#this post brought to you by a conversation with my father about tipping culture in the us

[chekovsphaser]

What baffles me the most about right-wingers is how they will identify a problem that is real and exists, (which was 99% of the time caused by right-wing policies), and then decide the reason for it is actually those lazy poors.

[onwriting-hrarby]

hi hera! what are some tips you can recommend for world building?

hi anon! <3 thanks for the question! i don't know if i'm authorized to talk about worldbuilding, because even though i use it to create novels (they all have a kind of dystopian, political reality) i still don't write sci-fi or fantasy, in which worldbuilding is much more important. i do read them, though, sparsely. (coming back here after finishing to say that i think i know more than i thought, and also that this is going to be a long post).

of course, first i'd like to throw you the question: are you asking about creating or about depicting?

creating

for creating worlds, i truly have no "special" advise: i'd say that it can go before establishing your characters or later, but in any way, the worldbuilding should be tied with the ambitions/anxieties of your hero(es). for example, i am now writing a novel about a political disruption, but essentially it is a novel about friendship amidst of that. i have to make sure that the worldbuilding is strong enough so that it interferes in said friendship: there's a revolution coming, and my heroes don't know which side to choose (they choose different sides, and therefore, what happens with their friendship?). even though the revolution is not the cause of their friendship to fall apart, it is important enough.

because i knew this was going to be important, i was sure to think about the history of the world, what brought the country there, establish their politics (what do people from this country face? how do politics work?) and culture (which language to they speak? does it encompass my heroes' reality?). but this is all very basic, and i'm sure you can find fantasy or sci-fi guides that will tell you so and much more.

HOWEVER: although i would stress that you have to read about the genre, please, do not only read that genre. for me, the best novels are not only one thing but many, they take from many genres. for example: a share of night by mariana enríquez is basically a story about a father and a son tangled up in black magic amidst the political uproar in argentina. so, we have: family saga (literary fiction, how the characters develop, even a bildungsroman) with a fantasy novel (the hero gets tangled up in a mess and has to choose their path towards this magic) with thriller (because it's told from different povs, you don't really know what's happening, you discover it along the characters, so it's terrifying) and political novel (they are all touched by politics). so, i'd say, break the genre. i don't think that any fantasy or sci-fi novel doesn't have any politics or any other genre in between, but i do believe that if you want to make a good fantasy novel, you can infer much more "literary fiction", whereas if you want to do a good literary fiction, you can infuse fantasy to bring it up a notch. (that's my opinion, anyway)

depicting

now, this is i think where the tricky part comes. it's difficult to explain your worldbuilding without explaining to much or doing an info-dump.

i recently read a book (fourth wing, by rebecca yarros) that didn't do a good job on that, and the first 3/4 chapters i felt like i was reading a wikipedia sometimes. this happened because the infodump wasn't justified. the main protagonist, violet, has lived in this world FOREVER, yet, even though the novel was in first pov, she was explaining it. and that completely threw me out of the loop. it wouldn't happen because when we think we tend to know our world as the palm of our hand. when the novel advanced and violet knew more people with whom she could talk, the worldbuilding was revealed little by little through dialogs and conversations, which i think was great and how it should be.

i'd say that one can reveal it in different ways:

the main protagonist is a estranger to this world: essentially, a little bit like harry potter, eragon or memories of idhun (one of my fave books when i was young), or even cornelia funke's ink blood: the protagonist stomps into a world they don't know and thus, they make questions about it. constantly, small questions in each step so that it doesn't overflow the reader and the reader keeps on discovering things until the end. in the example of "harry potter", harry is not a magician so must of the info-dumping on the magic world comes from hagrid when they go shopping. however, rowling makes sure to only say some things during that time, what has to do with the shopping itself: we know that people have pets, that they fly brooms, that they have a bank with their own money; we do not know how hogwarts works (instead, mcgonagall explains before entering the sorting hat) or nothing about voldemort (this is the main incognita of the book, and it gets revealed little by little). what rowling does is camouflage the real incognita by another one: the philosopher's stone. but truly, this is just a coy so that we get more worldbuilding (chess moves, prohibited section in the library, dog with three heads, snape is terrifying). a lot of it is revealed through conversations and also harry's pov about things, filled with surprised and exclamations from the others, who are not strangers to this.

confidante: we could argue that the characters of hp are confidantes to harry, but this wouldn't be what i'm talking about. take, for example, game of thrones (i'm talking about the series, not the books). in the first episode, we get the introduction between the most important families (yet, it is said that there are many others—by only showing those two, grr martin makes sure that we are seeing the main enemies) and in the same episode, we have the conversation between robert and ned. they talk about the main conflict, which is the long winter, and the revolution that robert led. they talk about this with such normalcy, because it's their world and they know it perfectly. it's okay not to know all the details, they are going to be revealed bit by bit as the series progresses. similarly to their conversation, we have daenerys and viserys convo about their condition as targaryen. we can piece together that they were thrown out of the throne, but we don't know how many years that was, or how exactly it happened (many seasons later, we learnt that jamie has a nickname because he killed the targaryen king). we can't forget that the politics and reality of a world is what makes us, so our characters need to be the same. when i meet new people, or when i talk with friends, i do not explain the history and culture of my country all at the same time. i begin with what's affecting my reality now, and maybe as i get to know them, i give them more info about everything.

through books/manuscripts/recordings: "the fourth wing" does that in every chapter, in which they cite a bible, or a recording, or something that talks a little bit more about worldbuilding. in game of thrones, we also have the little girl in the jail (i don't remember her name know) which the skin condition that talks about what's in her book. in harry potter, they discover the philosopher's stone because there's a recording about it. i think in the game of thrones books it's already explained like there was being a recording about it (as if, you're reading a historical recording of what happened in the world), which i think it's very clever because you can infodump asa much as you like without it being weird.

make all of this interact (read further on an example)

also, use the povs available. in "a share of night" by mariana enríquez (what a book, i can't recommend it enough), the father knows about the dark magic, the history of the family (to a certain extent), because his wife, now death, told him about it. however, his pov and information is limited because his wife was hiding things, and he also limits it in regards to gaspar, the son, because he doesn't want him to find out certain things and wants to protect it. but gaspar has secrets of his own (regarding dark magic itself), yet he's not able to fully grasp it, the world has been hidden. SO: when we read from the father's pov (not 1st person, but 3rd limited), we get the pov of a confidante because the way he talks with people about their reality signals that they know about it. but when we read from gaspar's pov (again, 3rd person limited) we get the view of the stranger. furthermore, gaspar sneaks in conversations with two or more confidantes, and also finds recordings and books. so, if you make the three interact and each character have their own thing, it makes it much more interesting.

anyway, as i told you this is not my main area of expertise! but this is all i've learnt through observation and critical reading! i hope it helps a little bit.

(ah, after writing, make it read to someone whom you haven't talked about this world. ask if there are questions by the end of the book, if they got bored, in which point... i think it helps!)

[namjuicyy]

A Father’s Love - Chapter Three

Masterlist | Requests are open.

Genre: Angst, fluff, smut.

Genre of this part: Fluff, angst.

Word Count: 1.6k.

Summary: Single father, Namjoon, struggles to keep his idol life and his private life separate. When he meets you, everything changes.

Warnings: None.

You'd not known Namjoon for very long, but you noticed a lot of little habits he'd gotten into:

1) He'd hold doors open for you, and always make sure that you went through them first; this included cars, buildings and anything else door-like and built for humans to enter.

2) He flashed you his "expensive" smile all the time, showing off his perfect dimples and his bright brown eyes.

3) He covered said smile when he laughed, something you immediately hated and found yourself tugging at his wrist to pull his hand away.

4) He was incredibly soft hearted and kind, and made sure to let the waiting staff at the restaurant know just how much he appreciated them serving you both.

5) He was completely smitten, unapologetically head over heels in love with his son. He was quick to show you the many photos he had of Haneul in his wallet. He had loads on his phone too, but there was something special about carrying his son around with him physically rather than digitally, which you appreciated.

6) Namjoon can't hide things from anyone, despite how hard he tries.

Namjoon picked you up at six, exactly when he promised you. And, after spending a good while choosing what you wanted to wear, you ran out the door and practically beamed at him. He held the car door open for you and helped you in, as a gentleman would do. In the car, he talked your ear off about little things, but it didn't make the conversation any less interesting or engaging.

When you got to the restaurant, he pulled your chair out to help you in, and sat down opposite you. You hadn't been to a Korean BBQ place in so long. You hadn't been anywhere for a while. You didn't have many friends in Korea and you allowed work to take over your life. You enjoyed your work. You also enjoyed solitude. But Namjoon's company was worth leaving your confined living spaces.

"So," Namjoon began putting his chopsticks down and giving you his full attention, "tell me about you. What made you move to Korea?"

"Change of scenery, I guess." You replied. "Everything got too samey, you know?"

"I understand. Why photography?"

"Because it was the only thing I was ever good at." You laughed, as did Namjoon. But part of you was being serious.

"I doubt that's true."

You nodded and took a mouthful of drink. "What do you do? I never asked."

He hesitated, thinking about his answer; something that confused you. "I work in the music industry." He replied finally.

"How vague."

He laughed. "It's just a really long story and a lot to swallow, is all."

"I have time... and can swallow a lot."

Namjoon choked on his drink, the liquid spurting everywhere, including onto the grill. The sizzle of it dissolving on the hot griddle, combined with the redness in Namjoon's cheeks caused you to laugh. And it wasn't the cute "please like me" kind of laugh that you usually do when you're hanging around with your crush. Your head tipped back, your lungs screeched and your hands began to clap like a seal performing at the local sea life centre. Everyone around you turned to look at your table, but you couldn't see anything except the lids of your eyes as they'd closed in sheer joy at Namjoon's misfortune. When you opened them again, you saw Namjoon wiping his shirt down from the spit and soju that had been spilled all over it.

"So this is what you're like when you don't have to be professional."

"Listen, you walked right into that one, don't pin this all on me."

Namjoon was silent. "You're right. I did."

You started laughing again. "You should have seen your face. It was priceless."

"Hey! That was the last thing I was expecting, okay? I didn't think you'd brag about your swallowing prowess."

"You brought it up!" You let the joke sit for a little while, giggling at the ridiculousness of the innuendo you just made before changing the subject to something you thought Namjoon might be able to cope with. "Is Haneul with your mum tonight?"

Namjoon shook his head. "No. One of my housemates Taehyung is looking after him. He's good with kids and Haneul adores him."

You cooed. "That's cute. How many housemates do you have?"

"Six." Namjoon laughed at your surprise. "I know, there's a lot of us. But they're my colleagues too. It just makes life easier."

You sat and thought for a moment. "So, you live with six other men, making seven of you in total. You all work in the music industry. You live in the richest part of Seoul and you're vague about your work. You're in a band."

"What? No."

You raised your eyebrows at him. "You're not that great at hiding things, you know?"

"I know, they told me."

You could understand completely why Namjoon didn't want to tell you about his profession, however annoying you found his vagueness. He was in a band, as you'd guessed. And if that band was successful, he'd want you to get to know him first rather than see him for his music and his money and his fans. Fans, whom, you didn't know the scale of or just how intense they could be. You'd heard of friends of musicians being sent hate purely because they knew the musician personally and the fan didn't. You, of course, didn't know if this would be the case, but given that Namjoon lived in the richest part of the city, meant he was somewhat successful. And, in your mind, music success comes throngs of mental girls willing to die for the musician they loved if they were given the chance. But you weren't too familiar with pop culture, nor did you delve deep into fandoms. Maybe you were wrong. You had no interest in finding out. You were just happy to be enjoying Namjoon's company and laughing at his stories and jokes.

Namjoon grew up in Ilsan, and is actually, incredibly smart. He'd always had a passion for music and had managed to convince his parents to let him audition for the company he's with now. He was one of the original members, and after six years of trials and tribulations, he'd made it. He'd become successful with six other men whom he loved dearly and wouldn't change for the world. They were his brothers.

But he refused to let you talk about him all night. In fact, he kept making little digs at you because you kept asking him so many questions and didn't give him the chance to do the same to you. He asked you about your family, about where you grew up, your favourite music, the kind of movies and shows you like, your childhood pets. Everything. He sat there and listened to you talk like you were giving a lecture on how to survive the inevitable apocalypse. His eyes never left yours, which, on occasion, unnerved you a bit because it felt like he was trying to look for your soul. His body language suggested to you that he was immersed in your stories, his smile told you that he found them charming and his laugh told you he found you witty and smart. Without realising it, you'd captured his heart wholly. What he didn't realise was that he'd done the same to you.

It was surprising to you that you'd warmed to him so quickly. You weren't the cliché recluse who was shy beyond belief and blushed every time someone complimented you. But you also didn't enjoy gushing your private life to complete strangers, and hanging out with people who couldn't better you in some way, shape or form. And you'd only known Namjoon for two weeks, so in effect he should be a complete stranger. But by the second day of knowing him, you'd already met his entire family, read to his son and made his mother cry the happiest of happy tears. So despite only knowing him for two weeks, as predictable as it sounded, you felt like you'd known him for two years. Which is why you were so comfortable giving him your phone number, telling him your home address and telling him the intimate details of your childhood, and smiling fondly when you were telling him about the best years of the time you spent at home.

He paid for the whole meal, despite you fighting over the card machine when the waitress brought it over. He won. "And I'll win every single time in the future, too." He told you cockily as he swiped his card.

You smirked. "There's a future?"

Namjoon grinned. "I think so."

For the nth time that night you felt your tummy do a somersault. You had to keep reminding yourself that this wasn't a date. That was, of course, until he kissed you on the doorstep of your apartment.

