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inbarfink · 7 months

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Interesting to note that Fionnaworld losing it's magic is not the only thing that changed about it when Ice King was turned back into Simon Petrikov. The 'side-effects' of it being in Simon's head seem to have... inverted.

Because the whole thing about Fionnaworld being in Ice King's head is that this is how he 'got the idea' for his 'Fionna and Cake' stories. Even though Ice King was supposed to just be 'a big nutty hard-drive', it seems like IK's subconsciousness had some sort of a connection to Fionnaworld and absorbed information from it - that Ice King's conscious self then put into his stories.

This... doesn't seem to be the case with Simon. You know, it's not like he goes 'oh, I get ideas for Fionna and Cake stories sometimes I just don't want to write them because I associate them too much with the Trauma of being Ice King' or even "I can't relate to Fionna and Cake anymore! But I do have some ideas for a pre-war era story about the quarter-life crisis of a blonde girl also coincidentally named Fionna!".

There's no indication that he gets any sort of 'ideas' from the Fionnaworld in his head anymore, a fact that he attribute to, just, a lack of interest in the characters.

Maybe one could speculate that Ice King's magic-infused mind gave it more of an ability to connect to the AU God Shoved in His Head. But.... Simon Petrikov's subconscious is still connected to it on some level. As we can see by the fact Simon's thoughts and immediate surrounding keep effecting the events going on in Fionnaworld.

Did this ever happen with Ice King? It's really hard to say, since we've seen so little of the 'real' Magical Fionnaworld. It was almost always filtered via the lens of Ice King's 'fanfiction'. Like, most obvious examples of 'Fionna and Cake' stuff being influenced by IK's psyche are probably just supposed to be him rewriting the stories in an inaccurate way.

But still, since Prismo was also actively 'writing stories' for Fionnaworld, and he considered it his own personal creative outlet, and since he found Ice King to be a satisfactory 'hard drive' for it all... Like, I'm going to assume that if IK's subconscious had a noticeble effect of the events of the Magical Fionnawrold - Prism wouldn't have been happy with it.

What I think is going on is related less to the matter of the magical-ness of Simon's brain and more to the other factor that Prismo mentioned in regards for picking Ice King's brain

It's emptiness.

Under the effect of the Magic Crown's Curse, Simon has lost most of his long-term (and sometimes even short-term) memories and, like, a lot of knowledge and intellectual skills he used to have. And that meant... a lot of space to store a whole-ass universe in his head, with probably also room to spare.

And maybe even the emptiness of IK's 'cursed dome' acted a bit like a vacuum - causing some information from Fionnaworld to leak into his mind.

But once Simon became himself again, all of this information and knowledge was restored inside his head. And maybe most of the experience of being Ice King is just 'dream-like impressions' like he said back in 'Betty' - but he still seems to retain some memories of these 1000 years as well. Back in 'Betty' he seems to have immediately remembered Finn and Jake, and after being permanently cured, well... he does seem to at least remember the events of "I Remember You' vividly enough to try and recreate them.

So now Fionnaworld is in a head full to the brim with stuff and... well, now it's, like, smooshed up with all of these elements of Simon's mind and psyche. Metaphorically, I'm visualizing it as, like, a bunch of items shoved inside an overstuffed cupboard and Fionnaworld is getting squashed and bent according to the shape of Simon's thoughts and memories that are shoved up close beside it. Less 'breathing room' for the world, and so Simon's thoughts can subconsciously affect the world more. But Fionnaworld information isn't leaking out anymore cause, like, there's enough out-there already.

That might also explain why Fionnaworld seems to be so damn small. Not even a full city as much as a few blocks.

It should be about as large as the actual Land of Ooo, but it might've shrank to be 'compact' enough to still fit into Simon's no-longer-empty mind.

(But now that they're free from his head and also canonized that's no longer a concern. It's alright now.)

#adventure time #atimers #fionna and cake #fionna & cake #at #at fionna and cake #fac #f&c #adventure time fionna and cake #adventure time simon #fionna and cake simon #fionna and cake series #fionna and cake show #simon petrikov #simon adventure time #ice king #the ice king

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normal-thoughts-official · 3 years

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I would have loved to see more interactions with the seelies- people who can’t lie but are crafty and secretive sounds fascinating. Think of the dialog! Alec going to magnus for advice since he has centuries of experience talking to them, Alec playing mental chess while trying to maintain peace. Would have loved getting more- but let’s be real, Cassaundra and the show writers weren’t clever enough to actually make any conversations like that of value.

SAME!!!!! honestly i would have loved to see so much more of the seelies. like bro do you understand that their culture predates the VERY EXISTENCE OF HUMANITY??? they are the ONLY kind of downworlders whose culture is completely detached from any human culture, not only because of predating it, but also because of the relative isolationism - which means human culture barely had any influence on their culture and history AS it developed

so like you can literally go fucking bonkers??????????? you can make ANYTHING. they have a whole ass society that doesn't have to have ANY ties to mundane concepts or history AT ALL. complete creative freedom. you could do ANYTHING! and don't get me started on the potential this has, within storytelling, to contextualize a lot of stuff modern western culture sees as natural or timeless as actually pretty fucking specific - like monogamy, cisheteropatriarchy, the gender binary, racism. all immortals have that potential of course since they can come from an array of different cultural and historical backgrounds but seelies in particular have SO much potential that is NEVER! FUCKING! USED! it all goes to waste and they are just a generic vaguely monarchic society that behaves literally exactly as modern western cultural standards. WHY. i'll never stop being salty, especially within sh where all this potential was there and instead they just villainized the seelies like no tomorrow for nO FUCKING REASON, and included a whole plotline about their ruler being a terrible power-hungry person and then proceeded to act as if that would have no influence on the seelies under her rule? thanks for nothing

like i know the seelie queen was so badly written that her own motivations even as a power-hungry wacko didn't make sense or were consistent (like why give simon the mark of cain for example, and for god's sake what kind of power-hungry crazy bitch gives their main enemy the power to literally kill her and destroy everything she has at the blink of an eye, like??? she literally tried to assist in her own genocide, it makes no fucking sense, i fucking hate it here) but if they are going to make her Terrible the least they could do was show how that impacted the people under her rule, especially if they are going to have meliorn be fucking tortured and either forced to display the marks of said torture or choosing to display them themself, like? please give your plotlines one singular thought

but of course it's easier to villainize seelies and reduce them to their obviously tyrannical ruler so they can go back to focusing on the shadowhunters and their issues. nevermind the fact that seelies are obviously equivalent to native ppls/third world countries resisting colonialism/imperialism in sh's stupid ass racial metaphor, which makes making their ruler a big bad unequivocally evil villain that is ruining everything A Choice. and a particularly choicy Choice considering they cast a middle-eastern man to play the most important seelie character. but if they are going to do that they could at least address how the people under her rule suffer and how that's a direct consequence of shadowhunter colonialism and interference, but why would we fkcnig thdo that!!!! when we can have love triangle drama or whatever

and tHEN there is the whole aspect of being unable to lie which is bound to have such an impact on their culture and history since they have to rely on other forms of communication to protect themselves - and considering the whole "tyrannical rule" plotline, to further the queen's agenda in the first place. and how telling the truth without preamble would probably be considered a huge display of trust in a society that has culturally developed so many ways of talking around things. like again the potential of the cultural and historic background for that society! it makes me go insane!!!

anyway all of that to say #JusticeForSeelies and #SeeliePlotlinesNow 2021 and forever. and YES i would have loved to see more interactions between them and other characters, particularly magnus because 1- admittedly i'm a hoe; and 2- magnus was clearly the one that had the most experience talking to seelies and that others relied on for that communication. he also seemed to be the most comfortable with them, which indicates there is either some sort of history there, or magnus just happens to feel relatively at home with the workings of their culture. which makes sense, because magnus also had to develop pretty similar defense mechanisms due to his, A- work as a warlock representative who has to interact with shadowhunters on the regular; B- history with having to deal with asmodeus, which required him to be very smart about what he disclosed and how, especially considering that he had to have been planning banishing asmodeus for a long time before he got to do it; and C- just history with abuse in general. we've seen the way he closed his heart off to new people; but at the same time, magnus is obviously an extrovert and likes to be around people in general. this meant that, in order to be able to both be in the kind of environment where he thrives and protect himself/his heart/his feelings, he had to learn how to interact with people while putting on a convincing façade, which requires pretty much the same sorts of wordplay and defense mechanisms that seelies use

magnus is good at wordplay, he's good at using talking to his benefit; we've seen that. he is also good at hiding and deflecting. he is notably not good at directly lying - every time he directly said A Lie such as "i am perfectly fine and not bothered by this at all :)" it was way less convincing than it was a clear display that he wouldn't budge. even alec, who has difficulty with social cues, noticed the lying and seemed concerned about it. so like. clearly his defense mechanisms were less lying and more dancing around subjects, directing conversation to safe topics, and guiding people to making certain assumptions and seeing sides of his that were safer and he preferred

so in that way it makes sense that magnus is somewhat in his element when dealing with seelies. i think "comfortable" is a strong word because this whole song and dance takes a huge toll on anyone's mental health and energy (which i think is something that could be very interestingly explored in seelies, their collective psyche, and their culture, the way they build relationships, etc. let meliorn have partners they feel 100% comfortable talking without preamble with 2k21), but it's something he is used to and a dynamic he can fall into without as much effort as others who would be second guessing themselves more and going slower, which clearly gives the seelies, who are used to it, an advantage

and like i know that i'm implying a confrontation or sort of situation where they are on opposing sides to seelies here, which i kind of am because i am thinking mostly about magnus' interactions with the seelie queen specifically, since she was the seelie he had the most meaningful interactions with. his interactions with meliorn were very few and almost never relevant, i barely remember them happening outside of generic downworld cabinet interactions tbh. but i don't just mean that because again, stop villainizing seelies 2k21

i also mean just generally that magnus would be in a more comfortable position talking to seelie strangers and slowly working into building a relationship and mutual trust. and just generally understanding them and the workings of their culture because he can empathize with the way they have built their social defense mechanisms. no one is 100% truthful to strangers, but seelies always seem kind of- analytical. and the cultural difference + anti-seelie racism makes them seem untrustworthy to most people, but magnus Gets It, so the potential for friendships! and the mutual understanding and the relative comfort around each other! and both parts understanding the enormity that is letting their walls down gradually and being more direct as time goes by. like.... aaaaaa

and yes magnus becomes a sort of reference on talking to seelies, mostly because he is good at "playing their game", but also making it a point to humanize seelies and making the other parts understand where they are coming from and how they feel :) and just improving their relations, particularly with other downworlders

im not going to get into alec because 1- the relationship between shadowhunters and seelies is already filled with oppression and a lot of complications, and particularly now that the seelie realm is politically fragile due to the loss of their ruler (however terrible she might have been), it would play into either white savior narratives or just straight up colonialism, especially given how alec as a leader already has a history of trying to build tutelage over downworlders (i don't care what his intentions were, it's still true, and although he's learning... well. he's learning, continuous action); 2- that would be more a relationship of opposition and i'm not that interested in that. but i would love to see seelies rebuilding themselves and their relationships and alliances with other downworlders particularly, and all the better if magnus is playing a part in that :)

in short:

more seelies

more magnus with seelies, especially friendships

more focus on the politics of seelies now that the seelie queen is gone

more seelies

#sh #shadowhunters #lore #magnus bane #meliorn #seelies #the seelie queen #seelie culture #seelie history #meta #magnus bane meta #meliorn meta #in a way #ask #anonymous #long post #salt #a bit #ok maybe a lot but mostly to add flavor to my lore ramblings

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palimpsessed · 3 years

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Writerly Ephemera

I was tagged by @amywaterwings @mostlymaudlin @tea-brigade @effing-numpties @captain-aralias @bloodiedpixie . This is so cool, so thanks for sharing yours! ❤️

Per Amy: We add little bits of ourselves to our writing, scattering memories and places and phrases and things into our stories. The game is to find five examples of this, of YOU, in your writing and show everyone.

I don’t really feel like I put much of my own experiences into my fic, probably because I don’t feel like I have a lot of experiences to pull from. (That’s not me being self-deprecating; that’s me never going anywhere or doing anything.) So, let’s see what we come up with!

Going to tag here. I feel like I’ve gotten to this late so I’m not sure who has been tagged. Anyway. No pressure, loves. Just saying hi. 🥰 @theflyingpeach @bazzybelle @otherworldsivelivedin @unseelieseelie @wetheformidables @caitybug @nightimedreamersworld @foolofabookwyrm @stillmadaboutpetra

1. I have put the most of myself into A Man of Letters. I have my degree in English Lit and when I was in college, I was at the height of my Jane Austen obsession. So I sort of built my degree around the development of the English novel. My senior thesis was on a book called Evelina by Frances Burney, who was one of Austen’s greatest literary influences. Evelina is an epistolary novel—told entirely in letters. I love the epistolary form, for the same reason I love dialogue and texting fics. It’s such a fun narrative technique and can reveal so much about individual characters. It’s actually a bit like the way Rainbow Rowell uses multi POV in her books. Anyway, my love of the epistle was on full display in this fic, which is ofc told in letters. —Do I share a passage? That’s like...the whole fic 😅 So, idk. Here’s Simon being a disaster as he meditates on letter writing:

Dear Penny,

As I start this letter, I already know I'm not going to post it. I know I won't be able to bring myself to do it, because of what I have to say to you. I do feel bad. It's not that I don't want to tell you. And you know I'm so much better at writing things down than saying them out loud. It's only that I feel like this would all sound better coming from me in person. I just don't think I'll be able to make you understand in a letter. I'm still trying to understand myself. And writing all of this down helps me with that. Even if I'm only pretending to write to you, it makes me feel better, to think of you on the other end. I promise I really will tell you everything as soon as we're together again.

