What is a Nightside Identity

Author: Masticina Akicta

Date: 18 October 2020

So what is a Nightside Identity

A Nightside Identity is a different Identity then you would use for your Family and Work. Much like a mask you would wear, a different name you use of your birth name.  This is done for many reasons, some obvious, some less obvious. 

Why have a Nightside Identity

Because you want your vampire activity not to bleed into the realm where your family or work can find it. Many people within the vampire community are not out of the coffin yet.

 The world can be very judgmental and people finding out you are part of the vampire community might raise questions. Not that legally there is anything bad about being member off the vampire community. It is just that some people are very judgmental and fear things they don't understand. It might affect your job chances or how your family treats you. 

Definitely if you are young, you rather not want to be institutionalized because your family disagrees with things.

It is about Safety Stupid

One of the things that the VC offers is insight in how to get blood, life energy and other things. It has a lot to teach about safe feeding, how to get and keep blood fine and methods that some might feel are troubling.

Just think of how your direct family would handle it if they learn you know a lot about drawing blood. Or knows you got a stacks of of needles. That won't go well with some people!

It would be the talk of the church, or talk in town if the town is small enough.

As much as some vampires can be out in public and teaching people about it. Not all can be out of the Coffin yet. 

There are also some people who want to hurt our community or members who are troubled and might endanger you. If they knew your real identity! 

Being Out and Proud

Some vampires are out, they are known! Usually their job also is within the pagan, occult or vampire community. A place where being not the usual is expected.

Be it writers or connected to jobs that are more open to things. Or at least not judging. Who judges the DJ who seems to have a rather interesting background, if said DJ makes great nights in the club! 

Or members of BDSM clubs who are known to be part of that world by some in the public. 

If a writer or artist is known to be part of the vampire community it can open up communications. Questions to them what the community stands for, what vampirism is and so on. There are good reasons for some members to be public. Obviously not everybody can be out of the coffin yet though. And some will never desire or can be out of the coffin. And that is fine. Safety first!

Out or In

So the question; Is it smart to have the world know about your vampirism and membership of the vampire community? That is up to you.

Obviously a few people will learn but there is a different between being out of the coffin totally or that only a few trusted people know it. 

This is a huge reason why we have a Nightside name, a mask we can wear to keep trouble from reaching our family and friends.

The reason why many strangers slide through the community. Their true name unknown. 

The Age of Fear

• Author: Masticina Akicta
• Date: 02 October 2020

The Age of Fear and War

I don't usually dive into semi political issues. As politics divides among everybody, family and friends included. And when we most need each others help we must be able to be there for each other. And be able to see beyond the battle lines we have put in the sand. 

But this is the Age of Fear and War. Not directly outwardly, though to be fair there have been fires and shootings and all kinds of horrible things spreading quickly through society. Huge pressure has released in the last few months in what it all broke down. 

The underlying reasons of such always were there but in the pressure given us by a Covid society it all just exploded out. People are afraid, they lost their jobs, they can't visit their family, parents, etc. Their kids are stuck at home and governments can't even stay on one line what is the best way to do things. 

Creating different groups within society which stand against each other. Much like groups always seem to grow into such existence. After all the whole political system is bound to create boundaries and an US versus THEM feel. To whom do you belong? Who do you support? 

Like a pressure cooker exploding, there always was pressure but took just a little more to break out in such a great wave of energy. Rupturing beyond any potential control. 

This has ruptured society in many ways. Defeating Covid requires working together and trusting each other. People like to work together fighting a common enemy. Nothing congeals a group as quickly as a common enemy. The virus is something we all can't beat on our own. And maybe we can't beat it at all. But we can try or at least lower the damage it can do to us, our friends or family and our societies. We have to try to deal with this disease in an intelligent way. There is little need to scream and attack each other over how we feel about the measures. And I don't believe that any one specific measure can truly win this war. If you could call it a war. But like the wars of old working together each doing their part might just make it work. And as always there are doomsayers.

We have to deal with a society which has changed a lot because of the pressures of covid regulations. Even in countries, where it is mostly cured or didn't come in, Covid is still a haunting ghost. From full lockdowns in what people are only very limited movement, to get food or walk their dog. To very light lock downs which limit certain activities in number of people that can come in. 

