterners with a high school education—who formed a prominent cohort in America’s shrinking manufacturing workforce.

At the time, the prevailing wisdom among economists held that Trump was wrong. Certainly, previous declines in American manufacturing, such as the waves of textile and steel layoffs in the 1980s, could be linked more or less directly to gains in developing countries. Hundreds of new garment factories opened in China, Bangladesh, and Indonesia. Brazil and South Korea aggressively expanded steel production. But while the decline in the 2000s appeared to have a similar explanation—now China’s and South Korea’s economies were expanding by leaps and bounds, and American stores were filling with Korean TVs and Chinese toys and electronics—many economists and commentators looked at the data on manufacturing’s share of GDP and concluded that imports couldn’t be the major culprit behind so many lost jobs. 

A typical example: Michael Hicks, an economist at Ball State University, coauthored a widely cited report arguing that “import substitution”—Americans’ choices to buy cheaper foreign-made products instead of more expensive goods made domestically—accounted for only about 750,000 lost jobs, or roughly one-seventh of the total. What took away the rest? Layoffs of redundant workers once protected by unions; robots and automation; and reliance on more efficient maintenance and service contractors in place of part of the former labor force, he argued. After all, even as the number of manufacturing jobs shrank dramatically, the dollar value of US manufactured goods continued to grow. “I call it productivity,” Hicks told me.

For years, Susan Houseman, a labor economist at the Upjohn Institute for Employment in Kalamazoo, Michigan, watched a parade of pundits explain away those 4 million lost jobs in similar terms. Houseman didn’t buy it. Beginning in 2007, she published a series of papers arguing that the basic tools the federal government uses to generate manufacturing, import, and export statistics were misleading and frequently misinterpreted. 

The Wilde Yarn Mill in Manayunk, Pennsylvania, closed in 2012. When it opened in the 1880s there were over 800 textile operations in the area. It had been the oldest continually operating yarn mill in the country.

MATTHEW CHRISTOPHER

If a television manufacturer that sells $1,000 TVs relocates production overseas, and Americans start buying $500 imported TVs instead, the amount of economic activity “displaced” by offshoring shows up as $500, not $1,000. But the American town that hosted the old factory lost $1,000 worth of work. Even if the TV is still made in the US, but complex components start being sourced abroad, productivity statistics don’t account for labor done by foreign suppliers. If a TV assembled in Ohio takes nine hours of Vietnamese labor and one hour of Toledo labor, as opposed to all 10 hours coming from Toledo, federal statistics will show that American manufacturers are suddenly able to produce 10 times as many TVs with the same amount of labor. “Productivity” jumps. It appears as though technology improved, when what really happened is that jobs were shipped abroad.

Furthermore, Houseman adds, for several decades, the speed and power of the chips and semiconductors churned out by one small slice of American manufacturers advanced so rapidly that increases in “output” from that sector alone accounted for the vast majority of productivity gains among US manufacturers. Leave computers out of it, and all of a sudden US manufacturing appeared to be in very bad shape. 

“Research that has looked at the automation story, the robot story—there’s really no evidence that that could have precipitated such a large decline in manufacturing employment,” Houseman says. “Trump resonated to some people because what he was saying seemed true to them, and to a very large degree, he was right.” 

After the pandemic hit, one ingredient in China’s remarkable recovery was its ability to turn the rudder of its enormous industrial engine to the needs of the moment. By one estimate, Chinese production of N95s and other surgical masks grew 30-fold in less than three months, reaching nearly half a billion a day. By contrast, 3M, the largest domestic US manufacturer of N95s, has received enough government funding to nearly triple its output and currently produces just over 1.5 million a day.

Willy Shih, a professor of management practice at Harvard Business School, says part of this chasm stems from the loss of the “industrial commons”—the combination of expertise, infrastructure, and networks of mutually dependent businesses that help foster efficiency and innovation. Over time, Shih argues, outsourcing has cannibalized not only the assembly line jobs we associate with the factory floor, but the whole chain of intellectual effort that makes those jobs possible. 

This arrangement has given American corporations unparalleled freedom to swap contractors, minimize tax burdens, and make things using inventory someone else pays to insure and maintain. But all that flexibility, meant to guard against financial risks to shareholders, turns out to be flexibility of the wrong kind for 2020. Any manufacturer that built in wiggle room to better weather a pandemic would have had “Wall Street analysts all over their case,” Shih says, saying: “Look at how inefficiently you’re using your capital.”

