#so the more hours you put in as a beginner the quicker you will LEARN what works best for you

[rigelmejo]

some basic language learning thoughts (based on some common questions i see on reddit forums). as usual, if you don't like the suggestion, feel free to ignore and throw it out! what works best for you will be what works best for you - everyone is different. at the end of the day, if you continue studying (hours add up), study some new stuff (expand your knowledge), and practice/review some stuff you've studied (improve comprehension of what you know), then you'll improve. You can achieve that in a ton of different ways, and any way which motivates you to keep doing it is great.

What's the easiest language to learn? My thought on this question is... it doesn't matter as much as it might feel like it does. If any language is going to take hundreds or thousands of hours of study, you will probably want to have goals that motivate you to study for THAT long, for years. If Danish 'takes less hours to learn' than Thai, but you watch Thai shows everyday and follow thai webnovel writers and twitter, and don't have much interest in anything Danish (and no friends that speak the language), then Thai is going to be 'easier' because you have more reasons to USE it. If Spanish and French seem to take a similar amount of hours to learn, but you're planning to go to school in a French speaking country and get a job there? Well you have a more pressing Need to learn French, that will hopefully help motivate you. The 'easiest' language to learn is the language you have REASONS to learn. The language you will use, and keep using. If you have no pressing reason to learn any language, but want to learn a language? Find reasons. Make goals that require the language.

(Here's one from me - I wanted to learn Japanese, in theory I can mostly do anything I want by just reading/watching/playing translations, however I am the kind of person that really enjoys reading originals in their original form... so that's motivating. My recent kick to study more? A show I want to watch is untranslated, so I better get to studying so I can still watch it.) Your goal can be anything from: I want to visit X, I want to talk to X friend/family better, I want to blog in multiple languages, I want to watch untranslated media, I want to sing my favorite musicians songs easier, I want to work in a country that speaks it, I want access to more recipes in X language, I am into history and want to read a history book from X time period in X language, I want to play a video game before localization, really the sky is the limit on goals you can set. Your goals, and how much you want them, and how often you do the sub-goals (so if reading untranslated cnovels by an author you love is your goal, maybe along the way you read easier webnovels to motivate you and find more writers you like), is going to push you to keep studying. Even if your goal is 'pass language B2 test' if it has a deadline, and it's a goal connected to other goals (like going to work in a country with the language, translating work, writing better), that will keep you motivated. Motivation is what will make a language 'easier.' If you can't find the motivation, even the languages which should take the 'least amount of time' will feel hard.

All that said, I am now about to contradict myself. While I really think motivation is the biggest factor in if you'll keep studying and keep learning... there are languages which due to their similarity to languages you already know, will take less Total Study Hours to make progress. As an English speaker, it only took me 6 months of very lazy unorganized studying (half hour most days) to be able to start reading non-fiction French with only a handful of word lookups per page. A lot of that was because French (especially science words and proper nouns like places) has so many cognates with English. I basically 'had' thousands of words of French I already knew, just because I knew English. It took about a year to read fiction books in French only looking up a handful of words per page, for 'general main idea' comprehension. When studying Chinese, it took me also about 12 months to read fiction, look up a handful of words, and understand the 'general main idea.' But I was studying 2 hours a day. So I studied around 182.5 hours to read French fiction with word lookups, and 730 hours to read Chinese fiction with word lookups. And the Chinese also took longer to learn to read with NO word lookups, since there was no english-cognate carryover to sound-out and over rely on like with French. (Although at a wonderful certain point, you know enough Chinese hanzi that new words are built of mostly hanzi you know, and you can use that to guess the gist of a LOT of new words when extensively reading with no word lookups - that happened for me at about 2 years). My point is: Chinese DOES take more hours of study to reach language skill milestones as an english speaker, compared to French! It took me the same amount of months, because I studied Chinese more hours per day (to make up the difference - and I had a better study plan with Chinese). But if you are a total beginner, and unmotivated and KNOW you will study maybe 1 hour per day and probably not more, then learning a language that is more similar to one you already know WILL take less study hours total to reach skill milestones. And that will hopefully be motivating.

(Another example: I spent 3 months of 1-2 hours a day studying Spanish, and can read Spanish nonfiction - thanks to the similarities to French and English. I can read fiction too but it requires word lookups. Japanese, due to kanji, also got 'easier' to read once I had learned more Chinese hanzi. So if your goals include learning languages with some similarities, then once you learn some of those similarities it will make future learning 'faster.')

I spent a month once studying Esperanto (a constructed language). Do I ever use Esperanto? No. Did I find the experience helpful? Yes. Because Esperanto is designed to be fairly easy for european language native speakers, has no exceptions, it had 1. a lot of similar-words to english so I could practice 'guessing similar words' (a skill I'd use a lot with French and Spanish later), 2. practice guessing what word endings mean grammatically (since Esperanto has no exceptions the grammar patterns are much more obvious than say grammar patterns in French). 3. Practice recognizing spelling to sound connections. Those 3 skills are useful in learning any language, but natural languages will have more exceptions to the patterns.

After spending a month on Esperanto, I saw HUGE progress after studying a few hundred words, noticed a huge amount of grammar patterns and how to notice them, and just generally got the experience of 'this is what skill milestones feel like.' Later, when studying French, I used that experience to recognize French word endings and what they tend to indicate, word functions, patterns in pronunciation, guessing with cognates/similar words, and I knew what the first 'milestones' I was aiming for would be. In a similar pattern: French milestones took me a few months each to hit, so when I studied Chinese later and it was taking 2-3 times as much study time... I knew which milestone to expect myself to 'work toward' and achieve next, and knew what making progress should feel like (even if it felt like it was moving slower) so I didn't give up. I was aware that Chinese language skill milestones might 'take more hours' so I didn't panic when it was taking me almost a year of reading graded readers in Chinese to move on to simple webnovels, whereas in French I'd only been reading graded readers for half a year before I felt ready to move on. I knew the general process, because I'd done it before in a shorter timespan with French, with Esperanto.

Is Esperanto useful to you? Only you know that. I personally did not find it useful in general for me, and didn't continue to study it. But it did teach me 'how' to study a language, what progress to monitor, and gave me the confidence that I was capable of learning.

If you really feel you're incapable of learning any skill in a new language, then spending some time on a language more similar to what you already know (if possible - a language you have motivating goals with), may help you see you are capable and can learn. An addition to this: spend a LOT of hours studying as a beginner, if lack of progress demotivates you. Once you push past the beginner stage, you'll be able to do goal-related things in the language you study and that will keep you motivated. But in the beginning, progress feels slow and you feel very confused. So the more upfront studying you do, the quicker you will push through that hard-to-motivate stage.

Is learning a language that is more similar to ones you know going to take less hours of study? Probably. But either way, motivation over hundreds or thousands of hours, for years, is going to be needed. So the goals you wish to achieve will be more important in your success, rather than how many 'hours' it will take.

What do you do if you get demotivated that it's taking SO LONG to hit the next language skill milestone? Fair concern. I got demotivated OFTEN by how much longer it took to reach milestones in Japanese compared to in French. First: try to keep perspective. It's normal for it to take more hours to understand certain things, if the language is not very similar to ones you know. You have to build a bigger foundation of understanding for lots of totally new stuff. Second: you're going to hate me but I'd suggest upping the study hours per day (or week). Studying Chinese RARELY demotivated me, despite it taking more actual hours of study to hit milestones compared to French, and why? Because I increased my study time for Chinese so I was still REACHING milestones in a reasonable amount of months (very similar to the months it took to hit French milestones). 2 hours a day of Chinese study was more than 1/2 an hour of French study, but 2 hours was doable. And it meant I still got to watch shows and read within a few months, and watch/read without looking many words up (depending on difficulty) by the end of year 1. Once you are doing the goals or sub-goals you have, it becomes so much easier to stay motivated. Once I could watch cdramas before they got translated, or read any novel I wanted using Pleco or Readibu to help? It was very easy to stay motivated and do things I WANTED to do in chinese. From there it was just practice/learn using activities I had the goal of doing.

Finally, similar to the suggestions above, if you find yourself in a motivation rut what can you do? I personally try to do 'study sprints' when I'm getting demotivated and need to see significant progress. What I do is pick a small goal, then spend 1-2 months studying as much as I can to improve in that goal. Suggestions: A beginner may make the goal to study the alphabet, a pronunciation guide, and 300 common words and see how far they get by the end of the month. (If at the end of the month the pronunciation is easier to hear and alphabet is easier to read then they succeeded - and they likely will). Another beginner may make the goal to read graded readers 1 hour per day or more all month and see how much they can read. (If the first graded reader they read is easier to read at the conclusion of the month, such as less unknown words or faster reading speed, then they succeeded - and they likely will see progress). A beginner/intermediate learner into flashcards might try to study as many flashcards in Anki as they can for a month. An intermediate learner may pick an audiobook and try to listen to AS MANY chapters as they can in a month, or may pick a novel and look up every unknown word while reading for 1 hour per day or more, until the end of the month. The idea is to pick a goal where you KNOW you're current skill level, work HARD on studying to improve that skill for a month, and then try to do the skill again and see how much progress you've made. I find it very motivating. It can take months to broadly notice progress milestones like managing to improve in your overall reading skill to tackle more difficult novels. But it can take just A MONTH to learn a few hundred new words and make the current novel you're reading become much EASIER to read, or the current show you're watching to become much EASIER to follow, or for the listening skills you're struggling with to become much more instant and reliable.

Example: one of my most recent sprints was to improve my Chinese listening skills. So for a month, I listened to audio flashcards of chinese-english sentences audio, and audiobook chapters (re-listening to each chapter a few times). I saw progress in 1. The audiobook got easier to understand over time, and 2. I tried watching a cdrama I've watched before, only this time I watched it without any subtitles, and it is now much easier to quickly comprehend and follow the lines (even without chinese subs). A sprint I did after a 2 year funk with minimal japanese progress was to cram study 2000 words in memrise Nukemarine's LLJ decks (took 3 months) then try to play a japanese video game I'd tried playing before the sprint. Another japanese sprint I did was listen to japaneseaudiolessons.com free lessons for a month, to work on improving my listening comprehension and recognition of word-order faster, and it did really help with seeing an improvement in those things.

As a beginner, I think the sprints can help with staying focused on small achieveable goals and seeing your progress (like reading daily, watching a show daily, studying X new words daily, going through a chapter of a grammar book weekly, etc). And then as you get farther and can actually do some of your sub-goals, can help with pushing yourself to some significant improvement in a particular area. (Like if you reached a sub goal of reading easy webnovels, it might be a month where you read a webnovel with more unique words that's 'harder' and look all unknown words up, and by the end of the month you see that medium-difficulty webnovels now feel as easy as the 'easy' ones did at the start of the month).

And then... if you study like me, which tends to be periods of a LOT of study followed by lulls where I might watch/read/listen to the language but not do much active study, then the sprint goal months tend to help cram in 100 hours of study every so often. So that you'll still (on average through the year) have studied 1-2+ hours a day. I do not focus well, and sprint goal months along with more relaxed months where I just watch/read/listen to stuff when I feel like it, is the only way I can get myself to study regularly. If you can consistently study daily, then sprint goal months can help you make Significant progress in a very specific area if some slow-progress area has been demotivating you. (And you can turn the sprint goals into challenges with friends, or tests to see what study methods work great for you versus bore you).

[we-are-knight]

Hi there, Sir. Um so I know this depends on many factors, but generally speaking about how long do you think it would take a beginner in sword fighting to become proficient with a longsword? How often should they train and for how long?

Define "proficient".

To be capable of defeating a totally untrained person in a swordfight with a degree of reliability? Assuming you have time for a two hour session once a week?

At least a year.

This is assuming that you also put in extra personal time drilling, working on new techniques, maybe meeting for sparring with other partners now and then.

Swords are not easy weapons to learn, though the difficulty level makes adapting out into other weapons much easier to pick up. Subsequently, where it may take a few months to be considered skilled with a spear or axe, a sword takes more time. It is somewhat easier to learn how to use a longsword if you also supplement training with one by becoming skilled at wrestling and even dagger, however, as these skills link into using a longsword.

Obviously, if you can train more than once a week, you will gain more experience quicker, and thus become better faster, assuming your teachers are good at facilitating your learning, and you are still supplementing what you learn in class with personal study.

