When I was a child, I had quite a hippy teacher who introduced us to stories and music from around the world. There's one that has bouncing around my head for a while but I can't find anything about it because I don't know what the original language was.
The parts I remember is that between each part of the story, the bird is singing words in the native language. The bird is killed but keeps singing, it's put in the oven but is still singing. The oven is opened to release it and is miraculously still alive and flies away.
The ending of the bird's song sounded (phonetically) like "Boon, boon, bun-quilla boon."
Hope you can help.

https://www.clevescene.com/news/bernie-moreno-claims-blockland-conference-convinced-atandt-to-bring-5g-to-cleveland-44477377
Never mind that most people still find 5G to be a technological joke only good for battery draining, and that AT&T's variety specifically in its earliest days was a deception in labeling. Morono wants us to believe this is some great boon to our local economy (maybe because America's possibly worst telco, HQ'd in Tex-ass, has given him some fat stacks) he had something to do with and he's sucking up to cryptobros who haven't done a damn thing for the people, only for themselves. Of course he may only be copying his Convicted Felon Führer who claims their poor widdle microdosed assholes will be tortured by Big Bad Biden.
Being an Ohio Republican however he'll possibly never pay a penalty for being both stupid and dishonest unless he fails like Mandel failed 8 years ago. I'll do my part to see that happen.

Posting this here to give back to this overwhelmingly helpful and active sub. I realize there are idiosyncrasies with SIBO and its permutations, but perhaps someone might glean a modicum of assistance from the treatise below.
Background

• History of IBS-C with worsening constipation, bloating, GERD past 4-8 years
• Lack of gut motility, cause unknown but suspicions are stress, ovebinge eating (not chewing), PPIs, antacids, artificial sweeteners (Splenda, Diet Soda, Gum), aging, and NSAIDs
• Very "clean" diet excepting artificial sweeteners, e.g., lots of salads, raw and cooked vegetables, sashimi, beans, nuts, seeds, high quality protein, if carbs, whole grains. No processed, junk, fried
• Little alcohol, occasional glass or two of good quality wine, beer, or champagne
• Moderately to lightly active, used to run, then jogging, then walking!
• Moderate caffeine intake (coffee)

Catalyst

• Instagram gut-biome tests, got me thinking....
• So bloated constipated that the bowel prep for a colonoscopy was ineffective, such a waste!
• IM doctor recommended SIBO breath test, came back positive for methane

Ineffective Treatments

• Rifamixin - one two week course, ineffective. Discouraged after reading lack of efficacy esp for methane overgrowth here
  • Doctors (saw another primary care and my gastroenterologist in addition to IM) all were against multiple courses of antibiotics for myriad reasons
  • I will give this a chance to have had some positive effect, because maybe it reset things?
• Motility Pro - BID, took on advice of this thread, no change to bowel patterns. No other benefits. Seems harmless though. Found it a bit more expensive than I expected
• Colace Clear - one doctor recommended, knew this wouldn't have an effect, and I was right
• Low FODMAP - very restrictive, noticed no change, so many variables with diet and time to digest that I doubted veracity. I gave it a good shot and even used the Food Marble breath test device with it. The only thing I noticed were spikes if I overate...
• Low Fermentation - I liked this one, but again, ineffective. At least less restrictive than Low FODMAPs and seems to make sense. Reminded me of the bowel prep. Exacerbated constipation
• Increased Fiber - started tracking fiber, noticed that I was getting over 40 grams a day with my standard diet, but my gastro asked that I increase more grains and starches. No real impact that I could discern. Gained a few pounds, probably with the increase in carbs, bloating out of control, ha
• Antimicrobial - took supplements containing things such as oregano oil, artichoke leaf extract, green tea, some pro-motility roots, a few others that I'm blanking on now. These seem fairly harmless and some people might be able to do this more intensively with a holistic doctor, however, I went lite and didn't have an impact that I could discern

Effective Interventions

• Behavioral (chewing/mindful eating) - this sounds so obvious that I'm embarrassed, but I realized I basically inhaled food. I'm unsure from where I got that habit, maybe quaffing down green smoothies in my 30s/Vitamix days, rushed at work, mindlessly chewing on sugar-free gum. Now I take MUCH more time to chew ever bit of food to the best of my ability. I took a a few gut-biome and other related tests and saw that my digestive enzymes were a bit low, so this habit of mindfully eating and chewing apparently aids this process of digestion
• Smaller meals - frankly, I overeat, took too much protein, and it overloads thy gut. I've cut down on portions, instead of volume eating nutritious stuff, I try to eat mindfully what I need or what's available. I'm not eating 6 times a day, just two or three smaller meals and am satiated. I tracked for a while what I was consuming and I was at least 600-1200 over maintenance every day
• Cut out all artificial stuff - this was painful, but after about a month I've lost the craving. I'm consuming less in general and have a sense that my gut biome thanks me for it
• Eliminated PPIs and antacids - I was popping chewy Tums as though it was nobody's business. Now I take them hardly ever, and have a French brand Boiron that produces natural anti-GERD medication on the occasion that I have stomach upset or eructation (usually after a restaurant)
• Vata-dosha diet - this is the weird part, I know, I know, Ayurvedic, it partly fed into the above and below (no pun intended), but I am basically 100% vata, which is known to be uptight, rigorous, dry, constipated, bloated, insomniac, eating too many leafy greens, raw cold things, etc. Now, I try to take more warming foods, more oils, take my time, breathe deeper, no raw, stringy or astringent
• Probiotics - I purchased that organic, coconut kefir that is touted here and feel it made a difference. I take about 3-4 ounces on an empty stomach (after coffee really) when I get my first hunger pangs. It's great! I wanted to reset the gut biome after the antibiotics. Another thing I take, especially since my family is half European, is unfiltered beer on occasion. I wouldn't recommend this as some people have issues with alcohol, but for me, a pint of unfermented beer and I go to the restroom much more regularly. This was somewhat of an epiphany and came up as an idea in one of the gut/food intolerance tests (i.e., I was consuming too many clean things...if that makes sense)
• Yoga - there is a certain centering, grounding and pro-kinetic aspect to vata-balancing yoga that I find supportive. I've always done some yoga, so I consider this more of a support than a change agent in my digestion. In general, increasing mobility seems to be a boon, but not to overdo it, so that one does not overly constrict. I can be anal-retentive literally, so need to unwind to let go

It's my intent that the above might be an aid to someone, and I'll try to update this to see if there's any change going forward. Right now, I have almost ZERO bloating, it's insane, GERD is reduced about 80%, stomach upset reduced about 70%, constipation is still there, but better and ameliorated at least 50%. I had posted a picture before here when I was first diagnosed and my stomach looked like a basketball!

Hey guys. I've been working on healing my insecure attachment. One thing I've always had a hard time wrapping my head around was the concept of self-love.
The only way - to my awareness - that I've felt love was through being desired by another person whose love I desired. I've had this feeling once or twice, however I couldn't really get close to them. Either they had a partner or I was too dumbfounded to believe that they truly loved me, that I completely removed myself from our connection. The main point being: that very intense feeling I felt was what I came to personally identify as love.
The issue now, is, I haven't had a similar feeling, with a similar level of intensity, towards myself. The work I've put into myself as an act of 'self-love' has felt - at best - like coming to terms with the mess that is life. It feels like getting off the hamster wheel but being met with the ultimate truth that one still is - in the end - a caged hamster.
I'm curious what you've personally experienced in this part of your life. How have you learnt to enjoy yourself as much as you have enjoyed other things and people?

IVF and Multiple Pregnancies:.
Risks and Management
In-vitro fertilization (IVF) has significantly increased the chances of achieving pregnancy for many couples struggling with infertility. However, one of the potential risks associated with IVF treatment is the increased likelihood of multiple pregnancies, such as twins or triplets. At Jeevan IVF, the best IVF clinic in Rohtak, we value the health and well-being of the mother and the babies most, and take advanced steps to manage and minimize the dangers of multiple pregnancies.
Understanding Multiple Pregnancies in IVF
Causes
In the majority of IVF treatments, multiple embryos are transferred to increase the chances of at least one successful implantation and pregnancy.
When more than one embryo develops successfully, it leads to a multiple pregnancy.
Types
Twins (two babies)
Triplets (three babies)
Higher-order multiples (four or more babies)
Risks
Complications for mothers and babies from multiple pregnancies are higher than singleton pregnancies and include preterm birth, low birth weight, preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, and complications during the delivery process.
The risk of developmental delays and long-term health issues is also greater for babies born through multiple pregnancies.
Management of Multiple Pregnancies in IVF
Selective Embryo Transfer
Jeevan IVF minimizes the risks of multiple pregnancies by recommending the number of embryos to transfer in an IVF procedure. This practice is called elective single embryo transfer (eSET). eSET reduces the risk of multiple pregnancies and is performed with excellent success rates.
Monitoring and Surveillance
Pregnancies resulting from IVF with multiple embryos transferred receive extra care as part of the monitoring process to watch for and detect any complications in the mother or babies' health and development early. This includes regular prenatal visits, ultrasounds, and other diagnostic tests to detect and address any potential complications early.
Preventive Measures
Our team at Jeevan IVF takes proactive measures to avoid and manage the complications of multiple pregnancies. This could include lifestyle management, dietary advice, or even prenatal vitamins, assuring the health of mother and the developing fetuses.
Special Care:
Special care for pregnancies that are multiple in number can assure optimal results for the mother and her babies. Our experienced medical team delivers clinical, obstetric, and neonatal services. This care will be delivered to each of our patients, availing advanced medical technologies, if necessary, and interventions to ensure quality services.
Patient Education and Support:
We understand that multiple pregnancies can be overwhelming for expectant parents. At Jeevan IVF, we provide extensive patient education and support to help couples navigate the unique challenges and uncertainties associated with carrying and delivering multiples.
Conclusion
In Vitro Fertilization treatment is a boon for couples who struggle with infertility problems, but one must have complete knowledge of the risks involved with multiple pregnancies. At Jeevan IVF, the best IVF clinic in Rohtak, we are committed to the mother's and babies' health and safety and personal care and support on your fertility journey. We, through specialized care and proactive management, assure successful outcomes with minimal risks in the case of multiple pregnancies.

