#thanks Covid for bringing along my drawing skills

[genopaint]

Every year on my birthday, I try to redraw an old piece of mine as a sort of present to all of you to celebrate! For this year, I've decided to redraw my very first commission ever! Plague Knight, but specifically in a cool pose! This was so much fun to revisit!

The original from 2019! It's hard to believe it's already been that long since I started doing freelance and commission stuff! This was very kindly commissioned by @ Jamix012 on twitter I believe. Thank you so much for taking a chance on me back then! I hope you appreciate the update

Right, and I also wanted to talk a little bit about life and what not really quick since I also don't think I did this last year. Yeah! Another year come and gone! That's wild. I'll be honest, things have been very tough lately especially with covid and stuff. I've been struggling a bit as things have just been pretty bad at home lately. But I'm pulling through and making it day by day. In particular lately I've been very self conscious about my art and skills lately. But I think the fact that stuff like Axel the Alligator can still come to me even now when I'm just feeling very low about my creativity and talent is a good sign that I do still have what it takes to come up with cool stuff I genuinely like. And also I particularly really wanted to just take some time to thank both SeafloorGames and CloudyGamesLLC for bringing me on board to their game projects over the past few years. While I'm sulking around about stuff I think it's completely flown over my head how wonderful it's been to actually get to work on two different indie games recently. Not only designing SUPER fun protagonists and other concepts for their games, but even getting to draw in game assets and learning various new skills along the way. It means a lot that both of them were willing to take a chance on me despite being unproven and I really haven't thanked them enough. These have both been a blast to work on, and moonlight pulse is, if i'm not mistaken, the first game not made for me where I designed a character for? Plus I realize that these games have already helped me achieve dreams of owning a toy of a character I designed and see fanart of something I designed. It's all happening in real time and when I take a step back from being so sad over silly stuff, it really is amazing to see and makes me extremely happy. So thank you again to both directors for having me as their drawing-guy and thank you all so much for all your love and support over the years! I'm hoping to get things moving again soon if possible and I hope you'll all be there to see me draw scalies for many years to come!!

[etraytin]

Looking for Photoshop Help!

Hello Tumblr friends! I come to you today not with kitten pictures, as is my usual, but in search of pictures! Three weeks or so from now (which will be Nov 7, 2021), I will be attending NekoCon with my cat rescue group as a featured charity. The synergy, you've gotta love it! We'll be doing a booth all three days to try and get donations for our work and attention for our adoptable cats. The Global Situation being What It Is, it's going to be a smaller con with many COVID restrictions, but it's still a valuable opportunity to drum up some funds in a year where we're packed to the gills and hurting for money even more than usual.

The biggest issue for us, and anybody else who tables at a con, is how do we get people to pay attention to us? We're not going to be bringing any live cats (being on display is super stressful!) so we can't draw attention that way, and the truth is that most of us middle-aged cat ladies don't know much about anime. Someone suggested that we could do "cat cosplay" photos for our adoptable cats and let people vote on the ones they liked best, something interactive and fun to bring people to the booth. I loved the idea, and I tried making one:

You may notice that I am... not exactly an artist. Poor Charlotte, if she didn't already have a home, I probably wouldn't increase her chances anyhow with my terrible MS Paint work. But you get the idea of what I'm trying to do, right? I just need help from people who can actually do it. That's where I am hoping the internet can come to my rescue.

Photos of our cats currently up for adoption are here! If you have skills and love cats, maybe you could take a few minutes to give one of them a little cosplay makeover? You can attach the picture to this post or email it to me at etraytin@gmail.com. I can't offer money, and although I'll definitely credit I can't even promise much exposure, just a way to help some really sweet cats find their forever homes. Thank you so much for reading and passing this along to anybody who might be interested!

[ohnobjyx]

Plum blossoms in the snow (I)

Part 4: April and May (I)

We have gotten to the mid point of the story. 

Disclaimer: I try to keep things objective (if I include my personal opinion, it’s in cursive and in brackets), but I’m biased because of the XZ friendly content I’m usually exposed to and by my own views of their situation. Open to discussion, but please make sure you’ve enough information to do so.

In March, slowly but surely, the incident was put behind. After the anger comes the aceptance, so to say. With so many people’s inputs, his fans started to let the topic cool down, while giving him their support. 

So everything was coming back to their place and seemed a lot calmer than a month before. This didn’t sit well with some people.

Antis’ attacks

The antis were quite active, trying to spark a conflict one after another, because the topic had been silent for a little bit. Remember: more interactions, more followers, more money so ignore the antis always (unless they attack you, if so, report them). 

To name a few: 

On early April, they placed so many negative reviews on CQL in Douban that the score fell from 7′9 to 7′3. However, people didn’t react as they wanted them to, and instead the score rose steadily back to 7′7 (as of now). 

When a brand of a product that XZ endorses admitted to economic fraud, antis attacked the brand, the product and XZ. Their argument was that because XZ is so popular, more people bought the product he endorses, thus contributing to the fraud. Some fans fell for it, protesting that what the brand does had nothing to do with XZ. 

Some of the antis pretended to be XZ’s fans, and with that “disguise”, attacked other netizens, prompting a statement from XZ’s fans support group. In the statement, they reject this kind of behaviour and insist that everyone should be careful with what they say and how they act.

All of this, along with spreading rumors, was trying to revive the discussion and the fan war to get more attention and followers (people have a short span of attention, especially on the internet), and profit from it.

Around mid April, both w/ibo and bil/bili blocked antis’ accounts, making antis say that XZ’s company must have paid them to do so.

Endorsements

It was positive though that in April he started to appear again in commercials and banners.

(The one on the left is a commercial from February, I couldn’t find another one with a better resolution from April. By the way, from an interview done before New Year’s Eve for that brand, we get these two little moments: 1 and 2). 

You may have noticed that the endorsement for the drink it’s a joined endorsement with another celebrity. Antis tried to pit the two group of fans against one another, but fans didn’t fell for it (the learning process was hard and long, but it was showing results).

Remember the one from the right. That’s a funny one, later in July. 

Plum blossoms and stars

In April, XZ reappeared again in w/ibo with that drawing of plum blossoms from his Oasis account (on 200410). Previously, he had shared a post for the National Mourning Day for the people who’ve died because of the COVID-19, and before that, it was a post from February 22, before 2/27. 

There are 4 main flowers in Chinese culture (one for each season), and each has a widely known meaning attached to them. 

Plum blossoms are one them, and often represent resilience and perseverance in the face of adversity, because it’s a flower that blooms a brilliant red in the middle of winter and snow. It can also be a harbinger of spring. 

So his first message after all of this mess to be one of perseverance and hope。 I personally find it very meaningful as to what his attitude towards the entertainment industry is.

This also calmed a lot of his fans, who had been worried of him succumbing to the antis and retiring from the industry. There had been a lot of rumours saying the he had got depression from all of this conflict, and this update effectively silenced those.

A few days later he sang a cover of the song “The hymn of the red plum blossom” for an online event “Beautiful China”. It’s a classical opera song from a film, very patriotic and well-chosen for such an event, but it could also represent his situation with the “coming of spring”. Musicians later analysed this song and deemed it too difficult for him to sing (he doesn’t have enough range for this kind of songs), but praised him for his spirit to try new, difficult things, and to bring classic songs to young people: “he’s like the plum blossom in winter: persistent against difficulties”.

XZ updated his Oasis again late in April, with a drawing inspired by posters from his university days: “hope”, “perseverance”, “acquisition”.

(This is the picture he updated on 200420, and below is a screeshot from the post in which he explains that those are drawings from his university days).

Reporting to the police 

On 21st of April, XZ’s Studio issued a statement.

3 accounts (among others) had used XZ’s photos and videos to slander his name, so the studio had collected the evidence and had turned it all to the police. The accounts had been spreading rumours about him for months (about him dating other guys, plastic surgery) and insulting him for his acting skills and lack of respect towards women. 

What we find most surprising is that, even in the face of a lawsuit, the antis didn’t relent and kept on trying to “black” (slander) him.

Those 3 accounts were, in their own words, chased and insulted by XZ’s fans, so they wanted to report XZ’s studio in return, for damaging their reputation.

(I don’t know exactly how this ended. I think the lawsuit is still going on, since these things take time, but the general outcome of this seems good for him. Most of the comments I’ve seen goes like “xz was just waiting for the right moment to act”, “staying silent and apologizing while collecting proof of a crime”.)

“Light Spot”

On April 25, XZ released a new song, and remarked that he thanks all well-meaning criticism and guidance, and that he’ll continue to grow from here. The song is Light Spot. There was again some drama related to this song, antis never take a rest it seems.

XZ’s apology

That week, XZ posted on w/ibo, apologizing for the troubles caused and asking people not to hurt others.

The source of the problem this time were rumours of him participating in HJ’s variety show (HJ is the host from Happy Camp with curly hair). Rumours said that he had invited XZ to participate in his new variety show on his own initiative. Haters attacked him for this, in order to prevent XZ from going to the program (remember that some of the antis’ objective is to make XZ retire from entertainment industry).

The TV station had to release a statement saying that XZ won’t participate in HJ’s show. XZ must have seen all the commotion and posted his comment asking people not to hurt HJ because of him.

Tracking down the antis

The leader of all of this commotion with HJ was a w/ibo user (let’s call her “B”) that had been a XZ hater for a long while, and her account was banned soon after this. Along with hers, many others hater accounts were blocked by w/ibo, prompted by XZ’s studio, according to other antis.  

Though their accounts were blocked, B tried to come back (and even with the same username), and attacked XZ again for making “false donations” to Wuhan, and accusing him of being immoral. XZ’s Studio finally posted definite proof that their donation had been real.

