I am 17M I live with my parents and I am more fed up than ever. I currently am studying so I can become an army officer. Studying is very hard for me as I don't like it at all but I do it so I can simply succeed in my goal. I have given up everything to study. I don't workout I stopped boxing and I go out for about 30 mins a day so I can blow off some steam. I can't say that I study a lot especially compared to other kids. I usually study 5 hours a day not counting school time and I have wasted a lot of time with inefficient ways of studying so I believe I may not gonna be able to pass this year and I will probably retake the exams next year. Regardless though of what I'll do, my problem is related to my parents. I love my parents but lately we have been distant and fightkng a lot about me studying. They seem to worry too much if I pass the exams like it is the end of the world and they pass of this stress to me too. Furthermore every time I tell them to go out even for a 30min walk we will end up fighting telling me that I should give up as I clearly don't care and that I will fail if I don't study. They tell me that my friends are dragging me down because they don't want to go to college and that maybe I am not cut out to join the army. They also check on me constantly so they can make sure I am studying and even if I am they will find a time that I might take a break to start a fight saying that I have given up. Every conversation I had with them for this whole year was related to studying they rarely talk about anything else even at dinner or when I am taking a break which gives me even more stress and makes us more distant. Lastly I can't help but think that they like to control what I do all the time. It doesn't matter what I do they will always tell me the opposite. If I want to go for a walk they tell me that I don't study enough if I study till late because of an important test they will constantly come into my room and check on me like I am doing something wrong and proceed to try and convince me that I shouldn't study and worry that much. Right now as I am writing this they just tried to take my phone away like I am doing something wrong using it. I get that everything they do, think that helps me but it just doesn't, it has made me hate living in this house and I keep telling them lies about so much stupid stuff because I know if I didn't I wouldn't be able to hear the end of it. Honestly I think I would even be better at studying if I didn't have this constant pressure by them. Although I know I will reach my goal one way or an other because I am determined to, they have made it unbearable living with them and I hate that this is destroying our relationship. I wish they would listen to me because I have told them all this and just ignored me completely. I am impatiently waiting for summer to come so I can get a job and move out of this house temporarily atleast. Oh and I forgot of course even though I will be 18 in a few days and I want to get a job this summer in order to have my own money and feel independent they discourage me and do everything to prevent me for going like it is a terrible thing to do and they that ill give up on my goals to just work. Atleast I know if I can get through this maybe I'll be able to survive in the army having someone yelling at me constantly. I know it was a lot of venting but I genuinely hope you can express your unbiased opinion about the situation. Am I being unreasonable and too dramatic? What do you think I should do? Is it my fault that I struggle with studying?

GrapheneOS and stock Android are both OS options for phones. GrapheneOS focuses on keeping your info safe. Stock Android, on the other hand, offers many handy features. Let's dive into how these two differ in privacy, security, and what you can do. This way, you can pick the one that suits your needs best.

Key Takeaways:

• GrapheneOS places a strong emphasis on privacy and security, while stock Android focuses on providing convenience features.
• GrapheneOS stays close to upstream and delivers regular updates before stock OS.
• Google apps work on GrapheneOS, but some apps need special permission to install.
• Some banking apps might not work on GrapheneOS. This is because they lack a certification from Google. You might be able to make some of them work by using special settings in the apps.
• Unfortunately, GrapheneOS misses on Android Auto and easy backup solutions.

GrapheneOS Features

GrapheneOS is known for its strong focus on privacy and security. This makes it perfect for those who want to keep their data safe. Now, let's look at what makes GrapheneOS stand out from the rest.

Sandboxed Google Play Services

One of GrapheneOS's key features is sandboxed Google Play services. This means apps can't freely access your private data. They're limited to a safe area. This helps prevent data leaks and stops apps from seeing more than they should.

Regular Updates for Security Maintenance

GrapheneOS keeps devices safe by offering frequent security updates. These updates fix any new vulnerabilities that might arise. This way, the system is always up-to-date, keeping your device secure.

Attack Surface Reduction Measures

GrapheneOS uses techniques to reduce the chances of different types of attacks. It limits how much apps can interact with the system, blocking some attacks right at the start. It also includes special features that make it harder for attackers to exploit the system.

Enhanced Heap Memory Corruption Defense

Heaps are a common target for hackers, but GrapheneOS strengthens against this. It uses its own memory management system to protect against heap corruption. This includes special memory handling to make attacks harder.

Robust Memory Exploit Detection and Prevention

GrapheneOS is ahead of the game in detecting and stopping memory exploits. It has tools that spot and fix important memory bugs. This helps keep your device safe from complex attacks that target memory use.

Official Production Support for Pixel Devices

GrapheneOS supports many Pixel devices officially. This includes the Pixel 8 Pro and other new Pixel devices. Users of Pixel devices can get the added security and privacy GrapheneOS offers.
After learning about GrapheneOS, it's time to look at Stock Android's setup and features in the next section.

Stock Android Setup and Features

Setting up Stock Android on your device is simple. Its user-friendly interface makes it easy. When you turn on your device, you'll follow some steps to make it yours. This includes picking a language, connecting to Wi-Fi, and signing in to Google.
Stock Android works perfectly with Google's many services. Thanks to Google Play services, you get millions of apps and games from the Play Store. Just sign in with your Google account to start downloading your favorite apps, from work tools to social apps.
Stock Android also brings you Google Maps. It gives you precise directions and updates on traffic in real time. It's great for finding your way in a car or on foot, showing you the best routes and interesting places nearby.
With Google Keyboard, typing is easier and better. It guesses your next words, lets you swipe to type, and supports different languages. This means typing on your phone is faster and more accurate.

Key Features of Stock Android:

• Simple and user-friendly setup process
• Integration with Google services, including the Google Play Store
• Google Maps for navigation and exploring new places
• Google Keyboard for enhanced typing experience

Features	Stock Android
User-friendly setup	✓
Google Play Store access	✓
Google Maps integration	✓
Enhanced typing experience with Google Keyboard	✓

Functionality Comparison

GrapheneOS and stock Android are much alike in basic phone tasks. Yet, they have key differences.

GrapheneOS Functionality

GrapheneOS values substance over flashy marketing. It cares deeply about privacy and security. By not including Google services, it focuses more on protecting users.
Its main goal is making your device safe from attack. It does this by limiting what attackers can do and safeguarding the core part of the operation system.
It also stops attackers from taking full control even if they somehow get in. This is done through a feature called verified boot.
By removing unneeded code, GrapheneOS makes attacks from far away, close by, or online less likely. It adds layers of protection to apps and the system, making them much harder to exploit.

GrapheneOS Functionality Features	Description
Sandboxed Play Services	A sandboxed Play Services feature that provides better app compatibility, functionality, and security compared to MicroG.
Push Notifications without Play Services	GrapheneOS allows push notifications to work fine without Play Services for many apps.
Privacy-Focused Network Toggle	GrapheneOS offers a network toggle without leaks and prefers fine-grained VPNs for enhanced security.

GrapheneOS finds a sweet spot between being private, easy to use, and secure. It designs features to challenge any threats.

Stock Android Functionality

Stock Android, made by Google, aims for everyone. It has many features that cater to diverse needs.
One highlight is Android Auto, making your phone and car work together. This way, you keep your hands off the phone while driving yet enjoy many useful features.
Another cool feature is Now Playing. It shows what song is playing without you needing to open your phone. This is handy for finding new music.

Stock Android Functionality Features	Description
Android Auto	Android Auto provides seamless integration between Android devices and compatible vehicles for hands-free access to navigation, communication, and entertainment features.
Now Playing	Now Playing feature The identifies and displays the currently playing song on the lock screen.

Such features make stock Android attractive for those who want a versatile system. It's packed with tools and tricks to make your life easier.
Remember, GrapheneOS and stock Android are both good for getting things done. Yet, GrapheneOS shines in protecting your privacy. This might mean fewer but more secure features.

Privacy and Security

When you pick a system for your phone, think about privacy and safety. GrapheneOS and stock Android protect your data in unique ways.

GrapheneOS Privacy and Security Features

GrapheneOS focuses heavily on keeping your data safe. It offers many tools to boost your privacy and security. These include limiting data collection and secure updates.

• Limiting Data Collection: GrapheneOS cuts down on what data gets collected, lowering the chance of others getting it.
• Secure Updates: It ensures your system stays safe by giving you regular, secure updates.
• Restricted Google Services Access: GrapheneOS limits how much Google can see of your personal data.
• Permission Controls: You get to decide what info apps can use. GrapheneOS gives you strong controls over this.

Stock Android Privacy and Security Considerations

Stock Android, made by Google, has its security perks. But it's heavily tied to Google's services. This can lead to less privacy.

• Google Services Integration: It comes filled with Google tools. While convenient, it does raise privacy worries.
• Privacy Settings: It does have some privacy settings. You can adjust app permissions a bit and limit some data access.
• Regular Updates: Google works on updating stock Android often to fix security issues.

Both GrapheneOS and stock Android care about security. However, GrapheneOS's special focus on privacy sets it apart. It's great for anyone who really values their data privacy.

Comparison Table: GrapheneOS vs. Stock Android Privacy and Security

Privacy and Security Features	GrapheneOS	Stock Android
Data Collection	Minimizes data collection	May collect user data through Google services
Updates	Regular secure updates	Regular updates to address security vulnerabilities
Google Services Access	Restricted access to Google services	System-level integration with Google services
Permission Controls	Strict permission controls	Permission customization options

Table: A comparison of privacy and security features offered by GrapheneOS and stock Android
In summary, if you're big on privacy, you'll like what GrapheneOS offers. It's a top choice. But if Google's services matter a lot to you, stock Android might be the way to go. It's not as privacy-focused, but it's great for those that love Google's features.

App Compatibility

GrapheneOS and stock Android both excel in app compatibility, but GrapheneOS faces challenges with some banking apps. These apps need special access. Yet, GrapheneOS aims for the highest privacy and security, sometimes making these needs clash.
Many apps are compatible with GrapheneOS, and the project actively works with developers. It encourages them to make their apps work with GrapheneOS. This allows users to enjoy the operating system's enhanced privacy and security safely.
Stock Android, on the other hand, has superior compatibility with all apps, including those from banks. It works across many devices and is chosen by developers. Its wide use makes it easier for developers to ensure app compatibility.
To make the app experience smoother on GrapheneOS, users can choose alternative apps that work well with the system. Also, the project is always updating to boost app compatibility through community efforts.

Recommended Banking Apps for GrapheneOS

Many banking apps face issues on GrapheneOS. Still, several banking apps perform well on this system:

• Banking App 1: This is a secure and reliable app made for GrapheneOS.
• Banking App 2: It provides an easy and smooth banking experience on GrapheneOS.
• Banking App 3: This app focuses on keeping your financial info secure and private.

Remember, although these apps are compatible with GrapheneOS, it's wise to confirm with your bank or financial institute for the latest compatibility updates.
As GrapheneOS grows, its app compatibility, including banking apps, is expected to get better. The project is dedicated to offering an experience that values security and privacy while ensuring apps work well.

User Feedback and Experience

GrapheneOS is great for privacy and security, which users love. They feel their data is safer and that Google tracks them less. Plus, it works well with most Android apps. This means users can still do what they want while keeping their privacy a top priority.
Some say that stock Android is smoother and has more useful features than GrapheneOS. They think that GrapheneOS focuses too much on privacy and misses out on some key features. For example, it doesn't work as closely with Google services and apps.
GrapheneOS users share their thoughts in forums, social media, and by talking to the team. They give detailed advice, like how to make permission prompts even safer. They also want the Auditor feature to be better explained, especially to journalists.
Users often request a better way to know when there are system updates. They want to be able to choose when to update, so it doesn't disrupt their day. They also ask about how to use the app pinning and auto-reboot timer, looking for more info.
Users also need more info about the Android Recovery system in GrapheneOS. They want to know more about its role in updating the system. And they worry about any issues the updates might bring.
Some users find features in GrapheneOS that remind them of Google. They want clearer information about these features. This way, they can understand them better.
App compatibility is an issue for some. A few apps won’t work on GrapheneOS because they fear security risks. Some just crash. This is why some users carry a second phone for specific apps, like banking or gaming.

User Profile Usage on GrapheneOS

GrapheneOS encourages the use of separate profiles for different apps. This keeps your privacy and security levels high. Users should have profiles for general use, social media, work, and private matters.

GrapheneOS Installation Ease

Installing GrapheneOS is known for being easy among custom OSes. The web interface makes the process straightforward. However, installing it on various computers might need extra steps sometimes.

GrapheneOS Benefits and Drawbacks

Why do people like GrapheneOS? It's great with most apps, makes you more secure, and doesn't let Google track you much. Plus, it backs up your apps very safely.
But it's not perfect. Some apps, like Facebook Messenger, have issues. The fingerprint sensor on the Google Pixel 6 isn’t the best. And sometimes you might face problems with internet when using a VPN.

Google Pixel 6 User Experience

The Google Pixel 6 is seen as a good buy by users. It offers good features and performance for its cost. However, the fingerprint sensor and the size of the phone get mixed reviews. The camera's quality also varies among users.

Overall Recommendation

Despite some issues, GrapheneOS is recommended by many for its strong privacy and security. It's a good choice for those who worry about Google spying on them.

