#these photos are very very heavily edited and its more clear for the womens ones but its feeling fake rather than actual photos

[evanescentjasmine]

Writing Egypt and Egyptian Characters: Rusty Quill Gaming Edition

I’ve finally caught up with the Cairo arc of Rusty Quill Gaming, which I was anticipating and dreading both. Fiction set in my country usually reduces it to a caricature of itself, especially when it takes place in the Victorian era, but considering everything they’ve said in their metacasts I was hoping Rusty Quill Gaming was the exception.

It wasn’t. 

I’m aware the game world plays fast and loose with history and setting, but the problems in this case are more than just inaccuracies. However, because I want to help fic writers and artists be able to portray Hamid and his family well, this resource will be split into two parts. The first part will tackle details I’ve been asked about with regard to the setting; it may touch on things RQG went wrong, but I’m writing it primarily as a resource for artists and writers. The second part will be my criticism of RQG, and why I found the Cairo arc actively harmful. This includes discussions of Orientalism and some racist text.

I should also preface this by saying I’m not a historian. Everything I say in this resource is a combination of what I grew up with and what I remember from school, supplemented by Google and guesswork. I’ll be explaining my thought process throughout, which can help you see what’s actual history and what’s my extrapolation.

Part One: On Egypt

Historical Context:

Figuring out the history of Egypt in RQG terms is a bit complicated, so bear with me because this will take a while. 

In real-world history, Egypt was a Roman then Byzantine province from 30 BC to around the mid 600s AD, at which point the Arab conquest swept through and Egypt became Muslim. 

What this means is that when the Meritocrats took down Rome and took over the world, Egypt was still a Roman province. That gives us a several hundred year gap before the Arabs that may have maintained the same culture? Or morphed a little back to some pre-Ptolemaic Ancient Egyptian, given their Meritocrat, Apophis, is named after a great Pharaonic serpent?

Either way, given Hamid’s name and the fact they live in Cairo, the city built by the Arabs, we can assume the Arab conquest still happened somehow, despite having a Meritocrat in Egypt. Maybe a Meritocrat out there is Arab and settled in Egypt for a bit with or before Apophis? Maybe it took a couple-hundred years for the Meritocrats to get all the previous Roman areas under control? Maybe there was a whole war and the Arabs won and settled and eventually they got to a truce or got absorbed into Meritocratic lands?

Many Muslim dynasties ruled throughout the period from the mid 600s to the 1500s. Given the lack of Islam in this world, probably the Arabs were unified by some Pre-Islamic deity/deities and brought them over as well, because I refuse to just sweep everything under the broad Greek God rug. 

In the 1500s, another Muslim dynasty took over--this time, from outside of the country, which is why it’s considered separate from all the rest. At this point, Egypt became part of the Ottoman Empire until the 1800s, which is when the Mohammed Ali dynasty started to try and secede and rule independently. And there was a brief blip of the French occupation for two years around then as well.

And, of course, we can’t forget about British colonisation, which started in the late 1800s with a veiled protectorate.

Presumably, since France and Britain are also Meritocratic and it seems like Apophis is currently ruling, we can disregard everything from the Ottomans onward. This changes, or should change, a ton, because Ottoman rule informed a lot of things from fashion to slang to nobility and so on. 

What we’re left with is most likely a Cairo that is still Arab but with much more Pharaonic influence, as Apophis is in charge, as well as continuing Greek influence due to the Gods. I am not a Coptic Christian, so I cannot speak to how these changes in history and religions would affect the Coptic language and culture, but no doubt it would still be around.

There would also be a bigger, more long-standing connection to other Meritocratic countries. This explains why Hamid was British-educated and so many people speak such good English without a British occupation to create the power disparity that would make that necessary to rise in Egypt and such a mark of status. 

However, this presents several confusing and contradictory aspects of the world building:

Why doesn’t this go both ways? Why aren’t there people in England and France who know Arabic or are influenced by Egypt? All we get is that the Tahan family are big. That’s it. If these countries are equals, it sure doesn’t look like it.

If Apophis is pharaonic and Ancient Egyptian culture and knowledge are so ubiquitous...why would they hollow out a pyramid to put a bank inside? It’s a tomb. It’s made to bury dead kings in a way that follows possibly still-existing cultural and religious beliefs. It’s the equivalent of someone building a bank inside a mausoleum. It’s bizarre.

Relatedly, if Ancient Egyptian culture and knowledge are so ubiquitous, why is Carter mentioning the Rosetta Stone? Why would the knowledge necessary to translate hieroglyphics have been lost? 

I mention these questions so fic writers can keep them in mind while writing and, of course, it’s entirely possible to create a workaround. For example, maybe the Rosetta Stone is supposed to be translating something else, like an ancient hidden magic?

Describing Cairo:

I want to make one thing very clear: Cairo is not, despite Alex’s description, like Vegas. While we do certainly have hotels and casinos, to reduce the city to only that is very harmful for reasons I’ll go into at the end of this resource.

Cairo is a very old city with a mix of architectural styles and is very heavily Muslim in real life. In Arabic, its tagline is often “city of a thousand minarets,” so clearly RQG Cairo will be fairly different. Given Apophis’ influence, Ancient Egyptian styles might be more prevalent in Cairo, but very likely not in the form of pyramids unless those pyramids were for the dead. In real life, some buildings do incorporate Ancient Egyptian flavour, usually just in the form of lotus columns or hieroglyphs. These would only be found in public institutions, however,  or, frankly, tourist-bait. 

Residential buildings tend to be clustered very close together and, since it’s an old city, streets are crowded and winding as the city keeps building on itself and spilling out of its previous bounds. Estates do, of course, exist, but I’d suggest against using Bryn’s example of Alhambra as a setting for the Tahan home. Alhambra is a palace fortress in Spain and, although it’s Andalusian and therefore influenced by Muslim architecture, it’s very different than anything in Egypt. It’s as absurd as saying a posh British character lives in a house that’s basically Versailles and leaving it there. I’ve included images of some Egyptian residential estates below, all from the 1800s to early 1900s.

And here are some photos of Cairo in the 1800s:

As you can see, not quite Vegas.

A fic set in Cairo can certainly still have the Cairo strip with all the casinos, since that’s an aspect of canon, but a place like that would probably be geared more to tourists and foreigners than locals. So long you’re aware of this while writing, and that Cairo would exist beyond it, you should be fine. It might also be worth having characters explore the actual city.

Weather:

The stereotype is that Egypt is just hot and sand year-round. It isn’t. The further south you go, the hotter it will get, so that Upper Egypt (which is in the south, yeah), is hotter than Lower Egypt, which is where Cairo and Alexandria are. Alexandria, by virtue of being on the Mediterranean, has fairly cold (for us) and rainy winters and mild, humid summers. Cairo gets very occasional rain and has harsher summers but is also dryer.

And, of course, a thing to remember is that even in the depths of the desert, the morning might be quite warm but the night will be quite cold as well.

Sandstorm season (called khamaseen) takes place from April - May but in the middle of Cairo it’s more of an annoyance than anything else.

Language:

Since they speak Arabic, it’s important to note that spoken Egyptian Arabic is very different from written Classical Arabic. Egyptian is a mishmash of Arabic, Coptic, a bit of Greek, and a bit of French (and, in the real world, some Turkish too) all smashed together. Accents differ from city to city, and Cairene Arabic is best known for the fact we pronounce the letter jeem as geem (so all soft Gs are turned into hard Gs) and tend to replace the letter qaf with a glottal stop.

This means that a Cairene wouldn’t be called Jamal, they’d be Gamal. A Cairene would pronounce burqa as bur’a.

Since religion plays a big part in language, RQG Egyptian Arabic may be a bit different. For instance, the greeting most people associate with Arabic is “Assalam alaykum” but that’s very specifically Muslim or at least associated with Islam, and might not have been as wide-spread given...y’know, that Islam doesn’t exist. I’m not saying it’s incorrect to use, just explaining the context.

Alternatives could include “Sabah/masa’ el-kheir” which means “Good morning/evening,” and “Naharak/Naharik saeed” which is, “May you have a good day.”

Fashion:

Although this didn’t really feature in RQG, I’ve received a lot of questions about the period’s fashion and honestly it’s my favourite thing ever so I probably would have touched on it anyway. I’ll only go into broad strokes, as there are plenty of regional variations and, again, I’m no expert 

Women

Egyptian women covered their heads and sometimes their faces not out of religiosity but out of a cultural expectation of modesty. This may well have come about as a result of the Arab/Muslim cultural majority, as to my knowledge this wasn’t the case in the Greek and Roman periods, but women of all religions covered their heads so that would likely still be the case in RQG’s Arab Egypt.

This isn’t with the hijab we know today. It may have been a cloth or kerchief tied over their heads and then the melaya laf (which is larger cloth, almost a sheet) that they wrap around themselves and over their head, as follows: 

The black face-covering was called a burqa or bur’a (not the same as a Muslim burqa, which serves similar modesty functions but is a separate thing) or a yashmak and may have been opaque black, white, or netted, such as in this picture:

Underneath the melaya they would be wearing a long, loose, patterned dress:

Upper class Egyptian women tended to wear Western dresses with a white yashmak that covered their faces and heads. A yashmak is Turkish, however, and without Ottoman influence this style and name might not have caught on in Egypt.

Men

While the melaya laf and yashmak have disappeared from Egypt, the traditional men’s gallabeya and ammama, or turban, are still seen widely today. The gallabeya (or jellabiya, outside of Cairene Arabic) is a long, loose garment with wide sleeves and no collar. It’s in muted, neutral colours, usually lighter ones like white or beige in the summer and navy blue or grey in the winter. You’ll have seen examples of it in the pictures of Cairo above, and here’s another one: 

Middle to upper class men and civil servants, however, tended to wear English suits with a tarboosh, or fez. Since fezzes were also a result of Ottoman rule, RQG Egyptians might not wear them.

And yes, impressive moustaches were also very much the fashion.

Names:

The running joke is that Hamid’s name is unnecessarily long, but my name is longer, and I don’t think that’s particularly unusual. We don’t usually go around introducing ourselves with all of them, admittedly, and I’m not sure whether Hamid does this as a way to indicate he’s overly fancy or because Bryn doesn’t realise it, but four names is not long. My ID boasts five, and I know of at least one more.

Arabic naming conventions use patronymics for all children, regardless of gender. What this means is that my name and my brother’s name is identical except for our first. 

Mine is Jasmine + Dad’s name + his dad’s name + his dad’s name + his dad’s name

And my brother is also First name + Dad’s name + his dad’s name + his dad’s name + his dad’s name.

Egyptians do not typically have last names, but an important family may all choose to identify under a name and use that as their last, such as the Tahans. In my case, I use my fifth name as my last name and introduce myself in everyday life as Jasmine Fifth Name. Notably, my brother does not, and goes by First name + Dad’s name instead. This isn’t unusual. On paperwork, however, we still have the same name.

Additionally, Egyptian women do not take their husbands’ last names in marriage, nor do children take any of her names. 

I’m not sure why, according to the wiki, Hamid’s sisters seem to have taken their mother’s name. Following Arabic naming conventions, they would all be First Name Saleh Haroun al Tahan, and their father would be Saleh Haroun al Tahan. A possible workaround might be that halflings have their own naming conventions that mean daughters have matronymics and sons patronymics. 

A note to podficcers: please google name pronunciations beforehand because Alex and Bryn’s are actually often wrong. Ishak, for instance, is not pronounced Ee-shak. It’s Iss-haaq or Iss-haa’, because of quirks of the Egyptian accent I mentioned earlier.

Part Two: Criticism

I understand it can be difficult to portray a country different from yours with accuracy. I understand the RQG crew will not have had the perspective on Egypt and Cairo that I do by virtue of living here. I do also acknowledge that I’m sure none of this was actively malicious or on purpose.

But it doesn’t have to be on purpose to hurt, frankly, and given how often the RQG crew have talked about their responsibility with a game that’s intended for an audience, I expected better. Bryn has spoken about not wanting to fall into stereotypes for Hamid and, to be fair, by being a non-religious fancyboy Hamid does neatly avoid the religious zealot and the noble (or ignoble) savage routes. Unfortunately, he falls into another, which was hammered home by the portrayal of Cairo and the Tahans as a whole.

Our first glimpse of Cairo, after the sandstorm clears, describes it as “basically Vegas,” with hotels and garish casinos catering to the rich all along the “Cairo strip.” From then on, our only other images of Cairo are vast estates and a pyramid in the desert. 

The only named Egyptians we meet are the Tahan family, who are introduced through an absurdly lavish estate compared to the palace fortress of Alhambra, a gambling problem that apparently runs in the family, murder, and corruption, as the head of the family who has already covered up a crime for one son then turns himself in to protect the other.

Then, to top it all off, Hamid is apparently utterly incapable of understanding why letting his brother get away with murder is an issue until the paladins point it out.

Do you see the pattern, here?

I understand this was aiming to be a criticism of the rich and powerful, but the fact remains that the Tahans are the only representation of Egyptians we get. While this may not be harems and hand-chopping levels of Orientalism, the image presented is of Cairo as a den of excessive wealth and vice, and Egyptians as corrupt and immoral.

This isn’t new.

The Middle East and North Africa (as well as India and China and everywhere else considered “the Orient”) has often been tied to images of wealth and overt splendour, usually hand-in-hand with the Oriental despot and corruption. This view went beyond just fiction and influenced the policies with which we were ruled. 

Cromer, Consul-General of Egypt, wrote books called Modern Egypt. He had this to say about us:

“The mind of the Oriental, on the other hand, like his picturesque streets, is eminently wanting in symmetry. His reasoning is of the most slipshod description. . . . They are often incapable of drawing the most obvious conclusions from any simple premises of which they may admit the truth.”

In his opinion, our inability to follow logical reason led to us being inherently untruthful and, therefore, immoral. Similarly, British statesman Balfour was of the belief that:

 “Lord Cromer’s services during the past quarter of a century have raised Egypt from the lowest pitch of social and economic degradation until it now stands among Oriental nations, I believe, absolutely alone in its prosperity, financial and moral.”

Egypt was under British colonial rule from 1882 - 1952.

You can see, I hope, why a storyline focused on an Egyptian family’s corruption in an Egypt characterised almost entirely by its casinos and one lavish mansion was very uncomfortable. The fact Azu was one of the people trying to explain morality to Hamid keeps it from sliding into a clear East vs West dichotomy, but the fact remains this is a British show featuring British players and this is the story they chose to tell. 

The rest was just salt in the wound, really. 

I expect mispronounced names and pyramids and jokes about camels in most media, but rarely do the makers of said media then go on to pat themselves on the back for doing their “due diligence” on a metacast about sensitivity.

I see weird naming conventions and mispronounced names and “basically Vegas” and “crocodile steak” and “camel’s milk froyo” and I do not see due diligence.  

I see a setting that barely looked past Cleopatra and I do not see due diligence.

I see a storyline that shows only excess and immorality and corruption and I do not see due diligence.