B accused him of being a racist and having “abnormal sexual orientation”. She also managed to make her accusations a hot topic on w/ibo quite frequently.

This hater, with others, surprised many people in their tenacity and persistence to defame XZ. People analysed her behaviour and tendencies and extracted conclusions like these about this kind of “professional” antis:

She knows how the entertainment industry works, so she works in it or has sources inside the industry.

She knows what kind of topic will attract attention from other users.

She has good resources and is very intelligent and manipulative at the same time, so she is capable of making two groups unite against a third, for example.

She’s likely to cooperate with XZ’ competitors to spread rumors about him, to allow his competitors to get more endorsements. She incites haters and antis to boycott XZ endorsements in order to do this.

(I was asked previously if YH couldn’t have participated too in the smear campaign, to gain more endorsements for WYB. At the time, I’d been very sure that these kind of things are too much of a hassle, but now I’m not so sure that no one would do this. I mean, I don’t think YH would do this for WYB, since he is very popular and successful on his own, but for other YH’s employees or other companies for their idols... I’m not so sure anymore. But this is all especulation from me).

She often has material that a “normal” fan can’t get access to. Among the fans, there are some that are called fan representatives. They can often access the companies and agencies, so they have more information and images about a star than any other. Of course, they can’t spread it if they stop being their fan, but that doesn’t stop B from buying pictures from them.

There are also “spies” inside the fandom, who get information about a fandom from the inside.

So, in short, a great part of the general public likes the rumours  and the stories she makes up, it doesn’t matter if they are true or not, and that gives her more followers.

Before XZ, she attacked the male leads from The Guardian (ZYL and BY), and used the same tactic. 

(Which confirms our theory that this storm will pass for XZ, most likely because she moves on to attacking another person, but that’s a whole other story).

So at the end of April, w/ibo started to ban all the accounts that spread malicious and hate content, the numerous accounts of B among them, even though all of them had been ticked by w/ibo before (like the blue tick in twitter).

Even after being reported to the police, the account doesn’t seem to stop, making people suspect that there is money behind of this and that it’s not an account managed by one person, but rather a team. They’ll do the same to whoever is popular at the moment, so it’s not even personal, it doesn’t matter who it is, XZ, ZYL, BY, whoever.

(I don’t like conspiracy theories... if there’s no data to back them up, it all remains speculation, and it spreads more information that no one knows it’s true or not. However, this whole thing with the antis is very strange. I suppose will see what happens once XZ comes back to limelight).

Haters are also something every idol has to face.

The haters dig into an idol’s past, and make up rumours based on that. For example, XZ had a gf while he was studyinghis degree, but they broke up. Haters then said that it was because of this that he went to South Korea and got plastic surgery (false, some people do have this kind of amazing genes), and that’s why he’s so good looking. Since lies are mixed in truth, some people, especially those who just know his name, or that he’s an actor, have trouble picking it apart.

Rumours also place idols in a tight position. If they don’t answer, people will think the rumours are true. But if they sue them, haters aren’t afraid either, because the process is long, and in this process they are still getting views and new followers. It may also shift the attention to them, which is exactly what they want.

All in all, the world is complex, but even in the middle of snow you may find a little plum blossom.

←Part 3: Why does it snow? | Part 4 (II): Plums blossoms in the snow (II)→

[squarecarousel]

Interview with Caitlin Alexander

Well folks, we're nearly at the end of our Square Carousel journey, and there are just two interviews left – both with two of our longest-standing members! Today, we reconnect with Caitlin Alexander, who has been with the Square Carousel Collective from its very beginning almost 10 years ago. Although we've featured an interview with her here in the past, it's been so long that we are due for an update! When she's not freelancing or performing her duties as an SC admin extraordinaire, Caitlin works tirelessly on her craft, creating prints, products, hand lettered posters, and artwork that embrace the earthy beauty of nature. With a strong focus on environmentalism and a sense of community, her artwork exudes a warmth and complexity that draws the viewer in and invites them to stay a while. Read on for her gems of wisdom!

Make Earth Cool Again

Q: Comparing your early work from your first few years after college to your most recent pieces, you've kept a lot of the textural, playful essence of your style while refining certain elements. Has your process changed much since those early days, and if so, what do you now do differently? 

 A: Such a great question straight out of the gate! My process has changed quite a bit since I graduated in 2011 (almost a decade ago... yikes!). In college, part of my crafted identity as a brand-new illustrator was my traditional use of gouache paint. I actually, in all honestly, was kind of a snob about it, because so many people in our department worked solely digitally. I felt that digital painting was a crutch, which I suppose can be true in some cases, and possibly even more-so when you're applying that to college students, but I certainly had no ground to stand on. In reality, my snobbery kept me from learning critical tools, as I never took Photoshop or Illustrator classes, aside from the one that was required for graduation. This hindered my work a great deal outside of college, given that illustration is so often paired with graphic design, and editing work for clients was so much more difficult traditionally. In 2013, I got a job designing t-shirts, and lied to the company, saying I knew how to use Illustrator. Luckily it was remote, so I was able to teach myself without anyone hovering over me, but that was so foolish, looking back, given the expensive education I got at SCAD should have been my opportunity to learn those things. I introduced digital work more and more over the years, and by 2016 or so, I was primarily a digital artist. Gouache will always have a place in my heart, and I will still break out the tubes occasionally, but working digitally has allowed me to grow so much more as an illustrator, with the ability to edit, paint with more detail, and having more control over color and layering. 

Q: Of all the projects you've done in your professional career, which would you say is closest to your heart? 

 A: Probably the picture book I worked on a couple of years ago, titled "Cool For You." I had a lot of creative freedom for that project, and the subject matter of climate change is personally very important to me. Working with the author, Marianna, was really wonderful, as well. 

Cool For You book cover

Q: The Southwest influence on your work is pretty significant, and I think it's safe to assume you appreciate the majesty of the landscape in your region of the country. However, if you had to live in another state, which would you choose and why? 

 A: Funny you ask that, because I've actually considered moving from Texas to Colorado lately! The culture there is still very western, but I appreciate the liberal point of view (Texas has been grating on me lately, even living in Austin), and the landscape is even more stunning out there! I'd be close to so many inspiring National Parks. Plus, summers wouldn't be 8 months of the year and over 100 degrees for half of it! 

Travel West postcard (1 of 6)

Q: TV shows or movies? 

 A: Lately, Jordan and I have been watching New Girl on repeat. I'm not usually one to watch a show or movie over and over again, but I think we really just needed something light and fun, since life has been so very stressful over the last year.

Q: What's your favorite subject to draw? 

 A: This one is hard! I'm torn between people and landscapes. People are more fun and comfortable for me, and I could knock out a bunch of them quickly. Landscapes are always intimidating, and I'm nervous the whole time, feeling like I can't remember how I did it the time before. It's so strange, because it always ends up fine! But since I feel that way, the payoff is so much greater when I feel satisfied with the final result. 

Q: What would a perfect day look like for you? A: I probably would have answered this totally differently pre-COVID, but in this current world we live in, I would absolutely love to have what used to be a normal, uneventful weekend day for me: Jordan and I would sleep in a little, see an early afternoon movie at the Alamo Drafthouse where we'd eat lunch, then spend the rest of the afternoon browsing used book stores and estate sales, and then meet our friends at the neighborhood coffeehouse for dinner and Trivia Night. I will be so happy to have that again. 

Cover art for East Side Magazine

Book Lover Ladies series- The Book Clubbers

Q: What have you learned from your years at Square Carousel, whether organizing behind the scenes or as a contributor? 

 A: Oooof!! So SO many things! Wow... well, I'll go with the most obvious first: as a member, I learned how to continue to make portfolio-worthy work, even without jobs coming in. That was definitely the most valuable thing about Square Carousel, in my opinion, and hopefully what everyone else got out of it, as well. It can be so hard for fresh graduates to keep up that momentum, and the group saved many of us from becoming stagnant. In terms of running the group... it's been rewarding, but honestly very difficult throughout the years. There have been many ups and downs, and finding the right balance between structure and patience can be extremely challenging. I'm super proud of Elizabeth and myself (OG members!) for keeping it running through the messes-- we've been through some shit together! My major takeaway is the importance of diligence. Projects, businesses, organizations-- they all need at least a couple of people who just keep chugging along, always maintaining the structure (schedule and accountability) and balance (rules and lighthearted encouragement). 

Moth magnets

Q: As the readers are aware, Square Carousel drawing to a close soon. Do you have any plans for what you'll do with the extra time you'll have after our tri-weekly challenges end? 

 A: You know, I actually haven't thought about this too much yet. It's probably because I'll just fill it with more self-imposed projects and deadlines, since I was able to bring that skill I learned in Square Carousel into the rest of my career a while ago. (Or more real jobs! That would be ideal!) I'll miss the community though, and hope to find a way to keep that aspect of freelance life alive. Instagram friends, anyone? 

Q: What's your quirkiest habit? 

 A: Jordan told me recently that he found it weird and endearing that I joke-sing to my cats in the kitchen about really stupid stuff... so probably that! Official Cat Lady© status achieved.

Caitlin and Buster Keaton the Kitten

Q: What advice would you give to a newbie illustrator just starting out today? 

 A: I'd give them the hard advice that our professors didn't really give us in school: there is no way this is going to work out for you if you're not incredibly committed to pursuing it. Now, don't get me wrong-- I'm not telling anyone to have an unhealthy work/life balance because I think that's a toxic sentiment. But you have to keep illustrating and illustrating and illustrating, and arguably more importantly, keep networking and networking and networking. You're going to be rejected or ghosted more often than not, but if you really want it to work out, you're going to keep doing it anyway. And taking critiques if industry folks offer them, to grow and become better. Don't become stagnant in those critical building years.