2. Also for A Man of Letters, my fascination with Regency fashions, in particular the dandy, was a major factor. I did an art book about this, comparing how fashion has changed over time, especially in regard to gender. (I also did an art book based on Evelina, since I’m on the subject. I minored in book art. 😁) I always fancied the look of a Regency dandy, so that was my gift to Baz.

Whoever has been working their magic on Salisbury should in fact be the person to whom I offer my eternal devotion. Alas, I am left to flounder under the burden of lusting after a man who is incapable of dressing himself.

The utter and unmitigated shame.

Salisbury wore a forest green wool frock coat that set off the golden highlights in his brown locks. This was accented with a green and aubergine striped silk waistcoat that was trimmed in white piping and felt much too daring a pattern for the man. (I don't care if he was a soldier; it takes a hardier man than him by half to choose a stripe like that.) His charcoal trousers were enticingly snug, but not so much to prove lethal. His cravat and points left much to be desired, though that likely reflected poorly on his ability to keep himself in order, rather than the ability of his valet. (Good God, maybe the man doesn't even have a valet!)

3. When it came to my countdown fic, To the Manor Borne, I had Shep make a reference to Cluedo, because Pitch Manor would be perfect for a real life game. Behind that, is the fact that my family played a lot of Clue and I watched the movie a whole bunch growing up, to the point where my sister and I used to quote it to each other. This was a way to pay homage to that. He also talks about playing the game Murder in the Dark, which was one I played at Halloween as a kid. One of my cousins was dressed as a ghoul with glow in the dark face paint and we were in my grandma’s creepy upstairs. Perfect vibes.

I’ve seen the kitchen and the dining room and the library and the study and the parlor. Walking through this house is like playing Clue. (They call it Cluedo on this side of the pond, because they like to be difficult.) (That was a whole thing. Do not get me started.)

I keep thinking Colonel Mustard’s going to pop up out of nowhere and brain me with a lead pipe.

And:

What kind of games do you play with magickal friends who don't have magic? Twister? Not with the wings and tail. Cards? Baz and Penny would cheat. Or accuse everyone else of cheating if they didn't win. Murder in the dark? With these people, in this house, I knew it would turn literal fast, and also it was like ten in the morning. Hide and seek? Simon and I would hide and everyone else would ditch. Snowball fight? World War III.

4. I’ve referenced Mozart in my fics a couple of times because when I was first getting into classical music, I was listening to a lot of Mozart. My sister had a CD of some of his early symphonies, and my local classical station does “Mozart in the Mornings” which happened to fit in the exact time slot between two morning classes I had my first year in college. I’d go sit in my car with a cup of tea, and just vibe with Mozart as my soundtrack. I’ve name dropped him in both A Man of Letters and To the Manor Borne. Also, Mozart wrote 12 variations on the melody shared by Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star, which is a lovely tie in. (I also had the gang sing/cast The Holly and the Ivy, which is one of my favorite Christmas carols, and by strange coincidence was playing on the radio at the same time I wrote that scene. 🥰)

"It's a songbook," I tell him, like he can't figure that out for himself. "Did you know that Mozart wrote twelve different versions of the same song?"

He's laughing. "Mozart did not write Twinkle, twinkle, little star, Simon."

"You know what I mean."

"He composed twelve variations for solo piano on the French folk melody Ah! Vous dirai-je, maman."

"Sure. Anyway, this is for the violin. For you to play."

He's still laughing, and I'm trying to figure out what's so funny, but then he kisses me again, on the lips this time, so I figure maybe I'm still doing okay.

Only one more to go! What will it be? 👀

5. Therapy! Eheheh...😅 Look, it’s no secret the gang needs it. And tbh, so do I. Haven’t actually managed to get myself to go yet, and I think that’s where a lot of my “send them to therapy” happy endings come from. I did it in Use Your Words and To the Manor Borne. I started Chamber by Chamber with SnowBaz already in therapy, and then structured the whole thing around therapy that they give to each other and to themselves. It didn’t really fit in A Man of Letters, but if it had, I absolutely would have done it. I’ve only shared from two fics so far, and since it could kind of spoil the ending to Use Your Words (tho saying this may be spoiler anyway...), here are two snippets from It’s a Kind of Magic, Part I of Chamber by Chamber.

I've been working on articulating my needs. We both have. Ordinarily, I'd be afraid of pushing him away by making demands when he's on the verge of a spiral, but my therapist insists that I can't go on treating Simon with kid gloves. If I never ask him for anything, he'll think he doesn't have anything to give.

And

When I told that to my therapist, she said that I needed to talk it out of me and she'd help me find ways to work through it all. She said I needed to talk it out with Baz, too, so that he'd know how to help me when things got bad again—that was something else she said, that things would get bad again, and that I'd need to be prepared for that. That I couldn't expect things to be easy, and just go away.

6. BONUS! I think the biggest way I include bits of myself is in the AUs I’ve chosen to write. I have three I’m planning that say a lot about me, so I’m going to talk a bit about them here. There is ofc my Scooby Doo AU, inspired in large part by the fact that I watched it all the time growing up and also, my sister continues to be obsessed with it. When we were young, my parents were doing a lot of work on their house and we’d take family trips to the hardware store. My sister and I hated it, so we’d wait in the car with my mom and she would entertain us with “Scooby Doo stories”. Other AUs I’m planning? Troop Beverly Hills—please tell me someone else out there loved this movie the way I did when I was 5. It was very influential to baby me and I remember wishing for nothing more than being able to dress like Shelley Long. So, I’m going to let Baz do it, because I think he deserves it. 🥰 Lastly, tho it will probably be the first I write, is my Cupid and Psyche AU, from when I was heavy into mythology and religion. Since these are all forthcoming projects, I don’t really have a snippet. Instead, here’s Baz comparing Simon to Eros, which is what started my brain on that particular AU.

I am lost. I barely know anything about Salisbury, but I can't help being drawn in. At one time, I could have comforted myself that I was only so smitten with him because he looks like he was sculpted by Praxiteles. That excuse grows weaker with every encounter. He's the furthest thing from a lifeless tribute to beauty in marble as one can be. There is something deep and dark and feral inside of him and I want to claw it out. I want to see it, to let it free. To taste his wildness and his pain.

#tag game #writerly ephemera

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shemakesmusic-uk · 2 years

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Getting To Know...

Jelly Cleaver.

South London guitarist, activist, producer, and singer-songwriter Jelly Cleaver has released her debut EP with her group “The Forever Presence” (which features members of Levitation Orchestra and Steam Down).

The EP Forever Presence is out noe via taste-maker independent label Gearbox Records (Binker & Moses, Levitation Orchestra, Abdullah Ibrahim, Thiago Nassif), and follows the recent release of her singles: ‘Forever Presence: Pt. 2′, which saw Cleaver introduce her unique and progressive style of ballad; and the environmentally-charged ‘Black Line’, which saw Cleaver merge expansive jazz, psych, lofi soul, and blues rock, as well as including an impassioned, blistering guitar solo.

We had a chat with Jelly all about the EP, her influences, activism and more. Read the Q&A below.

Hi Jelly! Firstly, what was it that led you to make music? Who were you influenced by growing up?

"I guess I’ve loved music since I can remember and I was playing the guitar since I could hold one. I really got into music and started spending all my free time writing songs when I was about 13 or 14 though. Pretty much all I used to listen to was music from the 1960s; I loved Jimi Hendrix, Joni Mitchell and Nina Simone. Apart from all things 60s I also loved the jazz singers, Ella, Billie and Sarah, and I had a best of John Coltrane CD I used to fall asleep to, but I was pretty much the only person I knew who liked jazz at the time. I was also obsessed with Jeff Buckley and Destiny’s Child but not much else from the 90s. That pretty sums up teenage Jelly."

You've just released your debut EP Forever Presence. What is the story behind the EP and what do you hope listeners take away from it?

"In some ways it’s quite a classic lockdown EP story. Us musicians were forced to take a break from gigging, and I started looking at some of the songs I’d written which I didn’t tend to perform because they were all ballads and didn’t really fit my live set. All the songs were inspired by some kind of deep loss and grief, whether loss of a loved one, loss of a community or climate grief. It was something I felt was particularly pertinent at the time when so many people were dealing with some kind of loss of grief due to covid. When restrictions had lifted enough I managed to persuade a bunch of really gifted musicians (half of whom were my housemates, luckily enough) to jump into a recording studio with me and we put the whole thing down in a day without ever rehearsing those pieces before as a band. It all happened very organically as I wanted to really capture our emotions and immediate reactions on the day. The record is really an offering to those who are grieving or dealing with loss, I hope it can help them in some way."

Please take us through your creative process for Forever Presence. Which part did you enjoy the most and what about it did you find the most challenging?

"Like I said, I’d already written all the music, and the hardest part was organising getting all the musicians in the recording studio on the day. Minus the logistics, the creative process happened quite naturally. Before we even played a note we all sat down and I chatted very candidly about what all the compositions were about, and I’m really grateful I was with the kind of people who would get what I was talking about. I thought once everyone knew what the music was about it would come out sounding right. We’d then play through it once or twice just so people understood the structure, and then we’d hit record."

You perform at activist events and organise workshops and gigs to celebrate freedom of movement and migrant rights. Please tell us more about that? How did you get into it? What does it mean to you?

"I’d always been into volunteering and fundraising as a teenager but as I got older I started to realise that so many problems in the world are systemic, and the best thing we can do to help people is to actually try and change those systems. Migrant rights in particular is something I feel really strongly about, and I hope if more people knew what was happening they’d feel the same way too. With the Black Lives Matter movement last year I think more people are aware that they should try and tackle systemic racism, and I think fighting for migrant rights is one of the most urgent things antiracists should do. Standing up against charter flights and fighting against horrific legislation like the Nationality and Boarders Bill or the Police and Crime bill are just some of the things people can do."

You've had an incendiary rise over the last year. What has been the biggest highlight for you so far? And what are you looking forward to in the future?

"One of the biggest highlights was probably being nominated for an Ivors Composer Award. I stood out from the rest of the jazz nominees for quite a few reasons, mostly being the only woman, but also being a self-taught musician and composer and having a completely self-released and self-funded composition. It’s a huge amount of work having to be completely budget and DIY about everything, especially as it’s something a lot of my contemporaries don’t have to deal with, so it was really nice to get that recognition. I’m looking forward to recording the next Forever Presence album and releasing some new projects too in the future. It’s very open musically so even I’m not sure how it’s going to sound yet!"

Photo credit: Kasia Kawalek

Forever Presence is out now.

#getting to know #jelly cleaver #forever presence

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thebrokenblackman · 4 years

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KRS-One - “Ah Yeah!” Critical Analysis by Hakeem Ture

“If hip hop has the power to corrupt young minds, it also has the ability to uplift them.” - KRS-One

The musician is a natural master of vibration and emotion. Many musicians have been able to make us dance. Many have been able to draw on relatability because nobody is the only person like them in the world. Perhaps some have even made us cry or provided soundtracks for intimate moments. Only few musicians have taken on the task of socially and historically educating their listeners through their music.

Even fewer have been able to combine the mastery of teaching with mastery of rhythm. Those who do this become legends like; Nate King Cole, B.B. King, Nina Simone, Bob Marley, Chaka Khan and Fela Kuti’ and their influence lives throughout generations. In 1995 Krs-One released a self-titled album that came in the sunset of his reign. His career would mirror the sepia filter of the album cover.

This album had dominant auras of militancy and rebellion that Krs-One fans had not heard since Boogie Down Productions - Criminal Minded. Krs-One was able to both appease his day one fans and gain the younger generation of Hip Hoppers who were listening to artists such as: Nas, Redman,Das Efx, Tupac, and A Tribe Called Quest. The message and timing of this album may have been divine. Let us look at the historical events of the year(s) Krs-One was creating this album in. In 1994, the United States congress had successfully completed the first step of becoming fascist by Voting to Censure Dr. Khalid Muhammad, National Advisor of the Nation of Islam. Bill Clinton and Joe Biden led Democrats to pass the The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act and effectively fueled the prison industrial complex. South Africa held it first election since intergrating with the apartheid government and Invisble Man author Ralph Ellison had passed. Hip Hop was the soul vehicle of expression to protest the genocide that had been going on and KRS One was one of its leaders. The youth looked toward this leader to deliver an album reflective of their mindstate and he delivered.

Imperative of a classic work of musical art, this album is composed of multiple great songs, but in my opinion the cornerstone song of the album is undeniably “Ah Yeah”. In this song he masterfully uses three 16 bar verses to empower and mobilize his listener much in the same way Dr. Khalid Muhammad did. This track starts with the establishment of an a capella warcry. He writes in response to western power’s having done such an incredible job destroying the rebel instinct that Afrikan people possess by publicly shaming our leaders and traditions. These lyrics are him trying to raise the psyche of a fallen warrior class and put revolt back in its holy place as opposed to the negative connotation that has been applied by the white power structure. He essentially made a chant-like hook with an underlying message of “This is your enemy, This is how to handle him, and THIS is okay”. The aim focuses on redirecting the accumulated anger of a traduced peoples that is often mistargeted toward self so that we may be collectively progresssive.

He bellows:

“Ah yeah, that's whatcha say when you see a devil down

Ah yeah, that's whatcha say when you take the devil's crown

Ah yeah, stay alive all things will change around

Ah yeah, what? Ah yeah!”

