#~1.5 books per day is still insane

[fullscoreshenanigans]

Including some manga panels and anime screencaps for ease of reference convenience:

(Chapter 11 | Chapter 16)

(S1 Episode 3 | Episode 9 | Episode 10)

Largely the same between mediums other than the addition of a gap in the railing of the upper area.

TPN Fandom! Do we know how big Grace Field’s Library is?

[ladeedayda]

I really like TCF, and I'm interested in book binding. So of course I was curious how much "book" would be needed to adapt the whole LN. I knew it was really long, so it'd take a couple big ones to include everything. Then I did some quick calculations and um. Uh. Well, here's a little math:

50k words at the minimum comfortable size and font comes out to approximately 100 pages. The average "largest" size books contains ~600 pages (at minimum size). That being said, it would kill me to read such tiny text for very long. Realistically, a comfortable font size (for me) would be 350 per page at most, so I'll be using that number moving on.

With that in mind, some of the more popular large book series like Eragon (906k total words, largest book having 280k words or 880 (803) pages) and Harry Potter (1M 84k total, largest having 257k or 870 (735) pages).

TCF has approximately 2M 150k words, 776 chapters. In part one. Ok, so... 2,150,000 words, with 1 page being ~350 words... that's 6143 pages. And if we gave each title in the series ~800 pages each, that's still 8 GIGANTIC books. TL;DR:

Eight books, 350 words per page, 800 pages each.

For reference, here's the A Song of Ice and Fire series, 1M 770k words, 4.2k pages (~400 words per page), 5 books total (~840 pages per book).

THAT'S A LOT OF BOOK.

[babyspacebatclone]

I am not making any of this up, only altering minor details as necessary that may be too identifiable.

It is long, so for sanity, full dets under the cut.

TL;DR: Whoever’s writing this crap (aka my life) is a hack, and needs to stop relying on the “medical emergency” trope for preventing my job from having a functioning level of staff.

Context: I work at a daycare center in the Midwest of the USA. It is not a chain; however, the owners own multiple centers in the area. Combined we would count as a large business, so of course that’s not how it is on the books (means they can work us longer before overtime, etc).

At the beginning of our story, there were three open centers. AC, the “flagship” center, with a director who is part of the owner’s family. BC North and BC South were purchased next, and, how can I nicely say it…. Half a step up from Ghetto? I am not joking, when I was working at BCN and my mom visited, she said she wanted to pull me out of there. BCN functions, barely; BCS is a few blocks away, and despite the owner’s insistence should never be reopened in my terrified opinion - never has had staff the 5 years it’s been under them, fortunately. CC has been open for 40 years, and purchased by the owners when the previous owner retired three years ago. I work at CC now, and hands down the best place just because we have a functioning director, which enables us to keep functioning staff (half of which were under the previous owner).

At the beginning of the year 2021, none of the three open centers had enough staff. We advertise openings like crazy, but it’s hard underpaid work. So what does my brilliant *cough* owner do?

Buy two buildings in two different nearby cities to convert into new centers. Because he thinks he can get more staff if he’s hunting in new cities??? idk

Not buy two new centers like he’s done previously, with existing enrolled children and staff - two non-daycare buildings to convert.

Note: I talk about “older” and “younger” rooms in this. By licensing, children are in a specific age group based on chronological age, with some overlap to allow for development (e.g. At 16 months, an infant can be a toddler, but you can also delay until 18 months without paperwork). My center has enough physical rooms we further separate infants and preschoolers by development/sanity; toddlers are in one single room. Also, “Lead” teachers are the ones in charge and have extra paperwork; assistant level teachers (like me) can also run a room but are more likely to go crazy if left unsupported (like me). Aides are considered unskilled enough that they can’t be alone with kids, unless there’s a pandemic going on and we’re just trying to have any warm body in a room….

So, that’s the context of this insanity before March 2021, when the lead teacher who was on maternity leave returned to my center and I assumed we could settle down into a stable pattern for a second.

I am a naïve idiot.

First we lose two experienced full-time positions, a preschool lead teacher and the kitchen/support staff, who are both leaving to move closer to their (different) families because personal reasons. Understandable. We have a new teacher-level staff we can have work the younger preschool kids with our returned (excellent) older preschool lead. Our director will just - do the kitchen work until we can find a new kitchen worker…. I guess? 🤷‍♀️ We’re also training staff to work the ancient dishwasher to help…

At this point CC officially implements a “no new children” policy. We will still accept the children we already promised a position before (mostly infants), and older preschool has a lot of kids leaving for kindergarten throughout the summer (as some parents stop day care during their own summer vacations). We can… Manage.

And our best part-time assistant teacher graduates and moves, but ok.

And then our second-best assistant teacher get a job in her field… ok…

And then the pregnant Toddler assistant teacher is put on bedrest for a month we are praying for her…

Ok two new hires, one an Aide but with experience excellent…

. What. No seriously what.

So, the director of AC is - long term sick. I won’t share details. This leaves us with two directors for three centers (Ideally, we would have four; one’s supposed to be Executive Director…). Here, logic is (strangely) applied and BCN is closed down and the children that chose to stay with the owners are moved to AC. Considering they had, I think, three total staff (one for each age group) not counting the Executive Director that had been covering that insanity…..

(We are also under the impression that the owner is stalling construction on those other two centers-to-be, but with our owner who knows….)

Anyway, the three staff will be helping at the other centers - specifically, the Toddler staff will work some days at AC and some days with is at CC, which is awesome because the Toddlers are drop dead insane right now.

Not joking. We have a biter in remission, an older girl with an attitude and her younger sister that had to move up with her when 16 months because the mobile infant room is packed but my young infant room had movers that had to change rooms, there’s a pack of three boys who just egg each other on, the leader of that pack was visiting preschool but started using the N word at relevant children (obviously, we have zero tolerance for that…), and the two youngest just-moved toddlers are screamers (they got better in the mobile room… they’ve regressed…).

And it’s 16 Toddlers (depending on the day) crammed into one area (that can be divided into two play areas, fortunately), at a 7 to 1 staff ratio.

So what happens last week? That Toddler teacher gets sick. Then goes to the hospital. Then, I am not joking wtf, leaves a vague text message to my director about a surgery I can’t even…

I just. What.

The Mobile Infant Room has a casual biter. Like, there is no provocation, this kid (who is giant and all muscle) just crawls up to kids and bites. The other 10 babies in there are generally ok-ish, but I don’t know how they are surviving.

Both preschools are…. Well, better than the Toddler room now that the one child is taking the summer before Kindergarten off praise whatever deity you worship hallelujah. Still have kids that need breaks in the director’s office but not as often.

My room, which is now 6 infants ages 3 to 6 months, is my default the easiest to manage.

And 4 of these 6 babies come in between 7:45 and 8:15 (the other two earlier), all want a bottle between 8:30 and 9:00 (we have two staff and policy is one bottle per staff…) and some of these kids take 20-30 minutes for a bottle (do the math)…..

But by about 10am we’re settled and we generally have them ready to wait for the next round of bottles staggered…

And the projectile spitter-upper is improving! They’re only spitting up about 1.5 oz a day, instead of multiple 2 oz random attacks!! 😊

………. My brain is mush send help.

[etraytin]

Quarantine, Day 37

I'm guessing most of you reading already know what this day of quarantine revolved around. I PASSED THE BAR EXAM!!!! They didn't post the results until early afternoon, which was just plain sadistic, but they did post them, and never have I been more thankful to have a name at the beginning of the alphabet. That's not the kind of suspense I need in my life. Pass rate for VA this February was 57%, which is about average for the February exam. I am hoping that all the people in my row with me also passed, but I never learned any of their names, so I don't know. We mostly just joked about how much it sucked to have to get dressed up and how cold the hall was, but it helped to have that little bit of human contact before and after the tests. They seemed pretty on the ball, and none of them spent the last hour doodling in their exam books like I did, so I hope they did okay. Thank you to everybody who has sent congratulations, especially to all of you who have been cheering me on for months. You are all excellent people and I love you. 

(Now that I have passed and I no longer have to agonize over possible time mismanagement leading to my downfall, I wish I could have my booklets back. I feel like I wrote some funny stuff during the interminable hours between finishing the tests and being allowed to leave, but I don't remember any of it now. I also learned that some states let examinees just leave when they are done with the test, which would've been so much less sadistic!) 

It's funny how much more public this celebration is than celebrating actually finishing the test. I talked about it on here, but much less on Facebook, IRL, etc. It felt like it would be jinxing it. Today, though, I have told basically every possible person, including complete strangers, that I passed the bar. They have all been very congratulatory, because they are nice. We celebrated by getting takeout food from the local Mexican restaurant that have been advertising that you can order up to two 16oz margaritas per meal ordered. Let me tell you, my friends, these margaritas are not fucking around. I drank half mine and got legless (I'm also a pretty cheap drunk because I rarely drink), put the rest in the freezer, and three hours later it didn't even have ice crystals yet. The food was good too, and I left a good tip. This has got to be such a weird time to work at a restaurant. 

Let's see, what else today? The continuing  saga of trying to figure out the sewing machine! Kiddo and I made another pillow, and I successfully sewed a seam into a pillowcase folded triple, so that's six layers of fabric. I should be able to sew pleats with that! A friend of mine also suggested that I could turn corners on seams by lifting the foot and turning the fabric, which could revolutionize the whole process. I will try it when it is no longer marg-o-clock. The other problem I've had is no elastic, and I am in no way capable of sewing the tiny long bits of fabric to make finished edges on cloth ties. I was thinking about knitting i-cord or something, until somebody suggested t-shirt fabric. Cutting strips of T-shirt makes long strands that do not ravel, and that curl in on themselves and have just a little stretch. They seem perfect! I have cut enough for two masks, so here's hoping. 

Getting a month worth of groceries yesterday was great, but I ran completely out of room in the freezer and had to take some old stuff out. I had more than a gallon of really yummy turkey stock I made this winter and I didn't want to lose it, but I had no place to keep it. So I thawed it overnight, then got out my big stockpot and spent all morning reducing it. By this afternoon enough water was cooked away that it fit in two pint jars I could stick in the refrigerator. It is much darker but still smells really good, so I'm hopeful. All I need is to make some noodles now. Plus I got two valuable tupperware back in rotation! I also made whipped coffee with my stand mixer. It’s hampered by the fact that instant coffee crystals simply do not taste very good, but the texture is awesome and the cold milk soaked out a lot of the bitterness. 

Oh, and I ate more of the ham rice pudding, which I don't think I mentioned yesterday. The other day when I baked the spiral ham, I saved everything, the meat, the bone, and the drippings. My mom told me about ham rice, which you make with ham drippings, but I think we had a failure to communicate in that I did not understand that you must mix the drippings with water before cooking the rice in it. I cooked 1.5 cups of sushi rice in two cups of straight drippings. It was very hammy, but also insanely salty. Like the kind of salty that burns your tongue. Not great! I didn't want to give up on it because it's a lot of rice, and I'm trying even harder than usual not to waste food, so I had to figure out something to do with it. So I made rice pudding. I took the rice and put it in a pot with an equal amount of whole milk and a quarter cup of brown sugar, and I simmered it into pudding. (Sushi rice makes kickass rice pudding, and very fast!) The resulting rice pudding is still pretty salty, tbh, but it is much better, and has a nice maple ham flavor. I will not make it on purpose, but I feel very clever about the whole thing. 

Honestly, this pandemic has made me feel more empathy than I'd have thought possible with the fifties housewives who were just nuts about aspics. You go through the war and all that rationing, of course you're not going to waste a cheap and easily available source of protein like gelatin, which you can get in powder but you can also just make by boiling bones. Nothing goes to waste, it's super thrifty! And when you're viewing gelatin as something that comes out of the soup pot instead of as sweet dessert that comes in little square blocks, it seems (somewhat) less insane to throw vegetables and meat into it, and to try and make it look interestingly sculptural at the same time. Doesn't mean I'd eat it, but I understand it. 

Anyway, we watched the Tinykittens feed most of the day and the mama still didn't give birth, so time to go turn that on again. Man, I am really jonesing for some kittens! Somebody remind me of that in a month when I haven't slept in days and am covered in formula, okay? 

[multibetkenya]

As a football enthusiast I have been fascinated with the concept of the sure bet prediction where there is an assumption that out there in the sports betting universe there is an algorithm, formula, methodology or way to guarantee a win on a sports bet especially in football or what is called soccer in America.

So the question I welcome you to analyse with me is whether there is a way to come up with a sure bet or a guaranteed win when it comes to sports betting in relation to football.

Firstly lets define what we mean by a sure bet,what does the word sure mean? according to dictionary.com there are multiple definitions for sure but the two that apply to this conversation are “confident, as of something expected:sure of success. ” and assured or certain beyond question:a sure victory. ” https://www.dictionary.com/browse/sure

What of bet? This is defined as a wager or a risk taken on an uncertain outcome or event.

