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taekooktimeline · 2 years

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May 31, 2022

May 31, 2022: BTS are at the White House to meet with President Biden to discuss anti Asian hate crimes, and Asian inclusion and representation. What an honor, and a proud moment as a fan of this group, to see them be invited by the current president to discuss such important topics.

Taekook were very perceptive of the other throughout the brief time we see them. Tae says “wow” as he takes in the audience. Jk is attentive to him, glancing over when he says this -

https://twitter.com/winterkoobear/status/1531730293941747712?s=21&t=PwtMnXG6Ig2TNiTaGGRtpw https://twitter.com/randomvante/status/1531715553668349953?s=21&t=PwtMnXG6Ig2TNiTaGGRtpw

Taekook have shown instances in the past where they comfort one another in high pressure situations (an example would be the below on September 13 2021, when Tae extended his hand to briefly shake Jk’s when they were given their special envoy diplomatic passports)

(You can view piece / video here - https://taekooktimeline2021.tumblr.com/post/666293577616375808/bts-meet-with-the-president-and-receive-their)

We also know Taekook like to shoulder bump each other. We see these subtle, quiet reassurance to one another again, at the White House. Tae leans back before bumping Jk -

Jk nods his head and then reciprocates with a bump of his own -

Tae subtly does another bump.

https://twitter.com/taekookgalleryy/status/1531711513098358784?s=21&t=3tIpU3gQMwEUOnGCKwlPiw https://twitter.com/_k91230v_/status/1531710718436814849?s=21&t=3tIpU3gQMwEUOnGCKwlPiw

Tae watched Jk attentively during his speech. Unfortunately, screenshots can’t capture it but it looks like Tae was originally going to give Jk a soft smile as he made his way back, but gave him adorable bread cheeks instead. See the clip and decide -

https://twitter.com/_k91230v_/status/1531712359055491072?s=21&t=PwtMnXG6Ig2TNiTaGGRtpw

Jk was laser focused during Tae’s speech -

https://twitter.com/taemi_kv/status/1531714749431422977?s=21&t=3tIpU3gQMwEUOnGCKwlPiw (more below, but at :13 you can see Jk’s hands moving like he’s about to clap but stops himself) https://twitter.com/kvlomlss/status/1531713892811829248?s=21&t=3tIpU3gQMwEUOnGCKwlPiw

Pictures don’t really do this justice, but after Tae’s speech, Jk was going to clap. You can see his fingers change from their resting position for a nanosecond before he stops himself. Resting -

uncurling to clap but then stopping himself -

https://twitter.com/bwisvk/status/1531713751766138880?s=21&t=3tIpU3gQMwEUOnGCKwlPiwhttps://twitter.com/jeontae_kimgguk/status/1531716371637477376?s=21&t=3tIpU3gQMwEUOnGCKwlPiw

I highly encourage you to see the below clip because these still really don’t show it as well. In any event, a close up - clasped -

went to clap but stopped himself -

https://twitter.com/taekookfoever/status/1531721142490255360?s=21&t=LgARot0BqK4jg8fAB6vO0w

Jk has a soft smile when the translator says “V”’and translates his part of the speech. Initially -

soft smile at “V” -

https://twitter.com/moncheri_kv/status/1531734428782710785?s=21&t=LgARot0BqK4jg8fAB6vO0w

For fun - There was a couple of Taekookers in the press audience, zooming in and taking multiple photos of the duo-

https://twitter.com/vkooksjourney/status/1531715683553525760?s=21&t=3tIpU3gQMwEUOnGCKwlPiwhttps://twitter.com/koovfolder/status/1531708548308209666?s=21&t=3tIpU3gQMwEUOnGCKwlPiw

Archiving all of the below just because -

https://twitter.com/moncheri_kv/status/1531730988291661824?s=21&t=LgARot0BqK4jg8fAB6vO0w

(collage credit to https://twitter.com/risote_love/status/1531721162639966209?s=21&t=LgARot0BqK4jg8fAB6vO0w )

https://twitter.com/yourstrulytkk/status/1531739354481274882?s=21&t=LgARot0BqK4jg8fAB6vO0w

Translation of speech -

https://twitter.com/haruharu_w_bts/status/1531715960972881920?s=21&t=PwtMnXG6Ig2TNiTaGGRtpw

Full link - https://twitter.com/boknowsnews/status/1531708957273767938?s=21&t=3tIpU3gQMwEUOnGCKwlPiw

Behind the scenes Taekook -

https://twitter.com/boragtan/status/1533745417879310336?s=21&t=CvBk5raek8SKtK_TYHeXHw https://twitter.com/potus/status/1533130590232485891?s=21&t=CvBk5raek8SKtK_TYHeXHw

#taekook #taekooktimeline #2022 #supportive #attentive

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fieldsplitting · 7 months

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if you are remotely interested in scientific fraud, pop psychology, behavioral economics or any of their unholy amalgams then I highly encourage you to check out this New Yorker piece on the disgraced researchers Ariely and Gino (archive)

Simmons, Nelson, and Simonsohn maintain a standing Zoom date once a week. Recently, they invited me to join. They’ve been working together long enough to finish one another’s sentences—the only real pleasure in what they do. Their work can be demoralizing, and after each successive fraud investigation they swear off the practice. “It’s pleasant for maybe an hour,” Simonsohn, who teaches at the Esade Business School, in Barcelona, told me. “You notice how they did it, and it feels great, like you wrote a mystery novel. But then everything feels bad.” Simmons, a professor at Wharton, added, “We have this unfortunate fraud detector in our brain. Obviously, it’s just an internal alarm and you have to then check, but you see results sections that stand out as ‘No no no, that’s not a thing.’ ” He remarked that Nelson had sent him a screenshot of a figure from a journal; with only a glance, Simmons would have bet his house that the data were fake, but the men didn’t plan to pursue the case. “At this point, it’s like an affliction,” Simmons said. “But if you see it you see it, and then it’s hard to look the other way.”

just fantastic. “I fucking hate my job at the fraud-detection store”, allege local professors

#sciblr

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belgiumwebnet1 · 10 months

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Optimizing Product Pages for Conversions: Best Practices for Jewelry Ecommerce

In the highly competitive world of jewelry e-commerce, it is crucial to have product pages that are optimized for conversions. When potential customers visit your website, you want to ensure that apart from finding the perfect jewelry piece, they also have a seamless and engaging shopping experience.

Here you will explore the best practices for optimizing product pages to increase conversions in the jewelry e-commerce industry with the help of an ecommerce web design company for jewelers.

1. High-Quality Product Images and Video One of the most critical elements of a product page is the visual representation of the jewelry. Investing in high-quality images and videos is essential to showcase the intricate details and craftsmanship of your products. Ensure the visuals are well-lit, feature different angles, and allow customers to zoom in for a closer look. Including videos can also provide a dynamic experience, allowing customers to see how the jewelry moves and sparkles.

2.Compelling Product Descriptions

Captivating and informative product descriptions are vital for converting visitors into customers. Instead of simply listing technical details, focus on describing each jewelry piece's unique features and benefits. Use persuasive language that evokes emotions and tells a story. Highlight the materials used, the inspiration behind the design, and other unique characteristics that set the piece apart. Incorporate relevant keywords to improve search engine optimization (SEO) and attract organic traffic.

3. Clear and Intuitive Navigation

Make it easy for customers to find their way around your website. Ensure that your product pages have a clear and intuitive navigation structure. Use breadcrumbs to display the hierarchical path to the current page, allowing visitors to navigate back to previous pages effortlessly. Implement a search bar that enables users to search for specific jewelry items, metals, gemstones, or styles. A well-organized and user-friendly navigation system will enhance the overall shopping experience and increase the chances of conversion.

4.Social Proof and Customer Reviews

Social proof is crucial in building trust and credibility with potential customers. Incorporate customer reviews and testimonials on your product pages to showcase the positive experiences of past buyers. Include ratings, star reviews, and written testimonials to give potential customers an idea of the quality and satisfaction associated with your jewelry. Additionally, integrate social media sharing buttons to encourage customers to share their purchases with their networks, further enhancing your brand's credibility.

5. Clear Calls-to-Action (CTAs)

The presence of clear and persuasive calls-to-action (CTAs), is essential for driving conversions. Ensure that your product pages have prominent and visually appealing buttons that clearly indicate the next steps, such as "Add to Cart" or "Buy Now." Use contrasting colors, compelling copy, and concise instructions to guide customers toward making a purchase. Additionally, include trust signals, such as secure payment icons and money-back guarantees, to alleviate customers' concerns about the transaction.

6.Mobile-Friendly Design

Given the increasing number of users shopping on mobile devices, it is crucial to have a mobile-friendly design for your product pages. Optimize your pages to load quickly on mobile devices, and ensure that the layout and images are responsive and easy to navigate on smaller screens. Implement mobile-specific features like swipeable image galleries and simplified checkout processes to provide a seamless mobile shopping experience.

Remember to regularly monitor and analyze the performance of your product pages, experimenting with different strategies to optimize your virtual store and maximize your sales potential in the jewelry industry.

Belgium WebNet is a leading jewelry website design company offering services like Shopify development, website design & development, social media optimization, search engine optimization, and more. Book a consultation call with them and get experts on board.