Then comes the establishment of an eerie bass line. This song structure is familiar to fans of his earlier work. It was what they were longing for. For a few albums he took the perspective of being in the classroom or office as opposed to in the battlefield with his men. He had returned to fight with us like Haile Selassie. Immediately he establishes a dual level of respect. One with his men and one with his deterrent.

“So here I go kickin' science in ninety-five

I be illin', parental discretion is advised still

Don't call me nigga, this MC goes for his

Call me God, cause that's what the black man is

Roamin' through the forest as the hardest lyrical artist

Black women you are not a bitch you're a Goddess

Let it be known, you can lean on KRS-One

Like a wall cause I'm hard, I represent God”

In the first 2 bars of the preceding excerption he lets us know he intends to drop some knowledge, but it will not be filtered for political correctness or comfortability. The following 2 bars he establishes both a tone of encounterment and identity. Then he goes on to explain from which direction he came much like Saint Maurice's appearance upon the plagued people of Europe to let them know he has navigated and he is no spook. He goes on to talk to his listener and the most important of them, the women.

In 1994, fresh off a press tour on which she gained popularity from criticizing Bill Clinton, Sister Souljah published her first book that was heralded by black scholars and youth alike entitled No Disrespect. Her Influence was cemented in the minds of black youth and played a huge role in raising generational consciousness by dealing with topics like “how the black woman is viewed by black men” and “the black woman’s role in repairing the black family structure”. She had solely been awarded leadership duties by a disregarded demographic in a scapegoated culture and was handling it with the grace of Misty Copeland. Her and the women she raised to consciousness needed the camaraderie of Krs One. He goes on to sell to himself:

“Wack MC's have one style: gun buck

But when you say, "Let's buck for revolution"

They shut the fuck up, can't get with it

Down to start a riot in a minute

You'll hear so many Bowe-Bowe-Bowe, you think I'm Riddick

While other MC's are talkin' bout up with hope down with dope

I'll have a devil in my infrared scope,”

In the first five bars he addresses the enemies of the oppressed people within the oppressed people. These “Wack MC’s” are the Uncle Toms’ and Judas of the rebellious, afro-centric movement that is Hip-Hop. He says they lack discipline and do not have the self awareness to rescue themselves. In comparison with himself who uses that energy toward an ultimate goal, Independence through revolution. In the succeeding excerption KRS briefly displays the cognitive processing and coping mechanism of a warrior:

“WOY

That's for calling my father a boy and, klak, klak, klak

That's for putting scars on my mother's back, BO

That's for calling my sister a ho, and for you

Buck, buck, buck cause I don't give a motherfuck

Remember the whip, remember the chant

Remember the rope and

You black people still thinkin' about voting?

Every President we ever had lied!

You know, I'm kinda glad Nixon died.”

Throughout the preceding excerption KRS skillfully uses onomatopoeias to create a setting for his listener. There is a battle going on. Shells casings are falling to the ground and bullets are flying from high caliber weapons. He is in the thick of it and then an enemy approaches him. He musters the courage to engage with his assailant by remembering the suffrage the morals of his enemies’ elected nation-state has caused his ancestors. Then he rejoices in the death of one of their leaders, Richard Nixon.

In the second verse Krs-One addresses an age-old topic of discussion for spiritual people that was brought forth to the Afrikans of today by Noble Drew Ali, “The Prophetic Soul”. This belief dates back to ancient Buddhism in the caves of Asia taught to us by Dr. Ivan Van Sertima in his book “African Presence in Early Asia”. This belief entails that all the prophets of the world including but not limted to; Adam, Jesus, Buddha, Muhammad, and himself were the same soul being reborn until its mission is completed.” Krs-One puts himself and a couple others in this divine line of being.

“This is not the first time I came to the planet

concern every time I come, only a few could understand it

I came as Isis, my words they tried to ban it

I came as Moses, they couldn't follow my Commandments

I came as Solomon, to a people that was lost

I came as Jesus, but they nailed me to a cross

I came as Harriet Tubman, I put the truth to Sojourner

Other times, I had to come as Nat Turner

They tried to burn me, lynch me and starve me

So I had to come back as Marcus Garvey, Bob Marley

They tried to harm me, I used to be Malcolm X

Now I'm on the planet as the one called KRS

Kickin' the metaphysical, spiritual, tryin' to like

Get with you, showin' you, you are invincible

The Black Panther is the black answer for real

In my spiritual form, I turn into Bobby Seale

On the wheels of steel, my spirit flies away

And enters into Kwame Ture”

In the beginning of the third verse he briefly continues the theme of possessing The Prophetic Soul but now, he does not speak from a perspective of being the people who had the soul. He speaks from the perspective of the soul. This soul is traveling and looking for a host. In the first two bars he speaks of how he was able to travel without detection from the government’s surveillance. Then, he goes on to finally choose a host that is relevant to the demographic of people it intends to reach. This host is stylish and his image is relatable, so the people will be receptive of his message through familiarity.

“In the streets there is no EQ, no di-do-di-do-di-do

So I grab the air and speak through the code

The devil cannot see through as I unload

Into another cerebellum

Then I can tell em, because my vibes go through denim

And leather whatever, however, I'm still rockin”

After the prophetic soul latches on to the host, KRS-One, it manifests purpose with grassroot organization and motivational speaking. Being KRS-One founded the Stop the Violence Movement in 1988 and was solely responsible for mobilizing many of the most influential Hip Hoppers against Gang Violence and Culture he had plenty of knowledge to give on the topic.

“We used to pick cotton, now we pick up cotton when we shoppin'

Have you forgotten why we buildin' in a cypher

Yo hear me kid, government is building in a pyramid

The son of God is brighter than the son of man

The spirit is, check your dollar bill G, here it is

We got no time for fancy mathematics

Your mental frequency frequently pickin' up static

Makin' you a naked body, addict and it's democratic

They press auto, and you kill it with an automatic”

Too often credit for the creation and establishment of a culture or society is given to one person as opposed to being evenly distributed amongst the support structure. How many times have you been taught the legacy of all the men that signed the declaration of independence? It is likely that you’ve only been taught about Thomos Jefferson. Just like there would be no Fidel Castro without the parallel influences of Che Guevara and Camilo Ceinfuegos there would be no Hip-Hop without KRS ONE. Perhaps without his tenacity, passion, and will it would have been infiltrated and exploited before it reached its full maturity. If that would have happened America would not have its current number one export. In his prime most consumers who listened to his message and gazed upon his image said “OH NO!” from fear of what they could not understand. Today, we look at his legacy of art and effort and cant help ,but smile and yell “AH YEAH!”.

“If hip hop has the power to corrupt young minds, it also has the ability to uplift them.” - KRS-One

He bellows:

“Ah yeah, that's whatcha say when you see a devil down

Ah yeah, that's whatcha say when you take the devil's crown

Ah yeah, stay alive all things will change around

Ah yeah, what? Ah yeah!”

“So here I go kickin' science in ninety-five

I be illin', parental discretion is advised still

Don't call me nigga, this MC goes for his

Call me God, cause that's what the black man is

Roamin' through the forest as the hardest lyrical artist

Black women you are not a bitch you're a Goddess

Let it be known, you can lean on KRS-One

Like a wall cause I'm hard, I represent God”

“Wack MC's have one style: gun buck

But when you say, "Let's buck for revolution"

They shut the fuck up, can't get with it

Down to start a riot in a minute

You'll hear so many Bowe-Bowe-Bowe, you think I'm Riddick

While other MC's are talkin' bout up with hope down with dope

I'll have a devil in my infrared scope,”

“WOY

That's for calling my father a boy and, klak, klak, klak

That's for putting scars on my mother's back, BO

That's for calling my sister a ho, and for you

Buck, buck, buck cause I don't give a motherfuck

Remember the whip, remember the chant

Remember the rope and

You black people still thinkin' about voting?

Every President we ever had lied!

You know, I'm kinda glad Nixon died.”

“This is not the first time I came to the planet

concern every time I come, only a few could understand it

I came as Isis, my words they tried to ban it

I came as Moses, they couldn't follow my Commandments

I came as Solomon, to a people that was lost

I came as Jesus, but they nailed me to a cross

I came as Harriet Tubman, I put the truth to Sojourner

Other times, I had to come as Nat Turner

They tried to burn me, lynch me and starve me

So I had to come back as Marcus Garvey, Bob Marley

They tried to harm me, I used to be Malcolm X

Now I'm on the planet as the one called KRS

Kickin' the metaphysical, spiritual, tryin' to like

Get with you, showin' you, you are invincible

The Black Panther is the black answer for real

In my spiritual form, I turn into Bobby Seale

On the wheels of steel, my spirit flies away

And enters into Kwame Ture”

“In the streets there is no EQ, no di-do-di-do-di-do

So I grab the air and speak through the code

The devil cannot see through as I unload

Into another cerebellum

Then I can tell em, because my vibes go through denim

And leather whatever, however, I'm still rockin”

“We used to pick cotton, now we pick up cotton when we shoppin'

Have you forgotten why we buildin' in a cypher

Yo hear me kid, government is building in a pyramid

The son of God is brighter than the son of man

The spirit is, check your dollar bill G, here it is

We got no time for fancy mathematics

Your mental frequency frequently pickin' up static

Makin' you a naked body, addict and it's democratic

They press auto, and you kill it with an automatic”

#krs one #krs1 #hip hop #90shiphop #boombap #african art #African American Art #african history

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scientificphilosopher · 5 years

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Mental Health and General Life Advice Gained Over the Years

Here is a list of some things I’ve learned over the years that have, I think, helped me live a better life

Be flexible in my narrative. When I say things like ‘I’m just an anxious person,’ or ‘I suck at confrontation,’ then I risk fixing onto this narrative rather than managing it in a healthy way. I become unwilling to recognize instances where I’m not anxious. I ignore opportunities for growth. Instead, I find it better to foster a flexible narrative. I know it’s important to acknowledge, normalize, and even embrace my identities, but I don’t want to mistake an aspect of my identity for my identity wholesale. I’m not my anxiety. Rather, I struggle with anxiety. I’m not Depression. Rather, depression has had a formative influence on my sense of self. This, too, goes for my social identities. Identities are real, and they have very real impacts on our world and our experience, but they are not everything. To paraphrase James Baldwin, identities are like garments that ought to be worn loosely so that our nakedness—and ability to change—can still be felt.

Steep in my fallibility. The more I’ve learned about my personal fallibility—which is prodigious—the healthier my relationships and general approach to the world has become. Embracing my tendency to be biased and make mistakes has, I hope, fostered a strong sense of humility. Thank goodness, since this world is messy and complex as shit, and we are often—so very, very often—wrong about things. Or at least overly-simplistic. And because things are so goddamn complicated, it can be hard, even impossible, to see nuance. Our limited and parochial natures can lead us to ignore complexity, especially if that complexity doesn’t cast a favorable light on our beliefs about the world. I’ve developed an almost fetishistic obsession with learning about cognitive biases and the seemingly infinite number of ways my psychology leads me astray (as evidenced by the persistent string of posts I’ve made on it, like here, here, here, here, and here). Paradoxically, fully embracing and seeking out my fallibility has led me to have a much deeper understanding of the world around me. As Simone de Beauvoir says, ‘It is in the knowledge of the genuine conditions of our life that we must draw our strength to live and our reason for acting.’ My genuine condition is that of a mistake-prone, biased, and mercurial ape. (And that’s pretty cool.)

Get in touch with the messiness. Why is it important to have a flexible narrative and to embrace our fallibility? Because shit’s complex! Incredibly, intensely, bone-chillingly, awe-inspiringly complex. Our brains have evolved as taxonomy machines where we carve up the world and separate everything into nice and neat little boxes. If only things could be so simple. As it so happens, though, the world is, as William James wrote, ‘multitudinous beyond imagination, tangled, muddy, painful and perplexed.’ I have found it to be very helpful to reflect on the complexity of everything, even the seemingly simple and straightforward.

Mindfulness exercises. ‘Mindfulness’ has, like ‘empathy,’ become a pop-psych buzzword over the last several years. This is partly because mindfulness is a very potent tool. It can fundamentally alter our day-to-day existence. There is no shortage of ancient schools of wisdom that have prescribed mindfulness as key to a meaningful existence. I’m partial to David Foster Wallace’s construction of mindfulness when he said that it is the true aim of a good education. With mindfulness we cultivate the power to choose where to focus our mental energies, to choose what has meaning and what does not. With practice, ‘it will actually be within your power to experience a crowded, hot, slow, consumer-hell type situation as not only meaningful, but sacred, on fire with the same force that made the stars: love, fellowship, the mystical oneness of all things deep down.’ In short, continued Wallace, ‘you get to decide what to worship.’

Thinking about thankfulness. Gratitude exercises are a form of mindfulness I’ve found to be especially beneficial. When I have the mental energy to do so, I try to get creative about my gratitude. I try to find gratitude in the mundane, the trivial, the invisible. It’s much too easy to be grateful for grand adventures and emotionally rewarding escapades. It can be much more difficult—but equally meaningful—to find gratitude in the humdrum, or to appreciate the infinite number of shitty things that didn’t happen to me, or to embrace the vast confluence of luck that has led me to this single moment of unadorned contentedness. This is another subject I’ve written about to a near-obnoxious extent (see some here, here, here, here, and here). I sometimes feel reservations recommending gratitude exercises, since, when things are really awful, as they so often are, it can feel patronizing and hurtful to have someone tell you that you should just be grateful. This is not my intention. The world is capricious and fucked up, far more often than it should be. This is why I try to access gratitude in the moments where things are okay. I try to seize moments of grace and calm and squeeze out those drops of thankfulness. This can add water to the reservoir that I will need to pull from when I’m thirsty and in pain. In my better moments, then, I can find gratitude, or some semblance or peace or perspective, even when I’m suffering. I can, as Nietschze wrote, ‘throw roses in to the abyss and say: “Here is my thanks to the monster who didn’t succeed in swallowing me alive.”’ And, ultimately, this has helped me get to a place where I can, more often than not, remain in a ‘contented dazzlement of surprise,’ to use Lewis Thomas’ turn of phrase.