Now that we have the definitions is there a possibility of wagering on a football sports event with an assurance of success? The answer to this is maybe and I will explain why

I will tackle this as with regards to wagers or bets placed on possible outcomes of football matches.There is definitely no certainty of a certain outcome when it comes to football due to such factors as injuries,red cards,player state of mind if affected by personal challenges and so on but there are definitely ways to increase your probability of correctly predicting the outcome of a football match.

The general masses believe that a sure bet is an impossibility or an extremely difficult aspect to come up with and I agree to extent academically but I disagree from experience.Kindly dont get me wrong am not suggesting that you can have a 100% success rate in sports betting but what am saying is that you can achieve a 90% success rate in sports betting and be profitable while at it.

HOW DO I COME UP WITH A SURE BET PREDICTION?

STEP 1:This is not a get quick rich skim

Like everything in life you will not get rich over night through sports betting. In order to have a positive yield while betting on football matches you need to invest a lot of time and energy to understand the main dynamics that provide an indication of the possible outcome of a matches.

This means you need to source for reliable sources of football statistics or historical data,invest time in scouring the internet for news related to the matches you are looking at,test and retest different methodologies until you find one that provides an acceptable success rate which is above 55%.

STEP 2:How to create a successful sure bet prediction methodology

Book makers provide 100+ markets for a single match and the most crucial aspect of sports betting is identifying three or four markets that you are comfortable with and that you can access enough data to aid you identify matches whose possible outcomes will fit into your preferred markets.Through my own experience what works for me is any market that has only two possible outcomes meaning probability wise i have a 50% chance of success.An example of this is Over 1.5 goals,Draw No Bet,double chance,BTTS. These markets are favourable as compared to such riskier markets as correct score and halftime/fulltime

STEP 3:Limit your greed,have a cap for your odds

I prefer multibets as compared to single bets for they give me acceptable odds but I limit my total odds to 10 odds or less and the reason for this is that with higher odds you are forced to take higher risks or consider more games which is risky as well.

What most forget is that you should look at odds in relevance to margins/profit so for example an odd of 1.25 provides a 25% margin/profit so hypothetically if you can manage to come up with a methodology that has a 80% success rate on 1.5 odds it means for every amount you spend you stand a chance at a 50% profit which is quite insane if you consider that the best performing hedge funds in the world have returns lower than 50% per year. If you place bets on a daily basis and you have an 80% success rate meaning you win 5/7 days it means you will be extremely profitable with a weekly margin/profit of 14% and with higher odds you end up making a larger margin as illustrated below:

DAY OF THE WEEK ODDS STAKE  OUTCOME WINS MARGIN MONDAY 1.5 KES 100.00 WIN KES 150.00   TUESDAY 1.5 KES 100.00 WIN KES 150.00   WEDNESDAY 1.5 KES 100.00 WIN KES 150.00   THURSDAY 1.5 KES 100.00 LOSS -KES 100.00   FRIDAY 1.5 KES 100.00 WIN KES 150.00   SATURDAY 1.5 KES 100.00 WIN KES 150.00   SUNDAY 1.5 KES 100.00 WIN KES 150.00       KES 700.00   KES 800.00 1.142857 DAY OF THE WEEK ODDS STAKE  OUTCOME WINS MARGIN MONDAY 2.5 KES 100.00 WIN KES 250.00   TUESDAY 2.5 KES 100.00 WIN KES 250.00   WEDNESDAY 2.5 KES 100.00 LOSS -KES 100.00   THURSDAY 2.5 KES 100.00 LOSS -KES 100.00   FRIDAY 2.5 KES 100.00 WIN KES 250.00   SATURDAY 2.5 KES 100.00 WIN KES 250.00   SUNDAY 2.5 KES 100.00 WIN KES 250.00       KES 700.00   KES 1,050.00 1.5 DAY OF THE WEEK ODDS STAKE  OUTCOME WINS MARGIN MONDAY 3.5 KES 100.00 WIN KES 350.00   TUESDAY 3.5 KES 100.00 WIN KES 350.00   WEDNESDAY 3.5 KES 100.00 LOSS -KES 100.00   THURSDAY 3.5 KES 100.00 LOSS -KES 100.00   FRIDAY 3.5 KES 100.00 LOSS -KES 100.00   SATURDAY 3.5 KES 100.00 WIN KES 350.00   SUNDAY 3.5 KES 100.00 WIN KES 350.00       KES 700.00   KES 1,100.00 1.571429

STEP 4:Everything in life requires insurance

To ensure a higher rate of success I always recommend you create multibets that are hedged and am not talking about arbitrage. I personally research two possible markets for the same game that offer adequate odds so that when I create a multibet I am able to hedge without loosing out on odds.However the hedging should not be in the same market e.g dont hedge over 1.5 goals with under 1.5 goals,you can hedge over 1.5 goals with something like BTTS such that you are able to take advantage of such scores as 1:1 2:0 2:1 which are common scores in soccer or you can hedge it with a double chance such as Draw No Bet which caters for a 0:0 or 1:0 score and still allows your multibet to continue running

King Kong

[blackcoffeeandblankpagess]

It has been a hELL OF A DAY

It all started with waking up to an email about assignments for my econ class this fall and I could feeeeeeeeel the cortisol levels rising as I started to panic about getting shit done even though I still have over a week

1.5 hours into my 3.5 hour drive to raleigh my car broke down :) my car has been on its last leg for well over a year and I’m constantly having to get stuff fixed but I am/was really trying to get through undergrad before getting a new one since I’d rather get one once I move to wherever I plan to be post college but anyway

The engine temp thingy was at the hottest level basically the entire drive (this is a bad thing!) and each time I had to go up (or down tbh) a mountain road (aka the entire road) I was like oh jeez this is noooot good and then eventually my car started sputtering and felt like it was going to just straight up stop so I called my dad in a panic and as I was pulling off a random exit it was getting worse and worse and ugh

I literally KNEW my car was going to break down I stg I half jokingly told so many people that it wasn’t gonna make it and I left extra early just incase and would ya look at that!

Through my frustrated tears I called AAA and they were able to send someone to tow it to a place near the airport which I’m so grateful for but that meant I had to spend the next 2 hours riding in the tow truck with a strange man

And look I legitimately think this guy had nice intentions but if you are an older man in a one on one situation with a young female traveling ALONE you have to understand that she is GOING TO FUCKING BE ON EDGE AND NERVOUS OKAY

I clearly was not trying to make conversation and had a lot on my mind and he was saying things like “you should smile more” and “you don’t talk much” etc. and I just ugh I had a lot of time to think about females in society and I was amped the fuck up (and still am)

Luckily when we got to AAA the guys were so nice and I made it with an hour to spare for my flight

Also spent some time panicking about the fact that I’m dumb as hell and booked my return flight for the day before classes start and that is NOT enough time to move into a new place and get my car etc etc but as I was frantically texting my roommate (aka my best friend) she was being so helpful and I was reminded of how excited I am to live with her (side note it is SO FREAKING EXPENSIVE TO CHANGE FLIGHTS like it is literally cheaper to just buy a new ticket whaaat)

This girl behind me in the security line was hysterical because her flight was leaving in 7 minutes and she asked the security people if she could cut to the front and ok I get that they probably see this stuff like 500 times per day but the security woman was SO INSANELY OVER THE TOP RUDE to her and then literally EVERYONE on the line was like GIRL YOU CAN CUT US GO CATCH YOUR PLANE and half of me was like girl I feel you and the other half was like ugh yes I love human empathy good job people

I’m still buzzing with the stress that was the chaos of today but I’m soooo looking forward to tomorrow which will include an early run and laundry and groceries and productive feelings and lots of thunderstorms and seeing my best friend in the wOoOrld who also gets home tomorrow

Today has left me feeling like my brain is loose inside my skull but I also recognize that most of the problems are things that I could only even have in the first place due to privilege (having a car, affording flights, etc.) and I recognize that in the grand scheme of things it’s really not a big deal and I’m like oh well no use in dwelling on it but I just needed to shout into the void a little bit so thanks for indulging me

[beyondlimitsonfoot]

The world’s big and I want to have a good look at it before it gets dark.” ― John Muir

— What to Expect in This Post —

 Trail Talk – A little background of day-to-day plans and what might change it

 Day to Day Plan A – The plan if Yosemite Valley opens by our start date of August 8, 2018 (Ferguson Fire we may need to go to Plan B)

 Day to Day Plan B – The plan if our trailhead is not accessible

 Resupply Points – Just a quick excerpt on where we will be resupplying depending on our routes

 Other Day to Day Plans – These are some of the day-to-day plans I was reading about before picking out how we wanted to potentially do it – check them out!

 Locate Us – I have set this up for family and friends to follow along; you’ll be able to see us on a map and how we are doing.

 Guest Artist  – This is actually my sister and she has some products that are available to buy; reason I am adding this here is because she just did artwork of Yosemite. Check her out! @twintedinc on Instagram and Twinted Shop Page.

 Gear Picks – Some gear favorites that I’ll be taking on the trail

— Trail Talk —

So we sent our resupply last week and I just tracked it this morning and the 5 gallon buckets were delivered to the P.O. Box at Florence Lake; this one is for our Muir Trail Ranch resupply. If you are just tuning in, this coming Wednesday August 8th I will be embarking on one of the biggest challenges I have ever done in the outdoors; I will be hiking the trail. I’ve set up a John Muir Trail Page for those of you who would like to follow the whole process.

A couple fires in the area, may put us in a bind and we will have to change our day-to-day plan so I’ve put together quick daily plans if we will be able to start in on the official Happy Isles (HI) Trailhead or have to start out of Tuolumne Meadows. Unfortunately due to the fire near Yosemite Valley, we probably will not be starting on our trailhead reserved.

What does this mean? This means all HI permits are cancelled. What do we do now? Well our plan is to go to Tuolumne Tuesday night and try for permits first thin Wednesday. It isn’t 100%, but the lady on the phone did say they have had no problems with shortage. We weren’t supposed to arrive to Tuolumne Meadows until Friday anyways, so we’ll just try again the next day if we need to. I guess we just have to leave it up to chance at this point; which I am ok with.

Let’s see if we stick to any of the plans below after we finish the trail!

amzn_assoc_placement = "adunit0"; amzn_assoc_search_bar = "true"; amzn_assoc_tracking_id = "beyondlimitso-20"; amzn_assoc_ad_mode = "manual"; amzn_assoc_ad_type = "smart"; amzn_assoc_marketplace = "amazon"; amzn_assoc_region = "US"; amzn_assoc_title = "My Amazon Picks"; amzn_assoc_linkid = "8d335e3a153ed047ef7def68d112034b"; amzn_assoc_asins = "B0038NHGBM,B000SJNI6G,B00995BDNK,B01N66S8G8";

— Day to Day Plan A —

If Yosemite Valley does open we will stick to our original plan of going an average of 11.6 miles per day; of course there will be up and downs, but we have picked out spots that are around that mileage. I have a feeling we won’t stick to these as much depending on the terrain, how we feel, smoke (especially in the beginning of the trail) and the other things that can slow you down 🙂

Day Trail Junction or Landmark Total Miles Day Miles Elevation End Elev + Elev – 1 Happy Isles to Forsythe Trail Jct 8.7 8.7 8,150 4,115 0 2 Tuolumne Meadows Backpacker Camp * ^ 23.9 15.2 8,700 1,700 1,150 3 Lyell Headwaters 34.8 10.9 10,200 1,500 0 4 Ediza Lake Trail ^ ^ 47.6 12.8 9,050 1,450 2,600 5 Red’s Meadow * 57.3 9.7 7,600 850 2,350 6 Purple Lake 70.7 13.4 9,900 2,500 200 7 North Fork of Mono Creek ^ 83.5 12.8 8,900 2,200 3,200 8 Italy Pass Trail 95.5 12 9,250 2,700 2,300 9 Muir Trail Ranch * ^ 106.4 10.9 8,400 1,620 2,470 10 Colby Meadow 118.4 12 9,800 2,000 600 11 Helen Lake ^ 128.7 10.3 11,595 2,650 810 12 Deer Meadow 142.7 14 8,700 700 3,595 13 Bench Lake Trail ^ 156.2 13.5 11,000 4,380 2,080 14 South Fork Trail ^ 166.8 10.6 8,500 1,100 3,600 15 Bubbs Creek Trail ^ 180.1 13.3 9,600 3,480 2,380 16 Shepherd Pass Trail ^ 192.1 12 10,930 3,600 2,270 17 Guitar Lake 205.7 13.6 11,600 1,200 530 18 Mt. Whitney Summit/Outpost Camp 219 13.3 10,600 2,900 3,900 19 Whitney Portal (we may finish Saturday) 222.4 2.4 8,360 0 2,240

 * = Resupply

 ^ = Pass we need to climb

— Day to Day Plan B —

So worst case, Yosemite Valley is still close and we will begin out of Tuolumne Meadows. This was a last-minute put together plan that I for sure know we will butcher out there. I just tried to keep the mileage to where we can potentially have a little more time to ourselves here and there.

