grace

enfp//slytherin watch me as I try to survive school

[cocconutoil-deactivated20181024]

MUSLIMS ARE GETTING PUT IN CONCENTRATION CAMPS IN CHINA

MUSLIMS ARE GETTING PUT IN CONCENTRATION CAMPS IN CHINA

MUSLIMS ARE GETTING PUT IN CONCENTRATION CAMPS IN CHINA

MUSLIMS ARE GETTING PUT IN CONCENTRATION CAMPS IN CHINA

[byelkyrie-deactivated20200204]

Links to articles about this in The Independent and The Washington Post.

[hundondestiny]

“Muslims forced to drink alcohol and eat pork in China’s ‘re-education’ camps, former inmate claims ‘The psychological pressure is enormous when you have to criticise yourself, denounce your thinking,’ says detainee” these are from may 2018.

[honeyloves]

The majority being discriminated against are called Uyghurs. Khazaks, Uzbeks, and Tajiks are also being ostracized. They are Turkic minorities. They are people. And the world is unaware.

There is an estimated one million people in these so called “re-education camps”. Uyghur people are being forced to assimilate into Chinese culture through marriage. Uyghur children are forced to learn Mandarin and Uyghurqi, the language, is prohibited to be taught in schools. There is a lot of Uyghur unemployment due to ethnic discrimination. Uyghur people are routinely, unjustly imprisoned, and many die. An elderly Uyghur poet was imprisoned. An Uyghur couple my family knows was beaten, and the wife suffered a miscarriage. These are just a few examples of discrimination.

Rebiya Kadeer is fighting for our voices to be heard. She is one of many who was unjustly imprisoned, due to her political activism. She was put on death row and was told to keep quiet or her family would be killed. More than 30 of her relatives have been unjustly detained in the concentration camps. Read her book (Dragon Fighter).

My culture is forcefully being erased. My people are dying. Who is listening? Who can help us?

This is ethnic cleansing.

This is the coming of the second Holocaust. I know that that word cannot be used lightly, which is why I am using it. I hope you all understand the severity of the situation.

Please spread the word. Be aware of this. Tell your friends, your family, anyone who will listen.

Uyghurs can’t reach out for help, but you can on their behalf.

Please.

[couragestudy]

video games

bioshock pt.i, pt.ii,

child of light pt.i

dear esther pt.i

everybody’s gone to the rapture pt.i

final fantasy pt.i, pt.ii

journey pt.i

kholat pt.i

kingdom hearts pt.i, pt.ii, pt.iii

legend of zelda pt.i, pt.ii, pt.iii, pt.iv, pt.v

monster hunter pt.i

overwatch pt.i, pt.ii,

pokémon pt.i, pt.ii, pt.iii

professor layton pt.i

silent hill pt.i, pt.ii, pt.iii, pt.iv

super mario galaxy pt.i

the elder scrolls pt.i, pt.ii

the vanishing of ethan carter pt.i

undertale pt.i

various games pt.i, pt.ii, pt.iii

movies & tv shows

breakfast at tiffany’s pt.i

flcl pt.i, pt.ii

it follows pt.i

k-on! pt.i

sailor moon pt.i

star wars pt.i, pt.ii, pt.iii

studio ghibli pt.i, pt.ii, pt.iii, pt.iv

the girl who leapt through time pt.i

x-files pt.i

[crimefighterphd]

Quick reminder, especially for you younger undergrads: Discipline is a skill, not a character trait. And just like any skill, it can be practiced and improved upon incrementally. Try not to get discouraged if you have a day, or multiple days, where you are less disciplined than you would like or need to be. Don’t quit. Don’t spend the next week binging Netflix because you think it’s a hopeless endeavour. Just get up the next day and try again. Each day you try is more practice, and each day you practice, you’ll get a little bit better, and that continual improvement will pay dividends in the long run.

Keep at it.

[petrichorals]

a reminder for my followers.

[travel-study]

  hey guys, just thought i’d whip together a list of some of my favourite authors most motivational   quotes. i especially love using these in bullet journal spreads. hope everyone is having a wonderful new year!            

          oscar wilde 

  “we are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars” 

  “always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much” 

  “with freedom, books, flowers and the moon, who could not be happy?” 

  “to love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance” 

  “be yourself; everyone else is already taken” 

  “to live is the rarest thing in the world. most people exist, that is all” 

  “it is what you read when you don’t have to that determines what you will be when you can’t help it" 

  "you can never be overdressed or overeducated” 

  “yes: i am a dreamer. for a dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world”

          fyodor dostoyevsky

   "there is no subject so old that something new cannot be said about it" 

  “power is given only to those who dare to lower themselves and pick it up. only one thing matters, one thing; to be able to dare” 

  “happiness does not lie in happiness, but in the achievement of it” 

  “the cleverest of all, in my opinion, is the man who calls himself a fool at least once a month”

  “to live without hope is to cease to live” 

         james joyce 

  “i am tomorrow, or some future day, what i establish today. i am today what i established yesterday or some previous day” 

  “a man of genius makes no mistakes; his errors… are the portals of discovery” 

  “he found in the world without as actual what was in his world within as possible” 

  “life is the great teacher” 

         charles dickens 

  “the sun himself is weak when he first rises, and gathers strength and courage as the day gets on” 

  “there are dark shadows on the earth, but its lights are stronger in the contrast” “a loving heart is the truest wisdom” 

  “i ask only to be free. the butterflies are free” 

  “we forge the chains we wear in life” 

  “an idea, like a ghost, must be spoken to a little before it will explain itself” 

  “no one is useless in this world who lightens the burden of it to anyone else” 

         franz kafka 

  “start with what is right, rather than with what is acceptable” 

