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Anonymous
Frontier Airlines Baggage Allowance: Carry-On, Checked Bags, Size & Weight Rules
Travelers flying with Frontier Airlines should review the airline's baggage rules before arriving at the airport. Frontier is an ultra-low-cost airline, which means the base ticket usually includes only one personal item, while larger cabin bags and checked luggage require additional payment. Understanding the Frontier Airlines baggage allowance can help passengers avoid unexpected fees and pack their luggage correctly at +1–866–673–8391. Baggage allowances depend on the ticket bundle, route, and when the baggage is added to the reservation. Buying baggage during booking is usually cheaper than paying at the airport.
Overview of Frontier Airlines Baggage Policy Frontier Airlines divides baggage into three main categories: Personal item (free allowance) Carry-on baggage (paid option) Checked baggage (paid option)
Each type of bag has specific size and weight restrictions designed to fit the aircraft storage compartments and cargo hold safely. Personal Item (Free Baggage Allowance) Every Frontier passenger can bring one personal item for free. Maximum size: 14 × 18 × 8 inches (including handles and wheels)
The bag must fit under the seat in front of you. Examples of personal items include: Purse or handbag Laptop bag Small backpack Briefcase
If the personal item exceeds the allowed dimensions, passengers may be required to pay a carry-on or gate bag fee at +1–866–673–8391.
Frontier Carry-On Baggage Allowance Passengers who need a larger cabin bag must purchase a carry-on bag or choose a bundle that includes it. Carry-on bag limits: Maximum size: 24 × 16 × 10 inches Maximum weight: about 35 lb (15.8 kg)
Carry-on luggage is stored in the overhead compartment of the aircraft. Typical carry-on bags include: Small wheeled suitcases Large backpacks Small duffel bags
Carry-on baggage prices vary depending on the route and booking time. Typical price range: $30 - $55 when booked early Higher fees if purchased at the airport.
Frontier Checked Baggage Allowance Checked luggage travels in the aircraft cargo hold and must follow strict size and weight limits. Standard Checked Bag Size Maximum size: 62 linear inches (length + width + height combined)
Standard Weight Limit Maximum weight: 40 lb (18 kg) per bag
This weight limit is lower than many other airlines, so passengers should weigh their luggage before arriving at the airport. Frontier Checked Baggage Fees Checked baggage is not included with most basic tickets and must be purchased separately. Typical one-way fees: Bag Type Typical Cost First checked bag $29 - $63 Second checked bag $59 - $86 Third or additional bags $75 - $110 Prices increase if baggage is purchased later or at the airport counter. Overweight and Oversized Baggage Fees Additional fees apply if luggage exceeds the allowed limits. Overweight baggage fees 41–50 lb: about $75 51–100 lb: about $100
Oversized baggage Bags 63–110 inches may incur an additional $75 fee
Bags larger than 110 inches or heavier than 100 lb are usually not accepted. Special Items and Sports Equipment Frontier Airlines allows passengers to travel with certain special items, although additional fees may apply assist at +1–866–673–8391. Examples include: Golf equipment Ski gear Bicycles Surfboards
Musical instruments These items must be packed properly and may require advance booking. Tips to Avoid Frontier Airlines Baggage Fees Because Frontier charges for most baggage services, travelers often follow a few strategies to reduce costs: Bring only a personal item to avoid baggage fees. Purchase baggage during booking to get the lowest price. Weigh luggage at home to stay under the 40 lb limit. Use compact luggage that fits the airline's size rules. Pack efficiently to reduce the number of bags needed.
Planning ahead can help travelers save money and avoid last-minute baggage charges.
Conclusion The Frontier Airlines baggage allowance is designed around a low-cost travel model. Each passenger can bring one free personal item measuring 14 × 18 × 8 inches, while carry-on bags and checked luggage must usually be purchased separately. Checked baggage must stay within 62 inches in total dimensions and 40 lb weight limit. Understanding these rules before your trip can help you avoid extra fees and travel more comfortably.
from
Space Goblin Diaries
I've been thinking about the design lessons I've learned from Beyond the Chiron Gate now that it's been out for a few years, and I thought I'd do a little post about one topic: achievements.
I'm personally not a completionist or achievement-oriented gamer. Seeing an achievement pop up is kind of fun, but I never change the way I play a game just for the sake of getting one, and I've never gone out of my way to get all the achievements in a particular game.
Nevertheless I decided to add achievements to Beyond the Chiron Gate because, why not? They're not much work to add, lots of players like them, and those that don't can easily ignore them.
