#just. if this was a not so important case from 1821 that no one really knew about whatever then. but brown v board is 1 of the most well

[lambtail-tales]

Simple Feelings (REQUEST)

Kanata Yatonokami x fem!reader (Paradox Live)

Word count: 1821

Paragraphs: 45

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First time ever filling a request (AAAAAAA? THANK YOU SO MUCH???) and also my first time writing something for Kanata! I love tsun boys but he's a tough one. I had a beta reader this time so I hope I did okay! The request was Kanata realizing that he's fallen for the reader! I hope you like it ;u;

✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉

It was 4 AM, and Kanata Yatonokami was still awake, and he was pissed.

Nayuta had already fallen asleep, wrapped up in the blankets on the bed. Kanata sat in front of his laptop, with the screen being the only source of light in the apartment so as not to bother his brother. He had decided to work on their new song since sleep evidently wasn’t an option. Lately, his days had been…eventful, he would say.

He and Nayuta were busy, maybe more than they had ever been, thanks to Paradox Live. It was taking a little adjustment, but he supposed he had no major complaints. He rested his chin in his hand, staring blankly at his computer. He had been stuck on this part of his work for some time, and it wasn’t even because the composition itself was posing a major challenge. It was because he had other things on his mind. Stupid, confusing things. Things that he would swear up and down he didn’t care about.

Kanata groaned softly and slumped over, forehead coming to rest on the edge of the desk he was working at, and it was all because Nayuta wanted to spend some of their prize money on sweets from a new bakery. A bakery where you had smiled at them, making every attempt to chat, recommending this and that, explaining tastes, textures, ingredients…he hadn’t been listening at all, instead watching your mouth move, your eyes light up, and how brightly you smiled at them the whole time. You had been in no hurry to get them away from the display case and out the door; all the while the saccharine smell of vanilla and sugar made Kanata’s head spin. He observed your nimble hands making quick work of closing up the box after Nayuta had decided what he wanted, the tune you had made out of the words, “Thank you so much, please come back soon!” echoed in his head.

Kanata Yatonokami was still awake, and he was pissed, and it was your fault.

All his life, he had never needed anyone except for Nayuta. He never really had the desire to build other connections. After all, he had learned his lesson; the world had been nothing but cold and cruel, he reminded himself of that plenty often.

But you weren’t, something in the back of his mind told him.

The voice was small, and he didn’t know where it came from; it was annoying in the same way an insect he couldn’t see, buzzing around the room would be. He wanted it to stop. It was seriously messing with his head. He was distracted, and it was getting in the way of important things that he should be (and would much rather be) doing. Nayuta had already noticed that he wasn’t quite himself, which he would have rather avoided, because that meant that now Nayuta was going to be on his case; how could he explain to Nayuta what he couldn’t explain to himself?

There was the rustle of fabric as Nayuta stirred, and Kanata looked up quickly to see him sitting up, eyes heavy and half-lidded.

“Nn…Kanata? You’re still awake?”

Kanata turned to face his brother. “Yeah, sorry,” he spoke coolly, hoping Nayuta would just go back to sleep. “I hope I didn’t wake you.”

Nayuta grunted, rubbing some of the sleep away from his eyes, and then looked at his older brother, puzzled. He wasn’t sure what time it was, but he knew it had to be an ungodly hour to still be up. “Hey…” he started cautiously. “Are you okay?”

This was exactly what he had wanted to avoid. “Fine.” The word came out more brusque than he had intended it to sound. “I was just working on something.” It wasn’t really a lie, at least.

“You’ve been ‘just working on something’ for the last three weeks,” Nayuta reminded him pointedly. “You can’t lie to me, Kanata.” He stared at his twin intently. “Tell me what’s up.”

Kanata sighed and turned back to his laptop. He hated that Nayuta was right. He should have known better than to try and get anything past him. He didn’t want his brother fussing over him like this, either. He sighed, and decided that this was going nowhere fast—he wasn’t going to be able to do any work with his head all clouded up like this. Besides, maybe talking to Nayuta would help him figure it out.

The laptop closed with a soft snap, and Kanata stood up, stretching his arms over his head on the way to the bed. He threw himself onto the empty side, curling up next to Nayuta, who looked down at him.

“So?”

Kanata blinked at the ceiling. “I dunno,” he muttered.

Nayuta raised an eyebrow. “Kanata, that’s not—”

“No, I really don’t know!” he insisted, furrowing his brows. He was actually being honest, but it was a terrible answer.

Nayuta hummed, leaning back onto his palms. He couldn’t think of any problems he was aware of. They had money, their songs were doing well, no one was bothering them…he was too tired to rack his brain for more ideas. Glancing over at his brother, he could see the troubled expression on his face.

“Suiseki?” he guessed. 

“No.” Kanata deadpanned.

“Suzaku?” Nayuta quirked a brow.

“Hell no!” Kanata spat, scowling at the mention of his name.

“Hmm…” This time, Nayuta spoke softer. “Is it a girl?”

“Huh?!” Kanata sat up quickly, shooting a glare in his brother’s direction. “Nayuta, are you—”

The other boy started laughing, and Kanata could feel his face get hot. “Why are you laughing?! Don’t be stupid!” More importantly, why was he embarrassed?! It wasn’t like he was right!

Nayuta, though, was pretty convinced he was right; his face broke into a sly grin. “So you’re all mopey and moody over a girl?” he teased. “Gross.” He fell back into his pillows.

But really, he was more surprised than anything. While he supposed it would have happened eventually, it still caught him off guard. After all, they had been together this whole time; just the two of them, alone, for nineteen years, and things like this were…never part of the equation, really. But, he only wanted Kanata to be happy, and while it was difficult to really come to terms with, he still wanted to support him and see his world get a little bigger. More colorful. Not to mention, it was about time there was someone to take care of him for once, even if he acted like he didn’t need someone like that.

Kanata couldn’t believe him. There was no way some stupid girl had anything to do with this. Kanata never cared about girls. “Nayuta!” he protested. “That isn’t funny! Of course it’s not about her!”

“Hmm?” Nayuta fixed his gaze on Kanata. “Her? I didn’t mention anyone…who are you talking about?” he asked, clearly amused now to see that he was getting a rise out of his brother. Honesty wasn’t really Kanata’s strong suit.

Kanata growled, putting his palms to his face. This made no sense, and it was stupid, and he was tired of being grilled. “I’m going to bed!” he huffed, lying down, grabbing the blanket, and pulling it to his chin.

“Sure,” Nayuta wriggled under the blankets alongside Kanata. “Goodnight~” he mumbled, closing his eyes the moment he rested his head back into the pillows. Sleep came rather quickly for him. Kanata, on the other hand…

He lay there on his side, eyes still wide open, staring at the floor. His heart had been pounding and his stomach was twisted in knots from what had just happened—he’d never felt anything like this before, but it felt gross. Still, he couldn’t just shake off the slip-up he had made.

“Her? I didn’t mention anyone…who are you talking about?”

Your face had come to mind right away, goofy airheaded smile and all, and his heart squeezed. He never really believed in love, save for the fraternal kind. Friendship, parental love, romantic love…he had never received any of that, nor did he ever need it. Why would he want it? Especially now, and from you, no less.

Because, the voice reminded him, you were kind, and gentle, and warm, and maybe he noticed the curl of your lips when you smiled after he spoke to you, and maybe he kind of liked it, and maybe there was a softness behind it that he had always wished to be shown.

Kanata tossed under the covers, picking up and mashing his pillow against his face, feeling a new rush of heat in his cheeks, his chest, to the tips of his fingers. “Damn it…!” he whispered petulantly. Why this? Why him, and why you? His mind raced with questions and thoughts faster than he could card through them and rationalize any of it. This was the kind of lame shit that happened in movies; the scenes that he would skip, or that would make him zone out. He was exasperated with himself. This had to be something else.

But maybe it’s not, the pest in his head argued. Maybe Nayuta had a point, and he was just immature and in denial because he didn’t know how to handle his own feelings. After all, how many times had he walked the same route in the last few weeks that would lead him to the storefront you worked at when he took walks while Nayuta was hanging out with Shiki? How many times had he peered through the window or over the counter before looking at anything on the menu or in the display case? How many of those times had he told himself it was because Nayuta had really liked the desserts there and he wanted to get him sweets to have after dinner when he came home? Why else was he willing to stomach the cloyingly sweet smell of icing and fresh berries? There was no hiding behind Nayuta this time.

Kanata was squeezing his eyes shut as if that would make him fall asleep any quicker, but it definitely wasn’t working, because instead of pitch black, he could see a shy smile, sparkling eyes—yours—burned onto the backs of his eyelids. His heart thrummed against his ribcage, remembering the way you had parroted his own name back to him after finally asking for it the fourth time he had come around. He hadn’t even thought twice about telling you.

“Yatonokami…-san.” Something about the way it rolled off your tongue was pleasant—comfortable, even. “I’ll be sure to remember!”

Loathe as he was to admit it, maybe that made him happy. Tossing the pillow away from his face, he rolled onto his back and opened his eyes, staring up at the ceiling. The sun had begun to rise, and there was a sliver of bright white light against the dull paint. He was giving in.

It was who-knew-what time, and Kanata Yatonokami was still awake, and now, he was pretty sure he liked you.

[lokigodofaces]

studying political science means every day i go online and see people spouting off nonsense and people believing them

[another-mexico-oc]

APH Latin America Week @aph-latam-events

June 8th - History

Hi guys! Today I share with you what I made for the Hetalia Latin America Week. I´m not sure if I will manage to complete the event, since I´m working on the answers of our askbox, and other things on my schedule. But this is what I have at the moment :)

History of Mexico (from 1325 to 1945)

Mexico has a lot to talk about. Of course there is a lot of historical events and interesting facts, but I´m going to summarize some of the most important events: 

1325-1521: The aztecs founded Tenochtitlán, in what is now the center of Mexico City. They became a powerful civilization, conquering and subduing various cities and villages. That is until 1521, when the Spanish conquerors arrived to the city and with the help of the aztecs´ enemies, and the disease they carried on (this is historically true, smallpox was a big factor for the defeat of the Aztec Empire), the city and the civilization came to an end, and the start of a new era.

1521-1810: The Viceroyalty of New Spain. It covered not just Mexico, but also the Caribbean, some islands from Asia (cough cough, Philippines...), Central America, and temporaly some regions of North America (all way up to Canada) and South America. It was also the moment in which Catholicism arrived to the continent. For natives it was like “either you convert into catholic, or you can work as an slave”. Cultures and races started to mix, but still, only spaniards could access to the highest positions. This was just a small spark of what came next...

1810-1821: Mexican Independence. France invades Spain, and spanish colonies are not happy with the new regime. In fact, the first leaders of the mexican rebellion supported the King of Spain, Ferdinand VII, but as the war of independence went on, and influenced by the liberal USA and French revolutions, they were like “You know, we don´t need Spain anymore, we can take care of ourselves”. It was a tough conflict, and for a moment it seemed they were not going to make it. But finally, on September 27th 1821, the war was over and the next day the independence was proclaimed.

1821-1823: First Mexican Empire. Mexico's first government was a monarchy, but the people did not like it, so it did not last long. At this time, the other territories that were part of New Spain declare independence from Mexico. 

1838-1839: First French intervention. Spain was outside the map, so it was France big chance to take control of the former colonies. In Mexico it is well known the “Pastry War”, because the invented excuse for France to invade Mexico was: unpaid cakes! There was a trade block until England arrived to put an stop to this. 

1846- 1848: Mexican-American War. Sigh. The beginning of a beautiful and toxic relationship. Everything started with the USA big expansion, the independence of Texas from Mexico, USA annexed Texas, Mexico didn´t like that and both declare war, and in the end Mexico loses almost half of its original territory. 

1862: Battle of Puebla. It seems Mexico can´t have a break, isn´t it? If the wars with Spain, France and USA weren´t enough, there was a inner conflict and disagreement between two groups. One group wanted Mexico to be like USA, the other want wanted Mexico to be like the Europeans monarchies. The latter group asked for loans from Spain, England and France in order to finance their campaign. Then president Juarez proclaim Mexico was not going to pay the debt, and Spain, England and France were like “We´ll see about that”. So they arrived to Mexico, but before things got heavy, Mexico convinced Spain and England that they would pay them later. But France was another case, and he saw ANOTHER big chance to take control of Mexico. Battle of Puebla, on May 5th 1962, was a temporal victory for Mexico, until...

1864- 1867: Second Mexican Empire. In the end France managed to invade Mexico, and president Juarez had to escape north. Meanwhile, France send an Austrian prince (Maximilian I) and his wife to be the new rulers of Mexico. But soon enough, France and the conservative elite turned its back on the new mexican emperor. In the end, Maximilian I was captured and executed. And it´s kind of sad because he and his wife really loved Mexico, and they were going to respect the culture and history of the country. And interesting fact: President Juarez was about to sold another part of Mexico to the USA, so they could help them to overthrow the Austrian emperor, but luckily this never happened because USA was busy with their civil war. 

1876-1911: Porfiriato. Mexico is ruled for more of thirty years by Porfirio Diaz. At first things were fine, but then he became a dictador. You can see that during this period, there was again a lot of european influence. Yes! Big Brother France is back! Also, the military uniform was inspired by the prussian one. Anyway, the discomfort of the people caused by this dictatorship lead to ...

