#my main goal is to just... help people ig? which is why i started off in health care

[straykats]

15 questions !!

tagged by @sulfurcosmos as always <3

ARE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? not that i'm aware of..?

WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? yesterday; was not feeling well so i couldnt do my assignments, which would have been fine if i'd been able to sleep instead but i couldn't so idk ig i got really frustrated 💀💀

DO YOU HAVE KIDS? no and (this isn't the question but) at this point in life, i kinda really dont want to in the future either

DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? when talking in person, yes, but online only to a handful of people (or in public posts, yes LOL but like not in private/direct convos online? if that makes sense)

WHAT’S THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE? their eyes and or smile, i think? or alternatively, their lack of smiling.

WHAT’S YOUR EYE COLOR? dark brown/black

SCARY MOVIES OR GOOD ENDINGS? im really bad at this or that questions bc half the time it depends on the mood? i do love a scary movie but good endings are.. well, good. but also when i choose a movie i don't really decide 'oh i want to watch this bc it has a good ending' (on the assumptoin that good = happy ending here).

ANY SPECIAL TALENTS? ...no? in the past i used to be able to make a un out of almost anything and everything but uh in the present day.. nothing 'special' ig. i mean if i dedicate the time to it, i can make clothes but thats a very selective talent LOL

WHAT ARE YOUR HOBBIES? wriitng, reading (hopefully i'll actually get to do this instead of saying i do this), sewing, playing piano, listening to music???? oh and people watching !! .. in a non-creepy way

DO YOU HAVE ANY PETS? we have a koi/fish pond and canaries at my house, but i don't really consider them my pets? its kinda the father's hobby ig

WHAT SPORTS DO YOU PLAY / HAVE YOU PLAYED? i don't do any rn 💀 but outside of mandatory participation (ie in classes) i've enjoyed swimming and soccer, though that wasn't competitive (like soccer was competitive but like. the way kids playing at lunch on the school oval is). i used to do tae kwon do and badminton as well.

HOW TALL ARE YOU? 167cm 'on a good day', as they say, or else 164cm LOL

FAVORITE SUBJECT IN SCHOOL? music and lit, but also partially bc i enjoyed the social atmosphere in those classes? i also enjoyed learning chem and bio.

DREAM JOB? i mean, given that i swapped courses, it'd feel wrong to not say 'author' lol but also like. even just editting? one thing i do really wanna do though is go to retirement homes and share the stories of the older adults - be that their life, or just a story they want to write but might be unable to? i mean, the best outcome/goal would be to enable or facilitate them writing it themselves, but i do want to write for people as well. especially within this specific context, i think having that social aspect is super important. (side note i just remembered a story one of the residents told me when i was on prac in '21 year and now im sad lol i hope she's well)

tagging tagging tagging @chogiwow @decembermoonskz @neo-shitty (again, no pressure !!) + anyone who read this tagging section hehe

[harveyguilleniconodelamoda]

Thoughts on Fashion & Style from Harvey's Instagram Live with Samantha Rei Crossland

Last night, Harvey Guillén joined fashion designer Samantha Rei Crossland for a chat on Instagram Live to talk about life, style, the entertainment industry, and to answer some fan questions! The full video may be available via Harvey or Samantha's IG eventually, as they saved it at the end, but in the meantime I've compiled some of the questions and answers related to Harvey's relationship with fashion and style here!

This text is taken from the video and has been lightly edited for clarity.

Samantha: Dollie says, "as a fan you can really tell Harvey worked deliberately through fashion and photoshoots to establish his style in person, in front of the camera, and on the red carpet. I'd love to hear more about that journey and additionally if you have any tips for achieving confidence in style and fashion."

Harvey: Wow, good question! I feel like that was an avenue that never was presented to me as an option for the first part of my career. You know everyone's like "oh who dressed you?" I dressed myself! I mean I still do, but I didn't really get any kind of help with anything stylish-wise until recently, when I got the opportunity to work with different designers and stylists who introduced me to those designers. That's really what it is: a stylist will get you into an atelier or someone's house, like Christian Siriano or someone like that. But for the most part, for a long time I just kind of dressed myself, and on a budget.

Knowing Harvey was putting these kinds looks together by himself on a budget in 2017 and 2018, I will never again cut any of the Chrises with their MCU money a single centimeter of slack for showing up year after year, to event after event, in bland black or navy suits.

Harvey (continued): Because stylists are worth every penny, but they're expensive! They are expensive because they do a great job, but you also have to be constantly doing that. I think Zendaya was just talking about this in an interview. There's moments where you want a stylist because you want to look your best and you want the best opportunity and possibility, and there's moments where you're like "I'll dress myself, it's just a small event, I'll make it work. I'll make it work with what I have."

But yeah, I really wanted to put myself in a position where...why can't I like fashion? Why can't I do a photoshoot, and why can't I do a cover? I had a publicist, one of my first publicists...I said "I want to be the first to do something, like be on a cover of something like this!" And they straight out loud said "that's not going to happen." And I was like..."oh well, I mean maybe not overnight, but that should be the goal, we should work toward--"

And they were like "yeah, but we want to be realistic...and that's not gonna happen."

Cannot imagine being the person to tell THIS man he's never going to be on the cover of a magazine.

Harvey (continued): I realized, if people on your team are naysayers or they're not seeing the vision, those people aren't on your team. So unfortunately, I had to let them go, because if there's someone on your team who's already being toxic towards your vision, that's not the vision, that's not the vibe, that's not it. And so I'm glad to report that shortly after that we did get a cover! And then I was able to kind of show that off and be like, "it can be done!" You just have to find the right team and the right people who see your vision.

I think for so long it's just been easy to say no to people who don't fit the mold of Hollywood, and I'm not here to fit a mold. I'm here to break it.

Samantha: You're killin' it! You have no idea how many of these questions were just "when is he starting a fashion line?"

Harvey: I want to! I think right now I'm so focused on my main passion, which is acting, and I'm so grateful and blessed to have opportunities that are coming my way and that I am excited for. And now wrapping something that I'm gonna hold so dear to my heart like Shadows for so long, I'm so grateful. And you know, most actors would kill for just the opportunity to be on a show like Shadows and call it a day, and I would be happy if that's the work that I'm known for, because it's such a great show.

But I'm fortunate that I have all of these other things that are coming up. I'm so excited for the opportunities, and I'm excited for the different characters and different roles and different hats I get to put on.

But eventually that would definitely be an avenue that...I mean, it would definitely be on brand! You know? It would be so on brand to open a plus size line, especially because growing up I didn't see as many options for plus size people, period. But if there were, obviously the lean is for female clothing, and it was never for men at all. Like the options for a plus sized guy was like...screen t-shirts and jeans. And that's it!

Or it was always Big and Tall, where if you weren't tall you got stuck with a really short and stout kind of shirt. The measurements were always catered to "if you're big, you gotta be tall," and well, I don't know if that's true, but there was no in between. So that's a market that I would definitely want to look at. But for the time being I'm focusing on the acting part of it.

Samantha: Kelly wants to ask, "do you like any specific colors or patterns? Where are your tastes when you dress high fashion?"

Harvey: I used to be afraid of color a lot because I was always told if you're plus sized or bigger you'll amplify yourself. But I think you shouldn't be afraid of color. Last year, a year ago next month, at the Meta Gala I wore pink! That was all Christian Siriano from head to toe, and there was a wink there and a story behind it--if you know you know--why he and I chose the color pink for the Met Gala and who they were honoring and all of that. So I'm not afraid of color. I try to be very specific about the dimensions and where my leg cuts off or where it elongates my leg.

Harvey's now-iconic outfit from the 2023 Met Gala--whose theme was honoring Karl Lagerfeld--blended foundational style elements of Lagerfeld's most famous designs for Chanel with all the things Lagerfeld loudly hated throughout his life. Lagerfeld was infamous for making shitty comments about plus sized people, people of color, short men, and a host of other things. He also disliked the color pink. So Harvey showing up as himself and looking stunning wearing that glorious pink number was possibly the classiest shade ever thrown.

Harvey (continued): I've just been like the Christian Siriano poster boy this year! Which is a funny story because when I first approached him over a year ago for the Oscars, he was really busy and he said "I really don't make menswear."

And I was like "well I'm not saying I want you to make completely a tuxedo, I want you to do something in the middle." And he was like "well, I kind of did that with Billy Porter" where he put Billy in this really amazing gown. And I was like "well I don't want to do a gown, I want something between that, you know? Like where it doesn't have to be a traditional, boring, just plain old tuxedo, and it doesn't have to be this amazing, beautiful ball gown that Billy had worn."

Because he doesn't really design for men, he designs for women. And he said "this would be the first I would do this." And I said "then that's great! It'll be the first!" And he definitely had never designed for a plus sized man, so we were checking all these boxes off.

So my idea was if someone in 1920 went to an award show but was trying to wear a vintage Victorian or Edwardian outfit to honor a vintage look. So the hair was 1920s. The hair was done by Connie, who was my hair person in What We Do In the Shadows, who helped me originate the original look for Guillermo.

And Romie--who's my best friend since third grade--is my makeup artist, and she did my makeup for the Oscars and makeup for a lot of the events I go to.

And it was just amazing, you know. That outfit...oh my god. Vogue ran it, they got so many likes, it was on every social [media] outlet, and it did so well that last fall, for the first time, [Christian] had a men's line. And I can't help but wonder if it was a coincidence, if it had anything to do with my "how about we try this experiment!"

This beautiful vintage-inspired look for the Oscars was Harvey's first red carpet collaboration with Christian Siriano and landed him on nearly every best dressed list for the event. The metallic brocade tuxedo gown and bell hem trouser were included in Siriano's Fall 2023 line, and are available to order on his website (for a hefty price) as separate pieces in sizes up to a size 30 (58 bust, 60 waist).

Harvey (continued): Christian's been great, and of course he would make amazing pieces for menswear, of course he would!

We collaborated on a lot of things. For the Critic's Choice award we did a really cool cut, which was like a midriff cut with a peek-a-boo of belly. Because you know, I like my body, and I can show it off! And he did it in a way where I was like "woah!" It elongated my leg and it had a peek-a-boo of a little bit of tummy, and it had a neckline that plunges. So it shows your chest, and it's mesh, and then this giant bow on the side that you can take off or put on.

This red carpet look Harvey wore for the Critic's Choice Awards is one of my personal favorites. It feels like plus size people are always being urged to both cover up as much as possible and make ourselves as small as possible. But this outfit stares those demands in the face and says "Why though? Fuck that! Show yourself off and take up space!"

Harvey (continued): It got so many compliments on the carpet! And it's to a T a Christian look, but also very much me, because we collaborated in what that would look like and how I want that on my body, how it looks on my body, because what looks good on me may not look good on someone else. But it's knowing what your best assets are and what you're showing off, and what you want to show off. Because that's what's going to make you feel the most comfortable, when you're showing off something that you love about yourself.

Samantha: That's literally what I tell my clients! You feel the best you've ever looked in your life when everything just fits you perfectly and shows off the best parts of your body that you like the most. It's not about hiding, it's about amplifying.

Harvey: Yeah, exactly.

---

Thank you so much to both Samantha and Harvey for this wonderful conversation on IG Live! It was truly a joy to witness it and get more insight into Harvey's thoughts on fashion and style.

If you're interested in Samantha's designs (including her OFMD-themed makeup pallets!), check out her website here. And you can find WWDITS-themed Harvey-approved merch at his website here!

[codename-adler]

Dear Tumblr toxicity,

Hi. Adler here. We need to talk.

- TW: mental health issues, depression, bipolar disorder, self-harm, homophobia, transphobia, coming out, xenophobia, islamophobia, racism, implied sexual content, rape, non-con, addictions, abuse, parental negligence, depictions of violence, swearing (please message me kindly if I forget anything)

- What prompted this message: The release of Skam France S7 teaser (emphasis on teaser, will get into that below)

- Where I’m coming from: I will talk from the pov of a white, cis and queer 22-years-old woman (she/her); this is the pov that affects my experiences and the opinions I will share below; but my message comes from a place of deep hurt, and love

- What this is about: My goal is to share a recurring experience that has hurt me in order to spread a message of awareness, maturity, peace and love

- Central content: Skam France, Skam Wtfock, and Skam/remakes in general

From now on I will assume people have enough information for me to talk about the topics without explaining every plotline/character. There are plenty of wiki pages to help you out and I will gladly answer any (respectful) questions asked if a plothole bothers your comprehension of my message. I’m only making these assumptions in order to alleviate the text.

January 9th, 2021.

The francetv slash YouTube channel releases an unexpected teaser video for an equally unexpected seventh season Skam France. The video features Tiffany, a white, cis female teenager, going into labour from denial pregnancy just after winning what appears to be a gymnastics championship. Overall, the video and its release are very dramatic.

The character of Tiffany, also called Tiff, was previously seen on season 6 of Skam France as a bully who persecuted the main character, Lola, both at school and on social media. Outside of this characterization, nothing is known about her. It is majorly accepted that Tiff is not a liked character; she rather poses as one of the antagonists of Lola’s arc.

Now you know the details of what happened, in the most objectively possible way. 

Now I’ll speak for myself.

Before I went digging around for people’s reaction, here is what I initially thought of this video.

1) Shock: I thought Skam France was over, so... Big, big shock.

2) Excitement: I hold this web series very close to my heart. It has gotten me through depressive episodes, anxiety attacks, coming out to my best friend. To see this new development? It couldn’t bring me more joy.

3) Curiosity: I recognized Tiff immediately. I was intrigued as to what would happen to her to set off a new season in true Skam Fr fashion. As soon as she started gripping her stomach, I knew she was pregnant and wasn’t aware of it. Big, big surprise here again.

4) Numbness/Overthinking: As I stared at my screen, motionless, my mind went off. What did it mean? How did she not know? Who is the father? Do we know him? Will the baby survive? Where are the other characters? Will Lamifex be present? What? How? When? Why? Who?

5) Disappointment: No, I did not like Tiff one bit in S6. Yes, I sincerely wished for a season on either Jo (ambiguous and funny teenage girl, cis + white), Sekou (seemingly neurodivergent teenage boy, cis + black), and my favorite, Max (mysterious and grave teenage boy, trans + white) So why Tiff? It felt to me like a missed opportunity, but I did not lose hope.

So, these were the five stages of my emotional process. And then I made the terrible mistake to go look for the fans’ reaction. I didn’t even look at the YT comments, I didn’t go on Instagram, I went directly here on Tumblr. Why? I’m still asking myself that. From S1 to S6 of Skam Fr, I kept my love for the show to myself and only looked at ig and video edits. I tried once, and only once, to look it up on Tumblr, and was greeted by fervent agressivity, disrespect and hate. Why did I ever forget that after watching the S7 teaser? I still don’t know.

The reactions on this platform were wild. People are furious (I get that). People are disappointed (I get that). People are anxious (I get that). People are also verbally agressive, insensitive, hateful, disrespectful and bullies. I don’t get that.