It is of some Arab guy pouring tea whilst saying “caution it is hot”. While he’s onto that, a hamster like creature comes over to the tea and tips the cup over while the Arab guy shouts “hot hot hot hot”. He then collects the cup while saying “you’re ruining it for me” and something like “I knew you were impure” or “I knew you were corrupt” can’t remember that part.
Where I’m getting the translations from is the subtitles the video I’m referring to has.
Thanks a lot.

Comparison Photos
Tldr: lopsided bloating in abdomen, levels out after urination. Pressure in belly often. Sometimes coincides with GERD symptoms, sometimes not.
Female, 35
115 lbs (52kg)
5'3" (160cm)
No smoking, 1 alcoholic drink per month, no recreational drugs
Not pregnant and no history of pregnancy
Relatively fit: 150 mins of cardio/week, and indoor rock climbing once a week
Relatively good diet focusing on fiber, protein, complex carbs
Medications: symbicort (160/4.5) and singulair (10mg)
About 9 months ago I was preparing to confront my abusive parents as to why I don't allow them to talk to me more. I began to feel abdominal pain and tried to implement stress reduction techniques. I've dealt with stress-related discomforts on/off my whole life (hence the parental stuff). I started noticing that every morning it felt like a bubble in the lower left area of my abdomen. I didn't pay much attention until it was still happening months later. It's about the size of a hamster or maybe a man's fist. It's firm to the touch, but I can move it around. It feels like a lot of pressure, but not painful. If I push it around too much or hold pressure with a knuckle, it can get sore in the area. Once I get up in the morning to urinate, my belly seems to flatten back out. (The two pictures are 3 minutes apart.) I still feel some pressure, and during the day the "bubble" isn't as noticeable, but if I check, I can often feel something on the left side. In the morning it's very noticeable, or after I drink a full glass of water. During this 9-month stint, I've had GERD symptoms for part of it, but they've since resolved. I don't seem to have symptoms of IBS (now or before). No trouble emptying, constipation, or urinary urgency.
History: I've experienced GERD and stomach inflammation on and off since age 10 due to stress (endoscopy showed stomach as "bright red"). Was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis at age 15 (which faded and left once I left my abusive family home, returned when I found myself in an abusive marriage, and faded and disappeared again after leaving the marriage). Because I have a history of stress-related, basically harmless physical ailments, and no health insurance, I've worked on decreasing stress in my daily life. It helped resolve the reflux and stomach pain, but not the bubble. Any thoughts or advice would be greatly appreciated!

"I thought you died out in the wild, Kirin."
Kirin stood roughly fifty feet from Evelia, taking notice of how her hands twitched at her sides. Her revolvers, for the moment, remained holstered, clasps opened, the hammer of each already cocked and primed. If it were anyone else, the swordsman would've considered it a rookie mistake, one not even worth drawing his sword over, but Evelia wasn't just anyone. She was the greatest gunslinger in the world. Why she took up with Threnody's gang was anyone's guess, but he couldn't call her out on it. He'd done the same when he was young and directionless, and now the two were enemies. It was another regret to add to the list.
The land around them was barren and dusty, plumes of fine dirt pushed up and away in the occasional gust. On the periphery, dead tree after dead tree dotted the landscape, as if the devil's fingers breached Hell itself and cursed the very ground beneath their feet. Vegetation was absent as far out as the horizon, and it proved to be a boon for Kirin, who followed the signs of life straight to Evelia's hideout - a tent nestled in a cave on the edge of the desert. Of course she wouldn't stray too far from Threnody, he thought. She couldn't bear to be much further apart from the man who practically raised her.
Evelia, brushing her blonde locks to the side, stared down the swordsman from the entrance to the cave. Behind her cold silver eyes lied a deep sense of dread that only grew the longer neither of them made a move. She'd been biding her time as long as she could, aware that Kirin would be coming, but not when. It's why she chose to hide out here, at the desert's edge - to keep him from getting to Farron and, ultimately, Threnody. As she ruminated over the past and attempted to collect herself, Evelia watched Kirin draw his sword from the sheath, her fingers curling toward her guns as he carved a line into the dirt.
She remembered that line well. In the days before his disappearance, Evelia would watch Farron and Kirin train on a line just like that one, usually no longer than six feet. The rules were simple: stay on the line, no matter what. If you moved off the line, you lost. The battles that resulted from this training were remarkable, to say the least. Kirin's every movement was one of determination, but she recognized the hollow emptiness behind those focused eyes. He'd been dead even before joining up with Threnody and the rest, before being turned a living weapon, before being forced to reconcile with the growing mountain of bodies.
Evelia paid close attention to the sharpness of the sword's edge. Kirin kept it well maintained, she thought to herself, almost to the point that it looked like it had never been used before this moment. It was a curious thought, one she entertained for a short time before Kirin shook the remnants of dirt from his sword, his gaze still and focused. That emptiness was still there, still clinging to his soul, but the gunslinger could see something else. Somewhere deep within Kirin's stare, there was an ember, and upon noticing it, Evelia immediately resolved herself to the coming static future.
She knew this was the end of the line. This wasn't just a return for him, she gathered. This was penance.
Immediately, Evelia's hand flew out in front of her, dragging the revolver on her right from its holster. It spun around her hooked finger before the handle struck her palm, a signal that caused her to pull the trigger on instinct. Kirin didn't hesitate, ducking low as the bullet whizzed past his head and breaking off into a sprint toward the woman, his sword mere millimeters from touching the ground. As his opponent levied two more shots in his direction, Kirin's body twisted, using his free hand to curl off to the left as each bullet struck the ground, kicking up shards of dry dirt.
The gunslinger would continue to fire several shots in the swordsman's direction, all the more aware of how much of the gap between them was being closed. She pulled her other revolver from its holster and began spraying bullets in chaotic patterns, which Kirin immediately began deflecting, despite how little distance remained between them. The sense of dread in Evelia's body was growing, and she could feel her chest tightening. There was never a point under Threnody's leadership in which she saw Kirin fight with such ferocity and speed. Something truly was different.
This realization was almost Evelia's death, her mind sent screaming back into reality as the tip of Kirin's piercing blade shined in the light of the desert sun, capturing her attention as it speared toward the center of her face. Her head immediately cocked to the side, narrowly avoiding a gruesome fate as her body snaked away from the swordsman, flipping backwards and putting a little distance between them. Kirin, sensing an advantage, pursued the evading woman, leaping into the air and raising his sword high in the air with both hands.
As Evelia landed on her feet, her eyes flicked up to see Kirin's silhouette descending on her position, his long black hair unfurled from its tie and spread wide like the wings of a vulture. He landed with a thud, the air itself hollering as his sword sliced through it like a guillotine. The gunslinger instinctively crossed her guns over her body, the edge of Kirin's sword catching and digging into the blades welded beneath each barrel. The shock rang through Evelia's hands, which were finding the task of holding back the swordsman's strength more sisyphean by the second. To save herself from being cleft in half, her wrist awkwardly bent, positioning the gun to point directly at Kirin's head. With a pull of the trigger and a loud bang, the two were suddenly separated, Evelia knocked to the ground on her back and Kirin retreating several feet, his free hand clutching his head.
Evelia repositioned herself to stand on her feet, her executioner now an obstacle between herself and her stockpile of weapons that sat in the cave. She kept her revolvers trained on Kirin, attempting to catch her breath in the increasingly dusty wind and noticing the large chips in her guns' mounted blades. Across from her, Kirin staggered forward several steps, lowering his hand as the side of his head started to leak blood down the side of his face. It was a somewhat deep graze, but little more than an inconvenience. Besides, he had many, many scars already. He wasn't afraid to add another one to the list.
"Why are you doing this?" Evelia called out to Kirin, her voice wavering just a little as she reloaded her revolvers. She felt she knew the answer, but she wanted to hear it directly from him. She wanted to hear his justification for it, as if he wasn't just as responsible for everything that happened while he served under Threnody. If Farron hadn't shown him the results of his wanton destruction, Kirin wouldn't have fled. Kirin wouldn't be here now, hellbent on killing her. She knew this. Part of her wanted to blame Threnody for turning Kirin into a demon, but she knew she was no better. She allowed it to happen. She could've fled with him, but her loyalty was to the group. There was no other home for her, not while Threnody still lived.
Kirin answered her by taking the handle of his sword into both hands, burying his own blood into the wrap and staining it red. His abject care of the sword was no longer necessary, though its blade would know no other victims than the three he'd sworn to death years ago. Evelia was the first. Though she was a fiercely skilled fighter in her own right, he knew Farron was far more malicious, and Threnody was the most difficult. In his eyes, Evelia's death would be a mercy she didn't deserve, much like himself. After all, he dug four graves for a reason.
He gauged the distance between himself and his first kill. Ten feet. It was enough time for three shots. If he could clear her in that time, the battle, as short as it was, would be over.
The swordsman leaned forward and pushed into another run, his blade lowered to his side. Evelia responded in kind with a shot, which Kirin deflected with a quick upward slice. The bullet was sent back in the gunslinger's direction, avoiding her cheek as the breaking air caressed her skin. She gasped under her breath as she fired another shot in his direction, which her opponent sent digging into the earth with another slash toward the ground. Kirin was now less than five feet from her, his sword primed and ready.
Evelia could sense her life flashing before her eyes, her fingers paralyzed over each trigger. In a single defining moment, she remembered a young man stumbling through the mud, chipped sword in hand. Atop her horse, she could feel the smallness of his existence, his body obscured by the rain. There was a pity to be felt in the storm that bore down on the outskirts of the fishing village, and in that pity, Evelia made a crucial mistake - she took the young man in and led him to Threnody.
The training lessons, the cruelty of the rulers under whom they were employed, the trail of bodies left in their wake - a being is shaped by their environment, but the environment is shaped by those within, and if she hadn't rescued him that day, he wouldn't have become the waking desire for death he was forced to embody. He likely would have died from starvation, face-down in the mud, suffocating, but at least was a far cry better than the pain he endured. In that moment, her lips curled, forming the remnants of an long-overdue apology.
She felt the blade make contact across her stomach, dropping her guns as Kirin slipped beneath her arm, avoiding whatever her next attack would've been. He stopped just behind her, his sword raised high in the air as the gunslinger's hands went to immediately clutch at her skin. Evelia stared straight ahead, waiting for the blood to start pouring, waiting for the torturous task of keeping her insides inside as her life faded away in the dust of the barren desert, and yet the warmth of her blood never came. Her hands came away from her stomach and, much to Evelia's surprise, were clean. Her brow furrowed as the confusion began to take hold, pushing bewilderment to the forefront of her mind. Why was she not dead?
"I don't underst--", she began to speak, turning around and only to be met a swift strike to the face from the pommel of Kirin's blade. The force of the hit shattered her vision, causing her to see multiple Kirins around the edges of her sight. Evelia staggered backwards, clutching her face and feeling blood leak from her nose before she fell, collapsing to the ground unconscious. Kirin, watching Evelia blackout, sheathed his unstained blade.
In just the moment before, Kirin made a significant choice, turning his sword so the back side of the blade led the strike. He pushed that side into Evelia's stomach, giving the illusion of slicing through her as the very tip ran across her flesh with just enough pressure to fool the gunslinger.
The phenomenon of someone's life flashing before their eyes right before they are assumed to die seemed to reach farther than that. In battle, that phenomenon extends to both parties, even when one kills the other. Kirin's own life flashed before his eyes as well, but in different ways. He remembered Threnody and his indifference. He remembered Farron and their cruelty.
And he remembered Evelia, all those years ago, extending a helping hand and saving him from the storm. He remembered her kindness. In the milliseconds after reminding himself, Kirin chose to turn the blade.
Hours later, the gunslinger woke in her cave, groaning as she lifted herself upright and looked around. She could feel the pain radiating through her left eye, which had swollen shut as a result of being struck in the face some time before. Clutching her head, Evelia turned and looked toward the cave's entrance, noticing the drag marks from outside leading to the thin bedroll on which she now sat. Even more present at the cave mouth was a piece of paper, stabbed into the wall by a serrated knife.
Slowly getting to her feet, Evelia lumbered over to the note, ripping it off the blade and doing her best to read it with her still-swimming vision. Peering closely at the words and grumbling under her breath, she read for a while, coming away from the note with a heavy sigh as she stared out over the desert.
"You're an idiot," she muttered, setting the note aside, but her smile said otherwise.
"Good luck, Kirin. You're gonna need it."
Original prompt. You can (probably) find this and more at StoriesInTheStatic.