Original Source - https://belgiumwebnet.blogspot.com/2023/06/optimizing-product-pages-for.html

#jewelrywebsitedesigncompany #ecommercewebdesigncompanyforjewelers

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autumnalchemist · 3 years

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So I commissioned the absolutely lovely @irisadielsart for this piece of artwork, and I absolutely adore it! The colors pop, the lines are clean, and I just love their absolutely adoring expressions! I could get cavities from how sweet this is! Also the added touch with Sheerow zooming around them is super cute and it adds to the whole scene.

Thank you again Iris for creating this for me. And to all of you out there wanting to send a commission? I highly recommend this funky artist! Prices for their commissions are fairly priced and I kindly encourage that if you do request art that you please send a tip! They deserve it for all the work they've done in creating this!

(Note! This artwork is okay to be reblogged! I do not wish to make any sort of merch from this and will not per the request of the artist. Do not steal the artwork and Do not repost this anywhere, please and thank you.)

#legend of zelda #a link between worlds #commission art #digital art #ravio #link #ravioli #I'm still floored by how quickly this was created #but it's still absolutely beautiful and I cannot help but stare lovingly at the colors!#digital artwork

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intrnl · 2 years

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Welcome to the WAVONE collection !

Here you’ll find an array of my early art pieces, each with their own visible and hidden meanings...

Explore! And zooming is highly encouraged :)

#abstract #independantartist #abstractartist #digital artist #digital art #vfxartist #cgartist #artist #baltimore art

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krisingtons · 3 years

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Happy Birthday Toshinori Yagi / All Might!

To celebrate the Symbol of Peace's birthday, here is my take on Toshinori's potential astrology natal chart, complete with explanations and reasoning. Buckle up for the highly specific, mashing up two niche interests post that literally no one asked for.

For BNHA Fans:

I will do my absolute best to explain the chart below step-by-step. If there's anything you want to know more about, feel free to ask or consult an online resource with the terms I used.

All the placements I've chosen are based on what we know in canon. Any new information we receive in canon may change this post.

The only official astrology information we have in canon is Toshinori's Sun sign, which is Gemini based on his June 10th birthday. (I'll get into this.)

After looking at some of the Sun signs Horikoshi gave to different characters, I'm convinced the man knows at least a little bit about astrology because they're very on point for everyone.

For Astrologers:

I only focused on the seven personal planets, even though I believe the generational planets have a big impact on the BNHA universe. It was just more than I could focus on.

I did not bother with the decans other than to vaguely have a sense of it, especially for the angles. I messed a few up slightly.

I also did not bother with retrogrades, even though I suspect Toshinori has one or two (I suspect Mars in particular).

I use Whole Sign Houses. To calculate houses, start with the AC, then move one sign counter-clockwise for each house. (Here, Leo is the 1st, Virgo is the 2nd, etc.)

For the moment of truth...

Toshinori Yagi's Astrology Natal Chart

(Yes, I drew it by hand. I'll zoom in for specific parts)

Sun, Moon, Rising

Since the only piece of information we have to work with from canon is Toshinori's Sun sign, let's start there.

The bigger circle surrounding the smaller circle represents Toshinori's Sun. Born on June 10th, this makes him a Gemini Sun. The Sun represents the ego, how the outer world sees us, and Geminis are very talkative, sociable, playful, and charming, but can be reluctant to engage with deeper feelings and are often restless for activity. As far as an astrological starting point goes, well done, Horikoshi. These themes clearly show up in Toshinori/All Might's external identity, and as I'll share, it plays a big part in his career, too, since I put it in the 11th house of community and serving others. (Note that conjunct MC, astrologers.) Next, let's talk about Toshinori's Moon.

This is the symbol for the moon. I feel pretty strongly that Toshinori has an Aquarius Moon. The moon represents our emotions, our inner life, and sometimes our mother. Aquarius is all about society, community, an unconventional way of doing things, and an idealism for what could be. Aquarius' often feel a push and pull between needing independence and needing to connect with others emotionally and intellectually. Not only does this seem to cover Toshinori's inner life well, but his mother figure served those ideals, too. Let's move on to the Rising Sign, also known as the AC. The Rising Sign indicates what sign was on the horizon at the time someone was born.

I placed his Rising Sign in Leo for two reasons. First, Leo is ruled by the Sun, and since Toshinori clearly embodies many of the traits of his Sun sign, it made sense to double down on that. Second, Leo Rising perfectly places his Sun in the 11th house of friendship, community, hopes and wishes, and social goals.

Mercury and Venus

Moving on to Mercury and Venus, these two planets go well together because they have rules about their distance from the Sun. Mercury can never be more than one sign away from the Sun, while Venus can never be more than two signs away due to their physical proximity to the Sun from our viewpoint on Earth.

First, Mercury.

Mercury is the symbol next to the Sun that (ironically) looks like it has bunny ears. Mercury indicates how we communicate things and how we learn. It is at home in Gemini, and people with a Gemini Mercury are often witty and knowledgeable. With it so close to the Sun and the Midheaven (which we'll get to later), it indicates how much his words were a part of his "brand" in his career, both through catchphrases and through frequent media appearances.

Now, Venus.

This was probably the toughest one to place for me (and for the astrologers paying close attention, I probably placed the degree too far from the Sun, my bad). I decided to put it in Aries in the 9th house for a couple of reasons.

First, Venus rules Toshinori's 10th house of career, and the 9th house represents, among other things, international travel and higher education. All Might's career was largely based on his time studying abroad and branding himself with symbolism from a country other than his own. Venus also represents things we love and our creative energy, and All Might clearly has a love of all things American.

Then, I placed Venus in Aries because Aries is ruled by Mars. It's a sign and planet of action, demonstrating Toshinori's drive in his career. However, Mars is also a planet that is considered violent, symbolizing war and things that literally cut. This pairs well with where I've placed Mars as shown below.

Mars

Alright, Mars is important canon-wise. As I just mentioned from Venus, Mars is a planet that cuts, which indicates war. And I've placed it in Cancer, which is Toshinori's 12th house. The 12th house, among other things, indicates service, sacrifice, mental health, and enemies. Toshinori literally sacrificed himself, his body, his life, by fighting a long-time enemy, an enemy he trained years to fight (hello again, 9th house Venus). Cancer is ruled by the Moon, which pairs well with his sense of service, too, since it's in Aquarius.

Jupiter and Saturn

Here's where we get into the meat of canon.

Jupiter first.

Jupiter is at home in Pisces, a sign that's all about dreams, saving the world, charitable giving, but also elusiveness. Jupiter, meanwhile is one of the best planets in Toshinori's chart, not only because it's in Pisces, but because Jupiter is all about good fortune, blessings, and opportunities. I've put it in the 8th house, which, among other things, signifies things that are inherited. That's right, my take on Toshinori's astrology indicates him getting One for All.

Planets in the 8th house can also indicate how someone handles a crisis, and Jupiter gives Toshinori the strength and positive attitude to handle a crisis well.

Finally, Saturn.

Saturn is like the Dad of the sky, indicating structure, discipline, and order. I've put it in Sagittarius, which is Toshinori's 5th house. Jupiter also rules Sagittarius, doubling down on the power of Jupiter in his chart. More importantly, the 5th house represents children and other ways we leave our legacy in the world. Saturn in the 5th house often indicates people who raise children that are not their own. This can be through adoption, step-parenting, or... mentorships. Hello, Izuku!

People with Saturn in the 5th house also are not inclined to relax, choosing to work more in lieu of leisure time.

What about all those lines?

Alright, I admittedly don't want to get too much into the aspect lines (the red and blue ones) because that goes more in-depth than I wanted, but they are purposeful. If you're interested in aspects, I encourage you to look up Squares, Trines, and Oppositions in particular.

I will mention the Midheaven, though. The Midheaven (MC) is the highest point in the sky, but not an actual physical body.

The MC represents a person's calling or vocation. If the Midheaven is not in the 10th house of career, it imports the themes of the house its placed in into someone's career. I've placed it again in Toshinori's 11th house of community since that's obviously a big part of his career. I also did that because the MC is always countered by the IC, which indicates someone's home and family life. Tumblr won't let me add another image, but if you go back up to Saturn, you can see the IC is also in Toshinori's 5th house, doubling down on the idea that mentor/mentee relationships play a big part in his sense of family.

As one final note, some of you may have noticed that I did place the north and south node in Toshinori's chart in the 5th and 11th house respectively. I won't get into detail here, but I wanted to give you the term in case you wanted to look it up. It's actually pretty significant this year, though, because the nodes indicate which signs eclipses happen in for that year, and it just so happens that there is a Solar Eclipse in Gemini today!

There you have it! I hope you enjoyed my wildly specific birthday post for Toshinori Yagi, better known as All Might. I'm wishing the happiest of birthdays to our favorite sunflower!

#toshinori yagi #yagi toshinori #all might #dadmight #happy birthday all might #natal chart #astrology natal chart #zodiac signs #bnha #mha #astrology #birth chart

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btsslowburnfic · 4 years

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Born to be Yours Ch. 10

Story Summary: For Namjoon, the moment he set his sights on being the #1 rapper, he pushed the symbol to the side and hated it. Love should be chosen, not forced on you. He didn’t believe in fate and this mark on his wrist was a big “fuck you” to all that.