Day Trail Junction or Landmark Total Miles Day Miles Elevation End Elev + Elev – 1 Tuolumne Meadows to Lyell Headwaters 10.9 10.9 10,200 1,500 0 2 Garnet Lake ^ 20.8 9.9 9,680 1,450 1,970 3 Red’s Meadow * ^ 33.4 12.6 7,600 900 2,980 4 Duck Creek 44.4 11 10,100 2,500 0 5 Goodale Pass Trail 54.4 10 10,300 1,600 1,400 6 Bear Ridge ^ 67.2 12.8 9,950 2,850 3,200 7 Muir Trail Ranch * ^ 82.5 15.3 8,400 2,070 3,620 8 Evolution Meadow 91.5 9 9,200 1,400 600 9 Evolution Creek 101.6 10.1 10,400 1,650 450 10 LeConte Ranger Station ^ 111.1 9.5 8,700 1,555 3,255 11 Palisades Lakes 121.8 10.7 10,650 2,650 700 12 Lake Marjorie ^ 133.8 12 11,200 2,630 2,080 13 South Fork Trail ^ 142.9 9.1 8,500 900 3,600 14 Kearsarge Pass Trail ^ 154 11.1 10,800 3,480 1,180 15 Forester Pass ^ 163.2 9.2 13,200 3,600 1,200 16 Wallace Creek 175.2 12 10,400 0 2,800 17 Guitar Lake 181.8 6.6 11,600 1,200 0 18 Whitney Portal 198.5 16.7 8,360 2,900 6,140

* = Resupply

 ^ = Pass we need to climb

amzn_assoc_placement = "adunit0"; amzn_assoc_search_bar = "true"; amzn_assoc_tracking_id = "beyondlimitso-20"; amzn_assoc_ad_mode = "manual"; amzn_assoc_ad_type = "smart"; amzn_assoc_marketplace = "amazon"; amzn_assoc_region = "US"; amzn_assoc_title = "My Amazon Picks"; amzn_assoc_linkid = "8d335e3a153ed047ef7def68d112034b"; amzn_assoc_asins = "B00P6VBI3G,B0036S86P4,B01GETA5J6,B00NFV3Q2K";

— Resupply Points —

The following are the resupplies we will be doing for the trail. The only difference between Plan A and B is that we might start from Tuolumne Meadows, so no need for us to drop off the 3 day resupply there we’ll just pack that in our packs instead of the 2 day that was for Yosemite Valley to Tuolumne Meadows.

Resupply Point Distance miles from Happy Isles Distance off trail Distance miles from Whitney Portal Tuolumne Meadows Post Office 22 miles .75 miles 199 miles Red’s Meadow Resort 60 miles .5 miles 161 miles Vermillion Valley Resort 88 miles 5 miles 133 miles Muir Trail Ranch 111 miles 1.5 miles 111 miles

*Elizabeth Wenk’s John Muir Trail Book has all the resupply points available in case you need food or supplies earlier. We are writing some of these down, but it’s pretty easy to find these on the John Muir Trail Map Pack.

Tuolumne Meadows Post Office (3 day resupply)

Red’s Meadow Resort (4 day resupply)

Muir Trail Ranch (9-10 day resupply)

This Saturday before we leave, we will head up into Mammoth Lakes and spend a couple of days there relaxing. We will go ahead and drop off our Red’s Meadow Resort resupply that weekend. See more on my resupply plans on my last post: John Muir Trail: Resupply Time.

amzn_assoc_placement = "adunit0"; amzn_assoc_search_bar = "true"; amzn_assoc_tracking_id = "beyondlimitso-20"; amzn_assoc_ad_mode = "manual"; amzn_assoc_ad_type = "smart"; amzn_assoc_marketplace = "amazon"; amzn_assoc_region = "US"; amzn_assoc_title = "My Amazon Picks"; amzn_assoc_linkid = "3bf8aeb8361fd3d86975c38c0d417dce"; amzn_assoc_asins = "B01NCU9DVL,B074X5WPC5,B013U0F6EQ,B077H34QYK";

— Other Day to Day Plans —

Before picking our day to days I read a lot about how people set theirs up; there is literally no right and wrong way. Do your own trail; so I’m pretty sure even though we have our goals written down, doesn’t mean we’ll follow it exactly. Here are some good reads on how other people did their mileage on the JMT.

 SoCalHiker: Itinerary for the John Muir Trail

 Trail to Peak: I’m Back from Hiking The John Muir Trail! See My 11 Favorite Photos!

 The Miles Tick Away: Fastpacking the John Muir Trail in 9 Days

 The Big Outside: Thru-Hiking the John Muir Trail in 7 Days: Amazing Experience, or Certifiably Insane?

 The Camp Kit: 17 Day JMT Itinerary

 Thehackneyhiker.com: My 19 day John Muir Trail itinerary

 Bearfoot Theory: John Muir Trail – My Hiking Plans

— Locate Us —

During our hike you may wonder how we are doing; well I’ve set up a page that you can locate us on a map and see where we are on the trail. We use the Garmin In Reach Explorer + that you can buy on either REI or Amazon.

Locate Us

— Guest Artist —

My sister and I have been working a new company (Twinted Inc.) that showcases her art that she then turns into a product all on her own. Her latest project has come just in time for when I start the journey on the John Muir Trail. In order Picture 1 is a photo we took years back in the winter time, Picture 2 is a photo of her pencil drawing, Picture 3 is the drawing put to life after her retracing it on the computer.

If you are interested in buying “yosemite down below” please let me know or click on Twinted Inc’s Shop and purchase your desired apparel. Please Contact Twinted if you would like to talk further on your own custom design.

— Gear Picks —

[ihewc_oxi id=”18″]

 Tent – Big Agnes Copper Spur HV UL 3 Person Backpacking Tent: We’re going to test this out on the trail and let you know how we liked it. Two of us and it should fit all our gear; already liking how lightweight it is and the space! Also, put it up in our backyard last week and it was very easy to put up.

 Sleeping Bag – North Face Unisex Cat’s Meow: I’ve had this for over 5 years. The link is something similar to the one I have as it weighs just about 2.2 lbs. 20 degree bag should be enough for the John Muir Trail.

 Sleeping Pad Therm-a-Rest Z Lite Sol Ultralight Foam Backpacking Mattress– : Last couple of hikes we’ve been using this without the blow up and honestly it’s very comfortable. We’ll see after 19 days on the trail. You can also use it outside the tent while you are cooking or to lay on a rock outside the tent when you are resting.

 Pillow Sea To Summit Aeros Pillow Premium– : I swear by this pillow. Ever since I got it, I have used it on every trip even took it to Switzerland on one of our hut to hut trips.

— Check Out My John Muir Trail and Blog Updates —

— Check Out What’s in My Backpack —

— Check Out Some Grub Ideas for the Trail —

— Follow @beyondlimitsonfoot on Instagram —

[ap_instagram_slider]

Figuring out a Day to Day Plan for the John Muir Trail is more of a goal mileage plan for the trail. I'd be happy if we hit close to that mileage every day. Follow along on our journey here! The world's big and I want to have a good look at it before it gets dark.”

[melodicholy]

Just making a quick guide for this small game I've been playing

LIVING IN THE ENDING WORLD GUIDE [INCOMPLETE]

Since I haven't seen any guides on this game, I thought I'd pipe in a small guide for other people who may still be looking around for one. I don't have all endings/achievements but the ones I do have are listed here:

Headed for paradise

Reached the tower

Watched the world freeze over

The new ruler was born in the mountain

Halfway down the road

Please note I'm no expert at this, simply just sharing what I know. About half of these were accidental and I have no clue how I got them, but I'll set up some tips and tricks for beginners, and how to get some of these achievements.

Starting Out

Before starting the game it'll give you three choices:

Food x5

Knife + two other tools

A game console

I've only chosen food once, and being unable to use a knife made getting more borderline impossible, so you run out fast if you're unlucky. Knives are hard to come by, and also needed to open wooden crates and reaching berries, so my advice is to always go for tools. Handheld consoles are good for mentality in the long run, but you need to usually find batteries for it to work, and finding a bonfire/hammock can usually do the trick at that point.

The Burnt-down Hospital gives flasks, vegetable seeds, first-aid kits, lab kits and a frying pan which necessary for base level 3 and blankets. If you make your first trip there with a severely ill character, you'll always be sure to find an operating room to treat them. This is only guaranteed once before you're left to the RNG. This place is also a huge speedrun to getting your characters insane if you're not lucky so go prepared.

The Ruined Library gives books, which gives knowledge. The first visit will always land you with a cooler box containing 4 food. Push on to find nets and first-aid kits, but I don't recommend getting the first-aid kit, those usually leave you wounded.

Barren Mountain gives meat and plant which can be converted to food with enough knowledge. At knowledge level 40 you'll find the Polluted Powerplant and the Forgotten School.

Polluted Powerplant is very important. You want to have ropes and food, a recommendation of at least 40 strength, a naginata or molotov to defeat the mutant. Never go near the hunk of metal on the ceiling. You'll die from radiation sickness. Don't touch/drink water and you'll eventually end up getting a broken bike.

Don't go into the Prison Park unless you have a fixed bike or completed the REX Plan.

Always fight the dogs, this will leave you wounded, but you'll deal a heart less damage.

Never bother with the rusty trunk unless you have the beach key or are very desperate. It widdles 1.5 hearts and gives 1 food otherwise.

Same with car event. Inspecting the inside gives nothing, so either leave or harvest the metal material from it.

When you are given a choice between seaweed or a small fish, always go for seaweed. It gives you 3 food at less cost.

Barrel event is also similar. If you have no need for bonfires or base upgrades, I recommend inspecting it for 1 food.

Never make bonfires out of anything but wooden material unless you're desperate. It lasts for five days, unlike the other options.

If you see a dog (Kotaro), follow it. It'll usually leave food or first-aids kits.

Don't hoard food. At around 8-10 food, I'll always get the event where mice destroy your base and storage. This immediately puts you back on square one, where you'll have to pray for a bunch of wood and metal. Definitely a must to have your base at level 3 so you won't have to worry about this.

Don't approach survivors unless you have a naginata. The man and woman you find will always attack you and take food, whereas you have a choice to share 3 food with the group of starving people, but some of them will also be hostile. Fighting the man and woman gives you 1 food, same with the hostile group, but sharing with the survivor group will have them returning later with the option to choose double the food, silverware and an invitation into their home. I've only chosen the first two options.

Naginatas can be made with knives and long sticks.

Broken radios need batteries to work and give around 5 knowledge points per night.

Dumbells are usually found in the Forgotten School.

Hammocks are like a permanent bonfire, craft them out of nets and long stick when you can.

The Beginning (Day 1-34)

Pretty much just stick around at The Shore of the Beginning. First things first you want to set your sights on getting wooden material. That's what you'll need to upgrade your base, and be able to refine tools like naginatas and fishing rods (the must haves). On Day 3 you'll almost always trigger a night/afternoon event that'll give you wooden material.

At 10 strength, you'll be able to break in car windows for 3 food, but at the cost of being wounded, which lessens the number of hearts you heal each night, and can grow worse, like into the severely ill status, which is a big no-no. Unless you have spare first-aid kits or are desperate, I'd avoid this.

At 10 knowledge, you'll find a map that'll give you two other places to access: the Ruined Library, and the Burnt-Down Hospital.

It is recommended to get blankets from the Burnt-Down Hospital before Day 19 or else you'll get ill.

I also recommend getting the key from the nurse to unlock the basement. This allows you to be able to unlock the Barren Mountain locale. While you're there, you should set up a bonfire and try to find some vegetable seeds and frying pans. Gather first-aid kits when you see them.

When you reach knowledge 30, you'll be able to convert things other than seaweed. You'll always find an abandoned trap on your first trip there. I don't know what happens otherwise, but I always leave it for later deer meat.

Around Day 20-28 you'll keep making notes about how cold it is. Build up food for a 4-day freeze where you won't be able to do anything as your life chips away. On Day 34 you'll be free to do whatever again.

Mid-game (Day 34-60)

Now at this point you want to get up supplies for another long run. If you see an old man in need of care, take care of him. He'll give you vegetable seeds, a nice bonus if you haven't had luck in the hospital. Build up food and stats for the grind at the Polluted Powerplant, you lack strength, go to the Forgotten School for some dumbells.

Once you have have enough supplies (food, weapons, etc.) go to the Polluted Powerplant and take the grind it'll take several days but you'll eventually manage to find a broken bike. This needs to be fixed with "machinery" which is just a radio.

You want to get this done before Day 59, otherwise you'll get the bad end where you freeze to death.

Different Achievements and How to Get Them

For the True end, you want to keep pushing on in the Powerplant until you find a pool of radiated water. Tapping "Proceed" will allow you to find the REX Plan. To understand it, or follow it, you need two flasks from the Hospital, two tubes that I'm guessing comes from the Shore, two liquids which you can get from the two hostile survivors. Finally you'll need some silverware which I only managed to get from the thankful survivors you help out.

