#so i went out and found an art trade base adopt to put in the blender

[moodycarcass]

i feel like one of these days im gonna get badly yelled at an adopt designer for taking the "you can change the design to your liking" blurbs too literally

[emcon-imagines]

“BEING A HYDRA TEST SUBJECT, AND BEING BROUGHT INTO THE SHIELD TEAM (AGENTS OF SHIELD)”

gif // requester: anon ​​// request here

aklshdfajksf I wrote a lot because like with some headcanons, I just pull out the whole story lmao

You had been on SHIELD’s radar for a long time, a subject that popped up once in a while in HYDRA data dumps or in fleeting encounters with SHIELD agents. It wasn’t like HYDRA put you in the field often, and when they did, it was more training than anything else

Still, by the time you managed to escape, you had an impressive file with SHIELD. Just tons of documents and notes under “UNSUB10″

It particularly intrigued Jemma. Once in a while, she’d pull up your file when she was bored to see if there was anything she had missed before

The moment you escaped HYDRA, you were back on the radar, even though you didn’t know it yet, and thought you were in the clear as long as you kept your head down

It took them a little over a few days to find you, and in that time, you had realized you were much more lost and scared in the real world than you expected

Anything had seemed better than HYDRA, and the real world was better, but the fear was constant

Your first confrontation with SHIELD went... well... badly

Coulson, May, and Daisy had gone in to talk to you, with other agents stationed outside, but the conversation deteriorated quickly since you didn’t trust any government agencies. SHIELD, HYDRA, what was the difference?

Coulson tried, really tried to talk you down so that your powers didn’t cause damage, May was ready to hit you with her ICER and deal when you woke up later, concerned about what would happen if you weren’t able to be negotiated with

But it was actually Daisy who got through to you, Coulson and May stepping back at letting her talk to you

It was clear that you didn’t have a choice, you were going to be taken in, easy way or the hard way

And Daisy really thought she had calmed you down enough for the easy way, but when you saw other agents moving in, you panicked again, and May took the shot, zero hesitation

(something that her and Daisy would argue about later on, even though it was just an ICER)

When you arrived at the SHIELD base, the only people you interacted with for the first few days was Jemma and Daisy, even Coulson deciding to observe from a distance while you got situated

Since you couldn’t leave the containment room they had you in, Daisy spent a ton of time with you there, bringing you extra snacks, fuzzy socks (since the clothes SHIELD provided didn’t include any), even a card game to play with you

She had revealed to you that she had powers as well, and though you were sure she was just playing a “good cop” role, you let your guard down little by little

Daisy stuck around when Jemma came around for preliminary medical exams (something they did for any enhanced person that came through) since she knew you were afraid of anything remotely similar to HYDRA’s medical labs

When she saw you smiling at one of her jokes!!! she pretended she didn’t noticed, but she told Coulson immediately after that “I think y/n may be warming up.”

So Coulson finally visited you the following day, and talked to you about your options, extending the offer to stay with SHIELD and work as a part of Daisy’s extended team

Which, though you were nervous about trading one organization for another, SHIELD offered protection, something you desperately needed

Coulson also introducing you to Andrew for a psych eval, and possibly further counseling

It was strange, because you never had anyone actually looking out for you like that before, or checking in with your mental health

Also having to be cleared by Jemma and Fitz to make sure that you didn’t have any lasting effects of HYDRA’s experiments (cough brainwashing cough)

After the whirlwind of orientation began, though, the real adjustments began, especially when you were given more freedom

It was weird, because you were sure you wouldn’t want to be anywhere near the lab, but it was also an environment you were familiar with and run completely different than HYDRA’s labs

So, when you couldn’t sleep, you spent your evenings sitting in the lab with Jemma and Fitz, just to have other people to be around

Or you’d meet up with Daisy, who you also spent most of your day following around like a puppy hahaha

But she didn’t mind! She was glad that you felt safe around her and you were eager to learn and put your past behind you

You also bonded with May? Which took a few weeks because... ya know... she did shoot you... but also she was in charge of most of your training and your energies vibed well together

When Daisy wasn’t around, May took you under her wing

Which was, to say, she was a total hardass, but also a softie under it all

Like she’d totally kick your ass in training and leave you absolutely wiped, but then give you the extra toppings off her pizza slices at dinner with the crew that night because she knows you like them

Coulson and May just adopting another Bus Kid ajkhdkjdf

Mack and Daisy were SO EXCITED to introduce you to things you may have missed while with HYDRA. Movies, TV shows, pop culture moments, usually accompanied by a few beers and popcorn

You: “Sorry, wait, what is this movie supposed to be about? It’s been 20 minutes and I’m still confused? Is Lisa his wife?”

Mack: “You just gotta enjoy the art.”

Daisy: *shielding your eyes with her hand* “No don’t look at this part, I promise it’s not worth it... wait did HYDRA even give you the talk when you were a teen? How does that work?”

Lots of long 1-1s with Coulson, just as he checked in to see how you were adjusting to the team, even though he was also constantly checking with the others to get updates on you as well

You grew to really trust him, and found yourself going to him for help when you needed it

And him finally giving you the all-clear to go on your first mission!

It was probably spur-of-the-moment-we’re-fucked-and-need-more-hands-on-deck but he knew you were ready for the challenge

And you rose to it, sticking by Daisy for most of it, following her cues

But you totally passed out on the Quinjet afterwards, just completely worn out from the adrenaline and the excitement of being in the field

Mack definitely took a picture of you fast asleep on Daisy’s shoulder and sent it to her later with the caption #slumped😴

[somethinginrocknroll]

He's not my favorite in a normal sense. His crazy fucking lifestyle and death are. He knew Elvis, The Rolling Stones, and many others too. Here's a mini bio on him:

Ingram Cecil Connor III better known professionally as Gram Parsons. He was a musician and frontman. Parsons worked with The Byrds in 1968, before quitting and joining his own band, The Flying Burrito Brothers from 1969 through 1970. 

Gram was born in Winter Haven, Florida on November 5th, 1945 to Ingram Cecil Connor Parsons II and Avis Snively Connor. Avis returned to her hometown to give birth to her son. She was the daughter of citrus fruit magnate John A. Snively, who held extensive properties in Winter Haven and in Waycross. Gram's father, Ingram Connor II was a famous World War II flying ace, decorated with the Air Medal, who was present at the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor.

In 1956 when he was only nine-years-old, Gram saw Elvis Presley in concert and fell in love with music. That’s where his love of music came in. Two years later his father who went by “Coon Dog” took his own life two days before Christmas, Gram was only 11/12. Both him and his sister Avis (Jr) were both shattered after their father’s death.

Avis Sr remarried to Robert Parsons and the children took his name and were adopted by him once he married their mother.

Gram Parsons did briefly attend the prestigious Bolles School in Jacksonville, Florida. That was before transferring to the public Winter Haven High School. Which he did after failing his junior year. Gram returned to Bolles which had converted from a military to a liberal arts curriculum amid the incipient Vietnam War. 

For a time, the family found a stability of sorts. They were torn apart in early 1965, when Robert had an extramarital affair and Avis' heavy drinking led to her death from cirrhosis on June 5, 1965, the day of Gram's graduation from Bolles.

Barely in his teens, he played in rock and roll cover bands such as the Pacers and the Legends, headlining in clubs owned by his stepfather in the Winter Haven/Polk County area. By the age of 16, he graduated to folk music, and in 1963 he teamed up with his first professional outfit, the Shilohs, in Greenville, South Carolina. 

Gram was heavily influenced by The Kingston Trio and The Journeymen. The band played hootenannies, coffee houses and high school auditoriums. Parsons was still enrolled in prep school, he only performed with the group in select engagements. Forays into New York City (where Parsons briefly lived with a female folk singer in a loft on Houston Street)included a performance at Florida's exhibition in the 1964 New York World's Fair and regular appearances at the Café Rafio on Bleecker Street in Greenwich Village in the summer of 1964.

 Although John Phillips who is an acquaintance of Shiloh George Wrigley arranged an exploratory meeting with Albert Grossman, the impresario balked at booking the group for a Christmas engagement at The Bitter End when he discovered that the Shilohs were still high school students. Following a recording session at the radio station of Bob Jones University, the group reached a creative impasse amid the emergence of folk rock and dissolved in the spring of 1965 around the time of Gram’s mother’s passing.

Shockingly despite being poor in school and having bad test grades, Gram went to Harvard University in 1966 with the help of a strong essay he wrote. He only did one semester and that’s where he became more serious about country music. He heard Merle Haggard for the first time.

In 1966, he and other musicians from the Boston folk scene formed a group called the “International Submarine Band”. After briefly residing in the Kingsbridge section of the Bronx, they relocated to Los Angeles the following year. Following several lineup changes, the band signed to Lee Hazlewood's LHI Records, where they spent late 1967 recording Safe at Home. The album contains one of Parsons' best-known songs, "Luxury Liner", and an early version of "Do You Know How It Feels", which he revised later in his career. Safe at Home would remain unreleased until mid-1968, by which time the International Submarine Band had broken up.

In that same year Gram got the attention of The Byrds’ guitarist Chris Hillman thanks to business manager Larry Spector as a possible replacement member since David Crosby and Micheal Clarke left in late 1967. Parsons had already met Hillman at a bank in 1967. Gram had his only child, Polly, with Nancy Ross the girlfriend of David Crosby.

Gram passed the audition in February 1968. He was at first a jazz pianist but was switched to rhyme guitar and vocals. Gram left the band when asked why Gram responded with,

"Being with The Byrds confused me a little. I couldn't find my place. I didn't have enough say-so. I really wasn't one of The Byrds. I was originally hired because they wanted a keyboard player. But I had experience being a frontman and that came out immediately. And [Roger McGuinn] being a very perceptive fellow saw that it would help the act, and he started sticking me out front."

He was also friends with The Rolling Stones members Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. And they stayed close to each other until a fall out in the 70s. Before Parsons' departure from The Byrds, he had accompanied the two Rolling Stones to Stonehenge along with McGuinn and Hillman in the English county of Wiltshire.

 Immediately after leaving the band, Parsons stayed at Richards' house and the pair developed a close friendship over the next few years, with Parsons reintroducing the guitarist to country music. According to Stones' confidant and close friend of Parsons, Phil Kaufman, the two would sit around for hours playing obscure country records and trading off on various songs with their guitars.

Returning to Los Angeles in 1969, Parsons sought out Hillman, and the two formed The Flying Burrito Brothers with bassist Chris Ethridge and pedal steel player “Sneaky” Pete Kleinow. They did every genre of music possible from hard rock all the way to country and jazz gospel.  Around this time of The Flying Burrito Brothers, Gram started dabbling more and more into drugs.

Then Gram started a solo career in 1970 and toured with Emmylou Harris for a bit ; he may have been romantically involved with her as well. He then accompanied the Rolling Stones on their 1971 U.K. tour in the hope of being signed to the newly formed Rolling Stones Records.

Parsons and Keith Richards had mulled the possibility of recording a duo album. Moving into Villa Nellcôte with the guitarist during the sessions for Exile on Main Street that commenced thereafter, Parsons remained in a consistently incapacitated state and frequently quarreled with his girlfriend, aspiring actress Gretchen Burrell who later become his wife. 

Eventually, Parsons was asked to leave by Anita Pallenberg, Richards' longtime domestic partner. Decades later, Richards suggested in his memoir that Jagger may have been the impetus for Parsons' departure because Richards was spending so much time playing music with Parsons. Rumors have persisted that he appears somewhere on the legendary album, and while Richards concedes that it is very likely he is among the chorus of singers on "Sweet Virginia", this has never been substantiated. Parsons attempted to rekindle his relationship with the band on their 1972 American tour to no avail.

After leaving the Stones' camp, Parsons married Burrell in 1971 at his stepfather's New Orleans estate. Allegedly, the relationship was far from stable, with Burrell cutting a needy and jealous figure while Parsons quashed her burgeoning film career. Many of the singer's closest associates and friends claim that Parsons was preparing to commence divorce proceedings at the time of his death; the couple had already separated by this point.

In the summer of 1973, Parsons' Topanga Canyon home burned to the ground, the result of a stray cigarette. Nearly all of his possessions were destroyed with the exception of a guitar and a prized Jaguar automobile. The fire proved to be the last straw in the relationship between Burrell and Parsons, who moved into a spare room in Kaufman's house. While not recording, he frequently hung out and jammed with members of New Jersey–based country rockers Quacky Duck and His Barnyard Friends and the proto-punk Jonathan Richman & the Modern Lovers, who were represented by former Byrds manager Eddie Tickner.

Before formally breaking up with Burrell, Parsons already had a woman waiting in the wings. While recording, he saw a photo of a beautiful woman at a friend's home and was instantly smitten. The woman turned out to be Margaret Fisher, a high school sweetheart of the singer from his Waycross, Georgia, days. Like Parsons, Fisher had drifted west and became established in the Bay Area rock scene. A meeting was arranged and the two instantly rekindled their relationship, with Fisher dividing her weeks between Los Angeles and San Francisco at Parsons' expense.

Gram loved to visit Joshua Tree National Park. He would visit it often. Gram would frequently do psychedelic drugs and try to spot UFOs there. He told Phil Kauffman that he wanted his ashes spread there in Joshua National Tree Park since he loved that place and practically lived there when not in LA. 

So he, Dale, Micheal, Phil, Gram's girlfriend Margaret, and Dale's unnamed girlfriend all went to stay at JNTP Inn. Where Gram got morphine from an unknown woman.

He injected himself and OD. Margaret shoved ice cubes up his ass and put him in a cold shower which worked. He was up and talking. Dale was left in charge to watch over Gram and then Gram stopped breathing. Dale tried CPR but failed. Margaret and Dale both watched Gram die. Finally they call a fucking ambulance and he's pronounced dead on arrival.

Now Gram’s stepfather is a POS okay. He wanted Gram buried in Louisiana so he could take Gram's little wealth and the family estate which didn't belong to the stepfather since he wasn't blood.

Phil and Micheal couldn't allow this. Gram wanted to be cremated and his ashes spread. So with a shit ton of booze to make an elephant drunk they take a loaned hearse, because you know everyone has a hearse on loan. They were dressed as cowboys. For as suits were “too itchy” to wear.  The duo take his body back from the airport where he's meant to fly back to Louisiana back to Joshua National Tree Park.

 So the duo crash in JNTP and they pour five gallons of gasoline on Gram and his coffin. Causing a fireball. But cremation and gasoline are different. So instead of having Gram's ashes they had a cooked charred Gram instead. Police were of course called. The duo was fined $750 each and made to do community service.Gram was sadly buried in Louisiana against his wishes but his stepfather didn't get anything.

Gram's wealth and estate were split between his wife, girlfriend, sister, and his daughter. And the family denied the whole illegal cremation happening and won't talk about it.

The end.

Omg that is a really good summary, very sad life tho and how he died but wow

[evilelitest2]

How did China become the way it is now? They went from dynasties to a communist dictatorship that targets Uighurs?

Well i will say, the Qing Dynasty (last dynasty of China) also did a lot of genocides against Nomadic non Han peoples on the frontier provinces (Despite being a non Han steppe dynasty themselves) , like China has a long history of that sort of thing.  But to answer your main question, this is really complicated but i’ll try to reduce it down to a few steps

Step one: The Qing Dynasty, last Imperial Dynasty of China, is chilling out being the Imperial power when the British Empire, in their endless addiction TEA basically gets a ton of the nation addicted to opium to force China to Trade with them, cementing their role as history more aggressive drug dealer.  When china is like “hey we don’t want to do discount heroin” Britain launches a series of “Opium wars” where they destroy the Qing army and force them to basically a accept these unequal treaties where Britain and the other European powers could basically run sections of most of the Chinese coastal cities, were immune to Chinese law, take Hong Kong for themselves (different story) and force China to enter unequal trade treaties. 

