Showing posts with label Earthseed. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Earthseed. Show all posts

Tuesday, May 2, 2023

Copied from redit

  


u/hikingsisters avatar
That time my sister took me "camping".

I grew up in a household with a narc dad and a borderline mom who often left us for long periods of time to do god knows what.

When I was 12 I learned that I had a half sister, who was 17 and living in another town a few hours away. She had problems in her house too, although mainly economical problems, not actual neglect caused by ill will.

We wrote letters to each other and in one letter I shared with her my fear of the long summer holiday. Being stuck in the house without even school to escape to was hell. She made a promise to come and save me if it got too bad. "Just let me know and I'll find a way to help" she wrote.

A few days after I had posted my letter where I told her about how my mother had stopped providing meals, and my dad was emotionally and sometimes physically abusive, she showed up on our doorstep.

She told my dad that I was going to spend the summer holiday with her family and since my dad hated kids, myself included, he happily agreed, no questions asked.

We took the night train north, I was so excited. She didn't take me home with her - she took me camping. We spent the entire summer hiking amazingly beautiful trails, usually tenting but sometimes renting a small cabin for the night. It was the happiest summer of my life. I suddenly had a sister – who cared and enjoyed spending time with me. She could fish and trap birds, and cook and showed me how to read maps and the names of the constellations in the night sky.

When the summer ended I was transformed. I wasn’t shy or confidence deprived anymore. I was a strong and resilient kid with an entirely new outlook on things.

I reported my parents for lacking parenting skills and I was placed with a foster family. Neither of them made a fuss to keep me, so it was easily done.

I often think about that summer, that changed my life so profoundly. I don’t know if it was that I gained a sister, or that she showed me that I can survive – and thrive – even on the roughest, unmarked trails.

It wasn’t until years later that I learned the real story behind that summer. At the time when she made me that promise, my sister lived with her family in a tiny apartment, with no place for yet another person or another mouth to feed.

In fact she had been told to get out herself as soon as possible, to make room for her siblings, and she was now awaiting the day when she could move into her student apartment.

I was amazed to hear that not only was our wonderful summer an emergency solution, her way to keep her promise and also give me an unforgettable summer – but she did it so well that I never once realized that we were there because we had nowhere else to go.

Today I turn 30. My sister is still my best friend and this summer we plan to hit the trails again.

Edit: Thank you all for your kind comments - I'm stunned. For those who wonder about the trail. This is it: http://www.swedishlapland.com/stories/kings-trail/

Archived

Wednesday, November 9, 2022

20 Questions a Man Should Never Ask a Woman (and the Reasons Why) from https://theadultman.com/

 

20 Questions a Man Should Never Ask a Woman (and the Reasons Why)

This post contains affiliate links. If you click on a link and make a purchase, we may earn a commission at no additional cost to you. Learn more.

Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt Abraham Lincoln

If there’s one thing that most men eventually learn in life, it’s that sometimes it’s better to say nothing at all.

And this lesson is arguably best applied when it comes to asking women certain questions. You may have already realized this the last time you asked a girl how old she was—or worse, how much she weighed.

We’ve all been there. You’ve dropped the first question that (for whatever reason) came to your mind and, were met with daggers / a drink to the face / a kick to the shin (pick your poison).

To be clear, we’re not telling you to ramp up the awkward silences. When it comes to questions you should ask women, you’ll find 120 of them right here.

Rather, every man should be aware of the questions which will not add any real value to your interactions.

As usual, gentlemen, we’ve taken care of the legwork for you. Here are 20 questions you should never ask a woman, in no particular order.

1. Can I kiss you?

It’s generally not a good idea to ask her before going in for the kiss. 

Assuming you’re on a date and that the circumstances are right, it’s ‘less square’ to just go for it.

Why?

First off, there are plenty of ways to test the water without vocalizing the request (raise a hand to her cheek and brush her hair out of her face. If she pulls back a bit from your touch, you know the kiss is a no-go). 

Secondly, asking for a kiss isn’t necessarily wrong by itself. But it puts you at risk for sacrificing masculine frame

For best results, make sure to test the water with some innocuous touching/flirting first, then go in for the smooth-move when her body language has given you the ‘green light.’ 

2. Why won’t you talk to me?

Post-commitment, this isn’t such a bad question (when posed within the context of you holding masculine frame and checking on her out of a sense of care, responsibility, and boundaries within the relationship—and not out of insecurity). 

But pre-commitment? Asking this question puts you at serious risk of sounding desperate and clingy—neither of which are attractive masculine traits. 

