my sister showed me an episode of hazbin and i have fallen irrevocably in love with that little loser snake guy with his eggs and the pathetic little meowmeow tv head

anyway heres my take on charlie bc i couldnt figure out what exactly she was supposed to be ?? shes more puppet like here i think. long limbs and stuff idk

Hello! I'm from the Philippines and currently pushing for liberation from the colonized mindset that permeates through our everyday life, as well as mutual aid initiatives to mitigate economic disparity. Your videos have been eyeopening for me and I was wondering... What do you think are the most sustainable and efficient courses of action? I have leadership experience in grassroots movements but I find it quite difficult to organize as I struggle to find like-minded people.

I think that the most sustainable and efficient courses of action are entirely context-dependent and it's tough for me to give the people who ask me this question specific recommendations without a fully detailed description of their unique situation.

As much as I hate to borrow from "corporate speak," it might be helpful to do a SWOT analysis of your area to identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats present in your unique context. Maybe someday I'll make a video going into that idea in more detail.

It may also help to do a resilience assessment. I found Think Resilience's self-directed course to be quite helpful in explaining this way of thinking in a concise manner. It's also completely free.

I fully relate to the struggle to find like-minded people, and it has certainly continued to be a challenge in my own local efforts. If/when I find an easy solution to this, you'll be the first to know. What I can suggest for now is that you seek out not necessarily like-minded people, but perhaps like-invested people. Meaning seek out groups that are already doing some sort of social, political, environmental, or educational activism but may not necessarily share your radicalism and try to work/build relationships with them that will naturally create opportunities for you to radicalise their efforts and tactics and spread anarchic and decolonial ideas.

Of course, doing this solo comes with the risk of your own radicalism being watered down--especially in more institutional spaces--which is why especifists recommend you engage in social insertion within movements as a group rather than as an individual.

My video on social revolution is meant to be a comprehensive overview of the variety of actions necessary to transform our world, so you can also look to those tactics and projects to draw inspiration once you've identified what needs doing and been able to connect with some folks who are as motivated as you to see change.

Hope this can help in some way. All power to all the people in the Philippines!

Why I liked India election’19

Its been about week that the elections in India came to a close after a very heated and dusty election festival - festival because that’s the way it was experienced by many here.I must say as a voter i have experienced several elections .Frankly during previous  elections, i let my experience pass by without much of a fervor .But election’19 came with a special flavor -it was more a chemistry, less of  math .

About 67% of  900 million Adrenalin spiked and  emotion charged voters exercised  their franchise and eagerly waited for the results to be announced . In private most voters ,politicians and political pundits had declared the results within themselves much ahead of counting and even the polls! - this turned to be true  with an exception of few astrologers of course  !   

Finally the India  elections -19 is all over now ,counting is all done  amid some creepy noise on VVPATs which failed to gather any momentum and yesterday with the pompous swearing in at Rashtrapathi bhavan ,the business of all ministries have already begun. 

Looking back on what was so special about this election ,there were several factors :

The BJP government in the previous term had connected with people emotionally and in someway it certainly established an identity of an common Indian .As some elderly gentlemen put it “ I now feel am an Indian and proud of it...” another school teacher said ”with the  present government in place I feel the British have now left India ...” Such emotions consistently echoed across the country.

The neo liberals failed to convince that a society can be completely  neutral with no religious or national identity and the least they could expect of  this society of ours with a five thousand year old history can leave its culture behind stay absolutely contemporary with nothing to do with our roots !  

Although the western pundits and left brainers were questioning the quantifiable  progress made by the BJP government in the last five years , in  terms of GDP  ,employment for youth ,domestic policy and  schemes implementation etc.All these seemed irrelevant for the most part of the populations .Although these are indeed popular factors that decide the fate of governments and state, here we just seem to over run it all for want of common social and emotional identity. This goes as a lesson for sociologists and rest of us on the importance of “national and emotional identity and the also the significance of the connect with state leadership”.

Many intellectuals,specially those media active individuals,  of the country who were pointing out to  social issues and profiling the governing party as an ‘intolerant’ - a new term for “communal” - did realize that those who they termed as” victims “ of intolerance  too voted for this very party which made way for about 303 seats out of 543 MPs in the parliament ! 

As the country moved towards the election ‘19 the opposition -  the congress in particular  -  was the happiest when they “caught the PM in rafale scam”  whatever be the fact of the matter of the deal it never saw  its impact on voters. 

