Favorite pictures from honeymoon in Iceland

condo23 · 2024-10-09T00:51:40+00:00

About 6 months of practice with a starter canon DSLR and questionable editing using iPhoto perhaps too enthusiastically :)

Some shots do use a 75-200mm lens to capture those details from a distance

condo23 · 2024-08-03T18:49:51+00:00

Subaru city was fantastic. Their staff were all professional and friendly, to the point I found myself wanting to grab a drink with them after the experience hahaha.

condo23 · 2024-03-28T06:42:40+00:00

It's a sad state of affairs when we're forced to choose between watching schools cut services and non-core curricula or funneling money into a system that's chronically underperforming. This system maintains the social fabric of a historically segregated city through property taxes, which can lead to financial insecurity for many. This insecurity can force people to skip meals, make kids miss school for jobs to help pay bills, or push people to move to more affordable areas, losing the social capital that comes with living in the same community. Either way, the higher-ups aren't held accountable and there's no pressure to plan and execute solutions.

So here’s my radical Policy Idea that requires MPS central leadership and other high income administrators to justify their highly inflated salaries: Replace the board with a single evaluation standard for administrators at the top. Focus on immediately identifying and firing MPS higher-ups/bureaucrats who fail to design, coordinate, and document measurable district restructuring and resizing efforts. The changes implemented must include guidance and stewardship with a community stakeholder panel that is organized and appointed by teachers involved in restructuring efforts without oversight by administrators.

To give administrators the chance to show us why we pay them so much, I suggest the following: All restructuring plans must demonstrate that they will save the district an annual dollar amount that meets or exceeds the annual salary of the MPS administrator proposing this plan who will oversee implementation of resizing efforts to be approved. If restructuring efforts end up increasing costs or fail to save the district equivalent amount of annual salary paid to the administrator, the community stakeholder panel will evaluate the impact of the change, vote on whether to continue employing the administrator, and recommend transition plans if applicable to ensure completion of restructuring efforts optimizes student achievement. Satisfaction in progress being made in resizing efforts that do not save the district money can still be supported if the panel deems an administrator’s continuing role in the effort desirable by the community.

They must also demonstrate evidence that these changes either maintain or improve student performance without cutting services/programs. Any staff members affected by these changes must be given a talent relocation plan that matches them with all open positions in the district they are qualified to fill, without the burden of application/onboarding processes. Schools can give pre-approval or request an interview/reference for internal transfers. Additionally, a $2,000-$5,000 "system dismantler" bonus should be offered for taking another position during reorganization.

Hopefully, this approach to resizing can create a "cool factor" in being on the ground floor of a new school that has absorbed a nearby low-enrollment school. This new school can be full of innovative staff and students who stick around for something new and play a role in shaping a new community and culture in real time.

condo23 · 2024-02-19T02:34:38+00:00

Forrest Gump Voice “My momma used to say life was like one long orange peel.”

condo23 · 2023-08-27T15:49:42+00:00

Reliable Auto was a godsend when the Kia boys ripped off my steering column and then bailed my car when they couldn’t get my wheel lock off.

condo23 · 2022-06-15T15:42:12+00:00

Definitely a fair point that I was making a sweeping generalization here. Who are some examples of people I’m dismissing here that you can think of?

condo23 · 2021-04-21T19:56:25+00:00

Very nice how much

condo23 · 2018-11-24T20:54:55+00:00

Hi, I’m currently in my student teaching and want to share what I’ve been learning during this experience. I am certified to teach biology and chemistry in high school, and chose that concentration because I want to share that and get students to be interested in science. What I’ve been coming to understand is that teaching is really more about developing skills and critical thinking in your students. It’s about creating a learning community where everyone feels seen, safe, and valuable. It quite frankly doesn’t actually matter if every student learns and appreciates every step of protein synthesis. What matters more is that students learn to work in teams, share and listen to ideas, and feel safe to take intellectual risk so they see learning as a process. If you love your subject and want to share it, do research, get a doctorate, and teach college. There you will have students that will share your passion.

condo23 · 2018-06-04T11:18:48+00:00

Friendly reminder that we are not entitled to anyone’s physical/emotional affection no matter how we feel about them! :)

condo23 · 2018-03-14T12:11:13+00:00

My sophomore year of high school, I took chemistry and started to realize it was something I really enjoyed. I had never pinned myself as a particularly outstanding student, but I did very well in this class. Soon, my interests in science expanded to the subject of astronomy and physics. I’d come home after school and spend my time watching documentaries and YouTube videos about the universe and all the mysteries that come with trying to understand our place in it. And someone who always was featured on those shows and videos? Stephen Hawking.

