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2014.01.24 20:39 Higgenbottoms Buy or Sell Wendy's Gift Cards with Dogecoin!
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2016.10.07 13:13 bezV ChronoBank
Chrono.tech is reimagining hiring for the blockchain age. Chrono.tech is led by an accomplished executive team with deep domain experience in HR, banking, and fintech. It boasts one of the strongest technical and product teams in the blockchain world and is well-funded to innovate in all sectors of HR, from hiring to workers compensation to lending to insurance.
2017.12.05 22:23 hackapreneur FCFL
The Fan Controlled Football League (FCFL) is the first professional sports league truly designed for the digital age – putting fans in control of their sports entertainment experience. FCFL fans act as coaches (calling plays and scouting players), GMs (drafting players and deciding personnel), and owners (hiring and firing coaches). This is all done via blockchain technology that allows for full transparency and decentralized decision-making.
2023.05.28 23:34 RelayFm_podcasts Mac Power Users 694: Workflows with Chance Miller
Chance Miller is the editor-in-chief of 9to5Mac. This week, he joins David and Stephen to discuss his work covering Apple and what the group wants to see at WWDC23.
This episode of Mac Power Users is sponsored by: - 1Password: Never forget a password again. - TextExpander: Get 20% off with this link and type more with less effort! Expand short abbreviations into longer bits of text, even fill-ins, with TextExpander. - Indeed: Join more than three million businesses worldwide using Indeed to hire great talent fast. - Squarespace: Make your next move. Enter offer code MPU at checkout to get 10% off your first purchase.
Guest Starring:Chance Miller
Links and Show Notes:Sign up for the MPU email newsletter and join the MPU forums.
More Power Users: Ad-free episodes with regular bonus segmentsSubmit FeedbackChance Miller, Author at 9to5Mac9to5MacChance's DeskChance's iPhone Home screensChance's iPad Home screensApple says it is removing apps & in-app purchases from its iTunes Affiliate Program - 9to5Mac9to5Mac Podcast NetworkSlackObsidianGrammarlyTodoistUniversal Control - Apple SupportReality Pro - 9to5MacThe Everything Headset – 512 PixelsApple journaling app will be part of iOS 17 - 9to5MacDay One Journal AppBloomberg: Health app coming to iPad this year, AI-powered ‘wellness coaching service’ also in the works - 9to5MacwatchOS 10: New features, release date, and more - 9to5MacApple Music needs these long-overdue features in 2023 - 9to5MacApple Should Bring Back Dashboard – 512 PixelsCarPlay’s UI Needs a Revisit in the Age of Large Screens – 512 PixelsEvery Default macOS Wallpaper – in Glorious 6K Resolution – 512 Pixels2023 Ford Mustang Mach-E SUVEverybody hates GM’s decision to kill Apple CarPlay and Android Auto for its EVs - The VergeiOS 17 Rumored to Feature 'Major' Changes to iPhone's Control Center - MacRumorsTimery for TogglTotSoulver 3Tabs to LinksOvercastApollo for RedditDenim - Playlist Cover MakerScreens for macOSChance Miller (@[email protected]) - Mastodon
from Relay FM All-Network Feed http://relay.fm/mpu/694
submitted by RelayFm_podcasts to RelayFM_masterRSS [link] [comments]
This episode of Mac Power Users is sponsored by: - 1Password: Never forget a password again. - TextExpander: Get 20% off with this link and type more with less effort! Expand short abbreviations into longer bits of text, even fill-ins, with TextExpander. - Indeed: Join more than three million businesses worldwide using Indeed to hire great talent fast. - Squarespace: Make your next move. Enter offer code MPU at checkout to get 10% off your first purchase.
Guest Starring:Chance Miller
Links and Show Notes:Sign up for the MPU email newsletter and join the MPU forums.
More Power Users: Ad-free episodes with regular bonus segmentsSubmit FeedbackChance Miller, Author at 9to5Mac9to5MacChance's DeskChance's iPhone Home screensChance's iPad Home screensApple says it is removing apps & in-app purchases from its iTunes Affiliate Program - 9to5Mac9to5Mac Podcast NetworkSlackObsidianGrammarlyTodoistUniversal Control - Apple SupportReality Pro - 9to5MacThe Everything Headset – 512 PixelsApple journaling app will be part of iOS 17 - 9to5MacDay One Journal AppBloomberg: Health app coming to iPad this year, AI-powered ‘wellness coaching service’ also in the works - 9to5MacwatchOS 10: New features, release date, and more - 9to5MacApple Music needs these long-overdue features in 2023 - 9to5MacApple Should Bring Back Dashboard – 512 PixelsCarPlay’s UI Needs a Revisit in the Age of Large Screens – 512 PixelsEvery Default macOS Wallpaper – in Glorious 6K Resolution – 512 Pixels2023 Ford Mustang Mach-E SUVEverybody hates GM’s decision to kill Apple CarPlay and Android Auto for its EVs - The VergeiOS 17 Rumored to Feature 'Major' Changes to iPhone's Control Center - MacRumorsTimery for TogglTotSoulver 3Tabs to LinksOvercastApollo for RedditDenim - Playlist Cover MakerScreens for macOSChance Miller (@[email protected]) - Mastodon
from Relay FM All-Network Feed http://relay.fm/mpu/694
2023.05.28 22:35 KatyaStec Looking for NJ/NYC/PA Fursuit Creator for All Ages of Geek and Boys Love Universe Mascots [HIRING]
![Looking for NJ/NYC/PA Fursuit Creator for All Ages of Geek and Boys Love Universe Mascots [HIRING]](https://b.thumbs.redditmedia.com/iCAEeYvxM2lhv1lq_WoX-XrOhCcCRmdX3AXKOC4zkyM.jpg "Looking for NJ/NYC/PA Fursuit Creator for All Ages of Geek and Boys Love Universe Mascots [HIRING]") | Hey! submitted by KatyaStec to fursuit [link] [comments] We are looking to hire a fursuit creator from NJ/NYC/PA area in the US. We're working on two major projects for our mascots from All Ages of Geek and Boys Love Universe. Below are the images for reference. The reason we need the NJ/NYC/PA area is because we'd like to discuss sizes and also meet up for measurements and the like. Can anyone help out with this? Would love to see your work! Kasai Mascot Reference (All Ages of Geek) https://preview.redd.it/mdk1j886co2b1.png?width=3000&format=png&auto=webp&s=528a67cc294119772edce3aedb9055d0817f51f0 Otto Mascot Reference (Boys Love Universe) https://preview.redd.it/d76jcw2mbo2b1.png?width=1680&format=png&auto=webp&s=48dffb8f26d22dcd82bca1cc5a9a215dd7a00e18 ~ Emily |
2023.05.28 22:25 not_wingren Dev Diary 52: Baashidi Lore Dev Diary
 | “We are the people of Baashi, he who led us from the deserts, he who made treaty with the dwellers of the ocean, he who slew the great chiefs of the Nikhuva and took from them their pearls and cowrie shells. It is in this year, which all civilized peoples know as the year of the star Dulasmag, that I write to you of the situation of our people. Of the wisdom of Qasri Aqoon, where scrolls are stacked like coins in a vault. Of the wealth of Qasri Maroodiqya, whose markets never want for the ivory of whale nor elephant. Of the honor of Qasri Abeesooyinka, who feeds many mouths and guards yet many more from the lizard demons. Of the nobility of Qasri Ubakhiyo, where the civilization of the Jasiir Jadid meets the savagery of the Tanizu barbarians. Of the cunning of Qasri Bariga, whose navigators and traders bring the far off knowledge of Haless to the shores of the Jasiir Jadid. And finally of the queen of cities. Qasri Baashi, the city of glory and death where no man save the noblest or bravest dare dwell. It is with these actors that our tale begins. May fortune and the divine laws of the world smile upon our people, for it is the age of our glory.” submitted by not_wingren to Anbennar [link] [comments] - Dayakh Baare in the foreword of Lessons of the Peace, a treatise on rule. A culture map of the Baashidi. There’s also [REDACTED], which isn’t on screen at the moment. A religion map. You can ignore that little blue province. It’s nothing important. Who Are the Baashidi? The Baashidi are a group of humans living in southern Sarhal bound by a shared language and historical ties to the hero Baashi as well as the ancient Jinnakah and Ardimya sultanates. Their culture group also includes the Guryadagga (People Who Stayed at Home), an umbrella term used for the people living in the lands that the Baashidi migrated out of long ago.The Baashidi call their home the Jasiir Jadid (New Peninsula) and term the lands of the Guryadagga the Jasiir Doog (Homeland Peninsula). Their culture is split into three groups: The Suhratbi, who live in the Suhratba plain. The Dhebiji, who dwell in the thin peninsular land of the Dhebij, and the Ashamadi, who occupy the eastern portion of the Ashamadiat plain. There are five kingdoms among the Baashidi: Qabiika Baddabi, Qabiika Beeragga, Qabiika Weggabiga, Qabiika Dadubakha, and Kabilu Gawakhiza. Qabiika roughly translates as royal tribe, with Kabilu being a corruption of the word used in some parts of the Ashamadiat. The Dhebiji and the Suhratbi are the original Baashidi, formed as cultures a millenia ago out of migrants from the lands of the Ardimyan sultanate as it was destroyed during an event known as the Great Death, a consequence of the Day of Ashen Skies. The distinction between them is partially geographic and political, but also references how much of their ancestry they trace to the Nikhuva people, whose tribes occupied much of the Dhebij in ancient times. The Asahamadi were incorporated into the Baashidi world centuries ago, made up of a mix of Dhebiji settler and Baashified Tanizu. They still maintain some traditions from Tanizu, and some of them even practice the rites of the Beast Memory over Baashidi religion. The Baashidi have an ancient pact with the merfolk, who inhabit the seas around them. Baashidi cities are built with sunken areas and canals to accommodate merfolk swimming through them, and the great friendship between the two peoples is a source of Baashidi pride and their success as seafarers. The Baashidi are well known for their poetry, with the skill highly prized among all levels of Baashidi society due to their belief in its magical power. Formal court poetry follows specific forms that draw upon mathematical formulations and sacred geometries, while its more folk practice is often as long form sung tales of an individual’s glory or dishonor. Those who master either form are respected for the power they wield, and it is not unknown for even the highest to be struck down by a curse poem from an offended poet. The Ardimya Sultanate and the Great Death Ardimya was a Jinn, a being of magic and elemental power whose kind ruled over Sarhal and Bulwar at various points in ancient history. Her history prior to appearing in East Sarhal is unknown, but she came from somewhere west, fleeing other Jinn, and led a great caravan of her servants through East Sarhal in an event known as The Great Procession. She gave many gifts to the people of the lands she passed through, something that we’ll cover in more detail in a dev diary on the [redacted] system. Eventually, she arrived in the lands of the Jasiir Doog, where she brought the local tribes under her influence through both gifts and force, chief among them the tribe of the Nasmaneen, who served as her priests.Ardimya’s sultanate was a powerful but isolated state. The strongholds of most of her kind were in West Sarhal, and Ardimya had little interest in those of her kind who were not her servants, not even those who fled from the Jinn-Binders in Bulwar. At the Lizardfolk Kingdoms dominated southern Sarhal, which they considered to belong entirely to them. Ardimya spent a great deal of effort staving off lizardfolk conquest of her sultanate, a losing war that saw her resources stretched. This all changed in 7700 BAS, when the precursor elves defeated Ardimya in a war, forcing her to pay tribute, while at the same time they ravaged the lands of the lizardfolk. While the precursors eventually left due to their civil war, Ardimya’s image in the eyes of her people was forever tarnished, eventually leading to an assassination attempt by one of her sons and the Jinn’s descent into madness. Matters were made worse when Ardimya was ravaged by the attacks of the Deep Devils, an event which afflicted all of coastal Sarhal. The weakness of their mother and her clear loss of sanity prompted her remaining sons to rebel against her, launching the sultanate into a civil war. Though Ardimya won the son civil war, her victory would be a bitter and short lived one. The Day of Ashen Skies occurred only 40 years later, banishing all of the remaining Jinn, including Ardimya. Though this was a catastrophic event for most of the world, it was near apocalyptic in the Ardimyan sultanate. Enchantments became unbound as magical storms which scoured and warped the land, killing millions. Additionally, the civil war had been a long and bitter struggle between family, a conflict where horrific magic and monsters had been unleashed. Without their masters and with the rules of magic changing, these creatures were free to wreak havoc as they wished. None will ever truly know what befell most of the sultanate’s cities, but the survivors who were not simply killed in this initial wave of devastation found themselves locked in battle with the Qeyikul, anthropotrophic humanoid monsters of unknown origin who devoured entire cities of survivors. Most of those who survived became nomads, engaged in a constant desperate struggle to survive the hostile environment that their home had become while their heels were dogged by monsters. From among these fragmented bands arose a hero known as Baashi. A young warrior who fought with legendary skill and valor, he rallied groups of survivors into an army that would eventually slaughter the main mass of Qeyikul alongside help from the Nasmaneen, who had managed to hold the capital city of Ardim Qarast against the tide of death. Baashi was offered a place of honor among those in Ardim Qarast but refused it along the line that his followers had come from the tribes oppressed by Ardimya and the royal tribes. He and his followers went west, while the royal tribes founded the sultanate of Jinnakah, which would eventually collapse in 789 AA, leaving the Guryadagga as nomads dwelling in the lands of the empire they had once ruled. The Guryadagga The Guryadagga, as mentioned above, is the name applied to those who remained in the Jasiir Doog after the events of the Great Death and Baashi’s march to the west. They are split into four royal clans: The Nasmaneen, the Qayneen, the Muudeyneen, and the Samaaneen. All of these are descended from the original royal tribes of the Ardimyan sultanate, though now split into many disorganized subtribes. They call their land “Ardimya’s Land” from which Cannorians call it simply Ardimya. The Nasmaneen managed to hold onto some power after the Great Death, using the magic of Ardimya’s city to keep their lands fertile and maintain the lifestyle of luxuries they had been accustomed to during the days of the Ardimyan sultanate. However, the magic of the city was damaged by the events of the Great Death and the desperate Jinnakans would send expeditions into the lands visited by Ardimya’s procession in search of a way to restore. This would lead to the creation of Bwa Dakinshi as a Jinnakah puppet state, though this was the only notable result. The sultanate would collapse by 789 AA, and the Nasmaneen dispersed as nomads, attacked by other Guryadagga tribes who had long been envious of their rule over Ardim Qarast. In 1444 the Guryadagga exist entirely as nomads, sustained through trading precious materials found in the desert or by offering their services as mercenaries to fight off Qeyikul attacks in the eastern lands of Qabiika Baddabi. They and the lands of Ardimya will see a great change and the birth of something new in the time period of the game. But I’ll leave that to a future dev diary. The Merfolk Baashi first met the merfolk in 60 AA, when he and his followers attempted to escape a horde of Qeyikul via hastily constructed rafts. The merfolk, recent arrivals to the region, took pity upon the humans and saved them, guiding their vessels to a safe island, where Baashi swore a pact with the merfolk chiefs and founded the city of Qasri Baashi above the nascent merfolk villages there. From this point, the merfolk and the Baashidi were joined in cause, and the two people helped each other prosper, both refugees from lost homelands. Merfolk do not know their own origins, but know that their ancestors felt a great sense of loss for an unknown homeland. Whether they were once land-dwelling people or refugees from the deep sea is unclear, but they arrived in Sarhal a few decades after the day of Ashen Skies, leading some Cannorians to believe that they are Ruinborn. The Baashidi themselves believe their friends to be exiles from the realm of water, fleeing the collapse of a cruel Jinn’s realm in the same way that they did. They are a generally xenophobic people who prefer to deal with the above seas world through their Baashidi partners, trusting in their ancient friendship and the respect that the Baashidi have for them to ensure they get a fair deal. Many Sarhali peoples have mistaken isolated merfolk sightings for the presence of water spirits or godlings, and the people of Fangaula and Fahvanosy both have a reverence for the creatures, even if the merfolk themselves avoid contacting them. Merfolk can breathe air, but must skin their skin wet in a similar fashion to marine mammals. They and the Baashidi have invented forms of magic and crude devices which allow them to sustain themselves on land for prolonged periods, but these are expensive and don’t make up for their lack of legs, meaning only magically adept or wealthy merfolk can spend any real time away from water. For the most part, their existence is confined to the seas and to areas near the coast.Those merfolk living close to or within Baashidi settlements often consider themselves to be citizens of the above the seas world, and enjoy full equality within it. The merfolk are not the only denizens of the deep but they are the only ones that are friendly. The Baashidi have heard tales from their friends of monsters and vile creatures beneath the waves, and are sometimes requested to send aid when the merfolk kingdom finds themselves engaged in war with those below. The merfolk themselves will be in game, though their culture won’t exist on the map. You’ll learn more about the merfolk estate and how you can interact with the Baashidi’s underwater allies in a future dev diary. The History of the Jasiir Jadid The Baashidi themselves settled in various small villages near the coasts and their merfolk allies. Over time, these settlements grew into city states which would find themselves as tributaries of the Jinnakah sultanate, who saw themselves as the premier power in southern Sarhal and ruled over many south Sarhali humans in addition to the Baashidi. In 480 AA, the expanding lizardfolk kingdom of Karassk would go to war with Jinnakah over the lands of the Jasiir Jadid, making most of the Baashidi their tributaries. The era of lizardfolk rule would allow the Baashidi to grow and develop their powerbases under the mostly distant lizardfolk, and when Karassk’s power began to decline in the 7th century, the Baashidi were able to become independent. For the first time in history, they were no longer under the shadow of an ancient empire and were free to choose their own direction as a people. The immediate centuries after the independence of the Baashidi were an age of warfare and strife, as the various Baashidi polities attempted to consolidate their power and gain advantage over their rivals. Perhaps the most important conflict fought in this time is the Dagafita, which marked the end of the period of warfare. The Dagafita was a series of wars that began in 1151, fought as a struggle for dominance of the Ashamadiat between Qabiika Beeragga and an alliance of the northern powers consisting of Qabiika Weggabiga, Qabiika Dadubakha, and Kabilu Gawakhiza. The conflict engulfed the entire Baashidi world until 1208, when Sadealdhahk the Wise assassinated his father and brought peace between his kingdom and its rivals. He renounced his claims to the former Beeraggan colonies in the Ashamadiat and sent gifts to the north to make restitution for the wrongs committed by his kingdom in the past. The Treaty of the Dagafita would become symbolic of a new era of peace and cooperation in the Baashidi world, remaining still unbroken in 1444. Sadealdhahk and his peers were influenced by a new religious movement sweeping through the Jasiir Jadid. A codification of the various folkloric beliefs from previous ages, it also taught a philosophy of dedicating oneself to the pursuit of knowledge and understanding of the divine nature of creation. This new religion and era of peace would be the seed of a Baashidi golden age, known as the Dasr Sharaf. Rinta Seekers Rinta Seekers (Truth Seekers), is a religion developed by the 12th century philosopher Kabil Hadni, who sought truth in the many hundreds of beliefs that fell under the umbrella of the Habab Zar (Old Exorcism or Old Spirits). Hadni’s religion taught that the gates to heaven were guarded by mortals, who had rebelled against the lesser gods the True Creator had stationed to guide the world and watch over heaven. These gods became corrupted by the power they wielded over the material world, and so the enslaved souls of heaven slew them and spread their remains across the sky, where the dead gods can only weakly inflict their evil upon the world. He believed that the mortals in heaven sought to avoid becoming corrupted by the gods, and would only allow those who achieved enlightenment to pass through the gates. Hadni taught that no mortal could achieve enlightenment in life, but that seeking an understanding of the divine law which undergirds the world would help protect one from the evils the dead gods sought to inflict upon them. The religion is part philosophy of life and part collection of protective rituals, officiated in equal part by learned scholars in formal settings as it is by itinerant ascetic holy men. Rinta Seekers is the great pillar of Baashidi and merfolk life. Its philosophy shapes the way that they relate to each other, and its exhortion to seek knowledge motivates Baashidi scholar-adventurers to learn the secrets of the entire world. Baashidi magic: There are two types of mages among the Baashidi, Mwalim and Darwiiz. Mwalim are studious scholar mages who practice a magical tradition based on reason and logic. Their magic utilizes mystical alignments of numbers and alchemical formulas and they also derive power from knowledge of astrology and interpreting the movement of the heavens, making them quasi holy men who are trusted to conduct auguries and ward from evil influence households and courts that hire them. Before casting all but the most basic of spells, they imbibe strange elixirs and do ritual dances mapping out mystic geometry in order to enter a higher state of consciousness. This trance is described as an intellectual ecstaticness that is believed to partially connect them to the realm of paradise. Many are also scholars of renown, writing treatises on history; philosophy; and mathematics, as well as studying natural laws in order to improve their own magic and alchemy, and practicing formal court poetry. Darwiiz are wandering mystics who practice a mixture of witchdoctory and spirit binding alongside ritual trances similar to that of the Mwalim. According to tradition, Darwiiz cannot cut their hair, drink the milk of an animal, carry salt, nor carry any tools for the making of or extinguishing of fire. Peasants and lords alike are obligated to provide a Dwariiz with hospitality and food, which a Darwiiz is obliged to repay with a performance of story, music, and dancing, alongside any needed magical aid. Mwalim enjoy the same privileges as Darwiiz, being entitled to hospitality, but see these and the other traditions of the Darwiiz as relics of a past era and the behavior of misguided folk magic practitioners. Mwalim are more trusted by nobility, being highly influential within courts and scholarly circles. Darwiiz, due to their wandering nature, rarely enter the courts of kings or other nobles but are often the only source of magical aid that rural villages and the rougher adventurers will be able to gain aid from. Darwiiz are far more common among the tribal and rural peoples, but no noble would ever turn one of them away or disrespect them. Influential Darwiiz have made their ways into the courts of kings before, and been trusted spiritual and practical advisors. 1444 and the Dasr Sharaf The Baashidi word in 1444 In 1444, the Baashidi are in the throes of their golden age, experiencing the benefits of age of peace and cooperation. When you jump into the game, the Dasr Sharaf is ongoing event that has the potential to springboard you into success. This is the age of the Baashidi’s height as a civilization, and you as a player will be able to determine how high they ascend. Open warfare between the Baashidi kingdoms themselves is unthinkable, and their rising power has led to them looking outwards for expansion. https://preview.redd.it/lj1sm4nuqm2b1.jpg?width=1920&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a8af655d784ab8668b1c4ef6a0794c63cf3b966a The island of Zyumaklai is the first step of this expansion, captured from Butuguzi by Kabilu Gawakhiza in 1420. It is the first of possibly many Baashidi possessions in seas far from their home. The other notable expression of Baashidi expansionism is the tiny state of Hisraad. A group of scholar-adventurers granted control of a mountain-fortress by the queen of Qabiika Dadubakha, they use their base to conduct expeditions into lizardfolk lands hunting for ancient knowledge, and have ambitions of conquering their own state there. Only time and you the player will tell if they succeed, and whether they are the precursor to more such expeditions. The Scholar-Adventurers of Hisraad. Note the gfx is not final. Hisraad is an interesting tag that is focused around the Baashidi expedition mechanics, which are relevant for all of the Baashidi countries, not just Hisraad and Qabiika Dadubakha. We’ll talk more about them in a future dev diary. Trade in Sarhal It would feel remiss to have a dev diary about Sarhal’s greatest seafarers without also including some information about trade in the greater continent of Sarhal. The trade mapmode. As you can see from the trade map, Sarhal pulls trade from Haless and Rahen towards Cannor. In 1444 this route functionally doesn’t exist, but as the Baashidi, Cannorians, and other trade focused powers in Sarhal, you’ll have the opportunity to bring the riches of Haless to and through Sarhal. Eagle eyed viewers might also see some changes in Rahen and southern Haless. The West Rahen Gulf has been split to accommodate the intended flow of trade with Sarhal, and several trade nodes have been adjusted to account for this. The gulf and the Ringlet Sea are going to be very lively areas in the Sarhal update, with pirates, colonizers, and trading kingdoms all trying to get their piece of the pie. You’ll also note that Eastern Haless flows directly towards Sarhal. As a Cannorian colonizer, you’ll want to establish a presence in Ardimya to control Halessi trade without needing to conquer huge amounts of land (You’ll also want a colony there for…other reasons)If you look at Sarhal for a bit, you’ll see the traditional trade routes through the interior of the continent that have existed for most of the history of settled states there. Gnollish traders carry slaves, salt, spices, and ivory across the breadth of the sahel and sudan of Sarhal, bridging the human civilizations of East and West Sarhal through this distant trade. The movement of West Sarhali slaves into East Sarhali is of great importance to the civilizations of East Sarhal, as is the flow of East Sarhali gold and finished goods to West Sarhal. Control of this trade is vital for a gnollish power, and the effect of greater sea trade on this ancient highway will play a part in the stories of the states of the interior.There’s one more notable thing about trade in Sarhal (or rather something with trade in its name), but I’ll leave that for a future dev diary about a particular people of no small import. WE NEED YOU I’d like to end this dev diary by reminding people that Anbennar is a product of the community that supports it, not a distant dev studio. That means you can contribute to Anbennar and make content for it. We have plenty of passionate and talented people working on making content for Sarhal and other parts of the mod, but we always need more.If you’re interested in helping out with Sarhal or any other region, hop on to the discord and ask around. You’ll even get your name in the credits of the release. https://discord.gg/anbennar A new challenger to Anbenncost's title has appeared. The city of Qasri Baashi is split over two provinces, representing its nature as a huge sprawling slum. Trade good mapmode. Those ivory provinces are from herds of pygmy elephants formerly bred by Ardimya as pets. I wonder why I included this image? Must be a mistake, but I'll leave it here. |
2023.05.28 21:26 Thirsha_42 Tight Money Ch 14
Here is chapter 14 of Tight Money.
