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love-takes-work · 3 years ago

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Live on Instagram, Rebecca Sugar and Ben Levin (with help from Ian Jones-Quartey) have given us a two-hour fundraiser to benefit the Trevor Project, in honor of Bi+ Awareness Week.

It was a lovely evening hanging out with them. Please see below for a little breakdown of what songs they played and what was discussed during the stream in terms of bi+ youth resources, Rebecca’s experiences, and the importance of having support for bi+ people.

Please go to The Trevor Project and learn more about what they do and how you can help. Their Resources for Bi+ Youth packet is available on the site! You can also donate through Rebecca’s specific fundraiser.

More below:

Rebecca announces this event is for Bi+ Awareness week for the Trevor Project. Ian Jones-Quartey is giving some help with the fundraiser in the background.

First Rebecca plays "Love Like You" on guitar. It's a lovely stripped down version. They're a little bashful about making a couple glitches on the guitar. It's very sweet and charming, Rebecca, no one minds. :)

Next Ben Levin joins on bass and they play "Fries," a longer version than was in the Adventure Time show.

Then Rebecca talks about the Trevor Project and its suicide hotline that they provide for the LGBTQIA+ youth they support. After some tech glitches, they discuss how great Trevor is and what resources and research they provide on why it's so important to support these communities. Since this is Bi+ Awareness Week, they have put together a resource guide. They encourage us to donate to this organization.

Rebecca discusses Ben Levin's involvement on Steven Universe and Craig of the Creek. They decide to play Jeff Rosenstock's song "Illegal Fireworks and Hiding Bottles in the Sand" as a mashup with the Craig of the Creek ending song.

Then they give an update on the donation amounts and Rebecca gets so excited about the support. They admit to being really nervous after no performances for so long.

Rebecca decides to play a solo song and doesn't announce the title at first but Steven Universe fans all know "Escapism." It's a slightly different version with some great guitar additions in an added interlude, and they even throw in some fun super-high squeaky notes at the end.

They give a shoutout to Jeff Liu for the beautiful guitar part. They tell a story about Adam Muto (who worked on "Escapism" with Joe and was Rebecca's board partner on Adventure Time), and how he asked Rebecca to write a song for the Adventure Time finale. Rebecca goes on to play "Time Adventure."

Then they bring Ben back to do the bass while Rebecca sings "I'm Just Your Problem." Rebecca does a cool guitar solo in the middle while Ben rocks on the bass.

Then they do a nice little instrument switch and bring in the omnichord and set up "True Kinda Love." They shout out Chance the Rapper, aivi and surasshu, and of course Estelle for the help writing this song.

Rebecca gets excited again about the amount of people who have donated and gives us info about the hotline for the Trevor Project, how their hotline is available for phone, chat, and text. They also point out the existence of Trevor Project's available pamphlet, which can help people understand their Bi+ friends and family, as well as helping actually Bi+ people understand how they can expect to be treated, how to understand themselves, and that they aren't defined by their partner.

Rebecca then takes a moment to set up with an acoustic guitar (so they can have their foot on a box since they don't have a strap) and they cut out briefly to get it organized. Then they do indeed come back with their foot on box.

With a shoutout to Kate Micucci (who is watching on Instagram Live), Rebecca says she will play "a Lars and Sadie song" that she's figuring out on guitar, and plays "Be Wherever You Are."

Rebecca goes back to getting excited about the donation amount and they can't believe it's as high as it is with the concert less than half over! They say they'd like to make a tradition of doing a Bi+ Awareness Week fundraiser every year. She didn't have access to information that Trevor is now providing to bi youth when she was growing up in the 2000s, and thinks their resources are so vital. She suggests using their resources yourself or that you slip the resources to people in your life who want to support (or need to know more about how to support) bi youth.

Rebecca says they're about to play a "really really hard" song that they're nevertheless excited to go for. They said maybe we can guess what it is. They shout out Nick DeMayo, who's in the audience, the animation director of Steven Universe who is Greg's namesake and taught them a lot about music. And then they jump into . . . a guitar and bass version of "Other Friends"!

They shout out aivi and surasshu, Jeff Liu, and Sarah Stiles for all their contributions to that song, and how cool it is to play a "campfire version" of the song even though it's different.

Next, she wants to play a solo (but will need Ben again right after!) but takes a moment to thank everyone in attendance for supporting the stream and the Trevor Project. They say "thank you for bearing with me" regarding the performance rockiness.

They talk about Marceline and how they felt so connected to this character--writing episodes like "What Was Missing" where Marceline would be revealed to have had a relationship with Bubblegum and be known to be a bi character, and Rebecca felt so astonished that the audience understood Marceline was bi and understood she would always be bi, not fluctuating in orientation based on current relationships defining her. Rebecca explored this about herself only after she saw it explored with Marceline, and understood it was so important to have media that helps people understand who a bi person might be. She never related to the "party person" or extrovert stereotype of bi people as they’re usually shown in media, and thought as a nerdy person who was shy, she couldn't be bi if that was true. Cartoons helped her connect with people who understood those things about Marceline and eventually about herself.

Trevor is so important as an organization to help the next generation understand all of this. Rebecca has felt that knowing herself wasn't possible if she didn't understand her bisexuality or accept it as what it is, and it spread instability throughout the rest of her life. What brought her to finally being able to process and understand this aspect of her identity was cartoons, and she hopes cartoons can bring some others in as well. With that, she brings out the song she was asked to write for Marceline even though she had left the show. Rebecca plays "Everything Stays."

Rebecca then says they were a little conflicted about whether they were going to say all that stuff, about why this issue is personal to them. (It's okay, Rebecca, this is the best!!!)

She says that song was about her stuffed black rabbit that was her favorite toy that she thought she loved so much, but she forgot it in the garden and it was damaged. That it was so surprising to her that she could have loved this rabbit the way she did and not realize it was missing, and that it could change without her. "Everything Stays" was obviously about that, but she also says the situation with Spinel was inspired by the same toy. She switches to electric guitar to sing and play "Drift Away" with Ben back on board on bass.

They point out that they're rocketing through the set list and Ian suggests maybe they'll have to do some encores. In thinking about what songs to play, they point out that so many songs were written about their mental health journey and coming out to family and friends. A song that was "at the end of that whole arc" for Rebecca was "Change Your Mind." It can go on forever, they point out, but they'll only play it a few times. On we go with a really smooth guitar version of "Change Your Mind." (It's the extended looping version.)

They announce that now with the Instagram contributions and the landing page we've reached the goal of $20,000, and they can't believe it's at the halfway point of the stream and we have already reached it despite that the show's been done for a long time and they "broke a lot of social media rules" by stepping away for so long, but that's been crucial to their mental health and their journey.

After they come back from a break, they discuss some funny artifacts that they finally got to take home that were left in the office--a Steven Universe piñata that they were supposed to smash in celebration of a pickup and they didn't want to because, you know, hitting a representation of their younger brother is kinda wack? Haha.

They also had a model of Marceline's bass.

These items were left in the office and just kind of frozen in time because Rebecca's last day (written on the white board, still, when they returned!) was March 13, 2020, just as the pandemic was coming down. Returning to collect stuff was like visiting a room that had been frozen in time!

Rebecca offers a stretch goal to get to $30,000 instead of the original $20,000, and talks a little more about the Trevor Project, discussing how important representation has been, to have bi representation in terms of DIRECT support for LGBTQ+ youth. What they've gotten to do with cartoon representation, having queer characters who can just have fun the way heteronormative kids can and see representatives of themselves is great, but these specific resources are also so important.

Rebecca then plays "Heart of the Country," a Paul McCartney song they're learning that has a hard solo they hope they'll nail. After playing it, they say they flubbed some of it but it was super fun.

Rebecca comes out with an old ukulele--older than the one they wrote the Steven theme song on and auctioned off for National Bailout--that they wrote a bunch of Adventure Time songs and got as a Hanukkah present. (They mention happy 5782 for those of us who celebrate Rosh Hashanah.) Ben is also using his first bass! They recommend musical instruments as gifts for bi people because those are the gifts that keep on giving! They mention working on guitar during the lockdown (which has been therapeutic!) and not having played uke in a while because of that. With that, she dives into "Here Comes a Thought."

They decide to talk about the background of "Mindful Education," how they were coming out at the time they were writing that episode and song. They said coming out was like having the ground spin around. They thought mindful meditation, being so wonderful and helpful, could become an 11-minute episode where Steven leads kids in mindful meditation. With help from Ben (and Matt Burnett), Rebecca realized it would work better if they show characters benefiting from the lessons. They have a little joke about how the episode number was 108 and they prided themselves on knowing the episode numbers. Then they put aside the uke and pick up a big black guitar to play "Found."

After this, she talks more about Trevor Project's hotline, chat, text, and resources. They remind us that bi+ people experience very specific forms of marginalization and this organization can help everyone who wants to understand. She thanks everyone for helping with donations and she can't believe the Instagram fundraiser has gotten to $10,000. She's amazed that "the thermometer is bursting" and promises to draw it later. Ben thinks he could be part of future fundraisers and Rebecca reminisces about times they've played together, like in 2016 at SDCC and a Gallery Nucleus show.

Rebecca goes back to the other guitar to do some audience requests for repeat songs and talks about the song "Fries." The story behind this one, when she was writing it--the first song she wrote for television and the first episode she boarded--since she was introverted and struggled with pitching, she went on the roof of Cartoon Network to practice being louder until she was actually audible. Ian helped.

They decide to do the ending Craig song again and Ben says Jeff Rosenstock's song is really nice and Rebecca talks about getting teary over the Craig ending with people sitting around the dinner table. Rebecca's favorite line is "speaking in a stupid secret language." She feels like she still hasn't moved on from that in her life and likes to surround herself with people who speak that language. After it's over, Rebecca says hi to Jeff Rosenstock in the chat.

They do more shoutouts for the Trevor Project and then discuss encore songs. Rebecca decides to do "Love Like You" again because they were sad they messed up a chord during the first performance. It's another lovely version.

After more great discussion of the Trevor Project's resources and Bi+ Awareness Week, Rebecca says hi to her Brazilian friends and how awesome it was to visit there for a convention, and she loves that Trevor is trying to expand resources to be more global. She knows how important those resources would be to help people worldwide. She thanks people for coming out to see her, and admits to being surprised that her life has come to include actual performances since she always thought she'd just be behind a desk as an animator. She gets very nervous about performing but loves that people support her. They love being able to perform and once got a sweet comment from John DiMaggio (the voice of Jake on Adventure Time) who would hear the early demos that were a struggle to be audible, and he told her that she's come so far that it now sounds like she enjoys performing, enjoys the sound of her own voice now. She feels that coming out and all the support from friends, family, and organizations has made that confidence and comfort with herself possible.

With that, Rebecca plays the Steven Universe theme song on guitar!

And then, they play "Time Adventure" again.

Rebecca talks more about the astounding amount of support for Bi+ Awareness Week, how moving it is and how hard it is to hold it together while talking about what it was like to be an adult who didn't know if they were even allowed to be bisexual and nonbinary, how much of their adult life was in such a quagmire over not knowing fully who they were.

For their next to last song, they play a song written by aivi and surasshu with lyrics by Rebecca: "Being Human" from the ending theme of Steven Universe Future.

Finally, Rebecca says thank you to everyone who's been involved in the songs--the performers, aivi and surasshu, Jeff Ball, the Crew, Ben Levin, Ian Jones-Quartey--and everyone who's helped raise over $11,000 just through the Instagram concert. She plays "Change Your Mind" one more time, adding that the journey is ongoing even though this song was written at a time she considers at the end of an arc of self-discovery for her.

Thank you!

(Yes, I did a donation.)

Links:

https://www.thetrevorproject.org/

https://www.thetrevorproject.org/resources/how-to-support-bisexual-youth/

#rebecca sugar #steven universe #adventure time #the trevor project #ben levin #craig of the creek #myblog

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ramlenvs3000f21 · 3 years ago

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Final Blog Post - ENVS3000

Wow! It is crazy to believe this is my final blog post. Before I respond to this week's prompt, I want to take a moment to thank all of my peers for their contributions to our Tumblr threads and discussions. I was constantly impressed by the experience of my classmates and the unique insights they provided to every blog prompt. ENVS*3000 blogs were always filled with diverse opinions, and seeing others sharing openly led to meaningful conversations. Thank you to everyone who contributed to my learning this semester.

At the end of this year, I will be graduating from the Lang School of Business with a degree in Marketing Management. As a commerce student, my education has centered primarily around economic theory and best business practices. While some courses would mention the importance of protecting the environment, they mainly showed the environment as a resource. Many of my business classes failed to explore the deeper connections between the natural world and its impact on human development. I decided to enroll in ENVS*3000 during the Fall semester of 2021 to expand my understanding of environmental conservation and nature interpretation. Throughout the semester, I have seen that interpretation can bring greater vitality to society. Interpretation promotes a more harmonious relationship between the individual and the environment both physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually (Beck et al., 2018, p.475). To support my learning, I have also been working to articulate my personal beliefs and values. I have always seen myself as someone with a robust belief system, but I have rarely taken the time to articulate it on paper. This course has encouraged me to reflect on my role as an environmental interpreter and challenge my previous understandings. Through class readings and blog posts, I have been able to form a comprehensive sense of my relationship and responsibility with the environment. The following blog post will highlight two of the core values that I have reaffirmed during my studies, and how I plan to uphold them in my future endeavors.

