For generations, “The Talk” has been a mainstay in African American families. At some point, Black children all get warnings from elders about how to avoid – and survive – police encounters. It’s a rite that cuts across region, socioeconomic status and profession – even for members of law enforcement.

Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: Last Monday, the Trump administration announced changes to the student visa program that would require international students at universities to take at least one in-person class this fall. That means students have to physically be on campus or leave the U.S. The changes could jeopardize the status of hundreds of thousands of students, so we've called on Dwayne McCay for more perspective on this. He is the president of the Florida Institute of Technology, known as Florida Tech. International students make up about a third of the student body there, and he's with us now to tell us his thoughts about this. President McCay, welcome. Thank you for joining us. DWAYNE MCCAY: Oh, I'm very happy to, Michel. Thank you. MARTIN: Would you just mind telling us a bit more about your student body? We said about a third are international. You know, where do they come from? And what do they study? MCCAY: Well, you know, we're a technological

Copyright 2020 KJZZ. To see more, visit KJZZ . STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: Hospitals in Arizona are reaching capacity. Coronavirus infections there continue to rise. And the governor, who once pushed ahead with reopening, has now delayed the start of school. Is that enough? From our member station KJZZ, Rocio Hernandez reports. ROCIO HERNANDEZ, BYLINE: Arizona students are some of the first in the nation to go back to school. Some districts opened their doors as early as end of July. But that won't be the case this year. In June, Arizona Governor Doug Ducey issued an executive order pushing back the reopening of brick-and-mortar schools. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) DOUG DUCEY: At this point in time, we are going to delay the first day of school till August 17. HERNANDEZ: That's too soon, says teacher Stacy Brosius at Deer Valley Unified School District in Phoenix. STACY BROSIUS: I don't want to be the teacher that gets COVID and have my third-graders have to attend my funeral. But I

On Monday, Los Angeles and San Diego public schools announced they will be starting the school year remote-only in August as coronavirus cases rise in Southern California. "The skyrocketing infection rates of the past few weeks make it clear the pandemic is not under control," a joint statement said. On Sunday, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health reported 3,322 new cases of COVID-19 and 18 deaths. Local health department data show a rebound in hospitalizations compared with May. Los Angeles Unified School District did not detail when, or under what conditions, schools might be able to open for in-person learning, even on a part-time or staggered schedule. San Diego Unified School District promised a " public assessment " by Aug. 10 of how soon they might return to physical classes. The Los Angeles system is the nation's second-largest school district, and the decisions together affect more than 700,000 students and their families. They come amid pressure from the federal

Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit NOEL KING, HOST: There's a hearing today that is crucial for hundreds of thousands of international students. It's about a rule that ICE announced. If a college is doing online learning only in the fall, international students will have their visas revoked. ICE says if you're doing school online, you don't need to be in the U.S. to do it. So now, some schools are suing ICE over this rule. NPR education reporter Elissa Nadworny is covering this. Good morning, Elissa. ELISSA NADWORNY, BYLINE: Good morning, Noel. KING: So explain what's happening here. What did ICE do and say, exactly? NADWORNY: So last week, ICE issued guidance that said if schools were all online because of the pandemic, their students couldn't stay in the U.S. You know, this has actually always been the case. There's always an in-person requirement in order to get a visa to come to the U.S. But last spring, when pretty much every school went virtual, ICE had allowed for

Did a mega drought topple empires 4,200 years ago? is an article by Michael Marshall in Nature [archive link] about the debate around the 4.2-Kiloyear Event, which was possibly a major shift in global climate patterns that started around 2200 BCE. The effects were especially stark in the Fertile Crescent, where social complexity decreased markedly, empires fell, and cities were abandoned, as recounted in the video essay The First Bronze Age Collapse and the Intermediate Bronze Age. If you want more granular detail, best known archaeological site for this period has a good website with lots of information, The Tell Leilan Project.

I'm a 40F who upon hearing the election results this week, felt a surge a gratitude about being a spinster. I figure there has to be articles, books, or some type of literature made by fellow spinsters throughout history about their experiences.

