#tips to memorising lessons

[schoolseducation]

10 Tips to Memorise Your Lessons Quicker

Memorising lessons efficiently is a skill that can significantly impact a student’s academic success. Whether you’re preparing for an important exam or simply trying to keep up with your studies, mastering effective memory techniques can make a huge difference. In this blog, we’ll explore ten practical tips to help you memorise your lessons quicker, ensuring you stay ahead in your academic journey.

[gguk-n]

Short n Sweet (Max Verstappen x Singer!Reader)

Inspired by the new Sabrina Carpenter album. Face claim- Sabrina Carpenter. All the pictures are from pinterest and instagram

No hate to anyone. This is all fiction

y/n.y/l/n

Liked by maxverstappen1, chappelroan, and 1,837,209 others

y/n.y/l/n Wanted to give you guys a little something before Coachella. Surprise single before Coachella.

user1 OMG!! SUMMER BOP😍😍 user2 why is Max lurking in the likes?🤔 user3 user2 who is Max? user2 user3 Max Verstappen is a Formula One driver for RedBull Racing user4 who has my girl writing love songs for??😭😭 user5 how are we supposed to learn this in a few hours? It's on the setlist for coachella🥲🥲

y/n.y/l/n

Liked by maxverstappen1, chappelroan and 1,245,298 others

y/n.y/l/n Thank you to everyone who came! I had a blast and even got to meet chappelroan. Can't believe you guys memorised Espresso in such short notice, love you guys!!😘😘

user6 I'm so happy they met😭 user7 She looks like the prettiest southern princess😍😍 user8 my dream came true when I got to see you live today❤️❤️ user9 There's a rumour that this song is about Max Verstappen?!🤐 user10 love you baby girl!! ❤️❤️The IT GIRL of pop is here😘😘

y/n.y/l/n

Liked by maxverstappen, redbullracing and 926,928 others tagged maxverstappen1

y/n.y/l/n So happy to release the next single on my album- Please Please Please. Hope you enjoy❤️

user1 is it just me or did they dating catch me off guard?🫣 user2 I thought it was just rumours but it seems it's real😭 user3 I didn't think we'd get to see Max act, but damn😭😭 user4 she's really marking her territory😏👀 user5 Max I hope you are better than all her shitty exes🙂 redbullracing thank you for casting our driver. All those acting lessons have paid off💙Liked by Author

y/n.y/l/n

Liked by maxverstappen1, redbullracing and 2,873,084 others tagged maxverstappen1

y/n.y/l/n The cat's out of the bag. I would like you to meet my boyfriend Max, a cat dad of 2 gorgeous Bengals. Also, I'm a bit of a show off, so here's pictures of my hot sappy boyfriend😍😍

maxverstappen1 Love you, schat💙 y/n.y/l/n maxverstappen1 I love you too baby!!❤️ redbullracing come to the paddock soon!! We would love to meet you🥹 landonorris OMG!! This is the girl you asked tips on how to pull?😏😏 maxverstappen1 landonorris I didn't ask for tips. I did it on my own user6 OMG!! THE HARD LAUNCH IS LAUNCHING😭😭 user7 I'm happy to see her sappy and in love😭😍 user8 the second and fifth picture🤤🤤 user9 Both of you are too cute😤😤 user10 can't wait to see Max at her concerts���🥹

maxverstappen1

Liked by y/n.y/l/n, landonorris and 2,870,208 others tagged y/n.y/l/n

maxverstappen1💙💙

y/n.y/l/n WOW a man of many words maxverstappen1 y/n.y/l/n I can show you I love you without uttering a single word redbullracing cutest couple ever!!💙💙 landonorris can't believe you pulled her👀 maxverstappen1 landonorris 😡🤬 charles_leclerc So happy for you both!❤️ schecoperez the kids love watching her old Disney shows!!❤️ y/n.y/l/n schecoperez OMG!! I wanna meet them!!🥹🥹 user1 can't wait to see her at the races😏 user2 Max has been so happy and cheery since he started dating her🫣 user3 both of them are made for each other😌😌 user4 the second picture 😍🤤Max is strong 🤤🤤 user5 both of them are each others biggest fans, so cute❤️❤️

Wired Autocomplete Interview with Y/N Y/L/N

maxverstappen1

Liked by y/n.y/l/n and 318,297 others

maxverstappen1 Enjoyed every moment in Zandvoort with this amazing atmosphere🟠 We couldn't challenge for the win today, but thank you for all your incredible support 🙌

y/n.y/l/n You did so well baby!! So proud of you!!😘😘 maxverstappen1 y/n.y/l/n thanks lifde. So proud of you too!!💙💙 y/n.y/l/n maxverstappen1 overall a great weekend for us🥹😏 user5 you were great!! We love you❤️❤️ user6 get you a man that celebrates your wins too🤧🤧 user7 their interactions are so cute, can't even believe she made it to the race🥹🥹 user8 they made everyone feel single at the paddock😭😭 user9 Monza next, Max will work his magic😤 user10 we love to watch the power couple win😭

[pombeom]

Okay hear me out bnd legal line with 7th member user who's basically their free use doll

free use with boynextdoor | ot5 boynextdoor thoughts (nsfw)

warnings: legal line only, freeuse, mentions of exhibitionism, semi-public sex, members are all dom and reader is sub, fingering, unprotected sex, creampies, tit sucking, kissing, have i forgotten anything?? a/n: doing this as a thoughts cos i’m quite busy rn but i love the idea of freeuse so this was fun write! feel free to send more freeuse requests my way! 🙇‍♀️

sungho:

After a long day of shooting for your next music video, you finally get home and you want to do nothing more than just lounge and watch TV. 

You head to your room to quickly wash up and change into your pyjamas consisting of some shorts and a matching tank tops. 

You prop yourself onto the couch turning the TV on, when you feel Sungho’s presence next to you.

“Hey, princess. What are you upto?”

“Nothing much. Just catching up on Single’s Inferno.”

His one hand immediately wander to your thigh as his other hand gropes your clothed chest, fondling with the plush causing your nipples to stand erect.

It’s not long before he rips off your shorts sitting you on his lap as he rubs his tip along your slit. You groan at the contact, your hips automatically grinding on his length as Sungho laughs at your desperation.

With no prior warning, he slams his cock into you as he moves you body to lay you down on the couch. He doesn’t care if the other members walk in. The risk excited him. 

The room is soon filled with a mixture of your cries, his grunts and the muffling from the TV. He slides his dick in rough, using you like his toy as tears pool in your eyes. 

“Cum for me princess,” he says picking up on the way your walls clench around his length. 

Soon after, your orgasm ripple through you, hitting like a wave. He pulls his dick out of leaving you feeling  despaired at the loss of contact. He pumps himself a few times before spilling his seeds on your bare stomach. Sungho strokes your hair and kisses your forehead, wishing you a good night before heading to his room. 

riwoo:

All the other members had left (or so you thought). You stayed back after your first dance lesson as the new choreography was taking a bit of time to learn and memorise. The music played on the speakers as you mark the steps. 

Suddenly, Riwoo appears through the doors, surprising you as you believed you were alone. 

“What are you doing here?”

“I couldn’t leave you behind now could I?”

He walks up close to you, wrapping his arms around your waist from behind, taking in the details of your face in the mirror. 

His hands slip under your joggers and past your panties, as he begins playing with the slick that had quickly formed in your pussy. He pumps his middle finger in slowly, leaving you arching your back against him. Riwoo pushes another finger in and then eventually adding a third, leaving you clenching spring his digits.

It’s not long before he presses your face against the mirror and starts ramming into you from behind.  

“Use my cock like the slut you are,” he groans in your ear, the goosebumps spreading across your body. 

He picks up the pace, fucking into your hole ruthlessly. His finger then begins flicking against your clit having you squirm under his touch. 

Seconds later you reach your high, whimpering against the mirror as your legs become weak, almost dropping down into the pool of both your orgasms on the floor. 

“Guess you’ll have to learn the dance later. Let’s go home.”

jaehyun:

Jaehyun’s studio being right next to yours meant that he had access to you whenever he wanted. 