I see a disregard for me and mine, and I do not appreciate it. 

Literature I’ve referred to in writing this criticism:

Orientalism (1978), by Edward W. Said

Orientalism in the Victorian Era (2017), a paper by Valerie Kennedy

Orientalism in American Cinema: Providing an Historical and Geographical Context for PostColonial Theory (2010), a thesis by Samuel Scurry 

Popular Culture, Orientalism, and Edward Said (2012), an article by Robert Irwin

#rusty quill gaming #rqg #hamid saleh haroun al tahan #resource #criticism #orientalism #representation #long post

[adamarinayu]

Can you tell us more about your author au, back in action au, and Notre duck au? Sorry if I'm asking for a lot but I just saw them on your AU list and they caught my interest 😅

Haha sure! I haven’t worked on any of them in a while but here we go! It’s a bit long, especially the Back in Action section....

In the Author AU, Donald is an author who works under a pseudonym, so that he and the triplets can have some normalcy in life while also being able to support them comfortably. He’s the author of a best selling series, which is the Paperinik series (maybe in this AU it’ll be called Duck Avenger, idk). 

He began writing the PK stories during highschool, and they were published as shorts regularly in a small magazine. Of course, being a teenager, it began as a fantasy- it was how he vented his frustrations. Gladstone, of course, figured it out, as did Della, but Scrooge had no interest so no one else outside of Donald’s closest circle (that is to say, Mickey, Minnie, Daisy and Goofy) knew. It soon grew to be a hero story, rather than a story about vengeance. At this point there are no nephews in the story.

After highschool, his story got picked up by a publishing company and Uno was his agent. He ended up including the character ONE based off of Uno, which Uno is equal parts amused and exasperated by (”Honestly, I thought you said you wanted to be anonymous.”). The two don’t officially become friends, however, until a couple of years later, when Della went missing. Donald had taken a surprisingly dark turn in the story which would have resulted in killing off the main characters, at which point Uno decided to intervene and talk to him. With Uno’s support and growing friendship Donald rewrote the story, keeping the darker tone but ending it on a higher note with all the characters alive and happy.

Donald also gave PK a family of his own, having him be a single father to three children (hinted heavily at them being adopted, after PK saved them as eggs), a decision which forever changed the direction of the books from being about a duck who fights because it’s all he’s good for, to being about a duck who fights because he has something worth fighting for. He and Uno obviously become very close over this time.

Gladstone reads every book that comes out. He always wins a free edition but insists on buying it, as his way of helping Donald out. He uses the tone of each book and the events that happen in them to determine whether or not he needs to come and kick a little sense into Donald.

Donald ultimately concludes the book series after Della comes back, with the story having a happy ending all around. Which definitely includes ONE getting a physical body and joining the family. Unsurprisingly he and Uno get married. Scrooge and the kids find out he’s the author of PK after Scrooge announces his studio bought the movie rights to the film lol. Della and Gladstone are just like “wow seriously, you guys didn’t see the writing clear on the wall?”

--

The Back in Action AU is basically, PK was a TV show and Donald was the titular character, PK. His co-star was Uno, who lent his voice and face to the character ONE (the names of all the characters in PK are changed, ofc, their real names are the actors’ names now, except for Uno and Xadhoom). The entire cast (yes, including Angus Fangus) were a pretty tight-knit family, of a sort. So while Della and Scrooge were adventuring (as he had left the adventure life behind, feeling as if he wasn’t contributing or seen as an equal among the group) he became part of a family of his own. Daisy also played PK’s love interest, though the two of them are actually more like Best Pals. They went to highschool together so. Daisy wasn’t in the main cast and was just a recurring character, as she had a main role in another series.

The triplets in PK were just babies, but PK wasn’t their primary caretaker. They were more like background characters, but occasionally PK would get roped into babysitting them and having to balance watching the children and saving the world because “oh god even if I stop the Evronian invasion if any of their feathers get singed my sister will kill me!” (Note, PK’s sister was only seen in photos and was a blonde, like in the original comics. You can hear her voice now and then though)

Donald was close with everyone (oh the bloopers he and Angus had.... and of course the Evronians, something ALWAYS went wrong with their costumes!) but Uno became his best friend (and his almost-more). The series was the most popular thing on TV for a while, and Gladstone and Fethry were so proud of their brother cousin and so sad that Scrooge and Della were missing the best moments of his life. Gladstone and Fethry are much more involved in Donald’s life than Della and Scrooge are in this AU. That isn’t to say they don’t all love each other very much, it’s just Della and Scrooge’s interests laid elsewhere.

Anyway, every series hits its end, and more often than not it comes much faster than planned. PK ended a whole season sooner than expected, due to the sudden buyout of their studio and the new owners choosing to shut PK down in favour of one of their own shows (couldn’t afford both at the same time, and their own show had a smaller budget). So the series ended on the cliffhanger of PK losing ONE and (Lyla’s character), the Evronians being defeated and PK choosing to hang up his cape because of just how much that final battle cost him. It was an ending that angered many people, extremely upsetting especially knowing that it hadn’t been the planned ending of the series.

The entire cast and crew split up, most still staying in acting but a few leaving. Donald went back to adventuring with Scrooge and Della while Uno went back to Italy with his brothers (Due and Tre, the former of which played a major part in 2-3 episodes) to work in their father’s lab. They ended up falling out of contact (not by their own choice, just due to the nature of their jobs). Then a few years later Della went missing and Donald was left caring for her three children- it was a bit ironic, perhaps.

In the 10-12 years Donald was taking care of them, a “sequel” movie and a spinoff came to be with different actors and stories, but neither were well received because they lacked the “spirit” and charm of the original series. Especially the spinoff, which was animated in a very Saturday-morning style.

The triplets don’t really know about the OG PK, only knowing it by the spinoff, or that their uncle used to be a big name actor. However, 10 or so years later it’s announced that PK is coming back.... with the original writers and actors (except for the kids). Including Donald Fauntleroy Duck, the actor who played the titular PK. They are shook.

The original children who played PK’s nephews were unavailable (”We were like 2 during all that, we really don’t care”) and, besides that, had already aged out of the roles (the comeback was a Ten Years Later kind of deal, and it had been more like 14 or 15 since the end of the show, so the original kids were already mid-late teens. Therefore, when the director discovered Donald was now caring for his three nephews (convenient that there were three) he suggested they play the role of the triplets. Donald left it up to the triplets, under the stipulation that they would have minor roles (as the triplets always did) and this wouldn’t interfere with school.

They actually made a whole new role for Webby in the show! Because the triplets agreed on the condition that Webby gets to join them. And that’s how Webby began to play the triplets’ younger sister. The director decided to take a page out of Donald’s real life and wrote PK’s sister out (this was also partially because the actress had died) so PK was now being a full-time father to his kids who had no idea who he really was.

But then Donald finds out that not only is Lyla there, not only is Angus there... so is Uno. Uno and both of his brothers. It’s quite a reunion. And of course everyone expects Donald’s most emotional reunion to be with Daisy, but no. It’s Uno. And Uno is the one he ends up on the front of a magazine with lol.

Also yeah they get married :3

Man I think I may have overspoke about this one XD But I really enjoy this one what can I say jkkghfdsjlk

--

Notre Duck!! That’s another one I enjoy though it isn’t as in-depth as the last. So basically Everett came to Earth, and it’s kinda like.... a Duck version of medieval times. He came here for inspiration, then ended up building Uno, who became like a son to him. However, when other flesh-and-blood ducks realized he was an android, they became fearful and called him a monster, and tried to attack and run him out of town.

After that, Everett hid him away in a tower attached to a church, where no one but the church staff would go. He didn’t want to lose his android son. But Uno watches the world below his tower change, dreaming of a day when he could go out there too.

One day he meets Donald, who is a street performer with an association to Scrooge McDuck, a king in a neighboring kingdom. Donald finds out very quickly that he is an android and doesn’t judge him for it, instead encouraging him to leave the tower because “life is about the adventure.” This, of course, does not sit well with Everett, who forbids Uno from leaving the tower or seeing Donald.

Donald is wanted by the lord of the city, who wants to use him against Scrooge (and earn favour with his own king). There’s no creepy old men lusting after young women and no slurs being used casually so.

Also anyway this actually spawned from me imagining Uno to the song Out There so yeah.

#Ask #DT17 AUs #They're all DUno

[womenintranslation]

“Our composite language”: WiT Interviews Translator Katy Derbyshire

A few weeks ago we spotlighted one of our favorite Women in Translation reads of 2018, Heike Geissler’s Seasonal Associate, in fellow WiT activist and translator extraordinaire Katy Derbyshire’s superb English rendition. Many of our readers know that as well as being one of the top German-to-English literary translators out there today, Katy was part of the team that initiated the newly inaugurated Warwick Prize for Women in Translation, whose third edition will open once again for submissions this spring.

We recently caught up with Katy to ask her a few questions about her superb Translator’s Note, in which she provides the fascinating backstory to the novel and to its translation and publication in English by Semiotext(e):

WiT: How did the Translator’s Note come about?

KD: I thought that seeing the book is about work, I could take the opportunity to describe my own. I toyed with the idea of mimicking Heike Geissler’s book and writing it in the second person—“You’re a translator, and you’re fortunate enough to love your job,” that kind of thing. Especially as Heike translates as well, from English into German . . . But that felt a little silly in the end so I stuck to a more traditional format, just keeping it plain and—I hope—clear for non-translators. I’m not the only translator to have realised that a translator’s note is useful to reviewers, giving them a little more background information and enhancing their understanding. I’m sure the book would have been reviewed anyway, but as you might have noticed, a few of the critics have drawn on what I wrote. Plus, of course, a note makes all of us translators a tiny bit more visible to our readers.

Did the publisher ask you to write it, or did you propose it yourself?

As it happened there was a clause in my contract that granted me the right to include a translator’s note. I assume that’s standard because semiotext(e) publish a lot of theory and non-fiction, and they didn’t specifically request one. But it set the ball rolling in my mind and seemed like a good opportunity. I don’t always write a translator’s note; sometimes the text doesn’t present the kind of challenges that might be of interest, sometimes I feel like it might spoil the “magic” of a particularly strong voice. But here it fitted well.

What I love about it is that you pull back the curtain to show what it means to translate—you’re not only doing dictionary work, far from it. For example, you say that as a translator you like to immerse yourself in another person’s writing and mimic it in your own language. In order to do that, since you’ve never worked at an Amazon fulfillment center, you dipped into an amazing trove of “Working at Amazon” videos on YouTube and listened to a range of people talk about working there. Getting those exact words and phrases right matters! I think that anyone who’s worked at an Amazon fulfillment center in the English-speaking part of the globe would agree that it's on the mark. Was achieving that one of the more complicated things about the translation?

It was, absolutely! That and working directly for an American publisher, when my English is very British. So those were the two things that most concerned me: How would an American say this? And how would an Amazon worker say this? I was lucky enough to be sharing a desk at the time with a very patient American friend, who kindly helped me to use “shopping cart” rather than “shopping trolley” and that kind of thing. The editor still had a bit of work to do on that front but I think it came out well. And then the online research was essential and eye-opening. I’m a big fan of that culture of sharing advice on YouTube, from makeup tutorials to DIY tips. It feels sincere and generous, and sometimes subversive. Anyone can have expert knowledge! Some of the Amazon fulfillment videos I found were made by people who were grateful to be working there and pleased to be given free pizza on long shifts, for example. Others were angry about how the company treated them but didn’t necessarily reflect on the system behind it. So that extra layer of perspective was fascinating and useful, and reminded me—although Heike says so herself—that a lot of people rely far more heavily on Amazon as an employer than she did, just working there to pay off her overdraft.

You say that Heike Geissler gave you the green light to add extra layers to the translation where you thought it was necessary, but you don’t identify these additions. I thought one added layer must have been about the word “tote,” which is Amazonspeak for the ubiquitous yellow crates used to hold products as they move on conveyor belts. By a remarkable coincidence, “tote” sounds like the word in German for death—ha! (But you don’t use the German word—Tod—which I found interesting). Can you give another example of what you added to the translation?

In that case, I left out the German word because, to a non-German-speaker, it doesn’t look like a homonym for tote, and I wanted to explain the odd reaction to the word but not add even more confusion. The other thing that springs to mind is that I added something to Heike’s initial description of herself—and therefore of you, as the reader who slips into her position through the narration. Here’s what it says now—everything from “Another important thing” is my addition:

From now on, you are me. That means you’re female; please don’t forget that because it’s important in places. You’re a writer and a translator, and at this point in life you have two sons and a partner who suits you well, something you’re usually aware of. Another important thing, which you rarely think about but which has to be said: You’re German, but the country you were born in no longer exists.

In this case, the book’s original readers can instantly place Heike geographically, because they know she’s in Leipzig in the former GDR. But I thought Anglophone readers might benefit from a little help. I added these interventions once I had a feel for our composite language, if you see what I mean—how Heike sounds in my English. And the book’s forthright style made that very easy to do. Obviously, I ran them by Heike too.  

You write about the difficulties finding a publisher for the book in the US and UK. Do you think the Women in Translation problem had anything to do with that? I remember it was one of the books you listed in your LitHub post a few years ago on “10 German Books by Women We’d Love to See in English.”

I think there were a number of factors that made publishers cautious. Firstly, who wants to annoy Amazon these days? But also, the book is a long way from a conventional narrative. It’s a stylized account of Heike’s time working at Amazon, and it also explores broader ideas about paid labour and what it does to us. Yet it’s not a theoretical or philosophical book as such—it’s radically subjective. Hard to categorise, in other words! I’m only now thinking about whether gender played a role . . . Perhaps we unconsciously expect books about work to be written by men? Do we expect women to write about relationships, parenting, “soft subjects”? I’m not sure. At any rate, semiotext(e) came along and ignored all that. I’m really thrilled by the reactions and reviews—very exciting.

What are you working on now?

I’m finishing off a short story collection by Clemens Meyer for Fitzcarraldo Editions. Tomorrow I’m going to Leipzig to take a look at some of the stories’ real-life settings with the writer and his Italian translator, Roberta Gado. That’s the huge advantage of living in the same country as the writers I translate. I have to admit I took a longer break than usual between first translating the stories and finishing off, so I’m excited to be returning to them with a fresh viewpoint. They’re gorgeous, crazy and sad. This is the first time I’ve cried at my computer while translating.  

What books are on your nightstand?

Too many! Here’s a photo . . . As it turns out, there’s only one male writer (and two anthologies) among them. Yay me.

#WiTInterviews #Katy Derbyshire #heike geissler #saisonarbeit #seasonal associate #German literature #Amazon #semiotext(e)

[lucyfishman-blog]

The Camera Never Lies

In recent years, a debate has emerged about whether the camera lies or not. There is either candid photography which is not lying to the viewers (as the photo is not set up and an informal photo is taken of a person, often without them knowing) or staged photography (a photo set up by a photographer, to create a specific image). Staged photography has become a debatable topic in photography as to whether it is cheating the viewers eyes or opening them up to the world around them.