Concentrate on pursuing your own purpose in life, and not caring as much if a woman does or doesn’t want to talk to you. 

A better question to ask would be “You seem quiet today. Is everything ok?”

3. You look different today, why’s that?

If this is meant as a compliment to acknowledge something ‘new’ she’s done (like getting a haircut), then you may be able to pull it off in a teasing, mischievous fashion. 

But if it’s meant as a neg or a put-down, it likely isn’t a good idea. 

Whether she does or doesn’t look different, this question lacks tact and doesn’t really go anywhere meaningful. 

A better question to ask would be something like “I like that dress! Is it new?”

4. You’re looking tired today, did you not get a good night’s sleep?

Calling out a lady’s tired looks (even if she truly does look tired) may hurt her feelings and make her feel like you think she’s unattractive. 

Instead, consider an alternative question. “I’ve been looking forward to catching up with you. Tell me how your last few days have been.”

5. I know you’ve got a boyfriend, but can we be friends?

If you truly just want to be friends, then there’s nothing wrong with this question. Yes, it will make you seem less attractive—but if all you want is friendship, then that shouldn’t matter to you anyway. 

But if you have ulterior motives (i.e. you actually want to sleep with her), then just skip it. 

Here’s the thing. A high value man doesn’t ask for people to be his friends. He naturally attracts friends by being awesome, likeable, and a winner. 

6. How old are you?

This actually isn’t a bad question to ask a woman who looks to be under 25-27, but not one who is 18-, as long as she’s younger than you. 

But if you ask a 30-40+ year old this question, you may run the risk of making her feel a bit self-concious. It may be better to let this one sit until you know each other better. 

7. I don’t know, what do you want to do?

Every girl wants a guy who’ll be the man and lead with a decision.

As the man, the ball is in your court to make a plan. 

You can ask her if she has a preference. 

“Do you prefer movies or concerts?”

But never ultimately put the decision of ‘what to do’ onto her. It’ll make you look weak, disorganized, and apathetic—none of which are attractive traits. 

8. Is that what you’re going to wear tonight?

Implication: “That looks terrible, what were you thinking?” 

Unless your girl is completely off the mark on dress code, this is a risky line to take, boys.

If you feel like you need to correct her fashion choices, you should probably just cut her loose and court a woman who’s more in-line with your style. 

9. Are you pregnant?

This is a risky one, because if she’s not pregnant, you pretty much just called her ‘fat’ or a non-virgen. 

Best way to handle this one? Just ride it out and don’t mention anything. If she doesn’t bring it up, you can casually bring up a conversation about your thoughts on having children in the future. 

If she still doesn’t mention it, and if you’re not fond of the way she looks, it’s probably best to move on and date someone else. 

10. How many guys have you been with?

I’m not a huge fan of this question because asking it out of a very specific context can put you at risk of looking jealous and insecure—which is a massive turn-off and a low-value marker. 

There’s one caveat, however. If she asks you the question first, it’s fair game to reverse it. 

11. Is your sister attractive?

This is a risky question. For women, competing for the attention of a dating partner with a sibling feels far worse than competing with a stranger. 

It just hits closer to home, in every way imaginable. 

Whether you’re pre-commitment or post-commitment, stay out of this territory unless you’re willing to risk complete and total disaster. 

12. Are you on your period?

This is a dangerous question to ask because, in her mind, it implies that you’re asking her if she’s ‘available for sex,’ which puts you at risk of sounding desperate and low value (trying to secure the ‘prize’ through agreement ahead of time instead of just making your move). 

It’s also crass and insensitive. 

What should you do instead?

Carry on and make your move as usual. If she informs you that she can’t because she’s on her period, tell her you don’t mind (if you don’t), but be understanding if she’s not down with it—especially if you’ve never slept together before. 

That’s a big step for some women, and being understanding is the right move on your part. 

13. Can I borrow some money?

How to turn a girl off in 5 words. Women seek providers, not parasites.

14. Do you think I’m attractive?

Asking this question makes it sound like you aren’t confident, so it’s a risky one. 

If she’s spending time with you and engaging with you, assume she’s into you. Don’t worry—she’ll bolt soon enough if she’s not. 

15. How much do you weigh?

Chapter two of the gentleman’s handbook. Never ask her how much she weighs.

Either you like how she looks, or you don’t. There’s really no reason that a man would need to ask this one. 

16. Why do you like wearing [insert piece of clothing]?

I’m not a big fan of this question because even if it’s meant well, you run the risk of sounding judgemental. 

