Sample green card letter affidavit
Green Dawn Global Takeover
2012.09.25 02:55 Kvothe24 Green Dawn Global Takeover
A mission to spread the great green word across the land. Place your troops in public places and post here. Over!
2024.05.16 23:26 lilburntoast Name an album and I will say my top 3 songs from there. (First topster)
 | submitted by lilburntoast to Topster [link] [comments] |
2024.05.16 23:11 Sweet-Count2557 15 Things to Do With Houston Kids Over Christmas Break
 | 15 Things to Do With Houston Kids Over Christmas Break Looking for ways to keep your kids entertained and make the most of their Christmas break in Houston?Well, let me tell you about one exciting activity that will surely pique your interest. Imagine gliding across the ice, surrounded by the sparkling lights and festive atmosphere at Discovery Green's ice skating rink. It's a perfect opportunity for some family fun and a chance to create unforgettable memories.But that's just the beginning! We have compiled a list of 15 things that will guarantee a memorable and enjoyable Christmas break for you and your little ones.So, keep reading to discover the other exciting activities that await you in Houston.Key TakeawaysHouston offers a variety of holiday light displays and attractions, including neighborhoods known for extravagant lights, the Light Park in Katy, and Galaxy Lights at Space Center Houston.The Houston Botanic Garden presents Radiant Nature, an illuminated wonderland featuring Chinese lantern installations, offering a unique and enchanting holiday attraction.Ice at Discovery Green provides an outdoor ice skating rink where families can skate with Santa on select days, allowing them to embrace the holiday spirit.Indoor play spaces like Wonderwild in the Heights and Frolics Castle at Memorial City Mall offer safe and entertaining environments for kids to release their energy and have a great time during the holiday break.Holiday Lights and DisplaysLet's explore the magical world of holiday lights and displays in Houston, where neighborhoods come alive with dazzling decorations and festive cheer. Houston is known for its extravagant holiday lights, and two neighborhoods that stand out are River Oaks and Pecan Grove. These neighborhoods go all out, creating breathtaking displays that are perfect for holiday lights photography.As you drive around, you'll be amazed by the festive atmosphere that fills the air. The streets are lined with beautiful displays and decorations that will surely put you in the holiday spirit. It's a wonderful experience to immerse yourself in the joy of the season and create lasting memories with your family.If you're looking for a unique light experience, check out The Light Park in Katy. It offers a drive-thru light experience, allowing you to enjoy the dazzling displays from the comfort of your own car.Another immersive holiday event is Galaxy Lights at Space Center Houston. Here, you can explore the wonders of space while being surrounded by stunning light displays.But the holiday lights aren't limited to neighborhoods. Houston also offers other attractions that are worth visiting. The Houston Botanic Garden presents Radiant Nature, an illuminated wonderland where you can explore dozens of Chinese lantern installations after dark. It's a magical transformation of the Gardens that showcases the beauty of nature in a new light.For some outdoor fun, head to Ice at Discovery Green. They offer an outdoor ice skating rink where you can glide across the ice and embrace the holiday spirit.And if you're looking for indoor play spaces, Wonderwild in the Heights and Frolics Castle at Memorial City Mall are great options. They provide safe and entertaining environments for your kids to release their energy and have a great time.In Houston, the holiday lights and displays are truly a sight to behold. Whether you're strolling through neighborhoods or visiting attractions, you'll be mesmerized by the festive atmosphere and the stunning decorations. So grab your camera, gather your loved ones, and embark on a magical journey through the best neighborhoods for holiday lights in Houston.Galaxy Lights at Space Center HoustonAs we continue our exploration of Houston's enchanting holiday lights and displays, let's now venture into the immersive and awe-inspiring world of Galaxy Lights at Space Center Houston. This holiday event takes Houston's holiday light displays to a whole new level, transporting visitors into a dazzling galaxy of lights and wonder.Here's why you should add Galaxy Lights to your must-visit list this Christmas break:Spectacular Light Displays: Space Center Houston's Galaxy Lights boasts an incredible array of light installations that will leave you in awe. From twinkling stars to colorful planets, you'll feel like you're floating through space as you stroll through this captivating wonderland.Interactive Experiences: In addition to the breathtaking light displays, Galaxy Lights offers interactive experiences that are fun for the whole family. Step into a virtual reality experience and take a journey through the solar system, or try your hand at controlling a rover on Mars. These interactive elements add an extra layer of excitement and engagement to the event.Festive Entertainment: Galaxy Lights also features live performances and festive entertainment to get you in the holiday spirit. From holiday-themed laser light shows to live music, there's something for everyone to enjoy. You can even catch a glimpse of Santa Claus himself as he makes special appearances throughout the event.With Space Center Houston's Galaxy Lights, you'll not only get to experience Houston's holiday light displays, but also embark on an unforgettable journey through the cosmos. So gather your family and embrace the freedom to explore this enchanting holiday event that will create lasting memories for years to come.The Light Park in KatyThe Light Park in Katy offers a mesmerizing drive-thru light experience that will transport you and your family into a magical winter wonderland. As you enter the park, you'll be greeted by a dazzling display of lights, creating an enchanting atmosphere that's sure to ignite your holiday spirit. The drive-thru experience allows you to enjoy the beautiful light displays from the comfort of your own vehicle, making it a convenient and family-friendly holiday activity.As you navigate through the park, you'll be treated to a symphony of colors and shapes, with each display more stunning than the last. From towering Christmas trees adorned with twinkling lights to whimsical scenes depicting Santa's workshop, there's something for everyone to enjoy. The attention to detail is truly remarkable, and you'll find yourself in awe of the artistry and creativity that went into creating this magical light park.The Light Park in Katy is the perfect way to spend an evening with your loved ones. The drive-thru format allows you to go at your own pace and take in the sights at your leisure. Whether you're looking for a romantic date night or a fun outing with the whole family, this holiday attraction has it all.Houston Botanic Garden's Radiant NatureHouston Botanic Garden's Radiant Nature presents a breathtaking illuminated wonderland for visitors of all ages to explore and enjoy. Step into a magical illumination that transforms the garden into a nature wonderland, creating an enchanting experience like no other.Here's why you should add Radiant Nature to your list of must-see holiday attractions:Immerse yourself in the beauty of nature: As you wander through the garden, you'll encounter dozens of Chinese lantern installations that come alive after dark. These intricate and colorful lanterns illuminate the surroundings, creating a mesmerizing atmosphere that celebrates the wonders of the natural world.Witness the transformation of the Gardens: Radiant Nature showcases the garden in a whole new light, quite literally. The enchanting illumination highlights the unique features of the plants and landscapes, allowing you to see them in a different perspective. It's a wonderful opportunity to appreciate the beauty and diversity of the botanical world.Create lasting memories with your family: Radiant Nature offers a memorable experience for the whole family. From strolling through illuminated pathways to discovering hidden surprises, there's something for everyone to enjoy. Let the magical ambiance spark joy and wonder in your children's eyes as they explore this captivating nature wonderland.Don't miss out on this enchanting holiday attraction. Radiant Nature at Houston Botanic Garden promises to transport you to a world of magical illumination and natural beauty. So, gather your loved ones and embark on a delightful adventure that will leave you with cherished memories.Ice Skating at Discovery GreenGet ready to lace up your skates and hit the ice at Discovery Green for a fun-filled and festive ice skating experience. At Discovery Green, you can enjoy outdoor ice skating in the heart of downtown Houston. This popular holiday attraction offers a magical setting where you can glide across the ice and embrace the holiday spirit.The outdoor ice skating rink at Discovery Green is the perfect place to create lasting memories with your family. Imagine the joy on your children's faces as they take their first steps on the ice. As you skate hand in hand, you can feel the excitement in the air and the holiday cheer all around you.One of the highlights of ice skating at Discovery Green is the opportunity to skate with Santa on select days. This special event allows your little ones to meet Santa Claus himself while enjoying the thrill of gliding on the ice. It's an experience that combines two beloved holiday traditions and will surely make this Christmas break one to remember.Whether you're a seasoned skater or a beginner, Discovery Green's ice skating rink offers a wonderful activity for everyone. The rink is surrounded by festive decorations, adding to the holiday ambiance. So, grab your skates and join in the fun as you twirl and spin on the ice, surrounded by the beauty of Discovery Green.Ice skating at Discovery Green is just one of the many holiday-themed activities that Houston has to offer. So, take advantage of the freedom that the Christmas break brings and explore all the festive attractions in the city. From dazzling light displays to enchanting holiday events, there's something for everyone to enjoy during this magical time of year.Don't miss out on the chance to make unforgettable memories with your loved ones. Lace up your skates and let the adventure begin!Wonderwild Indoor Play SpaceWhen it comes to finding a fun and adventure-filled play space for kids in Houston, Wonderwild in the Heights is the place to be. At Wonderwild, children can enjoy exciting indoor playtime and engage in active entertainment.Here are three reasons why Wonderwild is the perfect destination for your little ones:Endless Fun: Wonderwild offers a wide variety of activities that will keep your kids entertained for hours. From climbing walls to giant slides, there's something for everyone. Children can explore the colorful play structures, navigate obstacle courses, and even bounce on trampolines. The possibilities for fun are endless, and your kids will have a blast letting their imaginations run wild.Safe Environment: Wonderwild prioritizes the safety of its young visitors. The play space is designed with padded floors and walls to ensure a secure environment for children to play freely. Additionally, the staff members are attentive and trained to maintain a safe and enjoyable experience for everyone. You can relax and have peace of mind knowing that your kids are in good hands.Physical Activity: In today's digital age, it's important to encourage children to engage in physical activity. Wonderwild provides the perfect opportunity for kids to get moving and stay active. Whether they're climbing, sliding, or jumping, they'll be getting exercise while having fun. This indoor play space allows children to burn off energy and develop their motor skills in a controlled and supervised setting.Frolics Castle at Memorial City MallLocated within Memorial City Mall, Frolics Castle is a fantastic indoor play area where kids can unleash their imaginations and have a blast. This kids play area is the perfect destination for mall entertainment and offers a safe and exciting environment for children to play and explore. With its colorful and whimsical design, Frolics Castle will capture the attention of kids of all ages.Inside Frolics Castle, children can climb, slide, and crawl through various play structures, allowing them to release their energy and have a great time. The castle-themed play area is filled with interactive elements, including tunnels, bridges, and obstacles, that will keep kids engaged and entertained for hours. They can let their imaginations run wild as they pretend to be knights, princesses, or even dragons in this magical setting.Parents can relax and enjoy some shopping or take a break while their children play in Frolics Castle. The play area is conveniently located within Memorial City Mall, making it a convenient option for families looking for mall entertainment. It provides a safe and supervised space for kids to have fun, while also giving parents the chance to browse the mall or grab a bite to eat.Frolics Castle at Memorial City Mall is a must-visit destination for families during the holiday break. It offers an enjoyable and engaging experience for kids, allowing them to burn off some energy and have a memorable time. So, if you're looking for a fun and exciting activity for your children, head over to Frolics Castle and let the adventure begin!Neighborhood Holiday LightsAs we explore the enchanting world of holiday lights in Houston, prepare to be dazzled by the neighborhoods that go above and beyond to create a festive atmosphere. There's nothing quite like taking a drive through the city during the holiday season and witnessing the magical display of neighborhood holiday lights.Here are three neighborhoods that are known for their extravagant displays:River Oaks: This upscale neighborhood is famous for its stunning holiday lights. As you drive through the streets, you'll be greeted by beautifully decorated mansions, adorned with twinkling lights and festive decorations. It's a sight that will truly take your breath away.Pecan Grove: Located in Richmond, Pecan Grove is another neighborhood that goes all out when it comes to holiday lights. The entire community comes together to create a festive atmosphere, with each house competing to have the most dazzling display. You'll be amazed by the creativity and effort that goes into these decorations.The Light Park in Katy: For a unique and immersive holiday experience, head to The Light Park in Katy. This drive-thru light park features over a million lights, synchronized to holiday music. As you drive through the park, you'll be surrounded by a dazzling display of lights, creating a truly magical atmosphere.Driving through these neighborhoods and experiencing the festive atmosphere is a wonderful way to embrace the holiday spirit and create lasting memories with your family. So grab some hot cocoa, hop in the car, and get ready to be amazed by the neighborhood holiday lights in Houston.Festive Atmosphere DriveReady to immerse yourself in the holiday spirit? Hop in the car and embark on a festive atmosphere drive through the neighborhoods of Houston, where dazzling light displays and beautiful decorations await.There's something magical about driving through neighborhoods adorned with twinkling lights and festive decorations. It's a tradition that brings joy and excitement to both young and old. As you cruise through the streets, you'll be greeted by houses decked out in colorful lights, extravagant displays, and whimsical decorations. It's a feast for the eyes and a surefire way to get into the holiday mood.One neighborhood that's known for its extravagant holiday lights is River Oaks. The houses in this area go all out, creating a truly enchanting atmosphere. Pecan Grove is another neighborhood worth visiting, as it boasts stunning displays that are sure to leave you in awe. As you drive around, take your time to admire each house and appreciate the effort that goes into creating such festive scenes.If you're looking for a more immersive experience, consider visiting The Light Park in Katy. This drive-thru light experience offers a dazzling display of lights synchronized to festive music. It's a magical journey that will leave you and your family in awe. Another option is Galaxy Lights at Space Center Houston, where you can explore a winter wonderland filled with interactive displays and larger-than-life light installations.A festive atmosphere drive is a wonderful way to create lasting memories with your family. So gather your loved ones, turn up the holiday tunes, and set off on a magical adventure through the neighborhoods of Houston. Enjoy the beauty of the lights, the joy in the air, and the warmth of the holiday spirit. It's a time to be together, to be filled with wonder, and to embrace the magic of the season.Chinese Lantern InstallationsIf you're looking for a unique and enchanting holiday attraction in Houston, be sure to explore the dozens of Chinese lantern installations after dark at the Houston Botanic Garden's Radiant Nature. This breathtaking display is part of the Chinese lantern festivals, which are cultural celebrations that showcase intricate and vibrant lanterns.Here's why you should make a visit to Radiant Nature a priority this Christmas break:Immersive Experience: As you walk through the Houston Botanic Garden, you'll be transported to a world of wonder and magic. The Chinese lantern installations create a mesmerizing ambiance, illuminating the night sky with their stunning colors and designs. It's an experience that will captivate both children and adults alike.Cultural Appreciation: The Chinese lantern festivals are deeply rooted in tradition and symbolism. Each lantern tells a story and represents different aspects of Chinese culture. By visiting Radiant Nature, you'll not only be entertained but also have the opportunity to learn and appreciate the rich heritage behind these beautiful lanterns.Family Bonding: The holiday season is all about spending quality time with your loved ones, and visiting Radiant Nature is the perfect way to do just that. As you stroll together through the garden, you can marvel at the intricate lanterns, share laughter and create lasting memories. It's a chance to slow down, embrace the freedom of the moment, and enjoy the company of your family.Outdoor Ice Skating RinksAfter exploring the enchanting Chinese lantern installations at the Houston Botanic Garden's Radiant Nature, it's time to lace up our skates and glide into the next festive adventure - outdoor ice skating rinks. Outdoor ice skating is a classic winter activity that brings joy and excitement to people of all ages. Houston may not have the coldest winters, but that doesn't mean we can't enjoy this icy pastime. So, grab your warmest coats and hats, because we're about to hit the ice!When it comes to outdoor ice skating, there are a few tips to keep in mind. First, dress in layers to stay warm while on the ice. It's important to stay cozy, but also be able to move freely. Second, wear thick socks to provide extra cushioning and insulation for your feet. And don't forget to bring gloves to keep your hands toasty!Now, let's talk about the best outdoor ice skating rinks in Houston. One popular spot is the Ice at Discovery Green. Located in the heart of downtown, this rink offers a picturesque setting with the city skyline as its backdrop. Another great option is the Memorial City Ice Rink. This outdoor rink is surrounded by festive decorations and offers a fun and lively atmosphere.Whether you're a seasoned skater or a beginner, outdoor ice skating is a fantastic way to embrace the holiday spirit and create lasting memories with your family and friends. So, let's lace up our skates and glide across the ice, feeling the exhilaration and freedom that comes with this winter activity. Houston may not be known for its icy winters, but that won't stop us from enjoying the thrill of outdoor ice skating!Immersive Holiday EventWe can't wait to dive into the immersive holiday event and be transported into a world of enchantment and wonder. Here are three reasons why we're excited about this experience:Interactive Light Displays:Picture yourself surrounded by a mesmerizing array of lights that respond to your touch and movement.Engage with the interactive light installations, creating a unique and personalized experience.Watch as the lights dance and twinkle, illuminating the night and filling you with a sense of joy and awe.Magical Atmosphere:Step into a world where holiday magic comes to life, immersing you in a festive and enchanting atmosphere.Be surrounded by beautifully decorated trees, sparkling ornaments, and whimsical characters that ignite your imagination.As you explore the immersive holiday event, feel the warmth and joy radiating from every corner, making you believe in the magic of the season.Memorable Experiences:This immersive holiday experience offers the perfect opportunity to create lasting memories with your family and loved ones.Capture unforgettable moments as you marvel at the stunning light displays and share laughter and joy together.Whether it's a romantic stroll hand-in-hand, a fun-filled adventure with your children, or a gathering with friends, this event promises to leave a lasting impression.Get ready to be captivated by the immersive holiday experience and be transported into a world filled with interactive light displays, magical atmosphere, and memorable experiences. It's time to embrace the freedom of the holiday season and create cherished memories that will warm your heart for years to come.Enchanted Holiday AttractionGet ready to be transported to an enchanting holiday attraction that will captivate your imagination and fill you with wonder. Houston is home to some truly magical light installations and enchanted holiday crafts that are sure to delight both kids and adults alike.One of the must-visit holiday attractions in Houston is the Houston Botanic Garden's Radiant Nature. This illuminated wonderland features dozens of Chinese lantern installations that come to life after dark. As you wander through the gardens, you'll witness the magical transformation of the surroundings and experience the beauty of nature in a whole new light. It's a unique and enchanting holiday attraction that isn't to be missed.If you're looking for some outdoor fun, Ice at Discovery Green is the perfect choice. This outdoor ice skating rink offers a festive atmosphere where you can glide across the ice and embrace the holiday spirit. And on select days, you can even skate with Santa himself! It's a fun and festive activity that the whole family can enjoy.For those looking for indoor entertainment, Wonderwild in the Heights is an adventure-filled play space that