User Feedback Overview

Feedback	Request/Suggestion
Implementation of safeguards in on-demand permission prompts	Enhancing permission controls for improved security
Better explanation and marketing of the Auditor feature	Targeting investigative journalists as potential users
Proposal for a notification system for system updates	Allowing manual installation of updates
Inquiry about the functionality of app pinning with auto-reboot timer	Clarification on how the feature works
Request for clarification on Android Recovery system	Understanding its role and potential issues with OTA updates
Identification of features resembling "Googlisms"	Clear explanations and disclosures for informed usage
Challenges with app compatibility on de-googled version	Issues with banking apps, food delivery apps, Uber, and mobile gaming

Future Development and Updates

GrapheneOS gets better thanks to the hard work of gifted developers. They're always updating it to make it safer and easier to use.
Updates bring new security patches, app changes, and more. For instance, new kernel updates might change to versions like 5.15.151 or 6.1.80. Apps like Vanadium might jump to new versions like 124.0.6367.159.0.
They use tags to give updates for certain devices. For example, a tag like 2024040100 might mean a special update for certain phones. These updates are meant to make your experience even better.
Recently, they made sure that VPN apps can't accidentally leak your web requests. They also update apps like PDF Viewer to make sure they run smoother. These updates are all about making your phone more enjoyable to use.
GrapheneOS also pays special attention to certain phones. For example, the Pixel Fold might receive updates specific to its design. This keeps your device running well and safe.
They change settings to make your phone safer and easier to use. For security, a new memory tag setting is available. You might see different settings based on what phone you have, making everything more user-friendly.
Improving apps is just as important to GrapheneOS. Apps like TalkBack, which helps by reading the screen, might get better with version 14.1. These changes aim to make using your favorite apps a smoother experience.
They also make technical updates to stay cutting-edge. A recent kernel update, like 5.15.149, makes your device more secure and faster.
Even the Camera app and GmsCompatConfig (used for Google services) get updated. This ensures your phone is more dependable and full of new features.

Official Device Support

GrapheneOS officially supports many Pixel models including the Pixel 8 Pro and Pixel 5a. These devices let you make the most of GrapheneOS's features.
Some Pixel phones, like the Pixel 5, won't get any more updates. Yet, the Pixel 4a and 4 XL keep getting support, like better security. This means you can still use these devices safely.
The 8th generation Pixel devices offer top security levels. They're supported for 7 years from their launch with features custom-tailored to protect your device.
Pixel devices get different levels of support based on their generation. The 8th generation has a longer 7-year support compared to 6th and 7th generation models, which gets 5 years. This shows GrapheneOS's focus on lasting security and usability.

Future Focus and Community Support

The team behind GrapheneOS aims to make major improvements in device, system, and software security. Their focus isn't on supporting every device but on ensuring profound security.
GrapheneOS has a strong community that loves its security. This community's dedication to privacy drives the project's advancement and success.

Related Alternatives

CalyxOS, RattlesnakeOS, DivestOS, and Ubuntu Touch offer different privacy and security features. Exploring these options can help you find the right system for your needs.

Benefits and Drawbacks of GrapheneOS

GrapheneOS offers big benefits for privacy and security. It keeps your data safe and lets you control your online world better. But, there are drawback to consider too.

Benefits of GrapheneOS

• Enhanced Privacy: It reduces the chance of your data being stolen. You get to control what apps can and can't do on your phone.
• Innovative Security Features: It's really good at stopping new security threats. This makes it hard for bad guys to find ways to harm your phone.
• Enhanced Security and Privacy Settings: You can do cool stuff like turn off Wi-Fi automatically or only use the internet through certain apps, making your phone safer.
• Dedicated Effort to Prevent Memory Corruption Bugs: It works really hard to keep its system safe from bugs. This means fewer chances of someone breaking into your phone.
• Secure Apps: It comes with special apps that keep your phone safe. This includes a secure web browser and camera app that protect your data.

Drawbacks of GrapheneOS

• Limited Google Integration: It doesn't come with Google's usual apps. You can add them but this might mean giving up a bit of privacy for certain features.
• App Compatibility: You might struggle to use some apps, like banking apps, because GrapheneOS isn't the regular Android. But, more and more apps are being made to work with it.
• Lack of "Smart" Features: You won't find fancy features, like Google's smart phone answering feature or advanced keyboard tools. You might need to choose between these extras and your privacy.
• Troubleshooting Required: Sometimes things might not work perfectly. You might find some emojis missing or have to fix some app issues yourself. So, some tech skills could come in handy.

Deciding on GrapheneOS means balancing privacy with how easy your phone is to use. It's great for keeping your data safe. But, you might not find all the apps and features you're used to.

Conclusion

After using GrapheneOS for a year on a Google Pixel 6A, its focus on privacy and security shines. It updates quickly, in about 5 minutes, keeping your phone safe. Occasionally, small graphical glitches happen but are easy to fix.
Most day-to-day apps work well from the Google Play Store and Neo Store. The battery life is outstanding, lasting days even with lots of use.
It integrates well with Google's main products like the Play Store and Calendar. Yet, using these services means thinking about your privacy trade-offs.
When making privacy choices, think about how you use technology and what you're comfortable with. The author has used Apple phones for privacy extensively, which informs this perspective.
GrapheneOS makes Android more secure by adding extra permission controls, reminiscent of iOS. It lets users manage apps' accesses like location and storage.
A Google Pixel phone is a good choice for GrapheneOS because it supports other operating systems. Though some users find the user interface a bit challenging, they like its simple design.
To get push notifications working, the author installed Sandboxed Play Services. Going without Google Play Services can be hard due to its deep ties to Google.
With Android 12, apps start to adapt to your phone’s colors, which looks great, especially on the Pixel 7 Pro. This new look makes the home screen feel personalized and clean.
GrapheneOS takes security and privacy seriously, stepping beyond regular Android. Its multiple profiles help keep your data isolated, enhancing privacy.
Setting up GrapheneOS is easy, thanks to a user-friendly web interface. Most apps work well, giving users a satisfying experience, even with compatibility.
Battery life and performance are as good as regular Android systems, showing it can be just as efficient, with better privacy controls.
With GrapheneOS, users have less tracking and more privacy, surpassing typical Android’s privacy. Yet, there are issues with some specific apps and services.
GrapheneOS with a VPN sometimes has connectivity problems, possibly due to app compatibility. Generally, using it on a Google Pixel 6 is a good experience, despite minor issues.

GrapheneOS	Stock Android
+ Strong focus on privacy and security	+ Wide range of features and convenience
+ Streamlined updates with quick completion time	+ Regular updates and feature additions
+ Smooth app compatibility for day-to-day apps	+ Better compatibility with all apps
+ Impressive battery life	+ Similar battery life and performance
+ Seamless integration with Google products	- System-level integration with Google services
+ Additional privacy controls and permissions toggles	- Limited privacy control over Google services
+ Multiple user profiles for enhanced privacy	+ Standard user profile and features

Considerations for Choosing an Operating System

When you compare GrapheneOS and stock Android, think about what matters most. If you are very concerned about privacy and security, GrapheneOS is great. It keeps your data safe and your device secure. However, if you like having many features, stock Android might suit you better.
GrapheneOS is especially good for Pixel devices. It promises many years of support. For example, 8th generation Pixels get 7 years, while older models get 5 years. GrapheneOS might not work with Android Auto or some banking apps. But it's very secure and focuses on keeping your privacy safe.
Stock Android works well with Google apps and has lots of features. You can use Google Maps and Google Keyboard easily. But, if you switch to GrapheneOS, you lose things like Google Pay and some unique Google features.
Choosing between GrapheneOS and stock Android is all about what you need and like. Think about your privacy wishes and how much you value convenience. Then, you can make a smart choice that meets your needs.

FAQ

What are the key distinctions between GrapheneOS and Stock Android?

GrapheneOS focuses on keeping your data safe and private. Stock Android, on the other hand, comes with many useful features.

What are some of the features provided by GrapheneOS?

GrapheneOS gives you a more private and secure playground. It does this by keeping Google Play services separate. It also keeps your phone updated regularly.

How is the setup process and what features does Stock Android provide?

Stock Android is easy to get started with. It includes popular Google services like the Play Store, Maps, and Keyboard.

What are some of the functionalities offered by GrapheneOS and Stock Android?

Both operating systems let you do the basic stuff. But GrapheneOS skips Android Auto and Stock Android has a cool Now Playing feature.

What distinguishes GrapheneOS and Stock Android in terms of privacy and security?

GrapheneOS works hard to make sure your information stays private. It does this by not sharing much with Google. Stock Android, however, is closely tied with Google services, which might affect your privacy.

How is the app compatibility for GrapheneOS and Stock Android?

GrapheneOS might not work with every app. Some banking apps might not fully function on it. Stock Android usually works well with all apps.

What is the user feedback and experience for GrapheneOS and Stock Android?

Users really like GrapheneOS for its commitment to privacy and security. Stock Android is preferred by those who want a smooth experience with lots of features.

How are the future development and updates for GrapheneOS and Stock Android?

GrapheneOS depends on donations to improve with new features. Both systems get updated regularly. Stock Android gets these updates from a bigger team.

What are the benefits and drawbacks of using GrapheneOS?

Using GrapheneOS means your data is more protected. But you might miss out on using some popular apps and features.

What should I consider when choosing between GrapheneOS and Stock Android?

Think about what matters most to you. If privacy and security are top concerns, GrapheneOS is a great choice. Stock Android is better if you want a smoother experience with many features.

I’m working on a project. Postapo where mysterious deadly gas from underground floods the world and only way to walk through it is by using gas mask and airtight raincoat. Issue is gas masks and filters are scarce and you have to craft them.
Now if I understand right one of the ways to make filters is out of active charcoal, which is made out of charcoal and calcium chloride.
Now the thing is one of the substitutes for calcium chloride are lemon juice or bleach.
But would be safe to breathe through anything made from bleach?
And question two: Can homemade gas mask filter be made just from pure, natural, out-of-the-campfire non-activated charcoal?

Hey everyone!
Going to adopt my little fur ball around the beginning of July, from a friend of mine whose cats just had babies. I’m really excited, I’ve always loved cats and I’m so happy I’m finally in a position to get one and take good care of it.
The kittens are Russian Blues, born on April 1st, so they will be about 3 months old when I adopt. According to my friend, the kittens will be dewormed and vaccinated, but not yet spayed/neutered. I’ll have to get the neutering/spaying done. She said it’s better to wait until the kitten reaches 4-5 months of age to optimize their post-surgery recovery and minimize the risk of urinary tract problems?
I have a couple of questions I’d like to get sorted out before the little fur ball reaches my home:

1. I’m a medical student so I inevitably will get busy at times. I decided to adopt during the summer because I will be home from end June to early September, so I can spend a maximum amount of time with my cat in its early months at my home (and be around when the neuterin/spaying happens lol). However, when I do get back to school, how do I ensure a smooth transition so that my cat doesn’t feel lonely or anxious that I’m gone for 4-6 hours during the day? (Getting another cat is unfortunately not an option)
   
2. I live in an apartment (very spacious with good ventilation), any recommendations on litters with the best odour control? How often should I completely change the litter inside the box and clean the box?
   
3. In your experience, what’s a good ratio of dry food:wet food? In other words, how often should my cat eat wet food? I want to make sure I give it the best possible diet.
   
4. Are there signs of health problems in a cat’s early life that I should be on the lookout for? Like trouble walking/jumping, loud breathing, etc.? The cat will be checked by the vet before I adopt anyways, but I just wanted to make sure there is/isn’t something I should look out for.
   

Feel free to add any other advice you think might be useful to a first-time cat parent, thank you so much!

Hello! My name is Nycro and I've been a roleplayer for roughly 13 years now! I'm primarily an original story writer, preferring to build a story from the ground up. I love world building and character building. In my extensive history I've written most genres and continue to find enjoyment in exploring and sometimes trying new ones. I'm looking for someone to build a story with me with original characters and an original story. I'm a huge sucker for romance and prefer to have it involved in my roleplays as well.
I'm a multi-paragraph writer, tending to put in 3-5+ paragraphs for my writing, though I'm open to writing more depending how much I get back, but for a simple matter I refuse to write with anyone unable to give atleast two paragraphs, and would strongly prefer someone who can match or beat me in length to push me to writing more.
It is a requirement that you are capable of paragraph writing and able to produce atleast 2-3 paragraphs per emote. I'm not interested in single sentences.
It is also a requirement that you are 18+ I'm uncomfortable writing with anyone younger then that.
A little more about me! I use they/them pronouns I write in the third person, though I've dabbled in first person. Definitely prefer third.
I'm a caretaker irl, and things can be very hectic and busy with both my health and well-being, so I'm not always available but I'll always try to be open about it.
I'm a dog and cat owner, lover of the small critters, always happy to share pictures of my animals.
I enjoy making playlists, and have recently started making reference boards.
I'm open to writing all pairings, I honestly prefer finding a story that fits more then worrying about the pairing, so I'm open to everything.
I'm also open to furry/anthro! I'm happy to include or work them into the story some way if that's something that would interest you.
For Genres I prefer, though not limited to, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Post- Apocalyptic, Adventure, Slice Of Life, Romance, Drama, Tragedy, Medieval (non-fantasy), Historic, Western.
I'm open to some fandoms, though I'm not interested in playing canon characters
Harry PotteHogwarts Legacy. Recently picked up the game and I've had a strong pull to do something in the wizarding world.
Homestuck. Not ashamed to admit I'm still a fan and interested in coming up with plots for it!
Doctor who. A fun science fiction series, has been a bit of an inspiration and I love creating wild stories to go in the setting. One of my favorites.
My Hero Academia. I haven't done a roleplay in this setting in a while, and I'm a little hesitant to pick it back up, but I'm open to trying depending on the story we come up with!
Titanfall 2. This is a bit out there but it's one of my favorite games in general and I've had such a strong calling to get into it and write a pilot/mech dynamic duo as characters and think it could be a fun setting!
Halo. In general another one of my favorites, I'm not exactly sure what kind of story I'd like to write in it, but I'm open to any and all suggestions!
Monster Hunter. I'm a big fan of the games and am open to writing in any setting though I have a leaning preference toward new world plots. I'm happy to go back into older game settings, or creating our own though!