The achievement system in most versions of the game is just built into the game and the data never leaves your device, but when I made the Steam version of the game in 2024 I plugged them into Steam's achievement system, which means I can see how many players globally have gotten each one. (And so can you, just click on the achievements on the game's store page.)
I think overall there's a good mix of achievements that you'll naturally get in the course of playing the game a few times, and ones you have to deliberately try for. But in hindsight, there are a few achievements I now think are too difficult or luck-based.

(“No Detours” also has a low unlock rate but I still think it's a good achievement as it involves playing the game in a particular self-imposed-challenge way, rather than getting lucky with skill checks.)
The game has been out for a while now and I'm not going to update it to modify the achievements. However, I will say...
As creator of the game, I hereby decree that you may consider yourself to have 100% completion if you have all the achievements except for “Jaws of Death”, “Everybody Lives”, “Through the Wringer”, and “Crew Expendable”.
I'm planning to add achievements to my next game, Foolish Earth Creatures, but I'm not anticipating these kinds of problems as the game won't have any randomness, so for each achievement there will be a particular set of choices you can make that will definitely unlock it. (I might add secret achievements this time, though...)
*
Also:
#BeyondTheChironGate #DevDiary
from
Roscoe's Quick Notes

Tonight's men's college basketball game will feature the Northwestern Wildcats at Indiana Hoosiers, and has a scheduled start time of 5:30 Central Time.
And the adventure continues.
The birthday I never wanted: A suicide story worth celebrating
CONTENT Warning: This post talks about suicide while actually using the word suicide. (More specifically, it discusses heavy feelings of suicidal ideation, my own suicide attempts, research on deaths by suicide with efforts to reduce stigma, and strong opinions you may not agree with).
Last year today, after languishingly slip p ing through another day at a job I loved, I coached my dispirited body towards the bus stop, an apparition. For months, my body clung to earth’s axis, the dial-up handshake of life's endless phone call, signaling for a connection that was always out of re a c h One quiet promise propelled me forward: You can kill yourself tonight. Fueled by relief, I got off the bus near the Secretary of State, a not-so-subtle SOS. It was my 35th birthday. My challenge: To buy 35 items from the dollar store I could end my life with. Creativity and determination have always been my strong suits. When pushed to full VOLUME, they drown out all attempts at logic, any willingness to see another perspective. For someone who is non-binary, it is baffling how often I only see two paths in front of me, live or die. Suicide was my only option. Fortunately, the nature of existence is things change.
The thing about suicidal ideation, in silence it swells, leaving little room for any other thoughts. It feeds off whispers around corn ers, off unspoken I love yous. It fills the spaces where words do not form. The only fertilizer worse than silence: words that validate, voices of others who do not challenge, but affirm.
Last week someone I knew and admired died by suicide. I wasn’t close with this person. I wont pretend to know the complexity of their circumstances or their reasons for ending their life. I know nothing of the difficulty and danger that comes with living in a Black body. All I know is a faint sliver of light, in the vast shadows of all I don’t. I don’t know if the outcome could have been changed. Still, I am alarmed and concerned at the public narrative around their suicide in the last week, and the tone of celebration, specifically from community leaders. I believe deeply: No human should have the power to play God. No amount of public influence or closeness of relationship should make someone eligible to decide whether another’s life is worth ending. No human can honestly discern whether someone is having a serious mental health crisis or a spiritual awakening.
With multiple stays on psych emergency floors, I can confidently estimate that around 40% of the people I met claimed they were having some type of spiritual rebirth, that their eyes had been open to what others could not see. And maybe they were. As a human with a history of addiction and trauma, I’ve witnessed misinformation, ignorance, victim blaming, sexism, and transphobia from doctors, nurses, and even social workers. Still, at the end of the day, I would defer to a team of health professionals in deciding the health and wellbeing of someone else. I am by no means claiming that everyone who dies by suicide has a mental illness. Diagnoses aside, we know that mental suffering is part of the human condition. Our brains evolved to keep us alive. If someone’s mind is persuading them to die, research points to two regions of the prefrontal cortex that shape this thinking: The upper prefrontal cortex, controlling emotional regulation and self-perception and the lower prefrontal cortex, guiding decision-making and impulse control. When someone is suicidal, their brain wiring is faulty. They are not experiencing a miracle of transcendence. When we describe suicide with phrases like “they wanted to be free” or “they were soul tired”, we risk softening the truth. These platitudes may sound tender, but they drift toward glamorization, toward justification. Suicide resists reason. For any individual there might be a complex web of motivations. To justify a death by suicide, we would have to prove that no other path toward relief existed. That nothing could have changed. That there was truly no way through. We cannot know that Thus We cannot justify it. The experience of being suicidal—even for people like me who experience it chronically—is not permanent. It moves. It shifts over time. When we affirm someone’s reason to die, we quietly deny the possibility that their perception might have changed with time, with care, with treatment.