Chapter summary: Life after you and RM part ways goes back to normal until an accident changes everything

Previous chapters found here: Chapter 9

You are surprised that life does in fact go back to normal. You and Xavier make up and get back to working with smaller local groups after the awards season ends. Things with you and Ben get back to normal; you become a master of using heavy foundation on your soulmark when you’re at home. The summer tour is amazing. You and Xavier traveled to 32 states in 4 months. You find yourself following Twitter and Weverse to see what RM is up to. And you sometimes found yourself thinking about that night the two of you spent together. You mostly try to push it out of your mind though. Even though you told Xavier and he randomly brings it up.

“Right here? On this desk!?!” he asks, running his hands over the surface.

“Yes. And don’t do that, it’s weird and gross.”

“How was it? Describe it to me again.”

You chuckle a bit and roll your eyes, “No. I told you once so I could get it out of my system.”

“Ughhh you’re so boring.” he whines playfully.

“Shouldn’t you be reprimanding me about being a terrible cheating slut?” you raise an eyebrow.

“No. I ship that shit.” he responds, sipping on a smoothie. “Have you eaten yet?” he asks

You laugh and look through your phone. “No, I had a zoom meeting with Gina at noon and then I covered spinning class.” You press some buttons on your screen. “There. I just ordered. I’ll see you in a while.” You stand up and put your flip flops back on.

“Sounds good. I’ll see you in pilates tonight.”

You toss your bag over your shoulder and put your sunglasses on as you step out the door. You look both ways and start to cross the street as you hear a screeching sound. The next thing you hear and feel is the sickening crunch of bone hitting glass. Tires screeching away and then everything is black.

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Namjoon occasionally finds himself thinking about you. Mostly when he accidentally slams his body into a door frame or cuts his finger. He always says he’s sorry and then kind of feels like an idiot for apologizing to no one. He also thinks about the night the two of you shared together quite often and had made Jhope send him those photos he took.

He’s happy to be working and on tour again. It’s been a fun summer. They wrapped up the Asia portion of their journey and were well into Europe now. As usual, the filming crew was in the green room as they were preparing for their second night at Wembley. The first night had been amazing. He couldn’t think of anything that made him happier than being in front of ARMY, especially when they were singing along to the songs he wrote. He smiled as he scrolled through his phone while he had his makeup touched up.

“10 minutes, 10 minutes.” Management called out.

“Alright guys, let’s get it.” he yells through the green room.

They gather around and do their chant. The minute they step out of the green room they can hear the fans roaring and cheering along to the pre-show videos. They each go to their respective starting positions and wait to hear the signal.

They open quick and fast with “On” and the crowd is absolutely pumped. They begin their second song and will then introduce themselves. The music for “Dionysus” begins to play and the elaborate set pieces are added throughout the song. They are almost to the end of Dionysus when RM goes down hard. He falls off the table. People are gasping, Jin runs over and signals to the staff on the side of the stage that something is very wrong. ARMY and BTS are freaking out. The visual director quickly puts a message onto the big screens to please wait a moment. The medical staff immediately takes the lift up to the main backstage area. The obvious damage is a cut on his arm that took the brunt of the fall from the table, but that gash can’t account for the fact that he’s unconscious and breathing shallowly. There is a rush of oxygen masks and people yelling. Jimin and JK start crying, the other guys are freaked out about the show and what to do next. Jin rises to the occasion by asking if they should go ahead and skip to his and Suga’s solos until there is more information. A decision is quickly made to begin the solo portions. The two of them quickly change costumes and prepare to go out. An ambulance ends up needing to be called. The guys decide that Namjoon would want the show to go on and so they do. It’s ugly and weird and they are unfocused but they manage through it. ARMY is crying for RM because they know it’s bad when he doesn’t come back on stage. They skip the ments and encore and the guys are immediately loaded into vans and transported to the private health facility that he’s been taken to.

The staff escorts the six of them to a room where they wait for a doctor to come and speak to them. A translator is located and brought in as well.

“What happened? Did anybody see what happened before he fell?” Hoseok asks.

“He was fine. I didn’t notice anything strange.” Tae responds.

“They took video and showed the doctor,”Yoongi adds, having overheard the staff on the way there.

After a few minutes a doctor comes in. “Hello Gentleman. Your friend is in good hands here, and is stable.” she reassures them.

There is a collective sigh from the group as they hear this news.

“However, we aren’t sure what’s causing this condition. There is no evidence of an aneurysm on the CT scan and the video doesn't show any seizure-like activity prior to the fall. His heart is in excellent shape as well as his lungs. At this point we are running more tests but we do need to ask you all some questions here. Please answer honestly. Does your friend use any drugs? Even maybe extra prescription medication?”

It takes a few seconds for the translator to relay the message and the guys’ reactions range from anger to disbelief. Jin is up on his feet shouting about how they should be focusing on fixing Namjoon rather than gossiping, Jimin is crying more. It’s a mess.

“Calm down guys, it’s a standard question,” Yoongi says stoically. “She’s not trying to be rude.”

“No. He drinks beer and wine sometimes. But no. He’s not on any drugs. That’s ridiculous.” Jungkook summarizes.

“I’m sorry, it’s something I do have to ask. Is there anything else you guys could think of that might be pertinent? An old injury? Something he did earlier today or ate that he doesn’t usually?”

The guys all sat there for a minute. It was Jin who made the connection first: “His soulmate. She lives in LA.”

Tae’s hand flew to his phone to make a phone call.. The next few things happened over the course of a few hours: a phone call to Hitman Bang to get Gina’s contact information. Several phone calls to Gina. Calls from Gina to you. No answer. Phone calls to Xavier. No answer. Xavier calling Gina back hysterically sobbing that you were in a coma with a skull fracture and blood loss, Gina crying, Gina having someone else call Hitman Bang because she couldn’t stop sobbing, Hitman Bang calling Tae back.

The doctor was updated on the situation. “Ah...well that would explain it. Were the two of them very close?” she asks delicately.

It’s highly inappropriate but Yoongi just laughs, “No. They met one time .”

The doctor raised her eyebrows, “Oh. Well that’s unusual.”

“If she dies, will he die too?” Jimin asks quietly with tears in his eyes.

“No. And especially not if they weren’t close. I need to consult with some colleagues on this before we proceed. If you all want to go get some rest I think he’s going to be like this for a while. We can call you if anything changes.” the doctor informs them.

They are uneasy about leaving Namjoon there so they split up into groups of two to take turns. Jin and JK take the first shift at the care facility.

----------------

The doctor reaches out to several colleagues who are familiar with more case studies of soul mate injuries and what to do when there is a mirrored trauma response. She gets permission from RM’s parents (who have flown to London as well at this point) to try a reverse cryogenic procedure to restart his systems. Basically, they will bring his body down to an almost hypothermic point and slowly reheat him, encouraging cell regeneration and movement. It has been successful in similar cases, but it is a slow procedure that needs to be carefully monitored.

Meanwhile, social media is having a field day about what could have happened. BigHit put out that story that RM has developed a severe allergic reaction to shellfish and went into anaphylaxis on the stage; he was administered an epi-pen and hospitalized but is now resting and recovering. The rest of the guys give interviews to back up this story as well. 48 hours after the incident began, RM is slowly regaining consciousness.

“What happened? I feel like someone is opening up my skull with a pair of pliers.” he asks the doctor.

“I’m sorry but your soulmate was in a very bad car accident. She’s in a coma and you suffered a mirrored trauma response. I’m going to go let your friends and family know you’re awake.”

“Shit.” RM says, really taking in everything that was just said to him.

Jin is the first one in the room. “Hey. You’re finally awake. We were so worried.”

“How long have I been out for?”

“2 days.”

“Shit. What happened with the concert? Is everything ok? Oh God. What did they tell people?”

“One thing at a time.” Yoongi said as he entered the room. “We finished the show. The tour is postponed for at least a few weeks. We told people you had an allergic reaction.”

RM visibly relaxed but was still upset about the show. “Those fans have to be so disappointed.”

“Yeah, but they want you to be well. There’s thousands of flowers and cards being left at Wembley and so many messages on Weverse. We’ll make the dates up when you’re better. ARMY understands. It’s not your fault.”

“No, it’s [Y/N]’s fault.” he says briskly.

“I mean. She got flattened by a car. So, not really.” Tae added.”She’s in an actual coma. They can;'t just reheat her.” he was surprised by how cold RM sounded talking about his soulmate.

“You’re right. I’m just...it’s a lot. My head still hurts and I guess I just want someone to blame.”

“Blame the asshole who hit her,” Yoongi adds.

“Yeah. I will. I’m so tired.”

“Here, we’ll leave so you can talk to your parents for a minute before you rest.”

“My parents flew in?” he says surprised.

“We thought you were going to die,” Jimin says seriously. “Your sister is on her way here too.”

Rm laid his head back against his pillow. This is exactly the kind of soulmate bullshit he’s been trying to avoid. And you were in a coma. He stopped for a minute and thought about how scary it must be for you but he won’t allow himself to dwell on it. He’s getting his soul mark obliterated as soon as you wake up from your coma and sign off on it. If you wake up from it. Shit.