Step 2: In part to response to this, an unorthodox Christian sect starts a massive Revolution/Civil war called the Taiping Rebellion, which has the “FUN” distinction of being one of the most bloody war in human history...ever.  up to 30 million people die.  Remember this is happening at the same time as the American Civil War, whose highest death count only gets up to 1 million.   This does massive damage to Qing China, even though they win the war, and makes them super hostile to Christianity and western adaptations.  

Step 3:Japan, who is going through their own period of Modernization, decides the best way to reject Western Imperialism is to Imperalize Korea.  This leads to the First Sino Japanese War in 1895, who defeat China and start to take over chinese territory.  They take even more when they win the Russo Japanese War in 1905.  

Step 4:  The Qing rejection most attempts to reform the state (such as the Hundred Days reform) and instead attempt to fight all the Colonial powers...at once in the utterly disastrous 1908 Boxer Rebellion.  The Qing are semi colonized as a result and financially ruined and have lost the respect of the people. 

Step 5: Sun Yat Sen, the most prominent Republican (as in democracy) founds his resistance group to China based on the notions of China accepting westernization, modernization, a secular anti traditionalist goverment, nationalism, anti imperialism, and democracy.  The idea that for China to have a good future is to embrace a western style of nation state building.

STep 6: In 1911, a carelessly discarded cigerrete leads to an explosion which leads to a popular rebellion against the Qing.  Before anybody, including the rebel leaders themselves are ready, suddenly the Qing dynasty is gone leaving behind a massive Power Vacumm.  

Step 7: Sun, taking control of the state, founds the Chinese Nationalist Party, the Kuomintang or KMT.  They attempt to create a modern Republican Chinese Nation State but erm...

Step 8: A previous Qing General named Yuan Shikai attempts to overthrow the Republic and create a new Imperial Dynasty.  He fails and dies, but the civil war between him and the KMT leaves the KMT in control of only a few Chinese cities, and the rest of China breaks into a bunch of local petty fiefdoms with local military leaders just declaring themselves warlord and running China.  

Step 9: Sun is like “ok the democracy thing isn’t working out” and enlists the general Chiang Kai-Shek to help the KMT unify china.  Chiang starts to fight the other warlords, and when Sun dies in 1925,  Chiang turns the KMT into a military positivist dictatorship with the long term goal of unifying/modernizing China and then maybe becoming a democracy.  

Everybody Pauses for World War I

Step 10: Some Chinese intellectuals think that the new party should be founded on more left wing principles, and they found the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).  They ally with the KMT because they also want to modernize/unify China, and accept from the Soviet Union as well as other anti colonal forces

Step 11: Chiang (with the help of the CCP) does a pretty good job at defeating the Warlords and unifying China.  BUt Chiang then betrays the CCP and massacres most of them as well as left wing KMT members, and starts to adopt an anti Communist profile.  

Step 12: The CCP, now much more radical, sets up their commune and fights against both the KMT and the warlords.  But they lose and are forced to flee across the rural China as part of the “Long March”.  Most of the communists die but those who survive to arrive to the last communist hold out in safety, is the new communist leader and totally not a psychopathic murderer, Mao Zedong.  

Step 13: Chiang has mostly unified China, defeating or subduing most of the Warlords, and is slowly but surely destroying the last remnants of the Communist party, who have retreated to a few hold outs in the rural north.  The new KMT state is relatively stable but still a military dictatorship surrounded by enemies. Meanwhile Japan is going through its fascist phase and is gobbling up bits and pieces of Manchuria, but Chiang doesn’t think he has the strength to fight Japan until he has finished fighting the Communists.  

Step 14: Japans military on the Ground goes rogue and just sort of...invades Manchuria on their own.  Meanwhile Chiang is literally kidnapped and forced at gun point to declare war on Japan in 1937.  The KMT and the CCP make an alliance to fight against Japan jointly.  The Second Sino Japanese War has begun 

Step 15: Between 1937-1945, The KMT is almost entirely driven back to rural Western China by the Japanese, who spend their time committing horrific atrocities which the goverment still hasn’t apologized today (which is why the rest of East Asia hates Japan), including the absolute horrific Rape of Nanking (look it up).   meanwhile the CCP fights a few token battles but then hides in the north and slowly trains up their forces and lets the KMT and Japan fight it out 

Step 16: The US gets Japan to surrender and the CCP and KMT immediately go back to fighting each other.  However the economically ruined KMT isn’t able to defeat the far more disciplined CCP and is defeated in 1949.  The CCP declares itself a new country, the People’s Republic of China (PRC).  Meanwhile the KMT under Chiang flees to the Island of Formosa (Taiwan) and says that they still are the Republic of China.  The two Chinas then spend the the next 70 years pretending the other doesn’t exist

Step 17: Mao, now dictator of China, attempts to modernize the economy and centralize the state.  The good news is that the economy does recover.  The bad news is massive human rights violations and the massacre of a few million people.  The PRC while an ally of the Soviet Union, really is an independent communist state that actually can hold its own.  Mao gets involved in the Korea War against the US and while the PRC doesn’t win, they also don’t lose which establishes them as a world power.  

Step 18: However Mao very quickly goes off the Deep End and launches the “Great Leap Forward” possibly the worse economic policy in human history which leads to the death of up to 40 million people....whoops

Step 18: The PRC leadership puts Mao in a corner so he can think about what he did and try to restore order, but then Mao is able to launch a revolution against his own government with the students called “The Cultural Revolution” which is...the weirdest revolution ever?  Its like if a dictator lead a revolution against his own goverment...long story for another time.  The Cultural Revolution destroys mountains of traditional chinese art and culture, kills, arrests and harrassings thousands to millions of people, and just breaks the state, finally ending with Mao’s death in 1976. 

Step 19: With Mao’s death, the more moderate faction of the PRC takes over, purges the more radical members of the Party, ends the Cultural revolution and starts to semi liberalize the economy, leading to the weird communist/capitalist/mercantilism/Imperial hybrid China operates under today, including of course massive corruption.  The dictatorship because less intense and relaly less communist and they start to drift away from the Soviet Union.  Then in 1989 as the Soviet Union is collapsing, and their is a massive student protest against corruption and in favor of China becoming a more liberal democratic and socialist state.  The goverment after a few months of dithering, opens fire on the protesters and you still aren’t allowed to talk about it in China today.�� Death toll varies but most non Government accounts put it at around 10,000.  

Step 20: China becomes a global super power, only behind the US and EU in power and turns their government into a major economic hub, though they keep pissing off their western allies with unfair business practices.  Recently however, the country has gone from an oligarchic autocracy to an...autocracy autocracy with the rise of their new leader, Xi Jinping, who has centralized authority and made the country a lot more oppressive and autocratic, while pushing aback against corrupt and dissident.

Step 21: Which finally brings us to the Uyghurs. Imperial China did this too, but the PRC really has a problem with the various non Han minority groups, doubly so for those who are Muslim and have separatist leanings. So the extermination of the Uyghurs really could be read as a continuation of how the PRC has treated the Tibetans, the Mongolians, and even Hong Kong over the last few decades.  This is part of their vision of China as being a centralized, modernize, secular, unified Nation State, which doesn’t really leave room for regional ethnic religions minorities, doubly so against those with a non Chinese language.  

That is the super simple version, Chinese history is super complicated.

[elderredraccoon]

Righty!

So this is my first sketch in a long time...holy balls what is the sitch with human anatomy!

This is my Knight Character Arí, based in the Merlin (BBC) universe.

This lovely lady has spent most of her time being a Knight Errant due to the fact that only male nobility (lords and such) can be knights apparently. Hence the physique she has. She’s already tall for a lady, and often gets mistaken for a guy, but she tends to not give a rat’s tail about it.

While out on travels she began learning how to make the weapons she used as well, and has become a proficiant weapons and armour blacksmith, and is often found toiling over some new work she’s been commisioned for.

She never knew her mother and father, having been adopted into a small peasant family when she was just a babe. In part, that lead her down the road she has taken, becoming stong and able bodied to be able to help her family in the farms and learn how to protect her village. She loved her adoptive family with her everything, and would spend any free time she had, when younger, rough-housing with all the boys, and occasionally hanging around the girls to stop other bullying them.

She eventually left the village to learn how to be a knight, and has been on many adventures and built a small name for herself for being a gentle giant. However, word spread amongst bandits and other lowlifes to fear her, as she was terrifying on the battlefield. she was merciless and clinical in the slaughtering of criminals she had been sent to deal with, and thought of as a demon. She is suseptable to bloodlust stemming from an inherant rage that she does her best to control; but sometimes looses her grasp over. She would take on horrible jobs that would lead to too much death, needing to feed her monster the blood it craved. It eventually got to a point where she was putting herself in near constant danger and was at risk of loosing herself and potentially getting herself killed.

That is why she began learning how to become a Smith, to go down a less violent route, and vent her inner demons with fire and metal. In the final job shetook before stopping, she had taken on a group of bandits too large for her to handle and was stabbed through the gut and nearly died. The only reason she lived was because of a certain blue-eyed warlock finding her on his travels for herbs.

He managed to help her to safety and healed her, abd long story short, he had told her about camelot and his knight friends there, and how he knew a traveling knight by the name of Lancelot. They chatted long into the night, trading stories as the warlock used magic to help heal her wounds and found both of them laughing quietly. He suggested maybe that she went there to maybe find a place to stay and work, that she could accompany him there and he’d help her get settled.

She simply looked at the warlock, looking him up and down before mutely nodding, feeling the strings of fate tugging somewhere.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I got inspiration from @dyemelikeasunset ‘s Aseri (who is friggin amazing!) As i loved their body type for this character that has been sitting quietly in my head for an age now (I did use one of Aseri’s poses for reference just to help with the musculature so i could get an idea of what she looked like under her armour and clothes). Just quickly gonna say now, Dye, that i’ve been a long time follower of you and @beedalee, and i LOVE both of your work and you both have helped with a lot of personal issues with me, and with my art in terms of body type and physicallity. both of your are amazing, and i wish you all the luck and good vibes i’m capable of giving~

[the1975hqs]

He’s Matty Healy of art-pop heroes The 1975. She’s Heather Baron-Gracie of pop newcomers Pale Waves. The first time Matty heard Heather’s band he declared he needed to work with them. Two singles, a video and a mega US tour later, Pale Waves are on course to be your new favourite band. We meet the mentor and mentee in London.

The hub of The 1975’s empire is not, as you might expect, an airy, pink neon-lit, minimalist space with Rothkos hanging on the walls. It is, instead, a top-floor unit in a building on a courtyard trading estate in west London. The floor below has a place stocking Christmas supplies, and even on this humid September day, Santa’s grotto twinkles back at you through the open door.

Upstairs is the HQ of Dirty Hit, the record label founded by The 1975’s manager, Jamie Oborne, as a vehicle for the band he discovered as Cheshire teenagers. Now it’s home to some of the UK’s most exciting bands, from the established, such as Wolf Alice, to rising stars such as The Japanese House – whose ‘Pools To Bathe In’ EP was produced by 1975 frontman Matty Healy and drummer George Daniel – and new signing No Rome. There’s a particular up-and-coming band that Healy has really taken under his wing, taking them on tour in the States, co-producing their first two singles and directing the video for the second, ‘Television Romance’ – and that band is Pale Waves.

“I was just so excited to hear a band that was positioned in the left, an alternative band, that was so in tune with pop sensibilities,” says Healy, sat in Oborne’s office, the pungent smell of marijuana emanating from somewhere about his person. “It kind of reminded me of The Cure or The Primitives or bands like that – it’s the happy/sad thing loads of bands have thrived on. I saw them first at Dingwalls, and there was this truth in there. There’s a naivety and a purity to them and an honesty to them that kind of comes through in their music.”

Frontwoman Heather Baron-Gracie, who receives a warm, brotherly hug from Matty after plonking herself on the sofa next to him, puts it more succinctly: “I just love pop music, and when it makes you feel something, it’s even better.” Heather, 22, formed the band four years ago with her best mate Ciara Doran. Joining later were guitarist Hugo Silvani and bassist Charlie Wood. Two women, two men; two goths, two skinny indie boys – it’s a look that shouldn’t work, but it just does. “People say we’re like two sets of twins,” says Heather. “You couldn’t dress Hugo and Charlie up as goths because it just wouldn’t work. Well, we do the make-up sometimes and dress them up in my little skirts and things – but that’s just for us.”

Matty is at pains to point out the precise extent of his involvement in Pale Waves. “The songs were there, so my involvement in writing was only editing,” he says. “I always have a fear of being overbearing. I know what it’s like to be want to be prided on your own merits, and I would hate to be resented by an artist for feeling I’d strong-armed my involvement for my own personal gain.”

Mainly, the message is that Pale Waves are perfectly capable of writing songs on their own – Matty’s a facilitator, not a svengali. And what songs they are. The group’s two singles so far are the near-flawless sugar rush of 2016’s ‘There’s A Honey’ and the heart-melting crush of 2017 follow-up ‘Television Romance’.

The video for the latter was directed by Matty. What’s he like in director mode? “I’m very aggressive, but Heather gives as much as she gets so it’s all good,” he says. “We don’t do miming, we do have the track on at full volume. So I have to shout above the track, ‘LOOK SEXY!’ That’s pretty much the only thing that I shout: ‘LOOK AT THE CAMERA! LOOK F**KING SEXY!’”

The video sees Pale Waves performing in an Ashton-under-Lyne council flat in that looks like a hipster’s wet dream – all retro furnishings and kitsch collectables. It actually all belongs to the 92-year-old woman who lives there. “She had no clue what was going on but she was loving it, watching videos of The 1975 on people’s phones,” says Matty. “She didn’t actually believe it was me in the ‘Love Me’ video, because I was there with my Spielberg cap on taking it all very seriously.”

The first time Heather saw The 1975, it was accompanying her cousin, who’d won tickets to a gig. The last time, it was when Pale Waves were supporting the band on their two-month 2017 tour of huge US venues. “The first night was absolutely mental. I couldn’t even look up because I was like, ‘Oh my god’. We went from playing to about 10 people in Ireland to 7,000 people in Phoenix. It was a bit unreal.” Did Matty have any advice about that? “Yeah,” says Heather. “He said, ‘Just get on with it!’”

Though they’re friends, the tour didn’t provide much time to hang out. Matty was frazzled from the months on the road, and trying to get his head around his own band’s next album. “I was quite busy and quite down and quite emo – I’d been on tour for so f**king long,” he says. “We were pretty much doing a show every day and then when you have a day off you’re in your own little hotel and the lights are out. But it was great to watch Pale Waves grow as a band.”

Heather often writes songs with US coming-of-age films playing in the background for inspiration – her favourite being ‘Adventureland’. That sense of the apocalyptic emotion of teenage life lives in her lyrics too. “Those films set you up for going to America, but when I went I was kinda like, it isn’t what I expected. Like, we went to Hollywood at midnight and I was so scared because there’s a lot of mental people just roaming about. I was going all, ‘Take me home!’”

1975 fans have already embraced Pale Waves, and not just on Matty’s say-so. The bands share a mentality for finding romance in the everyday, and each group is formed around a creative core based on a tight friendship: Healy and best mate George, Heather and Ciara.

“That’s the thing I identify with most, the duality between them reminds me of the relationship between me and George,” says Matty, who, post-success, bought a house across the road from his bandmate to make sure he’s only ever a short skateboard ride away. “I did notice on tour that they never really did separate, never one without the other.”

Heather found Ciara on social media before starting university. “I saw a picture of her in this big group chat and I thought, ‘She’s the only one who really looks like someone I’ll get along with’. The first day we got there we met up and haven’t really been apart since then. I get scared thinking that she might not be a part of my life one day.”

Though they formed in Manchester, Heather’s home town is Preston, a no-nonsense city where the way she dresses – Robert Smith of The Cure by way of Robert Smith of The Cure – marks her out as someone different. “When I go back home to Preston, they do not take to it very well,” she says. Needless to say, her look isn’t as big a deal to her as it is to other people. “Everyone who meets me thinks I’m in a heavy metal band,” she says. “I never really call myself a goth, but others do. I’m like, maybe I am a goth?”

