It's finally the weekend and today we have a full schedule of games today from across the country, 15 in total to satisfy your baseball itch.
All channels shown below , plus much more great content is available with a subscription from Ultimate Media IPTV. Visit today for more information and choose the best IPTV subscription for you.
Here is a breakdown of each game, including the start time and the television channel broadcasting the game:
1.10pm ET - Tampa Bay Rays v Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park, Boston, Massachusetts. This game is being broadcast on BSSUN and NESN.
2.10pm ET - Detroit Tigers v Chicago White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field, Chicago, Illinois. This game is being broadcast on BSDET and NBCSCH.
4.05pm ET - St. Louis Cardinals v Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. This game is being broadcast on BSMW and ATTP.
4.05pm ET - Seattle Mariners v Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field, Arlington, Texas. This game is being broadcast on RSNW and BSSW.
4.05pm ET - Philadelphia Phillies v Washington Nationals at Nationals Park, Washington, DC. This game is being broadcast on NBCSP and MASN.
4.10pm ET - Los Angeles Angels v Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park, Houston, Texas. This game is being broadcast on BSW, ATTH and MLBN.
4.10pm ET - Colorado Rockies v Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri. This game is being broadcast on ATTR and BSKC.
4.10pm ET - Toronto Blue Jays v New York Mets at Citi Field, Flushing, New York. This game is being broadcast on SNET, SNY and MLBN.
4.10pm ET - Oakland Athletics v Miami Marlins at LoanDepot Park, Miami, Florida. This game is being broadcast on NBCSCA and BSFL.
4.10pm ET - Milwaukee Brewers v Cincinatti Reds at Great American Ball Park, Cincinatti, Ohio. This game is being broadcast on BSWI and BSOH.
7.15pm ET - Cleveland Guardians v Minnesota Twins at Target Field, Minneapolis, Minnesota. This game is being broadcast on FOX.
7.15pm ET - New York Yankees v Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, California. This game is being broadcast on FOX.
10.05pm ET - Baltimore Orioles v San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park, San Francisco, California. This game is being broadcast on MASN and NBCSBA.
10.10pm ET - Chicago Cubs v San Diego Padres at Petco Park, San Diego, California. This game is being broadcast on MARQ, SDPA and FS1.
10.10pm ET - Atlanta Braves v Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field, Phoenix, Arizona. This game is being broadcast on BSSE and BSAZ.

Respect the Doctor

🎵

"Bit of adrenaline, dash of outrage, and a hint of panic knitted my brain back together. I know exactly who I am. I'm the Doctor. Sorting out fair play across the universe. Now please. Get off this planet while you still have a choice."

So you've come to see my respect thread? mmmm I love respect threads. In fact, I invented them right after 4 slice toasters. So... where was I? Oh, that's right. Me. Doctor, the Doctor. I was born on this little planet on the Constellation of Kasterborous... or was I? Things get a bit complicated there... where I came from or who I am. I've been lots of people, some of them I don't even remember. The person reading this might be the Doctor too (?)... Anyway, back on point. The person who I am now is an easy-going travelehigh-speed engineebiscuit-lover. Me and my fam explore the universe in muh good old TARDIS, righting wrongs and chilling like there's no tomorrow (which is a possibility wink-wink). I'm happy to be your bezzie mate if you play nicely, but if not --- well, you'll get an idea if you keep reading. (scronch)

Source Key

Hover over a feat to view its source.

Doctor Who (2005) series # episode # = S#E#
Twice Upon A Time = TUAT
Resolution = R
Revolution of the Daleks = RotD
Eve of the Daleks = EotD
Legend of the Sea Devils = LotSD
The Power of the Doctor = PotD

Intelligence

Technological Aptitude
Understanding Technology

Using/Operating Technology

Building Technology

Modifying Technology

Disabling Technology

Repairing Technology

Computing

Observation

Deduction

Persuasion, Trickery & Manipulation

Resourcefulness

Medical

Planning & Strategy

Miscellaneous Skills

Mental Abilities

Mental Resistance & Willpower

Mind Reading & Communication

Mind Manipulation

Sensing & Feeling

Other

Physical Attributes

Strength

Speed & Agility

Durability

Remains in good spirits when an electric shock violently shoves her backwards (thought this likely due to her post-regeneration rush).
Recovers from the vacuum of space faster than her human companions.
Tries to hold back an explosion big enough to take out an airplane's cockpit with only its door to shield her.
Travels in warp drive without adverse effects.
Her biology can withstand the Time Force that would be overwhelming for humans, allowing her to briefly jump into Dan and Yaz's timestreams. However, the pressure would eventually kill her.

Senses

Regeneration
Time Lords can survive fatal injuries through the process of regeneration whereupon every cell in their body is rewritten, radically transforming their appearance and personality. This regeneration produced some interesting changes...

This ability is restricted to 12 regenerations across 13 incarnations. Due to the Doctor gaining a second regeneration cycle and the whole Timeless Children revelation, this limit might no longer be in play.
Excess regeneration energy affords a Time Lord a degree of invulnerability within the first few hours of their regeneration. The newly-regenerated Thirteenth Doctor fell from her airbourne TARDIS in the stratosphere down to a nearby train, crashing through its roof and getting up completely fine.
Side-effects following regeneraiton include memory loss, fainting and slowed movement.
The Master uses a machine to force her to regenerate into him so he could go around the universe causing destruction in the Doctor's name. This process was reversed shortly after using the regeneration energy from his CyberMasters.
Regeneration can be temporarily delayed without suffering negative effects, which the Thirteenth Doctor did for a little while to eat ice cream.
The Thirteenth Doctor's regeneration into the Fourteenth Doctor was unique from past regenerations in two respects; firstly being that this form strongely resembled her Tenth incarnation instead of a totally new body and secondly in that it also changed the Doctor's clothing (the only other time this happened was the First Doctor's regeneration into the Second).

Miscellaneous Time Lord Biology

Has two hearts and therefore two pulses.
Has a much longer lifespan than humans. In this body, she spent several decades imprisoned without visibly aging.
The Cyberium chooses her as a host over the Lone Cyberman.

Equipment

Get the full rundown of the TARDIS and Sonic Screwdriver in the comments

Psychic Paper
The psychic paper is a blank piece of paper that telepathically projects the Doctor's thoughts into the eyes of whom she presents it to.

Futuristic Technology

Mundane Items

Miscellaneous

"She was the universe."

Heya! I'm looking to do a Mega Man RP where the protagonist's role is given to one of the female characters for once. Bonus points if you're down for some hammy girl power vibes. I'm a literate roleplayer. I love the action/fighting, adventure, comedy, drama, and romance genres, in something resembling an order. I'm partial to FxF if romance is even a thing. And I'm open to hearing and considering your own unique ideas for Mega Man RPs. My intention is to GM for you. I can play a dedicated character in addition to GMing if you'd like, but right now I'm really interested narrating the world / NPC encounters for someone else. The one catch is hat I want you to play a canon character. You can try to sell me on your OC if you want! Just uh--Don't be offended if I say no. Since there are many different parts of the Mega Man franchise, I'd like to briefly talk about which ones and which characters I'm interested in seeing people play.

Mega Man Classic

Character: Roll Light (Maybe Quake Woman or Vesper Woman?)
Premise: There's trouble afoot and there's only like a 98% Dr Wily is involved somehow. Armed with her buster, broom, and a Variable Weapon System (See: The thing that lets Mega copy powers), Roll sets save the day. Why isn't Mega doing it? Could be as simple as him being down for repairs. He could be kidnapped. It could be worse! Because Classic Mega Man is anemic plot-wise, the tone could range from comedic and light-hearted to more serious.

Mega Man X

Characters: Alia, Palette, Iris, or Nana
Premise: X and Zero are pre-occupied with some of threat or mission that's going to take them away from our story for a good while, or worse are outright MIA, leaving one or more of these navigators to step up to the plate when new problems start emerging in their wake. They have big shoes to fill ... pun intended, it won't be easy. In Iris' case, we would have to explain how and why she's not dead anymore or set it prior to X4.

Mega Man Zero

Character: Ciel (Maybe Neige?)
Premise: Taking place in an AU in which Ciel never fled Neo Arcadia and instead started working to try and take it down from within, she will be charged with important mission from rescuing supposed mavericks to obtaining classified info or even taking down important officials. To aid her she will have access to cyber elves who will be reusable so long as they're fed enough e-crystals, and of course weapons. It'll be dangerous, with an element of espionage, but there'll be plenty of outright action too.

Mega Man ZX

Characters: Aile, Ashe, Ciel, or a Model Roll Biometal wielding OC
Premise: A new villain, quite possibly Master Thomas, is trying to remake the world in their image and one of our two heroines needs to teach them a lesson, or just try to survive their continued attempts at world conquest if you'd prefer that tone to a more heroic one. If Ciel is the character in question, she might have gotten ahold of Model Z after it was lost, or we could just run with her having all the biometals. There will probably also be new biommatches wielding biometals of other characters made by an unknown source.

Mega Man Legends

Character: Roll Caskett or Tron Bonne
Premise: Volnutt is MIA and Roll is reluctantly forced to take up heroics in an effort to go find him, going on her own adventures and toughing it out as a digger. This'll involve a lot of ruins exploration, and probably a comedic run in with Tron who is searching for Volnutt for other reasons. On the other hand if you're interested in playing Tron we could do a villain/anti-hero story in which she's doing sky pirate things, either pillaging like in the Misadventures of Tron Bonne or competing with rival, perhaps more evil villains.

Mega Man Battle Network

Characters: Mayl Sakurai, Mary Towa, or Iris.exe
Premise: Lan is off at a prestigious university, having finally been recognized for his repeated saving of the world and/or internet. But that doesn't mean trouble has left town and followed him. This time it'll be up to one of the others to deal with it when viruses, corruption, and wacky mustachio'd evil-doers try to mess the net up for everyone else. In Iris.exe's case, she'll probably have access to a physical body so that we aren't entirely limited to the net.

Mega Man Star Force

Character: Sonia Strumm
Premise: Being an idol is hard, but Sonia is up to the task, and it turns out that a passionate audience is going to be critical to solving the next crisis, leaving Geo out of a job! ...Or more accurately, on vacation. Poor guy. Balance idol life with hero work, keeping up a good image while getting down and dirty with campy villains and rivals. You get the jist.

Heya! I'm looking to do a Mega Man RP where the protagonist's role is given to one of the female characters for once. Bonus points if you're down for some hammy girl power vibes. I'm a literate roleplayer. I love the action/fighting, adventure, comedy, drama, and romance genres, in something resembling an order. I'm partial to FxF if romance is even a thing. And I'm open to hearing and considering your own unique ideas for Mega Man RPs. My intention is to GM for you. I can play a dedicated character in addition to GMing if you'd like, but right now I'm really interested narrating the world / NPC encounters for someone else. The one catch is hat I want you to play a canon character. You can try to sell me on your OC if you want! Just uh--Don't be offended if I say no. Since there are many different parts of the Mega Man franchise, I'd like to briefly talk about which ones and which characters I'm interested in seeing people play.

Mega Man Classic

Character: Roll Light (Maybe Quake Woman or Vesper Woman?)
Premise: There's trouble afoot and there's only like a 98% Dr Wily is involved somehow. Armed with her buster, broom, and a Variable Weapon System (See: The thing that lets Mega copy powers), Roll sets save the day. Why isn't Mega doing it? Could be as simple as him being down for repairs. He could be kidnapped. It could be worse! Because Classic Mega Man is anemic plot-wise, the tone could range from comedic and light-hearted to more serious.