----

24 hours later he is discharged from the hospital and decides to book a flight to LA to see what your doctors are doing about rectifying this situation. He can’t shake the massive headache and leg pain that he’s still experiencing constantly. He cannot perform like this. Also he’s looked into the legal status of soulmark obliteration if one party is a permanently vegetative state and what counts as legal consent. Because of course he has. The guys all talk and decide that Tae will go along with him for support. Really it’s to be the voice of reason because they can’t believe that rather than going to see how you’re doing, he is going to ask you to remove your mark.

------------

RM knows what hospital you are at because his doctor consulted with yours in order to determine the best course of treatment. You doctor was hoping that once RM woke up, you would show signs of improvement. So far though, there wasn’t a lot on your end.

Ben and Xavier dutifully took shifts staying with you in the hospital. On this particular night, Ben is taking the night shift, walking back from the vending machines. He stops when he sees two dudes who look like models standing outside your door.

“Hey. Are you guys friends with [Y/N]? You must be from the studio. I don’t think we’ve met before. I'm Ben” Ben is tired but tries to be friendly.

Tae and Namjoon turn and look to him. Ben. Ben must be her boyfriend.

“Actually we’re from one of the bands she worked with. I’m Namjoon and this is Taehyung. You must be her boyfriend?”

“Fiance actually,” Ben politely corrects. “Just a few weeks ago actually,” he awkwardly laughs. “But then this all happened. You know the asshole didn’t even stop?”

Tae feels extremely awkward. He can understand a small bit of what’s going on, but he knows that what’s coming will be very difficult for everyone.

“That’s awful. How is she doing?”

“Bad. Stable. But, bad. She lost a lot of blood and hit her head pretty hard. They’re surprised she didn’t have any broken bones other than her skull fracture. She dislocated her shoulder when it hit the hood. The guy was definitely speeding.” Ben runs a hand through his hair. “Sorry if you were hoping to visit.”

RM awkwardly runs his hands up and down his jeans. There is not an easy way to say this.

“So. You know that [Y/N] has a soulmark on her wrist?”

Ben stiffens ever so slightly, “I do. But it’s ok. We don’t really care about that whole destiny thing. It’s unconventional but you know…” he trails off.

RM takes a deep breath and rolls up his sleeve. “I have the matching soulmark. I was in a coma for 2 days. I need to speak to her doctor immediately.” NEXT CHAPTER

#bts rm x you #bts rm fanfic #bts fanfic #bts au fanfic #bts fanfction #namjoon x you #bts soulmate au #bts namjoon x reader #rm x reader

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retronator · 4 years

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The last 10 years of pixel art

Retronator the blog is exactly 10 years old right now (+ an hour or so more since I can’t seem to stop editing this post)!

I want to take this opportunity to look back at the teenage years of the 21st century and reflect on how the pixel art scene has grown over the years. I only promise a personal perspective, pieced together from my faulty memory and a bit more reliable archive of 1,700 posts on this blog.

2010

Social media sites emerged already in the late 2000s (Facebook launched in 2004, Twitter in 2006, Tumblr in 2007), but it took quite some time before they caught on, especially outside the US. I joined Tumblr in July 2010 and there were relatively few pixel artists active on the site. @jinndevil and @unomoralez go the farthest of those that I followed. The first post I reblogged was a Back to the Future piece from @megapont (via some blogpost share, since Megapont duo didn't join till 2013).

What was huge on the network however was sharing retro-gaming artworks by blogs like @it8bit and @gameandgraphics. This included many pixel art pieces and it helped grow a community of fans that adored both old games and pixels.

2011

I'd put 2011 down as the start of the hi-bit era of pixel art games, championed by the release of the iconic adventure game Sword & Sworcery. Pixel purism of the initial pixel art movement was left behind by mixing pixels with high-res special effects like soft shadows and vignetting. Also, spaghetti legs started their fad period.

Artists such as @probertson, @drewpixel, and @merrigo started their days on Tumblr, gathering huge audiences over the years. Meanwhile, Retronator grew to a whooping 100 followers by the end of the year.

2012

Tumblr's fan spirits were going stronger and stronger, to which I threw my own logs on the fire by releasing Tribute, my biggest and most popular piece of fan art I created so far.

The highly anticipated FEZ got released (to critical acclaim and other more controversial consequences), further bringing pixel art in front of the mainstream gaming audience.

From newly-followed artists, @johanvinet was damn inspiring with his smooth animations. Anything GIF did immensely good on the Tumblr dashboard.

2013

This was THE year for Tumblr. So many new artists joined, it was hard to keep track. Anyone from established names like Mojang's art director @jnkboy and @konjakonjak of Noitu Love 2 fame (later Iconoclasts) to pixel art beginners such as @waneella, now one of the most well-known illustrators in the scene.

The push for modern art direction with pixel art games wasn't stopping either. Not that amazing, more traditionally styled titles (with fresh color palettes) weren't present, as Chasm's debut on Kickstarter showed, but it was Hyper Light Drifter that really stole everyone's heart (machine) on the same crowdfunding platform. Gradients and smooth dynamic shading became unapologetically part of the pixel art (gaming) vocabulary from then on.

When Papers, Please got released at the end of the year to universal appraisal, a new example was set for showing that pixel visuals don't necessarily need to be the most polished, technically-impressive pieces of artistic expression, they can also be simple—the majority of detail-filling can be offloaded to the player's imagination.

2014

Pixel purist ideology was a highly debated topic. Dan Fessler, the background artist on Chasm, did a strong push against the tighter set of constraints which said you should only use 'clean' tools such as the pencil and color fill to complete your artworks. Dan instead only cared about clean results, pioneering in the process the technique of HD Index Painting that used the depths of Photoshop layer magic to get otherwise identical results. And there were plenty of others right around the corner that wouldn't even care about keeping the results married to traditional pixel art ideals.

Still, the majority of pixel art at this point was very orthodox. I started the Artist Feature series that showcased my favorite artists and none of them did anything controversial (nor they needed to). The biggest break from the old days was mainly highly increased color counts that allowed for subtle transitions without dithering, and free color picking without creating predefined color palettes. Octavi Navarro started his highly iconic @pixelshuh scenes, and the completely unknown @8pxl started her journey towards experimentation with pink sky gradients.

Even more importantly, Pixel Dailies were born on Twitter, following Ben Porter's 365 days of doing pixel art daily.

2015

I called 2015 The Year of Pixel Dailies in the end-of-the-year article in my newly started Retronator Magazine. The Twitter community really exploded this year, bringing in many new artists to the medium, with Pixel Dailies serving as a platform to raise visibility to everyone, old and new. I found out about @weilarddrake and @orange-magik this way, Slynyrd, @iceztiqarts, @igorsandman … Other freshly-discovered people on tumblr were @kirokazepixel (one of the most prolific artists on the scene), @faxdoc (his learning journey was inspiring enough for its own article), and Talecrafter with @deathtrashgame (starting a whole new style of aliased, low-res painting without caring about individual pixels).

The discussion whether pixel art could survive past its nostalgic roots was still in the air, stirred by opinions such as A Pixel Artist Renounces Pixel Art. History is proving them wrong however, with pixel art stronger than ever in 2020. It's not a visual language people born after the 80s couldn't understand.

New-school voxel art pieces started trending with the advent of Magicavoxel, pioneering the development of pixel art's sibling in 3D. The first pixel art convention Pixel Art Park was held in Tokyo. And (important for me personally), I came up with Pixel Art Academy, an adventure game that would take my ambitions in pixel art education into the future.

2016

After 9 years in development, Owlboy released! Also Hyper Light Drifter! And Stardew Valley! And Kingdom! Pixel art games were not dying, they were on the rise.

Edge (the popular British video game magazine) published a special 200+ page issue called Art of the Pixel. It featured contemporary artists outside the gaming context, championing the aesthetic's transition from its video game roots into its own art form.

Pedro Medeiros of @studiominiboss started his famous series of GIF tutorials, subsequently encouraging many others to share their knowledge in the popular square format. Tumblr still saw new artists joining the platform, such as @motocross-arts and @apolism (two thirds of the Japanese trio The Ultimate Pixel Crew), while others like @6vcr started their first pixel explorations that year. @brunopixels, an old-schooler on the platform like me, sparked the Octobit movement, a pixel art alternative to Inktober.

2017

Further new names on Tumblr included @guttykreum (outdoorsy perspective pieces) and @scrixels (one of the most consistent daily posters with over 1,000 artworks by now).

The annual Shibuya Pixel Art Contest joined Pixel Art Park at promoting the art form in Tokyo, Japan (and worldwide really). Lospec became the new go-to resource site for pixel art, picking up the mantle from PixelJoint and Pixelation that—while still active—stagnated technologically and feature-wise.

More than anything, pixel art games were everywhere. Maybe it only seemed to me this way since I was able to go to the Game Developer's Conference as press and had the chance to interview many many people in the scene, leading to over half a year of daily content on this blog. Indie games felt stronger than ever with so many of us full-on realizing our dreams of creating our own games professionally. The one that left the biggest splash on the scenes was no doubt The Last Night, announced front and center in-between AAA titles during Microsoft's E3 conference. The brothers Soret pushed the art direction even beyond the hi-bit era moniker, fusing 3D, shaders, and modern cinematography with pixels in an iconic combination that, like Sword & Sworcery's spaghetti legs, was so atmospheric that it couldn't be resisted by future imitators.

