Okay here goes,
I've used the G7 now for just over 2 months. At first I was pleasantly surprised with how the unit worked. Being a type 2 I was trying to get a handle on how different food affect my numbers without having to do 20 picks a day. This was a nice benefit to be able to monitor numbers throughout the day. The first month went rather well, except for 1 of the units just falling off on its own which Dexcom replaced so thank you for that. The 2nd month was something completely different. I've had nothing but issues with the sensors loosing connection even though im sitting right next to my phone which is my receiver. Then all of a sudden in the middle of the night I get "Low" warnings out of no where. This has happened over the last 3 sensors randomly but always in the middle of the night which at first scared the HELL out of me and my wife. The first time it happened I didn't bring my picks with me to test the actual numbers. Of course we panic'd. The next few times I was able to do a finger pick only to see that the CGM was off by over 50. I've pinned it down to where the sensor is located under my arm and i'm a side sleeper. Why during the first month didn't this happen once its not like I changed my sleep positions suddenly I've always slept on my side and of course I worried about this the first time I installed the sensor. There was no issues for the first month which was a relief. Now i can't trust the sensor without having to shut off the low warning at night which kind of defeats the purpose for the most part. I spoke with dexcom and this is what we concluded it was my sleeping position. I asked about moving the sensor to my stomach since that's not how I sleep and they recommend me not moving it, but guess what I'm going to anyway on the next sensor. I get that they don't read accurately when being depressed like I'm causing it to, but wouldn't you think we'd have a better solution then just saying sorry that's the way it is. I can't be the only person in the world using these that happens to sleep on their sides. I'm starting to question very seriously if I want to continue to pay for the G7's if this is what's going to happen. I do love being able to monitor my numbers randomly and make smarter choices on foods. The thought of going back to picking my finger sucks. Just looking for thoughts out there on how your process is going. I can't say I've had issues with customer service. They've been responsive and have now sent me 2 replacements so ya for them.

My climate is not functioning as well as it should. I went to the mechanic, and he found out that there is a problem with the Evaporator. I have talked with a lot mechanicer, but no one of them wanted to repair it, because it is a lot of work, the dashboard would have to be dissambled.
It is a bit frustrating, it will cost arround 500EUR instead of 60-70..
Have you ever been like this?
Thanks.

Hi guys,
My (UK based) family are totally at a loss as to what to do with my (late 20's) sister who has struggled with intense anxiety manifesting in different ways her entire life.
From what I know, it began with social anxiety, she struggled to go in to shops, talk to strangers, other public places, school etc - because of this she was helicopter parented, my parents thought it was helping at the time but I think it made her 100x worse, never having to face anything uncomfortable and it meant she avoided ever leaving the small village and house she grew up in apart from essential times like going to school etc. She never went to the movies or shops with friends, general socialising you do in your teens and until the age of 23/24 hadn't operated a bank card or got the train/public transport by herself and now in her late 20s has still never had a relationship.
My parents have tried everything, multiple years of private counselling in the UK costing thousands, NHS therapy (which is horrifically underfunded in the countryside in the UK with 2 year waiting lists) and lastly medication.
Her social anxiety has also morphed into generalised anxiety disorder, health anxiety and from what I can see, obsessive compulsive disordepure O (something I've had my own experience with).
Medication was a no after her health anxiety and the SSRI she was on caused her eye problems - she immediately went off them and is now deathly afraid of medication, believing it could ruin her life further as she says her eyes are messed up permanently since taking the meds.
My parents aren't equipped to deal with this anymore, they're both almost 70, still working jobs - inexperienced and lacking knowledge/the tools with how to best treat my sister's anxiety, they majorly worry for her future and how she will cope once they are gone, she's almost 30 and is too afraid to get a job and is usually have panic attacks most days. They want to retire but they have to support her also.
I just want my sister to have a life, she's capable of so much but fear is really holding her back and nothing seems to be the fix - we've been trying for almost thirteen years.
The only thing that helped me with my own experience was moving to London - access to a higher psychological treatment standard in the city is much easier but getting her here is almost near impossible.
Anyone here experienced something similar?
Appreciate it.

