if she can do it so can we!

5 times Dan and Phil click baited us

Wear jeans/pants that “breathe” and bring a sweater, even if it’s scorching hot out, until you know which building blasts the AC to 60 degrees F and which feels like a sauna

Backpacks with thick straps are your friend!  Messenger bags are cool and all but if you’re commuting with a lot of stuff, symmetrically styled backpacks are better for your back

You are your own person and you can walk out whenever you need to or want to, so long as you’re not disrupting the class.  Meaning you can go to the bathroom without permission, take a breather if you’re anxious, answer an important phone call, etc.

If you don’t like the class on the first day, if you can- DROP THAT CLASS AND TAKE ANOTHER ONE!  It’ll only get worse from there!

If you can, take a class outside your major; it’s a good break from your expected studies.

You are in charge of your schedule.  Your adviser and guidance counselor is there to ‘advise and guide’ but if you don’t like certain classes and you can substitute for others, that’s your choice.

Consequently, if you are changing anything drastic in your plan, talk with your adviser and instructors.

Pay attention to your credit hours and grades.  Never leave this to the last week of school, you will be sorry and stressed beyond belief!

Unless it’s a lab book or otherwise specified, go to the class for a week or so before buying an expensive textbook.  Some classes, while having it on their required list, do not actually use the textbook a whole lot and you might find some of it scanned online.  Rent if you can or buy used online (schools actually don’t give discounts).  Use your best judgement on what you think you need.

Tell the people who go up to you selling or advertising things you are not interested in that you are in a rush to class and don’t have time to listen to them.  It’s less rude and they’ll leave you alone.

The smaller the class, the better it is to have some sort of acquaintanceship with a couple classmates.  They might save your ass if you are absent one day or need to study.  And talking with them makes the time go by faster without it being so insufferable.

You don’t need to join a club or sport, but internships are cool and useful!

If you can afford it, take a day off once or twice each semester if you’re too exhausted.  Just be aware of what you missed and if it was worth missing!

Your health is the most important, this goes for mental health too!!  Note: College-age/upper teens is when mental disorders like depression and anxiety are most commonly diagnosed.  Most schools have therapy services, especially during exam time.  Look into it if you need to!

Communicate with your professor if you are having trouble with something.  Anything.

Eat and stay hydrated.  Bring a water bottle and snack to class.

All-nighters will happen but never go over 36 hours without sleep.

ADDITIONAL ADVICE

Don’t let a mental health day turn into a mental health week because you will be so screwed.

Pay attention to the syllabus and do not lose it. A lot of professors put all of the assignment due dates in there and ONLY in there.

If your school has blackboard or moodle etc. CHECK IT. a lot of professors will only post certain info there and not talk about it in class

READINGS ARE NOT OPTIONAL.

I REPEAT. READINGS. ARE. NOT. OPTIONAL.

Put them in your schedule, read BEFORE class. And summarise it. For bonus points, come up with some questions about the text and go introduce yourself to your professor either after class or during office hours, and ask them about it. This will make them much more likely to remember you in a positive light (and possibly bump your grade up if you hit a hard patch.)

Your library will have a copy of your textbook. If you cannot afford to rent it, you can go to the library and borrow it from the front desk for a few hours whenever you need it. It is there for you, okay? 

Our university’s campus bookstore required the professors to “require” the most current edition of the textbook, which was mostly a scam!

-lectures might seem optional because attendance won’t be required or you don’t have to watch them live, it’s important anyways. so please, please watch/go

-with that said, even if your classes are asynchronous try to have a regular schedule for yourself, 

-it might seem weird and scary not being able to actually meet your professor and not being able to ask questions in person, but trust me they’re just as worried as you are. therefore, even if it’s scary or difficult be honest and reach out to your professor. it’s likely that there as unsure as you are, but knowing that means it can be better communicated with your class and accommodations can be made. 