Editing photos may suggest the camera is lying as in the modern world there are many tutorials on editing photographs from little edits of colour to completely changing the photograph by for example adding more people. There have been multiple photos which have been disqualified from major photography competitions due to the editing. Recently the winner of the wildlife photography competition was disqualified for using a stuffed ant eater to capture the stunning image. Another major competition disqualified the winner because they had over edited the image and added extra clouds to it, but the question remains is that lying to the public or just making it more dramatic to capture the viewers’ attention and to clarify an underlying message?

In photography you can achieve candid photos especially in documentary and street, some editing maybe involved, but you are not completely changing the scene. Another point which proves the camera never lies is that film cannot be manipulated when developed and printed unless scanned, so in the past when analogue was first introduced most of the images would have been un-staged. In contrast, portraiture photography is a genre of photography where the subject will pose for a photograph. Portraiture photography can be considered fake if the person is doing something that they would not ordinarily do to mislead the public. Portraiture photography can also be considered fake if the photograph has been edited to add or remove physical marks on the body.

The question remains on how far can you manipulate photography before it becomes staged photography? The world press organisation states in its code of ethics that “staging means deliberately arranging something in order to mislead the audience” and that includes setting up a scene or the subject repeating what they were doing before the photographer arrived.

A photographer who I believe supports the theory that the camera lies is Stephan Vanfleteren. Vanfleteran was firstly a freelance photographer for the De Morgan, a Flemish newspaper and then went on to creating his own projects including one of his most well-known projects the ‘Surf Tribe’. Vanfleteren’s photos are mostly staged as he uses backdrops, photographic lighting and has the model always looking straight at him

Photo example: Refer to photo 1

The photo is from the project ‘People of Mercy’ and won first prize in 2013 photo competition by the world press. The project is about people receiving treatment on Africa Mercy, a hospital ship docked in Conakry, Guinea. This photo is of a 14-year-old boy called Alhassane Cisse. His photo was taken just after his operation to remove neurofibromatosis tumours from his face which made Alhassane unable to speak. Many people who were like Alhassane were receiving treatment in Conakry, Guinea. The tone of Vanfleteren’s photo is dark to make the atmosphere of the photo depressing and gloomy. The composition is portrait and cropped narrowly so that the boy is centred and there is no background shining through the photo. The texture is 2D as there are no shadows in the background or on the boy and this shows that if photographic lighting was used it was probably be shining towards the boy. From using the internet, I found that the shutter speed was 1/250, ISO was 400 and aperture was F5.6. This photo is clearly staged because it is using a photographic background and possibly photographic lighting. Also, the boy’s bandage looks very clean, but this may have been because he has just had it changed.

I believe this image supports the theory that the camera does lie because the photo has been set up. However, the background information from the photographer, has said that the boy is receiving treatment for his injuries so is that lying to the camera if the boy is injured? The picture does not give you a clear honest view of the boy’s injuries, but I am made to feel pity and therefore a wish to believe what I am seeing is true. The feelings that Vanfleteren has conveyed to the viewer lures them in and creates a viewer interest of the boy’s circumstances. So the photographers intentions are to educate and heighten the public’s awareness of real life in conflict zones, despite using photographic manipulation.

The photographer who I chose to support the theory that the camera never lies is Diane Arbus was an American photographer who was known for taking photos of marginalised people for example as dwarfs, giants, transgender people, nudists.

Photo example: Refer to photo 2

The tone of this image is dark and slightly grainy which indicates it was probably shot on film. It is in square format and the model is right in the centre of the image which shows that Arbus considered her composition when taking or editing the image. The lighting is overexposed on the right-hand side and then slightly underexposed on the left-hand side which shows Arbus did not consider her lighting when taking the shot and proves that this image was not staged. Also, the model looks like they are mid getting ready which again adds to the image not being set up. The narrative of this image was about people who were viewed as different back in the 20th century, people viewed transgender people and men who dress up as women as mental and not right in the head when there is nothing wrong with them, they were just different, and society could not accept at that time.

I believe this image does support the theory that the camera never lies as in Arbus’s photo the model looks real, it looks more like the photographer has just asked the model to look at the camera while he is trying to get ready. So, the image is captured as they are, and the viewer has a small but true insight as to how people live their lives.

To conclude I lean towards believing that the camera never lies as there is always a story behind why the photo was taken even if it is heavily edited. However, we must remember that a straight out of camera image is never a true representation of reality as a camera works completely different to the human eye with differing colour and range. The opportunity to stage and manipulate photographs in the modern world is huge and for this reason, there needs to be an agreed code of ethics within photography profession, that prevents photographers intentionally misleading the public if the photographs are to be used to inform and educate. It is the photographer’s intention that needs to be considered. Photography is an art form and artists will therefore desire a freedom to experiment, but regulation is essential in areas such as documentary photography where the public rely on a straightforward and accurate representation of an event, object or people. We need to acknowledge that not all photographers intend to utilise their photos in pursuit of improving society. So, I may choose to believe the camera never lies, but in the knowledge that it is operated by a human that will vary in their degree of integrity.

[gobbochune]

I’m calling you out for not knowing how to call people out

I saw a callout post for a problematic user the other day that was probably the worst attempt defamation I’ve ever seen. And this made me mad not because I thought the target was wrongly accused, but because there were like seven people giving their testimony to the abuse and yet it was handled so poorly that I doubt anyone who saw it would even believe them. This is pretty dangerous considering the person in question was an actual pedophile grooming children for sex, and a quick google search told me that this person has an army of stans ripping the lack of significant evidence apart in order to entrap new victims. Calling out the blatant inconsistencies in testimonies is a tactic that abusers use to separate their victims from the people who want to help them. Anyone who has had a run-in with a serial pedophile can tell you that they usually have a methods to make people trust them over numerous allegations. Its not enough to throw a rock at their house, at its worst, that rock can even help the abuser gain a victim’s sympathy. 

So I’d like to take this moment to explain how to properly spread information about a potentially dangerous person. Though, I’d like to make this very clear: I’m not saying this as someone whose done a lot of these as if its some kind of art form. I’m doing this from the perspective of someone who has seen the scum of the earth and know how they ensnare people, and hope to be able to spread awareness to potential victims. 

1. The Abuser

I feel like it is a no brainer to actually mention who the abuser is, but apparently thats difficult for some people to wrap their heads around. So often I will see purposeful misspellings or code names in callout posts to avoid causing drama. This is stupid for two reasons: Firstly, if it is at the point where you feel a callout post needs to be made for people’s safety, fandom drama should no longer be an issue. Secondly, if you don’t make it clear who it is you’re warning people about, how the fuck are they actually supposed to avoid them? Like, do you expect a 12 year old who is currently being gaslit by a pedophile to message you like ‘Hey, is @lle/////gory!!!334 Gregory? That kinda looked like his username but I couldn’t tell.’ Of course they’re not. They’re going to ask the person who is grooming them, who will either say ‘lol nah’ or make up a sob story as to why they’re being defamed. Grow a pair and use their names. 

It is very likely that the abuser will have more then one account, you’ll probably need to list all of them that you’re aware of, but know that the minute they see a post with their current name on it they’re probably going to change it. So, mention very clearly who they are, what circles they can be found in, and how they amassed enough popularity to trap victims in the first place. 

This callout post that I saw, which I will now be using as a reference for what not to do, managed to list the abuser’s various names but pretty much nothing else about them. All it said was that they were apparently the origin of some meme, but didn’t even explicitly say what the meme was so I had no idea if I even knew this person or not. I didn’t know if they were a fandom blog, an art blog, a social justice blog, a youtuber, the only context I could draw was from the fandom-specific usernames of their victims. If they changed their name, which they probably did right away, I would have no way of telling who this person was. 

Include screenshots of any of their posts with a lot of notes and listing this as identification for who they are. Also explicitly mention what circles they can be found in, any projects they were involved with, and any other iconography that can be associated with them. However, there is something I’d like to stress:

Do not include leaked personal information such as home address, workplace, or emails. It is not your authority to broadcast this information online. A callout post is not a legal testimony, merely a warning to other internet users within a community. If alerting the authorities is necessary, it is a different process to be handled by the victims and their supporters. Do not attempt to intervene through a social media. 

If you don’t want to receive hate from an army of stans thats understandable, which is why many people often will make a blog where victims can anonymously offer evidence. In fact, I suggest doing this as a first resort as it is easier to search “_____ problematic” into Tumblr then it is to scour a personal blog for mention of the abuser. This will also provide a handy archive for the allegations, and help keep up with the abuser’s activity. However, for legitimacy’s sake, I suggest that the mod’s identities of these blogs be clear. This leads us to my next point:

2. The Evidence

This is actually my primary reason for wanting to make this. The stuff mentioned above delegitimises accusations but isn’t really dangerous the same way a shoddy presentation of evidence can be. Someone who has been thoroughly brainwashed by the abuse cycle will look for any reason to continue a relationship with their abuser. They’ve likely been isolated from their friends, groomed to worship or fear their abuser, and are so drained from a volatile relationship that they don’t have the mental energy to waste on doubt. It takes a lot of strength to end even a good relationship, thats why abusers try to keep their victims drained and confused. They make them think it is easier to continue being abused then try to untangle the lies and manipulation. 

That is why you need to be explicit, blunt, and vocal about what the abuser has done. Put the most serious and unforgivable accusations at near top of your post in clear view. Try not to rely too heavily on accusations that dont have concrete evidence, as the abuser has probably already explained away anything you don’t have in writing. 

I am going to once again revisit the terrible callout post from before. The first thing they did was the usual attention grabbing intro with the paragraph pretending to tell us who this person is was to list a bunch of testimonies from various users.

Now, testimonies don’t really work over tumblr in a traditional sense. In a courtroom a testimony is given under oath, all the words spoken must be presumed to be true because the speaker understands that lying is a federal offence. Obviously the internet is not like this, and there is nothing stopping someone with a blog from lying. Not to mention, if they had been in the abuser’s circle in the past but is now flinging accusations, it is safe to say they didn’t leave on the best of terms. Abusers are famously unable to take responsibility for their relationships falling apart, odds are everyone in the abuser’s circle convinces their latest victim that all previous victims were in the wrong. 

I spoke with a friend who briefly joined the public discord of a known abuser to see what it was like, and showed me the rules specifically prohibiting anyone on the server to discuss allegations towards the mods. There was even a list of names that the bot would automatically block if you tried to type them in the chat log, and the mods had this witch hunt mentality where if they found evidence of you conversing with blacklisted users outside the discord, you would be banned and your name would be added to the list. It is very likely that the act of reading a testimony and asking about it could place a victim in danger. 

However, there is value to a testimony online if there are more then one. Testimonies are really only effective if there are an abundance of them, so many that you don’t even have to read one, the sheer volume of people speaking out against the abuser is suspicious enough on its own. Again, the presence of a blog that allows anonymous asks or submissions would be the ideal platform to publish testimonies.

Back at the terrible callout post, underneath the list of testimonies they had some bullet points of direct evidence that they linked directly back to the abusers blog. You should not do this. I cannot believe there are people who do not realise it is largely worthless to use posts that the abuser still has access to as a source. 

If you have even a remotely functional following anywhere on the internet you have probably said something stupid that bit you in the ass before. Your immediate reaction was probably to defend yourself, and when that failed, you go back and delete the post. Abusers can do the same thing, or, even more insidious, edit the post to say something else. 

“_____ fetishises black women! here is the link!” can originally have linked to something explicit but can easily be changed to “I think black women are beautiful and deserve our support <3 <3″ to make the writer of the callout post look stupid or overzealous. 

Screenshots are your friends. Take screenshots of the concerning behaviour and either include them in the post or link to a photo sharing archive. There’s really not much to explain about this. I cannot believe someone thought linking back to the original url would work. 

Another thing I cannot believe about that terrible callout post was that half of the accusations linked to posts of people repeating rumours they’ve heard. 

This is...dumb. This is unsalvageable. Don’t to this. It will never count and you will look like an idiot. 

However that terrible awful worthless callout post did have SOME credible evidence, to shit that didn’t matter at all, which leads us to our last point. 

3. The Abuse

Now this part is hard to discuss as most people seem to think abuse is a subjective term. This is not the case. 

While abuse can take shape in an infinite number of ways, not all stuff that pisses you off counts as abuse. Sometimes a jerk is just a jerk. Now you can hate a jerk as much as you want- they probably deserve it, but don’t try to sell someone just being a generally awful person as abuse.  

The terrible awful no good callout post tried to back up claims of criminal activity by saying the abuser cares more about Doctor Who than Flint Michigan. 

This is not abuse. Why would anyone think this is abuse. 

Now, if I have a blog devoted to a fandom I’m probably not going to post stuff about Flint Michigan to that blog. As stated above, I had no idea who this person was. For all I know they could have been exclusively a fanblog for Doctor Who. Sometimes there are just spaces that are kept away from serious real world issues and that in itself is not a crime. 

Trying to equate something like that to an act of sexual assault only makes it easier to dismiss your legitimate concerns by saying: ‘they’re just hating on me for being cringy’

There are millions of reasons why someone might not want to keep up with real world social activism on their blog, and those are a million reasons the abuser will use to invalidate your legitimacy. 

But hey, if that sort of thing annoys you, I totally get that. Go ahead and block this person, campaign against them, blacklist their stuff, encourage your friends to do the same. I’ve blocked people for less, just dont call it abuse. 

Now there is actual fan content that is means for legitimate concern. If the person consistently praises or creates content of abusive scenarios, its a red flag. If a person consistently defends incest or pedophilia, its a red flag. If a person bullies someone else for being ‘triggered’ over Flint Michigan, its a red fucking flag. 

The problem isn’t the art or the content or the blog type, but the mentality behind those things. Liking Doctor who isnt a problem. Liking the idea of Doctor Who having sex with his own daughter is. Avoiding current events isnt a problem. Trying to bully activists into silence is. You need to include that context to be taken seriously. 

Chat logs are your friend. Get the permission of victims to post, anonymously or otherwise, chatlogs of concerning behaviour. Try to focus on patterns to show a potential victim that the tactics used to insnare them have been used on other people before. Highlight instances of an abuser being sweet, (The Honeymoon Phase) as well as how quickly they devolve into abuse. 

In Conclusion

I’ve probably turned a lot of people off with this big dumb rant about something as petty as a callout post, and to those people I say: Good. If you’ve never been in a position to need this kind of thing then that is good. I’m not being facetious here, or implying you don’t know what you’re talking about just because you disagree with me, a callout post is really a last ditch effort to warn others that someone can construct in the aftermath of their ordeal. Pretty much everything I’ve mentioned relies on the willingness for victims to come forward, which I totally understand if they dont want to.

It is not my intention to bully others into sharing traumatic memories over the internet, but rather to make sure that anyone who does speak out wont become a target for harassment. At the end of the day, these are just posts floating around on tumblr. All you can ever hope is for someone to see your warning and stay away from the person who hurt you. Perhaps even draw the attention of other victims and help them process what has happened to them. 