Matty – who adopted his own take on Heather and Ciara’s style for NME’s cameras – says their commitment to it is a mark of their authenticity. “The make-up, the hair, the whole thing, it’s not a set-up for the band. I can see those two girls being like that and needing to be in a band to express that, needing to find each other.”

Though she stands out, Heather says her teenage years were about “keeping a low profile. I didn’t really find people that I got along with,” she explains. “At school I would go to a room to play piano when everybody else was talking in the cafeteria. I’m not really into that – I’m not really a massive social person. Ciara’s always telling me off for being socially awkward but I’m just like, ‘I can’t’.”

Heather has been writing songs since the age of 11. As a teen, she would write “kind of Avril Lavigne pop”; more recently it was “folksy, emotional and stripped-back acoustic stuff like Ben Howard – not very cool music.” It changed when she met Ciara. “She said, ‘Lets try something different, because I want to make people dance at our shows and not kinda just cry: they can cry and dance.’”

Right from that first week at university, Pale Waves became Heather and Ciara’s sole focus. The band rehearse daily, and dedicate every minute of spare time to music. University was a slog she had to get through. Jobs were another unwelcome distraction. “My parents tried to get me into this job entering numbers into a computer-based system for the NHS in St Helens, and I was just not doing it,” she says. “I went to the interview looking like this, but they offered me the job anyway. It was Monday to Friday with some weekends and my brain would just be fried.”

Heather’s days of keeping a low profile may soon be over. Even now, and particularly in Manchester, she’s recognised on the street by a growing band of obsessed fans. “They always call me ‘queen’. It’s dead cute. Or ‘mum’, I get ‘mum’ a lot,” she says. “I keep seeing girls dressed like me. They ask me about make-up – I’m not even that good at make-up! It’s quite scary having people look up to you. I don’t want to mess anyone up.”

The adulation looks set to grow as Pale Waves make their careful, precise steps forward. Later today, Heather’s back with the rest of the band in the studio recording an EP. An album will follow, but not for at least a year. “With the album, I think we’re just going to show another side to us which is a lot more emotional and not as – I don’t know how to put it… Just, like, a bit more intense.”

Matty perks up. “You mean like emotionally intense?”

“Yeah.”

“Good. That’s what I’m hoping for.

[jamiedodgerart]

if you're happy to tell us, i'd love to head more about ur inquisitor :00!! his debates with dorian sound fun

:DDD yeah sure! soz this is late

pica’s 1/6 of an inch tall

(im kidding. his name was originally a pun, but not a typography one - he’s a rehash of an old oc i had way back in the day, who was based off a magpie. hes actually on the short side for a dwarf, i want to say around 4′3″)

he was a lyrium smuggler before the inquisition, and specifically was the front man who sold it. he’s a champion liar and man of many faces, and knows how to disappear in plain sight (which is easy if you’re a dwarf and most law enforcement on the surface are humans. to a human guard dwarves all look the same and theyre too short to really get a good look at their faces). he had a pretty transient lifestyle- he didn’t get tied down, didn’t get too attached to anyone or anything, had pretty few posessions. he was 26 (or the dwarf equivalent of 26. hows dwarf aging work in dragon age anyway) when the carta got him to spy at the conclave, and you know how that went

look ok. the first half of his career as inquisitor was just. wingin’ it. no one really knew what the fuck he was supposed to be doing, least of all him, so he just pretended he knew what he was doing till, i wanna say the end of into the abyss. after talking to mal hawke some he learned that, hey, everyone’s always winging it, and also that his decisions kind of really mattered. (and that those decisions he makes can. kill people) for the first time in his life, he realizes hes actually important, and what he does changes things on the large scale

so after that, he got to thinking. the world kinda sucks. and it sucked before the war. and the leaders of thedas are really not doing all that much about it, except trying to kick each other in the nuts while their enemies are weak and completely forgetting that politics Cannot Survive as a practice if theres no farmers able to make food for diplomats to eat. so, orlais, if your farmland is all gunched up with battlefields, then you need to fix that, don’t you. but the inquisition is really, really good at providing stability! it’s good at establishing patrols, safe trade routes, providing local employment, and is a fairly reliable consumer of local goods. so pica capitalized on that, and quietly spread inquisition presence all over southern thedas. this led to immense inquisition influence, with very little fanfare.

you can guess why the rulers of thedas tried to get rid of him as soon after corypheus was taken care of as possible. they branded him a tyrant and like. ok. they werent like. super far off. bc at this point he was kinda trying to see how much of the world he could take over before anyone noticed/tried to stop him and also figured he could do like, a way better job at leading it than the current rulers could. and he wasnt beholden to anyone either (not like empress celene! elected to her throne by… uhhhhhhhhhhh divine providence or something. i mean shes doing an ok job but like i didnt vote for her) so if he really really wanted to he could go full dragon reborn

ive got off topic but point is he figures humans have had their go and they fucked it up, so it’s a dwarf’s turn and he’s going to put the world back together himself. (ps hey bioware can we have some dwarf stuff in the next game. im js. weve had a whole load of elf nonsense and its nice and all but dwarfs had a cool ancient society too yknow)

after trespasser he elects to keep the inquisition around, because he worked hard to make this glue keeping the bits of thedas stuck together and he’ll be damned if he’ll let solarse and his minions screw it up. but it gets nerfed heavily and hes pissed about it

he romanced cassandra! i really like their relationship- they look to each other for moral guidance. pica knows he can get flighty and relies on her to keep him in line, and always asks her for advice when he sees her in the courtyard. he usually doesn’t follow it but he feels it’s important to have her perspective on things

they disagree on a lot of stuff (like he made celene and briala co-leaders but she was in favor of gaspard) but he trusts her judgement, and supported her in becoming the divine

he’s a little weird about religion, specifically relating to the stone. the surfacer part of him that hates caves is like pff hippie garbage, but the bit that’s generations old and wants to belong to a larger whole of a culture is Super Into It. cole said he felt the stone’s presence around pica one time and externally he didnt react but internally he was yelling WHAT THE FUUUUUUUCKKKKKKKKKKKKK I LIVED IN SUCH PEACEFUL IGNORANCE I DIDNT NEED TO KNOW THAAAAAT and after the mythal thing hes like fuck believe what you want. whatever floats your boat. we live in a world where nugs have little people hands so if it comforts you to know a god did that then live your truth

re mages he figures theres a way better way for them to fit into society than the circle. its dumb. they can LIFT THINGS WITH THEIR MINDS. USE THAT FOR BUILDING. they can HEAL WOUNDS WITH THEIR MINDS. THEY CAN TALK TO SPIRITS AND SHIT THEY CAN PROBABLY FLY WHY ARENT WE USING THIS THEY’RE WASTED IN TOWERS LEARNING TO SHOOT FIREBALLS OR WHATEVER people who fear magic are cowards. chantry more like sham-try. 

hes big on research and development. he sent samson to dagna for research and in the au where mal lives he sent anders to her too. cos. like. dude COEXISTS WITH A SPIRIT. thats cool as SHIT how does it WORK. 

(im gonna make a post abt the mal lives au soon. its good)

hes largely responsible but he has also impulse bought at least three stuffed dragons. also, if the textiles technology were available, hed have dragon jammies. it’s the little things in life.

he collects notes he’s found talking about him and hangs them up by his desk. his favorite is the one samson wrote calling him a damnable rogue. he says hes doing things right, if he’s making people mad

hes trans! im not sure how thatd be regarded in dwarf society, in undergrounders i doubt it’d be very acceptable given their emphasis on reproduction, but house cadash has been on the surface for generations and has probably adopted more liberal views on lgbt stuff. either way hes not very open about it, and it’s really easy to pass when he’s around humans (i get the feeling dwarves and humans look for different things, when they’re trying to guess gender. for example hes got some beard scrub, which in human terms means male but in dwarven terms probably either means very young male or unkempt female) (the added implication to this is that varric might keep his beard to stubble so he looks younger) he met krem and had an instant Trans Solidarity moment, which also comes with the Trans Fear that the person Knows that you’re trans and could out you. it’s a weird kind of trust and for me feels like that one performance art piece with the people holding the bow and arrow. anyway hes cool w krem but doesnt talk to him all that much. theyve got pretty different interests.

his best friends are probs cole and dorian! he’s very curious, and likes to hear different perspectives on things. he and dorian often play chess and discuss all sorts of stuff. they end up yelling a lot because they both want to talk but the other started saying something before they were done with their point, which they started saying before the other was done with their point, and so on. he doesnt get very far in the slavery argument until hawke starts chillin at skyhold more regularly and can adequately school him on the state of tevinter slavery (fuck i gotta make a post about that. mal’s had a lot of development since i last talked about him)

he listens very seriously to cole’s observations. he can really appreciate the input of someone who watches so much more than speaks, and heartily supported his ventures in becoming more human.

he also gets along very well with josephine and likes to trick her into taking days off. hes also always down to chat w dagna and scout harding! and varric, of course. it’s always nice to talk to someone without having to crane his neck up at them all the time

(this is the reason he doesnt usually spend time w bull. hes just too tall and its uncomfortable knowing your face is at your friend’s dick height while ur trying to discuss battle strategy)

uhh trivia, at one point i thought i’d fucked up cassandra’s romance by not flirting with her enough so i meant to go for dorian’s instead, bc while i had wanted to romance cass since uhh i dunno one of my mutuals first reblogged a picture of her, i underestimated how charming and cool of a guy dorian ended up being. so in canon i say pica had a crush on both of them for a little while

its late and i think i got mostly everything so enjooooooy

as a parting gift, this is him

[anglelyre2-blog]

Automotive Museum In Southwest Philly Goes The Distance (And Then Some)

The Simeone Foundation Automotive Museum at 6825-31 Norwitch Drive may be well off the beaten path, but its collection of historic race cars is astounding. | Photo: Michael Bixler

If modern evolution is a linear progression of technological advancements, in no place is this more evident than the Simeone Foundation Automotive Museum. The easily overlooked building on Norwitch Drive in Southwest Philadelphia is a treasure trove of rare racing cars. It is a place where the past comes to vibrant life, where long forgotten machines are reintroduced to new generations and the early days of racing culture are celebrated.

The museum is currently home to 70 immaculately maintained and extremely coveted race cars, lined up and displayed by decade in colorful diorama-type settings. Dating back to the early 1900s, cars like Ferraris, Jaguars, BMWs, and Maseratis sit proudly as tangible remnants of eras gone by. The varied assortment of vehicles are not merely parked and gathering dust. They all run, a museum requirement, and are regularly taken outside to be showcased on the museum’s three acre back lot.

What propelled the museum into existence was one man’s personal collection. Gathered over the course of decades by Dr. Frederick Simeone, a prominent Philadelphia-based neurosurgeon at Pennsylvania Hospital, the cars were first stored in an unassuming public parking garage at 8th and Lombard Streets. Simeone rented the garage and gradually began to fill it with his treasures, simultaneously keeping it open as a public garage. Ultimately, the space filled with his collection and was no longer open for public use.

“Any collection doesn’t start as a gigantic collection. It starts with one piece at a time. Back in the 1970s when the collection started, it was still possible to get really great cars. The general public had not caught up with the iconic value of certain types of cars. You had to be a historian. They were affordable to buy and I was able to select the ‘Mona Lisa’ cars of the sports racing world. They aren’t available now,” Simeone remarked.

This exhibit features Le Mans racers from the 1930s through the 1970s. | Photo: Michael Bixler

Crediting his lifelong fascination of cars to his father who encouraged his interest, Simeone always had a penchant for early sports cars that were not Formula One cars. He liked racers with beautiful designs that could also drive casually on the open road. Simeone acquired the first three quarters of his collection at affordable prices, focusing on cars with noteworthy racing histories. As time went on, early racing cars morphed from hobby objects into art collector pieces. This led to a high demand and made them impossible to purchase. Simeone used other vintage cars he had attained that weren’t sports cars as trades to acquire those harder to purchase vehicles and added them to his lot.

As the collection continued to grow, Simeone was nudged by people who came to see it to preserve the collection for the future. He created a charitable foundation and found a larger location on Norwitch Drive to display the cars properly to the public. Simeone had two main goals for the foundation: the preserve the vehicles and to keep the collection together.

“I wanted to make sure there was a place for them to stay in perpetuity. The original purpose of museums was to preserve. In the process of preserving, you then have the opportunity to exhibit. These cars are all very special and cannot be duplicated. They are from an era that was iconic,” he said.  

Simeone noted there was specific criteria he looked for when acquiring a car or accepting one into the museum. Each car must hold historical significance and must be a car that won a race. The cars must also have original parts, and be aesthetically attractive, to demonstrate the design of the period it was made.

Hill climbs, where an automobile’s power and speed is tested, were popular in England in the 1920s. | Photo: Michael Bixler

“We want to have the finest cars that represent the ‘winners’ of the race world. We want to tell the evolution of these cars by the winners, to show the ingredients that lead to success. A lot of museums don’t care. We’re very fussy that they have all the right, important things particularly the original chassis, engine, and body.”

Along those lines, Simeone decided the theme of the museum would be “The Spirit of Competition” based on the concept that competition spurs forth advancements and better ways of doing things. He hoped this would especially reach younger visitors to the museum, who are finding their place in the world. The museum offers educational programs like STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) and a popular summer camp that demonstrates this focus.

“Our theme is based on the belief that competition makes everything better. The alternative is not competing. With that, there would be no evolution or development. The cars are set up chronologically, so you can see the progression. As technology evolves, things change,” Simeone said.

Preserving and maintaining the vehicles is a top priority of the museum. Among the collection, the oldest car is a 1907 Renault that was once belonged to William K. Vanderbuilt. It was donated to the museum by a man who had it in his family for 90 years. Simeone noted the rarest car in the collection is also his favorite, a blood red 1938 Alfa Romeo 2900 B. One of only four made, it is considered to be the best pre-WWII sports racing car. The museum also has rotating visiting exhibits that are popular among car clubs and those wanting to learn more on a particular make of car. Most recently, the museum showcased an exhibition of MGs.

A 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport in the Watkins Glen exhibit. | Photo: Michael Bixler

Another draw to the museum are its Demo Days, when one or two cars are taken outside and raced in the museum’s lot. Each Demo Day event focuses on a particular historical race, event, or make of a car. The day includes a brief discussion and social commentary about the featured cars.

“My real obligation is to create activities to ensure the museum is socially relevant and to use it as an educational device. The Demo is about taking an interesting car and explaining what makes it important. We associate the day with either a social event, the driver, the venue, or what was going on in the world. People love to see the cars in motion.”

Despite the impressive collection, which has garnered recognition and multiple awards overseas, the museum continues to stay under the radar of Philadelphia attractions. This has made fundraising efforts difficult. Cars in the collection can be “adopted” if a person takes a special interest in, one which usually stems from a personal connection one feels for a certain make or model.

“We have no philanthropy at all. People just don’t donate to car museums. It is a shame because the value level of the contents make us one of the highest in Philadelphia. It’s more valuable than the contents at the Rodin Museum, for instance. We are very overlooked,” Simeone remarked.

“We’ve been voted ‘Best Car Museum in the World’ twice, which is more than any other. The International Historic Motoring Awards in London gave us the ‘Best Museum’ award four times. They know about us in Europe, but not much in Philadelphia, sadly. We’re a hidden gem, I’m afraid,” he added.

This exhibit depicts the Targa Florio, a race through the hills of Sicily, Italy. | Photo: Michael Bixler

One longtime fan of the collection is Mike Wolfe from the show, American Pickers. Wolfe, an Iowa native, has been visiting Philadelphia for years, prior to his show, and met Dr. Simeone along the way. Simeone eventually acquired a Fiat 600 cut away engine from Wolfe which he “picked” in Italy. Now on display in the museum, the exposed, functioning engine is used as a teaching aid. Wolfe holds a deep appreciation for the museum’s preservation efforts and noted its worldwide importance.