Mega Man X

Characters: Alia, Palette, Iris, or Nana
Premise: X and Zero are pre-occupied with some of threat or mission that's going to take them away from our story for a good while, or worse are outright MIA, leaving one or more of these navigators to step up to the plate when new problems start emerging in their wake. They have big shoes to fill ... pun intended, it won't be easy. In Iris' case, we would have to explain how and why she's not dead anymore or set it prior to X4.

Mega Man Zero

Character: Ciel (Maybe Neige?)
Premise: Taking place in an AU in which Ciel never fled Neo Arcadia and instead started working to try and take it down from within, she will be charged with important mission from rescuing supposed mavericks to obtaining classified info or even taking down important officials. To aid her she will have access to cyber elves who will be reusable so long as they're fed enough e-crystals, and of course weapons. It'll be dangerous, with an element of espionage, but there'll be plenty of outright action too.

Mega Man ZX

Characters: Aile, Ashe, Ciel, or a Model Roll Biometal wielding OC
Premise: A new villain, quite possibly Master Thomas, is trying to remake the world in their image and one of our two heroines needs to teach them a lesson, or just try to survive their continued attempts at world conquest if you'd prefer that tone to a more heroic one. If Ciel is the character in question, she might have gotten ahold of Model Z after it was lost, or we could just run with her having all the biometals. There will probably also be new biommatches wielding biometals of other characters made by an unknown source.

Mega Man Legends

Character: Roll Caskett or Tron Bonne
Premise: Volnutt is MIA and Roll is reluctantly forced to take up heroics in an effort to go find him, going on her own adventures and toughing it out as a digger. This'll involve a lot of ruins exploration, and probably a comedic run in with Tron who is searching for Volnutt for other reasons. On the other hand if you're interested in playing Tron we could do a villain/anti-hero story in which she's doing sky pirate things, either pillaging like in the Misadventures of Tron Bonne or competing with rival, perhaps more evil villains.

Mega Man Battle Network

Characters: Mayl Sakurai, Mary Towa, or Iris.exe
Premise: Lan is off at a prestigious university, having finally been recognized for his repeated saving of the world and/or internet. But that doesn't mean trouble has left town and followed him. This time it'll be up to one of the others to deal with it when viruses, corruption, and wacky mustachio'd evil-doers try to mess the net up for everyone else. In Iris.exe's case, she'll probably have access to a physical body so that we aren't entirely limited to the net.

Mega Man Star Force

Character: Sonia Strumm
Premise: Being an idol is hard, but Sonia is up to the task, and it turns out that a passionate audience is going to be critical to solving the next crisis, leaving Geo out of a job! ...Or more accurately, on vacation. Poor guy. Balance idol life with hero work, keeping up a good image while getting down and dirty with campy villains and rivals. You get the jist.

Heya! I'm looking to do a Mega Man RP where the protagonist's role is given to one of the female characters for once. Bonus points if you're down for some hammy girl power vibes. I'm a literate roleplayer. I love the action/fighting, adventure, comedy, drama, and romance genres, in something resembling an order. I'm partial to FxF if romance is even a thing. And I'm open to hearing and considering your own unique ideas for Mega Man RPs. My intention is to GM for you. I can play a dedicated character in addition to GMing if you'd like, but right now I'm really interested narrating the world / NPC encounters for someone else. The one catch is hat I want you to play a canon character. You can try to sell me on your OC if you want! Just uh--Don't be offended if I say no. Since there are many different parts of the Mega Man franchise, I'd like to briefly talk about which ones and which characters I'm interested in seeing people play.

Mega Man Classic

Character: Roll Light (Maybe Quake Woman or Vesper Woman?)
Premise: There's trouble afoot and there's only like a 98% Dr Wily is involved somehow. Armed with her buster, broom, and a Variable Weapon System (See: The thing that lets Mega copy powers), Roll sets save the day. Why isn't Mega doing it? Could be as simple as him being down for repairs. He could be kidnapped. It could be worse! Because Classic Mega Man is anemic plot-wise, the tone could range from comedic and light-hearted to more serious.

Mega Man X

Characters: Alia, Palette, Iris, or Nana
Premise: X and Zero are pre-occupied with some of threat or mission that's going to take them away from our story for a good while, or worse are outright MIA, leaving one or more of these navigators to step up to the plate when new problems start emerging in their wake. They have big shoes to fill ... pun intended, it won't be easy. In Iris' case, we would have to explain how and why she's not dead anymore or set it prior to X4.

Mega Man Zero

Character: Ciel (Maybe Neige?)
Premise: Taking place in an AU in which Ciel never fled Neo Arcadia and instead started working to try and take it down from within, she will be charged with important mission from rescuing supposed mavericks to obtaining classified info or even taking down important officials. To aid her she will have access to cyber elves who will be reusable so long as they're fed enough e-crystals, and of course weapons. It'll be dangerous, with an element of espionage, but there'll be plenty of outright action too.

Mega Man ZX

Characters: Aile, Ashe, Ciel, or a Model Roll Biometal wielding OC
Premise: A new villain, quite possibly Master Thomas, is trying to remake the world in their image and one of our two heroines needs to teach them a lesson, or just try to survive their continued attempts at world conquest if you'd prefer that tone to a more heroic one. If Ciel is the character in question, she might have gotten ahold of Model Z after it was lost, or we could just run with her having all the biometals. There will probably also be new biommatches wielding biometals of other characters made by an unknown source.

Mega Man Legends

Character: Roll Caskett or Tron Bonne
Premise: Volnutt is MIA and Roll is reluctantly forced to take up heroics in an effort to go find him, going on her own adventures and toughing it out as a digger. This'll involve a lot of ruins exploration, and probably a comedic run in with Tron who is searching for Volnutt for other reasons. On the other hand if you're interested in playing Tron we could do a villain/anti-hero story in which she's doing sky pirate things, either pillaging like in the Misadventures of Tron Bonne or competing with rival, perhaps more evil villains.

Mega Man Battle Network

Characters: Mayl Sakurai, Mary Towa, or Iris.exe
Premise: Lan is off at a prestigious university, having finally been recognized for his repeated saving of the world and/or internet. But that doesn't mean trouble has left town and followed him. This time it'll be up to one of the others to deal with it when viruses, corruption, and wacky mustachio'd evil-doers try to mess the net up for everyone else. In Iris.exe's case, she'll probably have access to a physical body so that we aren't entirely limited to the net.

Mega Man Star Force

Character: Sonia Strumm
Premise: Being an idol is hard, but Sonia is up to the task, and it turns out that a passionate audience is going to be critical to solving the next crisis, leaving Geo out of a job! ...Or more accurately, on vacation. Poor guy. Balance idol life with hero work, keeping up a good image while getting down and dirty with campy villains and rivals. You get the jist.

Just returned from a trip to Japan and coming back to Toronto is..tough.
Toronto is a decent place to live, but in terms of what it offers as a city, it is just painfully mediocre.
Let's start with food, dining out has become incredibly expensive with mediocre food. If you want to eat anything decent, you're looking at at least $30 + tips + tax, and most of the times the food isn't even that good. There isn't any cheaper, affordable, quick, good meal options anymore, since even a meal at fast food place is expensive. Not to mention now every fucking shop is asking for tips, buying a coffee and the tipping option starts with 15%, like wtf am I even tipping for?! (Don't get me started with tipping on buying cookies!)
The city seems big but the new or novel things to do are just so few. All the ones you guys will probably mention I have tried. Kingston market, St Lawrence Market(like this one is just beyond lame), and all Little Italy, Danforth areas etc. They are just so boring to even visit. And walking on those streets is just painfully pointless. All the festivals etc are filled with same types of food vendors and uninspiring performances. And what is everyone's favourite activity to do in the summer? Drinking at a patio! I really don't get how this activity is so popular, most of the patios are just tiny little area facing the streets and it's not that much more fun just because you're drinking 10m away from an indoor place, and it's..just drinking. Or going to Toronto island for the 100th times.
Lastly, the people, the people in Toronto just give me this vibe of that they think they are such hot shit(but in fact they are really not). Going out in Toronto is probably the worst going out experience I ever had in my life, everyone is just hanging out in their own friends group and don't really want to interact with others. It's such sad thing that supposedly that a diverse city like Toronto don't have people with more open attitudes.
Of course, I know it's a very different visiting a place as a tourist, and this is just another weekly(daily) shitting on Toronto, but still, I wish the city could be more fun and interesting, but I just can't wait to move away!

Every 'patch' is just the devs overbuffing a random character to artificially change the meta so they can release more skins for the broken mons. I have played since launch and have seen this happen so many times im sick of it. Not to mention the fact that they purposefully release new mons in such a broken state just to drive up sales, only to nerf them to a regular power level a couple of weeks later. Now, with the rise of Glaceon, the game has just become boring, and the endgame is essentially which glaceon can rush Rayquaza first. This game has started a sharp decline, which started around about when zacian was released. The only 'balanced' release since then was Chandelure, the others were way too broken (Lapras) or just bad (Goodra). It's sad to see a game I used to be able to play hours of with my friends just become even more of a soulless cashgrab.

Hello,
I hope you're all doing well. I'm here today seeking advice on how to build muscle more efficiently and optimize the recovery process to maximize gains and want does Andrew huberman say about gaining muscles. I've been doing just calisthenics but I'm eager to explore strategies that can help me accelerate the muscle-building process without compromising my overall health.
Firstly, I would greatly appreciate any insights or recommendations on effective techniques, exercises, or training programs that have helped you personally in building muscle. Are there specific exercises or training methodologies that have yielded notable results for you? Any resources, books, or articles you can recommend to expand my knowledge in this area would be highly valued.
Moreover, I'm interested to know what your experiences have been regarding recovery time between workouts. I understand that rest and recovery are crucial components of any fitness regimen, but I'm curious to hear how long you typically allow for recovery before engaging the muscles again. Is there a general guideline or rule of thumb when it comes to the ideal recovery period? I want to ensure that I'm giving my muscles ample time to repair and grow, but I also want to strike a balance that allows for consistent progress.
Lastly, I'm aware that nutrition plays a significant role in muscle growth. Are there any specific dietary recommendations you follow to support muscle building? Should I be prioritizing certain macronutrients or exploring supplementation options to enhance my progress? I want to fuel my body optimally for muscle development and overall well-being.
I understand that building muscle is a journey that requires dedication, patience, and a personalized approach. However, hearing from others who have successfully navigated this process can provide invaluable insights and help me fine-tune my own approach.
Thank you all in advance for your time and expertise. I'm eager to learn from this wonderful community and take my muscle-building journey to new heights.

