I really want to go to duke but I'm also open to lots of other schools (so long as I can get a quality education I don't really care about the name so much as the cost, so I would like recs for where to apply)
Demographics:
Gender: ftm 💀
Race: white
School: I go to the poorest school in a pretty rich county. Honestly I don't know how it compares to others nationally but we have almost a hundred million in deferred maintenance: black mold, hvac hasn't been updated since it was built over 50 years ago, etc
Household Income: idk but I'm guessing ~200K
Intended Major(s): want to do biotechnology or possibly poli sci. Was also interested in bio but because of low pay I've kinda closed that off as an option. I'm especially interested in the programs at duke
GPA: 4.7 W 3.8 UW I'm a sophomore so I haven't taken the ACT or SAT yet but I got a 1250 on the PSAT without studying/preparing at all at the beginning of this year. 98th percentile for English, I think around 70th for math (working on it)
Classes this year: haven't gotten back AP tests but I took AP gov and AP environmental this year GT precalc Dual enrollment English GT chem Honors comp sci GT art Next year junior: Dual enrollment calc Ap Physics C Dual enrollment english GT photo or AP psych (depends on schedule) AP world Biotechnology GT
Extracurriculars: - model UN cocaptain

• climate club - organized plantings and cleanups
  
• unpaid internship (I don't want to be too identifying here because it's very possible someone might know who I am but I'm a social media intern with a nonprofit that works in conservation and I've gotten them 50k+ followers) and it's with an animal I'm very very passionate about
  
• working on a project tracking the number of bats in my area and planting trees and pollinators to restore habitat
  
• fluent in a foreign language (I don't think it really matters which but I don't want to say because it's identifying again)
  
• I write, I had some published but it was a really minor publication
  
• I do a sport but it's not a competitive one since it's kind of obscure
  
• I did science olympiad freshman year but I switched it out for model UN
  
• I'm in another club but it's very small
  
• I had a small business for a while selling art and made ~ 300 dollars
  

Essay: I think this is going to be my strong suit because I've always tested really high in English (98th percentile on PSAT)
List: duke, Emory, JHU, Georgetown, UPenn, Rutgers, temple, uwashington Seattle, William and mary, penn state, UMD, dartmouth, brown, unc, gwu, gmu.
And again I'm also open to suggestions but I'm kind of limited to states that aren't passing anti trans legislation + I feel like I'm not remarkable enough to get a scholarship so I'd prefer ones where I wouldn't have to take out hundreds of thousands in loans

As stated in the title I have a problem with the dreaded infinite loading screen when I try to start my modded Skyrim. I get the Betheshda logo and the dun-dun sound, then the Skyrim logo with the loading symbol in the corner, and then nothing, no main menu.
I have tried every solution I could find on my own, but to no avail. In the hopes that I can avoid having to disable and enable all 146 mods one by one, I now come to You, the wise masters of Reddit.
Please help me, You're my only hope.
Load order (as generated by Vortex):
Skyrim.esm
Update.esm
Dawnguard.esm
HearthFires.esm
Dragonborn.esm
ccasvsse001-almsivi.esm
ccbgssse001-fish.esm
ccbgssse002-exoticarrows.esl
ccbgssse003-zombies.esl
ccbgssse004-ruinsedge.esl
ccbgssse005-goldbrand.esl
ccbgssse006-stendarshammer.esl
ccbgssse007-chrysamere.esl
ccbgssse010-petdwarvenarmoredmudcrab.esl
ccbgssse011-hrsarmrelvn.esl
ccbgssse012-hrsarmrstl.esl
ccbgssse014-spellpack01.esl
ccbgssse019-staffofsheogorath.esl
ccbgssse020-graycowl.esl
ccbgssse021-lordsmail.esl
ccmtysse001-knightsofthenine.esl
ccqdrsse001-survivalmode.esl
cctwbsse001-puzzledungeon.esm
cceejsse001-hstead.esm
ccqdrsse002-firewood.esl
ccbgssse018-shadowrend.esl
ccbgssse035-petnhound.esl
ccfsvsse001-backpacks.esl
cceejsse002-tower.esl
ccedhsse001-norjewel.esl
ccvsvsse002-pets.esl
ccbgssse037-curios.esl
ccbgssse034-mntuni.esl
ccbgssse045-hasedoki.esl
ccbgssse008-wraithguard.esl
ccbgssse036-petbwolf.esl
ccffbsse001-imperialdragon.esl
ccmtysse002-ve.esl
ccbgssse043-crosselv.esl
ccvsvsse001-winter.esl
cceejsse003-hollow.esl
ccbgssse016-umbra.esm
ccbgssse031-advcyrus.esm
ccbgssse038-bowofshadows.esl
ccbgssse040-advobgobs.esl
ccbgssse050-ba_daedric.esl
ccbgssse052-ba_iron.esl
ccbgssse054-ba_orcish.esl
ccbgssse058-ba_steel.esl
ccbgssse059-ba_dragonplate.esl
ccbgssse061-ba_dwarven.esl
ccpewsse002-armsofchaos.esl
ccbgssse041-netchleather.esl
ccedhsse002-splkntset.esl
ccbgssse064-ba_elven.esl
ccbgssse063-ba_ebony.esl
ccbgssse062-ba_dwarvenmail.esl
ccbgssse060-ba_dragonscale.esl
ccbgssse056-ba_silver.esl
ccbgssse055-ba_orcishscaled.esl
ccbgssse053-ba_leather.esl
ccbgssse051-ba_daedricmail.esl
ccbgssse057-ba_stalhrim.esl
ccbgssse066-staves.esl
ccbgssse067-daedinv.esm
ccbgssse068-bloodfall.esl
ccbgssse069-contest.esl
ccvsvsse003-necroarts.esl
ccvsvsse004-beafarmer.esl
ccbgssse025-advdsgs.esm
ccffbsse002-crossbowpack.esl
ccbgssse013-dawnfang.esl
ccrmssse001-necrohouse.esl
ccedhsse003-redguard.esl
cceejsse004-hall.esl
cceejsse005-cave.esm
cckrtsse001_altar.esl
cccbhsse001-gaunt.esl
ccafdsse001-dwesanctuary.esm
Unofficial Skyrim Special Edition Patch.esp
Lanterns Of Skyrim - All In One - Main.esm
MagicalCollegeofWinterhold.esp
ClimatesOfTamriel.esm
RealisticWaterTwo - Resources.esm
FlowerGirls SE.esm
SkyUI_SE.esp
Prometheus_No_snow_Under_the_roof.esp
WARZONES - SSE - Civil Unrest.esp
Immersive Movement.esp
NSUTR_bugfixes.esp
NSUTR_groundsnow_mesh_fixes.esp
NSUTR_improvements.esp
FNIS.esp
Weapons Armor Clothing & Clutter Fixes.esp
Distinct Interiors.esp
ESOimports.esp
MCoW_EndofLoadOrderOverwrite.esp
Cutting Room Floor.esp
OpulentThievesGuild.esp
Civil War Aftermath.esp
Man Those Borders!.esp
Odin - Skyrim Magic Overhaul.esp
AVExpansion.esp
Ranger Cabins.esp
WACCF_Armor and Clothing Extension.esp
OwnCivilWar.esp
Sjel Blad Castle_SE.esp
hearthfireextended.esp
Hothtrooper44_ArmorCompilation.esp
Immersive Weapons.esp
Guards_Armor_Replacer.esp
Wintersun - Faiths of Skyrim.esp
Lit Road Signs.esp
Run For Your Lives.esp
Cloaks.esp
PrvtI_HeavyArmory.esp
NerniesRangerPack.esp
Better Hunters.esp
OutlawsRefuges.esp
CivilWarCheckpoints - All.esp
Dawnguard Sentries SE.esp
DivineCloaks.esp
OpulentThievesGuildPatch.esp
Brynjolf has Time.esp
Opulent Thieves Guild - Brynjolf has Time Patch.esp
Bells of Skyrim.esp
SkyforgeComplete.esp
Cloaks&Capes.esp
DaedricCloaks.esp
DG Alternate Route.esp
DawnguardArsenal.esp
Immersive Patrols II.esp
Triumvirate - Mage Archetypes.esp
The Paarthurnax Dilemma.esp
MOD - Simply Better Horses (SSE).esp
Open Civil War Tweaks.esp
HFE-CRF-Patch.esp
Prvti_HA_Fishing_DraugrWeapons.esp
XPMSE.esp
DeadlyDragons.esp
Dragon Combat Overhaul.esp
UltimateDragons.esp
PrvtIRoyalArmory.esp
RaceMenu.esp
RaceMenuPlugin.esp
dD - Realistic Ragdoll Force - Realistic.esp
Chesko_LoreBasedLoadingScreens.esp
Hothtrooper44_Armor_Ecksstra.esp
Growl - Werebeasts of Skyrim.esp
Wildcat - Combat of Skyrim.esp
dD - Enhanced Blood Main.esp
dD-Larger Drips.esp
dD-Reduced Wound Size.esp
Cloaks - Dawnguard.esp
Cloaks_SMP_Patch.esp
CBBE.esp
RaceMenuMorphsCBBE.esp
Cloaks&Capes_SMP_Patch.esp
marrymeserana.esp
IcePenguinWorldMap.esp
NewArmHorse.esp
adoptAventusAretino.esp
Armor Variants Expansion - WACCF Patch.esp
Armor Variants Expansion - ACE Patch.esp
Armor Variants Expansion - CRF Patch.esp
Armor Variants Expansion - IA_CoS Patch.esp
Armor Variants Expansion - USSEP Patch.esp
Aventus Aretino Voiced.esp
BarenziahQuestMarkers.esp
AttackBehaviorTweaks.esp
Cloaks - USSEP Patch.esp
Opulent Thieves Guild - ESO Imports patch.esp
DIVERSE SKYRIM.esp
DiverseDragonsCollectionSE.esp
Dragon Stalking Fix.esp
DragonbornAscendant.esp
FlowerGirls SE - Wintersun.esp
FranklyHDImperialArmorsAndWeapons.esp
Immersive Movement - Wildcat Patch.esp
Rings2Hands.esp
InigoPerkPointGiver.esp
RichMerchantsSkyrim_x10.esp
VexAnimNotMonsterSE.esp
Volkihar Knight.esp
Wildcat - Immersive Movement Patch.esp
WetandCold.esp
Wynters Ranger Armor.esp
Imperious - Races of Skyrim.esp
Complete Crafting Overhaul_Remastered.esp
PrvtI_HeavyArmory_CCOR_Patch.esp
PrvtI_HA_CCOR_DawnguardArsenal.esp
Sacrosanct - Vampires of Skyrim.esp
Immersive Citizens - AI Overhaul.esp
Relationship Dialogue Overhaul.esp
RDO - CRF + USSEP Patch.esp
RDO - USSEP Patch.esp
Castle Volkihar Rebuilt.esp
Fort(ified) Dawnguard.esp
Hunters Not Bandits.esp
Bells of Skyrim - ICAIO Patch.esp
AventusVoiced_RDO_Patch.esp
RealisticWaterTwo.esp
RealisticWaterTwo - Myrwatch Patch.esp
Skyland Watercolor - Slow Green-RW2.esp
Modern Brawl Bug Fix.esp

