Sesame street start to read book ebay

So I'm kinda novice when it comes to fantasy genre believe it or not only recently I started watching GoT and only recently started reading the Silmarillion and I find this genre fascinating tho I'm not big on violence and nudity of GoT...my point is I enjoy got and lotr and Harry Potter was a childhood love but I wanna explore more in fantasy genre....any recommendations on tv, film, book, video games are welcome Thank you and have a great day

Boyfriend often calls me names, belittles me when I make mistakes instead of supporting me, and sexualise me in demeaning ways.
For exemple, during arguments, he may grope my breast while reciting what sounds like a pornographic horror movie.
« You like it you slut ? Isn’t that all you want? Say it, repeat after me; I. am. a. slut. »
It never fails to disgust me when he takes his penis out, and forces it onto my face. But don’t worry guys, he has a good reason; I speak badly to him. Since I disrespected him, then why should he bother respecting me?
(Although, what is even more disgusting is probably my longing for a little apology, a little word, a little something. I fool myself each time hoping it’ll come.)
Intimacy just isn’t what it used to be. No kissing, no touching, no foreplay, it’s like his love is gone, like he doesn’t care about bounding with me anymore. We still do it daily, but the pleasure is systematically focused on him. I used to want him all the time, and now, it’s like I forgot sex even exist. Back when my libido was high, he would mockingly call me a nymphomaniac, each time I initiated. It might sound playful, but in his book, a promiscuous woman is a worthless woman. When asked to stop, he innocently says that he’s just teasing me, and that i’m a bit susceptible. Playing it cool. Playing the fools.
Still to this day, even though I now rarely initiate, whenever I show interest in lovemaking, it’s like he can’t contain himself from faking exaggerated interest in a very obvious way, while groping me and saying the same kind of things. Shouting sillily that I love dicks too much. Kissing me willingly in a gross manner. I’ll spare the rest to your imagination. There’s too much to say.
He also teases me daily by singing my name, my old usernames, my family name, and even my mom's name, which makes me feel kind of harassed. Especially when I’m in the middle of/just done cooking dinner for him, cleaning his apartment, or doing any task for him.
(I basically assist him in everything he does.)
For example, anytime he wants an item, he just asks me to go grab it instead of ever standing up. I roll everything he smokes and he smokes a lot. He said it’d be nice if he learned how to do it himself. I'm always ready to teach him, but he hasn't taken it seriously once yet. I cook whenever he’s hungry, which is often at 3AM these days. I force myself not to sleep for hours each days so we can fall asleep cuddling together, often being promised to sleep soon at 2AM, only to end up in the kitchen at 3AM, and be told at 6AM that it’s not worth sleeping anymore, so you can go sleep and I’ll stay a bit more on the computer, alright ? I’m then the annoying one for pointing out his lack of reliability.
Due to that, we often wake up at noon, and he never miss on saying he woke up too late and the day is kind of ruined because I didn’t wake him up earlier. Which is absolutely false, as I serve him as the best alarm clock ever, coming in his bed every 20 minutes, cuddling and kissing his forehead gently, telling him to please wake up. But I can’t force him to. I don’t understand why he’d be upset I’m awake since 5PM and he only is since 9PM because of his own difficulty to wake up.
Anyway. If I dare being lazy or show reluctance to his requests, he’ll jokingly call me useless or be a little upset, saying i’m being mean to him. Truth is, i’d happily do it all, if he wasn’t so inconsiderate all the time. I love him so much, so I do it still, but quite unhappily.
These behaviours upset me, not usually to the point of actually starting fights, but rather retreat and cry on my own. He never reaches out to apologize.
When I retreat, the only kind of attention he gives at this point is rather sad. It consists of messages mockingly asking if I left to cry, if I’m smoking all his weed, sometimes he likes to bring out of the blue some old arguments we had, and other times he prefers to send memes, but it’s never complete without the massive amount of emoji he uses to usually indicate he is clowning me and we’re not having any serious discussion. Oh, and if I dare ignore him, then I’m a pathetic bitch. Even when I remove myself, he take offence of it, says I’m being mean, and that I should apologize for abandoning him.
I don’t tolerate his behaviour in the sense that I voice my discomfort every time. Every single things listed here, he knows bother me, because I always speak up. But in the end, he’s never apologetic when he should be. And I’m still here, next to him, like nothing happened. Days after days.
He never says « I’m sorry I’ve hurt you » and just hugs me. I crave that. I crave the simplest apology. « I’ve been too far » I can only wish.
Everytime these behaviours occurred, I’ve let him know that I dislike it, that the disrespect hurts. But it just keeps going on. This is my everyday.
How can I effectively communicate the depth of his hurtful actions and their impact on our relationship?
To the people who have dealt with a similar situation, what have you done that bettered the situation? I know I will mostly read it’s a lost cause, as people on this subreddit seems to mainly seek the courage to leave their abusive person. But that’s not my case. I don’t plan on leaving. I love him with all my heart but I wish his behaviour would ceases.
I wish he realised he’s eroding my self-esteem.
I wish he realised he is constantly disrupting my mental well-being. I wish he realised I’m slowly losing my spark. I wish he realised nothing he does benefits us. I wish he realised he could be a better partner. I wish he realised would hate dating himself. I wish he realised he’s hurting his baby mama. I wish he realised baby feels the same as mama. I wish he realise he is really traumatising me.

Hi everyone,
I was wondering if someone who faces a similar issue might be able to offer some tips! I struggle with ADHD, but have been a good student most of my life. It takes me longer to study than most since I have trouble focusing. My most efficient study technique is writing everything on paper and using paper versions of books when possible rather than e-books. In college I would print out all of my professors’ slides and annotate. The pen and pencil is basically what I need.
I started using TTP because of how many people love the resource but I can’t seem to read more than a couple sentences before I lose my train of thought or realize that I can’t even remember what I just read. It’s not possible to rewrite everything in the chapters and there is no way to print everything, so I’m wondering if anyone has some advice on how I can efficiently study and retain as much info as possible if there is no paperback version. Thank you!! 😊 Any advice is appreciated.

Hi All,
I'm a pre-existing web seller that has been using ebay and other online marketplaces like Reverb for several years now.
When I saw that their silly return policy was being walked back I started to think about diversifying to look for more sales. But to be honest, after perusing the subreddit for a bit I'm becoming convinced Mercari is a nightmare and just not worth the apparent agony sellers have to deal with from both buyers and support.Maybe that's a bit dramatic, but reading here it does seem significantly worse for sellers than the other markets I use.
Before the 10% fee kept me away. Then the return policy which in my niche would invite rampant abuse. Now it finally seemed like it would be a good market but after reading people's' experiences I'm losing faith fast.
I don't intend to dump on Mercari, I've been a buyer in the past and like the marketplace and format. But it just seems like all I see on here are horror stories. Am I better steering clear?
Thanks all, I really appreciate your input!

I’m starting lessons at a barn that focuses on dressage. I did lessons as a kid, could only walk and trot and basic things like that. It’s been 4 years since I’ve been on a horse, but it’s always been my favorite thing in the world even though I wasn’t the best at it. I think this barn will help me a lot with my growth as a rider. I never really considered dressage before, but learning more about it I’m really excited! I’m looking mainly for books to read about dressage or just about riding in general that would help me. But video recommendations would be appreciated too!

