I was recently having a debate with a friend. He is a native speaker of mandarin & cantonese, and while I am a native english speaker. The essence of our discussion was whether or not character based languages innately improve a speakers memory vs alphabet based languages?
Their argument (for) was that this was the same topics such as the argument with Japanese blue v Green & perception. Language you learn affects the way your brain operates, so it is by itself a possible claim. Expanding on this, the number of characters you need to know for fluently engaging in society is significantly larger than the number of letters you need to know. He argued that if you forget a word you can sound it out & guess the meaning from its root and prefixes/affixed. He additionally brought up memorizing stroke order (but my counter there, that stroke order is fairly consistent across characters & intuitiveh
I argued against, as we don't read words one letter at a time anyway. It is remembering whole words, and to that end his own argument (remembering root words, prefixes, etc.) not only makes it comparable to mandarin, but in my opinion the Chinese radical system actually makes it easier to guess the meaning of a new character (at least in traditional) compared to english. Additionally I think the comparison to the "blue/green" studies is unfair - this feels to be a better example of nature v nurture. Does something about being a character based language speaker improve your memory, or does the fact that their (in china) education system emphasis memorization (poetry recitation, etc) lead to it.
That is a huge oversimplification of our discussion it was multiple hours. But the gist is, is there something about chinese & other character based languages that make their speakers better at remembering things?

Me (24F) and my boyfriend (26M) have been dating since 9 months. I am an old school, hopeless romantic kinda woman who writes poetry and stuff, doesn’t give up on love at all, till the last ounce of my breath. He was a F boy for 2 years straight because he lost his mother during COVID and he was trying to cope with it. But i gave him a chance to change and think maturely about relationships. We both are on the same page of having a sensible and serious relationship. But we have been going through a very rough patch lately. In the beginning 4-5 months he behaved very nicely and stuff, gave me time, was patient with me, validated my feelings (since i am over-thinker, so i need a lot of reassurance) but now the tables have turned. He asked me to support him since he was struggling financially and I agreed with him but as soon as i agreed with him, he started unpacking his stress baggage, talking to me rudely, behaving very differently, doesn’t even caring about me (even i am crying or i am ill or even at the hospital), blaming everything on me (for example if he fails to work because of his laziness or lack of attention he will blame it on me that i wasn’t able to work because you said me this and my all the attention goes there and my mind switches off itself and couldn’t work), stopped talking about the relationship and started saying me to handle everything, if i say something like i have been feeling the distance between us or just some general feelings of mine, he will start shouting and creates a fight, even though i apologise like 100 times, started treating me very badly (for example, yesterday I was waiting and roaming around the city for 7 hours in almost peak summers just to spend 1 hour with him so that we can sit and talk about us, i ate nothing and i told him that, he didn’t asked or cared to ask where i was or did i ate something instead just said sorry he was busy in work and couldn’t made it on time, i still understood his situation and greeted him by hugging him. And then as i started talking about our relationship and all the problems we are facing nowadays (honestly was on the verge of breaking up and it was a serious conversation) and he was still busy on the phone checking about the damn cricket match) And at the end still blamed me that he asked me to support him during this stressful time but he couldn’t see any support from my side. If i text him less thinking he might be busy, then also he will blame me that i don’t care about him, if i check up on him and send texts and still will get blamed that he couldn’t work because of me, while he says harsh and ruthless things to me but i endure all most of the times, thinking he might be stressed but it hurts me as well as i am a human being as well, so i bring those things up to him and still he blames me that i fight with him.
I mean i don’t know what he wants and when i ask him how do you want me to support you, he says i don’t know you should figure out yourself as you love me.
Can anyone help me what should i do? :(

In November 2022 an ex ended a 3 year relationship with me in a very dramatic and unhealthy way. I felt relieved; later I realized our dynamic was very toxic and manipulative.
Since then I tried connecting with new people, both through my social life and the apps. My experiences were a range of ‘not great’ to ‘horrifically bad’. An example of ‘not great’: on the first meeting the guy was crying in my arms because he was still in love with another woman. We are friends now. Example of horrifically bad: the guy would not let me leave his flat and joked about kidnapping me.
I am not really the type of person who needs a relationship to feel ‘happy’. I love my work, my interests, my family, I have many friends around the world, I feel always blessed and surrounded with joy.
In November 2023 I met someone from HK and I learned that something was missing in my life that I hadn’t even realized was missing. Together we created magical worlds in poetry, drawings, stories and shared experiences. I felt more connected to my creative and playful self, I felt more present, less invested in the digital world, enjoying the slowness of the world softly turning around me. I loved how he lives his life with intention, how he connected with all the little creatures around, how he cultivated a garden. Sex was also incredible.
It lasted 5 months. A few weeks ago it ended. For several reasons, he could not commit to a relationship with me.
Now I am trapped in the ‘what if’s. Imagining what my life would be like if we could be together. I am trying to bounce back, but it is not easy. Everything that was so fulfilling before feels so faded now. But I also don’t want to long for a person who doesn’t want me. It doesn’t feel nice.

Hi apes,

Can you feel it? Its finally here, but its not really anything like what we thought, ITS BETTER! That said I know how unforgiving you are so ill start with my superstonk credentials . Its just a link to my first post here so you will know that I am a dumbass ape that thinks the orange crayons taste the best.
Even so i expect to get torn up but I cant stop thinking about this, however before we start.
___________________
To Mr Roaring Kitty,
I want to take a moment to thank Roaring Kitty for everything. You made us a family, made us money and most important of all you gave us hope, there really was none. Even if we fail it was worth every penny.
Personally I had just lost my mom from COVID. We were so poor she died alone in a rehab bed since the beds were full in the hospital. We could not see her since it was a secure facility, she was just, gone. So many of us lost.
That is when I met the apes, your apes, your movement, and then it became our movement.
Kitty, you will never have to buy another beer again in your life. That goes double for your wife who also must have had to endured some shit, from both friend and foe. Hi Mrs. Kitty.
You didn't have to do any of this and you have inspired me and others to change the world, with or without tendies. You are not alone, we are on your motherfucking left!
Your Hamms is on us! Cheers!
________________________
APES I don't care if you do it here or anywhere but you let him know how grateful you are. You may copy paste the following "Thank you Roaring Kitty!".
alright so on with it, most of this is tin foil hat, but we are used to that.
Since we have so many new apes, many whom have felt the pain of being the victims of market manipulation this week, I will be defining things that are common knowledge for us Silverbacks.
all of this is, like my opinion man ok?
Disclaimer*:* Most everything I have learned of stocks I have learned with my fellow silverbacks. I am not a financial ANYTHING nor am I the algorithm Aladdin or the AI that reads these threads in order to change positions in the stock market. If you follow my advice you will end up naked in a small town in Mexico holding a banana in a moldy tortilla reciting Vogon poetry in Spanish pig latin (EFE)

WHATS WITH ALL THE MEMES FROM KITTY?

They are a genius move that do 2 things.
1- The Memes give us hints into what the plan is that cannot be stopped at the same time circumventing AI and the ALADDIN algorithm that reads these posts and adjusts the shorts position accordingly. While simultaneously making everyone ask "is it him?" this is called plausible deniability. Aladdin controls 70% of the market and is controlled at least laterally by a shithead named kenny, we don't like kenny, but he is irrelevant now.
2- The Memes are also a trap for the shorts who are thinking in an archaic way, spending literally billions to keep the price down using Synthetic shares. Maximizing the payoff by making them borrow more shares from us!
SEE GENIUS!
WAS E.T. HIS LAST POST?
You think a gangster like kitty goes out with a whimper like ET?

• V FOR VENDETTA (meme) the music is in overture.
• Run forest run, (meme) on a bridge 3/4 of the way over. Also a bridge is capital that you use to acquire businesses.
• 741 is everywhere which means the document filed for the 45 million shares and the possible use to exchange in stock for stock trade. also i saw the number 14.7 somewhere in there, percentage?

The last meme will be wonderous I expect nothing less from the man himself.
Selling him short like that, Shame on you!
But honestly I don't know.

WHAT IS A SYNTHETIC SHARE? WTF IS A DARKPOOL?

Synthetic shares, in the context of "seller boxing" and dark pool trading, refer to financial instruments that replicate the economic effects of owning actual shares without representing real equity ownership in a company. These shares are created through derivatives like options, swaps, or other financial instruments. When combined with seller boxing and dark pool trading, synthetic shares can play a significant role in market manipulation strategies. Here’s how this process generally works:
Seller Boxing Explained: Seller boxing is a strategy used to suppress the price of a stock by overwhelming the market with sell orders, often without actual stock changing hands. This keeps the stock price artificially low and can create a negative perception of the stock's value, making it unattractive to potential buyers.
Dark Pools Explained: Dark pools are private exchanges or forums for trading securities, not accessible by the public. They are often used by institutional investors to make large trades without exposure.
To KISS : Synthetic shares are just that, fake. But they important how we are going to the fucking moon, its how we are going to get paid. Last week a massive amount of dark pool synthetic shares were used.
At this moment you should understand that if the price is fake, and even buying at the tippy top last week is still a good bet, when MOASS happens.

OK SO WHEN IN THE FUCK IS MOASS?