In this video, I cover what I believe are the best mods that you can install for Skyrim Special Edition in 2023.
https://youtu.be/X1qSQ6waGho
All the mods covered can be downloaded from Nexus Mods, and managed using a Mod tool such as Vortex or Mod Organizer 2.
Although I am using the Steam version of Skyrim Special Edition with the Anniversary Edition DLC, installed on Windows 11, it is possible to run this game on Linux with all the mods if you use Steam Proton.
Mod List
The mods covered in this video, range from bug fixes, restored content, graphical upgrades, quality of life changes, new UI elements, new NPC behaviours and performance enhancements.
A Quality World Map
https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/5804
The Quality World Map mod provides a new set of highly detailed 3D or paper world map textures, complete with roads for the Skyrim mainland as well as the island of Solsteim.
There are quite a few options available to download, although I tend to use the Classic with All Roads option.
The result is that you now have a map that can be used for navigation, as paths and roads are now clearly defined, which is helpful for more obscure off the beaten path locations, especially in the mountains.
Achievement Mods Enabler
https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/245
The Achievement Mods Enabler mod restores the ability for you obtain Steam achievements when you have mods installed.
Strangely, with the release of official mod support in Skyrim, Bethesda stopped you from obtaining achievements if you installed any type of mod, which does not make sense, since Skyrim is a single player game, yet they allow you spawn in items using the console without any consequence.
In either case, installing this mod will once again allow you to obtain achievements regardless of how many mods you have installed.
Alternative Start – Live Another Life
https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/272
If you have played Skyrim several times, the game always starts the same, you get captured, you choose your starting race, a dragon attacks Helgen and you escape in the mayhem, the entire process takes about 20 minutes.
The Alternative Start mod allows you to completely bypass the vanilla beginning of the game and forge your own path.
You might choose to start as the newest member of a local guild, a shopkeeper, a hunter in the woods, a patron in a local bar, someone who has just been attacked and lost everything, a member of the Imperial Legion, the survivor of a shipwreck, or an Orc who has lived his entire life in a stronghold.
But regardless of the starting origin you choose, it does not lock you out of any quest lines, instead allowing you to choose your own role-playing adventure and comes highly recommended.
Convenient Horses
https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/9519
The horses in Skyrim are stupid.
They attack anything hostile on sight including dragons, and in most cases, especially with higher level enemies, end up getting killed, wasting 1000 gold.
The exception of course is Shadowmare, who is immortal, but regardless, still thinks it is a great idea to fight a fire breathing lizard in the middle of the countryside.
The Convenient Horses mod changes all that, as horses are now ignored by enemies and do not randomly attack things, and in addition, they now have skills that can be levelled up, which in most cases equates to extra stamina or health meaning that they can now sprint for longer distances.
The mod also allows horses can now carry things, be fitted with armour, recalled by a horse whistle or horn, and most importantly, your companions can now use horses as well, assuming of course that you cough up and give them 1000 gold.
I often found it silly that whilst I could ride a horse, my follower will run after me on foot, and in the vanilla game, aside from Shadowmare, I never bothered with horses, however with this mod installed, I now actually use them to travel Skyrim.
Cutting Room Floor
https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/276
There is no doubt that Skyrim is a massive game, however the more you play it, you might start to think that some things are missing in certain parts of the world, and you are right.
The Cutting Room Floor mod adds quests that were not finished by Bethesda due to several reasons, additional items, new NPC interactions and extra dialogue, as well as other pieces of cut content back into the world.
A simple little mod, that does a lot.
Footprints
https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/3808
The world of Skyrim has a lot of snow, as well as ash, however one thing that is strange is that no-one ever leaves any footprints in it.
The Footprint mod fixes that by allowing creatures, NPCs and your character to leave footprints with particle effects as they move through snow and ash.
Honestly, I am surprised they did not add this into the game when Skyrim Special Edition was released, but a fantastic mod to install all the same.
Immersive Citizens – AI Overhaul
https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/173
The NPCs in Skyrim, much like horses have questionable intelligence, especially when it comes to dangerous situations.
Therefore the Immersive Citizens mod aims to improve the AI of friendly NPCs to make them react like true humans when it comes to danger, in most cases this means that guards will now defend an area, which makes sense, whilst a shopkeeper or an NPC with a non-combat role will avoid conflict.
The mod also adds routines to the NPCs, which means that at certain times of day, they might visit a tavern, have more interaction with the player character, or explore more of the city, and in most cases, a NPC will not simply stick to one area, which is far more realistic.
A great mod that adds something that should have been in the game to start with.
Immersive Patrols
https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/718
Skyrim makes use of what are known as random encounters, in which at certain points on the map, you will experience a scripted event, this could be a bandit ambush, a dragon attack, a unique NPC, a group NPCs travelling from one location to another, or even an old Orc challenging you to a fight to the death.
The Immersive Patrols mod adds Stormcloak, Thalmor, Imperial and Dawnguard patrols to Skyrim, as well as a few roaming Skaal, Reaver and Rieklings to Solstheim, and sometimes, these patrols can cross paths with each other, and if they are on opposing factions, start fighting.
The mod also adds full scale battles between Stormcloak and Imperial soldiers whilst the Skyrim civil war quest line is still active, which can mean that, depending on your allegiance, you may be attacked on site.
In my opinion, mods like this that add additional content or expanding the variety that a player can experience is always a good thing.
Immersive Sounds – Compendium
https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/523
After playing Skyrim for so long, and then playing other action-based RPGs, the sound effects in Skyrim leave a lot to be desired.
Whilst the dragon shouts are cool to hear, other mundane noises such as the sound of armour shuffling whilst moving, the sound of weapons hitting armour pieces, spell effects, or even the groans of the Draugr sound a bit flat.
The Immersive Sounds mod completely overhauls the sound in game, spells sound louder and more damaging, weapons make appropriate noises when they clash, arrows whiz through the air, armour feels heavy, and comical noises such as when a sneak attack is performed can now be silenced.
As there is nothing more immersive breaking than lining up the perfect shot, only to hear a comical donk noise when the arrow hits.
The mod also adds audio cues when you when you pick up items such as gems, gold or potions, and chests now creak when they are opened.
This is mod that I always have installed, as I cannot play with vanilla sounds anymore.
JK’s Skyrim – All in One
https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/6289
Whilst Skyrim has several locations, towns, and cities to explore, some of the smaller settlements seem to be sparsely populated, in many cases, a village might contain just a couple of buildings, some crops and some NPCs.
The JK’s Skyrim mod fixes this by adding more content to the various settlements in the world, making them more memorable, for example, the Skyforge in Whiterun now looks a forge, complete with displayed armour pieces and a smelter.
Each town now has a theme, Riverwood for lumber, Rorikstead for farming, Falkreath has a graveyard, Dawnstar has a port, and Dragon Bridge is now a defensive outpost.
In fact, some locations now have new vendors, and the allegiance of the town will change depending on the progress of the Civil War quest line.
In short, this mod enhances the game, making locations more useful to the player character, and making the world more lived in.
No Spinning Death Animation
https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/1432
The enemies in Skyrim are very flexible, and sometime when you kill them, they do this weird twist animation as they slump on the floor which is both hilarious and disturbing at the same time, of course, this completely breaks immersion as no-one would do this in real life.
The No Spinning Death Animation mod removes the spinning around dance animation that NPCs do before dying and instead they will now just ragdoll when killed.
The mod also removes certain creature’s death pause animations which cause them to lose all momentum, remove any physical push based on your attacks, so that hitting them no longer launches them into the air.
A great mod to install, and one I find essential, especially for melee combat.
Relationship Dialogue Overhaul
https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/1187
One of the things you will notice as you play through the game is that followers will often repeat their dialogue, which can get annoying after a while, especially after hearing Lydia’s sarcastic responses to you when you ask her to carry something.
The Relationship Dialogue Overhaul mod adds over 5,000 lines of completely voiced dialogue for NPCs using their original voices, which now means that friends, followers, spouses, rivals, and others have much more to say.
The mod also fixes dialogue bugs and restores cut dialogue so you may hear your follower say something that you have never heard before, so as someone who likes using followers, it is nice to hear something different occasionally, whilst exploring Skyrim.
Run For Your Lives
https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/2272
Much like horses, NPCs in Skyrim will blindly run into combat whenever dragons and vampires attack, especially at the Whiterun front gate, which normally ends up with several dead merchants.
The Run for Your Lives mod makes it so that citizens in a village or city will now run indoors during these attacks, although Guards, members of The Companions, Vigilants of Stendarr, and the player's followers will still stand and fight.
The mod author mentions that this mod was created out of frustration of every person trying to be a hero and not surviving, which is exactly the reason I recommend you install this mod in your game.
Skyland AIO
https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/34179
When it comes to modding graphic mods in Skyrim, it quickly becomes a rabbit hole, as there are hundreds, if not thousands of graphic mods available for Skyrim, including texture and flora overhauls, landscapes and water replacers, snow mods, and it goes on.
Therefore, I will just be recommending one, Skyland AIO (All in One), which is a collection of all Skyland mods bundled together featuring high quality and resolution texture overhauls for architecture and landscapes.
Skyland is created using 4K 3D scans of real-world surfaces and offers the most realistic visual overhaul in Skyrim, covering cities, towns, and villages to forts, dungeons, and caves, as well as landscapes from the Rift to the Reach and beyond.
Out of all the graphic mods I have installed in Skyrim, this does appear to be one of the more consistent one, but just bear in mind that the mod itself does weight in at around 6GB.
Skyland LOD
https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/87412
The Skyland LOD (Level of Detail) mod provides a preset LOD or level of detail for when you have the Skyland AIO mod installed, which in other words means that you will be able to the see the Skyland modded textures at greater distances.
I recommend that you install both Skyland AIO and the accompanying LOD for the best experience.
SkyUI
https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/12604
The User Interface (UI) for Skyrim was designed with a controller in mind, so it can be a bit jarring if you are using mouse and keyboard.
The SkyUI mod describes itself as an elegant, PC-friendly interface mod with many advanced features, one of which is to add new HUD elements, and my favourite is visible duration for summons and flesh spells, as in the vanilla game, the only way you could check this was to open up the menu.
The mod also supports third party mod integration, which will allow you to configure a mod through the mod manager section in the game’s menu, instead of using an in game spell or power.
For someone who uses a mouse and keyboard for RPGs, this mod is a godsend, and I strongly recommend it.
SSE Display Tweaks
https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/34705
The SSE Display Tweaks mod provides an all-in-one solution for smooth FPS-unlocked gameplay, including physics fixes, borderless full screen performance boosts, refresh rate control, highly configurable frame rate limiting, various bugfixes and more.
In other words, you can now play Skyrim at a frame rate higher than the standard 60FPS, and most importantly, without the game engine bugging out, which typically happens if you manually disable V-Sync through the game’s config files.
As someone who has a 165Hz refresh rate monitor, Skyrim running at 120FPS is fantastic experience, so I strongly recommend installing this mod if you have similar hardware.
Unofficial Skyrim Special Edition Patch
https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/266
One of the running jokes about Bethesda games is that they tend to be buggy at release, which over time get patched, however years later, there are still several bugs left in Skyrim.
Most are minor, usually item placements, perks not working correctly, weapons that do not have crafting recipes, or exploits to do with training skills.
The Unofficial Skyrim Special Edition mod is a comprehensive bug fixing mod with the goal to eventually fix every bug in Skyrim Special Edition that was not officially resolved by the developers to the limits of the Creation Kit and community-developed tools.
Without a doubt, this is one of the most important mods you should install when playing Skyrim on PC.
Wet and Cold
https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/644
The Wet and Cold mod adds weather-dependent visual effects and AI enhancements to the player and NPCs.
More specifically, in colder climates, the player character, NPCs and some creatures will now have a visible breath animation when breathing, rainfall and snow will now appear on the armour and clothing, and depending on their race, NPCs will actively seek shelter when it is raining or snowing.
The mod also adds new weather-related clothing to the game’s levelled lists, typically scarfs, gloves, or hats, which are often equipped once the weather turns, or alternatively found on bandits located at snowy locations.
Much like the Footprints mod from earlier, this functionality should have been implemented into the original game.