TLDR; looking for sci fi (specifically with a lot of space travel) with detailed, expansive worldbuilding. Brutal, well-written and frequent fight scenes. The slow development of an introspective, emotionally (not sexually, I'm very asexual lol) driven platonic/romantic relationship. LGBTQ+ characters, though this isn't that necessary. Enemies-to-friends-to-lovers development. Perhaps some intergalactic political issues for extra spice. These themes don't have to all be in the same book, I'd love a variety of recommendations that capture different elements of what I need, just as long as they still have a decent amount of engaging fight scenes
Gonna clarify this right off the bat; this is in no way a post to promote my writing. I have no interest in publishing and just like writing things for myself as a hobby, so I hope this post doesn't come off that way. However, I feel stuck and uninspired trying to write worldbuilding for a story I'm plotting and would love some book recommendations :)))
I'm plotting out a romance sci-fi, though I don't want to put much emphasis on the romance. Since my two main characters are starting out as enemies, I want to write a realistic, slow burn enemies-to-friends-to-lovers story. One of these main characters is an alien, so I want to write detailed worldbuilding regarding the cultural and physical differences between the two, as well as how this affects their relationship. I also want to write a lot about the comedic ramifications of these differences, as that's always fun to write and read lol. I also want more inspiration for some fight scenes I'm planning, as I want to write scenes about brutal space ship battles, getting lost on dangerous alien planets, fighting off space pirates, intergalactic political struggles and resisting a tyrannical alien race that's hunting my main characters down. It's all very vague at the moment as I only recently started writing, but those are the main things I want inspiration for
I'd love multiple recommendations for a variety of kinds of stories. Stories with well-written action and fight scenes. Stories with slow burn, introspective, realistic romances. Stories that have characters go from enemies-to-friends (the lovers part isn't required, but it would be helpful as an aromantic person). Stories that have a lot of detailed, expansive worldbuilding regarding aliens, alien planets, different cultural norms, detailed space travel, everything. Additionally, any LGBTQ+ stories with these themes would be welcome, but it's not as necessary. I also don't want sex or anything sexually themed to be prevalent in my story (I'm VERY asexual and wouldn't even know where to start lol) so stories that focus on purely the emotional, platonic/romantic development between characters would be ideal. My monkey brain also latches very heavily on action-packed stories (a LOT of well-written fight scenes are very necessary for me, as otherwise I get bored lmao. I don't want things even remotely slice-of-life themed unless those scenes only happen rarely), so I'd prefer to only have suggestions that involve a lot of action/thrilleadventure themes with maybe romance on the side
Sorry if this request is too general, it's 2:40am rn and I'm struggling to put what I want into words lol. I just want something that will inspire the worldbuilding part of my brain, as well as give me an idea on how to realistically develop this relationship in a slow, satisfying way. I also mainly want inspiration on how to craft some beautiful, unique sci fi worldbuilding and brutal fight scenes, so I would mainly like to focus on that. I essentially want books that feel emotionally and somewhat philosophically engaging while also activating the monkey brain with cool fights LMAO. Got any recommendations for me?

I'm currently a first year student studying computer science at the University of Washngton, seattle campus. I have been at the school for like 3 quarters so far so this is almost the end of my freshman year, but even after 3 quarter taking CSE courses, I still can't find the balance to how to approach CSE courses in general. My main struggle is how should I use chatGPT for my programming assignments and homeworks.
Before starting university, I worked as a software engineering for about 9 months (not in the USA), and I was able to most of the works using chatGPT because all I had to do was understand the codebase, read the documentation, and write the required code using chatGPT. However, after I started school, I still using chatGPT for generating code for me and I don't know if that is a good thing or bad thing.
For example, I was writing this server side code for chatBot application in one of my CSE courses, and I was stuck on the problem for a very long time. Then, I used the chatGPT for an answer and it produced the correct answer in an instant. Since I was stuck on a problem, I did not see the point of not using a chatGPT. However, the problem arises when the code works and the application works, and I just move on to the next problem because it works.
I'm not even trying to understand the chatGPT result since it is working. I know that this is a bad practice, but I want to ask is it really necessary to understand the code if it works? if it works, it works right? I don't have to waste my time. if that is not right, how should I change my mindset and what programming practices should I try to develop? Is there any books/lectures/vidoes that I can find to help me cultivate different mindset?
In the past, even before chatGPT existed, people used to search answers on StackOverflow, but I remember some programmers used to say "don't blindly copy/paste code" and instead understand the them. I think with these people, they have really different mindset when it comes to code.
Most of my friends at school do not use chatGPT for programming and they basically do all of the code implementation from scratch. if they have to look at answers, they go to stackOverflow or google to search for answers, not chatGPT. what is the mindset that drives them to not use chatGPT for programming and instead use different tools like google or StackOverflow?
finally, my last question is what makes a good programmer?

Hello everyone! I'm trying to find a book I read sometime between 2001-2003, which I borrowed from my middle school library. I remember it was a hardback, and I think it had a white cover with a black picture of some sort, though I can't remember of what. It seemed like it was part of a series, from what I can remember of the ending.
For the plot, I admittedly don't remember too much. I know that it starts with a boy getting on a train to go visit his brother, who I really want to say lived in 'Soho', which makes me think the book took place in England. He hadn't seen his brother in a lot time, and I vaguely remember him being nervous about the visit, but I could be wrong.
On the train, he met someone who I believe turned out to be some sort of fae? This person seemed to know something about the brother, and either implied the brother was involved in some bad stuff, or that he was in some sort of danger. I think at one point the train gets attacked by more supernatural sort of people, and I remember there being mentions of supernatural-based gangs and mobs?
Eventually the MC got to the city, and after dealing with some more danger that I can't remember, he ends up discovering that his brother has become a werewolf. I don't know if the brother himself showed up and revealed this, or if someone informed him. I remember the book ended in such a way that the MC had to go find his brother (possibly again?) after learning that he was in some serious danger. I think there was kidnapping involved?
I remember liking the book and wanting to read the next part of the series (I assumed it was one), but either the school library didn't have the second book, or the second book wasn't out yet in general. Or there possibly was never a second book. I read a lot back then and didn't keep track of what I'd read, so I stopped thinking about it after a while. I remembered it a few years ago but googling hasn't helped me, since I only remember very generic stuff. Any help finding this book (or at least confirming that a book like this does exist and it wasn't a fever dream of some sort) would be deeply appreciated!

In the aftermath of a tiring final exam week, I found myself craving the sweet release of the written word. I mindlessly scrolled through my endless bookmarks of initially too-sparse series and an alliterative title caught my tired eye.
Downtown Druid.
It's catchy. And I like druids. So I gave it a once over to remind myself why it caught my eye initially and soon enough found myself clicking on the first chapter. And soon enough I also found myself caught up to the latest and in desperate need for more.
There are a lot of reasons to read a book, be it elegant prose, calculated intricate plots, or immense well-crafted worlds. But for this one the reason couldn't be more simple. It's fun. So absolutely fun. There's a good balance of comedy, action, and even mystery. Besides that, the contrast between a cutthroat thief and peaceful hippie nature powers is just inherently hilarious to me.
But even more interesting is the way our main character takes those hippie nature powers and reminds us that nature is not kind and peaceful by any means. She is a savage, resourceful beast whose domain extends everywhere life breathes. In many cases this domain reaches into deciduous, dappled sunlight forests. But Dantes shows us its roots can also take hold in the moss-filled alleys and gutters of a city or the dank underground of a dilapidated prison.
You will find spite, vengeance, blood, and cunning in equal measure in this story. As well as a sprinkle of the compassion that a street rat can afford.
And when you've wiped the blood out of your eyes, you'll realize you want to keep watching.
Go and read it and I'm sure you'll have fun like I did.

CONSISTENCY GUIDE
Consistency is what is preached over and over in the Self Help world and for a good reason. Rome was not built in a day. It is one thing we all have heard. But a lot of people do have trouble with consistency and this is my guide for consistency.
WHO IS IT FOR:
It is a generalised guide which can be applied in any field of self improvement. This could be a bit difficult if it is on any activity which is an obligation but if it is not that it would help you. So if you need to develop any habit on a consistent basis, this would help.
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE:
I always had a problem with consistency. I lived with ups and downs and was unable to follow through things for a long time. So this is what I have done to develop consistency which I have applied mostly on the work I do, my college classes, gym as well as the self improvement habit I indulge in like meditation, reading, even in skills like playing guitar, playing chess. So this guide would work in these cases as well as cases similar to that.
ACTIONABLE ADVICE:

1. Bare Minimum: Start with Bare minimum. Best way to calculate the bare minimum is TIME. So 1 minute of meditation, 1 minute of exercise, and then build from there. Obviously most people would be able to do 1 minute of work on anything.
2. Increase on a monthly basis: What I used to do was I do 10 tasks one day and then add 2 more tasks the other day and then get overwhelmed and just do 5 tasks or no tasks for the next 5 days. So if you are comfortable with doing 10 tasks for 1 minute each day, do that and then do 11 tasks next month and 12 tasks the month after that. So that you are able to do the given amount of tasks for the whole month
3. Increase time on a weekly basis: So you start with 1 minute, 10 tasks and you would increase the tasks next month, so what to do in the month of 10 tasks, you increase the time weekly. I used to increase on a daily basis but then again got overwhelmed, so Increase the time on a weekly basis, so if you do 1 minute of meditation for the whole week, increase it to two minutes of meditation the next week.
4. Add Variety: This is more applicable for things like Working out and Books where you should add variety to keep your interest in. I change my workout every 6 weeks, you can also change every 4 weeks. In terms of books, nowadays I read 60 books but I read 6 books and 10 pages for each book. This variety keeps my interest in the things.
5. Aim at improvement not 100%: don’t aim for 100% success rate, nobody has that. Aim at improving the amount of tasks, time of tasks over weeks and months and not aim at having 100% success rate as that is not the thing you would be able to be consistent at as stuff happens which would spoil that streak so aim at getting better not being perfect.

