The Wall

I know some friends who studied remotely in China this semester struggled to keep up with classes,assignments, and school events. One of them even decided to pause study for a year due to academic difficulties. As an international student, I already struggled in academics because English is not my native language. I worried whether I will be finish the courseworks on time next semester. Would you give me some advice as to how I can learn best remotely?

I’m sorry your friends had such difficulty! It is not easy to be an international student. And the time difference even makes things harder but you can do it. You should always let your professors know if you’re unable to submit your assignments on time. You should also feel free to set up Zoom meetings with them. Most American professors are very flexible, and they may not be aware until you tell them how challenging it is to take a course remotely from China. Also, if you need to use library resources and are having difficulty accessing materials, please contact the library! My library friends will do their best to help. This is the hardest part: whenever you can, get as much rest as possible. It sounds undoable but it is possible. Best of luck!

Not much for me. Two thoughts on loving ourselves and others. 1) There will be other holidays, but we all only have one family. Take COVID seriously. 2) Take care of your physical self. Eat well, try and get some sleep, stay cozy.

This was not a particularly close election (compare: bit.ly/bc-270), it just looked that way due to the slow announcement of results because of all the mail ballots. State law on recounts is different for each state, and each campaign can request one, but it’s very unlikely to change the outcome. Example: Georgia just finished its hand recount and it moved some votes but not nearly enough to change the outcome: bit.ly/bc-ga. Recounts usually change hundreds of votes, and Biden’s lead is tens or hundreds of thousands in the disputed states.

I am totally grooving on my dual existence – and the way it allows me to connect with people all over.

I’m sorry, you must have mistaken me for a dating site. Maybe you want Craigslist missed connections? https://boston.craigslist.org/d/missed-connections/search/mis

I would like to know how to answer  a Twitter influencer back privately after you have responded to a public tweet requesting a hookup encounter and t(he)ir response to you is that t(he)y are not gay! Bear in mind that this person’s has followers which are a majority of the LGBTQ community and some females. Plus throughout the person’s page are likes and retweets from other Twitter followers who are LGBTQ who by the way have responded publicly to the posted hookup tweet that t(he)y have either liked or responded back confirming interest. So again, how does one like myself who’s not only attractive but also in great shape respond to someone like this who’s so quick to respond with saying “I’m not gay” given the facts mentioned above regarding this person and especially when I have no interest in pursuing any type romantic involvement or relationship of any kind other than a hookup with this person? In other words why must the response every time to a proposed sexual behavior be answered “I’m not gay.” when that information regarding sexual orientation was asked whether t(he)y were or not? 

I would recommend saying, “Oh, that’s disappointing” either to yourself or directly to them, and move on. Don’t make too much of your disappointment, especially if you were looking for nothing more than a hookup. It’s just not worth it. Move on. /Edit/ I’ve had a quiet night to reflect on your question, and noticed I missed a significant detail: that they had made a sexual hookup request to an audience of LGBTQ folks, so their response is confusing. Are you wondering whether you need to publicly “out” this person as not gay or confront them privately? I would respond privately with something like: “I’m confused. You invited a hookup to a primarily gay audience, so I assumed you were gay.”

Yes – totally check them out for free peer tutoring, academic coaching, and writing help. But keep in mind the last day for tutoring for Fall is Dec 10 and the last day for Online Writing Lab submissions is Dec 8, so plan ahead.

To find a purpose and live it to the best of your ability.

What is the best motivational advice that you have gotten?

“I have learned one thing. As Woody [Allen] says, ‘Showing up is 80 percent of life.’ Sometimes it’s easier to hide home in bed. I’ve done both.” –Marshall Brickman, co-screenwriter of the film Annie Hall.

Good to see ya wall! It’s been a minute since I have been here. I am approaching second semester senior year and want to know if you know of any randomly fun adventures? I’m talking random like a scavenger hunt, secret room, or any other cool little trinket of a memory I can hold onto amongst unemployment.

You can roam the world to your heart’s content on Google Earth in satellite view and street view. Add a gaming aspect to your explorations with GeoGuessr (the free version has become very limited, though). Add audio with a radio station from anywhere:bit.ly/RadioOptions.

It’s very hard to choose. I have to say Vision’s aptitude for problem solving and lifting moods is very easy to appreciate.

Best? Objectively? Difficult to say. You might be interested in this discussion of objectivity and taste in Hume and Kant: bit.ly/ObjectiveTaste. But I will put it out there that there’s a WALLa WALLa Cheese Company. Long lost cousin of mine….?

Genetic research indicates that Australia’s greater glider is actually three species, so there are two new extremely cute flying marsupials. https://bit.ly/bc-gliders

Pasta Fagioli 
Laaa-sagna!
Chicken sorrentino 
Vodka rigatoni 
Al—-fredo! 

al fresco!  (or else Quarantino!)

of course it can be nearly impossible to say a person who has murdered babies and laughed at them has “good” in them. So, what type of good do you think lays in the midst of murderers, or people who have impacted others negatively? Also, what makes something good and something bad?

If you believe humans have the capacity to change, then everyone has the capacity to be a better (or worse) person than they once were, and shouldn’t be defined only by the worst thing they’ve ever done. It’s an open question how societies respond to destructive behavior, which is one way of defining good or bad. Once upon a time, it was commonly accepted worldwide that a nation had the authority to execute people; now that’s relatively rare, though it’s still a legal remedy in some US states. IOW, opinions differ. Here are 800 books at BC Libraries on the topic of capital punishment: bit.ly/bcl-capital-punishment

As long as I can remember, I’ve had trouble shutting off my mind to get to sleep. One night, for some reason, I tried to die by willing my heart to stop. I didn’t die. But I went right to sleep. Since then, I’ve been doing the same thing to get to sleep almost every night. I’ve never slept better. I promise I’m NOT suicidal. I’m happy and productive during my waking hours. But I worry. Am I harming my psyche, could I actually induce depression or real suicidality by doing this?

Yikes – as you say, sounds ominous. I’m very glad you’re not suicidal, but since you are worried about harming your psyche (and I am, too), why not contact University Counseling Services (bit.ly/BC-counseling) and run it by them. Discuss your sleep problems, too. They may have some good suggestions for you.