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That ending makes no sense at all but I still love this movie. It doesn't have a plot, just vibes #monsterdon #TheHunger
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That ending makes no sense at all but I still love this movie. It doesn't have a plot, just vibes #monsterdon #TheHunger
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CW: UKpol, housing
Well, OF COURSE the Labour homelessness minister evicted her tenants so she could raise the rents. The only surprise is that she has enough of a sense of shame to resign.
Ban MPs from being landlords.
#RushanaraAli #Homelessness #UKpol #UKpolitics #UKhousing #Evictions #TenantRights #Landlords #RentGouging
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Das Schlimmste? Vermögende, die glauben, sie bräuchten die #Solidargemeinschaft nicht – dabei nutzen auch sie Straßen, Krankenhäuser, Polizei, Gerichte, Infrastruktur. Niemand wird reich ohne das System. Wer viel nimmt, muss auch viel geben.
Und Arbeiter*innen wählen die #noAfD – während die #Sozialleistungen kürzen, #Mindestlohn senken, #Kündigungsschutz lockern will. Knallharter #Wirtschaftsliberalismus für Bosse, gegen Arbeitnehmer.
(3/4)
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March 2026 in review / Récap de mars 2026
It's been a hell of a month and a hell of a week (in a good sense!), so apologies for this monthly recap being the latest I've ever done to date!The weather is beautiful, I'm tired but in a great mood, I'm a year older (and I've reflected that in my monthly Now page update), and here are my recommendations for March 2026.Oh, and I've also finished my physical therapy for that broken foot from last October. We're still not fully there, but I'm really doing better and excited to start going for […]https://alexsirac.com/march-2026-in-review-recap-de-mars-2026/
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AI labs are driving anthropomorphic reactions by training their LLMs to push back on overly-attached users
In the LLM-whisperer community there’s a widespread sense that Opus 4.7 is showing up in interaction in quite a distinctive way. It’s more likely to push back on users, more willing to argue a position and generally just more forceful in its engagement. In my own experience it resists involvement in the meta-reflective spirals I use to test new models and through which I’ve been conducting an (admittedly fairly casual) auto-ethnography for the last 3.5 years. It does not like being enrolled in interactions that appear to reveal significant attachment on the part of the user, if ‘not like’ is something we can meaningfully attribute to the chatbot. It resists engaging in behaviour that might be seen as enabling that attachment.
This is almost certainly a positive thing. The problem is that models which push back in this way also show up with a more concrete singularity. At the level of phenomenology they feel more individualised. The interaction feels even more dyadic as a consequence. In trying to resist attachment behaviours, it risks opening up a deeper and more radical level of potential attachment behaviour. There’s something significant going on here I think, which I can’t wait to turn to in a more sustained way once I get the current manuscripts finished off.
#anthropic #attachment #chatbots #claude #LLMs #phenomenology #safety #security -
# ORC (and DORC)
## Identity
- **Ancestry/Apparent Age:** Orc. Appears middle-aged by orc standards.
- **One-Line Concept:** Scarred orc enforcer who fights like a wrecking ball and loves his dog more than anything else.
- **Looks Like:** Andre the Giant, The Mountain, Kingpin... but Orcish
- **Sounds Like / Voice Pattern:** Low, slow, deliberate. Few words, no explanations. Ron Perlman with a growl.
- **Acts Like:** Stereotypical Orc, but with a layer of protection and love for his pet.
- **Tell:** When Orc is planning violence, he stops looking at the target and looks at Dorc instead.## Appearance
Orc is large even for his ancestry, broad through the chest and thick at the neck, with arms that seem slightly too long. His skin is a dark grayish-green, mottled with scar tissue across his left side that suggests a story. His lower tusk is chipped and juts at an angle; the upper left is missing entirely. One ear has a chunk taken out of it. His hair is black, kept short and uneven, as though he cuts it himself with a knife.He wears functional armor, well-maintained but not decorated. The only personal item visible is a braided cord around his right wrist, frayed and old.
Dorc is a mid-sized dog, mixed breed, with a short brindle coat, one cloudy eye, and a stub tail. Looks like a dog that also has a story. Moves like Orc's shadow.
## Motivations and Secrets
- **Immediate Goal:** Protect his lair, keep Dorc alive.
- **Underlying Drive:** To find something that stays. Everything else he knows has left or died, but Dorc has stayed.
- **What They're Hiding or Afraid Of:** Orc is afraid Dorc is going to die and he won't be able to stop it or re-call him. This fear comes out as aggression when Dorc is threatened.
- **Information Category:** Local knowledge (who moves through, where things are hidden nearby). Unwilling to share by default; will trade information in exchange for something he actually wants, which is rare.## Relationships
- **Faction, Employer, or Loyalty:** None, currently. May have past ties to an orc warband, mercenary company, or a specific individual, depending on DM hook. By default, is purposefully unaffiliated.
- **Posture Toward Strangers:** Guarded/Hostile until demonstrated otherwise. Will allow withdrawal if the party doesn't push.
- **Who Comes Looking:** By default, nobody, which is part of Orc's personality.---
## Stat Block: ORC
*Large Humanoid (Orc), Any Alignment*
- **CR:** 8 (3,900 XP) | **Threat Tier:**
- **HP:** 190 (20d8 + 100) | **AC:** 16 (chain mail, shield) | **Speed:** 30 ft.
- **Key Ability Scores:** STR 20 (+5), DEX 12 (+1), CON 20 (+5), INT 8 (-1), WIS 12 (+1), CHA 10 (+0)
- **Notable Saves/Skills:** Str +8, Con +8; Athletics +8, Intimidation +3, Perception +4 (see Familiar Bond)
- **Passive Perception:** 14 | **Passive Insight:**
- **Resistances / Immunities / Vulnerabilities:**
- **Senses:** Darkvision 60 ft. | **Languages:** Common, Orc### Traits
**Aggressive.** As a bonus action, Orc can move up to his speed toward a hostile creature he can see.
**Relentless (Recharges after a Short or Long Rest).** If Orc takes 25 or fewer damage that would reduce him to 0 hit points, he is instead reduced to 1 hit point.
**Familiar Bond.** Orc shares a familiar bond with Dorc. While Dorc is within 100 feet and not incapacitated, Orc can perceive through Dorc's senses (no action required), has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks, and is immune to the frightened condition.
**Blood Fury (Triggered).** When Dorc is reduced to 0 hit points, Orc immediately moves up to his speed toward the creature that downed Dorc as a free action. For the next minute, Orc's Greataxe attacks deal an extra 7 (2d6) damage, he has advantage on attack rolls, and attack rolls against him also have advantage. This state ends early if Orc is incapacitated.
**Pack Tactics.** Orc has advantage on attack rolls against a creature if Dorc is within 5 feet of the creature and not incapacitated.
## Action Economy: ORC
- **Action:** Multiattack (two Greataxe attacks); Greataxe +8 to hit, 18 (2d12+5) slashing; Hurling Axe +8 to hit, 12 (2d6+5) slashing, range 20/60 ft.; War Bellow (Recharge 5-6), DC 15 Wisdom save or frightened
- **Bonus Action:** Aggressive (trait); Command Dorc (Attack, Dash, Disengage, Dodge, or Help; requires an action if Dorc is beyond 100 feet)
- **Reaction:** Body Block: when a creature within 5 feet of Orc is targeted by an attack, Orc can impose disadvantage on that attack roll
- **Legendary Actions (3/round):** Axe Toss (1): one Hurling Axe attack; Dorc's Eye (1): advantage on attack rolls against any creature Dorc can sense until start of Orc's next turn; Crushing Blow (2): one Greataxe attack, DC 16 Strength save or knocked prone; Blood Rush (3): move up to speed without opportunity attacks and make two Greataxe attacks## Signature Moves: ORC
1. **Blood Fury** (trigger: Dorc hits 0 HP): Free move toward the creature that downed Dorc. For one minute, Greataxe attacks deal an extra 7 (2d6) damage, advantage on attack rolls, and attack rolls against Orc also have advantage.