2018

Another game that pushed technological boundaries was Pathway, finally stepping into full light in 2018 and releasing one year later. I still think it has the most advanced pixel art graphics engine to date, using voxels and other tricks under the hood to deliver a completely dynamically lit environment while retaining the pixel-perfect 3/4 view aesthetic. Pixel art games were firmly part of mainstream gaming by now, with Celeste winning many awards alongisde pixelish Return of the Obra Dinn, further cementing the presence of pixels as an ever-evolving medium capable of expressing very different art styles.

I decided to focus solely on developing Pixel Art Academy in 2018, putting this blog on relative hiatus with very sporadic updates towards the end of the year. But I never let it die. I thoroughly enjoy writing about the scene and my interest in the art form only grows with time.

2019–2020

Ironically, the closer the years are to the present, the less I remember what things stood out most. Maybe it's because my brain hasn't had the chance to automatically prune my memories yet from the overload of information that is the interwebs these days. Pixel art seems so out there, so much of my everyday life, encompassing me on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Reddit, DeviantArt … Even on TikTok you see kids zooming out of their freshly pixelized Minecraft photographs they call pixel art. The medium is alive, and more than ever.

As for the Retronator blog, from its zero followers exactly 10 years ago, it grew to 100 after a year and a half, 1000 the year after, 10k when it was 5 years old, and 30k just last month. Tumblr is still the platform where most of you follow my pixel art reports and I don't intend to stop anytime soon.

Here's to the next decade! Thank you all for reading. <3

#Retronator #Pixel Art

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sociaworkismyradar · 3 years

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If only everyone could share our skills days – A blog by Natalie Senior – First Year B.A. Hons Social Work Student - University of Bradford

To realise the ambitions of our, ‘Take Me As I Am’ blog, we introduced the first year BA (Hons) social work students at the University of Bradford to the use of blogs as a vehicle for personal critical reflection. This was part of our Readiness for Practice module, linked to experiential skills days on diverse social work topics. Students were given the space to explore and practise reflective blogging, as formative pieces that will be used as the basis for their summative assessment. To achieve this we ensured there was dedicated time for thought and reflection (Giroux and Giroux, 2004); for safe and open conversations on topics such as the elimination of violence against women. Given that this academic year (2020/21) has been shaped by the Coronavirus pandemic, and as a consequence our teaching has moved online, the use of blogs and ‘coffee morning – well-being’ Zoom calls has made this an opportune time to introduce this novel form of pedagogy. This approach supports our ethos, that academic support must be tailored to the individual, yet balanced with due regard to our profession: social work. Such a pedagogic approach requires challenging the existing power relations between student and academic; it requires, ‘authenticity’, ‘responsibility’ and ‘engagement’ from both parties. The response from the students to our new approach has been overwhelming and marks a new chapter in our exploration and understanding of the student experience. We offer that the following blogs, written by students, clearly evidence the transformative learning and reflection that has taken place, and the potential that exists in this mutual pedagogy through the use of the reflective blog.

If only everyone could share our skills days – A blog by Natalie Senior – First Year B.A. Hons Social Work Student

International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women!

What a day to have the amazing skills day we had today. Speakers with so much knowledge and understanding of subject areas and a real passion for what they do. This clearly cascaded down to students in today's skills day and personally gave me a drive to find out more!!

Today’s skills day made me reflect on my past relationship and really made me see what I was living for 17 years is actually real and was not in my head coercion is real! My partner has also lived through domestic violence and has strong beliefs in stamping out violence against women. Each individual part of today gave me more knowledge and understanding of what me and my partner have both lived, it also made me revisit emotions I felt at the time and helped me to see where I have come to from learning from past experiences. For the purpose of this blog I feel I reflected on action as understood by Schon which outlines the process of reflecting after an event, exploring new information and feelings of how I felt at the time and processing these feelings and actions with new knowledge and understanding of my experiences and how I feel now (Bolton & Delderfirld, 2018). Sharing my day with him gave him a desire to look in to the White Ribbon campaign, we have boys ourselves and he models his beliefs and values in this area strongly with the boys, in this way he is a positive role model for our children aged 6,6 and 12.

The Anah Project is a project aimed at women fleeing all forms of abuse, not only localised in West Yorkshire but throughout the United kingdom (Anah Project, 2020). The Anah project isn't just a service that provides safe accommodation for fleeing women but they offer a support network around these women, they educate women on human rights and increase confidence, self-esteem and independence. They do this through a person cantered approach delivering support through individualised plans based on individual needs. It is widely researched and evident in policies and literature that person cantered approaches are the best way forward, they look at individuals as a whole identifying strengths, weaknesses, preferences, aspirations and in turn has a positive impact on the package of care and support required of each individual (Teater2014, Rutter & Brown,2015).

The project is run through a refuge, where self-referrals and referrals from other agencies can be made. As a student social worker I am already starting to gain a knowledge base of what services are available in the local area; just from today I have knowledge of three individual organisations/ campaigns/ projects where I can signpost or access for support and guidance should I ever need to in my professional role as a social worker (although this seems a million miles away right now!). Knowledge and understanding of such projects and campaigns, equips me with knowledge and understanding to promote the rights, strengths and wellbeing of individuals outlined in the social work standards (SWE,2020) using localised and national services. it also helps me to develop my skills when potentially working with individuals in these circumstances promoting rights, wellbeing and individualised plans drawing on individuals strengths and abilities to create better outcomes for them and work in partnership with wider agencies and professionals (SWE,2020).

The project works on principles of empowerment, collective action, self-help, mutual aid, inclusion and equality (Anah project, 2020). They certainly empowered me today! To empower someone is to give them choice and control at the same time relying on honesty and realism as a two way process (Maclean, 2009, Parrot, 2011). this project aims to do this on so many different levels. All these principles are key points in social work practice and hearing from such inspirational speakers today not only touched me on a personal level and gave me some realisation of my own experiences but gave me a desire to learn more and to better my skills and knowledge and personal understanding which in turn will better my practice as I progress from student to qualified social worker.

The issues discussed today sadly are a huge representation of the societies we live in, some societies more pertinent than others; and the work of social workers and organisations, projects and societies working together to drive down these inequalities of life providing social justice and better outcomes for all is indispensable in the 20th century societies we live in.

Domestic violence happens to both men and women but evidence supports that more women than men are victims of domestic violence, evidence also suggests that the prevalence in black, Asian, minority ethnic and refugee (BAMER) communities is a big percentage of figures recorded. Why is this? Is this because they live in a community where it is accepted to treat women in this way? Is it a community issue and an inequalities in beliefs and values of the community as a whole? Is it religion that leads these beliefs and values? No matter of the answer it is not acceptable against men or women. However research shows that women from BAMER communities are at higher risk of abuse than those from other ethnic groups. Honour based violence, forced marriage, arranged marriage and more recently female genital mutilation have become widely recognised within societies and a call to end these acts of crime is urgently required. Research shows that as a minimum twelve women a year have been killed as a result of "honour based violence", BAME women are impacted by specific forms of violence such as forced marriage and honour based violence, these acts of abuse are experienced in context with domestic abuse experienced by white women (Penny, 2020) The disclosure numbers of those individuals form a black, Asian and minority ethnic groups is worryingly less than that of the general population (Penny, 2020) Educated and knowledgeable professionals with the skills to intervene where required, to be able to identify when these acts are happening and know how to deal with them correctly and with the individuals best interests is vital. Professionals require knowledge of early identifying signs of potential risk or abuse that may raise cause for concern, schools and education settings need to have a rigorous set of policies and procedures for identifying where long periods of absence may be a concern, police services need to be more broadly educated on signs of honour based violence and domestic abuse and know how to intervene and respond to these signs promptly and safely.

More needs to be done to end violence against women and that is through us as professionals including police been knowledgeable enough to intervene, read signs and act promptly and make those referrals. Emphasis needs to be put on schools to educate pupils on safe and health relationships, safe and acceptable behaviours and giving them the knowledge of where to go if they are at risk or feel they may be at risk of harm and encourage them to do this with confidence and reassurance.

The White Ribbon Campaign really stood out for me, as I have said my partner has lived a period of his life with domestic abuse and he strongly believes in ending violence against women. He has strong views and beliefs on this subject which he tries to cascade down to our boys who are still young at present. Values are what us as individuals think or feel should happen and are unique to us all, some people share in the same values and beliefs as others, in life we rely on morality and the experiences of others to inform and create our own moral codes, values and beliefs, as individuals we are highly influenced by present and past experiences and understanding within a context of the society in which we live and grow (Parrot, 2011). He believes these morals and beliefs should be understood from a young age, boys eventually turn in to men and instilling the understanding that it is not acceptable to cause harm to women in any context through sharing experiences with our boys and helping them understand age appropriate situations will hopefully allow them to lead healthy adult life's, knowing right from wrong in a society where domestic abuse is widely seen and appears acceptable. The mission of the white ribbon campaign is for men to commit to never excuse or remain silent about male violence against women using men and boys to act as a catalyst for change and take action to change behaviour both individually and collectively (White Ribbon, 2020).