Once you get these things, you'll practically achieve immortality. Except, you still lose sanity and food and you cant refine anything past Day 60. I don't know what happens if you go to Babel before Day 59, though.

I only got this ending once, and I lingered around each locale unable to really understand what was going on since my mentality plummeted to insane pretty quick. I lingered around Babel post Day 60, just killing all the wriggling creatures until there were no more.

For another ending, you want to craft the bike and speed past the wriggling creatures in Prison Park until you get to Babel.

The other bad ending is when you don't go anywhere and just get caught up in the storm.

To get "New ruler was born in the mountain" achievement find the pretty flower seed and planter from the Burnt-Down Hospital and grow it. Once the plant disappears, go to the Barren Mountain and you'll find it!

(Bonus) Kotaro's "questline"

I never was able to finish this, but here are the places he appears in order. After the Forgotten School I'm not sure where to find him and I'm sure the "last walk" achievement is his.

He'll first appear in The Shore of the Beginning as a dog with a necklace. Follow him, though you won't find anything.

Next he'll be in the Ruined Library, you'll start calling him Kotaro and he leaves behind 1 food.

After that you'll find him in the Burnt-Down Hospital's garden. He'll leave a first-aid kit.

Then the Barren Mountain. He'll be chasing a deer you won't be able to catch up.

Then the Polluted Powerplant. It usually takes a while for me to find him there but you'll find him coming out a room where you hear a thud.

Finally the Forgotten School. He'll be atop a staircase with an item in his mouth.

So far this is everything I know. If there's anything else I missed, just pitch in and I'll add it. Ciao

[islandpcosjourney]

Hindsight

29th December 2020

3 years ago, after a lovely family Christmas and a crazy few weeks beforehand redecorating the kitchen & dining room, I was enjoying some down-time. Facebook reminded me today that we were removing my fireplace in town – a big job involving big hammers and lots of sweat, on hubby’s part anyway ;) I had also just said goodbye to my Dad for the last time, although I didn’t know that. My final words to him were “Please go see a doctor” as we had noticed that he wasn’t himself while he was with us Christmas week. If I’d known in hindsight that I’d never see or speak to him again, I’d have never let him go. For the last 3 years I’ve punished myself for that. But in all honesty, I’m glad I didn’t know, despite the shock of his untimely passing, as I spent no time trying to cling onto something I wouldn’t have. He was just my Dad, it was just an ordinary Christmas, we were just hammering concrete out of a fireplace, as per usual and it was his time to go.

This year. The year of COVID. The year of cancellations. The year of worry. The year of unknowns. The year of excess screen time. The year of FOOD! This was the year of a fresh start. A chance to really sit down and think, quietly about anything and everything. In a year where our health has been debated so much in the press and in the community, I chose this year to sort it out, head on. Or rather, this was the year that my body chose, to WANT to sort itself out.

Many of you will have read before of the trials and tribulations that my PCOS gives me daily. It’s a vicious circle of physical and mental symptoms caused by external and internal factors. But before this year, although I’d done tons of research and I knew everything I could about my difficulties, I still couldn’t solve them. Something was always stopping me and that was indeed me.

We are what we eat. I truly believe this and always did but mentally I was always being drawn to the wrong foods. I still am, I am human after all but while most people had a kill switch to stop themselves from eating junk, my switch was broken, or so I thought. I understood the theory behind what foods would be good for me but putting it into practice is always the hard part and I’m sure many of you will have faced this before yourselves!

During lockdown, like many others, I was forced online to work. It wasn’t long after that I started noticing daily headaches, getting worse and worse. After a while, it was debilitating, and I was at the point (when in normal circumstances) where I’d have run to the GP for some stronger pills! But this wasn’t really an option this time and it forced me to think alternatively. I was convinced it was screen time to blame so I took a wee break and combined my teaching days/hours to make sure I had a long weekend away from the computer to recover each week. Around the same time, I was also experiencing buzzing in my ears – one Sunday thinking I was going insane hearing somebody strimming in their garden, when of course nobody would do that up here on a Sunday! Kevin definitely thought I’d gone mad and I was certainly believing I was! We figured out it was tinnitus or something similar and deduced I’d just have to ignore it, along-with my headaches. Fast forward to June when I finally decided to move a huge pile of recipe books from the landing upstairs. I can’t remember why they ended up there in the first place but rather than putting them back downstairs again, they’d just sat there in a tall pile for months. It was at this stage that I came across Jason Vale’s Turbo Charge Your Life in 14 Days book. A book I’d had at college and had used to lose weight before my degree’s final recital in 2009. I remembered losing 7lbs in 7 days. I sifted through all the pages and got swept back through memory lane and my tastebuds started to remember the taste of some of the juices. Mmmmmmmm yummy. Especially the Turbo charge smoothie – Pineapple, apple, lime, spinach, cucumber, celery & avocado. The ONLY form of avocado I would eat as I hated its taste but seemed to love its creaminess in a smoothie! Avocado being an essential fat that I KNEW I should be eating with my PCOS…… So, the next shopping trip I decided the buy the ingredients, dig out my juicer and before I knew it, while planning a week away to see my Mum & brother, I also planned a detox! AND it timed in perfectly with Jason’s BIG juice challenge between 6th – 12th July! Perfect, all meant to be.

So now, let’s cut a long story very short. I returned a week later totally rejuvenated, hadn’t eaten a single morsel of chewable food in 8 days and I’d lost 8lbs – here, something was working! I felt amazing, my headaches had gone, my skin was glowing, my teeth were whiter, I had tons of energy and I no longer had any ringing in my ears – all after just one week. Ok, so let’s continue! Nearly 6 months later incorporating juicing into my daily diet and I’m 30lbs down (It was at 33lbs, but Christmas was far too good hahahaha). I’ve set myself a target of 100lbs but the biggest reason for this dietary change is not to lose all the excess weight I’m carrying, although of course that will help, its to always put my health first and live the healthiest life I can. In a year where health has never been more important, I am finally on top of mine. I have finally found a way to control my symptoms and my cravings, naturally. I know it probably all sounds ridiculously obvious, but we are what we eat. My body was consuming junk therefore I was junk – I was overweight, chronically fatigued, had oily/acne skin, excess hair, moody, depressive, stressed, dull, no fun – the list is endless. I will now consume, in an average juicy week: 7 pineapples, 56 apples, 7 limes, 28 celery sticks, 28 asparagus spears, 7 courgettes, 2 bags of spinach, 1.5 bags of kale, 3.5 cucumbers, 3 broccoli stems, a few bananas, massive handfuls of mixed berries, beetroot, 7 pears, 7 avocados. Safe to say I am now bright, bubbly, happy, positive, glowing, full of energy, no back pain or headaches, smooth skin everywhere and best of all, I am reducing my PCOS symptoms massively. I’ve been at this weight before; I remember how I felt at this weight before. My weight has nothing to do with this feeling. The food I am eating is directly responsible. Finally, an answer to all my troubles. I know it sounds obvious but how many of us will turn to medications or look for other factors to blame for our chronic conditions? I did! As soon as I was diagnosed, I continuously went running back to the GP/consultant for more and more pills. One to sort that, one to sort this, another one to counteract the last one etc etc. I KNOW categorically that the medications were intoxicating me and that the fuel I put into my body causes the relevant energy output whether strong or weak. I know that if I wake up in the morning and feel tired, a juice will sort me out, not caffeine. I know that if I’m tired at night it is because of the incorrect fuel I’ve put into my body earlier that day, for whatever reason I decided to consume it. I am seeing a direct long-term result of it all too.

From previous blogs, you will know that I DID NOT have a menstrual cycle without medical intervention. As of Boxing Day this year, that is no longer true. It may have taken since July to regulate my hormones naturally, but it has worked. Obviously, time will tell if I’m going to restore any kind of regularity to it but in all honesty, that’s not a concern right now as I can’t remember having a regular cycle since I was a teenager, so we’re talking around 20 years of hormonal disruption to be reversed and Rome wasn’t built in a day! Interestingly the last “natural” cycle I had after stopping years of medication also appeared on Boxing Day, in 2016 ;) In August this year, I was convinced “mother nature” had come to visit but she only said a very brief hello in a socially distanced way for a day so this time with the COVID restrictions lifted a little she was able to come to stay with gifts of stomach cramps, carb cravings & headaches as a way of getting us reacquainted again. Needless to say, she was made very welcome and I’ve never been happier, especially by hugging a hot water bottle.

Not everything is quite sorted but as you can imagine, its well on track! I now choose my food wisely, looking for naturally wholesome options as is humanly possible and just being more conscious of what I am eating (of course I eat treats ocassionally but I’m doing it consciously). Would you put dirty fuel in a car? Of course not. Would you put dirty oil in during an oil change? Of course not. That’s what I believe medications do to chronic conditions – they throw dirty oil into an already dirty engine. Our cars need servicing each year where they get an oil change, where the filters are cleaned, where essential maintenance is done, so why don’t we do that when we’re chronically sick? Why do we turn to pills to sort a condition we’ve developed rather than look to what we’re fuelling our body with and give it a good clean out? Of course we need medicines for acute conditions but chronic ones can be reversed if we clean out the “filter” and do an “oil change”. I’ve seen tons of documentaries recently where I’ve learned of people curing their Asthma, Eczema, Psoriasis, Diabetes etc I’ve even seen a documentary where cancers have gone into remission for dozens of years through eating raw food alone. I know it’ll sound very “out there” for some people and it would’ve done for me too had I not gone looking for Functional Medicine (using food to heal) research after years of understanding the theory behind it but not finding the right way to put it into practice. But, never in my whole life and in spite of a worldwide Pandemic, have I felt more alive or healthier than I do right now. I may have turned the clock back 3 years on my weight but energy-wise I feel about 15 years younger which is far more important than any number on the bathroom scales.

In hindsight, do I wish that I’d reached these dietary conclusions earlier? Not at all. It wasn’t the right time. In hindsight, I can see that all of the information that I have been armed with over the years, are the tools that have set me up for the success I now have. Like a fine wine, I needed time to breathe, time to mature to become the best I can be. No point in opening it early, you’ll just be disappointed. A good teacher is somebody who’s struggled themselves and I’m a better, stronger person for having had my major struggles. There’s probably many still to come. Life is never boring!

Now that I’ve written this, I logged into Tumblr to copy this blog across and to see when I last posted and to my amazement it was Boxing day last year! I love coincidences of dates & Boxing Day seems to have cropped up a number of times. I said that my goal was to increase my energy levels as I really struggled this time last year. I had said regarding Christmas day:

“I want to be able to, one day, wake up early to make the breakfast, open stocking presents, get dressed inc. make up, cook a Christmas dinner, watch a bit of Christmas TV, play some board games, do the washing up and still feel like a proper woman – not some shadow of one who can only do one or two tasks a day.”

Well I did all those things! I’d totally forgotten that I’d even set that goal (for one day!) but I reached it a year later and more. I never thought I’d be sizes smaller than a previous year as my pattern has always been to be one size bigger each year ;) I recently ordered a few jumpers for the harsh winter, one a size 16-18 and one a size 14 for the future. Well, although a stretchy material, I’m in the size 14 jumper and had to send back the other as it just hung off me! Considering I was a size 20 last year, ballooned to a size 22 by the middle of the year and now I’m back to the size I was 3 years ago, I’m delighted. I also don’t get the violently ill episodes when I eat gluten/dairy now that I did before when I religiously followed a PCOS diet and ocassionally slipped up. I honestly think fruit & veg is healing my gut, my hormones, my skin, every organ in my body! There’s a lot to say for eating a plant-based diet, not only for my health but also the purse-strings but there’s also lots to say for eating balanced nutrition and listening to one’s body for what it really needs. My ears are wide open now.

[led123123]

I don’t have anything to do.. maybe I should start learning spanish

ok lets see what they have at the supermarket.. they have discount on sugar.. buy 5 get next 5 for free? damn. really??

omg you get 50% off wtf

damn.. everything is a lot cheaper than I expected

frozen pizzas for 25 cents

chocolate with nuts.. 37% off..

but it’s still a lot more expensive than cookies..

what the heck.. cheese is more expensive than chocolate?? what the hell

bottled water is also expensive.. what the f*ck.. why do I drink bottled water..

50 bags of team is also not as cheap though..

but it would last me for.. like.. I usually use 2 bags.. for 1 pot. so.. and one pot lasts like a day.. so.. like.. 1.5 month or something.

whereas I can eat chocolate in 5 minutes

how.. should I get.. normal water.. to drink.. like.. am I supposed to.. get a filter?? for water?? to drink??

lol.. vegetables are more expensive than cookies..

damn.. they are selling gingerbread instead of cookies now.. jesus christ..

they have.. this..

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dulce_de_leche

this thing..

they have preserves at good price

and this “dulce de leche” also not that expensive.

they also have.. horseradish

and mushrooms.. but mushrooms are really expensive

condensed milk..

pickles

there’s some.. sauce for pasta..

oh. more teas.. this one is way cheaper..