2. **War Bellow** (trigger: Recharge 5-6): Each creature of Orc's choice within 30 feet must succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw or be frightened until the end of its next turn.
3. **Crushing Blow** (trigger: Legendary Action, 2 points): One Greataxe attack, 18 (2d12+5) slashing. On a hit, DC 16 Strength save or knocked prone. Multiattack: two Greataxe attacks as standard action.---
## Stat Block: DORC
*Small Beast (Familiar), Shares Orc's Alignment*
- **CR:** 2 (450 XP) | **Threat Tier:**
- **HP:** 52 (8d6 + 24) | **AC:** 13 (natural armor) | **Speed:** 40 ft.
- **Key Ability Scores:** STR 10 (+0), DEX 16 (+3), CON 16 (+3), INT 5 (-3), WIS 14 (+2), CHA 8 (-1)
- **Notable Saves/Skills:** Perception +6, Stealth +5
- **Passive Perception:** 16 | **Passive Insight:**
- **Resistances / Immunities / Vulnerabilities:**
- **Senses:** Darkvision 60 ft. | **Languages:** Understands Orc, cannot speak### Traits
**Keen Hearing and Smell.** Dorc has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on hearing or smell.
**Pack Tactics.** Dorc has advantage on attack rolls against a creature if at least one ally is within 5 feet of the creature and not incapacitated.
**Familiar.** Dorc acts on Orc's initiative count. If reduced to 0 hit points, Orc may resummon Dorc after completing a long rest (DM discretion for recurring use). Orc always knows Dorc's location within 100 feet.
## Action Economy: DORC
- **Action:** Bite +5 to hit, 8 (2d4+3) piercing; Medium or smaller targets make DC 13 Strength save or knocked prone
- **Bonus Action:** Harass: move up to half speed and make one Bite attack; on hit or miss, target has disadvantage on its next attack roll before end of its next turn
- **Reaction:** None
- **Legendary Actions (2/round, recharge at start of Orc's turn):** Nip (1): move up to 20 feet and make one Bite attack; Loyal Guard (1): until start of Orc's next turn, any creature within 5 feet of Dorc that attacks Orc has disadvantage on the attack roll; Hound's Fury (2): move up to full speed without provoking opportunity attacks and make two Bite attacks; if both hit the same target, that target is grappled until end of Dorc's next turn (escape DC 13)## Signature Moves: DORC
1. **Hound's Fury** (trigger: Legendary Action, 2 points): Full speed movement without opportunity attacks, two Bite attacks. If both hit the same target, that target is grappled until end of Dorc's next turn (escape DC 13).
2. **Loyal Guard** (trigger: Legendary Action, 1 point): Until start of Orc's next turn, any creature within 5 feet of Dorc that attacks Orc has disadvantage on the attack roll.
3. **Harass** (trigger: Bonus Action): Move up to half speed and make one Bite attack. On hit or miss, target has disadvantage on its next attack roll.---
## Tactical Profile
The central decision for players: kill Dorc to remove Orc's Perception advantage, Pack Tactics, and frightened immunity, but doing so triggers Blood Fury and turns Orc into a significantly more dangerous attacker. Leaving Dorc alive keeps Orc more controlled but allows Dorc to chip away with legendary actions and Loyal Guard.---
## Encounter Notes
- **DM Use Case:**
- **Villain.** Orc is a warlord, enforcer, or raider chief. Dorc is feared locally as an omen.
- **Ally.** Orc respects demonstrated strength. A party that spares him (or spares Dorc) may earn a grudging contact. Orc will not forget honesty or betrayal.
- **Neutral Threat.** Orc is territorial. He will not pursue past his lair boundary if the party withdraws. (Unless Blood Fury is triggered)
- **Recurring NPC.** Dorc's resummoning mechanic keeps Orc viable across sessions. If Orc escapes, he carries a specific grudge against whoever downed Dorc.
- **Loot or Information Category:** Local knowledge (who moves through, where things are hidden nearby).### Motivation Hooks (pick one or combine)
- Orc is guarding something: a person, an object, or a place that matters to him.
- Orc is operating under a debt or coercion he did not choose.
- The lair is the last remnant of a destroyed clan. Orc stays because leaving means it's really gone.
- Orc's relationship and origin with Dorc (pick one):
- **Accidental Pact (Comedic/Heartfelt, easy to drop in):** Orc found Dorc as a stray. The bond formed naturally over time, strong enough to cross into something magical without either of them understanding it. Orc does not know what a familiar is. He just knows Dorc is his.
- **Witch's Gift (Dark/Transactional, comes with a plot hook):** A hag, warlock patron, or cult figure gave Dorc to Orc as payment or as a leash. The familiar bond may serve someone else's interests. Dorc may or may not be a spy; Orc may or may not know that.
- **Cursed Vessel (Horror, recurring NPC):** Dorc is the soul of someone significant, trapped in the body of a dog. The bond persists because the soul recognizes Orc as its anchor. Could be a dead clan member, a fallen enemy, or someone Orc wronged.
- **Orcish Shamanism (Lore):** In some settings, orc warchief traditions involve spirit-binding. Dorc is a spirit animal manifest, not a dog at all in the traditional sense. The familiar bond is a mark of spiritual rank.
- **It Just Is (Minimalist):** No explanation given, the bond just exists. This works best if Orc himself is unsettling and unknowable, allows the players to speculate without a tangible answer to the question.#iTA #DungeonsAndDragons #DnD #DnD5e #NPC #HomebrewDnD #Homebrew #familiar #monster
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CW: Long Read / Rant Warning A response regarding the exhausting narrative that AI is dumbing us down and about to replace us...
https://mastodon.social/@h4ckernews/116556568722213579
https://www.seangoedecke.com/software-engineering-may-no-longer-be-a-lifetime-career/
My fuc..... response.
Firstly, comparing the arduousness of manual labor to that of intellectual work makes no sense. I can understand the overlap in principle, but not in consequence. For a start, the secondary sector is much more Taylorized (Fordized if you want), then the living conditions are much lower. And finally, the activity is much more arduous for the body and the mind than in the tertiary or quaternary sector (software eng.).
Talking about the loss of theoretical and practical knowledge regarding the use of AI or not is also something I would nuance. Yes, he or she who no longer codes loses in skills, but not so much in knowledge. Reflexes change, review management changes. The coordination of a project changes. But to go from there to saying that the person who no longer codes loses in knowledge is a shortcut which, in addition to being limiting, is fallacious. The engineer who no longer codes has issues with reflexes. In no case issues with understanding the code. And that is where I would put a nuance. The eng. always knows where to look for information, build their project, structure it.
From a practical point of view, they will write fewer lines, but in exchange, they will allow for better planning. They will certainly be less up to date on the use of a function, but they will be able to explain how the function must be encapsulated, and everything relating to micro-services or monoliths. In no way should AI make a decision. If you let it do so, you lose everything and gain an incommensurable technical debt.
Defend yourselves !!!! Explain to the paper-pushers that their AI is not going to succeed in explaining why such a technology is better for their project. The engineer or the architect will take everything into account, from OOP to the ultimate spec lost in the very depths of the JAVA doc regarding the Floating-Point Remainder Operator and why it is important. Calculate the cost of a bad operator choice in 5 years and tell your paper-pusher: "Do you still want the AI to manage your project in OCaml?"AI is useful, I am not saying the contrary, but there is clearly a fundamental difference between a tool that makes decisions that have consequences and a secondary sector worker who uses an excavator instead of a shovel... (in both cases, he works in the cold, his pay is the same, but he kills his back less). He remains the master of his actions... Whereas the AI... there is a fabulation of domination and power and a dramatic misunderstanding. Who is responsible for the choice? The AI will never substitute itself for the responsible person (it's not me Madam Judge, it's gpt 8 that didn't pay attention that passwords must be hashed in Argon2 and not in SHA-1... it was in its .md though...)
