I (22f) am the person that does most of the household chores. My fiance has cerebral palsy and can't lift a lot of things and wasn't really taught how to cook or clean, and I THINK I have pots. I asked my doctor to test and she did the thing where I lay down, sit up, and stand up. My blood pressure is fine. Nothing wrong there. But when I go from sitting to standing my heart rate increases almost 30 bpm. So she said to "treat it like pots." She said drink electrolytes and take breaks. But I can't freaking take breaks in the middle of making dinner.
I used to love cooking. I love food and cooking was one of my favorite things to do. But now I just can't. I can't even get through one meal without feeling like I'm gonna fall over. I have a metal chair I keep by the fridge but even that doesn't help when I'm cooking and there is no a/c. It's almost in the 90s in California and our property manager said she JUST put us on the list for a new ac. After we've been asking for years. They take forever to do anything here and until they do put in a new ac I think it's gonna be frozen food for the foreseeable future.
I'm just so frustrated. Like I know I need to exercise more. But I can't. I've tried. It was a lot easier when I didn't have a million other things to do. When I was like 16-17 I felt pretty good. I had been exercising for a while and felt a lot better than I had in a few years. Then I become an adult and all that drifted away. I got overweight and started to feel the effects of my physical illness and adhd. Now I can't even finish making alfredo. I mean sure it was homemade but damn it if it isn't one of the easier things I can make. I'm just fed up.

Howdy! I'm looking to build a private course on some family property in Southern UT. No tee pads or signage, just minimal tee box marking and (mostly) free standing baskets that don't stand out too much. I have a metal saw and welder and would like to make the baskets for as cheap as possible. I'm just hoping to find some inspiration here- fun designs, materials, etc. I plan to keep them as close to PDGA dimensions as possible, and the rest I'm open to. A couple more specific questions:
Anyone played on a course with rusty baskets? is it a big nuisance? I think I'd like the look, and any scrap chain I get my hands on will likely be rusty.
Any alternative materials to chain that work well? metal cable? retired climbing rope? I know chain is the best, just want to see what else might work.
Any input is much appreciated. Let's see some sculptural baskets!?

Link to original nosleep post:
https://www.reddit.com/nosleep/comments/1bgxwgm/i_found_a_set_of_blank_cassette_tapes_at_the_junk/
Growing up as a young kid in the late 1980s, I was always terrified by the stories I'd hear of people who'd go to the grocery store, take a hike in the woods, or even a trip to a crowded beach, and would disappear, never to be seen again.
Whenever I'd see their faces memorialized on the back of milk cartons, their last photographs forever immortalized in the macabre medium of ink on cardboard, it would send shivers down my spine.
But the truth is, by the mid 1990s, I had overcome my fears, too preoccupied by the distractions of an adolescent life.
That is, until one day, in 1996, when, at the age of fourteen, a mere freshman in high school, during my weekly pilgrimage to the junk store, I made a discovery in the cassette pile that would change my life forever.
"You're still listening to tapes?" My best friend Jess asked, rolling her eyes, a nerd in the truest sense. "Get with it, dude. CDs are the future. Higher dynamic range, superior sound quality. It's not even a question."
"Yeah, yeah." I replied, ignoring her criticism, as I rummaged through the store's now mound of cassettes, its collection having significantly accumulated since the dawn of the compact disc just a few years prior.
"Look at that thing. It just looks... not cool." My friend Mike added, as he pointed to my cassette player, which was clipped onto my belt, its black plastic headphones draped around my neck. "I swear, if you wear that to school, and the football team asks, I'm denying that we're friends."
Somewhere between elementary school and high school, he'd been converted to an athlete and, by association, became popular. But I didn't care about being cool. Or acting cool. Or dressing cool. I just liked what I liked, and to me, cassettes were functional, and cheap. And that, to me, was really cool.
"Sticks and stones can break my bones, but words can never-" I began to say to them, before something caught my eye at the bottom of the box.
It was a stack of eight homemade cassette tapes, each with a number scribbled onto it, bundled together by a flimsy old rubber band, that looked like it would break at any moment.
There was just something about them. Something so nondescript, so unapologetic, so mysterious, that I felt compelled to buy them, without even knowing what was recorded onto their magnetic tape.
"What are you guys doing later?" I asked Jess and Mike, as we left the store, and began our walk home, the ocean's waves showering us with mist, as they crashed along the seawall of our small South Shore town.
"First game of the season tonight." Mike replied, "Wouldn't miss it."
"You should check it out. Even I'm watching," Jess added, "We signed Walker in the draft. I just have a feeling about this season."
"No thanks." I declined, "I just can't get into sports. Despite my blue collar dad's continued attempts to convert me."
"Your loss." Mike replied, as we parted ways, each of us heading off in different directions.
—
Later that night, I was lying in bed, fantasizing about a world where Jess confessed her undying love for me, when I suddenly remembered that I'd bought the cassette tapes earlier that day.
So, I found the one labeled "1," popped it into my cassette player, and hit the rewind button.
After a minute, I heard it stop, and pressed play...
CLICK.