Toxic Rats: B, Geoff, Scott, Leshawna, Sammy, Sierra
Mutant Maggots: Anne Maria, Katie, Molly, Scarlett, Dave, DJ, Trent
Episode 02: Truth or Mutant Shark
"Last time, on Total Drama Revenge of the Island!" Chris opened over a long-distance shot of Wawanakwa, the recap montage beginning soon after. "Fourteen new competitors were blown away by this year's challenges," the host said as the yacht carrying the new cast was shown, Chris maliciously pressed a button on his remote control, and the yacht blew up. "They were treated to an early-morning swim," Max was shown trying not to drown, "said hello to the island's wildlife," Dave was shown to get nearly zapped by its eye-lasers, "and did some totem-surfing," the Toxic Rats slid down the hill and into the air, falling from their totem just before it crashed into the better cabin and exploded. "Ex-plosive!"
"In the end," a few short clips of Max trying to be villainous, "Max's non-stop claims about being dangerous made him useless enough that his team sent him packing, Hurl of Shame-style." The recap footage ended with Max getting catapulted off the island.
"Who'll go home next?" Chris asked the camera from the end of the dock. "And how much pain can I put them through first? Find out right now, on Total! Drama! Revenge of the Island!"
XXXXX
The episode opened on a shot of the morning sky and a few far-away bird calls as the camera panned down to the two cabins of Camp Wawanakwa.
The shot cut inside to the girls' half of the Rats' cabins where Leshawna and Sammy were woken up to the sound of Sierra texting on her phone.
"The first day competing on Total Drama was exciting," Sierra talked to her phone. "I managed to make some friends and even though my team lost the first challenge, I'm still staying for another day!"
"Girl, who are you even talking to?" Leshawna mumbled tiredly.
"I'm giving the fans an update about my day and experience being a contestant," Sierra mentioned. "The fansite eats up this stuff."
"Are you going to carry your phone everywhere you go just to do so?" Sammy asked.
"I won't use it during the challenges, but I keep it with me at all times," Sierra said. "Without my phone, I'd probably lose my mind!"
Confessional: Sammy
"So I joined the show because my friend group suggested I do so," Sammy timidly said. "They said it's to increase my self-esteem and make me branch out more or something close to those lines."
Confessional Ends
The shot cut abruptly to a top-down view of the other half of the Rats' cabin, showing Geoff and B sleeping in their bunk beds. The sound of a door suddenly slammed open and slammed shut, waking Geoff up.
It was Scott – flat against the front door with his eyes wide, his breath heaving, and his clothes dirty. "Dude, what happened to you?" Geoff asked in concern.
Scott straightened himself out. "Oh, uh... just had an early morning make out session with one of the honeys," he explained.
Geoff got out of his bed in his pajamas and got near Scott. "Why are you so messy then?"
The footage quickly cut to a scene of Scott running in terror from a Woolly Beaver – one with several boney spikes jutting out of its back. The shot flashed back to the Rats' cabin, and Scott added "A gentleman doesn't kiss and tell."
"Wait," Geoff stepped in. "You kissed a guy?" This comment earned him an annoyed expression from Scott.
Confessional: Scott
"All right. I was out looking for that hidden immunity idol, not that they need to know," Scott opened up. "It's all part of my strategy. Let my team lose so the Maggots develop a false sense of security before I pick 'em off!"
He was interrupted by a knock on the wall. "Occupied!" he shouted until the wholly beaver from earlier barged through the wall and frightened Scott into screaming.
Confessional Ends
The camera cut back outside the cabins, zooming on on the Maggots' abode on the right then cutting inside to show Anne Maria brushing and blow drying her hair.
Scarlett walked up behind her from the left carrying a clipboard. "How were you able to sneak those cans in?" she asked.
Anne Maria placed her items inside her pouf. "Easy. I stuck it in my pouf." She noticed the clipboard. "Why are you carryin' that clipboard?"
"I've been working on sleep analysis, Anne Maria," Scarlett answered. "Your stage two sleep spindles were low frequency followed by an intense delta or slow-wave. You slept well."
Anne Maria was a little surprised to hear that. "That's nice, but don't go spyin' on me." She grabbed her hairspray from her pouf and walked away spraying her hair.
Scarlett saw that Katie was still sleeping. "Seems Katie's sleep cycle is lower than I anticipated. Had she not tried to pull an all-nighter, she'd have a higher score," Scarlett spoke to herself.
Confessional: Scarlett
"I have the need to research my teammates and know what their weaknesses and strengths are," Scarlett said. "We were able to achieve victory in the first challenge, and I want to keep it that way."
Confessional Ends
The scene flashed to the boys' side of the cabin, the camera focusing on DJ as he woke up and stretched his arms. "Morning Trent and Dave!" the brickhouse greeted his bunkmates, though Dave wasn't around at the moment. "Where'd Dave go?"
Trent, who had also woken up, shrugged. "Beats me. He probably went to the bathroom."
Confessional: Trent
"This is my first time sleeping in a cabin," Trent confessed with his guitar on his lap. "It was hard trying to fall asleep, so I played some songs that were guaranteed to make me and the guys drift off… at least that's what my friends back home say."
"Anyway, my bunk mates are pretty cool. Dave's a bit neurotic, and DJ's more soft-spoken, but once I get to know them more, I can guarantee you we'll be best buds."
Confessional Ends
The scene cut to the back of the Maggots' cabin where Molly got out of a tent that she pitched.
Confessional: Molly
"I don't like bunk beds," Molly admitted with a shrug. "They tend to break no matter how stable it is. That's why I decided to sleep outside. Besides, I wanted to have a camping experience, and sleeping in a tent is the first way to go."
Confessional Ends
The footage returned to Molly stretching her body, and a few seconds later, Dave walked up to her. "Did you sleep outside of your cabin?"
"Yep," Molly nodded.
"Do you know the negatives of doing that?" Dave crossed his arms.
"I don't think so," Molly shook her head.
"You could get bug bites or get sick," Dave explained to the indie woman.
"I already planned for that," Molly laughed. "Ever heard of bug spray and sleeping bags?"
"I know those things, but why did you sleep outside?" Dave wondered.
"One, I prefer to sleep by myself, and two, I don't like sleeping indoors," Molly gives the germaphobe answers. "I hate following the crowd."
"Okay then," Dave said. "I'm gonna use the bathroom. Are you coming?"
"I'm already prepared," Molly took out toothpaste and a toothbrush.
\
The scene cut to a seagull sleeping in a nest inside the horn of a loudspeaker. A blow horn sounded through it without warning, though, forcing the bird out into the air and revealing its snake-like features as it fell.
"Up and at 'em my little morning glories!" Chris called out, sitting on his ATV below. "It's time for today's challenge!" he announced, the camera moving behind him to show the two teams assembled in front, their respective logos appearing on the screen overhead.
"What?" Sierra asked in shock. "But we haven't even had breakfast yet!"
"Not a problem for me," Molly brushed it off and swallowed a pickle. "I packed enough pickles for me to be full."
"And we haven't had enough sleep," Katie added.
"Cognitive function is dependent on REM sleep," Scarlett acknowledged the host.
"You can catch up on your sleep after the challenge," Chris told them. "Rrright this way, to the Bay of Dismay!"
The thirteen campers groaned, except for Katie, who pulled out her tablet.
"Hey viewers! I'm gonna be at a Bay of Dismay," Katie started to film herself until Chris used a magnet to take her tablet away. "What the?"
"Contraband! Now it's mine! Confiscator's keepers! Come on! Your humiliation awaits!" Chris told a miserable Katie.
\
The scene flashed ahead to the thirteen campers walking along at an even pace. "'Bay of Dismay'?" Trent told Anne Maria as they walked side-by-side. "That doesn't sound depressing at all."
"If Chris is gonna make us fight against alligators," Anne Maria said. "I'm planning on suing him after the show ends for breaking my nails."
Trent frowned, but chose to ignore it.
The camera lingered a few seconds as they walked off, long enough for DJ and Katie to enter the shot together. "So, what kinda challenge do you think Chris is gonna put us through this time?" DJ asked.
"I don't know," Katie answered without looking at him, "but I hope it's one that requires the use of a camera so I can take pictures with it, you know?"
DJ facepalmed, unseen by the influencer.
Confessional: Katie
"It's been four minutes, and I'm already missing my tablet," Katie squeaked out and huddled herself. "How will my viewers know what I'm doing right now?"
Confessional Ends
DJ decided to make Katie happy. "Maybe when the challenge is over, you could get your tablet back."
"Emphasis on maybe," Katie snarked.
"I don't know if this is going to be another physical challenge," Leshawna said to Sierra as the footage cut to the two of them walking together. "We already struggled getting that totem down last challenge."
"Chris probably has an academic challenge planned for us at the Bay of Dismay," Sierra told her as they walked forward, "and I know Chris isn't lying."
"How do you know Chris isn't frontin' us?" Leshawna asked.
"Basic knowledge," Sierra bragged. "I can tell if he's lying to us by his vocal pitch and body language."
"So you really studied the show and how it works, huh?" Leshawna followed up in surprise.
"Of course I have," Sierra said. "I've seen every episode like fifty-three times and auditioned twice before being accepted the second time."
B and Scarlett were now shown walking together. "Any idea on what we'll be facing up against?" the quiet brainiac asked the similarly intelligent boy, who didn't talk back to her. "I can see that you prefer not to vocalize your sentences like me, but you're more exaggerated."
Confessional: B
B simply shrugged in the confessional.
Confessional Ends
The static cut away to the body of water that was, presumably, the Bay of Dismay. Three structures rose out of its waters: on the left and right were two-tiered game-show-like seats that housed the Toxic Rats and Mutant Maggots respectively and bore their logos on the front; and in the middle was a single Greek pedestal upon which Chris stood in his blue tuxedo below a large video screen and electronic scoreboard.
"Welcome to the 'Getting to Know You' Trivia Game Challenge," Chris introduced. "Everyone strapped in all nice and snug?" he asked the contestants.
"Too snug," Scott answered irritably. "It's cutting into my shoulders!"
"Yeah, children's size harnesses will do that," Chris chuckled. "I'll be asking our players embarrassing personal questions," he explained, "and I mean majorly humiliating. If the player I'm talking about hits the poorly-wired buzzer and owns their humiliation before the time runs out," he continued as the shot cut back to Scott looking at the red buzzer on the counter in front of him, the camera zooming out to show Sierra on the left, Sammy on the right, and B, Leshawna, and Geoff on the back row, "their team gets a point." The camera panned across the Maggots, showing DJ, Molly, and Scarlett in the bottom row and Katie, Anne Maria, Dave, and Trent above. "First team to five wins part one, and a distinct advantage in part two."
"Buuut," Chris added as the shot cut back to him, "if no one owns up, this happens!" He took out his remote, pressed the button, and with a mechanical whir the elevated stand the Maggots were seated in suddenly dropped into the bay. The shot cut to the seven holding their breaths below the water, focusing in on DJ in particular. He looked around and screamed when he saw the large mutant shark with arms and legs looking at him hungrily, and his teammates joined in as the shark reared back to take a bite – but the stand rose back up just in time to take the teens away from danger.
The shot cut back to the surface as the Maggots re-emerged, dripping and coughing and generally frantic. "There's some kind of two-legged shark down there!" Anne Maria told the host in a panic.
"You mean Fang?" Chris asked with a broad smile and quick laugh. "Yeah, it turns out toxic waste can mess with stuff underwater too." He pointed up at the screen above him as he spoke, and the camera panned up to show a seemingly ordinary shark drinking a cup of tea on a wooden post underwater...until the screen flashed, and a picture of Fang against a simple teal background replaced the normal shark. "Who knew?"
"Better them than us," Scott said from the Rats' stand.
"Anywho," Chris continued slowly, "if a team gets dunked, their opponents can steal by guessing which dunk-ee is guilty. Guess right, and you get a point. Guess wrong, and this happens." With a sly look he pressed the button on his remote again, and this time it was the Rats who got plunged into the bay. Fang was shown tying a bib around his neck, then looking behind him just as the fresh set of teenagers came into view. He turned around and opened his mouth to bite, and with the muffled screams being heard the shot cut back to the bubbling surface. Chris pressed the button once more, and the Toxic Rats rocketed back up on their stand.
"Now that we understand the rules," Chris told them as they coughed up water, "let's start the game!" The host pulled a notecard out from behind his back. "To the Rats, now listen carefully," he began. "Who does this," he motioned upward to a picture of a question mark, "if they eat or drink any form of dairy?" the question mark farted.
All members of the Mutant Maggots began to laugh, as did the members of the Toxic Rats – all except Leshawna, who seemed to shrink in her seat as the camera zoomed in on her. "Where did you get that?" the sista asked in her embarrassment, pressing her buzzer and yelping at the shock she received.
The shot cut to the scoreboard, the Rats' half changing from 0 to 1.
The camera moved back to Chris and his card, now turned towards the Maggots. "Who sleeps with a teddy bear," he motioned upward to a picture of a brown teddy bear, "even after they turned 13?"
"Really? I thought we were more grown-up than that," Dave cringed at the fact.
Scarlett saw that DJ was feeling embarrassed. "Push the button, DJ! You're clearly harboring some guilt," Scarlett advised.
As the timer continued ticking, DJ finally shuddered, then slammed his right hand down on her buzzer. "Alright then," he declared after getting shocked, "it's me."
A bit of light laughter came from the Rats, and the scoreboard updated to show the Maggots' first point. "And it's one-all!" the host declared, earning a cheer from the Maggots.
"Aww, thanks DJ," Katie whispered to the drooping brickhouse. "I know that must've been hard, and I don't hold it against you."
"Really?" DJ regained his smile.
"I have my own collection of teddy bears in my room," Katie beamed.
Confessional: DJ
"Liking teddy bears is one thing me and Katie have in common," DJ smiled in the outhouse. "We'd have to get to know each other a bit more."
Confessional End
"Rats," Chris turned back to the other team, "whose first name is really Beverly?"
"That's not embarrassing," Trent called out defensively. "None of us will throw a fuss over a girl's name being Beverly."
Over to the Rats, Sierra was looking at a picture of Chris, Sammy was shrugging to signify it wasn't her, and Leshawna was just waiting for someone to buzz in.
B, on the other hand, looked down at his own buzzed timidly, and after some consideration, he pressed the buzzer and got shocked, raising his hand to let Chris know that he owned up to the question.
"Correct, Beverly," Chris teased the strong, silent genius. "Rats get the point, but I would've preferred a verbal response."
"But B is as quiet as a snail," Geoff piped up. "And we still got the point."
"Don't care," Chris said apathetically. "So, as a quick punishment." He smiled as he pushed the button on his remote again.
The Rats were plunged back into the water, and the camera focused on Scott as he hollered before getting chomped up by Fang, the stand rising back up as Fang struggled to close his jaws.
Scott managed to get out of Fang's mouth, shouting "No! Wait for me!" as he swam back to her seat.
Confessional: Scott
Scott winced in the confessional, pulling something white out of his butt. "What the? A shark tooth?" he asked, looking at what was obviously a shark's tooth.
Confessional: Fang
The next to use the confessional was none other than Fang, examining his mouth in a hand mirror with great concern. Upon noticing the gap in his upper row of sharp teeth, he growled angrily and snapped the mirror.
Confessionals End
Scott furiously climbed back into his seat. "Thanks for leaving me down there, team!" Scott scolded his teammates. "You can win this stupid challenge without me!"
"If he's not playing, then I'm not either," Anne Maria chimed in, the shot zooming back out as she and the other Maggots looked towards the host.
"I've already had a secret about me exposed, so I think I'll be leavin'," Leshawna declared.
"Okay, everyone just settle down," Chris told them all sternly.
"I'm with everyone else. We should stop," Molly said, standing up and trying to undo her harness. "I do not want any secrets of mine to be spilled out."
"You can do so after you've had a secret revealed," Scarlett snapped.
"Hey! Host talking here!" Chris barked. "I decide when the challenge is over."
"Whatever," Scott scoffed, having already removed his harness. "I'm out of here."
"Not until we win," Sierra held the dirt farmer back from leaving. "I am not going to have us lose."
Just then, Fang jumped out of the water and took a large bite out of the Maggots' stand, forcing them to yelp.
"Now would be a good time to leave," Sammy remarked and tried to get herself out of her straps.
The shot cut back to the Maggots as Anne Maria and Scarlett began to argue with Dave and Molly and DJ, Katie, and Trent watched the debacle going on.
Eventually, the shot cut back to Chris as he finally shouted "Alright! SHUT IT!" The off-screen arguments promptly ceased. "Thanks to that pathetic digression," he said in annoyance, glancing at his watch, "now we don't have enough time to finish this challenge! Happy?"
The Rats voiced their agreement. Likewise, all the Maggots agreed happily.
"Well you won't be happy for long," Chris told them and the camera with a smile. "Come back after the break for an all-new challenge from which there is no escape. And in the meantime," he added slyly as he took his remote back out and pushed the button, causing both teams to be dunked into the bay with a scream once more.
\
(Commercial Break)
\