According to the memes within a few weeks, be zen there is a plan.
This is the part where I get crucified by my fellow apes, and I am happy to take my licks.
I Believe that if MOASS could happen on the open "fair" market it would have in 2021 and again last week.
I believe that the only way to have MOASS is away from Aladdin, halts and dark pools. we must completely be out of the bog of eternal stench.
THE WORLD saw first hand last week, and it was maybe even for our benefit, that MOASS cannot happen in the fair market exchange with halts and the opposition illegal tactics.
So either GME cleans up the entire system that was created to work against us and take our homes, businesses and lives. Or we see what's in the box. (couldn't find the kitty "seven" meme)
I think that Kitty and the gang know this and we are all getting our tendies in a different way and Its bigger than we ever thought possible, BEAR with me please.

How would you communicate if anything you said was used against you? Ever had to prove you are human?

You see Aladdin and its bitch Ais ( I'm talking to you Aladdin, fuck you) can't understand memes, A computer does not know why Dickbutt is funny. SO the hedgies have weaponized social media against us with bots and AI. Anything you say or do is a product they can use against you, your words have value and sometimes determine what happens to your favorite stock.
Hence the Kitty Aladdin Meme
"They are fast but I am faster" Aladdin is the bad guy here. Go watch it again. "all you got to to is jump".
IF MOASS CANT HAPPEN ON THE fair MARKET THEN WHY ARE YOU SO HANDSOME AND CHIPPER?
Because of genetics and the filing of a document (prospectus supplement) and the EARLY preliminary earnings report.
It is not very common that earnings reports are released early. Very much less common that they are released early WITH A LOSS.
There was a big chunk of money "missing" "lost", where did it go?
Well put on your tin hat as this is what keeps me up at night.
KITTY/GME/TEDDY HOLDINGS/? wanted us to put together that they are creating a huge holding company conglomerate and we will be in it trading our shares for something that is shielded from the market manipulation of Aladdin.
The "missing" money is a hint along with the filing. The "LOSS" on the earnings report had the wonderful effect of triggering the algo to kick into gear and short the shit out of our beloved GME.
THIS MADE THE HEDGIES HIT THE LOWEST PRICE THEY COULD MAXIMIZING PROFIT GAINS FOR THOSE OF US NOT CHEATING THE SYSTEM
They used their own algorithm against them to put another nail in the coffin. I still am in shock from the move, bravo!!!
So what's it all mean?
I believe that Gmerica/TEDDY HOLDINGS (and others) has already been created, that the "missing" money was used in the deals. These were probably set in motion years ago, and cannot be stopped now.
For every 1 GameStop share, they'll get 4 of Another company they made the deal with. And for every 4 GameStop shares, they'll get 7 of say Shit, shower and shave shares, for example. (a real possibility, if you know you know)
This happens between companies attempting to purchase each other using stock as the currency.
As for the holders they will likely get to swap out their shares for the shares in the new massive holding company.
I think that we will be trading our stocks in for shares with blockchain attached and we will be shielded from market manipulation. (tin foil straight up guess)
Lets say this happens and they give a dividend. That would trigger THE MOTHERFUCKER OF ALL SHORT SQUEEZES. the MFOASS™
Oh and to get really APE kicked in the face here, since we would no longer need to lock the float to prove to some bought worthless politician, that they are doing something illegal DRS becomes less important. I say this having another 200 shares headed to the purple circle so be gentle.
Since they create shares from nothing then it does not matter how many are Street named.
I still say buy, hodl, DRS. but read the prospectus supplement. If I'm right it does not matter what you broker you use, you are in.
Add in the new CAT (consolidated audit trail) system although still controlled by shitheads and we have ourselves more than a few tendies. Which jives with GME and kitty not leaving any ape behind, not a one. I think the leaning forward meme is when it became active.
WHAT IS THE BEST PART?
The best part is that the companies that would comprise this conglomerate will include SSSY, Lego, Chewy, sax 5th ave and many others (in the memes) and it would rival amazon. Only less heartless and possibly even a decent wage.
Many of the stores that we would have in the holding companies were shorted into oblivion by the very assholes that we are revolting against.
Sweeet Sweet JUSTICE!
.... what I am saying is that...
oooo look a penny...
QH
On your left.
EDITED for her pleasure.

Term: Alliteration

Definition: Alliteration is the repetition of the same consonant sound at the beginning of neighboring words.
Example: "Sally sells seashells by the seashore."
Freewrite Prompt: The garden gate groaned gently in the gusting wind, while the moonlit meadow murmured melodies to the wandering creatures.

I am having a hard time understanding the proper way to pronounce an R after a constant. Some example words would be siempre, sobre, grande, fresa, secreto, hombre, padre. The list could go on. Is there a similar sound in English that I could try replicating? How do I position my tongue from the consonant sound to the R sound. Any assistance would be great, thank you

This is part 4 of a list of feminine primarch names and my reasoning for these names.
Please see the below link for an explanation of this project, my methods, and my intent.
I will keep the first post updated with links to the later posts to make referencing them easier.
Link to first post: https://www.reddit.com/PrimarchGFs/comments/1ctd7ot/primarch_names_and_etymologies_part_1_iii/
VII: Regalia Dorn (Rogal Dorn):
This is one I’ve changed my mind on since discovering this subreddit and seeing many people settle on Regalia Dorn. I originally had Rigel Dorn on my list.
I think I deviated too far from the original feel of the name for the sake of preserving the same number of syllables and consonance. Rigel is the name of a star in the Orion constellation. It comes from the Arabic “Rijil Jauzah al Yusra,” meaning “the left foot of Orion.” Rigel therefore means “leg, foot.” I liked the connection with stability since Dorn knows the value of a good foundation. I think I also was trying to avoid having too many names that end in an “A.”
However, Rigel has a very weak connection to the sense conveyed by Rogal. “Rogal” appears to be a combination of “royal” and “regal,” which are doublets for “befitting a monarch.” In this respect, I think the name Regalia Dorn is superior because it too refers to royalty, meaning “royal privileges / powers,” especially in the sense of decorations and outfits indicating high office through their ostentation. Dorn’s gold armor and status as the Praetorian of Terra certainly fits this sense of the word “regalia.”
VIII: Kore Curze [Kor-Ee] (Konrad Curze):
Another literary reference, Konrad Curze is a reference to Joesph Conrad, the author of “Heart of Darkness.” The story is about the search for an ivory trader named Kurtz in the “Congo Free State,” an African colony of Belgium that existed from 1885 to 1908.
This discussion is about to get very serious (discussion of racism, slavery, and human mutilation), so please exercise discretion in reading further. However, I believe this historical context is necessary to understand “Heart of Darkness” and the themes that influenced the character of Konrad Curze.
Belgium’s King Leopold II privately owned the “Congo Free State” and unofficially owned the Congolese people as slaves. As an example of the sub-human manner in which the Congolese people were regarded by Leopold, approximately 300 Congolese people were brought to Belgium and put in a human zoo designed as a fenced-in parody of an African village. Seven Congolese died of illnesses while imprisoned there as the public was allowed to gawk at them.
Leopold’s demands for productivity from the colony resulted in the population being treated worse than animals for the sake of extracting resources such as rubber. Congolese people were shot to death for failing to meet rubber collection quotas. Their hands were then cut off by their executioners to prove the bullets weren’t being “wasted” or stockpiled for a mutiny. The hands of the Congolese became a perverse currency because companies in the colony could offset low rubber production by using the hands as a demonstration the company’s militia “resolved” the low production issues. The companies therefore incentivized their soldiers to harvest Congolese people’s hands by promising to shorten the duration of the soldiers' service abroad based on the number of hands collected. Eventually, soldiers realized they could save ammunition by cutting off the hands of people that were still alive.
In “Heart of Darkness,” Kurtz is an ivory trader that has gone mad from his participation in these atrocities against the Congolese people. Kurtz had wanted to “civilize” the Congolese, indulging in the racist idea that black people required the intervention of white Europeans to lift them out of “barbarism.” Over time, Kurtz grew accustomed to the inhuman treatment of the Congolese people and even started to like it. He managed to create a cult that worshipped him and wished to indulge openly in hurting people for sport, unlike the other colonizers that hid their inhumanity behind more polite motives like seeking profit. Ultimately, Kurtz adopts a nihilistic view of the world where no one has a right to judge his actions because the world allowed all this horror to happen on its own.
Curze is a derivation of Kurtz, combining the name with “curse.” “Cursed” pretty much describes both Konrad Curze and Kurtz. Konrad is, as mentioned above, a reference to the author of “Heart of Darkness,” Joseph Conrad. Conrad is derived from the German name Konrad, which comes from the Proto-West Germanic “koni,” meaning “bold, brave,” and “rad,” meaning “advice, counsel.”
The themes of engaging in atrocities out of spite for the world itself are present in both Curze and Kurtz. Needless to say, this is the grimdarkest of all the primarchs and one a noblebright setting will have to do a lot of heavy lifting the rehabilitate in a manner that is narratively satisfying. I wanted the new name to reflect this shift.
I could not find a feminine alternative for Konrad. Konstance was tempting (I’m fond of Konnie Curze), but I figured if I was going to deviate from the original name’s etymology I should try to tie it to the theme of darkness in a way but with a more positive connotation.
The word “koni” reminded me of the Greek “Kore,” an epithet for the Greek goddess Persephone. Kore means “The Maiden.” Persephone is the daughter of the harvest Goddess, Demeter. The god of the underworld, Hades, kidnapped Persephone and married her, though the relationship appears to be one of the more consensual ones in Greek myth beyond that detail. Demeter withdrew her power over the crops and brought on winter while Persephone was gone. However, Persephone had already eaten food in the Underworld, which bound her to that place eternally. The gods negotiated a compromise with Hades whereby Persephone would remain in the Underworld for part of each year, resulting in winter, and return to the surface for the other part of the year to appease Demeter and bring on the growing season.
Popular modern interpretations of Persephone tend to be of a pretty girl that causes nature to bloom spontaneously around her before mean old Hades captures her and brings on winter. However, the myths are quite clear that Persephone embraced her role as Queen of the Dead.
Persephone is referred to as “dread Persephone” in “The Odyssey,” indicating the sense of horror the character is meant to evoke through her status as Queen of the Underworld. The epithet Kore was a way for worshipers to refer to Persephone without uttering her terrible name. The practice is similar to the Arcadian worship of the goddess Despoina, which literally means “The Mistress.” Despoina was closely identified with Persephone and may be an older goddess the myth of Persephone arose from. The goddess’s real name was either unknown or a secret and worshipers only referred to her as "The Mistress" to avoid taking her name in vain. This is a convention familiar to Abrahamic faiths, which often use variants of “God,” “Lord,” or other euphemisms to refer to their singular god.
I like how both Kurtz and Persephone / Kore go into their own types of darkness and meet two different fates. Kurtz goes into a darkness created by humans and is consumed by it. Persephone is taken into the darkness that awaits us all in the end and accepts it. I felt this corresponded better with a noblebright take on Konrad and his struggle with the clarity of his own destiny.
Thought of the day:
Fear the shadows; despise the night. There are horrors that no man can face and survive.
Feel free to leave a comment on these submissions and this project generally. I look forward to sharing more with you next time~