Hello Everyone,
I am in an interesting position and wanted to get your takes on the matter. I began my career journey rather young and have been working in corporate settings as a data analyst since 14, I was doing VBA work, basic Python, HTML, some JS…. I then began a position at 19 years old at a consulting firm that had me jumping around multiple financial and tech institutions tackling different projects where I would begin flirting with some ML concepts. During this time I’m actively pursuing a BBA in Finance hoping to secure a position as a quantitive analyst.
COVID hits and I frankly can’t cut it in the finance world so I end up taking a job as a Data analyst at a Fortune 500 utility company where I became a senior in a year and ended up devoting close to 3 years at the company. During this time I was miserable, I was using antiquated software/methodologies, the subject material was extremely boring and I had enough so I just resigned on the spot.
During this downtime I pursued a intense Data Science bootcamp in hopes of pursuing the “fun and challenging” data analyst/scientist positions. I gave this whole backstory just to say I have no idea what my trajectory looks like from here and this shitty job market is not making it any easier. All in all my questions are:
-Should I pursue senior positions since technically I have 10 years experience in data analysis?
-Should I start from scratch since I’m still relatively young (25) and look into ML internships?
-Is there a specific way you should apply to these roles?
-Should my resume be 2-pages long?
Any other advice is welcome and appreciated, I am always open to making industry friends so feel free to reach out.
Thank you all for your time.

I can’t help but feel a bit sad today. I have a 14 month old and take care of her full time.
My husband did a lot this weekend for me and I know he really cares about me. He gives me compliments and thanks me a lot. But he didn’t say anything to me on Mother’s Day. No compliments or anything. And I’m realizing I am sad about it. He is not big on holidays and prefers things to be natural and not forced, but still. My mom wished me happy Mother’s Day and so did a few friends, which is lovely.
I didn’t think I had expectations, but I guess I did? Even though I know intellectually social media isn’t real life, a lot of my friends had husbands who posted recognition posts and mine didn’t. He never does and he isn’t performative but it still made me sad. Perhaps it would have been ok if he has said something to me in person.
This isn’t my first Mother’s Day, but my baby was only 2 months old last year. I was definitely a mother then, but it feels different this year.
So if you didn’t get recognized yesterday, I am proud of you!!!

Can you have an alter that kind of embodies nothingness? I was in session the other day and we were trying to get into some lower grade trauma memories, but I was having more and more challenges with accessing the memories as the conversation went on, it almost felt like someone was standing in the way of the memory, and then all of the sudden it felt like that “someone in the way” switched out and i had no feelings, no emotions, no contact with the inner world and seemly no ability to retain memories or reflect on other memories that I’m normally aware of that have happened throughout our life. It was almost as if this possible alter was a total blank slate that’s job is just to block all things out. I know generally dissociation can cause these symptoms when you’re in an episode but this felt different, it felt like a switch into someone who was total emptiness, im curious if people have insight/experience here?