So, I've got a large k8s (1.27.1) cluster built with kubeadm on bare metal servers and using Calico as network plugin. I'm using both Traefik and HAProxy as ingress controllers (due to different workloads, separated with ingressClass) and both are installed with their respective Helm charts as DaemonSets with nodeSelectors to target only the worker nodes. I keep the apiservers separate, no workloads on them. MetalLB in L2 mode provides clusterexternal IPs to LoadBalancers type Services in the cluster.
Nodes are physically in the 10.118.1.0/22 private network (including virtual IPs for HA apiservers, and MetalLB IPPools are also in this range), 172.16.0.0/23 allocated for services and 172.16.28.0/22 for pods.
Now, when adding a new node (normal kubeadm join) it's 50/50 if the Traefik and HAProxy pods get a proper IP or not.
Most likely reason for this is the race condition if Calico/MetalLB pods become ready before or after Traefik/HAProxy pods.
In the error case, the ingress pods get an address from a weird 10.85.0.0 network - a network range that does not exist in our infra, and has never been added to k8s. Then if I a minute later delete the pod, it will be recreated with a valid address in the 172.16.28.0/22 range.
Now as the ingress controllers Service work in a roundrobin fashion, it's then 1/n (n=count of nodes) chance that connections time out as the Service tries to hit the non-existing 10.85.x.x IP instead of the 172.16.28.x. And as this becomes an ugly hang the connection until timeout and then retry, so it reflects upon end-users occasionally.
This only applies to DaemonSets. StatefulSets and Deployments seem immune - maybe they start a little later?
My questions are:
1) Where would this 10.85.0.0 network come from, why do Pods get IP from a range that simply is not is defined anywhere? Why not a 169.254.0.0 link-local address that is reserved for unconfigured networking devices?
2) Any way of postponing the new node entering a Ready state before the networking DaemonSets are ready? Sure, I could hack a sleep 10 seconds to ingress pods startup command, but that's not a beautiful solution.

Aware of the pros and cons of each vehicle for most part. Have a loaded Bolt on order if it ever gets made. I'm in MI.

I figure numbers wise, MSRP on Bolt is $36,285. I'll get a $1,500 GM discount so $34,785. Michigan's budget waives EV sales tax credit (up to sales price $40,000) effective October 1...so if I buy October 1 or beyond, no sales tax. $7,500 tax rebate included (I'd qualify for full thing), and the effective price becomes $27,285. I'm in no hurry to get the vehicle so waiting for October is cool with me.

A new Model 3 in existing inventory is $37,830. With sales tax, $40,099.80. The full tax rebate, which just kicked in in the last 24 hours, makes it an effective $32,599.80.

So we're talking a $5,000 difference in the best case scenario. If I bought the Bolt without the EV tax break, it would be $29,372...almost the same as the Model 3.

Affordability wise, I can handle both. I do try to be frugal and save. Trip wise, the Bolt would do it's job for me. Would inconvenience a couple times a year, but that's about it. Having the supercharger network would be nice, but isn't a total must for my driving habits.

So for people that own the Bolt and/or Model 3, or have experiences with one of them or both of them...how much more would you be willing to pay for a Model 3? With the Tesla price cuts on existing inventory + full $7,500 rebate, is the M3 the obvious buy? I'm not that interested in a no frills Bolt...I know the Bolt can be had for cheaper without options but I want one car with the bells and whistles as it will be something I keep for 10+ years.

Engagement based matchmaking refers to the practice of balancing lobbies and matching players in a specific and manufactured way to influence them to play the game longer and spend more money on micro transactions.
Some aspects of this include: giving you some bad games and then a good game and then some bad games to keep you playing. Intentionally matching you with players to force a certain outcome for the match so they can influence your mood and desire to play the game. The prime example of this is Call of duty who utilize what is (imo) the most egregious form of EBMM, specifically since Modern Warfare 2019. They (activison) have patented this “technology” btw. It tracks everything about player performance from things like aim, movement, apm, accuracy of button inputs, etc. this info is used to make a specific profile of each player which influences their engagement based algorithm.
One last point to illustrate why I find this deplorable is how it can be used it with skins. Activision have patented (and presumably use) a technology where they match new/casual players with good players who have bought a new skin, so the casual players get destroyed and subconsciously think “he’s good because of the skin let me buy it”. Sounds stupid but I’m sure it works and this exact thing has been described in the patent. They aren’t even hiding their intentions.
Ultimately, this is the result of unchecked capitalism and corporations chasing as much profit as possible. It’s sad but I’m sure more time has gone into developing the match-making algorithm for cod then time on the actual game. I think this sort of practice should be made illegal as it directly results in worse games, takes away the organic feeling of playing a casual game, and clearly serves no interest for the consumer and only serves to increase profit for the game publisher.
Also, let me just note that this EBMM is used in PUBLIC matches. In a Ranked system there obviously must be strict skill based match making by definition. That isn’t the same as engagement based tho (it’s just based on rank, or it should be at least), and it’s a different discussion with ranked matchmaking.

Main Language: EnglishWe require proficient speaking and communicating levels of english, no advanced linguistic skills required.
Timezones -
**European -**UTC - EveningsGMT+1 - Evenings
**North/South America -**PST NoonCST AfternoonEST Early EveningEST+1 Early EveningAsia - :(Africa - :(Oceania - (If you are brave..)
Schedule:
- Friday - 1930UTC OR 1930EST [CASUAL/FUN OP]
- Saturday - 1930UTC [MAIN OP]
- Sunday - 1930 UTC [MAIN OP] or 1930UTC OR 1930EST [CASUAL/FUN OP]
Operation Types:
A. High Priority Tasks- Intel Collection- Skirmishing (Non-avoidable)- Equipment Capture
B. Regular Tasking- Combined Arms Assault- Infantry Assault- Supply Convy- Reconnaisance
C. Low Priority Tasks- HVT Assassination- Disruption- Intentional Misrepresentation of alignment
**Requirements:**Age 16+legal ArmA 3 Copy, and a legal copy of SOG. PF. (Or compatibility Patch)working microphone (Please be of some quality)
**Required Mods:**See Modpack in server. TFAR, ACE, KAT Medical, CWR, CUP, S & S
ABOUT US.
We are Nova security, at this time a new unit on the scene. We are a unit ran by long-time players, modders and mission makers that puts a massive focus on improving and providing the most excellent assets possible to our players. We love effort and put as much as we can into research and gameplay!We are currently centred around the cold war (1960-1990), starting off our time with Vietnam. We are starting our operations Saturday, May 6th. We accept all individuals across all nations, religions, beliefs and groups, both in our game story and in our servers.
WHAT WE WANT FROM YOU.
We are very relaxed about your behavior. No formal title of address unless it makes it easier to address someone (Ex. calling someone “LT” versus “Starlight”) We do not require you to call people your commanding officer, nor show high respect to leadership. However, we expect you to be on your best behavior at all times. If you cannot reasonably maintain behavior for any given reason, you are welcome to sit out for an OP.We REQUIRE A MINIMUM OF 50% or (4) operations per month. This means you have to attend 4 total operations, or half of the operations that are available to you. (Ie. If only 4 ops happened per month, you only need to attend 2). If 25 operations (somehow) happen, you only need to attend 4 of them.
Multi Clanning
Any Unit that interferes with your ability to attend our operations is not allowed. Otherwise, multi-clanning is allowed.