“It’s a collection that you cannot see, literally, anywhere in the world,” Wolfe said. “When I travel in Europe, they all know Dr. Simone and respect him and the collection. He has the rarest of the rare. They envy everything he has because so much of it was pulled out of Europe. It is the type of collection you could never put together today, no matter how much money you have, because the cars have all been bought up. It’s one of the best-preserved collections of European and American Le Mans cars. It’s stuff you don’t even think exists anymore.”

Wolfe noted the artistic component of the collection. “There are types cars that tour art museums because the museums understand those cars are works of art. That is what Dr. Simeone’s whole museum is like. Everything is next level. When you go to a car museum like, his you realize it’s more art than anything else. When you think about art does it always to be a sculpture or a painting on canvas? Or can it be something that was made in an era that will never come again.”

On Demo Days the public gets to see the museum’s cars in action. | Photo: Michael Bixler

Also onsite is an extensive 6,000 square foot research library, filled with automotive literature that Simeone began collecting when he was just 14 years old. The library specializes in original car company literature that came with cars upon purchase, repair instructions, early automobile designs and illustrations, and pre-World War II magazines. There is a large assortment of hard bound books. Simeone continues to gather materials and noted private collectors have donated their literature collections to the museum to keep them intact.

“Automotive literature is the classic ephemera,” said Simeone. “It disappears. There is no card catalog for automotive books. Libraries don’t ordinarily have automotive sections. The materials are really important for restorers, historians, and for people who are selling their cars and want to make sure it is authentic and original. It is one of the highlights here. It’s actually where I spend most of my time.”

Simeone hopes that anyone who visits the museum will leave with something memorable. With a plethora of rarities from all over the world, it is hard not to gain an appreciation for race car technology. As early automotive pioneering continues to catapult us into the future, we are all along for an inspiring ride.

About the author

Virginia Lindak is a three-time Keystone Press Award-winning journalist, photographer, and author. As a journalist for nearly a decade, her 500-plus published articles span the Philadelphia region into New Jersey and Delaware. She has also co-authored four books on Lancaster County. Additionally, she works full-time in development at a non-profit organization in Chester County. In her free time she enjoys adventuring off the beaten path and delving into local history. Lindak holds a B.A. in Communications, Public Relations and Journalism from Immaculata University and a M.A. in Communication Studies from West Chester University.

Source: https://hiddencityphila.org/2019/05/automotive-museum-in-southwest-philly-goes-the-distance-and-then-some/

[otc-dramaturgy]

Spotlight Saturday

Today we’re spotlighting two more of our terrific actors! (I know, two? You have to read two whole spotlights? That’s so much work! But trust me, they’re worth it, these folks are amazing)

Our first spotlight is Dylan Arredondo, one of our National Players! Dylan is playing Cassio in Othello, Tom in The Great Gatsby, and an ensemble member in Alice in Wonderland!

What’s your hometown? Where did you go to school (and why) and what degree did you get?  My hometown is Las Vegas, Nevada. I currently reside in New York City, after earning a BFA in Drama from NYU Tisch School of the Arts. I want to be in rooms of creativity where everyone’s minds and bodies are firing on all cylinders constantly, where we're questioning our limits -- rooms that are dangerous with ambition. And so far I've had the most frequent access to getting into those rooms in New York, so that's where I've remained for the time being.

What most excites you about a year on the road with the National Players? What is the most daunting? I judge most experiences in life based on the following makeup: 33% of it is what you're doing, 33% of it is whom you're with, and 33% of it is where you're doing it. What I'm most excited about switches between those everyday: the texts & adventures, the ensemble & audiences, the venues & travels. Also, the most daunting is the most exciting. 

What did you do when you received the offer to be a National Player? Emotionally, of course, I was so excited and humbled to receive that offer, but I was a bit terrified because it was (is) such a significant commitment. Practically, I called several mentors that I respect and asked their advice on how I should move forward, as well as reached out to some colleagues who had worked with National Players before. Everyone's feedback regarding National Players was exponentially positive, which is partially why I'm here now!

Tell us about your most defining theatre experience: I was working on a postmodern production of The Little Foxes by Lillian Hellman in which we exploded and deconstructed the text and tried to piece it back together -- and that was a workout. Four weeks in, we had the whole show blocked and ready to go. Then we trashed it (or shelved it maybe?) We blocked an entirely different sketch of the show the next week. Then trashed/shelved it. Then blocked an entirely different sketch of the show the next week. And I think none of us realized that we were always building on these previous sketches. It was the week before tech week, I called a pal crying, saying something doubtful like, "I'm not sure if this is going to come together, which, you know, could potentially be totally humiliating." And then that week, we returned to sketch 1, but with this new knowledge of all these other iterations, and suddenly, everything was so much clearer, and where there were holes we had these other beautiful pieces of content that we could steal from to patch it up. Then we added a very smart design during tech week. And somehow everything came together and I was really proud of this product we were sharing with an audience. And it was a grueling process because for once, as an actor, I was being asked to exercise my creativity at every juncture on that road. (No one had ever asked me to craft the rules of the world in which the play existed; I always just crafted the embodied character inside the rules of the world as the script dictated.) And I feel like that feeling is something I've tried to attain as an artist in every project I've worked on since: holding myself accountable to being my most creative self at every step of the journey.

What's the one thing you MUST bring on the road? I have this one 80s Adidas jacket in a heinous off-white cream and navy and the day I part with it will be the day I die.

Our second spotlight of the day is on our amazing Sonny, Michael Mainwaring!

When was your first time onstage?  I started doing stage shows in elementary school. I did alllll the shows.

What was your most defining performing experience? Playing Angel in RENT with Harbor Lights Theatre Company in the Fall of 2015. It was an incredibly transformative experience. It gave me so much light and I found so much evolution in that process.

Who inspires you? Anyone who is willing to commit to their indivuality and show up for themselves. I find the most inspiring people to be those who consciousnessly take the world by storm and refuse to apologize for who they are, what they believe in and how they feel and express.

So much of In the Heights is about “running to make it home.” Where would you say your home is? I'm nomadic by trade so I go where the wind blows and where the energy flows. So..... earth?

When you “grab [your] coffee and [you] go,” how do you take it?  I work in the coffee industry when I'm not performing, so for me a SOLID and delicious shot of espresso is BOMMMBBB.

Our third spotlight (did I just say third I absolutely did tricked you all!) is on Danny Bolero, our splendid Kevin Rosario!

When was your first time onstage? If you'll accept all the Sundays after in my Grandparents living room, then I was five years old.  If that humbling time of discovery doesn’t count, then I was probably nine years old.  I had joined the neighborhood Parks and Rec. Drama Club.  My first show was as a Halloween Kitty to the title role in "The Year Santa Clause Slept Through Christmas"  I was a hit. MGM, Paramount they all wanted a piece of me, well at least in the daily fantasies that replayed in my head. I've always struggled with extreme shyness and anxiety, through the years, I have learned to cope with it better,  acting seemed the best way to pull myself out of myself.  It was much easier to be the buffoon in a show then to be bullied in school as a buffoon.

What was your most defining performing experience?  My most defining moment on stage would have to be coming FULL circle and playing Kevin on Broadway!  You see, I have had a long love affair with IN THE HEIGHTS,  I am originally from Los Angeles, and in 2007 I had never heard of, nor did I know anything about  IN THE HEIGHTS.  Before the show made the move to Broadway, they were having auditions in LA . Without an agent, I decided to crash the auditions, not knowing it was dance call. I just showed up at the studio where the auditors were being held, and I will never forget how mesmerizing the dance auditions were, me with my nose pressed up against the window.  One of the casting directors came to the door and asked if I was there to audition, “yes” I said “but I don’t do that”  as I pointed to the dancers inside.  She took my information and  gave me a link to the Kevin material on-line.  The next day I auditioned and two days later I got a call back.  But that was as far as it went. The show opened on Broadway without me, and won the Tony's without me and had another round of “replacement” auditions in Los Angeles  a few weeks before Thanksgiving. This time I had been to New York and had seen the show and I knew I had to be a part of it.   I showed up to the LA auditions and three call backs later, I found myself being flown to NYC to audition for the entire production team.  There must have been 40 people in the room, with Lin Manuel Miranda sitting front and center.  It was not meant to be this time, the role went to good friend Rick Negron.  Two months later “Heights” called and asked if I wanted to be a vacation swing. “Yes.” .I said, "Hmmmmm Hell Yes!"  That week I flew NYC, slept on a friends couch and learned the and stayed with the show almost 6 months during which time I was offered Kevin on the 1st national tour, and later back to Broadway as a replacement. Full Circle!

Who inspires you? Growing up in East LA, Broadway and musical theater was not my parents first choice for me as a career.    But my Godmother, never judged, and kept saying “Mijo"( which means son in Spanish), you can be whatever you want to be, you just have to believe it and work at it,  MAKE it happen.  I’ll never forgot those words of wisdom.  My parents as well were an inspiration, , working hard to give my brothers and I  a home and a good education. Lastly much of my inspiration came from my mentors, Beto Araiza and the late "Margo" Albert, a famous actress from the 40s whose main purpose was to teach me the technique and tools i needed to compete.  They taught me the importance of making work happen. For instance,  when your not working, make it happen, write a show, a book, a screenplay, coach,  volunteer, study..work at moving forward.

So much of In the Heights is about “running to make it home.” Where would you say your home is? This is a little difficult to answer, what with the kind of work I do,  I truly believe that saying, HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS.  As I mentioned earlier, I am from Los Angeles, which I consider home, where all my family and friends still live.  When I got the call to go to New York, I really had no other choice but to put all my stuff in storage and go.  .I told myself I would give myself a year in New York and if nothing happens, I will head back home.  Well  I just celebrated my sixth year living in New York, and consider NYC my home as well.  I still have my storage in LA, but I have adopted a new family member, my little Bijon Frisse mix,  Mozart who goes with me where ever I go.

When you “grab [your] coffee and [you] go,” how do you take it? Light and Sweet with a lil bit of Cinnamon!

Aaaaaand now that’s it for this Spotlight Saturday! Look out tomorrow for a recap of the week!

[spotlightsaga]

Kevin Cage of @spotlightsaga reviews… Orange is the New Black (S05E05) Sing It, White Effie Airdate: June 9, 2017 @oitnb Ratings: @netflix Score: 8.75

**********SPOILERS BELOW**********

OITNB has a habit of having white folks tell black folks’ stories… Normally you can kind of sense it right away, but after watching ‘Sing It, White Effie’ I had to look up the primary writer. I’ve talked about this a few times but never on this grand of a stage. I know that this has been addressed by many in previous years including Essence Magazine (which, yes I do read). It’s true that we as human beings, of blood and guts and organs and bones, are for the most part the exact same, sans a few genetic defects that only affect a certain race… And it’s true that some of us in different parts of the world have very different experiences due to environment. For instance, for over a decade in Miami, my only friends have been ones of color… Literally 98% Latin & Black… Despite how other parts of my family live, I live very differently. Growing up a 'sexually fluid’ ginger with a mother who was a very young teenager in high school gave me a vastly different experience than most. I’ve always celebrated my fucking weirdness. In high school I was literally a walking oxymoron, wearing 90 inch GAT pants I stole from the mall or borrowed from my friend, GlowGirl (yeah in the late 90s we all had Rave Names, didn’t you know?), paired with an oversized button up I found in my step-dads closet and a vest from Structure and Brooks Brothers eyeglasses that my Grandmother bought me on a visit… Not to mention spiked up Backstreet Boy haircut (that may or may not have been blue), tousled in the front, and fucking candy and jelly bracelets from the base of my thumbs up past my elbows. What the fuck, right? You’d think I’d look back and hate it, but all I see is a RAD fn’ Rave Star with 'anti-anti’ 90’s culture embodiment… Serving up Rave-Tastic Soccer Playing Prep Freak “on a Lemonade budget”…. Thank you, Shea Coulee!

Diversity has always been a part of my life in one way or another. I love to trade perspectives. I ask questions and offer up personal experiences instead of telling people their way of thinking is wrong, because I want people to understand me and I want to understand them. I truly believe that if we all at least tried to understand each other instead of this 'This opinion is right. This opinion is wrong,’ divisive mindset so many have seem to have adopted as of late the world would be a much better place. That being said, I just wrote a few articles on the 3rd Season of '60 Days In’ and stated there were certain topics I couldn’t completely speak on, even being a diverse ginger gringo faggot or whatever anyone wants to throw my way. On the internet today I was told I have a PHD in Cock Sucking (and other things that literally just look like letters on a page to me) and on the bus just last Monday, I let Snapchat take a quick, disappearing peak at a woman attacking my partner and I on the bus with an umbrella who called us 'stretched out asshole faggot cock sucking mother fuckers that will fry in hell’, I couldn’t make this shit up even if I tried. She had gotten a glimpse at my partner helping me on the bus because I have some issues moving around on Monday’s due to some disc issues in the upper parts of my back and went in for the kill when my partner asked if she could please turn the music down that she was blasting from her phone like she wasn’t aware that one can totally sonically invade someone’s space. None of these experiences give me the proper perspective needed to make a complete series featuring an episode that looks through the lens of a woman of color’s standpoint on Culture Appropriation on an all white 'DreamGirls’ production at the 'White School of Rich Bitch Privilege’.

Don’t get me wrong, this is probably the best take on racial issues I’ve ever seen on OITNB. I was moved, accomplished NYC playwright and television writer & editor Molly Smith Metzler, whose worked on two of my favorite Streaming Only series (OITNB & Hulu’s 'Casual’) is a raw talent that streaming networks would be lucky to have work on their exclusive series… But it all still felt like it was missing something. Some might tell you that the 'diversity’ plays itself out in front of the camera, but I assure you as a writer that it takes a village. When it comes to television particularly, everything is filtered through a lens after a lens after another lens…. As the showrunner draws out a storyboard with producers and then oversees the writing of a script which is handed to an editor and then off to a director which directs the actors who have their own interpretation of that character who are then filmed and framed by a cinematographer who hands over the multiple takes to an editor, who then slices and dices and puts together the final product that the network may possibly need to approve and by now I’m out of fucking breath. And I didn’t even mention the composers, casting directors, production designers, art directors, set decorators, costumes, makeup, the fn’ art department, sound department who collaborates with special effects people, not to be confused with the visual effects crew and the dozens and dozens of others who’s lens it funnels through to make a finished product. Did I make a point yet?

'Sing It, White Effie’ is by far the best of #OITNB5 but just like the tears that filled my eyes during the final moments when a young Janae has an epiphany when she realizes what her trip to a private school that has a trio of rich white girls playing the main characters of 'DreamGirls’ truly represents…. Just like Taystee’s beautiful, enthralling speech that I’m sure we all applauded and were worked up over emotionally… It just could have been better. No matter what you know, no matter what you’ve seen, no matter how intense your empathy radar is, no matter how many shoes you have traded with other people… We can write out someone else’s story, we can do our research, we can firmly believe the things we say, we can identify pieces of a puzzle of someone else’s story through idiosyncratic experiences, but we’ll never be able to put the entire puzzle together without the missing piece.

I don’t want it to seem like I’m complaining, I’m only imagining that a fantastic show could be even bolder, even more intense, even more 'on the nose’ with it’s ironic comedy style, that’s sometimes dark so that it fades into the drama with more ease. I love OITNB, I do. I would go as far as to say that this is the most bingeable show ever created. The hardest thing I’ve had to do in the past few months (thank god) is to decide to go to sleep instead of watching and writing about another episode of this very show. Slowly but surely, the inmates of Litchfield are shown to notice little things that are waking them to the impending consequences that are sure to devastate these women in a major way.