But baseless claims and petty squabbles aren’t how you do that. Abuse should be taken seriously, and there is a large difference between someone Problematic and an actual Abuser. 

[tanya-alevelsmedia]

Week 8- Group one’s shoot

The final shot division and Vedanti and I completed Master-breakdown which was finished at the same time  Diya (cinematographer) and Paarth(director) were working on the shot division accordingly. All of us worked together forward after complying with each other. With this finished, we needed to work on our locations for the shoot. We ended the class the other photoshop file menu, edit the menu and revised other things. We went on to have a small revision of component  4.

This week was the other group and we were assisting the other group for their shoot as their group was going to shoot first. The group consists of Production designer- Adrija, Director- keyosha, Editor- Vedant & cinematographer -Jaahnvi. Giving a little summary of the story which represents the LGBT issue in India where 2 women fall in love. 1 married and mistreated by her husband longing for love and the other college student who has been discovering herself. Their trailer not only represents the love but with the consequence of living with it.

Setting up for shoot:

We begin by helping Adrija by going through her checklist of items needed on the set. My duty on the set was to assist the production designer and click stills for the group. Before the shoot, the team required diffusers for the lights so the assisting team and I helped them out. I saw Adrija getting panicked with the documents and asked the team if I can help them with it so I took the responsibility of setting the documents properly and make a prop that was going to be used in the reading scene. I was supposed to type texts which represented the love between two characters as the character readers that text from the book in the library scene to emphasize longing love.  

The class started out by the team and the assisting team having pre-production discussing to recheck all the requirements and materials before the shoot Iiket he teaming going through the schedule and the checklist to ensure the shoot is in order and the production designer gave each person on the group what to bring for tomorrow’s shoot. I asked the team if they needed help and took up the task of sort out, get the documents ready and bring makeup sponges and brushes for makeup. 

Shoot day 1:

Before the shoot, sir suggested us to make 2 diffusers because we will be needing it during the shoot. A diffusion filter is used in front of a flash or studio light to soften the light on the object it is being fallen on. So we had some time in our hands before the shoot starts to finish making them. 

On our way to the location, we made ourselves clear of what our jobs at the shoot were going to be. I was in charge of helping Adrija who was the production designer and take stills of the groups during the shoot. 

Reaching the location we went through the schedules. The team was in constant contact with the actors on their location and the time. Another important piece of equipment which was would enhance the quality of the product was the lighting. This year we had rented lights for our shoots to learn more about this equipment and how to handle the lights and explained how to use them as well. He even went over its different functions and situations it would be needed to create what kind of effect. 

we were introduced to two kinds of lights:

Ring lights have circular lights that have an amount in the centre, so the camera's point of view is identical to the direction from which the light is coming from. This light is mostly used by YouTubers while filming videos.

Flashpoint Shoe Mountable LED lights which are used to shoot professional video. Uses an LED panel that emits lights and the light colour can be made more yellow tone to give daylight effect or the panel can make the light harsher accordingly. 

After the actors arrived they were offered any refreshments if they needed and then the teams introduced ourselves gave them an idea about their outcome they wanted and what the trailers we about (the basic idea).

Makeup, costumes, and characters' identity (the person characters) were briefed to the characters while they got ready. I helped Adrija iron press the costumes so it wouldn't look wrinkly on the camera and got the actors into the costume the meanwhile the rest of the crew went down to set up everything else. Adrija running around handling the makeup of both the actors I thought of helping her assist the makeup of one of the actors. With both of us working together. I helping Kia's makeup while Adrija guided me on how to go about it and she did an amazing job with the other actor's makeup.

Beginning of every shoot we have a little prayer and focus the camera on the photo frame of Lord Ganesh who is said to make us feel more powerful and not led down if any problems come in our way.

lights!camera!action the first shot was going around the two characters as they shoot in the park. 

The location was very windy and the weather was unstable as it could rain anytime so we had to do things precisely and fast. There were scenes in the park where the two characters were seen holding hands and walking and sitting on the steps talking about how their relationship will not be accepted. The scene was designed well and the branding part was well established in these shoots eg; juices boxes and Balaji chips packet was seen well in the holding hand's scene.

Only after a short while, when we shot the last shoot for that scene the weather changed and it was raining quite heavily. We had to pick up the equipment and run inside to make sure there was no damage. We soon realized if we shoot further on the continuity would be an issue so the decision was then to pack up from this location and go to the next one which was the house. were scenes between the two character and one of the scenes of the main character between her husband and son were going to be shot. 

Location 2 was the house had scenes between the two character and one of the scenes of the main character between her husband and son were going to be shot. 

The actors from the previously seen had arrived with the team but we were waiting for the male actor who was one of the main character's husband. As soon as the character arrived they were taken for makeup and costumes. 

I was assisting Adrija and helping her finish Kiara’s hair meanwhile the other actors get changed.

Going further with the makeup of the actors. Adrija was freaking out a little so I took in charge to help out in doing the makeup for the male actor.

This was a good experience and would be really helpful for keeping my shoot coming up in mind. During the production process was going on the rest of the team was Checking the frame of the shot and setting up the room with lights in its position. At this location, we had only 3 scenes to shoot. 

The first shot was of Preeti's husband screaming at her for the food not being good enough and a shot of her son in the bad ground. The shot was planned well and the cinematographer took a close up shot of her face to bring out her emotions which I thought was a good idea but however, I felt the lighting of the room did not suit the overall effect. The scene had good continuity as the next shoot was of the character sitting and cry venting out her feeling. 

The scene was lovely as the two lovers come close together. The setting of the scene was well placed to bring out the playful effect of falling in love again. 

Today's shot ended on a good note and the call time for day 2 was decided 8 in the morning at school. 

 PACK UP FOR DAY 1

Shoot 2 :

We assembled at the location which was library of holy crossed high school which was one of  Mumbai's oldest schools. The library looks very aesthetics very pleasing. We reached the school before the actors arrived to have run though with the shoots and set up the location before the first scene. As you can see above the team was in full motivation discussing the scenes. There was about 3-4 scene in the library. 

The first scene the book scene where the two of them meet and express their unsaid feeling to each other through the action of highting a beautiful sentence in the book. I found this scene to be very creative and the production of the setting was wonderful. The old vintage look of the library with the placement of the area which was going to be shot. 

Moving onto the next teardrop scene of the character which was a close-up shot of the actor got chills down the spine as it was not only well directed but the lighting added that effect well. In this scene thou, hey had decided to keep the makeup nature to give the worn outlook which was a good decision.

My job was in this shoot too was taking stills for my other team members and help to shift properties for the setting which was a fun task but shifting tables was difficult.

The last scenes that took a lot of time were the two characters hiding for the people who are behind them because they do not approve their love. Vedanti and I stood in the position just to take the focus.  

This scene needed complete darkness so all of us stood against the windows to give that effect. The library had 4 big windows so Vedanti and I stood up against the window with a huge rug which did not let the light pass through.

After multiple shots taken they finally found the shot they were looking for and our hands hurt a lot but the shot came out to look very good. 

The shoot finally came to an end and we thanked each other for all the efforts that each one of us put in. The efforts surely paid off with a great output which achieved. The teamwork and nicely done scene planning made the shoot go smoother. This shot gave us good exposure to working with professional actors and how to deal with the different situation which we could overcome by just find a different way. We hope our shoot which was coming up goes as well like the other teams. 

PACK UP FOR DAY 2

[gadgetsrevv]

Rebekah Vardy-Coleen Rooney Instagram feud: Why the football wives are fighting

As Britain descends into an increasingly bleak political horror show, today the country is delivering on its most famous export: Shakespearean drama. On the morning of October 9, two famous wives of major football (i.e. soccer) players were embroiled in an epic feud that just so happens to be deliciously suited to the era of Instagram Stories and private accounts. It’s the kind of splashy kerfuffle that forces people who previously had zero knowledge of or interest in a group of people or perhaps an entire sport to eschew all their responsibilities and learn everything they possibly can about it all in the span of a few hours.

This particular English Renaissance play stars two women, Coleen Rooney and Rebekah Vardy (who goes by Becky), both wives of footballers who played for the England national team. Like many WAGs (an acronym for the wives and girlfriends of athletes), the two were friends, and Rooney had trusted Vardy enough to be included on her private Instagram account, where Rooney would post personal updates about her friends and family.

But according to an operatic tweet posted by Rooney on Wednesday morning, which is at once a brutal damnation of Vardy’s actions and a master class in scene-setting and plot building, Vardy was selling those private stories to the press. “For a few years now someone who I trusted to follow me on my personal Instagram account has been consistently informing the Sun newspaper of my private posts and stories,” it begins.

“After a long time of trying to figure out who it could be, for various reasons, I had a suspicion,” Rooney writes. Here’s where it gets good: “To try and prove this, I came up with an idea. I blocked everyone from viewing my Instagram stories except ONE account.”

Coleen Rooney in 2018.

Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images

Rooney then writes that, over the last five months, she posted a series of fake pieces of information about her life to see if they ended up in the Sun. They did: On August 15, the Sun published a story about Rooney and her husband traveling to Mexico to seek controversial gender selection treatment. On September 28, the paper published a story about Rooney possibly joining the BBC reality show Strictly Come Dancing; a third piece about a supposed flood at the Rooney’s Cheshire mansion was also published by the Sun. (All these stories published in the Sun have since been taken down.)

Rooney writes that it was difficult to remain silent and refrain from commenting when the false stories spread about her but that it ultimately helped her find the culprit.

“I have saved and screenshotted all the original [Instagram] stories which clearly show just one person has viewed them,” she writes.

“It’s……. Rebekah Vardy’s account.”

By the time Americans were starting to wake up, the news had lit up British media. That’s not just because the British press is among the thirstiest in the world. It’s because the story had everything: a Notes app-esque manifesto, the genius weaponization of social media, the demonization of a woman named Becky, the exposure of shady tabloid inner workings, and yes, two very rich women fighting with each other, one of whom is widely beloved among football fans for “standing by her man” (Rooney) and one of whom is seen as a fame-hungry money-grubber (that’d be Becky). The Rooney-Vardy feud lets us all feel the kind of vindication of knowing a maybe-bad person is an actually-bad person; it allows us to share in Rooney’s catharsis as she closes her explosive note with the absolute perfect kicker. It’s ……. really great gossip.

Who are Coleen Rooney and Becky Vardy?

It has not been nearly as fun of a day for Becky Vardy, of course. Shortly after Rooney’s post was made public, she posted her own statement to Instagram denying the allegations, claiming that other people had access to her Instagram account and if only Rooney had called her when she first suspected that Vardy was leaking stories, she could have changed her passwords. “I don’t need the money, what would I gain from selling stories on you?” she wrote. “I liked you a lot Coleen & I’m so upset that you have chosen to do this, especially when I’m heavily pregnant. I’m disgusted that I even have to deny this.” Vardy has also reportedly tasked lawyers to conduct a “forensic investigation” on her Instagram account to find out who has access to it.

But for many who have followed both Vardy and Rooney for years, the two statements were vindication that their opinions about each woman were correct all along. “Becky Vardy has always been shady,” says SB Nation soccer writer Kim McCauley. “It’s very obvious she wants to take down Coleen because Coleen has always been the media’s favorite WAG, who got all the best TV spots, and Becky wants to take her place.”

Jamie and Becky Vardy in 2018.

Jan Kruger/Getty Images

“The Vardys are not nice people,” agrees Nicolle Zamora, who writes for the soccer site Unusual Efforts. She points to a series of racist statements both Becky and her husband Jamie Vardy have made in the past. Jamie has been caught on camera multiple times calling a person of Asian descent a racist slur; in 2014, Becky tweeted “Getting followed at 3am from work to your car by a weird black man has to be up there with one of the scariest moments ever!”

Becky in particular is also widely considered inappropriately fame-hungry — she was a cast member on the reality series I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here and regularly appears on talk shows like Loose Women, Good Morning Britain, and This Morning. Many have long suspected her of being the writer behind the Sun’s “Secret WAG” column, which covers football gossip from an anonymous WAG, which would solidify the link between Vardy and the Sun’s coverage of Rooney.

What adds insult to injury, Zamora adds, is that the Sun has a long and bitter history with the city of Liverpool, where both Coleen and her husband Wayne Rooney were born and raised (the Rooneys now live in the US, where Wayne plays for DC United). Since 1989, the people of Liverpool have boycotted the Sun for its false reporting on the horrific Hillsborough disaster, where 96 people were killed at an FA cup football game due to overcrowding inside the stadium.

Meanwhile, Coleen Rooney has long been royalty among football WAGs, once a part of the original queen WAG Victoria Beckham’s crew in the mid-aughts and now most known for being a mother and loyal wife during her husband’s various reported infidelities. People like her because, as London-based football fan Scott Perdue tells me over DM, she has a “humble background, stuck by her man, tries to stay out of the headlines.

“Coleen Rooney has absolutely bossed Rebekah Vardy,” he adds.

Why the Coleen Rooney-Becky Vardy feud is irresistible

But there is also something more universal going on with the Rooney-Vardy feud that’s pulling in even people totally unfamiliar with British WAG culture. Humans love stories about celebrities acting as investigative reporters of their own lives, and Rooney isn’t the first person to weaponize her social media accounts: Kim Kardashian has reportedly sent her friends fake photos of her newborn children to find out who is leaking information to the press. Fans, meanwhile, have started referring to Rooney as “Wagatha Christie” in admiration.

It might also simply be more banal than that. It’s refreshing, for once, to have a clear winner and a clear loser, to be able to root for one team without feeling sorry for the other. Ironically, this is also what can be so appealing about being a sports fan.

Charlotte Wilder of Sports Illustrated draws this parallel: “I’ve always said that sports are the greatest reality show. Even on reality TV, we assume that everything’s edited or manipulated. But you can’t have spoilers for a game, and there’s something really pure about that. And when the athletes’ lives mirror that unexpectedness, it’s thrilling to me.”

Wayne, Coleen, and son Kai Rooney in 2013.

Matthew Peters/Manchester United via Getty Images

Often, when we see athletes’ or celebrities’ lives play out in the press or on social media, there’s a tendency to assume what we’re seeing is in some way fabricated. The Rooney-Vardy feud, meanwhile, feels pure in its messiness. “A lot of times these athletes are very calculated because they know people are paying attention,” Wilder says. “And when done well, it becomes a master class in public relations. With something like this, [Rooney] knows she’s bulletproof, so she can take a risk. You don’t do this unless you’re pretty sure it’s not gonna backfire.”

Ultimately, what we’re talking about is leaked personal interest stories about the lives of famous people. “It’s still fairly petty,” Wilder laughs. “It’s not that there’s some horrible crime at the center of this, so it makes it a little more harmless to enjoy something like this. If it were really ugly and messy I would feel sad, but at this point, we can enjoy it.”

