Katt williams quotes get more haters

https://preview.redd.it/leqhamlomb0d1.png?width=1140&format=png&auto=webp&s=86e24fe5fe7b69b062e20b429c8b250fa1b6a342
Very Likely (99.9%) - Ally
I highly doubt that the finale will consist of only DC1 characters, and of the four DC2 characters left, two of them (Aiden, Riya) were already finalists and Yul would need an absolutely insane amount of plot armor to even reach the mid-merge, let alone finals.
Ultimately, Disventure Camp isn't Total Drama and there is a non-zero chance of a double-finalist, but I doubt that will happen based on the other ex-finalist's track records so far this season (4/6 of them have been booted before the Merge. Heck, James, the most recent winner, was the first boot).
I also think that Ally as a character will undergo major development in the imminent merge episodes, an Underdog Arc essentially, thanks to all of her close connections getting eliminated successively. I can imagine her Underdog Arc is centered around her developing more confidence in herself and her abilities and overcoming the haters. This would help mold her into true finalist material.
Likely - Alec, Gabby
I think that Alec is very likely to be a finalist given three major factors; he's been playing the best game so far asides from maybe Ashley, is the de facto main antagonist of the season, and it's possible that Odd Nation Cartoons would want each generation to be equally represented in the finals (Alec representing the DC1 Remaster) + a male finalist (there has not been a single male finalist from DC1).
Gabby, similarly to Ally, has immense potential for individual character development now that Ellie's gone and she's no longer essentially being reduced to a sidekick (she would also be representation for the BETA DC1 generation). Granted, Gabby is an insanely unpredictable individual and it's very possible she ends up not making the finale either because of being blindsided by the Villains, a game twist, or perhaps the writers trying not to essentially create Female Mal.
Potential - Ashley, Grett, Tom
If any of these individuals were in the finale, I wouldn't be too surprised at all given their current and potential future major involvement in the season's plotlines and opportunities for character development. With that being said though, I don't think any of these three being finalists is the mean outcome as of EP9 (though Grett has higher chances than either Ashley or Tom, both of whom are major physical threats who will be targeted the moment the teams merge).
Unlikely - Jake
I have seen alot of recent discourse on this forum that Jake will not only be a finalist, but that he'll be the winner of DCAS. I disagree because, for all intents and purposes, he's already a winner in all but name. As Miriam's grandson-figure, Jake has been a direct beneficiary of her $1,000,000, being able to move out of his parents' house thanks to it, travel, etc (and if the Miriam's death rumors end up being true, God forbid, then Jake is probably inheriting the remainder of the cash).
Jake's large amounts of focus in the pre-merge also make me doubtful that he'll ultimatley be a finalist. He gives off major Gabby vibes (she was the de facto protagonist in the pre-merge of remastered DC1, only to end up being the merge boot), plus he already had large focus in that season.
In addition to all of those above points, Jake also has plenty of potential enemies (the Villains, Aiden, and potentially Ally the second Ashley gets the boot). He isn’t lasting long unless he pulls a Hunter and wins every single immunity until the final four.
Very Unlikely - Aiden, Riya, Yul
Aiden and Riya were already finalists last season, and although as mentioned earlier DC isn’t TD, judging by the track records of the other finalists in this show, they’re surely destined for failure barring something insane.
Yul is imo even *less* likely than Aiden or Riya because in addition to him being near-universally hated among the cast (including within his own alliance), his relationship with the one person who actually likes him (Grett) is starting to tear apart at the seams and it’s very likely that gets him eliminated next episode barring another joint elimination or some other twist.

“Love, duty,… The machines had been built by men who had little use for such things, being like machines themselves. So they built new men, men without chests, father says. Men made stupid by the machines to serve their designs.” -Howling Dark, Chapter 65

Here Suzuha is telling Hadrian the history of the Mericanii. What’s interesting is that “men without chests” is a phrase and chapter title used by CS Lewis in The Abolition of Man. This book is Lewis’ critique of subjective/scientific morality, and a defence of traditional morality, which Lewis calls ‘the Tao’.

“We make men without chests and expect of them virtue and enterprise. We laugh at honour and are shocked to find traitors in our midst. We castrate and bid the geldings be fruitful.” -The Abolition of Man

I think these next two quotes illustrate that Hadrian and the Sollan Empire—even with all their flaws—try to conform to traditional morality or ‘the Tao’.

“Tao. It is the reality beyond all predicates, the abyss that was before the Creator Himself. It is Nature, it is the Way, the Road. It is the Way in which the universe goes on, the Way in which things everlastingly emerge, stilly and tranquilly, into space and time. It is also the Way which every man should tread in imitation of that cosmic and supercosmic progression, conforming all activities to that great exemplar.” -The Abolition of Man
“The Empire is a river, it has currents and a course. And while our movement may be limited—we are always limited. By our bodies, as you correctly noted. By our minds, by nature itself. Freedom is accepting those limitations and responding to them with humility. We cannot change nature.” -Kingdoms of Death, Chapter 14

This contrasts with other societies like the Lothrians, Extras, Demarchists, and the Mericanii, who embrace a scientific morality or try to transcend morality. But even when rejecting traditional morality they cannot escape the Tao.

“What purport to be new systems or (as they now call them) ‘ideologies’, all consist of fragments from the Tao itself, arbitrarily wrenched from their context in the whole and then swollen to madness in their isolation, yet still owing to the Tao and to it alone such validity as they possess.” -The Abolition of Man
“sweeping away the old is like knocking the foundations of a tower out from under your feet. Tradition grounds a man. Even for you Lothrians it is so.” -Kingdoms of Death, Chapter 14

Even if the Lothrians pride themselves for sweeping away traditional morality, their Lothriad still carry’s echos of the Tao:

“Let each toil for the good of all. Let there be bread, and board, and good order for all who toil.” -Kingdoms of Death, Chapter 10

The Lothrians and ancient Mericanii were also ruled by a class of people CS Lewis would call “conditioners”. We see humans being treated like livestock. The Chairs of the Lothrian Commonwealth need not adhere to the strict linguistic rules which they enforce. Similarly, we learn in Disquiet Gods that “American Princes” still managed the Mericanii machines without subjecting themselves to a cancerous fate. Lewis’ worst case scenario—the abolition of man—is realized in the Sun Eater universe.

“the man-moulders of the new age will be armed with the powers of an omnicompetent state and an irresistible scientific technique: we shall get at last a race of conditioners who really can cut out all posterity in what shape they please.” -The Abolition of Man
“critics may ask ‘Why should you suppose they [conditioners] will be such bad men?’ But I am not supposing them to be bad men. They are, rather, not men (in the old sense) at all. They are, if you like, men who have sacrificed their own share in traditional humanity in order to devote themselves to the task of deciding what ‘Humanity’ shall henceforth mean. ‘Good’ and ‘bad’, applied to them, are words without content: for it is from them that the content of these words is henceforward to be derived.” -The Abolition of Man

Hadrian does not believe that humans need to be conditioned. He sees that while the Sollan Empire has flaws (like slavery and their Palatine eugenics system), the empire is not trying to change what humanity is.

“At least the Empire protects humanity… Humanity. And mankind. The Commonwealth’s ideals were as toxic to the human animal as the surgeries and augmentations the Extrasollarians enjoyed. Each saw humanity as a problem to solve.” -Kingdoms of Death, Chapter 14

P.S. I think Sun Eater is so great on rereads for reasons like this. I made so many more connections like this on my reread. On a surface level it’s a fun story, but there are also profound themes. Btw thanks for reading if you made it this far, I know this is a bit long.

Traded in my old device when upgrading to a new phone. Was told to expect credit up to $800+ within 2-3 billing cycles. The device was in perfect condition, so I was expecting to receive that credit.
Two months passed, no news—followed up via chat, was told to wait a couple more cycles.
Another two months passed, no news—followed up via chat, was told they were missing some info on the old phone, and the refund was never going to get processed if I didn't follow up. Fine, provided info, also thought to confirm the amount of the refund, got EXPLICIT, yes in writing, confirmation that all $800+ credit would be refunded in 36 installments. The months that had passed would be provided as a lump sum, within 2-3 billing cycles.
Another two months passed with no news. I followed up via chat and was told FOR THE FIRST TIME that I do not qualify for the $800+ credit because I do not have a qualifying plan. At this point, I asked to speak to a real person. After spending an hour on the phone and considering the facts that 1) I was indeed informed (via the usual long terms and conditions that you scroll through and click 'yes' at the end) at trade-in that only certain plans are qualifying, 2) a significant amount of time has passed with no voluntary communications from ATT, and 3) I was promised the entire $800+ credit in writing by an AT&T representative, AT&T agreed to provide me with a credit of $400+ (half the initial amount). I asked for a confirmation, received a text, and was told the credit would show up in a few business days. I thought the matter was closed.
THE NEXT DAY, I received a text message stating that the credit was under review and was asked to call AT&T. I called and, after an hour's wait, spoke to a representative. I was then told the "system" (direct quote) rejected the request submitted by the representative I spoke to yesterday. I asked if the person who approved it yesterday could override it. The representative answered no, stating that we have to work under the "system." I asked if someone within AT&T could override the "system." The answer I received was basically "no." The representative was adamant that there was nothing they could do about the "system" not letting the credit go through.
I am on the phone with the supervisor now—will see how this goes (TO BE CONTINUED).