  “anyone who keeps the ability to see beauty never grows old” 

  “logic may indeed be unshakeable, but it cannot withstand a man who is determined to live” 

  “a book should serve as the axe for the frozen sea within us” 

  “believing in progress does not mean believing that any progress has yet been made” 

  “my ‘fear’ is my substance, and probably the best part of me” 

         ivan turgenev 

  “we sit in the mud, my friend, and reach for the stars” 

  “if we wait for the moment when everything, absolutely everything is ready, we shall never begin” 

  “time sometimes flies like a bird, and sometimes crawls like a worm, but people may be unusually happy when they do not even notice if time has gone quickly or slowly” 

  “don’t be ruled by others; to belong to oneself- the whole savour of life lies in that” 

  “we’re young, we’re not monsters, no fools: we’ll conquer happiness for ourselves” 

         george orwell 

  “happiness can exist only in finding acceptance" 

  "the essence of being human is that one does not seek perfection” 

  “freedom is the right to tell people what they do not want to hear” 

         victor hugo 

  “laughter is the sun that drives winter from the human face” 

  “music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent” 

  “curiosity is one of the forms of feminine bravery” 

  “to learn to read is to light a fire; every syllable that is spelled out is a spark” 

  “to love beauty is to see light” 

  “adversity makes men” 

  “our acts make or mar us, we are the children of our own deeds” 

  “there is nothing like a dream to create the future” 

  “all the forces in the world are not as powerful as an idea whose time has come”

  “perseverance, secret of all triumphs”

[collegeessayguy]

Six Resources that Have Changed My Life

[collegeessayguy]

1. Coffitivity

Work with coffeeshop sounds in the background.

Like I’m doing right now.

2. Ethan’s Private Stash of Really Good Reads

For one of my recent jobs, I spent a year combing the web for the best long form articles out there. This was the result: the very best reading on the web, curated by me.

Ideal audience: curious humans.

3. focus@will

I gotta have music when I work. Since all my favorite Pandora stations now repeat songs, I go here:

#AlphaChill

4. The Ridiculous Amazing List of Vocab Word Flashcards from Elite Prep

Why is it ridiculous amazing? I’ll just put it this way: the company spent a lot of money figuring out which words are likely to appear on your future standardized tests–SAT, ACT and AP–and it was nothing illegal, the company was just really thorough.

And hear the words read aloud here, if you prefer. Listen while you work or as you go to sleep, as one of my colleagues does (no joke).

5. Meditation

That’s right: our own breath and mindfulness = best resource ever. Ever try meditation and fail? (Yeah, me too.) Here’s an eight-minute meditation exercise that features the most relaxing song ever. Or just listen to the songhere.

6. O*Net Online

Amazing resource for learning about different jobs and careers. Not sure what you want to study, or specific jobs exist in your field? Just type a search term like “medicine” into the box at the top right. You’ll learn a lot in a little time.

What resource has changed your life? Share your favorite inspiring resources in comments below or via email at: ethan (at) collegessayguy (dot) com.

[polcry]

FINDING YOUR DAILY ROUTINE // for those students who have all of 3 contact hours a week.

Why should you have a daily routine? Well, not only does it provide structure, it also: improves productivity and efficiency; helps you sleep better; and manages and/or relieves the symptoms of mental illness!

Okay, that doesn’t exactly sound bad. How do I do it?

- Firstly, establish your wake-up and get-up times.

It’s recommended that teenagers between 14 and 17 should get somewhere between 7 and 11 hours sleep per night. For young adults (18-25), it’s 6-10. Everyone’s different, and everyone requires a different amount to function at their best (as opposed to barely functioning with the help of coffee). Generally speaking, the younger you are, the more sleep you need. You’ll need to find out your own personal optimum sleep length through trial and error.

Sleep hygiene is really important for achieving optimum sleep quality - although it’ll be hard at first, get up at the same time every day, even if you’re a walking zombie. If you are, you’ll find wtf to do to fix it in a sec. Patience, grasshopper. 

Then, work out when you need to get up. It doesn’t really matter at this point whether you’re a lark or an owl - everyone has obligations and every needs to get up at some point. Even if you don’t, businesses have limited opening hours and relatives and/or friends probably won’t want to talk at 3am. You need to make sure your waking hours and these normal functioning hours overlap at least a little. If you have a standing obligation - like school or work - make sure you factor in time to have a calm, mindful breakfast; don’t just grab a banana to eat in the car. 

Then, subtract your optimum sleep time (plus a 30-minute contingency for actually falling asleep) from your wake-up time, and voila! Your bedtime. 

Example: I want to wake up at 7:30. I know I need 9 hours sleep. So, allowing 30 minutes to fall asleep, I’ll be in bed with the lights off by 10pm.

- Secondly, work out your ‘active’ hours.

If you spend the majority of your time in self-study, sometimes it can all see a bit overwhelming and you seem to be spending endless late nights doing work amirite? There’s a solution to this: treat your work like it’s a job. Aim to be sat down at your desk for x o’clock and aim to leave your desk at y o’clock. Split your day into manageable chunks (I like 90 minutes), giving yourself 10-30 minute breaks in between, as well as a lunch break. Use your breaks to get food or put on laundry or have a flick through Facebook. When your break’s up, get back to work. Then, when it gets to y o’clock, you’re done. Finito. Put your books away, shut your laptop down, and relax. 

This is where whether you’re a lark or an owl comes into play. If you’re a lark, get to work within a couple of hours of waking, and relax at night. If you’re an owl, chill out during the morning and get shit done in the afternoon/evening. 

