Please be gentle. I am 33- f, single, living at home with parents. I spent 10 years in a toxic relationship and just starting to get out of the cobwebs and realize I do have a future, if I want one. I was depressed and felt like I had no future for so long.
Now that therapy has helped a ton, I am beginning to envision a future and see my worth. However, I get paralyzed when I think about my finances. I recently got a raise making now 70k around and $966/wk. I have around 120k worth of deb- most is student, 20 is car, ( i pay a friend at a 1.% interest ) and then around 5k in CC debt. I have 20k in my 401k, but I just found out bc of my ex advice I was not contributing anything all this time for my 40k so this is just employer (tragicccc).
I want to start contributing, but what percent? Do I also start a RothIRA? Or do I wait to invest before out of debt- my student loans feel insurmountable and feel like with the 20yr plan and my payments only going to interest I just am ignoring them and paying my monthly payment.
I feel scared and lost about future, and retirement and living comfortably. I want to move out. Rent/Buy?! Have my own life but idk where to focus first.
I feel if I wait until debt free, I'll be living at home with my parents until 40 and feel like I am waiting so long for "life" to begin after wasting so much time in an abuse situation.
I also just started my own business, slow rolling, which supplemental money is coming in and soon more (another part time opportunity) but also there are business expenses on my plate too.
Does anyone have any advice? Where to start/focus? I feel doomed. Sometimes when I think about my finances I go back into that despair cycle and wonder what is the point.
Looking for a beacon here.
TIA.

Hey fellow traders! It’s time to buckle up and take a closer look at Rocket Lab, a company that could potentially be on the brink of meme stock fame WITH YOUR HELP. Here’s why Rocket Lab deserves our attention:

1. **Short Interest Surge**: Wall Street firms have been piling on short bets against Rocket Lab. This increased short interest could signal a big opportunity for a short squeeze, pushing prices sky-high as shorts cover.
2. **The Rocket Lab Edge**: This isn’t just any company—it's innovating in the aerospace sector with its small satellite launch technology. If you believe in space tech, this could be your play.
3. **Community Power**: We’ve seen what collective enthusiasm can do. It's about community and timing, and Rocket Lab might just be the next ticker to rally around.

So, what do you think? Is it time to aim for the stars with Rocket Lab? Let’s discuss strategies and keep the momentum going. This could be our next big lift-off! 🌌🚀

Hi everyone!! SIR is tomorrow and I need to make a choice asap. I’d love some insight over this!
I was accepted to UCSB, and CSULB .
Both great schools. I applied as a political science major, but might switch to Econ!
UCSB
It’s a UC, there’s a little prestige to it.
I will be dorming as I live 2 hours away. I'm worried about not being able to find housing after my first year. How is the housing situation?
Received a 10k scholarship, that will cover my first two years of school.
I’m worried about the grading scale
More research opportunities?
Might have to pay some out of pocket
runs on quarter system, which I think I'd love, because I'm a fast paced learner, and LOVE testing on material I just learned
CSULB
Known as one of the better CSU’s
20 minute commute, although I want to try dorming my first year
I doubt I’ll pay anything out of pocket because of financial aid
Might graduate w/o debt
More of a hands on learning
Semester system... not sure how to feel about having the same class for 16 weeks.
I was also accepted into Cal Poly Pomona
Don’t know which is better out of the two
Personally, I feel like I'll thrive better at UCSB because I'll have the ability to do clubs/meet new people. basically get the full college experience.
I’m just scattered all around, and would appreciate what thoughts you guys have. Or if anyone was in my same situation, what they did, and whether they regret it or not.

Sorry for the long post...
Hey everyone! I'm curious to know if anyone has ever had symptoms of mold exposure and even tested positive for mycotoxins, but no evidence shows in the home as to where the mold may be?
Back story, my wife has slowly had her health fail over the last 25 years. At first, she was diagnosed with a gluten allergy. We went gluten free and her health did seem to improve quite a bit for approximately 5 years. Since then it seems to be one thing after another, culminating in her pretty much feeling horrible most of the time. Her symptoms can range from gastro to burning arms and legs, coughing after eating, etc....She's told me on many occasions that she feels like she is dying. COVID didn't help our situation and we're still pretty restricted because we can't imagine adding the flu or COVID to how she already feels. When there is an opportunity to do something, she feels too horrible to even consider doing anything other than resting.
We have known for years that she was exposed to mold in her classroom, our first home and second home. We would bring these exposures to the forefront when seeing the multiple doctors we've seen over the years, but all have dismissed mold as a culprit, although they've not had any solutions for her continued failing health. We've spent likely over 200K seeing MD's, specialists, functional doctors and naturopaths. No one has an answer. Typically the relationship with these doctors ends with them thinking she is bringing these symptoms on herself and that she just needs to de-stress, meditate or take depression medication. Spoiler, none of these things have helped.
Fast forward to today. We're now working with a functional chiropractor who ran multiple tests and found that she has elevated Lyme bacteria and is positive for mold mycotoxins. This doctor asked us to run an ERMI test on our current home and it came back showing that there was mold detected, but not elevated. In his words, "Typically not a problem, but for you we should probably remediate." We brought in a mold company and they took air samples. Their air samples showed elevated mold in certain spaces, so they did visual inspections in those areas. No evidence of mold has been physically observed anywhere in our home. We then proceeded to spend 20K for a remediation company to clean our home using the HEPA sandwich method, removing all insulation from our attic space, remediation of that space including phogging and new insulation blown in. We also had a company who specializes in methods to clean mold from HVAC systems come in and clean our entire system.
After remediation we waited 6 weeks and took another ERMI test. Much to our surprise, the results were far worse than when we started. The ERMI now detected high levels of mold in our home. My wife has not felt better and in fact is probably even worse since remediation. She is going through treatment for for mold and so this may be due to herxmi or MCAS. Anyway, after the second ERMI came back worse we had the mold company come back out. Their air samples, again, found elevated mold in certain places. They even cut back dry wall in those spaces and found nothing. In all cases, everyone has said our house looks brand new. We plan to take another ERMI test as we've waited more than 6 months since the last. If this ERMI comes back high, we are considering moving.
So after this very long post, has anyone been down this path before? Where there is no visual evidence of mold in your residence even though testing keeps showing there may be? I understand the challenges with ERMI, air samples, etc...it feels like we are chasing a ghost to be honest. At this point in the process and if we purchased a new home, we will have spent north of 600K trying to figure out if mold is an issue. While I have no issues doing such a thing if needed, how in the world are we ever to know if there is an issue if the issue can never be seen and therefore properly removed?

okay so, i started to apply for disability a little over a year ago, i got denied, which i knew was going to happen, but was still surprised since they had to have multiple letters to even cover all the shit they had to look through to deny. at that a point i was homeless and living in shelters + my car. I submitted my appeal in JAN, it is now MAY, and there still doing the medical review for my appeal. I moved out of homelessness and into a transitional living program for youth, which supplies my housing in a apartment building owned by the org, but that program ends this summer when i reach the age limit. Ive tried working, even if i do get hired with my accommodations, which has only happened twice in the 4 years ive been trying, i end up getting fired beacuse i cant make it to work, since im hospitalized at least once a month for weeks at a time. ive tried vocational rehab, i cant get into housing for disability because im not on SSI yet, and they require you to have it already. I have no friends to live with, and no family to rely on, im drowning in medical debt and im barely making it by in the current program im in. I have rhuem, pulm, cardiology, vascular, immu, ENT, lipedema specialists, genetic doctors, im in lymphedema therapy and physical therapy, YET IM STILL FUCKING WAITING FOR SSI???!? what am i supposed to do when my program is up?? rot away and wither?? my case worker has no clue and is out here searching for housing which requires ssi, but im not on it and i dont have hope that i will be anytime soon. zero idea what im supposed to be doing right now....

Introduction

Pertaining to Taylor Swift, "Female Rage" has deviated from its intended meaning after Swift debuted a new performance of The Tortured Poets Department during the Eras Tour. Now, according to Swift's use of the phrase, female rage is interpreted as public backlash against Swift's dating choices rather than as a response to the broader injustices against women and women's rights. This post examines Taylor Swift's flawed feminism, philanthropy, branding, and the controversial trademark petition for the phrase "Female Rage: The Musical". Swift's background as an entertainer, indeterminate politics, and alignment with capitalism over feminism pervades her legacy, again threatening her public tolerance as not just an individual but as a brand.

Once Upon a Female Rage...