50 cents for 40 bags.. the other one was 1.5$ for 50 bags or more

oh. there you are.. I see you. the cookies.

2$ for 500g.

potato chips are so expensive though

people who make them probably make a fortune

can’t see how much is dogfood.. (not for me)

lol.. previously they were selling.. winter clothes.. and.. pots..

some books.. wow. cheap

no.. pizza is not 25 cents.. if you buy one 2nd one is 25 cents

and you can get 8 per day

that’s. 60 cents per pizza

there is a lot of cat food but not a lot of dog food

no actually fruits and vegetables are not as expensive

because I read that there’s like.. 4kg.

I need to make cookies..

strawberries. 450g

“everything is relative”. I said that kitkats are cheap..

because they are only 42g

wow. 100% recycled water bottle

ice tea

I could be buying ice tea instead of bottled water..

omg.. pepsi mirinda.. they cost almost the same as bottled water??

sink water filters..

kolgate..

lol. I though

https://youtu.be/_mlUB2_k_h4

and 2 seconds later

https://youtu.be/f_2retya8QY

she published the video

I need to improve my cooky recipe somehow

https://youtu.be/f_2retya8QY?t=70

what a f*cking psycho

steven kind is a f*cking psycho. he’s gone mad. he should get in a mental hospital

he’s gone mad/crazy/insane

заболел

he’s gone insane. he’s not sane I mean

steven kimp.. kimpab lost his mind

xD

kimpab’s gone crazy

https://youtu.be/WxhTbxMSvT0?t=211

that’s spanish

“ a Spanish-guitar-led track containing Spanish lyrics “

https://youtu.be/f_2retya8QY?t=490

please sponsor me

https://youtu.be/G_zZeQdKHXQ?t=222

подсос

https://youtu.be/G_zZeQdKHXQ?t=360

штобы подлизатса

https://youtu.be/G_zZeQdKHXQ?t=366

дружыску

https://youtu.be/G_zZeQdKHXQ?t=430

https://youtu.be/G_zZeQdKHXQ?t=503

status resist

https://youtu.be/G_zZeQdKHXQ?t=523

https://youtu.be/G_zZeQdKHXQ?t=538

https://youtu.be/G_zZeQdKHXQ?t=556

“ меня удилилось это што в японе люди ходят без одежд“

this is the comment I wrote.. because she was asking. “what surprised you in japan”

https://youtu.be/CAg45RXTxTE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAg45RXTxTE&lc=UgyIT3nKds7hjToo-KB4AaABAg

“ Если понравилась песня, ставьте лайки, пишите комментарии и подписывайтесь на канал! “

“я щтитаю это очень странно”

“usb front panel”... and.. with this motherboard connection plut..

damn.. but I would have to like.. uninstall one front fan.. but like.. could I fit.. 3 120mm fans and this panel on the front?? I think I probably could

but.. that still it bad.. because.. like.. I wish they were connected on monitor.. instead.. because.. I can’t connect them on the front.. because I don’t want them to go on the front.. of the computer..

because then I wouldn’t be able to wrap them behind table..

I think

wish I could connect them on monitor

some monitor.. I think.. have audio port.. but.. not many have usb..

wow. hdmi switch

I have too many cables already..

I mean.. according to my mother..

damn.. this usb cable.. is so sensitive..

this usb plug is so bad

[auburnfamilynews]

Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

Let’s see how our former Auburn Tigers fared in their respective season openers!

Week 1 is in the books and it’s great to have live football to talk about! I know everyone is even more excited for Auburn to take the field in just 11 more days! Last Thursday, we looked at the Tigers who made their respective 53 man rosters.

25 former Auburn players made the cut for their teams respective opening day rosters. A trio of those guys had a major impact in their team’s Week 1 performance.

With Darius Slayton's late score on MNF, 3 former Auburn players turned in multiple touchdowns on #NFL opening week: • QB Cam Newton (Patriots): 2 rush TDs vs. Dolphins • RB Peyton Barber (Washington): 2 rush TDs vs. Eagles • WR Darius Slayton (Giants): 2 rec TDs vs. Steelers

— Nathan King (@byNathanKing) September 15, 2020

With that said, we’ll go down the list of games this week that featured Auburn players.

Patriots 21 Dolphins 11

Dolphins

Chandler Cox - No carries but had the key block to set up Miami’s only TD yesterday

FBA #4, Miami Dolphins TD: Jordan Howard, 1 yard run Assist: #1 for Chandler Cox @chandlercox10 pic.twitter.com/A4w5pZclq5

— Barstool Sabermetrics (@sabermetrics) September 13, 2020

Noah Igbinoghene - 2 total tackles

So here’s a cool nugget about Iggy:

Igbinoghene is the youngest player on an NFL roster this season. He's the youngest NFL player to play in a game since Buffalo LB Tremaine Edmunds in 2018.

— Brett Brecheisen (@bbrech) September 13, 2020

Patriots

Cam Newton - 15/19 155 yards, 15 carries, 75 yards, 2 rushing TDs

Cam looked good in his Patriots debut on Sunday. It’s weird seeing him with 15 carries but I guess it helps when you have a team that has a good offensive line to run behind. It’s going to take me a LONG time to get used to this.

Touchdown #1

@CameronNewton's first TD in New England! #MIAvsNE | #GoPats pic.twitter.com/W6ED1gyUFs

— New England Patriots (@Patriots) September 13, 2020

Touchdown #2

@CameronNewton's second TD in New England! pic.twitter.com/PqUNvcqC8g

— New England Patriots (@Patriots) September 13, 2020

Jonathan Jones - 2 total tackles

Packers 43 Vikings 34

Packers

Montravious Adams - DNP due to toe injury

Washington 27 Eagles 17

Eagles

Rudy Ford - 3 total tackles

Jack Driscoll - Began his NFL career starting at Right Tackle

Washington

Peyton Barber - 17 carries, 29 yards, 2 TD

Washington trailed 17-0 early in this game and despite averaging just 1.7 yards per carry, Peyton found the endzone twice on Sunday. The first TD from 1 yard out and the 2nd one from 3 yards out to put Washington up for good.

24 unanswered points.@WashingtonNFL has the lead on this Peyton Barber TD! : #PHIvsWAS on FOX : NFL app // Yahoo Sports app: https://t.co/DTlgEUZamw pic.twitter.com/82eXiAm6f4

— NFL (@NFL) September 13, 2020

Jaguars 27 Colts 20

Colts

Braden Smith - Started at RT

Jaguars

Daniel Thomas - Made his NFL debut at safety

Raiders 34 Panthers 30

Raiders

Daniel Carlson - 2/2 FG, 4/4 XP

This is the Daniel Carlson Auburn fans came to know and love. This one from 54 yards out:

Some say it's still in the air. What a boot from @DanielCarlson38 for his NFL career long. pic.twitter.com/Szl6nrXjma

— Las Vegas Raiders (@Raiders) September 13, 2020

His previous career long was from 50, done on 3 separate occasions his rookie season in 2018 with the Raiders.

Panthers

Derrick Brown - 3 total tackles, 1 solo tackle, 1 tackle for loss, Pass Deflection

The 7th overall pick had some eye opening plays in his NFL debut. As he did at Auburn, he battled constant double teams throughout the afternoon.

Omg RT @BrandonThornNFL: Derrick Brown with thunder in his hands vs. Gabe. INSANE power. pic.twitter.com/uwtwUX6ZvK

— N (@SirNanablog) September 14, 2020

Bears 27 Lions 23

Lions

Kerryon Johnson - 7 carries, 14 yards

Seahawks 38 Falcons 25

Seahawks

Neiko Thorpe - Named Special Teams Captain, played 18 snaps on Special Teams

Falcons

Marlon Davidson - DNP due to a knee injury

Josh Harris - Long Snapper for 2 Falcons punts

Chargers 16 Bengals 13

Bengals

C.J. Uzomah - 4 receptions, 45 yards

Josh Bynes - Sack, 8 total tackles, 4 solo tackles, 1.5 Tackles for Loss, 1 QB hit

Carl Lawson - Sack, 5 total tackles, 4 solo tackles, 1 Tackle for Loss, 1 QB hit

Cardinals 24 49ers 20

49ers

Dee Ford - 3 total tackles, 1 solo tackle, 0.5 tackles for loss

Saints 34 Buccaneers 23

Buccaneers

Carlton Davis - 4 tackles, 1 Tackle for Loss

.@Carlton_Lowkey held WR Michael Thomas to 17 receiving yards, the second lowest of Thomas' career.#GoBucs pic.twitter.com/zeztegLV2Y

— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) September 14, 2020

Considering that Michael Thomas is one of the top WRs in the NFL, I’d say Davis did a remarkable job of holding Thomas at bay.

Jamel Dean - 7 tackles

Steelers 26 Giants 16

Giants

Darius Slayton: 6 receptions, 102 yards, 2 TD

Darius had quite a showing on Monday Night Football. Slayton had both Touchdown grabs for the Giants in a losing effort.

Touchdown #1

It's been 260 days, but football is BACK! : https://t.co/yjv55mRicK | #TogetherBlue pic.twitter.com/tlMcH1VaCh

— New York Giants (@Giants) September 14, 2020

Touchdown #2

Slayton for six : https://t.co/yjv55mRicK | #TogetherBlue pic.twitter.com/TMnTyRuHMl

— New York Giants (@Giants) September 15, 2020

On Thursday, we’ll preview Week 2 for our Auburn Football players in the NFL.

War Eagle!

from College and Magnolia - All Posts https://www.collegeandmagnolia.com/2020/9/15/21437344/auburn-football-in-the-pros-week-1-results

[theopenrhode]

J'adore French Polynesia! Our honeymoon

Beautiful sunsets seen from a private overwater bungalow were the motivation to keep going during the slog of wedding planning. We plotted an insane honeymoon that ticked off many of our usual adventure travel requirements…multiple destinations, a plethora of activities with little rest, and a few splurges along the way. 

Tahiti is a collection of islands in the South Pacific and the name can refer to the entire collection or just the solitary island. Following the advice of many savvy planners before us, we used Tahiti as a jumping off point and headed to many of the more remote and pristine islands to get that true South Pacific feel. Our trip included Tahiti, Moorea, Bora Bora, and Tahaa all in a whirlwind 10 days. While Tahiti is an expensive locale, with some creative planning, you can still construct an affordable trip…AND get that all important overwater bungalow. 

Use Those Air Miles!

First, a world about award travel. I was determined to use my miles to pay for the airfare portion of this trip. This, I concede, is a costly flight and being able to get there on miles surely saved a bundle. It does take a PhD in award travel to make this one happen though. As you may know, on American Airlines, you can generally only book award travel on their direct airline. As soon a trip involves partner airline, you must call to explore feasible dates. The problem is that Air Tahiti Nui does not offer a large number of award seats and you could conceivably be on the phone for days attempting to find a workable flight from the East Coast to LAX then Tahiti with award seats. Know that award seats usually open about 270 days in advance; be ready to book early. The other suggestion is use  Expert Flyer which is a $5 per month subscription (or one month free after you sign up which is all you need for this endeavor) which lets you search Air Tahiti Nui’s airline for available award seats. Arm yourself with all your flight numbers before you call to reserve. And then in the word’s of Tahiti’s native language..Voila! 

Tahiti

The flight from LAX to Tahiti is roughly 8 hours and will arrive early in the morning, so I’d advise having the hotel store your luggage and freshen up before you venture out on Day 1. (Also, grab 2 bottles each of duty free liquor if you choose as it is quite costly on the islands) Tahiti has a bustling downtown with a large open air market and many shops. It’s definitely has the city feel and not exactly what many people envision when they book to Tahiti…they are thinking along the lines of Bora Bora. Nevertheless, we rented a car to tour the main stops which was absolutely worthwhile. We visited Teahupoo a world famous surfing destination known for an enormous break that crashes directly over a reef…not a place for amateurs. We also made a stop at the Arahoho blowhole, a natural rock formation that channels a forceful incoming wave into a small rock tunnel creating a huge blowing spit of water. Our accommodation for the night was the Manava Inn and Suites which is a newer hotel with an amazing infinity pool just perfect for catching that first South Pacific sunset. We dined at the nearby Blue Banana which sits on the water and offers typical Polynesian fare heavy on seafood. The next day we hit up the open air market and grabbed some incredibly fresh smoothies before heading back the airport to head to Moorea. 

Air Tahiti Multi Island Pass

Another quick point on airfare between islands. There is a ferry from Tahiti to Moorea that is pretty affordable and would be much cheaper than the plane. However, if you are planning to visit multiple islands, Air Tahiti offers a pass that lets you hop multiple islands for a fixed price. We chose the Bora Bora pass which included potential visits to Bora Bora, Moorea, Huahine, Raiatea (from here you can ferry to Tahaa), and Maupiti. Their guidelines for these passes are that they must start or finish in Tahiti or Moorea, you must visit at least 2 islands, each island can only be visited once, and you have to book all of your flights at the time of booking the pass. We capitalized on this pass as it allowed us to visit more islands without tacking on a costly plane ticket each time. 