1910-1924: Mexican Revolution. Again, a lot of inner conflicts, several groups fighting for power and overthrowing each other. Think of it as the mexican version of Game of Thrones. Another interesting fact, during this period, WW1 had begun and Germany send a telegram to Mexico, asking them to join their side, to distract USA and promising that if they won, Mexico was going to regain its former territories. But Mexico was already in its own war, and they knew they couldn´t win against USA, so Mexico was like “Thanks but no.”

1944-1945: Mexico in WW2. Mexico role in WW2 is very small compared to the other nations, but along with Brazil, they were the only two Latin American countries which sent soldiers to the war. Additionally, USA and Mexico got along better, after years of resentment. Oh, this two frenemies...

I wish I could had shared more historical events, and showing up Mexico in more outfits, but this is all I can give you at the moment. If you want more information and facts about my Mexico OC, I invite you to follow this blog, and to send your asks. Bye!

[sex-lies-and-boiled-milk]

On Carriages and Gigs of Gentleman Jack and Anne Lister's Diaries

I started reading about gigs because I wanted to find out which gig Anne used when she travelled to the Lake District in 1824. This nonchalant question I've asked myself led me into a week long reading and transcribing pages from the diary that talk about Anne in York in autumn of 1821 buying that gig. (My wife did this generously for me, thank you). After I did find this out, I've asked myself what do we know so far about the other means of transport in Anne's time. Travelling was such an important part of Anne's life, and not just travelling abroad or long-distance travelling, but her often excursions to York by Highflyer or going to Langton by coach or in someone's carriage or taking a ride in the gig to Halifax or when she is in Langton with Tib. In one of the ALBW interviews we heard about how they filmed the scene with the Highflyer arriving to Halifax, or how Lister chaise was filmed in the air when being taken off the ship when reaching Copenhagen. But the topic of carriages and gigs certainly deserves more attention. The number of different models and types of carriages and gigs that are shown in the show is just amazing. Thank you Dorjana Širola for all the transcriptions. Thank you wikipedia and many websites for data and information. Thank you BBC for snapshots from the show.

Stagecoach

A stagecoach was a heavy and spacious horse-drawn carriage on 4 wheels pulled by 4 horses or mules. It could carry up to 20 passengers, some inside, some on the top of the carriage. Coachman was in charge of driving the coach or a carriage, having the control of the horses from an independent seat. He would usually be accompanied by a footman whose concern would be the passengers and transported goods. This was a public service coach meaning passengers would pay for the transport as well as for transport of their packages or letters. There was a net of posting stations scattered around the country where tired horses would be exchanged for fresh ones.

This one at the beginning of episode 1 must be the Highflyer, a type of stagecoach, that connected Halifax with other towns.

Coaching inn

When people travelled in their own carriages or gigs, they would be accomodated in coaching inns. Coaching inns provided stables and food for horses but also accomodation for travellers for the night. Those that survived to today simply became regular inns or pubs, of course without stables provided (but it's fun tracking down the old buildings and finding remains of prior structures). Read here just about how much traffic jams involving this type of transport were regular back in the day: http://www.wickedwilliam.com/principal-departure-coaching-inns-1819/ 

Cary’s New Itinerary

Travellers who travelled on their own were equipped with useful reference books on the road telling them where exactly they could find coaching inns and posting stations. The reference work of the time was Cary's New Itinerary, first published in 1798, on all the roads in England and distances between towns, and contained the “list of all Inns that supply post Horses and Carriages”. Anne used this while touring the Lake District in 1824. 

photo credits: lakesguides.co.uk

The Lister chaise

Listers owned the Lister chaise, built in 1725, one of the oldest preserved carriages in the world. You can see it in the stables of Shibden Hall, if you already haven't. We see it in episode 1.

Interestingly enough this carriage doesn't fit the description of a chaise at all which is a 2 wheel light carriage for 1 person, with a folding hood or a calash top. Instead it better fits to a description of a post chaise: it had a closed body on four wheels, sat two to four persons, and was drawn by two or four horses. A postilion would ride on one of the horses that pull the carriage. It seems to me that post-chaise became the term to mean public travelling carriages that would change horses at post-stations, and that's why Lister chaise is a chaise, and not a post-chaise.

The real Lister chaise

The Lister chaise looks a bit different than this one shown in the show. "The green and gold appears to be the original colours, although at some point it was painted grey, before being restored and returned to its original colours in the 1950s" says Calderdale Council's brochure on Shibden Hall. The one in the show is simply rejuvenated, together with the colours but the model is the same. Here is the photo of the real Lister chaise. Credits Shibden Hall ...

Anne bought a gig!

In the autumn of 1821 Anne went to York to buy a gig from the famous York coachmakers Breary's. She bought a second-hand one, probably a model of Stanhope gig for £65.2.0 which in today's money is £3.738.72. https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/currency-converter/#currency-result

Tuesday 23 October 1821

…Mr. Duffin and I… went to Breary’s to look at the 2nd hand gig with a top to it – afterwards took Dr. Belcombe and Anne to see it, and I think I have determined to take it…

Friday 26 October 1821

…Ord[ere]d the gig at Breary’s – Handsome brass harness (evidently only used 3 or 4 times) and lamps to the gig, all together to £48…

Tuesday 30 October 1821

…Letter also from Isabella Norcliffe (Langton) – John Coates (the head-groom) strongly advises me not to have the yellow gig, but the green one, which will cost £15 more – at 2, went to Breary’s to /sic/ look at it again, and intend to follow John’s advice…

Wednesday 31 October 1821

…Eli Belcombe… went with me to Breary’s where I ordered the green gig, with lamps and harness and all complete six[t]y guineas…

Wednesday 19 December 1821

Had the new gig from Breary’s, and George and I drove from the Dr. Belcombe’s door at 11 ½ - the mare a little awkvard at 1st, and I had not driven an hundred yards before I ran against the wheel of a cart – however we came along very well afterwards – I drove the whole way, and we got here (Lowgrange) in 3 ¼ hours, 19 miles…

Monday 24 December 1821

…Mariana and I went out together at 2 – went to Breary’s – I ordered lamps to my gig, and paid him for the gig and all its appurtenances £65.2.0…

Transcription credits: Dorjana Širola

A gig is a light two-wheel cart for 2 people drawn by one horse. We know her gig was green, she bought lamps to be added on and it had a top that could be pulled out in case of rain. In this gig she travelled to the Lake District in 1824 with her aunt. Caradoc, her horse, pulled the gig and George Playforth rode on a hack-horse. As a breed Hack-horse was a type of horse that could have been used for riding but also pulling carriages or gigs. Since there is no gig in the stables of Shibden Hall, I consider Anne's gig to be lost.

photo credits: CMA Archives

http://users.vermontel.net/~greenall/Rabers/Stanhope_Gig_R100.html

Anne’s gig was Stanhope gig !!

This is a photo of Stanhope gig, the exact model I think Anne bought. Notice the top that can be pulled in or out in the case of rain, also the visible space for luggage under the seat.

Just like carriages, gigs were considered to be status statements and subject to changing fashions. As well as there was a high number of different types of carriages available, the same applied to gigs.

The Stanhope was a lightweight gig, similar to a phaeton. It had a high seat with a closed back and plenty of storage room for luggage underneath it. The Stanhope gig was a very popular design, first built in 1815 by Tilbury, a London coachbuilder, for the Hon Fitzroy Stanhope.

Photo credits and more photos here : https://www.thecarriagefoundation.org.uk/item/stanhope-gig

The Dennett gig

While she was buying the gig Anne was considering these other types of gigs, which were popular at the time.

The Dennett was also a two-wheeled gig driven by a single horse. It was enclosed at the rear and had room for luggage. Differences between the types of gigs consisted mostly in the number and arrangement of springs applied, and the additional space and equipment provided.

photo credits and more photos here : https://www.carriagelink.com/carriages?id=781528

The Tillbury gig

The Tillbury was a lightweight, two-wheeled, spindled-back seat gig, with no boot and no top. It was designed for short-distance rides around the town.

In Anne's own experience it's really difficult to understand all these types of gigs:  “ ... surely the man at Leeds did not understand the difference between this [Tillbury] and a Dennet – there is a difference in the springs, the former having a cross spring, or more springs in some way or other the (lancer shafts) are more bent at the ends, and the box put under the seat is smaller than in a Dennet … ” (Transcription by Dorjana Širola)

Photo credits : Joseolgon

A Phaeton

A Phaeton is a sporty open carriage, with a minimal body and typically with four extravagantly large wheels. It’s very lightly sprung and has no sidepieces in front of the seats. With open seating, it was considered fast and dangerous. Estate owners would gallop in them showing off. Phaetons can have a folded top as you can see here. If you want to know more: https://www.regencyhistory.net/2019/07/curricles-gigs-and-phaetons-in-regency.html

photo credits: By Museo del Bicentenario - Museo Casa Rosada

Rawson’s gig is a phaeton!

The gig from episode 1 that caused little Henry Hardcastle to lose his leg is actually a phaeton. Open, very fast and dangerous, with minimal space for anything else but the driver.

Mr Priestley’s carriage

Another carriage from the show is Priestley's carriage in which Ann Walker drives away from Shibden Hall after visiting with the Priestleys at the end of episode 1. It's also shown when Mr Ainsworth is leaving from the Priestleys in episode 5.

Mrs Lawton’s carriage

There are many other carriages and gigs in the show. Like this one, that brings Mariana Lawton to Shibden Hall in episode 1. Carriage or a coach is a closed 4-wheeled vehicle pulled by 2-4 horses. Horses are controlled by a coachman who sits in a seat up front raised up high for a good view. For private carriages groom would usually do the duties of the coachman. A coach might have a built-in compartment called a boot, used originally as a seat for the coachman and later for storage. A luggage case for the top of a coach was called an imperial; the top, roof or second-story compartment of a coach was also known as an imperial.

Miss Walker’s carriage

This is Miss Walker's carriage which we see a couple of times through the show. This is the  carriage in which they went to York and back in episode 4 and the carriage which goes all the way to Scotland to take Ann back with James and the Priestleys.

Mrs Stansfield Rawson’s carriage

The carriage in which Mrs Stansfield Rawson and Miss Delia Rawson visit Ann Walker at the beginning of episode 3.

Mr Rawson’s Landau

The type of carriage Christopher Rawson uses to get to work is called Landau. Landau is a type of a four-wheeled carriage with the folding top divided into two sections, front and rear, latched at the center. Both of the sides can be pulled down exposing the passengers to the fine weather. It was designed for transport through towns, enabling passengers clothes to be seen from outside. It was to become a matter of status and luxury to own one of these. Today in some cities Lord Mayors still use them in ceremonial occasions.

Landau with the top down!

Another photo of Landau with dropped top on both sides.

Landaulette

And then we had recently in Brian Moseley's transcriptions: 

“Friday 14 April 1820 Down stairs at 10-1/4 - Mariana and I, went up to Whitewindows to see Mr George Priestley’s carriage horse, (only one as yet bought) and his new dark blue landaulette built by Windus, a great city builder in town [pret?] between 4 and £500, and which, with the Priestley and Lea arms, quartered, and those of Kirkman in an escutcheon of pret[ence?] done au large on each pannel, is a city-like looking concern.”

A landaulet or landaulette carriage is a cut-down (coupé) version of a landau horse-drawn carriage. The landaulette retains the rear half of the landau's two-part folding top.

Photo credits: Piotrus

Fly

Again somewhere I read about another type of transport Anne used (sorry, can't remember where I read it!). Fly was a light horse-drawn public vehicle or a delivery wagon intended to move quickly and reach its destination in a hurry. Really interesting article here: https://brightonmuseums.org.uk/discover/2013/01/17/the-brighton-man-fly/

Lady Stuart’s carriage

The carriage which Anne uses when travelling between Richmond and London when going for Vere's wedding in episode 2.

Mr Sutherland’s carriage

Another travelling carriage, the one that belonged to the Sutherlands in ep 7.

Anne’s yellow carriage

Anne had a carriage as well, which she ocassionally used for her travels. In the show we can see it in episodes 7 when she collects it from the Norcliffe's and stops at York to have a chat with dr Belcombe. Also when she is in London staying with Mariana. She goes to Copenhagen with Miss Ferrall in her carriage as well. Also they filmed Anne(s) in it going to the wedding.

Carriage on booaaaaard!!

Or when she's arriving to Copenhagen, and the carriage is just being taken off the vessel. :) This is an excellent website on Regency types of carriages with good photos if you want to see more: https://regency-explorer.net/a-carriage-enthusiasts-paradise/

Caleche

At the beginning of episode 8, aunt Anne reads Anne's letter sent from Germany: “At Kassel Miss Ferrall and I took a calache and went to visit the Palace d’Hercule … “ The calash was a light carriage with small wheels, a body in the form of a boat and a folding top. Inside, it had seats for four passengers, outside was a separate driver’s seat. The calesh was mainly used for pleasure driving in a park. The caleche was the forerunner of the barouche, a carriage fashionable in the 19th century.