Me and everyone I love will die. You know what else I’m grateful for? This breath. And this one. And this one. It’s pretty wild to be alive, to be a self-aware extension of nature itself. What a stunning convergence of necessary circumstance needed to randomly grant me such a privilege. And, just as it came, so it will go. Randomly and inexorably. Death awaits. There is no stopping it. Dark, suffocating, oblivion. This can be scary, of course. But it’s also motivating and contextualizing. Death is not yet here, after all. And that makes each and every breath, smile, kiss, and laugh a priceless cosmic treasure. Indeed, it is precisely because of our limited time that life is so meaningful. Emily Dickinson, as she was wont to do, summed it up eloquently when she said, ‘That it will never come again is what makes life so sweet.’

I am not free. At the very least, I am not free in the way I’ve long thought. I am a physical being, subject to the laws of nature, of cause and effect. My thoughts are not authored by some mystical volition or unrestrained willpower. I am thoroughly restrained. I am, indeed, destined to write this sentence from the very moment the cosmos silently but extravagantly whispered itself into life. Some people recoil from this idea, thinking that if our thoughts and actions are determined by external factors, then life is meaningless, and change is futile. These conclusions do not follow. Change is occurring constantly. Our actions have consequences. What we do chaotically reverberates into our surroundings. We are determined, but not fated. We have power, even if it is not free. Instead of catastrophizing and fearing the implications of our lack of freedom, I like to reflect on what this means for how I treat myself and others. A lack of freedom motivates in me a deep sense of compassion. It demands forgiveness for both my mistakes and those of others. None of us asked to be here. We are, as Heidegger said, thrown into existence, awoken to a set of determined circumstance. I am the type of person who has been able to receive an education, to have supportive loved ones, to have a functioning moral compass, a disposition for moving and meaningful emotional experiences, and to want to work to make the world a better place. But I didn’t choose to be or have any of this. This is all luck, luck, luck. From my country of birth to my balding head and hairy back to every last neuronal blast fashioning my inner life—not one atom or twist of the genetic braid was chosen exclusively by me. So, if I find myself as the type of person who doesn’t want to harm others, who doesn’t have unmanageable compulsions, who doesn’t suffer from debilitating isolation, who isn’t disproportionately oppressed by the unconscious machinations of social systems, then this, like everything and all of it, is luck, luck, luck.

Interpersonal stuff. I’ve been very lucky to have had resources in my life, including access to healthcare, a support system, and loved ones who happen to be badass psychologists and counselors. I’ve gleaned invaluable life advice from these dear friends of mine. And thank the cosmos, as such advice has proven to profoundly improve my interpersonal relationships. A couple of quick ones: avoid ‘Shoulding’ on people. When I’m upset and in pain, I typically desire a compassionate and patient ear rather than practical advice. When people come at me with ‘Well, you should do this…’ I often just feel misunderstood or further alienated. Even worse is the ‘Nike Advice,’ where someone says ‘Just do such and such…’ This often feels invalidating because if it were a matter of ‘Just’ doing something, I would’ve already done it. Things are rarely so simple. Similarly, I’ve found it helpful to listen rather than problem-solve. I will commiserate and look for solutions if that is what the person asks for, but usually, I will try to be simply present for the other person, to sit with their pain and offer my compassion and understanding.

Meta-advice. Here’s some advice on my advice: take it with a fat, ballpark-sized soft-pretzel’s worth of salt. I am a philosopher, not a psychologist. I try to be very science- and research-driven, and I’ve been lucky to enough to draw from the hard-earned wisdom of other experts, but, nonetheless, I am not an expert myself. I try to live well. I try to be smart and kind and humble and patient, and I often fail. I am human, all-too-human. This is simply meant to be a sloppily-rendered summary of some helpful pieces of anecdotal advice I’ve gathered on my never-ending journey toward eudaimonia. Nothing more. It is non-exhaustive (this post is, like me after a night at home with a book and a DiGiornio, far too bloated), and I’m sure I’ll regret leaving out many pieces of pivotal information. But the above advice has (so far) been useful in my life. This does not mean it will be helpful for everyone. I hope, at least, that it would not be harmful. Do with it what you will, my friends, and good luck.

#nich #psychology #philosophy #life advic #mental health #eudaimonia #gratitude #mindfulness #death #mortality #long post #text #long

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lati-will · 7 years

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Full Moon – August 7/8, 2017 In AQUARIUS & Sun In LEO (15.250 Aquarius – 15.250 Leo)

Moon – past, intuition, unconscious, emotions, nurturing, feelings Sun – now, identity, consciousness, self-esteem, expression Aquarius (Air) – humanitarian, determined, individualistic, rebellious, pioneer, independant Leo (Fire) – leader, affectionate, generous, outgoing, stubborn, authoritative, courageous, warm-hearted

ENERGY: August 7/8, Full Moon + Lunar Eclipse

Lets start by looking at the Lunar Eclipse first…

A Lunar Eclipse occurs when the Moon is full and the Earth blocks the Suns rays from partially/fully reaching the Moon, thus the Moon is cast within the Earth’s shadow.

As the Moon is partially sitting in Earth’s shaddow (ie unable to reflect the I AM Light of the Sun), a window opens and we are drawn into ourselves, the part that we don’t show to the world, the emotional and deepest part of our psyche. The word ECLIPSE comes from the Greek word “ekleipsis” meaning “to abandon, to leave, to vanish” – and thats exactly what we may experience during a Lunar Eclipse – the desire to surrender and let go of parts of our self that limit our greater potential.

The energy of our August 2017 FULL MOON LUNAR ECLIPSE is an extension of our February 2017 Lunar Eclipse and Solar Eclipse. As we now come into our August 2017 Lunar Eclipse (followed by our Solar Eclipse on the 21/22 August 2017) , it is time to reflect on the themes of what was coming up for you in February 2017 and finally, gracefully and with FULL HEART let go, surrender and take that step into the soft yet powerful expanse of your HEART. It is TIME to LOVE the cracks and let go of the boundaries that limit your experience of infinite LOVE.

RELATIONSHIPS are the BIG THEME for our August 2017 Lunar Eclipse – ALL our RELATIONSHIPS such as friends, family, lovers, community and our societal systems (such as our relationship to/with Governments, Business leaders etc) And of course the most important relationship, your relationship with SELF. I invite you to deeply reflect during our August Full Moon Lunar Eclipse on ALL RELATIONSHIPS in your life and your feelings/thoughts/emotions behind that energy given/received within your relationships. And then does this energy exchange seek to empower through LOVE & KINDNESS or does is foster pain, hurt & separation through fear ?

Are you caught in the divisive anger/separation currently being felt within the world (forinstance politics) or are you holding a greater vision of what you know is possible through your heart ? Where in YOU can you identify anger, hurt, fear, separation in your relationships…. and most importantly what can YOU do this Lunar Eclipse to change the narrative within… which ultimately changes the story of our world ?

This Lunar Eclipse will be a GET REAL moment and a REVOLUTIONARY step into a deeper place within your Heart regarding all RELATIONSHIPS. The world needs you at this time to hold a greater vision and through kindness, compassion and reverence for one another come together in heart-space to be the change. What will it take for YOU to step up on this Lunar Eclipse and be this change ?

AQUARIUS is an innovator, a pioneer, a humanitarian ray of LOVE that seeks to find new opportunities for expansion. Thus during this Full Moon Lunar Eclipse in Aquarius, let go of the need to follow what ‘other people do’, what society may tell you is the ‘right way’ and what family or loved ones ‘expect you to do’. Simply trust in yourself, believe that the LIGHT in your HEART guides you to experience the greatest joy and that your unique way of seeing and being in this world is the birth place of miracles and a life well lived.

Our August 7/8 Eclipse opens a window leading into our August 21/22 TOTAL ECLIPSE in Leo (which I will be writing about in a future post) and the energy will be felt right up to Eclipse season that starts again in late January 2018. Just a kind & loving reminder, eclipses have a way of bringing about change/release in your life for your greater good. So you have the choice of surrendering and doing the release work consciously or you can choose to rebel against the eclipse energy kicking & screaming as the universe intervenes and makes the changes for you (I thoroughly recommend the former!)

There are some interesting transits that our influencing our August Full Moon Lunar Eclipse too…

JUPITER square PLUTO (at a close to exact 900 angle) is expanding our desire to be seen. You may find that you deepest beliefs as it relates to success, material wealth and status will rocked to the core, as you challenge where these beliefs came from and what now is your heartfelt association with YOUR meaning/definition of true success.

MARS in a weak conjunction with SUN and in weak opposition of MOON. Whilst this Full Moon Lunar Eclipse will signal a huge inflow of energy thanks to Mars (yep, that may mean some sleepness nights for the sensitives out there that ‘run energy’), you may wish to curtail the need to have to have everything done by yesterday. PATIENCE is a virtue, otherwise the Mars/Moon energy may make you a big narky & irritable and essentially you will be the cause of arguments between your lover, family and all your relationships. BREATHE to keep the energy flowing & surrender any anger or aggression with LOVE. Remember, when faced with the choice of ‘being right, or being kind’, the most compassionate and loving choice is that of KINDNESS.

Fixed Star SIRIUS is opposing PLUTO (whilst also in a weak conjunction with Venus). As I discussed last month, we are deeply being guided to bring into our Hearts/Souls the sacred integration & harmonic alignment of the Divine Feminine (Venus) & Masculine (Sirius) within our lives. The influence of Venuson this Full Moon – a Divine Feminine archetype – will create a graceful embodiment of love, beauty & sensuality in our lives.

And finally, our August Full Moon Lunar Eclipse amplifies the energy of our 8 August – 8:8 Lions Gate Power Portal. The 8:8 Portal is a stargate that floods energy from the source of all at the Great Central Sun, through our Sun, The Star Sirius, the Earth Grid Point of the Sphinx and The Great Pyramid of Giza… during this portal a wave of intense Light from the Galactic Center is being transmitted to the Earth. This “wave” contains the new Light Codes for the Evolution of the Earth for the next year/cycle, and so it is known as the Planetary New Year! This flood of LOVE will not only amplify the energy of our Full Moon Eclipse, but will be felt right up to our TOTAL Solar Eclipse on the 21/22 August 2017 (which I will write about very soon as we get closer to the date).

SUMMARY: Over all, our August 2017 Full Moon Lunar Eclipse is softening our Hearts and helping us to let go of the anger, frustration and deepest hurts in every RELATIONSHIP within our lives. Whilst emotions maybe running high this Full Moon, through sacred breath & deep surrender, you will emerge brighter and empowered to find evolutionary ways of living on-purpose. The ‘cracks’ which may appear are simply opening you to greater states of harmony in all your relationships and from this place of ONENESS – revolutionary change can be seeded and ultimately flourish.

I feel that the energy of our August 2017 Full Moon Lunar Eclipse is ultimately bringing you back to a tender place of sacred RELATIONSHIP with SELF. As you care for, love and nurture YOU… then EVERYTHING in your life changes. Eclipsing unhealthy/unloving patterns fills your HEART to a state of rich & delicious fullness that ultimately overspills out into every relationship in your life – HEALING YOU, healing the EARTH and healing the WORLD.

During this Lunar Eclipse remember to BREATHE… breathe through your heart and remove any judgement of what is being shown to you… remember LOVE is all there is ♡

Listen/Download my Lunar Eclipse Meditation > (Running Time – 21 Minutes)

View times in your City/Country>

By: OmAhOm © Simone M. Matthews www.UniversalLifeTools.com

#full moon #life #consciousness #subconscious #universe #space #earth #healing #spiritual #spirituality #spirit #soul #multidimensionality #articles

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the-desolated-quill · 7 years

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Amy’s Choice - Doctor Who blog

(SPOILER WARNING: The following is an in-depth critical analysis. If you haven’t seen this episode yet, you may want to before reading this review)

Simon Nye. Now there’s someone I never thought I’d see writing for Doctor Who. Don’t get me wrong. I’m glad he did. I just didn’t think this would be his thing.

For those of you who don’t know, Simon Nye is most well known for writing sitcoms. Most notably Men Behaving Badly, Is It Legal?, Hardware, and the criminally underrated Beast. Recently he’s received critical acclaim for The Durrells, a comedy drama series based on Gerald Durrell’s Corfu Trilogy and starring Keeley Hawes. So I was a bit surprised at the time to see his name pop up in the opening credits of Amy’s Choice. This couldn’t be the same Simon Nye, surely. And then I heard this line:

Dream Lord: (to the Doctor)“If you had any more tawdry quirks you could open up a tawdry quirk shop. The madcap vehicle, the cockamamie hair, the clothes designed by a first year fashion student…I’m surprised you don’t have a little purple space dog, just to ram home what an intergalactic wag you are.”

Yep. This is definitely a Simon Nye script.

As a result, Amy’s Choice has got to be the funniest episode so far this series. It’s absolutely jam packed with zingers and one liners. Too many to count. A few of my favourites include the Doctor reacting to Amy’s pregnancy (”You’ve swallowed a planet!”), the Dream Lord bluntly telling Rory what happens if they die in reality (”You die, stupid. That’s why it’s called ‘reality’”), and Rory’s reaction to an old man throwing him across a field (”He used to slip me the odd free toffee... Did I not say thank you?!”).