[sevendeadlyvices]

Poker Buddies AU: Max and Memories Notes

Something I compiled for @i-cant-thinkof-anything-new Poker Buddies AU they have going. Now I used the Poker Night wiki to get this and I thought this would be helpful for any Sam and Max or Poker Night at the Inventory Fans in general. That and I have my own Poker Night At The Inventory AU and headcannons that I need to work on too. The first information is generally Max’s poker strategy in Poker Night At The Inventory:

When it comes to reading the opponent's strategies, Max's will prove to be a big problem. Due to his lack of knowledge on the subject, his poker strategy seems non-existent. His choice of whether to call, raise, or fold tends to come out of nowhere. Sometimes, Max will or will not have a good hand, so he will be very hard to read. His strategies are completely random; he might bluff, be cautious, or be aggressive. Sometimes he will just keep on betting or keep on folding.

I would call Max an unpredictable poker player at times. There’s this tell he has that if his left hand quivers, he’s bluffing, but other than that, you’re on your own with him. 

Next is his relationships with the characters of both Poker Nights:

Heavy: Max seems to have a good strong friendship with the Heavy, asking him about how his career is going and what kind of weapon he could recommend.

Strong Bad: Mostly casual, having the odd talk with Strong Bad when Max is compelled to tell some sort of story.

Tycho: His relationship with Tycho seems to be, again, a casual friendship. They share many of the same interests, although from time to time Max will be slightly put off by Tycho's odd behavior.

The Player: Max often thinks The Player plays too conservatively, especially when not calling a huge bet of Max's.

Sam: Max very much loves the big guy. Max is Sam's long-time partner, best friend, husband, and sidekick.

Brock Samson: Brock finds Max annoying like Claptrap, but also finds it much easier to ignore him, even when Max is physically attacking him. He also has some level of respect for the lagomorph for everything he and Sam overcame as members of the Freelance Police.

Claptrap: Much like Sam, Claptrap is a fan of Max for their games and comics. He seems closer to Max than Sam due to the fact that Max isn't as annoyed by him as Sam is. Max's love for violence makes the robot think he would fit in very well on Pandora. If Claptrap is knocked out before Sam, he will often sit next to Max for a while. Also, during a Showdown, Max will stand right next to Claptrap, wondering what the next card will be.

Ash Williams: Ash has considerable respect for Max and Sam's career and is otherwise "okay" with the lagomorph. However, Ash also displays a few moments of apprehension and even downright concern when Max' insanity acts up, usually in his theme eliminations.

GLaDOS: Max doesn't seem to mind the murderous AI as much as the other characters and occasionally joins in when she insults or annoys the other characters (primarily Sam).

This is from the wiki, so take this with a grain of salt.

And finally, with spoilers in the cut:

The Memories I would focus on for the Epic Texas Hold Em Matches! Note that it’s not all the conversations from both games, but here’s the ones I found so far that might be interesting to incorporate for the AU. I’ll bold the ones that would seem more angsty for the AU:

Max: I don't know a lot about card games, truth be told. But, I take it you're a little bit of a beginner, yes? Strong Bad: Are you talking to (pronounces it as moy) moi? Max: You betcha. You're as green as the bologna in Sam's mini-fridge. Strong Bad: (angrily) Shut up, Stitch. Max: (cheerily) It's OK. It just means you have to adopt a wanton strategy of wild deception. Strong Bad: Hmm... Not the woist idea I ever hoid. Max: (furrows brow) Get into their heads.

Max: You know what I love? Tycho: What's that? Max: Destroying wave after wave of the undead. Tycho: WORD UP! How do you roll? Max: With my trusty side arm of course. Tycho: I'm more of an auto-shotgun guy. Max: Oooh! Heavy: This is good weapon no? Max: Sam and I had to resign ourselves to pistols when our cleaning bill started going through the roof. Tycho: Yeah, its like ichor? Oxyclean ain't cuttin' it. Max: This pelt is dry clean only.

Tycho: Max, how'd you learn to play cards? Max: Funny you should ask! This one time, Sam and I were busting up a crime syndicate down in Atlantic City. A road job. Tycho: Indeed. Max: Yeah! So we're tailing this low level mafia bum for an hour and he pulls up outside a casino and before he can go in Sam says, "Well little buddy, we better nab this guy quicker than a Pittsburgh driver taking a left on a green in rush hour." I couldn't have agreed more. So I grab a tire iron out of the back seat, right, hop out of the Desoto, and pummel this guy like a piñata. Tycho: Yow! Max: Blindfold and all! Tycho: ...That doesn't really answer my question. Max: You asked me a question?

Tycho: Hey Max, how do you like being a freelance police officer? Max: It's the best. Tycho: I bet it is. Max: Oh, but that's not all I do. I'm also available for babysitting, bat mitzvahs and general shakedowns. You know anybody who needs work? Tycho: See, this why I think we get along. You're a Renaissance man. Max: You need anybody roughed up? Tycho: There's a bird at the pet store that's been giving me a little beak, yeah. Max: Oh ho, putting a wise acre in his place is my specialty!

Heavy: I will make hat from you, little bunny. Max: How 'bout I just sit on your head and shoot people? Heavy: (thinks about this) ...This is good idea.

Heavy: Tiny Heavy, who is your favorite to kill in war? Strong Bad: Hmm, in WAR? Probably those Green Helmets. You know, the guys who don't have any cool weapons or gimmicks, and come in a discount three-pack. Heavy: To kill spy is glorious thing! How about you, Max? You are killing type. Max: My favorite enemy? {gasps} That's like asking me to choose between my children! Heavy: {laughs heartily} You crack me up, little bunny!

Heavy: You look very familiar, bunny. Max: How closely do you follow the Manhattan crime blotter? Wait, you didn't go the Spiro Agnew School of the Arts, did you? Tycho: You attended? Didn't take you for the book learnin' type. Max: No, but Sam and I pinched their gym teacher in a black market jock strap ring in the 80's. I'd be surprised if any student didn't remember a dog choking out a large man with a unibrow.

Strong Bad: I don't trust you one bit, ra-bbit. Max: It's ok, I don't trust myself. Strong Bad: How do we know that you don't have a never ending stack of aces wherever you put your gun? Max: Well, you don't, but you're welcome to look!

Strong Bad: So... Max. You're like one of those (pronounces as poke mons) poke-mons, right? Max: (narrows eyes) My genus and phylum is a mystery to all mankind. Strong Bad: Because I'd love to see some prepubescent pointy-haired kid run in here and stick you inside of a baseball (laughs). (in a high pitched voice, with a smile) That would be hilarious. Max: Are you talking about the red-capped kidnapper who terrorized the fauna on the Upper West Side for months? Strong Bad: Maybe. Max: Because Sam, Flint, and I caught him trying to stuff a chimpanzee into his knapsack, and made him cry for his mommy.

Strong Bad: I wonder if this dump is haunted? Max: (cheerily) Ooh, I hope so. There's something about being able to terrorize a spectral being without it up and dying on you that (furrows eyebrows) I just love. Heavy: (sadly, lowers his head) I do not like ghost. Max: It's OK Mr. Weapons. I've got extensive experience with zombies and vampires. (points toward himself) I can handle a little ghost. Heavy: (with large eyes) You will take care of ghost for me? Max: (cheerily) You betcha. Heavy: (cheerily, nods his head) I like you, tiny rabbit.

(Brock) GLaDOS: Brock Samson is eliminated. Max: GERONIMO! (lands on Brock's head and starts to gnaw on it, to no effect) Die, die, die! Brock: (gets up) I'll be at the bar.

(Claptrap) GLaDOS: Claptrap is eliminated due to lack of funds. Max: Wet willy, wet willy! (sticks a finger in his mouth and inserts it into a hole in Claptrap's side) Claptrap: Hey! That's not my ear, it's my... (both are electrified and fall from chair)

(Ash) GLaDOS: Ashley Williams is eliminated. Ash gets up and reaches for his chainsaw, only to realize it's not there. Max is holding it, standing a foot or so behind him. Max: (grinning maliciously) Looking for something? (looks at Sam normally) Hey, check it out, Sam! I'm a tree surgeon! Sam: (whispering to Ash) He's not really a tree surgeon...! Ash looks worried. Max: (revs up chainsaw) Open wide and say "ah!" (chases Ash away)

[0ffgun]

Alright so!! I got some requests from people for me to make a post with tips on how I self-study my languages, so here we are! It’s not perfect and everyone studies differently, but I hope some of these tips can help you out.

Personally I study Korean & Thai so this list is aimed at those but a lot of the study tips are pretty general and can be applied to whatever language you’re learning. 

I’m an energetic puppy in human form - I simply CANNOT sit still and study for longer than 20 minutes before getting insanely restless and distracted, so I tend to only actually sit down and actively study once a week. If you’re expecting something clever and insightful this is absolutely the opposite of that... I basically trick myself into learning! So here is my silly little guide, let’s go!

General Tips:

★ Get ridiculous with sticky notes. Seriously, do it. If you’re just starting out and don’t know the words for all of those household objects then go ahead and scribble them down on those post its and stick them EVERYWHERE. It might drive your family members/roommates crazy but hey... you’re doing it for a good cause, right?

★ Don’t rely on romanization too much - if your language has its own writing system, focus on that using as much as you can. Romanization seems helpful but in the long run you’ll rely on it too much. It’s better to get familiar with the native writing system asap!

★ Pick out a word/phrase of the day and write it somewhere you’ll see it often. I have a whiteboard in my room that I’ll scribble a few phrases onto and then every time I walk past it, I’ll say them. Or if I’m not gonna be home all day then I write something on my wrist and glance at it throughout the day! This one is the most fun because when people see it they’re like “ooh that looks pretty!” or “ooh does it mean something deep and profound?” when in reality you have the phrase I like cheese written on your arm and it never stops being entertaining. Bonus points if someone native to that language reads it and looks at you like you’re crazy.

★ Say the words in silly voices. It sounds weird but if you’re sitting there repeating words (like the word banana, for example) from an app in a monotone voice you’re definitely less likely to remember it than if you’re yelling out “BANANA!!” in an opera voice or squeaking out “b an a n a” dramatically as you let go of Jack’s hand and let him sink into the ocean. 

★ Don’t isolate vocabulary. Learning new words is great, but it’s useless and you’re more likely to forget it if you don’t learn to use it in a sentence. 

★ Keep a diary! One of the absolute best ways to practice your writing and improve your skills is to just jot down a few things every now and then. It’ll be rusty and you won’t have much to say at first and will definitely keep needing that dictionary every 2 seconds, but after a few weeks you’ll really notice the difference. Buy pretty pens and stickers to motivate yourself to write in it! It’s also fun to do this around people who can’t speak it as they’ll look at it in awe and you can show off when in actual fact your writing is usually a clumsy scribbled “today I snacks eat and go sleep” but hey what they don’t know can’t hurt and it’s always fun to look like a genius.

★ Talk to your pets in that language. They’re not going to judge you, they actually don’t even care what you say as long as you say it in that entertaining pet voice. I don’t have any friends that speak Korean or Thai so the majority of my speaking practice is hurled at my dog. If you don’t have a pet, then plants or stuffed animals work perfectly too!

★ Listen to language podcasts while you do household chores, heck if you’ve gotta do something boring, might as well yell foreign words while you do it!

★ Change your phone settings to your target language. That way you’re literally forcing yourself to use it, and it becomes second nature and you pick up key words so quickly. Only do it if you know how to get back into your settings and change it back if you have to... or else you’re stuck and lost. 

★ Listen to music and sing a lot. Just scream those lyrics! A little off-key screeching never hurt anybody!

★ Get comfortable with numbers. They’re something that is dominant in ALL languages and you’re going to use them on a daily basis. Start with learning how to count to ten and get comfortable with it, and then go higher. Once you’re used to numbers individually, make it harder. I used to get my mum to write out 10 random numbers between 1 to 10,000 in the morning and I would translate them, and then I would do the same for myself in the evening. After a while you get quicker at them and before you know it you don’t have to awkwardly translate them in your head anymore, the numbers are just there ready in your brain.

★ Don’t only watch dramas! Watch more natural stuff too - variety shows, vlogs, instagram lives... anything where people are just chatting like they normally would do. That way you’re subconsciously learning more casual speech patterns and casual language too!

★ Don’t just study at home! Always make sure you have a dictionary handy (like on your phone, for example!) and keep your brain busy while you’re out and about. Buying some groceries? Try to name everything in the fruit and vegetable aisles and if you don’t know the name of something, look it up! You’re more likely to remember vocab this way as your brain has a situation to associate it to.