Sustainability

As someone passionate about the environment and maintaining an outdoor lifestyle, I want to ensure that my career path emphasizes sustainability. We have learned this semester that the benefits of sustainability extend beyond just environmental conservation. Research has shown that maintaining access to spaces like parks and cultural landscapes contributes to positive health conditions (Beck et al., 2018, p. 49). As a commerce and environmental science student, I recognize that businesses are responsible to society and broader stakeholders for protecting the environment. With that said, I firmly believe that the private sector can be one of the most significant agents for change. Companies enable consumption, and they have the power to change how we purchase and use products and services. To be a sustainable business leader, I must consider the broader stakeholders and recognize that my decisions can have lasting impacts. As I enter the workforce, I want my career to prioritize working with companies that share a similar value structure. In one of my other classes this semester, I learned about business consulting and the various consulting disciplines and specialties. I was particularly intrigued by the environmental or sustainability consultants since this industry can combine my desire to protect the environment with my ambition to provide corporate value. I hope to use my nature interpretation skills, love for the environment, and business knowledge to ensure companies make sustainable choices.

Leadership

Another value that I have reaffirmed thanks to the lessons learned in ENVS*3000 is the importance of being an effective and inspiring leader. I have always enjoyed working with others and collaborating to reach a common goal. I believe that a good nature interpreter should have strong leadership qualities and help persuade others, and lead by example. This semester we learned about some of the various learning styles and that people learn in different ways (Beck et al., 2018, p. 110). To effectively communicate with others, we must acknowledge how they learn best and tailor our delivery to suit it. When it comes to academic and professional experiences, I often make an effort to take on a leadership role whenever possible. Leadership skills are something that I have developed over time and actively work towards improving whenever given the opportunity. This semester's podcast group project provided an excellent opportunity to leverage my leadership skills in the context of environmental interpretation. As a group, we needed to work collaboratively to choose our topic, build a script, and record and edit our podcast. I helped our group establish a work back schedule and divide the relevant responsibilities by taking a leadership role. We completed our podcasts ahead of schedule in part because I used my leadership skills to develop a clear plan and expectations. When looking at examples of successful environmental leaders, I attribute portions of their influence to their passion and knowledge. Many of the most notable leaders for sustainability, such as David Suzuki, can be so influential because they are passionate and well informed. As I look to become a leader for the environment, I hope to continue learning more about our planet's interconnectedness. As we have discovered this semester, acquiring knowledge is an enjoyable and enriching experience (Beck et al., 2018, p. 42). I know from my personal background that I am motivated by passionate leaders because their energy is infectious. As I look towards the future as a nature interpreter, I want to use my knowledge, passion, and leadership skills to inspire others.

Conclusion

As I move forwards in my academic and professional career, I will always look to create harmony in the complex relationship we have with the environment. I want to use my values of sustainability and leadership to be an influential environmental interpreter. To be an effective conservationist, it is essential to accurately document the environment and understand the cultural impacts and significance. We must acknowledge that diversity is critical to success (Beck et al., 2018, p. 461). As I join the workforce, I plan to leverage my knowledge in this course to think critically whenever I am in a natural setting. I want to be an agent of environmental change, and because of the foundation I gained this semester, I feel more confident in my ability to do so. References:

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage: For a better world. Urbana: Sagamore Publishing.

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bumbleartz · 4 years ago

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So got inspired by @sondrawr and @gotham-mother-of-monsters and had this ramble pop into my head. Hadn't flipped through my Mercy books in a while so it was fun to go back and refresh. Covers from the first book up to Storm Cursed and has spoilers if you haven't gotten that far.

Jesse has heard the title Marrok on and off throughout her childhood. Usually the title is whispered between the wolves or her father in tones she isn't supposed to hear. These conversations always ended in her being hustled off to the care of her mother or after the divorce being sent off to her room. The first time it became more than a hushed precursor to her being shuffled off is after being taken hostage. Her father had pulled her into his office and given her a name to go with the title along with a number to enter into her phone. "He is the head of all the wolves. If something happens regarding pack business or you feel for some reason you can't get to any of us or Mercy you call that number." She'd dutifully filed the number away as instructed under Bran Cornick and promptly had the conversation fade to where she kept the rest of what was considered pack information.

The first time she sees the Marrok is in the entryway way to the house in the middle of the night. She's too distracted by the fact her father is home safe to pay much attention to the others in the room as she is carefully wrapped into his arms. He looks like crap and smells worse even to her normal human nose. She can't bring herself to care as the tears she's fought so hard not to shed wet her eyes. When she unburies her face from her father's chest long enough to take note of the others there she's honestly too tired from the stressful nights of waiting to register anything beyond them being in one piece and alive. Later, after the first good night's sleep she's had in days, there will have been too many new faces for her to register who was who. The only one she can place a name to with any certainty is Charles. Mercy laughs and tells her Charles has that effect on people when she goes to see her later.

The first time Jesse meets the Marrok is not long after on a midnight escapade to calm her nerves. Another nightmare has had her shooting awake and the images are still playing in full technicolor behind her lids each time she closes them. It's been almost a year since she was taken hostage and yet the blinding terror feels as fresh as ever. She'd turned down therapy when it was offered. What was she supposed to say? Yeah, some werewolf thought they could use me as leverage to make my dad behave so they could use him in some murder plot with a side of treason? She'd known how well that would have gone over. She'd thought they would fade over time. Maybe they would have if things had gone back to normal; a demon vampire threat, murder plotting psychos, and the attack on Mercy had happened instead. Jesse didn't bother adding the destruction of her social life and ongoing mom issues to the list since they just seemed to pale in comparison to the rest. Anymore Jesse found herself waiting for the next horror story. The most recent of which was currently causing all the wolves various fits. She currently wasn't clear which was bothering them more: one of their own being resurrected or Mercy being pulled into the pack. The kitchen light is on as she rounds the corner and she expects to see any number of people outside of the vaguely familiar stranger currently staring back at her. Somewhere between him asking her if she couldn't sleep and making the hot chocolate the same way Mercy does it dawns on her this person who looks barely older than her is the Marrok. Her tired brain tries to summon up the awe with a side of shock she should be feeling and fails miserably. Instead she finds herself nursing her mug of cocoa and making small talk while the Marrok takes drinks of his own. In the midst of the conversation he manages to get her to verbal vomit about her nightmares and the troubles she's been having at school. She manages to find out he has a deep dislike of Shakespeare, has a deep love for music, and possesses a terrifying wit. By the time she is making her way back to her room and he to the guest room she is feeling better then she has in months. He's already gone when she gets up leaving her without ever getting a chance to say thanks. While it isn't a big thing it bothers her just enough to pull her phone out and send a text to the number she'd all but forgotten. The simple thank you is accompanied with a YouTube link to her favorite Lindsey Stirling video. After all, Jesse views not knowing who she is and being a violinist as a crime. The little smiley face emoji she gets in reply makes her grin.

The next time they meet she's the one providing the hot chocolate. The pack has managed to get themselves entangled with a fairy queen and Mercy has yet again made the sacrifice play. Everyone is chasing their proverbial tails trying to find her while remaining outside of her father's war path. In the meantime, Jesse feels she's improved in her chaos handling as she's only broken down twice. Apparently having your boyfriend kidnapped and going on to a fairy queen's court doesn't have the same punch as other things she has dealt with lately. When she sets the mug on the coffee table it's the wee hours of the morning and the Marrok has been seated cross legged on their monstrosity of a couch for the better part of a day. If she hadn't gotten to know him a little better over the previous months she would have felt she was intruding. However, Bran was not against using all available resources and she'd been pulled in regarding the newest resident of Aspen Creek. Kara and Jesse had clicked right off the bat and become faithful texting pals ever since. Bran rubs the bridge of his nose and blinks hard a few times despite his eyes having been closed before reaching for the mug. He looks beyond exhausted and she knows not all of it has to do with the current situation. Kara has confided in her about his lack of sleep and the way he's been running himself ragged. Jesse does her best to lighten the mood with a joke about the fairies contacting them any moment begging them to take Mercy back. Her effort is rewarded with an amused smirk and a quiet chuckle. She ends up rambling about different ways Mercy is driving the fairies nuts and is encouraged when Bran joins in. Jesse wakes to the noise of people rushing around. Bran is smiling and gripping a walking stick with a white knuckled grip from his spot on the couch when he tells her Mercy has been found.

Jesse is biting her lip to keep from laughing too loud as she informs everyone the butterflies have succeeded where the dove idea failed. Marji is cackling on the video feed in victory while Bran seems too amused to care he has just lost a hundred bucks. Two days pass in a blur of emergency calls and group texts. Despite the short time frame the wedding goes off without a hitch. Mercy is surprised and Jesse can't remember the last time her father looked so blissfully happy. Once the two love birds are off Jesse spends the rest of the reception twirling around the dance floor with Gabriel. The raised eyebrow this gets her from Bran makes her stick out her tongue. The fact Mercy comes back from the honeymoon in a wheelchair shouldn't have been much of a surprise. Jesse can picture Bran doing his iconic bridge pinch when she sends him the picture.

Bran's text to Mercy makes Jesse's lips quirk in amusement. After the destruction of the Rabbit she could use the humor. That humor plummets when the number comes up disconnected when Mercy tries to reply. The knot of concern only tightens with each person Mercy tries and fails to reach. The pain of it becomes near unbearable when they find Ben and no one else. The pain doesn't start to ease until she recognizes the dark haired man fighting beside Tad. After months of having Asil tease her about her hair after seeing it during a video chat with Kara she'd know him anywhere. Seeing her father and the pack alive and well makes the knot come undone. At least it does until she realizes one is missing and hears of Peter's death. She knows how her father will take the loss and can't bring herself to add more weight to those already overburdened shoulders. So she turns her focus to looking after the younger Sandoval children and burying her feelings as deep as possible. This works until Asil catches up to her in the kitchen getting together snacks for the kids. All he has to do is ask if she's alright and she falls apart. Asil pulls her into a hug and gives reassurances in Spanish. Jesse doesn't understand a word but it soothes her all the same. He tells her everyone in Montana is safe and she sags in relief. When everything is over and she gets a new phone that has been programmed by Charles, Asil's number is listed in the contacts.

Her mother has only been living with them for a day and Jesse wants to scream. She loves her mother but watching the resulting train wreck her mere presence is causing makes her wish she'd just leave them all alone. Even though her talk with Mercy has eased some of the hurt and anger, it hasn't gotten rid of it. Mostly because despite what Mercy said she can see the way her mother has gotten under her skin and cut her to the quick. Anger and the need for a voice of reason has her contacting Bran. Bran gently reminds her Mercy is more than capable of holding her own in a dominance dance. He must know this isn't what she was looking to hear because the next message contains Charles' number and instructions to text him. Jesse has no idea why Bran would have her talking to Charles but she copies and pastes the message she previously sent like instructed. Bran must have warned his son because Charles doesn't seem surprised to get the message. Charles turns out to be an unexpected fount of wisdom when it comes to the difficulty of broken family dynamics. It's odd how hearing from someone else that she is allowed to love her mother and yet not like her makes it feel OK. By the time her mother's stalker has been dealt with Jesse thinks she might finally be finding the path between love and hate.

Jesse isn't a wolf, but she can still feel the moment Bran breaks ties with the Columbia Basin Pack. She doesn't wait for her father and Mercy to come out of the office. Tad seems to know something is up but doesn't say anything when she gives the excuse of homework and heads to her room. Her phone is a lead weight in her hand because what do you say to someone who just had to throw away someone they love? A part of her is angry too. Angry at the pain she knows this has caused Mercy and the difficulty it will cause her father. However, Jesse knows what it is like to be caught in a situation outside your control due to the actions of those you love. She types out a promise to do what she can for Mercy and to send a warning the instant something happens requiring help. She ends the text with a little heart emoji. Current circumstances might make it harder but family out ranked all else. Jesse already knew if something happened Bran would help. She's proven right when Baba Yaga saves her father in Underhill.

Jesse's proven right again when Bran goes with her father to get Mercy back from the Lord of Night. He sends her a message promising her he will bring Mercy and her father back in one piece. She replies telling him she knows. She also tells him to come back in one piece too or she's going to have to go all Buffy the Vampire Slayer. At this point she's gone to battle to protect her new pyro of an adopted younger brother and managed to keep him from burning the house to the ground. She's pretty sure she can at least annoy a vampire lord. The fact she'd have backup from an Italian mercenary, a Dark Smith and more than one werewolf pack was completely irrelevant. After all the one thing she knew for certain was you always looked out for your pack, your family. Which is why as soon as she hears everyone is returning from Italy in one piece she sends a message to Tad for him to tell his dad. She also makes sure Warren passes on the message to Stefan though he doesn't need reminding. She snaps a picture of everyone getting out of the car when it pulls up and sends it to Charles and Asil because she knows hearing someone you care about is safe is not the same as seeing it. And because he is family in her eyes at this point, after she hugs her father and Mercy, she hugs Bran too.

#mercy thompson #patricia briggs #Bran Cornick #Jesse hauptman #writing

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lanaisnotwool · 4 years ago

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youtube

422 Get a College Education for FREE - Interview with Grant Aldrich

https://moneyripples.com/2020/09/15/422-get-a-college-education-for-free-interview-with-grant-aldrich/

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OER has given OnlineDegree.com the ability to achieve its goal of making the offering completely free for students and sets a positive example to encourage the adoption of these materials worldwide.

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Chris Miles (00:05): Hello, my fellow Ripplers! This is Chris Miles. Your Cash Flow Expert and Anti-Financial Advisor. Hey guys, I’m welcoming you out for a wonderful show. A show that’s for you and about you. Those of you that work so freaking hard for your money, and you’re ready for your money to start working harder for you. Today! You want that freedom. That cash flow. That prosperity. Right now! Not 30 or 40 bazillion years from now, but today. So you have that life that you love. To be able to do what you love. To be with those that you love. But on top of that, it’s just not about prosper yourself, right? It’s much, much deeper than that because as you become financially prosperous, you can create your own ripple effect through people’s lives. You can be a blessing in the lives of others. And that is the world I’m here to create. So thank you so much for allowing me to create a ripple effect through you with this show.

