Have you ever experienced that moment when you’re faced with an empty page, pen poised, ideas swirling in your mind but refusing to materialize into words? I can totally relate. It’s like standing on the edge of a cliff, captivated by the scenery yet hesitant to take that initial leap. But imagine if I shared ... Read more

The post Mind, Body, Soul: 30 Journal Prompts to Nurture Every Aspect of Your Life appeared first on LifeHack.

Having the right questions can make all the difference when getting to know a guy, whether you’re building a friendship or exploring a romantic connection. Conversations are more than just words; they’re opportunities to spark curiosity, foster understanding, and build meaningful bonds. This guide provides questions that help you move beyond small talk and create ... Read more

The post The Ultimate Guide to Questions to Ask a Guy: From Flirty to Deep appeared first on LifeHack.

Self-love is a topic we hear about often, but putting it into practice can feel elusive, like trying to hold onto something that keeps slipping away. You know it’s there, but it’s hard to hold on to. The concept of self-love involves valuing oneself and letting go of toxic influences. It’s about stepping back from ... Read more

The post A Guide to Self-Love: From Overcoming Doubt to System-Based Growth appeared first on LifeHack.

Self-reflection may seem simple, but it holds the power to transform your life in surprising ways. It’s about taking the time to pause, look inward, and really understand your thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. But why should anyone care? Well, because understanding yourself is the first step to improving anything about your life. Whether it’s better ... Read more

The post The Power of Self-Reflection: Transform Your Life from Within appeared first on LifeHack.

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It’s so easy to make and personalize! READ MORE...

The Advocacy Project works with older people and other groups across Glasgow and Lanarkshire to ensure their voice is heard, their needs met and their legal rights safeguarded. The organisation identified a low take up of their own service by older people from BME communities, which was generally held to reflect the wider picture in Glasgow in relation to health and social work services. This report was commissioned by them to examine barriers to access to services specifically for older people from BME communities in Glasgow South, where there is a high concentration of people from BME communities.

This report describes the rationale, process and learning from a project led by IRISS which explored the topic of supervision with a group of six partners from across the social services sector. The purpose of this report is to share the learning gathered through the project to provide some evidence, inspiration, and pointers for those interested in improving supervision. Key points from the report can be used to prompt reflection and discussion with teams, to review current supervision practice and to help plan improvements.

This is a paper produced as part of the PROP2 (Practitioner Research: Outcomes and Partnership) programme, a partnership between the Centre for Research on Families and Relationships (CRFR) at the University of Edinburgh and IRISS that was about health and social care in Scotland. This paper was written by Raymond Brennan from ENABLE Scotland who participated in the PROP2 programme. This research is an attempt to understand the difficulties people with learning disabilities face around friendships and relationships. Recent evidence produced in the ‘Keys to Life’ highlights the impact social isolation has on people with learning disabilities. This research is concerned with the experiences parents and children have when choosing their options of schooling, and if the ‘Circle of Friends’ approach would make the option of mainstream school less daunting.

Report 68 published by the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) in November 2014. This report will help readers to understand the Learning Together methodology.

In 2006 Mencap produced a comprehensive review of short break provision. Now, 10 years on, they are revisiting the support available for family carers to see whether recent policy initiatives and investment have delivered the much-needed change. A total of 264 family carers responded to their survey on short breaks provision and experiences of caring. They also sent Freedom of Information requests to all 152 local authorities in England that provide social care services. This report looks at short breaks provision in a climate of cuts to central and local government budgets. It examines the extent to which these cuts have impacted on the lives of people with a learning disability and their family carers. It also looks at the state of affairs for family carers of children and young people across the full spectrum of learning disability; from people with mild and moderate learning disabilities, to people with severe and profound disabilities.

Picture this. Walking down 135th street in Harlem, you spot a park in the distance. As you walk closer, you hear a basketball bouncing and kids yelling. It’s a small, outdoor court, well-maintained with fresh paint and a sturdy chain-link fence surrounding it. The ball is constantly in motion, being passed, dribbled, and shot from […]

"Most people do not get a clear opportunity to vote against Communism and prevent a historical evil from taking hold. We have that opportunity. Vote Trump." — James Lindsay

A twice baked potato casserole with plenty of cheese and sour cream! Potatoes romanoff is a potato based casserole where baked potatoes are shredded/grated and mixed with cheese and sour cream before being baked! This recipe is a great way to use up some leftover baked potatoes and if you don’t happen to have any...

Read On →

The post Potatoes Romanoff appeared first on Closet Cooking.

