Best Destinations for Female Travelers in the US

1. Asheville, North Carolina: Known for its artsy vibe and stunning scenery, Asheville offers a safe and welcoming environment for solo female travelers. Explore the vibrant arts scene, indulge in farm-to-table dining, and hike in the nearby Blue Ridge Mountains.
2. Sedona, Arizona: This desert town is not only breathtakingly beautiful but also known for its spiritual and healing energies. Female travelers can enjoy hiking, spa retreats, and exploring the town's art galleries and shops.
3. Portland, Oregon: Portland is a haven for female travelers interested in food, culture, and outdoor adventures. Explore the city's food carts, visit local breweries, and hike in nearby Forest Park.
4. Charleston, South Carolina: With its historic charm and Southern hospitality, Charleston is a great destination for female travelers. Explore the city's historic sites, enjoy the vibrant food scene, and relax on the beautiful beaches.
5. Santa Fe, New Mexico: Santa Fe is known for its rich culture, art galleries, and adobe architecture. Female travelers can explore the city's art scene, visit historic sites like the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum, and enjoy the city's spa culture.

These destinations offer a mix of culture, adventure, and relaxation, making them ideal for female travelers looking to explore the US. Want to know more about is visit travellfy

This is the first episode of SS season 2. This is where the show has more of a sense of what it wants to be. The episode time is cut in half, and the number of songs per episode goes from 4 to 2. These changes help improve the pacing of the show. As with many TV shows, the intro has changed. The intro is where we first see the inclusion of the side characters' pets. While they don't appear in this episode, they will be very relevant in the sister episode. As always, these posts are filled with spoilers, so read at your own risk.
First, I need to discuss the elephant in the room that this episode goes entirely against what was established in the first season. This ep is about how Strawberry got Pupcake, which could have worked if it was set up as a distant flashback. Strawberry already has the friendships with the other humans and Honey Pie Pony in this ep, but in the pilot, she has Pupcake, and all her friends met him at the same time that they met Strawberry, Custard, and Apple. Speaking of, Apple Dumplin is not in this episode, and no explanation is given as to why. When it comes Apple, I get the sense that the writers only include her when they need a little child character, and forget about her the rest of the time. Okay, rant over. Now, we start the episode with Strawberry and Custard planning for a "Just for Custard" day, which is set to happen in two weeks. We're treated to a song from Strawberry about how much she loves Custard, and I'm sure cat owners feel the same kind of love for their own cats. Later that night, there's a thunderstorm, and Pupcake shows up at her doorstep. Strawberry, being the compassionate person that she is, lets him in. Naturally, Custard does not like him, since he is loud, messy, and full of energy. I wish we could have had some scenes where Strawberry trains Pupcake to behave himself, since his behavior was obviously stressing out Custard. The one training scene we do get is more about teaching him how to do tricks than for behavioral stuff. The lack of training we see has the unfortunate implications that Strawberry was enabling Pupcake's behavior and forcing Custard to just deal with it. Anyways, the next day, Strawberry asks her friends if they know anything about this dog, which they don't. Then Strawberry gets the idea for Pupcake's name by going to Angel Cake's house, where she feeds him cupcakes, even though some of them clearly had chocolate icing. There's also a scene earlier, where Pupcake is given a bowl of milk. I can't help but wonder if these scenes where the pets are given human food (in this and other episodes), would have given kids the idea to feed those things to their pets, which would have made them sick (or worse). This is one of the reasons why it's important to analyze the messages in children's media, so that they don't receive harmful messages (like how a bunch of little girls ended up in the hospital for kissing frogs). Okay, second rant over. Since no one had any information about Pupcake, Strawberry takes him in as a permanent member of her family, much to Custard's chagrin. During the aforementioned training sequence, Custard remembers her special day, and gets dolled up, only for Pupcake to come inside and get mud everywhere. Strawberry sends the pets outside to play so that she can clean up. In real life, that would be extremely irresponsible, but since we're inStrawberryland, it's totally okay /s. Through the second musical number, Custard laments about how Pupcake has, in her eyes, ruined her life. Pupcake tries to bring her a stick, but then she finally gets fed up and tells him to stop howling, which he takes to heart. That night, Strawberry tells the pets a story about a prince getting lost in the woods. Custard gets the idea to take Pupcake into the forest and abandon him there, which is uh... kinda sociopathic. Anyway, the pets go on a walk the next day. Pupcake is still upset by Custard telling him not to howl, and so he doesn't even greet any of the other people they see. Then, Custard takes him to Huckleberry Briar, and they both end up lost and it gets very dark and stormy. At feeding time, Strawberry realizes that her pets are missing, so she recruits her friends to search for them with her. While they're lost, the pets bond with each other a bit, and Custard develops some empathy for Pupcake since that was how life was for him before he found Strawberry. They can hear the human voices calling for them. Custard convinces Pupcake to howl so that the humans can find them, even though she'd previously begged him to stop. When they're home, Custard comes clean and apologizes to Pupcake. Strawberry reminds her that she never stopped loving her and that she didn't forget about their special day. Custard has grown fond of Pupcake, and so she tells Strawberry that she wants him to be there on her special day. I'll admit, that this is a wholesome ending. It seems like the pets have a better understanding of each other. In case you couldn't tell, I'm not a big fan of this episode, and I won't be revisiting it all that much. Most of the episode is just frustrating and unpleasant to watch.
Comment your thoughts below!

Photos available here. Please credit Think Wild Central Oregon.
Lead Poisoned Juvenile Bald Eagle Gets Treatment at Think Wild
Bend, Oregon — Think Wild, Bend wildlife hospital and conservation center, is currently treating a juvenile bald eagle suffering from severe lead toxicity.
Think Wild received the eagle on Sunday, May 12, after a community member saw the bird on the ground in their pasture for a few days. The rescuer noticed the bird could not fly well when approached, so they carefully contained the bird in a crate for transport to Think Wild.
Think Wild admitted the 7.4 lb juvenile bald eagle and performed an intake exam. Upon intake, the eagle tested positive for lead toxicity at 53.8 micrograms per deciliter (ug/dL), over five times what is considered clinical in wild raptors (10 ug/dL). Think Wild staff will treat the bald eagle with injectable chelation therapy over the next few weeks. The chelating agents bind to the lead molecules in the eagle’s blood, allowing it to move through and out of the bird’s body.
So far, the eagle is perching, self-feeding, and resistant to handling, which are all positive signs. There are persistent symptoms of lead toxicity as well - the eagle is lethargic and exhibits wing and head drooping when resting. As the chelating agents remove the lead from the eagle’s system, we hope to see an improvement in these neurologic symptoms.
Raptors found with lead poisoning are said to have “lead intoxication.” They may appear “drunk,” with balance and coordination issues, lethargy and wing droop. Symptoms can also include leg paralysis, muscle wasting, dehydration, and anemia. The vast majority of lead-poisoned eagles don’t survive, and oftentimes those that are found must be humanely euthanized due to irreversible organ, muscle, visual, bone and brain damage.
Lead from ammunition is the primary source of lead toxicity in many species, like bald eagles, due to whole bullets or fragments left behind in live prey, gut piles, and carcasses. It is likely that the eagle recently fed on a carcass or prey animal that contained fragmented lead ammunition. Raptor lead toxicity increases during hunting season as gut piles or unrecovered game contaminated with lead are ingested by eagles, raptors, corvids and many other species, resulting in multiple food chain toxicities. Eagle nests near farms and agricultural areas can also be susceptible to toxic lead accumulation when lead shot is used for pest control, as adults may feed poisoned rodents to their nestlings.
Think Wild has treated over 20 birds of prey, including golden and bald eagles, turkey vultures, and Cooper's hawks, for lead toxicity since they began accepting raptor patients in 2021. Only four of those patients were releasable back to the wild. Director of Wildlife Rehabilitation, Pauline Hice, says “lead poisoning is an unfortunate occurrence that rehabilitators across the US see regularly due to the use of lead ammunition, lead sinkers, and environmental contamination. Luckily, these cases are preventable.”
People can prevent lead poisoning in wildlife by using non-lead ammunition, fishing sinkers and rodent control. If you choose to use lead, bury dressing piles and keep the lead away from any sources of water. If you see an eagle or any bird with symptoms of lead intoxication, please contact Think Wild’s Wildlife Hotline at (541) 241-8680. Do not attempt to capture or offer food and water to injured wildlife without first contacting a licensed professional. Bald eagles are protected in the United States by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the Bald and Golden Eagle Act.
About Think Wild
Think Wild is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization located in Bend, Oregon. Our mission is to inspire the High Desert community to care for and protect native wildlife through rescue and rehabilitation, outreach and education, and conservation. We provide veterinary treatment and care at the wildlife hospital, staffed by expert wildlife rehabilitation staff, animal husbandry volunteers, and our staff veterinarian. Wildlife conflicts or injuries can be reported to our Wildlife Hotline at (541) 241-8680, which is monitored seven days a week from 8 AM to 4 PM. Visit us online at thinkwildco.org, or on Instagram or Facebook u/thinkwildco.