We are almost seven months in and this only has been started. A lot will change, a lot will never be the same. 

Who is the Enemy

It seems as if these days the pressure, fear and political influences have made everybody an enemy of everybody else. It has made it very hard to work together and there is tension in the air. 

In writing you have three kinds of enemies, an enemy you can point it like Sauron, Darth Vader, and/or the Emperor. 

There are enemies like nature, an earthquake, a storm, a twister, a vulcano or tsunami. 

And there is the lesser used dark half type of enemy. These are the dark half of the normal person. The shadow side turned into villain. 

So who is the enemy? Obviously COVID is a force of nature. But through our human nature we also have decided that there are other things we can point at. For instance China for being the source of the virus. Each other for not following or blindly following Covid Regulations. There are those who balk at the idea of putting on face masks. And there are those who wear them daily. There are those who eagerly await any potential capable vaccine. And there are those who don't believe in vaccines. 

But also the fear of the unknown, we can't see the virus, we can't see who is infected and possibly can give it to us so inherently it is harder to trust other people. As humanity we like physical contact but by the Covid rules we need to keep a certain distance. And worse these days all of use are masked, due to the face mask laws. Depending on your country of course. Currently in my country they are putting it more in use again after enough people flaunted its use. Look nothing wrong with a facemask. As irritating as they are. 

I shouldn't have to go into how currently politics has put people on a knifes edge. I rather not, that would push this blog post outside of its framing. But it is making working together harder, or at least being humane to each other. I tell you there is a lot of hurt being thrown around.

How othering works

This is quite a simple thing, if you go back to pre school and high school there were bullies. And a bully didn't need much reason to bully you. You wore glasses,  you had a funny accent or a minor speech disability then you might just get bullied. So the simply way to make someone into an "other" is to define yourself and then point at the "other" and point out how different they are. Simple as it is.

On large scale this leads to rather mindless finger pointing and misunderstanding. And of course throwing a lot of emotional bagage around. Kids run on emotions, grown ups usually are more in balance, but sometimes people definitely are not in balance between their Intelligence and Emotion. 

So currently with Covid, you got a number of sides. And that isn't helping any co-operation or working to the end goal. That end goal, somehow beat Covid. Deal with the details later! 

How Fear causes us to act without thinking

So lets talk about Fear, it is a strong survival system. Fear quickly pushes is to fight or flight. Or stand still and try not to be noticed. Fear is an automated thing but it also can be ingrained on an intelligent and emotional level. 

A lot of people are now throwing rather hurting words to each other because they are not thinking it through. They are fearing the situation, they don't understand the situation. And I understand, because there are a lot of things I don't understand or can't do myself. But I try to have some trust in those who have studied for it and are working on the situation. Nobody is perfect, they will mistakes too but I see not reason to jump into a fight over if vaccines work or not. Or be crass to someone because they don't fully agree with us. But have we even listened?

If we only listen to our fears and emotions we make very bad choices. Or even non choices. 

Society Breaking Down

Another thing is that the expected systems are breaking down. Things we had now might only exist under other rules. We lost a lot, even the countrie that still have certain shops open or can offer certain entertainment have to deal with stricter rules. 

And the first two months everybody quickly found out just how rotten it is to be stuck in home and not being able to do anything of use. In my country we could get food, and buy a few things at the stores that still opened. BUT many things were just shut down,  until a few months later new strict covid regulations came out and those business could open again under stricter rules. 

In certain places society has been put on halt, which means it isn't only lack of entertainment, which is a first thing to fall away, the luxuries. But also no jobs in certain sectors, no travel, no things beyond trips like food and basic requirements. This is driving people insane. They have lost a lot! 

And let's not go into the ever lingering tensions that even in the best days of society always where boiling under the surface. They are now all out! 

What can we do to stay Sane

First of all decide what is important to you and how far outside of such you willing to go temporarily. Your friends and family should come first. YOU first, than your family and friends. And only then those in the layers around it. Because you can't wear the weight of the world upon your shoulder. 