He'd opened the car door for you. He'd walked you to your front door. He even watched you unlock the door to make sure you were definitely going to get in okay. Then he just held his breath, leant down, and kissed you, his plump lips moulding to yours like they were meant specifically for yours. His one hand was on the back of your neck, rubbing gentle circles into it, and the other was on your waist, pulling you closer to him as he began to use the smallest amount of tongue in your kiss. It took your breath away. It was the kind of kiss you were sure only existed in the movies. But there you were, bidding him goodnight afterwards, closing the door to your apartment and using it as a leaning post as you ghosted your fingers over your mouth while you grinned, solely as a way to ingrain the feeling into your mind. You were very rapidly falling head over heels for this man.

[twdmusicboxmystery]

Strawberry Theory: Master Post

Good morning! So I finally got around to reposting the Strawberry Theory. As you can see, I’ve done my best to make a master post out of it. I’m by no means sure that I have all the instances of strawberries, so if anyone thinks of any I’ve missed, please send them to me.

Warning: I might go down a bit of a rabbit hole here.

So these are the major instances of Strawberries that I’ll address here:

1)      Around Beth at Grady.

2)      That Daryl “claimed” in 4b.

3)      Around Father Gabriel in 5b.

4)      Around Sasha in 7b.

5)      Rick and Carl’s convo in S8.

6)      Around Carol in S7.

I want to talk about Grady first, even though it’s kinda out of order, because it’s the whole crux of the Strawberry theory. We see them around Beth all over the place at Grady. They’re in the cafeteria when she talks to Gorman, on the plate she brings to Edwards in his office, and what she uses to bribe Percy to help her get the KEY to the drug locker.

So let’s talk about the symbol of the strawberry and why it’s so appropriate for Beth.

In Christian symbolism, represents kindness and Christian goodness and purity in general. Not hard to see why this would be a Beth symbol. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

Strawberries were also thought to be a remedy for depression. They therefore represented healing, especially the healing brought by Christ.

Think about that. Not only was she in a hospital, and so maybe it showed she would heal from all her injuries, past and present, but we also have the Carol situation. Beth was literally holding strawberries in her hand when she went and got the medicine Carol needed from the locker. 

There’s always been tons of talk and criticism about the fact that Carol went from having internal injuries that Edwards didn’t think she’d survive, to standing up and walking out of the hospital in mere days. 

I’ve always thought that was probably meant to be more symbolic than realistic, and this surely proves it.

It’s also been said that the strawberry represents virtue. Specifically, that it stays virtuous and un-corrupted by the poisons around it. That’s definitely true of Beth, who never let the horrors of the world around her get her down or change her.

Because the tip of the strawberry points down, they sometimes represent Christ’s tears. The three-partitioned leaf represents the Trinity. The five petals on the flowers represent Christ’s five wounds (two hands, two feet and in the side).

I could go on, but check out THIS POST for more details.

The only other one I want to mention is that in other cultures, the strawberry can have a somewhat opposite meaning: that of sexual temptation. I’m less convinced that’s what tptb were going for, but given Gorman and what was going on at Grady, it would still make a certain amount of sense.

So no matter how you slice it, this is a very appropriate and even obvious symbol for Beth.

Next, Daryl claiming the strawberry patch. And here goes the rabbit hole.

I said the last time I posted the Strawberry theory, in the middle of S6, that the whole sequence where Daryl claims the strawberries is a foreshadow of how Daryl will find Beth again. I said it was significant that he’s on the road alone at the time (with the Claimers, but no other members of TF with him). Many of us believe that’s how he’ll find Beth.

Remember that @fragipanilove said in her post that, because Daryl is a Mary Magdalene figure to Beth’s Christ figure, he’ll probably be the first to see her (because Mary Magdalene was the first to see Christ, even before his apostles). So this actually works very well as a template. He’ll stumble upon her with another group and “claim” her from them. It’s especially interesting that the guy who first saw the strawberries throws Daryl a murderous look, as though he’d taken something the man thought should have been his.

Now, when I last posted about this, I thought it would be Negan’s people Daryl would find Beth with. During S6, we were all convinced she would show up with Negan. I think she still has to show up while Negan is in play, which he is for S9, but obviously it didn’t happen in quite the way we thought it would back then.

The thing is—and I’ve said this before—I do believe Joe’s Claimers were a foreshadow/parallel of the wolves. Lots of evidence for that. A “W” in the background when Daryl talks to Joe. 

Beth and Daryl’s parallel arcs: the fact that Daryl ended up with the Claimers after Beth sort of left him behind (though not of her own volition). And we have a lot of evidence that Beth will end up with the wolves some time after TF left her behind. The fact that the Claimers were sort of the vehicle that reunited Daryl with TF (Rick, Daryl and Michonne) and we think the same will be true of Beth and the wolves. I could go on and on, but I won’t.

So my point is that I still stand by my original analysis of this scene as a template for Daryl stumbling onto Beth, but I’m thinking now that the group he’ll find her with is the wolves.

Also remember that per my Claimed Trading Card post, we can now, because of the trading card @boltthrutheheart found, link the Claimers and the Red Machete to Beth and Daryl. And of course Daryl “claimed” the strawberries, which are a symbol of Beth.

Now let’s talk Father Gabriel. Here’s where things get kind of complicated. You know what? Let’s talk about Sasha first. That will be easier.

We saw strawberries around Sasha in 7x16. And the interesting thing about this scene is that, along with the strawberries are apples (Apple Theory) and pancakes (Bisquick was mentioned at Grady, and self-rising products also represent resurrection). So three very potent Beth symbols.

The next thing we know for sure is that in Sasha’s death, she became one of the biggest proxies of Beth that we’d ever seen. She died but reanimated as a walker (resurrection) from a yellow coffin (Beth’s yellow polo) and about a thousand other parallels you can brush up on HERE and HERE.

So, connecting those two things, I think when we see strawberries around other characters (other than Beth and Daryl) it’s because the character is about to become a proxy either to Beth or to her arc, which is thematic throughout the entire series.

I’m pulling that analysis specifically from Sasha’s arc, so now let’s look at Father Gabriel. If strawberries around him in 5b are to show that he’ll become a Beth proxy, how is that accomplished on the show?

Well, there are a couple of ways it happened back in S5.

1)      He started off being a very weak character that no one really liked. The end of S5, (5x16 to be exact) is when he first started to find his own strength and become worthy of living in TWD world.

2)      The final scene between him and Sasha in that episode. You can read about it in detail HERE, but remember that they fought over the rifle and shot out the glass of the picture with the white trees.

It’s actually super-interesting to consider all this. We still don’t know exactly what role Sasha played in Beth’s disappearance/being left behind, but we know she played a role. The interesting thing is that these two (her and FG) fought in this scene, had a conversation that made no sense whatsoever, and strawberries were seen around both of them at one time or another.

3)      This could also be seen as healing. Father Gabriel is very broken when they find him in S5, but 5x16 is the beginning of his healing, and he’s now because a very emotionally strong and steady character. Even Rick approves, which is saying something!

But now, after S8, there’s more, my friends. There is much more!

In S8, Father Gabriel was poisoned, right? He seems to have lost one of his eyes because of this. Also remember that in the sequence that led up to this, Dr. Carson died, and there were a ton of Beth parallels there too. (X)

The thing is, guys, having only one eye is tied heavily to the Sirius/Dog Star symbolism. @frangipanilove is the expert on this and could probably explain it better, but remember that the dog that came to the funeral home in Still only had one eye. We’ve always known that was important because the Sirius dog of the mythology is one-eyed. So that was always a way to show that Beth is the dog star, which will return.

Now Father Gabriel has only one eye (and it’s even the same eye as the dog!). So he’s a walking embodiment of the Siris/Dog Star symbolism. I don’t know if that means he had something to do with leaving Beth behind, as Sasha did, or that he’ll have something to do with her or her return. Because it’s taken so long for him to lose the eye, I lean toward it meaning something about her return. Especially as it happened in S8, and we really think we’ll see her in S9, it would make sense for the loss of his eye right before she appears.

Okay, let’s talk about some smaller instances of strawberries. 

I’ll start by piggybacking off of what I just said. There was another instance of strawberries in S8, but it wasn’t one we saw. Rather, it was heard in dialogue. While arguing with Carl, who was trying to tell Rick that they needed to make nice with Negan and the Saviors, rather than killing them all, Rick said, “You think we’re gonna be out there picking strawberries with Negan?

Okay, another rabbit hole. What does this line mean? Well, if strawberries = Christian goodness in traditional symbolism, then this is just another way of saying that Rick doesn’t believe they’ll be able to make nice or find Christian love for Negan and his people after all they’ve done.

But why insert the strawberry symbolism? They could have uttered the same line/meaning without using the Beth symbol. And because AOW ended without her showing up, it doesn’t seem like something that should specifically apply to her, right?

So here’s what I’m thinking about this one. Strawberries can be about healing, right? And we’ve already established that they were specifically used this way at Grady because of both Beth and Carol. Well, the ultimate emotional “healing” that could take place between Negan and TF would be if they could forgive one another (I’m specifically thinking about the fact that Maggie, Daryl and Jesus are secretly working against Rick where Negan is concerned) and feel truly Christian toward one another again.

I think that WILL happen eventually. That’s why Negan is still alive. That’s why they threw in that random scene at the end of S8 where Maggie and Daryl are secretly trying to kill Negan. Their next arc will be one of coming to a place of forgiveness for Negan.

But the fact that they used the strawberry symbol to indicate this shows that Beth must be tied up in it somehow. And that kicked my butt down a rabbit hole because…think of the reasons we originally thought Beth would show up with Negan: because there are bats around her. And remember I said HERE that even though she didn’t show up with him or during AOW, as long as he’s still alive, there is hope of her showing up. If we’re right about what the bats mean, then she has to show up while Negan is still in play. As long as he’s still alive, there’s hope for her return.

But given this healing stuff, let’s re-examine the bats around her.

1)      Beside her and Daryl in Inmates. Because it’s her and Daryl in this scene, the most obvious thing is that they’ll reunite at sometime during Negan’s tenure on the show. But this is also where we saw a disembodied shoe, and where Beth starts crying. So it’s about healing, and I’d also throw in that the lost foot/shoe symbolism will probably be fulfilled when she returns. Again, at some time when Negan is still on the show.

2)      Glenn holding the bat and talking about her in the present (rather than past) tense in 5x09. This one is super-huge. Everyone thought Glenn holding the bat was a foreshadow of his death at Negan’s (or Lucille’s) hands. And it was. But he specifically talked about Beth during this sequence. Why? She wasn’t even present for his death.

Because she is the one who will help everyone (specifically Maggie and Glenn, but TF in general) come to forgive Negan (thereby healing them) for Glenn’s death. This may also explain why they specifically did a major death fake out for Glenn (in S6) rather than any other character. Beth is very tied up in Glenn’s final arc (or at least the aftermath of it) even if she wasn’t present for it.

Finally, the most minor example is that we saw strawberries in the bowl of fruit Ezekiel offers Carol in 7x02. (X) This is the only one I don’t think is specifically tied to Beth. I mean, it kind of is, but not in a way we need to over-analyze.

The bowl of fruit contains apples, nectarines, pomegranates, and strawberries. Nectarines are very close to peaches, so I think they filled the bowl with fruits we’ve seen often on the show before. And yes, many of them are tied to Beth.

But the episode specifically emphasizes that pomegranates are Carol’s symbol. It was even confirmed on TTD. Ezekiel said a pomegranate is sweet fruit surrounded by bitter, and that’s an analogy for Carol’s mindset at the time. She’d built up bitter walls around herself. There was still sweet fruit inside, but she was concealing it.

So what does this have to do with the strawberry theory? I think this was meant to specifically tell us that Carol’s symbol is the pomegranate and NOT the strawberry. It’s there, but it’s very specifically not tied to her. So the strawberries Daryl claimed are not meant to be about Carol. They’re, you know, about someone else. And who did we see strawberries around? Who held them, used them constantly, and was in many shots with them at Grady?

Exactly.

Okay, I think I’m gonna stop there. Again, if anyone can think of more instances of strawberries, let me know. Thoughts?

[the-woman-upstairs]

Yuletide Letter 2018

Dear Author,

Hello and thank you so much for giving me the gift of fic! Listed below are all the relevant details that should help you in your writing, but if you have any questions, feel free to send me an anonymous message.

Here are some of my general likes and dislikes that should give you some guidelines for writing.

General Likes: Fluff, sexual tension, romantic tension, mutual pining, friends turned lovers, family bonding, protective family/friends/significant others, fake dating, holding hands, zombie apocalypse au, cuddling, happy endings, emotional hurt/comfort, emotional support, snowed-in, public declarations of love, soulmate au, relaxing/adventuring together, rebuilding trust, kidfic, high school au, non-sexual romantic gestures

General DNWs: Rape/non-con, BDSM, gore, extreme violence, torture, unhappy endings, character deaths, watersports, emotional/mental/physical abuse (parental/domestic), humiliation, incest, pedophilia, slurs of any kind, somnophilia, A/B/O dynamics, scat, emetophilia, bloodplay, breathplay, hate crimes, misogyny, homophobia, racism, first person POV, Dom/sub, ageplay, underage, vote, food kink, mommy/daddy kink, character bashing

Here are all my fandoms including characters and a few prompts if you’d like to use them.

Mission Impossible (Movies)

Characters: Benji Dunn, Ilsa Faust, Ethan Hunt

I absolutely adore all three of these characters and believe they have the most interesting dynamics with each other, especially after Fallout. What I’m really interested in is some OT3 goodness; there is just so much polyamory potential between them with their personal shared history, relatable traumas, and relationship growth from Rogue Nation to Fallout.