I've got a weird idea bubbling around for savings. Is it an OK idea to increase my pre-tax retirement contributions beyond what I'd intend to save for retirement to act as loan-against-retirement collateral for bigger life purchases? In my mind, it has the following advantages:

1. Lowering my effective tax rate now (background/numbers below), and avoiding state income tax altogether if I move to a non-SIT state in retirement;
2. Tax-free growth of a greater percentage of my saved income;
3. Interest paid on loans goes to myself instead of a lender;
4. For any amount of time that those 'excess' contributions are sitting in the account, they can benefit from tax-free capitalization; and, lastly,
5. Although the phrase, "Time out of the market is growth lost," is the conventional wisdom of loans on one's retirement, there's just as much possibility for those earmarked funds dodging depreciation in a stock market slump and thereby be able to slowly 'buy low' through repayment. In other words, it's a weird kind of diversification;

The other obvious thought would be to do conventional retirement savings proportions and then keep the excess in a HYSA, but even at 5% APR, after taxes the effective APR is 3.75%, more or less in line with straight inflation this year; and, at its heart, that HYSA APR's just gonna follow inflation anyways. Alternatively, a brokerage account with low-cost index funds, but again, capital gains tax comes into play.
So what are your thoughts on the idea?
Background: I'm 30, my base annual income's about $125k (average earnings/yr in my 20s was $47k but, truly, didn't start earning anything near this salary until 2020 when I got into my career), I live in Oregon (SIT state), and rent with my partner and a couple friends. My work offers a 403(b) in addition to a 457(b), meaning I could tax-defer up to $46,000/yr for retirement. I'll max out my Roth IRA every year regardless of these plans.
I have an OK emergency fund of $7k but intend to double that going into next year. (I'm well insured for injury/hospitalization, car accident, LOA, etc. and my job's pretty recession-tolerant (nurse).) I have $115k in retirement savings. My expenses are $2200/mo, and my effective tax rate right now is 24%.
Emergency fund: $7,000
Tax, effective: 24.18% (FICA = 7.65%, Fed = 16.37%, State = 7.81%)
Monthly bills, total: ~$2200

Rent: 800	Utilities: 150	Car Mt/Gas/Park: 320	Insurances: 140
Stream/Entertain: 150	Union: 100	Groceries: 500	Pet: 50

I am currently an informatics analyst working for the hospital. I have applied to a few Application Analyst jobs and I'm wanting to go to Epic (charting system) after working 7 months in this role. Now that I have a little non-bedside experience I am seeing the reality of the salary. I love this job exponentially more than bedside but my cousin who graduated nursing school with me said he is going to Oregon to make 140k as staff. They're unionized there so they have 1 hour paid lunch breaks, and he said they're treated great. Oregon is MCOL. Upon scouring reddit, I'm seeing that anything close to 140k as an Epic analyst is quite the minority and rare to see unless you're in a director type role. If you do make anything close to that, it is atleast after 4-6 years perhaps. I make 73k right now as an informatics analyst and made 72k in the same hospital as a NIGHT SHIFT ICU critical care nurse (low pay is partly why I left; to search for more lucrative salary).
Eventually I want to quit everything all together within the next 10 years by using passive income from real estate investing (Just built my first home and renting out the extra bedroom units to travel nurses).
What do I even do? I am seriously considering going back to bedside nursing even though I hated it and had so much anxiety; but it could be my environment as well - I am a minority in the south (live 40 minutes next to Harrison, AR) and in Oregon I wouldn't be.... I wouldn't do ICU again either so that would maybe make a big difference.
I love the autonomy of Epic and working from home. But I can barely save up to purchase my next rental property like this. If I am trying to get a higher salary, it'll take years to get to 140k. Homes in Oregon are expensive at 400k average as well but I am not opposed to out of state investing.
Any advice is appreciated.

I am currently an informatics analyst working for the hospital. I have applied to a few Application Analyst jobs and I'm wanting to go to Epic (charting system) after working 7 months in this role. Now that I have a little non-bedside experience I am seeing the reality of the salary. I love this job exponentially more than bedside but my cousin who graduated nursing school with me said he is going to Oregon to make 140k as staff. They're unionized there so they have 1 hour paid lunch breaks, and he said they're treated great. Oregon is MCOL. Upon scouring reddit, I'm seeing that anything close to 140k as an Epic analyst is quite the minority and rare to see unless you're in a director type role. If you do make anything close to that, it is atleast after 4-6 years perhaps (or if you can hack it as a consultant after 3 years of Epic work). I make 73k right now as an informatics analyst and made 72k in the same hospital as a NIGHT SHIFT ICU critical care nurse (low pay is partly why I left; to search for more lucrative salary).
Eventually I want to quit everything all together within the next <10 years by using passive income from real estate investing (Just built my first home and renting out the extra bedroom units to travel nurses).
What do I even do? I am seriously considering going back to bedside nursing even though I absolutely hated it and had so much anxiety; but it could be my environment as well - I am a minority in the south (live 40 minutes next to Harrison, AR) and in Oregon I wouldn't be.... I wouldn't do ICU again either so that would maybe make a big difference.
I love the autonomy of Epic and working from home. But I can barely save up to purchase my next rental property like this. If I am trying to get a higher salary, it'll take years to get to 140k. Homes in Oregon are expensive at 400k average as well but I am not opposed to out of state investing.
Any advice is appreciated.
I am asking you consultants to see if this path is worthwhile according to you.. Epic Consulting would be my end goal on the Epic Analyst route, but can I even become a consultant? And it would take me 3-5 years of grinding with no coding or building experience to even reach that high pay right?

I am currently an informatics analyst working for the hospital. I have applied to a few Application Analyst jobs and I'm wanting to go to Epic (charting system) after working 7 months in this role. Now that I have a little non-bedside experience I am seeing the reality of the salary. I love this job exponentially more than bedside but my cousin who graduated nursing school with me said he is going to Oregon to make 140k as staff. They're unionized there so they have 1 hour paid lunch breaks, and he said they're treated great. Oregon is MCOL. Upon scouring reddit, I'm seeing that anything close to 140k as an Epic analyst is quite the minority and rare to see unless you're in a director type role. If you do make anything close to that, it is atleast after 4-6 years perhaps. I make 73k right now as an informatics analyst and made 72k in the same hospital as a NIGHT SHIFT ICU critical care nurse (low pay is partly why I left; to search for more lucrative salary).
Eventually I want to quit everything all together within the next 10 years by using passive income from real estate investing (Just built my first home and renting out the extra bedroom units to travel nurses).
What do I even do? I am seriously considering going back to bedside nursing even though I absolutely hated it and had so much anxiety; but it could be my environment as well - I am a minority in the south (live 40 minutes next to Harrison, AR) and in Oregon I wouldn't be.... I wouldn't do ICU again either so that would maybe make a big difference.
I love the autonomy of Epic and working from home. But I can barely save up to purchase my next rental property like this. If I am trying to get a higher salary, it'll take years to get to 140k. Homes in Oregon are expensive at 400k average as well but I am not opposed to out of state investing.
Any advice is appreciated.