I'm pretty sure I'm going to be dead in the next 24 hours.
Whether that's the Costella family, or whatever this is, I'm not sure.
The police are taking forever, and part of me knows they're either refusing to believe me, or RC got them too.
I'm holed up on our school bus, so I've got nothing better to do.
I want to tell you about my team.
We met in our sophomore year.
Strangers standing outside the club room.
Levi was the freckled brunette who wouldn't stop talking about Game of Thrones.
Sunny, a pretty redhead, told him to shut up.
Tom, a sandy blonde, nodding his head to music corked in his ears.
I just wanted to be part of a club, and get away from my overbearing mother.
I won't say it was a perfect start. Our school was lacking in funding, so anyone could join, which made us more of a Quiz Club. I had some serious anxiety, so I stayed on the sidelines for a while, watching, rather than taking part.
It's not like we actually talked to each other initially. The first few weeks, we played Jeopardy, and attempted to find more members to cement us as an official Academic Decathlon club.
Unfortunately, though, it was just the four of us.
Which made it extremely hard for us to be taken seriously.
According to Google, Academic Decathlon teams were made up of nine members, placed by their GPA.
Our principal laughed at us, but he did let us become official.
Which was out of pity, I assumed.
The club was assembled, and we started meeting up after school.
Sort of.
Sunny barely showed up, and Levi didn't take anything seriously, preferring to spend the time telling us about his weird family turf-war.
Our principal dumped us in a tiny classroom with a resident rat living under the floorboards.
There was barely enough room to move, and the four of us crammed together for three hours was less than appealing.
Still, though, I wanted to be part of a club.
I had grown up with parents who were obsessed with board games, so I was pretty good at general knowledge questions. Our club room was too small for anything else but three desks (Sunny and I shared one) and a whiteboard we had to shove through the door.
But, again, we didn't start as an Academic club.
It was more akin to Story Time Club.
Arriving late on my third day, armed with quiz cards from home, I found Tom and Sunny completely mesmerised by Levi’s storytelling skills, drowned in shadow.
They didn't even turn the lights on.
I strictly remember squeezing next to Sunny, and hearing the words, “But there was so much blood all over the floor, and my Mom told me to go upstairs and hide under the bed…”
Sitting in front of them was Levi, perched on a desk, his legs swinging, a whiteboard marker between his teeth.
Sometimes he'd get up, and illustrate parts of his story.
It sucked that his drawings were all stick people.
I won't go into full details of his life, but Levi grew up as part of a family who had… interesting methods of making a living. I had seen the guy’s father multiple times when we hung out at his place, and, yeah, my friend’s family definitely had Soprano vibes.
Levi’s Draw My Life was nothing to do with the club, but it did bring us closer.
Even if, at that point, I was considering leaving.
But it's not like it was easy to walk away from these guys. It's like finding your soulmates. Levi wasn't the only one with an interesting life. Sunny Lang was an ex kpop trainee, who was kicked out for being too fat, which led her to develop a severe eating disorder, and a hatred for her own body.
Sunny explained her family were originally from Boston, her mother growing up in Korea.
She signed up for an idol agency focusing on creating a new girl group, and had gotten all the way to the final stages, before being kicked for her weight. Sunny told us her story with a smile, though there was a hollowness in her eyes I couldn't ignore. The other girls were judgemental bullies, and the idol diet and brutal regime almost killed her.
Sunny lived in a tiny apartment with 9 girls, who would tear each other apart for a chance to debut. Sunny said all the other girls debuted, and when we (not so patiently) asked for names, she shrugged, admitting she signed an NDA that prevented her spilling the beans.
What she did say, was the K-pop idol is a product, not a person– and are made and moulded into a product.
She had zero interest in throwing her humanity away to become a manufactured doll.
So, one of us was the son of an underground family, and the other was an ex idol.
Tom was an aspiring horror writer with a famous older step-brother.
His story times were usually, That one time I went to the Met Gala.
When it was my turn to reveal my story, I told them the only interesting thing about me.
I could smell when something bad was going to happen.
They laughed, but I was being serious.
When I was a kid, I smelled my mother’s brain tumor.
I remember it smelled like curdled milk.
I asked Mom why her head smelled of mouldy milk, and Mom laughed and said it was her shampoo.
It was actually a grade two tumor growing inside her brain.
Thankfully, the tumour was found quickly and removed.
Growing older, I became sensitive to smell. The little girl choking on the bus smelled of singed wood, and the old man crossing the road stunk of gasoline.
In the fourth grade, my classmate Alex Castor smelled of lemons all morning.
I sat behind him, choking on the stink all the way through class.
Ever since I met him, Alex had always smelled… off.
It was a distinct smell I could never understand, and as the days and months and years went by, that smell morphed into a subtle orangey musk that was so strong I had to cover my mouth and nose. Then, he smelled like lemons.
During Recess, I watched Alex fall off of the jungle gym, straight onto his head.
Alex Castor was dead before the paramedics arrived, my panicked teacher attempting CPR when his brains were leaking out of his ears.
The school claimed it was an accident, but Alex would have been fine if the jungle gym wasn't built on solid concrete.
I told my team members this, and Levi was sceptical.
“You can smell bad things?” He said, his lips curved around his milkshake straw. In the early days, we hung out in the local bar. It's not like we were allowed inside, but Levi could get us in anywhere.
I was squeezed between Tom and Sunny, while Levi took the seat opposite us. I couldn't help noticing our waitress was insisting on free milkshake refills, her frantic eyes glued to Levi.
I had zero idea why. Levi Costella was about as intimidating as a fruit fly.
Wearing a white shirt with a popped collar, a leather jacket thrown over the top, Levi was giving rebellious Harvard student, rather than son of a crime family.
Leaning forward, he raised a brow, clearly not believing me.
“So, you're like a stink psychic?”
I shrugged, sipping my own shake.
“Sure.”
I wasn't planning on telling him the club room smelled off on our first day.
Once we actually started the club, Levi surprised us as the smartest member, and getting to know him further, I came to the realization his family were infamous in our town.
However, his parents hid it well. Lucy and Michael Costella were the owners of a popular ramen store in our town, hiding under the facade of two successful business owners. The Costella’s were an attractive family.
Lucy was a sophisticated brunette with a lipstick smile, Michael, a handsome fluffy haired man who looked like he modelled glasses.
The two were fiercely protective over their youngest son, not so casually reminding us behind grinning smiles, that if anything happened to Levi, we would automatically be involved in the family.
I mean, they did laugh and say, “We’re joking! Look at your little faces!” when Sunny went deathly pale. But there was definitely truth behind their words.
Being Levi’s friend was… challenging at first.
Tom and I were in his room studying for finals, and an alarm went off, flooding Levi’s room in red light.
I had zero idea where it was coming from, but it locked all the doors and windows, forcing the Costella residence into temporary lockdown. Levi didn't seem fazed, casually mentioning his parents were taking care of it.
He had a whiteboard set up in his room, and was standing in front of it, cramming all of our textbook notes into one easily digestible drawing.
Levi wasn't just smart.
He was Ivy League smart, so we had struck gold with him.
His family were questionable, and yes, sometimes I did fear for my life, but as the more time we spent at his house, the Costella household became a second home. We got used to the alarms.
I just brought along ear plugs.
I wish I was writing this post about Levi’s family, and sure, they are a factor in what is going on right now, but I want to preface this by saying the events below involve the 2024 scholastic decathlon final in our town with the school’s listed:
Starbrook High School.
Ratcliffe High School.
Please note, the incident that took place last night was immediately covered up, and all phone footage was destroyed. Our town is mostly out of the way, and does not show up on Google searches.
We also have our own version of the academic decathlon, which is a more town-level competition, due to lacking funds. The four of us were desperate to start competing with our schools.
So, we started taking things a little more seriously.
We got a coach.
Mr Hanes, who was hesitant at first.
In his words, “You will hate me as your coach.”
He started by recruiting more members, announcing, “If you want to be taken seriously as an actual club, then I'll be taking the reins from now on.”
He did, and with our teachers guidance (and sometimes brutal honesty), we reached a level where we could start competing with other school’s in town. Now, none of us knew this, but Mr Hanes was obsessed with winning.
So, club meetings were twisted into two hour study sessions with no talking, followed by Mr Hanes Jeaprody, which was Jeaprody, without the actual fun.
We were quizzed multiple times, answer cards and practise questions quite literally thrown directly in our faces.
I hate to admit this (I really hate to admit this) but Mr Hanes’s tactics worked. Sure, we had been mildly brainwashed by our slightly unhinged coach, but with Levi Costella, we destroyed our competitors. Like I said, our town held their own version of the academic scholastic decathlon, but it was pretty much the same, with some changes.
Ten subjects. Language and Literature, Math, Social Science, Economics, Art, Music, Interview, Speech, and Essay.
Unlike the official Decathlon, ours was more like a game show, with the ability to be knocked out if a team member answers a question wrong. Whoever answers the most questions correctly wins. Team meet ups were either tests, study sessions, or quizzing each other.
Which leads me to last night.
The finals were held in the reigning champions, Ratcliffe High School’s, auditorium.
And we were about to win our town’s Scholastic Decathlon 2024 Championships.
Well…I was knocked out in the music section. Standing next to my coach who I was sure was going to asphyxiate from excitement, I could smell the sudden potent stink of lemon. I tried to ignore it at first, but the more questions my team were answering correctly, the smell got worse, suffocating my senses.
This wasn't just lemon. The stink was like a burning, singing smell trickling into my nose and the back of my throat.
It was stronger than what Alex smelled like.
This was suffocating, drowning my thoughts.
“Are you okay, Cassandra?”
Mr Hanes nudged me when a Ratcliffe girl was struggling to answer a question, only for Sunny to jump in with the answer. “You look quite pale.”
I nodded, forcing a smile.
My gaze was on the Ratcliffe coach, a scary looking blonde woman, whispering in one of her student’s ears.
The Ratcliffe kid freaked me out. He was way too tall, dark blonde hair, and bulging eyes I swear were not blinking.
His gaze was glued to Levi, who wore a smug grin.
There was a smaller girl next to the Ratcliffe kid, a Macbook balanced on her knee. Every so often, he leaned into her, the two of them in deep conversation.
“I'm just nervous.”
I jumped when Ratcliffe scored a point, their side erupting into cheers.
During the break, we had a mini team meeting.
Sunny rushed to the bathroom to freshen up, and I noticed a Ratcliffe girl with a bouncing ponytail following her.
Ignoring our coach’s speech, I joined the two girls in the corridor, that lemony scent hanging thick in the air.
I caught them in an awkward position.
The Ratcliffe girl had her fingers pinched between the material of Sunny’s dark blue shirt bearing our school’s name.
Sunny looked confused, her lips parted like she was going to yell.
Ponytail dropped her hand, suddenly, with a nervous laugh. “Oh! I'm so, so, sorry,” she gushed. “You had, like, the biggest spider crawling on your back.”
Sunny caught my eye, shooting me a reassuring smile.
“Thanks.” She made sure to keep her distance. “Uh, where's your bathroom?”
The Ratcliffe girl nodded down the hallway. “It's just down there. I'm going there too if you want me to show you?”
Sunny motioned for me to go back to the auditorium. “Uh, sure! That'd be great!”
I did try to follow them, only for Sunny to cough loudly.
I took the hint, reluctantly heading back into the auditorium.
My team was hyping each other up, Levi in the centre, sweating through his team shirt. He ran a trembling hand through his hair. “I can't do this,” He groaned. “Ratcliffe High is known to play dirty, man. They're unbeatable.”
“In what way do they play dirty?” I asked, joining them.
Levi gulped down water, shrugging.
“I dunno! They're already trying to distract me with the stink eye.” The boy narrowed his eyes at a grinning Ratcliffe kid who, after noticing our stares, jumped to his feet, waving at us.
“Hey guys!”
“That's Harry Cartwright, the son of the Cartwright family who tried to kill my parents in the third grade.” Levi mockingly waved back. “As you can see, their kid is a fucking sociopath.”
Huh. I wasn't expecting the smiley kid to be the mobster’s son.
Harry Cartwright was not what I expected.
Unlike his team members, he was the only one in casual clothing, a short sleeved white shirt and jeans, a pair of sunglasses perched on top of his head.
Tom went pale.
“Fuck.” He hissed. “He’s one of you? Then those bastards will have a reason to play dirty, right?”
Levi shrugged, averting his gaze. It was the first time I saw his eyes darken, like he was subtly telling the boy to back off.
“The Cartwright’s have been trying to buy our land for a while,” he muttered. “I wouldn't put it past them to use the Decathlon as a way to attack.”
“Attack?!” April, another member of our team, hissed. “Like, attack attack?”
Mr Hanes grabbed the boy, resting his hands on Levi’s shoulders. “Ignore them,” he said. “Hey. Look at me.”
Levi did, raising a brow.
“You're losing that spark in your eye, young man.”
“Spark?”
Our coach nodded. “Look at me, kid.”
Levi rolled his eyes. “I am looking at you, Mr Hanes.”
The man was shaking. I was guessing his whole career (or coaching career) was on the line.
“They know they're losing, Mr Costella.”
Hanes shook the boy, squeezing his shoulders. “You are being positive and Ratcliffe doesn't like that. They want you to be nervous. They want to make you second guess yourself and lose confidence. Don't let them get into your head.” he smiled, giving the boy a playful shove. “Kick their asses.”
“Exactly!”
I didn't realize Sunny was back from the bathroom.
The faint smell of lemons had followed her. I noticed a wet patch on her shirt collar, though she was quick to smile at me, admitting she'd spilled water down herself. Sunny wrapped her arms around Levi, squeezing him into a hug.
She hung on for a little too long, Tom dragging her away with a laugh. “Good luck, all right?” she backed away, ruffling his hair. “We’ve got this!”
When I hugged Levi good luck too, I had to resist covering my nose.
The smell of lemon was unbearable, just like fourth grade Alex.
But it wasn't as potent as earlier.
I vaguely remembered the smell starting to fade once Alex’s body was being carted away on a stretcher.
Following my captain through the crowd, I was right. The smell was less suffocating. Before he went back to the stage, I grabbed the back of his shirt.
The material was soaking wet.
“How are you so wet?” I said, swiping my hands on my shirt.
“Huh?”
I shook my head. “Never mind. Do you remember what I told you in sophomore year?”
Levi settled me with a confident, but nervous smile. “Thaaaat you're scared of clowns?”
“No. I mean the boy who smelled of lemons.” I gritted out.
Levi surprised me with a laugh. “What are you talking about?”
Something ice cold trickled down my spine.
Levi did know what I was talking about. He brought up my stink sense a day earlier in front of his parents, and I had to cover his mouth to shut him up.
Leaning close, I whispered in his ear. “You stink of rotten lemons.”
He nodded slowly, pulling away. “Uh… thanks?”
I bit back a hiss of frustration. “No, you don't understand what I'm saying–”
“Starbrooke High School,” The host announced. “Can all members please return to the stage.”
Levi held up his hand for a high five.
“Can we do this later?” He winked. “I'm kinda busy carrying this spelling-bee on my back right now.”
I nodded shakily, high fiving him, and letting him jump back onto the stage.
Before his words hit like a tidal wave, ice cold water slammed into me.
Spelling Bee?
Slowly making my way back to the stands, Levi’s mistake was circling around my head. He did win a spelling bee, but that was in middle school.
Thankfully, the smell of lemons was gone when I returned to my seat.
Mr Hanes handed me a soda. “Chill out, Cassandera, it's just a game.”
He could talk. The guy was on his fifth coffee.
Mr Hanes was not chilled out in the slightest.
Surprisingly, the event went well. I was half expecting my team to be crushed by the rafters, or caught in a blaze started in the crowd. But we were doing well. No, we were winning.
Reaching the climaxing round, Sunny choked against a smug Ratcliffe boy, joining me on the sidelines.
Levi answered the next question with a confident smile.
We were winning, but Ratcliffe could still catch up with a miracle.
The second to last question was to Ratcliffe, and it was general knowledge.
”Where on the human body would one find the *orbit?*
I knew the answer, and so did Levi, his lips breaking out into a smile when the Ratcliffe boy was hesitating, eyes wide.
Our school’s buzzer went off, Levi slamming his hand down.
Bzzz!
The host turned to our team. “Starbrooke, can I have your answer?”
Levi nodded, shooting our team a victory grin.
“It's…!“ He opened his mouth to answer, his jaw slackening suddenly.
The boy’s shoulders slumped.
“Uh… “
“Um…”
“Huhhhhh…”
Levi inclined his head, blinking, his eyes glazing over. There was a sudden, hollow vacancy that sent chills down my spine. It was like someone had reached into his skull, and yanked out his brain, leaving a shell in his place.
To my confusion, our team captain frowned at his buzzer like he'd never seen one before. He pressed it, exploding into child-like giggles.
Bzzz!
The audience laughed along nervously.
Tom nudged me. “What the fuck is he doing?”
Bzzz Bzzz Bzzz!
Levi’s entire body was slumped, his hand slamming down on the buzzer.
I caught something pooling down his chin.
“Is he… drooling?” I whispered.
Mr Hanes looked mildly horrified. “Has he been drinking?
“Levi?” Tom spluttered. “Drinking?!"
Whatever we were watching, however, was definitely influenced by… something.
Bzz. Bzz. Bzz. Bzz. Bzz!
“Young man, that is not a toy!”
The host wasn't amused. “Starbrooke High School, I need an answer from you,” He nodded to Levi, who was pressing the buzzer, his smile growing.
“Once again,” The host backed away, like Levi was contagious. “Where on the human body would one find the Orbit?”
Levi cocked his head, lips parted.
His gaze found the overhead lights, and he winced, his lips curling into a frown.
“Starbrooke High School!”
Levi jumped, tipping his head back and blowing a raspberry. “Palm tree?”
The audience laughed, and I started feeling nauseous.
Across from us, I could see the twist of a smirk on the Ratcliffe coach’s lips.
Bzzz! Levi slammed the buzzer again giggling.
“Starbrooke High School, if your team member continues to act like this, I will be forced to disqualify all members.”
Our captain stopped, gaze glued to the host, his hand creeping towards the buzzer, like it was a big red button.
The audience loved it, laughing like they were watching a sitcom.
“He wouldn't.” Tom whisper-shrieked.
The auditorium was silent for a moment, awaiting Starbrooke’s response.
Levi stuck out his tongue, slamming his hand down.
Bzzz! Bzzz! Bzzz! Bzzz! Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz–
When Tom dragged Levi away from his podium, a Ratcliffe girl hit her buzzer.
“Starbrooke High School, you are disqualified,” the host announced. “Ratcliffe High School, do you have an answer?”
It was Ponytail who nodded with a grin.
“The answer is the eye socket! The Orbit is part of the eye socket!”
“That is the correct answer.” The host was distracted, his eyes glued to Levi.
“Ratcliffe High School wins.”
Levi jumped when the Ratcliffe wide erupted into cheers.
His eyes were wide, clinging onto the buzzer for comfort.
Next to me, our coach looked like he was going to faint.
I barely noticed Ratcliffe’s victory, too busy watching our team captain, who was Harvard bound, tipping his head back and smiling at the ceiling like a new-born baby. Tom dragged the stumbling boy over to me, his mouth twisted.
“This was Ratcliffe, right?” He hissed, shaking our captain, who was struggling, squirming in his grip.
“Did they put something in his drink?!” He prodded Levi. “Hey! What did they do to you?!”
Still, though, drugging his drink didn't make sense.
Levi never left the auditorium, and kept his water bottle with him the whole time.
How did they even manage to slip something into his drink in the first place?
Did I smell our competitors drugging him?
Sure, intentionally inebriating my teammate was morally wrong and illegal, but why could I smell lemon?
“I doubt it was Ratcliffe.” Sunny squeezed next to me. “I've been watching them. They're harmless.”
“Then how the fuck do we explain this to his parents?!” Tom whispered, grappling with Levi, who was fighting to get back to the buzzer.
When Tom let go of him, he dropped onto the floor, crawling over to his podium. It was like watching a child.
Who was determined to piss off the adults.
Levi jumped back to instead feet, his gaze was glued to the host, a smile curved on his lips, when he slammed the buzzer again.
Bzzz!
“Someone, please remove the Starbrooke boy from the stage!”
I was embarrassed, our whole team ducking our heads as our captain was forcibly removed from the podium.
Mr Hanes grabbed Levi, pulling him off of the stage.
I expected our coach to be mad at him, but I think the teacher was more worried, a phone pressed to his ear while he forced the boy into a sitting position.
No, I don't think it's influence from alcohol, I could hear his conversation.
Levi kept trying to get up, mesmerised by the buzzer. The teacher was firm but gentle. “Hey. Sit down, all right? Keep still.” He went back to his phone call, gently prying Levi’s eyes open.
From what I can see, there's nothing wrong. He's just kind of…
Mr Hanes swiped his own hands on his jeans. ... wet?
Team Ratcliffe came over to rub it in our faces, though I was still tuned into our coach’s hissed whispering.
Water? No, I don't think it's water. It smells… no, I haven't told his parents…
“You guys did awesome!” Ponytail's voice was sugary sweet. Too sugary.
She held the 2024 trophy, bearing a satisfied smile. I noticed the Ratcliffe members were surrounding Harry, like guards.
“Better luck next time, okay?” She held out her hand, her eyes twinkling.
“No hard feelings?”
“Control your dog.” Harry said, amused eyes flicking to Levi, who was once again sprinting back to the fucking buzzer. His eyes had visibly darkened, lips curled into a triumphant smile.
Harry Cartwright was watching Mr Hanes chase our team captain like it was his own personal entertainment.
I had to look away before I died of second hand embarrassment.
“What did you put in his drink?” Tom demanded. “Weed? Edibles?” the boy attempted to shove Harry, only to be pushed back. “What the fuck did you do to him?”
Harry’s smile didn't waver. “Like I said. Control your mut.”
When the Ratcliffe team walked away, our red faced coach struggling with Levi, who was behaving progressively more erratically, informed us we were longer welcome inside the school.
Tom suggested calling an ambulance, but our coach was hesitant.
We all knew who Levi’s family were.
On the way out, Tom matched my stride. He was frowning at our team captain struggling to walk.
The way he was acting was already eyebrow raising.
But walking at an angle and being unable to stand up straight was worrying.
“I don't think they drugged his drink.” Tom muttered.
We pushed through the doors out of the school, and I revelled in the cool night air grazing my cheek. “If they did, he would be acting out of it, right? So, what's the deal with him acting like–”
“A child.” I finished for him.
“Yeah.” Tom leaned closer. “Do you think this has something to do with their turf war?”
I slapped at a bug creeping across my cheek.
Levi fell over again, this time bursting into giggles.
“Almost definitely.”
Levi was right about Ratcliffe playing dirty. I didn't realize how dirty until we were on the losers bus home. Levi was in the seat next to me, and the kid hadn't moved since we left Ratcliffe, his eyes wide, lips pulled into a dazed grin.
Bzzz!
The noise startled me from slumber. I was drooling, my head pressed against the window. Outside, the sky was pitch dark, and squinting through the glass, I couldn't get a bearing on where we were. I thought I was hearing things, but when I sat up, I heard it again.
Bzzz!
It was close.
Leaning over the boy, I glimpsed a smear of scarlet on his headrest.
I choked on my next words.
“Tom.”
Tom was in front of me, listening to music.
He didn't reply, his head of dark blonde curls nodding to the beat.
“Levi.” I managed to get out. I prodded him, and his head lolled into his shoulder. “Hey. Can you… sit up?”
Bzzz! Bzzz!
When the boy didn't move, I gently grabbed his shoulders and pulled him forward myself, something contracting in my stomach.
I don't know how long it takes for your mind to fully register something, but my body was already reacting.
Levi’s seat was infested with bugs, eating their way through the upholstery. I was aware of my body moving back. I threw up, instantly, screaming into my hand.
The back of my best friend's skull resembled a deflated soccer ball, what was left of his brain leaking from his skull where a swarm of skittering bugs chewed their way through brain tissue, metallic legs scratching the curved, pearly white of the base if his skull.
Levi’s head hung, his body flopping into mine.
But his eyes were still open, lips still stretched into a smile.
Blood ran in thick rivulets from his nose and ears.
Bzzz!
I could see them, black writhing dots alive in his eyes, wriggling movement under his skin.
“Tom!”
I jumped up, stumbling into the aisle, my stomach heaving.
And it was only when I was on my knees, swiping bile from my lips, when I realized the others weren't reacting.
Tom wasn't moving.
I pulled an Airpod out of his ear, a long, slithering string of pink attached to the end.
There was a stray bug skittering across his hand, his face starting to twitch and writhe.
Moving back, I checked myself over, my hands shaking.
Head.
Shoulders.
Hair.
Clawing through it, my breath was stuck in my throat.
Arms.
Legs.
Feet.
Mr Hanes was slumped against the window, a reddish froth bubbling from his mouth.
Sunny.
I started towards the back of the bus, but all I had to see was her bowed head, half of her skull chewed through.
Sunny was in a far more deteriorated state, her face had been ripped through, a skeletal smile glinting in the dim.
The thick black smear on the window next to her was moving.
When I screamed for the driver to stop the bus, he ignored me.
If anything, he stamped on the gas.
I moved forward to shake him, before glimpsing a bug creeping down his face.
Calling 911, the operator laughed at me.
“Bugs are eating your friends.” He said. “Do you know the penalty for calling with bullshit pranks?”
The bus didn't stop, so I stayed at the front, while the bugs took over the back, eating through my teammates.
After four hours, I risked leaning over the seat next to Tom to check on Levi.
They were eating him.
Chewing all the way through skin, muscle and bone.
I tried to stop the bus, but the driver’s hands were tightly wrapped around the wheel.
Another hour, and blood was seeping down the aisle, crawling with bugs.
Levi was gone, and in his place, a buzzing skittering pile of bugs, that I thought were going to move to a second victim, maybe burrowing into the seats.
But, no.
These things began to tremble, replicating.
Building.
Slowly, nothing became static, and static became muscle.
Then bone.
Then flesh.
When a body began to slowly form, moulded from the dead boy, I stumbled back.
These things weren't eating Levi Costella.
They were rewriting him.
…
Edit: I'm still on the bus. I'm 99.9% sure that I'm infected with whatever this thing is. I can't stop fucking itching.
I keep picking them off me but they won't stop. This bus isn't going to stop until I'm like the others.
…
Edit 2:
I can feel them chewing into my skull. They're in my ears. I keep spitting them out. Please, someone get them off of me. Help me. I don't want to die at 17.
Edit 3:
Still alive. Still breathing. Maybe they're leaving me alone????? I think I'm okay. There is a pile of bugs at my feet, but they're crawling off of me.
Edit 4:
Levi really wants to go home. Like, he just told me he REALLY wants to go home. He's got a gift for his parents.
~~Edit 5 :) ~~
Levi is next to me right now, an odd smile on his face.
The bugs are not finished building him yet, but he'll be ready soon.
We will be ready soon.
Your son says hello! He is a wonderful boy, is he not?
Mr and Mrs Costella, I cannot wait for you to meet him.
He is our greatest achievement, and rest assured, you will give us what we want.
Warm regards.
The Cartwright's.