WHAT WE OFFER TO YOU.
We offer high quality challenging missions alongside a wide variety of operator customization, quality and fun. You are allowed to customize uniforms, kits and weapons to your desires, as well as a team of arma experts and people who have had way too much knowledge on military history.
We are infantry focused, however, we have an support team, known as our auxiliary crew who are expected to know every facet of operation. As an auxiliary member, you need to prove you are able to be a pilot, vehicle crewmen, scout, medic, JTAC and operate artillery without the usage of "computers", as well as be highly open to communication.
For the infantry, you may play as any role you are qualified for, we offer training for all of the following:
Demo/EOD - (RID) Dispose of ordinances and planting and proper usage of demolition or authorised traps.
Scout/Marksman - (Adv. Bal) Recon, report back on information, use markers effectively, and take out high threat/value targets.
MG Specialist - (Adv. Bal) Ability to operate LMG, MMG and HMGs, mounted, held or otherwise.
Medic/Corpsman - (Ace,KAT Medical, Custom) Ability to use limited (high rate) equipment and procedures to treat combat and field injuries effectively, as well as administer certain drugs to soldiers.
Grenadier - (Adv. Bal) Usage of the M79 grenade launcher or another approved grenade launcher. For smoking, indirect fire and other signaling.
AT/AA - Ability to use a large range of Western, Soviet and other design rocket launchers effectively, as well as understand the weaknesses of all possible targets.
Rifleman/Asst. MG - Literally most basic role possible. Carry ammo for people, walk around and shoot.
Auxillary Crew (DETAILS IN SERVER) - Operate all "Assets" present in a mission. Able to operate Aircrafts, Tanks, Mortars and associated measurement, communication and calculation equipment.
Leadership - (TFAR) Ability to operate long range radios for RTO and JTAC functions. As well, all leadership members must prove their ability to lead both team (4) and squad (12) sized elements.
WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR
Infantry
Zeuses
WHAT WE CANNOT OFFER:
Dedicated Armour Corp
Dedicated Air Corp
Dedicated Recon Detachment

You are also welcome to join our teamspeak or check out our ORBAT. If Fun with a tone of seriousness sounds like you, welcome aboard!
>DISCORD
https://discord.gg/xvAMYZFWB8
>ORBAT
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Bv1FRs77rLUTlmDPTRg07w9_1PZbvpLo25zklpR-I28/edit
>SOP
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LqDyxh_BXuJiagLP6IZnp-tv2FcWqEghwnLA-r2klM0/edit#
>TS
IP -173.234.27.145:10105
PASSWORD - grapes

Please have patience with my grammar and spelling. I have studied 14 hours today. I have studied about 30 hours a week during this JavaScript course. That’s outside of the 35-40 hours of class.
I haven’t posted one of my updates here in a while, this place has way more members than the place I’ve been posting. If you don’t like these then I can post elsewhere. Follow em for constant weekly updates.
This is the end of my 4th week. I have 11 more. I technically have one week off in July for summer, so my bootcamp ends in 12 weeks. I haven’t really discussed the schedule so I’ll mention that and I want to really focus on the professional development classes and learner support with this update. The schedule is Monday through Friday, 10am-5pm but office hours are until 6. If you’re doing per scholas in the winter there’s a winter break. I’d you’re doing it in the summer there’s a summer break. They also give you national holidays off. I don’t know about other courses or teachers but my teacher does not give us assignments on these days.
I have now gone through 4 full professional development days. They are wednsday for me. I’ve shared in the past how professional development here is better than at my university. And how I love the coach. He is very very informative and knowledgeable on every question you ask him. It’s actually surprised me a few times when I thought I’d be asking a question most people wouldn’t think and he belted out a very thoughtful answer.
In his course we have now covered and rewrote our entire resume, cover letter, reformatted our entire linked in profile, and our elevator pitch. The resume they gave us a template for but they also gave us very detailed information on how to write each section and how your resume should look similar to what’s on your lines in account. He also had us take online courses for the linked in profile. We also took a personality quiz and skill test to determine the different things we should be writing on our resume and linked in profile. We have also created vision statements and values statements. I think these are all very necessary to understand who you are. It’s not until you sit down and start thinking about these things that you realize how little you know about yourself.
I digress.
I am able to schedule an appointment any day, almost, to speak one on one with him or learner support. These meetings with professional development are 15 minutes but again, any time.
Learner support has provided me with a counselor that is free and better than any therapist I have had. And actually, I have noticed I am able to voice my concerns (I have anxiety) and worries with learner support, my teacher, or professionals e elopement and they’re all very nice people who have very insightful comments and really show they care.
This last Wednesday we met with our recruiters. Thereact course I’m in is funded (design and creation of it) by a recruitment company called teksystems. The recruiter we met with seemed like the definitely knew how to do her job. She said she sits down with the hiring managers of these companies looking to hire employees and coaches them on EXXACTLY how to interview us. Because I guess I’m the past there’s been issues where hiring managers just have no clue how to hire tech workers. So she coaches them ways to draw out the full potential from us. And she kind of explained how she ensures them and us that the jobs she sends us to look into we are going to be qualified for. I’m excited to have someone on the backend working hard to find me a job as well as all these great services on the front end helping me develop. I obviously don’t know if all of this is efficient or successful until I graduate and get my job. But for being free, you can’t beat it.
Follow me so you can continue to get my updates wherever I post next.

This amendment eliminates the SOTW Clause as it's no longer relevant. Additionally, it requires residents to join a co-op to become a citizen (and sets limits of membership to 3 co-ops). Most importantly, it defines the Coordinator System to give the co-ops some structure. Article IV is rewritten as follows:
3.1 The People's Coalition.
The People’s Coalition is the democratic means by which the Danzilonan interests are carried out and maintained. It is composed of non-hierarchical cooperatives and a group of volunteer diplomats known as the Seer. The coalition is privileged with access to national funds, with each cooperative working toward distinct and clearly defined objectives. Danzilonan citizens may become members of cooperatives at will by indicating their intention to do so on the census or contacting the legal cooperative. They may, however, belong to no more than three. The agenda of each cooperative is to be determined either by consensus or a majority vote by its members. The coalition exists in a dynamic state, thus necessary changes to its configuration are encouraged. No particular arrangement of the coalition is to be deemed as final, unconditional, or permanent.
3.1.1 Forming Cooperatives.
The coalition will necessarily have to account for matters of diplomacy, national security, infrastructure, commerce, and the management of a national budget. Cooperatives are brought about when two or more citizens petition to do so during the appropriate time in a legislative session. This is to be done on the subreddit using a [Proposal] thread title. The petitioners must identify themselves then specify the name of the cooperative, its responsibilities, and the project(s) that they will begin work on as its founding members. Voting is to take place in-game following the same procedure as other non-amendment proposals. If a simple majority votes to approve of its formation, a new cooperative is created and integrated into the coalition.
3.1.2 Eliminating Cooperatives.
If a cooperative is deemed obsolete or detrimental it can be recalled at any time by a citizen by posting a [Recall] thread. This initiates an immediate voting process which will take place for 5 days in the same thread and a simple majority must vote in favor of the recall for the cooperative to be eliminated. Alternatively, this can be done by its own members with a [Disband] thread in which all of its own members sign off on its elimination in the comments.
3.1.3 The Agenda
The authority, names, and responsibilities of existing cooperatives may be altered as part of a standard proposal requiring a simple majority. The existence of cooperatives is justified by their continued work on projects for which members may sign up without preconditions other than citizenship. Projects may be short term tasks such as constructing a building. They can also be ongoing efforts such as recordkeeping or improving diplomatic relations. Each cooperative is afforded its own Discord channel and each project its own thread. Conflicts that arise in terms of the agenda are to be resolved internally by democratic means, otherwise it may be appealed to the general population for a vote.
3.1.4 Coordinators
While cooperatives are generally non-hierarchical, the people may decide to enact the Coordinator System when deemed necessary. Coordinators have the power to set the agenda within reason for the sake of keeping the team productive. Elected internally by their members, no one may coordinate more than one cooperative at a time. The role of Coordinator is not to be treated as an office, but rather a dynamic role carried out by the citizens most suited for it at a given time.
The bimonthly census is used to reactivate and nullify the Coordinator System as the people deem necessary. Each census will include a question on the renewal of the Coordinator system. If a majority of census voters respond in favor of renewal by the seventh day, the system will be used until the next census and Coordinators must be re-elected. If a majority of census voters respond in opposition to renewing the Coordinator System by the seventh day, it is immediately dissolved until the next census. A culture in which Coordinators treat their role as temporary and conditional is therefore encouraged.
3.2 The Seer
Unlike cooperatives, the Seer is a permanent feature of the coalition that takes on the diplomatic responsibilities of the FWCD. Each member, known as an Eye of Danzilona, may take on the duties of liaison of Danzilona to an alliance or other supranational organization.
Any Eye can serve as a simple point of contact to foreign nations, however, nations communicating with Danzilona should ideally be asked to seek out a pair of Eyes.
Eyes must work to keep citizenry informed on international matters and are not to make decisions for Danzilona or claim to have the agency to do so. The Eyes must also have a Seer discord channel in which they can communicate about matters of diplomatic significance.
3.2.1 Volunteering, Approval, and Recall
Any citizen who wishes to take on the duties of an Eye shall make a post on Danzilona on a saturday or sunday with the title “[Eye Nomination] - ". Voting will then proceed as outlined in 2.1.2 and 2.1.3 (skipping 2.1.1), with votes as follows: "Eye . eye/nay". Approval requires a 50%+1 vote.
Upon approval the citizen shall become an Eye until they step down or are recalled. To recall an Eye any citizen, including any other Eye, can make a post with the title "[Recall Eye] - ". A 50%+1 vote in favor is required for recall.
Two or more Eyes may also start a snap recall vote for another Eye in Discord as a public thread in the citizens channel, such a vote would instead require 2/3rds of votes but voting would close within 24 hours.
Voting will begin now in this thread and proceed for 48 hours. Since this is an amendment a 2/3rds in favor will be needed for it to pass. All those in favor vote Aye, all those oppose, Nay.