will provide hours of fun. Let your kids release their energy and have a great time exploring the various play areas. And at Frolics Castle in Memorial City Mall, kids can enjoy free play and let their imaginations run wild.No matter which enchanted holiday attraction you choose to visit, one thing is for sure - you're in for a memorable experience. So gather your family and embrace the joy of the holiday season as you immerse yourselves in dazzling light displays and create lasting memories. Houston has everything you need to make this Christmas break truly magical.Release Energy and Have FunAs we continue our exploration of Houston's enchanting holiday attractions, let's now shift our focus to a subtopic that's perfect for kids (and adults) who need to release their energy and have a whole lot of fun. During the Christmas break, there are plenty of indoor activities and holiday-themed crafts to keep everyone entertained. Here are three options to consider:Indoor Play Spaces:Wonderwild in the Heights provides an adventure-filled play space where kids can climb, slide, and explore to their heart's content. It's a safe and entertaining environment for indoor play, allowing kids to release their energy and have a great time.Frolics Castle at Memorial City Mall offers free play for kids, giving them the freedom to let loose and enjoy themselves. With various play areas and activities, it's a fantastic option for burning off energy and having fun.Holiday Themed Crafts:Many local museums and art centers offer holiday-themed craft workshops during the Christmas break. Kids can unleash their creativity and make their own ornaments, cards, and decorations. It's a great way to engage their imaginations while enjoying the freedom to create.DIY Festive Games:Create your own holiday-themed games at home. From pin the nose on Rudolph to a Santa sack race, the options are endless. Get the whole family involved and have a blast playing these customized games. It's the perfect opportunity to release energy, have fun, and make lasting memories together.With these indoor activities and holiday-themed crafts, kids can have a blast while staying active and engaged during the Christmas break. So, let's embrace the freedom to release energy and have a whole lot of fun!Embrace the Holiday SpiritImmerse yourself in the holiday spirit with a variety of festive activities and events in Houston. Get into the holiday groove by indulging in some delightful holiday crafts and enjoying the enchanting sounds of holiday music. Houston offers plenty of opportunities to embrace the holiday spirit and create lasting memories with your family.Get your creative juices flowing by participating in holiday craft workshops. Many local art centers and community organizations offer classes where you can learn to make your own unique holiday decorations. From handmade ornaments to festive wreaths, these workshops allow you to express your creativity and add a personal touch to your holiday decor.Don't forget to tune in to the sweet melodies of holiday music. Throughout the city, you'll find live performances of your favorite holiday tunes. Whether it's a local choir singing carols or a symphony orchestra playing classical holiday music, there's something for everyone to enjoy. Let the music fill your heart with joy and put you in the holiday spirit.In addition to holiday crafts and music, Houston also boasts stunning light displays that will leave you in awe. Take a drive through neighborhoods like River Oaks and Pecan Grove, known for their extravagant holiday lights. Marvel at the beautifully decorated homes and immerse yourself in the festive atmosphere. For a unique experience, visit The Light Park in Katy, where you can enjoy a drive-thru light show that will dazzle your senses.Embracing the holiday spirit in Houston is all about celebrating with loved ones and enjoying the festive atmosphere. So gather your family, put on your favorite holiday tunes, and get ready to create memories that will last a lifetime.Frequently Asked QuestionsHow Much Does It Cost to Attend Galaxy Lights at Space Center Houston?The cost to attend Galaxy Lights at Space Center Houston varies depending on the day and time you visit. It's best to check their website for the most accurate and up-to-date pricing information.When planning your visit, consider going during off-peak times to potentially save on admission costs.Regardless of the cost, experiencing the dazzling light displays and immersive holiday event at Galaxy Lights is sure to create lasting memories for you and your family.Are There Any Special Events or Activities at the Light Park in Katy?Yes, there are special events at the Light Park in Katy that Houston kids will love! With dazzling lights and a drive-thru experience, it's perfect for creating lasting memories with your family.At the Light Park, you can immerse yourself in the holiday spirit and enjoy beautiful displays and decorations. It's an enchanting holiday attraction that will leave you in awe.Can You Purchase Tickets in Advance for Houston Botanic Garden's Radiant Nature?Yes, you can purchase tickets in advance for Houston Botanic Garden's Radiant Nature. Planning in advance is a great idea to ensure availability and secure your spot.Online booking makes it convenient and easy to purchase tickets from the comfort of your home. Pricing information can be found on their website, allowing you to budget accordingly.Don't miss out on this unique and enchanting holiday attraction, so be sure to get your tickets early!What Is the Admission Fee for Ice Skating at Discovery Green?The admission fee for ice skating at Discovery Green during Christmas break isn't mentioned without the context of Things to Do With Houston Kids Over Christmas Break.Is There a Minimum Age Requirement for Children to Play at Wonderwild Indoor Play Space?At Wonderwild indoor play space, there's no minimum age requirement for children to play. This means that kids of all ages can enjoy the adventure-filled play space and have a great time releasing their energy.Indoor play spaces like Wonderwild provide numerous benefits for children, such as promoting physical activity, stimulating imagination, and promoting social interaction.ConclusionSo gather your family and get ready to make some unforgettable memories this Christmas break in Houston! Whether you're marveling at the extravagant holiday lights in River Oaks and Pecan Grove, exploring the immersive Galaxy Lights event at Space Center Houston, or letting your kids release their energy at Wonderwild or Frolics Castle, there's something for everyone to enjoy.And did you know that Houston Botanic Garden's Radiant Nature features over 100 Chinese lantern installations? It's a truly enchanting experience you won't want to miss! submitted by Sweet-Count2557 to worldkidstravel [link] [comments] |
2024.05.16 23:11 Weathers_Writing They call Silicon Valley the tech capitol of the world. They're wrong
I won't disclose its actual location, so if that's why you're here, sorry to disappoint. It's not time for that yet. However, I do think it's time to start getting the word out. I've noticed an increase in what I'll call "Antennas" lately, or people who can detect cross-planar phase shifts. Without getting into all the math (some of which I don't even know), this is basically a phenomenon which refers to entropy seeping into our universe from other realms or universes or whatever you want to call it. Simply put, people think our universe is a closed system to entropy, meaning that the disorder of any variable in our universe can only increase or decrease in direct proportion to other variables in that same system (the universe). Under this precept, we can establish rules like the Laws of Thermodynamics, and for most people, they're effective. But not for Antennas.
Put another way, if you throw a bunch of bouncy balls into a box, there are a number of different configurations that the balls could take on, with different speeds and magnitudes. You can calculate all of those if you have the right numbers. Now let's say you throw in another set of balls that you don't consider in your calculations of the initial set. Well, then you're not going to get an accurate picture of what's happening. Most people only see the first set and calculate based on that, but some people can see two, three, four or more sets.
You'll understand the concept better when I tell you the story, but I wanted to give you a primer on an important concept that will help you understand why this place, which I'll call "Area X", exists, and what the goals of the people who work there are.
Also note that I'm going to be using the alias "Trent" moving forward. Please refer to me as such in any direct messages.
***
Eighteen years ago I started working as an independent Home Inspector. I dropped out of community college after my first semester (not because I didn't find some of the subjects interesting, but because deference to a man or woman has never been my style) and started working some odd jobs. I did construction work for a couple years, then plumbing. I even drove a garbage truck for six months. I've always found pleasure in using my hands, and getting dirty was never a problem for me. Still, having a boss really dragged ass, so I spent my free time working on creating my own business. It took a few years and lots of savings, but I finally managed to get basic set of Home Inspection equipment: Tyvek coveralls, a cheap half-face respirator, voltage & AFCI/GFCI testers, CO2 and radon monitors, an IR camera, and telescoping mirrors in addition to the boots, safety glasses, electric gloves, ladder, and toolkits I already had on hand.
My buddy at the time was in the business, but he was moving off to the coast, so he helped me get set up and even introduced me to some of his clients. Of course, by that time I had already gotten my State license, but I still was a bit apprehensive to work with insurance agencies. I thought I could make a living working independently, inspecting for mold or sizing up a house for a prospective buyer. Eventually, though, I realized I should probably take every job available to me.
Easing into the business went about as well as it could have. The clients my friend referred to me were very satisfied with my work, and I was able to retain them. Then, in order to increase my reach, I hired someone on Fiverr to build a website for my company which led to a marked increase in traffic and conversions. About six months through, I began to get on a first-name basis with the boys and girls down down at Allstate and Progressive, and they fed me some of the bigger cases. In fact, I got so booked by year's end that I had to hire someone to help manage my schedule and the Excel spreadsheet with all my finances. I capped off a successful year with a 5-star Google rating and a trip to Ireland to visit some family and friends and get piss drunk. When I got back, it was the grindstone all over again, until the summer when I discovered… well, you'll see.
First off, I want to say that I was never one to believe in the paranormal. I grew up watching the movies and hearing the ghost stories round the campfire like every other kid, but it never struck a chord with me. If I can't touch it or see it or hear it, does it really exist? Probably not. So don't go thinking this was a scared man seeing his own shadow. That being said, I had this sense that something was off about this house when I parked along the curb and looked through a large window, perhaps two times the size of my van, to a dingy, dark foyer.
The entire neighborhood was stacked with upper-middle class domiciles, though it seemed like only two thirds of them were occupied, mostly by professionals who commuted to the City every weekday, and the rest were empty. As a man who understands real estate, to say this was strange would be an understatement. Still, I had no problem appraising the mini-mansion for a couple of newlyweds looking to enter the community. I did some research on the property ahead of time, and it seems that it was owned by a couple of old timers who had gone off the grid some time ago. The water and electric bill were both unpaid dating back to 2004 (it was June of '06 now). The bank had repo'd the house (which only had about 100k left on it) and held it for a year and a half before putting it back on the market. I tried to find out more about the old couple who vanished, but there was nothing in the news.
I stepped out of the van in my coveralls and grabbed my suitcase which had my mask, gloves, and eye protection in it. I liked to do a preliminary survey first, running an eye test on the exterior then interior before bringing out the big guns (that way I could identify the areas where I think there could be problems instead of running a metal detector over the whole damn ocean seaboard). I was about to do just that when the window caught my eye again. It felt uncharacteristic of me to be so occupied with this window, but I detoured to the front porch and peeked inside anyway.
Most of the furniture had already been moved out, meaning all that was left was a single three-seater couch, a couple candlesticks on the fireplace mantle, a pristine chandelier overtop a dining room table, and the kitchenware: an oven, gas stovetop, marble countertops, and an island. I could see into the living room very clearly with the afternoon light, but the dining room was dim enough that there were a few structures I couldn't quite make out in the distance. One of them appeared to be some kind of china cabinet or bookshelf—I figured it was the former considering where it was located. The other shadow looked kind of like a grandfather clock. Or at least that's what I thought until it moved.
When I say it "moved", I don't mean to say that it picked up and walked away. If you're not familiar with the Necker Cube, I suggest you search it up, because that kind of illusion is the best way to describe what I saw. At first I was seeing the grandfather clock in a certain way—pushed into the corner of the room—and the next second my vision "corrected" and it was maybe five feet to the left of its former position. I shook my head and looked again and saw the grandfather clock in its second orientation, standing in the center of the room against the wall. I figured I was just seeing things, but even so I spent a little extra time dawdling around the Egress window, taking notes, and delaying the interior inspection.
When I finally grew a pair and went inside, I walked straight to the dining room. Sure enough, the grandfather clock was stowed away in the corner of the room. I spent a couple minutes watching it with my pencil and travel notebook out. I'm the kind of guy that likes to collect hard data when the chips are down. Unfortunately, the clock apparently already had enough fun and was content with sweating me. Oh, well.
I fitted my pencil behind my ear and pocketed my travel notebook, then flipped the rest of the first floor lights on and completed my prelim. I concluded that everything was pretty standard. If anything, the house was in better shape than I'd expect considering it presumably hasn't been lived in for a couple years. I say "presumably" because one can never count out squatters, even during those times. Mainly I was expecting more dust build up and cobwebs than there were. Perhaps someone from the department had come by recently. It's unlikely, but possible.
I did the same check upstairs and it came back mostly clean. There was a bit of staining near the attic I wanted to check for mold. Based on its color, it was probably just a minor case of Aspergillus, but better safe than sorry. Then I got to the basement, and, well, let's just count out the idea of anyone dropping by. I don't know what I was expecting, but it certainly wasn't what I found.
The first thing that caught my eye was the long, slender body of a birch tree lying pale and dead across a large portion of the even larger unfinished basement's cement flooring. I had to do a double take to make sure I wasn't dreaming, but, yep, there it was. Its crown was sealed up in the wall with only its trunk hanging out, which made me think of those medieval pillory devices which locked up people's heads and arms. Then confetti-scattered around the tree and all over the basement floor was a minefield of broken glass and ceramic tangled up with a set of random objects. And when I say random, I mean random. There was an unfurled Somali flag (the blue one with a single star in the center), some packaged drinks and condiments branded with all sorts of different languages (I could only make out Gaelic and Chinese or Japanese, I couldn't quite tell), a broken dome-shaped security camera, an otoscope (the thing the doc uses to check your ears), Hot Wheels cars (okay that one isn't so strange), and the list goes on.
At that moment, I wasn't freaked out or disgusted. I was more or less just confused. I started walking through the rubble, trying to avoid the sharp fragments but pretty confident that my steel toed boots would crush most the pieces anyway, when I heard a clink just up ahead. I was able to spot the coin in time, just before it jingled to a halt atop an old Life magazine. I picked it up and noted right away its oval shape and bronze color—clearly not American made. I tried reading it, but not only was the language not English, it appeared to be so old that most of the lettering had been filed down. I looked up at the ceiling to see if it dropped from a shelf, but there was nothing that could have been holding the coin. I considered for a moment, looking around at the other junk, and had the crazy idea that maybe all this stuff just appeared here. I popped the coin in my pocket and headed back to the van when I stopped by the tree and realized something. It wasn't a birch tree—it was a palm tree. I just didn't realize because of how ashy and decayed the bark was.
Now at this point you might think I've been acting a little nonchalant for such a strange occurrence, and I don't blame you, but if you're gonna stick around with me that's just something you're gonna have to get used to. I guess I was just born with a screw loose, but I really don't scare easily, and I tend to look at everything pragmatically. If you dig deep enough, you'll always find another plausible explanation. That being said, I do want to get to the part about Area X, so let me give you the rundown on what I learned about this basement.
I ended up trekking back to the van and picking up my gear. I was no longer running the routine inspection, obviously, but I figured I might as well throw 30 thousand dollars of scanning equipment at whatever the fuck anamoly existed in that basement. Most of it came back negative. There was a bit higher-than-usual EM interference as picked up on the voltmeters, but nothing that screamed danger close. Still, it was enough for me to set up my volt testers and IR camera while muddling through the rest of the junk. I won't bore you with another list of items, but I did find one thing of value: a diamond necklace. And not just any diamond necklace, it was one of those Queen-wearing, multi-row, big-jeweled necklaces like out of some Historical Fiction movie from the thirties. I almost didn't pocket it because I'm used to expensive items being owned by someone… someone who might want it back. But I figured if there was ever a place the finder's keeper's rule applied, it was probably in this Quantum graveyard.
7 O'clock rolled around and I hadn't eaten. I'm a pretty bulky guy, carrying my share of both muscle and fat, and most people think that means I need to eat a ton but that's really not the case. Mostly I just get dehydrated easily, especially in the summer. That said, I was bordering on famished territory and considered heading out for a bite when I heard another sound. The first thing I did was check my scanners, and sure enough the voltage needle was fully spun to the right side of the dial. EM interference. Then I went to see what had dropped. I was able to pick the object out pretty quickly since I had spent the last 6 hours staring at the mosaic of a basement floor. It was a silver briefcase, like one of those out of a crime novel, and it was cracked open.
I had this sense then that I was standing at a precipice, and if I opened the briefcase and looked inside, I wouldn't be able to stop whatever would come afterwards. Part of me deep down knew that I was just that type of guy that had to know, and maybe this was my Hamlet moment where it would be a trait gone a step too far. But then again I didn't really believe in any of that sentimental bullshit, so I opened the briefcase.
The gun surprised me a little, but not as much as the piece of paper laid atop a case file reading in large black font, "FIND ME". I expected the envelope to have some missing person file in it, but instead there were all these schematics and blueprints for some kind of device. Whatever it was, it was pretty massive. Some of the lengths were hundreds of meters long. And what's more strange is based on the blueprint's locale, it appeared to be underground. I looked back through the pages a couple times, then checked the note—nothing strange there. The gun appeared to be a simple glock. I was no gun expert, but I had been to the range pretty regularly with my construction buddies, so I got used to the feel of a pistol and rifle and some of the different names; however, I realized pretty quickly it wasn't your standard glock when I couldn't find mag-release. That's when I noticed how light the gun felt. I tried to chamber a round, but again, there was no hammer. What the hell kind of gun was this?
I ended up throwing everything back in the briefcase, including the necklace, coin, and a few Koozies I found that were branded with one of my favorite sports teams (never let an opportunity go to waste). I put up all my shit back in the van and spun over to a local burger joint, got my fill, and went home. I made sure to draft an email to the prospective buyers, telling them the house had several patches of black mold and a bit of a rat problem before drifting off to sleep. Although I really didn't do much of that.
When I woke up, I took a cold shower and downed a can of Reign, then commuted to my gym and got a lift and some sauna time in before making the trip back to the house. I brought some extra supplies with me for some experiments I cooked up while not sleeping the previous night.
First, I had two camcorders set up on a couple tripods in either corner of the basement. I wanted clear footage of these mystery objects spawning in. Then I set up a voltmeter in a similar fashion, but I had a wire extending out of it on a circuit which fed to an alarm that would blare when the reading was over 250 volts. Upstairs, I rearranged some of the furniture so that the small number of tables, chairs, clock, cabinets, and other little pillows or vases I could find were scattered across the living room, dining room, and kitchen. Then I pulled up a lawn chair to the front porch window and waited.