How is it people go day to day at all? literally, how is 99% of the population not conscious? can you not see? or do you think maybe it is beyond you? it doesn't affect you? its not as bad as it seems? or some other ignorant and delusional psychological self comfort.
surely its not like the movies, and some people observe while others get herded from paddock to paddock, a rare few genius and outliers of all which are Neurodivergent
our world both sputtering and struggling to function and simultaneously being destroyed by neurotypical people.. just consume and steal and take from those who care about detail and precision and perfection.. disgusting..
literal ants sprawling for crumbs, yet no real thought, not even as an individual, no leader, no queen, may as well be a smooth brain koala grasping at leaves even it cannot digest. brain dead apes that just take take take, live in a social hierarchy and invent concepts like "bullying" that make zero sense because we all pretend we don't live in this sick social fuck fest of a game, but we do live here. and everyone just lies fucking willy nilly every second of every single day..
yet people just accept it as so.. how does anything less than perfection ever prosper, how come people want problems, want pain, want misery? and toss it up to "balance" or some other misnomer to make themselves feel better.. how the fuck does youtube videos have soft corners, yet we still make cheap mass produced shit with sharp edges that no one ever buys and gets thrown in the ocean to destroy the very thing that keeps us alive..
EVERY. SINGLE. THING. that gets made. not used, not bought. not sold, IT AFFECTS SOMEONE DOWN THE LINE, all these people "doing their own thing" all these simultaneous problems and projects.. video games for example, we have hundreds of studios making hundreds of shit games, wasted hours, wasted resources, everyone branching off to make their own failures, all because of corporate dried shit sniffers thinking they know everything, feeding the greed machine, when people forget, movies, music, art... these are our god forms, the ONE thing we ACTUALLY have.
otherwise we are just smooth brain fucking animals crawling around in our own literal shit, we are so aware of the microscopic world, yet ignore it until it shuts down our social structure.. fucking idiots... old school systems.. fucked up laws.. governments that lie.. you call yourself an ADULT? how the FUCK did you let this happen?
we live in a bureaucratic world (worst fucking word in the world, both literally and visually, linguistically and literature, fucking awful word.), and just like the word itself, it should not exist AT ALL, governments and rules and laws that make NO sense and only benefit those looking to exploit those who cant think for themselves, steps for steps for steps that lead no where..
yet when it comes to that same logic and reasoning, as an individual, it is illegal, criminal, frowned upon even, and then the average person is so dumbfounded by such a concept it gets laughed into the firey pits of hell where we are all fucking headed anyway
intstead of everything being FAIR and TRACKED and LOGICAL, having laws that MAKE SENSE, we live in a clusterfuck..
every single detail, increment, ownership, every number word and piece of data, ALL should be recorded and traceable to a source
EVERY SINGLE MOMENT, should be accounted for, there should be NO THEFT or MISSING items
for example: DE CRIMINALISE DRUG USE - SOLVES ALL YOUR DRUG PROBLEMS. LESS ADDICTS, LESS DEATHS, LESS CRIME.
BAN CENSORSHIP. ENABLE TRUE FREE SPEECH, BEING OFFENDED IS NOT ALLOWED, NOT EVEN TAUGHT, OFFENCE IS PHASED OUT.
Increase right to repair laws, teach repair and mechanics in schools, change school catchments and also reduce work commutes, create large synchronized communities with a balance or trades and education across well distributed areas, abolish the "central business district"
abolish any and all destructive and parasitic practices, become full sustainable regardless of the cost (no MATTER how expensive self sustainability is FREE in the long run) what don't people understand about this most basic shit...
if you don't want problems.. STOP FUCKING MAKING PROBLEMS.. but that's just it isn't it... people WANT problems.. the average person wants a series of manageable problems they can feel good about on a daily basis..
After 2-3 whole days of using broken software, broken system, shitty bureaucratic rules, waiting for idiots, waiting for technology either to load or to buffer, waiting for something to arrive waiting for THINGS to happen with services that "track" but will straight up just be inaccurate to the point where not knowing would be better..
i've always said, its easier to read a book with no internet collection, and easier to watch a video with a fast one, but with a slow and broken connection, nothing is possible. we live in a society on inescapably broken systems, if they didn't exist, we would be free and happy, if they worked perfectly, we would be free and happy, but instead we CHOOSE to live right in the middle
who the fuck is this world built for...

Ignore the overheated geeks: the general election doesn’t matter
By Jeremy Clarkson (The Sunday Times, May 12)
I went to the finals of the Madrid Open tennis championships last weekend, where a spindly man from Russia was set to face an unseeded French Canadian, who turned up in a cowslip yellow version of the fetching playsuit that Sean Connery wore in Goldfinger.
The spindly man made a shaky start, and it looked like General Montcalm was on course for an amazing victory. But then the man with legs like pipe cleaners started to fight back. And you could sense the tension. In one corner of the stadium, you had Montcalm’s friends, family and trainers writhing in a cauldron of dopamine and serotonin, willing their man to hang on in there. And in the other corner, there was a tribe of Russians doing exactly the same thing.
It was a good match with some epic baseline rallies, a lot of nifty backspin dolly drops, and a palpable sense of infectious excitement from all the tennis fans in the stadium. Me included. It was gripping and fascinating, but here’s the thing: I absolutely couldn’t care less who won. I’ve no love for Russia at the moment, obviously, and I think the French Canadians need a smacked bottom. James Wolfe won: get over it and speak English. But watching the fight was tremendous. And of course, that brings me on to the general election.
All over Westminster, there are hundreds of people who are frothing at the mouth with anticipation of the forthcoming duel. Wonks. Journalists. Lobbyists. They love the fight, the game. They meet and gossip and when you see them huddled round an embarrassing Student Time YouTube clip that’s just emerged, you sense they are actually aroused.
They wait in a mummified state, like the flight controllers at Nasa when a spaceship is in the re-entry radio blackout zone, for someone on the front line to say something which is at odds with the party line. Or for a junior minister to appear on the BBC News programme and not know the price of a loaf of bread. Then that’s it. Their down-the-line winner.
Every small mistake, every bacon sandwich moment, is pounced upon with delirious glee. They wait, like Frost did when he was in the third round against Nixon, for Angela Rayner to admit she had two houses, or no houses, because that’ll be that in their eyes. Game, set and match.
Of course, those in the Sunak dugout will noisily explain that this is proof that she’s Ronald Biggs in a frock. While at the other end of the court, Sir Starmer’s gatekeepers will argue that she’s only human. And news of all of these titbits will be broadcast with squeaky glee to a wider audience than the one watching Baby Reindeer.
I usually care about a general election. And I certainly cared about the Brexit referendum. But this time round, you can vote for a party that’s useless by accident. Or a party that will be useless on purpose. So it really doesn’t matter who wins. It won’t change your life in any way, shape or form.
Cancel culture and a woke civil service means the Conservatives won’t even be allowed to say what they want to do, let alone actually do it. And the Labourites will be prevented from making the changes they want by the world’s financial markets, and common sense.
We are told that if the Tories win, non-doms will continue to avoid paying taxes, which won’t make a ha’porth of difference to you because you don’t even know what a non-dom is. And then we have news that if the Labourists win, people will no longer be able to buy their council houses. And that doesn’t affect you either.
Then you’ve got Sir Starmer on the trans issue. He implied last year that a woman can have a penis and immediately the Westminster fanboy bubble went bananas. “HE DOESN’T KNOW WHAT A WOMAN IS,” they bellowed. And we all sat at home, sighing and thinking: “Yes he does. He just can’t say it, because unlike JK Rowling, he needs a job”.
We saw a similar thing with Mr Rishi when footage emerged of him saying he doesn’t have any working-class friends. Straight away the wonks were out of their seats, spitting with fury as they explained he only eats swan and that he uses his butler’s children as footstools. Meanwhile, you were thinking: “I really ought to mow the lawn.”
Doubtless there will be fans of the political system bouncing up and down in their seats right now, pointing to the recent council elections in which a Muslim chap, standing on the Green ticket, celebrated his win by saying it was a victory for Gaza, and referred to a local Jewish chap as a “kind of animal”. He sounds like the sort of chap who manages to be daft and unpleasant all at the same time, but he’s in Leeds and most of you aren’t, so what does it matter if his head’s full of silly nonsense? All he’s going to be able to do in the next five years is have a very small say on where the next park bench will be built.
It’s not a completely different story for whoever wins the general election. They may have the power to make changes, but only in the same way that they have the power to drop a nuclear bomb on Belgium. It’s not actually going to happen.
The fact is that we will be treated to a bombardment of promises and polls in the coming months. And it will be a good spectator sport. But it doesn’t really matter who wins because the pot holes will continue to give you punctures, the trains will continue to be unreliable, air travel will continue to be a nightmare, NHS waiting lists will continue to be barbaric, the navy’s missiles will continue to misfire, the small boats will continue to arrive, farmers will continue to get a kicking, bills will continue to land on the doormat, we’ll all continue to pay taxes and we’ll all continue to die.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
And here's the Sun column: "I’ll be staying in the UK this summer and not going abroad – here’s why."
Clarkson's columns are regularly collected as books. You can buy them from his boss or your local bookshop.