Special thanks to u/SpacePaladin15 for creating the universe and allowing fan writers to join the fun.
Additional thanks to u/BiasMushroom, u/YakiTapioca, u/cruisingNW, u/SavingsSyllabub7788, u/YaaliAnnar, u/White_Dragon_Coranth, u/Illwood and u/Redundant-Honse for letting me use elements from their fanfics in mine.
Leena and Dani finish the dinner with with the parents and we get a quick look into how things are going on Venlil Prime.
Thanks to u/Saint-Andros, u/cruisingNW and blankxlate for proofreading this chapter.
I love your comments so please tell me what you think so I can get better or if you have suggestions for future snippets of life on Venlil Prime you would like to see me cover, leave it in the comments.
First Previous
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Memory transcription subject: Liara, Prime News Reporter
Date [standardized human time]: November 3, 2136
My prompter counted down as my stage lights brightened, and I watched the camera light go live.
I took a deep breath and began the interview, “From Prime News, it’s ‘How I Built This,’ the show that dives deep into the stories of remarkable entrepreneurs and their journey to success. I’m Liara Raz and on today's show: how Ricardo Mota Esparza and Vye turned their small machine shop into a life saving business and helped reconnect Venlil Prime with its industrial past.”
Kotaka pointed right, and I followed him to Camera Two.
“A few days ago, my ear trimmer broke. Not a big deal, I’ve had it for ages and it served me well. When I went to the store to get a new one… nothing. There wasn’t a single trimmer to be found. I tried to order one with the same result.”
I watched a few tails of the audience swaying in agreement, it seems that trimmer comparison landed! I’ll need to give the writer a fruit bowl sometime.
Back to Camera One, “As I looked into the reason, it turned out that we got all of our small motors from Fahl and with the border closed for trade, we didn’t have the ability to make our own small motors. We know how to make these motors, but we don’t have the machines to manufacture them. And with fabricators in short supply, I, like so many of you, have had to go back to using scissors.”
Ears back, flick the tail. They are just as unhappy as you.
“Today, we have a special guest joining us in the studio who is helping to change that. Please welcome Ricardo Mota Esparza, the co-founder of Predator Parts Machine Shop on Venlil Prime. Ricardo, it's a pleasure to have you here.”
Quickly switching to a positive affect, I turned my attention to the man sitting across from me in the studio. Following Talen’s example, the studio had positioned the chairs to face each other instead of the camera. I had thought the human would be covered in oil and stained pelts but his clean appearance showed I still needed to work on my own biases.
He wore a tight, light green chest-pelt that traveled down the length of his arms, only revealing the caramel skin of his hands. There was an outline in the pocket on his chest pelt where he had stashed a small data pad. Below that, the human also wore dark blue coverings that stretched all the way down that ended just above his feet, which were dressed with foot coverings of a golden yellow color of which contrasted harshly against the drab interior of the studio.
“Just ‘Rocky’ please. And thank you, Liara, for having me. It's an honor to be on your show.”
Good, let’s keep this relaxed and show everyone there is nothing to fear. Rocky had a deeper voice than any other interview subject I had met before, but there was a light airiness about his vocalization that was quite pleasant.
He took our pre-broadcast rehearsal well. He smiled through closed lips, careful not to show his flesh-tearering fangs. His movements were slower than they had been when he arrived; his hands gesticulating with every word. This might be easier than I thought.
“Rocky, let's start from the beginning. You were a machine shop worker on Earth when you joined the exchange program, correct? What was your first impression of your partner Vye?”
Rocky started moving his arms as he spoke and it was mesmerizing to watch his body language despite my inability to comprehend any of it. Without a tail, it made sense that humans would come up with another solution, I just didn’t expect it to be so… beautiful.
It’s like I’m watching a master Strayu chef kneading fresh dough; or a conductor directing an orchestra.
“Oh, we hit it off right away. We shared a lot of interests and talked about everything under the sun. Vye was working for a fabrication shop as an apprentice when he signed up to meet me in person. We had a great time on Station 2 and we tried to maintain contact after the program as well. When news that the Federation had started assembling ships to attack Earth, I was on one of the first flights to Venlil Prime.”
“I imagine it must have been hard to leave everything behind you and flee here. Can you tell us a bit about those difficult times?”
Please don’t say anything violent. Just stick to the talking points and you will be fine.
“I would rather not discuss that. Like most people, I lost loved ones and everything I had built when it was all destroyed by the Federation, but Vye was there for me from the moment I landed.”
I tried to keep my tail from curling, this was going more smoothly than nearly half of my past interviews! Just like we rehearsed, he skipped over the messy details and dived right into their industry.
“Vye encouraged me to find a new purpose and start anew. He is a crazy guy and wicked smart. He realized what was happening with the machines after Federation borders closed and trade was cut off. He had been working on establishing his own shop before I arrived, and needed an extra set of hands. Working with Vye gave me… focus. Focus enough to help me through everything.”
Lucky guy. Whew, okay, the hard part’s over.
“That's truly inspiring, Rocky. So, how did you and your business partner go about setting up your machine shop on Venlil Prime?”
“Initially, Vye and I tried to secure funding and supplies from the UN embassy, but the bureaucracy proved challenging. We then decided to approach the Venlil Government directly, explaining our vision to help both humans and Venlil who lost their jobs due to closed borders and Federation attack. They agreed to provide two old fabricators and a small grant to kickstart our venture very quickly.”
“That's remarkable! By bridging the gap between humans and Venlil, you not only found support but also a mutually beneficial collaboration. How did it all begin?”
Come on, you are doing great! Remember to highlight humans and venlil working together.
“With the fabricators, Vye and I started manufacturing parts for another brand-new fabricator while we advertised our services with flyers and ads on Bleat. Our first client was a farmer who was on the brink of losing his harvest due to broken harvester drones. He took a chance on us, and we delivered quality parts in just a couple paws.”
Excellent answer. Rocky adjusted himself in his seat and I knew he didn’t mean to, but it was clear just how strong he was as his muscles flexed underneath his tight chest-pelt. He looked at me expectantly, reminding me I needed to ask the next question.
Glancing at my list, I prompted him, “It sounds like your dedication to quality and timely service quickly gained attention. How did your business grow from there and who came up with the name for your business?”
That wasn’t in the talking points! Why did I ask that? Speh! I had to make a conscious effort to control my tail and ears so as not to give away my mistake.
“I knew you were going to ask about that. It’s stupid. Vye and I couldn’t decide on which name to use, so we each picked our favorites and then we flipped a coin. Vye won so we named the shop Predator Parts Machine Shop.”
“The name was Vye’s idea?”
Thank the sun and stars, Rocky I could nuzzle you. You really saved my hide with that answer.
“Yeah, he wanted to stand out from other shops and create a brand. A deal’s a deal so he got to pick the name. Word spread within the farming communities about our affordable, high-quality results. We hired more workers, both experienced and untrained, to keep up with demand. Within three weeks, we rented out the rest of the building and started training human refugees as mechanics and repairmen.”
“It's incredible how you turned adversity into opportunity, Rocky. What motivated you to empower unemployed venlil and human refugees, and help them rebuild their lives after all the turmoil that has happened since first contact?”
Rocky’s eye fur rose and he looked to his side, up and away from the camera. I had seen many humans do this when they were thinking. It was a cute quirk. For how dangerous they were supposed to be, they seemed like children in some ways.
“After the Federation's attack on Earth, many of us humans were left with nothing to return to and venlil were still hurting from the Federation’s decision to cut off all trade. It was a chance for us to come together, learn from one another, and create a new future. We hired Venlil workers to train humans in fixing common equipment, fostering a sense of unity and shared purpose.”
“Your story is truly inspiring, Rocky. However, I understand that there have been some challenges along the way. Could you share a recent incident that reflects the lingering fear some still have towards humans?”
Now to drive it home. Rocky sat up and intertwined his digits in front of him as I asked my question.
“Certainly, Liara. Just this morning when I was covering for our receptionist, I received a phone call at our office from the Capitol Spaceport. The caller hung up as soon as I answered and ignored my call back. I had to contact Mr. Cass at the main office in the Capitol Spaceport to find out that their fabricators are broken. It's a reminder that despite the progress we've made, there are still people who harbor fear and uncertainty.”
Bunch of morons stuck in the past and holding the herd back.
“It's disheartening to hear that some remain fearful, but your efforts are undoubtedly making a difference. Looking back on your journey, what are your reflections, Rocky?”
Now let's finish strong.
“The path we've walked has been challenging, but it has also been rewarding beyond measure. We’ve built a thriving business, repaired machines of all kinds, and provided employment opportunities to those in need. Our customers are mostly welcoming and appreciative, but there is still work to be done in breaking down barriers and fostering understanding.”
“Rocky, your story serves as a powerful reminder of the resilience of the human spirit and the transformative power of unity. Thank you for sharing your journey with us today.”
“Thank you, Liara. It was a pleasure being here and sharing my story.”
“And that concludes our interview with Rocky Mota Esparza, one of the remarkable entrepreneurs behind a thriving machine shop on Venlil Prime. Join us next time on ‘How I Built This’ as we uncover more extraordinary stories of innovation and determination. Until then, stay inspired and keep building. Goodbye!”
Memory transcription subject: Leena, Human Refugee Host
Date [standardized human time]: November 6, 2136
“Leena, your father and I were worried when you said that you found someone and moved in together so quickly but now that we have met her, we are happy that you have found another mate.” My mother flicked her tail and waved her ears in an outpouring of support.
But I was floored. Mate? They thought that we were together? I bloomed intensely, the heat radiating from my face felt like a furnace. Dani’s eyes widened, her reddening expression betraying a mix of shock and confusion; and was that a smile on her face?
Dad swayed his tail warmly, “We understand how most people are concerning humans but you don’t need to worry about that from us. We are your parents and we love you no matter what, and we are happy to meet the pr-... the human who captured our daughter’s heart.”
Mom followed up without skipping a beat.
"We've noticed how close you and Dani have become and we are happy for you but we are a bit concerned that you didn’t tell us you were being pursued by anyone."
I don’t know what was more difficult to process, the incorrect belief that we were a mated pair, the joy and support I was getting from my parents, or Dani’s stifled laughter at the whole situation. Captured my heart? Being Pursued? Had they rehearsed this?
“What? No, Mom, we're not... I mean, we're just… she’s…”
I stumbled, trying to find the right words to clarify the situation. I stole a nervous glance at Dani, looking for a lifeline and finding none, before turning back to mother.
Mom continued with her ears facing me, "Leena, your father and I were the same way. We knew we were soul mates the moment we met! We moved in together only a few [months] later; we understand the whirlwind of romance. You’re a grown woman and we’re so proud of you.”
Not to be outdone, Dad added his own thoughts.
“You’re moving much faster than we did, but we are happy you two are starting a life together! And the way Dani loves your children, it seems like they have built a real relationship of trust despite the… differences.”
I flicked my tail in confirmation. "Yes, she's been wonderful with them. They've grown fond of her in just a few days, and she's been like family with m- with them bu…"
Dani couldn’t help herself, she had to make things worse, the opportunity must have been irresistible.
"Oh, Leena, my love, you're making me blush!"
She closed one eye quickly while she looked at me, enjoying the lightheartedness of the moment with a gentle smile, but she didn’t seem to understand what my parents meant. Before I could respond to her jest, Dad leaned forward, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
"Dani, you know this isn’t the first time Leena has tried to keep a secret from us. When…”
Sun and stars I know what he is going to say, “Dad, please!”
“...she was 6, she met a boy in school and they became fast friends. Well, being as young as they were they thought that nuzzling meant they were a mated pair, so Leena comes home and asks us how to make a Vyalkit. We told her how we made ours and the next day, she and the boy were shaved so close you might have thought they were applying to become exterminators!”
Dad loved that story, he told everyone he could, but it was never any less embarrassing.
“Needless to say, her secret ‘husband’ didn’t stay a secret for long and we set her straight.”
Mother turned her gaze on me, moving her ears in sympathy, but I saw how her tail swayed during dads retelling.
“You don’t need to keep your relationship a secret from us. We know how other people feel about humans. Just know that we don’t care that she is a woman, that she isn’t a venlil or even that she’s a predator. We just want you to be happy.”
Dani's laughter escaped her control, and she erupted into a fit of giggles. I couldn’t resist her infectious laughter. She was too full of joy in the face of what was one of my most embarrassing moments so I picked up a soft toy and playfully threw it at her, hitting her square in the head to my surprise.
"Okay, okay, I confess, " Dani managed between laughs. "Leena and I are secretly in love, and we're announcing our relationship tonight."
My eyes widened, a mixture of surprise, embarrassment, amusement and horror.
"Dani!" I bleated helplessly.
Mom and Dad exchanged glances, their tails swaying faster.
"Oh, Leena," Mom said, her voice filled with joy, "we're so happy for you. Love knows no boundaries, and we accept your human mate with open arms."
My ears fell flat against my skull, and all I could do was stammer. "But... but we're not..."
Dani burst into uncontrollable laughter before I could finish the sentence. My eyes narrowed, and I threw another soft toy at her in defiance.
"I can't believe you!" I exclaimed, my voice laced with both amusement and annoyance. "You're enjoying this way too much."
Dani wiped away tears of laughter, finally gaining control of herself. "I'm sorry, Leena. It was just too funny not to go along with it for a moment."
"You're terrible, Dani!"
Taking a deep breath to regain composure and control, I put both paws on the table.
"Dad, Mom, let me explain. You see, after Dani saved Tas and Vissa following the stampede, I didn't mention her because I hadn't seen her since we met at the hospital. When Governor Tarva made her announcement, I went to the park with Tas and Vissa to get some air, and that is when we met again. We talked and since she needed a place to stay, we agreed we could help each other.”
My eyes fell towards the table, embarrassment coloring my features again. “I'm sorry I didn't tell you she moved in sooner. I've been preoccupied with finding work and money troubles. We’ve become friends, and she offered to rent the spare room to help me financially."
Amidst Dani’s laughter, Mom and Dad shared a puzzled look, their excitement dying down. Dad spoke up first, his voice filled with curiosity.
"Wait, you mean... you and Dani are not in a relationship?"
Dani shook her head, “No, I’m just renting the spare room. I love children and without a job right now, I have lots of time to help Leena. There is nothing going on between us.”
My mother’s blush brightened slightly as she realized her mistake. "O-Oh, we misinterpreted the situation, I apologize. But we're still happy that you've met someone like Dani, Leena. It seems she's been a wonderful presence in both your life and the childrens’."
I looked at my mother with my ears perking up. She looked at me lovingly, expressing genuine joy through her features.
"Yes! I appreciate your understanding. Dani truly has been amazing but we are only friends, nothing more."
"Darling, we're sorry for jumping to conclusions. We love you, no matter what. Whether you find love with a venlil or a human, we just want you to be happy."
I couldn’t help it when my blush deepened, feeling a mixture of love and appreciation for my parents over their proclamation of support.
My father smiled warmly, "Well Dani, thank you very much for being a supportive friend to our Leena. I apologize for our confusion." He chuckled guiltily.
She nodded at him with a smile on her face. This turned out better than I had hoped given the start of the meal! The tension melted away as the confusion and mistakes were cleared up.
"Thank you, Dad, Mom. I'm grateful for your understanding."
Mom placed her paws onto both mine and Dani's, her gaze filled with love. "Leena, we love you no matter what. If you ever find someone who truly makes you happy, regardless of their species or gender, we will support you."
I was overcome with gratitude and pride in my parents, my tail swayed back and forth, "All of your support means the world to me."
Dani added her own reassurances and I hoped she wasn’t too upset with me throwing things at her.
"Leena, you have a wonderful family." Dani admitted.
The room filled with a sense of joy and relief, and laughter slowly replaced the tension. The misunderstanding had been cleared, and we enjoyed the rest of the claw after the humorous mix-up. During the rest of the meal, I stole quick glances at Dani. I felt a mixture of gratitude, concern and something else that I couldn’t quite describe. She was so full of life and joy and understanding.
Later while lying in bed and reflecting on the conversation we had during the meal, I didn’t know how she could be so happy after her world had been attacked, and everything she knew and loved was destroyed. I had been mortified with how things went during the meal at the moment but she just laughed and made light of it all.
Thank you Solgalick.
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First Previous
submitted by Thirsha_42 to NatureofPredators [link] [comments]
Special thanks to u/SpacePaladin15 for creating the universe and allowing fan writers to join the fun.
Additional thanks to u/BiasMushroom, u/YakiTapioca, u/cruisingNW, u/SavingsSyllabub7788, u/YaaliAnnar, u/White_Dragon_Coranth, u/Illwood and u/Redundant-Honse for letting me use elements from their fanfics in mine.
Leena and Dani finish the dinner with with the parents and we get a quick look into how things are going on Venlil Prime.
Thanks to u/Saint-Andros, u/cruisingNW and blankxlate for proofreading this chapter.
I love your comments so please tell me what you think so I can get better or if you have suggestions for future snippets of life on Venlil Prime you would like to see me cover, leave it in the comments.
First Previous
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Memory transcription subject: Liara, Prime News Reporter
Date [standardized human time]: November 3, 2136
My prompter counted down as my stage lights brightened, and I watched the camera light go live.
I took a deep breath and began the interview, “From Prime News, it’s ‘How I Built This,’ the show that dives deep into the stories of remarkable entrepreneurs and their journey to success. I’m Liara Raz and on today's show: how Ricardo Mota Esparza and Vye turned their small machine shop into a life saving business and helped reconnect Venlil Prime with its industrial past.”
Kotaka pointed right, and I followed him to Camera Two.
“A few days ago, my ear trimmer broke. Not a big deal, I’ve had it for ages and it served me well. When I went to the store to get a new one… nothing. There wasn’t a single trimmer to be found. I tried to order one with the same result.”
I watched a few tails of the audience swaying in agreement, it seems that trimmer comparison landed! I’ll need to give the writer a fruit bowl sometime.
Back to Camera One, “As I looked into the reason, it turned out that we got all of our small motors from Fahl and with the border closed for trade, we didn’t have the ability to make our own small motors. We know how to make these motors, but we don’t have the machines to manufacture them. And with fabricators in short supply, I, like so many of you, have had to go back to using scissors.”
Ears back, flick the tail. They are just as unhappy as you.
“Today, we have a special guest joining us in the studio who is helping to change that. Please welcome Ricardo Mota Esparza, the co-founder of Predator Parts Machine Shop on Venlil Prime. Ricardo, it's a pleasure to have you here.”
Quickly switching to a positive affect, I turned my attention to the man sitting across from me in the studio. Following Talen’s example, the studio had positioned the chairs to face each other instead of the camera. I had thought the human would be covered in oil and stained pelts but his clean appearance showed I still needed to work on my own biases.
He wore a tight, light green chest-pelt that traveled down the length of his arms, only revealing the caramel skin of his hands. There was an outline in the pocket on his chest pelt where he had stashed a small data pad. Below that, the human also wore dark blue coverings that stretched all the way down that ended just above his feet, which were dressed with foot coverings of a golden yellow color of which contrasted harshly against the drab interior of the studio.
“Just ‘Rocky’ please. And thank you, Liara, for having me. It's an honor to be on your show.”
Good, let’s keep this relaxed and show everyone there is nothing to fear. Rocky had a deeper voice than any other interview subject I had met before, but there was a light airiness about his vocalization that was quite pleasant.
He took our pre-broadcast rehearsal well. He smiled through closed lips, careful not to show his flesh-tearering fangs. His movements were slower than they had been when he arrived; his hands gesticulating with every word. This might be easier than I thought.
“Rocky, let's start from the beginning. You were a machine shop worker on Earth when you joined the exchange program, correct? What was your first impression of your partner Vye?”
Rocky started moving his arms as he spoke and it was mesmerizing to watch his body language despite my inability to comprehend any of it. Without a tail, it made sense that humans would come up with another solution, I just didn’t expect it to be so… beautiful.
It’s like I’m watching a master Strayu chef kneading fresh dough; or a conductor directing an orchestra.
“Oh, we hit it off right away. We shared a lot of interests and talked about everything under the sun. Vye was working for a fabrication shop as an apprentice when he signed up to meet me in person. We had a great time on Station 2 and we tried to maintain contact after the program as well. When news that the Federation had started assembling ships to attack Earth, I was on one of the first flights to Venlil Prime.”
“I imagine it must have been hard to leave everything behind you and flee here. Can you tell us a bit about those difficult times?”
Please don’t say anything violent. Just stick to the talking points and you will be fine.
“I would rather not discuss that. Like most people, I lost loved ones and everything I had built when it was all destroyed by the Federation, but Vye was there for me from the moment I landed.”
I tried to keep my tail from curling, this was going more smoothly than nearly half of my past interviews! Just like we rehearsed, he skipped over the messy details and dived right into their industry.
“Vye encouraged me to find a new purpose and start anew. He is a crazy guy and wicked smart. He realized what was happening with the machines after Federation borders closed and trade was cut off. He had been working on establishing his own shop before I arrived, and needed an extra set of hands. Working with Vye gave me… focus. Focus enough to help me through everything.”
Lucky guy. Whew, okay, the hard part’s over.
“That's truly inspiring, Rocky. So, how did you and your business partner go about setting up your machine shop on Venlil Prime?”
“Initially, Vye and I tried to secure funding and supplies from the UN embassy, but the bureaucracy proved challenging. We then decided to approach the Venlil Government directly, explaining our vision to help both humans and Venlil who lost their jobs due to closed borders and Federation attack. They agreed to provide two old fabricators and a small grant to kickstart our venture very quickly.”
“That's remarkable! By bridging the gap between humans and Venlil, you not only found support but also a mutually beneficial collaboration. How did it all begin?”
Come on, you are doing great! Remember to highlight humans and venlil working together.
“With the fabricators, Vye and I started manufacturing parts for another brand-new fabricator while we advertised our services with flyers and ads on Bleat. Our first client was a farmer who was on the brink of losing his harvest due to broken harvester drones. He took a chance on us, and we delivered quality parts in just a couple paws.”
Excellent answer. Rocky adjusted himself in his seat and I knew he didn’t mean to, but it was clear just how strong he was as his muscles flexed underneath his tight chest-pelt. He looked at me expectantly, reminding me I needed to ask the next question.
Glancing at my list, I prompted him, “It sounds like your dedication to quality and timely service quickly gained attention. How did your business grow from there and who came up with the name for your business?”
That wasn’t in the talking points! Why did I ask that? Speh! I had to make a conscious effort to control my tail and ears so as not to give away my mistake.
“I knew you were going to ask about that. It’s stupid. Vye and I couldn’t decide on which name to use, so we each picked our favorites and then we flipped a coin. Vye won so we named the shop Predator Parts Machine Shop.”
“The name was Vye’s idea?”
Thank the sun and stars, Rocky I could nuzzle you. You really saved my hide with that answer.