I've came back to Skyrim after a long time and I've immediately started modding it, but this time I've added some combat mods to spice it up. Unfortunately, the game crashes upon selecting "New Game". If anyone could help me with this issue, I would be most grateful.
Here is the list of active plugins in MO2: Skyrim.esm Update.esm Dawnguard.esm HearthFires.esm Dragonborn.esm ccBGSSSE001-Fish.esm ccQDRSSE001-SurvivalMode.esl ccBGSSSE037-Curios.esl ccBGSSSE025-AdvDSGS.esm Unofficial Skyrim Special Edition Patch.esp RSkyrimChildren.esm FISS.esp ClimatesOfTamriel.esm TrueHUD.esl skymojibase.esl 3DNPC.esp RealisticWaterTwo - Resources.esm Apachii_DivineEleganceStore.esm NoRecoil.esm MagicDuelReborn.esm SkyUI_SE.esp HD Lods SSE.esp Circlets and Masks with all Robes and Hoods.esp Immersive Sounds - Compendium.esp WARZONES - SSE - Civil Unrest.esp SMIM-SE-Merged-All.esp Gildergreen Regrown.esp IcePenguinWorldMap.esp DeadlySpellImpacts.esp Weapons Armor Clothing & Clutter Fixes.esp VisualAnimatedEnchants2023.esp Summermyst - Enchantments of Skyrim.esp Footprints.esp JKs Skyrim.esp Cutting Room Floor.esp DiverseDragonsCollectionSE.esp CBBE.esp Cloaks&Capes SMP.esp KSHairdosSMP.esp KSWigsSMP.esp The Eyes Of Beauty - Elves Edition.esp BarenziahQuestMarkers.esp RichMerchantsSkyrim_x2.esp Skyrim Immersive Creatures Special Edition.esp SkyrimUnleveled.esp Bijin AIO.esp Civil War Aftermath.esp OBIS SE.esp SeranaDialogAddon.esp Immersive Encounters.esp Man Those Borders!.esp Settlements Expanded SE.esp Legendary Skyrim Crossbows.esp Hothtrooper44_ArmorCompilation.esp Holidays.esp HarvestOverhaul_Redone.esp Wintersun - Faiths of Skyrim.esp Lit Road Signs.esp Skyrim Better Roads and Bridges - All In One - Merged.esp Guards_Armor_Replacer.esp Unique Uniques.esp Run For Your Lives.esp CitizensComplete.esp UniqueBorderGates-All.esp Skyrim Flora Overhaul.esp FloraRespawnFix.esp Ars Metallica.esp Improved Eyes Skyrim - Serana.esp Improved Eyes Skyrim - Vamp.esp Improved Eyes Skyrim.esp ClimatesOfTamriel-Nights-L1.esp 1nivWICCloaks.esp dD-No Spinning Death Animation Merged.esp Hothtrooper44_Armor_Ecksstra.esp MCMHelper.esp TKDodge.esp TrueDirectionalMovement.esp ValhallaCombat.esp FCO - Follower Commentary Overhaul.esp BetterThirdPersonSelection.esp skymoji.esp SkyHUD.esp AHZmoreHUD.esp TESL-LoadingScreens.esp ReadTheRoom.esp 3DNPC0.esp 3DNPC1.esp BeastHHBB.esp Faction Crossbows.esp Dr_Bandolier.esp Andromeda - Unique Standing Stones of Skyrim.esp HOR_AlchemyXP30.esp Apachii_DivineEleganceStore_Patch.esp CWRepairs.esp notice board.esp Prometheus_BeastSkeletons.esp armored-horses.esp The Paarthurnax Dilemma.esp Map Markers Complete.esp BentPines.esp Apocalypse - Magic of Skyrim.esp Skyland Watercolor - Slow Green-Vanilla.esp Apophysis_DPM_SE.esp Beards.esp BecomeABard.esp CWRNimriel.esp Guard Dialogue Overhaul.esp InstantMining.esp PrvtIRoyalArmory.esp skyforgedWeapons.esp Starting Spell Choice.esp UIExtensions.esp WardsFunctionalitiesExtended.esp WeaponsOf3E_SSE.esp RaceMenu.esp XPMSE.esp RaceMenuPlugin.esp RaceMenuMorphsCBBE.esp Precision.esp Attack_MCO.esp scar-adxp-patch.esp TW3SO.esp Realistic-Voice.esp RLO - Effects.esp chfshPlayerVoicesets.esp AMatterOfTime.esp AmazingFollowerTweaks.esp Killable Children.esp RSChildren.esp KC - USLEEP Patch.esp Imperious - Races of Skyrim.esp MLU.esp Helgen Reborn.esp ZIA_Complete Pack.esp Tools of Kagrenac.esp Blacksmith Forge Water Fix SE USSEP.esp JS Dragon Claws - Helgen Reborn Patch.esp Ordinator - Perks of Skyrim.esp HOR_OrdinatorPatch.esp Sacrosanct - Vampires of Skyrim.esp Immersive Citizens - AI Overhaul.esp CollegeOfWinterholdImmersive.esp CWICRFSEPatch.esp CWIOrdinatorPatchSSE.esp CWR_IC_Patch.esp Winterhold Restored.esp Winterhold Restored - JKs Skyrim Patch.esp Relationship Dialogue Overhaul.esp Alternate Start - Live Another Life.esp Alternate Start -- New Beginnings.esp RLO - Interiors.esp RLO - CRF Patch.esp RLO - IC Patch.esp RLO - Illuminated Spells.esp RealisticWaterTwo.esp RealisticWaterTwo - Alt Volcanic Watercolor.esp

