#tarantula literacy program

[wild-zamboni]

Me: man what a day of work. I sure can’t wait to be normal and think about normal stuff

My brain: remember the tarantula literacy program in Nightvale

Me: yeah? What about it.

My brain: those tarantulas can read now

Me: yeah those tarantulas can read now

[wtnvcrossword]

WTNV - Ep 183 - The Nephilim

Across

3. The Nephilim do not like to be ___ over. (Past tense)

4. What comes from the hole in the sky?

6. It is unflattering to act as though you are this.

9. Rejoice in the pure volume of doing what?

11. On what day did we decide we will take a walk every day?

12. The Tarantula Literacy Program was deemed a complete what and so will be immediately defunded and shut down?

14. Joanna Rey showed Valerie McGowen the proper way to sing to what animals?

15. What subject was Josh Crayton most interested in at school at the moment? (Two words)

16. Though the Night Vale Fine Art Museum was frozen in time back in 1978, anyone can go and stand outside the ___ ___, to look at the terrified expressions of those unfortunates caught in that moment of their lives for the rest of eternity. (Two words)

18. Who do the seven fingers in the shattered sky belong to?

19. Cecil said to do what until your stomach lolls and your throat closed up?

20. When she spotted the Nephilim, Sylvia Wickersham unfurled a what?

Down

1. The tagline of the Tarantula Literacy Program is “Teach a spider to read: Stop the ___.”

2. Sylvia’s sign was covered in a scrawling what that Cecil did not recognize?

5. Who did Cecil say we give sop to?

7. Tuesdays were spent in the shower until this ran cold.

8. In the interest of maintaining what kind of objectivity, Cecil chose to express this type of opinion in a different way?

10. Cecil shared his opinion on the fate of the Tarantula Literacy Program through a series of high pitched what? (Plural)

13. The sponsor of the episode was what brand Signature Whiskey Type Beverage?

17. “Fill the air with ___ turned into celebration and then settling back down onto the ground as ___.”

[nightvale-radio-station]

Awww! The tarantula's found a new friend! I hope their literacy program is going well and those little spiders are learning alot!

[oberlincollegelibraries]

Self-Care Sunday: OCL Staff on How They De-Stress in Isolation

Sunday’s here again and today we’re checking in with our staff at the Oberlin College Libraries to see how they’ve been managing stress during the pandemic. Let’s see what they have to say!

One thing we heard over and over is that our library staff loves food! Cooking and baking is a great way to relax and unwind. Outreach and Programming Librarian Eboni told us she’s been baking “A LOT”, while Facilities and Operations Assistant Bill says that eating healthy is what keeps him feeling great. And if you’re looking for culinary inspiration, why not pop over to the Bon Appétit YouTube channel? They have lots of great videos and, did you know? One of their hosts, Chris Morocco, is an Obie? Class of 2003!

Another big recommendation from our staff is exercise (Perhaps to burn off all the calories from that delicious home cooking). Daily walks are a must for many staff members, especially those with dogs (And, hey, at least our pets are happy we’re in isolation!). Science Librarian Alison suggests walking near water and woods, if you can, to enjoy the spring flowers and bird songs. And we have quite a few practicing yogis in our group. Art Librarian Barb recommends the app Down Dog, which is free until May 1st, for solo workouts. Or, if you’d like some one-on-one time with our very own resident yoga instructor, Head of DMS Tim (RYT-200 certified) is offering to give Obies freebie advice and classes while we’re all stuck at home. A big thank you to Tim for such a generous offer! (Contact Tim at tkeller@oberlin.edu)

Well, if all that working out has got you tired, we have some folk who have great advice for keeping you entertained. Preparations Assistant Patty recommends the newest Animal Crossing game. She says “It helps me to relax and even allows me to connect online with others in my family that I can't see in person. It is basically a peaceful game until the tarantulas show up (which doesn't happen often).” Meanwhile, Science Library assistant Jennifer prefers old-school gaming. She finds it “helpful to plan special events at home during all of this - formal dinner night, game night, poker tournament, etc. Put it on our calendar, and make it something to look forward to.”

Of course, we wouldn’t be a library if we didn’t have knitters on staff! Outreach and Programming Librarian Eboni and catalogers Lindsey and Faith all listed knitting as a favorite way to unwind. Lindsey recommends getting a Ravelry account if you don’t have one already! And if yarn isn’t your thing, Reserves and Media Manager Michael suggests stamp collecting, and Information Literacy and Student Success Librarian Alonso recommends making art. He enjoys drawing, sketching, and coloring. Science Library assistant Jennifer also enjoys drawing and coloring, but she prefers to do it digitally.... She suggests downloading paint by number apps!