All of which makes Coleen Rooney and Becky Vardy the perfect distraction from literally everything else happening in the UK right now: a feud so neat and perfect it can be tied up with a bow, a Twelfth Night-style comedy of errors that writes itself where the good guy gets all the faves and the bad guy gets canceled. If nothing else, it beats talking about Brexit.

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#Gossip Rebekah Vardy-Coleen Rooney Instagram feud: Why the football wives are fighting

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What’s the Most Important Lesson You’ve Learned Along Your Journey?

Every twist in our story, challenge we face, and obstacle we overcome is an important part of our story.  These difficulties make us stronger and wiser and prepare us for what’s ahead.  As we grow and succeed we may imagine that soon the challenges will fade away, but in our conversations with business owners, artists, creatives, academics, and others we have learned that the most common experience is that challenges never go away – instead they get more complex as we grow and succeed.  Our ability to to thrive therefore depends heavily on our ability to learn from our experiences and so we are asking some of the city’s best and brightest: What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?

Rocio Zapata | Home Baker & Cake Decorator

@cakesdenise

The most important thing I’ve learned is to have a clean working area and be kind and respectful with clients. One more thing would be to always give good quality, presentation, and lastly good flavor for the product. In this business of pastries we never stop learning, we will always learn new things to improve.

@cakesdenise

Kristen Vollinger | Believer in the strength of a new day and its noms

First things first, I must state anyone who says, “I forgot to eat today”, absolutely makes zero sense to me. Not sure if I am envious of their free thinking and lack of time spent planning their next meal or if these are just deeply sad souls. ha. joke. Okay. So What is the most important lesson you’ve learned in your journey so far? I believe it is key to stay true to your WHY (why are you doing this?) and asking yourself this question often.  To help reach your why and stay focused, I try to surround myself with what I want to see more of in the world, especially on social media. When posting my own content, I want to be excited about it and not have it based in a belief of what is expected of me as a food blogger. I believe the message in return is more genuine and interesting. If I start posting what I believe others want to see, then I’m not being true to myself and my passion. I will not be favored by all, yet I wont have lost sight of the reason why I started this journey. We will never live this exact day again, so let’s celebrate it with some delightful tastes.

@DallasNewGirl

Christy Zuehl | Owner | Life Coach | Chief Designer @ EDIT Learning & Design, LLC

janazerpoliphotography.com/branding-photography

At EDIT Learning & Design, LLC. I provide life coaching, course design and training facilitation services. This business evolved from my passion for learning design, and mentoring others. It takes time to build a business and create a client base. When you are building a business and planning for how it will be structured, you need to factor in time to get the business off the ground and build your reputation. Hard work, dedication, and flexibility are important factors in getting started. Having a clear brand and product is also important. People have to understand the services you are offering and how you can help them to be more productive and achieve their goals.

editlearningdesign.com  @EDITLearningDesign linkedin.com/company/editlearningdesign   @editlearningdesign pinterest.com/EDITLearningDesign

Kymberly Smith | Dallas Blogger

The most important lesson I’ve learned in my journey so far is to be resilient and always be motivated. I have not always been able to bounce back from rejection in reference to wanting to start my own blog. This is something that I’ve wanted to do since I was in the military. It wasn’t until I joined the military that words like resilience, motivation and determination became part of my daily life. Because of that, any time someone said I couldn’t do something, it made me push myself more, it made me work harder because I wanted to succeed.

bonbh.com  @bonbh_blog

Clara Warner | twenty-something lifestyle blogger | graphic designer + integrated marketing specialist

The most important lesson I’ve learned so far is to grant yourself some grace. I think we all expect a lot from ourselves these days no matter what profession we are in or how old we are – we all feel such a determination to be perfect and successful in everything we do. But things don’t always go as planned; you don’t always get everything right on the first try. Instead of being so hard on yourself and expecting perfection at every turn, grant yourself some grace – relish every mess up, embrace your “failures”, take time to process your emotions. The most successful people are often the ones who failed a lot during their own journey and they recognize that “success in a day” is (in most cases) unattainable. Every goal takes time to achieve and it won’t always be sunshine and daisies, so celebrate the good days and the bad. And most importantly, never invalidate your feelings of failure, but rather grant yourself the grace to feel that way and then rally. My all-time favorite quote is, “live imperfectly with great delight” and I think that exquisitely encompass this whole idea; take delight in your imperfections and allow yourself the grace to grow in your own way and at your own pace.

xoxoclara.com @_xoxo_clara_/ @xoxo-Clara pinterest.com/xoxo_clara

Eve ksabi |  fashion, fitness and life style blogger

I have learned it all about pursuing your dreams and your ambition. It about your vision, your personal style and the ability inspire other while staying true to yourself. You must Embark on your journey with a clear goal  of how to turn your dream to reality. I started my fashion and fitness blog in an attempt to inspire and motivate women to love themselves from the inside out. It was not an easy journey and there were lots of bumps along the way! One thing I’ve learned during my journey is that success can happen if you truly believe in your passion, if you are consistent, and if you are pursuing your passion from your heart. My journey through the blogging world has taught me that inspiring people can cross any barrier of race, religion, or age. People love to be inspired by others and we are all connected.

thestyleandfitness.com fitwitheve.net @Thestyleandfitness  @Lksabi @aviaksabi pinterest.com/avivit10

Vanessa Fields AKA 1/2 of the ATXFoodChronicles team | Communications Coordinator for TTIA

@ATXFoodChronicles

The most important lesson we have learned from starting our Instagram account is to not compare our accounts successes to anyone else. While everyone is hustling and doing their own thing, it is easy to go down a rabbit hole of comparing your photo quality, amount of likes, event invites etc. to theirs but we have quickly learned that this will get you no where. Our motto is, have fun, focus on your own journey but always remember to support one another. Community over competition is key!

@atxfoodchronicles

Cori Aston | Makeup Artistry (Editorial, Avant-Garde, Fashion, Commercial. Beauty, Private Clients)

Makeup: Cori Aston Photo: Stevie Reid Model: Delaney Martinez

In this world of creatives, (Makeup, Hair, Photography, etc.) and with each diverse genre…creating and embracing our community is such a VITAL facet for growth, opportunities, new experiences and challenges. My advice to any artist, no matter the medium, embrace their fellow artist in all fields. Because we are all the individual threads in this intricate weave that is our profession – creating ART. There is only one of you…always stay true to your vision.

CoriAston.net  @coriaston39  @coriastonmakeupartistry

Candace Hughes | Co Owner of Dérive Media

Focus on what is important to you. We often spend so much time stressing over the small stuff and forget about the simple blessings that surround us everyday. Everything happens for a reason, truly and sometimes it doesn’t make sense, but trust in God always. Every time that I’ve felt rejected and disappointed, there has always been something better in store! A positive attitude changes your whole mindset in addition to encouraging the people around you! Life is a continuous learning experience and hard work pays off. Have an open mind, live your life to the fullest, pursue your dreams and goals! The job that you are passionate about is not random, it’s your calling! Most importantly fill your days with experiences, not material things.

@candacemhughes derivemedia.com @derivemediaco

Dawn Treader | a nonprofit who is raising awareness to defend and protect the rights of widows and orphans through the exploration of local artist, live music, and some dang good coffee

Mikaylah McGee

The most important lesson we’ve learned is, the process is more important than the prize. The process itself is the prize. Providing for orphans and widows is our oxygen, its our DNA. We don’t build homes for orphans and widows over night. It takes time. Our dream is to change lives all over the world but that begins with taking advantage of every hour and disciplining ourselves to be competitive for the helpless over time. We live for the PROCESS.

dawntreadertx.com @dawntreadertx @dawntreadertx

Ria Hartfield and my business is Locs By Ria

The most important lesson I learned so far was to believe in myself because and not sell myself short. I’m a self-taught stylist so I was very insecure about my work. I wasn’t 100% sure if I was even doing it right but my clients would be extremely satisfied with the results. Some of my clients won’t even go to other stylists. It took a long time for me to recognize my worth as a loctician and to realize that I really am talented.

@locsbyria

Loviatar’s | Vintage Event Rentals & Interior Curation

Photo Credit: @laurenapelphoto HMU: @sydneyannlopezhair

A valuable trait we have had to channel is patience. As designers that deal in predominantly vintage goods, we are always on the hunt for unique and eclectic items. Often times it would be easier to pick up a missing piece at a conventional retailer but we know that the end result is that much more rewarding if we put in the extra time to hunt down the perfect piece. We are finding that people truly do appreciate the little details and the story that is attached to each object, making our efforts worthwhile!

loviatars.com @loviatars

Letty Stewart | Lash Artist & Esthetician

 In my journey I have experienced so many things. It hasn’t been easy but with the help of my family I have finally found my dream job which is a Lash Artist at Peachy Keen Studio and I am so happy to be where I am at now. My obstacles in life have been tough from dropping out of high school to abusive relationships but I have managed to find the light at the end of the tunnel. My biggest accomplishments have been thanks to my husband. He’s inspired me to be who I am today. I know that my children will be inspired as well to be better and create a world full of joy and love.

linktr.ee/letty.peachykeenstudio

Joshua Harris | Professional athlete | Fitness consultant

Lynne Jones

The harder you work, the less you worry. When your work ethic is at a high level, that eliminates any doubt you may experience because you know how hard you’re working and that gives you an unwavering amount of confidence.

thepeakwork.com

Kiesha Hick | Entrepreneur, Eye Candi Bar

@thelavishluxe

The important lesson I have learned on my journey so far is, self importance, self development and patience, while coming out of my comfort zone, to do what I was called to do, empowering women, and giving them the confidence to look and feel beautiful!

@eyecandibar @eyecandibar

TK Kader | Author of the international best seller “How to Punch the Sunday Jitters in the Face”, Entrepreneur and Angel Investor

You can accomplish anything you want in life and become unstoppable as long as you practice belief x discipline.

@tkkader

Alexandra Goodman | designer

You are going to have some negative experiences. It could be as simple as someone not liking your work or being denied an application to participate in a local art show. You cannot let those experiences define you. Do not let them become setbacks. Keep pushing forward. Focus on the praise you receive from clients and their genuine appreciation for your creations.

etsy.com/shop/agoodmandesigner @agoodmandesigner

Acenette Gonzalez and Justin Ramirez | Owners of Maravilla Cacao Confections

A valuable lesson I’ve learned on my journey is collaboration is a key to success. I say this because collaborating with others brings inspiration from places you never thought to seek it from. It has allowed me to to create with others on different artistic platforms and see different points of views. All while helping that other independent business as well. The great thing about being a small business owner is the support from other small business owners. We all want to see each other succeed and that’s a beautiful thing to me.

@maravillacacao [email protected]

Elena Jones | Mom | Wife | Entrepreneur

@katiemeckleyphotography

Moving to a new country has been a great challenge. To start again, especially while tending to young children, was much more difficult than I imagined. Throughout this journey, I have learned that success, in its truest sense, doesn’t come with haste or ease, but to those who exercise the three P’s: passion, persistence, and patience. First, in order to accomplish anything noteworthy, you have to have an unyielding passion for your work with a single, noble goal in mind: an objective that goes beyond your own material success and that truly benefits your clients and the greater community. If you don’t believe in the product or service you’re selling, then you need to be selling something else. Second, I have learned that very little can be accomplished unless you are persistent in chasing your dream; this means waking up in the morning with a plan of micro-goals to accomplish for the day and repeating that routine until you see results. Every day is an obstacle course that must be navigated with focus and tenacity. It also means adapting strategies that are not working, yet keeping your overall mission in mind. Finally, I have learned that nothing meaningful can be achieved without patience and that an enduring success can only be accomplished over time. The old saying, “good things come to those who wait,” may be dismissed nowadays, but it rings true in my life. The setbacks we experience—the lost sale, the incomplete checklist, the long-term client who decided to go elsewhere—are opportunities to better learn our business and grow in virtue. There is no such thing as failure as long as we continue to see the big picture and keep moving in the right direction.

@latinamomintheheartoftexas  @latinamomintexas

Magnolia Elvis | music producer & recording engineer

@Dj_ron_t

You have to always be prepared to work; even on your off days.

VibeLabDallas.com  ShoutOutMagnolia.com

Addie Roberts | Registered Dietitian and Nutrition Coach

The most important lesson I’ve learned is that people don’t thrive under more rules around what NOT to do with food. Instead, I’ve found that lasting change is made and people are able to flourish and achieve their goals when the coaching message is promoted as food freedom without obsession around what they’re eating.

generalwellnessnutrition.com @generalwellness  youtube.com/generalwellness

Kelly Harrod | Body Liberation/Self Love Advocate

The most important thing I’ve learned on my journey so far is the importance of flexibility. So many times we plan with good intentions as society tells us that those who fail to plan, plan to fail. Some times life does it’s own thing, causing out beautifully crafted plans to fall by the wayside. Learning to be flexible has allowed me to be more forgiving of myself and others when things don’t go as I had hoped.

@the_self_love_squad @selflovesquadig

ChristFit Unashamed

Community is so important to growth of person physically, mentally, and Faith.

linktr.ee/christfitunashamed

  Ashton Lewis | Actor

Patience and persistence. If you’re working hard at what you want, don’t beat yourself up for, one, sucking at it when you first start. I’m a recovering perfectionist, so this is a hard one for me. And that’s an ego thing, right? If I’m focusing on how much I suck, that’s entirely about what other people think of my progress. But what other people think doesn’t matter: if I’m thinking about that I’m just torpedoing my own joy. Second, don’t beat yourself up for taking a bit to figure something out. Sometimes it just takes longer than other people. But what I’ve learned on my journey is that if you’re patient, and keep at those skills you’re trying to hone, they often open up and start blooming over time. It’s difficult to see in the moment but you look back and see what the journey was and how important it was to take the long path and struggle through it.

@actionlewis  backstage.com/u/ashton-lewis

Tre’Quwandous Love | Aspiring model Natural Hair Enthusiast and Hospitality expert

@shotbyadrw [email protected]

You have to move in life knowing that the things you are seeking are also seeking you and will find you in the most divine fashion.

@trelovetrelove @TreCLove

Diana Pàez | social communicator and journalist | Founder and CEO of Let`s go By Diana Paez

My biggest lesson in this wonderful journey I have been gone through is to be patience and understand that good thing happens exactly at the moment have to happen,. sometimes we reject what we have and we don’t pay attention to the wonderful things around us. I have learned that every person in the world have a special place and labor to do while were living the life and enjoy every moment in the present can be the only thing that change our future. Every lesson will be a part of the process in our life and we need to take them as part of example to tell other people that fall off is not too bad when we can get up and be better. patience is part of the process to grow in every dream you want to make it real.

@letsgo.by.dianapaez letsgobydianapaez.com

Lizz Hurley | Visual Artist

The most important lesson I’ve learned so far is that sales don’t determine talent. Sales will come, focus on perfecting your craft.

lizzhurleyart.com @lizzhurleyart

Jacqueline | Empowerment Executive & Life Coach

My Starry Eyes My Intuition is My Superpower! You Never need to justify your existence. Say less than you know; show less than you have. What I practice in private I will be honored for in public. Leave All in a better space than before I arrive. Allow my potential to come out and play big on the planet. Permission Granted!

