If I knew anything about being black in America it was that nothing was guaranteed, you couldn’t count on a thing, and all that was certain for most of us was a black death. In my mind, a black death was a slow death, the accumulation of insults, injuries, neglect, second-rate health care, high blood pressure and stress, no time for self-care, no time to sigh, and in the end, the inevitable, the erasing of memory. – Rachel Kaadzi Ghansah in The Fire This Time A New Generation Speaks about Race
‘amygdala hijack’ – The constant exposure to news that puts a person in fear puts the brain in a continuous state of dysregulation, which makes it hard to get from a threatening point A to some more safe point B in the future.
Bellwether – named for the wether, or castrated sheep, fitted with a bell to indicate where the flock was going.
“quiet quitting” – The practice of doing no more work than one is contractually obliged to do, especially in order to spend more time on personal activities; the practice of doing little or no work while being present at one’s place of employment. Workers only do the job that they’re being paid to do, without taking on any extra duties, or participating in extracurriculars at work. The term suggests a norm where people do more work than they’re paid for. Racialized women bear the brunt of this extra labor, with studies showing that women of color do more office “housework” and have less access to “glamour work” (ie work that gets you noticed by higher-ups, and can lead to your next promotion) than white men do. Just doing the work that you’re paid for should be the standard, not an act of mutiny.
Tang ping – lying flat: living a low-desire life. It is a “resistance movement” against the “cycle of horror” of high-pressure schools and endless-hours jobs.
When I speak, I don't speak as a Democrat or a Republican. I speak as a victim of America's so called democracy.
You and I have never seen democracy. All we've seen is hypocrisy. I’m not standing here speaking to you as an American, or a patriot, or a flag-saluter or a flag-waver – no, not I.
I’m speaking as a victim of this American system. And I see America through the eyes of the victim. I don’t see any American dream. I see an American nightmare.
Black victims of Americanism are waking up and they're gaining a new political consciousness.
- Malcolm X
Authentication is the process of verifying your credentials, and that you’re allowed to access a system.
Authorization involves verifying what you’re allowed to do within that system.
“Culture refers to the learned, socially acquired traditions of thought and behavior found in human societies. It is a socially acquire lifestyle that includes patterned, repetitive ways of thinking, feeling, and acting.” –Marvin Harris and Orna Johnson 2003
Quotidian – occurring every day: belonging to each day : commonplace, ordinary quotidian drabness.
…identity is comprised of our values, experiences, histories, memories, relationships, and the roles we carry. It is influenced by so much.
Tiffany Hammond
Afrofuturism is a cultural aesthetic, and philosophy of science and history that explores the intersection of the African diaspora culture with science and technology.
You know about cold opens if you’ve ever watched Saturday Night Live or The Office. At its best, the cold open is both entertaining and a non sequitur. On SNL, it takes place before the guest host comes out; similarly on The Office, it often doesn’t connect to the larger story. I try to operate my class the same way: The cold open is nothing more than a fun conversation starter. After the conversation dies down—and it might last 5 seconds or 50—I move on to the attendance question portion of my opening. At its best, the attendance question connects to the cold open. It lets me share something about myself and opens the door for my students to share a little bit with me.
Inimical – tending to obstruct or harm; unfriendly; hostile.
Permacrisis: An extended period of instability and insecurity, especially one resulting from a series of catastrophic events.
Carolean: Of or relating to Charles III of Great Britain and Northern Ireland or his reign.
Kyiv: The capital of Ukraine, on the Dnipro River.
Lawfare: The strategic use of legal proceedings to intimidate or hinder an opponent.
Partygate: A political scandal over social gatherings held in British government offices during 2020 and 2021 in defiance of the public health restrictions that prevailed at the time.
Splooting: The act of lying flat on the stomach with the legs stretched out.
Sportswashing: The sponsorship or promotion of sporting events in order to enhance a tarnished reputation or distract attention from a controversial activity.
Vibe shift: A significant change in a prevailing cultural atmosphere or trend.
Warm bank: A heated building where people who cannot afford to heat their own homes may go.
Ikigai (生き甲斐, lit. ’a reason for being’) is a Japanese concept referring to something that gives a person a sense of purpose, a reason for living.
Timeboxing – Give each task on your to-do list an allotted amount of time, schedule it on your calendar and continue working until time is up. Make sure to block out any distractions while you’re working. Proactively scheduling blocks of time on your calendar to focus — and breaks throughout the day to restore your ability to focus — is “really critical” for productivity.
Relentless Robin 
well done.