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belle-et-inspirante · 2 years

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Top 20 Chatbot Use Cases From Different Industries You Shouldnt Miss

A smart automobile chatbot can complement multiple functions, an otherwise manned teams are required to complete independently. Such language barriers can open up the door for miscommunication and mistakes. Even integrations as simple as Google Translate or iTranslate can provide the complete spectrum of your services in the language of their choosing. As the world grows smaller and smaller, more people across the globe have taken up travelling.

How Does AI Chatbots Work?

Chatbots work on 2 major principles, one is adherence to a series of predefined rules, and another is using AI to interpret queries and perform the necessary action.

They were looking for ways to improve their Container Price-Quote Flow. They also needed the new solution to be integrated with their CRM software for lead qualification and personalization. Hybrid.Chat is one such platform that swears by the Human + Bot model to provide amazing results. Improve your Chatbot In Different Industries brand reach, responsiveness, and personalization significantly through AI-powered, humanlike interactions. Work with our consultants to rapidly deploy and optimize SaaS products. Leverage the expertise of our agents, who are highly skilled in interactions via chat messages, calls, and email.

Planning for the 2023 recession: why branding still matters and how marketers can get ready for challenges ahead

For example, if customers frequently call to check the delivery time of their package, it makes sense to let the chatbot handle those questions. For instance, chatbots can be helpful in real estate by answering general questions that potential buyers have. For instance, they can provide Google Maps directions to your physical store. These fun experiences that your customers will enjoy will do a lot for your brand’s image in the long run. Let’s discuss how chatbots have transformed different business functions in terms of customer service. A customer service representative or a chatbot is unlikely to be like your psychologist or hairdresser.

People can add transactions to the created expense report directly from the bot to make the tracking even more accurate. Depending on the relevance of the report, users can also either approve or reject it. This chatbot use case also includes the bot helping patients by practicing cognitive behavioral therapy with them. But, you should remember that bots are an addition to the mental health professionals, not a replacement for them.

Chatbot Use Cases: What Bots Can do in Different Industries

Chatbots for mental health can help patients feel better by having a conversation with the person. Patients can talk about their stress, anxiety, or any other feelings they’re experiencing at the time. This can provide people with an effective outlet to discuss their emotions and deal with them better.

Everything is processed and conveyed by an AI-enabled virtual assistant. To create a conversational sales platform for free, in under five minutes, check this out. More stakeholders — Depending on what you’re selling, a B2C product usually only has a single stakeholder involved in the transaction. In a B2B market, however, there are various stakeholders, like the marketing, sales, product team who’re affected by what you’re offering. The average cost of a missing a customer in real estate is far higher than the average cost in e-commerce, so every lead you let go represents a sizeable chunk of lost revenue. There simply aren’t enough support representatives or salesmen to go around.

Why a Chatbot for Business?

The additional help from chatbots can keep customers away from the phone lines and reduce waiting times. Chatbots are computer programs that mimic human conversation and communicate with customers, usually on websites, social media, and other apps. There are many different AI-powered chatbot use cases, and every industry can benefit from incorporating them into its customer engagement strategy.

Chatbots can engage customers by answering their simple queries when the support team is busy or not available.

The chatbot can collect the information you need and answer candidates’ questions.

Secondly, you can also automate reminders to customers through SMS to collect payments and set up revised payment plans.

Different messaging apps attract different users, and the way the apps are used also varies, depending on the platform.

They can help you collect prospects whom you can contact later on with your personalized offer.

Have you connected with multiple prospects who have questions about your pricing details?

The chatbot had to ask the candidate questions based on the job profile that they chose. We also needed to incorporate accepting file inputs from candidates to automate the document submission process. Candidates who showed interest in applying were given links to interact and complete the screening process. We wanted to leverage chatbots and conversational UI to develop a solution that would help Hybrid.Chat and the HR industry in general.

Different Types of Chabot Used Across Different Industries

In this article, we’ll look at the most popular chatbot use cases in 5 different industries, but first, let’s look at general chatbot benefits that apply across any business. Some of the best chatbot apps also help their users show product availability to customers. This allows the customer to save time and complete their product purchase faster. For this to happen, you need to connect your inventory data to your NLP chatbots. This will help them identify the right products based on the keywords added by the customer during the chat. These digital assistant chatbots work on voice recognition APIs along with text-to-speech platforms.

GLOBAL CHATBOTS MARKET SIZE INDUSTRY RESEARCH … – EIN News

GLOBAL CHATBOTS MARKET SIZE INDUSTRY RESEARCH ….

Posted: Mon, 12 Dec 2022 08:00:00 GMT [source]

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mantruffles · 2 years

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Top 20 Chatbot Use Cases From Different Industries You Shouldnt Miss

How Does AI Chatbots Work?

Chatbots work on 2 major principles, one is adherence to a series of predefined rules, and another is using AI to interpret queries and perform the necessary action.

Planning for the 2023 recession: why branding still matters and how marketers can get ready for challenges ahead

Chatbot Use Cases: What Bots Can do in Different Industries

Why a Chatbot for Business?

Chatbots can engage customers by answering their simple queries when the support team is busy or not available.

The chatbot can collect the information you need and answer candidates’ questions.

Secondly, you can also automate reminders to customers through SMS to collect payments and set up revised payment plans.

Different messaging apps attract different users, and the way the apps are used also varies, depending on the platform.

They can help you collect prospects whom you can contact later on with your personalized offer.

Have you connected with multiple prospects who have questions about your pricing details?

Different Types of Chabot Used Across Different Industries

GLOBAL CHATBOTS MARKET SIZE INDUSTRY RESEARCH … – EIN News

GLOBAL CHATBOTS MARKET SIZE INDUSTRY RESEARCH ….

Posted: Mon, 12 Dec 2022 08:00:00 GMT [source]

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blissful-moontrip · 2 years

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Top 20 Chatbot Use Cases From Different Industries You Shouldnt Miss

How Does AI Chatbots Work?

Chatbots work on 2 major principles, one is adherence to a series of predefined rules, and another is using AI to interpret queries and perform the necessary action.

Planning for the 2023 recession: why branding still matters and how marketers can get ready for challenges ahead

Chatbot Use Cases: What Bots Can do in Different Industries

Why a Chatbot for Business?

Chatbots can engage customers by answering their simple queries when the support team is busy or not available.

The chatbot can collect the information you need and answer candidates’ questions.

Secondly, you can also automate reminders to customers through SMS to collect payments and set up revised payment plans.

Different messaging apps attract different users, and the way the apps are used also varies, depending on the platform.

They can help you collect prospects whom you can contact later on with your personalized offer.

Have you connected with multiple prospects who have questions about your pricing details?

Different Types of Chabot Used Across Different Industries

GLOBAL CHATBOTS MARKET SIZE INDUSTRY RESEARCH … – EIN News

GLOBAL CHATBOTS MARKET SIZE INDUSTRY RESEARCH ….

Posted: Mon, 12 Dec 2022 08:00:00 GMT [source]

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captainvegas · 2 years

Text

Top 20 Chatbot Use Cases From Different Industries You Shouldnt Miss

How Does AI Chatbots Work?

Chatbots work on 2 major principles, one is adherence to a series of predefined rules, and another is using AI to interpret queries and perform the necessary action.

Planning for the 2023 recession: why branding still matters and how marketers can get ready for challenges ahead

Chatbot Use Cases: What Bots Can do in Different Industries

Why a Chatbot for Business?

Chatbots can engage customers by answering their simple queries when the support team is busy or not available.

The chatbot can collect the information you need and answer candidates’ questions.

Secondly, you can also automate reminders to customers through SMS to collect payments and set up revised payment plans.

Different messaging apps attract different users, and the way the apps are used also varies, depending on the platform.

They can help you collect prospects whom you can contact later on with your personalized offer.

Have you connected with multiple prospects who have questions about your pricing details?

Different Types of Chabot Used Across Different Industries

GLOBAL CHATBOTS MARKET SIZE INDUSTRY RESEARCH … – EIN News

GLOBAL CHATBOTS MARKET SIZE INDUSTRY RESEARCH ….

Posted: Mon, 12 Dec 2022 08:00:00 GMT [source]

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vini-on-line-miglior-prezzo · 2 years

Text

Top 20 Chatbot Use Cases From Different Industries You Shouldnt Miss

How Does AI Chatbots Work?

Chatbots work on 2 major principles, one is adherence to a series of predefined rules, and another is using AI to interpret queries and perform the necessary action.

Planning for the 2023 recession: why branding still matters and how marketers can get ready for challenges ahead

Chatbot Use Cases: What Bots Can do in Different Industries

Why a Chatbot for Business?

Chatbots can engage customers by answering their simple queries when the support team is busy or not available.

The chatbot can collect the information you need and answer candidates’ questions.

Secondly, you can also automate reminders to customers through SMS to collect payments and set up revised payment plans.

Different messaging apps attract different users, and the way the apps are used also varies, depending on the platform.

They can help you collect prospects whom you can contact later on with your personalized offer.

Have you connected with multiple prospects who have questions about your pricing details?

Different Types of Chabot Used Across Different Industries

GLOBAL CHATBOTS MARKET SIZE INDUSTRY RESEARCH … – EIN News

GLOBAL CHATBOTS MARKET SIZE INDUSTRY RESEARCH ….

Posted: Mon, 12 Dec 2022 08:00:00 GMT [source]

https://online-wine-shop.com/top-20-chatbot-use-cases-from-different-industries/

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joaomurakami · 2 years

Text

Top 20 Chatbot Use Cases From Different Industries You Shouldnt Miss

How Does AI Chatbots Work?