@jacquelineisms podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/permission-granted-the-jacqueline-show/id1475436982

  Blakk Juu | Hot New Rap Artist from keepit1hundredint

That if you don’t believe in yourself, then no one will so I think in myself beyond boundaries of measurements, I also learned you need active, positive people backing you up so much love to my label keepit1hundredint #usagainsthem.

@blakk.juu @usagainsthem @blakkjuu keepit1hundredint.com @BlakkJuu soundcloud.com/keepit1hundredint

Brittany Smalls | personal blogger

@filmmaker_j

I think the most important thing I have learned is that you should always stay true to yourself. People (myself included) put so much effort into trying to conform to society’s expectations, we often lose ourselves. For so long I was scared to put myself out there and go for everything I wanted because I would look at someone else and point out all of the things they have, that I don’t and I never stopped to acknowledge all of the qualities I have. Once I realized that I am not unworthy because I lack certain qualities someone else may have, my life changed and I gained so much confidence. I have never been happier. it’s made a huge difference in how I view myself, in my marriage and in my life all together. What makes you different, makes you beautiful.

@_sincerelynotyours

Maria Cruz | Paper florista

@kittyboo_

There are many things that I have learned and still learning, in a world we’re everything is “help me and I will help you” you kind of fall into a pattern of let me see how much I can get out of the situation. I have other colleagues that do the same thing and they always advise me pick your prices higher don’t sell yourself short, its never enough it’s always to low! They tell me. I learned that when you start doing something you love and greed gets in the way, it’s stops being something you love it becomes WORK and the reason I started my own small business was precisely because I did not want to work a job that made me feel prisoner of my life. And when greed comes into play that’s exactly what happens you become prisoner of money of greed and everything that involves. Don’t get me wrong of course i want to make money. I am a mother of four and I need to bring the bacon but being honest. Now three years in this business I have learned how to price, how to help my customers and be smart about my business. I can say we never stop learning EVER but with the right mentors around and a little patience I have learned a lot.

@katys_flower_wall

Mosiah Perales | Goalkeeper | Goalkeeper coach and Instagram influencer

Over little a year of my Instagram account (I made my account on May 24, 2018), is that if you want to get yourself out there on social media, you need to know what you want and the goal of why you are putting yourself out their, but when it comes to interactions with your followers and people who view your content, open your mind for other people’s comments and opinions even if they are negative. I’m doing what I love and making my passion more than a dream. If you want something, make time for it and be dedicated, don’t be afraid of failure, I’ve learned so much from failing. I was scared to put myself out there and what people would say but I didn’t let that distract from what I wanted. I want to influence people in a good way as well as get noticed and hopefully become a pro soccer player.

@fuerzagkeeping

Justin Stringfellow | DJ/MC

The most important lesson that I’ve learned in my journey so far is that there is always room for improvement in your craft. Like many artistic pursuits, the DJ field is very saturated. In order to stand out, you have to work really hard and constantly be improving. It’s also super helpful to have others to look up to and learn from. The journey of growth is just as important as the destination.

@justin.thedj mixcloud.com/JustinTheDJ

Astrid Garces | Branding Creator

Josben Rodriguez

Life is happening now and I have to be present to live it. not holding to anything in the past and not worrying about the future. Also it’s too short not to do what I love and what I am really passionate about.

@astrid_garces

Zach Rigsby | Fashion blogger & Design student

The most important lesson I’ve learned in my life is to never let anyone else’s judgment or negativity drive what I do or wear but instead to let criticism inspire me to become better.

@zach.rigsby

Bondie Metchore | Digital Marketing Consultant | Web Designer & Social Media Strategist

In life, the biggest lesson I’ve learned is that change is inevitable. Things end, pain eventually goes away and there’s always a new goal to go after. Enjoying the actual journey is a blessing that we tend to overlook. Living life from a place of knowing that nothing is forever has helped me stress less during the difficult times and value more the beautiful moments that life offers.

In Business, I have learned that gaining a loyal client is more important than making a quick buck. People like to feel valued and heard and when you lead your business with love and service, clients always come back.

bondiemetchore.com @girldesigningdreams

Jonah Levine | Co-founder & Designer

The most important lesson I’ve learned is perseverance. The idea or the accumulation of ideas has in time been a bit of a struggle, but we put our heads down and figure out what needs to be done.

I’m very happy and proud of the brand that’s been created and we will continue. It’s a product for a niche market and we recognize that. Perseverance will get us through. Perseverance is what has gotten many things done in fashion and in life.

At L’Escalier we hope to bring the idea, the thought that while things may be difficult, perseverance can prove to be true.

shoplescalier.com @shoplescalier

Kyler & Kaelyn Silas (Ky & Kae) | Recording Artists/Musicians

When we were little, we were eager to be teenagers/young adults. Now we’re in middle and high school, and we just want time to slow down. We can’t believe in a few years, one of us will be off to college. Life is too short to just dream about what you want to do and not put anything into action. You have to always put your best foot forward and commit to whatever dream you want to come true.

@officialkyandkae youtube.com/channel/UCITNM6MLuu2CODIHATCuvQA bequestmusic.com

Zeke Jeremiah | Director, CEO/Founder of UTubeSensations and UTubeSensations Kids

The most important lesson I’ve learned in my journey is to trust the process. In the beginning I would get stressed out easily  because of so many things that would come up. Now I’m better prepared from experience, but mostly easy about it because things won’t always work out the way you wanted it too, so I relax and trust God through the process.

@campbell.zeke @UTubesensations @UTubeSensations-Kids @Forever-and-a-Day @zekejeremiah @utubesensations @utubesensations_kids

Trish Keller | Virtual Health & Fitness coach

The most important thing I’ve learned on my journey so far is how important the power of a positive attitude is. I started my journey in a pretty dark state, struggling with body image issues, unhappiness, feeling overwhelmed, and just feeling really stuck in life in general. Through coaching I learned to look at things in a more positive light, I started to look at myself through a more positive lens. Even on my harder days, when I’m struggling with competency issues or negative people, I’ve found a way to look at the lessons and the positivity in those less than ideal situations. And by doing that, I have gained self-confidence, self-worth, healthier habits, happiness, amazing friendships, and the incredible opportunity to help others find similar happiness for themselves.

@trish_keller linktr.ee/patriciakeller

The post What’s the Most Important Lesson You’ve Learned Along Your Journey? appeared first on Voyage Dallas Magazine | Dallas City Guide.

source http://voyagedallas.com/2019/08/26/whats-important-lesson-youve-learned-along-journey/

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The Bling Ring II, 2018's Least Wanted Reboot

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Reboots have officially jumped the shark.

We’re not sure whether the world needed a fifth version of A Star is Born or the 2018 edition of the Furby, but we have them both and early views bode well for both.

It is also true that the problem of repetition is not exactly modern. The phrase “there is no new thing under the sun,” is so old it is attributed to King Solomon in the book of Ecclesiastes. That said, at the point when crime sprees are getting in on the trend, we may have officially reached the point where we can definitively say there is one reboot too many in the world.

We’re talking specifically about The Bling Ring Redux.

The Bling Ring Rides Again

Earlier in the week it was reported that the Los Angeles police department arrested a criminal gang composed of three teenage boys and one of their mothers in connection with a string of high-profile robberies.

According to the LAPD, they were arrested after being pulled over in South LA. The trio allegedly had just robbed the home of Los Angeles Rams receiver Robert Woods. In the car was reportedly $50,000 in cash as well as assorted jewelry, watches and handbags. The mother of one of the teens was also charged in the case, in connection with a firearm also recovered from the car.

At the time, the police did not believe the suspects were involved in anything more than a single robbery.

However.

“During recent months, the Los Angeles Police Department has become aware of residential burglaries targeting actors, producers, musicians, and professional athletes living in the Los Angeles area,” said Lillian L. Carranza, captain of LAPD’s commercial crimes division, during a press conference.

The trio were eventually connected to burglaries at the homes of Rihanna, Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig, Christina Milian and her boyfriend, French singer Matthieu “M. Pokora” Tota. Rihanna’s burglary marks her second in recent months — in May a 26-year-old man was charged with burglary and stalking after allegedly breaking into her home and staying there 12 hours. The latest crew seemed much less interested in hanging out — and though there are no reports on what was taken, police have confirmed that damage to the singer’s home was “extensive.”

According to police reports the suspects planned to hit the homes of LeBron James, Viola Davis and Matt Damon next.

They were dubbed by local and national media channels “The Bling Ring” given their love of stealing shiny things — mostly jewelry — from homes of famous people, like the previous holders of the title.

The More Dramatic Original  

The original Bling Ring was a group of mostly of young women from upper-middle class California suburbs who between October of 2008 and August of 2009 collectively stole more than $3 million in jewelry and high-end designer goods from people like Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, Rachel Bilson and Megan Fox, among others. All of the suspects were described as “club kids” who were according a Vanity Fair piece “obsessed with celebrity culture.”

The original Bling Ring also had a few more bizarre twists and turns, including an impassioned voicemail from one of its members on what she felt was an unflattering portrayal of her story in the Vanity Fair piece.

“I opened up to you so that way the world could potentially know what a great, amazing, talented, strong, healthy girl that I am, not even a girl, young woman. I am PETRIFIED, petrified with this story! I am so disappointed. And I’m letting you know that I will clear this up. Have a nice life, bye.”

Then there was the ironic twist that this person also ended up sharing a cell with Lindsay Lohan during the month she spent in prison in connection with the robbery spree.

But unlike their more current version, the earlier Bling Ring kept much of what they stole, especially the designer shoes and jewelry. Today’s Bling Ring wants the cash and, according to reports, was interested in selling those stolen goods on eBay.

The Instagram Problem

Social media channels, particularly the photo-based Instagram, are excellent places for celebrities to connect with their fans — and show off their stuff. And this is done for very good commercial reasons — celebrity influencers have a well-established track record of using social media to kick of trends in cosmetics, fashion, jewelry and consumer electronics.

But the downside to social media is that it’s also an excellent information channel for the dishonest. It offers the world a detailed inventory of one’s most valuable possessions, along with an exact schedule of when one will not be home to guard them. The LAPD lieutenant investigating the most recent round of Bling Ring-style thefts noted that the boys in the group had targeted celebrities and professional athletes based on their touring schedules and social-media posts.

The original Bling Ring participants noted the same habits, though slightly adjusted for the time. Instagram wasn’t an option the first time around, but they did use social channels like Twitter and Facebook, combined with Google Maps data, to give them a clear idea of where the people they wanted to rob lived — and when those people would not be at home.

For most consumers, the risk is that the information available online about them can be co-opted by cyber thieves for digital fraud. For the rich, famous and heavily followed online, the threat is that the bolder thieves and fraudsters of the world are collecting that personal information — and making house calls.

Police continue to investigate the Bling Ring Redux  in Los Angeles, noting that they believe the scheme is larger than the four participants they have in custody.

The good news? Sort of? According to experts, the same tactics and tendencies that make it easier for potential thieves to smash and grab celebrity goods also make it easier for the authorities to eventually catch up with those thieves. Simply said: showing one’s ill-gotten gains on social media is a common, but not terribly smart, move.

“Criminals may be smart when it comes to operational planning,” Simon Atkinson, a former British Army officer trained in covert operations who now works for the Glasgow-based Athena Security & Intelligence Consultants, told Town and Country. “But the unintelligent ones are often caught because they flaunt what they’ve done: buying expensive cars and posting pictures of them on Facebook. It also makes it easy to find informants.”

The trick is to turn the jewelry into cold cash, but anything from a high-profile robbery is tough to flip quickly on the open market as legitimate buyers will question where the items came from — maybe even using some of those same social media channels to check on items.

Moreover, Atkinson noted, thieves who steal high-profile goods from high-profile people often find they have a problem on their hands. Unless, like the original Bling Ringers, a thief is looking to keep trophies, stolen items have limited use because they are difficult to sell when the authorities are on the lookout for them. Stealing stuff, Atkinson noted, is often much, much easier than selling it.

So even when crime gets a reboot, it generally always ends the same way — in handcuffs.

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[blogwonderwebsites]

Nature Kim Jong-un Will Visit South Korea, Leaders Announce

Nature Kim Jong-un Will Visit South Korea, Leaders Announce Nature Kim Jong-un Will Visit South Korea, Leaders Announce http://www.nature-business.com/nature-kim-jong-un-will-visit-south-korea-leaders-announce/

Nature

Image

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and President Moon Jae-in of South Korea at the Paekhwawon State Guesthouse in Pyongyang, North Korea, on Wednesday.CreditCreditPool photo

SEOUL, South Korea — Kim Jong-un, the North Korean leader, will visit South Korea “in the near future,” he said on Wednesday after meeting with the South’s president, Moon Jae-in. He also agreed to dismantle missile facilities in the presence of outside inspectors, and he promised additional moves toward denuclearization if the United States takes steps of its own.

At a joint news conference with Mr. Kim in Pyongyang, the North Korean capital, Mr. Moon said he expected Mr. Kim to visit Seoul, the South’s capital, before the end of the year. Such a trip would be the first by any North Korean leader, another dramatic moment in a flurry of diplomacy in recent months.

Mr. Kim said he and Mr. Moon had “made a firm commitment to exert active efforts to make the Korean Peninsula free of nuclear weapons and nuclear threat and turn it into a land of peace.”

In a joint statement the two men signed, Mr. Kim agreed to “permanently dismantle” a missile-engine test facility and a missile launchpad in Dongchang-ri, in northwestern North Korea, and to allow outside inspectors to watch that process. The Dongchang-ri complex has been a key test center for the North’s intercontinental ballistic missile program.

Image

Mr. Moon and Mr. Kim on Tuesday, en route to their first meeting in Pyongyang.CreditPool photo

North Korea also promised additional steps, including the permanent dismantlement of facilities at its main nuclear complex in Yongbyon, north of Pyongyang, if the United States takes “corresponding measures.” The North did not specify what it wanted from the Americans, but in recent weeks it has been demanding almost daily that Washington join the two Koreas in jointly declaring an end to the Korean War. Mr. Moon also advocates an end-of-war declaration.

President Trump called the North Korean commitments “very exciting” on Twitter. He also noted that the two Koreas had agreed to submit a joint bid to host the 2032 Olympics.

The Korean leaders’ summit meeting in Pyongyang was their third, and it was Mr. Moon’s first visit to Pyongyang as South Korea’s leader. The two had met on the inter-Korean border in April and May.

The big question hovering over their talks this week has been whether Mr. Kim would take steps to convince Washington that he is willing to denuclearize. American officials want to see concrete moves from the North, including freezing its nuclear activities and submitting a full list of its nuclear weapons, facilities and fissile materials. The North said nothing on Wednesday about submitting such a list.