I send out item requests as often as I can so my friends can get gold.
I'm also looking for a team to join. I am lvl14, 8☆, play daily, and contribute ~7000 points
Add Cremellomoon as a friend on Rival Stars Horse Racing to compare stats and gift items! https://cdn.pikpok.com/RSH/?friend_id=526919278

Please note this post is very long. I am a detailed person and just want everything out there.
Hello there Reddit. As the title says I am looking to replace a bi-weekly Friday game that I was part of but due to real life happening with the DM and various cancellations he decided to end the game. The thing is I really enjoyed the story I came up with for this character as well as some of the people despite only getting to play a few sessions. So I wanted to test the waters to see if any GM's were looking for players that I may be able to join and could potentially bring in others from the same game.
I am looking solely for 5E at this time as I am in school and I don't want to really learn new systems. Plus this character that I really want to play again was developed for 5E.
A Little About Myself
I am female and 30 years old, I have been playing D&D for 6-7 or so years give or take. I thus don't need much help at all in constructing the mechanic of characters. I am getting my AA and looking to Major in Psychology but so far that hasn't gotten in the way of my other campaigns.
I am very good at communication and unless its an emergency to the point I don't have time to warn ahead of time I ALWAYS let a DM know if life comes up for me to miss a session or so. I am someone who loves to work with a DM to build a story so I am a very rp focused and rp forward player. In turn I am always open to grow and learn.
I live for the "no way" moments of D&D. The surprises, the nat 20's and 1's that come at the right and wrong times, the character backstory reveals and mysteries, and of course the hijinks and really strange plans that somehow work that make everyone say "no way."
Experienced with
I have experience with roll20, and Foundry willing to learn others
Preferred communication is with Discord.
I don't wish to do any games that require a webcam (optional is fine) nor play by post.
What I look for in GM's
Respectful and great at communication. Creative individuals, I much prefer and seek out homebrew systems then modules. I want to see the worlds and idea's that a DM creates. I do not like player vs GM mentality nor GM vs Player mentality so someone of the same mind. I want to help build your story and want to give you a character that you can have fun with, and I want you to take what I give you and use it to truly to your best content. As little or as much that sparks the creative process. I like building relations with DM's, I dare DM's to hurt my characters on a regular basis.
Schedule
My Timezone is PST
I am looking primarily for bi-weekly game either Friday or Sundays. I can be persuaded into weekly but only on one condition. You see I am in a friend group where I started playing D&D our games have been going on for a long time. We have three "active" games still going but they are not by any means weekly, they are MAYBE monthly though lately its been "every few months". It's more that they like to take time to prepare, or psyche themselves up. So if it comes to a point where all the other players can play on that day, that I will very much probably choose to sit out a weekly session to play with my friend group with full knowledge it'll be awhile until the next session.
If this is okay then I can do weekly. And do please know my friend group is incredibly understanding, if we are in a very story driven period especially involved with my character I will mark as many days as needed as "cannot play" and my friends will plan for a different time and be willing to wait. It will never be "oh next session fighting big bad I am gonna ditch" more like "next session I know I won't be much involved or is a shopping episode I can afford to miss it". I stress heavily that this will not be a regular occurrence. A maybe once every few months.
Other life obligations may come up as well but that is the truth for everyone and as I said I will always communicate that.
Character
Like I mentioned above I do have a character that I really want to use that I didn't get to see her story come to life in this campaign. I am not opposed to making new characters but I just would love the chance to see her through since I only got like 4 sessions with her.
Her name is Samhain Beltane. (Saa-wnn) (Bell-tayn)
At least that is the name she is going by, her original name she cannot recall...and anytime she tries to recall those little details her mind goes foggy or even hurts like she's getting a migraine. She is a young woman somewhere around 16-19 its hard to tell due to her keeping her face covered with a porcelain mask.
Samhain is part of a group called The Eternal Masquerade, lead by a woman who calls herself
"Madam Carna Vall" to outsiders and clients and "Mama Carna Vall" to her troupe.
Everyone in the group wears circus and performing like attire, they seem like innocent entertainers and are a delight during festivals. People of nobility clamor for them to attend great balls and gala's. Their intentions are more then just mere entertainment, it is information. Madam Carna Vall, while extravagant as she is does not take too kindly to people in power who only know how to hoard and lord it over others. Overabundance of pride and arrogance is usually befalls kingdoms. But she also knows that great leaders and heroes need to be built through conflict and tough decisions, those who are too weak or afraid will also bring others down with them. She is thus on everyone's side and no one's side at the same time, as she finds secrets and blackmail on what all goes on in places where her troupe have significant hold. While people are entertained other members listen and sneak around to either find and unearth the rumors and scandals...or to start them. She has wrecked and built the reputations of many depending on how she feels will lead to the best results for the means of many.
Samhain came into her fold when she was a young child, due to unfortunate circumstances that lead to her parents demise. An event that shook Samhain's core, left alone...but only for a little while as her parents spirits would come to her and guide her. They told her who to seek out in Madam Carna Vall an ally who helped them before. It was them who would also give her a mask before she died and told her to never take it off, never let anyone see her true face, and to not use her name. This event would open her up to the spirits around her as she made many new friends and still looked over by her parents.
She is in mechanical terms intended to be a multi-class of Phantom Rogue and College of Spirits Bard. Her race is an Aasimar and while as a child she was protector due to the events she has fallen and the intention would be for her to eventually become protector again.
I don't want to go into further details just there is a lot with her parents as they were murdered by enemies of their past.
Should this post interest and you want to know more about myself or about the character please contact me here on reddit that you are interested and share with me your discord handle where I may contact you. Thank you so much for reading and hope to hear from someone.

Hello folks,
​
I am hybrid and actively trying to improve both strength and endurance. I have worked into a split that follows roughly two heavy leg days, and 20-25 mpw. I have adapted to this schedule and seen a bit of progress. 80% of my runs are easy and instead of a 3rd leg day I threw in sprints/tempo work. What I am thinking of experimenting with is taking off a leg day and attempting to reach 40 mpw. I am a slightly bigger lad, so I think this will help me lean out and put emphasis on my running which is what I am weaker at. I was going to follow this for 8-12 weeks and then re-implement more strength work. To be more clear, I would like to know if having training blocks where I ramp up my mileage and then another training block where I put emphasis on building strength is a good idea. Similar to bulking and cuttings relationship. Or would this not be productive and I should actively add mileage to my current split? To help steer your answer, I am in the military, so the race times I would need to improve in would be a 2 mile and 5 mile timed run. Objectively, for strength and endurance what has worked for you? Thanks in advance.