Hi! I'm looking for a co-writer to help me write my WIP. If you're interested and want more information, dm me on Discord (user Jessi11)
A bit of the plot: Peter Johnston, a regular college student, works at an art gallery as a tour guide. He encounters a glowing scorpion sculpture at the gallery, which causes an explosion and leaves him with powers. Peter decides to become a superhero and joins the Noveas (Avengers) to help stop villains. After training, he creates a suit and takes the name "Arachnite."
Mark Williams, furious about being fired, sets the gallery on fire, but Peter persuades him not to. Mark then takes on the task of murdering his boss and his minions, he turns in to a supervillain named "Havoc." Peter asks the Noveas if he can defeat the Havoc by himself, hoping to impress them and become a member of their group.
Peter gets multiple attacks from the Havoc, but on his third encounter, he is able to knock him down. The Viper, a mercenary that the Noveas hate, helps Peter without him knowing. Peter is unaware of the Viper's involvement, but they team up to defeat him. An unlikely friendship forms between Peter and the Viper and eventually into something more, and they continue to defeat villains together.
In the end, Peter and the Viper form a strong bond, stopping the Havoc and continuing to defeat villains.
There's more to the story and I've only done 2 chapters so it would be really helpful if I had some people to help me.
Thanks for reading and have a great day!

I'm in Minnesota. There was damage to our house from a hail storm last August. We were solicited by a construction company to fix the damage, where they would work with our insurance company and the only thing we would have to pay is our deductible. The damage was: roof, windows, interior damage from leaking, garage door, gutters.
When the construction company/general contractor (GC) got into it, they said that there was more damage to the roof and windows than our insurance company (IC) was providing funds for. The GC and IC couldn't come to an agreement, so our GC told us that it would need to go to appraisal. The GC provided us with the appraiser they use in these situations and told us everything we should communicate to our IC. We made sure to get a supplement to our contract with the GC to ensure we would not have to pay for the appraiser. An award was given from that appraisal and the GC seemed happy with the result.
The GC then scheduled a subcontractor to do the work on the interior damage (drywall/etc.). When that subcontractor came, he said there was much more damage than what was provided in the scope of the claim, about $3,000, so he went back and worked out a new estimate/invoice with the GC, about $10,000, and then the GC and I went to our IC to get an addendum to the claim. Our IC refused, saying they wouldn't allow any addendums. The GC said this was odd since it's fairly standard to get addendums when additional damage is found. The GC suggested I talk with my IC agent to see if he could help.
I did that, and my agent seemed confident that an addendum would be possible and he went off to talk to the claims department. When he finally came back, he said he was previously confident because he didn't realize an appraisal was done, and that since the appraisal was done everything awarded in it was now set in stone. Since only $3,000 was awarded in the appraisal for the interior work, that's what we have to work with.
Our GC has now sent us an invoice for the balance due for work completed (roof and windows), but I explained if we paid them that invoice in full ($33,000) we would not have enough money to fix the interior damage (we only have $38,000 left from the claim money). He said that doesn't matter, you need to pay for work we've completed. We offered to put the money that's supposed to go towards the garage door and gutter replacements towards the interior work since the former is only superficial dings/etc and that the interior damage is more important to get fixed. They also talked to the drywall subcontractor and he was willing to come down too, but we were still $3,000 apart.
I asked why we were expected to pay for this out of pocket when we were only supposed to have to pay our deductible, and the GC said it's not their fault the appraiser didn't come on site to inspect the interior damage. I said it was the GC that said to do an appraisal and to use this appraiser, and we were never asked to coordinate anything so it should fall to the GC to make sure that happens. The documents the GC sent us from the appraiser also states the GC should be onsite with the appraiser when the appraisal happens. The appraisal also awarded some Overhead and Profit, and I suggested the $3,000 that we're apart should come from that since it was a failure in coordination which what Overhead is supposed to be. The GC said there was no O&P awarded in the appraisal, so I screenshotted where the appraisal award states that, and he replied he's not going to argue with me anymore about it, and that we need to pay for work done or "next steps" will be taken.
The only recourse the GC has suggested for us is to file a claim with the state commissioner. Our IC agent was skeptical this would do anything since everything the IC has done is above board.
The Payment Terms in our contract says that we need to pay them the initial insurance check plus the deductible upon delivery of materials, and then the balance is due upon completion of the work. I replied to their invoice email saying that work has not been completed since there's still the interior, garage door, and gutter work that is not done yet. They said they only invoiced for work they've done (true), and that they don't do everything listed on the claim, that they are an exterior construction company that does roof and window work, and don't do that other work. They work with our IC to get monies for us to so we can have that work done. That we need to pay the invoice for work done or penalties, interest, and liens will be issued.
I said their contract says that they will fix all damages laid out in the insurance claim, quoting back their contract to them that says:
"By signing this contract, you authorize [GC] to discuss the damage to your real property with your insurance company for the purpose of coming to an agreement on project scope and price. Upon agreement by [GC] to the scope and price as defined on the insurance loss statement provided by your insurance company, you authorize [GC] to complete the replacement of said damaged property with ~no additional cost to you except for the insurance deductible,~ subject to terms and conditions on the reverse side. Payments will be made as outlined above.
ADDITIONAL TERMS - Page 2

1. Performance Guidelines. Contractor agrees to complete the Work set forth in this Contract in accordance with manufacturers' specifications for installation of all materials and all applicable construction codes. You acknowledge receipt before signing this Contract of these Performance Guidelines as required by Minnesota Statute 326B.809(b)."

I have not gotten a reply back from them after I sent that on Friday. Today is Tuesday.
I spoke with the appraiser and asked why an onsite inspection wasn't done so the interior damage could have been inspected and a appropriate award given for the damage. He said that even if the appraisal was done onsite, he would not have been able to award any more money than the $3,000 because the bid the GC put in for the appraisal only had $3,000 for the inside work. He's legally not able to award more than that bid the GC gave him.
So to me, it sounds like the GC made the mistake of asking for an appraisal without first getting an accurate estimate of the inside work, and because of that, we are stuck with only $3,000 for the inside work when it'll cost $10,000 to complete.
The contract says that we can pay contractors to complete work and deduct that cost from the contract price. The email from them discussing the invoice also says as much, that we can use the claim money to get the work done ourselves.
So I was thinking about saying we will do the rest of the work ourselves, and subtracting from the contract price ($85,000 that was awarded in the appraisal) the garage and gutter work that's in the claim, plus the interior estimate that the GC worked out with the subcontractor ($10,000), leaving a balance of $25,000 instead of the $33,000 they invoiced for. I'd send this check in the mail and consider the project with them complete.
I assume they'll file a Mechanic's Lien after that and will have to sue us in civil court to enforce it, and after researching it looks like I don't need an attorney in Conciliation or District Court to defend myself in MN. I feel fairly confident in presenting my side of things before a judge. The only concern I have right now is if the judge decides in favor of the GC and we have to pay for the GC's attorney fees. Otherwise I'm fine leaving this to a judge to decide. I understand where the GC is coming from, that they want to be paid for the work they've done, but to me it seems like it was their mistake that got us in this situation, and we're entitled to have our house's damage repaired just as much as they are entitled to being paid for work done.
What advice would you give me in this situation? Should I follow through with paying them $25,000 and allow them to file a lien? How much in attorney fees would you guess I'd be on the hook for if the GC wins before a judge? Is there a better option for me to take?
Thank you for reading if you've made it this far.

mostly just venting here but holy fuck I'm so heated right now it's insane.
I'm a sub who bids to millworkers primarily(solid surface). One millworker in particular is a very good customer. They're a pretty decent size company and have 4 project managers. 3 of them are great. 1 of them is an absolute fucking shit show. This dude is incredibly forgetful for a guy who's supposed to be a PM at a high end millworker. He's very much the face of that meme/joke where one persons lack of preparation should not suddenly become your emergency. He's good for "I forgot to send you this job how fast can you get it done?" on a semi-regular basis.
This guy had us make him a mock up for a project we have under contract with him. As far as we knew, the mock up was fine and everything is cool. Then he emails me and says "here's the updated shop drawings and your quote, I believe you have everything covered but we are now changing detail, please provide a change order for this"
I send the change order. a few weeks go by and we start doing the job and realize something is off. what they're asking for is requiring about $2000 more in materials than I ever figured. Come to find out, that detail previously mentioned was not the only change from the mock up. So i go back to him and ask, what happened here? the project was quoted like this per the architectural's, the mock up was made the same, and now the project is being done differently, to the tune of $2000 in materials? "I sent you the drawings and told you to update the pricing, if you missed that it's on you" is the response i got.
You sack of shit mother fucker you specifically told me what to change and that it was the only the change. I wish I could post the drawing I was sent without potentially doxing myself just to show how buried the new dimension in question was. If I didn't think it was pure stupidity and forgetfulness on his end, I'd think he was trying to sneak it by me on purpose. so of course now he refuses to pay for the additional material because I "missed" it and he can't submit another change order for it himself. Did I "miss" the fact that 1 dimension changed? apparently. but I was 100% misled by an absolute chode