By Brian VanHooker Published: November 11th, 2024

By JM McNab Published: November 11th, 2024

By Matt Solomon Published: November 12th, 2024

By JM McNab Published: November 12th, 2024

Looking for a hugely entertaining alphabet book that also has an uplifting message of empowerment for young readers? I highly recommend T. REXES CAN'T TIE THEIR SHOES by Anna Lazowski and Steph Laberis, launching June 29th, 2021 from Doubleday Books For Young Readers. The back matter also has an alphabetized factoid list of "all the amazing things animals CAN do!"

This is an alphabet book that can be appreciated by grown-ups as well as young readers, with lots of potential discussion points. The illustrations of animals in ridiculous situations are so SOOOOO FUN --- omigosh, even as I'm writing this post, I went back to look through the digital ARC and can't decide which is my favourite, though I'm leaning toward the "Cheetahs can't chew bubble gum" page.

I asked debut picture book author Anna Lazowski if she had any advice for young writers, and here's what she said:

"Write what you want to write, because as you move through the publishing process, it will become incredibly important for you to truly believe in your work. The rejections in this industry are endless, and they come at every stage. Critique partners might reject elements of your manuscript, agents will reject your work, and once you're on submission to editors, they will reject your work. Then once you're finally published, some reviewers will reject your work. If you don't fully believe in your stories, this will be extremely hard to take. It's hard as it is, so make sure you're all in on the work you're doing. It will make the rest a little bit easier to navigate."

Wise advice. Thank you, Anna! And congrats to you and Steph on your upcoming launch!

----

Also see other Advice For Young Writers and Illustrators From Children's Book Creators and my other Interviews With Children's Book Creators.

Image at the top of this post was created for my new #BookADay book journal. For more info about Donalyn Miller's #BookADay challenge, see Donalyn's post in the Nerdy Book Club blog.

Just read (and loved) a fun reimagining of the classic fairytale Goldilocks and the Three Bears: GOLDIBOOKS AND THE WEE BEAR, written by Troy Wilson and illustrated by Edwardian Taylor, published earlier this year by Running Press Kids.

Here is Troy Wilson's advice for young writers:

"My advice? Write badly. Badly, badly, badly. Include words and ideas that shouldn't be there. Leave out words and ideas that should be there. Put things in the wrong order. Have your protagonist act wildly out of character. Why? Because that is what your favorite author does.

"You don't see your favorite author's horrible first drafts. Or horrible second drafts. Or horrible third drafts. For that matter, you don't see their attempted books that never, ever turned out at all. (Some things are just dead ends, even for your favorite author.) No, you only see their final, super-duper-polished work, after they got lots and lots of great feedback.

"Everyone starts with bad writing. Every single writer, every single time - no matter how long they've been doing it. You can't avoid your own bad writing. You can't go around it or over it or under it. You have to go through it. Just get it onto the page or screen. You can always fix it later. Except if you let the bad writing - or the fear of bad writing - stop you from writing. Because you can't fix what isn't there."

Thanks, Troy! 

Related links:

Publisher page about Goldibooks and the Wee Bear

More about Troy Wilson at TroyStory.ca, Twitter and Facebook.

More about Edwardian Taylor at EdwardianTaylor.com, Twitter and Instagram.

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Find more advice for young writers and illustrators from children's book creators.

A few years ago, I had a successful KonMari sesh that helped me tackle my closet chaos. But over time, I noticed that clutter started to creep back in. The issue was: All In, No Out. I made new purchases—thanks to an expanding waistline—but neglected to let go of ill-fitting clothes (because maybe, just maybe, I may fit into them again?) But recently, after spending a good 10 minutes digging through my wardrobe for that particular mustard cardigan, it became […]

The post 10 Things From IKEA Helped Me Tame Closet Chaos (Finally!) appeared first on IKEA Hackers.

Client: “So you got everything you need? Take all the time you want. We really believe we understand the mind of the creative individual. We know it takes time to create a powerful ad.”

Me: “Yeah. It does. Thanks.”

Client: “But it’s urgent. Just imagine that it should have been done as of yesterday.”

Me: “But no deadline?”

Client: “Right. Well, I mean, we need it for four days, but otherwise, yeah; no deadline.”

Gomi has revolutionized the electronics industry by tackling the persistent problem of proper disposal at the end of a product's life. Unlike many other speaker companies, Gomi adopts a circular approach that enhances product longevity and significantly reduces pre and post-consumer waste.[...]

California-based Greatfill makes zero waste easy. With a variety of refillable household products, the company’s focus is on health for the home, humans and the environment.[...]