Chatbots work on 2 major principles, one is adherence to a series of predefined rules, and another is using AI to interpret queries and perform the necessary action.

Planning for the 2023 recession: why branding still matters and how marketers can get ready for challenges ahead

Chatbot Use Cases: What Bots Can do in Different Industries

Why a Chatbot for Business?

Chatbots can engage customers by answering their simple queries when the support team is busy or not available.

The chatbot can collect the information you need and answer candidates’ questions.

Secondly, you can also automate reminders to customers through SMS to collect payments and set up revised payment plans.

Different messaging apps attract different users, and the way the apps are used also varies, depending on the platform.

They can help you collect prospects whom you can contact later on with your personalized offer.

Have you connected with multiple prospects who have questions about your pricing details?

Different Types of Chabot Used Across Different Industries

GLOBAL CHATBOTS MARKET SIZE INDUSTRY RESEARCH … – EIN News

GLOBAL CHATBOTS MARKET SIZE INDUSTRY RESEARCH ….

Posted: Mon, 12 Dec 2022 08:00:00 GMT [source]

un nuovo post è stato publicato su https://online-wine-shop.com/top-20-chatbot-use-cases-from-different-industries/

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joemoshe · 2 years

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5 Things to Never Spend Money on Again

We get it. Some expenses are just unavoidable— for instance, house rent, food, utility bills, and maybe some debts like student loans and car repayment. However, let’s be honest too. We also fall victims to expenses that we could’ve avoided completely.

You don’t need to strip your life down of all life’s bare necessities and live like a cave dweller, but you shouldn’t splurge money like a robber baron’s wayward son either. It is important to find the balance between the two.

According to studies, about 94% of millionaires spend less than they make since they focus more on saving and investing, at least to the extent that their investments can cover their bills. But to reach such financial independence, you need to understand how to carefully manage your finances.

Ask yourself these questions: How much money did you receive all throughout your life? How much money did you spend? And how much money is left?

Perhaps, you have spent the majority of your money to support basic necessities, but if you would look back at all your expenditures, a big portion of it was actually spent on trivial things that didn’t add up value to your life. Almost every one of us has been there and done that.

If we would only learn how to manage money more effectively, we would be closer to financial independence way sooner.

Here are the things people regret buying and will never spend money on again:

1. Car

You probably know how expensive owning a car is if you have one. Unfortunately, those who own a car do not understand how much driving a car around costs.

In 2020, the average monthly payment for a new car was around $500. Yet, aside from this are expenses that are often neglected.

It is also necessary to take into consideration the maintenance costs, gas fees, insurance, and other car-related expenses. Not to mention that having your own car gives you the capacity to drive around, even for trivial reasons, which requires gas.

Gas prices are pricey and will cost you fortunes, so you should spend money again on cars— well, unless necessary.

If you live in an area where public transportation is problematic and need to take your kids to school and run various errands, then a car is essential. However, if you are single and don’t stand in need of one, you better save and invest that money for a greater cause.

2. Expensive Personal Care Products

If looking good is one of your priorities in life, you must have spent fortunes trying out multiple brands of skincare products without thinking twice about whether they’re overpriced or not.

You need to know that personal care products are pretty much identical. In fact, a lot of them were mostly produced in the same factories in China and were only sold under different brand names. The prices only vary based on how popular they are. Some products that cost $100 are no different from $20 ones.

The beauty industry’s margins are tremendous, so don’t get yourself fooled by paying $100 for a product that you can get for a much lower price.

3. Spending Money to Impress

Spending money to impress is absolutely a pointless waste. When you are in your teenage years, still navigating life, it is relatively easy to build your life around what people around you think. It’s quite normal to get influenced easily by society in terms of your clothes and the things you have.

Yet, although this pressure is occasionally internal, teenagers are known for chastening each other into conforming to social norms. But this circumstance isn’t limited to teenagers but also to adults. Not only are they compelled to look their best, but they were also propelled to keep up with the Joneses all throughout their adulthood.

Adulthood has its fair share of cliquey rebels, rich kids, and outsiders too. No matter what age, whether 18 or 50, people would want to fit in.

But is it indispensable to give in to peer pressure and squander your hard-earned dollars to be accepted? If you want to achieve financial independence and move to the future with impressive financial standing, the answer should be a big “NO.”

An adult’s opportunity to splurge money is limitless, but if you give in every time, you will only end up draining your bank account. Remember that keeping up and impressing your friends as an adult is just as meaningless as in high school.

4. Investments You’re Not Sure About

Sometimes, knowing a little information about a particular thing makes us feel like we know it all— only to find out how little we know. This is especially true for people who were just starting out.

It’s good to invest, but don’t bet your money on investments you know nothing about. Remember Warren Buffett’s golden rule in investing? Never lose money.

Maybe, it’s even better to get your money to lose its value due to inflation while waiting for the right investment opportunity than lose it all in one snap in a bad investment.

5. Extended Warranties

Getting extended warranties is one good way to waste money. If you would come to think of it, warranties people barely use guarantees, no matter what kind of warranty there is, because spending a lot of time going through the hassles of fixing an item is a big nuisance.

On top of that, there are cases where the warranty doesn’t cover the particular damage your item has! Sometimes, it’s way easier to buy a new one.

#finance #financial #investment #investing #money

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resinatingbeauty · 3 years

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Everything You Need To Know About UV Resin

I thought I would make this post because of how much Amazon pesters me to answer questions regarding UV resin and I know many of you were able to learn and benefit from my other craft posts which focused more on epoxy. Today I'm going to cover all the things I have learned using UV resin, which is something I use almost exclusively for many of the items you see in my Etsy shop.

What is UV resin?

UV resins are photochemicals that react to different wavelengths of UV (sunlight) to cure. This allows for a much shorter cure time and longer work time than epoxy resin, as UV resin will not begin to cure / harden until it is exposed to UV light. In the photos above, you can see the two main types/brands of UV resin I typically use for the creation of my projects, Solarez and Limino, both of which can be purchased on Amazon (Solarez has its own website, but shipping is not free though Amazon only has some of their products). While Solarez is known for surfboard creation and repair, boat repair, etc. It is one of the few UV resins that can be used to create larger projects such as these Fairy Garden Jars you see below.

Normally, however, UV resin is used for smaller projects - jewelry, coating, small casts, and the like. It is practically the same chemical combo found in UV nail polish. These chemicals may be triggered to harden using the same UV lamps one would see at a nail salon, though not all UV lamps or torches cover the full spectrum of UV wavelengths as sunlight (more on this later). I rely on UV resin for the creation of my popular rune sets, as they require more detail and time to fully create than the 30-45 minute work time one typically has with epoxy. Below are some examples of items I have in the shop made primarily with UV resin.

UV resins are typically non toxic and are not harmful to the environment when cured or uncured. The resin itself shares similar properties to epoxy but can have a much lower viscosity in general, making it more ideal for casting and coating than doming. UV resin does give off an odor when curing (Solarez is the WORST even when not curing), much more so than epoxy.

Pros & Cons of UV resin

Pros:

No mixing. UV resins are ready to go from the bottle.

Longer work time, shorter cure time. Great for making multiple projects at once or highly detailed, smaller projects. UV resin fully cures in approx 5 mins in full sunlight.

Great for clear casts and adding a glossy finish to any project.

Bonds to metal, wood, plastic, etc. Making it great for quick fixes.

Most are self degassing and self leveling.

Easier to handle. No component mixing means you can't possibly ruin your project from the get go.

Accepts most Inclusions / pigments one would use with epoxy

Waterproof when cured.

Cons:

Expensive. UV resin will average $65+ (for 1000g) USD for the equivalent of a 32oz epoxy combo for $20+. Solarez is on the cheaper side, but harder to work with.

Fickle. UV resin will produce bubbles that don't want to surface, must be used in very thin layers, prone to shrinkage, and cannot cure if using opaque or dense Inclusions or pigments.

Can only be used with clear silicone molds. Plastic molds tend to adhere / melt to UV resin. Solarez may be used with an MEKP catalyst to get around this, but not foolproof.

May only be used for small projects.

Must purchase UV lamp / torch to cure, but some only cure with certain wavelengths or sunlight itself. Can over cure and become brittle or undercure and be tacky.

Even clear but detailed molds may not cure correctly.

So, you may notice there are more cons than there are pros when it comes to UV resin. This is absolutely true- for cost effectiveness alone, unless you are looking to mass produce something or need more potability / work time for your project (as I do), I recommend avoiding UV resin and going with epoxy which will usually even yield better overall results.

If you DO decide to try UV resin or have tried UV resin, you may run into a few problems initially that will cause you to trash projects and become frustrated. Never curing resin is a popular complaint, this next portion of this post is entirely dedicated to troubleshooting UV resin in order to better help you achieve the results you are looking for.

Using & Troubleshooting

There are many different brands of UV Resin available. Save for Solarez, the ones that come in the big or small tubes like the Limino resin shown (I've used brands Miraclekoo, Decoroom, DIY, Let's Resin, Solarez, SooKoo, and Limino) are pretty much the same product selling for around the same price per milligram / fluid oz. They all have about the same viscosity and will generally yield the same results and have the same average cure time.

Note: Solarez is more of a polyester based resin or can be acrylic based depending on which of their products you purchase. It has a very strong odor and is more liquid than these others. It is also fairly cheaper (Almost half the price) and can be purchased in larger quantities. Unfortunately, even though the price tag is enticing, I really don't recommend it. It is very fickle with the UV wavelengths used to cure it. If you are trying to do any indoor project using a UV torch or lamp, you are going to want to even then drop an extra $20-$60 on a multi spectrum UV lamp to cure your project. You will find that you have to intermittently expose the resin to light or it gets an orange peel/puckered texture- sometimes the light will even literally burn right through your project. It can even burn or damage your mold, as Solarez gets very hot when curing even though it is formulated to not get as hot or combust when using UV light to cure, which is something, I guess.