Part 14.3

Heracles VS Lernaean Hydra

Author Note: I was thinking about it and I really wish that GT9 used more draconic symbolism throughout the story when (or if) I revisit Team Crowley VS Rosencreutz I'll have symbolism of Aleister (TheBeast666), Aiwass (Codename: DRAGON) and Coronzon (The Dragon of the Abyss) all have symbology of them being Dragons preying on a God/Hero like CRC and the reversed conflict of Chaos VS Order you see in mythology, I also wanted to achieve something similar with Kakine Teitoku as he can represent the Fallen Angel and the Seraphim but for now I'll try adding draconian symbolism into Gunha VS CRC.
True Expert Christian Rosencreutz, with his golden rosy cross sword, clashed relentlessly against the indomitable force of the Strongest Gemstone, Sogiita Gunha. With each clash of their powers, the air crackled and compressed, and the pavement trembled beneath.
CRC, observed Sogiita with a mixture of intrigue and disdain. "You fight like the legendary Heracles," he remarked, his voice carrying over the din of battle. "But know this, I am the Lernaean Hydra, and no matter how many heads you sever, I shall always rise again!" Rosencreutz roared to slice the #7’s midsection.
Sogiita, his entire body wreathed in unknowable energy, met CRC's blade unyielding. "Bring it on, old man!" he retorted, his voice brimming with confidence. "I'll knock you down as many times as it takes! I won't stop till you come to your senses and remember your roots, like the roses you love so much, Rosencreutz!!"
Their clash intensified, that old man’s higher dimensional sword colliding with the raw power of that boy’s fists and kicks as they pushed each other to their limits with each sword swing, punch, kick and flash.
Sogiita unleashed a barrage of punches, each strike carrying the force of a meteor, while that silver young man countered: he wielded his sword in his right hand and released impacts followed by white light that was enough to previously take down all of The Bridge Builders Cabal.
As the battle raged on, the very fabric of reality seemed to warp and shift around them, bearing witness to the titanic struggle between two unparalleled forces.
The founder of Rosicrucianism who intimidated reality itself to obey his will and that Gemstone with an unstable personal reality that could change on a whim.
The atmosphere crackled with electrifying distortion.
Sogiita's fists tore through the air with the ferocity of meteors, their velocity enhanced by his ability to adapt and accelerate, surpassing even CRC's speed. As each blow was released, the friction with the surrounding air molecules ignited a scorching heat, intensifying the impact.
The rapid movement of molecules generated an escalating thermal energy, causing the air to seethe with increasing temperature. It was akin to a tempest of incandescent projectiles hurtling towards CRC, their speed surpassing the limits of human perception.
It was like a storm of brilliant fiery arrows was fired at Rosencreutz.
These blazing arrows of force were reminiscent of the elusive strikes employed by the Rose & Cross Leader, ignoring distance with deceptive agility.
With each thunderous punch, that bandana boy sought to overpower his adversary through sheer kinetic force, his unwavering resolve palpable in every motion.
But that wasn't enough for this superhuman.
CRC, wielding his cross sword with precision and skill, deflected each and every one Sogiita's flaming arrows with calculated strikes of his own. Each impact unleashed a burst of blinding white light, sending shockwaves rippling through the chaotic city.
"You think brute strength alone will defeat me?" the silver man taunted, his voice cutting through the chaos of battle. "You may be strong, but strength without strategy is nothing but raw power wasted."
Sogiita grinned, his confidence unshaken. "My strategy is just to knock you out, old man and get you some help old man!" he retorted, his voice ringing with defiance. "I'll K.O. you with my fists and guts alone!!!!"
Rosencreutz's eyes narrowed as he parried another of Sogiita's punches. "Your arrogance will be your downfall," he warned, his tone tinged with certainty. "I may not match your overall speed, but I have something you lack: intellect and precision.”
Christian Rosencreutz then plunged his cross sword into the ground.
"This is what harmed Kamijou Touma," he declared, grinning and unleashing a torrent of lethal invisible attacks from his outstretched palms.
However, the #7 countered with a relentless barrage of flaming arrows from the thermal aftershock of his punches.
Each strike akin to a particle accelerator in its intensity and speed. That Gemstone was the particles being fired on the right and that True Expert was the particles fired on the left.
As the attacks clashed, the battlefield became a spectacle of raw power and precision.
“Roar!” CRC held his open palm to his mouth and blew gently on the tip of the middle finger.
That was all it took for a blaze easily outdoing a flamethrower to rush out. And this was not just any fire. It fed on the power of a ley line and stole vitality from space itself. This overwhelming mass of light and heat was wielded for no other purpose than to take lives. Anyone who tried to survive it using simple composite armor or special fibers would dry up and burn away in less than a second.
But that wouldn't kill another superhuman would it?
Of course not.
“Aaaaarghhhh!!!!” screamed the #7.
Some assaults bypassed the fray entirely, slipping through the chaos like elusive particles in a collider.
A smokescreen.
Those brilliant fireworks from hell weren't meant to take Sogiita’s life. They were meant to disrupt the Gemstone's senses and sight so he couldn't counter all of that old man’s deadly attacks.
Invisible strikes found their mark on that Gemstone, and the searing arrows of the arrows scorched Rosencreutz.
CRC was wounded but he rejected to make any whimpers. Instead with a sudden burst of velocity, the young silver man picked up his cross sword from the ground and launched a flurry of strikes, cutting at the #7’s body with pinpoint accuracy.
His arms, his head, his face, his stomach, his legs, his midsection, his back.
Each blow landed with devastating force, causing Sogiita to stagger back under the onslaught.
If that bandana boy hadn't had his defenses and general stats raised by the #5 he’d be cut to pieces.
The #7 fell on his back.
"There's a fire," Sogiita declared, his voice ringing out amidst the chaos of battle.
With each attempt to break his spirit, Sogiita's resolve only grew stronger, fueling the flames of his determination. "Every time someone tries to make me give up, it's like wind feeding my flames, making them burn even brighter just like my punches," he explained, his words carrying the weight of his unwavering determination.
He refused to stay down.
With a roar of defiance, Sogiita surged forward once more, his movements blurring with speed as he disappeared from view. In the blink of an eye, he reappeared behind Christian Rosencreutz, catching the magician off guard.
"Hey, old man," Sogiita taunted, his voice filled with confidence as he seized Rosencreutz from behind.
Christian Rosencreutz's eyes widened in surprise as he realized he had been outmaneuvered.
As Sogiita Gunha faced off against Christian Rosencreutz in their airborne duel, he felt the flames of determination burning within him, driving him forward with unstoppable force.
Before he could react, the boy lifted him effortlessly and slammed him onto the pavement below with a resounding thud.
"I'm not just a kick-boxer!!" Sogiita sang.
As the impact reverberated through the air, the young silver man let out a pained cry. The force of the collision compressed the surrounding air, heating it up until it crackled with energy. Christian Rosencreutz's head struck the ground with a velocity equivalent to mach 20, igniting his body in flames upon impact.
This move is called a suplex.
Struggling to regain his bearings, Rosencreutz muttered in a daze, "The House of the Holy Spirit...the seven walls..."
"You said it yourself, didn't you?" the gutsy boy retorted, cocky. "My power and my guts can break through your impenetrable walls. And I can spread those same guts to the world around me."
With a grimace, Christian Rosencreutz acknowledged the truth of the boy's words. "Your uncontrolled AIM field grants you the ability to imbue non-organic objects with the properties of your virus," he observed, his voice tinged with begrudging admiration. "Allowing them to bypass even the defenses of the seven-walled tomb.”
"A virus? Don't be so gutless, CRC," the #7 retorted, his voice filled with defiance. "This battleground ruled by wills is a two-way road between you and me."
Christian Rosencreutz raised an eyebrow at the boy's words. "Hey Gemstone, you could've killed me if I weren't a superhuman with an idealized body that accomplished The Great Work and crossed the Ungrund, what then short-stack?" he questioned while fitting an insult against his height.
Even without the seven-walled tomb or sheets of diamonds Rosencreutz was cartoonishly durable.
"Sorry, old man," Sogiita retorted, a hint of irritation lacing his words at the jab about his height. "I may have let my enthusiasm get the better of me, but rest assured, I understand the magnitude of this battle. Just like the Hydra, no matter how many heads you regrow, I'll persevere until I've completed my labors.”
"Mhm, so you do know your mythology," CRC remarked, a hint of amusement in his voice. "The Lernaean Hydra, or simply Hydra, is a serpentine lake monster in Greek and Roman mythology. Its lair was the lake of Lerna in the Argolid, known as an entrance to the Underworld. In the canonical myth, the monster is slain by Heracles as part of his Twelve Labors."