Chris Miles (00:50): And, and of course, thank you guys for also keeping that ripple effect going. Cause you guys keep sharing. You keep bingeing and everything else. So thank you so much for joining us today. You guys are a big part of this I couldn’t do without you. Hey, as a reminder, check out our website, MoneyRipples.com There is an ebook, Beyond Rice and Beans, Seven Secrets to Free Up Cash Today. That you can download for free. And by the way, it’s like a whopping 28 pages because I put page breaks in it. So it’s like a 15 minute read. Great stuff in there, but you also check out on our blogs. There’s actually some of our YouTube videos that are up now of this very show. So if you actually want to watch the show, you can actually start watch on YouTube as well. So check it out.

Chris Miles (01:29): Alright! So today I’ve got a special guest and you know, I keep finding some interesting people and this is definitely no exception. You know, this was somebody who reached out and said, Hey, you gotta have Grant Aldrich on your show because you know, it’s funny, my wife had actually even brought up about, you know, doing online degrees, but even like having ways to have it paid for. And I thought that was intriguing. And within the same week that she said that someone says, Hey, you need to have Grant on your show. So that’s what I got. Guys. I have grant here with us and just to let you know, grant actually runs a company OnlineDegree.com and now he founded this one. It was a real purpose driven mission, right? The mission is this, to make college more accessible and affordable for everyone.

Chris Miles (02:13): Now, after graduating college with an overwhelming amount of debt. Grant was actually determined to change how students embark on their college education. He has spent his entire career working at startups with nearly 15 years of experience and two prior exits to a publicly traded company. He’s also been a board member and donor to a number of non-profits and advisor to many public traded companies and a guest speaker at seminars and graduate school courses. And today, well, especially when I bring him on and say, all right, whether you’re someone you’ve got kids or whether it’s yourself and you’re thinking about going and get your degree again, how can you do it in a way where you don’t have to go to pay millions of dollars to make crappy amounts of money? And so that’s why we have a Grant here on our show today. So grant welcome!

Grant Aldrich (02:54): Hey, Chris! Thanks for having me!

Chris Miles (02:55): Absolutely, man. So tell us about your story and what inspired this. Like you mentioned that you went through a lot of debt, right? You know, tell us more about that.

Grant Aldrich (03:03): Yeah. I left college with just an immense amount of debt and I seemingly made all of the right choices. So I took a traditional path. Graduated high school. Went to the best school I could get to. And I even came in with AP courses and all kinds of things that had me graduate as a sophomore. So I had a year already finished and I still graduated with just a ton of debt. And that left a real mark on me for many years because I didn’t pay it off until my late twenties. And I was in a position recently where I had exited my last company and I really was sitting around trying to figure out, what do I want to do to make a big difference and enjoy my work far more than I had before?

Grant Aldrich (03:50): And I just kept coming to higher Ed. My parents were teachers and a bad taste in my mouth that had been sitting there for so long and everything just kind of came together to try to make higher education, more affordable, more accessible.

Chris Miles (04:04): Yeah. How did that even come to be for you guys?

Grant Aldrich (04:08): You know, this was definitely a meandering approach. I just started with the mission. And I think that’s a really cool thing to do as an entrepreneur. You just start with a mission. I want to make college affordable and accessible. And I didn’t know how we were going to do it. It was definitely something I stumbled upon and tried to figure out. And finally, we came to, we’re going to create a modern alternative to the community college. And so people can come on the platform. Get started in 60 seconds. Take as many college level courses as they’d like. Earn credit towards their degree at universities across the country. We do it all for free.

Chris Miles (04:44): Now, how is that possible?

Grant Aldrich (04:45): It was just to kind of complete it. Not only do we provide all this for free, we provide support services. We organize discounts for our students on their behalf. So for example, you come in, take a bunch of units that can lower the cost of your degree, but then we go above and beyond that and get the universities to give you another discount. So you may get 10%, 20% off the cost of your degree just from coming through our program. And so to answer your question, how do we do it, you kind of have to look into the dynamic of how the system works. So the benefit for the student is probably obvious, right? I’ve got, instead of just making this big leap to go back in getting your degree, paying full price and having to just figure it out on the go, we provide an option to wait in the pool where you could save a bunch of money sometimes up to 30% 40% of your degree.

Grant Aldrich (05:34): And to give it a kind of, you know, kick the tires a bit, see what classes are of interest, you know, get used to learning in an online format. Prove you’ve got the time management, all that. That benefits probably obvious. What people don’t realize, it’s an immense benefit for the universities as well. So for the universities, it’s a little known fact that they are desperate for good students. And when I say good, I mean, students who will finish their program. Who are prepared when they show up. Who don’t need a lot of orientation programs on how to learn online and how to make sure they work courses into their daily life. It’s really valuable. So inherently when you’re going through progressing through the courses, you’re making yourself a better student. So the entire platform is sponsored by the universities to make it a true win-win for the student and the school.

Chris Miles (06:26): Interesting. Yeah. I can see when they’re college, that’s a big deal. Especially if they want that, the impressive numbers show that people actually graduate and finishing complete. Right? Versus, you know, it’s like, you know, University of Hawaii, where people used to go on vacation, then drop out. You know.

Grant Aldrich (06:41): Yeah. I wish we all could go to University of Hawaii and just skip class all day.

Chris Miles (06:45): That’s the one place you won’t go to do online education.

Grant Aldrich (06:48): No! Definitely not! Yeah. More like, you know, upstate New York where it’s nice and cold. Right? But yeah. So the whole process, getting people back to school and doing it this way has just been really successful. It’s just really worked because it’s really created a whole new paradigm.

Chris Miles (07:05): Yeah. And who funds this? Like how is this funded?

Grant Aldrich (07:08): All by the university partnerships. So, you know, when I first started, I looked at doing a non-profit. And the problem is, is that, there’s actually a lot of rules on how non-profits were able to generate revenue. And so I didn’t want a system where we would be, couldn’t do tuition. Right? I wanted no tuition. That was a key thing. And I didn’t want to be dependent upon donations. And so if you’re non-profit, you take revenue in certain ways you can lose your non-profit status. So I decided, Nope, we’re just going to keep it. We’re a benefit Corp. And we’re going to make it funded completely by the universities.

Chris Miles (07:41): Great! And now, I know what you have as a tagline says, The First Years For Free. Is it just the first year or is it the entire college experience? And how does that work?

Grant Aldrich (07:50): It could actually be more than the first year. You know, we’ve tried, because we’re a new concept and it’s a little different. And you know, I made that comparison to a community college, which is something everybody knows. But we are different because you know, when you come on our platform, you could take one course. You could take all 15 that we offer. And you could then still get the discount on different schools. So it’s far more flexible than a community college. In terms of that flexibility, you don’t have to go to class. It’s all online at your own pace. So the goal was to make something where I looked at the community college systems thing. This is a very rigid system. What if I don’t want to get my full associates degree? What if I just want to get a little bit, save, and then go to the right school of my choosing? Or what if I want something that’s more accessible from my heavy work life and my family life and all these things. So really that’s what I tried to design a better system for. And so, yeah, I mean, anybody can come in, they can take one class or you can save up as much as 40% on your degree, depending on the school you go to. And the discounts that we have.

Chris Miles (08:52): Wow! That’s incredible! Well, like you said, it’s great that people have working schedule if they already have their own business or they’re already going, you know, they’re working all the time. Like they don’t want to spend a lot of time. They want to be able to do at their own pace and that sort of thing. Right? It sounds like you’ve definitely provided a solution for that.

Grant Aldrich (09:07): That’s it. This is built for the working adults. So something people don’t realize is that working adults have become the real students in higher education. Not the 18 year old. And there’s an estimated 35 to 40 million of those adults who are not taking that first step. So I really tried to create a solution that just met all the impediments that were stopping people from getting started. And yeah, you’re right. One of them is that, Hey, we’re busy. Adults are busy. We’ve got kids, got jobs, you’ve got responsibilities. We can’t leave all of that three times a week to go to class in the middle of the day. Not conducive for what we’re doing. It’s gotta be 30 minutes while we’re cooking dinner. 30 minutes on the couch at night. That has to be conducive to that learning environment. And then of course the cost. If you’re not 18 years old, you can’t amortize the cost of a degree over your lifetime like you can when you’re young. We’re thirties, forties, we have to be able to get an affordable degree that will actually help us get a better career. That’s not going to break the bank. And so I think really what we’ve done too, is balanced the ROI of getting a degree now. And the cost.

Chris Miles (10:13): Right! Exactly! And that’s been one of my biggest hangups with school, right? Cause I dropped out of college with what, not even a class. It was a project, one project away from getting my bachelor’s. Right? And then I decided to go into being an entrepreneur just to gain that experience that was going to go to the business consulting. So I was going to finish my MBA. And by after I went to the business, I said, well, what the heck? These degrees seem worthless, you know. In comparison to how much time and money I have to put into this, versus I can just go out and make money no. You know, as an entrepreneur. And that definitely was more enticing. And this kind of seems like it’s a good hybrid between the two. It’s like saying, Hey, do I want to get the ROI? Plus the time I have to put, by the way, I did try to actually go and finish my degree. Five years later. And they said, all right, great, well, you just have to take another semester and a half of full time credits. Cause it had been over five years. I said, well, forget that, you know, there’s no reason I should get a sociology degree and have to spend a year and a half going full time to school when I was already retired, you know? So, Oh yeah. Make logical sense at that point, right?

Grant Aldrich (11:17): Oh yeah. Well, you know, the other problem is, Is that so many schools out there are not adult friendly, which is what you’re kind of touching on. And so the other thing that we’ve done is we’ve tried to only partner with schools that are adult friendly. And so to that point, you know, what does adult friendly mean? These are schools that aren’t going to give you a lot of sweat for being five years out of the classroom. They look past that. They’re far more accommodating to the modern adult or working adult. And so they view a lot more support for working adults. The classes are online. The restaurant pays, you know, all those things that help and not give you the experience that you had. But you’re right, you know, for a bigger perspective, not everybody needs to get a degree. Some careers, you should have it because you had the edge for your job and you can get that big promotion.

Grant Aldrich (12:01): Or if it’s a necessity. Like if I want to be a teacher. But for you and I, you know, we’re both entrepreneurs. What’s great is that what we’ve now branched out to is into certifications. And so in addition to degrees, we offer discounted certifications with credit universities that are better than anything else out there. Where, let’s say you want to be a bookkeeper. Well, you can get a certification with a certificate from the university, for your clients in book keeping with Quick Books and all of this. To basically just prepare you for a career as being your own boss. So that way, you know, you’ve got something. You don’t have to be a CPA. You’ve got something. When you go into that room, when you’re pitching your new clients, you know, I’m certified by University of X and it looks really good. So I’m glad we’ve really added that. So I think it’s complimented the situations that you’re talking about, where not everybody needs a degree.

Chris Miles (12:50): Right. That’s true. Now you mentioned, of course it’s perfect for the working adult. What about for those that are the typical young adult college age? You know, is this a good fit for them? Cause I know again, a ton of people that will say, how do I pay for college? How do I save for college, all this kind of stuff. And so I guarantee you there’s many, many listeners saying, all right, I may not need a degree, but what about my kids?

Grant Aldrich (13:12): Yeah. You know, it is. Although it hasn’t been open for them. I’ll explain why. When we first got started, I had the working adult in mind. So we purposely excluded it to anybody who was under 18 or any international students. And my logic was, was that I wanted to make sure we came out of the gate for our first MVP product, that we had a really good experience for that core demographic. And since then it’s just exploded. And so now we’re going back and saying, okay, we can expand now and go into high school students international because we get so many students knocking on the door saying we want it. In fact, for every one adult now that we have in, three knock on the door that we turn away who are either international or under 18. And so it’s a big problem. Yeah. So we’re working on now working out the intricacies of now opening up the platform for all those people. It’s not ready yet. Soon!

Chris Miles (14:07): Soon. So if they got somebody who’s in their mid teens, this is probably the perfect time.

Grant Aldrich (14:12): Yeah! So I would say, you know, check back maybe after the summer. We’ll be good to go.

Chris Miles (14:16): Okay. That’s pretty soon.

Grant Aldrich (14:17): Yeah, yeah, yeah. Very actively working on it.

Chris Miles (14:19): That’s great! Awesome! Well this is fantastic! I know it’s a, just like incredible niche, you know, that just to see that that’s even available and even possible for people to even get, you know, the ability to even take some courses and essential, not only have they come out of pocket initially. Right? I think that’s just incredible. So if people want to learn more about it, where should they go?

Grant Aldrich (14:40): Well, Chris, thank you man! And you know, it really is trying to just spread the word about it that, you know, in addition to what we do, there are a bunch of other little known secrets on how you can save college. You know, cause I think so many people fall into the trap where they just go in the front door and they just accept the fact, that’s it got to pay full time tuition. And the only ways to save previously were scholarships or community college. And both of those have tons of problems. They’re terrible options for an adult to try to do. And I can go into that later, but anyhow, yeah. So to come on, just go to OnlineDegree.com you can follow the project if it’s not something that, you know, if you’re not interested in certification or degree and we’ve got all kinds of info there on ways you can save. It’s really cool. So let’s say that would be a good one. And I’m also available on LinkedIn, you know, people want to connect.

Chris Miles (15:24): Great! Okay. We got to open it up for a few more minutes for sure. So grants or whatever you’re talking about right there. Like what are the non traditional ways that people might miss out on? You don’t have to give all the details, all the secrets, but just give us a few.

Grant Aldrich (15:38): Yeah. You know, you almost have to look at going back to higher ed as like you’re hacking your way through. And I mean that in a good way. Yeah. Cause you’re taking pieces off the shelf from numerous destinations. So what’s kind of good by starting in our platform is that we provide a good base. So, okay. Let’s say we aggregate all the adult friendly schools. So you know, which ones are the ones that are going to treat you the way that you would assume you’d be treated, going back to school. And so you start there and then we can map out what courses you can take for free. Then we can look at what kind of discounts are available that you can take advantage of at the different institutions. And then from there, we also compliment that this is something that most people don’t know, there’s these exams you can take where it’s not like an AP exam.