Britzka

Just the other day I read this line in Anne Lister's diary : Sunday 5 October 1834 “saw my father and Marian off in their new Britska-phaeton” (Thank you gentlemanjackthelass on Insta) and, of course, had to google this type of carriage. Also wondering, are we going to see it in Season 2?

The Britzka is a type of opened horse-drawn carriage on 4 wheels pulled by 2 horses. And that’s about it with its similarities with the phaeton. Britzka was a long, spacious carriage with a folding top over the rear seat and a rear-facing front seat. It could be adapted with all manner of conveniences (beds, dressing tables and so on) for the traveller. 

Read here about this and many other types of carriages and gigs: https://www.geriwalton.com/vehicle-titles-origins-descriptions-1700s-1800s-a-c/

[aleximedicusa]

claps hands. i can’t sleep, so am i gonna set down a whole timeline of important events in lewis’ life? yes. it’s only up until 1832 so far, as that’s just as far as i’ve plotted out specific events within the novel, and there’s a bit of a gap between 1829 and 1832 because i still need to figure out notable things that happen then. 

c. 1821.  late summer: lewis moves from pwllheli to london to begin his medical studies. he’s quickly disillusioned by anti-welsh sentiment and the general issues of medical study at this time. he also faces financial difficulties that make him unable to afford the rising prices of anatomical subjects he needs for courses, which leads to him resorting on one occasion to robbing a grave himself and narrowly avoiding arrest. 

1825.  may: lewis attempts the examination for his license from the college of surgeons and fails, due to the subpar education available in london at the time. devastated and humiliated, he plans on spending the rest of the summer throwing himself into further study so he can attempt the exam again as soon as possible, but he ends up overworking himself to illness.  june: seeing how overworked lewis is, his friend john and john’s wife katherine insist that he spend a few months at their country home to convalesce. lewis grudgingly agrees, but as he is not much of an outdoorsman, he ends up spending most of his days inside while john goes off riding and hunting.  july: katherine, in an attempt to get lewis out in the fresh air a bit, suggests that he pay a visit to the local nobleman, a comte peter luminuex d’arces. lewis agrees, not expecting to like the man, but finds that they get along quite well, and he spends the majority of the day with the comte. throughout the rest of the summer, he goes to spend time with peter as often as he can, and he starts getting Complicated Feelings he doesn’t quite know how to address.  september: lewis returns to london, after a heartfelt goodbye with peter. back in london, he meets hippolyte barthélemy, a visiting french surgeon of some renown, and lewis seizes on the chance to get a french anatomist’s perspective on the plight in england regarding dissection. hippolyte takes a liking to lewis and agrees to aid how he can with pushing for laws to change. 

1826. may: lewis passes the examination and can now practice as a surgeon. as soon as possible, he returns to the country to stay with peter for a few months before starting his practice officially.  june: finally, finally, these two idiots confess after a year’s worth of pining, and they officially become lovers.  september: lewis returns to london to begin setting up his practice. he finds himself still frustrated with the lack of access to bodies, as it not only harms the education of students but the further study of established surgeons. he starts testing the waters of becoming a bit more vocal and active in the discussions happening in the medical community. 

1827.  march: lewis decides to spend some time in paris to better understand the way that their system of anatomy laws function. he convinces peter to come with him, as there can hardly be any objection to a welshman bringing along his french-speaking friend to act as a translator and travelling companion.  august: lewis and peter return to england — lewis to london, peter to suffolk. this goodbye is extra painful, since they had a whole five months in paris living together. september: emboldened by his experiences in paris, lewis begins really pushing in earnest with the other members of the medical community to try and bring about legal change. he fully becomes the shouty man we all know and love.  december: peter surprises lewis by showing up in london for christmas. not really an important point, just a nice one.

1828. may: lewis is called upon to give testimony for the select committee on anatomy.  august: lewis and hippolyte (mostly hippolyte) organise some sort of... ball or large social event for both prominent surgeons / physicians / anatomists and members of general high society, in an attempt to drum up support for their cause and bridge the gap of understanding between the public and the medical profession.  november: the burke and hare story breaks in edinburgh. burke and hare, two irish immigrants, are caught for the murder of a woman named margaret docherty, and it later comes to light that they have killed sixteen people to sell to dr. knox. 

1829.  january: lewis goes to edinburgh for the execution of burke. he is horrified and repulsed by what knox and connor have done as anatomists, buying murdered bodies, and he and connor have a fight about that.  february: lewis returns to england and goes to peter’s home. he’s exhausted and upset, having endured mobs, infuriated by the burke and hare case, shouting at and even attacking the anatomists. 

1830.  month unknown: lewis ‘proposes’ to peter. although they can’t marry officially and can’t wear rings when someone could see them, they agree to consider each other husbands. 

1832.  august: the anatomy act finally passes. 

[alatismeni-theitsa]

One thing I love about your account is that you challenge all of what I thought being Greek meant. Like growing up, I always felt bad about myself because my skin was pale, and I was always told all Greeks have olive skin. I never liked my nose because I felt it didn’t look like what the media portrays Greek noses to look. Like even looking at my mom and papou’s noses, I just have a different one. I’ve always just been insecure, feeling like I could never look Greek enough.

Ya su! :D Big answer incoming, brace yourselves! 

From your question I understand you are a Greek of diaspora and your mother was a second generation Greek immigrant. I have received plenty of messages here from Greeks of diaspora who have told me “I am pale/I have blue eyes/I am blond and I don’t feel like a Greek!” Really, I should make a tag! It’s so strange how foreigners make us feel like we don’t belong in our own ethnicity! North Europeans and Americans make even us, who live in Greece feel like our heritage doesn’t belong to us! “You can’t possibly be the same!” they say. No, we are not the same. However we come from a long continuous line of people who tought the Greek heritage to their children for centuries. We speak the same language, we have many same traditions, we get inspired by the same nature. The antiquity doesn’t exist in a vacuum and it never stopped being a part of us. 

That’s why I encourage proper representation of Greeks, especially on American media, so false images stop being circulating. It’s not exactly racist what’s happening but it has resulted in many Greeks straight up being told “you don’t even look Greek, why you speak on Greek issues?” That enrages me EVERY.FUCKING.TIME.

Because to tell you the truth, Greeks couldn’t be further from the stereotype  “dark olive skin with curly black hair”! The majority, especially in the north, is pale, many times with big weird ass noses. 99% of us look white with the first guess. Of course there are some occasions where the stereotype is true (I don’t pretend there are no darker Greeks!) but those are rare. An American friend once saw a documentary about modern Athens and she was very surprised about how white we looked and asked herself “is this Germany??”

Even in the ancient art all over Greece we see pale/white people all over the place. I have been to museums all over the country and always seen them (where the colors are preserved) and I have posted some in my tag #ancient greek art as well. The Americans go “oh, those are fake because Greeks idolized white skin”. Sure, Jan, all Greeks all over the country made art with Caucasian white people because they were all in a secret white supremacy pact. Of course figures are beautified sometimes but it’s crazy to assume Greeks did everything in their power not to depict their own people accurately. I have this post (link) where I discuss that ancient Greeks weren’t that different from us today, with sources of studies showing our DNA hasn’t changed much. It’s to debunk the “ancient Greeks were darker than the modern ones”, which is used to depict our ancient gods and people very dark in modern art.

Foreigners also focus on the mixes with other people Greeks had in order to justify how we are dark. “But they are close to Africa sooo...” No. This argument doesn’t make much sense and people who use it know jack shit about our history and demographics and don’t have any common sense. It’s true though that mixes have played a part in our history and our appearance so it’s good to speak about those.

Greeks in the North (Athens and up) have mostly been mixing with Slavs and Germanic people because it’s easier for us to go to each other’s country by foot, and we just are close to each other. Plus, the history of the Balkans is very interesting and full of mixes and immigration! We also have mixed (I don’t know to what extent) with the Turks, who are Mongolic in nature and come north of Greece as well.   

People from the Peloponnise can be darker but still they look hella white (as I was told by Peloponnisian friends and as I have noticed myself). People in the south islands are more likely to have some Arab DNA but generally no one has observed that they look different than the rest of Greeks. (I haven’t seen it or heard it ever in my life. Other Greeks, correct me if I am wrong). You can’t tell which person comes from just by looking at them. 

Your struggle is understandable and I would like to give some suggestions to overcome it and be more comfortable in your own heritage. Perhaps you do some of these things anyway but there is no harm in listing them!

1) Search historically important Greeks and see their portraits. Seriously, do it! You may find yourself looking a little bit like them. You will surely have one thing common with them since they are usually pale :P Sometimes they may have non Greek names (Karlota, Suzanna, Emilia) but it was a trend for the rich families of the 19th century to give such names to children. I mean if you find a non-Greek name investigate if they are Greek or not because they actually might be. In my tag #Greek people you will find photos and portraits of Greeks from old times!

2) Read the history of Greece. All of it, not just from 300 BC to 100 AC as most foreigners do. Preferably, find works that have someone Greek as a writer or supervisor (because Greeks usually try to depict accuratelly what happened), or writers who truly feel Greece, like Richard Clogg. Read about Greek old allies and old enemies, about who we trade with, about where we immigrated, where we went to study to see what are the most likely mixes. Obviously, every kind of mix can happen but for numbers that matter you got to know the historical trends. It’s gonna be a journey that will help you feel your Greek side more and have answers ready when someone claims you don’t look Greek.   

3) Learn more Greek. The Greek language is logical but also stupid and funny, expressing the spirit of the people who made it. Learning Greek means learning how Greeks think. We have 20+ weird phrases to playfully say someone is gay, like “he flogs the dolphin”, “he shakes the pear tree” etc. We have phrases that stem from war and pirate raids and... hating the Turks, our colonizers :P We have many Mediterranean expressions like calling a mole “olive” or saying “I am in an open sea” (”πελάγωσα”) when we feel lost, or saying “he pressed my oil out” when someone tires us. I am very passionate about Greek so you can message me any time with any question about it! 

4) Learn where your family comes from. I mean the exact place/town, the geographical compartment. Learn the specific dances and traditional costume of that area from youtube videos or a Greek community in your area! See if the people in your area were great warriors, great merchants, great wine producers. See if there are any Greek heroes of the 1821 revolution coming from your place! Learn the song “Πώς το τρίβουν το πιπέρι” and the weird ass dance that comes with it, which Greek archeologists didn’t even hesitate to dance in a Mycenaic tomb!

5) Meet more Greeks! Through groups on insta or fb, through Tumblr blogs etc. Watch youtubers of Greek diaspora as “Greek in Town” or the comedian Basile! Maybe there is one Greek community near you area and you can pay a visit for festivals! 

6) Cook Greek food. If your grandparents and mum know recipes, take them as if they are gold. It’s a great way to get familiar with the local Greek ingredients and the Greek palette. Replace your soul with feta if you can xD 

7) Read Greek modern literature, even translated. Elitis, Sahtouris, Seferis, Venezis, Papadiamantis, Mirivilis, Delta, Empirikos, Zei, Kazantzakis are only a few of the literary gems Greeks have to offer. Enjoy good writing, the Greek perspective, and get to know the newer Greek society in a unique and authentic way. Here is a list with more of them (link).

8) Be proud. Be proud of a people who endured earthquakes, wars, genocide, famine, occypation, slaughters and slavery and can still stand. In every anniversary of ww1, ww2 and grecoturkic war, in our schools we sing prideful songs and hang posters with our war heroes, always standing proud. The students and the army parade in the streets, the small childrean wearing traditional costumes. Being proud is one key element of being Greek. 

Of course I don’t mean in a nationalistic/facist tone! We also celebrate the fall of the Greek junta of 1967 - which was financed by the US - and we are proud for it! And we fought German nazis. So no such ideology is welcome. Because we have so many things to be proud of (such long history!) foreigners equate our pride with nationalism. That is not the case for a healthy Greek mind who knows Greek history.

Ok, that’s all! Thank you for making it this far and reading what I had to say! I wish you a great cultural journey and I remind you that my DMs and Asks are open if you ever need anything! 

[cannibalmutual]

i need the links for these fics ur talking about please and thank you

a mini rec list of my favorites so far! the first two are my Ultimate favorites tho, the first being the one i referenced as being love and the second is the one i referred to as heartbreak. all end happily, and are rather happy (except the second. ends happy tho. mostly)

Inevitable, unavoidable by Lilian

""Can I touch you?”

“Please, go ahead,” Crowley croaks, wondering if this will be something he will have to provide an explanation to Aziraphale later when he remembers. Or if it will be something they’ll simply never, ever mention again. He might die, in that case. Although he might just die now, too, when the angel raises his index finger and follows the shape of Crowley’s eyebrows reverently."

Or: Aziraphale gets amnesia and thinks Crowley is his husband when he sees him.

1/1 chapters, rated g, 3843 words

and, so on by PaintedVanilla

Crowley doesn’t remember heaven, but Aziraphale remembers him.

1/1 chapters, rated m, 8969 words

Build Our Kingdom by Mackem

“Ready for lunch?” Crowley drops to his knees to start unbuckling the straps on the basket as though this is something they do all the time; as though he hasn’t just effortlessly catapulted Aziraphale back in time almost fifty years.