I didn't have to wait long though. In about a minute, I started to notice some of the objects moving. It was strange. When a few of them would shift simultaneously, it was like looking at a holographic card that would change shape depending on where your eyes were in relation to the image. Every time I saw a shift, I felt an awkward feeling in my eyes. They went blurry for a fraction of a second, then there was a twinge of pain, as if my brain couldn't handle the contradictory stimulus. It didn't get more crazy than that though—until the alarm went off.
I had cracked open the small rectangular window in the basement to the side of the house so I would hear it. It took four hours and several strange stares from passersby walking their dogs before it rang, so I was a bit lost in my thoughts, but when I heard the beep I perked up fast. It lasted for maybe 5 seconds total, but what I saw was truly miraculous. The best way I can describe it is a pool of silver or gray or translucent light emerging in the foreground between me and the objects in the different rooms. A series of twisting tentacles sprouted from the gray octopus-like head and spun in a way that reminded me of that little kids ride at the amusement parks. Then the objects started to "heat up" is the way I describe it. Their position became relative, meaning they were here one second, there another, then they popped out of existence entirely. Suddenly the rooms were all empty, then they were full of things I had never seen before. Then five seconds passed and the octopus vanished and it was back to the same old objects in their usual places.
It took a few minutes to process what I saw, and even then I wasn't sure I really saw it. I went inside and looked around at my distribution of the house's furnishings. They were all there, intact. Then I went downstairs to check the cams. I rewinded a couple minutes and played it back, but there was no flying object to be found. Instead, there was some gray static that lasted half a second and then the object, a kid's treasure chest toy, was there on the ground. But you want to know the really strange part? I rewinded the tape again, and when I watched the footage back, the treasure chest was always there.
I later came to understand that these poppings in-and-out of our reality are only conceivable to a conscious mind that can track the interference patterns—not rote computational instruments. In fact, even most people can't do it (although everyone has at least a slight awareness of it, even if only subconsciously). Plus, locations like the basement of this house are very rare and kept under tight lock. That became obvious to me two days later when, after my normal morning routine, I pulled up to a driveway and curbside filled with unmarked government vehicles. Either bravely or stupidly, I pulled up to a few officers (they were wearing suits in 85 degree weather, so I assumed…) who were idling by the large fence of crime scene tape and asked them what the score was.
"There was a crime," said the short man with a unibrow.
"Oh, is that right? Damn shame. Someone break in? I have a niece who lives nearby, so…"
The man looked at his two compatriots, both of whom were wearing sunglasses and a "get this civilian fuck out of here" expressions. "Oh, yeah," he started in a reassuring tone that was so condescending it would have annoyed anyone except me, "we found a body. We think it was a homicide. Best to keep your kids away from here for a while."
I thumbed the stubble on my chin, my other hand outstretched on the wheel, and considered moving on, but my mouth had other ideas. "That right? But uh, isn't this house vacant? I mean, I don't remember no one living in it."
The short man, now tall with temper, said, "Yeah, some squatters. We think there was a dispute over some drug money. Nothing for you to worry about though, we got it under control. Now if you wouldn't mind moving along, we have a lot of work to do."
Oh, I'm sure you do, I thought, but only said, "Of course, sir, sorry for keeping you from your job." Then I rolled up the window and cruised on, keeping my eyes on the house which slowly diminished in the side-view mirror.
Luckily I had been smart enough to break down my camp and lug home all my equipment each night, so I didn't leave anything incriminating. I didn't move the furniture back, so maybe that would come back to haunt me, but considering the kind of shit going down in that house, I didn't think they would notice.
For any of you wondering about the conclusion of the house story, I went back a couple weeks later after the suits had left and the tape was taken down and confirmed that not only was the basement entirely cleaned out, but it was no longer exhibiting any strange properties. I looked for a story related to the house, maybe a made up murder of some kind, but there was nothing. That bastard lied to me and didn't even bother to cover his story up.
Now, in the aftermath of an event such as this, I really only had one of two options. I could forget it, move on, continue living life. The necklace was surely worth a fortune. I could sell it and have enough to retire, or at least hire enough people and expand my business large enough to retire within ten or so years. Or I could take all that money and invest it in my own PI business with only a single objective: finding out what those people knew, and why they were hiding it.
I think you know me well enough by now to guess which line of reasoning appealed more to me.
***
For the sake of brevity, I'm going to omit most of my encounters along the journey to discovering Area X. There's a lot to tell, and if it appeals to you perhaps I'd be willing to share at a later date, but for now I want to get this part of the story, the more proximal part, out in the open.
Three years ago, I discovered the source of what I'll call "The Receiver". This is the device that was schematized in the documents that I found in the briefcase. What it does is a complex answer, and how it does it is pretty much all speculation, but here's what I've been able to find out: this universe we live in is a node in a network of many other spaces. These spaces exist in higher dimensions that we cannot directly perceive, but using a conceivable analogy, just think about a flower with petals. The petals are these other dimensions which bleed into our world, which is at the center. However, it's not that pretty. We see the physical world through the lens of spacetime: sizes, speeds, etc. These other dimensions don't necessarily have space or time. In fact, what actually exists there, I couldn't say. The only data I have on them is from two sources: correspondence information and server data from the secret agency (which I'll call "the Organization") that keeps this under wraps, and first-hand experience with realms from these other entities, either directly (I experience it) or through the eyes of someone else with the same or greater abilities than I possess.
I referred to these people with abilities earlier as "Antennas", and I will continue to use the term. Antennas really come in three flavors, marked by the strength of their ability: weak Antennas, like me, are able to observe spontaneous interactions between our universe and other dimensions (phase shifts) when there is a strong force of collision like existed in the basement; moderate Antennas may see phase shifts occur at any point, and they usually are able to retain memories from across the different transformations; strong Antennas, and I don't know if they exist yet, but they are able to consciously interact with these other realms and cause phase shifts to occur.
I mentioned that moderate Antennas are able to retain memories from before and after a phase shift. Technically, all Antennas have this ability, but it's about degree. I can recall only very specific instances and without much detail. Moderates are usually able to pick out much more nuanced minutiae. At the lower end of moderate scale, most of those details fade or get fuzzy over time, but for the very strong Antennas, they hold onto almost everything. One other property that scales with strength is interaction with other conscious entities. Only a small percentage of moderates are able to do this. What's interesting is that these entities can possess (yes, like ghosts) people who aren't even antennas, but no one is aware of such possession at this deep of a level. I have several companions now, and only two have had interactions with these otherworldly beings. Not all of them are malevolent, some of them are whimsical or kind, but there are a fair share of demons out there.
Getting back to the point, Area X started as a government funded project in the 70's. At that time, they were focused on a few subjects: Artificial Intelligence, DNA sequencing, and psychedelics. Yes, they were part of the infamous LSD experiments. But they looked at these subjects through a common lens—there was something that the burgeoning tech industry, fueled by the advent of a commercial computer market, was missing. As the tech giants rose in the early 2000's and began to collect mass amounts of data, this other agency was decades ahead in a different metric, although it was completely (and still is) hidden from the public. Their efforts to understand psychedelic experiences led to a formalized method of understanding interactions between multiple realities. They built certain scanning equipment to detect anomalies like the one I found in the basement; although their tools were much more sophisticated and didn't utilize voltage readings. Then they ran tests in these areas. One area in particular is a hot-bed of phase shift interactions. That's where Area X is located (and the Receiver).
The Receiver is a giant electromagnetic orb that has trapped the kind of multi-dimensional energy that causes the phase shifts; since the Organization seized control of the lab, it's effectively become a map of the Earth in relation to these other worlds. For the past twenty or so years, the Organization has been studying this map, using the data big Tech companies have collected to essentially develop a Rosetta Stone for interpreting the meaning of the fluctuations in their scanning equipment. Recently, the public, though going the long way round, was actually pretty close to a breakthrough in this same department until recently when ultra-powerful LLMs surfaced, and the whole world began going down what I'd argue is the wrong rabbit hole of language processing. But I digress.
Area X is essentially a private military base built for defending the most impactful piece of technology ever invented. With the Receiver, the Organization now has the power to essentially predict any and all future outcomes, the only thing holding them back is the limitations of their own scanning equipment which will get better with time. To put it into perspective, the Organization has access to a kind of data allocation tool which in one day can produce over ten thousand times that the Big Data companies combined would be able to filter through in the next decade. You might think, then, that the problem is merely asymmetric power, and that is certainly a concern, but it isn't the main concern. The main issue is that this organization is actively recruiting (and kidnapping) Antennas from around the world in an effort to find or make one of them into a strong Antenna. In other words, they want a subject who is able not only to see the future, but to manipulate it at will.
balance to the world. I've been working on amassing resources, capital, and building my own team, and now I'm ready. You might ask why I'm posting this here. Wouldn't it be better to keep all this secret? Well, yes, it would be. But that's the problem. Nothing is secret anymore. They know about me and the others, and if I don't make a move, they will. In a way, this is a letter directly to the organization that I know, and I'm coming.
In a different way, I wanted to release this information to the public. There are lots of people out there waking up and realizing that the world they experience is not the one others experience. If you think you might be an Antenna, don't be afraid—you have a special gift that can be controlled. If you want more details on how to control it, or if you're interested in my mission, don't be afraid to reach out. This hasn't always been my life's work, but it is now.
At least until I die.
submitted by Weathers_Writing to weatherswriting [link] [comments]
Put another way, if you throw a bunch of bouncy balls into a box, there are a number of different configurations that the balls could take on, with different speeds and magnitudes. You can calculate all of those if you have the right numbers. Now let's say you throw in another set of balls that you don't consider in your calculations of the initial set. Well, then you're not going to get an accurate picture of what's happening. Most people only see the first set and calculate based on that, but some people can see two, three, four or more sets.
You'll understand the concept better when I tell you the story, but I wanted to give you a primer on an important concept that will help you understand why this place, which I'll call "Area X", exists, and what the goals of the people who work there are.
Also note that I'm going to be using the alias "Trent" moving forward. Please refer to me as such in any direct messages.
***
Eighteen years ago I started working as an independent Home Inspector. I dropped out of community college after my first semester (not because I didn't find some of the subjects interesting, but because deference to a man or woman has never been my style) and started working some odd jobs. I did construction work for a couple years, then plumbing. I even drove a garbage truck for six months. I've always found pleasure in using my hands, and getting dirty was never a problem for me. Still, having a boss really dragged ass, so I spent my free time working on creating my own business. It took a few years and lots of savings, but I finally managed to get basic set of Home Inspection equipment: Tyvek coveralls, a cheap half-face respirator, voltage & AFCI/GFCI testers, CO2 and radon monitors, an IR camera, and telescoping mirrors in addition to the boots, safety glasses, electric gloves, ladder, and toolkits I already had on hand.
My buddy at the time was in the business, but he was moving off to the coast, so he helped me get set up and even introduced me to some of his clients. Of course, by that time I had already gotten my State license, but I still was a bit apprehensive to work with insurance agencies. I thought I could make a living working independently, inspecting for mold or sizing up a house for a prospective buyer. Eventually, though, I realized I should probably take every job available to me.
Easing into the business went about as well as it could have. The clients my friend referred to me were very satisfied with my work, and I was able to retain them. Then, in order to increase my reach, I hired someone on Fiverr to build a website for my company which led to a marked increase in traffic and conversions. About six months through, I began to get on a first-name basis with the boys and girls down down at Allstate and Progressive, and they fed me some of the bigger cases. In fact, I got so booked by year's end that I had to hire someone to help manage my schedule and the Excel spreadsheet with all my finances. I capped off a successful year with a 5-star Google rating and a trip to Ireland to visit some family and friends and get piss drunk. When I got back, it was the grindstone all over again, until the summer when I discovered… well, you'll see.
First off, I want to say that I was never one to believe in the paranormal. I grew up watching the movies and hearing the ghost stories round the campfire like every other kid, but it never struck a chord with me. If I can't touch it or see it or hear it, does it really exist? Probably not. So don't go thinking this was a scared man seeing his own shadow. That being said, I had this sense that something was off about this house when I parked along the curb and looked through a large window, perhaps two times the size of my van, to a dingy, dark foyer.
The entire neighborhood was stacked with upper-middle class domiciles, though it seemed like only two thirds of them were occupied, mostly by professionals who commuted to the City every weekday, and the rest were empty. As a man who understands real estate, to say this was strange would be an understatement. Still, I had no problem appraising the mini-mansion for a couple of newlyweds looking to enter the community. I did some research on the property ahead of time, and it seems that it was owned by a couple of old timers who had gone off the grid some time ago. The water and electric bill were both unpaid dating back to 2004 (it was June of '06 now). The bank had repo'd the house (which only had about 100k left on it) and held it for a year and a half before putting it back on the market. I tried to find out more about the old couple who vanished, but there was nothing in the news.
I stepped out of the van in my coveralls and grabbed my suitcase which had my mask, gloves, and eye protection in it. I liked to do a preliminary survey first, running an eye test on the exterior then interior before bringing out the big guns (that way I could identify the areas where I think there could be problems instead of running a metal detector over the whole damn ocean seaboard). I was about to do just that when the window caught my eye again. It felt uncharacteristic of me to be so occupied with this window, but I detoured to the front porch and peeked inside anyway.
Most of the furniture had already been moved out, meaning all that was left was a single three-seater couch, a couple candlesticks on the fireplace mantle, a pristine chandelier overtop a dining room table, and the kitchenware: an oven, gas stovetop, marble countertops, and an island. I could see into the living room very clearly with the afternoon light, but the dining room was dim enough that there were a few structures I couldn't quite make out in the distance. One of them appeared to be some kind of china cabinet or bookshelf—I figured it was the former considering where it was located. The other shadow looked kind of like a grandfather clock. Or at least that's what I thought until it moved.
When I say it "moved", I don't mean to say that it picked up and walked away. If you're not familiar with the Necker Cube, I suggest you search it up, because that kind of illusion is the best way to describe what I saw. At first I was seeing the grandfather clock in a certain way—pushed into the corner of the room—and the next second my vision "corrected" and it was maybe five feet to the left of its former position. I shook my head and looked again and saw the grandfather clock in its second orientation, standing in the center of the room against the wall. I figured I was just seeing things, but even so I spent a little extra time dawdling around the Egress window, taking notes, and delaying the interior inspection.
When I finally grew a pair and went inside, I walked straight to the dining room. Sure enough, the grandfather clock was stowed away in the corner of the room. I spent a couple minutes watching it with my pencil and travel notebook out. I'm the kind of guy that likes to collect hard data when the chips are down. Unfortunately, the clock apparently already had enough fun and was content with sweating me. Oh, well.
I fitted my pencil behind my ear and pocketed my travel notebook, then flipped the rest of the first floor lights on and completed my prelim. I concluded that everything was pretty standard. If anything, the house was in better shape than I'd expect considering it presumably hasn't been lived in for a couple years. I say "presumably" because one can never count out squatters, even during those times. Mainly I was expecting more dust build up and cobwebs than there were. Perhaps someone from the department had come by recently. It's unlikely, but possible.
I did the same check upstairs and it came back mostly clean. There was a bit of staining near the attic I wanted to check for mold. Based on its color, it was probably just a minor case of Aspergillus, but better safe than sorry. Then I got to the basement, and, well, let's just count out the idea of anyone dropping by. I don't know what I was expecting, but it certainly wasn't what I found.
The first thing that caught my eye was the long, slender body of a birch tree lying pale and dead across a large portion of the even larger unfinished basement's cement flooring. I had to do a double take to make sure I wasn't dreaming, but, yep, there it was. Its crown was sealed up in the wall with only its trunk hanging out, which made me think of those medieval pillory devices which locked up people's heads and arms. Then confetti-scattered around the tree and all over the basement floor was a minefield of broken glass and ceramic tangled up with a set of random objects. And when I say random, I mean random. There was an unfurled Somali flag (the blue one with a single star in the center), some packaged drinks and condiments branded with all sorts of different languages (I could only make out Gaelic and Chinese or Japanese, I couldn't quite tell), a broken dome-shaped security camera, an otoscope (the thing the doc uses to check your ears), Hot Wheels cars (okay that one isn't so strange), and the list goes on.
At that moment, I wasn't freaked out or disgusted. I was more or less just confused. I started walking through the rubble, trying to avoid the sharp fragments but pretty confident that my steel toed boots would crush most the pieces anyway, when I heard a clink just up ahead. I was able to spot the coin in time, just before it jingled to a halt atop an old Life magazine. I picked it up and noted right away its oval shape and bronze color—clearly not American made. I tried reading it, but not only was the language not English, it appeared to be so old that most of the lettering had been filed down. I looked up at the ceiling to see if it dropped from a shelf, but there was nothing that could have been holding the coin. I considered for a moment, looking around at the other junk, and had the crazy idea that maybe all this stuff just appeared here. I popped the coin in my pocket and headed back to the van when I stopped by the tree and realized something. It wasn't a birch tree—it was a palm tree. I just didn't realize because of how ashy and decayed the bark was.
Now at this point you might think I've been acting a little nonchalant for such a strange occurrence, and I don't blame you, but if you're gonna stick around with me that's just something you're gonna have to get used to. I guess I was just born with a screw loose, but I really don't scare easily, and I tend to look at everything pragmatically. If you dig deep enough, you'll always find another plausible explanation. That being said, I do want to get to the part about Area X, so let me give you the rundown on what I learned about this basement.
I ended up trekking back to the van and picking up my gear. I was no longer running the routine inspection, obviously, but I figured I might as well throw 30 thousand dollars of scanning equipment at whatever the fuck anamoly existed in that basement. Most of it came back negative. There was a bit higher-than-usual EM interference as picked up on the voltmeters, but nothing that screamed danger close. Still, it was enough for me to set up my volt testers and IR camera while muddling through the rest of the junk. I won't bore you with another list of items, but I did find one thing of value: a diamond necklace. And not just any diamond necklace, it was one of those Queen-wearing, multi-row, big-jeweled necklaces like out of some Historical Fiction movie from the thirties. I almost didn't pocket it because I'm used to expensive items being owned by someone… someone who might want it back. But I figured if there was ever a place the finder's keeper's rule applied, it was probably in this Quantum graveyard.