As you might expect, binge watching Netflix  is high on the list of ways to relax (and all the other streaming services, of course! HBO is actually offering a bunch of free movies and shows until the end of April). Multiple people suggested rewatching all of the Lord of the Rings movies. Sounds like we have some Tolkien fans at OCL!  

Other great advice includes watching livestreams of your favorite musicians or taking an online course. Music cataloger Faith says she’s been “taking dance classes through the Beck Center at Home classes! They are free!” Follow #BeckatHome on Instagram or Facebook to see what they’re offering. 

We also have quite a few Buddhists on staff who say their faith is helping during this time at home. Conservatory Public Services Librarian Kathy finds Buddhism, along with a good laugh, is what she needs- “I've been looking for more humor. Being a Buddhist, I have really been enjoying the  FB group Buddhist Humor. It's fabulous!!”

With that, we’ll leave you with a few more words of wisdom from the OCL staff. We hope our advice, tips, and suggestions have been helpful! From our homes to yours, we hope you are all safe, happy, and healthy!

“Staying on a ‘normal’ schedule seems to be the best way to handle stress for me. I also enjoy napping, reading, spending time with my family. It’s so nice to have time together without our regular activities.”-- Sara, Cataloging and Metadata Assistant

“Remember that, while things could still get worse, everything always changes. Eventually the situation we're all in now won't be the same. Take it one day at a time. Do things you enjoy, take time to avoid news outlets, and relax.”--Tim, Head of Discovery and Metadata Services

“Being grateful for simple things like waking up to another day, naturally occurring timeless awareness, giving and receiving love with other sentient beings. Singing. Making any old music from scratch.”--Facilities and Operations Assistant, Bill

Image sources: giphy.com

[eelhound]

"An update on the Tarantula Literacy Program, a long running education initiative in this town whose tagline 'Teach a spider to read: Stop the madness' can be found on wheatpaste posters plastered over most buildings in Night Vale.

The program has announced that all tarantulas are now reading at a grade 40 level, which is the reading level of someone working on their third graduate degree due to not wanting to ever have to make a final decision about the direction of their life. The program has been deemed a complete success and so will be immediately defunded and shut down. The hope is that any new tarantulas can be taught to read by their own tarantula families, and this self-sustaining education will completely transform those gross bugs into gross bugs with a tradition of storytelling and scholarship.

Personally, I have many feelings about this program, but in the interest of maintaining journalistic objectivity, I will only share those feelings through a series of high pitched yelps. [series of high pitched yelps]

Apologies if anyone is offended due to the raw and real nature of my truth telling."

- Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor, from Welcome to Night Vale, ep. 183

[donny273-blog]

So today I was start blogging about something which I believe in with every nerve ending and sinew that forms as me.  A story that comes from the heart. It comes from a place that is very natural for me and whatever I accomplish in life this was a pure example when you focus on others and not yourself and you focus on helping those in need amazing things happen and the sum of the parts combined provides a synergy that they do themselves.

  As Thomas Edison says I'd rather the 1% of 100 people's efforts then 100% of the most talented individual.

  Without the long analogies, I will go into it. 2013 was an interesting year for me. I was engaged to Haruka and I had just come back from a trip South East Asia with her. I was technically married (having registered the marriage in Japan in May). I was also in a very lost space professional working out of a serviced office with many business ideas but really since the age of 22 for the first time lost in a space of what to do in my life as the last 6 years was in the educational business being the owner and face of Better Learning

    I also was looking at personal development as a method to pick me up as I believe a little bit of my soul was broken. The first few years of business success and the RAT (retire at thirty) dreams I had when I was 18 were had distinguished. I was disillusioned and tired with people, business and had to face reality of looking at people who had taken the "safe" path that were ahead of me for once. I was older and looking at the people who. I still believe in myself and my ability due to the fact I came out so young and so fearless and for once I contemplated the grim reality that I may be washed up and have no more to offer. When I was coaching in the same personal development program I had conducted the green smoothie day (click here for article) earlier I looked at what my core passions were;

    1.     Travel, 

2.     Personal development and education

3.     Empowering those in need, especially kids

4.     Going back to my roots in Asia

5.     Using technology and information to empower and provide a level playing field for those especially who are disadvantaged socially and economically 