-even though it seems easy to just wake up and open you’re laptop to your lecture, still try to get up in advance (as in not the 10 minutes before). dressing up and getting ready will help you transition into a work/study mentality if it’s part of a routine

-groupme and emails will become your best way of communicating with your classmates, TAs, and professors. sometimes its weird because you don’t know what level of formality to use with different people, don’t worry. they’ll make it clear to you how they’d like to be addressed either by their first names or their title (in my experiences, TAs prefer first name basis, some professors like being called by their first name or nickname and others exclusively by their title)

Justice for George Floyd

Justice for George Floyd 2

Justice for George Floyd 3

Charge the Officers Responsible for George Floyd’s Murder 

Charge the Officers Responsible for George Floyd’s Murder 2

Justice For Ahmuad Arbery

Justice For Ahmuad Arbery 2

Justice for Breonna Taylor

Stand with Breonna

Charge Officers Responsible for Breonna Taylor’s Murder

Justice For Tamir Rice

Justice For Joāo Pedro

Justice for Alejandro Vargas Martinez

Justice for Belly Mujinga.

Justice for Rashad Cunningham

Justice For Tony McDade

Justice for Dion Johnson

Justice for Jennifer Jeffley

Justice for Young Uwa

Justice for Elijah Nichols

Justice for Tete Gulley

Justice for Tazne Van Wyk

Justice for Michael Dean

Justice For Amari Boone

Justice for Darrius Stewart

Justice for Shukri Abdi

Justice for Ashton Dickson

Justice For Darrius Stewart

Justice for David McAtee

Justice for Cameron Green

Justice for Crystal Mason

Justice For Zinedine

Justice for Regis Korchinski-Paquet

Justice for Christopher Josey

Justice for Amiya Braxton

Justice For Emerald Black

Justice for Andile Mchunu

Justice for Cameron Green

Justice for Tamla Horsford

Justice for Collins Khosa

Free Siyanda

Reopen Sandra Bland’s Case 

Free Willie Simmons who has served 38 years for a $9 robbery

Get Washington State to Hold Police Officers Accountable for Police Brutality

Arrest Officer Jared Campbell for macing a child 

Demand Jail Time for Dylan Mota and Jacob Robles

Demand Jail Time for All Police who Murder Innocent People

Fire Racist Criminal Michael J Reynolds from the NYPD

Petition for Nationwide Police De-Escalation Training

Petition for Nationwide Police Required Racial Bias Test

stop immigrants being poisoned by ICEBan the use of inhumane rubber bullets

Demand a retrial for Angel Bumpass wrongfully convicted 13 year old with a life sentence

End Police Brutality and Violence Against BIPOC in the USA

Ban the use of rubber bullets for crowd control

Join Campaign Zero

Drop All Charges Against Incarcerated Trafficking Survivor Chrystul Kizer!

Reopen Kendrick Johnson’s Case

Abolish Prison Labour in the USA

Require Dash and Body Cameras for the King County Sheriff’s Office

Donation Links

A thread of Youtuve videos you can stream to donate to BLM

Official George Floyd Memorial Fund

OFFICIAL Gianna Floyd Fund (George Floyd’s child)

Black Lives Matter

We Cant Breathe

43 Bail Funds to Support

Homeless Black Trans women fund

Split a donation between 70+ community bail funds, mutual aid funds, and racial justice organizers

Minnesota Healing Justice Network

Women for Political Change

Spiral Collective

When We All Vote

National List of Bail and Mutual Aid Funds/Organizers/Black Owned Businesses

Venmo names of black trans people that need help

Latino Community on Lake Street

Black Immigrant Collective

Centro de Trabajadores Unidos en Lucha

Atlanta Black Owned Business Relief

Al Maa'uun

Remembering Shana Isuroon 

Fundraising for destroyed black owned businesses

Joyce Preschool

Black Table Arts

Northside business support

Du Nord Riot Recovery Fund

Unicorn Riot

Donate to Destiny Harrison & her daughter Dream’s Legacy

Pimento Relief Fund

Southside Harm Reduction

West Broadway Business and Area Coalition

Division of Indian Work

TC Care Collective

Justice for Breonna Taylor

Justice for Jamee

Last week India passed a blatantly anti-Muslim law that seeks to naturalise millions of immigrants, except if they are Muslims.