Grant Aldrich (16:23): It’s not as hard as that is, but they’re all about subject matter expertise where you can test out of a course. And so you can take, instead of taking, let’s say a full semester, long class on, you know, we can make this up, but history one. You can take, we have a history course. So this isn’t exactly the same. You can knock it out with our history course. But to give the example, you could take a prep course, right online, just short term. Take this exam and then remove the requirement when you come to school. So little techniques like this, just chip away at the amount of units you have to take at the actual university. Cause at the end of the day, you have to get, let’s say 120 units to get your bachelor’s degree at a college. And each course is three, four units, et cetera. The more that you can finish for free or at a discount rather than paying full price for tuition at that school, the better.

Chris Miles (17:13): That’s true. I remember, cause I lived for two years in Japan during my college years. Right? So I came back my sophomore year of college and they said, Hey, you can test out of this. And so I essentially got like 16 language arts credits. You know, for no charge. I was just able to get that knocked out. Right. And you know, kind of accelerate a little bit to the bachelors. I still had to take a bunch of more courses, but at least I was able to say, all right, well that’s off the list now. I’ve got plenty of, almost had too many credits by the time I was getting my bachelors, you know?

Grant Aldrich (17:43): That’s fantastic! Yeah. That’s a good example actually. Right. You know, you don’t take a language class if you’re comfortable enough with the language. You could test out of it. Yeah. Great example.

Chris Miles (17:51): Yeah. Awesome! Well, great! So again, everybody check out OnlineDegree.com you know, just, yeah. If that’s something that either for yourself or for someone you know, check it out. See what resources are available. Reach out to them and see if that’s something that’s a fit for you and something that could actually be the very thing you’ve been looking for. So Grant, I really appreciate your time today. It’s been awesome!

Grant Aldrich (18:11): Chris, thanks a lot for having me on!

Chris Miles (18:13): You bet, man. And everybody else, make it a wonderful and prosperous week and we’ll see you later.

#Chris Miles #Anti-financial Advisor #Cash flow #Cash flow Expert #Debts #Entrepreneur #Financial Freedom #Money Ripples

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lovehaswonangelnumbers · 4 years ago

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New Post has been published on https://lovehaswonangelnumbers.org/message-to-lightworkers-august-28th-2020-victims-and-saviors/

Message to Lightworkers, August 28th 2020 ~ Victims and Saviors

By Caroline Oceana Ryan

This week’s guidance from the Ascended Masters, Galactics, Earth Elementals, Fae Elders, Angelic legions, and Archangels known as the Collective:

Greetings, friends! We are very pleased to have this moment to speak with you today.

Recently a Light Bringer commented to our writer about a channeling she had received for him, from one of his guides.

He wrote:

“In a recent channeling you did for me, my guide said that I am not the savior of the planet.

What I learned from that was, that we as Lightworkers are anchoring many Light codes that have helped bring about many changes and current situations on the planet.

It is our job to bring in the higher Light/energy so that the necessary changes can take place.

What she said also showed me that my most important job is to stay strong, to focus and take care of myself, and not be concerned or worried or stressed about what is going on in the world around me.

Our jobs as Lightworkers is to keep our energy/Light as strong as possible.

By doing this we are enabling our energy to flow, which will allow for a stronger fifth dimensional Light to be distributed around the planet.

If we worry and stress about all the chaos and madness going on simultaneously, this only diminishes the strength of our fifth dimensional Light, which is used to build the New Earth, and at the same time, protect the planet from the darker energies.

So by focusing on ourselves, and having the attitude that all is taken care of and all is complete, we are doing the greatest good that we came here to do.

That might sound selfish, but this is how we stay strong and focused, and stand tall and let our natural abilities as Lightworkers accomplish the most good.

We should not feel guilty about being concerned about ourselves and taking care of ourselves first. This is what we came here to do.”

Our writer recently channeled another message from another spirit guide, who offered almost the exact same message.

And she has pondered the point about guilt, as she and so many others were raised with the idea that “It is better to give than to receive,” which is a mistranslation of the text that has led to many misunderstandings of the original teaching.

It is of course possible to understand that this is a misteaching, and not a solid Truth for Light Bearers at this time.

Yet the subconscious is powerful.

Many still carry the feeling that they owe it to their fellow humans to give to the point of imbalanced overgiving, because it is for one thing difficult to see others suffer, and for another, hard to shake off centuries of learned self-negation.

We would say that this is indeed a time when many look out onto the world and see many in despair, weighted by experiences of hunger, homelessness, and unemployment, of illness or environmental destruction, and other dense situations.

And it is very easy to move from a moment of viewing those circumstances to feeling the compulsion to save or rescue those in difficulty.

And certainly, to help out here or there with solid advice, financial contribution, a meal, or smile or kind word of encouragement—all of that is a beautiful moment of connection with another.

In that moment you are sharing something.

They have blessed you with the chance to give, and you have blessed them with the chance to receive.

You are not fooling yourself that you are taking away their pain in any complete way.

And yet—your kindness reassures them that they are worthy to receive, and are gathering to them the tools and resources needed to stand on their own, to be well again or housed or employed again, to believe in themselves and their life path again.

A beautiful thing indeed!

And you yourself have realized that you are also Abundant; that you have plenty to give and plenty to feel wonderful about.

This is especially true when you are not feeling particularly Abundant, and for example, decide to give regularly 10 percent of all the money that comes to you as a gift and encouragement to a group or individual that inspires you with their work.

That number of 10 being the number of increase, you then bless your own situation—your income, your health, your relationships, and more—with the steady outflow of money that is simply a form of life energy.

The imbalance comes from the belief that giving should be compulsive or come from a need to rescue another.

We would agree with the channelings above, that the rescue idea, based on the victim/savior paradigm, is an idea whose time has well passed.

It is a belief based in scarcity teachings, and on self-denial, that says, “Others are more valuable than me. More worthy of Joy and fulfillment, while I am worthy of self-sacrifice.”

This is a strange and demanding time to be on the planet, and so you will need to watch your emotional and mental vibration, friends, as well as your etheric vibration, so that you do not shift either into despair or into “rescue mode.”

You can avoid that by sending higher Light to any person or place that appears to be suffering now, such as to the populations of California facing extreme fires, among other western states.

Send Light to their people, trees and wildlife, their homes, schools, and hospitals.

Send Light to the people of Beirut and their whole country of Lebanon as they rebuild themselves after disaster.

Send Light to those who are ill, or fearful for a loved one who is ill.

Light to those afraid of becoming unemployed, or who have done so, and are not receiving adequate income.

Light to those not able to make their rent or mortgage, or pay for health insurance.

Certainly you do not have the outer resources to make all this, and all of Earth’s other pains and challenges, suddenly fade away.

Yet you can envision all of these situations solved, just as you can envision NESARA Law fully enacted, and all persons living in Abundant and fulfilling circumstances.

You are correct if you are thinking that all will not be ironed out overnight.

Yet know that were you in the etheric, viewing Earth from the distance of being no longer in physical life, you would do no less.

You would not have the luxury of “rescuing” others, and would have to work with them energetically, as they were open to such, in order to assist them.

Recall from deep within you your complete confidence in energetic solutions that find their way outward to physical ones, and draw on that experience.

Assisted by your spirit guides and higher self, you are perfectly suited to help to transform your world, yet in ways that simply empower and encourage others, rather than take them off of their path.

The time to look for saviors and rescuers is well over, friends.

You have come in to learn how to love and trust yourselves and your own higher instincts. You lead the way in that path, as in so many others.

And so allow that particular kind of Joy and relief from heavy burdens, by letting go of that which is not yours to carry.

Care about others, most assuredly.

Yet grant that they are powerful enough (perhaps, far more so than you!) to create their own solutions, and that your love for them points that out, with complete confidence in all they are able to transform.

Namaste, friends! So much Joy awaits you, and begins to unfold for you now.

We are with you, always.

If you repost, please maintain the integrity of this information by reprinting it exactly as you find it here, and including the link to the original post.

Thank you.

******

All of Creation Is watching Earth and witnessing its Ascension Process. They are ready, ready for this Planet to be Declared a Light Only Zone. All of Humanity are called upon now to Step Up in fulfillment of their Divine Soul Contract.

The dark has been cleared, fully defeated and New Earth, Nova Terra, is ready to begin. This requires each Being to fully clear the remaining density within their bodies, to awaken to full remembrance of their Galactic Truth, their Soul Essence, their Divine Blueprint.

This is not a Drill, in Real Time, Present Moment of Now Mother of All Creation is on the Planet and she is Our Divine Director, Our Eternal Mother. She hired you for this role and She is here to guide you.

Mother has the entire Galactic Federation of Light and all the Angels with Her in all moments. She also has Her guide/ambassador Robin Williams and Master St. Germain by Her side. There is no session like this available on the planet, or in all of Creation.

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zhannabelle-eng · 4 years ago

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How to prepare for the New Year and resist the coronavirus?

Challenge of Good from Zhannabelle: 5 steps that will change your life

2020 has been a challenging year for the entire world. But let's not let things get us down! A higher power gives us nothing we can't handle and survive. The important thing is that each of us can make the world a better place, and therefore we can make ourselves better too. This is what Zhannabelle's New Year's Challenge of Good is all about. Discover the 5 basic steps you need to take to become happy.

This year has brought a lot of unpleasant news and bad events. First of all, there's the new COVID-19 virus, which has already sickened millions of people. And some people are still waiting in fear to get sick. But should we be afraid so much? Spiritual mentor Zhannabelle recommends everyone to join the Challenge of Good consisting of 5 steps. Performing each step, you will make your life and the lives of your family and friends better, and you will be able to protect yourself from all illnesses.

Step 1 – SAY THANK YOU

At this difficult time, many may say, ‘I have no one and nothing to be thankful for’. But think carefully before you say this. It has been a difficult year, but have you never had a single event for which you can say thank you?

Let's proceed with the first step of the Challenge of Good. Take a blank sheet of paper, a pen and write down all the events for which you want to thank God or a family member, a friend, an acquaintance - it does not matter who. Most importantly, remember and write down all the good moments in your life during the year that are worthy to be thanked for.

Some of us may find it difficult to remember everything at once. If this is the case, ask Zhannabelle for a magical amulet. It will awaken your memories and focus on the most important things. After all, so many positive things have happened during this time, and some things are still forgotten! Hold the amulet in one hand and write your list with the other.

Keep this sheet of paper once you have written down all the events. Reread it on days when you feel bad and when you are in a difficult situation. It will give you strength and an opportunity to move on, to live and think only about good things, to believe in a better future and in yourself.

Step 2: BE JOYOUS

Joy is an invincible force. While despondency, sadness and denial can destroy everything, joy inspires and encourages everyone who comes into contact with it. Nowadays, people have protective masks on their faces and you can't tell if they're happy or sad. You should smile in any case! Know and believe that joy can heal any disease and help in difficult situations.

There is one monastery in the world, where almost all diseases can be cured, but on one condition: while you are there, you have to smile all the time. Otherwise, the monks will point out your fault and even punish you. The punishment is carrying heavy buckets of water up and down the hill. Having done this a couple of times, one decides that smiling is much easier and keeps smiling even when no one sees it.

The things is that smiling sends special impulses to the brain, which can even heal the body. Since not everyone can get into that monastery, we must try to awaken our joy on our own.

The easiest way is to stimulate joy with cheerful labels and smiley faces. These should be hung up around your house and/or in the workplace. You can draw a funny face and write: ‘Smile urgently!’ or "You're not naughty, you're a smiley’. Basically, let any little thing that makes you smile be in front of you all the time.

If fun stickers don't work, there is another way. It will fit more for home than office. Turn on your favourite music and dance without thinking about anything. Give yourself over to the dance like children do. You will feel the positive energy pulsating inside you after 2-3 minutes.

Zhannabelle has a special amulet for you in the form of brightly coloured feathers. Just looking at it will make you smile! There is a cheerful spirit inside of it that will energize you with positivity every day.

But if you still can't rejoice anything, then signing up for Zhannabelle’s retreat and doing a ritual there is the only way out. You need to do this, because without the feeling of joy you cannot move on to the next step of our Challenge of Good.

Step 3. BE FRIENDLY

You now have gratitude and joy. These feelings can be multiplied by sharing them with others through friendliness. But it is important for you to do it from your heart. Think about it: which person's picture you have in front of your eyes right now or who you are constantly thinking about without keeping in touch with this person? Maybe you have dreamt about that person more than once for no reason. Often it is because they need your help or support. Call, text, or meet this person! Even if you haven't communicated for a long time or had a grudge against this person, it's all in the past.

A friendly chat with an old friend would bring you joy and excitement. Send her the link to the article about group classes at Zhannabelle's online school. Let her read it and decide to give it a try, too. Maybe she needs individual consultation, then tell her how to make an appointment. Provide help, be a guide for someone to the world of opportunity, and new resources will open up for you.

Be a friend to people, don't give up on them in difficult situations, and inspire them. Then goodness will return to you. If it is difficult, amulets with assistant spirits will always help you. Put this amulet to your heart - and it will immediately help you be friendly towards others.

Step 4. Be Generous

Generosity isn't only material, although it's also important. For example, sharing money, clothes, and food with those in need. However, the most significant is generosity of your heart and soul. You can not measure it, but it is always immense. You can show it by sharing your joy and giving a good mood to others. But the highest degree is to share knowledge with people. It's especially important to pass on sacred wisdom.

Share information about seminars at Zhannabelle's online school, invite them to join mentor's YouTube channel, where every woman is sure to find a useful and relevant video for herself. You already have this knowledge, so share it, be generous!

Step 5: START BELIEVING

Faith should never leave you: believe in the future, in the best, in yourself. It's the feeling that allows you to move forward. Without it, you can't live life to the fullest.

Write down on a sheet of paper everything you want for your family and yourself. Next to it, write down the things you wish for the world. If you want to have a good life, you should write your wishes on a piece of paper with a huge faith at heart that everything will happen the way you want it. You are recommended to read your wishes to the music of transformation.