I need cat help. I have two cats and they are great but they are destroying my sanity. Also, we move in less than a month and I have wonder if this is the chance to improve some tricky behaviors that have emerged.
They are always under my feet. I trip over them in the baby carrier and feel terrible but I don’t see them with the carrier on. I walk on eggshells. This might not be fixable, but it’s worth mentioning.
They constantly try to escape. Leaving and coming home is SO HARD just from dealing with the cat escapes. I have to leave at minimum 4 times a day for school drop off and pick up. They escape a LOT. I made them a catio. They liked it initially but now have broke out of it a million times …they like it but not as much as escaping. Part of me wonders if I could let them outside with an air tag and a better collar (I heard some are possibly better than the three I have tried so far), but we will be on a very busy fast street and we have a train on the other side. I think coyotes will be less inclined to be near our house but the cats are not conditioned for traffic and could run in front of a car. But I do wonder…
I read a self help book on cats (Total Cat Mojo) and followed the recommendations. I got cat toys and play with them every day. They still zoom and meow at night. I made vertical spaces and cat scratch spots. They still prefer the kitchen counters and scratching the couch and carpet. (I might try a motion air spray for the counters and a scent spray for the couches. I also have some fun hide-y holes and perch/tower ideas in store for the new place). I have had to replace so much furniture that they have destroyed. I got a cat-proof couch and they are really testing the limits of it.
They are fed well and loved immensely by the family, but if they are outdoor cats they will likely die (it is considered inhumane to have them as outdoor cats in this area on account of the coyotes , but we have a stray cat problem so it is also very encouraged to adopt, which is what we did). They are a bonded pair that was fostered indoors since birth from a feral mom, but they hate being indoor cats now. We got leashes thinking we could train them and walk them but they hate the leashes. They break out of breakaway collars. They are so sad inside. I just feel like there is no fixing it unless I let them outside but we are on a busy street and if a coyote doesn’t get them, a car definitely will.
They drive me crazy but I love these little buddies and want them to thrive. How do I set this new living situation up for success? We have a smaller home and no longer have the views/vaulted ceilings/second floor…but we have a big yard and could make a bigger catio and could update the new spot to be more optimal possibly. I love the cats and I want them to love their lives with us. I do believe they are mostly happy. They get treats and pets and they are played with and snuggled by all of us.
One more note (kudos to you if you read all this. I feel like I’ve written a book at this point): in the last year we were gone for about seven weeks at which point we had two different cat sitters. Anytime we go on trip we get the same cat sitters who know them at this point. We also have visitors a lot. Like all the time. Also I was pregnant and had a new baby in the last year. So the cats have dealt with a ton of change over the last year and they’re only two years old. I can honestly say that we will be slowing down the rate of change a lot in the new house (but will still have the occasional trips and house guests).
Thank you for reading this. Any advice is welcome and appreciate it for our sweet little buddies.

Below is the opening to my solo playthrough of Phandelver and Below. I've never played the module, but I was introduced to D&D through one of it's many actual plays, and I've always wanted to play the story myself. I thought it would be fun to use my semi-familiarity with the story to run a solo game, allowing me to simultaneously practice my writing. The opening is meant to detail how the Wave Echo Cave was found by the Rockseeker brothers, and explain why my characters are willing to help old Gundren. Below you'll find my version of how the cave was rediscovered and get introduced to my first PC, a young gnome with dreams of becoming a wizard, Erkyfrune 'Kyfrune' Filkor. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did writing it!
​
The Lost Mine of Phandelver
A Solo-Play RPG
Nundro Finds the Cave
Gundren Rockseeker finalized his order with Umphrey Baggort’s General Goods shortly before the midday bell. He had a few hours before he’d be meeting Sildar at The Widow’s Tankard to go over their planned route one last time. They were to leave for Phandalin in the morning. There he would reunite with his brothers, Nundro and Thardin, and return to Wave Echo Cave.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
He still found it hard to believe they had found it. Five-hundred years it remained hidden, and all it had taken to locate it was Nundro’s constant clumsiness. He’d tripped, seemingly over nothing, and rolled down the side of a cliff, crashing to a stop amongst an outcropping of large boulders. Gundrin and Thardin had rushed down to him, only to find Nundro laughing like a madman, the dripping blood from his broken nose smearing across his mouth and beard, making him look like a cannibalistic court jester.
“Listen!” He’d shouted, blood spraying from his lips. “The waves! Do you hear them?!”
Gundren, sure Nundro had finally cracked his head one too many times, was hearing nothing more than the sloshing of his own addled brains, but Thardin lowered himself to the stoney ground and pushed his ears against the boulders.
“He’s right, Gundren,” Thardin said, ear still pressed against the large stone, “It’s as if the very Shining Sea were trapped underfoot.”
Nundro stood there, smiling, dripping blood into the dust and stone. “Wave Echo Cave,” He whispered, “It’s ours!”
They’d camped there amongst the boulders, using their picks and shovels to chip away the ground around one of the boulders enough to get their pry bars wedged solidly underneath. It took all three of them, hanging and hopping from the bar like the rumored monkeys of Chult, but they managed to shift it enough that gravity took hold and yanked the giant stone down the embankment, where it shattered amongst the less regal hills surrounding the eastern edges of Phandalin.
It took all of the next day to clear away enough of the stoney ground to reveal the small tunnel entrance that had been buried beneath rubble, rock, and passing time. The sounds of crashing waves seemed enormous in the silence surrounding them.
“We can’t simply walk into there with lanterns and a few day’s rations,” Thardin had said. “We’ll need to set up an excavation camp, which will require a trip back to Neverwinter.”
None of the brothers wanted to leave, but Gundren and Thardin agreed Nundro deserved to stay, being the true locator of the legendary site. They flipped a coin. Thardin won, and Gundrin left the next morning for Neverwinter.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
He’d gotten nearly everything prepared for his departure. There was just one final order of business to take care of, adventurers willing to see the wagon safely to Barthen’s Provisions. And, if they proved capable and loyal, perhaps they could be hired on to clear out the cave on the inevitable creatures that had occupied it during its many forgotten years.
He listened as the final ring of the city bells reverberated into silence, then turned north, heading towards Filkor’s Gadgets and Repairs. There he knew he would find at least one willing adventurer, assuming the boy’s father would let him leave the safety of the shop.
Kyfrune
Erkyfrune Filkor sipped his tea while his father adjusted the small spring in his latest iteration of a years-long obsession.
“I’m telling you Erky, I am this close to figuring it out.” His father, Erkaline, said. The it in question being a nail clipper capable of transforming itself to meet the varying needs of any fingernail, claw, or talon. “Once I finally figure it out, we can move out of this dump and into a properly respectable district. It’s not right for the descendants of Elisytris Filkor to be living in squalor. He was quintessential to the Forge of Spells, you know!”
Erkyfrune, Kyfrune to anyone besides his father, knew this very well. He’d heard the story more times than he could count. Who knew if there was any truth in it, but he loved his father, and feigned interest again, if just so he would be able to concentrate on the story and let his fingers work their talented tinker’s magic.
His father was just getting to the part where Great-Grandfather Elisytris single-handedly took on a trio of raiding bandits and their evil wizard overseer when the three bells above the storefront sounded, signaling a customer, one Kyfrune and Erkaline knew well. Gundren and his brothers had been coming to them for years, always in need of some intricate tool or another to assist in a prospecting project. Kyfrune had always felt a spark of envy for their adventurous life, delving into the ruins of the past for lost treasures and tomes. The latter interested him in particular, for even though his father disapproved, Kyfrune wanted nothing more than to learn the mysteries of Mystra and her magical weave that permeated the very fabrics of reality. Already he’d learned a few spells, and had even recently conjured his first familiar, a celestial wolf spider, he lovingly referred to as Walter.
“Couldn’t you have conjured something less…disgusting? A cat would have at least had fur.” His father had grumbled when Kyfrune had shown him his new magical pet.
“Walter has fur,” Kyfrune had argued.
“Nothing with eight legs should have fur,” his father had replied, shaking his head and returning to one of his seemingly infinite projects. “You should focus more on your craft. One day, you’ll be the Filkor that the sign out front is referring to.”
Kyfrune wasn’t a terrible tinker, but he’d never be capable of the wonders his father could produce. Besides, tinkering was Erkaline’s thing. He never said this, of course. Being a good son was just as important to Kyfrune as learning to bend the energies of the multiverse to his whim.
“Gundren! What can I do for you my friend?” Erkaline asked, removing the magnifying glasses he wore when working. “Need some more of those explosive crickets? How’d that first batch work for you?”
“Howdy Mr. Filkor, Kyfrune, everything going well I hope?” Gundren asked, removing the floppy hat he’d always worn since Kyfrune had known him.
“Can’t say I can complain, anything that’s wrong I just haven’t gotten round to fixin’ yet, and what can’t be fixed, can be made anew” His father laughed at this old joke, and Gundren, the kind patron he was, laughed along as well, even though he’d heard this one probably every time he’d come to the shop.
“Too true Mr. Filkor, your capable hands are powered by an even more capable mind. I, ah, am not actually here for any services you’d normally provide. I’m actually wanting to offer Kyfrune a small job,” Gundren turns to the younger gnome, “I’ve heard you’ve a decent grasp of the weave, any truth in those rumors?”
Kyfrune, bringing the cup of tea to his mouth for another sip, was caught off guard by the unexpected question, and spilled most of his remaining tea over his work shirt. Rather than answer Gundren, which his ever-present social awkwardness would have caused him to stammer meekly through, he waved his hands over his sodden shirt and muttered a simple incantation. The tea, lemon ginger with lots of honey, simply faded, leaving his shirt dry and spotless.
“That’s quite the trick, any bandits or goblins with brains in their skulls would run screaming from such deadly powers,” Gundren laughed, not unkindly. “Seriously Kyf, do you think you could provide protection for a wagon of supplies I’ve ordered? It’s not going far, just down the High Road a ways and east along the Triboar Trail, to a small settlement called Phandalin. It’d need to be brought to a gentleman named Barthen. He owns Barthen’s Provisions, and will pay you 10 gold once you’ve delivered the wagon. Normally I’d go with it myself, but I’ve got to meet Nundro and Thardin as soon as possible,” he leans closer and whispers, “We’ve found something. Something pretty big. If you do well with the wagon, maybe I could bring you in on the excavation of a legendary site, thought to be lost to time.”
“You can’t mean-” Erkaline began, but Gundren cut him off with a curt wave.
“Best not to speak of anything now. Ears and eyes are known to be anywhere, and I’m not wanting any competition. What do you say Mr. Filkor, can you spare young Kyfrune for a week or so, two out the most?”
Kyfrune looked to his father, who rubbed his large nose and pulled at his forked beard, largely white now, with only a few streaks of the once inky black that had been its original color. He wasn’t going to beg or plead. He loved his father, and would do as he bid, but oh sweet Mystra, please let him say yes.
“I suppose, if you can promise it’d be no more than a week or so, I could spare my apprentice,” his father began, then turned to Kyfrune, “But Erkyfrune, you listen and listen good. I never liked your messing with this magic nonsense, but I understood your youth. Consider this your pilgrimage into the world of adventure. Upon your return, I expect you to set aside these childish fancies and start putting the work in that is necessary for you to take over the shop. Agreed?”
Kyfrune’s heart somehow managed to soar and plummet at the same time, leaving him with a momentary feeling of unsteadiness. To finally be given approval to venture forth into the world, a world that wanted him to wield his magical abilities, only to have the approval tethered to a promise to walk away from his dream. His father’s serious eyes looked at him expectantly.
“Yes, Father. Your terms are agreeable, and I thank you for allowing me to experience an adventure before settling into my destined path.”
His father’s gaze faltered momentarily, but he quickly regained his composure, turning to Gundren, “Well Gundren, it would seem you have yourself a wizard. You’re not planning on sending my boy out on the road alone are you?”
“Of course not, sir. He’ll be accompanied by at least two more souls, although I’m not sure of who they are as of yet.”
Erkaline smiled, “I’m sure the great city of Neverwinter will provide you with a couple more adventurers for your quest.”
Gundren nodded, then placed his hat upon his head. “I’ll need Kyfrune at The Widow’s Tankard by ninth bell,” he looked to Kyfrune, “ I’ll have the contract ready and’ll buy you dinner. I’ll show you the route you’ll need to take, and, perhaps, I’ll fill you in on more of the details.” His eyes glinted with excitement. “Be well Mr. Finkor,” he said, then walked out the door. The three bells above the door sounded very loud in the quiet shop. Kyfrune turned to his father, who was putting the magnifying glasses back into position and settling himself at his workbench.
“I suppose I should pack my things,” he said.
“I suppose you should son,” Erkaline looked up from the nail clippers that he hoped would change his and his son’s lot in life, “Be careful, okay. Take in the world, experience your adventure, heck, shoot off some of those spells you know, but please, be careful.”
Kyfrune walked around the bench and hugged his father tightly, then walked upstairs to his small room to pack. He’d never felt more excited in his entire life.

Went to that class and was told the top I wore yesterday was too much for the class! Honestly British culture is so conservative I don't think o even belong here. I just want to be naked under the sun on a tropical island do circus 🔅sometimes I'd rather just do my own stuff so nobody needs to tell me to follow a dress code. I don't even know how TF I ended up here better would be in Australia also speaks English but can wear bikini and get air. The UK feels like a Muslim country I swear to God. Not safe for women and not first world country at all. I'd rather go to Dubai even so many people move from London to Dubai and said safety is much better. I don't feel a sense of belongings and I don't feel welcomed here. It's important to find people who are in vibes match
I was told I have to wear shoes as well, I don't like to train with shoes on I feel better lifting with bare feet and it also works the balance muscles on the feet more they won't even let me touch the heavy weight lol 😂
I'm just gonna shower and brush my teeth and train by myself, I really don't vibe with these people at all... I don't like to wear clothes or shoes I like to train naked , I can't wait until my maladaptive day dream husband come rescue me to go to private island to train alone in peace.
As I was walking home from taking a shower I saw a creep following me again, I heard him say hi or something, I was wishing for a weapon already and guess what , at the next block I found. One!! I've been just picking up random stuff that I wish for, yesterday I wanted to eat a juicy yummy fruit after training and found a delicious grape fruit right after.
I tested the weapon pretty good! I used it to hit bricks it even made fire hahahaha I feel much safer now! I showed my neighbor this she said you can call polis I laugh said popo no use ...