Hi Everyone Wanted to share my experience dealing with joystick drift on my xbox controller.
So my original controller which came with the Series S started showing signs of joystick drift around 1 year after the purchase. Initially I bared it, but it became a pain when playing games such as overcooked 2.
Spending 5k more on buying a controller didn't seem to make a lot of sense since I had one more controller, the only issue was with couch co-op games.
So I first tried to call up local repair shops and they quoted me insanely high numbers to replace the joystick - roughly 2k. I live in Hyd, these prices might be lower in places such as Delhi.
Then the engineer in me got an itch, and I thought why not replace it myself. Searching on amazon I found this - TCOS TECH Xbox Series X/S Analog 3D Analog Joystick Replacement for Xbox Series S Xbox Series X Wireless Controller : Amazon.in: Video Games (not sponsored or affiliated in any way)
I thought it should just be a simple soldering job and I ordered a soldering kit with this.
Then I started, and oh my, it was a really scary experience.
So the difference between soldering normally, and removing solders made by hand is generally very easy. But in things such as the controller, the soldering is done using automated machines on the PCB.
Removing these solders is not possible using normal soldering guns you might have for hobbies etc. They require significantly more heat to remove.
So yeah, I spent a long time trying to heat and remove the solder to no avail, the PCB almost changed a bit of it's colour, and I was like I have anyways messed this up.
Then I started exploring more on youtube to see more simpler techniques, there were techniques around just breaking the potentiometers/joystick instead of the solder, and then just move it back and forth to break the solder.
I thought I'll do this on the whole joystick, but just doing it on one of the potentiometers was too much effort and scary. Scary in terms of breaking the whole thing up.
Then I ended up only breaking 1 potentiometer (the front-back one which had the drift) and then replacing it with a potentiometer from the one I had purchased. After much more effort and abusing the PVC very badly with heat, solder and the hole from where I removed the older potentiometer, it looked like a complete mess. I was worried if it would even turn on.
Luckily after few minor adjustments, the joystick was working perfectly. I can honestly say, I felt super happy!
Fast forward to 2months since this, now the joystick has a different kind of problem, where it randomly gets stuck in top direction, hopefully might be fixable with minor tweaks.
All in all it was a very scary experience (of destroying my whole controller), and I won't recommend it to anyone if you don't have advanced soldering skills and equipment.
Better approach would be to buy a stick like this online and then maybe go to a mobile repair shop and pay them some money to help with soldering.

Should surgically mole removal (excision) be way more expensive compared to laseshaving etc. Especially in mexico? Wondering if what they quote me is reasonable...

I've done research locally (Toronto), it would be mostly around CAD$400-800 to get it removed (please let me know if it's reasonable/how much did you pay)
Since I'm going to Mexico for vacation, might as well get it done there. Reached out to several plastic surgeon and they quoted me anywhere between CAD$800-1300. Not sure if they're giving me tourist price.
To be fair, my local research is just mole removal in general (could be laser, shaving, etc). And I'd guess getting it removed by excision should be more expensive (can anyone confirm) But then is this reasonable or they're trying to milk my money??

A bit of a word salad title but It gets the point across, whether it being an original work or an adapation of something prexisting, that is following cartoon or anime logic and strcture.
I've been watching the 80's Popeye movie starring Robin Williams after someone mentioned it to me in a thread and man, it's a fucking labour of love cause it's an almost 2 hour movie that is replicating a Popeye cartoon down to the T. Like I can clearly see this in animated form. The acting is also so on point to Popeye characters. Especailly Robin Williams and Shelley Duvall as Popeye & Olive but everyone else too. They got the voice and body language down to perfection.
Aside from that, Hideakai Anno of EVA fame directs some incredible LA anime flavoured movies. Cutie Honey & Shin Godzilla are the two I've seen from him and those are just straight up anime.
It all kinda bums me out that more LA media doesn't just embrace the cartoonish way of doing things.

Hey everyone,
Well, I have a very odd concern (even though I'm a Ph.D student at the moment). I've recently been going through a lot of my records for an upcoming internship and I'm worried I may have only sent the transcript from the last high school I graduated from in this case, rather than all of them.
For some context, I initially "attended" (this will be in quotes for a reason) the public high school in the area. I was only there for 3 days that consisted of no classes at all. Rather, it was an orientation of sorts so the would-be freshmen could get used to the high school, rules, and its layout. I never completed any classes that year (I did a summer gym class to get early high school credit and that shows up on a transcript) before my parents found a high school in a pinch.
The following high school I only attended for a quarter of the year (before I moved onto the final high school I would graduate from 3.75 years down the road). I got my old high transcript recently just in case it was necessary for future employment and I see my grades under the first quarter were listed as "NA" in this case. My guess is they probably treated it like how colleges transfer grades (where previous institution grades don't count towards GPA). No big deal on its own.
The only thing I'm concerned about is whether I submitted the old transcript from the high school where I attended for a quarter to my undergraduate colleges at all. Folks can probably tell by this post that I'm an extremely anxious person so I let my parents handle applications and paperwork (since both of those give me the most anxiety). This non ironically makes more anxious as an adult since I never knew what I took out in loans in undergrad until I applied to graduate school and had to consider my debt totals and whatnot (feel free to see one of my older posts where I list all of my neurodivergent, mental, and recent sleep apnea diagnosis).
I am also worried about what could happen if those grades from that high school I attended for a quarter of the year were uncharacteristically low at all. Long story short, that high school I attended for a quarter had what my father aptly described as "monitored home school" and I abused the retake system they had in place by not doing well on my first attempt, memorizing the answers they reused, and retaking it again. I wonder sometimes if they picked up on that and my grades were knocked down at all.
What could happen if this mistake is the case at all? What could happen to my degrees up until this point since I'm now in a Ph.D program? Could my undergraduate degree (and subsequent graduate degrees) be revoked over this at all?