Note: This is a series I want to create, centred around some given element or facet of worldbuilding and storytelling. Primarily, each post will either be a piece of hard science in terms of physics or logistics or otherwise core elements of the setting itself (such as military structure), or non-physical core elements of the people and their world (such as sports and personal enjoyment matters, for emotional regulation and social stability, among other reasons). In short: all the things that actually create a functional, realistic culture.
A random (meaning, I have just picked it at random for today), often overlooked element within space opera (and sci-fi in general) would be all things recreational. You might not find a good way to heavily feature this into your (say) novel, game, or screenplay, but it can be something to just touch upon, and have in your notes, as it will at least indirectly relate to the wider world you're building (so, it's worth knowing, as the author).
The logic is very simple: using humanity as a fundamental base (technically, an axiom), we can conclude that any humanoid or even alien species would have to gift themselves some kind of national sport, wargame, gambling system, or otherwise. The real-world examples literally encompass almost all of culture itself, making me believe that if your people are even remotely humanoid in their fundamental nature, then the recreational is a core facet of culture itself. This is so integrated into our real culture (rather, cultures) that we take it for granted, and don't even think about it when it comes to fiction-writing. But, it's a nice thing to add if you want added realism and stability, or an extra human touch.
For whatever reason, fantasy seems to feature invented sports and the like far more than sci-fi (unless such is the entire narrative of the sci-fi story, of course -- and, then, it's typically car-based). If we look to history, we clearly have the very creation of modern dice (India) as a gambling tool, and we have wargames (Go and Chess, etc.) as either direct military training tools (wargames proper), or abstracted wargames for more general use, since at least 3000 BC. Sports-wise, we see Blood Bowl (Warhammer fantasy sports game), Quidditch (fantasy; Harry Potter, which is akin to football mixed with netball in the air), and a dozen major examples from sci-fi, often featuring murder and cars (which we could see as a kind of replacement for the Roman and Greek sports), or else some kind of American sport hybrid. These include Real Steel, Futuresport, The Running Man, Rollerball, and Death Race (also, movies by the same names).
The aforementioned are obviously plot devices, and possibly don't have a place within your space opera setting and story. But, the fundamental drive and psychology are there. There are a few other examples from sci-fi board games and novels. Not to mention general sports and activities, such as Swimming.
Personally, I have made my national sport and recreation activity Swimming. The reason is four-fold: (1) it is a driver for both health and relaxation; (2) it can be social and peaceful; (3) for symbolic reasons; and (4) because there is likely not much water in space, yet humans still have a deep drive towards water (naturally, this is only applicable to any water-based culture, such as humans). It also occurs to me that water is a natural fitting for space, more so, if we take the TV trope, 'space is an ocean' (which does seem to be the natural categorisation, though it's not the only one). Another reason might be that it creates a reward system/social mobility, or at least the implication of such. Maybe, boarding a spaceship and taking a trip to the 'local' Swimming Centre is the week's holiday for your lower class people. On the other hand, maybe the high class types sit in Swimming Centres all the time. Not an uncommon trend throughout both fiction and history, as you might imagine.
That's just my own example, and may act as a springboard (no pun intended). You can justify dozens of real sports and otherwise activities, or invent your own. They may be readily accessible, or limited to certain classes of people or otherwise groups. There will likely be many different activities and sports for all your peoples, just as we see on Earth.
If you're writing a novel, just one trip to one sports centre or otherwise will do the trick, assuming you have planted in the reader's mind the notion that this is very normal and healthy for the culture/people. Best is to try and fit it into the wider plot, or else as a passing element (a few pages). One natural way to deal with this is to tie such into a wider theme or plot-point. Don't just have people randomly go Swimming just to inform the readers that they are Swimming. You need to work it in a bit better than that.
Depending on your culture, you may want a dozen violent/unhealthy sports and activities, or you (i.e. your culture's governing body, etc.) may only regulate more peaceful, healthy ones. I would try and tie this into the wider theme, anyway, and take into account the kind of people/culture you have. For example, you may or may not want Football with ant-like robots. On the other hand, bottle-tossing for big space Russians always sounds like a fun game.
If your culture is based on Americans or Hongkongian, for example, then you should think about their native sports and activities, and how that might fit into whatever you're doing with them in space/the future. Other than that, you need to consider the (a) disposition of your culture; (b) the history of your culture; (c) the function of your culture; (d) the state of your culture; and (e) the peoples of your culture. Although this is not an exhaustive list, it should suffice.
It also occurs to me, we just don't see enough sports in space outside of these movies/stories that are wholly dedicated to said sports, which is weird considering how sport-obsessed humans have become since 500 BC (but, especially since 1920 AD). This is often in relation to the ruling classes in rich, urban settings (cities/towns), or the average citizens in urban areas, finding a bit more free time on their hands (i.e. Scotland and England circa 1920 AD). Makes sense: you have bored, work-less nobles, or even workers with nothing to do. They need something to do; thus, they invented all sorts of games, wargames, and sports. You see this with horse-related games, ball-related games, and even something like fox tossing. Tennis was 'the game' (popular sport) of the middle classes and above by the 1880s through the 1980s (hence, most early video sports games of the 1950s through 1970s were all Tennis-based). Worth noting that most early video games were themselves sports games or wargames! Actually, most video games are wargames circa 2023 AD, with a vast number of the rest being sports. I stress this only to stress the importance of such things to human culture and entertainment... indeed, most of our entertainment is also either war-based (Boxing, etc.) or otherwise sports (Football, etc.). Not shockingly, most modern sports were invented, therefore, in the British Empire (sometimes with French or Dutch roots). Older sports are seemingly universal -- ranging from Africa to Native Americans to India -- and are typically ball-based (classically, often using heads, or else leather balls).
Of course, most sports are impossible in zero gravity, so I'm just assuming you're creating some kind of zero gravity war-based game, or otherwise sport (fundamentally throwing-based or ball-based), or your culture is on a planet or space station of some kind, which has artificial gravity.
Tron is a great example of offering some inspiration (duel type, and others), not to mention Spy Kids 3D (car race), Speed Racer (car race), and Ready Player One (car race). Then, you have combat training type games (I'll just call these 'physical wargames') and VR games (Gamer movie, for example), not to mention VR holiday trips.
Speaking of which, I'm reminded of Germany's vast, cheap, powerful cruise trip system by 1938, which saw millions of working (and fairly poor) Germans taking such Party-run trips and holidays (mostly a propaganda tool, funded with blood money, of course). In the more modern context, this is what we saw by the 1950s in America and England with various holiday sites, theme parks, modern cruise trips, and beach holidays (though these do date to at least 1920, but typically only by the middle classes and above). No less, Tolkien himself once came on holiday to the town I live in (on the coast, North of England), which was a famous holiday town back in the 1850s through 1960s. This was commonplace, including long walks through the woods and various built-up areas. Even in the 1700s, people began going to the 'sea air' for so-called health benefits. In reality, this was likely due to the fact the city air was unhealthy. The sea air was simply fresh, clean air (though, it likely is good for you, psychologically speaking, compared to the grey-state of city life). All of this to say that humans have a deep desire to be in nature, and to relax. This is true most of all for the rich and urbanised (as you can imagine).
Space theme park, anyone? Giant cinema on the Moon? Sure, why not. Titanic cruise trip across the galaxy? Doctor Who already did that, but you get my point! There is much to be done, and you only have to add a few such items, and briefly touch upon them, but I think it does wonders for the human connection, and some added realism (assuming such correctly fits your setting and themes).
There are many other activities of note, of course, including but not limited to art groups, acting/plays, drinking games, general board/video games, card/dice/token games, sword-based sports, hunting, Shooting (sport), and actual warfare.
The only other thing I should like to say is that gambling is not always wholly a negative, nor drinking. These ensure that people have something to do at the end of eacfh day/week, without rioting against the system or going insane/depressed. Gambling and drinking are about as old as modern culture itself (at least 7,000 years), so it's not a trivial matter. You may or may not want these in your setting in some manner: think that the key positive function to gambling is social mobility, as it allows poor people to climb up the social ladder by winning large sums of money (or, rather, gives them the hope of such). However, this needs to be contained, because (a) you actually need people to climb the social ladder, unless they are kept there; and (b) studies indicate that gambling doesn't actually work in this way, as most winners fall back to zero after 12 months. This assumes you have some kind of social caste system, which is money-driven, of course (which is very common). Drinking is simple: it keeps men off the streets and not as depressed, which is very good for a functional culture (despite the major negative social (and health) impacts of drinking itself according to studies). Alcohol comes to us via the Arabic, and I read that it comes from at least 7,000 BC. I read that gambling stems from many games/betting from 'knucklebones' (goats/sheep, mostly, around the Near East, then India, China, Greece, etc.), around 5000 BC (at least). I'm not sure if this was purely for gambling purposes, or the later form of divination (hence, the origin of dice). We still treat dice (such as in modern board games) as if we are fighting the gods of fate... as if we are making a bet with the future itself. This is part of 'divination', at least. This makes sense, if you think about it in a Jungian and Darwinian context (most of all, of the typical male brain pattern of high risk and high reward, clearly stemming from hunting). This would be pure speculation, but I like to think that these early gamblers were betting on Fate, struggling with the spirits of the animals of said bones (goats/sheep), maybe trying to get good omen/luck from them. We have certainly seen a great deal of such activity in the past, as evidenced by cave paintings and various omen rituals. I believe a future space human culture would have such things in place, too, just in different ways.
Right now, for example, the major form of gambling is hitting young boys via video games and their 'loot crate' systems, which is actually very dangerous and often illegal. These are almost always on war-driven games, so the connection back to hunting goats and bone-dice is not such a leap -- it's just a simulated, digital, nested form. Another major form of gambling over the last few decaes has been Boxing, which is literal combat/fighting between man. If your space opera has a primary focus on actual warfare, however, I think such sports and games are unneeded (for the most part). Only within a non-war context would your culture require such replacements (i.e. sports and wargames), but I do believe the royals/nobles of your setting would have such activities, as they are likely to have great amounts of free time, and not actively enage in warfare (though, you could primarily fill their time with politics and/or religion).
I have said enough for today. Ah, speaking of which: talking might be another consideration for your culture. This is literally as old as man, and does count as such an activity in the context of debate. You famously find this within the Jewish and Islamic worlds: likely because they don't enage with the other items I mentioned as much, and their religions require great moral debate and such. On the other hand, Buddhism requires a lot of silent thinking (which is a kind of debate, in a sense). This heavily depends on your culture's primary religion and otherwise. Some cultures are almost purely geared towards warfare, for example, like the Akkadian Empire (though we are likely a bit harsh on that). In this case, the focus would be on action. If your culture is anything like the modern West, then it's also going to be heavily driven by action, purely due to the speed of the culture and its workers. How this manifests itself depends on the type of government and culture you have in place (the Dutch Empire vs. the U.S., for example).
I'm sure I've forgotten a few key items and categories, and I'm sorry for that!
(Clearly, within a cyberpunk direction or more classical space opera context, the primary free-time activities and modes tend to be centred around sex, war, and/or slave-labour, as shown by Star Wars in general, for example. This may or may not fit your world and story, however. The other core negative item would be gambling, which is the only item which doesn't innately involve the body, though often bleeds over into various animal gambling games/activities. You may find that you have certain sci-fi/space creatures in your world, for example, and find yourself creating a gambling game out of that. Typically, you either make said creatures fight each other or race/run. This typically keeps the more lower classes engaged in the 'slums' sector (typically of a planet). Very common trope/theme, as noted in the bright-cyberpunk-space-opera sort of movie, The Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), when they go to a trading hub planet, filled with crime, sex rings, and gambling, including little weird creatures fighting each other, akin to dog fighting or such on Earth. But, again: you don't actually require this, it's just one popular way to go within the wider sci-fi context, and it serves a few purposes, in-universe.)

