Lost in the valley of the night.

Here are all 12 pieces from my E! News exclusive illustration series!!!

I’m super happy with how each piece turned out and that each character has managed to stay themselves despite being thrown into new surroundings and costumes. (My inner feminist wouldn’t allow Merida or Mulan to have their weapons taken away lol) Pocahontas still loves animals, Cinderella is still dressing tiny creatures, Tiana is cooking, and Belle fell asleep reading! I hope you enjoy the princesses you know and love, with a twist!

what do you like to do in your spare time?

Always get feedback, whether that be on essays, exams, homework or your general performance. In all cases, especially those where you can’t obtain formal feedback {i.e. from receiving a graded essay or test back}, arrange to meet with your tutor to discuss your progress.

Study efficiently. Pay attention to when you study best {morning or night?} and where you study best. Work on a schedule that falls around that. When you study, give it 100% and don’t give in to menial tasks {such as checking social media} that will break your concentration. Do this on a planned break.

Form good habits. Get roughly the same amount of sleep each night from the same hour at night to the same hour in the morning, if you can. Drink plenty of water. Like I said, take breaks. Study daily, even for a short amount of time if that is all you have.

Set yourself deadlines and stick to them. If you can, start your homework/assignments as soon as you get them, and if they’re longer ones, set goals along the way. 

Fail to plan, plan to fail. A teacher once told me that, and it resonates in my mind even ten years on. It is not wise to write an essay or assignment in your head as you go along. Give yourself a structure and brainstorm ideas, no matter how brief or comprehensive this is.

Study actively. Don’t write and rewrite notes over and over. Get the information in to your long term memory through active recall {testing yourself}, making visual aids {mind maps/diagrams} and teaching others.

Anticipate a certain degree of disappointment somewhere along the way. Even the brightest minds will falter, and understandably, this might knock your confidence or your motivation. Allow yourself to build on those errors in time for your next assessment - let that motivate you. Making mistakes is inevitable, but not making the same mistake twice is key.

Enjoy what you do. Take classes that interest you, and aim to develop a knowledge of that subject which is well-rounded and comprehensive. Taking the extra steps to immersing yourself in your studies will not only make the process easier, but you’ll gain motivation through your inquisitiveness and desire to learn.

Treat your studies like a full time job - that is what they equate to in most cases. Take breaks and know your limits, but remember that if your input is minimal then your output will be too. Resist that urge we all know too well, and don’t shy away from your education.

ri-science:

How neuroscience can help you control your tickling response

Your brain predicts sensations based on your own movements and isn’t surprised when you try to tickle yourself. To combat the tickly feeling when someone else tickles you, cover their hand with yours. 

Your brain can then make predictions about how it’s going to feel, and doesn’t produce the tickle response.

My mother had her pre-natal care, and her post-miscarriage care, at Planned Parenthood.

Because it was the best place for her.  Because at the time, she had a two year old child and a bike and they were living just around that nice little sweet spot between ‘desperately poor’ and ‘almost have enough to consider a savings account.‘  And when you are poor, and female, and need health services, Planned Parenthood is there.

And my mother walked past the protesters, walked past the people who screamed at her about not killing her baby, about how she was a whore, and she was going to hell.  My mother, in mourning for a child that she had lost, blaming herself, hating herself for failing at this most feminine of things, walked through that, to care for herself, to get the medical care she needed.  So that someday, two years later, she could have me.

I cannot speak to the courage that must have taken.  But that path is walked by thousands of women.  Every single day.

She donated to Planned Parenthood until her death.  And she said to me, that the people who screamed at her saw her only as a vessel for a baby.  They didn’t care about her, they didn’t care about her baby, either.  They were pro-birth, not pro-life, because none of them would be there after her baby was born, to offer help and support and care. 

When your partner says “No”

Who alway got in trouble? Me.

They would call my mother and she always came in and lectures my teachers and threatened to sue for making her miss work and treating me poorly.

She always taught my brothers to respect women. The only fights my brothers ever got in was defending women from someone else.