Jaehyun was jotting down lyrics, scribbling out the words over and over again, frustrated at his lack of inspiration. Luckily, he knew just where to find it. 

He closes the door behind him as he approaches you swivelling your chair around to face him. 

“Hey beautiful,” 

Before you had the chance to reply, he pulls you out of the chair, taking your place and straddling you on his lap. He places soft kisses along your exposed collarbone as he starts lifting your white tank top over your head.

“Jaehyun I have to finish writing this verse.” 

“You keep writing then, baby.”

He repositions you so you have your back against his chest as he pulls down your jeans and underwear along with his own, freeing his hard cock from his boxers. He wastes no time in inserting his length into you. His hands grip firmly onto your hips and whilst you try suppressing your moans, his dick pumps into you quickly and sharply. 

The pen in your hand shakes at the speed in which he’s fucking you but you continue writing, the ideas surprisingly seeming to flow with ease. 

Minutes later, you feel his cock twitch inside you as his grip tightens, the familiar knot forming in your stomach. 

You finally figure out the last line of the verse when you feel his seeds spill into you as he groans against your ear and seconds later your own orgasm erupts. 

“Let’s see how far you got on with those lyrics?” 

He scans the words you wrote down and couldn’t help but chuckle. 

“You’ve practically written smut. Might have to redo that again baby.” 

taesan:

Following on from Riwoo, it’s your turn in the studio for the recording for your upcoming song. You enter the booth, lowering the mic to your height when the door opens behind you. Taesan walks in standing behind you as his arms wrap around your waist.

“Y/n you ready to begin?” your producer asks. “Yeah I’m ready.”

You hear the music play through your headphones, catching the beat as you prepare to sing. Just then Taesan props a hand under your joggers, pushing past your panties to feel the lips of your pussy. As he strokes his fingers through your slick, you try to hold in your whimper as you begin singing your line. 

“Can you use a more gentle tone? You sound a bit tense right now.”

“Yes of course.�� 

By now your joggers and underwear were pulled down to the floor as Taesan had set himself free inserting his dick into your hole, pumping in slowly. 

You sing your line again but you weren’t satisfied. The music restarts as you try to make the corrections from your producer but with Taesan picking up the speed, your mind goes blank. He continues to ram inside you as your voice strains even more, affecting your singing. 

“Look at you so weak on my dick,” he whispers making sure the mic doesn’t catch his voice. 

It becomes harder to hold in your moans as your pussy clenches around his length, milking his cock as he cums inside you. It’s doesn’t take long before you reach your climax, as you coat his dick with your orgasm. 

He eventually pulls out, giving you a kiss on your neck before he gets dressed and leaves. 

For the rest of the recording your cum pools in your underwear and your knees were weak but you’re finally able to concentrate on your job.

leehan:

It’s finally the day of your comeback and all the members are getting their hair and makeup done. 

“Y/n can you come change into your outfit now?” The stylist calls out, leading you to the changing room. 

You strip yourself of your casual clothes when suddenly Leehan peers past the door. 

“Leehan what are you doing?” 

He doesn’t response and instead barges into your room, locking it behind him. Your naked body in compared to his clothed state left you vulnerable. He begins placing soft kisses around your nipple as his finger toys with the other one. 

“Fuck. I’m so horny. I need to be inside you right now.” 

He pulls his jeans down with his boxers as his cock stands rock hard. He guides his length against your hole before slipping it in and pushing himself inside you deep until his tip hits your cervix. 

He takes it slow but each stroke somehow gets deeper and sharper leaving you a moaning mess. His hands continue to toy with your nipples as he the begins to lick up the pace feeling you get wetter by the second. 

“Leehan, fuck I’m gonna cum!” You whine. 

He pumps faster and soon your organs hits leaving you seeing spots of white as your mind goes blank. You then feel his own orgasm as his cock twitches, costing your inside with his white cum. 

The knock on the door brings you back to reality as you both quickly clean up and get changed, getting ready to perform in the next hour. 

[voidnoidoid]

weak hero study habit headcanons

writing this instead of actually studying like i'm supposed to and also bc i miss weak hero lol. sry for not posting 2nd year of uni is hitting hard...

here's some headcanons abt how the eunjang gang studies for exams!

Gray: He starts studying really early and effectively, uses flashcards and reviews the day's lessons at home every day. Does practice questions and papers. Studies smarter and not harder and aces every exam. Gets a full night sleep before tests.

Eugene: He used to procrastinate studying in favour of going down wiki rabbit holes and ends up cramming a few nights before each exam. After some advice from Gray he's started studying earlier and sticks to a study schedule and does practice papers. His grades have improved! Though he does stay up late to cram sometimes.

Ben: He does NOTTT study at all until finals. He gets distracted while studying and constantly puts it off. He studies better in group settings because his friends keep him accountable. Gray, Alex and Gerard have helped him out lots. He's an audiovisual learner so lots of diagrams and reading out notes helps.

Gerard: He gets decent grades despite sleeping in class all the time. After work he makes some time to at least review class notes and studies on the weekends. He likes to go to chill cafes to listen to music and study. His mind will wander and he tends to daydream while studying so he has to reread his notes many times.

Alex: Poor dude tries really hard to study but can't get his grades up. He uses a rote memorisation method to cram as much info in his head before tests. Pretends not to care about studying but he puts more effort than most people realize. Especially since Ben comes to him to ask questions. He asked Gray and Eugene for study tips and has since improved his study strat, aiming to understand instead of blindly memorizing.

Teddy: Studying? What's that? Before he joined Ben's group he didn't care about studies at all. But now that he's got himself a better friend group and adopted Co he's decided to try studying. It's a slow process and he is struggling to catch up with schoolwork but he's determined to make things work. He takes frequent study breaks to play with Co or go on walks. Keeping his body moving helps his mind process information.

Rowan: Professional procrastinator but somehow LOCKS IN and gets good grades. Nobody knows how he does it. Like he's that type of guy to say "haha i barely studied" and then does well. Eugene is slightly jealous. His secret? Late night cramming and energy drinks. Is super burnt out after exam season and always gets sick after due to bad study habits.

So yeah! This lowkey motivated me to study more today. It's important not to burn yourself out, take frequent breaks and remember that doing a little bit is better than nothing at all. Starting is the hardest part but as long as you start early, all progress is good progress. All the eunjang boys passed their exams! Yippee!

[sweetestberryofthebunch]

ALRIGHT Let’s talk everybody lives and is happy au thoughts!

Billy goes back to live a normal teen life because Agatha insists on it (she wants him to have a childhood as long as he can) but once a month he comes over and gets intense lessons on the different types of magick from each of the coven members.

Lilia is probably his favourite teacher, even though he is definitely the worst at divination. But she keeps her lessons entertaining, always has a story or a comment at the tip of her tongue. And while she does tease him for his slip ups, she equally praises a good card reading.

Alice is the most lenient out them all, they usually both get distracted and end up talking about music half of the time. Agatha constantly has to keep them in check and complains loudly about it. Its alright though, because Billy is pretty good at protective magick naturally, and Alice likes to joke she learns more from him than the other way around.

Jen is surprisingly strict with what she teaches him, makes him take tests and pop quizzes she makes, giving him actual homework and not accepting any slacking on memorising lists of ingredients, especially for poisons. One time Lilia notes she is just as strict as Agatha, to which both Agatha and Jen go „Absolutely not!“ in unison.

Sometimes he drives up to the house and Sharon sees him, and then he gets invited over for dinner, she‘s always so excited to see him.

Agatha teaches Billy the most, both about her intense knowledge of lore and their history as witches, but also guides him through his mind reading and astral protection. Sometimes they just sit in the enchanted basement and she tells him everything she knows about chaos magick, and on some rare occasions, the bunny sitting between them munching on some leftover greens, she tells him about Wanda. They grow a lot closer through this, even though Agatha would never admit that.

