#to learn from new teachers and colleagues and socialize and/or play with them or whatever

[supercantaloupe]

i can't decide if i should bother applying to go to oboe camp this year or not. the first year was pretty good and while i still enjoyed last year too i wonder if the amount i'm getting out of the experience is enough to justify the trip anymore since i already feel like it's diminishing in terms of what i have left to learn or experience there

[pevchpits]

𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙡𝙚𝙨 "𝙘𝙝𝙪𝙘𝙠" 𝙝𝙞𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙤. 𝘤𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘯. 𝘩𝘦 /𝘩𝘪𝘮. 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘺. 𝘣𝘪𝘴𝘦𝘹𝘶𝘢𝘭. 𝘦𝘯𝘷𝘪𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘳.

❛ I don't worry, don't worry, don't worry about people in my face I hit 'em with the style and grace, and watch their ankles break ❜

𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘴 . 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 . 𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵 . 𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘴 . 𝘮𝘪𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘳 . 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 . 𝘥𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘱𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 . 𝘥𝘰𝘤.  𝘢𝘭𝘭 . 𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘪𝘰 ⤵︎

𝗠𝗜𝗡𝗜 𝗔𝗣𝗣.

〔 ian anthony dale, 40, cis man, he/him ) CHARLES “CHUCK” HIRANO was seen listening to BAD BAD NEWS BY LEON BRIDGES on their way to ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING. CHUCK is known to be CREATIVE & STUBBORN.

𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗧𝗦.

full name: charles hirano nicknames: chuck is his preferred name, charlie can be used on occasion birth date: september 12, 1982 hometown: born in sao paolo, brazil; raised predominantly in vancouver, british columbia, canada ethnicity: european, japanese gender: cis man sexuality: bisexual  religion: agnostic occupation: environmental engineering living situation: home owner  languages: english, various programming languages, fluent japanese and portuguese, conversational french, spanish, and mandarin ( chuck only has his private tutors to thank ) height: 5 ft 11 in / 1.8034 m tattoo(s)/piercing(s): none. clothing style: chuck, despite swearing that appearances mean nothing to him, likes to dress on the nicer side when he’s not on sight. a nice pair of slacks, button downs, and form fitting sweaters are some of his signature pieces.  hobbies: landscaping! not even gardening particularly but landscaping is big for him. building in general ( swing-sets, tree houses, random counter spaces for the kitchen ), anything that involves spending time with his daughter. billards/pool tournaments with friends when he convinces himself he has the time. photography ( especially of his daughter ). he’s played on a few adult recreational league sports teams. reading, predominantly political and/or historical biographies/autobiographies or historical fiction.

𝗠𝗜𝗡𝗜 𝗕𝗜𝗢.

Life was easy growing up: travels, nannies there to pick up the messes he would make, and tutors there to make sure, amongst all the fun, Charles Hirano was still making the grades his parents expected. His life path was set ahead, clearly lined, with no little diversions or side paths left to be traveled. After high-school, it was straight onto one of the various universities his parents had connections to in order to study business or economics, during university he would intern at his parents’ fossil-fuel company, and then when he graduated he would land a gig and climb the ladder. Take his place. Secure the family legacy.

The world may have been at his fingertips, all his for the taking as his father liked to say, but that world was small. Born and raised inside an echo chamber of his parents and their colleagues beliefs that were never challenged in the private school filled with students from families just like his, Chuck thought he had life figured out by the time he first stepped foot on his university’s campus.

His first class, an elective he chose just to fill his required credit load, was an ethics course in urban planning, and by the first week, his entire major and course plan had changed. Ethics courses replaced economics, environmental science courses replaced entrepreneurship, and engineering courses replaced e-commerce. 

By the time his parents realized the switch, it was already to late. They had been too busy dealing with their own business by the time he forwarded the graduation ceremony dates, and Chuck had already snagged a job assisting the city planner and city public health commissioner of Huntsville with short-term and long-term projects for the city. It was a humble gig, and certainly not the one his parents wanted him to take, but Chuck was sold.

[ pregnancy tw ] Once in his new home, it didn’t take long for him to flourish both in his role and social life. He was a bright light with something to prove, and that caught the eyes of his superiors, friends, and who would soon become the mother of his beloved daughter. They started as just friends, as she had been dating one of their mutual friends, but one thing led to a next, and when she went through a horrible break-up, it was Chuck’s shoulder she leaned on. He thought he had found the one, even brought up marriage when he finally made enough to save up for a nice right and nice wedding, so it was the least bit alarming when she found out she was pregnant. The two were happy and excited for this next stage of their life. [ tw end ]

With the promise of marriage in the near future, a new baby girl, and a recent promotion to a full-time environmental engineer for the city, Chuck got comfortable. More effort was put on work and making sure he could build a legacy all his own for his family and eventually save up for that big wedding than on the actual relationships he was working so hard for. By the time his daughter was four, enough was enough. She had fallen out of love, and while it was never explicitly stated, Chuck knew he was the only one to blame.

Years past, and he tried harder both for himself and his daughter. He still has his moments where he’ll get too in his head: dinner will be forgotten about, he’ll be late to picking up his daughter from her mother’s, but he cares, and he’s trying and hoping one day it’ll stick.

𝗛𝗘𝗔𝗗𝗖𝗔𝗡𝗢𝗡𝗦.

- character inspiration: sandy cohen from the oc, jacob yi from minari

- feels as if he has a lot to prove, which only intensifies whenever someone finds out what his parents did and where he came from

- fell in love with design/landscaping/engineering type of work earlier than college, he just never realized it. he’d spend hours creating his own little worlds with whatever he could find around house: desert palaces in sand, mud huts with their own mini gardens, and mazes of snow tunnels feeding into various areas around the family backyard

- extremely smart but can often lack ‘common sense’ and forgets things quite easily

- can come off as a bit intense in work spaces but is very laid back in his social life. snarky and sarcastic at times ( most of the time ) sure, but especially with his daughter, chuck wants her to be able to explore and make mistakes and learn from them without the weight of “expectations”

𝗪𝗔𝗡𝗧𝗘𝗗 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗡𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦.

platonic. good pals give him a group of friends! friends that he had through his ex that are now in a bit of a awkward situation but still loving. coworkers ( chuck works for the city so anything govt, engineering, outdoorsy probably has some overlap ), fellow parents! teachers! anyone involved in adult sports teams he might’ve run into ( definitely jack-of-all-trades but master of none in sports, likes it for social aspect and competition ) familial. siblings.... we’d have to work on how they got here, but i imagine he was estranged from most of them. his daughter’s family on her mother’s side!  romantic. his ex. maybe one or two dates/flings he’s had to ‘get out there’ since the break-up negative. anyone who might be turned off by his opinionated self! work rivals. anyone angry for how he treated his ex!

[artificialqueens]

Show me the Stars, Chapter One (Trixya) - Kite

A/N: It’s been a long ass time since I’ve posted to AQ, but here I am with a Trixya fic. Hope you guys enjoy it! Feel free to check out my concept art over on my tumblr @youre-a-kite. And if you’re feeling the space themed lesbian au vibe, check out my fic Artemis on Ao3, which features Branjie, Trixya and Scyvie in space.

Summary: Trixie is a tour guide in a planetarium who makes up the facts as she goes along, and Katya is an astrophysicist who takes the tour with the intention of calling her out, but doesn’t.

Trixie sighs as the gaggle of elementary kids start to screech when she dims the lights, plunging them into darkness. She waits for the teachers to regain control of the room, and nods politely whilst they apologise, but she knows it’s going to be a few minutes before the kids settle.

It’s the same story every day.

But on the plus side, it usually means she can shave five minutes off the end of her presentation. Ten minutes, if one of them needs the bathroom half way through.

“Good morning kids,” Trixie says, with as much enthusiasm as her slightly hungover self will allow. “My name is Trixie Mattel and I’ll be your tour guide today. Please remember that there is no eating or drinking in the planetarium. Now, raise your hand if you’ve ever seen a star.”

-x-

The door to the break room slams shut behind her.

“I swear to god, I’m quitting tomorrow,” she groans.

Pearl scoffs. “Bitch, you say that every day.”

“I know, but this time I mean it.”

This isn’t how Trixie pictured her life would work out when she moved to LA the moment she graduated college. Like every other hopeful out there, she was going to be a star. She thought she’d at least have a recurring role on a sitcom by now. But gradually, as her savings account has drained, acting classes had been switched for shifts at the makeup counter in the mall. The agent that she’d hired became a luxury that she was no longer able to afford. She’d taken a job at the planetarium because she figured it was the closest thing to acting that she could find, but, God, she fucking hates kids.

Her colleagues are the only thing about the job that she actually enjoys. She’d gotten the job through her roommate Kim and became friendly with the other pretty quickly. She’s never been one to shy away from social situations, especially not at work.

In the break room, anything goes.

Last week, their boss, Brooke, had pulled Trixie into the office to give her a lecture on ‘why we leave our personal lives at home’ when she realised that half of the tours started late one morning because her guides had been too busy grilling Trixie about the hickey on her neck from her Tinder date to keep an eye on the time. Honestly, that talk had gone in one ear and straight out of the other. She figured that it was pretty hypocritical, coming from the woman who’s almost definitely banging the chick who works in the gift shop.

“Trix’, you’ll like this,” Pearl tells her, beckoning her over. “When Violet was working the public telescopes last night, some old couple asked her to point them towards Ursa Major.”

Violet laughs loudly, “like I know where that fucker is.”

“What did you do?” Trixie smirks.

When their job amounts to little more than following a script and flicking the lights on and off at the right time, they all know how stressful it can be when they get asked a specific question.

Violet shrugs, “I just pointed upwards. What else was I supposed to do?”

-x-

After lunch, Trixie is leading the ‘Moons of the Solar System’ tour that is open to the public. On the one hand, the ratio of children to adults on these tours is always much lower, so that’s a positive, but on the other hand, members of the public come with their own set of problems.

There’s the entitled moms, who think that their kids should get to climb up on the displays. There’s the know it all dads, who like to jump in with a ‘well, actually’ every once in a while. There’s always a group of tourists who never listen to the ‘no flash photography’ instruction at the beginning. But every once in a while, there’s someone interesting or quirky or different, that makes her shifts just about bearable.

Pearl is collecting ticket stubs at the entrance to the planetarium dome, and gives Trixie a nod when the last members of the audience have filtered in. As she leaves, she closes the doors behind her and sets the lights so that they begin to dim.

“Good afternoon, ladies and gents. I’m Trixie Mattel and I’ll be your tour guide today. Please remember that there is no eating or drinking in the auditorium. Now, raise your hand if you’ve ever seen the moon.”

She rattles through the opening section about Earth’s moons fairly quickly. It’s the most boring part of the script by far, since even young kids will already know this by now. With feigned enthusiasm, she asks her audience participation questions about solar and lunar eclipses. Once she’s finished, someone raises their hand to ask a question. She prays it’s something she knows the answer to.

“When’s the next lunar eclipse?”

Trixie shifts uncomfortably. The woman’s blue eyes are piercing, waiting for her to answer.

“Um, some time next month. You’ll have to check out our website for further details.”

The woman nods, seemingly satisfied. But she’s barely into her segment on Jupiter’s four largest moons when the woman speaks up again.

“Which space probe has travelled the furthest?”

She has to use all of her willpower to force herself not to roll her eyes. The Lord really is trying to test her today. Quickly, in her head, she rattles through all of the names of the space probes that she knows, trying to pick the one that sounds right.

“Um, Galileo,” Trixie guesses.

The woman smiles, but says nothing.

“And how far away is-“

Trixie has to cut her off.

“I’m sorry ma’am, but I’m going to have to ask you to leave all questions until the end.”

The woman apologises, but it doesn’t make Trixie feel any less on edge.

The thing is, Trixie knows that he answers are wrong. She knows that she’s making up the majority of her script on the spot. And she knows that the parents here are lapping it up, planning to go home and brag to their book club friends about how their kids enjoy educational pastimes, because they’re just so damn gifted.

But this woman. Who’s teetering in skyscraper heels and watching her like a hawk. Who’s nodding along with the presentation, smirking softly to herself, like she knows something that everybody else doesn’t. Trixie is sure that this woman knows that everything she’s saying is bullshit.

Trixie sets up the projectors to play a short clip showing the names and sizes of some of the solar system’s biggest moons, then positions herself in the back corner of the room. Then, as if this woman isn’t odd enough already, she starts to look up at the dome. But she doesn’t look up like all the rest of the parents, with a semi-interested expression and frequent glances to her watch. She looks up in awe, like this is the greatest thing she’s ever seen in her life. Like nothing could bring her to look away, not even for a moment.

And it’s funny, because Trixie is as captivated by the woman as the woman is by the moons.

At the end of the presentation, Trixie is dreading the asking the audience for questions, because she knows whose hand is going to be the first in the air. So, she drags out the end of the show for as long as possible, praying that she overruns. When Pearl pokes her head through the door to give her the two minute warning for the start of Kim’s next group, she’s so relieved, she could kiss her.

“And that’s all we have time for today folks. Please exit via the gift shop on your right. Have a lovely day!”

She makes a beeline for the door, but of course, the woman follows her.

“Hold on, I didn’t get to ask my questions,” she smirks coyly.

Trixie sighs and gestures to the edge of the corridor so they can stand out of the way of the crowds.

“Look, I don’t know what kind of game you’re playing but-“

The woman holds up her hands in defence. “I’m not playing any games, I just wanted to know-“

“Save it,” Trixie cuts her off, and she really hopes she’s right because if not she’s just been very, very rude to a curious audience member. But then the woman grins and she knows she isn’t wrong. Trixie sighs. “Are you going to tell my boss?”

The woman shrugs and Trixie’s eyes widen.

“Look, I’m sorry if your kid didn’t enjoy the show or whatever. I’ll get you tickets to the next-“

“Ew, gross” the woman cuts her off by shaking her head, “I don’t have a kid.”

“Oh. Then why are you at a kids planetarium show?”

The woman laughs. Her teeth are perfectly straight and perfectly white, not that Trixie cares.

“My niece watched a show here last week, but the new facts that she learned turned out to be the biggest load of garbage I’ve ever heard.”

Trixie ought to be embarrassed, but really, she’s just annoyed. Why can’t this woman just leave a bad review on trip advisor like a normal person?

“Are you some kind of space expert or something?”

The woman takes a business card out of her purse and hands it over.

Prof. Yekaterina P Zamolodchikova. Astrophysics Department - UCLA.

“Jesus,” Trixie mumbles.

“No, Katya,” the woman replies, holding out her hand for Trixie to shake.

Trixie doesn’t shake her hand.

“Please don’t tell my boss, I really need this job.”

“Maybe if you really needed it, you’d be less terrible at it.”

Trixie shrugs. “That’s fair.”

Katya’s gaze sharpens. “What you’re doing isn’t right. Kids come here to learn and you’re just making shit up as you please.”

Trixie shifts on the balls of her feet. It would be easier to just let Brooke tear her a new asshole than have to put up with this. Maybe if she tells her before Katya has the chance, she’ll get to keep her job.

Trixie looks at her watch and sighs. “Okay, if you’re going to tell her will you at least tell her tomorrow, so that I get paid for the rest of the day.”

Katya looks Trixie up and down, then grins devilishly. “I’m not going to tell her.”

“You aren’t?”

“No.”

Trixie blinks rapidly, then stares at her, unaware of what they’re supposed to do now. Then, Katya gestures to the business card in her hand.

“See the address? I want you to meet me there at eight. I’m going to teach you what you need to know.”

Trixie narrows her eyes. “You’re a college professor and you want to teach third grade physics to a terrible planetarium tour guide…”

Katya shrugs. “Or I could tell your boss that you can’t do your job properly.”

“Fine. God damn it. Whatever. I’ll be there.”

Trixie had been warned of the unsavoury side of life before she moved to LA, but had never thought she would be blackmailed into being educated.

She looks down at the card in her hand, but when she looks back up, Katya is already walking away.

“How will I know where to find you?”

“You’ll know,” she calls back over her shoulder.

“This had better not be a trap so that you can kidnap and murder me,” Trixie shouts after her, earning her a few uncomfortable glances from nearby parents.

“No promises,” Katya tells her, then leaves the building.

[davewakeman]

Talking Tickets: 17 April 2020--Refunds! Restarts! Support! And, More!

Hey! 

Thanks for being here again this week. If you are enjoying this newsletter, tell your friends and colleagues to sign up by visiting this link.

How is everyone holding up out there?

If you need someone to chat with, let me know. I’m here for you if you need a proper chat as my friend, Cat, would say.

I made a typing error about the strategy webinar. It is going on this coming Tuesday.

Have a few minutes and want to grab a drink? We may not be able to have a drink in person just yet, but we can have a virtual happy hour. Join me and Ken Troupe for what is becoming a Friday tradition for happy hour with sports business folks at 5 PM EDT.

If you are interested, we’ve got a nice Slack community with folks from around the world and all areas of the industry, exchanging ideas, connecting, and thinking about the future of their businesses.

I’ll share a bunch of links to resources and other places to connect in the newsletter.

Hopefully, I’m able to strike a proper balance for all of you…between, “Wow! This is nuts!” and “We will get through this.”

To the tickets!

————————————————————————————————————

1. When will events return? No one knows but we are learning more:

Dr. Zeke Emmamuel says he doesn’t see large scale events coming back until the fall of 2021.

Shane Harmon, CEO of Sky Stadium in New Zealand shared some interesting information from his government on when restrictions might start to be loosened and things can begin to normalize a little. Patron Base also put together a nice resource guide for their customers that y’all may find useful.