Right now it’s the little things, like Suzanne (Uzo Aduba), the usual most 'out of touch’ resident of Litchfield, observing the fact that she’s not being fed during regular hours. Gloria (Selenis Leyva) has come to a point where she is completely overwhelmed, she can’t carry on her normal duties anymore. Her genuine concern for Daya (Dascha Polanco) as well as her inner turmoil she’s experiencing for generally losing control paired with the backfiring of attempting to steal the gun from Daya to impede the takeover is a weight she can no longer carry. Her phone call to Diaz (Elizabeth Rodriguez) was another truly successful, relatable, and dramatic moment that puts the audience inside Litchfield for an oh-so important instant. I think we can all relate to a point in time where we are completely at a loss for what to do in a situation, maybe we want to ask for help, but we don’t know how, or even where to start, or even if we could be helped at all… So you just need a familiar voice on the other end of the line. The family dynamic is so strong with this one, and as a person who lives in a Latin Dominated city, there’s a certain way that pride is carried here that I see in these characters. These actresses are truly amazing to bring their distinct perspective into a script that is not their own, essentially that is what makes this show so special in these dramatic points of reference. It is bigger than the writers, who are great, but just not as diverse as we would like.

If it’s one thing that a talented white woman would write with a pristine birds eye view, it’s satire of a what it would be like to be a rich white woman turned into a slave by white supremacists… Oh yeah, and one white nationalist. Judy King (Blair Brown) looks completely insane with her messy hair, ketchup stained face, and belt leash around her neck. I literally can’t stop laughing as I write this. The image will be forever stored in the memory banks of my brain. Taystee is PISSED. The Helicopter Press snapping a photo of Judy King tied to a cross on top of a roof by skinheads wearing hijab’s has interfered with Taystee’s intentions, which means everyone’s intentions, but most importantly… Justice for Poussey. She means to buy Judy off of the skinheads and grab 'The PR Guy’ Josh (John Palladino) to issue a statement, but the skinheads make Taystee & Friends work for it, holding a ridiculous auction, which doesn’t really work… But for the sake of moving the core narrative onward in what is as close to real-time as possible, I suppose it’s fine…. I’m just not sure where everyone else came from considering in one scene they were alone and the next minute the area is full of potential bidders. Just goes to show you even some of the best shows are fat from perfect.

Pensatucky (Taryn Manning) has yet another memorable moment, again the drama is really what is setting this season ablaze. Big Boo (Lea DeLaria) catches Pensatucky & Coates (James McMenamin) making out. Of course, this not only enrages Boo for obvious reasons, but it also has her worried for Pensatucky’s safety. A lot of people seem incredibly uncomfortable with this subplot, but Manning delivers the true Pensatucky 'thought process’ in a 'methamphetamine metaphor’ that’s just divine. 'No matter how much I wanted different, I had to respect the chemicals… Because Lye doesn’t feel anything until it touches ephedrine’, Pensatucky means this… And even if you don’t understand the white trash chemistry behind the metaphor, she delivers it in the most earnest & steady manner. There’s a beauty to it. She continues… 'Have you ever wanted somebody that you shouldn’t?’ Boo doesn’t have it, 'Of course. It’s called masturbating. Now say goodbye and walk the fuck away, son.’ Pensatucky is a character that we’ve already explored so much throughout the past 4 ½ seasons, but there are so many notes to this character and to Manning’s delivery that they could literally go on forever. This is the very opposite of Piper (Taylor Schilling) who literally seems like a new person, someone completely alien to the Piper who kicked off the show in S1. Even her interactions with Alex (Laura Prepon) feel off key. Maybe prison is changing her? Or maybe they have no idea what to do with the character. They certainly know what they want to do with Alex, as she has started a bit of an 'outdoor prison’ revolution… Grass Roots, if you will!

We should mention that Coates escapes by way of Pensatucky stealing the gun from 'The Incompetent Queens of White Trash’, Angie (Julie Lake) and Leanne (Emma Myles), who don’t even realize that their 'secret hiding place’ they stored the gun while on a massive DXM trip is actually the back of the belt that Angie had no idea she was wearing. Coates actually takes the gun with him… All of these events have me worried for Pensatucky and there is really only so much that Boo can do. Right before his grand escape, Taystee and company lead Judy out for a press conference. Taystee begins and Danielle Brooks delivers her words like a Viola Davis or Meryl Streep in the making. She hands it over to Judy but pulls back when she realizes that Judy lying about her ill treatment will only hurt their cause… And to roll back to my original point, which I rolled off on a bit of a passionate tangent… Taystee literally says the words that I positioned that first point around… Judy King cannot speak for Taystee or any of the inmates, for that matter. This isn’t exactly a Pensatucky 'Methamphetamine Metaphor’ but dammit… In the face of previous controversy the show, particularly the writers room, has been accused of, you’d think that they’d hire equally as talented women of color to write this speech, portions of these episode, entire episodes. Once again, I take nothing away from the talented Molly Smith Metzler, she did an excellent job here… I just think that this scene, as well as others, could pack so much more power and benefit from the proper frame of reference.

[tcportfoliomgj]

Wednesday, 9th of June, 2021

"There is really nothing so good for thinking, for clearing your mind, for acquiring fresh, unexpected thoughts than crossing the borders of your homeland." - Jeroen Lutters

So today is the day. Well, technically tomorrow, but I have to hand this portfolio in at 8:00, so that basically means I have to finish and hand it in tonight. Things are a little chaotic. I think I've covered most of the competencies and such, but I still need to do a part of creativity, collaboration and professional challenges. I need to do critical thinking as well (though it's already woven in some other posts too), but I'll do that in another post.

At the start of the year, we had to do a PC with our learning teams. This meant I had to do it with Nynke and Marije. We decided to focus on the ideal classroom and wanted to make a 'guide' for other teachers. I must admit, we didn't always take it that seriously and I would do things differently now. Later, Stijn joined the team and he was able to really add something to our project even though he joined near the end. Our final product was a Padlet (appendix 23), something that I would certainly change if I had to do it now. It's not bad, especially not for a first PC, but I think I would prefer to have a booklet, a neater webpage or a more brochure-like product. Still, I learned a lot from it. I did the research for it and got to practice using databanks and such.

My second PC however, is a lot better in my opinion. It's not finished yet, but I think we might continue this project next year. I worked with Joyce, Marije, Kimberly, Dominique and Eva. Ton was our coach and Bert Wienen our 'client'. But let's take it back to the beginning...

One day, the girls and I started talking about something that was said in a webinar. It was about teachers and whether or not they should also help students with personal problems. At some schools, they keep those things strictly separate. The teacher does the teaching, and everything else is done by other professionals. We found this a little shocking. Sure, teachers aren't psychologists and I don't think they should ever try to be. However, a student's personal life can affect their academic life, so shouldn't we as teachers be there for them to lend an ear and support them? We started questioning what we heard and what we already knew. Pretty soon, the idea formed to make this our PC, but we didn't really know how yet.

We worked on the basics first, like making a group contract (appendix 24) in which we decided on some rules concerning our behaviour, et cetera. Then through Ton, we got in contact with Bert Wienen, as we needed a 'client' for our professional challenge. I've mentioned Bert before, because of his research. I was a bit apprehensive about working with him, because of what he had written and of what he had said in a lecture, but I did want to give it a chance. Together with Ton, we had a brainstorming session. We decided that we could definitely work with Bert, but that we didn't have to focus on labels and diagnoses. We wanted to keep it more general than that because being an involved teacher that coaches also means you want to help everyone with personal problems, not just the ones who are labelled with a certain 'problem'.

We started talking to Bert and quickly came to the conclusion that we already know a lot about what teachers think, but that it's just as important to know what students think. Eventually, we decided that we would conduct preliminary research to help Bert with his research. We wanted to interview students of different ages and focus on student voice. Perception isn't always the same as reality, but it does show us how people experience reality. In fact, the perceptions of students form their views of education and influence their behaviour (Quaglia & Corso, 2017). Because it was preliminary research, we didn't have to worry about all the technicalities. This way, Bert really gave us the opportunity to focus on the interviews.

We made a design canvas (appendix 25) together and started preparing the student interviews. We wrote a project plan (appendix 26), with me taking the lead since I had already had a semester of Project Management when I studied Global Project & Change Management. We also created an interview guideline (appendix 27). This way, we can draw a conclusion from open conversations because in every conversation we have recurring questions. Kimberly and Dominique conducted the interviews on VO, while Joyce did it on PO. We are currently in the process of transcribing all the interviews and we haven't really decided what our final product will be, but we will after the portfolio deadline. We think the conclusion will be that not all students need a teacher to take on a coaching role, but they often do appreciate it. The close proximity of a safe haven isn't the most important, but the knowledge of there being one (Stevens & Bors, 2013, p. 77). We also plan on continuing with this PC next year. Hopefully, we'll be able to take the next steps in our research.

I would say our PC has gone pretty smoothly so far. We communicate quite well and are very honest with each other. We created a space in Microsoft Teams so we could easily share files and work in documents together. Setting up a team collaboration environment can be encouraging and makes it easy to work on a project together (Horine, 2017). We decided that we'd use Whatsapp for daily interactions. Face to face would've been an ideal way to communicate, but because of the pandemic, this was a bit hard. Near the end of the academic year, we were able to work on campus and talk face to face, which made things a lot easier. We used Teams video calls when we weren't able to meet on campus and also to organise meetings with Bert. We'd email him whenever we needed to update him on the project.

I would definitely describe our project group as a 'high-performing team', as Horine (2017) calls it. He says that high-performing teams have a core set of traits. The first trait is clarity. Teams need to know where they are going, what they are going and how they are doing it. I think we had a very clear plan and stuck to it quite well. High-performing teams also show commitment. As a group, we all felt very responsible for this project and wanted to go the extra mile, we were definitely invested and willing to put in the time. According to Horine (2017), the team should also be professional. The members take responsibility and do the assigned work. I think that we, as a team, did handle things professionally. Of course, we would joke here and there, but when we had to get down to business we were always able to get into that mindset. Then there is synergy, the fourth trade. I think this took a while for us, but after some weeks we really started to understand what worked well and who could do what. We started to really use our talents and performed really well as a team. Lastly, there is trust. Trust is of course earned over time, but I think we got to a good level of trust quite quickly. We were honest and open, this way we were able to discuss minor problems and easily work through them. All in all, I think we did really well as a team, and I'm quite proud of us and of our work. I definitely think we showed some courage because interviewing students about a topic like this isn't easy. We focussed on a very relevant topic however and we were very persistent. Sometimes things took a while to move forward, but we never gave up. Something we could improve on might be our focus on a final product, taking more risks and being more self-aware so we could use our talents a little more than we already did.

However, there were also some creative journeys and processes this year that didn't go that well at all. An example of this is the documentary we had to make for Art Based Learning. I wanted to do this alone and my first idea was to make a satirical documentary on the Dutch pluriform society. However, I was very behind on a lot of the work and I tend to be a little impulsive and sporadic. At one point I changed my topic to menstruation because I thought it would be cool to take a taboo topic and turn it into an awesome documentary. But it wasn't easy. I'm not the most structured person, and I easily get stuck during projects because of the simple step by step process. When I think I'm stuck or can't do something, I just block all my motivation to keep going and sometimes give up quite easily. It's not unusual for people with ADHD to struggle with going through a process (Regelink, 2020). Eventually, I was so behind on all the assignments that I decided to admit that I was struggling. I think it's important to not see it as giving up. Admitting that you need help or aren't very good at something can be very hard. Bart very kindly took me under his wings and asked me to join his documentary. He was doing it on a very personal topic but needed someone to conduct research to support his work. I quite like doing research so I was very happy with the job. I found him some news articles and went through government reports for him, highlighting all the relevant information. I will say, I still very much see it as Bart's documentary. Also because he is telling a personal story. I only helped him with the research for it.

I think the beautiful thing about Bart's documentary is that he opens up to all of us to simply tell his own story. His story is not representative of all adopted kids in the world of course, but he also doesn't try to do that. He just tells his own story, while also being aware of the other perspectives out there. The documentary shows multiple sides of a very complex and heavy subject and Bart is respectful of all sides too. His documentary gives to stuff to think about. What's good or bad isn't decided, things just are the way they are, with all the experiences that come with it. He gives you space to just let it all wash over you, you can think about it, take a little while and then form your own opinion. Bart's experience with adoption is not related to the government reports on adoption, but because he still involves it in his documentary you can see that the topic is way bigger than just Bart's story. And still, it's his documentary, his story. It's storytelling in such a beautiful and cool way. Everyone can learn and grow from it.

Another assignment that didn't go too well was the final paper for VMT3 (a history course I took for 'vakinhoudelijke onderwijseenheid'). The course itself went really well. Bas, our lecturer, uses the SALT method, where you basically have an assessment every week instead of at the end of a course. This way, you keep up with the theory learned. Most students start cramming right before an exam, but all that knowledge is very easily lost because of the forgetting curve. Students cram but they never get back to it (Van der Meijden, 2021). I did really well during the weekly oral assessments. I thoroughly enjoy history and I loved Bas' lectures, but VMT3 was only worth 4 EC's, so we had to end it with a final assignment to get to the 5 EC's that we needed. Bas gave us two options, we could either write about the SALT method or write a guide to revolution, using the French Revolution as your example. I chose the latter but my planning wasn't very good. Bas even gave me an extra week, but I wasn't able to finish it. I decided to let it go and hand in my unfinished work (appendix 28) because I had to move on. I'm not very proud of it, especially because I know I can do better and really wanted to do better. We haven't gotten our feedback yet, but Bas did tell us that we passed the oral assessments. I think for me this all adds to my learning journey, some (creative) processes go really well, some not so well. But it shows me that I need to work on my planning skills and my self-discipline.

Still, I think I did fairly well this year, and it also shows in the feedback I've received. A lot of student in TC1 wanted to give each other feedback so we decided it would be a good idea to create a platform where we could do this. I made a Padlet (appendix 29) for our year where we all could give each other feedback if we wanted to. Some students didn't really feel the need to join in this, but some really enjoyed the Padlet and found it quite helpful. I definitely enjoyed reading the feedback people wrote for me.

All in all, I think we've all grown a lot this year. With our creative process, our ability to communicate and collaborate, and just as humans in general. I'm proud of us.

🎵 Riptide - Vance Joy

[div2-portfolio]

Div II Retrospective Paper

Google Doc

Div I as a whole was a relatively lonely year - though I embarked on plenty of academic journey’s that were deeply rewarding without the GPA anxiety that colored my high school years, and made several close friends, I felt alone and without a strong community at Hampshire. I entered my Div II with a desire to pin down my academic interests in preparation for a definite career and domestic life which I imagined that I was supposed to desire and work towards somewhat because of this disconnection. I decided to operate with an uncreative focus on my future, as opposed to on building the futures I imagine for myself and my communities because I didn’t truly feel a part of one. I was interested in the arrival, as opposed to the process. I left behind a long summer of time spent alone, running around my home town of Los Angeles on various buses and trains, to see some of my favorite bands play. I worked the door at a few DIY music shows around the city, as I was interning for a small LA music collective called Smash Club that I discovered on Instagram. I wrote and produced a short album called All My Friends which I published on Bandcamp and SoundCloud at the very tail end of the summer. A lot of the drive I had to engage in all these different projects came from an intense dissatisfaction with my mental state. I wanted to be busy, and more than that to be busy doing the things that my idealism and social anxiety normally would have prevented me from even trying. My expectations of reality had been permanently shattered by some traumas I went through during the Spring semester - the assumptive world I existed in was all of a sudden very new and endlessly terrifying. I felt that the only thing that I could do was act on the desire/hope/drive/trust that remained in me, that this was the only way forward. 

I was excited about arriving back to campus after being so socially isolated in LA and ended up pouring a lot of my creative energy and propensity for risk-taking into my social life. I was content not to scrutinize my academics partially because of how early I was into what I knew would be a two-year process, and because I thought it was alright for my priorities to be elsewhere while I took the introductory classes that I intended to shape the start of my Div. I wasn’t clear on what areas of study would best guide me towards the subject(s) of my Div III, so the classes I took were all guesses in the direction of interests I already had and wanted to expand upon to reach clarity. I planned on exploring the presence of poetry in children's educational lives, how to introduce more writing programs for lower-class black and brown children who might not regularly interact with poetry in their classes, and investigating the ways that poetry can serve as a tool in mending traumas experienced in childhood (and onward). I took five classes, the most I had taken in one semester up to that point. I hoped that these classes would help me begin to map and specify my driving goals and questions about the intersections of race, childhood, and trauma. 