SABOTAGE?! And it all started out as such a nice idea… A cliche as tall as my ex-roommate’s erection live-blending Kelly Bundy Mike Kelley and Ted Bundy parafernalia wearing blondes to the sound of gekko’s mating in the Amazon. Cut the bullshit! There’s no such thing as a nice idea getting detourné by some smart art postpostsituationist pranker or right-wing gaswhitey flexfrat, no, my dear well-meaning peace dove friends, if an idea can gets turned into its opposite during its execution, it probably was flawed from the start! Sometimes people use Woodstock 99 - the limp dickshit rape and pillage slash and burn disaster edition - as an example of how a great, positive, wonderful, hell, holy idea can turn into the worst kind of evil in the hands of the wrong people. Well, dear naivopino’s, let me inform you: bull-shit! The whole idea of Woodstock, be it ’99, ’94, ’69 or 2219, is just batshit dumbwhat asking for the baddest kind of trouble right from the bat. Or, what? Do you honest-to-dogly think that during the original (I retrovulsely puke into my stomach even using that wretched word) edition of 1969 nothing was burned, stolen, no women were raped? What, just because there were no sperm dna tests, nigh to none options for women to speak up against sexual violence let alone the fact that speaking up against rape during that whole shitshebang of a weak acid trip’s campfire get-together was near to blasphemy in the hippie community means that no women were raped? Because men all of a sudden turned into meek little dickies lambs for three years from 1968 to ’71? Fuck that shit. Please. I don’t even want to spend a single move of a single digit of my old hands having to make anything about that largest circle jerk-off in history clear to you. Read your books. Do your homework. Anyway, that’s what I was thinking about when a friend told me recently about another of those so-called great ideas gone hilariously wrong in a little map smudge of a town in of all fucking places Belgium for chrissakes. Let me admit to you, right here and now, no smirk no smile on my face: I laughed so hard when I heard it I shat my new Calvins. Framed them afterwards, too, in a nice little Nielsen A2 birch. It’s sitting there, stinking the fuck out of my storage, waiting for a good stock market crash to come. Never underestimate the potential of the future art market gold rushes. My shit, my gold, bruv. So, these two clowns of artists in Belgium (are there any other there? don’t get me started on rené ma bite or marcel bread arse here!) had the ammazing idea to get themselves funded by the local government in this hamlet of three houses called Watou which apparently would be part of - ok, stop me here. Not in the history of mankind has ever ended a sentence well which tried to explain any aspect of Belgian politics, topography or whatever the call the thing there where a man rides a horse stark naked and bites the neck of living goose hanging from a tree? (See, that sentence didn’t end well either, did it, what’d I tell you? Cursed stuff!) Let’s try that again: two artists in the Belgian town of Watou had the splendid idea to organize a festive event, in the middle of summer, whereby all the people of this little village (if you’re thinking of blue skinned vikings charging Roman legionnaires in a berry-induced bad trip frenzy, well, so am I) for one day left their houses, dropped the key of their house in a transparant bowl on the town square and all went to the field adjacent to their village to well be (as in: not fornicate) together and thereby, if I had a press release I’d quote this from it: practiced a performative experiment in hospitality and neighborship where no fixed rules are applied. I’m guessing if you’re sensitive like I am to the finer things a life, you might as well start looking for your nearest Nielsen frame too by now, but hey: we haven’t even gotten to the joke yet! This was all the serious stuff. Let me summarise it even more briefly for you, just to get it out of my haemorrhoidical system: Imagine a village. Everyone leaves their house at the same time. Leaves their front door open. Drops the key to said door in a large bowl. Drifts into a field somewhere off to do fripp knows what (no rules applied, but probably: no fornication whatsoever.) Got the mental image? Good. Now get the fuck out of that dream and imagine any sad little teardrop of a town you know. Imagine who lives there. Imagine all the people you know who live in a town, or rather, fuck that, imagine all the people you know. Now imagine that some dogoodydoodydoobywah wants to “bring the people together again” and “mend the social bonds which had been broken by” yaddah yaddah yaddah. Okay? Now imagine the fucking assholes - they might even be you - who get they absolute mostest pleasure out of ruining the naive, well-intentioned ideas of others? You see what I see? The doodygoodoo is a bit all alone on his white ivory hilltowertop, right? All the others apparently prefer to start mayhem, to jinx other people’s efforts, to laugh - loud! - at their friends tripping over their own feet. No? You think in your ‘reality’ people are ‘decent’ and ‘rough diamonds’ or ‘deeper than you’d think they are’? Well, my dear, that paradisiacal odor you’re smelling all around you is the smell of your own shit cause you got your head up your ass! Listen and suffer! Because what happened in our not-just-proverbial Belgian village on that sunny morning in July… a couple of the townspeople - we’ll never know how many but I’m guessing almost everyone except for the government-funded, from-the-city hippie artists was in on the joke - had invited some acquaintances from the town next door to quietly enter the village while everyone was not-fornicating on the idyllic field, to take all the keys from the bowl, lay them on the train tracks which run along the town, flattening them to perfectly unusable little steel flabs and placing them back in the bowl. So when our supposedly resocialised townspeople entered their village that afternoon, ready to get their key, run to their house and close their door for at least the next 364 days, the immediately realised they couldn’t close their doors anymore. Total mayhem ensued. Men started chasing women, people pillaged their neighbours houses, children and adults alike pooped on all toothbrushes they could find, underwear was thrown into compost heaps, compost heaps were thrown into unlawful indoor spas, hundred thousands of untaxed euro piles were find inside old televisions and grandmas paintings. There was no stopping them. Housewifes hung themselves after their portrait, tits out and all, was found hanging above at least three beds in different houses. It was bad. Real bad. By the time news of this feast of anarchy and murder had spread to the nearest villages and the police arrived, the artists had of course long disappeared, no doubt to narrativise their failure into a story of experiment and learning and cash in a couple of fat pay checks.
And you know what the name was the artists had given their beautiful day of harmony and collective connecting: Open Doors Day. They sure got it, their open doors day, they sure got it. Serves them right. Serves them damn right.
peace - out!