But of course there’s more to a story than just being funny, and thankfully Nye brings a lot to the table.

The Doctor, Amy and Rory encounter the Dream Lord, played wonderfully by Toby Jones, who has trapped the protagonists in two versions of reality. One in the TARDIS and one back in Leadworth where Amy is pregnant and she and Rory have long since stopped travelling with the Doctor. In each reality there’s a deadly danger, except one is real and the other is fake, and they have to decide which is the dream and which is the real world. An interesting premise, but it’s undermined sadly because the Leadworth reality is so obviously the dream. The constant references to how peaceful and tranquil it is, plus the fact that the entire world seems to cater to the things Rory wants in life were all a bit of a giveaway. So it’s a bit hard to be invested in this so called difficult choice they’ve got to make because to an intelligent audience it’s a no-brainer surely. It also ruins the emotional impact of Rory’s death because any lingering doubts you may have had about which is real are instantly evaporated because you know Rory can’t possibly be dead. I didn’t however consider the possibility that both worlds were fake. I thought that was a good twist. In the heat of the moment, you forget that if the Dream Lord has no physical form, he can’t possibly manipulate the real world, so how is the TARDIS in danger? Also it’s a clever bit of misdirection. Cold stars being fake seems really obvious in hindsight because we know that physics doesn’t actually work like that, but because Doctor Who has a bit of a reputation for twisting the rules of science around for the purposes of entertainment, we’re actually prepared to buy into it. For all we know, there could be such things as stars that burn cold in the Whoniverse.

Some people have criticised this episode because the monsters aren’t very scary. And yeah. Aliens disguised as old people aren’t remotely scary. It’s actually quite daft. The sight of old people shambling across a field like zombies and attacking Amy and Rory’s house with gardening tools has got to be one of the most surreal images I’ve ever seen in Doctor Who. It’s like Night Of The Living Dead. Or Nearly Dead in this case. (If I said that I found the scene where Rory hits an old lady on the head with a plank of wood hysterically funny, does that make me a bad person?). But if you’re only criteria for what makes a good Doctor Who episode is whether or not the monsters are scary, you must live a pretty sad life frankly. With a series as flexible as Doctor Who’s, do we have to keep going back to the same boring old monster of the week format? That’s why I love Amy’s Choice so much. It’s something different. It uses imaginative sci-fi concepts to explore the characters in greater depth.

At the end it’s revealed that the Dream Lord is actually the dark side of the Doctor’s psyche manifested, which completely changes your perspective of the episode in repeat viewings. Toby Jones does an impressive job with this darkly comic material, taunting Amy and Rory and spitting barbs at the Doctor, but once you realise who the Dream Lord really is, it all becomes clear what Jones and Nye are trying to achieve. The Dream Lord highlights all of the flaws in the Doctor’s character. The self loathing is evident, but we also see other, unsavoury traits highlighted by the Dream Lord’s costume changes. We see him dressed as an upper class aristocrat, which of course is to do with the Doctor being a Time Lord, but also to highlight the Doctor’s arrogance. We see him dressed as a doctor, which is obviously to display his intellect and his desire to help others, but this is where the Dream Lord explains the rules of his game, so it could also symbolise the Doctor’s power and influence over human life. Later we see the Dream Lord dressed as a butcher, which represents the Doctor’s capacity for violence and warmongering. He also mentions the Doctor’s brief stint as a vegetarian during the classic series, which could hint at the Doctor’s inability to commit. We see him dressed in a silk dressing gown and bare chested to represent the Doctor’s lust and attraction toward Amy (we’ll come back to that later). Finally we see the Dream Lord dressed as a racing driver, which represents the Doctor’s spirit of adventure, but can also represent a desire to recapture one’s youth. This is supported by the Doctor’s current incarnation as a young man (the youngest man ever to play the role in fact) and the Doctor’s tendency to pick attractive, young women as his companions.

Dream Lord: “An old man prefers the company of the young, does he not?”

The two worlds are also an extension of the Doctor’s personality and representative of his fears and desires. The TARDIS seems much more tantalising because that’s the life the Doctor enjoys. New discoveries, imminent danger and only one man to save the day. Leadworth, on the other hand, represents everything the Doctor hates and fears. Everything is slow. Peaceful. Boring. Even the aliens disguised as old people play into this. You could argue that they represent the Doctor’s fear of staying in one place, growing old and becoming irrelevant. Also they’re ancient alien refugees whose homeworld was destroyed and they leave death and destruction in their wake. Sound familiar?

But as interesting as all of this is, this episode isn’t really about the Doctor. It’s about Amy. But before I go into that, I have just one minor complaint to make:

Rory: “You ran away with another man on the night before our wedding.”

Amy: “Not in that way.”

Er... YES in the way! Absolutely in that way! I’m sorry, are we just going to ignore the ending to Flesh And Stone?! (I know it’s tempting, but...). Hello! Earth to Moffat! Trying to have sex with another man on the night before your wedding is not what normal people do in a healthy relationship! It’s kind of a big deal!

In the end, it all comes down to Amy’s choice. But she’s not just having to choose between dream and reality. She’s having to choose between two lives. Adventures with the Doctor or married life with Rory. And this is where we see the Doctor at his ugliest.

The two realities are not just manifestations of the Doctor’s fears and desires. They’re also meant to skew the odds in his favour when Amy makes the choice. It’s been hinted at previously, but the Dream Lord makes it crystal clear. The Doctor cannot understand how Amy could possibly be attracted to someone as unimpressive as Rory, and so the Dream Lord tries to entice her. He can tell Amy finds the Doctor attractive, and the scene where he’s in the silk dressing gown implies the feeling is mutual. But it’s not as simple as that. As much as the Dream Lord wants to entice her, there’s a hint of cruelty in there too. As much as the Doctor is possibly attracted to Amy, the Dream Lord makes it incredibly clear that she’s not his equal and will always be beneath him. Up until now, Amy has borderline hero worshipped the Doctor, and while the Doctor will never admit it, the Dream Lord shows that he does actually enjoy this feeling of superiority over her. So at this point the choice becomes either living a life with a mundane man that will love her and respect her or living a life with an exciting adventurer who will never fully trust her or treat her as an equal.

Ultimately Amy chooses Rory. Not just because she realises what a jerk she’s been to him all this time, but also because she finally realises that the Doctor is not the perfect hero she imagined him to be. And while Rory may be more mundane compared to him, he’s a better man than the Doctor.

I have to say Karen Gillan really shines in this episode. I’m not sure if I’d go as far to say that I like Amy now, but at least we’re addressing these issues and I really like the emotional journey she goes on. And after his wooden performance in The Vampires of Venice, Arthur Darvill has improved dramatically. The scene where he’s carried Amy up into the baby’s room and is looking at the cot and silently worrying about his wife’s safety was incredibly powerful. Matt Smith was good too of course, but it’s Gillan and Darvill who are the stars of this episode I feel.

Amy’s Choice is, in my opinion, the strongest episode of the series so far, using an imaginative premise to show us the Doctor’s more sinister side and explore how his companions react to this. It’s intelligent, entertaining and creative in equal measure, and I really hope Simon Nye will get the chance to write another Doctor Who episode in the future.

#amy's choice #simon nye #doctor who #eleventh doctor #matt smith #amy pond #karen gillan #rory williams #arthur darvill #steven moffat #bbc #review #spoilers

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theagencyrp · 6 years

Photo

[[LOADING FILE]]

>>:// [[ACCESS GRANTED]]

ALIAS: AGENT ROCKEFELLER; ROCKY NAME: [[REDACTED]] POSITION: TECH OPERATIVE ACCESS LEVEL: ONE

>>:// [[AGENT ROCKEFELLER INTEL]]

>> Agent Rockefeller’s family is a household name. Despite their wealth and influence, Rockefeller has been able to keep their identity from being compromised. >> Rockefeller prefers a traditional three piece suit. >> Trainer Notes: Rocky was divorced three weeks before they entered recruitment with the Agency. This seems to have no negative effects nor has it hindered their desire to succeed in training or cause them any emotional duress. Follow up with psych. >> Rockefeller has never been sick a day in their life.

>>:// [[AGENT ROCKEFELLER IS TAKEN]]

Faceclaim: Robbie Beeser

>>:// ATTEMPTING TO ACCESS CODENAME: ROCKEFELLER >>:// DECRYPTING >>:// TEMPORARY ACCESS GRANTED

What skeleton are you applying for?: Agent Rockefeller

Character’s real name: Jude Laurent Elster

First choice FC: Robbie Beeser

Second choice FC: Simon J Loof

Character gender and pronouns: Cismale (he/him)

Character age: 24

Please list at least two reasons why the Agency looked to recruit your character:

He’s good with secrets. Not only has he managed to maintain a completely secret identity, but he’s also been able to avoid divulging any secrets about his personal life, unless sharing relevant knowledge to the agency. He spent several years covering up his family’s secrets, from their money laundering to private family gossip that could ruin their personal image. On top of that, he managed to deliver information about them to the FBI without being caught or even suspected.

He prioritises his work over everything. He follows orders and will take any measure to make sure he can accomplish whatever needs to be done. He makes it known that his allegiance lies with whoever is making the right moves and right decisions in his eyes.

Character backstory: [[At least three paragraphs. We ask that you include important life events, important childhood points, previous job experience/training, how they were accepted into The Agency, etc. ]]

The Elster family was a powerhouse in the state of California. Everyone with that family name was a someone: renowned doctors and surgeons, lawyers, linguists, politicians. At the forefront of it all was Laurent Elster, a businessman and philanthropist who ultimately became more concerned with money than morality.

Rocky was the youngest of two and the only boy. His older sister, was bred for greatness and raised with the intention that one day she would take over everything their family had built. She got the nicest things, the best tutors, the most expensive summer camps, every opportunity handed to her on a silver platter. Whilst Rocky never went without anything, it was made clear to him from day one that he was a backup child, the one that would get everything if anything ever happened to his sister, and thus was pushed to the sidelines. However, without constant training from his father, his mother doted over him like a favourite toy and it was almost as if he and his sister lived totally different lives under the same roof.

In some ways, he considered himself lucky. Without his future completely planned out for him, Rocky had a level of freedom that his sister would probably never experience. He got to pick his own extracurricular activities and make friends without clearing them with his father first. He was popular in school, his social circle was large and everyone considered him a ‘close’ or ‘best’ friend. He slipped into every clique in one way or another; getting in with the jocks by playing on the basketball team, gaining favour with the more academically orientated kids through his after school computer science class. Having everyone know who he was was the only way Rocky was truly living up to the family name because, if he was being honest, he didn’t give a shit about any of it.

Anyone who didn’t know Rocky would’ve called it ‘a rich kid thing’. He had everything and could have anything at the drop of a hat; he was well liked, intelligent, good looking, and none of it meant anything to him. The problem with being smart was that Rocky could see through everything and he saw through his family. His sister was a robot by the time she got into high school, a mini-me of their father, and it made Rocky sad. He got first priority with his mother because his father allowed it, allowed her to have another child to keep her occupied so she wouldn’t dwell on the fact that their marriage was as stale as both of their personalities. They were the American dream in front of cameras, smiling as they cut ribbons and passed checks to people in wheelchairs, kissing babies and shaking hands like they had any integrity left.

It surprised him that not more people knew about the money laundering. It seemed obvious, a prolific businessman with a dozen charities that he started ‘anonymously’? Come on now. Every now and then people in suits would turn up to the house, or a reporter, or a phone call would send his father into such a rage that everyone in the house would go and hide in their rooms until he calmed down. For someone as clever as Rocky, he did enjoy eavesdropping and he did a lot of it. The air vent in his room went directly through to his father’s office and he got to hear so much more than anyone else in the house. All of it was fake, all of their money was sitting in over seas bank accounts and charity accounts, every shirt on Rocky’s back and step he took in that house was fake.

For years, Rocky deliberated with himself. He knew it was wrong but how much did he really know? How long had this been going on for? How long could it go on for before their family was caught? The stress of the situation started to surface in small acts of rebellion, enough that he could let off some steam without getting into any more trouble than necessary. He stayed out after curfew and snuck strangers into the house; sometimes coming home smelling of smoke with a lighter in his pocket and ash in his hair; occasional photos popping up on gossip websites of him leaving parties with strangers on his arm. Not just strangers, other boys.

His father finally started taking notice of his son’s misdemeanours after people started asking ‘so what’s the deal with Jude?’. The Elster reputation was everything and Laurent Elster wouldn’t have his son running around, acting like it was okay to go home with a boy then return the next day with love bites on his neck. In one heated argument, the longest conversation they’d ever had, they came to a standoff. Rocky wasn’t allowed to ruin the family reputation by being gay. But what was his dad going to do about it? What was he going to do if he tried to stop Rocky from being himself? How would he feel if Rocky had to deny a part of himself but all of their secrets ended up in the hands of the FBI? How would it feel if they suddenly lost everything?

To cut a long argument short, Rocky wasn’t going to tell the FBI anything and in return, his father wouldn’t ruin his life in every way he could think of. He would finish school, marry a nice girl picked out for him, stop hanging around with boys ‘only out to get him in trouble’, and behave himself. Step one was simple enough, Rocky got through the end of high school by being the same as he always had: sociable, clever, good at managing time. College was unnecessary, considering his father had decided now and forever how he was going to fall into place in the family business, but an experience he desired nonetheless. This was where he met Petronella, a lovely Dutch girl who Rocky made fast friends with in first and only year at Harvard. He told her as much as he could, detailing how much he disliked his father and how little he wanted to be involved in the future planned out for him. She couldn’t do much for him but she could give him a way out of his father looking over his shoulder, making sure he wasn’t ‘spending time’ with anyone he shouldn’t be - they were married within a year of meeting. Step two complete.