Moorea

In Moorea, we definitely saved the most as we rented an airbnb and cooked most meals for the 3 days we stayed. Our airbnb was incredible and you can view it here. It overlooked the ocean and was constructed mainly out of wood which they imported from Asia with a vast deck with small whirlpool and free kayaks to use. As an added touch, the caretaker greeted us with leis and fresh pineapples and bananas. Check out our video tour of the property! We also rented a small car (the Twingo) which was just large enough for 2 people and 2 suitcases, but it was quite useful for getting around. I would recommend a car for Moorea…there is a lot to see and even if you are staying in a resort, get out and explore! The island is very navigable. Moorea has a main road that circles the entire Island and the drive can be made in about an hour and a half and the driving is the same side as the US which makes it simple. Places we stopped included a drive up to the Belvedere Lookout where you can overlook Opunohu and Cook’s bay separated by the mighty Mount Rotui, a snorkel at Motu Beach at Les Tipaniers Hotel, and a stop at the Moorea Juice Factory (lots of delicious samples!). We chose not to do any organized snorkeling tours here as we planned that later in the trip though it is rumored to be amazing on this island. The island also has a lot of hiking and we did a few short hikes to idyllic waterfalls. Mostly, we enjoyed our waterfront rental with incredible kayaking and snorkeling in front of our door. We also loved using the ample kitchen and having private dining for two (my husband is quite the chef! Me..not so much). Groceries could be pricey but if you capitalize on the items that the French are known for, you’ll find it isn’t so terrible. For example, bread and cheese are both delicious here and you can grab an entire baguette for about 1 USD. In fact, baguettes are so popular here that they have adorable baguette mailboxes where you can get fresh baguettes delivered daily! We definitely indulged in a good portion of cheese and bread! My final cuisine tip is to grab the local produce. We stopped at several roadside fruit stands and grabbed from the tree pineapple which was mouthwatering. 

Bora Bora

The next island up on our mini Tahitian tour was the famous Bora Bora. There are some that say it’s overrated…but I really think it’s beloved for a reason. It is beautiful beyond words. I mean the island is literally shaped like a heart…can you beat that for a honeymoon? Flying in you can glimpse the iconic Mounts Otemanu and Pahia rising up in the middle of a turquoise lagoon surrounding by numerous small motus (small reef islands surrounding an atoll). A large number of the resorts are located on motus surrounding the main island. The Bora Bora airport is also located on a motu so everyone who arrives will need a boat transfer to get to the main island. Most accommodations will arrange this for you. However, it is simple if you are doing it unaided. Air Tahiti offers a free shuttle ferry that leaves the airport about 20 minutes after your flight arrives and transports you to Vaitape village, one of the main villages on the island. We used this on the return trip to the airport and it was easy. Arrive to Vaitape about 1.5 hours ahead of your flight and there is a luggage trolley to place your bags, the cost is free, and it will take about 30 minutes to the airport.  We stayed at the Sofitel Bora Bora which offers both a mainland option and a private island option. We lucked out a bit here as we booked the mainland option in an overwater bungalow. However, the mainland resort was under construction during our stay and they moved us out of our overwater bungalow. We got ourselves an upgrade to the Sofitel Private Island so we could still have that iconic bungalow. They have a private boat transfer from the airport (at a cost) and as we arrived in Bora Bora on my birthday, we splurged and arrived to the resort in high style! The bungalow here was incredible with a huge bed on which they’d written Happy Birthday in flowers, a glass window in the floor to view the fish swimming below, and a large deck and swim platform. Their private island included the use of kayaks, a gorgeous deck to watch the sunset, and a free shuttle to the mainland. Take your kayak around their island and when you are about 180 degrees from the resort, get snorkeling…there is a hidden underwater message made of coral that says “I LOVE BORA BORA” that makes for quite the underwater photo. Their restaurant on the island was delicious but, as with most resort dining, pricey. Cocktails run about 20 USD each and meals around 30-50 USD. However, an ample breakfast buffet was included. While it is easy to stay in your gorgeous resort for your ENTIRE stay, get out and explore Bora Bora! We rented this adorable tiny car called a Twizzy which essentially felt like a go-cart (see pics) but got us around. If you’re feeling peckish, there are multiple “snack” stands on the beach offering basic Polynesian fare and sandwiches, salads, fries. We ate at Snack Matira on Matira Beach, a large white sand public beach with a beautiful turquoise lagoon. A must do is the obligatory visit to legendary Bloody Mary’s where scores of celebrities have eaten and their names are written on a large wooden board outside of the door. Here you’ll find casual tables atop a sand floor and roaming roosters throughout the restaurant. I’d advise going for lunch as it gets packed at dinner time. Finally, we did a one day swimming with sharks tour which I’d highly recommend. We used Shark Boy Bora Bora which was a half day tour of sharks and stingrays. They picked us up at the hotel and we had a small group that went just outside of the lagoon to swim with black tipped reef sharks (and one very large lemon shark and a moray eel!). On our way back, we stopped to feed the stingrays. The guides were super personable and everyone aboard had a great time…don’t forget lots of sunscreen and your waterproof camera! 

Tahaa

Our final island stop was the flower shaped island of Tahaa where breezes carry the sweet vanilla aroma down from numerous vanilla farms that dot the island. We boarded a nighttime flight to Tahaa and arrived around 7 pm. This island was our honeymoon finale and our splurge luxury accomodation. Here we stayed at the impeccable Le Taha’a Private Island Resort and Spa which costs about 700 USD per night. This was definitely way above our usual travel budget but we wanted that final overwater bungalow honeymoon experience. Here though, I will add that I initially booked this many months ahead of time on Orbitz at the 700 rate but I always try to book refundable rates and as the date approaches recheck. I lucked out as about 2 weeks before, the rate reduced to around 500 or so per night so I cancelled my initial reservation and rebooked saving hundreds. I love Orbitz!  The service at this Relais and Chateaux hotel was excellent. From the moment our bags hit the luggage carousel, a representative from the hotel had them in hand and whisked them and us to a spectacular teak boat that would transport us to the resort located on it’s own private motu. The boat ride is about 45 minutes and if we could, we’d have chosen an earlier flight from Bora Bora to make this trip in the daylight; however, the arrival was no less impressive with a cavernous open air lobby and fragrant flower crowns for our heads. The room was nothing short of incredible…a huge bed in the middle of a very spacious room adorned with a bed of flowers fashioned into a heart shape greeted us. There was also a glass topped chest at the foot of the bed that could be opened to view the fish. A huge soaking tub (with another small fish window) and large polynesian wooden doors separated the bathroom from the main room. A huge floor to ceiling glass slider gave us a dream worthy view of the turquoise waters surrounding the motu and a giant private deck with lounge chair completed the very impressive bungalow. You could also walk down the wooden steps from your deck directly into the water for a quick dip to cool off. I think this was the MOST spectacular room in which we have stayed.  The rest of the resort packed no less of a punch. There is a large infinity pool with a pool bar, named Le Place, and two other on side restaurants, Le Vanille, the main restaurant which feels like you’re eating in a treehouse, and Ohiri, a reservations only dining space. Similar to other Tahiti resorts, the food here is very costly, heavily seafood based and cocktails cost about 20 USD. We did dine here a few times and it was very delicious; however, we much preferred room service where they would set up more basic fare (club sandwiches, burgers, pastas) on your private deck and the setup was pretty grand. The final tip is that you can take their free shuttle to the mainland and there is a basic pizza place, Ma’a Viti Pizza, located there to grab a quick bite.  It is really the only place near the resort to dine that you can get to from the resort’s private motu and the food is inexpensive and it is a nice contrast from the pricey resort options. Of note, the resort frowns up bringing this back to their motu, so you can either eat it there or you’ll have to smuggle it in! Mostly we relaxed at the resort and enjoyed their Coral Garden teeming with thousands of fish located just steps from the bungalow located in the channel between the resort and the neighboring motu. It was really simple to don your suit and snorkel gear and hop in numerous times a day. Tip: Walk all the way up the garden to the very end were the current enters and then you can just float through the coral garden with the current and feel completely weightless while you watch beautiful fish pass by. Here we also saw an octopus and a lion fish! They also supply kayaks and paddleboards for free so you can get out and explore the crystal clear waters and watch rays pass under your board.  We did one full day tour while in Tahaa which was quite a packed day including a tour to a rum distillery, a stop at Iaorana Pearl Farm, a vanilla farm, and a ride out to swim again with black tipped reef sharks. It was the utmost in convenience with a pick up and drop off right at Le Taha’a’s dock and a midday stop at a private motu for a Polynesian lunch. We did actually book this tour directly from the hotel, which we rarely do, as it was convenient to get the dockside pickup.  We ended our honeymoon at Le Taha’a watching the sunsets on the western part of the motu which overlooks Bora Bora…not a bad way to end a honeymoon. 

Champagne Splurge

Le Tahaa was our major splurge this trip. We NEVER spend this much per night on an accommodation, but Le Taha’a is glamorous. While costly, it still is a bargain compared to splurging on an overwater bungalow on say Bora Bora which can easily cost $1K per night or more. My advice would be to pick a place to splurge for just a few nights and use less expensive options like an airbnb on the other days. 

Champagne 'Buzz'worthy

There is no better place in the world to purchase vanilla than on Tahaa…the Vanilla Island. Tahaa produces 80% of French Polynesia’s vanilla and a visit to a farm is an educational experience to learn this labor intensive process. We visited La Vallee de la Vanille which gave us an overview of the process and we purchased some vanilla to take home. Decadently fragrant and worth the cost!

Insider Tips

Take advantage of duty free liquor while at the airport. Liquor and cocktails are pricey in Tahiti and you can take 2 bottles of liquor AND 2 bottles of wine/champagne per person and they don’t count toward you luggage weight!Consider the Air Tahiti multi island pass if you plan on visiting more than one island. It can result in substantial savings.You’ll need more sunscreen than you think! and it is pricey out in Tahiti so make sure you pack enough for your stay. For those with longer hair, consider a spray detangler for your hair. I find this to be essential for snorkeling. It helps to smooth hair that may have been snagged by a snorkel mask or seaweed.You really need a waterproof camera for this trip - the wildlife is all under the water and you’ll want to capture the proof that you had a shark weaving it’s way toward you.One of the major costs of your Tahitian adventure is dining. Try to get off the resort if you can and you’ll find local food much more reasonable. Or, even better, use an airbnb for some of your stay and you can do some cooking. Eat like the French with baguettes and cheese and you’ll save quite a bit.Do spurge for the overwater bungalow for the quintessential experience but you won’t need it for every night of your stay…switch things up and use it for only part of your journey. Read the full article

[cenjun]

Simatai - Great Wall of China

Beijing day 3 Our 3rd day in Beijing is my favourite! We went to the Great Wall of China and was completely blown away by the grandness of it. Although it was a second time for me, the first time i had gone to Badaling (a different section of the Great Wall), it was just as stunning and breathtaking. Badaling is one of the most popular section due to the lower level of difficultly compared to other sections and closer proximity to Beijing. This time we went to the Simatai 司马台 section, which is known to be a slightly more difficult hike but more scenic because it is surrounded by beautiful mountains and river. The journey was said to be around 2h from Beijing, but we took the wrong bus and our journey was around 3h instead hahah :/ It is recommended to book your tickets online for Simatai Great Wall at least one day in advance, as there are limited tickets per day. You can still get your tickets upon arrival if the daily limit has not been reached. Actually we had already set off from our apartment late, and with the wrong bus route we only arrived at the Great Wall at 2pm and the Simatai Great Wall starts to clear people from the place at 430pm. So we did not have enough time to start the hike from the bottom (thankfully). Instead, we bought the cable car tickets, which took us directly to Tower 8 of the Great Wall. (From the same cable car drop-off point, you can take another footpath to start your hike from tower 5) For the entrance fee of Simatai Great Wall + round trip of cable car + entrance fee of Gubei Water Town 古北水镇, it was RMB 280 per person. This was a ticket combo that we had bought, which gives you a slight discount. In my opinion, the water town (RMB 100) was not worth it, and can give it a miss. The cable car will be well-worth the money if the weather is not in your favour or if you are not THAT fit. The Great Wall is sectioned by towers. Simatai has total of 34 towers, out of which only 1 to 10 are open for hiking and while the remaining is closed as it has not been restored. The hike up from tower 1 to 10 is said to take 2.5h, and 0.5h down. This is a very rough estimate because the weather is also an important consideration. We went in early Sep and we were burnt and were sweating like there was no tomorrow. There was also a lady in her mid-thirties that fainted while resting under one of the towers. So, remember to bring lots of water and some fruits or snacks to keep yourself hydrated and energised. We climbed up from Tower 8 to 10, and then down from Tower 10 to Tower 5. All in all, I think it took us approx. 1.5 hours and omg the heat was really killing us. We did take a break at each Tower on our way up to cool down and load up on water and fruits. The view is really insane though - breathtaking. It is really one of the most magnificent things I have ever seen. It is so grand and so beautiful, and considering that it was first built in during the Qin dynasty thousands of years ago is just jaw dropping. After the climb, we explored the small water town 古北水镇 at the bottom of the Great Wall. It's a cute little town with buildings of ancient Chinese architecture and streams of small canals (i.e. think Chinese version of Venice). It is very beautiful and relaxing to stroll down the streets, BUT it was not worth the RMB 100 that we had paid per person to visit the town. You could feel that the entire town was built for tourists and it does not have the quaint charms like Venice as it lacks authenticity. From there, we managed to take a direct bus back to Dongzhimen 东直门 for RMB 25 per pax. I would suggest searching for the direct bus service rather than taking bus 980 or 980 express (RMB 15 for 980 / RMB 17 for 980 express) from Dongzhimen station like we did, because we ended up getting off at the wrong stop and getting lost.