Comments along the lines of “What she gonna do with a fucking baby?”, “Are we gonna watch the baby do nothing all fucking season?”, “Wowwww, teenage pregnancy, so new and relatable!” (note the sarcasm made in the comment here), “Who gives a shit about Tiff?”, etc. 

And then all the mistakes Skam Fr ever made flooded back onto the feed. The wlw misrepresentation, the whitewashing, the overdramatization, the dubious sex scenes between minors, all of it.

Let’s take a break here. Do I condone these mistakes? Nope. Am I a white-bully apologist? Nope. Did I forget every horrible action Tiff has made in the past? Nope. She manipulated a whole school against Lola, she profited from Lola’s mother’s death, she bullied her, harrassed her, pushed her deeper into mental distress. Tiff was a despicable character that I never once liked. The way she was played by the actress made it clear that Tiff was not intended to be a good guy. If I could replace her as the main of S7, I would, in a heartbeat. I’d choose, as I said, Jo, Sekou or Max.

Skam France deeply lacks diversity and made mistakes when attempting to diverse the issues represented. This is not an opinion, it’s a fact. 

Poc representation is very, very low. Only one season has a woc of Islam beliefs as mc (Imane, S4) with poc entourage/family. Only 2 other characters not related to Imane were poc (Sekou and Sarah, S1-S2). These 2 characters were very in the background and served to further the mc’s plotline, they had no real content. (I am not a poc, and so my opinion does not matter here. If you are not poc, your “opinions” don’t matter here, this point is not for you to debate. These are facts.)

While I do not particularly find the wlw representation bad, I do understand how it hurts/bothers other queer women. From my perspective, the bar was very low regarding my expectations of the Lola/Maya pair (none of them died *yay* they had a happy ending *yay* they were not typically overfeminized or overmasculinized *yay* Lola  and Maya were respectful of each other, understood each other, accepted each other with all their flaws and their beauty *yay* I truly believed in their love and it gave me confidence and hope *yay* I ould really go on but this is not my main point so I’ll stop here) Regardless of my opinion on Mayla, I understand that to some queer women, it was bothering/hurtful. (If you are anything other than a woman / wlw, this point is not for you to debate. Keep your “opinions” to yourself, it does not matter here. These are facts.)

Like every remake of the original Skam where the S4 was given to Sana/Imane, the Muslim community was not represented at its best, at its most beautiful and respectfully. The character of Imane, although she is my favorite girl of the series, was not portrayed in a way that respected the majority of the Muslim community. (If you are anything other than Muslim, this point is not for you to debate. Our opinions do not matter here. These are facts.)

And so the same goes for the portrayal of sexual assault and child pronography in S2, of mental illness and homophobia in S3, of disabilities in S5, of addiction, transphobia, self-harm and neurodivergence in S6. Again, if you are not part of these communities, your opinions do not matter on these issues. These are facts that are not up for debate.

In other words, Skam France, as well as the original Skam, Skam Wtfock, Skam España, and probably all the others I haven’t watched in their entirety, are NOT perfect shows. They (maybe) tried their best to portray issues of the younger generations that are ugly, shameful, taboo, hard-to-swallow-pills. Of course they made mistakes. Of course they have to be held accountable. Of course they can and should do better. Of course it must be spoken about.

Here is my problem.

The so-called “fans” shamelessly SHITTING on the WHOLE show because of ONE TEASER TRAILER. (btw, this is where I get angry)

I am not talking about the fans making fun of the show and this season’s premise like “Better MCs than Tiff for S7: a romance between the car that almost hit Lucas S3 and the car that hit Arthur S5, or the school’s nurse, or Imane’s dad, or Elu’s rabbit” (that shit’s funny and I’d watch all of these).Or the joke about Wtfock and Skam Fr shaking hands while signing the same contract to disappoint the fans with white MCs (it’s funny cuz it’s trueeeee).

I am not talking about the fans criticizing the producers’ choice of Tiff as MC. There is a difference between shitting on issues and adressing/discussing them. I WANT to talk about how this season’s issue would have been so much better if a woc, specifically a black woman, had been the MC, because black women and doctors are a whole different level of issue than white women and doctors. Add on top of that an unplanned teenage pregnancy? It would have been IMMACULATE. I WANT to talk which wlw couple was better represented, Mayla or Croana/Crisana, and why is that. I WANT to talk about disabilities in black and poc communities. I WANT to talk about headcanons, AUs, to rectify the missed marks. I WANT to talk about our takes on seasons about Max, Sekou and Jo, instead of Tiff’s.

I DO NOT WANT TO TALK ABOUT YOUR SHITTY, NEGATIVE, UNHELPFUL, HURTFUL COMMENTS.

Just because the protagonist is white, doesn’t give you ANY right to dismiss the issue that is unplanned teenage pregnancy. This is a problem that affects countries WORLDWIDE. Do you know how many deaths are related to minors giving birth? Do you know how many babies die at birth from these pregnancies? Do you have any idea the trauma it puts you through, to go into labor without even knowing you were pregnant in the first place, and then giving birth, and then having to care for a defensless human being? The dilemma of keeping it, or giving it away? The fear that lives in every person able to give birth, that one day they’ll become pregnant, because society turns sych a shameful look to that? No matter your ethnicity, your gender identity, your sexuality, your political stance or whatever shit you bring up to justify your disgraceful and downright degrading comments, YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO SAY THAT A MINOR GIVING BIRTH IS NOT AN ISSUE. 

You think the topic has been covered plenty before? Yeah, because shows like “16 and pregnant” and “I Didn’t Know I Was Pregnant!” are such good examples and show the reality with such an objective point of view! 

Bullshit. Teenage pregnancy is still a taboo, it still kills, and people are still morons about it. 

“Well I guess everybody is secretly pregnant now!” No, Jessica, but you wouldn’t know about it, would you? Because I wouldn’t tell you shit if you were my “friend” and I was going through it. The whole message of all the Skams is not that it presents super relatable issues of teenagers, although it is a big topic of the show. They present some issues that affect the youth in an authentic light, but that’s not it.

Tous les gens que tu rencontres mènent un combat dont tu ignores tout. 

Sois indulgente. Toujours. x x x

//

Everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about.

Be kind. Always. x x x

THAT’S THE MESSAGE. THAT’S THE WHOLE POINT OF THE SHOW.

And you all missed it.

All of you making dead baby jokes and death threats, degrading people who give birth, shaming teenagers for their pregnancies... Listen to yourselves.

“Well she deserves it, she was such a bitch!” No, Michael, you shit stick. Let’s rewind a bit for you, yeah? It was a GOD DAMN TEASER. We literally know nothing! Nothing at all! Why are y’all getting mad when we saw 3:25 minutes representing a whole ass season! Listen to yourselves. Y’all judge so fast for people pretending to love Skam and its authenticity and its motto.

You say Tiff is irredeemable?

Emma cheated on her boyfriend.

Manon lied and manipulated her friends.

Lucas was homophobic and prejudiced agaisnt mentally ill people.

Imane was homophobic too and went behind her friends’ back to get what she wanted.

Arthur cheated on his girlfriend too.

Lola dragged Elliot down with her in her addiction, lied, was verbally abusive, etc.

ALL THE MAINS ARE PROBLEMATIC.

Any guess why?

BECAUSE THEY ARE TEENAGERS. THEY ARE STILL GROWING AND LEARNING.

Yet we still loved them all. 

So don’t you dare tell me that Tiff deserves this, that her baby deserves to die, that teenage motherhood is irrelevant. Motherhood is not a curse in the first place, nor is it something to wish to inflict upon anyone. Motherhood is different for every single person and nobody except the person living with it can have an opinion on that. We don’t even know if the baby survived, for God’s sake!

There is no excuse for this kind of behavior..

It makes me so angry. Women are discriminated against in a fandom I thought was safe, again and again and again. 

I have to stop here because, well, this is just too much. There is much wrong with Skam (the original AND all the remakes), but there is even more wrong with the fans. I’m done.

You don’t support the show anymore? Fine, then don’t watch it! If I really am wrong, the number of viewers will go down and the show will die, just like you wished. There is no need to be vicious about it. 

I hope y’all are proud of your misogyny. 

Sincerely,

Adler.

[wannaliveattheholidayinn]

Alright, now that I've been given a few hours to stew and think and cry and have several breakdowns over the cancellation,,, let's talk about how I found this show, my relationship to it, and why I love this show

Anyone who's interacted with me in this fandom, be it over tumblr or in the discord know I started watching because my dance teacher was an extra in the Help! scene (bc I never shut the fuck up about it). But it did start a little earlier.

I had seen a few ads, on NBC and on YouTube. I thought it looked interesting, but I was in sophomore year, having breakdowns just about every other day, the homework was hard, and there were also reports of the virus. At the time it seemed so far away, but I had a feeling it would arrive soon. So it didn't seem like something I could add to my plate. I thought it would simply become another Good Girls to me (aka a show I really wanted to watch, and still kinda do, but I never really got around to it.) So, watching it kind of fell to the back of my mind. And then... that fateful day.

It was a big deal when the teacher would put on the TV in the main studio. It didn't happen often, and when it did, it always had to do with dance in some way. But my teacher was on YouTube and googling Zoey's. We sat down, I even grabbed my glasses so I could see what we were watching. We picked up at the ladies singing "Whatta Man" which the owner of my studio was howling at. I'm lucky enough that two of my teachers have been involved in Smuin Ballet in San Francisco, one still currently in the company (although she just had a baby and... y'know professional dance is hard in the pandemic.) I'm also lucky enough to have met another former Smuin dancer who was also an extra in the Help! scene. So, my teacher pointed himself and the other former Smuin dancer out, funnily enough, they were similarly dressed. So, the scene ended and we went on with our class. I went home and put on the first episode.

And then... well we all know what happened next. The US went into lockdown, and there wasn't much to do.

And yeah, I had school. I went into the two five pm history classes I had, I still had homework,,, but other than those two history classes and the occasion english class there was nothing... dance had stopped, homework, class, and the workload changed. Suddenly, I was left with a lot of free time. So, continued to watch Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist. For a while, it was Killing Eve and Zoey's Playlist, but then that went away, and it was just Zoey.

(also, yes, I'm aware this isn't linear and in chronological order, but give me a break, my memory is already shit and this pandemic just made it worse.)

In April, I wrote my first fanfiction for the show. It was this small, little piece of fluff that showed a future Zimon and their four kids (four kids, Jesus Christ, what was I onnnnnn). It's already outdated bc of my use of Eddie and not Perry but I still hold it very dear to my heart. It was posted on ao3 on Jun 13, 2020, and was my first fanfic on the site. I've posted more since then, but it's still overwhelmingly zep there, and I currently have two ongoing fanfics. My goal is to become that person in the zep fandom who is known for her works where people perceive Zimon's relationship, in a funny but wrong way (and when I say people, I (mostly) mean Tobin.)

I love Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist. It's made me laugh, made me cry, made me sing along with it, and made me actually fully enter a fandom. I've considered myself in fandom long before Zoey's, but Zoey's actually had me interacting with others. It's technically not my first fandom. I'd say that was Mighty Med, all the way back in sixth grade. But it's the first where I've actively interacted with others and even made an acquaintance (Isabella ily 💗).

Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist had moments that made it hard for me to love it the way I do. There have been some bad writing decisions. I personally don't ship cl*arkeman, even though it's clear they are endgame.

But, I still love it. It was a coping mechanism in a hard time, and I love that it helped me. And I know it helped others as well.

I know not everyone is going to understand my comparison to Cloak and Dagger. They are vastly different shows. But the cancellation... that's what gets me the most about both. They were both canceled in a way where the fandom was going to feel like crap. Both were canceled after two seasons when they had more story to tell. It was done quietly, and there was backlash. Different programs eyed them. The difference is we don't know how this one will end yet. Cloak and Dagger was canceled, and I'll never be the same. I'll never truly be over it. And while I know I'm not in the right headspace to process this cancellation, I think I may be able to find a way. It'll be really, really fucking hard. But I'm slowly getting there with Anne with an E, and I think I could with Zoey's. It was an incredible show while it lasted, and if it's its time to go... I'm glad for the time I had with it and will help keep it going along with others in the fandom. All that being said...

Save Zoey's Playlist

Start petitions (ig, idrk how change.org works), keep it trending on Twitter, let NBC know it made a mistake, and let other streaming services know we're interested in seeing the show go on. It deserves a clean resolution that's not a cliffhanger. Just let these characters be happy in the end.

This doesn't have to be another Cloak and Dagger, or Timeless, or whatever show anyone has felt never got a proper chance to tell its story and end in a satisfying way. It can be another Brooklyn Nine-Nine, or Lucifer, or Friday Night Lights (me, side-eyeing NBC for that one). This doesn't have to be the end. And maybe I'm too late to writing this, maybe it's not trending anymore and it won't trend again, and it won't get picked up. But at least we can say we tried.

This was long as fuck to write, and I could've put that time towards... idk homework ig, or writing the fanfiction I just started, or any of my ongoing two. But it felt it necessary to write this. I don't know why, maybe I just needed to get this shit off my chest. If no one in the fandom reads this... eh, I really can't blame you, it's long as all fuck.

If you did, and you got this far, I love you, I love this fandom, I don't regret my time here, and I hope you don't either. It means the world to me that you read this.

I love you all, and I'll shut up now 💖💗💖💗

[doomedandstoned]

Three Beginner Tips for Writing Advertising Copy

~Bacon's Blog~

Photograph by Randy J Byrd

Understanding how to write good ad copy is one of the most important things that you can do as someone trying to create ads. After all, if the text on the ad isn’t good then why are you running the ad in the first place? You want people to be engaged and you want them to understand what you are trying to sell.

To break this all down, I'm going to talk about how to immediately appeal to your audience, ways to keep people reading, and of course how to create with the fan -- your end goal in mind. Once you start to do this the sales start to come. All you need to do is explain to get people engaging with you.

3. How To Immediately Appeal To People

So how do you instantly appeal to people with your advertising? Well you call them out for what they are, of course! What do I mean by this? Well, if you’re targeting black metal people in Paris then why not start by writing, "Paris Black Metallers!" Then they know they are being catered to.

Furthermore, you are going to win the hearts of your fans by marketing to them in their own language. This is especially relevant for Europeans. Even in the US you can win people over by targeting them using regionalisms and making reference to things that make the region special. This is a great way to get people to buy-in using local pride, showing you genuinely care and want to be a part of your community.

2. Ways To Keep People Reading

So now that you’ve got people's attention, how do you get them to read the full ad? First and foremost, you want to keep your sentences short. In fact, having a short first sentence is the key to getting the momentum going. If you can make each sentence easy to digest you will achieve what is called the "slide effect." Your reader will be reading and reading and then suddenly have found themselves having read the whole ad!

What's more, you want to make sure that your texts are mobile friendly. What this means is on your main text before the "See More" break on an ad should be 120 characters or less. Your headline copy should be 40 characters or less. What I like to do is set up my main texts like this:

Main text:

(Main text ad copy 120 characters or less)

Pre-order now!

(LINK)

1. Creating With The Fan In Mind

Remember when you are writing ads, as with anything else, you need to be creating them with the fan in mind. This means that the overall mood you set with the ad needs to be one that is appropriate for that fanbase. This is not as tricky as I just made it sound.