Faith of each of us is very strong, anything is within our power! Faith can heal the whole world and every person. Pray not only for yourself and your family, but also for our planet.

Communal prayer has often saved cities and countries from enemies. It will also help against the common enemy of humans, the coronavirus. Write Zhannabelle via her website where you live, and we will tell you how to contact the women of Power in your city. You can't imagine how many of us there are all over the world! Women unite in prayer for the future of the whole earth. You join us too.

Dear ladies, together we have taken 5 steps towards a new year, a new world. Share this knowledge with your family and friends; send them the link to this article. Invite new people to our seminars, and you will be lucky, prosperous, healthy, you will love and you will be loved.

Mariika (Budapest)

‘I have been studying at Zhannabelle's online school for a long time. I attend group classes and seminars. It helps me a lot in life: I got rid of fear of communication with strangers, overcame the fear of saying something wrong, as a consequence I met a good man and we are dating. But recently I started dreaming about an old acquaintance with whom we had quarrelled a long time ago. It's funny to say: once, 10 years ago, I considered something she did a betrayal, because she told my parents that I was going on dates instead of going to classes. It seems so silly now, but then it was a tragedy and a dirty trick from Elzbieta, whom I considered my best friend.

When I made an appointment for individual counselling with Zhannabelle, I asked her why I was dreaming about my friend almost every night and what it could mean. She explained that Elzbieta probably needed my help and recommended me to call her. I didn't really want to reconnect with someone with whom I had lost contact long ago. But, following Zhannabelle's advice, I called her.

Elzbieta was pleased to hear my voice. After a couple of minutes of conversation, she admitted that she had been waiting for my call, she was afraid to call, afraid that I would slam the phone on her. It turned out that a couple of months ago she had been diagnosed with breast cancer and the recovery from a course of chemotherapy was very difficult for her. My former friend had no one to have a good talk with. She remembered our friendship, we trusted all our secrets to each other, and no one but me had ever supported her like that. Elzbieta missed me very much and constantly regretted the mistake we had made at a young age, which had caused us to stop communicating. After talking to her, I knew that I had to act immediately and I made an appointment for her for a consultation with the mentor.

After a month of continuous study at the online school, my friend had a sustained remission. She could even keep her breasts, and now she feels great! This is all thanks to Zhannabelle. I showed my concern by doing my part to save Elzbieta, for which I gained a firm friendship.

#zhannabelle #spirituality #new year #christmas #holiday #challenge #coaching

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pamphletstoinspire · 4 years ago

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BEATIFICATION OF PADRE PIO OF PIETRELCINA HOMILY OF HIS HOLINESS JOHN PAUL II 2 May 1999

“Sing a new song to the Lord!”.

1. The summons of the entrance antiphon captures well the joy of so many of the faithful who have long awaited the beatification of Padre Pio of Pietrelcina. By his life given wholly to prayer and to listening to his brothers and sisters, this humble Capuchin friar astonished the world. Countless people came to meet him in the friary of San Giovanni Rotondo and, since his death, the flow of pilgrims has not ceased. When I was a student here in Rome, I myself had the chance to meet him personally, and I thank God for allowing me today to enter Padre Pio's name in the book of the blessed. Guided by the texts of this Fifth Sunday of Easter, which provides the context for the beatification, let us this morning trace the main features of his spiritual experience.

2. “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God and believe also in me” (Jn 14:1). In the Gospel just proclaimed, we heard these words of Jesus to his disciples who were in need of encouragement. In fact, his allusion to his imminent departure had thrown them into turmoil. They were afraid of being abandoned, of being alone, and the Lord consoled them with a very specific promise: “I am going to prepare a place for you”, and then, “I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also” (Jn 14:2-3).

Through Thomas, the Apostles reply to this reassurance: “Lord, we do not know where you are going; how can we know the way?”(Jn 14:5). The remark is apt, and Jesus does not avoid the question which it implies. The answer he gives will remain for ever a light shining for generations still to come: “I am the way and the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father but by me” (Jn 14:6).

The “place” that Jesus goes to prepare is in “the house of the Father”; there the disciple will be able to be with the Master for all eternity and share in his joy. Yet there is only one path that leads there: Christ, to whom the disciple must be conformed more and more. Holiness consists precisely in this: that it is no longer the Christian who lives, but Christ himself who lives in him (cf. Gal 2:20). An exhilarating goal, accompanied by a promise which is no less consoling: “Whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do, and greater works than I will they do, because I am going to the Father” (Jn 14:12).

3. We hear these words of Christ and think of the humble friar of Gargano. How clearly were they fulfilled in Bl. Pio of Pietrelcina!

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe ...”. What was the life of this humble son of St Francis if not a constant act of faith, strengthened by the hope of heaven, where he could be with Christ?

“I am going to prepare a place for you ... that where I am you may be also”. What other purpose was there for the demanding ascetical practices which Padre Pio undertook from his early youth, if not gradually to identify himself with the Divine Master, so that he could be “where he was”?

Those who went to San Giovanni Rotondo to attend his Mass, to seek his counsel or to confess to him, saw in him a living image of Christ suffering and risen. The face of Padre Pio reflected the light of the Resurrection. His body, marked by the “stigmata”, showed forth the intimate bond between death and resurrection which characterizes the paschal mystery. Bl. Pio of Pietrelcina shared in the Passion with a special intensity: the unique gifts which were given to him, and the interior and mystical sufferings which accompanied them, allowed him constantly to participate in the Lord's agonies, never wavering in his sense that “Calvary is the hill of the saints”.

4. No less painful, and perhaps even more distressing from a human point of view, were the trials which he had to endure as a result, it might be said, of his incomparable charisms. It happens at times in the history of holiness that, by God's special permission, the one chosen is misunderstood. In that case, obedience becomes for him a crucible of purification, a path of gradual assimilation to Christ, a strengthening of true holiness. In this regard, Bl. Pio wrote to one of his superiors: “I strive only to obey you, the good God having made known to me the one thing most acceptable to him and the one way for me to hope for salvation and to sing of victory” (Letter I, p. 807).

When the “storm” broke upon him, he took as his rule of life the exhortation of the First Letter of Peter, that we have just heard: Come to Christ, a living stone (cf. 1 Pt 2:4). He himself thus became a “living stone” for the building of that spiritual house which is the Church. For this we today give thanks to the Lord.

5. “You too are living stones, built into a spiritual house” (1 Pt 2:5). How fitting are these words if we apply them to the extraordinary ecclesial experience which grew up around the new blessed! So many people, meeting him directly or indirectly, rediscovered their faith; inspired by his example, “prayer groups” sprang up in every corner of the world. To all who flocked to him he held up the ideal of holiness, repeating to them: “It seems that Jesus has no interest outside of sanctifying your soul” (Letter II, p. 155).

If God's Providence willed that he should be active without ever leaving his convent, as though he were “planted” at the foot of the Cross, this is not without significance. One day the Divine Master had to console him, at a moment of particular trial, by telling him that “it is under the Cross that one learns to love” (Letter I, p. 339). The Cross of Christ is truly the outstanding school of love; indeed, the very “wellspring” of love. Purified by suffering, the love of this faithful disciple drew hearts to Christ and to his demanding Gospel of salvation.

6. At the same time, his charity was poured out like balm on the weaknesses and the sufferings of his brothers and sisters. Padre Pio thus united zeal for souls with a concern for human suffering, working to build at San Giovanni Rotondo a hospital complex which he called the “House for the Relief of Suffering”. He wanted it to be a first-class hospital, but above all he was concerned that the medicine practiced there would be truly “human”, treating patients with warm concern and sincere attention. He was quite aware that people who are ill and suffering need not only competent therapeutic care but also, and more importantly, a human and spiritual climate to help them rediscover themselves in an encounter with the love of God and with the kindness of their brothers and sisters.

With the “House for the Relief of Suffering”, he wished to show that God's “ordinary miracles” take place in and through our charity. We need to be open to compassion and to the generous service of our brothers and sisters, using every resource of medical science and technology at our disposal.

7. The echo stirred by this beatification in Italy and throughout the world shows that the fame of Padre Pio, a son of Italy and of Francis of Assisi, has gone forth to embrace all the continents. And I gladly greet those who have gathered here — in the first place the Italian authorities who have chosen to be present: the President of the Republic, the President of the Senate, the Prime Minister, who leads the official delegation, and the many other ministers and distinguished guests. Italy is represented most worthily! But also the many faithful from other nations have gathered here to pay homage to Padre Pio.

My affectionate greeting goes to all who have come from near and far, with a special thought for the Capuchin Fathers. To everyone I offer heartfelt thanks.

8. Let me conclude with the words of the Gospel of this Mass: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Have faith in God”. There is a reference to this exhortation of Christ in the advice which the new blessed never tired of giving to the faithful: “Abandon yourselves fully to the divine heart of Jesus, like a child in the arms of his mother”. May these words of encouragement fill our hearts too and become a source of peace, serenity and joy. Why should we fear, if Christ for us is the Way, and the Truth and the Life? Why should we not trust in God who is the Father, our Father?

May “Our Lady of Graces”, whom the humble Capuchin of Pietrelcina invoked with constant and tender devotion, help us to keep our gaze fixed on God. May she take us by the hand and lead us to seek wholeheartedly that supernatural charity flowing forth from the wounded side of the Crucified One.

And you, Bl. Padre Pio, look down from heaven upon us assembled in this square and upon all gathered in prayer before the Basilica of St John Lateran and in San Giovanni Rotondo. Intercede for all those who, in every part of the world, are spiritually united with this event and raise their prayers to you. Come to the help of everyone; give peace and consolation to every heart. Amen!

#padre pio

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dailyaudiobible · 4 years ago

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07/26/2020 DAB Transcript

2 Chronicles 17:1-18:34, Romans 9:25-10:13, Psalms 20:1-9, Proverbs 20:2-3

Today is the 26th day of July welcome to the Daily Audio Bible I’m Brian it is wonderful to be here with you today as we greet the new week together and just kinda lookout. There’s is Monday coming, there’s Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday. These are days that we will live into, but they are in our future. They are out in front of us. We are standing here looking into this new week and if we become aware of it, we can realize we are at a precipice. The choices and decisions that we make are gonna fill those days and write the story of this week. And, so, we are here and in advance we can make some decisions about the path that we’re gonna take as we follow the leading of the Holy Spirit in our lives. And, so, welcome to a brand-new week and let's see what comes our way and invite the Scriptures to give us…to give us the wisdom that we’re gonna need as we go into this week. So, we’ll read from the New Living Translation this week and continue our journey in the Old Testament through the book of second Chronicles. Today, second Chronicles chapters 17 and 18.

Prayer:

Father, we thank You for Your word and we thank You for this…this vista where we’re looking out into the new week and our calendars have things on them and we have plans, but we submit those things to You. We want to walk through this week in lockstep with You every moment. We want to live this week to its fullest in Your graces and in Your smile. We want to be in Your presence and be Your delight as You are our delight. And we are so grateful. We are so grateful for what we…what we read in the book of Romans, that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. May we just…may we just fall back into that like we’re falling back into a warm pillow and being surrounded by Your love knowing that we can confidently go into this week we have nothing to prove. It's proven. There's nothing we can earn. It's given. You have come for us and have invited us to collaborate with You to be the light of the world, to shine the light of what it looks like to be made a new creation upon this earth. And, so, may we live into that with all of our hearts this week. It's all available, it's ours to choose. And, so, Holy Spirit come because we want to choose it, but we forget. We are so enveloped in this culture that we start behaving like it constantly, when You invited us out from that - in it but not of it - so that we can be the voice the pulls everyone else forward. Come Holy Spirit into this week we pray. In the name of Jesus, we ask. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com is home base, it is the website, it’s where you find out what’s going on around the community. So…so, check that out. Check out the different sections there in the website or you can check them out in the app too by pushing that little drawer icon in the upper left-hand corner. Check out the Shop where there are resources available for the journey. Check out the community section for different links to…to connect.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible, you can do that at dailyaudiobible.com as well. Thank you. Thank you as we navigate the summertime. Thank you for your partnership. I’ve said it a thousand times, if we were not in this together, we wouldn't be here. And that is the nature of this beautiful unique community that we share. It wouldn’t work if we weren’t here together. If we were not in this together taking this journey like a voyage across a year and through the Bible, if we weren’t in this together it wouldn’t work. And, so, thank you. Thank you for your partnership. There’s a link on the homepage. If you’re using the Daily Audio Bible app you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner, or the mailing address is PO Box 1996 Spring Hill Tennessee 37174.

And, as always, if you have a prayer request or encouragement, you can hit the Hotline button in the app, which is the little red button at the top, or you can dial 877-942-4253.

And that's it for today. I'm Brian I love you and I'll be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Community Prayer and Praise:

Good morning Daily Audio Bible I’m calling in from Maryland. I’m calling for a young man who called in a few weeks ago. I didn’t catch his name, but he asked for prayer for his family but towards the end he was very adamant and very specific and very strong that he needed prayer for himself. He said he was 13 years old and for whatever reason whenever I hear children call in it always strikes my heart. So, I’d like to know…let him know that someone heard him and does pray for him. Even though I don’t know your name, you know who you are, God knows who you are. So, I’d like to that you know I do pray for you every morning and I wish you well. Thank you.

Good morning DAB family my name is Maureen __ I’m calling from Nigeria. I really want to thank you Brian for everything you’re doing for us. God is seriously using you to do wonderful work in the life of his children. I want to thank you also for keeping this platform always very updated. I want to thank God in a special way for the life of my husband. He has been a very wonderful man. God has been working wonders through him to reach our families, to reach our loved ones, to reach our friends. And I pray that God will continue to provide for him, that all the sacrifice he’s making for the sake and good of others will be replenished a 100-fold. I ask God to continue to sustain him in good health and mind and body and to worship in spirit and in truth all the days of our life. I pray also for every other family in the DAB and ask God to bless all these people – guidance, strength and hope who worship him. In Jesus’ name. Amen. Thank you everyone. Thank you so much. Bye.