7 O'clock rolled around and I hadn't eaten. I'm a pretty bulky guy, carrying my share of both muscle and fat, and most people think that means I need to eat a ton but that's really not the case. Mostly I just get dehydrated easily, especially in the summer. That said, I was bordering on famished territory and considered heading out for a bite when I heard another sound. The first thing I did was check my scanners, and sure enough the voltage needle was fully spun to the right side of the dial. EM interference. Then I went to see what had dropped. I was able to pick the object out pretty quickly since I had spent the last 6 hours staring at the mosaic of a basement floor. It was a silver briefcase, like one of those out of a crime novel, and it was cracked open.
I had this sense then that I was standing at a precipice, and if I opened the briefcase and looked inside, I wouldn't be able to stop whatever would come afterwards. Part of me deep down knew that I was just that type of guy that had to know, and maybe this was my Hamlet moment where it would be a trait gone a step too far. But then again I didn't really believe in any of that sentimental bullshit, so I opened the briefcase.
The gun surprised me a little, but not as much as the piece of paper laid atop a case file reading in large black font, "FIND ME". I expected the envelope to have some missing person file in it, but instead there were all these schematics and blueprints for some kind of device. Whatever it was, it was pretty massive. Some of the lengths were hundreds of meters long. And what's more strange is based on the blueprint's locale, it appeared to be underground. I looked back through the pages a couple times, then checked the note—nothing strange there. The gun appeared to be a simple glock. I was no gun expert, but I had been to the range pretty regularly with my construction buddies, so I got used to the feel of a pistol and rifle and some of the different names; however, I realized pretty quickly it wasn't your standard glock when I couldn't find mag-release. That's when I noticed how light the gun felt. I tried to chamber a round, but again, there was no hammer. What the hell kind of gun was this?
I ended up throwing everything back in the briefcase, including the necklace, coin, and a few Koozies I found that were branded with one of my favorite sports teams (never let an opportunity go to waste). I put up all my shit back in the van and spun over to a local burger joint, got my fill, and went home. I made sure to draft an email to the prospective buyers, telling them the house had several patches of black mold and a bit of a rat problem before drifting off to sleep. Although I really didn't do much of that.
When I woke up, I took a cold shower and downed a can of Reign, then commuted to my gym and got a lift and some sauna time in before making the trip back to the house. I brought some extra supplies with me for some experiments I cooked up while not sleeping the previous night.
First, I had two camcorders set up on a couple tripods in either corner of the basement. I wanted clear footage of these mystery objects spawning in. Then I set up a voltmeter in a similar fashion, but I had a wire extending out of it on a circuit which fed to an alarm that would blare when the reading was over 250 volts. Upstairs, I rearranged some of the furniture so that the small number of tables, chairs, clock, cabinets, and other little pillows or vases I could find were scattered across the living room, dining room, and kitchen. Then I pulled up a lawn chair to the front porch window and waited.
I didn't have to wait long though. In about a minute, I started to notice some of the objects moving. It was strange. When a few of them would shift simultaneously, it was like looking at a holographic card that would change shape depending on where your eyes were in relation to the image. Every time I saw a shift, I felt an awkward feeling in my eyes. They went blurry for a fraction of a second, then there was a twinge of pain, as if my brain couldn't handle the contradictory stimulus. It didn't get more crazy than that though—until the alarm went off.
I had cracked open the small rectangular window in the basement to the side of the house so I would hear it. It took four hours and several strange stares from passersby walking their dogs before it rang, so I was a bit lost in my thoughts, but when I heard the beep I perked up fast. It lasted for maybe 5 seconds total, but what I saw was truly miraculous. The best way I can describe it is a pool of silver or gray or translucent light emerging in the foreground between me and the objects in the different rooms. A series of twisting tentacles sprouted from the gray octopus-like head and spun in a way that reminded me of that little kids ride at the amusement parks. Then the objects started to "heat up" is the way I describe it. Their position became relative, meaning they were here one second, there another, then they popped out of existence entirely. Suddenly the rooms were all empty, then they were full of things I had never seen before. Then five seconds passed and the octopus vanished and it was back to the same old objects in their usual places.
It took a few minutes to process what I saw, and even then I wasn't sure I really saw it. I went inside and looked around at my distribution of the house's furnishings. They were all there, intact. Then I went downstairs to check the cams. I rewinded a couple minutes and played it back, but there was no flying object to be found. Instead, there was some gray static that lasted half a second and then the object, a kid's treasure chest toy, was there on the ground. But you want to know the really strange part? I rewinded the tape again, and when I watched the footage back, the treasure chest was always there.
I later came to understand that these poppings in-and-out of our reality are only conceivable to a conscious mind that can track the interference patterns—not rote computational instruments. In fact, even most people can't do it (although everyone has at least a slight awareness of it, even if only subconsciously). Plus, locations like the basement of this house are very rare and kept under tight lock. That became obvious to me two days later when, after my normal morning routine, I pulled up to a driveway and curbside filled with unmarked government vehicles. Either bravely or stupidly, I pulled up to a few officers (they were wearing suits in 85 degree weather, so I assumed…) who were idling by the large fence of crime scene tape and asked them what the score was.
"There was a crime," said the short man with a unibrow.
"Oh, is that right? Damn shame. Someone break in? I have a niece who lives nearby, so…"
The man looked at his two compatriots, both of whom were wearing sunglasses and a "get this civilian fuck out of here" expressions. "Oh, yeah," he started in a reassuring tone that was so condescending it would have annoyed anyone except me, "we found a body. We think it was a homicide. Best to keep your kids away from here for a while."
I thumbed the stubble on my chin, my other hand outstretched on the wheel, and considered moving on, but my mouth had other ideas. "That right? But uh, isn't this house vacant? I mean, I don't remember no one living in it."
The short man, now tall with temper, said, "Yeah, some squatters. We think there was a dispute over some drug money. Nothing for you to worry about though, we got it under control. Now if you wouldn't mind moving along, we have a lot of work to do."
Oh, I'm sure you do, I thought, but only said, "Of course, sir, sorry for keeping you from your job." Then I rolled up the window and cruised on, keeping my eyes on the house which slowly diminished in the side-view mirror.
Luckily I had been smart enough to break down my camp and lug home all my equipment each night, so I didn't leave anything incriminating. I didn't move the furniture back, so maybe that would come back to haunt me, but considering the kind of shit going down in that house, I didn't think they would notice.
For any of you wondering about the conclusion of the house story, I went back a couple weeks later after the suits had left and the tape was taken down and confirmed that not only was the basement entirely cleaned out, but it was no longer exhibiting any strange properties. I looked for a story related to the house, maybe a made up murder of some kind, but there was nothing. That bastard lied to me and didn't even bother to cover his story up.
Now, in the aftermath of an event such as this, I really only had one of two options. I could forget it, move on, continue living life. The necklace was surely worth a fortune. I could sell it and have enough to retire, or at least hire enough people and expand my business large enough to retire within ten or so years. Or I could take all that money and invest it in my own PI business with only a single objective: finding out what those people knew, and why they were hiding it.
I think you know me well enough by now to guess which line of reasoning appealed more to me.
***
For the sake of brevity, I'm going to omit most of my encounters along the journey to discovering Area X. There's a lot to tell, and if it appeals to you perhaps I'd be willing to share at a later date, but for now I want to get this part of the story, the more proximal part, out in the open.
Three years ago, I discovered the source of what I'll call "The Receiver". This is the device that was schematized in the documents that I found in the briefcase. What it does is a complex answer, and how it does it is pretty much all speculation, but here's what I've been able to find out: this universe we live in is a node in a network of many other spaces. These spaces exist in higher dimensions that we cannot directly perceive, but using a conceivable analogy, just think about a flower with petals. The petals are these other dimensions which bleed into our world, which is at the center. However, it's not that pretty. We see the physical world through the lens of spacetime: sizes, speeds, etc. These other dimensions don't necessarily have space or time. In fact, what actually exists there, I couldn't say. The only data I have on them is from two sources: correspondence information and server data from the secret agency (which I'll call "the Organization") that keeps this under wraps, and first-hand experience with realms from these other entities, either directly (I experience it) or through the eyes of someone else with the same or greater abilities than I possess.
I referred to these people with abilities earlier as "Antennas", and I will continue to use the term. Antennas really come in three flavors, marked by the strength of their ability: weak Antennas, like me, are able to observe spontaneous interactions between our universe and other dimensions (phase shifts) when there is a strong force of collision like existed in the basement; moderate Antennas may see phase shifts occur at any point, and they usually are able to retain memories from across the different transformations; strong Antennas, and I don't know if they exist yet, but they are able to consciously interact with these other realms and cause phase shifts to occur.
I mentioned that moderate Antennas are able to retain memories from before and after a phase shift. Technically, all Antennas have this ability, but it's about degree. I can recall only very specific instances and without much detail. Moderates are usually able to pick out much more nuanced minutiae. At the lower end of moderate scale, most of those details fade or get fuzzy over time, but for the very strong Antennas, they hold onto almost everything. One other property that scales with strength is interaction with other conscious entities. Only a small percentage of moderates are able to do this. What's interesting is that these entities can possess (yes, like ghosts) people who aren't even antennas, but no one is aware of such possession at this deep of a level. I have several companions now, and only two have had interactions with these otherworldly beings. Not all of them are malevolent, some of them are whimsical or kind, but there are a fair share of demons out there.
Getting back to the point, Area X started as a government funded project in the 70's. At that time, they were focused on a few subjects: Artificial Intelligence, DNA sequencing, and psychedelics. Yes, they were part of the infamous LSD experiments. But they looked at these subjects through a common lens—there was something that the burgeoning tech industry, fueled by the advent of a commercial computer market, was missing. As the tech giants rose in the early 2000's and began to collect mass amounts of data, this other agency was decades ahead in a different metric, although it was completely (and still is) hidden from the public. Their efforts to understand psychedelic experiences led to a formalized method of understanding interactions between multiple realities. They built certain scanning equipment to detect anomalies like the one I found in the basement; although their tools were much more sophisticated and didn't utilize voltage readings. Then they ran tests in these areas. One area in particular is a hot-bed of phase shift interactions. That's where Area X is located (and the Receiver).
The Receiver is a giant electromagnetic orb that has trapped the kind of multi-dimensional energy that causes the phase shifts; since the Organization seized control of the lab, it's effectively become a map of the Earth in relation to these other worlds. For the past twenty or so years, the Organization has been studying this map, using the data big Tech companies have collected to essentially develop a Rosetta Stone for interpreting the meaning of the fluctuations in their scanning equipment. Recently, the public, though going the long way round, was actually pretty close to a breakthrough in this same department until recently when ultra-powerful LLMs surfaced, and the whole world began going down what I'd argue is the wrong rabbit hole of language processing. But I digress.
Area X is essentially a private military base built for defending the most impactful piece of technology ever invented. With the Receiver, the Organization now has the power to essentially predict any and all future outcomes, the only thing holding them back is the limitations of their own scanning equipment which will get better with time. To put it into perspective, the Organization has access to a kind of data allocation tool which in one day can produce over ten thousand times that the Big Data companies combined would be able to filter through in the next decade. You might think, then, that the problem is merely asymmetric power, and that is certainly a concern, but it isn't the main concern. The main issue is that this organization is actively recruiting (and kidnapping) Antennas from around the world in an effort to find or make one of them into a strong Antenna. In other words, they want a subject who is able not only to see the future, but to manipulate it at will.
balance to the world. I've been working on amassing resources, capital, and building my own team, and now I'm ready. You might ask why I'm posting this here. Wouldn't it be better to keep all this secret? Well, yes, it would be. But that's the problem. Nothing is secret anymore. They know about me and the others, and if I don't make a move, they will. In a way, this is a letter directly to the organization that I know, and I'm coming.
In a different way, I wanted to release this information to the public. There are lots of people out there waking up and realizing that the world they experience is not the one others experience. If you think you might be an Antenna, don't be afraid—you have a special gift that can be controlled. If you want more details on how to control it, or if you're interested in my mission, don't be afraid to reach out. This hasn't always been my life's work, but it is now.
At least until I die.
2024.05.16 23:10 Weathers_Writing They call Silicon Valley the tech capitol of the world. They're wrong
I won't disclose its actual location, so if that's why you're here, sorry to disappoint. It's not time for that yet. However, I do think it's time to start getting the word out. I've noticed an increase in what I'll call "Antennas" lately, or people who can detect cross-planar phase shifts. Without getting into all the math (some of which I don't even know), this is basically a phenomenon which refers to entropy seeping into our universe from other realms or universes or whatever you want to call it. Simply put, people think our universe is a closed system to entropy, meaning that the disorder of any variable in our universe can only increase or decrease in direct proportion to other variables in that same system (the universe). Under this precept, we can establish rules like the Laws of Thermodynamics, and for most people, they're effective. But not for Antennas.
Put another way, if you throw a bunch of bouncy balls into a box, there are a number of different configurations that the balls could take on, with different speeds and magnitudes. You can calculate all of those if you have the right numbers. Now let's say you throw in another set of balls that you don't consider in your calculations of the initial set. Well, then you're not going to get an accurate picture of what's happening. Most people only see the first set and calculate based on that, but some people can see two, three, four or more sets.
You'll understand the concept better when I tell you the story, but I wanted to give you a primer on an important concept that will help you understand why this place, which I'll call "Area X", exists, and what the goals of the people who work there are.
Also note that I'm going to be using the alias "Trent" moving forward. Please refer to me as such in any direct messages.
***
Eighteen years ago I started working as an independent Home Inspector. I dropped out of community college after my first semester (not because I didn't find some of the subjects interesting, but because deference to a man or woman has never been my style) and started working some odd jobs. I did construction work for a couple years, then plumbing. I even drove a garbage truck for six months. I've always found pleasure in using my hands, and getting dirty was never a problem for me. Still, having a boss really dragged ass, so I spent my free time working on creating my own business. It took a few years and lots of savings, but I finally managed to get basic set of Home Inspection equipment: Tyvek coveralls, a cheap half-face respirator, voltage & AFCI/GFCI testers, CO2 and radon monitors, an IR camera, and telescoping mirrors in addition to the boots, safety glasses, electric gloves, ladder, and toolkits I already had on hand.
My buddy at the time was in the business, but he was moving off to the coast, so he helped me get set up and even introduced me to some of his clients. Of course, by that time I had already gotten my State license, but I still was a bit apprehensive to work with insurance agencies. I thought I could make a living working independently, inspecting for mold or sizing up a house for a prospective buyer. Eventually, though, I realized I should probably take every job available to me.
Easing into the business went about as well as it could have. The clients my friend referred to me were very satisfied with my work, and I was able to retain them. Then, in order to increase my reach, I hired someone on Fiverr to build a website for my company which led to a marked increase in traffic and conversions. About six months through, I began to get on a first-name basis with the boys and girls down down at Allstate and Progressive, and they fed me some of the bigger cases. In fact, I got so booked by year's end that I had to hire someone to help manage my schedule and the Excel spreadsheet with all my finances. I capped off a successful year with a 5-star Google rating and a trip to Ireland to visit some family and friends and get piss drunk. When I got back, it was the grindstone all over again, until the summer when I discovered… well, you'll see.
First off, I want to say that I was never one to believe in the paranormal. I grew up watching the movies and hearing the ghost stories round the campfire like every other kid, but it never struck a chord with me. If I can't touch it or see it or hear it, does it really exist? Probably not. So don't go thinking this was a scared man seeing his own shadow. That being said, I had this sense that something was off about this house when I parked along the curb and looked through a large window, perhaps two times the size of my van, to a dingy, dark foyer.
The entire neighborhood was stacked with upper-middle class domiciles, though it seemed like only two thirds of them were occupied, mostly by professionals who commuted to the City every weekday, and the rest were empty. As a man who understands real estate, to say this was strange would be an understatement. Still, I had no problem appraising the mini-mansion for a couple of newlyweds looking to enter the community. I did some research on the property ahead of time, and it seems that it was owned by a couple of old timers who had gone off the grid some time ago. The water and electric bill were both unpaid dating back to 2004 (it was June of '06 now). The bank had repo'd the house (which only had about 100k left on it) and held it for a year and a half before putting it back on the market. I tried to find out more about the old couple who vanished, but there was nothing in the news.
I stepped out of the van in my coveralls and grabbed my suitcase which had my mask, gloves, and eye protection in it. I liked to do a preliminary survey first, running an eye test on the exterior then interior before bringing out the big guns (that way I could identify the areas where I think there could be problems instead of running a metal detector over the whole damn ocean seaboard). I was about to do just that when the window caught my eye again. It felt uncharacteristic of me to be so occupied with this window, but I detoured to the front porch and peeked inside anyway.
Most of the furniture had already been moved out, meaning all that was left was a single three-seater couch, a couple candlesticks on the fireplace mantle, a pristine chandelier overtop a dining room table, and the kitchenware: an oven, gas stovetop, marble countertops, and an island. I could see into the living room very clearly with the afternoon light, but the dining room was dim enough that there were a few structures I couldn't quite make out in the distance. One of them appeared to be some kind of china cabinet or bookshelf—I figured it was the former considering where it was located. The other shadow looked kind of like a grandfather clock. Or at least that's what I thought until it moved.
When I say it "moved", I don't mean to say that it picked up and walked away. If you're not familiar with the Necker Cube, I suggest you search it up, because that kind of illusion is the best way to describe what I saw. At first I was seeing the grandfather clock in a certain way—pushed into the corner of the room—and the next second my vision "corrected" and it was maybe five feet to the left of its former position. I shook my head and looked again and saw the grandfather clock in its second orientation, standing in the center of the room against the wall. I figured I was just seeing things, but even so I spent a little extra time dawdling around the Egress window, taking notes, and delaying the interior inspection.
When I finally grew a pair and went inside, I walked straight to the dining room. Sure enough, the grandfather clock was stowed away in the corner of the room. I spent a couple minutes watching it with my pencil and travel notebook out. I'm the kind of guy that likes to collect hard data when the chips are down. Unfortunately, the clock apparently already had enough fun and was content with sweating me. Oh, well.
I fitted my pencil behind my ear and pocketed my travel notebook, then flipped the rest of the first floor lights on and completed my prelim. I concluded that everything was pretty standard. If anything, the house was in better shape than I'd expect considering it presumably hasn't been lived in for a couple years. I say "presumably" because one can never count out squatters, even during those times. Mainly I was expecting more dust build up and cobwebs than there were. Perhaps someone from the department had come by recently. It's unlikely, but possible.