Prompts:

- The three of them are stranded together during a mission and through their teamwork + stressful situation realize their feelings for each other

- One is injured and the other two fret over them. Can be during or after a mission

- Benji and Ilsa rescue Ethan together and while they both know they have feelings for him, realize they’re in love with each other too

- Figuring out how to live together and enjoying domesticity with each other

- Post Fallout vacation where they help each other to heal from Lane’s attacks and fall in love in the process

The Miseducation of Cameron Post

Characters: Cameron Post, Jane Fonda, Adam Red Eagle

What really struck me about this movie were the touching and realistic bonds of friendship between the three queer teens. Conversion therapy is horrendous, but the support and love they had for one another made me emotional (not enough films that focus on queer teens being friends with each other). I’m strictly looking for gen, not interested in any romance between the three of them, but if you want to introduce an OC love interest for one or each of them that’s totally fine.

Prompts:

- What happened now that they escaped God’s Promise? Where do they end up, how do they travel together, what places do they visit, who do they meet? (Please nothing from book canon as I haven’t read it yet)

- Zombie apocalypse au and would prefer it set during the canon era. Give me some 90s culture, queer teens, and a zombie filled road trip

- Time skip where it’s been about ten years and they’ve gone on to live separate lives but are brought back together and catch up/reminisce

- Three queer teens and a baby! Somehow in their travels they find a baby and despite the obvious hardships, work together to take care of them and give them better love and support than the three of them received

- Musician au where the three of them play completely different instruments and genres but manage to cobble together an awesome band as a means of openly queer artistic expression

Searching

Characters: David Kim, Margo Kim

The father-daughter relationship in this movie really tore me up in how raw and real it was and I just want to see more of it, either post-movie or in a kind of au

Prompts:

- These two would be interesting to see in a zombie apocalypse au. Surviving together, David doing anything to protect Margo while she proves skilled at surviving herself

- Father daughter road trip post-movie! What’s their destination? Any cool or weird sight-seeing? Would like to see them enjoying the time together but also openly grieving over Pam together about how she can’t be there with them

- David meeting someone new and the two of them dealing with him dating again and the possibility of another long term paternal presence in Margo’s life

- Father daughter detective agency. Can either be an au on its own or post-movie canon. Cases they take on, uncovering corruption, reuniting families, working together to help others like them

- Margo’s first year in college documented through her e-mail, Skype, texts, misc digital messaging with her father

Blockers

Characters: Angelica, Sam, Julie, Kayla

The emphasis on positive female friendships was such a wonderful part of this film and I really would like that to be the focus of any fic for this fandom. I included Angelica because I’d also be very interested in having Angelica/Sam be a background relationship with the focus being on the friendships or the central relationship that the other friends help/support Sam with.

Prompts:

- The girls helping get Sam and Angelica together, whether it’s through flirting tips or setting up dates or

- Sam (with Angelica) goes to pride for the first time and Julie and Kayla come to support (maybe they also explore their own queer identities? Feel free to experiment with that concept)

- Future fic where Sam and Angelica are getting married and the friends go through all the cliches (bachelorette party, family getting together, panic/stress in general) together while also reminiscing and strengthening their friendship

- Future fic where the three of them become moms and help each other deal with parenting

- Any exploration of their friendship before senior year. Include all the cliches you’d like: homecoming games, sports or academic competitions, bonding over love or hatred of school subjects, etc

Baby Driver

Characters: Darling/Monica, Debora

I adore the movie as is but I would also 100% love it more as a lesbian car chase/heist film.

Prompts:

- Events of the film but Deb is the driver and she falls in love with darling

- Post movie where darling survives and seeks out deb

- Deb takes that cross country drive with darling instead of baby

- Supernatural creature au darling as a vampire, deb as a werewolf

- Initially, darling just hooks up with deb (smut is highly appreciated) but then falls in love with her

The Nice Guys

Characters: Jackson Healy, Holland March, Holly March

This movie is already great but would have been improved by 100% if Holland and Jackson had kissed at the end. The co-parenting dynamic they adopted towards the end of the film was so sweet and I’m an absolute sucker for queer family dynamics. Add the time period to that and there’s loads of great fic possibilities.

Prompts:

- Holly accidentally calls Jackson “dad” and Holland freaks out like he does but realizes he wants Jackson around, in both a “dad to holly” way and “I’m in love with you” way

- Family road trip vacation with plenty of pining between Jackson and Holland, realization of feelings, and Holly setting her dads up

- Beach vacation where Holland and Jackson can appreciate each other’s dad bods in bathing suits

- Case fic where one of the guys ends up in danger or kidnapped and feelings are realized/revealed

- Holland gets a lot of attention from women AND men (oblivious to it naturally) and Jackson finds himself feeling jealous and Holly helps him woo her dad

Thank you so much for writing my Yuletide fic, I can’t wait to read it!

[severepersonacrime]

The question of who is to blame in the event of a suicide is something that is often brought up in popular culture, debates and the media. When the tragic story of the bullying and suicide of Amanda Todd went viral around the world, more efforts were made in order to try and prevent teen suicide and put in measures to help those. But it also raises questions of responsibility and whether others should be given responsibility for their actions or whether the victim should be held accountability for making the choice. This case of the long distance relationship between 17 year old Michelle Carter and 18 year old Conrad Roy upholds this debate and whether someone should be held criminally responsible for what they say in regards to teen suicide.

Conrad Roy was a young man living in New Bedford Massachusetts, born in 1995 – he suffered from social anxiety, especially surrounding school and being in the classroom and therefore struggled. However, he was close with his family, often working alongside his father and grandfather in their marine salvaging business. In 2014, he earned his captain's license after attending three months worth of night school and graduated on the honour roll of his high school – he was a star athlete who played baseball and ran track. Although he had been accepted to do a degree in business, he declined the offer and decided not to pursue higher education.

Conrad's mental health, however, was deeply worrying. Alongside his social anxiety, Conrad also suffered from depression and was very hard on himself about his achievements and what he wanted to do with his life. When he was 16, his parents divorced, which hit him hard and left him struggling to cope. His friends often noted that they would have a lot of conversations that would quickly turn dark, talking about a darkness surrounding him and how he felt isolated.

When he was 17, Conrad had messaged a friend, Aryanna Taylor, telling her that he had overdosed in a suicide attempt. He was rushed to hospital. He had overdosed on a drug called acetaminophen, and had asked his friend to contact his mother, who believes this was his way of calling out for help with his mental help. He was put on anti-depressants, a drug called Celexa, and was getting professional help to deal with his problems. The future was slowly starting to look brighter as time went on, until he met Michelle Carter.

Michelle Carter was a girl that Conrad had met while he was on vacation with his family in 2012. The two eventually started a relationship, which became a long distance one after the vacation had ended. As was the case with long distance relationships, most of their interactions were over the phone through text and they were rarely able to see each other face to face.

To those that didn't know Michelle Carter, they would have described her as a friendly, normal teenager, who was active and always able to brighten up someone's day. She was well-liked by her fellow students. But there was more to her than meets the eye. Her and Conrad had many things in common: she was also on antidepressants and was dealing with an eating disorder. Both struggled with mental health issues, which would eventually takes its toll with Conrad.

On Saturday July 12th 2014, Conrad seemed normal, according to his family, and that he wanted to go the beach with his two younger sisters. However, his sisters noted that he seemed distracted by his phone, most likely texting Michelle, seeming agitated and anxious. He had taken his sisters out to ice cream later, however, and his mood seemed to have lifted. He returned the girls home and he left his house at 6pm, telling his family that he was leaving to go to a friend's house. That was the last time his family spoke to him.

On Sunday July 13th 2014, while interacting with Michelle through text, Conrad parked in the parking lot of a closed K-Mart and poisoned himself with carbon monoxide fumes in his truck in an attempt on his life. Sadly, the attempt worked and he died.

During the night, Conrad's sister, Camryn, received a text from Michelle, asking if she knew where Conrad was and that they were in fact boyfriend and girlfriend, a fact which Camryn herself was not aware of. It was supposedly unlike Conrad to not come home until the middle of the night and that something may have been wrong. In the morning, she searched his friend's houses and their Dad's but there was no sign anywhere.

On the afternoon of July 13th, police found his body in his truck, post mortem, his cellphone right next to him. The idea of him having committed suicide was not considered. Had detectives went through his phone records, they would have across a series of messages from Michelle, in which she seemed to be coaxing him through text messages to commit the act, right until he actually did.

A released log of the messages they had sent each other:

Conrad to Michelle: 7/12/2014 | 3:40:35 p.m.: I'm determined

Michelle to Conrad: 7/12/2014 | 3:41:33 p.m.: I'm happy to hear that

Michelle to Conrad: 7/12/2014 | 3:47:18 p.m.: When you get back from the beach, you gotta  … do it….

Conrad to Michelle: 7/12/2014 | 4:26:55 p.m.: no more thinking

Michelle to Conrad: 7/12/2014 | 4:26:55 p.m.: Yes, no more thinking you need to just do it...

At the wake, however, Michelle appeared to be acting as though Conrad's suicide was a complete shock to her, sending his mother a message detailing how devastated she was at the news and making a scene at his wake. To others, she seemed to be acting like a grieving widow. She even set up a fundraiser in his name in her hometown.

Detectives eventually got round to speaking to her regarding the manner of his death, in which she lied and denied having spoken to him on the day of his death. Her story was full of holes, however, and police eventually scoured through her phone to find these coaxing text messages, which they believed was the tipping point as to what made Conrad want to commit suicide. She had also sent ominous messages to a friend:

Michelle to Samantha: 7/12/2014 | 8:02:12 p.m. He just called me…I heard moaning like someone was in pain and he wouldn't answer when I said his name…

Michelle to Samantha: 7/12/2014 | 8:25:34 p.m.: I think he just killed himself

Michelle to Samantha: 9/15/2014 |8:24:05 p.m.:  Sam his death is my fault like honestly I could have stopped him I was on the phone with him and he got out of the car because it was working and he got scared and I f---ng told him to get back in …

Another text message recovered from Conrad's phone details Michelle asking him to delete his text messages. Some of the deleted messages recovered included Conrad telling her that she felt scared to do so and that she kept continuing to persuade him to carry it out. Although she had originally tried to help Conrad throughout his problems, her mind had changed, suggesting they carry out an act similar to that of Romeo and Juliet and believed that it was better for him to die.

This shocked detectives, however there was no law dictating whether the encouragement of suicide or assisting someone in suicide is a criminal offence. In legal times, Michelle was miles away during the time of his death, so it would become hard to prove her to criminally responsible in a court of law on counts of murder. However, others argue that texting provides a certain leeway, that its like having the person there in front of there. The U.S. Supreme Court seemed to agree with this point of view, deciding that Michelle should face charges of involuntary manslaughter and would have to stand trial. She was labelled as a “young offender” rather than a juvenile, which meant that at just 17 years old, she could be sentenced as an adult.

The day before Michelle's trial, Michelle wavered her right to have a trial by jury, and her case was heard by Lawrence Moniz. Her trial was the first in the state of Massachusetts to be regarding involuntary manslaughter through text messages. Prosecution argued that she had sought to gain public attention from the tragic suicide of her boyfriend, while the defence argued that Roy's decision was ultimately his own and she had broken no laws. She was found legally guilty of involuntary manslaughter on June 16th 2017, and was released on bail until August 3rd, where she would return to court to await sentencing – on August 3rd, she was sentenced to a two and a half year term, having to serve at least 15 months in a correctional facility and having to serve at least 5 years probation. She was also not allowed to leave the state of Massachusetts or obtain a passport with permission from a judge.

While lower courts do not yield the power to control state law, further attention to a case, especially one so controversial, may influence other courts to bring more action in terms of trying to add new terms and clauses to the judicial system, including this idea of assisted suicide through text messages and phone calls, and degrees of accountability. Many would argue that the case was just of two teenagers who were not in the right frame of mind to be in a relationship with somebody else. Some would say that Michelle took advantage of someone who was clearly in a low state of mental health. Either way, this case has shed a new light in flaws within the legal system, in which laws remain unclear and more work needing to be done to establish a firm line between accountability and innocence.

[buttonholedlife]

Gays Hate Techno speak non-commercial techno culture, along with a great collection to match

Their festivity has no wristbands. Their schedules may not be blowing up on socials. When Gays Hate Techno throws a party or does a compilation-- like the one that only lost-- what you obtain is actually nothing at all yet musical feeling.

It is actually only the type of riotous perspective that has instilled the most effective digital popular music. Given that we can not all create the event, Gays Hate Techno collections can bring you some of that sensation straight through the songs. The have quickly become must-hear occasions, and also model 4.0 is no various.

I spoke to GHT owner Matt Fisher as well as compilation developer Benjamin B. Orphanhood Eksouzian to acquire knowledge into how it all comes with each other. They deliver a confident notification for any person who seems like they're certainly not discovering community in electronic music-- as well as a template for just how to function all together to get that groove back.

Oh yeah, as well as-- due to the fact that this is actually a collection, we've obtained one thing to queue up for listening. (Do not miss the corker of a track by friend-of-the-site David Abravanel, whose popular music possesses the best wit for the task.) There's a complete megamix of the popular music (which you can easily additionally manage signing up for their podcast):

Images good behavior GHT, coming from their gathering.

Peter: I recognize this is an one-of-a-kind sort of group; can you describe just how you envision this team as well as exactly how it functions?

Matt: Gays Hate Techno isn't an industrial promoter in the standard feeling. Our company do not possess a set roster, resident DJs, or even a particular program. Our company manage around performing projects like the party and collections that assist the online area, not vice versa. During that way, the compilation and also the event possess the same objective-- they're means our company can easily ensure and also celebrate partnerships that or else exist merely or mainly online.