It may seem like you won’t have enough time to get all the stuff done that you need to, but trust me. By keeping a routine and committing yourself to only doing assigned tasks during your ‘working’ day, you will get more done in the same amount of time. 

Example: I aim to sit down at 9:15 am. After my first task chunk (90 minutes) and a 10 minute break, it’s 10:55. My lunch break starts at 12:30, and I give myself two hours in case I need a nap. Then, I have two more 90 minute chunks, with a 10 minute break in between. I’m done by half five, I’ve got the whole of the evening to chill the fuck out, and I’ve had six hours of focused work instead of six hours of multitasking, punctuated by Tumblr scrolling. 

- Thirdly, plan your day.

If you’re observant, you’ll have noticed I have an hour and forty five minutes between waking up and doing stuff. This is me-time. I give myself an hour to eat breakfast, read the news, check Instagram and, most importantly, plan my day. 

Assign yourself the three things that you need to accomplish that day. Don’t make a single thing comprise of multiple parts. 1 thing is not English reading chapters 3-6 + notes; 1 thing is one chapter with notes. Now, it seems counterintuitive to under-plan. But you’ll be more productive if you frequently make dents in your to-do list and end up getting more done in the day than you had initially planned. 

Also, don’t underestimate how long a task will take. It’s better to overestimate and have leftover time to do smaller, unplanned tasks than feel stressed or rushed when it’s getting to five pm and you’ve still got notes for three chapters to make. If you’ve still got time left over even when overestimating, plan for some smaller, more menial tasks in there too. 

Stick to your ‘task chunks’, adhering to your break whether or not you’ve accomplished the chunk’s task. It’s okay to give a chunk more than one task - sometimes, I like to dedicate a chunk to lots of little bits that need to get done (like making a phone call or sorting out my school bag). 

- Lastly, get the hell to bed. 

Waking up at the same time is all very well if you’re maintaining a regular bedtime too, but it isn’t magically going to make tiredness from not getting enough sleep go away! 

Don’t eat a heavy meal too late at night, and try not to exercise within two hours of falling asleep. Turn off your technology - phones, tablets, computers, TVs - within 90 to 30 minutes of going to bed. I find an hour is the sweet spot for me. Take the opportunity to have a bath, journal, read a book or plan the stuff you need to do the next day. Establishing a night-time routine will help your body recognise when it’s time to wind down. 

If you’re super duper tired, your bedtime is the thing to adjust. Don’t get up later; go to sleep earlier. I know all the good TV is on after 9pm - but that’s why OnDemand TV was created. I promise it’ll still be there tomorrow. 

So that’s the basics of creating a functioning, well-rounded daily routine. It can be adapted for days when you actually have stuff to do (such as attending those precious few lectures), as well as for students whose education isn’t mostly revolved around independent study. Just do fewer/shorter task chunks per day and do them after/before school or university or work, or apply the tips only at the weekend to create a routine for getting stuff done!

Stick to it and you’ll be more energetic, more productive, and happier! 

[winterazalea]

[studyign]

winterazalea:

CLASSICAL

The old masters. I tried not to include most opera composers, since singing/lyrics interfere with concentration. Most of these playlists are at least an hour long:

Baroque (prancing through the flowers with royalty):

Albinoni

Bach

Corelli

Handel

Guerre

Purcell

Scarlatti

Telemann

Vivaldi

Classical (sipping tea with royalty while listening to their woes and gossip):

Beethoven

Haydn

Mozart

Paganini

Romantic (watching a heartfelt, teary-eyed scene in a soap opera):

Berlioz

Bizet

Borodin

Brahms

Bruch

Bruckner

Chopin

Dvorak

Field

Franck

Gade

Grieg

Liszt

Mendelssohn

Rachmaninov

Rimsky-Korsakov

Rubenstein

Saint-Saëns

Schubert

Robert Schumann

Clara Schumann

Smetana

Strauss II

Tchaikovsky

Wagner

Weber

Impressionistic (stargazing in an open field at midnight):

Debussy

Ravel

Late Romantic/Early Modern (dramatically confessing your love in the pouring rain):

Albéniz

Beach

Chaminade

de Falla

Dukas

Elgar

Fauré

Glazunov

Mahler

Respighi

Satie

Sibelius

Strauss

Vaughan Williams

Modern (these get sub-categories because they’re so different):

Emotional and moving

Barber

Bartok

Glass 

Holst

Ives

Kabalevsky

Kodaly

Poulenc

Schoenberg

Trimble

We’re off on an epic adventure!

Copeland

Grofe

Prokofiev

Tailleferre

Dramatic theme for every super villain ever

Adams

Musgrave

Shostakovich

Stravinsky

Tower

Curious and off-putting, but hypnotic

Cage

Higdon 

Rodrigo

Jazz hands and big city lights

Gershwin

Joplin

Milhaud

Still

Long, random playlists: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8)

Youtube Channels:

Classical Music

The Spirit of Classical Music

TopClassicalMusic

naxosorchestral

Classical Music11

There’s also playlists on Spotify (just go to Browse > Genres & Moods > Classical).