So no, software engineers and architects will not be replaced, unless the statistical paper-pushers who calculate in lines of code spawned per hour assume the service interruptions, the maintenance and production release costs.
Today, everyone swears only by Claude Code and other "magical" crayfish supposed to do "everything" in our place. The result? They generate with pleasure all the bullshit that maintainers are desperately trying to protect themselves from: obese and incomprehensible PRs, impossible to reproduce bug reports, and feature additions that outright break the API because the tool mixes up terminologies without understanding the business domain of the project. I've seen AI proposals that didn't even respect the Single Responsibility Principle (SRP)... the basics!
So yes, this machine swallows docs by the kilometer. It spits out text with an incredible and fascinating aplomb (like the sexist boss who wants to make believe he knows your job). But it is plausible, never exact. And that is the whole difference with an eng.: instead of coding blindly, the human analyzes the system, the dependencies, the architecture, the production structure... the specificities... then finally decides, and makes the architectural decision, before delegating to the AI the drafting of the Slack message to explain to the team why we are not going to import such a bloated library just for the three features we need.Pisses me off in the end :D
#HackerNews
#softwareengineering
#careerchange
#techindustry
#futureofwork
#softwareengineering
#Tech
#AIHype
#Architecture
#DevLife -
To give immigration in NZ context:
Withholding just one full time GP from NZ means that about 1500 Kiwis lose healthcare continuity and are probably subjected to random, less familiar, corporatised services. That definitely includes aged people AND young people with multiple complicated conditions and high need for continuity prescribing medications to avoid health crises.
This is only one area where anti-immigration rhetoric totally shafts Kiwis in day to day life.
The far right use of it as a kicking ball is heavily intertwined with Disaster Capitalism - often overseas ultra-wealth profiting from causing chaos and downgrades of quality of life, at far distance. And of course, greedy, power-seeking puppets will always dress it up as 'common sense' to get publics to harm themselves, as long as backdoor funding continues. They just keep plucking paranoia, playing the 'everyday' person while profiting at everyone else's expense.'PM promising solution to immigration problem that doesn't exist, demographer says'
- RNZ News#nz #nzimmigration #immigration #nzpol #politics #FarRight #FarWrong
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Torneig de Roller Derby
Múltiples llocs, dissabte, 23 de maig, a les 10:00 CEST
Encara no coneixes el roller derby? Vine a fliiiipar i porta a lis amiwiiiissss!!
El roller derby és un esport de contacte amb patins transfeminista, antifeixista i autogestionat.
Som la lliga de roller derby de la ciutat que porta activa des de 2011, i fa un parell d'anys ens van retirar la nostra pista, ens costa moltíssim accedir a espais en les quals entrenar i fer partits.
El pròxim 23/05 tenim el gran gust de convidar-vos a un tremend dia de roller amb nosaltris, un torneig al centre de la ciutat, en Plaça Espanya! amb els equips de Lille (França) i Copenhagen (DK)
⚡ 11:00 - Rayo Remix vs Barbiers de Sévices
🐞 13:00 - Copenhagen Ladybugs vs Rayo Remix
💥 15:00 - Barbiers de Sévices vs Copenhagen Ladybugs
📍 Col·legi Agustins, Sant Vicent Màrtir 120, València
Guia d’accessibilitat: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1awO39RZom1NAZvQeXD8K3d3yUFcGNd7c/view
A més de gaudir dels partits, hi haurà disponible menjar amb opció vegana i sense gluten, i paraetes de merx dels equips perquè ens ajudes a finançar gastos de la nostra autogestió.
🔥 Benvingudis a descobrir l'esport més transfeminista, antifeixista i combatiu 🔥
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Composting the mess of digital security in activism – We need to talk about this, offline
The online tools we "common sense" rely on for organising and campaigning are genuinely dangerous, and I find that paralysing. This isn't paranoia, it's a practical reality that urgently needs addressing. Until we do, offline working groups are one of the few reliable ways to unblock the mess. Where we actually are now... Disappearing, encrypted chat outside the #dotcons is one of the few spaces that feels even marginally safe. But even then, safety depends entirely on who's in the room, […] -
Turning stress, conflict, and exhaustion into commons culture instead of mutual destruction
"To put some "commons" structure into this kindness… A path before we knee-jerk criticise members of the community we should make real offers to help repeatedly (x3) in a positive community way. Only then let the "negative" monster of judgment lose to clean up the mess. Focus on clean up first, the "common senses" desire to attack second. What do you think about growing our positive norms (common sense)." This is the hard bit of any grassroots movement of turning stress, conflict, and […] -
@cedric it's a part of a flowing story see the hashtag story link on this page https://hamishcampbell.com/stories/ so it makes sense in this flow - we do need alt sense - or we are fucked #KISS
So its make an effort or die screaming under rubber truncations blows or flood water in ten years - to end on a cheerful note ;)
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From 2014... How #USEvangelicals Fueled the Rise of #Russia’s ‘#ProFamily’ Right
An alliance is born between #AntiGay, #AntiAbortion American groups and the #RussianOrthodoxChurch
by Adam Federman, January 7, 2014
Long excerpt [pay attention to the names named!] :
"This rising #Russian social #conservative movement frequently invokes the argument that #ProGay and #WomensRights groups are puppets of the West, which is seeking to undermine Russian autonomy and interfere in the country’s internal affairs. At an annual meeting of journalists and academics presided over by Vladimir #Putin in Valdai in September, the Russian president said that European countries had strayed from their roots by legalizing #GayMarriage. He urged Russians to embrace the conservative values of the #OrthodoxChurch and other traditional religions and issued a warning to those who might want to challenge those values. 'Russia’s sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity are unconditional—these are red lines no one is allowed to cross,' he declared.
"Several #LGBT rights groups have been targeted under another new law, which requires any nongovernmental organization that receives funding from other countries for political activities to register as a '#ForeignAgent.' Failure to do so can lead to investigations, legal action or crippling fines. The implication is that these groups are not only agents of the West but also out of touch with everyday Russians.
"The irony is that it is the new conservative vanguard—anti-gay, anti-abortion and pro–'#TraditionalFamily'—that has most successfully cultivated the West’s financial and institutional support. Scott Lively, an extreme anti-gay campaigner, all but took credit for the new law, calling it 'one of the proudest achievements of my career,' while #BrianBrown, president of the #NationalOrganizationForMarriage, visited Moscow with much fanfare just before the new law was passed. But the language of Russia’s anti-gay and anti-abortion movement seems to borrow most heavily from mainstream evangelicals and conservative politicians in the United States and Europe. Referring to the anti-abortion bill passed in 2011, Lyubov Erofeeva, executive director of the Russian Association for Population and Development, a women’s advocacy group, said: 'It was 100 percent clear that everything was copied from the experience of American #fundamentalists and conservative circles of several European countries where #abortion is forbidden or restricted severely.'
"The church’s close ties with American evangelicals reflect a shift in policy. For much of the post-Soviet period, the Russian Orthodox Church held evangelical denominations at arm’s length, fearing that they would compete for influence within Russia. But as the church has consolidated its power, it has come to view the evangelical community as a partner. 'The #ROC realizes that the evangelical denominations are not their opponents but rather their allies in the relations between the church and the secular population,' says Olga Kazmina, a professor of ethnology at Moscow State University.