Wood is one of the most common materials used for manufacturing and construction. Despite it being a natural resource with potential for reuse and its biodegradable qualities, the wood used in the industry is far from circular. In fact, each year, millions of tons of this precious material are wasted. To prevent this, a group of designers from the firm Disrupt.Design Lab (D.DLAB) have been exploring the development of circular solutions for wood. By developing new techniques that combine advanced fabrication and traditional methods, the team aims to contribute to the development of zero-waste industries.[...]

If you love pasta, but don’t often find suitable gluten-free alternatives in restaurants, Charlie's Table gluten-free products may be the answer for you. In fact, this craft pasta and pasta flour blend not only caters to the gluten intolerant, but is free of the top nine food allergens.[...]

The Housing NOW project addresses home insecurity in a variety of affordable, efficient and sustainable ways. Started by Blue Temple, an architecture design studio based in Myanmar, the structures are constructed using bamboo that is locally available and endlessly renewable.[...]

Los Angeles, often hailed as the entertainment capital of the world, is not only a hub for the film and music industries but also a fascinating canvas of urban design. The city's architectural landscape reflects a rich tapestry woven with threads of history, culture, and innovation. As one navigates the vast expanse of Los Angeles, it becomes apparent that the city's design is a dynamic fusion of tradition and modernity.[...]

Breanna Teel is a high school science teacher who keeps things like fish and eels in her classroom. She did not foresee becoming a rabbit rescuer. A student brought a rabbit to school not knowing she was pregnant. While there, the rabbit gave birth to two bright pink baby bunnies, but didn't feed them, so Teel went into overdrive to save the newborns. She would have done so under any other circumstances, but when your students are following along, you go the extra mile to set a good example. I can imagine that no one in the classroom has ever seen newborn rabbits. I certainly haven't.

Teel's efforts paid off when the babies began to grow and flourish. They appear to be some odd breed of show rabbits that resemble large powder puffs with wiggly noses. Are they tribbles? At any rate, they've become a permanent part of the classroom into which they were born.    

Plant-based paper has been used for thousands of years, but exactly how is it created from trees?

An artist's rendering of a black hole

Cybersecurity researchers have discovered a malicious package on the Python Package Index (PyPI) that has racked up thousands of downloads for over three years while stealthily exfiltrating developers' Amazon Web Services (AWS) credentials. The package in question is "fabrice," which typosquats a popular Python library known as "fabric," which is designed to execute shell commands remotely over

From 1997 to 2012 just 1% of VC funded companies had female founders. Three of those companies were mine. People tell me it’s much better for women now, but statistically, this is BS. I raised money for a startup recently, and here’s what I found works best for female founders: Get a male cofounder. Women raising money without […]

The post How to get funding from deluded, self-congratulating investors appeared first on Penelope Trunk Careers.

The post Russian Penitentiary System of the 90s: Two Photo Projects From Foreign Authors appeared first on English Russia.

The post Girls and Coffins: Advertising From the Moscow Funeral House appeared first on English Russia.

The post The Best Works of Sergey Maksimishin: Prominent Russian Photographer appeared first on English Russia.

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The post Russia Accepts Refugees From Donbass, Ukraine appeared first on English Russia.

The post Kiev: Residential Building is in Fire Due to the Wreckage From the Air appeared first on English Russia.

DUE TO DEMAND... 'SONGS OF A LOST WORLD' (DELUXE EDITION) IS NOW AVAILABLE TO DOWNLOAD UNTIL MIDNIGHT TONIGHT. PLEASE BE SURE TO CHECK EMAILS & DOWNLOAD TO HEAR THE FIVE EXCLUSIVE LIVE TRACKS AT TheCure.lnk.to/WorldwideDeluxe

From Music Week:

"Robert Smith is beyond passionate": Polydor's Ben Mortimer on The Cure's triumphant return to No.1

by George Garner

It was very much a case of Friday, The UK's In Love for The Cure, as the iconic group and their label Polydor celebrated an incredible charts results day on Friday, November 8. 

More than 32 years after their only previous No.1 album, Robert Smith’s band marked an emphatic return to the top of the chart with their 14th studio release – and first for 16 years – Songs Of A Lost World.

Indeed, Polydor co-president Ben Mortimer has told Music Week that even when held against their own lofty expectations, the response from the public has been "overwhelming". Songs Of A Lost World has effectively done seven times the first week sales of 2008's 4:13 Dream, and outsold three of their last four albums' entire lifetime sales in one week. 

So, how does it look when broken down?

Well, for one, The Cure outsold the rest of the Top 5 combined, with a stellar opening frame of 51,362 sales (19,838 CDs, 23,182 vinyl albums, 1,219 cassettes, 4,546 digital downloads and 2,577 sales-equivalent streams) according to Official Charts Company data.