Peter: The individuals I recognize who have actually been to your celebrations state it is actually a definitely unique odds to follow all together. How performs the celebration event for the group?

Matt: The layout for the celebration is actually imitated revolutionary faerie parties and also Burning Man-style encampments, so it possesses goals that are actually various from, point out, an industrial music festivity. We're a reasonable slumber event created around songs, but a community-building activity. What I mean by that is that our company depend on involvement, volunteering, and impulsiveness much more than perhaps an event would. Our experts likewise try to become as cheap as feasible, as well as we keep a traveling fund that defrays costs for our females, trans, nonbinary performers and also artists of different colors.

. Peter: So just how carries out the neighborhood job-- just how perform folks take part?

Matt: Anybody may and also must get involved. Our construct is actually created around helping with individual communications as high as it is actually generating a popular music sequence. Our experts have an available require artists, and also our experts leave behind room around our curated plan time for an available course for casual sets as well as tasks.

Folks volunteer to prepare dishes, aid park cars and trucks as well as assist set up phases. Our team talk to every person to give away 2 hrs of their opportunity. They additionally take fine art, perform injury decrease training, serve as our clinical staff, give massages, do yoga exercise and also reflection. Undoubtedly a celebration our dimension does not especially require 400 volunteers. The objective of the volunteering is so much more about trembling people away from viewer setting as well as providing them an excuse to create brand-new good friends while becoming part of the activity, not just portion of the target market.

I assume that the social focus triggers better functionalities, incidentally. We put together an atmosphere that produces unwinded, enthusiastic listening, and people that've permit their protectors down a little bit, and also motivate the DJs and entertainers to seek a lot more individual, farther-out tips than perhaps they normally reach check out. There's a wonderful responses loophole there. Our experts're all there as songs supporters, and as an encouraging system.

Benjamin: In conditions of the compilation process, as Matt specified above, our team see these compilations as an innovative item of the participants of Gays Hate Techno. Our intention is actually to advertise our participants' art and also to display their original work as shared through the music genre of techno.

To that side, every year (cycle) our team introduce a contact us to engage to the present members of the facebook team, e-mail calls from previous compilations, along with a Discord team for individuals who have actually determined to leave Facebook, but would like to keep hooked up to the celebration and neighborhood. Participants create each of the material-- songs, album artwork, promo video job, push launch copy, as well as in most years the audio mastering of tracks.

Our team urge volunteer work and involvement to create a compilation that shows our community. Our team require the performer to announce the work as their personal and also to confirm that it does not include samples that might offer a licensing concern. Outside of that, our company do not reject jobs from a visual critique standpoint. This year, as an example, our company had more artwork articles for the album art work than our experts can use and also made a decision to let the Facebook group vote to determine the last piece to represent Gays Hate Techno IV.

Peter: At the threat of making you discuss a joke, I must inquire-- what is actually the account along with the label?

Matt: Gays Hate Techno is actually a prank title that emerged of a conversation I had along with buddies in New York City back in 2010 or even 2011. They were managing a gathering at the Stonewall Lodge that featured techno, tech-house, as well as very little even more than what back then was regular gay male nightclub music. It was the answer to the inquiry: why's it thus hard to receive folks to follow bent on pay attention to better music?

Each of the 3 terms was indicated sarcastically, of course, along with a kind of Kathy Griffin-type odd dismissiveness. A pair of times later, I produce the Facebook team as a method for us to just debate and upload paths we liked. Individuals invited close friends, and also it quite, extremely quickly ended up being an international team. People would comment that they failed to know some other queer individuals who liked the songs folks were posting. There was a wish to link with various other folks this method.

. CDM: Due to this whole workers-- I am actually attracted to call this team "Misanthropes"? Perform support the collection and this excellent area and offer it a pay attention-- as well as purchase it if you like it.

GAYS HATE TECHNO IV through Gays Hate Techno portions

a number of the background with our company regarding their track-- and also it's a necessary and also effective tale:

"i am actually recognized to become included in the 4th edition of the Gays Hate Techno compilation! my keep track of, "what they derived from me i will never come back", is actually an action in the direction of recovery. a sonic portrayal of my mindset post-trauma, and the tension it has actually placed on my interpersonal connections because of the brought upon concern as well as pain. i am an heir, yet the memory is there along with me daily i awaken, till the minutes stocking bedroom prior to i design to sleep.

because my abuse happened back house in michigan, it is vital for me to render to the queer & & trans folks certainly there without clinical support or access. detroit, and michigan typically, have actually restricted sources for LGBTQIA+ household, as well as there is no location solely for queer and also trans heirs of sex-related abuse as well as rape, which is a significant aspect when you are actually browsing this form of damage. i have actually determined that i will certainly match the sales of this record till december 18th of this year, and will certainly be donating that atop my personal addition to the Compunction Ellis Facility, an institution in detroit that supplies secure residing for homeless queer and also trans young people, help solutions, a come by health and wellness facility for wayne area homeowners that are actually medicaid eligible at no expense, and transition information for trans youth, only among others. therapy is actually type the recuperation method, as well as providing queer young people accessibility to that is critical.

i chance y' all delight in the compilation. thanks for the continuing assistance! ..."-- Jarvi Guðmundsdóttir aka Acid Father (excerpt coming from FB blog post)

Regarding the event

The post Gays Hate Techno speak non-commercial techno culture, along with a fantastic compilation to match appeared initially on CDM Create Digital Songs.

This content was originally published here.

[levaire]

New Post has been published on https://levaire.com/nextsteps/

How to Become a Christian (Next Steps)

Welcome! We pray you are reading this because you have taken an important step in accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. This means you are born again! (John 3:3)

If you have not yet taken this step, no worries. If you’re reading this, you’re seeking answers. This is way healthier than believing you already have all the answers!

Maybe you’re here because you were handed a Gospel tract from a street evangelist. Maybe you read one of our articles and followed a link to this page. Maybe you simply did a Google search.

Whatever channel brought you here, you’re obviously here for a reason.

What Must I Do to Be Saved?

If you recited a prayer you found at the end of a tract, it probably looked something like this:

“Jesus, I turn from my sin. I believe you died on the cross to set me free from sin. I believe you rose from the dead after three days. I claim you as my Savior and Lord. I now follow you and give you the rest of my days. In your mighty name, amen.”

While this confession is important, please understand it cannot save your soul any more than rubbing a rabbit’s foot can give you good luck.

Your heart-felt prayer must be directed to God or Jesus. You must be at the place where you are done with the brokenness in your life. You must recognize your best efforts have yielded poor results. You must recognize you are unable to save yourself.

When you direct your heart-cry to God and trust in what Jesus has done for you, you will be born anew. This is a supernatural, spiritual conversion. Millions of men and women around the world and over the centuries have taken the same step in trusting God and calling out to Him. Welcome to God’s family.

What to Expect Now

Some people have tender conversion experiences. They may not feel anything has changed at first, but swiftly, they’ll notice the desires of their heart are changing—for the better. Things that used to burden them won’t weigh as much. Joy and peace will begin to replace sorrow and worry.

Others may have dramatic conversion experiences. They may experience overwhelming waves of love or emotion, find themselves overflowing with praise for God or experience a sharp increase in their desire to read the Bible.

Either path is normal. Trust that God knows what He’s doing in you and what you need in the moment.

Regardless of your salvation experience, there will be an eternal change. You will have a desire to do what is right and a hunger for the truth.

Jesus is spiritually living inside of you now! Get ready for an amazing journey!

While you’re wondering, “Okay, so how do I become a Christian?” here are some important next steps on your Christian walk:

Step 1. Get Baptized

In the Bible, the first thing a new believer did was to get baptized. What does that mean?

Baptism is a public demonstration of your belief in Jesus’ crucifixion, burial, and resurrection. It is the outward symbol of what happened in your spirit when you accepted God into your life.

Your old life has died and gone down to the grave. You are placed under water as a symbol of that death and burial.

When you are lifted out of the water, you are raising up to new life as a follower of Jesus!

Baptism can be done by a pastor or someone who has led you into these truths. You are baptized into the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Your new identity is in God! As Paul said, “My life is hidden in Christ and God.” (Colossians 3:3)

Scriptures on Baptism:

Romans 6:1-18 | 1 Corinthians 12:13 | Mark 16:16 | Luke 3:21-22 | Mark 1:4-5 | John 1:29-33 | Matthew 3:11-17 | Acts 8:36-38 | Matthew 28:19-20 | Colossians 2:12 | 1 Peter 3:21 | Acts 22:16 | Galatians 3:27 | Luke 3:16 | Ephesians 4:4-6 | Acts 16:31-33 | Acts 2:38-41

Step 2. Read God’s Word, the Bible

As a New Testament believer, start your Christian journey by reading the books of the New Testament. The books of Matthew, John or Ephesians are great places to begin. Read and meditate on the words. You can pray the promises in the Bible back to God. God is faithful to His Word, so praying Scripture to Him is a powerful way to grow in prayer and intimacy with God.

Read your Bible and use it as the standard

“Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.” (Acts 17:11-12)

This clearly goes to show that we should be like the Berean Christians who would not just receive the teachings blindly. They went home regularly, searching the Scriptures to be sure the Apostles were teaching them things in alignment with God. They checked regularly to know if God had given such instructions as Paul and Silas gave them.

This is the most important tip. Whatever you are taught, ensure it reconciles with the Word of God. If what you are taught in any church (no matter the size or reputation) does not tally with the Bible, then leave that church and find a Bible-believing church.

“I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” (Ps 119:11)

The passage above shows us the importance of the Word of God. God is His Word. John 3:16 shows us just how important God’s Word is to Him. Psalm 119 shows us how important it should be to us.

Don’t have a Bible yet?

Start at https://biblegateway.com or https://biblehub.com. Need a Bible app for your smartphone or tablet? We recommend ‘Blue Letter Bible’.

Step 3. Attend a Bible-Believing Church

“When the congregation was dismissed, many of the Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who talked with them and urged them to continue in the grace of God.” (Acts 13:43)

It is always joyous when children of God make their way to Him. It is always a wonderful thing when people confess their sins, acknowledge Jesus as their Savior and dedicate their lives to God!

The Bible tells us there is much joy in heaven whenever a sinner repents; much more than over ninety-nine people who do not need repentance (Luke 15:7). The blessings of God are numerous and are without repentance. You have taken a wonderful step towards eternal life.

Now—to find a Bible-believing church to be your place of worship!

Why a Bible-believing church?

When a you enter a new, unfamiliar land, you may not know much the culture. You may not know directions to available resources or utilities. In this new land, you may want a guide who knows the culture, the geography and the people. This is where a Bible-believing church comes in.

A Holy Spirit-filled, Bible-believing church will be valuable for guiding you down the right path. The Bible tells us that, in the last days, there will be many false teachers and prophets misleading God’s people. Therefore, healthy Biblical teaching and fellowship is a must for all believers.

“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.

“Woe to you, blind guides! You say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath’.” (Matthew 23:15-16)

These are harsh words from Jesus to the religious leaders of His day. Instead of going to a church that does not believe in the Bible (and there are many), your goal is to be like the new converts in Act 13:43.

“If you want to walk fast, walk alone. If you want to walk far, walk together.” (African proverb)

There is power in association. It is important to be gathering with people who share the same faith. When you spend time with others who share your goals and beliefs, you grow stronger together. The Bible teaches us, “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.” (Proverbs 27:17)

How to pick a Bible-believing church

As a new convert who knows little or nothing about churches and the Christian faith, this may prove to be a challenging task! No matter what you see or hear, the most important criterion is that the church you select must believe in Jesus Christ and worship the Lord God Almighty.

In Hebrews 11:25, we are commanded to fellowship with other believers. You will look for a church that preaches from God’s Word (free of additions or man-made traditions.)

Here are some tips to help you pick a Bible-believing church:

Interview and Internet

Conduct Internet research to find local Christian churches. Some searches you may want to do might be “churches near me”, “nondenominational churches near me” or “evangelical churches [your city]” (without the brackets.) Many churches will have a page called “Beliefs” or “What We Believe”. Upon finding a handful of churches that seem to fit, it’s time to begin calling them. Interview church leaders and pastors. Here are some basic questions you might ask any church you are considering:

Is the Bible the 100% true, accurate Word of God inspired by the Holy Spirit?

Is Jesus the Son of God and the only way to eternal life with God? Is there any way to God or eternal life other than through Jesus?

What does the Bible say the world will look like when Jesus returns? Do we need to gain dominion of the earth before that happens?

Through our effort, can we alter biblical prophecy?

Does a person have any responsibilities to God upon accepting salvation?

How important is popular culture in structuring your services?

How do you train and equip your people to carry out the Great Commission?

What opportunities are there for me to join Bible-study groups or volunteer?

Do you preach sermons that talk about exposing false teachers and false doctrines? Should Christians ever question anointed teachers?

What curriculum do your youth ministries use?

To whom are church leaders accountable? Has your leadership ever been questioned by members? How was it addressed?

What growth is more important to your church? Growth in numbers or growth in spiritual commitment of members? (They may only select one!)

What is the most crucial issue your church has faced? How was it resolved?

How do you determine the spiritual growth of your members?

What is meant by the word “Church,” and what is its purpose?

What is the role of your church in social issues and politics?

When do you believe life begins?

What are your church’s views on marriage and sexuality? Please share scriptures that confirm your beliefs.

How does your church handle divorce among your members?

Do you believe Christians and Muslims pray to the same God; are Yahweh and Allah the same?