I had never heard of the campaign before today but me and my partner looked in to this further, the idea of using men as a catalyst to educate other men and young boys is an amazing concept. There are many men out there who share the same beliefs and this needs to be heard it needs to be recognised worldwide.

Learning that the university isn't a recognised organisation who promotes the white ribbon campaign at present gives me a platform at the social justice society meeting later this week to discuss with executive members of how we can work to get the university recognised for its promotion of the white ribbon campaign. Following today and the knowledge I gained I feel I have a better knowledge of what it is and how important it could be for the university to be recognised for this.

Finally to end a brilliant information filled day we heard from breaking the silence.

For many men speaking out about mental health and abuse is a difficult concept no matter what ethnic background they are from. Personal experiences have seen how difficult this can be for men and unfortunately my experiences also saw a failing in services which put the individual at more risk, but whom eventually left the abusive relationship. More needs to be done to encourage men to speak out, it needs to become more socially accepted that men also suffer abuse and have rights to safe and healthy relationship and life the same way as women and children do. There are a number of articles within the human rights act (1998) that states the rights of all individuals. Article le 3 highlights that everyone has a right to not be subject to torture, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, Article 8 also outlines everyone has right to live a life with respect to a private life, home and correspondence, Article 9 highlights everyone has freedom of thought, conscience and religion and Article 10 identifies everyone has a freedom to express themselves and hold opinions (Brammer, 2020) Social workers working with individuals discussed above should endeavour to promote these rights trough all areas of practice and help individuals know and understand their rights when living in societies where this is not always so.

Traditional ideologies place emphasis on the masculinity of men in society where unfortunately men are also weakened and shamed by acts of abuse. An article published by the BMJ (1998) exploring the theories and values in health research found that in social constructivist views the male gender is signified by beliefs and behaviours of been hard and strong and this is evidence through practiced social interactions, it is an assumption that these attributes are fixed and evidence shows they do vary across cultures and religions (BMJ, 1998).

Socially it is not accepted that men can be victims of abuse but research shows that this is in fact the case and more should be done to encourage men to speak out and get the help and support they need, in the same way women do. Black and Asian Minority Ethnic (BAME) men appear to find speaking out much more difficult than men of other ethnic origins, why is that? Is it because of racism and discrimination stopping them accessing services and support? Is it social and economic inequalities? Is it the huge stigma around mental health? Is it the society which influences very stereotypical views?

BAME communities can experience racism and discrimination in many forms at many different points in their lives and research shows that this can have a negative impact on mental health and wellbeing (mentalhealth.org, 2020). Disadvantages within societies often associated with BAME communities such as poverty and poorer educational outcomes, higher unemployment and contact with criminal justice systems also plays a huge part in individuals speaking out and accessing support they need, they may not know how or where to access help (mentalhealth.org, 2020). As professionals it is important that we know what services are available in the local area, the support groups that run and how to access these. We have a duty to promote quality and inclusion and promote the rights of every individual we work with (SWE, 2020).

There is huge stigma around men's mental health and a lack of understanding on a community level of what this is and how to deal with it, in some communities it is not talked about and in some it is seen in a negative light. This can often discourage people from speaking out particularly men whom are seen to be strong and bold members of society. Research completed by BMI Healthcare (2020) found that one in eight men have mental health problems that they often struggle to discuss or seek help for (BMI, 2020).

Today’s skills day has been really informative and inspiring and given me more of an understanding of services available to people whom I may work with within my professional career. It has allowed me to develop some understanding of why these things take place and understand some professional jargon when it comes to legal procedures and practices. It has also given me a little closure in that self-acceptance of my own experiences were in fact real and should be spoken about and socially we still live in a world where changes need to be made and working together in communities and societies to change the view and disadvantages caused by domestic violence, and other forms of abuse is highly required for better quality of life and living.

I worried about today as it is close to home but now I feel inspired and enthused to get involved where I can and help make that change in society promoting social justice for all!!

Anah (2020) Anah Project [ONLINE] https://anahproject.org/what-we-do (Accessed 26th November 2020)

BMI (2020) Men and Mental Health: a damaging stigma [ONLINE] https://www.bmihealthcare.co.uk/health-matters/mens-health/men-and-mental-health-a-damaging-stigma#gdpr-out (Accessed 30th November 2020)

BMJ (1998) Education and Debate; Theories in Healthcare and Research: Theories of Masculinity [ONLINE] https:://doi.org/10.1136/BMJ.317.7165.1072 (Accessed 30th November 2020)

Bolton, G. and Delderfield. R. (2018) Reflective practice: writing and professional development fifth edition. London. Sage

Brammer, A. (2020) Social work law: 5th Edition. UK. Pearson Education

Maclean, S. (2020) Social Work Theory Cards: 3rd Edition. Linchfield. KirwinMaclean

Maclean, S. and Harrison R. (2009) Theory and Practice: a straightforward guide. Great Britain

Parrott, L. (2011) Values and Ethics in Social Work Practice: 2nd Edition. Exeter. Learning Matters ltd

Penny, G. (2020) Supporting B&ME victims- what the data shows. [ONLINE] safelives.org.uk/practice_blog/supporting-bme-victims-what-data-shows (Accessed 1st December 2020)

Rutter, L. Brown, K. (2015) Critical thinking and professional judgement in social work: 4th Edition. London. Sage

SWE(2020) Social Work England Standards of Proficiency. London. Health care and professional council.

Teater, B. (2014) Contemporary Social Work Practice. London. Open University Press

White Ribbon Campaign (2020)

What we do

[ONLINE]

https://whiteribbon.org.uk/what-we-do

(Accessed 1st December 2020

#bradford #bradforduniversity #bradfordcollege #socialwork #students

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continuants · 4 years

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for the past month or so, i’ve been holding a fancy friday where i get dressed up, put on a bunch of fun makeup and work from home while feeling extra special. i was interviewed by NBC News about it! there’s a cute lil video! it was so strange to be doing press not for work, but i’m glad i could share this lil bit of myself.

highly encourage taking a day to dress to the 9s and lean into who you are, even if you’re just going from bedroom to couch :)

At the start of the quarantine, Brennan found herself leaning heavily on her coping mechanism of exercising and therefore was often wandering her home dressed in her workout clothes.

Knowing she’d have to be on a work-related Zoom call on Fridays, she decided that would be the day where she’d bring back the cat eyeliner, the bright lipstick and as much glitter as she could manage.

“I felt like … I was losing this piece of myself and it was really hard to look in the mirror,” Brennan said. “I do my makeup to express my identity. If I could open up my soul to you, it would be hot pink glitter.”

#personal #fancy friday #quarantine #coronavirus #thinking about it too hard i started thinking about why i havent been sharing the photos here #and i realized tumblr is my journal and like #the deepest parts of who i am #not necessarily the outside?#but i'm cute as hell so maybe next week that will change #anyway i'm overanalyzing in the tags now byeeeee

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ducktracy · 4 years

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165. porky’s building (1937)

release date: june 19th, 1937

series: looney tunes

director: frank tashlin

starring: mel blanc (porky), billy bletcher (dirty digg), berneice hansell (rabbit), tedd pierce (sandy c. ment, dog)

alas, the photo limit prevents me from placing this in here, but the cartoon opens with a highly amusing disclaimer:

any similarity of characters or happenings in this picture to actual people or events is definitely intended................. if you think we're going to sit around for days thinking up new ideas - you're pixilated!

somewhat of a strange anomaly is mel blanc voicing fat porky. this is the first frank tashlin cartoon since porky’s romance, the last cartoon to feature porky’s original voice actor, joe dougherty. fat porky wouldn’t survive past 1937—frank tashlin was the sole person who kept him going, after tashlin’s porky’s double trouble he got a diet. this is more of a personal anecdote than a concrete observation, i always found this so-called “transitional period” amusing. nevertheless—it’s up to porky you beat his rival, dirty digg, to see who can build the best town hall the fastest.

frank tashlin, ever the cinematographer, introduces the cartoon with a silhouette behind a closed door, the door identifying the silhouette as sandy c. ment, city building commissioner. tedd pierce provides the voice for sandy, discussing the plans for the new city hall about to be built. we see porky and a particularly grizzly brute as the gentlemen sandy is referring to, the only two contractors in the city. they’re both tasked with building the city hall--whoever can come up with the cheapest bid wins. i believe it’s norm mccabe who does some particularly funny animation of porky waving to his rival, only to receive a steely glare in return, much to the rejection of porky. i’m certain frank tashlin’s feelings towards porky were projected into that glare.

sandy displays the city hall plans, revealing a poster of an art deco feat of modern architecture. tashlin’s cartoons in the 30′s are particularly rife with the streamlined, art deco feel, supported by his tendency to use jazzy underscores as we see here as well. more norm mccabe(?) animation as porky and his rival get the papers they need to sort out the bids. lovely animation as any sense of camaraderie between the two is gone in a snap, both nose to nose (or nose to snout?) as they stalk over to their desks to crunch the numbers, not once breaking physical contact or eye contact until absolutely necessary. mel blanc and billy bletcher’s voices collide as the two crunch the numbers aloud, the billy bletcher brute deliberately copying porky’s numbers. the two finish, the staring contest resumes, and they do the same furious tango back to sandy.