SUMMARY:
Do bare minimum things for bare minimum time and increase time on a weekly basis and add tasks on a monthly basis, add variety in the places where you can add and not aim at being 100% perfect but at improving.
I hope this would be able to help you be more consistent as it has helped me. If you have any problem with your life, tell me in the comments and I will make a guide about it if I have solutions to your problem. If you have any review regarding the way I write, tell me in the comments.

CONSISTENCY GUIDE
Consistency is what is preached over and over in the Self Help world and for a good reason. Rome was not built in a day. It is one thing we all have heard. But a lot of people do have trouble with consistency and this is my guide for consistency.
WHO IS IT FOR:
It is a generalised guide which can be applied in any field of self improvement. This could be a bit difficult if it is on any activity which is an obligation but if it is not that it would help you. So if you need to develop any habit on a consistent basis, this would help.
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE:
I always had a problem with consistency. I lived with ups and downs and was unable to follow through things for a long time. So this is what I have done to develop consistency which I have applied mostly on the work I do, my college classes, gym as well as the self improvement habit I indulge in like meditation, reading, even in skills like playing guitar, playing chess. So this guide would work in these cases as well as cases similar to that.
ACTIONABLE ADVICE:

1. Bare Minimum: Start with Bare minimum. Best way to calculate the bare minimum is TIME. So 1 minute of meditation, 1 minute of exercise, and then build from there. Obviously most people would be able to do 1 minute of work on anything.
2. Increase on a monthly basis: What I used to do was I do 10 tasks one day and then add 2 more tasks the other day and then get overwhelmed and just do 5 tasks or no tasks for the next 5 days. So if you are comfortable with doing 10 tasks for 1 minute each day, do that and then do 11 tasks next month and 12 tasks the month after that. So that you are able to do the given amount of tasks for the whole month
3. Increase time on a weekly basis: So you start with 1 minute, 10 tasks and you would increase the tasks next month, so what to do in the month of 10 tasks, you increase the time weekly. I used to increase on a daily basis but then again got overwhelmed, so Increase the time on a weekly basis, so if you do 1 minute of meditation for the whole week, increase it to two minutes of meditation the next week.
4. Add Variety: This is more applicable for things like Working out and Books where you should add variety to keep your interest in. I change my workout every 6 weeks, you can also change every 4 weeks. In terms of books, nowadays I read 60 books but I read 6 books and 10 pages for each book. This variety keeps my interest in the things.
5. Aim at improvement not 100%: don’t aim for 100% success rate, nobody has that. Aim at improving the amount of tasks, time of tasks over weeks and months and not aim at having 100% success rate as that is not the thing you would be able to be consistent at as stuff happens which would spoil that streak so aim at getting better not being perfect.

SUMMARY:
Do bare minimum things for bare minimum time and increase time on a weekly basis and add tasks on a monthly basis, add variety in the places where you can add and not aim at being 100% perfect but at improving.
I hope this would be able to help you be more consistent as it has helped me. If you have any problem with your life, tell me in the comments and I will make a guide about it if I have solutions to your problem. If you have any review regarding the way I write, tell me in the comments.

CONSISTENCY GUIDE
Consistency is what is preached over and over in the Self Help world and for a good reason. Rome was not built in a day. It is one thing we all have heard. But a lot of people do have trouble with consistency and this is my guide for consistency.
WHO IS IT FOR:
It is a generalised guide which can be applied in any field of self improvement. This could be a bit difficult if it is on any activity which is an obligation but if it is not that it would help you. So if you need to develop any habit on a consistent basis, this would help.
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE:
I always had a problem with consistency. I lived with ups and downs and was unable to follow through things for a long time. So this is what I have done to develop consistency which I have applied mostly on the work I do, my college classes, gym as well as the self improvement habit I indulge in like meditation, reading, even in skills like playing guitar, playing chess. So this guide would work in these cases as well as cases similar to that.
ACTIONABLE ADVICE:

1. Bare Minimum: Start with Bare minimum. Best way to calculate the bare minimum is TIME. So 1 minute of meditation, 1 minute of exercise, and then build from there. Obviously most people would be able to do 1 minute of work on anything.
2. Increase on a monthly basis: What I used to do was I do 10 tasks one day and then add 2 more tasks the other day and then get overwhelmed and just do 5 tasks or no tasks for the next 5 days. So if you are comfortable with doing 10 tasks for 1 minute each day, do that and then do 11 tasks next month and 12 tasks the month after that. So that you are able to do the given amount of tasks for the whole month
3. Increase time on a weekly basis: So you start with 1 minute, 10 tasks and you would increase the tasks next month, so what to do in the month of 10 tasks, you increase the time weekly. I used to increase on a daily basis but then again got overwhelmed, so Increase the time on a weekly basis, so if you do 1 minute of meditation for the whole week, increase it to two minutes of meditation the next week.
4. Add Variety: This is more applicable for things like Working out and Books where you should add variety to keep your interest in. I change my workout every 6 weeks, you can also change every 4 weeks. In terms of books, nowadays I read 60 books but I read 6 books and 10 pages for each book. This variety keeps my interest in the things.
5. Aim at improvement not 100%: don’t aim for 100% success rate, nobody has that. Aim at improving the amount of tasks, time of tasks over weeks and months and not aim at having 100% success rate as that is not the thing you would be able to be consistent at as stuff happens which would spoil that streak so aim at getting better not being perfect.

SUMMARY:
Do bare minimum things for bare minimum time and increase time on a weekly basis and add tasks on a monthly basis, add variety in the places where you can add and not aim at being 100% perfect but at improving.
I hope this would be able to help you be more consistent as it has helped me. If you have any problem with your life, tell me in the comments and I will make a guide about it if I have solutions to your problem. If you have any review regarding the way I write, tell me in the comments.

CONSISTENCY GUIDE
Consistency is what is preached over and over in the Self Help world and for a good reason. Rome was not built in a day. It is one thing we all have heard. But a lot of people do have trouble with consistency and this is my guide for consistency.
WHO IS IT FOR:
It is a generalised guide which can be applied in any field of self improvement. This could be a bit difficult if it is on any activity which is an obligation but if it is not that it would help you. So if you need to develop any habit on a consistent basis, this would help.
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE:
I always had a problem with consistency. I lived with ups and downs and was unable to follow through things for a long time. So this is what I have done to develop consistency which I have applied mostly on the work I do, my college classes, gym as well as the self improvement habit I indulge in like meditation, reading, even in skills like playing guitar, playing chess. So this guide would work in these cases as well as cases similar to that.
ACTIONABLE ADVICE:

1. Bare Minimum: Start with Bare minimum. Best way to calculate the bare minimum is TIME. So 1 minute of meditation, 1 minute of exercise, and then build from there. Obviously most people would be able to do 1 minute of work on anything.
2. Increase on a monthly basis: What I used to do was I do 10 tasks one day and then add 2 more tasks the other day and then get overwhelmed and just do 5 tasks or no tasks for the next 5 days. So if you are comfortable with doing 10 tasks for 1 minute each day, do that and then do 11 tasks next month and 12 tasks the month after that. So that you are able to do the given amount of tasks for the whole month
3. Increase time on a weekly basis: So you start with 1 minute, 10 tasks and you would increase the tasks next month, so what to do in the month of 10 tasks, you increase the time weekly. I used to increase on a daily basis but then again got overwhelmed, so Increase the time on a weekly basis, so if you do 1 minute of meditation for the whole week, increase it to two minutes of meditation the next week.
4. Add Variety: This is more applicable for things like Working out and Books where you should add variety to keep your interest in. I change my workout every 6 weeks, you can also change every 4 weeks. In terms of books, nowadays I read 60 books but I read 6 books and 10 pages for each book. This variety keeps my interest in the things.
5. Aim at improvement not 100%: don’t aim for 100% success rate, nobody has that. Aim at improving the amount of tasks, time of tasks over weeks and months and not aim at having 100% success rate as that is not the thing you would be able to be consistent at as stuff happens which would spoil that streak so aim at getting better not being perfect.

SUMMARY:
Do bare minimum things for bare minimum time and increase time on a weekly basis and add tasks on a monthly basis, add variety in the places where you can add and not aim at being 100% perfect but at improving.
I hope this would be able to help you be more consistent as it has helped me. If you have any problem with your life, tell me in the comments and I will make a guide about it if I have solutions to your problem. If you have any review regarding the way I write, tell me in the comments.

Hello. I'm Zach, and I'd love to share a bit of my world with you in the hope of finding someone who resonates with me. I do want to firstly say I am looking for a long term relationship, someone I might want to settle down with. Physical attraction is part of the equation, so let’s be open from the start. If you’re comfortable, a photo would be great. Here are a few from me. Most Recent. 2. 3. If I still have your attention then I would love to tell you more about me.