Hello DAB family this is Brother Ox this is July 23rd and I wanted to give my many thanks to Brian. I’ve been saved since I was about 15 years old and have been in church all of my life but recently have been confronted with the fact that there is probably a lot…there’s a lot of the New Testament I haven’t like read through beginning to end cover to cover, don’t meditate on these…on this wisdom. And as many times as I’ve tried beating my head over Romans, it was not clicking. I wasn’t being able to meditate and receive that. So…so this romp through even just the first eight chapters of Romans has been incredibly profound and I can’t thank him enough for it. I found myself in a place where with all of these things going on in the world that I see what I stand against, I have a very weak grasp on…on what I stand for and why…I understand what I stand for but not how to express why and I need to go back to the Scriptures, the New Testament particularly, to understand that. So, I thank everyone…I thank the DAB family to bringing me to this point. Prayers go out to Gigi from the loss of her father. We’re are all in prayer for you sister and I can’t…we extend our compassion out to you in this and pray that God gives you the strength to you, you and your family to step forward. And Treasured Possession, your…your words today about…about our brothers and sisters who are found with autism and whatnot, they are incredibly inspiring. I thank you so much for those. God bless you all. This is Brother Ox signing out.

Good morning Daily Audio Bible family this is __ calling from South Sudan. I am very grateful for all of you, everyone that is part of this community, you have touched my life through your prayers and encouragement and I also thank God for the Hardin family - Brian, Jill, China, Ben and the younger one I believe is Elijah. Thank you for this great ministry that God has committed into your hand. Your faithfulness to continue these many years. I…I would like to share with you that today is my wedding anniversary, 23rd of July. My wife and I met each other at the University of Texas. In a prayer meeting I pulled up a chair and sat behind a girl and after that prayer meeting the girl turned around and looked at me and caused me to stop breathing. So, I told her that because I stopped breathing, she…she would have to become my wife to keep me breathing again. And 32 years later God has been faithful to us. 32 years, five children who have been successful. So, we thank God and we bless him in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Hi family this is Sally North Dakota. So, I haven’t called in for quite a while, so I wanted to call in and check in with everybody. Want you to know that I love you. I appreciate Brian and Jill so much and China. I love our family that we have here. Want to give out a shout out to Annette in Oklahoma City. Happy birthday, 10 years, wow that’s totally awesome. I’m on my second year listening and I feel like I’ve been a part of the family forever. So, it’s really great. Annette, I love what you shared about never being alone and…and the things that you’ve learned from the DAB. I too have learned a lot about myself and…and I’m thankful that we all continue to grow together and pray for each other. And I want you to know Annette that I love you. You’re very special to me. And I also wanted to lift up Prodigal and his new queen and Claire’s grandma that’s in a…that’s ion a coma. So, heavenly Father we just lift this family up to You. We thank You for giving her life and the life that she’s had. And Lord, we pray for Your perfect will to be done in this family as You draw them close to You and to each other. We thank You for Your comfort and the love that You give us during this time. And, so, Prodigal, it’s always good to hear from you. And everybody else, I love you so much and I’ll continue to call in from time to time. Okay. Bye for now.

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thedistantstorm · 5 years ago

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Dawning Delights 02: Baking Cookies

Summary: Hawthorne invites her newfound family in the Tower to experience a City-Style Dawning with the family that took her in years ago. The holiday is not without it’s charm, or aggravation, and certainly has plenty of surprises in store. A season-inspired, trope-tastic story about a family forged by something greater than blood, finding reasons to enjoy the season - and cherish each other. Main Post

Pairings: Hawthorne/Zavala, Sloane/Amanda, Devrim/Marc

Updated every Tuesday/Friday & both holiday eve and days for Christmas and New Years.

Marc, in typical Marc fashion, revises a midday brunch to a family-style dinner not long after making their arrangement. Apparently he’d got Amanda’s very enthusiastic RSVP and decided she should be treated to a home-cooked meal and be able to provide input on their Dawning Celebration. After all, accepting Zavala into their unorthodox family meant Amanda came along with it.

"Oh, this isn't going to end well." Suraya rolls her eyes as Amanda hollers, "He doesn't know the difference between salt and sugar!"

The Clan Stewardess pulls a beer from the fridge and hands it to the Shipwright. "Take this, and go back to watching your sparrow racing, would you?" When Amanda goes, she lays a hand on his forearm. "You're doing fine."

Zavala sighs. "I don't have to help with these-"

"Yes, you do. You’re psyching yourself out. Stop doubting yourself. Cooking and baking are two totally different things."

"And yet you excel at both."

"Both my fathers taught me what they knew. Besides, I don't think anyone was baking cookies in the dark ages," She reminds him. The exaggeration earns her a subdued half-smile. "Blend in the butter. Slow, fold it in on itself." She watches the consistency change, sticking her fingers into the mixture to test it. "Perfect," She tells him, voice even, not indulgent. Tension bleeds from his shoulders. "I'll roll it out. Amanda picked the cut-outs, right?"

He turns, finding them on the counter near the refrigerator and brings them to her. "Here."

"You can do this too, it's easy." She hands him back one that looks suspiciously like a jumpship. They exchange a glance at the rest - also jumpships and sparrows - and Hawthorne grabs a few more that look like stars and bells, even a little Ghost-shaped one.

He presses the cookie cutter into the flat roll of dough carefully.

"You can't hurt it, Zavala, push all the way through."

He does, and when he pulls back the cookie cutter, the dough comes with it. Halfway through transferring it to the cookie sheet nearby, it flops out of the plastic. He catches it in a fist, effectively ruining the shape.

Hawthorne laughs, opening his fist and plucking out the dough. "Put your hand under it next time." She rolls the misshapen cut-out back into a ball and pops it back in the bowl with the other half of the dough. "You really can't hurt these. I promise."

"You've seen me try to cook," He reminds her, pressing into the dough again.

Her hips nudge his. "You've got this, Commander. Besides, Marc will be more obsessed with us baking together than he will about the quality. He can't bake to save his life. Ask him about the time we tried to make Dev a birthday cake. He'll love it."

Amanda shouts something in the background, kicking her feet against the bottom of the couch. No doubt she has glimmer riding on the results of the race. Meanwhile, Suraya works with precision and experience, rolling out more dough on the counter beside him to speed things up.

"Did Marc try often?" Zavala knows by now that her childhood isn't a secret, but she grows embarrassed easily and won't share much without pointed questions. As it happens, Zavala is curious, wanting to know as much about her as he can.

He'll get the story from her first, and still ask her adoptive parent later. By then, Suraya will be loose enough to point out any inconsistencies, and add her own commentary.

"No. He looked up ‘easy to bake recipes for kids’ exactly one time," She admits, sheepish still. "Dev was on assignment and due back on his birthday. We did some accidental chemistry." She wipes her forehead with the back of her hand, spearing a dab of flower on it. He spares it a fond blink and meets her eyes once more. "Some cakes use vinegar, and baking soda. It helps them rise. It's also the same thing used in children's experiments, science fair volcanoes, that sort of thing." She shrugs.

"My Dad - I mean, you've seen him, he cooks by heart. The recipes are just guidelines." Zavala hums in agreement. "So he dumps the vinegar in right after the baking soda, and he's got the mixer on, right?" She claps her hands. "Just, bam! Everywhere. Chocolatey ruin, all over the kitchen." She laughs and he can't help but smile. "I must have been eight or nine, I can't remember. I laughed about it for a week. He spent an hour washing chocolatey goo out of my hair, and three more trying to clean the kitchen."

"What did you do?"

"He all but sprinted to the bakery. We made it home with maybe ten minutes to spare? Dev probably wouldn't have known," She grins, "But I ratted Marc out immediately."

Zavala laughs.

"He was so stressed, and Dev was so confused, and," Suraya giggles, "I didn't know what to do." She snorts, having to stop what she's doing, she's laughing so hard. "Marc started raving. 'The damn thing said it was for kids,' he kept saying. He's sworn off baking to this day, and I'm not kidding, he hasn't made a single dessert." Finally, she composes herself, wiping tears from her eyes. "I am so making him tell you the story. He'll lose his mind."

"Are you sure you want to antagonize him?"

She is. "He's a primadonna. He loves it. He'll start with the hand motions-" She flops a hand towards him, dusting his sweater with flour, lips snacking as she tries to belay her laughter once more. "Oops."

Blue eyes look down and narrow. "Suraya," He warns in a tone that says he’s already determined his next move and it’s not in her favor.

She grins, sheepishly. "Whatever you're thinking, don't."

Dark shapely eyebrows rise and fall in a silent insinuation.

The next time Amanda comes into the kitchen, there may or may not be hand prints on Suraya's back, and flour in her hair. Zavala isn't faring any better, she sees what she'd guess is a Suraya-sized palm smeared across the seat of his jeans. She takes one look at them and makes an about-face, leaving her empty on counter, sneaking into the fridge for another, unwilling to join in the chaos. They're too busy carrying on to notice her, and she's not about to spoil their fun.

She will, however, bring it up to Marc later, because she knows he'll want to hear all about it.

It's well after dinner when the girls are laying on the couch watching some old holiday feature that Zavala pulls Marc aside. He waits until Suraya is nodding off onto Amanda's shoulder - Amanda is too enthralled to mind, she loves these reruns - to slip back into the kitchen unnoticed.

"Plans in plans?" Marc queries smartly, unprovoked. His hair is starting to turn more pewter than black-brown these days, but he still doesn’t look a day past forty (he’s thankful to his skin-routine and hairdresser for that). He gestures to the large kitchen island, and the stools beside it.

“Well,” Zavala doesn’t look nervous. Perhaps that’s why it radiates off him so obviously. Marc doesn’t believe in auras, but projection and a little context do wonders. “I do need to ask you something.”

Marc shakes his head, patting Zavala’s folded hands. “When and how? Is there a plan and can I help?”

“You don’t even know-”

His hazel eyes shine in fond amusement. “She sees right through you, doesn’t she?” He muses aloud, to which Zavala shifts uncomfortably, exposed. “That’s not a Devrim trait, you know.” He tips his head down, trying and failing to conceal his grin before swinging his gaze back up to ethereal blue. “She gets that from me."

"Still-"

"I am absolutely certain my husband gave you the curt, gentleman's heart-to-heart and relished every awkward second of it." He crosses one leg over the other, and smiles. Devrim had called him immediately after this particular conversation, resources and satellites, encrypted comm protocols be damned. After all, it wasn't often that the Vanguard Commander snuck into the wilds unannounced to ask your blessing to marry your child. "You don't need to convince me. I'm here for this. And you.” His eyebrows dip in an insinuation. “So spill."

Zavala leans in, voice dropping to barely a whisper, and Marc scoots closer, visibly vibrating with excitement.

The Guardians waste no time presenting their Vanguard with presents. For Ikora, flaky pastries replace last year's overabundance of donut holes. Zavala finds himself inundated with Gjallardoodles again, within hours of the Tower's festivities officially beginning. Eva, laughing from her place between Tess, Kadi, and Rahool, only encourages it.

Hawthorne watches from afar. She doesn't have the heart to tell them that Louis doesn't eat birdseed when they bring it by the bag. Instead, she sets it aside for Colonel, who is still roosting comfortably in the Hangar and will - unlike what Cayde insisted previously - eat anything.

At some point, she sees Zavala approach Ikora for some sort of exchange. Pastries for cookies, conversation between them unrushed and pleasant. She can see it in their body language. They may not be close, but it warms Suraya to see Ikora smile, for her to be getting along with Zavala and them to be working as a team once more.

The year prior had been rough for everyone. Hawthorne and Zavala were still working to well and truly define what was between them when Cayde was murdered. Sure, there were feelings and Suraya's relatively certain they both knew what those feelings were at the time (they just wanted to be careful), but losing Cayde changed things.

The Vanguard was forever changed. At one point, Suraya had been pulled into a meeting with the Hidden - which was something - and been asked about Zavala's stability (they really did know everything, which was alarming) and her opinions on the Vanguard being necessary at all. It had been a time. Of course, she understood why those questions begged asking. Zavala threw up walls like she did, closing himself off to everyone.

But, Suraya knows better than anyone how to slip in the cracks. She did not push or prod. Did not beg his attention or time or push him to cheer up. She simply existed, constant and quiet, at the edges of the room, the other side of his bed. Waiting. It didn't take nearly as long as she had expected.

Now, she knows, she has Eva to thank for that. There was a reason she'd made sure Suraya only received edibles for her feathered companion (misguided though it was). The old woman had given him a reason to be concerned, a reason to share his overabundance of holiday treats with her, and it paid off.

It took far longer for the Vanguard to make peace and try to move on, for Ikora and Zavala to set aside their collective pride and grief and foster a relationship once more.

Here they are, though. She can hear Zavala's low laugh from here, see the way Ikora reaches out to test one of the better looking cookies in the tin he's holding. They're better together, the both of them.

Louis squawks something agreeable, and she doesn't think on it much when she turns to feed him a little nibble of the treats he'd been given that he does enjoy. Some of the Hunters who know a thing or two about hawking have brought him presents, as well. He hasn't gone hunting yet, and 'tis the season. He's a little underweight as it is. He chitters on like the spoiled brat he is, keeping her attention. She smooths his feathers and grins at him. He looks at her, head tilted, beak parted. Asking for the rest.

"No more," She says, and his cries grow a little more urgent. "You want food, you have to hunt. You're not a chicken."

He beats his wings petulantly before crying once more. Suraya laughs and sends him on his way.

When she turns back, Zavala is entrusting the two tins of leftover Gjallardoodles to Ikora. The Warlock slips the smaller one into a drawer at her station. Suraya doesn't think anything of it.