In Europe, the UK is preparing for 3 additional weeks of stay-at-home orders, pushing the opening of events back a bit further.

In the US, we still have no clear strategy for what reopening will look like, what we should expect, and how we will start to regain any sense of normalcy.

We do have a reopening panel and we do have a desire to reopen events, but, again, unfortunately, no clear direction.

I think we all have to try and take a balanced approach to our expectations here. First, we have the economic factor and that’s impacting all of us here immensely. Second, we have to deal with the safety concerns of the population and recognize that liability will drive a lot of the decision making process. Finally, never lose sight of the impact of fear and emotionally driven decision making on mass society. As quickly as people are gung ho to get back to ballparks, if an outbreak happens that was accelerated by a ballgame and that link is made, that could do more long-term damage than anything that has happened to this point.

Because, unfortunately, none of us really know the right answer here.

But I am hopeful after seeing the PGA Tour aim for June and the Australian Football League talking about July. 

2. The economic impact of these shutdowns becomes more and more apparent:

Baseball America wrote up a piece on why fan free games aren’t going to make sense for MiLB and what not playing in 2020 would mean for minor league baseball going forward.

The economic challenges are going to be felt all over. Colleges are likely going to be put in a position to cut sports like the University of Cincinnati did with soccer this week.

As a holistic thing, Research and Markets put together a report this week that tries and cover everything about the entertainment industry and the impact of the virus on folks.

Like a lot of stuff, the analysis and the information coming out from reputable sources needs to be parsed with for context and when you see anyone tell you something is all or nothing…take that with a grain of salt.

Bill Sutton tweeted out a call for teams to get on the virtual season tickets now and over the years I’ve been calling for folks to think more seriously about their membership model, their email lists, and how they are developing their global fan bases.

Harry DeMott from Ticket Evolution wrote up a good piece on restoring liquidity to the ticketing ecosystem as I was finishing this up that is worth a read.

Whatever position you find yourself in right now, your strategy going forward is going to be more important than ever. And, if doing things the way we’ve always done things is a bad idea in the best of times, right now it is a really bad idea to settle for that answer.

3. StubHub, refunds, cancellations, and more continue to make the news: 

The regulators in the UK continue to look into the merger between Viagogo and StubHub. And, as was mentioned in the press this week, “worst timed acquisition ever“?

Vivid Seats did announce their refund and exchange policy this week and it looks a lot different than Ticketmaster’s or StubHub’s.

AEG is offering a 30-day window for fans to get refunds and once a new date is announced, fans will get another 30 days.

While many of us have focused a lot of our attention on the platforms and technology companies, the same uncertainty is trickling into other areas with college football programs feeling the pinch because of the compromised place they find themselves.

Let’s be real here, college programs are only feeling the pinch now because most of them had the earliest deadlines…at a certain point, this is going to be a refrain that all of us are going to hear. Again, it goes back to the point above…we need clarity, information, and guidance on what the next several months look like before folks are really going to feel comfortable doing much of the stuff that we consider normal.

Leadership 101 stuff.

4. How are you connecting with your fans and customers during the pandemic?

Over the last few weeks, I’ve highlighted some really cool examples of using assets, content, and ideas to connect with folks.

The link above is from my friend, Blair Hughes, down in Brisbane. He’s been focusing on fan engagement since 2013 and he updated his resource guides this week to include a few new ideas that will work even when you are socially distanced from your fans.

The Indianapolis Indians were lauded by the governor. The Red Sox dropped coloring sheets. There are tons of free videos and performances from organizations all over the world. 

I’ve struggled with this a little bit because what do you offer folks when there is so much uncertainty. My path has been to continue to figure out how to add value and share ideas with folks. (To be fair, it is selfish as well because focusing on others helps me overcome the gaping void of being an entirely inadequate 4th-grade teacher and helps keep some of those negative thought processes at bay.)

But what are you doing to connect with folks now? Let me know and I can try and highlight some of these ideas as well.

5. The ticketing industry is doing a lot of stuff to help everyone weather this crisis together: 

This week INTIX announced a relief fund, the INTIX Member Covid-19 Relief Fund. 100% of funds will go to member assistance to help members of the ticket community bridge the economic gap while we wait out the pandemic.

Any gift matters, even $1.

As Maureen says that all folks want to do is help and I agree. So if you can, support this effort.

On top of the relief fund, Maureen and her team are hosting a weekly Zoom call on Wednesdays at 12 PM EDT. Anyone can join, no matter if you are a member or not. This week’s had over 200 folks.

The ALSD has a list of resources and ways for folks to learn and connect during the pandemic.

Global Citizen has put together the Live Aid of the Covid-19 crisis for tomorrow, 18 April.

Crew Nation is Live Nation’s effort to help the crews that make the shows happen. The Arts Council in the UK is also working to help freelancers and other folks impacted by the shutdowns. Theatre Support as well.  Indie venues band together to form a group to lobby congress for support of the industry.

While it isn’t about giving any money to support folks, MLS put up a training site so folks can keep their soccer skills fresh during the social distancing. And, if you have a young kid, this is likely enough to make you weep.

This is on top of all the other things I’ve highlighted over the last few weeks. If you or your organization are doing something to help folks, let me know and I will highlight it and share it here and with my community as well.

As I finish this up, I love when folks run and do challenges in their local communities…so I saw this one from Rob Sibbitts in Atlanta and he has completed his challenge…but maybe we can convince him to run another race for a local nonprofit.

My buddy, Greg Turner, who lives outside of Hong Kong just translated a report for anyone that is interested in learning more about the Chinese market for arts and entertainment. It doesn’t fit into the weathering the crisis theme, but it does give you something new to explore and since China is slowly starting to return to normal activities could give you some food for thought about what to think about in all of your home markets.

—————————————————————————————————————-

What am I up to this week?

Guess what? I’m still at home! I am doing the webinar that is listed at the top and I’m starting to drop new content on the podcast feed.

Want to chat? Let me know. Between my duties as an awful elementary school teacher, I’ve got plenty of time and will to chat. And, I’m happy to be here if someone needs someone to talk with. 

Please follow and like us:

Talking Tickets: 17 April 2020–Refunds! Restarts! Support! And, More! was originally published on Wakeman Consulting Group

[laurendormanblog]

Blog #8: Coronavirus Updates - March

This comes from a post from simplepolitics on Instagram, released throughout the month of March.

3 March: Boris Johnson has set out a 4 point plan to contain the spread of the virus - contain, delay, research and mitigate (make (something bad) less severe, serious, or painful.) It detailed measures that the government aren’t taking right now, but could take ‘at the right time and on the basis of scientific advice’. These could include:

Encouraging home working and discouraging unnecessary travel.

Consideration of school closures and reducing large-scale gatherings.

Using the Ministry of Defence for support. 

Government departments having a coronavirus lead. 

Helping businesses with short-term cash-flow problems. 

Using more volunteers in hospitals and recalling recently retired staff. 

“Our ability to test and treat is going to get us through the coronavirus and get through it in good shape.”

4 March: NHS and Coronavirus. 

‘I’ve heard the NHS declared a level 4 incident?’ It’s been level 4 since January. All that means is that we’re co-ordinating nationally.

‘So, what’s happening right now?’ Worst case scenario planning. Reviewing hospital beds, use of video consultations and setting up 24/7 incident teams. 

‘And if it gets worse?’ If cases rise, action plans come into play. Extra staff might come from NHS leavers and retirees. Using volunteers like St John’s ambulance has also been raised. Some non-urgent care could be delayed. 

‘Will the NHS get more funding to cope?’ Jeremy Corbyn asked in Parliament today. The PM said he’d ‘give them everything they need’ to cope, but wasn’t more specific.

5 March: Plans to fight Coronavirus may limit personal rights (travel, gathering, education etc.) To what extent is that justified?

10 March: Fighting the virus. Individual events may be cancelled, but the UK is resisting ‘lockdowns’ or bans on public gatherings. We’re at stage one - contain - of the government’s 4 point plan to tackle Coronavirus. Is it the right policy?

YES - STAY AT CONTAIN

Those with any symptoms have already been asked to self-isolate. A leading expert said, “Many outdoor events, particularly, are relatively safe.”If measures are introduced too early, they may not be as effective in the long run. There’s the huge practical and economic disruption of closing schools/offices.

NO - MOVE TO DELAY

On average, people take 5 days to show symptoms - they might not self-isolate even though they are carrying the virus. We haven’t yet reached our ‘peak’ so we still have time to act preventatively. We need to protect the most vulnerable. The markets are already volatile - we shouldn’t delay to avoid economic impact.

11 March: As we get deeper into this virus thing, people will become poorly. Some of them you will like. Some you will love. Others might be people with whom you disagree. Maybe disagree a whole lot. Let’s find a way to treat everyone with respect and humanity, whatever their ideology. Abusing people for being ill is as nonsensical as it is ugly.

11 March: 

The World Health Organisation has changed the state of Coronavirus to a pandemic. A pandemic is the worldwide spread of a new disease. The virus is now in 114 countries. This change of language may change how countries choose to deal with it. WHO Director Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus was keen to give reassurance. He said, “There’s been so much attention on one word. But these words matter much more:

Prevention

Preparedness

Public health

Political leadership

People.”

13 March: Boris Johnson didn’t announce closures to schools yesterday. Schools will only close if specifically told to - if a student or staff member contracts the virus.

WOO

Children won’t be missing out on education.

Different countries are at different stages - we shouldn’t feel pressure to follow measures.

Children who are off school could spend more time with vulnerable grandparents.

NHS staff may also not have childcare - and therefore be unavailable for work.

BOO

Online learning is a viable alternative.

Ireland, Lithuania, Slovakia and Denmark have all announced the temporary closure of schools. 

We don’t fully understand the role children play in spreading the virus.

While children may seem to have mild symptoms, teachers and support staff could be at risk.

14 March: Updated virus advice - symptoms. A new continuous cough and/or a high temperature. Sneezing and a runny nose are NOT symptoms. What to do:

Stay at home for seven days.

Sleep alone (if possible).

Ask friends to go to the shops (and leave things on doorstep).

You do NOT need to tell the authorities.

Do NOT call 111 (unless symptoms are getting worse or aren’t better after 7 days).

For now, people you live with don’t need to stay home, but you should stay 2 meters away from them.

16 March: New UK measures to tackle the virus include:

Avoid unnecessary social contact - that means pubs, clubs, theatres and other social venues.

Avoid non-essential travel.

‘Whole household’ 14 day isolation if anyone you live with shows symptoms.

Work from home if you can.

Starting tomorrow, emergency services will no longer support mass gatherings. Schools to stay open. This will be reviewed.

17 March: Health and Social Care Committee. Commons Committees are cross party. Made up of MPs who are passionate about health, they examine policy, spending and legislation to hold the government to account. 

The Health Committee meets later to hear from a selection of experts. They want to know how prepared the UK is to deal with coronavirus - it’s called an inquiry.

They’ll examine areas such as rises in cases, preventative measures, further options and NHS plans. Jeremy Hunt (Conservative) is in the chair. They’ll hear from:

Sir Patrick Vallance, the government’s chief scientific adviser.

Sir Simon Stevens, the chief executive of NHS England. 

Professor Keith Willett, Director for Acute Care at NHS England and other colleagues. 

Results of inquiries are public and many require a government response.

17 March: Travel advice - advice now against ‘all but essential travel’ outside the UK for 30 days. From Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab.

17 March: Chief Scientific Adviser, Sir Patrick Vallance, has given MPs his expert opinion. He expects the number of new cases to start coming down in two to three weeks. He keeps thinking overall UK deaths under 20,000 would be a good outcome. (Although obviously a horrible one.) He thinks we need a big increase in testing. Without people going to hospital. A community based test.

17 March: 

Financial measures:

Businesses to have access to government backed loans (totalling £330bn) available from next week. 

Extending 12 month business rate ‘holiday’ to all businesses in retail, hospitality and leisure. 

Retail, hospitality and leisure sector - for small businesses who may not have insurance - cash grants of up to £25k/business.

Mortgage lenders will offer three month mortgage holiday to those who need it.

Other announcements:

NHS will postpone all non-urgent operations from 15 April for 3 months.

Foreign Office advise no non-essential foreign travel for 30 days.

18 March: Emergency Coronavirus Bill.

‘What’s the issue?’

Changes to the law are needed to give public bodies necessary powers to respond to the crisis. The legislation lasts 2 years. The four UK governments can switch the new powers on and off when needed.

‘What will this Bill do?’

Measures are wide-ranging but include:

Recently retired NHS staff will be able to return to work without pension penalties.

Volunteers will be helped to take Emergency Volunteer Leave.

Use of video and audio links in court proceedings will increase.

Port and airport operators could be asked to temporarily close if Border Force staff shortages result in a threat to security. 

Police and immigration officers will have strengthened quarantine powers - including power to detain people to protect public health. 

Statutory sick pay will be paid to those self-isolating from day one. 

‘What’s next?’ The Bill will be labeled in Parliament tomorrow.

18 March: Wales and Scotland confirm schools to shut on Friday.

18 March: Schools in England, Scotland and Wales will close on Friday afternoon. Schools in Northern Ireland are already closed.

18 March: 

Schools update:

Schools in England to close on Friday to all but children of key workers (e.g. NHS staff, delivery drivers) and vulnerable children.

Nurseries and private schools will be asked to do the same.

Exams will not take place in May/June.

Schools in Northern Ireland will close to pupils from tonight.

Scotland and Wales had already announced closures. 

Other points:

Everyone encouraged to follow previously given advice on self-isolation and social distancing.

Testing being ‘scaled up’ - moving to 25,000 a day.

19 March: 

PM gave June as an optimistic time frame.

He said we can ‘turn the tide’ within the next 12 weeks - if we take the steps already outlined.

Government in negotiations to buy an antibody test - to assess whether people have had Coronavirus.

First patient has entered a clinical drugs trial.

Ask businesses to ‘stand by their workers’ - ‘as we will stand by you’.

20 March: Kids questions.

1. What does Coronavirus do? It can cause fever, a cough and difficulty breathing. Medical experts say 99% of people will make a full recovery.

2. I’ve heard about social distancing - what is it? It means making sure there’s enough space between people who are well and those who might not be well. It helps stop the disease spreading.

3. Can I help? Yes, by regularly washing your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. When you could or sneeze, cover your mouth and nose with a tissue (not your hand!)

4. What’s happening to stop it? Doctors around the world are working hard to find a vaccine that will protect people.

20 March: Boris Johnson ‘tells’ pubs, restaurants, clubs, theatres, cafes, etc. to close tonight and not reopen tomorrow.

20 March:  The ‘Coronavirus job retention scheme’ means employers will be able to access a grant to cover 80% of retained workers salaries up to £2,500/month. VAT payments deferred until the end of June. Universal Credit standard allowance increased for 12 months by £1000. Working Tax Credit will be raised by the same amount. Self employed with zero income can access Universal Credit at rate equivalent to Statutory Sick Pay. Next self-assessment income payments also deferred until 2021. Local Housing Allowance will be changed so it covers at least 30% of market rents in a claimant’s area. Cafes, bars, nightclubs, restaurants, clubs, theatres, cinemas, gyms, leisure centres to close as of this evening. Takeouts unaffected.

21 March: Updated virus advice. In general: Stay home. All the time (except key workers who can’t bring their ‘A’ game from home). Only shop for essentials and keep distance from others. Buy only what you need (and leave stuff for others). Symptoms: A new continuous cough and/or a high temperature. What to do if you have the symptoms: Everyone in your home needs to stay home for 14 days. Sleep alone (if possible). Ask friends to go to the shops (and leave things on doorstep). Try to keep distance from others around the home. Visit 111.NHS.UK if you need help.

21 March: Government urge people to be responsible when they shop and think of others. It will be left to retailers to limit items and that the government shouldn’t be involved. There is more than enough food to go round and the food supply chain can expand. Curfew on deliveries to stores and delivery driver hours relaxed. Competition rules suspended to allow collaboration between supermarkets. Plastic bag charge suspended.

22 March: Government explicitly confirm ‘you can go for walks. You can go to the playground.’ Exercise is ‘probably the right thing to do’. Obviously don’t get into contact with other people, though.

22 March: Now taking special steps to shield the most clinically vulnerable. The NHS has identified up to 1.5 million people who will be contacted and urged to stay at home for at least 12 weeks. They have been identified as high risk. Others in the same household will not be required to stay at home - but should still follow social distancing. Care will continue. Carers can still visit - as long as they follow guidelines. Support networks will be created for those without help. Advised people to look out for neighbours. Reiterated staying 2m apart - even in outdoor spaces.

23 March: All McDonald’s restaurants in the UK will close by 7pm tonight.

23 March: If Boris Johnson falls ill with the virus, Dominic Raab (Foreign Secretary) will stand in. If Raab is also ill, another minister will step up.

23 March: The PM is ‘making a statement to the country’ at 8.30 this evening. It’s post COBRA, prime time TV, at a time when the Coronavirus Bill is in Parliament so can easily be added to, while many people are calling for the government to go further. Expect a big announcement.

23 March: The PM tells the nation ‘you must stay at home’. You may leave the home to shop for necessities. 1 form of exercise a day. A medical need. Traveling to and from work, if absolutely necessary. If you don’t follow instructions, the police will have powers to stop you.

23 March: Very clear message is “You must stay at home.” Only go out for:

Shopping for essentials

One form of exercise a day

Medical need/caring for a vulnerable person

Travelling to/from work - where this is absolutely necessary and you can’t work from home.