“Yeah, he wanted to stand out from other shops and create a brand. A deal’s a deal so he got to pick the name. Word spread within the farming communities about our affordable, high-quality results. We hired more workers, both experienced and untrained, to keep up with demand. Within three weeks, we rented out the rest of the building and started training human refugees as mechanics and repairmen.”
“It's incredible how you turned adversity into opportunity, Rocky. What motivated you to empower unemployed venlil and human refugees, and help them rebuild their lives after all the turmoil that has happened since first contact?”
Rocky’s eye fur rose and he looked to his side, up and away from the camera. I had seen many humans do this when they were thinking. It was a cute quirk. For how dangerous they were supposed to be, they seemed like children in some ways.
“After the Federation's attack on Earth, many of us humans were left with nothing to return to and venlil were still hurting from the Federation’s decision to cut off all trade. It was a chance for us to come together, learn from one another, and create a new future. We hired Venlil workers to train humans in fixing common equipment, fostering a sense of unity and shared purpose.”
“Your story is truly inspiring, Rocky. However, I understand that there have been some challenges along the way. Could you share a recent incident that reflects the lingering fear some still have towards humans?”
Now to drive it home. Rocky sat up and intertwined his digits in front of him as I asked my question.
“Certainly, Liara. Just this morning when I was covering for our receptionist, I received a phone call at our office from the Capitol Spaceport. The caller hung up as soon as I answered and ignored my call back. I had to contact Mr. Cass at the main office in the Capitol Spaceport to find out that their fabricators are broken. It's a reminder that despite the progress we've made, there are still people who harbor fear and uncertainty.”
Bunch of morons stuck in the past and holding the herd back.
“It's disheartening to hear that some remain fearful, but your efforts are undoubtedly making a difference. Looking back on your journey, what are your reflections, Rocky?”
Now let's finish strong.
“The path we've walked has been challenging, but it has also been rewarding beyond measure. We’ve built a thriving business, repaired machines of all kinds, and provided employment opportunities to those in need. Our customers are mostly welcoming and appreciative, but there is still work to be done in breaking down barriers and fostering understanding.”
“Rocky, your story serves as a powerful reminder of the resilience of the human spirit and the transformative power of unity. Thank you for sharing your journey with us today.”
“Thank you, Liara. It was a pleasure being here and sharing my story.”
“And that concludes our interview with Rocky Mota Esparza, one of the remarkable entrepreneurs behind a thriving machine shop on Venlil Prime. Join us next time on ‘How I Built This’ as we uncover more extraordinary stories of innovation and determination. Until then, stay inspired and keep building. Goodbye!”
Memory transcription subject: Leena, Human Refugee Host
Date [standardized human time]: November 6, 2136
“Leena, your father and I were worried when you said that you found someone and moved in together so quickly but now that we have met her, we are happy that you have found another mate.” My mother flicked her tail and waved her ears in an outpouring of support.
But I was floored. Mate? They thought that we were together? I bloomed intensely, the heat radiating from my face felt like a furnace. Dani’s eyes widened, her reddening expression betraying a mix of shock and confusion; and was that a smile on her face?
Dad swayed his tail warmly, “We understand how most people are concerning humans but you don’t need to worry about that from us. We are your parents and we love you no matter what, and we are happy to meet the pr-... the human who captured our daughter’s heart.”
Mom followed up without skipping a beat.
"We've noticed how close you and Dani have become and we are happy for you but we are a bit concerned that you didn’t tell us you were being pursued by anyone."
I don’t know what was more difficult to process, the incorrect belief that we were a mated pair, the joy and support I was getting from my parents, or Dani’s stifled laughter at the whole situation. Captured my heart? Being Pursued? Had they rehearsed this?
“What? No, Mom, we're not... I mean, we're just… she’s…”
I stumbled, trying to find the right words to clarify the situation. I stole a nervous glance at Dani, looking for a lifeline and finding none, before turning back to mother.
Mom continued with her ears facing me, "Leena, your father and I were the same way. We knew we were soul mates the moment we met! We moved in together only a few [months] later; we understand the whirlwind of romance. You’re a grown woman and we’re so proud of you.”
Not to be outdone, Dad added his own thoughts.
“You’re moving much faster than we did, but we are happy you two are starting a life together! And the way Dani loves your children, it seems like they have built a real relationship of trust despite the… differences.”
I flicked my tail in confirmation. "Yes, she's been wonderful with them. They've grown fond of her in just a few days, and she's been like family with m- with them bu…"
Dani couldn’t help herself, she had to make things worse, the opportunity must have been irresistible.
"Oh, Leena, my love, you're making me blush!"
She closed one eye quickly while she looked at me, enjoying the lightheartedness of the moment with a gentle smile, but she didn’t seem to understand what my parents meant. Before I could respond to her jest, Dad leaned forward, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
"Dani, you know this isn’t the first time Leena has tried to keep a secret from us. When…”
Sun and stars I know what he is going to say, “Dad, please!”
“...she was 6, she met a boy in school and they became fast friends. Well, being as young as they were they thought that nuzzling meant they were a mated pair, so Leena comes home and asks us how to make a Vyalkit. We told her how we made ours and the next day, she and the boy were shaved so close you might have thought they were applying to become exterminators!”
Dad loved that story, he told everyone he could, but it was never any less embarrassing.
“Needless to say, her secret ‘husband’ didn’t stay a secret for long and we set her straight.”
Mother turned her gaze on me, moving her ears in sympathy, but I saw how her tail swayed during dads retelling.
“You don’t need to keep your relationship a secret from us. We know how other people feel about humans. Just know that we don’t care that she is a woman, that she isn’t a venlil or even that she’s a predator. We just want you to be happy.”
Dani's laughter escaped her control, and she erupted into a fit of giggles. I couldn’t resist her infectious laughter. She was too full of joy in the face of what was one of my most embarrassing moments so I picked up a soft toy and playfully threw it at her, hitting her square in the head to my surprise.
"Okay, okay, I confess, " Dani managed between laughs. "Leena and I are secretly in love, and we're announcing our relationship tonight."
My eyes widened, a mixture of surprise, embarrassment, amusement and horror.
"Dani!" I bleated helplessly.
Mom and Dad exchanged glances, their tails swaying faster.
"Oh, Leena," Mom said, her voice filled with joy, "we're so happy for you. Love knows no boundaries, and we accept your human mate with open arms."
My ears fell flat against my skull, and all I could do was stammer. "But... but we're not..."
Dani burst into uncontrollable laughter before I could finish the sentence. My eyes narrowed, and I threw another soft toy at her in defiance.
"I can't believe you!" I exclaimed, my voice laced with both amusement and annoyance. "You're enjoying this way too much."
Dani wiped away tears of laughter, finally gaining control of herself. "I'm sorry, Leena. It was just too funny not to go along with it for a moment."
"You're terrible, Dani!"
Taking a deep breath to regain composure and control, I put both paws on the table.
"Dad, Mom, let me explain. You see, after Dani saved Tas and Vissa following the stampede, I didn't mention her because I hadn't seen her since we met at the hospital. When Governor Tarva made her announcement, I went to the park with Tas and Vissa to get some air, and that is when we met again. We talked and since she needed a place to stay, we agreed we could help each other.”
My eyes fell towards the table, embarrassment coloring my features again. “I'm sorry I didn't tell you she moved in sooner. I've been preoccupied with finding work and money troubles. We’ve become friends, and she offered to rent the spare room to help me financially."
Amidst Dani’s laughter, Mom and Dad shared a puzzled look, their excitement dying down. Dad spoke up first, his voice filled with curiosity.
"Wait, you mean... you and Dani are not in a relationship?"
Dani shook her head, “No, I’m just renting the spare room. I love children and without a job right now, I have lots of time to help Leena. There is nothing going on between us.”
My mother’s blush brightened slightly as she realized her mistake. "O-Oh, we misinterpreted the situation, I apologize. But we're still happy that you've met someone like Dani, Leena. It seems she's been a wonderful presence in both your life and the childrens’."
I looked at my mother with my ears perking up. She looked at me lovingly, expressing genuine joy through her features.
"Yes! I appreciate your understanding. Dani truly has been amazing but we are only friends, nothing more."
"Darling, we're sorry for jumping to conclusions. We love you, no matter what. Whether you find love with a venlil or a human, we just want you to be happy."
I couldn’t help it when my blush deepened, feeling a mixture of love and appreciation for my parents over their proclamation of support.
My father smiled warmly, "Well Dani, thank you very much for being a supportive friend to our Leena. I apologize for our confusion." He chuckled guiltily.
She nodded at him with a smile on her face. This turned out better than I had hoped given the start of the meal! The tension melted away as the confusion and mistakes were cleared up.
"Thank you, Dad, Mom. I'm grateful for your understanding."
Mom placed her paws onto both mine and Dani's, her gaze filled with love. "Leena, we love you no matter what. If you ever find someone who truly makes you happy, regardless of their species or gender, we will support you."
I was overcome with gratitude and pride in my parents, my tail swayed back and forth, "All of your support means the world to me."
Dani added her own reassurances and I hoped she wasn’t too upset with me throwing things at her.
"Leena, you have a wonderful family." Dani admitted.
The room filled with a sense of joy and relief, and laughter slowly replaced the tension. The misunderstanding had been cleared, and we enjoyed the rest of the claw after the humorous mix-up. During the rest of the meal, I stole quick glances at Dani. I felt a mixture of gratitude, concern and something else that I couldn’t quite describe. She was so full of life and joy and understanding.
Later while lying in bed and reflecting on the conversation we had during the meal, I didn’t know how she could be so happy after her world had been attacked, and everything she knew and loved was destroyed. I had been mortified with how things went during the meal at the moment but she just laughed and made light of it all.
Thank you Solgalick.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
First Previous
2023.05.28 21:16 tyyphus Found this piece of gold in my Jobs feed: Korean Gentleman Seeks Pakistani Bride
 | submitted by tyyphus to Upwork [link] [comments] |
2023.05.28 20:45 LGBTQIA_Over50 What places in CT are LGBTQIA friendly?
And what employers (hiring for office, customer service, recruiting work) are open to hiring someone who is over 50, Masters degree (i can leave the Masters off of my resume)?
I am single, over age 50, and need FT work to cover an apt, car, medical insurance and food, all by myself. My resume is tailored towards each job I apply to. I have an interest in legal assistant (but likely my age will work against me for that as a career change). My multi-industry background is helpful for a personal injury law firm. But many may want an entry person or someone who can live on $40,000 or less.
Regardless of our age, all FT working people need a living wage.
Does anyone know of any particular employers who are open to hiring an experienced middle aged woman with a strong work ethic?
I've been applying on Indeed and am getting automatic rejections. I will he starting out living in my car due to lack of income.
submitted by LGBTQIA_Over50 to Connecticut [link] [comments]
I am single, over age 50, and need FT work to cover an apt, car, medical insurance and food, all by myself. My resume is tailored towards each job I apply to. I have an interest in legal assistant (but likely my age will work against me for that as a career change). My multi-industry background is helpful for a personal injury law firm. But many may want an entry person or someone who can live on $40,000 or less.
Regardless of our age, all FT working people need a living wage.
Does anyone know of any particular employers who are open to hiring an experienced middle aged woman with a strong work ethic?
I've been applying on Indeed and am getting automatic rejections. I will he starting out living in my car due to lack of income.
2023.05.28 20:34 lemonshire0 Delivery rider as a 17 year old?
The big three: Deliveroo, Uber Eats and Just Eat all require riders to be over 18, but I'm interested in doing food delivery, or any other delivery on a bicycle as a 17 year old. My question is does anyone know any companies that would hire 17 year olds? I noticed on Indeed that Domino's had an ad for a delivery rider with the minimum age being 17 rather than 18.
I'm in sixth form here, and looking to do some work when I want to, as my timetable is a bit annoying. I love cycling, the type that wears lycra, so think I would enjoy doing delivery riding too. I'm not just interested in food delivery, though I'm not really aware of any messenger services that exist any more.
Thanks in advance if anyone can help.
submitted by lemonshire0 to deliveroos [link] [comments]
I'm in sixth form here, and looking to do some work when I want to, as my timetable is a bit annoying. I love cycling, the type that wears lycra, so think I would enjoy doing delivery riding too. I'm not just interested in food delivery, though I'm not really aware of any messenger services that exist any more.
Thanks in advance if anyone can help.
2023.05.28 20:29 RXCmods Cringe wall of rambling stupid bullshit about random shit my brain makes up.
I don't know how to explain anything. I'm simply just too complicated to be properly understood. I'm 14 years old and I've decided to end it all tomorrow. That's it. Actually, I'll try to explain but it won't really be understandable for anyone. I may have mixed up the order in which all of this happened. So it all started 4 years ago or so. I had many friends, always straight A:s on everything at school. My life was going great and I loved going to school every day to study and meet friends. Then my parents started fighting because my dad started to act almost violently towards me, my mom, and my little sister under the influence of alcohol after drinking wine on the weekends. My parents decided to break up after 16 years or so of being together and my dad moved out to a different house and started dating new people, specifically Thai women for some reason. It was very painful for me that they broke up. On top of that, my father's mom died and that was incredibly painful for me as I had met her almost every week for my entire life. I had never seen my father's dad as he died quite young in the 90s from a heart attack I think. He smoked a lot and didn’t live very healthily. We never had any contact with my mother's parents as they lived very far away from Sweden, which is where I've lived my entire life. One lived in Turkey and the other lived in Tunisia. I don't know if they even know that I exist. Anyways, my father's mom was the only person in my family that I still had contact with so that was as I said incredibly painful. My grandma who died had some other relative in Finland who had sent me letters, money, and gifts a couple of times. In the letters, he said that he wants to meet me sometime, but he died about a week after my grandma due to the same reason as her, cancer probably because my Finnish relatives didn't live very healthily. Then a few months later someone had written something bad on the teacher's chair. I was pretty sure I knew who it was. but for some reason, I took the blame for it. The guy that did it was that one guy who always causes and gets in trouble all the time. So I took the blame for it for absolutely no reason or simply because I'm stupid or whatever. That's when things turned around in my life. We had a bunch of meetings with the teacher and my parents discussing why I did it and stuff and I tried to tell them the actual truth, but obviously, it just seems like I just can't take the consequences or whatever. The teacher had always been nice to me and I liked that teacher because she gave me work at school that matched my level of skill, usually work from 4 school years above. After I made the false confession, I was the guy that got all the blame for everything that the other trouble kid was doing. I never talked to him or anything, he was in a completely different gang of friends, often with older people. I've never been that guy who caused any trouble at all, so getting all the blame for everything that the trouble kid was doing was incredibly painful. The stuff included: Stealing things, putting sharp stuff on the floors, destroying things, etc. So that continued happening until the next year of school when I got another teacher. This teacher refused to give me work that was challenging and just gave me the same really easy stuff that all the other students were working with. I tried to talk about it with my parents and the teacher but it seems like they had just forgotten that I was above the other students in terms of knowledge levels. Maybe I did just lose a lot of intelligence over the summer break, but it doesn't make sense to suddenly drop 4 years of knowledge in 2 months from not attending school or whatever. We had P.E. together with the older people for some reason and one day we played soccer. I've always hated soccer and I'm really bad at it. Team sports are not my thing. So I did very bad and the older people started swearing at me and one guy pretended like I hurt them, which the P.E teacher actually believed. So my parents are wondering what happened to me, I used to be a really good student and now I'm suddenly writing bad stuff to the teachers, destroying stuff and hurting people, all because I made a false confession once. To this day they still think I did all this. So the older people started bullying me a lot and rumors about me started going around and everyone believed in them. The people that did all this stuff could do basically whatever they want, blame me, and get away with it. I've heard them say some very bad things about me when they think I'm not there. And in 2021, my really good friends that I had since 2018 no longer talked to me. I think it was because they believed in all those rumors about me that even my teacher believed in so much one of them even said to me: "You are so fucking stupid". So when the summer break started: I had lost all my friends, family members died, gotten bullied by teachers and students, parents divorced, and probably more that I'd just forgotten about. Yea, there is. So after my parents divorced, my mom met a new guy who was very nice and had a son around my age. We were the same age, had the same interests and we were really good friends. One day my mom broke up with her new guy, turns out he's been cheating on her for months. So I lost contact with my only friend as the only times we met were when my mom met him. It was incredibly painful to lose my only friend on top of everything I was already going through. I've never had any phone number for any friend or anything. To this day the only phone numbers I have are my parents whom I haven't talked to on the phone I think ever. So I started a new school after the summer of 2021 because the school where all this happened didn't have classes for people my age. All my old friends started a private school which they had been queueing for their entire life. I was hoping to get some new friends and get back to my normal life. Little did I know things were only about to get way worse than they've ever been. This school was a very sketchy and old school that I had heard some very bad things about but decided to start anyways mostly because of its location. So right off the start, on the first day of school, they failed to provide instructions on where to go, and I was late because I had to find someone who knew where I was supposed to go. It was already a pretty big red sign as they had promised in a mail that somebody was supposed to lead me to the right place. Anyways, the school seemed quite normal until I had been there for a few weeks. That's when I realized I'm not going to get any friends at this school. Everyone there is just so different from me. They all are the average kid my age who plays soccer, and boring video games, and use their phone for hours every day. I stopped talking entirely at this school due to many reasons, but mostly because there simply was no need to talk when there was no one to talk to about anything. The school did kind of realize I was different and needed special support, but promised a lot that they never actually delivered. They did realize I need more difficult work but always forgot about it. By not talking, I have developed a fear of talking, also known as extreme social anxiety which plagues me to this day. I've always had trouble concentrating when there are noises in the background, which I hadn't really realized before I started here. This school is on a completely different level than anything I've ever seen before. The best way to describe it is total anarchy. Also one of 3 schools in the entire country that has security cameras, the other 2 being famous for their serious problems. This school is for me, constant mental torture. As I said the school is very old, built in the 70s and most of the furniture is probably original. Everything looks so disgusting and torn down. The floors, the walls, everything. The bathrooms were straight out of silent hill. I forgot to mention that I had developed some form of eating disorder at the previous school, which still plagues me to this day. Haven't consumed school food since 2020. So I went depressed, hungry, and extremely mad in school every day. My suicidal thoughts started in 2022. My parents, and teachers all knew everything I thought about the school, but my teachers really didn't have time to do anything. We decided that I'll be working alone in a different room than the rest of the class. The room was the same room we did important tests in. So we started doing that, and it actually worked well for the first weeks, until my teachers simply forgot that I'm working in that room. They stopped giving me the stuff to work on and gave me absent status on every lesson. The teachers had suddenly just completely forgotten about my entire existence. So I went to school every day to enter a room and stare at a clock for 6 hours a day, failed multiple subjects because as I said, teachers completely forgot about my existence. That's when my suicidal thoughts really started coming up often. We had meetings sometimes with the school and they kept promising things they actually didn't have the capability to offer. Tons of misunderstandings and changes that just made things even worse. One day, my teacher told me that the school had hired a new special teacher that is educated about the things that I struggled with. I met him once and turns out we have really similar interests. We discussed them the entire day. Then the next day he was sick. He was sick for weeks until returning once after weeks of me sitting in that room staring at the clock, going insane and flipping furniture, breaking things, etc. Massive thanks to my mom who have been very supportive and pushed for school to give me what I need. The issues were just on the school's side. So the school ended up promising they'll solve this stuff after the summer break of 2022, and that I'll work with him in the room and a bunch of solutions to my problems that sounded great and would finally fix my life to almost normal. A few days before school started, my teacher announced I'll be getting some completely different teachers who knew nothing about my issues and that the special help guy would not meet me again as he had started a completely different job in some other school. This is where I begin to realize that when things seem to be getting better, they're actually only getting worse. It was like I started from scratch again with everything. My new teachers thought I was just an average student, they knew nothing about the issues I have at school. After a few weeks of going there, in the classrooms, not working because of my issues, my mom came to me with what seemed like the best news I'd ever gotten in my life. I got a place in that private school that all my old friends went to. There are only good things heard about this school, and I thought I'll be able to get my old friends back and get back to my normal life with friends, good grades, and good teachers. I hadn't been this happy in a very long time. Little did I know things were only about to get even worse. I started this school in a completely different class than all of my friends, in a different part of the building with tons of people who knew a lot about me, even though I didn't know their names and still don't. The issues that I had developed didn't just disappear because I switched to a new school. I still have extreme social anxiety and autism and I still can't eat school food. In my opinion this school is actually only worse than my previous, where I thought it just couldn't get any worse. Mainly due to the same reason the previous school sucked. It ain't the schools that suck, it's me. I'm the problem causing all of this. I'm the most annoying kid a parent could ever have and the most annoying student a teacher can ever have. There is no problem with school. It's all made up by my mind and I can't get over it. There's still a lot more that happened that has led me into this decision. but I've been typing for a long time and I'm too tired to continue on with this wall of cringy bullshit. There is only one way out.
submitted by RXCmods to SuicideWatch [link] [comments]
2023.05.28 20:25 yelpvinegar Notion AI for Writers
Notion has emerged as an essential writing tool over the past few years. It already allowed users to manage virtually every aspect of the content creation process in an easy to use interface. That’s why I was excited to see that Notion just lauched its AI tool, Notion AI. But what exact is Notion AI and what are the potential uses of Notion AI for writers? Read on to learn more!
What is Notion?
Notion is a digital workspace that allows you to organize and manage various aspects of your life, including tasks, projects, notes, and more. It is a flexible, all-in-one platform that combines the functionality of various productivity tools, such as project management software, note-taking apps, and databases, into a single workspace.
Notion features a customizable interface that allows users to create pages, databases, and templates that suit their specific needs. It also supports a wide range of integrations with other tools and services, such as Google Drive, Trello, and Slack.
Notion is available on desktop and mobile devices, and it offers both free and paid plans with varying levels of features and capabilities. Its popularity has grown rapidly in recent years, making it a popular choice for individuals, teams, and businesses looking to streamline their workflows and increase productivity.
What is Notion AI?
Notion announced on February 22, 2023 that all users could access notion’s latest tool, Notion AI.Notion AI is an artificial intelligence assistant that can be used natively within Notion documents, spreadsheets, or other Notion products. Notion AI uses the same GPT-3 language model that is behind ChatGPT.
What Are The Features of Notion AI?
Notion AI contains a number of features designed to enhance productivity for writers within Notion.
Notion AI allow users to:
- Create a content calendar to plan ahead and stay organized with your blog posts.
- Write catchy headlines that will grab your readers’ attention and encourage them to read further.
- Use visuals, such as images and videos, to make your blog posts more engaging and memorable.
- Make sure your blog is mobile-friendly, as more and more people are accessing content on their smartphones and tablets.
- Use social media to promote your blog and reach a wider audience.
- Engage with your readers by responding to comments and encouraging discussion on your blog.
- Focus on a niche or specific topic to establish yourself as an expert in that area.
- Collaborate with other bloggers or brands to expand your reach and bring new perspectives to your blog.
- Use SEO techniques, such as keyword research and meta descriptions, to improve your blog’s visibility on search engines.
- Experiment with different types of content, such as listicles, how-to guides, and interviews, to keep your blog fresh and interesting.
You can see a full list of the current Notion AI features in the screenshots below:
Notion AI Pricing
Anyone (including users with a free Notion plan) can try Notion AI for free, in order to test its capabilities before purchasing the add-on subscription.
However, once you’ve used all your complimentary Notion AI responses, you will see a message that a Notion AI add-on subscription is necessary to continue using AI features. You’ll then need to purchase the Notion AI add on.
The Notion AI add-on costs $8 per member / month for users choosing the annual plan (an additional $96 per year) if you already have a paid Notion account.
If you have a paid Notion plan and choose to purchase the Notion AI add-on but pay with monthly billing, or decide to keep your free Notion account and only upgrade to receive Notion AI, you will be charged $10 per member / month ($120 per year).
How Can Writers Use Notion AI?
Having experimented with Notion AI (both as an early beta tester and using the plan currently available to all users), here are some of the top use cases demonstrating the value of Notion AI for writers:
1. Summarizing Written Content
Notion AI offers an easy to use, one click command, that automatically summarizes a portion of text highlighted.For the purposes of this example, I entered the text of a recent WSJ article, Fed Minutes Show Most Officials Favored Quarter-Point Rate Rise.