__________________________________________

CONTEMPORARY CLASSICAL

Sometimes the old masters are too stuffy. I get it. Have some more long playlists from a few of my favorite contemporary artists:

Piano

Yiruma

Michael Nyman

Ludovico Einaudi

Brian Crain

Jim Brickman

Ryuichi Sakamoto

Joe Hisaishi

Yann Tiersen

Violin

Itzhak Perlman

Vanessa Mae Storm

Emilie Autumn (electric)

David Garrett

__________________________________________

EDM

Maybe you don’t like classical at all. That’s fine, too. Here’s some wub-wub to get your mind on track:

Aggressive & Intense (dubstep, deathstep, metalstep, etc)

Long, random playlists: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8)

Youtube Channels:

Glitch Mob

Excision

TheSupremeKronus

Chill & Melodic (chillstep, deep house, melodic dubstep)

Long, random playlists: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8)

Youtube Channels:

Pulse8Music

ChillYourMind

Fluidified

Upbeat & Dancy (electro house, club music, more chillstep)

Long, random playlists: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) Youtube Channels:

Madeon

Paul van Dyk

Omnitica

There are countless other Youtube channels and mixes. You can also find some playlists on Spotify (Browse > Genres & Moods > Electronic).

__________________________________________

INSTRUMENTAL COVERS OF POPULAR SONGS

Here are a few channels to check out if you’re starting from nowhere:

Piano

Miri Lee 이미리 Pianistmiri -  pop, r&b, rap, some classical, rock, and k-pop

David Sides - pop, r&b, rap, some rock

oysterlovers - pop, r&b, rap, some classical and rock

The Theorist - pop, r&b, and rap

TheUnsungHeroine - pop & electronic/dubstep

YourPianoCover - mostly pop, a few rap

Steve Siu Piano - pop, country, classical, some rock and rap

Yoonha85TV - pop, rap, r&b, some k-pop

Brooklyn Duo (piano & cello) - pop

ThePianoGuys (piano & cello) - pop, r&b, classical, rock

Hour-long, yearly pop playlists by oysterlovers:  2013, 2014

Yearly pop medleys by AlexTanMusic:   2012, 2013, 2014

Violin

The Mad Violinist & SCO - pop, r&b, rap, dubstep

Lindsey Stirling - pop, r&b, rap, soundtracks, classical

Momento - pop & rock

Josh Vietti - pop, r&b, rap, rock, classical

JuNCurryAhn - pop, k-pop, classical, soundtracks

David Wong - pop, r&b, rock, rap

Bryson Andres - pop, r&b, rock, electronic

JasonYangViolin - pop, rock, rap, soundtracks

Of course, there are countless people who don’t have huge channels and maybe only a cover or two. The search bar is your friend. And don’t forget to make a playlist!

__________________________________________

VIDEO GAME SOUNDTRACKS

Think about it, there are tons of people whose only job is to get the atmosphere of a game right by carefully composing the right music. And there are plenty of games with beautiful music. I love these playlists:

Remember Me (brilliant mix of electronic and classical)

Papo & Yo (relaxing and tropical)

Rayman Origins (springy, lighthearted, and amazing)

Rayman Legends (energetic, goofy, and wonderful)

Dark Cloud 2/Dark Chronicle (beautiful, bouncy, heart-racing)

To The Moon (dreamy and moving)

Kingdom Hearts (gorgeous, epic, breathtaking)

Mirror’s Edge (soothing and mechanical)

Hamtaro: Ham-Hams Unite (adorable 8-bit)

Alice: Madness Returns (odd, creepy, and carnival-esque)

Journey (peaceful and atmospheric)

Child of Light (melancholic and powerful)

Trine (epic and mystical)

The Vanishing of Ethan Carter (mysterious and haunting)

Valiant Hearts (pretty and heartbreaking)

Walking Dead Season 1 (depressing and beautiful)

Braid (relaxing, Celtic vibes)

Botanicula (breathy, vibrant, playful)

Machinarium (earthy, futuristic, energetic)

Long, random playlists:  (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10)

Youtube Channels:

VGameOSTs

SoundtrackVideoGame

Video Game Soundtracks

__________________________________________

MOVIE SOUNDTRACKS

Just like video games, movies rely heavily on music to set the mood for the audience. Here are some of my favorite playlists:

Studio Ghibli

Spirited Away

Howl’s Moving Castle

Princess Mononoke

Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind

Kiki’s Delivery Service (x)

Castle in the Sky

My Neighbor Totoro

Ponyo

Porco Rosso

The Wind Rises

Grave of the Fireflies

random playlists: (1) (2) (3)

Classic Disney piano covers (1) (2)

Lord of the Rings

The Fellowship of the Ring

The Two Towers

The Return of the King

Amelie

How to Train Your Dragon

How to Train Your Dragon 2

Coraline

The Secret of Kells

The Tale of Princess Kaguya

The Piano

Schindler’s List

Harry Potter

Philosopher’s/Sorcerer’s Stone

Chamber of Secrets

Prisoner of Azkaban

Goblet of Fire

Order of the Phoenix

Half-Blood Prince

Deathly Hallows pt 1

Deathly Hallows pt 2

You can also view a full list of Grammy Award-winning soundtracks here

__________________________________________

ANIME SOUNDTRACKS

You’ll look like weeaboo trash, but at least you’ll be concentrating. You might need to skip a few tracks here and there if they have lyrics (that messes up my concentration, at least). That said, here’s some recommended playlists:

Elfen Lied (flowy and pretty)

Tokyo Ghoul √A (powerful, electronic, heart-wrenching)

Samurai Champloo (funky, hip-hop, soothing, amazing)

Hellsing Ultimate (epic, funky, aggressive, but also sad and moving)

Death Note (emotional, edgy, rock n’ roll)

Attack on Titan (sometimes emotional & harrowing, sometimes epic & gritty)

Ghost in the Shell (hollow, lonely, mysterious)

Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (gritty, funky, upbeat)

Blue Gender (funky, badass, intense)

Mnemosyne (jazzy, upbeat)

Cowboy Bebop (sometimes smooth jazz, sometimes wild & funky)

Neon Genesis Evangelion (more smooth jazz)

Fishugi Yuugi (emotional, romantic)

Sailor Moon (happy & upbeat)

Cardcaptor Sakura (lighthearted, bubbly)

Inuyasha (epic, emotional, inspiring)

Long, random playlists: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10)

Youtube Channels:

Dolan Zoldhost

EpicAnimeRequiem

Epic San

MrAnimeSoundtrack

Erolox OST

__________________________________________

Like I said, this isn’t a complete list but hopefully a good jumping-off point. Feel free to add to areas with your own suggestions. Have fun listening and go be productive!