Do not meet up with friends or family members you don’t live with.

Closure of all shops selling non-essential goods.

Closure of libraries, outdoor gyms, places of worship.

No gatherings of more than 2 people in public, apart from those you live with.

The police will have the power to enforce rules - this includes fines and dispersing gatherings.

No social gatherings including weddings. Funerals are not included in these measures. 

Measures will be reviewed in three weeks. 

24 March: One clarification from last night - the government has confirmed that children whose parents live apart are allowed to travel between their houses. 

24 March: Coronavirus - help for the self-employed? ‘What’s the issue?’ On Friday, the government announced it’s financial package to protect workers. It was a huge intervention, but concentrated on the 85% of people in the employment using the PAYE system. There was no wage guarantee for the self-employed. Since then, MPs on both sides of the House have raised the issue.

  ‘What’s the latest?’ Today, the Treasury Committee urged the Chancellor to take more action - following an ‘unprecedented response’ to their call for evidence. Help has been promised - but Rishi Sunak was keen to stress how complex it is. He said, “The issue is one of finding a way to target help… rather than having something that provides blanket cash subsidies to 5 million people.”

 The message is help is coming - but nothing firmer for now.

24 March: 

The government is seeking 250,000 NHS volunteers to help during the crisis, through a new volunteer scheme.

5,500 final year medical students and 1,800 final year student nurses will be going into work early.

A new NHS ‘Nightingale’ hospital is opening in the ExCel centre in London. It can hold 4,000 patients.

Hancock paid tribute to NHS staff.On overcrowded tubes, said Transport for London should run enough carriages so that people can obey 2 metre rule.

Journalists were not in the room, but submitted questions via Zoom.

25 March: Beware! Fake news - the self employed amendment. People are sharing, a lot, an amendment that would offer self-employed people up to £2,500 per month. An amendment is a change that is suggested to any new bill  (new law). At specific times in the process, MPs/Members of the HoL can vote to include/refuse them. This amendment does exist. However, MPs didn’t accept the text. It was so one sided, there wasn’t even a vote. Having been through the Commons, it is in the Lords today. Supporters of the amendment will try again. They will fail. Those looking for self-employed help need to wait for the announcement this week, probably on Friday.

25 March: Parliament will finish for its Easter Break today - a return on 21 April will be under review.

25 March: In 24 hours 405,000 people have responded to the call to be NHS volunteers. Care message - stay at home, protect the NHS, save lives. Confirmed we will hear from the Chancellor tomorrow on additional help for the self-employed. An antibody test, which would test if you have already had the virus - is being evaluated - reiterated accuracy of testing is key. Rollout would be staged. In other news, the Coronavirus Bill has passed the House of Lords without amendment.

26 March: Off-licences have been added to the list of essential shops. They can now stay open for the duration of whatever this is. Other essential shops include supermarkets, pharmacies, petrol stations, laundrettes and more.

26 March: New Self Employed Income Support scheme will be worth up to £2,500 per month. This will cover 80% of wages, against average profit over the past three years.

26 March: To the self-employed - ‘You have not been forgotten.’ Launching a new self-employed income support scheme. Offering a taxable grant worth 80% of average profits over the last three years, up to a maximum of £2,500. Open to those that make the majority of their earnings from self-employment - with trading profits up to £50,000. Open for three months but it will be extended for longer if necessary. Only those with a tax return for 2019 are eligible. Anyone who missed the deadline for submission has an extra four weeks. It will be up and running by the beginning of June. Reiterated other support available, such as Universal Credit.

27 March: The Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, has tested positive for the Coronavirus. He is currently experiencing minor symptoms, but Dominic Raab is set to take over if needed.

27 March: The rate of infection has been doubling every 3-4 days. Figures are a powerful reminder to act. Confirmed that the Prime Minister has tested positive for Coronavirus. PM is continuing to lead the UK’s response via video conferencing. PM has brought together businesses, universities and research institutes to boost testing capacity to the front line. Hundreds of tests to take place by the end of the weekend. Confirmed approval for two new temporary hospitals in Birmingham and Manchester. Matt Hancock, Health Secretary has also tested positive. Professor Chris Whitty, England’s chief medical officer, is self-isolating after having symptoms.

28 March: Frontline NHS staff will begin to receive tests this weekend. Critical care doctors and nurses with symptoms, or who have people at home with symptoms, will be tested. If they’re negative, they can go back to work. Loads more tests coming next week. It won’t apparently, be long until ambulance crews, paramedics and GPs also get tested. Social workers are on the list too.

28 March: Grants will be with over a million businesses as soon as possible. Administrative barriers to be removed on manufacturing and supplying of face masks and hand sanitiser. Employers - where work can’t be done from home - should follow safety guidelines. If that’s not happening, authorities should be informed. Hospitals in London are not at capacity. Capacity is being expanded. 500 beds will be available at Nightingale/Excel Centre next week.

29 March: Letter issued to the public from the Prime Minister.

29 March: All parts of the country are on an emergency footing. Merging police, fire, ambulance, NHS etc. Groups are creating coordinated local responses. National Supply Distribution, supported by the military are delivering Personal Protective Equipment to NHS Trusts and Healthcare settings. A new web-page and phone number launched to support the most vulnerable. Once registered, prescriptions and food can be delivered. After reviews in the next few weeks, over 3-6+ months, social restrictions are expected to gradually lift. 

30 March: We’ve got a new thing to help us breathe. Problem? We struggled to supply enough ventilators. Also, the patient needs sedation and is almost always in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). Solution? A new form of a machine (CPAP) is easier to produce and could keep 50-60% of CPAP using patients out of ICU. What next? The CPAP has been given the nod by the first set of regulators and is in testing. It could be in our hospitals in ten days or so. Mercedes F1 can, apparently, knock out hundreds of these a day. There are concerns that the seal around the mouth can be a little leaky. This could create an infection problem. Manufacturers say that if Personal Protective Equipment is used, the risk to carers is minimal.

30 March: 

So far today…

Morrisons has committed £10m of food and other bits to foodbanks.

EasyJet have grounded their fleet for at least two months.

Dominic Cummings - the PM’s advisors - is self isolating with virus symptoms.

While we, apparently, have the capacity to test up to 10,000 people a day, yesterday we tested only 7,000.

30 March: Just under 200 prisoners are expected to be released temporarily from Northern Ireland’s jails. It’s due to staff shortages due to the crisis. They will be subject to conditions and release will be under constant review.

30 March: 

Unprecedented numbers of UK residents trying to get home. Government are working with other countries to get Britons home.

They have a new arrangement worth £75 million with a list of ‘partner’ airlines - to target flights from priority countries where commercial flights are not running.

Reductions in traffic/footfall show that people are following advice.

Priority is trying to keep the number of severe cases below intensive care capacity.

Chief Scientific Adviser, Patrick Vallance said it was “premature to put an absolute time on how long this goes on for.”

31 March: 

Yesterday saw the highest single daily increase in the number of deaths from COVID-19.

Government are sourcing more ventilators from a group of businesses such as Rolls Royce and Dyson. The first of 1000s of new ventilators will be produced this weekend.

Conducting rapid trials on drugs, including anti-malarials, which may be able to reduce impact.

Social contact has been reducing. There is a ‘bit of a plateau’ in the number of new UK cases.

Despite these ‘green shoots’ - warned against complacency and taking ‘our foot off the pedal.’

Home Office confirm they will extend NHS visas, free of charge, for about 2,800 NHS staff whose visas are due to expire before 1 October.

That’s it for March! I will upload updates for April (so far) soon!

All credit goes to simplepolitics on Instagram.

[mykidsgay]

Supporting Your Non-Binary Students with Pronoun Changes

“I'm a queer high school teacher, and one of my amazing students started using a new name and they/them pronouns at the end of last year. I helped them write a letter to all their teachers explaining this change, and they just confided in me that one of their teachers flat-out ignored the letter and is still using their old name and pronouns. I get the sense that the kid doesn't want to start a whole THING about it, but it obviously wears on them. What do I do?”

Question Submitted Anonymously Answered by Aly Massey

Aly Says:

Dear fellow queer high school teacher,

First of all, it sounds like you are a wonderful support for this student to have in school. That they trusted you enough to help them announce this major change to all teachers is a great sign, and it’s great to see you’re still looking out for them!

This is a tough spot to be in. We want to be supportive of our LGBTQ+ students, but balancing that support with maintaining their privacy, sense of safety, and comfort is a fine line to walk. It is incredibly frustrating when our colleagues don’t share that same commitment and may even actively oppose it—I feel for you.

That being said, it sounds like you are looking for a way to address the issue with the least amount of pressure and attention called to the student. With that in mind, I would try to consider some environmental factors before taking your next steps.

Do you know this other teacher well? Is this someone you feel comfortable talking to one-on-one? If so, that may be your best bet to start. This way, you don’t have to put the student under any extra pressure that they’re trying to avoid. While you may be steaming out the ears thinking about a teacher purposefully ignoring a student’s pronouns, it’s best to approach the situation calmly and openly for the sake of the student, and to avoid backlash on you both. Ask the teacher if they’re aware of the issue. Emphasize your concern for the wellbeing of the student as a means to connect with this teacher. Almost all educators care deeply about their students, whatever their personal beliefs are. If you can make this about giving a student the support they need to succeed, you may be able to find common ground. However, this is certainly not the only option. If you are at all uncomfortable with a one-on-one conversation, there are plenty of other ways to communicate.

Do you have other adult allies at the school to support you? Remember that you don’t have to do this alone. The stress of student support around sensitive issues can sometimes be isolating for teachers, but this job can be too much to take on solo. Are there other teachers/staff that you and/or the student trust to work on this issue together? Your guidance counselor(s) and/or social worker(s) can often be helpful in this avenue. Showing unified support amongst teachers to actively use the students’ correct pronouns and name can be a strong way to make this stubborn teacher feel the “peer pressure.”

Do you have support from the administration? Is this a topic you could bring up in a professional development or other meeting (without needing to call out the teacher specifically)? Perhaps you could suggest the idea for a workshop on why it is important to listen and respond positively to the needs of LGBTQ+ students. You could look no further than My Kid Is Gay, or venture out to the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN) for resources on this kind of professional development. Whether or not this teacher becomes a full blue-pink-white flag-toting super ally is questionable, but pressure from administration and school culture can be a powerful tool.

Are there other students who want to participate in supporting this student/general inclusion policies? This could be an opportunity for interested students to take an active role in improving inclusivity in the school. If you have a GSA at your school, that could be a good place to start (and if you don’t, try starting one!). They could, for example, lead sessions in homerooms/advisory classes about the range of gender identities and why non-binary inclusion is important. The regular presence of student AND staff-supported LGBTQ+ learning sessions (including those specifically referencing pronouns) can help shift school culture and create an indirect pressure on this teacher to adjust their behavior. These sessions certainly do not have to mention the student specifically (though if said student would like to share a personal story that is obviously great!).

You can also show students resources for their workshops like those offered at GLSEN, stories of trans histories from the New York City Oral Trans History Project, the Education for Liberation Network, and (of course) Everyone Is Gay. Having a teacher to work as an advisor in this process is key, so be prepared to offer extra assistance if you go this route. This last suggestion is my personal favorite. Honestly I would argue that kids today have a better grasp on LGBTQ+ issues than most of their teachers, and yet their direct voices are one of the most underused resources in schools.

One thing I would note is that this work has to be continuous, it can’t just be a one and done lesson. But the good news is that this repeated involvement of students and staff can reshape norms in your school, pressuring people like this teacher to actually listen to students who make these requests (and hopefully to even create classrooms that don’t assume gender at all).

With that in mind, keep checking in with your student regularly. However this plays out, these insecurities at school can weigh heavily on LGBTQ+ students. Ensure that they have easy access to a supportive guidance counselor, and see if there are any resources outside the school in your area for LGBTQ+ youth (if there are any for non-binary students in particular, that’s even better!). Throughout this, they are the person that needs your support and care most. And remember to take care of yourself. Schools need more teachers like you willing to step into a sometimes awkward or uncomfortable zone to advocate for students.

***

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[dcnativegal]

In which I change jobs and listen to the people of Lakeview

Back in August, (it’s now early March, 2019) my boss called me up in my office in Christmas Valley and asked if I’d consider moving my work to Lakeview and joining the Lake District Clinics’ staff as a therapist. I pretty much said, you bet, when do I start? It’s not that I haven’t loved the people I work with as colleagues and as clients in Christmas Valley. It’s more that I have spent most of my 30+ years as a social worker basically embedded in medical teams, working on the psychological and practical issues that come up for people who are medically ill. The prospect of going back into a busy clinic at a bustling, though tiny, hospital, excited me. And so it was that I said goodbye to my clients, and to my work buddies Hayley, Jama, and Geri, and started driving south instead of north from Paisley, in late September.

It's now been 5 months, and the metaphor I use is that we are building this airplane while flying the thing, since this is the first time this hospital has had such a role: ‘Behavioral Health Consultant.’

Behavioral Health Consultants are culturally competent* generalists who provide treatment for a wide variety of mental health, psychosocial, motivational, and medical concerns, including management of anxiety, depression, substance abuse, smoking cessation, sleep hygiene, and diabetes among others. (definition brought to you by https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primary_Care_Behavioral_health)  

*The better term than culturally competent is ‘culturally agile’, but the idea is the same: to be agile is to establish rapport with anybody, including people from the ethnicity called “white” and the culture of “taciturn cowboy.”  

The new job has an aspiration: “Primary Care/Behavioral Health Integration” whereby “mental health” is not taken care of in some other place, complete with another building, parking lot, and stigma (because when the town’s population is 2,300, everyone knows your rig.) If a patient comes to their primary care person for high blood pressure, or a miscarriage, or very high blood sugars, and the primary care person hears that your marriage is disintegrating, or you have nightmares, or your child killed her/himself, then there’s an immediate referral to me. If I’m busy with another patient, a referral gets made electronically, a receptionist calls this person, and boom, they are on my schedule. If I’m not busy, I’m brought in to meet them right then. Perhaps this person is crying, and I sit and listen, and maybe it’s just a bad day, or a sad anniversary, and what I do is provide compassionate listening. And my card. Perhaps we start a conversation and they schedule for a longer session because they hadn’t figured on being gone from work so long. See you soon, I say.

Behavioral Health Integration is new to much of the country, and yet it makes so much sense. Mind and body are connected. The trauma someone experienced as a child contributes to both his anxiety now and his high blood pressure. Her alcoholism might be worsened by her spouse’s infidelity: however, her liver is for sure. Let’s get this addressed, mind/body/spirit. Teamwork, people.

There are two other populations I get referrals to see. The folks who are taking an addictive substance that really isn’t good for them long term: either benzodiazepines like valium, or opioids.

The second group are the frequent flyers: folks who use the emergency department a great deal. There’s a team of people who try to help them. Are they anxious? Anxiety causes a lot of emergency department visits. So does a life that is very disorganized. Who can keep track of the day of the week, let alone an appointment in a clinic? There’s a meeting of people from many disciplines who meet weekly to brainstorm about how to create a supportive, educational web of services so that this person doesn’t use the most expensive health care resource available, (the emergency department) or bounce back into the hospital because being at home wasn’t safe.

I’ve had some interesting encounters. I meet people who are so much pain that they rock back and forth while they talk to me. I hear about a family where every single member has a serious disability but only one member will come in to talk to me. I finally went out with them to meet another relative waiting in the car and basically said, Hi, I don’t bite, come in to see me sometime, okay? It took 3 months but it worked.

A child came and sat at my table, proceeding to play with my wooden robots, then the magnet marble sculpture thing, and then color a mandala. All the while, a biological parent tells the story of their predicament, and the child corrects and fills in, holding the memory of all that has happened to this family. I find myself wishing multiple times a day, “if only the adults would adult.”

Another child is having panic attacks. Perhaps the addicted parent and the chaos at home are factors? You decide.

There is a funny thing that happens as I work in the arena of mental health while in a small town, and it will keep on happening. I assess one member of a social network, which may or may not be related to one or four of my other clients. The jigsaw puzzle of the situation becomes clearer and more recognizable while I listen to the stories. I can’t reveal that I already heard that story from someone else, with significantly different plot points and antagonists. I simply make note. Later that same day, the client has become the guy or gal behind a counter: well hello! And then I see the client’s mother in town: she peered at me through narrowed eyes, told me she was glad to know who was talking to her son. Sounded like I passed muster.

pass muster

be accepted as adequate or satisfactory.

synonyms:

be  good enough, come up to standard, come up to scratch, measure  up, be acceptable/adequate, be sufficient, fill/fit the  bill, do, qualify

I met with a rather desperate patient, in chronic pain, and super pissed off about everything. That patient died unexpectedly and sadly a few days later. On the same day I learned of this death, two of my other clients came in, separately, and cried about the sudden loss of this person. Used up all of my tissues. We are part of a tightly woven web.

And I can’t talk about any of it except to clinical supervisors or my therapist. Which is fine. Thank goodness I can take notes. My brain gets very full.

I no longer have the Roarks, Hayley the amazing therapist and her husband Tom the amazing police deputy, who could give me the back story and the full list of felonies for most of North County. I exaggerate only slightly. I do get perspective at the team meetings where we talk about the frequent flyers: everyone has a piece of the patient’s history. And everyone knows everyone else, and what they did last summer. I will never have that deep knowledge of this community that natives of Lake County do. There is a chaplain who seems to have the same deep, back stories of everyone in Lakeview. The primary care providers know a great deal, too. Perhaps my fresh perspective has a benefit: at least three clients have told me they are glad I’m not from here. They have a chance, a clean slate, instead of me having assumptions based on last name, what side of town they live on, etc. And I try so hard not to judge. I sit and listen, always humbled and amazed at the stories that are shared.