In August of this year, India revoked the autonomous status of the Kashmir region, putting a communication blackout on the state. Kashmir has entered the fifth month of no internet and heaviest militarisation of any region in the world.

India is a secular, socialist republic. This bill is anti-constitutional and against the principles on which the country was founded

Naturally, there have been protests across the country. At the forefront of the protests are students from India's public universities.

Police opened fire on peaceful protestors in Jamia Milia Islamia University in Delhi, and Aligarh Muslim University in Uttar Pradesh.

Ever since then, the ruling fascist Hindu nationalist political party, the BJP, has been doctoring videos and sending fake news all over the internet, discrediting protestors and labelling them as terrorists

Amidst the raging pandemic and our Government’s botched handling of it, GOI has found the time to book student activists under a draconian “anti terrorism” law called the UAPA.

Here’s a brief article about what exactly the UAPA is here. It was written in October last year so it’s before all of this, but it highlights the ways it could be misused, and why it’s a cause for concern.

Here’s another article about the same. Has proved prophetic, because our government NEVER fails to let us down!

Many student activists have been booked under UAPA, like Natasha Narwal and Devangana Kalita. Safoora Zargar, who is pregnant, has been jailed despite concerns about COVID-19 (and this being entirely under an unlawful law).

Here’s a quick twitter thread with the names of other activists booked under UAPA.

[Oh btw, in a completely different story, no charges have been made against those suspected of inciting violence at JNU. It’s under investigation, which sounds promising, but uh, we’ve seen what’s happened in the past. There’s not really a lot of hope there.]

THE FURRIES ARE HELPING OUT NOW AND WHERE I EXPECTED TO FIND RACISM I INSTEAD FOUND ANTHROPOMORPHIC NEON GREEN TIGER BALLS

if you know any local street medics, check in with them about this very real possibility at your local protests so that they can educate themselves and others about dog bites.

“hi wanted to comment as another person who worked with training dogs. wheelbarrowing is not recommended a lot of the time because the dog CAN flip around and bite you, including your face!

frankly i would recommend having citronella spray of some kind on hand. its unpleasant AND not sus to carry. i have no issue with spraying the shit out of an aggressive animal or kicking it tbh. whatever keeps you safe.

if youre in a situation where a dog is latched on its recommended to choke them out by using a rope or lead under their jaw, lifting and pushing forward. they have to pick whether to hang on or breathe.

OH AND! COPS DO NOT! EVER! OUT THEIR DOGS! k9s intentionally are NOT cued to release because of "liability". choke those dogs OFF!!!!!!! thats what cops do every time.

if the dog is already biting a person when you attempt to drag them backward, the dog WILL bite harder and hang on, so thats another reason. im sure thats obvious but i did want to add that.”

as a former dog trainer, i seriously can’t state enough that police dogs are trained via long term abuse and are often put down after retirement due to aggression issues. i know a lot of us don’t want to think about the reality of having to hurt a dog, but please put that aside and consider this should it become a reality where you live. it may save your life or someone else’s. you and other people are more important.

while i don’t claim to be a “book blogger” by any account (more of a cranky publishing-person blogger most days), i know a lot of people have followed me through my book posts, so i’m taking advantage of that captive audience to boost these bookstores. shop them through their own websites and if you’re local, look into curbside pickup to minimize shipping costs and overhead. okay that’s all thanks bye stay safe.

the lit bar (a personal favorite and the bronx’s one remaining bookstore)

hariett’s bookshop

semicolon bookstore

mahogany books

uncle bobbie’s

loyalty bookstore

dare books

listening tree books

underground books

multicultural bookstore

pyramid books

black dot bookstore

brain lair books

medu bookstore

wild fig books and coffee

frugal bookstore

olive tree books

detroit book city

cafe con libros

revolution books

sisters uptown bookstore

source booksellers

hakim’s bookstore

sankofa books and cafe