I did the same check upstairs and it came back mostly clean. There was a bit of staining near the attic I wanted to check for mold. Based on its color, it was probably just a minor case of Aspergillus, but better safe than sorry. Then I got to the basement, and, well, let's just count out the idea of anyone dropping by. I don't know what I was expecting, but it certainly wasn't what I found.
The first thing that caught my eye was the long, slender body of a birch tree lying pale and dead across a large portion of the even larger unfinished basement's cement flooring. I had to do a double take to make sure I wasn't dreaming, but, yep, there it was. Its crown was sealed up in the wall with only its trunk hanging out, which made me think of those medieval pillory devices which locked up people's heads and arms. Then confetti-scattered around the tree and all over the basement floor was a minefield of broken glass and ceramic tangled up with a set of random objects. And when I say random, I mean random. There was an unfurled Somali flag (the blue one with a single star in the center), some packaged drinks and condiments branded with all sorts of different languages (I could only make out Gaelic and Chinese or Japanese, I couldn't quite tell), a broken dome-shaped security camera, an otoscope (the thing the doc uses to check your ears), Hot Wheels cars (okay that one isn't so strange), and the list goes on.
At that moment, I wasn't freaked out or disgusted. I was more or less just confused. I started walking through the rubble, trying to avoid the sharp fragments but pretty confident that my steel toed boots would crush most the pieces anyway, when I heard a clink just up ahead. I was able to spot the coin in time, just before it jingled to a halt atop an old Life magazine. I picked it up and noted right away its oval shape and bronze color—clearly not American made. I tried reading it, but not only was the language not English, it appeared to be so old that most of the lettering had been filed down. I looked up at the ceiling to see if it dropped from a shelf, but there was nothing that could have been holding the coin. I considered for a moment, looking around at the other junk, and had the crazy idea that maybe all this stuff just appeared here. I popped the coin in my pocket and headed back to the van when I stopped by the tree and realized something. It wasn't a birch tree—it was a palm tree. I just didn't realize because of how ashy and decayed the bark was.
Now at this point you might think I've been acting a little nonchalant for such a strange occurrence, and I don't blame you, but if you're gonna stick around with me that's just something you're gonna have to get used to. I guess I was just born with a screw loose, but I really don't scare easily, and I tend to look at everything pragmatically. If you dig deep enough, you'll always find another plausible explanation. That being said, I do want to get to the part about Area X, so let me give you the rundown on what I learned about this basement.
I ended up trekking back to the van and picking up my gear. I was no longer running the routine inspection, obviously, but I figured I might as well throw 30 thousand dollars of scanning equipment at whatever the fuck anamoly existed in that basement. Most of it came back negative. There was a bit higher-than-usual EM interference as picked up on the voltmeters, but nothing that screamed danger close. Still, it was enough for me to set up my volt testers and IR camera while muddling through the rest of the junk. I won't bore you with another list of items, but I did find one thing of value: a diamond necklace. And not just any diamond necklace, it was one of those Queen-wearing, multi-row, big-jeweled necklaces like out of some Historical Fiction movie from the thirties. I almost didn't pocket it because I'm used to expensive items being owned by someone… someone who might want it back. But I figured if there was ever a place the finder's keeper's rule applied, it was probably in this Quantum graveyard.
7 O'clock rolled around and I hadn't eaten. I'm a pretty bulky guy, carrying my share of both muscle and fat, and most people think that means I need to eat a ton but that's really not the case. Mostly I just get dehydrated easily, especially in the summer. That said, I was bordering on famished territory and considered heading out for a bite when I heard another sound. The first thing I did was check my scanners, and sure enough the voltage needle was fully spun to the right side of the dial. EM interference. Then I went to see what had dropped. I was able to pick the object out pretty quickly since I had spent the last 6 hours staring at the mosaic of a basement floor. It was a silver briefcase, like one of those out of a crime novel, and it was cracked open.
I had this sense then that I was standing at a precipice, and if I opened the briefcase and looked inside, I wouldn't be able to stop whatever would come afterwards. Part of me deep down knew that I was just that type of guy that had to know, and maybe this was my Hamlet moment where it would be a trait gone a step too far. But then again I didn't really believe in any of that sentimental bullshit, so I opened the briefcase.
The gun surprised me a little, but not as much as the piece of paper laid atop a case file reading in large black font, "FIND ME". I expected the envelope to have some missing person file in it, but instead there were all these schematics and blueprints for some kind of device. Whatever it was, it was pretty massive. Some of the lengths were hundreds of meters long. And what's more strange is based on the blueprint's locale, it appeared to be underground. I looked back through the pages a couple times, then checked the note—nothing strange there. The gun appeared to be a simple glock. I was no gun expert, but I had been to the range pretty regularly with my construction buddies, so I got used to the feel of a pistol and rifle and some of the different names; however, I realized pretty quickly it wasn't your standard glock when I couldn't find mag-release. That's when I noticed how light the gun felt. I tried to chamber a round, but again, there was no hammer. What the hell kind of gun was this?
I ended up throwing everything back in the briefcase, including the necklace, coin, and a few Koozies I found that were branded with one of my favorite sports teams (never let an opportunity go to waste). I put up all my shit back in the van and spun over to a local burger joint, got my fill, and went home. I made sure to draft an email to the prospective buyers, telling them the house had several patches of black mold and a bit of a rat problem before drifting off to sleep. Although I really didn't do much of that.
When I woke up, I took a cold shower and downed a can of Reign, then commuted to my gym and got a lift and some sauna time in before making the trip back to the house. I brought some extra supplies with me for some experiments I cooked up while not sleeping the previous night.
First, I had two camcorders set up on a couple tripods in either corner of the basement. I wanted clear footage of these mystery objects spawning in. Then I set up a voltmeter in a similar fashion, but I had a wire extending out of it on a circuit which fed to an alarm that would blare when the reading was over 250 volts. Upstairs, I rearranged some of the furniture so that the small number of tables, chairs, clock, cabinets, and other little pillows or vases I could find were scattered across the living room, dining room, and kitchen. Then I pulled up a lawn chair to the front porch window and waited.
I didn't have to wait long though. In about a minute, I started to notice some of the objects moving. It was strange. When a few of them would shift simultaneously, it was like looking at a holographic card that would change shape depending on where your eyes were in relation to the image. Every time I saw a shift, I felt an awkward feeling in my eyes. They went blurry for a fraction of a second, then there was a twinge of pain, as if my brain couldn't handle the contradictory stimulus. It didn't get more crazy than that though—until the alarm went off.
I had cracked open the small rectangular window in the basement to the side of the house so I would hear it. It took four hours and several strange stares from passersby walking their dogs before it rang, so I was a bit lost in my thoughts, but when I heard the beep I perked up fast. It lasted for maybe 5 seconds total, but what I saw was truly miraculous. The best way I can describe it is a pool of silver or gray or translucent light emerging in the foreground between me and the objects in the different rooms. A series of twisting tentacles sprouted from the gray octopus-like head and spun in a way that reminded me of that little kids ride at the amusement parks. Then the objects started to "heat up" is the way I describe it. Their position became relative, meaning they were here one second, there another, then they popped out of existence entirely. Suddenly the rooms were all empty, then they were full of things I had never seen before. Then five seconds passed and the octopus vanished and it was back to the same old objects in their usual places.
It took a few minutes to process what I saw, and even then I wasn't sure I really saw it. I went inside and looked around at my distribution of the house's furnishings. They were all there, intact. Then I went downstairs to check the cams. I rewinded a couple minutes and played it back, but there was no flying object to be found. Instead, there was some gray static that lasted half a second and then the object, a kid's treasure chest toy, was there on the ground. But you want to know the really strange part? I rewinded the tape again, and when I watched the footage back, the treasure chest was always there.
I later came to understand that these poppings in-and-out of our reality are only conceivable to a conscious mind that can track the interference patterns—not rote computational instruments. In fact, even most people can't do it (although everyone has at least a slight awareness of it, even if only subconsciously). Plus, locations like the basement of this house are very rare and kept under tight lock. That became obvious to me two days later when, after my normal morning routine, I pulled up to a driveway and curbside filled with unmarked government vehicles. Either bravely or stupidly, I pulled up to a few officers (they were wearing suits in 85 degree weather, so I assumed…) who were idling by the large fence of crime scene tape and asked them what the score was.
"There was a crime," said the short man with a unibrow.
"Oh, is that right? Damn shame. Someone break in? I have a niece who lives nearby, so…"
The man looked at his two compatriots, both of whom were wearing sunglasses and a "get this civilian fuck out of here" expressions. "Oh, yeah," he started in a reassuring tone that was so condescending it would have annoyed anyone except me, "we found a body. We think it was a homicide. Best to keep your kids away from here for a while."
I thumbed the stubble on my chin, my other hand outstretched on the wheel, and considered moving on, but my mouth had other ideas. "That right? But uh, isn't this house vacant? I mean, I don't remember no one living in it."
The short man, now tall with temper, said, "Yeah, some squatters. We think there was a dispute over some drug money. Nothing for you to worry about though, we got it under control. Now if you wouldn't mind moving along, we have a lot of work to do."
Oh, I'm sure you do, I thought, but only said, "Of course, sir, sorry for keeping you from your job." Then I rolled up the window and cruised on, keeping my eyes on the house which slowly diminished in the side-view mirror.
Luckily I had been smart enough to break down my camp and lug home all my equipment each night, so I didn't leave anything incriminating. I didn't move the furniture back, so maybe that would come back to haunt me, but considering the kind of shit going down in that house, I didn't think they would notice.
For any of you wondering about the conclusion of the house story, I went back a couple weeks later after the suits had left and the tape was taken down and confirmed that not only was the basement entirely cleaned out, but it was no longer exhibiting any strange properties. I looked for a story related to the house, maybe a made up murder of some kind, but there was nothing. That bastard lied to me and didn't even bother to cover his story up.
Now, in the aftermath of an event such as this, I really only had one of two options. I could forget it, move on, continue living life. The necklace was surely worth a fortune. I could sell it and have enough to retire, or at least hire enough people and expand my business large enough to retire within ten or so years. Or I could take all that money and invest it in my own PI business with only a single objective: finding out what those people knew, and why they were hiding it.
I think you know me well enough by now to guess which line of reasoning appealed more to me.
***
For the sake of brevity, I'm going to omit most of my encounters along the journey to discovering Area X. There's a lot to tell, and if it appeals to you perhaps I'd be willing to share at a later date, but for now I want to get this part of the story, the more proximal part, out in the open.
Three years ago, I discovered the source of what I'll call "The Receiver". This is the device that was schematized in the documents that I found in the briefcase. What it does is a complex answer, and how it does it is pretty much all speculation, but here's what I've been able to find out: this universe we live in is a node in a network of many other spaces. These spaces exist in higher dimensions that we cannot directly perceive, but using a conceivable analogy, just think about a flower with petals. The petals are these other dimensions which bleed into our world, which is at the center. However, it's not that pretty. We see the physical world through the lens of spacetime: sizes, speeds, etc. These other dimensions don't necessarily have space or time. In fact, what actually exists there, I couldn't say. The only data I have on them is from two sources: correspondence information and server data from the secret agency (which I'll call "the Organization") that keeps this under wraps, and first-hand experience with realms from these other entities, either directly (I experience it) or through the eyes of someone else with the same or greater abilities than I possess.
I referred to these people with abilities earlier as "Antennas", and I will continue to use the term. Antennas really come in three flavors, marked by the strength of their ability: weak Antennas, like me, are able to observe spontaneous interactions between our universe and other dimensions (phase shifts) when there is a strong force of collision like existed in the basement; moderate Antennas may see phase shifts occur at any point, and they usually are able to retain memories from across the different transformations; strong Antennas, and I don't know if they exist yet, but they are able to consciously interact with these other realms and cause phase shifts to occur.
I mentioned that moderate Antennas are able to retain memories from before and after a phase shift. Technically, all Antennas have this ability, but it's about degree. I can recall only very specific instances and without much detail. Moderates are usually able to pick out much more nuanced minutiae. At the lower end of moderate scale, most of those details fade or get fuzzy over time, but for the very strong Antennas, they hold onto almost everything. One other property that scales with strength is interaction with other conscious entities. Only a small percentage of moderates are able to do this. What's interesting is that these entities can possess (yes, like ghosts) people who aren't even antennas, but no one is aware of such possession at this deep of a level. I have several companions now, and only two have had interactions with these otherworldly beings. Not all of them are malevolent, some of them are whimsical or kind, but there are a fair share of demons out there.
Getting back to the point, Area X started as a government funded project in the 70's. At that time, they were focused on a few subjects: Artificial Intelligence, DNA sequencing, and psychedelics. Yes, they were part of the infamous LSD experiments. But they looked at these subjects through a common lens—there was something that the burgeoning tech industry, fueled by the advent of a commercial computer market, was missing. As the tech giants rose in the early 2000's and began to collect mass amounts of data, this other agency was decades ahead in a different metric, although it was completely (and still is) hidden from the public. Their efforts to understand psychedelic experiences led to a formalized method of understanding interactions between multiple realities. They built certain scanning equipment to detect anomalies like the one I found in the basement; although their tools were much more sophisticated and didn't utilize voltage readings. Then they ran tests in these areas. One area in particular is a hot-bed of phase shift interactions. That's where Area X is located (and the Receiver).
The Receiver is a giant electromagnetic orb that has trapped the kind of multi-dimensional energy that causes the phase shifts; since the Organization seized control of the lab, it's effectively become a map of the Earth in relation to these other worlds. For the past twenty or so years, the Organization has been studying this map, using the data big Tech companies have collected to essentially develop a Rosetta Stone for interpreting the meaning of the fluctuations in their scanning equipment. Recently, the public, though going the long way round, was actually pretty close to a breakthrough in this same department until recently when ultra-powerful LLMs surfaced, and the whole world began going down what I'd argue is the wrong rabbit hole of language processing. But I digress.
Area X is essentially a private military base built for defending the most impactful piece of technology ever invented. With the Receiver, the Organization now has the power to essentially predict any and all future outcomes, the only thing holding them back is the limitations of their own scanning equipment which will get better with time. To put it into perspective, the Organization has access to a kind of data allocation tool which in one day can produce over ten thousand times that the Big Data companies combined would be able to filter through in the next decade. You might think, then, that the problem is merely asymmetric power, and that is certainly a concern, but it isn't the main concern. The main issue is that this organization is actively recruiting (and kidnapping) Antennas from around the world in an effort to find or make one of them into a strong Antenna. In other words, they want a subject who is able not only to see the future, but to manipulate it at will.
balance to the world. I've been working on amassing resources, capital, and building my own team, and now I'm ready. You might ask why I'm posting this here. Wouldn't it be better to keep all this secret? Well, yes, it would be. But that's the problem. Nothing is secret anymore. They know about me and the others, and if I don't make a move, they will. In a way, this is a letter directly to the organization that I know, and I'm coming.
In a different way, I wanted to release this information to the public. There are lots of people out there waking up and realizing that the world they experience is not the one others experience. If you think you might be an Antenna, don't be afraid—you have a special gift that can be controlled. If you want more details on how to control it, or if you're interested in my mission, don't be afraid to reach out. This hasn't always been my life's work, but it is now.
At least until I die.
submitted by Weathers_Writing to nosleep [link] [comments]
Put another way, if you throw a bunch of bouncy balls into a box, there are a number of different configurations that the balls could take on, with different speeds and magnitudes. You can calculate all of those if you have the right numbers. Now let's say you throw in another set of balls that you don't consider in your calculations of the initial set. Well, then you're not going to get an accurate picture of what's happening. Most people only see the first set and calculate based on that, but some people can see two, three, four or more sets.
You'll understand the concept better when I tell you the story, but I wanted to give you a primer on an important concept that will help you understand why this place, which I'll call "Area X", exists, and what the goals of the people who work there are.
Also note that I'm going to be using the alias "Trent" moving forward. Please refer to me as such in any direct messages.
***
Eighteen years ago I started working as an independent Home Inspector. I dropped out of community college after my first semester (not because I didn't find some of the subjects interesting, but because deference to a man or woman has never been my style) and started working some odd jobs. I did construction work for a couple years, then plumbing. I even drove a garbage truck for six months. I've always found pleasure in using my hands, and getting dirty was never a problem for me. Still, having a boss really dragged ass, so I spent my free time working on creating my own business. It took a few years and lots of savings, but I finally managed to get basic set of Home Inspection equipment: Tyvek coveralls, a cheap half-face respirator, voltage & AFCI/GFCI testers, CO2 and radon monitors, an IR camera, and telescoping mirrors in addition to the boots, safety glasses, electric gloves, ladder, and toolkits I already had on hand.
My buddy at the time was in the business, but he was moving off to the coast, so he helped me get set up and even introduced me to some of his clients. Of course, by that time I had already gotten my State license, but I still was a bit apprehensive to work with insurance agencies. I thought I could make a living working independently, inspecting for mold or sizing up a house for a prospective buyer. Eventually, though, I realized I should probably take every job available to me.
Easing into the business went about as well as it could have. The clients my friend referred to me were very satisfied with my work, and I was able to retain them. Then, in order to increase my reach, I hired someone on Fiverr to build a website for my company which led to a marked increase in traffic and conversions. About six months through, I began to get on a first-name basis with the boys and girls down down at Allstate and Progressive, and they fed me some of the bigger cases. In fact, I got so booked by year's end that I had to hire someone to help manage my schedule and the Excel spreadsheet with all my finances. I capped off a successful year with a 5-star Google rating and a trip to Ireland to visit some family and friends and get piss drunk. When I got back, it was the grindstone all over again, until the summer when I discovered… well, you'll see.
First off, I want to say that I was never one to believe in the paranormal. I grew up watching the movies and hearing the ghost stories round the campfire like every other kid, but it never struck a chord with me. If I can't touch it or see it or hear it, does it really exist? Probably not. So don't go thinking this was a scared man seeing his own shadow. That being said, I had this sense that something was off about this house when I parked along the curb and looked through a large window, perhaps two times the size of my van, to a dingy, dark foyer.