Caitlin’s studio

Q: Anything else you would like the readers to know? 

A: Yes – thank you so much for supporting Square Carousel through our amazing ten years of challenges! We really appreciate everyone who has kept up with us, checking out the illustrations for each prompt and reading our posts and interviews. Y'all are wonderful, and we hope you'll continue to find us, wherever each of us fly from here! And on that sweet note, we say goodbye for now! Check out Caitlin’s website for more, and follow her on Instagram for new art when it drops.

Join us next time for our final interview!

[musiqueetude]

Why hello everyone! This is my brand new studyblr! (And third or fourth introduction.) I’m originally @mystic-musicblr​, which was my sideblog, but I’ve decided to move my studyblr into a separate blog so I can do a bit more with the blog. I also apologize for tumblr destroying the quality of my banner that isn’t the best, it looks better trust me. Tumblr just sucks. 

Anyway, onto the introduction!

✨Lil about/basics ✨

✨I’m Hayden (they/them, but if you refer to me as she/her I don’t care. I’m not too picky)

✨I’m an only child, a Cancer (♋️) and left handed. So I understand the struggle of writing and trying to write on the iPad (digital notes are so hard 😭)

✨ I play 4 instruments - violin, viola, clarinet, and bass clarinet. 

✨ I love to draw a lot. My icon is the start of an old piece I did last year, but never got around to finishing it, so it’s temporary for right now. 

🎻University info🎻

🎻 I’m a sophomore this upcoming year first generation student and an alternate resident assistance for the 2020-2021 year.

🎻 My major is music industry, with my emphasizes/area in multi-instrumental that I’m struggling to change to applied for violin (really wish I could do viola but it’s out of my hands for now as I don’t have a viola)

🎻 This upcoming semester I’m not overloading myself too much with classes, only with 16 credits, so I won’t die under the pressure of what I did this past semester (spring 2020) with 18 credits 😅😭. Though thanks to switching to online classes, I actually passed my spring semester that greatly brought my GPA up so I was happy and proud of myself for being able to do 18 credits despite the transition into having more online classes. Plus, three of my classes are online this semester (WVU is making a lot of classes hybrid and/or fully online since they are limiting sizes in classrooms to make sure we don’t spread COVID-19 around.), so I should be good. 

🎻I really wish I could minor in French or History, yet I can’t really afford it, don’t have time, or room to do it, which really sucks. The arts do take up a lot of your time and to people who can do double majors or minors in certain majors that demand a lot, you get major props. Maybe one day when I do graduate I’ll minor in French or History. 

🎻 I’m a member of my universities student run record label and it’s pretty great. 

🌼Studyblr/Uni goals for this year🌼

🌼 Be active on here, whether school is still online or in class

🌼 Not focus too much on the aesthetic demands of studyblr. I feel like that really hinders me posting a lot and frankly I believe that the aesthetic demands of studyblr really bring down the community next to multiple factors I could explain in a long post or video. 

🌼Be able to priorities my classes and work in between RA work and having fun. 

🌼Have fun. Literally. 

🌼Start a queue on here for reblogged post and make original content more frequently.

🌼Join and create challenges 

🌼Create more personal goals for myself 

🌼Create more art! I actually am going to try to do YouTube this summer since I need to work on my editing skills and I want to draw and do music more, so that will help with all of that. Along with creating fun videos here and here while making some videos critiquing stuff I like.  

☀️Favorite Studyblr’s☀️

Because why not and I really love them and their content. I’ve been following them forever on my side-blog studyblr and now that I’m here, I can follow them without following them from my main blog. 

☀️@coffeeandpies​ @adelinestudiess​ @gloomstudy​ @studyingkoala​ @mlidilners​ @studyburst​ @illya-studies​ @smartspo​  @elkstudies​ @problematicprocrastinator​ @studytommorow​ 

[sunflower-swan]

Wolfstar Chapter 15

A/N: Here’s what you need to know: I created this story for Writer’s Month 2020. Every day is a new prompt, and therefore a new chapter. This is an AU Wolfstar where Remus is a tattoo artist next door to Sirius who manages a flower shop. James and Lily are alive in this universe and own a coffee shop across the street. And to make parts of the story work with the prompts, Remus is about 10 years older than Sirius. It also takes place more or less in present time, minus Covid-19.

This is chapter 15 of a multi-chapter work. If you’d like to start from the beginning, here is chapter 1.

Disclaimer: I don’t own these characters. I just like to play with them.

Day 15 Prompt: Coffee Shop AU

Rating: Teen and Up

Word Count: 1448

Tags: humor, fluff, angst, smoking, cigarettes

Chapter 15

Remus

Otis Redding, “Cigarettes and Coffee”

But it seemed so natural, darling

That you and I are here

Just talking over cigarettes and drinking coffee, ooh now

Remus awoke on a hard concrete floor. His bones protested as he moved to a seated position. He leaned his back against the bars of the cage and let out an exhausted breath from the effort. Still seated, he Accio’d his wand, and began the arduous task of post-transformation clean-up. Once his skin was delicately pieced back together, he stood and turned around. It was only then he noticed Sirius lying on the ground outside the cage.

He stayed?

With a groan, he swung open the door of his cell.

“Sirius.” He nudged the man on the ground with his toe. “Sirius,” Remus repeated with a shake to his shoulder.

Finally Sirius began to stir. He let out an uncomfortable groan that only comes from sleeping on hard concrete. Unfortunately, Remus knew the sound well. One time he thought a mattress in the cell was a good idea. He had woken up to a destroyed mattress.

Sirius rubbed his hand over his face, then peered up at Remus standing over him. “Morning,” he croaked.

“Morning. How about some coffee?” Remus held his hand out to Sirius.

He grasped the hand, and Remus helped him to a standing position.

“You look like hell, Remus.”