I can’t share specifics, but I certainly see themes.

Let’s talk for a minute about step families. There are an awful lot of step families and second and third marriages and many times, live-in sweeties who act like step parents, all of which is very confusing to children. There are a couple of rules that I thought everyone knew, but apparently not. Such as:

·         Do not, under any circumstances, tell a child, ‘you are so much like your Mom/Dad’ if those qualities you are calling out are negative. Please, please. You are not getting back at the miscreant, who is a conniving/cheating/meth-dealing/flake. You are hurting your child. (See, self-fulfilling prophecy. See, shitty legacy.) STOP IT.

·         Grownups need to do the adulting. Children are not go-betweens. Period, end of sentence. Also, children best not play one parent against another: the only way to make sure THAT isn’t happening is to …

·         Co-parent. If your kid has left your home to live with grandma, or step-father, or aunt, whomever, guess what? You are now co-parenting with your mother or step-father or sibling. You are coordinating school meetings with teachers, immunizations, and team schedules. You are consulting with the ‘other parent’ on whether the kid gets a smart phone, or can date, and whether they need condoms. Circle the wagons and parent the kid, whatever the old painful history. For the kids’ sake.

Right?

How about grief. People feel grief about all kinds of things, and especially the loss of other people. One grief hooks up with all the other losses, and sometimes, the heart just breaks and the mind stops and the tears flow. My all-time favorite quote about grief is this one:

People, usually, the conscientious ones, have very high expectations of themselves. They will plod on, and keep it all up, until the tears overflow, and they are horrified when they cry at work. Perhaps the long-dead person was the only one who ever stood by them, which explains why the ‘little’ loss that happened just the other day flowed into this biggest loss, and they are overcome.

I do some ‘grief education’. That it comes in waves. That patience with oneself is critical, and kind: if you can’t stop crying, then you need to cry, and go ahead, take the rest of the day off. You are not a slacker, or a malingerer. You are giving your mind and aching heart a break, and that is a healthy thing to do. We talk about options like writing a letter to the one you miss, so that you can tell them what you’ve been wanting to share. Who knows, maybe they are listening. Whatever the metaphysics of the matter, they exist in your experience. In psychoanalytic terms, that’s called an “introject.”  Write freely, as if they will hear your words.

Or maybe write a song, or draw a picture, in their memory, in their honor. What would they have told you to do, if they knew they were about to leave this mortal coil? Go forth and find another lover? Get back to playing that guitar and never mind how bad it sounds at first? Go dancing. Go bowling. Have a beer, or stay sober, in my name.

And know that you cannot push through grief, there is no shortcut:

It is an alteration of self that we would not choose, and it is excruciating. We are altered without anesthetic. I’m sorry. I have been so altered.

Let’s talk about social isolation. I found this quote in the New York Times and had it made into a canvas hanging in my office: (via EasyCanvasPrints.com)

Most of the clients I see are deeply disconnected from people, especially the men. Maybe there is a wife who connects him to the rest of the family, or a mother. But no one else. He doesn’t speak to his children. He’s estranged from a sister or a brother. No cousins, lost track of them. Don’t care to reconnect. Old pain, betrayals, lots of good reasons to stay mad. Except for the loneliness.

I encourage clients to call up an old friend and say, I was thinking about you, what the heck, I thought I’d call, tell me what’s going on, if this is a good time. Once the person gets over their shock, the content of what your old co-worker/ cousin/ younger sister tells you is refreshing. At least it isn’t the same old thoughts going around like a trapped gerbil in your mind. And then you’ve strengthened an old bond. Why not? Doesn’t cost anything.

I know it feels awkward. I called up my first cousin, out of the blue, after texting her to make sure I still had the right number, and in my text, I said, could you chat? She called me right away thinking something was wrong. We hadn’t spoken on the phone since I moved to Paisley. I didn’t mean to scare her. But I didn’t do our usual calendar/Christmas thing this year, and she’s my first cousin. We’re friends on Facebook, but we don’t share the whole truth on Facebook. We were candid. Life is imperfect. And I renewed that bond with this bright, hardworking woman with whom I share DNA.

I also hand-wrote several letters to old friends. I got lovely texts or emails back saying a letter will come in reply but give them time. I’m totally fine with that. And even if nothing comes back, I sent forth a bit of love, and story, to distract them from their mind-gerbils. There was a woman at St. Stephen’s, whom I got to know when I worked as the Parish Secretary and she was a volunteer. She would send a lovely note or postcard to someone and stamp it with “GUILT FREE MAIL.” How wonderful is that. Edith Eder, you were a gift to the world. She would wait to give baby blankets to newborns, and I think she waited because she’d had a stillbirth at one time, and knew the pain of having no baby for all the cute clothes and rattles that had been gifted.

*****

Ultimately, for the anxious and depressed, I hope I can convey some information, some strategies and tricks, a wee tincture of wisdom that they can hold onto, when they hit a bad patch. I have my own therapist, in Bend, 3 hours away, whom I see once a month. I take my anti-depressant dutifully and gratefully. I approach my very own bad patches and slip and fall, like I did over thanksgiving. I try to spot the bad patches, like drivers look for black ice this time of year, but sometimes the slipping can’t be helped. And kerplunk, we are in the ditch and need a tow. Best to minimize the damage, do what needs to be done and chalk it up to ‘When Bad Things Happen to Good People’, which is the book I recommend most to clients.

There’s the awesome quotation by Anais Nin about the blossom:

I see entering into psychotherapy this way: it is a risk, because the familiar misery feels safer, at first, than the bright new possibilities of change, which are scary, but then, occasionally, breathtakingly glorious. And in any case, patience is required. With ourselves. Again, Anais Nin, who is an incest survivor by the way:

Amen

[infpsagittarius]

Updates on my life

It's the beginning of a new school year. I've jumped to a new school for 27% of salary increase. It's now very close to a legitimate teacher's salary and I'm happy about that. I mean basically I'm working like my last job but the salary is way higher so I think the jump is worth it. And it's true that no matter where you go, you will meet new people and possibly form some bonding too. I do miss my old colleagues and the vibe with them though. But nothing lasts forever. Even their dynamic has changed with the addition of new colleagues.

So new school, I'm teaching P.2 and P.5 with the addition of afternoon zoom supplementary classes almost every day. Yup. So 590 minutes of am classes and 180 minutes of pm classes in a week. So 770 minutes a week. Around 13 hours of teaching a week, that's around 2.5 hours of teaching daily. Duty time= 60 minutes a week. Not too bad at all.

In my last school I had 810 minutes of teaching in a week and 150 minutes of duty time.

The teacher behind me has 790 minutes of teaching in just the morning. She has 90 minutes of duty time too. So maybe I do prefer doing 770 minutes but spread out to pm too.

Yea but like whatever. Why am I flooding this entry with numbers anyway. I gotta admit that I'm strugging with my P.5 students since they are hyperactive and hard to control. I can shout and look really strict but I do feel like it's a facade. I can see the experienced class teacher is earning way more respect than I do. It's maybe she is really passionate about the students and really caring and giving. She gives out this mama vibe that whatever she does is for your own good. Not like us new and young teachers who just know to control the discipline without knowing how to love the children from the heart. Last year I was with the newest of newbies and I didn't learn much regarding how to love the children from heart or how to talk to parents. It's okay at least I'm always open to learn.

Apart from work, I'm hanging out more with the mates where I live and I enjoy that. We play boardgames over wine, talk about stuff, went kayaking and hiking too. As I grow older, the definition of friendship has changed over time. It has been a long time for me to see friendship as "girl friends who I can share everything with". Now for me, friends are the ones who are willing to hang out and who I can share a good time with.

My education is also going right now. I'm going to classes two days a week and I was nervous the first few times going to the English one and it revelaed a lot about my social anxiety. R rasied a point - people who think they are introverted, are they really introverted or they are just insecure? Maybe I'm really just insecure. And where does it stem from? Looks mostly?

Oh that's why I'm also bracing my teeth too. I hope it's gonna do something.

OK so new school year:

new job with higher salary and more people to learn from

hanging out more with friends and forming more meaningful relationships

going to school to get a necessary and non-expensive postgraduate degree

bracing my teeth

The things I wanna improve more:

Make use of my free time (evenings after work, weekends and holidays)

work out more and lose fat since I've almost never lost my fat sucessfully

Continue to learn more and meet more people and form relationships

plan for fun activities and make memories

[idolizerp]

LOADING INFORMATION ON MAYDAY’S LEAD VOCAL, LEAD DANCE KANG YOONAH...

IDOL DETAILS

STAGENAME: N/A CURRENT AGE: 20 DEBUT AGE: N/A TRAINEE SINCE AGE:14 COMPANY: MSG SECONDARY SKILL: N/A

IDOL PROFILE

NICKNAME(S): 새끼윤아 (saekkiyun-a) –  as in kid yoonah, quite literally. she’s seen in msg hallways since she was very young and people there (from staff to idols) practically saw her growing up which also meant she kind of became the mascot of some of them over the years.

あおい (aoi) – despite yoonah being a common name and easy to pronounce, her parents thought it would be better for her adaptation in a foreign country to have a japanese name INSPIRATION: in part, it happened because she loved singing since young and because her father played a big influence in her choice of career. in the other hand, things just aligned very well at the right moment to her. yoonah was living a moment in which everything ended related to idols. snacks, phones, drinks, food, her friends only talked about that and the radio was always playing the latest hits. it felt overwhelming and exciting. the last push she needed was the vocal competition and since then she never left. SPECIAL TALENTS:

taiko – yoonah spent most of her childhood years living in japan and while she was in school there, she was taught how to play the drums and even performed in some festivals

steady breathing – perhaps due to her many years under training, she developed a very controlled breathing while singing. she can even jump rope while singing a couple of song parts

mimics sounds – she can mimic a couple of sounds like a bubbles popping, some animals, doraimo and even the haegeum.

NOTABLE FACTS:

admission – yoonah became part of MSG because she won a vocal competition sponsored by the company

siblings – she’s the youngest of three and while her older sister is involved with nothing related to the business, her middle brother is a constant presence in yoonah’s life since he’s also/planning to be an idol

language – while growing up, her household was a constant of korean and japanese language mixed. once she moved back to korea, that habit didn’t vanish and sometimes, she let slip some mixed phrases

education – while she attended regular middle schools in japan, yoonah is an alumni from the school of performing arts in seoul

health – yoonah always had a somehow fragile health. besides being nearsighted she also suffers from anemia

IDOL GOALS

SHORT-TERM GOALS:

as many of the other trainees, what she wants the most is to debut. it has been almost seven years since she joined the company and she’s practically craving to leave her status as a trainee and finally became an idol despite her reluctance to pursue this career at first

LONG-TERM GOALS:

she imagines that, once everything settles down and she makes her debut, she’ll be able to move into radio hosting and music production. in the past few years it has become something she wanted to be involved and she’d be absolutely thrilled to follow a more secluded area of the entertainment business

IDOL IMAGE

when yoonah is fourteen, she stumbles her way in something that she, at first, didn’t want to. she’s all pouts and her puff and rosy cheeks accentuate her cute features even more in the lights of the building. ‘so cute’ the receptionist whispers, ‘she’s the one isn’t she? the one who won the competition’ a boy asks.

the first impression is of a lost kid. small steps and bowed head, all shy and unsure. once she finds her way, not much changes. yoonah is still shy and in a corner, not certain what she was supposed to do but the moment she opens her mouth things are different. she sings in a way that shows she’s untrained and childish, it sounds clear though, and her voice is pretty and soothing. she’s just a kid and now there’s a plenty of time until she manages to be perfect for what her company wants her to be.

yoonah is adorable and has a good voice but the cuteness is not the only façade MSG wants and it’s certainly not the only one she can pull off. she grew confident over the years of training, she doesn’t shy away when asked to try something new and she certainly won’t try to hide herself behind her seniors when teased about something.

as years passed by, she started getting the impression that if something different didn’t pop up from her side, then she definitely wouldn’t be able to make it to debut. the bratty but still cute play she keeps on to the entertainment of many (from her company and school and sometimes, when she’s able to visit, her home) became much of her own personality than something she keeps just for the sake of the act.

so far, her plans have been working. MSG still is in good terms with the image she portrays, and they are aware (if she didn’t make it as obvious as she could) that she’d be fine to do whatever fanservice fit for her image — from cringy cute acts to feeding the same-group couple craze.

if yoonah could have one wish regarding this situation, she’d ask her company to not ask her to go to extremes. despite her young appearance, she’s already in her 20’s and even though she’s already this old, she doesn’t seek for a drastic change. she’s hoping that being in their hands for almost seven years also meant they’d know at least this much.

IDOL HISTORY

tw: unhealthy relationship (familiar)

introduction

stars were aligned in the day they both meet. college colleagues in a class that didn’t have anything directly connected with what they were coursing.

she’s aims to become a teacher and he wants to become a singer. just like their shared class, there’s nothing to connect there, but they keep in touch, help each other with the subject, check if they are eating properly and not just skipping it altogether. soon, they are not caring for the other as just a friend from that one class, feelings build and they work their way through school as a couple. break-ups, misunderstandings, joys and achievements.

               verse

things after school are not a fairytale. misook struggles to get her first job since she didn’t have any connections and she’s also a woman trying to get a recognizable role. junghoon also stumbles on his own feet with his career. men are better seen when dressed in a uniform instead of holding a guitar.

they are married now, and they need to find some stable work to finally form their family properly. misook gets a job in an elementary school far from her apartment by an hour which is great, it’s a progress. junghoon, in the other hand, stagnates. he starts getting part time jobs in restaurants and construction sites to get some money to help at home. there’s nothing but a lot of struggle in the beginning but things eventually work the way they should, and they start their life together, husband and wife, hand in hand.

               pre-chorus

minji was born in early 1990’s. she’s pretty and has the features and behavior of a baby princess. hyunwoo was born a couple of years later and he too is someone they can be proud of. finally, yoonah came when spring had just begun to bloom.

the financial situation was nice by the time. misook and junghoon found their stability before deciding to have children, although three was never in their plans at first.

they were supposed to have a comfortable life.

but the crisis hit in their doorstep and they mistakenly opened a gap. she lost her job as a teacher and the business he started to run wasn’t working as well as before. with no other warning the five of them moved to japan where his parents lived. it was rushed and unprepared and they weren’t very certain of what would happen to them in a time like that one. but they went anyways and although not ideal, they were united.

chorus

yoonah is four and she’s attending a school where people don’t speak the same language as she. the same happens when she goes to the supermarket with her mother and any other place they visit. she’s shy and unsure of what to do but her mother is a light and she helps her through it.

she’s the youngest child in their house and she’s the one who lived the least in their home country, so despite her lack of social skills, she easily adapts to the new surroundings. She’s not the girl one would pick for a round of dodgeball but in arts and music class, people definitely see her charm. she’s timid during most of the time, it’s true, she doesn’t necessarily like to be the center of attentions, but her teacher helps her. she gives yoonah her time to work things out, to be in her own comfortable place, this help naturally makes her develop a certain fondness towards music.

she grows up quite sick. her health is not the best, she gets a cold way too easily, her body is frail, and she falls on her own. people are inclined to not hurt her and to not go too hard on her, she won’t do the running exercises or play hide-and-seek, instead she stays indoors, looking out of the window.

as she gets older, her immune system gets stronger, but her reputation still pursues her. she stopped minding that a while ago, preferring to remain in her comfort zone, playing with instruments that were too big for her and ones too complicated to even start learning. some of her friends even tried to invite her to play. with her situation, it could easily be assumed she’d be an outsider, but her classmates warm up to her fast, she’s well-loved and well-cared but she has her own pace.

               bridge

her father still is not happy with the life he has. despite having three great kids and an amazing wife, the fact that he wasn’t able to follow his dream as a musician still haunts him to this day. they heard the stories almost every other week, when they had dinner together, and his frustration was clearly pointed.

yoonah don’t blame him entirely but the moment she started being forced to audition to musical groups and be signed for festivals, the glow that music had slowly started to fade away.

when he heard about entertainment companies sponsoring music competitions, about having young people signed off with their labels if they won, he was thrilled. his children had the opportunity he never had. in the first opportunity, they flew all the way back to south korea for a couple of days and despite used to, yoonah wasn’t familiar with the grandiosity of that event. she froze and couldn’t perform. her father was furious.

the moment followed her for the next couple of months and she wrongly felt guilty for failing him like that. she wanted to become someone he’d be proud and not ashamed of, so she asked her mother to keep an eye if any other opportunity raised, and reluctantly, the woman complied.

               elision

this time, when she flew to her home country with her mother only, she had a certain easiness in her heart, but she still felt pressured. When her mother crouched by her side and told her she should just do whatever she felt she should, yoonah smiled and hugged the woman for her support.

this time the fourteen years old was capable of showing what she supposed to show. she sang and played the giant guitar in a very timid way at first but still strongly certain of every step she should take. people were paying attention to what she did, and that boosted her confidence in a way, because she grew stronger. her part in the competition wasn’t so small or insignificant anymore, she shone. and she won.

this time she was assigned with MSG.

this time, when she went back to japan, her father had a smile so big that didn’t fit in his face.

this time she had reached her goal, but she was still unfulfilled. was this truly what she wanted?

this time, her mother said enough. Enough to crazy ideas, to pushing their children to do things they didn’t want, enough of projecting his dreams on a little girl, enough to everything.

this time they divorced.

outro

they were all back in south korea eventually, but not together anymore. despite doing what she did because of her father, yoonah went along with her training in MSG. she doesn’t know why she kept it up, it wasn��t for lack of support that didn’t give up, since her mother was favorable to make her end things before she even started if that wasn’t what she really wanted.

but then yoonah was reminded of the time when she was back on that stage and how free she felt at that moment, and how she wanted to feel that feeling again and perhaps, she could revive that moment in the future. So, she stayed, warned that she could call an end at any moment.

in the beginning, all was new, naturally, and she thought she wouldn’t be able to adapt. it was, after all, a lot to get used to. a culture that despite being her own, was still unfamiliar, a routine that changed all the time because of practices and school and exams. she persevered.

but her perseverance wasn’t enough. she saw as big groups of her company started to debut, she saw cherry bomb at its early years and looked up to them as if they were goddesses, she trained with the boys from indigo and hoped with all her heart to be chosen as a member of honey. she saw as her friends debuted in 1ferno and she was still there waiting for a chance. what didn’t make her change labels or give up on the idol career was probably the fact she started enjoying the whole thing. she made friends who she cherished and appreciated and seniors who looked out for her, and everything was so familiar and natural that giving a thought to leave that comfortable zone sent a nauseating feeling down to her stomach.

almost seven years later and she still waits for a chance to make it to her debut. sometimes when she’s back in the dorms, when a day was particularly bad or upsetting she wonders if all the luck she had in life was spent in that day when she performed and by a miracle, her charisma (or lack of it) and mild talent made her win the competition that made her sign with MSG. she wonders if she left the company everything would be okay and she’d find another place where she’d be more likely to debut. she absolutely hated herself for not being able to disconnect the people from her future and remain stagnated because that’s how she feels when she sees people who trained with her performing while she’s still there working on dance sequences and voice exercises. she knows she got better and she knows she deserves a chance… she probably ran out of luck.

but she still endures the whole process. she still does what she’s asked and she smiles and tries to enjoy this eternal waiting moment, for as long as they want or for as long as she can take.