• 5ft 11in, a burly 230lbs. Working on being active at the gym, I would love it if you could help keep me motivated.
• I work full-time as a rural mailman, climbing mountains of Amazon and swapping tires like its F1. Hours are long but I make a comfortable middle class living. 6 figures.
• I live in a small rural town in TX, considering I lean blue and the voting block here is 97% red, it makes it hard to form lasting connections. I'm open to relocating if we click.
• I'm a huge PC gamer. As far back as I can remember I've had a SNES controller in my hands. I love looking for co-op games and would love to see your face light up every time I share one because you know that every co-op game is a confession that I want to spend more time with you.
• I love to read and write. I'm working on a book that will never see the light of day, because it's never good enough kinda vibes. I'm big into Sci-fi and Fantasy and always have my head stuck in a world that is not our own.
• I DM for D&D, have been for almost 10 years now. D&D is not just a game for me; it's a canvas for creativity and a forge for friendships. If you're also an enthusiast, we'll have endless tales to share.
• I change my bed sheets once a week.

I hope this snippet into who I am catches your eye, its only a small piece of me and I don't want this post to get too long. We didn't even talk about cooking!
Who are you? My only preferences are someone who is roughly 24-33 in age, a few years outside of that would be okay if we really connected. Someone who might be okay with distance but wants to eventually meet. Someone who is patient, kind and humble. Someone who always tries to see things in a perspective other than their own, but holds their own morals highly. Someone who doesn't mind me texting them at like 3am to go look at the stars cause then we'd both be doing it and looking at the same stars together even if were apart. Someone who lives life with enthusiasm and passion.
If you're passionate about something I really want to be a part of it in some way, If it's listening to you ramble for hours about that obscure album you just found or the new succulent you just bought or this wild spice blend you've been trying out. Whatever makes you smile, I want to understand it.
Hopefully I've created a spark and we can find warmth. I look forward to hearing from you.

So ... I was a bit late to finishing the books, and then when I started looking up fan discussions on here, I was pretty surprised to see so little speculation about Brienne's future as a major hero of ASOIAF. It seems to me that GRRM has been hanging all kinds of hints on her without explicitly calling attention to them, kind of like how there are zillions of clues about the Red Wedding that become more obvious on re-read.
Here is (probably) a not even comprehensive list of interesting plot details about Brienne of Tarth:

• Brienne is set to inherit the title of Evenstar, which is an allusion to a very heroic character from LOTR
• She wields a fiery red sword made from Ice
• Bloodraven or Bran or someone weirwood-related seems to want her to wield this sword, judging first by Jaime's ASoS weirwood dream (which encouraged him to give her a sword) and second by Brienne's (very likely) weirwood dream sequence at the end of AFfC (in which she kept being reminded that she needed her sword, right before her "sword or noose" confrontation with Stoneheart)
• Brienne and her sword have already been compared in the text to another legendary hero, Galladon of Morne
• Brienne is one of very few "true knights" in the series, of course with the irony that she isn't a knight at all. But this isn't a minor point -- a major theme of ASOIAF is whether and when violence can be justified, and the deconstruction of chivalry plays a central role in exploring this theme. Brienne, as a warrior whom the story has so far presented as righteous, therefore occupies an honestly very unusual place in the narrative.
• There are many obvious allusions to Brienne in the Dunk and Egg novella series -- to an almost ridiculous degree, with of course the cherry on top being that Dunk is Brienne's ancestor. I wondered for a while why GRRM was motivated to write this spinoff series -- like of all the topics he could've written about, why focus on these characters, and this time period -- and it struck me that the main-series characters who are most closely connected with A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms are Bran (via Bloodraven) and Brienne (parallel to Dunk). And the novella series grapples with a lot of the same themes about chivalry and honor and knighthood that Brienne's own POV chapters do. If I had to choose a single POV whose chapters are most in conversation with A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, it's Brienne, easily.
• The weirwoods have shown a major POV character a vision of Brienne wielding a burning sword against ice zombies (and the fire in Brienne's sword does not go out).
• ASOIAF is a series about duality (it's in the title) and it's interesting that Brienne's whole shtick as a character is that she is constantly faced with either-or choices and chooses both. She is loyal to both a Stark and a Lannister; exhibits both conventionally masculine and feminine traits; is honorable and idealistic, but is also learning more about the world and developing a more complex moral code. You can see this duality in the two uses of Oathkeeper in AFfC, in which the first use represents a loss of innocence, like the death of chivalry, while the second use is a rejection of nihilism. Also notice how Brienne, who has been trusted by both Starks and Lannisters to carry out conciliatory missions, is faced with enemies and foils who, like her, ride on both sides of this divide (Bloody Mummers, the Hound), but whose nihilistic opportunism is contrasted with Brienne's sincerity.
• Brienne is also a foil to literally everyone -- Sansa in the first half of AFfC, Arya in the second half of AFfC, Jaime in ASoS, but also, as noted by Jaime, to Tyrion; to Samwell Tarly as made obvious by her many interactions with Randyll in AFfC; and to Cersei obviously; and maybe most interestingly and most overtly, to Sandor throughout AFfC.

I honestly don't know what the endgame plan is for this series with respect to the Others and Daenerys and Euron and Bran etc, or what kind of heroism is in store for Brienne. But it is really strange to me that so many really important themes for the series are explored with her character, and a not-insignificant number of fire-ice imagery is associated with her, and yet she still plays so small a role in fan conjectures about where all of this is headed.
All I can say is, if I had to bet on the plans of an author who likes to surprise us and deconstruct and reconstruct common fantasy tropes, but who also still drops a lot of hints about his intentions (a la Red Wedding), my money would be on Brienne and probably also Sam to do some heroic shenanigans in the endgame.

I guess the best way to start this post is to admit that I am in somewhat of a deep personal struggle (Jihad, if you will!) and, as these feelings have been cropping up during my reading of The Red Book, I figured I would reach out to some Jungians. I quite enjoy you folks and your sub. Anyway
I guess the simplest way to put it is that I have realized that I do not seem to want anything. My desire seems to be roadkilled; carelessly left dead on the way to the next vague destination. I am beginning to worry about this. I am beginning to wonder at what point asceticism becomes a rejection of life.
I am 25 and after graduating college with a profoundly unmarketable degree two years ago (sociology) I have been working as an antique clock repairman. I live in an apartment with bare walls, minimal furniture, and stacks of books. I have a few friends and a family I am very close with. It's just that it's getting to that point when people are asking me when I'm going to start a career and get a house and get health insurance and "grow up". To say that I have no interest in these things is probably underselling it; the uncomfortable reality is that these things honestly disgust me and I have absolutely desire for them.
This really is the crux of the issue here. I am not a desert father and I am not a tortured genius. I sincerely believe I am a mostly normal guy who just likes reading. I don't want to reject the world and I feel like that's what I'm doing. I can say these things are "consumerist" but the reality of the situation is that the "consumerist" world is where most people live, and in rejecting that world, I feel myself pull away from them. I like people a lot and do not want to do this.
Is there a way to live fully in the world and yet reject it? Or see it with clear eyes? I think this is question I am asking, but I am unsure. Any thoughts are welcome.

Hello. I'm Zach, and I'd love to share a bit of my world with you in the hope of finding someone who resonates with me. I do want to firstly say I am looking for a long term relationship, someone I might want to settle down with. Physical attraction is part of the equation, so let’s be open from the start. If you’re comfortable, a photo would be great. Here are a few from me. Most Recent. 2. 3. If I still have your attention then I would love to tell you more about me.

• 5ft 11in, a burly 230lbs. Working on being active at the gym, I would love it if you could help keep me motivated.
• I live in a small rural town in TX, considering I lean blue and the voting block here is 97% red, it makes it hard to form lasting connections. I'm open to relocating if we click.
• I work full-time as a rural mailman, climbing mountains of Amazon and swapping tires like its F1. Hours are long but I make a comfortable middle class living. 6 figures.
• I'm a huge PC gamer. As far back as I can remember I've had a SNES controller in my hands. I love looking for co-op games and would love to see your face light up every time I share one because you know that every co-op game is a confession that I want to spend more time with you.
• I love to read and write. I'm working on a book that will never see the light of day, because it's never good enough kinda vibes. I'm big into Sci-fi and Fantasy and always have my head stuck in a world that is not our own.
• I DM for D&D, have been for almost 10 years now. D&D is not just a game for me; it's a canvas for creativity and a forge for friendships. If you're also an enthusiast, we'll have endless tales to share.
• I change my bed sheets once a week.