★ Be mean and make yourself work for things you normally do - check your horoscope on a regular basis? Read it in your new language instead! Want to check out the weather forecast? Do it the hard way.

★ Don’t feel like studying? Not in the mood? Then don’t do it! Instead put on your favourite show in your study language of choice. Not every study session has to be a hard one. Just relax and watch a foreign movie! You have no idea how much your brain picks up without you even noticing, chilling out and watching a drama absolutely counts as studying. Don’t force yourself to study if you’re not feeling it, you’re more likely to learn if you’re having a good time.

Advanced Tips:

★ Get keyboard stickers - if your new language has a different alphabet and you use your laptop to study it a lot then you’re definitely gonna need these! You can buy them SUPER cheap on ebay!

★ Change the language on your Netflix account and get ready to binge watch your faves! If you change your profile language to the one that you’re studying, you’ll notice that a lot of the shows available will now show subtitles in that language too. If you’re pretty advanced then now is probably the time to drop your native subs and start watching with the original subtitles in the original language.. good luck! 

★ Play Pokemon. When the latest Pokemon games started coming out with Korean language options I JUMPED at the chance - what better way to study than to just laze around playing video games? This is great for any other kinds of games you can snatch up in your target language too.

★ Read a favourite book in your new language. A common one is Harry Potter! It’s pretty much available in every language at this point and it’s a story you probably already know, which means you never get too lost because you know the plot already.

Resources:

Here are a bunch of apps and things that I use for studying that I find super helpful (and all of these are free!)

Drops (for Thai and Korean - available in both the apple store and the google play store)  - I use this app every single day without fail. It’s brilliant for expanding your vocabulary (there are TONS of languages available on there too!) HOWEVER: It only lets you study for 5 minutes and then you have to wait around 9-ish hours before you gain another 5 minutes to work with unless you want to pay for more. But honestly? That’s a good thing. You only need 5 minutes of vocab study before your brain wants to dissolve into mush anyway. I get up, do my morning stuff (usually just involves rolling around and blinking in confusion before grabbing a coffee) and then sit and do 5 minutes of drops, and then by the evening my 5 minutes have replenished and I do it again. Rinse and repeat, and you’ll be learning more words in a week than you even realise!

Duolingo (I use this for Korean, there is currently no Thai option) - This app is fantastic. I don’t recommend it for beginners as it should be used as more of an aid alongside your natural studies, rather than as a study resource itself. This app expects you to already know the basics so I’d dig into this one once you’re starting to get a little comfortable with your language!

Naver Dictionary (for Korean) - I use this every single day! Not only does it help me when I need to find a certain word, it also gives me lists of example sentences which is PERFECT and super helpful when I’m trying to memorize words!  And for Thai I use Thai-English Dictionary (I can only find it in the Apple store sadly) and that’s incredibly handy too, I wouldn’t be able to cope without it! I also use this website as a Thai dictionary when I’m not on my iPad!

Talk To Me In Korean (for Korean) - This has been a core element to my Korean studies. They have tons of lessons available on their website, they do regular YouTube videos (usually only 5-10 mins long, perfect for just a mini casual study session!) and they also sell textbooks and do podcasts too. If you learn best from textbooks then these are by far my favourite ones I’ve found, give them a try! They’re not too pricey.

Lingodeer (for Korean) - It’s cute, it’s friendly and it’s helpful!! I learned a bunch of new phrases using this one and it’s perfect for casual study!

Memrise (for Korean) - Fantastic if you’re a beginner! There are tons of languages available on here too. Although, there are only 3 levels in Korean so I got through this one pretty fast. 

Eggbun (for Korean) - An app that encourages you to learn using a texting format! I haven’t really used it much but I have friends that have said it’s really useful!

Ling (for Thai and Korean) - This one was pretty good, once again though I wouldn’t use it if you’re a beginner, it’s probably a lot more helpful if you know the basics before you attempt this one! I’ve only used it for Thai but there’s a Korean option you could try checking it out!

Mondly (for Thai and Korean) - This app is cheeky and it wants your money. You get a bunch of free lessons to start with which are GREAT but that’s it. Then it reduces you to one free lesson a day but honestly? Still useful so go ahead and use it. They also have speaking practice available too!

Thai2English (for Thai) - This website is an absolute LIFESAVER!! If I’m ever browsing and come across a sentence that just throws me, I simply copy and paste and this legend of a website just breaks it down for me word for word.

Extra Korean links:

Children’s books in Korean

Learning Korean through fairytales - a textbook used in Korea for children who are learning to read, it’s helpful as a Korean language learner too! You get a little story and then it’ll ask you questions about what you just read. 

TOPIK previous exams - these are so good for practice and if you want to get a general idea of what academic level your Korean skills are at. 

Learning to type in Hangul - this one was fun and I now type Korean pretty comfortably on my laptop so if you know you’re gonna be typing a lot, I recommend this program!

[almostnoisydonut]

𝓛𝓪𝓷𝓰𝓾𝓪𝓰𝓮 𝓛𝓮𝓪𝓻𝓷𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓘𝓷 𝓛𝓮𝓼𝓼 𝓣𝓱𝓪𝓷 5 𝓜𝓲𝓷𝓾𝓽𝓮𝓼

You don’t have time for language learning, right?

Let me tell you something – you don’t need huge amounts of time to make progress in the language you’re learning.

There are plenty of things you could be doing to move your learning forward, even if they only take five or ten minutes.

The philosophy behind 5-Minute Language is that you can learn languages even if you have a busy lifestyle. Too many people feel held back by their other commitments and they put off learning until they’re free.

Will they ever be free? Will they have more time?

Maybe the question should be: do they have minutes here and there right now? I think it’s a much more relevant question, and I think the answer is often ‘yes���.

So, instead of thinking about language learning as a future activity, something that you will do at some point when you have a bit more time, why don’t you try one (or more!) of the following language learning activities that only take five minutes or less to complete.

One of the most crowd-pleasing language apps to apply the microlearning technique is Duolingo. It has a nice set of 21 languages and is freemium. It's available on Windows, iOS, and Android devices. A study from a few years ago found that it takes 34 hours of Duolingo lessons to learn the equivalent of one college semester.

How is the app so efficient? Duolingo lessons are gamified, which makes the process of learning more interesting and engaging as your play your way into the new language.

The app focuses on direct translation of words and phrases. That way, you will almost always be translating from one language to your native language, or vice versa, which makes learning quicker and simpler.

One of the more recent examples of effective language learning apps is Easy Ten. It's a vocabulary app that will give you ten new words to learn every day. You can set the themes and topics that you're interested in, as well as increase the number of vocabulary units you'd like to learn per day.

Once that's set, you'll start receiving fresh words every day with audio pronunciation, translation, definition, and examples of use. Once you got the vocabulary memorized you can do quizzes to test your knowledge. The app is free and is available for download on both Android and iOS.

While learning a language by using a vocabulary app will bring you quick results, it's not going to be immersive enough to give you necessary conversational skills. If that's something you're after, you're going to have to try something different, like watching YouTube videos in a new language.

You already spend time listening to music, watching movies, and TV. A part of that must be on YouTube, too. Why not bring more diversity into it and do it in the new language? It will help you train the ear to the nuances of a new language. Integrate self-education into your entertainment habits and learning will feel like a hobby, not a burden.

You can also learn language by finding a language exchange partner.

The great thing about language exchange partners is language partners are a free resource, can become great friends, give you access to native speakers, are easy to talk to, are accessible from anywhere you take your phone and are a great way to learn language in five minutes.

Another way to make sure learning a language doesn't feel like too much effort is by using lyrics- and music-based vocabulary apps and websites.

Learning a language simply by listening to music sounds too good to be true, but it is a fun package.

Linguician is a site that lets you choose your songs based on your favorite music genres and artists, learn new vocabulary while listening to them, and then test your newfound knowledge with the various multiple-choice tests.

Lyrics Training is a similar platform that helps you broaden your vocabulary while enjoying your favorite music pieces. The main (and the only) task you get is to fill in the gaps in the lyrics as you listen to a song. You can do it in different modes and go from a Beginner level with filling in 10 percent of the lyrics to an Expert listener.

Whatever you choose to do, aim for variety. Five minutes a day can help you make real progress, especially if you mix up how you practise. Good luck!

[wristcheckstore]

Seiko Prospex Samurai SRPF79K1 “Save the Ocean” Special Edition One of the Most Requested Seiko Watch at WristCheck.Store

o many Customers can't be wrong Right why is the diving watch so popular? I took a closer look at it for you and found out some amazing things.

About WristCheck.Store

The Internet portal WristCheck.Store is specialized in the online sales of watches of considerable manufacturers such as Gucci, Emporio Armani, Oris, Tissot, Hamilton, or Seiko.

Buying a luxury watch is a moment to cherish, but it shouldn’t cost you an arm and a leg.

My name is Joel. I love watches and I wanted to create a place where others could search for the best watches online for a great price. In my experience, finding the best price online takes a lot of time and effort. Many people do not have the time to shop around and miss out on the best prices.

That’s where I come in. With WristCheck, you can be sure to get a more competitive price than most web retailers and save 20% or more on your purchases. You can choose from our wide selection of watches or send us a special request via email to get you the best price. We source our watches from several vendors within the US, Europe, and Asia. This allows us to offer wholesale prices for a wide variety of luxury watches, produced with the highest quality in material and design. Because we ship from multiple warehouses, please allow for up to 4-5 working days for any items that may ship from international warehouses. In cases where the delivery is quicker, we shall send you a message to let you know.

Seiko Prospex Samurai SRPF79K1 “Save the Ocean” Special Edition Review

Seiko’s Prospex with the reference number SRPF79K1 and the nickname Samurai is in many ways an exciting watch, which offers a lot at first glance and appeals to a wide target group. A well-known manufacturer, a professional diving watch with an automatic movement and an iconic design are just four of the features that Seiko’s Prospex Samurai SRPF79K1 uses to captivate potential buyers. Understandably, who wouldn’t be intrigued by these features?

The Prospex Samurai SRPF79K1 is all about Seiko’s “Save the Ocean” campaign, which the traditional Japanese manufacturer uses to advertise. In the spring of 2018, they entered into a partnership with ocean conservationist Fabien Cousteau.

The oceanographer is fully committed to protecting marine biodiversity. The Fabien Costeau Learning Center has been in existence since 2016. The facility is intended to become an information center for the protection of the oceans. Costeau wants to bring together marine biologists, environmentalists, divers and other experts here to educate about climate change and its consequences. As a world-renowned manufacturer of diving watches, Seiko is supporting the project. Across its product range, there are model collections in a “Save the Ocean” special edition. When you purchase one of these products, Seiko donates a portion of the proceeds to the Fabien Costeau Learning Center. That sounds worthy of support and somehow too good to be true. What’s the catch?

The first impression

From a black cardboard box with a silver Seiko inscription, I take out the Seiko watch still wrapped in protective foil. “Prospex – Save the Ocean” is written on the inside lid of the box.  The Seiko Prospex Samurai SRPF79K1 is a bulky diver with a massive buckle closing the silicone strap. I twist and turn the watch. Immediately, the wave design of the dial catches the eye, revealing that this is a “Save the Ocean” model. Last year, Seiko already introduced two new Prospex models from the “Save the Ocean” series that bear the distinctive surface structure. On a blue background are manta rays that seem to float across the dial. Combined with the blue bracelet, this is a perfect match for a diver’s watch with this name.

I touch the cold surface and touch the Seiko Prospex Samurai SRPF79K1 for the first time. The watch feels very valuable. Huge dashes as indices, a date magnifier, and a countdown bezel give the Seiko model its classic diver design. In terms of naming its watches, Seiko is in a class of its own. The Seiko Prospex Samurai SRPF79K1 owes its nickname “Samurai” primarily to the design of the hour and minute hands. This is inspired by historical samurai swords. The watch manufacturer is proud of its roots in the country of Japan.

The Seiko Prospex Samurai SRPF79K1 on the wrist

Flipping it over, I’m amazed how light the Seiko Prospex Samurai SRPF79K1 is on the wrist. With a diameter of a massive 44 millimeters and a height of 13 millimeters, the diver’s watch really doesn’t have to hide. The low weight, on the other hand, is astounding. Finding matching outfits for the Seiko watch does not turn out to be a great difficulty. The sporty casual design suits many occasions. At the same time, the Seiko Prospex Samurai SRPF79K1 brings a certain prestige to the wrist with its sheer size. However, you should like the size and flashiness of a watch. The timepiece does not know the word understatement. But for me, these dimensions simply belong to a diver’s watch!