as fate has it, the two reach a tie with their bids at $3,000,000.02 each, with a hilarious detail of dirty diggs’ paper including scribbles of a stickman and a self serving game of tic tac toe, indicating just how dedicated he is to his craft. the tie stumps sandy on how to determine who gets to build the city hall, until he reaches a conclusion—both get to build the city hall. whoever finishes first, wins. a lack of sound effects hides the detail, but there’s some rather amusing animation as sandy jabs a finger in porky’s face and honks dirty digg’s nose daffy duck style.

transition to the two now at their respective construction sites, waiting to take off like runners in a race, accompanied by a crowd no less. sandy fires a starting pistol, and the two take off to build. digg hops into his backhoe, clearing the land for his building. can’t go wrong with the backhoe scooping up a giant boulder and crunching it up with an anthropomorphic mouth, spitting the chunks into a cart. porky’s dinky little contraption is just as whimsical, with a mechanical boot slamming itself against an actual shovel suspended by a pulley to clear the way. frank tashlin does a wonderful job juxtaposing the personalities, through mannerisms and extraneous details such as their equipment.

the rubbery animation associated with digg is only furthered as he struggles to pull his backhoe out of the deep hole he dug for himself--we see that the street lamps in the city are caught in the machine, bobbing up and down in their respective “posts”. finally, digg prevails, pulling out a tangled mess of rubbery street lamps. points for creativity.

elsewhere, the cartoon takes a rather morbid yet wonderfully hilarious turn: a dog construction worker loads crates of dynamites into a hole, chuffing halfheartedly on a pipe as he waddles back to the dynamite lever, hands in pockets, marching along to a whimsical rendition of “boulevardier from the bronx”. rolling up his sleeves, he prepares to pull the lever, when a crowd of spectators approach, leaning in as the dog prepares to fire. the dog opens one eye and grunts “step back folks, ya bother me,” VERY well timed to a nice little oboe underscore with each syllable. the crowd gives him his space... until the dog prepares to fire again. another “step back folks, ya bother me.” they oblige, until they don’t. the charade continues, until finally the dog waddles back to the hole where the crates are stashed, rendition of “boulevardier from the bronx” and all. the dog pokes an eye open as the lemmings inevitably wander to the hole of dynamite (a fitting underscore of “let’s put our heads together” to boot.) the dog squeezes his way through the crowd, heads to the lever... and BOOM! cold blooded murder dismissed with a mere dusting off of the hands. a WONDERFUL gag timed succinctly and purposefully prolonged--the same dog would reappear a year later in porky the fireman, another tashlin piece, doing the same prolonged waddle and same accompaniment of boulevardier from the bronx.

a collection of some whimsical animal gags, gags that feel like something out of a harman and ising cartoon, albeit more polished. two beavers load cement and sand into a cocktail shaker strapped to the side of a camel, a pelican dumping water from its beak into the makeshift cocktail. the camel shakes the shaker, all of the animals swaying along. perhaps slightly outdated, yet still fun nonetheless. turtles flip their shells open (wheels attached to the top--or in this case, bottom--of the shells) and tow away the mixture created by the animals. meanwhile, a dog carrying a load of cement, the hod carrier, marches up a support beams thanks to suction cups tied on his shoes, complete with some jaunty music and animation. dirty digg lives up to his namesake by playing dirty, hurling a brick at the dog. the dog falls, his suction cups continuing to ascend up the scaffolding, underscore and all.

we meet camera shy porky for the first time in a few minutes, a reflection of frank tashlin’s distaste and uncertainty regarding the character, who encourages his team to “get in there and fight!” they’re all lined up along a bench, a sign above labeling them as “HOD CARRIER SUBSTITUTES”. thus sparks the running gag of the cartoon: as the substitutes dash off do to their duty for porky, a diminutive rabbit (voiced by berneice hansell, of course) zooms up to porky, donning a sweater that reads “HOD CARRIER” as she squeaks “how ‘bout me, porky?” porky isn’t at all convinced by her diminutive stature, snapping “no!”

on porky’s team, a few pelicans pull the appropriate levers to mix water, cement, and sand in their bills, flying off and twirling their heads and bills around to create the mixture. one pelican successfully discards his load down a long chute to the construction site. the next, however, isn’t so lucky. ever the conniving weasel (or dog), digg attaches a dead fish to a balloon for the oncoming pelican to feast on. the pelican, eager for the snack, spits out its mixture in favor of the fish, the mixture pouring from the sky and landing right on porky. none too deterred, porky encourages his cement mixer substitutes, a line of pelicans, to, once again, get out there and fight. as they fly off, the eager rabbit from before, now donning a sweater labeling her as a cement mixer, squeaks “how ‘bout me, porky?” the same routine as porky once more yells “no!”

digg’s construction site is going swimmingly, as to be expected. a wonderful slanted layout as we spot the builders hard at work. despite the success of the building, digg barks “okay boys, c’mon down. i don’t need you anymore.” digg marches into his office, a makeshift shack on the site, and we’re left to ponder what it is he’s scheming as a rolling pan of the exterior shields us from digg's view, the billy bletcher laugh the only thing cluing us in to nefarious acts. tashlin loved to do the concealing pans, and they work out well in his favor, adding a sense of suspense and anticipation. out on the other side comes digg in a fancy new machine--DIRTY DIGG’S BRICK BRICK LAYING MACHINE.

porky, who’s dutifully laying his bricks the old fashioned way, spots digg’s new trick, and is hardly pleased. mel’s stuttering is particularly heavy, still attempting to emulate joe dougherty as porky complains “say! you can’t do that!” digg takes no offense. “well, i’m doing it, ain’t it?” settings on digg’s machine include start, full speed, super speed, super colossal speed, gosh darn fast, and reverse. digg pulls the lever to start, increasing the speeds as bricks inevitably hurtle out of the chute and land right into place on the site of his building. wonderful (and tedious!) complex animation as the bricks pile on, one after the other, even porky taking a moment to admire the handiwork. tashlin’s cartoons always seem to entail bits of animation that seem so tedious and complex to animate, such as a whole mess of train cars zigzagging on train tracks in porky’s railroad, or the interminable pile of luggage carried by daffy in porky pig’s feat. tashlin’s eye for detail is keen.

a score board gloatingly displays digg’s lead over porky: digg has 22 stories, porky 2. as porky mourns his loss (”woe is me... woe is me!”) no matter--the eager beaver bunny from before is there to cheer him up, donning a “brick layer” sweater with the same “how ‘bout me, porky?” porky declines. a quick zoom in and out, and the rabbit asks the same question, now donning a “colossal brick layer” sweater. porky once more declines. with the third and final “super colossal brick layer”, porky finally yells “no!”, to which the rabbit sulks off. thankfully, porky has a change of heart. “ok-ok-o-oka-ok-ok-oka--alright, eh-geh-geh-go in there and eh-feh-fi-feh-fight!” little rabbit is ecstatic.

the power of popeye compels the rabbit as she flexes her muscles, even flexing her ears to make a pair of makeshift muscles. one ear scoops the mortar, the other tosses a brick on top, and we very quickly realize she is MORE than capable for the job, laying bricks three times as fast as digg’s machine. the scoreboard hurries to adjust porky’s “score”, both of them now tied at 77 stories each. even better is the little “whew!” the rabbit sighs after pausing to rest, a lovely bit of comedic timing both underscoring and highlighting her work.

now, digg rushes to beat porky’s building, realizing he has a worthy competitor on his hands. the two are neck and neck... until the poor mechanical design of digg’s brick layer lands him in hot water. he mistakes the reverse setting for the highest speed setting, and with a hearty kick to the lever, the lever breaks and is now stuck in reverse. mel blanc seems to provide digg’s exclamation of “gosh! it’s stuck in reverse!” instead of bletcher. just as quickly as he had laid the bricks, the bricks of digg’s building come hurtling back into the machine, the machine swelling bigger and bigger as it threatens to burst from the congestion. digg’s entire building is now without a brick, and to make matters worse (or better), the machine finally explodes.

porky’s dinky little backhoe from before comes to life, digging a plot of land the perfect size for digg to fit in. digg flops to the ground from the impact of the explosion, receiving a swift kick to the ass with the machine’s shoe and a konk on the head via shovel for good measure.

elsewhere, porky triumphs, his city hall now complete. the cartoon’s motif of “fifty-second street” triumphantly underscores porky’s victory as he shakes his fist in the glory, perched on top of his architectural feat as his adoring fans shout from below. suddenly, we’re visited by a familiar friend: the little rabbit from before zips to porky’s side. “how ‘bout me, porky?” instead of shooing her away, porky is more than happy to lift her up and have her pose on his outstretched hand. a wholesome iris out as the little rabbit clasps her ears together like fists, reveling in the glory.

truthfully, this is probably the one porky cartoon i forget about the most. not that it’s bad by any means, but out of his hearty filmography of 153 cartoons, this one isn’t the most notable. with that said, this is a fine cartoon. the animation is certainly the highlight: whether it’s porky and dirty digg doing their furious nose-to-snout tango, the dog lumbering around the site of the dynamite hole, the animals mixing cement together, or the entire brick laying montage, there is a lot to admire, the climax of the cartoon especially. the “how ‘bout me, porky?” gag is especially amusing, albeit taxing (as it was intended to be), and the dynamite gag with the dog is wonderfully morbid. porky still has a very transparent personality, yet mel’s deliveries are fun to listen to, especially at this stage when he’s still figuring out the speech patterns. the cartoon’s music score is absolutely WONDERFUL, very jazzy, very upbeat, a fitting score to match the streamlined look of the cartoon.

while this isn’t my go-to recommendation for porky cartoons, it makes for an amusing watch. i wouldn’t urge you to drop everything and see it, and if you don’t watch it you’ll be just as well off, but this is a fine cartoon with a lot to admire.

link!