“You remembered,” Aziraphale breathes as wonder courses through him. He mentioned something once during an awkward moment, half a century ago, and now here kneels a demon atop a picnic blanket.

“Hmm?” Crowley barely shoots him a sidelong glance as he concentrates on opening the basket.

Aziraphale’s eyes do not move from him. “You remembered,” he repeats, no less stunned. “Crowley, you really didn’t have to.”

Crowley’s hands still. Eventually, his eyes still on the basket, he murmurs, “Well, we did The Ritz, didn’t we?”

1/1 chapters, rated g, 9355 words

i just happen to like apples (i am not afraid of snakes) by gyzym

Written for the following prompt: "Someone write me Crowley the bitter lesbian who only gave Eve the apple because she thought feminism should be there from day one." As such, please be warned that this story contains some fairly radical reinterpretations of Biblical stories and themes; if that sort of thing is not for you, please give this tale a pass.

1/1 chapters, not rated, 1821 words

all i need, darling, is a life in your shape by deadgreeks

After everything, Aziraphale and Crowley, by unspoken agreement, begin sharing their lives.

---

Why? Aziraphale wanted to ask him, why millennia of the way things were, and now this?

But while Crowley seemed to have little issue upending every unspoken rule they’d ever written for themselves, Aziraphale was not so flexible, and they had spent thousands of years never quite addressing whatever it was this had stemmed from. Words, Aziraphale had always felt, were for bickering about where to eat for lunch, or hashing out ontological debates, or other trivial nonsense; there was no need to trifle with the imprecision of language, with phrasing and the possibility of being misconstrued, when it came to important matters if the other person simply understood, without needing it said. Six thousand years ago, when Aziraphale had met Crowley on the wall of Eden, watching the first two humans set out to begin the rest of history, something deep within him, more central even than his Grace, had thought, oh, it’s you, and that had been enough for him--for both of them, he assumed--for three millennia.

However much he wanted to ask, he didn’t know how. The words simply weren’t there.

1/1 chapters, rated g, 14244 words

[brewerlinda1995]

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[sleepwalkcollective]

A DOMESTICA BIBLIOGRAPHY

A few weeks ago our friend Nohar asked us, jokingly, if we could provide a bibliography for Domestica, and now that we're just a few weeks away from our shows at Battersea Arts Centre in London (May 23rd-26th) we figured...why the hell not. So here it is. This is actually slightly funny (and tricky) to write, partly because we made the show over such a long period of time (2011-2016) that we've lost track of quite a lot of where the material came from (and what, if anything, it might have been in reference to), and partly just because of the way in which we decided that the work would reference other artworks. From the very beginning of the process we were clear that our interest was not so much in the artworks themselves as it was in our collective memory and sense of them, the kinds of images and ideas that immediately spring to mind - more or less universally, we hope - when we talk about "classical art". Consequently the material draws almost entirely from works that we already knew, and could remember (at least in part), and which felt like they would be broadly familiar to an audience.

Some of the show was informed by visits to the Prado museum in Madrid, although we were more influenced I think by a general sense of the artworks there when seen en masse -  the kind of recurrent tropes and atmospheres - than by individual works themselves. And except maybe for a couple of cases we deliberately didn't go back and look at any of the artworks, and avoided concrete research as such.

Crucially, you don't need to get any of the references in order to get the show, and as long as you have a dim sense of what classical art is and does - and the space it occupies in our collective culture and memory - that should be more than enough.

For the curious though, what follows is a list of all of the specific references in the show that we can remember, arranged in the order that they appear; as a list it's not really spoiler-y, I don't think, but if you don't wanna know anything at all before you see the show you might want to give the rest of this blog a miss :)

- The First Panel doesn't refer explicitly to anything, although the show's opening text does make (oblique, mostly for-our-own-amusement) reference to both the First Communique from the Weather Underground (which I'm kind of obsessed with), and to Alien³. The date given for this panel is the present day (ie. it's currently set as 2018), and we'll continue to update that for as long as we continue to perform the show.

- The Second Panel references, at length, Boticelli's Birth Of Venus, one of few paintings we suspected would be universally-familiar enough that we could talk about it in some detail without having to explain what we were describing. The panel also then includes a rush of references that are mostly non-specific - this material was built around a generic list we made of the kinds of things you find in classical art - although I'm pretty sure Ibsen's Hedda Gabler is in the somewhere, as is Penelope from Homer's Odyssey (she'll be back again later in the show...). Towards the end of the panel there's a clear and obvious reference to Bosch's Garden of Earthly Delights, another painting we imagined might be familiar to most. The date given for this panel is 1485, the approximate year in which the Birth Of Venus was painted.

- The Third Panel directly references Chekhov's Three Sisters (which we love, and to which we returned when making Khloé Kardashian in 2017), although really it's more in reference to a kind of generic Chekhov/Ibsen/Strindberg kind of mushed-together naturalistic drama (I'm sure you know what I mean here...), and actually I think I was mostly going off some dim memories of Tolstoy's Anna Karenina for some of the references in the text. The date given for this panel is 1896, the year Chekov's The Seagull was first performed; we could have put the year that Three Sisters premiered - 1901 - but wanted to keep all of the historical dates pre-20th century.

- Despite appearances, the Fourth Panel actually refers to nothing much in particular, beyond a vague memory of the kinds of things that appear in pastoral scenes (we may have been picturing Rubens here for some of the details(?), although I suspect I may be adding this retroactively...). Undoubtably we were thinking of Disney's Fantasia as well when working on this section. The date given for this panel is 1821, the year Constable painted The Hay Wain, a more or less arbitrary choice.

- The Fifth Panel refers explicitly to Mozart's Don Giovanni, and even nods to a couple of lines from the libretto - this is one of only a couple of cases where we allowed ourselves a more obscure reference for the sake of a good line - and is generally informed, for some of it's details, by visits to cathedrals across Spain. There are nods here also to a half-remembered, GCSE-level knowledge of Greek Drama, and to images of severed heads in paintings (possibly we were picturing Caravagio's Salome with the Head of Saint John the Baptist specifically), and the Incongruous Nude is likely taken from Botticelli's Calumny of Apelles. Aesthetically, this scene (as with much of the show, actually) was obliquely informed by Val del Omar's Fuego en Castilla. The date given for this panel is 1652, the year Bernini completed the Ecstasy of Saint Teresa, which is later referenced directly in the Seventh Panel (see below).

- The Sixth Panel doesn't refer to anything in particular, I don't think. The date given for this panel, 2012, is the year in which we wrote the initial version of this text.

- The big text in the Seventh Panel includes rapid-fire references to the Minotaur, Ophelia from Hamlet, Odysseus and Penelope from Homer's Odyssey, Samson and Delilah, and Bernini's Ecstasy of Saint Teresa (this latter is actually worth looking up if you're not familiar with it, not least because it's gorgeous...). Aesthetically there's a Felini influence in there somewhere as well if I remember right. The date given for this panel is back in the present day.

Beyond those concrete references there's also a couple of buried threads, remnants from early versions of the show which didn't make it into the finished version - like the Patty Hearst kidnap tapes (another obsession during the early residencies), and Ivan Pavlov's experiments in Classical Conditioning - which are more or less invisible in the show now, but you might catch an occasional echo, and some of this early material is included in the Domestica book that's coming in May.

There were also of course a number of more general influences on the work: both form and content were informed by The Fold by Deleuze and Visual Culture by Richard Howells and Joaquim Negreiros, to give just two examples; the costume design by Ana Inés Jabares Pita was influenced by the work of Francisco de Zurbarán; and Alice Saville's excellent write up of the show for Exeunt - which you can read HERE - correctly picked up on a relationship with Mallory Ortberg's work for The Toast, which we came across part way through making the show and have a lot of love for, although the influence was more general and tonal than specific.

And finally, a last note which feels important-ish: in the last couple of days of finishing the show in 2016 we stumbled across Audrey Wollen's Sad Girl Theory and wished we'd discovered it sooner, as it feels like it articulates a bunch of ideas that crossover with what we were doing or thought we were doing, and so although the discovery came too late to influence Domestica it still hangs ghostlike over just about everything else we're now working on...

And that's about everything we remember, although there may be more; if you wanna check any of these, the full Domestica performance text will be published by Oberon Books on May 1st.

Sammy (2018)

Domestica photo by Alex Brenner

PS. relatedly, we've written a big list of 100 things that have influenced our work between 2006-2016 - including the period in which we were working on Domestica - which you can read over HERE.

[libralita]

Death Note Part 2

Writer: Tsugumi Ohba

Illustrator: Takeshi Obata

Summary: Light Yagami is an ace student with great prospects—and he's bored out of his mind. But all that changes when he finds the Death Note, a notebook dropped by a rogue Shinigami death god. Any human whose name is written in the notebook dies, and now Light has vowed to use the power of the Death Note to rid the world of evil. But when criminals begin dropping dead, the authorities send the legendary detective L to track down the killer. With L hot on his heels, will Light lose sight of his noble goal…or his life?

Rating: ★★★★☆

Part 1

Review:

I really enjoyed this series. It was so engaging and thought provoking. There was one part that bored me to tears and I kind of hated but other than that it was near perfect.

I’ve broken up my notes into parts because I read the giant 2400 bind up so it would be too long to do one post.

Hearing Light’s explanation for what he did makes me even more annoyed with the business executive plots. Light is so smart that he could figure out what he would do without his memories and what someone like Higuchi would do. That’s so awesome! Now why would I want to read 17 chapters full of these stupid business executives? There were way too many to care about or even remember their names. They weren’t as smart or cool or interesting as Light and L. Light and L figure out it’s the eight so quickly. They were pathetic antagonists.

“No matter what world, the god of that world creates the rules. You will be defeated by the fake rules I have created, and die for the sin of defying me.”—Page 1228

Did Light become crazier?

Ugh! Misa can’t remember L’s real name! I mean…I’m glad L isn’t dead but still.

“Ryuk: Sorry but… Misa: Huh? *Ryuk drops Misa* Ryuk: I’m male, I’m shy when it comes to girls.”—Page 1249

How weird.

“Even if she can’t remember the name…Misa will make the eye trade with Ryuk so she can help me…that trade will come in handy immediately!”—Page 1254

Jesus Christ, Light.

“So it was all part of his plan.”—Page 1257

Ryuk knows what a crazy SOB Light is.

“Light: The Kira case hasn’t been solved yet. I’m in no mood for love at the moment.”—Page 1264

Bit of a contradiction, Light. A while ago you said you fell in love with Misa.

Is everyone just sitting in absolute silence while Rem, L and Light are figuring this shit out?

WAIT WATARI! NO! HE WAS SUCH A BAD ASS!

NO NO NO L IS NOT DEAD! I SWEAR TO GOD!

20 days, 18 hours, 31 minutes and 30 seconds? Until what? L what did you plan?

Alright so looks like this Near kid is probably going to be a candidate for L and there’s this old guy who knows about the count down.

So now Light is Kira and L. What a strange turn of events.

“Ryuk: Then I can’t expect much more fun…”—Page 1316

Ryuk, we still have 1084 pages to go. I’m sure there will be plenty of fun!

“L is dead.”—Page 1321

No! I will stay in my bubble of denial FOREVER!

“January 10th 2005. Mary Kenwood, the second Kenwood daughter, dies in a motorcycle accident in Colorado, USA. April 7th, 2005. With his family at his side Thierry Morello succumbs to liver cancer in a hospital in Paris, France. Mary Kenwood and Thiery Morello, along with their alter egos, Wed and Aiber, are vanquished to the darkness.”—Page 1325

Okay then? Wait…did they die?

Holy shit, the business executives all die of heart attacks.

Alright, let’s see if Near can fill the L-shaped void in my heart.

Interesting so now the FBI, CIA and Near are going to try and track down Kira without L.

Stop. There’s a CIA agent called “Ratt”. Stop it.

Please tell me Light is using 4chan to kill people, they would be hilarious. Also, Light, might I introduce you to the concept of Fake News.

Ah, the NPA director has been kidnapped by a crazy chick.

“No matter what I have to do I will get it before Near…”—Page 1355

So we meet Mello, who at first I thought was a girl but is apparently a boy. And he grew up with Near in the orphanage and they were in competition to become the next L. Mello was always in Near’s shadow so now Mello is going to do anything to defeat Kira and Near. Which includes kidnapping and getting the Death Note that the Japanese police have.

So Watari ran this orphanage that was some sort of training facility for future L’s. Which means that Watari was some sort of father figure to L…which means my heart hurts.

This is actually a really interesting plot line. We have this weird sibling dynamic. It’s another cat and mouse game now that L is gone.

“Mello: I want Kira’s head and I’ll kill anyone who gets in my way. I’ll be number one.”—Page 1370

Huh, maybe training children to become these obsessive detectives is a bad thing.

It’s time for Near and Light to meet.

“L number 2, nice to meet you.”—Page 1413

Oh shit.

L M N, we need all the letters of the alphabet! Also, it’s a good thing that Light’s name also begins with an L.

“The original L gave his life and proved to the world that a mass murderer named Kira is lurking somewhere in Japan. He was even able to find out what Kira was using to do those killings. But even though you’ve taken over L’s place, you’ve done nothing. Not only that, I think Kira’s public approval has even increased because of you.”—Page 1478

Oh shit, Near is throwing shade!