We can honor the depth of a person's pain without validating their death or suicide.
The truth is that when someone dies by suicide, there are circumstances we will never fully understand. But there are things we do know: -The World Health Organization names suicide as the 10th leading cause of death in the United States, officially surpassing COVID-19 in 2024. It also identifies stigma as the greatest barrier to prevention. -Someone dies by suicide every 11 minutes (TDM, 2026). -People who know someone who died by suicide are three times more likely to die by suicide themselves (NLM, 2022). -Media coverage that speaks honestly about suicide by sharing resources, recovery stories, and dispelling myths reduces suicide rates. This is known as the Papageno effect. Simply put: honest conversations about suicide help save lives.
I have debilitating depression that, at times, makes it impossible to see anything objectively, a fog so lightless it makes it impossible to see any exit sign that doesn’t read: DEATH. Last year, I couldn’t see how distorted my thinking was. I couldn’t access a faith that I would ever feel differently. I couldn’t remember a time I wasn't consumed with immobilizing heaviness. I was wrong.
When I told my friends I had no other options but to end my life. They didn’t respect my wishes. They didn’t choose to empower me or my autonomy. They called health professionals. Because they did, I am still here.
So when someone dies the way our friend did this week, I will say the truth plainly: They died by suicide. And I will keep saying it, because by saying it, by speaking about suicide honestly, we break the silence. We reduce the stigma. We save lives.
With love and gratitude, L's Preschool Teacher
COMMON NARRATIVES ABOUT SUICIDE THAT ARE FALSE (Mayo Clinic, 2024).
MYTH: Once someone decides to end their life, nothing can stop them. FACT: Effective intervention and reducing access to lethal means can save lives. Most people struggling with suicide are ambivalent. Those who survive a suicide attempt often express relief. 90% of suicide attempts do not going on to die by suicide (Harvard.edu).
MYTH: Talking about suicide “plants a seed” or increases the chances a person will act. FACT: Talking about suicide is known to reduce suicidal ideation, when talked about in an informed way. While it may feel uncomfortable, discussing suicide improves mental health outcomes and the likelihood that the person will seek treatment. Opening this conversation can help people find an alternative view of their existing circumstances. If someone is in crisis or depressed, asking if they are thinking about suicide can help, so don't hesitate to start the conversation.
MYTH: Suicide is a choice. People who die by suicide are selfish, cowardly or weak. FACT: People don't die of suicide by choice. Often, people who die of suicide experience significant emotional pain and find it difficult to consider different views or see a way out of their situation. Even though the reasons behind suicide are complex, suicide is commonly associated with illnesses, including depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, substance use, chronic pain or respiratory issues, neurological disorders, and cancer. Health professionals often describe suicide as the final symptom of a terminal biological health condition causing major deficits in decision-making and information processing. For this reason, there is no autonomy.
References:
https://hsph.harvard.edu/research/means-matter/means-matter-basics/attempters-longterm-survival/
More on the brain and suicide: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/31340/the-neurobiology-of-suicide-the-suicidal-brain/magazine
Very well said, Representative Whitsett! Finally a Democrat with the courage to say the unspoken things out loud.
#quotes #politics #theology
from A Life Incomplete
When I saw author Meg Hunter-Kilmer say on Facebook that she was publishing a new book, Who Is Jesus: Discovering Christ in the Gospels, I really wanted a copy but wasn't sure it would come out in Japan, where I live. So I reached out to her for a review copy in exchange for an honest review. She quickly responded and got me a copy. So, this is a review based on that free copy.
I think I first found out about the author on Twitter. She has two theology degrees from Notre Dame. She now works there in the campus ministry after years of being on the road as a “Hobo for Christ.” She does have a passion for Scripture, having read the Bible multiple times — the first time, as she states in the introduction to this book, when she was 13. Her passion for Jesus and Scripture comes through in her podcasts and talks, which I often have the pleasure of listening to.