Fed up with life prospectives
Hey everybody... I am posting this because I am fed up with this hamster wheel and I hope somebody might relate.
I am 30 years old. The past 5 years I worked very hard and had success in academia and as well outside of it. Recently I landed the job of my dreams or what I thought would be it. It is very demanding, interesting and pays off financially. The thing is I will work 120% because this is what comes with a position like that. I wake up 5 am and usually come home around 9pm. Then I have to cook, shower and prepare the next day.
I do not have the energy currently to do sports after work, my back and neck is tight and I know tomorrow I will have several conferences and shit to handle until it's 9pm again.
If I look back past the last 5 years I see no fun and only hard work. I am not sure why I do what I do when thinking of what I am missing out on. I will have two weeks of holidays soon...but honestly i just think of when I return I will work like an animal again.
Today I met an old friend of mine. She had similar aspirations but did not meet the requirements. She is a teacher now and works part time. She was glowing, happy, telling me about all the trips, music festivals and other joyful events she is planning to attend. I could feel her lightness and peace.
Me on the other hand I could only talk about work related things and serious "adult topics". I turned back home early and looked in the mirror and saw a very seriouse person. I have a hard time feeling joy and laugh at jokes, whereas I used to be a very humorous person once.
I ask myself why I am so driven and why I can not just work a less demanding job. Do not get me wrong, I am not in for the money. I never really cared about money. My aspirations are others.
When I am thinking of leaving everything behind, I think about what after? Leaving what I achieved behind seems stupid too... And other less demanding jobs bore the hell out of me (one needs to make ends meet right?) And then I just think again of my seriousness and all the things I am missing out on and the years are passing... Once I wanted to be a poet...now I am just a seriouse professional and kinda numb of working so much.
Can anybody relate with this spiral? What is life about?

Hey everybody... I am posting this because I am fed up with this hamster wheel and I hope somebody might relate.
I am 30 years old. The past 5 years I worked very hard and had success in academia and as well outside of it. Recently I landed the job of my dreams or what I thought would be it. It is very demanding, interesting and pays off financially. The thing is I will work 120% because this is what comes with a position like that. I wake up 5 am and usually come home around 9pm. Then I have to cook, shower and prepare the next day.
I do not have the energy currently to do sports after work, my back and neck is tight and I know tomorrow I will have several conferences and shit to handle until it's 9pm again.
If I look back past the last 5 years I see no fun and only hard work. I am not sure why I do what I do when thinking of what I am missing out on. I will have two weeks of holidays soon...but honestly i just think of when I return I will work like an animal again.
Today I met an old friend of mine. She had similar aspirations but did not meet the requirements. She is a teacher now and works part time. She was glowing, happy, telling me about all the trips, music festivals and other joyful events she is planning to attend. I could feel her lightness and peace.
Me on the other hand I could only talk about work related things and serious "adult topics". I turned back home early and looked in the mirror and saw a very seriouse person. I have a hard time feeling joy and laugh at jokes, whereas I used to be a very humorous person once.
I ask myself why I am so driven and why I can not just work a less demanding job. Do not get me wrong, I am not in for the money. I never really cared about money. My aspirations are others.
When I am thinking of leaving everything behind, I think about what after? Leaving what I achieved behind seems stupid too... And other less demanding jobs bore the hell out of me (one needs to make ends meet right?) And then I just think again of my seriousness and all the things I am missing out on and the years are passing... Once I wanted to be a poet...now I am just a seriouse professional and kinda numb of working so much.
Can anybody relate with this spiral? What is life about?

Hey everybody... I am posting this because I am fed up with this hamster wheel and I hope somebody might relate.
I am 30 years old. The past 5 years I worked very hard and had success in academia and as well outside of it. Recently I landed the job of my dreams or what I thought would be it. It is very demanding, interesting and pays off financially. The thing is I will work 120% because this is what comes with a position like that. I wake up 5 am and usually come home around 9pm. Then I have to cook, shower and prepare the next day.
I do not have the energy currently to do sports after work, my back and neck is tight and I know tomorrow I will have several conferences and shit to handle until it's 9pm again.
If I look back past the last 5 years I see no fun and only hard work. I am not sure why I do what I do when thinking of what I am missing out on. I will have two weeks of holidays soon...but honestly i just think of when I return I will work like an animal again.
Today I met an old friend of mine. She had similar aspirations but did not meet the requirements. She is a teacher now and works part time. She was glowing, happy, telling me about all the trips, music festivals and other joyful events she is planning to attend. I could feel her lightness.
Me on the other hand I could only talk about work related things and serious "adult topics". I turned back home early and looked in the mirror and saw a very seriouse person. I have a hard time feeling joy and laugh at jokes, whereas I used to be a very humorous person once.
I ask myself why I am so driven and why I can not just work a less demanding job. Do not get me wrong, I am not in for the money. I never really cared about money. My aspirations are others.
When I am thinking of leaving everything behind, I think about what after? Leaving what I achieved behind seems stupid too... And other less demanding jobs bore the hell out of me. And then I just think again of my seriousness and all the things I am missing out on and the years passing... Once I wanted to be a poet...now I am just a seriouse professional and kinda numb of working so much.
Can anybody relate with this spiral? What is life about?

Unethical Pet Store in Fashion District
Address: 430 S Los Angeles St Los Angeles, CA 90013
Description: There is a “pet store” selling small animals (birds, rodents, fish, etc) on the sidewalk near the fashion district in DTLA. The store is called Pet & Supplies. The conditions of the animals and their enclosure are deeply distressing and require immediate attention. The cages were extremely small and filthy, devoid of any form of stimulation such as toys. This is all in the midst of the sidewalk where there are loud crowds of people and other clothing/food vendors. This is highly unsafe and I can only imagine the stress the animals are under.
I saw small birds with bald spots on their heads to their back, most likely from stress-induced feather plucking. The animals have no place to hide, there is not even substrate for the hamsters to bury in. The cages are easily toppled over by people passing by and there are no pamphlets on how to care for the animals.
This cannot be legal? I hope someone will look into this for me or expose what is happening in the streets of LA via the media. This does not seem to be regularly inspected by animal welfare.
When I searched for an article, I saw this quote: “In addition, SB 917, a California law, prohibits "any person to willfully sell, display, or offer for sale or give away as part of a commercial transaction a live animal on any street, highway, public right-of-way parking lot, carnival, or boardwalk." Penalties for both offenses include fines of up to $1000 and 6 months of jail time.”
I’m hoping people on here would aid me by looking into this further and finding rescues that can demolish this place. There are photos in my other post.

Unethical Pet Store in Fashion District of DTLA
Address: 430 S Los Angeles St Los Angeles, CA 90013
Description: There is a “pet store” selling small animals (birds, rodents, fish, etc) on the sidewalk near the fashion district in DTLA. The store is called Pet & Supplies. The conditions of the animals and their enclosure are deeply distressing and require immediate attention. The cages were extremely small and filthy, devoid of any form of stimulation such as toys. This is all in the midst of the sidewalk where there are loud crowds of people and other clothing/food vendors. This is highly unsafe and I can only imagine the stress the animals are under.
I saw small birds with bald spots on their heads to their back, most likely from stress-induced feather plucking. The animals have no place to hide, there is not even substrate for the hamsters to bury in. The cages are easily toppled over by people passing by and there are no pamphlets on how to care for the animals.
This cannot be legal? I hope someone will look into this for me or expose what is happening in the streets of LA via the media. This does not seem to be regularly inspected by animal welfare.
When I searched for an article, I saw this quote: “In addition, SB 917, a California law, prohibits "any person to willfully sell, display, or offer for sale or give away as part of a commercial transaction a live animal on any street, highway, public right-of-way parking lot, carnival, or boardwalk." Penalties for both offenses include fines of up to $1000 and 6 months of jail time.”
I attached photos of the place and highlighted areas that this pet store disobeys the "City of Los Angeles Pet Shop Rules and Regulations (https://www.laanimalservices.com/sites/default/files/documents/PERMITS/Pet-Shop-Rules-and-Regulations.pdf)
I’m hoping people on here would aid me by looking into this further and finding rescues that can demolish this place.