As the world burns around us all, we need to decide what is most important to us and protect those people. Because you can't protect everybody and you can't help everybody.

Sometimes we need mentally a day off, a day of peace. To recharge ourselves before we can to out there again in the storm that batters down on all of us.

I can suggest not to watch the news, or follow anything too crazy. Because there are things you can influence, things you can't influence and things that influence you. 

And if you can't influence it, maybe you shouldn't deal with it mentally either.

What we can do to help those close to us

It isn't odd to have a group of trusted friends and family. A small tribe, a tribe that protects each other and aids each other. That understands that they can't change the world all on themselves, and it isn't always their job. Their job is to protect their members and offer safety in dark times.

But be careful some tribes are more dangerous then others and will try to use you for their own goals. So, don't be blind. Be smart! If you feel that something is wrong in a tribe, be ready to leave it. 

Listening

The most important thing is listening. We don't listen anymore, we don't take the time to sit with others and listen. Listening is not the time you take actively listening, but it is also understanding someone from their position. Their life, their viewpoint, why do they think or do as they do. Because if you can't understand you more easily turn them into the "other" and othering lies at the core of many fights. 

Finding your Tribe

Author: Masticina Akicta

Date: 22 September 2020

Entering a new Home

You move through the places of the internet, local area or meet people with the same interest. Maybe it is your sexuality, faith, or even something simple as your like for a sports team. You meet others of equal mind and insight. Maybe you are young and seek teaching, or a place among people who understand your situation where your family might not. A tribe is not always family or those predefined, but one that gathers together through law of attraction.

Home is a feeling, you know it when you find it. You just feel this is right. 

What is a tribe

A tribe is a group of people. We used to live in tribes, in small villages, Farm areas either we owned the area or as serfs to those in power. You can find small villages everywhere. These things are tribes. 

A church also can be a tribe, people know you and that share good and bad times. They are not direct family but through the group of faith you are bound. For good or for bad. 

And a tribe also can be online these days. So much is online, and Covid has made that even more obvious to many.  In the "good old days" manyh things were offline.. As long as there is a shared interest and reason to be there for each other to accept each other as member of an extended family. There is a tribe.

The Good and the Bad

Tribes come with good and bad things, sad but true. Some tribes help younger members out to deal with their situation, identity and allow them to grow in safety. They have teachings, insights and more.

But tribes also can become cults where your own ideas become wrong-think. And where you better follow someone else command/lead else you are evil. 

This is the problem every group has, how do you keep it inviting and deal with the influence without being corrupted by it. 

There is a saying "There were is power, there is corruption." And in many places such is showing. But a good leader tries to make sure such corruption has little to no chance. Ah that is another topic though.

Lets just say that it is hard for tribes to always stay as they originally were created. Sometimes they are co-opted as old leaders disappear, sometimes the leaders use false-words to draw people in. And sometimes the tribe is just a cult. 

What does this mean for the vampire community

So within the vampire community the Tribe is a place where others accept you as you are. As a vampire, donor, or swan.  Where there can be discourse, we can teach each other, we can learn things. Where we can talk with others about the troubles we are having. And many solutions are within the grasp of members.

The tribe has information, knowledge for those seeking it. We have older vampires who have been through things before, young vampires still learning and those facilitating groups.

But also some groups are more for drama and news sharing. MAYOR events! Not as much for calling it a home. But around the big busy city in what we connect with each other and share information and news. We have our own cozy little tribes that we call home. In a culture of cats it is almost inevitable that hissy fits will break out. Or big fights, or people will try to abuse power. It just is inevitable. 

What makes a tribe your home?

A tribe should feel safe, inviting, caring and understanding. It should offer things that can help you grow and get stronger and learn many things. And over time grow into a role to aid others who are fresh into the tribe. No matter the age everybody who finds their tribe within the vampire community will learn through time just what that specific tribe offers.

They are bound to find others who know more, and have tips, insight, and hopefully long term support.