So in a nut shell the happy facts this election established to me  was an eyeopener on what a state leadership should be doings as its “firsts” and that people of the country value most - is establishing and protecting the citizen’s identity and culture  and the  rest will follow - So here its the chemistry first.

Secondly ,the importance of a top leader, in this case  the PM, to stay connected with the ordinary class of the country (yes the middle class).We saw and felt this as each time he addressed the audience either in person or thro’ the  media he conveyed to them that he is one among them and so genuine it seemed, it did touch those  hearts of almost every citizen -including mine. 

Well during session one the BJP has conducted very well and demonstrated how well it can handle chemistry and we will look forward for session two that of Math.While term one  is proof of concept of sorts  term  two will be that of prototype stage .This is what the left brainers will be critically looking at all though it could be a smaller population then the right brainers the former forms a critical mass .Well for those looking for a quantifiable accomplishment of session one (can we call chem session?) its BJP= 302/543  and NDA =353/543  (firstpost figures) .

Seeing the present ministerial team - team Modi 2.0 as they call it - and its leadership there is enough reason to believe that the outcomes can be AS good and even better then term one .

Well i liked this election because this  festival of democracy made a commoner  like me get involved and many political ,social and leadership lessons were given ! 

More on that in the coming days until then happy learning  !

Jai Hind  !

The ridiculous thought process of family planning and naming my daughter

When I was a kid I swear one day I would be the mom of four boys and they would each have, what would be to some comedy fans, familiar Jewish names. Leonard, Arthur, Julius, Milton (maybe Herbert).  Most people who I shared this fantasy wondered why a girl born in the 80's would chose such antiquated monikers relating to a religion I had no relation to.  My good friends knew, of course, my family planning tied to my interest in the biographies of the Marx Brothers.  I will admit, this is ridiculous. To my credit, I was 11. By the time I grew up, adulted and held the all-to-real responsibility of having and naming real children,  I learned some things.  One, our obsessions with celebrities is delusional, usually fulfilling some kind of void in our lives. And two, becoming a grown woman is ...eyeopening. You have to work hard to be taken seriously. The Marx's biographical bragging of womanizing, on stage dirty jokes aimed at the unsuspecting and chasing no longer seemed like harmless play.  While these things went over my head as a kid, it now shadowed my experiences as a woman.  So, can I REALLY name my daughter after a Marx Brother?   I suppose these are the struggles we have with most classics films. Cinephiles cringe in the dark at moments reminding us how bad things were historically and where things certainly need improving today. We then comfortably slip back into the warm bath of nostalgia and continue to finish the movie that just offended.   So I suppose I wanted to do the same with naming my daughter, slip back into the comfort of nostalgia and delusion of celebrity. But is that the responsible thing to do?  Is it moral? Or just completely delusional? Still, the name Harper called to me. I did some soul searching with my husband during our baby moon to Palm Springs.  After the usual stops on the Marx tourism itinerary, I considered my own story.  How as a kid my Marx Brother obsession taught me to dig through archives, use film libraries, comfortably drop into college lectures unannounced, uninvited. I learned to attain historical facts and use knowledge creatively.  Then I grew up, earned a degree in History and then Film. Then made a fulfilling career in media.   Oddly, I guess the name Harper would not tell the legend of a classic movie star, but rather reveal my own journey to a happy career and life.  And what mom wouldn't want to share that with her daughter?   So at the risk of sounding like a delusional individual who never outgrew her childhood voids, completely oblivious to the Marx Brothers most cringing moments, I decided to name her Harper.  My friends get it.  They know and love me. My husband, a fan himself, agreed and occasionally calls her Harpo.  It works.   And after all the mental fuss, the topic never comes up.  Most people we meet assume we uncreatively picked a top 10 baby name of 2017. Great.  That works.  It's a good cover for a seemingly normal family, born delusional cinephiles in disguise.

As for having four, well, I think I’ll call it a day and manage the amount of responsibility I already enjoy.

The Journal Journey - Part 10

It has been a few weeks since we cracked my original growth journal, so I decided to use that as my writing topic today.  That, and to be transparent, there weren’t any topics off the top of my head to write about today.  I had some thoughts, but nothing really captured me, and I did want to write so here we go.  This is from my January 19, 2017 entry.