Listen to the most recent Vicious Syndicate podcast here - https://www.vicioussyndicate.com/vs-data-reaper-podcast-episode-133/
Read the most recent Vicious Syndicate report here - https://www.vicioussyndicate.com/vs-data-reaper-report-264/
As always, glad to do these summaries, but a summary won't be able to cover everything and can miss nuances, so I highly recommend listening to their podcast as well. The next VS Report will likely be out on Thursday June 8th with the next podcast happening sometime next weekend.
Death Knight - While DK is still the most popular class, its playrate has dipped under 30% due to players trying to experiment with the newer decks. As long as the class remains "new" and has 3 viable archetypes across its rune specs, it'll be popular. Blood DK changed the least from the miniset. Hollow Hound is a candidate to be added to the deck, but it doesn't look like an all star performer in that archetype. ZachO will have to look closer at the card's performance when he does deck refinement. Blood DK's position in the format hasn't changed after the miniset; it's a deck that's good against aggressive decks and is one of the main counters to Frost and Unholy DK, but it's a deck that still has legitimate counters in decks like Control Priest, Enrage Warrior, and Relic DH among others. The deck looks Tier 2ish throughout ladder, and there's a chance it might be the best DK deck right now due to aggregated stats dragging down Unholy and Frost DK's performance since there's more experimentation there and relatively none in Blood DK. The standard build of Frost DK is still fine but looks weaker after the miniset. It didn't get any new cards, and there's now more healing in the format which weakens the deck's performance. On top of the traditional Frost build, there's a new UFF build that was popularized by Pizza. It tops out at 4 mana and runs eggs, Naval Mine, and Yelling Yodeler with Death Growl and Unholy Frenzy. Gameplan of the deck is to rush you down in the early game with your sticky deathrattles and end games with Naval Mine burn. While the list has been propagating, it is "complete trash" and "Tier 8" with a sub 40% winrate. Goes to show a high-level streamer can have a good performance with a subpar deck under a low sample size, and the element of surprise with the deck can throw people off. The problem is if they know what they're playing against, they can just pop your eggs/mine to ensure you never get value out of YodeleDeath Growl. Unholy DK is also experimenting with Death Growl and Yodeler, and those cards look better in that archetype. While Death Growl was previously hyped for Unholy DK and ultimately didn't make the cut in the deck, Yodeler arguably pushes it to be viable enough in the deck that you can start building around the deathrattle synergy by adding cards like Nerubian Egg. Unholy DK is also experimenting with Magatha, and she seems to perform okay in the archetype. ZachO will probably refine the most popular lists seeing play right now, but the optimal Unholy DK deck has likely changed due to the miniset. Even at peak potential the deck's performance isn't likely to be concerning. Unholy DK's winrate is being brought down by builds that are going all in on the deathrattle synergy by playing Infectious Ghoul, Cagehead and Unholy Frenzy. Corb says he thinks refinement for Unholy DK will be slow since it seems like the type of deck that players will only play if it's busted, but ZachO disagrees. If Unholy DK were a Shaman deck that might be the case, but because it's a Death Knight deck it'll be perpetually played. Murmy is a card that's popular in the archetype, but ZachO doesn't understand why people keep shoving it in since it's an underperformer. It's one of those cards that's dragging down the archetype's winrate. Most notable experimentation in Unholy DK is the Cagehead OTK where you run Bonelord in combination with Cagehead, Dead Air, and Yodeler. It's not good and will likely disappear.
Demon Hunter - Most establish DH builds aren't trying to incorporate new cards. Relic is fairly popular but not particularly strong right now (around Tier 2ish). ZachO still champions the Okani/Meltanix/Pozzik build as the way to go with the archetype. Some people are trying to experiment with Remixed Rhapsody in the deck, but ZachO isn't sure if that's worthwhile. Outcast DH is also Tier 2ish and is fine but might struggle more if Hunter rises in play. Some people are trying to run Through Fel and Flames to juice up S'theno, but Outcast DH is not a S'theno focused deck. The Crushclaw build of Big DH is now the best way to build the deck. Nothing has changed with Big DH's optimal build, and it's arguably the best DH deck at most levels of play. The one "new" deck that is beginning to rise in play is Spell DH. While the Sinful Brand nerf previously obliterated the deck, Through Fel and Flames has given new life to the deck to focus on an all in S'theno + Abusive Sergeant OTK turn. The deck is the best DH deck at higher levels of play. It doesn't see much play currently, but it's starting to pop up more frequently at Legend (around 4.5% playrate). The deck can sometimes pop off a S'theno OTK as early as turn 6, which isn't pleasant. This deck will be a part of the meta at high MMRs, but it's unlikely to be a factor at lower ranks. Because the deck solely revolves around the S'theno OTK, it's more complex to play than the previous Sinful Brand version since you have less damage and must manage your resources more closely due to that. ZachO predicts the deck will start rising in play once either the podcast summary or the next VS Report is released, and Corb says there's pure horror on his face seeing Spell DH come back from the dead. The good news is the deck is unlikely to be popular for the large majority of players, but it will be an unpleasant play experience for those who are at high MMRs.
Warrior - The miniset should have erased any doubt that Warrior is back. Enrage Warrior looks insane and is one of the best decks in the game. The deck was already a Tier 1 deck at most levels of play before the miniset and got even stronger thanks to Jam Session. It's a top 5 card in the deck, and it's easy to fit in by cutting Wild Pyromancer. Jam Session + Imbued Axe on the same turn can be back breaking for the opponent. There's additional experimentation with people cutting Roaring Applause for Frightened Flunky or Treasure Guard. Enrage Warrior has a great matchup spread, with its main counter being Priest decks (Control and Undead). If you want to beat all Death Knight decks, this is a great deck to do so. Menagerie got some new cards and there's been experimentation within the archetype. The ZachO list uses Abyssal Bassist in the deck with Remixed Tuning Fork and Sword Eater. Because of the current demon pool, Amalgam played on Bassist will give you a 100% guaranteed chance of generating a One Amalgam Band. Feno had a more aggressive iteration using Backstage Bouncer, which seems quite good in the deck. ZachO says he's likely going to combine both decks together when he gets to deck refinement. The ZachO list is slower and greedy, and can struggle more in faster matchups. However, it does better against slower decks like Blood DK since you can generate infinite value with Voone + Zola (ZachO says he had a game where he played 12 Amalgam Bands). Corb says he watched McBanterFace play the deck on stream, who exclaimed that it might be the greediest deck in the entire format since it can't get outvalued by anything. The Feno list is much better in faster matchups, but it's running arguably too many 1 drops and can gas out against late game focused decks. There's a balancing act in the archetype where you want to be as greedy as possible without sacrificing your early game matchups. As of now the deck is fluctuating between Tier 1 and Tier 2, but ZachO thinks it likely won't be a Tier 1 deck since its performance is being boosted up a bit by the early unrefined meta. Corb thinks once the deck's optimal build is figured out, it'll be one of the most well-rounded decks in the format. ZachO gives a tidbit of info and says the key to winning the Blood DK matchup is finding a Tony off Nellie. You stress the Blood DK and run them out of removal. If you hit fatigue, Tony can end the game if they've run out of removal. Blackrock & Roll Control Warrior could be Tier 3 with the right refinement, but the deck clashes with the new cards. It really wants to run Abyssal Bassist, but running Bassist means you almost forced to run Sword Eater for the weapon synergy, which hurts your Last Stand synergy.
Priest - Not much has changed with Control and Undead Priest. There's some experimentation with Overheal Priest, but it's bad. Undead Priest looks good but might decline in its performance once the meta settles. Control Priest looks better after the miniset; it's usually in the Tier 3 range due to the number of counters it faces, but it currently looks Tier 2. Relic DH is the primary counter to Control Priest (70/30 matchup), but if that deck isn't popular, then Control Priest has a favorable outlook. The Frost DK matchup got better since lists are running more life gain from Armor Vendor, Clergy, and Fan Club. Does well against both Enrage and Menagerie Warrior (Whirlpool wrecks the infinite One Amalgam Band gameplan).
Paladin - The most dramatic change to the class is the addition of Horn of the Windlord in Pure Paladin. Running the weapon alongside Feast and Famine is a significant amount of offboard damage. Pure Paladin was solely reliant on having board to deal damage, and now it has a way of winning games once it loses board. The weapon makes Pure Paladin look much "scarier", and it currently looks like one of the best decks in the game throughout all of ladder, including Top Legend. ZachO will have to figure out the optimal build for the deck and what the card cuts are, but you probably move away from Garden's Grace. Corb brings up For Quel'thalas as another burst enabler for the weapon, and while ZachO agrees it'd be nice to run in the deck, Pure Paladin runs a very tight list and it's hard finding which cards to cut. Big Paladin got good new tools in Dance Floor and Cold Feet, but the archetype still doesn't look viable. The deck is better, but it's still deep in Tier 4 territory.
Hunter - Hunter is a very hard class for deck recognition right now, because there's a lot of "blurry lines." After the miniset launch, you could roughly split Hunter into 3 archetypes: Naga, Big Beast, and Arcane. However, now people are trying to piece together the best elements of all 3 of those archetypes to build the ultimate Hunter deck. Despite all the unrefined experimentation going on in the class, it is performing at a very high level; Tier 1 at all levels of play. That's before ZachO discovered this new Hunter list that combines all 3 together. ZachO and Corb have no idea what to call it, but tentatively settle on Ultimate Hunter, and ZachO can't stop raving about the deck. You have the Naga Hunter early game with bananas + monkeys, a Big Beast package utilizing Hollow Hound, Hydralodon, and King Krush, and a small arcane package that gives you board clears + card draw. You run 3 beasts so Selective Breeder can always give you the option for Hollow Hound and can let you more consistently play it on turn 6. While a lot of Big Beast builds run Renathal, ZachO calls that lazy deck building. You don't need the 5 extra health from Renathal when Hollow Hound acts as a Reno Jackson, and you can generate additional copies of it. Hunter now has the ability to heal to full in faster matchups, which lets it bridge into the late game where it can put 2x King Krushes on board with Faithful Companion and then resurrect them with Stranglethron Heart. Star Power is the standout card from the arcane package, and people quickly realized that it's often just a full board clear for 5 mana. In this deck, you run Star Power alongside Halduron Brightwing and Conjured Arrow. The deck has an Arcanist + Unleash Fel type of swing turn, a strong early game with the traditional Naga/Face Hunter cards, an insane late game with the Big Beast package, and one of the strongest AoE cards in the current format. This is one of the best decks in the game, if not the best. The only matchups that look bad for the deck are Pure Paladin and Spell DH. Corb and ZachO encourage the Reddit comments section to come up with a better name for the archetype besides "Ultimate Hunter," because they have no idea what else to call the deck.
Mage - Because there's more lifegain in the format now primarily due to Hollow Hound, Burn Mage got worse. If Hunter gets more popular, Burn Mage is going to suffer since Hollow Hound is very effective against it. Control Spooky Mage is not it, although Star Power still looks like a worthwhile addition to Mage decks even without spell power added onto it. Some people are running Renathal builds with Denathrius in them, but nerfed Denathrius is not a win condition. ZachO calls Mage the second worse class in the game after the miniset. While Burn Mage does currently look functional, ZachO expects meta trends to make things rough for the deck going forward.
Warlock - Sadly, Warlock looks like a big disappointment after the miniset and looks like the worst class in the game. The new decks line up very well against both Chad and Imp Warlock, and ZachO says he's seen a drastic reduction in their performance. While some people are trying out the new Fanottem + Jailer combo in Chadlock, it's an incredibly greedy late game play that doesn't line up well against current decks. Implock gets outclassed by other aggressive decks, and Hollow Hound farms it.
Rogue - Class didn't change much. Miracle Rogue runs the same 30 card list and currently has a Tier 2ish performance. Some people are trying Pirate Rogue, but ZachO isn't seeing a lot of promise in the archetype. Secret Rogue isn't working well.
Druid - Nothing currently looks promising from the new cards. Big Druid is a solid deck (ZachO says the deck is just as good, if not better, than Zok Druid was), but people don't seem enthused to play it.
Shaman - To no one's surprise, Totem Shaman is a good deck that no one cares to play. The archetype did get new cards between Remixed Totemcarver and Backstage Bouncer. Magatha also looks like a card the deck can utilize, and it's possible you might be able to cut Ancestral Knowledge for it.
Other miscellaneous talking points-