The Power of Archetypes

Nobody is 100% an Archetype, they are mere tools, pure types of personalities and what they do. But many archetypes are pretty common, the teacher for instance teaches others. The Leader leads the group, the healer heals those who are hurt and so on. And you'll notice that as you survive longer in a tribe and definitely within the vampire community that you'll find your place among others. A seat to take in a way, you might find that you want to teach others and protect them above the other things. Or you have skills that help organize things and seem to make you a natural leader.

Every vampire once was young and knew little, some had a family who had vampires or understood vampirism to the point that they could teach their kids. But not all had. 

And if one finds their way finally to the vampire community and one of the little tribes where one can get training one soon enough. Donors and black swans find hopefully a little tribe where it is safe too. Safety over all. 

We grow into our roles to end up keeping an eye on groups to make sure the new members are safe and learning. And all is fine. 

Archetypes are bound to shine through. Some will roll into leadership positions, other teachers, other researchers, other support networks and more. We are all connected in that weave of thinking.

Leaving the Tribe

Sadly reality is that not always a tribe is good for you. There are many reasons why a tribe might change. For instance if the tribe turns poison, if it works like a cult and tries to extinguish all own thought and personality to be replaced with "right-think." If a tribe automatically deems you wrong and judges you without knowing truly who you are. 

Or you might just not feel at home. What if you are a psy vampire in a tribe of medsangs. And you really don't have much touching grounds with their topics and vice versa. Then maybe it is better to find a tribe that is mixed, or has vampires of all types.

I highly suggest that, diversity is strength after all. Mixed Communities always seem to have an answer on situations.

Retaining Yourself

It is important that in the end you retain your own identity even if one shares connections with others in a tribe. You are an individual, with your own strengths and weaknesses and that can be added to said tribe. Nobody is perfect and within our communities and with our nature hissy fits can happen. Just remember to retain your own identity.

Safety

And that is just it, whatever you do, don't lose yourself and remember to be safe and smart. In the end we are responsible for our own actions.

Vampire Awakenings

Author: Masticina Akicta

Date: 28 August 2020

A new age

Your voice deepens, your body changes, you begin to feel odd emotions and hair grows places... oh wrong fact sheet. 

*looks through the pile of papers* Young vampires do go mentally and bodily through a stage that might look a bit like this. An awakening can be rough! 

You Are Different

So you are different then others. Let me tell you a secret, everybody is different then others one way or another. There are so many things that make someone different that it isn't strange to be "off" the linear path. 

The thing is, vampirism isn't really well known or even accepted. Though through time we have gotten enough information out that it has gotten from being seen as an insane outsider to, just weird. Yet that depends on who we are talking about.

Lets just say it this way, there is a reason why not everybody needs to know about your condition. At a point if you want a donor it helps a lot. And you might need to find a way to get your family to accept that you wear darker clothes*, sunglasses and suncream. [* Or at least covering clothing that bounces off the light and makes sure the UV won't hit you!]

That is not a fashion statement, that is how we deal with the issues it usually comes with. I say usually, how strong we get these side effects differ. The trick is that not everybody has to know the core truth behind it all. After all not everybody is willing to accept our nature. Some would send us to the psychiatrist or the likes. So make certain changes in smart ways.

To be fair, I was sun sensitive as hell as young child. So when I got to black clothes and sunglasses it was kinda expected. Even these days I wear darker clothes, not all black but dark enough so it absorbs a lot of the light. 

The thing, YOU are different, and that is fine. Finding ways to survive and fit within groups is something you'll have to work with your whole life. Get used to it! 

What is an awakening

In short it is learning what you are and learning how to handle it. It begins with waking up to odd needs and odd nature that seems so unlike most around you. And then you find our community and many are like you, in certain ways.

 It is your energy system shifting into full gear and you suddenly gaining insight and in time you might get control over it. The hunger pours through you, you feel stronger yet also weaker. And something in you whispers to find food. Get used to it, it will always be with you. 

And no it doesn't just last 6 years and you get a piece of paper that says you are awesome. It lasts a damn lifetime as your energy needs keep changing as you age. Learning more and more what your energy being means to you and what needs to gives. 

Like puberty it definitely hits hard in the beginning. It can hit like a brick wall, with all such entails. Hunger rising, strange feelings, mayor energy shifts and stuff happening that you simply don't understand. And just like puberty you better get used to it.