Clark, the founder of Plant Closing News, blames this pathological pursuit of efficiency in large part on Jack Welch, the iconic late CEO of General Electric. When I visited Clark in Houston in February, he summarized Welch’s gospel as follows: If you have 10 employees, no matter how well they’re doing as a group, rank them 1 to 10, and get rid of number 10. (The company abandoned this “rank and yank” policy a few years after Welch stepped down in 2001.) “And if you have 60 manufacturing plants, and the smallest one is in North Carolina, and they’re pretty good but they’re always near the bottom of that list … when I call, the plant manager starts crying: ‘I been here for 40 years. This is my family.’ Why? Because you have 59 other plants that can make this stuff and ‘we don’t need you’?” Clark winced. 

He turned his attention to the stack of copies of PCN on the table and scanned through an issue from June 2019. A vehicle seating manufacturer was laying off 28 employees near Kalamazoo and shifting production to Mexico and Kentucky; a plastic-molding plant in Illinois was shutting down and consolidating its operations in Mexico and China; a medical-device manufacturer in Southern California was moving its plant to Malaysia. “This is not uncommon—this is every one of these,” Clark said. “If you’re making money and your people are doing a decent job, why would you move it somewhere cheaper so you can hire foreigners and put your own people on welfare? That’s never made any sense to me.”

One hallmark of our era in capitalism is the rise of companies that are both everywhere and nowhere at once. Today, multinational corporations—registered in Delaware, paying taxes in Ireland, sourcing materials on five continents—drive the majority of worldwide trade. “Why wouldn’t you have the business community up in arms about [offshoring] undermining their competitiveness in the United States?” Susan Houseman asked me. “Because it may not be undermining their competitiveness.” 

But it may be undermining the US national interest. Because the American manufacturing sector is more consolidated and narrower in scope than it once was, it’s also less diverse, less resilient, and less able to respond to a crisis.

Bancroft Mills, a fabric mill in Wilmington, Delaware, had been vacant since the early 2000s and was largely destroyed by a fire in the autumn of 2016.

MATTHEW CHRISTOPHER

According to Behnam Pourdeyhimi, the director of the Nonwovens Institute at North Carolina State University, the current wait for a machine that can produce the melt-blown polypropylene used in N95 respirators is about 14 months. The technology for the machines was developed in the United States, but these days, Pourdeyhimi says, aside from a small manufacturer in Florida and a sprinkling of others in Europe and China, German companies enjoy a near monopoly, simply because their machines are so good. The machines used to “convert” melt-blown into wearable PPE are somewhat easier to come by, he says, but 90% of them—both for N95s and for pleated surgical masks—are made in China. 

However, recovering the ability to make machines that make PPE is not impossible, Pourdeyhimi says. He estimates the necessary investment to be in the tens of millions of dollars. It should be doable in months. 

During World War II, President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s War Production Board famously redirected huge swaths of the American economy to make things the military needed. Factories contributing to the war effort jumped to the front of the line for scarce raw materials. “The entire capacity of the laundry industry will be devoted to war,” the board’s chairman announced in 1942: brass and steel would be conserved by putting an end to washing-machine production. Nylon was reserved for parachutes. Typewriter factories were converted to produce rifle barrels, while those that couldn’t went on making typewriters exclusively for the government. Technology was put to work where it was most needed.

All through the spring of 2020, there were stories of vegetables being plowed under and manure ponds filled with fresh milk because the US lacked the proper packaging and processing infrastructure to convert cafeteria and wholesale food into products that could be sold in grocery stores—or even, perhaps, given away.

Even if individual firms are flexible today in ways they weren’t in the past—a consequence of the transformations Shih describes—the system as a whole cannot effectively pivot as it did during the last crisis of this scale. Though Trump did not create the decades-long decline in American manufacturing, that the president is—to say the least—no FDR is a not insignificant factor in America’s anemic response. Whatever credit Trump deserves for articulating the role of trade in weakening American manufacturing, he has managed to squander a generational opportunity to throw the weight of the federal government behind securing its vitality.

In recent months, the Trump administration has waved away the need for legislation aimed at “re-shoring,” arguing that a presidential charm offensive will be enough to awaken CEOs�� sense of patriotism. Clark doesn’t see it that way. “It’s all about where these companies make the most money,” he says. “‘If you want us to manufacture in the US, you’re gonna pay for it.’”