What it means is that if you are playing art doom you want to use more grandiose language. If you’re playing garage rock maybe you get a more casual approach. You’ve got to think, what is the vibe you want to be giving off? This is the atmosphere you have to build. The challenge is building it with so few characters!

There are many other layers to copywriting, but this is the starting point that I think will help anyone trying to run effective and compelling ads. Remember, as long as you are creating copy that appeals, keeps people reading, and is created with the fan in mind then people are going to enjoy your ads and engage with them -- meaning you get data and sales!

Matt Bacon (IG: mattbacon666) with Dropout Media is a consultant, A&R man, and journalist specializing in the world of heavy metal. You can read other articles in the series by clicking the "Bacon's Blog" hashtag below. Matt can also be heard on the Dumb & Dumbest podcast, which he co-hosts with Curtis Dewar of Dewar PR.

[ogbellarke]

(i took this from @ vesselofink on ig)

this was supposed to be a 'work on your wip and answer a question a day' type thing, but we'll instead use these questions to distract us from our wips!

1. what is your current word count? around 34k

2. what’s the basic summary of your wip? a girl discovers she’s an enhanced human after her father is murdered so she joins a secret group that is after those who killed her father and who plan kill more like her.

3. what is your title? calling the cavalry :)

4. who’s your favourite character? how are they introduced? my favs are the core five lol they’re all written to be likeable. and they’re all introduced in the first three chapters.

5. your favourite ship in your wip? the romantic subplot and the secret couple, don’t wanna spoil lol

6. what’s the biggest mistake your mc has ever made? i’m actually not sure yet, i’m not too deep in backstories yet but she’s an icon in the present

7. what/who inspired you to write? my very first work was inspired by a dream that wouldn’t leave me alone. but for this work, it was actually that taylor lautner movie where he finds out his parents aren’t his real parents and he has to go on the run with lily collins from a bad organization lol

8. most underrated character? her name is noa cantillo and if i ever publish, she’ll be considered the most underrated, i’m sure of it.

9. favourite lines? with or without context. “we still have too much life to live.” “even drunk you talk like a scientist.” “don’t think this means anything.” “i like jello.” “don’t tell me i’m going soft again just because i’m proud of you.”

10. create a moodboard/aesthetic for your mc. first one for my main, savannah and second one for the wip itself

11. what is your mc’s fondest moment? when she graduated and walked across the stage as her dad whistled and clapped louder than anyone with the biggest smile on his face.

12. songs that remind you of your wip and/or favourite characters? young god by halsey, somewhere only we know by keane, nothing’s gonna hurt you baby by cigarettes after sex

13. do you enjoy torturing your characters? lol no omg but sometimes it’s necessary.

14. what is your mc most afraid of? oblivion, disappointing her dad, failure to bring an end to the bad guys

15. secret talents of your characters? with the enhanced beings that most of them are, they have a faster metabolism, super speed and strength, skin pliability, and quicker regeneration. but idk about like legit secret talents yet

16. if your book had the opportunity to be turned into a media, would you take it? who would be casted as who? oh fuck yes omg that’s what’s keeping me going--the possibilty of a movie. and laurel thoma, xavier serrano, marina laswick, tessa thompson, and michael b jordan are my core 5 face claims so

17. what are some basic moral and general beliefs your mc has? she’s an atheist, first of all. she believes in second chances. she has a real good moral compass and always fights for what’s right and for those who cannot protect themselves

18. how did your characterws find out the tooth fairy doesn’t exist? savannah found out at 14 when her dad decided she was old enough. kit was a foster kid so he never got that experience. same with tate. heidi woke up to her mom putting a loonie under her pillow at 9 and was traumatized. and grey decided at 5 that he was too old for that ‘baby stuff’.

19. which character of yours has the best name? oooo, i love my main girl savannah natalia moreno (fun fact her first name was orginally natalia but 20k words in i decided i liked savannah better.) but arlington samuel reed and beckett alfred greystone are also winners lol

20. who is your least favourite oc? the villain lol gotta read to know who that is

21. teaser! post a snippet of your wip. here’s a three paragraph entry to learn how no-bullshit my main sav is :)

Grey turned to her, standing up straight with his arms crossed. If Sav were honest with herself, she’d admit the guy kind of scared her. “Excuse me,” he began with a low voice, “I'd like to advise you to watch your tone.” 

She understood how vital Grey was here, but he was no authority figure of hers, and ever since she was little, her father taught her not to let people walk all over her. She was emotional, and she spoke her mind when she got upset. 

“Excuse me, but I saw my father killed in front of my own eyes, I was chased from my home in freaking sweatpants, shot at, picked up by strangers, shot at some more, and now I'm told I’m being targeted by some secret organization that's been out to kill me since birth! I think I'm entitled to a bit of leeway right now, don't you?”

22. what are some representations your wip has? (gender, lgbt, poc, disabilities, etc) of the 12 main characters, 6 of them are women, 9 of them are lgbtq+, 8 of them are poc, and as for disabilities--there’s a character with half-deafness, one with a prosthetic arm, and another with a prosthetic leg. also the main character has ptsd.

23. is your wip a stadnalone or part of a series? honestly, it could be a series if i got my shit together. i’ve written two endings already, one of which closes it completely, the other opens it to a sequel so we’ll see

24. which character goes through the biggest change throughout the story? def the main girl. she starts out as a regular college student and ends so strong and powerful.

25. who knows about your wip or interest in writing? do they help/support you? only my fam and a few friends know about my writing at all, but as for this book, my girl @harpermiller who i love very much lets me rant and send snippets and ask questions all the time

26. annoying habits your characters have? heidi is a know it all, kit is almost annoyingly loving, tate is real closed off and even those closest to her don’t know much about her, grey doesn’t let his emotions show which makes it hard for people to help him.

27. what’s the last three lines you wrote for your wip? with or without context. no context!

Sav supposed this was their now or never moment. She knew she loved Kit Torres--she just didn't know in what way. Sometimes it felt completely platonic, other times Kit would give her a look that grew butterflies in her stomach.

28. are any characters based off people you know in real life through looks, personality, or habits? i suppose tate is kind of like a side of me no one knows. and kit gives me grant ward vibes sometimes. but other than that, no.

29. what’s a ship that could never happen in your wip? who and why? almost anyone with grey because he’s their leader and mentor. 

30. what’s your goal word count? like 60-100k honestly i just wanna finish it lol

tag 5 peeps to keep it going. pick a wip and get crackin: @nillle @harpermiller @trashy-greyjoy @biondebeauties @holy-captain

[unproduciblesmackdown]

weird to think back on things like the funky experience of being The All A’s/B’s gang and then The All A’s person during middle school and the Smart Kid designation cuz we all have a godawful time within the k-12 education system and also in Higher Education / academia as well and the setup isn’t like, good for anyone though natch between the “lack of attention / occasional positive attention” and “frequent / negative attention” ends of the experience the former is preferable; apparently weird to have been Good Student passing b/c again idk i have good retention and could memorize shit in homeroom for a quiz that day and that was great b/c actually i had godawful / nonexistent study habits and actually basically hated school and did anything last minute and all but like whatever, i could figure out / understand and remember shit more efficiently / faster than usual so like, idk, i’d get wild results ig. and anyways yeah Smart Kid throughout all of k-12 but like, although i don’t think i’m Not smart in any way, it’s like, but no i hated school and never really tried, that inferred correlation wasn’t there but like also there’s the weird Presumed Identity for you. and it Was weird b/c idk i was like, okay? “perpetually nebulous / imprecise / uncertain sense of identity” gang out here and i’m like hmm okay Am i “the good grades getter?” and then apparently you are cuz like welp that’s the Expectation, and also in my case i was also in the “oops let’s minimize ptsd party” gang of Gotta Get As/Bs motivation..............the point is like, it’s funny how despite that concept of what The A’s Getter is, by now i’m like oh but that’s not even like, my Main Thing, much less my Whole thing. my main thing is that i get wildly interested and passionate about stuff and when i’m really about shit i’m So about it and into it and all that yknow. and it’s like, would be cool if i hadn’t had to like, first fight past this arbitrary Assigned Box to even start to figure out what i’m Really like. but Schools aren’t out here about like allowing for people to be varied individuals and shit. plus, weirdly i’m not sure if i hadn’t had that “Positive” Label to supplant any others that my autistic ass would’ve been largely left alone as much as it generally was............even I didn’t get through middle school w/o some light bullying peppered in there but hey for the most part i got by. and like, i remember 15 was a time for a wild Agonizing Spike cuz that was the point i was having to try to settle on a college major and i was like bitch i don’t know!!! for starters how is every 19 / 20 y.o supposed to know!!! but like litchrelly a year and a half ago my ass was in middle school and barely had any opportunities to individually choose what to pursue, and even if i Had an interest i would sometimes assume if it didn’t seem like The Smart Kid choice i would just assume that like, my interest would only be Allowed to go so far. so yeah i’m 14-15 for the first time having a little breathing room and allowed to pick out my own shit and investigate various stuff (cuz of the luck of getting to live on campus aka parents are Not around and i can be around for more than just Classes) and yet like, that wasn’t enough time to suddenly Fully Realize The Whole Of My Own Identity And What My Actual Passions And Life Goals And Etc Are. plus i kinda remember that i figured i’d flunk out and so was kinda Not spending freshman year expecting to actually be able to do this college thing.....so yeah i always distinctly remember the Stress of sophomore year with this Timer counting down of “gotta declare a major oh god” and trying somehow to Realize What I’m Even Like (i did partially lmao outside of the Academic aspect of it) and obviously like, that’s a Lot.......................plus it was kind of doomed anyways cuz i do remember that when i even mentioned the fact of like “hey what if i majored in ______ [cuz i’m evidently actually like thinking social issues are what i’m thinking i could dedicate my attention to, i’m 15 idk trying to figure this shit out]” and it got immediately brushed off cuz of my mom’s assumptions about what i was like based on my being Smart(tm) and my not wanting to tell my parents about anything Actually about myself by that point so that was like..........well cool to know that that’s not an option for me anymore thanks to immediate dismissal........................like i totally remember that by sophomore year i was def Swiss Idol and “i don’t have a clue what to major in” was a big part of that 9_9...............and like, doing college early is kinda crazy but also Not having high school to mayyyybe figure things out for a bit before hurtling towards Declare Major at 92384 mph is like, would it have helped? who can say. but for example, i know Now i’m a theatre gay, and the limited number of friends-ish i made at college was basically all theatre gays what a surprise, but i myself didn’t ever touch that because i had No direct experience with it, because middle school didn’t have that extracurricular, and then being dropped into hs with people who did? i was like fuck i’m not auditioning for shit i really don’t know how to do. i’m not even Supposed To Be Here goddamn!! i can karaoke avpm in the first floor lounge that’s IT!! fuckin r.i.p. but i mean also i Know high school is it’s own fuckin mess that’s hardly like “flourish as individuals!!” all a sudden. like how i don’t know if i’d’ve been “solid B’s” gang if i would’ve had more room to just figure out my own shit earlier, or if things would’ve been even More miserable cuz of my replacement Type being something more frowned upon cuz weird loser was def waiting in the wings............and then of course Smart Kid expectation constraints wasn’t hardly the only issue in holding back that “oh wait but what am i like *Actually*” process cuz if i was in high school i would’ve been around my parents every day and That was just as much if not more a hindrance in figuring myself out. like going to college may have been useful in that yes i did learn shit but if nothing else i am glad for it b/c the strides i made in “god damn i have to get away from these people (my parents lmfao)” and knowing at least that i’m not Like what THEY thought i was like was E ssen tial Knowledge..........but anyhow like the point of looking back on this shit isn’t to figure out How To Have Run The Perfect Course cuz obviously what’s the point in imagining as broad a what-if, but it’s good for Understanding shit currently..........like oh yeah this crap probably Affected me!! and you gotta know the history to understand the present...............it’s just really wild how like, Passion and (rarely activated) Energy And Intense Interest is like, what i consider my Thing now, and that was like. not what i ever heard anyone else tell me that’s what i’m Like, like, ever basically. i mean not that i don’t think i’m Not smart. it’s just like, not my whole thing and it just kinda feels more incidental, right. What If the whole time i’d been able to pursue whatever i felt like is a wiiiiiiiild question i don’t even know. there’s been so Little of that that’s its absolutely off the shits to be able to put together “oh right i’ve been a theatre gay all along” and “actually i Have performed on stage a decent number of times and supremely thrived in those experiences and i Know i was interested cuz i wished like (@ my family: dni)” and have this very simple (and thus far unusable) Knowledge about something i actually like and am interested in, cuz for the most part it’s [??? ?? ? ?? ???]

on a shorter but related note: the Camaraderie i feel with everyone in the “either has or wants to or would even seriously consider Cutting Ties with parent/s" gang and like, always very Interested in the various experiences within this v broad category. cuz there are so many factors playing into Why you’re in this group and then there’s so many factors in regards to whether someone actually feels able to ditch a ‘rent or two, and then beyond that, all the factors in whether someone’s actually able to............like, knowing that it’s never “lucky” to have to be in this group in the first place, i fairly am Lucky about it in many ways cuz, first of all, lucky to have been able to actually execute [eff off from parents] maneuver, and lucky to get to Know that’s what i totally needed to do........we are all Valide in how we try to deal with relations w/ parents that are so bad you even have to think about “maybe i have to Not Have This Person In My Life At All” and like, when people are dealing with that but Don’t feel they have the option to truly cut that parent or two out of their life, that’s like, well as someone who once felt that way and can Empathize and yet also had these Factors Line Up which let me peace out which aren’t factors that are in play for everyone (as well as a lack of other factors which Are relevant for others and which might mean Leaving Behind Parent/s 5eva isn’t an option they’d consider) it’s like Oh wow, let me hear more about that experience. tldr the camaraderie

oh and ps. it’s funny how like, in my post-being-in-school life, i thiiiiiiiink people usually probably assume i’m Kinda Dumb if anything. cuz the Grades don’t exist anymore but i’m still autistic!!!!! which is another wild factor in thinking about like “well what if [some aspect of my life] had been entirely different, hmmm” cuz it’s like. well i’d’ve still been autistic lmao..............the Social shit has like, been an issue even before the other usual shit in school cuz i Knew i wasn’t fitting in at preschool when all we were doing was like, learning colors and going outside. and it always was a bit distressing to me Never really having more than a couple friends and even then not that close or anything, right? and also how i’d try to Fix this with various strategies and trying out different situations like “oh well i’m not putting myself out there i’ll put myself out there” [tries it and it half-backfires] or “well if i’m spending a weekend with people who know me from Online they’re gonna like me for sure” [majority of ppl in a sub Friend Group i’m peripheral to and i’m intermittently stressed the whole time] “Ah Fuck” lmao and honestly only recently am i like oh right..............when you’re autistic socializing just in a very fundamental way is really like That*.................(*a way i can’t easily explain lmao)............like really just in mad recent times kind of realizing like, oh, okay, i don’t think i can ever Adjust My Approach and just suddenly become good at Easily Makes Friends and that kind of shit..............finally just kinda realizing like ohh right okay i really just do Not do “normal good conversation” like you’re supposed to and that’s just chill The Way It Is not necessarily “not good enough at it” way but It Just Is Different way like........yeah it can be Not Pointless to try to modify your social approach and that’s true for absolutely anyone, but like say, if i’m like oh if i simply get Better at [social interaction task] i will then finally be Good at it, it’s like, shit well that’s honestly just not how it works for me. like, #getting how after a point it’s like “okay learning to do [task] in a way that’s more [like this] is maybe gonna be better for Masking / seeming allistic but like, not for Actually giving me a social experience that’s more fulfilling for Me.” Plus, it’s like, i’m also way more (or okay at least As Much) socially limited by external factors, probably. 