An awakening isn't a fixed time period. It is finding out things and beginning to understand just what is happening. And every energy sensitive being had their own, but vampires, well we got a harsh one. A hunger that lives deep inside of us.

Also it can happen early in your life but also later. So unlike puberty there isn't really a fixed time when it should hit. Some people only learn about their energy condition much later. Others know it very young. 

The need for blood, life energy or other ways to feel good again will be strong in you.

Rough years ahead

So you are hit with the hammer, welcome to life. Rough years ahead, but it doesn't has to be done alone. To make it easier for yourself you can learn the basics and have experienced vampires to talk to. But to do that you need to find active communities and others willing to take time for you. Teach you the basics, the ethics and the way to stay healthy.

People willing to support you, even accept that at times you still act rash, as any young vampire would. And that you need time to adjust. 

Hell you might even want to seek for a cure, I give you a hint, so far we found none that works permanent or makes us "fully normal functioning" whatever that means. We can learn to deal with our condition though and survive. 

Being a vampire means you are stuck with it. And making your own life a bit easier by learning the ropes and connecting up with the right people to help you along. You don't have to do this alone, even if you are having to deal with all this stuff. Many did go through much of the same before you and not only survived but also thrived. You can do also! But it will take time and (self)training.

What experienced vampires can do

First of all patience. I know, young just awoken vampires can be a bit caustic and rough like 80 grid sandpaper. But weren't most of us like that too? And how many of us were born in families or groups where other vampires could teach them? Indeed! So a bit of patience and accepting that they will make a mistake at times is part of it. Like watching a toddler run, then fall, cry, get helped up then run again. Once we all were the toddler!

So if possible be patient, and show new members where to go for help or information. True, not everybody has the same function within a group, some of us are more suited in helping others directly. But at least know where you can send vampires to for the right help. We are more powerful if we work together. 

And maybe you are not trained or experienced in specific needs for a just awakening vampire. For instance, you are a sanguinary vampire and you meet a young psy vampire. Then send them the way to the psy's that can aid him/her. And vice versa.

My Awakening

You don't really put all those years in a tiny end of a blog post. But it is fair people learn about it. 

In short, rough, chaotic at times painful. I didn't have vampires around me so I only had the online community. So yeah I have been there, and I know how rotten it can be. So the need for the community to offer teachings and aid is obvious. Best is to find a trust-able group or community that can offer both teachings and a kind of family.

Your Future

So, there you are, where do you end up? Where will you go? What help will you find? What long term friendships might you end up with. And just what will this all mean to you.

That is for you to find out.

A Peaceful Summer

Author: Masticina Akicta

Date: 28 August 2020

Summer of Peace

Those who have been around in the Vampire Community long enough all know summers. It is when young people have vacation and more time for other stuff. So usually a glut of young people roll into our communities. In search for different things. 

And in some years it is more then other years. Depending if a movie or book with vampires got hot or not. 

I can tell you, vampires in fiction aren’t doing that well lately so we are in a slow time for people coming in through such desires.

New and Interested

Most people rolling into our communities are young. Some just love vampire books and movies, some are rebelling teens/young grown ups. And yes some actually are vampires or connected to our communities in ways that they stick. 

The thing is the ones that come in for the cool factor usually leave within a week or two. Our communities can be rather boring if there is no drama, no fights, no problems.

Don’t get me wrong, the vampire community and drama go together. But it isn’t always there. And a lot of older members are quick happy they don’t have to deal with drama all the time. We seen it before, we will see it again.

The Type of visitors we get

The word vampire itself has quite an allure. And like a flame attracts moths, we attract visitors of all kinds. 

The young vampire fiction lover; He/she loves the fiction, the clothing, the world, the powers, the everything. These usually don’t last long once they learn we deal with the human vampire version not the movie vampire version.

The bored ones; Like above, but less a fan of vampires but just bored and in search for something nice. Vampires draw drama right? Right? Not always! Boring human living vampires tend to scare them away.

The Researchers; Fun lot, wanting to know more, learn more. And our bigger community is open to having researchers around. If they ask nicely and behave. After all many of our members desire secrecy for good reasons.