The entire neighborhood was stacked with upper-middle class domiciles, though it seemed like only two thirds of them were occupied, mostly by professionals who commuted to the City every weekday, and the rest were empty. As a man who understands real estate, to say this was strange would be an understatement. Still, I had no problem appraising the mini-mansion for a couple of newlyweds looking to enter the community. I did some research on the property ahead of time, and it seems that it was owned by a couple of old timers who had gone off the grid some time ago. The water and electric bill were both unpaid dating back to 2004 (it was June of '06 now). The bank had repo'd the house (which only had about 100k left on it) and held it for a year and a half before putting it back on the market. I tried to find out more about the old couple who vanished, but there was nothing in the news.
I stepped out of the van in my coveralls and grabbed my suitcase which had my mask, gloves, and eye protection in it. I liked to do a preliminary survey first, running an eye test on the exterior then interior before bringing out the big guns (that way I could identify the areas where I think there could be problems instead of running a metal detector over the whole damn ocean seaboard). I was about to do just that when the window caught my eye again. It felt uncharacteristic of me to be so occupied with this window, but I detoured to the front porch and peeked inside anyway.
Most of the furniture had already been moved out, meaning all that was left was a single three-seater couch, a couple candlesticks on the fireplace mantle, a pristine chandelier overtop a dining room table, and the kitchenware: an oven, gas stovetop, marble countertops, and an island. I could see into the living room very clearly with the afternoon light, but the dining room was dim enough that there were a few structures I couldn't quite make out in the distance. One of them appeared to be some kind of china cabinet or bookshelf—I figured it was the former considering where it was located. The other shadow looked kind of like a grandfather clock. Or at least that's what I thought until it moved.
When I say it "moved", I don't mean to say that it picked up and walked away. If you're not familiar with the Necker Cube, I suggest you search it up, because that kind of illusion is the best way to describe what I saw. At first I was seeing the grandfather clock in a certain way—pushed into the corner of the room—and the next second my vision "corrected" and it was maybe five feet to the left of its former position. I shook my head and looked again and saw the grandfather clock in its second orientation, standing in the center of the room against the wall. I figured I was just seeing things, but even so I spent a little extra time dawdling around the Egress window, taking notes, and delaying the interior inspection.
When I finally grew a pair and went inside, I walked straight to the dining room. Sure enough, the grandfather clock was stowed away in the corner of the room. I spent a couple minutes watching it with my pencil and travel notebook out. I'm the kind of guy that likes to collect hard data when the chips are down. Unfortunately, the clock apparently already had enough fun and was content with sweating me. Oh, well.
I fitted my pencil behind my ear and pocketed my travel notebook, then flipped the rest of the first floor lights on and completed my prelim. I concluded that everything was pretty standard. If anything, the house was in better shape than I'd expect considering it presumably hasn't been lived in for a couple years. I say "presumably" because one can never count out squatters, even during those times. Mainly I was expecting more dust build up and cobwebs than there were. Perhaps someone from the department had come by recently. It's unlikely, but possible.
I did the same check upstairs and it came back mostly clean. There was a bit of staining near the attic I wanted to check for mold. Based on its color, it was probably just a minor case of Aspergillus, but better safe than sorry. Then I got to the basement, and, well, let's just count out the idea of anyone dropping by. I don't know what I was expecting, but it certainly wasn't what I found.
The first thing that caught my eye was the long, slender body of a birch tree lying pale and dead across a large portion of the even larger unfinished basement's cement flooring. I had to do a double take to make sure I wasn't dreaming, but, yep, there it was. Its crown was sealed up in the wall with only its trunk hanging out, which made me think of those medieval pillory devices which locked up people's heads and arms. Then confetti-scattered around the tree and all over the basement floor was a minefield of broken glass and ceramic tangled up with a set of random objects. And when I say random, I mean random. There was an unfurled Somali flag (the blue one with a single star in the center), some packaged drinks and condiments branded with all sorts of different languages (I could only make out Gaelic and Chinese or Japanese, I couldn't quite tell), a broken dome-shaped security camera, an otoscope (the thing the doc uses to check your ears), Hot Wheels cars (okay that one isn't so strange), and the list goes on.
At that moment, I wasn't freaked out or disgusted. I was more or less just confused. I started walking through the rubble, trying to avoid the sharp fragments but pretty confident that my steel toed boots would crush most the pieces anyway, when I heard a clink just up ahead. I was able to spot the coin in time, just before it jingled to a halt atop an old Life magazine. I picked it up and noted right away its oval shape and bronze color—clearly not American made. I tried reading it, but not only was the language not English, it appeared to be so old that most of the lettering had been filed down. I looked up at the ceiling to see if it dropped from a shelf, but there was nothing that could have been holding the coin. I considered for a moment, looking around at the other junk, and had the crazy idea that maybe all this stuff just appeared here. I popped the coin in my pocket and headed back to the van when I stopped by the tree and realized something. It wasn't a birch tree—it was a palm tree. I just didn't realize because of how ashy and decayed the bark was.
Now at this point you might think I've been acting a little nonchalant for such a strange occurrence, and I don't blame you, but if you're gonna stick around with me that's just something you're gonna have to get used to. I guess I was just born with a screw loose, but I really don't scare easily, and I tend to look at everything pragmatically. If you dig deep enough, you'll always find another plausible explanation. That being said, I do want to get to the part about Area X, so let me give you the rundown on what I learned about this basement.
I ended up trekking back to the van and picking up my gear. I was no longer running the routine inspection, obviously, but I figured I might as well throw 30 thousand dollars of scanning equipment at whatever the fuck anamoly existed in that basement. Most of it came back negative. There was a bit higher-than-usual EM interference as picked up on the voltmeters, but nothing that screamed danger close. Still, it was enough for me to set up my volt testers and IR camera while muddling through the rest of the junk. I won't bore you with another list of items, but I did find one thing of value: a diamond necklace. And not just any diamond necklace, it was one of those Queen-wearing, multi-row, big-jeweled necklaces like out of some Historical Fiction movie from the thirties. I almost didn't pocket it because I'm used to expensive items being owned by someone… someone who might want it back. But I figured if there was ever a place the finder's keeper's rule applied, it was probably in this Quantum graveyard.
7 O'clock rolled around and I hadn't eaten. I'm a pretty bulky guy, carrying my share of both muscle and fat, and most people think that means I need to eat a ton but that's really not the case. Mostly I just get dehydrated easily, especially in the summer. That said, I was bordering on famished territory and considered heading out for a bite when I heard another sound. The first thing I did was check my scanners, and sure enough the voltage needle was fully spun to the right side of the dial. EM interference. Then I went to see what had dropped. I was able to pick the object out pretty quickly since I had spent the last 6 hours staring at the mosaic of a basement floor. It was a silver briefcase, like one of those out of a crime novel, and it was cracked open.
I had this sense then that I was standing at a precipice, and if I opened the briefcase and looked inside, I wouldn't be able to stop whatever would come afterwards. Part of me deep down knew that I was just that type of guy that had to know, and maybe this was my Hamlet moment where it would be a trait gone a step too far. But then again I didn't really believe in any of that sentimental bullshit, so I opened the briefcase.
The gun surprised me a little, but not as much as the piece of paper laid atop a case file reading in large black font, "FIND ME". I expected the envelope to have some missing person file in it, but instead there were all these schematics and blueprints for some kind of device. Whatever it was, it was pretty massive. Some of the lengths were hundreds of meters long. And what's more strange is based on the blueprint's locale, it appeared to be underground. I looked back through the pages a couple times, then checked the note—nothing strange there. The gun appeared to be a simple glock. I was no gun expert, but I had been to the range pretty regularly with my construction buddies, so I got used to the feel of a pistol and rifle and some of the different names; however, I realized pretty quickly it wasn't your standard glock when I couldn't find mag-release. That's when I noticed how light the gun felt. I tried to chamber a round, but again, there was no hammer. What the hell kind of gun was this?
I ended up throwing everything back in the briefcase, including the necklace, coin, and a few Koozies I found that were branded with one of my favorite sports teams (never let an opportunity go to waste). I put up all my shit back in the van and spun over to a local burger joint, got my fill, and went home. I made sure to draft an email to the prospective buyers, telling them the house had several patches of black mold and a bit of a rat problem before drifting off to sleep. Although I really didn't do much of that.
When I woke up, I took a cold shower and downed a can of Reign, then commuted to my gym and got a lift and some sauna time in before making the trip back to the house. I brought some extra supplies with me for some experiments I cooked up while not sleeping the previous night.
First, I had two camcorders set up on a couple tripods in either corner of the basement. I wanted clear footage of these mystery objects spawning in. Then I set up a voltmeter in a similar fashion, but I had a wire extending out of it on a circuit which fed to an alarm that would blare when the reading was over 250 volts. Upstairs, I rearranged some of the furniture so that the small number of tables, chairs, clock, cabinets, and other little pillows or vases I could find were scattered across the living room, dining room, and kitchen. Then I pulled up a lawn chair to the front porch window and waited.
I didn't have to wait long though. In about a minute, I started to notice some of the objects moving. It was strange. When a few of them would shift simultaneously, it was like looking at a holographic card that would change shape depending on where your eyes were in relation to the image. Every time I saw a shift, I felt an awkward feeling in my eyes. They went blurry for a fraction of a second, then there was a twinge of pain, as if my brain couldn't handle the contradictory stimulus. It didn't get more crazy than that though—until the alarm went off.
I had cracked open the small rectangular window in the basement to the side of the house so I would hear it. It took four hours and several strange stares from passersby walking their dogs before it rang, so I was a bit lost in my thoughts, but when I heard the beep I perked up fast. It lasted for maybe 5 seconds total, but what I saw was truly miraculous. The best way I can describe it is a pool of silver or gray or translucent light emerging in the foreground between me and the objects in the different rooms. A series of twisting tentacles sprouted from the gray octopus-like head and spun in a way that reminded me of that little kids ride at the amusement parks. Then the objects started to "heat up" is the way I describe it. Their position became relative, meaning they were here one second, there another, then they popped out of existence entirely. Suddenly the rooms were all empty, then they were full of things I had never seen before. Then five seconds passed and the octopus vanished and it was back to the same old objects in their usual places.
It took a few minutes to process what I saw, and even then I wasn't sure I really saw it. I went inside and looked around at my distribution of the house's furnishings. They were all there, intact. Then I went downstairs to check the cams. I rewinded a couple minutes and played it back, but there was no flying object to be found. Instead, there was some gray static that lasted half a second and then the object, a kid's treasure chest toy, was there on the ground. But you want to know the really strange part? I rewinded the tape again, and when I watched the footage back, the treasure chest was always there.
I later came to understand that these poppings in-and-out of our reality are only conceivable to a conscious mind that can track the interference patterns—not rote computational instruments. In fact, even most people can't do it (although everyone has at least a slight awareness of it, even if only subconsciously). Plus, locations like the basement of this house are very rare and kept under tight lock. That became obvious to me two days later when, after my normal morning routine, I pulled up to a driveway and curbside filled with unmarked government vehicles. Either bravely or stupidly, I pulled up to a few officers (they were wearing suits in 85 degree weather, so I assumed…) who were idling by the large fence of crime scene tape and asked them what the score was.
"There was a crime," said the short man with a unibrow.
"Oh, is that right? Damn shame. Someone break in? I have a niece who lives nearby, so…"
The man looked at his two compatriots, both of whom were wearing sunglasses and a "get this civilian fuck out of here" expressions. "Oh, yeah," he started in a reassuring tone that was so condescending it would have annoyed anyone except me, "we found a body. We think it was a homicide. Best to keep your kids away from here for a while."
I thumbed the stubble on my chin, my other hand outstretched on the wheel, and considered moving on, but my mouth had other ideas. "That right? But uh, isn't this house vacant? I mean, I don't remember no one living in it."
The short man, now tall with temper, said, "Yeah, some squatters. We think there was a dispute over some drug money. Nothing for you to worry about though, we got it under control. Now if you wouldn't mind moving along, we have a lot of work to do."
Oh, I'm sure you do, I thought, but only said, "Of course, sir, sorry for keeping you from your job." Then I rolled up the window and cruised on, keeping my eyes on the house which slowly diminished in the side-view mirror.
Luckily I had been smart enough to break down my camp and lug home all my equipment each night, so I didn't leave anything incriminating. I didn't move the furniture back, so maybe that would come back to haunt me, but considering the kind of shit going down in that house, I didn't think they would notice.
For any of you wondering about the conclusion of the house story, I went back a couple weeks later after the suits had left and the tape was taken down and confirmed that not only was the basement entirely cleaned out, but it was no longer exhibiting any strange properties. I looked for a story related to the house, maybe a made up murder of some kind, but there was nothing. That bastard lied to me and didn't even bother to cover his story up.
Now, in the aftermath of an event such as this, I really only had one of two options. I could forget it, move on, continue living life. The necklace was surely worth a fortune. I could sell it and have enough to retire, or at least hire enough people and expand my business large enough to retire within ten or so years. Or I could take all that money and invest it in my own PI business with only a single objective: finding out what those people knew, and why they were hiding it.
I think you know me well enough by now to guess which line of reasoning appealed more to me.
***
For the sake of brevity, I'm going to omit most of my encounters along the journey to discovering Area X. There's a lot to tell, and if it appeals to you perhaps I'd be willing to share at a later date, but for now I want to get this part of the story, the more proximal part, out in the open.
Three years ago, I discovered the source of what I'll call "The Receiver". This is the device that was schematized in the documents that I found in the briefcase. What it does is a complex answer, and how it does it is pretty much all speculation, but here's what I've been able to find out: this universe we live in is a node in a network of many other spaces. These spaces exist in higher dimensions that we cannot directly perceive, but using a conceivable analogy, just think about a flower with petals. The petals are these other dimensions which bleed into our world, which is at the center. However, it's not that pretty. We see the physical world through the lens of spacetime: sizes, speeds, etc. These other dimensions don't necessarily have space or time. In fact, what actually exists there, I couldn't say. The only data I have on them is from two sources: correspondence information and server data from the secret agency (which I'll call "the Organization") that keeps this under wraps, and first-hand experience with realms from these other entities, either directly (I experience it) or through the eyes of someone else with the same or greater abilities than I possess.
I referred to these people with abilities earlier as "Antennas", and I will continue to use the term. Antennas really come in three flavors, marked by the strength of their ability: weak Antennas, like me, are able to observe spontaneous interactions between our universe and other dimensions (phase shifts) when there is a strong force of collision like existed in the basement; moderate Antennas may see phase shifts occur at any point, and they usually are able to retain memories from across the different transformations; strong Antennas, and I don't know if they exist yet, but they are able to consciously interact with these other realms and cause phase shifts to occur.
I mentioned that moderate Antennas are able to retain memories from before and after a phase shift. Technically, all Antennas have this ability, but it's about degree. I can recall only very specific instances and without much detail. Moderates are usually able to pick out much more nuanced minutiae. At the lower end of moderate scale, most of those details fade or get fuzzy over time, but for the very strong Antennas, they hold onto almost everything. One other property that scales with strength is interaction with other conscious entities. Only a small percentage of moderates are able to do this. What's interesting is that these entities can possess (yes, like ghosts) people who aren't even antennas, but no one is aware of such possession at this deep of a level. I have several companions now, and only two have had interactions with these otherworldly beings. Not all of them are malevolent, some of them are whimsical or kind, but there are a fair share of demons out there.
Getting back to the point, Area X started as a government funded project in the 70's. At that time, they were focused on a few subjects: Artificial Intelligence, DNA sequencing, and psychedelics. Yes, they were part of the infamous LSD experiments. But they looked at these subjects through a common lens—there was something that the burgeoning tech industry, fueled by the advent of a commercial computer market, was missing. As the tech giants rose in the early 2000's and began to collect mass amounts of data, this other agency was decades ahead in a different metric, although it was completely (and still is) hidden from the public. Their efforts to understand psychedelic experiences led to a formalized method of understanding interactions between multiple realities. They built certain scanning equipment to detect anomalies like the one I found in the basement; although their tools were much more sophisticated and didn't utilize voltage readings. Then they ran tests in these areas. One area in particular is a hot-bed of phase shift interactions. That's where Area X is located (and the Receiver).
The Receiver is a giant electromagnetic orb that has trapped the kind of multi-dimensional energy that causes the phase shifts; since the Organization seized control of the lab, it's effectively become a map of the Earth in relation to these other worlds. For the past twenty or so years, the Organization has been studying this map, using the data big Tech companies have collected to essentially develop a Rosetta Stone for interpreting the meaning of the fluctuations in their scanning equipment. Recently, the public, though going the long way round, was actually pretty close to a breakthrough in this same department until recently when ultra-powerful LLMs surfaced, and the whole world began going down what I'd argue is the wrong rabbit hole of language processing. But I digress.
Area X is essentially a private military base built for defending the most impactful piece of technology ever invented. With the Receiver, the Organization now has the power to essentially predict any and all future outcomes, the only thing holding them back is the limitations of their own scanning equipment which will get better with time. To put it into perspective, the Organization has access to a kind of data allocation tool which in one day can produce over ten thousand times that the Big Data companies combined would be able to filter through in the next decade. You might think, then, that the problem is merely asymmetric power, and that is certainly a concern, but it isn't the main concern. The main issue is that this organization is actively recruiting (and kidnapping) Antennas from around the world in an effort to find or make one of them into a strong Antenna. In other words, they want a subject who is able not only to see the future, but to manipulate it at will.
balance to the world. I've been working on amassing resources, capital, and building my own team, and now I'm ready. You might ask why I'm posting this here. Wouldn't it be better to keep all this secret? Well, yes, it would be. But that's the problem. Nothing is secret anymore. They know about me and the others, and if I don't make a move, they will. In a way, this is a letter directly to the organization that I know, and I'm coming.
In a different way, I wanted to release this information to the public. There are lots of people out there waking up and realizing that the world they experience is not the one others experience. If you think you might be an Antenna, don't be afraid—you have a special gift that can be controlled. If you want more details on how to control it, or if you're interested in my mission, don't be afraid to reach out. This hasn't always been my life's work, but it is now.
At least until I die.
2024.05.16 23:08 Superbly_Humble Group game design (UPDATE 1) & sub news
Hey friends!
Looks like the deck building card battle (20 card decks) won yesterday. Thank you for participating in the vote.
Because this is the first group game, it will be very casual, as this will all be done on Reddit. I'll enable our chat to help out, but I'll need your help to keep people from abusing it. For the future, I want to have a discord server where we can interact better, but that's a slow process for me (anyone with experience please DM me).