...Expecting to hear some grunge, britpop, or maybe even ska music. But what came out of the speakers was something... else.
"If you're listening to this..." A man said, his ominous voice crackling over the magnetic tape, "...You've found my instructions on where to find the bodies in the marsh."
What the heck? I thought to myself, nearly spitting out my soda. This must be some kind of prank. But for some reason, I couldn't stop listening.
"Bodies that, if discovered in the correct order, will provide clues to who I am. And why I did what I did."
Okay, maybe it's some sort of audio game? Like a detective thing, Yes, that must be it.
"As this is the first cassette in the set of eight, for this tape I'll be providing step by step instructions on how to find the first body. So, when you're ready, please proceed to the marshes on 139, where the bend of the road meets the sharp turn sign. You'll want to pause the tape now, until you get there."
CLICK.
I did just as he instructed, and paused the tape.
139. That's an actual street, not far away. Wait a minute. Could this be... real?
I wasted no time, picking up the plastic rotary telephone that I'd begged my parents to let me keep in my room, and called Jess' house.
"What the heck, dude!" She answered, "You just booted me offline. I've been downloading this song all day, and it was at 95%."
"Sorry," I replied, "But there's something I need to tell you."
I proceeded to tell her about the tape, and its instructions, and asked her to skip school with me the next day, to accompany me on my search for the bodies. Naturally, she laughed off the request, citing a presentation she had to give at school the next day, but offered up going right then and there.
"At night? Are you crazy?" I asked.
"I mean it's not real. So what's the worst that could happen?" She reasoned.
"Okay, let me call Mike."
I would have bet a million dollars that Mike would have declined the invite, and called me an idiot for even entertaining the idea, but when he picked up the phone, he was so upset that the boys in green, as he called them, had lost, that he jumped at the chance to get out of the house.
"Really?" I replied.
"Yeah, I can't listen to my old man make up excuses for them anymore. It's much too early in the season."
—
About an hour later, Jess, Mike, and I met at the marshes on 139, where the bend of the road meets the sharp turn sign, just as the narrator, as I'll call him, had described.
"Where to now, genius?" Mike asked, gesturing to the immense stretch of marshland that lay before us. A stretch of marshland that was so expansive, in fact, that our town was even named for it.
"One second." I said, before putting on my headphones and pressing play on the cassette player.
CLICK.
"If you're listening now, it means you made it to the starting point. Next, you'll want to turn to the marsh, and scan the horizon for an old scarecrow. Once you find it, walk across the top of the marsh, careful not to fall into its trenches, until you reach the scarecrow. Until then, pause the tape."
Once again, I did just as he instructed, and paused the tape, before returning my headphones to my neck, and looking off into the distance.
Sure enough, about a football field's distance away, was the scarecrow, its body illuminated by the moonlight, its arms open wide, as if calling us over to join it.
"Follow me." I said to my friends.
—
A few minutes later, I was trudging through the grassy surface of the marshlands, my flashlight in hand, as Jess and Mike lagged behind me, bantering away as usual.
"It's up, up, down, down, right, left, right, left, A, B, and start." Mike said.
"No, you idiot, it's up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, and start." Jess corrected.
"Will you two shut up already?" I called out, as I forged ahead, too annoyed to look back at them.
"You know what, Tyler? I'm really starting to worry about you, dude." Mike said.
"Oh yeah? Why's that?" I replied, rolling my eyes.
"You're really changing. Hanging out at the comic book store. Listening to metal. And worst of all, wearing those flannels around your waist."
I stopped in my tracks, and turned back to him.
"Me change? Dude, I saw you bullying Shea in the locker room, with the other football players."
"So what? The kid deserved it."
"Did he? Why?"
"For being a nerd. That's why. And you know what?"
"What?"
"Maybe you deserve to be bullied too."
I dropped my flashlight and stormed over to him, before we both locked eyes, fists clenched.
That's when we heard Jess, call back to us from up ahead.
"Hey guys..." She said.
We both looked over to her.
Jess simply pointed a few feet away, where we saw...
...A giant scarecrow, towering above the marsh, its wooden body barely keeping it standing, nearly all of its hay having fallen off.
—
CLICK.
"If you're listening now, it means you made it to the scarecrow. Next, you'll want to look out at the Y-shaped ravine before you, separating you from two different patches of marsh. Jump to the one on the left, take about five steps, and dig there. That's where you'll find the first body, and a clue. After you find it, you'll want to switch to the second tape."
CLICK.
I relayed the recording to my friends, who had very different reactions.
"I'm not jumping-" Jess said.
"Stand back." Mike interrupted, as he took a few steps back, crouched down, ran...
...And cleared the ravine, his boots splashing into the muddy marsh on the other side.
Jess and I simply looked at each other, then over at Mike, then down at the ravine, and finally back at each other.
—
A few minutes later, Jess was helping me up from the ravine, she too, having just crawled up from it after falling in.
Meanwhile, Mike was laughing so hard at us, that he stumbled backwards and tripped over something.
Seeing that Mike, too, was now covered in mud, Jess and I joined in on the laughter, and before we knew it, all three of us were all uncontrollably howling under the moonlight, all three of us, dirt caked onto all of our clothes.