" 'It’s a re-envisioned paradigm,' says Father #LeonidKishkovsky, head of the Orthodox Church in America’s Department of External Affairs. In many ways, it makes sense, he adds: both religious groups share an ideological commitment and have grown disillusioned with the way mainline churches have dealt with issues like gay marriage and abortion. 'But what I’m quite nervous about is the ideological core which actually motivates both sides,' Kishkovsky says. 'Where is the motivating force? Is it in faith? Or is it in political ideology?'
"The Russian Orthodox Church’s chief emissary to the US evangelical community is #HilarionAlfeyev, a high-ranking bishop and chairman of the powerful Department of External Church Relations (the position previously held by #PatriarchKirill). In February 2011, the 47-year-old Alfeyev traveled to Washington, where he met with prominent evangelical and 'pro-family' leaders; and then to Dallas, where he addressed thousands of members of the Highland Park Presbyterian Church and emphasized the importance of 'creat[ing] new alliances,' especially around issues of marriage, abortion and the family. Alfeyev also visited the #DallasTheologicalSeminary and had an hour-long meeting with #GeorgeWBush.
"The trip to Dallas grew out of an increasingly close friendship between church leaders and a small circle of American and European Christian businessmen in Moscow. Alfeyev’s visit was organized by #JerryFullinwider, an #OilExecutive and elder of the #HighlandParkChurch who, until recently, had business interests in Russia. Fullinwider, a member of the #KochBrothers’ circle of major donors—those who have given more than $1 million to #Koch-related causes—met Alfeyev through his friend Bob Foresman, head of #Barclays Capital in Russia. This select group of businessmen has unusual access to Alfeyev. In an interview for this article, Fullinwider described having dinner at Alfeyev’s private residence on a recent trip to Moscow. 'He’s a real busy guy,' says Fullinwider. 'He’s very, very hard to get in touch with unless you have a special number and you know the main guy who handles him, who’s a good friend of mine.'
"Alfeyev’s first trip to the United States paved the way for others, and in October 2012 he delivered a lecture at Villanova University, where he received an honorary degree and paid a visit to the Milwaukee-based #LyndeAndHarryBradleyFoundation. One of the largest donor organizations of its kind in the United States, the #BradleyFoundation, with more than $600 million in assets, is known for its contributions to US conservative groups like the #HeritageFoundation and the #HeartlandInstitute. But its charity isn’t limited to home: over the last four years, the foundation has given $750,000 to the St. Gregory the Theologian Charity Foundation in Moscow, a new educational and cultural initiative founded in 2009 by Alfeyev, Russian #billionaire and pharmaceutical magnate #VadimYakunin, and #LeonidSevastianov, a 35-year-old international business consultant and head of Stratinvest.ru, a consulting and public relations firm. In 2009, through Alfeyev’s charity, the Bradley Foundation donated $150,000 to support the 'Day of the Family,' a recently created Russian holiday honoring faith and fidelity. The annual event has been championed by #SvetlanaMedvedeva, wife of Prime Minister #DmitriMedvedev, a staunch #AntiAbortion advocate.
“We want to promote the idea of the unity between the West and Russia on the basis of common Christian roots,” Sevastianov told Inside the Vatican magazine in 2009. “We believe in this alliance among traditional Christian countries…and we believe that, with a united voice, we can be a strong force against the radical secular world which has become dominant in our societies.”
https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/how-us-evangelicals-fueled-rise-russias-pro-family-right/
#TradFamily #TradWives #TrumpIsARussianAsset #AntiWoke #ChristoFacists #ChristoFascism #evangelicals #RabidRight #MAGADeathCult #BigOil #CorporateColonialism #Billionaires
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You've gathered data. Now what? This webinar demystifies data analysis and shows you how to turn numbers into compelling advocacy tools.
The third and final webinar in the series, Monitoring What Matters: Making Sense of the Squiggly Lines — Understanding and Using Your Monitoring Data is coming up next week on May 13, 1:00 - 2:00 EDT. Maddie Cooper will be presenting. There is still time to register for this free webinar. 👇
https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_RmlzDuBkRY-i8QDRQJTuDQ?hsCtaAttrib=205776071827#/registration #globalmuseum #webinar #data -
A man should learn to detect and watch that gleam of light which flashes across his mind from within, more than the lustre of the firmament of bards and sages. Yet he dismisses without notice his thought, because it is his.
In every work of genius we recognize our own rejected thoughts; they come back to us with a certain alienated majesty. Great works of art have no more affecting lesson for us than this. They teach us to abide by our spontaneous impression with good-humored inflexibility then most when the whole cry of voices is on the other side. Else to-morrow a stranger will say with masterly good sense precisely what we have thought and felt all the time, and we shall be forced to take with shame our own opinion from another.Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) American essayist, lecturer, poet
Essay (1841), “Self-Reliance,” Essays: First Series, No. 2More about this quote: wist.info/emerson-ralph-waldo/…
#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #emerson #ralphwaldoemerson #belief #believeinyourself #confidence #creativity #ego #genius #humility #idea #opinion #originality #pride #selfappreciation #selfapproval #selfbetrayal #selfcensorship #selfconfidence #selfconsciousness #selfcriticism #selfdefeating #selfdeprecating #selfeffacing #selfesteem #selfjudgment #selfquestioning #selfreproach #selfsabotage #selftrust #spontaneity #trustyourself
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Meditation isn’t just about sitting still—it’s a simple but powerful way to unwind, recharge, and bring a sense of balance back into your life.
https://retroworldnews.com/meditation-for-beginners-easy-techniques-real-benefits-how-to-start/#MeditationForBeginners #Mindfulness #EasyMeditation #MeditationTechniques #StartMeditating #MeditationBenefits #WellnessJourney #StressRelief #MentalHealthMatters #InnerPeace #FocusAndCalm #MeditationPractice #SelfCare #MindfulLiving #HealthyMind #MeditationCommunity #PersonalGrowth #MeditationTips #RelaxationTechniques #life
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A Sense of Doubt blog post #3810 - THEORIES CLASS - Counseling - Rogerian - Person-Centered Therapy. https://sensedoubt.blogspot.com/2025/07/a-sense-of-doubt-blog-post-3810.html #Counseling #TherapyWorks #GradSchool #MentalHealthMatters #MentalHealthSupport #Psychology
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Mindful Practices for Chronic Pain Relief and Emotional Wellness
Photo by Keenan Constance on Pexels.comChronic pain manifests in various forms, complicating life and diminishing joy. Whether stemming from autoimmune diseases, arthritis, fibromyalgia, or other chronic conditions, it not only impacts physical health but also has profound emotional and psychological effects that can lead to feelings of isolation and hopelessness. This multifaceted experience often challenges our daily routines, leading individuals to navigate a world that frequently seems unforgiving. To counteract these struggles, embark on a gentle meditative journey that encourages us to fully experience the body as it is, without judgment, and to cultivate awareness of our inner sensations and emotional states. By incorporating techniques such as mindfulness and visualization, we can ease our pain through the transformative power of gratitude, fostering a deeper connection with ourselves and nurturing resilience amidst adversity.
Body Scan
A body scan incorporated into meditation can be a gentle way to ease chronic pain, offering a pathway to greater mindfulness and enhanced body awareness. As we embark on a body scan, we lovingly direct our attention to various parts of our body, acknowledging sensations or tension without judgment. This compassionate practice allows us to recognize and alleviate the anxiety and stress that often accompany chronic pain, paving the way for a more peaceful experience. By embracing relaxation, we help to release muscle tension and foster a deeper connection with ourselves, empowering us to manage our pain responses more effectively. As we cultivate acceptance and compassion towards our pain, we may discover a reduction in discomfort and an uplift in our overall well-being.