[studysection]

I hope you enjoy these inspirational quotes I collected and add them to your collection, either in your bullet journal, your planner or your pocket for some extra motivation!

Charles Bukowski

“If you’re losing your soul and you know it, then you’ve still got a soul left to lose.”

“We are here to laugh at the odds and live our lives so well that death will tremble to take us.”

“To not to have entirely wasted one’s life seems to be a worthy accomplishment, if only for myself.”

F. Scott Fitzgerald

“Never confuse a single defeat with a final defeat.

“Genius is the ability to put into effect what is on your mind.”

“The world only exists in your eyes. You can make it as big or as small as you want.”

Mark Twain

“You can’t depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus.”

“Apparently there is nothing that cannot happen today.”

“The secret of getting ahead is getting started.”

“Do the right thing. It will gratify some people and astonish the rest.”

“Don’t go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first.”

George Bernard Shaw

“Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.”

“The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want and if they can’t find them, make them.”

“Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.”

“We are made wise not by the recollection of our past, but by the responsibility for our future.”

“Just do what must be done. This may not be happiness, but it is greatness.” 

“Life would be tolerable but for its amusements.”

“If you leave the smallest corner of your head vacant for a moment, other people’s opinions will rush in from all quarters.”

“You use a glass mirror to see your face; you use works of art to see your soul.”

“Imagination is the beginning of creation. You imagine what you desire, you will what you imagine and at last you create what you will.”

“People who say it cannot be done should not interrupt those who are doing it.”

“Success does not consist in never making mistakes but in never making the same one a second time.”

Charles Dickens

“Have a heart that never hardens, and a temper that never tires, and a touch that never hurts.”

“There are dark shadows on the earth, but its lights are stronger in the contrast.”

“There is a wisdom of the head, and a wisdom of the heart.”

Anton Chekhov

“Knowledge is of no value unless you put it into practice.”

“You must trust and believe in people or life becomes impossible.”

Robert Frost

“Don’t ever take a fence down until you know why it was put up.”

“The best way out is always through.”

“Freedom lies in being bold.”

“In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life: it goes on.”

“Happiness makes up in height for what it lacks in length.”

“Always fall in with what you’re asked to accept. Take what is given, and make it over your way. My aim in life has always been to hold my own with whatever’s going. Not against: with.”

Virginia Woolf

“Arrange whatever pieces come your way.”

“You cannot find peace by avoiding life.”

“If you do not tell the truth about yourself you cannot tell it about other people.”

Maya Angelou

“Whatever you want to do, if you want to be great at it, you have to love it and be able to make sacrifices for it.”

“Nothing will work unless you do.”

“We may encounter many defeats but we must not be defeated.”

“My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style.”

“You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.”

J. R. R. Tolkien

“All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”

“It’s the job that’s never started as takes longest to finish.”

“Not all those who wander are lost.”

[calmestblue]

Motivation vs Discipline: Explained

Btw, if anyone is still confused with the difference between “motivation” and “discipline”, let me put it like this:

• Motivation is incentive; something that encourage you to go on by imagining some form of rewards in the future if you do a certain activity; for example, taking a bath with the motivation of not wanting your crush to smell your bad natural body odor;

• Discipline is habit; it makes you do a certain activity without thinking of a future reward because your brain and body already think it is the normal thing to do; for example, putting cereal into the bowl before the milk – someone who do this everyday would naturally do it without thinking of any sort of reward before doing it.

In studyblrs’ case, having studying schedule based on motivations means you keep having to remind yourself about the rewards of studying hard (i.e proving your hated former classmates wrong, making your parents proud, getting lucrative job, etc). While this may work on some people, it doesn’t sound realistic that your brain somehow can think the same motivations sound rewarding enough when you’re feeling down; and it is dangerous when you’re feeling down when you have five essays due or have an exam in the next week.

Meanwhile, having studying schedule based on discipline means that you keep studying at the scheduled times out of habit, because your body and brain thinks it is the right thing to do at that specific time. It sounds more realistic, because although you’re feeling down at that moment, staring down at the same sentences over and over again, highlighting it, and re-writing it down in your notes will make those sentences remembered by your brain. Or, even if your brain does not remember them later, you will know where the important sentences are, because you already highlighted it. Also, working on your assignments based on scheduled discipline means that although you make horrible essay in the first day, you will have more time to revise it later because working based on discipline means you don’t procrastinate it to the last minutes.

In conclusion, we should all devise studying schedule based on discipline.

[niqabisinparis]

Motivation is overrated. No amount of motivation would’ve gotten me through hours of my accounting textbook. No “vision” is enough to keep me awake til the crack of dawn on an essay that I don’t even know if the professor will check. Discipline is what determines how far you go. On those days when your cute little list of #goals and vision of yourself 5 years from now aren’t enough, discipline will pull you out of bed and get you to work. I wish I knew this in high school because I thought I couldn’t work without motivation. I wasted so much time trying to find purpose before I realized that working now, albeit blindly, will ensure that I could chase any purpose I discover in the future. Sure, motivation is crucial, but it’s not consistent. It’s not reliable. You can only rely on yourself and your grit. 