If you were cognizant in the early 2010's, you've heard countless jabs at Taylor Swift in the media. Magazines, radio, or online. Music critics did not take her seriously as a songwriter; parents put a woman on an unrealistic pedestal as the ideal role model for their children; she dated too much and used men as lyrical fodder. No matter the story, it inevitably spread, conjoined with everyone's respective opinions, and you'd be left to wonder, "Why does everyone hate this girl so much?"
Taylor's target demographic has always been young or adolescent girls, more so when Swift herself was one. She made music that spoke to the awkward misfit, cultivating a para-social relationship with fans on MySpace, then later twitter, Instagram, and YouTube, where Taylor posted relatable vlogs showcasing the life of a homegrown American girl. Taylor had a delayed public "growing up" and, compared to her female pop contemporaries, Swift never "gratuitously sexualized her image and seems pathologically averse to controversy" (and, apparently, never even had a sip of alcohol until she turned 21). She was more than happy to spin this narrative to allude to an inherent moral superiority above other women in the industry (Better Than Revenge, heard of it?), engaging in the very slut-shaming that she herself endured (the Madonna and Whore archetypes). The victim complex arose with the need to prove Taylor as a different type of pop girl. Based upon her holy and clean image, Swift had been dubbed "a feminist's nightmare", and that "[To Swift] other girls are obstacles; undeserving enemies who steal Taylor’s soulmates with their bewitching good looks and sexual availability." Feminism and Tennessee-Christian country values don't exactly mix, it seems.
Years later, Swift befriended Lena Dunham and thus experienced white feminism osmosis, where Dunham taught Swift that real feminists defend rapists, makes insensitive jokes about rape and abortion, and prioritize all-white casts. Swift then declared herself a feminist in 2014, saying,

"Becoming friends with Lena – without her preaching to me, but just seeing why she believes what she believes, why she says what she says, why she stands for what she stands for – has made me realize that I’ve been taking a feminist stance without actually saying so."

I suppose the male-centric songwriting subject that permeates Swift's discography contained covert feminism and that we just didn't see that. Perhaps, the "Bad Blood" song and music video were written only in jest and not about poor Katy Perry, for Swift, as a feminist, would "never make it a girl fight" or tear other women down (though all Katy did was date your terrible ex-boyfriend and allegedly steal three backup dancers from your tour). In 2013, Swift said, in response to Tina Fey and Amy Poehler's joke towards her serial dating, "There is a special place in hell for women who don't help other women."
There was that time in 2015 Taylor said that Nicki Minaj was "invited to any stage [she is] on" (as if Taylor expects to have access to every stage, award, and platform that Nicki might not otherwise have as a black female artist...yikes!) in response to Nicki's criticism of the white + thin VMA nominations. Later, Nicki responded with confusion, as Swift continued, "It’s unlike you to pit women against each other. Maybe one of the men took your slot..". Of course, this 'beef' was 'squashed' when Nicki performed with Taylor at the VMAs, with Nicki quite literally only having 38 seconds of stage time without Taylor. Maybe all that parading around with a legion of famous white women - similar to the way Taylor might've done with her numerous 1989-era handbags - was in fact a stance against gender inequality, and that this display of "girl power" should be enough to constitute Swift as a feminist icon.
Even while Swift says that Dunham informed her feminist outlook, she dances around the exact contents of those beliefs: "what she believes, what she says, what she stands for" is not exactly insightful towards what beliefs Swift might have inherited. Taylor never broaches women's rights topics such femicide, FGM, forced pregnancy & marriage, sex trafficking, women in slavery, women's financial and political oppression, women's educational rights, women's health, or women's autonomy, so we can assume she only gives a fuck about "girls supporting girls" (whatever that fucking means).
Despite some questionable (and sometimes vindictive) behavior, Taylor as a young woman did not deserve every media lashing that she received. We cannot deny that most headlines and criticisms perpetuated a misogynistic rhetoric which has plagued Swift for a majority of her career. Acknowledging events such as the development of her ED, her sexual assault trial, "Famous" lyric and MV depiction of Taylor, and the explicit Twitter deepfakes, for example, as both disgusting and unfortunate things that happened to a young woman in Hollywood does not negate the fact that Taylor is mostly a performative feminist.

Get Your Fucking Ass Up and Be a Philanthropist, It Seems Like Nobody Wants to Be a Philanthropist These Days

In 2013, Taylor Swift cut the ribbon at the grand opening of the Taylor Swift Education Center at the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, Tennessee. The donation amount - $4 million - was the largest individual artist gift ever donated to the Country Music Hall of Fame, which is, of course, mentioned on Swift's website. The two-story facility features three classrooms, an instrument room, and an interactive children's exhibit gallery. Swift also performed at "All for the Hall" charity shows and has donated numerous artifacts from her career (such as notable guitars, tour costumes, etc) to the museum.
This was over 11 years ago, and it is still the only notable philanthropic contribution Taylor Swift has made.
For a woman of her net worth and stature, and a woman who recognizes the difficulties for women in film and music, you would think that Taylor Swift might establish a scholarship program for women to study the arts or something. Perhaps Swift might even consider becoming a member of organizations that support female artists, or one that supports LGBTQ+ causes (since she is now proudly an ally), yet she remains superficial with her graces. Broader philanthropy, such as donating relief aid to Palestinian women or women impacted by violence and discrimination will probably never receive any financial support from Miss Swift because then she'd be using her money towards philanthropies involving anyone but white entertainers.
She even says herself in Miss Americana, "My entire moral code as a kid and now is a need to be thought of as 'good'." Well, she's certainly thought of as good, though her actions say otherwise. She's more than happy to do a vaguely altruistic song and dance for a clip-worthy interview quote and mass appeasement, then fuck off to one of her mansions on a 20 minute private jet flight, rather than actually contribute to anything pertaining to the causes she has endorsed. Yet, far too many people continue to give a woman such as her their money, time, and energy, and she hoards these resources to herself.

I Like Some of the Taylor's Songs, But What the Fuck Does She Know About Feminism?

Swift continued with her self-proclaimed feminist campaign, positioning herself as a political activist and LGBTQ+ ally in the Miss Americana documentary. The primary focus of the documentary consists of the sexual assault trial, Andrea Swift's cancer diagnosis, Taylor's ED and body dysmorphia, media scrutiny, and, largely, finally speaking up about her politics publicly, mostly her opposition to the 2018 Tennessee Republican senate candidate, Marsha Blackburn, and Blackburn's beliefs. Swift says, following a scene discussing her experience during the trial,

"I just couldn't really stop thinking about it. And I just thought to myself, next time there is any opportunity to change anything, you had better know what you stand for and what you want to say."

We must ask ourselves, though: when has Swift ever spoken up to change anything? Okay, pulling her entire catalogue from Spotify because they didn't pay their artists enough and similarly pulling her catalogue from Apple Music are changes that she leveraged due to her revenue potential and power, but they are not pertinent to the average woman's rights. Moreover, these are issues that directly impacted Taylor's income, which was enough reason for her to protest in the first place. Swift has sold the most units for a female artist in first week sales, is the first female artist with 100k monthly Spotify listeners, is the first female artist to win the Album of the Year Grammy 4 times, and is the first female artist to do X, Y, and Z, all while being inoffensive and family-friendly to boot. The actual Taylor Swift seems unwilling to compromise the brand of Taylor Swift by contributing in meaningful ways to feminist causes, especially if it is for women outside of America and Hollywood.
The reason political anthems such as "The Man" and "Only the Young" of the Lover era feel disingenuous and corporate is because, well, it is. Taylor has taken every opportunity to advance her career or public image at the expense of other women. What is truly genuine to Taylor's outlook on other women is vying for male attention, taking down female competition, and vocalizing feminist injustices only if they directly impact her and her money. Some will argue that it's satisfactory for a woman with such a huge platform to even TALK about feminism, but that just isn't enough. It's even less impressive when you candidly look at the scope of her feminist lens: "If I was the man, then I'd be THE MAN", or "I really resent the ‘Be careful, buddy, she’s going to write a song about you’ angle, because it trivialises what I do", and, of course, "We all got crowns". Feminism, but only when it happens to me. It gets worse when you look at Taylor's track record of copying other famous women and removing other female artists as potential threats to her pop prowess.
It's good for PR to align yourself with certain blanket feminist and political beliefs, therefore good for branding, therefore good for ticketing and merchandise sales, therefore good for business. And Taylor Swift is a business.
She's not a feminist. Taylor Swift is a capitalist.

I Can't Pay Those Sweatshop Workers a Livable Wage or Benefits! How Else Would I Make My Billions?

Recently, Taylor's team filed to trademark the phrase "Female Rage: The Musical" after Taylor said during Paris N1 of the Eras Tour,

"So you were the first ones to see The Tortured Poets at the Eras Tour...or as I like to call it, 'Female Rage: The Musical'."