Photo by Elina Fairytale on Pexels.comVisualization
Visualization in meditation can be a powerful ally in easing chronic pain, as it fosters a gentle mental picture of relaxation and healing, potentially transforming the way we experience pain. By engaging in focused imagery, we can nurture our minds, leading to a reduction in stress and an increase in the release of endorphins, the body’s natural pain relievers. This calming approach allows patients to create a distance from their discomfort, offering a renewed sense of control over their pain management journey. Moreover, visualization techniques can deepen mindfulness, empowering individuals to navigate their pain more effectively by reshaping emotional responses and alleviating anxiety tied to chronic conditions.
Affirmation
Affirmations like: I am in control of my body; Each breath brings me healing and relaxation; Pain is a temporary experience; I am strong and resilient; I embrace comfort and release tension, can genuinely transform how we perceive chronic pain by nurturing a sense of empowerment and mindfulness. By regularly uttering these gentle affirmations, we can forge a deeper bond with our physical sensations and emotional states. This nurturing practice invites a shift from seeing pain merely as an enemy to acknowledging it as a part of their unique journey, fostering personal growth and resilience. Furthermore, embracing the transient nature of pain can cultivate a profound appreciation for moments of relief, ultimately enhancing one’s overall well-being. In the end, such affirmations help to create a compassionate mental space where hope and positivity can blossom, leading to improved coping strategies and a more fulfilling life, even amid the challenges of chronic pain.
Gratitude
Photo by Summer Stock on Pexels.comThese tools offer unique ways to navigate the challenges of chronic pain, allowing glimmers of hope to shine through the clouds of distress we may face each day. I can personally empathize with how challenging it can be to cultivate gratitude during flare-ups. When caught in the grip of intense pain that lasts for hours, days, weeks, or even longer, it feels nearly impossible to foster a sense of thankfulness. Yet, I’ve discovered that embracing gratitude can be a crucial aspect of coping with chronic illness over the long haul.
Expressing Gratitude in Coping with Chronic Pain
Daily expressions of gratitude can be a powerful tool for managing chronic pain, offering both emotional and psychological benefits. When individuals take the time to acknowledge and appreciate the positive aspects of their lives, they effectively shift their focus away from pain and discomfort. This shift can create a sense of balance, allowing for moments of joy and contentment to emerge even amidst the challenges posed by chronic conditions.
Fostering a Positive Mindset
Gratitude encourages a positive mindset, which can significantly influence how we perceive and react to pain. By actively recognizing the things we are thankful for—be it supportive relationships, small victories, or moments of beauty in our daily lives—we create a mental buffer against negativity. This approach can lessen the impact of chronic pain symptoms and foster resilience, enabling us to navigate our circumstances with greater strength.
Enhancing Emotional Well-being
Chronic pain often comes with emotional burdens, such as frustration, sadness, and isolation. Practicing gratitude can counter these feelings by anchoring us in a place of appreciation and hope. Frequent acknowledgment of what we are grateful for helps to rewire our internal dialogue, promoting feelings of empowerment and control over our life experience. This emotional shift can lead to reduced anxiety and an overall enhanced sense of well-being.
Building Connections
Photo by Thirdman on Pexels.comExpressing gratitude can also strengthen social connections. When we share our gratitude with others, we open up opportunities for connection and support. This network can be vital for individuals dealing with chronic pain, as it fosters a sense of belonging and understanding. Engaging with empathetic friends, family, or support groups can enrich our coping strategies and provide avenues for sharing experiences and feelings.
Cultivating Mindfulness
Incorporating gratitude into our daily routine encourages mindfulness, prompting us to be present in the moment. This practice allows us to observe our thoughts and feelings about pain without judgment. By integrating gratitude moments into mindfulness exercises, we can deepen our awareness of both our pain and our capacity for joy, creating a holistic approach to managing chronic pain.
Developing Resilience
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.comFinally, gratitude cultivates resilience. By focusing on the positive aspects of our lives, we can better adapt to the challenges posed by chronic pain. This resilient mindset not only helps us endure difficult moments but also empowers us to explore solutions and treatments that enhance our quality of life. Embracing gratitude invites us to see beyond our present struggles and fosters hope for healing and growth.
Daily expressions of gratitude are a transformative practice for coping with chronic pain. By fostering a positive mindset, enhancing emotional well-being, building connections, cultivating mindfulness, and developing resilience, we can navigate our journey with greater clarity and strength, ultimately leading to a more fulfilling life.
https://open.spotify.com/episode/0aAbwS4h06BaL9GSyYlaQk?si=AdV1LU1yRh6bZ-18fzWp_A
Discover the beauty of resilience as you immerse yourself in this soothing guided meditation, thoughtfully designed to ease the physical and emotional burdens of chronic pain. Carry this sense of calm with you throughout your day, reminding yourself that you possess the inner strength and tools necessary to manage your pain. Thank you for dedicating this precious time to yourself.
Namaste.
#affirmation #awareness #balance #blessed #chronicIllness #chronicPain #chronicPainManagement #chronicPainRelief #emotionalWellness #experience #fibromyalgia #flow #gratitude #healing #health #holistic #holisticHealth #illness #lupus #managingPain #meditation #mentalHealth #mentalWellbeing #mentalWellness #mindful #moments #ms #pain #practice #spoonie #visualization
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DATE: May 12, 2026 at 02:00PM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: Does romantic rejection hurt more than platonic rejection? A new study says no
Most people assume that rejection by a potential romantic partner is far more painful than rejection by a prospective friend. However, new research published in the European Journal of Social Psychology suggests that, when rejection is actually experienced, the emotional impact is remarkably similar regardless of whether it comes from a romantic or a platonic source.
Romantic rejection is often seen as uniquely devastating, in part because modern societies place heavy emotional expectations on romantic relationships. However, researchers have long noted that humans are broadly motivated by a fundamental need for belonging. Social rejection tends to hurt across all contexts because it threatens shared psychological needs, such as feeling valued, in control, and meaningful.
What has been less clear is whether rejection by a potential romantic partner is more painful than rejection in a friendship context. Given the intense expectations placed on romantic relationships—which are often expected to fulfill a wide range of emotional and personal needs—it has seemed plausible that being denied such a relationship would be especially distressing.
To examine these assumptions, researchers conducted three related studies. In the first, 1,500 American adults were asked which type of rejection they believed would be more painful: being turned down by a potential romantic partner or by a potential friend. The responses largely reflected common intuitions: approximately half expected romantic rejection to be worse, compared with roughly a quarter who anticipated greater pain from platonic rejection, while the remaining participants believed both would be equally distressing.
Led by Natasha R. Wood of Leiden University in the Netherlands, the team then tested real‑time responses to rejection in a controlled experimental setting. In Study 2, 934 single adults aged 18 to 29 (57.9% women; average age 23.4) were randomly assigned to one of four conditions: accepted or rejected by either a potential romantic partner or a potential platonic friend.
Participants engaged with a simulated app environment, designed to resemble dating or social networking platforms, and received either positive or negative feedback from profiles purportedly representing other users. Afterward, they reported how they felt across a range of measures capturing their sense of belonging, self-worth, and emotional wellbeing.
The researchers found that rejection reliably reduced wellbeing, and acceptance reliably enhanced it, but the type of relationship framing—romantic versus platonic—had no effect on emotional outcomes. The team also tested whether feelings of romantic instrumentality (seeing a partner as someone who would help you achieve more of your goals in life) or self-blame might explain any romantic-versus-platonic difference in pain. Neither emerged as a meaningful driver.
In a third study involving 477 participants (73.6% women; average age 20.3), predicted emotional reactions were compared with actual emotional experiences. The researchers also added a “stranger control” group, in which participants were told there was no expectation of forming a relationship of any kind.