Instead, ask something like this: 

“I like that dress. Do you feel like the style matches your personality?” 

17. Are you in love with me?

This question puts you in dangerous territory. You run a serious risk of sounding low-value and desperate. 

Always leave the L-word (and/or bringing up the commitment talk) to her to bring up first. Once she brings it up to you, you can decide if you’re ready for it. 

18. Why are you friends with [insert guy’s name]?

This question definitely puts you at risk of sounding jealous or insecure—both of which are serious low-value markers. 

As a strong, masculine man, you shouldn’t be threatened by other men in her life. This woman is either into you, or she isn’t. You can either trust her, or you can’t. 

If you don’t like her friends, feel like you can’t trust her, or just don’t like how she interacts with other men in-general, bail and find a different woman to date. 

Don’t ever try to come between a woman and her friends or control how she interacts with them. 

On the same token, if you don’t like her friends, you have every right to hit the road and not feel guilty about it. 

19. Why are you single?

This is an interesting question because it’s almost ok, but not quite. 

It can make the conversation sound more like an interrogation than a conversation. 

Instead, phrase it like this (and by the way, this is a question that you SHOULD always ask when you meet someone new):

“So tell me about your relationship history. What kinds of dating and relationship experiences have you had?” 

high-value woman won’t mind talking about her relationship history in the slightest, as long as you’re willing to return the favor. 

Red Flag Warning: If everything she has to say about her exes is negative (they were toxic, they were abusive, they were all pieces of crap, etc.), then head for the hills. 

Odds are very good that those men were not all bad. The common denominator is likely her.

20. Are you really going to eat that?

Unless this is said in a playful way, hold off on the food judgment.

Instead, ask a question like this: 

“Wow, that dish looks exotic/rugged/spicy. Have you ever had it before, or is this a new experiment?”

Conclusion

When it comes to many of the above questions, context is key. If you’re maintaining a strong masculine frame, have a great rapport with the girl, or are in a relationship already, you may be able to get away with a few of them.

If you’re not the best at maintaining a conversation, you might want to learn about the best topics to talk about with women.

The goal isn’t to stop being playful or teasing. Teasing is a great way to build attraction with a woman and show that you have a sense of humor.

We merely want you to avoid the questions that put you at risk of coming off as low-value, insecure, desperate, etc. 

Thursday, November 3, 2022

💗💗Why did you write Lolita ?

 💗Why did you write Lolita ?

« It was an interesting thing to do. Why did I write any of my books, after all ? For the sake of the pleasure, for the sake of the difficulty. I have no social purpose, no moral message ; I've no general ideas to exploit, I just like composing riddles with elegant solutions. » What was the genesis of Lolita ? « She was born a long time ago, it must have been in 1939, in Paris ; the first little throb of Lolita went through me in Paris in '39, or perhaps early in '40, at a time when I was laid up with a fierce attack of intercostal neuralgia which is a very painful complaint—rather like the fabulous stitch in Adam's side. As far as I can recall the first shiver of inspiration was somehow prompted in a rather mysterious way by a newspaper story, I think it was in Paris Soir, about an ape in the Paris Zoo, who after months of coaxing by scientists produced finally the first drawing ever charcoaled by an animal, and this sketch, reproduced in the paper, showed the bars of the poor creature's cage. » Did Humbert Humbert, the middle-aged seducer, have any original ? « No. He's a man I devised, a man with an obsession, and I think many of my characters have sudden obsessions, different kinds of obsessions ; but he never existed. He did exist after I had written the book. While I was writing the book, here and there in a newspaper I would read all sorts of accounts about elderly gentlemen who pursued little girls : a kind of interesting coincidence but that's about all. » Did Lolita herself have an original ? « No, Lolita didn't have any original. She was born in my own mind. She never existed. As a matter of fact, I don't know little girls very well. When I consider this subject, I don't think I know a single little girl. I've met them socially now and then, but Lolita is a figment of my imagination. » —

Sunday, October 23, 2022

Lolita

  Https://www.ourbabynamer.com/meaning-of-Lolita.html

What does Lolita mean?

The name Lolita is of Spanish origin.

The meaning of Lolita is "sorrows".

Lolita is generally used as a girl's name.

It consists of 6 letters and 3 syllables and is pronounced Lo-li-ta.

The Given Name Lolita

Lolita is a diminutive of Lola. See Lola for further details.

Embraced by many parents, the name Lolita, is one of timelessness and dazzle.

An auspicious name, it is one that will be admired.

Wrap it up and take it home, Lolita may just be the name you're looking for.