• During the Paladin section, ZachO goes a bit more in depth about his refinement process. He does his deck refinement on Tuesdays (which VS Gold and Patreon members can see on the VS Discord as its happening and get explanations on card choices). When they do podcast recordings (especially ones after an expansion or miniset launch), ZachO usually will talk about archetypes at a surface level and doesn't dive deeper into them. There's a couple of reasons why that's the case: he wants as much data as possible on new cards and because refinement takes him multiple hours a week to do. ZachO can make statements on the podcast like "these cards look strong in X archetype" or "this card looks like bait" based on what he sees at a surface level, but he admits there are times where what he finds in refinement can directly contradict what he said on a podcast episode due to getting more data.
  
• During the Hunter section, ZachO calls Hollow Hound "one of the most transformational cards in the history of the Hunter class." It's Hunter's version of Silvermoon Arcanist + Unleash Fel that gives you a major stabilization swing turn. Corb jokes that it took 10 years, but Control Hunter is finally viable thanks to Hollow Hound and Star Power. Hollow Hound looks to be the best card of the miniset and the one that has the most impact. Ironically, the one other time Hunter had access to mass lifegain (during Rastakhan with Vicious Scalehide + Dire Frenzy), it also was the best deck in the game, and Hollow Hound seems much better and more consistent.
  
• The main takeaway from the current format is you should expect Hunter to be very influential in shaping up the new meta. Most burn decks will become weaker if Hunter rises in play, and ZachO fully expects that to happen. He thinks this iteration of Hunter is appealing to high MMR players because they tend to like playing decks that have major swing/comeback turns, and that's what Hollow Hound provides. It's a versatile deck that can win different matchups in different ways, and that's very appealing to that playerbase. Aggregated stats don't tell the whole story for Ultimate Hunter's performance, and ZachO says its current trajectory is the best deck in the game. Once Ultimate Hunter blows up in popularity, we'll have to see how the meta responds to it. ZachO at the end of the podcast realizes Spell DH is very well positioned against it.
  
• Corb thinks that some of the current decks like Enrage Warrior and Spell DH are different than usual 4 set meta decks. It's possible that the miniset being so dual class focused means we had more power injected into the format than we normally would have, since it's possible they would have cut a card like Jam Session if each class could only receive the typical 3 cards.
  

At my local Smith's in Las Vegas, they had choice Tomahawk on sale for $10/lb. I decided to buy one to try something. Usually with fancy cuts I go prime, dry-aged prime, or some sort of farm-to-plate butcher. FWIW, I don't think the cost of Costco prime is worth it.
I salted it pretty heavily and then put it in the refrigerator on a wire rack for 7 days. I usually do similar with other prime steak cuts to help them develop flavor and a crust when you cook them.
I reverse seared in a cast iron pan until it hit 120 degrees F then seared on a super hot charcoal grill for 1:30 per side. I sliced it and sprinkled more salt and a teeny bit of grass-fed butter over them.
I am sorry I don't have photos. It was medium rare and very good. A bit chewier than more expensive cuts of beef but just for fun I opened a 1994 Chateau Pontet Canet with it and it was pretty good.
It didn't have the mouth feel or funkiness of a dry-aged prime steak, but $10 vs $25 per pound....worth it.

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts sets to answer if these new movies are a reboot or prequel. But the answer was already given in 2018's Bumblebee
➤►🌍📺📱👉Watch 🔴✅👉Transformers: Rise of the Beasts ONLINE FREE HD
When The Transformers entered the world of live-action, Michael Bay introduced a new type of action movie that was heavy on effects but also had enough heart to garner a huge following. The first movie reinvigorated the summer blockbuster, and this trend continued for four more sequels. In that time, characters like Bumblebee and Optimus Prime were fleshed out, and audiences learned that Autobots had been part of Earth's history for centuries. But when 2018's Bumblebee was released, it introduced speculation and contradictions.
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Transformers: Rise of the Beasts is the latest entry in the world of live-action Transformers but one that's created some issues regarding the continuity of all movies. The main question that should hopefully be answered in this new entry is whether these movies are all connected or if the more recent movies are set in a rebooted continuity. But when audiences go back, this question is already answered in Bumblebee.
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In Michael Bay's Transformers movies, the history of the Autobots and Decepticons and their relationship with Earth was unique but also complex. For starters, it was established that these alien visitors came to Earth as early as the 1800s. However, Transformers: The Last Knight instead claimed that Cybertronians had been fighting alongside humans since the Middle Ages. Even more interesting, Bumblebee fought during World War II. But this all contradicted even the original movie, which seemed to set up that Bumblebee and the Autobots had only recently visited Earth.
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With the original five movies in mind, Bumblebee created a much more complicated universe in which Bumblebee never fought with American soldiers because he came to Earth in the 1980s. Furthermore, Prime followed suit not long after, even though he appeared for the first time in 2007. This alone helped prove that Bumblebee was the start of a new continuity separate from the Michael Bay movies. But the most important hint that the past movies were part of a different continuity was the G1 designs that were used on previously introduced Autobots like Optimus and Ironhide.
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Though Bumblebee helped cleverly set up a new universe of Transformers movies, it was hard to differentiate due to particular callbacks to Bay's entries. Perhaps the most obvious was making Bumblebee a Camaro, which was first introduced in 2007's Transformers. Since then, the look has become synonymous with the character and has continued to be used with Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. Another thing that has created confusion is that the new movies are set in the '80s and '90s, which would explain why Sam Witwicky found him years later. However, for that to work, it would have to make The Last Knight non-canon, among other inconsistencies, like Optimus' arrival to Earth
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Though the debate over whether the new Transformers movies are tied to past ones feels greater than ever, it's clear that a new timeline was established years prior. If anything, Rise of the Beasts could serve as a capitalization on this new continuity, and with Unicron having multiversal powers, it could prove this by establishing Bay's universe as separate. Ironically, while Bumblebee may not have the biggest stakes, it had an important job of establishing a new era of Transformers movies and succeeded in ending a debate before Rise of the Beasts was even released.
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To dive further into this new continuity, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts hits theaters on June 9th, 2023.

TLDR: looking for advice on procedures for securing client payment with a payment plan.
I'm a high-ticket service provider, and my client's will often choose pay via payment plan over the span of a few months (which increases my average sales significantly). In past years a client or two may have missed a payment by a few days or so, but they'd always end up paying and apologizing within a week or so maximum.
This year however I'm having challenges with multiple clients not paying their plans and then ghosting.
Right now my process is to:

• hold any relevant products until the client pays in full
• require payment plans on auto-pay
• have a contract with late payment fees
• send emails to the client to remind them of upcoming payments
• following up with the client once a week or so when they still haven't paid
• This is new, but I've started filing a few cases with the labor department and small claims in my state, which I'm not in love with but I don't know what else to do, or how soon I need to start resorting to this.