As many of you may have read, there is a case of two missing adopted kids in North Carolina, where remains have been found. The news has reported that their adoptive “mother” is Avantae Deven.
I’m a curious person and started digging up information on Avantae Deven when I first read the story in my news feed and could not believe what I was reading. It seemed like whomever this woman is must have be using an alias; Avantae Deven is not a name like Kim Jones or Mackenzie Smith.
The more I dug, the weirder it seemed to get. I found a property deed to a place in Sedona, Arizona, and figured out that whomever this Avantae person is, she at one point in time had owned a home together with someone named Nicole Adams. So I dug into who Nicole Adams was, and learned that she was the widow of a spiritual leader named Robert Adams. It appeared to me that there would be no way to identify who Avantae really was, unless I could also identify the true identity of Robert Adams.
*******
I've done investigative work for many years, including skip tracing. I can conclusively state that there was absolutely no person actually named Robert Adams born in New York State on January 21, 1928. This is demonstrated by the New York Birth Index. I have combed the census records for 1930, 1940, and 1950, and cross-checked them against multiple databases, and am confident that nobody with the birth name of Robert Adams was born anywhere in the United States on January 21, 1928.
Moreover, there was absolutely no person with the true name of Robert Adams who died anywhere at all in the United States, let alone Sedona, Arizona, on March 2, 1997. This is demonstrated by the Social Security Death Index.
I began this research largely by performing exhaustive searches on the known addresses that are associated with Robert, his wife Leonie (who used to use the alias Nicole), and Avantae Deven (who turns out to be their daughter Michelle who began using the alias Avantae in the mid-1990’s or so). Most of the addresses are PO boxes. Those that are PO boxes are all *private* PO boxes, not PO boxes that one can rent from the United States Postal Service. To me, that spoke volumes. The family were clearly using aliases.
As I explain further below, I eventually determined that “Robert Adams” was Robert Spiegel, born 21 January 1932 in New York. “Nicole Adams” was actually Aileen Beverly Leonie Maxwell, born February 2, 1929, in Jamaica. “Avantae Deven” is actually their daughter, Michelle K. Spiegel, born on October 1, 1960, in California.
One of Robert’s many false stories about Robert’s life that my research has refuted is Robert’s claim that his mother was Jewish and his father was Catholic. That was a lie. Both of his parents were Jewish. It’s also interesting that he claimed that he was “raised Catholic.” There is absolutely nothing to suggest that. His mother always, in New York, lived in Jewish neighborhoods. Moreover, as will be discussed below, his parents had a Jewish wedding. It’s also downright absurd that he would tell people that he was “half Jewish.” If your mother’s Jewish, you are Jewish, pure and simple. Even if Robert’s father had truly been Catholic (which he wasn’t; his name was Samuel Spiegel and he immigrated to America in 1907, lived with his Jewish, Yiddish-speaking cousins, and spoke Yiddish himself), Robert would have been Jewish because the status of being a Jew comes from the mother. Robert’s mother’s name was Fannie (nee Fleisfeder) Spiegel. Fannie’s parents were Itzik Fleisfeder and Esther Libke (nee Rifkin) Fleisfeder. Esther’s parents were Mendel Rifkin and Sarah whose maiden name is lost to time and the disappearance of the shtetls. Robert’s claim to having had a Catholic father was utterly false, but is part and parcel of his ongoing compulsive daily lying about anything and everything.
Here is the story.
*******
Kolomyia, formerly known as Kolomea, is a city currently located in the Western Ukraine.
On January 21, 1892 (the same year that Kolomea tallis¹ workers went on strike for better pay and working conditions), Kolomea resident Rachel Katz, wife of Abraham Spiegel, gave birth to a son, who was given the name Schmuel.
On the date that Schmuel Spiegel entered the world, Kolomea was ruled by the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, and almost half of the city’s residents were Jewish.
In June of 1907, fifteen-year-old Schmuel² boarded the Zeeland, which sailed from Antwerp, Belgium, arriving at New York Harbor on June 18, 1907. The ship’s manifest states that Schmuel’s father had paid for his transport, and that Schmuel intended to reside with his father, Abe, in Brooklyn. Schmuel was granted entrance, and took up residence with his cousin Charles Fetner, who resided at 353 Myrtle Avenue, Brooklyn, in Apartment A with his wife Jennie and their baby daughter Ettie. The sparse record that exists suggests that although Schmuel’s father was, indeed, named Abraham, Abraham lived and died in Europe, without immigrating to America.
The 1910 census describes Samuel’s cousin Charles as a carpenter, who had been married to housewife Jennie for six years, and a father of three children-- Ettie age four, Nathan age two, and baby Jacob, who was not even a year old. Eighteen-year-old Samuel was identified by profession as a “Foreman Sailmaker” in an industry described as “pocket-books.”
Three and a half years after being granted admission, on a bitterly cold winter day, January 4, 1911, Schmuel (now employed as a pocket-book maker, and having Anglicized his name to Samuel) signed and submitted his declaration to become a United States citizen. He stated, in that declaration, that he was born on January 21, 1892.
By 1915, Samuel had left his cousin’s abode and was residing as a lodger in the home of a widow named Rose Hammer, who lived with her two adolescent sons, Meyer and Louis, at 531 E. 5^th Avenue; Samuel was now working as a “driver.”
Two years after the 1915 state census was taken, Samuel had moved back to Myrtle Avenue, but this time at building no. 849. On June 15, 2017, Samuel registered for the draft, and described himself as being a pocketbook maker, working for “A. Shoenfeld,” at 101 Crosby Street, New York. He was single. He stated, in his draft registration, that he was born on January 21, 1892.
*******
A woman named Fruma Fleisfeder was born in Beltz, Bessarabia, sometime between July 1, 1893, and 1901, to Itzik Fleisfeder and Esther Lieba Rifkin. Fruma (not living up to her pious given name) provided different dates and years of birth to different authorities on different occasions, making it impossible at this point in time to know her true position in the birth order of her family. Regardless, Fruma, who began using the name Fanny upon her entrance to the United States, did have three brothers and a sister who also came to America-- Louis Fleisfeder who was born April 10, 1890, Max Irving Fleisfeder who used October 10, 1892 as his birthdate, Hersch (later known as Harry), whose official birthdate was December 15, 1901, and Sylvia who was born in approximately 1906.
On December 1, 1919, Fruma arrived in New York Harbor on the ship La Touraine, declaring her intention, at entry, to become a United States Citizen. The ship’s manifest describes her as five feet five inches tall, with fair hair, blue eyes, and a fair complexion. The ship’s manifest states that she was, at that time, age 24. If that were correct, she would have been born in 1895.
Fruma (then going by Fanny) took up residence with her cousin Ethel (nee Ruchlin) and Ethel’s husband Samuel Steinberg, on 15^th Street, Brooklyn. Soon thereafter, Ethel gave birth to her first child, a daughter named Theresa. The 1920 census states that Fanny was Russian, didn’t speak English but, rather, spoke Hebrew, and worked as a milliner in a millinery store. The 1920 census also states that Fanny was age 25, which lines up with her being age 24 in the prior year’s ship manifest.
*******
Sam and Fanny married in Manhattan on January 24, 1925. Their marriage certificate (signed by each of them) identifies Sam as being age 32 (contradicting, by one year, his immigration records which would have placed him at age 33), and identifies Fanny as age 24, the same age that she had claimed to be six years prior, and also contradicting an immigration petition that she would file two decades in the future, which generally placed her birth year at the mid-point of 1893.
If Fanny’s immigration records (which included a petition with her signature on it) were correct, Fanny would also have been age 32 as of her marriage to Samuel, not age 24.
So did Fanny lie in her marriage certificate? Or did she lie in her immigration petition?
The marriage certificate identifies Sam as having been born in Kolomea, Austria, and his father being Abraham, and his mother being Rachel Katz. It identifies Fanny as having been born in Beltz, Russia, to a father named Isaac, and to a mother named Esther Rifkin.
The marriage certificate does not identify Fanny as having any profession, but identifies Sam as being a pocketbook maker.
Sam and Fannie were married at 125 E. 4^th Street, Manhattan, a six-story apartment building with retail units on the ground floor that is now an expensive co-op, with three-bedroom units selling for over $900,000. Present-day real estate advertisements alternatively state that the building was built in 1894, 1903, and 1905.
The first name of the rabbi who officiated was Harry. His surname starts with Reid, but the remaining letters of his signature are illegible. Rabbi Harry identified his residence as 232 Broome Street, which, at the time, was a four-story mixed use building that, among other things, housed Chevrah Ahavath Zedek Anshei Jaskinover.
Witnesses to the marriage were Mayer Budmon and Samuel Steinberg.
*******
Sam and Fanny’s existence was documented next in the 1925 New York State census by census. They were living at 205 S. 2^nd Street. Samuel was still working as a “pocketbook maker.” Fanny was identified as a “housewife.”
Fanny was identified as age 25. This was in accordance with her age as stated on her marriage certificate, but not in accordance with her immigration documents or the 1920 census.
Sam was identified as being age 28, which conflicted with all prior records.
*******
In 1930, the couple were again enumerated, this time in the Federal census. The enumerator, whose signature appears to be “Max Krahn” (or something like that) stated that he obtained the information on April 16, 1930.
Sam was identified as a “framer” of pocketbooks. He was identified as being 36 years of age, which conflicts by two years with the age that he provided to immigration authorities. Perhaps the enumerator was simply sloppy; Samuel was also incorrectly identified in the 1930 census as having been born in “Poland,” with parents who were both also born in “Poland,” notwithstanding other governmental records having identified him as being Austrian. The language he spoke? “Jewish,” according to the enumerator. Was that to mean Hebrew? Yiddish? Both?
Fannie was identified as age 30 (directly in conflict with the information she supplied in her immigration petition, which bears her signature) and as being “Russian,” with parents born in “Russia.” The 1930 census enumerator incorrectly wrote that her year of immigration was 1921. Fannie, too, was identified by the enumerator as speaking the “Jewish” language.
Although later records reflected that Sam and Fannie had a son named Irving who was born in 1926, Irving was not recorded in the 1930 census. Was he missed by the enumerator? Or was he a later-adopted son?
The couple also had a boarder, identified by the 1930 enumerator as one Esther “Larson,” age 40, born in Russia, and similarly a speaker of the “Jewish” language.
*******
The New York Birth Index identifies a baby boy, Robert Spiegel, as one of many babies having been born in the city on January 21, 1932.
*******
On May 21, 1936, Samuel committed suicide by hanging in the family residence, a tenement apartment located at 1168 Union Avenue, in the Bronx. Although, based upon the date of birth that Samuel used for official governmental purposes he was age 44, the death certificate stated that he was age 43.
Fannie engaged the Gordon Funeral Home to prepare him for burial.
Strangely, although Samuel’s headstone accurately identified him in Hebrew as Schmuel Spiegel, son of Avraham, it inexplicably incorrectly stated that he died at age 40.
Fannie of course knew her husband’s real age; both of them signed the marriage certificate that had Samuel’s correct age listed. Furthermore, Samuel had petitioned for citizenship in 1911, and stated that his date of birth was January 18, 1892.
Why would Fannie commission a headstone with a false age? Perhaps she, like her son, was a compulsive liar. Maybe that’s where Robert got it from.
*******
The 1940 census has Fannie (identified as age 38), Robert (identified as age 8), and Fannie’s son/Robert’s brother, Irving Spiegel, age 13, as living with Fannie’s 72-year-old mother, Esther Fleisfeder, at 1537 Fulton Avenue, in the Bronx. Fannie and Esther were identified as widows. Esther was identified as “U” (unable to work), while Fannie was identified as engaged in housework. No source of income for the family was identified.
No explanation is obvious regarding where Irving was living in the census taken a decade previously. Was he adopted?
There is no “Irving Spiegel” listed in the New York Birth Index for either 1926 or 1927. There is an “Irving Spiegal” listed, who was born April 29, 1926. But he is not Irving Spiegel.
I initially thought that perhaps Irving might be one of the unnamed Baby Boy Spiegels born in New York in 1926 or 1927, and that he left the hospital unnamed because his parents were waiting for his bris before naming him. However, Robert left the hospital with the name Robert. Why wait until the bris to name one child, but not the other?
*******
Slightly less than two years after she was enumerated in the 1940 census, Fannie’s mother Esther died, at home, at 1537 Fulton Avenue. The causes of death were “Coronary Thrombosis, Pulmonary Oedema Nephritis, Hypertension, Arteriosclerosis.” Esther left this world on February 6, 1942, the same day that the W. L. Steed was torpedoed, shelled and sunk less than a hundred nautical miles east of the mouth of Delaware River by a German submarine.
She was buried at Mount Moriah Cemetery in Fairview, New Jersey, the same cemetery where her son-in-law Samuel was interred.
*******
On November 12, 1943, Fannie, now residing at 1985 Bathgate Avenue, in the Bronx, petitioned for citizenship. She claimed, in that document bearing her signature, to be fifty years of age, meaning that if she was telling the truth, she would have been born in approximately 1893.
*******
On January 19, 1948, Robert (having assumed a false date of birth, that being January 18, 1931), enlisted in the New York National Guard. On paper, he had turned age 17 the day before his enlistment. In reality, he would be turning age 16 two days after his enlistment.
On December 9, 1949, Robert was discharged from the national guard, apparently for having been AWOL.
The discharge document identifies his address as being 1985 Bathgate Avenue, New York City.
*******
The 1950 census places Robert again at 1985 Bathgate Avenue, New York City. It correctly identifies him as age 18, and states that he worked as a shipping clerk for a newspaper company.
According to the 1950 census, Robert resided at the Bathgate Avenue address with his mother Fannie, who was purportedly still age 50 (seven years after she had previously claimed to immigration authorities to be age 50), and Robert’s brother Irving, age 24.
Irving was listed as unemployed and moreover, according to the census record, had not worked for the prior year. Fannie was employed full-time as a milliner in a hat factory.
*******
Military records reflect that Irving J. Spiegel, born in 1926 and a resident of 1985 Bathgate Avenue, who had completed two years of high school education, had flown bomber planes over Germany during the war. In his military documents, Irving described himself as single, with two dependents.
*******
On February 2, 1929, a baby girl given the name Aileen Beverly Leone Maxwell was born in Lucea, Hanover, Jamaica, to William Maxwell and Daisy (nee Tibbits) Maxwell. Her birth was registered by her parents.
*******
In 1954, Robert Spiegel and Aileen Maxwell were married in New York City. Their marriage license was given License No. 10284.
*******
The following year, the Kingston, Jamaica, Gleaner reported on June 6, 1955:
Miss Leonie Maxwell, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. W. J. Maxwell, was married recently in New York City to Mr. Robert Spiegel of the U.S.A. Both the bride and groom are students at the New York Institute of Dietetics. The bride left the island nearly two years ago for New York. Her wedding gown was chantilly lace and nylon tulle. The bodice was fashioned with a wide, scalloped neckline and elbow-length sleeves. Her three tier skirt of chantilly lace was over pleated nylon tulle. Her fingertip-length veil was adorned with pearls.
*******
If the claim regarding the couple studying at the New York Institute of Dietetics was even true, their studies at this institution didn’t last long. In May of 1956, a number of advertisements bearing Robert’s photograph appeared in the Kingston, Jamaica Gleaner. The advertisements described Robert as a psychologist, author, lecturer, and “practitioner in auto suggestion,” and identified him as “Dr. J. Robert Spiegel.” Readers were invited to come meet Robert on May 21, 1956, at Record Plaza, where he would be autographing his “latest” “world-wide” 33 and 1/3 RPM record, “How to Stop Smoking in 7 days by Auto-Suggestion.”
*******
On May 1, 1959, three residents of 1985 Bathgate Avenue, Bronx, New York, came through customs, having returned from a trip to Jamaica. They identified themselves as “Robert D. Spiegel” born in New York (in addition to giving himself a false middle initial, Robert neglected to complete the I-94-A fully, specifically by leaving his birthdate blank), “Leonie A. Spiegel” born in Jamaica on February 2, 1929, and their minor daughter, and “Sharon S. Spiegel,” born in New York. Someone also neglected to fully complete Sharon’s I-94-A, specifically by leaving her birthdate blank.
*******
Leonie had taken Sharon to Jamaica two years earlier. There are no publicly available records pertaining to their outbound transport from the United States to Jamaica. There is, however, a record pertaining to their return to the United States. That publicly available record does not provide their address, but Sharon is identified as weighing 1 stone 5 pounds (a total of 19 pounds), and Leonie is identified as weighing six stone 5 pounds (89 pounds). Interestingly, Leonie used the name “Aileen Spiegel,” and the records assert that Aileen has no middle initial. Aileen was / is her true legal first name, but it is a lie to say that she has no middle initial.
*******
Almost two years later, on January 5, 1958, the Kingston, Jamaica Gleaner reported:
Staying at the Tamarind Hotel are Mr. and Mrs. Bob Spiegel and daughter Sharon of Miami, Florida. Mrs. Spiegel is the former Leonie Maxwell, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. W. J. Maxwell of Lucea and has been in the United States for several years. A welcome party in their honour was given last Saturday night by Messers. Horrace, Ray, and Dennis Maxwell, brothers of Mrs. Spiegel. It was a very enjoyable affair.
*******
In 1963, roughly five years after their 1958 visit to Jamaica, Leonie petitioned for naturalization, in Louisiana. Although I am in possession of the index showing that she petitioned in 1963, I do not possess the petition itself. However, the fact that she petitioned for naturalization in Louisiana demonstrates that that at least she was residing in Louisiana at the time. Since she stated that she didn’t leave Robert’s side for over 40 years, presumably Robert, young Sharon, and also baby Michelle were living in Louisiana at that time.
*******
People who knew Robert personally relate that he stated that Leonie was a Cayman Island heiress. She wasn’t. Not only was she not born in the Cayman Islands, Leonie’s father’s estate was litigated (with the judge ruling against her) long before Robert started telling people that his wife was a Cayman Islands heiress.
Leonie’s father did leave an estate, but not to her. On November 9, 1967, the Gleaner reported that the Supreme Court had upheld the will of the late William Josiah Maxwell, the father of Horrace, Ray, Dennis, and Leonie, and the husband of Daisy Maxwell, who had contended that William’s signature was a forgery and that the person to whom his estate had been bequeathed had exercised undue influence. The court disagreed. The article reported:
The estate, which one of the executors described as “a sizeable one,” included 112 acres of land at Paradise and three houses at Lucea, Hanover.
*******
Robert apparently wasn’t banking on Leonie’s inheritance in any event. In May of 1966, advertisements appeared in the Houston Chronicle with Robert’s photo on them, selling a record that would purportedly assist people in stopping smoking in seven days. He identified himself as “Dr. J. Robert Spiegel.”
*******
On page 55 of the November 15, 1969, San Antonio, Texas Express and News, was an advertisement stating:
SCIENCE OF THE MIND
Dr. J. Robert Spiegel of Houston, director and founder of the Science of the Mind Foundation there, is conducting Sunday evening meetings at 7:30 p.m. in the Sheraton Inn, 1400 Austin Hwy.
*******
On page 4 of the July 10, 1970 edition of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram was a photograph of Robert, with a brief local news blurb:
GUEST – Dr. J Robert Spiegel of Houston, Science of Mind Foundation director, will speak at the 10:45 a.m. service tomorrow in First Church of Religious Science, 2001 6^th Ave. His subject is “What Religious Science Teaches.”
*******
On page 8 of the June 18, 1970 edition of the Houston Daily Cougar was this advertisement:
HOME OF UNIVERSAL LIFE
“Teaching Aquarian Meditation For The New Age
Meets Every Sunday, 11:00 A.M. At The World Trade Center Auditorium
Houston, Texas
DR. J. ROBERT SPIEGEL (BRAHMADANDA) DIRECTOR - FOUNDER
Aquarian Meditation Initiation for the first time offered through correspondence. For those sincere students wishing to bypass evolution and enter the 5th Kingdom. Initiation includes meditation technique, Mantra, how to "live” 24 hours a day, and much more. Write for application today:
P.O. Box 53328 Houston, Texas 052
*******
From the Galveston Daily News, May 02, 1971, Pg. 31:
AQUARIAN MEDITATION SOCIETY PRESENTS DR. J. ROBERT SPIEGEL AN AUTHOR, LECTURER, TEACHER OF YOGA & SELF DEVELOPMENT WILL SPEAK ON MAN, MIND & THE UNIVERSE WEDNESDAY, MAY 5th AT 7:30 P.M. IN THE RECREATION CENTER HARRIS COUNTY PARK, NASA RD. # 1 ALL WELCOME — DONATION $1.50
*******
The 1972 Spiritual Community Guide lists Robert twice, in the San Diego area. First, on page 117, using his alias “J. Robert Spiegel”:
THE TEMPLE OF METAPHYSICAL ABUNDANCE. J. Robert Spiegel, 1118 Torrey Pines Rd., 92037. Teaches yoga, nutrition, ESP, metaphysics, psychology, mind control
Second, on page 124, in which he, as one might have predicted, was masquerading as some sort of medical man or scholar:
"AQUARIAN MEDITATION SOCIETY, U. S. Grant Hotel, Attn: Dr. Robert Spiegel, 453-7588"
*******
Also in 1972, Volume 25 of San Diego Magazine published in November advertised gift certificates for the “Astrology Research Center.” “Give your loved one the gift of love. Only $50” said the advertisement. Where was this entity located? At 1118 Torrey Pines Road, the same address as Robert’s Temple of Metaphysical Abundance. The advertisement purported that person identified as “Lil Canaan” was the director. The telephone number was 459-6400.
In 2013, the San Diego Union Tribune published the obituary for Lillian Mulonas, who founded the La Jolla “Astrology Research Center.” At this point in time, unless Robert Adams’ only surviving daughter, Michelle/ Prentiss/ Avantae knows the answer and talks, we will not know what relationship, if any, existed between Robert’s Temple of Metaphysical Abundance and Lilian’s Astrology Research Center, both of which were located at 1118 Torrey Pines Road in 1972.
*******
From the July 12, 1973, San Diego Reader:
BRAHMADANDA FOUNDATION
“Teachings of the Cosmic Way” meets Sundays, 11:00 a.m., U.S. Grant Hotel, Crystal Room. Free admission, refreshments served. Call 453-7588 for more information.
*******
On page 51 of the June 29, 1974 edition of Phoenix’s Arizona Republic was the following advertisement:
Speaker from San Diego
Dr. J. Robert Spiegel from San Diego, a traveler and lecturer, will speak at 8 p.m., Friday in Universal Series Center, 4340 N. Seventh Ave., on the topic “Science of Being.”
He is the founder of the “Aquarian Meditation Society” in Jamaica and is founder and publisher of “Equinox,” a philosophical newspaper.
*******
The family (Adams or Spiegel, however one might want to refer to them) have resided in (that I know of) New York, Miami, Jamaica, Louisiana, La Jolla, Los Angeles, Houston, New Mexico, Hawaii, Las Vegas, Scottsdale, Sedona, and a number of cities in North Carolina.
*******
In at least the 1990’s, before he left for Sedona, Robert Adams used the address PO Box 7210, Jordan Avenue, D-30, Canoga Park, CA. He used that address on correspondence he wrote, and on at least one published document. Who else used that address? The data aggregators show that this address was also used by a Michelle K. Spiegel, and a person going by the name Leonie Maxwell. Michelle and Leonie also used other addresses associated with Robert, those being 1815 Willis Avenue Panorama City, and 21551 Burbank Boulevard, Woodland Hills.
*******
The California Birth Index shows that Michelle K. Spiegel was born on October 1, 1960, in Los Angeles County, to a mother with the maiden name Maxwell.
*******
In later life, Michelle used the addresses above that are associated with Robert and Leonie, as well as an address of 12004 Vanowen Street #14, North Hollywood. This is the same address at which Denniston Keith Maxwell, one of Leonie’s younger brothers, resided at, after his immigration to the United States. Denniston was one of Michelle’s uncles.
In a recent Facebook posting, Michelle/Avantae stated: “Never knew anything personal about said uncles, etc. Never asked, never cared.” Really? She shared an address with an uncle? Her uncle lived within a few minutes’ drive from her parents, and Michelle/Avantae never knew anything about him?
As an aside, Michelle/Avantae alleged (or admitted) that she “never cared” about anything personal regarding her uncles. If that is true, what does that tell us about Michelle/Avantae’s fundamental character? Antisocial? Psychopathic? Narcissistic in the extreme?
*******
On August 2, 1996, Michelle, going by the name Avantae E. Deven, married Tyson Ruben Alvarez in Las Vegas. The two had addresses in common in Arizona, Nevada, and Montana.
*******
Robert “Adams” died on or about March 2, 1997, in Sedona, Arizona.
Shortly after that, in the spring of 1997, “Nicole Adams” and “Avantae Deven” (both aliases; the correct legal names are Aileen Beverly Leonie Spiegel and Michelle K. Spiegel) purchased a home together in Sedona, on Navahopi Road. Shortly after the purchase, “Nicole” quit-claimed her portion to “Avantae.”
On July 17, 2001, Tyson, still married to “Avantae,” quit-claimed any interest in the Navahopi property to “Avantae,” and had the county recorder send the deed to “Avantae” in care of the Infinity Institute, at that time located at 9101 W. Sahara Ave. Suite 105 C29 (in other words, a private post box), in Las Vegas.
Avantae divorced Tyson in 2006. She had, by then, moved to North Carolina. She “served” Tyson via publication summons, claiming that she was unable to find him, despite his information being on multiple data aggregators.
You can go to various Facebook groups, and other sources, to pull up the documents that people have uncovered showing who is associated with the "Infinity Institute," and in what fashion, and also the addresses that they have used over the years.
In any event, this is the information regarding Robert that I think that people need to be aware of.
Why turn to a known liar and con man for spiritual guidance?
1A tallis is a prayer shawl.
2The ship’s manifest states that he was age 14, which conflicts by one year with what Samuel identified as his date of birth. These errors are not uncommon; his fare could have been purchased when he was age 14 and the records not updated.