Lolita Popularity

In the U.S. in 2018, it ranked 6,916 in baby name popularity for girls with 17 occurrences. Less than 5 boys were given the name.

In contrast, the year before it ranked 7,269 in baby name popularity for girls with 16 occurrences. Less than 5 boys were given the name.

The trend's your friend. See how Lolita has changed in popularity since 1880 by visiting the Lolita Name Popularity Page.

Lolita Related Names

Lolita is a diminutive of Lola.

The name Lolicia is a form of Lolita.

Famous Lolitas

  • Lolita ~ Lolita character

Lolita Numerology

What will your new littleLolita be like?

It may all be in the numbers.

The numbers that make up your child's name.

Numerology may give you some insight.

Children named Lolita are often prestigious and faithful but most of all they are read more >>

Lolita Name Fun

Would you like to fingerspell the name Lolita in American Sign Language?

Then just follow the diagram below.

 Be creative with the name Lolita.

Just for fun, see the name Lolita in Hieroglyphics, learn about ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphics and write a Hieroglyphic message.

Learn about nautical flags and see your name or message written in nautical flags, on the Lolita in Nautical Flags page

Monday, September 19, 2022

Earthseed


 

Lolita

 ❤“Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. Lo-lee-ta: the tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, at three, on the teeth. Lo. Lee. Ta. She was Lo, plain Lo, in the morning, standing four feet ten in one sock. She was Lola in slacks. She was Dolly at school. She was Dolores on the dotted line. But in my arms she was always Lolita. Did she have a precursor? She did, indeed she did. In point of fact, there might have been no Lolita at all had I not loved, one summer, an initial girl-child. In a princedom by the sea. Oh when? About as many years before Lolita was born as my age was that summer. You can always count on a murderer for a fancy prose style. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, exhibit number one is what the seraphs, the misinformed, simple, noble-winged seraphs, envied. Look at this tangle of thorns.”

― Vladimir Nabokov, Lolita

❤❤Memorial Day BY MICHAEL ANANIA

 

It is easily forgotten, year to
year, exactly where the plot is,
though the place is entirely familiar—
a willow tree by a curving roadway
sweeping black asphalt with tender leaves;

damp grass strewn with flower boxes,
canvas chairs, darkskinned old ladies
circling in draped black crepe family stones,
fingers cramped red at the knuckles, discolored
nails, fresh soil for new plants, old rosaries;

such fingers kneading the damp earth gently down
on new roots, black humus caught in grey hair
brushed back, and the single waterfaucet,
birdlike upon its grey pipe stem,
a stream opening at its foot.

We know the stories that are told,
by starts and stops, by bent men at strange joy
regarding the precise enactments of their own
gesturing. And among the women there will be
a naming of families, a counting off, an ordering.

The morning may be brilliant; the season
is one of brilliances—sunlight through
the fountained willow behind us, its splayed
shadow spreading westward, our shadows westward,
irregular across damp grass, the close-set stones.

It may be that since our walk there is faltering,
moving in careful steps around snow-on-the-mountain,
bluebells and zebragrass toward that place
between the willow and the waterfaucet, the way
is lost, that we have no practiced step there,
and walking, our own sway and balance, fails us.

Thursday, September 15, 2022

THE VILLAGE CHOIR Anon.

 Half a bar, half a bar,

Half a bar onward!

Into an awful ditch

Choir and precentor hitch,

Into a mess of pitch,

They led the Old Hundred.

Trebles to right of them,

Tenors to left of them,

Basses in front of them,

Bellowed and thundered.

Oh, that precentor’s look,

When the sopranos took

Their own time and hook

From the Old Hundred!

 

Screeched all the trebles here,

Boggled the tenors there,

Raising the parson’s hair,

While his mind wandered;

Theirs not to reason why

This psalm was pitched too high:

Theirs but to gasp and cry

Out the Old Hundred.

Trebles to right of them,

Tenros to left of them,

Basses in front of them,

Bellowed and thundered.

Stormed they with shout and yell,

Not wise they sang nor well,

Drowning the sexton’s bell,

While all the Church wondered.

 

Dire the precentor’s glare,

Flashed his pitchfork in the air

Sounding fresh keys to bear

Out the Old Hundred.

Swiftly he turned his back,

Reached he his hat from rack,

Then from the screaming pack,

Himself he sundered.

Tenors to right of him,

Tenors to left of him,

Discords behind him,

Bellowed and thundered.

Oh, the wild howls they wrought:

Right to the end they fought!

Some tune they sang, but not

Not the Old Hundred.

Infinity