Do you have any? Do you like them on guys? Would you ever get one?
It's funny, I used to be deadset on getting tatted when I was younger. I wanted to be total patchwork, everything covered. I loved Mei Pang's look! (still do tbh). But as I grow up I find myself getting more turned off by tattoos. I once had a dream I had a huge back piece, it wasn't badly done, but I woke up and was like hell no I'll never get a tattoo. I think the idea of the permanence irks me, and I think I was so drawn to Mei's tattoos because they're symmetrical. One alone, if not minimal, looks out of place to me
I am happy my mind's changed, I look back to my old tattoo ideas and good lord. Granted I thought of them when I was like 14 but still, if I got some of this stuff tatted on me I swear that patch of skin would be cut off by now lol
Some examples are (keep in mind I was ~14): holly (??), "outlaw" (lol okay cowboy..), playing cards (or just an ace), a reticle (??? like why), John 15:13 (I have zero idea why I thought this verse was applicable to myself? not cringe just weird), the american idiot logo (I wanted this SO BAD), JOS logo (the middle row on the right) and ascii art. Keep in mind those are the relatively less embarrassing examples. I was such an edgelord such a weirdo ... I should delete that entire note lol. But that was actually funny to look back on. Just how and why
That being said, I am sort of thinking of getting a small quote tatted on my back, ~below a shoulder blade. Only a few words and not in a corny font. Unsure what quote tho, I love Nayyirah Waheed's poetry, I may do something from her idk. I want something easily hidden, I would also be open to getting one on the nape of my neck. Back when I was with this guy I dreamt of getting a tattoo of his initial with a heart around it on like the spot behind the ear lol, I wouldn't be opposed to something there.

Hi everyone,
I wanted to share with you my response to the introduction found in the only edition of Use of the Self currently in print. I believe it's a rather misleading intro to FM Alexander's work, so I'm sharing this in the hope that I can help clear up misconceptions people may have about the Alexander Technique, not derived only from Anthony Kingsley, but many bland blog posts one tends to encounter when researching the Alexander Technique. That said, this is not intended to be an introduction of its own, but rather something experienced students, teachers, and anyone enthusiastically learning the Technique may find useful. In the tradition of Alexander himself, I've included extensive footnotes, some painfully long. I'm happy to answer any questions or otherwise discuss what I've written. Understand these are my own interpretations and opinions about what some call "the work," so take them as you will. I've taken lessons for a number of years and currently am training as a teacher, so my view of the Technique is based on these experiences, as well as my interpretations of Alexander's writings. Some of these interpretations you may object to, but I hope you find my arguments reasonable.
Response to Anthony Kingsley's Introduction to The Use of the Self
The Use of the Self may be FM Alexander's most important work, since it contains his own account of how he developed what is now called the Alexander Technique. While Alexander's other volumes are available from Mouritz, the only edition of The Use of the Self currently in print is published by Orion Spring. This edition replaces the philosopher John Dewey's introduction—which praises the technique's "genuinely scientific character"—with one by the contemporary teacher Anthony Kingsley, who is heralded on the book's front cover as a "leading Alexander Technique teacher." Therefore it is probable that many readers' first impressions of the Alexander Technique will be framed by Mr. Kingsley's opinions. I submit this is problematic, since his introduction is in my view contradictory to fundamental principles of the Alexander Technique. I write this response to address the introduction's two most dire faults: Kingsley's misrepresentation of the concepts inhibition and direction, and his dismissal of the concept of the primary control. I'll begin with the second, since it is a more straightforward error.
Primary Control
Kingsley opens his paragraphs on the primary control with the opinion that the concept should be "recast," then describes Alexander's definition of the primary control as a "particular relationship of his head, neck and back [that] acted as a master reflex that conditioned his whole organism." Then he discards this definition, claiming the head-neck-back relativity should instead be "regarded as an indicator[sic] of overall health rather than an area considered in isolation." He concedes the "region of the neck and back is a [...] barometer of our state of being," but concludes that "no single element is actually primary," since our eyes, breath, digestive system, and all other psychophysical elements are "simultaneous and interdependent" and also like barometers. Finally, he reveals his "recast" of the primary control, defining it as "the unknown and unseen self-righting and self-healing mechanism that can be restored and vitalized."
In sum, Mr. Kingsley has presented the primary control—which Alexander wrote extensively about and considered central to his technique—with an ill-defined mystical force which, accordingly, Alexander must have unwittingly stumbled upon and mistaken for a certain relativity of the head, neck and back.
Ironically, it is in The Use of the Self where Alexander wrote of discovering the necessity to first free his neck in seeking a better condition for his vocal apparatus, since that was the sine qua non of taking his head forward and up, of widening the back, and so forth, which are in turn the necessary conditions of freedom and stability in the limbs. This is the genesis of Alexander's use of the word "primary" in describing the head-neck-back relationship, and in my experience, as in Alexander's, it holds true: the sequence of directions given to oneself matters greatly, since tense feet, for example, can hardly flatten on the floor if the head is taken back and down, whereas the head can be taken "forward and up"1 to a fine degree even if there is tension in the lower extremities, particularly while sitting. Further, and maybe most significantly, the relativity of the head-neck-back rarely need change during any manner of activity, whereas the arms and legs are constantly bending, rising, stretching, and so on. Small wonder Alexander considered this relativity primary.
Of course, Kingsley is not wrong to point out the interdependence of all processes in the body. It is certainly true that undue tension in the feet creates a downward pull on the head, neck and back. Yet what is crucial to understand here is that in the context of learning and teaching the Alexander Technique, the primary control is an indispensable concept. It instructs the pupil to guide his or her attention through the body in the sequence most fit to facilitate proper relativity of all the parts, and it names succinctly that natural, visible, dynamic yet enduring relativity of the head, neck and back observable in little children and animals as well as many great musicians and athletes. Thus Kingsley discards a practical concept in favor of a truism about "interdependence;" and so we come to his second, graver error.
Direction
Here it begins to seem that what Kingsley writes of in his introduction is not the Alexander Technique at all, but in fact the Kingsley Technique, since he has redefined not only the primary control, but two other conceptual pillars of the technique: inhibition and direction.
First, he takes aim at direction, neglecting to elucidate Alexander's own definition of the concept before setting out the axiom that "aiming for postural improvements using postural directions leads to a bodymind[sic] attitude of effort and trying, which simply reinforces the problem." Dismissing as superfluous all "ideas and images about heads, necks and backs," he declares that "the trying[sic] self is the obstacle, and the shift towards a non-trying[sic] self is the solution." Finally, he offers his own definition of the directions as "the natural flow of energy and vibrancy that exists within the organism," directions which are interfered with "when we are in a condition of stress and reactivity."
Here, again, Kingsley takes a practical concept which Alexander developed based on careful observation of his own muscular action, and replaces it with a kind of mystical or spiritual phenomenon which, implicitly, only the initiated can perceive.2 Thus the famous directions are not, as Alexander described repeatedly, a series of mental orders or intentions projected to oneself before and during muscular activity along lines one has reasoned out in advance, but a "natural flow of energy and vibrancy"—just as the primary control is not, as Alexander saw it, a concrete, observable relativity of the head, neck and back, but an "unknown and unseen self-righting and self-healing mechanism." These pseudo-spiritual definitions do a massive disservice to neophyte readers, and reveal Kingsley's muddled seeing in relation to the central problem addressed by the Alexander Technique: how to shed habit and coordinate the bodymind through reasoned conception and conscious awareness.
But for a moment let us leave aside direction, since a subtler and more misleading error still lurks in Kingsley's presentation: his dismissal of conception itself. He explicitly warns that "ideas, concepts and cognitive efforts reinforce the very mental instrument that is the problem in the first place," he advises us to simply trust that "the prevention or inhibition[sic] of reaction, maintains or liberates this stream of energy [or direction] in the body."
To understand Kingsley's error, we must return to Alexander. In Man's Supreme Inheritance, Alexander sets out four stages to the "performance of any muscular action by conscious guidance and control:"

1. The conception of the movement required;
2. The inhibition of erroneous preconceived ideas which subconsciously suggest the manner in which the movement or series of movements should be performed;
3. The new and conscious mental orders which will set in motion the muscular mechanism essential to the correct performance of the action;
4. The movements (contractions and expansions) of the muscles which carry out the mental orders.