The original article text is listed below:
Most Federal Reserve officials thought slowing the pace of interest-rate increases at their meeting three weeks ago offered the best way to balance the risks of doing too much or too little to combat inflation, but some warned against the hazards of slowing or stopping rate increases too soon.
“A number of participants observed that a policy stance that proved to be insufficiently restrictive could halt recent progress in moderating inflationary pressures,” said the minutes of the Jan. 31-Feb. 1 meeting, released Wednesday.
Fed officials unanimously approved raising their benchmark federal-funds rate by a quarter percentage point to a range between 4.5% and 4.75% on Feb. 1. That increase followed six larger increases, including a half percentage point in December.
Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday the central bank will raise interest rates a quarter-percentage-point. Powell said more increases will likely be needed to continue lowering inflation.
The minutes of the gathering said that “almost all participants agreed that it was appropriate” to raise rates by a quarter point, or 25 basis points. Many of these officials “observed that a further slowing in the pace of rate increases would better allow them to assess the economy’s progress… as they determine the extent of future policy tightening,” the minutes said.
But a few participants favored or would have also agreed to a larger half-point move, the minutes said. “The participants favoring a 50-basis-point increase noted that a larger increase would more quickly bring the target range close to the levels they believed would achieve a sufficiently restrictive stance,” the minutes said.
Their discussion suggested another increase of a quarter point was likely at their next meeting on March 21-22. Since then, new data indicated stronger economic activity and slower progress on inflation than previously expected, which could keep the Fed raising rates longer than anticipated before the latest reports.
At the time of the recent meeting, Fed Chair Jerome Powell was facing increasing skepticism from investors over whether the central bank would continue raising rates because economic activity had been mixed around year’s end, with signs that consumer spending had moderated and weakness in the hard-hit housing sector was spreading to manufacturing. Investors were also anticipating rate cuts later this year.
The Fed raises rates to combat inflation by slowing the economy through tighter financial conditions—such as higher borrowing costs, lower stock prices and a stronger dollar—that curb demand.
Most Fed officials projected in December that they would raise the fed-funds rate to 5.1% this year, which would imply quarter-point rate increases at their next two meetings, in March and May. More than a third of officials anticipated lifting the rate above 5.25%. No officials projected rate cuts this year.
Some officials at the meeting observed that any continued easing in financial conditions could require the Fed to raise rates to higher levels or keep them at higher levels for longer than anticipated.
In the three weeks since they met, fresh U.S. economic reports showed that hiring and retail spending surged in January. The unemployment rate fell to 3.4%, a 53-year low, surprising economists who have long anticipated that Fed rate increases would slow economic growth soon. Economic growth also has rebounded in Europe, further easing worries of a global recession this year.
As a result, investors now expect the Fed to lift the fed-funds rate to around 5.4% in June–more than central bank officials had projected in December.
Inflation’s swift decline late last year also stalled in January. The 12-month inflation rate edged down to 6.4% last month from 6.5% in December and a recent high of 9.1% in June, according to the Labor Department. The department’s widely followed gauge, the consumer-price index, rose a sturdy 0.5% in January from the month before, a sign of still strong price pressures.
Two Fed presidents said last week they would have supported a larger half-point rate rise at the last meeting, rather than the quarter-point increase approved. One of them, Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester, said officials aren’t limited to quarter-point steps. “We can move faster, and we can do bigger [increases] at any particular meeting.”
St. Louis Fed President James Bullard also said he would support moving as quickly as possible to raise the fed-funds rate to 5.4%. “I don’t see much merit in delaying our approach to that level,” he told reporters last week.
Most other Fed officials have expressed a preference for quarter-point increases. Richmond Fed President Tom Barkin told reporters last week he liked that approach “because I believe it gives us the flexibility to respond” depending on how the economy evolves.
Mr. Barkin said he didn’t favor moving rapidly to an estimated peak rate before pausing because he isn’t confident the central bank can gauge how much its past rate moves are slowing the economy. “That theory, to me, requires more confidence in understanding” the effectiveness of tighter rate policy “than I have,” he said.
Overall inflation had slowed in recent months largely because of falling prices of energy and other goods. Large increases in housing costs have slowed, but haven’t yet filtered through to official price gauges. Mr. Powell has nevertheless justified continued rate increases by pointing to still-tight labor markets, elevated wage pressures and high inflation for labor-intensive services.
Mr. Barkin noted the surprising strength in January spending and hiring, but said he wasn’t ready to substantially revise his economic outlook because of the potential for unusual seasonal volatility, including a longer holiday spending season in the fourth quarter, warmer weather and changes in how employers are managing their staffing given recent difficulties hiring workers.
Investors’ shifting expectations about the Fed could already be helping the central bank because interest-rate policies work through financial markets. Changes to the anticipated trajectory of rates, and not just what the Fed does at any meeting, can influence broader financial conditions.
Since November, anticipation of a milder interest-rate path led financial conditions to ease somewhat after tightening substantially last year. The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate, for example, jumped from 4% one year ago to 7% in November. It then edged lower, to around 6% earlier this month.
Over the past two weeks, however, financial conditions have tightened again as investors anticipate an interval of higher short-term interest rates. Mortgage lenders have reported rates are returning back to 7% in recent days.
After a few seconds, Notion AI generated the following text summarizing the article:
The minutes of the Jan. 31-Feb. 1 meeting of the Federal Reserve show that most officials favored slowing the pace of interest-rate increases to balance the risks of doing too much or too little to combat inflation. However, some warned against slowing or stopping rate increases too soon. The minutes also suggest that another increase of a quarter point is likely at the next meeting on March 21-22. Fresh U.S. economic reports showed that hiring and retail spending surged in January, which could keep the Fed raising rates longer than anticipated before the latest reports.
Investors’ expectations about the Fed could already be helping the central bank, as interest-rate policies work through financial markets. Changes to the anticipated trajectory of rates, and not just what the Fed does at any meeting, can influence broader financial conditions. Since November, anticipation of a milder interest-rate path led financial conditions to ease somewhat after tightening substantially last year.
Over the past two weeks, however, financial conditions have tightened again as investors anticipate an interval of higher short-term interest rates. Mortgage lenders have reported rates are returning back to 7% in recent days. Two Fed presidents said last week they would have supported a larger half-point rate rise at the last meeting, rather than the quarter-point increase approved.
St. Louis Fed President James Bullard also said he would support moving as quickly as possible to raise the fed-funds rate to 5.4%. Most other Fed officials have expressed a preference for quarter-point increases, as they believe it gives them the flexibility to respond depending on how the economy evolves.
Overall inflation had slowed in recent months largely because of falling prices of energy and other goods, but large increases in housing costs have slowed, but haven’t yet filtered through to official price gauges. Mr. Powell has nevertheless justified continued rate increases by pointing to still-tight labor markets, elevated wage pressures, and high inflation for labor-intensive services.
While not perfect, this is a really good summarization of a complex article/topic. And the Notion AI tool also provided options for further editing this text, including making the summary longer, rewriting the entire summary, or replacing a section of the article.
2. Changing Tone of Text
Another great feature of Notion AI is its ability to change the tone of text.
For example, I used the following excerpt from a Washington Post article on winter weather:
A strong, intensifying storm system continued its trek across the Lower 48 early Wednesday, unleashing high-impact winter weather that could cause widespread power outages and grind travel to a halt. At least 75 million Americans are under winter storm, ice storm, blizzard warnings or winter weather advisories.
In addition to hefty precipitation in much of the Midwest and parts of the Plains, there could also be snow in notably low elevations — including in areas that rarely see measurable snowfall. Even the Los Angeles County mountains are included in a rare blizzard warning — the first issued by the National Weather Service office there since 1989. Snow levels could descend to below 1,000 feet elevation as extreme anomalous cold at high altitudes whips up a serious elevation storm.
That same lobe of frigid air aloft is also spawning a surface low that’s marching across the country. Over the Upper Midwest and the northern Plains, up to two feet of snow could fall in what the National Weather Service office in Minneapolis is calling a historic winter storm. It could prove to be a top-5 event in the Twin Cities, where blizzard warnings slice through the metro.
On the southern fringe of the snowfall, mild air a mile above the ground will favor freezing rain, with a quarter- to a half-inch of ice accumulation, or glaze, possible in some areas. Parts of the Corn Belt and Michigan are expected to be hardest hit, including places like Dubuque and Cedar Rapids, Iowa, or Lansing, Kalamazoo and Ann Arbor in Michigan.
The storm should finish its cross-country assault in the Northeast late Thursday into Friday, where additional winter storm warnings are in effect for northern New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.
I then used the Notion AI change tone function, and selected the “casual option”:
The Notion AI tool then quickly generated the following text:
Wowza, we’ve got a major storm system heading across the US of A, bringing some serious winter weather that could knock out power and put a stop to travel plans. That’s no joke, folks! It looks like around 75 million Americans are under winter storm, ice storm, blizzard warnings or winter weather advisories, so you know this is serious business.
And get this, it’s not just heavy precipitation we’re talking about – parts of the Midwest and Plains could get snow, and we’re talking about areas that don’t usually see snowfall. The Los Angeles County mountains are even included in a rare blizzard warning – the first one issued by the National Weather Service office there in over 30 years! The snow could even come down to below 1,000 feet elevation. Yikes!
There’s a lobe of frigid air up high that’s causing all of this, and it’s also spawning a surface low that’s going across the country. In the Upper Midwest and the northern Plains, we’re talking up to two feet of snow in what the National Weather Service office in Minneapolis is calling a historic winter storm. That’s right, it could be a top-5 event in the Twin Cities, where blizzard warnings are all over the place.
On the southern edge of the snowfall, freezing rain is likely, and some areas could see a quarter- to a half-inch of ice accumulation. The Corn Belt and Michigan are expected to be hit hard, including places like Dubuque and Cedar Rapids, Iowa, or Lansing, Kalamazoo and Ann Arbor in Michigan.
This storm is going to finish up with a bang in the Northeast late Thursday into Friday, where more winter storm warnings are in effect for northern New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. Stay safe out there, folks!
While perhaps a bit over the top, it definitely demonstrates the AI tools ability to create content using different tones.
3. Writing Social Media Posts
While the previous two use cases demonstrate the Notion AI tool’s ability to synthesize and mimic different forms of text, this next example shows its power to create text based off of very short prompts. Specifically, how it can quickly generate social media posts.
I selected the option from the Notion AI menu to write a social media post. It asked for me to enter a prompt to complete this sentence:
Write a social media post about_____________
And I simply entered “spring cleaning.”
In response, it generated the following social media post (including the hashtags):
Spring is here and it’s time for some cleaning! Whether it’s decluttering your home, organizing your closet, or deep cleaning those hard-to-reach areas, now is the perfect time to get started. A little bit of cleaning can go a long way in making your space feel refreshed and renewed. Don’t forget to donate any items you no longer need to charity or recycle them responsibly. Let’s all welcome spring with a clean and organized home!
#springcleaning #declutter #organization #cleanhome #refreshed #renewed #donate #recycle
While not perfect, I didn’t give the AI tool much information, so I was fairly impressed with this output.
4. Writing a Blog Post
Similar to the last use case, I wanted to further text the Notion AI tool’s ability to generate written content. So I selected the “write a blog post” option and entered the following prompt:
The tool generated the following blog post:
The Benefits of Jogging
Introduction
Jogging is a popular form of exercise that has numerous benefits for both physical and mental health. It is a low-impact exercise that can be done anytime and anywhere, making it a convenient choice for people of all ages and fitness levels. Jogging is also an affordable form of exercise, as it requires no special equipment or membership fees. In this blog post, we will discuss some of the benefits of jogging and how it can improve your overall health and well-being.Physical Benefits
Jogging is an excellent way to improve cardiovascular health. It helps to strengthen the heart and lungs, lowers blood pressure, and reduces the risk of heart disease. Jogging also helps to build endurance and increase stamina, which can improve athletic performance in other activities.In addition to its cardiovascular benefits, jogging can also help with weight loss and weight management. It is an effective way to burn calories and boost metabolism, which can help to shed excess pounds and maintain a healthy weight. Jogging also helps to build muscle and tone the body, giving you a leaner and more sculpted appearance.
Jogging is also good for bone health. It helps to strengthen bones and prevent osteoporosis, a condition that causes bones to become brittle and weak. Regular jogging can also improve joint health and flexibility, reducing the risk of injury and improving overall mobility.
Mental Benefits
Jogging is not just good for physical health, it also has many mental health benefits. It is an excellent way to reduce stress and anxiety, as it releases endorphins that promote feelings of happiness and relaxation. Jogging can also boost self-esteem and confidence, helping to improve overall mood and well-being.Regular jogging can also improve cognitive function and brain health. It has been shown to improve memory, concentration, and overall brain function, reducing the risk of cognitive decline and dementia in later life. Jogging can also help to improve sleep quality, which is essential for overall health and well-being.
Social Benefits
Jogging can also provide social benefits, as it can be a great way to meet new people and make friends. Joining a jogging group or running club can provide a supportive and motivating environment, where you can connect with other like-minded individuals who share your passion for jogging.Getting Started with Jogging
If you are new to jogging, it is important to start slowly and gradually build up your endurance. Begin with short, easy runs and gradually increase the distance and intensity over time. It is also important to wear proper shoes and clothing to prevent injury and ensure comfort while jogging.To make jogging more enjoyable, try listening to music or a podcast while you run. You can also join a jogging group or find a jogging buddy to keep you motivated and accountable.
Conclusion
In conclusion, jogging is an excellent form of exercise that can benefit both physical and mental health. It can improve cardiovascular health, aid in weight management, strengthen bones and joints, reduce stress and anxiety, boost self-esteem and confidence, and improve cognitive function and brain health. Jogging can also provide social benefits, making it a great way to meet new people and make friends. If you are looking for an easy and convenient way to improve your health and well-being, jogging is a great place to start. So put on your running shoes, hit the pavement, and enjoy the many benefits of this simple yet effective form of exercise.Overall, I was very impressed with how quickly it generated this grammatically correct and well written blog post. It’s worth noting that once the Notion AI tool finishes generating the text, there is a button you can click to make the article longer, which it also does with ease.
5. Finding Action Items
Last, I wanted to test the “finding action items” tool. To do this, I found a publicly available copy of a county’s meeting minutes over their local water authority (see PDF here):
I then ran the text through the AI tool, using the “find action items tool”:
Notion AI generated the following:
- - [ ] Purchase hydrants to replace existing hydrants in the Pinebrook Water System
- - [ ] Complete the activation of the system, replacing the hydrants, and other miscellaneous punch list items to complete the Pinebrook Water Interconnection Project
- - [ ] Engage legal counsel to advise on the assignment from Global Foundries to Onsemi
- - [ ] Request a preliminary meeting with the Poughkeepsie Joint Water Board to discuss issues and concerns regarding the assignment from Global Foundries to Onsemi
- - [ ] Speak to the Deputy County Executive, Ron Hicks in regard to the request to assign the water sale agreement to Onsemi
- - [ ] Consider retaining auditors, RBT to review Onsemi’s financials
- - [ ] Follow up with Ron Haase, Rust & Co. about purchasing the Market Street Plant
Conclusion
The examples of Notion’s AI tool make a strong case for adding the Notion AI tool to your writer toolkit! And the examples above only represent a fraction of the total use cases. Notion is already one of the best productivity tools for bloggers, and the addition of Notion AI for writers further cements its place on this list!
2023.05.28 18:47 sweetoon01 Are there any 22 year olds here who have never had a job?
I've never worked in my life and still financially dependent on parents. I don't really have any employable skills and have a ton of anxiety which makes it difficult to get hired. I constantly feel like I'm way behind my peers. I feel like a child mentally but I am an adult. Most people around my age seem so much more mature and have goals and ambitions. I am clueless and am stuck in a complete rut. I'm tired of wasting away at home but I also don't know what else to do. Idk if I even want to do anything.
submitted by sweetoon01 to youngadults [link] [comments]
2023.05.28 18:05 autobuzzfeedbot 9 Things Celebs Did To Someone Much Younger Than Them That Weren't Acceptable Then And Aren't Acceptable Now
- In a 2013 interview with V Magazine, Zoë Kravitz made suggestive comments about Jaden Smith. She was 24 at the time, and he was 14.
- In an interview with Fuse in 2013, Machine Gun Kelly talked about his crush on Kendall Jenner. He was 23 at the time and she was 17.
- While appearing on The Wendy Williams Show in 2015, Neil Patrick Harris expressed his attraction to Nick Jonas before he was of legal age. Harris was 42 at the time.
- In 2017, model Ali Michael got a lot of backlash after comments she made about Finn Wolfhard. Ali was 27 at the time and Finn was just 14.
- In 2012, Katy Perry groped Justin Bieber backstage at a London concert. Katy was around 28 at the time and Justin was around 18.
- In 2012, Jenny McCarthy also touched Justin inappropriately at the American Music Awards when presenting him an award. She was 40 and he was 18.
- In 2019, Lil B was called out by Lil Yachty for a tweet he made about then-17-year-old Billie Eilish. Lil B was 30 at the time.
- In 2018, Katy Perry tricked an American Idol contestant into kissing her. At that time, he was 19 years old and she was about 34.
- Lastly, in 2010, Drake kissed and fondled a 17-year-old fan on stage at his concert in Denver. He was 23 years old.
2023.05.28 17:57 RubiusGermanicus I will probably be homeless in a few weeks
Hello all,
I am a recent college graduate (23/M). I studied supply chain management, finished with a strong GPA (3.6), have a ton of work experience from working while attending school and have a long list of qualifications that most people my age do not, since I had to work full time basically since I was legally able to. I have a solid resume and good references. And yet, ever since I got laid off from my job in February I’ve been jobless.
I’ve tried everything. Everything you can think off; LinkedIn, indeed, google Jobs, ZipRecruiter, even staffing agencies. I’ve gone to offices in person and asked about available positions. I’ve applied to over 800 jobs and it’s always the same; ghosted, rejected, or it’s a scam. I’ve looked for work in other cities and other states and still no luck. I’ve applied for jobs I’m overqualified for and still nothing. I’ve even lied on certain applications to try and make myself look better. Still nothing.
Before uni, everyone told me SCM is a great industry, rapidly expanding, lots of job opportunities. And yet I’ve seen none of that. I feel like I wasted my time learning about something I don’t really care that much about only to end up in a even worse position. If I had known it was going to be like this I would’ve studied something that actually makes me happy.
And now, almost 4 months after my layoffs I’m dead broke. I don’t have the money to pay any of my bills and I don’t have a support network to help me out. A few more weeks and I will end up on the streets.
It just makes me so angry. I didn’t give up all this time and energy only to get put into a situation like this. I didn’t go to college to get a degree that brings me nothing. I am thousands of dollars in debt and the only thing I can do is look at how awesome everyone else’s lives are. I hate it so much and at this point I’ve just given up and accepted the inevitable.
And the icing on top of it all? I got laid off while the manager’s daughters both got jobs and one of their friends got my position. I got replaced with a fresh hire bc nepotism I guess.
Thanks for listening.
submitted by RubiusGermanicus to offmychest [link] [comments]
I am a recent college graduate (23/M). I studied supply chain management, finished with a strong GPA (3.6), have a ton of work experience from working while attending school and have a long list of qualifications that most people my age do not, since I had to work full time basically since I was legally able to. I have a solid resume and good references. And yet, ever since I got laid off from my job in February I’ve been jobless.
I’ve tried everything. Everything you can think off; LinkedIn, indeed, google Jobs, ZipRecruiter, even staffing agencies. I’ve gone to offices in person and asked about available positions. I’ve applied to over 800 jobs and it’s always the same; ghosted, rejected, or it’s a scam. I’ve looked for work in other cities and other states and still no luck. I’ve applied for jobs I’m overqualified for and still nothing. I’ve even lied on certain applications to try and make myself look better. Still nothing.
Before uni, everyone told me SCM is a great industry, rapidly expanding, lots of job opportunities. And yet I’ve seen none of that. I feel like I wasted my time learning about something I don’t really care that much about only to end up in a even worse position. If I had known it was going to be like this I would’ve studied something that actually makes me happy.
And now, almost 4 months after my layoffs I’m dead broke. I don’t have the money to pay any of my bills and I don’t have a support network to help me out. A few more weeks and I will end up on the streets.
It just makes me so angry. I didn’t give up all this time and energy only to get put into a situation like this. I didn’t go to college to get a degree that brings me nothing. I am thousands of dollars in debt and the only thing I can do is look at how awesome everyone else’s lives are. I hate it so much and at this point I’ve just given up and accepted the inevitable.
And the icing on top of it all? I got laid off while the manager’s daughters both got jobs and one of their friends got my position. I got replaced with a fresh hire bc nepotism I guess.
Thanks for listening.
2023.05.28 17:55 Reggash The good and bad sides of Freedom
 | . submitted by Reggash to stalker [link] [comments] long post and spoilers ahead Similarly to the previously described Duty, their ideological enemies are also often perceived by stereotypes, myths, and memes. Here are some actual good and bad sides of the Freedom faction, based on the events of the trilogy and various lore snippets. Freedom values:
I'm completing tasks assigned to me by the commander. What, did you think Duty is the only clan that can follow orders? We can be disciplined too, when the situation warrants. You gotta be a moron to really believe that Freedom is full of junkies and drunks. Think about it, if that were true our whole clan would've been dead and buried a long time ago.Moreover, one of their major rules is to obey their commander in combat, as mentioned in Call of Pripyat, during the recruitment of Strider's squad: We don't have a strict hierarchy. Earn our respect and you get plenty of followers. However, when on the mission, we obey the commander's orders without question.If Freedom really would be just an unorganized herd of stoned anarchists (as some Dutyers seem to think of them), then they likely wouldn't be able to become one of the most powerful factions in the Zone, that can be a menace both to Duty and the military. Furthermore, the faction most likely has a pretty large income - after all, Freedom has no problem with selling artifacts for profit (in contrast to Duty), and unlike loners, they all work together, which allows them to collect a large number of artifacts for a shared profit. This lets the faction to obtain the more expensive NATO weapons from the black market in large numbers.
Holding the Barrier as best we can. The military stopped defending it after the Emission, and so many monsters broke through there that even we in the Dark Valley shat our pants. That's when our boss organized the expedition.It was likely appreciated even by Duty, because during this period they abstained from waging regular warfare with Freedom and limited themselves to minor skirmishes.
Our clan lives in the Zone and studies it, in a practical sense. I believe that the Zone is an unbelievable scientific opportunity for the whole of humanity. (...) I have no doubt that in a few years' time, we will see a massive leap in science and other areas of human knowledge thanks to our research here in the Zone. This leap will be felt by everyone... even people whose closest contact with science and technology is their cell phone!The research is also mentioned by some regular members of the faction: Did you know that Freedom is studying the Zone too? We're not scientists, that's true, but we also want to know what created this nature's miracle. Everything here is a gift to humanity: all these anomalies, artifacts and mysterious emissions. What were we talking about? Oh, yes, you asked me what I'm doing here. I'm collecting data for research - taking measurements of background radiation, temperature, humidity and noting the presence of monsters and anomalies...In Call of Pripyat we also may learn that Freedomers are willing to help the scientists at Yanov: I reckon our boys could do the job. Freedom has its share of smart folks and if we don't know something we'll ask at the bunker. We'd love the opportunity to help science! Speak to Loki at Yanov - I'm sure he'll say the same.It seems however that Lukash has a different view on the matter of scientists, but more on that later.
And the fact that their suits are equal to (or in some instances even better than) the gear used by Duty, Mercs or the military says a lot about their technicians. Moreover, Freedom came up with some compounds and practical ideas that are used in their suits, as evident by their descriptions: This lightweight stalker bodysuit is made by Freedom craftsmen. The suit's fabric is treated with Horizon, a special solution developed by the faction by trial and error to increase resistance to anomalies.Chekhov mentions that Freedom has the "best tech team in the whole Zone", and it doesn't seem like an exaggeration.