[loyallogic]

Will your story make you the king?

This article is written by Ramanuj Mukherjee, CEO, LawSikho.

The better story always wins.

A lot of lawyers were thrilled to watch the last episode of Game of Thrones this Monday. Even if the last season of the epic TV series was hurried, we could not ignore what Tyrion said – good stories cannot be stopped. They spread. They take hold of the people and influence everything.

The story decides who will rule.

Ask the trial lawyers. The better story wins. Not the dry letters of the statute book. Those are mere tools for bringing the story within a framework and giving it sanctity.

Ask the constitutional lawyers. The better story still wins. Lawyers and judges can always come up with legal justifications, to make the story they like the best, win.

Politics is a game of stories too. The politicians with better stories, that spread the best and are liked by many people, usually win.

Professional success is no different. The lawyer about whom you hear good stories are more sought after. The ones with bad stories are forgotten and avoided. Legendary law firms are all about the narratives that justify their extremely high hourly rates.

Why do big law firms hire dozens of freshers from top law schools although 60-80% either leave on their own or are fired within the first year is over? It is a story. We hire the top talent and pay them a top salary. It is a story that is very appealing to clients. How else do you establish that you have top lawyers? Hiring graduates of top law schools is a shortcut to building that story. How much of that is true story remains to be examined?

Graduates of law schools also aspire to work in a law firm because of a story. 1.5 lakh salary per month. You could be a partner in 8-10 years and earn 50-70 lakhs per year. You could even earn a crore or more some day, as you become a senior and sought after lawyer!

What a story! People chase that future. And often do not realise the dark side of the story that remains unsaid.

The crazy hours. Falling sick from exhaustion or not getting enough sleep for months. Having a therapist on speed dial. Insane office politics. Being shouted at by your boss at the drop of a hat, something that will be totally unacceptable in another kind of work environment. Boiler room environment that suffocates most people. Not having any fixed work hours, and crazy expectations about you responding to mails in the wee hours of the morning.

Well, those things don’t make for much of a story that anyone wants to say.

But then I recently heard that more and more top law school graduates are opting for things like litigation, policy research, startups and academia. That makes sense. Maybe finally those law firm stories are filtering through to law students.

Your life is probably being dictated by some story or the other. Your choices are being shaped by stories.

click here

Some stories appeal to our confirmation bias. Some appeal to our prejudice. Some of these are dangerous and specifically designed to influence our actions. Some stories drive us insane with rage or render us impotent.

Brands are also stories. They make us trust some products or companies more than others.

You may have already embedded in your mind some stories about what online courses are like. Or you may have been told stories about how lawsikho courses have helped someone in their career, and hence you want to take a course from us.

Whether you enrol in a course or not, whether you choose tax law or M&A as your career destiny, whether you intern with litigators or law firms, all that probably depends on the stories you have heard about those things.

What are those stories? What stories did you miss out on?

What is going to be your story? Are you actively shaping your story? What stories will your potential bosses, your potential clients, your peers will tell about you? Are those stories powerful? Are they going to spread?

Are you going to rule?

If your story is an ordinary one, you will be one of the crowd. If your story is an extraordinary one, you will stand out and will be sought after.

Here is my earnest invitation to you. You have a unique story to tell with your life, with your career, with your skills. Let us teach you how to do that best. Let us work together to take you from ordinary to extraordinary. We exist to do that!

Come join us for a LawSikho course. Let’s design your story and spread it together.

It’s creative. It’s challenging. It is exhilarating. It is probably nothing like what you expect so far.

You probably have no idea how powerful stories are yet. Or maybe you do. Come and find out with us.

Let’s embark on a journey of creating empowering and amazing stories.

We still have a few spots left in Master Access, sign up here:

Here are the upcoming courses in which admission will close in the next 09 days

Diploma

Diploma in Intellectual Property, Media and Entertainment Laws

Diploma in Cyber Law, Fintech Regulations and Technology Contracts Executive Certificate Courses

Certificate in Labour, Employment and Industrial Laws for HR Managers

Certificate Course in Advanced Criminal Litigation & Trial Advocacy

Certificate course in Companies Act

Certificate course in Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code

The post Will your story make you the king? appeared first on iPleaders.

Will your story make you the king? published first on https://namechangers.tumblr.com/

[everyonethinksmynameiskayla]

Coding data and binge eating clementines

I’ve been meaning to sit down and write another post for a while now but since my head is no longer preventing me from having a coherent thought (I do still get occasional headaches), I’ve been working on coding my interview data and by the time I’ve done that all day I just want to lie down and not use my brain. Coding is so exhausting - it requires such intense concentration. I had to jump through all these absurd hoops to get the software for it too, I had to download VirtualBox to run Windows 10 on my MacBook in order to run the coding software, QDA Miner, and getting Windows 10 for free or really downloading anything is a huge challenge with crappy internet. So that took almost a week. But now I’m in the groove, so to speak. I’ve got giant pieces of paper hanging in my apartment so I can work out my ideas etc. and I’ve got all of my transcripts back from Oumoul as of this morning. 

^ My giant paper  

Starting next week I’ll be in Thies (about 1.5 hours east of Dakar) for almost two weeks for a training that Tostan is doing on their human-rights based non-formal education approach to community empowerment. I didn’t know about it until last week but they’re letting me slip in at the last second for a fraction of the price that the other representatives from other African development NGOs are paying for room/board/training (I think that’s basically who’s going to be there, but we’ll see) since they’re my sponsoring organization and my research, which the training will be useful for, is going to be helpful for them.

Last weekend Brittany’s friend from the US, Teresa, was here visiting so we went to spend a night in Simal in Sine Saloum, a region on the coast of both the ocean and the river about three hours south of Dakar. I think I’ve probably already talked about this, but to get anywhere outside of Dakar you have to take a “sept-place” the ridiculous old, worn-out circa-1980′s Renault station wagons which hold 7 people, hence the name “sept-place” which means “seven places”. To get a sept-place you have to go to the garage baux maraichers, which 3 years ago when I was here was the apex of chaos in the universe but has since gotten a bit cleaner and more organized. So we found a guy going to Fatik, which is past Sine Saloum but we were just going to get off early. We had to wait a little while since no one else was there for Fatik yet but that actually worked out okay because we got the three best seats (the passenger seat and the two window seats in the middle, you have to be a contortionist to sit comfortably in the way back). It took forever, as per usual, to get out of Dakar and Rufisque, the next city which at this point is being swallowed up by Dakar, because there was an insane accident that seemed to involve a giant truck flipping over into a ditch so a crane had come and pulled it out and so we sat in completely stand still traffic (engine off and driver nowhere to be found) for at least an hour. So by the time we got out of the sept-place in Tataguine (which I enjoy because when you say it with a Senegalese accent it sounds like Tataouine) it was dark. After much negociation and confusion we found a guy who had a car and who claimed to have a vague idea of where Simal, the coastal village where we were going to stay, was. However once we got closer to the village it became clear that he in fact had no idea where he was going, and we proceeded to drive around in the sand for approximately an hour, asking random people who clearly did not know where the campement was either for directions, at one point a little boy even got in the car to try to help but he kept changing his mind about which way the driver should turn so that was useless. The driver kept calling the lady from the campement, which was likely also useless since the only descriptor of where we were at any given moment was “near some sand and a fence and some donkeys”. But eventually we made it and boy, was it worth it, we sat at a table right on the water and had tabouleh and chicken and then the next morning had an assortment of jams with tappalappa (the village bread that I like) and coffee that wasn’t instant. Then we had a ride on a pirog that came with the room, so for about two hours a very nice man steered us down the river and through the marches on a very large pirog (there are pictures of that on the photo blog). He explained how the women would wade out and plant what looked like tiny mangroves in the marsh in these perfect rows, and showed us the shrimp nets that were tied to long bamboo poles propped up in the trees, which you have to come collect in the middle of the night. Then I had a headache so I hung out in the restaurant area while Brittany and Teresa kayaked, which was fine because it was serene and beautiful and I was happy to sit and do nothing for a while. 

As we were discussing how we should get home and when we should leave, this young French woman came up and said she couldn’t help but overhear and explained that she and her husband were about to drive back to Dakar in about ten minutes, did we want a ride? We obviously wanted a ride. Her husband was Senegalese but they met in France and they turned out to be the absolute coolest people ever. We all chatted the whole three hours back and he let me borrow a book about microlending in Bangladesh and Brittany promised to show the woman, Sophie, around the art scene in Dakar (since she’s an artist and they had just moved here when they got married in January - she had some incredible stories about the marriage rituals Souleman’s mom had guided her through). 

^ Where we stayed, Campement Simal

Other than that little jaunt to Sine Saloum (and I would say another day trip to Ile des Madelines, but I’ve been there so many times it doesn’t really count anymore, although this time I did ride in the trunk on the way there), life is fairly normal (by Dakar standards).

^ In the trunk on the way to the island, at the top of the cliff once there

I go home for lunch a couple of times a week and over to Moussa’s for attaya every couple of days. During the day I mostly code and work and read either at home or at a café. My new friend who works in the monitoring and evaluation department of Tostan invited me to come use the extra space in their office to work but I have’t gotten around to doing that yet because it’s not super close to where I live. Every Thursday Brittany I go to “Marché Jeudi” (Thursday Market) which is a labyrinthine collection of people selling giant piles of clothes and various other random things that pops up around the corner from my apartment every Thursday and you have to really dig (literally) but everything is about 200-300 francs and we’ve had some amazing finds. Like last week I got an Eddie Bauer button down and a top from Zara (for less than 50 cents a piece!!). Right next to Marché Jeudi is the “beignet lady” and I go to her fairly often and bring beignets (which are fried balls of sweet dough) to Moussa’s to go with the attaya. She’s legendary and always surrounded by a huge crowd waiting, but it’s a very modest set-up, just a woman sitting on a stool on a particularly narrow street surrounded by a giant vat of boiling oil, buckets of dough, and a big bowl where she deposits the beignets when they’re done so her daughter can wrap them in Swedish newspapers (my bread I get from the boutique next door also is wrapped in Swedish newspaper…I don’t understand where it’s all coming from…maybe Sweden…but why???) and bag ‘em.

I go every now and then to Marché HLM also, which is the fabric market in the HLM neighborhood, which is like the projects but for Dakar. I love Marché HLM for a couple of reasons. The fabric is so vibrant and beautiful so I enjoy being surrounded by it (it’s also only about $1 for a yard) but I also like that it’s one of the only spaces in Dakar that feels ruled by women. Most of the sellers and shoppers are women, and even if they’re men they aren’t crazy aggressive like they are at markets like Sandaga where they gets lots of tourists so when they see a Toubab they descend and won’t leave you alone until you buy something. At HLM I’m pretty much always guaranteed to be the only Toubab and it’s also just quieter in general even though it’s absolutely massive and ten times as labyrinthine as Marché Jeudi. There are tiny little corridors lined with fabric stalls and you can only pass through one person deep. It’s also my favorite place to practice my Wolof, because everyone there is super game to speak Wolof to me instead of French and because of the repetition of buying and selling and each stall owner asking me the same questions over and over I learn the words better and it’s easier to repurpose them later.  

^ Some of the fabric I’ve gotten at HLM that hasn’t become clothes

I’ve really gotten to know the bus and informal public transportation systems (car rapides, kolandos) even better and only take cabs if it’s too late at night for buses. It’s great because I know the city so well now and taking public transport everywhere makes me feel more connected to Dakar and my fellow Dakarois (most ex-pats just take cabs all the time, since relative to the West it’s cheap, but relative to the buses here it’s astronomically expensive). It can be frustrating as public transport can be anywhere else; waiting forever, insanely crowded buses (like the kind of crowded where you don’t need to hold on to anything because you can’t move at all anyway), people accidentally stepping on you or elbowing you in the head etc. But now that I’ve gotten used to it I can never justify a cab to myself. 100 francs (16 cents) versus 1500 francs ($2.50) for the same distance…not a hard choice. That might seem petty but it’s all relative, I don’t convert currencies unless I’m making a big purchase when I’m living abroad.