"Yeah, I know," Sogiita replied confidently. "I studied the tales of great gutsy heroes in school.”
"So, short-stack," Christian Rosencreutz began, his voice carrying a hint of scholarly interest. “Have you ever considered the parallels between our battle and ancient Near Eastern religions?”
Sogiita listened intently. "Are you saying you see yourself as a god of war or a hunter?" he inquired.
CRC chuckled softly. "In a sense, indeed. We are both assuming roles in this grand theater, are we not? I, the Hydra, and you, Heracles."
He continued, "Consider the Second Labor of Heracles. Eurystheus, the king of Tiryns, sent Heracles to slay the Hydra, which Hera had raised specifically to defeat him. Heracles approached the swamp near Lake Lerna, where the Hydra dwelled. To protect himself from the poisonous fumes, he covered his mouth and nose with a cloth and shot flaming arrows into the Hydra's lair, causing it to emerge and terrorize the surrounding villages."
CRC paused, drawing a comparison. “In our own clash, the flaming arrows that Heracles hurled at the Hydra find their echo in your lightning-fast fists, generating shockwaves that ignite the air with their speed and force. It's as though each strike of yours is akin to shooting a flaming arrow, much like Heracles did.”
“Huh? Are you suggesting we're caught in a time loop? That some enigmatic group, like the Bridge Builders Cabal, manipulated events to resurrect you, pitting us against each other in a timeless struggle? I've never met them, and I'm certainly no child of Zeus. Are you implying that our battle will be distorted into a Greek legend by a meddling time traveler?!” frantically asked the boy.
“No, no, you simpleton. This world contains synchronicities. In Sumerian, Babylonian, and Assyrian mythology, the war and hunting god Ninurta was celebrated for his deeds. The Angim credited him with slaying eleven monsters during an expedition to the mountains, including a seven-headed serpent, possibly identical to the Mushmahhu, and Bashmu, whose constellation was later associated with the Hydra by the Greeks. In Babylonian contexts, the Hydra's constellation is also linked to Marduk's dragon, the Mushhushshu.”
“Uhhh….” That shounen boy was dumbfounded.
"Hhm, I suppose calling it a time loop isn't technically wrong," Christian Rosencreutz began, his tone measured. "I'll break it down from history class and reconstruct it through the lens of the occult. Historic recurrence, young Gemstone, is the phenomenon of events echoing throughout time. Whether it's the rise and fall of empires or the repetitive cycles within a single society, it's all part of this grand plan that was decided when Adam ate the forbidden fruit."
The #7 with his guard up but curious listened: "So, history just keeps repeating itself? Just a series of coincidences?"
Christian Rosencreutz shook his head sagely. "There is no such thing as coincidences. Take, for instance, the Doctrine of Eternal Recurrence, pondered upon by thinkers like Heinrich Heine and Friedrich Nietzsche. While it's said that 'history repeats itself,' it's not quite that simple. Rather, these recurrences stem from identifiable circumstances and chains of causality."
He continued, his voice carrying the weight of centuries of philosophical debate. "Consider the phenomenon of multiple independent discoveries in science or the reproducible findings in natural and social sciences. These recurrences, whether in the form of rigorous experimentation or comparative research, are vital to our understanding of the world."
Christian Rosencreutz paused, allowing the weight of his words to sink in. "G.W. Trompf, in his seminal work, The Idea of Historical Recurrence in Western Thought, illustrates the recurring patterns of political thought and behavior since ancient times. Through these patterns, history offers us invaluable lessons, often leading to a sense of resonance or déjà vu."
Their words reverberated like a challenge to destiny itself, a testament to their unyielding determination in the face of adversity.
That Gemstone didn't surrender his characteristic fervor. "History echoing through time, huh? It's like the universe itself is stuck on repeat, and we're just caught in the cycle. But you know what? If history's gonna keep looping, then let's break the pattern! Let's smash through those chains of causality and forge our own path. Who cares about déjà vu? We'll create something entirely new, something that'll shake the very foundations of this world and we’ll do it with guts!!!" He defied that silver monster.
But Rosencreutz wasn't finished. He pulled out his Crystal World Map.
The supposedly old man listened intently to that boy's impassioned response, his expression inscrutable behind his clairvoyant card. After a moment of contemplation, he spoke.
“Gemstone, you speak of breaking free from the chains of repetition, of forging a new destiny against the backdrop of eternal return. It is a noble aspiration, indeed. However, consider this: eternal return is not merely a philosophical concept or a whimsical notion of fate. It is the very fabric of existence, woven into the nature of time itself.” He pressed his finger on the Miniature Garden and a 3D holographic projection flew out—
“In ancient times, the Stoics grappled with the idea, seeing in it both a sense of cosmic order and a challenge to individual agency. Augustine and others recoiled from its implications, fearing it as a negation of free will and salvation. And yet, Nietzsche, in his brilliance, dared to confront the concept anew, exploring its depths in the crucible of human consciousness.”
Didn't Aleister Crowley say that he had to shatter every single phase in order to eliminate the concept of fate?
“I will shatter every last phase and put an end to all mysticism. It can be helped and we need not restrain our tears and bite our lip when faced with tragedy. I will bring back the pure world in which everyone can feel anger like normal and question it all like normal!!”
And didn't Coronzon appear to break down all the phases including the Pure World?
Partial destruction would be meaningless. If anything remains and an eternal distortion is born from that, then it will all happen again. I will eliminate the ten spheres, the twenty-two pathways, and the hidden eleventh symbol. Collisions between phases? Sparks and spray? You cannot save anyone if you only treat those symptoms. All of the fundamental clogs must be removed. All so we can pass the baton to whoever comes next.”
“Sparks and Sprays…” Rosencreutz muttered.
“Eh?” The #7 didn't quite hear him.
"Beside time stands fate, cruelty's steadfast herald. In the silent chambers of the soul, whispers the most profound wisdom. Humanity, in its folly, neglected to exalt life's splendor, its radiance, its grandeur. Truly, it is a rare gift to comprehend the forces that shape our existence.” That magician spoke in despair.
“From the moment man ate the fruit of knowledge, he guaranteed your species’ failure... Entrusting his future to the whims of fate, man clutches to a flickering hope. Yet, within the Miniature Garden lies the key to all revelation. Beyond the well-trodden path lies the ultimate terminus. It matters not who you are; Death is the sole certainty awaiting all.” he finished with scorn.
Shokuhou Misaki was currently linked to Sogiita Gunha so she was overhearing the entire conversation.
“Are you okay, Leader?” asked Kamijou back at the hospital.
“Yeah…” she responded.
*“Really?” Mikoto breathed a white sigh. “It wasn’t the shock of seeing their school destroyed. Nor was it the fear of having those rioters attack. …They’re afraid of their own power. And after learning how exactly to use that power to survive, they’re not sure they can just switch it off and return to their normal lives. So their gears have ground to a halt.”
Tokiwadai Middle School was a prestigious esper development school.*
The young ladies registered there were Level 3 at the lowest and Level 5 at the highest.
Almost all of the students had a power that surpassed that of a blade or handgun if used properly, but something had become twisted.
Yes.
“A lot of them weren’t really sure why they were training their powers.”
Shokuhou breathed a white breath, wrapped her own arms around herself, and rubbed her thighs together.
Why are you studying?
How many people could give a proper answer to that question? Because my parents told me to, because my teachers taught me to, because that’s how the world works. Those would be most people’s answers. Even the students with a clear vision of their future would only have something vague like “for the entrance exams” or “for my future”.
Only a small handful would have specific puzzle pieces in mind, such as “I need to learn how to use this equation so I can build a rocket”.
The young ladies of Tokiwadai Middle School were the same.
What if the very gears that humans have…their actions, reactions, inactions were all the result of some transcendental entity hovering above.
Like God or The Devil watching over humanity’s reality sphere and ordering around his system like everyone was a pre-programmed NPC that had specific events occur to them to get them to develop in the way that they did and determined their genetic bloodline that composed their psyche?
Is there truly a free will?
It was said that in order for you to break out of the system of society that the working class was stuck in you had to climb to the top where the corrupt elites resided.
Imagine Breaker negated sparks, Aleister Crowley could see through the veil thanks to Holy Guardian Angel Aiwass, Great Demon Coronzon could always see the cogs.
Christian Rosencreutz could view the entire world through his Miniature Garden.
The rest of humanity was at the mercy of their own destinies.