pps oh and also, tangentially related b/c Autistique, it’s wild how every time you delve into (something At All specific about autism) you’ll probably learn something Utterly new about autism which is like god damn this isn’t That niche why haven’t i heard this!! why do i have to know there are 538 other would-be “i should already know this” revelations waiting for me about this topic cuz you have to manage to dig up this stuff on your own and dodge all the unhelpful bullshit types of sites where it’s Not about info from people / for people who are autistic? please. it’s almost like this is a constant and important part of my identity that affects p much every aspect of my life and is helpful to hear others’ info about the collective experience of it b/c like, it’s literally all in your own head and you can’t just somehow Know the ways you’re different in that realm just from emergent traits you can pick up on and figure out. ugh!!!! anyways

this is LONG but NO readmore b/c eh. who am i if not [i hope everyone hates my blog this week.jpg] every week

[2spry]

Ozark Foothills 50k Race Recap

Oh man… so I don’t even know where to start. I guess at the beginning. This was my first race back since I broke my foot, 1 year to the day actually. I still can’t believe it worked out that way. I was looking at races that were easy to travel to, and that were loop courses. I wanted a looped course in case my foot said “nope” and I needed to hop off course easily. I signed up for this race only 5 weeks out! I had had a year of major ups and downs, with multiple attempts at upping mileage with no avail. Every time I tried to increase or even add in a little speed work or hill training, my foot would blow up. When I say blow up, the pain would be bad enough to cause me to limp. It wasn’t until really February where I was not having much pain anymore. I hit, on average, in the 60-70 mile range for Jan and Feb, with 116 miles total in March. I also had only 2 speed work sessions (they were easier ones). So I signed up with the goal of only using this as a training run, to make sure my foot could handle the distance. If it did, I was going to pick a longer race next and really train for it! I was extremely nervous because having your foot snap during a race is very scary and the pain is something you never forget. I have had to work hard on my mind this past year because the fear was really taking over. The mind is so powerful. Working hard on mental training has been a huge help for me. That is one of my weaknesses.

The day before the race was crazy!!! I thought I really had everything lined up, but so many things happened which led to getting off late. It worked out though! This was an Altra sponsored race so I was also going to the packet pickup to help out my local Altra rep Erica, and I was covering the race for Road Runner Sports on their Instagram account. Doing both of these things was incredibly fun for me! I love new experiences! Plus, it got me out of my head!!! They had a screening of The Double, and the speaker was Jeff Browning (aka @GoBroncoBilly). It was chalk full of awesome information. One of the main things I took away from his talk was to slay the negative thoughts of the mind. I know this, but to hear someone so accomplished say that they have to do this all the time, really brought it home to me. The mind is so powerful. Once that was over we headed to the hotel.

We got to the hotel around 8:45ish and headed to the room. So far everything had been rather uneventful. Then the room keys wouldn’t work and we got locked out! Phones were in the room (key worked at first and then just wouldn’t, no idea). Anyway, we finally got everything in and ate dinner around 9:30. While I was eating, I realized, oh my goodness, I forgot to get my race packet!!! LOL!!! I mean who does that!?!? Goes to the race packet pickup and forgets to pickup their race packet!?!? Me apparently. Thank goodness they had race day pickup! Then we realized we forgot the bottom to the electric kettle for coffee in the am. Oh well. The front desk was able to provide it. After all that, I finally headed to sleep close to midnight. And sleep I didn’t.

Up at 3:45 exhausted! However, I did not have a headache or migraine which was HUGE!!! I cannot remember a race where I didn’t have one of those the night before or the day of. (When I ran my 50 miler, I had a migraine from the night before and it didn’t abate for 7 hrs of the race!) Not having a headache gave me such a boost!!! We got there at around 6:15 and it was foggy and dark. I had thought for a moment that it wasn’t going to lift, making a note to bring my headlamp next time just in case. It did finally lift and turned into a gorgeous sunrise!

I was super nervous, freezing (yes me the cold weather runner was freezing lol!), and very thankful once she blew the horn to start. I kept reminding myself that this is a training run, no pressure! I started out very conservative. I was really watching my footing (I did the whole race) and just trying to ease into a steady easy pace. It did take me awhile to warm up, but once I got going I felt pretty good! I would say after the 5th mile I felt like I was getting in a groove, getting more comfortable with the terrain, but I could feel my lack of training then too. Just the amount of vert and all the rocks and roots that I am not used to. My quads and ankles let me know that really quick, but I told my mind to shut it, slayed those negative thoughts, and told myself to just enjoy this! (There was 3,800 ft of ascent so lots of hills) I started to look around at the beauty of where I was and just got really emotional. Here I was running, in a gorgeous area, on trails, in an ultra, healthy. What a blessing!!! That gave me a boost and I started to pick up the pace. I think this was around mile 10-12. I started to pass people, but I had no idea what race they were running. You are on the course with 25k, 50k, and 50 mile runners.

Coming through the half, I felt really good! I really was ultra conservative with my footing and therefore hadn’t fallen yet. My upper body felt really good, and I know a big part of this was because of my new race vest fitting seamlessly. Super important to find one that works for your body! I filled up my water bladder with Ultima Replenisher, and headed out! But then had to run back cuz I forgot my MUIR gels!!! LOL! Made a bathroom pitstop and finally headed out. I had no stomach issues with that combination, it worked well!

The hardest mile for me was 17. My hands started to swell like crazy! I was using salt, so I didn’t know why I was swelling so bad. Still unsure of the cause. They were so swollen that I actually thought I was going to have to cut off my ring. I was feeling a bit more tired, and just kind of worried. I started opening and closing my hands and telling myself it was going to be fine. Then, about a mile or two later, it started to go down a bit and relief washed over me. I began to think about all my friends that can’t run right now and began running miles for them, praying for them and for this race. I started to pick up the pace. Once I started running, I began to catch up to people. It was so spread out at this point that passing was pretty easy. I hit a string of two people and wanted to pass them but I kept thinking, no they are keeping you conservative, you don’t want to blow up you’ve come so far. I was kind of panicking. I felt so good I thought it was a fluke. So I stayed for too long. Finally I told myself what are you doing!?!? Get going! So I asked to pass and took off. I kept passing people. I had someone tell me hey you’re going really fast!!! Are you sure you're feeling ok? (It was getting really hot at this point, 70’s) I said yes I feel great! They cheered me on! Each aid station had amazing volunteers and I cannot tell you how much their cheers help! I continued to try and catch people. I started having water poured into my mouth (I didn’t have a cup) and ice in my fandana to help with the heat. Plain water was tasting so good at that point. I also began grabbing orange slices.

I hit the last aid station feeling great! So much so that I neglected to check my water bladder. It was empty. You might not think that is a big deal, but it really is. In that heat with miles to go, you need it. I let myself have an “uh oh” moment and then moved on. Those last few miles were tough. I felt pretty dehydrated and very nauseous, but I kept pushing. I fell twice because I got a bit sloppy at watching my footing, and then rolled my ankle pretty bad. I noticed that not one person was around me still. I ran alone for a lot of the race. After limping a bit I pressed on and started running, only to hear footsteps behind me coming fast, I moved over and it was Jeff Browning. LOL! He was cruising, but made sure to take the time to tell me to keep pushing! So I did! I ran all the way into the finish! I had no idea if I was even in the top 10, so when I crossed the line and Shalini the RD told me I was 3rd female I was in complete shock!!! It was like a dream.

From one year ago breaking my foot, to now taking 3rd was crazy. It was a huge confidence boost to know that my foot could handle the distance and that I was able to have a podium finish with as little training as I did. I felt so blessed and humbled. A new memory to replace the old. A realization that I can do this! A thankful heart to have been able to run this race and finish. A grateful heart for all of the support and new friends that I made at this event. Thankful to the Lord for the gift of running.

Now that I know I can handle distance again, I am going to find my next race and really train for it. I am so excited and hopeful for the future. I cannot wait to see what happens!!!

Huge thank you to all the volunteers, the RD Shalini, my mother, and all of you who commented and supported me through this journey. Big thank you also to Road Runner Sports, Altra Running, Jaybird Sport, OS1st, Yukon Charlies, and Momentum Jewelry for your awesome support and gear to get me through!

Gear: Altra Running King MT 1.5 and gaiters Road Runner Sports R-Gear Recharge Compression Capri Altra running performance tank Garmin Fenix 5 Os1st Arm Sleeves Injinji trail crew socks Ultimate Direction Race Vesta with bladder not front bottles

Fuel: MUIR energy gels Ultima electrolyte replenisher Salt stick KION essential amino acids

Balm: Squirrel’s Nut Butter

Pic Cred IG accounts: Trail @mile90photo, Finish @alex.fagin

[purplesurveys]

1430

survey by supremequeenstyles

What is something you've learned to never take for granted? My job and how good I have it, at least from an objective standpoint - from the pay, the people I work with, the skills I get to be exposed to and learn, how relevant it is to my interests, etc. And even the fact that I got to score it during the height of the pandemic. The biggest downside to it all (and what matters the most at this point) is how mentally beat down and burned out I already am – I’d leave in a heartbeat if I’m allowed to be reckless, but I also don’t take this opportunity for granted so I’m still here.

Is there a specific goal you're currently working toward? I already achieved my last goal, which was to get a promotion...so I’m actually currently in the middle of a sort of slump when it comes to goals. Maybe this survey is trying to tell me that my next goal is to actually leave my job already and to find something even more tailored to my passion hahaha. Why are you giving me a career crisis at 12 PM, survey?

Tell me about something significant that happened to you in the past year. I’d say getting into BTS back in April was pretty fucking significant and life-changing. And it goes so much beyond being a fan and finding a new interest to submerge myself in and finding friends who like them too – they were a huge, if not the main, stepping stone that helped me become happy again. At the start of April 2021 I didn’t even plan on being around by the end of the month; but by the end of the month all I wanted was to stick around.

What subjects do you like to read about? History and any essay that talks about experiences that I can heavily relate to.

What is the name of the last book you bought? I don’t really remember.

Is there a grocery store within walking distance of your home? There’s a convenience store in the village that you can walk to if you’re resilient enough and have the time to kill...but I prefer to drive lol. As for a grocery, no – you’ll have to drive out for that.

What kind of jam do you prefer? No jam.

Is there a subject you're interested in learning more about? I always enjoy reading about anthropology and social/cultural history.

If you could change one thing about your home, and money was no issue, what would it be? I’d install a gate in front because we’ve never had one :/ and have a patio built both at the back of the house and at the rooftop.

Do you ever purchase DVDs or blu-rays anymore or do you only stream your entertainment? I have not bought or been bought a DVD in years; we never had a Blu-Ray player. And yep, I only stream stuff these days as I’m sure most people do now.

Are there any (obviously fictional) villains you can't help but love? Gus Fring.

Can you name a villain who you could kind of side with? Walter White.

Would you agree that romantic subplots in fiction are overused and often unnecessary/distract from the main plot? I feel like it varies; some media are definitely able to pull a romantic subplot off, others just obviously throw it in the mix to have some mass appeal. I just happen to be all out of examples off the top of my head at the moment, hahaha.

Or do you prefer your fiction to have some romance? I don’t always look for it unless I’m watching something that’s meant to be a romance or romcom from the get go.

What's something silly that made you smile recently? I watched the episode of 2D1N where they introduced the new member, Inwoo; and I had a good laugh watching him royally fuck up his first-ever mission.

Have you had any good songs on repeat recently? What are they? Left & Right by Seventeen. OH OH and Wait A Minute by Willow Smith is also pretty good.

Where do you get your music? Spotify. Or when I discover a catchy song from TikTok or an IG reel.

What's one of your favorite lines from a film or television series? “It gets easier. Every day it gets a little easier. But you gotta do it every day –that's the hard part. But it does get easier.” from BoJack Horseman.

Do you watch Star Trek? Which one is your favorite? I’ve never seen it.

Can you think of a controversial film you actually enjoyed? Which one was it and what was the controversy? A Clockwork Orange. Uhm...the whole film was a controversy on its own lol but I guess what was most difficult for me to watch had been the Singin’ in the Rain scene. I think I’ve only watched that scene in its entirety once; I’ve skipped it in the other times I’ve watched the movie.

Do you like to have some form of entertainment (movies, shows, youtube) while you eat? Not always; but yeah I will sometimes look for a YouTube channel to watch.

Is there a specific outfit that always makes you feel good about yourself/more confident? Describe it. Any sleeveless top paired with my favorite denim jeans. It’s a casual look, but still able to hug my figure nicely so I like going out with that particular pairing.

How often do you use public transportation? Never. I’ll learn how to commute only when they start fixing the system here.

What color eyes does your significant other (or crush) have? (If applicable.) I don’t have a crush on anyone, at least in my personal life.

Do you ever wish your own eyes were a different color? Nah. Any eye color on an Asian that isn’t dark brown looks unnatural, anyway.

Have you tried any new recipes lately? How did it turn out? I don’t cook.

When was the last time you messed something you were cooking? :))

Are there any recipes that have been passed down to you by family members? I’m sure we have recipes on both sides of the family, they’ve just never been passed down to me in particular because I didn’t get to inherit the cooking genes and can’t be trusted in the kitchen.

Are you craving any specific food right now? Sushi. Always sushi.

Do you need a new pillow? Not really.

Is there a show you keep meaning to finish watching but haven't yet? Our Beloved Summer and Hometown Cha-cha-cha.

Is there a show you keep meaning to START watching but haven't yet? Twenty Five Twenty One.

Do you ever take those silly Buzzfeed quizzes? That’s my extremely last resort when I find myself utterly bored on the internet.

Other than Bzoink, what other fun websites do you visit to unwind? (If any.) You can usually just find me on social media.

The last time you were in a bad mood, what was the reason? Aki waking me up at 2 AM.

How do you calm yourself down when you're angry? Watching or listening to BTS, whichever I’m in the mood for.

If you dye your hair, are you planning to try a new color next time? Yeah I’m definitely due for a new color; my roots are growing quickly as all hell and the top of my head is this awkward mix of black and light brown lol. I’ll go for dark green next time, or whatever the salon people recommend for me.

Do you have a favorite reality show? In The Soop.

Does anything around your home need repairing? The toilet downstairs occasionally gets wonky, so maybe that.