[pulitzerpanther]

Miss Grant...why did you become a reporter?

This question and Cat Grant’s answer were taken from the monthly-quarterly ‘Nine Lives Left’ column featuring CEO Cat Grant and editor of ‘The Trib’ Lucas ‘Snapper’ Carr. The column features questions towards both regarding journalism, ethics in the news industry, and–from Cat–fashion advice for the wilting middle-age ‘walking bearclaw’ editor taking said questions. 

While originally edited in format and featured in the article, the below blurb was taken from the podcast posted on CatCo-.Co with the title of the same name.

So, Cat, everyone always wonders–I know, I know, we get asked this often–and I know we’ve discussed it over the years.

“Oh, of course, I love repetitive questions. If I hear it enough, it’s like the dulcet, soothing tones of Donald Trump.” 

Why did you become a reporter?

“Hmm, yes, well–I’m sure you expect a wholly different answer, given the fact that I technically started in gossip.

Is there more to Cat Grant than high heels? 

“If there wasn’t, you wouldn’t work here. Fine. A similar answer was in my excellently-written memoir, Cat Got Your Tongue released in 2002, but, in order to take you on a journey of me, Snapper, we’d either have to get you a fashion sense, or gussy up a handy little time machine and skip that awful hair-teasing, leopard print phase of the 90′s to go back to the book-worm days of my youth and, namely, the news as an influence–or lack thereof–of my formative years.

Below is the excerpt written by Cat Grant for the ‘editorial’ column, read and featured on both podcast and Trib header.

My father was a particularly knowledgeable man–a great man who had this air of regal mystique about him, or so it might seem to a young girl who had a habit of tiptoeing around the corners of an old, two-bedroom apartment in the bustling playground of Metropolis, before skyscrapers built like towering trees in the ground would become a far more commonplace playroom than my father’s study. But when I was a little girl, I enjoyed that air of ‘fine things’ that he seemed to carry–suits and cigars; mystical brief cases with work-related things in them. It’s all very fantastical to play make-believe with, if you’re ambitious, and while my age is a carefully-kept secret (soon to be given away by this article like an old CIA agent in a bar) there was a time when I did enjoy that long-forgotten art of playing. 

As I tell my son, creativity is important–creating a rocket ship out of a box is the fundamental mind-set that will, one day, create a company out of thin air. It should never be repressed in a child, and I often found myself tempted by the utter adulthood of my father’s study like a creativity landmine. 

The door was always locked save for Sunday mornings, his coffee creating a fine brown ring along whatever ever-present newspaper had found its way to mahogany that morning–the business and politics sections the first read and neatly folded to the side. Saturday morning cartoons were not something my radical mother appreciated in the mornings, but both of them could be seen feverishly discussing current events over the sounds of a crackling, small television in the corner. Only on Sundays, of course, they were feverishly discussing far less important things every where else at much louder–far more grating–volumes everywhen else. 

It wasn’t uncommon to hear the soothing sounds of Walter Cronkite (prior to Dan Rather and Connie Chung’s overruling domain in my mother’s household) in my youth and this particular day, there was one singular, titular program on the television. 

Fortunately–as is an American right–the magnitude of war was lost on me at such a young age, and I had the benefit of merely being fascinated by war like it was some distant, fantastical teleproduction. Like H.G Wells was narrating events, materialized with sensationalism and haunting faux-realism–like I was always one step removed from its horror, because I was.I wasn’t aware of this at the time–what little girl would be?–but Nixon and Johnson ordered the bombing of the Eastern Cambodian line in order to usurp the then-communist Vietnamese strongholds. I wasn’t aware of the impact this would have, ultimately, on the American population–peace signs and drugs and love not war notwithstanding–but also on the Cambodian people.

For four years, with as many visits as an estranged aunt appearing solely for family functions that no one particularly wanted to invite her to, but she just obnoxiously showed up anyways–similar to Joan Crawford, the later years, at a party or Joan Rivers at your wedding (three times)–only to make one small, forgettable appearance, I learned of my first taste of media’s role in education the masses–

By learning that media was not educating the masses. 

From the time I was nine to the time I was thirteen, the Khmer Rouge regime, under the daunting, fanatical leadership of Pol Kot, committed the systematic genocide and elimination of approximately three million Cambodian people under the name of Democratic enstatement in the country. I heard the word Kampuchea (the government created by this regime after the slaughter) feverishly whispered around my father’s coffee mug like a dirty word–like that salacious affair my mother heard about the neighbor having with his nanny–and never understood the impact of it. It wasn’t discussed in my school and, save for a quickly-buried news report every week or two, it was lost, like some lack-luster movie hitting the box office, watched by a hundred thousand people never to be heard of again.

It was a transient sensationalist story. I didn’t understand the gravity of what occurred until college and the magnitude of such a death toll never truly touched Western newspapers save for blurbs. Not even in 1999, when Nate Thayer and Nic Dunlop interviewed a member of the regime’s command still awaiting trial. The story was picked up, ran once, and everyone’s fickle minds forgot about it come Monday, while the weight of the death toll was still being felt by the country to this day.

It was a systematic oppression of the people–a slaughter of a race and religion–and in my twenties, when someone mentioned it, as historical fact, an event that cost the lives of millions, I furrowed my brows like it was a word I couldn’t quite remember on the tip of my tongue.

Lost.

In the 90′s, I was far more educated and politically forward–I was nicknamed Hanoi Cat by a few particularly close friends (one of whom is on the ballot for president this year and should think wisely about the things that a girl might remember to blackmail her with)–and it wasn’t uncommon for me to be enraged by the cruel, cruel state of the world. 

Oh, I taped myself to trees in political outcry, usually hungover and in fabulous heels on a budget, before my palette for social change and fashion had both fully refined. I screamed at rallies and bemoaned the effect of war on the world while sleeping in my thin dormitory mattress that I thought toughed my spine into steel. I was war-torn and affected by the weight of the world’s decisions, unlike my unassuming friends and colleagues.

I’ve since grappled and come to terms with the fact that complacency within a world is a fallacy: ignorance of people assuming the blame doesn’t lie on their shoulders; ignorance of people assuming the blame solely does. Change is not as simple as strapping yourself to a tree and screaming about indignancies.  

I’ve also since made it a point to buy better mattresses. A girl needs her beauty sleep to change the world, after all. 

The Rwandan massacre was far more documented, at the time, than the Cambodian massacre was in the 70′s. But To some of you, who are about to swiftly make my own point about a disassociation of connection and responsibility for me, you might have furrowed your brows and wrinkled your nose at this very paper. 

I’m sure it’s a fabulous look on you. 

Perhaps you saw the movie with Don Cheadle in the early thousands–Hotel Rwanda–where the gripping dramaticism of it all might have dampened the weight of the events with Hollywood flare–provided a sense of detachment that comes with all things sensationalized.  After all, how do we, as a society, come to terms with the deaths of a million people? Another genocide and, though the emergence of electronic media made it far more televised, this one became just as forgotten. 

For a minor history lesson–don’t worry, I’m sure many of you have that hot for teacher fetish–let’s recap the events of the Rwandan conflict in a short, small, haunting blurb that does nothing of justice to the weight or impact of what occurred: in 1994, due to the loss of a political leader, over one hundred days, an approximate million Rwandans were killed by militias and the military under order of the interim Rwandan government.

The coverage of the event was minimal, at best, and the focus of most media outlets–save for a steadfast Perry White who I will credit with having a great focus on human rights, even if the Planet is a subpar paper in every way to ours thanks to one Lois Lane’s lackluster writing–was more on evacuating government officials than on the genocide.

Questionably as appalling as the genocide–in a moral way that, to a journalist, rivals the death of a people–was the treatment of the genocide after the fact. The Rwandan Patriotic Front followed the interahamwe and the Hutu-dominated military into Zaire (what is now called The Democratic Republic of the Congo) and pillaged–that’s slaughtered and raped for those unfamiliar with coy terminology–their way across the eastern part of the Congo. Two years later, Zaire was once again invaded and a puppet government was installed. When that government crumbled, the government once again ransacked the country like some sadistic Santa Claus stumbling in through your fireplace to devour all of your cookies. With a hint of a Krumpus flair.

These actions caused a total death-count of around five-million congolese people.

None of these actions were adequately covered in the news.

So what does all of this have to do with me being a journalist? Oh, I have a point–trust me, I always have a point. Maybe I’m still a writer, through and through and it might be lost in the superfluous overzealousness of my ideas, but there’s always a point. 

I became a reporter for one simple reason: to find truth.

Were there news stories surrounding these events? Of course. Coverage might have been ill-focused during the time–far more for the Rwandan genocide than the Cambodian, though that could be attributed to the times and the lack of such a fine political conscience that Americans carry with them, today–but it was covered. But these moments are forgotten. 

Lost in history. 

A girl with knit eyebrows, forgetting the effect of war and conflict in a country so far away from my own.

Not only were these events transient in the media–not only did I watch them fade underneath the fickle eye of the current press with no lasting coverage or true understanding of the events that took place–I watched the media effectively suppress information.

Stories need to be told and information cannot be suppressed. What do both the Cambodian massacre and the Rwandan genocide have in common? The same thing any government needs in order to systematically commit atrocities against the Geneva Convention–the same thing anyone needs to commit a crime against humanity, big or small: silence. 

Cooperated silence. 

These governments silenced the media within their countries. They controlled the information flow so tightly that there was only one story that was ever told and a lasting embargo was placed worldwide over these events to not endanger the lives of any officials left in the war zone.

No one was talking about it. 

The moment a government starts oppressing speech–the moment the government takes away a people’s voice is the same moment they ultimately take away their humanity. 

Their tie to the world is cut.

How would you feel? In the land of the Great, if we were slowly starting to be distorted–cut off from news, from information flow. If stories of truth turned to ‘stories that the government told us’ which, ultimately, lead to global news of stories of what the government said, since there’s no other form of information available…would you feel safe? Would you feel safe being involved in a ‘He Said’ ‘He said’ with Big Brother? 

Oh, I can hear the rackling shackles of Republicans even while I’m writing this, but it’s not political–it’s human.

What would have happened if one voice in a sea of millions fought for their right to be heard–fought for their right to exist? Is it likely that millions of people might be alive, due to one voice? Oftentimes, political stressors are overwhelming–we’re led to believe that we’re cogs in a system, barreling out of control. 

No. Oh, no–no. Fake. News.

I’m one woman and I have, a will continue to make a difference, and so can you.

That is why it is so important that we have not only a global conscience–but a global presence in the world–humanity is not just a contained problem that happens on the other side of the globe. It is not just a number on a scale of millions dead. It is a problem that could someday affect us and already should simply from the ethical position of allowing it to happen, in the first place.

I don’t say all of this to endlessly guilt you. I believe there’s nothing wrong with taking joy in the finer things in life–in indulging in the good things, instead of just entrenching yourself in the bad–and, like I’d earlier informed you, I do have a nice mattress. I’m not a pauper constantly toiling away underneath the stress of the hedonism of humanity. 

But I do stay informed–I think it is my duty to stay informed, just as I think it’s yours–and, furthermore, it’s my duty to inform you. To tell you the truth with integrity and steadfast objectivity. 

It is my job to ensure that you cannot be blinded by the ‘fake news’ of the world.

Perhaps I don’t tie myself to trees anymore, and my heels are far more upclass, but there’s still a fire of injustice within me. I think there is for anyone who’s masochistic enough to persue the truth of the world because, oh, it can be cruel. And it can be abhorrent. And human nature can be so bone-crushingly haunting that it aches–it leaves a hole within you where humanity used to be–but there’s a brightness to it, as well. 

There will always be people who fight, if you give them a cause–there will always be hope to survive; to push past; to assist those who have been faced with atrocities–and that’s why I became a journalist. To give them a voice. To give them a light.

To give them a choice to fight.

I became a reporter to give a voice to places that no longer have a voice–to make these stories have a lasting impact of relevance and to question not only my own complacency with silence, but to challenge the world’s. It is far easier to ignore the atrocities of the world. It’s far easier to pretend that war is non-existent and that we hold no part in it, if it’s not on our soil we don’t have to handle the short and long-term effects as someone in the country might.

But humans haven’t survived because we’ve had it easy–we’ve survived by building communities. Fostering innovation and pushing together, ultimately, as a society. 

Any cruelty the world faces, I will do my best to ensure that people don’t furrow their brows in forget a few years later–instead, we can all rise up against them, history that steel in our spine molded by information, not a rusty old college dormitory bed, and proudly proclaim: 

Not again. 

This article was published and hosted by CatCo Worldwide Media; edit et al: Lucas Carr; feat: Cat Grant; CatCo WW M - 2015.

[thevalkyriesonline]

Nine Worlds; One Valkyries Trip To London’s Inclusive Fan Convention

Conventions appeal to different fans for different reasons, whether it be comic con, a game expo, YouTube/Blogger convention or whatever the medium but one common factor in all of these conventions is the possibility to meet other like-minded fans! As well as hopefully getting the chance to meet your idols! 

There is a Con though that really thrives on fans, it is called Nine Worlds (London’s Inclusive Fan Culture Convention). A Con with a difference – the difference being it is made by fans for fans to meet other fans and just enjoy and celebrate their fandom in all it’s crazy geekiness.

It has been going since 2013 when it was first set up but I only heard about it last summer (2017) when I discovered that one talk held there was titled “It’s research! Or Why it is ok to play over 100 hours of Dragon Age when you really should be writing.” This, as a huge Dragon Age fan since discovering Inquisition, spoke to me on a level that none of my immediate friends understood or appreciated. Unfortunately I was unable to attend Nine Worlds in 2017, but the fact that there was a time and place to have such a discussion on such a unique fan-based topic inspired me to endeavor to attend in 2018. So as soon as the Early Bird Tickets became available I put my money where my heart wanted me to and I began to plan and save for a big solo adventure to London for Nine Worlds 2018.

I also made another bold and brave and foolish decision to sign up as a Content Provider for Nine Worlds 2018!

Why? – because why not? I have been a mega reader, hoarder and fan of all fiction featuring, adapting or retelling Norse Mythology for years and Nine Worlds provided me with the ideal and probably only platform where I could take the chance to share my enthusiasm and passion for the genre of Norse Fantasy. The Nine Worlds Team accepted my proposal, so, on top of saving for the hotel room on-site and booking train travel I also had to plan a lecture/talk – I was both really nervous and really excited! The months, weeks and days soon dwindled down to departure day and then I was off down to London for what I hoped would be a fun and busy weekend.

Now on to the fun bit – the various sessions and events and panel discussions! These were the ones I attended but over 50 were held each day of the convention so this is just a small sample of what fandom and genres were covered.

Session One – LARP (Live Action Role Play). Speakers; Penny Jackson, Adam Dinwoodie, Mx RA Madgwick and Haplocke Spence

As I am attending my first ever LARP event, set in the world of Dragon Age in November this was a must for me! The panel was made up of experienced and new-ish LARP players and they gave a great insight into how LARP’ing works, the various types and systems involved, clothing and equipment, rules for both play and player protection and more.