Alexander considered "conception of the movement required" the very first stage in his technique, to precede even inhibition. Thus he made clear, if indirectly, that in the context of his technique, clear conception is essential to achieving a desired end. Incidentally, this is a fact any competent artist can attest to; if a composition is not unambiguously understood and organized within one's memory, it cannot be brought to fruition. Even the most simple act, such as extending one's arm to grasp a nearby object, requires a detailed conception of distance, weight, strength, and so forth; if the object turns out to be heavier than expected, the conception of these variables and their relation to one another, and hence the muscular action, must change. This is direction in action, albeit subconscious.
Yet Kingsley belittles conception, instead leaning on concepts like "ease," "letting go" "acceptance," and the like. He is not alone in this among teachers, but in my opinion, they overlook the influence of what Alexander termed "erroneous beliefs," a concept closely related to that of "unreliable sensory appreciation." Both could be read in the spiritual lexicon alongside "letting go," etc.; but that would place their referent outside the realm of what words and concepts can describe. On the contrary, Alexander was pointing to something concrete and empirically observable: to errors of spatio-motor perception able to be observed phenomenologically and in other people's behavior; not to transcendent truths about observation itself. Thus the classic example of an Alexandrian "erroneous belief" is a person who raises their arm and believes their shoulder has remained still when it has not. The key for the pupil in this instance is to gain an accurate conception5 of their own muscular action, in reference to bodily sensations; not to simply "let go" or "do nothing."3 And this conception must come about through active tutelage—e.g. Alexander Technique lessons—or, dare I say, the way Alexander himself did it: by reasoned experimentation, conceiving hypotheses based on careful register and analysis of his own sensations, and also by watching the behavior of others. John Dewey called the technique scientific for a reason.
All of this is not to understate the importance of concepts like "release" and "effortlessness," including in the context of the Alexander Technique. Seeing more or less what is meant by them is doubtless the key to mastery of all activities, all practices, all techniques. Yet those spiritual concepts should not blot out the very concrete technique Alexander developed for improving what he called "the use of the self:" that coordination of the muscular system, achieved through conscious reason, which influences for better or worse the functioning of the whole organism.4
Inhibition
So much for direction. What about inhibition? Under the heading "Inhibition and Non-Doing," Kingsley describes Alexander's understanding of inhibition as "an artificial pause between stimulus and reaction," after which he could "give directions to himself." Then he lays down the gauntlet, stating that in the "real world […] life does not offer us the choice to inhibit:" since according to neuroscience research, "neural reactions take milliseconds and are faster than conscious thought processes." In other words, "we either react to the stimulus, or not." So, with inhibition proven impossible, Kingsley is left with no choice but to "reformulate" another of Alexander's concepts, offering us a supposedly scientifically enlightened6 view that inhibition is really "a quality of non-doing[sic] that needs to be already available in the organism before the receipt of a stimulus." This is "a way of being[sic] rather than a way of doing[sic]."
This Kingsleyan inhibition turns out to be the essence of the technique, since it is this very "condition of non-doing[sic]" the teacher is supposed to transmit, through a touch Kingsley describes as "a dance of poetry and a symphony of silence." With it, the teacher imparts a "deep sense of acceptance" by which "change emerges in the pupil."7 He goes on to compare the Alexander Technique to "Zen Buddhism, mindfulness and the philosophy of non-duality," identifying the uniqueness of the Alexander Technique in "the transmission of immediate experience." In fact, there is no Alexander Technique as such, but only inhibition:
The Chinese Tao has a concept of Wu Wei[sic], which translates as surrendering to the effortless flow of life[sic], or non-doing[sic] action. Ultimately, the Alexander Technique needs to reinvent itself and relinquish the Technique. The Alexander Teacher really teaches nothing[sic!]. But this nothing or emptiness is in fact the deepest essence of being and the fullness of life. Like grace, it drops onto us and into us when the conditions are ripe.
The problem is that Alexander's own writings indicate that inhibition is not a "quality," a "condition," or a "surrendering to the effortless flow of life." On the contrary, according to Universal Constant in Living, it is "the act of refusing to respond to the primary desire to gain an end, [which] becomes the act of responding (volitionary act) to the conscious reasoned desire to employ the means whereby that end may be gained." As clear as day: inhibition is an action in response to the stimulus of conscious desire: a conscious, continuing refusal to do a thing the way one normally does it. Alexander saw that this inhibitory act had to precede in every instance any attempt to change his habits. Everyone is well familiar with the inhibitory act. The act of not indulging an immediate desire, however small, is it. So, inhibition is not an "artificial pause," but a phenomenologically observable process within the organism, a process that can be made habitual through practice. It is no more abstract and transcendent than blinking or moving one's finger.7
Here Kingsley again takes something ordinary and concrete and makes it mystical, going so far as to "relinquish the Technique." The trouble is that there is a good reason the Alexander Technique came to be known as such. A technique is a skillful way of doing something; a mental tool; a procedure. Ways of doing can be found everywhere: techniques for dance, for romance, for healing, even for attaining nirvana or enlightenment. Each has a goal in mind and is based on what worked in the past; each resorts to concepts to explain itself; each prescribes action, or doing something a certain way. Yet Kingsley dismisses the idea of doing anything at all. Equating the Alexander Technique with "nothing," he tosses out the concepts Alexander spent decades refining, when Alexander's genius was precisely to conceive a useful, coherent way of doing things through patient observation of the phenomena he termed inhibition, direction, primary control, and the rest.
So, the technique may encompass all the acts of living, but it is still a technique. Alexander often used the term "procedure" to describe it, and I think procedure is as apt a word as any to describe the application of his technique to the acts of living. He constantly stressed the technique's sequential, stepwise nature and recorded countless practical examples of it in action, both in hypotheticals and accounts of lessons. The technique is not a metaphysics or a philosophy like non-duality; it is a practical procedure with a clear purpose: restoring
advantageous, natural relativity of the head, neck and back.
Conclusion
The technique is blindingly simple but surprisingly subtle and difficult to master; and, as far as I am aware, it is unique. Unfortunately, Kingsley is not alone in overlooking the uniqueness and subtleties of the technique in favor of spiritual truisms and platitudes. I suspect there are two main reasons for this.
The first is the tendency of serious pupils of the technique to become more open to "spirituality," both philosophically (e.g. non-duality) and in terms of sadhana (e.g. meditation, yoga, self-inquiry). Many are enthusiastic about the similarities between the Alexander Technique and, for example, mindfulness practice. It is certainly true that the technique requires the pupil to have some degree of "mindfulness," or the ability to realize when the mind has wandered; and it is also true that a few people who devote themselves to the technique come upon some of the same insights one might find in spiritual practice. Yet spiritual insight is not the purpose of the technique. In my opinion, the Alexander Technique is a relative of energy practices such as Hatha yoga, qigong, and TRE (trauma release exercises). Such techniques are often used in tandem with spiritual practices meant for the cultivation of insight, but their purpose has traditionally been preparatory and salutary, not "spiritual." One need not stray too esoteric to encounter the idea that the real goal of spirituality has nothing to do with "ways of doing." On the other hand, Qigong explicitly aims to regulate qi in the body; kundalini yoga is concerned with the flow of prana; the Alexander Technique seeks to restore the good use of the primary control. More practically, the technique teaches mental discipline, and ultimately the ability of the nervous system to regulate itself. Such a practice may lay the groundwork for spiritual realization, but it is by no means indistinguishable from it.
While there is no point speculating about Alexander's private insights, one thing can be certain: he left us a definite procedure with a practical, concrete purpose—not a transcendental one. Yet Kingsley's introduction continually implies the Alexander Technique is an essentially spiritual practice with heavenly fruit. Disparaging the core concepts that constitute the Alexander Technique, he invites us instead to simply "surrender," "let go in faith," and blindly trust that its real essence—nothing less than Wu Wei—will be transmitted through the "rare, "unconditional" touch of the teacher.
The second, more obvious reason Alexander has been so misunderstood is that he rarely wrote concisely, and in any case, recognition and conception of the primary control can never be refined through words, but only through unfamiliar sensory experiences—either reasoned out, as Alexander did, or in the hands of a good teacher. Hence there is more than a kernel of truth to Kingsley's view of the "supreme value of guidance with the hands;" yet I differ from him in that I insist the Alexander Technique cannot be divorced from intellectual understanding and, indeed, conception.
The Use of the Self and Alexander's other works certainly were not without their flaws, but at their best they illuminate concepts which are nuanced, rich, and useful when applied. Primary control, direction and inhibition are three such concepts. Whatever their flaws, Alexander's books point the way to a wonderful technique, and they deserve thoughtful, probing introductions like Dewey's—not dismissals.
1 Like many other Alexandrian terms, the concrete meaning of "forward and up" seems incredibly controversial among Alexander Technique teachers. While I conceive it roughly as freedom of the atlanto-occipital joint, the term cannot be understood in isolation from the rest of the parts—namely, from one's conception of the primary control. It seems to experience it, one must discover it, as Alexander did, or be shown it by a teacher.
2 This is not to say there are not phenomena only some people perceive.
3An overemphasis on "letting go" and the like obscures the fact that Alexander always described the technique as consisting of stages or sequential steps, which in my opinion constitute the "means whereby" he wrote of.
4 "Use of the self" is another problematic term. Related to the concept of "good form" and "good technique" among athletes and musicians, it refers essentially to coordination of the musculature along reasoned lines, which is not separate from conception of the primary control. Equal and opposite is the term "misuse," since one's idea of misuse depends on one's idea of good use. Different teachers understand the term differently. Kingsley states that "bodily tensions and distortions become fixed and reinforced as we react to the general stimuli of living." True enough. Yet he goes on to imply it is associated only with fear, anxiety and distress. Again he couples this concept to the language of contemporary spirituality, trumpeting that it "alienates us from our own true nature." This is to completely ignore the point Alexander returned to again and again in his own writing: that the use of the self is inextricably linked with conception. No doubt, tension and imbalance are very often inextricable from fear. But there may be another class of misuse: one based on misconceptions about the body, unexamined movement patterns from childhood which have little or nothing to do with manifestations of stress or emotions in the body. I suspect one may experience profound psychophysical quietude yet still tend to throw their head back and down in relation to their neck and back, especially in movement.
5Kingsley writes that the teacher's touch indicates the "negation of trying and doing within the pupil." Even a token mention of guidance viz. the relativity of the body parts is nowhere to be found. Yet in my opinion this discussion of touch is misleading, since nothing like it can be found at all in Alexander's writings. On the contrary, Alexander stressed that the teacher's role was to demonstrate manually the proper relativity of the pupil's parts, with the means whereby of the technique; not to transmit "a way of being," nor indeed enlightenment or gnosis.
6 Neuroscientific findings relating to will and volition have proliferated in recent years. They may raise fundamental questions about the nature of self and will, but in my opinion they have little to do with the Alexander Technique, no more than they do with dancing or playing an instrument. If there are really recognizable activities Alexander termed "inhibition" and "direction," then his writings are timeless, since they speak from direct observation and experiment, not philosophy about "free will" and the like.
7 In spiritual literature one encounters, almost universally, the idea that there is no "doer" of action, or no "doer" but God. Hence Kingsley is implying that Alexandrian inhibition is somehow related to this concept, which Buddha famously summarized: "Events happen, deeds are done, but there is no doer thereof." In my opinion, the Alexander Technique has nothing more to do with this than does reading, writing, or playing a game. There may be "procedures followed, but no follower thereof."