The Troll; Every community draws trolls, it is inevitable. It is almost as If every community has a bridge somewhere. They usually don’t stay long once they learn how boring it really is. 

The Young Vampire; The reason many communities have an open door policy. Young vampires need to learn the basics, the ethics, the safety. The ways to feed and be safe to themselves and others. Having access to older vampires helps them along the road much quicker. 

The Otherkin; Inevitable an non-vampire otherkin will show up. But with their own communities being rather small they understand the position better. And many are quite respectful. If not seeking something the vampire community cannot fully offer. 

The Know-It-Better; No matter how short they have been part of the community they know it better. Fun lot, because usually they are dead wrong. But they simply know it better. And with that kind of mentally set off a lot of members who just want to feel safe and part of a family. So don’t last long before a moderator ushers them out.

What we offer

Knowledge and a Family. To young vampires and those just waking up to their reality we offer a place they are understood and offered insight and knowledge. Depending on the specific community you can find different things. Some are made for research.

Yes, we do research, the med-sang community. The Medical Sanguinary aka pure blood feeder community for instance does research into blood. How to store blood for longer, where to find it and of course Donor Safety.

The other community, due to its different ways of feeding is more spread in the ways of tries to improve things. But even there some basic methods are well known and there is materials one can find about these ways. Ways to feed, cleanse, filter and some extra little things. Tricks to make things easier.

Peaceful Summers are good news

I like peace. I used to jump in the chaos and drama. Free energy. But these days I do like to enjoy a bit of peace and “family” time. Be among friends and not have to deal with a lot of trouble. You get older you know. 

Also projects go a lot better if you don’t have to fight of trouble. 

Vampires, Donors and COVID19

Author: Masticina Akicta

Date: 30 July 2020

The World has changed

A few months ago I wrote the first version of this blog post but I didn’t post it. And now a lot has changed. By now it is obvious that the world has changed, and a new hopefully temporal normal exists. One that has a virus going round and things closed off and opening again. Depending where you life the world might have changed quite a bit.

I am lucky enough that here things are half open. With adjustments and extra rules things have been made possible again. But no big events, no parties, limited travel and so on. This has been quite an issue for many of us psychic vampires.

My usual diet was train rides, free floating energy, filtered and treated then the muck was send into earth. After I was done in a busy train-station or train the energy was a lot cleaner. 

But with travel limited and even now it is allowed it isn’t suggested to do so. Sure now it is open, partly, but for quite a few months I had no feeding grounds. And that wasn’t great. 

Yes the limitation on travel on itself sucked, but not even having a good ground to feed was worse.

Being adaptable I made a few adjustments. The new rules meant that an electric bike suddenly was a really good idea. It wasn’t cheap I tell you but it can get you far and still decently fresh. And being out there in nature for a while has given me some kind of food-light. Natural energy, it isn’t as nice as human energy, but it works for now. 

But that is me, lets talk about Donors! 

A Donors needs

As the disease is still on every bodies minds we have to get to the reality that for sanguinary vampires things got a lot worse. No travel, and donors that also need their blood/energy to retain health. In short, things are running dry for many vampires.

And donors needs as always should be kept in mind. 

As pointed out the travel limitations will make it impossible for some vampires to meet their donors. And even if the limitations lighten up a bit the question is for how long and how safe it is to travel. 

I can tell you one thing, the buses are far from full, same for the trains. 

As we are all stuck in this situation the question rises, how are we going to deal with this?

Dealing with Less Energy

Vampires need energy, need blood, need resources. But many of use have had times we hadn’t fed for a while, we ran low, and so on. The problem as we know is that our ability to fight off disease is partly bound by our energy. So if we are low the chance that a virus, disease or something kicks us down is the worst. I won’t judge anybody here, we all are in this situation. And we all have to deal with it our own ways. And you NEED to feed a point to stay healthy. That is a given!

If possible finding less usual ways to get energy might help one to survive. 

I moved to earths energy, it is slow, doesn’t tastes nice, but all in all I survive on it. Thrive? Not sure, survive yes. I still would prefer feeding at a dance party.