I try to follow up like once a week with these clients, and to be sensitive and understand that most missed payments are accidental. But the whole follow up process after a week or so feels like such a time drain, and it's really not fun when I'm just obviously being ghosted.
And since I'm a service provider, even when I hold the products, the most expensive part of my business (for me) is costs associated with the client receiving their service. So it still sucks when I've already done the work, and am holding onto it, but just can't seem to get paid the rest of what I'm owed. Plus, taking on clients who don't pay prevents me from being able to work with clients who do pay, since I have limited availability. And since the client is still an active client who likely hasn't left a review yet, and will still need to meet with me to receive their goods, it feels so awkward for me to have to get increasingly serious with them about paying their invoices. I don't want to feel like a debt collector.
I have some specific questions I'd love to know, but honestly I'd love to hear what process works for you and your businesses bc obviously this is something I need to learn to handle better. My questions are:

1. how often do you follow up with client's who haven't paid?
2. do you have a specific timeline for escalating cases of non-payment legally?
3. are my reputation concerns silly? do I need to press harder sooner?
4. what non-payment procedure works well for your business?

We attended the Marriott Vacation Club presentation yesterday and got out unscathed. It wasn't as high-pressure as I expected, but that could be because I prepared for it. Having done a lot of reading ahead of time, I had been able to run some numbers before the pitch and prepare myself for what it would look like; so while it's all fresh, let me share it here.
Their pitch is basically that you buy in for a fixed amount upfront, in exchange for a number of points per year, forever. The starting package is $33,200 which gives you 2000 points per year. That's $16.60 per point. Those points can be used for any of their properties, worldwide. The cost varies per place, per type of room, per season, and per day of the week. Those costs (in points) for a particular room at a particular location never go up. The cost (in points) for any given room/property never goes up: a 1300-point room will always be a 1300-point room. And the amount of points you earn each year stays the same forever as well (unless you buy more at then-current prices, which do rise over time).
Separate from the buy-in and the yearly points, you have yearly fees. The yearly fees DO climb in price over time. There's a maintenance fee that's currently $0.68/point ($1360/yr in the case of the package outlined above), plus a $230 per year Resort Fee I think they called it, to cover the program, like banking points or borrowing points, membership in the exchange program, etc. That totals $1590 per year in fees on top of the buy-in amount. That yearly cost will go up over time, but I didn't get a solid answer of what that rate of increase is - I think he said 1-2% per year for the Resort fee, and that the Maintenance fee had risen two or three times since 2010. Those are important numbers to pin down if you were actually interested in buying in - which we never were. That's the thing that leads most people to want to exit the program - those yearly fees that you're responsible for, forever.
His pitch was not very streamlined and bounced from one thing to another, but nothing ever landed. For my part, when he started to probe about what I knew about the program and what the pros and cons were, I replied that it was his presentation, not mine, and he had me for 90 minutes, so please go ahead. He tried to give figures of what people spend on vacations (using ridiculously unrealistic high numbers) and the saying what you would "save" by being a member - but he liked to ignore the upfront cost when calculating what you would "spend". And the numbers he started with were vastly higher than I've ever spent on a hotel room to begin with.
The way he chose to highlight the properties was odd as well - his favorite resort in Kauai, I think it was, he kept saying it had the biggest pool in Hawaii. I'm sure some people want that, but when I go to Hawaii, the size of the hotel pool is at the very bottom of the list I'm ticking off.
My wife (who entered like me with no interest in buying in) asked him if there's a way out if we decide down the road that we don't want to continue in the program. He said Marriott offers an "Exit Strategy" where they will buy your points back for half of the current retail price (currently $16.60, so $8.30 per point). He said the company wants not just happy members but happy ex-members as well. I asked who pays the escrow fees in that case and the seller (the member) does, he said. We didn't get into the specifics of those fees. I asked him, if it were true that there was a viable "Exit Strategy", then why were there people selling their packages for $2 per point? He said the Marriott will swoop in and buy those points themselves, to keep those points in their pocketbook. But I pointed out that there are brokerages' pages littered with packages of points for $2-3.50 per point up for grabs. Pages and pages of packages for sale by people who just wanted out of the program. He said that they weren't in Escrow yet, and that's why Marriott hadn't swooped in yet (lol).
[Sidenote about brokerages - the seller might be willing to get out for $2/point, but there are Escrow fees the buyer must pay, a $300 "Education Fee" Marriott charges to the buyer, plus a $3/pt Transfer fee that gets paid to Marriott by the buyer. So a $2500 sale becomes $6320 paid by the buyer (see here for example).]
We knew those numbers going in, so there wasn't really an approach he found that was effective to us.
When it came time to offer us "Incentives" his pitch was "instead of 2000 points yearly, how about 1000 - and instead of $1360/yr in maintenance fees, $680. Your maintenance fees are cut in half." Well yeah buddy, because the number of points are cut in half too. When I laughed at that and pointed out that it wasn't a discount, it was simply fewer points, he said "But also! Your cost per point is not $16.60 but $15.70." So a discount of 6% I think that works out to. I chuckled again, and he offered 2000 extra points (one-time points, not yearly points) and quoted their value at like $9800 or something, and threw some financing numbers to us. I think he said $1570 upfront and like $280 per month - no duration given, nor interest rate on that. Then he also quickly suggested the AMEX Bonvoy Brilliant card with 0% for 15 months, and you'd earn 6 Bonvoy miles per dollar spent (assuming your approved credit line was high enough to cover the buy-in), which would give you 94,200 Bonvoy points for the purchase, and give you 15 months to pay it off at 0% - a payment of $1,308/month during those 15 months). But we weren't interested in any of that.
After that, he agreed we weren't interested, and he sent us to a closer who offered us a couple packages at this same hotel, at basically retail, but with bonus Bonvoy miles included. That wasn't interesting either. So then they gave us the voucher for the agreed-upon gift, 10k Bonvoy miles, and said thanks for your time.
So here are some points I thought helped in the negotiation:

• We gave real-world examples of places we had stayed at prices far below the examples he was giving. Reject the assumption that you are currently over-paying for your trips (but that's assuming you aren't).
• Telling him it was his presentation, not mine, seemed to knock him off balance a little but because he didn't know which direction to come at us.
• I was prepared with copies of folks selling their shares on brokerages (example), and a copy of the point table for this property which I found here. I didn't need to pull any of those out, but I was glad I had prepared them.

One thing I spent some time on in preparation was this one: I wanted to compare what a hotel in the program costs using points, versus what it's available for on the open market in cash. The property we're staying at costs $1070 for these same dates on Booking.com, available to the public (we paid $150 for three nights in exchange for attending their presentation). So $1070 is what you can rent this room for at retail for those same three nights. As a member of the program, the number of points needed to reserve the same room on these same days is 1300. Those 1300 points at $16.6/pt is $21,580, based on the buy-in cost upfront. That's absurd, but remember we're at the start, where the cost per point hasn't averaged out yet - we're still looking at the whole buy-in cost, divided by one year's worth of points. (The following year, you have another 2000 points, so the cost per point has gone down by half theoretically. The next year, it's cut in thirds (really simplistically speaking). That cost per point will go down every year you own the membership, but that first year cost is astronomical.)
So then I wanted to calculate the average of your cost per point (just based on the buy-in cost and points earned) over time. The retail price of the room was $1070, divided by the number of points needed to reserve it (1300) is .82. So $0.82 is the cost per point I need to reach in order for the cost I'm paying (in points) to equal what the cost is commonly available in cash. So, here's the math I got by plugging in years and working it out: 20 years x 2,000 points per year is 40,000 points. $33,800 upfront divided by 40,000 points is $0.83 per point. That's close enough to the .82 we were aiming at. So: at a $33,800 buy-in, it would take 20 years in the program for the average cost per point to drop enough that I'd be paying the same rate I could get on the open market today - and that's without factoring in the yearly fees at all. (1590 x 20 years is another $31,800 over that time - not accounting for cost increases - remember the yearly fees do increase over time).
So we're still on the trip, and it's time to go museum walking, so I'll leave it there for today. I'll try to answer any questions when I'm back online.