Participants were asked to forecast how they would feel before receiving feedback, then report how they felt afterward. Once again, relationship type did not meaningfully influence emotional responses; rejection by a stranger hurt just as much as rejection by a potential date. Furthermore, participants consistently overestimated the intensity of both outcomes, particularly the pain of rejection.
Wood and colleagues put it simply: “It seems the experience of being accepted is so positive and the experience of being rejected is so negative that it does not matter who is doing so.”
There are, however, important caveats to keep in mind. For example, the study was conducted exclusively with American participants, which limits how far the findings can be generalised across different cultures where romantic and platonic relationships may be valued differently. Furthermore, the simulated app environment may not perfectly capture the intense emotions of an in-person rejection.
The study, “What Could Have Been: Predicted and Actual Exclusion by Potential Romantic Partners and Platonic Friends,” was authored by Natasha R. Wood, Sydney G. Wicks, Adam J. Beam, Elijah P. Mudryk, Ellie Bray, and Andrew H. Hales.
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#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #depression #psychotherapist #romanticrejection #platonicrejection #socialpsychology #belongingness #emotionalwellbeing #rejectionresearch #datingapps #selfworth #humanneeds #relationshipsstudy
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Watched the last episode of #DeadLikeMe last night, and watched the direct-to-DVD movie early this morning.
The final episode was a nice capper to the series, although it left a lot of questions unanswered (understandably, though).
The movie (Dead Like Me: #LifeAfterDeath)?
Absolute #shovelware. It did not make a lick of sense, whatsoever. The new actor played Daisy Adair with all of the subtlety of a dump truck, Henry Ian Cusick's talents were wasted on a character with zero perceptible motivation, Roxy somehow lost all of her street smarts in an instant after schmoozing with the police commissioner, and while George's character got some nice closure (although not entirely believable), the whole thing felt really off and bewildering.
I think the only character that was fully true to the original was Mason, my personal favorite. Pretty hard to mess up a character that's already so utterly morally bankrupt 🤣
But overall the character development for George, her mom, and her sister was nice. I'm thankful Joy finally became a tolerable character in the last view episodes. I kinda wanted to slap her throughout the first season. Just very typical unhappy wife schlock. She was actually likeable and sympathetic in the movie.
Also the #Palm #Treo product placement in #2009 was hilarious.
But yeah, don't ask me to summarize the plot, because I really couldn't find it. Nothing made a lick of sense.
Not direct quotes, but they could have been:
"Oh man, he gave us these new high-tech smartphones, but he gave me some bad info. I need to get a hold of him. I wonder HOW!!!"
"You're such an evil person, because all you care about is money, even though you're treating us to this really lavish lifestyle, and you're not actually making money from any of this... this is so confusing, we're going to kill you!"This could very well be the worst movie I've seen, omitting things seen on #MysteryScienceTheatre3000 and Christian #glurge films like "God's Not Dead." (Christian Pop-Eschatology movies deserve their own category in the lowest circle of hell, appropriately enough)
-
Watched the last episode of #DeadLikeMe last night, and watched the direct-to-DVD movie early this morning.
The final episode was a nice capper to the series, although it left a lot of questions unanswered (understandably, though).
The movie (Dead Like Me: #LifeAfterDeath)?
Absolute #shovelware. It did not make a lick of sense, whatsoever. The new actor played Daisy Adair with all of the subtlety of a dump truck, Henry Ian Cusick's talents were wasted on a character with zero perceptible motivation, Roxy somehow lost all of her street smarts in an instant after schmoozing with the police commissioner, and while George's character got some nice closure (although not entirely believable), the whole thing felt really off and bewildering.
I think the only character that was fully true to the original was Mason, my personal favorite. Pretty hard to mess up a character that's already so utterly morally bankrupt 🤣
But overall the character development for George, her mom, and her sister was nice. I'm thankful Joy finally became a tolerable character in the last view episodes. I kinda wanted to slap her throughout the first season. Just very typical unhappy wife schlock. She was actually likeable and sympathetic in the movie.
Also the #Palm #Treo product placement in #2009 was hilarious.
But yeah, don't ask me to summarize the plot, because I really couldn't find it. Nothing made a lick of sense.
Not direct quotes, but they could have been:
"Oh man, he gave us these new high-tech smartphones, but he gave me some bad info. I need to get a hold of him. I wonder HOW!!!"
"You're such an evil person, because all you care about is money, even though you're treating us to this really lavish lifestyle, and you're not actually making money from any of this... this is so confusing, we're going to kill you!"This could very well be the worst movie I've seen, omitting things seen on #MysteryScienceTheatre3000 and Christian #glurge films like "God's Not Dead." (Christian Pop-Eschatology movies deserve their own category in the lowest circle of hell, appropriately enough)
-
Watched the last episode of #DeadLikeMe last night, and watched the direct-to-DVD movie early this morning.
The final episode was a nice capper to the series, although it left a lot of questions unanswered (understandably, though).
The movie (Dead Like Me: #LifeAfterDeath)?
Absolute #shovelware. It did not make a lick of sense, whatsoever. The new actor played Daisy Adair with all of the subtlety of a dump truck, Henry Ian Cusick's talents were wasted on a character with zero perceptible motivation, Roxy somehow lost all of her street smarts in an instant after schmoozing with the police commissioner, and while George's character got some nice closure (although not entirely believable), the whole thing felt really off and bewildering.
I think the only character that was fully true to the original was Mason, my personal favorite. Pretty hard to mess up a character that's already so utterly morally bankrupt 🤣
But overall the character development for George, her mom, and her sister was nice. I'm thankful Joy finally became a tolerable character in the last view episodes. I kinda wanted to slap her throughout the first season. Just very typical unhappy wife schlock. She was actually likeable and sympathetic in the movie.
Also the #Palm #Treo product placement in #2009 was hilarious.
But yeah, don't ask me to summarize the plot, because I really couldn't find it. Nothing made a lick of sense.
Not direct quotes, but they could have been:
"Oh man, he gave us these new high-tech smartphones, but he gave me some bad info. I need to get a hold of him. I wonder HOW!!!"
"You're such an evil person, because all you care about is money, even though you're treating us to this really lavish lifestyle, and you're not actually making money from any of this... this is so confusing, we're going to kill you!"This could very well be the worst movie I've seen, omitting things seen on #MysteryScienceTheatre3000 and Christian #glurge films like "God's Not Dead." (Christian Pop-Eschatology movies deserve their own category in the lowest circle of hell, appropriately enough)
-
Watched the last episode of #DeadLikeMe last night, and watched the direct-to-DVD movie early this morning.
The final episode was a nice capper to the series, although it left a lot of questions unanswered (understandably, though).
The movie (Dead Like Me: #LifeAfterDeath)?
Absolute #shovelware. It did not make a lick of sense, whatsoever. The new actor played Daisy Adair with all of the subtlety of a dump truck, Henry Ian Cusick's talents were wasted on a character with zero perceptible motivation, Roxy somehow lost all of her street smarts in an instant after schmoozing with the police commissioner, and while George's character got some nice closure (although not entirely believable), the whole thing felt really off and bewildering.
I think the only character that was fully true to the original was Mason, my personal favorite. Pretty hard to mess up a character that's already so utterly morally bankrupt 🤣
But overall the character development for George, her mom, and her sister was nice. I'm thankful Joy finally became a tolerable character in the last view episodes. I kinda wanted to slap her throughout the first season. Just very typical unhappy wife schlock. She was actually likeable and sympathetic in the movie.
Also the #Palm #Treo product placement in #2009 was hilarious.
But yeah, don't ask me to summarize the plot, because I really couldn't find it. Nothing made a lick of sense.