However, Solarez can be used with an MEKP catalyst, allowing you to dual cure it using sunlight / UV light. This allows Solarez to be used with opaque pigments and can be used for larger projects. The catalyst was not initially included with the resin, but the manufacturer began including it for some reason. The ratio is 6 drops of MEKP mixed into 1 fluid ounce of Solarez. 6:1. With the MEKP catalyst, your project will fully cure in 30 mins (using sunlight or UV light to help it along) but it is prone to becoming overheated, still requiring small layers to be cured one at a time to avoid combustion.

If you're going to try UV resin, I recommend trying any of the brands above, save for Solarez. Grab a 50-120g bottle to try and see if you like it. I recommend beginning making something simple like a pendant or earrings using a clear silicone mold or open back bezel. Mica pigments and most alcohol inks will work with UV resin the same way they work with epoxy and UV resin also creates a super clear glossy finish that may be used to gloss and spruce up cured epoxy projects.

So you took the dive and purchased your UV resin? You've got problems? Yea, tell me about it.

•My Project is Super Tacky! What do?

This is common and will vary from product to product, but usually isn't the product. So before you go flaming the foreign manufacturer who doesn't understand you anyway, ask yourself the following and try these methods to solve the inevitable tacky problem:

How long did you cure? The average cure time shown on the bottle is just that, an average. This doesn't mean that your project will cure in five minutes under your UV lamp. Not all UV lamps are made equal. For starters, check the packaging, but most UV resins require your lamp to be 36w+, so write that off immediately. If your lamp is producing less wattage, than it's not going to cure your UV resin. If you're using a lamp that is 36w+ or your UV resin claims to cure under 36w, then take a look at your lamp itself. Most nail salon UV lamps are either table shaped or dome/cave shaped. If you're using a table shaped lamp on a 3D mold / project, the light is unable to penetrate the sides and back of the mold. This style lamp will only work to cure projects in open back bezels or free hand, flat coatings. If using a dome shaped lamp then the majority of the UV light is found at the back of the lamp. If you have your project at the front or sides, it is unable to be fully penetrated by UV light at all angles.

Try turning your project,curing it for a minimum of 5 minutes on each side. Using finger cots, remove your project and let it cure free form. It shouldn't be so tacky that it sticks to your work area at this point, but if it is, then there is only one solution:

Let it cure in actual sunlight for 10-20 minutes, turning it so that every angle sees light. Typically, your UV lamp doesn't offer the same UV light wavelengths as pure sunlight, and you can buy new lamps or torches to test, but sunlight is free.

If your project is still tacky after all these measures, you've tried adding a new layer of clear resin to it and allowing it to cure in sunlight.

If this doesn't work, think about your Inclusions, your glitter, your pigments etc. If your project is nearly opaque, then you'll need to tone it down if you're going to use UV resin.

If NOTHING else, your product may indeed be a dud or became contaminated in some way. Unfortunately, it's not always easy to get in touch with the manufacturer, but if you order your product from Amazon, they'll more than likely allow you to return it.

My project is all bubbly? What do?

Bubbles are always a problem, whether you're using UV resin or epoxy. Little tiny bubbles always form, especially around the edges of the mold or embedded within details in the design. Don't forget, you have infinite work time with UV resin. This means that you have as long as you want to work out the bubbles.

Use a toothpick to pop tiny bubbles at the bottom of the mold or dislodge them to bring to the surface. Be careful though because you don't want to leave little scratches on your mold or puncture it.

Use a torch to pop bubbles on the surface. A grill lighter, regular lighter, or whatever will do the trick. Make sure you hold the flame a good inch or so away from the surface. It will catch fire and your mold possibly will too. Do so carefully! I run the torch across the top layer every time I add something to the resin to remove any bubbles it gives off. This also works for epoxy.

Blow on it. Some people claim the heat of your breath will pop surface bubbles, but I have had no success with this method.

Warm your resin. Stick your UV resin in a plastic bag or something air tight. Allow some water to heat to near boiling on the stove before pouring it over your resin bottle in a bowl or basin. Do not stick your resin in the microwave or oven or anything crazy.

Stir slowly. Stir inclusions like glitter and pigments slowly, scraping the sides and bottom. This will prevent air bubbles kicking up into your mix and oxygen being introduced into your pour.

Try pigments. For some weird reason (most likely due to changes in viscosity), resin projects with pigments, glitter, and the like have less tendency toward bubbling than clear casts.

Are your bubbles huge? This may be because your pouring super thick layers of resin and all sides have not cured properly. Your layers should only be 1mm thickness maximum when using UV resin.

My project has come out warped, not even, has divots , etc.

If you are curing your layers quickly, your project is heating. When you add more resin over top of this hot resin in a hot mold, this will not only cause more bubbles but also lend to shrinkage. Allow your project to cool to room temp and have some downtime between curing. This will also protect your molds that will become damaged from overuse / overheating and cooling.

With Solarez, this is key to having a beautiful project at the end of the day. Even though it is formulated to not overheat if exposed to sunlight, Solarez will get this orange peel like texture on the surface layer if overexposed.

Yes, there is such thing as overcuring as well, and it will make your project brittle and even flakey, but this is normally not the biggest complaint with UV resin.

So why even buy UV resin?

UV resin has its perks. In a pinch, it makes for a clear, glossy finish that will cure / harden quickly in the sun or with a UV lamp that one would be waiting 24-48 hours for with epoxy. It can be used to repair epoxy projects and fill small divots as well as the ability to bond to pretty much anything makes it useful to have around. It is convenient to use due to the fact that you don't have to mix it, it is easy to pour and compatible with most inclusions. It is also ideal for its extended work time as it will not cure until exposed to UV light. This allows you to create highly detailed clear cast jewelry and other projects you wouldn't be able to assemble and detail before epoxy would begin to cure.

I hope this helps everyone who is having trouble with UV resins or those who have considered using UV resin as an alternative to epoxy. If you have any other questions you would like answered or are someone adept with UV resin that would like to share, please do so! Good luck!

~Samantha

Owner/ Designer/Creator blursedbaubles.etsy.com

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iampikachuhearmeroar · 4 years

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tl;dr political rant post:

it had been my goal from 12 years old to do an arts degree in philosophy (yes what a nerd- thanks to my dad playing a Great Courses philosophy dvd one morning in 2007 and my dad always taking me to the botanic gardens/the uni some weekends).

i graduated from my arts degree in 2018, with a major in english and a minor in philosophy. i was so, so lucky to even get into my communications & media degree (at first i was originally going to do marketing communications, advertising & PR)... but i realised that i was not made for business subjects- despite my mark101 tutor telling me she thought i had knack for marketing- something under this policy that i wouldn’t undertake due to the price hike for commerce/business degrees. nor was i made for a media degree. so i changed to arts & humanities.

although under this atrocious policy, english subjects are made “cheaper”- why on fucking should the rest of someone’s arts/humanities degree be so much more expensive, all depending on the fields they choose???? so you’re telling me, if i was instead to enter undergrad this year to do my english degree... that my english major would be subsidised, but my philosophy minor would be at double the cost (along with the few first year business and communications&media subjects i did), unless i forced myself to pick maths or science subjects that i would most definitely fail, no matter how much work i’d put into them??? or there’s languages- but much like maths/science- there’s the problem with my handwriting that stopped me trying french and even japanese (ironically, since it’s know for its ~painstakingly neat and orderly~ script- but my handwriting is still messy, disorderly and confusing asf).

*please note that most of this next section is just me being highly spurious and cynical. it’d probably work out fine*

but you’re also telling me that under this policy that i’d also probably have to forego my reasonable adjustments in those subjects (yes i still have trouble with my handwriting to this day) mostly because a lot of software still won’t let you write out maths problems properly or i’d have to spend twice as long trying to get a graph to work in excel or idek matlab (please teach me maths nerds)???? and most maths working out is probably better handwritten or whatever??? and that’s besides the point that i still can’t use excel at all 😂.

so with these classes then, would i be battling from day one of first year with professors to let me use a computer during exam periods (unless of course they use online/take home exam methods like philosophy)???? probably (im being very suspicious here because i don’t know how science/maths etc faculties work).

although i did get this once with one particular english professor; who used the excuse that he didn’t know how to set a computer up for exams because he had been on “sabatical for 4 years” or whatever and so “didn’t know the policies anymore”.... so then according to him it was apparently “the students job to do it.... especially since you’re in third year, miss williams”..... however, i was promptly then told by EVERY uni offical that i approached for help to do it for me.... and my other professors across my course that had done it for me, that it was in fact the PROFESSORS job/responsibility to set it up, and not the student’s??? like. help your students fuckwit professor grant??? honestly. anyway. aside from my personal struggles in the english department: let’s proceed. (this was a real incident btw).

would i be at a significant disadvantage to other students by not being able to use a computer during maths exams or science exams because of the drawing of diagrams and graphs and “showing your working”???? hell yes. would i want the professors in that department to probably condescendingly telling me all the time to “present my work neater and more precisely”? FUCK NO. it’s exactly why i avoided every maths and science subject in undergrad- even including the astronomy subject that i wanted to do- because it also meant that fellow students had to read my handwriting for practicals etc as well, that i wasn’t entirely keen on either. but i did not need the harsh reminders of “be more precise and infallible in your work presentation” that i’d had at school constantly for 11 years of maths lessons; affecting my mental health and performance in a subject during a uni semester.