“That’s Not Happening and It’s Good That It Is”

By Michael Anton July 26, 2021
Gaslighting getting you down? Feel like the regime has dialed the Megaphone up to, and past, eleven? You’re not crazy. It’s definitely happening and likely to get worse as our masters’ ability to cope with reality further worsens—or worse, they gain the complete and absolute control they seek. They’re both scornful and terrified of dissent, which explains why they incessantly shriek at us and lie to our faces.
So, to help you navigate the twitstorm, I present a guide to seven of the regime’s most common, oft-deployed lies. This is not meant to be comprehensive. I’m sure there are tactics they use that either I haven’t crystalized or that aren’t front-of-mind at the moment. I encourage others to expand the catalogue with their own observations. The better we can understand how they try to manipulate us, the better we can resist and counter it all.
Let’s start with the Unholy Trinity of ruling class horse manure. These first three are similar, but subtle differences determine the ways they’re used in differing circumstances.
The Law of Merited Impossibility
The coinage is Rod Dreher’s and goes back to the early debates on homosexual marriage. As Dreher formulates it, the Law of Merited Impossibility holds: “That will never happen, and when it does, boy will you [homophobes, transphobes, racists, sexists, whatever] deserve it.”
This Law is used, first, to disarm resistance to the latest leftist enthusiasm. Whatever the innovation is, it will have no adverse consequences. None! Puberty blockers and disfiguring surgeries have no downsides whatsoever. How dare you suggest they might!
Its second purpose is to dismiss out of hand “slippery slope” arguments—despite, or because of, the fact that every single such argument over the last twenty years at least has proved true. Worried that allowing people to “self-identify” as whatever sex they want will lead to pervy 50-year-old men exposing themselves to’ tween girls? Insist, loudly and indignantly, that that will NEVER happen and anyone who suggests it might is an alarmist bigot with a heart full of hate.
The third purpose is to enforce the new caste system. Those who get to impose fresh irrational indignities on the rest of us are the upper caste. Those who object, or even have reservations, are lower. The latter are not allowed to harbor, much less express, any doubts. Whatever humiliation the upper caste has planned for us, we deserve and must meekly accept. Hence when said pervy 50-year-old actually does start waving around “her” equipment in the girls’ locker room, if any parent dares object, let ’em have it with both barrels. That thing that ten seconds ago you said would “never” happen? Now it’s righteous punishment for the retrograde.
The Law of Merited Impossibility has done wonders for the Left in helping to ram through a wide variety of radical societal changes and cow into silence all opposition. It’s currently busy destroying girls’ and women’s sports, an outcome that we were assured would “never” happen. Though one wonders what the ladies did do to deserve it.
The Law is a bit passé, though, because our rulers rarely any longer feel the need to reassure normie Americans that everything will turn out OK, that the things we most fear won’t happen. Mostly, the holders of the Megaphone just skip to the second half, the angry insistence that we deserve it
The Celebration Parallax
A parallax is the apparent difference in position of the same object seen from different vantage points. For instance, an analogue speedometer that reads sixty miles per hour to the driver, but fifty to the passenger—even though the needle itself is only in one place.
The Celebration Parallax may be stated as: “the same fact pattern is either true and glorious or false and scurrilous depending on who states it.” In contemporary speech, on any “controversial” topic—or, to say better, regime priority—the decisive factor is the intent of the speaker. If she can be presumed to be celebrating the phenomenon under discussion, she may shout her approval from the rooftops. If not, he better shut up before someone comes along to shut him up.
Note also that the key distinction here is celebration versus non-celebration, not support versus opposition. One need not actually, clearly oppose the subject under discussion in order to be blameworthy. Declining or neglecting to celebrate it forcefully enough is enough. As in Stalin’s Russia, lack of enthusiastic clapping is regarded as opposition. The legitimacy of one’s right to state the same identical fact, in the same identical language, depends on who one is and what one thinks of it. Since the left presumes that all persons of color approve of the phenomena covered by the Celebration Parallax, the Parallax is really a test to distinguish allies from Deplorables.
To the best of my recollection, the origin of the Celebration Parallax arose from the need to defend “affirmative action,” a very unpopular policy since its inception. The party line therefore goes like this: People of color must be granted explicit preferences to overcome America’s “legacy of racism” so that we may “diversify” America’s power centers and end white male dominance, a move that—in addition to being necessary to address the country’s inherent racism—improves those institutions by infusing them with different and hitherto neglected points of view. Also, kids of color need “role models” who “look like themselves.”
But there is no such thing as “reverse discrimination,” which is itself a racist term, and there are no “quotas” (another racist term) whatsoever, but only “timetables,” “goals,” and measures to evaluate applicants and candidates “holistically.”
On no subject is the Parallax more prevalent than immigration. Depending on who’s doing the talking, the demographic transformation of the United States is either a glorious trend that portends a permanent Democratic majority and a more “vibrant” future, or else a “conspiracy theory” that is not happening in any way at all, no-how.
The Left insists that concerns from certain quarters that immigration policy in America (and Europe) amounts to a “great replacement” is a “dangerous,” “evil,” “racist,” “false” “conspiracy theory.” But a leftist New York Times columnist can write an article entitled “We Can Replace Them” and . . . nothing. [Redditor’s note: Michelle Goldberg calls for politically dispossessing white nationalists, not displacing white Americans from America.] Same fundamental point, except she’s all for it and her targets aren’t. A U.S. Senator can exult that demographic change will doom Republicans. [That is a link to a more or less openly white nationalist website.] Joe Biden himself can refer to an “unrelenting stream of immigration.” Except they’re celebrating it and calling for it. Anyone on the Right who uses the exact same words will not merely be denounced; the very fact pattern that is affirmed when Biden says it will be denied when the Rightist repeats it.
The Law of Salutary Contradiction
Which brings us to the Law of Salutary Contradiction, whose formulation is: “That’s not happening and it’s good that it is.” While the Law of Merited Impossibility applies to the future, this one is about the present. It’s what the ruling class immediately switches to after what they insisted would “never” happen is happening before everyone’s eyes.
Is the NSA spying on Tucker Carlson? That’s an insane conspiracy theory . . . which is also warranted by Tucker’s treasonous contacts with Russian officials as he seeks an interview with Putin.
Is the Biden Administration inviting in illegal immigrants, then putting them on military planes and shipping them to the heartland? Absolutely not . . . and these future Nobel Prize winners deserve their shot at the American Dream.
Once you learn to recognize this pattern, you see it everywhere. It is the cornerstone of ruling class rhetoric in the current year.
The Smails Exhortation
Turning from the Unholy Trinity, we see that the ruling class condemns all of us as entitled boors. In their eyes, we deserve nothing. We have no reasonable wants nor any just complaints. Our only role is to accept getting nothing and learning to like it.
Our masters bleat about “democracy” but have redefined the word to mean “getting exactly what we”—i.e., they—“want.” Any ostensibly “democratic” outcome that might result in us getting what we want is ipso facto illegitimate. Border wall? Fascist! Immigration enforcement? Racist and fascist! Law and order? Double racist and fascist! Better trade deals? Economically illiterate! An end to endless wars? Catastrophic! And also, somehow, “anti-Semitic.” Penis-free girls’ bathrooms? Transphobic!
No matter is too small, too local, too private, or too inconsequential to escape their gaze and slip their punishment. Bake the cake, bigot.
Mostly what they bleat, though, is anti-American, anti-white, anti-conservative, anti-Christian, anti-rural, anti-Southern, anti-Red-state, anti-redneck, anti-working-class hate. Every media organ and cultural citadel blares this message loudly and incessantly.
The purpose is hard to figure. On one hand, it’s demoralizing, which certainly serves ruling class ends, and it fires up their coalition. On the other hand, if you’re trying to boil a frog, it’s best not to tell him the plan, as he might try to jump out of the pot.
Which brings us to:
The Lie-Back Imperative
This tactic, and the next one, are related to what Steve Sailer has called “The War on Noticing.” [Steve Sailer is a white supremacist.]
The regime knows it’s in a difficult rhetorical position. The heart of its argument is that some people are inherently innocent and good while others are inherently guilty and bad and must be treated accordingly. To ears insufficiently attuned to this new understanding of justice, this can sound unjust. Tying moral worth to circumstances of birth? Nottreating people equally? Punishing the living for the sins of the dead?
Why all this is—contrary to appearances, logic, and common sense—“just” requires considerable explanation. To the extent that people “get it,” they will sharply divide between those who say that the “advantaged” have it coming and those who object “No, I don’t.”
The problem for the regime, therefore, is that while its message is very effective at egging on its own side, it can be equally effective at alarming and rousing its targets. The ideal solution would be to come up with a public message that rallies the regime’s base while lulling its targets, but this turns out to be very difficult, if not impossible.
Another option is to forbid the targets from speaking up—hence the Celebration Parallax.
But the regime’s preferred mode is not merely to allow its targets to speak, but to require it—so long as the targets deny the regime apparatchik said what she said. Hence the response to “You are evil and deserve what’s coming to you” must be “You don’t think ill of me and wish me no harm.” Every punch in the face must be publicly rationalized, by the victim, as a massage. The purpose is partly to bully the frog into staying in the pot and partly a matter of humiliation. In the oft-quoted words of Anthony Daniels, “a society of emasculated liars is easy to control.”
A great many “conservatives” are not merely willing but eager to play along. Indeed, whole institutions of the establishment “Right” do little else but reassure their ostensible constituency that the Left not only doesn’t mean its proto-genocidal rhetoric but isn’t even saying it.
It is an odd feature of the current year that calling an avowed enemy a liar—publicly insisting that her plain words could not possibly mean what they plainly say—not only fails to provoke an angry denial but is welcomed by the liar herself. Anything to keep the regime’s targets somnambulant for as long as possible. The more Americans who wake up and realize that contemporary leftism is a revenge plot with themselves as its targets, the more will object and try to stop it. This is what the regime, at present, most fears and is trying to prevent.
The Enmity Counteraccusation
This one is perhaps the most brazen. As I put it elsewhere, “the enemy calls you its enemy for recognizing its enmity.”
As regime hacks spew vile, borderline—and sometimes explicitly—violent rhetoric at you, they will immediately wheel and counterattack if you dare object. [Some guy on Twitter suggested Mr. Anton get the rope for predicting that George Soros would initiate a coup against the Trump administration ahead of the 2020 election.] Don’t appreciate being called evil because of your race? Then you are “divisive”! Dare put up your hands to block an incoming punch? That’s violence! You’re just supposed to take it.
They’re enemies who treat you like enemies while they insist that you treat them as friends. At least, though, unlike the housebroken “Right,” they stab you in the front.
A related point is that if you so much as speculate as to where their insane vitriol might lead the country, you will be accused of wishing for that outcome. It’s entirely possible that decades of anti-American, anti-white, anti-Christian animosity, coupled with nation-destroying trade, immigration and foreign policies, will not lead to civil war. Then again, it’s entirely possible that they might. If they do, the ruling class and the Left will bear the blame. Naturally, though, they will blame us.
Indeed, they already are. Attempts to head off such a conflict by warning about it are treated as provocations intended to produce said conflict. One can be forgiven for wondering if their plan is to start it and then say we started it, sort of like insisting Poland triggered the Second World War by shooting back.
“You’re worthless, baby; and if you even think of trying to leave me, I’ll kill you”
Which brings us to the last. Deplorable Americans are loudly and incessantly said to be the worst people in the history of the planet, pure unadulterated evil, with no legitimate concerns, interests or grievances.
Well, OK. Then why live with us? Why treat as anathema even the most moderate, banal, attempt to allow some measure of federalism and local control?
There can only be two answers: either our masters know (or intuit) deep down that we can live without them but they can’t live without us, or else they want to keep us around to administer what they view as deserved punishment.
Being neither a psychiatrist nor a theologian, I could not say whether the roots of this behavior are psychotic or demonic, but in this layman’s judgement, it exhibits key characteristics of both.
But understand this: they hate you and want you cancelled and ostracized, or at least utterly subservient and obedient. You owe them no consideration. Their every argument, every sentence, every word are proffered in bad faith. As Mary McCarthy said of Lilian Hellman, “Every word she writes is a lie—including ‘and’ and ‘the.’”
The regime is powerful, which means we must calibrate our resistance carefully. But to think clearly, our minds must be free. Which requires understanding its rhetoric and seeing through it. I hope this short guide is useful in that effort.