“Tell me something I don’t know.”

~~~~~

After Remus took a shower and changed his clothes, the pair went across the street to the Cafe. Remus ordered the largest Cafe Mocha that James and Lily offered: an enormous mug of hot chocolate, with a shot of espresso, topped with an obscene amount of whipped cream and drizzled with chocolate syrup. Sirius ordered a small black coffee.

Sirius insisted on an outside table today. He chose a seat downwind of Remus, and as he sat down, he pulled out and lit a cigarette. He took a long draw with his eyes closed, then tilted his head back and exhaled so the smoke went behind him. Remus watched his Adam’s apple bob as he swallowed.

Lily showed up with their drink orders. “Everything ok, fellas? Felt like a change of scenery?” She glanced awkwardly between Remus and Sirius.

“Everything is fine, Lily. Thanks. In about twenty minutes you can bring me another one of these.”

“Ok…” Lily raised her eyebrows, but didn’t question them further. She turned and went back into the Cafe.

Remus attempted to appear calm. He sipped his drink and watched his friend closely. Unable to handle the silence any longer he said, “I was bitten when I was young. Most employers are not generous or understanding in dealing with lycanthropes. It worked out to my benefit that I chose to be self-employed and can set working hours around the cycle of the moon.” It all sort of tumbled out at once, like word vomit. Better than actual vomit, that could sometimes happen the morning after. Might still happen anyway.

Sirius remained silent. He put out the butt of his cigarette and took a sip of his coffee. The bitterness caused him to make a face, but he took another sip.

“Sirius,” Remus pleaded, “please say something.”

“What do you want me to say, Remus?” He raised an eyebrow.

The irony of the question was not lost on Remus. Less than forty-eight hours ago, they had stood mere feet from where they were now sitting, and Remus had asked the same of Sirius.

“Fair enough.” Remus was shocked Sirius was sitting here at all. He was surprised when he found him sleeping on the floor outside the cage. Any sane person would have run the moment he transformed.

“Although...” Sirius tapped his fingers on the formica. “...it does explain the name of your place.”

The both looked across the street: ‘Mark of the Wolf, Tattoo Lounge’.

“I thought you were being artsy and deep when you came up with the name. Turns out I was wrong.” He looked back at Remus, and gave a lopsided grin. Sirius leaned forward and rested his elbows on the table. “You were being quite literal.”

Remus chuckled and picked at his fingernails. “Yeah.” He finally looked up and met Sirius’ sparkling eyes. “You’re one to talk though.” Leaning forward and resting his elbows on the table, he glanced across the street at the Flower Loft. “Dog Among the Daisies, Flower Loft. Bit on the nose, don’t you think?”

Sirius threw his hands out to the side and shrugged, before clasping them under his chin. “So we’re both hiding in plain sight. What’s your point?”

“I don’t have a point. Merely pointing it out.”

Lily appeared with Remus’ second Cafe Mocha, and a coffee pot to refill Sirius’ cup.

“Thank you, Lily,” Sirius said.

“One more after this one, Lils,” Remus added, “and some chocolate cake with that one as well. If you have some?”

“Sure thing, Remus.” She smiled and left the men again.

Suddenly, Sirius began chuckling. His shoulders shook and he played with his cup of coffee between his hands.

“What’s so funny?” Remus asked.

Sirius’ eyes were alight when he looked up at Remus. A half smile tugged at his lips. “Uh...good metabolism?” he quoted Remus' words from a few months ago back to him.

“It’s...not an untrue statement.” Remus shrugged.

The heavy weight in Remus' chest dissolved. He hadn’t even realized he’d been carrying it around until it was gone. Knowing Sirius knew about this part of him, and he wasn’t running for the hills, was a positive sign. His lycanthropy wasn’t his only secret, but it was the biggest one. Remus felt  he carried more skeletons than most. More than anything he wanted to be completely open and honest. One thing at a time, he reminded himself. 

“So, what sort of work would you have wanted to do if you didn’t have this...furry little problem?” Sirius asked.

Remus snickered. Furry little problem…? He glanced at the building which housed the Potter’s Wheel Cafe. “Well, I actually really wanted to work at Rising Phoenix Roasters when I was younger. See, they hire artists to design magical specialty latte patterns.”

“That sounds cool.”

Remus nodded in agreement. “Still,” he shrugged, “I’ve got the Tattoo Lounge. You know?”

“Do you ever think about what it would have been like to work at Rising Phoenix Roasters?”

“Well…” Remus rested his chin in his hand. “I imagine it might be something like…”

Remus sat in the back room. The ‘Creators Room’ is what the baristas called it. It’s where wizards like Remus designed intricate latte and cappuccino art. The baristas mused that The Creators sole purpose was to torture them with the most complicated patterns imaginable. They were right.

All of the Creators were highly skilled in the pour of a perfect latte. Occasionally one might prove as adept at customer relations as they were in designing, but they were the exception and not the rule. The owners tried to put Remus behind the counter once. It turned into a fiasco. No, he was very happy and content to remain in the Creators Room.

The sounds of porcelain clanking, steamers swishing, and people chittering, along with the smell of espresso brewing, served as the backdrop of his muse. He had been working on this dragon art for the past week. It’s wing flap wasn’t quite right yet, so he pressed on.

His alarm went off, indicating his shift was over. Without the alarm, he would keep working until they shut the lights out on him. It had happened once. Or twice. All things considered, there were worse ways to earn a living.

Sirius looked at Remus in wonder. “Wow,” he whispered. “So why didn’t you just open your own coffee shop?”

“Crowds. Not a fan,” Remus replied. “Plus, like I told you, a tattoo is forever whereas a latte is temporary. You drink it, it’s gone, you forget about it. Besides,” he took a deep breath and looked into Sirius’ eyes, “if I wasn’t a tattoo artist, then I may never have met you.”

He watched Sirius blush and look into his coffee. Then he ran a hand over the back of his head. “This is true,” he said with a smile. “I know you’re not opening up today,” he added with a sigh and a glance at the time, “but I am, and I need to get going.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right.” Remus was sad to see Sirius go, even if it was only across the street. “See you later?”

Sirius stood and reached for his wallet. “Definitely. And Remus, I wasn’t lying before. I really don’t care about your...condition. It’s only one night a month. The other thirty and one-half days you’re totally fine.”

Remus heart soared at these words. “Thanks, Sirius.”

Next Chapter: Chapter 16

[audiohut]

Real time road bumps and measures i take to overcome them.

Sorry for the delay, things have been hectic between Covid shutting down my plant and finding and working a new job. But i appreciate your reading! 

I have been slowly running into some problems with my own song writing and interest skills when it comes to adding percussive elements that keep the beat filled out as well as using chord progressions and scales to enhance the experience of the song.

I have been referencing a lot of Shakewell and Oliver Tree to note take and utilize some of the tension and release tactics they use to create a more solid song as well as a more exciting and emotionally driven song. In Oliver Tree’s song Alien Boy he slowly builds his beat with each new section of the song that is presented giving the listener something new every time around until the song recedes back to its “standard” mode past the chorus delivering short term nostalgia in what it they just witness being built.

In the song i am currently having a hard time finding something that wraps this idea into the fold as my beat has some nice sampled piano, fun percs on the sides to fill it up as well as some pitch bent 808’s. But the deeper i get into the song the more it strikes me as boring. Using the knowledge from some of my last postings, i found that adapting to the flow of the song with pitch shifted or stretched string instruments helped bring out its color and added some interest for me.

Another cool things i learned is how the song is structured can allow new elements to brought in in different manners. Using one to three instruments throughout your verse and or intro section will display the mode of it while among the chorus you can have new instrument chime in to enhance its emotional movement and when bundled with appropriately choreographed lyricism and performance will really top the mood. Sadly my song has not gotten to that point, but in time it will be there! Until then, i am curating the main bulk of the song but attracting the mood with the instruments and sample i have chosen without it being to repetitive.

Something we touched on before was how your chord progressions can help develop your songs structure which can or maybe should be mapped before you write and adjusted as need be. But if you genuinely feel in your heart this verse should last more than eight bars say based on the mood and tension/release then by all means go for it, but one draw back if not experimented with is the boredom that can hit the listener. Like i mentioned above, Oliver Tree has a great sense of structure in how his songs are developed and his repetitious use of kick and snare along with 808’s gives the song a solid foundation which is a great place to start and the same as before, adjust as need be to fit the melodies and various instruments surrounding them.

As i continue to work my through these songs and digest new information i am confident this song will reach fruition and make it sway to the standard i have set for it. I hope this real time expression helped you think about ways to work around the road bumps in your production. As i continue to learn on my experiences i will continue to share my thoughts for you in hopes it will give perspective and educate the matter at hand.

Overview:

Song Structure is a must

Variation is important

Samples make a difference

Using percussion as ad libs fills out your song

Having material to reference and note take on will put you hours ahead of your own game

Research and willingness to learn

Anyways guys, thanks for reading this one! If you would like more information from first hand experience feel free to head to my previous posts! Happy writing!

-Andrew Giordanengo

-Audiohut

[femmesfollesnebraska]

Artist Feature: Kara Dunne

Pleased to present this q-and-a with artist Kara Dunne. All words and images (c) Kara Dunne...

A Trailer is a Castle on Its Side

Where are you from? How did you get into creative work and what is your impetus for creating?

I like to say I’m from Vermont because that’s where I was born and most likely will end up someday.  Currently I live in Massachusetts.

My observation skills got me into creative work.  I was always good at drawing from observation growing up, and in general observing things that were odd or quirky in the world.  Once I tapped into these heightened skills of seeing things in a new way, I think the gift of creativity followed suit.  Once you are super-honed into the world around you, you naturally start making unusual connections that you’d like to share (secretly in hopes that you may be the first one to make them of course).

As a practicing artist over the years, my work accumulates around me in boxes and flat file drawers.  And since I mostly create multiples of things, sometimes I feel like an unintentional hoarder.  But the thing is, unlike a hoarder, I don’t want to hold on to the stuff I make. I have increasingly felt the “what is the point of producing all this stuff?” question that is not unique to the artist’s experience.  I can relate to the: “If a tree falls in the forest, and no one is around, then it doesn’t make a sound” concept.  If I make work that remains in my flat file, then it too, remains silent.  So what is the point?  I can only amuse myself for so long by producing for myself.  One needs an audience.  Coming from a performance background, audience interaction for me was always the most exciting part of the practice.  I’ve recently made it my main goal as a printmaker to reach an audience with my work by finding new ways in which I can just give my prints away.  I’ve never wanted to sit with my stuff at a table making puppy dog eyes in order for people to stop and buy something from me.  No surprise that I was terrible at selling girl scout cookies.

Tell me about your latest project and why its important to you. What do you hope people get out of your work?