I hope this snippet into who I am catches your eye, its only a small piece of me and I don't want this post to get too long. We didn't even talk about cooking!
Who are you? My only preferences are someone who is roughly 24-33 in age, a few years outside of that would be okay if we really connected. Someone who might be okay with distance but wants to eventually meet. Someone who is patient, kind and humble. Someone who always tries to see things in a perspective other than their own, but holds their own morals highly. Someone who doesn't mind me texting them at like 3am to go look at the stars cause then we'd both be doing it and looking at the same stars together even if were apart. Someone who lives life with enthusiasm and passion.
If you're passionate about something I really want to be a part of it in some way, If it's listening to you ramble for hours about that obscure album you just found or the new succulent you just bought or this wild spice blend you've been trying out. Whatever makes you smile, I want to understand it.
Hopefully I've created a spark and we can find warmth. I look forward to hearing from you.

So I made this comment to another person's post recently about her feeling annoyed at the teachestudent relationship in Maxton Hall and that it wasn't being properly addressed as toxic. I agree. But that's hardly my only issue with the show. Because a lot of really young people are into these genres, I feel the need to address these points as someone who's actually lived the Ruby/James storyline, different ways and multiple times. A veteran, one might say. You can take my statements as a grain of salt, or whatever you like, but may those who have ears listen:
Spoilers throughout if someone hasn't finished the season:
This is the thing...I actually find the lead actors cute and super talented even despite this being a genre that I find deplorably predictable and drab. I actually only got invested to improve my German, sadly now I'm actually invested in the characters at this point despite me seeing everything that's going to happen a mile away, because a lot of these writers who may actually be creative but stifle it for the sake of hashing out another "proven to make money" storyline that has been recreated time and time again. Yes, the teachestudent situation is problematic not because they're both consenting individuals who or of age, but because apparently they knew each long before which hints that she would've most likely have been a minor when the relationship took form. Maybe people who have read the books can shed better light on the matter.
Beyond that, my biggest issue with these common bad boy meets good girl trope shows beyond how oversaturated the romance world is with these stories (damn, not even a reversal like good boy meets bad girl), is the very negative expectations they put on real girls out there. These stories fuel the idea that they "can fix him" and even those overly toxic traits he possesses should be downplayed in some way, and even the slightest redeemable qualities he shows should be made out as holy. This is one of the large reasons I hate this genre. For example, despite James's slight transition in S1 (and yes, I'm fully aware that he will most likely continue to change for the better in some ways), to say I think Ruby deserves better is an understatement. Women/girls keep fawning over the swimming pool scene where he saves Ruby, but I was honestly pissed at him for this whole catastrophic scenario and how it unfolded. Firstly, he invited her to this godforsaken hive of scum and villainy of a party despite him knowing full well this is not normally her scene, ignores Ruby's actualized fears of pupils teasing hedisliking her for being with James, and gives her an invitation into the lion's den thinking she'll come out unscathed? For someone who hints at himself having an impressive GPA, I'm not impressed by his lack of logical deduction. When viewed from this perspective, the blame of Ruby getting pushed into the pool and being triggered into a panic attack that nearly got her drowned largely rests on James's shoulders, especially as one of the sole people at that party claiming to "care" about her. Despite this, no open moment from James of reflection of responsibility for what took place there and nothing even remotely resembling an apology not even the following morning of the incident, but rather even gave off the impression that it wasn't even that big of a deal. He sent a text asking if she was doing better (not even the first text the following morning, mind you), and that was the end of that. Not a question or care more before a slew of flirting between the two. Of course, at that point Ruby is already infatuated with him, so it makes little difference. But to someone from the outside looking in, the selfishness and ambivalence is glaringly obvious.
It's an ongoing theme in S1 that apparently getting apologies out of James is like pulling teeth (another highly toxic masculinity trait that we need to stop treating with humor or something "enduring" when interest is involved). I believe I counted him saying it only twice in the last episodes and it was always backed by some sort of excuse "but I did it because I was embarrassed by my parents...sorry, but I can't...my father...etc." In reality he's been needing to give proper apologies since the show began, but the moment he finally formulates the words, it's always accompanied by some excuse? Immaturity. What was the topper on the cake for me and an ultimate red flag (yes, yes...it's fantasy, a show...but in real life, run for the hills), he continues to take decisions that should normally involve both of them, into his own hands and gravely gauging her whims wrongly in these situations. First with the poster of them, then again ending the relationship in order to "protect" her. He's very creative at finding solutions when it's getting back at Ruby for things in the beginning, but now he's just willing to throw in the towel anytime he has to fight for their relationship? Again questioning his logical capabilities and even his intentions at this point. Perhaps it's actually just rooted in him being afraid of commitment after a life of whoring himself out to hush people up or a slew of one night stands which has left him detached? If not, as I suspect it isn't, a form of self-sabotage due to his father's hold on him. I know it's most likely the latter, and as relatable and sad as that may be, this is catastrophic and needs therapy to get resolved. Rose-tinted romance isn't going to fix that (trust me, speaking from experience, girlies). And to make matters worse, I can read the handwriting on the wall from the last episode ending, that James is liable to take matters into his own hands again and hurt Ruby because he keeps trying to decide what HE thinks is best for HER life. I'm not a teen or in my early twenties watching this show, so I tend to view these from a mother hen type of perspective. If you see a guy like James Beaufort, it might be entertaining on TV or film, but in REAL life, run for the hills unless you have written proof he's attending therapy and counselling for his issues and start seeing a difference. My interest in the show is starting to wane after already guessing (like most things in this show and others of its genre) what's coming next season...such as James getting cold feet, taking executive control of their relationship again and bailing...very sure. I don't even need to read the books for that. I've lived this, girlies.
Hopefully, the writers exceed my expectations and do something unexpected. As I said in another post, it wouldn't be the most drastic of plot twists, but make the chauffeur the old flame James's mother was alluded to and have James secretly be his kid, which would give light on why he acts like a father figure (or at least the closest positive one James has) and his passionate defense of James. That would maybe keep me invested and one my toes knowing there are actually all these secrets being unraveled. Okay, anyway, that's my rant on this. That was waaay too long. Bye.