To everyone‘s surprise, Rio is by far the strictest of them all. She takes him out into the fields and forest until way past midnight, makes him stand in the dirt barefoot, feel the earth with his bare hands and feet, doesn’t let go until he manages to revive a dead branch, summon a flower from nowhere or feel the forest around him as a living organism, every single branch full of life. One night, under the full moon, Rio makes him meditate over a dead crows body for hours, until the bird springs back to life, flying away in confusion. She never discloses whether she allowed it to happen or if he stole the crows life back from her.

Or, sometimes she teaches him more fun stuff. How to shoot vines from the ground, how to control the life around him, call upon the wind, listen to the whispers of the trees, how to call upon the animals everywhere around them, how to grow thorns rich with venom. When nothing works and he gets frustrated, she shows him tricks with her knife, so he gets surprisingly good at knife throwing too.

They return at the break of dawn both covered in dirt and leaves, shoes lost somewhere in the forest, exhausted but happy, and Agatha makes a fuss about how the boy has school in the morning and Rio shouldn’t let him run around the forest at night. And definitely not teach him combat, what the fuck is wrong with her?

Just, you know, this boy has the Coven he was so excited about assembling now, and despite having such immense powers it scares him sometimes, he is being taught and accepted and they are here to support him. The way a young Agatha deserved to have too.

[polysprachig]

Hello friend! I just came across your post about filling in old spaces in your polyglot journal via the bullet journal tag… could you say more about how you use your polyglot journal in general and what its intended purpose(s) is/are?

Thank you for the question, @northfaceho! ***(Read orange text for a short summarised version)

The purpose of my polyglot journal is to capture my process of learning languages, both for myself and to share with other people. It was prompted by a secret learning project I did in 2019 to make my other native language skills go from passive to active (and the subsequent desire to subtly strengthen my skills across my main 5 languages). This happened to coincide with my dissatisfaction with the general ‘Polyglot learns X# of Languages - Here’s How + Tips and Tricks’ kind of content you could—and can—find online. And the rich stock at the base of all my griping generally boiled down to one thing:

Fucking notecards.

No shade to anyone in specific—it was more a general trend I felt I noticed at the time—but the idea that someone who has acquired or is learning a football club worth of languages and who, moreover, is able to demonstrate their use of said languages across the 4 skills to various degrees of range and accuracy at their current stage of learning does so by *secret tip: using notecards* struck me as extremely… imprecise and decidedly non-tip-worthy. It’s not that I think these people were lying about using notecards to learn—not at all! The description was just focused on what I learn with not how I learn imho, and it begged the question: Well, what do you do with the notecards?

Because at the time, I only really used notecards in Old English, but not as flashcards for memorisation or playing vocabulary matching games, which I assume was used as shorthand in the content I kept seeing. No, once a year, I would take out some fresh notecards and write Beowulf verbatim from memory for the section I have memorised, then compare it to the orthography in the Howell D. Chickering dual-language translation. (I do something similar with Chaucer, but notecards are too small so I use a yellow legal pad instead. Still, the concept is the same.) And later, when I started learning Italian, I would prepare a notecard to keep on my desk during lessons which listed out the most common errors I knew I was going to make in that day’s class, based on my teacher’s recent feedback (usually incorrect pronunciation/word stress, Greek or French influence which isn’t correct, accidental uses of Latin, etc.).

And so I repurposed what I had hoped would be a travel journal into a polyglot journal and kicked it off with this statement of my intentions forgive the register:

This year, 2024, one of my main goals was to read the rest through, comment on my methods, mistakes, mindset, etc. etc., and fill in the gaps with scraps of loose studies and feedback from my teachers. Oh yeah, and start typing it all up to save my future self some time.

I’ll be posting a lot more from my polyglot journal in 2025, now that I’ve figured out how much time I can commit to it based on my schedule and the writing routine I’ve been testing out these last months. I want to make sharing it an adventure reflective of its many side quests and the actual time and input required to learn.

In essence, the journal reflects the planning, check-ins, learning notes, and process of my quarantine levelling up project and literary/poetic translation portfolio part 1, which are free to read here if anyone is interested:

The Merlin Project (Irish-English)—running with the question all my students asked in the pandemic, i.e. Can I learn a language from just watching TV? by writing borderline Merlin fanfiction

The tragic portion of my translation portfolio (English-German-French-Italian)—literary translations into English from Poliziano, Goethe, Voltaire and Kaiserin Elisabeth (Sisi); translations into German of Lord Byron, Mary Shelley and Percy Bysshe Shelley

The journal is not without silly and serious one-off language escapades as well, which I occasionally ventured out into when taking a break from the more major projects.

Thanks for reading if you’ve made it to the end!

[shit-people-probably-didnt-say]

Any soft Wesper kid HC or prompts? I’ve always imagined Wespers kid as struggling to read just like Wylan and not fully understanding it. They just know that “Da reads everything for Dad” and growing up in a much healthier environment than Wylan they dont grow up with the same low self esteem issues and instead the idea that love is someone willing to read to you. They hope that in the future they find someone like that for themselves. IDK I’m a sucker for breaking they cycle lol

Aw Id love to share some soft Wesper Kid HCs!

Apologies for the delay in answering Ive had this in my drafts so I can build on it

- Wesper kid is an early riser and often wakes before his Dads, so the only sensible thing to do is bring his favourite book or toy and climb into their bed with them. They often spend the entire morning on off days just lounging in bed

- Swimming lessons! Being so close to canals and the harbour (and that swimming once saved his Pa’s life) having the Wesper Kid know how to swim and be confident in water is extremely important to them

- Ive always imagined if the Wesper kid had a cognitive disability it would be colourblindness or ADHD. Where his Da is the hyperactive sort he is the inattentive type and can struggle to sit for lessons without his mind wondering. So to help him they adjust his school day. They give him more frequent breaks in class and bigger gaps in-between lessons with lots of outside play, and they find tutors who teach in a very practical way to keep him engaged

- Wesper kids favourite animals are rabbits, little bit of Aditi coming to him. Jesper also sings Zemeni lullabies and reads him all his favourite stories from his childhood. Wesper kid becomes their ‘little rabbit’ and Grandma Aditi is well known in their home

- Ive love the idea that theres no shame or secret regarding Wylan not reading. Kids accept the world as it’s presented to them so he wouldnt think anything unusual of it. When it comes time to do homework or bedtime stories theres no hush-hush that only Da can read to him. But Wylan of course memorises bedtime stories and is Wesper kids go to for math/science homework

- Wesper kid has his Da’s energy and his Pa’s musical interest…which results in him wanting to learn the drums. Jesper is overjoyed, Wylan is of course delighted and supportive but makes a mental note to get ear plugs as a kid learning percussion can be quite overstimulating for autistic people

- As much as Wylan is dead set on gentle parenting that doesn’t mean it’s easy. When you’re brought up with harsh treatment and are used to that being ‘normal’, it takes daily conscious effort to break that cycle. He never ever lays a harsh hand or word on their son, but he does have to take time outs occasionally to gather himself on rough days. Its retraining mental instinct but he would do it a million times over for his son to feel safe and loved

- Wesper kid is asthmatic/anaemic like his Pa. Id love a fic of the first time the kid becomes really unwell with the flu or lung fever and Wylan & Jesper are just losing their minds. Luckily Nana Marya is there to help calm new parent worries and pass along some tips on soothing a poorly child

I may continue to add to this, but this is what I have at the moment 💕

[sensitivebellybutton]

A QUICK GUIDE TO BELLY BUTTON PLAY SESSIONS!

I'm backk!

Belly button masturbators of Tumblr, I'm scurrying out of my hidey-hole again to give you some more lessons on how to please your lil tummy dimples! This time is a bit different, as I'll be going over some more general tips on how to make your belly button sessions as enjoyable as possible!

Part 1: Pre-production

The first step to a wonderful belly-bash is your environment. You don't want any distractions or mood-killers that will take you out of the experience. Make sure you've locked your door (if your room doesn't have a lock, ensure your roommates aren't in or won't disturb you).

Have all your tools and play items already at arm's reach. There's nothing worse than having to stand up and let all the oil drip out of your belly button in order to go grab your Q-tips from across the room. Make sure your curtains are closed (explaining to your neighbours why you were moaning while sticking things in your navel would be quite the conversation).