 -          “People with fixed mindsets would do almost anything to reach their goal except take charge of the process to make sure it happens.”  - This is a big differentiator of having a fixed mindset vs. a growth mindset, right?  Those with a growth mindset take action and go after their commitments, each day, no matter how boring, dull or painful they might be.  Those with growth mindsets know that they will fail on some parts of their journey but that doesn’t prevent them from getting started. Or, maybe it is that they just don’t want to put in the work?  I’ve caught myself on this one occasionally.  There have been those days that I just don’t want to put in the work. It could be not wanting to get those miles in, launch a podcast, read, listen to something inspirational, pick up the phone and call that certain person, or write!!!  Today I didn’t really know what I was going to write about but, I still put my fingers to the laptop and started typing.  Take the first step and the you will begin to get moment.  I continue to fight that fixed mindset and that stops me sometimes from taking that step. I don’t think it is laziness, or maybe it is.  I don’t think we, as a society are lazy.  I understand, yes, there are some out there that are just plain lazy; I get it.  For the most part however, we work very hard but sometimes, are we working really hard at those things that we really love? I know I am guilty of sometimes working hard at things I don’t love.  Sometimes that is part of the sacrifice we need to make; divide our time, prioritize, be patient and put in the work in an area we don’t love to benefit down the road.  Give up the good now for the great later? We are all able to take charge of the process and put in the action necessary to get us moving in the right direction.

-          “There is a lot of intelligence out there being wasted by underestimating student’s potential to develop.” – I think there are a lot of directions I can go with this one. I have been guilty of judging kids for being entitled; lazy even!!! 😊  But, I believe that has a lot to do with the way we condition them, how much we give them, or what problems we solve for them.  The more I am learning the more I am understanding that the more independence we give them to be creative, the more they grow and the better they become.  Many stories I read about the younger generations and the creativity they have in business, sports, music, entertainment, writing, etc. is exciting and inspiring.  Knowing that these are the future leaders of our country gives me a lot of confidence in the direction of our world, and OUR country!!!  I believe our society, our schools, and us as parents are giving the next generation freedom to create and, well, be free!  

-          “The good stuff resides on the other side of your comfort zone.” – Not sure how many times I’ve referred to this, but it has been a lot.  Really simple to understand and the more we allow ourselves to be uncomfortable the more growth we experience.  I know this to be true.  I know it works but it is so damn hard sometimes to lean into it.  Well, wait, no, it is hard, but I don’t think it is as hard as being patient.  There are times that I know the right thing to do is this task because it is going to be uncomfortable; I know it is going to make me better, so I lean into it and do it. I certainly feel better after but, the lesson I was to learn from it might not come to the surface for years down the road. That is what I mean about the patience part.  There are many times I ask myself, “okay, so what am I supposed to learn from this?”  The challenge, or, the great thing about this journey, we really have no idea when that piece of wisdom you just obtained is going to come in handy.  Many times, we don’t even know what the lesson is when we are learning it; but, sometime down the road, we are in a situation that causes us to revert to that experience, that moment, that circumstance where we were tremendously uncomfortable, and it provides us with the confidence to break through that wall.  

-          “Constant repetition creates conviction.” – I also like, “repetition is the mother of skill.” If we think about it, it is easy to comprehend right? The more we keep doing something, no matter how many times we fail at it, we are going to get better and better.  At first, we are going to be uncomfortable (see above) but each time we make an effort at it, we get more and more comfortable.  The more we do it, the more confident we become in that exercise.  We create belief (conviction) in our abilities/skills.  All of us sucked at walking when we first tried!!  

-          “Someone’s early performance doesn’t dictate their talent or future.” – How many sports stories can be sighted as examples of this? Individual players that dealt with injuries, loss, hardship? The underdog stories, right? We love those!! I talked about J.K. Rowling’s story last week, great example. I’ve attempted using this logic with our youngest daughter with soccer and having to start up with a new team going from one of the better players on the team to one of the average players.  It is not about where you start it is about who you become along the way. Bullet point above relates to this as well.  She had some very good soccer skills from playing for the last few years in her PA club. However, new coach, new disciplines, and new practice scheduling, going from practicing 1 day a week to 3 days a week, over the last 6 weeks, her skills got tremendously better and she has grown, not only as a soccer player but as a teammate and person.  It is not a sprint, it is a marathon and the lessons she is learning now, they may not bear fruit until years down the road.  Can be frustrating, especially if you are a 12-year-old but providing them with this type of awareness, not only helps them but helps us by teaching it.  