Creating Families with Marlene Fried and Pamela Stone, though I’d intended it to inform the Childhood Studies aspect of my Div II, ended up being much more a reproductive justice studies class. I struggled with it because of the number of students and the style of our class time - as the course went on it became increasingly based in sharing personal information that was pertinent to the content (international adoption, queer parenting, etc…), which was not a sharing style that I felt excited about participating in. The Black Feminist Archive was an amazingly valuable space to me just in the fact that it convened over twenty black people of my same age range into one space for 3 hours every Monday - it was dominated by those people, and we were in turn the subject of its scholarship. Being exposed to that contextualized my place as a black person at Hampshire and in the world, affirming that I shared experiences with some, and that I didn’t with others, and asked me to examine some of my privileges and proximities to whiteness with new scrutiny that had never seemed so essential before. The theories that this class and Zahra Caldwells class exposed me to were immensely foundational for the directions my thoughts on black femmehood/womanhood would continue to go in the future - particularly the notes on the perceived excessiveness of the black body, Zahra Caldwell’s definition of black female cool, and the aesthetic of black female cool as it is/has been co-opted by white folks. The Black Feminist Archive also challenged me with the task of contributing to a group presentation on the black body by using archival research and creating my own finding aids. I went to the Smith College archives and found documents that offered insight into the lives of two black women, mainly through words written about them. These classes were invaluable to me, but my learning was also impeded somewhat by my disagreement with the professor's modes of facilitation, and assigning work.

Iaido and Dancing Modern were the only classes that I was able to enjoy, as I didn’t feel blindsided by some aspect of the class I wasn’t prepared for - they both accurately matched the class description, and continued that way for the entire semester. They were also both physically motivated classes, Iaido being a sect of Japanese martial arts involving a dulled katana called an iaito. They both served as grounding points in my day and helped me return to some semblance of safety in and curiosity about my body which I had felt very disconnected from and in some ways scared of for some time. I had not danced since my junior year of high school after I very unceremoniously quit my ballet studio, partially due to its bankruptcy and partially due to the general unkindness of its directors. This return to dance was full of surprises in how much enjoyment I got out of it, and also in that it became a way for me to tap into the Hampshire community by getting more involved with campus dance life. I auditioned for several Div III pieces and composition works that would be choreographed by students and joined the rehearsal process for three, which put me into contact with several other dancers (two of whom I’m still close friends with and plan to collaborate with this year). That semester was the first time I felt tapped into the larger Hampshire community, and that my academics were not compartmentalized away from my social life - they all started to bleed together and clued me into the essentiality of cultivating joyfulness in and across all areas of my life. I got involved in the music scene on campus as well, forming a two-piece band with a close friend after we listened to each other's Bandcamp discographies, and we played several shows at Hampshire, as well as venues on the West coast over Winter break.  

I learned that I wanted to write and dance, and that both would have significant places in my Div III, from the classes I took in the next two semesters during the Spring and Fall of 2019. My Fall 2018 schedule was without any literary studies or childhood studies courses, so I took two poetry courses (mostly analytic, though The BreakBeat Poets was partially generative), a modern dance course, and a childhood studies course at Smith. I began a pattern of taking at least four classes every semester, and taking more than half of them off-campus, which pushed me to further expand my assumptive world and connect me with the Five College Area, just as the variety of classes I took in Fall of 2018 had expanded my connection to Hampshire. In high school, I had always dealt with anxiety about my ability to perform well, and would deliberately stay home from school to avoid this feeling. The way many of my high school classes were structured allowed very little room for critical engagement, and it was rare that I ever felt fulfilled by assignments and projects because of it. Once it began to sink in for me that I had control over what classes I took, and that the primary way’s my performance would be judged would be through my critical engagement (i.e. in-class participation and essay writing), I felt excited by academics, not paralyzed by them. 

This was also the semester defined by the college’s financial crisis. In my friend groups, there was looming dissatisfaction, cynicism, and fear about the turn of events Hampshire seemed to be heading towards. The professors in the off-campus classes I was taking always had plenty of worried questions to ask me. The omnipresence of this concern allowed me to shake some of my self-imposed anxieties loose. The individual and campus-wide scrambling that became so quotidien during this semester destabilized my perception of the university structure, something that previously had been so inaccessible and immaterial that I placed my faith in it without thinking. This deeply flawed system laid bare, combined with my inchoate mental framework of excitement in the face of challenge carved out space for me to unravel the limitations I had previously placed upon how I imagined myself in the present and future due to restrictive academic policies and practices I’d internalized in high school. Spring 2019 was a turning point in that I began to forgo the future I imagined I should want or should work toward. The classes I took were initially intended to propel me into a deeper understanding of my goals with children's literature and childhood studies, and by the end, that understanding became that those goals were coming from the high school guidance counselor in my head encouraging me to settle on a career as soon as possible. The topics explored by the classes I chose did interest me, and I believe I needed to follow those threads to discover the possibilities of how much farther I could take them. This was a wonderful trade-off in that as I drifted away from the interests that initially drew me to the courses, each one transformed me in terms of how I viewed it. 

Instead of each class supplementing some invisible requirement or standard that I needed to satisfy, they made themselves clear to me as entirely unpredictable sources of specific knowledge, providing me with numerous lenses to look at the world through. This realization of subjectivity in academia greatly decreased my anxiety around choosing a career. Instead of orienting my class taking, and participation around what a class might do for me, I began to see each class as a small community that it was my responsibility to learn how to cultivate. The Stories Children Tell pushed me past my self-consciousness in subjects I didn’t feel as confident in, as it was a 300 level psychology course. I was able to create a story study, coded each story for things like locus of control or presence of multiple perspectives, and wrote a lab report analyzing the findings. I also wrote a fifteen-page paper on narratives created to assuage cognitive dissonance, using the history of child sexual abuse by clergy in the Catholic Church as a case study. I developed new confidence for speaking consistently in class in The BreakBeat Poets and began writing again after a long hiatus largely due to the writing assignments we had. Contemporary 3/4 at Amherst College further developed my engagement with the Five College Dance community, putting me into contact with two other black dancers who I performed alongside in both of their self-choreographed works, and introducing me to the Five College Repertory auditions in March which I attended with several Hampshire friends. The band I was in continued to grow in size, and we played more shows that semester in the WMass area, although the number of members and incessant emphasis on performance over song production began to stir up tensions.  

Reading Contemporary Poetry with Matthew Donovan at Smith, Poetry Writing with Sam Ace at Mt. Holyoke, and my independent study with Hampshire Professor thuy le were all courses that challenged me enormously in my writing and reading practice. In each, my professors put me and other students into contact with several accomplished poets doing readings and Q&A’s in the Five College Area. Attending these were mandatory parts of the class - sometimes the artists would actually come in and speak with us directly. I had spent the summer in Amherst with friends, and these artist talks that were so sited specific, taking me to different areas of Amherst and NoHo, felt like an extension of the exploring I began doing in the Pioneer Valley by bus and on foot in the Spring of my second year. The band broke up at the semester’s start, and so I had a lot more free time on my hands. It was a busy semester, the velocity of which was carried over from the previous one. I continued pushing my limits, heightening my class and work-load. I was losing sight of what my concentration was and getting more invested in the individual worlds of my classes. In the end, this was a positive thing. The developments I made while dancing and writing in parallel projects that did not intersect felt immensely truthful and were swift in cutting deep at my obsessions and concerns. It became clear that a work where these mediums did intersect could be majorly effective. Boat’s Leaving, a repertory piece I had been cast in and had rehearsals for twice a week, was a work about a group of people on a journey together, and on the way trying and failing over and over to protect each other from suffering. My independent study brought me to a better understanding of how my writing has failed to address the subjects I’ve intended it to; I learned about what I struggle with in writing, what has been missing. I had intended for the class to focus on intersections between black and Chinese cultural identities, and though I do feel like my subject matter addressed this, thuy’s guidance dove me headfirst into a more broad contemplation on what my true desires were for my writing. What are my concerns? What is it that I see in the world that I want to change? How does the writing build towards this change? How can the language, down to the specificity of my word choice, reflect those desires? What are the links and divides between the personal and the collective? How is it a black feminist act to divulge personal information about queerness, sex, family, love, grief, and the blurring of perpetrator/victim dichotomy to an audience of strangers? These were some of the most interesting questions asked by authors that thuy assigned me to read, such as Simone White, Anne Carson, and Sun Yung Shin. I completed two chapbooks in my two poetry classes that semester considering these questions - Phosphoromancy and Sun Through A Skylight Under Snow - some poems from which I hope to edit and include in my Div III. 

My class with Nigel Alderman at Mount Holyoke on Modernism also sparked a connection for me between writing about marginalized identities and capitalism that illuminated the path to my Div III. A particular essay by Woolf called Mr. Bennet and Mrs. Brown got me thinking about writing as a practice of simultaneously rendering reality as it is and changing it. Taking Aesthetics of Racial Capitalism with Iyko Day at MoHo the following semester was the perfect answer to those thoughts for how it answered and expanded my questions about capitalism, race, queerness, and spatial existence. I had been trying to write about those subjects but struggled to make work that held the complexities between them in an honest way. The course illuminated many of these unknown realms, gave me clearer language to wield when speaking about them, and specified the historical sites where my interests overlap. It also introduced me to the concept of anti-relationality, a facet of capitalism that alienates people from each other, and from themselves. This concept cropped up in my TA’ing position as well. Being the first facilitating position I’d ever officially held, it stirred up a lot of anxiety about my ability to be a leader, and hold the vulnerability of students, in addition to the fact that it was a course I’d not taken before. I often struggled to push myself past my perceived limitations. The class group itself was also difficult to work with. I found that thuy almost always had to take the lead in discussions, and that participation was hard to excite and sustain. Many of the students were planted firmly in their chosen literary form, and I struggled to brainstorm effective ways to get them out of their comfort zones. Despite these roadblocks, identifying these anxieties has made it easier for me to now identify when I am repeating the behaviors that exacerbate them. The class content - considering writing as a space making practice that creates new lenses to see reality through - also contributed to developments I made that began to crystallize my Div III ideas. 

I can’t recall exactly how my interest in cowboy aesthetic, cowboy drag, and its racial implications developed. Some of it was present in my subconscious from seeing my Chinese grandfather in cowboy boots, Stetson hats, and silk vests in old footage, and recalling him teaching me to play “Range of the Buffalo” on guitar. What I know is that taking Intermediate Installation with Serena Aurora-Himmelfarb and Aesthetics of Racial Cap. at the same time sparked something in my brain and brought me to a fascination with the mobility politics of the American West as they impose themselves upon the Black, Asian, and Indigenous people who have historically lived there. Installation class broadened my understanding of art and coaxed dance back out of me as a valuable, essential method of researching whereas the previous semester I had been trying to define my Div III as solely literary. After naming these interests, Serena sent me work by an LA-based Chinese artist (who I hope to soon have a conversation with) Stephanie Mei Huang, a painter and installation artist doing work using “cowboy drag” to render the simultaneously belonging and unbelonging of Chinese consciousness in the American West. The class also familiarized me with the concept of assemblage, a combination of things/ideas/items/parts which through their individual pathways moves the entire organism as one entity. This idea comforted me when it came to the number of concepts I was drawing on in writing, performance art, dance, and installation. It freed me creatively and encouraged me to develop a hybridized project, that drew in many disciplines, forms, and methodologies - a feat fit for a Hampshire student. 

For our assemblage prompt, I drew together a pile of letters and envelopes I’d collected over the years and sewed them to the back of a Chinese textile jacket my mother made when she was around my age in the shape of a classic Western fringe jacket. I workshopped a short performance piece where I unhinged myself from a wall in the art barn while wearing the jacket, leaned against the wall statically, and then two-stepped around my classmates while singing “Cattle Call” by Eddy Arnold. This jacket is still a convergence site for many of the ideas I am weaving into my Div III. It holds mobility on a personal and collective level - the mobility of the railroad and of my Chinese ancestors who built it, the mobility of black ancestors escaped from slavery, the mobility of letters from California to Hampshire and vice versa, the free mobility of white settlers of the West in comparison to the criminalized mobility of black and Native American people, and how I negotiated my mobility in the summer of 2018 on trains and buses in Los Angeles. 

The pandemic cut these classes in half, switching them over to Zoom and totally disrupting the trajectory I’d been on in each. I lost a lot of motivation and momentum going from in-person to screen-locked but still managed to produce a video dance installation that was exciting and interesting for me, both for how it held the progress and discoveries I had made and for the future dance video installations it beckoned me to begin daydreaming about. In turn, the pandemic and historical uprisings for black lives implored me to think on a collective and personal level about concepts my classes introduced me to - particularly relationality, interdependency, and rendering consciousness in the wake of our historical contexts, changed permanently by the events of Spring and Summer. I am coming out of my Div II and into my final year thinking broadly about race, movement and mobility, consciousness rendering and changing, and the tension between the personal and the collective. I still struggle against many of the isolative behaviors I have identified in myself these past few years, but my acknowledgment of them has transformed the way I move through the world and treat the people around me. I continue to learn and grow and strive now to stick to my values by doing something when the actions of another or myself do not align with my values. I intend for my Div III project to be an actionable step towards this project of accountability, by illuminating the unseen - the erased histories of black and brown people in the American West, the love for my blackness and my black community which I resented suppressed in myself for far too long, and the simultaneous racial grief and melancholia that lionizing my proximity to whiteness. I hope to offer new information about pathways towards black and yellow solidarities, trouble the personal/collective dichotomy, and interrogate the propensity of historical narratives and nostalgia’s like that of the Western cowboy, for good and evil. 

[kenhattenbach-blog]

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[pilatesembodiedsf]

8 Lessons From Arnold Schwarzenegger That Will Set You Up For Success

“I never believed I was average, and that alone is a big reason I wasn’t.” -Arnold Schwarzenegger

Very few of us are ever able to feel like we accomplish the majority of our goals. And, whether we want to admit it, life is a game of trial and error. So, it’s easy to get caught up in the errors and frustrated by the trials. 

But, if you learn from those who have repeated, timeless successes, their mindset usually leaves clues about how they were able to apply different rules to the same game.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is the ultimate example of someone who has created opportunities throughout his life. And, while no one needs to replicate his path, the way he approaches situations, obstacles, and challenges is a masterclass in mental mastery.

“No matter what, I had to prove to myself that I’m extraordinary. There is no normal,” Schwarzenegger shared in an exclusive interview for Ladder.

The mind is a powerful thing, and Schwarzenegger has leveraged an unbreakable mindset to seemingly create a competitive advantage over the universe. As someone who started with nothing when he immigrated to the United States, his belief in himself has made the world apparently bend to his will — and not the other way around.

“Always think of yourself as special. And think, ‘I’m going to prove to myself and the rest of the world that I can do it.’”

Even at 72 years old, the bodybuilder-turned actor-turned governor-turned activist continues to believe there’s more that he can accomplish — and it’s likely the main reason he continues to add new achievements to his resume.

Here are 8 lessons that I took away from my interview with Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Don’t Think About Difficulty

“There’s an advantage of doing things automatically,” says Schwarzenegger. “I have a routine where you don’t have to think much — if at all. [Routines] are the foundation of a house.”

Schwarzenegger has built his life on habits and routines that have made him a creature of habit and efficiency.

Whether it’s his workouts — delts and arms one day, chest and back and calves another day, abs every day, and an extra 30 minutes of cardiovascular exercise at night — or checking email and catching up on news, Arnold has built-in expectations for his day.

“Add as many of those routine things as possible because you do them without ever thinking about them. This is your daily schedule. Like breathing.”

While this isn’t earth-shattering, his mindset towards creating habits isn’t what you’d expect. 

Whereas you might consider certain habits as difficult to build, that’s the first step in guaranteeing that it’ll be harder to adopt change.