But then Mike stopped laughing.
"Hey guys..." He said.
Jess and I looked over at him.
"...What the heck is that?" He continued, pointing to an object that was protruding from the marsh.
I turned on my flashlight, shined it onto the object, and was shocked to find...
...A human hand, long decomposed, its digits collapsed into the mud, its wrist bones sticking up through the grass.
Jess screamed at the top of her lungs.
Mike, having just stood up, fell back to the ground, his eyes wide in horror.
And I, I took it the worst of all, immediately turning to the ravine and gagging into it, as if that was the polite place to do it.
"But wait," Jess began, "That means..."
"...They're real. The tapes are real. And there are seven more bodies out here." I muttered, my body beginning to tremble.
"Cool." Jess said, before taking a closer look.
"We've gotta go tell someone. The cops. Let's get out of here." I said, still in shock.
"Are you kidding, dude? We have a once in a lifetime chance here, to find these bodies. Now let's find the clue and play the other tape." Mike said, his voice excited, but his body shaking.
"He does have a point, as disgusting as it is." Jess added.
"You can't be serious?" I yelled out to them both.
"Hey, you're the one that found the tapes. And wanted to come out here." Jess replied.
"The way I see it, there's only one way to decide." Mike called out.
"Oh yeah? What's that?" I asked.
"We vote." He said, with a smile.
—
A few minutes later, Mike and Jess were digging through the mud, searching for the clue, as I watched on in horror, switched tape "1" for tape "2", and pressed play.
CLICK.

I've noticed some comments that thought my other two ideas where not so practical. One pointed out my fishing idea couldn't exist because of lore reasons and was totally correct. Today I bring you my newest idea. CRAFTING. You can craft tools and even certain consumables throughout the game. Some ideas I have.

1. Homemade sticky bomb
2. craft able with tree sap OR gum

Recipe: 1 frag or tnt 8 Oz trees sap OR 6 pieces of chewed gum (see my other post)
The balancing is the time it takes to obtain these items. For example. If you are trying to get 6 pieces if chewed gum you will have to consume 6 pieces and chew them for a minute a piece before they turn into "chewed gum" (craft object)
For the tree sap you will need a metal tap There Is also a wooden tap but because of its construction you will need a 'hammer' to insert it into the tree. With the metal one you wouldn't.

1. Homemade Traps Recipe: spider string Scrap metal Bomb or even more scrap metal (for concertina Homemade trap)

With this idea we can make use of hunts gorgeous environment and actually collect cobwebs to then craft into spider string!
We can break down guns for scrap metal (scrap metal given is x times slot size.
These are just two of my ideas! I love hunt! Let me know what you think and PLEASE share some of your ideas

I don't have a problem with StewMac in general, but holy smokes, the cost of their truss rod rescue tool is offensive. Since it's also not currently available, I don't feel too bad asking if anyone has any alternatives or has any experience making their own. It's that low profile thread cutting die that's the trick.
I don't own a milling machine or a metal lathe - but for the cost of the tool I can just about buy a used one.
Maybe I'm just venting. I'm sure it's expensive because it's so niche, but damn...

Hello throwers! This is my first post here, and I'm excited to share my restarting journey. It began with an attempt to repurpose some bearings I use for my 3D printing projects into a homemade yoyo. The project didn’t quite succeed —it worked but couldn’t sleep. So, impulsively, I decided to inspire myself with a modern yoyo and grabbed an Arrow Elite for just 12 EUR last week, and I’ve quickly fallen back in love with yoyoing.
A bit of background: My journey began with a HyperRussell from Bandai, won at a mall yoyo demo in 1998 when I was 14. At the contest/demo, I quickly learned tricks like 'walking the dog,' 'rock the baby,' 'throwback,' and 'around the world.' Surprisingly, I mastered these in just 10 minutes, outperforming a group of 8-10 kids and winning the final showdown against two others. It was all spontaneous fun rather than serious competition. Since then, I’ve mainly stuck to those basic moves, without exploring deeper into competitive tricks.
Now, at 40 and over two decades later, I’ve picked up a yoyo again and was amazed to find my muscle memory intact! This past week, I've been revisiting those old moves and incorporating new ones like the trapeze into my routine, becoming more consistent and nailing the landings more often. I've also ventured into unresponsive play, where my basic bind is solidifying.
From my research, the top plastic yoyos like the iYoyo Shooting Star, Speedaholic XX, and the Ascent seemed great but were pricey with shipping at around 40 EUR. In search of more affordable options, I discovered the K2P, comparable to the Ascent but more wallet-friendly w/o shipping costs.
Why opt for another plastic yoyo? To avoid any potential heartbreak from accidental damage to the Arrow, and why not grab a deal when it’s right? I found a fantastic offer on Amazon: a K2P + V3 pack for just 27 EUR, compared to the typical 20 EUR for the K2P alone. This deal seemed too good to pass up, so I ended up getting three yoyos for the price of one iYoyo Shooting Star with shipping—39 EUR in total, and I'll even test the metal experience. I'll receive the pack within 3-4 days.