-          “Work towards and do the things that will expose your flaws.” – Getting out of that comfort zone again!!  Even more empowering, being courageous to share your insecurities.  This was a huge eyeopener for me and I’ve discussed this quite a bit.  I was wearing so many masks to disguise my flaws, thinking if I hid them then the outside would think my life was so good.  Meanwhile, the reality is my life was a freeking mess and I was spending so much time hiding it and no time fixing it.  I did this for so long that it has taking me almost 10 years of battling it to begin being comfortable with sharing my flaws.  I still hesitate, I still get scared to do things that I know I am going to fail; but, I am getting better and those things that were so uncomfortable for me to do before, are getting easier and easier.  Yes, when we screw up, fail, and make mistakes, there are those that will judge, criticize, and poke fun.  However, there are others, that know the battle you are taking on and can relate, because they are braving that fight too.  Those will be the ones that will pick you up and be courageous enough to tell you their flaws and how they are fighting them.  Those folks are the ones you want to stay close to.  

 We all have stories to tell but there are only some that are brave enough to share them.  What stories and flaws are you willing to put out there?

Show Off

Tonight I just had the most amazing discussion with one of my favorite people in the entire world, Gio. Completely unexpected, and a little weed and wine, led to quite the open conversation. 

We opened with relationships, and obviously my complete excitement and experience overwhelmed him. I quickly segued into my focus on my career and explained the opportunity I have to grow professionally through the end of the year. 

Very honestly he explained “if you’re going to do it, really do it.” Which is very eyeopening - if I am going to sacrifice my social “requirements” to really dive into my career I can’t half ass it. He specifically told me I need to attend conferences and build a network. I am a valuable asset and people need to know me to realize that.

I did not realize that he was pushing for senior management changes, in hopes to better the Firm overall. Oddly, this threw me off. I’m not entirely sure what about this point of discussion made me uncomfortable and made my energy become more defensive, but it certainly happened. Perhaps it was the thought of someone meddling in the process. Not that Gio has no right to meddle, and is likely the best person to have that kind of power, I think the idea of someone having the ability to do that really surprised me. Which is likely just dumb on my part. 

As part of his suggested management changes, he advised a PM to “show off” to really prove himself as a valuable asset and really go for a large career advancement. He basically told him to lead by being a leader - and leaders don’t ask for seats at the table, they just eat. 

We then looped back to my previous “relationships” and the potentials within reach. He seemed supportive of the idea of someone who is on the same energy wavelength as I am. But we’ll see where that goes, I'd hate to lose this kind of genuinely good person in my life. 

We then became a bit deeper and he said some incredibly flattering and inspiring things. Such as, “I wish you saw yourself the way that I see you.” And, “you’re special, really special.” 

He drove the points home by sharing that he doesn’t have strong relationships with a lot of people at the Firm, at least not very many senior people, because he doesn’t find them particularly interesting. He’s drawn to me because of something, and I am flattered and humbled to be drawing these kinds of people into my life. 

He wanted to make sure I understood my take away of “show off.” I am a special person and should take advantage of that and show off a bit. 

I’m a little unsure of which part of myself I should show off - meaning in relationships or professionally - but realistically, I think he’s leaving that up to me to decide. 

Now to figure out how to show off without being a cocky m-effer.....

Why You Should Take Singing Lessons

Confidence and technique

When it comes to singing, in by far the most cases, it`s about selfconfidence and pure technique.

You need to learn the basics of breathing and support, in order to maintain the correct pitch. When you discover these basic aspects of singing, it will be very rewarding, and it will certainly be an eyeopener for you.

Singing will also bring you many health related benefits: Daily singing helps preventing depression. It will boost your circulation. Your lung capacity will gradually increase. And maybe most important of all, it will bring you more strength to cope with everyday situations.

 Get your creative juices flowing!

By training your voice, you will have the ultimate tool for song creation right at hand. Even if you have little or no experience in writing your own songs, daily singing will make your subconciousness create new songs and melodies, inspired of what you sing, even if you are no aware of it. Your memory will also improve, as your brain will develop new connections when you challenge it regularly.

More benefits

If you sing in the shower or sing along with the radio, consider taking this raw vocal skill to new heights.  Music – the “universal language” not only stirs our deepest emotions, but active participation can increase energy and vigor to see us through even the most stress-filled life commitments. The singing warm up (exercises involving whole body, neck, shoulders, jaw, face, lips, tongue, diaphragm) strengthen neural connections to the voice and breath. Singing challenges concentration and attention, especially when techniques such as singing from memory, combining rhythm with action, and mental substitution are used. Standing up straight is part of correct technique as you’re singing, so with time, good posture will become a habit! As your chest cavity expands and your shoulders and back align, you’re improving your posture overall.