moreover, that’s besides the fact that i’d flat out fail the “year 12 band 4 maths” requirements- unless they want to waive those- for first year maths/science subjects (at least basing it on my local uni).... considering that i actually skipped out on maths completely in year 12 by doing a TVET/tafe/technical college course in live theatre, production and events (which no surprises here, actually included maths anyway 😅).

because, fuck. is ANYONE seeing a trend in my study choices here? hell, i almost did a commerce/business dual degree with a tafe diploma in event management for crying out fucking loud. and you’re telling me that’s also doubled in price?? it’s obvious that i was interested in the arts & humanities and business subjects from the get-go. but under this policy- i’d be charged double for having my interest in event management, instead of say, biology (which is a subject that if it weren’t for mark scaling in my final hsc exam- i would have failed completely)??? utterly ridiculous.

i even contemplated doing a double degree with law at one point (or doing a legal studies major/minor- which is now a course at my local uni, but was not while i was there). however, law course fees have also doubled under this new policy. leaving that out of reach for me, despite that a double degree with law was out of reach for me anyway..... since my mark average was 65% and not at least 75% lol. but as if those marks averages will actually matter under this new policy.

under this bullshit policy, i’d be forced to take science/maths or even teaching (another field i had to avoid, since people can’t read my writing on a whiteboard from a distance half the time either.... besides the fact that i’m not really the ~teacher type~) subjects- all so that my degree price overall will be ”reduced”..... meaning that i would have to trade out my philosophy minor for something in maths/teaching/science (or maybe creative arts- since those fees stayed the same roughly)... instead of sticking to what i was good at: philosophy and other humanities/social science fields like sociology and history????

i understand that many people will snub me with saying “oh why did you even BOTHER going to uni if you were THAT indecisive about what you wanted to do?” which is something i’ve seen many older people saying on posts about this policy. but hell, i was 19 FUCKING YEARS OLD WHEN I STARTED UNI, FOR GODS SAKE. OF COURSE I WAS GOING TO BE FUCKING INDECISIVE ABOUT MY DIRECTION IN LIFE! because, newsflash fuckwits: not everyone has a defined career goal at 19. hell, i still don’t have one at almost 25..... since i’ll admit here, that i flunked out of my postgrad library course.... because i realised that i simply couldn’t cope with learning simple HTML, CSS and javascript coding for website design & user experience design 😂 (again help me computer wiz friends). yes, believe it or not, librarians have to know that today. and most people think that it’s just all about books (okay that was me, but i was wrong). also, if you’re wondering: postgrad library courses aren’t affected, thank god. but my point is, aren’t we meant to fuck up and pick the wrong things in life sometimes??? aren’t we meant to be indecisive about our choices in our late teens up until our mid 20s???

but now you’re telling students that their very first year of uni is practically set out for them, even for arts/humanities degrees (im not counting properly prescribed degrees such as engineering/science/communications & media (they had prescribed majors and prescribed first year subjects, which is why i left it. because i felt trapped in the prescribed marketing et al major etc); all because the government is telling them that “oh to make your first year cheaper: (A.) get good marks.... so that we don’t cancel your HECS place and (B.) pick subjects outside of the arts/humanities like science/maths/tech related subjects so that you don’t pay a whopping $14,500 for your first year of uni and will be more likely to be “job ready”. whatever the actual fuck “job ready” really means. and this all as if there ISN’T enough pressure for a 18/19 year old to succeed in their first year of uni already.

although, the one thing i’ll say is that my one year advanced diploma in marketing that i did in 2014, was $16,500. i still haven’t made any moves to pay it off. but it was constantly in the back of my mind during uni, both undergrad and postgrad. it was there as a reminder to pick cheaper subjects, so as to not greatly increase my combined hecs debt and vet-fee help debt; which is now sitting at $42,500. which under this new policy is the new price of ONE arts & humanities undergrad degree. i’d hate to be going into uni next year at 19 years old (or any age really) with that price tag on my degree.

anyway. that’s the end of my non-sensical rant. morrison and the rest of the libs etc can go fuck themselves.

#life #about me #shut up ilona #auspol

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newstfionline · 3 years

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Friday, August 6, 2021

US plans to require COVID-19 shots for foreign travelers (AP) The Biden administration is taking the first steps toward requiring nearly all foreign visitors to the U.S. to be vaccinated for the coronavirus, a White House official said. The requirement would come as part of the administration’s phased approach to easing travel restrictions for foreign citizens to the country. No timeline has yet been determined, as interagency working groups study how and when to safely move toward resuming normal travel. Eventually all foreign citizens entering the country, with some limited exceptions, are expected to need to be vaccinated against COVID-19 to enter the U.S.

Big tech companies are at war with employees over remote work (Ars Technica) All across the United States, the leaders at large tech companies like Apple, Google, and Facebook are engaged in a delicate dance with thousands of employees who have recently become convinced that physically commuting to an office every day is an empty and unacceptable demand from their employers. The COVID-19 pandemic forced these companies to operate with mostly remote workforces for months straight. And since many of them are based in areas with relatively high vaccination rates, the calls to return to the physical office began to sound over the summer. But thousands of high-paid workers at these companies aren’t having it. Many of them don’t want to go back to the office full time, even if they’re willing to do so a few days a week. Workers are even pointing to how effective they were when fully remote and using that to question why they have to keep living in the expensive cities where these offices are located. Some tech leaders (like Twitter’s Jack Dorsey) agreed, or at least they saw the writing on the wall. They enacted permanent or semipermanent changes to their companies’ policies to make partial or even full-time remote work the norm. Others (like Apple’s Tim Cook) are working hard to find a way to get everyone back in their assigned seats as soon as is practical, despite organized resistance. In either case, the work cultures at tech companies that make everything from the iPhone to Google search are facing a major wave of transformation.

At least 10 dead as van carrying migrants crashes in Texas (AP) An overloaded van carrying 29 migrants crashed Wednesday on a remote South Texas highway, killing at least 10 people, including the driver, and injuring 20 others, authorities said. The crash happened shortly after 4 p.m. Wednesday on U.S. 281 in Encino, Texas, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) north of McAllen. A surge in migrants crossing the border illegally has brought about an uptick in the number of crashes involving vehicles jammed with migrants who pay large amounts to be smuggled into the country. The Dallas Morning News has reported that the recruitment of young drivers for the smuggling runs, combined with excessive speed and reckless driving by those youths, have led to horrific crashes.

Turkish wildfires are worst ever, Erdogan says, as power plant breached (Reuters) Turkey is battling the worst wildfires in its history, President Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday, as fires spread to a power station in the country’s southwest after reducing swathes of coastal forest to ashes. Fanned by high temperatures and a strong, dry wind, the fires have forced thousands of Turks and foreign tourists to flee homes and hotels near the Aegean and Mediterranean coasts. Eight people have died in the blazes since last week. Planes and dozens of helicopters have joined scores of emergency crews on the ground to battle the fires, but Erdogan’s government has faced criticism over the scale and speed of the response. In the last two weeks, fires in Turkey have burnt more than three times the area affected in an average year, a European fire agency said. Neighbouring countries have also battled blazes fanned by heatwaves and strong winds.

Sri Lanka’s financial problems (Foreign Policy) Sri Lanka is threatening to become South Asia’s economic weak link. It’s mired in a severe debt crisis, and its budget deficit exceeded 11 percent of GDP during the last fiscal year, which ended in March. The country’s foreign reserves can only pay for three months of imports, prompting Colombo to cut back on many foreign imports, including turmeric, a staple product. Fitch Ratings has warned default is a real possibility. Sri Lanka’s woes stem in great part from a floundering tourism sector. Tourism typically accounts for at least 5 percent of GDP, and some estimates even put the figure at 12.5 percent. The sector’s troubles began before the coronavirus pandemic, when suicide bombers killed at least 290 people in churches and hotels in April 2019, keeping visitors away. But the pandemic still dealt a giant blow. A 2021 assessment found tourist arrivals between January and April fell nearly 100 percent from the same period in 2020.

Australia to spend $813M to address Indigenous disadvantage (AP) Australia’s government on Thursday pledged 1.1 billion Australian dollars ($813 million) to address Indigenous disadvantage, including compensation to thousands of mixed-race children who were taken from their families over decades. The AU$378.6 million ($279.7 million) to be used to compensate the so-called Stolen Generations by 2026 is the most expensive component of the package aimed at boosting Indigenous living standards in Australia. Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the compensation was a recognition of the harm caused by forced removal of children from families.

Israel launches airstrikes on Lebanon in response to rockets (AP) Israel on Thursday escalated its response to rocket attacks this week by launching rare airstrikes on Lebanon, the army said. The army said in a statement that jets struck the launch sites from which rockets had been fired over the previous day, as well as an additional target used to attack Israel in the past. The IDF blamed the state of Lebanon for the shelling and warned “against further attempts to harm Israeli civilians and Israel’s sovereignty.” The overnight airstrikes were a marked escalation at a politically sensitive time. Israel’s new eight-party governing coalition is trying to keep peace under a fragile cease fire that ended an 11-day war with Hamas’ militant rulers in Gaza in May.