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Chapter LXXXVI
Duchy of Daele, Aethera
Magnus watched from atop the walls of the central district. The Warchief had moved in completely now. Nothing was stopping him anymore. From his vantage point Magnus could see orcs and others in the Warchief's service flow through the city streets like a sickness coursing through the veins.
Then there were the screams.
He had believed most, if not all, of his citizens had sought shelter in the central district. But from the cries and screams he had been gravely mistaken. Many seemed to have decided to stay within their homes to hope and pray for the best. A hope and prayer that never came as they were dragged from their homes kicking and screaming. Crying babes were torn from their mothers while fathers were lashed and beaten before being dragged away for who-knows-what. Sons and daughters were no better. Either dying for putting up too much of a fight or joining the rest of their family in enslavement to the Warchief.
The Duke. No, he couldn't call himself that any longer, he thought bitterly. He no longer had a duchy to rule over. He had failed his people. Where had he gone wrong, he wondered as he stared out into the massing hordes. Perhaps if he had bent the knee from the start then many of his people would have survived. Or if he had invested in the magical capabilities of his city.
He sighed. Ifs and perhaps. That was all he had now. All any of them had now. He turned around and stared at the Great Cathedral of Daele. Only the large Temple Cities under the rule of the Bishopric of the Mother Goddess surpassed it in size and grandeur.
Some 73,000 souls now filled the confines of the Cathedral, or tried to. Most of the city that had sought shelter here were either in the Cathedral itself or had spilled around the building. Pews and other unnecessary things such as candelabras were taken out to make more room for the poor souls.
He and the Duchess had offered their own Ducal residence as shelter. Some accepted, though many wished to be close to the Holy Mother in their last hours. The nobles on the other hand had barricaded and locked themselves inside their manors. In the opening days of the siege, servants would still go about their business for their masters.
That had ended as it became obvious that this was the end for them all. No more servants and maids came and went from the manors, and most of the nobles within spent their last moments locked in vaults of wealth or perhaps drowning themselves in whatever vices or hedonism they saw fit.
Magnus of Daele glanced over at the Cathedral. His wife was inside tending to the masses and wounded that had found their way there. While they had been bound within the central district he had thought many times to go and see her one last time.
But then he would push those thoughts away. He feared if he came to her for a moment of respite and comfort than he wouldn't have the strength to leave her arms. He didn't want that. The people didn't deserve to see their former ruler hiding amongst them. He was a warrior, and he needed to act like it. Even now as death came for them at last.
It pained him to think of what will become of them soon.
He couldn't bare it no more. If this was to be their final moments. Then he will meet his end on his own accord! With a determined look he descended the stone stairs. As he reached the cobbled stone ground, what remained of his men looked up and stood at attention.
Even now they still offered him respect he didn't deserve, he thought. He strode towards a marble fountain and jumped up on the rim. He turned and dragged his gaze across his men.
"I know what you all must be feeling. Dread. Fear. Helplessness. Worry for not only yourselves but those you care about. I too feel this. I too, dread for what is soon to come. The hordes of hell are at our gate and no matter how hard we fight it isn't enough. What lies on the other side for us? Who knows. Many people claim many things. But few of us truly know what awaits us when we leave this realm for the next."
He paused for a moment and steeled his gaze.
"But what I do know is I will not go quietly there! I will not cower and hide! When the enemy comes for me they will know my fury! They will know my rage! They will remember the name Magnus of Daele! I will not leave this world like those cowards that have sworn their lives to that beast on the horizon! When I leave it, it will be with blade in hand! It will be with courage in my heart! And it will be a cry of battle that they will hear the last of my voice!"
He stopped and jumped down and stood in front of the path to the Cathedral.
"I ask you this. Not as your leader, but as one of your fellow countrymen. As your fellow soldier. Will you fight with me?"
He stepped aside.
"You are free to seek shelter and comfort with your loved ones if you so wish. I do not, nor will not, blame nor judge you. Every man should have the chance to decide when and where they leave this world. You can die with your loved ones. Or you can die gloriously beside me. It is your decision. Whether or not you fight and die in the house of the Holy Mother or side by side with me. You have earned the right to choose to do so."
He marched forwards towards the gate that separated them all from certain death. He stopped and looked back at the collected men.
"Will you fight with me, one last time?"
There were maybe two hundred men left of his army. Yet not a single soldier left his side. If Daele is to fall, it will be with a rallying cry that they'll meet the void beyond with.
Magnus and his two hundred men formed ranks for the last time.
"Raise the gates."
"RAISE THE GATES!"
The order sounded and the portcullis rose. Magnus saw across the bridge as orcs looked up to see what the commotion was about. Feral grins split their faces as battle loomed once more.
"It's been an honor to serve under you Duke Magnus." A soldier stated.
"Magnus." He clarified.
The soldier turned his head a fraction with a questioning look.
"We may have started this war as Leader and Soldier. But we will leave it as equals. If that is alright with you?"
The soldier nodded his head with a smile.
"Aye. Then it's been an honor to fight beside you, Magnus."
"Aye lad. It's been an honor to fight beside you as well. Beside you all."
His soldiers readied their weapons and armor one last time. Straps, bows, and swords were all checked as they made ready to fight once more. Magnus drew his sword. How many lives had it taken in these past weeks, he wondered. It had only tasted blood of the black-sailed corsairs before this war. But soon it's gluttonous feast would come to an end.
Magnus marched forward, and Daele marched with him. The gate closed with a finality as they left. A last act of spite for the Warchief.
The orcs across the bridge sounded a battle horn and made ready for combat. Even as they did, creatures of the deep lunged out of the water nearby. Soldiers died to tentacle and claw even before they even reached the orcs.
But that didn't deter them. They were going to die anyway. Magnus slashed his blade through a claw joint of a giant crustacean before stabbing at the things head. It gurgled before slumping over dead.
The orcs soon grew restless and worried that the sea beasts would take all the fun of their combat! They roared and charged the dwindling remnants of the men of Daele.
Magnus slashed across the face of some sort of half-octopus half-human creature before moving to engage the greentide. The orcs had a couple heads in height on the humans. But it still didn't matter to them.
Magnus roared as he cleaved his blade in an upward swing that sliced the studded leather of the orc as well as his chest. Red blood spilled forth from the wound as Magnus returned the blade back down and cut the beast's throat. Cutting of it's guttural howl of pain.
A simple thrust pierced the head of another that rushed him soon after. A spinning swing freed the blade and sent the head of another falling from a orc's shoulders.
As they fought, the sea beasts were beginning to attack even the orcs as blood and battle filled the air. A satisfying sight, Magnus thought as his blade vivisected a razor finned flying fish.
He brought his blade down onto a green meaty shoulder. Severing the thick length of muscle that used to be attached to it. The orc roared in fury even as Magnus stabbed his blade down into the knee and through the orc's calf.
The air was knocked from him and his vision blurred slightly as he was thrown back from the orc. He looked up from his prone position as he watched the orc pull his blade from his flesh. He glared at the blade then at Magnus before he limped his way towards him.
Magnus made to get up, but his head was still ringing from the impact and was slow to react. The orc neared him and raised his own blade to finish him off. His life was only prolonged because of the soldier he had spoken to before. The lad had charged the orc with a sword and shield.
It may not be enough to kill the orc. But it was enough to buy Magnus time to get his bearings and stand. He picked up a nearby spear, it's owner no longer needing it. He yelled as he rushed towards the orc and jammed the spear into the beast's chest.
It roared and tried to wrench itself free. The soldier hacked and stabbed as Magnus fought to keep the beast steady. Eventually it ceased long enough to drop his sword. Magnus rolled and retrieved it before bringing it down and severing the beast's head.
He breathed heavily and turned to give his thanks to the soldier that had saved him. But no longer found him by his side. Many of his men were no longer at his side.
He looked about as barely a handful remained. They were beaten and bloody. But they were as determined as he was to finally be at the end. He held up his bloodied blade and looked between it and the next wave of orcs that were rushing towards them.
He gave a rallying cry once more as he and his last men charged the orcs. Time seemed to stop as blades and axes froze mid swing.
I'm sorry, he thought. He should've said goodbye to his wife. He should've told her he loved her one last time. He should've done so much more for the people he cared for.
I'm sorry.
-----
The Duchess walked among the huddled masses as they cried and prayed amongst one another. She had done the same off and on over these past few weeks. The former when she had a moment to herself. The people needed someone to remain strong. Her husband was out defending them, but she was here and they needed to see that she was as strong.
"Perhaps the actuator was faulty?" She heard Dylan murmuring to himself as he scratched and scribbled on a piece of paper, his brother sat nearby watching and would grunt to make sure Dylan knew he was listening. It had been yet another trial to keep him from rushing off again to "help" the troops.