After a year at Harvard, Rocky was taken out of education and set to employment at his father’s new office in New York. He kept quiet, he worked in the job he hated then came home to the apartment with Petronella and they put the world to rights. As a temporary measure, all of this was fine; Rocky could handle it, but the idea of this being the rest of his life…it was an unbearable thought. What no one knew, not even Petronella, was that he had a plan to get away from all of this.

Feds had started turning up to get information from Rocky since he got to Harvard, still under the watchful eye of his father but with a few blind spots that came with being on the other side of the country from him. He was hesitant at first, dwelling on his father’s words from that huge fight over a year ago now, but knowing he couldn’t continue as he was.

So, he started to cooperate. Small interviews turned into requests for physical evidence, wires taped to his chest every time he had a meeting, until they were asking him for confessions. He was surprisingly good at it, charming and friendly enough that no one would suspect what he was doing, that every time he went into his own office he was following instructions to hack the emails of his co-workers and managers, sending screenshots and faxing paperwork that no one outside of the business was meant to see. All of that was fine but a confession from his father? It was the only way they could end this but Rocky couldn’t pull the trigger. He knew this would ruin everything and that as soon as their empire came crashing down, he’d be first suspect. He was going to decline until they told him, ‘When you’re done here, we have an opportunity for you that you won’t want to say no to’.

His only request was safety for Petronella. She wasn’t involved and she’d been nothing but a loyal friend and ally, giving up years of life to pretend to be married to someone who couldn’t love her, just because she was a good person. She wasn’t happy when Rocky explained the situation, afraid more than anything, but understanding. She trusted him when he said she’d be safe and this wouldn’t hurt her, that measures were in place to make sure she could have a normal life after everything came out. All she had to do was forget about him.

Rocky was already gone by the time arrests started happening and the entire Elster dynasty was turned on it’s head. He tried not to think about it, putting everything he had into learning everything the agency had to teach him. He was ideal for a tech agent, good at obtaining information from the right sources and getting it to the relevant people without third party involvement. It was strange to admit but he enjoyed it, the work as much as the knowledge that he was doing something different and something right. Leaving everything behind wasn’t without his hardships and sometimes Rocky thinks about his family, about his life as Jude Elster, but knows in the grand scheme of things, this is what he’s cut out for.

Character personality: [[At least one full paragraph, please.]]

+ intelligent, hard working, sociable, generous. - resentful, self righteous, closed off, judgemental.

There’s really three sides to Rocky’s personality. There’s ‘Agent Rockefeller’: stoic and serious in his work but always willing to learn and assist others. He loves his work and he’s good at it, he goes above and beyond to complete tasks and enjoys the credit and praise he gets for it. There’s ‘Rocky’: friendly, kind, a guy who can talk your head off and knows how to have a good time. He loves people and likes it even more when they love him back, but no one gets closer than arms length.

Then there’s ‘Jude’. No one knows Jude, not even his name, but parts of him shine through at the best and worst of times. Sometimes it’s obvious that he’s come from money, with his preference for sharp suits and his inability to stay impeccably healthy. How does he even do that? How good does someone’s health care get so good that they don’t even catch the office cold? He can be judgemental, unable to relate to financial struggles and a little ‘nose wrinkly’ when it comes to smaller houses and older technology. But he means well, he has a level of empathy you’d think you could only find in a puppy and makes his relationships count, whatever they are. He’ll always call you out if you’re going against something he believes in, if you’re doing something he considers to be inherently wrong. Some might call it harsh, he calls it honesty.

#all #rockefeller #tech #one #taken

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positivepsychologyinterventions · 5 years

Text

Podcast: Comfort Zones Aren’t Where We Grow

Today’s guest has a simple plan for radical life changes: Step outside of your comfort zone. Lucia Giovannini is a former supermodel-turned-psychologist whose new book advises that the path to a meaningful life lies in stretching our intellectual and emotional abilities. Lucia believes that making a concentrated effort to learn and grow on a daily basis can make you a happier person, and help you realize your true potential. And isn’t that the goal of a well-lived life?

Listen in as Lucia gives easy, practical tips for expanding your horizons, reaching the best of your abilities, using your talents to serve the world, and finding inner happiness.

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

Guest information for ‘Comfort Zone’ Podcast Episode

Lucia Giovannini is world renowned sensation, a former international Italian supermodel – turned transformational speaker and author of 13 books. Her newest book, A Whole New Life, has been translated into 8 languages, and is available in English from Post Hill Press, a Simon & Schuster imprint.

Her 25 years of inspiring work through conferences & has been influenced by growing up throughout different parts of Italy and Africa, immersed in the beauty and the pain of those unforgettable lands. Her work crafts a synergy between traditional psychological techniques, motivational practices, and ancient eastern rituals that turns her seminars into profound experiences for Asian and European audiences alike. Lucia holds a doctorate in psychology and counseling, a bachelor’s degree in psychoanthropology, and is an international affiliate of the American Psychology Association. Please visit her online at https://www.luciagiovannini.com/

About The Psych Central Podcast Host

Gabe Howard is an award-winning writer and speaker who lives with bipolar disorder. He is the author of the popular book, Mental Illness is an Asshole and other Observations, available from Amazon; signed copies are also available directly from the author. To learn more about Gabe, please visit his website, gabehoward.com.

Computer Generated Transcript for ‘Comfort Zone’ Episode

Editor’s Note: Please be mindful that this transcript has been computer generated and therefore may contain inaccuracies and grammar errors. Thank you.

Announcer: Welcome to the Psych Central Podcast, where each episode features guest experts discussing psychology and mental health in everyday plain language. Here’s your host, Gabe Howard.

Gabe Howard: Welcome to this week’s episode of the Psych Central Podcast. Calling into the show today, we have Lucia Giovannini, a former Italian supermodel who holds a doctorate in psychology and counseling and a bachelors in psychoanthropology and is a member of the American Psychological Association. Lucia, welcome to the show.

Lucia Giovannini: Gabe, I am really honored to be here.

Gabe Howard: I am extremely excited to talk to you about our subject, which is stepping outside your comfort zone. But before we get started, I really just want to ask — What’s it like to go from an Italian supermodel to a doctorate? For some reason in our culture, we tend to think of those things as mutually exclusive. But obviously, they’re not.

Lucia Giovannini: Well, yeah. Well, for me, it was actually stepping out of my comfort zone. I started working as a model, and then it soon became a full-time career. And at the beginning it was awesome. So I moved to Milan, and I was living in a beautiful house. I was traveling the world, et cetera, et cetera. But after a while, a short while, I started feeling depressed because since I was a child, I’ve always felt a deep calling for creating a better world, not just for us humans, but also for the other beings that share this planet with us like animals, trees, mother earth. And so really listening to this call again, and I had to do this going through a depression, sadly. But the depression was actually a wakeup call for me. So in order to follow my true calling, I had to leave everything that I had created so far — my house, my career, my marriage, at that point. So it was really stepping out of my comfort zone.

Gabe Howard: When you talk about stepping out of your comfort zone, do you literally just mean doing something that makes you uncomfortable or is it — is it deeper than that?

Lucia Giovannini: Definitely doing something that makes me uncomfortable, but it’s even more than that. In my case, for example, I was scared to death to let go of all my certainties. And so it’s really going beyond fear, going beyond all your conditioning beliefs that say you won’t make it, you are not good enough, you will not be able to survive, et cetera, et cetera. So it’s really uncovering new territories or traveling in, you know, new paths.

Gabe Howard: Did the people around you see this as concerning or a cry for help or self sabotage? Going from, you know, modeling and like you said, all that glamour over to academia, which again, people see as really two different worlds. So was there concern from the people around you that you were running away or abandoning something that used to be important to you?

Lucia Giovannini: Well, they actually thought I was crazy. I tried to speak, you know, with my husband at that time, and he said, well, seek help because there’s something wrong with you. Then I spoke to my friends, my co-workers, the other models, or photographers, or you know, fashion designers who are my friends. And all of them said, “Well, you know, I think there’s something wrong with you. Please seek help, seek professional help.” So it was really difficult. And even after I took that decision and I let everything go, all my friends abandoned me because they thought I had gone crazy. So that was the other harder part. One hard part was, you know, the money and the other, the other part was my friends and all the people around me, because they couldn’t understand that depression was a reality. My soul talking to me, trying to reach me and signaling me that there was a new path there for me.

Gabe Howard: And we can kind of see why we hold it, you know, beauty and glamour and money and fame in very high regard. So on one hand, I think they may have been concerned because after all, something that used to be important to you, you have now lost interest in. And then, of course, there’s that societal pressure of probably a lot of people wanted to be you. So they couldn’t understand why you were walking away from something that they saw as so desirable. Do you think for people out there who are walking away from something that they’ve spent a lot of time and effort in, that the reaction of their friends and family and support system is a barrier to them moving on?

Lucia Giovannini: Well, yeah, definitely, because, I mean, we as humans are social animals, so it’s not that we cannot make it alone. Of course we can. But it’s much more difficult if we don’t have a support system. And if all the people around us — our best friends, our partner, our family — doesn’t understand, you know, what we are going through, it’s not easy. And of course, in my case, I also doubted myself. Apparently, I had it all. So I also started out in myself thinking, have I really gone crazy? You know, am I really throwing away everything good that there is in my life? I mean, I was looking around me and all the other people seemed happy, my co-workers seemed happy, the other models, my husband seemed happy, at that time, my husband was a fashion model as well. So why are they happy? Why for them, it’s OK and it’s not for me? If the people around you don’t support you, it’s also easy that you start doubting yourself as well.

Gabe Howard: Obviously, we just met and I know it turned out okay for you and I know you’re doing wonderful things and great things, and I know that more importantly, you’re much happier now. But even as I’m listening to you, I’m thinking, oh, man, I don’t know. That’s a lot to give up. So I imagine that many people, when stepping outside their comfort zone, feel exactly the same way. What are some ways to get over that barrier or what are some ways to not only step outside of your comfort zone, but to do so when a lot of people — and people who are very meaningful to you — really aren’t backing that plan?

Lucia Giovannini: So I normally advise people to ask some coaching questions: What is the cost for me to stay in this situation? We normally focus on the cost that we pay to follow our dreams. We normally ask ourselves, OK, but if I do that, like if I leave my job, if I leave this relationship? If I don’t, I’ll leave my home town. What will be the cost that I will pay? I will have no money. I will have no friends, will fail, etc, etc. But we seldom focus on another question which is far more important. And it is — what is the cost that I’m paying if I stay here? If I stay in a job that I don’t like anymore? If I stay in a relationship that has nothing more to offer? If I stay in a situation that is my comfort zone but doesn’t make me grow, doesn’t nurture me anymore? Once you realize that the cost that you are paying is so high, then it really gives you a good motivation to go out of your comfort zone. Another thing is really to ask another coaching question, which is: If I didn’t have fear, if I didn’t feel fear, what would I do? Because normally we let fear advise us instead of letting love be our advisor. Normally we make decisions out of fear rather than making decisions out of love. And so that’s another new paradigm.

Gabe Howard: I really like what you said there. There’s a meme on Facebook that I really like and that says “Instead of imagining what could go wrong, imagine what could go right.” We’re afraid. We don’t want it to happen. It’s uncomfortable. It feels poorly. And we allow that to stop us from getting to the thing that feels positive or good or extraordinary. And then we end up sort of like right in the middle, right? Where we’re no longer afraid, but we’re also not excited. We’re safe. And that’s what a comfort zone is. Right?

Lucia Giovannini: Yeah. Actually, I think we should call it discomfort zone rather than comfort zone, because it becomes a prison after awhile. I mean, for me, I wasn’t so courageous to jump out of my comfort zone immediately. I spent, like, at least a couple of years, if not more, you know, in that depression, trying to get this thing changed. Lying to myself. Keeping on telling myself that I didn’t have any clarity on what I wanted. But internally I was very clear on what I wanted. It was just that it was too difficult to admit it even for myself. So I stayed in that discomfort zone for, like, a long time, and it became a prison. And this prison, it suffocates you. It takes all your energy, all your vitality. And so we call it the comfort zone. But it should really be called discomfort zone.

Gabe Howard: We’ll be right back after we hear from our sponsor.

Announcer: This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp.com. Secure, convenient, and affordable online counseling. Our counselors are licensed, accredited professionals. Anything you share is confidential. Schedule secure video or phone sessions, plus chat and text with your therapist whenever you feel it’s needed. A month of online therapy often costs less than a single traditional face to face session. Go to BetterHelp.com/PsychCentral and experience seven days of free therapy to see if online counseling is right for you. BetterHelp.com/PsychCentral.

Gabe Howard: We are back talking about ways to improve your life by stepping outside of your comfort zone. I think the idea of having safety can be a prison. And I think that that is really what is going to maybe challenge the audience, because the audience is going to think to themselves, wait a minute, if you’re saying that I’m safe, I’m in prison. Can you expand on that? And in a way to let people know that just because you’re safe or mediocre or OK, that doesn’t mean that you’re excelling or succeeding. It just means that you’re safe. And that “safe” isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it’s not necessarily a good thing either.

Lucia Giovannini: Well, I’d like to quote Maslow, you know, Abraham Maslow, the great psychologist of the last century?

Gabe Howard: Yes.