Again, I think creating a school to create super genius detectives is probably not the greatest idea in the world.

“Touta Matsuda One of the men who work under me. But he’s completely useless.”—Page 1499

Aw, Matsuda, that’s so sweet.

Wow, Light got the President to play right into his trap.

“Near, I’ve pretended to be brainless but L is still the greatest detective in the world! And Mello, let me show you who is going to change the world with the Death Note—Kira!”—Page 1531

Light, you’re so crazy.

“I can do this…there are no disadvantages for me.”—Page 1542

What could possibly go wrong?

“Misa: Light, I’ve been a great help, haven’t I? Light: Yeah, I love you, Misa. Ryuk: Hyuk. Is that the face of someone saying ‘I love you’…?”—Page 1547

No it is not.

Well that plan was a complete disaster. You stupid cockroach shinigami (Sidoh). Although, I probably shouldn’t want Light’s plans to succeed.

Ugh, I feel so bad for Misa.

Light, you’ve corrupted Matsuda! He was kind of annoying but now…

Wait! Shit! Light’s dad is making the deal!

LIGHT’S DAD DIED!

Welp, Near figured out that L is Kira.

Now the former-VP-now-President of the US decided to turn over to Kira.

“…Then, Near, Mello, and L won’t be able to lead normal lives once they’re exposed to the world as infidels…”—Page 1683

Light, dear, you are L.

“If you’re scared, you don’t have to participate but please don’t leave the headquarters. I’m scared so I’m not going to go outside.”—Page 1689

Aw, poor Near.

Ah so Mello is with Hal.

Near offered to write Mello’s name.

Hey, shouldn’t this Xavier’s School for the Crazy have taught these kids how to act normal that way they could go outside without being an L suspect?

“Light: Yes, Near? Near: Sorry, I called the wrong number. Bip”—Page 1752

I love Near. Oh he was checking to see if it was L. That’s so smart.

“Light: Near, you must escape. Near: Look who’s talking, Kira.”—Page 1764

Oh snap.

It’s…raining money…Smart.

Aizawa is going to look into Light being Kira again. Hopefully he doesn’t die.

And now we have a new owner of the Death Note: Teru Mikami.

“Has Aizawa made his move? If he has, I shouldn’t try to pry into it too much. They’ll only get more suspicious of me if I do. Actually, it might be better to have them investigate as they please, and even check out Misa.”—Page (Too lazy to find the page number)

Fuck, Light knows.

I wonder if because Aizawa is a father that’ll effect his relationship with Near.

“No, the important part is ‘I’ll kill Kira, and then kill myself.’ Therefore Deputy Director Yagami and the Kira suspect are related.”—Pages 1820-1821

He’s so good. Oh shit, Near figured out that Light is the new L. Man, Near’s good. Light could never figure out L’s real identity but Near figured it out so quickly. Though, now that I think about it. It might have been in Rem’s Notebook.

I didn’t know Matt from Game Theory worked for Mello. The more you know.

Now we get to meet Mikami. Let’s see how crazy he is!

Huh, have we gotten this mug shot picture before for Misa and the business executive? We got one for Light and Ryuk.

So Teru was bullied. He is quite crazy.

Near…why do you have finger puppets?

Wow, it’s one of the girls who use to have a crush on Light. What a one in a million chance. Ah, but this inadvertently make things a little bit more difficult for Light. Man, this book is so brilliant sometimes.

Light, you are really shit at keeping your identity a secret. Mello and Near have both figured you out.

Back to Japan!

So Mikami is punishing the by-standards now. This is turning into an Seinfeld episode.

Takada, I need to remember that name.

Ide, they want to bonk! Matsuda knows people, he just doesn’t understand crime.

Light got into contact with Mikami and everything seems to be going according to plan for Light…unfortunately?

“I’ve never made travel arrangements myself. I want you to come back, and then we’ll go to Japan together.”—Page 1949

Aw, that’s so sad.

So battle between Light and Near has truly begun.

Damn, Hal Lidner has some balls.

Poor Misa.

“Once the victim’s name, cause of death and situation of death has been written down in the Death Note, this death will still take place even if that Death Note or the part of the Note in which it has been written is destroyed, for example, burned into ashes, before the state time.”—Page 2006

Doesn’t the Netflix movie completely throw out this rule?

MIKAMI ARE YOU NUTS? YOU JUST KILLED SOMEONE WITH THE DEATH NOTE IN PUBLIC!

“Matsuda: Ooh! Light’s in trouble now!”—Page 2031

…We are all Matsuda.

“Near: What this proves is that Light Yagami is a lady-killer.”—Page 2039

AY-OH!

Poor Aizawa.

So now Misa and Mogi have been kidnapped/taken into custody by Near. Ah, so this was Near’s plan to get someone to touch the Notebook.

Near is putting his plan into action I’m getting dangerously close to the end.

I’m assuming that Mello is going to show up at the last minute and completely ruin Near’s plans.

Mello’s kidnapped Takada!

And now Matt is dead. I hope Stephanie isn’t too sad about it.

Ah shit Takada is going to try and kill Mello. She, much like Hal, has some balls of titanium.

Aw shit Takada killed Mello. I wish he’d been more prominate in the book series. He was a cool headache for Light.

And now Light has killed Takada so he can destroy Mello’s body.

Near has a mask on.

And meeting has begun.

Nate River, there’s Near’s name.

“I’ve tampered with the Notebook. We managed to get it into our possession, and replaced the pages. The person behind the door…the one in charge of the actual killing, has been filling up one page every day, so I just calculated which page would correspond with today’s date, and replaced all the subsequent pages.”—Page 2212

Holy shit, really?

“Exactly as planned!”—Page 2214

FUCK!

“I ordered Mikami to use the fake Notebook outside on purpose to have your agent witness it in plain sight.”—Page Lazy

*sighs*

FUCK YEAH NEAR! YOU FUCKING DID IT! I’m so proud of you, kiddo.

“Matsuda: Light…Why…?”—Page Shit is Getting Real

Oh, Matsuda…

Man, Gevanni is good.

Oh god Mello scarified himself for Near.

“Mello always said he was going to be number one, and that he was going  to be better than me and L but I always knew that I would never be able to surpass L. it could be that I lack the action and he lacked the calm and even though we couldn’t surpass the one we admired on our own together we can stand with L together. Together we can surpass L.”—Pages 2262-2263

HELL YEAH!

Near called Light a murderer, hell yeah.

FUCK YEAH MATSUDA SHOT LIGHT!

Ryuk is writing Light’s name down in his Notebook.

Light Yagami is dead.

Near is eating chocolate.

I feel like if I were on this task force I’d retired after this.

Aw, Misa is the leader of a cult…how odd.

The bonus chapter was kind of funny.

[everythingtimeless]

Historical Hour With Hilary: 1x05

Missed an installment? Want to read up on where the team has been before? Just bored? Catch up with previous Historical Hours here. Otherwise, come along and discover that you probably don’t actually remember the Alamo, on March 6, 1836, as our heroes find themselves trapped in the legendary mission on the eve of battle.

If there is one thing that American Southern folk mythology really enjoys, it’s a romantic “Lost Cause” about a small group of brave patriots fighting to the end against a much larger and morally bankrupt foe: their bodies may be broken, but their spirit prevails. I could be talking about the Civil War, the end of which the team visited in 1865 a few episodes ago, but I could also be talking about the Alamo and its context within the Texas Revolution, which began just thirty years previously. It was a very short war, lasting only from October 1835 to April 1836, and it resulted in Texas’ independence from Mexico and official entry into the United States, which...  may or may not count as winning, but never mind. The causes of the conflict are complex, but I’ll try to summarize quickly. In 1821, Mexico had achieved freedom from Spain and recognition as its own sovereign country, with the Mexican War of Independence, and the territory of Texas became a formal Mexican state, Tejas. Eight years later, in 1829, Mexico banned slavery, which um. Did not go down well:

The aversion toward the Mexican government felt by most American Texans (who objected to learning Spanish, abiding by Mexican law, becoming Roman Catholics, etc ) was further exacerbated by the 1829 abolition of slavery. [...] The overthrow of federalism in 1835 finally prompted the Texans to revolt, given that a centralist state would tighten the Mexicans' grip over the distant and increasingly U.S.-populated secessionist province with uniform laws and taxes. However, the fact that the imposition of a centralist state would result in the abolition of slavery in Texas remains one of the main, yet often downplayed, reasons why the Texans rose up in arms. (p. 162-63).

“Often downplayed.” Wow, who could have possibly seen that coming? In case it wasn’t clear, the Mexican government objected to so many Americans moving to Mexico, as the Americans then made no effort to integrate and behaved (shock, surprise) like they owned the place. For another tidbit to annoy your racist uncle on Facebook, how about this:

The Law of April 6, 1830, said to be the same type of stimulus to the Texas Revolution that the Stamp Act was to the American Revolution, was initiated by Lucas Alamán y Escalada, Mexican minister of foreign relations, and was designed to stop the flood of immigration from the United States to Texas.

This was an entirely symbolic law, given as it was completely impossible to enforce with 1830s-level bureaucracy and communication over vast stretches of the Southwest, but it reflected Mexico’s attempt to impose control over an unruly and secessionist state (I’m not gonna say anything here, I’m not gonna say anything) and cut immigration levels from troublesome Americans, spreading moral disorder and presumably stealing jobs. If you’re interested, you can read in more detail about Texas-Mexican politics and the influences on the revolution here (you will need an institutional login to access full text). Otherwise, you can probably see that by the time the uprising actually started in 1835, the causes of the Texians’ (as the Anglo-Texas settlers were called) discontent were, well, something less than noble.

Mind you, they weren’t entirely unjustified, as Antonio de Padua María Severino López de Santa Anna y Pérez de Lebrón, or “Damn, Son, Leave Some Names For the Rest of Us”, Mexico’s eleven-time president, general, and towering statesman of the period, made even his contemporaries uneasy. His cruelties and excesses during the Texas campaigns, including the slaughter at the Alamo and the Goliad massacre of March 27, 1836 (or the “Other Alamo”, which killed at least 350 men, nearly double the Alamo’s death toll of 182, and which Santa Anna ordered against the wishes of his subordinate, General José de Urrea), got him into hot political water upon his return home. Part of Mexico’s political reforms had been in an attempt to avoid a post-revolution Santa Anna dictatorship, which he certainly possessed the talent and temperament to try. However, as noted before Flynn mucks things up, he did not indiscriminately butcher the women, children, and slaves inside the Alamo. Instead, they were given a blanket, safe passage, and two dollars apiece (see page 39). Only the defenders were killed.

As the team encounter, these defenders included some of the most colorful figures of later American folklore, including Davy Crockett and James Bowie, and William Barret Travis’ famous letter, which Lucy ends up having to write, is commonly cited as an enduring legacy of patriotism and “victory or death.” (It’s now a standard part of the history curriculum for Texas schoolchildren, which does not surprise me.) Of course, the participation of actual Tejanos in the events has been obscured and understudied, and almost immediately after the battle, it began to be memorialized in sentimental (and racist) novels. The supposed villainy and racial inferiority of the Mexicans was highlighted and made a key part of remembrance of the Alamo, especially as it was easy to take that view from the winning side. On April 21, 1836, General Sam Houston defeated Santa Anna in the Battle of San Jacinto, which lasted just eighteen minutes, and won the war (and independence) for Texas. As mid-19th-century Southern generals go, Houston is actually not that bad: he was very close with the Cherokee Indians, including being an honorary citizen and having an Indian wife at one point. He also fiercely opposed slavery and secessionism (or: Texas, having joined America, immediately wanted to leave it again) in the run-up to the Civil War, and was the only governor of a Southern state to refuse an oath of loyalty to the Confederacy, which caused him to be removed from office. Davy Crockett also hated the daylights out of President Andrew Jackson and his heinous Indian Removal Act, so hey. They’ve got that going for them.

Overall, I feel as if this is one episode where Timeless could have pushed a little harder at this history in places, but hey, that’s what I am here for. I therefore have to make the point explicit that yes, of course it was about race and slavery in the American South just a few decades before the Civil War, and yes, Texas has always been like that. It also flips our modern ideas about “illegal immigration” on their heads, and invites us to think more cautiously and critically about our fondness for “Lost Cause” patriotic mythology, because frankly, the Alamo wasn’t a Lost Cause. Yes, the soldiers died, but Texas won its independence less than two months later, which allowed the story of the Alamo to serve exceptionally well as a tragic tale and propagandist memory, and which was deliberately constructed as an important event in a way that far outstripped its actual historical significance. The Goliad massacre was arguably more significant in terms of the number of soldiers killed and the point of “no return” for the rebel cause, but nobody particularly remembers that today, which demonstrates the way in which the mythologizing of the Alamo stretches beyond its real impact. The Texas Revolutions’ origins were also less about a valorous desire for liberation from Mexican tyranny, and more about the Texians wanting to do things their way, especially if it involved their right to go on holding slaves and ignoring the laws, language, and customs of the country they had moved to. So yes, Wyatt, every kid in Texas might know the story, but I’m not sure how much anyone -- individually or collectively -- actually cares to remember.