Opinions

I got no true answers that help us all. And since so many vampires feed differently this is a topic we should talk about. The comments on this blog are open BUT I understand if you want to keep it within the discords and safe groups this is shared instead. After all we gotta be safe! 

The Summer is in Town

The Summer is in Town

Author: Masticina Akicta
Date: 23 June 2020

Summer is in Town

So the Summer has arrived, though this country luckily also offers days of gray and wind many of the days are about the sun shining. To many that is a good thing, to some like me it isn’t. It is the time we make sure we have enough UV cream, clothes that block out the sun and have to plan when we go outside.
To some Summer is a great thing, to others the day-star’s oppressive rays and heat are bad. Yet you can’t change the reality that summer is in town.
Today is a Tuesday and UV readings are reaching 8. Meaning one can burn easily within fifteen minutes unprotected.

UV Cream and Sunglasses

A common tool among vampires is UV cream and sunglasses. In my country it can get up to UV level 8, which is pretty powerful. If you go by the calculations of the exposure.
My skin is between 100 and 200 and how quick is burns. Which means that exposed to UV levels 1 [aka winter levels] I can be unprotected out for 100 to 200 minutes. But as 8 hits it is closer to 13 to 25 minutes unprotected. Luckily we have UV cream to make that longer. But even then I do get headaches and can overheat easy in the hot weather. That is why I like to stay inside and move activities into the morning or evening. Like a smart person would. Not to mention the little red heat blots showing up on my skin.
And you think clouds help, oh no, on a cloudy day you still can get level 6 exposure or more. So that is something you need to learn to deal with. Even seemingly innocent summer days can be bad news. That bottle of UV cream will be useful.
Don’t forget clothing that blocks off some of those rays.

UV Formula

I shall repeat the formula here:
The skin factor is how quick you burn or how long you can stay outside unprotected. Mine is between 100 and 200. But some have closer to 50 and others are closer to 300. It depends on your skin color and how it reacts. And yes some have closer to 0 due to skin conditions.
In the middle of the winter with UV power 1 I can be out there for 100 to 200 minutes unprotected. No troubles!
In the summer though with UV at 8 that time is cut short. By its factor 100/8 = 12 minutes and 200/8 = 25 minutes. Quite simple isn’t it?
And you can find out the UV factor on that day and area by checking the daily weather. On a good weather reporting website they also mention the UV factor.

But what if we apply UV cream. And lets say it is UV 30. And lets say that we apply it well enough to get at least half its value. [People almost never put enough UV cream on for full protection].

(200/8)*15= 375 minutes protected outside.

Simple isn’t it? Check the weather status what UV is doing, apply strong enough UV cream and most of us should be fine to a point. The sun still irritates.

Midday's in the Shadow

In the top of the midday it is the hottest, the sun is fully out. It is when I usually am inside hiding pretty much from the day star. I can go out, I don’t burst in flames, it just feels very wrong and I have a limited time I can be outside.
Being inside somewhere in the shadow is my way. I got a sister who is the other way around always trying to find the sun or even go on vacation in Sunny Countries. And yet here I am always thinking how the sun and UV will handle things. Always making sure I am inside or somewhere in the shadow. And keep an eye on the time and have UV cream with me. Yes, I can handle SOME sun but I don’t feel right with it at all.

Sunglasses

As said before it is worth repeating. Sunglasses are the key. A good set of sunglasses can help you survive outside. Of course glass goes over plastic here, as the cheapest sets you can buy usually are plastic. And a decent enough coating should do wonders.

Hydration

And lets not forget to drink enough water or healthy drink of your choice to replace what you have lost. Food is something you can fix later, but water or something like that is definitely going to help you out. Drink enough water, definitely in the hot summers. A refillable bottle of water can do wonders against potential headaches.

Mornings and Afternoons

The simplest way to deal with it is not to get out during the midday if you don’t have to. If groceries need to be done most of those shops are also open in the afternoon or morning. Setting off the right time can spare you the worst. Not to mention, it usually is a bit more silent in the stores around certain times.
Plan your day well and stay inside during the worst, if you can.