He would get a "flash of inspiration" and would try to dart of to his workshop in the city to build some sort of new contraption that would "turn the tide" as he put it.
But the handful of soldiers that were stationed with them had been quite insistent that they remain here for their own good. Everyone had thoughts of much the same. Prayer and talk of going to their homes to retrieve swords or other family heirlooms and go join the Duke in defending their city.
But their loved ones were quick to dismiss such thoughts and would convince them to remain with them. The Duchess had similar thoughts. Either to pick up a sword and join her husband or to drag him in here where they could hold one another as their deaths neared.
She held back tears at the thought that her husband might be dead already. That they were just waiting for the inevitable call that the gate had been breached. That they would soon die.
A murmur rippled through the Cathedral as a voice sounded from the entrance. Then she heard the words that broke her heart.
"The Duke has fallen! The gate is under siege!"
Cries rose as families joined together in a last embrace. The only soldier they had looked conflicted, even a bit guilty. The Duke had died bravely while they were here guarding people that would surely die anyway.
No-one would fault them for thinking such. Even now some wished to take up arms to avenge the Duke and defend Daele. As the voices and cries reached deafening levels a single clear female voice sang seemingly from the air itself.
The cries and voices all hushed as a wave of calm fell over them. The voice uttered a single word.
Sanctuary.
Then a crack of thunder sounded as the wall behind the alter to the Holy Mother Goddess split open with a radiant golden light. The whole Cathedral stared at the gap with awe and fear.
The Delta Guard that remained and the other soldiers readied their weapons for any possible threat they might face that emerged from the hole. But none came. The Duchess walked forward cautiously. As she neared she could feel something. A chill air blew from the hole.
She knew of few places that would be cold this time of year. But it wasn't a harsh cold like from the mountains or even the biting freeze from the wastes. It felt like their home would during the harvest months when the weather began to grow cold.
She was terrified. But she couldn't show it to her people. She stepped forward and slowly stuck a hand into the hole. There was a slight tingle that pricked her skin. She wasn't sure if it was from the magic or the cold coming from the other side.
She turned to her people with a determined look. Then she stepped into the gap. When nothing happened immediately it was like a spell broke and the masses began to drive towards the hole, their salvation within reach!
She and the Delta Guard who were now HER personal Honor Guard led them through the golden passage. Slowly at first but then faster at the thought of safety being at the end while death waited behind.
-----
A large wooden log with a heavy iron ram was bashed against the gate again and again. The orcs believed it would be easier now that the defenders were gone, but the gate operators were being absolute pests to them. Throwing rocks and oil as well as the occasional arrow.
It wasn't going to stop them. But that didn't matter to the spiteful gatekeepers. Anything to inconvenience or hinder the orcs was enough. As a rock sailed through the air and banged against the iron helmet of a grunt, the One-Eyed appeared with his apprentices.
"What is taking so long?"
A grunt turned to the elder shaman.
"The gate is strong and its taking time to breach."
A rock rained down on the grunt as he spoke.
"And those infernal pigs won't cease their pestering!"
The One-Eyed gazed up at the men atop the portcullis.
"Move your men."
The grunt called his men back from the gate. The gatekeepers cheered and jeered as the orcs retreated. Then the air grew tense and crackled with energy. The One-Eyed murmured in an orcish tongue as his apprentices began to chant. He raised a gnarled finger towards the gate.
As the chanting got louder electricity arced along the ground and through the air. The grunts and soldiers nearby yelped as they were shocked from the currents being drawn.
When the chanting ended the air popped as a bolt of lightning sped from the gnarled finger and into the portcullis. A boom rang out as dust and debris billowed from the aftermath.
The grunts looked on in awe as they saw nothing but ruble where the thick gate once stood. They cheered and yelled as they saw the remains of the pesky gatekeepers amidst the ruble. They surged forwards with battle cries, ignoring the worn and tired form of the One-Eyed. His apprentices helped him stay on his feet as they followed after the tide of greenskins.
As they neared the Cathedral cries rang out from nearby houses and manors as their inhabitants were dragged forth. They were all brought before the One-Eyed as he inspected them. He sighed as he dismissed all that were brought to him. None had what he needed.
Not that the soldiers cared, more slaves to work or to satisfy themselves with. Then the sounds of battle rang out. The One-Eyed ordered his buzzing apprentices to follow after it.
They turned a corner and were met with a brief skirmish in front of the Cathedral. A few humans were fighting fiercely against the many orcs that circled them. One of the Cathedrals mighty wooden doors were cracked open. From his spot the One-Eyed could see a radiant golden light coming from inside.
"Hurry! Deal with them and get inside there!"
The orcs grunted in confirmation and began to make short work of the lowly guards. They broke through the doors and the pitiful barricade they had erected against them. The entryway was empty save for some belongings that seemed to have been left behind.
The orcs rounded the corner, one was met with a arrow to the shoulder as a few guards remained to but the fleeing people time to get all the way through. The One-Eyed turned the corner as the guards were quickly dealt with. He saw a hole in the opposite wall that golden light poured from, and that the citizens of Daele were fleeing into!
"Stop them!" He ordered. Whoever made it must be here somewhere, he thought.
Dylan and his brother were the last ones in the Cathedral other than the guards and now the orcs. His brother grunted and gestured to the orcs as they closed in on them.
"I know! But it has all our plans are on it! I can't leave it for these savages to find!"
The gnome looked about hurriedly for the notebook he had that held all the schematics and ideas he had had over the years. He saw it as the last guard was cut down. He grabbed it just as Alban grabbed the back of his brother's shirt and dragged him back as an axe blade planted itself into the tile where his hand had been moments before!
The orcs roared as the two sped into the crevice. One threw his axe at the two fleeing Artificers. As it reached the boundary of the hole it slammed shut with such force it shook the entire building. Where the gap had been was now solid masonry, and an axe that was seamlessly embedded into the stone as if it had been there all along.
No matter how hard the orc tried to pull it wouldn't budge from its new place. The old One-Eyed shuffled forwards towards the wall. He ran a hand along as he tried to feel what kind of magic had just appeared.
Everyone could sense magic to some degree. But it took someone who was especially talented or trained to know who, or what, had cast the magic and what kind it was.
Draconic was obvious, he thought. The power of the dragons saturated the place now. But he caught a couple of other things that piqued his interest. A bit of the divine was there too. Though that could be because of the holiness of the building. Then there was something else. Like an after taste. Something... other.
"Interesting." The old One-Eyed uttered as he gazed at the spot the chasm was moments before.
"Very interesting."
-----
The Duchess ran towards the light, her people close behind her. As she neared the end she felt a shake come from the other end. She and the others hurried at that sign.
She breathed deeply of the chill air as she reached the end of the passage. She looked around, her Delta Guard did as well. Weary of any signs of danger. But they found none, nothing obvious that is.
Her people began to pour behind her as they too emerged from the passage. Before long the flat land they found themselves in was soo occupied by the remnants of an entire city.
"What is this place?" Someone asked as they all looked around their new environment.
She wished she knew, thought the Duchess. They stood there for many minutes trying to decide what to do. Then a strange thing rumbled as it neared them. It flashed lights of red and blue as it neared the large mass of people.
The Delta Guard readied their tridents as the police car neared. A man dressed in tan clothes stepped out of the vehicle and looked at everyone with a shocked gaze. He shuffled forwards and spoke in a calm voice, though a hand was on his holster.
"Can I help you folks?"
The people all shuffled and murmured as to what to do and who the strange man was. The Duchess strode forwards and dipped a light bow in greeting.
"Greetings sir. I am Duchess Helena of Daele, me and my people are looking for a place called Sanctuary. Are you from there or know where it might be?"
The man scratched his head as he looked at the mass of people.
"Don't know nothin' 'bout no Sanctuary. But Somewhere is just 20 minutes east of here."
The Duchess scrunched up her face in confusion.
"I beg your pardon?"
"Somewhere. That's the name of our town over yonder." The man said as he gestured to the east towards the large mountain range in the distance.
The Duchess wasn't sure what to think, of the man nor the events that just happened. But her people needed food and shelter. So while it might not be called Sanctuary, it would hopefully be one anyway.
She called her people as the deputy drove away in his car back towards town to notify the Sheriff.
"My people! We have had trying times as of late! Now, we have hopefully found salvation! Found Sanctuary!"
The mass migration murmured excitedly and followed after the Duchess as she headed "20 minutes east".
​
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Greetings /ClevelandCavs,
In case you haven't heard, Reddit recently announced some major changes to their API that could seriously impact the users here on /ClevelandCavs and across Reddit as a whole.
You've likely already seen quite a few posts like this one across other subs, so we're going to cut to the chase.