The Seiko Prospex Samurai SRPF79K1 in detail

The case

For the case of its Prospex Samurai in “Save the Ocean” design, Seiko put a lot of emphasis on good build quality. The solid case structure is made of stainless steel, which has both polished and brushed surfaces, depending on the component. As you can easily see on the back, the middle part is visually separated from the lugs. The dial is protected by sapphire crystal. In the manufacturing process, Seiko made it anti-reflective, which benefits the readability under water. Those who really want to use the watch on the high seas or underwater will quickly appreciate this feature. I find the date magnifier at 3 o’clock very useful and well done. Most of us will probably associate Rolex watches with it.

The crown has a size that matches the watch, which makes it easy to operate. In the first stage, it is completely covered by a crown protector. In everyday life, this improves the wearing comfort immensely. The screw-down crown also stands out due to its easy-to-grip surface structure. If you turn it now, you’ll notice the slight play that the crown has. In my experience, this is a great relief when setting the time and date. The hands never shoot forward too quickly, so you can set the time accurately.

Bezel and case back

The bezel is a diver’s bezel or countdown bezel. The tactile feel when the clicks engage is outstanding! Visually, it frames the lighter dial.

The cashback is screwed down six times. Instead of the usual date window, you’ll find the famous engraved waves on Seiko watches, reminiscent of “the great wave of Kanagawa”, a famous Japanese painting. If you search a little bit, you will also find your production number. 163 is the number of my Seiko Prospex Samurai SRPF79K.

In its case, the Seiko Prospex Samurai SRPF79K1 withstands a possible water pressure of 20 bar. 200 meters maximum diving depth would be possible. However, hardly any amateur diver will penetrate into these spheres.

The movement

For the movement, Seiko uses an automatic movement from its own production. In this case, it’s a Seiko 4R35 caliber, which is very reliable and durable. For the number freaks among you: with 23 jewels, the Seiko 4R35 has a power reserve of 41 hours. The oscillation frequency is 21600 vibrations per hour.

The Seiko Prospex Samurai SRPF79K1 shows itself at its best…

…with the dial. The wave structure is something completely new, which I actually haven’t seen on a diver’s watch like this before. With the neatly printed rays, it gives the Seiko Prospex Samurai SRPF79K1 a very interesting design.

And it is practical, too. That should be the focus for diving watches. The large line indices ensure perfect readability. To guarantee that even at night and in the dark, Seiko has given Samurai hands and indices a luminous function. Apart from the manufacturer’s lettering, the 200M indication, and the rectangular date window, there are no other elements on the dial. But that’s how it should be, after all – simple and straightforward.

Perfect for the water: the silicone strap of the Seiko Prospex Samurai SRP

Silicone and rubber straps have emerged as one of the best solutions for diving watches. They do not age and are easily adjustable. This is also the case with the huge specimen that my Seiko Prospex Samurai SRPF79K1 is equipped with. The buckle is made of stainless steel and bears the engraved Seiko lettering. However, what I liked the most about the bracelet is its practicality. In addition, it is quite comfortable to wear.

My conclusion about the Seiko Prospex Samurai SRPF79K1 – a diver’s watch for everyone.

I can understand why this Seiko diver with the reference number SRPF79K1 is so popular among customers. This Seiko Prospex in the “Save the Ocean” special edition is the diver’s watch for everyone! It looks exactly how you would imagine a diver’s watch to look: large, blue-black, with a bezel and a dial to match. On top of that, there are good materials, a high-quality finish, and stand-out features like the maritime skate design.

This already very good overall package is comparatively affordable. This makes the Seiko Prospex Samurai SRPF79K1 interesting for collectors and beginners alike.

If you have any questions or feedback, we would love to hear from you! Please contact us at sales@wristcheck.store and we will be able to help you with any inquiry you have.

[deadinsidedressage]

How do you feel about going to trail rides where the horses have most of the time learned to just follow the horse in front of them? I see them getting lots of hate since "its not real riding" and that ppl should rather go to riding school than to trail rides. Here where i live, riding schools don't let beginners ride without handler and only in arena so it would be pretty expensive and not that fun tbh and it would turn into a lesson rather than fun and relaxing time on a horse in a forest.

That’s not an interaction with horses that will net you experience to learn to ride safely and confidently on your own. It can also be debated how safe those “guided trail ride” scenarios actually are.  Not to disparage people who work there or people who’ve enjoyed going on them (I’ve been on a few myself), but placing beginners/non-horse people on horses with extremely varied backgrounds (and sometimes questionable soundness) isn’t a recipe for success. I’ve personally been on one with 25 people in the group with 2 employees, a lead and a back. That’s not a good ratio to actually help if someone falls and is injured or has a horse take off.  When you add in that these facilities often don’t have helmets available... it’s really just a bad accident waiting to happen.  Not to mention if your goal is to be an active rider with horse ownership in your future--- you’re not gaining anything valuable out of the experience. In my experience, the horses are taught to follow the horse in front of them (like in a pack line) and are often encouraged to ignore the rider on top of them. To these horses, you are not a rider you are a meat sack they’re packing. “Saddle time” doesn’t equate to better riding when it lacks the context of correct coaching. If you did a year of taking a guided trail once a week you would not have learned to ride you would have learned to be a passenger.  I’m not entirely sure how to interpret “riding with a handler” but I am going to assume you’re referring to one of two things (if not both):

Someone coaching off a lead line or a lunge line

Someone coaching from the center of the arena 

Both of which are tied up in being for safety and being for education. There are two things you need to know about horse riding:

It’s inherently dangerous

It’s not simple

Beginners are put on a lead line or a lunge line because they do not yet know how to safely control the horse. Nor is sitting correctly on a horse very intuitive when you first begin. To actual sit in a balanced way that means you won’t fall off if the horse suddenly stops (let alone takes off, bucks, rears, spins, etc.) while also exerting control of the direction and speed you’re traveling at is a very complicated bit of full body isolated muscle use. It takes a period to develop this and so yes, beginners are put in situations where they have the need to control the horse “removed” (in both cases the person with the lead line or lunge line can cede or take control when necessary). This allows the rider to actually develop their balance independently of developing their aids (aids = how our seat, legs, and hand work to control the horse). Which often is actually a means of accelerating the learning process even though it can seem to slow it down--- because while yes you’re not “in charge” of the horse, developing your balance first means a quicker adaptation period to using your aids correctly because you’re not having to fight your body to communicate with the horse (should be also greatly noted this removes a lot of frustration and discomfort from the horse being used for beginner instruction).  When graduated off a line, yes an instructor stays in the arena because... that’s... that’s just how you get instruction? The purpose of a riding school or a lesson barn (or just taking lessons on your own horse or on a horse you lease) is that you are learning to ride. You’re not paying them for the privilege to ride, but you’re paying them for instruction on learning to ride safely, correctly, and confidently. While it seems really simple and straightforward when watching movies or shows (or even watching people out in the world), riding is complex. I can still recall the roughly year period of my life when I transitioned from walk/trot only to walk/trot/canter. There was a lot of muscle coordination and balance it took for me to do that and then even with that it took me a while to feel comfortable doing that. You need instruction to learn to do just about anything with horses and especially to do it correctly and safely. You take lessons when you are learning the basics, you take lessons as you continue to improve your skill, and even if you got to the Olympic level you’d still take lessons. Even if your goals are only to be someone who does trail riding, taking lessons to learn the fundamentals of balance and control should be something you pursue. As I said earlier, horses are dangerous. Hundreds of people die every year when participating in horse sports, including trail riding. To reduce your risk of being one of those hundred plus, you should invest the time in learning to safely halt, w/t/c off a lead, ride basic figures, ride basic obstacles, and develop a solid enough seat that if your horse takes off, rears, or bucks you should be able to stay on. People who are really wise and smart but are “only interested in trail riding” also invest time in riding their horse regularly in an arena, take regular lessons focused on developing their riding for their interest, and go to trail/obstacle specific clinics. Those people are the ones who are really looking out for themselves and their horses because at the end of the day... anything you do with horses is dangerous so anything you do to prevent a dangerous situation is smart.  Of people who trail ride and only trail ride without any arena time, lesson time, or clinic time invested that I personally know or have known... they all experienced major falls or accidents. One couple whose horses I exercised for a few years only took the horses out to ride for hunting season. They only began riding in their middle age and never with formal instruction. So when one of their horses panicked and fell on the man absolutely crushing his pelvis... it wasn’t that big of a surprise. He’s lucky he wasn’t hurt worse.My aunt broke her knee going to mount up on a trail because her horse took off. She used to ride regularly as a under 20′s woman but has only been the occasional trail rider since she bought horses again as a 40′s something woman. If she rode regularly and worked on her horse’s training issues... probably avoidable. Her friends she rides with who don’t even have an initial formal riding education to fall back on have also fallen and had serious injuries. One broke several vertebrae and one broke her collar bone. These are accidents that while not entirely avoidable for someone with a much greater riding education (because no accident with horses is 100% predictable or avoidable) are way less common. Generally, I also live in an area now with a lot of “fair weather” (do not ride with much/any regularity) trail riders without formal education. As a result I also get to read a lot of “HELP MY HORSE DUMPED ME AND TOOK OFF IN CAP. FOREST AND HAS BEEN MISSING 48 HOURS” in our local equestrian facebook groups. Too many of those have the follow up where you learn the horse has been hit by a car, broke a leg falling off a cliff, or just... never is seen from again.  So while one may seem more fun in the short term, in order to actively be going out and doing these things on your own and safely on your own you really need to put in the work of learning riding basics. 

[monbebe26-monstax]

Growth (Part 3)

(Part 1) (Part 2)

You had returned for the session and you had felt a little more comfortable during it. You were aware of how careful he seemed with you. He never touched you without asking and made sure to only touch you as long as you needed guidance. His touch was like fire but he was careful in guiding you without being too pushy. You appreciated that a lot more than he probably realized.

“How long have you lived here?” He asks. He was sitting across from you now that the session had ended. He still had another hour before he could lock the front doors and you were not ready to go back to your empty apartment yet.

“A few months. I moved in the spring.”

“A job?”

“Boyfriend. I can pretty much go anywhere with my job.”

He tries to hide his disappointment, but in all honesty he was not surprised. “What do you do?”

“Freelance writer.”

“Ah,” he smiles. “And your boyfriend?”

“Ex-boyfriend,” you clarify out of instinct and he picks up on the shift in your tone.

He frowns, fighting the urge to reach across and touch you again. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have…”

“It’s fine,” you cut Wonho off. “He’s part of the reason I am here actually. So you can thank him for having a beginner in your midst.”

He nods, the tip of his tongue darting out over his bottom lip. More questions piling up in his head but he didn’t want to push you too much.

You watch him, you can see the curiosity hidden underneath his reserved surface. You sigh before looking away. “He cheated. A lot. And when I asked him why he said because I wasn’t good enough.”

Wonho fought the urge to ball his hands into fists and hit the floor. “Fuck him,” Wonho practically growls and you turn your face back towards his. You scan him over. “You deserve better than him.”

“You don’t know me,” you say softly. You were surprised that he was so angered by your ex’s transgressions.

“I see you.”

You stare at him and he shrugs before looking at his bare feet. “Thank you.”

He smiles, embarrassment now painting his cheeks. “It’ll get better. I promise.”

“My yoga or my heart?” You ask while you both get to your feet and collect your things.

“Both,” he answers walking you to the door. “See you day after tomorrow?”

You agree with a smile before leaving him. He exhales shutting the door before going to sit at the front desk while he waits for the other instructor to finish her last session.

….

Three months later:

“I think you are ready to join the morning class again if you would like,” he says, his hand warm on your hip while the other holds your feet. Your legs were resting on his thigh as he kneeled in front of you on his other knee. He was stretching your lower half and it felt good. Your eyes closed and you fought back a sigh of contempt.

“I would rather not. I can probably just take another evening class if you think my time with you is over,” you say. You had grown closer in the last three months, a friendship having formed enough that you two even met outside of the yoga studio a few times a week.  

“No,” he says quickly. “That’s not it at all. I enjoy our sessions. You’ve improved so quickly over such a short time.”

You open your eyes and study him over. His gaze meets your and you see him exhale before he looks away, his cheeks pink.