“People should realize that I don’t have sympathy for ‘difficult.’ There are a lot of things in life that are difficult,” adds Schwarzenegger. 

“If you want to build routines, you need to change your expectations. Are you going to back off every time something is difficult? Or, are you going to be the person who looks at something that is difficult — or the most difficult — and say, ‘I’m going to go and do it and prove it to myself.’ That’s how you build habits. “

“Don’t ask should or shouldn’t I. You just do it.” 

Make Things Automatic

Part of Arnold’s legendary focus is a byproduct of his routines. But, just as importantly, it’s knowing what’s fixed in life — and when you need to put additional time, energy, and creativity into the non-routine aspects of your day.

To help you understand the importance of automated experiences, Arnold shared his experiences in politics.

“When I was Governor, I had fixed funds on what you could spend on certain programs like education. It’s a fixed expenditure. Same for healthcare and prisons.”

“I had something like only 8 percent of discretionary funds. There’s very little wiggle room. But, knowing what is automatic and knowing what is not help you focus,” says Arnold.

And that’s the way it should be with your daily routine. He recommends creating as many fixed moments in your day. Then, you have fewer aspects where you need to dig deep, be creative, and come up with custom solutions.

You might see this as a limitation, but Arnold sees it as an advantage. Less variation means more focus. And the more you can focus on fewer things, the more likely you’re able to create a bigger impact. 

Doing Isn’t Enough. Effort Influences Value.

I asked Arnold about something most people don’t know about him, and he shared his love of art and painting. But, that’s not what stood out to me (even though I was impressed by his painting). It was how he thinks of his time spent creating art for others. 

“Today, it’s easy to go to a store and buy a gift or go to the flower shop and get flowers. You used to go out and pick flowers and put them in a vase. It’s all flowers. But, my mother was in heaven that we made an effort to go out and make the gift.”

Arnold understands that output isn’t the only measure of success. Your effort is also an important part of the equation. 

“You must try to make an effort in everything you do, especially things for others. When you find pottery and paint on that, they know you spent hours on that. It makes a difference. It takes effort and people really like that.”

Be Unconventional

According to Arnold, more than 50 years ago, no one worked out in the morning. Gyms didn’t open until 10 am, so the entire structure of the day was based on rules that, as it turns out, didn’t exist for a good reason.

Arnold broke down how back then, people believed that you were weaker in the morning. It wasn’t until he lived with his idol, Reg Park, that he started squatting 500 pounds at 5:30 am, and his entire workout schedule adjusted. 

The shift helped him remove limiting beliefs about his body, which, in turn, helped him understand that most limitations are self-conceived. This even led to some unreal 3 am workouts as an actor.

“If you think you can’t do something, you won’t. But, if you try to do something different, you might be surprised how much what you thought was a limitation wasn’t real.”

Goals Aren’t Enough. Have a Vision…

“Arnold, you’ve been asleep 16 hours. Something went wrong with this non-invasive procedure…you had internal bleeding, and in order to have you not die, we had to open you up.”

In the most powerful moment of our discussion, Arnold shared how his “routine” heart surgery took an unexpected turn and he was faced with a difficult comeback prior to filming the latest Terminator film.

When he was awakened after 16 hours, his immediate response wasn’t what you might think.

“Wait a minute, in three-and-a-half months, I’m supposed to be in Budapest to shoot Terminator 6. But, they are saying it takes 6 months to recover.”

While it might seem like Arnold wasn’t thinking about the big picture and overall health, it was — in fact — the opposite. He was visualizing where he needed to be as a way to return to health.

“I always look for motivation. If you have no motivation, then it’s hard to get going under those circumstances. You’re down and you have a major setback. And the vision is what can bring you back.”

“If you have no goal, you have nothing. You have to know where to go. You need a vision.”

…But, Focus on Small Wins

Once you have your vision, then you need to put in the reps or mileage. This is exactly what Arnold, whom many consider the greatest bodybuilder of all-time, had to do in order to recover from his heart surgery. 

“I asked the doctors, ‘When can I get up?’ And the doctor says 3 to 4 days. People don’t die from the procedure; they die from pneumonia and lungs filling with fluid,” recalls Arnold.

“I’m going to be up tomorrow and I’m going to be walking. Get me a walker. And that’s what I did. I went for walks, would lie back down, rest, and then get back up for another walk. I was a fanatic. I built up to 2-hour walks. Then, I traded the walker for a cane.”

Within 6 days he was out of the hospital. Just 3 weeks later he was working out with light weights. And, as he promised, three-and-a-half months later, he was on set for Terminator 6.

“The director said, ‘I can’t believe you had open-heart surgery three-and-a-half months ago,’” says Schwarzenegger.

“We all have setbacks, but, if you have a very clear vision and a clear goal, then you put in the reps, you can come back.” 

Find Your “On Switch”

Despite his success, Arnold isn’t immune to having down moments or aging. But, it’s his ability to adapt and be self-aware that allows him to keep on thriving.

“When I hit 50, I realized I was not able to come back as quickly at 2 am for filming after 2 hours of sleep. So I said, ‘I will never sleep again at night when I’m filming.’ But, I needed something to give me a spark.”

That spark was chess.

“The more chess I played, the more alert I was and able to come to the set fully charged because my mind was ready from all the chess. I remembered the lines 100% and the physical work felt 100%.”

“You have to figure out what it takes to be on. When you have a setback or feel sluggish or mentally tired, you must find a way to recharge.”

Busy Is OK. Distracted Is Not.

In the 1970s, Arnold found himself overwhelmed with bodybuilding, acting, buying real estate, and building construction. 

“A lot of things were coming together at once. I was overloaded,” recalls Schwarzenegger.

At that point, Arnold turned to meditation, something he has discussed in the past. For a year, he would meditate 20 minutes in the morning and another 20 minutes at night. Whereas many might find meditation beneficial for its ability to calm and destress, Arnold found another invaluable benefit that continues to help him today.

“[After meditating] all of a sudden, I could focus on one thing. I could do real estate and not be thinking about bodybuilding When training, I wasn’t thinking about acting. I got really focused and learned how to focus, and it made me better at everything I did.

“Knowing how to focus on one thing at a time has made me better at everything I did.”

Conclusion

Whatever you take away from Arnold, the foundation of his mindset is rooted in something we can all possess: confidence. And it’s that confidence that has allowed Arnold to take chances and push himself to heights no one could’ve ever imagined — except maybe himself. 

“Prove to [the world] that there are extraordinary things that can happen because that’s when they can.”

The post 8 Lessons From Arnold Schwarzenegger That Will Set You Up For Success appeared first on Born Fitness.

[thechasefiles]

The Chase Files Daily Newscap 22/1/2020

Good Morning #realdreamchasers. Happy Errol Barrow Day! Here is your daily news cap for Wednesday January 22nd , 2020. There is a lot to read and digest so take your time. Remember you can read full articles via Barbados Government Information Service (BGIS), Barbados Today (BT), or by purchasing a Midweek Nation Newspaper (MWN).

DEMS: WE’RE A GOVERNMENT IN WAITING – Democratic Labour Party (DLP) members and supporters went down memory lane yesterday. The party remembered its founder, the island’s first Prime Minister, Errol Walton Barrow on his birthday with a special tour that started at DLP headquarters at George Street, St Michael, and ended in St Lucy, the birth parish of the National Hero. Along the way, stops were made at Barrow’s bust at Independence Square, the old National Insurance Scheme building on Fairchild Street which will soon be demolished to make way for a national park, and the rural parish of St John, which Barrow represented with distinction from 1958 until he died in 1987. Stops were also made at Codrington College, Gall Hill and Wilson Hill Community Park. DLP president Verla De Peiza, and third vice-president Andre Worrell said yesterday’s event could be just what was needed for the Dems to circle in the wagons in an attempt to regain the government. (MWN)

THREE ANNUAL SCHOLARSHIPS TO MARK ERROL BARROW DAY – Students from this country’s newer secondary schools have been given three new reasons to look forward to the annual celebrations of Errol Barrow Day, as Prime Minister Mia Mottley announced this afternoon that her Government will be providing three annual scholarships to mark the occasion, for which only they are eligible Speaking at the unveiling of a plaque to commemorate the centennial of Barbados’ father of independence at his birthplace in St Lucy, Mottley announced that the scholarships will be in the areas of maritime studies, aeronautics and culinary arts, areas which were passions of the Right Excellent Errol Walton Barrow. The Prime Minister also revealed that Government was willing to play its part in any public-private partnership for the restoration of Barrow’s original home, Nessfield, at The Garden. Mottley declared: “It is easy to build monuments to our heroes, but I believe in living our heroes. “I believe in not only doing credit to our nation but credit to them by our living. “My Government therefore as of next year’s Errol Walton Barrow Day has agreed to the issuance of three scholarships every year on this day. “They must be in areas associated with Mr Barrow’s interest. “These scholarships would be reserved for students from the newer secondary schools in Barbados. “They must be in the areas of air transport and I am sure that Mr Barrow will smile from wherever he is if he knew that this initiative would produce a pilot or an aeronautical engineer. “The other areas are maritime because he was a lover of the ocean and of course culinary.” Mottley contended this was an opportunity for ordinary young Barbadians to walk the path of one of the country’s legends. “By the living of these scholarship winners in years to come, we will be living our heroes and the examples brought to us by them,” the Prime Minister said. (BT)

PARENTS STAND BY ST. ALBANS – Despite a few calls for increased security, parents of children attending St Alban’s Primary School are standing firm behind the school. Yesterday ( Monday) was the first day of classes after the Weston, St James school was closed last Thursday following the daring morning shooting death of Marlon Holder as he was dropping off his son. “I feel comfortable still as I know security does a good job and the perpetrator knew who they wanted, so I’m not scared. It’s possible it might happen again, but the children got to come to school. “There’s no sense in thinking about moving to another school because it could happen there too. All I can do is put God first and ask for His protection,” said Mary Worrell. (MWN)

EDUCATION FOR ALL IN BARBADOS – A new study by the UN children’s fund, UNICEF, has found that Barbados ensures that education is funded equally between the richest and poorest households. The study titled, “Addressing the learning crisis: an urgent need to better finance education for the poorest children”, was published on Monday to coincide with a meeting of education ministers, gathered at the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland. UNICEF is urging world leaders to address ‘shameful’ disparities in public education spending.According to the study, only five of the 42 countries involved in the survey ensured that education is funded equally between the richest and poorest households. They are Barbados, the only Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country in the survey, as well as Denmark, Ireland, Norway and Sweden. The study calls for all countries to follow this example, prioritize public funding for lower levels of education, and provide at least one year of universal pre-primary education for every child. “We are at a critical juncture. If we invest wisely and equitably in children’s education, we have the best possible chance of lifting children out of poverty by empowering them with the skills they need to access opportunities, and create new ones for themselves,” said UNICEF executive director, Henrietta Fore.The study warns that no country can achieve the goal of inclusive and quality education for all unless it makes quality education a reality for all segments of the population. “But, in too many countries, governments spent the least in education resources on the poorest children. The most disadvantaged children, who face the strongest barriers to learning opportunities, will be the ones acutely facing the amplifying nature of shortfalls in education” It noted for example, school-to-work transitions are considerably longer for those with low levels of education and skills. “They are also more likely to transition to low-paying, low-skilled jobs. For them, the full promise of education will remain unrealised unless we start moving towards a more equitable path.”. The study warns excluding the poorest children from education perpetuates poverty and is a key driver of the global learning crisis. Obstacles they face include discrimination due to gender, disability, ethnic origin, and poor infrastructure. It said that those who do make it to school may then find themselves faced with large class sizes, poorly trained teachers, a lack of education materials and poor school infrastructure. UNICEF said that this has an adverse impact on attendance, enrolment and learning “Countries everywhere are failing the world’s poorest children and, in doing so, failing themselves. As long as public education spending is disproportionately skewed towards children from the richest households, the poorest will have little hope of escaping poverty,” Fore warned. (MWN)

PM GONSALVES BACKS MOTTLEY’S POSITION ON US MEETING IN JAMAICA – St. Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves, on Tuesday, praised the position taken by his Barbadian counterpart Mia Mottley as some regional leaders prepare to meet in Jamaica with United States Secretary of State Michael Pompeo. Mottley, speaking at a weekend ceremony to honour the late Barbados prime minister and regionalist, Errol Barrow, said Bridgetown had not agreed to accept the invitation to the talks and warned about efforts to divide the 15-member regional integration movement, CARICOM. “As chairman of CARICOM, it is impossible for me to agree that my Foreign Minister should attend a meeting with anyone to which members of CARICOM are not invited. If some are invited and not all, then it is an attempt to divide this region,” she said. Gonsalves, speaking at a news conference here, said while the United States had every right to invite whoever it wanted to the talks with Pompeo, who arrives later this evening in Kingston, “I have a strong support for Mia Mottley where she said she couldn’t, as chairman of CARICOM accept an invitation to go where some countries are invited and some are not invited. “I think that’s the correct position because it would appear as though you are dividing CARICOM. Having said that it is the right of every sovereign country to invite who they want to invite and for those sovereign countries to go,” he said. Gonsalves recalled that last year, President Donald Trump had invited some regional government leaders to Miami for talks adding that he had no idea as to why Washington had adopted that position regarding the Caribbean. (BT)

JAMAICA DEFENDS TALKS WITH US – Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Kamina Johnson Smith says talks between United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and some Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries this week should not be viewed as divisive but as an opportunity for bilateral engagement. Pompeo is to make a two-day working visit to Jamaica starting today. CARICOM Chairman and Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley spoke out against the talks and revealed that her decision to spurn the invitation to dispatch her foreign minister to the meeting in Kingston was based on principle. “We don’t look to pick fights. I don’t look to pick fights, but I am conscious that if this country does not stand for something, then it will fall for anything. As chairman of CARICOM, it is impossible for me to agree that my foreign minister should attend a meeting with anyone to which members of CARICOM are not invited. … It is an attempt to divide this region,” she said. In a statement today, Johnson Smith said this week’s US engagements with Caribbean foreign ministers are being undertaken largely bilaterally and not within a CARICOM context. “There is nothing unusual or divisive about such meetings. All countries, large and small, have a sovereign right to engage bilaterally with any other country, beyond any regional or hemispheric arrangements. This happens across the world even in political unions which CARICOM, indisputably, is not,” she said. Johnson Smith argued that Jamaicans should remember that the understanding in CARICOM is that member states should work to coordinate foreign policy and therefore collaborate on issues and consider each other’s positions, but there is no obligation to harmonise policy. She added, “The fact is that since its formation, members have, as is their sovereign right, voted differently and taken differing positions on a variety of issues. Jamaica has always both exercised that right and respected it when exercised by others.” She asserted that Jamaica will continue to act in a principled manner to ensure that the region remains a “zone of peace” while engaging with partner countries in advancing the country’s development goals and economic interests. “We view the expanded context of these bilateral meetings as a welcome and positive development, since the last visit of a US Secretary of State to Jamaica in 2018.” Johnson Smith will join Prime Minister Andrew Holness and senior cabinet ministers for bilateral talks with Pompeo on Wednesday, January 22. Meetings with his Caribbean counterparts will take place thereafter. (BT)