Hi Everyone Wanted to share my experience dealing with joystick drift on my xbox controller.
So my original controller which came with the Series S started showing signs of joystick drift around 1 year after the purchase. Initially I bared it, but it became a pain when playing games such as overcooked 2.
Spending 5k more on buying a controller didn't seem to make a lot of sense since I had one more controller, the only issue was with couch co-op games.
So I first tried to call up local repair shops and they quoted me insanely high numbers to replace the joystick - roughly 2k. I live in Hyd, these prices might be lower in places such as Delhi.
Then the engineer in me got an itch, and I thought why not replace it myself. Searching on amazon I found this - TCOS TECH Xbox Series X/S Analog 3D Analog Joystick Replacement for Xbox Series S Xbox Series X Wireless Controller : Amazon.in: Video Games (not sponsored or affiliated in any way)
I thought it should just be a simple soldering job and I ordered a soldering kit with this.
Then I started, and oh my, it was a really scary experience.
So the difference between soldering normally, and removing solders made by hand is generally very easy. But in things such as the controller, the soldering is done using automated machines on the PCB.
Removing these solders is not possible using normal soldering guns you might have for hobbies etc. They require significantly more heat to remove.
So yeah, I spent a long time trying to heat and remove the solder to no avail, the PCB almost changed a bit of it's colour, and I was like I have anyways messed this up.
Then I started exploring more on youtube to see more simpler techniques, there were techniques around just breaking the potentiometers/joystick instead of the solder, and then just move it back and forth to break the solder.
I thought I'll do this on the whole joystick, but just doing it on one of the potentiometers was too much effort and scary. Scary in terms of breaking the whole thing up.
Then I ended up only breaking 1 potentiometer (the front-back one which had the drift) and then replacing it with a potentiometer from the one I had purchased. After much more effort and abusing the PVC very badly with heat, solder and the hole from where I removed the older potentiometer, it looked like a complete mess. I was worried if it would even turn on.
Luckily after few minor adjustments, the joystick was working perfectly. I can honestly say, I felt super happy!
Fast forward to 2months since this, now the joystick has a different kind of problem, where it randomly gets stuck in top direction, hopefully might be fixable with minor tweaks.
All in all it was a very scary experience (of destroying my whole controller), and I won't recommend it to anyone if you don't have advanced soldering skills and equipment.
Better approach would be to buy a stick like this online and then maybe go to a mobile repair shop and pay them some money to help with soldering.