I am so confused right now.
I (17f), have a best friend, we'll call her B(17f). We became good friends really quickly and it has just been a year of being close to one other. It all started when we had a free period in school and talked about our family and stuff for the whole time without hesitation. From then on we were inseparable. She means so much to me, really. I was soo lonely before her, never had anybody to talk to or just be with and she changed it so I'm really indebted to her for that.
We have just given 12th boads this year (its bacically final exams of 12 standard which is on a all india bases). During the exam month maybe after 2 of the exams I got to know that my grandmother passed away. It was really shocking because even though she was in the hospital, she was making speedy recovery. The day she got discharged from the hospital, we lost her on the way home.
I wasn't really close to her but this is my grandmother we're talking about. I was really disturbed after hearing this, especially because I hadn't met her for years, neither I was able to bid her a last goodbye. I wasn't even able to participate in the rituals for her funeral.
The day I got this news I told B. I told her that my grandmother died. She said it's okay, and that even though my grandmother wasn't nice it's hard to loose a grand parent and that I should focus on my studies. This is badically all that she said. I had talked to her about my grand mother and told her some questionable things that she has done, so maybe she thought that I wasn't affected with her death but idk why I expected her to console me, to just be there for me. i didn't even get are you OK text from her.
The next day she was texting me about how there is this person she texted on reddit who turned out to be weird. That's what she asked me the next day after my grandmother just died. She never asked me how I was, never. I was not as responsive as usually was but that was because i was bloody alone. My parents had all gone to the hometown for the funeral and i was at my aunt's house because i could'nt leave the exams. I was so alone and not even once she asked me how i was. I even told her after a few days that i am not okay and that it really hurt when she started taliking about a guy to me after i told her my grandmother just passed. To that she replied that I was being cold so she thought she should give me some time and also she was sick with a throat infection do she couldn't wait for me to talk.
That really hurt. I know she was unwell and it must be difficult for her to think about other stuff while being in sickand I also understand that I am not a baby and that I shouldn't expect people to coddle me, but that really hurt. She did apologise and said that she didn't expect that I would be affected by this. But then went on as if it's all normal from the other day. After this incident, I tried to just forget it and move past it, but everything that she did just infuriated me. It never felt like she was sorry, even after she said it. This has just made me feel like she doesn't care at all. She is recently started talking to this guy on telegram. And all we talk about is him. "Should I send him this?" Or " he send me this message what should I reply with" something or the other about him. She tells me that she talked to him for hours one day but she couldn't even txt me once.
I was really trying to just forget it, really but I just felt so off. It's like I have to work to make things no longer awkward between us when she was the one that hurt me. It still infuriates me. Every conversation is about her, how her father demotivates her or how her grandma did this or something something along those lines. I have started to feel as if she doesn't know anything about me. Sometimes it's like she doesn't care at all about me.
I know I'm no angle myself. But when I did something wrong I know that I tried to change that about myself, tried to mend things (atleast in my head i was trying, idk if it was noticeable).
I know her life is harder than me, she has gone through more stuff than I have, but sometimes is it too much to expect someone to just listen and tell you that you aren't being dramatic Or hell's sake tell you that you are being dramatic rather that telling them that worse happened with them?
I am so just frustrated right now. We were on a meet and she started to talk to that same telegram guy in the meet. I have done this too but in my head it's like "i did it only once and then apologised for it, and its not like i always talk about someone else while we are together."
I don't know what to do. I really wanted to tell her that I am hurt but it feels like it has been to long and I shouldn't hold on to something that happened a month ago. I really don't want to loose her. She is that only friend that I have and we have a great friendship apart from some things. Idk if what I feel is justified or if i'm being dramatic and entitled, expecting too much from people Please be completely honest and tell me if I'm wrong so that i can try to better myself or how I should handle this situation. Any advice for this pety situation is welcomed.
Thank you for reading Sorry for the long post and if things are unclear, it my first time trying this so I don't really know how to be presise!

I mean yes, 60~ hours is kind of a long absurd time for a game to get good... but it also took me several retries to get to that playthrough of New Vegas where I actually finished it.
For context, up till Groundbreaker... actually heck up till Roseway, the Outer Worlds for me was a slog. The intro, Emerald Vale for all intents and purposes should have been a good intro biome, a sort-of interesting dilemma that allows you to handle it in a multitude of ways similar to Goodsprings in New Vegas... but you could exhaust and explore all of Goodsprings in around ~2~3 hours, Emerald Vale was larger and apologies to Parvati but was frankly uninteresting in hindsight that took me almost 2 days to actually go through without anything of worth coming out of it really. There's no dark sinister secret or anything controversial to uncover, I mean there is but it's honestly frankly underwhelming.
Groundbreaker was 'eh' mostly just a quest hub but nothing again that could sink your teeth in, there's some nice worldbuilding there explaining their situation as their own entity against the Board but at this point what the Board is still wasn't really that clear to me. Oh and we also meet Martin here, probably one of the more interesting NPCs you'll meet this early in the game, his is a cruel tale but being a vendor NPC, is kind of just stuck there, but what little you learn of him actually sets the tone for the strengths in writing of Outer Worlds cynical corpocracy.
Then I get sidetracked to Scylla... like Emerald Vale, barren of anything actually interesting to learn of. Filler-quest that tells you to go there, filler-experience. It's a loading screen with extra steps.
Okay, on Roseway now... this seems interesting can't wait to explore the different areas and learn about what happened here as I venture forth... aaand nvm you learn less than an hour in that this is really all about. I mean yeah there's insight you can surmise later on to provide introspection to your quest giver but so far this game has just been 90% Barren Planets that don't really offer anything interesting to learn about.
Mind you, despite me saying all of these have been bland they still do have multitudes of ways to approach the actual resolution of the quest... it's just that they seem kind of bog standard that you kind of just learn to not expect anything unexpected.
I think Monarch is the first real turning point for me on how things get interesting, because there's actually a lot of interesting memos, terminal, conversations, and logs for you to read. Learning what leads to this area being fucked up, the actual moment-of getting fucked up, guiding your hand to how the colony can sustain itself moving on.
But then, Peril on Gorgon, honestly on Monarch I was still kind of just exploring the map because that's what you were supposed to do and the interesting bits for you to learn about are all really consolidated in one area... but Gorgon? It was honestly a blast to explore, there's a lot of great worldbuilding all over the place, lots of secret audio-logs and terminals to discover.
Unfortunately from what I understand, I'm a little over more than halfway through but god if Byzantium and Eridanos holds the same quality Monarch and Gorgon has then I'm looking forward to it.

welcom to America today with a new article about ‘Taylor Swift baby’ goes viral at concert. Are kids allowed – and should you bring them?
Taylor Swift brought her Eras Tour to Paris and attracted one surprisingly young fan: a baby, who was allegedly photographed lying on the floor.
A venue spokesperson told the New York Post’s Page Six that the fan in question would have been offered a place to sit: “For spectators with a young child in the floor, an alternative seating arrangement has been proposed but refused by ticket holders.” A quick Google search reveals that plenty of parents are seeking guidance on the best way to bring a baby to a concert.
A blog post on the e-commerce site Tushbaby asks “Can you take babies to concerts?” and advises that infants wear earplugs and, when possible, be taken to concerts that are “Appropriate for their age and temperament.” Beyond providing food and drinks, parents should be prepared to leave if the experience proves overwhelming for their baby, the post says.
read more here :
https://new.themindful-life.com/2024/05/13/taylor-swift-baby-goes-viral-at-concert-are-kids-allowed-and-should-you-bring-them/

I am 21, I was raised by two teachers who were both quite antiquated in their methods of parenting. They are still and were throughout my childhood emotionally dismissive, physically distant, withholding of appreciation and or respect to both myself and each other. I have always existed in an emotional grey zone where I put all of my baggage in a corner so that when I need to inevitably need to deal with one of their outbursts I can move freely/have the emotional bandwidth to manage. In the past two years I went through a major loss and am still struggling immensely to cope with the grief. The experience of this loss completely changed my brains ecosystem and it has bled into the greater parts of my life. I initially shouldered the weight of the loss and kept my head down metaphorically, deep down I could tell it was seriously fucking me up, I continued to bounce between jobs before burning out/having a mental breakdown during a construction apprenticeship, I was so motivated to keep that apprenticeship but I didn’t want to be somewhere where I was my only advocate. I have tried other jobs since then but the same situation occurs where there is an accommodation that would make my life 1000x easier that is otherwise not available to me because my condition isn’t “visual or physically disabling”. Trying to get CBT Psychotherapists to be flexible in treatment is another qualm I need to blow steam about, you would imaging therapists would handle treating patients on a case by case method, utilizing a broad spectrum of psychological principles and ideas to gauge where the patient is at mentally and or what they need, but no. It feels like all the doctors and therapists want is money, they don’t seem genuinely concerned with patient progress and only throw the most menial of solutions at the largest of problems. I am planning on going on disability or social welfare as I have not been capable of working in over half a year despite continued efforts, I am just so tired of feeling like the only advocate for myself, I am frustrated at the world for being so systematic and cruel. All we are is human, all we can do is try, we don’t deserve to feel punished for that, do we?

