For open minds
Music blasts from the radio and road ahead is clear. Sun shines, and the landscape glistens with snow.
That’s when the people inside the car saw the wolves.
In Pure Spirit
Have you ever been that close to such majestic hunters in the wild?
Right now, the role of masks in preventing the COVID-19 (coronavirus) spread is in question. Two things are known to be accurate; masks help stop infected people from passing the virus on and medical professionals working in the thick of it benefit from masks, as do their patients.
What about the rest of us? Do we cut the risk of infection by wearing a mask? That’s not clear. One of the known problems with members of the general public wearing masks is that, statistically, we’re rubbish at it.
People put their masks down, get them contaminated from the dirty surface and then strap the infection onto their face. Untrained people also take their masks off in such a way as to transfer the virus to their hands and then catch the disease.
This video is from University of Minnesota Health. It was made a year ago; in other words, this is a purely instructional video that was made and published without anyone trying to make money off the coronavirus scare.
Hindsight is key, isn’t it? Don’t touch the front of the mask and wash your hands afterwards!
In Pure Spirit
Are you wearing masks during the COVID-19 pandemic? Are you planning on buying a stash of masks afterwards to keep in the house?
The 2nd of April is World Autism Day. As you’d expect, the NHS has a helpful site on autism where you can read more, in summary, autism isn’t a ‘condition’ that needs to be cured.
Autism does mean having a brain that works differently to other people, and some people with autism may need extra help in some areas.
Yvon Roy is a Canadian author and illustrator. His son was diagnosed with autism and the sometimes hilarious, sometimes sad family struggles that followed are retold in Little Victories. Little Victories, which will soon be published in English for the first time, recounts how Roy gradually got his son used to hugs, or that there might be a small amount of dust in the bath and the fact that life does not always follow a routine.
Yvon Roy has worked on several children’s stories, won Best Biography Award from the Disability Fund and Society, received the INSPIREO High School Students Award for most inspiring youth book and the Literary Award for Citizenship from the Maine Teachers’ League.
In Pure Spirit has permission from Titan Comics and Statix Press to share some internal panels from the comic book.
Little Victories
In Pure Spirit
Does autism touch your life?
You can pre-order Little Victories on Amazon.
Magical doors that can transport you to places of wonder have been part of our collective imagination of generations.
Doors have a more significant meaning during the Covid-19 pandemic which currently has much of the world in quarantine and stuck behind closed doors. Those doors are keeping us safe, but they’re also keeping us trapped even if its the invisible virus we should really blame.
Climadoor usually sells real doors. This week, though, given we’re all trapped, the focus is on magical mystery doors.
There’s a virtual tour to experience.
If you’re brave enough to start the tour, then you might find yourself at the door to King’s Landing in Game of Thrones, outside Monica’s Apartment in Friends or even Star Wars’ Mos Eisely.
There’s the spooky door of Hawkins Middle School from Stranger Things, the iconic Baker Street door from Sherlock and – nature always finds a way – Jurassic Park.
In Pure Spirit
If you could step through any virtual door and tour any virtual land, what would it be?
Sadly, there is plenty of false and misleading information on the internet about the coronavirus (Covid-19).
While there is plenty of accurate information too much of it is easier dumbed down too much or written for a medically trained audience.
The good news is that Kurzgesagt – In a Nutshell is a trusted channel on YouTube that works hard to explain complex topics with easy to follow, but intelligent videos.
This video explains the science of Covid-19 nicely and clearly, while also treating the audience as an intelligent one.
In Pure Spirit
What tips do you have to make self-isolation and social distancing easier for you?
A wonderful comic from Goofy God Comics, who can also follow on Instagram.
A guy is calling out for Mother Gaia, and he’s worried because he thinks he cocked up. Gaia reassures him that should never get mad, no matter what he’s done.
The problem? He killed all the bees.
In Pure Spirit
Do you think governments around the world are doing enough to investigate the mysterious and devastating reduction in bee numbers?
March the 8th is International Women’s Day. Yes, there’s an International Men’s Day too.
Did you know that brand mascot as twice as likely to be male than female?
It’s a marketing stunt, but I think it’s a nice one, as kitchen appliance brand CDA tried to fix this. Without simply changing colours to pink or adding ribbons and bows, CDA worked with an illustrator to re-imagine some iconic brand mascots as female ones.
In Pure Spirit
How successful do you think CDA have been? I think they’ve done pretty well, but if you disagree there are the comments below to say so.
Which brand mascot do you think would be better as a woman?
LastTissue is the latest idea from a Danish company trying to save the world. We chop through millions of trees and pollute millions of gallons of water just for yucky disposable tissues.
Is there a better way?
[Back this Campaign]Every year 8,000,000 trees are felled just for American sneezes alone. That kills of habitat and therefore wildlife. At the same time, trees are no longer there to soak up the carbon emissions that are destroying the atmosphere.
The company behind LastTissue is LastObject, and they have a mission.
In Pure Spirit
Is LastTissue a good idea, or is it just a yucky gimmick?
Russian photographer Akunohato has a brilliant neo-pagan cosplay calendar ready for 2019. It’s not just neo. It’s neon.
Like what you see? You can pick up the Neon Witches over at Etsy.
In Pure Spirit
Which alternative 2019 calendar do you recommend?
You’ll be able to see Rachael Talibart’s beautiful photography in person at the Sohn Fine Art Gallery in Lenox, Massachusetts in the States from 7th of September through to 11th November.
The English photographer uses fast shutter speeds to freeze the water into shape, creating as a sculpture might clay and in doing so manages to, somehow, reveal faces in the waves.
Talibart is said to be inspired, in part, by Homer’s Odyssey and the stories of sea monsters there. Need to see more? Pop over to her website and check out her thoughtful range.
In Pure Spirit
Do you see the faces in the waves too?
Via This is Colossal.