This trademark petition was filed last week on Saturday, and news comes about just as numerous unofficial fan-made merch designs have cropped up with this phrase plastered on Fruit of the Loom basics. I'm of the opinion Swift's team motioned for a trademark so that they can send out cease & desists to all those that make knockoff merch, which disrupts potential sales for Bravado, UMG's choice merchandising company; however, since it was filed earlier, perhaps Swift has bigger plans with the bizarre use of the gendered phrase. One Swiftie referred to the phrase "female rage" as "a funny Eras Tour joke". Could it be a possible fourth version of the Eras Tour Movie? Whatever the reason, the motion to capitalize off of such a concept is disgusting, but not unsurprising, for a woman that profits on her vain feminism.
Swift, through her company, TAS Rights Managements, has also trademarked over 200 phrases, including "1989", where she owns the property rights to this calendar year on keychains, phone cases, sunglasses, stationary, bags, beverage ware, clothing, entertainment services, your subconscious, and, of course, Christmas ornaments.
The vapid consumerism in Swiftie culture is, frankly, disgusting. Bravado's sustainability statement is non-existent, the quality control is abysmal, and the materials they use are horrible. The materials, such as acrylic and polyester, are made from petrochemicals. This means they are non-renewable, shed microplastics, and are quite toxic in production. The manufacturing process to make all of those lazy-rushed Eras Tour logo graphic tees is a huge blow to environmental well-being. Apparently, though, Swifties don't give a fuck. They sell out products in seconds and either have to face the manufactured scarcity or buy from a scalper that resells for 200% of the already ridiculous retail price. This doesn't include the environmental impact of vinyl records, CD, and cassette production, of which Taylor produces many variants that sell unsustainable amounts.
If we're talking about women's rights violations, why is no one acknowledging the women that work in the inhumane sweatshop conditions that have to pump out fugly t-shirts and hats? The millions of plastic microfiber dander they are inhaling, or the toxic dyes that touch their bare skin? Are they being compensated fairly for their skilled labour and are they in safe working environments? Do these women have minimal bargaining power, and do they have authority over their worker's rights? Is Taylor Swift female raging at their injustices? Does Taylor Swift ever feels bad that her wealth was built on the backs of women of color, disadvantaged by the demands of the global economy and garment industry? Do you think she ever says a little white feminist prayer for them before she goes to sleep at night?
What's even crazier is not that Taylor herself doesn't care, it's that Swifties don't care. There CANNOT BE ethical billionaires. You only make a billion dollars if you are exploiting other human beings for capital gain. Based on public perception of the possible "Female Rage: The Musical" trademark, it seems like Swifties are already asking for merch with this phrase. "If Taylor made it, I'd buy it." Oh, cool. So not only do you champion Miss Swift's avarice and billionaire status, but you also are unashamed to admit to your blind consumption of her music and merchandise, no matter where they might originate in production or sincerity. Just as Swift takes and takes and takes, Swifties' consumerism of Taylor Swift cannot be quelled.
The tortured artist's most vulnerable and sincere poetry...available now in 21 different versions!

I Am Tortured Poet, Hear Me Whinge

Look - even if Taylor's intention is to characterize TTPD as more "tortured" and "angry", the main thread of the album is "I was ghosted by my decade-long situationship with a controversial indie boy and my fucking stupid fans wrote a 'Speak Up Now' open letter prompting me to drop him" anger, which is adequately expressed in the lyrics and performances. The extent of Taylor's "female rage" on TTPD is on tracks such as "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?", which contends with relentless media scrutiny; "But Daddy I Love Him", where Swift firmly states she'll date whoever she likes no matter how "Sarahs and Hannahs" may react; and "The Albatross", a track mythologizing her reputation and the consequences of dating her. Of course, these coincide with deep psychological wounds that formed during Swift's early years in the media, and so, from her feminist perspective, these subjects tackle the misogyny and double standards that she faced.
Yet Taylor Swift still has no grounds to be claiming that TTPD best exemplifies female rage and therefore she, in the context of this album, is female rage incarnate. As the daughter of a stock broker and mutual fund marketing executive, Taylor was born into wealth and allowed privileges like trips and subsequent relocation to Nashville all so that she might get a record deal. Her father even invested at least $120,000 into the then-fledgling label, Big Machine Records, which ensured Taylor's place with Borchetta after leaving her dead-end development deal with Sony. The fact that her parents were able to buy her a fucking brand new guitar for Christmas and pay for music lessons says so much about the financial security and safety of her childhood.
Money is privilege and protection, and despite Swift's experiences with misogyny and loser boyfriends, she does not know what female rage is.
Her rage is derived from her frustrations with her obsessive fans pulling the moral superiority card on Taylor in response to her rebound with Matty Healy. That's literally it. She's just pissed that the monster she created is no longer obediant, it's become a feral, sovereign entity that depletes the world of its natural resources and thinks it is more intelligent than it actually is because it's mommy has started to talk to it with big words. Apparently, 'illicit', 'elegy', 'nonchalant', and 'precocious' are considerably big words for the oafish monster, and I find it strange that this level of literacy is present in a group of fans that allegedly have GPAs of 3.5 or higher, but I digress.
Taylor Swift has never been one paycheck away from destitution. Taylor Swift has never experienced racial discrimination. She may have instances of gender discrimination, but she possesses the ideal white, blonde American beauty standard and therefore reaps the benefits of being a conventionally attractive woman. Taylor Swift has sufficient social capital. Taylor Swift is a billionaire woman prolonging her victimhood though she, as a woman, has mostly had control over her image and music (unlike her contemporaries). Taylor Swift is NOT entitled to be championed for her "female rage", nor should she be. Taylor Swift has never even been the struggling artist, for fuck's sake. I don't give a fuck if she's trying to fill the empty lunch tables of her past. Taylor Swift purporting herself, her unpolished album, and her lukewarm feminism as a musical bleeding with female rage is asinine.

Sigh Try and Come For My Job, Poors

Out there in the world right now is a 23-year-old woman, a recent college grad, who works as a barista. She has to wake up and get ready to go into a minimum wage job because she cannot get a job in her field. She doesn't have healthcare benefits or sick time, so she has to go into work no matter how she's feeling. All day long she is berated by vicious customers and creepy men, and, exhausted from being on her feet, she knows she has to go home to her shitty roommate that never does the dishes and her roommate's shitty dog. To comfort herself, she considers getting a treat, but thinks against it when she remembers that matcha lattes cost $15 and they taste like milky dirt. She knows that she needs to buy groceries this week, and so the woman resolves to go home, but notices that her gas tank is low. She goes to put gas in the car, but the pump stops at $27.86 because that's all that she has in her checking account. The woman, bereft and reeling, sinks into the driver's seat. "Well," she thinks, her head in her hands, "at least I don't have Taylor Swift's job. I just couldn't imagine."
Fame is somewhat of a choice. If at any moment Taylor feels that she is misunderstood, misconstrued, or overwhelmed by public opinion, she can LEAVE the public eye - Lord knows she has the retirement fund and residuals to do so. In "I Can Do It With a Broken Heart", the TTPD song about meeting the demands of your career-zenith mega-tour while in the relationship trenches, Taylor ends the song by rambling,

"You know you're good when you can even do it with a broken heart...you know you're good...and I'm good, cause I'm miserable, and no one even knows!...try and come for my job."

Yeah, obviously we wouldn't know, you recently passed the billionaire threshold and are the most famous and in-demand performer in the world right now. Taylor Swift makes an estimated $10 to $13 million dollars A NIGHT on the Eras Tour. Furthermore, the Eras Tour movie grossed $261.6 million globally, (which, as the producer, Taylor takes home 57% of the ticket sales) not counting the streaming revenue from Amazon Prime Video and the estimated $75 million deal that Disney paid to have it on Disney+. We're not even considering the income from cheap plastic popcorn buckets and drink cups plastered with colored squares in her Era-specific likeness.
It's funny. Taylor Swift often said that being famous wasn't hard, that she "isn't complaining". I'm sure it is difficult to always have to present in a good mood, else you'll end up misrepresented in the media, and I'm sure it's invasive to virtually have no privacy or semblance of anonymity. Still, Taylor Swift shows up each night of tour and performs. For a majority of her career, she has penned her sad songs while on the road. Most of "Red", her breakup album, was written in the thick of the Speak Now World tour. Now, some Swifties say they almost "feel bad" for attending the Eras Tour with Swift's revelations in this song, that they have had a 'dimmed experience' upon hearing Taylor's misery whilst performing. Despite the fact that Taylor said that "this was the happiest she's ever been" at Gilette Stadium in May, the lyrics "boohoo, woe is me, smile for the cameras and make the fans happy!!!" are jarring for Eras attendees.
While Taylor Swift was making double-digit millions a night in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and feeling miserable, Ana Clara Benevides Machado passed away due to heat exposure. The concert promoters, Time For Fun, are now the subject of a criminal investigation due to their lack of adequate hydration and safety. Taylor Swift cancelled the Sunday show that was to follow and offered VIP tent tickets to Benevides Marchado's family, which was a kind gesture, but perhaps incongruous to the incident of which they were offered as consolation. Everyone grieves differently, of course, but I'm not sure attending the very show at the very same venue that my daughter or sister passed away in two days prior, where the singer CONTINUED the show despite her death, would be healthy for closure.
There was no female rage at the show as Swift never saw Benevides Machado pass out. There was no female rage towards the disregard for fans as humans while Swift elected to proceed with her Brazil tour dates despite the country being in historic heatwaves (at risk of overheatting herself). If Taylor Swift was so shaken by touring with a broken heart or a fan's passing, she wouldn't have added an additional North American leg of Eras just two months after the Matty breakup. She's brokenhearted but willing to mend the cracks with your money and move onward with her worldwide female rage induced pillaging.
No matter what happens, even if you die at a Taylor Swift concert, Taylor collects a big fat check and flies away. She doesn't know you as anything other than a conversion rate or earning potential despite what her nearly 20-year long parasocial relationship with fans might otherwise indicate. She knows that, while some Swifties are without disposable income, they feel obligated to spend on a "48 Hours Only!" exclusive vinyl variant instead of necessities because they are so entrenched in Taylor Swift's intoxicating celebrity, they'll prioritize materialistic fandom before their needs. This is good enough for her because this means she can expand her real estate portfolio and finance her cat's lavish lifestyles. They're worth an estimated $100 million dollars. Her three cats could pool their net worth and solve world hunger.
While you and I might be denied bereavement leave and barely surviving the current political and economic climate, Taylor Swift has to, instead of gets to, perform for stadiums at full attendance for three nights in a row across the globe. You and I might be replaced by AI at our longtime jobs, but Taylor Swift is threatened with losing more and more money each time you listen to a "Stolen Version" of her songs. If we don't buy every variant of all of her albums, then who is going to pay for the fucking cats?
It is tone deaf to spend as she spends and lives as she lives in this economy, but this is her reality. She was able to donate $100,000 to all of her tour truck drivers, and that's wonderful, but it leads me to wonder about the ethos of the 2020s where one woman can hoard such life-changing amounts of money. Remember in 2014 when she gave a fan $90 ($120 in today's money) to get Chipotle because she had no fucking clue how much it cost? This is a 34-year-old woman who is increasingly out of touch with the reality for working class people and women in general. Normal everyday adults must wake up and go to their thankless jobs, and yet Taylor Swift, despite all her riches, incessantly references the lows of her life and career as a public figure and entertainer to farm sympathy and drive sales. And still, the corporate women have latched onto "I cry a lot, but I am so productive! It's an art!" as their cubicle battle cry.
Do you think that, from up in her private jet, Taylor Swift gazes at the world through her poetic, tortured eyes, and thinks, "All the little people, in their cars, walking, going about their lives...all those girls that don't support girls...do they know that I've made an album about female rage?"