YOUTH LEADERS DISCUSS ISSUES ADDRESSING THEM – Young people want economic empowerment, but that will not come without some sacrifice. Trinidad’s Minister of Sport and Youth Affairs Shamfa Cudjoe made this point yesterday in response to youth leaders who voiced concerns about not having decision-making power in matters that affect them. During the opening ceremony of the 6th Caribbean Youth Leaders Summit at the Hyatt Regency, Port of Spain, several young leaders, including Chair of the Caribbean Regional Youth Council (CYRC) Shaquille Knowles, and Chairperson of the Commonwealth Youth Council Tijani Christian, urged more young people to speak out against unemployment and underemployment. “I ask you to interrogate the data. Decent jobs are just beyond surviving, we are asking to be economically empowered. We want to own our own homes, we don’t want to be renting all our lives,” Christian said. “We want the opportunity not just to contribute to conversation, but we want to know that we can live in the Caribbean and we don’t have to migrate, but we can strive, build and move towards economic empowerment for every single young person.” However, Cudjoe, who is a former CARICOM Youth Ambassador and a United Nations Youth Ambassador, urged the participants to do more to influence some of their peers, who she suggested did not have their priorities in order. “You want your own home but you don’t want to save. . . while we fight the government we are responsible for some of these challenges. You have to check yourself, you can’t have party clothes and don’t have work clothes. You need to work to get the money to go in the party,” she added. In addition, she reasoned that some people would find it too hard to gain employment due to how competitive the world is. “Your five Levels are important, the university degrees are important but they are not everything. It is not your ticket to success. It sets you on a nice foundation to figuring out what you like but you still have a duty to chart your own course and remain relevant to what is taking place throughout the region and the world,” she added. The summit is being held under the theme Promoting Youth Economic Empowerment: Building synergies towards Sustainable Caribbean Development. Close to 200 participants from CARICOM member states attended the opening, including youth leaders from Barbados, Jamaica and The Bahamas. United Nations representative Marina Walter, Programme Manager at the CARICOM Secretariat Sushil Ram and Vice President of Operations at the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) Monica La Bennett also attended. In her address, La Bennett also pointed out that youth unemployment remained at unaccepted levels. “Our figures indicate that youth unemployment range from between 18 to 47 per cent in countries which we have data for. It is estimated that more than a third of our young people, almost 36 per cent are not in employment, studying or training.“This is a staggering statistic and unacceptable and an untenable state of affairs,” La Bennett said. She added that the conference was the perfect opportunity for the CDB to hear from the youth, which said would help shape their youth policy. The conference continues through Friday. (MWN)

UNITED STATES GETS FIRST CASE OF MYSTERIOUS NEW CHINESE ILLNESS – The United States on Tuesday reported its first case of a new and potentially deadly virus circulating in China, saying a Washington state resident who returned last week from the outbreak’s epicenter was hospitalised in good condition near Seattle. The man, identified only as a Snohomish County resident is in his 30s, was not considered a threat to medical staff or the public, health officials said. The virus has infected about 300 people, all of whom had been in China, and killed six. The newly discovered virus can cause coughing, fever, breathing difficulty and pneumonia. Airports in the U.S. and other countries have stepped up monitoring, checking passengers from China for signs of illness. The US is the fifth country to report seeing the illness, following China, Thailand, Japan, and South Korea. Late last week, US health officials began screening passengers from Wuhan in central China, where the outbreak began, at three airports — New York City’s Kennedy airport and the Los Angeles and San Francisco airports. On Tuesday, the CDC announced it will add Chicago’s O’Hare airport and Atlanta’s airport to the mix later this week. What’s more, officials will begin forcing all passengers that originate in Wuhan to go to one of those five airports if they wish to enter the US. (BT)

HUGHES IN TOP FORM – Champion jockey Rasheed Hughes electrified the Garrison Savannah on yesterday’s Errol Barrow Day with a sterling display in the irons to land a quintet of wins. The three-time ruler of the Barbados Turf Club’s jockey championship ran hot from the day’s fourth race, winning with Melrose Racing’s colt Zensational. The duo turned away the early threat of Filmores to make all the running in the Crane Resort Trophy Handicap over 1 800 metres. Thereafter, it was the Hughes show, which he closed out with a gem astride Bills Inc.’s nine-year-old gelding Voldemort in the Hilton Hotel Barbados Resort Trophy Handicap. Nominated for both the Tanglewood and the Spa Sprint on March 7, Voldemort sprinted from the gates before Island Cotton and Joshua swooped by him down the backstretch. (MWN)

CHANGES TO B-BALL SEASON – There will be no women’s league competition in the Barbados Amateur Basketball Association’s (BABA) 2020 season. This and other changes are designed to pave the way for more efficiency, says BABA president Francis Williams. “Coming out of the strategic session that we had with the ladies at the end of the year and with further discussion, one of the things that we have decided is that there would be no league season for the ladies this year,” Williams said at the opening of the new season and 2019 awards ceremony last Sunday night at the Golden Sands Hotel. “However, we will be using more frequent and shorter tournaments and rallies in an effort to maintain interest among the ladies.” (MWN)

FACING FEAR OF FAILURE – Failure is a part of learning and nothing to be afraid of, says Barbadian and West Indies cricketer Jason Holder. It is equally important to “strike a balance” and develop coping mechanisms to deal with failure and success. That, in essence, sums up his advice to teenaged boys, those between 12 and 16 years old who may be reluctant to try something new because they fear failing. Holder was speaking at last Wednesday’s We Gatherin’ 2020 Ideas Forum at the St Lucy’s Parish Church rectory in response to a member of the audience who asked him to give advice that would help the average teenage boy in secondary school “face that fear of failure and overcome it”. The woman said, “One of the things that I see most in boys at school is their fear of failure. They don’t try ’cause they don’t want to fail.” (MWN)

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Best Places to Visit in Vietnam

It’d be no exaggeration if I predict viet nam a property of beauty, because it is cent percent true. Vietnam is a Southeast Asian country in the South China Sea famous for its pristine shores rivers and Buddhist pagodas. Vietnam is more than that although yes , there are cities and locations which you might not believe lovely. An excursion to this nation is like an adventure of its own. Finding new, beautiful shore each time; giving preference buds an entirely new adventure with best fish; riding to mountains that are lonely; celebrating the silhouettes of cities like Ho Chi Minh from skies bars and enjoying the rich wild life in the islands are a few of the experiences in Vietnam that may remain etched in your memory. Vietnam is for everybody else, make it a beach lover, history enthusiast, leisure sailors, mountain goat or a adrenaline junky; it really is an entire destination that’s now each day.

My Son

An essential archaeological place, located about the central coast of Vietnam close to the Duy Phú Village, My Son is among Southeast Asia’s main ancient destinations. Once being the most location for Hindu ceremonies, My Son is the place you are able to observe a number of marvels of temples. It is supposedly built between 4th and 14th century the Champas, by the then rulers.

  Hoi An

Hoi An is an ancient coastal town and the trading post of south-eastern Asia. The town is just one of the must see places. Architecture and the style of these buildings signify a great amalgamation of west west and the east.

Old Canal, Japanese-designed Bridge, Pagoda, Temples , and French Colonial Houses nevertheless reflect the old world allure. For anyone who love Hoi An can be an perfect choice where you can unwind within their stunning and not as crowded beaches or enjoy the nightlife in one of many cafes by this river.

Hoi An can also be an ideal place to taste real food. If you want to learn the art of food style, you can combine a cooking class.

  Ba Be National Park

Tranquil Ba Be National Park is absolutely magnificent with the three Ba Be Lakes in its heart, rimmed by karst peaks and populated slopes. Most people come here to take calm vessel trips or kayak over the lake and explore the caves full of stalagmites and stalactites in the area, but for the more busy, additionally there is exceptional trekking and trekking in the mountains here involving ethnic minority villages. This is one of the most tranquil areas in viet nam, and the evening, travelers who spend here sleeping in conventional home stay accommodation over the lakeshore, allowing an adventure of rural living that is simple.

The rare mammals, butterflies, turtle, and fishes which could be viewed here attract nature enthusiasts and photographers from throughout the earth.

  Ha Long Bay

Ha Long Bay is Vietnam’s identifier. Located about 130 km east of Hanoi in northern Vietnam, Ha Long Bay is well famous because of the water; bunch of limestone rocky outcrops rising and lush shore. The island is indeed among the prettiest places in viet nam and probably the most visited as well. An individual will find lakes and caves. It is astonishing to see how on the centuries this island has been processed into something. Halong Bay can be actually a picture-postcard destination having its blue sea and water cliffs sprinkled throughout with karst topography. Locally known as ‘where the dragon descends into the sea’, this Halong Bay has multiple breeze and lime stone caves lakes, and grottoes.

  Hue

If I may put it in this way Hue is the capital of Vietnam. Situated in Central Viet Nam on the banks of the Perfume River, Hue formerly functioned as the imperial capital of the Nguyen dynasty. Today, the former period’s vestiges are reflected from the architecture, cuisine and culture of the city, which makes it one of the best places to see in Vietnam. Of the city’s monuments, the Citadel is probably by far the most famous. Once the seat of the Nguyen emperors, the Citadel is a sprawling complex of expansive palaces, ornate temples, gates and walls Another crucial milestone on the lake is that the city’s official emblem, the Thien Mu Pagoda.

  Mekong Delta

Probably, the significant tourist attraction in Mekong Delta is your colourful market that sells a melange of locally grown items. This place offers a treat from simply taking you. Needless to state, you are bound to have a wonderful experience seeing with southwestern viet nam at Mekong Delta. The Mekong River nearby additionally serves as an aid to get this to agricultural region fertile by creating a maze of canals and streamsit is also known as the’Vietnam’s Rice Basket.’ The Delta which extends between the Gulf of Thailand and Ho Chi Minh City Delivers plantations to more than the third of the country.

  Sa Pa

Sa Pa is a movie perfect destination in Vietnam. Surrounded by mountains, rice terraces, Sa Pa is a beautiful town that is frequently used as a base for sipping villages and rice paddies and trekking at the Hoang Lien Son Mountains. Tours round Sa Pa supply the ability to witness amazing waterfalls; interesting traditions adventure yummy food and the lifestyle of the regional tribes. One has to go hiking in the mountains of Sa Pa for views of the mountain and jungle ranges of Vietnam.

  Ho Chi Minh

Speedy internet food , low rates and high standards put Saigon up as a traveling or nomad destination. Around town there’s plenty to keep visitors busy, French age architecture for example Vietnam’s niches, Ben Thanh Market, at District 1, the War Remnants Museum and Notre Dame Cathedral being the major tourist draw.

The most useful of those things to do in Saigon are the trips and tours visitors can take out of the town. The Cu Chi tunnels are both local and provide a true insight to what went on within the American War. This one will be my choice, if you only do one tour in Vietnam.

The fascinating and special Cao Dai temples camera be along with the Cu Chi trip, visit for the noon ceremony. street walking in the core of the backpacker region before heading back to Saigon for lunch alternatively simply take into the water to get a Mekong, villages and markets tour.

  Bao Loc

Located right among Ho Chi Minh city and Dalat, Bao Loc has been an important stop for us after a pretty awful trip on highway 20. Although the town might not look like much and feel like a compulsory remainder for people riding throughout the country, it adopts a couple of paintings like a few of Vietnam’s green tea (you can go to a few of the tea plantations close to the city) and some pretty good food, but the real gem hides from the nearby Dambri Waterfall Resort.

Inside this massive park you’ll come across that the Dambri waterfall. This high stream of water comes crashing at an incredible speed and makes for an unbelievable sight. There could force you to realise Dambri is As the opinion is impressive from below, becoming down. It’s well worth the excess day outside of one’s itinerary if you’re driving through viet nam subsequently spend the night in Bao Loc.

  Hanoi

The funding of Vietnam is the frenetic heartbeat of the nation and a place that befuddles travelers just as much as them appeals. The motorbike frenzy, pollution, and clamor of street vendors can get too much for some travelers, but Hanoi may be your place when you’d like to dive into Vietnamese city lifetime. While history buffs should get a bee line here simply to see the bundle of excellent museums the old town quarter has lots of charm being offered. The Vietnam Museum of Ethnology and also Vietnam Fine Art Museum are both introductions to the artistry of the nation, while the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum is an important tribute to the founder of Vietnam.

  Nha Trang

For sandy fun in Vietnam, Nha Trang is king. The beach trundles for six kilometers along the shore of Nha Trang city that is central and through summertime is filled with foreign visitors in addition to families on a break. There is excellent swimming here with swimming pool areas for relaxing days taking in the sand and sun along with manicured lounging areas that get this a great option. Should you get bored of sunbathing, the ancient Po Nagar Cham Towers are just to the north west round the Xom Bong Bridge and have been used as a place of worship here as at least the 7th century (using some historians saying the site itself has been a place of active worship since much sooner ). There’s also an excellent museum dedicated to the task of Alexandre Yersin who discovered the cause of the bubonic plague and also founded Nha Trang’s Pasteur Institute (which still carries out vaccination programs in Vietnam today).

  Dalat

Located around a lake and a golf course, on the Lang Biang highlands, Dalat is a serene and trendy location for a perfect holiday escape. Dalat has cool nights that are soothing and days. The climate is rightly tagged as’eternal spring.’ This holiday destination boasts with flowerbeds which have put it among the places to see in Vietnam of its magnificent lakes, waterfalls, and lush green valleys.

December — March will be the ideal time to stop by Dalat. The current weather remains comfortable. There’s not any rain. This makes it perfect for outdoor pursuits. The flowers blossom within this spring up, making Dalat all the more vibrant and romantic.

  Ben Tre

Vietnam includes several destinations that are for people that like to take an trail. 1 such gem is Ben Tre. Situated on the bank of River Mekong, Ben Tre is one of the best. The spot has attractions such as coconut candies factory. An ideal afternoon in Ben Tre would be to stop by the factory place sail at dusk to catch fireflies to sample their premium candies and watch sunsets that are amazing. Ben Tre is a place for romance and ideal to go to with your own partner.

  Kon Tum

Situated in the Central Highland, Kon Tum is a Weary city sitting on the Border of Their Dakbla River. The place is without almost any hustle and bustle and so makes for a terrific place to see at Vietnam. Although the town could be the base for visiting other hot places has some attractions including the architecture of a unique. The spot is ideal to catch two or a beverage at the day once the most of the town involves break.

    Con Dao

Con Dao Archipelago is an unspoilt destination in Vietnam. It reflects a history under French as Con Dao was once home to probably the prison in Vietnam Even though tired in character. Con Dao has opened its door for tourism. The biggest island of this Con Dao archipelago is Con Son, which is a laidback getaway with gorgeous beaches some magnificent Hawaiian buildings and challenging treks and park. Some of the best approaches is by watching sea turtles laying eggs hiking in the park, diving and dangling out from the beaches.

  Quy Nhon

Quy Nhon is a beach lovers’ heaven. Operating out of Central Vietnam,” Quy Nhon is among the places which you would like to wake up every morning ; sand shore and tidy roads make this destination a favourite of tourists everywhere across the universe. It can also be an perfect honeymoon destination in Vietnam without a uncertainty. Expect large amount of pure beauty fresh seafood along with also guest houses to crash into.

  Ninh Binh Province

Blessed with natural beauty, fundamental Vietnam based Ninh Binh state offers sights of splendour and wildlife at book and the park. Located south of Hanoi, Ninh Binh province is just one of those spots frequently visited types and also by travellers. The high lights of this post include the landscape of Tam Coc that can be seen by taking a traditional boat ride and also seeing of Trang An Grottoes, a UNESCO Site. Additionally being heavily commercialised, you’ll witness many hotels and restaurants here. You may go to Samson Beach for a day Cuc Phuong, and the wild life book since Ninh Binh state is located near Thanh Hoa Province.

  Bai Tu Long Bay

Located in the north east Vietnam, Bai Tu Long Bay is actually really a surreal island which continues to the border. Even the Bai Tu Long National Park shares the boundary the famed Ha Long Bay. The island can be as amazing as its beachfront destination of course, if we may a wee bit more magnificent. It is an ideal destination for anyone who’d love spend appreciating the type all by them and to escape the busy Ha Long Bay. An individual can elect into the Bai Tu area for ship trips and pleasure in the slow life with this island.

  Mui Ne

Probably one of the most bustling beach destinations was a sleepy backwater destination that stayed discounted by most tourists. The destination is one of the very crowded weekend attractions in viet nam today. Mui Ne can be found at a short distance in Ho Chi Minh City and hence can be called a taste for visitors which are eager to pay for a large sum to stay in luxurious resorts. Mui Ne delivers a casual atmosphere and has good stretches of sand. It’s a place to unwind and get that tan.

    Best Places to Visit in Vietnam