Next week: An insane president, scandal in the White House, the threat of domestic terrorism and nuclear war, plane hijackings, and more? Are we staying in 2017? Nope. It’s 1972.

[justastormie]

I’m doing two, because I can. 

Ancient Historical meme from my drafts;

First things first: What’s their name and when and where did they live? If there are any/ you have one, add your favourite picture of them. 

Erwin Johannes Eugene Rommel (1891-1944), Germany, lived around Württemberg for most of his life, the occasional world war aside. Of historical note for being a masterful tactician, writing an important book of military theory about wwi and commanding the german forces in the north african campaign of wwii. 

Napoleon (1769-1821), France technically but had a great deal of fun on camping trips all over Europe. Of historical note for one-uping Alexander the Great. Created landmark legal, military and social organizations. List of fuckups is longer than most people’s list of accomplishments. One of the most enduring military and political legends of the modern era. Bees.

1. How and when did you first hear about them?

Rommel- I honestly can’t remember. My father is a wwii nut so i was raised on the stuff. I got serious in my interest of him about 12/13 when I first read the collection of his papers translated into English. 

Napoleon- fourth grade (about ten years old). We had a section of world history, dismal though it was. In one of the little “fun facts” thing they had a tiny little box describing Nap’s return from Elba with an itty-bitty reproduction of Steben’s Returned From Elba. I thought that sounded like the most badass thing I had ever heard, and was also a little in disbelief because surely someone can’t just walk back and reclaim their kingdom. Like, that shit didn’t happen in real life. So I bought my first biography to find out the real story. 

2. What do you like most about them?

Rommel

he tempered his ambition and leadership with compassion and a fierce sense of honor

genuinely seems to have been a nice dude

he and his wife are cute as fuck 

was later cute as fuck about his son Manfred 

was incredibly clever

was a peach eating lunatic adventurer masquerading as a srs prussian soldier 

he was a romantic both in the age of chivalry sense and the modern sense

Napoleon

SUCH A BADASS, oh my god

was an over-invested mono-maniac at all times, which I can related to

incredibly capable in many fields

i have been napoleon and josephine trash since day one

crowning himself. i just love that moment.

was really smart. on a ‘holy shit’ level. (even if he did some massively stupid shit sometimes)

meritocratic promotion structures

hamilton WISHES he were this non-stop. 

never gave up, never gave in. even on st. helena he started dedicated his energies to preserving his legend and legacy, to great effect. 

3. Is there anything about them that makes you angry or that you don’t like at all?

Rommel 

literally worked for nazis

pretty sexist

there’s a lot i disagree with him about, but very few things that make me truly pissed off. ie he was of the period opinion that military men shouldn’t be involved in politics, as he thought that would mean the military as an organization would start defining germany’s political future which would turn into military rule and he was catagorically against that. which i think is both wrong and allowed him, and others in the german army, to disclaim responsibility for political shit they didn’t agree with that was being done by their government. but i can absolutely see where he was coming from, and i think his concerns were reasonable and legitimate. 

so yeah. a lot of disagreements, but very few things that just piss me off.

Napoleon

w h e r e   d o   I   b e g i n

allowed his obsession with legend and conquest overwhelm his moral values 

sold his honor and his moral principles in order to maintain power

frequently only took into account the human cost of warfare way too fucking late

rampant misogyny

really fucked over Junot

really fucked over tons and tons of people who were loyal to him, from close friends to the soldiers who followed him

got a truly staggering number of people killed on account of his own short-sighted obsessions

to paraphrase the old tv show Wiseguy, You don’t get to shove people around just because your fire burns brighter, no matter how brilliant that fire is. 

never gave up, never gave in. even when he fucking should have, looking at you reasonable peace terms of 1813. 

4. If you had one day with them in our present time - what would you do together?

Rommel - Aviation museum, he’d absolutely love it. I’d get him to pick some German place to eat and interrogate him ruthlessly about what inter-war rural Germany was like. 

Napoleon- Smack him repeatedly in the face for invading Spain  Walk and talk. Have him show me around Paris and have a debate over legal systems. Nerd out over Ossain. Show him a modern bookstore. Let him see how much of his work has survived into the present day. Shove him into at least one shrubbery.

5. What would you like to talk about with them?

Rommel - Engineering, aviation, dogs and funny army stories

Napoleon- All of the things. I can only imagine the conversation would be a pinball game of madness as to topics covered. And okay. I’d have to ask about Waterloo. I’d be that person. I don’t think he’d do it, but I’d love to hear him talk about Corsica. 

6. In which way do you identify most with them or a figure they created?

Rommel - He was an intensely practical man who tried very hard to do the right thing and frequently failed. I hope that one day I’ll have the strength of character to try to rectify my mistakes as he did his. 

Napoleon - I too am an over-invested, bossy weirdo. 

7. Thoughts about their death? E.g.:Was it too early, was it deserved, woud you have tried to prevent it and how? 

Rommel- oh god TOO EARLY, UNDESERVED, that poor brave bastard. I mean the fact that he was murdered because of his role in a plot to overthrow hitler and make peace with the allies is reason enough. would have definitely tried to prevent it, but would need like. the a-team to stop it. because you’d have to rescue not only rommel but his family that was being used as leverage against him. unless you’re allowed to go really far back and then i’d just start slapping the shit out of everyone at the versailles peace conference.

Napoleon - hoooo boy. uuuuuuuh. i mean. do i like it how he died? no. does that dislike come from a rational place? ...nooo. best case scenario for me would be he gets shot before the last charge of waterloo. hell if i had my way i’d go back and convince him what REALLY needed done was him personally leading the imperial guard up the hill. heroic, dramatic death and historians get to fight over wellsley actually beat napoleon for the rest of forever. europe also gets a break from napoleonic insanity. which doesn’t happen if napoleon gets to live. once more if you’re allowed further back, i slap the shit out of him before he invades Spain and point out that Ireland is lovely this time of year (it’d still be a clusterfuck, but less of one).

8. Is there a book or movie etc. you would recommend to someone who’s new to the person and would like to learn more about them?  

Rommel - The Rommel Papers is a good place to start, there are frequent letters to his wife but the content is primarily military. 

Napoleon - Shannon Selin’s website and book. The book is fiction but she is the lord our god in this fandom for her mad research skills. She provides sources for everything, which makes her the perfect jumping off point. (Now if I can just convince her that what she REALLY needs to do is write another book starring josephine) 

9. What can we learn from them? 

Rommel - when in doubt, bluff like a motherfucker right action is not a mystical, obvious thing at all times, we must do what we believe is right to the best of our abilities while being willing to let compassion guide us onto different paths.

Napoleon - 

human beings are capable of astonishing intellectual and physical feats, and the best of our stories can still be written, they are not confined to antiquity. 

find friends who will support your goals and then listen to their good advice even when it challenges your ego. 

if loud, bossy weirdos can find devoted friends and romantic partners than we’ve got a pretty good shot too.

don’t invade spain

propaganda is half the battle

love, in all its forms, is a resilient motherfucker

don’t interrupt your enemy when he’s making a mistake

strive to be so badass that hundreds of years later, the historical fiction that is all about fighting you has their characters become complete fanboys any time you actually show up (ft. Richard Sharpe in Down With The Tyrant But OMG Harper Look It’s Napoleon *SWOON*, hon. mention also goes to William “Why Aren’t I French” Laurence). 

a willingness to take charge is half the battle for power

bees are a cute fashion accessory and go with anything  

10. Would you want to be friends with them if they were still alive? 

Rommel - I think he’d be a good Dad Friend to have. Someone to ask for advice and go to reenactments with. A good person for moral/personal advice even if their political/social views are outdated. Definite bonding over dogs.

Napoleon - Would entirely depend on how we met. I feel like we’re similar enough on a personal level that it’d be very easy for our personalities to clash, and we’d have to declare ourselves mortal enemies and neither of us would back down from that because what is admitting you might have been hasty. Or, if fate were kind, we’d get on splendidly with constant low levels of dry sarcasm and prank wars. There would also be lots of emotions everywhere, at all times. People would hide. I have to admit I’d still stab somebody if it meant I got to be a Marshal. 

11. The most powerful quote by or about them?

Rommel - have  short one and a long one

"We have a very daring and skillful opponent against us, and, may I say across the havoc of war, a great general." 

- Winston Churchill during 1942. During the fucking war. I mean damn, it doesn’t get better. Though since this is easily the most famous quote about him, have a personal favorite;

“Living legends, they project, each in his way, the classic image of a the warrior: brave, vigorous, sharp of eye and mind, rapid in decision, alert in danger, faster and bolder in the fight than his enemies. of this extraordinary brotherhood is Rommel-the brotherhood of Hector, of Rupert of the Rhine, of those who can only be described as heroes; and it is curious that so determinedly practical a modernist as Rommel-the least fanciful of men- should have joined a company so bonded by myth.” 

-David Fraser from Knight’s Cross: A Live of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel

Napoleon - 

All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others

i mean; 

History is a set of lies agreed upon. 

- Napoleon at some point, i’m not sure. But i’ve always loved it and found it apt. 

[bestonreview]

Top 10 Best Free Smartphones Without Contract

Have you ever taken the time to walk into a Verizon or AT&T store? You’ll commonly see some phones that cost 0$. On that shelf you’ll see some phones that can’t connect to the internet at all, old phones from 3 or 4 years ago, and cheap knock off. It sort of makes you think: you really get what you pay for when you go for a free phone. Since you’re paying nothing, you’re getting nothing. There are times, however, when you find a really decent phone for no money on it at all. Some companies will give you discounts for phones in a size that isn’t so popular with customers. Other phones will see their prices plummet from their pedestal just a year after they are released. Even some of the best brands out there, like LG, HTC, Samsung, and Apple, see their flagship models eventually drop in prices.

You could get those phones, of course, and enjoy a great bargain in the process. But you will still have to deal with the face that they come with a contract, which locks you onto the providing company’s network. SIM-free phones are rising in popularity every year. Flagship phones that go on sale can be forbiddingly expensive. The iPhone X, for example, cost something like $999 when it was first released. It may make a lot more sense to buy phones that are SIM free and unlocked, and then get a SIM only deal later in order to get a proper bargain. Here we prepared a list of the very best SIM free handsets on the market. iPhone X

The iPhone X comes with a screen size of 5.8 inches. That’s pretty good considering we’re dealing with Apple, who only recently began to get the screen size right on their phones. The resolution, as would be expected of a premium iPhone, is pretty high at 1125 pixels by 2436 pixels. The real camera has a resolution of 12 megapixels, which makes for some crisp pictures. The storage is either 64 GB or 256 GB and the RAM is 3 GB. The phone weighs very little at 174 grams and the battery has a capacity of 2716 mAh. Of course this is an ambitious start. We’re starting with the biggest phone on this list. The iPhone X is arguably the most significant iPhone launched since the very first iPhone, the iPhone 3G was launched 10 years ago. If you’re wondering why we skipped from the iPhone 8 straight to the iPhone X without having an iPhone 9, then there’s your answer: the iPhone X is read as “iPhone Ten” and that’s because it was launched a decade after the very first iPhone. That’ makes it pretty important. Recommended Articles For You: How to Get A Free Smartphone Online A Complete Guideline The 5 Best No Money Down Cell Phone Plans Switch To Boost Mobile From Metro PCS 2018 Apple has been piling up those incremental upgrades on its phone but went full on no holds barred with the iPhone X. You get Face ID which gives you the magic power of unlocking your phone just by staring at it. You also get a pretty cool 5.8 inch super retina HD display with absolutely no bezel. The whole front of the phone is the screen except for the speaker. You also get wireless charging, iOS 11, and, best of all, Animojis! Samsung Galaxy S9

The weight on this phone is 163 grams. The dimensions are 147.7 mm by 68.7 mm by 8.5 mm. It operates on the Android Oreo operating system. The screen size is 5.8 inches, which makes it the same size as the screen on the iPhone X. The resolution is 1440 pixels by 2960 pixels. The phone runs on an Exynos 9810 Octa processor. It comes with 4 GB RAM. For storage you get to choose between 64 GB, 128 GB, and 256 GB options. The battery has a great capacity at 3000 mAh. The rear camera has a healthy 12 MP resolution while the selfie camera has a resolution of 8 MP. This is one of the best Android phones on the market. You can get it on preorder from lots of places. If you want it on preorder, you’ll have to part with about $700. Understandably, that’s a hefty amount. However, you can read on to see some of the other options that are there on this page.    iPhone SE

This phone weighs 143 grams. It has dimensions of 123.8 mm by 58.6 mm by 7.6 mm. It operates on iOS 10 at the moment. The screen has a size of 4 inches. The resolution on this phone is 640 pixels by 1136 pixels. It comes with an Apple A9 chipset. The RAM is 2 GB while the storage comes in 16 GB and 64 GB options. The battery has a capacity of 1624 mAh. The rear camera is actually pretty decent with a resolution of 12 MP while the selfie camera comes with a more modest resolution of 1.2 MP. If what you’re looking for is a cheap iPhone then you can’t really go wrong with the iPhone SE. It’s one of the best SIM free iPhones you can buy right now. It’s not as powerful as the later iPhones, but it’s definitely stronger than the iPhone 5S while maintaining its size, which is an okay for anyone who wants an iPhone like they used to make them; without the massive screens. Moto G6