First week sales of Songs Of A Lost World are, in fact, the fifth highest on debut for any album in 2024, trailing only Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department (270,091), Coldplay’s Moon Music (236,796), Sabrina Carpenter’s Short N’ Sweet (89,658) and Billie Eilish’s Hit Me Hard & Soft (67,111). 

For further context, let's turn to Music Week charts analyst Alan Jones' breakdown: “[The Cure] also exceed the to-date sales of The Cure’s last studio album, 2008’s 4:13 Dream, which debuted and peaked at No.33 on consumption of 7,360 units, 16 years ago last week, and has to-date consumption of 35,123 units. Songs Of A Lost World’s 597.85% increase on that album’s first frame is due to many factors, including the fact it has been so long since an album by The Cure; the multiplicity of its physical formats (two CD, two cassette and six vinyl); a live stream of their 1 November gig at The Troxy; a BBC Radio Two ‘In Concert’ performance; and the popularity of Songs Of A Lost World singles Alone and A Fragile Thing. The latter track has provided the band’s highest radio airplay chart position – No.26 – for more than 20 years last week, including attracting 59 plays from the aforementioned Radio Two so far.”

Robert Smith wanted to know how much we believed in the record before he'd commit to working with us, so we didn't hear a note until the deal was signed – which was a touch that I loved and respected

On top of this, Polydor have actually secured a chart double this week, with their act Gracie Abrams also topping the UK singles chart with That's So True jumping to No.1 on sales of 40,798.

Here, Polydor president Ben Mortimer, talks about working with Robert Smith, getting the band back to the top, and more...

Before we get into the campaign, what has it meant to you personally to work on The Cure's first new record in 16 years? And what has it been like working closely with Robert Smith?  

“First off, I am the hugest fan. Disintegration got me through a tough period in my early teens. I've always loved the band's ability to be so mournful and despairing and marry it with such beautiful melodic pop songs, so it meant huge amounts to me personally to get to work on this. And working with him has been a privilege. Robert is so dedicated to his craft, he's beyond passionate about the band and its legacy. He wanted to know how much we believed in the record before he'd commit to working with us. So we didn't hear a note until the deal was signed, which was a touch that I loved and respected. He is hands on in every part of his business in the most inspiring way.”

The Cure have returned, obviously, to a massively different music landscape compared to the one they operated in with 4:13 Dream. What were Polydor’s hopes and expectations for week one given there's not been a new album for so long, and have the actual sales surprised you? 

“I had a feeling it would do well. We're lucky enough to work The Cure catalogue, so are well aware of how well their music streams and across so many generations. But this has been an overwhelming response that in truth we didn't completely predict. But then again it's an incredible record, with 5/5s across the board. As predictable as this sounds, the greatest music always finds its way to people in the end.” 

It’s interesting how you achieved the result without a very long pre-order period compared to most albums. What did you have to work with in terms of data/fanbase for the campaign? There's obviously their incredible catalogue too – how have you reactivated that in the run-up? 

“Whether intentionally or not, the band have been running the smartest teaser campaign. It would be worthy of a Music Week marketing award! He teased the record was coming years ago. Something he says he regrets, but it created a sense of folklore around the album, and the band have been playing songs from it on tour for several years. Clips have been all over the internet. All of this created feverish demand amongst the fanbase.” 

There looks set to be huge international success with the album as well, what role did Polydor play in connecting all the dots globally for that to happen? Did you have any specific territories outside of the UK that you really wanted to target?

“They're huge in Europe, Australia, North, Central and South America. As soon as we told our partners this was coming there was palpable excitement and demand. We zoned in on Germany, France, Holland, and several other key markets, and they've all delivered. It's testament to the power of the global company.”  

The Troxy show was another big moment of the launch week, not least because they played the whole album in full. Why are intimate launch shows still so effective in your mind? 

“Our partnership with YouTube on the live stream made it possible. And they recorded insane levels of traffic on it. They're a stadium and festival band, so to see them this intimate, was a special experience even for those on the live stream. Playing for over three hours… It was truly my 2024 highlight.”

On top of The Cure, Polydor also have the No.1 single this week with Gracie Abrams. What does that say about Polydor right now in terms of your roster, and your ability to get top results for veteran and new artists alike? 

"The Polydor roster is well renowned as one of the best in the UK business. We have long relationships with so many artists whose careers continue to flourish. Lana Del Rey is nine albums in, Michael Kiwanuka is four. The Cure and Snow Patrol recent successes are current examples of how seriously we take career longevity. Gracie's first number No.1 single shows how we are equally committed to the next generation of artists coming through. They are after all the lifeblood of our business."

(Photo, L-R): Ali Tant, Robert Smith, Jim Chancellor, Ben Mortimer, Faye Jordan and Fred Stuart)