Imagine this - they found our Mikluha! And the guys that were with him also survived. They sneaked past the braineraser, and then spent a month just killing time, couldn't get back out.Even Dutyers who arrived in Pripyat after the Scorcher shutdown were impressed by his actions: In the formerly inaccessible zone one of the Freedom detachments was discovered. How did they manage to get through unharmed and then survive a few weeks here? Can't even imagine. I guess we underestimated these guys. Freedom faults:
Duty is trying to destroy the Zone, Freedom is trying to destroy Duty, and the bandits are using any chance they get to shovel some more money in. I've had enough and I won't take it any more. I've travelled the Zone on my own and even stood with Freedom for a while. But as soon as they started talking about whacking Duty, I put my skates on and sailed.Chekhov himself even mentions that fighting Duty is their priority: Duty seeks to destroy the Zone and appropriate its secrets. We must stop them. Our main job is to fight Duty.It's worth to note that later on, the conflict became less important, since both factions started to focus on their own thing. In Shadow of Chernobyl we may learn that the factions have occasional ceasefires during which the members of both groups even meet and talk: I meet up with one of the Duty men when there's a cease-fire. We share. The man's actually smart, but, shit, narrow-minded like your tank. You see, our philosophy is completely different from theirs: you can only tame the Zone, assimilate it, but not destroy it.
One stalker in the 100 Rads bar mentions that Freedom supposedly sabotages some research groups: To the North, not far from the Brain Scorcher, Freedom have set up their HQ in an old military base. They're notorious nihilists, anarchists and criminals - freedom fighters, freaking guerrillas all of them. All they do is sabotage research groups, attack army units and constantly skirmish with Duty.In fact, in contrary to his predecessor, Lukash doesn't seem to care about studying the Zone, and is more eager to prevent the government from doing so - he orders attacks on the military, because he doesn't want them to turn the Zone into a "research zoo": The military are staging a gradual Zone takeover. We need to slow them down, otherwise the Zone will turn into a research zoo. One of the military camps is right by the Agroprom. If you manage to purge the place a bit, it will slow down Zone's takeover by the army.Marked One also notes that Freedom is not willing to help the scientists when speaking with Kruglov. It seems that the faction drastically changed its behavior after the leader change in 2012. However, it must be mentioned that the Freedomers from the detachment led by Loki in Call of Pripyat are still keen to help the scientists at Yanov. Another example of Lukash having quite extreme ways of protecting the Zone is the fact that he orders a hit on a stalker who sells stuffed mutants, and is against hunting them in general: We eliminate monsters, expect for us it's a matter of survival, not profit. Mutant populations are not as numerous; besides, they're living beings too, so we can't permit their annihilation. Some individuals refuse to understand it. An apt illustration is the stalker called Scarecrow. He got his nickname for a reason, selling stuffed mutants. We've warned him before, but all for nothing. So can you do a good deed for mother Earth?
I'll tell you about artifacts. What's an artifact? It's a cluster of anomalous energy, kinda like a stock cube. There's also artifacts that can...err...what's that damn word...ah, right...ge-ne-ra-te anomalies! I think that's how Chekhov says it. Anyway, only problem is, once the artifact generates an anomaly it's as good as useless. The anomaly itself ain't exactly powerful nor does it last long, but it's good enough to delay someone or knock 'em off your trail altogether.Of course, majority of stalkers came to the Zone with the intention of enriching themselves on artifacts, so it's not just Freedom that could be held accountable of any potential anomaly outbreaks or other incidents; however it is Freedom that actively and methodically fights any attempts of bringing some kind of control and order to the Zone, which could prevent such events from happening. Besides, even though there is no evidence that the Zone is growing, it still could endanger the rest of the world - for instance, even though it's unlikely, the possibility that some mutants could leave the Zone and pose a threat cannot be ruled out. Freedom's assaults on the military and skirmishes with Duty certainly do not reduce the probability of such thing happening. Have you heard the rumor that the Zone is growing? I think it's true 'cause I've seen real scary mutants near the perimeter, ones that you could only meet near the center of the Zone before. Not good, eh?
Behave, OK? Got it? Try fooling around and you'll be sorry. We had a slow-witted one here once; he pissed everyone off so bad that we made him take a hike on the minefield - naked. You should have heard Skinflint cursing when that dude's arm fell square on his head! That was something special... yeah... So, you got the idea?As can be seen, not all Freedomers are laid-back and easy-going. Moreover, they happen to be betrayed by their own people - other groups and factions also have corrupt members in their ranks, but Freedom seems to be particularly vulnerable to incidents involving them. In Shadow of Chernobyl one experienced member of Freedom, Pavlik, was leaking informations about his faction to the Mercs; a similar situation happened in the past, when Lingov, the commandant of Freedom, was also selling his faction out. What's worse, Lingov was one of its founders: I didn't expect him to do this! I've known him for ages! We hunted for our first artifacts together, we made Freedom what it is today! I trusted him with all the operational planning, and he just went and sold us out...In Call of Pripyat we encounter Flint, or rather Magpie, who endangered and took advantage of other stalkers. When the situation became clear, some stalkers took note of the fact that Freedom accepted him without checking who he was: Have you heard the kind of people Freedom recruits nowadays? There was this fella called Flint, bragged left and right about his escapades and trophies... well, he turned out to be the scum of the earth. Left his buddy to die in an anomaly, grabbed his loot and took off. Later they uncovered more of his exploits over at Zaton, where he basically fed a group of hunters to a chimera. I used to think better of Freedom... Hell, I'd rather be factionless than have friends like that.
- They are neutral/friendly towards bandits This can be seen in some mods, but such thing has no place in the original games. Both in Clear Sky and Call of Pripyat Freedomers fights with bandits. What's more, some dialogues from Clear Sky imply that bandits could take over the base in the Dark Valley by force: My pals and I want to head for the Dark Valley and take a bite out of those Freedom cats. Only we can't do that without Yoga's permission - he's the boss around here. I don't feel too comfortable stepping up to him, so we're still mulling it over for now.Freedom is neutral with bandits in Shadow of Chernobyl, but this is due to technical reasons; members of the both groups never meet in the game, and there are no dialogues or anything which would imply that they get along. Similarly, Freedom doesn't have good relations with Mercs for most of the time, and they certainly are not allies. - Freedom and mutants There are no dialogues which would allude to any unconventional attitude of Freedomers towards mutants, besides the aforementioned dialogue with Lukash. Here are fragments of some dialogues that show what attitude they really have towards the bloodsuckers: There's nothing new. There are no more artifacts here, and in those little cottages bloodsuckers used to live, we shot them off best as we could.As can be seen, they either kill them or avoid them. The well-known meme isn't backed up by any lore element. |
2023.05.28 17:22 Intelligent-Mud8081 Goddamn 👀
 | submitted by Intelligent-Mud8081 to BitLifeApp [link] [comments] |
2023.05.28 17:04 LGBTQIA_Over50 Be honest, am I never going to get back in the workforce to support myself? USA over 50
I need a full income to pay for all living expenses. I'm not married, and have no family. Are there any people out here living alone and paying all bills by themselves?
I can't get hired at my age, and I fluctuate with leaving on and taking off my Masters degree. The degree major isn't the topic of this post. Having it shouldn't disqualify me.
This one job I see says "Management Trainee" $50,000 to $60,000 which is the very minimum I need to live.
The job ad shows, "We are looking for management individuals to grow with us and make a long-term investment in their futures. We offer our Management Trainee’s a stable work environment that provides job security and many opportunities for career advancement..."
"growth" and "long term investment" meaning someone younger, right?
In today's economy, most people dont stay for longer than 5 or 10 years at the same place. It happens, but its rare. It sounds like the job ad is written carefully to indicate that they want someone in their 20s or 30s or early 40s and not someone in their 50s.
I used to work in HR, insurance and banking. I know how to construct a resume and tailor it for each job. I leave off the dates I graduated college. I don't go back beyond 10 years.
An employee at one of the upscale coffee shops saw my resume on my laptop (I asked him for some advice). He said, "you are way overqualified to work here..." That is helpful to know Regardless, can't do stand on my feet work for 40 hours.
I don't just need gas, food and insurance money, I need an income that pays for housing, utilities, dental and healthcare.
Does anyone know what types of office jobs will hire a middle aged person in their 50's? (industries desired, human resources recruiting, insurance not life, senior assisted living office manager, legal assistant).
I'm getting turned away. Appearance matters. The avg haircut where I live is $75.00+ and highlights are $200+. I need to cover my greys and look presentable.
submitted by LGBTQIA_Over50 to jobs [link] [comments]
I can't get hired at my age, and I fluctuate with leaving on and taking off my Masters degree. The degree major isn't the topic of this post. Having it shouldn't disqualify me.
This one job I see says "Management Trainee" $50,000 to $60,000 which is the very minimum I need to live.
The job ad shows, "We are looking for management individuals to grow with us and make a long-term investment in their futures. We offer our Management Trainee’s a stable work environment that provides job security and many opportunities for career advancement..."
"growth" and "long term investment" meaning someone younger, right?
In today's economy, most people dont stay for longer than 5 or 10 years at the same place. It happens, but its rare. It sounds like the job ad is written carefully to indicate that they want someone in their 20s or 30s or early 40s and not someone in their 50s.
I used to work in HR, insurance and banking. I know how to construct a resume and tailor it for each job. I leave off the dates I graduated college. I don't go back beyond 10 years.
An employee at one of the upscale coffee shops saw my resume on my laptop (I asked him for some advice). He said, "you are way overqualified to work here..." That is helpful to know Regardless, can't do stand on my feet work for 40 hours.
I don't just need gas, food and insurance money, I need an income that pays for housing, utilities, dental and healthcare.
Does anyone know what types of office jobs will hire a middle aged person in their 50's? (industries desired, human resources recruiting, insurance not life, senior assisted living office manager, legal assistant).
I'm getting turned away. Appearance matters. The avg haircut where I live is $75.00+ and highlights are $200+. I need to cover my greys and look presentable.
2023.05.28 16:48 SirPiecemaker When the barbarian is named "Uthgar the Kind" some people don't think he's still capable of ripping someone apart when they piss him off. Those people are very, very wrong.
"There you go, little one," Uthgar the Kind said as he handed the little girl a wooden doll. She smiled half-heartedly but accepted the gift kindly and even chuckled lightly as he gently patted her head. The barbarian then turned to the village elder who was finishing his second round of retching in a corner.
"Are you well, my friend?" Uthgar said warmly.
"His... \ugh** by gods what did you do to him?" he replied weakly.
Uthgar turned back and looked at the brigand laying on the ground in a pool of blood. He was clutching his leg that was, mere moments ago, expertly torn off below his knee. The wound, however, was skilfully tended to as to save the man's life.
"It's just a flesh wound," Uthgar smiled.
"You tore his leg off!"
"He'll live. That makes it a flesh wound, no? And I let him keep the leg! I'm sure a skilled healer will be able to attach it. A few years of practice and he'll be back on his feet with only minor loss of feeling," Uthgar explained patiently, stroking his grey beard.
"I- was it really necessary though?!"
"That is the man who burned down the stable, yes?" Uthgar asked.
"Well, yes, but-"
"And he took the little one's doll after he struck her?" Uthgar said and looked at the girl who was clutching her doll.
"... yes. I just- your name is Uthgar the Kind. I thought you'd be... gentler with him."
"Ah!" Uthgar laughed uproariously. "It is true, yes. My heart has grown soft in my later years. You should have seen me when I was young and full of rage!"
"Gods, there's nothing I'd want less," the Elder replied with wide eyes.
"Hah!" the barbarian said and patted the man on his back, almost knocking his breath out, "you have a good sense of humour, friend! That is a great quality!"
"It's just... this man," the Elder said and pointed to the passed-out brigand, "he- he was just a messenger, you see? Sent by the local warlord trying to take our land. I dread to imagine what he'll do now-"
"I'll crush him for you, is that agreeable?" Uthgar smiled. The Elder did not.
"Perhaps you could try and talk to him?" the Elder asked meekly.
"I am... not good with words. And many men who would burn down stables and strike children do not respond to words."
"He's coming!" a nearby voice yelled out, soon revealing itself to be a young stablehand, face still freckled with soot. "The- the Warlord," he hastily explained. "He hasn't heard from his man, he's-"
The rest of the village wasted no time and ran off to their respective homes to hide. Before too long, the village centre only had Uthgar, the Elder, and the curious little girl.
Moments later, the sound of hooves announced the arrival of the Warlord. Grizzled, crass, teeth crooked and rotten, he certainly looked the part of a man with no morals. He looked down at his messenger, then back at Uthgar.
"So," he hissed, "the filthy peons finally hired someone to protect them?"
"My friend here," Uthgar replied politely and nodded towards the nervous Elder, "asked me to... try and persuade you. So I will, yes?"
The Warlord chuckled. "Is that so?"
"Leave. Never come back. Or I will break your back."
The raiding party collectively laughed. Their grizzled leader looked around at his men and spat on the ground. "Kill him," he commanded.
Uthgar sighed and took off his leather cloak. The brigands' smiles disappeared when they saw that despite his aged, grey beard, his body had the musculature of a 20-year-old barbarian covered in so many scars one could use his back as a washboard. Standing up straight, he now commanded the area with a more than 2-meter tall stature and sizeable bulk. He cracked his neck and looked at the Warlord with a grim smile.
"Come," he growled. "Let me give you a hug."
submitted by SirPiecemaker to PiecesScriptorium [link] [comments]
"Are you well, my friend?" Uthgar said warmly.
"His... \ugh** by gods what did you do to him?" he replied weakly.
Uthgar turned back and looked at the brigand laying on the ground in a pool of blood. He was clutching his leg that was, mere moments ago, expertly torn off below his knee. The wound, however, was skilfully tended to as to save the man's life.
"It's just a flesh wound," Uthgar smiled.
"You tore his leg off!"
"He'll live. That makes it a flesh wound, no? And I let him keep the leg! I'm sure a skilled healer will be able to attach it. A few years of practice and he'll be back on his feet with only minor loss of feeling," Uthgar explained patiently, stroking his grey beard.
"I- was it really necessary though?!"
"That is the man who burned down the stable, yes?" Uthgar asked.
"Well, yes, but-"
"And he took the little one's doll after he struck her?" Uthgar said and looked at the girl who was clutching her doll.
"... yes. I just- your name is Uthgar the Kind. I thought you'd be... gentler with him."
"Ah!" Uthgar laughed uproariously. "It is true, yes. My heart has grown soft in my later years. You should have seen me when I was young and full of rage!"
"Gods, there's nothing I'd want less," the Elder replied with wide eyes.
"Hah!" the barbarian said and patted the man on his back, almost knocking his breath out, "you have a good sense of humour, friend! That is a great quality!"
"It's just... this man," the Elder said and pointed to the passed-out brigand, "he- he was just a messenger, you see? Sent by the local warlord trying to take our land. I dread to imagine what he'll do now-"
"I'll crush him for you, is that agreeable?" Uthgar smiled. The Elder did not.
"Perhaps you could try and talk to him?" the Elder asked meekly.
"I am... not good with words. And many men who would burn down stables and strike children do not respond to words."
"He's coming!" a nearby voice yelled out, soon revealing itself to be a young stablehand, face still freckled with soot. "The- the Warlord," he hastily explained. "He hasn't heard from his man, he's-"
The rest of the village wasted no time and ran off to their respective homes to hide. Before too long, the village centre only had Uthgar, the Elder, and the curious little girl.
Moments later, the sound of hooves announced the arrival of the Warlord. Grizzled, crass, teeth crooked and rotten, he certainly looked the part of a man with no morals. He looked down at his messenger, then back at Uthgar.
"So," he hissed, "the filthy peons finally hired someone to protect them?"
"My friend here," Uthgar replied politely and nodded towards the nervous Elder, "asked me to... try and persuade you. So I will, yes?"
The Warlord chuckled. "Is that so?"
"Leave. Never come back. Or I will break your back."
The raiding party collectively laughed. Their grizzled leader looked around at his men and spat on the ground. "Kill him," he commanded.
Uthgar sighed and took off his leather cloak. The brigands' smiles disappeared when they saw that despite his aged, grey beard, his body had the musculature of a 20-year-old barbarian covered in so many scars one could use his back as a washboard. Standing up straight, he now commanded the area with a more than 2-meter tall stature and sizeable bulk. He cracked his neck and looked at the Warlord with a grim smile.
"Come," he growled. "Let me give you a hug."
2023.05.28 16:39 girl_from_the_crypt Stuck on earth and looking for a job: So this is what government work is like...
My savior human is distraught. I alone would have trouble enough coping with Kit Sutton's absence, but with Nettie Peterson's grief added to mine, it's been impossible to go about my day with any semblance of serenity.
It's quite simple; when Nettie's unhappy, I cannot be content. She finally let me visit her earlier today. That doesn’t mean her overall state has improved, though. We went to talk in the garden, only there wasn’t much talking involved—she merely sat in her mother’s chair, staring blankly at the storm-tossed flower chaos.
“Didn’t you want to fix your plants back up?” I inquired.
“M-hm,” she muttered.
“It’d be a shame if your pretty garden was gonna stay like this.”
“M-hm.”
“If you need help, you let me know, okay?”
“M-hm.”
“I won’t try to eat the geraniums again.”
“M-hm.”
I leaned forward to try and catch her deep brown gaze. “Nettie, please say something. I thought we wanted to share our feelings more.”
“There’s nothing to share,” my savior human answered, her voice dry and monotone. “Kit’s not here anymore.”
“Yes, and I’m upset, too. But either I’m a horribly poor judge of human behavior or there's more to this.” I tilted my head at her. “I’ve never seen you this way. You said you didn’t always want a solution to your problems, and I’d be happy to just sit and listen as well, but you’re not talking either.”
“You don’t get it, do you?”
“Clearly not.”
Nettie let go of a soft breath. “I didn’t wanna tell you. Not until… It’s just that in the last couple days, Kit and I were getting kind of…” She faltered and trailed off.
“Kind of what?” I prompted.
“It’s hard to explain.”
“Please try, if you can. I want to understand.”
My best friend refused to meet my gaze. “See, that’s what I envy you for sometimes. You have an outsider’s perspective. You only see what’s in front of you and you don’t concern yourself with the rest.”
“I am concerned! I’m really concerned about you right now. You’re my best friend, and I’m sorry if I ever made you feel like my caretaker, but I wanna be here for you now. Please. Let me.”
“I… I know, that’s not what I was saying…” She adjusted her bra strap, her hand coming to rest on her shoulder as though she was hugging herself. “If there was something I’d kept secret from you—nothing bad, just something personal—would you be mad at me?”
“I can’t even imagine being mad at you,” I replied.
"That's good to know," she murmured, finally lifting her head to meet my gaze. "It doesn't change things for now, but it's… good to know."
After that, she fell silent again, and I left not much later. I was setting out for a pretty gloomy rest of the day when Frankie Preston texted me, asking to come hang out at the hotel. I've only stayed at a hotel twice, when Nettie took me on vacation with her. The first time was to Croatia, the other to the south of France. My savior human speaks fluent French.
Anyways, I was glad to follow up on the server's invitation. I won't describe the exact location of the hotel he'd chosen, but it was a fairly nice place. I took Kit Sutton's car there, which definitely gave me a weird feeling. In a way, it was nice. It felt like her. The worn seats, the ancient scent tree, the assortment of guitar picks in the cup holder. The empty takeout bag lying in the footwell. When I pulled up to the hotel parking lot, I was almost reluctant to get out. When I eventually did and entered the lobby, I found that I didn't quite know where to go. I opted to simply walk up to the front desk. There was a man sitting behind it, but he didn't look up from his computer screen upon my approach.
"Mm-yes?" he muttered, and it took me a moment to realize he was addressing me.
"Hi," I began.
Something about my voice must have caught his attention, as he abruptly lifted his head to meet my gaze. "Hi," he echoed, a smile forming on his face. I couldn't help but take note of the silvery gleam of his blond hair. It was long and wavy, tied back behind his head. I wondered how it felt. "And you are…?" he prompted, taking me in.
"Sunshine," a voice rang out from behind me. I whirled around, giving Fran a bright smile which, to my delight, he reciprocated. "You have no idea the kind of acquaintance you just made."
I glanced between the two in confusion. The receptionist spoke up first. "Oh. Oh, I see! This is her, isn't it?"
"Yes. Eva, this is… one of the many banes of my existence. He's my younger brother, but only in the most remote sense of the word, I assure you." The waiter gave the receptionist a look that was somewhere between contemptuous fondness and pure contempt.
The other man grinned. "Oh Frankie, my Frankie, you are just the most bitter piece of work there is."
"Younger? You look far older than Frank," I remarked.
"Ouch. But what are looks, really?" He waved me off. "And what is age with creatures like us? Frankie tells everyone he's twenty-two, I say I'm twenty-seven. We just made up these numbers to match our faces. He's existed for way longer, though. That's probably why he's so miserable." He leaned forward, twinkling at me. "Me, I see the world through fresher eyes."
I didn't quite know what to say, so I kept my mouth shut.
"Frankie, won't you introduce me?"
The waiter sighed deeply. "This is… Zion. Zion Boyd. I told him it's a perfectly silly name, but he wouldn't listen. I'm glad Rhonda picked mine for me."
Zion Boyd laughed quietly. "You're an asshole."
"You're an idiot."
"You wanted to hang out?" I reminded Fran.
"Right!" He grabbed my wrist and began steering me towards the winding flight of stairs in the back of the hall. "Ignore him. Forget him entirely, if possible. You're not missing out.”
He brought me up to his suite, a pleasantly large, open space. The tall windows let in the light of the setting sun, painting blushing hues upon the wallpaper. I sat down on the living room couch, switching on the TV not because I was in the mood to watch anything but rather for the background noise. Frankie joined me after a second, placing before me a glass of cold coconut water as he regarded me through thick lashes. "You got something on your mind, don’t you?”
"Your brother."
"Aw crap. That smarmy, handsome piece of shit…" Fran clenched and unclenched his fists repeatedly. "I knew this would happen."
"What? No. I was wondering about what he said," I clarified, shifting uneasily in my seat.
His hands stilled. "Oh." He smiled brightly. "Do tell."
"He called you creatures. And there was something else in there about your ages."
"So? What do you think? Any grand theories?"
I shrugged. "I could probably try to piece things together. But I'd rather hear it from you."
"Ah, would you. Well, I'm sorry, Sunshine, but it doesn't work like that."
"Don't you think I need to know?"
He reached out to poke my sternum with his finger. "No. I give you everything you need. When I decide you need more information, I'll give that to you, too."
I frowned at him, but hadn't yet regained the ability to speak when my phone rang. I reluctantly fumbled it out. It was an unknown number, but I recognized the voice that greeted me from the other end. “Mary Markov?”
“Miss Shirley! Nice talking to you again.”
“To be honest, this is a bad time…”
“That’s of no relevance. Remember when I told you I might get back to you?”
“Yes.” I exchanged meaningful looks with Frankie, who rolled his eyes. He scooted closer to me and pressed his cheek up to mine to listen to the phone call. His skin was almost unnaturally smooth. I swallowed thickly when I felt his jaw working on his bubble gum, moving against mine.
"Miss Shirley?" Mary Markov asked. "Are you still there?"
"Did you say something?"
A sigh. "Look. You want money, I want your help. Come to the address I’m sending you now. It’s a big parking lot by a hiking trail in the woods. I have business there, and I could use the extra manpower.”
“Right now? I’m kind of on a…”
“You can bring the misanthropist with you.”
“What’s a misanthropist?” I inquired.
“She means me,” Fran supplied.
"She does," Miss Markov confirmed.
"We're coming." I ended the call, turning to Frankie. "That's okay, right? Are you with me?"
"Sure. Money's important. It'll be better if you have your own so I won't have to give you mine." He got up to collect our jackets. "At least this way, you won't get stabbed for it."
We took Kit's car over to the meet-up spot. Mary Markov was waiting for us beside a black pickup truck that seemed rather ill-suited for her. She was wearing a blazer, suit pants and dress shoes that were somehow pristine despite the muddy ground.
"There you are," she said, her tone crisp. Pointing her chin at the woods behind her, she added, "I hope you're ready for a bit of a hike."
"What do you need me for?" I asked.
"The Collective you came into contact with. We have reason to believe that they are meeting up here, among other places. There are probably hideouts to be found, and other things, too."
"Like what?" Fran raised a skeptical brow.
"The objects you were hired to guard. They're important; we don't rightly know what they are but they're constantly being kept on the move. There's no doubt the Collective wants them to remain obscure, and they're being clever about it."
"And you're hoping we'll go in there unprepared and just stumble across them?" the waiter inquired.
"Not exactly. There's a particular member of the cult we've managed to keep our eye on, and we followed her here. She's with at least two others, so we believe they're up to something important," Mary Markov explained. "Go in and find them. When you do, stay low and observe. I'll stay here. If anything goes wrong, call me and I will send for reinforcement."