Why take singing lessons?

Singing is as natural to humans as it is to songbirds, but many of us tuck our talents away out of shyness or sympathy for those within earshot. Some people take singing lessons to make sure they get that solo in church or a part in a spring musical. They want to learn to sing loud. But there are other reasons to take singing lessons, like “to build up self-confidence” or “learn study skills.” While there may be some people who take singing lessons for seemingly unrelated or unimportant reasons, that doesn’t apply to everyone.

With the right singing technique, your voice should sound natural rather than artificial.  In some ways, correctly produced singing is more like sustained speaking.  This naturally produced sound is more acceptable to pop and musical theatre audiences today, as tastes have changed and evolved.

A good vocal technique will allow you to sing with a natural sounding voice, but will improve things like range, power, flexibility, riffs and runs, and style. The right vocal training will allow you to sing in the style or genre that most appeals to you, rather than forcing you to sound like the singing teacher, or the teacher’s favorite singer. Most importantly, the right vocal technique will balance both the lower and the upper registers with a smooth connection between the lower and upper voice.

Regular voice lessons and practice sessions help students develop advanced levels of concentration, determination, self-discipline and responsibility to regularly practice and work at skills to reach near and far-distant goals. These are the rare personality traits that more than any else will ensure success in all other areas of life.

Singing lessons has also been shown to cause significant improvement of the quality of the speaking voice including improving clarity, tone, diction, and expression. Singing students also work on improving their facial and body expression, eye contact and confidence, and become accustomed to singing in foreign languages.

Visit http://yourownsingingvoice.blogspot.no for more info

The "Wonder Factor" According to Davi Akei.

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK - I've recently been spending some time working as a Styling Director on a project with Soul artist Davi Akei (Dah-vee  A-kee) who released his latest single "Distance" earlier this month. It's certainly been a eyeopening journey returning to the world of a musician and experiencing his rigorous approach to achievement first hand. With the debut of his first mainstream EP "Authentic Soul"  set to release this March, filming a docuseries in association with The Mill Group , and taking the time to give back to the young black creatives, he's seems to be on the right path to making a big difference for the new world we're in. 

SW:  Is music a choice or a consequence for you? 

DA: I think it's a consequence of my gifts. I can't help that I feel this way about music. It' really just apart of being. You know how a lot of people have pets? A companion for life that they would just do anything for? Thats exactly how warmly I feel towards music. My life has soundtrack because I'm always listening to or creating it so this is me sharing my gift with the world.  

SW: You mentioned in your docuseries that "music is always working for you", how is that?

DA: I mean, in the sense that it's never off. It's me wanting to learn another instrument, to write another song, which would normally require me to be extremely sensitive to life and it's humor or whatever. I feel like music and I have a partnership and that's why I think it works for me and not against me. 

SW: What are these things that triggers you write music?

Raw emotions. I usually freestyle most of what I write . Those pins in life that add to the bigger picture of course are a huge contribution. Having to tap into those memories and emotions are important for me as an artist to hold onto if I really want to convey that in my voice or the way I deliver a message. 

SW: Have you learned anything new or shocking while recording "Authentic Soul"?

DA: I learned that I can creatively expand in areas where I didn't think to challenge myself before. That writing from different vantage points, I'm able to embrace my diversity. Writing for different artists while still maintaining that authenticity can also be a lot of fun too. I also learned the true importance of teamwork and that you're only as strong as your weakest link. My team has really helped me propel this vision I've had for so long and I'm really grateful for the hard work of those that have been apart of this project. 

SW: What would you consider to be your "Wonder Factor"? 

DA: I think my wonder factor is that my passion for music is vivid, my soul is authentic to the sound and my entire heart is all the way in this. I have the means to speak to the multitude, just to affirm them and their quest for love isn't wrong. I really think my artistry is tough and that's fine. I want to get people to get back to feeling the truth in music and say "I was just feeling that" or "This is precisely what I'm going through right now" and still be able to see that that good things can still come from those moments when you feel you're at lowest. Experiences and sharing them is what brings us as humans together. We're not living this life by ourselves. 

Davi Akei's music can be found on TIDAL, Spotify, iTunes, Apple Music, Soundcloud, & Google Play,