A Guardian Angel wouldn't arrive to save a parent’s child from fate every single time.
"Okay, nice poetry, can we get back to fighting already?" asked the #7 impatiently.
"Seems I got carried away," the old man conceded with a nod. "The synchronicities of this world, akin to the astral configurations in astrology, serve as an example of synchronicity, according to Jung. It describes circumstances that appear meaningfully related yet lack a causal connection, much like the parallel relationship between celestial and terrestrial phenomena. Synchronicity experiences entail subjective encounters where coincidences between events in one's mind and the external world may lack a clear causal link but still harbor an unknown connection.”
"Ah," Sogiita chimed in, recalling his philosophy class discussions. "We talked about synchronicity back then. Jung thought it was a good thing for the mind, but said it could get dicey in psychosis. He cooked up this theory as a kind of mental link between those meaningful coincidences, calling it a noncausal principle. This term came about in the late 1920s, and then he teamed up with physicist Wolfgang Pauli to dive deeper. Their work, The Interpretation of Nature and the Psyche, dropped in 1952. They were big on this idea that these connections, even the ones that don't seem to have a cause, could still teach us a lot about how our minds and the world work."
“Mhm, you know more than you lead on, Gemstone.” pondered CRC.
“Oh this? My teachers say I'm not good at remembering speeches hahaha…” The #7 looked slightly nervous. “You know, analytical psychologists really push for folks to get what these experiences mean to boost their awareness instead of just feeding into superstitions. But funny thing is, when clients spill about their synchronicity experiences, they often feel like no one's really hearing them out, or getting where they're coming from. And hey, having a bunch of these meaningful coincidences flying around can sometimes ring the schizo bell. Delusions aren't healthy.”
Where was this conversation going?
"Delusion! Hah! That's a good one coming from you," CRC fired back.
"The real delusion is thinking humanity isn't worth a darn," Sogiita shot back, pulling out some info from Johansen and Osman. "Some scientists think coincidences are just random flukes, but counselors and psychoanalysts reckon there's more to it, like some deep-down stuff needing to come out. Unconscious material to be expressed."
Rosencreutz interjected, his expression reflecting a mix of confusion and concern. "Aleister Crowley's actions have left a lasting scar on this world and this city," he began, his voice weighted with solemnity. “The vacuum-like dichotomy between magic and science created by the use of that colossal psychotronic weapon, has damaged this world's memory almost irreparably.”
Psychotronic weapon?
The Archetype Controller?
He paused, his gaze piercing as he continued, "Jung's exploration of synchronicity as evidence of the paranormal paved the way for further inquiry, notably by Koestler and the subsequent embrace of these ideas by the New Age movement.”
Sogiita shrugged, "Some folks say synchronicity is impossible to test or prove, so it gets labeled as pseudoscience. Jung even acknowledged that these synchronicity events are basically just coincidences, statistically speaking. But hey, who's to say what's really going on without some solid scientific studies, right?"
"Dubious as his experiments may have been," CRC interrupted, "Jung believed in a connection between synchronicity and the paranormal, drawing parallels to the uncertainty principle and works by parapsychologist Joseph B. Rhine.” CRC posed a thought-provoking question, "How are we to recognize acausal combinations of events, since it is obviously impossible to examine all chance happenings for their causality? The answer lies in the fact that acausal events are most readily expected where a causal connection appears inconceivable upon closer reflection. It's impossible, with our current resources, to explain ESP or meaningful coincidences as mere phenomena of energy. This challenges the very notion of cause and effect, as these events occur simultaneously rather than in a linear cause-and-effect manner. Hence, I have coined the term 'synchronicity' to describe this phenomenon, placing it on equal footing with causality as a principle of explanation."
Getting closer to that Gemstone, CRC emphasized, "Esper abilities cannot be fully understood with science alone. They defy traditional cause-and-effect explanations, instead representing a convergence of factors that create a quantum phenomenon affecting both the micro and macro. Why were there the naturally gifted and the naturally ungifted?”
Why did some students get praised for their abilities while others needed to work harder?
Others among them would have worked every hour of their free time and not progressed anywhere in this city’s leveling curriculum.
Why did this city present such an unfair and unpredictable status quo of potential?
Why did hard work barely matter in a city of empirical evidence to record any possible progress?
Sogiita Gunha wasn't a normal Level 5 but he wasn't always this powerful. He went through the curriculum same as everyone but if the outside conditions for his Gemstone ability to manifest didn't form in the exact way that it did, in such an acausal form then would he even be here to challenge Christian Rosencreutz right now?
Everything just happened to fall right into place.
All those puzzle pieces that would lead to this moment here and now.
Was it all just talent? God picking a fool as his champion?
The #7 leaned back, absorbing CRC's words with a thoughtful expression. "So, what you're saying is, there's this whole other layer to reality that we can't quite wrap our heads around," he summarized, nodding slowly. "I mean, it's like trying to catch smoke with your bare hands—slippery and elusive."
He chuckled, shaking his head slightly. "Historic recurrence, synchronicities, all these things—they're like pieces of a puzzle scattered across this substantial reality. And sometimes, they just... click into place, right? It's like the universe has its own plan, and we're just along for the ride."
That bandana wearing boy's gaze drifted, lost in thought. "You know, CRC, it's funny," he remarked, a wry smile playing on his lips. "Here we are, with all our powers and potential, but at the end of the day, we're still grappling with the same questions as everyone else. Talent, destiny, divine intervention—maybe they're all just different sides of the same coin."
He shrugged, the weight of the philosophical musings settling over the broken city. "Who knows? Maybe God does have a sense of humor, after all.” that boy chuckled.
There was a deep silence between them.
Rosencreutz’ response was swift and resolute, his tone filled with certainty. "All this ‘universe has a plan’ banter is just a distraction from the inevitable," he declared, his eyes narrowing. "We can debate the nature of us being all-powerful yet struggling with mortal issues until the sun burns out, but it won't change the fact that our fate was sealed upon the knowledge Adam learned."
“To think so many trivialities have developed while this old man wasn’t watching. Heh heh. Then I should assume the thread of fate has again begun to weave its strange connections between myself and some unknown human.”
He rose forward, his movements purposeful. "It's time to put an end to this dance of platitudes," CRC continued, his voice cold and unwavering. "We'll settle this the only way that somewhat matters—through objective action in this grand play."
“Silence, preserved doll. Illusionists are meant to remain silent. That is all we magicians are: wielders of substanceless illusions. Opening your mouth serves only to break the illusion.”
With a flicker of resolve in his eyes, he locked gazes with the #7. "I am Hydra, Gemstone," he said, his voice carrying a hint of challenge. "Our battle ends now.” CRC opened both his palms and began shooting at their surroundings, the buildings, the pavement, the apartments, the rubble.
It probably wasn't random as it seemed to create a pattern.
“Huh are you getting senile old man?” asked the young Gemstone.
“What fun. I never imagined someone would bother diligently polishing their skills this far while knowing it is all essentially an illusion. Didn’t you ever feel silly going to the effort?”
Rosencreutz dropped to all fours, his rosy cross sword gripped tightly in his right hand.
He moved—
“Arrgh!” Sogiita yelled amidst the relentless and precise and precise strikes from that golden cross. “Old man?” he asked.
That magician didn't say anything.
That silver man’s movements became more beastly.
Faster.
Stronger.
Fiercer.
Something new was beginning to manifest.
With each strike of his higher dimensional blade that old man’s blows seemed infused with an otherworldly energy.
The wounds inflicted by his weapon burned with a venomous intensity, sending searing pain coursing through Sogiita's body.
That boy grimaced as the poison from that silver man’s strikes surged through his being, each wound feeling like it was ablaze with venomous fire.
"Damn... That burns…like a killer hornet’s sting," he muttered through clenched teeth, his voice strained with effort. Gritting, he fought to maintain his focus, despite the agony threatening to overwhelm him.
Was this another application of The Four Stages? Citrinitas? No, there was nothing yellow here, it was more like a dirty purple.
But it wasn't just the physical damage that posed a threat.
As the Rosy Cross leader leaped on all fours his movements took on an almost erratic quality, he was bouncing from one building to another with an animalistic agility.