For those who don’t know (including me, I had to look up what it was called), a sung-through musical has little to no dialogue, most of it is singing, like Hamilton or Phantom of the Opera for example.
I feel like it’s leaning that way, since we get most if not all of the story through the music. And any needed dialogue could be added into the songs. Polyphemus is a good example, Ody and mr stabbed eye are having a conversation, but it’s mostly all lyrical except a few lines here and there.
I wouldn’t mind either way. I know that Hamilton is a big inspiration so it might follow in its footsteps. “More poetry than prose” as some say

We met up on a rainy Sunday about a month ago and talked about some books. Our pick this month was Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn, because Assaulty wanted to read a story from an elderly perspective. The characters in this one were not really elderly - they were maybe 60 - but that's an advanced age for an international assassin. It seemed like most people liked it, though it's not everyone's preferred genre. It did resolve itself really well. I thought there were maybe too many main characters stuffed into a shorter book. The_OG_Bert liked the cold hearted professionalism the ladies conducted their business, they really leaned on their experience to their advantage. At one point they compared notes about the best vein to open up for a discrete kill.
Asterion7 brought a bunch of books he had read to pass out including The Wolf Den by Elodie Harper Stolen Focus: Why You Can't Pay Attention—and How to Think Deeply Again by Johann Hari, and Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel. He also had The Weird: A Compendium of Strange and Dark Stories, which someone had brought to a previous meeting. Maybe that guy will get it back some time. He's finishing and really liked Menewood by Nicola Griffith, the second of the Light of the World series. He and Skyverbyver talked visiting Pompeii and going to museums there that really made The Wolf Den that much more interesting.
Assaulty did the same thing - brought a bunch of books in an attempt to declutter a bit. She shared Still Life with Bones by Alexa Hagerty, No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy, The Moor's Account by Laila Lalami, and The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison. These are all exceptionally good books. She spent the most time on Ruth Ozecki's The Book of Form and Emptiness, and it sounded interesting enough for us to add it to our list. She also talked about other Ruth Ozecki books including My Year of Meats.
The Book of Form and Emptiness is about a neurodivergent kid, and Ozecki weaves in pop references and talks about education and mental conditions. But she approaches these conditions not as tragedies, but as new opportunities for perspective. It has themes about hoarding and decluttering, and even has a positive things to say about schizophrenia. She read Hollow Kingdom by Kira Jane Buxton, Richmond's Unhealed History by Benjamin Campbell, and The Hundred Years' War on Palestine by Rashid Khalidi, saying that the Ottoman Empire part was particularly interesting; and recommends In Memorium by Alice Wynn, about a couple of gay friends who bonded over a shared love of poetry going off the fight World War Uno.
Aimee tends not to pick up a lot of Contemporary Fiction, so she was not likely to get much from Killers of a Certain Age. She talked about The Fig Tree by Goran Vojnović with Olivia Hellewell translating, and a few other books like The Power by Naomi Alderman and is reading the Silo compilation by Hugh Howley. Coconut_sorbet read the three books in the Remembrance of Earth's Past series starting with The Three-Body Problem, and said while they are incredibly heavy and hard to wade through, it's totally worth it. Apparently the fourth book is a fan fiction that someone sent the author and he supported it enough for it to be published.
The_OG_Bert read The House is on Fire by Rachel Beanland, which is about a Richmond Theater kinda near where MCV is now that apparently burned down, and has been working through The Lord of the Rings. He's finding the audiobooks to be a really good way to experiencing the story, but found that the library doesn't always provide the narrator that you like, and that can ruin the flow. Skyver read Spark of the Everflame by Penn Cole, a romantasy that leaves you hanging at book 3.
Aurora has mostly been reading award winning books and we talked bout the differences between Hugos and Nebulas. One basic difference is that fans vote for Hugos while professional panels select Nebulas. Besides Killers of a Certain Age, she knocked out The Tower at Stony Wood by Patricia A. McKillip, which she says is YA but really good. Unfortunately the author passed away and Aimee brought this one in last time. She read The Spear Cuts Through Water by Simon Jimenez unique but dense, saying it's possibly a best book she ever read candidate. The themes are more about the oral tradition and how stories are told, and includes first-, second-, and third-person narratives. What Feasts at Night by T. Kingfisher; The Saint of Bright Doors by Vajra Chandrasekera , calling it a great Sri Lankan story but a little hard to explain; Translation State by Ann Leckie; The Water Outlaws by S.L. Huang, which is like a classic Chinese novel but with LGBT characters; The Terraformers by Annalee Newitz, saying the book had great ideas, but she didn't love the execution.
She liked Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh, saying it was the best novel she'd read in a while, so that could be literally out of hundreds of books; and Starter Villain by John Scalzi, who is a lot more popular than I thought. Muffin and Kim both liked this one, saying it was a popcorn read, but hilarious, and none of them wanted to ruin the experience by giving away the plot. There was also Shigidi and the Brass Head of Obalufon by Wole Talabi which sounded like a lot of fun, being a heist story about deities working as independent contractors with the main character being minor nightmare god.
She told us about Palimpsest by Catherynne M. Valente which she read for a book club bingo contest, which both Skyver and Asterion loved. It's very weird, about sexually transmitted passes to parts of a city. The book has a lot of sex in it, but Skyver said it's not sexy or titillating at all, it's mostly a metaphor for addiction. We talked about In the Night Garden and several other Catherine Vallente books, like Comfort me with Apples, Space Opera, and In the Cities of Coin and Spice.
Incorrigible_Muffin read a few books: Recovery Dharma: How to Use Buddhist Practices and Principles to Heal the Suffering of Addiction, which teaches a series of quick, practical techniques; This is How You Lose the Time War by Max Gladstone and Amal El-Mohtar; two John Scalzi books: The Kaiju Preservation Society and Starter Villain; The Other Significant Others by Rhaina Cohen, a series of case studies of deep friendships and platonic soulmates, trying to refocus of what society values to community and friends. She recommended a memoir by Rachel Willis The Risk it Takes to Bloom. The last one talks about becoming a woman, but missing those most important milestones in your life like your body developing through puberty.
She told us about You Dreamed of Empires by Álvaro Enrigue with Natasha Wimmer (Translator), describing it like a Bridge to Tarabithia but with time travel about anti-colonial uprisings; The Other Valley by Scott Alexander Howard, which she said was a mindfuck, but with interesting bureaucracy; and Lilith by Nikki Marmery, calling it lush and sexy and suggested you read it in a natural environment like a garden. I had brought in The Violence by Delilah S. Dawson for Assaulty to borrow, and Muffin said it is an excellent follow-up to Brutalities: A Love Story by Margo Steines. Aimee said it reminded her of The Power by Naomi Alderman. The author of The Violence Dawson got her start by writing Star Wars novels; I thought that was pretty cool.
We talked about Friends Don't Fall in Love by Erin Hahn, which is a sizzly slow burn, but funny; and A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid. But I didn't catch who brought those up.
We talked about the new series Fallout. I thought that someone who hadn't played the game might not be able to get into the series, but Coconut hadn't played it and absolutely loved the show - some of the scenes are right out of the game, and the nostalgia of the experience was the most exciting part of it. The show was set in LA, and I played Fallout 3 and 4 and New Vegas, and the composition of the scenes in the show looked like they were right out of parts of these games. Coconut also said that the Bad Batch star wars cartoon was straight up good storytelling. I've heard really good things about it, but then I look at the art and am immediately turned off. To me it looks like complete ass. Coconut agreed, saying that's the worst part of the experience, but it still manages to impress. I definitely need to give it a try. Asterion7 said the same thing about Xmen 97. Skyver is particularly excited about it, saying that the animated series is the only media that really follows the comics, and the comics were pretty awesome. She used an example: Mystique is Nightcrawler' father in the comics, but Marvel cowardly ran away from that gender fluidity in all their other media content.
Muffin was excited about Walter Goggins being in Fallout because of his work in Righteous Gemstones. Aimee is reading the Silo compilationand respects what the show did. Of the written series, Asterion7 didn't like Dust, and Coconut didn't like either of the second or third books, but both loved the first one. Most people who have seen it have good things to say about Star Trek - Discovery. I keep confusing it with Voyager. I'm not sure why, but I've always avoided it because of that.
Coming up on May 19