Conclusion/TLDR

Thank you for reading. I would love to hear your critical insights towards this entire ordeal: TTPD, the trademark, the implications of it all.
TLDR: Taylor Swift is a bad feminist and is delusional to think that the TTPD eras set exemplifies female rage at women's injustice.

Once upon a time, there was a young individual named Alex. Alex hailed from a small village in a country torn by conflict and economic hardship. Despite the adversities, Alex dreamed big and harbored a burning desire for a better life. With unwavering determination, Alex decided to embark on a journey to a new country in pursuit of opportunities.
However, the path was far from smooth. Alex faced numerous obstacles along the way, from treacherous border crossings to navigating unfamiliar territories. Without proper documentation, every step seemed like a gamble, fraught with the risk of being detained or deported. Yet, Alex pressed on, fueled by hope and resilience.
Upon arriving in the new country, reality hit hard. Without legal papers, opportunities seemed scarce, and the future appeared bleak. But Alex refused to be defined by circumstances. Instead, Alex took matters into their own hands, seeking out every possible avenue to forge a path forward.
Despite the odds, Alex was determined to pursue education. With sheer grit and resourcefulness, Alex managed to enroll in a local community college, working odd jobs to make ends meet. Every obstacle became a stepping stone, fueling Alex's drive to succeed against all odds.
As years passed, Alex's hard work and perseverance paid off. Despite the challenges of being an undocumented immigrant, Alex graduated with a bachelor's degree in business administration, a testament to resilience and dedication.
But Alex's journey didn't end there. Armed with newfound knowledge and skills, Alex ventured into entrepreneurship, starting a small business from scratch. It wasn't easy, facing bureaucratic hurdles and financial constraints, but Alex refused to be deterred.
Through sheer determination and unwavering faith, Alex's business began to thrive. From humble beginnings, it grew into a successful venture, creating job opportunities and contributing to the local economy.
Despite the adversities faced along the way, Alex's story is a testament to the power of resilience, perseverance, and the indomitable human spirit. From overcoming obstacles to achieving academic and entrepreneurial success, Alex's journey serves as an inspiration to many, a reminder that with determination and courage, anything is possible, even against the toughest odds.

I'm (23F) primarily coming here because I feel like I don't know who I can talk to about this and just need to get some things out. My sister (21F) is graduating from college this spring and has been looking for a job for the past few months. This morning, she found out she got a job in a different state (will become relevant) and my mom (54F) and I were so happy and relieved that she finally got her first job. My dad (51M) on the other hand was pretty furious because it meant that she was moving to a different state and the car he was going to give her no longer would be needed.
For some context, my parents got divorced when my sister and I were pretty young and things haven't really ever been smooth between them. My dad lives in the South, my sister is graduating from a school in the Northeast and going to work elsewhere in the Northeast, and my mom and I live on the West Coast (as we have for all of my life). My mom raised my sister and I and put us through the best private school she could and made sure we were always her first priority (she's the best).
My dad has always been a pretty controlling person, but I've come to a point where I've learned to manage his involvement in my life and have learned how to placate him to a certain degree. Mine and his relationship has gotten a little easier over the past few years for a few reasons but his relationship with my sister has gotten worse. He sees her as not very communicative and not very willing to "meet him halfway" but from her point of view, he's never understood her or taken the time to try to see who she is and what's important to her.
Cut to recently, I graduated from college last year and my graduation gift from him was money (within a certain limit) for a car. He helped me buy the car I chose and had said that the same would be given to my sister the following year (this year) when she graduated. As great as getting money for a car and having help with buying it is, it came with a lot of strings and was not something my sister or I directly asked for. That's not to say we're not grateful for the cars, but he was the one who offered; it wasn't as though we twisted his arm to get him to buy us a car or something.
Now, instead of buying my sister a separate car, he decided he was going to give her his current car so he could buy a different one that better suited his needs. My sister liked the car that he was going to give her, but last year I had been able to research what kind of car would best suit my needs and pick out the car I would end up getting. She was fine with not being able to have the same free reign I did, but perhaps wasn't very communicative with him because she's been trying to complete all of her finals and final assignments as well as try as much as possible to enjoy her last semester of undergrad.
My sister got a few final interviews for a job opportunity in a place where she wouldn't need a car, and she got an offer letter this morning for the job. Instead of congratulating her, my dad said she was "not an adult" and that she needed to "learn to think for herself" instead of deferring to my mom. He said he was "sad and let down" and was upset at how poor the communication between him and my sister was about the car.
More things he said: "I don't deserve this poor communication" "You don't respond to me. Respond to all kinds of social media meanwhile all day" "You only respond at times that work for you. It comes across as selfish/childish". He then sent my mom this nightmare: "It's a fitting end to our coparenting. You've been controlling and a nightmare the entire time. You were never grateful I permitted you to move to SoCal. I didn't want the girls to grow up with a functionally depressed mom in the Bay Area. As always, it's always about you and the girls and you don't ever give a f*ck about their dad. So selfish. Such a bad mom. [my name] gets it. [my sister's name] will in time. I'm honestly ashamed I let you into my life and regret it still to this day. White-trasy, lying, selfish, vain. I told [my name] how your behavior was to break every rule as a co-parent. She understood. I didn't attack you. I did attack the sh*t behavior. Hopefully someday I'll have that chat with [my sister's name] when she gets her head out of her a*s."
Just typing the text makes my blood boil. I don't know what to do. I'm planning to bring this to my therapist in a few days but am not sure what to do until then. I think this could sever my sister's relationship with my dad, and I'm not sure I want to continue mine with him anyway. I'm also pretty uncomfortable with him thinking I'm on his side, but I don't want to meddle further if it's going to make it worse for my mom and sister. There's a lot more context and information I could probably give but for the sake of not writing a novel about the situation, I'll end here.
TLDR: My sister got a job in a big city where cars aren't needed and my dad is upset that he has to sell the car and decided he was going to cuss her and my mom out instead of congratulate her.