Permanently dismantling the Yongbyon complex would be a major concession. Yongbyon is the birthplace of the North’s nuclear arms program, and successive administrations in Washington have tried but failed to get it shut it down completely, though its activities were frozen for several years under a deal reached during the Clinton administration.

Image

Women in traditional Korean dress waved from a balcony during the procession Tuesday. North Korea routinely mobilizes citizens for large-scale celebrations to keep them loyal and disciplined, analysts say.CreditPool photo

The complex includes a centrifuge plant that produces highly enriched uranium for fueling nuclear bombs. It also contains the North’s only known source of plutonium, another bomb fuel: a Soviet-era nuclear reactor and a laboratory that extracts plutonium from the reactor’s spent fuel.

But the North’s offer to shut Yongbyon came with strings attached. It made no specific demand of the United States in return, but it made clear it was sticking to its longstanding position that the Americans must match the North’s concessions in a “phased” denuclearization process.

And dismantling Yongbyon would not necessarily mean an end to the North’s nuclear development. Outside analysts have long suspected that North Korea has at least one other centrifuge plant that it operates in secret.

The North’s offer to let inspectors watch the dismantlement of the Dongchang-ri missile facilities also represented a step forward. In May, when the North destroyed its only known nuclear test site in Punggye-ri in the northeast, journalists were allowed to film the operation from a distance, but no nuclear experts were invited to watch. That led many to suspect that the demolition was just for show and that the site could be reopened.

Also on Wednesday, the two Koreas’ defense ministers signed an agreement aimed at easing military tensions along the countries’ border, the most heavily armed in the world. On Nov. 1, it says, no-fly zones will be established along the border and both militaries will stop carrying out artillery and other drills close to the frontier.

Image

Mr. Kim — and many other North Koreans, as seen in the background — met Mr. Moon at the airport in Pyongyang on Tuesday.CreditPool photo

Both militaries will also remove some of the heavily armed guard posts they have built within the Demilitarized Zone, the 2.5-mile-wide buffer zone along the border, the agreement said.

South Korean analysts have warned that much is at stake in Mr. Moon’s efforts to mediate a breakthrough in the stalled dialogue between Washington and Pyongyang. They said that if he failed to coax Mr. Trump and Mr. Kim to hold a second summit meeting, following up on their June talks in Singapore, the Korean Peninsula might revert to the roiling tensions of last year.

When Mr. Moon’s special envoys visited Mr. Kim in Pyongyang earlier this month, he told them that he was willing to denuclearize within Mr. Trump’s first term. But he said he would start taking phased actions toward that goal only if Washington reciprocated with “simultaneous” measures to prove that it was no longer hostile, the envoys said. At the same time, the North is continuing to expand its nuclear arsenal.

As a first step, the North wants the United States to declare an end to the 1950-53 Korean War. The war was halted in a truce, not formally with a peace treaty, 65 years ago, leaving the peninsula still technically at war.

Next week, Mr. Moon is expected to brief Mr. Trump during a trip to the United Nations. Then, Mr. Trump is expected to decide whether he will meet with Mr. Kim again. White House officials said last week that Mr. Kim had recently proposed a second meeting.

Image

The welcoming ceremony at the airport. The blue-and-white flags symbolize a unified Korea.CreditPool photo

“If my visit helps restart North Korea-U.S. dialogue, that itself will be highly meaningful,” Mr. Moon said on Tuesday.

Mr. Kim greeted Mr. Moon at the Pyongyang airport when he arrived on Tuesday, kicking off a spectacle that stressed the ethnic affinity of the two Koreas, while giving few clues to whether he was willing to give up his nuclear weapons.

When Mr. Moon stepped off his plane, a smiling Mr. Kim was waiting on the tarmac with a military honor guard and a large crowd of Pyongyang citizens mobilized for his arrival. After the two leaders hugged each other and moved to their cars, the crowd fervently chanted “Hurrah!” and “Peace and prosperity!” while waving plastic flowers and “Korea-is-one” flags that showed an undivided Korean Peninsula.

As the motorcade carrying Mr. Moon and Mr. Kim to a state guesthouse wove through Pyongyang, huge crowds, mostly women in bright flowing dresses, lined the boulevard, waving pink flowers and chanting for reunification.

Tuesday’s crowds were clearly mobilized to show the North Koreans’ adoration for Mr. Kim and their support for his uriminzokkiri, or “among our nation,” policy of stressing inter-Korean cooperation while the North engages in a nuclear standoff with the Americans.

On Tuesday morning, North Korea’s state news media told its people of Mr. Moon’s planned visit, saying it would “offer an important opportunity in further accelerating the development of inter-Korean relations that is making a new history.” It did not make any reference to its nuclear weapons program.

A version of this article appears in print on

, on Page

A

10

of the New York edition

with the headline:

Kim, at Third South Korea Summit, Hints at Denuclearization

. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe

Read More | https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/18/world/asia/moon-jae-in-pyongyang-kim-jong-un-summit.html |

Nature Kim Jong-un Will Visit South Korea, Leaders Announce, in 2018-09-19 07:45:35

#Nature of Business in the Current Market

[internetbasic9]

Nature Kim Jong-un Will Visit South Korea, Leaders Announce

Nature Kim Jong-un Will Visit South Korea, Leaders Announce Nature Kim Jong-un Will Visit South Korea, Leaders Announce https://ift.tt/2OwJzJA

Nature

Image

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and President Moon Jae-in of South Korea at the Paekhwawon State Guesthouse in Pyongyang, North Korea, on Wednesday.CreditCreditPool photo

SEOUL, South Korea — Kim Jong-un, the North Korean leader, will visit South Korea “in the near future,” he said on Wednesday after meeting with the South’s president, Moon Jae-in. He also agreed to dismantle missile facilities in the presence of outside inspectors, and he promised additional moves toward denuclearization if the United States takes steps of its own.

At a joint news conference with Mr. Kim in Pyongyang, the North Korean capital, Mr. Moon said he expected Mr. Kim to visit Seoul, the South’s capital, before the end of the year. Such a trip would be the first by any North Korean leader, another dramatic moment in a flurry of diplomacy in recent months.

Mr. Kim said he and Mr. Moon had “made a firm commitment to exert active efforts to make the Korean Peninsula free of nuclear weapons and nuclear threat and turn it into a land of peace.”

In a joint statement the two men signed, Mr. Kim agreed to “permanently dismantle” a missile-engine test facility and a missile launchpad in Dongchang-ri, in northwestern North Korea, and to allow outside inspectors to watch that process. The Dongchang-ri complex has been a key test center for the North’s intercontinental ballistic missile program.

Image

Mr. Moon and Mr. Kim on Tuesday, en route to their first meeting in Pyongyang.CreditPool photo

North Korea also promised additional steps, including the permanent dismantlement of facilities at its main nuclear complex in Yongbyon, north of Pyongyang, if the United States takes “corresponding measures.” The North did not specify what it wanted from the Americans, but in recent weeks it has been demanding almost daily that Washington join the two Koreas in jointly declaring an end to the Korean War. Mr. Moon also advocates an end-of-war declaration.

President Trump called the North Korean commitments “very exciting” on Twitter. He also noted that the two Koreas had agreed to submit a joint bid to host the 2032 Olympics.

The Korean leaders’ summit meeting in Pyongyang was their third, and it was Mr. Moon’s first visit to Pyongyang as South Korea’s leader. The two had met on the inter-Korean border in April and May.

The big question hovering over their talks this week has been whether Mr. Kim would take steps to convince Washington that he is willing to denuclearize. American officials want to see concrete moves from the North, including freezing its nuclear activities and submitting a full list of its nuclear weapons, facilities and fissile materials. The North said nothing on Wednesday about submitting such a list.

Permanently dismantling the Yongbyon complex would be a major concession. Yongbyon is the birthplace of the North’s nuclear arms program, and successive administrations in Washington have tried but failed to get it shut it down completely, though its activities were frozen for several years under a deal reached during the Clinton administration.

Image

Women in traditional Korean dress waved from a balcony during the procession Tuesday. North Korea routinely mobilizes citizens for large-scale celebrations to keep them loyal and disciplined, analysts say.CreditPool photo

The complex includes a centrifuge plant that produces highly enriched uranium for fueling nuclear bombs. It also contains the North’s only known source of plutonium, another bomb fuel: a Soviet-era nuclear reactor and a laboratory that extracts plutonium from the reactor’s spent fuel.

But the North’s offer to shut Yongbyon came with strings attached. It made no specific demand of the United States in return, but it made clear it was sticking to its longstanding position that the Americans must match the North’s concessions in a “phased” denuclearization process.

And dismantling Yongbyon would not necessarily mean an end to the North’s nuclear development. Outside analysts have long suspected that North Korea has at least one other centrifuge plant that it operates in secret.

The North’s offer to let inspectors watch the dismantlement of the Dongchang-ri missile facilities also represented a step forward. In May, when the North destroyed its only known nuclear test site in Punggye-ri in the northeast, journalists were allowed to film the operation from a distance, but no nuclear experts were invited to watch. That led many to suspect that the demolition was just for show and that the site could be reopened.

Also on Wednesday, the two Koreas’ defense ministers signed an agreement aimed at easing military tensions along the countries’ border, the most heavily armed in the world. On Nov. 1, it says, no-fly zones will be established along the border and both militaries will stop carrying out artillery and other drills close to the frontier.

Image

Mr. Kim — and many other North Koreans, as seen in the background — met Mr. Moon at the airport in Pyongyang on Tuesday.CreditPool photo

Both militaries will also remove some of the heavily armed guard posts they have built within the Demilitarized Zone, the 2.5-mile-wide buffer zone along the border, the agreement said.

South Korean analysts have warned that much is at stake in Mr. Moon’s efforts to mediate a breakthrough in the stalled dialogue between Washington and Pyongyang. They said that if he failed to coax Mr. Trump and Mr. Kim to hold a second summit meeting, following up on their June talks in Singapore, the Korean Peninsula might revert to the roiling tensions of last year.

When Mr. Moon’s special envoys visited Mr. Kim in Pyongyang earlier this month, he told them that he was willing to denuclearize within Mr. Trump’s first term. But he said he would start taking phased actions toward that goal only if Washington reciprocated with “simultaneous” measures to prove that it was no longer hostile, the envoys said. At the same time, the North is continuing to expand its nuclear arsenal.

As a first step, the North wants the United States to declare an end to the 1950-53 Korean War. The war was halted in a truce, not formally with a peace treaty, 65 years ago, leaving the peninsula still technically at war.

Next week, Mr. Moon is expected to brief Mr. Trump during a trip to the United Nations. Then, Mr. Trump is expected to decide whether he will meet with Mr. Kim again. White House officials said last week that Mr. Kim had recently proposed a second meeting.

Image

The welcoming ceremony at the airport. The blue-and-white flags symbolize a unified Korea.CreditPool photo

“If my visit helps restart North Korea-U.S. dialogue, that itself will be highly meaningful,” Mr. Moon said on Tuesday.

Mr. Kim greeted Mr. Moon at the Pyongyang airport when he arrived on Tuesday, kicking off a spectacle that stressed the ethnic affinity of the two Koreas, while giving few clues to whether he was willing to give up his nuclear weapons.

When Mr. Moon stepped off his plane, a smiling Mr. Kim was waiting on the tarmac with a military honor guard and a large crowd of Pyongyang citizens mobilized for his arrival. After the two leaders hugged each other and moved to their cars, the crowd fervently chanted “Hurrah!” and “Peace and prosperity!” while waving plastic flowers and “Korea-is-one” flags that showed an undivided Korean Peninsula.

As the motorcade carrying Mr. Moon and Mr. Kim to a state guesthouse wove through Pyongyang, huge crowds, mostly women in bright flowing dresses, lined the boulevard, waving pink flowers and chanting for reunification.

Tuesday’s crowds were clearly mobilized to show the North Koreans’ adoration for Mr. Kim and their support for his uriminzokkiri, or “among our nation,” policy of stressing inter-Korean cooperation while the North engages in a nuclear standoff with the Americans.

On Tuesday morning, North Korea’s state news media told its people of Mr. Moon’s planned visit, saying it would “offer an important opportunity in further accelerating the development of inter-Korean relations that is making a new history.” It did not make any reference to its nuclear weapons program.

A version of this article appears in print on

, on Page

A

10

of the New York edition

with the headline:

Kim, at Third South Korea Summit, Hints at Denuclearization

. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe

Read More | https://ift.tt/2xs45Uh |

Nature Kim Jong-un Will Visit South Korea, Leaders Announce, in 2018-09-19 07:45:35

#Nature of Business in the Current Market

[blogparadiseisland]

Nature Kim Jong-un Will Visit South Korea, Leaders Announce

Nature Kim Jong-un Will Visit South Korea, Leaders Announce Nature Kim Jong-un Will Visit South Korea, Leaders Announce http://www.nature-business.com/nature-kim-jong-un-will-visit-south-korea-leaders-announce/

Nature

Image

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and President Moon Jae-in of South Korea at the Paekhwawon State Guesthouse in Pyongyang, North Korea, on Wednesday.CreditCreditPool photo

SEOUL, South Korea — Kim Jong-un, the North Korean leader, will visit South Korea “in the near future,” he said on Wednesday after meeting with the South’s president, Moon Jae-in. He also agreed to dismantle missile facilities in the presence of outside inspectors, and he promised additional moves toward denuclearization if the United States takes steps of its own.

At a joint news conference with Mr. Kim in Pyongyang, the North Korean capital, Mr. Moon said he expected Mr. Kim to visit Seoul, the South’s capital, before the end of the year. Such a trip would be the first by any North Korean leader, another dramatic moment in a flurry of diplomacy in recent months.

Mr. Kim said he and Mr. Moon had “made a firm commitment to exert active efforts to make the Korean Peninsula free of nuclear weapons and nuclear threat and turn it into a land of peace.”

In a joint statement the two men signed, Mr. Kim agreed to “permanently dismantle” a missile-engine test facility and a missile launchpad in Dongchang-ri, in northwestern North Korea, and to allow outside inspectors to watch that process. The Dongchang-ri complex has been a key test center for the North’s intercontinental ballistic missile program.

Image

Mr. Moon and Mr. Kim on Tuesday, en route to their first meeting in Pyongyang.CreditPool photo

North Korea also promised additional steps, including the permanent dismantlement of facilities at its main nuclear complex in Yongbyon, north of Pyongyang, if the United States takes “corresponding measures.” The North did not specify what it wanted from the Americans, but in recent weeks it has been demanding almost daily that Washington join the two Koreas in jointly declaring an end to the Korean War. Mr. Moon also advocates an end-of-war declaration.

President Trump called the North Korean commitments “very exciting” on Twitter. He also noted that the two Koreas had agreed to submit a joint bid to host the 2032 Olympics.

The Korean leaders’ summit meeting in Pyongyang was their third, and it was Mr. Moon’s first visit to Pyongyang as South Korea’s leader. The two had met on the inter-Korean border in April and May.