(Questions originally from https://standupforthetruth.com/2011/12/church-shopping-35-key-questions-to-ask-the-church/ )

Eventually, it will be time to visit your finalists. Before and after services, go out of your way to meet people. Meet the pastor. Meet the leaders. Ask more questions. Tour the church. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you (He will). Eventually, you will find a church home.

Pray for God’s Guidance

God is your Father. When you accept him as your Lord, the Holy Spirit comes into your life. The Holy Spirit is our guide, our counselor, our friend and our comforter. Whenever you are not sure what to do, call upon God. Pray to Him and ask Him to guide you. He hears you and will order your steps.

Studying the Word of God and comparing it with the preaching at your local church is the ultimate way to discern whether your church is Bible-believing.

As you start upon your Christian journey, keep these tips close to heart. God will bless you and keep you on the right path! Praise God!

  Please follow and like us:

[maryanntorreson]

Behind The Scenes: Héctor

At Babbel, our endgame is getting people to have conversations with other people, in a new language. There are fantastic folks here making that possible. In our “Behind The Scenes” series, we sit down with them to provide a glimpse into who makes it all work, what they do, and where their heads are at. 

This round we’re talking to Héctor Hernández, Curriculum Manager for Babbel Live. 

What’s your role at Babbel? What do you do on a typical day?

I’m the Curriculum Manager for Babbel Live. I’m in charge of structuring the progression of our live tutoring sessions and I manage a team of four content creators that create the teaching materials for the courses.

Where are you from and which languages do you speak?

I was born and raised in Mexico’s capital city, the Great Tenochtitlan, Mexico City. Spanish is my mother tongue, but I started learning English at a very young age. Also, French came along when I was still in primary school. German and Italian were the very first languages I learned autonomously when I was already in my late-twenties.

This is a pretty international workplace. How does that influence your work? 

It definitely allows you to learn more about the world itself. I’ve had the opportunity to talk to people from different cultures and places, which has allowed me to learn more about many interesting parts of the world, and to understand language learners better.

You started off as a Mexican Spanish Editor in Didactics and are now Curriculum Manager for Babbel Live. Tell us about your journey of how you got here? 

I was originally hired last year to help the Didactics team develop content for Latin American Spanish, which is now available as a learning language on the Babbel platform. A few months ago, I became aware that the Curriculum Manager position became available as part of our Internal Mobility program. I was able to apply and after some interviews, I was hired to become part of Babbel Live. The team and the project are a new learning experience within Babbel, where we bring the best classroom environment to help our learners become conversational with the help of our experienced teachers.

You are part of the Babbel podcast A Zero to A Hero. What inspired you to create this podcast series? 

A Zero to A Hero was part of one of Babbel’s goals to create new content formats that learners could listen to on the go. When I started creating the podcast I didn’t want to make it too grammar-focused, but target it more towards communication. That means that at the time of creating each episode, I always started with a communicative goal in mind (introducing yourself, talking about your daily habits, getting around in a new city, etc.). From there, I thought of the linguistic elements that needed to be included to reach that goal. Once that was clear, it was time to make it conversational. For that I had my colleague Catriona by my side, who was very into her Spanish-learning journey. She always had interesting questions that are common for Spanish learners but also for people who have just started learning a new language. We have received very positive feedback from learners all over the world, and thanks to the learner-centric approach, we have over 300k downloads already! Along with all of our Babbel podcasts, we were recently awarded the International e-Learning Award in the category of Mobile Learning this year.

What challenges are you most animated by?

Breaking barriers, which for me is what language learning is all about. Not only breaking linguistic and cultural barriers, but also mental barriers. As adults, we fall for the trap of believing that we have either learned it all or that we are unable to learn anything new, which blocks your vision and your development. Therefore, learning a new skill is a way of breaking barriers. Having these new skills also opens new opportunities, whether it is a new job, a new circle of friends, or a new life in another country. I want to help people reach their goals and live the life they want to.

How does working on a purpose-driven product affect your workday?

Babbel’s mission, everybody learning languages, was already my mission before joining the company. I’m very passionate about language learning, so it was easy to jump on the Babbel train. It is very motivating to work around people who have the same passion as you, because you are able to bring new ideas that you can build together to put in front of thousands of people. It is also very rewarding to receive feedback from our learners and get to know how they’ve put what they’ve learned to use. It continues to inspire me and my whole team.

Since we are now all working from home, how have you adjusted to this situation? Do you have any tips to share for WFH productivity?

Adapting to the work from home routine due to COVID has been a challenge for everybody. We had to rethink and adapt all of our routines. I just became a father in December last year, so seeing it from the bright side, the lockdown gave me the opportunity to see my baby grow and be closer to him at this stage of his life. This itself brought some challenges, where I’ve had to sit in several meetings while trying to bring my baby to sleep, which is not the easiest. I’ve tried to arrange my working area similarly to my office: I have another monitor, which definitely helps to increase productivity while working from home.

Want to work with Hector? His team is now hiring German Language Teachers for Babbel Live!

The post Behind The Scenes: Héctor appeared first on Babbel.

Behind The Scenes: Héctor published first on https://premiumedusite.tumblr.com/rss

[thisdaynews]

Alberto Salazar: The inside story of Nike Oregon Project founder's downfall

New Post has been published on https://thebiafrastar.com/alberto-salazar-the-inside-story-of-nike-oregon-project-founders-downfall/

Alberto Salazar: The inside story of Nike Oregon Project founder's downfall

Alberto Salazar has been banned from athletics for four years after being found guilty of doping violations

That Alberto Salazar – one of the world’s most famous athletics coaches – has been found guilty of doping violations will send shockwaves through the sport. Here, Mark Daly – the BBC reporter whose Panorama programme sparked the United States Anti-Doping Agency investigations – reveals the inside story of Salazar’s downfall.

The investigation begins

For years there had been rumours. But they were just that – rumours.

In 2013 I began working on a story about doping in athletics.

Initially, we’d been focusing on historical claims of doping by famous British athletes in the 1980s. But in the course of that reporting, athletes and coaches began to share with me rumours of much more recent misconduct. They urged me to delve deeper into an ongoing problem, rather than only historical ones. They pointed to one of the most prominent figures in the history of the sport: Alberto Salazar, coach of Britain’s Mo Farah.

At that time, Farah was riding high – having just secured a historic Olympic and world ‘double-double’ in the distance track events. Salazar, his mentor, had been credited for transforming Farah from an athlete struggling to win medals on the big stage into the world’s number one – and Britain’s most successful ever track athlete.

But the rumours about the American, while not public, were persistent in elite circles; whispers of unorthodox methods, athletes being giving unnecessary prescriptions and even the use of banned substances and methods at the prestigious Nike Oregon Project (NOP) over which Salazar presided.

Salazar was legendary in US athletics circles, and the most prominent running coach in the world. Winner of the New York Marathon three years in a row from 1980-82, he had once pushed so hard in a race he ran himself unconscious and had the last rites administered.

Salazar remains more famous in the US than any athletes currently competing. If he was cheating, this was going to be a tough story to break.

The background – Salazar’s rise

Salazar founded NOP in 2001.

A long-time friend of Nike founder Phil Knight, Salazar persuaded Nike that if it bankrolled his dream project, he could end the track dominance of the east Africans. If anyone could deliver this plan for Nike, it was Salazar. He was completely embedded into the company’s DNA; he’d been a Nike athlete throughout his career and even had the famous Swoosh tattooed on his arm.

In the grand scheme of Nike finances, athletics is small business, but an enormous part of its corporate identity. Within Nike’s sprawling 286-acre Beaverton campus in Oregon, built around the man-made Lake Nike, shrines to the company’s athletics pioneers are easily found. One can enter the Alberto Salazar Building, or even the six-storey Seb Coe Building.

Salazar was one of the most powerful and revered coaches in the sport. He embraced the latest innovations – altitude tents fitted around the beds of his top athletes, long sessions on underwater and zero-gravity treadmills. He sought to influence every aspect of his athlete’s life and left nothing to chance. His attention to detail was known to be exquisite.

But by the time Farah arrived in 2011, NOP had enjoyed limited success. It had been built around Salazar’s protege Galen Rupp. Salazar discovered Rupp aged 15, but so far the American had failed to deliver on the world stage. It would be Farah – 18 months later, in the 10,000m on London’s Super Saturday – who would win the first Olympic title for the Oregon Project.

To cap it all, Salazar’s favoured athlete – Rupp – took the silver, just a few strides behind. It was Salazar’s crowning moment. It was also the tipping point for the man who would ultimately help bring him down.

The whistleblower

Steve Magness had been a promising athlete, posting one of the fastest US high school times for the mile (four minutes one second). He turned to coaching in his early 20s and was spotted by Salazar, who brought him to NOP. He spent 18 months as Salazar’s assistant coach, leaving just before London 2012.

He would later tell me that watching the Farah-Rupp Olympic one-two was “one of the most disheartening moments of my life”. Some months later, he emailed the United States Anti-Doping Agency (Usada), saying: “Look into the Nike Oregon Project athletes… I’m strongly suspicious.”

Magness had several conversations with Usada over the next two years. But he became frustrated, wondering whether his concerns were being taken seriously enough. It was during this time we were introduced to him. I travelled to meet him in Texas, where he was enjoying success as a track and field coach at the University of Houston.

The walls of his house in Houston were adorned with athletics memorabilia, in tribute to a lifetime dedicated to running; a huge pile of well-worn running shoes occupied a whole corner of the living room. Magness is quietly spoken, thoughtful and reserved – a self-described introvert.

He chooses his words very carefully, which is why his allegations seemed so explosive – Salazar was cheating; of that he was certain. He told me about a document suggesting Rupp had been given testosterone; he recounted the dodgy experiments with the banned steroid to find out how much it would take to trigger a positive drugs test. He told me he thought this was “them trying to figure out how to cheat the tests, right? So it’s how much can we take without triggering a positive?”

He knew the risks of speaking out were huge and worried his career could be cut short. He would later tell me: “I’m essentially the David taking on the Goliath of the biggest company and some of the biggest, one of the biggest, names in the sport, which is absolutely terrifying because they [Nike] control the sport.”

Magness (right) just missed out on running a four-minute mile at the Prefontaine Classic in May 2003

Building more evidence

Magness wasn’t alone. Working alongside the US investigative website ProPublica, I had gathered testimony from many more athletes and support personnel with experience of NOP.

Kara Goucher was one. Under Salazar she had won a silver medal at the 2007 World Championships, and she told me he had been like a father figure to her. Goucher was US running royalty, and her testimony that her coach had crossed the line into cheating was excoriating. She recalled that Salazar told her to take a thyroid drug she had not been prescribed to help with weight loss before a race.

We were told Salazar had an obsession with boosting testosterone levels, and would act like a doctor at times, issuing thyroid and asthma drugs, painkillers, sleeping pills and massive doses of vitamins for dubious medical needs.

We learned he retained a trusted endocrinologist – Dr Jeffrey Brown – on a paid Nike consultancy to treat many of his athletes. In collusion with Salazar, Dr Brown would identify thyroid and other apparent abnormalities; he’d frequently prescribe thyroid hormone to athletes whose values would be considered normal according to standard reference ranges. Rather than treating medical necessity, his goal was to optimise athletic performance.

Athletes sent to Dr Brown’s office were encouraged not to ask too many questions. They would later tell Usada they felt “intimidated” and under pressure to comply with Salazar’s directions.

One former NOP runner – Tara Erdmann – said she was told to travel to Houston to see Dr Brown but had no idea why. She said: “What is going on? Why do I have to do this?” Still, she went along with it, even though “it was kind of scary”.

Another athlete – former American 5,000m record holder Dathan Ritzenhein – said Salazar would make comments like: “I can’t coach you if you don’t do this.” Ritzenhein had been put on thyroid medication even though his levels were in normal range.

Magness the guinea pig

There was now a culture in which it was nearly impossible to say no to Salazar if an athlete or assistant coach wanted to maintain their standing with him. And that is how Magness himself crossed the line.

In 2010, Salazar became aware of a legal supplement that could boost levels of L-carnitine – which occurs naturally in the body and helps convert fat to energy – and produce a significant performance boost. The problem was it took about six months of drinking the supplement to notice any difference. Salazar didn’t want to wait that long.

UK researchers had devised a method to produce the same result by infusing intravenously the supplement using a drip, over four hours. Salazar wanted to test this, and Magness was to be the guinea pig. Reluctantly, he agreed and the results were instant. “Almost unbelievable,” said Magness.

Salazar emailed his friend Lance Armstrong – the seven-time Tour de France winner, who was then training for an Ironman race. He wrote: “Lance call me ASAP! We have tested it and it’s amazing!”

The only problem was World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) rules stipulate infusions of any kind must be of less than 50ml – about three spoons worth – every six hours. It was against doping rules.

Realising this, Salazar changed tack, and for another six NOP athletes, reduced the infusion time to an hour. He assured his athletes it was within the rules, and in fact, Usada had given it the all-clear. It hadn’t.

“Both Dr Brown and Alberto told me it was good with Usada and I mistakenly trusted them,” said Magness. “It doesn’t excuse it. I take responsibility for what I did, but unlike the vast majority of people in this sport I did something about it.”

Ironically, it would be Magness who would find himself on the wrong end of a potential ban for his part in Salazar’s L-carnitine experiment.

Catch Me If You Can is broadcast

There had been some reporting about NOP previously in the New York Times and Sunday Times, but none had accused Salazar of out-and-out cheating.

We had whistleblowers ready to go on the record and do exactly that. It was nearly unprecedented, and it wasn’t lost on them, or us, that Salazar had the backing of the biggest sports footwear company in the world.