We’re needing a driver for a P2 car in VSCA league and various GT3 cars in other special events. iRating preference: 1500-4000
The league we race in is VSCA, the league follows the IMSA schedule and is a FCY league. We all drive “part time” but field an entry in every VSCA event so we’re not expecting an incoming driver to be committed to every single race. VSCA races their endurance races on the same day as the iRacing “official events”, and the rest of the schedule (usually) follows a week before or after the actual IMSA event. We’re currently second in the sprint cup standings and 5th in the overall season standings after missing the Daytona 24. We’re not the fastest team on the grid but work hard to have good pace, good strategy, and finish races with the lowest amount of incident points possible. Our focus isn’t on raw speed as much as keeping the car clean and out of trouble and finishing races. When we race the other iRacing endurance special events we usually have a poll of who can/wants to race and what car.
We’re an American based, English speaking team, that mostly resides on the eastern side of the US.
Reply here or DM me if you’re interested in joining our team and I’ll shoot a discord link

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Schedule

Game	Runner / Channel	Time / Link
Pre-Show (before the marathon%)	Interview Crew	0:29:00
Sonic Frontiers (Any%)+	AlphaDolphin	1:07:08
Bugsnax (All Bosses Co-op)+	Konception and limy	0:34:51
Mega Man Maker (any%)+	megamarino	0:28:10
F-Zero X (All Tracks (Expansion Kit))	1davidj	1:25:00
Skate 2 (Any%)+	SupaScared	0:45:00
The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap (Any%)	Myth197	1:40:00
BONUS GAME 1 - Ring Fit Adventure (Beat World 1 Intensity 30 Restricted)	Verxl	0:20:00
Luigi's Mansion (100% Race)+	HDlax and Jovin	1:15:00
Daily Recap - Sunday (Recap%)	Interview Crew	0:15:00
Devil May Cry 4: Special Edition (NG Devil Hunter - Nero/Dante)	DECosmic	1:20:00
Thief (2014) (Any% (Rogue, No DLC))+	DemonicRobots	1:25:00
Banjo-Kazooie (100% no FFM)+	duck	2:08:00
Dark Summit (Any%)+	flatline	0:50:00
Bloody Hell (Any%)+	BystanderTim	0:15:00
Loom (Any% VGA)+	LMMotoss	0:30:00
Michael Jackson's Moonwalker (Any%)	RetroBrando	0:22:00
SuzukiBakuhatsu (Any% Hard)	quino	0:20:00
Metal Slug XX (normal Any% eri)+	sukimos	0:25:00
Anodyne (All Bosses)	LaserTrap_	0:27:00
PHOGS! (Solo Any%)+	Sean_A	1:05:00
Alien Swarm (Any% Co-op)+	Kykystas and mr.deagle	0:20:00
Attack on Titan 2: Final Battle (Season 3)	Froob	0:52:00
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII - Reunion (Any% Race)+	desa3579 and BigSid	1:20:00
Peggle Deluxe (Any%)+	britsha	1:20:00
ENDER LILIES: Quietus of the Knights (All Spirits)+	Keizaron	1:10:00
Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus (All Keys)+	Zenthrow	1:12:00
The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds (Any%)	benstephens56	1:35:00
Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon (Any% Ultimate)	The Blacktastic	0:25:00
Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon 2 (Episode 1: Normal/Veteran)	DanTheVP	0:38:00
BONUS GAME 2 - Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (Randomizer- Any% Glitchless (Lycanthrope))	Dr4gonBlitz	1:05:00
Daily Recap - Monday (Recap%)	Interview Crew	0:15:00
StepManiaX (Game Showcase)	ZephyrGlaze, WDRM, and chezmix	1:20:00
Katana ZERO (All Stages Normal)+	Modulottie	0:24:00
Hearthstone: Knights of the Frozen Throne (Solo Adventures)	srd_27	0:30:00
Overcooked! 2: Night of the Hangry Horde (All (Hangry) Horde Levels)	RUBIEHART, Peace Egg, and Sunbrojade	1:00:00
Chained Echoes (Any% No CW - Fresh File)+	moonblazewolf	0:53:00
Alpha Prime (Any%)+	danejerus	0:34:00
Rose of Meat (Any%)	shmumbler	0:12:00
SNOLF (Any% No Coordinate Warp)+	dowolf	0:40:00
Marathon Infinity (All Main Levels - Kindergarten)	tbcr	0:35:00
G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero (Any%)+	MixMastaPJ	0:25:00
Maniac Mansion (Any%)+	Sathdresh	0:08:00
Disney's 102 Dalmatians: Puppies to the Rescue (All Levels, Inbounds race (PS2))	passere and TaintedTali	0:32:00
Ratatouille (Any%)+	adef	0:25:00
CrossCode (Any% No Menu Glitches)+	EpicYoshiMaster	1:35:00
Hi-Fi RUSH (Any% NG Easy)+	MoistRock	2:45:00
Bastion (Live Tutorial Showcase)	Cosmic_Bones and SeaAverage	0:35:00
Returnal (Fresh File Glitched (PC))+	cavecavecave	0:40:00
The Elder Scrolls Anthology (Main Series)+	Chronos_R	2:00:00
BioShock 2 (Any%)	bloodthunder	1:05:00
BONUS GAME 3 - Halo 3 (Legendary)	g3lk_jr	1:25:00
Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes (Any% - Normal)+	NickRPGreen	1:11:00
Daily Recap - Tuesday (Recap%)	Interview Crew	0:15:00
Silent Hill: Homepour (All Bosses NG+)	shmumbler	2:45:00
SIGNALIS (Any% Casual Difficulty / Memory Ending)+	DruciferPlays	0:50:00
Choo-Choo Charles (Any%)+	Bird650	0:25:00
Resident Evil 6 (Ada vs Jake, Coop, Amateur, NG+)+	TaintedTali and texan_red_wolf	1:20:00