Session Two – The Only Toilet in Thedas. Speakers; Sarah Gordon, Phil Dyson, Angela Cleland

Now who couldn’t resist that title? Especially when you are a Dragon age fan. This panel discussion was the most interesting because it covered not just the world of games but also of books, TV and Film. It made me realize how much in Fantasy the practical matters of hygiene from toilets to sewers to bathing are just not address yet in Sci-Fi it’s more visible. The panel discussed whether it was a taboo or simply a matter of too much detail on a very personal and private matter – for instance do you want to know how long the hero, heroine, villain or indeed any character takes on the toilet? If they wash their hands or not? – but then again social, religious and cultural practices exist even within the bathroom and so perhaps it should be represented more?

Session Three – Know Thy Enemy. Speakers; Adrian Tchaikovsky, Jeanette Ng, Ms Anna Stephens

This was a panel debate all about the nature and representation of Villains. I found it fascinating to discuss Villains and their nature, one panel member made the very good point on how it is wrong to see the Villain as the champion of Chaos and the Hero of Order for it is in fact the other way around. In many scenarios across all mediums it is the Villain that has established some type of order whether through politics, society, culturally or religious or just geographically or financially but it is the Hero who emerges to disrupt that form of order and thus bring about chaos. This made me instantly think of Katniss in the Hunger Games, she is rebelling against the ruling society and its cultural practice of the Games and thus brings war to the capital city and thus chaos. Another issue discussed was whether the viewer/reader must be sympathetic towards Villains. The panel debated hard on this topic and in the end agreed that sympathy isn’t necessary for a Villain to be a true villain or a good villain but what is necessary is that the viewer/reader gets a sense of the Villain’s journey to their villainy – they must see where, how and why the character has become the Villain, whether for good or bad, and so enjoy the Villain’s redemption or come-uppance by the hero.

Session Four – D&D (Dungeons and Dragons) for Young People. Speaker; Elizabeth Prais

In my day job as a college Librarian I had recently learned of a lunch-time Dungeons and Dragons group being set up by a teacher after some students expressed an interest. So, I was eager to learn more tips and tricks to either host such a group in the Library or pass on to my colleague. The lady who hosted this session hailed from America and was very open about how she ran her local residential D&D group for her daughter and some local children. She gave some great recommendations and advice on timing, kit, planning, preparation and how to adjust and adapt the large and complex set of rules for a younger more impatient audience.

Session Five – Philosophy and Mass Effect. Speaker; Michael Duxbury, Emily Marlow

Now this was the first session I wasn’t entirely clued up on as I myself am still stuck half way through playing Mass Effect 2 by Bioware so a lot of the moral/ethical dilemmas they talked about I hadn’t actually experienced yet, or I couldn’t remember what I chose in the ones I was familiar with. Yet it was interesting and food for thought on how the scenarios were portrayed, and the fixed set of options provided resulted in the moral and ethics becoming such a personal dilemma for players. It wasn’t always a case of choosing the lesser of two evils but how the player and indeed the character depending on their Renegade to Hero balance would pick. Some panel members and indeed people in the audience felt that more choices would improve and increase the dilemma levels instead of just A or B. The panel also discussed how often, at least amongst themselves, they would pick based on the benefit or not long term, not the short term and play with a view of working towards achieving success or a goal.

Session Six – Beyond Marvel and DC – What comics you should be reading. Speakers; Angie Wenham, Stephen Lacey, Kate Barton, Ram V

The panel mentioned a great many titles, artists, apps and webcomics that they recommended as alternatives to Marvel/DC and then invited the audience to contribute. I recommended Nimona* by Noelle Stevenson  and I Hate Fairy Land by Skottie Young.

* Interested in Nimona? Check out our review! 

I Hate FairyLand

Nimona

Session Seven – Disney Sing-A-Long

This was the true highlight for me as an eternal child thanks to the magic of Disney. I wasn’t the only adult in the room, it was a very popular event and there were children of all ages and their parents and even a few Disney cosplayers too. We were all able to sing-a-long via screen projecting the words, or handouts or follow a link online. A whole range of songs was sung and Frozen ‘Let It Go’ proved to be a major popular one with a member of Con Staff leading a friendly stage invasion and then everyone proudly showed off all the right moves to the lyrics. I honestly was in tears with joy as some of the most powerful songs were sung by young and old alike.

The final event I will review was the FABULOUS MMORPG SHOW. Speaker; Misha Anker, Paul Flannery

Which was a blend of audience power and D&D – we basically had the Game Master who set up a story, invited some members of the audience to join him on stage and fill in character sheets but they had to be as unconventional as possible and then he would invite the audience to provide character names, objects, powers etc. to the story narrative and the players would roll a giant D20 (20-sided dice) to determine the outcome. This was a whole lot of fun and silliness and the story involved a Bee with a Human Leg, a Swarm of Wasps and a Wizard whose greatest spell was making Jam, they had to find the Cheese Board for the Duck of Doom! You had to be there to believe the story and it was amazingly resolved within the 1 hour and a half session.

Norse Fantasy, My own presentation! 

Was scheduled bright and early on a Saturday morning the night after the first big disco (alas Becky did not go dancing due to a very painful wisdom tooth spoiling things) and yet the room quickly filled up much to my delight. Despite not having the colorful presentation I spent hours on, due to not having my own laptop to plug into the screen, I was still able to explain, explore and introduce so many of my favourite authors and titles to a new audience. Some of the audience also proved to be fellow fans of many of them and a good number took photographs of my favourite title list to go away with to look at later and thanked me for the session, which was an awesome feeling. I was even complimented on my choice of t-shirt for the session – my own Valkyrie t-shirt from Redbubble. It says, “Valkyrie of Odin – Midgard Original – Since 793”. If you are interested in my presentation, I am planning on doing a written version of it for the Valkyries Blog so stay tuned!

Last but not least was the fab mini Geek Market that was on all weekend and as it was also my birthday, I indulged myself in another t-shirt from Genki Gear, some D&D themed tea, tea strainer and mug, two new bookmarks, some funky acrylic necklaces featuring a book and a fox in a bin, some super cute little clay keyrings of Flynn Rider, Thor and Pizza and of course BOOKS! Each attendee got a surprise free book in their bag, but I got two based on libraries and books, The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman and Bookworm by Christopher Nuttall – expect a review on here once I have got around to enjoying them.

Now the managing team have recently stepped down to consult with attendees and invite new members, as they are reviewing their constitution to try and make it more inclusive and representative of those who attend. Although from what I witnessed their inclusive and equality practices were out of this world compared to other cons I’ve been too. I do hope the new organizers can continue what has already been established and continue to make improvements where they feel it is needed. I for one enjoyed it all – despite my wisdom tooth being a very literal pain throughout – for I definitely would attend again.

Did you attend Nine Worlds? What did you think? What was your favourite presentation?

  Purchasing through our amazon affiliate links earns us a small commission at no extra cost to yourself! Any commission earned goes to keeping the Valks in coffee!

A Valkyrie at Nineworlds! @london_geekfest #nineworlds Nine Worlds; One Valkyries Trip To London's Inclusive Fan Convention Conventions appeal to different fans for different reasons, whether it be comic con, a game expo, YouTube/Blogger convention or whatever the medium but one common factor in all of these conventions is the possibility to meet other like-minded fans!

[wallythayer]

How to Reclaim Your Attention Span

Cal Newport, PhD, doesn’t have a Facebook or Twitter account. He gets news mostly from his local newspaper and National Public Radio. An accomplished academic and author, he provides no contact form on his website, purposefully making it difficult for people to reach him for interviews.

In the age of endless stimuli, Newport, an associate professor of computer science at Georgetown University, believes in cultivating an ethic of “deep work” — focusing on one cognitively demanding task at a time. While his personal commitment to depth poses challenges for journalists hoping to quote him in an article, it’s reaped professional rewards. In the decade since obtaining his BA, Newport has earned a PhD, published four books, written numerous peer-reviewed papers, and earned a tenure-track position at an elite university. 

“The ability to stay steady on one target and ignore everything else operates in the brain’s prefrontal regions,” writes Daniel Goleman, PhD, in his best-selling book Focus: The Hidden Driver of Excellence. Specialized circuits in this area allow us to tune in to what’s important (the person we’re having a conversation with in a busy restaurant) and tune out what isn’t (the conversation at the next table). 

While our attention is powerful, it’s also fragile. It “continually fights distractions, both inner and outer,” explains Goleman. 

The way we use our attention also shapes and controls our reality. “If we don’t consciously choose where we want to direct our attention, there will always be something in our path to misdirect it,” writes former Microsoft and Apple executive Linda Stone, who coined the term “continuous partial attention” — the idea that we pay partial attention continuously out of a desire to not miss anything, always on the lookout for something more interesting than what’s before us. 

While paying close attention can be challenging, there are actions we can take to strengthen this capacity and lay the groundwork for becoming more attentive.

Get Emotional Support

Focused attention is a component of cognitive ability, but it also involves our emotions. 

“Emotional cues are not only ubiquitous in our lives and environment, they are also strong distractions, often interfering with our ability to both -accomplish tasks and maintain equanimity,” writes Richard Davidson, PhD, in his best-selling book, The Emotional Life of Your Brain. 

The power of emotion to affect our ability to focus led the neuroscientist to include attention — along with resilience, outlook, social intuition, self-awareness, and sensitivity to context — as one dimension of what he calls the brain’s “emotional style.” Our emotional style dictates, with some consistency, how we respond to our experiences, and it is governed by specific, identifiable, measurable brain circuits.

Like all the factors comprising emotional style, attention lies on a spectrum, with narrow focus on one end and distraction on the other. If you tend to be hyperfocused, you might find yourself so involved in a project or one side of an argument that you miss the bigger picture. If you land on the unfocused end, you may find when you read the final words on a page that you’ve forgotten what was written at the top. 

There is also more than one type of attention. Davidson describes selective attention as the capacity to focus on certain features of an environment and ignore others. It’s a key building block of self-awareness. 

Another type — open, nonjudgmental awareness — involves the ability to recognize signals from the external environment, as well as any thoughts and feelings that pop up in our brains, without getting stuck on any one stimulus. 

Fortunately, even if we tend toward hyperfocus or distraction, the brain’s plasticity allows us to adjust our style of paying attention.

For example, Davidson advises the überfocused to keep their office doors open, place photos of loved ones on their desks, and scatter books and magazines around as temptation to pick one up. Those who are more easily distracted can try keeping the office door closed and removing extraneous stimuli. 

You might also try these attention-building practices:

• Daily mindfulness meditation, Davidson explains, can help improve concentration. “We have found that long-term meditation practitioners, when engaged in the simple practice of focusing on an object, show higher levels of activation in the prefrontal cortex and parietal cortex,” he says. This -“executive” part of the brain also governs self-awareness and decision-making.  

• Body-scan exercises can improve self-awareness, he notes. Because your focus moves across your whole body, scanning trains your mind to move from detailed attention on one spot — such as your big toe — to wider awareness. This can be helpful to people who struggle with either distraction or hyperfocus.

“Investigating physical sensations is one of the best ways for us to learn to be present with whatever is happening in the moment and to recognize the difference between direct experience and the add-ons we bring to it,” says meditation instructor Sharon Salzberg, author of Real Happiness: The Power of Meditation.

• Breathing exercises are another good tool for boosting self-awareness and dealing with strong emotions. To help stressed-out kids stabilize their thinking, connect more deeply, and refocus, actress Goldie Hawn’s MindUP program integrates deep-breathing exercises in its pre-kindergarten-through-eighth-grade curriculum. The program shows teachers how to lead students through three-minute “brain breaks.” These breaks, taken three times a day, calm the brain’s amygdala, which plays a primary role in emotional response. This helps improve students’ capacity to focus and retain information.

• Monotasking allows for and strengthens focused engagement, Davidson explains. Continually switching between tasks, on the other hand, saps your attention. Doing one thing at a time enhances focus and boosts your short-term memory. Multitasking causes your body to release more stress hormones, such as cortisol and adrenaline, which can lead to health problems when chronically elevated. (For more on the impact of stress, see “Hormonal Harmony.”)

Go Deep 

Cal Newport exemplifies the attention-strengthening benefits of monotasking. In addition to helping him make significant career advances quickly, his deep-work ethic has personal benefits, too. 

“For the most part, I don’t touch a computer between the time I get home from work and the next morning when the new workday begins,” he writes in Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World. 

“This ability to fully disconnect, as opposed to the more standard practice of sneaking in a few quick work email checks, or giving in to frequent surveys of social-media sites, allows me to be present with my wife and two sons in the evenings, and read a surprising number of books for a busy father of two.”

Studies have shown that reading books improves cognitive function, working memory, and the ability to detect and understand other people’s emotions. So by spending time reading, Newport is doing the kind of focused work that enhances his ability to pay attention. (If it feels like you don’t have time to read books, reconsider the time you spend on other activities. For example, Americans currently spend about four hours per day watching television.) 

To strengthen your ability to focus, try to minimize “shallow work,” those activities we often perform while distracted that don’t demand deep thought — mindlessly scrolling through email or social-media feeds, for example. Like Newport, you might consider avoiding social media altogether or scheduling specific time periods when you use the internet instead of randomly checking it throughout the day. 

In fact, Newport recommends scheduling every minute of your day. “We spend much of our day on autopilot — not giving much thought to what we’re doing with our time,” he writes. “It’s difficult to prevent the trivial from creeping into every corner of your schedule if you don’t face, without flinching, your current balance between deep and shallow work, and then adopt the habit of pausing before action and asking: What makes the most sense right now?” 

And when it comes to email, Newport suggests sending and responding to only those messages that really matter. 

Manoush Zomorodi, host of the technology-focused podcast Note to Self and author of Bored and Brilliant: How Spacing Out Can Unlock Your Most Productive and Creative Self, agrees. “People confuse productivity with responsiveness,” she says. 

To help workplaces become more focused, Zomorodi suggests they purposefully and thoughtfully use collaborative platforms, such as Slack. “The idea is that you have channels where you can talk to your colleagues, so you aren’t on email as much,” she says. “But what happens is that we spend so much time updating that we don’t have the opportunity to do the harder thinking.” 

Cutting down on needless communication reduces stress. Zomorodi notes that her readers and listeners are often seeking ways to handle workplace burnout, much of which relates to consistent demands on their attention. “The pinging and constant updating is driving people crazy, and making them feel like they don’t have time to do their actual work.” (For more insights from Zomorodi, see “Creative Inspiration: Manoush Zomorodi.”) 

To ease employees’ work-related stress and improve focus and productivity, some companies, including Volkswagen and Deutsche Telekom, have attempted to change the “always-notifying” workplace culture by limiting after-hours and weekend email use. You can do this for yourself by removing the email app from your phone or turning your phone off on weekends and evenings, and by disabling notifications and alerts. 

Take Breaks

A few years ago, while on a sabbatical from Silicon Valley’s daily distractions, futurist and researcher Alex Soojung-Kim Pang, PhD, decided to study the habits of Charles Darwin, Winston Churchill, Stephen King, and other productive people. Although these legendary creatives designed their lives around their work, they didn’t spend long days toiling away. 

Instead, they organized their days to include intensive blocks of concentrated work — typically around four hours — followed by a period of intentional rest, and then another shorter bout of less-intense work. 

 “Deliberate rest and focus complement and reinforce each other,” says Pang, author of Rest: Why You Get More Done When You Work Less. “Not only does rest give you time to recharge the energy you spend at work, but improving your capacity to detach from work deepens your ability to concentrate and be present on the job.” (For more on this concept, see “Deliberate Rest.”) 

Rest is an antidote to attention fatigue, a collection of cognitive symptoms that occur when the brain’s inhibitory system — which tunes out distractions — gets worn down from use. And resting doesn’t necessarily mean napping, although Churchill’s afternoon snooze was a nonnegotiable part of his daily routine. 

Since concentration is demanding, active restorative breaks can also help your body refresh the oxygen and energy your brain needs. Pang cites a group of scientists who relax by rock climbing as an example of “deep play” — an activity that provides many of the same psychological rewards as work. 

Scientific experimentation and rock climbing require the same kind of cognitive problem-solving, Pang explains. “They both involve seeing the big challenge and then breaking it down into little parts.” 

The absorbing and challenging nature of deep play provides room for finding yourself in flow — the intense state of concentration that leaves you feeling energized and that benefits both your work and your well-being. (For more on the connection between flow states and happiness, see “Go With the Flow.”)

Smooth the Transitions

Increasing your ability to transition between tasks is another key to improving attention. Failure to disengage fully from one task before moving on to another can leave your mind spinning in loops of chronic anxiety. It can also impinge on your performance at work and in relationships. 

In the late 1990s, while working as a consultant, Sophie Leroy, PhD, began seeing many employees struggle to pay attention during meetings. After conference calls, she noticed that distracted participants would often express a desire to have spent more time on a topic that had been discussed for several minutes. 

In a 2009 paper, Leroy outlined the phenomenon of “attention residue” — remaining thoughts about one task that distract us from our present one.

Now an associate professor at the University of Washington Bothell’s School of Business, Leroy maintains that strong performance depends on an ability to successfully transition our attention. For example, when we glance at our phones, go to a meeting, and proceed directly to an important conversation with a significant other without taking a break, our brains never get a chance to process information, integrate ideas, or find temporary closure.

“It’s like windows staying open in our brains, and it makes it hard to focus on the intervening work,” Leroy says. “If I am still thinking about task A while trying to do task B, I don’t have the cognitive capacity to process those two tasks at the same time and do a perfect job on both tasks.”

To help manage shifts of attention, Leroy suggests making a “ready-to-resume” plan — a routine to close the task you’re stepping away from and free up your attention for a new activity. This is as simple as taking one minute to write a list of what still needs to be done to complete the unfinished task. When you close that list, you’re ready to move on to the next thing. 