About a year ago, I [29 M] was in a toxic relationship with J [29 M]. While there were no serious stakes in it (no kids or messy finances), the relationship and breakup ended up emotionally affecting me in a way I had never really thought possible. I feel guilty because after the relationship I tried to be friends with my ex still, which I now see as a mistake in the context of this relationship, and then after a few months, he blocked me because I didn't respect a boundary he had set about not sending him long messages. He said he didn't feel safe since I "completely ignored" the boundary.
I was devastated, but over the course of the next few months, came to understand a great deal of ways that I feel that I had been abused during the relationship. I felt angrier and angrier, and even though I was seeing a therapist, it eventually boiled over. My ex had blocked me on discord and probably on text, but I went onto an astrology app called Co-Star that he had had me download, and sent a message using it that said something like, "You were an abusive partner, but you can make it right with an apology."
Now, I have no idea if he actually saw the message. It was sent with a weird feature of the app called Chaos Mode that apparently chooses to send the message at some future time, so who knows if it actually ever sent. I don't know if he still has the app, if he unfriended me, or whatnot. But I feel guilty because I enacted exactly the caricature of me that he had created--I hadn't respected his boundaries, and I sent the message anyways.
At the same time, I am still feeling very victimized by the relationship. To give you a sense of the kinds of things that were going on in the relationship, here's a few examples that I currently find a little horrific [Note: this kind of turned into a summary of the relationship after I wrote it]. I'm aware that to heal I should probably not be ruminating about these things, especially if they lead me to boil over and message him, but here you go.
The first time I had sex with him, he slammed the door on me for not being able to finish and said "finish yourself." When I came to bed, I told him I felt shame. He said "good." The next time we had sex, he set a timer for me and said I had to finish within 5 minutes. These were the first times I ever had sex. He was manipulative in bed, telling me he didn't want to perform certain acts because I didn't give him enough praise for them, so that I started exaggerating my pleasure; he blamed me for why certain positions weren't working and was frustrated with how my body worked. On top of this, he admitted at the end of the relationship to having had sex with me around five times after he decided to break up with me (before he did), which just makes me feel a bit icky.
He would put me down in pretty transparently cruel ways. One example was when I exerted myself, he said I sounded like a muppet and that he "didn't want to be dating a muppet." When I offered him a blanket but apologized that it might not have been washed in a while, he called me a baby. He would insult my ability to give complements, asking me to tell him what color his eyes are but then rejecting everything that I gave him, telling me I was bad at complements repeatedly (and saying that it wasn't fair of him because his other exes were artists, so no wonder I was bad). Now, there were times that he was complementary to me--he told me I was hot, good at singing, good at writing, smart--but also times where he would put me down for things I was less good at, like cooking.
He constantly made me feel insecure about my gender. (For context, we are both men, but he was raised as a woman). So he would make pretty sweeping feminist critiques over fairly mundane things, like if I complained when I was sick he would go off about how men are always babies when they are sick and women don't get attention. When I confronted him about some of the things he was saying, telling him that while I wanted him to express these kinds of social problems so that I could be aware and adapt, I was feeling insecure in the relationship--he flipped it around and told me that if I didn't feel loved, he could say "I love you" less, and that I hadn't been grateful enough for when he came to visit me. (I had written him poetry, deep cleaned my apartment, taken time off work, sent my roommate off for the week, bought him a bus pass, planned his visit, met him in the airport despite not having a car, and just an insane amount of work to be turned into, "you weren't grateful enough").
Other than namecalling, he was just plain controlling. The reason that the boundary around me not sending long messages exists is that when I felt insecure--which I think makes sense given the ways he would talk to me--I would often send him a few paragraphs apologizing and explaining how I was growing. Even though long messages were the first thing he said he loved about me, and that he said our communication was like magic, he eventually set up what he called an "Essay embargo" and told me not to write them. The first time he set the "embargo", he had said it was only until we met in person because he didn't want me to write anything that would make him nervous. After we met in person, I assumed the embargo had lifted. Yet shortly after, he set it again, giving a few explanations--the main one just being that he wanted to appreciate our relationship without overthinking it. It seemed playful. He definitely did also say that long messages made him uncomfortable because he felt obligated to send a response. So, when I did send messages, I would add that he didn't have to respond (which I realize is not fully respecting the boundary). I did ask after sending messages whether they were ok and he never responded to those questions.
Despite this, there were times during the relationship that I continued to send long, often apologetic messages. I had felt like this boundary was set playfully and I also was feeling overwhelming guilt that I, for whatever reason, needed his affirmation for. I am conflicted because on the one hand, I was definitely ignoring his boundary--but on the other, I feel like the boundary was not very thoughtful of my own needs, either.
Prior to the breakup, it was hell. He was getting angry at me for everything--for pretty mundane things like using the bathroom before him and stinking it up. He told me he had to show me how to do everything, but I realize now that a lot of this was just him being particular (e.g, he told me I don't know how to drink tea because I left the bag in, when I just like it strong). Unfortunately, I had flown 5,000 miles to visit him and was sort of trapped in his proximity, and was drunk on love still since I was trying very hard, it was my first relationship, and he had sold me on notions of fairytale romance and told me we were cosmically meant to be together and other lovebomby sort of things. At one point, he missed a turn while driving with GPS and got angry at me for not helping--he disconnected his phone and threw it sideways at me (I guess so I could navigate for him, but it was a pretty retaliatory motion). We flew to a convention and I met some of his friends, and at one point he introduced me to a girl he had almost dated before, saying I was a friend and not a partner. I pointed this out to him later and he just said "does that make you angry?". He flirted with a woman at a party, telling her she was pretty while demanding that i bring him snacks (I feel so, so weak for not confronting him about this). He got drunk and I stayed with him as he passed out, but he was angry at me in the morning. When one of his friends told me they thought I was nice, because i was opening doors for everyone, my ex said "Is he really?" Questioning them.
The breakup itself was cold and calculated. He started it by telling me that he thought about not giving me any reasons for the breakup because I always overanalyze things. He told me he wouldn't have broken up with me if I was a woman. He told me I didn't take care of him and he needs a partner that takes care of him, and that his partners always feel taken care of. He threw some things I had said at the beginning of the relationship back at me--misquoting and misunderstanding them.
After the relationship, I had no idea what to think. It was my first relationship. It had started with fairytale romance. I had been passing his tests, I had been an exception to his long string of abusive relationships. He presented himself as this incredibly moral person (vegan, environmentally conscious, telling me of all of the ways others had abused him that he would never do, even his closest friends). I had completely internalized criticisms that he had had of me throughout the relationship, many of which had led to serious self reflection and my writing messages about my growth. Within a week I told him I still loved him and that I always would. He reminded me of his boundary around long messages and said they made him anxious. I was desperate. We took a few weeks of no-contact. We messaged short-messages back and forth, with a few life-updates to eachother each. He told me he was rescuing a kitten that he found, and I remembered how he could be kind.
But as I processed, more and more, I felt angry. I wrote unsent angry letters in the notes app on my phone for a month. I wrote myself a 20,000 word summary of the relationship. This was not a healthy way to process. It elevated me. (Some of you will probably comment that maybe I shouldn't have written this post for the same reason, but oh well--I wanted to process and I want to hear if others have similar stories). Meanwhile, my ex kept pushing back the date for when we would verbally connect again. Eventually, I boiled over. I did not insult him. But I wrote a long message explaining that I wanted to take 3 months of no-contact. I had entered another relationship and told him that even though I was feeling angry at him, he shouldn't be worried because even though I had baggage from the relationship, I was communicating well with my new partner. I also told him that I felt like if I did talk with him, that I would end up tearing him a new one, and that I needed time to cool down. I'm not proud of the message in general, but I didn't call names, tell him he was awful, or anything like that. I was just insensitive and told him I was angry.
And like that, I was blocked. It was over. A period of about 9 months, five of which we were together, with two before escalating towards love bombing and two after escalating towards my boiling over.
And yet, I had never expressed to him that I thought he had been abusive. I felt frustrated that I had told him that I would always love him, when in many ways now I hated him.
Five months passed, during which I came to realize more and more how messed up the relationship was.
And then I sent the message on Co-star.
Fast forward another four months to now.
I just sent him a text, knowing he probably has blocked me there too. It said something like, "I want my last message to you just be: I'm sorry, and I forgive you." I wanted to free myself. I needed to not feel angry at him or ashamed of myself. I needed to not feel like I had a million things to say to him--I needed to just say, this is it: I'm not sending more messages. I'm sorry, and I forgive you. It was for myself. I was forgiving him selfishly, even though he didn't deserve it, so that I could move on.
I feel like I shouldn't have sent this, but I don't feel bad about it yet, either. I needed closure. It always felt like there was some "message I could send" to detail his abuse, and I needed to not have that standing over me--I needed to forgive. I am now oscillating between wondering about myself--whether I have a problem with boundaries, since I had boiled over at this point three times to message him. Feeling frustrated I didn't assert myself about his abuse, that I doubled down on loving him. Part of me is glad that I sent the message on Co-Star saying that he was abusive, because it was the only indication I ever gave him, really, that what he did wasn't ok to me--he had blocked me before I could articulate anything. But I also know that this message even if received would not mean anything to him.
Anyways, now I'm venting about it here on Reddit. Does anyone have similar experiences surrounding self control messaging exes and feeling a bit out of control?

FIRSTLY( ppl from other states)GAALI MATT DO BHAI HAMARI KYA GALTI HAI NTA KO DO GAALI
SECONDLY(Delhi ppl) bhai you can look at this from 2sides - ek taraf 10 din aur drag karke marke padhna hoga ( to the people like me who had legit studied hard asf and studied everything) it’s annoying for us because we wanted to get it over with but now THE OTHER SIDE‼️‼️ - EVERYONE ELSE will start their physics revision tomorrow thak haarke shaam ko marte marte, y’all can start it this very moment!! You have an advantage not only for chem / english / GT but also for physics!! Start revising- 24hrs se bhi zyada hai paper 3 baje hai parso bhai kardo sab kuch then after that 10 DAYS EXTRA- IT IS A LOT, I’ve done all syllabus and to the people who actually studied it’s a golden opportunity, cover any topic that was left, do mocks, questions and ace it. Lesssgoooo look at the greener side of the grass , stay motivated fellow Delhiites 🔥🔥🔥 Baaki sab other states waalo ko bhi best of luck

Hello everyone.
I recently removed the toxic peoples around me, and well.... not a lot of peoples remain now. So instead of being sad about it, I would rather take the opportunity to meet new peoples. To avoid any drama, nobody under 18, otherwise age doesn't matter.
My main hobbies : gaming (mostly rpg), reading (manga, novels, comics...), movie (a bit of everything, favorite movies are corpse bride, spiderverse, and V for Vendetta). I also spend a lot of time cooking and drawing, so expect to receive pic of my dishes often, Im really proud of my cooking skill ;)
Bonus is you are french
I hope I covered everything, feel free to ask any question you have :)
Discord prefered for daily chat

Hello,
I am originally from Asia and currently on a SWV and enroute for 10-yr ILR which I may obtain in 2027. My current SWV time covers 2027 so will last till ILR receipt hopefully.
However, my current workplace is a top professional services firm and very 'corporate'. I had recently joined the firm. They sponsored my SWV and covered all costs (about £7k single applicant, subject to contractual clawback and repayment if I leave within a certain period). Getting sponsorship was so hard and I was grateful for the opportunity.
While I passed my probation, they fired 3 junior colleagues, all of them were on PSW visa, while I was on probation. All three fired were people of colour. The ones fired weren't allowed to do their notice period. They were paid their notice period in lieu. Basically fired on the spot and their work laptop etc taken away.
The work culture is horrible, every minute of every hour has to be "billable" and I am micromanaged to the core. I am now the only person of colour and migrant in the team. Nobody talks to me at work (apart from work things), they talk and hangout among themselves, not with me. I have figured that either they will get rid of me at some point, or I will leave, whichever comes first.
I have to give 8 weeks notice for one day of approved annual leave. The role also contains a lot of travel, every day I am on client site or regional employer offices in different cities. I don't drive so travelling takes 3-4 hrs per day.
I got a lot of insults under the banner of "constructive feedback". I know I am not perfect and open to learn but them taking every opportunity for a gotcha moment to make me feel bad about myself is just horrible. It's sad how these people working in some of the biggest companies have some of the smallest and pettiest of minds. As a human you get reduced to just timeshares and charge rates.
I cannot say anything because I am easily replaceable to them. They can replace me with someone else in 30 seconds.
The job is taking a physical and mental toll on me. I am single and don't have family or friends in the UK. Unlike my British / European colleagues, I don't have a support system to come back home to after a shitty day at work, which is everyday. I am also under the old SWV rules so the pay isn't great either, nothing near £38k.
I was looking at the Innovator Founder visa and basically any visa that gives me some freedom.
Could you please help?