If you're interested in baby registry boxes but don't know which one to try or how to even sign up for them I have some info for you here! I got boxes/bags from Target, Walmart, Amazon, Hey Milestone, Babylist, and Similac and I'm still waiting for a box from Enfamil. I'm not an influencer or someone paid by these companies I just really like surprise boxes of stuff. I have pictures but I don't know how to add them. Anyway onto the lists.
Target:
How to get: This appears to have changed recently. According to target.com you join the Target Circle rewards, create a baby registry, add 10 items, and spend $10 from registry (either yourself of someone else). You have to pick up the bag in store with a barcode they give to you and it can be somewhat difficult to get since supplies are limited. When I did this in March all I had to do was create a registry and then go to the store to pick up the bag.
Items:
1 Philips Avent Natural Bottle
1 Dr Browns Anti-Colic Bottle
3 pack sample of Huggies Special Delivery Diapers
2 pack sample of Millie Moon Diapers
16 count sample of Huggies Natural Care wipes
10 count sample of Honest plant based wipes
10 count sample of Water Wipes
2 count sample of Lansinho breastmilk storage bags
2 count sample of Lansinho disposable nursing pads
1 count sample if Boogie Wipes
1 sample of Dreft scent booster for laundry
1 sample of Palmers stretch mark lotion
1 sample of Dapple bottle and dish soap
1 sample of Pedialyte
1 sample of Auqaphor baby ointment
1 sample bottle of Aveno baby wash and shampoo
1 sample tube of Triple Paste diaper rash cream
All coupons are through Target Circle rewards
Walmart:
How to Get: Sign up for a registry at Walmart. Click this link https://walmart.cesampling.com/babybox/soldout and fill out the form and it would be shipped to you for free. Unfortunately these boxes have been sold out since last year but maybe they will restock. I only got one because my OB’s office gave it to me at my first appointment. You’re not missing much by not getting one.
Items:
1 Dr Browns Anti-Colic Bottle
3 pack sample of Huggies Special Delivery Diapers
16 count sample pack of Huggies Natural Care Wipes
1 sample of Arm & Hammer baby laundry detergent
1 sample bottle of Johnson’s head to toe wash and shampoo
1 sample bottle of Aveno baby wash and shampoo
1 pack of milestone month cards
Insert cards (not coupons) for Gerber, WaterWipes, Liquid IV, Aquaphor, and Arm & Hammer
Amazon:
How to Get: Have an Amazon prime account. Create a baby registry. Add 10 items to your baby registry. Purchase $10 worth of items from registry (either yourself or someone else). Wait for the items to ship and then add the baby welcome box to your shopping cart. There should be a $35 coupon applied when you go to checkout.
1 Newborn Swaddle size 36in x 36in
1 Amazon Essentials 3-6 month onesie
1 Mam Anti-Colic Bottle and Pacifier set
1 Bessie's Best lactation cookie
2 count sample of Lansinho breastmilk storage bags
2 count sample of Lansinho disposable nursing pads
1 sample of Aquaphor baby ointment
1 sample of Palmers skin therapy oil
1 sample of Palmers stretch mark lotion
50% off coupon for Shutterfly
10% off coupon for Amazon Essentials (items must be from a list compiled by Amazon)
$20 off coupon for Tylenol Smart check digital ear scope
$200 off Factor meal delivery service
Inserts (not coupons) for Palmers, Aquaphor, Baby Breeza, Mam bottles/pacifers
A card booklet with ideas for the registry
Hey Milestone:
How to Get: Hey Milestone is not a registry. They make three different baby boxes you can choose from and you just pay shipping. If you’re considering multiple boxes it’s best to get them all at once because the shipping will be cheaper. Shipping for one was $12.99. I only got one, the pregnancy box, so I can't tell you what you may expect from the other two. Check them out here: https://www.heymilestone.com/
Items:
1 full size Boudreaux’s Butt Paste butt barrier
1 Herobility 5 oz bottle
1 sample pack of Bamba peanut butter puffs
1 Kudos diaper with 10% off coupon
1 Dr Browns pacifier
1 Nanobebe hospital go-bag kit (includes pacifier, 2 breastmilk bags, 2 nursing pads, 20% off coupon)
2 count sample of Lansinho breastmilk storage bags
2 count sample of Lansinho disposable nursing pads
1 Preggie Pop
1 Bessie’s Best lactation cookie
10 count sample pack of Zahler prenatal vitamins
1 sample of Bella B nipple butter
1 sample of Bella B cradle cap be gone shampoo
1 sample tube of Eucerin baby sunscreen
1 count sample of Jack n Jill baby gum and tooth wipes
1 nail file with info for Mother’s Milk Bank
10% off coupon for Boudreaux’s Butt Paste butt barrier from Amazon
$130 off good chop meat delivery
16 free meals from Hello Fresh
$1 Bamba snacks
1 insert for Forsite 350 genetic testing
Babylist:
How to Get: This one is by far the most involved process. Create a registry on Babylist. Enter in your baby’s due date, you address, and first and last name. Add three items from the Babylist shop. Add three items from other stores (you can do this by putting a plug-in from the website on Chrome or Firefox. More detailed instructions on the website). Complete 40% of your registry checklist (you can do this by just checking items off yourself). Spend $30 from your registry (either yourself of someone else). Once these things are done you can pay $8.95 for shipping or you can chose simple shipping and it’s free.
Items:
1 Herobility 5oz bottle
1 Philips Avent Naturel bottle
1 Monica and Andy baby hat
1 Small Story 0-3 month onesie and 20% off coupon
1 Parker bib with 15% off coupon and a chance to win $200 giveaway
1 Nanobebe first pacifier
2 pack sample of Kudos diapers with 10% off coupon
2 pack sample of Healthy Baby diapers
2 pack sample of Parasol diapers
10 count sample of Honest plant based wipes
10 count sample of Water Wipes
10 count pack of motif medial breastmilk bags and 15% off coupon
1 sample tube of Noodle & Boo body wash and shampoo
1 sample tube of Noodle and Boo lotion
1 Bessie’s Best lactation cookie
2 count sample of Lansinho breastmilk storage bags
2 count sample of Lansinho disposable nursing pads
1 sample of Wellements probiotic and $15 off coupon
1 sample tube of Aquaphor baby ointment
1 sample of Desitin
1 sample of Palmers skin therapy oil
1 sample of Palmers stretch mark lotion
1 sample of Bird&Be vitamins and 15% off coupon
1 sample bottle of Vivi & Bloom body wash and shampoo
2 samples of Triple Paste diaper rash ointment and $2 off coupon
Coupon for a free onesie from Oso and Me ($32 value)
Coupon for free 8x8 photo book from Shutterfly
Coupon for a free will from Trust & Will
Coupon for free Swaddle from Little Unicorn
1 insert for babylist health for information on free breast pumps
Similac
How to Get: Sign up to my Similac rewards at https://www.similac.com/rewards.html . It’s completely free. I do recommend using an email you rarely use though and don't put in your phone number.
Items:
1 7 oz can of Similac 360 Total Care formula
1 7 oz can of Similac 360 Total Care Sensitive formula
1 sample of Pedialyte
Coupon for 1 free session at JC Penny portraits and 1 free 8 x 10 print
Coupons for $50 off Similac formula (They will send more in the mail once you use these)
16 free meals from Hello Fresh
Coupon for 50% off Shutterly
Coupon for $20 off Lovevery play kits
Coupon for $3 off Pedialyte
A collection of 12 gift cards to places I’ve never heard of ranging from $60-$30
Enfamil:
How to get:
Sign up for Enfamil Beginnings at https://www.enfamil.com/baby-formula-coupons-samples/ . It’s completely free. I do recommend using an email you rarely use and don’t put in your phone number. I’m still waiting on my Wonder Box to come. They tend to ship close to your due date so I may get it soon.
Overall thoughts: I enjoyed the fun of going through the boxes to see what I got. The Walmart one is no great loss to anyone not able to get one. I was disappointed with the Amazon one because I expected it to be a bit better based on what others had gotten. Plus I didn’t get the Dude Wipes people were getting and I was looking forward to them lol. The Babylist box was the best of the bunch, which is good considering the hoops you have to jump through to get it. Hey Milestone was great for the butt paste and bottle alone. I was also really pleased with the Target bag. These are just the things I got and each box/bag may be different.

I own a lot of nvidia shares and options too. Recently I have searched the internet trying to access nvidia A100 and H100 GPUs for business purposes.
I have came in contact with a variety of cloud providers (azure, aws, gcp, lambda labs, paperspace, runpod.io)
Pretty much it comes down to this:
GCP - 8x H100 GPUs cost per hour 88$, total monthly cost ~60k. I tried reserving one of these machines but ran into quota issues. I reached out to them telling them that I would like access but it has been incredibly hard, and haven’t been granted access yet despite a history of paying ~10-20k monthly in cloud fees.
AWS - made an account with them and subscribed to the developer monthly support plan hoping I can get more access to the GPUs. To no avail they granted me a few access to the RTX 4060 GPUs. and it was very small amount. On average 1x H100 machines are about 3.5$ per hour. Amazon has the p4d series vm using GPUs, for more details see here: https://aws.amazon.com/ec2/instance-types/p4/
Azure - also subscribed to the support plan of 100$ per month. To no avail after sending about 10 quota requests to allow me to use their A100 and H100 GPUs, it was still not granted. They are also about ~3$ for 1x H100 GPU. For more details see here: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-ca/pricing/details/virtual-machines/windows/
On demand cloud providers:
Lambda labs/runpod/paperspace - these cloud providers are great and often charge per hour based on demand for these GPUs. Meaning that sometimes you can have access, sometimes not. Anyways often times their H100 and A100 aren’t available but their 8x H100 Machines are available for like 27$. Currently I’m using like 20 of these H100 GPUs and man does the cost stack up.
It’s been like 2 weeks and I paid already 10k+ already.
This provides a lot of perspective in terms of how demand is for these nvidia GPUs at these data centers and cloud providers. I have a credit card attached and even with the high pricing, I can’t even get access to these GPUs. Also, needless to say all providers aside from lambda labs and runpod require you to provide a legitimate use case for these machines.
My use case is that I am exploring some start up ideas with regards to AI and need to deploy models using fast compute with low latency inference times.
Anyways, just some thought into how bullish into nvidia I am. It’s good to actually get some perspective even though you hear media talking about demand >>> supply.

Miss Culuss' daughters, which I am one of them, have been coerced by our mother, Miss Culuss, for years to sell our bodies in sexual servitude in the form of marriage to Mr. Bingas, Mr. Alhazred and Mr. Thossothoth. Trust me, it's been tiring hearing our mother constantly bragging to all the men of the grand hidden Victorian city of Harlotowah, California; that we were simply born to have our buttocks banged and bred at any man's will, desire or pleasure.
Tiring it is, but trust me it gets more exhausting when everyone here is immortal and Spring is eternal here. All residents of Harlotowah stop aging at the physical bodily age of 35 years old. Yet the years are drastically longer. For example, when I was a child, I remained with the aged body of an 11 year old until 3 decades had passed. Then the same process went for when my body reached its adolescent stage and so on and so forth, you get the idea of how this works now.
As for the Victorian era city, well we updated our old architecture with electricity but it is devoid of television, phones, pretty much everything except for electricity used for hygiene. Strange it may seem, but once you realize the nature of who/what created and rules over Harlotowah, it won't come to you as much of a surprise. You see, the ruler has a fetish, an immense fetish for sexual submission. Thus why even the boys here are either feminized (like I was), force fed hormones to transition or remain boys yet must partake of constant sexual initiation until their bodies reach the final aging point of 35.
Obscure sexual rules dominate Harlotowah, they are devoid of normal morality and some of them completely devoid of sanity.
Now, back to myself and my sisters. I, Scarlet, near the bodily age of 32, have been with Mr. Bingas and Mr. Thossothoth, not in marriage but as a sexual partner more so. Mr. Bingas, having the body of a father who's an alcoholic, though he is nice in the streets, he is maniacally rough in the sheets. Each time he's pounded me, it's to an almost primal tribal drum like rhythm, and it's amazing.
However, for Mr. Thossothoth, he has this intelligence with this subtle insidious air to it. It's like whenever we talk or spend time together, or even while he's fucking me, it's like I'm in this strange sinister dream. It feels euphorically ominous, I believe that's the best way to describe being with him as a sexual partner.
For example, while we were out in his spacious lovely garden during noon, in this smooth way, he tore my dress off with ease in fluid precise motions till I was only in my floral black lingerie beneath. He tied my hands together in front of me, tied them to the fence of the balcony we were on with the view of the garden, he stripped down and then began to ravage me. As he pulled my long auburn hair while he ravaged my buttocks, I felt like a synergy of profound sexual pleasure and deep flooding feelings of foreboding combine like two rivals having make-up sex.
For hours he fucked me until even when the sun began to set. I didn't hunger or thirst for good or drink, all I did hunger and thirst for was for his cock to ravage my ass and continue filling it with his seed, which he did. The whole experience, well all of those experiences to be honest since we've done this multiple times, they all felt like I was experiencing an orgasmic overwhelmingly ominous dream of the entirety of eternity itself.
As we had rough ravenous sex in those hours of noon to twilight, I saw the lush green trees sway with the wind back and forth in an almost harmonious rhythm, from serenely swift to terrifyingly slow, back and forth, back and forth. The flowers swirled in eternal circles as they moaned. The grass swayed back and forth as well while the bushes let out unhinged howls. It's as if the entire vast garden was being blown by a great wind from a world of pure delightfully demented symphonies.
I think I've become addicted to being a sexual partner of Mr. Thossothoth. Though I am curious of how Mr. Alhazred is like, I will see later this year. As for now, I shall remain as Mr. Thossothoth's sexual partnepossible bride. The eternal subtly malevolent and euphoric Spring of Harlotowah is close to blooming to its peak. I have a feeling that when it reaches its peak, something immense will happen either with me or with this town. We shall see. As for now, Mr. Thossothoth is outside waiting for me to have a splendid walk with him in his garden again.
And how I long to be at his side as we walk through his garden and the town day and especially at nightfall. The Spring during the night is like an rapturous wet dream and nightmare combined into one new force, new being, new experience. Mr. Thossothoth calls it the Daturain time, where the Datura Goddess' influence and presence is strongest. I believe him and am curious if we can do a sexual ritual to commune with her. Maybe, some night, hopefully soon.

OpenAI just announced GPT-4o, their new and improved flagship model for ChatGPT, and I'm betting that this is the model that Apple will integrate with Siri soon.
Here's why:

• It's VERY fast and now multimodal. It can "see" the world around you. Sam Altman (CEO of OpenAI) says it is the best interface he's ever used. He said, "It feels like AI from the movies," and he's not wrong. It's magic. You can ask it to look around you and solve math equations, offer outfit suggestions, help you figure out who and what you're looking at, and more. The demos that they showcased today during their livestream were magical.
• It can help you navigate the world and physical spaces. This is something that Meta, Humane, and Rabbit have been trying to do with their multi-modal devices (Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses, Humane AI Pin, Rabbit R1).
• It has improved memory and remembers context and details about you, what you do, and what you ask it to do. It's like having a deeply personalized personal assistant. Think Jarvis in Iron Man.
• It sounds NATURAL and, more importantly, reacts naturally. You can interrupt it mid-sentence, and it'll stop to listen to you, just like a real human. It's akin to the movie "Her". There's a reason they made the default voice sound like Scarlett Johansson.
• They've announced an exclusive MacOS app that integrates seamlessly into your workflow and allows you to upload screenshots to offer feedback on coding or your writing; you can voice chat with it and also have it summarize notes/ meetings. Nothing for windows yet.
• Siri is terrible as it currently stands. We have a ton of anecdotal evidence. Just look at iphone or any discussion around why Siri has gotten worse over the years. It's no secret that Amazon and Google have proven that their assistants are better in many ways, but they don't have the Apple ecosystem. This is the only reason Siri is remotely tolerable.
• The 2024 Apple Worldwide Developers Conference is happening in a little under a month, from June 10th - June 14th. They will be announcing the new features and direction for iOS18. Tim Cook stated on their recent earnings call, "We believe in the transformative power and promise of AI, and we believe we have advantages that will differentiate us in this new era, including Apple’s unique combination of seamless hardware, software, and services integration.”
• Bloomberg released this article on Friday. Apple Nears Deal With OpenAI to Put ChatGPT on iPhone. In it, they state that "The two sides have been finalizing terms for a pact to use ChatGPT features in Apple’s iOS 18, the next iPhone operating system".
• Forbes posted this earlier today: Apple’s New ChatGPT Deal—Here’s What It Means For iPhone Security.

I think we're at a pivotal time in tech with AI large language models, which are finally getting to the point where they are refined and fast enough to be harnessed for general-use cases. With its seamless tech, Apple will ride this wave and finally make Siri the magical assistant that it was always supposed to be.
**My position is 600 shares bought at an average cost of $186.10, bought right at market close today. I'm planning on holding them long-term. Tomorrow, I'll purchase some long-dated calls. Roast me all you want. I wanted to make sure I had all of my analysis squared away before I bought in.