Not direct quotes, but they could have been:
"Oh man, he gave us these new high-tech smartphones, but he gave me some bad info. I need to get a hold of him. I wonder HOW!!!"
"You're such an evil person, because all you care about is money, even though you're treating us to this really lavish lifestyle, and you're not actually making money from any of this... this is so confusing, we're going to kill you!"This could very well be the worst movie I've seen, omitting things seen on #MysteryScienceTheatre3000 and Christian #glurge films like "God's Not Dead." (Christian Pop-Eschatology movies deserve their own category in the lowest circle of hell, appropriately enough)
-
Watched the last episode of #DeadLikeMe last night, and watched the direct-to-DVD movie early this morning.
The final episode was a nice capper to the series, although it left a lot of questions unanswered (understandably, though).
The movie (Dead Like Me: #LifeAfterDeath)?
Absolute #shovelware. It did not make a lick of sense, whatsoever. The new actor played Daisy Adair with all of the subtlety of a dump truck, Henry Ian Cusick's talents were wasted on a character with zero perceptible motivation, Roxy somehow lost all of her street smarts in an instant after schmoozing with the police commissioner, and while George's character got some nice closure (although not entirely believable), the whole thing felt really off and bewildering.
I think the only character that was fully true to the original was Mason, my personal favorite. Pretty hard to mess up a character that's already so utterly morally bankrupt 🤣
But overall the character development for George, her mom, and her sister was nice. I'm thankful Joy finally became a tolerable character in the last view episodes. I kinda wanted to slap her throughout the first season. Just very typical unhappy wife schlock. She was actually likeable and sympathetic in the movie.
Also the #Palm #Treo product placement in #2009 was hilarious.
But yeah, don't ask me to summarize the plot, because I really couldn't find it. Nothing made a lick of sense.
Not direct quotes, but they could have been:
"Oh man, he gave us these new high-tech smartphones, but he gave me some bad info. I need to get a hold of him. I wonder HOW!!!"
"You're such an evil person, because all you care about is money, even though you're treating us to this really lavish lifestyle, and you're not actually making money from any of this... this is so confusing, we're going to kill you!"This could very well be the worst movie I've seen, omitting things seen on #MysteryScienceTheatre3000 and Christian #glurge films like "God's Not Dead." (Christian Pop-Eschatology movies deserve their own category in the lowest circle of hell, appropriately enough)
-
#MurderEveryMonday Cover with a Zoo animal Elephants can Remember: Is it good?
I know, I know: my choice to this #MurderEveryMonday is probably again too obvious, but it also gives me the opportunity to talk about this book. Check Kate’s blog to know more about the hashtag.
Agatha Christie was 82 years old when she wrote Elephants Can Remember. This is the last novel she wrote with Poirot as the detective and it was published in November of 1972. Poirot’s Early Cases (1974) and Curtain (1975), both published afterwords, were written in the 1920s and 1930s, for the short stories, and for the last case of Poirot in the 1940s, the book being kept unpublished in a bank vault.
Even at the time of publication, the book received some less kind reviews, with some pointing out inconsistencies about times and ages, which quite frankly could (and should) have been avoided by the editors and publisher of the book. Still, many today consider this a lesser work, but I find several reasons to like it.
The book starts with Mrs. Ariadne Oliver going to a literary luncheon. Oliver is the alter-ego of Agatha Christie: she likes apples, she is always trying hair styles, writes crime fiction, and complains about her Finn detective, lamenting inventing him, since she doesn’t know anything about Finland. It’s always a delight to have her as a character in a book. In the first chapter, Mrs. Oliver tell us about her problems with making speeches, the questions people always ask her, the letters she receives from her readers, and how she tries to deal with all of this. And I found this a delight because it seems clear we’re given a glimpse of something Christie also struggled with and knew first hand.
At that lunch, a woman asks Mrs. Oliver if she is the godmother of Celia Ravenscroft and after corroboration, the woman continues: “Did her mother kill her father or was it the father who killed the mother?”.
And I still remember, when I first read this book (which is more than I can say for so many other books), I was as puzzled as Mrs. Oliver. I mean, why would it matter if it was the father or the mother? Why would it be so important to know? But this also tell us something about the beliefs and obsessions of the people in the past (in this case, in the 1970s). I think Agatha Christie was more observant than a talkative person, and because of that she noticed things more. And I love her books have these snippets she took from her observations: it can be something she heard someone saying, or it can be something being discussed in a newspaper, some new advance in science, something she remembers her family doing when she was a child, etc.
This is also a book about a murder in the past and deals with the people’s memory (the elephants), sometimes people remember certain things, but not others, or they remember things differently. And it’s Poirot job to make sense of all this.
I didn’t re-read this one for some time now, but I remember liking it. And now that I’ve talked about what I liked about it, I’ll be re-reading it again shortly. So, tell me, did you read Elephants Can Remember? Did you like it or not? And why?
#AgathaChristie #BookLook #books #ColecçãoVampiro #CrimeFiction #MurderEveryMonday #Policiais #readings -
#MurderEveryMonday Cover with a Zoo animal Elephants can Remember: Is it good?
I know, I know: my choice to this #MurderEveryMonday is probably again too obvious, but it also gives me the opportunity to talk about this book. Check Kate’s blog to know more about the hashtag.
Agatha Christie was 82 years old when she wrote Elephants Can Remember. This is the last novel she wrote with Poirot as the detective and it was published in November of 1972. Poirot’s Early Cases (1974) and Curtain (1975), both published afterwords, were written in the 1920s and 1930s, for the short stories, and for the last case of Poirot in the 1940s, the book being kept unpublished in a bank vault.
Even at the time of publication, the book received some less kind reviews, with some pointing out inconsistencies about times and ages, which quite frankly could (and should) have been avoided by the editors and publisher of the book. Still, many today consider this a lesser work, but I find several reasons to like it.
The book starts with Mrs. Ariadne Oliver going to a literary luncheon. Oliver is the alter-ego of Agatha Christie: she likes apples, she is always trying hair styles, writes crime fiction, and complains about her Finn detective, lamenting inventing him, since she doesn’t know anything about Finland. It’s always a delight to have her as a character in a book. In the first chapter, Mrs. Oliver tell us about her problems with making speeches, the questions people always ask her, the letters she receives from her readers, and how she tries to deal with all of this. And I found this a delight because it seems clear we’re given a glimpse of something Christie also struggled with and knew first hand.
At that lunch, a woman asks Mrs. Oliver if she is the godmother of Celia Ravenscroft and after corroboration, the woman continues: “Did her mother kill her father or was it the father who killed the mother?”.
And I still remember, when I first read this book (which is more than I can say for so many other books), I was as puzzled as Mrs. Oliver. I mean, why would it matter if it was the father or the mother? Why would it be so important to know? But this also tell us something about the beliefs and obsessions of the people in the past (in this case, in the 1970s). I think Agatha Christie was more observant than a talkative person, and because of that she noticed things more. And I love her books have these snippets she took from her observations: it can be something she heard someone saying, or it can be something being discussed in a newspaper, some new advance in science, something she remembers her family doing when she was a child, etc.
This is also a book about a murder in the past and deals with the people’s memory (the elephants), sometimes people remember certain things, but not others, or they remember things differently. And it’s Poirot job to make sense of all this.
I didn’t re-read this one for some time now, but I remember liking it. And now that I’ve talked about what I liked about it, I’ll be re-reading it again shortly. So, tell me, did you read Elephants Can Remember? Did you like it or not? And why?
#AgathaChristie #BookLook #books #ColecçãoVampiro #CrimeFiction #MurderEveryMonday #Policiais #readings -
#MurderEveryMonday Cover with a Zoo animal Elephants can Remember: Is it good?
I know, I know: my choice to this #MurderEveryMonday is probably again too obvious, but it also gives me the opportunity to talk about this book. Check Kate’s blog to know more about the hashtag.