Is bot traffic getting in the way of reporting clean Google Analytics and GA4 data? Read on to learn how to clean up your Google Analytics data by excluding unwanted bot traffic.
But first, how do you spot bot traffic in your Google Analytics data? The key signifiers often stand out as very unusual, take the following for example:

• Traffic spikes that are not associated with any business reason can be attributed to bot traffic.
• Other unusual variables include having a 0% or 100% bounce rate on a page with traffic, only bots could produce such an absolute number for a metric.
• Sometimes, unconcealed and/or less sophisticated bots are easily searchable in Google Analytics because the word “bot” is in the Source Name.

Now that we have covered how to spot bot traffic in your GA data, let's go over how to exclude it from your data:

• The easiest way is to go to View Settings in the Admin section and simply check the “exclude all hits from known bots and spiders” option.
• You can also create a filter to exclude any suspicious traffic you’ve identified by creating a new View in which you will uncheck your bot setting and add a filter that excludes suspicious traffic using variables such as city, IP, ISP, Host Name, Source Name, etc. Test the filter to see if it works. If so, then apply it to your Primary View.
• Lastly, you can use the Referral Exclusion List, which you can find under Tracking Info in the Property column of the Admin section. This list allows you to exclude domains from your Google Analytics data. So, if you’ve identified suspicious domains, you can remove them from your future data by adding them to this list.

Removing bots from your Google Analytics data is smart, but remember that it doesn’t actually prevent bot traffic from hitting your websites, apps, and APIs. While the bots may no longer skew your site’s performance data, they might still be impacting it—slowing it down, hurting the user experience, and getting in the way of conversions. Learn more about excluding bot traffic from GA and GA 4 and how you can mitigate these bad bots before they do damage here.

Does anyone know when the next mta police exam comes out? I took the written and passed and was called for the physical exam but I couldn’t attend due to a family emergency. Got an email from them saying “ The purpose of this letter is to confirm, that based upon your failure to appear for and to complete the Physical Fitness Test, the MTA has determined that you have abandoned your application, and therefore, you are no longer under consideration for the MTA Police Officer position.
Thank you for your time and interest in the MTA, and we wish you the best in all of your future endeavors.”
Really bummed out about so I’m planning to take it again. Anyone have any idea when the next filing date is?

Dear SiMadam Maple Hams,
A lot of these claims are not the fault of the Naval Experience Program (herein referred to as the NEP).
The NEP has no control over the activities of PAT platoon units. If these units do not place their Sailors into their next courses - then they are failing their own sailors.
I know a lot of actual sailors who have been wasting away on pat platoon waiting for their initial trade course to start.
This has been normal since time immemorial. It was bad during COVID because measures were in place and courses were outright cancelled, but prior to that - most trades were running 1-2 courses per year. Now some trades are running 3 courses a year.
I would also like to point out that NEP candidates cannot compete with any sailors waiting for their trades course because NEP candidates first have to actually sign a contract after picking a trade. Once they pick a trade, they will have to wait with the rest of these Sailors in PAT platoons.
Now I’m seeing 1 year contract NEPs, with no trade and no requirement to extend, getting NETP before actual sailors.
Also not the NEP's fault. Any unit can nominate a Sailor for NETP. You can email the NFS(A/P) NETP Booking Cell and the people there are very nice and helpful and will happily load Sailors. All you need to do is ask for the course list, pick a course date, fill in the form with the Sailor's name, rank, and service number - and boom. That Sailor is loaded.
Between May 16 and October 01 of this year, there are a total 8 NETP Courses scheduled and are capable of handling maybe 20-25 Sailors.
And the sad fact is... They have had to beg units for people to enroll - otherwise they would have to cancel the course... I know for a fact they had to cancel two courses this year already, so if you personally know any units that have Sailors that need NETP, then please give them a call!
They’re doing dive courses, I even heard of some attending clearance diver selection (might be a rumour), before actual sailors who have been requesting it for years.
For the third time, this is also not the NEP program's fault, nor is it outside their control.
FDU(A/P) publishes a list of scheduled courses every year. Rescue Swimmer, Port Inspection Diver, Supervisor Courses, Ship's Team Diver, Clearance Diver - you name it.
A person interested in this course must first submit a memo through their chain of command, Dive Officer, and complete a checklist with their unit's Health Services to pass Dental and Part 1 and 2 medicals (actual requirements vary depending on the course).
This process can last weeks to several months - and that depends on how much support a Sailor gets from their CoC and Health Services unit.
Now again, like the NETP situation if units do not support their Sailor's applications, then that Sailor goes no where. The NEP is not actively nudging these Sailors off courses.
If anything, the NEP is actually making some of these courses possible because FDU(A/P) is not getting enough people who are properly processed with completed checklist to actually show up ready for the courses!
So far this year 1 course almost got cancelled - but because the NEP was able to provide bodies, they were able to run the course!
As I write this, a course in June is also currently in jeopardy of being cancelled due to not having enough enrollees.
The NEP is actually at the back of thr priority list. First are ships, then individual applicants, and lastly somewhere are the NEP.
So no, the NEP is not stealing spots off Sailors who have been waiting years for their dive course.... The NEP is doing everything right within their power to make sure their candidates have gone through official channels to get their applications and checklists completed, and by doing so, providing enough bodies for FDU to actually run courses.
And yes - one NEP candidate from the East Coast and one from the West Coast have completed Clearance Diver training.
One did not get selected however, but that is the Clearance Diver unit's perogative. (Its called Selection after all).
But can you really fault these two NEP candidates for passing a physically and mentally demanding course...?
The programme is a complete ruse designed to make these people have a fun year that they can brag about to their friends and hopefully they’ll sign a real contract.
Not gonna lie, that is the intention.
We want sailors. We NEED sailors.
If it gets them through the door of recruiting, and if they sign a new contract to continue being in the Navy - then by all metrics the program is working.
And so far, I have seen only 1 person out of 75 that has voluntarily released in the 1 year this program has run.
Morale in the fleet is getting beat down lower everyday and watching these people come in and take your spot on the course or sail you’ve been dying to get isn’t doing any favours.
If the argument is that *"NEP candidates are having fun, but people in the fleet aren't" *then something else is wrong in the fleet, and the NEP is not the cause of that - with the reasons I have listed above.
Each and every unit, ship, and organization within the CAF and the fleet are near seperate entities - each with their own challenges.
Saying that the NEP is making life worse for these units has no basis in reality. The NEP is not all knowing, nor does it have the power to make random people's lives miserable.
It's like saying HMCS Montreal is having fun sailing, while HMCS Frdericton and HMCS Chalottetown are sad because their ships are broken. It doesn't make sense.
It doesn’t even make any sense for the navy to be spending the money on these people getting courses they don’t need.
First off, the way the military does things is we are given a budget at the start of the fiscal year.
This budget is identified and allocated way in advance of an intented purpose.
For example, the CAF is given a budget. This budget divided between the Army, Navy, and Air Force. This is further divided into other units within these branches.
The Navy and the CAF has identified the need to create a program to encourage civilians to join the Navy, and retain them after their initial contract. The Government has approved this program and allocated a portion of this years' budget to fund this program.
This program, the NEP, is doing its best with the money allocated to them to ensure that the sailors under their care are taken care of and given enough positive experience so that they hopefully willingly sign another contract, so that our Navy has enough Sailors in the future to sail our ships and complete our missions.
If we don't move heaven and earth to get these Sailors now - then even people who have joined the Navy normally like you and me will be unable to sail in the future because ships are just severely undermanned.
Also I would like to share a personal anecdote...
My RQS3 course had 12 people. Of those 12, after four years 6 had left the forces due to one reason or another.
In my trade, you can apply for a Specialist skill within a Specialist trade.
The Navy will train you and fly you to whatever ship to complete your course. Basically whatever is needed to ensure you pass that course.
All you have to do is study hard.
I have seen people who pass this course - and then end up not sailing and then they lose their qualification.
This, after the Navy spent so much resources, money, and man hours into getting these Sailors qualified, but then they just up and decide this isn't for them.
The argument of "why are these NEP candidates getting this and that when they leave anyway?" is severely misguided when you and I both know there are already people in the Navy who throw away opportunity to the winds...
So hopefully dear SiMa'am Maple Hams, please reconsider your opinion on the program.
In short, the NEP is not stealing resources from othe units.
The NEP is operating within the resources and mandate given to them - and in some cases, actually directly or indirectly contributing to the success of other units in the Navy by providing an investment of manpower that we badly need.
If we were like other NATO countries, then I would argue that this program is unnecessary if we consider the option of outright mandatory military service and conscription.
But we are not like those other countries, and we do not have the option of conscription...
So we have this program instead.
For your consideration, SiMa'am.
PS, I would personally like to extend my thanks to the crews and personnel of the following units for supporting the NEP program:
HMCS St. John's (they have been our most supportive unit).
HMCS Ville de Quebec (thank you for taking time off your busy schedule for allowing job shadowing for the NEP candidates).
HMCS Chalottetown (thank you for taking care of our candidates during your deployment. we know the sea state between Iceland and Halifax was bad, but that didnt let your crew from throwing the NEP candidates to the side).
HMCS Harry Dewolf (your willingless to employ NEP candidates allowed them to become familiar with the platform, and sets the candidates up for success)
NFS(A) Scheduling and Booking Cells (you have always accomodated our requests and has never let us down when we needed help)
Tribute Tower Galley (thank you for employing our candidates and for providing them with delicious food - some of our candidates have never eaten this well in their life)
Juno Tower Accomodations and Booking Cell (you are the first people we contact to get our NEP candidates set up after CFLRS, and without your help we wouldn't even be able to do anything)
CFB Halifax Dockyard Gym and CFB Shearwater Gym (thank you for accomodating our fitness related requests, including letting us borrow the gym so our candidates can see what it is like to swim for their life before they apply for courses)
FDU Atlantic and Pacific (we apologize if we had sent people who were not physically able to complete the courses you offer - to be fair, they are really hard, but we are working on making the quality of people we offer to send better. Hopefully we can continue sending candidates to fill in courses so they do not get cancelled).
Clothing Stores (thank you for setting up our candidates with their kit!)
Base Logistics, Maritime Operations Group, Fleet Padre's office, Fleet Master Sailor and Junior's Mess, FMF Cape Scott, Halifax MFRC, SISIP, PCC(A/P), Health Services Stadacona, TEME, CFLRS, Recruiting, Public Affairs, MARLANT/MARPAC, and the various units all over - for reasons too many to list, we thank you for supporting the program in all the unique ways you do.
Despite what some may say about the Naval Experience Program - all of you have given the program all the support the program could ask for and more.
If you all didn't care, then we wouldn't be here.
Disclaimer: These are my own opinions and does not reflect the official position of the NEP, the Navy, the CAF, or the Government of Canada.