Was this a rookie move, or a good way to jump back into yoyoing? I’d love to hear your perspectives and any tips you might have!
PS: My 3D yoyo design has improved a lot btw, even it uses just 688 bearings, able to land the trapeze and perform a 'rock the baby', it's really fun to print and try designs :)

EDIT: (shortened) How is a telescoping rod & tube with a blocked end best made? By boring a thicker rod so it doesn't completely run the hollow through end-to-end? Or fit a rod material inside the tube? Is it possible for someone with little experience and a lathe to do this? What kind of lathe? What should I consider for the tube & rod material: aluminum or steel? Where can I get short lengths for prototyping?
I hope I'm asking the right questions to the right people. My apologies in advance; I have little to no experience in machining.
I am looking for direction regarding the fabrication of a length of aluminum or steel rod (the male) to fit inside a tube (the female) of the same metal. The length I'm thinking of is 6 inches, and the width is anywhere from an inch to a half inch. First, I need to figure out where to source these materials. Secondly, The tube isn't entirely hollow; if it were a rod rod rod, its hollowed-out section would end an inch shy of the end, leaving the tube block. This rod & tube don't have to have a tight fit; there can be a little play.
Is there a specific name for this sort of tube, or a better way to describe better than I have? Does the tube start as a solid rod that's bored out, or would a short length of solid rod inside an existing piece of tube work better?
This tube/rod design won't bear any pressure; a long thin bolt or screw will pass through a hole in the tube's terminal end and into a threaded hole at the tip of the rod. The tube/rod design is more for alignment, as a few rods are attached to the face of one plate and the tubes to the face of another. An object (imagine a block) is held between the two facing plates, and tightening the long screws will apply pressure to it.
I know this is not a job for a drill press. I've never worked on a lathe despite always wanting to take machinist (and welding) classes. Is the modest lathe (maybe an old model of one brand or another) that I could someday accomplish this sort of work on my own?
I know I know nothing; Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[I will limit the definition of "artillery" here to recoilless guns, mortars, and light field gun; I have no illusions that I can build a 155mm CAESAR in my garage workshop :)))]
The good news is that there is a lot of homemade recoilless gun and mortar designs out there; they are smoothbore weapons with relatively simple gun/firing mechanisms that can be made from materials like train axles, water pipes or 105-155mm howitzer propellant shells.
(What I mentioned above comes mainly from my research on the Viet Minh, although many modern articles also often mention it when talking about non-state armed groups such as Hamas)
It seems like no one has ever been able to build a light field artillery, even the ones from the 70s and 90s of the 19th century. Or maybe I haven't searched carefully enough, or that creating a weapon system with a metal, rifled barrel mounted on a recoil brake cylinder was too much for anyone who only had a few simple machine tools and blast furnaces in the garage or underground.
But the most concerning thing is probably the ammunition for them. If the artillery piece itself is a mechanical system, designing and manufacturing ammunition will require you to have a solid understanding of both mechanics and explosives, ensuring they will not explode right inside the barrel and must be produced in large enough quantities.

If you had to take your pick, where would your main base of operations be located? Would you want to stay isolated, safe and hidden, or would you consider expanding your territory in order to provide for more people? What kind of skill sets would you say would be most useful that you'd look for in a fellow survivor? Doctors are a must, obviously. someone well-versed in hunting, agriculture and living off-the grid might be a lifesaver. You'd also definitely want fighters, preferably ones that aren't so trigger happy. A group should never go without some form of security detail. Would you open your doors to anyone or be cautious of inviting new people in? There's also the potential issue of over-population which you would need to think about.
Would you be a benevolent leader? Do you see yourself eventually becoming a tyrant of sorts? Would you try to keep the peace and run things without resorting to violence or would you use violence as a means to exert authority? How would you keep the community well supplied? Hunting, fishing and growing your own produce in green houses would be a pretty effective way of keeping everyone well-fed. Raising cattle might be another option but most if not all domestic animals probably died at the beginning of the outbreak. Even if there were cattle left to raise, they'd need constant maintenance and they'd need to be fed. Would you consider implementing a rationing system to keep food/water from running out? What about raiding other settlements for supplies? Would you pull a Negan, and extort them for half their supplies in exchange for protection? Would you consider doing any of that or would it be too inhumane to steal from steal and pilage from other groups of people just trying to survive? A small group could live off the land but a big group would struggle more to do so. Especially if you're faced with potential bad weather that might make living off the land as a non-viable option. Of course, you could always send out some of your people to scavenge for more food but that's a bit of a shot in the dark. You're more likely to find a greater amount of food/water, medicine and weapons/firearms at another community but you'd have to take it by force so it really depends on if you could live with choices like that or not. Would your group have horses or cars/trucks as a means of transportation? Obviously if your group had cars, you'd be able to cover a lot more ground but vechiles need fuel and fuel is incredibly scarce. On the other horses need to be fed and properly cared for like cattle. Plus they can be spooked or torn apart by a herd of walkers.