I'll start out by really introducing myself; I'm Magnus, a game designer in Vancouver, Canada. My company, BRB Games, has been a subsidiary of a large game company, and my employees and I primarily designed games for ages 3-12. I have worked on a few other projects as a consultant, mainly doing logic, core design, testing, etc. In November we found out cutbacks were incoming. Due to a tight contract, I've had a second job the last few years as a lead robotics designer (among other hats) to cover my costs, plus top-up my own employees at BRB. I was often doing 16 hour days, juggling way too much, ontop of a 3 hour commute if I even went home. We all talked and closure was the best choice. Most of my employees were picked up right away, or transitioned into the parent company, and in April, my last person got a fantastic job remotely for an Australian company as a junior designer. I gave my notice with my employer and that brings me to here and now. I have time to actually go to conventions again, I'll be teaching 4 classes a month in person, I'm interning a highschool student in game design from California currently, a volunteer math tutor, and I feel I can finally help everyone in boardgamedesign. I want build this community back up, the best it's ever been. When it closed due to the Reddit protest, we lost 80,000 subs. I became the mod after 2 attempts (and a long talk with Reddit admins). Honestly, this calling in life fulfills me, and if I can pass on anything to you, or help get your game noticed and sold, I'm more than happy to. Long intro short, I'm here to help, so feel free to ask me anything and if I don't know the answer (happens a lot), we can find out!
Also, thanks to our mods u/bgg-uglywalrus and u/MudkipzLover. Without them, we couldn't do this. Their experience, determination and willingness for anything boardgames is inspirational and a foundation of what we are. Thank you, muchly.
So to get started on the game, I want to focus on the first aspects of proper design:
Card Game: Deck Builder (Boardgamedesign Edition)
1 - Main Objective (DEVELOPMENT STAGE)
Closed as the artwork isn't finished yet, and play conditions are directly controlled
It's time to dedicate our resources to visual appeal and player immersion
To be fair, the rules will be compiled already, this is the design aspect
We are able to send out prototypes before this step
Honestly this should be happening very early. The more people know about your game from an early stage, the more they feel connected. Ask for controlled opinions, and respond to everyone within reasonable limits. Every person and is a potential customer now and in the future, and you are building loyalty to YOU, not the game.
Please feel free to add a comment with the section you'd like to add to. We can respond to those threads for more detail, but EACH comment will be a different design element. Your name will be added to that section and that's your contribution! More than 1 person can be credited for the section, and more than 1 section can be credited because we are all collaborating!
When it comes to the deck creations, keep the art and theme to yourself for now, but list what you want in a deck mechanic.
This document will be updated constantly until we lock it and create the next stage.
If we determine that this projevt comes to a marketable standing (which is not intended, but never say no to glory), contributors will have a few options. Either DM me your real info for credit or your username will be used. I know privacy is a premium on the internet, but I can only credit those that want it. If that means creating a new account to protect your privacy, you'll have to DM the mod team so we can approve you due to low karma automod.
Lastly, anything you contribute to this project is considered the IP of the project as a whole. Credit where credit is due (having your name on a project is a HUGE start for your resume), but please only contribute if you understand that there is no financial incentive, nor compensation of any kind outside of credit. I can't afford to feed you all :)
submitted by Superbly_Humble to BoardgameDesign [link] [comments]
Looks like the deck building card battle (20 card decks) won yesterday. Thank you for participating in the vote.
Because this is the first group game, it will be very casual, as this will all be done on Reddit. I'll enable our chat to help out, but I'll need your help to keep people from abusing it. For the future, I want to have a discord server where we can interact better, but that's a slow process for me (anyone with experience please DM me).
I'll start out by really introducing myself; I'm Magnus, a game designer in Vancouver, Canada. My company, BRB Games, has been a subsidiary of a large game company, and my employees and I primarily designed games for ages 3-12. I have worked on a few other projects as a consultant, mainly doing logic, core design, testing, etc. In November we found out cutbacks were incoming. Due to a tight contract, I've had a second job the last few years as a lead robotics designer (among other hats) to cover my costs, plus top-up my own employees at BRB. I was often doing 16 hour days, juggling way too much, ontop of a 3 hour commute if I even went home. We all talked and closure was the best choice. Most of my employees were picked up right away, or transitioned into the parent company, and in April, my last person got a fantastic job remotely for an Australian company as a junior designer. I gave my notice with my employer and that brings me to here and now. I have time to actually go to conventions again, I'll be teaching 4 classes a month in person, I'm interning a highschool student in game design from California currently, a volunteer math tutor, and I feel I can finally help everyone in boardgamedesign. I want build this community back up, the best it's ever been. When it closed due to the Reddit protest, we lost 80,000 subs. I became the mod after 2 attempts (and a long talk with Reddit admins). Honestly, this calling in life fulfills me, and if I can pass on anything to you, or help get your game noticed and sold, I'm more than happy to. Long intro short, I'm here to help, so feel free to ask me anything and if I don't know the answer (happens a lot), we can find out!
Also, thanks to our mods u/bgg-uglywalrus and u/MudkipzLover. Without them, we couldn't do this. Their experience, determination and willingness for anything boardgames is inspirational and a foundation of what we are. Thank you, muchly.
So to get started on the game, I want to focus on the first aspects of proper design:
Card Game: Deck Builder (Boardgamedesign Edition)
1 - Main Objective (DEVELOPMENT STAGE)
- Design an engaging card game battle experience with deck building mechanics.
- Defeat opponents deck by reducing Heath to zero
- OR Creating a lock out condition.
- Character cards, artifact cards, condition cards
- (Group Defined)
- Cards are played from hand as defined per card.
- Cards are activated using resources (?)
- Cards are activated with combining each cards defined resource value(?)
- (Group Defined Input)
- 20 Cards per deck hard limit
- Players construct a deck using individual preset decks of 20 cards.
- Players share a pool of universal condition cards (?)
- (Group Defined)
- Shuffle Determine turn order Draw (x) cards to hand (?)
- First turn rules (no attacks, activations?)
- Turn Structure and Phases Draw Playing Activating Resolving Player Universal Actions Resolving Turn
- Activation
- Checks
- Blocks
- Damage Dealt
- Conditions (Weakness, Lasting effects?)
- Interactions
- Resolution
- Reducing players health to zero
- Defeating all defensive cards (?)
- Creating a zero sum condition (unique mechanic or the gimmick)
- Spreadsheet stats analysis (as we go)
- FIRST INTERNAL PLAYTESTING (yay!)
- Recording data sets of all conditions
- Extensive strategy testing
- Group input about what worked, and didn't
- Refine Ruleset
- Card conditions and activation tweaks
- Gameplay change and redesign as needed (you can ALWAYS change your game at any time, this is just a checks and balance dedicated to it)
Closed as the artwork isn't finished yet, and play conditions are directly controlled
- Create play sheets for players
- Conditions to try Feedback for a variety of mechanics
- Seek out closed groups (either local, or online)
- Compile data and rework as needed
It's time to dedicate our resources to visual appeal and player immersion
- Artwork
- Overall game theme Deck theme Character theme Dice, Spinner, token theme (components)
- Player Immersion Game backstory ("Once a year, players...")
- Individual deck story Unique wording and phrases Compelling intrigue dialogue
- Promotional Materials (Unique Art and tone)
- Art testing Compile feedback forms Test for colour visions, dyslexia and other impairments
- Art reworks and touchups
To be fair, the rules will be compiled already, this is the design aspect
- List all game rules and mechanisms
- Startup guide (can be seperate insert)
- Quick references (if complicated)
- Determine phrasing based on thematics
- Artwork and formatting
- Page count Structure and finesse
- Decide on platform (Digital or Physical)
- Digital
- Select release program Design phase (Inhouse or hire)
- Testing inhouse
- Testing public
- Feedback Review and reworks
- Physical
- Determine desired materials (Request sample)
- Playtest with physical prototypes (We know certain materials hold up and reuse them to save time, so we only need to heavily test if we are using an unknown vendor, new product or process, or new paints).
- Determine content arrangement
- Choose box size
- Design insert
- Box art creation
- Decide on manufacturer
- Get specifications about batch sizes, weight, and distribution to warehouse / choice location
- Calculate shipping and vendor distribution
- You'll have the data to do this now.
We are able to send out prototypes before this step
- Select choice game stores, boardgame bars, playtesting groups, reviewers, streamers / YouTubers, notable designers, game design companies, publishers, and convention directors (You'll want to have a diaglue about review in exchange for free game or money, both, or return shipping. Also a timeframe!).
Honestly this should be happening very early. The more people know about your game from an early stage, the more they feel connected. Ask for controlled opinions, and respond to everyone within reasonable limits. Every person and is a potential customer now and in the future, and you are building loyalty to YOU, not the game.
- Forums, Reddit, Online videos, Interviewers, Blogs, Website, Conventions, In person, everywhere!
- Business cards are affordable, grab them
- (More?)
- We'll cover this more
Please feel free to add a comment with the section you'd like to add to. We can respond to those threads for more detail, but EACH comment will be a different design element. Your name will be added to that section and that's your contribution! More than 1 person can be credited for the section, and more than 1 section can be credited because we are all collaborating!
When it comes to the deck creations, keep the art and theme to yourself for now, but list what you want in a deck mechanic.
This document will be updated constantly until we lock it and create the next stage.
If we determine that this projevt comes to a marketable standing (which is not intended, but never say no to glory), contributors will have a few options. Either DM me your real info for credit or your username will be used. I know privacy is a premium on the internet, but I can only credit those that want it. If that means creating a new account to protect your privacy, you'll have to DM the mod team so we can approve you due to low karma automod.
Lastly, anything you contribute to this project is considered the IP of the project as a whole. Credit where credit is due (having your name on a project is a HUGE start for your resume), but please only contribute if you understand that there is no financial incentive, nor compensation of any kind outside of credit. I can't afford to feed you all :)
2024.05.16 23:07 Scavenge101 I'm trying really hard to give this game a shot
Long story short, only way I have of playing this is this new client they have released. I checked which starter deck to get before spending any money, bunch of threads say Broly green. Buy. Lose every game against the easy bots. No matter what I try. It's extremely frustrating and so shockingly dense by whoever designed this game that it's so hard to get new cards.
I've watched a few youtube videos and checked some guides, okay cool I get it. The big weakness of the starter decks is that they lack any power cards that make the ramp up worth doing. But I can't get any cards without spending money and I don't want to spend money if this games just not worth playing to begin with.
Is there an easy path to getting competitive at least with one single deck? Because jesus christ, I've never been so instantly demotivated to play a game and I really want to like it since I'm a huge dragonball fan.
submitted by Scavenge101 to DBS_CardGame [link] [comments]
I've watched a few youtube videos and checked some guides, okay cool I get it. The big weakness of the starter decks is that they lack any power cards that make the ramp up worth doing. But I can't get any cards without spending money and I don't want to spend money if this games just not worth playing to begin with.
Is there an easy path to getting competitive at least with one single deck? Because jesus christ, I've never been so instantly demotivated to play a game and I really want to like it since I'm a huge dragonball fan.
2024.05.16 23:06 ImaginationVarious50 Big D Calls Alicia Mom
In the Mother’s Day video, when she was showing the letters and cards the kids had given to her, I happened to catch a glimpse of the letter that big D gave her. It began with “Dear Mom.” Looks like he calls her Mom.
submitted by ImaginationVarious50 to doughertydozenexposed [link] [comments]
2024.05.16 23:05 vampiricangelface [exchange] 5 envelopes of stationery! [US to WW]
hi there!! i am hoping to get back into art journaling and i would love to recieve some new stuff for my collection while giving away some unused older things! im looking to give away 5 envelopes of stationery (i.e. washi tape samples, stickers, letter paper + envelopes, cards/postcards, assorted ephemera, etc.) in exchange for any of the items i just listed + any junk journaling supplies or unique items!
i'll pick 5 people in the comments to exchange with :) comment what themes you like!
submitted by vampiricangelface to RandomActsofHappyMail [link] [comments]
i'll pick 5 people in the comments to exchange with :) comment what themes you like!
2024.05.16 23:05 kwakers2001 G10 print bed - PLA not sticking - It is now..... Other Filament Samples Help
I ordered a G10 sheet about a week ago after watching Makers Muse as I am planning on buying and printing PETG. The gods were obviously looking down, as two days ago my Creality glass bed (2 years old) exploded as I picked it up with my thumb and finger out of the freezer. Interestingly the print was still attached to the glass, it just shattered all around it. It was fun trying to get the print off.
Anyway...... For those who have bough G10 and are struggling with printing PLA.
When mine arrive it has a plastic sheet on both sides that needs to be removed. I gave both sides a clean with hot soapy water (Fairy/Dawn) and a green sponge/scourer. Did a couple of prints and then it was not sticking. Change bed temp up 5 - 10 degree C. Still no joy, tried glue stick etc.
Solution: Was to give the bed a really good scrub using the hot water, Fairy/Dawn and the scrubby side of the sponge (new one). Really scrub, use those arm muscles.
I suspect that the plastic sheet (sticky tack that holds it) on the bed from new, was not completely removed and a good scrub helped. It may be that the sheet needs a very fine "sand" which the scrubby bit on the sponge supplies. I don't know, but it has worked for me.
Some people have said use fine grit sand paper (I did not do this).
I just need to get some PETG and some sample of TPU and other filaments to test out the bed.
Does anybody know if you can get cheap but good samples of different filaments. I just want, say 5 meters of each to do some tests.
submitted by kwakers2001 to 3Dprinting [link] [comments]
Anyway...... For those who have bough G10 and are struggling with printing PLA.
When mine arrive it has a plastic sheet on both sides that needs to be removed. I gave both sides a clean with hot soapy water (Fairy/Dawn) and a green sponge/scourer. Did a couple of prints and then it was not sticking. Change bed temp up 5 - 10 degree C. Still no joy, tried glue stick etc.
Solution: Was to give the bed a really good scrub using the hot water, Fairy/Dawn and the scrubby side of the sponge (new one). Really scrub, use those arm muscles.
I suspect that the plastic sheet (sticky tack that holds it) on the bed from new, was not completely removed and a good scrub helped. It may be that the sheet needs a very fine "sand" which the scrubby bit on the sponge supplies. I don't know, but it has worked for me.
Some people have said use fine grit sand paper (I did not do this).
I just need to get some PETG and some sample of TPU and other filaments to test out the bed.
Does anybody know if you can get cheap but good samples of different filaments. I just want, say 5 meters of each to do some tests.
2024.05.16 23:01 penpalwithseven [Offer] Hiroshi Yoshida postcards! [Canada]
reposting because one of the people who requested weren't in the countries I listed. This time, Canada only since I gotta root for my fellow Canadians!
I have a lot of these art print postcards that I was planning on sending with random penpal letters, but haven't been going through them as quickly as I'd like to. I'll offer up 1 more. I have cards depicting various places from the following countries:
Japan
China [None left!]
North Korea [None left!]
Greece [None left!]
Italy
Myanmar [None left!]
India
Egypt [None left!]
Switzerland
USA
submitted by penpalwithseven to RandomActsofCards [link] [comments]
I have a lot of these art print postcards that I was planning on sending with random penpal letters, but haven't been going through them as quickly as I'd like to. I'll offer up 1 more. I have cards depicting various places from the following countries:
Japan
China [None left!]
North Korea [None left!]
Greece [None left!]
Italy
Myanmar [None left!]
India
Egypt [None left!]
Switzerland
USA
2024.05.16 22:56 orenishii12345 Filling out application to renew my brother’s green card. Am I considered a preparer?
I’m helping my brother fill out his application online to renew his green card. He doesn’t speak any English, so I’m the one that’s filling out the questions and translating for him. Would I put myself down as a prepareinterpreter for this application? Or does a prepareinterpreter have to be someone that belongs to a business/organization?
submitted by orenishii12345 to USCIS [link] [comments]
2024.05.16 22:55 SoCaFroal Custom button cards not showing icon from template
Hey all, I have a button card that used to work but it's no longer showing the icons. In developer tools, the sensor state looks right when I open/close/lock the door. I havent been good at maintenence on my dashboard so I assume there was an update at some point which updated how the templates need to be set up. Can someone help me with this?
submitted by SoCaFroal to homeassistant [link] [comments]
icon: mdi:door-open friendly_name: Front Door Master SensorHeres the card
type: custom:button-card entity: sensor.front_door_master_sensor name: Front Door tap_action: action: call-service service: script.1668618609440 target: {} data: lock_entity_id: lock.main_door_lock styles: card: - filter: opacity(50%) - height: 80px icon: - color: white name: - font-size: 12px - color: white state: - value: Open styles: card: - background-color: red - filter: opacity(100%) - animation: blink 5s ease infinite - value: Closed styles: card: - background-color: steel-grey - filter: opacity(100%) - value: Locked styles: card: - background-color: green - filter: opacity(100%) Here's the template- sensor: - name: "Front Door Master Sensor" state: > {%- if is_state('binary_sensor.contact_front_door_contact', 'off') %} {%- if is_state('lock.main_door_lock', 'locked') %} Locked {%- else %} Unlocked {%- endif %} {%- else %} Open {%- endif %} icon: > {%- if is_state('binary_sensor.contact_front_door_contact', 'off') %} {%- if is_state('lock.main_door_lock', 'locked') %} mdi:door-closed-lock {%- else %} mdi:door-closed {%- endif %} {%- else %} mdi:door-open {%- endif %} 2024.05.16 22:50 Icymushi Need Help with I-765 Eligibility for Expired J-1 Visa Holder Married to U.S. Citizen
Hi everyone,
I'm seeking advice on my eligibility for filing Form I-765 (Application for Employment Authorization). I entered the U.S. on a J-1 visa, which has since expired, and recently got married to a U.S. citizen. Unfortunately, my husband isn't able to apply for my green card right now, but I need to work.
Can anyone help me understand what eligibility category I fall under for the I-765 given my situation? I don't have a lawyer and I'm feeling a bit lost. Any guidance or resources would be greatly appreciated!
Thank you!
submitted by Icymushi to USCIS [link] [comments]
I'm seeking advice on my eligibility for filing Form I-765 (Application for Employment Authorization). I entered the U.S. on a J-1 visa, which has since expired, and recently got married to a U.S. citizen. Unfortunately, my husband isn't able to apply for my green card right now, but I need to work.