It was summer. He needed money to pay for school next year. He decided to get a job. He needed to apply to different places. He first made a resume. He then made a cover letter. He walked around his neighborhood.

The date? A week before posting this.
The year? The current one as of writing.
The mood? Kendrick Lamar inspired.
Long has this book taunted me in bookstores. I pass by the Books In English section and it taunts me. "Read me," the cover said. "You like Ancient Greece shit."
"That I do," I answer, to the confusion of the bookseller passing by. My plans of befriending her for future discounts go down the drain, as I whisper. "And yet, I know I'll hate you."
"Yes," this book answers. "But how long as it been since you felt hatred?"
"I mean I read «I want to die but I also want to eat tteokbokki» not long ago."
The book squints. I wonder how it can do that since it has no eyes.
"True hatred."
Close scene.
I feel like I should start this post by exposing the three main points of it, to all of those who read and perhaps are not interested in yet another "BookTok has to be fucking insane to have hyped this" rant:

1. I picked up this book knowing it was bad.
2. I haven't finished it yet, because it is so bad.
3. I am struggling to finish it, because it is so bad.

If you have enjoyed this book, please tell me how to at least derive fun out of it. I am struggling immensely.
My problems with it:
a) Persephone can't even classify as a Mary Sue because I genuinely do not feel like she is good at anything. I apologie for any Mary's or Sue's reading this for even associating yall's name with such a character. The character is so one dimensional that she is deserving of merely one name. To honor the incosistency in writing, I shall be inconsistent myself, and refuse to choose one. Sue is suffering from the greatest case of Mary, but in the direction of pure incompetency. Theresa so far flip-flops from cutesy, virginal goddess who's super shy and not like other girls, to a 2014 girl's interpretation of what a badass woman looks and acts like.
b) This one dimension-ness is shared by all characters so far.
c) I have stumbled upon fanfiction more eloquent and consistent in the "Crack" tag. Christ on a hike, is the writing bad.
I have not even reached one (1) page where la pieceh delah resistanceh* which are the "intimate" scenes of book but the scenes of "excitedness" from Persephone are so childishly written and baffling that I am DREADING them.
You may ask:
"Why keep reading then? Sounds like you hate it and will take nothing from it."
I shall borrow the points format from above.

1. My parents did not raise a coward (on purpose), but they did raise me stubborn.
2. I hate the idea that a grouping of words is so bad that it overpowers me like so.
3. I feel like it'll work like a vaccine and innoculate me from bad books here onwards. No more looking at the BookTok table, no matter the occasional pretty cover or much more accessible price point.

Please help. I want to finish this book. Suggestions on how to do it? Do I just gotta lock tf in? Do I pray to God? More than one, even? Do I get a glass of wine and get drunk whilst reading? Do I go to a secluded area where no humans are around for miles and simply scream as I read each word and turn each page?
Thanks in advance, and sorry for the rant.
*No corrections, please. I have no respect for the french language.

I am so goddamn tired of making it to several final round interviews, being told over over and over about what a "great fit" I am for the position, what a "great addition" I'd be to the team, how "impressive" my experience is....only to either be ghosted or rejected. Tired of getting a rejection email barely an hour after I submit my application. Tired of people not willing to give me a chance. Tired of dealing with recruiters asking me the same questions over and over. Tired of writing cover letters. Tired of seeing people who were also included in my round of layoffs getting hired, while for some reason I'm somehow not good enough for ANYONE to hire me. I'm sick of it.
I genuinely do not know how much of this I have left in me. I'm seriously ready to just give up and become homeless at this point. I can't do it anymore.