I was struck, though, by how resolute Magness had become. He was nervous leading up to the broadcast, as was I, but he had decided this was something he needed to do. He told me: “It would be much easier to just shut up, do my job. I’ve got a good job, got a good reputation…[but] I can’t. Because I’d be living a lie.”

Months of meticulous evidence gathering had gone into making the programme, with a huge amount of oversight from BBC lawyers. We asked for detailed responses from Salazar and Rupp. They issued firm denials, but were short on detail.

Our Panorama programme – Catch Me If You Can – was broadcast in June 2015.

After the broadcast, Magness was catapulted into the limelight – a position he says he did not relish.

He said: “It was hugely intimidating and also made you feel kind of powerless because your story, your identity, is no longer yourself… having no control over that is frightening… every bit of your life gets dissected.”

The story was headline news around the world, and with it came tough questions for Farah and UK Athletics (UKA) – the sport’s governing body in the UK.

UKA had made Salazar a consultant to its endurance programme, along with legendary British athletes Steve Cram and Paula Radcliffe.

We made and make no allegations about Farah, but questioned his association with a coach who was believed by so many of his former athletes to be on the wrong side of the line.

At an emotional news conference three days after the programme, Farah said his name was being “dragged through the mud”. He said he wanted answers from his coach, but refused to part with him.

Questions were now being asked over what, if any, due diligence was done on Salazar by Farah and UKA. Salazar had been coach to US athlete Mary Slaney, who had tested positive for testosterone in 1996.

“That’s the question I asked before [joining Salazar’s team in 2011] and Alberto said he wasn’t coaching her at the time,” said Farah.

But Salazar was coaching her at the time – and the questions were mounting. Some in the sport were urging Farah to part with the American.

Media playback is not supported on this device

Mo Farah angry at ‘being dragged through mud’

Salazar’s backlash against the ‘haters’

Salazar was not about to take the allegations lying down.

Three weeks after the programme aired, he issued a blistering 12,000-word riposte, denouncing the BBC and ProPublica’s journalism and demanding an apology.

He said he needed the testosterone for his personal use because he had been diagnosed with a condition called hypogonadism, which results in low testosterone, and produced a letter from a specialist.

He admitted the testosterone experiment, which used his own sons as “guinea pigs”, took place. But he claimed it was designed to protect against his athletes being “sabotaged” by someone rubbing testosterone gel on them after a race so they would test positive.

The whistleblowers were “haters” and we, the journalists involved, were “irresponsible”. He reserved his most damning criticism for Magness, describing him as a “failed coach”.

Salazar’s explanations seemed to be enough for NOP athletes. Rupp said he was 100% behind his coach, and Rupp’s parents emerged in the media calling the allegations “baseless and outrageous”.

But his response provoked as many questions as answers – and Usada was watching.

It would later emerge that just four days after the programme aired, Usada wrote to Salazar demanding explanations as well as evidence of his own apparent need for possessing testosterone. It followed that up by asking about the “sabotage” experiment.

So began a period of intensive investigation by the agency, led by Travis Tygart, the man who brought down Armstrong.

So what did UKA do? No allegations had been levelled at Farah, but his coach to whom UKA had entrusted its prized asset was now under intense scrutiny. UKA launched a review.

“That was just a sham,” Magness told me. “I mean, their investigation consisted of [a] 30 to 45-minute Skype call with me. So that sums it up to me, if that’s the extent of your investigation.

“That’s the shocking thing to me… forget the things that we don’t know – if you just look at the things he admitted to doing, like the experiment on testosterone to see if people would test positive…. some of the prescription drugs that he admitted to having and sending in the mail and things like that. That alone should be, like, red flag waving right here.”

UKA, despite taking evidence from several of the whistleblowers as well as from the BBC, found “no reason to be concerned” and gave Farah the green light to carry on with Salazar.

Some of the sport’s biggest names came out in support of Salazar, notably those with associations with Nike.

IAAF president Coe, then a paid Nike ambassador, stood by his “good friend” of 35 years. He said: “Alberto… is a first-class coach. Don’t run away with the idea that this [NOP] is a hole-in-the-wall, circa 1970s Eastern Bloc operation. It’s not.”

Salazar was confident Usada’s investigation would run aground and find no evidence of doping violations against him. “They will find Jimmy Hoffa’s body first,” he quipped, referencing the controversial union boss whose disappearance has never been solved.

Medals at Rio 2016… but Fancy Bears bite

The 2016 Rio Olympics came and went without a whisper from Usada. NOP was once again revelling in Olympic glory. Farah completed a historic double-double by winning the 5,000m and 10,000m, Rupp took bronze in the marathon, Matt Centrowitz won gold in the 1500m. Press reports suggested the Usada investigation had been quietly dropped. Farah gave an interview saying he felt “vindicated” for standing by Salazar.

Galen Rupp – who strongly denies ever breaking any rules – celebrates his bronze medal in Rio

But that bubble soon burst.

In February 2017, the Russian hackers Fancy Bears popped up with a series of devastating sports leaks. Among them, a secret IAAF list of athletes who were “likely doping” was published. It included Farah and Rupp. The pair were among 50 athletes secretly flagged by the Athlete Biological Passport, and subsequently cleared as “normal”. Neither has ever tested positive.

Then, a 269-page interim Usada report of its NOP investigation was passed to the Sunday Times by the Russian hackers.

The report painted a damning picture of a culture of coercion and secrecy at NOP and accused Salazar and Dr Brown of cheating and being cavalier with the health of athletes including Farah.

It said Salazar and Dr Brown “almost certainly” broke anti-doping rules over the infusion of L-carnitine. The report accused the pair of obstructing Usada’s investigation by altering some medical records and refusing to hand over others. Infusion guinea pig Magness noticed, when he read the leaked report, that his medical notes had been changed. NOP athlete Dathan Ritzenhein’s notes had also been altered; a notation indicating his infusion was just below the allowable limit had apparently been added.

Usada learned Farah had had an infusion in the UK. UKA would later tell an inquiry this was within the legal limits, even though it hadn’t been recorded properly. Farah has always strongly denied breaking any rules.

The report also reveals Salazar eventually agreed to be interviewed under oath by Usada investigators, who, after delving into his own testosterone use, concluded he had failed to provide adequate justification for possession of the drug, constituting a doping violation. The report, while strongly hinting Salazar may have started using the drug before he finished his running career, also suggests he may have used it on Rupp during massage treatments. Rupp has always strongly denied breaking any rules.

The publication of this top-secret report was obviously not what Usada wanted – but it seems to have forced its hand for it can now be revealed both Salazar and Dr Brown were noticed of charges in March and June 2017 respectively and both formally charged in June of that year with anti-doping violations. The charges related to the claims about testosterone, the L-carnitine infusions, and tampering with evidence to thwart doping investigators.

Neither Magness nor any of the other NOP athletes were charged.

It is understood that despite 10 NOP athletes agreeing Dr Brown could discuss their medical records with Usada, he steadfastly refused to do so.

Salazar and Dr Brown, armed with heavyweight legal teams funded by Nike, contested the charges. This meant the cases had to go the American Arbitration Association (AAA).

This was a hugely complex case, and one which did not have a slam-dunk positive drugs test to stand upon.

But Tygart’s team specialise in these rare, non-analytical positive cases (Armstrong being the case in point) and believed there was enough evidence to justify a lifetime ban for the coach. All of this was being done behind closed doors to protect both the innocent until proven guilty, and also the integrity of the cases. Once again, people started to think it all had gone away.

Shortly after charges were laid in 2017, stories started appearing in the UK press that Farah was seeking to distance himself from Salazar. He announced he was leaving the American in October that year, but not, he insisted, because of the doping allegations.

He said: “If I was going to leave because of that I would have done. If Alberto had crossed the line I would be out the door, but Usada has not charged him with anything.”

Only, it had. Farah may not have been aware of this. Olympic champion Centrowitz soon followed him out of the NOP door.

Then, once more, all was quiet. In reality, it was anything but.

Hearings, like mini court cases, were held for each case in May and June 2018, during which witnesses, including Magness and Goucher, were grilled by both sides. Dr Brown was eventually compelled by the arbitrators to give testimony under oath. The AAA panel, consisting of three judges with experience at the Court of Arbitration for Sport, then retired to consider their verdict.

What happened on Tuesday?

Early on Tuesday, the arbitrators handed down their judgements – both Salazar and Dr Brown were guilty of doping violations and banned from the sport for four years.

Tygart said: “The athletes in these cases found the courage to speak out and ultimately exposed the truth.

He added: “While acting in connection with the Nike Oregon Project, Mr Salazar and Dr Brown demonstrated that winning was more important than the health and wellbeing of the athletes they were sworn to protect.”

Both were found to have trafficked testosterone, used banned infusion methods and tampered with athletes’ records.

Their bans begin with immediate effect and will send shockwaves through the sport.

What happens next?

This judgement can be appealed against, so it is perhaps not the end of the story. But it is surely the end of Salazar’s coaching career, and possibly even NOP. Salazar was NOP, and almost nothing happened there without his say-so.

This will have a seismic impact in the world of athletics. Several NOP athletes are running at the World Championships in Doha this week, and one has already won a gold medal – Sifan Hassan in the women’s 10,000m. Rupp is due to take on Farah in the Chicago marathon in a fortnight.

UKA supremo Neil Black is sure to come under fire for allowing Farah to remain at NOP following the Panorama programme. UKA stands accused of whitewashing its review and turning a blind eye to the concerns about the man who turned Farah into the world’s best; blinded by the promise of more gold medals.

And Farah? What this decision means is all of his greatest achievements on the track were delivered under the tutelage of a coach who has been exposed as a cheat and a doper. That doesn’t mean Farah cheated; there is no evidence he did. His judgement, though, will come under intense scrutiny.

Magness, who told me he “felt vindicated” and was relieved their “voices had been heard”, had this to say about Farah: “I don’t know what Mo knew or didn’t know. Only he knows that. But I know what he knew from 2015 onwards, and you got to face up to those decisions and who you tie yourself to.”

Farah could have parted with the American when the allegations first surfaced.

He didn’t – and the legacy he so craves will suffer as a consequence.

Read More

[newstfionline]

America Soured on My Multiracial Family

David French, The Atlantic, Aug 26, 2018

There are three fundamental, complicating truths about adoption. First, every single adoption begins with profound loss. Through death, abandonment, or even loving surrender, a child suffers the loss of his or her mother and father. Second, the demographics of those in need of loving homes do not precisely match the demographics of those seeking a new child. Adoptive parents are disproportionately white. Adopted children are not. Thus, multiracial families are a natural and inevitable consequence of the adoption process. Third, American culture has long been obsessed with questions of race and identity.

Combine these three truths and you will not only begin to understand the challenge of adoption, you’ll also gain insight into a darkness in American culture, a darkness that scorns even the bond between parent and child. I know this firsthand. Amid the stories of adoption in America is the story of my family--the story of my youngest daughter.

I’m an Evangelical Christian, and ever since I was a young man, two Bible verses have tugged at my soul. The first comes from the Book of James, and defines “pure” religious practice in part as looking after “widows and orphans in their distress.” The second, from the Book of Galatians, declares an eternal truth: “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” As a result, my wife and I not only felt called to adopt, but we believed that race was no barrier to unity for a family of genuine faith.

And so, in the summer of 2010, we journeyed to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to pick up our youngest child, Naomi Konjit French. As with every adoption story, hers begins with profound loss. Her unwed mother surrendered Naomi to her grandmother and grandfather and then disappeared from her life. Her grandparents were subsistence farmers, barely able to eke out a living. Then, her grandfather died, and Naomi and her grandmother began to starve. By the time Naomi was two years old, she weighed barely more than 14 pounds. That was her condition when she was abandoned again--this time lovingly turned over to an adoption agency. Her grandmother simply couldn’t keep her alive.

Think about the trauma. As a toddler, she’d already experienced death, starvation, and abandonment. And soon enough, she’d experience displacement. This American family arrived, scooped her up, and flew her halfway across the Earth. Within a day she was in a new land, living with people she did not know.

From the instant we saw her, we loved her with our whole hearts, but any adoptive family can tell you (indeed, any family at all can tell you) that love does not heal all hurts. There is pain that can last a lifetime.

I will never, ever forget the moment when we told our daughter her story--when we held each other and wept shamelessly and publicly in a pizza parlor in Middle Tennessee. (Parenting tip: Never have the tough conversations in restaurants.) It was a hard night, but our bond has grown, and we can speak more freely about the difficult past.

Day by day, we love each other and we fight through that pain, the consequence of trauma and loss. How does a little girl attach to a new mom after losing a mother and a grandmother in rapid succession? How does a father bond with a little girl when the only man she was ever close to died before she was old enough to speak? And early childhood malnutrition carries with it developmental challenges that can last long after she regained her health and strength.

All of this is hard, but many families face far greater challenges. And, as we remind ourselves daily, we’re blessed beyond measure. Naomi is growing up in an intact home with siblings who love her deeply. She’s part of a church and a school community that are dedicated to helping her flourish. Her parents have good jobs, and the days of material deprivation are long past.

But hovering just outside the frame--and sometimes intruding directly into our lives--is a disturbing reality. There are people who hate that our family exists. Actual racists loathe the idea of white parents raising a black child, and ideological arguments about identity raise questions about whether a white family’s love can actually harm a child of a different race. And, sometimes, people even question whether adoptive parents truly love their children, claiming that parents adopt to “virtue-signal” or simply to ostentatiously demonstrate their open-mindedness.

Before we adopted, we of course knew that there has long been political opposition to transracial adoption. In 1972 the National Association of Black Social Workers famously declared white adoption of black children to be a form of “cultural genocide.” But that was decades ago. By the 21st century, American churches were fully engaged in an adoption movement. Families continued to adopt domestically, but they also reached out (like we did) overseas. By 2004, the peak of international adoption, Americans brought home 22,884 children, many of them with special needs, many of them of different races from their new parents.