"Why don't you let your agents go in? Why pull Eva into this? Again?"
"Frankie, I'm fine," I assured him, taking a step towards the newsreader. "What do I get paid?"
"You won't be disappointed in the money," she promised, smiling thinly. "To answer your friend's legitimate question—," she glanced over at Frank Preston as though she didn't consider his query legitimate at all, "—you are quite handy. Normally, when humans have to defend themselves and it comes to an altercation, there's… screams. Blood. Gunshots. Bullets are costly. Personnel even more so. When our agents get hurt, it might take months for them to recover. You don't need that kind of time. You're altogether less likely to be injured fatally. Employing you might end up saving us some lives and we'll be sure to make it worth your while."
That's, in short, why I found myself trudging through the mud and brushes alongside a very grudging Frank Preston that night. The storm had taken its toll in the woods, too—our chaotic surroundings reminded me of a larger-scale version of Nettie's garden. Trees had been uprooted and were lying dead in our path like organic roadblocks. The ground was covered with broken branches, twigs and young leaves. The wet soil squashed beneath our shoes every step of the way. With nightfall approaching, there was not much light reaching the forest floor. This certainly protected us from visibility, but it came at the price of my vision. I couldn't really see what was beneath me, so I kept tripping and staggering.
Frankie was somehow as graceful as ever, unbothered as he stepped over roots and rocks as if he could sense them before placing his feet. He was much quieter than me, but he thankfully wasn't smug about it. He kept one hand steady on my shoulder, aptly guiding me away from obstacles and protrusions. After a while, this began to work very well, and I became less noisy the deeper we proceeded into the woods. The server’s grip suddenly turned painfully tight, stopping me in my tracks. I realized why when I caught a glimpse of brightness not too far ahead. My chest tightened when I spotted the beam of a flashlight traveling the forest floor.
“Hush,” Frankie murmured into my ear. “Don’t. Move.”
I stood stock-still, trusting the fingers still digging into my skin.
The light passed over us, nearly reaching us but not quite. I breathed a silent sigh of relief, which died in my throat when a familiar voice carried over to us on the breeze.
“Hurry up already, would you?”
“Don’t… don’t stress me. Why aren’t you helping?” a young woman replied.
“Because it’s your fucking job.”
I felt myself break into a cold sweat. My heart was thumping so fiercely it was beginning to hurt; my pulse racing. Breaking from my rigor, I leaned over to whisper to Frankie. “That’s them.”
“What?”
“The one who stabbed me.”
Fran’s hand disappeared from my shoulder, moving down to quickly grasp mine. The pair before us was still on the move, the light of their torch slowly fading into the distance. “Listen to me,” my partner proceeded to hiss into my ear. “There’s two of them and two of us, but technically it’ll just be you. I’m not gonna leave you on your own, but the most I can do is hold one of them down.”
“But you’re strong…”
“I can’t actually hurt anybody. I gladly would, but it’s literally physically impossible for me. Do you still want to follow them?”
I paused. I didn’t want to. In fact, every fiber of my being was yelling at me to run, to get out of those woods, and yet… “We have to.”
A sigh. “I really feel like I ought to talk you out of this.”
“Don’t.”
“If things get dire, I’ll grab you and bail.”
“I’ll allow it. I’m still doing this.”
“Guess I was wrong. You might get stabbed for your pay this time around, too.”
“This is bigger than just money, Fran.”
His hand wandered back to my shoulder, nudging me forward. “I know. You want to tear this creep apart.”
I paused. “If Markov asks, we didn’t plan on it.”
“Finally, some murderous tendencies in that sunny mind of yours.” The cheer in Frankie’s voice was only a little forced.
I steeled myself as we took up walking once more. Soon enough, we caught up with the two cultists, trailing behind them at a safe distance. I could hear the faint scraping of a wheelbarrow on the uneven ground. The eerie creaking noise was enough to speed up my heartrate once more. Frankie’s words still echoing through my mind, my thoughts were racing. A part of me was convinced I was making a terrible mistake, but there was something driving me on. Whether it was curiosity, an underlying thirst for revenge or illusions of grandeur, I’ll never know. Yet forwards I went. Abruptly, the pair stopped, the wheelbarrow grating to a halt. Frankie instantly dragged me down to hide behind a dead, uprooted tree, and not one second too soon.
The beam of the flashlight roamed the underbrush, its owners remaining blissfully unaware of our presence. “Here we are,” the person who’d attacked me spoke up again.
“Woah,” the woman pushing the cart answered eloquently. Whatever they were looking at was undoubtedly rather impressive.
“You’ve never been here before, have you?”
“No… Does it go as deep as they say?”
“Deeper. It’s a whole-ass tunnel system down there. We’ve spent years prepping for this, remember?”
“Okay. Whew. Well then, off we go. Can you help me lift him up, at least?”
The other person groaned. “Fine.”
Frankie Preston had grabbed my arm. The distant shine from the cultists’ torch bathed him in an almost unearthly glow. He was cowering beside me with tense shoulders, his face a cold, concentrated mask. He wasn’t even chewing on his gum anymore. His wired posture reminded me of a lurking wildcat in a nature documentary. When he turned to look at me, I could almost tell what he was thinking.
Whatever these two had come here to do, it was happening now, meaning that this was our last chance to intervene.
Trying to free my mind from all thoughts of flight, I rose to my feet. Step by step, I made my way out of our hiding spot, instantly drawing the pair’s attention. Two heads whipped around to face me. The flashlight dropped and rolled a little ways across the ground, its wide beam illuminating the small clearing and revealing the reason for the cultists’ venture. There was a dark hole in the ground at our feet, the opening reminiscent of a gaping, toothless maw. My gaze wandered over to the pushcart. Its bulky contents were covered by a large, green tarp. The tall, lanky person slowly raised their hands to their hips, uttering a low, mildly surprised “huh”. The woman, who was stockier and far shorter in stature than them, stood frozen in shock. The eyes that stared at me from behind her black mask were blown wide.
“Hey you,” the tall one said. “I had a feeling we’d meet again soon.”
I didn’t respond. My stomach suddenly burned with a phantom pain. I couldn’t tear my eyes from the person’s gloved hands, trying not to jump when their fingers twitched into the direction of their pocket. Trying to keep my breathing steady, I reached up to unzip my jacket. As it fell to the ground, I felt my tentacles pierce my skin. Simultaneously, my teeth began to elongate, curving outward as they uncomfortably stretched out my gums.
“I had a feeling something like this was gonna happen, too,” my former assailant added, tilting their head at me. “I do love being right.”
The woman, who had been stunned speechless up to that point, let out an ear-shattering scream, but before anything coherent could emerge from her throat, the other person had spun around and struck her square across the face. The blow had come with such force that she crumbled immediately, her shriek dying in a strangled whimper before she hit the ground unconscious. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. My mind was spinning, but I forced my eyes to remain hard, praying that my large fangs were twisting my face enough to veil my terror. I lifted myself over the fallen tree, partly employing my extra limbs. The cultist didn’t shrink away, instead taking a large step towards me. Before I knew it, the surface of their mask was scraping against my teeth. Too startled to move, I held their gaze for several seconds. Up close, I could see the only part of them that wasn’t obscured.
There was something very, very wrong with their eyes.
At first, I couldn’t put my finger on it. Their iris was of a pale, watery color that could not quite be defined as blue. Their surreal milky sheen was enough to send a chill up my spine. And then I realized it. There were only the irises. That black dot that all humans and most other known lifeforms typically have in their eyes, the pupil, it simply wasn’t there.
I stood rooted to the ground, staring into the stranger’s eyes. I thought I could see different colors swirling around in those not-quite-blue orbs. I was abruptly noticing a sudden inability to move on my part. I wanted to lift my arm and shove the cultist away, I wanted to unhinge my jaw and sink my teeth into their flesh, but I couldn’t. I was distantly aware of the heavy rising and falling of my chest, of my heart thundering in my ribcage, but it didn’t feel real somehow. Nothing felt real anymore. The world had turned iridescently turquoise and violent, flashing lights dotting my vision as my breathing grew quicker.
Somewhere in the back of my head, the last waking part of me was screaming.
And then, all of a sudden, everything turned dark again. I blinked furiously, trying to orient myself as the outlines of trees and bushes swam into focus again. The sweet smell of pine needles and damp soil hit me as I emerged from the hypnotic half-slumber. Before me, ramrod straight, stood Frankie Preston, and somehow, the sight of him had triggered the flight instinct in the cultist I had failed to provoke. Our eye contact broken, they staggered back, just as Fran stepped aside. This time, I didn’t throw away my shot. I threw myself at the stranger, lunging forward with my teeth bared. They dodged me by a hair’s breadth, bolting towards the manhole and, within a split second, they had disappeared down the pitch-black shaft. No sound of impact met our pricked ears.
Frankie wordlessly took out his phone, proceeding to place the call to Mary Markov. He walked over to me as they talked, grabbing my hand with his free one and pumping it almost rhythmically like he was trying an unconventional method of resuscitation. His voice and that of the newsreader on the other end sounded strangely far away. After hanging up, he hastily typed something before finally shoving the device back into his pocket. With an almost methodical precision, he wrapped his arms around me and picked me up, holding me close to his chest. My tentacles were hanging limply from my back as my teeth slowly began to reassume their normal size and length. Entangling my trembling fingers in his curls, I must have looked absolutely pitiful. The server sat down on the fallen tree, his grip on me unfaltering as I adjusted to sit on his lap, feeling myself unwind.
We remained like this, not speaking, until we heard steps draw closer. Mary Markov and two of her agents were walking towards us at a speedy pace, the newsreader crouching down in front of us while the two men immediately took to the unconscious female cultist.
“You were in here for quite a while,” she began, her voice drifting in and out of my ears while Frankie’s soothing touch curled around the edge of my senses. “I had a feeling something had gone wrong, so I’d already sent for backup. Good thing, too, I guess.” Her voice held a barely hidden note of accusation.
“Leave her be. She’s obviously in no condition to speak,” the waiter growled.
I would have confirmed this, but I was in no condition to speak.
Mary sighed. “Nevermind then, we’ll discuss this later. For now, let’s check what they were transporting.”
I patted Fran on the back to alert him.
“Feeling curious? Even after all of this?”
I nodded into his nape.
A grunt. “Well, fine. Not like this could have gone any worse, huh.” He stood up and walked us over to the wheelbarrow, closely followed by Mary. The newsreader inspected the tarp, then grabbed one corner and flung it off the cart. A sharp gasp escaped her and I craned my neck to look. Frankie instantly turned around, trying to avert my eyes from the sight that had just been revealed to us, but it was too late. I had already seen the contents. The headless body lying folded in the barrow.
A human with their head removed doesn't look entirely human anymore. I could tell from the stature that it was a male body, but its condition made him feel less like a person. I couldn't help drawing this distinction, even though it made my stomach turn. Rigor mortis having washed over the carcass, he was in a bent, twisted position that would have been painful to anyone still alive. One of his arms, freed from the tarp, was dangling loosely over the side of the cart. One of Mary’s agents gagged and covered his mouth. I shot him a sympathetic glance, though I don’t think he caught it. I was too tired to scream or throw up. Thus quenching any visceral reaction to the gruesome sight, I buried my face in Fran’s shirt once more, closing my eyes.
X
1
2: deadbeat roommate
3: creepy crush
4: relocation
5: beach concert
6: First date
7: Temp work
8: roommate talk
9: a dismal worldview
10: warehouse
11: staircase
12: explanation
13: hurt
14: hospital
15: ocean
16: diner
submitted by girl_from_the_crypt to nosleep [link] [comments]
It's quite simple; when Nettie's unhappy, I cannot be content. She finally let me visit her earlier today. That doesn’t mean her overall state has improved, though. We went to talk in the garden, only there wasn’t much talking involved—she merely sat in her mother’s chair, staring blankly at the storm-tossed flower chaos.
“Didn’t you want to fix your plants back up?” I inquired.
“M-hm,” she muttered.
“It’d be a shame if your pretty garden was gonna stay like this.”
“M-hm.”
“If you need help, you let me know, okay?”
“M-hm.”
“I won’t try to eat the geraniums again.”
“M-hm.”
I leaned forward to try and catch her deep brown gaze. “Nettie, please say something. I thought we wanted to share our feelings more.”
“There’s nothing to share,” my savior human answered, her voice dry and monotone. “Kit’s not here anymore.”
“Yes, and I’m upset, too. But either I’m a horribly poor judge of human behavior or there's more to this.” I tilted my head at her. “I’ve never seen you this way. You said you didn’t always want a solution to your problems, and I’d be happy to just sit and listen as well, but you’re not talking either.”
“You don’t get it, do you?”
“Clearly not.”
Nettie let go of a soft breath. “I didn’t wanna tell you. Not until… It’s just that in the last couple days, Kit and I were getting kind of…” She faltered and trailed off.
“Kind of what?” I prompted.
“It’s hard to explain.”
“Please try, if you can. I want to understand.”
My best friend refused to meet my gaze. “See, that’s what I envy you for sometimes. You have an outsider’s perspective. You only see what’s in front of you and you don’t concern yourself with the rest.”
“I am concerned! I’m really concerned about you right now. You’re my best friend, and I’m sorry if I ever made you feel like my caretaker, but I wanna be here for you now. Please. Let me.”
“I… I know, that’s not what I was saying…” She adjusted her bra strap, her hand coming to rest on her shoulder as though she was hugging herself. “If there was something I’d kept secret from you—nothing bad, just something personal—would you be mad at me?”
“I can’t even imagine being mad at you,” I replied.
"That's good to know," she murmured, finally lifting her head to meet my gaze. "It doesn't change things for now, but it's… good to know."
After that, she fell silent again, and I left not much later. I was setting out for a pretty gloomy rest of the day when Frankie Preston texted me, asking to come hang out at the hotel. I've only stayed at a hotel twice, when Nettie took me on vacation with her. The first time was to Croatia, the other to the south of France. My savior human speaks fluent French.
Anyways, I was glad to follow up on the server's invitation. I won't describe the exact location of the hotel he'd chosen, but it was a fairly nice place. I took Kit Sutton's car there, which definitely gave me a weird feeling. In a way, it was nice. It felt like her. The worn seats, the ancient scent tree, the assortment of guitar picks in the cup holder. The empty takeout bag lying in the footwell. When I pulled up to the hotel parking lot, I was almost reluctant to get out. When I eventually did and entered the lobby, I found that I didn't quite know where to go. I opted to simply walk up to the front desk. There was a man sitting behind it, but he didn't look up from his computer screen upon my approach.
"Mm-yes?" he muttered, and it took me a moment to realize he was addressing me.
"Hi," I began.
Something about my voice must have caught his attention, as he abruptly lifted his head to meet my gaze. "Hi," he echoed, a smile forming on his face. I couldn't help but take note of the silvery gleam of his blond hair. It was long and wavy, tied back behind his head. I wondered how it felt. "And you are…?" he prompted, taking me in.
"Sunshine," a voice rang out from behind me. I whirled around, giving Fran a bright smile which, to my delight, he reciprocated. "You have no idea the kind of acquaintance you just made."
I glanced between the two in confusion. The receptionist spoke up first. "Oh. Oh, I see! This is her, isn't it?"
"Yes. Eva, this is… one of the many banes of my existence. He's my younger brother, but only in the most remote sense of the word, I assure you." The waiter gave the receptionist a look that was somewhere between contemptuous fondness and pure contempt.
The other man grinned. "Oh Frankie, my Frankie, you are just the most bitter piece of work there is."
"Younger? You look far older than Frank," I remarked.
"Ouch. But what are looks, really?" He waved me off. "And what is age with creatures like us? Frankie tells everyone he's twenty-two, I say I'm twenty-seven. We just made up these numbers to match our faces. He's existed for way longer, though. That's probably why he's so miserable." He leaned forward, twinkling at me. "Me, I see the world through fresher eyes."
I didn't quite know what to say, so I kept my mouth shut.
"Frankie, won't you introduce me?"
The waiter sighed deeply. "This is… Zion. Zion Boyd. I told him it's a perfectly silly name, but he wouldn't listen. I'm glad Rhonda picked mine for me."
Zion Boyd laughed quietly. "You're an asshole."
"You're an idiot."
"You wanted to hang out?" I reminded Fran.
"Right!" He grabbed my wrist and began steering me towards the winding flight of stairs in the back of the hall. "Ignore him. Forget him entirely, if possible. You're not missing out.”
He brought me up to his suite, a pleasantly large, open space. The tall windows let in the light of the setting sun, painting blushing hues upon the wallpaper. I sat down on the living room couch, switching on the TV not because I was in the mood to watch anything but rather for the background noise. Frankie joined me after a second, placing before me a glass of cold coconut water as he regarded me through thick lashes. "You got something on your mind, don’t you?”
"Your brother."
"Aw crap. That smarmy, handsome piece of shit…" Fran clenched and unclenched his fists repeatedly. "I knew this would happen."
"What? No. I was wondering about what he said," I clarified, shifting uneasily in my seat.
His hands stilled. "Oh." He smiled brightly. "Do tell."
"He called you creatures. And there was something else in there about your ages."
"So? What do you think? Any grand theories?"
I shrugged. "I could probably try to piece things together. But I'd rather hear it from you."
"Ah, would you. Well, I'm sorry, Sunshine, but it doesn't work like that."
"Don't you think I need to know?"
He reached out to poke my sternum with his finger. "No. I give you everything you need. When I decide you need more information, I'll give that to you, too."
I frowned at him, but hadn't yet regained the ability to speak when my phone rang. I reluctantly fumbled it out. It was an unknown number, but I recognized the voice that greeted me from the other end. “Mary Markov?”
“Miss Shirley! Nice talking to you again.”
“To be honest, this is a bad time…”
“That’s of no relevance. Remember when I told you I might get back to you?”
“Yes.” I exchanged meaningful looks with Frankie, who rolled his eyes. He scooted closer to me and pressed his cheek up to mine to listen to the phone call. His skin was almost unnaturally smooth. I swallowed thickly when I felt his jaw working on his bubble gum, moving against mine.
"Miss Shirley?" Mary Markov asked. "Are you still there?"
"Did you say something?"
A sigh. "Look. You want money, I want your help. Come to the address I’m sending you now. It’s a big parking lot by a hiking trail in the woods. I have business there, and I could use the extra manpower.”
“Right now? I’m kind of on a…”
“You can bring the misanthropist with you.”
“What’s a misanthropist?” I inquired.
“She means me,” Fran supplied.
"She does," Miss Markov confirmed.
"We're coming." I ended the call, turning to Frankie. "That's okay, right? Are you with me?"
"Sure. Money's important. It'll be better if you have your own so I won't have to give you mine." He got up to collect our jackets. "At least this way, you won't get stabbed for it."
We took Kit's car over to the meet-up spot. Mary Markov was waiting for us beside a black pickup truck that seemed rather ill-suited for her. She was wearing a blazer, suit pants and dress shoes that were somehow pristine despite the muddy ground.
"There you are," she said, her tone crisp. Pointing her chin at the woods behind her, she added, "I hope you're ready for a bit of a hike."
"What do you need me for?" I asked.
"The Collective you came into contact with. We have reason to believe that they are meeting up here, among other places. There are probably hideouts to be found, and other things, too."
"Like what?" Fran raised a skeptical brow.
"The objects you were hired to guard. They're important; we don't rightly know what they are but they're constantly being kept on the move. There's no doubt the Collective wants them to remain obscure, and they're being clever about it."
"And you're hoping we'll go in there unprepared and just stumble across them?" the waiter inquired.
"Not exactly. There's a particular member of the cult we've managed to keep our eye on, and we followed her here. She's with at least two others, so we believe they're up to something important," Mary Markov explained. "Go in and find them. When you do, stay low and observe. I'll stay here. If anything goes wrong, call me and I will send for reinforcement."
"Why don't you let your agents go in? Why pull Eva into this? Again?"
"Frankie, I'm fine," I assured him, taking a step towards the newsreader. "What do I get paid?"
"You won't be disappointed in the money," she promised, smiling thinly. "To answer your friend's legitimate question—," she glanced over at Frank Preston as though she didn't consider his query legitimate at all, "—you are quite handy. Normally, when humans have to defend themselves and it comes to an altercation, there's… screams. Blood. Gunshots. Bullets are costly. Personnel even more so. When our agents get hurt, it might take months for them to recover. You don't need that kind of time. You're altogether less likely to be injured fatally. Employing you might end up saving us some lives and we'll be sure to make it worth your while."
That's, in short, why I found myself trudging through the mud and brushes alongside a very grudging Frank Preston that night. The storm had taken its toll in the woods, too—our chaotic surroundings reminded me of a larger-scale version of Nettie's garden. Trees had been uprooted and were lying dead in our path like organic roadblocks. The ground was covered with broken branches, twigs and young leaves. The wet soil squashed beneath our shoes every step of the way. With nightfall approaching, there was not much light reaching the forest floor. This certainly protected us from visibility, but it came at the price of my vision. I couldn't really see what was beneath me, so I kept tripping and staggering.
Frankie was somehow as graceful as ever, unbothered as he stepped over roots and rocks as if he could sense them before placing his feet. He was much quieter than me, but he thankfully wasn't smug about it. He kept one hand steady on my shoulder, aptly guiding me away from obstacles and protrusions. After a while, this began to work very well, and I became less noisy the deeper we proceeded into the woods. The server’s grip suddenly turned painfully tight, stopping me in my tracks. I realized why when I caught a glimpse of brightness not too far ahead. My chest tightened when I spotted the beam of a flashlight traveling the forest floor.
“Hush,” Frankie murmured into my ear. “Don’t. Move.”
I stood stock-still, trusting the fingers still digging into my skin.
The light passed over us, nearly reaching us but not quite. I breathed a silent sigh of relief, which died in my throat when a familiar voice carried over to us on the breeze.
“Hurry up already, would you?”
“Don’t… don’t stress me. Why aren’t you helping?” a young woman replied.
“Because it’s your fucking job.”
I felt myself break into a cold sweat. My heart was thumping so fiercely it was beginning to hurt; my pulse racing. Breaking from my rigor, I leaned over to whisper to Frankie. “That’s them.”
“What?”
“The one who stabbed me.”
Fran’s hand disappeared from my shoulder, moving down to quickly grasp mine. The pair before us was still on the move, the light of their torch slowly fading into the distance. “Listen to me,” my partner proceeded to hiss into my ear. “There’s two of them and two of us, but technically it’ll just be you. I’m not gonna leave you on your own, but the most I can do is hold one of them down.”
“But you’re strong…”
“I can’t actually hurt anybody. I gladly would, but it’s literally physically impossible for me. Do you still want to follow them?”
I paused. I didn’t want to. In fact, every fiber of my being was yelling at me to run, to get out of those woods, and yet… “We have to.”
A sigh. “I really feel like I ought to talk you out of this.”
“Don’t.”
“If things get dire, I’ll grab you and bail.”
“I’ll allow it. I’m still doing this.”
“Guess I was wrong. You might get stabbed for your pay this time around, too.”
“This is bigger than just money, Fran.”
His hand wandered back to my shoulder, nudging me forward. “I know. You want to tear this creep apart.”
I paused. “If Markov asks, we didn’t plan on it.”
“Finally, some murderous tendencies in that sunny mind of yours.” The cheer in Frankie’s voice was only a little forced.
I steeled myself as we took up walking once more. Soon enough, we caught up with the two cultists, trailing behind them at a safe distance. I could hear the faint scraping of a wheelbarrow on the uneven ground. The eerie creaking noise was enough to speed up my heartrate once more. Frankie’s words still echoing through my mind, my thoughts were racing. A part of me was convinced I was making a terrible mistake, but there was something driving me on. Whether it was curiosity, an underlying thirst for revenge or illusions of grandeur, I’ll never know. Yet forwards I went. Abruptly, the pair stopped, the wheelbarrow grating to a halt. Frankie instantly dragged me down to hide behind a dead, uprooted tree, and not one second too soon.
The beam of the flashlight roamed the underbrush, its owners remaining blissfully unaware of our presence. “Here we are,” the person who’d attacked me spoke up again.
“Woah,” the woman pushing the cart answered eloquently. Whatever they were looking at was undoubtedly rather impressive.
“You’ve never been here before, have you?”