How would you handle defense? Would you want a thin electric fence with barb-wires, a regular metal thick fence, a wooden stake wall, a wall layered together by sheets of fused metal, or a thick concrete wall lined with metal? Keep in mind that while some of these walls might provide greater defense, they would also require greater resources and manpower to patch up in case the walls are ever breached by walkers or other the communities. Would you set up traps around the perimeter like what the Ericson kids did as a means of protection and to hunt potential wildlife? Homemade bombs, tear-gas and gas mask would also prove invaluable. What type of weapons would you want your people to primarily use? Obviously a gun is never not useful so you'd definitely want your people to arm themselves up with firearms but ammunition is a limited resource. Archers with regular bows and crossbows would not only prove themselves to be great hunters but a great line of defense. Plus arrows can easily be crafted unlike bullets. In terms of melee weapons, you'd have your pick of knives, machetes and axes to distribute out. Since axes can easily get stuck, they aren't the most ideal melee weapons.
What kind of laws would you set up to keep your people in check? What about children? Would you try to protect their innocence or raise them up to be fighters as soon as their able to walk? Probably would be ideal to strike for more of a balance. You wouldn't want sheltered kids to be like Duck or Sarah cause that would get them killed you also wouldn't want to turn a kid into a mindless soldier like Minerva. Would you condone utilizing violence as a fear tactic and torturing your enemies or those who simply break the rules? How would you deal with thieves within your own ranks, backstabbers, non-contributers and the indecisive ones that aren't able to take a life or make difficult choices? What about the mentally ill, sick, elderly and the disabled? Would you let them stay but keep them under watch, exile them, or straight up execute them? The physically disabled could still prove to be useful if they have a wealth of information to provide to future generations. The same could be said for the sick and elderly but that doesn't change the fact that they are ticking time bombs. Once they die, they'll turn. The same could be said for pregnant women but with the right, they could survive and recover. Plus the odds of their survival is still much higher than the ederly and terminally ill. Maybe you could have the doctors strap their patients down, at least the ones that have the highest chances of dying. Not sure how feasible this would be but another good way of keeping track of who will die and turn is to have everyone wear heart rate monitors. It seems pretty unlikely since it would not only be pretty high-tech but there probably wouldn't be enough resources out there anymore to make heart rate monitors for everyone within your community.
What about the dangerous criminals that might pose a threat to the community like those with a history of murder, sexual assault, and child/domestic abuse? Would you execute them quickly, torture them and then let them become walkers, or exile them? Locking them up is another option like what Rick did to Negan but then they'd a detrimental drain on the precious resources of your community so keep that in mind.
Lastly, if you had to pick the most competent and capable survivor from the game/comics and/or series, who would they be? I'd recommend to choose a maximum of three per survivor's group to join your community. Take into account their personality, reliability, skillset and how well they function in a group environment.

Preface: I started hammering this out not too long ago, with hopes of it extending to the truely amazing lengths that other stories have. Personally I doubt it will, but hey might be entertaining for a few people. Criticism is welcome, constructive criticism even more-so. Formatting is not my strong suit (mobile doesn’t help, nor does not knowing what the hell im doing), neither is pacing nor doling out enough detail to certain points, hopefully in time I will improve. Title may be subject to change, still iffy on it.
Kata surveyed the fields below her, searching for her quarry. The corrupted beast had three times now harassed the keep, harming multiple guards and killing a child. She gripped her bow harder, poor Ensia… just a little girl, ripped from the world too young.
She knew her parents and saw them mourn. It was heart wrenching, listening to them sob. Holding the orange blood stained body of their little girl.
She owed it to them to bring back the beast’s head. She kept a close eye on the ground below, looking for the black furred bear. It fled into the nearby woods.
Tree cover was common but did not prevent much visibility to the ground. She knew it was fairly small, and packed a mean bite, but she had her stinger, positioned at the end of her armored tail.
The red scales a sign of her bloodline, a relative of the royal family. As such, it was her sworn duty to protect her people and hunt down those who threaten them.
Minutes of careful gazing and hearty flying later and she spied her prey, positioned by a tree and ravenously devouring a still live deer. She couldn’t help but pity the deer, dying to feed such a beast. She watched as it struggled, trying to escape.
Kata began to swoop down to the two animals. After she had killed the bear, she would put down the deer. It would only be right.
Tucking in her wings, she began to dive, twisting around a tree and notching an arrow into her bow. Pulling up from the dive to coast a mere 10 feet above the ground, she let the arrow loose, hitting the bear in the back of the neck.
It reared back, roaring in pain as she slung her bow and drew her sword. Coming in low and fast, nimbly twisting around trees, she let her momentum work for the cut as she held it out at an angle.
Simultaneously, she readied her tail to nab a quick sting on the beast just in case the sword wouldn’t prove lethal. Meer moments later her sword cut deep into the bear, dragging along its neck like a guillotine. It hadn’t cut as deep as she would’ve liked, so as she passed the beast she whipped her tail down onto its back, her stinger piercing its thick hide and quickly delivering a dose of paralyzing venom.