In Leroy’s studies, participants who switched tasks without a plan remained distracted and their performance was inhibited. By contrast, those who made a still-to-do list showed improved performance on the next task and less stress from attention residue. 

Pausing between activities is a gentle way of bringing awareness into the present moment. It allows us to reflect on what we value and how we want to use our attention. We can mindlessly give it away or direct it toward something with intention. As Linda Stone notes, it’s a powerful choice we get to make, every moment of every day. 

This originally appeared as “Play Close Attention” in the September 2018 print issue of Experience Life.

Get the full story at https://experiencelife.com/article/reclaim-your-attention-span/

[prayatnasoe]

ARTICLE 01 

A Democratic Work Model - Vibrant democracy at Prayatna

A democratic work model is one in which everybody has good subordinates and bosses and everybody can adjust his work status at will. It refers to a society where the rank and file can vote on issues, not just the senior people, because all constituents have some say in how things are run. This is distinct from a fully managerial model, in which the leader is seen as almost mythical—an ideal role model whose job it is to inspire people into being better managers themselves.

Students in the fresh political atmosphere created by the Prayatna Authorities at the Centre are keen on performing certain tasks as suggested by their leaders with utmost dedication. 

For instance, they would like to form a “Mandal” to run their school/educational institution/operation in a democratic way. It is expected that these students will work hard and give their best efforts in fulfilling the conditions put by their political leaders

The Cabinet is mandated to function as a collective organ. This mandates that elected members of the members draft and adopt policy and programme documents which are all modelled on the consolidated policies of the student matters and implementing rules of the Institution. 

Students in Prayatna Education NGO  have the right to choose their local leaders via general elections held once in six months through written and electronic applications. Students have the right to elect one or more members of their school's student council to serve as their leader. Each student has two votes for choosing their candidate which makes it crucial that candidates represent a wide range of opinions among

Why Prayatna’s Democratic Work Model?

Students cabinet is the most important and popular place for students to interact with each other, but it’s quickly become a “memories room” that contains countless stories and anecdotes pulled from many different students. The team behind Students Cabinet decided to make this online place because we believe browsing through photos of happy moments with friends can enhance any negative moment at school. The cabinet’s purpose is to keep students connected and inspired on a daily basis and, more importantly, help break down any barriers that may exist between students.

Migrant Children become empowered when they work on a project that fulfills our passions. When they complete a significant project, not only did they overcome some obstacle, but children also experienced the gratification of overcoming an obstacle. 

The sense of accomplishment can be so rewarding that we continue working towards our goals even when we feel we cannot succeed. This is where development of a sense of empowered comes in. We learn to see things from others’ perspective, get better at seeing relationships through different eyes, and gain the confidence to take action when we have chosen not to by following a safer routine. Then we can choose to continue developing these abilities to win over opportunities in our lives of our children!

ARTICLE 2 

Nurturing a 6 year old | Child Learning

As a parent, communication with your child is the key to learning. It is important to be clear about what you want from them and what you don't want. Children will respond well to parental direction and structure. It is also important to use positive reinforcement when necessary. Also, it is helpful to practice raising awareness of body language and other non verbal cues that might indicate that your child wants something. After all, if we can't read what our kids are thinking, we aren't going to teach them very much!

While most kids are happy to stay home and play with Legos and blocks, a small percentage start kindergarten armed with a pencil and paper.

These early learners learn better when they have tasks to complete than when they are just playing. In their quest for grades, early learners must learn to work hard and persist. Sometimes this means sitting still and doing what they are told.

ESSENTIAL ASPECTS TO NURTURING A CHILD

There are six elements to the nurture of a child:

Parents should provide affection and attention. Families should exchange gifts Parents should help children learn how to solve problems Their role should be to organize activities that increase their senses

Physical and emotional well being is something that many overlook. Physical well being encompasses activities that build and deepen our bones, muscles, ligaments, tendons, brain activity and nervous system. Emotional well being encompasses nurturing and supporting relationships with family, friends, colleagues and people in our lives. Physical well being builds us up to be strong enough to handle whatever life throws at us without getting injured (our bodies are built for this!) and emotional well being keeps us stable and happy enough to function at our best level.

DIETARY NURTURING

So many of us go to bed hungry every night. This is a major reason why weight gain occurs. If you are eating correct amounts of food, you will have energy for the next day. If you don’t have enough nutrients in your body, it can only deal with so much pain before it gives up. The next day, you wake up feeling like crap... or worse yet, sluggish. If your body isn’t running properly, you are setting yourself up to experience chronic pain.. This article outlines the general nutritional type of foods you should be eating when pursuing any exercise program or diet that

SOCIAL LEARNINGS

Social Development is about increasing the quality and extent of community involvement in work, business, and social activities. This approach integrates the general philosophy of entrepreneur George Russell Couch from his famous 1945 essay """"Social Choice"""" in which he outlined his theory of choice architecture. Couch argued that children must develop their abilities through interacting with people and organizations different from themselves, developing competencies where necessary, and working in ways that promote social welfare and well-being for everyone

Attention is the most precious thing in the world— and I've learned over time that if you give more of it, you'll get more of what you want. In the pursuit of our dreams, we often give ourselves away. We become distracted, our energy shoots off, and we give up on things that should be made a priority. But it doesn't have to be this way. If you learn to pay more attention to the things you want massively and give yourself permission each day to let go of the things you don't, you have a better chance of getting what you really want—and more importantly, letting go of the things that drain your energy and leave you feeling hollow.

ARTICLE 3 

Quality Management in Government Schools & Socio-cultural development 

The biggest difference between education in the private and the public sectors is not what students learn but what teachers and principals do in order to deliver an unforgettable education. In recent years this has led to a shift in how government schools interact with their students and their parents.

Students are brave and optimistic individuals who put their own ideals and interests above those of others. Despite being taught to be subservient to authority figures, children today resist taking orders from teachers and prefer to think for themselves. This makes them good role models for others because they always seek out new information and evaluate based on its merit.

Let’s dive into Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural Aspects of Education

        Spiritual development""  is also conducive to an emotionally healthy and prosperous childhood. Students should be encouraged to think about faith and moral issues from a young age, and that moral development should be given weight in the curriculum. Few social issues are more directly relevant to young people than climate change, and yet very few schools help their students think critically about the issue.                                            

Moral development involves supporting students to make considered choices around their behaviour and the values that provide a framework for how they choose to live."""" This may mean encouraging them to think more carefully about how they use welfare benefits or arrange their care-giving so as not to disadvantage themselves, for example. It may also mean bringing home the house on time so everyone has a meal each evening even if they can’t afford one themselves. Moral development does not consist in lecturing or attempting to convert others but encouraging them to think for themselves and act accordingly. 

Social Development involves to know how to stand up for others; how to compromise, hold firm, listen and accept other people's opinions, and how to express views even if they conflict with those of others.````Social development may consist of learning how to spread the work you do, developing the skills and knowledge about work that you already possess, or learning new skills that will enable you to do more effective work. All have value and should be pursued as part of your professional development. However, personal development acknowledges the fact that different people respond to different processes. Thus, some methods of social development might be more appropriate for some people than others.

Cultural development supports students to build global awareness and empathy for other cultures. They should challenge discrimination based on cultural or racial difference. They should experience cultural traditions embedded in arts, crafts, language, literature, theatre, song, music, dance, sport, Science, technology and travel. Cultural development in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) encourages students to develop critical thinking, creativity, problem solving and communication skills through experiential learning. This includes not only formal educational programs but experiential learning as well as networking and partnerships with other organizations.

ARTICLE 4 

UNDERSTANDING CHILD PSYCHOLOGY 

There are a lot of pieces to understanding children. It’s important to look at how each child perceives different situations and how this influences their actions. There is much information available online about psychology, but we’re going to focus on how you can use this information to advocate for your child in the best possible light. As parents we have to realize that each kid is different and develop our own specific techniques for getting along with them in order to get the best out of them.

There is much we can learn from our children. Research shows that """"even very small aspects of children's development can have huge effects on adult outcomes."""" For example, if a student displays one kind of emotion but has another hidden emotion, such as fear, this will have a huge impact on how the adult treats the child. Children's emotions are not always correctly identified or labeled. This can lead to a lot of confusion as parents try to help their kids with their emotions, unaware that they are doing more harm than good.

Why is it so important?

Child development and Children Learning is incredibly complicated. It's as if something's been set in stone, set in stone for thousands of years, yet we're still figuring it out. We don't yet fully understand the causes and effects of human behavior, but understanding child psychology helps us understand many aspects of early development. Later in life we can apply these insights to solve problems. Each person is unique and has their own characteristics, emotional makeup and behavior that develops as they grow older. The older you get, the more important your psychological development becomes. As we continue to develop as individuals, our needs change, our behaviors change, and our abilities change.

Child psychology and development affects us in ways we realise only later in life. As parents, we need to understand our children’s development so we can equip them with the skills they need to succeed in life. In this section you will discover how characteristics such as confidence, self confidence, emotional intelligence, problem solving ability, empathy and perseverance can be used by teachers and parents to help children conduct themselves in an ethical and competent manner.

Detailed Aspects to Child Development 

Child psychological development is a process that affects a person from infancy to age 18. There are three stages of child development: causal, functional, and expressive. Each stage has connotations for a particular ability or ability proficiency that a child will acquire. The causal stage is characteristics that cause certain changes in thinking and behavior. For example, your child might begin displaying the signs of causal reasoning at about age 3. Common causal abilities include reasoning, vocabulary, conceptual understanding, and planning.

There are many factors that influence a child's intelligence or development. One important factor is the family environment. The kind of parenting practices practiced, as well as how interventions are implemented, has an effect on the kinds of achievements a child may later achieve. Most importantly, however, is the quality of educational programs children receive at school.

Child Development through formal education; informal education includes play and story time. Common childhood illnesses and behaviors resolved through Parenting Through Play. Play is a vital concept in all areas of life whether we realize it or not. Play encourages imaginative thinking, active listening, problem solving, and problem-solving. It helps children learn to cooperate and co-opt authority. It develops fine motor skills and arm-flapping skills that teach children to express themselves through balancing on hands and feet, swinging from ropes, using pretend weapons

OBSERVE & RESPOND

There is much about parenting that we do not understand. Many of us try to supervise as best we can but are not fully aware of the impact of our actions. We inadvertently provide our children with options that are rich in meaning but rarely make them choose between options in ways that feel good. When I was a teenager, a friend of mine suggested I look into behaviourism, a theory that explains why children under certain circumstances will choose to interact in certain ways. This is what I found: children are generally very good at evaluating people and figuring out what is valuable to them. If you want to understand human nature better, the best thing you can do is to observe and record the way your child behaves.

ARTICLE 5 

Slow Development of Indian NGOs and Government Schools. 

The biggest industrial factor that restricts economic development in India is the weak political system. The combined political and administrative capacities of the states is very weak even though the states form a cohesive federation. 

India has a long way to go to catch up with developed countries when it comes to female literacy and employment opportunities. Eastern India has been lagging behind due to both economic factors and institutional arrangements. Recent decades have witnessed a gradual but significant deterioration in the quality of Free education provided in public institutions both for girls and boys. We need to redirection

Eastern India is lagging behind Western India in many spheres. For one, it lags in the area of data collection and matching. Delhi, for example, has 15 data entry points for NGOs whereas Mumbai has only four. Also, while there are 33 million Indians living in Western India, only 23 million are eligible to vote; 15 million are not allowed to cast a ballot for a particular office due to language barriers.

Current Proceedings of the Education reforms.

The digitalization of the curriculum, but there needs to be a rethinking about how Eastern India can succeed in the global pool of `knowledge workers.' In fact, if we want to create a future where a literate person can open up their own business or go into professions like medicine without a college degree, many more. 

Over the last few decades, funding for research in Eastern India has lagged behind that in the West. This has had a deleterious effect on research in areas such as health and engineering. Despite this, many key technological advances—including the cells that make up the heart, which have been successfully transplanted into patients in Western hospitals—have been made. In fact, there are actually some patients in Western hospitals that receive heart transplants from patients in Eastern India.

Data collection from mobile phones and internet use has increased dramatically in the past few years. People across India have become more dependent on data services and this trend will continue. More and more businesses are growing rapidly but lack adequate resources to handle this increased workload. The government should focus on improving the overall quality of services provided by government departments and making them more accessible to citizens through a better

It has to do with our attitude towards Free education and Children NGOs. The West has been steadily investing more in its higher education sector, and is beginning to reap the rewards. One way it does this is by providing computer labs as part of its educational deals with educational institutions.The U.S. has also been giving gifts to its schools, with the Gates Foundation investing $30 million into computer labs over the past five years. Of course, money can't buy everything. But if we want our kids to have access to the most advanced technology, then investing in computer labs is a good place to start.

[khiryworrell]

This project is a photo-series that explores the concept of masculinity in hopes of rebuilding and redefining it. Recently, I sat down with classically-trained, professional dancer and choreographer Ibn Snell of BlocNYC to examine masculinity, from his point-of-view.

I captured Mr. Snell in his element, the stage, where he demonstrated his definition of masculinity: “strength + confidence.” Prior to the portrait session, our conversation ranged from questions about his dance background to more in-depth inquiries that dealt with racial & social issues, as it relates to masculinity.

Read more of our exchange*, here:

Where are you from? And, how has your hometown influenced your artistry? Please be specific.

My name is Ibn Snell, and I’m a dancer and choreographer from South Philadelphia, PA. My hometown has influenced my artistry in many ways, but mainly because [this city] is a town of many entertainers, many dancers and singers. Being in that environment [in addition to] growing up with a family of dancers, you’re eventually going to be shaped and molded within the arts realm.

Growing up as an African-American male, did you ever have any reservations about pursuing dance, specifically pursuing ballet/modern, as a profession?

Well, I first began tap class at the age of four, so I didn’t really have any reservations.

But as I got older, I do remember a specific incident. When I was in the seventh grade, I was scheduled to perform at a dance competition in Las Vegas so my mom came to the school to let the principal know. Then… the principal informed my entire class, and the entire school!

I didn’t want that to happen, and didn’t want my friends to know that I tap danced because I wanted to be perceived as “cool.” I distinctly, however, recall my friend Unique approaching me to congratulate me on that Las Vegas dance competition. It made me feel happy that I was doing something I should be proud of, and I asked myself “What are you hiding?” I’ll always remember her coming up to me to express those kind words because it made me accept the fact that I’ve been doing this since I was four years of age, and I am damn good at it! At that time I was 11 or 12, so I had a good eight-year run. In retrospect, I should have been a little more open to have an outlet where I could explore and express myself.

In your own words, explain what it means to be masculine? And, how do you express masculinity/masculine energy through your art, and within your profession?

I try not to put so many generalizations on things, but I would say strength and confidence, that sums up masculinity for me.

When you're in an industry that’s predominated by one sex, there's a stigma that follows the opposite sex as “gay.” It happens in the dance, modeling and bodybuilding industries a lot.  Mainstream media is quick to portray different types of sports as masculine but not ballet. Many people would be surprised, though, that the elements of traditional athletes (endurance, strength, flexibility, precision, and spacing, etc.) also applies to dancers.

Have there been any impediments or roadblocks in your dance journey, thus far? Have there been people -- family, friends, associates, colleagues -- you may have disconnected from because you chose to pursue dance as a profession? If so, please be specific.

Not at all, humbly speaking. I love my craft. I’m very sensitive about what I do and I believe I am very good at it, and when people see that you good at something, they’re going to stick around and try to see where your talents takes you. I believe if I wasn’t as passionate and as committed to dance as I am now, or as good, then yes I might have listened to those people, and the naysayers saying that I shouldn’t do that. My parents were very supportive, my extended family were too, and all of my friends went to Creative and Performing Arts (CAPA) High School, here in Philly, so they understood the arts and most of them they danced as well.

When was the moment you fell in love with dance? At what age did you attend your first ballet/modern class? Did your parents/guardians have any reservations about you attending because you're male?

I’m not totally sure when I fell in love with dance, I will say when I got serious with my formal training I was around the age of 12. I’d be locked in my room watching dance tapes, learning routines, and trying to be the best dancer I could be. The repetition of me always going to dance school, remembering the dance routines + combinations, then watching them is what made me fall in love with dance. At that age, I said to myself “Ibn, this is what you need to do!”

My mom and dad never had any reservations about it, and were very supportive, but, you know when you’re young, you aren’t naïve, I heard the whispers.

For example, all of my male cousins tap danced, and I was the only one that furthered my career and took other classes like  modern, jazz, and ballet. I love my family to death but you know when you’re young you hear the whispers from your extended family like “The other boys are playing sports, Ibn isn’t playing sports…” That always was stuck in my head, and in a way propelled me to want to be the best at my craft.

How has the overall perception of black male dancers changed since you were younger? Have you seen progress, in society, or is there more work to be done?

I believe it’s changed because technique is always evolving, and art is always evolving. I think that mainstream TV is also highlighting dance and showing it in a positive light through shows like “Dancing with the Stars,” and “So You Think You Can Dance,”so you see a lot more young black males and males of color wanting to get into hip-hop dance, and the dance realm, overall. Since I was young, the perception [of black male dancers] has changed in a really good way. For me, I know I’ve inspired other young black males to take their first dance classes, whether it be at CAPA, Eleone or at my home studio.

Another example of progression I saw was a photograph that showed seventeen black boys in the ballet studio, and the overall message was: “This is Community,” and it showed collectivism over individualism. The fact that young men can be in a dance studio/class wearing tights and ballet shoes, and it’s not a problem? That’s where the comfortability should be permanent! You should be comfortable in whatever it is you’re doing; you’re learning, you’re bettering yourself, and that should be something to celebrate within itself.