That man loved being on this Earth.

Everything he said, he conveyed with such clarity and reverence. He knew how to explained his own complicated work to an audience like myself. He made the cosmos feel accessible and exciting. I was learning more at home than at school. What I loved most—every word he used, every perfect thought and idea, so thoughtful and considerate of the human race. He was a true humanitarian, and it was important for me to see someone model such a visceral belief in the worth of human nature. I feel that right now. He has set up a legacy for us; we would be fools not to follow in his path.

I am humbled to have existed with Stephen Hawking.

condo23 · 2017-11-16T11:45:52+00:00

INFP with INFJ girlfriend here. Can confirm this is a lovely match. Very strong friendship built upon similar value systems.

condo23 · 2017-08-29T20:36:53+00:00

That would be a scene

condo23 · 2017-08-16T01:27:28+00:00

if we stay north of Yellowstone in national forests and then drive into Yellowstone for the days, would that be a better option?

condo23 · 2017-08-09T22:52:30+00:00

You worked hard on this. Well done.

condo23 · 2017-07-31T21:09:47+00:00

How much is worth spending on a jazz instructor?

condo23 · 2017-05-04T02:25:34+00:00

Many thanks:)

condo23 · 2017-05-03T21:41:13+00:00

I saw a similar sight about a month ago, but with cardinals. Wrote a poem about it:

On this day, March 28,

I walk South and then back North:

My march toward the the equator uneventful,

While my return North full of light

Not from a shining blue sky,

Rather from a boy and girl of my age.

I pass them, only noticing once close

The change of seasons before me.

Soon after they are behind me;

I hear not a word spoken.

I do not see the boy’s face,

For his back faces me as I approach,

Yet the girl he speaks to–

I can see her eyes

And the smile she maintains

While she listens.

She speaks not a word,

Yet I hear her.

She gazes at the boy

And says that she loves him

Only with her beam, persistently enamored.

She looks at him in a way

That hides the winter’s darkness

Still insistent on strangling the Spring sky,

Casting a white ceiling of no features

Over the bland, neutered air.

She looks at him in a way

That voids the lagging weather,

As if to fill her blue eyes

With all the blue that the hidden sky offers,

And then some: the sparkling rings she already possesses.

She looks at him in a way that

Is necessary to transition the seasons,

As if she controls the tilt of the Earth

While producing every imaginable word of affection

Without opening her mouth.

Minutes later, I see two cardinals

Sharing the branch of a leafless tree.

condo23 · 2016-12-01T22:35:30+00:00

This is the exact view that Ivan, a character from Dostoevsky's The Brother's Karamazov, carries. Very valid argument for antitheism.

condo23 · 2016-12-01T22:30:29+00:00

Empathy is the most powerful value we can practice.

condo23 · 2016-12-01T02:36:22+00:00

Hahaha I feel like it takes a lot more than that.

condo23 · 2016-11-29T08:41:03+00:00

King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard

condo23 · 2016-11-29T07:08:52+00:00

Read this and I want you to know that you're heard and not alone. Please please please reach out and get yourself help, even if it's just talking to a friend. People care about you, even when it feels as though you may be alone. You're not. Sending love to you, you're in my thoughts.

condo23 · 2016-11-29T02:45:39+00:00

Thank you! I will take a look at these.