[allywut]

A Really Fucking Vulgar Guide to Not Losing Your Shit in College (Condensed Version)

Bitches love to put things into lists. Moreover, bitches love numbered shit. Here’s some numbered shit in list format to help you not suck in higher education. You’re welcome.

1. Go to class. Like 210% serious. I don’t give a shit if you’re a get by on nothing, A+ slacker. You’re fucking paying for this crap so you might as well get the services owed to you. Take your ass to class even if you zone out 99% of the time. You know 1% more than you did when you walked up in there. Congrats, asshole.

2. All that free time you have during your first week of classes? Make it your bitch. Don’t just print the goddamn syllabus and be like all done. No motherfucker. Take a good fucking look at that assignment list. What’s due next week? Yeah, do that shit now bc I know you don’t have anything else to do. Then when you’re coughing up a lung six weeks into the semester and don’t feel like getting your ass up to do that calculus homework, you’ll remember this week. You’ll remember that you’ve been a week ahead this whole damn semester. Pat yourself on the back, ass wipe.

3. Prepare yo self. No seriously. You got notes to print for class? Sure you could be like all those other bitches and just shove them into your backpack, or you could actually /prepare/ for class. I’m talking looking that shit over, identifying key concepts, getting a decent grasp of the material before your ass is even in class. You a STEM major? Yeah, make this kinda shit your life because now class is like one bomb ass group review session. Again, you’re welcome.

4. Snack like a motherfucker, but save that junk food shit for the weekends. From now on, you are a fucking health guru during the week or if you’re a slacker like me, at least on the days you have class. Fruits? Hell yeah. Pack some of those. Mind wandering in class? Snack on some apple slices. Can’t stay awake? Keep eating some almonds or some shit, but don’t be that bitch with the potato chips. Just don’t.

5. Read. Yeah, you heard me. Read and I’m not just talking assigned reading. I bet my left butt cheek that your campus library has /something/ of interest to you. Commuting and don’t want to drive out there? Library databases bro. We’re in the digital age, motherfucker. I’d bet my other butt cheek that the shit you want is in a nice little PDF somewhere. But na man, you thinking maybe you want to go into computer science? Check out computer science books and eat them up bro. You don’t like reading them? Probably not the field for you. You a biology major in your second year? Yeah dumbass. Time to break out the bio books and not the ones your professor is shoving in your face. Amaze your friends and teachers with your out of class knowledge. Be a fucking star.

[sherlocks-study]

Is there a pin function for tumblr because I need this shit on my dash 24/7

[exclusivelyeva]

hi! when i study, i have to listen to music. because of this, i spend a lot of time finding stuff to listen to. here’s a masterposts of study sounds for anyone looking for new music :) 

soundtracks

the theory of everything

best of harry potter

ambient:

common rooms: slytherin | gryffindor | hufflepuff | ravenclaw

hogwarts library

the great hall

leaky cauldron

under the hogwarts lake

storm on the hogwarts express

hp ambient noise masterlist

pride & prejudice (fav!!)

lord of the rings

interstellar

disney

animal crossing

the martian

star trek

jurassic park

avengers

gaming soundtracks & playlists

favorite movie soundtracks 

8tracks

study like a superhero

work hard in silence, let success be your noise

yours, vincent (van gogh)

disney acoustics

jazz for the afternoon

the sky-the moon- the stars

songs that feel like hugs

stillness of the mind

coffee & tea

hogwarts

to the moon and back

pop goes instrumental

concentrate

aim for the sky

unfinished sentences

chasing daydreams

sad romantics

everything classic

winter workout

homework at hogwarts

once upon a time

avengers assemble

ultimate instrumental

a grand ball

ravenclaw | hufflepuff | slytherin | gryffindor

spotify playlists

spotify playlist recs

studying with spotify

peaceful piano

brain food

deep focus

intense studying

productive morning

a soft jazz backdrop

atmospheric calm

study vibes

relax & focus

instrumental study

white noise

ambient 

coffitivity

rainymood

soundrown

simplynoise

jazz & rain

faux fire

relaxing snow

a soft murmur

classy fireplace

rainforme

moodturn

snowymood

coding fm

ambient mixer (fav!!)

forest mood

rainy cafe

noisli

hipstersound

classical/instrumental

classical pieces for studying

6 hours of classical music

electronic versions of classical music

classical music masterpost

+ another classical music masterpost

the nutcracker act one

pictures at an exhibition

huge classical playlist

ultimate instrumental playlist

nature + ambient

stormy ocean

ocean

rain

wind (light)

wind (howling)

train

space

gentle rain

river

forest

waterfall

rainforest

thunderstorm

wind chimes

distant traffic

traffic in the rain

nature sounds

playlists by studyblrs!!

electronic thoughts by @eruditekid

drift away by @ofminervas

ascendancy by @unknown-notes

quiscence by @thecollegekid

stay calm by @mildlincrs

peace of mind by @eruditekid

classical studying by @mildlincrs

hard work time by @highlightcrs

back to school with disney by @hermionegoals

keys + strings by @noarasseo

march madness by @symphcny

0 gravity by @cmpsbls

study playlist by @studycell

finals life by @studyrelief

with two sugars, please by @symphcny

work hard, then play hard by @mildlincrs

mornings by @spacekid-studies

music masterposts 

study sounds

study sounds pt 2

study music

melodic studying

listen while studying

studying with music

soundtracks for study

ambient noise masterlist

study music masterpost

my posts

food

advice for freshman

[laufeysonodinson]

I threw a wish in the well

Don’t ask me I’ll never tell

I looked to you as it fell

[dontgigglesherlock]

And suddenly this song became the scariest song in the world

[astrangertomykin]

I gave you my number. I thought you might call. 