I'm a 40F who upon hearing the election results this week, felt a surge a gratitude about having no kids or a male partner. I of course have been on this path for years, mostly due to my total disinterest in dating and or sex. (I didn't realize I was a OG member of the 4B Movement.)
The choice to forego the things that many women consider their purpose in life does make you feel like the weird one.
I figure there has to be articles, books, or some type of literature made by fellow spinsters throughout history about their experiences. It find it a 95 percent positive experience, but I'd also be curious if these ladies have also written about the drawbacks (money troubles, not being anyone's person) as well.
I'd be curious how the stigma played out then as it does now, I figure it was worse then due to not being able to get good jobs, but I know in some places, these women served as elderly caretakers. I look forward to learning more.

A government contractor in Georgia has been charged in federal court with leaking a classified report containing top-secret information to a news organization. The Department of Justice announced Monday prosecutors charged 25-year-old Reality Leigh Winner of Augusta with mailing copies of classified documents to a reporter.

A computer server crucial to a lawsuit against Georgia election officials was quietly wiped clean by its custodians just after the suit was filed, The Associated Press has learned.

Updated at 3:36 p.m. E.D.T. on December 4. President Trump may have been involved with a change to the Republican Party campaign platform last year that watered down support for U.S. assistance to Ukraine, according to new information from someone who was involved. Diana Denman, a Republican delegate who supported arming U.S. allies in Ukraine, has told people that Trump aide J.D. Gordon said at the Republican Convention in 2016 that Trump directed him to support weakening that position in the official platform. Ultimately, the softer position was adopted. Denman is scheduled to meet this week with the House and Senate Intelligence committees to discuss what she saw, said two sources familiar with the briefings. Investigators in Congress and elsewhere want to ask the San Antonio-area woman about how her proposal supporting Ukraine changed in the course of last year's convention. People familiar with the story described it to NPR. Robert N. Driscoll, a Washington-based lawyer for Denman

Legendary producer/engineer Ron Nevison whose credits include The Rolling Stones, The Who, Led Zeppelin, Kiss, Ozzy Osbourne, Bad Company, Barbra Streisand, Jefferson Starship, Chicago, Styx, Heart, Damn Yankees, Thin Lizzy, and more is seeking new artists or bands to produce, as well as songs for Upcoming Projects.

Note that most projects will require funding which will be discussed in detail if we move forward.

Pop-Up Music is seeking SAMBA - big loud street samba. Bring on the pandeiro, ago-go, cuica, apito, surdo and the party!

This opportunity is for an exclusive contract with a term - all submissions must be 100% owned by the writer/writers.

Let the party begin! We look forward to your submissions.

Thanks,
The Pop-Up Music Team

Publisher urgently seeking songs for film and television placement. All styles. No demos. No samples. Must control composition and master rights. If your song is selected you will be offered an exclusive publishing agreement. Please submit through Music Xray.

Expressive Artists is a music publishing company with an emphasis on film and television placement. In the past year we've placed hundreds of songs in feature films, major network TV shows including, "S.W.A.T.," "No Activity," "What We Do In The Shadows", documentaries, podcasts and apps. Two of our Music Xray artists songs are featured in the upcoming major motion picture, "The Comeback Trail," starring Robert De Niro, Morgan Freeman and Tommy Lee Jones.

Seeking instrumentals for all genres. We're not looking for wallpaper or bland outtakes, but top quality music that will cut it in commercials. Please note, YOU MUST control master and publishing to submit.

This opportunity is for an exclusive contract with a term - all submissions must be 100% owned by the writer/writers.

- Pop-Up Music Uk Limited

We at Pop-up Music are seeking new tracks within specific genres for an exciting new worldwide opportunity.

We need URGENTLY Brit Pop, Ballads (of all genres) Trip Hop, Ska (50's to 80's) Electro Swing, House, 80's 90's Dance, Disco (70's) Contemporary Pop with 80's influence, Funk, 1960's (Any original tracks from back in the day) and Lounge.

This opportunity is for an exclusive contract with a term - all submissions must be 100% owned by the writer/writers.

We look forward to your submission

Thanks in advance,
the Pop-up Music Team.