Just a little background here. I'm 28 currently and i work for a beverage company that distrubutes it across various stores. Ive been doing this for close to 5 years now. It's a lot of phsycial labor. My co workers are a hit and miss and many people call out and the sales represenitives order to much product so we have a lot of extra work to do. Just company stanards. I make 22.95 an hour now after 5 years. Full benefeits and 401k which i don't contribute too as i invest on my own. I had an interview with a third party Geico office and i got offered 21 an hour starting pay plus bonuses and potential for more raises. They have a matching 401k and they pay for only half of benefeits. Would this be a good career to pursue for experience of getting into the industry or finding other customer service jobs? I'm a little nervous but really like the idea of being an insurance agent and helping people. This office doesn't do cold calling. They only call people that haven't finished their quote or taking care of already existing customers.
TL;DR Should i switch from being a grocery stocker to a insurance agent?

Mattana Ministry Welcomes You To: Weekly Bible Study: 14 May 2024 Theme: Bible Basics Explained/Faith Scripture: Heb. 10:35-39 & Heb. 11:1-2 Message: God Exists
Faith may seem a small thing, but it can lead people to some extraordinary actions. Consider this story from Romania. The year was 1989, and the Communist government ruled. The Communism that ruled much of Eastern Europe in the 20th century was built on atheistic ideology and philosophy. Though the government allowed church, it kept a tight grip, and often jailed and tortured pastors and believers who defied their rule.
In the town of Timisoara, a local pastor named Tokes, who was teaching the Bible faithfully, was commanded to leave his home and church because he had criticized the government for human rights violations. On the day the police were to evict their pastor, local Christians surrounded the home to stop them. A crowd grew quickly, and the army was called in to stop them. Shots fired. Many wounded, many killed. But then something incredible occurred. The people didn’t fight back. Instead they knelt and prayed. Can we picture that? Prayer against bullets.
Yet the sight was too much for the soldiers. They refused to shoot any more. By this time, the whole town was there. Another pastor named Dugulescu climbed to the balcony of the local opera house and addressed the crowd. He recited something, only a few lines, and two simple words struck deep in the hearts of the people. They began chanting. Then shouting. Two words in defiance of oppression. Two words that cried out for freedom, equality, and dignity. Again and again, they shouted in unison: God exists.
We’ll come back to that story. For now, those same two words are at the very heart of this little thing called faith. So what is faith? Is it just another word for belief? I believe in God - so that’s faith. Right? Well, James reminds us that demons believe in God, and they tremble over that belief. So faith is more than that.
So what is it then? Is it an action of the heart or a conviction of the mind? Or maybe it’s just a feeling in our gut of what we know is true.
To find some answers, we’re turning to the book of Hebrews, and a chapter known as the Hall of Faith. Hebrews 11. The chapter reads like an Old Testament hall of heroes. It’s a highlight reel from every prophet and warrior who ever made it onto a Sunday School flannel board. If we grew up with Bible heroes, we’ll recognize these names. And even if we missed out on all that, there’s something about these heroes - something they all have in common. Many epic stories, countless grand adventures, one shared attribute. And it’s not just courage, or compassion, or integrity. All of those are beautiful and necessary. But this one, this one changes them all. Faith transforms all of our virtues because it gives them direction and purpose. It points everything about us back to God.
So what is faith? Hebrews 11 verse 1:
“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see” (Hebrews 11:1). Faith is confidence. The Greek word here can also be translated substance. Faith gives substance to the things that we hope for. Hope is about the future anticipation of good things coming. But hope alone is ephemeral a dream with nothing tangible to grab hold of. It takes faith to give hope substance, and confidently grab ahold of it here in the present. And back in verse 1, faith is also assurance about what we do not see.
Now not seen is not the same as not real. The Greek words here carry a sense that means not yet seen. Just because we don’t see it yet doesn’t mean it isn’t real. That’s where hope comes in. Hebrews 6 calls hope an “anchor for our souls.” It keeps us grounded, stops us from drifting.
See hope without faith is just wishful thinking. Like a lottery ticket - I hope this one changes my life, but it probably won’t. But hope with faith is like a bus ticket. Sure, the road might be rough and my fellow passengers can occasionally get on my nerves, but my ticket says home, and I know that my bus driver will get me there.
And verse 2 tells us:
“This is what the ancients were commended for” (Hebrews 11:2). The ancients here refer to Old Testament heroes, and the rest of the chapter reminds us of their stories. Fantastic stories. But they’re not just here to tell a good story. This chapter was written to encourage us. Chapter 10 ended with a powerful call to stand strong to persevere in the face of trial. Back in 10:35,
“Do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised”(Hebrews 10:35b-36). And chapter 10 ends with one essential Old Testament quote from Habakkuk:
“The righteous shall live by faith” (Hebrews 10:38). Remember, righteous means right with God. And in the Bible it’s the only way to Heaven. And Hebrews reminds us that when we’re right with God, faith is how we live. That short verse is quoted throughout the New Testament.
MM
Please feel free to leave a review of this message.
https://www.soulcenters.org/directory/mattana-ministry/#listing-reviews