[productivelyfe]

FINAL NARRATIVES

SUBSTANTIVE KNOWLEDGE

I chose the Management career track because I feel it best coordinates with my passion, outlook and natural abilities.   

To this career track I bring the effective management of multiple items (under pressure if applicable). I’m like glue, fusing together the unit from the inside, trusted Senior authorities, and the outside public. I possess the ability to identify and apply the most appropriate solutions. I have an inspirational, developmental and strengthening impact on my kin, as well as, a reaching positivity. I'm capable of motivating, maintaining high morale, and have the ability to win over/shape outlooks. Leader by example, I ensure that everyone prospers. I’m not afraid to assume the burden and responsibility. I desire to serve, with loyalty, the organization, its people, and its missions.

INTELLECTUAL

USAF, Security Forces, Balad AFB, Iraq. Flyaway Security Team. A few of us meet at the office to go to midnight chow. Just as we're leaving, the landline rings in dead silence. The abnormality makes us jump. I walk over, answer. It's another of our team leads, out with his member on a mission, says they were left at an airfield. "What do you mean left!? Where?" "We went in for food, the pilots must have forgotten, we got left here." Running through my mind, "Hostile location. Why, how?" I gathered my sense. "Have your overnight bags and weapons?" "We have everything, but you can’t call me, I can only call you." "Stay on the line." The others are teasing, glad to have not picked up. I drown out the jokes. Only task now- get them home. I fly through contact pages beside the supervisor’s monitor, and computer database for squadrons/titles. I call person after person, until someone with authority to reroute/dispatch planes, confirms a plane en route. They're back by morning. The supervisor arrives routinely at the office. I brief on last night's incident- it's all been taken care of. Through a few long blinks, he smiles of relief. A teammate who witnessed said he "was enthralled by the way” I “expertly handled the situation. There could've been no better Airman to answer that call.”

INTERPERSONAL

Some flight chiefs, thinking they were feathers of a different flock, coordinated days off for themselves, left early, or failed to attend PT with everyone else. If on time to morning briefings, it was either a uniform top unbuttoned, sagging pants, or boots unlaced. Airmen were made to work late, or work posts without rotation, to cover for their absences. Those who confronted the flight chiefs heard sneers like, “Shut up; it’s above your pay grade.” Morale plummeted. Work became affected. The room was filled with threats of making IG complaints (leads to a base-wide investigation by an outer agency). I empathized, but told fellow Airmen the situation didn’t warrant such complaint. Instead, I sent our Senior (flight advisor/manager) an Email informing him of offenses, how bad morale was; but stressed this isn’t IG-level worthy. He spoke with me, asked which flight chiefs, he was already suspicious of one. I confirmed, plus another. He assigned the bad apples to administrative duties to keep an eye on them. A flight-wide anonymous morale/suggestions survey was soon rolled out. A 5-panel board, including myself, was selected to review the answers and brainstorm ideas to implement suggestions. The IG complaint was circumvented, solutions performed, and moral shot up within weeks.

COMMUNICATION

Superiors chose me to lead a security team of 4 Airmen on a humanitarian mission in Pakistan. It called for aid after a flood swept most the country. The surrounding chatter was anxieties about it being, Pakistan. My prior supervisor, and local Iraqi, on separate occasions said, "Dangerous. Idiot move to send you there." "You shouldn’t want. There are terrorists there.” I heard them, but had already begun learning the territories from a map I printed. My newly-found team was also willing/excited. We were medically cleared, met our flight crew, and arrived soon to our temporary base- Islamabad AFB. Aside the runway, we set up tents, receiving bed linens from locals. Delivery of food on pallets began day one. The pilots expressed fear of using their weapons, as they rarely carried. My aim was to stabilize/ gain their confidence in us- their security team. I assumed their burden, "Leave it to us, that’s our job." Before transporting passengers, a pilot said, "Searching them ... suicide vests ... terrified." Again, "Our job." We est. a systematic pat down, tailored to local gender customs. By taking command, maintaining open communication check-ins, and flawless performance, we quickly gained their trust. All enjoyed the beauty that is Pakistan in what was the best exp. of our lives.

MANAGEMENT

I set a personal goal to get my Community College of the Air Force (CCAF) degree before my 6 year enlistment was up. It was going well, then it came time to deploy. I was in the middle of a course, but opted to see how long I could delay having to drop it. I brought my laptop and Verizon USB internet stick to training. It was hoorah!, playing war games during the day, to staying up past everyone to study and submit Anatomy papers at night. I maintained effectiveness throughout the duration of the day, and 2 weeks of main-priority training. I also completed my Anatomy course with an "A." After settling into my deployed location, I signed up for dual courses. Half-way through those, I desired to help and encourage others to pursue their educational self-development. My supervisor approved and said I could call myself the squadron’s “Education Monitor.” I sent out a mass email announcing and creating my position. I became the regular point of contact to approx. 10 Airmen. I counseled them on Tuition Assistance, credit hours in relation to the CCAF, and helped them sign up for classes. I scheduled some for CLEPs, and helped answer any questions/concerns. I maintained contact with the base's Education Office to coordinate products/events they were offering. Later, I achieved my CCAF.

LEADERSHIP

Leadership is a main quality I've demonstrated throughout my life. Of two siblings, I was firstborn. In school, my projects were often kept by teachers to use as the example for next year’s classes. Coaches were amazed by my running talent, and in 8th grade, I ran as an individual competitor in the high school’s cross country meets, and started Varsity my Freshman year. No one in my immediate family was military, but at 17 years old, I made a split-second decision to join the Air Force. In BMT, I achieved Marksman on both the M9 pistol, and M16 rifle, and was 1 of 2 females to graduate my class with “Warhawk” (highest PT standard) status, the other girl being on my flight. Deployed to Iraq, I spent my free time in school, volunteered, and counseled others through the "Education Monitor" position I created. I trained with others to improve their PT scores. I’ve selflessly taken Airmen under my wing and put my whole energy into building them. As a result they’ve gotten selected for special duties, monthly/yearly awards, and have won Airman Below the Zone (pin on rank early). I’ve received various awards/accolades, but I’m not satisfied until I’ve inspired, and had a developmental impact on my circle. Excellent leadership = excellent teamwork to progress the success of the mission.

[wineanddinosaur]

Advanced Cicerone Chris Leguizamon Is Using Beer Education to Make the World a Better Place

It was the two-hour bus ride to and from his previous job at Stone Brewing Co. in Escondido, Calif., that gave Chris Leguizamon time to become one of only two Advanced Cicerones in San Diego. Armed with a collection of beer magazines and books like Randy Mosher’s “Tasting Beer: An Insider’s Guide to the World’s Greatest Drink,” Leguizamon honed his expertise as a craft beer expert, eventually becoming the education program manager at Pure Project, a 1% for the Planet Company and certified carbon and plastic-neutral organization known for ultra-complex and highly sought-after brews. He shares his knowledge with beer drinkers of all levels through an Instagram livestream series under his account @chris.thebeereducator, with a goal of helping San Diego become home to the most Cicerone-certified front-of-house staff anywhere else in the world.

Sharing knowledge comes naturally to Leguizamon. As a former brewery tour guide for six years, as well as a first generation Latino/Hispanic American with a degree in physics and passion for renewable energy, he’s as well versed in discussions about the diversity in beer styles as he is about diversity and social justice. After the #BlackoutTuesday initiative permeated Instagram last June, Leguizamon says he found himself avoiding discussions about beer in order to focus on conversations around equity (and the lack thereof) outside the beer industry.

“I could not fathom educating people about anything that pertains to this fizzy carbonated beverage without addressing real social issues, because that’s what the world is going through,” Leguizamon says. When responding to critics who say breweries should “stick to beer,” he says, “If you just think that life is about beer, you’re missing the point … Beer is made by someone with hands, that’s working, that also has three kids — there’s more to it [than beer].”

With Pure Project’s backing, Leguizamon shifted his educational efforts online. (He calls his employer “the best leadership company I’ve ever seen in my entire life.”) In the following interview, Leguizamon discusses his entry into beer, his upward trajectory, and his desire to empower others to make their own impacts.

Ed. note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

1. How, when, and why did you get into beer?

When I was 15, I was visiting my uncle in Bogota, Colombia. I’d never really had beer besides like, family gatherings when you’re like two years old (laughs). He brought in a mixed 6-pack, sits it right down in the living room, and says, ‘Chris, today we’re gonna drink the products of our country.’ He presented one — Club Colombia, which has won a bunch of awards — and told me to look at the color (yellow, fizzy, straw-like), smell it, and then I tasted it. It was nothing like soda, and I remember thinking, ‘Oh, God, this sucks!’

The second beer was Poker, and it had this attractive amber hue to it. The two didn’t look the same at all, so I tried it and it had this recognizable toast that reminded me of breakfast with my mom, and a touch of caramel. Colombians are attracted to caramel because of our obsession with arequipe. We put that on everything, so right away I thought it was way better than the other one.

At that point, I went down a rabbit hole of: Why does beer taste different? There are cultures behind this. There are centuries of science and art. I began wanting to read, wanting to learn, and indirectly change the stigma of what a Latino or a guy that looks like me is in beer. I’m a brown-skinned kid from one of the poorest cities in the nation (Reading, Pa.) and I want people to have a ‘Oh, holy smokes, this kid knows his stuff!’ type of mentality.

2. So when did you formally enter the beer industry?

In 2014, I worked at a brewpub in Pennsylvania called Chatty Monks, and at that point I was the only non-family member that was on staff; it was just a staff of six, including the three owners. I was this bushy, big-eyed 21-year-old, excited to finally be in craft beer and I would sing praises about flavors, pairings, and there came a point where like the guests were looking at me and they’re like, ‘Dude, it’s just beer. Why do you have so much passion behind this?’ It got to a point where I became an outlier in my own industry-slash-town. So I thought, ‘I’m gonna move to the place I like to vacation, which is San Diego,’ and I did in 2014. I remember thinking, ‘Holy shit, these people get it.’ I worked at Mission Brewery as a tour guide until 2015, moved to Stone Brewing until 2016, and then AleSmith Brewing Company until early 2019.

3. You’ve worked at a few big name breweries in San Diego. But you’ve talked about getting burnt out on the industry after a couple of negative encounters. What kept you in beer?

In 2019, I wanted to leave the beer industry, defeated. I was like, ‘Maybe I could get into bourbon, maybe get into coffee’ … but Kira Bouchard [currently the regional manager at Pure Project], who is my saving grace, was having coffee with me and asked what ‘beer adventures’ I was having. When I told her I was considering leaving the industry altogether, she encouraged me to apply to Pure Project, despite there being no open positions at the time.

Things fell into place: Someone left, I applied. I went through the whole interview process and the rest is history. I went from not wanting to smell a beer or talk about it to signing up for the Advanced Cicerone exam three months later.

4. What was the [Advanced Cicerone] exam study process like?

I studied for five hours a day. I would wake up at 5:30 a.m., put a Jimmy Dean breakfast sandwich in the microwave, and then coffee. I’d just sit there every single morning and by 6 a.m. the books were open. I sacrificed a lot. I’ve missed out on a lot, but that determination kind of got me back into the rhythm.

5. Why is beer education so important to you?

I’m very team-oriented, and I hate when people talk down to beertenders or try to stump them, mainly because of gender. That ticks me off. A lot of people try to stump [female bartenders] and I can’t stand that, so I want to empower everyone to be able to hold their own.

6. After you achieved Advanced Cicerone, how did you start to share your knowledge?

We at Pure Project all push each other to be better, and the way that it evolved was I was homebrewing this BrewDog beer through their DIY Dog program [an annual compilation of open-source homebrew recipes], and I asked Mike Czech [Pure Project director of distribution], ‘What if we do something like this at Pure Project? We’re releasing two new beers every two weeks. What if you announce the title, the ABV, and three important keywords the beertenders can use?’ But Mike tailored it so well; he cut out the fluff. I’m very raw with my ideas and I need someone to edit, and Mike made it happen.

At the same time, Matt [Robar, Pure’s co-founder] saw potential in me because I was a tour guide for so long. He asked me to jump on an IG Live, since we were about to release Hazelsaurus Rex and a barrel-aged sour. It was one of the rawest IG Lives ever, I’d never had the two beers and Winslow [Sawyer, Pure’s head brewer], who is like a foot taller than me, pours the beers and my face lights up. I’m just geeking out. When we cut, they thought I did a pretty good job, so they asked me to do it again the next week. And it went from there!

7. How did that segment on Pure Project’s Instagram transform into what you’re personally doing, and how did it change during Covid-19?

I started a beer account called Chris the Beer Educator, and the first video you find is literally me in the back of my girlfriend’s backyard, laying out the intention of this whole virtual education thing. It was literally just to highlight everyone who got me to the point where I’m at now — never to focus on me; it’s to highlight other people and what they’re doing.

Then Covid hits and I’m sitting there antsy, wanting to keep teaching people about beer. So this spawned off that IG Live that Pure Project had me do for a couple months. I thought if I can convince people to read one of the most fundamental books, which is ‘Tasting Beer,’ then hopefully people will follow along. It made me want to read that book again, and it kind of grew into its own beast.

Weirdly, people have told me I built a brand. I didn’t mean to — I literally just wanted to empower people that were just at home during quarantine, not knowing what the world is gonna look like, to read ‘Tasting Beer’ and show how amazing San Diego beer professionals are. It’s San Diego craft beer in its rawest form.

8. What’s one episode that stands out to you?

When George [Thornton, owner of Home Brewing Company] and I were talking, things were flowing, and we were talking about Black is Beautiful — that was just the most human side of me, and George. There was a lot of frustration with what’s happening in the world, a lot of ‘How can people not just want to listen?’ George and I had that one moment where we both had pain, we both had frustration, and this was the least we could do being beer professionals, just being human, is telling people, ‘Listen, we know that you feel attacked, but just stop yelling back — just listen, learn, read a book about what’s happening. Try to understand people’s perspective that you don’t understand. They’re not part of the same walk as you. Celebrate that diversity as we like to celebrate diversity in beer styles.’

9. Ultimately, what’s your goal in the beer industry?

The main goal of Chris the Beer Educator is to have everyone pass their Certified Cicerone and to get that Level 2. I’ve always, always, always wanted to have people go from Level 1 to Level 2 and say, Chris was that person when everyone else says ‘Just do it yourself,’ he didn’t mind that I messaged him and said, ‘Hey could you clear up this section for me?’

I asked a lot of people for help during the Advanced Cicerone studying, and I got a good amount of ‘nos.’ Then there’s those people that mentored me, and I want to be that person for San Diego, so that we have the most Certified Cicerones, the most [Advanced] Cicerones, and ideally the most Master Cicerones in the nation. Imagine San Diego not just having the most amount of breweries — that’s nice — but the most educated staff anywhere, where everyone’s really on top of their game. Making it both female and male, Latino, person of color, Black, Asian, whatever it may be to diversify. That’s the dream, honestly.