Lucia Giovannini: He used to say that if you plan to not choose your capacities, if you plan to play safe, plan not to stretch yourself, you’ll be unhappy for your whole life. Of course, I’m not saying that we should jump off the cliff with no parachute or do stupid things. But the idea is to stretch ourselves because otherwise we can’t grow. Exactly the same as, you know, when we go to the gym. Say we lift weights — after a while, we need to increase the weights. Otherwise, we don’t train our muscles. If we train for a marathon or even just, you know, running after a while, maybe we started running five minutes and then we run in 10 minutes, then we run 15 minutes, then half an hour. Then we run faster because that’s the way we train. If we keep on running just for five minutes at the same speed for a year, then we are not really training. And that is so obvious when we talk about sports. But the same principle here applies to our inner world. If we don’t stretch ourselves, we don’t grow. And if we don’t grow, we don’t develop our capacities. And if we don’t develop our capacities, we’ll never know the full expression of our talents — we’ll never be self-actualized. I think the meaning of a life — of a human life — is really to use our capacities, our talents, to serve the world in some ways, to serve the communities. And so the only way to do that is really to stretch ourselves, to train ourselves. And in order to do that, we need to do new things to train exactly as we would in the physical sense.

Gabe Howard: Thank you so much. And I couldn’t agree more, and in preparing for this interview, I read a whole bunch of things that you wrote and one of the articles was stepping outside of your comfort zone. And it was a… it’s a short little article, and it has three things in there that you can do to step outside of your comfort zone. One of them is trust your gut. And I understand that and I’ve heard it before. And one of them was believe in yourself. And that makes sense. I understand why we have to believe in ourselves. But the one that really caught my eye and I’d like you to talk a little more on is the very first one. And it said do something ordinary in a non-ordinary way.

Lucia Giovannini: Yeah. So the idea there is to really let go of your fear of being judged by other people and to train yourself with little things like, for example, you could wear a pair of shoes of different colors or open your umbrella on a sunny day. Do something that is really ordinary but in a different way. So you will be, may be, judged by other people, but you just don’t care. You will catch the attention of other people, but it’s OK, because one of the limitations that we self-impose on ourselves is that we want to please other people, that we don’t want to be different from others. And yet our capacities and our talents are in our uniqueness. So if we don’t do things because of our fear of judgment, then we are limiting ourselves. And so this little exercise… and it can be, I don’t know, sing out loud, you know, while you are walking on the street. Just sing your preferred song and sing it out loud. It may be, you know, little things or even ask people favors, like, even people that you don’t know so well or your co-workers. But ask them weird favors like “Would you buy me a holiday?” They would look at you and say, “Have you gone nuts?” But it’s okay, because then you can say, it’s OK, I’m just, you know, doing an exercise. But the idea is really to be OK with other people’s judgment. To be OK if other people say no to you. So you’re more free to really be yourself.

Gabe Howard: One of the examples that you used in your article was brush your teeth with the wrong hand. So if you normally use your right hand, use your left hand. And I did this. I went ahead and brushed my teeth with the “wrong” hand. It was very difficult to do. And it took an ordinary habit, something like brushing my teeth. And it turned it into this, you know, 5-minute exercise and/or ordeal. It made something ordinary, non ordinary.

Lucia Giovannini: Absolutely. And this has also got to do with our awareness because we humans are creatures of habit. So, for example, we always brush our teeth in the same way. We don’t put our awareness on brushing our teeth, and that’s OK. But the exercise is precisely because then when you brush your teeth with your non-dominant hand, then of course you need to put your attention into that, and so that’s how we slowly, slowly change our habits. The same goes with — for example, it’s normal to wear our shoes when we go out — but when you wear two different sets of shoes like one in one color, and the other one of a different color, then you’ve done something different. Then you are more aware, you know, of how you dress, of the people looking at you. And then it brings your awareness to your everyday habit. And so once you’re more aware, you also can start deciding to add new habits. So you are doing new things instead of keeping on with your routine.

Gabe Howard: The other article that I loved was the 21-day challenge, and you give 10 examples of things that you can do over those 21 days. And there are some expected things in there, you know, exercise at least 20 minutes every day, improve your diet, throw away things that you don’t need anymore. And I think a lot of people can really relate to those. We see that a lot. And then there was a couple of suggestions that I think — while not as obvious as diet and exercise — I think people can really relate to, you know, like learn something new, or use positive words instead of negative words or be more creative. But there were three in that list that really gave me a moment to pause. The first one was: Do something for yourself early in the morning.

Lucia Giovannini: Yeah, because we are all so used to being good parents, being good partners, being good daughters or sons, being good workers. In other words, do our duty. And that’s OK, of course. But at the same time, we risk to spend a whole day doing things for others or doing what we have to do instead of what we really want to do. And so we risk of getting at night with some resentment within us, with some sensation that, you know, we’ve been running the whole day without really taking care of ourselves. If we start the day doing something for ourselves first and then we go about doing our life. We all have a vase full of love and that love can flow to the others as well. What if that vase is not full of love for ourselves first? We don’t have anything to offer, to really offer, to other people. It starts the day in a totally different energy.

Gabe Howard: And of course, the flipside to that, which sort of goes along with doing something for yourself early in the morning, is before going to bed, spend 10 minutes to think about what went well during the day. We tend to hold onto the negativity, right? Is that kind of the logic of patting yourself on the back?

Lucia Giovannini: Well, it’s even more than that. As you said, our minds are programmed to focus on the negative. Our reptilian brain is primed to do that. And so we really need to do something to use our awareness and our intention to do something to steer the wheel of our brain in a different direction. It’s also that when we start focusing on the positive, then we feel more motivated to go on with our projects. Otherwise, if we always focus on what’s not working, we lose interest and we lose motivation. We lose energy. And then we decide, why should I care? Nothing works.

Gabe Howard: The most exciting one on the list and one that I personally have never thought of for happiness, stepping outside of your comfort zone, improving your life: Teach something every day. Share your gifts with other people.

Lucia Giovannini: Yes, there are many reasons here. So one reason is the best way to learn something is to teach it, because of course, when we teach something, we need to know it well. For example, if we teach someone — let’s say our kids, or a friend, to be positive — we need to train our positivity. Otherwise we wouldn’t be able to teach it. And so that forces us, you know, to learn something new. And also the other reason here is to share our knowledge, to share our experiences. To, in a way, try to make a difference in the world. And when I talk about the world, I mean, our community, our family, our co-workers, our friends, or even the bigger world out there, the idea is really to share your talents, your gifts with the world, with someone else — to feel that our presence is useful.

Gabe Howard: It has been great speaking with you, and I really appreciate all the information that you’ve given us.

Lucia Giovannini: Thank you, Gabe. It was amazing.

Gabe Howard: Where can our listeners find you?

Lucia Giovannini: So they can find me in my website, which is my name, basically, www.LuciaGiovannini.com. L U C I A G I O V A N N I N I dot com. And alsofind a free gift, a five-part video series on change, on how to create the changes we want in our life. And there they can also find my book, A Whole New Life.

Gabe Howard: Thank you so much for being on this show, we really appreciate you and we appreciate all of our listeners as well. Please don’t forget to give us a review on whatever podcast player you found us on. While we like five stars, we also like it if you use your words. You can also head over to our Facebook group at Psych Central.com/FBshow. That’ll take you right in. Join and I’ll approve you and you can talk to me and suggest anything that you want. And remember, you can get one week of free, convenient, affordable, private online counseling anytime, anywhere, simply by visiting BetterHelp.com/PsychCentral. We will see everybody next week.

Announcer: You’ve been listening to the Psych Central Podcast. Previous episodes can be found at PsychCentral.com/show or on your favorite podcast player. To learn more about our host, Gabe Howard, please visit his website at GabeHoward.com. PsychCentral.com is the internet’s oldest and largest independent mental health website run by mental health professionals. Overseen by Dr. John Grohol, PsychCentral.com offers trusted resources and quizzes to help answer your questions about mental health, personality, psychotherapy, and more. Please visit us today at PsychCentral.com. If you have feedback about the show, please email [email protected]. Thank you for listening, and please share widely.

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erraticfairy · 5 years

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Podcast: Comfort Zones Aren’t Where We Grow

Listen in as Lucia gives easy, practical tips for expanding your horizons, reaching the best of your abilities, using your talents to serve the world, and finding inner happiness.

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Guest information for ‘Comfort Zone’ Podcast Episode

About The Psych Central Podcast Host

Computer Generated Transcript for ‘Comfort Zone’ Episode

Editor’s Note: Please be mindful that this transcript has been computer generated and therefore may contain inaccuracies and grammar errors. Thank you.

Announcer: Welcome to the Psych Central Podcast, where each episode features guest experts discussing psychology and mental health in everyday plain language. Here’s your host, Gabe Howard.

Lucia Giovannini: Gabe, I am really honored to be here.

Gabe Howard: When you talk about stepping out of your comfort zone, do you literally just mean doing something that makes you uncomfortable or is it — is it deeper than that?

Gabe Howard: We’ll be right back after we hear from our sponsor.

Lucia Giovannini: Well, I’d like to quote Maslow, you know, Abraham Maslow, the great psychologist of the last century?

Gabe Howard: Yes.

Gabe Howard: It has been great speaking with you, and I really appreciate all the information that you’ve given us.

Lucia Giovannini: Thank you, Gabe. It was amazing.

Gabe Howard: Where can our listeners find you?

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wagginstaff-bct-blog · 7 years

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Research on Psychology; Cognitive Behaviour and the science of being human:

Written by Simon M.D Locke, a Neurologists’ and Professor Emeritus of Neurology at Harvard Medical School, Consciousness, Self - Conscious, and the Science of Being Human is the authors case study and hypothesis on explaining aspects of the mind. Locke uses his experience in the science to help provide an alternate perspective in answering the complicated questions of where within the human architecture does the mind originates. Where Locke examples and criticises previous efforts from Physicists, Phycologists, Biologists, and Philosophers participation to understand consciousness (Ch.3, pp.19) after presenting his own opinion on how a process should look (CH.2, pp.5). Writing that the ‘supreme manifestation of self-consciousness’ is not simply ‘some-thing’ that can be pointed at. It is instead a process of the brain, as such an analytical understanding of the brains surface level and subconscious level function is required. There is no holy grail, but through careful mapping of actively, we may be able to approximate activity that is representative of, and secluded to, the self-awareness of being human.

Ideas not dissimilar to the questions raised by my earlier reads [look at previous blog post] into predicting and influencing behaviour through mapping stimulation. Something later explored through the chapters 13 - 14 in detailing the impact of experience. From perception of time passing to the stimulation of senses, the act of being aware to experiences preludes to both the extent of defining awareness and the intrinsic relationship between mind and senses. An argument both for and against awareness carried over from the Authors previous chapter expressing contradictions’ in whether mind and humanity is either suspended or elevated through sleep (CH.9, pp.79). Contradicting in the definition of consciousness (it’s a complicated question if I need to state that once more) as a key definition is to demonstrate awareness and presence in the moment. Something that is technically lost in a state of dreaming as awareness to surrounding is suspended or clouded in the artificial awareness we create for ourselves. So, who is to say that subconsciously recreating experiences does not demonstrate an active perception of the world and self. Yet if such an exemption would be made what would be to separate this definition from any non-human identity. An interesting question that is also explored in the work of fiction; Do Android Dream of Electric Sheep? (1968) [2] which would greatly influence the film Blade Runner (1982) in its themes and exploration of humanities moral separation to non-humans. While neither texts specifically explore humanity through dreams, Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner does draw ideas of defining humanity through personal or merely perceived experience. Even if memories were artificial the existence of them creates a backdrop for more experiences no more devoid than if it was stored within a human brain. This was further explained much better than me in a YouTube video analysing the antagonists ‘tears in rain’ speech:

youtube

However, that is just fiction, which for me supplied an interesting adaption to these ideas. Even though they do undermine Locke’s own fixation on consciousness being in the biological nervous system.

Yet because of such an undefinable and subjective term; “Consciousness is a subject about which there is little consensus, even to what the problem is. Without a few initial prejudices, one cannot get anywhere.” - I believe this the main problem he tries to contribute towards. As Locke seeks to add stability and control to research using insight of neurology to better inform ways of measuring and identifying consciousness within the brain. Yet, the human psyche cannot be explained through one field of practice: While the author believes consciousness is a function of the nervous system, an exploration into neural networks strengthens the power the multidisciplinary fields of Psychology and Philosophy has, to make greater and more advancing assumptions into the theory of mind.

Throughout my readings, this novel helped to serve as a nice contrast to the studies such as Robert Pellegrino’s and Mitchell Whitelaw novels in its method of exploration. Contrasting in approaching the topics of mind, perception, and life. The aforementioned texts do so with the backing of artistic experience and creative exploration into the more intrinsic aspects of the mind. This being opposed to a neurologist (hardly comparable professions context I know) as it was very much based within the realm of observable states of mind in both psychology and neurology. Imparting the authors own theories in a post reflection of results to draw attention to contradictions’ or proposed changes in what might be seen as an unchanging assumption within self-consciousness.

References:

[1] Locke, Simon, M, D. (2008) Consciousness, Self - Conscious, and the Science of Being Human. Westport, Connecticut, Praeger Publishes.

[2] Dick, Philip, K. (1968) Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? United States, Doubleday.