• story about some kind of conspiracy

Coming up on June 23

• Any kind of graphic novel - I'll have a couple to lend out if anyone needs

Coming up on July 21

• Looking Glass Sound by Catriona Ward. Laucchi recommends to go into this book blind.

Coming up on August 18

• The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozecki

Coming up on September 22

• Palimpsest by Catherynne M. Valente

So I've been into these systems for three years now, but I've recently come to doubt my whole typology. I'm not going to say what I've been typed as before though, because I'd like to avoid bias.
It'd be cool if you tried to type me in other systems as well, such as Enneagram, Socionics, Psychosophy/Attitudinal Psyche, Big 5, Temperaments, Jungian...

1. I'm a very closed off person who needs a lot of time to recharge since people wear me out, but I've been told I come across as a highly energetic, hardworking and overall as an inspiring and determined person. For instance, I always strive for the best, even if that means sacrificing my comfort (like going to one of the best universities in my country even if it's like over 100 km from home and I have to wake up at 5 AM everyday), and I'm always passionate about pursuing something to improve myself, because I'd hate to feel like I'm wasting time lazing around.
   
2. People see me as someone responsible to rely on, they have told me I'm a good listener and understand them well, I give honest advice while also taking into consideration their feelings and reactions (I don't want to come across as offensive and insensitive), and in general I like giving a good impression. I mean, I can't stand fake people, but I still feel it's important to portray yourself in a good light. I think you must treat others the same way you'd like to be treated, that is, with respect (but, of course, if they cross me, I'll act spiteful towards them, since that's what they deserve).
   
3. Despite trying to be reasonable at all times and doing my best not to come across as overly emotional, I'm very anxious and tend to catastrophize, so while it's not usual, when it happens, my outbursts are strong. Then, I feel like trash after it all happens, since I perceive it as me having made a fool of myself. My feelings tend to escalate quickly, and sometimes due to something that it's not THAT important, so it's helpful to have someone slow me down and help me see the big picture. I can also be too straightforward as well, to the point that I sometimes end up being reckless. For example, there has been multiple times where I suddenly felt the urge to insult someone because they did something that offended me; in those cases I fortunately had a friend to shut me up and distract me from it because they know I might not be able to wait until they're out of sight to complain about them.
   
4. While at a distance I might seem intimidating and stern, people close to me see me as innerly soft, sensitive and pretty much a romantic prone to sentimentality. I've always had a hard time with processing emotions, because since I was a kid I've been taught "emotions are for the weak", so I tried to repress them. It wasn't until I discovered my passion for poetry that I finally learned to come into contact with them and understand them without shame. Currently, I feel like I have an easier time expressing myself and I'm not as repelled of my own feelings like I was in the past... Many people have actually told me, to my surprise, that my face is amusingly expressive, like I'm transparent even if I try my best to hide myself from the world. That said, I communicate my feelings through poems, so while I'd like the other person to take the initiative in this regard, I'll try to reciprocate it my way.
   
5. However, I can also be quite passive and insecure when I feel oppressed and vulnerable in my environment (I feel like the whole world is against me in such circumstances), so I tend to walk on eggshells most of the time just in case. I'd say I'm mostly awkward, and I never know how to interact with my surroundings properly. If I've done it well, it's likely that I've just been lucky. This has led me to be isolated most of my life, and despite the fact that I currently have some connections with people, I feel like it's still not enough. I'm very private, secretive, and harbour trust issues; but I also crave intense connection with people I've taken a liking to (after a long time assessing if they're trustful enough for me to grow attached to them, since I place a lot of value on loyalty and suffer a lot when those close to me suddenly disappear from my life). I'm really compassionate with others, so some people have taken advantage of my kindness to then stab me in the back when I least expected it, which has made me become outwardly distant and unapproachable through the years (when the truth is that I'm just terrified of people). I've always had this impulse to help and protect those in need when they couldn't stand up for themselves, so it's curious how much compassion I could feel for others when I couldn't feel it for myself. Anyway, I still hold those around me to high standards, which I apply to myself as well.
   
6. On the other hand, I place a lot of value to my appearance too. Like poetry, my own style is a way to express who I am as a person, and I can't understand nor find myself attracted to people who don't care at all regarding this part of themselves... It's as if they're neglecting one of the most important ways to make themselves appealing to both themselves and others. For me, it's also a way to feel better about myself, since the attractiveness and health of the body is just as important as that of the mind.
   
7. Now, I suck at everything related to numbers or economics. They're so boring and uninteresting to me that my brain shuts down when something related to it comes up (I already suffer enough in law school whenever I'm forced to do subjects involving financial law or the like). I've always been more drawn to humanitarian subjects like languages, literature...
   
8. I'm highly impatient (I get easily frustrated when something doesn't go my way like "it's supposed to", and I can grow envious and resentful towards someone that did it better than me), irritable (I'm peaceful until something or someone crosses me), and pessimistic (if something remotely bad happens, then that means it's all doomed to fail). I can be intolerant as well, easily despising someone others might be indifferent to, and I've been told to be impulsive too when I fail to guard myself from what makes me react aggressively either to others or myself. In addition, I cannot deal with people that are too aloof to descifer, like it's obvious they're keeping something from me, but they will lie and tell me "it's okay" while it's obvious that it's not, and their facial expressions are so dull that I won't even be able to extract the minimum out of them. In such circumstances I might flare up to try to get them out of their shell in order to know whatever they're hiding away from me; but that typically ends up driving them away from me further (which pisses me off to no end). I like straightforward people who are not cowards and will make things clear from the beginning, even if it hurts.
   
9. Regarding my mannerisms, they're mostly stiff, instead of smooth or soft. As I said, I come across as energetic even if I slept 4 hours that day, I walk and talk VERY quickly (people who speak and move slowly get on my nerves), and I can be very expressive and loud if I'm feeling comfortable enough with the person I'm with (I can even look extroverted next to my quieter friends). I also don't have any shame at all when it comes to myself; I can talk about anything weird or rant about my nerdy interests and creepy fixations to the point of becoming obnoxious without giving a damn about the reaction of the other person. I may even enjoy making the other person embarrassed and teasing them, since it's hilarious. Fortunately, I'm good at eliciting interest in others, so oftentimes I can drag them into the abyss of my obsessions and teach them all about it.
   
10. Aside from poetry, my other interests are varied. For instance, I also love reading old books, writing stories, creating original characters and researching whichever area of interest I'm into at the moment. I like to maintain an active lifestyle too. In the future, I strive to become financially successful (that's why I'm in a career that is going to bring me a lot of opportunities), independent, and travel and learn as much as I can to improve both myself and my talents. I'm overall a very individualistic person, but I'd like to meet more people who align with my values as well; without at least someone by my side with whom I can share myself I become depressed.
    

I'd appreciate it if someone is willing to try to type me via chat too, if that's more comfortable for you.

When an author metaphorically pours their heart and soul into their writing, whether it be a novel, poem, song, or any other kind of writing, they also literally pour magic power into it, although it will be dormant for a while. After many years, that power will awaken, and reading these magical writings can cause miraculous events to happen.
For example, let's say someone is trapped indoors due to incessant rain, and decides to read some old poetry to pass the time. One of the poems is about a storm reaching its end and the sky clearing up. The person reads the poem, and then looks up to see that the rain has stopped and the sky is clear. For another example, let's say a person has badly injured their legs and is now in a wheelchair. They read a book about someone who, although wheelchair-bound, dreams of being able to walk again someday. After reading, the person realizes that their legs are completely healed, and they can walk again.
Another way this can work is through delusion. Let's say that an ancient grimoire is discovered that gives instructions on how to summon a demon that can grant you a wish in exchange for you giving up your soul. The reality is that the demon never existed. The author of the grimoire was insane, and would often have vivid hallucinations. However, when someone follows the grimoire's instructions, the demon appears and offers the wish, just as it was written. The demon came into existence because of the author putting their delusions into writing.
This is an idea I came up with a few years ago, but I don't know if I'll actually use it in any writing of mine. Feel free to draw inspiration from this is you want.