Just before the world shut down, which for me was a year before the pandemic because my time was happily consumed as a new mom, I had just finished a long term research project that connected the agrarian and urban versions of what it meant to be a shepherd and gather something.   It compared the idea of a shopping cart attendant at the grocery store to that of a traditional shepherd gathering and caring for a flock of sheep.  The final result from my years of research into this concept was a limited edition artists’ book, titled, Shopping Cart Shepherds.  Printed on a letterpress, it combined drawings, screen-prints and interviews from my conceptual journey that began in 2012 when I spent time in a small town in Ireland (and yes, around sheep and people who raised sheep).  I met a local man in his eighties named Tom Tarpey, who had been raising sheep for about thirty years at that point.  Strangely enough and quite a rarity in Catholic history, he was the retired priest of the town.  He had left the church in order to marry the love of his life. Once a shepherd of the people, he became a shepherd of sheep.  What a rare find!  I thoroughly enjoy my work when I can interact with the world more directly; when my artistic research connects me to people in places I have never been and with whom I remain in contact with.  I have all these great big ideas, and usually I will be hesitant at first (shy?) to make connections with the community in order to see those ideas come into fruition, but ultimately things pan out in one way or another.  For example, when I came home from Ireland and was blabbing about sheep, a friend gave me a newspaper article about traditional Basque shepherds still working in this country- in the mountains in Idaho.  For a long time, the article was taped to my wall as a reminder to contact some guy I read about named Henry Etcheverry.  In 2014 I was awarded a residency at a fabulous spot called Surel’s Place (thank you so much Surel Mitchell), and it gave me the opportunity to the make necessary connections out there for this book.  Needless to say, it was an amazing experience and the Etcheverry family embraced me like one of their own; and I learned a lot about sheep.  I now consider them my extended west coast family.

110 copies of the book, Shopping Cart Shepherds, exist (that’s all I could afford to get printed) and inside the back cover it asks the reader to pass the book along to someone else once they finish it.  It is my hope that the ideas in this book will travel and reach more than 110 people.  (More trees falling in more forests?)  I have given away most of the copies at this point, both to people I know and don’t know. The books serve as messages in bottles- it’s honestly difficult to not to have control over where they go, but I guess an artist never really knows where their artwork will end up after it is purchased anyway.  Perhaps my books are mostly buried in the sand dunes of someone’s office book pile, or they have actually reached new beaches far far away.  I will never know.

Since completing this major work, all of my ideas for making prints have the underlying purpose of getting out into the world and reaching an audience.

I find certain design elements of architecture to be amusing, and often make work about the structures around us, as they are extensions of our culture and can change with popularity just like anything else.  Cupolas, ultimately a very useful and functional architectural ventilation add-on to barns and other large buildings, have been on the rise where I live.  Decorative cupolas mainly, seem to show up on top of garages overnight, like cherries atop sundaes.  (Makes the sundae and the house look better).  I made an edition of screen-prints based on this idea- a vanilla sundae with chocolate sauce and sprinkles in a fancy glass serving dish…with a cupola on top.  To get them out to cupola-adorning people, I made up a survey of questions about cupolas.  I printed the survey onto paper door hangers and distributed them.  The survey could be cut out from the door hanger as a postcard and mailed to my special P.O. box in town.  If the survey was sent back, that household would receive an original artist print.  I had the post box and distributed the door hangers for a few months before I had to stop the project because of the emergence of covid.  I had received at least a dozen responses at that point, and mailed out a portion of the edition.  I’d like to start it up again at some point.    

My next print- based community outreach project idea is in process now and will involve restaurant placemats.  I just need to make some local restaurant connections.  (Another pre-pandemic idea forced to simmer on the back burner).   Here’s the basic idea.  A table at a restaurant is the perfect gallery space.  It is especially ideal because it is the location where a group of people will sit and wait for a long period of time together with nothing else to do but sit and chit-chat in one place.  Not even in a gallery do you have the same group of people staying near each other and talking for longer than fifteen minutes in front of a single artwork.  

A paper placemat at a restaurant is viewed for a longer period of time than a work of art on a gallery wall.  It is hard not to look at a placemat- it is one of the few places to look while waiting for food.   I will use the format of the dining placemat as a way to bring fine art into the everyday world. I believe an etching is the perfect kind of print for this project.  An etching is considered the finest of fine art printmaking, mainly because the process of making an etching plate is just as time consuming as printing the edition itself.  Also, it would be perfectly ironic if a plate made a placemat.  And the thought of such a sacred piece of paper so carefully processed as an art work that should end up underneath someone’s sweaty beer glass and dinner plate is simply…exciting to me.  Equally, the thought that a restaurant guest may decide to not get it messy because they want to take it home is the kind of leave-it-to-chance scenario that I gravitate to as an artist; it forces me to relinquish my control and challenges the idea of art as an artifact.  For the viewer, the idea plays with the preciousness of “art” and the context in which we view a work of art (in a gallery vs. the real world).  For the restaurant owner, it may also bring more business and create a new kind of hype attracting more customers.  Let’s say I print a series of five placemats, and if people collect all five placemats they get a free limited edition non-placemat print worth X amount of dollars.  Or maybe they collect all five and get ten dollars off their next meal.  Something like that.

This project connects directly with the public and gets the fine art print into the hands of the everyday person.  The imagery within the frame of the placemat will vary- from beautiful local scenery and landmarks (as everyone enjoys a pretty picture), to several different designs that will engage the table with non-phone related activities- like a dining room scavenger hunt or a list of dinner conversation starters, as well as other designs that are more cerebral and open to interpretation, serving as conversation starters themselves (with digestion friendly, witty imagery).  It is also my intention to make one of the placemats at each table have a QR code with a link to a video of how the placemat was produced, essentially educating the public about what an etching is, and moreover- what printmaking is.  

Considering the political climate, how do you think the temperature is for the arts right now, what/how do you hope it may change or make a difference?

The climate is quite volatile right now, to say the least, and I think artists have a responsibility now more than ever to connect people from both sides of a political issue in order to start a meaningful conversation.  I think the temperature for artists right now is great- get in the pool!  Art always impacts at least one person looking at it, so that’s something.  Art is mainly a non-confrontational way to interpret something about the world that needs to change for others who may not understand why change needs to happen.  The best example I can think of within the visual arts is installation and involves statistic- based information.  For example, a person may come across a beautiful sculpture of a sea monster made from plastic cups.  Then they read about the work and how two million cups were used to make the work and that two million cups end up in the ocean every day; that person now has the physical representation in front of them of what two million actually means and it is forever burned into their mind. That person can stand next to the giant sculpture of cups and can better understand what the number means in relation to how it impacts the environment.  A real life artwork that is forever burned in my mind like this is a video piece by the ceramic artist Ehren Tool called the ‘1.5 Second War Memorial’.  In it, every 1.5 seconds a cup is shot and breaks. Each cup represents a human life.  You would have to watch the video for  eight minutes to get to the number of people who died in the Gulf War (Tool is a veteran of that war) and watch the video for two years to get to the number of total casualties in WWII.  

Artist Wanda Ewing, who curated and titled the original LFF exhibit, examined the perspective of femininity and race in her work, and spoke positively of feminism, saying “yes, it is still relevant” to have exhibits and forums for women in art; does feminism play a role in your work?

More often than not, feminism lies under the surface of my work.   How can it not, as I am living as a woman in this world?  Feminism is always going to be relevant.  It does not end, it is forever in existence; Feminism should not be considered as waves of the past, but as the water itself. I hate that ‘feminism’ is still considered a ‘dirty’ word.  Mostly I experience this as a high school teacher, when every so often I will have a male student who expresses their thoughts about what they think feminism is and after I cringe, mostly internally and sometimes externally, I sadly realize that this wrongly informed opinion comes from the belief system of the parents.  I try my best to inform them of what is true and false without becoming pushy; it is my hope that these particular students gain more perspective in the world through life experiences once their bubble becomes bigger-  and of course once their bubble of close-mindedness has popped.

Ewing’s advice to aspiring artists was “you’ve got to develop the skill of when to listen and when not to;” and “Leave. Gain perspective.”  What is your favorite advice you have received or given?

One of my first professors, Nick Tobier, had a five line mantra of sorts that he told us to write down during his first lecture.  

“Public space is yours to take.

Reveal the things that are hidden.

What you see has been filtered for you.

Let private notions become public.

You can make icons”

-

https://www.karadunne.com/

~

Les Femmes Folles was a volunteer organization founded in 2011 with the mission to support and promote women in all forms, styles and levels of art from around the world. Editor Sally Brown retired from active blogging after 10 years in 2021, but still accepts submissions. sallery_art@zohomail.com https://femmesfollesnebraska.tumblr.com/callforart-writing

Check out the 10th anniversary LFF exhibit, Feminist Connect, here:

https://www.les-femmes-folles-feminist-connect.com/

[gammaprimesmw]

All My Worthwhile SMW Hacks - Now on GBATemp

For those who have perhaps wondered where the SMW in my screen name comes from, it comes from my long history in the Super Mario World ROM hacking scene. It's something I originally discovered all the way back in 2006. Back then, I quickly fell in love with the ability to change levels. I could make the most annoying levels of the game a bit more bearable. (Looking at you, Tubular!) Before long, I had joined Acmlm's Board and attempted to pass a collection of blatant level edits off as my first SMW hack, only to be shot down rather quickly. I briefly quit, only to start again. This time, I tried to make my own levels, only to eventually break something in my ROM. I almost gave up yet again before finally producing my first passable (at the time) hack late that year. I intended to follow that up with another hack called Super Mario Bros. 5, but ended up burning out sometime in the following summer. I then left hacking behind until late 2010. That's when what I consider my real SMW hacking journey began.

By late 2010, a lot had changed about the scene. New utilities now existed, and new custom assets could be inserted that the average user wouldn't dare to mess with in 2006. Custom music, blocks, and sprites could be inserted whether or not one knew 65c816 Assembly. Meanwhile, I was getting better at pixel art, allowing me to make my own graphics from scratch. Before long, I had decided to resurrect Super Mario Bros. 5, recreating the whole thing practically from scratch. The result would be Super Mario Bros. 5 Roborn. It wasn't easy to pull the hack off, even with new skills and tools. I'd suffer from bouts of Hacker's Block, which is like a writer's block or artist's block, but it affects the ability to create new levels. I'd also run into technical problems and the inability to find the right resources to do everything I really wanted to do. Learning to make my own custom music helped somewhat, but I would still be dependent on the ASM people to either code what I needed or fix bugs involving whatever custom code had already been inserted. Sadly, requests for custom bosses were seldom, if ever, fulfilled. This fact would eventually kill a sequel to SMB5R known as Mecha-Bowser's Revenge. I wanted custom bosses that didn't exist and lacked the patience to learn the necessary ASM skills to make them myself. After canceling that hack and honing my level design skills a bit, partially thanks to a great tutorial written by AxemJinx. I entered my first Vanilla Level Design Contest in late February of 2012. While my level didn't win or even place in the top 5, it didn't place at the bottom either. A very critical hack reviewer called XKeeper, who I remember being one of the people to lambaste my earliest attempts at SMW hacking, gave the level a 4/5 when he played it during a Twitch stream. The time was fast approaching to try for another full-length hack. I tried my best to manage my ambition with this one. I'd keep the story simple. Bowser kidnapped the Princess (again). Koopalings would be the World bosses, and the existing bosses and boss templates made custom Koopalings feasible. I decided to draw all the foregrounds and backgrounds for this project. Only one thing really posed a threat to this project: Hacker's Block. It would get so bad sometimes that I'd question the morality of ROM hacking, believing the blocks came from God/my conscience trying to stop me from promoting the "sin" of downloading ROMs. Thankfully, friends like imamelia would reassure me that it wasn't. The hack was finished just as 2012 came to a close. This is the oldest hack that I felt worthy of going on GBATemp.

It was game on from there. I'd produce several more hacks. Each one would receive mostly positive reviews. The most frequent complaint I'd receive would be that my hacks all felt the same. I was, and still will be should I return to hacking, a traditionalist hacker. I tried to make my hacks feel like official Mario games. I eschewed the typical ROM hacking practice of making something significantly harder than the base game. I'm the first person to test the levels, and I'm not the greatest at video games. Lost Levels-tier difficulty curves aren't my thing, and Kaizo definitely isn't my thing. The latter fact suited me just fine. Up until about 2015, Kaizo hacks were banned on SMWCentral. That would start changing that year. A little thing called Janked Up Mario Party (AKA JUMP) was released, and it began changing the very culture of SMWC. Kaizo hacks were now permitted, thanks to them being popular with Twitch streamers. I kept going for several more years, even as popular opinion began turning against my "safe, homogenized" hacks, and Streamer Kaizo hacks began taking over the hack database. Let's Plays and streams of my hacks became more and more sparse, and my overall motivation to hack slowly dwindled through 2019. I burned out so back early last year that, for a couple weeks, I became thoroughly convinced that ROM hacking was a sin, regardless of what people like imamelia said. That conviction would bring me to tears every time I thought about everything I had created. I was still proud of it. These hacks were still available. I could've very easily asked a staffer on SMWC to take them all down, along with all the other resources I created. Being seen as crazy, and the fact that I could never truly erase what I'd done, ultimately held me back. Eventually, I gave into temptation, popping into a friend's stream while he was streaming a hack called Return to Dinosaur Land. That night, I also had a chat with Daizo Dee Von, and he finally convinced me that I was wrong about the whole "ROM hacking is a sin" thing. I salvaged some levels from the canceled Chocolate Collection I was working on since late 2019, threw in a few contest entry levels, and built a few new levels to create a much smaller collection hack simply called "Ten." I could've been done there. That could've been my send-off to the world of SMW hacking. Then COVID-19 happened, inspiring me to start another project inspired by the various conspiracy theories surrounding the pandemic. Unfortunately, I didn't have enough inspiration and motivation to see said hack through, and it was canceled. I decided then that I was pretty much done with hacking. I'd been doing it for a decade straight. That was probably the real reason I was burning out, rather than some divine intervention. I was burned out, and SMWC's culture was no longer one that really supported my style of hacks. I was no longer the one whose hacks could generate hype in large swaths of the community. I was now known as someone who just put out a string of very similar hacks. I even wondered if a sufficiently-trained AI algorithm could make hacks like mine. Maybe that thought can go two ways. I could see it as meaning I'm more like a machine than a person when it comes to designing levels, or the hypothetical AI could be seen as passing the ROM hacking equivalent of a Turing Test.

Anyway, here are the rest of the hacks. You will need a Super NES emulator and a Super Mario World ROM to play these. I can't tell you where to get the latter, but I can recommend using snes9x as your emulator of choice.

KAMEK'S ISLAND (2013)

MARIO & LUIGI: KOLA KINGDOM QUEST (2014-2015)

SUPER MARIO WORLD: BOWSER'S CATACLYSMIC TRAP (2014-2015)

SUPER MARIO LAND 3: TATANGA'S RETURN (2015-2016)

MARIO IS MISSING DONE RIGHT (2016)

SUPER MARIO BROS: THE EARLY YEARS (2016-2017)

SUPER LUIGI LAND (2017-2019)

SHORT BUT SWEET This is a collection of 4 mini-hacks I made during this time. These were usually side projects I did to keep my skills sharp and still do some hacking without burning myself out on the larger projects. Often, these would incorporate levels I had made for various hacking contests. One of them, Oiram's Invasion, is actually a contest entry itself, created for the 2013 12 Days Before Christmas contest. It's my highest-ranking contest entry on the site, having made it all the way to 3rd Place.

[themeggem]

Final Reflection

Ten weeks is almost up, a chapter in my life coming to a close. It’s funny, my cycle started when I arrived in Torquay and now as I prepare to finish up loose ends, my cycle finishes, a new one beginning  as I step towards a new chapter in my life. It’s like my body is ready to let go.

 The ‘end’ feels a little open, uncertain and exciting. When I’m asked where to next? I’m never really sure at first. My decisiveness flaring up perhaps. But it’s okay, it allows for a blank page, I have the opportunity to carve out my own way, while being open to possibilities. It feels liberating in ways, a freedom to take my own steps without the (sometimes strict) guidance of schooling and university. The best part about it is that I feel ready to spread my wings and fly. I’ve already began shaking off the dust.

Before diving into the journey, I wanted to thank and feel gratitude for Matty, who carved out time in his busy life to listen to me, to be present and to guide me throughout the internship. For having the patience as I became familiar with the new surroundings, activities and tasks. And for providing me with both the initial opportunity but also giving me the freedom to take the reins for B recertification and allowing me to input any ideas or recommendations. Importantly, Matty helped me to become more in touch with my intuition and my resistance, by allowing me to write honest reflections and motivate me to journal more frequently. The experience has been a gift, and it is something I will remember and cherish.  

The big ole’ Journey

Like most things in life, this journey came with its own ups and downs. I feel like I’m getting the hang of riding out these roller coaster of emotions and situations thanks to COVID. But more thanks to being present. I can better recognise the feelings that rise within me better than before. I used to be consumed by my emotions, but now I just see them as travellers sometimes stopping for a little while, but never moving in. By not attaching to my emotions, my observation skills both within but outside have heightened. As part of the learning process I wanted to simply observe more practical things, but also how others connect, and react to situations. It has been insightful and further sparked my drive to run my own business, and create stronger connections with others. Seeing the flexibility and the way you can balance your life in a way that nourishes your wellbeing seems so important and something I want to stay true to. Self care is vital if I want to thrive. 

Through observing myself, I have leaned in to everything B Corp! I enjoyed the structure and guidelines that came with the recertification process. It was very ‘heady’, repetition started to set in at times, but when I began to feel settled, new tasks and ideas put me in a new direction.

Taking the initiative to connect with B Lab excited me, it showed that I was pretty keen to be involved and wanted to take a deeper dive into learning what it’s all about. I want to continue strengthening this connection, inspired to join Melbourne’s B committee to further extend my network within the B Corp community. Something I am interested in doing is definitely B Corp consulting, it seems to be a growing movement and it aligns to my values and how I see businesses being key to transformation and change that is so vitally needed. It’s a goal I have in mind, and I will be looking at ways I can improve my consulting skills and gain a deeper understanding of the B Corp world. 

Opening my own business has always been an idea that lingers and nudges me in times of inspiration. I feel prepared to take the risk, it’s just understanding how to take the risk exactly, and who it will be with. 

The future is filled with uncertainties, I guess it always is. Covid in a way has smashed to pieces preconceived ideas of what steps I should be taking after graduating. It’s left an open book of opportunities and failures. I feel myself floating a little. This year sometimes feels like a weird dream. Everything stopped in its tracks. Every expectation pulled from under my feet. How am I supposed to ‘do’ life now? What does this mean for my life? It made me realise nothing was for certain. That what I do now doesn’t mean I’m locked in for life. You never are. It brings me a stronger sense of intention as I realise my core purpose is to be. To simply be. The rest is just extra. That in being you are already more than enough. So whatever you choose, It cannot truly define who you are. So I say only do what allows you to be. To be, authentic self. From there is where we may thrive. To be there takes a lot of courage, takes bravery. Sometimes I get so confused about who I truly am, the societal constructs that have been bestowed upon us cause us to morph and play roles to feel some sense of belonging. Sometimes it feels more comfortable to be in the roles, to accept what has been dealt. But then I do things that feel right and it brings me back home.

It feels right when helping others to be seen, to be understood and to feel comfortable in being themselves. It feels right when I can help improve how we manage our lifestyles and our impact on the environment, when awareness grows, when we feel a deeper connection to our surroundings and when we try to restore some balance. I stated in my goals earlier that I wanted to gain a clearer understanding of where I wanted to direct my passion, but I think somewhere in the depths, I knew all along… To discover with others how we might improve our fundamental connections to all beings. From rocks, gum trees and incredible oceanic mammals. These ecosystems are our existence. How can we live in better harmony? How can we use our minds, our ideas, or creations to repair and rebalance? How can we sit closer together and listen presently to others and the world that wraps around us?

Lately I have sensed a flare of creative energy, I want to paint, dance, draw, I want to create my own content. I imagine a business that changes the way we understand the story of our clothes, where my fellow humans are no consumer in my eyes but are connecting, working together towards a common goal in loving and nurturing our beautiful planet, using technology and industry as a force for good. Continuing to propel the sparked awareness of improved localisation as Covid meets us eye to eye. We needed each other then, and we need each other now if we are going to nurture and repair the damage that has been and is being done. I see freedom in running my own business, allowing my gypsy travel bug to flare, to carve out my imagination and bring it to life and to make my own money off my own back. 

I may be inexperienced, I do have many doubts, it feels uncomfortable at times. But I don’t see how I’m going to change, how I’m going to grow if I don’t step into the deep end and start learning how to swim. 

[mhsn033]

Health News24.com | Following a community health worker for a day: It’s incredible what she does

Health

Thousands of neighborhood health workers state existence-saving medication and enhance for sufferers at their properties all the design during the nation.

Covid-19 has made their work great more difficult, but they persevere.

We accompanied Katrina Jacobs on her rounds.

Katrina Jacobs grew up on a farm in Varkens Vlei, Philippi, the save each her americans were workers. She used to be in her 20s when her father used to be identified with TB. She saw him coughing up clots of blood.

She says her mother struggled along with her “stubborn” father as a end result of he didn’t should lift his medicines. So she gave up her job to cease dwelling all the design through his six-month therapy, to be clear he ate effectively and took his pills day-to-day, she educated GroundUp.

Help then, there were no nearby taxis and, as her father walked utilizing a crutch, she would carry him on her wait on to scamper to the sanatorium.

“It used to be a battle, but I did it,” says Jacobs.

At the present time, 20 years later, Jacobs is one among thousands of Community Properly being Workers (CHWs) providing dwelling care all the design during the nation. She lives and works in Heinz Park, Mitchells Tedious.

From Monday to Friday, on foot, carrying a shoulder catch and sporting a disguise and most continuously a visor, she delivers medicines, monitors of us for Covid-19, offers files and assesses about 10 of her sufferers a day.

Jacobs used to be specifically assigned TB sufferers, particularly these with drug resistance.

Whether or not it’s rain or shine, arena workers Felicia Davids and Raylene Kotze state continual medicines in the Westridge residence. On this particular day, they did 32 deliveries. (Ashraf Hendricks, GroundUp)

Ensuing from the possibility of contracting Covid-19, Jacobs tries to envision out her sufferers open air, but confidentiality will likely be an disaster. One among her sufferers has TB as well to HIV and she or he decides it’s better to steal the consultation out of look of the neighbours. She asks him to thrill save on his disguise and asks that the early life step open air.

She explains to him that she has been sent to evaluate him to verify that the sanatorium to present his medication needs. Amongst the questions she asks, stressing that that is all stored confidential, are: “Attain you smoke dagga?”, “Attain you make utilize of condoms?”, “Attain you seek the advice of a in fashion healer?”, “Who can enhance you at some stage in your therapy?”, “What time produce you lift your medication?”

She explains it’s key he does not put out of your mind to lift his medication on time.

“It’s seemingly you’ll maybe maybe earn sick all over again,” she cautions.

When she leaves, she offers him a brochure about Covid-19.

The pandemic has made her job great more difficult, she says.

“Standing open air, we can’t glance what’s occurring in the residence,” says Jacobs, making it more difficult to evaluate the sufferers’ living stipulations and to make a decision what else may maybe maybe be considerable to handle and wait on them.

Some sufferers can additionally be complex.

“Heaps of my clients are on medication, so it’s a battle to earn them to the sanatorium,” she says.

They should be consistently reminded to scamper to the sanatorium. Others are engaging in crime, and too disturbed to scamper to Samora Machel, the save the sanatorium is positioned. Most continuously Jacobs has to lag along with her sufferers. At events she makes utilize of her possess cash for his or her taxi fare or to lift them some food whereas they take a seat and wait on the sanatorium.

Building have confidence is an disaster. She has had doorways slammed in her face. Nonetheless she returns the following day with a smile and reminds them her services and products are free.

Travelling round clear neighbourhoods poses a possibility to her. Community healthcare workers whinge of being robbed of their telephones and cash. Jacobs has additionally been caught up in protests and teargassed. She says that ride used to be “traumatising” and that she used to be given a fracture day work. Regardless of this, she peaceable delivered medication to a affected person that day.

Gaynor Dankers, mission supervisor for Arisen Ladies, has been with the organisation since its inception 20 years ago. Alongside her is Skilled nursing sister Sheila Scoble, who’s one among the organisation founders on the head office in Mitchells Tedious. (Ashraf Hendricks, GroundUp)

Jacobs works for the non-profit Arisen Ladies, which is shriveled to the Western Cape Department of Properly being. Mission Manager Gaynor Dankers says it started 20 years ago with four workers and now has over 180, including 136 fieldworkers.

In Mitchells Tedious in June, they saw 600 sufferers, from unique child babies to centenarians. The organisation is engaging in dwelling care, but additionally has feedings schemes and offers bereavement enhance. We produce every thing from “the womb to the tomb”, she says.

Home visits by nurses faded to be unavailable in the Mitchells Tedious residence, diverse than costly non-public dwelling care. All of Arisen Ladies’s services and products are free and are funded by the smartly being department.

“Heinz Park is a TB, HIV, Covid-19 and minute one smartly being hotspot,” says Dankers.

Covid-19 “has had a important affect on how we operate”, she says.

Sooner than the pandemic, of us would resolve up medicines at particular areas enjoy church buildings and civic centres, but now every thing should be brought to of us’s properties. Topic workers find additionally taken on teaching the neighborhood about Covid-19.

“When we knock on the doorways, the of us don’t want us in the homes thanks to fraud and the of us whine we are bringing in Covid-19,” she says.

Crime is an disaster for the fieldworkers, and she or he pleads with the neighborhood “to retain our of us stable”.

“Community-basically based services and products are a should should our smartly being draw,” acknowledged Monique Johnstone, spokesperson for the provincial smartly being department. She acknowledged fieldworkers had been considerable in managing Covid-19 cases.

“They’ve assisted with doing dwelling visits to get contact numbers, fall off pamphlets, discharge and work letters, and even food parcels. They’ve additionally equipped treasured support with Covid-19 screening and referring relevant neighborhood people to attempting out web sites,” she says.

Within the Mitchells Tedious residence there are 10 organisationss and extra than 750 CHWs providing care.

Johnstone acknowledged that CHWs are not clinical practitioners and can easiest refer sufferers requiring urgent clinical consideration.

“They operate in volatile and prone communities and we ask that the neighborhood support by keeping them stable so that they are going to state an efficient and supportive healthcare provider,” she acknowledged.

Whatever the hazards, Jacobs says that she has no fears or concerns. The Lord gave her “a spirit of enjoy and a sound thoughts,” she says.

Arisen Ladies additionally operates out of the Stephen Reagan Hall in Westridge, Mitchells Tedious. Clinics, social fashion areas of work and neighborhood pushed organisations, just like Arisen Ladies, find become key offer and smartly being companions. (Ashraf Hendricks, GroundUp)

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[maxihealth]

Health Happens at Home: Lessons from the Parks Connected Health Summit

Home is where the health is, we know in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. To be sure, many of us who have been preaching that our ZIP codes are more impactful to our health than our genetic codes have known the evidence backing the social and behavioral determinants of health for a long time.

This week, Parks Associates convened the Connected Health Summit, focused on the theme of consumer engagement and innovation. I attended all three days’ worth of sessions in this well-planned and -executed virtual meeting. In this post, I’ll weave my favorite themes of consumer health engagement for self-care at home for ourselves and the people we love.

The first chart organizes Parks Associates’ introduction to the Summit, illustrating that health happens in every room of the house — from the kitchen to the loo, for young people and older, for our gyms for fitness and remote monitoring for our heart health.

To enable health care at home, across the continuum from health promotion, to disease prevention, chronic care management, safe and healthy aging-in-place, and palliative care at the end-of-life, it takes a village — in the form of a health/care services ecosystem.

Enter the second chart, which expands what we traditionally have called “home healthcare” into new areas for care at home. Typically, home healthcare has covered (definitionally and in terms of reimbursement) services addressing activities of daily living, durable medical equipment, and hospice.

Under “new partner services,” Parks Associates lists broadband, home security, retail health and tech (from Best Buy Health to CVS health and Walmart, among others), and the “tech giants” (namely Amazon, Apple, and Google),  personal emergency response services (PERS), et al..

Hospitals, clinicians, long term care and other legacy health care system players must collaborate with the folks on the right side of the chart to provide continuity of care to people at home, if we are to realize the vision of connected health where people live.

The pandemic has made this vision more important and real as our homes have taken on more roles beyond pure shelter: for work, for education, for food service, for shopping, and indeed, for health care.

The third chart illustrates different parts of the home care experience all of which bolster self-care life-flows at home:

Smart home functions of lighting and smart speakers, for example;

Safety and independence for PERS and connected cars, shopping and GPS;

Wellness, for fitness via wearable tech, exercise, and nutrition; and,

Health, for the health”care” flows like remote monitoring for heart conditions, diabetes, respiratory, and other condition areas.

The drawing shows that increasingly complex medical care can happen at home through the use of sensors and services. These will require partnerships and collaborations across multiple providers and technologies, “unified” through good design centered on the person using the service at home.

Health care providers, plans, and payors will need to collaborate with those newer players who can add value and expertise to this vision. They may already be in peoples’ homes, trusted brands in kitchens and bathrooms and bedrooms. They will have expertise in on-boarding and up-skilling consumers with devices or services, and be design-thinking with knowledge of UX and understanding consumers’ lives and values.

Among various challenges to getting to the Holy Grail of connected health-for-all is how to reach at-risk populations. In particular, Parks Associates pointed out the fact that many patients are not currently being served, with at least 14 million U.S. households without broadband access and not reachable via app-based solutions. We’ve seen this play out poorly in the pandemic in households where people have been unable to work from home, access school classes from home, or reach a physician for a telehealth visit from home.

Health Populi’s Hot Points:  Among the many excellent keynote sessions, two spoke most profoundly to me in the context of the home as the health hub.

This statement, that “Along with the pandemic, there is a humanitarian crisis in healthcare,” came from a talk given by Angie Kalousek Ebrahimi, Executive Director, Mind-Body Medicine at Blue Shield of California.

Angie described the health plan’s Wellvolution program which was launched in June 2019 — well-timed in advance of the COVID-19 pandemic. Wellvolution is a healthy living platform that supports peoples’ self-care at home, co-designed with plan members. Angie’s term learned three key lessons in developing this project:

The importance of providing a personalized program that’s meaningful to the consumer

Moving from being “transactional” to enabling experiences

Breaking down siloes and expanding to a whole-person care paradigm.

Blue Shield of California was well-positioned to support plan members at-home in the pandemic with this platform in place, recognizing peoples’ own personal crises in care and disrupted lives as the coronavirus crisis emerged in early 2020.

Tori Ames, Manager of Cincy Kids Health Connect, the Center for Telehealth at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, discussed how her organization met the pandemic’s challenge through the program’s many virtual care channels” diagnostics, specialty clinics, direct-to-consumer, remote patient monitoring, Project ECHO, and other touch points outside of the hospital.

Cincy Kids was able to onboard and create telehealth accounts for over 1,000 providers, expand existing programs, launch more than 25 new electronic health record builds in divisions that never used telehealth, and obtain thousands of temporary licenses for clinicians.

Impressively, the organization stood up virtual care using a variety of conferencing and software tech’s including Cisco Jabber, Epic/MyChart, Extended Care, Microsoft Teams, Teladoc, Tyto Care, and Zoom.

Tori had this image in her talk, which speaks to that humanitarian dimension to our pandemic journeys. We must keep the love and the person in mind at the center of the crisis in which we all find ourselves and each other.

Thanks to Parks Associates for bringing us together this week to share perspectives on the challenges and opportunities for connected health, essential in the era of COVID-19.

The post Health Happens at Home: Lessons from the Parks Connected Health Summit appeared first on HealthPopuli.com.

Health Happens at Home: Lessons from the Parks Connected Health Summit posted first on https://carilloncitydental.blogspot.com

[csrgood]

The Art and Science of Changing Lives

Originally published by Adobe

As a graduate student in mechanical engineering at the University of Central Florida (UCF), Albert Manero always wanted to use his engineering skills to change the world. One morning in 2013, he caught a glimpse of how he might do it.

“I heard a radio interview with a man who developed the first 3D-printed mechanical hand, shared his design, and essentially started a global movement of makers,” Manero says. “I was determined to help by bringing whatever skills and lab resources I could to the project.”

It wasn’t long before a family in Orlando reached out to Manero with a slightly modified request — something he and his fellow classmates hadn’t tried before. “They asked if we could build a bionic arm for their six-year-old son,” he says. “Their request was a little intimidating and also exciting. We knew if we could assemble the right team of engineers and designers that we could do it. Within eight weeks, we had a prototype, and that’s when Limbitless Solutions was born.”

Limbitless Solutions finds its inspiration

Manero was soon consumed with the project. Juggling classes and international research, he and his fellow students established a nonprofit organization on the UCF campus. Their focus: making low-cost, lightweight, personalized bionic arms at no cost to families. Making the limbs financially accessible is key. A bionic limb can traditionally cost as much as $50,000 — something that is unaffordable for many families, especially since a bionic limb requires replacement every few years as a child grows.  

Coming up with the mission was a great start, but the real inspiration came when they looked at the problem through the eyes of children with limb differences. Even when kids can get traditional prosthetics or bionic limbs, they may be embarrassed to wear them or simply have a hard time seeing the device as an integrated part of themselves.

“Kids with limb differences often face challenges. Our mistake was to assume they just want to blend in and feel normal,” says Manero, now president of Limbitless. “When we started talking with them, we realized that these kids want to be seen and celebrated for who they are — superheroes."

That insight made Limbitless what it is today. The team has grown from its initial group of engineers to include artists, designers, developers, and around 25 student interns each semester from across engineering, marketing, and arts disciplines at UCF. The result is a blend of science and creativity that is evident in every bionic arm the organization develops.

Personal designs empower kids to express themselves

Kids are especially excited about the fact that each arm is custom-designed to reflect their unique personality. They get to collaborate with students from the UCF School of Visual Arts and Design to create personalized outer sleeves using creative tools such as Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator. Then, the Limbitless art and painting team uses Photoshop, Illustrator, Dimension, and Substance Painter, along with professional airbrushing equipment, to give each bionic arm its unique character.

Together, they’ve designed arms that look like everything from a bouquet of flowers to the arm of Iron Man. This creative expression is crucial for creating a sense of ownership, empowerment, and confidence in each and every child.

Annika Emmert, 15, one of Limbitless’s bionic kids, was 10 when she received her first arm. “I can’t even begin to explain the opportunities I’ve had since meeting the amazing people from Limbitless,” Emmert says. “The fact tht I got to design my own bionic arm makes me feel good about wearing it. It has changed my life for the better."

That blend of creativity and engineering comes through in everything Limbitless does, including the apps it develops. Kids learn how to control their new arms by playing Limbitless Runner and Limbitless Adventure — games built using Adobe XD, Mixamo, Fuse, Photoshop, Illustrator, and Animate. These fun, immersive games help limb recipients get comfortable with flexing their muscles to produce movements and gestures. That training is key to faster adoption.  Testing the effectiveness of the training games in relation to adoption of the arms has been an integral part of their first clinical trial. Preliminary testing shows positive results for use of training games to accelerate the ability to use the bionic arm.

For families, there’s an app for bionic arm calibration, troubleshooting, and family support chat. The organization has even developed an app and a website portal that allows families to customize their bionic designs online. Both were designed and prototyped in Adobe XD.

Visual storytelling changes the conversation around limb differences

Limbitless is more than halfway through the clinical trials on its bionic arms. Once complete, FDA certification will enable the prosthetics to be covered by insurance, thereby making the arms more accessible to children with limb differences. In the meantime, the non-profit is working hard to raise awareness and attract funding. Visual storytelling is central to its efforts.

The advocacy and marketing team’s top priority is to share the Limbitless mission through the website, social media, flyers, and posters, and they rely on Adobe InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, XD, and Spark to do so. Videos on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube, created using Adobe Premiere Pro, Premiere Rush, and After Effects, are particularly effective in communicating the Limbitless mission and celebrating limb recipients.

“Limbitless' sole focus is not only on the technology, such as our bionic arms, but the children using the technology, their families, their lives, and their stories,” says Mrudula Peddinti, Branding Director at Limbitless Solutions. “Creative storytelling goes beyond scientific data and statistics about a device. It adds emotional impact and the humanity behind the prosthetic. Our role is not only to develop and provide accessible technology, but also utilize the power of visuals to amplify our bionic kids' and families' voices and stories to build awareness throughout the rest of the community. This is what allows Limbitless to not only garner genuine buy-in and support of our mission, but also empower our bionic kids.”

The Limbitless bionic kids themselves are helping to raise awareness using visual storytelling. , and now they have their own comic. The Bionic Kid comic series is the brainchild of then 10-year-old Zachary Pamboukas, who received his first bionic arm in 2016, and his older brother, Christo. The two boys came up with the idea to raise money for other kids in need of bionic arms, writing the story and even helping with the illustrations. The comic is helping to change the conversation around limb differences.

“’Bionic Beginnings’ is the amazing origin story of the Bionic Kid, Zachary, a boy who confronts a bully through nonviolent means and ultimately becomes a superhero. It shows how to openly communicate about disabilities,” says Manero. “A group SVAD professors, Limbitless illustrators, and undergraduate interns sat down with Zachary and Christo to bring the story to life in Photoshop, Illustrator and Spark. We even had the boys draw some of the details to make sure the storyline and characters were just right.”

Building a STEAM-powered maker space

When Manero realized how important it was to blend art with engineering, he contacted Matt Dombrowski, assistant professor in the School of Visual Arts and Design at UCF. Dombrowski has been instrumental in pulling the thread of creativity through every team and building an academic program that’s truly “STEAM-powered.”

“The idea is to blur the lines among disciplines and show students how to work at the intersection of art and engineering,” says Dombrowski. “We believe creativity is an essential skill for everyone — which is why Adobe Creative Cloud is embedded in everything we do.”

That multidisciplinary approach is a driving force for Limbitless, and the organization will soon have an ideal space for its design-driven engineering to flourish. The non-profit plans to open a new lab on the UCF campus, partially funded by Adobe, which will increase safety, ramp up production to help kids in need, and expand the educational impact for students. This new facility will amplify production up to 10x!

The new Limbitless Learning Lab will more than triple the organization’s square footage, allowing more room for 3D printing, laser-cutting, airbrushing, and injection molding equipment. It will also include conference rooms and training areas, ideal for K­–12 field trips and summer STEAM camps that teach the value of importance of creativity and expose students to the three pillars of the Limbitless mission: engineering design, artful expression, and gamified training. Limbitless has already hosted field trips for several high school classes, and the new space will allow the organization to expand the program, empowering the next generation of innovators.

Manero also wants to provide a safe space for staff and students to try new ideas and tackle new challenges as they arise, a philosophy that came into play during the COVID-19 crisis. Early in the pandemic, Limbitless quickly repurposed its manufacturing space to produce personal protective equipment (PPE) for local healthcare providers. Employing the capabilities of Adobe Creative Cloud, the team utilized Lightroom and Photoshop to process the images of the designed protective visors imprinted with the messages love, hope, compassion, and thank you — yet another sign of its emphasis on creativity and the human spirit. The organization also helped manufacture parts for one of the world’s first 3D-printed mechanical ventilators, supplementing supplies for hospitals dealing with an influx of respiratory patients.

"We're so fortunate to have the opportunity to make an impact during the COVID-19 pandemic. We know that this isn't the last challenge we're going to face,” says Manero. “We want to give students a place where they can pursue creative ideas about how to empower individuals and entire communities.”

Limbitless goes full STEAM ahead

For Manero and his team, the journey has been challenging and rewarding. The growing family of bionic kids inspires them to keep improving bionic arm technology and expand design options. More than 160 Limbitless interns have gained valuable 21st century STEAM learning skills, and many have gone on to make their mark in art, game development, software, and even accessible technology. And the future looks even better.

“Combining immense creative talent and passion with technology and engineering, we can change the world with solutions that are not only functional, but also beautiful, expressive, and empowering,” says Manero. “That’s really the heart of our mission at Limbitless.”

source: https://www.csrwire.com/press_releases/45415-The-Art-and-Science-of-Changing-Lives?tracking_source=rss