I accidentally posted this to my username instead of my subreddit so here is is:
The Mortgage, Part 3
“Fuck,” I said as I drove to work in the old beater that only started on the fourth try because it could tell that I was pissed off. Ray’s case started at two o’clock, and I was heading to the office to get ready. “Fuck fuck fuckity fucking fuck. Fuck.” I’d wanted to tell Angela about Ray’s case, and how I was sorry that I hadn’t wanted to help him, but now I would, I would help him, and I would win, but then I’d gotten her all riled up on something else, something totally different, something way more serious.
My wife had given me a triple ultimatum: fix things up with her father, save idiot Ray from Sy-Co Corp., and somehow find a downpayment for the place she wanted to buy, in the little townhouse infill project in Bixity. It was like demanding I do a double bank shot, and then run over to the baseball diamond and hit a home run after first pointing to where it would land, Babe Ruth style.
Angela was mad at me, seriously mad. She’d slipped out that morning before I was even awake, sliding quietly past me on the couch. I didn’t realize she was gone until I heard the faint click of the front door closing. I jumped up, tripped over a blanket, and by the time I got up and my robe on, the elevator down the hall dinged, and Angela was gone before I opened the apartment door.
I swore at myself some more and pounded the steering wheel, “I fucked up,” I said, several times as I hit the wheel over and over again, until I accidentally honked it, and then looked all sheepish when the guy in front of me gave me the finger. I reached my office without further incident, but instead of walking in the front door, I went further down the hall, and into the office of Mark Cecil-Rowe, Barrister, LL.D, the man with the finest speaking voice I ever heard. When I entered his office I forgot for a minute about Angela and her father and sleeping on the couch the night before. I forget about everything, except the reason that I had come to Cecil-Rowe’s office: to stump him with a legal problem that I had solved, but which I was pretty sure he could not. In other words, I had come to preen and to brag and to boast. No one likes a showoff, and I had come to show off. I put my hand on the door and turned the knob. After a brief pause, I flung open the door.
“I’m a goddamn genius,” I said as I strolled into the older man’s office.
I noticed the echo of a hastily closed desk drawer hanging in the air. In Aaron’s office, where I rented space, a sudden act of concealment implied cocaine, but with Cecil-Rowe, the item in question was probably a mickey of vodka. I had the sense that he’d been drinking a bit before I arrived, but his powers of observation were unimpaired, and when he looked into my face, his expression showed sympathy, and actual pain.
“What have you done now?” he said, as set the papers before him to one side, and readied himself to hear my latest tale of legal brilliance.
“I’m a genius,” I said.
“Oh dear. Have a seat.”
“No really, I am. I’m a genius. I got this case that everyone says you can’t win, but I’m gonna win it, and when I do, I’m gonna look like a genius.” Cecil-Rowe gave me a sad indulgent smile.
“Whenever you tell me you’re a genius, I am always concerned about what is to follow. When you get wrapped up in what you call your genius, you tend to ignore the more mundane things we lawyers have to do to win a case. You think you’re going to win by genius alone.”
“Let me tell you why I’m a goddamn genius.” With effort I wiped the smug, self-satisfied expression that was on my face.
“Tell me why you’re a genius,” Cecil-Rowe said, “while I pour us a coffee.” He heaved his bulky body up from his chair and shuffled over to a counter. He picked up a carafe of hot coffee sitting on a hot plate, and poured two cups. “Speak,” he said, handing me one. I took a sip of the coffee, and told Cecil-Rowe the tale of Cousin Ray: his purchase of a franchise from Sy-Co Corp, its swift demise, the crash and burn in Commercial Court, the Minutes of Settlement, the seventy-one kilometer limit, and lastly, Sy-Co’s motion scheduled for two p.m. that very day, seeking an interim injunction shutting down Ray’s place.
Cecil-Rowe absorbed all this without the need to take notes. Instead, he sat back while he eyed me, taking the occasional sip of coffee, and smiling at the extravagant flourishes and details that brought out Ray’s story to full effect.
“Obviously Ray is dead on arrival,” he said, “but I guess this is the part where you tell me how you’re going to win.”
So I told him how I was going to win, but it didn’t have the desired effect. “I told ya I’m a genius, Mr. C,” cueing him to applaud, to admit what a brilliant lawyer I was. But there was no applause from Mark Cecil-Rowe. He looked at me without so much as a smile.
“You can cling to that genius notion as a consolation prize, after you get whipped this afternoon in court.”
“No way,” I said, “not a chance. I got this thing won hands down. I’m gonna kick ass in court today and--”
“And how exactly do you plan to do that, if you don’t have evidence?”
“What?”
“Evidence, Calledinthe9os. It’s what lawyers like me use to beat geniuses like you.”
“But I’m gonna win without proof. I don’t need proof. The argument I’m gonna make, relies on simple facts that are totally obvious, so the judge is gonna--” Cecil-Rowe stuck up his hand.
“Stop right there. I know what’s coming. You’re going to ask the judge to take *judicial notice.”
And he was right. That was exactly what I was going to do.
There are some things so obvious that you didn’t have to prove them, things that everyone knew. You didn’t have to prove that water froze at zero degrees and boiled at a hundred, or that Bixity was between West Bay and East Bay.
“You got it,” I said, “judicial notice all the way.”
“You’re going to tell the judge that the centerpiece of your argument, the lynchpin of your case is a fact known to pretty well everyone, and so you don’t need proof.”
“Exactly,” I said. Cecil-Rowe took another sip of his coffee, and left me hanging in the silence for a while before he spoke.
“If that’s true, then why does coming up with that argument make you a genius?”
“Oh, I said,”I didn’t think of that.”
“It is acceptable to rely on judicial notice for minor, ancillary points. But you never should walk into court thinking that the court will take judicial notice of your entire defence. It’s just too risky.”
“But how am I going to rustle up a witness in time for this afternoon?”
“Worry about that after you leave my office. I can’t help you with that. What I want to know, is why you’re doing this at the last minute.”
“What makes you think I’m doing this at the last minute?”
“Because you never would have resorted to judicial notice if you were properly prepared. If you’d opened this case a bit earlier, you’ve have everything lined up. But you got to work on it late, and so you want to rely on judicial notice. You’ve messed up, Calledinthe90s, and you know what my rule is when you mess up.” Cecil-Rowe didn’t extend aid to me, until I admitted the error of my ways. It was infuriating, but he was inflexible. So I fessed up.
“My idiot cousin Ray’s been trying to retain me for almost two weeks, but I was putting him off because I was mad at him. So now my wife’s mad at me, and if I don’t win this case, I’m dead. Plus her dad’s mad at me too and --” My brain roared into overdrive, a mess of family and law and fear, and at the centre of it, thoughts of Angela’s anger and her father. My mind took off, and then came to an instant halt at a helpful destination.
“Yes?” Cecil-Rowe said.
“Sorry. I just realized how to solve the evidence problem. Look, can I ask you about the thing I actually came here to ask you about?”
“You have a problem that’s worse than having no evidence? What could be worse than -- oh. You don’t have a retainer. Your client doesn't have any money.”
“Exactly. How do I get paid? That’s the problem.” I explained that Ray had no money, as in none, and that if he did have money, he wouldn’t spend it on me. Instead, he’d go back downtown and throw his cash at some big firm, who would take on his case, and proceed to lose it in a calm, careful, sober manner, ending in a reporting letter to Ray telling him that he’d lost.
“Now that’s a problem I can solve,” Cecil-Rowe said.
“Really? ‘Cause I can’t see a way around it. I think I’m gonna have to do this for free, and that really pisses me off.” Cecil-Rowe shook his head.
“You may or may not get paid, but you can set things up so that if you win, you’ll win pretty good.”
“How? Ray’s a deadbeat. Tapped out.”
“But is he desperate?”
“Totally. The first time he failed, he lost his own money, but if he goes under this time, he’s taking family money with him, and he’ll be the black sheep forever.”
“And he’s using family to emotionally blackmail you into helping him?’
“Like no shit. That’s the part that pisses me off the most. I’m like a goddamn slave, being forced to work for free.”
“Never fear, young apprentice. I have just the thing in mind.” He reached into a drawer, and pulled out a form. “Fill in the blanks, and have him sign.”
I looked it over, and saw that the document was a retainer agreement. I whistled. “Holy shit. If he signs this, he’s almost my slave.”
“Close, but not quite” Cecil-Rowe said, “the Latin term for this is "contractus pro venditione animae"”. It’s the ultimate retainer agreement. Once Ray signs that, you own any cause of action he has against the person suing him. You can settle the case on any terms you like, and you get to keep whatever proceeds there are.” Cecil-Rowe placed the folder back in a drawer, and from his manner you could tell that the interview was over.
“Awesome, Mr. C. I’ll call you from Commercial Court when we’re done.”
“Commercial Court?” he said.
“Yeah, Commercial Court.”
“This just keeps getting worse. Take notes, Calledinthe90s, while I school you on Commercial Court. Commercial Court is a jungle, and without preparation, you’ll get savaged.”
“That’s what happened to Ray when--”
“Take notes, young apprentice,” he said, tossing me a pad and a pen. He started to lecture, and I took notes that I have with me to this day, in a safe deposit box downstairs in the vault at Mega Bank Main Branch.
* * *
By the time Cecil-Rowe finished schooling me, it was close to ten, and the case started at two. I didn’t have much time. I ran down the hall to my office, and called Ray’s restaurant. No answer. Then I called Ray’s house. I expected to get Ray’s wife, but the man himself answered.
“You’re not at work. Why aren’t you at work?”
“Sy-Co Corp served all my employees with a cease and desist letter. They all got scared and took off. The place is shut down.”
“You gotta fax machine at home?” He did, and asked why.
“I’m taking your case, but only if you sign the paper I’m about to send and fax it back.” I sent the fax, and five minutes later it came back signed, and it was official: Ray had sold me his legal soul.
I went out to the parking lot, got into my beater and drove fast. In less than thirty minutes I reached my destination. I knocked on the door, and when it opened, my diminutive mother-in-law poked out her head. “What a pleasant surprise,” she said.
“Sorry, Mrs. M, but I’m in a super hurry. I gotta rush to get to court to help Ray. But first, I gotta speak to Dr. M.”
“He’s not here,” she said.
“Not here?”
“He’s on his way to his bridge game. He left just a few minutes ago.”
“Where’s the club?”
“He’s walking there,” she said, and pointed down the street.
“Thanks.” I got into my car and headed where Mrs. M had pointed, passing big houses and new project with an “Opening Soon” sign. And walking past it was the figure of Dr. M.
“Hey, Dr. M,” I called out the window. He stopped and looked around, startled. But he didn’t see me, not at first.
“It’s me, Dr. M. Me, Calledin90s.” He leaned forward as if to see me better. I got out of the car.
“Is something wrong with Angela? Or the baby?”