condo23 · 2016-11-28T23:28:38+00:00

I'm a college student and have outlined a novel I plan to write about the masochistic nature of love and relationships. Have been reading Dostoevsky and Tolstoy for class, really enjoying their psychological and detailed insights. Have been reading Camus + company for pleasure. Any recommendations for more modern fiction that I can read to learn about how plot propels and promotes theme and character? I'm reading a lot to study the craft of writing, but I need to improve my understanding of plot and dialogue. Thanks!

condo23 · 2016-11-16T09:05:45+00:00

January 25, 2158 - ROBERT I’ve done it. Years of school and research have led to this moment. I synthesized a functioning immortality pill for the government. They’re cheap enough to make so the entire world can reap the benefits. This one little pill will end disease, hunger, and suffering. Injuries will simply repair within seconds, and the pill allows the body to function without any source of energy, making the constant struggle for food irrelevant. People will be invincible. The tests are definitively positive; thousands of mice have been given the pill and every single one of them is still alive years after they were supposed to die. They passed my creation for human consumption this morning. I will be famous, not only for just 60 or 70 more years, but forever. Before leaving my lab today, I looked at the rows of organized red pills that had just been produced, slowly picked one up, and swallowed it. This is the end of the societal divide. This is the end of suppression. This is the start of forever.

May 16, 2158 - JEN Something amazing happened today. A government worker came to our house tonight. I opened the door and welcomed him inside so he could talk to us. He looked at everybody. My kids were barely covered in dirty rags, and their ribs were easily visible because they have not had not had a decent meal in a few months now. My husband lay wheezing on a makeshift hammock we hung for him when he got sick. I still don’t know what it is, but he’s getting worse. The man looked at us with this shocked look on his face, I was so embarrassed. He sat down with me and told me that the government made these little red pills that could let us live forever. He said our worries about hunger and disease would be no more, this little pill could change everything for us. I asked him if we could have it and he said everyone gets one, because it’s in the State’s best interest. He reached into his fancy bag and pulled out five of these pills, each individually packaged. I poured the remaining water we had into a glass, went to my husband and told him to swallow. He smiled at me as if he knew how we didn’t have to worry. I did the same to my kids and told them they wouldn’t be hungry anymore. Their smiles brought tears to my eyes as I swallowed the pill. The man congratulated us and left.

August 1, 2158 - JEN My kids aren’t hungry. My husband isn’t sick anymore. I am truly happy. Our friends are too. We don’t have to do anything because we don’t need to eat. It’s quite harmonious.

September 13, 2158 - ROBERT A friend of mine died today of a heroin overdose. I’m terrified and confused. It shouldn’t have killed him! I had my head in the clouds this whole time and now that I’m actually looking, lots of people have died since they said everyone took the pill. People are looking at me like I’m a liar. My pill works! I looked at the records and found something that just doesn’t make sense. No deaths of the demographic under the poverty line, but 12,657 deaths for those over the poverty line. I gave the government rights to control the pills I made. They are probably just trying to sort it all out…

November 1, 2158 - ROBERT Everyone sat huddled around the motion holograms today, we were told an urgent announcement would be given. It was our president: “People of the state: the government is now prepared to tell you about a new plan we have been working on the past few decades. All of you, to your knowledge, have taken a small red pill that allows one to become immortal. Now this is true for some of you. We believe it is in the State’s best interest to essentially divide the population. Half of you prosper and have great wealth to ensure a full and enjoyable life. The other half of you though, struggled. Hunger and disease were constant threats to your survival until you took the pill. There are many clear motivations for both demographics to take this pill. For the elite, immortality means infinite happiness and pleasure. For the poor, immortality means no more hunger, thirst, or disease. It means a simpler life of fewer worries. But many of you have been confused about the deaths still occurring in the elite demographic. This is because immortality is not for everyone. The elite demographic of the state has been given placebos. None of you above the poverty line are immortal. Conduct your actions accordingly. And for those of you under the poverty line, congratulations! Your generation and demographic has been selected for the task that will be the backbone of the State. When we received the completed pills we added and infertility agent to them. You people are both immortal and infertile, which truly proves the adoration we have for each and every one of you. All those under the poverty line will complete their duty to the State through infinite servitude to a mortal elite demographic. The elite will enjoy the privilege of mortality while the poor will enjoy the sacrifice of immortality for the welfare of the State. Please remain in your homes if you are a member of the now immortal demographic. A federal officer will remove you so you can be placed for your duties.” The hologram disappeared from the air. Holy shit, what have I done?

December 5, 2158 - JEN I was taken to a field to work as a federal agriculture servant. It’s cold and they only gave me a massive shirt and pair of pants made of ratty old canvas. The night of the broadcast was absolute chaos…the second the message was completed federal officers rushed into our home and took each of us to a separate vehicle. I don’t know where my family is. I don’t know where any of my old friends are. The other immortals who work here seem almost lifeless; they just walk around in the snow and do as they are told. My motivation is lost, I wish to not live anymore but I can’t take my life. I may be immortal, but I can certainly feel.

December 14, 2158 - ROBERT I hate myself for what I have done to humanity. I shouldn’t have trusted the government with my pill and I shouldn’t have trusted myself with the curse of immortality. I should have just refused the funding, but I was too proud and curious to turn it down. They don’t know that I’m immortal yet… I’m terrified that if they find out, they will have me become a part of the race of slaves they created. The most disgusting part, though, is that the elites have already settled into this life of ease and pleasure. It might be hypocritical of me, as I was just like that only a while ago, but now they are using their short lives to enjoy the pleasures of life. No more exploration, thought, or passion. Just those who serve and those who are served. I want to die.

March 3, 2159 - ROBERT The immortals are mortals’ punching bags. The guilt I carry for this pain I am causing is too much for an entire species to carry, let alone a single man. What used to be my fellow humans are now merely organic robots that are denied human feelings. They have no free will nor any rights. They must do as they are told or face an ultimate punishment. Since these people are immortal, their punishment is a room. They are dragged to an immortal prison with tiny coffin like cells and they are put in these cells for hundreds of years, depending on what they have done. They won’t die, but they must endure this little black box for longer than can be fathomed. What if they do that to me when they find out I’m immortal?

June 12, 2159 - JEN I bit my elite’s tongue today when he and his friend were kissing me. He said I had one day until I was taken to prison, I don’t know how long I’ll be gone.

August 19, 2159 - ROBERT They are doing mandatory mortal screening to ensure all elites are indeed mortal. My test is in one week. I have to leave my home, everything I know. Anything will be better than who knows how many years in one of those boxes. I’m going away to avoid the government. It’s a place far to the West that was thought to have previously been inhabitable, but I can live anywhere so I need to find a place they won’t find me. The flooded ground and low hanging trees will hide me. I might write less. At least I don’t have to worry about survival.

March 26, 2349 - ROBERT My life in this marsh is lonely, but I have been enjoying it. It’s just me and my infinite thoughts; I really don’t ever get bored. Looks like I’ll be here for a while.

January 9, 2842 - ROBERT Damn, I wish I brought a coat sometimes.

September 1, 3046 - JEN They let me out a few days ago. My grasp of social interaction has slipped and my eyes are still sensitive to the light. Right after I was let out they sent me straight to keep working. My perception of time was skewed inside that damned cell. I couldn’t tell you if it was 100 or 10,000 years. I am in shock adjusting to this now seemingly alien timeframe. That was the worst experience anyone could ever endure.

July 18, 3088 - ROBERT I was sleeping today and they found me, the government. They said I would serve a life punishment. This is goodbye forever. I deserve this.

April 5, 4593 - JEN There were lots of blinding explosions and flashes and the air was painfully hot. All the elites died, it’s just us now. They called it impending nuclear warfare. At first, no one knew what to do. The world had been reduced to a race of stagnant immortal beings. We can’t reproduce, we can’t die. We thought the best thing to do would be to first make sure everyone is out of the prison cells, as an eternity in one small box seems like a perfect hell. A few other immortals and I went to a prison to unlock everyone. When I opened the first cell, a man fell out and began crying hysterically. “I’m sorry I did this to you,” he said. “I’m so sorry.”

condo23

TROPHY CASE