In 2010, the year we adopted, the Washington Post’s Michael Gerson wrote a piece that reflected the heartfelt views of countless adoptive families. It was the “noblest thing about America,” he said, that “we care for children of other lands who have been cast aside.” And what of multiracial families? His answer was our answer: “Instead of undermining any culture, international adoption instructs our own. Unlike the thin, quarrelsome multiculturalism of the campus, multiethnic families demonstrate the power of affection over difference.” There was a spirit of optimism, of hope that we could actually live the promise from Galatians, and in living that promise help change the nation we loved.

But then came a backlash. Claims of cultural imperialism, wounded national pride, and rare, sad horror stories of exploitation or abuse soured foreign nations against American families. And at home, identity politics and even outright hostility against the Christian adoption movement triggered attacks from some on the left--attacks that were soon to be matched and exceeded by attacks from a racist right.

The first significant blow came from the Obama administration IRS. The adoption tax credit (a significant financial aid to adoptive families) was made fully refundable for the 2010 and 2011 tax years. The IRS responded with mass-scale audits of adoptive families. In 2011, it audited a staggering 68 percent of families who claimed the adoption tax credit. In 2012, that number hit 69 percent.

My family was caught in the dragnet. So, at the same time that we were integrating a new child into our home, we were also combing through adoption receipts trying to prove to the IRS that we had indeed adopted, that we had indeed spent the incredible sum we reported, and that we hadn’t defrauded the government. Thousands of families faced the same task, often with far more complex adoptions featuring receipts and records written in languages they couldn’t decipher. An October 2011 GAO report indicated that the IRS “had not found any fraudulent adoption tax credit claims, and there had been no referrals of adoption tax credit claims to its Criminal Investigation unit.”

Next, in 2013, Kathryn Joyce, a writer and journalist who studies and reports on American Evangelical Christianity, published a book called The Child Catchers: Rescue, Trafficking, and the New Gospel of Adoption. It was a blistering attack on the Evangelical adoption movement, claiming the adoption industry was rife with corruption and that Evangelicals were in the grips of an ominous “orphan fever” that was motivated primarily by a desire to evangelize orphan children. The book received significant coverage. Joyce wrote essays in the New York Times Sunday Review, and Mother Jones. She was interviewed on NPR’s Fresh Air.

We quickly discovered that if you’re the white parents of an adopted black child, and you’re in the public eye at all, men and women will viciously criticize you for having the audacity to believe that you can raise your kid. At times, the criticism was direct and personal--most of it directed at my wife. It was one thing to face hostile comments on blogs or random tweets. It was another to face angry direct messages and sometimes-tense personal encounters in public. Family and friends were aghast. Look at what the left does and says to loving families, we remarked to each other. Look at what they believe about faithful Christians.

Then, sometime around the summer of 2015, we began to notice a shift. The attacks on our family came less and less from the left, and increasingly from the alt-right--a vicious movement of Trump-supporting white nationalists who loathe multiracial families. They despise international adoption. They call it “race-cucking your family” or “raising the enemy.” Heaven help you if they find you online, and find us they did. In part because I criticized their movement directly--and in part because I refused to support Donald Trump in 2016--they came after us with a vengeance.

They lifted pictures of my then-7-year-old daughter from social media and photo-shopped her into a gas chamber, with Donald Trump pressing the button to kill her. They put her image in slave fields. They found my wife’s blog and filled the comment section with gruesome pictures of dead or dying African-Americans. They made me wish for the days when “the left” came after us; at least progressive critics didn’t want my daughter to die.

We’re an extreme case, mainly because my wife and I are both writers and we’ve both offered very public (and controversial) political commentary. Not every adopted family has been audited by their government, attacked online from left and right, and seen their child threatened by racists. No one should believe that our experience is the experience of every adoptive family. But many, many families have their own experiences of hatred and ignorance.

White parents see racism directed at their black kids. Cruel people use social media to accuse parents of raising kids as fashion statements. Others lecture them on their inherent inability to meet the needs of children of color. The hate our family received may have been more prolific because of who we are, but that hate is real, it is part of American life, and it will find its way to all too many families that looks like ours.

In the years since we brought our daughter home, overseas adoption has plummeted--down 72 percent since 2005--and it’s not hard to see one of the reasons why. A broken American culture inflicts itself on nations abroad and families at home, and attitudes shift. In 2010, before we left for Ethiopia, the primary response from friends and acquaintances reflected the hope and joy of the moment. “Are you so excited?” they asked--offering the cheerful rhetorical question always asked of expectant parents. Since then, I’ve seen the question posed to adoptive parents change: “Are you ready?” people wonder, as they seek to prepare parents for problems to come.

For our part, we’ve sheltered our daughter from all these attacks. One day she’ll learn. One day I’m sure we’ll hold each other again--this time not in a pizza parlor--and weep for the hate directed at her because of her beautiful skin, a hate designed to wound her precious soul. We’ll do our best to guard her heart against those who would seek to turn child against parent, to claim that her parents’ love was somehow suspect and their faith a source of oppression rather than a source of life and hope.

We love our daughter more than we love our own lives. But the idealism of 2010 is gone. Then, we thought our family reflected the future. Now we know that was naïve. Now we know that while the promise of Galatians--the promise that we are “all one”--is true in the Kingdom of Heaven, in America it does not yet apply.

[mrmichaelchadler]

Cannes 2018: The Wild Pear Tree, plus awards predictions

Cannes likes to keep things challenging until the end, so it was almost inevitable that the last competition title would be Nuri Bilge Ceylan's "The Wild Pear Tree"—at around 190 minutes, a relative breeze after Ceylan's 196-minute "Winter Sleep," which won the Palme d'Or in 2014. But "The Wild Pear Tree" is neither slow nor boring; like "Winter Sleep," it's a Chekhovian drama that takes its time to introduce and analyze the behavior of an arrogant, condescending protagonist, peeling back layers until we've understood the full breadth of his contempt.

Sinan (Aydin Dogu Demirkol), a recent college graduate, returns to his small hometown of Çan with a massive superiority complex. He longs to become an accomplished writer and to pen commercially unviable, hopelessly personal chronicles of Çan's culture, not exactly a subject dear to his heart. In one of the film's most drawn-out and funny sequences, possibly a dream, he seeks advice from a local author, introducing himself by arguing that it's good, strategically, to get to know the competition. The author tries, over and over, to politely brush him off.

In the meantime, Sinan is unemployed, and he is likely to follow in the footsteps of his father (Murat Cemcir) and become a teacher. (He takes the prerequisite test without bothering to prepare.) He is romantically unattached; in an early scene, he learns that a woman he knew from his youth (Hazar Erguçlu), who may have eyes for him as well, is about to move away and marry a jeweler. But her apparent affection is still a small victory, one he celebrates by getting into a brawl with her ex.

It wouldn't be a Ceylan film without lengthy philosophical and theological digressions, including a discussion on whether religion can ever adapt to modernity. The movie, shot by Ceylan's regular cinematographer, Gokhan Tiryaki, also has the director's customary digital splendor. Most shots in "The Wild Pear Tree" look as if Ceylan spent hours finding the perfect balance of sunlight and shadow for each frame.

Still, as with "Winter Sleep," the slender story of "The Wild Pear Tree" doesn't seem to cry out for an extreme running time; it's hard to escape the sense that Ceylan filmed an overlong draft to give his film the appearance of heft. "The Wild Pear Tree" is the title of Sinan's book, and his father, a gambling addict, likens their family to a pear tree's misshapen fruit. In some ways, his description also applies to this ambitious and lovely but imperfect film.

Speaking of gambling: With the Palme d'Or and other Cannes awards set to be announced tomorrow, it's time to place bets on what might win.

Palme d'Or: The Palme d'Or isn't intended to be a statement, except when it is. (Does anyone still think "Fahrenheit 9/11," which won the prize a little more than a year into the Iraq War, was the best film in the 2004 competition?) And from the beginning, the conversation at Cannes this year has centered on on gender equality. Last weekend, 82 women—one representing each female director who has been selected to compete for the Palme—rallied on the red carpet to protest the lack of women auteurs in the festival's main event. (By contrast, there have been 1,645 men in that time.) Nor has it escaped anyone's notice that, so far, Jane Campion is the only woman to have won a competitive Palme.

That doesn't mean the jury would award a movie simply because its director is a woman. It does mean that, in a year when enthusiasm is spread widely across half a dozen or more movies, having a female director might tip the scales in a particular good film's favor. So in a year with a pretty open Palme race, I'm giving an edge to "Happy as Lazzaro," a folklorish, offbeat riff on the raising of Lazarus. The director, Alice Rohrwacher, won the Grand Jury Prize in 2014 for "The Wonders."

Grand Jury Prize: Lee Chang-dong's "Burning." Critical sentiment doesn't always align with the jury's tastes; 2016's ecstatically reviewed "Toni Erdmann," for instance, went away empty-handed. But "Burning" pulled off a record 3.8 score out of a possible 4.0 in Screen International's poll of critics—eight perfect ratings and two near-perfects. Any film that inspires that kind of enthusiasm has to win something. Alternate: Nadine Labaki's "Capharnaüm," which many are predicting for the Palme.

Best Director: Spike Lee for "BlacKkKlansman," which to my eyes is his best dramatic feature since "25th Hour" if not "Crooklyn." The movie feels certain to win something; I'm just not sure what. In auteurist France, best director seems like a good way to simultaneously honor Lee's career (the jury may want to correct the Palme loss for "Do the Right Thing" in 1989) and the high-wire act he pulls off with "BlacKkKlansman."

Alternate: "Cold War," especially if the criterion is conspicuous style. Compressing 15 years of a relationship into less than 90 minutes, Pawel Pawlikowski's period anti-romance is shot in black-and-white in Academy ratio with the same off-kilter framing he brought "Ida." (Characters are often shot with extra headroom.) It's a strange choice, but you certainly notice it, and the film itself is widely liked.

Jury Prize: This is always a tough call because you never know quite what the award is going to be; sometimes it's merely third place, sometimes it's a way to send a message, as when Jean-Luc Godard and Xavier Dolan—an elder statesman and a younger director—shared the prize in 2014. Let's call it a shared award for the directors Jafar Panahi ("3 Faces") and Kirill Serebrennikov ("Summer"), who are both under house arrest.

Best Actress: Zhao Tao, from Jia Zhangke's "Ash Is Purest White," as a woman whose devotion to her gangster boyfriend lands her in prison—and then persists, in a different way, once she's outside.

Alternates: Samal Yeslyamova suffers through nearly every scene of Sergey Dvortsevoy's claustrophobic, Dardennes-like "Ayka," playing a Kyrgyz woman who, after giving birth, scrounges Moscow for money and medical care. Double alternate: Joanna Kulig in "Cold War."

Best Actor: Marcello Fonte, "Dogman." As a runty, good-hearted dog groomer who has a lapdog-like loyalty to a coke-snorting heavy who repeatedly lets him down, Fonte gives one of those charismatic performances that makes you wonder why the actor isn't an international star.

Best Screenplay: I haven't yet seen Hirokazu Kore-Eda's "Shoplifters," which I'm catching up with tomorrow, but everyone loves it, so I'm putting it here.

Tomorrow I'll have a full wrap post explaining why I always knew these predictions were wrong.

from All Content https://ift.tt/2It1MJ7

[bestnewsmag-blog]

New Post has been published on Bestnewsmag

New Post has been published on https://bestnewsmag.com/trump-100-days-that-shook-the-world-and-the-activists-fighting-back/

Trump: 100 days that shook the world – and the activists fighting back

Naomi Wolf, creator, political journalist and co-founder of DailyClout: ‘Trump didn’t try this. You did this. Your own state of being inactive brought us exactly right here’ The first 100 days of President Donald Trump: how have my lifestyles changed? First of all, there was the mourning length. Now not for me, but for my fellow citizens. I used to be just mad. And that I wasn’t even maddest at the Trump voters. I understood that the critical warfare lines now aren’t left versus proper, but the 1% neoliberal globalizers making off with all of the loot and disemboweling the middle elegance. So when I noticed the campaign, I knew that in the US, simply as within the Uk, a candidate who stated anything at all about humans forgotten in the neoliberal race might have a solid threat. Donald Trump’s first 100 days as president – day by day updates

Study greater No – I was mad at my personal leftwing tribe. All of January, people on the left would confront me with dazed, grief-stricken expressions, as though they’d simply emerged from a multi-vehicle pileup on a foggy highway. “How should this have occurred? What will we do?” I couldn’t even bear to take part in the one’s conversations. Eventually, I began explaining my rage to my closest buddies.

I was screaming approximately the opportunity of this very moment for eight years, on account that I published a chunk in the Father or mother titled “Fascist America in 10 Smooth Steps” and wrote an e-book based totally on it, called The End of us (2007). Underneath George Bush Jr, the left has been very receptive to the e-book’s message approximately how democracies are undermined via the conventional methods of might be authoritarians.

however, as soon as Obama turned into elected – “one of ours” – I had to spend the next eight years yelling like a haunted Cassandra, to a room the left had abandoned. I had yelled myself hoarse for eight years Underneath Obama about what it might imply for us to take a seat still whilst Obama dispatched drones in to take out US residents in extrajudicial killings; what it’d imply for us to sit nevertheless at the same time as he exceeded the 2012 Countrywide Defence Authorisation Act that permits any president to keep citizens forever without charge or trial; what it’d imply for us to sit down still even as he allowed NSA surveillance, allowed Guantánamo to live open and allowed hyped terrorism tales to hijack the charter and turn the USA into what Finally even Robert F Kennedy Jr become calling a National safety surveillance kingdom.