“No… Does it go as deep as they say?”
“Deeper. It’s a whole-ass tunnel system down there. We’ve spent years prepping for this, remember?”
“Okay. Whew. Well then, off we go. Can you help me lift him up, at least?”
The other person groaned. “Fine.”
Frankie Preston had grabbed my arm. The distant shine from the cultists’ torch bathed him in an almost unearthly glow. He was cowering beside me with tense shoulders, his face a cold, concentrated mask. He wasn’t even chewing on his gum anymore. His wired posture reminded me of a lurking wildcat in a nature documentary. When he turned to look at me, I could almost tell what he was thinking.
Whatever these two had come here to do, it was happening now, meaning that this was our last chance to intervene.
Trying to free my mind from all thoughts of flight, I rose to my feet. Step by step, I made my way out of our hiding spot, instantly drawing the pair’s attention. Two heads whipped around to face me. The flashlight dropped and rolled a little ways across the ground, its wide beam illuminating the small clearing and revealing the reason for the cultists’ venture. There was a dark hole in the ground at our feet, the opening reminiscent of a gaping, toothless maw. My gaze wandered over to the pushcart. Its bulky contents were covered by a large, green tarp. The tall, lanky person slowly raised their hands to their hips, uttering a low, mildly surprised “huh”. The woman, who was stockier and far shorter in stature than them, stood frozen in shock. The eyes that stared at me from behind her black mask were blown wide.
“Hey you,” the tall one said. “I had a feeling we’d meet again soon.”
I didn’t respond. My stomach suddenly burned with a phantom pain. I couldn’t tear my eyes from the person’s gloved hands, trying not to jump when their fingers twitched into the direction of their pocket. Trying to keep my breathing steady, I reached up to unzip my jacket. As it fell to the ground, I felt my tentacles pierce my skin. Simultaneously, my teeth began to elongate, curving outward as they uncomfortably stretched out my gums.
“I had a feeling something like this was gonna happen, too,” my former assailant added, tilting their head at me. “I do love being right.”
The woman, who had been stunned speechless up to that point, let out an ear-shattering scream, but before anything coherent could emerge from her throat, the other person had spun around and struck her square across the face. The blow had come with such force that she crumbled immediately, her shriek dying in a strangled whimper before she hit the ground unconscious. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. My mind was spinning, but I forced my eyes to remain hard, praying that my large fangs were twisting my face enough to veil my terror. I lifted myself over the fallen tree, partly employing my extra limbs. The cultist didn’t shrink away, instead taking a large step towards me. Before I knew it, the surface of their mask was scraping against my teeth. Too startled to move, I held their gaze for several seconds. Up close, I could see the only part of them that wasn’t obscured.
There was something very, very wrong with their eyes.
At first, I couldn’t put my finger on it. Their iris was of a pale, watery color that could not quite be defined as blue. Their surreal milky sheen was enough to send a chill up my spine. And then I realized it. There were only the irises. That black dot that all humans and most other known lifeforms typically have in their eyes, the pupil, it simply wasn’t there.
I stood rooted to the ground, staring into the stranger’s eyes. I thought I could see different colors swirling around in those not-quite-blue orbs. I was abruptly noticing a sudden inability to move on my part. I wanted to lift my arm and shove the cultist away, I wanted to unhinge my jaw and sink my teeth into their flesh, but I couldn’t. I was distantly aware of the heavy rising and falling of my chest, of my heart thundering in my ribcage, but it didn’t feel real somehow. Nothing felt real anymore. The world had turned iridescently turquoise and violent, flashing lights dotting my vision as my breathing grew quicker.
Somewhere in the back of my head, the last waking part of me was screaming.
And then, all of a sudden, everything turned dark again. I blinked furiously, trying to orient myself as the outlines of trees and bushes swam into focus again. The sweet smell of pine needles and damp soil hit me as I emerged from the hypnotic half-slumber. Before me, ramrod straight, stood Frankie Preston, and somehow, the sight of him had triggered the flight instinct in the cultist I had failed to provoke. Our eye contact broken, they staggered back, just as Fran stepped aside. This time, I didn’t throw away my shot. I threw myself at the stranger, lunging forward with my teeth bared. They dodged me by a hair’s breadth, bolting towards the manhole and, within a split second, they had disappeared down the pitch-black shaft. No sound of impact met our pricked ears.
Frankie wordlessly took out his phone, proceeding to place the call to Mary Markov. He walked over to me as they talked, grabbing my hand with his free one and pumping it almost rhythmically like he was trying an unconventional method of resuscitation. His voice and that of the newsreader on the other end sounded strangely far away. After hanging up, he hastily typed something before finally shoving the device back into his pocket. With an almost methodical precision, he wrapped his arms around me and picked me up, holding me close to his chest. My tentacles were hanging limply from my back as my teeth slowly began to reassume their normal size and length. Entangling my trembling fingers in his curls, I must have looked absolutely pitiful. The server sat down on the fallen tree, his grip on me unfaltering as I adjusted to sit on his lap, feeling myself unwind.
We remained like this, not speaking, until we heard steps draw closer. Mary Markov and two of her agents were walking towards us at a speedy pace, the newsreader crouching down in front of us while the two men immediately took to the unconscious female cultist.
“You were in here for quite a while,” she began, her voice drifting in and out of my ears while Frankie’s soothing touch curled around the edge of my senses. “I had a feeling something had gone wrong, so I’d already sent for backup. Good thing, too, I guess.” Her voice held a barely hidden note of accusation.
“Leave her be. She’s obviously in no condition to speak,” the waiter growled.
I would have confirmed this, but I was in no condition to speak.
Mary sighed. “Nevermind then, we’ll discuss this later. For now, let’s check what they were transporting.”
I patted Fran on the back to alert him.
“Feeling curious? Even after all of this?”
I nodded into his nape.
A grunt. “Well, fine. Not like this could have gone any worse, huh.” He stood up and walked us over to the wheelbarrow, closely followed by Mary. The newsreader inspected the tarp, then grabbed one corner and flung it off the cart. A sharp gasp escaped her and I craned my neck to look. Frankie instantly turned around, trying to avert my eyes from the sight that had just been revealed to us, but it was too late. I had already seen the contents. The headless body lying folded in the barrow.
A human with their head removed doesn't look entirely human anymore. I could tell from the stature that it was a male body, but its condition made him feel less like a person. I couldn't help drawing this distinction, even though it made my stomach turn. Rigor mortis having washed over the carcass, he was in a bent, twisted position that would have been painful to anyone still alive. One of his arms, freed from the tarp, was dangling loosely over the side of the cart. One of Mary’s agents gagged and covered his mouth. I shot him a sympathetic glance, though I don’t think he caught it. I was too tired to scream or throw up. Thus quenching any visceral reaction to the gruesome sight, I buried my face in Fran’s shirt once more, closing my eyes.
X
1
2: deadbeat roommate
3: creepy crush
4: relocation
5: beach concert
6: First date
7: Temp work
8: roommate talk
9: a dismal worldview
10: warehouse
11: staircase
12: explanation
13: hurt
14: hospital
15: ocean
16: diner
2023.05.28 16:02 idkwhou1234 is it haram to cut off contact with a mother?
I am curious whether cutting contact with a mother is haram. This isn’t about me but however it involves my family which is my sister and my mother.
5 months ago , my sister has left us and moved out from our place without informing my mother. She left as she felt she couldn’t take it anymore and she also left as she wanted to get married without the approval from my mom. However, i felt that she was not being fair? ( im unsure of how to describe it)
Back then, my mother was mentally unstable as she is a single mother and was the only breadwinner of the family therefore our household was becoming toxic. It was more on my mom lash out on my sister. However, as we grew older I could see the character development in her. Her screaming unnecessarily reduced, her lashing out became lesser and lesser. I felt that compared to back then , she is improving much better now. I can see she is trying to be the best mom currently. She’s aware of the past and deeply regretted it as she told us before.
However, this wasn’t the case for my sister. She felt that she couldn’t move on and still hold grudges against my mother despite my mom trying to be better. Yet she went to her useless father who barely helped us when we were unstable and barely cared for my sister. ( he didn’t even gave child support money to her) She cut off contact with my mother , during ramadhan she didn’t even initiate breakfast with us, during eid she didnt ask forgiveness for my mom.
And futhermore the sacrifices my mom made to raise her up such as hiring a lawyer just to get her from her useless father side AT THE AGE OF 19 , working day and night to support her education just she could get her diploma. I feel is unfair for my sister to abruptly leave my mom and not contact her at all. Im not trying to side my mom neither or my sister but hearing from my sister saying that people that cut contact from their parents is not haram made me felt angry. What are your views on this? I apologise for any mistake i made.
submitted by idkwhou1234 to islam [link] [comments]
5 months ago , my sister has left us and moved out from our place without informing my mother. She left as she felt she couldn’t take it anymore and she also left as she wanted to get married without the approval from my mom. However, i felt that she was not being fair? ( im unsure of how to describe it)
Back then, my mother was mentally unstable as she is a single mother and was the only breadwinner of the family therefore our household was becoming toxic. It was more on my mom lash out on my sister. However, as we grew older I could see the character development in her. Her screaming unnecessarily reduced, her lashing out became lesser and lesser. I felt that compared to back then , she is improving much better now. I can see she is trying to be the best mom currently. She’s aware of the past and deeply regretted it as she told us before.
However, this wasn’t the case for my sister. She felt that she couldn’t move on and still hold grudges against my mother despite my mom trying to be better. Yet she went to her useless father who barely helped us when we were unstable and barely cared for my sister. ( he didn’t even gave child support money to her) She cut off contact with my mother , during ramadhan she didn’t even initiate breakfast with us, during eid she didnt ask forgiveness for my mom.
And futhermore the sacrifices my mom made to raise her up such as hiring a lawyer just to get her from her useless father side AT THE AGE OF 19 , working day and night to support her education just she could get her diploma. I feel is unfair for my sister to abruptly leave my mom and not contact her at all. Im not trying to side my mom neither or my sister but hearing from my sister saying that people that cut contact from their parents is not haram made me felt angry. What are your views on this? I apologise for any mistake i made.
2023.05.28 15:28 CabbagePreacher Chapter XV – Ye who art armed.
Link to chapter on RoyalRoad
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Brown, Ayomide and Hakim were currently busy in the forest outside of Azdavay, looking for wood that could be converted into weaponry.
“Captain! I have great news!” The one shouting with great excitement was Hakim, who was holding a bundle of plants which looked very similar to the cattails that Brown had seen back in the wetlands of America. He also carried a couple of chestnuts in his pockets.
📷
A chef like Hakim could separate the rest of the forest from the trees. He had just stumbled upon a small lake formed from the constant rain, where these cattail-like plants had grown.
“Is that food that’s not slime?” Ayomide was the one who was intrigued the greatest by the introduction of these new plants.
“Yes, it is. These are ‘shepherd reeds’, that’s what they were called in my hometown.” Hakim peeled the rind off of two of the plants and handed them over to Brown and Ayomide. “Try them out, you can eat them raw.” He then peeled himself a shepherd reed to eat with the others. The white core of the plant tasted similar to asparagus. Eating it raw definitely wasn’t the tastiest thing, but it tasted like the clouds of Heaven to Ayomide who had only consumed slime for almost an entire season.
“And we can… Actually, I’ll leave what I can do with the rest as a surprise for later.” Hakim looked full of excitement as he examined the reeds he had harvested. “These are the best during late spring, we arrived at the perfect time.” He’d definitely be back in the forest for another harvest.
“Actually, couldn’t we just use these plants as straw?” said Ayomide upon examining the reeds. "Get rid of the heads, and we can easily lie on them I’d think."
“I reckon. The straw from these plants were also made into hats and other stuff back in my hometown. I don’t know how they did it, I was young when I got separated.” Hakim secured his bundle of shepherd reeds with his hands, and looked at Brown and Ayomide. “So, you found good sticks?”
Brown nodded. “I think these should be enough. Let’s go back then.” He and Ayomide were carrying a bundle of wood in their hands. Brown was also carrying, in his pockets and a knapsack that had been taken from Jacob, small stones he had found along the road. “Ayomide?”
“R-Right. Let’s go.” Ayomide turned back to face the path to the cave, and the others followed.
📷
📷
While Brown and co were busy with reeds and wood, Shinasi and Tater were exploring the mountain path.
Captain Brown and Shinasi had only headed the path between Curry toward Azdavay, he hadn’t had the chance to go up the Curry path it to see what lay there. So, they had decided that they’d first survey their immediate area first, before beginning their journey to survey the faraway plantations.
The mountains were largely peaceful, like any area near human habitation. The residents of Azdavay had long cleared anything scary like dragons or wyverns. All that was left were man-bears, man-wolves (not to be confused with werewolves) and generic slimes, who Shinasi could take on his own with his spear and pavise. Young Tater only had a combat knife to his name, he hoped that he would soon get a new weapon for himself when the team back at the cave got to crafting them.
“’Tis cold, isn’t it, mister?” Tater, and the rest of the former slaves, only had rags to their name. Thankfully, Brown had let Tater borrow his coat for this expedition.
“Mm. Totally… Yeah.” Shinasi seemed to be more focused on staring at the sky and contemplating idly, which was unusual for a former adventurer like him.
Thinking was not for adventurers, or so thought Tater who had only heard of adventurers through random tidbits. “What got you think so hard?”
“It’s adult business, my boy.”
“Adult business?” Tater quickly went through his mental list of what constituted as ‘adult business’. “Booze?”
“No- I mean, yeah… lack of drink is a problem. Right now, it’s not that.” Shinasi hadn’t had anything to drink since he had escaped Azdavay.
“Uhm… crippling debt?”
“That was a problem. However, I have the slightest hunch that the debt collectors might not want to visit a cave full of fugitive slaves.”
“Then… love?” This was his last. Tater had exhausted his list of ‘adult business’ that didn’t involve his juvenile ideas about acts of interhuman copulation.
Shinasi instinctively turned his head away from Tater to avoid his gaze. “Y-yeah, it’s totally not that either. Nuh-uh.”
Shinasi’s love life had caught the interest of Tater. Such topics seemed like they were of utmost importance for a young boy like him. “Mister, who’s the special one?” He poked Shinasi mischievously, hoping to drag out an answer.
“Oh, shut up.” Shinasi continued avoiding the relentless psychological attacks from Tater as the duo marched on the road. They hadn’t seen anything interesting, until they came upon a small village, actually a large estate housing an open mining field, in the mountains.
“I think this is one of the copper mining villages.” commented Shinasi. “Plenty of copper up in these mountains.” The Curry Mountain was famous in Gemeinplatz for its bountiful veins of copper, and the towns in Casamonu were famous for manufacturing goods from this copper.
“So, this where they got the stuff they make our pots out of.” Tater’s eyes were fixed on a line of slaves carrying pickaxes who were coming out of a wooden shack next to the mine. They were flanked by two overseers holding whips and carrying swords.
It wasn’t a plantation, but these mines did fill the critical criteria of ‘having lots of slaves’ “We found the kind of thing the old man’s looking for.”
“Think we did. Let’s give them a greeting, shall we?”
“Right.” Shinasi and Tater kept marching on, until they were in range to speak with the overseers. “Top of the morning to you, gentlemen.”
📷
The trio of Brown, Ayomide and Hakim had returned back to the cave. They quickly got to work, each of them holding a kitchen knife (courtesy of the late Jacob) and the items that they had foraged.
Brown and Ayomide were doing their best to carve shafts out of the sticks, which was a painful process as they both weren’t experienced with carving of any kind. Meanwhile, Hakim was preparing the shepherd reeds for culinary use by peeling the rinds and cutting them off from the strawy bits. He wasn’t doing this just to make food; the straw would be useful as rope for the makeshift weaponry.
After an hour or two, Brown and Ayomide had constructed shafts of acceptable quality. Now came the experimental part. Brown had been carrying large stones he had foraged during their travels. Both of them also had cut small pieces of wood, around ten inches (30 cm) long, to use as a hammer for shaping the stones.
This wasn’t an exact science; this was just what the people in the cave had come up with after a long brainstorming session.
They spent some time, knapping the stones, trying to find out which were hard and which were soft. Eventually, after another ten minutes of experimentation, Brown and Ayomide had a good idea as to the characteristics of the stones they had. Then they began knapping the stones, slowly carving a vaguely spear-like shape. After enough knapping, they used the small wood hammers to carve smaller, more intricate chips off the stone. To finish it all off, they scraped these spearheads to the floors of the cave to polish them the best as they could.
Now the only thing left was to put up the finishing touches. They took the straw that Hakim had prepared in the meanwhile, and they attempted to use the straw to bind the spearheads with the wooden shaft. The first one to do this successfully was Ayomide, who now had a complete spear. Then followed Brown in success, who happily looked upon the fruits of their labor.
Today, on the 74th of Spring 5859, John Brown and Ayomide entered the Stone Age.
“You know, I bet I can make an axe or something with this.” Ayomide seemed to be enjoying knapping. She put her newly spear aside to tinker with stone.
Brown, who was now a couple days off of being exactly sixty years old at this point, couldn’t stand long sessions of sitting down and working. He stood up, to take a break, and to observe what Hakim was up to.
Hakim had been occupied with further processing the shepherd reeds. His job hadn’t been done when he had peeled the rinds off the cores, he intended to use every part of the plant. He was grinding the starchy roots of the plant with a large rock, which produced flour. This grinding process was largely done by the time Brown had come to the scene.
“Ah, captain. Could you hand me one of your spears?”
Brown didn’t know why Hakim needed a spear for cooking, but he obliged and handed the man one of the newly crafted spears. Hakim proceeded to dump the flour he had made into a pot filled with a thin layer of slime and plants unknown to Brown. To Brown’s surprise, Hakim began violently beating the mixture in the pot with the shaft of the spear. The mixture eventually coalesced into a solid lump with a consistency similar to soft rice cake.
“Sorry for dirtying your shaft, captain.” Hakim gave back the slime-stained shaft to Brown. “These ‘spear cakes’ could be useful as provisions. They won’t rot easily, and their taste is better than pure slime slop.” He picked a lump for himself, and handed Brown another.
“Thank our Heavenly Father for providing us with this meal.” Brown obliged by biting a lump out of this strange spear cake. “Mmm… They have quite the minty taste.”
“It’s just a bit of this-and-that from the forest to get that mint taste. Even troops on the march could cook this without extra effort, I reckon. Living off the land, and all that.”
Ayomide was about to request some of the spear cake, before she was rudely interrupted by Shinasi and Tater entering the cave. “Captain, we have some good news.”
“Welcome back, young men. What’d your good news be?” Brown was ready for some good news, being stuck on a mountain did that to a man.
“You see, Tater and I found a copper mining village up on the road. It’s pretty close to where we are.” He pointed to the vague direction of the village. “Just up there. It’s lightly guarded, just some overseers for the slaves and nothing much more.”
Ayomide raised her brow. “Wait, weren’t we going for plantations?”
“It don’t matter, do it?” The one to reply was Tater. “There’re plenty of slaves, and plenty of loot up in copper land.”
“As the boy says. I of course don’t have a full account of what they have, but one’s gotta assume that they’d not have nothing. Not to mention, they hired me as a temporary guard after I told them that I was an adventurer. Apparently, they’re scared by the uprising in Azdavay.”
“Good thing we started on the spears then.” Brown looked at Ayomide. “We’ll have to work extra, young lady, to get arms for us and the slaves as soon as possible.”
Hakim interjected “And food as well, we need to have food for when they’re at our cave.”
“Then it seems we’re at a consensus.” Brown was excited to get back to doing what he did best. “Our first target for liberation shall be the copper mine!”
submitted by CabbagePreacher to JohnBrownIsekai [link] [comments]
<< Previous Next >>
📷
Brown, Ayomide and Hakim were currently busy in the forest outside of Azdavay, looking for wood that could be converted into weaponry.
“Captain! I have great news!” The one shouting with great excitement was Hakim, who was holding a bundle of plants which looked very similar to the cattails that Brown had seen back in the wetlands of America. He also carried a couple of chestnuts in his pockets.
📷
A chef like Hakim could separate the rest of the forest from the trees. He had just stumbled upon a small lake formed from the constant rain, where these cattail-like plants had grown.
“Is that food that’s not slime?” Ayomide was the one who was intrigued the greatest by the introduction of these new plants.
“Yes, it is. These are ‘shepherd reeds’, that’s what they were called in my hometown.” Hakim peeled the rind off of two of the plants and handed them over to Brown and Ayomide. “Try them out, you can eat them raw.” He then peeled himself a shepherd reed to eat with the others. The white core of the plant tasted similar to asparagus. Eating it raw definitely wasn’t the tastiest thing, but it tasted like the clouds of Heaven to Ayomide who had only consumed slime for almost an entire season.
“And we can… Actually, I’ll leave what I can do with the rest as a surprise for later.” Hakim looked full of excitement as he examined the reeds he had harvested. “These are the best during late spring, we arrived at the perfect time.” He’d definitely be back in the forest for another harvest.
“Actually, couldn’t we just use these plants as straw?” said Ayomide upon examining the reeds. "Get rid of the heads, and we can easily lie on them I’d think."
“I reckon. The straw from these plants were also made into hats and other stuff back in my hometown. I don’t know how they did it, I was young when I got separated.” Hakim secured his bundle of shepherd reeds with his hands, and looked at Brown and Ayomide. “So, you found good sticks?”
Brown nodded. “I think these should be enough. Let’s go back then.” He and Ayomide were carrying a bundle of wood in their hands. Brown was also carrying, in his pockets and a knapsack that had been taken from Jacob, small stones he had found along the road. “Ayomide?”
“R-Right. Let’s go.” Ayomide turned back to face the path to the cave, and the others followed.
📷
📷
While Brown and co were busy with reeds and wood, Shinasi and Tater were exploring the mountain path.
Captain Brown and Shinasi had only headed the path between Curry toward Azdavay, he hadn’t had the chance to go up the Curry path it to see what lay there. So, they had decided that they’d first survey their immediate area first, before beginning their journey to survey the faraway plantations.
The mountains were largely peaceful, like any area near human habitation. The residents of Azdavay had long cleared anything scary like dragons or wyverns. All that was left were man-bears, man-wolves (not to be confused with werewolves) and generic slimes, who Shinasi could take on his own with his spear and pavise. Young Tater only had a combat knife to his name, he hoped that he would soon get a new weapon for himself when the team back at the cave got to crafting them.
“’Tis cold, isn’t it, mister?” Tater, and the rest of the former slaves, only had rags to their name. Thankfully, Brown had let Tater borrow his coat for this expedition.
“Mm. Totally… Yeah.” Shinasi seemed to be more focused on staring at the sky and contemplating idly, which was unusual for a former adventurer like him.
Thinking was not for adventurers, or so thought Tater who had only heard of adventurers through random tidbits. “What got you think so hard?”
“It’s adult business, my boy.”
“Adult business?” Tater quickly went through his mental list of what constituted as ‘adult business’. “Booze?”
“No- I mean, yeah… lack of drink is a problem. Right now, it’s not that.” Shinasi hadn’t had anything to drink since he had escaped Azdavay.
“Uhm… crippling debt?”
“That was a problem. However, I have the slightest hunch that the debt collectors might not want to visit a cave full of fugitive slaves.”
“Then… love?” This was his last. Tater had exhausted his list of ‘adult business’ that didn’t involve his juvenile ideas about acts of interhuman copulation.
Shinasi instinctively turned his head away from Tater to avoid his gaze. “Y-yeah, it’s totally not that either. Nuh-uh.”
Shinasi’s love life had caught the interest of Tater. Such topics seemed like they were of utmost importance for a young boy like him. “Mister, who’s the special one?” He poked Shinasi mischievously, hoping to drag out an answer.
“Oh, shut up.” Shinasi continued avoiding the relentless psychological attacks from Tater as the duo marched on the road. They hadn’t seen anything interesting, until they came upon a small village, actually a large estate housing an open mining field, in the mountains.
“I think this is one of the copper mining villages.” commented Shinasi. “Plenty of copper up in these mountains.” The Curry Mountain was famous in Gemeinplatz for its bountiful veins of copper, and the towns in Casamonu were famous for manufacturing goods from this copper.
“So, this where they got the stuff they make our pots out of.” Tater’s eyes were fixed on a line of slaves carrying pickaxes who were coming out of a wooden shack next to the mine. They were flanked by two overseers holding whips and carrying swords.