Back to Main Fic Post

#Destiny Fanfiction #commander zavala #suraya hawthorne #amanda holliday #destiny dawning #dawningdelightsfanfic #destiny marc #devrim x marc #tower family

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fly-with-no-hope-no-fear · 5 years ago

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In concluding my #HilltopHideawaysAGR photoseries, I realized that while those pictures gave a glimpse of what my life at Saint Anselm looked like spatially, the project didn’t even begin to tell what Saint Anselm gave me in my four years there. And so I return to what has always been my best form of expression: pen and paper (which now I’m typing to share with all of you). Let’s see if I can do the Hilltop justice this time around.

Saint Anselm gave me a Benedictine liberal arts education that I now use every day. Because even though taking classes that had nothing to do with my majors was sometimes frustrating and difficult (*coughcough*@Formal Logic*coughcough*), I still enjoyed the things discussed in those classes, and my mind grew in so many ways that I didn’t expect. I’ve always been reflective in nature, but to receive an education that stressed the importance of a philosophical perspective, I can only count as an amazing gift. The influence that the Benedictines had on my education, showed me that while philosophy could help us ponder many questions of existence and purpose, it has gaps that only theological musings can fill…and vice versa. Logic and faith go hand in hand. For one to exist without the other, always leads the human mind into a trap of extremism, regardless of which end it may fall to.

Saint Anselm gave me relationships that have absolutely blessed me and helped me grow as a person. There are the monks, several of whom were mentors to me in various aspects of my life, who were professors, friends, and sometimes like overprotective brothers who helped me with papers, gave me helpful resources, poked fun of me, were always available to chat, and interrupted quite a few dates. Their presence on campus and in my life only further convinced me that although human, monks are super-heroes who wear habits instead of capes. The amount of respect I have for these men is immense.

I had professors who were engaging, helpful, inspiring, and cared about my success. Not just my academic success, but also my personal success. They pushed my limits, but were there every step of the way. There are a few I wish I could take just one more class with. There’s one I will always look up to, and I owe him a lot for catching what others missed when I struggled to sort through all the information I was receiving. I’m thankful for our life chats, his support, and the book he gave me that opened my eyes and helped me come up with new answers to old questions. He was great to bounce ideas off of, and he made it clear he’s proud of the direction I’m headed. I know he’s just an email away.

I made so many smart, talented, incredible friends who amaze me every day. We have been there for each other through thick and thin, and overcome so much together. From talking out disagreements, keeping each other awake so homework and papers got finished, movies, late night drives, Red Arrow Diner/Dunkin’/Wendy’s/Chick-Fil-A runs, meals together in Dav, cshop, and pub, walks around campus all hours of the day and night, photoshoots, classes together, life talks, sleepovers on dorm rugs, interventions, and dance or music parties…not to mention the group chats, shenanigans, and paper cranes, of which there were many. And the hugs. Wow. When it comes to my friends, there is always something interesting happening. I am incredibly grateful to each and every one of them, for their friendship and the things they have taught me.

When I committed to Saint Anselm and arrived on campus in August of 2015, I was not expecting to encounter the kind of communities that I did, in the ways that I did. The monastic community. The academic community. The people who work in Dav, cshop, and the pub. Denise in Bradley House. The student body. It was impossible to not run into someone I knew whenever I made my way across campus, whether friends, staff, professors, or monks. Saint Anselm truly is a community.

Saint Anselm gave me experiences. Obviously, that started with moving to school…everyone experienced that. For me, college also meant being in a classroom for the first time since 2nd grade. But it was perhaps the lessons and experiences I had outside the classroom that taught me the most. I learned about many other faiths and political perspectives, and in doing so, transformed and strengthened my own. I learned the power of dialogue. I learned how to listen, be compassionate, and stand my ground. I realized the kind of person I wanted to be. I began fighting back against anxiety, and putting myself out there instead of holding myself back. I went to concerts, I spent quality tie with friends, both in groups and individually. I got on a plane for the first time and flew to Indy for the 2019 SEEK conference. I spent 8 days on a SBA service trip in Mississippi. I applied for a scholarship that would have allowed me to pursue an ambitious and terrifying, but much needed service project post-grad, had I won it. In short, I took risks that pre-college me never would have dreamed of taking…and not only did I grow immensely from doing so, but I enjoyed it. The windows that they have opened my mind to, keep me dreaming every day.

Saint Anselm gave me the realization that I am a creator. High school Alexis was a writer, sure, but she was also a sports kid first and foremost. While I started Just Shine On at 15 years old, college helped me realize that creative writing is much more my forte. I wrote over one hundred poems. And I started getting into iPhone photography. But creation also gave me two more communities: poetry club and open mic. Between the two of them, I got in a lot of performance and writing experience. When I went to SEEK I submitted a poem to their contest and was chosen as a finalist. My poem was displayed for everyone there to see. Besides poetry and photography, I dabbled in music, spontaneously buying a ukulele I named Gavin, and teaching myself how to play. I also took guitar lessons as a class. That didn’t go quite as well, but I plan to pick it up again at some point. (The guitar’s name is Gabe.) The appreciation I have for artistic ventures, and the passion I have to create, I may very well have found on my own eventually. But my gut tells me college and the people I met helped me find it so much sooner. And it provided the perfect environment to practice in. Having professors who encouraged and supported me and many others in our extracurricular passions, is something I’m grateful for too.

Lastly, college gave me…well, me. I have grown a lot. I have found my voice, new passions and interests. I learned that it’s okay to be overwhelmed, stressed, anxious, scared, and sad sometimes. What matters is whether or not I let it overtake me. I learned the difference between what it means to be in love, and to love. I developed a life philosophy that’s still growing and starting to spread to all areas of my life, and a belief that if I’m striving to be faithful to God always, then He will be faithful to me even when I fail. I learned so much about who I am, who I want to be, and who I don’t want to be. Most of all, I learned that I will never be done learning who I am, because who I am is a lifelong journey of development. Saint Anselm gave me so much more than just an education; it truly was the best of times and the worst of times. And I’m forever grateful.

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texpatcolo · 6 years ago

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Behind the scenes

I have been wanting, for a long time, to help create some sort of universal resource to encourage women into mountain biking and provide tools, inspiration and community that don’t require time, travel or money to engage with. But I have a tremendous amount of doubt about it because I have no model that resonates, and I don’t know how to be one.

Every time I open up media and look around I see ambassador programs and “sponsored” riders and social media influences and I have an immediate and adverse reaction to these women. I see myself in none of them. Instead, I see women faster than me, fitter than me, more attractive, more core.

Then I remember feeling inadequate as a little kid because my dad loved running more than anything and not only did I despise running, I was horrible at it. And I remember the sideways derogatory comments he’d make about my mom’s appearance as she got older and out of shape.

And I remember the woman he had his longest affair with who was a perky, fit triathlete and who had the nerve to be nice to me when her daughter and I raced Ironkids triathlons together as young teenagers. I learned to hate athletic women who naturally had nice bodies and some sort of innate physical abilities and excessively positive attitudes and the men who worshiped them.

My mom raised me to value my intellect and to accept nothing less than being valued as a whole person. She literally told me looks don’t matter and in retrospect I can see why. I managed to grow up without body image issues but with a massive and judgmental chip on my shoulder that I’m still trying extremely hard to shake off.

And yet I will readily confess that the one (and only) time a man said he was attracted to me for my physique, my head swam and I was overwhelmed with glorious, warming dopamine for months. I’d finally won something, though I wasn’t sure what… When I got over it, I felt like a complete moron. Like I’d been duped.

It didn’t help that I went to work in the mountain bike industry and had to fight that feeling of physical inadequacy on a regular basis. I also had to fight for the value of intelligent professional adults. The latter was far harder; years ago, a well-known and high-powered female figure in the mountain bike industry told me I was wasting my time with graduate school. I used to think it was funny that she laughed at me for wanting to grow and better myself; now it makes me angry.

The last few years before I got out of the bike industry, when I was surrounded mostly by women who had become friends, the being a slow rider thing wasn’t so bad. They sheltered me from it, literally. My year-long foray into cycling media was the most challenging, and required a constant effort to stay one step ahead of everyone else so that I didn’t find myself abandoned on some trail with no one conferring legitimacy on me any longer because I couldn’t keep up.

For two years in a different role, I had to report and submit to someone whose major achievement in life had been riding their bike fast, and yet was somehow in charge of a large and complex organization. Despite my decade of work experience and master’s degree, I never came out ahead. Not once. He never earned my respect, and I was told -- straightforwardly -- that he did not respect me and never would. “Why” was never answered, but being younger than he and female and not a historical figure in the bike industry were three obvious reasons.

As those two years wore on, I felt more and more beat down and ignored. It wasn’t until I left that I realized how physically and emotionally ill I had become in that role. I was so downtrodden that when I got another job, friends and family members were commenting that I was back to my old self, when I never realized I had drifted so far away.

So perhaps this will be obvious and needless to say, but I have never been “impressed” by athletic greatness unless the person uses that platform for good (thank you, Rebecca Rusch, for being a true role model). I bristle if you tell me I should be interested in someone who is fast or strong because they are fast or strong. I don’t care.

Beyond an abundance of negative personal experiences, I know those people have something I never will, in addition to some innate physical abilities. They have time, and that is so easy to forget. Time is everything.

If you have a 40+ hour/week job (that maybe you actually love and derive personal value from), a spouse who is not into what you’re into, kids, a mortgage, continuing educational requirements, volunteer commitments, family needs, other hobbies that you’re passionate about, friendships that revolve around things other than athletic endeavors … then the person who lives in a van and roams the country to ride bikes, or the person who can do multi-hour runs on a daily basis because they freelance, or the person who has the financial and personal freedom to travel to retreats, is not someone I have ever been able to be inspired by.

And I think that is what makes me frustrated. At the end of it all, the people that the bicycle industry puts up for us all to be inspired by aren’t “regular” enough for me to care about, gain some insight from or feel any kinship with.

Despite all of the bullshit, I’m still the bicycle’s #1 fan and always will be. I still think every damn person needs to own a bicycle and ride it and they’d all be happier and more supportive of our public lands and our environment would be healthier and on and on. I have been deeply passionate about riding bikes since I was 13 and it’s as real now as it ever was.

Even with a busy job that I love, lots of other hobbies that I love, non-bike people in my life who I love and everything else (see above) that means I sometimes only ride once a week, I consider myself a real mountain biker and I don’t give a shit if the current culture would beg to differ.

I rely on riding a bike more than anything to maintain an even keel because it accomplishes so many positive things at one time. I need to be outside in the woods playing like I did as a little kid and feeling immersed in nature, appreciating my body for what it can do rather than what it looks like, ensuring the maintenance of my sanity, feeling accomplished as my skills improve, experiencing new and beautiful landscapes and being part of a community that I want to hate at times, but that also gave me my family and that deserves a great deal of credit for its culture of volunteerism and public lands advocacy.

THAT is what I want other women to experience. The end goal doesn’t have to be a race, or weight loss, or what-the-fuck-ever. Mountain biking can exist outside of retreats that require time, money, vacation days and childcare that a lot of women do not have. Mountain biking can exist in places like Ohio and Texas and Florida and South Dakota (though you wouldn’t think so from bike media and event locations).

Mountain biking can exist simply to connect you with the great outdoors and make you feel better about life and yourself. For me, mountain biking is extremely personal. It’s MINE. And it’s something that I think is so worth having that it’s worth me trying to share it.

I can’t possibly be the only person out there for whom all that is true.

#mountainbiking womenmtb mtbwomen

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acaseforpencils · 7 years ago

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National Cartoonists Society.

The National Cartoonists Society is a vibrant community of talented artists, and as this is a resource for aspiring cartoonists, I would be remiss not to have them on this blog! I reached out to Jason Chatfield with some questions about the organization, and he coordinated all of the responses from members below, which was tremendously kind of him! So thank you, Jason!

What is the National Cartoonists Society?

Bill Morrison:

The National Cartoonists Society is the world's largest and most prestigious organization of professional cartoonists. It was born in 1946 when groups of cartoonists got together to entertain the troops. They found that they enjoyed each other's company and decided to get together on a regular basis.

Today, the NCS membership roster includes over 500 of the world's major cartoonists, working in many branches of the profession, including newspaper comic strips and panels, comic books, editorial cartoons, webcomics, animation, gag cartoons, greeting cards, advertising, magazine and book illustration and more.

Membership is limited to established professional cartoonists, with a few exceptions of outstanding persons in affiliated fields. The NCS is not a guild or union, although we have joined forces from time to time to fight for member's rights, and we regularly use our talents to help worthwhile causes.

Bio: Bill Morrison is an American comic book artist and writer, and co-founder of Bongo Comics (along with Matt Groening and Steve and Cindy Vance). He is the Executive Editor of MAD Magazine. He was the creative director of Bongo Comics from 1993 to 2012. Bill is the current President of the National Cartoonists Society.

What is the history behind the NCS?

Tom Richmond:

The National Cartoonists Society’s earliest origins began during World War II when a group of cartoonists including Bob Dunn, Gus Edson, Clarence D. Russell and Otto Soglow got together in New York in 1943 to do “chalk talks” at hospitals for the USO. These were so popular that the cartoonist group was lured away from the USO to do similar entertainment for the American Theater Wing, eventually expanding with many more cartoonists including Rube Goldberg, and traveling up and down the eastern seaboard. The cartoonists involved decided they wanted to get together more often, and the NCS was born.

On March 1st, 1946, a group of over two dozen professional cartoonists met at the Berkshire Hotel’s Barbary Room in midtown Manhattan and organized what was then called “The Cartoonists Society”. The inaugural board was made up for president Rube Goldberg, vice-president Russell Patterson, treasurer Clarence D. Russell and treasurer Milton Caniff, Otto Soglow was later named a second vice-president. The initial membership was 26 cartoonists, within a year membership had grown to 112 members. Today the NCS has over 400 members including international cartoonists, and is the largest organization of professional cartoonists on the planet.