With each jump, a shockwave rippled through the air, carrying with it a palpable sense of dread.
Something was spreading.
The air around them seemed to thicken with a toxic miasma. The #7 struggled to breathe, the noxious fumes clouding his senses.
Like a chaotic monster’s venomous poison breath.
The once-clear air now felt thick and suffocating.
Gasping for breath, the bandana boy struggled to maintain his focus amidst the swirling chaos.
His vision blurred, his movements sluggish as he fought against the oppressive atmosphere.
Blinded that heroic boy could only fire a flame arrow without his sight.
His fists striking out with all the strength he could muster. Igniting in that poisonous compressed air.
It seemed to be flammable like a dragon’s breath.
???
At the hospital, Shokuhou's voice carried a mix of surprise and relief. “He caused real damage.” she exclaimed.
Kamijou turned his attention to her, intrigued. “What happened?”
“It's hard to see clearly, but it looks like the #7 managed to blast off CRC's left arm,” she explained. “Though, I'd say it was more of a lucky shot. I can read he acted on pure instinct.”
Kamijou nodded, a hint of melancholy in his tone. “Yeah... the psychic link and all.”
Had the #7 Level 5 given up on the old man?
Back on the battlefield, Sogiita cursed under his breath. “Dammit... Sorry, old man,” he muttered. “I was aiming to hit your whole body to maximize the surface area, maybe break a few bones as a casualty. We can probably get your arm reattached at the hospital. Heaven Canceller has enough guts to even fix me.”
It was clear—he hadn't given up.
It was an accidental strike of his arm.
“As each ghastly head was severed from its serpentine form, dreadfully, two more writhed forth from the abyss.” a cryptic voice amidst the chaos spoke.
Wasn't it said that the Hydra’s lair was the lake of Lerna in the Argolid.
Lerna was reputed to be an entrance to the Underworld.
The abyss.
The Ungrund.
There is no limit to the depth of the Alcyonian Lake, and I know of nobody who by any contrivance has been able to reach the bottom of it since not even Nero, who had ropes made several stades long and fastened them together, tying lead to them, and omitting nothing that might help his experiment, was able to discover any limit to its depth. This, too, I heard. The water of the lake is, to all appearance, calm and quiet but, although it is such to look at, every swimmer who ventures to cross it is dragged down, sucked into the depths, and swept away.
The keeper of the gate to the Underworld that lay in the waters of Lerna was the Hydra.
The serpentine Lake Monster.
“Rosencreutz……?” The #7 muttered.
That magician chuckled ominously. "No, young Heracles, Hydra." he intoned, his voice echoing with a bizarre resonance. “The Lernaean Hydra's curse is upon you now.” as he said that he cut off a bit of his arm that was cuterarised with his golden blade and it began bleeding.
Anna Sprengel’s blood was said to create unknown miracles when spilled.
Christian Rosencreutz’ blood was so virulent that even its scent was deadly.
As Sogiita Gunha glanced at his severed arm lying on the ground, a creeping sense of horror enveloped him. "All of fate is a curse and that curse," he murmured, his words barely audible over the din of battle, "extends even to my severed limb.”
Christian Rosencreutz’ left arm grew back.
No.
Two new arms grew in its place.
The fate of chaoskampf? The hero battling the dragon?
The arm was fully functioning with no defects.
Although one of the arms appeared somewhat scaly and lanky like a serpent.
It had human anatomy but something was abnormal here.
He almost looked like a spider as he emerged from the poisonous fog as he remained on all fours.
“So short-stack. Are you ready to complete your final labor: Crossing the abyss!!!” He challenged that boy with his cross sword facing him.
"Boss, what's up? You look kinda stuck," Kamijou asked, his tone concerned.
Two students were sitting together in the waiting room at a hospital.
"—abyss, Hydra, curse, synchronicities, Historic recurrence." she replied, her words carrying a weight of unease.
"Huh? What? Can you give me the lowdown?" Kamijou prodded, his urgency evident.
"Can't quite wrap my head around it. But what I can tell you is that after CRC started talking about these esoteric concepts, he leveled up his power ability, managed to seriously hurt the #7 despite me cranking up all his stats for the win condition," the honey-blonde girl explained, frustration creeping into her voice.
"Can you beam all that stuff into my head, like a memory download? You're a psychological esper, right? My right hand won't mess with it, and we've done the telepathy thing before," Kamijou suggested.
"Memory download's not quite it, but I can send you a recording," she clarified.
"Got it," Kamijou muttered as he absorbed the info.
"You got any ideas to help the #7’s situation ability, Kamijou-san? We're kinda desperate here," she asked.
"I wish Index was still here, dammit.” he lamented, “But you know about magic, right?" he queried.
"Yeah, people converting their delusions into reality right?," she admitted.
"Well, magic's not just about delusions; it can be tied up to the whole world. Not sure if it's relevant, but based on Idol Theory, Rosencreutz might be pulling in 'energy’ from the Greek 'phase’ of Heracles for an edge," Kamijou theorized.
"Like a chessboard flip?" Shokuhou Misaki inquired, her brow furrowed with concern.
"No, more like... imagine you're playing checkers with a buddy, and you're totally crushing it because you're a checkers pro. Then suddenly, your buddy switches it up and challenges you to an arm wrestling match, and you lose because, well, arm wrestling isn't your forte," Kamijou Touma explained, trying to paint a vivid picture.
"So, by taking on the role of the Hydra from Greek myth, he's essentially forcing the #7 into the role of Heracles? But didn't Heracles defeat the Hydra?" Shokuhou sought clarification.
"Yeah, but..." Kamijou recalled the tale from the movies he'd seen. "Lichas gave Heracles a shirt soaked in the Hydra's poisonous blood from his arrows, which ends up killing him by tearing his flesh down to the bone," he elaborated.
"It was actually Nessus seeking vengeance and tricking Deianira into giving it to Heracles as a gift, delivered by Lichas without disclosing the tunic's lethal bloodstained secret from the Lernaean Hydra, but you're right," Shokuhou corrected gently. "So, Rosencreutz is harnessing the power of that legend to slowly poison the #7?"
"Not literal. I mean the poison is real but his slashes do significant harm now so it's more like shifting the paradigm in his favor…shifting his position.” The spiky-haired boy wasn't in the mood to explain Phases, “Earlier, he mentioned Sogiita spreading his 'virus' throughout the world. A virus isn't a poison in the traditional sense, but the Rosicrucians originally sought to create a universal cure for all illnesses. Now, CRC is spreading a literal poison, positioning himself as the ultimate predator and his opponents as prey rather than his savior role, the paradigm has been shifted." Kamijou concluded, his voice tinged with gravity.
“So he’s changed the environment to get the win condition? The #7’s durability doesn't matter in the face of the world being forced to go about a certain way because of Rosencreutz stage play?” The girl asked.
“Yeah…if things keep going this way…Sogiita will….goddamnit….” The spiky haired boy swore. “I can't let someone else die after all that's happened but I feel like if I go out there I really will kill him…” he muttered that last bit while clenching his right fist that began shaking uncontrollably.
The girl’s eyes seemed confused.
“What did you say?” The honey blonde middle schooler asked.
“Nothing, just mumbling to myself.” he spat out.
That boy and girl could never come to the right conclusion on their own without the aid of former Magic God Othinus by their side.
“Did you think I had challenged you with no hope of succeeding, you cesspool? The magic born on earth is bound by the directions based on the earth’s magnetic field and by the density and composition of the air which is determined by air pressure which is in turn influenced by gravity. That is inevitable when you are focused on the cardinal directions of north, south, east, and west or on the basic elements of fire, water, wind, and earth. But what you will find upon leaving the atmosphere is an unknown. Coronzon, are you sure there will be no malfunction in the magic giving you control of Avatar Lola? And before, my power was bound by the puny speck named earth which failed to become a black hole or even a sun, but once we enter outer space, just how far do you think that power will be released? I do not mind at all that I will lose the support of Academy City.”
Well the boy was half right.
“Let us test it out, you cuspidor. On one side, we have you using the planet and bound to an avatar. On the other, we have me exposed and freed from the planet. Now, who will be the star of this show?”
Christian Rosencreutz did not shoot at his surroundings for no reason.
The battlefield transformed into Rosencreutz's canvas, resembling the legendary battleground of Lerna where Heracles once clashed with the Hydra.
Yes.
He didn't unleash his powers randomly; every action was deliberate.
In the magical side of Idol Theory, mimicking an object, event, or person allowed one to tap into a fraction of its power.
And that even applied to locations that essentially worked as stage plays.
Idol Theory was so absolute that even the basic cross held a portion of the son of God’s power.
As Above, So Below.
As Below, So Above.
Macro to micro.
Micro to macro.
And the macrocosm and the microcosm are always linked.