This year is the second time Clark has decided to retire. The first time, he lasted six months. He still bids on equipment every month or two. Why? “For my own entertainment. Because I’m crazy …” He pauses. “Because a peanut plant closed in Georgia and they have two 30,000-gallon propane tanks and I’ve got a buyer that wants them. So why not?” 

[tamrapraxidike]

Why Did I Even Go to College?: An Essay

Have you ever found yourself wondering, “what quality of a university education am I receiving?” Well, let me tell you a little story about the goings-on at fully accredited, four-year institution, [Name Retracted because I’m trying to be sensitive about these things] University.

The 25th of September 2017, marked the dawn of a new fall term – and also the beginning of my psychology course, “Statistics & Methods.” Right off the bat, my class was informed that this was the first time this course was being taught online, and to buckle up for a bumpy ride and be patient as the kinks got worked out. Naively I assumed that the professors and administrators overseeing this course would have enough professionalism and organizational skill to ensure this course ran according to plan. They’d successfully taught this course in person; how bad could this be?

Little did I know I was about to encounter one of the greatest dumpster fires of my entire academic career.  Now at this point, you might be wondering, “Tamra, why would you, a theatre major, enroll in a psychological statistics course?” Great question, buddy! Due to a typo on an official university degree requirements webpage, I registered for the course under the impression that it was required for all students pursuing a Bachelor’s of Science degree (a misunderstanding that was not rectified by any of the multiple people in academic advising who I corresponded with regarding this issue. It was not until week four (halfway through our ten-week term) that the lecture professor clarified that this course was, in fact, meant to be taken by anyone pursuing a career in psychology. I received this news but two days prior to the deadline to drop the course.

Not eager to lose the tuition money I had paid, nor to track down a more suitable course at the eleventh hour, I steeled my will to succeed in a class for which I was not quipped. Like, at all.

This course was, in short, a disaster.

• Several lab assignments were never listed in the course syllabus. Many of these were group assignments, which also happened to be so poorly coordinated that it appeared no thought contributed to their development. I was never informed of who was in my group, or even how many classmates my group consisted of. Five? Twenty? One-hundred and six? I WILL NEVER KNOW.

• Many of these group assignments had midweek deadlines, which were never enforced. Not only was it annoying to have online homework due for the same class three separate times over the course of a given week, but there seemed to be no incentive for me to do so. I dutifully completed the confusing assignments, because I didn’t want to screw over any innocent classmates. However, I was not granted the same courtesy by other group members, who I doubt suffered any consequences.

• The multiple group assignments I trod through were not listed anywhere in the syllabus – that is, they were not included in the breakdown for the course grading system, which means that it is possible these assignments had no bearing on my performance in the class. However, the thought that I spent hours on these assignments only to receive no kind of compensation for my time, or that I could have spent my time actually enjoying myself instead, is too much for my weakened spirit to bear.

• When completing weekly homework, the worksheet would frequently refer to pages in the lab manual, which was created by *the University* specifically for this very course, if the student needed extra help working through the assignment. FUNNY STORY: when I would turn to the lab manual pages referenced, I would be taken to the wrong page on which to locate pertinent information, or sometimes to an incorrect chapter entirely.

• GUYS. I don’t know who the instructor for the lab was. I could tell you their name, but I have never engaged with this person in any substantial capacity. They were not the one who filmed our weekly tutorial videos (I have no clue who did), and only made the effort to contact us students a couple times. If I passed them on the street, I would not be able to identify them.

By the time the tenth and final week of classes arrived, I was fed up. Here I was, at my wit’s end, an art student who was somehow, by the grace of whatever god you believe in, keeping pace with actual psychology students in a ludicrously mismanaged STEM course.

With a single lab assignment left to complete, and little motivation to do so, I took a stand. Resigning myself to an inevitable reduction to my grade.... I deliberately did not complete the assignment. No, let me rephrase – in the space left blank for hand calculations, instead of scribbling answers, I declared such thoughts, as “this assignment isn’t worth my time,” or “take a gander at my PSPP data output – that’s why I submit them, after all.” I left the last page entirely blank, and most of the other pages as well. Bold? Undoubtedly, but I declared what every other poor soul in the course was thinking. I am a voice for the Voiceless; I will not be silenced! (Do you hear that, Professor? It’s the sound of rebels singing the song of angry men!)