Pulling up, she began to loop back around for a second swipe. Agilely twisting mid air to avoid hitting branches. The bear had began turning to face her, stiffly moving as the venom did its work. Confident in its potency, Kata continued forward, sure that the bear would not be able to fight back.
Only as she got too close to turn away had she realized her confidence was for nought, as it reared up onto its hind legs and took a mighty swipe at her, knocking her to the ground and cutting a nasty gash into her face
. As she hit the floor, her head filled with a searing pain like staring into the sun. She began to worry that the bear had hit her far too hard for her to recover and fight back, until with a thunderous clap and bolt of blue light the pain disappeared.
She quickly clambered to her feet, ready to face the bear once more, but to her shock, the beast wasn’t charging her. In fact, before her eyes was not just a bear, but a large building of metal and strange stone.
To her astonishment, the bear started to roar in pain. Looking around for the cause, she noticed a concerning sight. Its rear quarter of its body was fused into the structure. She stepped forward, blood from her face dripping down her neck in non-concerning quantities, inspecting the odd building.
Matthew stared excitedly at the workshop before him.
The most interesting room of the Nevada General Laboratory. A research center for robotics, genetics, botany, and most relevantly, quantum physics.
The mainstay of the Quantum Physics Department was the Quantum Breach Array. Theoretically capable of creating a portal to any point in space, perhaps even time.
The prior test of the array had not gone smoothly. When it was activated, a black bear sized animal had bolted out and started attacking researchers, biting a technician in the shoulder before scurrying back through the array. He had shut it down as soon as he could.
Mostly ignoring a handful of warnings, his boss was too excited about the prospect laid before him to slow down the research. Matthew couldn’t fault him. He was always chasing something exciting, and ever since his career in the military the thrills had to be bigger and more intense.
Seeing as he had combat experience, they’d bought him a fairly sturdy set of equipment from a surplus depot and plopped him down in the room. His technical expertise and education were more than enough to run the necessary equipment.
Perhaps they had gone a bit overkill, with night vision, full body kevlar and plates, M4, 1911, and lever action shotgun, but over equipped was better than under, and he didn’t mind the extra firepower.
He waited until the PA system crackled to life as the words rang out, the excited voices of the skeleton crew in the building.
The Q.P supervisor, two Q.P researchers, and 4 researchers from other departments which wanted to be present for the test. Technically, he wasn’t part of the Q.P department. He was just a technician working with robotics, but he hadn’t minded the hasty change to his job description.
A flurry of quickly hushed voices echoed through the speaker, before a clear concise sentence was beheld.
“Activate the array.”
Like a good grunt, Matthew did as he was told. Walking to the console and starting the device.
He felt sick to his stomach as the array buzzed to life and forced a hole through time and space. An unnatural feeling to be sure.
Stepping away from the console, he heard a capacitor burst and looked up in horror as the array buzzed louder and louder, the blue orb in the middle starting to expand.
Stepping back to the console, he fiddled with the controls, trying to shut it down. Error message after error message met his attempts, before a blinding flash of blue light and a piercing headache pervaded his concentration with a thunderous, seering mental pain.
He hadn’t even had the time to fall to his knees before it dissipated, he went to take a step back, but felt something give resistance, turning around to see something which shouldn’t be there.
A shrub, phased into the floor, right behind him. Had he been standing just a foot back, he’d likely be part of the plant. Atleast, he would be taking up the same space. Something told him that would not be a pleasant experience.
Giving the workshop before him a quick survey, the array was scorched, but the machinery around it was fine. Lathes, drill presses, other machines. He noticed a few patches of grass poking through the concrete floor, as he began walking around around.
With his first real steps around the area, he felt light and airy. Picking up a nearby wrench and dropping it, he noticed as it accelerated down, it was about half the rate it normally should.
Excitement rose in his stomach as the implications were clear, he was in a new world.
He had to see the reactions of the others. Opening the workshop door, he quickly made his way to the observation room. It was close, despite not needing to be. They watched via cameras.
More shrubs and tree limbs littered the halls, which hardly slowed him down. Reaching the observation room, he tried to push the door open to no avail. Giving it a harder push, he heard the crunching of tree limbs. His gut sank with dread as he called out to no response
“Hello?”
He took a few steps back before charging the door with his shoulder, one hit. More crunching. A second, the door opened more, and a third hit forced the door open all the way.
What he saw within did not assuage his concern, as the room was filled with thick tree limbs. Through the leaves and branches he could see bits of lab coats. He could only mumble two words as reality dawned on him
“Dear God.”
All excitement vanished from his mind. He no longer desired to explore the new location before him. It had gotten people killed. Injuries can be treated, but catching a case of death?
Matthew took a deep breath, before closing the door to the observation room and walking down the hall. Heading towards an office, he opened the door and rummaged through one of his coworkers desks.
She was saving the bottle of whiskey for when the array was stable and could be reliably used, celebrating the hard work it took. It was a good bottle too, 20 years old. But she wasn’t going to drink it. None of the staff were, the facility has clearly moved.
The thought crossed his mind, imagine how confused the other departments must be when they show up for work in the morning. Pull into the gravel road, but no building meets them.