Looking to see if anyone can point me in the right direction, but there's something about stayed gone that I just can't put my finger on.
It's the charismatic not-quite singing, but rhythmic rapping over the jazz. I don't quite know how to describe it, or how to put it into search terms to find more. I'm especially referring to the second section of the music, after the slow bit at the start, where Vox begins the broadcast, and he goes off frantic and mayhem-like.
It's a rap battle, but not quite "rap". It reminds me of Hamilton, but the entire style and the way they perform the lyrics is different somehow. The most comparable bit of hamilton is in non-stop, where Aaron burr just starts rambling sorta out of the songs rhythm but still keeps in time, as he's marvelling at Hamiltons accomplishments, or the almost rap-battle style conversation they have about the constitition. Though, this song comes off as way more fluid and conversational than in Hamilton, which has tighter rhythms and attention (don't get me wrong, I love Hamilton, but it's different somehow to this) So it's like rap but not.
It also reminds me of the kind of arrogant (in a good way) American Big band personalities, with a very blatant American accent (again in a good way) as they tell a story, or engage the audience, or read out soloists names. Where it isn't quite singing, not quite rapping, and fairly detached from the music beneath it. But the music doesn't stop, and it isn't silence. The band keeps going doing their own thing, while the "personality" rambles.
Other examples that give me similar vibes are the musicals Hairspray (or mamma Mia, but that's much less jazz...and also less good imo) For example, in the song welcome to the 60's, the music quietens down for a moment while they negotiate a deal, and then comes back in. The deal happens over the music, not quite detached, but still doing its own thing.
Honestly, the best comparison I can draw for the kinda thing I'm after is the Mr hippo speeches from fnaf ultimate. Imagine if Mr Hippo were a character in a musical, and was performing one of his death speeches quickly over a big band.
Kinda like spoken poetry ig + lots of background music.
(Edit because I just thought of another cool example) tick tick boom. I've never seen the original but I've seen the Andrew Garfield version. The half-frantic narration he does is quite similar to what I'm after.
Can anyone direct me towards this oddly specific type of music? I wanna listen to much more of it (I'm also working on my own album — just a teenager so just having fun messing around on musescore and my keyboard — and I REALLY wanna harness this kinda spoken rap poetry big band personality mesh into it) Defo could've just said "anyone got more music like this" but I wanna try to be specific about what aspect of the music I'm looking for — I've got tonnes of jazz I listen to but it doesn't quite scratch the itch this song does. So does anyone have any cool songs or albums specifically in this style I've (tried to 💀) convey here?
Mega thanks in advance.

1. Device Identification Exercise:

• Provide excerpts from various texts and ask students to identify and annotate instances of specific literary devices.
  
• Discuss their findings as a class, exploring different interpretations and applications of the devices.
  

1. Creative Writing Prompts:

• Assign each student a specific literary device and ask them to craft a short story or poem that prominently features that device.
  
• Encourage creativity and exploration of the device's nuances in their narratives.
  

1. Literary Analysis Essays:

• Assign students a literary work (poem, speech, or prose) and ask them to write an essay analyzing the author's use of a chosen literary device.
  
• Emphasize the impact of the device on the overall theme and tone of the work.
  

1. Collaborative Storytelling:

• Divide the class into small groups and have each group create a collaborative story.
  
• Assign a different literary device to each group, instructing them to incorporate it seamlessly into their narrative.
  

1. Speech Writing and Delivery:

• Have students choose a social or political topic and write a persuasive speech using anaphora or epizeuxis to enhance their rhetorical impact.
  
• Organize a speech delivery session where students showcase their use of repetition for emphasis.
  

1. Literary Device Showcase:

• Assign each student or group a different literary device and ask them to prepare a presentation showcasing its historical origins, notable examples, and contemporary usage.
  
• Encourage multimedia elements such as visuals or short video clips to enhance engagement.
  

1. Rewriting Exercises:

• Provide sentences or paragraphs containing common expressions and ask students to rewrite them using more complex literary devices.
  
• Discuss the impact of the changes on tone, mood, and overall meaning.
  

1. Debate on Stylistic Choices:
   • Organize a debate where students defend or critique an author's use of a specific literary device in a given text.

• Encourage students to articulate how the device contributes to or detracts from the effectiveness of the work.

1. Literary Device Scavenger Hunt:

• Provide a list of literary devices and have students search for examples in books, articles, or online.
  
• Discuss their findings in class, exploring how different authors use the same device in diverse ways.
  

1. Themed Poetry Slam:

- Task students with creating a thematic poetry slam where each participant focuses on a different literary device. - Host a class poetry slam event where students perform their pieces and discuss their choices. 

1. Interactive Online Quizzes:

- Curate online quizzes or interactive activities that allow students to self-assess their understanding of literary devices. - Provide instant feedback to reinforce learning. 

1. Peer Review and Feedback:

- Implement peer review sessions where students exchange their creative writing assignments and provide constructive feedback on the integration of literary devices. - Encourage discussions on the effectiveness of different approaches. 

1. Literary Device Journal:

- Assign students a literary device to track in their personal reading over a set period. - Have them maintain a journal documenting instances of the device, their interpretations, and reflections on its impact. 

1. Literary Device Bingo:

- Create bingo cards with different literary devices - As students encounter instances of these devices in class readings or discussions, they mark off the corresponding squares on their bingo cards. 

1. Real-world Application Project:

- Challenge students to find examples of literary devices in advertisements, speeches, or news articles. - Present their findings, discussing how the devices are employed for persuasive or artistic purposes in the real world. 

Week 3: Villanelles and Ekphrastic Poetry - Lecture and Discussion
Objective: - Explore the structured repetition of villanelles and the visual inspiration of ekphrastic poetry. - Understand the fixed form of villanelles and their emotional impact. - Discuss the interplay between visual art and written expression in ekphrastic poetry.
Day 1: Introduction to Villanelles - Lecture: - Definition and characteristics of villanelles. - Explanation of the ABA ABA ABA ABA ABA ABAA rhyme scheme.

• Discussion Questions:
  1. What intrigues you about the structured repetition of villanelles?
  2. Why is the ABA ABA ABA ABA ABA ABAA rhyme scheme significant in villanelles?
  3. Can you think of any famous villanelles or poets known for this style?

Day 2: Analyzing Villanelles - Part 1 - Lecture: - In-depth analysis of classic villanelles. - Exploration of the emotional impact through repetition.

• Discussion Questions:
  1. How does the repetition in the villanelles contribute to their emotional resonance?
  2. What themes or emotions are effectively conveyed through this structured form?
  3. Share your thoughts on the impact of repetition on the reader.

Day 3: Analyzing Villanelles - Part 2 - Lecture: - Discussing modern variations and themes in villanelles. - Exploring the versatility of the form.

• Discussion Questions:
  1. How have modern villanelles evolved in terms of themes and structure?
  2. In what ways does the fixed form of a villanelle challenge or enhance creativity?
  3. Share examples of emotions or themes that might work well in a villanelle.

Day 4: Crafting Villanelles - Part 1 - Lecture: - Step-by-step guide on crafting the first four lines of a villanelle. - Emphasis on creating a strong thematic foundation.

• Discussion Questions:
  1. What challenges do you anticipate in crafting the first four lines of a villanelle?
  2. How can you establish a strong thematic foundation within this repetition?
  3. Share examples of themes or emotions suitable for a villanelle.

Day 5: Crafting Villanelles - Part 2 - Lecture: - Step-by-step guide on crafting the final three lines of a villanelle. - Emphasis on creating resolution and impact.

• Discussion Questions:
  1. Why is the final three-line structure crucial in providing resolution in a villanelle?
  2. How can a villanelle evoke a sense of completeness within the repeated lines?
  3. Share and discuss individual villanelles, highlighting successful elements.

Homework Assignment: - Craft a villanelle focusing on a theme or emotion that lends itself well to repetition.
Study Guide Questions: 1. Reflect on the challenges of crafting the first four lines of your villanelle. How did you establish a strong thematic foundation? 2. How did you approach creating resolution and impact in the final three lines of your villanelle? 3. What insights did you gain from the process of crafting a villanelle?
Quiz: Assessment on the understanding of villanelles, the ABA rhyme scheme, and the emotional impact of repetition.
Day 6: Introduction to Ekphrastic Poetry - Lecture: - Definition and characteristics of ekphrastic poetry. - Explanation of the relationship between visual art and written expression.

• Discussion Questions:
  1. What interests you about the interplay between visual art and poetry in ekphrastic works?
  2. How might visual stimuli enhance or influence the creative writing process?
  3. Can you think of any famous ekphrastic poems or poets known for this style?

Day 7: Analyzing Ekphrastic Poetry - Part 1 - Lecture: - In-depth analysis of classic ekphrastic poems. - Exploration of how poets respond to visual stimuli.