We at Pop-Up Music are seeking Electronic music in all genres. Ideally tracks that were created at the time and geographically genre specific. Late 80's Chicago House to contemporary Eletro Pop.

Ambient, Ambient dub, Breakbeat, Baltimore Club, IDM, House Music, Chicago House, Electro Swing, Bitpop (Video Game Music), Trap, 1980's Hip Hop - Break Dance, Electronic pop, Indie electronica, Dream Pop... and all the other forms of Electronic music - if it's good we'll take it!

This opportunity is for an exclusive contract with a term - all submissions must be 100% owned by the writer/writers.

The Pop-Up Music team looks forward to your submissions!

Many thanks,
The Pop-Up Music Team.

Label/Publisher is seeking songs for release, publishing, sync placement opportunities, and promotion. We have a proven record of placing songs with major networks and brands such as FOX, ABC, Roxy, Forever 21, Specialized, etc.

We are specifically seeking music from artists that have a timeless sound. The overall vibe of the label is one of honest music with warm vintage emotion. We are looking for Singer-Songwriter, Folk, Americana, Indie, and Alternative Country that evokes emotion. We lean toward a more melancholy sound so please no “fun” or overly “happy” songs. At the moment we are only seeking single unreleased songs by active artists or bands. By focusing on singles we can target specific markets when promoting and seeking sync placements. This also allows us to craft the labels’ “sound” while acting as a discovery vehicle for new and emerging artists.

Please DO NOT Submit more than one song. If I like what I hear I will dig around and find more of your material or contact you for additional music.

IMPORTANT: Artists must be willing to sign the master & publishing rights to the selected song over to the label and publisher. The songwriter/writers will retain 100% of the writing credit and will receive all royalties for their share. In addition, an advance will be paid to the writer/performer for the song in an amount to be determined. The advance then becomes a recoupable expense. After the advance is recouped, all income generated by the song will be split 50/50.

Our label is distributed by our digital aggregator, The Orchard, and releases will be available on every major retailer and streaming service including iTunes, Spotify, IHeartRadio, Amazon, YouTube, Google Music, rDio, Shazam, Flipagram, etc.

- Jason Currie / Dog Bites Wolf

Deal Type: Catalog Inclusion
Decision Maker: We are the final decision maker
Deal Structure: Exclusive
Compensation: $251 - $500
Song Quality: Rough Mixes, Fully mastered, Broadcast ready
Similar Sounding Artists: First Aid Kit, William Fitzsimmons, Gregory Alan Isakov, Nikki Lane, Molly Tuttle, Father John Misty

Our Clients are independent and multi platinum artist(s) Seeking high quality, energetic trap, pop, & R&B style beats for production placement on upcoming releases. We are looking for industry quality production to shop throughout our network, as well as to consider signing new talent for production management opportunity. We will provide you with feedback & rate your submissions!

: Please submit your best work. Songs will go through the review process and if selected you will receive negotiated compensation. We look forward to hearing what you have to offer. 
- The Administration

Deal Type: Producer / Production Management Decision Maker: We are the final decision makers Deal Structure: Negotiable Compensation: Negotiable Song Quality: Rough Mixes, Fully Mastered, Broadcast Ready Similar Sounding Artist: Future, Migos, The Weeknd, Drake, Ty Dolla Sign, 2Chainz, Gucci Mane, Tory Lanez, Chris Brown, Cardi B, Lil Baby

We need more Singer Songwriter material in our catalog. We are seeking intelligent storytelling backed with masterful instrumentation. Something along the sound of Elbow, Fink, Feist or Bon Iver would be perfect. Please DON'T SUBMIT UNFINISHED DEMOS. We accept only professionally recorded and fully mastered material.

We are proud to have a unique business model and an artist-friendly agreement. The music released on Filter Label is instantly included in our catalog for licensing placements which is sent out to top music supervisors and agents.

We have hundreds of songs placed in ad campaigns (McDonald's, Nike, Bank Millennium, Nestle, Philip Morris), TV series (The OA, Exatlon, CSI: Las Vegas, Nikita, Top Boy), films (Loneliness, Sex and Compassion, The Matrix Revisited, Cherie, Mission: Wolf), and on network television (CNN, MTV, Channel 5, National Geographic, NBA, UFC), etc.