6.     Reduce wastage of resources - food etc

  Social work and working with kids is something I definitely would resonate with in many areas of life. A part of this was when I was at university; I spend my weekends help build and facilitate an Saturday morning class for aboriginal kids to learn about computer literacy, in a computer class called (CONNECT)

  So therefore when during Xmas of 2011 when I was floating through south east Asia through Cambodia for a week on an intrepid travel. If I wasn't going through a fish massage or eating tarantulas  or exploring the temples of Siam reap of Angkor wat, I was initially looking for an "voluntarism" experience, to go and experience a volunteer experience since I was in the area and it seemed like the thing

  Then I had a good hard look at myself. Correct my political incorrectness, but I don't want to be seen as an Angeline Jolie adoring kids of all colours and looking suave at the part and being seen as the saviour(no offence as I was at the Bar where Angeline drank at and she has a cocktail name after her when I processed this ideas and respect what she does, from what I heard she one of the most engaging people to ever sit down and have a conversation with,

    The reason why? I am Asian. Yes I grew up westernised, but the reality is I am Taiwanese.

  Sure, I was born in a more privileged country that is considered "first world" and did not have to deal with genocide or deal with not paved roads or people dying and I grew in a truly western society with western values but let's be honest, in the image of the white rich westerner helping the poor south East Asian family, and taking a cheesy picture of running and playing with kids and shouting English words and handing over the change from tonight's drinks, I could not justify to myself I was being true to myself in being a volunturist as I was buying an experience by running with kids and taking a photo and telling myself I was doing my part of make the world a better place.

  The reality is to help kids in these areas. They just need help. From my experience too often the volunteer and charity business is set up so much on the sales process where only a small percentage goes into helping the kids in need. It is still great because at least some help helps. With household brands such as world vision who have budgets for television advertising or people in malls, anywhere from 15-40% of profits goes into helping the projects where as the rest gets lost in admin

The thing I couldn't relate to was also how many of orphanages have becomes so sync in selling the tourists experience, but encourage the kids to cater for the voluntarists experience. The worst was when they started to mix non local traditional values such a religion to the kids’ education and values, that objectively, does not help or aide with the children with who they are

  True empowerment of an individual starts from loving and accepting you for who you are. You can ever get empowerment trying to be someone else your not.  That's why I can not fit the role of a volountourist. This is someone’s else life full time and how I can relate to a kid that looks similar to me when I was younger with an experiential interest in looking at their life as in the ‘helper’.

  One thing I loved about sunrise foundation even though it's not perfect they don't try and tweak the religion . They are people being people and keeps the people where they are and doesn't indoctrinate them to any ideology or theory.  They let the kids be their kids. Who is there to say, taking outside economic factors aside that one culture is better than another. It could be more attractive, commercially viable but people are who they are and their culture needs to be respected as so.

  Considering I had spent the time building the community with the schools the idea was to let's the Sunday Taiwanese school kids, the same one my mum taught in and also I attended to learn my culture. I wanted them to make a connection to other Asian kids that of the same age had a lot more to deal with and a lot more disadvantage with and try and 

  More or less the most importantly i wanted to do something that truly made a difference, that wasn't about be satisfying my personal significance need in "helping kids in Cambodia, or ticking off my bucket list "visited orphanage in Cambodia" and donated money. 

  The initially idea went from having a fundraiser and gift exchange for kids from Australia to kids in Cambodia and exchanging letter but logistics, freight and also cost and risk of local customs opening packages looking for valuable items meant unless it was accompanied it wasn't logical to do all that.

  The best way to help is money. Money puts food on the table, more hungry mouths to feed, for textbooks. Money allows medical assistants and money talks

    So eventually it ended up with the support of the school and the Taiwanese community, and my connections at the Tzu Chu foundation, two speeches by Geraldine cox to talk about her journey in sunrise. In total just Under $5000 was raised, and most from three $1000 cheques and to top it off one was from Mr Peter Huang, someone I respect a lot in the business and political community for what he does for the Taiwanese community and culture  and two mystery Taiwanese ladies who read Geraldine story and came and donated the cheques and didn't even stay for her speech, but had heard enough about what she did to put their support forward in where it counted. My gratitude to their generosity.