It wasn’t a plantation, but these mines did fill the critical criteria of ‘having lots of slaves’ “We found the kind of thing the old man’s looking for.”
“Think we did. Let’s give them a greeting, shall we?”
“Right.” Shinasi and Tater kept marching on, until they were in range to speak with the overseers. “Top of the morning to you, gentlemen.”
📷
The trio of Brown, Ayomide and Hakim had returned back to the cave. They quickly got to work, each of them holding a kitchen knife (courtesy of the late Jacob) and the items that they had foraged.
Brown and Ayomide were doing their best to carve shafts out of the sticks, which was a painful process as they both weren’t experienced with carving of any kind. Meanwhile, Hakim was preparing the shepherd reeds for culinary use by peeling the rinds and cutting them off from the strawy bits. He wasn’t doing this just to make food; the straw would be useful as rope for the makeshift weaponry.
After an hour or two, Brown and Ayomide had constructed shafts of acceptable quality. Now came the experimental part. Brown had been carrying large stones he had foraged during their travels. Both of them also had cut small pieces of wood, around ten inches (30 cm) long, to use as a hammer for shaping the stones.
This wasn’t an exact science; this was just what the people in the cave had come up with after a long brainstorming session.
They spent some time, knapping the stones, trying to find out which were hard and which were soft. Eventually, after another ten minutes of experimentation, Brown and Ayomide had a good idea as to the characteristics of the stones they had. Then they began knapping the stones, slowly carving a vaguely spear-like shape. After enough knapping, they used the small wood hammers to carve smaller, more intricate chips off the stone. To finish it all off, they scraped these spearheads to the floors of the cave to polish them the best as they could.
Now the only thing left was to put up the finishing touches. They took the straw that Hakim had prepared in the meanwhile, and they attempted to use the straw to bind the spearheads with the wooden shaft. The first one to do this successfully was Ayomide, who now had a complete spear. Then followed Brown in success, who happily looked upon the fruits of their labor.
Today, on the 74th of Spring 5859, John Brown and Ayomide entered the Stone Age.
“You know, I bet I can make an axe or something with this.” Ayomide seemed to be enjoying knapping. She put her newly spear aside to tinker with stone.
Brown, who was now a couple days off of being exactly sixty years old at this point, couldn’t stand long sessions of sitting down and working. He stood up, to take a break, and to observe what Hakim was up to.
Hakim had been occupied with further processing the shepherd reeds. His job hadn’t been done when he had peeled the rinds off the cores, he intended to use every part of the plant. He was grinding the starchy roots of the plant with a large rock, which produced flour. This grinding process was largely done by the time Brown had come to the scene.
“Ah, captain. Could you hand me one of your spears?”
Brown didn’t know why Hakim needed a spear for cooking, but he obliged and handed the man one of the newly crafted spears. Hakim proceeded to dump the flour he had made into a pot filled with a thin layer of slime and plants unknown to Brown. To Brown’s surprise, Hakim began violently beating the mixture in the pot with the shaft of the spear. The mixture eventually coalesced into a solid lump with a consistency similar to soft rice cake.
“Sorry for dirtying your shaft, captain.” Hakim gave back the slime-stained shaft to Brown. “These ‘spear cakes’ could be useful as provisions. They won’t rot easily, and their taste is better than pure slime slop.” He picked a lump for himself, and handed Brown another.
“Thank our Heavenly Father for providing us with this meal.” Brown obliged by biting a lump out of this strange spear cake. “Mmm… They have quite the minty taste.”
“It’s just a bit of this-and-that from the forest to get that mint taste. Even troops on the march could cook this without extra effort, I reckon. Living off the land, and all that.”
Ayomide was about to request some of the spear cake, before she was rudely interrupted by Shinasi and Tater entering the cave. “Captain, we have some good news.”
“Welcome back, young men. What’d your good news be?” Brown was ready for some good news, being stuck on a mountain did that to a man.
“You see, Tater and I found a copper mining village up on the road. It’s pretty close to where we are.” He pointed to the vague direction of the village. “Just up there. It’s lightly guarded, just some overseers for the slaves and nothing much more.”
Ayomide raised her brow. “Wait, weren’t we going for plantations?”
“It don’t matter, do it?” The one to reply was Tater. “There’re plenty of slaves, and plenty of loot up in copper land.”
“As the boy says. I of course don’t have a full account of what they have, but one’s gotta assume that they’d not have nothing. Not to mention, they hired me as a temporary guard after I told them that I was an adventurer. Apparently, they’re scared by the uprising in Azdavay.”
“Good thing we started on the spears then.” Brown looked at Ayomide. “We’ll have to work extra, young lady, to get arms for us and the slaves as soon as possible.”
Hakim interjected “And food as well, we need to have food for when they’re at our cave.”
“Then it seems we’re at a consensus.” Brown was excited to get back to doing what he did best. “Our first target for liberation shall be the copper mine!”
2023.05.28 14:40 savvyjiuju A little piece of writing about the journey to discovering that it’s not your fault
Every once in a while (jk like five times a week), I imagine how I might explain life with ADHD to someone who struggles to understand. So, as if we all need yet another explanatory metaphor, I present to you last evening’s “I’m supposed to be getting ready for bed” hyperfocus project.
Anyone with more knowledge of pianos than me, please correct any technical or terminology mistakes!
———
Imagine a world in which everybody plays piano. They all pass around their favorite sheet music—classic foundation pieces to concertos. At the age at which everyone around you is playing beginner’s music, you sound about the same as they do. A little off, but everybody is a little off at this stage. You’ll all grow out of it. Just focus, okay?
So you focus.
You and your cohort are a little older. The music being passed along is a little more complex but you’re working very hard. Sometimes you could swear you’re working harder than everyone around you. But it doesn’t seem to show. Your peers are playing the pieces well after some practice, some of them flawlessly. But no matter what you do, no matter how many hours of practice, you can’t do what they do.
When you let loose and improvise, people seem to love your compositions. But it’s improvisation, so you can never play the same composition twice. And when you play from sheet music, people expect to hear the music as it’s written. Some of the notes you play hit just right, and people seem relieved that you seem to have finally gotten the hang of it. Then the next note is a bit off. And the next. You focus, you practice, you get a private tutor and you get a little bit better as long as your every waking hour is devoted to piano. You’re exhausted. And now you’re so nervous, waiting for that mistake out of nowhere, that you start making more and new mistakes while trying to avoid the old ones.
Your teachers tell you to stop being so careless. Your parents insist that you have the same set of keys and pedals as everyone else, so why can’t you just do what they do? You even have the music right there in front of you for god’s sake. Can’t you read?
You decide that no, you must not be able to read. There must be something wrong with your fingers or your feet. You must be fundamentally incapable of playing the music that everyone else knows by heart.
One day, you stumble across an ad for a piano tuner. Aren’t piano tuners for people whose pianos have been damaged somehow? Yours isn't damaged, you’re just careless and don’t pay attention to the sheet music. But you can’t stop thinking—what if they’re wrong? What if you’re right? What if you really are working harder than everyone else, and something is different that has nothing to do with that? What if there’s something different about your piano?
You call the tuner. You make an appointment.
The tuner finally calls you back, and they ask some questions. Have you ever stored your piano improperly? Have you ever, say, dropped it onto the sidewalk while trying to move it through a window? Pulled off some of the keys? Has someone set it on fire previously, or taken an axe to it? No? Pianos don’t just start off out of tune. Why did you call a piano tuner if nothing is really, actually, wrong with your piano?
They say you need to hire a tutor, get better sleep, and stop wasting their time when your real problem is that you haven’t put in the hours to be a decent player.
You guess that’s it, then. Everybody else was right. You should have known that. You should have sucked it up and tried harder. You do that for a few months. You’re exhausted. You’re depressed. You’re anxious all the time. Your playing isn’t any better. You see another ad for a different piano tuner.
This time, you feel a swell of righteous anger.
You know, somewhere you can’t name, that you aren’t wrong. That something is off. That you’re doing everything everybody said to do, and nothing is working. You know that you’re playing the right notes but the sound that comes out doesn’t match the keys under your fingers. You make another phone call.
This time, the piano tuner asks to visit you and your piano. They bring their toolkit. They play some keys, then others. They open it up and look inside. They nod and “hmm” and “aha.” They tell you that your piano is out of tune, has been for a while, and it’s no wonder you’ve had such a difficult time. Your piano isn’t like everyone else’s, but you can do beautiful things with it if you play a little differently. You can even try having it tuned, although you’ll always have a unique sound.
You have some options. What would you like to try first?
(Funny story: I’m no good at it at all, but I actually learned to play as a child on an antique upright piano that was too fragile to tune without restringing entirely. While it was only slightly off, it was off enough that the little songs I made up on that piano played very differently on a properly tuned instrument. But they sounded just right on the keys they were written for.)
submitted by savvyjiuju to adhdwomen [link] [comments]
Anyone with more knowledge of pianos than me, please correct any technical or terminology mistakes!
———
Imagine a world in which everybody plays piano. They all pass around their favorite sheet music—classic foundation pieces to concertos. At the age at which everyone around you is playing beginner’s music, you sound about the same as they do. A little off, but everybody is a little off at this stage. You’ll all grow out of it. Just focus, okay?
So you focus.
You and your cohort are a little older. The music being passed along is a little more complex but you’re working very hard. Sometimes you could swear you’re working harder than everyone around you. But it doesn’t seem to show. Your peers are playing the pieces well after some practice, some of them flawlessly. But no matter what you do, no matter how many hours of practice, you can’t do what they do.
When you let loose and improvise, people seem to love your compositions. But it’s improvisation, so you can never play the same composition twice. And when you play from sheet music, people expect to hear the music as it’s written. Some of the notes you play hit just right, and people seem relieved that you seem to have finally gotten the hang of it. Then the next note is a bit off. And the next. You focus, you practice, you get a private tutor and you get a little bit better as long as your every waking hour is devoted to piano. You’re exhausted. And now you’re so nervous, waiting for that mistake out of nowhere, that you start making more and new mistakes while trying to avoid the old ones.
Your teachers tell you to stop being so careless. Your parents insist that you have the same set of keys and pedals as everyone else, so why can’t you just do what they do? You even have the music right there in front of you for god’s sake. Can’t you read?
You decide that no, you must not be able to read. There must be something wrong with your fingers or your feet. You must be fundamentally incapable of playing the music that everyone else knows by heart.
One day, you stumble across an ad for a piano tuner. Aren’t piano tuners for people whose pianos have been damaged somehow? Yours isn't damaged, you’re just careless and don’t pay attention to the sheet music. But you can’t stop thinking—what if they’re wrong? What if you’re right? What if you really are working harder than everyone else, and something is different that has nothing to do with that? What if there’s something different about your piano?
You call the tuner. You make an appointment.
The tuner finally calls you back, and they ask some questions. Have you ever stored your piano improperly? Have you ever, say, dropped it onto the sidewalk while trying to move it through a window? Pulled off some of the keys? Has someone set it on fire previously, or taken an axe to it? No? Pianos don’t just start off out of tune. Why did you call a piano tuner if nothing is really, actually, wrong with your piano?
They say you need to hire a tutor, get better sleep, and stop wasting their time when your real problem is that you haven’t put in the hours to be a decent player.
You guess that’s it, then. Everybody else was right. You should have known that. You should have sucked it up and tried harder. You do that for a few months. You’re exhausted. You’re depressed. You’re anxious all the time. Your playing isn’t any better. You see another ad for a different piano tuner.
This time, you feel a swell of righteous anger.
You know, somewhere you can’t name, that you aren’t wrong. That something is off. That you’re doing everything everybody said to do, and nothing is working. You know that you’re playing the right notes but the sound that comes out doesn’t match the keys under your fingers. You make another phone call.
This time, the piano tuner asks to visit you and your piano. They bring their toolkit. They play some keys, then others. They open it up and look inside. They nod and “hmm” and “aha.” They tell you that your piano is out of tune, has been for a while, and it’s no wonder you’ve had such a difficult time. Your piano isn’t like everyone else’s, but you can do beautiful things with it if you play a little differently. You can even try having it tuned, although you’ll always have a unique sound.
You have some options. What would you like to try first?
(Funny story: I’m no good at it at all, but I actually learned to play as a child on an antique upright piano that was too fragile to tune without restringing entirely. While it was only slightly off, it was off enough that the little songs I made up on that piano played very differently on a properly tuned instrument. But they sounded just right on the keys they were written for.)
2023.05.28 14:28 Taylor-Swifty A4A Anyone Else Like OCs?
[possible fandoms: Transformers, Totally Spies, Disney, TMNT, Street Sharks, Pixar, Star Wars, G. I. Joe, Nintendo, Marvel, DC, possibly more!]
I am 18+ and all participants and characters must be 18+.
Hey there! Most people call me Desi. I am a role player, obviously! I usually spend my time indoors every day with a mild excursion here and there to the store, movies, or beach. I adore writing, but that's obvious.
I am very versatile on genre, I have major preference for romance, drama, slice of life, mysteries, action and adventure, Hallmark-esque plots, and anything else we might conjure up! I do have tons of canons and OCs! I’m sure you can find one you like. I can write from a paragraph to novella.
I am looking for any gender of partner and character, I have so many unique characters and ideas for each one! I can also slide my OCs into any fandom.
Ideas:
your character replaces Sam/Charlie in the Transformers franchise while fixing various mistakes made by Michael Bay. I have the characters set up on my server, with alternate designs for Jazz, Sideswipe, and Hot Rod.
I also have a ton of Disney characters, I’ve been dying to play out a ripple in the space time continuum where one or a group of them get sent to the real world.
I also am hunting for a Totally Spies role play.
My character is a Spanish heiress, who lives a life of luxury, only her father is murdered, and the people who did it, are now after her. She runs away in search of a bodyguard to help her get back what was stolen from her.
The next idea I have is for a relationship that is on the rocks, and the two are left trying to navigate their lives past the honeymoon phase and learn how to adapt to living together.
This is specific to my character but she was a championship surfer, and she got injured at the top of her game. I really want to play out her becoming a mentor, teaching someone how to become the next champion.
One of my characters goes undercover to try and expose a illegal ring, this would play out like a suspense or thriller, could play male or female.
An emotionally damaged stripper who is abused by staff spends her days trying to get by, until the day comes where she meets someone who could help her pursue her true dreams of running her own operation.
A Russian woman who was stolen from her family as a little girl and tormented into becoming a living weapon is hired to bring your character to them. On the way, she finds out that the people who hired her are working for the militia that made her the way she is, and so, she decides to take a stand, and wipe them out.
This is only a third of my ideas, not even that, a fraction! Come check out my characters, let’s discuss something!
I have men, women, young and mature, thieves, business owners, single mothers, wayward young adults, college students and staff, bounty hunters, detectives, police officers, victims, patients, crooked therapists, strippers, so many unique stories to tell! I guarantee one of them will strike your fancy!
I am looking for a romantic role play as one of my many OC characters, drama or major events will happen depending on the character you select, and I have 300+ so far.
I also have many canon characters I would love to play as, such as Legolas, Transformers, Marvel and DC , Avatar and Disney.
I have many ideas depending on who you choose!
I am a very affectionate person, I love to make people happy, so I am always open to adjusting characters or role plays.
I don't like role plays with action asterisks, Sorry! I also don't like to role play without proper punctuation and grammar. I usually write at least one paragraph. 25 being my record.
I am a firm believer in conversation so I most likely will text you OOC for any reason, I also prefer to keep things adult, meaning I don't take part in petty or childish arguments.
I don't ghost either, so Ill probably rip the bandage off and tell you why I don't want to role play anymore.
I also love having friends! I used to get bullied quite a lot for many, many reasons, so I haven't had many friends in my 20 years of living. Lets chat, get to know one another!, I've been role playing for a long time, about 6-8 years give or take? I typically enjoy modern role plays with real life basing.
I enjoy stories of the romantic genre as well as action and adventure. My characters are original with face claims, some are canon characters from Marvel and DC. Characters like Barney, Captain America, Superman, just really selfless characters have always been my inspiration.
I always try to write my characters with loving aspects if I can. Life is broken and many people suffer, life isnt perfect so I usually write some darkness for a character if I feel it.
I don't use random face claims, I use actors or media icons I feel fit the character, I mentally put myself in the position of director, my role play is a movie, and I am casting the character, that is how I usually go about it, and if you don’t like it I am not the partner for you.
I definitely want a partner who can be a friend, who can be detailed yet tame, someone who can give me something to reply to, I am not very picky. I don't like people who are judgmental though, I prefer good vibes only.
Replies from me are vary. Sometimes I cant write as much as Id like because I get a writers block.
Sometimes I can reply 5 times a day, but sometimes I cant reply for a day maybe even two or three. But usually I update OOC. I look for people who aren't looking for perfection, I don't like role players who are too arrogant about their skill. I wouldn't say I'm the best role player out there, so if we don't mesh I completely understand.
I keep my characters location/job vague so that I can work them into a plot better. They are pieces to the puzzle, and I keep them so they can fit better into any story we choose!
I will only be role playing on discord partly just to be able to show you my original character portfolio server, which has channels with their backgrounds, age, and their galleries.
Simply DM me for my tag and we can get things started.
Sexuality wise all my characters are adjustable.
Reply wise, this will be fairly advanced. I strive to keep things above a paragraph but I can go lower depending on the plot. I write a maximum of 10 paragraphs but my usual is 3-4.
my character portfolio will be the main key to our discussion, so you will be viewing it upon your interest. I have 100+ characters. I can also role play over email or reddit chat, that way I can just copy the bios and send the photos.
That being said our characters will have romance, and adult content will be ahead If desired. All my characters are adults.I am looking for action, adventure, romance of course is my favorite, mystery, drama, anything is up for debate!
I am looking for both male or female characters to partner my own with, as well as trans or non binary as well, all are welcome.
I hope we can have a fun role play together!
submitted by Taylor-Swifty to RoleplayPartnerSearch [link] [comments]
I am 18+ and all participants and characters must be 18+.
Hey there! Most people call me Desi. I am a role player, obviously! I usually spend my time indoors every day with a mild excursion here and there to the store, movies, or beach. I adore writing, but that's obvious.
I am very versatile on genre, I have major preference for romance, drama, slice of life, mysteries, action and adventure, Hallmark-esque plots, and anything else we might conjure up! I do have tons of canons and OCs! I’m sure you can find one you like. I can write from a paragraph to novella.
I am looking for any gender of partner and character, I have so many unique characters and ideas for each one! I can also slide my OCs into any fandom.
Ideas:
your character replaces Sam/Charlie in the Transformers franchise while fixing various mistakes made by Michael Bay. I have the characters set up on my server, with alternate designs for Jazz, Sideswipe, and Hot Rod.
I also have a ton of Disney characters, I’ve been dying to play out a ripple in the space time continuum where one or a group of them get sent to the real world.
I also am hunting for a Totally Spies role play.
My character is a Spanish heiress, who lives a life of luxury, only her father is murdered, and the people who did it, are now after her. She runs away in search of a bodyguard to help her get back what was stolen from her.
The next idea I have is for a relationship that is on the rocks, and the two are left trying to navigate their lives past the honeymoon phase and learn how to adapt to living together.
This is specific to my character but she was a championship surfer, and she got injured at the top of her game. I really want to play out her becoming a mentor, teaching someone how to become the next champion.
One of my characters goes undercover to try and expose a illegal ring, this would play out like a suspense or thriller, could play male or female.
An emotionally damaged stripper who is abused by staff spends her days trying to get by, until the day comes where she meets someone who could help her pursue her true dreams of running her own operation.
A Russian woman who was stolen from her family as a little girl and tormented into becoming a living weapon is hired to bring your character to them. On the way, she finds out that the people who hired her are working for the militia that made her the way she is, and so, she decides to take a stand, and wipe them out.
This is only a third of my ideas, not even that, a fraction! Come check out my characters, let’s discuss something!
I have men, women, young and mature, thieves, business owners, single mothers, wayward young adults, college students and staff, bounty hunters, detectives, police officers, victims, patients, crooked therapists, strippers, so many unique stories to tell! I guarantee one of them will strike your fancy!
I am looking for a romantic role play as one of my many OC characters, drama or major events will happen depending on the character you select, and I have 300+ so far.
I also have many canon characters I would love to play as, such as Legolas, Transformers, Marvel and DC , Avatar and Disney.
I have many ideas depending on who you choose!
I am a very affectionate person, I love to make people happy, so I am always open to adjusting characters or role plays.
I don't like role plays with action asterisks, Sorry! I also don't like to role play without proper punctuation and grammar. I usually write at least one paragraph. 25 being my record.
I am a firm believer in conversation so I most likely will text you OOC for any reason, I also prefer to keep things adult, meaning I don't take part in petty or childish arguments.
I don't ghost either, so Ill probably rip the bandage off and tell you why I don't want to role play anymore.
I also love having friends! I used to get bullied quite a lot for many, many reasons, so I haven't had many friends in my 20 years of living. Lets chat, get to know one another!, I've been role playing for a long time, about 6-8 years give or take? I typically enjoy modern role plays with real life basing.
I enjoy stories of the romantic genre as well as action and adventure. My characters are original with face claims, some are canon characters from Marvel and DC. Characters like Barney, Captain America, Superman, just really selfless characters have always been my inspiration.
I always try to write my characters with loving aspects if I can. Life is broken and many people suffer, life isnt perfect so I usually write some darkness for a character if I feel it.
I don't use random face claims, I use actors or media icons I feel fit the character, I mentally put myself in the position of director, my role play is a movie, and I am casting the character, that is how I usually go about it, and if you don’t like it I am not the partner for you.
I definitely want a partner who can be a friend, who can be detailed yet tame, someone who can give me something to reply to, I am not very picky. I don't like people who are judgmental though, I prefer good vibes only.
Replies from me are vary. Sometimes I cant write as much as Id like because I get a writers block.
Sometimes I can reply 5 times a day, but sometimes I cant reply for a day maybe even two or three. But usually I update OOC. I look for people who aren't looking for perfection, I don't like role players who are too arrogant about their skill. I wouldn't say I'm the best role player out there, so if we don't mesh I completely understand.
I keep my characters location/job vague so that I can work them into a plot better. They are pieces to the puzzle, and I keep them so they can fit better into any story we choose!
I will only be role playing on discord partly just to be able to show you my original character portfolio server, which has channels with their backgrounds, age, and their galleries.
Simply DM me for my tag and we can get things started.
Sexuality wise all my characters are adjustable.
Reply wise, this will be fairly advanced. I strive to keep things above a paragraph but I can go lower depending on the plot. I write a maximum of 10 paragraphs but my usual is 3-4.
my character portfolio will be the main key to our discussion, so you will be viewing it upon your interest. I have 100+ characters. I can also role play over email or reddit chat, that way I can just copy the bios and send the photos.
That being said our characters will have romance, and adult content will be ahead If desired. All my characters are adults.I am looking for action, adventure, romance of course is my favorite, mystery, drama, anything is up for debate!
I am looking for both male or female characters to partner my own with, as well as trans or non binary as well, all are welcome.
I hope we can have a fun role play together!
2023.05.28 14:18 BlueCollarBeagle Do Conservatives Have a Remedy for Age Discrimination?
Admittedly, this is anecdotal.
When I was seeking employment at the age of 52, headhunters told me privately, that while employers cannot tell them that they will not hire anyone over 50, if the headhunter continues to present candidates over 50, the employers will stop using their services.
In the end, I was laid off from my job at the age of 60 and no one would hire me at my previous pay level or job level. I wound up taking a job at a supermarket at one third my previous pay, but enough to eek out until I retired at 66.
If Republicans require that "able bodied individuals between the ages of 50-55" work to receive any welfare, what, if anything, should be done to protect the workers from age discrimination?
submitted by BlueCollarBeagle to AskConservatives [link] [comments]
When I was seeking employment at the age of 52, headhunters told me privately, that while employers cannot tell them that they will not hire anyone over 50, if the headhunter continues to present candidates over 50, the employers will stop using their services.
In the end, I was laid off from my job at the age of 60 and no one would hire me at my previous pay level or job level. I wound up taking a job at a supermarket at one third my previous pay, but enough to eek out until I retired at 66.
If Republicans require that "able bodied individuals between the ages of 50-55" work to receive any welfare, what, if anything, should be done to protect the workers from age discrimination?