For eight years, Beneath Obama, my audiences were libertarian cowboys and crimson-kingdom truckers; contributors of the military and police forces, who were appalled by what they had been witnessing; and even conservatives, involved about our legacy of freedom. My usual audience, the buyers at Whole Foods and drivers of hybrid cars, the educated left, my people, sat smugly at home even as the very pillars of American democracy had been being systematically chipped away. They had been watching Downton Abbey and tending their heirloom tomato patches on weekends within the Hudson Valley, because everything changed into Adequate; yeah, he can also Ok drone moves, but they couldn’t be that terrible, on account that he become certainly one of “ours” – a handsome, eloquent African-American, a former network organiser – within the Oval Office. Seduced by way of the picture of a fascinating black man on Air Pressure One who talked about “alternate” – a white female in a pantsuit (although enormously paid by way of Goldman Sachs) talking about “that highest, toughest glass ceiling” – the left slumbered whilst US democracy changed into undone brick by means of brick through brick.

  Donald Trump’s world  Muslim Ban Is Each Irrational and Unsuitable fighting 

  Donald Trump did the unthinkable as he sat in the president’s chair. What became the concept of as mere rhetoric for the election has grown to become out to be a truth? Something that can’t be pushed aside. In one of his first acts, the president signed an executive order barring Muslims from 7 countries from journeying to the united states. It is a bewildering order and seems like an try and please his constituency. One is at a loss to recognize the purpose at the back of it. I have supported Trump all alongside however this government order defies sanity.

Many Individuals are glad as they’re not conscious that this ban in actual terms is incomprehensible. There is a lot of competition as properly. Donald says the ban on tour and access to the use is to store the yank people from the ravages of radical Islamists. Alas, analyzing between the strains shows this order is just a sop to his electorate. Not one of the 7 countries named has had any connection with any terror activity within the United states of America. That is the harsh fact. Any other factor to mull over is that the nationals of nations that had been involved in terror hobby against America like Saudi Arabia and Egypt do not discern inside the ban.

The Ban

There’s global outrage at the tour ban. Russia and China are the only 2 international locations who’ve no longer commented on it. The Muslim allies of us preventing shoulder to shoulder against the ISIS like in Iraq must be thinking how they may be singled out. Lots of Iraqi soldiers are preventing the ISIS and including them and leaving out international locations which have a hyperlink to nationals who dedicated terror acts towards the united states need to be bewildering to them. Why did Donald for all the macho photograph he wants to task not include those countries?

Business hobbies

The sad component is that Donald has a large Enterprise hobby in these international locations like Saudi Arabia and UAE and as he has Enterprise interests he has disregarded these nations. Saudi Arabia is an enigma as it’s far and best friend of America and perhaps Donald did no longer want to touch it as it would have ruffled the feathers and with all of the oil coming in from there he idea it higher to leave out the foremost sponsor of Islamic fundamentalism. How may want to Donald have omitted it? Are Enterprise pursuits extra essential than justice and fair play. I study unfortunately that an Iraq veteran who misplaced Both legs fighting with America army towards the ISIS turned into now not allowed inside the America for rehabilitation and restoration. What can be sadder than this?

Ultimate phrase

Donald’s govt order is simply a strive to show his supporters that he method Enterprise. He has forgotten There may be palpable anger in opposition to America in the Muslim international and only for this motives has made it risky for Individuals to travel to many elements of the globe. Donald must keep in mind that men who ride the tiger have the threat of being eaten by the beast. Who knows Donald may be gobbled by means of his very own movements. Loads will depend on the resilience of the American state.

  The arena’s Most Lovely Bridges

They’ll be small or They will be large, They’ll be timber or concrete- but bridges are something that can be located nearly everywhere in the global. However, this text specializes in the bridges that make our heads flip round. These bridges are architectural miracles that in reality have the potential to take our breaths away. So without similar ado, we bring to you a listing of bridges around The world that are simply the aspect you need to go to. (Also, here is a pro tour tip for you – make certain you look at British Airlines while you e-book your flights)

1. Brooklyn Bridge, Big apple: Featured heavily in many films inclusive of the famed Batman Trilogy, this bridge is a cable suspended bridge that paves the manner out of new York. It’s far thus far, one of the oldest and Maximum complex bridges of recent York. The towers giving stability to this bridge are in reality fabricated from granite, limestone, and cement. The Maximum outstanding thing is this bridge turned into constructed in 1833 and is still surviving until today.

2. Golden Gate Bridge: This Bridge, Also placed in United states of America of The united states, links the metropolis of San Francisco with Marin County and is a well-diagnosed symbol of California and even the complete of The USA. This bridge is also included inside the current day wonders of The world. Earlier than the bridge become built, the simplest manner to travel among the two edges became using a ship. This bridge became built in a time span of four years. This bridge has Additionally been featured in many films around the world.

3. Tower Bridge, London: This Bridge is likewise an icon and global consultant of the region in which it changed into made – London. This bridge took 8 years to construct and became constructed between 1886 and 1894. This bridge has two towers which were linked by way of two walkways and consist of sections which can be suspended on both sides of the tower. These sections than in turn stretch in the direction of the banks of the Thames. On the time of its construction, this bridge becomes the largest and Most sophisticated bridge in the world.

four. Sydney Harbor Bridge: This Bridge turned into opened for public use in 1932. This mixed with the Opera homes of Sydney are a first-rate cultural symbol for Australia throughout The world. This bridge is known to host the fine New Year Celebrations in Australia. This bridge holds the report for The sector’s largest metallic bridge. However, it isn’t considered to be the longest. It took 8 years to build this bridge with exertions of 1400 men.

Now which you recognize the satisfactory bridges that you have to visit, it’s time to % your baggage and takes a ride to these exquisite places. Additionally, ensure that on every occasion you are buying tickets, you inspect British Airlines to get the best in terms of tour and airfare.

Small and large bridges exist around The arena. We bring to you a list of the first-class which you should clearly visit. Take hold of a price ticket from British Airways and fly to peer These extraordinary bridges nowadays!!

[char27martin]

Tips for Surviving a Book Tour from a Debut Novelist

It’s your first book tour. You’re ready to face crowds of adoring fans, and you’re going to autograph books and body parts until your Sharpie runs dry. Nothing could be more rewarding, with your first book hot off the press.

This guest post is by Jason Rekulak. Rekulak is the Publisher of Quirk Books, an independent press based in Philadelphia.

His first novel, THE IMPOSSIBLE FORTRESS, was published by Simon & Schuster in February and is available wherever books are sold.

Follow Jason on Twitter @jasonrekulak to get news and updates about his writing.

That’s the best-case scenario, at any rate. What’s likely to happen is a different story. Talk to any veteran author or publicist, and they’ll tell you the book touring business ain’t what it used to be.

Back in the twentieth century, in-store book signings were a reader’s only opportunity to witness writers up close and personal—so bestselling authors could expect massive crowds, and even first-time authors could usually count on a decent turnout, if the book was getting the right amount of buzz.

These days, of course, every writer has their own website (and Facebook page, Goodreads account, and Instagram feed) …all of which have diminished the popularity of in-store events. After all, why leave the comfort of your own home to shake an author’s hand when you can sit on your sofa and trade tweets with her instead?

Booksellers admit that getting readers to events by first-time novelists can be an enormous challenge. I was well aware of the difficulties as I set out to tour my first novel, The Impossible Fortress, and I was determined to buck the odds. Sure, I was an unknown author … but I believed my novel’s subject matter had broad universal appeal. The Impossible Fortress is set in the 1980s and concerns two teenagers who fall in love while programming a video game. Full of nostalgia and romance and technology, I figured the novel offered something for everyone.

To entertain my audience, I created a Powerpoint presentation with colorful images of Tom Selleck, George Michael, Wheel of Fortune hostess Vanna White, Apple II computers, and other pop culture treasures. I went on eBay and found a Members Only jacket to wear during events, and I bought a pack of Cyndi Lauper trading cards to give away as bookmarks.

[How to Easily Improve Your Author Platform in 30 Days]

And my first three events were great. The first night in Philadelphia was a terrific kickoff. We had a full house, mostly because I sent personalized invitations to all of my friends and neighbors (Pro Tip 1: you have to be shameless and force everyone you know to come). Night two in Brooklyn was good because my publisher showed up in force, my agent brought a few coworkers, and I was “in conversation” with a terrific author who attracted his own fans. The third night—in my New Jersey hometown—may have been the highlight of the tour; the venue was packed with my friends from high school, there were plenty of cocktails, and a 1980s cover band kept the party going long after I stopped reading. Clearly, the tour was off to a fantastic start.

Create Your Writer Platform Now!

Want to build your visibility and sell more books? Create Your Writer Platform shows you how to promote yourself and your books through social media, public speaking, article writing, branding, and more. Order the book from WD at a discount.

But sometime near the end of night three, my high school buddies started talking about the approaching snowstorm, and I realized my tour was in jeopardy. I was scheduled to fly from New Jersey to North Carolina the following morning. But when I logged onto the American Airlines website, I saw my flight was already cancelled.

By this point it was nearing midnight, and I decided to take a calculated risk. I would drive south to Philadelphia, hoping to stay ahead of the bad weather, and I would catch the earliest possible morning flight from Philly to North Carolina. After all, there were crowds of excited readers waiting for me in Raleigh, and I wasn’t going to let them down!

I didn’t get much sleep that night, but my gamble paid off: By noon the next day, I had arrived at my hotel in Raleigh. The manager at the front desk greeted me with a smile. “Here for the big game?”

This was not the greeting I’d hoped for. “Big game?”

“UNC versus Duke,” he said. “Tar Heels versus Blue Devils! Haven’t you heard? It’s the biggest rivalry in college basketball! Everyone is going to be watching tonight!”

My heart sank. “Wonderful,” I told him. “I’ll take the key to the minibar.”

I tried to stay optimistic. I reminded myself that my novel had received a starred review in Booklist and a one-sentence mention in Entertainment Weekly. Surely I could manage to pull a small crowd in a city where I knew absolutely no one … right?

My event was due to start at 7pm, and that night I arrived a few minutes early. The staff had assembled some thirty folding chairs, but only three of the seats were occupied—a father and his two teenage kids.

“We’ll give people another ten minutes,” I told them. “In case anyone’s stuck in traffic.”

[3 Common Author Platform Mistakes — Plus How to Fix Them]

No one was stuck in traffic. No one else was coming. One minute ticked by, then another. The teenagers slumped in their chairs, and I sensed they were getting impatient. By 7:08, I knew I was pushing my luck; I worried my three attendees would flee the store and leave me alone in a sea of empty folding chairs.

Now if you ever find yourself in this kind of situation (Pro Tip 2: you will), I suggest you try to make the most of it. There’s no reason to act like you’re addressing a crowd of hundreds. An audience of three allows for a different and more personal kind of conversation, so take advantage of the format. I switched off the microphone, sat across from the father and his two kids, and asked why they had come to the event. It turned out that the father was a fan of 1980s pop culture and video gaming. His son (a ninth grader) was an aspiring writer. His daughter (an eighth grader) was interested in graphic design.

I couldn’t have wished for a better three-person audience. I’ve spent twenty years working in book publishing and I love speaking with young people about writing and graphic design. So I gave a truncated version of my normal presentation, then asked about their favorite writers, shared some advice about breaking into book publishing, and showed off some rejected cover designs for The Impossible Fortress. We ended up chatting for forty-five minutes, and what could have been an incredibly awkward reading became a positive encounter for everyone.

In the weeks since my visit to North Carolina, I’ve described the event to a handful of authors, and everyone laughs with recognition. “Yeah, I’ve been there” is the most common response, and many insist that I got off easy.

Book Tour Blues

Here are just three ways it could have been worse:

I could have arrived at a bookstore that didn’t have copies of my book. (This happened to the comedian and actor Judah Friedlander, while promoting his book How to Beat Up Anybody. He tells the story in a podcast interview with Greg Fitzsimmons).

I could have been heckled by a drunk in an ill-conceived prank. (This happened to Kevin Wilson when he was touring for his terrific novel The Family Fang; he wrote about the incident for the Powell’s Books’ website.)

I could have accidentally insulted the only people who showed up for my reading. (Which is exactly what happened to John Green, author of The Fault in Our Stars. He tells the story in a video appropriately titled “Mortification.”)

And then there’s Lori Jakiela. If you’re heading on a book tour anytime soon, you must head over to Literary Hub and read her chronicle of the worst book-signing of all time (the story involves a case of mistaken identity at the grand opening of a Sam’s Club—and to say anything more would spoil a brilliant essay).

So now you’ve been properly warned. Sure, you’re likely to have one or two rocky events along the way, but hopefully there will be plenty of good ones to balance out the duds. I wish you a safe and healthy journey (Pro Tip 3: Pack plenty of Vitamin C, and don’t forget your signing pens)!

Get Feedback (from an Agent) on Your Plot for One Flat Price

You’ll Love This Plot Critique Service If:

—You’re looking for a professional critique of your plot —You want to know what an agent thinks about the strengths and weaknesses of your plot —You want a clear idea of how to revise your plot to ensure the most compelling story

Invest in your manuscript and order your critique here.

If you’re an agent looking to update your information or an author interested in contributing to the GLA blog or the next edition of the book, contact Writer’s Digest Books Managing Editor Cris Freese at cris.freese@fwmedia.com.

The post Tips for Surviving a Book Tour from a Debut Novelist appeared first on WritersDigest.com.

from Writing Editor Blogs – WritersDigest.com http://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/guide-to-literary-agents/tips-surviving-book-tour-debut-novelist