On the other hand, as a more stereotypical cradle Catholic, I haven't read the entire Bible on my own. I have own Bibles in multiple languages, translations, and formats. Of course, I have Fr. Mike Schmitz’s Bible in a Year podcast on my devices. I even have Hunter-Kilmer's previously published book, A Year in the Word Catholic Bible Journal. Yet there is still something intimidating about reading it in one go – even if that one go is over one year.
This book, at less than 100 pages, is much less intimidating. It is meant to be used as a textbook for a Bible study group, though it works just as well as a solo study/prayer guide.
I went through it once when I first got it and then again today. As both a Catholic and a teacher, I really like it.
Organized as a 12-week course, readers follow the life of Jesus through the Gospels, starting with the Annunciation and going through to Christ’s resurrection. Each week has three Scripture readings on the week's topic related to the life of Jesus, followed by a few short notes on the readings and some questions to help readers/participants think more deeply about the readings. Each section ends with a “praying with the word” section to help one further reflect on the reading. Her voice and passion that are so pronounced in her talks come through clearly in the notes and questions in these sections.
I am also really impressed, as a lifelong teacher of English as a foreign language, with how the book is structured. First, in the introduction, Hunter-Kilmer sets out her expectations, which are that the reader should be ready to go at their own pace, to not feel intimidated, that God's word and love are for everyone and that no matter where you are or who you are you will find something new in it. She follows through on this thinking by how she has structured the discussion sections. She always starts out with the same question, asking readers/participants about how the reading affects them in a way that will eventually prime participants into thinking about Scripture more deeply while they are reading. The subsequent questions are obviously deeply informed by her own deep reading of Scripture and prayer. Each section ends with a space to help the reader/participant move into deeper thinking and prayer on what was discussed by writing down something concrete that moved them during their reading.
My mom taught CCD at our local church, and although I became a teacher, I never really thought I would — or could — teach or lead any discussions related to the Church. I am a cradle Catholic and my journey isn’t really an intellectual one, but one made up of faith and experiences. I am not always open in sharing what I am thinking about that journey, as well. Yet, going through this book, I not only felt this was something I could use, but something I would like to use, something that got me thinking about how I could use it in a discussion group.
In the end, after asking for a review copy thinking it wouldn't be available in Japan, it is actually available here on both Amazon Japan and Rakuten/Kobo. So maybe I will be able to use it someday. Highly recommended.

from
Kroeber
Comecei a escrever online em 2003, quando comecei um blogue. Que tempos diferentes esses, em que ainda se acreditava na bondade da Google (do no harm), no poder de democratização da internet e nos sentíamos seguros ao publicar a nossa opinião online.
from
Kroeber
Há formas diferentes de estar errado. Mesmo quando as consequências são igualmente terríveis, pode haver diferenças importantes. Pensemos, por exemplo, em duas pessoas. Uma aproximou-se do fascismo quando este propunha culpar o estrangeiro, o comunista, o inimigo interno e o marginal de todos os males. Esta pessoa aderiu ao projecto fascista porque via nele um impulso revanchista, que resolveria com grande violência todos os ultrajes e indignações que a assombravam. Uma outra pessoa acreditou no Estalinismo, admitindo que talvez uma mão forte e implacável com os inimigos e contravelucionários fosse necessária para finalmente se atingir uma sociedade justa e igualitária. Uma e outra viram os seus projectos políticos derrotados. Imaginemos que uma e outra aceitaram na derrota a evidência de um mau método, mas teimaram que o objectivos iniciais continuavam relevantes e nobres. Isso significa que uma deixou de acreditar que o fascismo é a melhor forma de se vingar do estrangeiro e do inimigo e a outra deixou de acreditar que a força é a melhor forma de atingir uma sociedade justa e igualitária. Embora o fascismo e o estalinismo tenham igualmente causado a morte de milhões e aberto feridas que ainda hoje infectam as nossas sociedades, a desilusão (no caso destas duas pessoas ficcionais) com um e outro sistema tem resultados diferentes, pelo menos potencialmente diferentes.