This phone comes with a weight of 167 grams. The dimensions are 153.8 mm by 72.3 mm by 8.3 mm. It operates on the Android 8 Oreo OS. It has a screen size of 5.7 inches, which pits it against other standard smartphones like the iPhone X and the Samsung Galaxy S9. The screen has a resolution of 1080 pixels by 2160 pixels. The CPU is an Octa-core 1.8 GHz Cortex-A53. It comes with either 3 Gb RAM or 4 GB RAM while the storage comes in options of either 32 GB or 64 GB. The battery has a capacity of 3000mAh. The rear camera has a resolution of 12MP while the selfie camera has a resolution of 5MP. Motorola has been known for making affordable smartphones for quite a few years. The Moto G6 is a great phone for its price. It’s a great improvement on its predecessor, the G5, in many ways. The screed, which is HD+ and LCD, is one of those improvements. The screen size is also an improvement. In fact, the Moto G6 Plus has an even larger screen. The resolution on the screen is also better. The other features, such as the CPU, the RAM, and the 12 MP rear camera put this phone on nearly the same level as phones which cost twice as much If you want a good phone that won’t cost you an arm or a leg, then you’ll appreciate this gem. Samsung Galaxy Note 8

This phone has a massive screen size of 6.3 inches. The resolution on the screen is 2960 pixels by 1440 pixels and it’s a Quad HD+ screen. The rear camera is 12 MP and has a dual lens. The weight is a little on the heavier side at 195 grams. The operating system is the Android 7.1.1. The RAM is 6 GB while the storage comes in options of 64 GB, 128 GB, and 256 GB. It also accepts external storage of up to 256 GB. The battery has a capacity of 3300 mAh. This phone has received quite a lot of hype and that’s not for nothing. The huge screen comes with an ‘infinity display’ which is an absolute joy to look at. The dual lens camera in the back is the best in its class. The RAM also makes it a pretty powerful phone. It’s fairly pricey, but it’s absolutely worth the price, considering it comes SIM free. OnePlus 6

This phone weighs 177 grams. It has dimensions of 155.7 mm by 75.4 mm by 7.8 mm. It runs on the Android 8.1 Oreo OS, It has a pretty large screen at 6.28 inches. The resolution is 1080 pixels by 2280 pixels. The CPU is a Snapdragon 845. The Ram is either 6 GB or 8 GB, both of which are very powerful. The storage comes in options of 64 GB, 128 GB, and 256 GB. The battery has a capacity of 3300 mAh. There are two rear cameras with resolutions of 20MP and 16Mp while the selfie camera has a resolution of 16MP. It’s no doubt that this phone is one of the very best Android phones you could find on the market right now. If you judge your phones based on how good their cameras are, then the cameras on this phone will blow your mind. The rear camera in particular is spectacular. The performance as well as the design of this phone is pretty much in the same league as the iPhone X and the Samsung Galaxy S9. The price, however, is much lower. iPhone 8

The screen size on the iPhone 8 is 4.7 inches. This is smaller than the iPhone X but still respectable enough, especially for those who don’t like massive screens on their phones. The resolution on the screen is 750 pixels by 1334 pixels. The rear camera has a resolution of 12MP. The phone weighs a paltry 148 grams. The RAM is 2 GB and the storage comes in options of 64 GB and 256 GB. In the tradition of Apple phones, it does not accept any external storage. The battery has a relatively low capacity of 1821 mAh. The iPhone 8 is admittedly not the kind of phone that sends waves through the market. It’s basically just an iPhone 7 with a few tweaks and improvements here and there and maybe an upgrade or two. If you already have an iPhone 7, then we wouldn’t recommend that you get his phone. However, if you have an older phone then it’s probably a good options, especially if you feel like the iPhone X is far out of your budgetary range. Nokia 3310

This phone weighs 79.6 grams. The dimensions are 115.6 mm by 51 mm by 12.8 mm. The screen size is 2.4 inches. The resolution on the screen is 320 pixels by 240 pixels. The RAM is 16 MB. The storage is also 16 MB. The battery has a capacity of 1200 mAh. It also comes with a 2MP rear camera. This is a great throwback. If you have a case of pure and unstoppable nostalgia then you have the necessary drive to get this classic. In fact, nostalgia is exactly the thing that makes this phone continue to fly off the shelves in large numbers. It definitely comes with a low price and it may just be the right phone to take with you when you go out partying or to attend events. It’s also a great phone to have in your bag for emergencies. It’s not a smartphone, granted, but it is the world famous Nokia 3310; the phone that made the game Snake famous! LG V30

This phone has a screen size of 6 inches. The screen has a resolution of 1440 pixels by 2880 pixels. It has a rear camera with a resolution of 16 MP. It weighs 158 grams and runs on Android 8 Oreo. The RAM is 4 GB and the internal storage comes in options of 64 GB and 128 GB. It also accepts external storage of up to 512 GB. The battery has a capacity of 3300 mAh. Whenever we think of LG we think of its flagship G series of phones. However, the 2017 V30 is just as good and is a smartphone you should definitely consider. The screen resolution is definitely one of its great strengths. It’s also got great design and you immediately know you’re using something on the level of a Galaxy Note 8. It’s a little pricey, but you’ll love it. Honor 10

This phone weighs 153 grams. The dimensions are 149.6 mm by 71.2 mm by 7.7 mm. It runs on the Android 8.1 Oreo OS. The screen has a size of 5.84 inches and a resolution of 1080 pixels by 2280 pixels. The CPU is the HiSilicon Kirin 970. It has RAM of 4 GB and storage options of 64 GB and 128 GB. The battery has a capacity of 3400 mAh. The rear camera has a dual lens. One lens is 24MP while the other is 16Mp. Meanwhile, the selfie camera is pretty strong with a resolution of 24MP. The Honor 10 is a pretty robust Android and, while relatively unknown, is beginning to grow popular. It’s a great improvement on what’s been there before and has some pretty impressive features. While it’s not going to outperform a Samsung Galaxy S9 or an LG G7, but all that is more than made up for by the combination of the killer cameras and the low price. Final Thoughts As you can see, the fact that you’re looking for a contract free phone doesn’t mean you have to settle for a low quality phone. There are plenty of premium SIM free options out there. You just have to know where to look. Read the full article

[woodworkingpastor]

Disciples’ Quest, week 13:  ...that locks and keys shall be needless Habakkuk 1:1-4; 2:1-4; 3:17-19

Call to Worship    

People of God, prophets like Habbakuk pointed to a future hope, a Savior.

No one knew when he would come.

They only hoped they would recognize the Messiah, the Son of God.

We wait with hope for the One who has come and is coming.

Today we light a candle to symbolize our hope. We hope in the One who will come.

 Hymn  While we are waiting, come  # 1032, v. 1

People of God, a new hope is coming.

We will rejoice in the Lord!

The Shakers are a nearly extinct religious movement that began with a fair amount of enthusiasm in England in 1747 who based their lives around the principles of racial and gender equality, simplicity, pacifism, celibacy, communal life, and the confession of sin.

Their uncompromising devotion to these principles led them to belief that any contact with the secular world around them would damage their faith, so they attempted to isolate themselves from society as much as possible. To help with this, they wrote a document known as the Millennial Laws of 1821. They would be better able to love Jesus and one another if they lived their lives within certain boundaries.

As with a lot of Christian groups of this type, there were strict rules governing how men and women could—and mostly could not—interact.  And they even had a few guidelines that are quite baffling to us today: rules on what color your bed needed to be painted (green); what material and colors curtains could be made of; and even a rule that it was immodest to eat bread on the same day it was made.

But there is one rule in the list that I find absolutely delightful: “All should be so trustworthy, that locks and keys shall be needless.” What practical difference would it make in our lives if we lived in such a fashion? What would change? Sometimes people like to argue about the United States being a Christian nation, and what things determine that.  What if this were our measure—Christians living our lives and practicing our faith in such a way that locks and keys are needless?

Poet David Barber helps us think about this idea in a poem based on this admonition. It’s too long to read in its entirety, so I’ll share just a few lines here where he explores the things that would be needless:

“Needless, useless, pointless, moot: stripped of every honest purpose, nothing so haplessly worthless now, so meaningless.

Needless, needless: the deadbolt, the strongbox, the padlock lolling from the tall spiked gate, the little metal teeth all jingle-jangling mindlessly on their rusting ring, the all to obtuse fitfulness of pin and tumbler, every chain known to man.

All melted down for scrap: the whole clanking, tinkling, delirious mess spaded into the pitiless furnace for our trusty smiths to put to good use, all that glorious blazing gloop walloped anew into buckles, skillets, windchimes, wind-up toys, more spades.”  (The Best American Poetry, 2017)

Isn’t that the one of the most delightful things you’ve heard in a while?  And why is it delightful? Because we know that our world is so far from it—and so was that of the Old Testament prophet Habakkuk.

The minor prophets of the Old Testament can be like that strange Christmas gift we receive every few years: we’re certain that the person who gave it to us really invested some careful thought and a bit of expense in it, but we’re not at all sure what to do with it! We tend to not read them, or only encounter brief pieces of them, in part because we don’t fully understand the situation into which the prophet was speaking. These writers are incredibly specific about situations that we know next to nothing about; as such they seem disembodied, floating around freely without enough clues or contexts to help us make much sense of them.

But maybe if we slow down and think about it for just a minute, the words in Habakkuk 1 aren’t so difficult to understand:

O LORD, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not listen? Or cry to you “Violence!” and you will not save? Why do you make me see wrongdoing and look at trouble? Destruction and violence are before me; strife and contention arise. So the law becomes slack and justice never prevails. The wicked surround the righteous—therefore judgment comes forth perverted (Habakkuk 1:2-4, NRSV).

How do we respond to God when our hopes and aspirations in him do not materialize?

Habakkuk’s complaint

Maybe Habakkuk is praying, or maybe he is in worship. But either way, he is upset by the things he sees going on around him. Whatever the case, Habakkuk takes these things to God. Habakkuk complains and laments that the basic functioning of the world is operating. Never mind not needing locks and keys, in Habakkuk’s community violence reigns, wrongdoing is prevalent, strife is all over and judgment is perverted. And these are just the things he can see—imagine how much angrier Habakkuk would be if he had a Twitter account?  He’d probably be as angry as many of us are!

Even though some of you might not have realized there was a book of the Bible named Habakkuk, and even though Habakkuk is not the most specific of the Old Testament prophets, one way we can connect with this part of the Bible is that Habakkuk’s complaints about his world sound so much like the complaints we have about ours.  What will be different for some is that Habakkuk refuses to see life as one issue and current events as a separate issue.  They are the same issue for Habakkuk; what he sees happening on his streets, and what he hears is going on around the fringes of his society are both an important part of how Habakkuk is to follow God.

As Habakkuk deals with this, he does something that is very helpful. He doesn’t compartmentalize his life into the secular and the sacred; he doesn’t look at the problems in his community and become partisan or political; Habakkuk takes his concerns to God. He essentially has one significant question: “If God is who God claims to be, then how can the world be the way it is?”

God’s answer

God gives Habakkuk a two-part answer, and it might not be what we want to hear: “Wait. These things will be taken care of in their time. But for now, the answer is wait, and get to work.”

That was probably a hard thing for Habakkuk to hear because he could look at things that didn’t seem right, circumstances that ought not be the way the were. And it might be even harder for us to hear, because not only can we pick up our newspapers or our smartphones or even look around us and see things that aren’t right, we are culturally conditioned to be impatient, to want the things we want, and to want them now.  It might be one of the reasons why Advent isn’t so very popular: we’re in a hurry to get to the warm traditions of Christmas! We don’t like to wait.  In our house, it might be that we do almost all our Christmas shopping on line and have everything delivered to our front porch. No need to wait.  If you’re busy and wondering when you’ll get your grocery shopping done for Christmas dinner, no need to wait—call Kroger, and Philip King will meet you at your car with your order and put them in your back seat with a smile!

But when it comes to the violence and injustices of the world, God gives us a two-part answer: Wait, and get to work.

We have a job to do!  And in this sense, the old Shakers got a few things right. Our job is live so that “locks and keys shall be needless.”  God doesn’t put it quite that way to Habakkuk; God says, “the righteous live by their faith.” We often make faith out to be something we hold in our head; a mental or verbal affirmation of a set of beliefs.  But that’s not how the idea of faith works, especially in the Old Testament. The Hebrew word is probably better understood as “faithfulness.”  “The righteous shall live by their faithfulness” is the idea. Faithfulness is found in steadfastness and consistency as we carry out our calling.

If we’ve been paying attention, then the idea here ought to be familiar because we’ve been hearing it all Fall.  

What did God say when calling Abram?  “I will bless you…so that you will be a blessing.”  

What did God say to the Hebrew people just three months out of Egypt? “The whole earth is mine, but you shall be for me a priestly kingdom and a holy nation.”  

God essentially tells Habakkuk the same thing: I will attend to my business; you attend to yours. And it leaves Habakkuk—and us—with a choice: what do we do when our hopes and aspirations in God do not materialize? For Habakkuk, God’s answer was enough. By the end of the book Habakkuk has moved from “How long shall I cry for help” to “thought the fig tree does not blossom and no fruit is on the vines…yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I wall exult in the God of my salvation.”