Agatha Christie was 82 years old when she wrote Elephants Can Remember. This is the last novel she wrote with Poirot as the detective and it was published in November of 1972. Poirot’s Early Cases (1974) and Curtain (1975), both published afterwords, were written in the 1920s and 1930s, for the short stories, and for the last case of Poirot in the 1940s, the book being kept unpublished in a bank vault.
Even at the time of publication, the book received some less kind reviews, with some pointing out inconsistencies about times and ages, which quite frankly could (and should) have been avoided by the editors and publisher of the book. Still, many today consider this a lesser work, but I find several reasons to like it.
The book starts with Mrs. Ariadne Oliver going to a literary luncheon. Oliver is the alter-ego of Agatha Christie: she likes apples, she is always trying hair styles, writes crime fiction, and complains about her Finn detective, lamenting inventing him, since she doesn’t know anything about Finland. It’s always a delight to have her as a character in a book. In the first chapter, Mrs. Oliver tell us about her problems with making speeches, the questions people always ask her, the letters she receives from her readers, and how she tries to deal with all of this. And I found this a delight because it seems clear we’re given a glimpse of something Christie also struggled with and knew first hand.
At that lunch, a woman asks Mrs. Oliver if she is the godmother of Celia Ravenscroft and after corroboration, the woman continues: “Did her mother kill her father or was it the father who killed the mother?”.
And I still remember, when I first read this book (which is more than I can say for so many other books), I was as puzzled as Mrs. Oliver. I mean, why would it matter if it was the father or the mother? Why would it be so important to know? But this also tell us something about the beliefs and obsessions of the people in the past (in this case, in the 1970s). I think Agatha Christie was more observant than a talkative person, and because of that she noticed things more. And I love her books have these snippets she took from her observations: it can be something she heard someone saying, or it can be something being discussed in a newspaper, some new advance in science, something she remembers her family doing when she was a child, etc.
This is also a book about a murder in the past and deals with the people’s memory (the elephants), sometimes people remember certain things, but not others, or they remember things differently. And it’s Poirot job to make sense of all this.
I didn’t re-read this one for some time now, but I remember liking it. And now that I’ve talked about what I liked about it, I’ll be re-reading it again shortly. So, tell me, did you read Elephants Can Remember? Did you like it or not? And why?
#AgathaChristie #BookLook #books #ColecçãoVampiro #CrimeFiction #MurderEveryMonday #Policiais #readings -
#MurderEveryMonday Cover with a Zoo animal Elephants can Remember: Is it good?
I know, I know: my choice to this #MurderEveryMonday is probably again too obvious, but it also gives me the opportunity to talk about this book. Check Kate’s blog to know more about the hashtag.
Agatha Christie was 82 years old when she wrote Elephants Can Remember. This is the last novel she wrote with Poirot as the detective and it was published in November of 1972. Poirot’s Early Cases (1974) and Curtain (1975), both published afterwords, were written in the 1920s and 1930s, for the short stories, and for the last case of Poirot in the 1940s, the book being kept unpublished in a bank vault.
Even at the time of publication, the book received some less kind reviews, with some pointing out inconsistencies about times and ages, which quite frankly could (and should) have been avoided by the editors and publisher of the book. Still, many today consider this a lesser work, but I find several reasons to like it.
The book starts with Mrs. Ariadne Oliver going to a literary luncheon. Oliver is the alter-ego of Agatha Christie: she likes apples, she is always trying hair styles, writes crime fiction, and complains about her Finn detective, lamenting inventing him, since she doesn’t know anything about Finland. It’s always a delight to have her as a character in a book. In the first chapter, Mrs. Oliver tell us about her problems with making speeches, the questions people always ask her, the letters she receives from her readers, and how she tries to deal with all of this. And I found this a delight because it seems clear we’re given a glimpse of something Christie also struggled with and knew first hand.
At that lunch, a woman asks Mrs. Oliver if she is the godmother of Celia Ravenscroft and after corroboration, the woman continues: “Did her mother kill her father or was it the father who killed the mother?”.
And I still remember, when I first read this book (which is more than I can say for so many other books), I was as puzzled as Mrs. Oliver. I mean, why would it matter if it was the father or the mother? Why would it be so important to know? But this also tell us something about the beliefs and obsessions of the people in the past (in this case, in the 1970s). I think Agatha Christie was more observant than a talkative person, and because of that she noticed things more. And I love her books have these snippets she took from her observations: it can be something she heard someone saying, or it can be something being discussed in a newspaper, some new advance in science, something she remembers her family doing when she was a child, etc.
This is also a book about a murder in the past and deals with the people’s memory (the elephants), sometimes people remember certain things, but not others, or they remember things differently. And it’s Poirot job to make sense of all this.
I didn’t re-read this one for some time now, but I remember liking it. And now that I’ve talked about what I liked about it, I’ll be re-reading it again shortly. So, tell me, did you read Elephants Can Remember? Did you like it or not? And why?
#AgathaChristie #BookLook #books #ColecçãoVampiro #CrimeFiction #MurderEveryMonday #Policiais #readings -
#MurderEveryMonday Cover with a Zoo animal Elephants can Remember: Is it good?
I know, I know: my choice to this #MurderEveryMonday is probably again too obvious, but it also gives me the opportunity to talk about this book. Check Kate’s blog to know more about the hashtag.
Agatha Christie was 82 years old when she wrote Elephants Can Remember. This is the last novel she wrote with Poirot as the detective and it was published in November of 1972. Poirot’s Early Cases (1974) and Curtain (1975), both published afterwords, were written in the 1920s and 1930s, for the short stories, and for the last case of Poirot in the 1940s, the book being kept unpublished in a bank vault.
Even at the time of publication, the book received some less kind reviews, with some pointing out inconsistencies about times and ages, which quite frankly could (and should) have been avoided by the editors and publisher of the book. Still, many today consider this a lesser work, but I find several reasons to like it.
The book starts with Mrs. Ariadne Oliver going to a literary luncheon. Oliver is the alter-ego of Agatha Christie: she likes apples, she is always trying hair styles, writes crime fiction, and complains about her Finn detective, lamenting inventing him, since she doesn’t know anything about Finland. It’s always a delight to have her as a character in a book. In the first chapter, Mrs. Oliver tell us about her problems with making speeches, the questions people always ask her, the letters she receives from her readers, and how she tries to deal with all of this. And I found this a delight because it seems clear we’re given a glimpse of something Christie also struggled with and knew first hand.
At that lunch, a woman asks Mrs. Oliver if she is the godmother of Celia Ravenscroft and after corroboration, the woman continues: “Did her mother kill her father or was it the father who killed the mother?”.
And I still remember, when I first read this book (which is more than I can say for so many other books), I was as puzzled as Mrs. Oliver. I mean, why would it matter if it was the father or the mother? Why would it be so important to know? But this also tell us something about the beliefs and obsessions of the people in the past (in this case, in the 1970s). I think Agatha Christie was more observant than a talkative person, and because of that she noticed things more. And I love her books have these snippets she took from her observations: it can be something she heard someone saying, or it can be something being discussed in a newspaper, some new advance in science, something she remembers her family doing when she was a child, etc.
This is also a book about a murder in the past and deals with the people’s memory (the elephants), sometimes people remember certain things, but not others, or they remember things differently. And it’s Poirot job to make sense of all this.
I didn’t re-read this one for some time now, but I remember liking it. And now that I’ve talked about what I liked about it, I’ll be re-reading it again shortly. So, tell me, did you read Elephants Can Remember? Did you like it or not? And why?
#AgathaChristie #BookLook #books #ColecçãoVampiro #CrimeFiction #MurderEveryMonday #Policiais #readings