Part 2: Dress for the occasion

For me, how my belly button is exposed really affects how turned on I am during a session. There's LOADS of different ways you can expose your navel, such as:

- Button-down shirt left open (if you have breasts, unbuttoning it to just beneath)

- Stating the obvious but crop tops! Tight or baggy, short or long, whatever makes you feel the sexiest!

- Tie up your shirt, either a button down for that cowgirl effect or a regular T-shirt like its 2006.

For what you wear on your other half, it's best if it doesn't push your belly up and scrunch your navel. Underwear is generally best, but low-rise jeans can also feel really hot too.

Part 3: Preparing your belly button

As is a running theme in my guides, DO NOT TOUCH YOUR KNOT UNTIL IT'S TIMMEEE! It retains your sensitivity for sooo much longer and keeps the feeling of it being stimulated novel.

Instead, it's time for some navel-gazing!

- Do a photoshoot with your belly button. Side-on angles are especially flattering as it will show off the curve of your innie as it dips into your stomach.

- Spread it open in front of a mirror and admire. As long as you're keeping those digits out of your belly button, get a good look in there! Try and memorise every fold and detail.

- Press your belly up against the wall. Don't know why this turns me on haha, it just feels a bit like you're teasing your knot a little bit.

- Stroke your sides and upper belly. Don't be afraid to get a lil touchy feely! Your sides and ribs are sensitive areas, and this is a great way to warm yourself up for what's to come.

Part 4: Once the play is done

After you've finished, whether that's after a luscious navelgasm or your belly button became too sore to continue, make sure you wash it off! Get any oils, saliva, pen markings off of it ESPECIALLY if your tummy will bs exposed in public later haha (unless that's your thing).

Let your belly button breathe for a bit, make sure you take your hands away from it and put on something that covers it up so you aren't tempted to give it some more cheeky pokes (naughty!)

Just a quick one today! The next proper one with actual play techniques will be soon, I still need to playtest some things (if you get my meaning hehe). I hope you all enjoy and please do let me know about your experiences with my guides! I lovvvee hearing that people have been pleasuring their lil innies to my instructions haha!

See ya soon!

[chocosourlemon]

Uglydolls thoughts (more of headcannons)

OX can run with his ears very smoothly. It's clearly a fact. It was very interesting to see how he does it in the portal scene. And I like to think he learned how to do that during his training with Lou from back then. (It was clearly shown in the movie, so)

Maybe Luckybat is very good with Math. He's just too shy to say anything. Give the guy a math equation and he will immidiently solve it effortlessly within seconds.

Babo can hold his breath for a long time maybe?(it's so random) He must also be very strong to hold alot of things with him.

Wage would be very good with edible art. She would be amazing at that.

Moxy can make origami VERY FAST. Like as in, very very fast snips of her scissors and she just pops up a face of Mona Lisa or something. She can also do pigeon eyes. She would freak out everybody with it.

Mandy has a great memory, I guarantee. She can remember stuff like choreographies (for lou or something idk) lessons and instructions very easily. She must be very good to be able to get Lou's attention and be one of his assistants. Maybe she's also learning arts and crafts under Moxy? She would be a fast learner.

Spy girls! I've always wanted to brainrot over these dolls. They are so chaotic and fun I love them😭

Kitty would borrow make-up kits from Mandy when she joined in. She would hesitantly ask for tips about it. I wonder what she is though(her job) cause I didn't hear it from the movie but if it was I don't know it.

Lydia is an animal lover. She must have some pictures of her favourite types of animals somewhere. I got this idea since some of her lines in the movie was "Is that supposed to be, some kind of dog?" And "I love bunnies!!"

TUESDAY. TUESDAY MY GIRL😭😭😭 I love her so much oh my god I can't describe my obsession with her. She needs more screen time!!!😭😭😭 She would be a very rebellious and messy character but also has a heart of gold. Out of all the three, she clearly shows the signs of having a Lou obsession. She would memorise everything about the guy. His schedule, his hair and skincare routine, (I also like to think Lou shows the girls the perfect beauty routines if he can) everything. But she would also be the type to just, stare at him. Like a dead eye stare, with a creepy smile. (Her concept art is still in my head) She would try to find time to hang out with Lou everyday. It's cute😭

NOLAN. Yes. I was so upset that we didn't get to have more of him in the movie. Like he looked like a genuinely sweet guy he's so adorable wtf😭 He would be so awkward to everyone he talks to for the first time, but he's trying. He would be a tall, adorable, socially akward fella UGHHHHH HES SO PRECIOUS. I want more of his character. Its a need.

*looks at lou*

Hm.

Theatre kid.

[princesspumpkinseed]

Throughout my university education, I tried incessantly to be a good student and I took pleasure in inflating my marks. Despite being one of the few students not having studied pure maths at A-Level, I almost exclusively achieved firsts (only once achieving a 2:1 in French, which I then improved the following year) and finished my undergraduate degree in Maths with awards for my high grades and requests from my teacher to continue my studies for the sake of science. Now that the memory of Bristol is becoming more and more distant, I want to tell you, reader, how I did that.

Imposter syndrome

Before you’ve even started studying, imposter syndrome might set in. Don’t let the doubts about whether you deserve to be in your institution block your path. I remember thinking that everyone else had studied further maths; that maths was what the other students dedicated their lives to (while I just liked it enough); that my occasional lack of comprehension was proof that I got into this university on a whim and I was not as worthy as the other students. To those thoughts, I invite you to reply “Let’s see how far I can go with this.” If you really did get into an amazing university with students who are supposedly superior to you then let’s see how much you can take from this university: how many classes and mentally stimulating problem sheets, how many afternoons in your cherished campus until they realise that you’re not supposed to be there. Try your damndest to keep up and maybe you’ll surprise yourself and find that that drive is exactly what is going to keep you where you where you want to be. If you’re not supposed to be there: cash in.

Alternatively, maybe you got into a university which you think you’re too good for. Prove it. If you’re too good for this uni, then get a first and have them begging you to do a PHD. I dare you.

Come back to it later

When starting university, you need to build skills as well as learn content. You know how to memorise the notions and how to apply the formulae – you’ve been using this kind of skill since GCSE – but building analytical skills or learning to write elegant proofs cannot be done in an evening or with a pack of flash cards. When learning to write proofs, I recommend to you to write out the teacher’s proofs and annotate the relevance or each sentence. I also used to break down big proofs into the function of each paragraph and then imitate it afterwards. You could also use this approach for applied maths: note the techniques used at each stage of a response at the side of the page and then try to do it yourself. Remember, though, that you a building a skill and this will take effort and repetition. If you’re not quite getting it on Tuesday, give it a good go (at least 20 minutes of actively trying to understand a method or a style) and then come back on Wednesday. You might not be used to having to leave something unfinished for the evening but Rome was not built in a day and your first year is essential for building a good foundation so use your time generously for your study.

PS. A small proof tip I have is to define any theorems you’re going to use in your introduction and then you won’t forget how you were planning to tackle the problem and you won’t need to define them later, which will improve your flow.

Previewing Content

I didn’t consistently read the lecture notes before class started but when I did I felt rather proud of myself. I knew what was coming up in the lesson and therefore like I had an advantage over other students and if something didn’t click when I was reading, sometimes simply the teacher’s intonation would clarify all of it. A quick glance over the content (not necessarily absorbing any of it) is all it takes to feel smug and curious before the lesson even begins.

Conversely, consolidating content.

If you didn’t understand the lesson, the best thing you can do is actively review the lecture notes. Explain them aloud or write them out in a conversational tone as if you were explaining it to yourself. In maths in particular, this can render the abstract more intuitive and allow you to manipulate concepts more easily. Throw in an example or two if need be, to concretise your understanding.

Also, find some chums to discuss with after class. Even if you just complain about a homework problem, chatting with a friend can make topics more memorable. Don’t be shy about not getting something: your friend may rephrase the content and turn out to be a better teacher than the initial lecturer. So complain, rant, explain, or just make jokes about the lesson, and this might contribute to the community in your course simultaneously.