What's Happening

• Third Party Reddit apps (such as Apollo, Reddit is Fun, and others) are going to become ludicrously more expensive for it's developers to run, which will in turn either kill the apps or result in a (high) monthly fee to the users if they choose to use one of those apps to browse. Put simply, each request to Reddit within these mobile apps will cost the developer money. The developers of Apollo were quoted around $2 million per month for the current rate of usage. The only way for these apps to continue to be viable for the developer is if you (the user) pay a monthly fee, and realistically, this is most likely going to just outright kill them. Put simply: If you use a third-party app to browse Reddit, you will most likely no longer be able to do so, or be charged a monthly fee to keep it viable.
  
• A big reason this matters to clevelandcavs, and why we believe it matters to you, is that many readers (myself included) use third-party apps for Reddit. A recent study on /PCgaming found that nearly a quarter of its users primarily use third-party apps to browse. It's likely those numbers translate here and to other communities as well.
  
• Some people with visual impairments have problems using the official mobile app, and the removal of third-party apps may significantly hinder their ability to browse Reddit in general. More info
  
• Many moderators are going to be significantly hindered from moderating their communities because 3rd party mobile apps provide mod tools that the official app doesn't support. This means longer wait times on post approvals, reports, modmails etc.
  
• NSFW Content is no longer going to be available in the API. This means that, even if 3rd party apps continue to survive, or even if you pay a fee to use a 3rd party app, you will not be able to access NSFW content on it. You will only be able to access it on the official Reddit app. Additionally, some service bots (such as video downloaders or maybe remindme bots) will not be able to access anything NSFW. In more major cases, it may become harder for moderators of NSFW subreddits to combat serious violations such as CSAM due to certain mod tools being restricted from accessing NSFW content.
  

Open Letter to Reddit & the June 12th Blackout

In lieu of what's happening above, an open letter has been released by the broader moderation community, and clevelandcavs will be supporting it.
Part of this initiative includes a potential subreddit blackout (meaning, the subreddit will be privatized and posts will be unable to be shared or commented on) on June 12th, lasting through June 14th or longer. The mod team here is in support of joining this blackout, but we understand that we do not own this subreddit -- it belongs to the community at large.
With that in mind, we would like to give the community a voice in this. Is this an important enough matter that clevelandcavs should fully support the protest and blackout the subreddit for at least 24 hours on June 12th? Should we participate all the way through June 14? Longer? Feel free to share your thoughts and opinions below.
It's worth noting that those dates will largely be a quiet time here at /clevelandcavs since it will largely be the Cavs postseason (though Finals Game 5 does take place on 6/12) and pre-draft (where we don't even have a first-round pick).
Please share your thoughts in the comments below. And we encourage all of our users to consider supporting these protests themselves by not using Reddit at all from June 12-14. This move by Reddit is nothing short of anti-consumer and anti-competition. Not only that, but it kills all of the hard work countless passionate developers have put into all of the great third-party apps like Apollo, Reddit is Fun, and others.
Thanks everyone! Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.
Cheers,
ClevelandCavs Mod Team

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Transformers' Biggest Movie Debate Was Solved Way Before Rise of the Beasts
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Transformers: Rise of the Beasts sets to answer if these new movies are a reboot or prequel. But the answer was already given in 2018's Bumblebee
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When The Transformers entered the world of live-action, Michael Bay introduced a new type of action movie that was heavy on effects but also had enough heart to garner a huge following. The first movie reinvigorated the summer blockbuster, and this trend continued for four more sequels. In that time, characters like Bumblebee and Optimus Prime were fleshed out, and audiences learned that Autobots had been part of Earth's history for centuries. But when 2018's Bumblebee was released, it introduced speculation and contradictions.
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Transformers: Rise of the Beasts is the latest entry in the world of live-action Transformers but one that's created some issues regarding the continuity of all movies. The main question that should hopefully be answered in this new entry is whether these movies are all connected or if the more recent movies are set in a rebooted continuity. But when audiences go back, this question is already answered in Bumblebee.
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In Michael Bay's Transformers movies, the history of the Autobots and Decepticons and their relationship with Earth was unique but also complex. For starters, it was established that these alien visitors came to Earth as early as the 1800s. However, Transformers: The Last Knight instead claimed that Cybertronians had been fighting alongside humans since the Middle Ages. Even more interesting, Bumblebee fought during World War II. But this all contradicted even the original movie, which seemed to set up that Bumblebee and the Autobots had only recently visited Earth.
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With the original five movies in mind, Bumblebee created a much more complicated universe in which Bumblebee never fought with American soldiers because he came to Earth in the 1980s. Furthermore, Prime followed suit not long after, even though he appeared for the first time in 2007. This alone helped prove that Bumblebee was the start of a new continuity separate from the Michael Bay movies. But the most important hint that the past movies were part of a different continuity was the G1 designs that were used on previously introduced Autobots like Optimus and Ironhide.
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Though Bumblebee helped cleverly set up a new universe of Transformers movies, it was hard to differentiate due to particular callbacks to Bay's entries. Perhaps the most obvious was making Bumblebee a Camaro, which was first introduced in 2007's Transformers. Since then, the look has become synonymous with the character and has continued to be used with Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. Another thing that has created confusion is that the new movies are set in the '80s and '90s, which would explain why Sam Witwicky found him years later. However, for that to work, it would have to make The Last Knight non-canon, among other inconsistencies, like Optimus' arrival to Earth
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Though the debate over whether the new Transformers movies are tied to past ones feels greater than ever, it's clear that a new timeline was established years prior. If anything, Rise of the Beasts could serve as a capitalization on this new continuity, and with Unicron having multiversal powers, it could prove this by establishing Bay's universe as separate. Ironically, while Bumblebee may not have the biggest stakes, it had an important job of establishing a new era of Transformers movies and succeeded in ending a debate before Rise of the Beasts was even released.
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To dive further into this new continuity, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts hits theaters on June 9th, 2023