I was recently gifted a ring that I’ve decided to reset. It has a 2.8ct, K, VS1 natural diamond set in a platinum setting.
I was vacationing in India, and I thought why not do it here. Jewelry in general is a big part of the culture, there are many experienced, reputable jewelers, and I’d wanted to add some gemstones (sapphires) to the setting and I could see and pick them out for myself at these stores.
My aunt had a gold necklace that had a broken which she had given one of her trusted jewelers to fix. This was a brand-name place, established in late 1800s, blah blah blah. So she told me to come along, telling me that they are trustworthy and would do a quality job.
Here’s how it went.
We went in, she picked up the fixed necklace, exchanged pleasantries with one of the sales-people (who she had a long-standing relationship with). Then introduced me and I started talking. Showed them the ring, and the guy starts talking.
Him: [examining ring] What kind of stone is this?
Me: it’s a diamond.
Him: how many carats?
Me: uh, it’s 2.8 carats, and K, VS1.
Him: [turns it over in his and, continues to examine] How much was it? 10, 15? (I imagine he was asking in thousands, but I’m not sure)
Me: (mildly shocked but hiding it). I don’t know, it was a gift. (It was given to my mom by my dad, which she gifted to me after my civil wedding ceremony)
Him: [still examining the ring. Then whispemutters to two other sales people nearby] Bring the tester.
At this point I pick up my phone and pretend to be doing something on it. I was a bit taken aback and didn’t know what to do.
Salespeople bring one of those diamond tester things. Three salespeople crowd around the main dude, whos holding the ring. Main dude tests it. And then looks critically at it, not saying anything.
One of the sales people, whispering to main dude: Is it real?
Main dude slightly nods to him.
They continue crowding around him, looking at ring.
At this point I’m just calmly looking around, trying to not be awkward.
Main guy to me: is it certified?
Me: yes.
Him: do you have the certificate?
Me: no, it’s with my mom, but I can get it if you need.
Him: [silent for a while, and then] it should be inscribed on the stone right?
Me: yes I think so.
Him [nods]
At this point the others disperse, and we talk about the new setting I want, etc. I get a reasonable quote but I feel a little taken aback by the whole experience for some reason, so I tell them I’ll let them know, and me and my aunt leave.
After leaving, I don’t know. It felt so off. Like rude? I don’t know. I just remember feeling bad. My aunt could see I was a little quiet and told me that’s just how business is done in India, people are more blunt, and it’s becuase I’ve been away so long that I’m not used to it. But I don’t know. Is this normal?
I just felt kind offended? Or upset?

I was recently gifted a ring that I’ve decided to reset. It has a 2.8ct, K, VS1 natural diamond set in a platinum setting.
I was vacationing in India, and I thought why not do it here. Jewelry in general is a big part of the culture, there are many experienced, reputable jewelers, and I’d wanted to add some gemstones (sapphires) to the setting and I could see and pick them out for myself at these stores.
My aunt had a gold necklace that had a broken which she had given one of her trusted jewelers to fix. This was a brand-name place, established in late 1800s, blah blah blah. So she told me to come along, telling me that they are trustworthy and would do a quality job.
Here’s how it went.
We went in, she picked up the fixed necklace, exchanged pleasantries with one of the sales-people (who she had a long-standing relationship with). Then introduced me and I started talking. Showed them the ring, and the guy starts talking.
Him: [examining ring] What kind of stone is this?
Me: it’s a diamond.
Him: how many carats?
Me: uh, it’s 2.8 carats, and K, VS1.
Him: [turns it over in his and, continues to examine] How much was it? 10, 15? (I imagine he was asking in thousands, but I’m not sure)
Me: (mildly shocked but hiding it). I don’t know, it was a gift. (It was given to my mom by my dad, which she gifted to me after my civil wedding ceremony)
Him: [still examining the ring. Then whispemutters to two other sales people nearby] Bring the tester.
At this point I pick up my phone and pretend to be doing something on it. I was a bit taken aback and didn’t know what to do.
Salespeople bring one of those diamond tester things. Three salespeople crowd around the main dude, whos holding the ring. Main dude tests it. And then looks critically at it, not saying anything.
One of the sales people, whispering to main dude: Is it real?
Main dude slightly nods to him.
They continue crowding around him, looking at ring.
At this point I’m just calmly looking around, trying to not be awkward.
Main guy to me: is it certified?
Me: yes.
Him: do you have the certificate?
Me: no, it’s with my mom, but I can get it if you need.
Him: [silent for a while, and then] it should be inscribed on the stone right?
Me: yes I think so.
Him [nods]
At this point the others disperse, and we talk about the new setting I want, etc. I get a reasonable quote but I feel a little taken aback by the whole experience for some reason, so I tell them I’ll let them know, and me and my aunt leave.
After leaving, I don’t know. It felt so off. Like rude? I don’t know. I just remember feeling bad. My aunt could see I was a little quiet and told me that’s just how business is done in India, people are more blunt, and it’s becuase I’ve been away so long that I’m not used to it. But I don’t know. Is this normal?
I just felt kind offended? Or upset?

I have a 76 day total, 32,000 mile, trip planned including 3 cruises, 13 hotel/resorts, 14 flights, and 2 rental cars with a total cost of $57,000 USD (not including incidentals and excursions). We have 3 people. I can get medical only (with evac) for ~$600 total OR I can get full trip coverage for ~$2700.
The biggest (realistic) concerns are medical issues but of course we can have trip delays, cancellations, etc. I'd guess ~$30K are non-refundable bookings and the rest are at least partially refundable or fully so i don't feel like im really risking losing 60K maybe more like 20-40K.
I got quotes from CHUBB & Allianz and some ballpark estimates from a few others. Chubb is the best coverage for the cost but I'm still thinking the chance of needing to cancel the trip is quite low so am I just betting $2700 against a low odds max $30K payout? I mean if I was gambling or investing I'd see it this way (11:1 on a <10% chance best case) so why not look at it that way?
Realistically, apart from medical, the biggest issue I can see is missing flights that cause a chain reaction causing us to miss a cruise departure or something but have buffer days around them already. That would maybe be a max $12K payout (4.4:1 on a <10% chance)
It doesn't really seem like a good bet.
Please convince me that I SHOULD get full coverage and not just medical.

Recently bought a new house and need to fence in a 180' straight runaway in our backyard to connect to our neighbor's fence to keep our dogs in the yard. Have spent the last two months doing yard work to get our property corners uncovered from brush to make this possible.
In the front yard we can meet our neighbors' fences with minimal work and distance to cover (70' total.) So we'll be doing privacy fencing there. Our neighborhood is a busy dog walking area. I had thought I'd try to tackle that straight 180' myself. Wife enjoys the look of a privacy fence. I do too. Thing is though, it's an unleveled yard and there are quite a bit of rocks buried that I've found.
Also, the back nearly entirely faces the side of a National Guard armory. There is a brick building that is about 25-30' high. No windows. Just bricks as far as the eyes can see. No one ever goes back there. So we don't need "privacy." We just enjoy the looks of the panels and it would make the yard look uniform.
But is it worthwhile to do chainlink for that 180' stretch? I spoke with 5 contractors throughout the area. One can install a 4' chainlink that distance for $3,100 with gates. Guy has a great reputation. Contractors were quoting from $5,800 - $7,200 for wooden privacy fencing. Then $3,000 - $5,000 for chainlink depending on material and height.
It would cost me ~$2,500 in materials to DIY a privacy fence for that stretch. Total plus the front 70' would be a little north of $3,000 plus a lot of sweat equity and no solid time table on completion date.
Is it worthwhile to pay an extra ~$1,000 to have the rear 180' ft. done by a pro who can assure the fence will be leveled and secure. Even though it would be chainlink? It would free up a lot of time to get going on other projects and enjoy the summer.
Sidebar: If we go self-install privacy fence. 180' is far too long for spike anchors, right? It would make no sense to use those vs. concrete with that distance. Wind isn't much of a factor thanks to the building next door. But the distance is really long and we get hammered by snow in the winter. Figured I'd ask more experienced people about those while I have the floor.