- Emil Hadji Panzov / Filter Label

We are looking to add some cross-genre material to our catalog. We are hoping to find brave compositions combining two or more genres, like in the following examples:

- Jazz meets Hip-Hop
Guru ft. Donald Byrd - Loungin’
- Rock meets Electronica
The Prodigy & Tom Morello - One Man Army
- Classical meets Pop
Woodkid - Run Boy Run
- Electronica meets Classical
The Glitch Mob - Fortune Days

Please note that we are not looking for copies of the referenced tracks, they are listed only as great examples of combinations of two or more genres. Filter Label is notorious for discovering new talent and setting new music trends, so please submit your best material and surprise us with what could be the next big thing. Songs with uncleared samples WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED. Please submit only professionally recorded and mastered songs.

We are proud to have a unique business model and an artist-friendly agreement. The music released on Filter Label is instantly included in our catalog for licensing placements which is sent out to top music supervisors and agents.

The songs by our talented artists can be heard in The OA, Exatlon, The Matrix Revisited, CSI, Nikita, on ads for McDonald's, Nike, Philip Morris, Nestle Wagner, Bank Millennium, in shows on MTV, CNN, Nat Geo, NBC, Al Jazeera, Esquire, Channel 4 and almost every major TV network in the world.

Brainstorming session for my brother please! Stay-at-home dad for most of the last 15 years has launched the teen and now hopes to find something rewarding that he can do when ADHD translates to everything taking him 5x longer (but is near perfection once it's done). Four-year business degree. Veteran. Some success a long time ago in sales, but never loved the work. Enjoyed a couple of years in tech recruiting because more than anything it seemed he found great satisfaction in helping his clients find just the right match. Otherwise, youth soccer coaching led to becoming a ref at the collegiate level. Got a Salesforce Admin cert but never used it. Learned a ton as the parent of an elite athlete about the realm of sports marketing and sponsorships and contracts and really gets into it.

Has a good head for businessy things and building relationships. He likes helping people, using his brain and problem solving. Very kind and personable guy, logical head, communicates well, a smart and sensitive dude. I think he'd be great in business strategy, maybe athletics administration. But he has so little recent work experience and is pushing 60.

The ADHD means that composing the perfect 20-min business communication can take two hours. Obv this does not translate well to successful work and can make it stressful. I think he takes meds and experiences limited benefit. His happy place is spending hours reading the paper and going down rabbitholes of news analysis.

Given his age and the ADHD time suck problem, what might be out there for him? Even part time? He's healthy, he can travel, he's near a major metro area.

I deleted a whole paragraph of TMI for context, and have shortened that to: His partner makes good money, so this is more about him finding rewarding productive work that he can do to augment the household income.

Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit SARAH MCCAMMON, HOST: California's two largest school districts, Los Angeles and San Diego, both said yesterday that students will not be headed back to school campuses this fall. Instead, classes will be online. But school board leaders in Orange County, which sits between LA and San Diego, have decided the opposite. Last night, the Orange County Board of Education voted to approve recommendations that school campuses reopen in the fall without masks or social distancing. Lisa Sparks is one of the board members who voted in favor of those guidelines, and she joins me now. Welcome, Lisa. LISA SPARKS: Thank you. MCCAMMON: And we should note that your recommendations are not binding recommendations, but they are what your board is advising. They say that masks may be harmful to students and that social distancing causes, quote, "child harm." How so? SPARKS: I think that the data is not completely conclusive. And that is the main point of all of this

Copyright 2020 Georgia Public Broadcasting. To see more, visit Georgia Public Broadcasting .

The University of Michigan is forging ahead and working towards being a leader in generative artificial intelligence with its U-M-GPT program. As it does, there are environmental concerns to be addressed. The initiative is part of Michigan’s broader effort to integrate AI into its academic and administrative infrastructure, enhancing learning, teaching, and research. But, AI consumes a great deal of energy. WEMU's David Fair spoke with the Vice President for Information Technology and Chief Information Officer at U-M, Dr. Ravi Pendse, about how U-M is dealing with the environmental ramifications of AI.