‘Winning a medal doesn’t make him Jewish’ (Washington Post) When gymnast Artem Dolgopyat stepped off the podium as only the second Israeli to win an Olympic gold medal, he triggered one of Israel’s many cultural tripwires: It quickly emerged that the country’s newest sports hero is banned from marrying his fiancee here because he is not considered Jewish enough by the rabbis who control Israel’s marriage law. Immediately after Dolgopyat took top honors in the men’s floor exercise, his mother took the chance to complain that Israeli religious law is keeping her engaged 24-year-old son from tying the knot because only his father’s side of the family is Jewish. Marriage law is tightly controlled by Israel’s Chief Rabbinate. And for generations, couples who are of mixed religions—or who are atheists, gay or inadequately Jewish—have been forced to marry outside the country. Dolgopyat’s training schedule has made that impossible, said his mother, Angela Bilan. “I want grandchildren,” Bilan said Sunday in an interview with Israeli radio.

Talking to strangers (Atlantic) A hefty body of research has found that an overwhelmingly strong predictor of happiness and well-being is the quality of a person’s social relationships. But most of those studies have looked at only close ties: family, friends, co-workers. In the past decade and a half, professors have begun to wonder if interacting with strangers could be good for us too: not as a replacement for close relationships, but as a complement to them. The results of that research have been striking. Again and again, studies have shown that talking with strangers can make us happier, more connected to our communities, mentally sharper, healthier, less lonely, and more trustful and optimistic.

But tanks make such handy snowplows... (BBC) A German retiree was fined nearly $300,000 by local authorities on Tuesday following the discovery of a World War-II era tank in his basement along with other items of the period, including a flak cannon and multiple machine guns. The Panther tank was removed from the man’s property in 2015, a job that took 20 soldiers almost nine hours to complete. The unnamed 84-year-old might have been able to hold on to his tank and the rest of his collection—which must now be donated to a museum within two years, according to Tuesday’s ruling—had he kept it a better secret. “He was chugging around in that thing during the snow catastrophe in 1978,” Heikendorf Mayor Alexander Orth told reporters.

#headlines #news

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robert-c · 3 years

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How Common Business Practices Contribute to the Perpetuation of Poverty and Racism

Over the last century a number of laws were passed to ensure that employees would not be cheated by their employers. It began with ensuring that they were paid for all the hours an employer required them to be on the job. More followed: safe procedures for certain jobs, guarantees that promised retirement benefits would be there, that group medical plans sponsored by employers could not permanently exclude pre-existing conditions. It was only fair since the company’s cost of these benefits could be deducted from the company’s taxable income. Some employers simply violate the laws, counting on the fact that most employees don’t know their rights.

Even without directly violating the law, ever clever businesses have been finding ways around these protections: claiming that employees who should be covered under overtime pay rules are in positions exempt from those provisions; recasting employees as “contractors”, so they are not covered by employee regulations; utilizing part time employees so that they can be excluded from benefits, like healthcare and 401k’s. Their excuse, as always, is to limit expenses and therefor keep the cost of their goods or services low for the ultimate consumer. A closer examination of that argument usually falls apart when it becomes impossible to trace the line between these expense reductions and lower prices to the consumer.

However, there is a small point in their favor in that consumers usually do simply go for the cheaper product. Then again, if there really was a big connection between these cost saving measures and the final cost of goods and services there are things the companies could do. Their massive advertising budgets could be used to educate consumers about the reasons their product costs a little more than competitors, they do it all the time with claims of value and quality. It might be something like “Quality and community responsibility cost a little more, but it’s our neighbors who are earning a decent living providing you these goods and services. And we think they’re worth it.”

They don’t because it’s easy to get away with these practices when virtually everyone else is doing the same thing.

The large segment of the workforce that is excluded from company provided benefits (either because of schemes like above or because the employer is too small to provide them to anyone) is reason enough to scrap the idea of a completely “free market” healthcare system.

After more than half a century of propaganda about how wonderful and good the profit motive is, it’s about time that we acknowledge that it can do just as much harm as good.

Here’s another move that works for both part time and full time employees. When they have the potential to earn more, fire them, or drastically cut their hours (in the case of part time) so that they’ll have to quit. This keeps turnover high for the low paid jobs, but these are typically the jobs that don’t take much training to do, so turnover isn’t so costly, especially in high unemployment times. It is also a backhanded way of claiming to give raises to the more experienced people, while weeding them out at the same time.

You might think that part-timers could just get other jobs to supplement their income loss but then you’d run afoul of the next “dirty trick” of employers.

This works especially well with part-timers; continually change the schedule. Employers can make up any number of bullshit reasons why this “makes sense”, “is necessary” etc. but the net effect (and likely real purpose) is to keep part-timers from looking for, let alone accepting, other work. If you don’t know until days before what your schedule is going to be it’s pretty hard to plan interviews, let alone schedule other work, especially since the other employer is probably doing the same thing with their schedules. This essentially makes part-time employees the virtual slaves of their employer, an easy and enviable position for the company, not so much for the employee.

Their only way out is to have enough savings to do without income for a period of time to look for better work (let alone the money to get the training for higher paying full time jobs). But then, those earning even twice minimum wage for only 20 to 30 hours a week aren’t likely to have much left over for savings. That’s roughly $15,000 to $22,600 a year BEFORE taxes. The middle (or median) rent in the 50 largest cities in the US for a one bedroom is about $1,235 a month with an additional $147 for utilities (data from businessinsider.com). That’s $16,584 a year! The rents are lower in places with fewer jobs and higher where there are many job opportunities. A real double bind choice, since the wages aren’t generally higher in the same proportion as the rents in the higher job opportunity locales.

In fact, the free market essentially works against these people. As more people come to these high employment cities, the limited availability of apartments causes the rents to rise, while at the same time, the abundance of job seekers keeps the wages lower. It’s a perfect arrangement for landlords and employers alike, and a perfect storm of shit for those at the bottom of the economic ladder.

And since it cheats the rest of us, not just the employees, we should also mention that when people don’t earn enough to meet basic living expenses (and are essentially barred from being able to earn more through alternative or additional jobs) the welfare and public assistance they require is paid for by the rest of us. All thanks to the for profit businesses managing to find ways to pay as little as possible, all the while bragging about the number of jobs they’ve brought to the community, while others pick up their slack. To add insult to injury, these are often the same business owners who constantly prattle about “responsibility”, “self-reliance” etc.

Now, let’s get down to the hardest core facts about this and admit that people of color make up a disproportionate share of the folks struggling at this level. True, some people manage to rise above this, but it takes extraordinary effort beyond just being talented. It takes so much more that I seriously doubt many (if any) of us born to privilege could have done so ourselves.

Using a few people who manage to succeed despite their original circumstances does not excuse the artificial obstacles placed in their way. Instead of focusing on the “feel good” story of someone succeeding against the odds, we should be looking at why the deck was stacked against them in the first place. Failing to look at the system that holds people back and justifying it as fair because a few do overcome the obstacles is the same as defending the slavery of the pre-Civil War south because a few managed to escape it.

This “Pollyanna” view of our economic system plays well into the myths we want to believe; i.e. that there are no major problems with our system, and that it is fair and “anyone” can succeed. That attitude will not help us address inequities and injustices, and the problems that continue to arise because they remain unresolved.

Most whites imagine that they are not racists as long as they don’t support the white supremacists. Not seeing that the economic practices above create and maintain poverty, and that poverty is overwhelmingly people of color, is a form of racism. It isn’t as obvious, and it’s easy to pass off as all about ambition and determination. Nevertheless, it plays its part as surely as police and justice system presumptions that suspects of color are generally violent.

Please note this last, as it will be ignored by those who are quick to condemn me as some sort of “socialist” or “communist” simply because I don’t “drink the Kool-Aid” that any and everything a business does must be good and proper because it was done in pursuit of the sacred goal of profit. My first inclination IS NOT simply more law or regulation. I see those as last resort measures.

I would rather that some prominent businesses would openly acknowledge and then disavow these practices, and set an example for others. Failing that perhaps there are ways to set up incentives to do the right thing and as a last resort more expansive legislation and regulation.

Imagining that some great political affirmation of the “good old days” can keep things the way they are (or were) is the same sort of folly that allowed French aristocrats to imagine that there could never be a revolution. I don’t want a revolution, but we’ve had almost two and a half centuries to solve this situation and the progress has been incredibly slow.

Now that more and more whites are falling into this poverty trap they should be allying with people of color to change things. Perpetuating racism benefits only the rich, white, upper class. Poor white supremacists are being played for fools the same way their ancestors were when they died in the Civil War attempting to protect the rich plantation owners, most of whom conveniently bought their way out of service in the military.

But I don’t expect any of them to figure that out. I’m sure that they’ll just use it to justify their baseless complaints that they have been deprived of something they think they deserved.

#racism #poverty #capitalism

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petrichorparacosm · 3 years

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A Conspiracy Theorist’s Take On Coronavirus Conspiracy Theories

So, I am a lifelong Conspiracy Theorist. However, I am part of the often forgot about majority of theorists who don’t base their theories purely on internet hearsay and bigotry. Let’s talk COVID- 19, without that nonsense clouding the truth.

This post is U.S. centric.

I. Origins

I think that the virology lab in Wuhan had something to do with it, just because of how highly suspicious the location of the initial outbreak is. There are a few different possibilities:

a) it was a bio weapon in the later stages of development and was accidentally released;

b) it was a bio weapon in the early stages of development and its release was accidental or meant to be a test but got wildly out of hand;

c) it wasn’t a bio weapon but scientific negligence is what led to the initial outbreak;

d) it’s part of a bigger plan. We’ll get to that theory later

COVID- 19 is highly contagious and has produced several potent mutations, but the death rate is low. This supports either the non- bio weapon or early- stage bio weapon theory: if this was a late stage- bio weapon or an intention release of one, the death rate would be higher. I also don’t think that China would have intentionally released the virus in Wuhan, as this has garnered suspicion and negative attention. It would have made more sense to release it elsewhere, which is why I think it was either accidental or premature.