Como a construção desta experiência de pensamento já está enviesada (uma das pessoas quer vingar-se e a outra quer uma sociedade melhor), usemos esta lógica num outro exemplo, mais próximo. Dois eleitores do Chega, que votaram com motivações diferentes. Um votou porque viu no voto a forma mais viável de extremar a política, talvez até aconselhado por um extremista (como no caso de alguns eleitores que votaram Chega por conselho do Mário Machado). Um outro porque estava desiludido com os políticos em geral e achou que tinha pouco a perder, ao menos votava em alguém que dizia que ia mudar o sistema. São muito diferentes estes eleitores. Embora, se alguma vez o Chega chegar ao poder ambos tenham contribuído para isso, as diferenças entre os dois eleitores são importantes. É obrigação de quem quer realmente que a política melhore a sociedade conquistar o eleitor que está desiludido com os políticos e que não votou num candidato extremista por convicção. Este eleitor faz parte da maioria e demonizá-lo, além de injusto, é contraproducente. O outro eleitor dificilmente será persuadido a escolher a liberdade e a democracia. O seu voto é táctico e num instante mudaria para um candidato ainda mais extremista se o houvesse. Existem fascistas, são perigosos e estão mais próximos do poder que nunca nos últimos 50 anos. Mas não devemos cair no erro de tratar a maior parte da população como fascistas nem desistir de quem, por passar dificuldades, deixou (com bons motivos para isso) de confiar na classe política. A maioria das pessoas quer viver em paz com os seus vizinhos e não deseja inimigos. Se a narrativa fascista ganha terreno, é também porque não são apresentadas alternativas a quem tem dificuldade em pagar as contas e alimentar os filhos. Cabe a todos os democratas derrotar estas explicações que fazem do estrangeiro, do inimigo interno de novo (como dantes) o bode expiatório de todos os males. E acima de tudo, apresentar soluções para melhorar a vida das pessoas, para as tirar da pobreza, proporcionar cuidados de saúde decentes, reduzir a precariedade no trabalho, eliminar as desigualdades sociais.
from
Nyfiken

Det finns en bild som många av oss bär på från barndomen: den långa bilresan, solen som flimrar genom sidorutorna, föräldrarnas tysta samtal i framsätet och sedan, som ett slags magi, en röst som börjar berätta. Kanske var det Astrid Lindgrens Ronja Rövardotter som lästes upp av en mjuk stämma via en skramlande kassettspelare. Kanske var det Emil i Lönneberga, eller något av de tusen andra sagor som Sverige fostrade sina barn med under bilsemestrar och långa sommarresor. Ljudböcker var barnens grej. Den var tidsfördrivets format. Den hörde hemma i bilen, inte i soffan.
Den uppfattningen levde länge. Länge nog för att forma en hel generations syn på vad det innebär att 'läsa' en bok. Att läsa var att sitta still. Att läsa var att ha boken i händerna, att känna papperet mot fingrarna, att se orden på sidan. Att lyssna på en bok var något annat – ett substitut, ett nödvändigt ont, ett sätt att konsumera en historia utan att egentligen ta sig tid att läsa den ordentligt. Den här synen var utbredd och den var enveten.
Men någonstans under det tidiga 2000-talets första decennium börjar något förändras. Inte dramatiskt, inte med fanfarer. Snarare som när man plötsligt märker att vädret har skiftat – man vet inte riktigt när det hände, men nu är det påtagligt annorlunda.
Det är svårt att peka ut ett enda ögonblick när ljudboken slutade vara barnens och bilresornas medium och blev något mer. Men om man försöker kartlägga förändringen landar man oundvikligen vid smarttelefonens genombrott. När vi fick datorer i fickorna fick vi också möjligheten att bära med oss bibliotekets hela samling, var vi än befann oss. Audible hade funnits sedan 1995, men det var först när det blev sömlöst integrerat med vår dagliga teknologi som formatet verkligen exploderade.
I Sverige blev Storytel, grundat 2005 men med sitt abonnemangsupplägg från 2012, en katalysator för en ny slags lyssnarkultur. Plötsligt var det inte en specifik bok man köpte utan tillgången till ett helt bibliotek. Precis som Spotify demokratiserade musiklyssnandet – och förändrade vår relation till musiken i grunden – förändrade streamingtjänsterna för böcker hur vi tänker på läsning.
Och med förändrade vanor kom en förändrad självbild hos lyssnarna. Plötsligt var det inte bara barn på bilresor som lyssnade på böcker. Det var pendlare på tunnelbanan. Det var löpare med hörlurar. Det var föräldrar som diskade efter middagen. Det var yrkesmänniskor som ville utnyttja sin pendlingstid. Och med dem kom en ny legitimitet.
Men legitimitetsfrågan är komplicerad. Den gnager. Räknas det? Den debatten är inte ny, men den har fått ny intensitet i takt med att ljudboken tagit allt mer plats. Bokens försvarare – ofta akademiker, litteraturkritiker eller kulturkonservativa röster – menar att läsning är en kognitiv process som kräver ögonens rörelse över texten, hjärnans aktiva avkodning av bokstäver och ord. Att lyssna är passivt. Att läsa är aktivt.
Neurovetenskapen ger en mer nyanserad bild. Forskning har visat att hjärnan i stor utsträckning bearbetar berättande och språk på liknande sätt oavsett om inputen är visuell eller auditiv. Den semantiska förståelsen, den emotionella responsen, förmågan att följa ett komplext narrativ – allt detta verkar fungera ungefär likadant. Skillnaderna finns, men de är inte av den karaktären att en läsform kan förklaras som överlägsen den andra.
Ändå är det svårt att helt avfärda känslan av att någonting är annorlunda. Det är annorlunda. Att läsa en roman med ögonen ger en frihet att pausa, att spola tillbaka i sinnet, att läsa om en mening vars skönhet slog en. Det ger en intimitet med textens rytm som uppstår i samspelet mellan ens egna inre röst och orden på sidan. Att lyssna är att låta någon annan bestämma tempot, röstens karaktär, pausernas placering. Det är en annan upplevelse – inte sämre, men annorlunda.
Och kanske är just den acceptansen – att de är olika utan att det ena måste underordna sig det andra – det viktigaste steget i hur vi tänker på detta. Böcker har aldrig haft ett enda format. Boktryckarkonsten ersatte det handskrivna manuskriptet. Pocketboken demokratiserade texten. E-boken utlovade ännu en revolution. Varje ny form väckte oro och motstånd, och varje gång visade sig oron vara, om inte ogrundad, så åtminstone överdriven.
Och ändå: är den fysiska boken på väg att dö? Det är en fråga som ställs med jämna mellanrum, och det är en fråga som förtjänar ett seriöst svar snarare än ett reflexmässigt försvar.
Statistiken berättar en historia med inbyggda paradoxer. Ljudboksmarknaden i Sverige och globalt har vuxit explosionsartat under 2010- och 2020-talen. Storytel rapporterar ständigt nya prenumerantrekord. Younger generations – millennials och Generation Z – lyssnar mer än de fysiskt läser. Och ändå: den tryckta boken dör inte. Bokförsäljningen i Sverige har visat sig remarkabel stabil. Oberoende bokhandlar, som man trodde skulle sopas bort av näthandel och digitalisering, har i många städer återfött sig själva som kulturella mötesplatser.
Det verkar som att boken – det fysiska objektet – har funnit en ny identitet just i kontrast mot det digitala. I en värld där allt är flyktigt, delbart och ständigt uppdaterbart har papperet blivit en markering för permanens. Att äga en bok, att sätta den i bokhyllan, att kunna ta ned den om tio år och minnas var man var i livet när man läste den – det är en upplevelse som ingen strömtjänst kan replikera.
Det finns också en taktil dimension som är svår att rationalisera bort. Bokens vikt i handen. Pappersluktens specifika kemiska komplexitet – det är faktiskt ett ord för det, bibliosmia, kärleken till boklukt. Det faktum att man inte kan se batteriindikatorn minska. Det faktum att inga notifikationer bryter koncentrationen. Den fysiska boken är, i vår era av ständig uppkoppling, närmast ett meditativt objekt.
En aspekt av ljudbokens uppgång som sällan diskuteras tillräckligt är vad den har gjort med berättarkonsten som sådan. Inspelningarna har blivit ett konsthantverk i sig. En bra uppläsning kan fördjupa ett verk på sätt som texten ensam inte förmår. Skådespelaren och röstartisten David Suchet, känd för sin tolkning av Hercule Poirot, har gjort en tolkningsnyckel av ett antal klassiker som många menar överstiger de ursprungliga texterna i kraft och närvaro.
I Sverige har ett antal röstartister blivit stjärnor inom formatet. Det finns lyssnare som medvetet väljer bort en bok om den läses av fel person. Rösten är en del av verket. Den här dimensionen av ljudboken är relativt ny – under kassettepokens glansdagar var uppläsningarna ofta torra och textbundna. Nu är det fullständiga produktioner, ibland med musik och ljudeffekter, ibland med omsorgsfulla tolkningar som tar decennier av skådespeleri i anspråk.
Det för oss tillbaka till ursprunget. Berättandet är, i sin mest ursprungliga form, muntligt. Innan skriften fanns sagor. Innan tryckpressen fanns skalden. Den som minns hur det kändes att ha en vuxen läsa högt för sig som barn – hur den rösten formade och färgade världen – förstår kanske varför ljudboken känns som något mer än ett substitut. Det är ett återvändande till något fundamentalt mänskligt.
Men det finns skuggsidor. Ljudbokens expansion har inte enbart varit demokratiserande. Det finns en oro, artikulerad av bibliotekarier och litteraturpedagoger, att den snabba konsumtionen av böcker via strömning skapar ett ytligare förhållande till texten. Prenumerationstjänsterna belönar kvantitet: ju fler böcker en lyssnare konsumerar, desto mer värd är prenumerationen. Det skapar ett incitament att lyssna fort, att välja det tillgängliga och behagliga framför det utmanande och svåra.
En annan oro handlar om vad som händer med de böcker som aldrig blir inlästa. I det digitala ekosystemet är synligheten allt. En titel som saknar inspelning riskerar att falla utanför det som räknas som tillgängligt. Esoteriska verk, smalare poesi, akademisk litteratur – det är format som passar dåligt för uppläsning och som därmed riskerar att marginaliseras ytterligare i ett medielandskap som i allt högre grad styrs av strömningsplattformarnas algoritmer.
Och det är värt att notera att tillgängligheten, som ofta lyfts fram som en av ljudbokens stora fördelar, fortfarande är ojämnt fördelad. För den med dyslexi eller synnedsättning är ljudboken en livlina – en möjlighet att ta del av litteraturen på lika villkor som andra. Men för den utan tillgång till en stabil internetuppkoppling, eller utan råd att betala en månatlig abonnemangsavgift, är det digitala biblioteket fortfarande stängt.
Kanske är det dags att omformulera frågan. Istället för att fråga om den fysiska boken kommer att dö, kan vi fråga: vad är det vi egentligen vill bevara? Om svaret är litteraturen – berättelserna, tankarna, de mänskliga erfarenheterna som böckerna bär – så finns det goda skäl till optimism. Litteraturen lever och sprids bredare än någonsin. Fler röster hörs. Fler berättelser når ut.
Om svaret däremot är ett specifikt sätt att möta litteraturen på – stillsittandet, boken i handen, den personliga inre rösten som tolkar texten – så är den erfarenheten utan tvekan hotad. Inte utrotad, men förträngd. Tryckt på defensiven av ett accelererat medielandskap där uppmärksamheten är en bristvara och passivt lyssnande är enklare att infoga i vardagen än aktiv, koncentrerad läsning.
Det är en verklig förlust, om den sker. Det koncentrerade läsandets speciella egenskaper – förmågan att hålla kvar en komplex tanke, att bygga inre bilder utan yttre vägledning, att befinna sig i ett slags konstruktivt ensamskap med en text – är inte bara estetiska utan kognitiva och kanske till och med demokratiska. En befolkning som kan läsa djupt och kritiskt är mer motståndskraftig mot desinformation, mer kapabel till eftertanke, mer rustad för de komplexa samtalen som ett demokratiskt samhälle kräver.
Och när nästa generation barn sitter i baksätet – med trådlösa hörlurar och en strömningtjänst istället för en kassett – och låter en röst berätta dem in i en annan värld, så gör de exakt samma sak som de barn som kom före dem. De läser. De lyssnar. De lever.
from
wystswolf

Let us warm one another.
Your heart lights in me the glow of life. How fierce the fire my tongue sets in you. Let us start the wildfire of our longing. And rise and fall in one another’s embrace.
Ember to flame. Wind to torrent.
When the heat cools, what will we have wrought? But the greatest love story we have ever seen. I in you, and you in me. Books and moments and music and quiet contemplation. Great art, monuments to love... and some woe. And from us, great nations and worlds,
A universe begun with a spark in our eyes.
#poetry #wyst #love
from
💚
Our Father Who art in heaven Hallowed be Thy name Thy Kingdom come Thy will be done on Earth as it is in heaven Give us this day our daily Bread And forgive us our trespasses As we forgive those who trespass against us And lead us not into temptation But deliver us from evil
Amen
Jesus is Lord! Come Lord Jesus!
Come Lord Jesus! Christ is Lord!
from
💚
Three-Passenger Ship
And to our Atlas, as hers To the best of dawn, and the sea Floes of fish to coral Evidence be on the climb And substance heard, in prayer By particular way, honesty then Parchments of bread and maple Perhaps out of season- And Victory knew The edifice of days- back in tow And in her revenge, a catapult by the Maine Prodigy asleep But staying in Fortune This be the chill In beautiful air, to the distance with planes As they go Westward To a place of springing sea With other washmelt To the time, bless this ground And in the sympathy gait There was no noise to abate And vlad was sick Leeward May And had a plan in hand To announce a sub to a statue Nuclear ocean, the clear death of Holland Fearing the nights of other Crosses And on simple days, a church by a curb Setting lights upon servience Carroe few but this mist- And Audubon carry Perfumes of muster and the sick This is vlad’s place, they heard Digital and Troy Captive to all-hold In verdance by the Maine Happening know In the isles- and the end of the World Places by dawn And dealing there- to be gone.
Escuché tus canciones. No puedo decir que me conmovieron, pero sí que me parecieron diferentes. Eres un músico, quizás no maravilloso, pero sí especial. Tus letras son interesantes, pero sinceramente no puedo decir más, porque no las entiendo.
No sé por qué los jóvenes desperdician sus habilidades y talentos haciendo cosas raras. Sí, esa es la cuestión, cosas extrañas. Como quien dice, salidos de las pautas que han sido tan complejas de establecer. Imagina lo que costó a la sociedad aceptar el rock. Y cuando ya sus normas fueron adoptadas y hasta apreciadas, a unos jóvenes les dió por hacer cosas raras, por ejemplo el funk.
Imagínate lo de hoy. A dónde vamos a parar. Ya no se necesitan instrumentos. La música se hace pulsando unos botones.
Por eso me ha sorprendido gratamente tu disco. Todavía usas instrumentos. Todavía cantas con tu voz. Te felicito, eres un joven increíble. Y valiente: la crítica te va a despedazar.
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Aunque yo le digo a todos que mi cabaña es espaciosa, en realidad este tema forma parte de mis habituales fantasías. No es pequeña comparada con la que asigné a los duendes, si bien -proporcionalmente- la de ellos es más espaciosa.
Soy Santa Claus y a tí te conozco. Ya sabes que en Navidad no hay tiempo para presentaciones. Ahora puedo hacerlo porque estamos en marzo y te has sentado a mi lado con esa enorme jarra de cerveza. Yo llevo tres y estoy como nuevo.
-¿Tú eres de verdad Santa Claus? -¿Quién más, si no? Mírame. -Pero estás más delgado. -No te dejes llevar por las apariencias. Camarero, una más y la cuenta que ya es hora que algo pague mi amiguito. -Con gusto, y gracias por tantos detalles. Pero dime, ¿cuántos Santa Claus hay? -Yo qué sé. Nunca me había puesto a pensar en eso. -Pero es un hecho. -Sí, pero qué más da. Yo fui el que te tocó, y por eso te he reconocido. -¡Papá!
Debido a una pésima interpretación de ciertas filosofías orientales, estar aquí y ahora se encuentra sobrevalorado. Los mismos apóstoles de estos asuntos elogian a los visionarios como Julio Verne. Son capaces de hablar semanas enteras sobre lo magnífico que es tener un comportamiento virtuoso acumulando méritos para el mañana, meditar sobre el acontecimiento futuro de la muerte para observar lo transitorio de esta vida, y cuando explican la causalidad hablan del presente y del futuro como construidos con los ladrillos de las acciones que van quedando atrás.
Yo pienso que examinar el pasado puede ser fuente de lecciones que nos conducen a actuar de un modo más inteligente. Y considerar el futuro nos permite prever cuándo nuestros actos nos pueden encaminar al desastre.
Estar aquí y ahora puede ser magnífico. Vivir el presente es lo lógico en muchos sentidos pues podemos concentrar nuestra energía en lo que hacemos. Nos evita recordar episodios tristes del ayer que nos llevan a la depresión, o anticipar calamidades que el futuro nos puede deparar, con lo angustioso que eso resulta. Pero también puede hacernos estúpidos, porque hay otros sitios y otros tiempos que nos pueden dar algunas ideas para vivir mejor, incluso para imaginar de un modo creativo y placentero.
El aquí y el ahora no son buenos ni malos en sí mismos. Lo serán en función de lo que hagamos. Aquí y ahora puedo causar un daño, aquí y ahora puedo plantar un árbol.
Asunto diferente es pensar en el presente como un instante eterno. Uno puede pensar lo que quiera, pero si te comes una manzana, cuando la termines será simplemente historia.