The issue for us is one of hope.  Even as we look at brokenness around us, do we have enough hope in God to carry out what we have been asked to do. What is your answer?

[marketingatlightspeedreadin-blog]

5 Rules (and One Secret Weapon) for Acing Multiple Choice Tests

When it comes to taking multiple choice tests, there’s this common piece of advice that often gets thrown around. “When in doubt, always choose C.” Right? Or maybe for you it was B ’cause this advice comes from everywhere. Maybe you heard it from your dad or your teacher or you read it on the internet. I’m pretty sure that I heard it from some kid in my eighth grade history class named Jimmy, but as Abraham Lincoln once didn’t say, “Always independently verify advice given to you “by eighth graders named Jimmy.” Truer words have never not been said.

So today we are gonna go over some more well-founded and useful advice that you can use to make sure you ace that next multiple choice test you got coming up in the future. And I’ve got five main strategies to go through as well as one secret weapon of sorts, so let’s just get started. First off, when those test papers flutter down to your desk, don’t just start immediately going through the questions one by one in a linear fashion.

Instead, take a few minutes to go through and skim the test and just get a general overview of the questions. Now, as you’re doing this, you can answer any of the questions that stand out as really, really easy or that you’re really, really confident in, but another thing you’re doing by doing this whole little skim once over the test before you actually start in earnest is you’re priming your brain for some of the questions and details that are on the test as a whole. And this can be really, really useful for a couple of different reasons. One, you’re priming your brain to start thinking about some of the harder questions and we’re gonna get to that in a minute, but number two, sometimes multiple choice tests will have questions that hold details and hints or sometimes outright full answers to other questions on the test.

For example, say you’re taking a history test one day and you come across a question like this. Which American president’s death caused Napoleon to order 10 days of mourning in France? Now, as you’re going over the answers, you can eliminate one of them right off the bat, but the other ones, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, George Washington, you don’t know which of the three is the correct answer. So maybe you skip it, you go on into the test and then later, you come across a question like, true or false. Even though Thomas Jefferson and John Adams were bitter political rivals during the heyday of their careers, they eventually regained their friendship and kept it until both of their deaths in 1826. Now that question just established that Thomas Jefferson and John Adams both died in 1826 and say that you knew from some other source that Napoleon himself had died in 1821. If you knew that, then that question answers the previous question because both Thomas Jefferson and John Adams are not possible answers, therefore, it’s Washington. These kind of details and questions aren’t always gonna crop up in your tests, and in any case, you probably shouldn’t waste a whole ton of your test time digging around for ’em because, you know, preparation is a much better strategy.

You should hopefully come into the test prepared to answer most the questions in the first place, but it can be helpful in certain occasions, so just prime your brain with a little bit of a preliminary pass before you start in earnest. The second technique on my list is what Barbara Oakley’s book A Mind for Numbers calls the Hard Start, Jump to Easy technique. And this is a technique where, basically, you jump into a difficult problem and you spend a couple of minutes thinking really deeply about it, but if you can’t get the answer to that problem, you move on. Now this is something you’re teachers have probably told you in the past, just to save time on your tests, but there’s another benefit that they might not have told you about.

If you spend some time thinking about a hard problem, you’re engaging your brain’s focus mode. And I know this focus and diffused dichotomy is something I talk about a lot in these videos, but it’s really, really important. So while you’re using focus mode, you are concentrating on the problem and you’re using your conscious resources to try to solve it. But once you jump into a different problem, your subconscious resources, the more distributed parts of your brain, work on that difficult problem in the background. And then when you go back to the problem a little bit later, you probably have a better chance of answering it.

Oh, and my apologies to Dr. Oakley, but we have got to get a better name than Hard Start, Jump to Easy technique. So I’m gonna go ahead and recoin it the Tiny the Tiger technique ’cause it’s like that one boss battle in Crash Warped where you spend some time fighting the boss and then you switch over to avoid these tigers and go back and forth from there. Tip number three is to make sure that you read each question on your exam twice. Doing this is really, really important because multiple choice questions can be tricky and because they have a limited number of answers and those answers are just written out for you, it can be really tempting to simply skim over the question very quickly and then go to the answer that looks most familiar. But professors can be pretty sneaky when they’re writing these kinds of questions, so you need to watch out for a few things that can trip you up. For example, some of the questions on your exams might ask you which of the following is not X, Y or Z.

And it can be really easy to fail to see that word, not, if you’re going through really fast and just skimming the questions. Other questions might actually have more than one correct answer and your job there will be to find the answer that is most correct. And of course, in that vein, there are also all sorts of questions that have all of the above or none of the above as potential answers and I am not too proud to admit that in several classes during my college career, I took tests very quickly and failed to see these types of answers on a few questions, which I, of course, got wrong. Tip number four is a tactic that I found personally useful all throughout high school and college and it’s to double check your answers as you get to the end of each page of your test instead of just waiting to do it all at the end.

And the reason this is so useful is that once you get to the end of a page on your test, you probably only have five or 10 questions to go over and because you have so few, you’re probably not gonna rush or get intimidated by the number of questions you have to check and that’s gonna decrease the likelihood that you’ll skip over a dumb mistake or something that just should glaringly stick out and that’s gonna increase your scores. Now this is not a replacement for giving your test a good once-over once you’ve finished it. And I definitely think you should be budgeting time at the outset of the test to do that, but by adding this technique into your test-taking arsenal, you can increase your scores even more. Alright, let’s move on to tip number five here. So if you come across a question that you just can’t get the answer to, or maybe you feel like the answer’s on the tip of your tongue, but you just can’t quite get it, try to envision yourself in the room in which you learned that piece of information.

Maybe it was your classroom, maybe it was your normal study spot, but either way, science has shown that if you can envision the area where you learned something, it activates something called context-dependent memory. Basically, humans are more able to remember things when they’re in the context or location in which they learned them, but research done in 1984 showed that if people simply envisioned the place in which they learned something, they can sort of, channel some of that ability even though they’re not physically in that room.

Now, if even that doesn’t work, or maybe you’ve run across a question where you just absolutely have no clue what the answer is, you’ve never seen it before or you just can’t eliminate any of the choices whatsoever, well, it’s time to break out that secret weapon. So, remember our friend Jimmy who gave us that old advice, you know, “When in doubt, pick C?” Well, yeah, Jimmy was wrong, but that’s okay, because instead of following some dumb rule or just randomly guessing, you can actually use statistics to exploit the way in which human beings typically write multiple choice tests.

And that’s because, as the author William Poundstone points out in his book Rock Breaks Scissors, humans are pretty bad at creating actual random distributions of answers. During his research, Poundstone collected over a hundred multiple choice tests from all sorts of different sources. Schools, colleges, drivers exams, online quizzes, you name it, he got it. And that totaled over 2,400 questions. And what he learned from doing statistical analysis on all those questions was pretty surprising. First off, he did discover biases for individual letter answers, but those biases changed based on how many answers were available on the question. For three answer questions, you know, A, B, C, there was no bias. And for four answer questions, the bias turned out to be B, not C, though it was a very statistically small advantage. 28% versus the expected 25%. And then, when we go over to five answer questions, you know, A through E, it was actually E that was the most common answer and C was the least commonly right answer. Those findings are just the type of the iceberg though, and personally, I find them far less interesting than all the other things he discovered.

Including the fact that with true/false questions, there’s a definite bias toward true answers being correct. In his research, 56% of the time, true was the correct answer and only 44% of the time was false the correct answer. Even more interesting and potentially useful to you is the fact that a question has a higher than average likelihood of not having the same answer as the question that came before it.

So if you have one question on a test where you knew the answer was C, you’re definitely sure of that, and then you move on to the next question and you’re stuck, or maybe you’ve narrowed it down to C or D, then it’s likely that D is the answer, not C. And perhaps most astoundingly, for questions that had either an all of the above or none of the above answer present, that answer was correct 52% of the time, which means that if you’re stuck on a question and you can’t narrow it down, that answer’s your best bet. Now even though I had fun calling these findings a “secret weapon” of sorts, I really want to emphasize that you should only use them when you’re completely at a loss and you have to take a shot in the dark.

You should use every other technique in the book to narrow things down, to give yourself some space, to use that Tiny the Tiger technique because, at the end of the day, all you’re doing is exploiting the way that people write tests. You’re not actually learning anything and you’re not actually using your mental faculties to work with the actual information and content of the exam. Anyway, beyond all the tips in this video, the most important aspect to your success on any multiple choice test or any kind of test at all is preparation. And if you want to learn how to prepare for your tests more effectively, I actually just put together a resource on my website called The Ultimate Guide to Acing your Final Exams. And it collects everything that I’ve ever made related to exams, so if you haven’t seen all those videos or you’re looking for a specific tip, you might wanna check it out and you can find it on the card on the screen right now or in the description down below.

Beyond that, if you enjoyed this video, you can give it a like to support this channel, it’s much appreciated, and if you have additional tips on acing your multiple choice tests that I didn’t talk about right here, I would love to hear from you down in the comments below. If you wanna subscribe to this channel and get new videos on being a more effective student every single week, click right there and you can also click right there if you want to get a free copy of my book on earning better grades. Now the recommended video this week is actually something related to this because it’s about a technique called confidence tracking that can help you even further increase your scores on multiple choice tests, so check it out.

For More Info : Visit Here : http://lightspeedreading.com/

[recentanimenews]

How Far Is the Universe? Anime's Journey to the South

  In this season's A Place Further Than the Universe, four girls team up to make their way to Antarctica to help find one's missing mother. Just starting the journey has already taken them a lot of work: earning money, finding an expedition, and then getting that expedition to accept them. But the hardest part of their journey is still to come... because the show's title isn't playing around.

    Worlds Apart

To get an idea of just how far we're talking, we need to take a look at the history of Antarctica... or, rather, the history of our knowledge of it. Even though the concept of a "counterweight continent" of sorts was talked about as early as the 1st century AD, it was believed for quite some time that Australia was the farthest south we'd ever encounter a landmass.

  It wasn't until 1820 that explorers got anywhere near enough to Antarctica to even know it existed! The Antarctic Circle was crossed several times in the 1700s, but heavy ice forced the ships to turn around. The first confirmed and recorded landfall was in 1895, though there's an 1821 landing still disputed by historians.

  Nowadays the population fluctuates between 1,000-4,000 people throughout the year, including scientists, travelers, and even a civilian town with a school!

    How Big Is It?

When we think of Antarctica, our brain may default to thinking specifically of the South Pole. But unlike the North Pole, the South Pole is in the middle of a massive continent! (For the pedantic, that's true south; the magnetic South Pole is actually on one of Antarctica's coastlines.)

  Antarctica is, all told, 5.405 million square miles. That's bigger than Australia, and almost as big as the entirety of South America! So when it comes how far away it is in general... well, that's a different matter.

  Let's put it this way. As the crow flies, Antarctica is 8,814 miles from the Crunchyroll home office in San Francisco. And it's 8,761 miles from your humble writer's home... all the way on the other side of the United States. In either case, it's about three times the distance from the middle of either coast to Antarctica as it is straight across the United States!

  But... and this is important... that only works if you have somewhere to land. And if you don't mind shoring up on an uninhabited patch of ice with no other humans around for miles, that's fine. But the sparse population makes all the difference.

    Welcome Party

Now it's time to start thinking like Shirase!

  The crew of A Place Further Than the Universe will be coming into Showa Station, a research center built in 1957 and comprised of more than 60 buildings. This requires a plane from Harumi to Fremantle, Australia, and then a boat from Fremantle to the base.

  The flight from Harumi will take the crew 4,928 miles into their stop in Australia -- almost twice the length of the United States. From there, their ship will be taking them another 3,823 miles to Showa Station.

  So the crew has 8,751 miles to go before they get to their destination: about as far as the Crunchyroll team would (assuming there was a station directly south!).

  That's farther than someone at our home office would have to go to get to Tokyo or London. And all for adventure! (Well, and finding someone's missing mother. That's a big deal, too.)

    Speaking of Showa Station...

Ever wondered what life is really like in Antarctica? The Showa Station team shares their exploits online!

  Showa Base Now!! shows off photos of the team and what they're getting up to. Check them out to learn more about life in Antarctica!

  And if you poke around a little more, you'll find that they seem to be... following Shirase's progress? Well, yes and no. They're actually mapping the progress of the icebreaker Shirase, after whom our southbound friend may be named.

  So, is Antarctica literally "further than the universe"? Well, of course not. That would be difficult. But the continent, which was theorized about thousands of years ago and only set foot on within the last 200 years, is still far away enough that even thinking of visiting is an extreme undertaking. And now it's time to cheer on Mari, Shirase, and their friends as they take the next step to their far-off dream!

  Start watching A Place Further Than the Universe on Crunchyroll.

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  Kara Dennison is responsible for multiple webcomics, blogs and runs interviews for (Re)Generation Who and PotterVerse, and is half the creative team behind the OEL light novel series Owl's Flower. She blogs at karadennison.com and tweets @RubyCosmos. Her latest stories can be found in Whoblique Strategies.

By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com