II. Masks

Three coexisting facts:

1. If the virus came from China, then the American government + corporate powers probably didn’t have a (direct) hand in it;

2. This doesn’t mean that the government + corporate powers aren’t taking advantage of the situation (they definitely are);

3. There is a historical precedent for wearing masks in public and avoiding gatherings during pandemics and epidemics (e.g., the Spanish Flu).

Masks are a conventional, reasonable strategy for avoiding affection. Whether there are organizations using mask mandates for their own purposes is an entirely separate matter, and should be treated as such.

Also, the theory that masks are step one in trying to force Islamic dress codes on us is an example of blatant misinformation used to distract from actual conspiracies + hate mongering used to divide us (the masses). I could give a lot of rebuttals to this bout of Islamophobic nonsense, but I’ll say this: If the malevolent powers that be in this country were, for some reason, interested in forcing Islamic dress codes upon us, our faces would not be their first concern. It would be our midriffs, arms, and legs, then head coverings. Face coverings are far from universal among Islamic communities.

III. Vaccines

This is where stuff gets more complicated. There are a lot of concerns and theories over the vaccine, some of which are more valid than others. There is, of course, the pre- pandemic anti- vaccination movement, which warrants its own discussion. As someone who acknowledges the science behind vaccines in general as sound, I approach this debate with the question “is there anything risky or nefarious about any of the vaccines?”

The most prevalent concerns tend to be :

A) the vaccines were rushed in production and testing and may be unsafe;

B) the vaccines contain a microchip to track us/influence our behavior;

C) the vaccines are designed to reduce or eliminate fertility (especially in women).

Unfortunately, A has no easy answer. The CDC has recently released data that suggests that the vaccine has a higher casualty rate than any other vaccine in the past 20 years, but this still only accounts for 2% of covid related death. To simplify: the COVID-19 vaccines have a high death rate for a vaccine, but a much lower death rate than actual COVID-19.

Of course, it doesn’t help that there’s no real way to verify these numbers, and many news sources either a) refuse to look in to it or b) staunchly believe that COVID was created for the sole purpose of making their lord and savior, Trump, look bad.

Regardless, waiting to get vaccinated is an understandable course of action even if, statistically, getting vaccinated reduces total risk.

Let’s track the history of B: the head of the Russian Communist party and a former Donald Trump advisor support the theory that the vaccines contain microchips to track the movement of the vaccinated, track who has been vaccinated, and possibly influence behavior.

Also feeding the theory is the fact that Bill Gates wanted to give the vaccinated “digital certificates” to identify themselves, and was at one point playing with the idea of injecting people with a “special ink” to make an “invisible tattoo” that would be used to identify the vaccinated without the use of records.

I trust none of these individuals, as each have their own agendas. What makes me skeptical of this theory is that the U.S. government + the corporate powers already track all of us through cell phones and security cameras (fun fact: the U.S. has more surveillance cameras per person than China).

When I took the vaccine out of necessity, I took meticulous notes before and afterwards, documenting my thoughts, opinions, and patterns of behavior. I have not noted any changes.

Finally, C. This one is difficult to prove or disprove, because

1) most people who get vaccinated aren’t going to immediately start actively trying to have babies;

2) fertility rates have been steadily declining for decades;

3) although changes in menstration have been reported after vaccination, the vast majority experienced this as a short term side effect only (I.e, their cycles went back to normal). I had no change in my cycle, nor did my mother.

I will say that I’m not interested in ever giving birth, which is one reason I’m not worried about this- I’m much more inclined to worry about current humans that theoretical future humans.

Now, one thing to note is that reducing the population so drastically is a counterintuitive move for the elites. Less workers = each individual worker is, statistically, less disposable. Less consumers = less consumption.

The only way this theory could be true and make sense is if it’s just the lead up to something else, like lab- based, expensive reproduction to mostly avoid the above, kill off the “undesirables,” and put people in debt whenever they want kids, functionally putting them further under corporate control.

If this was the plan, than the Global Powers That Be (assuming that this was the result of collusion and not China’s attempt at a bio weapon) definitely weren’t ready yet: that kind of technology is available, but not nearly efficient or cost- effective for them to avoid the worker- shortage pitfall yet. Just look at how corporate America has nearly buckled under its own weight at the current shortage of minimum wage workers!

TLDR; the vaccine came from the Wuhan lab and was either a prematurely released bio weapon, the result of epidemiological negligence, or the lead up to some grand conspiracy to control human reproduction, which would be a stupid move on the part of the government- corporate- military complex, and would have required global cooperation and coordination.

Sources/references:

#covid #covid 19 #covid vaccine #vaccines #masks #fertility #surveilance #bill gates #conspiracy #conspiracy theories #long post #us #politics

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zurilux · 4 years

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Vent session 4/26/20

A couple things. First, the not so serious.

I’ve been living with my parents for a little over a year now since the second year of my boyfriend’s ST program basically makes it impossible to work while doing the program. We decided to move our in with our parents to save money (especially since there’s no way I could support us and our two dogs on my own.) My parents are fine. They’re not perfect but they’re fine. I’ve realized as I’ve gotten older though just how different I am from a lot of my family. My parents are definitely products of their time. They dont believe in therapy. I go to therapy. I’ve gone to therapy since I was a freshman in college (When I could go without them paying for it/knowing about it) I’ve recently started Trauma counseling, trying EMDR to process past traumas and maybe stop some of my more toxic/ bad habits and the cycle of abuse. (my current relationship isn’t abusive but I’m scared that I may make it toxic because thats really all i’ve known or if it fails I’ll go back to the cycle)

I myself have had quite a few traumatic events happen in my life. In the last few years I’ve become pretty open about my mental health, hoping that it might help others (so no one will feel the way I felt, like I was alone etc) I think a lot of my family would benefit from therapy, as now that I am so open, sometimes my family will share their stories. My parents, like I said don’t believe in therapy, and now they also believe they are too old to be fixed. Especially my mom. Which, for me, is really saddening. My mom, when overwhelmed, will hit herself in the head. Which can make it hard to talk to her about anything serious because she also takes a lot of things super personally (and I cant blame her for that. I’m sensitive AF) and it sucks that she feels she, or her inner peace, is worth it at this point. I’ve found a lot of my family just doesn’t really seem to want to better themselves and would rather just say “This is how I am, take it or leave it”

It’s exhausting to be around people who are in that sort of mindset when you’re working very hard to be better. Trying to be happy, get my anxiety/depression/PTSD under control, process traumas....

Also. some of my traumas happened in the house, or when I was teen living here. SO, sometimes just being in this house is a struggle. Being back in this room where my ex-wife tried to kick me out and pushed me to a breaking point. Being in this room where I found out my ex-wife kissed someone else while they were deployed and decided they didnt want to be with me anymore. Being in this house where I broke down shattered, screaming and crying for the world to stop spinning, and my ex-wife yelled at me, belittled me, harassed me so much over the phone I had to get my parents involved so she wouldnt speak to me again. In this house where I had to hide so much of myself, had to pretend so many things didnt happen....Its really hard being here. especially in this time of super stress, being in Quarantine and a Pandemic due to COVID-19.

and to add on top of that, my mother has started trying to inch me out. My grandma is supposed to move in when I move out. I guess my grandma is hounding her, so in turn, she’s hounding me. Even after I have explained that COVID has messed with my boyfriends program, and my planned summer vacation. Originally he was supposed to be done in June, and we had a FL trip planned in Sept, so we’d move out after our FL trip, to save money, and hopefully not stress the dogs out. (moving to a new place and then all of a sudden your parents are gone for 8 days might be a little much for our pups). Depending on when he started, and how much money I saved, and if my coworker would be moving in with us we could possibly move in August, gives the dogs a month to adjust to their new surroundings before we would move. BUT, now....he may have to do a summer term, to make up for the lack of ST time in ORs at different hospitals, which means he wouldn’t start working in June, he may, depending on how they do their summer term, not be done with his program till July or August...and obviously he needs to work, for at least a month or two before we could move. also, we don’t know if we’ll be able to travel to FL in September, THere isnt really a point in going if Disneyworld and Universal aren’t open/fully functioning. soooo....a lot is up in the air. The added stress of my mom constantly asking when I’ll be moving out is not helping my stress level at all. It’s irking me more than I thought. I didn’t want to admit quite how much it bothers me. oi.

Secondly,

probably a month ago now...or a couple weeks I’m not sure (time is hard right now ya’ll) our dogs started fighting. Very suddenly. We’ve had Carbon since September 2018. Frank (Jake’s dog) and Carbon have never fought till this point. I’m not sure what changed because they both have lived with me (Frank and one of Jake’s parents’ dog dont get along, so he had to live with me) the entire time I’ve lived at my parents house...It seemed like we were making progress, we were able to have them out in the same room without any trouble for a few days recently. (previously we had been crating one, and switching them out about every 4 hours if we were both home) They do fine on walks together. they seemed to be doing okay, but then another fight happened a day or two ago...Jake’s suggestion is to remain living separate. I’ll move in with my co-worker, he’ll either move out on his own or with a roommate with Frank.

to backtrack, Carbon is a almost 2 year old pit/lab mix. He was a rescue, I got him when he was 5 months old. He’s fairly mellow for his age, but he is 2, he’s young and playful. Frank is a 6/7 year old potato dog (he’s short, a little long and has a round/barrelesque body, supposedly a chihuahua, pug, staffy mix. He isn’t fat either, its solid mass. He’s older and grumpy. so maybe he just snapped at Carbon’s youthful shenanigans. They both are very much daddy’s boys. they may have fought over his attention (now that they see him more, he has been basically quarantining at my house ) it’s kind of impossible to know.