Taking this further, be present and helpful on your course group chat around exam season! You’ll find that other people may pose questions which highlight a gap in your knowledge or that explaining to another solidifies your own comprehension.

Even after your course ends, it could be nice to honour what you have learned using books and documentaries. I read Alex’s Adventures In Numberland after my maths degree just for the nostalgia and I ended up adding some niche trivia to my expensive education. Your knowledge should inspire you and stimulate you, not stress you out.

Be a teachers’ pet: you paid for it.

In first year, I frequented teachers’ office hours and I’m glad I did because receiving maths through verbal and illustrative demonstration helps me to surpass the abstract words on the page. If you have a quick query, don’t be afraid to send an email or chat with the teacher after the lesson. Put up your hand to ask or answer questions - sitting at the front might make this less scary since you can’t see all of the other students. These teachers are experts in their field so interact with them and enjoy their thought-provoking conversation – use it to nourish your own curiosity and to motivate yourself to make them proud. Many a time, teachers sent me extra articles or books after I had expressed a curiosity or lack of understanding to them and thus I have resources to further my study despite having graduated.

Better than knowing the content, know the teacher’s style.

I noticed when doing functional analysis past papers that there was always a question requiring a certain technique following a question requiring another technique: this knowledge was indispensable in the final exam! I almost wasted time trying the wrong technique until I remembered this and then recited a perfect answer, of which previous exam papers had assured me the correctness. Knowing the teacher’s style can give you a hint about the content of the exam (where to focus your revision) and helpful insight about strategies required. As well as this, they’re a booklet of fun problems which are tailored to your competences – what’s not to love?

Concluding advice…

The above advice is applicable only when you already have a study schedule and you do what is required to you to keep up with assignments and content, but how you do this depends on your learning style, your waking hours, your extra-curricular activities, etc. I can’t give you a study plan but I can give you the above flourishes to make a good routine even more effective and I can leave you with some final advice: don’t lie to yourself. Don’t tell yourself that something is good enough when you don’t think it will get you what you want. Sometimes you just don’t get things and you may need to take a jog or go to the bathroom to think about it with a clear mind or sometimes you don’t have the time to waste on a single problem when other assignments are urgent – that’s okay, but give yourself the best chance of getting it right by beginning it early and prioritising your study first and foremost. Don’t hope for a grade, work for it: effort is much more dependable than chance.

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for letting my two classmates get bad grades for a project after they didn't bother to even contact me about it?

A couple months ago my class needed to make a presentation on certain ethnic groups in out country. I (16nb) got put in a group with two other people (both 16f) because everyone already chose their groups and we were the only ones left.

They weren't present the day it was decided, as they usually aren't. Later that day i created a groupchat and told them that we have to make a presentation, what was the topic and when we were supposed to present it. One of them read it, the other one didn't. I knew the first one would tell her, because they're close friends, so i wasn't worried about them.

We had over a month for it and the lesson was once a week, so we needed three or four more weeks for the whole class to present their work. So there was a lot of time. They never once contacted me about it and i didn't really care.

I made my own presentation by myself and it was ready on time, but other people were showing theirs first so it was my group's turn on the fourth lesson - we had around two months.

On the lesson before that i asked the teacher to let me present my own on the next one since everyone was finished and he didn't really bother to check if everyone was done + he was pretty annoyed that it was taking more lessons than he meant for it to.

It turned out that the two girls made their own presentation, it was a pretty awkward situation and when i asked one of them said "well, then you're with us now" and generally said that i csn just sit by and pretend i did some work, but in the end i sat down and the teacher let us present two. But then it turned out they couldn't open it on the teachers laptop and present it to the class. The teacher told me to present mine and that they could try again after i do.

I did it and got a good grade. I was following another teacher's tips on making a presentation, so there wasn't much text to keep people's attention and i memorised most of the information myself so it would be more coherent and not as boring.

The other two ended up unable to open their own and both got shitty grades for the lack of a presentation without the possibility of doing it again (i'm not even sure if they made it, they could have just lied hoping to get more time?).

So i'm wondering, was i the asshole? I could have tried harder to contact them earlier on, but they didn't either even though i explicitly said in the groupchat that WE are in a group for the project together. Or should i have invited them to give my presentation with me? But as i said most of the information was from my head, not the presentation and it was clear to the teacher that they didn't help me with mine and i didn't help them with theirs. And also i didn't really know at the time that they needed it, but i guess i could have offered regardless? The girls didn't even seem to care about the grades, but it bothers me.

What are these acronyms?

[silverskull]

Shades & Hues

Part 1: Shades of Sorrow

Tim and Lucy often have happy kisses, but sad hugs on-screen. What if we flipped that idea and wrote a two-shot? * She kisses him, pressing her face hard against his, memorising the scuff of his stubble; the bump of his nose; the brush of his eyebrows; the soft twitch of his eyelashes against her own; and, finally, his lips. Warm and soft and giving way under hers as they always do; as they always have, since the very first time that she kissed him.

(Full fic below the cut, or click here to read and bookmark on AO3)

Someone offers her a wet wipe, and she bats it away like a dandelion seed. It flaps in the corner of her vision, sweeping against her cheek and she sees florid stripes, the red lines harsh in the sunlight reflecting off the white gauze. They wave it at her again and she shrugs her way out from under their arm, irritated, and letting herself be led instead by the deathgrip her hands have on the front of his uniform.

No.

No - not death. Not. Death.

“Lucy, we have to get him on the stretcher.”

It’s Bailey, and she’s calm, steady, level. Everything Lucy suddenly is not.

Her breath is too hot; too tight in her throat. Breathing is too much to think about - how to get enough air - and she knows she’s doing something wrong, gasping the way she is, grinding her teeth so hard she can feel the entirety of her lower jaw all the way in the backs of her ears, but she’s fighting against something much bigger. A monster in her lungs, clawing at her windpipe and scraping its way towards her lips. A pain that’s constricting her muscles and fettering her to this one single point on the tarmac. A fear too big to name.

“Shit, I’m showing cardiac arrest.”

Arrest.

Arrest.

They’d only stopped to assist Nolan with an arrest. A simple thing. Standard procedure. Celina simply wasn’t strong enough to restrain the suspect, and Nolan needed more boots on the ground. Across the console, in the driver’s seat, she’d seen Tim tip his head, and he flipped the sirens at the exact same moment as she lifted the radio. Always in sync. They weren’t even on call, just close by. Convenient.

“Ma’am, I need you to let go!”

“John, just get her away from him!”

Strong hands surround her, pulling her inexorably backwards, and Celina’s dark bun bobs into her line of sight, her small fingers unlatching Lucy’s, one by one, from the clamp they have on the placket of his open shirt. She stumbles, tripping over her own knees, and the sun flashes at her through the palm trees, momentarily blinding her.

***

“You got this?” he asks, lazily, but with just enough arrogance that her first response is to scoff at him.

“I got this.” She throws Tim a withering look as she hops out of the passenger’s seat, keeping her ears open to the garbled declarations of Nolan’s suspect. The man is red-faced, sweaty. His hair hangs in greasy strings around his ears, and (though it wasn’t something she’d ever say aloud) he definitely has crazy eyes.

Juarez approaches her as she rounds the hood of the shop, limping almost imperceptibly, her right hand clenched, white-knuckled, around the butt of her gun. She nods once at Lucy, her chin low and her mouth wide open, quietly gulping down deep breaths.

“You good here?” Lucy asks, reaching a steadying arm towards Juarez’s shoulder.

“Yes ma’am,” Celina says, nodding rigidly. “Officer Nolan got the situation in hand.” She shakes her head quickly, straightening her spine. “I should have taken Detective Harper up on those extra sparring sessions.”

“Well, lesson learned this time.” Lucy couldn’t fault the rookie for something she’d had to figure out the hard way herself. She looks away, raising a hand to her eyebrows and squinting across the dusty sidewalk at Nolan. “You want us to take this guy for you?”

“Nope, I got it!” 