[inkskinned]

it’s not about that i know how to do laundry. it’s that when i was four i knew how to fold clothes; small hands working alongside my mother, while my older brother sat and played with his toys. it’s that i know what kind of detergent works but my father guesses. it’s that in my freshman year of college i had a line of boys who needed me to show them how to use the machine. it’s that the first door they knocked on belonged to me. it’s that they expected me to know.

it’s not that i know how to cook. it’s that the biggest christmas present i got was a little plastic kitchenette i never used except to climb on. it’s that my brother used it more, his hands ghosting over pink buttons and yellow dials. it’s that when my work needs cake for a birthday, they turn to me. i get it from costco. i don’t even like cooking. a boy burns popcorn in the dorm microwave and laughs. a week later, i do the same thing, and he snorts at me, “just crossed you off my wife list.” it’s that i had heard something like this so many times before that i laughed, too.

it’s not that i don’t love being feminine. it’s that i came home with bruises from trying to be a trick rider on my bike and heard the word “tomboy,” felt my little mouth say, “but i’m not a boy, i’m a girl”. it’s that they laughed. it’s that until i was sitting in my pretty dress and smiling with a big pretty smile and blinking my big pretty eyes, i wasn’t given back the title “girl”. it’s that until i wore makeup and styled my hair i was bullied; it’s that when i don’t wear makeup i’m a slob, that my mental health diagnosis hangs on the hook of being dressed up. it’s that my therapist sees me returning to bright red lipstick and tells me i am looking happier and i have to explain that i am more sad than i have ever been. it’s that i dress myself in as many layers as i can every time i ride a train because it’s better to be laughed at than harassed. 

it’s not that i know how to clean, it’s that my brother’s chores were outside where i wanted to be, and mine were inside. it’s that i would have weeded the garden better than he did if they had just let me. it’s that i am put in charge of fixing other’s messes, expected to comply without complaint.

it’s not that i can’t open the jar. it’s that you ask my brother first every time. it’s that i am pushed into docile positions, trained to believe that my body when it’s strong and healthy is ugly, trained into being less, weaker. it’s that the jar is also science, is also engineering, is also every job, every opportunity. it’s that you laugh faster when he tells a joke, that you take him seriously but wave off me, that when he raises his voice he’s assertive but when i do i’m hysterical. the jar is getting into a car with a stranger as a driver and wondering if this is our last ride. the jar is knowing that if something happens to us, it’s our fault. 

it’s that i’m weak and i don’t know if it’s because i just am or i was trained to be. it’s that we need to sit pretty with our pretty smiles and our pretty words trapped pretty and silent in our throats, our hands restless but pretty when idle, our bodies vessels for nothing but a future white dress. it’s that we are taught someone else needs to open the jar for us.

here’s the secret: run metal lids under hot water, they’ll expand faster than the glass they’re around. here’s the secret: when you keep us under hot water, we do more than boil. we expand over our edges. and we learn how to open our mouths, our claws, our screams hanging in kites over cities. just give me a chance. give me a chance when i am four when i am seven when i am twenty-three. i promise i can be amazing. give me the jar. i’ll show you something.

[palesamkr]

Feynman's technique

This is the reason I passed my mid year exams even if I procastinated at the beginning of the year and only studied days before exams.

This technique is just like teaching someone except you’re writing your words down.

You start by reading your textbook and notes and learn as much as you can for that study session. After that you take a notebook (prefaribly for this technique only) and you start explaining this the way you understand it. When you get lost, go back to the textbook and read again, close the book and explain that on paper.

I swear if I had started using this technique at the beginning of the year (unlike most my school year starts in january) I would have gotten straight A’s because it’s like photocopying the information to your mind.

You’ll know the subject like you’re a teacher.

[chonce]

#NotMyPresident

The electoral college does not vote until December 19th. We have 40 days.

What does this mean?

Right now, the presidential election results are only a PROJECTION of the election outcome. They are PRELIMINARY RESULTS. A candidate still needs to earn 270 electoral votes to win. Hillary Clinton won the popular vote, which means that more than 50% of the voters wanted her for president. The electoral college shouldn’t guarantee an override of the public’s opinion– and it doesn’t have to.

There are 21 states that do NOT restrict which candidate the electors vote for. Out of these 21, Hillary lost the following:

As you can see, these states are worth 166 electoral votes. As it currently stands, Hillary Clinton is projected to receive 232 votes. Trump is projected to win 306. This means that 37 votes need to be taken away from Trump to bring him down to 269. Hillary Clinton needs 38 votes ADDED to win 270. These electoral voters can also abstain, which means that they can refuse to vote for either candidate. If 37 of the voters within these states abstain then no candidate will have reached the required 270. In this case, the vote would be taken to the House.

Trump won Pennsylvania, a state that typically votes blue, by less than 100,000 votes. While it is highly unlikely to get all 20 electoral voters to cross party lines and vote democrat, it also isn’t impossible to convince a few of them to be “faithless electors.” We only need to convince 38 out of the 166. That is 23%. There are SIXTEEN states we need to focus our attention on.

A move like this would be unprecedented. However, as we all saw on November 8th, odds don’t guarantee reality. Trump had a less than 20% chance of winning, yet given the circumstances, enough people came together and made it happen. We can make this happen. 

Ask yourself this: What do we have left to lose? We can stay complacent and accept that this country will be run by a racist, sexist, islamophobic, homophobic, ablest bigot, or we can at least try. 

How?