The thought of their confused faces forced a small grin on his face. But it didn’t last. Stepping over to a window, he gazed out to the landscape before him. It definitely was not the deserts of Nevada.
Placing his hand onto the window latch to open it, he felt a small static shock.
Kata walked up to the odd stone wall before her. It was quite bumpy and rough, looking as if it were sandstone, yet granite at the same time.
She wondered what it was, and where it was cut from. More importantly, she wondered how it got here. Godly intervention? A sorcerer messing up a spell?
Pulling her from her curious examination, the trapped, corrupt bear let out a low whine, as its forelimbs gave way, hanging awkwardly from its odd binds.
Walking over and hoisting her sword high, and bringing it down hard. Stabbing it between the eyes.
Thick black blood oozed out onto the blade, smelling like the rancid corruption it had been tainted with.
She was both concerned and angry. More and more tainted creatures had been popping up and they couldn’t find the source. It was frustrating, and she couldn’t do anything about it.
Corruption searches needed large, well trained units, along with plenty of supplies and squires. Searches took weeks, and it was imperative all casualties be accounted for. Such forces can only be mustered by houses which have months of preparation.
Returning to the building once more, she slowly outstretched her hand to touch it. Once her fingers neared close enough, a small arc zapped her fingers. Pulling her hand back with a small yelp she looked around, surprised.
The gears turned in her head, a weird building did a weird thing. Weird. But not weirder than it just showing up. Slowly reaching out to touch it again, focusing intently, she was startled by the sound of cracking from above.
She immediately drew her bow and notched an arrow, looking up to where the noise originated. She saw a hand pushing open a window, and acted automatically, letting the arrow loose straight at the hand, cutting a gash into its back.
Had it been parallel to the ground, the arrow would have cleanly pierced the palm. A yell sounded out from the open window followed by words. Foreign words, but words nonetheless.
Kata winced, she thought it was a threat, something tainted. But the corrupted don’t speak. If she were in that situation, she’d probably be swearing, so she guessed that’s what they were.
She called out to the voice, hoping they understood her
“Sorry! So sorry! I thought you could’ve been one of the corrupted!”
Slinging her bow and taking a few steps back, she leaped up to the window, beating her wings to gain more height on the jump. Grabbing onto the ledge and vaulting in, she continued to apologize, atleast, until she was cut off by another yell before a hard impact connected with her head
“OHB’JESUS”
She did not know what an “ohb’jesus” was but she certainly knew the person exclaiming that could pack a punch. Stumbling to her right, she bumped into a desk of sorts and used that to steady herself.
Looking at the person she accidentally attacked and who, to her, reasonably struck back, she was confused by the sight. They were not of her own people. They were slightly shorter than her, but a lot stockier. No wings, tail, or specialized ears. They had pale skin, a compact face, and weird legs. They also wore clothes made of a material unlike anything she’d seen before. They stood firmly, fists raised, ready to throw another punch, something she’d rather not have to deal with. She raised her hands out in front of her, in an expression of ‘lets calm down here, shall we?’
Matthew stood fists raised as a genuinely surprising sight stood before him. A manticore thing, though humanoid in posture. New world, new peoples he supposed. Regardless, he hadn’t expected to get shot nor for someone to just fly through the window, so he clocked them in the face.
He hadn’t hit too hard, but it still sent them stumbling to a desk. He was just about to throw another when they held up their hands.
Hopefully it meant the same thing to both parties, as he shifted his posture and took a step back.
Hopefully they were here to apologize, cause his hand hurt like hell. They began speaking, gesturing with their hands in what seemed like an apology, but Matthew couldn’t be certain. He had no clue what they were saying, new world and thus, new languages.
After a moment of confused staring, they pointed at his hand, to which he just gave a thumbs up. He thought they were offering to help with his hand, something which seemed like a nice gesture but Matthew knew he could fix it better. Unless they had magic.
Now that was something, the excitement of the situation wormed its way back into him.
He cautiously held out his hand, letting them come forward. He used that opportunity to get a good look at them.
They were slightly taller than him, like someone standing on their toes, and casting a quick glance down revealed that’s quite literally why. Their legs were digitigrade. Adding to that, they had wings, a scaled tail, and a mean looking stinger capping it off.
Looking at their face, it was odd. It looked like a shrunk down and slightly misshapen lion's head mixed with that of a humans.
After getting over the mild oddness of the sight, he noticed a mean cut on the side of their head, bleeding bright orange blood.
‘Wonder how they got that’
He thought to himself as he watched curiously as they began to take some items out of a bag. In short order he was disappointed to notice that they were rudimentary bandages.
He withdrew his hand and sighed, seeming to confuse the… person? He was going to go with a person. Before him. If his hand was simply going to be bandaged, he’d rather do it himself.
Walking over to a first aid kit, mounted just under a fire alarm, he opened it and took out a pack of zip stitches and a bandage. He gestured for the manticore person to come over, as he demonstrated the use of the supplies.