For many, Guerlain’s Habit Rouge represents a high watermark in perfumery. Since its original release in 1965, the composition has been beloved by gentlemen (and ladies) across the world. It is also a well known favourite of many of the most well regarded perfume historians and reviewers out there and, because of that, one could well argue that there is precious little further useful opinion that can be added to the existing cannon (and they may well be right!).
Still, Jean-Paul Guerlain’s multi-faceted composition has been no stranger to a remix over the years and, since Delphine Jelk took over from Thierry Wasser as in-house perfumer at the historic French house, she has managed to deliver a staggering three new takes on the fragrance in as many years. What better opportunity could there be, therefore, to undertake both a reappraisal of the original release and, in doing so, compare it to some of the new kids on the block? Note: I have not sampled the first of Jelk’s flankers, 2022’s Habit Rouge L'Instinct but, given the almost unanimous negativity surrounding it, it’s not high on my hit list! We’ll be looking at Rouge Prive and the Parfum today.
Habit Rouge EDT (1965)
The concept behind Habit Rouge (or ‘Red Coat’, if translated in to English from its native language) was to create a perfume that brought to mind the jackets worn by the landed gentry when they went hunting. In the UK, we’re no stranger to this nefarious practice - our own fox hunting aristocrats also wore red coats and, despite now being banned, the idea of chasing helpless creatures to their deaths is still a subject of debate in our national politics (with right wing politicians often promising to offer a ‘free vote’ to MPs on the issue to energise their base).
As an animal lover myself, this is perhaps the only element of Habit Rouge I find somewhat jarring. There is nothing within this perfume which brings to mind sport, adrenaline, blood, or violence. I find it somewhat curious, consequently, that Guerlain sought to relate it to hunting. The only thing wearers of Habit Rouge were likely to be chasing on its release were sexual partners!
That statement isn’t made wholly in jest either. Habit Rouge is a gentleman’s fragrance, but it carries within its structure not only aspects of formality and traditional masculinity, but also sensuality and sensitivity. It is, as such, a fragrance well suited to old fashioned romantics. Indeed, if it didn’t have these traits, I’d argue that it wouldn’t have survived for the almost 60 years that it has. When you think about it, it’s almost incredible that, despite how radically concepts of masculinity have changed over the years, Habit Rouge has still been a regular seller for Guerlain, with devotees now spanning across 5 generations.
Created to be the younger brother to the company’s 1925 release, Shalimar it, like its sibling, contains a citrus top note, which descends into a floral heart, before culminating in a vanillic leather and amber base. Habit Rouge is not simply a three card trick, however, and its complete run of notes can be summarised as follows (as per Basenotes):
Top Notes: bergamot, lemon, rosewood, basil, pimento
Heart Notes: sandalwood, carnation, patchouli, cedar, rose, cinnamon
Base Notes: vanilla, amber, moss, leather, benzoin, labdanum, olibanum
When it comes to the head of the perfume, the real star of the show is the bergamot, which radiates wonderfully off the skin when first sprayed. Whilst it is effervescent, though, it is also a powdery affair. In fact, it can most accurately be described as being akin to orange sherbet - fizzing whilst maintaining a chalkiness. It is warm and reassuring as opposed to enthusiastic. It also maintains a cologne like structure, however, by incorporating herbal and spicy notes through the use of basil and rosewood.
This accord is then joined to a rose and carnation-dominant middle phase, through which the powdered facets of the fragrance continue to run, and through which the fragrance begins to show its romantic side.
Finally, the dry down of the fragrance provides a semi-sweet backdrop with the vanilla taking the edge away from the traditionally masculine moss and leather accords and combining with the rest of the ingredients to produce a soft, light amber.
It is not hard to see, in this context, why Habit Rouge has continued to be successful over the years - it, essentially, captures hearts and minds because it resonates with the personality of its wearer in a way that other traditional masculine fragrances can sometimes struggle to do (as they were often, like their owners of the period, more buttoned up).
Habit Rouge - Rouge Prive (2023)
That doesn’t mean that the EdT of Habit Rouge smells like it was composed yesterday, however. It just means that it has aged like a fine wine as opposed to being the perfume equivalent of a kipper tie. In fact, if it were any item of clothing, I’d compare it to a 1960s slim lapelled suit - of its time, but still stylish today.
Still, as the years have gone by, the term ‘legibility’ has become more and more important in the perfume industry, and there now seems to be a distinct trend towards the creation of perfumes whose formulas are more streamlined than Habit Rouge. Or to put it another way, perfumers are being encouraged to reduce the number of notes in a perfume’s composition, with the aim of producing a more direct product. For lovers of vintage fragrances, legibility can be an anathema but, personally, I have no issue with the principle behind the concept. Nor it appears, does Delphine Jelk. Enter Habit Rouge Rouge Prive.
Top Notes:Bergamot, Ginger
Middle Notes: Orange Blossom, Iris
Base Notes: Leather, Patchouli, Vanilla
As can be seen from the notes list, Rouge Prive maintains the structure of Habit Rouge (bergamot, floral, vanillic leather), but switches out or culls a number of the traditional accords that were contained within the original. Gone are the cologne-esque elements. Gone too are the powdery rose and carnation. The leather, meanwhile, has been amped up and modernised - more akin to Tom Ford’s Tuscan Leather than Knize 10. Whisper it quietly, but it also seems that Jelk has snuck an oud accord in to the base too.
Given the number of changes, you could be forgiven for thinking that Rouge Prive would end up smelling completely different to the EdT, but fans of the OG need not worry - this is still unmistakably Habit Rouge. To paraphrase Persolaise (my favourite reviewer of perfumes), it’s like the whole perfume has simply been redrawn with clean bold lines. The bergamot continues to shimmer and, in spite of the florals being listed as Orange Blossom and Iris, the ultimate accord generated is still interpreted by my nose as being a rose. It is very much a rouge perfume as opposed to an orange or purple one (which is, incidentally, roughly what you get if you combine an iris hue and orange on a colour wheel…).
Where Rouge Prive differs to the EdT is in its brute strength. The leather note really does have a serious kick to it and, given that, the perfume is pulled from the bottom up, as opposed to the top diffusing off the skin to reveal the heart.
Whilst I’ve always found the EdT to perform quite well, the longevity of the Prive is genuinely outstanding, again due to the material in the base. Pleasingly though, the dry down still does maintain the powdered amber facets contained within the original. It’s a superb flanker that updates Habit Rouge without necessarily ripping up the original composition.
Habit Rouge Parfum (2024)
Not to rest on their laurels, Guerlain have now revisited Habit Rouge again in 2024, introducing a parfum version to go alongside new stablemates Vetiver Parfum and L’Homme Ideal Parfum.
I’ll say in advance that I’m a little sceptical of the allure of parfums myself, as I often find that the actual performance difference between fragrance concentrations can be completely counter-intuitive (I have EdTs that vastly out-perform EDPs and Parfums, both in terms of silage and longevity). In addition, given that Rouge Prive was already quite beastly, the necessity for a parfum to be made only a year later seems curious to me.
Parking those views for the moment though, the theme across these three new releases appears to be alcohol. In the case of Habit Rouge, the drink of choice is listed as rum, although there seems to be confusion in that regard, with Jelk being quoted in the marketing as saying:
For Habit Rouge Le Parfum, I Created a leathery vanilla liqueur with plenty of bold bourbon-inspired intensity
Perhaps Guerlain are suggesting that the perfume has been matured in bourbon casks? Hmm. In any event, the notes list for this one is as follows:
Bergamot, Vanilla, Rum, Patchouli
Well, I did say perfumers were streamlining their notes list, didn’t I!
What’s most striking to me about the Parfum is, firstly, how base heavy it is (we’re talking sub-woofer level) but, secondly, how patchouli dominant it is - there’s a definite chocolate element in that respect, but my nose also detects something slightly medicinal, smoked, and perhaps even burnt (think coffee beans). When combined with the vanilla, the result is a perfume that very much lies within the domain of the gourmand.
This is somewhat a blessing and a curse - if you’re not a particular fan of the EdT or Prive’s floral elements, you’re likely to get along a lot better with the Parfum. At the same time though, I’d argue that the floral heart of Habit Rouge is, to a large extent, key to its DNA, and vastly reducing the components that make this element ‘sing’ lead to a very different fragrance profile.
My second critique is that the perfume, generally, feels less balanced than Rouge Prive. I have no issue with the concept of a Habit Rouge that focuses on patchouli - readers of my previous pieces will know that I’m a huge fan of the note - I just wished that, on a technical level, the Parfum still maintained a decent top end. As it is, the whole thing sits very deep against the skin, with any radiance from the bergamot being buried by the heavier materials. This ultimately leads to a fragrance that, rather than being a sparkling rouge, comes across as a heavy-set chocolate and beige. Because of that, I can’t decide whether or not I’ve truly fallen for the Parfum.
That being said, you honestly couldn’t go wrong with any one of these three and I’ve no doubt they’ll appeal to different elements of the fragrance market. I look forward to Jelk’s next flanker in 2025, even if these variations are becoming a little bit akin to Marge Simpson’s Chanel jacket…!

Starting a new business involves important decisions that can significantly impact the future of your venture.
Setting up your LLC is one of these areas.
Failure to navigate this process effectively can result in costly setbacks, both in terms of time and finances.
Here are six crucial mistakes to avoid:

1. Choosing The Wrong Entity

Selecting the appropriate type of LLC lays the foundation for your business's financial and operational framework.
Single-member, multi-member, and S-Corp classifications offer distinct advantages and considerations.
A single-member LLC provides simplicity in paperwork while ensuring liability protection.
Conversely, opting for an S-Corp designation entails different tax obligations, potentially offering tax-saving opportunities for higher earners.
Understanding the nuances of each entity type is paramount.
Seeking guidance from seasoned professionals can illuminate the optimal choice tailored to your business needs and goals.
NOTE: The LLC service I recommended that gives the most hands on assistance with this is ZenBusiness, (affiliate link). The team there are great for giving advice on exactly how to navigate the various steps to forming your LLC, or S-Corp.

2. Incorporating in the Wrong State

Deciding where to incorporate your business involves weighing legal, financial, and administrative factors.
While certain states like Delaware and Wyoming offer enticing legal and tax incentives, they may not be conducive to the needs of smaller enterprises or solo entrepreneurs.
Incorporating out of state may lead to increased paperwork, fees, and regulatory complexities, offsetting potential benefits.
Prioritize practicality and compliance by assessing the requirements of your home state and consulting legal counsel to navigate any jurisdictional considerations effectively.

3. Forgetting to Keep Your LLC Compliant

Establishing an LLC marks the beginning rather than the culmination of your compliance obligations.
Maintaining regulatory adherence safeguards against risks such as piercing the corporate veil and personal liability exposure.
Vigilance in areas such as using the business name consistently, fulfilling annual reporting requirements, and segregating business finances from personal funds is imperative.
Engage with legal professionals or regulatory authorities to stay abreast of compliance obligations and fortify your business's legal standing.

4. Incorporating Without Required Licenses

Securing requisite licenses and permits is a prerequisite for conducting business lawfully in many industries and jurisdictions.
Failure to obtain mandated licenses can result in penalties and operational disruptions.
Whether at the local, state, or federal level, thorough due diligence is necessary to identify and fulfill licensing requirements pertinent to your business activities.
Prioritize regulatory compliance by proactively acquiring the necessary licenses and permits, thereby mitigating legal and financial risks.

5. Failing to Get the Right Kind of Legal Assistance

While self-filing an LLC may suffice for straightforward cases, complex scenarios demand expert legal guidance.
Collaborating with legal professionals ensures comprehensive understanding and adherence to legal obligations, particularly in multi-state operations or partnership arrangements.
The upfront investment in legal counsel can yield invaluable dividends by preempting potential disputes or regulatory oversights.
Explore avenues for legal assistance, such as specialized services or legal consultations, to safeguard your business's legal integrity and mitigate future liabilities.

6. Using Random Legal Documents Found Online

The proliferation of online resources offers convenience and accessibility in various facets of business management.
However, indiscriminate adoption of generic legal documents poses inherent risks.
Templates sourced from the internet may lack specificity or fail to address unique circumstances, potentially leading to contractual ambiguities or disputes.
Exercise prudence by scrutinizing online templates and supplementing them with professional legal review when necessary.
Customizing legal documents to align with your business's specific requirements enhances clarity and mitigates legal uncertainties.