I’ve seen a growth in many summer intensives offering full or partial scholarships to males interested in investing in their dance career.  During the summers of 2010 + 2011, I attended The Ailey School on scholarship in New York City, founded by the late Alvin Ailey. I met many black male dancers who traveled from all over the world to experience the legacy the Ailey School has to offer. I am still so thankful for being able to dance at one of the world's most illustrious dance institutions.

The opportunities available to black males may have grown a bit since my training days but there is still work to be done.

Speak on any major accolades or recognition you have received for your artistry. Explain a moment when you were most proud to call yourself a professional dancer.

In November 2012, I went to Rwanda to dance at a “Conflicts of History” performance that depicted the 1994 genocide. I was there for fourteen days, and had the opportunity to teach dance to orphans who did not have a home. It made me feel good to give back to the community. For me, this experience solidified that [dance] is my calling; this is what I’m supposed to be doing.

Name some of your male dance heroes (specifically dancers of color).

My dance heroes include Shawn-Lamere Williams, artistic director of Eleone Dance Theatre, as well as Anthony Purnell, a choreographer for Parkwood Entertainment, Beyonce’s main record label, and William St. David, rehearsal director for Eleone Connection. Purnell has worked with her since 2003, the debut of her first mainstream solo album. Shawn-Lamere has been very influential In the Philadelphia tri-state area as far as dance and giving young people an opportunity to get off the streets and better themselves. During my second year of high school, I got into the second company [Eleone Connection], and William took me under his wing ever since I’ve met him; I can call him for anything!

What advice would you give to young African-American males interested in pursuing ballet/modern dance?

The advice I would give to them is to never listen to any outside noise! Always know that you can do it, if you put your mind to it.

If I were to listen to all the people saying “Why are you tapping?” “You should be playing sports.” etc., I would not have been the confident guy that I am today. Be you and if you really want it, go after it because no one can stop you but you.

How would you like to be remembered, as a professional dancer? What is your legacy?

I want to be remembered for instilling confidence in my peers when they couldn’t complete a dance step. To be remembered for my tenacity, my fierceness, my energy, my fiery speed, my breakneck dance speed, that’s what I would want to remembered for.

The legacy I wish to leave behind is being a good dancer but a better teacher and mentor. I truly believe youth are our future and I have been blessed with the greatest training, teachers and mentors. The experiences they handed me, not only made me a better dancer but a better person through each life lesson that came with the discipline. Teaching will always be a passion of mine, so I hope to continue to do the right thing by educating the youth and giving back.

For more info on Ibn Snell, check him out on Instagram: @ibbsnibbbb

*Edited for readability and flow

[myblogwithothermediainserted]

Wednesday, March 25, 2020 3:58am

This is a facebook post from Dr. Gabriela Magda, Rae Votta’s friend in New York. I would just post the link like I usually would, but I don’t want to risk losing this one. 

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I asked my mother for permission to share this #COVID19 dispatch and she said, “I have no problem with that. I want others to be safe to do whatever is in their power to be safe and to protect others from getting sick.”

Last week I videochatted with my mother and noticed she was congested and ill appearing. She told me she had new backaches and a cough that over the course of the day had turned productive, but that she did not have a fever. Because my mother takes medications for a chronic condition that make her immunocompromised, the temperature she reported to me, 99+, though mildly elevated, was concerning to me and as the day progressed and her temperatures rose to 100.4, I became fearful and contacted her doctors to inform them of what was going on and request an outpatient COVID test which I knew would be available where she receives her care. They replied to me immediately and though initially they were more concerned about influenza, they acquiesced to my request and the next day she drove to the testing site. Though her fevers, aches, and cough persisted, she felt a little bit better than the day before and we were hopeful this would turn out to be no big deal.

The next day, hours into my first day working on one of our hospitals’ COVID teams, my mother’s doctor called me to inform me that my mother had tested positive for COVID19, and because they knew I am a pulmonary/critical care physician we came up with a treatment plan together. I had just spent the morning listening to case presentations of COVID patients as varied as those who could be discharged home to continue their recovery there, to people close in age to me who were fighting for their lives in the ICU. The news of my mother’s diagnosis stunned and scared me, and I went into fight or flight mode coordinating her care, remotely assessing my father, a cancer survivor who lives with COPD, for symptoms, and instructing my parents on how to quarantine from each other on different floors of their house for the foreseeable future.

We do not know where she acquired COVID. It could have been at her job in a New York City public school because despite the urgently expressed insistence of teachers, parents, and students across our city, our elected officials delayed the (difficult) decision to close the schools. It could have been at the grocery store. We will never know, and what matters is not quite where, but rather under what conditions this virus was able to be transmitted. When my mother learned of her diagnosis she called me crying and pleaded, “Why me? What did I do wrong?” My heart broke. You did nothing wrong.

This past week I have been working in the COVID ICU at Bellevue, the oldest public hospital in our country, which occupied a mythical place in my mind while growing up in NYC and at which I now have the amazing opportunity to practice medicine alongside colleagues who are as passionate as I am about providing the best possible care to EVERY person who comes through our doors. Every night when I come home I hear phantom ventilator alarms. The other night I thought I heard one near my bed and almost turned around to see what the problem was before I realized I was home and not in the ICU and that there are no ventilators in my tiny studio apartment. In my brief career, I have never seen anything like what I am seeing in our ICU, nor have my more experienced colleagues. Our census grows daily with patients who develop respiratory failure after a few days of smoldering fever and cough. A pattern of middle-aged patients representing all walks of life who have certain co-morbidities seemed to develop, but we are seeing even younger patients with the illness. It is not socially responsible to say that this disease afflicts only the elderly. We are no longer allowing routine visitation by family members so as to prevent further spread of the infection to themselves and to other people. This is just one of the difficult decisions that we are tasked with making on a daily basis.

As predicted by anyone with a keen eye on social justice and labor rights, those affected include workers who could not afford to take a day off from their jobs lest they lose even a day of much needed income. When I look at these patients, I am reminded of my parents, working class immigrants who diligently went to their difficult jobs every day to put food on the table for me so that I could grow up comfortably and fulfill my dreams in this country that sometimes doesn’t seem to care as much about people like them as it does about the ultrarich and ultraprivileged. My father was a New York City taxi driver for my entire life until 2 weeks before I went to medical school in New Orleans, when he retired and within the same week was diagnosed with cancer. If it weren’t for being married to my mother, whose employer provided them both health insurance, he would not have received the chemo, radiation, surgery, and follow-up care that saved his life. He worked 12+ hours per day, 7 days a week, 365 days per year during his tenure as a cabbie. I wonder to myself, if he had still been driving his cab during this pandemic, would he be one of the patients whose ventilator I now adjust on a daily basis?

This is not the first time I have grieved for my city. I remember exactly who I sat behind during Spanish class when I heard the first plane fly into the World Trade Center. I watched the towers burn from my homeroom window. I walked 70 blocks and 6 avenues that day and along the way found a woman who I recognized from my morning commute and asked her if I could go with her to wherever she was going just so I had someone to walk with. I remember the devastated faces I passed on the street. When I was finally able to get to a working telephone to call my mom, I remember the sound of relief in her voice because she thought I had died. My childhood street has since been named after a first responder who lived on it until that day. I remember the acrid smell that persisted in the air when we were finally allowed to return to school, and I feel lucky that unlike some of my classmates from that time, the only ailments I suffer from are chronic sinusitis and the occasional unpleasant memory.

This is an entirely different crisis because it does not have a sense of finitude (although in many ways, neither has that day), and the thing we are contending with is invisible except for its horrific consequences we are seeing play out in our hospitals everyday. It is an affront to my parents, my patients, and my colleagues who are literally sacrificing their own well-being to take care of our city, when I observe or hear of people still publicly congregating in dense groups despite repeated warnings from leadership, physicians, and scientists to stay home. It enrages me when I hear out of touch politicians irresponsibly prattle on about people going back to work in a couple of weeks when we are struggling to manage the current onslaught in our hospitals and my colleagues and I fear we are nowhere near the peak of this problem.

I do feel like everything in my life has prepared me for this moment and that I am meant to be right here, right now, working in whatever ways I am able to with my colleagues to take care of the people who need us the most. I am the first physician in my family; the life I have lived is so radically different from the ones my parents lived in Ceausescu’s Romania. I chose to go to New Orleans for medical school because I was haunted by images of Hurricane Katrina and I wanted to learn from people who kept that city afloat (literally and figuratively) while the agencies who were supposed to help them failed them. I ranked my residency in Washington, DC, because I wanted the opportunity to rotate at the National Institute of Health, where Dr. Fauci and his colleagues were my attendings and taught us about the ravages of the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s and 1990s. The day after the election in 2016, I cried with my patients about the results and will never forget the words of one woman who held my hands as she expressed her regret that she could not vote due to her hospitalization and said, “This is going to be bad for me.” I was so thrilled when I matched in New York at my current fellowship program because I knew I would be joining the ranks of an amazingly dedicated, compassionate, innovative group of people who show unwavering and undeterred care for every single New Yorker. I am so proud of my family of colleagues here and across the world who are selflessly and tirelessly working in whatever capacity in order to care for patients.

I am once again urging you to heed the calls for social distancing. I have been reading your posts and am painfully aware that some of you are deeply struggling to pay your rent and your bills because of this turn of events. I am so sorry. I am encouraging you to elect politicians whose interests are to create a social safety net for all people in this country, and not just to provide tax cuts and benefits to people who they perceive to palatably satisfy certain demographic criteria. I am imploring you to hold your elected officials accountable and demand they provide healthcare workers with the resources we need to take care of you, and the resources you need to be able to stay home nourished and properly sheltered so that our healthcare system can accommodate everyone who desperately needs it right now.

My mom is doing okay for now. I am remotely monitoring my parents daily. We are scared that any day the other shoe could drop, but we are trying to remain hopeful and grateful. In the meantime, the magnolia tree behind my building continues to bloom magnificently, the birds continue to chirp obliviously, the sun continues to set and rise again…

https://www.facebook.com/806222/posts/10109579688763729/?d=n

https://twitter.com/gabmagda/status/1242618464826785792

[msbrittonsblog]

Helpful Resources: Teacher Edition

They always tell you never to start anything with a quote, so instead, I’ll start with the idea that every single day, you always learn something new, even when something doesn't match exactly what you wanted, you can actually learn quite a bit from it. Or, if you don’t receive as much as you were looking for, sometimes less is better. 

After receiving two out of three emails back from my old high school teachers, I was able to look into some of the resources that they gave to me in preparation for becoming a teacher. Some I already was very familiar with such as Kahoot and Quizlet, but I challenged myself to find something new about them that I never once knew before. Some resources were Latin oriented because my old Latin teachers still want me to pursue a career involving Latin as I took it for four years in high school, and I was also a Teacher's Aide for my last two years. Even though they were Latin specific, I tried to see if I could spin it for my concentration, which I will later discuss. I also wanted to look into a book called “Boy’s Life” by Robert R. McCammon, which was recommended to me by my practicum mentor teacher, Mr. Smith. He swears by this book and thinks it is the best book to teach your students, and that it is definitely underappreciated as a resource to use in the classroom as it is his favorite book. Mr. Smith shared with me his story about encountering this book, and I thought it was only fair to dedicate some of my time in order to look into it so maybe one day I can teach it to my students. 

The first resource I started looking into was one given to me by D-Whit, also known as Ms. Whitmore, my old advisor, who was also a Latin teacher. This was a website called “Maine Classics,” where a group of Latin teachers and classics professors run a site dedicated to “spreading the teaching of the classics in Maine.” At first, I thought I wasn’t going to be able to use a lot of the resources found on this site, but I then came across a newsletter called “Clamor.” Each newsletter discusses upcoming events, paraphrases what happened at recent conferences, and also in the March 2018 issue, they stated the top essays that won the recent competition based on a given prompt. The prompt stated was, “to compose a writing based on a quote from Lucretius and how he might respond to a recent report from NASA about three planets 39 light years away that may contain life.” This is where my interest was sparked. Yes, I wasn’t going to be a Latin teacher any time soon, but Latin and English have a wonderful relationship, and the prompt stated in this newsletter was quite engaging and innovative. I think Latin interests a lot of students in school, whether they want to take it or not because the culture is so interesting, and the fact that Latin is referred to as the “dead language,” really peaks people's interests. This site, because it is created by professionals in Latin and the classics, the information provided is very relevant to the subject. I think that as an English concentration, I could spin a lot of Latin prompts into one for English, as long as the Latin itself isn’t too complicated, and as long as I have a translation ready. I could also do prompts similar to this based on the characters of the book I plan on teaching, such as “How would Dr. Frankenstein react towards the recent news outbreak about the Corona Virus?” The prompt is relevant to recent events, and the students must really understand the character and their development throughout the story in order to provide their response. I think that I personally am going to keep track of these newsletters because I feel that doing lessons that cross into other subjects may potentially increase engagement and interest in students. 

The other resources I have looked into were Kahoot and Quizlet. I have used both of these resources before and thought they were both very successful in how they were used. Kahoot, a lot of the time has been used as a fun way to refresh students’ minds on a certain topic being taught. The winner can also be given a prize i.e. the satisfaction of winning, some cool stickers, etc. I did learn that Kahoot can be played at home as they have premade vocabulary sets for many different subjects (English, history, math, science, etc.) as well. Another cool thing about Kahoot is that they have accessibility options that allow those who are “text-to-speech technology users, Braille users, and other users with sensory, cognitive, or other disabilities,” to have the opportunity to use Kahoot and have all the options easily available to them. 

Similar to Kahoot, Quizlet also has premade flashcard sets. This site is used “To help students (and their teachers) practice and master whatever they are learning. Quizlet provides engaging, customizable activities with contributions from people everywhere.” I personally have used this site previously, and it is able to be accessed via an app on your phone (iPad, tablet, etc.) and also your laptop/desktop. I think this is a great option for at-home preparation for any type of memorization. It creates flashcards and offers different games/activities as well such as “learn”, where they increase levels with multiple choice and writing definitions; “write”, where you write definitions that fit the word or vice versa; “spell”, where Quizlet speaks the word/definition out loud and you have to type what you hear; “test”, where they create a mock test that you can choose what sections you would like, whether that be multiple-choice, matching, and/or writing definitions; “match”, a game where you match the word/definition to the correct one; and then the final game being “gravity”, a timed game where you have to drag the correct word to fit the correct definition listed below. I think this respects the multiple different learning types that students and even teachers have because they aren’t stuck using the standard flashcards. Quizlet provides options. And, allowing your students that option to find what best learning strategy works best for them, will help them not only in the future but also in your classroom. 

For my final resource, I looked in the book “Boy’s Life” by Robert R. McCammon like discussed at the beginning of my blog post. My mentor teacher swore by this text, and looking into it (really only reading the first chapter, prologue, and summary so far), I definitely agree. Just reading the book description, I was hooked. Being a huge nerd for books about murder and the supernatural, this book has it all as it is about a boy and his father who see something no one should have seen, and now they are haunted by the traumatic sight until they find out the secrets their town has within. Through reading this book you get to investigate the mysterious murder along with the characters of the novel and “learn more about the meaning of both life and death.” Seen in the description, the opportunities for lessons on symbolism alone seem to be endless as a “green feather” is brought up due to it “leading [the boy] deeper into the mystery.” So far, this description has hooked at least one reader, two if you count Mr. Smith. This book’s genre (murder mystery and supernatural fiction) also seems to be popular amongst the age demographic seen in high school. I personally have not seen many books in this genre taught in English classes because I have really only learned from classic literature myself. Even though the supernatural aspects of the novel may not be real, as a reader, you can still learn a lot from the author’s choices. You can connect supernatural themes into something seen in today’s time if you analyze deep enough. And, if I were to teach this novel, I could turn this lesson into one focusing on reading comprehension and literary analysis in order to have students make connections to plots that may not seem relevant to real-life to something that is. Students are creative, and sometimes it takes something outside of the box to lure in students’ interests. This creativity, I think, could shine with the proper outlines and objectives, especially if you use materials that possibly no teacher has ever been willing to teach before because it is outside of the set curriculum/norm. 

The variety of teaching opportunities that this novel provides is quite large. The first chapter itself practically uses a simile or metaphor every paragraph as the main character really likes to describe things through comparison. The time that this book is set in is also 1964, which was around the time of the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War. This opens up the chance to collaborate with your colleagues in the social studies concentration because you could do a lesson together (time period recaps, research project, connecting common themes from the book to current/past events, etc.). So far, I am really hooked by the book and I am very interested in reading the whole thing in order to see what I can do with it in the future. I already have many ideas, and this is just from reading the first chapter! 

Sometimes something that may not seem as useful as another thing, it truly is if you dig a little deeper. This connects to all the resources I have received so far from my old high school teachers and now my current mentor teacher. I am continuously learning from my fellow colleagues and mentors, and I do not think that this will ever stop. To conclude this long discussion of teaching resources, I would like to say that each resource has provided me with a helpful tool/tidbit that I will someday be able to use in my own classroom. Whether that be a Kahoot filled with literay terms or quotes, a Quizlet containing a unit/lesson’s taught vocabulary, a newsletter that gives me an idea for a writing prompt, or a book that can have any type of literary/reading analysis learning objectives I can think of. Anything can have at least one take away. 

All the love, 

Ms. Kellsie Britton