Ok. When we told baby that she’s going to be a big sister, she wasn’t thrilled. We explained it to her, somehow she referred to Bluey, and we told her it would be like Bluey with two little Bingos, but she wasn’t really excited. I mean, she was happy, but then abruptly changed to basically “yeah, no thanks, dudes” 😬 We kept talking with her, and she said things like “BUT I yuv yu” as if we wouldn’t love her when the babies arrive 😭 and it broke momma’s heart. We kept working on it, and she’s now happy and somehow proud because she’s going to be a big sister, just like Bluey with two little Bingos ☺️ I believe aunties helped a lot with that, without even being aware. We made it part of her routine to say good morning x2 to my belly, right before saying good morning and feeding her hamster and fish. She even added two kisses for her sisters, that came from her 🥰
I feel them move more and more now :) and the other day hubby was able to feel them too!
Now, to the happy and crazy news: aunties already know that we are expecting two girls 😂❤️ I told them that same Sunday by text, and they went nuts! Most of them believed it would be one of each, so they were surprised. I told them not to come over because hubby had to work the next day and I was feeling very tired. So, we planned to meet the next day and had a reunion at our house on Monday. We didn’t go out because I. Am. Tired. lol We ordered food, they spoiled baby so much, and kept talking about the gang growing with my baby girls 😂 They started to plan Disney trips LMAO I was like “yea, let’s wait a couple of years for that.” They started to laugh about hubby being surrounded only by girls and how it would now be a must for him to have a man cave lol We spent a lot of time looking for twins stuff online, and they even had the nerve to tell me how we should name them, these women! 😂 They keep “fighting” for the godmother’s position… if they only knew we’ve been thinking about hubby’s BFF and his wife for one of the babies 😬 It was a very sweet evening. They had a bit of wine, so you can imagine the craziness.
Hubby couldn’t avoid them this time because they were already here when he came back from work. I DID WARN HIM! They were waiting for him anyway, because THEY BROUGHT PINK MUFFINS TO PRETEND AND ACT A BABY GENDER REVEAL LMAO because they said they should have organized it but I didn’t give them the chance (how selfish of me) 😂😂😂 I don’t like these things, but it was so much fun and baby had a blast. So, there we were: hubby, baby, the aunties, and me pretending it was the first time we informed them lol lol Aunties basically threw a party when I bit the brownies and there was pink inside. They even started to jump, and one of them cried, oh please give them an Oscar! 😂 But no, they were excited for real :) Hubby brought them a new bottle of wine (for the one they broke when I announced my pregnancy) and warned them that this is the last bottle we are going to give them haha
Aunties were… loud. Hubby was… overstimulated lol They congratulated him, kept saying “good job, dude,” and stuff like that, but he was strong enough to stay with us for the rest of the evening 🥰 It was lovely.
One of the aunties (the one of the text) suggested we could go shopping for the twins if I feel alright. I know this is also a trap to talk with me, but I like the idea :) we really need things for the babies 😬 they keep sending a lot of things to our group chat and they have bought a couple of things, mostly clothes. They were talking about a baby shower. Grauntie gave us two very cute blankets 🥰
Now, I’m planning baby’s birthday party while trying to get at least the basics we need for the twins 🫠 I am tired and will be even more tired by then, but I do want us to celebrate baby’s birthday because she deserves it and we need it as a family. Also, my dad is coming and it would be nice to be surrounded with the aunties and all the important people in our lives that care about baby. We will be at the new house by then, so it sounds like a good way to start over. Oh, the aunties don’t know we’re moving, and I don’t even know how to tell them. I know they’d understand, but also, I know how they’ll react.
Ok, another thing. A few weeks after Mother’s Day, good BIL sent me a text. I read it a bunch of times and sometimes I still go back to it. He sent something to hubby too, and they have been in contact, but only having conversations like “hey, all good?”, “yeah, all good,” and that’s it. This is what he said to me:
“Hello, [me]. I don’t want to bother you, I actually struggled debating if I should send this to you and in the end, I decided to take the chance. If this seems selfish, I am sorry. You don’t even have to read it, and if you do, you don’t even have to answer back, but I’d like to know if you read it. The last thing I want is to cause you more distress in your life.
First of all, congratulations on your pregnancy. I am very happy and excited for [hubby] and you. [Baby] will be a great big sister. If I may say, and with all due respect, you look beautiful. Motherhood suits you well, as [good SIL] says; she also says congratulations, by the way. I admit seeing you made me feel a bit sad because, if our relationship was normal, I believe I’d have been one of the first people to know. I know I lost that right, and I don’t intend to make this about me.
I am so sorry about what my mother said to you, it was horrible and unforgivable. I told her so. I keep repeating [hubby’s] words in my mind. That’s true, in a way. I understand how you two feel I chose them over you, but the reality is that I tried to help you as much as I could. I thought I was doing the right thing, and I am sorry if I wasn’t. I, honestly, feel in the middle.
This might be hard for you to believe, but I have set hard boundaries with my mother. Finally. I can’t cut her off completely because, well… she’s still my mother. I am not as strong as [hubby], maybe because she hasn’t really interfered with [good SIL] and me. But I now know what she’s capable of. I’m taking baby steps on this, to put it in a way.”
What I am trying to say is that I am deeply sorry about all this. All I wish for you is to enjoy this moment of your life and have a healthy delivery. Your babies are lucky to have you two as parents.
If you let us, we would love to give or send you a present. Also, a little something for the new big sister. Don’t worry, we won’t do anything if we don’t have your permission. We will leave you in peace until you let us back into your lives, hoping you will.
Please know that you can count on me, on us, for anything you need. I am aware I’m not reliable right now, but I mean it.”
He hasn’t contacted me after this, but good SIL has 🙄 I haven’t answered back because I was feeling horrible after the incident. I still don’t feel 100% good but I’m feeling much better. Still, I don’t know if I should send him an answer. I found myself writing something the other day but deleted it. This is on my old phone, and he doesn’t know my new number. He congratulated hubby too and told him how sad he was because baby got scared of him when he smiled at her. Maybe that was another wake-up call.
OH, something funny. We received a package the other day, it was from MIL. It was the same, sent as a gift from Amazon. I waited for hubby to open it, and it was baby clothes FOR A BOY 😂 There was a note with a short apology, saying we should start over because grandkids need their grandparents :) The clothes will be donated as the Bluey set was donated. I didn’t even tell you, but we gave the blue set, along with a few other toys, directly to a family. It was nice because baby herself handed the set to the family’s baby :)
And I think that’s all! I might be forgetting something but idk what lol
I think I’m getting sick, but I feel good today ❤️ (Also, if you happen to see twins stuff while browsing the internet, let me know or send me the link 😂).

Basic Stats of POV
Name: Lyle Ancestry: Human Age: Adult Status: 2 Role: Expert (Archer) Primary Abilities: Agility, Awareness, Marksmanship Specialties: Quickness [Agility], Notice [Awareness], Attack [Marksmanship]

I am Lyle, archer in Lord Mael's personal guard.

I know the name, Dellingard. One of the ten families that make up the Noble Council of the Moore Kingdom. Never met someone from their territory, but any of the Dellingards sent here aren't major powers themselves.
"We do not know what they want, remember that and be prepared for either a friend or foe." Lord Mael sits comfortably upon his horse. Such a rugged man, he seems less noble and more general.
"Teller, your job is to scout out ahead, use those keen senses to keep us safe. These next four days are going to be tense. No doubt that Dellingard will be wanting to get eyes on us as soon as they can. I want to know what those eyes are. Unless necessary, stay 20 lengths ahead of us until we set camp."
The accompanying scout nods. "Yes, my lord," and sets off.
This could be a trap or a boon. The lord said that we could use an ally... But it seems like the world itself wants to eat us alive. Now, the most important are here and not leading the cultivation or building up of our new home. What happens if we are attacked, tricked, and killed? What will happen to our families?
The sense of unease starts to build. Caressing my bow to calm down, I take a slow, drawn breath and think. I focus on the anxiety. What does it look like today? I close my eyes, navigating my steed by the sounds around me. Ah, it's a bear. The kind that makes the land shake when it drops down to all fours with a maw clutching a fish. It hasn't seen us yet, though, but we know she has a cub somewhere.
We have to stay away from the cub and the mother at all costs. I envision myself carefully backing away, retracing my steps, hoping that the cub is not on my side of the mother bear. She's fearsome. One wrong move and it'll be the end of me. However, she wishes only to look after her cub and herself. I can treat her with respect and let them wander the forest of my mind in peace.
I meditate in this way for the better part of the first three days, and there doesn't seem to be anything in the wake of us. On the third day, Teller did note that there was a small team of scouts keeping track of us, but they weren't in an ambush formation. So, we're most likely safe to progress.
As we move through the lands, I can't help but wish that we could have more guards for this delegation. Though, I suppose that Lord Mael and Captain Pater are warriors, so the majority of our group are indeed fit for combat. However, with the unknowns in play... Steward Borrik is old and would have to be protected. We have Teller, the scout, but he's not good in a straight-up fight. We've Demmer and Cornel, the heavy infantry, and Dale, the light infantry. Then you have myself and Donna, the archers. Balanced party, yes, but other than the lord and Captain Pater, none of us have seen much combat before coming under the service of House Braedon.
I suppose it has been needless to worry on the trip. Because here we are. The hold of Dellingard. Its rudimentary make seems to suggest that they don't have much comfort either. The farms outside the wooden wall seem to be successful at least, and I don't see any gauntness in the passersby. They don't know starvation.
We are let through without much fuss and guided to the hall to have our audience. House Dellingard's forces are considerable in comparison. If this is a trap, it would be a success if only Lord Mael got out alive. I grit my teeth. Don't poke the bear; this bear has spears and armor.
House Name: Braedon Head of House: Baron Mael Braedon Motto: "An enemy can still choke on ash." Coat of Arms: An argent broken sword stuck in a pile of sable ash. Founding Event: Doom (Rise from the ashes of House Morkad)
House Resources: Defense [12] Influence [6] Lands [17] Law [12] Population [16] Power [8] Wealth [15]
Holdings: Defense [None] Influence [None] Land: Terrains/Features [Plains, Hills/Woods, Light] Power: Trainings/Units [Green/Personal Guard], [Trained/Criminals] Wealth [Mines]
House Braedon's Rise From Ashes uses Green Ronin Publishing's "Sword Chronicle: Feudal Fantasy Roleplaying" in the writing process. I own the intellectual property of Lestrid, Isle of Deltine, the characters and all fiction written in this story. However, were it not for Sword Chronicle, I would have a harder time creating as grounded of a world as I would like.
First Previous