“Everything okay?” You ask.

He bobs his head and switches to your other hip. You let him guide your legs to his other thigh. His fingers brush under the hem of your shirt against your bare skin and you shiver. His touch eliciting a warmth under the area he touched.

It always happened like that. Anytime he touched you whether it be his hand on your back as he guided you through a crowd at a movie theater, when his hand brushed yours by accident, or your legs touched when you sat next to each other, and even here in the studio whenever he touched you which was often as your knowledge and poses were always progressing and you were always learning something knew warmth would grow from his touch.

After your legs are in place his hand slides down to press against the curve of your hip. You watch him until he looks at you again. A blush still coloring his cheeks.

“Wonho, what is it?” You ask. You want to touch him, coax him into sharing what weighed on his shoulders at the moment.

He shakes his head clearing his throat while gently putting your feet on the floor and shifting away a little.

“Tell me,” you say softly sitting up.

He shakes his had again, turning away to grab his water bottle. You move quicker and snatch it from his reach. His lips part in surprise as you hold it behind your back.

“Tell me.”

His eyebrows raise at your demanding voice before he looks at the floor between you.

“Please,” you whisper and this time you do touch him. You use your free hand to touch his cheek. He turns his face into your touch, eyes fluttering shut. He exhales, a tired sigh, before he opens his eyes and lifts his head from your touch.

“If I tell you then I might not be permitted to be your instructor anymore.”

“What?” You ask, confusion washing over you. He bites his lip and you watch him fight internally with himself.

(Part 4)

[timeslostart]

December 7th, 2019

THE ROAD TO FASHION

Love creates all things...

I stumbled into fashion entirely by accident.  There was no "Ah Ha" moment where I said this is what I want to do for a living, no growing up with a shoe or purse addiction, no need to have brand name clothes or continually sketch the newest trending designs in my notebook.  It was a lot more basic than that.

As a young twenty something, I knew that I wanted to start my own business - that was it. I had no plan, no idea what I wanted to sell or what my business should be called but like many modern day entrepreneurs I decided it would be a good idea to open an Etsy shop. I took the first step down the road that day and I didn't even realize it.

Now when you've never run a business before you learn quite quickly that it is not as easy as it looks even with Etsy's cheat sheets. Setting up shop took quite a bit longer than I expected partially because I didn't have a name for my company and partially because I had no products to sell. This probably wasn't the best way to start off being a business owner but that's kind of what happens when you decide to walk in blind... you stumble.

I stumbled quite a lot. I think I spent more time catching myself from falling than I actually did building a business. In the beginning Times Lost Art or "TLA" as I like to refer to it now was more of a daydream while I was working at my "real" job than anything else. Case and point, I came up with the name for my business one day at work while I was washing my hands at the bathroom sink. Really inspirational stuff going on there, I mean REALLY!

I was big into cross-stitching and embroidery back then so that's what I decided to start making to sell in my Etsy shop. BIG MISTAKE! Anyone who has done any kind of embroidery can tell you first hand that it is extremely time consuming and you will never, ever, I REPEAT, never, ever be able to sell your embroidery for a price suitable enough to make up for the time you spent creating the piece itself.

And so I went on for a few years drifting in and out of the idea of starting my own business. My failures continually outweighing my successes. I was running out of drive and ambition and slowly but surely falling into the trap of living an ordinary, creativeless existence (if that is even a word).

Now working for a living isn't the only thing that can effect one's creativity. As with anyone's life, people can have an effect on it as well. Friends and lovers can appear and disappear as if by magic or at least that is how it feels sometimes. My artwork and designs were at a standstill, I was bored of spending so many hours cross-stitching even though I had become quite good at it. It was at that point that I decided to turn my attention to a newer hobby, one that didn't take quite as much focus and was quicker to execute... knitting.

I had taught myself how to knit a couple of years prior by watching YouTube videos of all things. (FYI - New Stitch A Day is an amazing website with numerous tutorial videos that I still reference all the time. I find them extremely easy to follow especially if you are a beginner knitter.) I found that I enjoy knitting very much. It is calming and relaxing and at the same time rewarding because you get to make something from literally nothing. You are essentially tying knots in a skein of yarn to turn into a garment. When you think of it in such layman's terms it really puts a new perspective on something that up until a few years ago I, myself, never considered an art form.

It wasn't until after my son was born, however, that I got this crazy idea to take that art form and start designing my own patterns. Up until that point it had never occurred to me to design my own, I had just been contented enough to follow someone else's knitting pattern. Once I had my baby, however, I had someone to make things for and the drive and ambition I had thought I'd lost came back in full force.

My very first design was created shortly after Halloween 2017.  My son and I are avid Batman fans but do you think I could find a bat toque? I looked everywhere in town and nothing. For it being Halloween where bats and ghosts and pumpkins are supposed to be abundant I was sorely disappointed. I had never made a toque before let alone used more than one colour of yarn at a time. Knitting in the round was something new to me as well but I was persistent. After about the third go around I finally managed to hammer out a basic design that was wearable. At this point my then 8 month old was so over trying on hats that he would pout every time I came near him with one.

Being able to make something for him was exactly the inspiration I needed because shortly after that nine more baby toque designs followed. I finally had a clear vision of what Times Lost Art was supposed to be. It wasn't the same vision I'd had when I began and for that I am thankful. I followed the road to fashion not by choice but by love, the love I had for my little "Gremlin". Now it was time to take that love and build a brand.

Gabrielle Vansteelandt 

Times Lost Art 

[bestsoftblog]

Best Compound Bow for Finger Shooting — Top Pick of 2020

Are you looking for the best compound bow for finger shooting that offers archers both beginners and experience finger shooters that ability to shoot accurately with a moderate target distance with their fingers?

Look no further?

Best Compound Bow for Finger Shooting

In this archery industry, I have read thousands of online reviews and analyze hundreds of pros and cons as well as watched tens of videos on how to use compound bows for finger shooting.

What is the Best Compound bow for finger shooting?

The Best Compound bow for finger shooting is the Oneida, which is the most accurate and nicest bow ever made with a moderate distance.

As the hardest hitting and smoothest bows, Oneida gives archers a blend of high performance and unique shooting experience.

This Oneida Eagle bows are made and built 100% in America.

The Oneida Black Eagle offers instinctive shooting and quicker speeds, easy to shoot, much faster, accurate draw cycle and better for long range shooting.

Here’s the best…

Related: 11 Best Compound Bow for Finger Shooters in 2020

Can you finger shoot a compound bow?

You can shoot a compound bow easily with no release under these scenarios:

You can shoot with two fingers if you have a long frame or if you have a short draw length.

You do this shooting by working around the string’s steep angle when at full draw.

Generally, this is called shooting a compound bow without a release.

Although, in some instances, it might decrease accuracy, but you should look for a bow that allows efficient finger shooting.

Related: Best Compound Bow under 500

Can you target shoot a bow in your backyard?

Beginner archers want to practice target shooting at home, and you can target shoot a bow in your backyard as well.

It makes archery convenient and more fun with a backyard target range.

Choosing a backyard target and backyard ranges are possible in rural areas or in cities if you are not risking a potential accident or not actually hunt.

How far can a 25 lb bow shoot?

A 25 lbs draw weight can hit a target from 60 or even 70 yards away successfully.

This 25lb bow shoot is great recreational target practice and can go as far as shooting 100 feet without losing accuracy, and with this kind of draw weight.

What is the easiest bow to shoot?

A powerful compound bow is easier to shoot and aim at a far target than a powerful recurve bow because the string forces at a full draw are reduced due to let-off.

Again, the compound bow is the easiest to shoot among other types of bow because it is more adjustable, smaller, has more model choice to choose from and available in the market.

Compound bows are a compromise between crossbows and recurve bows in that they are more challenging than crossbows and easier to shoot than recurves.

The following bows are very easy to pull and shoot.

PSE shoot down

Bohning Archery

Stan SX3 & HBC

Sweetspot

Barnsdale bows

Related: Best Compound Bow for under 300

Do you need a release aid for a compound bow?

Yes, you do need a release aid for compound bow; however, you can shoot a compound bow successfully without a release if your bow allows it.

If you do want to shoot a compound bow with your fingers, you need to master the fingers shot.

The draw weight of your compound bows tends to double the draw weight of recurve bow; this creates more tension on the fingers when drawing the bow and reduces comfort.

Related: Best Compound Bow under 600

Tuning compound Bow for Finger shooting

Tuning compound Bow for Finger shooting

Every finger shooter should use a shoot around rest to align their arrow nocks.

This will allow the cock feather to stick straight away from your bow.

Tweak your arrow nock rotation in order to achieve a perfect fletching clearance.

Watch this video and learn how to set up a compound bow for finger shooting that are both instinctive and barebow shooting.

Instinctive shooting

Instinctive shooting

How to set up a compound bow for finger shooting

How to set up a compound bow for finger shooting

You can shoot a compound bow with fingers as they are growing shorter with average bow having 32 to 34 inch axle to axle.

In finger shooting, it is difficult to shoot a bow shorter than 38 to 40 inches because it results in painful finger pinch due to acute string angles that are created at full draw.

How to shoot a compound bow

How to shoot a compound bow

Related: Best Women’s Beginner Bow

What is the Best Hoyt Compound Bow?

The Hoyt Defiant 34 compound bow is the number one choice bow designed perfectly as a fast and solid bow capable of hunting, 3D shooting, target shooting and can do anything you want and need.

Hoyt Compound bows are premier hunting bows that are in 3 categories such as ALPHA, ULTRA AND TURBO.

They are made of high-performance carbon or aluminum manufacturing.

ALPHA: These Hoyt compound bows are the most compact and lightest series designed perfectly for tree stands, ideal for long miles or blinds.

ULTRA: These Hoyt Compound bows are designed for stability when target hunting requires longer shots and features a longer axle to axle for extra forgiveness.

TURBO: The TURBO category of Hoyt Compound bows feature the fastest series with speeds up to 350 feet per second for maximum kinetic energy.

Hoyt Tribute — Hoyt Finger Bow

The Hoyt Tribute bow is specially designed for the finger shooter at 45” axle to axle and brace height of 8” for comfort and smooth shooting style.

This compound bows rolls smoothly straight off your fingers shock free and silently.

What is the Best Finger Shooting Bow?

The Barnsdale Classic X is the best bow ever made for finger shooting and are accurate and forgiving.

Read Also: Best Compound Bow under 1000

What is the Best Finger Shooting Compound Bow 2020?

The Hoyt Prevail 40 is the best bow for finger shooting in 2020 and is purpose–built to help you prevail in target shooting and hunting.

This Hoyt Prevail 40 boasts of XT2000 limb, rear stabilizer location, SVX and X3 cam & ½ performance systems and other advanced technologies.

Features

5.0 lbs mass weight

312FPS (ATA)

7 ¾“ Brace height

40 ¼“ Axle to Axle

What are the Best Mathews Finger Shooting Bows?Mathews Conquest Apex 7

The Mathews Conquest Apex 7 is a great bow that offers absolute and blazing speeds of up to 320 fps and is one of the most popular Mathews target bows used in 3D field competitions.

Its length provides stability with a weight ranges 30–40lbs, 40–50lbs, 60–70lbs and 70–80lbs.

Features

65% let-off

38” Axle to Axle

4.9 lbs mass weight

Draw length range 23”-30.5” and half sizes 23.5”-30.5”

IBO speed of 320 feet per second

Available in RH and LH orientation

Mathews Genuine bow string

Brace height of 7 inches

Straight line perimeter weighted Apex 7 bow cams

Parallel limbs

Frequently Asked QuestionsIs Bear Archery a good brand?

The Bear Archery is a good brand and one of the best compound bow manufacturers that offers typical compound bows in high quality classic designed looks and provides good value for your money.

What is the meaning of archers?

Archers are persons who shoot arrows from a bow for hunting, target shooting, sport, gaming practice or as a weapon to hunt games.

Is it bad to keep a recurve bow strung?

There is a risk to keep a string or unstring your recurve bow — though you can leave the bow strung for hours.

Keep in mind that recurve bow failures could happen while you are unstringing or stringing.

You can just leave your recurve bow strung if you are shooting on and off during the day.

Since a recurve bow is a bow whose limbs curve away from the archer when unstrung.

A recuvre bow stores more energy to deliver greater energy efficiently than straight-limbed bows.

This gives more amounts of kinetic energy and speed to the arrows.