Today's games repulse me with their copycat, timid and shallow character. Though it seems like there is a variety of concepts flashing around, in practice games revolve around the same half-dozen tropes. Their hallmark sign is that it is nothing that is not seen on TV. If the game's idea is not a reflection of the modern world from someone who, by all appearances, has never read a real book or has experience to share, then it's Pirates in Some Carribean, or the Victorian Age When Jack the Ripper Roamed in a Black Cab, or the Middle Ages with Standard Treachery, or Abstract Space Exploration. I was sick and tired of this a few years ago, now I have all but given up on this art form. Even when the concept is interesting, it is rarely taken far or with force. Neutered developers are afraid to give offense and as a result make bland, short-breathing stuff, but I think the sharp edges are never there to begin with anymore. I don't know anybody who sets out to defy the world, stand apart from its simulations and blandishments and spit a good gob in its ugly square face.
I have never had an opportunity to make a game of my own (it takes a team besides everything else), but I have made mods for a very old RPG for years - new mechanics, plots, magic, quests, effects, scripts, writing and so on. I have more or less put that old engine on its head, though I know hardly anyone will ever find out about my efforts. This is to say that I am not a pure theorist. Some time in the winter, bored and exasperated, I decided to do a quick marathon of game ideas - for RPG, quests, simulations, something in-between - and see how many I can whip out on the run. I would like something from here picked up by a company, but I am not advertising. I realize that is probably not something that might happen. It was a good exercise for me, however. Here are the results for all to see. I did ten first, then three more occurred to me.
1 ) Circa Caotica
You play the role of Jabsh, a clown of a traveling circus, who suddenly discovers that he is no orphan but the son (Raka, daughter for female players) of the director, Maestro Leotardi. Minutes later after making the sobbing confession the boss is swallowed by the Crocodile Man in a suspicious accident. You have to own up to the unexpected legacy and step into the tight and tall boots of the director. Your responsibility is to keep the circus going by fine-tuning and inventing acts based on ideas solicited over regular all-troupe brainstorming sessions despite little starting respect from the others, who have decided to unionize as well (the mentalist takes notes). You must keep drawing in crowds to avert the bankruptcy, earn respect and manipulation points and find the truth behind Leotardi's death and the disappearance of the Big Green cashbox with everyone's last year salary and the medallion that supposedly bears the face of your mother the same evening. All the while you still have to perform in regular clown acts with your partner. You can play as a red clown or a white clown, and the other type will be your foil.
2) Nachtwaffe
"Ah, count. Decided to join me for a walk?" Vampires steal planes from the Nazi airforce to zoom through the dark skies over the Balkans and turn humans to make more of their own. You start out as a single nosferatu, converted from an arrogant German, and must find and raid small airports and landing strips across the forests and mountains of Roumania, impersonate a living officer to get supplies and fuel, avoid communist guerillas, find and build places to hide during the day and choose which humans to turn to expand your force. Naturally, it is all quite a dead end, as the war is bound to finish sooner or later, which radio broadcasts confirm, and what then will happen to the vampiric empire? But this is something that the gameplay begins to convey to the player gradually. Hopefully the fate of someone who has no future but still does his all will touch some dormant strings in players' hearts.
3) Yuck!
The sleepy Tibetan village of Dongtso is unaware of what lurks in the bushes and the mountains: you, the desperately lonely yak-man. Born with a big head and two horns, you have only one connection to civilization: the gold ring in your nose. Squinting cross-eyed, you can just make out some kind of symbols on it, and a banner over the village shrine features ones like them. This must be the key. You have to lurk about the supersititious hamlet, helping the folk at night and out of sight with small chores and evesdropping on their reactions and conversations until you can pick up a few words, including, at some point, "Hello." Since this is a game about Tibet and shaping up something rebellious, let the tongue be one of Tibet's many and accompanied by Tibetan script. You can train to pronounce the words when you dare show yourself to children, old people and widows, to improve from mooing to legible speech, but until then you have to dodge men's hunting parties and survive. With enough good deeds and a few friends, you might win the folk's confidence and stand before the village council so that someone might teach you to read. The quest becomes complicated, however, by the appearance of the army of People's Republic of China that establishes a base in the village in its push to subdue Tibet. The year is 1952. One of the newcomers is a local - a renegade llama who, the villagers say, has been on many supernatural journeys in the mountains, even to Shangri-La, but is now wearing the uniform of Tibet's conquerors. The writing on the ring, deciphered, identifies him as your father. What will happen next?
4) Footlocker
This is a soccer-themed RPG, but you view the sport from the point of view of a bookie besieged on all sides by mafia. To pay back his debt he resolves on a colossal set-up: first get control of an underdog team, then bring them at least to the regional semi-finals and, with the bets in their favor, make them lose in a big way. The thugs are ready to provide cash handouts, leg-breaking, knuckle sandwiches, addictive opioids and more to get the right people on the team and stubborn elements out, but at the cost of increased control and cut of the profits. You must balance their appetities with placating sports authorities, the press, sponsors and police. In the final match a dilemma presents itself: go through with the plan and ruin the team or defy the gangsters and take your chances on the right side of the tracks?
5) And See It Again For the First Time
Starting out from your homeland on three caravels, you unfurl the sails and set out to circumnavigate the world. The globe is randomly generated every time and rolls away at the horizon, with the map, continents and straits unknown beforehand, in the manner of River Raid. Your characters are the three ships and their crews, condition and supplies are their stats. Dropping anchor at strange shores and dealing with natives will be necessary but dangerous as they fight with each other, shuffle and migrate like microbes. Loss of crew can't be repaired. At least one of the ships must find the passages and make it to the fabulous Gate of Makhamedi, enter it from the far side and begin the journey home.
6) The Person and the Essence
In the beginning chapter you play Sauqin, second-in-command to general Varziranga, head of the army of the Arcolan Empire sent to quash the rebellion of Panlaa, who has tried to bring his province to secede. The imperial army has crushed Panlaa'a troops a fortnight ago and has got him shut in the Ravine of the Gold Specks. Complete victory is near, but the commander has been acting strangely since the battle. On this decisive night his behavior spins out of control just as Panlaa makes a sudden sally from his trap, causing great confusion. As his lieutenant, it falls to you to maintain order in dealing with the various officers as well as the clerics of the One, who insist that Panlaa, a lapsed pagan, be given to them for execution once he is captured. The ending of the chapter will determine whether Panlaa ends in the emperor's prison in the capital, Hotharsoom, alive or dead at the clerics' hands, whether Varziranga will be simply demoted or disgraced.
Chapter two will take place in the capital city. You will have been promoted to a top military command for your performance, only to become embroiled in an intrigue involving the emperor's controlling mother, a consequential schism in the church of the One over whether the head of state is eternally the same person reincarnated or a series of persons, demagogues in the public and lurking pagans with unclear motives. Other chapters will follow, and the endings will determine who sits on the throne and who stands behind it, whether state policy is in principle subject to revision and criticism or not and whether the pagan faiths are crushed without mercy or adopted into the church of the One. The material here is Byzantium, Egypt with the notion of the pharaoh as incarnate Horus and the empires of southeast Asia. Some early Christian heresies also deserve to be revivified.
7) Of Rats and Men
You are a rat trapped in the gears of the Trumpet of Doom, the hugest, heaviest and most advanced steam ship ever to paddle the Grumuous Sea. This basin is famously salty enough to let even an iron float for a time, which, the public money finally gathered, made it the perfect road to carry the 25-inch-gunned ("24 + 1 for Paterland!") Trumpet to the shores of Festaly and at last give those Festalians what for! The citizenry is cheering with patriotic joy, the brass bands are blowing. The ship rats are less happy, especially you, who were captain Reissenpouf's pet before you managed to scramble through a porthole and below the desk as he was buttering a toast. You are nearly panicky with fright. Unlike the locals there, you have spent time locked with the diagrams in the captain's safe and know that the battleship is very weakly armored below the waterline. Someone must have made a good bit of business during the construction selling the metal. When the Trumpet comes up against the Festalians with their triton suicides or their rumored counterpart ship, the Rough Musician, not even the Grumuous Sea will keep it from ending up as a gigantic, barnacled wreck on the ocean floor.
To avoid this fate you only have so much time to organize the other rats for systematic sabotage. The game's world is the enormous ship below and above the deck. The humans of the crew are, of course, adamant in their resolve to get themselves killed, so they will repair the servos, the cables turning the massive gears, the ball bearings, the hydraulics and the rest almost as quickly as those are destroyed. This effort will be headed by the near-transparent, monochrome spindle of a man, Admiral Hel, the leader of the expedition, always of his private high deck, sipping his black milk and staring through his spectacles ahead to where TOD's fate awaits it. If all of you ratfolk together gnaw through and spoil enough of the ship's devices, however, the captain might just have the authority to radio Kaiser Walzer of the decision to turn back... though you personally may also have to sneak back into his cabin to sit on his pillow and intone suggestions as he sleeps. The fact that you are an albino rat and at first come across as a crazy visionary doesn't help, and neither does being a female rat and having to give birth to a litter every so often. The current mate can be deputied on tasks while lactating. Other ships may sometimes be encountered in the sea, with different results, and you may improve your reputation in the murine community by predicting these encounters, if you check the looking glass often enough. The length of the game, and hence the difficulty, depends on the distance to Festalian waters - from two weeks' journey to three months.
8) Cosmic Choir
You play as one of the planets of the solar system. The other actors and your partners are the thieving and scurrilous Mercury, the lusty and sly Venus, the militant braggart Mars and so on. And you are the meh-in-the-middle Earth, and in this group of strong personalities stand out with your unique ability of Rational Decision (it would be nice to get Woody Allen for the voice acting, were he younger). Other planets have other powers, and all of them certain characteristics and appetites (for tasty meteorites, for more intimate or more standoffish orbits and so on). The plot revolves around the announcement of the Sun that it has had enough of burning hydrogen and wants to retire, going immediately into the red giant phase, which would, of course, burn up all of the inner planets and kick the outer planets way out. For this the star has recruited a planet-sized asteroid, large enough to pull most of the star fuel away so that the moribund transformation may be set in motion. The euthanatic dark planet is whirring ever closer. Before it gets on a near enough orbit to disrupt the Sun the other planets must find out what caused this sudden depression and persuade their ruler and source of life otherwise. (The answer is that the Sun has always dreamt of going nova but lacks substance.) Playing as the only inhabited planet, you must also keep the life forms on you alive through all of the maneuvering. If you can get Mars to cooperate, however, you may shorten the distance enough for humanity and some of the ecosystems to make the leap and found Musk City there, and then you won't have to care about your surface anymore.
9) Paris, 1245 A.D.
A meticulously researched simulation of the criminal underworld of medieval Paris and the worlds that abutted on it: those of the church, guilds, city watch, the university, lepers, the court and so on. No shortcuts and simplifications for babies who can't tell a Benedictine from a Cistercian. A dynamically filled encyclopedia may be included, though, and remain permanently unlocked for later replays. The main character is a vagrant and a thief. This may be a persistent sandbox, possibly a multiplayer RPG, or it may have a plot, but strictly within historical realities.
10) The Last Supper
You play the role of Jesus, son of God, in the company of the twelve disciples. The game should probably be in first person. (The Sermon of the Mount and such may be shown in cutscenes, or they may be challenges in quiz form.) The time period is your wanderings in Judea after the baptism and until the last night before the arrest. The background is the Judaic society at the time and its Roman controllers, somewhat historically accurate. This is a detective story, a wholldoit where you need to figure out who is best suited to betray you in due time so that you may prep him for the job and finally give him the impetus to "do it quicker" at the Last Supper. For Christ certainly needed someone to betray him. It's not always Judas: the identity of the potential traitor, along with his motives, will vary randomly between playthroughs. Incidents and encounters along the road, both recorded in the Bible and invented, will liven up the experience and better inform you about the personalities of the disciples, building on but going beyond what is known (Peter with his short temper, the lofty John an so on).
11) Cuadrophobia
Ships and the sea again. This time you are a typical sailor with an atypically strong survival instinct on one of the vessels in a colossal game of Battleship between Our Guy and the Other Player. Accordingly, there are two grids firing at each other: your side's and the enemy's, though you only get to travel across your own. The ship you begin on is chosen at random: it may be anything in size from a single-squarer to a five-squarer. Smaller ships are less likely to be hit, of course, but when a ship is finished, it sinks, and you with it. The purpose of the game is to survive until Our Guy's victory, which programmatically is likely but not guaranteed and happens about 70% of the time. To do this you must desert on a regular basis, setting out in a dinghy to a ship more favored in the current situation. However, the dinghy only travels three squares per turn, and you can only spend two turns in the open sea before dying. You also need time on board ships to access their radio broadcasts, which, besides playing some inspirational propaganda, update the picture of the grid as the battle rages. Without it you are limited to paddling to vessels that you can directly see. The role-playing element comes from dealing with ship commanders, who all take their duties and titles - captain of Cruiser! captain of Battleship! - very seriously, from picking up supplies in floating debris and from acquiring special abilities that let you, for example, paddle an extra square farther. Is war evil? Is it to be hated, or is our side to be cheered on? After all, if Our Guy loses, this will all have been in vain.
12) Standardom
In this game of life, dedicated to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), you must pass through all of the Gates of Conformity to win your ultimate prize - death from old age, as opposed to suicide. The option to kill yourself is always available in the menu. Being the hero and chickenshit that you are, though, you are determined to submit to every humiliation just so you can press forward. The world of the game is a vertical platform that moves with you along the Y axis, which represents time from some random year forwards: you may begin at 100 B.C., 1824 A.D., 12749 j-Spec and so on. It is really all the same where on the timeline you are dropped off. As with other platformers, once the screen has moved, there is no going back. You can walk freely to the left and right, however, pick up bonuses, disarm threats and converse with characters. Going up, every so often the screen is intersected by a wall with a gate in it. Your character's silhouette must either match the cut of the gate or be smaller to pass through. You start out small as a baby, a little circle, but very soon handicaps such as Discovery of Talent, Unusual Upbringing, Independent Spirit or Love of Sex will begin to rush at you to complicate your silhouette with Г, & and other such protrusions. You will also grow in size until your late 20s. Luckily, opportunities will also present themselves to prune some of this exotica: Family, Steady Job, Political Engagement, Puppy, Human Interest and other bonuses can be found or obtained from conversations to simplify your puzzle to a manageable cut until such time as the years pile on and the worst is behind you. You will become smaller and smaller and able to rush through the checkpoints one after the other to the finish line.
13) Six Handshakes to Liberty
The country is suffering under a cruel dictatorship. Ar-Parason, the president-for-life, has wrung the last of resources from the nation and has now thrown it into a disastrous war. In his palace he is surrounded by guards armed to the teeth and without a shred of conscience to shoot the bastard. What can you, a humble microbiologist living in the suburbs, do about this? Nothing, it seems, until you discover a strain of bacteria that is absolutely deadly within weeks and immune to all known antibiotics except one, still not fully developed. The microbe is passed along by touch. Alas, you discover it when you become infected with it. You still have the resources to finish the research on the antibiotic and save yourself, but now you realize that you possess the perfect secret weapon to rid the country of the tyrant. Although you can't get so close to Ar-Parason in person, someone must enjoy that intimacy...
Every day you do your research at the computer, look through the press, then put on gloves and go out in search of people in contact with other people who will, you hope, ultimately carry the strain to its target. You have to follow news to figure out whose hands to shake and who to sleep with - secretaries, daughters of generals, corrupt officials - and many times the scheme will fall short of success. The chain of handshakes will terminate early somewhere, and these intermediaries will just die. But all those sacrifices are worth it, aren't they? You keep several intrigues going at once, determined to see one of them to the end. Meanwhile an epidemic is beginning in the country, Ar-Parason is starting to take precautions, and your own remaining time that could be spent on finishing the antibiotic is also running short. What is more important: life, revenge, justice, survival, honor? Your actions will be your decisions.

Hello all! It's a new month and time to summarise the month that's passed. First of all, however: happy Pride-Month! Let the celebrations begin.
This "month in review"-post has unfortunately been delayed a couple of days due to issues with reddit and personal impositions (I'm on a vacation right now).

Some stats

This month, 135 articles were posted and 26 subscribers were gained. May 5 and 24 had the most new articles: 11 articles each, or ca. 16.2% of the month's posts.
(The numbers were established on June 2, 2023, and may be subject to errors.)
Breakdown by flair:

Flair	No. of posts	%
Africa	1	~0.7%
Asia	8	~5.9%
Europe	26	~19.2%
North America	50	~37%
Oceania	1	~0.7%
South America	4	~3%
international	2	~1.5%
entertainment	21	~15.5%
fashion	2	~1.5%
people	15	~11.1%
sports (new)	3	~2.2%
other	2	~1.5%
old news	0	0%
historical	0	0%

(The numbers were established on June 2, and may be subject to errors.)

Highlighted articles

A selection of 10 articles from this month:

(For more posts, see the complete monthly archive.)

Final words

Know of a positive queer subreddit? Please share it!
The person who hijacked a Posie Parker-rally to send a message of solidarity and trans-positivity held a small AMA on lgbt. It's a short but interesting read.
It's now Pride-Month, and hopefully everyone is doing good. Unfortunately, all too many are still forced into the closet by hostile governments and political climates, by family and friends. In these times, remember: Pride is a protest - so celebrate our lives and who we are, and make your voice heard.
That's it for now. Thank you for reading and a big "thank you" to everyone who's submitted articles and contributed to discussions. Let's look forward to another month of good LGBT-news!
(For other monthly summaries, see the wiki.)

So I did it. I took everyone’s medical and non medical advice and took my family member to the hospital. I told them he was being brought in for an abandonment situation, his family can no longer care for him due to his mental health issues and violent outbursts and to contact his psychiatrist. His psychiatrist said this was the best way. We’ll, they tried to gilt trip me and have me come get him. Saying he doesn’t qualify to be admitted or to be sent anywhere. I told them repeatedly that he isn’t safe at home for himself or for the people that live with him. He cannot care for himself. The social worker and case worker basically said they couldn’t do anything and we as a family had to pick him up and figure it out. Saying the system is broken and the country and it doesn’t help families very well with this type of stuff. I feel so defeated and frustrated. I stood my ground and told the new social worker(night time one) no one could pick him up, nor take care of him. The hospital staff was made aware of the situation in the morning and they kept him. They told me that we would get in trouble and adult protective services would be called because it’s abandonment. I’m like that is what we told you the situation was! They didn’t listen, they tried to bully. I’m scared to be home though