The big question hovering over their talks this week has been whether Mr. Kim would take steps to convince Washington that he is willing to denuclearize. American officials want to see concrete moves from the North, including freezing its nuclear activities and submitting a full list of its nuclear weapons, facilities and fissile materials. The North said nothing on Wednesday about submitting such a list.

Permanently dismantling the Yongbyon complex would be a major concession. Yongbyon is the birthplace of the North’s nuclear arms program, and successive administrations in Washington have tried but failed to get it shut it down completely, though its activities were frozen for several years under a deal reached during the Clinton administration.

Image

Women in traditional Korean dress waved from a balcony during the procession Tuesday. North Korea routinely mobilizes citizens for large-scale celebrations to keep them loyal and disciplined, analysts say.CreditPool photo

The complex includes a centrifuge plant that produces highly enriched uranium for fueling nuclear bombs. It also contains the North’s only known source of plutonium, another bomb fuel: a Soviet-era nuclear reactor and a laboratory that extracts plutonium from the reactor’s spent fuel.

But the North’s offer to shut Yongbyon came with strings attached. It made no specific demand of the United States in return, but it made clear it was sticking to its longstanding position that the Americans must match the North’s concessions in a “phased” denuclearization process.

And dismantling Yongbyon would not necessarily mean an end to the North’s nuclear development. Outside analysts have long suspected that North Korea has at least one other centrifuge plant that it operates in secret.

The North’s offer to let inspectors watch the dismantlement of the Dongchang-ri missile facilities also represented a step forward. In May, when the North destroyed its only known nuclear test site in Punggye-ri in the northeast, journalists were allowed to film the operation from a distance, but no nuclear experts were invited to watch. That led many to suspect that the demolition was just for show and that the site could be reopened.

Also on Wednesday, the two Koreas’ defense ministers signed an agreement aimed at easing military tensions along the countries’ border, the most heavily armed in the world. On Nov. 1, it says, no-fly zones will be established along the border and both militaries will stop carrying out artillery and other drills close to the frontier.

Image

Mr. Kim — and many other North Koreans, as seen in the background — met Mr. Moon at the airport in Pyongyang on Tuesday.CreditPool photo

Both militaries will also remove some of the heavily armed guard posts they have built within the Demilitarized Zone, the 2.5-mile-wide buffer zone along the border, the agreement said.

South Korean analysts have warned that much is at stake in Mr. Moon’s efforts to mediate a breakthrough in the stalled dialogue between Washington and Pyongyang. They said that if he failed to coax Mr. Trump and Mr. Kim to hold a second summit meeting, following up on their June talks in Singapore, the Korean Peninsula might revert to the roiling tensions of last year.

When Mr. Moon’s special envoys visited Mr. Kim in Pyongyang earlier this month, he told them that he was willing to denuclearize within Mr. Trump’s first term. But he said he would start taking phased actions toward that goal only if Washington reciprocated with “simultaneous” measures to prove that it was no longer hostile, the envoys said. At the same time, the North is continuing to expand its nuclear arsenal.

As a first step, the North wants the United States to declare an end to the 1950-53 Korean War. The war was halted in a truce, not formally with a peace treaty, 65 years ago, leaving the peninsula still technically at war.

Next week, Mr. Moon is expected to brief Mr. Trump during a trip to the United Nations. Then, Mr. Trump is expected to decide whether he will meet with Mr. Kim again. White House officials said last week that Mr. Kim had recently proposed a second meeting.

Image

The welcoming ceremony at the airport. The blue-and-white flags symbolize a unified Korea.CreditPool photo

“If my visit helps restart North Korea-U.S. dialogue, that itself will be highly meaningful,” Mr. Moon said on Tuesday.

Mr. Kim greeted Mr. Moon at the Pyongyang airport when he arrived on Tuesday, kicking off a spectacle that stressed the ethnic affinity of the two Koreas, while giving few clues to whether he was willing to give up his nuclear weapons.

When Mr. Moon stepped off his plane, a smiling Mr. Kim was waiting on the tarmac with a military honor guard and a large crowd of Pyongyang citizens mobilized for his arrival. After the two leaders hugged each other and moved to their cars, the crowd fervently chanted “Hurrah!” and “Peace and prosperity!” while waving plastic flowers and “Korea-is-one” flags that showed an undivided Korean Peninsula.

As the motorcade carrying Mr. Moon and Mr. Kim to a state guesthouse wove through Pyongyang, huge crowds, mostly women in bright flowing dresses, lined the boulevard, waving pink flowers and chanting for reunification.

Tuesday’s crowds were clearly mobilized to show the North Koreans’ adoration for Mr. Kim and their support for his uriminzokkiri, or “among our nation,” policy of stressing inter-Korean cooperation while the North engages in a nuclear standoff with the Americans.

On Tuesday morning, North Korea’s state news media told its people of Mr. Moon’s planned visit, saying it would “offer an important opportunity in further accelerating the development of inter-Korean relations that is making a new history.” It did not make any reference to its nuclear weapons program.

A version of this article appears in print on

, on Page

A

10

of the New York edition

with the headline:

Kim, at Third South Korea Summit, Hints at Denuclearization

. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe

Read More | https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/18/world/asia/moon-jae-in-pyongyang-kim-jong-un-summit.html |

Nature Kim Jong-un Will Visit South Korea, Leaders Announce, in 2018-09-19 07:45:35

#Nature of Business in the Current Market

[marinareyesfranco]

Lino Diva$ Art Gallery from lino divas on Vimeo.

Post Internet Argentina

Partially published as New Media in Buenos Aires in VICE's The Creators Project blog, January 2014

Argentina boasts hundreds of artist-run initiatives, some of which occupy no permanent space at all, other than web space. There’s an infinite number of workshops, studios, exhibitions, residencies and galleries that may or may not have ever sold a work of art in their life, yet thrive culturally and contribute to budding local scenes all over the country. These projects, a lot of which are documented online in the website Proyecto CARA (full disclaimer: I’m also co-founder), are often much more interesting than whatever goes on in bigger galleries or museums because they are community-driven and respond to artists’ needs in the face of systematic institutional inaction. Some of these projects are so essential to some cities, that it’s become impossible to talk about art in the city of Córdoba without mentioning Casa 13, Rusia Galería in Tucumán or La Herrmana Favorita in Rosario. These projects not only exhibit artworks, but rather take on the responsibility of creating educational programs and constitute a network of artistic and, lately, curatorial residencies. Namely, these projects are doing what a lot of city, provincial and national governments are not doing: supporting contemporary art.

While a lot of projects rely on a physical space to exist, some are mutable or even virtual. In fact, these art workers are sustaining alternative art institutions with varying degrees of seriousness and play, but always with a lot of commitment, especially considering that basically no one makes a living off them. One of the most notable efforts of institutional transvestism is the Fundación para la Difusión del Arte Contemporáneo en Mercosur y Alrededores (FDACMA, or Foundation for the Dissemination of Contemporary Art in Mercosur and its Surroundings), an “auteur institution”, according to its founder, artist Lino Divas. FDACMA is only one of Divas’ many uni-personal cultural endeavors, which also include Fanzineteca (a zine archive), Videoarteca (video art archive) and the all important FDACMA Permanent Collection, comprised of art from emerging artists from the Mercosur economic community Argentina, Brasil, Paraguay y Uruguay and other affiliated states (Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Perú and Venezuela). FDACMA exists online and takes on various physical forms wherever Divas is invited. The fact that the project is his doesn’t mean he doesn’t involve many other people. In fact, in 2009 Divas invited several artists to create the future capital of Mercosur in ThisIsNotAGallery, each contributing a miniature building or urban area, turning the whole gallery into a model city. Recent activities also include the 1era Bienal del Pasacalle (1rst Banner Biennial), which took place in various public spaces during July 2012 in San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina. Hopefuls tweeted messages with the hashtag #bienaldelpasacalle to @fdacma over a 3 day period, after which 20 were selected via online voting. The chosen messages, which varied in content and character -from “Thanks Google for everything” to “<3 Legal abortion is life <3”- were then turned into banners and placed around town close to existing independent art spaces, creating a route that increased their visibility.

Lino Divas (an alias, not his real name) is also an illustrator, web designer, gif maker, creator of his very own online Lino Divas Art Gallery, art peddler in Mercado Libre (a Latin American Ebay) and an artists’ artist who will probably matter more to insiders than to collectors, if that’s even a concern for him. Divas actually seems to be the direct descendant of another secretly great artist, Benito Laren (also not his real name). Laren, a self taught artist, first burst into the scene in 1987, when he started creating his paintings on glass and participated in the tight-knit 90s art scene around the Rojas Cultural Center at the University of Buenos Aires. He is also a cheeky megalomaniac who wears several wigs á la Warhol, open collar shirts under white suits, always dreamed of becoming famous and claims to be inspired not just by God, but by Martians. With him, everything about his personal branding is and is not a joke. His work spans painting, video, literature, mail art and nation building. Laren is actually the king and only citizen of Larenland, for which he has issued postage stamps featuring himself in various poses and sent letters to faulty addresses worldwide, including Saddam Hussein’s, only to have them sent back to him, with the other country’s “return to sender” stamp as a sign of recognition of Larenland. If mail art is a precursor of net art, then Laren is definitely sending spam. Both Laren and Divas have created personas as part of their work and the internet is a continued source of inspiration and source images, but Laren is still lagging on the technological front, whereas Divas’ body of work is readily available online. Divas is all about the internet, whether he’s making illustrations about the spam he gets or digital art based on “ego shots” (now called “selfies”, but this was back in 2008). Both his preferred mode of inspiration and medium is simply low budget technology.

The internet and the possibilities of Open Source, along with a lot of low tech and PC related imagery, are closely linked to the output of several Buenos Aires-based artists. There are more conventional venues like Fundación Telefónica, which focuses on “art and technology” or FASE, an annual exhibition featuring new media art, but both support a simultaneously dated and hi-tech version of art, which heavily features robots and LED lights. Other artists explore ways in which technology can be used to discuss such varied topics as the perceived notions of institutionality, politically correct humor and even the Patriarchy through gifs, websites and tumblrs, but also using otherwise old school mediums such as painting, sculpture and photography.

Facundo Pires

One such artist is Facundo Pires, whose work expands photography, sculpture and installation, yet does so through printing experiments with failing machinery and researching amateur porn posted online, among other subjects. Mostly, what Pires is really doing in exploring the mechanics and limits of photography, both analog and digital, as well as image manipulation. In his most recent solo exhibition, “La línea del horizonte” (The horizon line) at Miau Miau gallery, Pires researched pornographic images and videos amateur performers would post online, retouching them into oblivion. Some film rolls, already a thing of the past because of digital photography, were encapsulated in clay and displayed on a shelf. A printed photo was displayed lightly resting on a rod that protruded from a wall. Pires is steadily developing an archaeological approach to images and paraphernalia: “what did we use this for, again?”

Adriana Minoliti, from the Queer Deco series

Adriana Minoliti considers herself a painter, yet her practice expands way beyond the canvas into feminist activism through art, curating exhibitions and editing publications. What Minoliti proposes is a transformative approach to art and life, providing a more integral vision of sexuality that takes into consideration feminist and queer theories. Her practice includes painting but also installation and photomontages, always working with abstraction and geometry as a biopolitical tool. Aside from the huge and stunning paintings in her show Playroom at Daniel Abate Galería in 2012, Minoliti has been amassing an impressive body of work with her Play G and Queer Deco series, both of which are photomontages. In Play G, which she proposed to Playboy Argentina but was turned down for being “too artsy”, Minoliti mixes naked women and geometric forms that interact with them. According to the artist, the abstract porn she works with “is post-pornographic because they mean to excite the spectator’s nervous system but criticize the statutes of pornography.” The Memphis Group, an Italian architecture and design from 1980s Milan is a clear reference throughout Minoliti’s work, but particularly the Queer Deco series, in which she places anthropomorphic geometric constructions in the midst of design magazine spreads. Most recently, Minoliti teamed up with mexican born but Buenos Aires based net artist and curator Gaby Cepeda, to create a series of gifs for an online exhibition that mixed both Minoliti’s paintings and their interests, ranging from Rihanna to cats, japanimation and the affirmation of power through sexiness.

Girls of the Internet Museum, a project by Gaby Cepeda

Another project that stems from the online exploration of feminism is the Girls of the Internet Museum. According to Cepeda, it's founder, the GIM was “born from a necessity to put together references, works and context that build sense around the girly internet experience, wether they stem from art or from the most random digital production.” The project came about in November 2012 during a workshop on temporary museums and express exhibition making by curator Pablo León de la Barra at the Centro de Investigaciones Estéticas. For the past year, Cepeda kept working on the project, developing a Tumblr-as-museum as a feminine, if not strictly feminist, institution. Integrating post-internet theory and international artists, from Jennifer Chan, Angela Washko or Jesse Darling, who are more upfront about their feminism, to Petra Cortright and Emilie Gervais, as well as the Argentine Laura Códega or Bolivian Narda Alvarado. The GIM manages to exist as both online exploration of “girls”, but also as IRL exhibitions and the ultimate thesis research tumblr.

Franco Ferrari’s show at La Ene in Buenos Aires

Franco Ferrari is another artist fascinated by the idea of museums. First in an apartment show and then at the Nuevo Museo Energía de Arte Contemporáneoand the University of La Plata, Ferrari has been working with the idea of high art, theft, copyleft and the possibilities the internet provides for creating your own high art Open Source museum. Working with high resolution images stolen from the web, Ferrari prints them -mostly in a 1:1 scale- to play with the idea of the palace-as-museum, that 18th century space that, through revolution, was opened to the public and served as a tool for civilization. Searching for frescoes by Tiepolo, he found The Immaculate Conception on the Google Art Project -a 100MB file- and became obsessed with the quality of the images he could get online. He looks for the gloss, crackle and the paintings in their original frames. “It was a matter of improving the internet search to get high resolution pictures. I realized that I could open a museum anywhere.” he says. Ferrari clearly admires the greatest of the art of the past, but also questions its exclusivity, bringing the masterpieces to Argentina or someone’s home through appropriation, his DIY attitude and a little bit of theft.

The term post-internet refers to a state of mind that conceives the world as a network; another way of thinking. In the context of these artists’ production, we can apply it to how they create being conscious of the networks they are operating in - from inception to production and how it is distributed. But it doesn’t just apply to how artists produce art, but to how they team up with other art workers to generate other projects. Buenos Aires is an exciting art city mostly because of all the galleries and collectives you might not hear of, yet are essential. Some of the artist-run galleries that have been important in the past few years won’t necessarily be there when their lease expires -Rayo Lazer, Urgente, Inmigrante, Isla Flotante, Bonjour, Big Sur and Militantes are some of the standouts- but they all would have shaped a generation of artists that conceive their work as part of a greater, multi-platformed art world.

#la ene #franco ferrari #adriana minoliti #gaby cepeda #girls of the internet museum #facundo pires #lino divas #FDACMA #buenos aires #argentine art #argentina