Atlanta may see a first: Tonight thousands of people may come to a candlelight vigil for a grocery store. "Murder Kroger" as it's known closes its door tomorrow, October 28 after serving Ponce de Leon Avenue for three decades. GPB's Stephen Fowler was live at "Murder Kroger" in the shadow of Ponce City Market. Rickey Bevington: So let's begin with why many Atlantans call this supermarket "Murder Kroger." Stephen Fowler: Murder Kroger. It's been the subject of articles, songs, and even its own Wikipedia page. In 1991 a woman was shot and killed in the parking lot. The AJC then called it "Scary Kroger," but eventually it morphed into "Murder" instead. In 2002 someone found a dead body in the parking lot. Most recently a man was shot outside the building in 2015 where he later died. So it's not exactly a death trap to go buy some sugar, but like Atlanta traffic and anything named Peachtree, the name stuck. A few years ago the murder Kroger got a makeover and officials tried to get the

The Safe Harbor Act is one of the four amendments Georgians will be voting on in next Tuesday's election. If it passes, the state will impose additional fees on those convicted of certain sex trafficking crimes, as well as adult entertainment establishments. That money will fund treatment and resources for victims of child sex trafficking.

In 2016, at only 28-years-old, pianist John Burke has already accomplished the dream of a lifetime for many musicians -- to be nominated for a Grammy Award. It's for his newest album " Orogen ," a breathtaking journey through what he describes as the creation of mountains.

Several hundred climate scientists and public health professionals descended on the Carter Center in Atlanta today. It was for a climate and health conference organized by former Vice President Al Gore.

Tupac Shakur is one of the most famous rappers in history. Until his murder in 1996 at the age of 25, Shakur was a figurehead of the West Coast rap scene. So Tupac Shakur’s connection to Georgia might surprise you.

Here's a seemingly simple question: Can musicians in quarantine play music together over an Internet connection? We've migrated birthday parties, happy hours and church services to video calls these days, so couldn't we do the same with band practice? Across ubiquitous video conferencing tools like Zoom, FaceTime and Skype, it takes time for audio data to travel from person to person. That small delay, called latency, is mostly tolerable in conversation — save for a few overlapping stutters — but when it comes to playing music online with any kind of rhythmic integrity, latency quickly becomes a total dealbreaker. This video follows pianist and composer Dan Tepfer down the rabbit hole. Tepfer often occupies the intersection of music and innovative technology (just check out his Tiny Desk concert ), and by proxy has served his fellow musicians as a tech support line of sorts. A public inquiry on Twitter led him to jazz trombonist Michael Dessen, also a researcher at the University of

Copyright 2020 KUNC. To see more, visit KUNC . MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: As cities across the country consider diverting police department dollars into social programs, some are looking at summer jobs for low-income youth. Through these summer youth employment programs, young people can make some money, learn new skills and stay productive. From member station KUNC in northern Colorado, Leigh Paterson reports. LEIGH PATERSON, BYLINE: Last month, New York slashed police spending but did fund its massive summer youth employment program. Cincinnati shifted a million dollars out of its police budget to expand youth employment. Los Angeles did something similar to its $1.8 billion police budget. Here's LA city council member Curren Price. CURREN PRICE: Well, my motion shifted $150 million from the police department budget. PATERSON: Ten million of that will go to the city's summer youth employment program. He said this reallocation is a direct response to recent protests against police violence.

Copyright 2020 Northern Public Radio. To see more, visit Northern Public Radio . NOEL KING, HOST: All right. Here's a story about unexpected consequences. People are buying fewer lottery tickets because of the pandemic, which is bad for convenience stores and gas stations. But it also means hundreds of millions fewer dollars for school funding. Peter Medlin of member station WNIJ in DeKalb, Ill., explains what's going on. PETER MEDLIN, BYLINE: Last year, the Illinois Lottery set records sales. Proceeds from Powerball tickets to scratch-offs contributed $731 million to public education. That translates to more than 10% of the state's funding for school districts. But the receipts don't look nearly as good this year. With more strict reopening guidelines, sales have plummeted. And revenue has nosedived nearly $90 million during the pandemic. Victor Matheson teaches economics at the College of the Holy Cross in Massachusetts, where he researches sports and the lottery. VICTOR MATHESON: So

Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

What does the Bible really teach about angels? In this eye-opening article about the spiritual realm, Pastor Doug reveals amazing facts about these heavenly messengers, facts that will inspire you about God’s love and that will help you avoid falling into dangerous spiritual traps.

MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST: It is time to bring home U.S. troops from Syria. That was a tweet from the president this morning. It made many people think the president was acting on his longstanding goal of getting U.S. forces out of long-running wars in the Middle East. He also appeared to be clearing the way for Turkey to cross the border into northern Syria. But what has followed today has been confusion and criticism of the president, followed by more tweets from Trump, including one in which he threatened to destroy the economy of Turkey. NPR national security correspondent Greg Myre is here. Hi, Greg. GREG MYRE, BYLINE: Hey, Mary Louise. KELLY: It feels like it might be a good idea to just back us up 24 hours or so. We know that President Trump had a phone call with President Erdogan of Turkey, and then all this unspooled from there. What happened? MYRE: Right. Well, these presidential phone calls with foreign leaders continue to be highly problematic. Trump spoke with the Turkish

The Trump administration has proposed a new rule governing the wages of tipped employees, after an earlier effort sparked a backlash from waitstaff, bartenders and other workers. The proposed rule from the Labor Department would allow employers to require more widespread sharing of tips with "back of the house" coworkers, such as cooks and dishwashers. The rule makes clear, however, that employers cannot pocket those tips or use them to reward managers and supervisors. The rule would also give employers more flexibility in assigning non-tipped tasks to workers who rely on gratuities for a big part of their income. The proposal was cheered by the restaurant industry. But workers' advocates and some lawmakers say they still have some concerns. "This rule establishes once and for all an appropriate balance, and ends arbitrary and capricious regulations," said Angelo Amador, regulatory counsel for the National Restaurant Association. "We commend the U.S. Department of Labor for providing

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST: A bipartisan delegation of Congresspeople is just back from Ukraine. It was a trip designed to strengthen the U.S.-Ukraine alliance, and it was planned before news broke of the whistleblower complaint against President Trump involving that same country. Congressman John Garamendi led the delegation as a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee. And the Democrat from California joins us now. Welcome, Congressman. JOHN GARAMENDI: Good to be with you. SHAPIRO: One central question in the impeachment inquiry is whether President Trump demanded help investigating a political rival in exchange for U.S. aid to Ukraine. And I know that aid was a central topic on your trip, so what did you learn about Ukraine's reliance on American assistance? GARAMENDI: Well, first of all, Ukraine is an extraordinary country. These citizens of that country are determined to be independent. They have been fighting a war against Russia for the last five years. They've lost 13- to 14

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST: A bipartisan delegation of Congresspeople is just back from Ukraine. It was a trip designed to strengthen the U.S.-Ukraine alliance, and it was planned before news broke of the whistleblower complaint against President Trump involving that same country. Congressman John Garamendi led the delegation as a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee. And the Democrat from California joins us now. Welcome, Congressman. JOHN GARAMENDI: Good to be with you. SHAPIRO: One central question in the impeachment inquiry is whether President Trump demanded help investigating a political rival in exchange for U.S. aid to Ukraine. And I know that aid was a central topic on your trip, so what did you learn about Ukraine's reliance on American assistance? GARAMENDI: Well, first of all, Ukraine is an extraordinary country. These citizens of that country are determined to be independent. They have been fighting a war against Russia for the last five years. They've lost 13- to 14

Life is a road. Jesus said you are either on the broad way to destruction or the narrow road to life.

here through the 24^th while moving randomly across the surface of europe. the last roll of the dice got me to sweden during midsommar, so that's pretty cool

In this post Shepherd suggested a book mark exchange and mine arrived today. Thanks to Shepherd for both idea and execution and to everyone who sent in bookmarks. I got a lovely selection, including a library one you can use to track your reading (I mean, I use StoryGraph, but more manual methods are also good) and 3 bookmarks for non Anglophone bookshops. If other people taking part could check in, that would be lovely.