The article Advanced Cicerone Chris Leguizamon Is Using Beer Education to Make the World a Better Place appeared first on VinePair.

source https://vinepair.com/articles/chris-leguizamon-beer-education/

[johnboothus]

Advanced Cicerone Chris Leguizamon Is Using Beer Education to Make the World a Better Place

It was the two-hour bus ride to and from his previous job at Stone Brewing Co. in Escondido, Calif., that gave Chris Leguizamon time to become one of only two Advanced Cicerones in San Diego. Armed with a collection of beer magazines and books like Randy Mosher’s “Tasting Beer: An Insider’s Guide to the World’s Greatest Drink,” Leguizamon honed his expertise as a craft beer expert, eventually becoming the education program manager at Pure Project, a 1% for the Planet Company and certified carbon and plastic-neutral organization known for ultra-complex and highly sought-after brews. He shares his knowledge with beer drinkers of all levels through an Instagram livestream series under his account @chris.thebeereducator, with a goal of helping San Diego become home to the most Cicerone-certified front-of-house staff anywhere else in the world.

Sharing knowledge comes naturally to Leguizamon. As a former brewery tour guide for six years, as well as a first generation Latino/Hispanic American with a degree in physics and passion for renewable energy, he’s as well versed in discussions about the diversity in beer styles as he is about diversity and social justice. After the #BlackoutTuesday initiative permeated Instagram last June, Leguizamon says he found himself avoiding discussions about beer in order to focus on conversations around equity (and the lack thereof) outside the beer industry.

“I could not fathom educating people about anything that pertains to this fizzy carbonated beverage without addressing real social issues, because that’s what the world is going through,” Leguizamon says. When responding to critics who say breweries should “stick to beer,” he says, “If you just think that life is about beer, you’re missing the point … Beer is made by someone with hands, that’s working, that also has three kids — there’s more to it [than beer].”

With Pure Project’s backing, Leguizamon shifted his educational efforts online. (He calls his employer “the best leadership company I’ve ever seen in my entire life.”) In the following interview, Leguizamon discusses his entry into beer, his upward trajectory, and his desire to empower others to make their own impacts.

Ed. note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

1. How, when, and why did you get into beer?

When I was 15, I was visiting my uncle in Bogota, Colombia. I’d never really had beer besides like, family gatherings when you’re like two years old (laughs). He brought in a mixed 6-pack, sits it right down in the living room, and says, ‘Chris, today we’re gonna drink the products of our country.’ He presented one — Club Colombia, which has won a bunch of awards — and told me to look at the color (yellow, fizzy, straw-like), smell it, and then I tasted it. It was nothing like soda, and I remember thinking, ‘Oh, God, this sucks!’

The second beer was Poker, and it had this attractive amber hue to it. The two didn’t look the same at all, so I tried it and it had this recognizable toast that reminded me of breakfast with my mom, and a touch of caramel. Colombians are attracted to caramel because of our obsession with arequipe. We put that on everything, so right away I thought it was way better than the other one.

At that point, I went down a rabbit hole of: Why does beer taste different? There are cultures behind this. There are centuries of science and art. I began wanting to read, wanting to learn, and indirectly change the stigma of what a Latino or a guy that looks like me is in beer. I’m a brown-skinned kid from one of the poorest cities in the nation (Reading, Pa.) and I want people to have a ‘Oh, holy smokes, this kid knows his stuff!’ type of mentality.

2. So when did you formally enter the beer industry?

In 2014, I worked at a brewpub in Pennsylvania called Chatty Monks, and at that point I was the only non-family member that was on staff; it was just a staff of six, including the three owners. I was this bushy, big-eyed 21-year-old, excited to finally be in craft beer and I would sing praises about flavors, pairings, and there came a point where like the guests were looking at me and they’re like, ‘Dude, it’s just beer. Why do you have so much passion behind this?’ It got to a point where I became an outlier in my own industry-slash-town. So I thought, ‘I’m gonna move to the place I like to vacation, which is San Diego,’ and I did in 2014. I remember thinking, ‘Holy shit, these people get it.’ I worked at Mission Brewery as a tour guide until 2015, moved to Stone Brewing until 2016, and then AleSmith Brewing Company until early 2019.

3. You’ve worked at a few big name breweries in San Diego. But you’ve talked about getting burnt out on the industry after a couple of negative encounters. What kept you in beer?

In 2019, I wanted to leave the beer industry, defeated. I was like, ‘Maybe I could get into bourbon, maybe get into coffee’ … but Kira Bouchard [currently the regional manager at Pure Project], who is my saving grace, was having coffee with me and asked what ‘beer adventures’ I was having. When I told her I was considering leaving the industry altogether, she encouraged me to apply to Pure Project, despite there being no open positions at the time.

Things fell into place: Someone left, I applied. I went through the whole interview process and the rest is history. I went from not wanting to smell a beer or talk about it to signing up for the Advanced Cicerone exam three months later.

4. What was the [Advanced Cicerone] exam study process like?

I studied for five hours a day. I would wake up at 5:30 a.m., put a Jimmy Dean breakfast sandwich in the microwave, and then coffee. I’d just sit there every single morning and by 6 a.m. the books were open. I sacrificed a lot. I’ve missed out on a lot, but that determination kind of got me back into the rhythm.

5. Why is beer education so important to you?

I’m very team-oriented, and I hate when people talk down to beertenders or try to stump them, mainly because of gender. That ticks me off. A lot of people try to stump [female bartenders] and I can’t stand that, so I want to empower everyone to be able to hold their own.

6. After you achieved Advanced Cicerone, how did you start to share your knowledge?

We at Pure Project all push each other to be better, and the way that it evolved was I was homebrewing this BrewDog beer through their DIY Dog program [an annual compilation of open-source homebrew recipes], and I asked Mike Czech [Pure Project director of distribution], ‘What if we do something like this at Pure Project? We’re releasing two new beers every two weeks. What if you announce the title, the ABV, and three important keywords the beertenders can use?’ But Mike tailored it so well; he cut out the fluff. I’m very raw with my ideas and I need someone to edit, and Mike made it happen.

At the same time, Matt [Robar, Pure’s co-founder] saw potential in me because I was a tour guide for so long. He asked me to jump on an IG Live, since we were about to release Hazelsaurus Rex and a barrel-aged sour. It was one of the rawest IG Lives ever, I’d never had the two beers and Winslow [Sawyer, Pure’s head brewer], who is like a foot taller than me, pours the beers and my face lights up. I’m just geeking out. When we cut, they thought I did a pretty good job, so they asked me to do it again the next week. And it went from there!

7. How did that segment on Pure Project’s Instagram transform into what you’re personally doing, and how did it change during Covid-19?

I started a beer account called Chris the Beer Educator, and the first video you find is literally me in the back of my girlfriend’s backyard, laying out the intention of this whole virtual education thing. It was literally just to highlight everyone who got me to the point where I’m at now — never to focus on me; it’s to highlight other people and what they’re doing.

Then Covid hits and I’m sitting there antsy, wanting to keep teaching people about beer. So this spawned off that IG Live that Pure Project had me do for a couple months. I thought if I can convince people to read one of the most fundamental books, which is ‘Tasting Beer,’ then hopefully people will follow along. It made me want to read that book again, and it kind of grew into its own beast.

Weirdly, people have told me I built a brand. I didn’t mean to — I literally just wanted to empower people that were just at home during quarantine, not knowing what the world is gonna look like, to read ‘Tasting Beer’ and show how amazing San Diego beer professionals are. It’s San Diego craft beer in its rawest form.

8. What’s one episode that stands out to you?

When George [Thornton, owner of Home Brewing Company] and I were talking, things were flowing, and we were talking about Black is Beautiful — that was just the most human side of me, and George. There was a lot of frustration with what’s happening in the world, a lot of ‘How can people not just want to listen?’ George and I had that one moment where we both had pain, we both had frustration, and this was the least we could do being beer professionals, just being human, is telling people, ‘Listen, we know that you feel attacked, but just stop yelling back — just listen, learn, read a book about what’s happening. Try to understand people’s perspective that you don’t understand. They’re not part of the same walk as you. Celebrate that diversity as we like to celebrate diversity in beer styles.’

9. Ultimately, what’s your goal in the beer industry?

The main goal of Chris the Beer Educator is to have everyone pass their Certified Cicerone and to get that Level 2. I’ve always, always, always wanted to have people go from Level 1 to Level 2 and say, Chris was that person when everyone else says ‘Just do it yourself,’ he didn’t mind that I messaged him and said, ‘Hey could you clear up this section for me?’

I asked a lot of people for help during the Advanced Cicerone studying, and I got a good amount of ‘nos.’ Then there’s those people that mentored me, and I want to be that person for San Diego, so that we have the most Certified Cicerones, the most [Advanced] Cicerones, and ideally the most Master Cicerones in the nation. Imagine San Diego not just having the most amount of breweries — that’s nice — but the most educated staff anywhere, where everyone’s really on top of their game. Making it both female and male, Latino, person of color, Black, Asian, whatever it may be to diversify. That’s the dream, honestly.

The article Advanced Cicerone Chris Leguizamon Is Using Beer Education to Make the World a Better Place appeared first on VinePair.

Via https://vinepair.com/articles/chris-leguizamon-beer-education/

source https://vinology1.weebly.com/blog/advanced-cicerone-chris-leguizamon-is-using-beer-education-to-make-the-world-a-better-place

[notsoivorytower]

This month, we spoke with Ph.D. candidate and Anzaldúing It podcaster Jackie Cáraves. An L.A. native, Jackie talked to us about navigating life and the ivory tower as a QWOC, first-yen college student, and first-gen grad student in the borderlands. She shares her insights on the LGBTQ Latinx Community, impostor syndrome, code-switiching, and QWOC survival. Follow Jackie on IG @getitgirrl and @anzalduingit !

Hey Jackie! Tell us a bit about yourself and your academic journey. What is your field of study and what does your current research focus on?

I grew up in East Hollywood in Los Angeles with a single mother on welfare and two older brothers. My dad left when I was 18 months old and I’ve only seen him a handful of times throughout my life. As a unit, my mom and my older brothers Martin and Rudy are extremely close. We went through a lot together. My brothers really influenced my journey to academia. Martin showed me that it was possible to go to college by attending UC Berkeley after high school. My brother Rudy tried to provide for us by joining a gang, which really made me question why he had to go through that trauma as a necessary part of our racialized poverty. It made me want to understand the systems that put us all in those really difficult situations. When I went to UC Santa Cruz, I was inspired by my feminist studies classes and latino studies classes. In those classes, I learned about intersectionality and about my own family’s experiences in a systemic way. When I read the works of these chicana feminist scholars, I saw myself and I wanted to be just like them. I wanted to create knowledge and bridge academia and community.

I am currently a PhD Candidate in Chicana/o Studies at UCLA. My research focuses on the experiences of Trans and Gender Non Conforming (GNC) Latina/o/xs. My work really aims to highlight the ways in which Trans and GNC Latina/o/xs embody resilience and so my dissertation will mainly focus on family, chosen family, and spirituality as sources of resilience. I was connected to Bamby Salcedo, the president and CEO of Trans Latin@ Coalition, through a friend. After Bamby and I had developed a repoire, Bamby asked me to work in community with Trans Latin@ Coalition to co-produce the first report about health in the Trans Latinx community. Our report, The State of Trans Health, was published by Trans Latin@ Coalition last year and involved surveying 129 members of the Trans Latinx community all over Southern California. Based off of the work that Bamby and I did, I am conducting more in depth interviews with Trans community members about their methods of resilience.

Can you speak to your experiences as a QWOC in academia? You certainly seem to be vocal about attempting to break down the Ivory Tower. What are some obstacles / inequalities / disadvantages you've encountered and how did you deal with them?

For me being a QWOC in academia has come with imposter syndrome. My mom was only able to obtain an elementary school education. I am a first generation college student and a first generation grad student. So, my background only fills me with doubts about whether I can be an academic and a scholar. As I entered the MA and PhD, I became very uncomfortable being in those spaces, often feeling like I didn't belong or that I wasn't supposed to be there because I somehow felt I wasn't qualified to be there. I felt like someone was going to find out I was truly unqualified and kick me out of the program altogether. Even being in a program like Chicana/o Studies where my peers and professors are all People of Color didn't make it easier. Because ultimately academia is still academia and there is a culture of competition and performance that exists.

Academia is isolating, competitive, and based on production. My cohort is the first Chicana/o Studies Cohort at UCLA and I think we are keenly aware that we are the first. Being the first cohort is special because we are really building the culture of our program. We have tried together to build community, mentorship, and support each other. However, building this culture took time, so the first few years were especially difficult. Now, however, I think my main sources of affirmation and validation are my cohort members and my adviser. We are trying to break down, as much as we can, the sense of competitiveness and alienation that academia puts on grad students.

I also want to use academia to do community work. It is really hard to be authentic in a place that is so competitive and so based in what you “produce.” The ways in which I try to break that is through my scholarship and through my teaching.  

You focus on Latin American Studies and have been a big advocate for LGBTQ visibility. Can you tell us more about your goals for implementing your studies within the larger LGBTQ Latinx community?

Being in Chicana/o Studies and Latino Studies, I’ve learned a lot about race, class, and even gender. However, there is a dearth of social science literature that focuses on queer Latinx experiences. We see a lot of that scholarship, specifically chicana lesbian feminist scholarship, be relegated to the humanities. My goal is to bridge the literature and center current Latinx struggles. We have a lot of conversations now about intersectionality but a lot of our conversations have only one or two dimensions and we don’t include queer or trans identities in those conversations. They should. Centering the queer and trans community can help us understand heteronormativity, another structure that oppresses all of us. At least that’s what I want to bring to a university and academic setting.

In terms of the larger Latinx community, I want to use the resources of a university and my own social capital to collect information and make it useful for community members who are trying to empower and elevate themselves. For example, when Bamby and I did this study together last year, we knew what kind of data the study would produce because of our lived experiences. But we wanted to show the results in a printed, digestible way for grassroots organizations to bring to funders, politicians, and community organizers.

After listening to your recently launched podcast, "Anzaldúing It," we knew we had to feature you on Not So Ivory Tower. We appreciate you speaking on your experiences as a QWOC in L.A., touching on issues like being a child of immigrants, welfare, toxic relationships, and self-care. Can you tell us more about this project?

Thank you for listening to the podcast! It brings me so much joy to be talking about the podcast and to be in a place where we are now putting together the 10th episode! The idea of a podcast started with a conversation I was having with my best friend, Angelica Becerra. Earlier this year, I brought up the idea of doing a podcast to Angelica. I suggested it to her because we always come together and have these conversations on our own. What we talk about on the podcast is really how we talk to each other in real life and how we heal and bring joy to our lives. We learn a lot from each other and I just wanted to start recording these moments of our lives that have really felt cleansing and soothing for both of us.

In the podcast we talk about our personal lives, academia, and those things that help us get through: spirituality, astrology, our families (both chosen and not) and food! We never thought that we would have so much interest, but we are so happy and excited that people are listening and that people seem to be taking joy in listening. This podcast is a way for us to stay connected to the world, ourselves, and our community. Especially in times like these, I think we need these brief moments of laughter, love, and honesty, almost as a respite from the news. We are super excited about sharing with you!

In one episode, you talk the roles code-switching and accents play in academia. This seemed like a perfect reflection of Gloria Anzaldúa's writings on performing multiple identities to survive. Can you speak more on your experiences with this?

As I’ve mentioned in the podcast, code switching is something that I have had to learn since I was little. As first generation students, child of immigrants, we learn this from a really early age. We switch from English to Spanish whether we are at school or at home. I also was in very white spaces from middle school and onwards and I learned the different borders I had to cross with my language whether it was with friends, teachers, or at home.

In academia I’ve had to learn a new language. I’ve had to try to find an academic voice that still remains true to who I am. I’ve tried to hold on to the way I speak and not assimilate. I try to keep the way that I speak from growing up in the hood and not try to erase where I come from.

Even though we are talking about language, I’ve also “code-switched” with my gender presentation and with my queerness. Code-switching is often about performance of your different identities and for a long time, I performed femininity because I thought that was what was expected of me. I’ve learned to live more authentically in the last 2 years too in my gender presentation. So in that regard I’m trying not to code-switch in my queerness.

What advice would you give a young QWOC just starting out on her academic journey? Are there any strategies, support systems, or tools that you think would help them navigate academic spaces better?

I would say, find those people that you feel safe with, share with them what you’re going through, and know that you’re going to have to be vulnerable. Community, friends, and family are essential for productivity. Also, don’t look for academia to validate you. It is important to remember that you are not a machine and productivity is not the only marker of your worth. Mental health is a real thing! Go to therapy, ground yourself in spirituality, get the support and help you need. It is important to laugh, love, and heal and try your best to remain true to yourself through this process.

[skoog150-blog]

How Well Is The March For Our Lives Organization Actually Doing? By: Katie Skoog

     The March For Our Lives is a nonprofit, student-led organization that advocates and is in support of gun reform to prevent further recurring gun violence in the United States.  The organization was planned by students David Hogg, Emma González, Cameron Kasky, Jaclyn Corin, Alex Wind, Sarah Chadwick, and Alfonso Calderón at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School after the school shooting that took place on February 14th, 2018.  In this blog post I will be evaluating whether or not March For Our Lives’ social media is effective enough for their organization.  Just a disclaimer, I did not have access to their website’s analytics and I could not look at the specific analytics for the gender, age, location, income, and education for their users without having to pay for a subscription.  Please note that the lack of this information may affect one’s opinion on the organization.

Listed below are the March For Our Lives’ social media:

Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/marchforourlives)

YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC77-uGJRVBiXou-G6S7_4yQ)

Twitter (https://twitter.com/AMarch4OurLives)

Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/marchforourlives/)

Facebook Analytics:

     According to Likealyzer.com, the March For Our Lives’ frontpage is at a rating of 100%.  They provide a profile picture and cover photo, a title/username, an ‘about’ section, and a call to action message.  Although their context and information provided is at a rating of 44%.  They are lacking a phone number and a location for their main office.  This restricts people from getting into immediate contact with them and visiting their office and/or sending letters to their office.  Their activity rating is at a 62% because it has some activity, but they leave their followers wanting more.  The specifics of their activity is they have on average about 0.4 posts per day, 197 characters per post (40-100 characters is recommended), 16 videos, and 0 pages liked.  The response aspect of their page is at a rating of 100% because their followers are able to post on the page.  Lastly, their Facebook page provides a “donate” button right on the front page, which allows easy accessibility for their users.  This small, yet effective feature really helps the organization raise more money, which means they can create more change.

Twitter Analytics:

     According to sparktoro.com, the March For Our Lives’ Twitter has a score of 94 out of 100.  They have 3,462 tweets, they are following 469 people, and have 465,843 followers.  Their engagement score is at a 97 out of 100.  They generally get 993 likes per tweet, 255 retweets, and 100% of their tweets are met with engagement from their followers.  Their Twitter was listed by other accounts/sites 1,633 times.  They are somewhat active with 40 tweets within the past week, amd 128 tweets within the past month.  They also provide a link to their website through their Twitter.  From what I have observed, I would say their Twitter is their most used social media.  If you wish to get into contact with this organization, I recommend doing so through Twitter and/or email.

Instagram Analytics:

     According to analisa.io, the March For Our Lives’ Instagram has a 2.56% engagement rate, a 2.50% like rate, and a 0.06% comment rate.  They have 358,471 followers and are following 287 accounts.  Their average engagement per post is 9,177, average likes are 8,945 likes per post, 232 comments per post, and they post on average 1.09 posts per week and 4 posts per month.  They also have a link to their website through their Instagram.  They are lacking posting enough content on their Instagram.  In order to gain and maintain their followers, they should start posting more.

YouTube Analytics:

     According to socialblade.com, the March For Our Lives’ YouTube channel has 37 uploads, 8.44k subscribers, and 402,608 views total.  They are rated a grade C+ and have gained 150 subscribers and 26.136k views within the past month, make about $7-$105 monthly, and $78-$1.3k yearly.  They are ranked 6,074th place in the nonprofit rank.  They generally do not reply to comments and I noticed that they have not posted in three months.  These two factors could be the reason why they are only ranked at a C+.  I suggest that they possibly do a ‘question and answer’ type of YouTube video to further personally connect with their audience.

Organizational Considerations:

     The March For Our Lives organization costs $5 million and have “several million” left to spend (Hoisington).  Based on what I’ve seen, they have a good reputation for being able to spread the word quickly and effectively, and they also impress a lot of others because they are so young and have made such a significant contribution to the United States.  A total of 1.2 million people are involved in the March For Our Lives organization according to Wikipedia.  Their social media help this number increase everyday.

My Personal Impression of the March For Our Lives Organization:

Strengths: According to the analytics, this organization’s main social media platform is Twitter.  Their Twitter account has the highest score for their engagement and popularity.  They are also skilled in using social media to enact change and organize large groups of people.  For example, they started the National School Walkout Movement and the March For Our Lives protests solely through the use of their social media accounts.  On their Twitter, they tweet about relevant news regarding gun laws, which is what most of their following is interested in.  Therefore I believe the type of content they are producing is relevant to their followers and their organization, which looks good and does more good for their organization.

Weaknesses: According to the analytics, this organization’s YouTube and Facebook could use some work.  They have not posted on their YouTube channel in three months, and inactivity leads to losing the interest of your followers.  They also rarely reply to their YouTube comments, which leaves the users thinking that they are not valued.  Their Facebook’s aesthetic is at a rating of 100% (likealyzer.com), but their activity level is low.  They should communicate better on all of their social media outlets to improve their organization’s reputation and effectiveness.  This way the audience will feel more valued and appreciated, which makes them more likely to continue to follow the organization.

Opportunities To Improve: The organization should work on improving more of their social media, that way they can attract more people and better promote their non-profit organization.  One of the main problems I noticed is that they do not engage with their audience enough.  If they take some time to reply to questions or just generate a conversation through replying to their users, they could be receiving higher scores on their analytics.  They also need to be posting more frequently on some of their social media, such as Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.  If they continue to lack content, they are going to lose the interest of their audience, then their organization will start to slowly fall off.

Threats To This Organization: The March For Our Lives faces threats by Donald Trump, the National Rifle Association (NRA), Marco Rubio who funds the NRA, and many more.  Especially with Trump and The March For Our Lives being so active on Twitter, there is a chance for them to butt heads on that platform.  Although this organization’s strengths outweigh their weaknesses.  They have many young people, gun violence survivors, mothers, fathers, and so on, on their side.  They also have a variety of celebrities who have participated in their march, such as Justin Timberlake, Will Smith, Cher, and Amy Poehler.  The amount of support from these different types of people will further grow their organization.

Next Steps and Long-Term Areas To Focus On:

     The main next couple of steps this organization should focus on is improving their social media.  They need to engage more with their audience in order to create more change.  Ideas from fellow students across the United States could help fix gun laws and help grow their organization.  As for long-term goals, The March For Our Lives should focus on changing the United States and their gun laws one step at a time.  It is important for this organization to keep in mind that the little victories count too.  Overall, The March For Our Lives is an extraordinary organization that is aiding in changing gun laws for the better, one victory by one.  Their social media definitely helps them in spreading the word and bettering their organization, although it could be more effective.

Works Cited:

https://analisa.io/profile/marchforourlives (IG Analytics)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_for_Our_Lives (Organizers/participants)

https://filtergrade.com/photos-from-the-march-for-our-lives-in-boston/ (Picutre)

https://likealyzer.com/report/marchforourlives (Facebook analytics)

https://socialblade.com/youtube/channel/UC77-uGJRVBiXou-G6S7_4yQ (YouTube analytics)

https://sparktoro.com/score/amarch4ourlives (Twitter analytics)

https://www.newyorker.com/news/dispatch/the-march-for-our-lives-presents-a-radical-new-model-for-youth-protest

[thefemalecampaign-blog]

Meet a Sweet Savage

Meet A Sweet Savage

We were able to interview a new entrepreneur in the clothing industry by the name of Ashley Tioni. She is currently the Owner of Rose and Raja, which is a brand targeted primarily to women. We wanted to get to know her a bit more and wanted you guys to as well.

 “I am 19 years old born and raised in Metro Detroit. I have always had a creative mindset, expressing myself through songwriting, poetry, digital content creation and drawing. I grew up an introvert and stayed to myself most of the time either reading or writing. It wasn't until I observed that the extroverts at my school and church were the ones making a name for themselves, getting the biggest roles in plays or simply getting the most attention. So at around 13, I made up in my mind to push myself outside of my comfort zone and start sharing my work, sharing my talents so I can have the recognition that I felt I deserved. Though I have failed during some of my efforts to gain attention and build a reputation for myself, I definitely learned a lot which has shaped me into the young woman that I am today.”

 Everyone has some type of story of when they started their business venture and why. Some stories may be similar, but for Ashley it started based off of a strong passion for owning something of her own:

 “My business is Rose and Raja; a clothing brand that currently features tees and crop tops for the summer. Our aim for anyone who follows us or reps our clothes is to Live Young, Wild & Free. Meaning that we want our customers to aspire to live in a way where they have the confidence to be daring and bold enough to follow their dreams, work hard towards their goals and have financial freedom to do what they want whenever they want. 

 I started Rose and Raja May 2017 after coming home from college for the summer. Rose and Raja was a passion project initiated out of boredom. All my friends were working their summer jobs, doing research programs, internships and studying abroad and I was at home doing NOTHING. I've always been interested in fashion and I always had a passion to own my own business. With so much free time on my hands I figured this would be a great time to start.”

 A lot of businesswoman we’ve interviewed told us that their family and friends were the ones who influenced them to own their own business. Now for Ashley, her influence remains the same as everyone else, but instead she wants to prove her influence completely wrong:

 “My influence to start this company was my mother. Before moving in with my dad at 15 I left my mothers abusive household. I had extreme punishments from running up and down stairs 100s of times, standing in the garage for hours at a time in the dark, getting hit with a whip, wooden club and belt buckles, getting my hair cut and many other punishments that I took in for years. Also dealing with the threats to put me in a girls home or telling me how ditsy or stupid I was. 

 All moments in my mom’s house weren't negative, but it sure did entice me to prove her wrong. We rarely spoke about dreams, and I knew I wanted to do something, anything that would make her proud. We don't talk much now, but one day I plan for her to see me running my company, doing great things that she never thought I could do. She won't have to say it, but I know she'll be proud of her "ditsy" daughter.”

 Passions are one of many ­pieces that drives a business to continue to grow and be successful. Like any visionary, Ashley wants to create content that she hopes inspires others to do the same.

 “My passion is to create and inspire others to do the same. I have always found pleasure in making something and sharing it with others. In high school I would make a poem everyday and share it with all my friends on Kik. It meant the world to me when I had people tell me "I needed this" or "This really made my day". Knowing that the things I create can cause positive feelings towards someone else is a beautiful feeling and only makes me want to make more and more.”

 Behind every name is an even broader message. This also translates into the type of clothing you sell, etc.

“Roses symbolize love and respect. Raja means radiance. I like to think of them together as a healthy balance of sweet and strong. I love using the term Sweet Savage because I feel that it fits with what Rose and Raja stands for. You can be kind and considerate while also being driven and ambitious. I feel that this is something I have been trying to maintain and I feel that there are others who want to do the same.”

 ­­­­With any brand that is targeted primarily for women, the men want to rep the brand a little bit too. So when we asked Ashley about making the brand unisex, this is what she told us:

“Rose and Raja is targeted mainly for women, but we have a lil’ something for the men who want to rep the Rose and Raja brand.”

 As a part of being an entrepreneur, one should strive to leave a mark on the work or make some type of change. That should always be the main goal, so we asked Ashley what she hopes to do to impact the world:

 “I plan to leave my mark by simply being myself and being as genuine as I can. I feel like there are a lot of people pleasers in the world who are trying to cater to trends, their friends and families or what society says is "cool". I love me and to leave any mark you must be original and unique. I know I was created for a purpose, but that purpose cannot be fulfilled if I am trying to be like someone else. I am working hard to do what I believe God has sent me here to do, and if I accomplish what I can, I am positive that my mark will be left and remembered.”

 We females do run this world, no matter what anybody says. As time goes on, so many females are rising up and becoming entrepreneurs just like Ashley has. We are dominating in everything that we do.

“Being a female entrepreneur is fun! People are impressed because so many men are dominating the workplace and to see women step up, makes other women feel empowered. I love meeting other girl bosses because we come up with great ideas and we have style that men cannot compete with! It just makes me feel good to simply talk with other young women about their brands, helping each other out and just growing bigger and better. To be apart of that is amazing and I am so glad that I have decided to become a female entrepreneur.”

 Rose and Raja is a brand that sells graphic tees and crops, many of their products have sayings on them. We wanted to figure out the inspiration and story behind why she chose a lot of what she’s selling:

 “I used to get in trouble for being terribly honest. One time at church this older guy complimented my hair and said he wished he had long hair like mine. I told him he could get long hair...if he used Bosley. My mom snatched me so quick and told me I hurt his feelings, but I thought I was offering a solution to his problem. He looked so sad once I told him that, so I decided from that point on to sugarcoat the truth so I wouldn't hurt people's feelings. 

 I say all that because I noticed that as I got older I wouldn't be direct or honest with people, and that bothered me. I got so used to holding in what I really felt that I felt uncomfortable being bold and direct. So when I made the Issa Animal Introductory Collection for Rose and Raja I took that as an opportunity to be bold, to say what people may be thinking but would never say out loud. My first design was "Beware of Kitty" and once I finished that one, the rest just poured out.”

 The future should be something any entrepreneur should constantly think about because growth is key. You don’t ever want to be the same person or brand you were a year ago. Grow, get out and do more research, but most importantly plan wisely. In ten years, Rose and Raja plans to:

“...travel the world, with signature pieces and an identity that is unmatched by other streetwear designers. I see storefronts, loyal customers, features in magazines, a strong team fueling the Rose and Raja image. I see real tigers wearing real roses, working with influencers I've idolized for years, having memorable events and so much more. Overall I see major growth, and we grow more and more each day, so in 10 years I can only imagine where we'll be.