Apply the zip stitch, pull, adhere, and place a bandage over it. He gestured to their own injury. He might as well, at the very least, it could build some good will with the locals…

Greetings Gameswap,
Below is a lost of all thing available for trade. All Items will be CiB unless stated. Can send pics upon request when a trade is agreed upon. Want list is at the bottom of my list/post. Thank you!
Haves
Switch:
Fire Emblem Engage Divine Edition (Sealed)
Little Nightmares 2 (Sealed)
Final Fantasy XII The Zodiac Age
Super Mario RPG (case only)
Diablo III Eternal Collection
Civilization VI
Fifa 18 (Sealed)
Fifa 19
Fifa 20
Wii
Sonic Colors
PS5:
NBA 2K22
Final Fantasy Stranger of Paradise (Sealed)
Fifa 22
Fifa 23
PS4:
God of War (PS Hits)
Marvel Spider-Man
Middle Earth Shadow of War
3DS:
Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate
Metroid Samus Returns (hard trade)
New Super Mario Bros 2 (hard trade)
Kirby Planet Robobot (hard trade)
Legend of Zelda Tri Force Heroes (hard trade)
Mario Kart 7 (hard trade)
Mario and Luigi Super Star Saga and Bowsers Minions (hard trade)
DS:
Civilization Revolution
New Super Mario Bros (hard trade)
Brain Age (Loose)
CrossworDS (Loose)
Need For Speed Carbon (Loose)
Nintendogs Lab & Friends (Loose)
Sims 3 (Loose)
Zoo Tycoon DS (Loose)
Steelbooks:
Dragonball Fighterz
Elden Ring (Sealed)
Pokemon:
metal charizard, Electabuzz, Lusamine, Lillie, Phoebe, Lusamine, Skyla, Team Skull Grunt, Suspicious food tin, urn of vitality, alcremie vmax, charizard gx, charizard v, charizard vstar, charizard vmax, pikachu vmax, xerneas gx, silvally gx, decidueye gx, primarina gx, incineroar gx, malamar v, Sharpedo ex, hydreigon ex, zekrom, gardevoir ex, eiscue, centiskorch, flapple, decidueye, ninetails, eevee, birthday pikachu, birthday pikachu, gengar, water energy, double colorless enrgy, jolteon, gardevoir, zeraora v, silvally, mewtwo vunion, greninja vunion, torracat, litten, pikachu, lances charizard v, zacian vunion, grookey, greninja
Pokemon Binder & Jumbos
Pokemon Coins, Counters, Dice
Pokemon Pins
POPS/Figures:
Rocks 54 Jimi Hendrix
Rocks 53 Jimi Hendrix FYE Exclusive
Rocks 49 Lemmy Kilmister
Rocks 49 Lemmy Kilmister Gold Edition
Games 173 Tekken Jin
Games 175 Tekken Kazuya
Games 207 Tekken King Caped
Games 176 Tekken Devil Jin
Games 202 Tekken Armor King Blue Version
Games 202 Tekken Armor King Silver Version
Games 171 Tekken Heihachi
Games 172 Tekken King
Marvel 270 SpiderMan Big Time Suit
Marvel 098 SpiderMan Miles Moralez
Marvel 003 SpiderMan Hot Topic
Marvel 124 Taskmaster
Marvel 223 SpiderMan Homemade Suit
Marvel 220 SpiderMan Collector Corps
Marvel 224 Peter Parker
Marvel 195 SpiderMan Stealth Suit
Marvel 227 Vulture Glow
Marvel 110 Green Goblin 2016 SC Exclusive Glow
Marvel 109 Green Goblin
Marvel 233 Superior SpiderMan
Rock Candy Chun-Li Pink Version
Marvel vs Capcom Infinite Chun-Li Statue (local only/fragile)
Marvel vs Capcom Infinite Iron Man Statue (local only/fragile)
Marvel vs Capcom Infinite MegaMan Statue (local only/fragile)
Marvel vs Capcom Infinite Captian Marvel Statue (local only/fragile)
Infamous 2 Cole Statue Hero Edition (local only/fragile)
Funko Master Chief Bobblehead
Manga Realization Samurai Spider-man (not sealed but complete in box)
WANTS:
Amiibo, Switch, NGC, Wii, PS5 offers and lists
MTG Offers
Mario vs Donkey Kong
Princess Peach: Showtime
South Park Snow Day
The Legend of Zelda Skyward Sword HD
Kirby and the Forgotten Land
Metroid Prime Remastered
Kirbys Return to Dreamland Deluxe
Mario Strikers Battle League
Animal Crossing New Horizons
Fire Emblem (any switch)
Captain Toad Treasure Tracker
Detective Pikachu Returns
Cuphead
WarioWare Move It
Slimer Rancher (switch)

Hey everyone, I have a lathe and am getting a mill in about 2 weeks. I have a few small jobs here and there and I'm looking for more. I work at an aerospace machine shop but love it so much I had to get my own manual machines so I can do odd jobs on the weekends. Does anyone need parts made or know anyone who does? I have access to a metal supply shop which is very affordable but good quality so I can obtain most materials. I can ship parts as well. Located in Mesa AZ. Thanks for your help!