What does a beginner archer need?

Archery can involve a range of accessories and equipment.

For a beginner archer to get started, all what you need are the basic equipment and accessories such as

A bow

A string

A bracer

Some arrows

A quiver

Finger tab

A bow stand

A bow stringer

A target to shoot at.

When you are beginning or getting started in archery, it can be challenging and overwhelming to figure out how to safely and properly shoot your bow.

Are Easton Arrows good?

The Easton Scout Arrows are good and an excellent choice for beginner archers as well as archers who shoot from a low poundage bow.

However, for archers whose bows have a draw weight of more than 30 pounds, it is advisable not to use these arrows because your bow is too powerful for Easton arrows.

How long should my arrows be for a 29 inch draw?

A beginner archer should be happy with a longer arrow; however, most experienced archers go for 27.5 inch arrow length for a 29 inch draw.

So how long should your arrows be depends on your skill level in archery and how far you’ve shot arrows at different targets.

What is index finger Archery release?

An index finger archery release is where a trigger is pulled to fire the arrow and control the shot precisely.

It gives the archer the ability to squeeze the trigger to activate and control the arrow and shoot the arrow precisely and accurately.

What is Trigger in Archery

In archery, a trigger is also called a release aid, mechanical release, or release and is a device that helps archers to fire arrows accurately and more precisely by using a trigger to release the bowstring, rather than the archer’s fingers.

It makes the release of the bow string faster and quicker to reduce the amount of torque put onto the bowstring from the archer’s fingers.

What is a longbow?

A longbow is a type of bow that is tall, almost equal to the user’s height and allow the archer a fairly long draw.

It limbs are circular or D-shaped in cross section and relatively narrow, so longbow is not recurved significantly.

What can be used as a bow string?

String materials that are traditional materials include raw hide, linen silk, hemp, sinew, and other vegetable fibers.

Natural fibers are effective and can be used on traditional wooden or composite bows but would be unusual on a compound bow or modern recurve bows.

Conclusion

Now you have learned what the best compound bow for finger shooting is. That is the Oneida, because it is the most accurate, nicest bow ever made for finger shooters.

Final Thoughts on the best compound bow for finger shooting

Oneida remains the smoothest bow that provides archers a blend of unique shooting experience and high performance.

Culled from Bestsoft Nigeria: https://www.bestsoftnigeria.biz/blog/best-compound-bow-for-finger-shooting/#ixzz6Yx5O30T4

[agungqiuqiu-blog]

Online Poker I Bet You Will Have Fun

Online poker is popular more than ever; individuals from throughout the world are playing poker 24 hours a day. Online poker continues to be comparatively new, starting in 1998 but really hitting the web industry big in 2005. The type of online poker is fair - if you're skilled you may make money, which is often an additional pay check to assist you at the end of the month, but if you're just into poker as a hobby the you could have plenty of safe fun playing poker online.

Poker Players

Poker is hot and poker players are actually huge celebrities. Poker players playing online poker can vary from a novice to a professional World Number of Poker winner. Poker players now have the ability to join any online poker game at their leisure and according with their schedule of free time. Poker is the ultimate test of skill and can be extremely unpredictable. Poker has many variations, even although the rules of play and strategy differs, the hierarchy of winning hands remains the same.

Player Etiquette

Players are normally seated according to the order they arrive at the table. At some online poker sites players can upload pictures or images to represent themselves at the table. Whilst playing, players are permitted to take a moment to take into account their actions, but are requested to do so in timely manner. Players are asked to check the Sit out Next Hand box if they have to attend to a matter far from their computer. Players that intentionally decrease play will be warned and if such behaviour continues might have their accounts suspended. Players should not endeavour to play when they are tired, upset or drunk.

Free Poker Play

Many online poker rooms also permit the players to play for low stakes (as low as 1¢) and often offer poker free rolls (where there's no entry fee), attracting beginners. Many online poker rooms also provide free money play so that players may practice these skills in several poker https://agungqiuqiu.net/ games and limits without the danger of losing real money. People who previously had no way to master and improve because they had no someone to play with now have the ability to learn the overall game much quicker and gain experience from free money play. Whilst the practice of comping players with free meals, rooms in hotels, and merchandise is fairly common in brick and mortar casinos, online poker rooms have needed to produce new and exciting ways to reward faithful customers.

Rules Of Play

Once you have decided in your game of choice, you will need to understand the rules. This shouldn't take too much time, especially if you know the basic poker rules beforehand. Once you're familiar with the guidelines, you will need to formulate a fundamental poker strategy. Learning the basic rules of poker takes only several minutes and getting used to the flow of poker takes only half an hour or so. The rules are simple but don't forget that there are lots of poker variations available online.

Online casino poker players are no longer considered flukes when it comes to winning big money. Online poker players are definitely the new breed of poker players and they are already giving the professionals a function for his or her money. Playing poker online is becoming a favorite and acceptable pass time in many elements of the world. Playing online poker is safe when you are in the secure surroundings of you own home and you're not put through the dangers of common society.

[johnroycomic]

Entirely Free Comedy Class - Revised Edition

Hey all, my Entirely Free Comedy Class is now over five years old, and looking back, it could be clearer and better, and more detailed.  So I’m revising it.  And the first week is ready.  Here it is!

WEEK ONE

In every major city, someone is teaching a stand-up comedy class, often charging hundreds of dollars for the effort. While I know some professional comics who have benefited from these classes, the majority consensus among my fellow comedians is that they are of dubious value.

They may help a little to build courage and comfort on stage, but they will not replace any of the many hours you will have to spend in Open Mics if you want to tell jokes for a living.

There is only one way to get good at stand-up comedy, and that is to do stand-up comedy. There is no short cut.  There is no homework.  You can practice your jokes in your room until they are tight and polished.  You can practice them on the very stage you are going to tell them on.  You still won't know if they are funny they are until they encounter a live audience.  You can't know anything about a joke until an audience of everyday people, who expect to laugh, reacts to it.  

A comedy class is an artificially supportive environment.  You can't get the honest reactions you need to build an act from fellow students and a teacher who wants a good Yelp review.  Only performing stand-up in real “game time” conditions will do.  Not only do you need to learn on the job, you can only learn on the job.  For the comedy beginner, there is no substitute for the open mic.

I am not saying stand-up instruction is impossible.  I'm not saying all you can tell a new  comic is to go out, plow through their sets with no game plan, and hope for the best.  I did that.  It was a nightmare.

I would love to have had some kind of road map to help me know what to focus on.  I got important advice later in my career that I would have loved to have had access to at the start.  Many aspects of this art form took me years of wrong turns to figure out.  I would love to spare the next generation some of that confusion.  They might get better quicker if I could tell them what they needed to know right when they needed know it.

This is my twelve week class on stand-up comedy.  It's everything I've learned about writing and performing comedy. This book is the textbook.  Your city's open mics are the classroom. And through the magic of Youtube, the best comedians of all time will be your guest speakers.  

Read one chapter a week.  Watch the featured video clips and answer the study questions.  Then put the instructions into practice at your local Open Mics.  After you have gone up at least three times practicing the lessons of that week, read the next chapter. Repeat for twelve weeks.

There are two goals of the class. One is for you to have a five minute set you can do at any comedy showcase with confidence.  The second, more important goal is give you an effective process for improving your act that you can use as long as you do stand-up comedy.  It's the  

process I use every week to this day.

I focus on basic fundamentals. I don’t tell you what to write or talk about. Previous books about stand-up presented a “right way” to write jokes.  As the sheer variety of modern comedians shows, there isn't one.  My process can help you with any style you might choose. As long as the essential elements of comedy are present, you can make people laugh any way you like.  

Assignment One:

Find out where the comedy open mics in your area are.  Maybe they are on a web site that lists all the comedy shows in your city.  Maybe they are listed with the music shows of the week.  Maybe you can find them listed among the offerings of local theater companies.  Googling your city's name and “comedy open mic” is as good a way to start as any.  Find out how many you can go to this week.  

Find out what you need to do to perform on them.  Sign up if necessary.

If at all possible, go to open mics that are listed as specifically for comedy.  This class was designed with those in mind.  

It may be hard to find comedy open mics in some areas.  If this is the case, all is not lost.  Many music open mics will let you do stand-up as well, but you'll want to check with the host and venue first.  If you don't know who to talk to at a venue, ask the bartender.  They always know.  

Music open mics will be a tougher audience to crack.  You will have the added challenge of getting the audience to stop talking and focus. Music acts generally do not require an audience's undivided attention the way comedians do.  That will be something you have to earn.  If you can grab them and make them laugh on a night that's not conducive to comedy, that's a win you can be proud of.

Assignment Two:

Write five minutes of material.  

What sort of material? This is up to you.

I know this is a vague assignment that doesn't give the student much guidance.  Even the word “material” is vague.  It seems specifically chosen to describe as little as possible.  It just means “something that exists.”  It doesn't get any clearer when you look at the other words comedians use to describe what

makes up their act.  “Stuff.” “Chunks.” “Bits.”  Bits of what?

Well, bits of whatever you can think of that might make someone laugh. You'll need all of it.  Those skewed insights on life you've had over the years?  Those things in the world everyone thinks are normal but you can prove are actually insane? Remember your analogy that made your  friend say “I never thought of it that way”    You finally have a place for all that stuff.   And they give you a microphone!  

As a famous comedian once said, “You should write whatever you can't stop thinking about.”

Still stuck?  Don't worry.  It's understandable.  You haven't had any practice.  Somehow, for all the millions of different writing assignments you get in school, “Write something funny” never comes up.

Try this.

  Think of something you said that made your friends laugh. What additional information would strangers need to have to laugh at that?  What words could quickly explain the situation and context just enough that the funny part made sense?  Add those words in before the part you said to your friends.  Your punch line now has a setup line.  You now have a joke.

I've written many jokes this way.

Once a brutish guy came up to me after my act and said “it’s weird you’re hanging out after the show. Most comedians won't hang out after the show.”   He said “comedians” like a snotty kid would if they were going, “Ooh... look at the big comedian.”

I didn't respond to the tone in his voice.  I was nice. “That’s weird, we always hang out after the show,”  I said. We do.

The guy ignores it.  He says, “Fucking queers don’t want to drink with me.”  Oh, he's a bigoted asshole, I thought.  No wonder no one wants to drink with him.

I whispered to my friend Adam, under my breath, “Now I get it.”   He laughed.

In real life, I only said “Now I get it,” and Adam laughed.  I didn't need to describe the guy.  Adam was looking right at him.  I didn't need to tell Adam we were at a comedy show.  He was with me the whole time.  All Adam needed was “Now I get it,” and it was funny.  An audience of strangers needs more.

When I related the story in my act, I began, “I go all over doing comedy. Sometimes you meet cool people. Sometimes you don’t.” I described the guy's initial question, and how I was confused because comedians always hang out after the show.  Then I did his asshole voice going “Fucking queers don't want to drink with me,” followed by, “and I was like, “Now I get it.”   I got a laugh in the same place as I got it from Adam that night.  

With those modifications, something I said that made my friend laugh became a joke I could do on stage.

Incidentally, Adam doesn't appear in the joke at all.  His presence at the scene is not essential to why it's funny.  The joke is about me and the guy, not Adam.  That night, Adam was the audience.  In a comedy show, I have a real audience.  Telling them that Adam was there is just needless words that don't serve my purpose, which is to get a laugh when I say, “Now I get it.”  You only need to include what the crowd absolutely needs to know to get the joke.  Everything else should go.  

Don’t spend more than five hours writing your material.

It's not a novel, it's five minutes of comedy.  

The important thing is to get up on that stage as soon as possible. Don’t put off that first performance.   I know it can be scary.  It may be nerve-wracking when you picture yourself up there, but prolonging the wait only makes it scarier.  Best to rip the band-aid off as quickly as possible.  Your fear will diminish once the experience is no longer a scary unknown.

Some people wait months and months trying to hone the perfect material before they do their first set.  This is pointless.  There is no way to anticipate the reaction your jokes will get before you tell them. Further hours of editing are a waste of time.  Get your ideas in front of an audience as soon as possible.  You will have all the time in the world to re-write it later, when you actually know what worked.

Some of you may be asking, “Wait! What if I don’t want to write ‘jokes?’ What if I want to do characters or tell stories or just talk to the crowd? Why can’t I get laughs that way?”

You can! You can do anything you want as long as you can get them to laugh after you do it.