I don’t like the idea of living apart. I’m needy. Plus, for a majority of our relationship we have lived together already. Jake is not only my boyfriend but also my bestfriend. I’m very physically affectionate, and Jake kind of sucks at texting...Also, I’m worried that our schedules wont line up. I work M-Thurs 6:30 am to 5pm. his ST schedule could have him working 12 hour days, he could have to work on my days off. having him spend the night once a week is not enough for me, if I can help it, most of this year that’s all I’ve been getting and its been awful (Quarantine has changed that but, thats special circumstances) We already were only supposed to live apart while he was finishing his program, and now we may need to live apart another year...or more...for the rest of Frank’s life, unless Carbon passes suddenly I guess...thats a long time. I get that he doesnt want to crate them “forever” if we lived together. and if we wanted to go on a trip, we’d need specific people to help us, to be sure no fights ensued or whatever, if someone gets bit...it’s over. I understand that...it might not be fair to “crate and rotate” them for however long we need to and neither of us is giving up their dog....I thought maybe if we could get a big enough space maybe it wouldnt be so bad. we could kind of section them off away from each other...(this past year its been me and the 2 dogs in like maaaaaybe 500sq ft) but finding that might be difficult in our price range...especially since we’ll be renting and probably moving to Portland (which is expensive) it’s causing a lot of stress for me...my anxiety is causing me to overthink. Like. is this somehow a sign that we shouldnt be together? He and I got together before i was even officially divorced (granted he was supposed to just be a confidence boost, not actually a legit relationship..but we fucked up and fell in love) and he has broken up with twice over our three years...the second time really wasnt necessary because he was trying to take care of me, to not cause me to be miserable during his second year of school when he knew I wouldnt be able to see him much and that I am needy, but we ended up doing what I had suggested...which is what we are doing now..being together but living apart. sigh. I don’t know. It’s a lot going on right now. I’m not a fan....everything is super stressful as is...and now all this too...oi oi oi. sigh. it’ll work out somehow...right?

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wavering-eyes · 4 years

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The Three Goals of the F&L List

The TCG got a banlist a couple of weeks ago which went into effect on the 14th. I haven’t posted about it (or any banlist in the past year+...) because I feel it’s the kind of discussion I don’t have much to add to anymore. You can go anywhere and get a banlist analysis because the intent of the banlist is pretty clear to anyone who’s extensively interacted with the metagame. It’s for this reason I think the banlist is sort of self-explanatory, at least when it’s doing its’ job, and as a result, I have little desire to see Konami try to explain it themselves (also because their previous attempts didn’t satisfy anyone). I had pretty much the same feelings with this one.

With that said, there’s still an obvious demand for banlist analysis out there, so I figure it might be helpful to elaborate on my perspective in hopes it saves you, the reader, some time in trying to decode future banlists when they come around. To this end, I have isolated three primary factors that influence which cards end up on the banlist.

First off, as you probably know, the banlist is a tool used to balance the metagame. If a card or deck starts dominating the game at a high level to the point where other decks become unviable or warp around it, that deck will usually be addressed in some major form in the following list. Until recently, SPYRAL had four different cards (Drone, Quik-Fix, Master Plan, and Resort) on the banlist for this reason; the deck is simply too strong at combo-ing off with any more copies of these cards.

Second, the banlist is also used to ensure the game is enjoyable to play irrespective of game balance. The “fun” associated with the game is a really complex topic, but generally, this is meant to explain when cards are hit due to negative experiences with their mechanics. Yata-garasu is a solid example of this. I can personally guarantee you that Yata-garasu could be unbanned next list and see zero competitive success. The reward of denying your opponent a draw is simply too low for it to be worth finding a way to Normal Summon a 200 ATK bird and then hit your opponent with it, given that this absolutely requires you to either go second and break a board, or slow down the game going first without shutting your opponent out entirely. Any combo deck seriously capable of doing this would be infinitely better off going for an FTK or OTK, and any control deck capable of this would be better off just winning traditionally. And yet Yata-garasu remains banned, because at more casual levels of play, this card is about as fun as a root canal. If you’re looking at the banlist and spot a card that doesn’t seem to fit into any particular archetype and doesn’t seem too strong, this is probably the reason why that card is there.

Furthermore, this is also why occasional banlists will come out and indiscriminately nuke every deck relevant to the metagame: players tend to enjoy the game less when the metagame is stale, even if it’s balanced. January 2020 is the most recent example of this: the top four decks at the 2019 WCQ were unquestionably Danger! Thunder, Sky Striker, Salamangreat, and Orcust. These decks had very solid matchup spreads against each other and represented a wide variety of playstyles. Most TCG formats would kill to be this diverse. Nonetheless, once January rolled around, the banlist hit key cards in all of them, because people had grown tired of seeing the same few decks everywhere, and the only one that really managed to survive was Salamangreat.

Third, on a more cynical note: the banlist is also a tool meant to sell a product. If you’re looking at the banlist and can’t discern that a certain card was hit as the result of one of the prior two reasons, it is probably because of this. While there’s something to be said about the play experiences and power levels of Called by the Grave and Red Reboot, I’m going to keep it real with you: I am firmly of the belief that these cards were hit to sell Triple Tactics Talent and Evenly Matched, respectively. Why’s that?

Red Reboot was limited in January 2020 in a format where the premier backrow deck was virtually all spells. A few tiers below the main four of that format were True Draco, which lost Demise and Diagram at the same time, and promptly dropped off the face of the earth; Altergeist with 1 Multifaker, still played only by Doug Zeeff; Guru Control, which was never that good, and had handtraps as backup in the case of Red Reboot anyways; and Traptrix, which saw fringe play at best. Red Reboot obviously saw no play in this format, but Evenly Matched did. So what’s the difference? Why is the less relevant of these cards Limited while the more popular, and arguably powerful one, isn’t?

Yes, Evenly takes your battle phase, and yes, it’s not a Counter Trap so it can still be negated without Solemn Judgment, but once again, let me be real with you: Red Reboot was a Super Rare worth like a dollar on release, and Evenly Matched was reprinted in a premium set three months later, rebounding to around $20 at the time of writing. Money is the motivator here.

Same with Called. Called was a $5 common for the longest time. Handtrap design literally shifted around it (Infinite Impermanence, Nibiru, the Primal Being, and Fantastical Dragon Phantazmay all don’t interact with the card), and as a result, it hadn’t seen much play at all in the previous few months, as the combo decks still remaining shifted towards playing as many extenders as possible, or putting out a negate in under 5 summons. Called was already made irrelevant by the decks that would normally want to play it becoming so powerful that they no longer have to rely on drawing it at all, so why was it hit again?

Triple Tactics Talent goes for nearly $100 a copy right now, that’s why. Why play the card that just counters some hand traps instead of the better going-second card that activates a card from the banlist if your opponent tries to interact with you at all? Called wasn’t much better if you didn’t have to use it, anyways. It’s a bit of a wonder why Konami felt they needed to limit a bad card in order to sell a good one, but let’s consider a few things about the format and world right now:

In-person events have been canceled since March.

The format has become incredibly expensive to play in since then. A 9-card side deck containing a set each of Forbidden Droplet, Lightning Storm, and Infinite Impermanence will cost you like, >$700.

Events since then have mostly been held in simulators.

You do not need to buy cards to play simulators.

You need cards to enter Remote Duel tournaments, but Remote Duels are a total joke and Konami knows it.

Once events reopen, people will probably be searching for budget versions of expensive staples. Called fits that perfectly.

Finally, I’d like to mention that this is also meant to explain why Konami is less willing to hit new cards as opposed to old ones. It is generally not a great look for your company to sell people cards only to tell them they’re not allowed to play those cards. If the time between release and banning is short enough, it raises questions as to why the card was printed in the first place.

So, to recap, consider cards on the banlist with the following questions in the following order:

Did, or would, this card contribute to an unbalanced metagame?

Is this card enjoyable to play against?

Is there a really expensive card that fills the same role as this one?

And if you answer “no” to all three, Konami might just be off their shits. Cannahawk was Limited for like 5 years, after all.

Thanks for reading. After one round of editing, this seems ready for release, but it’s possible there’s something I wanted to express but forgot to. If that happens, or if I come up with an example that demonstrates a possible fourth major factor, I’ll make a followup post.

#yugioh #yu-gi-oh #yugioh tcg

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aphotographyobsession · 4 years

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I purchased the Medela with my second and have used it full time (3x a day, 5 days a week) for 3 months now and still going strong. I have a LOT to say about these pumps, but the bottom line is Medela is far superior. If you don’t want to read the full review, save yourself time, money, and frustration and purchase a Medela.