It's the 8th MeFi Holiday Card Exchange!

Sign ups are open, and will close approximately 8am EST 11/17. I hope to have assignments out by end of day EST 11/19 - if you haven't gotten yours by end of day Friday 11/22, please check your spam/junk and contact me. This is our eighth year of the card exchange. We have 5, 10, and up to 20 options available. You can choose US only, send anywhere (international) or Europe only (if there are enough signups for this). Most of the people participating are in the US and Canada, so if you sign up for international, you will mainly get those addresses. I try to spread them out. If you're in Europe, and want a limited number of US addresses, just let me know in the notes section - I likely won't be able to give you 20 non-US/Canadian addresses, but I will do my best! (same if you'd rather mostly have US and Canadian addresses. I will do my best with specific requests.) Other answers to commonly asked questions- - There isn't a specific timeline on when you need to have your cards sent out by, just whenever you can. - If something happens and you can't send out your cards after all, send me a message, and I will happily send some for you! - Any type of card is fine - store-bought, handmade, postcards, etc. - While this is a holiday card exchange, and most people do send holiday themed cards, I have received all sorts of cards, so do what makes you happy! - Number of card options are 5, 10, and up to 20. If you are open to more than 10, but not 20, you can add that to the notes. Sometimes the sorting works out that I have some odd numbers. Also, if you choose up to 20, it is possible that you will have a duplicate (because you may be in two lists of 10) - so it may not work out perfectly evenly (I do my best to avoid this!). If you don't have the bandwidth to do the card exchange, but you'd like to get a holiday card anyway, I am happy to send one - just memail me your info! (Seriously - Costco had holiday stamps, and I said "oh, I'll take two!" and phew, I have a lot of stamps now!) I do have the form set up so that it sends a confirmation with a summary of what you've chosen - this means that it has to collect your email. If you don't want to let it do that, you're welcome to memail me, and I will add you to the spreadsheet. I'll try to check into this thread daily, but if you have an urgent question, please memail me. This is (still) truly one of my favorite things all year, so thank you for participating! Sign up form is here!

Updated at 5 p.m. ET Employers added a record 4.8 million jobs last month, as the U.S. economy continued to slowly bounce back from a deep and painful coronavirus recession. The unemployment rate dipped to 11.1%. Job growth accelerated from May, when revised figures show employers added 2.7 million jobs. Loading... "Our economy is roaring back," President Trump told reporters in the White House briefing room. "It's coming back extremely strong." What's odd this time is that the closely-watched monthly jobs report offers a snapshot of the economy that was already somewhat out of date as soon as it was issued. The Labor Department report reflects conditions from the middle of June. The COVID-19 outbreak has since been accelerating in many states , which could put the brakes on the nascent economic recovery. Investors welcomed the positive jobs news. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 92 points while the Nasdaq composite index hit a new, record high. "This is not just luck, what's

In which I write about Islam, spirituality, my Hajj pilgrimage in the summer of 2024, living as a USian in southern Spain, and change both voluntary and unwilled.

Example of what I write about: I just added a post about how fear of Satan, which was encouraged by the Catholic church and pop culture, scared me off from belief in ANYTHING Unseen (including God) for decades.

[Link

Alternative indie artist Neito Han released his first fully original bilingual song, “Good Luck, Stranger,” on Friday. This is Nathan Sharp’s second overall release under this new moniker after seemingly…

NYC based and UK born folk singer-songwriter Joe Holt shares "Wanting More", the first taste of his upcoming highly anticipated album I Love You, Say It Back. The artist collaborated…

Minneapolis-based singer/composer Nona Invie unveils gentle offering “Forget My Name,” from forthcoming LP Self-soothing. Giving us a glimpse of the health and cathartic project, the new single is built on…

Even though they can’t vote, folks in California prisons will still be affected by this year's election. Uncuffed goes into San Quentin for this special elections episode.

Life is a road. Jesus said you are either on the broad way to destruction or the narrow road to life.

John was overwhelmed by shame. He couldn’t shake his addictions and felt alone and helpless. Your gifts lead the broken into the healing arms of our loving heavenly Father. Thank you for sharing!