Hello /gaming!
tl;dr: We’d like to open a dialog with the community to discuss /gaming’s participation in the June 12th reddit blackout. For those out of the loop, please read through the entirety of this post. Otherwise, let your thoughts be heard in the comments. <3
As many of you are already aware, reddit has announced significant upcoming changes to their API that will have a serious impact to many users. There is currently a planned protest across hundreds of subreddits to black out on June 12th. The moderators at /gaming have been discussing our participation, and while we’ve come to a vote and agreement internally, we wanted to ensure that whatever action we take is largely supported by our community.

What’s Happening

• Third Party reddit apps (such as Apollo, Reddit is Fun and others) are going to become ludicrously more expensive for it’s developers to run, which will in turn either kill the apps, or result in a monthly fee to the users if they choose to use one of those apps to browse. Put simply, each request to reddit within these mobile apps will cost the developer money. The developers of Apollo were quoted around $2 million per month for the current rate of usage. The only way for these apps to continue to be viable for the developer is if you (the user) pay a monthly fee, and realistically, this is most likely going to just outright kill them. Put simply: If you use a third party app to browse reddit, you will most likely no longer be able to do so, or be charged a monthly fee to keep it viable.
  
• NSFW Content is no longer going to be available in the API. This means that, even if 3rd party apps continue to survive, or even if you pay a fee to use a 3rd party app, you will not be able to access NSFW content on it. You will only be able to access it on the official reddit app. Additionally, some service bots (such as video downloaders or maybe remindme bots) will not be able to access anything NSFW. In more major cases, it may become harder for moderators of NSFW subreddits to combat serious violations such as CSAM due to certain mod tools being restricted from accessing NSFW content.
  
• Many users with visual impairments rely on 3rd-party applications in order to more easily interface with reddit, as the official reddit mobile app does not have robust support for visually-impaired users. This means that a great deal of visually-impaired redditors will no longer be able to access the site in the assisted fashion they’re used to.
  
• Many moderators rely on 3rd-party tools in order to effectively moderate their communities. When the changes to the API kicks in, moderation across the board will not only become more difficult, but it will result in lower consistency, longer wait times on post approvals and reports, and much more spam/bot activity getting through the cracks. In discussions with mods on many subreddits, many longtime moderators will simply leave the site. While it’s tradition for redditors to dunk on moderators, the truth is that they do an insane amount of work for free, and the entire site would drastically decrease in quality and usability without them.
  

Open Letter to reddit & Blackout

In lieu of what’s happening above, an open letter has been released by the broader moderation community, and /gaming will be supporting it. Part of this initiative includes a potential subreddit blackout (meaning the subreddit will be privatized) on June 12th, lasting 48 hours or longer.
We would like to give the community a voice in this. Do you believe /gaming should fully support the protest and blackout the subreddit for at least June 12th? How long if we do? Feel free to leave your thoughts and opinions below.
Cheers,
/gaming Mod Team

Hello i am currently making a heresy era iron hands army as of now i only have the age of darkness box set minus one of the 20 mk6 marines, made them in a different legion for an allied force, and i plan on buying new mk6 marines to make into a squad of volkite and rotor canons along with a sicarian tank and mk3 command squad
my problem is weather getting an iron father and the legion breachers or a legion praevion and vorax automata rule of cool is messing with me cause both options look sick and the bare heads for the breachers and praevion i wanna use for my preators, didnt wanna give them the helmets cause i want them to stand out, so could yall help me out for what would work best with the iron hands

Hey all,
I’m a full-time musician, and I have a pretty good amount of PA. I’ve got:
-2x EV SX250 -2x Carvin TRx118N -4x Peavey PV-12M -Behringer X32 Rack
I’m drowning in amplifiers, I occasionally scoop them up free from my day job. So powering all these speakers isn’t a concern.
My thought is, this gear sits around until I need it for a big outdoor gig where we have to provide sound, which is maybe 4-6 times a year. The vast majority of the time, I get by with my Turbosound IP2000 for FOH. My thought is, if I can drop my sound system off, still go play a bar gig, and come back and pick it up at the end of the night I could pad my income quite a bit. I could even break down the system into 2 smaller ones (single sub, single monitor, pair of mains) and potentially rent out both in a night. I guess what I’m wondering is:
-what are the costs associated with this kind of business (insurance etc) -what could I expect to generate per event -what kind of target audience should I look for (was thinking weddings and town functions where someone only needs a PA for a night and isn’t going to buy one) -how can I keep people from breaking my equipment
While I can run sound pretty well, that’s not really my goal at the moment. Maybe if I partner with a sound engineer down the road and I can still go play with my band 😅
Probably important/ pertinent, I am in the US about an hour outside of Washington, DC.

We live miles apart, she lives in South Carolina & I live in California we met on a two week vacation in the Virgin Islands, we get along great she is so smart, loves the outdoors, wants to continue in the line of work I am already in (engineering), we truly have grown so close over the past month. I have met her mom & dad and close family and I was invited to go see her in 3 weeks time for my birthday in early July. However, her birthday in actually coming up on June 14 and I will not be able to make it due to work but I do have enough time to buy her her favorite dress that she has been wanting and/or delivering her favorite flowers to her doorstep along with a stuffed animal and card! My conundrum is I do not know what she would be the most happy with, I would get both but is that too much? The will cost around the same $150 respectively so $300 for a bouquet of pink carnations and plush bear & LuluLemon dress to get delivered to her door no issues. However as you can imagine I am stuck on what would be the better gift to give as she has expressed to me before that she really loves this dress but is just waiting to get it but also how she never had received flowers on any occasion before. I do not want to mold my gift around her entire opinion before I make a purchase but I do want to show her I am thinking of her constantly and that I will always be there to ensure she gets effort from me. I don't want to overdo it but I also do want to do what I know I can if possible while also getting her something she would appreciate. I know she will for both she is truly a sweetheart so she deserves all of this overthinking I just don't want to bombard her with too much affection and give off the sense I am trying to "love bomb" her as I have no reason to, but I do want to send the message that she is my princess and nothing will stop me from making sure she gets what she deserves!
TLDR: For her birthday, do I buy my LDGF a $150 dress or $150 worth of flowers, or both?

Has anyone tried working from home without childcare after your parental leave is done? My baby will be about 5 months when I go back to work, and I’m so anxious about the cost of childcare. Pros/cons of working full time from home with a baby?

I Just completed first clinic administered intramuscular ketamine earlier today. I've been working with my psychiatrics nurse for over 2 years now and she is trained in this modality so I decided to try it with her.
I had a good experience... wow, though. Bam, I was in it but kept repeating my mantra and dove into the abyss- which is what met me first on the other side. I'm committing to two more doses with her over the next two weeks.
For cost and practical reasons I'm considering one of the online providers but I'm having trouble making a decision. I found this post to be somewhat helpful but have so many more questions than answers.