Can anyone help me understand what eligibility category I fall under for the I-765 given my situation? I don't have a lawyer and I'm feeling a bit lost. Any guidance or resources would be greatly appreciated!
Thank you!
2024.05.16 22:49 pookiedookielookie U.S. Permanent Residents and Travel to London, UK
Hello, I will be traveling to London, UK for study abroad for one month and I am a permanent resident of the U.S., meaning that I have a green card. I also only have a Mexican passport. Can I travel to the UK with my Mexican passport and permanent resident card, or do I need to apply for ETA or a UK Visa? Can someone please help me !!! I can’t get in contact with the embassies 😭
submitted by pookiedookielookie to immigration [link] [comments]
2024.05.16 22:46 Brave_Minimum_791 Sticky situation - cancel old policy and pay it off without talking to my agent office
Hi everyone! I need some advice on how to deal with an unusual situation.
I signed up for a new insurance company (SF). After paying for the new plan I noticed the effective dates were incorrect and not what i had initially chosen. They were 1 day after my previous insurance coverage was going to end. I chose previous day start so they would OVERLAP but this option in the online date calendar did not stick.
Immediately I call my local agent for the first time. I said id like to keep what i have chosen and choose those same options but change start date. She insists we start a new plan and go over my coverage. I reluctantly agree only because after all she is helping me correct an error that occurred with the start date.
She goes to review my plan options. Then says something i dont even want to repeat word for word... She described several awful scenarios in attempts to guilt me into accepting the options she wanted me to have. I felt her tone with me was extremely inappropriate. I SHOULD HAVE ended the conversation there. At this point i felt shamed and pressured. I explain that im trying to keep it around a certain price while still retaining good coverage. We agreed on a lower deductible and more benefits as long as my budget is taken into consideration. I dont need or want the funeral benefits, or any of the other stuff she finessed me into getting. In the moment i told myself ill just deal with it if the price is OK to me.
I was thankful she was helping me correct the start date so didnt want to argue. I agreed to the changes and all felt okay. She did mention several times "i shouldnt be doing it this way but i want to help you" which i didnt understand and struck me as odd. I told her i really appreciated her help. She then asked for me to leave her a google review which i agreed to. I was waiting till this all settled... i never did it after what happens next. We end the call on a good note and said shes reach out to me with updates.
After WEEKS its been radio silence. I try calling the office and cannot get a live person. I stopped after several attempts and figured theyd get back to me. Nothing ever happened. I login to the online account and attempt to make a request for changes on my policy. Never heard back. Theres alot going on in my life right now so i gave up after awhile. Figured everything would work itself out and id get a final correct bill or a call someday. I was so wrong.
Several days ago i get cancellation notices due to non payment. Im furious. The billing was never figured out and they are billing me for two policies. From what the letters say they want the full amount of both or theyll cancel me on that day and my policy "could be" reinstated theyll let me know. I panicked and thought i never want to deal with or talk to them again!!! Not taking a chance of them "reconsidering" and also im not paying 2 bills one of which is way higher then expected. So.... I instantly signed up for a new policy with a new provider starting a day before this messed up policy cancels. Im covered with no gap in coverage. I have exactly the coverage i want now and no longer wish to do business with SF.
TODAY is one day after old policy cancels i get a call from my agents office. The message from secretary stated they apologize its taken so long. Theyre finally figuring out the billing and give me a balance. The number given was what i agreed to at the time of plan setup. Im OK with paying that.
My question is how to proceed and deal with this billing? Id like it taken care of and pay what i owe WITHOUT having to speak to anyone at that office. Should i call the 1800 number or would they just forward me to the office? It may sound childish but theres no way i feel comfortable dealing with anyone at that branch ever again. Nor will i give them my bank card info or anything. Ill mail in a check or pay by CC online if i have to but not to that agents office. They made me feel like crap all through the process. I dont want to explain all this to customer service or file any complaints. How can i cancel, pay this off, and move on? From the letter i got its cancelled as of yesterday. The call today took me by total surprise.
Thanks for sticking with me thru all this. Any advice is appreciated.
submitted by Brave_Minimum_791 to Insurance [link] [comments]
I signed up for a new insurance company (SF). After paying for the new plan I noticed the effective dates were incorrect and not what i had initially chosen. They were 1 day after my previous insurance coverage was going to end. I chose previous day start so they would OVERLAP but this option in the online date calendar did not stick.
Immediately I call my local agent for the first time. I said id like to keep what i have chosen and choose those same options but change start date. She insists we start a new plan and go over my coverage. I reluctantly agree only because after all she is helping me correct an error that occurred with the start date.
She goes to review my plan options. Then says something i dont even want to repeat word for word... She described several awful scenarios in attempts to guilt me into accepting the options she wanted me to have. I felt her tone with me was extremely inappropriate. I SHOULD HAVE ended the conversation there. At this point i felt shamed and pressured. I explain that im trying to keep it around a certain price while still retaining good coverage. We agreed on a lower deductible and more benefits as long as my budget is taken into consideration. I dont need or want the funeral benefits, or any of the other stuff she finessed me into getting. In the moment i told myself ill just deal with it if the price is OK to me.
I was thankful she was helping me correct the start date so didnt want to argue. I agreed to the changes and all felt okay. She did mention several times "i shouldnt be doing it this way but i want to help you" which i didnt understand and struck me as odd. I told her i really appreciated her help. She then asked for me to leave her a google review which i agreed to. I was waiting till this all settled... i never did it after what happens next. We end the call on a good note and said shes reach out to me with updates.
After WEEKS its been radio silence. I try calling the office and cannot get a live person. I stopped after several attempts and figured theyd get back to me. Nothing ever happened. I login to the online account and attempt to make a request for changes on my policy. Never heard back. Theres alot going on in my life right now so i gave up after awhile. Figured everything would work itself out and id get a final correct bill or a call someday. I was so wrong.
Several days ago i get cancellation notices due to non payment. Im furious. The billing was never figured out and they are billing me for two policies. From what the letters say they want the full amount of both or theyll cancel me on that day and my policy "could be" reinstated theyll let me know. I panicked and thought i never want to deal with or talk to them again!!! Not taking a chance of them "reconsidering" and also im not paying 2 bills one of which is way higher then expected. So.... I instantly signed up for a new policy with a new provider starting a day before this messed up policy cancels. Im covered with no gap in coverage. I have exactly the coverage i want now and no longer wish to do business with SF.
TODAY is one day after old policy cancels i get a call from my agents office. The message from secretary stated they apologize its taken so long. Theyre finally figuring out the billing and give me a balance. The number given was what i agreed to at the time of plan setup. Im OK with paying that.
My question is how to proceed and deal with this billing? Id like it taken care of and pay what i owe WITHOUT having to speak to anyone at that office. Should i call the 1800 number or would they just forward me to the office? It may sound childish but theres no way i feel comfortable dealing with anyone at that branch ever again. Nor will i give them my bank card info or anything. Ill mail in a check or pay by CC online if i have to but not to that agents office. They made me feel like crap all through the process. I dont want to explain all this to customer service or file any complaints. How can i cancel, pay this off, and move on? From the letter i got its cancelled as of yesterday. The call today took me by total surprise.
Thanks for sticking with me thru all this. Any advice is appreciated.
2024.05.16 22:43 Dizzy_Software9862 My son green card said was mailed but never delivered
They said if was not delivered on may 8 had to make a request which I did so they will answer me on June 7 🫠 what else I can do? Help!!!!
submitted by Dizzy_Software9862 to USCIS [link] [comments]
2024.05.16 22:42 TunaFishCommand Greene Street Market payment
Hi all, fairly new here and interested in visiting the Greene Street Market. My question is, do you know if most vendors accept card/contactless payments, or cash only?
Thanks!
submitted by TunaFishCommand to HuntsvilleAlabama [link] [comments]
Thanks!
2024.05.16 22:39 Mchl496 Why doubting Game Pass is a mistake
So it's popular to doubt Game Pass due to a lack of understanding of the model. Xbox/Microsoft wants Game Pass to be the Netflix of gaming. We know that, but no one questions Netflix. Netflix initially had old movies and TV shows on DVD. So let's talk Netflix and their competitors.
They later did streaming. What was happening around then? Streaming wars were incomming due to Netflix becoming popular. Studios wanted more money and then thought, wait why don't we do our own at some point. Netflix started spinning up their own content in landmark deals, House of Cards whole first season was green lit. Netflix began blowing money to draw eyesballs at this point. They needed continued subscriptions growth to help mitigate the blowing of cash but they new they would only survive with engaging new titles since they were losing the back catalog that most people were watching. Yes, Bright got headlines, but losing Friends and the Office hurt Netflix.
Netflix doesn't get the ability to make a big theatrical run pop that makes 500million dollars and then the 2nd run with it being on TV. So what do they do? They end series after a couple seasons. They do things to gain acclaim or get everyone talking. 2020 came along and what were we talking about in March/April? Tiger King. It's a far cry from Bright but it took over the globe.
What did Netflix's competitors do? They launched services and made original content. A lot are flopping. I won't mention Quibbi, Vudu, Crackle or all the other low tier streaming services. HBOMax was in it's best in 2020. They got my money. They about faced on that their features releasing day and date, started cancelling shows, merged and changed their name and cancelled/scrapped completed projects. I cancelled my service and only came back when they offered it for 99¢ a month for the ad version for a year. Guess what, I'll be cancelling it when the price changes.
Disney locked in a lot of subscribers for 2-5 years pre-launch. They released a lot of new content to mixed to meh results. They made a Willion series and cancelled it after season 1. X-Men 97 got me to log into a family account to watch it starting 3 weeks ago.
CBS All Access became Paramount Plus. They went in on Star Trek and now Paramount is looking to get sold in a weird way where the IP would stay with Sony but paramount plus would get sold off?
Peacock made headlines for their Bel Air series but I've heard more people talk positive about Crackle than ever mention Peacock.
**** Back to Game Pass****
If Microsoft stick's to their plan, they will be Netflix. They need to work on getting subscriptions. I'm sure a lower tier Game Pass, that's just their phone games will get a lot of new subscribers. They won't take as many big swings like Netflix did for Bright. They will take moderate swings like Netflix did for Adam Sandler movies and stand up. They will hopefully work with TV partners to make sure new TVs can play Game Pass. They don't need a handheld if all the new Samsungs and LG TVs have a built in 100 dollar piece of equipment. They will make more TV shows and movies. They might not of made a new Fallout game, but the series made the old games spike in sales and plays.
Microsoft made a service that influenced a service that made PlayStation and Nintendo copy parts of it. Some of the same Games Journos who bemoan Game Pass as unsustainable also really want Nintendo to copy them more, usually justifying emulation/piracy.
You won't like what Xbox/Microsoft does all the time. If we lose Phil Spencer, you'll get someone way more keen to be a Bobby Kotick and keep his job then someone who loves videos as a medium. You don't have to agree or support them. Vote with your wallets. I'm just a Nintendo Day 1 fan, who owns all the systems and likes what Microsoft is building to.
P.S. a cancelled TV series doesn't get the same press as a closed game studio but the loss of jobs and impact is the same. You look at all the crew and then people hired to do related jobs... Like the craft services, security and post production services. It hurts.
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They later did streaming. What was happening around then? Streaming wars were incomming due to Netflix becoming popular. Studios wanted more money and then thought, wait why don't we do our own at some point. Netflix started spinning up their own content in landmark deals, House of Cards whole first season was green lit. Netflix began blowing money to draw eyesballs at this point. They needed continued subscriptions growth to help mitigate the blowing of cash but they new they would only survive with engaging new titles since they were losing the back catalog that most people were watching. Yes, Bright got headlines, but losing Friends and the Office hurt Netflix.
Netflix doesn't get the ability to make a big theatrical run pop that makes 500million dollars and then the 2nd run with it being on TV. So what do they do? They end series after a couple seasons. They do things to gain acclaim or get everyone talking. 2020 came along and what were we talking about in March/April? Tiger King. It's a far cry from Bright but it took over the globe.
What did Netflix's competitors do? They launched services and made original content. A lot are flopping. I won't mention Quibbi, Vudu, Crackle or all the other low tier streaming services. HBOMax was in it's best in 2020. They got my money. They about faced on that their features releasing day and date, started cancelling shows, merged and changed their name and cancelled/scrapped completed projects. I cancelled my service and only came back when they offered it for 99¢ a month for the ad version for a year. Guess what, I'll be cancelling it when the price changes.
Disney locked in a lot of subscribers for 2-5 years pre-launch. They released a lot of new content to mixed to meh results. They made a Willion series and cancelled it after season 1. X-Men 97 got me to log into a family account to watch it starting 3 weeks ago.
CBS All Access became Paramount Plus. They went in on Star Trek and now Paramount is looking to get sold in a weird way where the IP would stay with Sony but paramount plus would get sold off?
Peacock made headlines for their Bel Air series but I've heard more people talk positive about Crackle than ever mention Peacock.
**** Back to Game Pass****
If Microsoft stick's to their plan, they will be Netflix. They need to work on getting subscriptions. I'm sure a lower tier Game Pass, that's just their phone games will get a lot of new subscribers. They won't take as many big swings like Netflix did for Bright. They will take moderate swings like Netflix did for Adam Sandler movies and stand up. They will hopefully work with TV partners to make sure new TVs can play Game Pass. They don't need a handheld if all the new Samsungs and LG TVs have a built in 100 dollar piece of equipment. They will make more TV shows and movies. They might not of made a new Fallout game, but the series made the old games spike in sales and plays.
Microsoft made a service that influenced a service that made PlayStation and Nintendo copy parts of it. Some of the same Games Journos who bemoan Game Pass as unsustainable also really want Nintendo to copy them more, usually justifying emulation/piracy.
You won't like what Xbox/Microsoft does all the time. If we lose Phil Spencer, you'll get someone way more keen to be a Bobby Kotick and keep his job then someone who loves videos as a medium. You don't have to agree or support them. Vote with your wallets. I'm just a Nintendo Day 1 fan, who owns all the systems and likes what Microsoft is building to.
P.S. a cancelled TV series doesn't get the same press as a closed game studio but the loss of jobs and impact is the same. You look at all the crew and then people hired to do related jobs... Like the craft services, security and post production services. It hurts.
2024.05.16 22:37 Interesting_Cut8584 Don't make my mistake
 | My wife just arrived in the US, spent 1700 for green card and work authorization. Not too long after arriving in the US. She developed severe stomach pain We went to urgent care then they sent us to the ER, turns out she has bladder and kidney infection. I didn't have insurance for her yet as she just arrived submitted by Interesting_Cut8584 to USCIS [link] [comments] I have a bit of emergency fund. But still took a bit hit from this. Had to pay 3,925 out of pocket for the ER visit. I'm just posting this in hopes of warning others. Have a bit more than what I had in emergency fund |
2024.05.16 22:36 urai19 Non-Citizen taking the Bahamas cruise from Miami
I’m not a US citizen but I’m a green card holder. I’ll be taking Carnival Sunrise from Miami to Bahamas and was wondering if I need a visa or any other travel documentation besides my green card? The cruise is closed loop and comes back to Miami
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2024.05.16 22:34 Organic-Leg-1443 Advice on goals/mindset for next few years prior to grad admissions
Hey everybody.
I finished my undergrad at a major Canadian university (UBC) this spring, and I'm hoping to pursue a life sciences PhD in the next 2 years in the U.S. (I have a green card, ignore any visa concerns). I got a life sciences major and stats minor in 3 years (tons of APs + didn't take a single summer off), but I totally fucked up my GPA (3.1) and my grades show somewhat of a progression till my very final semester which I screwed up pretty badly. I did get about a year of research experience in a plant biology lab where I primarily worked in bioinformatics (but got some wetlab experience as well), and my work will be published as a first-author paper in the next 1-2 years (certainly at least a preprint to show for it before PhD admissions).
Currently I'm in the process of finalizing an RA position at an academic lab at a reputable cancer institute in the U.S. and I'm looking at about a 2 year commitment there before I start my PhD in 2026. The PI seems to pretty great and mentorship-oriented, and I also believe I'll have an opportunity to publish there as well since I'll be working on my own project (the role isn't just assisting with others' work).
I just want advice on how I can salvage my terrible academic performance and put myself in a good position for PhD apps in ~2 years' time. I was really hoping to do my PhD at a T10 school but I feel that my undergrad grades put me at a severe disadvantage for grad admissions. Any tips on how to get in the right mindset, what to focus on during these two years, etc? Should I perhaps take more undergrad courses at a nearby school after graduating to raise my GPA?
submitted by Organic-Leg-1443 to gradadmissions [link] [comments]
I finished my undergrad at a major Canadian university (UBC) this spring, and I'm hoping to pursue a life sciences PhD in the next 2 years in the U.S. (I have a green card, ignore any visa concerns). I got a life sciences major and stats minor in 3 years (tons of APs + didn't take a single summer off), but I totally fucked up my GPA (3.1) and my grades show somewhat of a progression till my very final semester which I screwed up pretty badly. I did get about a year of research experience in a plant biology lab where I primarily worked in bioinformatics (but got some wetlab experience as well), and my work will be published as a first-author paper in the next 1-2 years (certainly at least a preprint to show for it before PhD admissions).
Currently I'm in the process of finalizing an RA position at an academic lab at a reputable cancer institute in the U.S. and I'm looking at about a 2 year commitment there before I start my PhD in 2026. The PI seems to pretty great and mentorship-oriented, and I also believe I'll have an opportunity to publish there as well since I'll be working on my own project (the role isn't just assisting with others' work).
I just want advice on how I can salvage my terrible academic performance and put myself in a good position for PhD apps in ~2 years' time. I was really hoping to do my PhD at a T10 school but I feel that my undergrad grades put me at a severe disadvantage for grad admissions. Any tips on how to get in the right mindset, what to focus on during these two years, etc? Should I perhaps take more undergrad courses at a nearby school after graduating to raise my GPA?
2024.05.16 22:29 BagOk9283 Surge and Verve cost of living increase
Well I closed down both of my credit cards from Continental Finance. I got a letter that due to cost of living adjustments they were raising the interest rate 5% and adding $50 to the annual fee. And fuck that.
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