SPREAD THE WORD. Trend #NotMyPresident to let people know that we do not accept being led by a man who does not care about our wellbeing. Email your professors, email the dean of your colleges. The last thing a university wants is negative press. Millenials can take a stand, but that doesn’t mean we have to be the only ones. Church-led events helped bring a lot of disillusioned voters to the polls. Spread the word in any way possible, whether it be on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, or even in person. Stage a peaceful protest. Hand out flyers. Let the people around you know that you don’t accept this man as your leader when he won’t even accept you as a citizen with your designated rights.

These 166 people need to face the consequences of electing this man. 

Do this for the people who couldn’t vote. Do this for the people who live in the very real fear of being deported. Do this for the people who will have to face the rise in hate crimes. Do this for the people who have a very real possibility of losing their rights. Do this for the people who will no longer be able to afford necessities. 

[chonce]

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:

Is this possible?

Yes, I wouldn’t have made the post without doing my research. Read the following paragraphs, taken from archives.gov:

Are there restrictions on who the Electors can vote for?

There is no Constitutional provision or Federal law that requires Electors to vote according to the results of the popular vote in their states. Some states, however, require Electors to cast their votes according to the popular vote. (The 16 states listed above do NOT restrict their electors to this rule.) These pledges fall into two categories—Electors bound by state law and those bound by pledges to political parties.

The U.S. Supreme Court has held that the Constitution does not require that Electors be completely free to act as they choose and therefore, political parties may extract pledges from electors to vote for the parties’ nominees. Some state laws provide that so-called “faithless Electors” may be subject to fines or may be disqualified for casting an invalid vote and be replaced by a substitute elector. The Supreme Court has not specifically ruled on the question of whether pledges and penalties for failure to vote as pledged may be enforced under the Constitution. No Elector has ever been prosecuted for failing to vote as pledged.

SOURCE: https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/electoral-college/electors.html

Can Hillary still receive votes from the electoral college even though she’s conceded?

Think about it, Mitt Romney lost the 2012 election. All of the electoral voters didn’t immediately vote for President Obama the second he conceded. The election still ended up being 332 votes to 206. Not 538 unanimous votes for Barack Obama.

“For starters, it doesn’t matter if a losing candidate concedes, as far as the Electoral College process goes, according to Amy Bunk, director of legal affairs and policy at the Office of the Federal Register, among other experts.”

SOURCE: https://www.bostonglobe.com/news/politics/2016/10/20/can-losing-presidential-candidate-actually-challenge-election-results/s42xw8h3pcwFcXx7rsS14I/story.html

Conceding does not take a candidate’s name off of the ballot that the electoral voters see. In the past, “faithless electors” have voted for the projected losing candidate, or even voted third party. 

SOURCE: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faithless_elector#List_of_faithless_electors

Concession really only means acceptance of the PROJECTED outcome. This does not mean that the actual outcome cannot be different from the projected outcome. Please keep this in mind.

[joolshallie]

How to write a bomb ass personal statement

I’ve had a few asks about how to write - as one of you put it - a bomb ass personal statement. I’m a bit reluctant to write this, seeing as I haven’t actually got an interview/offer yet! But I guess it might be helpful to those of you applying around now :)

HOW TO START

Bullet point what you want to include - I suggest listing out what you want to include. It’s a good idea to do this at the beginning, to make sure you don’t leave anything out; and it can help form the basic structure of your statement.

Do not start at the start - this is one of the most important things I learnt when writing mine. It is so hard to write that first sentence - so just leave it until the end, and begin writing with the actual content, something you’re more comfortable writing about.

When you do get down to writing that first sentence - do not start with a cheesy quote or the typical “I have always bee passionate about…” as these are things that can immediately put off an admissions tutor. Try and be original, or just simple: “I want to study X because…”

THE CONTENT

Just keep writing - don’t worry about the 4,000 character and 47 line limits. Literally just write, and keep going, even if you think what you’re writing is bad - just get all your ideas out there, and put down everything you would want to include. It’s so much easier to take things out rather than adding things in. My personal statement was around 8,000 characters at one point!`

Get the balance right - different unis want different things from personal statements, so check their websites to make sure you’re getting in what they want. You need to get the balance of intellectual curiosity/passion for the subject with your personal qualities and extra-curriculars. 

Back up everything with evidence - don’t just say you are great at working in a team, give examples that demonstrate that you have worked well in successful teams in the past.What to include?

WHAT TO INCLUDE

Why you want to study that particular course

Why you are the right person to study the course

Extra things you have done to show commitment or interest about the course - volunteering, subscriptions to journals, further reading etc.

Any relevant work experience

Any relevant awards you’ve won (e.g. maths challenge or physics olympiad) or responsibilities within the school (e.g. prefect or house captain)

Demonstrate desirable skills for your course - problem solving, teamwork, leadership etc.

WHAT NOT TO INCLUDE

Cliches - like “Ever since I was born I have wanted to study…”

Quotes - this is a personal statement, so don’t start quoting other people! Plus way too many people do this to make it original.

Jokes - it may be that the person reading your statement has a very different sense of humour than you do.

Really long sentences - you want your personal statement to be as easy as possible to read, and long confusing sentences won’t help that.

Repetition - it’s such a short document, you don’t have space for this. Plus it gets boring!

Names of unis - the unis you apply to have no idea where else you have applied, so don’t name any of them in your statement.

THE ENDING

Do not end on a cheesy quote or joke. Just sum up why you’d be a great candidate and reinforce what you have told them throughout the main body of the statement - that you’re fabulous!

Once you have finished a draft you can start trying to cut down on the word count. Maybe ask a teacher to look at your spelling/grammar, and you can always get your friends’ opinions too, on what should come out, and what should be kept in. Make sure you don’t let other people have too much influence - it has to be a personal statement!