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Patreon Arxur POV of the Cradle Series wiki Official subreddit Discord
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Memory transcription subject: Captain Sovlin, United Nations Fleet Command
Date [standardized human time]: January 15, 2137
It wasn’t my imagination; our triangular shuttle was sinking like a stone. Water bobbed up against the cockpit windows, entombing us beneath the waves. Hull integrity would eventually give out and allow water to flood the compartment. The predators were just watching it happen, with not nearly enough panic showing in their binocular eyes. They made no attempt to inflate a life raft and escape, while we could still get the doors open.
The craft had tipped forward at a slight angle, and the airborne vehicle began to sink nose-first toward a watery grave. A feeling of immense claustrophobia gripped me, as the nightmare scenario came to fruition. My claws wrapped around Samantha’s arm before I could stop myself; the human looked at me with sheer disbelief, and pushed me away. Her nose was scrunched in an obvious sign of distaste. Carlos would’ve definitely been more amenable to my desperate outreach for support.
Samantha heaved a sigh. “I’m going to pretend you didn’t just fucking do that, but it better not ever happen again.”
“Please! We’re sinking!” I croaked.
Onso snickered. “Sinking? You don’t feel the engines running? It’s a submersible aircraft.”
Upon closer listening, I could feel the quiet hum of the engines. Somehow, the combustion drive was still running underwater, and pushing us in a controlled manner further into the ocean. There were no signs of leaks seeping through the walls, despite being encased in the depths. I’d never heard of a plane that could fly underwater, but I should’ve gleaned our safety from the predators’ calmness.
If a human is running or terrified, that’s when it’s time to assume our deaths are imminent.
Sam wasn’t the least bit amused by me latching onto her arm, but Tyler and Carlos were both masking smirks. I dipped my head in shame. How had the Yotul known of technology which was unfathomable to the wider galaxy? Until today, I wouldn’t have thought such devices would ever have a use. It was embarrassing that the primitive kept his head better than me around novel technology, though I tried to push that egoistic thought out of my mind.
“Do the Yotul have this kind of technology, Onso?” I prompted the reddish-furred marsupial to answer, though I knew the reply would be in the negative. “I’ve never heard of such things, so I’m surprised it’s old news to you.”
“Well, I took it upon myself to read up on the specs; they were included with our briefing notes. Never know when shit’s gonna break, and someone’s gotta fix it. The Yotul have a saying, ‘Everything can break, so assume it will do so today.’”
“That’s valid. Every spacecraft crash is due to a ‘one-in-a-billion’ mechanical failure; unlikelihood upon unlikelihood. Uh, anyhow, I’m a little out of my element here, clearly nothing like you.”
“I don’t mind the water, Sovlin. Mama had a sailboat, which she’d take around the harbor. It was a little disappointing to hear human water activities involve hunting. There’s so many beautiful things to see; it’s the last untamed frontier. Even after space is explored, the oceans still hold so many mysteries and unique lifeforms!”
“Plenty of humans agree with you, even ones who enjoy fishing like Tyler. We’ll go snorkeling or scuba diving just to explore reefs and view marine life,” Carlos chimed in. “No boat, nothing but a basic breathing apparatus.”
“There’s water sports too. Surfing, where you try to ride massive waves on a board.” Samantha made odd gestures with her hands, as though conveying a series of hills. “Parasailing, up in the sky tied to a boat. White water rafting, where you go down turbulent, rocky rapids in an inflatable.”
I groaned. “Why…are any of those not mortally dangerous?! What is wrong with you predators? I thought you evolved from the fucking trees!”
“It’s all in the spirit of fun, a memorable experience. Don’t tell me none of it sounds like something you want to try once.”
“No, those stunts sound horrible. This is horrible. I can see the depth meter going up…it’s double digits! I can’t see the sky!”
“Quit being a baby.”
“Quit being a predator! I hate humans; I can’t stand you! Onso, back me up.”
“The surfing sounds totally badass. I can imagine riding a wave up to its crest, and trying not to fall,” the Yotul answered. “We should try it together, old man. Conquer your fears, do things you think you can’t.”
“I am not doing that. No way on the cradle.”
Tyler sported a devilish grin. “Hey, it could be worse, Sovlin. You could be doing shark cage diving.”
I offered the blond human a blank stare. Through the cockpit behind him, I noticed orange-striped fish swimming clear of the aerosub. There was a dark shadow in the murky depths below, which filled me with palpable unease. What if it was some sort of massive predator which hid in this oceanic range? Chewing at my claws with anxiety, I tried to parse through what he said.
Cage diving? That can’t be what it sounds like; locking yourself in a cage and jumping into the water…not trying to escape. What’s a shark?
We moved closer to the ambiguous shadow within the turquoise ocean, which I tried to ignore. The humans would freak out if there was reason for alarm; I couldn’t make a fool of myself again. Plastering a look of confusion on my face, I flicked a claw at Tyler for an explanation. His blue eyes twinkled with amusement, and my former guards watched with interest.
“Ah, you’re wondering what that is.” Officer Cardona tapped his fingers against his holopad, and noticed that his Yotul exchange partner was intrigued too. He showed a picture to Onso first. “I’d say it’s self-explanatory. Oh, and, yes, they have side-facing eyes, but sharks are predators. Humans have movies about them eating us, even though that’s uncommon in reality.”
Tyler turned the device toward me, and I flinched away with disbelief. Sure enough, a pack of Terrans were suspended in a metal cage below the water. “Sharks” circled them with predatory intent, serrated teeth visible. From what I’d learned about Gojids being omnivores, I’d trust the primates on binocular eyes not being necessary to eat living food. However, deciphering human behavior was a maddening endeavor. Was this some twisted way of reasserting their dominance as apex predators, against animals that dared to prey on them?
“You just said it was in fucked-up human movies…it’s CGI! That’s not a real fucking thing!” I screamed. “I thought we were keeping it professional, huh? You all are definitely saying, and making up, predator nonsense on purpose, at this point!”
Tyler flashed his teeth. “It’s real. We don’t need to make anything up; humans will go to great lengths for thrills.”
“That seems to be tempting fate. I’ve always believed in respecting nature, though it would be cool to see these animals up close,” Onso said.
“Good news: you can see them in aquariums too.”
I thought humans would think water decorations were stupid…wait, what did he just say?!
My spines were bristling. “You have aquariums, like the Kolshians on Aafa?”
“Yep,” Tyler affirmed.
“And instead of sea plants, you keep dangerous predators in them?”
“Yeah? They’re cool to look at, man.”
“Protector, I don’t care if we’re in the middle of the ocean. I want off this sinking boat!”
Carlos stifled a laugh. “Well, your wish is about to be granted. This puppy isn’t meant to dive deeper than 100 meters. The UNS Deep Core is up ahead.”
The foreboding shadow had grown larger in my periphery, and my eyes swiveled back to the viewport. It was a submersed ship, but one that was so large, its breadth faded into the murky distance. There was no way this wasn’t in the triple digits of meters long; the all-black, undecorated exterior would cause an observer to mistake it for a shadowy patch of water. There was a tower affixed to its spine, which perhaps housed an equivalent to a bridge.
“The humans must’ve snuck this ship here days ago. How long has it been lurking?” I murmured to myself. “They couldn’t have airdropped it from too high up either…I don’t think.”
Samantha rubbed her hands together. “If you think this is the only one sent, think again. We’re told as much as we need to know, Sovlin, but it’s a blast to fill in the blanks.”
Our aerosub glided down to the bottom of the Deep Core, before flipping over and latching onto to a watertight door. It was similar to how a spacecraft would dock for boarding; my concerns were assuaged a little, noticing some familiarity. Packing such a large crew into a metal tube must be stressful for any land-dwelling species, but the humans were insane enough to tuck their senses aside. There could be enough predators aboard to compose a small village.
I disliked the fact that I was hanging at a ninety-degree angle, though I didn’t voice my complaints. The humans awkwardly dismounted, with Tyler helping Onso down. Carlos hoisted me to my own two feet, and I took a steadying breath. Our own watertight hatch, which I mistook for an emergency exit when I thought it was a sane vehicle, was on the right exit. There was a click, as human personnel opened the circular door from the other side.
The five of us were helped up through the threshold into the submarine, and we admired the metal inner workings of our surroundings. The tunnels were narrow, with small doorways leading between compartments; many required a slight step up to clear. One Terran greeted us at our docking point, though he wore a different uniform than the getup I was used to. I wasn’t sure what to expect from land predators who operated underwater, but the ample facial hair checked out with my mental image.
“Welcome aboard the Deep Core. I’m Commander Fournier; your presence is requested on the bridge,” a gruff voice greeted us.
I blinked in confusion. “May I ask why…sir?”
“First aliens to step foot on a submarine. You’re VIPs; it’s a good photo-op, you could say. Follow me.”
Of course, the humans are worried about optics as we’re descending to an outlandish location. Sometimes, they’re awfully predictable.
Claustrophobia threatened to flare up, with the cramped passages and lack of direction. Onso showed no such uneasiness, forcing Tyler to ensure that the Yotul studied objects with his eyes, not his paws. The primitive seemed enamored with any machinery or design quirks, even basic things such as hinges. I was really trying not to look down on him, but when he was gawking at simplistic nails, it was difficult. At least his dimwitted curiosity was a distraction from our present environment.
The bearded commander led us to a steep stairway, and communicated for us to follow his lead. There was a thunderous bark of “up ladder!” before the human-in-charge popped open a hatch. Tyler waved a hand at me and Onso, signaling for us to climb after Fournier first. I ensured that my balance was steady, hustling up the rungs. There was a railing surrounding the hatch, along with a safety chain that our guide was unclipping.
“Sir, may I ask how much air we have left?” I couldn’t resist asking, despite being out of breath from the short ascent. “I presume you’ve been submerged a few days. Even spaceships can only carry a few weeks of oxygen, and I don’t see any tanks, um…”
Fournier issued a throaty laugh. “Scared of submarines, Gojid?”
“A little, uh, yes…sir.”
“Don’t be. We have as much air as there is water in the ocean.”
Onso bounded after us. “The Terrans use electrolysis to separate the hydrogen from the oxygen in seawater they collect, then use that O2 to ventilate the ship.”
“Why, I like this one!” the commander bellowed. “Read up on subs, haven’t ya?”
“It drew me in…like a vortex of knowledge. I always liked machines.”
“Then I take it you’re an engineer? I can see that kid-like glee in your eyes.”
“A rocket engineer. The unchanging rules, the complex order, the concreteness and the planning: it speaks to me. Having a new class of machines to study really lit that fire, for the first time since the Federation killed my passion. Not even studying your weaponry truly scratched that itch. It’s just, I never dreamed I’d discover a new alien boat!”
“Well, well! I’m no engineer, but I’ll be happy to share what I know. Feel free to ask any questions; we love talking about what we do, to someone who really wants to hear it.”
“Thank you, sir.”
Commander Fournier led us into a stout compartment, where a vast array of gadgetry and screens covered a wall. Humans were examining a green circle on display, with a rotating line and labeled angles. Data feeds were also listed there, which led me to conclude it was a sensors equivalent. Navigations was at the front, at least from the appearance of several control columns. Some predators appeared to be acting as officers or supervisors, peering over others’ shoulders and issuing commands.
This isn’t that dissimilar to a starship, but where is the viewport? How can they see?
I cleared my throat. “Sir, where is the viewport? There’s no windows!”
“We don’t need windows,” Fournier explained. “We use sonar, because sound travels further in water than light. Glass or transparent materials are just a weak point in the hull, and a potential source of leaks if we take a hit.”
“Okay. Then why did the submersible craft we took here have windows?”
“Because it needs to be a spacecraft too, and you need to see when you’re flying. It’s useful enough to outweigh any concerns,” Carlos chimed in.
“This is so cool!” Onso bounced on his digitigrade hindlegs, and the commander fortunately didn’t take offense to his excess excitement. “The sonar doesn’t need to see at all. It just…listens.”
Fournier nodded. “Precisely. I saw you examining the bearings on our machinery, and I’ll impress upon you the importance of noise reduction down here. We keep everything detached from the hull frame to avoid vibrations…even dropping a wrench can give you up to an enemy. Sonar receptors pick up the slightest vibration, and then, they know you’re there.”
“That explains why your engines have to be so quiet. I was reading about how you try to avoid cavitation…you know, where the vacuum pressure caused by the propeller makes water boil. The bubbles pop and give off noise.”
“You don’t need a rundown at all, Yotul; you already know everything. We have a speed range where we can operate silently.”
I was growing bored of the technical explanations, and Onso, a primitive, was outshining my knowledge to the humans. Perhaps the Yotul was desperate to prove himself as an academic equal, but he didn’t need to prattle on about science like he was reading a textbook. While there were impressive feats of engineering on display here, I agreed with Samantha’s assertion of naval obsolescence. What good was fighting in the water, except in this extraordinary circumstance?
The predators can hide far away from any targets or locations of value forever. How ingenious. They’d be unseen altogether if the other human tribes realized this theater was irrelevant in a war.
I suppressed an irritated huff. “Permission to speak freely, sir?”
“Granted,” Fournier replied, a curious twinkle in his eyes.
“Respectfully, sir, I do not see the purpose of putting all this time into submarine development, at least for military aims. You’re a spacefaring species, and you’re incredible at ground assaults. What use is it to hide so far away from civilization…from the action? Maybe you sink a few ships that are using an outdated method of moving resources, but I don’t get it. You have better weapons.”
“You really don’t know? To use your word, these ships are masterful predators; nearly undetectable, capable of hearing the slightest sound, and able to surface anywhere in the world. But it goes far beyond that. The destructive power housed here is a hell of a deterrent. That’s why we’d never actually trade nukes like ya Feddies thought we did.”
“Nukes? I’m not following.”
“There’s tens of nukes stuffed onto just one of these things. We can hang off the shore anywhere, and fire missiles while underwater. Not that we have to be close to our target; we can shoot ICBMs halfway around the world. You never know where we are, if it’s right down your neck or prowling distant shores. We’re waiting to strike, anywhere and everywhere, with the technology to end civilization itself, even after command is destroyed on land. Obsolete, my ass.”
I gulped with discomfort, wishing I could recede into the ship walls. That declaration was so calm yet predatorily destructive; there were chilling implications for the extent of human aggression. It suddenly made sense why Earth tribes were intent on sniffing these predators out of the ocean’s recesses, and why the subs tried to remain undetectable at all costs. Should the current battle go awry, Talsk could be devastated by an unseen arsenal of epic proportions.
As Commander Fournier took his post, I tried to understand why humans would devise such machinations, for use against their own civilization. The Federation’s “irradiated Earth” could’ve been a reality; these capabilities shouldn’t exist in any culture. I didn’t understand why my kind-hearted friends would even think of such predatory weaponry. Surely, understanding the apocalyptic consequences of these vehicles should’ve convinced them not to build them.
My therapist could’ve elaborated further on the full heights of Terran aggression. Humans didn’t enjoy killing, yet they brainstormed and actualized the optimal ways to kill every human in existence? It was a paradox. Perhaps their predator nature factored into their decision-making in a manner they didn’t understand. Orders were issued to begin our descent, and for all sailors to report to battle stations. I felt the submersible tilt down, so I tried to clear my head of what the primates were capable of.
I have to believe that they will never actually do something like that…that their goodness will prevail. They didn’t snap after Earth, right? I trust their better judgment.
“W-well, if there’s really a base at the bottom of the ocean, the Farsul are fucked,” I murmured to my posse.
Samantha’s fist tightened, as her smirk returned. “I’d say they are.”
The numbers on the depth meter continued to escalate, as the submarine navigated the ocean which spanned below us. Locked inside a steel tube with predators, and knowing the potential of its onboard weaponry, my nerves were anything but quelled. The submarines somehow eclipsed even the worst starships in its dastardly capabilities. The Farsul wouldn’t be prepared for this predatory contraption, should we stumble across any of their flotilla.
I was glad that the humans were on the same team as me; there was no telling where their capacity for annihilation ended.
---
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