One instance where I do convert and allow myself to splurge a bit (by Dakar standards at least) is this new restaurant about 10 minutes from my apartment called Mawa’s Taste of America, which is owned by a Senegalese woman who lived in the US for decades and makes absolutely incredible American breakfast food. I’ve also been obsessed with clementines (about $1.20/kilo…I eat A LOT of them) but the season is ending soon and I’m so bummed. Speaking of food, Brittany and I also recently tried some sort of weird cake called the Dakaroise from the bakery near my apartment and it was not only twice the size of our faces but one of the strangest things I’ve ever eaten. It was fairly dry yellow cake with layers of filling that was what I can only assume pure butter whipped with some sugar in it. It was like if I was making cookies and stopped after the first two ingredients and then used that to fill the cake.

^ Brittany’s head for scale 

Also here’s the most adorable picture ever of me having a tender moment with my baby cat who fell asleep with his paw on my face (not at all my cat, but I like it more than Brittany and it’s her families’):

[westfallingforchaol]

Salaam! I’ve started to think that I should just stop apologizing for disappearing for weeks on end because I feel guilty, and then I end up making promises I can never keep, and it becomes a vicious cycle. So, no more apologies. Just that school started, and it’s already kicking my ass. Also, my laptop broke down- I have no clue what happened. One day, it just up and decided to become stupid, and I couldn’t use it for about a week and a half. That happened. But I got it back this afternoon, so I thought I’d start off by doing a much-needed January wrap-up.

Even though I wasn’t blogging much, January was a pretty decent reading month for me. I read a total of 8 books, which is good since I wasn’t reading anything at all the past couple of months. Quality-wise, you probably know how I am by now… it goes up and down. For the most part, the books I read ranged from good to pretty good, and that’s honestly all I can ask, ha. I did read something awful though, but more on that later.

Personal

So… guess who I met? If you don’t follow me on Twitter, you might be unaware of this but I met Zayn a week or so ago. I love him to death- I think he’s both an incredible artist and an incredible human being. I was never a One Direction fan, but I distinctly remember thinking that Zayn was super attractive and had a unique voice; when he went solo, I really began to pay attention to him. Almost a year after his album release, I still listen to his songs almost every single day. I’ve binge-watched interviews and videos and stalked his social media, and he’s such a humble, grounded, adorable person.

Meeting him was incredible. He was so gracious and lovely; when I was taking a photo with him, my hand was shaking out of nerves so he reached out and steadied my phone. He was so kind to all his fans… and just in case you’re wondering, yes, he’s just as attractive in real life. :)

I also saw one of my favorite bands live! I’ve seen Kings of Leon live once before back in 2014, and they’re so incredible that I couldn’t possibly miss their 2017 tour. Protip: there are two things you need to do in your life:

See a rock concert in Madison Square Garden

See Kings of Leon on tour

I won’t pretend like I’ve seen a ton of concerts, but I’ve been to a few big rock ones, and there’s something that sets Kings of Leon apart from the rest. They make sure their fans get their money’s worth of performances. They performed 28 songs. One after the other with minimal pauses in between- so energizing, so rapid-fire but so, so good. If you like even just a couple of their songs, I’d highly recommend seeing them live. Despite not being my favorite band of all-time (that crown goes to Linkin Park) I still prefer their concerts over anybody else’s.

On Choosing a Different Path for Myself

Some of you might know this already, but I’m studying Applied Psychology at NYU. I just started the second semester of my junior year, which means I’ll be graduating in just over a year- which is insane just to think about. But I’ve decided that I want to switch…

Well, not really “switch” per se, but do something more advanced. Which is medicine! Surprise, surprise. When I went to Los Angeles over the winter break, I had a talk with a couple of my relatives, both of whom are psychiatrists. By talking to them and their constant affirmations that I was born to go into medicine, I started thinking. What do I want from my life? What do I want out of my career? And you might judge me for this, and I know this is probably why I’ve been sorted into Slytherin my entire life- I want to be successful. I want to be rich, lol, and I want to work for the money I earn. I want to travel. I want a good house, and a nice car. I want to be able to give my parents the chance to retire and sit back and relax while I am able to fulfill their needs. I want to buy stuff without looking at the price-tag, and I want to be able to give to causes that I support without compromising my day-to-day actions for lack of finances.

But that’s not just it. I wanted to become a psychologist so I could help South Asian youth who suffer from mental illnesses and are stigmatized and dehumanized. And I can do that. I can do that if I become a psychiatrist. I can do something good all while making a decent life for myself and my family. It’s going to take many extra years, particularly because I’ll have to take an extra year after my undergraduate to fulfill my pre-med requirements. But that’s a cost I’m willing to pay, you know? It was a scary decision to make. I wasn’t sure I could do it. I’m still not sure I have the brains to get into med school, but you know. I’ll go down with everything I’ve got. It’s honestly a little terrifying, but I’ve enrolled for the first class that’ll help me get there, and I’m ready.

But that’s all I’m going to ramble about. You came here for a reading wrap-up, so here it is!

Reading Wrap-Up

Everything Everything by Nicola Yoon | 1.5 stars | Review

This rating may come as a surprise to many, but I really disliked this book – not because the technical aspects were bad, but because the themes were so offensive that it didn’t sit well with me. I was enjoying it at first; the fun additions of notes and charts and illustrations added character, and I was interested in the character’s experience with her disability. But then the love interest was introduced, which made the book extremely insta-lovey, and that was also when the ableist themes came into play. This book was one big message of: you can’t be happy and you can’t have a normal love-life if you have a disability. Which is wrong on so many levels and completely downplays the experiences of so many. I explain it better in my review, so if you’re interested in learning more, check that out!

Goodreads | Amazon

If I Was Your Girl by Meredith Russo | 3.5 stars | Review

I had high hopes for this book, and for the most part, it did not disappoint. The main character was immediately likable, and you fully empathized with her desire to move on from a traumatic event and to fit in with a new group of people. My favorite aspect of the book was definitely her topsy-turvy relationship with her father; the nuance and complexity of their dynamic definitely added an extra layer to the otherwise happy book. I also thought that the romance was incredibly cute, even though I thought it was a little insta-lovey. Also, let’s talk about how little attention is given to great female friendships in YA- if you’re looking for a good female-friendship dynamic, check this book out. Trigger warning for transphobia, depression, suicide attempt and outing.

Goodreads | Amazon

Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire | 2.5 stars

I had very mixed feelings about this book; on one hand, I thought the world-building was incredible. Or rather, the potential for the world-building was incredible. Conceptually, the book was so strong, but I felt that a lot of the potential was wasted in execution. A ton of the world-building happens through dialogue rather than actual action. Which really bummed me out and kept me from enjoying the book. The characters fell flat for me too. I did, however, really enjoy the balance between whimsy and dark; I thought the plot was brilliant, and had it been carried out better, it would’ve definitely gotten a higher rating from me. Look out for my full review!

Goodreads | Amazon

Not If I See You First by Eric Lindstrom | 4 stars

This was perhaps my favorite book of the month, which was a surprise because I didn’t know what to expect when I went into it. I’ve only ever read one other book with a blind protagonist, and this one was completely different in tone from that one. I was wary at first because the protagonist is so bitter and mean and sarcastic, and I approached it with caution because it seemed to give off the vibe that she was that way because she lost her sight. But as the story progressed, as the main character developed and grew through relationships and interactions with the people around her, as she learned more about her past and her life and came to terms with her vulnerabilities, the beauty of the book came to light. It was truly a beautiful book, and another one with really amazing female friendships. Definitely a must-read! And look out for my review!

Goodreads | Amazon

The Young Elites & The Rose Society by Marie Lu | 3.5 stars each

#gallery-0-5 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-5 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 50%; } #gallery-0-5 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-5 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */

So, I know I’m late to the game, and I know everyone and their mother loves this series- and I understand why. Even though I didn’t give either book a great rating, I really enjoyed them both and am definitely looking forward to the finale. I think what makes this series stand out so starkly amongst its peers is the fact that it’s basically a villain’s coming-to-power story and then I’m guessing her subsequent downfall. I love the complexity of Adelina’s character; I enjoy how you empathize with her but also constantly criticize her choices because she’s going too far. I love the world-building, and the writing’s solid. I sometimes feel that the secondary characters feel flat, and also that Adelina’s still too likable to be called a villain. I want to see her pushed further so I can fully give her the label of villain, because I don’t think she’s there yet. Which was my main gripe with the second book. I won’t be doing an individual review for each book, but I’ll do a joint review for the trilogy!

Goodreads | Amazon

The Princess Saves Herself in This One by Amanda Lovelace (ARC) | 3.5 stars

I don’t read a ton of poetry, but I picked this one up because I’m mutuals with the author on Twitter, and it won an award, and it’s been getting a ton of hype. It’s basically word porn. I think a lot of the poems in this are incredibly relatable; it covers topics like mental health, body image, family dynamics, loss and death, abusive relationships, moving on, self-love, feminism and strength. A lot of the values I hold myself were reflected in this, and Lovelace definitely has a way with weaving words together so that they say a lot in very few characters. I enjoyed the first two parts of the book much, much more than the last one- which I felt was a little dragged and didn’t fit in with the tone of the other parts. But if you’re looking to get into poetry and aren’t sure where to start, check this out.

Goodreads | Amazon

Life in a Fishbowl (ARC) by Len Vlahos | 3 stars

Okay, so let me preface this by saying that the premise of this book is very misleading. The reality television aspect of it doesn’t come into play until well past the 30 or 40% mark- and believe it or not, I was really, really enjoying the book before the TV part was introduced. Definitely the strongest feature of the book is the writing. Vlahos is incredibly gifted; he’s clearly honed and polished his voice to perfection. It’s snarky, it’s intelligent, it’s satirical and hilarious and also surprisingly simple. Just reading his words made the experience delightful. His decision to tell the story from approximately eight perspectives was a gutsy move, but he pulled it off. The relationships, the themes were all spot on. It’s just that the storyline began to drag after the 60% mark, and the characters didn’t undergo any development, which I would have really liked to see. Even so, this was such a fun, fast-paced book, and I’d recommend it to anyone. Full review to come!

Goodreads | Amazon

Blogging

So, I’ve talked a little already about how I basically failed at blogging this month- I’ve never been so far behind my reviews. Because blogging sucked so much, I’m not going to do a post-to-post wrap-up like I usually do. But I’ll just leave a link to the Diversity Bingo 2017 event that I, and a few other friends are hosting. It’s basically a year-long reading event where you need to read 36 books that fit into a bingo sheet, each fulfilling a facet of diversity. You can find more information (and my TBR) here.

I also compiled a list of the diverse books releasing between January and June of this year. I know that I could have really used a masterlist, and in compiling it, I introduced myself to so many awesome-sounding books. If you’d like to check it out (and share, if you can please!), you can do so right over here.

The last post I’ll feature is my top 10 books of 2016. If you’re interested in seeing what the standouts of last year were, you can check them out here.

Also, I’m making a massive change to the blog- something that I think is important for my sanity, ha. I’m getting a co-blogger! I’ve already spoken to someone about it; she’s a friend that I got to know over Twitter. She’s incredible- kind, open-minded, thoughtful and just super wonderful in general. I’m not going to announce who exactly it is just yet- we’ll do that together when she writes her introduction post and she can officially be integrated into the website. Which also means that a URL change is in order. I can’t have a co-blogger and keep it my name. I’ll purchase the bookshelvesandpaperbacks.com domain soon, so just a heads up!

What I’ve Been Watching and Listening To

So, y’all probably know by now that A Series of Unfortunate Events was released on Netflix, which I binge-watched and freaked out over. The books were such an integral part of my childhood, and it felt so wonderful to revisit the characters and the story. The show stays so true to the books- from the narration to the sets to the whimsical, weird, magical-realism-type tone, everything feels like home. The casting is spot-on. I love Neil Patrick Harris as Count Olaf, and it took me some time to warm up to the children, but I love them all dearly now. Go check the trailer out:

As for music, I’m going to be fully basic and just talk about Zayn a lot more, ha. I barely listened to anything except for his new track with Taylor Swift. I really don’t like her, guys. The fact that the song is the soundtrack for Fifty Shades Darker really doesn’t help, but come on, it’s Zayn. I had to give it a try- and I haven’t stopped listening to it since. I’ve often wanted a version where it was just him singing, and guess what- yesterday, he dropped an acoustic version where it’s just him and a guitar. It’s honestly heaven-sent, and even though it was released in February, I couldn’t go without including it here. Check it out- it almost seems like a completely different song, and I haven’t listened to the original since!

So that’s it for last month’s wrap-up. I know, I had a lot to talk about- it was a busy month and a lot was happening in life. Kudos to you if you made it this far into the post. Let me know in the comments below what your month was like? As always, thanks for stopping by and happy reading!

Connect with me elsewhere:

Bloglovin‘ | Goodreads | Instagram | Twitter | Tumblr | Facebook

Wrap Up | January ’17 Salaam! I've started to think that I should just stop apologizing for disappearing for weeks on end because I feel guilty, and then I end up making promises I can never keep, and it becomes a vicious cycle.