“No, no not at all, sorry to scare you, it’s nothing like that. I need your help.”
“Oh.” He started walking again, and now it was my turn to be a bit stunned, watching my father-in-law walk away from me. I caught up with him in a few quick strides.
“Listen, I really need your help.”
“And I really need to get to a bridge game.”
“This isn’t about me. It’s about Ray.” That brought him to a halt. He turned to me, angrier even than he’d been the night before.
“Did you drive all the way out here just to make fun of me? To remind me of how you won, distracting me with nonsense about Ray’s case?”
“I mean it,” I said, “I can win Ray’s case. I can prove it in a few words.”
“Prove it, then.” So I did. I spoke words, only a few words, but they were the right words to speak to Dr. M, for the words I spoke were in his language, words that he understood perfectly.
“I understand,” he said, “you’ve come to boast some more, to prove that you were right after all.”
“I want to win Ray’s case, but I don’t have any proof of what I’m saying.”
“You don’t need to prove that two plus two is four.”
“This, I gotta prove, and I need you to help me prove it. I need you to come to court with me, as my witness.”
“I can’t do that. I didn’t witness anything.”
“As my witness. My expert witness.” Unlike a normal witness, an expert witness can give an opinion. An expert is there not to advocate, I explained to Dr. M but to instruct, to teach.
“My bridge partner won’t be very happy,” he said.
“But Ray will, and so will Mrs. M and Angela and--”
“Very well. Do you have a cell phone? We can call the bridge club from my car.”
* * *
We were on the highway getting close to the downtown exit, when my wife called my cell phone. Back then cell phone service was super expensive and my wife only used it for emergencies. Or when she was really angry. I picked up the phone, wondering which it would be.
“I’m so happy that you made things up with my father,” she said.
“How did you know?”
“My mother called. She says you took him with you, that you went out together.”
“He’s with me right now,” I said.
“Where are you going?”
“To court. Going to court to win Ray’s case for him.”
“And you brought my father with you to watch?” She was so happy, I could hear in her voice that she was smiling. “That’s a great way to bond with him, Calledinthe90s. Look, I’m sorry I got so mad at you earlier, I really am. My dad’s a bit too sensitive and--”
“Sorry, Angela, your dad’s not coming to watch me.”
“Why is he with you, then?”
“He’s my witness,” I said.
“What?”
“His expert witness,” Dr. M said, loudly enough for Angela to hear.
My wife’s anger exploded into the phone. She wanted to know how I could expose her elderly, vulnerable father to the stress of a court case. I tried to tell her how I needed him, how there was literally no one else I could turn to, that her father was an expert, a true expert, and the judge was legally bound to believe him, but Angela heard none of this.
“Look,’ I said, “I promise you that--” And then I lowered the phone and pushed the red button, terminating the call. I’d learned that the best way to hang up on someone, was to do it when I was doing the talking. That way it looked like the call had dropped.
“I’m going to steal that move,” Dr. M said.
We rolled into the parking lot. I grabbed the cloth bag out of the back of my car, the bag that held my law robes and shirt and tabs, plus the other stuff I needed for court. It was one-thirty, still thirty minutes to go, not a lot of time to get robed and ready for court. It was just past one-forty five when I, with Dr. M in tow, opened the door to a courtroom on the eighth floor of an old insurance building that had been converted into a courthouse, the home of Commercial Court.
“Commercial Court is an exclusive club,” Cecil-Rowe had explained to me earlier that day, “the legal playground of the rich and powerful. They’ll know instantly that you’re not one of them.” And he was right. It was clear from the moment I walked in that I did not belong, for I was the only lawyer in robes. Everyone else was wearing a suit, and not some cheap thing off the rack like I wore.
There were a half-dozen lawyers present, and after they saw me, they exchanged knowing looks about the stranger amongst them. I ignored them, and walked up to the Registrar. I told him the case I was on, and he signed me in.
“First time in Commercial Court?” he said, eyeing my robes. “You know you don’t have to be robed in Commercial Court.” In other Superior Courts, you always had to bring your robes and get all dressed up. But Commercial Court had its own set of rules, and in the court for rich people, their lawyers did not have to wear robes.
“You’re here on the Sy-Co case?” a young woman asked. She was a junior like me, give a year or two either way. She was dressed in the finest downtown counsel fashion, some designer thing that Angela would know if she saw it.
“Just got retained,” I said.
“You know there’s no adjournments, right? We don’t do adjournments in Commercial Court. I’m just trying to be helpful, because I don’t think you've been here before. You know you don’t have to be robed, right?
“So I heard.”
“So where’s your material? You haven’t served anything, so how do you plan to argue your case?”
“I gotta witness,” I said.
She smiled. “There’s no viva voce evidence, either. Affidavit only.”
“We’ll see what the judge says.” There was a knock from the other side of the door to the judge’s chambers, and then the man himself entered.
I was amazed to see that even the judge wasn’t wearing a robe; instead, he was wearing a light coloured suit and a bright blue bow tie. He was dressed as good as the lawyers, all part of the downtown Commercial Court club, the playground of the richest and most powerful corporations in the City.
“Commercial Court’s not like other courts,” Cecil-Rowe told me earlier that day, explaining that most cases were over in fifteen minutes or less. A plaintiff showed up with some papers, and had a short consultation with the judge. The judge signed an order granting an injunction, or taking away a man’s business, or freezing his money. Commercial Court is where you went to get quick and simple court orders that eviscerated your opponent before the case even got going.
Defendants would appear sometimes in Commercial Court, Cecil-Rowe explained, but it was usually their last time up. Defendants always died a quick death in Commercial Court.
The judge took his seat, and then looked over the lawyers before him. His eyes moved along, and then stopped when they reached me, the one lawyer who was not like the others.
“You don’t need robes in Commercial Court,” the judge said to me.
“I’ll remember that for next time,” I said.
“What case are you on?”
I told him.
“He’s filed no responding materials,” my opponent said, “nothing at all.”
“I’m just vetting the list,” the judge said, “I’ll circle back to you two in a few minutes.” I listend while the judge vetted the rest of the afternoon list: a Mareva, plus a Norwich order, with counsel on those cases sent away in a matter of minutes.
Now the courtroom was almost empty, just the judge, two lawyers, the registrar and my star witness and father-in-law, Dr. M, who sat in the back of the courtroom dressed in an old business suit, put on hastily at his place two hours earlier, when I urged him to hurry it up, to not waste so much time on picking a suit.
“Back to you,” the judge said, addressing my opponent, “I thought this was an uncontested matter. That’s what your confirmation sheet said.”
“I’m sorry, Your Honour, but I didn’t know until I got here that the case was defended.”
“I got retained at the last minute,” I said, “barely three hours ago, the day after I read the papers. But I’m ready to go, ready to argue the case on the merits, so long as you grant me an indulgence, and let me call my witness, to let him testify in person instead of by affidavit, there being no time for me to draft anything.”
Opposing counsel was on her feet. “That’s not how things are done in Commercial Court,” she said, “or any court that I know of, for that matter. My friend (that’s what they make lawyers call each other in court, ‘my friend,’ even though you might hate the other guy’s guts),” the lawyer said, “my friend should have served his responding materials and filed them with the court. Instead, he’s taken us totally by surprise.”
“I’m sorry my friend is surprised by opposition,” I said, “but then consider, it’s my client’s livelihood that’s at stake. If my friend gets her injunction, Ray Telewu’s business is dead, and he loses everything. So yes, my client opposes the injunction, and yes, I’d like to call evidence.”
The judge didn’t consult the papers before him nor the books, but instead, he looked up at the big white clock on the courtroom wall. Its hands said two-fifteen.
“How long will your witness take, counsel?”
“In chief, ten minutes.” I’d practiced with Dr. M on the way in, and I was pretty sure he could do it in five, but I gave him a bit of extra time, just in case.
“We’ve got about two hours,” the judge said, “but I want to be fair to you and your client. Let’s take a fifteen minute recess so you can get instructions. Either we go ahead today with viva voce evidence, or we adjourn, and that will give Calledinthe90s time to file responding materials.”
When everyone came back, the junior’s boss was there, Senior Counsel, a heavy weight, one of those big guys downtown. Plus they brought this guy from Sy-Co Corp, the head of some bullshit division, with some bullshit title, Head of whatever, so that’s the title I’ll give him here. He was The Head. He was the man, the big cheese, the signer of the affidavit on which Sy-Co relied that day.
“What’s he doing here?” I asked Senior Counsel.
He stared at me, all lean and steel grey, looking every inch the hard hitting lawyer that commanded the biggest fees. “If you’re calling a live witness, then so can we. The Head will give evidence today, in advance of your client, so that the judge hears it from him first.” His junior smirked at me, and the two of them sat down, delighted that they’d thought of a way to one up me.
Except that they’d done it by exposing their client to cross-examination. The judge came in, allowed the Head to testify, and when he was done, I stood up.
“Just a few questions,” I said. Senior Counsel was stunned for an instant, and then he stood.
“This serves no purpose, Your Honour. The witness has confirmed the simple facts of his affidavit, and there’s no disputing it. Ray Telewu opened a restaurant less than seventy-one kilometres from Bixity City Hall, and that’s in breach of the Minutes of Settlement he signed.”
I did not bother to respond. Instead, I just stood, and I started to ask questions.
“Have a look at that map in your affidavit,” I said, and he did. I picked up my copy, and tore the map out of it. I passed it up to him.
“What do you notice about this map?”
“That it’s accurate,” the Head said, repeating his evidence in chief, amplifying it, talking about how the map contained perfect measurement.
“You will notice that the map is flat,” I said, laying it on the witness box before him.
“Of course it’s flat. That’s what maps are. Maps are flat.”
“But the earth is round,” I said, “or more properly, a sphere.” Senior Counsel was on his feet in an instant.
“What difference does that make?” he said.
“What you’ll hear from my expert witness, is that a flat map cannot accurately show Earth’s curves. A flat map distorts distances, and in this case, reduces them.”
“But that can’t be by very much.”
“In this case, by just over twenty meters,” Dr. M said from the back of the court.
“That’s my expert witness, the esteemed Dr. M.” I didn’t actually say Dr. M. Instead, I said his real name. But I’m not going to use the real names of my family here, so I’ll just keep calling him Dr. M. “Dr. M was a professor of Physics at the University of Bixity for almost thirty years. He has published numerous papers on particle physics, and is the first Canadian winner of the Wolf Prize for physics.”