For some context I am living with my parents and when I was like 1-2 yo my parents bought a pet. He was a chocolate colored Burmese cat. He was my best friend throughout my whole childhood, who took care of me whenever I was sad or crying. He never bit anyone, and even played with our 5 dogs. He would never mind if I would put him into this small Doll stroller. Now it's been over 1,5 year since he had to be put down. He was old and would cough all the time. He would eat less and less due to vomiting. I knew his time would come soon and I was trying to prepare myself for it. Unfortunately at that time I had to leave the house for a bit since I had to stay at the hospital for a few days. The day I left my dad called me and my mom who were with me that the cat is in a bad condition and that it's time for him. He drove Felix to a nearby vet, and I couldn't go there to be with him in the last moments. Before I left to the hospital I went up to my baby to say goodbye and tell him I'm gonna be back soon. So I suppose I did get so say goodbye, but not the way I wanted it to be like. I started thinking that maybe he didn't want me to see him like this and that he knew I left for a bit. Still, I cry every once in a while blaming myself for not being able to be there with him. To see him that one last time and comfort him that everything is going to be okay.

Question for those who work as nurses in Washington state! My partner and I are looking to move from Utah to Olympia, Tacoma, Seattle, or Vancouver area. We are both nurses who have med surg experience. From researching, it seems like the best hospitals to work at are:
-St. Joes -Tacoma General -Harborview -UWMC -Valley med Renton -Everygreen Health Kirkland -Peace Health Southwest
If anyone has good or bad experiences please share!
We’ve also considered moving to Oregon… if anyone has any feedback about working there as well it would be much appreciated!!

Question for those who work as nurses in Washington state! My partner and I are looking to move from Utah to Olympia, Tacoma, Seattle, or Vancouver area. We are both nurses who have med surg experience. From researching, it seems like the best hospitals to work at are:
-St. Joes -Tacoma General -Harborview -UWMC -Valley med Renton -Everygreen Health Kirkland -Peace Health Southwest
If anyone has good or bad experiences please share!
We’ve also considered moving to Oregon… if anyone has any feedback about working there as well it would be much appreciated!!

Question for those who work as nurses in Washington state! My partner and I are looking to move from Utah to Olympia, Tacoma, Seattle, or Vancouver area. We are both nurses who have med surg experience. From researching, it seems like the best hospitals to work at are:
-St. Joes -Tacoma General -Harborview -UWMC -Valley med Renton -Everygreen Health Kirkland -Peace Health Southwest
If anyone has good or bad experiences please share!
We’ve also considered moving to Oregon… if anyone has any feedback about working there as well it would be much appreciated!!

Cast of Season 20

Men

Name	IG	Age	Notes
Young Soo	nogurchito	38 (1986)	Pediatrician and is undergoing training to specialize in neonatal care at a hospital in Seoul
Young Ho	powermks	34 (1990)	Dated a woman who was 10 years older. Likes women who earn well. In charge of quality management at Hyundai Engineering.
Young Sik	mingquu	34 (1990)	Was raised by his grandparents. Still lives with his grandmother. Works at Nonghyup bank.
Young Chul	ry.ool	40 (1984)	Process engineer at Intel USA. Lives in Oregon. US citizen.
Kwang Soo	jeong.jy0321	35 (1989)	Went to a science 'magnet' school in Seoul. Was a circuit design researcher at L Display. Now an escape room designer.
Sang Chul	mezzzzzzzini	36 (1988)	Lived abroad for a number of years. AI developer at Samsung Electronics

Women

Name	IG	Age	Notes
Young Sook	ddohyunnii	33 (1991)	MBTI is ENFJ. University assistant professor > Hyundai Steel Pangyo Headquarters
Jung Sook	IG bitterpeach.kr & YT	37 (1987)	Likes fashion. Is unhappy with how she looks. Wants her partner to be attractive who needs to be 'kissable'. Senior manager at LG Electronics.
Sun Ja	r_ang22	32 (1992)	Owns a home in Gangdong-gu. Looks for personality & values. Elementary school teacher.
Young Ja	hyemnie	30 (1994)	Graduated from Yonsei University, Department of Business Administration. Lotte Members Digital Marketing Assistant Manager
Ok Soon	flying.heej & globetrotterheej	36 (1988)	S7 OS's younger sister. MS in CS from Cornell. Works at Google in NY. Hobbies are scuba & sky diving, flute, golf etc.
Hyun Sook	jyujin_smile	36 (1988)	Bachelors and Masters in Pharmacy from Seoul U. Researcher at Amorepacific

Season Notes

• S20 cast photos: https://cdn.newsculture.press/news/photo/202404/547071_688791_733.jpg

Previous S20 Discussion Posts

S20E01, S20E02, S20E03

Panel

• Defconn - thugdefconn
• Song Haena - songhaena
• Lee Yi Kyung - luvlk89

Links

SBS Plus 나는 SOLO
Stream - Kocowa - Subs +24h from broadcast
Official YouTube channel - Clips from episodes and live stream
Wiki - Unofficial and it's in Korean. Turn on auto-translate in Chrome browser.