Nolan is almost as sweaty as the angry man, wrestling the cuffs onto his lean, knotted arms. Lucy can see track marks amongst the veins; bruises and torn flesh score his skin all the way up into the grubby shirt wreathed above his elbows.

“You sure about that?” Tim is almost languid, resting his arm along the window ledge and watching them from the shade of the driver’s seat. “You’re looking a little… dewy.” 

A laugh bubbles up under Lucy’s tongue, and she turns to give Tim another look of wry reproach. She can already hear his fingers tapping lightly against the car door, see the small crease between his eye and his nose that let her know he’s mocking them, his eyes darting to her for acknowledgement. She knows him so well, she can picture his moves before he even makes them.

What she doesn’t see is the prisoner’s wife. 

Small, meth-skinny, with ragged, dull hair. She’s a blur through the collapsed screen door of the dilapidated house, a stain the same colour as the chipped beige clapboard sagging into the burnt lawn.

Juarez moves first, dropping to a squat and pulling out her holstered weapon.

Time slows. Congeals. The heat from the asphalt rises in waves before Lucy’s eyes, and her head feels too heavy to turn.

One black flash against the beige house.

One deafening bang, echoing clangorously around her.

She sees Tim, his lips parting - the start of a smile or a yell, she can’t be sure - and his eyes fix on her.

Blue, blue sky. Blue, blue eyes.

Feathered red.

Shattered red.

Blossoming red.

He lurches back into his seat, and, with all the violence of a smashed record, time catches back up to her.

Juarez is yelling at the woman, Nolan is yelling at the radio, the suspect is yelling at the ground, and Lucy is yelling at Tim.

She can’t see him - just red. Red where there should be blue. Red where there should be Tim. Nothing but red.

“Officer Chen!” Nolan’s voice cuts through her concentration like a blade, and she swings around, her arms on autopilot and reaching for her gun. Nolan is hauling the man off the ground, grunting with the effort, and he growls something else at her. There’s something she’s supposed to do. Somewhere she should be. She looks towards Celina, who is already grappling with the small woman, and with a swift kick, knocks her to the ground. The gun drops and glints black in the dry earth, feet away from where the woman falls. 

How do guns glint? How does black flash?

“Lucy!” Celina’s voice is high, and it pierces her rumination, drawing her back into the present. Juarez has the woman handcuffed beneath her, but her worried eyes are set on Lucy. “Lucy, I’ve got this. Go check on him.”

Him? Tim.

Tim… Tim!

She whirls around, her feet starting to run before her mind catches up with them, and she stumbles in the rough lawn before she moves forward. She’s aware of Nolan manhandling his prisoner into the back of his shop, aware of the shrill sound of distant sirens spiralling in an eerie vortex as they draw closer, but all she sees is red. Red on the windshield. Red on the white painted window frame. Red dripping relentlessly onto the road below their shop. She hears a scream as she crashes against the driver’s door, her hands reaching for his head and tipping it - easily, far too easily - towards her.

A bubble of blood bursts in the corner of his lips and his eyelids flicker. His shoulder is wet, and sticky below her hands. A dark bloom billowing across the navy of his uniform shirt.

His lips twitch and the screaming changes, and she suddenly recognises her own voice, pinched with horror, stretching his name into a thin wire of fear in the air between them. She gasps and swallows, grasping clumsily at the door handle and almost knocking herself out as she hauls it out of her way. He droops limply in his seat, only the belt and her hands keeping him upright, and she can hear herself calling him again, again, again, but he’s not answering.

***

She falls backwards into Nolan’s arms, the fight draining out of her like water through sand, and all she can do is watch helplessly as Bailey and her team cut away the last of Tim’s white vest and prep the AED. His skin is smeared with blood, and she finds herself looking at her own hands, finally recognising the need for a wipe - she’s covered in red. Her hands, her sleeves, the beds of her fingernails. Even, she realises, under the full glare of the sun, all across the arch of her cheekbones. Bright sparks of his blood flashing red beside the streaks of her own tears. She almost reaches to rub her eyes, but then Celina is there, calmly restraining her wrists and running a cool cloth over her stained fingers.

“Let me help you just clean these off. It won’t take a second.”

“Three, two, one… clear!”

Bailey’s command and Celina’s appeal mix and blend with the background noise in a discordant chorus of voices, and Lucy lets her hands be held and wiped, her shoulders still supported (or restrained) by Nolan. She sees Tim’s body buck starkly, spasming in a viciously sharp arc as the AED shocks him, and she gasps, reaching out as if to stop his pain.

“Still no rhythm. Run it again!”

“There now, this hand is done. Let’s have the other��”

Celina releases one of her hands, and it hovers in mid air, her own index finger blocking Tim’s arm from view. His head has rolled to the side, and his eyes are closed. He could be sleeping, turning his head towards her in his dreams, releasing a soft breath into her ear. 

Sometimes he murmurs. Rarely, and completely unintelligibly, but she can’t help herself from drawing closer, stroking his cheek and bumping his nose with hers, encouraging him to repeat himself to her. He doesn’t, and she still can’t tell what he’s said, but she holds those moments like a gift, precious and irreplaceable and just for her; something he only started doing a few months into their relationship; something he still gruffly denies in the broad light of day.

His body arcs again, and she sees his eyes spring open, crystal bright where they catch in a beam of sunlight, and his mouth expands in a silent scream.

Bailey’s team seems to exhale as one, shifting and reforming around one another with practised ease, changing positions and equipment in a confident dance of precision, like the gears of a well-tuned clock clicking seamlessly into place. Lucy rises out of Nolan’s grasp, and this time he lets her go, Celina hovering in her periphery like a concerned hummingbird. She crawls the few steps to Tim’s side, black pebbles from the asphalt sticking to her fingers, but she hardly notices. All she can see is his chest rising and falling; rising and falling fitfully, as if he’s struggling to make his lungs work the way they should. His hands are at his sides, trapped in the torn fabric of his shirt and tapping a spasmodic rhythm against his thighs.

She’s hooked her fingers into his before she even realises she’s reached him, and his head jerks unsteadily towards her. His eyes lock onto hers, and for a second he seems to catch his breath, inhaling slowly, fully, as his fingers wrap around hers.

“Lucy…”

“Shh, shh. It’s okay. It’s okay sweetheart, we’ve got you.”

She feels herself finally crashland back into her body, the cacophony around her instantly transforming into the familiar cadence of emergency calls and orders, the uniform colours and vehicle shapes once again making sense.

He’s been shot.

Tim. Her love. Her heart. Her world.

He’s been shot, and she can tell it’s not good.

There’s so much blood, still, all over him, and his clothes, and the ground; and his eyes are too wide and too scared. She can hear the words ‘pneumothorax’ and ‘pulmonary edema’ from the medical team, and she knows they have to get him to the hospital, right now, or … Her mind blanks it out and she shakes her head, ridding herself of the thought, of the tears that have squeezed themselves out onto her lower lashes.

“We’ve got you, love. It’s going to be okay.”

She runs a hand through his hair, ruining his carefully arranged ‘do, and stroking her fingers along the edge of his cheekbone. His eyelids flutter closed at the touch of her thumb, but his breath catches in his throat, and he coughs wetly and jerks back to wakefulness with a fright, his eyes searching restively for hers.

“Lucy, we have to go.” Bailey is opposite her, an oxygen mask in hand, already hissing with air and Lucy nods, once, and then again, more firmly. She squeezes his fingers tight and brushes her thumb across his lips.

“I’ll see you soon.”

And she kisses him, pressing her face hard against his, memorising the scuff of his stubble; the bump of his nose; the brush of his eyebrows; the soft twitch of his eyelashes against her own; and, finally, his lips. Warm and soft and giving way under hers as they always do; as they always have, since the very first time that she kissed him. He breathes against her, and she inhales him, stifling a sob and holding his face close, lingering against him for a long moment; savouring the beat of his heart pulsing warm and quick under her fingers at his jaw and temples.

And then Nolan is behind her again, drawing her away, and Bailey is covering Tim’s face with the oxygen mask. The EMTs load his stretcher onto a gurney and rush him towards the back of the ambulance. She watches, feeling as if she’s been completely hollowed out; as if anything stronger than a light gust of wind could blow her away.