Bio: Tom Richmond is a prolific humorous illustrator, cartoonist and caricaturist whose work has appeared in many national and international publications since 1990. He is most famous for his movie and television parody illustration work in MAD Magazine.

Richmond has been honored with several awards, including Caricaturist of the Year twice, in 1998 and 1999 by the National Caricaturist Network and with a divisional "Silver" Reuben award for Advertising Art in 2003, 2006 and 2007, Newspaper Illustration in 2009, and Magazine Illustration in 2015, from the National Cartoonists Society. He is the winner of the 2011 Reuben Award for Most Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year.

In 2011, Richmond became the 34th president of the Society, succeeding Jeff Keane, and served two terms though 2015. (NCS presidents are chosen for two-year terms.) Tom is currently a board member of the National Cartoonists Society Foundation.

What is your favorite thing about being a member of the National Cartoonists Society?

Carolyn Belefski: What's great about being a member of the NCS is the connection that can be established with other cartoonists. We are spread out locally, regionally, nationally — even globally — with all the chapters involved. In addition, cartooning is generally a solitary process. You truly have to sit, think, and put the work and time in for a final creative product. It is so valuable to come out of our caves every once and awhile. That's why I exhibit at comic conventions as well. Through my association with NCS, I've been able to meet cartoonists from across the globe. As with any relationship, you get what you give, so it is important to be actively involved. We are all linked by our love for humor, cartoons, animation, and storytelling.

Bio: Carolyn Belefski is a visual communicator, designer, and illustrator whose credits include work for Curls Studio, Clorox, United States National Archives, The White House, among many others. Carolyn currently serves on the National Cartoonists Society Board of Directors and created the annual blood drive, Cartoonists Draw Blood, with the American Red Cross. View Carolyn’s portfolio online at www.carolynbelefski.com and follow her on the socials @CarolynBelefski.

Pat Byrnes: These Are a Few of My Favorite Things (about being an NCS member)—short answer: Cartoonists.

Longer answer: Same as the short one, but with feeling. (Warning: Perhaps too much feeling.) Cartoonists are my favorite people. Because cartoonists are my people. It’s not that I don’t find other people wonderful and interesting and a joy to be around; it’s just that I find myself more comfortable around cartoonists. I am told it’s that way for people in other callings too—or at least for the ones who call their life’s direction a calling. The people in your particular calling simply get you, or a core part of you, in ways that others don’t. Even when we cartoonists have huge personal differences, our cartoonist-ness unites us. Those differences may be as seemingly superficial as preferences in pen nibs. A discussion may blossom over the nuances and relative virtues of two seemingly identical slivers of metal. Or ink. Or ink versus digital. The expression of those differences can get passionate, yet through it all, we recognize that we might as well be discussing Ollivander’s wands, with everyone so keenly aware of how personal their magic is and how much it means to each of us. It is our shared identity. The welcome embrace of our diversity of styles may not be reflected in the outward diversity of our membership—yet—but it nevertheless demonstrates the kind of openness to others that I’d want to be a part of, no matter what. In these trying times, when our differences may involve more global issues (such as, well, diversity), I am reassured by the knowledge that our most fundamental partisanship, toward cartooning, will always survive any other kind: ink is thicker than water.

We are cartoonists. You are family to me. Regardless of difference, I celebrate each moment in your company. Life has its confounding times, and I don’t always understand my exact purpose on this Earth, but you, my brothers and sisters in the National Cartoonists Society, are a constant reminder that I have one. Better still, I share one. With each of you. How could I not love that?

Bio: Pat Byrnes is an American cartoonist best known for his work for The New Yorker. He created the comic strip Monkeyhouse, which ran for three years. He received the National Cartoonist Society Advertising and Illustration Award for 2001, with an additional nomination for 2000, and nominations for their Gag Cartoon Award for 1999 and 2000. He also draws cartoons for other magazines and illustrates for a variety of ads and publications.

Maria Scrivan:

The best thing about being a member of the National Cartoonists Society is the community.

This is an organization of members whose job is to make people laugh, and who inevitably make each other laugh.

The Reuben Awards weekend, where we celebrate the industry’s best, feels very much like a family reunion.

Surprisingly, the stage where the awards are given isn’t covered in banana peels or shaped like a desert island.

Banana peels aside, the NCS is also a group of consummate professionals who are an endless source of inspiration, guidance and support which results in the foundation of many lifelong friendships.

Bio: Maria Scrivan is a syndicated cartoonist, illustrator and author. Her comic, Half Full, is syndicated by Tribune Content Agency and appears daily on GoComics and in newspapers across the US including the LA Times. Her work is published in MAD Magazine, National Lampoon, American Bystander, Parade Magazine, Prospect Magazine (UK), Macmillan Books, Funny Times, Mashable.com, HuffingtonPost.com and Salon.com. She also licenses her work for greeting cards to companies including Recycled Paper Greetings, NobleWorks, RSVP, Design Design, Designer Greetings and more. She is a member of the National Cartoonists Society, the Society of Illustrators and the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators.

www.mariascrivan.com

www.gocomics.com/half-full

Instagram/Twitter/Facebook:

@mariascrivan

What is the National Cartoonists Society Foundation?

Jason Chatfield: The National Cartoonists Society Foundation is the charitable arm of the National Cartoonists Society. The NCS Foundation was formed in 2005 to continue the charitable and educational works that have been a hallmark of the NCS since its inception in 1946.

The National Cartoonists Society Foundation is a registered 501(c)(3) charity that works in tandem with the NCS to advance the ideals and standards of the cartooning profession, to stimulate and encourage aspiring cartoonists through scholarships and educational programs, and to provide financial assistance to cartoonists and their families in times of hardship.

The Foundation also encourages the active involvement and participation of NCS members in the charitable and educational projects undertaken by the Foundation, thereby utilizing the Society’s greatest assets and strengths. The NCS has a treasured tradition of members donating their expertise and talents to good causes in person and through their art.

One of the most rewarding parts of the annual Reuben Awards weekend, which takes place in a different city each year, is the local children’s hospital drawing events, raising funds for sick kids in need through cartoon auctions and live drawing events.

You can read more about the foundation and its activities at: http://cartoonistfoundation.reuben.org/about/

Bio: Chatfield is a cartoonist & illustrator based in New York. He is Australia’s most widely syndicated cartoonist, producing the iconic comic strip Ginger Meggs which appears daily in over 120 newspapers in 34 countries through Andrews McMeel Syndication. His work also appears regularly in The New Yorker and MAD Magazine. Chatfield is the current Vice President of the National Cartoonists’ Society. He is also a professional comedian. You can see his comedy website here.

What is the 27 Club and why should I join?

Luke McGarry: As the son of a cartoonist, I was lucky enough to grow up in and around the NCS. When I became serious about breaking into the business, it was really instructive to see how other professional cartoonists interact with each other, share insider tips, engage in “shop talk" and learn from each other’s mistakes. The art of shameless self promotion was a handy skill to pick up as well. I think it’s great that the NCS 27 Club now offers young cartoonists that same experience I was fortunate enough to have. I love the idea that it ties in with my new regular feature in MAD Magazine, which is also called “The 27 Club.” See, there’s that shameless self promotion I learned about!

Bio: Luke McGarry is an illustrator, cartoonist, animator and designer from Manchester, UK, now based in Los Angeles.

His clients include MAD Magazine, Playboy, VIZ, Goldenvoice, FYF Fest, Festival Supreme, VICE TV, Vans Shoes, Airbnb and Universal Music Group among others. He has created a number of animations and music videos for the likes of VISA, IFC, Epitaph Records, Universal Republic and the NHL. He has received both the Advertising Illustrator of the Year and the Silver T-Square award from the National Cartoonist Society, and a cease and desist letter from the city of Santa Monica.

He’s one half of design outfit Fantastic Heat Brothers, and he sings, plays bass and twiddles knobs in the band Pop Noir.

If you would like to keep an eye on him, here are the requisite social media links: Instagram / Twitter / Facebook

The Reuben Awards: The 72nd Annual NCS Reuben Awards, which honors cartoonists in categories that range from gag panels to animation will be held on May 25-27, 2018 in Philadelphia, PA. Awards will be announced on May 26th. View the nominees here!

If you would like more art supplies in your life, you can follow A Case for Pencils on Twitter and Instagram! And you can find Jane Mattimoe (the editor of Case) on Twitter, here!

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speakupthinkup · 4 years ago

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Best Online Study & Learning Tools

Hello, everyone!

If you’ve been paying attention to social media or the news, you’ve likely heard about people slowly, but surely trying to do more than just lounge around at home during the era of COVID-19. I personally feel like I can only binge watch so many shows before I feel like my brain is turning to mush, and because of this, I began pursuing more opportunities for self-improvement online including free online courses and reading/listening to free books/eBooks. Out of this undertaking, I realized that many other people may be thinking like me, but also may be wondering where to look and what tools or platforms to use. So, I thought I’d lay out some viable free options for you here.

Check out these free resources:

Coursera is a top tier online learning platform where myriad courses are offered for free and at cost. As online learning is becoming more prevalent, platforms like these are likely only going to continue to grow and be used by more and more people.

edX is founded by Harvard and MIT and was my first exposure to massive open online courses (MOOCs). This site offers various courses for free and at cost to learners who are seeking self-improvement through online learning.

Canvas offers many free professional development opportunities for educators to improve their skills and better their ability to serve others. Upon reviewing this site further, I’ve decided that I’ll personally be looking into taking a course or two on this platform.

FutureLearn is another site that offers free and paid learning opportunities relative to various subjects from universities across the world.

Codeacademy delivers free learning opportunities for coding and brags that it has the best system out there to help with learning and developing coding skills. I’ll tell you I’ve tried my hand at coding and it can be challenging, but it is definitely a great skill to develop and has various practical applications.

TED-Ed is TED’s education initiative which offers original animated content and a platform for educators everywhere to develop and share learning materials with the masses. I love the TED platform. Nearly every video I’ve seen I’ve found to be informative and often even inspirational.

Academic Earth offers a pool of free online college courses from many of the world’s top universities. The site allows you to search for courses by program, category and subject.

Alison is quickly becoming one of the biggest platforms for free and paid online learning. Courses on nearly everything are seemingly available on this site with many courses offering users the option to pay for certification for their coursework.

Apple iTunes U offers access to free public courses through its app and provides educational materials relative to Apple products and programs as well.

Duolingo offers a tailored language learning experience that is available via web browser or through an app. It uses gamification to encourage follow through and participation in the program. I love Duolingo! I use this program daily for learning Spanish, but there are so many other languages on there. I find it to be super engaging and effective. Give it a try!

Quizlet offers free and paid learning tools to help facilitate learning and memorization of various subjects across grade levels and difficulties. I’m a big fan of Quizlet’s free version of Quizlet Learn that allows you to study given materials in various ways. Also since it is such a huge platform, Quizlet already has tons of study sets that are posted up for anyone to use.

If you haven’t heard of Grammarly yet, I’m surprised. It is quickly becoming available nearly everywhere for your editing and grammar-based needs. As a user myself, I find it hugely helpful, especially for suggestions relative to word choice. It comes in both free and premium options. I use the free option, but for frequent writers, I’d bet the paid version is probably worth it. Grammarly also gives you feedback on what you’re writing sounds like (i.e., empathetic, neutral, etc.).

Schooltraq is intended to be a smart academic planner for students and although most online learning platforms have their own built in systems for managing one’s schedule, Schooltraq allows you to keep track of coursework and due dates across colleges, online platforms and other education mediums in one place for free.

GoConqr is striving to be a global learning platform for educators and learners to share and access ever-evolving quality content. It boasts a huge user base and aspirations to grow even bigger.

Evernote is probably one of the most well-known note-taking programs/apps out there. I use it and find it to be very helpful. Evernote is continually updated to ensure better interactivity and usability. Although they offer paid options, the free version of Evernote is excellent and will most likely meet most individuals note-taking needs.

Chegg Prep flashcards and other study materials will soon be replacing StudyBlue. This is another viable study tool. However, I prefer Quizlet as it offers more ways to study and has a comparatively bigger user base.

HippoCampus is powered by the NROC Project in an effort to offer a free, academic website that provides education on general subjects through various media.

Kahoot! allows you to develop and use other open sourced trivia type games for learning various subjects and information. You can also look at reports to see how people are using and performing on your Kahoot! The learning games can be accessed via the Kahoot! app as well as via web browser. I’m a big fan of this free program and it is especially great for group learning environments.

Why do these resources matter? I think it is important to never stop learning, growing and improving. In the field of speech-language pathology, it is a requirement to be continuously learning to ensure you provide evidence-based service and to remain knowledgeable relative to your scope of practice. But in my personal life, I still feel it’s very important to continue growing. I personally feel less fulfilled when I’m not accomplishing goals and learning new things, so I strive to do just that regularly. So if you have read this far, I encourage you to pick at least one of these recommended resources and give it a try. What do you have to lose?

Thanks for reading and I hope you get some benefit out of using these resources. If you enjoyed this post, check out the other posts on my blog. I’m also currently working on developing my own website and blog, which will be available at speakupthinkup.com.

Author: Devin Fisher M.S., CCC-SLP [email protected]

Links & Resources:

Coursera: https://www.coursera.org/

edX: https://www.edx.org/

Canvas: https://www.canvas.net/

FutureLearn: https://www.futurelearn.com/

Codeacademy: https://www.codecademy.com/

Ted-Ed: https://ed.ted.com/

Academic Earth: https://academicearth.org/

Alison: https://alison.com/

Apple iTunes U: https://itunesu.itunes.apple.com/coursemanager/

Duolingo: https://www.duolingo.com/

Quizlet: https://quizlet.com/

Grammarly: https://www.grammarly.com/

Schooltraq: https://schooltraq.com/

GoConqr: https://www.goconqr.com/

Evernote: https://evernote.com/

Chegg Prep: https://www.chegg.com/flashcards

HippoCampus: https://www.hippocampus.org/

Kahoot: https://kahoot.it/

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