Dead Rising 2 (TimeSkip NG)+	Ecdycis	1:00:00
Kidnapped (Any%)+	sharkhat87	0:10:00
Goosebumps: Dead of Night (Any% Normal)+	nyiddle	0:15:00
Beard Blade (Any%)+	janglestorm	0:54:00
Dharma Doujo (Any%)	Lizstar	0:40:00
Gauntlet (Any% Co-op)+	yelsraek and chessjerk	0:20:00
Sifu (WUDE Any% (Master))+	EileenCream	0:52:00
Exodus from the Earth (Any%)+	catalystz	0:35:00
Touhou 14.3: Impossible Spell Card (All Scenes No Items)	msm_smtn	1:20:00
Shatterhand (Any%)+	Amad	0:24:00
lil gator game (Any%)+	ItzBytez	0:18:00
Dangun Feveron (Arcade)	Qlex	0:22:00
Trine Enchanted Edition (Any% NG+)+	GrosHiken	0:25:00
N++ (Co-op Legacy X-row)	killingpepsi and XandoToaster	0:25:00
HITMAN 3 (Any% Freelancer Campaign)	Frote7	0:30:00
Shadow the Hedgehog (Glitchless Bidwar)+	MetalMedb	0:20:00
Sonic Adventure (DX) (All Stories Relay)+	SpacebarS, shovelclaws, Themimik, Yoshipuff, AlphaDolphin, and Allegro	1:50:00
The Legend of Zelda: Majoras Mask (Blitz Randomizer)+	spikevegeta	2:30:00
BONUS GAME 4 - Super Mario Odyssey (Any%)	Dangers	1:02:00
Daily Recap - Wednesday (Recap%)	Interview Crew	0:15:00
Paper Mario (Any% no ace)	Mx_4	1:50:00
True Crime: New York City (Any%)+	pmcTRILOGY	1:00:00
Golf It! (Classic First 5 Maps 100% Race)+	Nichole Goodnight and Bathinjan	0:30:00
Hobo Cat Adventures (Any%)+	yoshipro	0:20:00
Batman Forever (Any%)	Faust4712	0:45:00
Give Me Toilet Paper! (Hand%)+	Asuka424	0:13:00
Pepsiman (Any%)	TheFlyingMarlin	0:28:00
Stair Quest (Stair%)+	davidtki	0:15:00
The Cat in the Hat (PS1) (Any%)+	Mildew	0:12:00
Wayne's World (Any%)	Ritzblues	0:30:00
The Incredible Hulk (Any%)+	Iceplug	0:20:00
Pocky & Rocky Reshrined (Any% Uzume)+	EODTexSR	0:25:00
The Curse of Monkey Island (Any% Mega-Monkey)+	frozenspade	0:24:00
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (Any% (No 3rd-party FPS caps))	Joshimuz	4:20:00
Darkest Dungeon (Defeat Hag/NecromanceSwine Prince Bidwar)+	RebelDragon95	0:50:00
Mega Man 6 (Any% 2 Players 1 Controller)	DarkTerrex and Ppotdot1	0:41:00
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Any%)	mralberto23	3:00:00
Pizza Tower (Any%)+	SoaringSloth	1:20:00
BONUS GAME 5 - Titanfall 2 (Any%)	Blaidan	1:25:00
Daily Recap - Thursday (Recap%)	Interview Crew	0:15:00
Gunfire: Reborn (Qing Yan - Full Game - Reincarnation 1)+	Shockwve	0:35:00
Crash Bandicoot: N. Sane Trilogy (Full Trilogy Any%)	Murcaz	2:40:00
Amnesia: Rebirth (Any%)+	bloodthunder	1:00:00
Shantae and the Pirate's Curse (All Dark Magic, Pirate Mode, No OOB)	TheSoundDefense	1:20:00
Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series (Klonoa 1 Any% Easy Support Mode)+	Mr_Shasta	0:50:00
VVVVVV (Any% Glitchless)+	Metroid Crime	0:22:00
SaGa Frontier (Story Bidwar)+	Raclesis	1:00:00
Final Fight 3 (Co-Op Any% (Easy))+	JaekRock and Space Coast Gaming	0:25:00
Shinobi 3: Return of the Ninja Master (Expert)	dagronSR	0:30:00
Wild Guns (Any% hard co-op)+	giygasblues and Crak Atak	0:25:00
Lunistice (Any% Glitchless)+	Nestani	0:35:00
X-Men Arcade (2-player 1CC Attempt)	LRock617 and MetroidMaster	0:30:00
Dark Forces (Easy (TFE))+	CovertMuffin	0:26:00
The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords (Any% Co-op)+	AmberCyprian and TGH	0:30:00
Metroid Prime Remastered (Any%)+	Samura1man	2:00:00
Pokémon Colosseum (Any% Race)+	Swiftalu and Sparkle	4:05:00
Kaizo Monkey Ball (Story Mode)	IkeSMB	0:40:00
Sure Shot (100%)+	Shoujo	0:25:00
Spin Rhythm XD (XD Turntable Showcase)	AngryScootsman	1:00:00
BONUS GAME 6 - Clone Hero (Showcase)	Frif	0:54:00
Daily Recap - Friday (Recap%)	Interview Crew	0:15:00
Celeste (TAS- True Ending)+	Lmjacks, tmcalvins, and Vamp	0:36:00
Super Mario 64 (Randomizer- 70 Star Non-Stop)+	360Chrism	0:42:00
Kingdom Hearts Final Mix (Any% Proud Race)+	MistMaster1 and Violin	2:30:00
TimeShift (Casual Difficulty)+	ChurchnSarge	1:05:00
Neopets: The Darkest Faerie (Any%)+	Jaxler	0:50:00
Tony Hawk's Underground (Beginner Any%)	Biglaw	0:37:00
Spelunky 2 (Spelunker Trials Any%)+	Lavableman	0:20:00
Ori and the Blind Forest Definitive Edition (All Skills No OOB/TA)+	Primorix	0:35:00
Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg (Any%)	monkeysmb	1:12:00
Final Fantasy IV Pixel Remaster (Any%)	Zic3	2:55:00
I Wanna Be the Guy Remastered (Any%)+	LogicPQ	0:25:00
Superhot VR (Any%)+	davidtki	0:15:00
Super Mario Bros. (Warpless)+	GTAce	0:20:00
Fire Emblem Engage (Any%)+	Claris	1:15:00
Pokémon Scarlet/Violet (Victory Road)+	eddaket	2:30:00
Elden Ring (Any% Glitchless)	Mitchriz	1:20:00
Super Mario Maker 2 (Relay Race)	TheRileyC, Aurateur, PangaeaPanga, TanukiDan, Shoujo, Caspur189, LilKirbs, and Thabeast721	1:40:00
BONUS GAME 7 - The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Any% Blindfolded)	Bubzia	1:45:00
Baron Of Shell (100%)+	grandpoobear	0:48:00
Event Recap (Recap 100%)	Interview Crew	0:20:00
Super Metroid (Co-Op Any%)+	ShinyZeni and zoast	0:50:00
Finale! (The End%)+	Tech Crew	0:20:00