  Biggest takeaway from the event: the kindness of a stranger is amazing. For me, to be able to generate that type of $$$ and knowing that it was put into a project that made meaning to kids more than satisfying my own sense of being. What I've learnt after the years is that charity is also a bucket of giving that never ends and never has a return on investment similar to parenting and one should always have projects in their heart to give unconditionally, free from religion and agendas, because to give and empower those and the projects you really connect and add meaning to you, you find meaning and enlightenment in your life and one’s true purpose.

  This event in 2013 just after my marriage, before Haruka came back, allowed me find myself before I embarked on married life.

[52nonprofitsjbj]

Outreach360

The focus of this blog has so far been very North America heavy, and this post is a half step towards changing that.  Outreach360 (formerly Orphanage Outreach) is a US-based nonprofit with operations in the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua.

My draft blog post sat like that for about two weeks because that’s all I could say at first.  Because what can you say about one of the most influential experiences in your life without being trite or cliché?  My brother has been writing his law school applications, wanting to express something about Outreach360 in his personal statement and has also struggled to find the right words.  

I was 19 when I volunteered with Orphanage Outreach for the first time: I spent two weeks in Monte Cristi, Dominican Republic in the summer of 2004.  When I arrived at the airport I met Coco, who had volunteered for the first time in February of that year for just one week and was now back indefinitely.  It’s almost 13 years later and she’s still a part of the organization, building their programs in Jinotega, Nicaragua.

Outreach360’s COO, Brian, was a team leader when I interned there for four months in 2007-2008.  Years before, he had joined his now-wife for a trip after she had volunteered there during college, and after organizing student trips evolved into becoming a team leader evolved into being COO, he and his wife bring their school-age daughters.

I myself served in the DR with Outreach360 seven times for a total of about six months, including that internship, between 2004 and 2010.

This is all to say that it’s the kind of organization that gets its hooks in you.

I’ve been active in community service since I was an elementary-school Girl Scout and there are some organizations that I feel excited about and want to stay involved in – like Outreach360 – and there are others that take a bit too much effort to make work or to sell to potential volunteers.  There’s something to be said for chemistry and for making it easy to say yes: Yes, I want to spend my time and energy on your cause or issue.  Yes, I want to ask my friends and family for money and support.  Yes, I want to travel abroad for the first time.  Yes, I want to live in a tent with tarantulas and mosquitoes.  Yes… I want to meet like-minded people and make a meaningful contribution.

I’m focusing on Outreach360 this week because, like Bike and Build, it’s been awhile since I’ve been involved and I know a lot has changed.  For instance, in 2011, Orphanage Outreach rebranded itself as Outreach360 to reflect its reach – not just in individual orphanages but also their broader communities.  Since then, it’s also expanded from serving exclusively the Dominican Republic to new programs in Nicaragua. I get Outreach360’s email updates, but I wanted an opportunity to look more closely at the evolution it’s undergone since I was last there.

Since I’ve known Outreach360/Orphanage Outreach, volunteers have focused on education and construction: They organize summer camps with a focus on Spanish/English literacy and work in local schools, as well as help develop the infrastructure for the orphanage (during “my day”, the home base) like building new dorms or repainting the facilities.  As their programs have grown, I’ve been excited to see the new emphasis on sustainability and, in Nicaragua, on agriculture.  There was (maybe also has been?) a garden at the Monte Cristi orphanage to promote its self-sufficiency and decrease costs and reliance on donations, but the sustainable agriculture program at its two locations in Nicaragua will provide food to volunteers, the on-site student program, and potentially to the local communities.  This thinking around sustainability and scale are really interesting – and a great addition to the organization’s programs.

France is a bit farther from the DR or from Nicaragua than the US, so I haven’t yet been able to revisit since I moved here six years ago, but Outreach360 is often on my mind.  I’ve emailed a few times to offer my remote skills – grant writing? web content? editing? – but so far haven’t heard back.  I guess with 20,000+ alumni it’s hard to keep track.  But I encourage any readers to check out volunteer opportunities, but this was so important to me and I want more than anything to share the experience.

[vilevilescorpio]

Speaking of which: An update on the Tarantula Literacy Program, a long running education initiative in this town whose tagline  “Teach a spider to read: Stop the madness” can be found on wheatpaste posters plastered over most buildings in Night Vale. The program has announced that all tarantulas are now reading at a grade 40 level, which is the reading level of someone working on their third graduate degree due to not wanting to ever have to make a final decision about the direction of their life. The program has been deemed a complete success and so will be immediately defunded and shut down.

Episode 183 - The Nephilim