• * * *

It went downhill after that for Sy-Co Corp. My father-in-law testified, explaining in simple language, language that even a child could understand, that the Earth was a sphere, that the shortest distance between two points on Earth was a curve, not a straight line. He summarized his calculations in plain English, dumbing down the math, so that everyone present imagined, if only for the moment, that they shared his understanding of a difficult mathematical equation.
Senior Counsel tried to cross-examine Dr. M, but it did not go well, my father-in-law indulging him, gently chiding him, continuing his explanations until the lawyer sat down, defeated by Dr. M’s mastery of the subject,his own lack of preparation and his inability to improvise. When counsel said that he had no further questions, the judge addressed us all.
“I’m not going to reserve, and I don’t think I need to tell everyone why. I think it will take about a minute for me to write a decision saying that the Earth is not flat. I’ll give you some more time after that, but after fifteen minutes, I”ll be back to render my decision.” He rose, everyone bowed, and he disappeared behind the door to judge’s chambers.
I pulled a piece of paper out of my file, and slammed it on the desk before Senior Counsel and his junior. “Fill in the blanks, and sign,” I said.
Dr. M’s head shot up at the commotion, and he shuffled over to see what was going on.
“What’s this?” Senior Counsel said, picking up the paper I gave him..
“Minutes of Settlement. You fill in a number, a big number, for the costs you gotta pay me. Your client signs, and then we’re done.” Senior Counsel opened his mouth to bargain, but I overrode him.
“You know your client’s going to lose; the judge made that obvious. Hurry up if you want to settle; we don’t have much time.”
At the end of most Canadian court cases, the loser has to pay at least part of the winner’s legal fees. That’s the way it’s been since forever, and I think it’s a good rule. Sy-Co Corp had lost, so it had to pay a good chunk of Ray’s costs, and Ray’s costs were somewhere between whatever bullshit figure I claimed they were, and where they actually ought to be. Senior Counsel took the paper over to his client. There was a brief discussion, and then they came back, with the form signed, and a number written in the blank space.
I’ll give it to Sy-Co Corp and their lawyer. It wasn’t a bullshit number, a low ball number. They gave me a real number, a number more like something I’d actually accept, a number that made sense to pay me in costs, in light of the success I’d had, and how I got it. It was a respectful number, a common sense number, and I appreciated it an awful lot.
I tossed the paper back at them.
“Add a zero,” I said, continuing on when Senior Counsel blanched, and his junior retreated a step. “I know what’s going on here. Your client sold mine a bullshit franchise, one with a history of failing.” The franchise had opened up again under a new owner not long after Ray had lost it and then it promptly failed again. Like I said at the start of this story, it’s an old story. It’s how some franchise companies make money. “Your client makes more money selling bullshit franchises doomed to fail, then it does from the honest ones that make money. So add a zero to that number, or Ray’s gonna sue you, class action and all that, for all the people you’ve fucked.”
The Head stepped forward from the benches and spoke to me.
“We get threats like that all the time, but no one follows through. They don’t have the money to fight us, and neither does your client. So go ahead and sue.”
“It’s true that Ray doesn’t have jack shit,” I said, “not a pot to piss in, but he’s my cousin, Ray is, and even if he doesn’t have money, he’s got me. Ray’s family, and for Ray, I’ll sue you guys for free. Hell, I’ll even pay the expenses. Plus I’m gonna put a jury notice in, too, come to think of it, ‘cause juries--”
Senior Counsel cut me off, and moved his client to the back of the courtroom. There was a brief discussion, and then they came back. I watched as Senior Counsel wrote a single digit on the Minutes, a zero, written right where I wanted it.
“You’ll have to initial the change,” I said to the Head of Sy-C0, and it gave me great satisfaction to watch him sign.
“Don’t forget,” I said the moment his pen stopped moving, “for the settlement to be valid, I need to get the money today. Right now.”
“Can’t it wait until tomorrow?” the Head said.
“Not if you want the settlement to stay in place. I’ll follow you back to your office, and you can put a cheque in my hands.”

• * * *

“What’s this?” my wife said when I entered the apartment later that day, after I’d driven Dr. M home, stopping first at a local pub for beers.
“It’s an absurdly expensive bunch of flowers,” I said, “although no flowers, however beautiful, however expensive, could expiate my--”
She took the flowers, and gave a kiss.
“My mom called. She told me what happened. You fixed things with my dad.”
“Yup,” I said. I had certainly done that. I’d made Dr. M a professor again, if only for a few minutes. Not only a professor, but an expert witness. The judge had declared him an expert in plain terms and Dr.M had beamed when he’d heard those words.
“And you won Ray’s case, too. But my mom didn’t know how, and I don’t know how you did it either.”
“I’ll tell you over dinner tonight,” I said.
“But we agreed no more dinners out; we have to save money, now that a baby’s coming.”
I passed her the envelope that I’d received a few hours before. She opened it, and took out a cheque, a cheque drawn up for an amount I specified, made payable to Mr. and Mrs. Calledinthe90s.
The moment I got that cheque, all I could think about was how my wife would react when I put it into her hands. I could not wait to see her eyes bulge, to hear her voice say “oh my god,” to hear her laugh.
She did none of these things. Instead, she cried.
“Does this mean we can buy a house?” The money wouldn’t be enough to buy a house, not nowadays, with prices being so crazy. But things were different back then in the 90s. Sure, the internet was barely a thing and cell phones were super expensive and a lot of things sucked, but I’ll give the nineties one thing: houses were cheap.
“I think so,” I said.

Today we were blowing bubbles and I was just hanging out with oldest who is 4 with autism and my 3 month old. Well I told him screen time goes off when blowing bubbles or playing and he hit my 3 month old on his stomach and screamed. It made my 3 month old scream and cry and in the moment I yelled at him to go to his room and did a small wat on his butt. I’m not proud of it but I’m so scared he’s going to hit my 3 month old like he hits me and dad. Luckily my youngest was okay but it scares me. I went in and apologized and told him again he can’t hit and explained why with my youngest especially but I don’t know if I’m getting to him or if he understands it. He’s partially verbal. I know the spank part doesn’t help him understand that more so I definitely can’t do that. Just old instincts I had growing up myself and with an old fashioned family. I don’t know if he’s even hitting to hurt someone even he slams and slaps everything lately even if he’s happy or upset. It’s been a difficult time. We’re still on a waiting list for a therapist and I’m not sure how to get him away from this stim or trying to hurt people. Anyone who has any tips? His aggression isn’t great it started ever since I got pregnant I know this was a huge transition for him so I feel for him too ❤️ it hasn’t always been easy, I love him so much I just want him to get help so he can attend school and have friends and a good relationship with his brother. So any tips would be greatly appreciated or suggestions for books I can read

Hey y’all, I just got back from college where I rebuilt my carbs in my dorm room and I just started putting my bike (1975 Honda CB 750F) back together hoping to start riding again soon, but the bike does not seem to want to start. It turns over good and started up briefly a couple of times but does not seem to want to run. Compression: Although I haven’t formally tested the compression, the engine has run for me before and I see no reason that it would have lost compression. Fuel: When it ran the two times it started, it died after about 20 seconds. Figured this was fuel starvation so I cleaned out the petcock (which was clogged) and then checked each carb and all four seem to be getting fuel. The carbs are bench synced (not vacuum since this requires a running engine) and the air screws are one turn out. Spark: I just replaced the old ignition coils with new ones because the last time it was running, it was dying after about 10-20 min of riding and I think it might have been overheating coils. Regardless, I pulled out each plug and checked for spark and they were all good. Air: the air box has a relatively new air filter and is clean. The intake books aren’t in great condition and don’t seal entirely properly with the box. Im sure there is an intake leak here and I intend to address it soon, but I cant imagine it would stop the engine from starting.
Im moderately new to diagnosing engine problems so any help/advice would be much appreciated. Also sorry that this is a long read, but I figured I would give the most amount of relevant information as possible. Thanks!