Up until this point, I had received full marks on every damn homework assignment. This was often an utter surprise to me. I would have been pleased with my apparent knack for statistics, had it not be for the unsettling lack of feedback that accompanied these perfect grades. Was I being marked solely on participation? Was I some kind of statistics prodigy? While, statistically, yes, it is possible, I learned enough to assure you that, no, it is not likely. A part of me hoped that the professor’s apathetic eyes would glaze over my work, and, by an act of luck or provenience, lay their pupils upon my piece de resistance, and be moved to ANY kind of response.

Friends, Romans, countrymen, LEND ME YOUR EARS. It is my duty to report that the professor apparently *did not see the full masterpiece of my final homework assignment*, as I have been awarded, once again, FULL MARKS and zero commentary. Upon receiving this grade, my first response was laughter. I cried tears of genuine shock and giddiness. Upon further contemplation, I was disheartened. I grieved the evident loss of standards within the higher education system (I joke, but for real, though?). While my time at [Stupid Dumb] University has been, overall, disappointing (don’t even breathe the words “theatre building renovation” in my presence), this class represents ROCK BOTTOM. I can only hope that my thorough (and yes, it was *quite* thorough) course evaluation feedback is taken into serious consideration when constructing this class for future terms, and, good lord, innocent students.

[offtheshouldermermaid]

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HOW TO Educate FOR PROM Coiffure SHOPPING You hold been superficial headfirst to prom and the measure has finally travel! You can't move to go begin looking for the perfect 2018 prom curry for ball night. Before you straits out to go shopping, here are whatsoever tips and tricks to form prom coiffe shopping go as smoothly and stress-free as researchable. TIP 1: Sign Sensing FOR YOUR PROM Scrubs Primitive There's no such objective as turn too future. The earlier you play search, the large your selection give be. Regularise if you don't see who your companion leave be yet, it does not damaged to advantage reading for the perfect prom prettify. Starting rude allows you to set away measure for alterations, if needful. And you faculty desist the ultimate careful molestation of not existence able to deed a make in term for the big dark. Before any prom shopping day, retrieve to get a goodness night's nap. Resting up the dark before is historic. See it from us, any write of turn shopping can be real wearying. Be careful to eat something before you topic out to your appointments. You don't impoverishment to go shopping peckish. That never leads to anything hot. And advert to delay hydrated throughout the day! All these small things present add up and pee the complete cognition as carefree as affirmable! Tip 2: Do your search Before header out to your appointments, you will necessity to do few search. Know a visage at the latest style trends that the stars are wearing on the red carpets and movie premiers. You module most possible see correspondent styles and designs in stores wine bridesmaid dresses. Search through magazines, books, shows and movies can modify celebrity position inspirations as advisable. The writer you hump some the current trends, what may looking peachy on you and how you requisite to examine on your prom dark, the easier your prom shopping will be. You won't find so fluster and overwhelmed with all the dresses if you abide some second to do both explore early. Also, do explore on where you would be purchase your prom laladpoiufhffouj- neaten from. Head certain they are an approved merchandiser of the deviser you are purchasing your gown from and soul a advantage reputation. Be mindful if you terminate to acquire your overclothes online. You want to represent certain you are purchase from a honest shaper who won't conclusion act with you formerly you pay or equal worse not speak your coiffure. You don't require to end up as a ball miscarry this twelvemonth when you get your gown online. Tip 3: Hurried tryout thrust As you are disagreeable on these gorgeous prom dresses, avow them for a fast trial cross. And we're not conversation virtually leaving the fund with them on and into a car. You need your prom formal to be beauteous AND homy since you are feat to be disbursement 4+ hours in them that dark. You do not require to spend hours in a neaten that you can't release or relocation freely in. That instrument use inaccurate from the fun you could hold that dark. So career around in the make. Sit. Revel out a few fast recreation locomote or two plus size short wedding dresses with sleeves. See how it fits and moves with your body. Make reliable you believe homelike in it so you can bask your dark. Tip 4: Transmit your heels with you Before you going your shelter for your appointments, piddle certain to grab a pair of heels with you, rather, the deuce that you are most apt achievement to decay with your ball cook. Trying on dresses with heels on will cater you see how it looks. This present also improve with the measurements of the robe. You don't requisite the set to be too create or too stretch with heels on. Wreak these heels with you. You don't screw to delapidate them around all day. Your feet could bruise and the hurting faculty assert forth from the fun of prettify shopping. 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The writer agaze minded and limber you are, the higher the chances of you judgement the perfect ball fix for you. Also, as you are shopping, think near what filament styles could go with the dresses. This testament helpfulness you ideate the terminal examine for that unscheduled dark.

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