NOTE: This discussion post may (and probably will) contain spoilers

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I feel like I was an overachieving high school student at my school. But I failed in the college admissions process.

- 4-year ASB Board Member, huge strides/impact as Student Body President and 2nd Vice Pres. Established Student Comment at Board meetings, substitute taught classes with advisor on medical leave. Student Reporter for high school segment of monthly district video for families. Graduation commencement speaker. I also established and led the Video & Tech group after doing all the videos myself for the school for 2 years.
- 2 1/2 years varsity orchestra, 2nd to concertmaster. ~7 years total.
- 4th in state 300m hurdles junior year, swept team Captain, MVP, and most varsity points 2 years in a row, Conference Male Athlete of The Year, multiple top 10 school records
- 1 year experience as a Hyatt downtown hotel front desk agent, full time for summer hired at 17
- 3.90 unweighted GPA, 2 AP classes out of the 6-8 or so offered
- Successful YouTube channel and Minecraft server in middle school (7k subs, hundreds of thousands of views, $600+ revenue)

Applied for Business

Waitlisted from Cornell Hospitality School
Rejected from University of Washington, UPenn, Boston University, Rice University University of Southern California, WashU, NYU and Northeastern. These were all the reach schools I applied to
Accepted to University of Oregon, Seattle University, DePaul University, Portland State University, and Western Washington University.

My downfall? Course rigor on my transcript I guess and the lack of extracurriculars/awards outside of school. And probably for applying Business. I didn't take calculus either even though I was a year ahead in math.
I can confidently say I've been the biggest part of my community. I gave everything I could because I love my district and my community. It's shown because I have numerous student and athlete of the month awards and just the impacts I've made all around. It's hard to really get that across properly, it's not quantitative.
I'm looking for closure as I head to my local state school having to pay about 15k. I wanted to go out of state but I can't afford paying more than 10k even, I never wanted to take out loans. I was rejected from every top school and every scholarship I've applied to so far. I feel like I did so much and I was so busy and I did the things I was passionate about, but that wasn't what colleges were looking for. And it's hard seeing a lot of people succeed in the admissions process who may not have done as much as I have. I'm willing to be selfish and say I probably deserve the success more than some.
To put it best, I'm a jack of all trades and a master of none. I wasn't an overachieving academic, nor was I good enough to be a high D1 recruit (although I'm really close); I'm just in the middle. I'm extremely well-rounded.

WAMC + School List
Got my MCAT Back today but luckily I’ve been pre-writing primaries and secondaries so I should be able to apply early.
Applying MD/PhD, research interest in Comp Neuro modeling diseased neural populations and resultant behaviors.
3.9X, 518 (131,127,129,131) , ORM, T200 Honors College Cellular Neuro major, data science minor
2k+ hours as student employee in context-dependent feeding behavior lab, 5 presentations, 4 in state and 1 national, and 1-2 pubs in prep but nothing sent in for review
200+ hours as researcher who attended month long international program about computational neuroscience, 1 presentation/project which won first place in the program
100+ hours as pediatric neurologist medical assistant, learned how to do EEGs on patients and T.O.V.A. Tests (1 summer, wanted to do longer but lived too far away)
100+ hours as hospital volunteer (2 years)
80+ hours as hospice volunteer (1.5 semesters)
80+ hours as non-clinical video game designer volunteer (made games to teach kids about neuroscience) (1.5 years, low hours per month cuz how it works idk)
7 awards, some state stipends based off of stats, a travel award for national conference, and fellowship to conduct research
President of research connections clubs, secretary of gaming club, vice president of chess club, all at least 50 hours and some across a couple years.
200+ hours as a gym desk assistant, tbh just did it cuz needed money
80+ hours as organic chem TA
School List: Medical College Wisconsin, Oregon H&S, UAB, UUtah, UMinn, UBuffalo, Penn State, UWisconsin Madison, Wake Forest, MUSC, Tulane, UConn, SUNY Downstate, Georgetown, Tufts, UNC Chapel Hill, Ohio State, UColorado, Einstein, UFlorida, Dartmouth Geisel, UMass Worcester, FAU, UCinn, Stony Brook, Boston, Icahn, Case Western, Duke, Harvard-MIT, Columbia, Yale
Some connections/reasons/cope for those higher tier picks: My PI is an Icahn Alum, one of my recommenders is a Columbia Alum, one distinguished guy who taught at the international program was at Yale and is now at Geisel, and one of my recommenders is transferring lab to Tulane, but will likely not be in same department as me, tho still Neuro.
Thanks a bunch if you read this long and I appreciate the feedback

Got my MCAT Back today but luckily I’ve been pre-writing primaries and secondaries so I should be able to apply early.
Applying MD/PhD, research interest in Comp Neuro modeling diseased neural populations and resultant behaviors.
3.9X, 518 (131,127,129,131) , ORM, T200 Honors College Cellular Neuro major, data science minor
2k+ hours as student employee in context-dependent feeding behavior lab, 5 presentations, 4 in state and 1 national, and 1-2 pubs in prep but nothing sent in for review
200+ hours as researcher who attended month long international program about computational neuroscience, 1 presentation/project which won first place in the program
100+ hours as pediatric neurologist medical assistant, learned how to do EEGs on patients and T.O.V.A. Tests (1 summer, wanted to do longer but lived too far away)
100+ hours as hospital volunteer (2 years)
80+ hours as hospice volunteer (1.5 semesters)
80+ hours as non-clinical video game designer volunteer (made games to teach kids about neuroscience) (1.5 years, low hours per month cuz how it works idk)
7 awards, some state stipends based off of stats, a travel award for national conference, and fellowship to conduct research
President of research connections clubs, secretary of gaming club, vice president of chess club, all at least 50 hours and some across a couple years.
200+ hours as a gym desk assistant, tbh just did it cuz needed money
80+ hours as organic chem TA
School List: Medical College Wisconsin, Oregon H&S, UAB, UUtah, UMinn, UBuffalo, Penn State, UWisconsin Madison, Wake Forest, MUSC, Tulane, UConn, SUNY Downstate, Georgetown, Tufts, UNC Chapel Hill, Ohio State, UColorado, Einstein, UFlorida, Dartmouth Geisel, UMass Worcester, FAU, UCinn, Stony Brook, Boston, Icahn, Case Western, Duke, Harvard-MIT, Columbia, Yale
Some connections/reasons/cope for those higher tier picks: My PI is an Icahn Alum, one of my recommenders is a Columbia Alum, one distinguished guy who taught at the international program was at Yale and is now at Geisel, and one of my recommenders is transferring lab to Tulane, but will likely not be in same department as me, tho still Neuro.
Thanks a bunch if you read this long and I appreciate the feedback
Edit: forgot to add, 80ish hours shadowing pediatric neurologist and 4 hours shadowing dermatologist

For context, I heavily watched pll from seasons 1 to 3 as a 15 to 17 year old and was up to date but then slowly became less engaged and watch the odd ep here and there (haven’t even watched the finale in full) just scenes and reading what happens
However I started rewatching it a couple of months ago and finally up to season 3 so may have more as I watch seasons I haven’t even seen in full yet

• fave character was Aria as a teenager but now it’s Spencer, I never appreciated her on the first watch
  
• Aria and Ezra NOW make me sick yuck hahah - I remember younger me was obsessed with their relationship and I would rewatch their scenes and YouTube edits however now I actually get mad when they are on screen and wish he went to jail
  
• under-utilization of characters: I feel like they could of done more with side characters like Duncan and the kid from the doll hospital but instead we get 1-2ep appearances and sometimes left with more questions
  
• I love the spooky feel of the lost woods resort episodes and wish they kept more of that spooky feel through out
  

Would love to hear if any of your opinions have changed on a rewatch?