 As of now I'm planning to get as many eyeballs as I can on the Rose and Raja brand. This time next year I plan to have a few fashion shows under my belt as well as introduce our newest collection. There is so much work that needs to be done, but we can take the heat. I am so excited for what the future has to offer and to continue growing Rose and Raja.”

 From one brand to another, we wish you nothing but the best. You are new and fresh in the clothing industry and we hope that you are/continue to soak up as much knowledge as you can. Timing is EVERYTHING. Never rush greatness. There will be doubters, but don’t let that detour you from what you want and dream to do. Again good luck and have fun.

 Follow her and RAR on social media:

 www.roseandraja.com

IG and FB:

@roseandraja

 Her personal social media:

IG- @ashleytioni

[ichigopanhpff]

Ignis x Reader Fic: Next To You Pt. 3

A little early, but here’s part 3! This is slowly turning into a novella. Oh Six... -_-

And a sidenote: give Drew ofthe Drew’s “Cry, Die, Fly” a listen. I feel this song reflects the theme I’m trying to get across in the story. Enjoy!

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9

(Y/N)’s mobile phone alarm vibrated on the nearby coffee table, slowing stirring her from slumber. Softly groaning, her eyes gingerly flickered open to see the blinking LED light in the darkness of Ignis’ apartment with faint traces of mixed light from the street lamp and sun peeking through the curtains. She lazily reached for her phone to shut off the alarm and sighed, giving herself another 15 seconds to fully wake up, hugging her pillow still. As grateful as she was to him letting her crash at his place yet again, she didn’t want to overstay her welcome and decided to wake up an hour before him to make breakfast.

While in the gifted children’s program, they were taught everything from self-defense to home economics to fully utilize every skill set to be a functional human being to the crown prince. A deadly homemaker, as she humorously remarked. As much as she wanted to forget all those years of training, it’s all become muscle memory now.

Finally determined to wake up, she yawned, slowly sat up and reached for her glasses while throwing the blanket off of herself, welcoming the cool air on her legs and felt goosebumps rising. Even though it was near the end of summer, parts of Insomnia had interesting chilly sub-climate pockets. (Y/N) quietly pattered to the main door to grab the newspaper from outside and set it on his dining table. She then made her way into the kitchen and turned on the light on the hood for more visibility. Grabbing the bag of Ebony Dark Roast from the lower cabinet, she filled the electric kettle up with water and waited for it to come to a boil. In the meantime, she placed the coffee beans into a manual grounder and got to work.

Ignis had grown to be a coffee snob and said time and time again if you want something done to your standards, do it yourself. After grinding the beans to the right consistency, (Y/N) took out the ceramic coffee dripper from another cabinet, placed a paper filter inside it and filled it with the coffee grounds, measuring it to exactly three scoops; she knew he liked it strong and took it black.

Once the electric kettle automatically shut off, she prepared a small pot with water in it to poach some eggs while she waited for the kettle to cool off a bit before steeping the grounds. When the water in the pot came to a simmer, she drizzled a small bit of vinegar in before slowly tipping the eggs in. After three minutes, the eggs were done and the kettle water had cooled to its optimal temperature. (Y/N) steadily bloomed the grounds as the dark liquid filtered into two mugs and his portable thermos. Satisfied with her work, she set his mug aside and decided to let the aroma awaken its drinker as she grabbed some bread to make toast for the poached eggs.

She heard Ignis’ bedroom door open moments later, followed with slow footsteps softly echoing down the hall. He turned to his right and saw (Y/N) busying herself over his stove, wearing an oversized t-shirt and shorts. Her bed hair had been left as is. It’d been a long time since he’s seen her like this and never realized how adorable she looked. Were her legs always that well shaped? He inwardly blamed his grogginess for this random insight and lightly shook his head.

“Morning, sunshine,” she greeted in a sing-song tone while tending to some bacon slowly frying in a pan as the toast popped up from the toaster. “Slept well?” “Well enough,” he replied while reaching for the prepared mug of coffee, trying to rub the sleep from his face. Upon sipping it, he drew his head back slightly in shock. “… You made this?” “Who else would?” “It’s… good.” “Wow, a compliment from the Impeccable Ignis,” (Y/N) drolled as she plated the bacon alongside the poached egg and grabbed the toast. “What a way to start my day.”

She took their plates to the dining table while Ignis grabbed their respective mugs and utensils. He noticed she drowned hers in milk; she’s always liked her coffee weaker than his with a spoon of brown sugar. Before sitting, he drew the living room curtains open to let sunlight in.

“Y’know, people would mistaken us as a married couple if they saw us like this,” she joked and sat down. “So this is what it feels like to have someone understand and irritate you on a daily basis,” Ignis off-handedly added and sat down across from her. “I’m not that irritating.” “You’re a six on a good day, at most.” “Thanks for that vote of confidence.”

(Y/N) looked up and her eyes widened with a slight shock; it’d been a while since she’d seen Ignis’ hair completely unstyled and not in his work clothes. He was wearing a fitted white v-neck t-shirt and charcoal grey loose fitting sweatpants. He actually looked… sexy unkempt.

Was his chest always that chiseled? His shoulders that broad? And were his eyes always that green without his spectacles?

“Are you alright?” He looked up from the newspaper and asked. “Your cheeks are pink.” “Hm?” His voice snapped her out of his thoughts. “Y-yeah. Must’ve been from cooking.”

(Y/N) sipped her coffee and dug into her breakfast, finding every possible way to not look at him directly. But she’s done so many times before. Why is it bothering her now?

“These Niflheim bastards...” She heard Ignis mutter under his breath, continuing to read the paper with a concerned expression. “They’ll be attacking us before we know it.” “Haven’t there been talks of a peace treaty?” “Nothing’s set in stone yet,” Ignis replied. “My main question is what’s their goal in this war? Land? Power?” “Curious you ask that, considering you want nothing to do with the royal family.” “Curiosity’s gotten me in nothing but trouble is what you’re saying,” (Y/N) translated and sipped her coffee. “Your words, not mine.” “Anyway.” She downed the rest of her liquid sarcasm and collected the dishes to put into the sink. “I’m gonna go get ready and get out of your hair.”

As she entered the bathroom, Ignis tended to the dishes and heard his phone chirp from its charging station in the living room. Placing the final piece of clean ceramic on the drying rack, he walked over and grabbed his device.

It was an email from the Citadel. Opening the message, he slowly scanned it with his eyes considerably widening.

King Regis agreed on the ceasefire with Niflheim, but the date of the treaty signing had yet to be announced. As part of the agreement, Noct was to wed Lady Lunafreya in Altissia and he, Gladio and Prompto were assigned to take him there in the Regalia. He’s to help the crown prince pack up his belongings before they set foot on their journey in the next few days.

He halfway expected this to happen, but so soon?

“Ig, you okay?” (Y/N)’s voice called for him, drawing him out of his thoughts. He jolted his head up and saw her look at him with a confused expression. “What’s wrong?” “Nothing. It’s just work,” he dismissed and locked his phone. “I have to head out soon, so I can drop you off if you like.” “Sure. It’d be better if it’s a few blocks from the building.”

Ignis silently nodded as she continued analyzing his body language. She knew something was wrong.

“Ig...” She called softly and placed a gentle hand on his forearm, grabbing his attention to her concerned gaze. “Are you sure?” “Yes...” he lied. “We should head out in the next ten minutes.”

Ignis quickly finished his coffee, washed up and reemerged in his usual suit with his spectacles on while (Y/N) changed into her usual hoodie, t-shirt and jeans. They left his apartment and hit minor traffic en route to her sector for work due to road work.

He felt this would be a good time to tell her, but should he? This was official royal business, after all; she had no part of it. But she’s his friend and felt she had a right to know. What was the right choice in the end?

“Ig, whatever you’re debating in your head, just spit it out,” she impatiently blurted out, staring at the road. “What are you–” “Don’t play dumb. That’s beneath you,” (Y/N) dryly commented. “You’re gripping the steering wheel tightly while we’re sitting in traffic, you haven’t touched your coffee for the past four minutes and you have your thinking face on,” she listed off her analysis. “So whatever’s on your mind, which is most likely the work email you received, you’re debating whether it’s proper of you to divulge its contents to me or not because of my non-affiliation.”

There were times he hated when his logical reasoning was used against him, especially by her. He continued to remain silent.

“Ignis Scientia, I swear to the Six I will take control of the wheel and crash this goddamn car if you’re still pussyfooting around,” she threatened with a sense of eerily calm. “What happened to making clear cut decisions?”

Shit. (Y/N) used the full name card. He knew she was crossed now and it was a lost battle. Even his parents never did that. Sighing aloud, he divulged what he read from his email.

“When...” She swallowed hard, trying to digest the news she forced out of Ignis. “When do you think you’ll be back?” “A week… A month… It’s hard to say,” he murmured. “I see...”

The rest of the car ride went by in silence. (Y/N) had a gut feeling it was something related to the treaty; her parents had been talking about it non-stop and complained about how they would’ve been able to resolve things quicker if she hadn’t wasted her life not being apart of the council.

Despite her dissonance with her family, she only cared for Ignis’ safety; her one and only friend, her most important person. What could she do to assure his security when he leaves Insomnia?

“(Y/N), I’ll be fine,” he reassured to break the tension, noticing her hands wringing on the strap of her bag. “Gladio and Prompto will be there with me to protect Noct from anything that comes at us.”

Traffic gradually cleared and Ignis was able to drop her off nearby her work building as requested.

“Call me before you leave. I’d… like to see you, if that’s possible.” “It may be hard with my schedule the next few days, but I’ll try.” “Try a little harder for me? Please?” she softly pleaded. 

Ignis placed the car in the park gear and looked up to meet her expression mixed with sadness, loneliness and concern. This was why he didn’t want to tell her: he was never good at consoling the opposite sex.

“I’ll… see what I can–” he hesitantly began but was cut short by her sudden embrace.

Her head was buried halfway in the nook of his neck and caught the faint scent of his cologne. (Y/N)’s heart was pounding intensely in her chest, feeling the escalating rhythm at the base of her throat, trying to figure out why she did what she did. Ignis found his arms moving on their own and gently hugged her back, half unsure in what he was doing. He, too, felt his pulse slowly increasing from her sudden contact.

“Silly girl...” he spoke softly into her ear and stroked her hair as a way to comfort her. “I’m not leaving yet.” “I-I just felt…” she stuttered out into his collarbone. “If I didn’t do this now, I wouldn’t be able to for a long time.”

Slowly releasing, (Y/N) avoided eye contact with Ignis and hurriedly gathered her belongings, hoping he didn’t see the blush she was trying to hide with her hair.

“Have a good day… and all that stuff,” she mumbled out shyly and let herself out of the car. Quickly blending herself into the sea of the Lucian working class, she gripped the strap of her bag tightly, reeling in embarrassment.

That’s when it hit her. She had non-platonic feelings, romantic feelings, for Ignis Scientia. The insufferable perfectionist Ignis Scientia. And she hated herself for it. The Six play a damn cruel game.

All (Y/N) wanted to do right now was hide away in a hole and never come back out. Or bang her head on some kind of surface. Either one works right about now.

–

“This… is quite a lot to prepare given the timeline,” Ignis fretted, looking at the Citadel’s schedule for their upcoming trip. “Is there any way to get an extension on this, General Drautos?” “As much as I’d love to, our honorable guests from Niflheim are to arrive within the next five days,” Drautos tiredly replied. He noticed the general’s cheekbones have sunken in more. “Do you think you can make do?”

The adviser softly sighed and adjusted his spectacles as he re-read the document until it was fully committed to memory and nodded.

“I’m sure I can make this work if the rest of the group pitches in.” “Good. I leave it in your capable hands,” the general finalized. “We’ll be in touch should anything change. Keep your mobile on you at all times.” “Yes sir.”

Ignis gathered his belongings, formally bowed and left the Crownsguard office. As he took his mobile phone out, he heard Gladio’s voice call for him down the hall.

“Ah, just the person I was looking for...” he greeted and put his phone away. “What’s up, Iggy?” “I’m guessing you received intel on our upcoming trip?” “Yup. This’ll be fun. Our first time outta Crown City...” Gladio replied with an excited smirk. “Regardless, we need to be prepared. I’ll need your help gathering supplies.” “You got it. Just tell me what I need to get.”

He took his mobile phone out again and sent Gladio a list of items he’d be most efficient with gathering. The two walked down the long marble hallway, listening to their footsteps echo down the corridor in conjunction with the sounds of clattered armor at the opposite end. They walked past two guards and greeted one another.

“You look a little tired, Iggy. Long night?” Gladio asked with a suggestive tone. “I’m exhausted from all the drinking we did,” he briskly replied and took another sip of coffee from his thermos. He looked down at it with significance. It’s strange how (Y/N) made it the same way he did daily, but hers tasted better.

“Coffee that good today?” Gladio pointed out. “Yes… It’s rather tastier than usual.”

Gladio hummed with interest and decided to continue chiding Ignis.

“(Y/N) made it?” “… Yes.”

Ignis knew where this was going.

“Sure you two aren’t an item?” “She’s just a friend and nothing more.” “I dunno if you’re just telling yourself that or you’re really that emotionally idiotic,” Gladio casually replied. “No, please. Tell me what you really think.” “Look, friends of the opposite sex don’t normally do the stuff you two do, like letting her crash at your place on a whim and make breakfast for you both,” he pointed out. “That’s couple stuff. The fact she made that extra effort on the coffee for you means something.”

Gladio’s words struck a chord in him. Thinking back on it now, his previous girlfriends never did that for him when they slept over. It was always him doing so, mostly out of habit. It was different with (Y/N) for some reason; his trust with her ran deep. Only now did he realize there were so many pieces of their lives that fit together and entwined like a red thread of fate.

“I’m sure she did it out of courtesy,” Ignis brushed off his friend’s observation. “Considering how impulsive she can be most of the time.” “I dunno. If you ask me, she’s got guts. Up and leaving her family responsibilities to make her own path,” Gladio remarked with respect. “She would’ve made a great Crownsguard, if you ask me.” “I’m sure her parents would be elated to hear that.” “Just… keep an open mind, Iggy,” his friend coerced. “You can’t plan everything out in life. (Y/N)’s good for you. She keeps you on your toes.” “I wish she wouldn’t. Just last night, she was taking off her–”

He immediately stopped himself mid-sentence. Feeling the heat rise up to his cheeks, Ignis cleared his throat, not wanting the passing guards to misunderstand the conversation.

“Taking off her what now?” his friend asked with interest. “It’s– Never mind.” “C’mon. You can’t just stop right at the juicy part,” Gladio teased with a sly look and playfully elbowed his bicep. “Don’t you have supplies to go pick up?” Ignis harshly dismantled the topic and turned it right back to business. “We both have a few busy days ahead. I suggest you not slack like Noct and Prompto.” “Yessir,” he lazily responded and eye rolled.

Gladio walked a few steps ahead and stopped halfway, giving some parting advice. “If you don’t snag her up, someone else might.”