Synopsis: Markus is summoned from Earth by evil beings looking for a 'weak and primitive' creature to use as sacrificial entertainment. What they got instead was a human. Immediately after arriving, Markus awakens to an ability so rare, so powerful that it makes every god on Firellia desperate to recruit him as their new champion.
Learning to control his innate mastery over mana, Markus will devour the very essence of any monster, demon, or god that dares get in his way, determined to never lose his freedom again.
——
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Well, that could’ve gone worse.
Maxen wasn’t a crack dealer. What he did end up being was a brothel owner. He found Markus’ power interesting, and hoped to use his ability to transfer mana to invigorate his workers with incredible energy, ensuring they could continue to see clients, perform shows, and generally be available near enough twenty-four hours a day for as long as humanly possible.
As Markus understood it, the most valued courtesans were in such high demand that it actually behooved Maxen to limit their availability. Something about retaining their exclusivity.
It was the dozens upon hundreds of lower-ranked workers he owned that he wished to see working twenty-four seven, insisting that such a life would be more than splendid for any of his employees, for they ‘did so enjoy working for him’, and ‘endless work would only mean endless fulfillment’ for any of them.
Markus wasn’t so sure about that. He turned Maxen down, but not before hearing his offer. Mainly because Maxen had led with it:
After he’d finished training in the necessary method to transfer energy between subjects, he would’ve been contracted to appear at the brothel every evening to take mana from livestock and distribute it to workers.
Transferring energy itself wasn’t something that was outside the reach of regular magicians, Maxen had explained. But it was difficult to do properly. Too often, botched mana transfers resulted in either the subject of the transfer, the source of the mana, or the middleman enacting the exchange having some issue that screwed everything else up.
Load a person with too much mana and the effects could be catastrophic. Take too much away and similar issues could occur. Then, beyond quantity were the matter of types and grades. Regular magicians only had a limited understanding of these.
That was why the Innate Trait of Mana Manipulation was so desirable to Maxen. The ability to properly portion mana in exact grades and percentiles and transfer it smoothly from multiple subjects to multiple recipients over and over again without failing was something not even the most practiced magician could do without a decent chance of failure.
It was something that, with practice, Markus should be able to do effortlessly.
And for a couple hours of mana transferring a night, every night, Maxen was willing to offer Markus what seemed to be a ton of benefit. A hundred gold a night, an amulet with a thirty mile range that would open a portal to the brothel whenever Markus needed it, and beyond that, he’d also offered something called a ‘boon’.
This boon was a fragment of a godly power, one which would allow Markus to persuade people of things more easily, as well as mitigate hostilities between Markus and creatures with a lesser Spirit attribute than him.
It sounded tempting, but ultimately the costs outweighed the benefits. This was only cemented by the fifty year contract Maxen had in mind.
“If you’re unwilling, then you are unwilling. It is a shame. Your life in Firrelia could’ve been a rather fortuitous one, unfettered with worries.”
Markus was pretty sure he could get hired as a bartender or florist here and some monster or other would still come along to try and murder him within the week. The prospect of a worry-free life on Firrelia sounded like lunacy at this point, and he’d only been here a single day.
He refrained from saying as much, but Maxen seemed surprised when Markus turned him down.
He was at least pleasant about it. He spent almost the entire meeting between them combing his long, pristine hair. At a point, he conjured a piece of meat from seemingly nowhere and fed it to the helldog, who leapt up in excitement the moment it smelled the freshly cooked beef.
Markus was ashamed to say his stomach rumbled. He felt more ashamed to say that he’d been struggling to sit upright for most of this meeting.
“Have you named this one yet?” Maxen asked as the dog graciously accepted its meal, gnawing and ripping at it against the floor as he spoke. “I’m surprised you’ve managed to tame such a beast. Whoever sent her must’ve employed a rather sloppy spell of frenzy, but to manage to tame such a creature is impressive still.”
“Any idea who sent it?” Markus felt disarmed around Maxen. He’d struggled more than he should’ve to reject his offer. It was like his presence alone was so calming and innocuous that Markus almost wanted to take his honeyed words about these endlessly devoted workers to be true, even if his heart told him the concept was inherently twisted.
“I would be remiss to share even conjecture on that, I’m afraid” Maxen said, his tone serious. “I am a neutral party. I work to ensure as much. I do not make enemies with my fellow deities, no matter how they might like to play at war.”
Markus coughed once more, bringing a hand up to his mouth. He touched his forehead and felt sweat. “Well, can you tell me anything that might help?”
“Yes. I can tell you that you absolutely stink of mana.” His voice turned more stern, almost like that of a parent. “If you continue to hold so much power within you, you will die. Every minute, you increase the chances of Toxicosis taking hold.”
Shit, he’s right. I haven’t worked to get the mana out of my body since I last fought, and I still have way too much swirling around in me. No wonder I feel so fucked right now. Not like Randall mentioned shit about it to me, either, and I was hardly thinking straight after everything that happened with him.
Markus sighed. “I don’t know what to do about it. I’ve been trying to keep my mana under control by putting more points into my Spirit, but still…”
“Try this.”
With that, Maxen tossed him a small, purple stone. It looked like an amethyst.
“These stones are excellent at containing mana. They have other uses, too, but I haven’t more time to explain them. I appreciate you meeting with me.”
With that, he tossed over two more. The three stones landed before Markus’ feet with a slight clatter, though none of them looked to crack in any way.
“Wait. Wh-why would you…”
“Call it payment for an entertaining fight yesterday. Imagine it beats whatever you earnt for it down here, if anything.” Maxen shrugged. “Call it a retainer for future services, if you will. I imagine you’ll be of some use to me in future, assuming you leave this place soon.”
“I already told you I don’t wanna work for you…” Markus felt terrible pushing away what looked to actually be a valuable gift, but he wasn’t gonna take anything that bound him to anything. That had trouble written all over it. Last thing he needed was to be indebted to a god.
“Fine. Just call it a tip. No strings attached.” With that, he stood, and with a single flick of his wrist, spruced up the entire cell, the blood and plate shards disappearing from view, the floors and walls of the cell taking on a sheen they’d likely not had since construction.
“Why do any of this for me?” Markus asked, voice catching a little. “I refused your offer.”
“My virtue is Service. You looked as if you required some. What does it hurt me to part ways with a few stones? I have so many more.”
“Kinda feels like you’re throwing a dog a bone,” Markus murmured, staring down at the stones.
“What an odd thing to say.” Maxen phased through the bars of the cage, going to make his leave, then turned to face him once more.
“You’re not a dog. You’re a person.” He blinked, looking as if he were trying to parse the idiom once more. “And those are simply stones.”
With that, Maxen took his leave.
Markus found himself simply holding the stones for a few minutes, a chill in the air, his chest heaving as he tried to reconcile everything that had happened up until now.
These gems… they were the result of the only positive interaction he’d had since his arrival. Their deep purple was captivating, and while staring at them helped to anchor him in the moment, in this crazy reality he’d now found himself a part of, he only noticed his hand was shaking when he heard them begin clacking together.
Gently, delicately, he settled the three stones onto the floor, and put his face into his hands.
Markus felt tired. He’d gotten a few hours of sleep. He’d had to fight for his life no less than three times in the last twenty-four hours. To say that he felt tired was an understatement. He felt insane. It had taken that small shred of humanity, of normalcy in the face of this new hell to realise just how different everything now was.
And it had come from what was likely another evil god. Or at the very least, one he was almost sure he couldn’t consider to be ‘good’. He was more than skeptical of Maxen, but even so, the affirmmation he’d given Markus without even meaning to was so much more than anything anyone else had done for him since getting here that it had almost broken the shell blanketing his emotions entirely.
This was a horrible place. He didn’t want to be here. His body ached, his shoulder still missing some flesh, his throat was sore, his hand was still singed, his entire body felt partially numb from the exertion that Mana Poisoning was bringing about within him.
This was hard. Maybe too hard. He told himself it didn’t matter. Nothing was coming to save him, after all. If he wanted to survive this situation, he had to rely on himself, he knew it.
There would be more gods. They might torture him more. Strip even more away from him. He had nine more fights to get through if he couldn’t find another way out, and he wasn’t sure he’d last that long.
His resolve would have to be stronger than that. Even if there was no way out, even if his life was doomed to this, even if he couldn’t clearly see the path through his misty, tired, crying eyes, he would have to be stronger. Stronger than his enemies. Stronger than Drathok. Stronger than even the mightiest god in here.
Markus felt a stillness come about him. A quiet intensity that blotted out his doubts and strangled his worries. Something inside of him told him to keep fighting, and its incessant voice couldn’t be quelled by any one niggling fear or paltry concern.
None of that mattered anymore. Only his escape. From this cell, from this fate, from sitting under the thumb of every wretched deity that called Firrelia home. He’d do whatever he had to to thrive, to progress, to carve his way towards his future.
He felt a lick against his arm, alongside an alarming brush of flame.
He barely flinched. Instead, he leaned into the hellhound’s face and petted it, finding that the flames around the dog’s face receded further the more he pressed his hand against the dog’s fur. It understood how not to hurt, or at least to avoid doing so.
“Hey,” Markus spoke to the helldog, touching its ear, which immediately perked up. “I still haven’t given you a name yet, have I?”
It was some solidarity in the darkness, some hope in this forgotten place, to see how calm and friendly this creature seemed in the face of it. It’d warmed up to him so quickly.
Markus wiped his face, inhaling sharply through his nose as he did. He blinked himself to focus, turning to look at the happy, lion-sized nightmare beast, a smile upon his face.
“How about Ember? Do you like that name?” He tried to push his hand further into her fur as he went, but burnt himself a little. If anything, she seemed to be glowing hotter than before.
“...does that mean you like it, or you hate it?”
She licked his hand where it burnt.
Markus laughed, holding his hands up. Was he imagining the intent here? Who knew.
“Well, it’s decided. If there’s no objections, I’ll call you Ember until further notice.”