Stories and character monologues work a lot like “jokes.”  If one of these is your thing, for every sentence in this book that mentions “jokes,” just replace “joke” with “character monologue line” or “story beat” and the principles are the same.  

Keep in mind that a stand-up story has to have laughs peppered throughout the entire piece.  It can’t just pay off at the end. No matter what approach you take, you are still going to have to make the audience laugh at the rate they are accustomed to, which is roughly between two and four laughs a minute.  You can make them wait longer here and there to build tension, but the longer they have to wait, the bigger that payoff is going to need to be as well.  Stand-up is both the widest and the most narrow form of performance there is. You can do anything you want…. as long as the audience does one specific thing over and over again.  

Improv and talking to the crowd are a little tougher to teach than jokes. They rely on you being funny in the moment. They are a product of your pure comedy instincts and the amount of practice you’ve had expressing them.  The only way to improve is to start racking up stage time doing improv and crowd work,the way an athlete must practice being in the moment to perform better in those moments. Week Nine of this class is devoted to doing just that.

For now, follow the joke writing exercises and develop written material anyway. It is the best way to learn what makes a series of words funny. Think of it as practicing improv in slow motion.  Besides, improvisers and crowd workers like Rory Scovel and Jeff Ross still need something to do on TV sets where they don’t let you wing it.  Even in your live act, it can help to have some surefire lines.  While improv can light up a crowd like nothing else in comedy, it misses sometimes.  It's unavoidable.  You will appreciate having tested jokes to fall back on when the riffing doesn't work.

Write your new five minutes in a dedicated space for this class.  It can be a notebook.  It can be a computer file.  But it should have no other writing in it.  I find a small notebook is the best because you can carry it anywhere.  If you prefer to just type your bits into your phone that works too, but I feel that writing words out long-hand helps commit them to memory.  

I advise writing your jokes out in full sentences, but if you can remember:

“I gotta get healthier. I can’t have one more day go by where the BEST thing I can say about myself is that the pot I smoked made me too lazy to eat Carl’s Jr. TWICE.”

from:

“Gotta Get healthier/best thing I can say/too lazy from pot to eat Carl’s Jr. 2x”

…then I am not going to make you write it all out just because I think you should. But the MINUTE you find yourself staring at “Candy Crush/Slot Machine guy WTF?” in your own handwriting with no idea what it means, it's complete sentences from now on. A forgotten bit could be the Netflix Special closer that now you’ll never have.

Assignment Three

Once your five minutes is written down, it's time to memorize it. Don't freak out from the “m” word.  You don't necessarily have to know it word for word.  But some level of memorization is necessary.  You don’t want to be in actual danger of forgetting the point of what you’re talking about.

Some people like the certainty of knowing the words by heart. It's one less thing to worry about, and besides, they’re proud of that wording so why not make sure to show it off?

Others find memorization a source of stress and would rather not have another thing hanging over their head they have to remember not to screw up. For them, a loose idea they can sort of “jam on” is better.

Whichever sounds best to you is how you should do it, as starting out in stand-up is all about increasing your comfort level as you do something that provokes intense anxiety.

However you choose, I have found that whether a joke was written out verbatim the minute the idea appeared or whether it took ten tries through informal riffing, a “right way” based on brevity and the strongest, most colorful word choices begins to suggest itself. By the time a joke is ready to be recorded, even the “jazziest” comics tell it pretty similarly from night to night.

There are advantages and drawbacks to both approaches. A memorized joke sounds polished and can be delivered with confidence, each syllable emphasized for maximum

power. You may discover interesting language sitting down and writing that your onstage riffing brain would never have landed on in the moment.

On the flip side, there is a directness and energy to an improvised wording that a memorized bit can lack. It sounds like you're just hanging out with the audience and that's powerful.  

When you script a bit out verbatim, there can be a tendency to think of it as “set in stone.”  You deliver the lines like an actor and only those lines.  You can forget that there is always room to add things because you are not talking “in the moment.”

Personally, I go up with at least one written-out punchline for each new bit that I intend to work on. On a fresh page, I write down all the punchlines and premises in a list before I go up. The Carl’s Jr. bit from above might be listed as “Lazy/Pot/Carl’s Jr.”

My set list might look like this:

Lazy/Pot/Carl's Jr.

Comedians don't hang out/Now I get it

40/Green Day

40/Close Bar/Bulls

Favorite Gay Bar/Ke$ha

After it's all written out, I take the list up with me and riff.  No matter what, I always make sure I hit at least one prepared punchline for each subject I bring up.  That way, bomb or crush, the audience will know I had a purpose to each bit. You will test their patience if they feel you are just meandering around with no payoff.  They will check out.  I feel I owe it to them to reward their attention with at least one thought-out comedic idea for each of my premises.  They should know I respected them enough to at least have a point to each of my ramblings, even if the jokes don't all land.

If they happen to really like one of those punchlines, I will keep talking, in case I find something else funny. They seem to like where this is going, so let’s find out what else is there.  This has lead to great stuff, but if it’s a dead end, at least they got a solid joke they liked before I went exploring.

Over time, as the repetition and trial and error process continues, I find my jokes inevitably find their way into a series of words that changes little from night to night.  It's the best way I have found to get that idea out, and I know it by heart.

Assignment Four

Do your five new minutes at an open mic.  Then do this same five minutes at two more open mics.  Write down what worked and what didn't, but don't adjust anything yet.  Perform the same jokes in the same order.

With the amount of people trying to do comedy now, some open mics give you just four, three, and sometimes even two and a half minutes to do your act.  If this happens, do as much of your material as you are able to get out in the time allotted, but don't rush.  Tell your jokes the way you think they work best.  Don't try to jam them all in just to say you did it. Get to what you can and give those jokes the best chance they have to succeed.

Assignment Five

After your week of performances, or however long it takes to do a set at three open mics, look over your notes.

Write down your answers to the following questions.   In the back of this book, you can find them on the easy to copy “Set Questions” Worksheet.

Set Questions

Which of your jokes got a laugh?

Which jokes didn’t?

Why do you think the jokes that did work worked?

Why do you think the jokes that didn’t work didn’t?

What could you change about the ones that didn’t work to maybe make them work?

Could changing jokes that worked make them work even better?

Keep this info handy for next week.  We will get into it in depth.

Assignment Six:

When you've done your three performances, and you've written down your initial thoughts about your jokes, search the internet for the late, great Greg Giraldo's special “Midlife Vices.”  It is currently view-able on Youtube.

Watch the special.

Answer the following questions.  They are also printed out on an easy-to-copy Worksheet in the back of this book.  It's the one that says “Video Questions.”  Every week there will be comedians to watch and you will answer these same questions every time, so making a bunch of copies of this one might be a good idea.

Video Questions

How would you describe the comic's stage character, that is to say, the personality they present in their act?

Were the jokes presented as true stories from life?  Or clearly false “jokes?”

What made you laugh in their act? Why?

What didn’t work for you? Why? Why do you think it may have worked for others?

How did the comic use their body to get laughs?

How did the comic use their face to get laughs?

How did the comic use their voice to get laughs?

What did you notice that made their act unique?

How did the comic structure the jokes that they wrote?

You will find answers at the beginning of next week's lesson.

That's it!  That’s week one. Get started and I'll see you again next week. Kill 'em!

[aquamystic]

hello! let’s talk about subliminals which is related to the Law of Attraction. 📝💕🌌

✨ okay so what are subliminals?

wait, slow down and let me talk about something really important: the subconscious. it is actually a complex concept still quite unknown from humans. imagine your mind as an iceberg. the most revealed part which consists of 10% of the iceberg is your conscious mind, it is what you use to make decisions, to remember something, to think. and now, there is the 90% of the mind which is called the subconscious. as it says, it is the part you are not fully conscious about, it is our higher self. it is like a storage room of everything else: your beliefs, your memories, your skills, your imagination, what you have experienced and it even controls the systems in your body. the subconscious isn’t rational or logic, that’s why when you are stressed and anxious, just telling yourself that everything will be fine and that there is no need to stress won’t particularly work. so imagine if we could control and use it, we could achieve so many things!

✨ I understand what it is but you still haven’t explained what are subliminals!

patience my friend. a subliminal message is an affirmation or a message (visual or auditive) that we mostly use to “talk’ to our subconscious. what can it do? well, so many things! you can change your appearance, change your life, get a new phone…

✨ why do you say it is related to the Law of Attraction?

I’m getting boring but let’s define what is the Law of Attraction. it is a law just as gravity and a belief that our thoughts, vibrations, moods affect the universe. basically, if you are desperate and negative, you will attract negative things. everything is energy and vibrations: plants, objects, you. and the energy/vibration attracts the same energy/vibration. so, your subconscious needs to be on the same page as your conscious mind so as to have the same vibration as what you desire and for it to manifest it for you.

✨ cool! so, I can get what I want in just a couple of days?

hmm, no. that’s not how it works. being in a state of mind positive enough to attract what you want is not as easy as it seems. there is still anxiety, stress, doubt, etc… moreover, the subconscious mind and the universe will bring you what you desire when theyfeel like it is the time. usually, you get results from a subliminal between a few weeks and 3 months. as always, we aren’t equal and some take in affirmations better than others and tend to be positive so they will get results quicker. it is perfectly normal because our subconscious mind has to analyze the informations. in a more general rule, it takes 21 days to form new habits.

✨ I think I get it now but how can I listen to subliminals and where?

simply on youtube and with headphones if possible. there are many people who have decided to help others by making subliminals. they write affirmations for your subconscious and they put music on it so that it is more distracting to listen to it. moreover, some say that knowing the affirmations isn’t great and that it slows the results and so that it is better to not hear them. for example, you want blue eyes. a subliminal maker will write affirmations like : “I have blue eyes immediately”, “My eyes are always blue instantly”, etc…

💫 before listening to subliminals:

erase any blockages: especially if you are new in the subliminal community, it is best to listen to a special subliminal who will get rid of blockages, allow your mind to let you change safely, etc… the best is to listen for 21 days minimum! but I know how impatient we can be so whenever you feel that you are clean, you can start the real subliminal journey.

💫 and then, advices and things to do:

don’t listen to too many subliminals especially if you are a beginner: the maximum recommended is 2/3 to get optimal results but if you feel like you can listen to more, then it is perfectly okay. when I talk about videos I am actually talking about topics which means that if you want to get taller, listen to one video about it. if you want to have straighter hair, listen to only one video about it. and so on. so do not listen to more than one video about one topic. listening to two or more videos about getting straighter hair will create clutters and slow your results down.

drink water: your body is mostly made of water and it needs a lot to function. listening to subliminals is tiring for you subsconscious so if you don’t want to have an headache, I recommend drinking a lot.

be healthy: you are what you eat and subliminals takes a lot of energy.

act “as if”: act like you already have your results, compliment your “gorgeous blue eyes” while you still have brown/green eyes. buy clothes with a smaller size if you want a lose weight.

avoid mirrors: don’t look at yourself in the mirror at least one/two hours after listening to subliminals or it will confuse your mind and again, slow down the results.

listen to subliminals at a low volume: so that only your subsconscious hears the affirmations.

meditate: it is a great way to get faster results.

detachment: being obsessed about the results is bad, bad, bad and this is often the number one reason why we do not get results. you need to be confident that your results are coming and be relaxed about it.

take breaks: your subconscious needs to rest and to take in all the affirmations. don’t listen too much, take breaks.

listen to the subliminals between 30 minutes and one hour is the best but you can do less or a bit more.

make a playlist and be loyal: changing videos all the times is useless and will do nothing but create clutters.

take action: you want to lose weight? work out. subliminals will help A LOT but working out is still a great solution.

visualize: if you are listening to a “desired face subliminal” for instance, you will need to imagine yourself with this desired face.

love yourself: wait, we are supposed to love ourself before changing ourself? well yes! p o s i t i v e  v i b r a t i o n, my friend.

so, there are also many other ways to have better results but this post is getting very long and I think I have explained most of it. if I made a mistake do not hesitate to tell me and if you have any questions, hit me up! I do not have the ultimate knowledge and there are many people who know much more than I do and I recommend going in the subliminal amino, it is where I learn a lot of things. one last thing: be careful with the subliminals makers. respect them, thank them and be careful to not give requests if they don't accept them. but if you really don't feel good listening to the videos of one of them, stop listening. ‼️💙

I hope it helps everyone and good journey in the subliminal world! 💫🌍💗📝‼️

important update: the subliminal community has grown a lot and we have discovered that the subconscious mind is actually so much more powerful that you don’t NEED to complete any of these rules. your mind is limitless and your reality is yours to change at any moment. you don’t have to drink water, to flush your mind or any of this, the only thing you need to do is to get rid of your limiting beliefs: you can change reality in seconds. if you are interested in knowing more, check out solarsubs on youtube, she wrote a google doc on this. ✨

sorry for the misinformation, it was an old post and i have learned since then. but the good news is: there is no rules! 🌸

[mahamukti-blog]

Checklist: What to Look for When Choosing a Yoga Class

In case you're new to yoga, you probably won't realize what's in store when you stroll in the entryways of a beginner's yoga class out of the blue. You probably won't realize how to begin in picking a learner's yoga class to visit. Here's a "how to" agenda.