My experience with Ameda: I purchased this pump for two main reasons. First, it was a closed system (milk can’t get into tubes) and the cost differential – there was a greater one when I purchased the Ameda in 2011. At first things worked well. I starting pumping at night to build supply before returning to work. After returning to work, things continued well for a few months, then all of a sudden my supply started dropping. I could tell that my pump “wasn’t quite the same” so I read and read online. Ultimately, I determined that I needed to replace the valves. I did, and things improved… for a few weeks. Then, again, my supply dropped, I replaced the valves and things improved for a short time. This repeated several times (those valves are $7 for a pair… that adds up!!!!). I spent more than what I wanted to on replacement valves. This went on until my son was 7 months and then my supply all but dried up. When it got to the point that I could only get 4 oz per day and I was pumping 3x a day for 20 minutes each I decided it was time to switch to formula. Did I blame the pump? Not at the time, but now, absolutely! So, I cleaned everything well and packed it away carefully knowing that I would need it again for the next baby (except for the time when my close friend had her Ameda motor die on her after about 6 months of daily use and she borrowed mine for a week – hers was under the 1 year warranty, so Ameda did send a replacement free of charge). When my second baby came, I pulled it back out and pumped some during maternity leave without issue at first (new valves). Then all of a sudden I felt the pump “wasn’t quite the same” so I took it to a lactation consultant to look it over. We tested just the motor and it was reading the correct suction pressure. We checked the tubing and other connections until we found the root cause; THE VALVES!!!!!! The bad valve was essentially causing the pump to pull less than half the expected vacuum. Bottom line, it was worthless with bad valves. The lactation consultant opened a new package of valves from her own store and one of them was bad right of package. We went through all of mine and the majority of them were bad. No wonder my supply dried up… I was pumping, but with bad valves I wasn’t actually removing milk. If you don’t remove milk your body slows the production. I decided at that point to test until I found a few extra good valves and then anytime I needed more, I would just have to come back and test to 100% verify that the valves I was using were good. I DID NOT want to lose my supply again just because of the bad valves. Well, it didn’t matter, because a week into me pumping at work, my motor started to go out. Yes, it was 2 years old, but the actual working life of the pump was about 5. Either way, I may have only used it for 5 months but it was not under warranty so I purchased a brand new Medela pump. My experience with Medela: I purchased a Medela Pump in Style and what a difference!!! I could tell an immediate difference, but for the sake of not wanting the “new and shiny” aspect to persuade my review, I’ve waited to write this. So, with the Ameda in my first two weeks of work, I already saw a decline in my milk supply. This gem got my supply back up to normal within 3 days. If that’s not enough to persuade you to go with Medela, I don’t know what will. I have no complaints with this pump. In fact, that close friend that I mentioned hers broke on her… when she has a second little one I plan to help her buy a Medela. Yes, I’m that passionate about it. I feel sorry for the mommy that buys the Ameda and then doesn’t have the support system or money to problem solve the Ameda issues and buy all those replacement valves. Here are my opinions on the other aspects of the pumps: Bag: The backpack is tall and forces you to stack things. So, when you need the cooler from the bottom, you have to pull everything out. The tote, while maybe a little bigger is better organized so I don’t end up pulling everything out and readjusting. The Ameda is designed so you can pull the motor out of the bag, the Medela is not. So far that hasn’t presented a problem, but I can understand if you want to tuck it away in a small bag how it might be. The Ameda has no room to spare. If you want to bring a book along, good luck. With my Medela bag, I pack the hands free bra, extra bottles, a book, and extra accessories… with room to spare! Setup/Takedown: I felt like it was a much bigger deal to setup the Ameda to pump. You have to pull everything out of the bag and setup and then take it all back down and put away. With the Medela, the motor stays in the bag and everything stores nicely so you don’t have to pull everything out. I never have to take the cooler out and the tubes stay attached and have a nice little storage bag next to the motor. Flanges/Valves/Fittings: The Ameda accomplishes a “hygienic” closed system, which is a great concept, but comes at a price. I attribute this to my inadequate pumping and ultimately my supply drying up. The silicone diaphragm seemed to always get stuck in the vacuum position and the valves constantly needed replaced. I never did have to clean the tubes though. I also bought a different sized flange, but it was one that slide into the existing one and I never felt it made a good seal. The Medela is an open system and I do get condensation in the tubing. It’s worth it to me though because I know I’m getting great suction. I simply run my pump for a minute or two afterwards and it dries them out. The little white membranes provide the same function as the Ameda valves, but they are much less expensive and are much less likely to need replacing. I also had to buy a different flange size for the Medela, but it is designed so that the flange itself can just simply be a plug and play. It’s not an insert like the Ameda so I don’t have to worry about another joint that could potentially lead to suction loss. Cooler: The coolers are about the same size, but the Medela only has enough room for 4 bottles. The Ameda has room for 6. I only 4 - 5oz bottles so it works perfectly for me. With the Ameda, the ice packs never lasted long enough in my opinion. The Medela icepack is far superior. I even heat my milk to scald (150 deg F) – lipase enzyme issue you can Google if you’re interested in learning about it – and then I stick it in the bag and it is able to cool it and keep it cold until the evening! It’s awesome. Bottles: Ameda is 4 oz, Medela is 5 oz. Other than that, they are essentially the same. I don’t use them. I pump into the Playtex drop-ins pump and store liners and then they pop into the drop-in bottles (less bottle washing!). Motor: The vacuum supposedly is rated the same (lactation consultant shared that with me, but I’m not going to lie I didn’t read into it), but my experience is that the Medela is more reliable (several reviews report motors dying prematurely… which I experienced as well as my close friend). Also, the Ameda has the ability to adjust both speed and suction. At first I thought this would be perfect, but the more I used it, the more I was annoyed that it didn’t just automatically adjust. How am I supposed to know how fast it should go? Haha. So, the fact that the Medela pump does it’s automatic fast speed at first for letdown then adjusts to regular on its own or with the push of a button makes my life much easier. I’ve never once thought how nice it would be to adjust the speed myself. With the Ameda I always had to use full suction. With the Medela I have it at half suction and it works perfectly! Also, the Medela works faster for me than the Ameda did. Cleaning: The flanges are essentially the same. The two things that are different about cleaning is that the Ameda valves are a pain to clean because you really can’t clean them for risk of damaging them… and they are expensive! I gently rinsed them and left it at that. With the Medela, I do have to rinse the tubes once a week and have to do it when I’m certain I won’t need them… because you have to wait for them to dry completely before use again. So far it hasn’t been an issue. Availability of parts: Because Medela is a better known brand, you can find just about any replacement item you need at Target. So, when you need that emergency membrane/valve, you can almost guarantee you’ll find it at a nearby story, whereas, with Ameda I was overnight shipping if I had an emergency. Noise: The Ameda is much louder and more obnoxious sounding the Medela. Mine had a whirring sound when it pumped. Others who heard it thought something was wrong with it and usually asked if everything was okay (they were Medela users). Batteries: If you’re going to pump in the car, even once, buy the car adapter. These things sucks batteries like crazy (both of them). The battery pack is external with the Medela, which is has to be since you can’t remove the motor… but it makes it annoying. Hands free: Do yourself a favor and get a hands free pumping bra! In conclusion, buy Medela and rest assured you’ve made the right decision.

This sucks. Quite literally in fact! I was lucky enough to have a sweet baby that was born 5 weeks premature. She was perfect in every way but had to spend 3 of those extra weeks in the NICU. (I think they just wanted more time with her) One of the many perks that we were provided is the "Pump for Preemie Program". They allow you to take home a hospital grade breast pump (also a Medela) and hold your baby as collateral. It sounds like I am joking but when they were releasing her from the NICU, I had 5 nurses call me to make sure I brought the pump or else they wouldn't let me take her home. Literally 5! That pump was amazing - it has a better suction than the personal use pumps but that is not always a good thing. The main difference is that I had to pump for longer using this pump than with the hospital grade to get the same amount. It was just an extra couple of minutes. The longer pump time is MORE than worth the price difference. The hospital grade ones are insanely expensive ( but you can rent them if you wanna try it out - try Babies-R-Us) On to this pump - It's a great deal. You get a portable pump, ice pack, power plug, bottles and accessories. You will certainly need additional accessories but Medela makes that easy by offering a lot of "gift packs" or "new mom" kits. The breast pump I ended up with had the "On the go tote" that is pictured here but they also offer a backpack or a "Metro" messenger bag. (I suggest you go for the tote and get the CheekyTummy diaper backpack or use it with the Boba 4g baby carrier that has straps on the shoulder to help hold your bags.That keeps arms open to block strangers (and Grandma) from kissing on your baby and waking him up.) This pump can be run on A/C power or 8 AA batteries. They make it significantly heavier, so get to the plug when you can. It is designed to be a double pump but you can always use it on just one breast. The breast shields come in medium- I don't have huge boobs and my nipples didn't grow 3 sizes, like the grinch's heart, so those worked well for me. The larger sizes that I tried at the hospital would try to suck in my entire boob and my will to live. A good way to tell if you have the right size is to see what is sucking in and rubbing. If all of your nipple is rubbing/chaffing against the inside of the flange, than you probably need to try the next size up. It should fit the center of the flange and by the middle of the pump you will see it has reached maximum size is gliding along the inner edges smoothly. If it is sucking in areola and nipple - it's too big.

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I got one of the "hands free" bras to go with it. The idea is great - pump without having to hold two little milk troughs to your chest. The execution makes it hard. I would suggest trying it with a tight tank top first. Just channel Regina George from Mean Girls and cut holes on each nipple and stick the flange through. Honestly, your probably not walking around and pumping as it is your only chance to actually sit down. Some well placed pillows will hold up the bottles so you can pump, check facebook, and continue to rock the baby's swing so she doesn't wake up mid-let down. This pump is quiet - but not silent. It's like an aggressive, nipple sucking, purring cat. They have quieter ones on the market but I am not sure they can hold up the level of suction over the long term. The hoses can build up quite a bit of condensation in them, which can mold. Make sure to air them out whenever you see little droplets in them. You can point the tubes downward put the pump on full blast without the breast shields on and let it air out the hoses before let down starts. You can also use rubbing alcohol to clean them but I never tried that. All in all, this is a wonderful product. I am glad I spent the extra dollars and went for Medela over an off brand. The replacement parts are easy to find. I would highly recommend it - it will be your best friend and your worst enemy!

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