#bct #ctec500 #integrative practice #IP02

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iwishyoupeace-blog · 7 years

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Reading Response #1- Theoretical Perspectives

Steven Seidman’s chapter titled “Theoretical Perspectives” encompasses a variety of theories that define and discuss sexology. Seidman states, “Individuals and groups give meaning to bodily sensations and feelings, make erotic acts into sexual identities, and create norms distinguishing between acceptable and unacceptable sexualities” (2016, Loc. 619). Whether society realizes it or not, there is a certain stigma on how each gender are supposed to act and behave. Although society has come a long way from expanding gender roles, there is still a lot that has to be done in order to achieve equality among different genders. Seidman goes on to explain that sexuality is believed to be natural because there is a science that studies it, sexology. Seidman explains that there are three key ideas of sexology. Seidman states that “First, sexology claims that humans are born with a sexual nature, and that sexuality is part of the biological makeup of all individuals” (2016, Loc. 626). I agree with this statement because it is known that people that are assigned a gender as soon as they are born, and then follow the norms of it until they grow out of it (ie: pink and blue standards for baby boys and girls). Seidman also states, “Second, sexology views sexuality as being at the core of what it means to be human: our sexual drive is no less basic than our need to eat or sleep. Sexuality is said to be basic to who we are” (2016, Loc. 626). With this statement, sexuality encompasses all of life. Even going beyond gender roles and gender identity, sexuality is brought up everywhere. Whether it be television ads, songs, or just listening to inappropriate comments being made out in public, sexuality and promiscuity is everywhere and cannot be avoided. Seidman states that the third key idea is that “sexuality is viewed as a powerful and driving force in our behavior” (2016, Loc. 626). As mentioned in the chapter, there is believed to be a natural attraction between men and women, as sexologists believe the purpose of sexuality is to procreate (2016, Loc. 626). Sexology is a scientific approach to understanding sexuality, and although it may be well studied it may not be the best bet to define sexuality. Because it uses the scientific method to study sexuality, the data collected is pretty solid by using case studies, interviews, and observations (Seidman, 2016, Loc. 637). Because of sexology’s ideas that a heterosexual relationship that includes a sexual relationship encompasses a healthy marriage, sexology can be useful in helping to study heterosexual marriages. I believe that to use sexology to study sexuality overall is not feasible because the beliefs of it are so concrete.

Seidman goes on to talk about Freud and his sexual theory. Freud believes that sexuality is the basis for our feelings and actions (Seidman, 2016, Loc. 648). Seidman states that unlike the sexologists, Freud believed that sexuality was not for reproductive reasons but rather for pleasure (2016, Loc. 658). Freud’s theory is very pleasure-driven in describing the sexual nature of humans and how sexual pleasure drives everyone. Seidman states that Freud has a much deeper social understanding of sexologists and states that “the family is the formative social environment shaping our psyches and sexualities” (2016, Loc. 669). Though I agree that Freud may have studied the social aspect of sexuality more, I do not necessarily agree with his theory as I believe that it is way too focused on sexuality for pleasure rather than the meaning of sexuality itself, which I do not think is solely based off of sexual pleasure.

Seidman then discusses Marxism and how he believes that the economy shapes sexuality (2016, Loc. 680). Seidman states, “Individuals must adapt to the rhythms of a system of mass production that progressively strips work of individual imagination and skill” (2016, Loc. 680). Marx’s theory basically states that in order to become successful, people must not allow feeling and emotions to overlap with their own work. This is why Marx’s theory believes that people must be “economically and socially disciplined” (Seidman, 2016, Loc. 691). Marx’s theory is similar to sexology in that it believes sex should be heterosexual with the purpose of procreation, in order to avoid distractions with overindulging in sex. The theorists were brought challenges amongst themselves as products have become more promiscuous, as well as advertisements. Although originally stating that sex should be separated from capitalism, now that sex is being used in marketing and advertising the Marxist views have changed (Seidman, 2016, Loc. 712). The one thing that interested me the most was that Seidman states, “There can be no real sexual freedom until there is real individual freedom, which is impossible under capitalism” (2016, Loc. 712). Even though Marxism is now welcoming sexuality into the economic and marketing environment, they still do not believe in sexual freedom.

From Marxism comes Feminism, which believes that “gender is a social identity and a set of norms that guide behavior” (Seidman, 2016, Loc. 712). Among this theory is Nancy Chodorow’s “The Reproduction of Mothering,” which basically states that when mothers do the parenting females tend to stay closer to their mothers while males break away to learn about their own gender and sexual identity (Seidman, 2016, Loc. 723). Because of this, women learn from their mothers to view intimacy as a means of caring while men may see it as more “performance-and-body-oriented” (Seidman, 2016, Loc. 723). This theory is importance because it shows how the parent can influence the gender identities and sexual differences of people. Seidman also discusses Catherine MacKinnon’s theory which describes male dominance shaping women’s sexuality (2016, Loc. 734). There were a lot of interesting theorists in this category but the one I found most interesting was from Gayle Rubin. Rubin talks about social stigmas and how one gender can get away with something that another gender cannot.

From a sociological perspective, Jon Gagnon and William Simon created a “script” theory of sexuality (Seidman, 2016, Loc. 767). This theory states that there are appropriate “scripts” for sexual behavior we learn as we grow up. The “scripts” are based on race, gender, and class and are a product of social labeling (Seidman, 2016, Loc. 777). Seidman explains, “People learn this in the course of interacting with both the straight and gay world” (2016, Loc. 777). People learn that their thoughts and feelings about a certain sex, whether it be from the same one they identify as or a different, help them to discover their sexual identities. Depending on how society labels the sexual identity a person defines his/herself as determines how accepting he/she will be of his/herself. I think this is one of the most accurate theories I have read in the chapter because I feel like a lot of people learn who they are by being a functioning member of society. It takes a lot for people to be able to define themselves and be fully confident, even if they know that society may not approve of them.

Modern gay and lesbian studies state that homosexual behavior differs from homosexual identity (Seidman, 2016, Loc. 787). Many of the theorists in this category believe that women in the Victorian era adopted intimacy amongst one another in sharing bonds and friendship. The theorists state that beginning in the twentieth century as women started working, the romantic relationships that once brought women together were diminished. This is when women were stigmatized as lesbians (Seidman, 2016, Loc. 787). These theories are very interesting to me because it is something I have never studied before: understanding the difference between homosexual behavior and homosexual identity. From gay and lesbian studies, the term “queer studies” was created. According to Seidman, the two ideas associated with queer studies are that “the idea of a natural human sexuality is a belief or cultural notion, not a biological truth” and “this idea divides sexual behaviors and identities into those that are normal and healthy, and those that are abnormal and sick” (Seidman, 2016, Loc. 819). Thinking of this quote, I feel sad to know that there are people willing to identify certain sexual identities as abnormal or sick. Though I want to believe that everyone is accepting of one another, especially as someone that is going to encompass a variety of races, cultures, and sexual identities in my future career as a nurse, I am not ignorant to the fact that there are people that try to make others feel horrible for how they identify themselves.

Overall I found this chapter really interesting and helpful. As I have not really studied gender before, learning about the different theorists was helpful in understanding where some people back up their viewpoints. I found some theories to be more strongly supported than others, and that some should definitely consider being updated.

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trendingnewsb · 7 years

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What Harry Styles and Zayn can tell us about life after boy bands

One Direction is accidentally the best named boy band in the history of coordinated turtlenecks. Legend has it that Harry Styles picked it on a whim because it sounded cool after Simon Cowell gave the five boys a second chance to compete on X Factor if they were willing to go at it as a team.

For about five years, it worked remarkably well, and then the tears fell.

There’s a line in Zadie Smith’s The Autograph Man, a book about the the trappings of idolization published when Harry Styles was eight years old, that seems oddly prescient for the current situaton. Just after a line that happens to be about a character’s ruffled shift, Smith writes, “All fandom is a form of tunnel vision: warm and dark and infinite in one direction.”

And yes, there are plenty of horribly original “different directions” jokes to be made about the lads’ respective solo careers. But the truth of the matter, is that separating was the only way they could all head upwards.

Before 1D, the *NSYNC model was the best case scenario for life after a boy band’s prime years. Justin Timberlake was the one who got to keep the music career, and lives happily ever after in the A-List while the rest are relegated to TV hosting gigs. Joey Fatone’s Live Well Network show, My Family Recipe Rocks, is delightful, but it can’t be what he envisioned for himself. Or you have the Backstreet Boys, tethered together for eternity in Las Vegas playing the old hits. Harry Styles’ solo debut, out today, makes it clear that it doesn’t have to be that way anymore.

SEE ALSO: Harry Styles hasn’t quite mastered the stage dive yet, but his solo music sparkles live

Zayn Malik was, of course, the first to go. He exited the group in flames with some comments about wanting to be a normal 22-year-old but quickly came back with bold promises of #realmusic, as opposed to whatever he considered One Direction.

ZaYn

Image: MIKE WINDLE/GETTY

Malik wasn’t content to fall into traditional boy band roles and be “the shy one” when he was actually experiencing severe anxiety. Plus, he favored R&B over the classic rock influences that were beginning to dominate One Direction and he has the voice for it, so he left the band to make music that was more his speed, working with M.I.A., PartyNextDoor, and even Styles’ ex, Taylor Swift.

It’s no surprise that fans, despite some very harsh words on Twitter when he split, responded positively to the new music. One Direction was the first major boy band to treat young women with respect as music fans instead of just assuming they want washboard abs and a Max Martin hook, as great and necessary as those things can be to young fans coming of age.

When Styles was recently on the cover of Rolling Stone, Styles explained as much to Cameron Crowe, who just happened to be profiling him.

“Who’s to say that young girls who like pop music short for popular, right? have worse musical taste than a 30-year-old hipster guy? That’s not up to you to say. Music is something that’s always changing. There’s no goal posts,” he said. “Young girls like the Beatles. You gonna tell me they’re not serious? How can you say young girls don’t get it? They’re our future. Our future doctors, lawyers, mothers, presidents, they kind of keep the world going. Teenage-girl fans they don’t lie. If they like you, they’re there. They don’t act ‘too cool.’ They like you, and they tell you. Which is sick.”

Malik echoed the sentiment in his book. (Oh yeah, he has a book, some fashion collaborations and a TV show on the way, NBD.) “I think we need more women in positions of power across the world,” he wrote. “I think a lot of the world’s problems could be solved if we allowed more contribution from women.”

Instead of making the music they thought girls wanted to hear, they put a little faith in their fans and tried to make the best music they could. It paid off.

For Louis Tomlinson, that meant the sunny “Just Hold On” with DJ Steve Aoki, and if there is anything that’s a fairly sure bet, it’s a handsome boy with a devout social media following dipping his toes into EDM. Sometimes, I imagine I’m in a The Graduate situation, at pool party. Instead giving the tip “plastics” to a lost boy unsure what to do with his potential, I whisper, “EDM” into his ear. While Aoki is a veteran of the scene at this point, “Just Hold On” is actually his highest charting single in both the UK and the USA, where the song hit #2 and #52, respectively.

Liam Payne, meanwhile, signed a record deal with Republic in 2016. Like Tomlinson, his ambition has some EDM leanings, but he’s got his eye on hip hop, as well. He previously released a single with Juicy J and Wiz Khalifa and has a new single with Migos’ Quavo out on May 19.

Niall Horan and Styles were always the most likely to hit the ground running with One Direction’s ’70s rock influence. Horan, the guitar-wielding Irish man, was the most involved in the group’s songwriting process and Styles baked a damn carrot cake for Stevie Nicks on her birthday. Horan beat Styles to the punch releasing his first solo single, the sweet acoustic number “This Town,” but Styles’ solo album came first.

A good suit.

Image: mike coppola/Getty Images

He considered calling it Pink, because The Clash’s Paul Simonon once said that, “Pink is the only true rock & roll color.” Nearly every review of Harry Styles has focused on Harry Styles, the rock star, in an age when the form is limp. “Sign of the Times,” the lead single, is a bold statement of intention to fill that void. Styles announced the Bowie-channeling tune exactly 20 years after the Prince album the song borrows its name from was released.

But he ended up simply going with Harry Styles instead, and it’s a fitting choice. In interviews, he’s wants to make it clear how honest the lyrics are as he avoids getting into details about just about everything. “I didn’t want to write ‘stories,'” he told Rolling Stone. “I wanted to write my stories, things that happened to me. The number-one thing was I wanted to be honest. I hadn’t done that before.” Styles knows he’s not reinventing the wheel, but what he can offer that no one else can is a direct line into his psyche.

“Mature” details of the album will inevitably be sensationalized, sex, drugs, and rock n’ roll were never really absent from One Direction (sample lyric: “waking up beside you, I’m a loaded gun.”) The main difference is that now it doesn’t have to be sung with a wink.

Communication, or lack thereof, is the album’s focus. Styles desperately wants people to say what they mean. “Tell me something I don’t already know,” he begs and begs on “Ever Since New York.” Hell, he doesn’t even use emoji, as he confessed to the crowd at his very first solo show.

At his most confessional, the soft, Eliott Smith-indebted, “From the Dining Table,” Styles begs for resolution. “Woke up alone in this hotel room. Played with myself, where were you? Fell back to sleep, I got drunk by noon,” he confesses. “I’ve never felt less cool.”

The mumbling masturbator is, of course, not a traditional boy band archetype, and definitely not what would be expected of “the cute one.” But thanks in large part to the infinite feedback loop of fandom online, it’s what we know fans needed to hear. The boy they worship (and the subject of their own erotic fan fiction) gets lonely, too.

It’s too early to tell what the longevity of the One Direction boys solo careers will be, but they’re already tipping towards a higher success rate than any previous boy band. Their increasingly web-savvy fans seem poised to ensure a decent run.

Pop groups are no longer a survival of the fittest. They’re better prepared to service the passions and desires of their young, predominately female fanbase better than ever and even grow up with them after they grow up and start running the world.