#lt #porky’s building #looney tunes #reviews #tashlin #long post

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orisamerica · 4 years

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7 Necessities before Sending Your Workforce Remote

Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, many companies are considering work from home options to facilitate social-distancing and keep their workforce healthy. However, it’s not as simple as sending your employees home, firing up personal laptops and getting back to work. Here are seven things you need to have lined up in order to successfully deploy your remote workforce.

1. Secure Remote Access: Employees should not have open access to everything on their work systems from their personal computers. This keeps company data protected. In order to be productive through this pandemic, however, employers will need to provide a secure connection utilizing VPN or remote access software. These solutions will mirror the employee’s work desktop without housing all of the data on the individual’s personal system, allowing them to seamlessly continue work.

2. File Sharing Capabilities: While people will be working in isolation, they must still be able to collaborate. File sharing/group editing software will be critical to moving forward creative or documentation projects through real-time editing, commenting, and versioning. Software like Dropbox for Business, Microsoft Teams/Sharepoint or Google Documents fill this need securely.

3. Enterprise Level Antivirus: Basic home-level antivirus is not sufficient, particularly in secured industries. Extend your enterprise-level antivirus to home systems that will be accessing your network to create an added layer of protection. You may also consider deploying firewalls on top of individual’s home networks to create the same secure connection employees experience in your office.

4. Video Conferencing: Meetings must go on while people work remote; however, voice-only leaves much to be desired in terms of tone and context. We highly recommend putting in place video conferencing options. You can implement something as simple as Google Duo/FaceTime, or something more feature intensive, like Zoom or GoTo Meeting.

5. Messaging Software: You can’t just spin your chair around to talk to your co-worker when working remote, yet it’s not efficient to always pick up the phone. We recommend implementing a messaging software like Microsoft Teams or Slack to open communication channels and allow employees to continue to interact quickly and accurately. Utilizing these tools, you can set up one-on-one conversations or set up channels to facilitate team communication.

6. Phone: A strong VoIP solution will allow employees to take their phone numbers remote to their cellphones without giving out their cellphone numbers. Office calls will transfer seamlessly to the employee’s cellphones, voice mails will be sent via email, and the employee can dial-out using a phone application to maintain office functionality.

7. Remote Access Policy: Prior to providing access to your employees, put in place a clear access policy that acknowledges that your company monitors whatever they do while connected. Employees should be encouraged to act as if they are on site even while working remote and reminded that punishments for doing something illegal/against company policy will apply.

The COVID-19 situation is ever-changing. Schools across the nation have been closed and events have been cancelled. While it may make sense to keep your employees on-site for now, we believe it’s important to have a plan should you need to close your physical offices. Getting these seven pieces of the puzzle in line will prepare you to take your workforce remote. Hope you will find this information helpful in this pandemic situations. Visit our website to know more about Oris America.

#COVID-19 #7 Necessities before Sending Your Workforce Remote #work from home #remote workforce

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igigisaggi · 4 years

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Baking Bread or Breaking Bad?

Feeding the Commons Beyond Crisis

Long before the COVID-19 pandemic, our vivid everyday experiences and situated knowledges made us aware of the horrible failings of our current system of capital accumulation and neoliberal individualization. Now, as the pandemic ripped the glossy facial mask down from the face of our neoliberally organized societies with a virulent grin, these failings lay bare before our very eyes (the eye understood here as an interface between body and mind). Needless to say that our feeling of an urgent need to transform this failing neoliberal being-individually-outside-of-a-multispecies-world to a just and convivial being-together-in-a-multispecies-world currently seeks ways to burst out. Ironically, a virus, that our neoliberal societies interconnected through globalized capitalism helped to create, complicates a being-together-in-a-multispecies-world as of now.

This crisis nevertheless points towards a beyond, a speculative future, that will arise from our decisions we take now and from which new possibilites of being-in-the-world are going to emerge. We are right there, on the dancefloor, the space in-between past and future worlds. The way we dance will decide about the world we enter when departing from the dancefloor.

When the invitation came to play our first live concert at the Beyond Crisis Conference organized by the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano we did not hesitate to take this wonderful opportunity. Beyond Crisis. The beyond is our dancefloor. What a match! Still, we also wanted to participate in the sessions and workshops of the conference, so we recorded our concert beforehand and took part.

Luckily, we had the opportunity to participate in a workshop dedicated to the topic "Commoning, Subsistence & Sufficiency". Despite the fact that none of us were real 'experts' in these fields (Who even is an expert?), we had the feeling that commoning might be key for our future being-in-the-world. We had a great discussion with a handful of people via Zoom about what "commoning" can contribute to reaching social-ecological transformation and what the context of the current pandemic may implicate for this agenda.

We first identified three readings of the concept of "commoning": sufficiency, common land and data/common knowledge. Focusing primarily on the sufficiency-reading and the sense of community that this implicates, we characterised commoning as a need-oriented, communal living together of humans and non-humans based upon sharing and trusting relationships, no matter if it's about land, food, knowledge, health or other needs and resources. By not only sticking to human-human relations we quickly came to the point that "commoning" is actually a concept extracted from nature. It is important to keep this in mind and learn from the commoning practices of plants, animals and microbes as they themselves have commoning systems in place ensuring their survival. The biological understanding of diversity is key to this, as most ecosystems and their constituents rely on diversity in order to be resilient to phases of shortcomings, crises and catastrophes. We can observe that monocultural systems, let it be agricultural production or capital accumulation interweaving each other, are extremely vulnerable to crises as we can see in the increasing dependence on pesticides, insecticides, genetic modifications etc. in agriculture, as well as currently in the austerity-plagued health systems and non-existing economic safety nets of capitalist societies.

Diversity helps to reduce vulnerability and build up resilience. If one of many components is experiencing a crisis, others will step in and help out. An unconditional basic income would have helped to buffer the current economical crisis, as well as an alternative money system set up regionally to support local businesses. These are examples that already show on which scales resilient commoning systems can be established, mainly locally or regionally. While diversity helps building up resilience, it also needs to be a principle in re-organizing our power structures. A sole focus on building resilience obscures the power relations in which we are enmeshed. Therefore, we need to scale up the commoning concept in order to reduce the power of the financial sector, the agribusiness and the food industry.

If we want to scale up the commoning concept, we have to acknowledge its decentralised nature, promoting the diversity of many local projects and initiatives, e.g. urban gardening or farming projects working with permaculture, towns using alternative money systems (see “Bristol Pounds”), library of things, repair cafés/bike kitchen, alternative housing projects, RIVE/WWOOFing, alternative education models (scandinavian/multispecies etc.) or peer-to-peer insurances (e.g. Elinor-Network). A scaling up can only be achieved by entanglement. We need to interconnect the existing small scale commoning projects and make them visible as a big cloud of commoning. Being in a natureculture world characterized by entanglement and interconnectedness across all scales, we witness the implosion of scales. Our dominant framework of thinking with scales is not available anymore. Instead, we are urged to think in entanglements. We could start by paying attention to the human body and its symbiosis with trillions of microbes on the skin or in the gut. How about this commoning project?

Our relationship with food and beyond can be part of the solution, as we are feeding not only us as human beings, but trillions of microbes, that have specific needs we should take into account while choosing which food to eat. At the moment, due to the corona crisis, people maybe have more time to celebrate their daily meals and food is one of the last things available for us, at least in a rich country like Germany. This has the potential for our society to rethink our relationship with food and its importance for a good living, picturing a point of departure for a social-ecological transformation. For post-corona times food can be a lever to fulfill the desire for conviviality. Food is the ultimate community-builder as its production, distribution and processing involves people working together often resulting in the social event of eating together. However, the current way we produce, distribute and process food is highly unequal and unhealthy, so that we have to seek for alternatives.

One outcome of the conference workshop was the idea of establishing community ovens especially in cities, as rural populations are more often used to sharing principles. This could even serve to transcend social bubbles by bringing people together that would otherwise never meet and encouraging them to share their distinct knowledge and skills with each other. The sour dough could be the facilitator, as it is a way of producing your own bread or pizza dough for every budget, even for homeless people. It can be shared and its special affordances discussed, even sensitising for our relations with the bacteria fermenting the sour dough leading to the end product of a piece of bread being shared among a community. Thus, it is only bottom-up practices that can enable the flourishing of the commons concept, letting people learn naturally to appreciate communities. And yes, even in times of social distancing having a community to rely on in crisis situations is crucial.

#dance music #earthly survival #covid19 #corona #crisis #commoning #community #oven

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