Ember barked, flames leaping outward from her body, then ran in a circle. Then she laid down a short distance from Markus’ feet.
To think this thing was sent to kill me just hours ago… that ‘kill’ command must’ve been pretty damn powerful to force this creature to change so drastically. She seems practically harmless right now, if you ignore the fact she’s permanently on fire. Well, that and the size.
The thought cheered Markus up a bit. He hadn’t expected he’d wind up in here with a companion of any sort. While he was hardly glad he’d condemned the creature to be stuck in a cell with him, it was nice to at least have some friendly company.
“Don’t worry, I’ll get you out too.”
Ember’s ear twitched, but she didn’t react otherwise.
Still, Markus believed he could do it. He’d stopped them from tearing each other apart, after all. He’d killed that horrible monster, too. A god had been willing pay him a hundred gold pieces a DAY for his services. That had to be more than most people made a month here, surely?
Things were fine. For a person being constantly pushed to the brink of death, they were great, in fact.
And why had he been sitting around feeling so lethargic anyways? He still had everything to fight for. He still had so many tools he could use, and much more to learn. All he’d been doing was amassing more means to survive with each trial he’d been through, and the best thing he could do right now was find a means to store his mana and get his body back in check, just like Maxen had told him to.
Markus grabbed one of the stones and used [Identify] on it.
[Essence Stone. Grade: ?. A purple stone used to power magical objects and bolster arcane spells and rituals, able to be filled with various types of mana. Consumable.]
Consumable? Did that mean he could… eat it?
Worry about that later. Try putting mana in the thing first.
[Current Mana Capacity: 205%. View breakdown? Y/N.]
“Breakdown?.. Yeah. Show me.”
[Stored mana by Grade:]
[G Grade Frost Mana: 12%]
[F Grade Spirit Mana: 46%]
[E Grade Spirit Mana: 18%]
[E Grade Flame Mana: 7%]
[D Grade Mystic Mana: 16%]
[D Grade Blood Mana: 30%]
[D Grade Flame Mana: 11%]
[D Grade Life Mana: 34%.]
[C Grade Life Mana: 22%]
[A Grade Divine Mana: 9%]
Wow, that was a lot… was that everything he’d generated that he hadn’t used already? He’d already used up all of the Shock and Flame Mana he’d received from Drathok in his first fight, and then from what that creature ended up giving him, he’d blown all of that Frost Mana between training his cyro skills and fighting off Ember. He was still generating more from the core he’d devoured… but it was a really low grade. It didn’t do much.
There were multiple mana types Markus still didn’t understand the uses or applications of, but the one that perplexed him most on the list was the Mystic Mana. He’d had it since his first fight, he was sure, but when had he absorbed it? When he’d been teleported here, maybe? Who knew what it did?
That didn’t matter right now. What mattered was storing away the right kinds of mana so that he didn’t run too low on the ones that might be useful to him.
…this was difficult. He didn’t want to be without useful things, but he could only store so much.
He still had 15 skill points to spend, courtesy of his fight with Ember. He decided to distribute those before making any solid decisions.
[Name: Markus Brown]
[Class: Otherworlder (Earth) (Tier: Novice 10)]
[Health: 303/395]
[Mana: 832/1090]
[Strength: 48 (+30)]
[Agility: 52 (+30)]
[Arcana: 6]
[Constitution: 60 (+30)]
[Spirit: 45]
[???: 0]
[For each ten points in Spirit, you have been awarded a free point to spend on Arcana or Constitution per level. You have 8 free points available.]
4 free points per level just for having a high Spirit score? Markus had almost completely forgotten about that. That brought the total he had to spend up by over 50%, and considering he’d been planning to raise his Arcana anyways, this had worked out great for him.
Markus knew he needed 10 Arcana if he wanted to unlock Paths and rank up his skills. He remembered as much since both the [Frost Mastery] and [Regeneration] skills had reached high enough ranks to open themselves up to Path access. He still had no clue what paths did, but he figured they had to be important enough to warrant the increase.
Four free points went into Arcana, leaving him with four more free points to spend. Constitution seemed like a safe bet, but he was curious to see what future Arcana breakpoints did… He decided to hold off on committing the rest of his free points until he had some idea of what a Path actually was.
That being said, he immediately dumped 5 of his 15 regular points into Spirit, bringing it up to 50. Higher mana capacity, more free points every level, more mental resilience, better growth… what wasn’t to like?
Well, if you ignored the caveat of Spirit also increasing Markus’ mana generation.
That’d be fine. He’d just put all his mana in stones! No problem.
Speaking of which, now that he’d increased his capacity, time to do just that.
Increasing his Spirit score had ticked his mana total over to nearly 1200. It felt nice to have a four digit mana score now, it was almost triple what he’d had available level 1. The amount of mana he held in his body right now was enough to give him mana poisoning, but likely would’ve been 500% of his capacity a day ago, and who knew how much damage that would’ve done to him then?
One thing he knew for sure was that through trials and tribulations, he’d definitely grown, and the tasks that had been put in front of him were hardly easy ones.
It was as he was transferring mana to the first stone, mainly focussing on moving the excess F Grade Spirit Mana out of his body, that he saw a new notification pop up, one he’d never seen before.
[Mana Manipulation: 1 >> 2. Your Mana Capacity has increased from 1190 to 1390. Your passive Growth has increased. Empower skill unlocked. Manifest skill unlocked.]
[Mana Manipulation will sometimes give a unique option in the advancement of future skills and traits.]
Wait… he’d levelled Mana Manipulation?
This was great! It’d increased his capacity by so much! Not to mention two new skills, he really hoped they were something he’d find helpful down here.
By the time Markus was done shifting and moving the mana in his body, his remaining reserves looked like this:
[G Grade Frost Mana: 2%]
[F Grade Spirit Mana: 2%]
[E Grade Spirit Mana: 10%]
[E Grade Flame Mana: 5%]
[D Grade Blood Mana: 15%]
[D Grade Flame Mana: 9%]
[C Grade Life Mana: 18%]
[A Grade Divine Mana: 7%]
Some of these percentages had gone down due to his capacity increasing, but the main change had been moving most of the Frost and Spirit Mana out of his body, seeing as he still generated those, and keeping the more potent Spirit Mana in case he needed it. He’d also put all of the Mystic Mana within its own stone, which had taken on a black sheen. For some reason, he couldn’t mix it into the same stone as other elements.
That said, other mana types didn’t seem to have that restriction. He’d dumped a good portion of Blood and Life Mana into the same Essence Stone as the one he’d put his Frost and Spirit into, and the stone still seemed to be capable of holding yet more. The way it shone in the darkness of the cell was noticeable, its shifting colours crazy and kaleidoscopic.
Now that he’d done as much, his body feeling more than relieved from his mana being drained and his Overcharge promptly ending, Markus stood, pacing around the cell as he came to finally discover what the hell a Path was, pulling up a list of his skills and passives.
[Cyromancy: 3. Mastery awakens at 10.]
[Frost Mastery: 5. Awaken a Path?]
[Regeneration: 8. Awaken a Path?]
[Pyrokinesis: 1. Mastery awakens at 10.]
[Glaive Mastery: 3. Mastery awakens at 10.]
[Evasion: 3. Mastery awakens at 10.]
[Empower: 1. Path awakens at 5.]
[Manifest: 1. Path awakens at 5.]
[Diplomacy: 1. Mastery awakens at 10.]
[Mana Manipulation: 2. Evolution awakens at 5.]
[Frost Resistance: I.]
[Freeze I/II resistance.]
Markus hovered Frost Mastery and selected ‘yes’, and a list of options appeared before him.
[You may now awaken a Basic Path for Frost Mastery. You are able to hold up to four different Paths at one time. You may forget, combine, or evolve previous Paths in order to learn more. Paths unlock new skills, as well as new features and passives, allowing skills to grow much more powerful or gain unique effects.]
[Basic Frost Mastery Paths are as follows:] [Please choose one from the following options:]
[Freeze Lance: A martial skill which allows the user to imbue their weapon attacks with ice during combat. Landing successive blows will inflict Freeze I upon opponents. This ability requires 30 Frost and 20 Spirit Mana to cast and lasts for thirty seconds. Freeze Lance can be upcasted with higher Mana Grades to inflict higher levels of Freeze.]
[Frost Barrier: A passive skill which allows the user to reduce damage taken from physical strikes by 5-70% depending on Mana Grade used, with G Grade Mana offering a 5% reduction and S Grade offering a 70% reduction. Damage reduction is halved versus elemental damage, and nullified versus Flame Mana. Frost Barrier can be actively channelled whilst grappling an enemy to slow their movements for a short time, or inflict Freeze when used with higher Mana Grades.]
Below these two were a third option, the writing carrying a faint white-blue sheen.
[(Mana Manipulation) Frozen Tomb, G Grade: A continuous channel ability that allows ice to flow out from around you, affecting terrain and slowing enemies within at a cost of 2 Spirit and 2 Frost Mana per second. While stood within the frozen terrain, you may spend 15-30 Frost Mana and 15-30 Spirit Mana to spawn 3-6 icicles which will seek to impale opponents, inflicting Freeze I and Bleed I alongside damage. Enemies stood within Frozen Tomb for over a minute will be inflicted with Freeze II, compounding to Freeze III after 3 minutes. Enemies that die within Frozen Tomb will be devoured, their Mana Cores automatically being absorbed.]
This was difficult. Frozen Tomb sounded really, really strong, but equally expensive. Was it the best thing to go for here, or was Markus better off taking the simpler and much more straightforward Freeze Lance ability?
//
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A/N: Hey! Thanks for reading! Decision's already been made in the next chapter, of course, but I'm curious what you'd pick here. Also curious what you think of Maxen! Let me know, I love reading you guys' thoughts!
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Good afternoon all,
I appreciate there's been a bit of gloom cast upon us all by the leaks from Legends video (which as a reminder are currently unsubstantiated speculation) so I was hoping to bring a little bit of fun or even hope (I always like to think about what could be added as I am, like many of us, a huge Warhammer fan) via this post. I did a few like it before but I'm restructuring it now so that It'll be divided into three clear parts: What the faction needs, What I'd like to see added and What I think CA is likely to add.
Lastly before I start I want to just throw out the disclaimer that I have no sources inside CA, nor am I claiming that this is what should happen, this post is entirely based on my own opinions and experiences playing this wonderful trilogy of games and Warhammer as a whole. I know the game is winding down as a whole and it would just be nice to see the races all reach a point where they feel complete (hence the title of this post).
So without any further preamble lets dive into the Chaos Dwarves, a faction that is a personal favourite of mine that needs very little to his completion status in my opinion.
What the faction needs:
Honestly I think the faction is in a really good place as a whole and if it's never touched again it will still be fun and have a very varied roster and there really is only two things that I think they're lacking as a faction outside of a new starting point option in my opinion:

• An infernal railway system to reflect the Chorfs industrial scale infrastructure but more importantly to allow fast travel between different points in the vast empire you normally end up with by the end-game.
• Campaign variety for the different LL's as they currently all play the same with the same mechanics.

What I'd like to see added:
I think one Lord Pack (or whatever they're called these days)
In the pack (Paid DLC)
LL: Tordrek Hackhart - Now this is likely to be a controversial pick as some people would like to see him join the Vampire Coast, but I think Tordrek would be a far better addition to the Chorf roster. For a start he isn't tied to the Darklands or the steppes like almost every character in their lore so he could start anywhere on the world map which opens up some really interesting campaign options for a race whose current lords are effectively on each other's doorsteps.
Secondly the Black Kraken would make for a fantastic campaign mechanic, allowing you to build it up much like the other horde factions in the game (Vampire Coast Ships, The Spirit of Grungni etc.) allowing for mobile recruitment and some powerful in battle abilities but I feel CA could go further than that if they wanted to. Tordrek is an engineer at his core and has a massive grudge against his Dawi kin so why not give him missions in the form of mini quest-lines like Malakai that culminate in him fighting battles against his old engineer peers in exchange for powerful permanent upgrades to his submersible ship?
In terms of faction traits I'd expect him to have a bonus to research to reflect his engineering skills, a bonus to relations with the Dreadfleet (and perhaps start him in their vicinity) and a bonus to income from ports. For personal lord traits I would expect him to hand out buffs to artillery and gunnery units and perhaps enhance Infernal Castellans too, and in battle I would envision him as incredibly heavily armoured and likely wielding powerful ranged fire in the form of a bazooka or torpedo launcher, switching to his iconic mechanical tendrils for close-quarters combat.
I appreciate he doesn't have any legendary items but I don't believe Nakai or the Dragons did either and yet CA were able to correct that so hopefully they could do the same here, as I imagine that his armour would certainly warrant legendary item status and it's possible that whatever weapon they decide to give him would as well.
LH: Rykarth the Unbreakable - Now I know some people would like to see him as a lord but I think Rykarth makes for the perfect LH choice. He is a bit of a living legend amongst his people and would provide heavy leadership buffs to his fellow Chorfs on the battlefield, and likely buff their offensive and defensive capabilities too. He would also be an incredibly tanky character thanks to his unique armour (Armour of Gazrakh) and have a hefty physical resistance or ward save to reflect this, alongside a respectable amount of armour piercing damage when going on the offensive and he would of course be unbreakable (clue's in the name). I would imagine that Astrogoth would also be able to get him quicker given their history together, in much the same way that Ungrim can get Garagrim earlier.
GL: (Generic Lord): Bull Centaur Lord - I would expect the name to potentially change but effectively this is just the lord variant of the Taur-ruk, with a yellow skill line that lets you buff your bull centaurs in different ways and provides the option of a hard hitting cavalry lord that I would expect to be anti-large given the giant axe the old-school model was swinging about. Not a revolutionary addition I know but as someone that loves bull centaurs I'd really appreciate being able to run a true full-stack of them and having a hard hitting anti-large lord (especially given how many big entity races surround the Chorfs on the map).
GH: (Generic Hero): Hobgoblin Khan - A hybrid hero wielding a spear and shield with a bow for ranged fire, they would essentially be watered down version of Gorduz. They would have a yellow skill line that allows you to buff Hobgoblin leadership and their units (I would imagine them to have three skills for infantry, ranged and mounted units where you pick one) and likely boost campaign movement range when embedded in an army. I don't think Hobgoblins should be leading Chorf armies but I do think that they should have a hero option to make them more viable in armies that don't have Gorduz and a fast hybrid hero is always handy. I would expect them to also have a wolf mount.
Unit 1: Chaos Dwarf Bazooka Team - In a faction that already has a large variety of firepower you might ask yourself why they need more but to that I say: Bazookas! In all seriousness these would function in a similar way to Irondrakes with Grudgebearer torpedoes and be a more mobile (by Dwarf standards) artillery unit that can also deploy on walls or battlements
Unit 2: Chaos Dwarf Harridans (or Viragos) - Given the lack of female representation in the Chorf and Dwarf rosters at present (which is a shame as they had some awesome units in the lore) I think this unit would add some nice variety. They would essentially be a unit of extremely grumpy old Chorfs (think of them as an evil mirror to slayers) who would be lightly armoured but very fast, wielding two handed hammers to provide them with a hefty armour piercing weapon strength. Given the extremely low standing they have in Chorf society I would also expect them to have expendable because they are often viewed as being of a similar standing to Hobgoblins and I would imagine they might also provide guardian to friendly spellcasters given their role as protectors of the temples. Unbreakable would also make sense on them as they are deranged fanatics at this point, and it would help offset their low amounts of armour.
Unit 3: Hobgoblin bolt-thrower - I would envision this as a cheap early game artillery piece, that provides some solid, if admittedly less accurate, armour piercing anti-large fire. Its main selling point would also be the fact that you could choose to buff it with Khans and unlike all the other Chorf artillery it wouldn't have a capacity limit.
Unit 4: Chaos Dwarf Infernal Guard (Hailshot Blunderbusses) - A nice and easy addition here given we already have the Infernal Guard in game, this variant would effectively be a late game version of the standard blunderbuss unit, providing sundering or fire damage alongside increased damage so that we have a choice between accurate long range damage or eviscerating close range damage for our late-game gun lines.
Unit 5: Chaos Siege Giant - The missing unit that is most conspicuous by it's absence, the Chaos Siege giant is very different from its other giant kin in that it would actually be good (or should be on paper) and able to dish out some serious damage without being melted by ranged attacks. It has heavy armour so I'd expect to see it have perhaps an extra 5% missile resistance compared to normal giants, alongside a significantly higher armour stat. Given it's arms have been replaced with massive blades I would also expect it to have a higher weapon strength and pack a hefty anti-large bonus. Honestly this is just a unit that would be really cool to have and giving it bonus damage VS building would also be a nice nod to it's actual role in the lore. - Also added to WoC
The Rework and content (FLC)
Infernal Railway - A simple copy of other teleport mechanics like the sea-lanes, allowing you to ride the infernal rails from one city that has built the Rail Network building to another that also has the building. It would obviously have a cooldown where the same army can't use them again for a few turns and it wouldn't be instant like the World Roots but it would for example allow you to ship an army back to the Darklands from the East coast of Cathay in less than 15 turns (which would have been handy when A Grudge too far kicked off on my legendary campaign)!
Campaign Variety - Tordrek would obviously help alleviate this a little but it doesn't change the fact that the Chorf DLC, while excellent, never really delivered on the unique campaigns CA were touting before release. This would be their chance to change that in the same vein as the excellent Franz and Gelt reworks the Empire recently enjoyed. By all means leave Astrogoth as he is to be the generic choice to learn the faction but both Zhatan and Drazoath could both benefit from a mechanic or two of their own.

• Drazoath - My personal favourite of the Chorf characters, I feel Drazoath definitely has potential for a mechanic or two given his unique starting point as something of an outsider in Chaos Dwarf society. I imagine a system similar to how the Senate functioned in Rome 1, where you receive missions that you can either complete for a reward (conclave influence in this case) or ignore for a punishment (minus relations with other Chorfs or similar debuffs). Then you ultimately reach a stage where you're strong enough to overthrow them and when you declare war on Zharr Nagrund you enter into war with all the other Chorf factions but receive a huge amount of influence and some powerful permanent campaign buffs for taking it and successfully holding it for ten turns (random Chorf armies would spawn during this time). I think it would make his campaign a bit more challenging but also separate it from the others in a way that also captures his lore better. The other potential mechanic would be a workshop similar to Ikit focused solely on K'dai though the buffs would be permanent unlike in the forge and likely require a combination of raw materials, armaments and trade resources to ensure you couldn't blitz through them all too quickly.
• Zhatan - A nice and simple change here, given Zhatan's relationship with Ghorth, give him a system where he can spend labourers (because lets be honest you're drowning in them quite quickly in his campaign) to receive boons from Ghorth ranging from an extra seat in the tower to reduced upkeep for active forge upgrades for a few turns. I appreciate it's nothing wild but it's something extra that makes your campaign that little bit different and gives you new ways to spend one of your unique currencies. You could also add in a favour system with a bar to represent how pleased Ghorth is with your endeavours with bonuses for keeping the labourers flooding in and completing the missions Ghorth gives you and debuffs for disappointing your unforgiving master (perhaps if it hits 0 he randomly gives one of your seats in the tower to a rival for example). These changes aren't revolutionary but they would separate Zhatan from the other LL's on offer and make his campaign that little bit more lore friendly and unique.