“Lucy. Go on, we’ve got your shop.”

Instead of pulling her, this time Nolan shoves her gently, and she almost trips again, looking back at him and wondering why he looks so strange. He nods, and Lucy automatically imitates the gesture, and tears fall from her eyes, clearing her vision, and Nolan looks like himself again, tilting his head urgently towards the ambulance.

She takes a breath, turning from him, from their shops, from the dark blotch of blood on the ground where the stretcher lay, and she hurries after Bailey, hoisting herself up and inside the closing ambulance doors. AO3 link💖

On to Part 2!

[luxnebula]

Oh, darn, I said that I'd write a post about volunteering at an academic conference and then I just Didn't Do That. So here's my experience volunteering for the World Congress of Environmental History. The WCEH is a congress that is arranged every four or five years and it focuses on environmental history. This year, the conference's theme was transitions, transformations and transdisciplinarity, so there were panels from all sorts of fields and from so many points of views.

Before the congress itself, I joined WCEH's social media team. The social media team's first task was to make videos introducing the Linnanmaa campus, which were then posted on Instagram and Twitter, for which I wrote the script. Here is the first video on Twitter. Here is the second video on Twitter.

Our training for the conference consisted of five meetings before the conference.

As I packed my backpack for the first meeting, I decided that I wouldn’t take along the novel that I was reading at the time (Frankenstein terapiassa by Jenny Jägerfeld and Mats Standberg) because I thought I wouldn’t have time to read it, even if I got there early, as I tend to do. I ended up regretting this decision as the lesson started behind schedule. However, I absolutely do not hold this against the lecturer because I also know how it is with the trains, as someone who also regularly travels by train. VR, venaa rauhassa, as we say here. This is just an anecdote that I thought was funny.

During the first meeting, we had a lecture held by a representative from the Oulu tourism board giving us pointers on what tourists can do in Oulu during summer. This was extremely valuable because it had not even crossed my mind that the conference participants and guests might ask what to do after the conference presentations.

To write a short summary of the tourism talk, we talked about transport (bus, bike rental), the islands near Oulu and how to get to them and what to do on them, saunas, the waterpark, the beaches and nature trails. It was emphasised that when someone asks for a restaurant recommendation, we should not just give our favourite restaurant, we should ask what kind of cuisine the asker wants and then recommend something. We were given a tip of having a map app or the Summer Tips brochure open on our phones at all times so we can quickly show something on our phones. To the question “what should I do in Oulu?” we should ask some specifying questions: how much time does the person have? What do they like to do? Do they have a car? And work from there. As a last resort, it could be good to recommend the market hall because it has tourist information. This was very valuable for me because social skills are one of my biggest weaknesses. Having scripts like this memorised will make it much easier for me to be more effective in answering questions.

During this meeting it started to dawn on me just how unique this event would be. WCEH is organised only every fifth year, so this was a once in a lifetime opportunity for me to get some work experience before graduation.

Our second meeting concerned the AV technology in the classrooms that would be used during the conference. This was also useful work experience because being fluent with AV technology could be a good skill to have in this modern era. WCEH was a hybrid conference, which meant that there were in-person panels, but they were also possible to attend via Zoom and they were recorded to watch later.

The first day of the congress started a little roughly for me. I woke up with mild stomach pain, which continued to 10 AM, which is when the reception for the congress opened. I had to be there to tweet about the reception opening. Thankfully, I ended up making it on time to the reception desk. Then at 11, I found out that the congress staff wouldn't have a complimentary lunch, so I had to run back to my apartment for lunch, which I had to do in the rain. I hadn't checked the weather before leaving home, so I didn't have an umbrella with me either. My shoes and socks ended up getting soaked.

On Monday, I also had a panel that I was supposed to supervise and I feel like I didn't do a good job. The first problem that I quickly found was that the laptop did not have any free USB ports left. The speakers and I ended up having to unplug the microphone to plug a flashdrive in, copy the slide shows onto the laptop and plugging the microphone in. This turned out to be a bad idea, because it messed with the microphone’s settings. The microphone kept showing error messages in Zoom for the first session. I hope that it did not affect the recording. The second problem was that the projector would not turn on. I had to call NomadIT (our IT support for the conference) for help, which made the panels start ten minutes late. Other than that, the first session went fine.

Before the second session, I asked NomadIT which USB I should unplug for the flashdrive and I was told to unplug the camera. Keeping that in mind, I started the second session much more easily, now that most of the problems were taken care of during the first session. However, the speakers forgot to unplug the flashdrive and replug the camera and I did not want to interrupt the speaker, so most of the Zoom meeting was recorded without a camera. I can only hope that the slide shows and panel’s audio at least saved fine. I don't think I will be an AV-tech expert anytime soon…

I went home without going to the opening ceremony, which I ended up regretting because it turned out that the male choir Huutajat performed there. It would've been cool to see them, even if I'm not a fan... 🥲

On Tuesday, I only had one shift, but I still had work to do from morning onwards, when I posted on X on behalf of other people in the social media group. I also helped look up people’s X and Instagram handles so we could @ mention them in our posts. Good thing I stayed at my apartment for that, so I could access my laptop and do it quicker than on my phone. I found it a little amusing that I was essentially doing some social media stalking, but in a professional and academic sense.

At the campus, I was asked to tweet about a panel named Arctic Spotlight before it started and do short interviews with the panel speakers. This turned out to be very chaotic. Adding on to the tasks I already had, the lecture hall's computer keyboard wasn't working, so I had to send out a SOS to the IT support, which I then didn't even have time to follow up on and check that the keyboard issue would be fixed. Another social team member and I then immediately had to do the short interviews, which thankfully were done quickly. Arctic Spotlight ended up starting in time, so I think the keyboard issue was sorted without me having to follow it. This short, hectic period taught me how to manage overlapping tasks on a short notice, how to delegate tasks and how to trust other people to do those delegated tasks.

Wednesday was very uneventful, but that was welcome after the chaos on Tuesday. Someone had forgotten their bag in the restrooms, so I wrote and posted a tweet about where to look for lost items.

Thursday was easily the longest day for me. I went to the reception desk, where someone asked for directions to the Botanical gardens. This made me very happy because one of the pre-assignments for the class included taking photos and talking about a favourite place in Oulu. My response to that assignment was the Botanical gardens, so I'm very pleased that at least two people took my advice and went to see it.

Later on the same day, I ended up volunteering in decorating a restaurant in Nallikari for the party on Thursday evening. It was fun, although it ended up getting late and getting back home from Nallikari was stressful because I had never been in Nallikari before. Not to mention that I had an 8 AM AV shift the next day, so I was in a hurry to get home so I could get enough rest.

Either way, on Friday morning,

I got to my assigned hall well before the assigned time, but I was still somehow not the first in it. Even the laptop had been set up for me! I did not need to do anything, but I tested the mic and sound anyway. I started the recording and the panel went great. The panel was very interesting! I especially liked the talk about how the horse chestnut tree has been talked about in Finnish newspapers and how attitudes towards it have shifted with time. Especially during the Winter War, when it was questioned how useful the tree even is, when times are tight and you cannot use horse chestnut wood for furniture, food or even firewood. It highlighted to me how everything affects everything and gave me a moment of deep affection towards the humanities and history.

After the panel, I went to the reception desk, where I ended up calling a cab for someone who didn't speak Finnish. I also went to listen to a panel about the sustainability of tourism (which was very interesting too!) before I went home.

As I walked home from the panel, I started to feel a little melancholic. I realised how much fun I had had during the week doing the various tasks and talking to people. Normally, I would have been downright exhausted after a whole week of socialising, but for some reason, I didn't feel any of that on that Friday. I had to tell myself "don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened" several times LOL

So in summary, what I got out of volunteering at the conference was experience and practice. Experience in customer service, spontaneity, stress resistance and changing my plans on the fly. Practice in speaking English (which I get surprisingly rarely!), social skills and team working skills. So I got exactly what I hoped to get, although I wish I could have networked a little more. My studies have been very solitary and stressful ever since 2020, so it was immensely fun and gratifying to do something in real life with other people, especially when it is something as tangible as this. This was an extremely positive experience for me, and I am very glad I decided to join the volunteer team. I would not have missed this for the world. Even if I did not have the time to listen to many of the panels (I will have to keep an eye out on the recordings of the few panels that sounded interesting, but missed), I'm extremely satisfied with my experience in volunteering. Volunteering at the conference is one of the last things I do at the university before I (hopefully) graduate later this month, so I'm glad that I am ending my university studies with such a grand note and a good experience.

[endeavour12345fics]

The Aftermath, chapter 27

Sharp coughed, feeling pressure inside his chest. Not good, he thought, but it would happen sooner or later.

That month, a cold epidemic had ravaged Hogwarts. He’d spent the last few days brewing large batches of Pepper-up potion for the hospital wing, its reserves used up at an alarming pace.

Most students had gone through it, but none of the professors had fallen ill… until that moment.

He sat at his desk, shuffling through papers. Maybe he could still finish his lesson plans for the day.

He dipped the tip of his quill and started writing, having to stop after a few words. The feeling of pressure in his chest had increased, and he was feeling cold, even colder than usual. Tiredness washed over him, as if the quill weighed a tonne.

He cursed under his breath. I’d better go to the hospital wing, and Merlin help me get there.

He had to stop to catch his breath more than once as he walked, and he thought he’d pass out from the effort as he crossed the hospital wing’s entrance. Fortunately, Nurse Blainey saw him and quickly directed him to a more secluded bed. He laid on it without a word, focusing only on trying to breathe. He closed his eyes, and wished he could sleep. Sleep quickly claimed him without a fight.

As he laid there, Nurse Blainey went back to work, fetching a few Pepper-up and Wiggenweld potions.

After a few hours, he woke up and looked around. There were two Pepper-up and a Wiggenweld potions on his bedside table. Next to it, Philip sat on a chair, reading a book and mouthing something to himself. As he saw Sharp was awake, he closed the book. Sharp could now see its cover: it was the copy of Hamlet that he’d given Philip for Christmas.

“Nurse Blainey left these potions for when you woke up. I was just trying to memorise a soliloquy as I waited.”

Sharp took the potions, starting by the Pepper-up ones. Philip couldn’t hide a smile as he saw steam coming out of his professor’s ears. After taking the Wiggenweld potion, Sharp’s expression became more relaxed, and he laid back against the pillows.

“I’m feeling better, but I think I’ll try to sleep again. You’re free to leave if you want to.”

“I think I’ll finish this scene first, then go to the library. There’s something I need to check for Charms.”

Sharp closed his eyes and turned to his side, and Philip went back to the book. After a few pages he closed the book, hearing Sharp’s peaceful breathing next to him. Trying not to make any noise, he made his way out of the hospital wing.

At the library, he took his quill and parchment out of his bag, and searched for books that mentioned the water making charm, Aguamenti. He opened the first one and read a few paragraphs, the introduction of the essay already forming in his mind. He wrote it as fast as he could, before he forgot something by opening another book.

The rest of the essay took a while to write, for he had to stop at every few words to allow the ink to dry, or it would get smudged and hard to read.

When he was done, he put away the books as he waited for the ink on parchment to dry. Afterwards, he read a scene from Hamlet before leaving the library. The common room would probably be warmer and more comfortable.

When he got there, he was surprised to see that it was not too busy. It allowed him to curl up on his favourite armchair by the fireplace and read some more.

Around dinnertime, he made his way to the Great Hall, where, as he had suspected, Sharp wasn’t present. Philip first thought about checking on him after the meal, but at the same time it didn’t seem necessary. He would check the next morning if he felt it was needed.

He ate silently, noticing that the Hall was a lot more quiet than usual. He couldn’t exactly pinpoint why, but it was probably a mix of the weather and the wave of illness around the castle.

He was able to leave the Hall before the majority of the other students and went straight to his dormitory. He got ready for bed, hoping to already be asleep when his dormmates arrived. Although he usually went to bed later, he felt exhausted, as if his brain was going to shut down.

He fell asleep rather fast, which surprised him. Usually, it took him hours to fall asleep, and he wouldn’t feel rested when he woke up, but he was sleeping soundly when Garreth and Leander arrived.

[skylarstark4826]

With a singular wave, my hand shows our dissimilarity.

“Alien, is all they see”

Hiding my eyes, I look down at the sand beneath us. With Tsireya I am vulnerable and feel my heart beating hard against my chest. Suddenly, my hand is held by hers.

“I see you” she whispers

Her voice is soft, sending an involuntary wave of sensation through my body. I meet her gaze. Her pale eyes reflect the sea.

“You are brother of Tulkun, you are one of us now” she tells me, guiding my hand to her chest, I feel the racing of her heart.

“Tsireya, your heart beat is very fast” I say leaning in. Up close I want to study her patterns, to memorise them. It's close to eclipse and the sky brings a light lilac hue to her skin.

My eyes wander to her lips, if she knew all the times I've caught myself staring at them during our lessons.

“Lo’ak, what's wrong?”

Without warning my lips capture hers, like a magnetic pull. Her lips are warm compared to the cool eclipse air, they’re soft yet strong against my own. My hands move up to support the sides of her face as she presses up into our kiss. Sharp chills rush up my spine and finger tips. The excitement leaves me breathless forcing me to pull away.

Tsireya amused titters into her hand “you must learn to breathe Lo’ak, from here” mockingly she rests one hand on my chest and the other just beneath it. But her touch only makes it harder.

“Tsireya!” Ao’nung calls from a distance.

Shit.

“Lo’ak where are you!” calls Neteyam

“Shit shit shit, they're coming”

“you must go, Ao’nung will suspect something if we are together” Tsireya explains rushing me to the water “he would definitely punch you harder this time”

“Understandable” I reply, furthering myself into the water “Reya..”

“Yes?”

“thank you, for accepting me."

I wait long enough to see her smile, before swimming away from the shore.

Next time, I will remember to breathe.

[classicpixels]

hi! i don't know if this is weird but i remember reading ages ago that you were a law student? i am as well and i'm going into my second year this october and i have no idea how to study more efficiently. do you have any tips? i'm going through a law student crisis!!! sorry if this is weird, i know it's not related to the sims but you and your content seems so put together and neat so i thought you'd have some tips for law or something lol. thank you so so much!!!

Hello! This isn’t weird at all, sweetheart x

I’m so excited to meet a fellow law student, so thank you for reaching out! You’re leagues ahead of me because, despite my age, I have just started my tertiary journey which is something I’m so happy (but stressed) about.

It’s safe to say you have much more experience than me but I would love to offer some study tips which will hopefully be of help to you x

Personally, I always briefly read through the modules before class so I can hightlight what I would ask during the lecture for further understanding of the topic. Taking notes in class really helps you stay focused on the lesson and absorb the information so much better, in my opinion!

Right after each class I would create my own notes while referencing my class notes and text books to reinforce the information I learned. This may seem tedious but I find that it helps me retain information so much better, especially the case laws and legal principles because you’ve repeated them a couple times and simplified it whilst curating your notes.

It comes in handy during exam seasons as you have all your syllabus condensed into something you’re able to understand and digest, rather than having to review so many textbooks and modules all at once which only adds onto the stress. It also helps you in answering exam questions because you’re able to cite case laws and apply legal principles in a simplified manner, which saves you a lot of writing time and wrist pains.

Keeping on top of things like assignments are crucial to stay on track, at least for me. Try to complete your assignments as early as you can so that you’re able to focus more of your time on studying and revising the syllabus which, as you know, is important because there’s so much to memorise and remember. By doing so, you’re familiarising yourself with the study materials rather than force-feeding information to your brain during study weeks.

If you’re a visual person, colour coordinating your notes will help. Eg. pink for statutes, yellow for legal principles, etc. Or if you have photographic memory, then I hear mind-maps are useful!

I hope these are helpful tips and that you feel less anxious about your law student crisis. Best of luck to you! “Vincit qui patitur.” He conquers who endures.