• Discussion Questions:
  1. How does the visual inspiration impact the themes and imagery in ekphrastic poetry?
  2. What unique perspectives or insights can arise from responding to visual art?
  3. Share your thoughts on the relationship between the visual and the written in ekphrastic works.

Day 8: Analyzing Ekphrastic Poetry - Part 2 - Lecture: - Discussing modern variations and themes in ekphrastic poetry. - Exploring the diverse ways poets engage with visual art.

• Discussion Questions:
  1. How have modern poets expanded the themes and approaches in ekphrastic poetry?
  2. In what ways does the incorporation of visual art broaden the possibilities in written expression?
  3. Share examples of visual art that you believe would inspire compelling ekphrastic poems.

Day 9: Crafting Ekphrastic Poetry - Part 1 - Lecture: - Step-by-step guide on responding to visual art in writing. - Emphasis on capturing the essence and emotion of the artwork.

• Discussion Questions:
  1. What challenges do you anticipate in responding to visual art with written expression?
  2. How can you capture the essence and emotion of an artwork in your ekphrastic poem?
  3. Share examples of artworks that you find particularly inspiring.

Day 10: Crafting Ekphrastic Poetry - Part 2 - Lecture: - Discussing the role of personal interpretation and creativity in ekphrastic poetry. - Exploring the potential for multiple ekphrastic responses to a single artwork.

• Discussion Questions:
  1. How does personal interpretation influence the creative process in ekphrastic poetry?
  2. In what ways can multiple poets respond differently to the same piece of visual art?
  3. Share and discuss individual ekphrastic poems, highlighting successful elements.

Homework Assignment: - Craft an ekphrastic poem in response to a chosen piece of visual art.
Study Guide Questions: 1. Reflect on the challenges of responding to visual art with written expression in your ekphrastic poem. How did you capture the essence and emotion? 2. How did personal interpretation shape your creative process in crafting an ekphrastic poem? 3. What insights did you gain from the process of crafting an ekphrastic poem?
Quiz: Assessment on the understanding of ekphrastic poetry, the relationship between visual art and written expression, and the creative possibilities in responding to visual stimuli.

Week 1: Introduction to Poetry and Limericks - Lecture and Discussion
Objective: - Introduce students to the diverse world of poetry. - Focus on the specific characteristics of limericks. - Initiate discussions on the importance of rhythm and humor in limericks.
Day 1: Introduction to Poetry - Lecture: - Definition and purpose of poetry. - Overview of various poetic forms and their cultural significance.

• Discussion Questions:
  1. What does poetry mean to you personally?
  2. Can you name any specific poetic forms you are familiar with?
  3. Why do you think people turn to poetry as a form of expression?

Day 2: Understanding Limericks - Part 1 - Lecture: - Definition and characteristics of limericks. - Explanation of the AABBA rhyme scheme.

• Discussion Questions:
  1. What makes limericks distinct from other poetic forms?
  2. Why is the AABBA rhyme scheme important in limericks?
  3. Can you think of any famous limericks or poets known for this style?

Day 3: Understanding Limericks - Part 2 - Lecture: - Historical context of limericks. - Exploration of the rhythm and meter in limericks.

• Discussion Questions:
  1. How do the historical roots of limericks contribute to their style?
  2. Why is rhythm crucial in creating an effective limerick?
  3. Can you identify the rhythm and meter in a sample limerick?

Day 4: Crafting Limericks - Part 1 - Lecture: - Step-by-step guide on crafting the first three lines of a limerick. - Emphasis on humor and wordplay.

• Discussion Questions:
  1. What challenges do you foresee in crafting the first three lines of a limerick?
  2. How can wordplay enhance the humor in limericks?
  3. Share examples of humorous language that might be effective in limericks.

Day 5: Crafting Limericks - Part 2 - Lecture: - Step-by-step guide on crafting the final two lines of a limerick. - Emphasis on the punchline and resolution.

• Discussion Questions:
  1. Why is the punchline important in concluding a limerick?
  2. How can the final two lines contribute to the overall impact of the limerick?
  3. Share and discuss individual limericks, highlighting successful elements.

Homework Assignment: - Craft a limerick focusing on humor and wordplay.
Study Guide Questions: 1. Reflect on the challenges of crafting the first three lines of your limerick. How did you approach humor and wordplay? 2. How did you develop the punchline and resolution in the final two lines of your limerick? 3. What insights did you gain from the process of crafting a limerick?
Quiz: Assessment on the understanding of limericks, the AABBA rhyme scheme, and the importance of rhythm and humor in this poetic form.

Week 1: Introduction to Poetry and Sonnets
Day 1: Overview of Poetry Styles - Activity: Icebreaker - Introduce yourself through a poetic name acrostic. - Lecture: Brief history of poetry, introduction to various styles. - Discussion: What draws you to poetry? Share your favorite poems.
Day 2: Understanding Sonnets - Activity: Analyze a classic sonnet together. - Lecture: Explanation of sonnet structure (Shakespearean and Petrarchan). - Discussion: Share initial impressions and feelings about sonnets.
Day 3: Writing Exercise - Crafting a Sonnet - Activity: Break down sonnet structure with examples. - Assignment: Write a sonnet exploring a personal experience or emotion. - Vocabulary Words: Quatrain, Couplet, Volta.
Day 4: Peer Review and Feedback - Activity: Peer review workshop for sonnets. - Lecture: Discuss common challenges and strategies in sonnet writing. - Discussion: Share insights gained from reviewing peers' work.
Day 5: Recap and Reflection - Activity: Reflect on the week's lessons and exercises. - Lecture: Overview of upcoming weeks. - Assignment: Write a short reflection on what you've learned about poetry and sonnets.
Study Guide Questions for Week 1: 1. What is the basic structure of a sonnet? 2. Compare and contrast Shakespearean and Petrarchan sonnets. 3. How does the volta contribute to the meaning of a sonnet? 4. Discuss the role of rhyme and meter in sonnets. 5. Explore your personal connection to poetry. What emotions or themes resonate with you?
Quiz: A short quiz assessing understanding of sonnet structure, key terms, and the historical context of poetry.
Week 2: Embracing Haiku and Villanelle
Day 1: Understanding Haiku - Activity: Analyze classic haikus. - Lecture: Explain the traditional structure and themes of haikus. - Discussion: Share thoughts on the simplicity and depth of haikus.
Day 2: Crafting Haikus - Activity: Write haikus individually. - Lecture: Discuss the significance of nature in haikus. - Discussion: Share and discuss individual haikus.
Day 3: Unraveling the Villanelle - Activity: Analyze a famous villanelle. - Lecture: Explore the structure and repetition in villanelles. - Discussion: Discuss the impact of repeated lines on the overall theme.
Day 4: Writing Exercise - Composing a Villanelle - Activity: Break down the process of crafting a villanelle. - Assignment: Write a villanelle on the theme of memory or loss. - Vocabulary Words: Tercet, Refrain, Envoi.
Day 5: Peer Review and Feedback - Activity: Peer review workshop for villanelles. - Lecture: Discuss the challenges and beauty of crafting repetitive forms. - Discussion: Share insights gained from reviewing peers' villanelles.
Study Guide Questions for Week 2: 1. What defines a haiku? Discuss its structure and thematic elements. 2. Explore the cultural significance of nature in haikus. 3. What is the structure of a villanelle, and how does repetition contribute to its impact? 4. Discuss the emotions evoked by repeated lines in a villanelle. 5. Reflect on the process of crafting a villanelle. What challenges did you face?
Quiz: Assessment on the understanding of haikus, villanelles, and the effective use of repetition in poetry.

1. Renga:

- *Definition:* A collaborative form of Japanese poetry, alternating three and two-line stanzas. - *Example:* Collaborate with a friend to create a renga exploring the changing seasons. 

1. Prose Poetry:

- *Definition:* Poetry written in prose form, blurring the lines between poetry and prose. - *Example:* Write a prose poem capturing the essence of a vivid dream or memory. 

1. Concrete Poetry:

- *Definition:* Poems that visually resemble their subject matter, often taking on unique shapes. - *Example:* Create a concrete poem reflecting the theme of unity or disintegration. 

1. Narrative Poetry:

- *Definition:* Poems that tell a story, often with characters and a plot. - *Example:* Craft a narrative poem based on a personal experience or fictional tale. 

1. Pastoral:

- *Definition:* Poetry idealizing rural life, nature, and simplicity. - *Example:* Write a pastoral poem celebrating the beauty of a countryside landscape. 

1. Elegy:

- *Definition:* A poem mourning the loss of someone or something. - *Example:* Compose an elegy reflecting on the passage of time and the inevitability of change. 

1. Aubade:

- *Definition:* A morning poem often focused on the parting of lovers at dawn. - *Example:* Write an aubade exploring the tender moments before sunrise. 

1. Ekphrastic:

- *Definition:* Poetry inspired by or describing a work of art. - *Example:* Craft an ekphrastic poem in response to a painting or sculpture you admire. 

1. Found Poetry:

- *Definition:* Creating poetry by rearranging existing texts or found materials. - *Example:* Create a found poem using newspaper headlines or fragments of a novel. 

1. Epigram:

- *Definition:* A brief, witty, and often satirical poem. - *Example:* Write an epigram commenting humorously on a contemporary social issue.