Nail down your objectives and locate the correct style for you.

Everybody comes to yoga for various reasons. Now and then these distinctions are slight, different occasions they're tremendous.

For example, would you say you are keen on an extreme physical exercise to throbbing music, or would you say you are on to a greater extent an otherworldly way towards (calm) edification? It is safe to say that you are pulled in to yoga in view of its medical advantages, and assuming this is the case, is it physical or passionate wellbeing you are most intrigued by?

It is safe to say that you are keen on the rationality and rich customs of yoga, or would you say you are on the other outrageous and wouldn't be found dead recounting a mantra?

Whatever your own needs and proclivities, there's a yoga for you. On the off chance that few kinds of yoga school in goa are offered in your general vicinity, do your exploration on the web or in the library to discover which style would be the best fit for you.

When you recognize what it is you're searching for, you can set a few objectives. Call the educator of the amateur yoga class you're thinking about and inquire as to whether your desires are sensible.

Pick a drop-in or arrangement fledgling yoga class

A drop-in yoga class enables you to pay-as-you go. There will probably be some turnover week to week with respect to which understudies appear for class. The instructor is probably going to keep this class on the mellow side, since understudies will be at such varying capacity levels.

This might be exactly what you're searching for in the event that you simply need a sample of yoga yet would prefer not to purchase a costly bundle of classes. This may likewise be a decent decision for you if your calendar won't enable you to go to a class each week. Remember there are huge disadvantages.

One, on the grounds that the class is progressing, you will never get the chance to begin at "the starting." You might be somewhat lost at first while you get familiar with the way of life of the class. Likewise, drop-in amateur yoga classes will in general be tedious.

An arrangement yoga class is diverse in that you purchase a set number of classes and each class expands on what you realized in the earlier week. A decent arrangement class is redundant just in that there is some audit each time, however then the educator presents new material.

You can adapt considerably more a lot quicker in an arrangement class, however again there are downsides. In the first place, on the off chance that you miss a class it might be hard to make up the material that you missed. Additionally, you will be approached to pay for the entire arrangement in advance.

Investigate your dimension of duty, your calendar and your spending limit and choose whether a drop-in or an arrangement class is better for your requirements.

Ensure the instructor has sufficient preparing.

Yoga is currently a noteworthy supporter of games wounds. This can be credited to two things: understudies propelling themselves unreasonably hard for flawlessness and lacking preparing of educators.

Try not to be bashful in getting some information about their experience. There are affirmations for educating "exercise center yoga" that an educator can get in a long end of the week. A multi day preparing is sufficiently only to make somebody hazardous. This isn't to imply that that a portion of the general population who begin with such accreditations don't end up being phenomenal teachers by committing themselves to rehearse and expanding their insight through the span of months and years.

There are obviously individuals who show yoga with no formal confirmation at all, and however it may be troublesome for these educators to get obligation protection, there's nothing unlawful about it. Remember that yoga is a profound convention a great many years old, and giving somebody a testament for learning a couple of postures and breathing methods would have been an odd thought in fact even seventy years prior. It is one thing to get up one morning and choose to show yoga with next to zero involvement. It is very another to educate subsequent to living for a considerable length of time under the tutelage of an ace yogi who simply doesn't put stock in declarations.

When in doubt, search out yoga instructors with somewhere around 200 hours of preparing. In the United States there's an association considered the Yoga Alliance that offers a vault of educators who went to preparing programs that satisfy certain guidelines. Somebody can have the Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT) assignment from the Yoga Alliance and still be a terrible instructor, however generally RYTs are a sure thing.

Investigate extra expenses of the yoga class.

Some of the time there are extra costs associated with taking a novice's yoga class other than the enlistment expense. You may need to purchase your own yoga tangle, tie, or different props, for example. In certain classes you may need to purchase certain books for study or even unique dress of a specific shading.

It is essential to recognize what the related expenses are direct so you and your financial balance won't experience any shocks later on.

[duodigital]

Blogging vs. YouTube — Which One Should You Start in 2022?

by DUO DIGITAL

Blog vs. video blog: A blog or a YouTube channel—which is superior? Which one would be more profitable as a business and which one should you start as an entrepreneur? If these questions have been keeping you up at night, you’re in the correct spot.

This article provides information on current events, data on blogging and YouTube businesses, and suggestions for starting a profitable business on either platform.

We think the entire blogging community is doing themselves a disservice by ignoring their youtube channel and vice versa.

As a result, I’ve written this essay explaining how you should utilize each platform to develop a highly lucrative internet business.

Yes, I do both. I run my own prosperous blog and upload content to YouTube. As a result, I’ll also provide you with blogging advice that works.

When it comes to launching these internet businesses from scratch, YouTube is without a doubt the winner. This is because setting up a channel costs nothing, in contrast to setting up a blog, which costs money for web hosting and a domain name.

But, Let’s review this in Detail.

Which One Turns a Profit Quicker? YouTube or blogging?

Beginners who want to start making money online quickly and create content frequently ask me this question.

Should you create a YouTube video and hope for affiliate link hits, or should you master search engine optimization and publish a blog post that ranks on Google and receives millions of views over time?

They both have the potential to be financially successful, so the answer to this question is yes. However, I believe that YouTube is more likely to generate income quickly than blogging.

This is because posting video content on YouTube makes it much simpler to rank there.

Since your YouTube material will rank at the top of the search results for the first 72 hours, you don’t require viral videos.

When this occurs, your intended audience will search YouTube for your particular video.

After that, you can include affiliate links in your YouTube description box to direct viewers to digital goods and services.

That makes a significant difference in how much money you can make via YouTube. On the other hand, blogging doesn’t really need you to put on a face or provide video content (At least in the beginning)

However, blogging is the way to go if you’re in it for the long haul and want to create a long-lasting internet business. 

Why? Because a successful blog can make money from advertising, affiliate marketing, and the selling of digital products and services.

If you have a YouTube channel, you technically don’t have complete control over your audience because YouTube has the authority to stop supporting it at any time.

This is something that many YouTubers have previously encountered, therefore in the long term, I think blogging is a much safer investment.

Result: YouTube

YouTube is the obvious winner in this scenario because you don’t need to spend money on it. YouTube videos can help you increase visitors and sales FASTER.

But Let’s clear your other doubts.

Is blogging still lucrative in 2022?

Like YouTube, blogging has developed. What began as private diaries evolved into genuine companies and side hustles that provide income. But can blogging still be successful in 2022, given the popularity of video and podcasts?

Here are a few figures

Blogs are read by 77% of internet users.

The best approach for people to learn something new is via reading blogs.

survey on why readers of blogs read them

According to 60% of users, blogs are important in influencing consumers’ purchasing decisions.

During the epidemic, 35% of bloggers reported increased revenue.

According to Glassdoor, the average blogger makes $52,000 a year, with more well-known bloggers earning an average of $8,000 per month.

The Truth About YouTube in 2022

If you’re thinking about starting a YouTube business in 2022, here are a few market trends to consider.

US YouTube viewers from 2018 to 2022

By 2022, 210 million Americans, or 81 percent of the nation’s population, will be using YouTube.

90% of people have discovered new businesses on YouTube, and a whopping 70% have bought something after seeing a brand there.

Although “day in the life” vlogs and kids’ programming are still the most sought-after types of content, the demand for yoga videos is growing.

On YouTube, live streaming was viewed by 70% of people in 2020, and this number is expected to rise.

Last Words: YouTube Versus Blogging

Both blogging and running a YouTube channel have benefits and drawbacks.

In the end, it really depends on your comfort level and your goals.

Do you wish to develop your personal brand? If so, I suggest using both platforms.

I wish I had made a better content strategy when I first started; if only I had given up fretting about where to begin, I would now be much further along.

But the benefit of beginning today is that you can learn from my errors.

Therefore, if you’re considering launching a YouTube channel or a WordPress blog with Name Cheap Hosting Plan, do it right away.

Here is our Amazing article on the In-demand and trending Side hustles:- It’s Time For You To Start A Side Hustle? Top 8 Profitable Ideas- WFH

FAQ’S

Since I know several of you have the same inquiries, I thought I’d address them here once again.

Is running a blog more lucrative than running a youtube channel?

Really, it all relies on how you make money off of your platform.

Most certainly, yes, if YouTube advertising is your only source of income. However, you’ll notice a quicker ROI with YouTube if you’re also employing other strategies like affiliate marketing or product sales.

Although blogging will take more time, the effort is totally worthwhile.

What should you begin with first? A blog or a YouTube channel?

How comfortable you are writing or being on camera will determine this.

Start a blog if you feel more comfortable writing. Create a YouTube channel if you feel more comfortable there.

You can always do both, of course.

Do Bloggers Even Exist Anymore?

Yes, blogging still exists and will continue to exist.

What better method to achieve organic reach than through a blog that tops search engine results? More and more businesses are looking to do this.

[ulead]

4 Things I've Learned as a Sales Intern

When I heard that I was going to be a sales and marketing intern, I had no clue about what's in store. I got that opportunity from ULead, I was very excited yet nervous at the same time. I had always been interested in sales & marketing but, frankly, I had sold nothing yet. Now, I want to invest this time to share the 4 most significant things I've learned as a sales intern and how they will keep on aiding me through the rest of my internship and career.

The things you learn in school will apply to your future whether or not you need them to. In school, I would continuously tell myself, "When am I truly going to utilize this?" Well, that proclamation got up to a little bit quicker than I expected. 

Have a short memory - at least where it matters most.

Most people start losing their interest in sales and start hating their job because they get frustrated when people say "NO" to them. Similarly, This was my greatest test. I'm the sort of individual that likes to convince people, however that is certainly not the situation in sales. You need to encourage yourself to have a short memory and let all the rejections you get, just let pass on from one ear to the another. 

Contemplate a round of baseball. You can't get up to the plate and hope to hit a grand slam every time without fail. You have to work the pitcher and endure base shots. A similar way of thinking remains constant on sales. Assuming that you battle with disappointment and can't have a short memory, it will be hard for you to be fruitful in sales. In baseball, assuming you fail more than 7 out of 10 times, you're still considered a decent player. In the area of complex sales, those percentages are not even that great, so you better have a short memory.

Be observant of your boss/mentor.

Most of us college students will ask ourselves a similar inquiry, "What does it take to make it in the real world?" The answer is simple and right in front of us, our bosses and supervisors who work close by us. They hold their positions for a reason. They worked hard and put in countless hours to achieve the title and status they presently hold. This implies that you should stand by listening to your mentor, be perceptive of their activities, and watch how they heft themselves around clients and in sales calls. If you do these things you'll be able to expand the knowledge that they have effectively collected, which will set you in an advantageous position over your peers.

Practice makes perfect.

Communication is extremely important in today’s society. With all of the development in technology and everybody having their own mobile phone, calling isn't going at any point in the near future. For this reason, I have been tasked with various calling campaigns to become more familiar with having phone conversations. The real lesson learned here is that practice makes perfect and the more you do it, the more you will be comfortable in talking.

Have fun with it and make mistakes.

The simplest way to learn is to make errors and learn from those mistakes. You're not going to be the best salesperson, and that is alright. You need to keep reminding yourself that an expert at anything was once a beginner. I'm not saying to blame all of your mistakes on the fact that you are new, but to keep an open mind and don't get discouraged with failure.

So, play around with what you do and enjoy the people around you. I did my Internship in Hyderabad it was a paid internship where I get Internship certificate as well. Find an online internship with certificate where the work environment is friendly and comfortable. On the off chance that it doesn't fit you, it's presumably not a decent match. Find an organization where you can act naturally and endeavor to be the individual that you need to be because when you love what you do, you won't ever work a day in your life.