What I think CA is likely to add:
I think the Chaos Siege giant is very likely to make it into the game given how popular a unit it is (and CA do love their monsters), most likely in a DLC for a different faction or as FLC but it would obviously be available to the Chaos Dwarves as well.
I think that will be it however as support for the game is winding down and while the pack I outlined above and the rework would both add lots of fun new content and leave the Chorfs with a lot more variety and plug up the few gaps in their roster it's ultimately not as essential as the content missing from some other races and they'll still be perfectly fun and playable without it.
I would however be astounded if we didn't see the Siege Giant before the end given it's an easy re-skin and a much requested unit.
Closing thoughts:
I appreciate some of my choices might have been a bit divisive as I know some people really want Hobgoblin lords and a mono-roster for them complete with a LL but I personally don't think that would fit with the Chorfs lore as I certainly can't see them following a goblin to battle, and I think a better choice for this would be Gitilla da Hunter for the Greenskinz (having access to the Hobgoblin content from the Chorfs and the goblin content from the Greenskinz). I also know the Kolossus is a popular choice for a lot of people but again I don't feel it's really needed when we already have the K'dai destroyer and a stacked ranged roster (plus I don't feel like howdah units perform that well in game personally).
I also know that CA said they wanted to do more thematic packs and the one I've outlined above is a real mixed bag but that's largely because the Chorfs never got as much support as some other factions and so what's left is very much a selection of different types of units rather than a thematic sub-section of the roster.
I would also like to address the giant bull-centaur in the room and say that while I love Shar'tor the Executioner, CA did state that he is considered an AOS character now and so is therefore off-limits to them. I would be happy to see a different centaur LL take his place but GW are traditionally very reluctant to let CA make new characters and I don't believe there are really any of note in the lore, hence I settled on Tordrek (who I do personally think might add more to the faction anyway in terms of mechanics and possible start points).
Anyway that about sums it up so I'd love to hear your thoughts and suggestions and what you thought of mine and if this post proves popular enough I'll happily continue them with the aim to cover all factions currently in the game. That being said I hope you all have a great day and thank you for taking the time to read my post!

Hello! I’ve just passed my TP today and just wanted to share my experience as reading others’ experiences and tips have really helped me (:
BTT / FTT - Try to book ASAP! - You need to pass BTT to obtain Provisional Driving License (PDL), which allows you to drive on the road instead of just inside the circuit - I was eager to start learning and hence took 5 practical lessons before my BTT. Even tho I cleared my module 1 (some mentioned that their instructor won’t clear module 1 unless you have PDL), I think I would’ve saved at least 2 lessons if I had booked an earlier BTT - You need to pass FTT (and other requirements) to book practical test - Use the school’s free e-trial tests and Traffic Police’s mock tests, don’t bother with the other apps (https://eservices1.police.gov.sg/phub/eservices/landingpage/mock-theory-test) - You can try camping for earlier BTT/FTT slots, I cancelled and forgo my original FTT slot for an earlier slot so that I can book TP
Instructors - I was fortunate to get pretty nice instructors and somehow kept getting the same few instructors towards the end - Instructors with number 0xxx are senior instructors who’ve been with CDC for pretty long - Instructors with number 7xxx are part-time instructors (iirc) - Imo one of the biggest challenges when learning driving is not just mastering the techniques, but having to adapt to different instructors’ teaching styles and quirks

• 7150 Alan: Got him for my very first lesson, quite a nice guy who was patient and didn’t scold me for jam-braking many times hahaha. However, he did not really teach me how to turn the steering wheel properly and let me freestyle. He also told me to look at my side mirrors to check if I’m in the centre of the lane, which I later learnt from other instructors that this isn’t preferred.
  
• 1134 Koi Joo Guan Dennis: He seemed ok when he hosted the induction but was really impatient during my practical lesson. I felt really stressed ‘cos it was only my second lesson and kept getting scolded. Perhaps he had a long, rough day.
  
• 0004 Mun Chiang Chor Patrick: As you can tell from his ID, he’s one of the OGs left. Super patient and encouraging! Gave me much-needed confidence after the previous class.
  
• 0432 Tan Wei Liang: He looked quite intimidating ‘cos he didn’t smile and replied nonchalantly initially. I still remember his death stare when I braked too hard hahaha. Sometimes he also goes for toilet breaks halfway through the lessons, and he didn’t see a need to update the system lol. However his tips were really useful, always ask us to “look far far” and anticipate - very useful for turning around bends and S course. Subsequently I realized that he just has a stern face but he’s quite cute and funny in his own way la hahaha.
  
• 0696 Koh: He was ok but hmmm.. idk somehow I didn’t feel v comfortable with his teaching style perhaps ‘cos of the words he used.
  
• 1283 Hitmi: Very nice guy! Heard that he was a TP tester previously, no wonder he was really meticulous at pointing out the potential things that would cost demerit points (eg. chevron markings, wide turns)
  
• 1056 Ong Wei Keong: One of the rare few instructors who didn’t use his phone lol, but he taught me to use rear mirror predominantly to determine if we can change lane. However other instructors later told me that we should use rear mirror to check if any vehicle wants to overtake, and use side mirror predominantly to determine if we can change lane.
  
• 0313 Nelson Pay Chun Heong: One of my fav instructors! Friendly and taught really well. You can feel that he has the heart to teach and I was grateful to have him for most of my lessons towards the end of my CDC journey.
  
• 1257 Lu Cheet Phiang / 1058 Chong Boon Heng / 0628 Andy Koh: Nice instructors!
  

Comments above are purely based on my own experiences, but ymmv (learnt a new slang lately lol)
TP practical test - I was extremely nervous ‘cos I really wanted to pass on my first try. But later I figured that it’s ok to fail, many others also fail during their first tries and you just have to learn from your mistakes. - The night before TP I panicked a bit after reading about sighting/turning points, but everyone is different ‘cos your height, sitting posture etc matters. Do as per your usual lessons and you’ll be fine. - Did my cheatsheet and visualized the scenarios - My test sequence was: Parallel parking #43 —> turn left into Slope —> Directional Change —> Reaction Response —> S course —> Crank Course—> Vertical Parking —> right turn —> emergency brake before exiting from Gate 3 - I was happy that I did well in circuit and told myself to stay focused on the road. However towards the end I got a bit distracted and got some demerit points. Passed eventually yay!
Tips - Try to minimize demerit points in the circuit as it’s more within your control (I only got 4 points - 2 each for turning steering wheel while stationary during VP/PP, which I already planned to forgo. This helped me to have more “buffer” for the road portion).

• STOP COMPLETELY at the STOP line. Immediate failure for this after all the effort put in for the other stations is quite regretful.
  
• I remember acronyms better, so I use SMCC for all the courses except crank/S. S = Signal. M = Mirror adjustment (if applicable, for VP/PP). C = Change gear. C = Checks. This was really helpful for me.
  
• Parallel parking: Ask your instructors to let you try PP #41-43during revision lessons, there are stipulated times that they can’t enter that area but testers love going there as the first station. Things to note: (i) keep close to the left kerb, ~0.5m/half car length (ii) remember to REVERSE first before exiting lot to avoid mounting kerb (adjust right mirror down and inwards so that you can see rear wheel/kerb clearly) (iii) If you did PP at #41-43 first and instructor asked you to go slope next, BE VERY CAREFUL as the kerb there is very wide.
  
• Vertical parking: This was my nightmare initially ‘cos my sighting point is always quite different. But after I learnt how to do corrections, I wasn’t scared of VP anymore. Things to note: (i) Positioning of car is important. For courses 23-25 (near S course, narrow road), position car close to centre line. For courses 30-34 (near crank, wider road), position car in the middle of the lane. (ii) You need to know how to do corrections if your car is too close to the left/right kerb. (iii) Half car out/shoulder passes kerb before turning left out of the lot to avoid mounting kerb.
  
• Once your vehicle has stopped and you need to reverse again (regardless of during DC, RR, parking and even during corrections), check rear mirror and TURN YOUR HEAD TO LEFT AND RIGHT behind to check
  
• Slope: Do not enter the yellow line area until the car in front is at the top of the slope (tester will ask you to go either left/right of the slope). Do not change lane until you are at the top of the slope.
  
• Yellow boxes: Ensure that there’s enough space before moving up
  
• Look far ahead - regardless of S course, bends, after U-turn etc
  
• If tester asks you to exit from Gate 2 (back gate), have to filter to left lane of the circuit BEFORE the double white solid lines located near the right bends. If tester asks you to exit from the RIGHT side, you have to change lane AFTER the zebra crossing
  
• Emergency brake is usually tested before you exit the circuit
  
• Beware of CHEVRON markings
  
• There are some test routes that lead to KPE - take note of the sign and keep to the 2nd most left lane instead of the usual left most, otherwise it’s an immediate failure if you go to the expressway
  
• Approaching traffic junctions/obstructions: SLOW DOWN and keep foot off accelerator, prepare to stop anytime
  
• Always clarify with tester if you are in doubt, I repeated almost all of his instructions haha
  

It is impossible (at least to me) not to feel nervous. What matters most is to breathe and stay calm. Try not to show tester that you’re nervous, and try to treat it like another practical lesson and not a test. Easier said than done, but just try your best! I adopted others’ advice and ate mint throughout the warmup, before test, and during test. I think it helped to calm my nerves a bit!
Longest post that I’ve ever made in any forum, hope this helps! Happy to share my consolidated notes or try to answer any doubts. Good luck!! (: