It is an asian movie, probably japanese or chinese. I saw it around 10 years ago on television. There is a traffic cop who is chasing the villain, the villain jump-flies into the air. The traffic cop chases the guy and reaches a house. In the house, there is a family whose members have supernatural powers.
In one of the scenes, the protagonist's girlfriend has a fever. He goes to the pharmacy to buy some medicine.
In the ending scene, the villain handstands upside down and the dragon tattoo(which is some sort of key to some power) from the protagonist moves from his back to the villains back. Also the villain kills the protagonist's teacher.
Please help me find the name. I cannot seem to find it.

…You know, I haven't eaten since 6:00 this morning, and all that was, was a half a cream cheese bagel, and it wasn't even real cream cheese, it was light cream cheese. And now you want me to run off and do another autopsy? What the hell happened to you?
Sorry for the delay!
Now, X!
A: Anyway, I was drugged.
B: Baby me and you’ll be peeing through a catheter.
C: Come on, Scully, get those little legs moving!
D: Dear Diary, today my heart leapt when Agent Scully suggested spontaneous human combustion.
E: Even when the world was falling apart, you were my constant, my touchstone.
F: FEDERAL AGENT!
G: Good, because I put it back in that drawer with all those other videos that aren’t yours.
H: Her name is Bambi?
I: Imagine going through your whole life looking like that.
J: Just sing anything. Jeremiah was a bull frog. Was a good friend of mine. Never understood a word he said but I helped him drink his wine. Joy to the world…all the boys and girls. Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea. Joy to you and me.
K: Keep going, FBI woman.
L: Life... is like a box of chocolates. A cheap, thoughtless, perfunctory gift that nobody ever asks for. Unreturnable, because all you get back is another box of chocolates. You're stuck with this undefinable whipped-mint crap that you mindlessly wolf down when there's nothing else left to eat. Sure, once in a while, there's a peanut butter cup, or an English toffee. But they're gone too fast, the taste is fleeting. So you end up with nothing but broken bits, filled with hardened jelly and teeth-shattering nuts, and if you're desperate enough to eat those, all you've got left is a... is an empty box... filled with useless, brown paper wrappers.
M: Mulder, it’s me.
N: Now, if you don’t mind, I have to get an A.P.B out on a white male age 17 to 34, with or without a beard, maybe a tattoo…who’s impotent. Let’s go.
O: One of them was disguised as a woman, but wasn't pulling it off. Like, her hair was red but it was a little too red, you know? And the other one... the tall, lanky one... his face was so blank and expressionless. He didn't even seem human. I, I think he was a mandroid.
P: Please explain to me the scientific nature of the whammy.
Q: Queequeg, come back here! Queequeg? Queequeg! Quee— [sad, empty leash retracts]
R: Roswell! Roswell!
S: Sorry, no one down here except the FBI’s most unwanted.
T: Trust no one.
U: Unfortunately around this time of year I always develop a severe hemorrhoidal condition.
V: Venus was at its peak brilliance last night. You probably thought you saw something up in the sky other than Venus, but I assure you, it was Venus.
W: What do you mean you want me to do another autopsy?! And why do I have to do it right now?! I just spent hours on my feet doing an autopsy, all for you. I do it all for you, Mulder. You know, I haven't eaten since 6:00 this morning, and all that was, was a half a cream cheese bagel, and it wasn't even real cream cheese, it was light cream cheese. And now you want me to run off and do another autopsy? What the hell happened to you?
X: ____________

History

The Kamo clan is one of the big three clans in Japan. That means they are one of the clans with the most power and authority in the Jujutus space. The Kamo clan has a large emphasis on blood ties, so they look down on bastard children or adoptions, etc. The Kamo clan is not viewed in the best of lights due to one of the evilest sorcerers in history being Noritosh Kamo, who was actually Kengaku. They are very traditional and go by the rules the most, this has put them closer to the higher-ups of the Jujutsu headquarters.

Inherited Cursed Techniques

Blood Manipulation: This is the prized possession of the Kamo Clan, as the name implies this technique allows the user to control their own blood in multiple aspects. This technique is extremely versatile allowing the user to excel in long, mid, and close ranged fighting. The main limit to this technique is the amount of blood, if the user forces too much blood from their body then they run the risk of death by blood loss, also using this technique in water makes the blood too unstable to use outside of the user's body.
Extension Techniques

• Convergence: A technique that compresses and condenses the user's blood to its limit. The blood orb is used to perform other techniques
  • Sickle Swarm: After using Convergence, the user clasps their hands around the blood orb and fires off multiple very fast sickle shaped blades of blood. This is not as fast as Piercing Blood but is good for covering a large area in attacks.
  • Supernova: After using Convergence to create multiple small orbs of blood, the user releases the condensed blood, which is shot out in every direction like a buckshot.
  • Piercing Blood: After using Convergence, the user clasps their hands around the blood orb and shoots the condensed blood through a single point, firing out a long-ranged beam of blood with extreme flesh-piercing capabilities. Reinforced with cursed energy, the blood can reach the speed of sound.
    • Piercing Blood: Stack: This is the strongest move available from the Blood Manipulation technique. The user takes multiple Convergence blood orbs clasps their hands around them and condenses them even further down into one single orb. When the user reinforces the blood with cursed energy and when fired it could reach speeds around Mach 2 (twice the speed of sound)
• Blood Moon Spirit: By using the user's own blood as a medium, they can summon a small shikigami that resembles a small maroon colored koi fish. It swims around in the air around the user and is used to condense and compress blood with the Convergence extension, it can then fire out the blood orb as one of the three techniques used by Convergence.
• Slicing Exorcism: A long-range attack that allows the user to slice their opponent. I can take the form of a rotating disc of blood or a long stream of blood.
• Blood Edge: The user shapes their blood into a dagger in order to stab or slash their opponent. The blood is not solidified and is instead rotated at high speeds to strengthen the blade's lethality.
  • Scarlet Jet Dragon: The user forces the blood in their body to fire out of their body extremely fast and turn into the Blood Edge extension. This has similar speed to New Shadow Style: Batto Sword Drawing.
• Crimson Binding: The user manipulates their blood into the shape of a widespread net that tightly ensnares their target.
• Flowing Red Scale: Increases the user's body temperature, pulse rate, and the number of red blood cells to give themselves greatly increased energy and physical capabilities.
  • Flowing Red Scale: Stack: Intensifies Flowing Red Scale in order to increase the user's physical capabilities to an even higher degree than normal. This is similar to a Maximum Output technique.
• Blood Meteorite: The user hardens some of their blood before throwing it at their target. Its speed and power are inferior to Piercing Blood.

Reversed Cursed Technique

• Leukocyte Manipulation: The reversal of Blood Manipulation allows the user to create and control white blood cells. This is different from the normal Blood Manipulation that controls red blood cells. With this, the user can make themselves increase the amount of white blood cells in their body, this could allow them to recover from poisons and illness extremely quickly without needing immense skill in RCE. If the user is exposed to a poison or illness enough and uses this technique to heal it, they will eventually become resistant and then immune to it. This can also do all the regular things that Blood Manipulation can do, like all the extension techniques but it will cost more CE to do.

Maximum Technique

• Ichor Heart: This is the passed down pinnacle of Blood Manipulation that very few users actually achieve. This technique resembles the Wing Kings technique. This technique allows the user to create an external blood storage and producer by creating a circle of blood around the back of the user, this circle of blood is constantly rotating extremely fast and the user is also forcing regular CE and RCE to constantly rotate in the ring as well. This constant motion allows the circle to constantly create more blood for the user to control, any excess blood that is not immediately used is stored around the ring and will begin to form wing-like formations. If the wings get big enough then the user could actually fly with them. Like Wing Kings, the wings also help increase the user's mobility and agility.

Neuro Static: This technique is a modern inherited technique that allows the user to control the electric signals that flow through their nervous system. The user can build up electric signals in their nerve endings and with that built-up charge, they can discharge it to deal electrical damage to their enemies. The main drawback of this technique is that is it needs time to build up significant amounts of electricity. This technique is not seen as impressive at all by the older clan members since it is not the more traditional inherited technique of the Kamo Clan.
Extension Techniques

• Stimimula: The user uses the built-up electricity and forces it back through the nervous system to increase reflexes and speed.
• Override: The user uses the built-up charge and manipulates an enemy's nervous system by touching them. The user can force the electricity to flow to certain parts of their body and brain to force certain motions or nerve damage.
• Current Burn: This technique allows the user to force a large amount of electricity into the Prefrontal Cortex to force the target’s cursed technique to burn out as if they just used a Domain Expansion. This burnout won’t last as long. This technique can also be used to cure the technique burnout of another sorcerer so they can use their technique faster.
• Voltage: The user puts each hand on either side of their enemies and forces the built-up electricity to travel towards each other. The electricity will travel through the air and form a small lightning bolt, the bolt will travel at the same speed as a normal bolt of lightning so this technique is near instant.

Reversed Cursed Technique

• Shock Pad: The reversal of this technique allows the user to absorb natural electricity that exists not inside of their own body. This gets rid of the main limit to this technique as it allows the user to gain lots of electricity very fast.

Maximum Technique

• Dynamo Pressure: The pinnacle of this technique allows the user to discharge a large amount of electricity to an opponent and is similar to Override but this allows the user to force the electric signals to “mind control” the opponent by using precise electrical signals to manipulate the targets memories, emotions, feelings, and movements. The user can manipulate the target from a distance and the amount of time the user can control the target is dependent on the skill of the user. The user can only control one target at a time.

Inherited Trait

Similar to the Six Eyes of the Gojo clan, but not as well-known and much more secretive.

• Death Sketch: Thanks to the experimentation of Kengaku in the body of Noritosh Kamo, now deep in the genetics of Kamo Clan members there is a chance that someone is born as a part cursed spirit. This has the ability to increase the jujutsu power of the user to 125% similar to how sorcerers that come back as vengeful cursed spirits are stronger than they were in life. Since they are part cursed spirit their blood acts as poison to sorcerers. This has the downside that their bodies will be disfigured and not look fully human. Due to the traditional mindset of the Kamo clan, they have a history of hiding or getting rid of young newborns that have this inherited trait. Their have been known cases for that those with the Kamo Clans inherited techniques that also have the Death Sketch inherited trait and they have had similar looking dimorphisms. Those with Blood Manipulation that been recorded having a heart twice as large and three times as efficient at producing and circulating blood. The veins and arteries are also extremely pronounced in their body allowing them to be very visible through their skin. Their have also been noticed as having vents on their shoulder blades and hands. This allows for easier and faster release of blood from the body. If their body have made too much blood for their bodies then the extra blood will expel from those vents. Those will the Neuro Static technique have been noted as having two brains, one in the skull and the other in their abdomen they also have two sets of nerves running through their bodies. This the nerve system also is better then a regular human/sorcerer, the electrical signals take less time to travel to the brain allowing the user to react and process things faster. Two brains would also double the charge of electricity for the technique. The bonus for having two brains is that it would also allow the user to heal a brain with RCE by producing the RCE through the other brain. This would also allow them to not experience CT burnout by moving the activation of the technique to the not burnt out brain.

Secret Arts

The Kamo clan is very secretive about their secret arts and doesn’t let non-kamo clan members know of them. The Kamo Clan even uses binding vows, so that no non-clan member will learn of them.

• Streaming Cherry Blossom: This ability is something that has been passed down from the beginning of the Kamo Clan. This technique allows the user to force their CE from their body into an object with great amounts of force and damage it from the inside. This is used to bypass physical defenses, if used on another sorcerecurse then they would require more CE to bypass the enemy's CE reinforcement
  • Talon Claws: Allows the user to only output CE through three of their fingers. This is what the Kamo clan thought would be the best damage to singular point ratio to deal the most damage with the smallest point. Also in exchange for saying the phrase “Talon Claw” out loud the output of the attack will increase dealing more damage.
• Dead Calm: This is an anti-domain technique, this allows the user to create a small domain around themselves and if used in a domain expansion then the domain won’t recognize them and won’t target them. In addition, if the domain is cast by a cursed spirit or any nonhuman/sorcerer then the curse won’t be able to see the user they will just see blank space instead. To use this technique the user needs to figure out how to expand a domain without their technique combined with it. This is a pretty simple feat for some sorcerers, and they actually use this technique as the building blocks for harder techniques like Domain Expansion and also Domain Amplification.
  • Calm Abyss: This is a version of Dead Calm but instead of using it to defend against domain expansions. This version is built around the Curtain barrier by modifying the parameters of the barrier they can have it where the user can’t be seen by lower-level cursed spirits, roughly two or three grades below the grade of the user can’t see them. This can also be changed so that blindness only affects one curse no matter the grade.
• Resurgence: Due to the nature of the inherited techniques of the Kamo Clan, they have vast knowledge of how cursed energy affects the body. This technique is a lifestyle guide for retired sorcerers and older clan members, with this, they can reinforce their bodies in such a way that they are able to live longer than a normal human could and also allow them to be in their physical prime for longer. This could boost a sorcerer's life to 140 years old.

Cursed Tools

• Firefly
  • Grade: 3
  • Appearance: This cursed object is a small glass bottle with a cork on the top. In the bottle is a small dark red flame that never goes out.
  • Ability: The ability of this cursed object is that when someone throws this and the bottle breaks then the dark red flame expands and explodes into a large fireball. The reason this is exclusively a cursed object for the Kamo clan is that an ancient member of the clan had an explosion based technique and he created thousands of them before his death.
• Red Eye
  • Grade: Special
  • Appearance: This special grade cursed tool is a recurved bow made from bright red wood with a white bowstring and a dark leather handle. Along the sides of the bow arms, there are jujutsu symbols.
  • Ability: This bow has the ability to select a target and fire an arrow that will bypass any defense the target has. The arrow will instantly force a way for it to bypass anything that would stop it and strike the weakest spot of the target. Once someone has been targeted with this ability they can’t be the target again, but this bow can still be used as a very strong cursed tool and fire extremely fast and powerful arrows. The Kamo Clan has a strong interest in Kyujutsu (Art of Archery), so this is one of their most precious cursed tools.
• Bow of Six Realms
  • Grade: Special
  • Appearance: This special grade cursed tool is a long Yumi bow, the bow itself is not special and resembles a regular wooden bow, but the bowstring is made of six different colors: Light Blue, Dark Red, Black, Purple, Brown, and Green. It color of the bowstring represents one of the six realms of Buddhism.
  • Ability: This technique of this bow allows the user to fire an arrow and then if they choose the arrow will fly through one of six different portals, each one having a different effect depending on one of the six realms of Buddhism. The Naraka realm lights the arrow on fire dealing explosive damage to the target, The Petra realm will let the arrow only attack the soul directly and pass right through the body, The Tiryagyoni realm will turn the arrow into a shikigami letting the user control it through commands, The Manusya realm will turn a sorcerer into a human for a short time meaning they will take away their ability to use cursed energy for 1 minute, The Asura realm will create an extremely loud sound when it makes contact it is akin to a thunderclap, and The Deva realm will cover the arrow in RCE so it will one shot any cursed spirits but will heal any sorcerers. Only one portal can be used at once.
• Ripple
  • Grade: 1st
  • Appearance: This cursed tool is a Chinese dao with a dark green handle. Along the blade is the imagery of crashing waves.
  • Ability: This sword has the ability to “ripple” its attacks. This means when something is cut by this sword they will feel the attack multiply times even after the initial slice, the amount of “ripples” depends on how much CE the user uses in the attack.
• Rotten Halo
  • Grade: Special
  • Appearance: This cursed object looks like a ring made from dried and stretched together flesh.
  • Ability: The ability of this cursed object is that it allows the user to use regular cursed energy to produce blood instead of having to use RCE or having to be a half cursed spirit.
• Thief Fletcher
  • Grade: Special
  • Appearance: This cursed tool takes the appearance of a glove but it is actually made from the skin of an ancient sorcerer. There are tattoos of unique looking arrowheads along the knuckles.
  • Ability: This cursed object allows the user to turn any cursed tool into an arrow. The grade and technique of the tool stay the same and the application of the technique changes so that it beats fits for an arrow to use. Once they are turned into an arrow the only way to change them back is through the glove again.

i am chinese, i think type 4 skin (i haven’t gone to my consultations yet)
my tattoos have pink, red, white, blue, yellow and purple in it— has anyone of asian descent achieved full removal of any of these colors?

❌❌❌SOLD❌❌❌ https://preview.redd.it/kdvif5nyee5d1.jpg?width=469&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=14b231021f2ef8d848723c94c485bdf78ee99465
My Photos: https://imgur.com/a/AHYJWgu
PSP (Haas video included) https://imgur.com/a/gX1j6gR
Authentic: https://www.fashionphile.com/p/hermes-barenia-birkin-30-fauve-378479
Price $1150 shipping included- I accept only PPFF
Paid $1650 including shipping
POP https://imgur.com/a/xLxQ1we I ordered Fauve Barenia (now for sale) and an Ebene Barenia Faubourg at the same time. $1600 usd each plus alot in transaction fees.
Seller : Mark
RFS: I went a little Barenia crazy- purchased 4 different Barenia and Barenia Faubourgs-3 from Mark and 1UB- so Im letting this one go as I have it in Fauve Barenia Faubourg. Looking to sell and pay for a B35!
Only about 1.5 mths old and gorgeous. Marks leather is from Haas Tannery which is where Hermes buys the Barenia from(and where UB buys theirs from too). It is not Chinese Barenia leather which is reflected in the cost as Barenia is expensive-it needs alot of coatings to get the patina and has alot of wasted leather due to veining. All handmade,Palladium hardware upgraded, with Marks beautiful white contrast stitching. Inside lined with Chevre. The bag is just starting to soften up, patina and smells wonderful and better each day as Barenia does.Comes w/PHW lock, 2 keys, clochette, large branded H dust bag, small dustbag, no box.
*I have reduced the price significantly ($500) due to a scratch on the hardware logo- . Personallyimo its not very noticeable when in use as the sangles hang down and when its closed the turncocks in the way. And hardware scratches. I have photographed it as close in as possible and in different lights so you can see worst case scenario -first photo in series being the worst. I don’t want anyone to be surprised, but I believe when you see in IRL its not a big deal. So someone will get this beauty at a great price! (Twilly in photos is not included)! Price is firm.
Price $1150 shipping included(usually costs me $50)~USPS Priority. I accept only PPFF
PPFF only please. Ship USPS Priority, upper 48 states only. Buyer is responsible for own QC, Name address and shipping information is buyers responsibility to be correct. I will ship 1-2 days after purchase. Photo of bag in box and label at the Post Office with tracking will be sent to you. Once package is dropped at the Post Office I am not responsible for delivery, loss or damage etc. All sales are absolutely final. No returns or refunds.
Feedback: https://www.reddit.com/RepLoversBST/s/epETYcEIxx

I made a Matlab script for checking if words/sentences in a list use exactly the same letters, and applied it to the question on movies/TV shows posed in this post. It's a bit primitive and will get matches for remakes/sequels and ignore anything that is not in the English alphabet. But sifting through the results yields some good cases.
For starters I used the 2500 movies challenge list, with curated results shown below, some lame, some interesting:

• Alice (1988) = Celia (1989)
• Cinemania (2002) = Iceman (1984)
• Colin (2008) = Lincoln (2012)
• Damien: Omen 2 (1978) = Demonia (1990)
• Fire! (1977) = Free Fire (2016)
• Ice Cream Man (1995) = In America (2003)
• Paper Moon (1973) = Repo Man (1984)
• Clerks (1994) = Reckless (1984)
• Scare Me (2020) = Scream (1996)
• Cheerleader Ninjas (2002) = Ninja Cheerleaders (2008)
• The Tall T (1957) = Thale (2012)
• Titanic (1997) = Titanica (1995)
• The Iceman (2012) = The Mechanic (2011) = The Time Machine (1960)
• Attack the Block (2011) = The Black Hole (1979)
• Ace in the Hole (1951) = The Italian Connection (1972)
• Angel Heart (1987) = The General (1926)
• Nightmare (1981) = Nightmare Man (2006)
• The Dreaming (1988) = The Midnight Meat Train (2008)
• The Brood (1979) = The Brotherhood (1968)
• Mother (2009) = The Room (2003)
• Behind the Green Door (1972) = The Big Red One (1980) = The Good Neighbor (2016)
• Another Man, Another Chance (1977) = Three on a Match (1932)
• Marie Antoinette (2006) = Re-Animator (1985)
• Deathtrap (1982) = The Departed (2006)
• The Shining (1980) = The Sting (1973)
• The Dead Lands (2014) = The Last Stand (2013)
• Shine a Light (2008) = The Signal (2007)
• Blood Feast (1963) = A Taste of Blood (1967)
• The Chinese Connection (1972) = The Innocents (1961)
• Atlantis, The Lost Continent (1961) = The Cat o' Nine Tails (1971)
• The Hearse (1980) = Street Trash (1987)
• The Irishman (2019) = That's Entertainment! (1974)
• The Iron Horse (1924) = The Iron Rose (1973)
• Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth (1992) = Terror in the Aisles (1984)
• Children of the Corn II: The Final Sacrifice (1992) = The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich (1968)
• The List of Adrian Messenger (1963) = The Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond (1960)
• The Conjuring (2013) = Rough Night in Jericho (1967)
• House Hunting (2013) = The Night House (2020)
• The Curse (1987) = The Rescuers (1977)
• Australia (2008) = Rituals (1977)
• Under the Sand (2000) = Under the Sea (2009)
• Night Call Nurses (1972) = Ruling Class, The (1972)
• Supernatural (1933) = Treasure Planet (2002)
• Dead Alive (1992) = Evil Dead (2013)
• Diamonds are Forever (1971) = Invaders from Mars (1953)
• The Raven (1963) = The Revenant (2015)
• Get Over It (2001) = Vertigo (1958)
• Erotic Nights of the Living Dead (1980) = Legong: Dance of the Virgins (1935)
• Gone with the Pope (2010) = White Pongo (1945)
• Streetwise (1984) = Twister (1996)
• Street Law (1974) = Wall Street (1987)
• The Last Winter (2006) = The Sister In Law (1974)
• George Washington (2000) = The Roaring Twenties (1939)
• The Man With Bogart's Face (1980) = 'Twas the Night Before Christmas (1974)
• The Town that Dreaded Sundown (1976) = Under the Shadow (2016)
• The 5th Wave (2016) = The Wave (2015)
• The Inside of the White Slave Traffic (1913) = The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World (2002)
• A Christmas Horror Story (2015) = A Christmas Story (1983)
• Muscle Beach Party (1964) = The Slumber Party Massacre (1982)
• The Day After Tomorrow (2004) = Wyrmwood: Road of the Dead (2014)
• Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (1988) = Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995)
• Godzilla vs. Kong (2021) = King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962)

I did the same for the Wikipedia pages for List of films and List of television programs, which gave thousands of results with a lot more garbage. Here are some selected results:

• An American Carol (2008) = Miracle on Ice (1981)
• American Sniper (2014) = Space Marines (1997)
• Palindromes (2004) = Promised Land: (1987, 2002 & 2012)
• Demolition Man (1993) = Mon île était le monde (1992)
• The Animal Kingdom (1932) = Nothing Like a Dame (2018)
• In the Line of Fire (1993) = The Thirteenth Floor (1999)
• Girl on the Third Floor (2019) = Lord of the Night (1927)
• Deathtrap (1982) = The Departed (2006) = The Parade (2011)
• The Strange Death of Adolf Hitler (1943) = Stranger on the Third Floor (1940)
• Knife for the Ladies (1974) = Sands of the Kalahari (1965)
• Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011) = The Professionals (1966) = The Sheriff of Hope Eternal (1921)
• Oil for the Lamps of China (1935) = Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron (2002),
• Final Straw: Food, Earth, Happiness (2015) = How to Lose Friends & Alienate People (2008) = The Island at the Top of the World (1974) = It Happened at the World's Fair (1963) = Orphan of the Wilderness (1936) = Parade of the Wooden Soldiers (1933) = Rollo and the Spirit of the Woods (2001)
  
• The Sabrina the Teenage Witch Show = The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien
  
• Batman: The Animated Series = Mr. Bean: The Animated Series = Sabrina: The Animated Series
  
• The Secret Millionaire = Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
  
• America's Got Talent: The Champions = The George Michael Sports Machine
  

Another 12 hour shift! Help me pass the time?
Hi, I’m Em! I’m a 20 y.o. female from Louisiana. I love all animals, nature, trinkets, cute clothes/accessories/purses. I work as a caregiver. I’m into/have tattoos and piercings. Right now I have 4 earrings, and a smiley. Used to have a bridge piercing and my nostrils done and I’m thinking about repiercing them :0 I’m 5’3, 210 lbs and have brown eyes with curly brown hair. Hut hut 1, hut hut 2. Big titties,big butt too. (Nicki Minaj lyric)(but also true)🤣I smoke ouid. I have two dogs, who are my absolute BABIES. I love music, especially R&B and “pretty sounding” music. I enjoy going to the shooting range and breaking down and cleaning my piece. Love going for rides whether it be in the car or on a fourwheeledirtbike. I wanna get my endorsement and get a crotch rocket so bad lol. I enjoy texting and I enjoy phone calls even more. Sometimes I literally do not stfu and sometimes I have absolutely nothing to say. Not sure what else to say😅 I’m horrible at describing myself. Message me to learn more! :P

If you love peas but have found that your grocery store's selection of them isn't quite enough, you're in luck! There are many different types of Peas, and you might think you're in the middle of an Easter basket when you walk down the pet aisle at the supermarket.
This comprehensive list will give you all the information you need to pick out precisely the kind of peas that suits your fancy and your recipe!

What are peas?

Peas are a healthy and inexpensive vegetable that can be enjoyed. The best part about peas is that they taste great whether you want them on their own or incorporate them into another dish.
They can be boiled and eaten plain, tossed into salads as croutons, or even ground up to use as flour for baking.
Also, the most popular of different types of peas include black-eyed peas, English peas, and split peas (for soup). You can find these types at any grocery store, but have you ever wondered what other kinds are?
Let's dive in!

List of Different Types of Peas

Green pea

High in vitamins C and K and with a good amount of potassium and folate, green peas are a tasty vegetable packed with nutrients. One cup provides 100 percent of your daily requirement for vitamin K.
In addition, they can be enjoyed raw or cooked – blanch them to retain their vibrant color. Green peas can be used as a garnish for salads, soups, or stews – or eaten straight from the pod! These delicious veggies also freeze well to enjoy them all year round.

Chickpea

In addition to being a tasty legume that's a staple in many international cuisines, chickpeas are an excellent source of protein. They also serve as a perfect plant-based meat substitute and can be used in vegan recipes.
You can also love adding them to hearty salads or quick soup dishes. Store dried peas in an airtight container, and they'll keep for up to a year at room temperature. For more information on different types of peas, read below.

Fava beans

These are typical peas often used in cooking because they have a mild taste. Like other different types of peas, limas should be eaten regularly to keep you healthy.
Aside from their use in cooking, there aren't many health benefits associated with limas. However, some people claim that eating them improves memory and relieves constipation.

Lima beans

The next on our list of different types of peas is lima beans. Although somewhat similar in taste and texture to green beans, they are longer.
They also have a slightly different flavor and contain more protein than green beans. Soaking them for 6 hours before cooking will significantly decrease their cooking time.
They're best served with a pinch of salt and some pepper or favorite spices or herbs. If you want to enjoy them year-round, plant lima bean seeds indoors about two weeks before your last frost date in spring, or seed them directly into your garden once it's warmer outside and the danger of frost has passed (late May is typically safe).
Lastly, wait until nighttime temperatures are consistently above 60 degrees F. Lima beans grow well in warm weather.

Yardlong Bean

Also, one of the different types of peas, typically grown in Asia and called snake beans or asparagus beans, is yardlong beans, which are primarily used in stir-fries.
These beautiful long pods can grow as long as 6 feet but usually fall between 2 and 3 feet. In addition, the peas are edible when young and tender.
But even then, you'll want to cook them with a little bit of sugar because they tend to be tricky. Like many Asian vegetables, these beans have a bitter flavor that takes some getting used to if you aren't used to eating them regularly.

Chori Chori

This pea is renowned for its warmness. Use in chicken soup or any dish that could use a hug. Also excellent when blended into butter and spread on toast.
Chori peas are an acquired taste, but you'll wonder how you lived without them once you get used to them.
Also, you might want to try growing your own, as Chori Chori peas are native to Ethiopia and are notoriously difficult to find outside of Africa. Be warned: your success rate will be about 50%.
But if you do succeed in growing your own Chori Chris, consider yourself lucky—you'll have found one of life's great culinary treasures. If not, well, at least you tried!

Snow Peas

Popular in many regions around Asia, Maxigolt peas are small and sweet. The Japanese have been known to add them to sushi, while locals in China stir-fry them as a side dish with pork and broccoli.
In Thailand, they're different peas that can be mixed into pad thai and other bean sprouts and shrimp. They're also delicious and can be cooked on their own for two minutes or microwaved for one minute until soft.

Golden Sweet Peas

There are many different types of peas, and Golden sweet is also one. It is a legume vegetable with an edible-podded fruit called pea. These delicate green pods have long been famous for their unique flavor and tender texture.
They are often used fresh or frozen in both sweet and savory dishes to provide some contrast to more starchy elements such as potatoes.
Although there are wide varieties available, including purple and yellow, most will fall into one of two groups: English peas (such as supersweet varieties) or Asian varieties. Golden Sweet is a variety that has been selected specifically for its taste.
However, it retains much of its sweetness when cooked, and it also boasts a bolder flavor than many other different types of peas.

Maxigolt Peas

It is probably my favorite type of pea—they are sweet, delicious, and have a very mild flavor. I like to eat these different peas fresh out of their pods as they don't require cooking.
Perfect for snacking on while watching your favorite movie. It's great in stir-fry, too, if you prefer not to consume them raw (but why wouldn't you?) Sugar snap peas are also called Chinese peas and snow peas, depending on where you live.
In general, sugar snap peas taste like sugar with a hint of green beans. Very crisp and refreshing, try them with some low-sodium chicken broth! Love them!

Miragreen Peas

First developed in 1956 and patented in 1966, these sweet peas are round and bright green. Honey Snaps offer a unique look to your favorite recipes with an almost identical flavor to traditional Snap I peas.
What is more appealing than a plate of sweet peas that appear as if they have been cooked in honey? These peas are great for stir-fry dishes with cumin and coriander.
They also pair well with ham or chicken for an elegant side dish. Serve them chilled for breakfast alongside a sliced baguette drizzled with honey and mint chutney.

Sugar Sprint Peas

These peas were initially cultivated in China, but now they're grown worldwide. They contain a higher amount of sugars and are a variety that is typically only available during colder months. When harvested early, they can be served fresh; when harvested later, they're often used in canned vegetables.

Sugar Snap Peas

These are incredibly popular right now and are usually green in color. Because they can be eaten whole and have fragile skin, making for easy eating.
They're also versatile—they can be eaten raw or cooked. This versatility makes them ideal for salads or as a side dish to accompany any meal. Their flavor is slightly sweet and not overpowering.
So, they can easily be incorporated into both meat dishes and vegetarian meals. Plus, their texture offers a nice crunch that people tend to like.
Best of all? They come packaged frozen (or even canned), which means that once you get your hands on them, it doesn't take much time to prepare them for eating.

Honey Snap II Peas

Snap peas come in many colors, but they're often green or yellow. The Honey Snap II pea has multicolored pods encased in a white shell.
Although these peas are sweet and juicy like other snap peas, they don't have a taste or texture that sets them apart from different types of peas.
One cool thing about these peas is their shape—their pods look like little Styrofoam balls when you hold them on end.
They're pretty cute and fun to eat raw, straight out of the pod! These beans might be small and sweet, but they pack a powerful punch of flavor in every bite.

Royal Snap II Peas

Snappy and sweet with a nice, light snap. Suitable for side dishes or as an addition to soups and stews. Substitute one part royal snap peas for every four parts mixed vegetables in your favorite side dish recipe to up its nutritional value.
Bonus points if you can eat them fresh from the pod! The Snap varieties are generally sweeter than their shell-on counterparts, but they also have tougher skins that require longer cooking times.
Still tasty, though! If you're looking for more ways to use Snap peas, try substituting them into any recipe that calls for green beans—the texture is similar, and it's a great way to stretch your food budget further by using less expensive ingredients in place of more expensive ones.
When selecting fresh Snap peas at your local grocer's produce section, be sure to choose those that are brightly colored (bright green) with firm pods that feel crisp when squeezed gently between thumb and forefinger.
Avoid limp or overly soft pods and any yellowing leaves; both indicate age and thus poor flavor quality.

Snowbird Peas

These peas are specifically bred to be grown in tropical climates. They're perfect for an outdoor garden but require a greenhouse or protection to keep them warm during colder months.
Snowbird peas grow best in temperate and tropical climates and are usually eaten fresh from a pod or cooked. The plants will reach about 2 feet tall and produce light yellow flowers when they mature.
You'll need greenhouses or another shelter for these peas if you live in areas with cold winters that dip below 10 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 12 degrees Celsius).
Snowbird pea seeds should be planted around April and harvested by September. If you don't have access to greenhouses, they can also be grown indoors as long as temperatures stay between 70 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit (21 to 29 Celsius).

English peas

What's more classic than a plate of English peas? There are a few different varieties, but they all look like the picture above. They're green with a semi-sweet flavor.
English peas are delicious when sautéed with butter and garlic. Or try them in stews or soups. Eat them fresh off the vine—or freeze them for later use. To prepare: Shell your peas by hand or use a knife to remove their thin outer shell before cooking.
In addition to tasting incredible on their own, you can use these versatile veggies in stir-fries, pasta dishes, salads, and sandwiches.
If you have too many to eat right away, put some up for later by freezing them; don't cook them first—the frozen version will taste better (and it's less work). To freeze: Shell your peas and blanch them in boiling water for 2 minutes before transferring them to an ice bath until cool.
Conclusion
After reading through all these different types of peas, you may be thinking: Are there so many types? How do they differ from one another? Should I buy some to add to my diet?
These are all great questions. There are more than 4,000 varieties of peas in existence today—all with unique traits and subtle differences.
That being said, it's also not practical or cost-effective for every person to try each type. So we urge you to use your best judgment when deciding which peas to pick up at your local grocery store.
Be sure you enjoy them as part of a healthy diet (one that includes plenty of veggies!) and that they add variety—not calories—to your plate.

Prologue part 2
Chapter 1: Song of rainfall, and snow part 1.
Date: Feb 12th, 2046 9:23 AM/PCT Location: Proxima Centauri B, Outskirts of Kashuna, Capital of Proxima Centauri
“Hey! hey! Your local Global occult defense initiative recruiter here. The world is gonna get worse before it gets better. No seriously look around you. Around you, you are surrounded by Aliens, the occult, and things beyond comprehension that God made just for fun. It's our job to protect humanity from these world ending threats.” The video cuts to an event where the skies suddenly turn blood red mixed with an aurora borealis, fissures appear in the crimson skies, and azure liquids falling from the skies. When the droplets of the azure liquids drop into the ground they turned into horrific amalgamations of flesh, and liquids. The video cuts to a person being engulfed by the azure entities, and after a while the azure liquids suddenly disappears and the person who was engulfed by it started to laugh.
A moment later the body started to morph into another form, and was immediately lit up by humanoid robots with cold azure eyes. Some parts looked human. Mainly the head, and the body. The ears looked like headphones, the limbs looked so robotic or something akin to that of a prosthetics, and the eyes… Looks akin to that of the creature from the azure liquid. Seeing that sent shivers down my mind. Suddenly I felt like wanting to run away but didn't because I didn't want to fall off a jeep running at 60 miles per hour. But a second later I felt like my body was being broken apart. I don't know why but I just felt that way. In some part of me I felt somewhat disgusted at myself. Seemingly seeing myself as one of them.
A tear appeared on my face, making me feel dread as the video played. I don't know why… But it both made me sad, and angry. Like how I felt when I lost both mom, and dad. I shook my head and tried my best to ignore it. It's probably just my imagination or my mental instability. Yet something nagged at me like it wasn't. “Whether domestic or international. Do you really think we haven't suffered through the stars just to get here? Well if you know history then your answer is no, and you would be perfect for joining our local mobile task forces. Such as MTF Fox-2 The sneaky bastards.” Suddenly the screen cuts to footage of robotic soldiers in full optical camouflage uniforms gunning down some sort of ghost like apparitions. One of the apparitions looked like a giant orangutan that was given steroids, and was gunned down by a 70mm canon fire from a robotic construct that looked like a giant mechanical spider armed to the teeth with machine guns, and a main 150mm Howitzer, and a secondary 70mm flak. It's eyes glowed azure blue as it continued to gun down more of these apparitions.
“Um… Nau? Why does the local internet have military recruitment adds for humans? Like I bet the only people sent here are probably military personnel mostly, and some are researchers. So why is there military recruitment ads?” I asked curious about the reason this kind of ad was playing in this side of human controlled territory to try and distract myself from what I just saw and felt. If the UN was a conventional military then hiring soldiers from other nations or species would be out of the question.
“Well honestly K, you humans have been fighting off incursions for the last 5,000 years albiet in such smaller scales than what your normal species outside of the Orion arm does. It takes up a lot of man power to fight a prolonged war against wave incursions, and mutants from BEAR zones. To why you are fighting such draining conflicts? Well if I remember correctly a lot of these zones contain a lot of valuable resources to the point that fighting a large scale guerilla war would be worth the sacrifices. Not to even mention the main directive of the global occult defense initiative. To fight the things that bump in the night, and kill whatever things that threaten the safety, and veil of normalcy.”
“Their main motto is ‘We cull the things in the dark in order to live a normal life. We fight not for glory, profit, nor borders. We fight to keep normalcy.’ and sometimes this is just what they do. It takes a lot of manpower to contain things that can't be killed, to contain threats that might prove useful, to cull incursions, and to keep the veil of normalcy you know. Sometimes you need to outsource your recruiting from your target demographic. Think of it as a large scale version of the french foreign legion.”
Defragmentation complete.
Neural cloud status: Somewhat stable
Main cause of crash: Gravitational forces, and Thawing.
Reverting memories…..
Welcome. Recreatant 01.
Project Snowfall. ^{⁠_⁠^} :⁠-⁠P
-P.S remember. Mommy loves you K. Remember. Keep on living. No matter what happens. Even if the world drowns in rainfall.
A message appeared on my vision before quickly disappearing. I shrugged it off, thinking of it as some sort of hallucination, and a side effect of being thawed out which probably messed with my neurons.
Suddenly my mind started to feel light as it something has been lifted from my conscience.
“Kyruger you okay? You've been spacing out.”
“Yeah….. I'm fine.”
“What did I tell you?” She asked me.
“Umm….”
“Honestly I don't remember.”
“Well it's not like I'm letting you join them. Plus I wouldn't want you to disappear again.”
“We'll let's start to talk first. What do you remember?” I offered.
“How have you been Nau?” I smiled and looked at her, and I could faintly see her start to tear up as she stared back at me. For an honest second there I wanted to hug her but didn't because I wouldn't want us to both die. She's driving a buggy after all.
“Sure.” She said as she looked at the azure horizon whilst sighing. Currently the road we are driving is nothing but dust, and empty desert. As said by Nausica it would take 30 minutes to commute from the port to the capital. And currently we're traveling 80-90 miles per hour.
“Well. How do I put it…”
“I miss you Kyu. It's been lonely since you left.” She said whilst trying not to tear up. So.. your lonely. Just like me huh?
“How long has it been since I had…. a sincere connection….” She sighs before continuing.
“The past…. Twenty years has been rough to say the least. Everyone I met either hated me just because of my species or how I looked. Despite me trying my best to adapt….”
“People…. Still hated me….”
“Just like when we were kids…. “
“Just like when the neighbor’s kids used to belittle me just because of my hair color, and my eyes.”
“Despite me doing my best to be a good person, people still hated me for what I am. When I brought it up, or if someone knew they would avoid me. The only people that don't do that is people from my race, my sisters, and my S.T.A.L.K.E.R colleagues. Thanks to my race I couldn't get any job other than being a field agent outside of my species territory since the other species were reminded of the entities that came from the rainfall events everytime they saw us. Thus I worked for research institutes or secret societies as a freelance survey agent/S.T.A.L.K.E.R in B.E.A.R zones because of my species tolerance to Borsch radiation, and high survivability.” When I heard that, it made me feel bad for her. And quite honestly made me want to stick with her more out of pity.
“Want a hug?” I offered. She laughed.
“Sure after we arrive at the city.” She humored me.
“So how about you? What happened after you left?” She asked me. Now that I think about it. 4 years were a blur to me. All I remember was studying, and being alone most of the time. Other than that. The 4 years were basically trips.
“Well. My life went downhill. I followed my dream to be an astronaut and become an adventurer of the stars yet I failed. Everytime I tried to apply to NASA, they always rejected me. Years after years of applications rejected. Even though I both excelled in academics and physical fitness the agency still chose other candidates. After that I gave up. My heart couldn't bare it anymore. So I tried to work for other corporations. But was turned down every step of the way since I was either too good or my expectations were too high for what they were willing to pay for me. Most companies even tried to guilt trip me despite them offering me wages that would've barely keep me afloat. Thus I had no where else to go than to work at a government agency since it was the highest paying job, with great benefits I could find. Thus I worked at the FBI. The department of unusual incidents. Though my work was mostly doing debugging, fixing vulnerabilities, and sorting out papers every once in a while.”
“But everytime I sorted out papers they would give me some sort of pill that would make time fly for me. Honestly I don't remember much from those paper filings but it took a lot of time, and drained the hell out of me. It was tedious, with very strict deadlines. Eventually making me hate the bureaucracy since it wasn't in my pay grade to sort things out for them. There was a dedicated division for that but was severely understaffed. Even my division was severely understaffed. The only division that was fully staffed is the counter terrorism division which handled field operations. I don't really know much about the counter terrorism division, and the things I remembered are mostly they make arrests or investigate unusual incidents too unusual for even the other FBI departments.” I told her. Honestly thinking about it, the more I remembered the more I think I was miserable there. I couldn't help but sigh, and look at my hand.
“So that's why you posted those posts about your frustrations. You couldn't find any outlet, and decided to scream into the void.” She's….. right…..
I couldn't help thinking that I felt like my self deprecating humor was a way to cope. A way to voice out my frustration in humor.
“Heh…… your right…..”
“I couldn't find someone to talk to so I coped by other means. Making myself laugh whilst internally I was in turmoil at how frustrating my life was. Always burnt out, and devoid of the passion I wanted to work with.” Saying that made me feel… vulnerable…. Emotions of sadness, rage, and yet… happiness.
Sad about how my life was wasted, spiteful and rageful at how everything turned out, and happy that I had someone to be vulnerable with. Happy to talk it out without having a person to shove my self esteem out like some of the therapists I talked to. Happy that someone understood, and didn't immediately start to chew me down. Blaming me for the life I've lived even though I had no say with most of my life. In some ways some parts of therapy made me feel even worse.
Some part of me wanted to hug her…. yet I feel like it would be inappropriate. Hmm .. Now that I think about it…
I never opened up like this before. Some part of me was relieved that i was heard, another was insecure, seemingly paranoid that she'll just use me, and discard me the moment I had no use to her anymore. I don't know why that is… but it feels… just like it. Like I was some sort of doll being repaired over and over again by it's owner.
I shrugged. No point in dwelling in that. I have nothing waiting for me at home. No family, no friends…
Just crippling loneliness only alleviated by endless distractions, manic humor, and fake people hiding behind consumerism to alleviate the sense of meaninglessness brought by the modern world. God it feels so absurd. I feel like a stranger brought into another world where things are the same yet so different at the same time. I wonder. How whimsical are the other worlds? How is it different from the world I came from?
Aliens, humans all the same things. These are just people. Of a different species with different aspects, yet one aspect unites them all.
Self awareness, and sentience.
A deafening silence lingered in the air. Caused by my own words.
“I feel you. Despite the universe being filled with whimsy, and the occult. It's mundane. Absurd even in it's irony. Despite being whimsical, people want a mundane life. Makes you want to side with the anarchist coalition. But those are just idealists. Thinking that people want whimsy and freedom rather than safety, and stability.”
“I want to live in a world where I'm free. Free to choose whimsy, and fantasy rather than depressing, and devoid of passion replaced by the mundaneness of the modern world where the magic of reality is hidden behind secret societies, and where it only benefits the few. Where the anomalous become a part of life, and things or people like me aren't hated for what we couldn't choose.” Nau said, seemingly agreeing with what I said. A moment later she laughs in a way similar to that of someone who's lost it all. She sighs, and suddenly begins to hum a tune.
“La, lala, lala, lala, La, lala, lala, lala.” Suddenly snow began to fall as she continued to hum the tune. Whilst humming the tone, she looked upon the skies only to see snow began to fall.
“Beautiful isn't it?” she said, before continuing to hum the tune. I looked upon the snowfall. Whilst looking at it, it reminded me of my childhood. It felt whimsical. Reminding me of a nostalgic time. Made me feel like a kid again. I chuckled. I then took off my mask temporarily. Out of habit I stuck out my tongue, jokingly yet seriously wanting my life to return to a more nostalgic time. Right after that wore it back on.
“That's magic. Specifically sympathy magic. Where music is a part of the casting process of magic. Where it uses emotions from music to cast magic and embues the emotions on reality. Often it is called another thing.”
“The magic of the scene.” I then swallowed the snow, making me feel somber, and carthertic.
“You can feel it too. The magic can make you feel…..”
“What the caster feels.”
“To why God made it as it is. He only said to us is experience without emotion is hollow and refused to elaborate. To this day we still don't know what that means. The living reality is really cryptic. The eternal monarch. Often he explains things through poetry, and references in history. Even if we only knew that history thanks to him. He oftens say the sweetness of reality is found in the sobering and emotional experiences.”
“Is there really a God? If so why didn't he just try to fix it all? Isn't God supposed to be benevolent?” She laughed at my words.
“More like a spectator. He tried to be benevolent but it only led to more problems. So he let it all be. When he tried to fix everything it only led to more suffering.”
“No matter what he did, the old civilization he so cherished so much crumbled to dust. In a world where God exist he is powerless to the consequences of his actions. Everything has consequences. Whether he liked it or not. That's just how reality is. Despite having sway on reality, it still had some consequences that one cannot undo lest more consequences come. The story of the eternal monarch, and the God inside the machine is quite tragic. Two lovers broken by the world that cared nothing about them.” She laughs again whilst trying not to cry.
“tsk. Hahahhaahha!”
“What's so funny?”
“It's so ironic. Gods who symbolized omnipotence towards reality broken by the thing they lorded over. They are the embodiments of concepts. Yet the concepts they embodied and lorded over still held sway on their lives.”
“No matter who you are. Reality shows no mercy.” Suddenly she started to cry, and laugh at the same time. Seeing her like this made me feel bad for her. What made her into this? What broke her to this point? The whole thing was both awkward and cathartic.
“Want a hug?” I offered.
“Sure…. Hahahhahah!” She said whilst laughing, and crying. I hugged her. When Nau noticed it, she caressed my hair. It was an awkward two minutes before she talked normally again.
“Um…. I'm sorry…. I kinda said too much…” tears fell on my head, and I let go.
“Feel better?” I asked, and she nodded whilst snickering to herself similar to that of someone laughing to seeing something so absurd.
“If you want you can always cry on my shoulders.” I offered her. She smiled, and looked upon the azure skies.
“Fine…” She smiles, she then jokingly leaned on my shoulder whilst driving. I started to sweat bullets from it. Nau quickly lifted her head from my shoulders, and focused on the road, smiling as she did it. For the next 13 minutes we sat there in silence until we arrived at Kashuna.
Towers adorned the horizon. Towers that would dwarf the burj khalifa adorned the surrounding. Shops littered the streets selling food, appliances, etc. And people of multiple species walked around side by side, along with humans and humanoid constructs. Robots that looked human but clearly distinct by the way their body is constructed. Some had prosthetic looking bodies akin to that of something you'd see in cyberpunk or the original ghost in the shell. There's also some constructs that had ears or limbs similar to that of earth animals. Most I'd see was ears and tails similar to that of fluffy animals. Some even had prosthetics with sharp looking nails. The attires were even more of a hodgepodge of different cultures, and ethnicities. Some wore traditional Chinese attire, some Hindu, some east Asian, some south east Asian, some Russian, some European, and some modern American. The sight in front of me was interesting.
“What's with them?” I asked, finally breaking the 13 minute long silence.
“Oh the constructs? Those are humans put into homunculus. Souls who has been extracted from their body using magic to be put in bodies they desired. They're often called transhuman but are generally used for warfare or fun. Often homunculi are used in order to kill those who are immortal in a sense. Even if their body dies the soul escapes, and basically makes a new body within days thus causing the perpetrator to live Scot free. Basically just executioners in a law enforcement sense. Only something dead is allowed to kill or shatter a soul to the point of destruction. These people are either dead nor alive but technically dead. Biologically speaking they are just echoes. Echoes of memories of those that died. Lingering spirits who's will is strong enough to linger and have a sentience of their own akin of that of the living. That's just how the world works. It's the reason why could even fight against incursions and rainfall events in the first place. But those who die in these events generally have their souls shattered. Unable to be retrieved or pass on into the dark forest. The after life where the dead lie stuck in a world where they can experience the life they couldn't experience for eternity. But sometimes it causes the soul to go insane. Thus tries to break out but loses their humanity or sentience in the process.”
“But if that exists why didn't just anyone try to destroy it?”
“God doesn't want to. The story of the broken God explains why he doesn't want to. He keeps clinging into the past. Whenever damage is caused to that plane he would always try to repair it. Even if it's completely destroyed he still recreates it. Even caused the destruction of that species. Historically speaking that has happened three times. Three species wiped off.”
“Why don't we just kill him?” She laughed before pausing, and answering my absurd question.
“A species tried that only for him to come back, and destroy said civilization.” Oh….
“Yet we still respect him. Despite him creating a place where we all end up, and go insane eventually it's not entirely a bad thing. It's just people generally go insane if stuck there in a long amount of time. It's just an unfortunate side effect. It's all for a good cause. It's not his fault for that. No matter what he did. He even modified souls multiple times yet everytime they would go insane sooner or later. It's just the consequences. But the means justifies the ends for him.”
“We have no say on what he does just as he has no say on what we do.”
“The monarch was always a tragic figure. An idealist, and an idiot. And we love him for it.” She snickered whilst saying that last line. A few moments later she stopped, and parked the car. Nau then pulled out her phone, and started to do something with it.
“Well let's go the venue. You'll love what your going to see.” She said, smiling at me as she said that, it made my heart melt. I left the car, and she held my hand making me flustered. The both of us walked towards the parade whilst holding hands. When we finally arrived there, a large amount of people gathered around guard rails. Five minutes later the sound of drums, and people singing echoed around the block.
“Why can't we be friends?” <4x!> The sound of multiple accents singing echoed through the air. Suddenly on the skies a rainbow appeared. Is this the same magic Nau described and used?
Also are they singing why can't we be friends?
“I seen you around for a long, long time I remembered you when you drank my wine!” Humans wearing cloaks, and gasmask wearing UN insignias and another faction with an insignia of a flaming torch sang together laughing and smiling under the masks. Something you can notice by the way their eyes look.
“Why can't we be friends?” <16x!> The people around me smiled, and laughed enjoying the parade.
“I seen you walking down in Chinatown I call you but you could not look around!” A bunch of people with thick Chinese accents sang together.
“Why can't we be friends?” <16x!>
“I pay my money to the welfare line I see you standing in it every time!” Some soldiers with thick Louisianian, Texan, and New Yorker accents sang together making me chuckle. The differing accents made it so funny for me.
“Why can't we be friends?” <16x!>
“The color of your skin don't matter to me As long as we can live in harmony!” People with Russian, Chinese, British, Indian, French, and American accents sang together.
“Why can't we be friends?” <16x!>
“I'd kinda like to be the president So I can show you how your money's spent!” A bunch of American soldiers sang together, trying their best not to laugh.
“Why can't we be friends?” <16x!>
“Sometimes I don't speak right But yet I know what I'm talking about!” A bunch of soldiers with thick Russian accents sang making the scene even more funnier.
“Why can't we be friends?” <16x!>
“I know you're working for the CIA They wouldn't have you in the mafia!”
“Why can't we be friends?” <16x!>
“Why can't we be friends? I want to be your friend. Why can't we be friends? I want to be your friend.”
“Why can't we be friends? Why can't we be friends? Why can't we be friends? Why can't we be friends? Why can't we be friends?”
“WOOOHOOOO!!!” The crowd around me cheered with a round of applause. Seemingly enjoying the performance of the army. Next above us a squadron of giant mechs flew by, seemingly partaking of the festivities. A moment later the squadron of high flying mechs fired a barrage of confetti. A moment later another squadron dropped a few mechanized spider unit with artillery strapped to it. Some sort of robotic quadrupedal tank. It's eyes glowed blue as it activated.
“Yes! Chaikovsky baby!” An alien speaking English said. The crowd cheered on. A moment later a symphony started and a bunch of constructs holding instruments gathered on the streets and started to play chaikovsky’s 1812 overture. The constructs marched to the beat for the whole durations. The people enjoyed their performance.
Suddenly the guns on the mechanized units fired as the iconic part of The 1812 overture played. The sound of artillery echoed as the units fired their guns. Thankfully it was just blanks, and didn't shower us with broken glass shards. The people cheered even more as they saw the artillery on the mechanized spiders fired.
The sound of people cheering drowned my ears with tinnitus almost deafening me. Right beside me Nau was enjoying the show. A genuine smile plastered on her face. Right after this the performance marched further, and further into the city. She tugged on my hand, wanting me to come with her to follow the parade.
The next performance was another song. But unlike the last songs it was sobering.
“This one is for our fallen. To those who've died in our war against those that threaten our ways of life.” A moment later a piano, and violins started to play.
A beautiful looking construct appeared amidst the formation of musicians. “It only takes one lone soul, it only takes one in a thousand.” Oh.. oh I remember this song! This was tranquility! I heard it from an anime I used to watch during my teenage years. Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu: Die Neue These. The legends of the galactic heroes. Gosh. That's a throwback….
“No, that's not bravery
As children we learn it's wrong
To put out the light of another
Our innocence lost over time
A means to an end” Hearing those words felt so healing. It put me both in a good and cathartic mood. It felt like my soul was being soothed.
“It's hard to hold your head up high, But we must try” suddenly the banging of bass dropped. Two beats, next one beat. It repeated.
“Sway together in the dark It's supposed to be,
'Cause I want to know the end And you never ever need to fight
But you're fighting everyday And I don't know when your light will go out
Innocent crying child, The heart of your enemy”
“My heart to heart with the light And we always get along
Counting the stars in the sky Thinking why they have to die!
Just face to face we can hear A voice telling us it's wrong.
Counting the stars in the sky It was like a lullaby.”
“For sunsets I'll break the rules We learnt playing down in the heather
The secrets behind all the veils We just use other words
For freedom we make our charge For friendship we bare down on others
Can't one of you just calculate Tranquility?”
“It's hard to hold your head up high But we must try”
“Ah, ah, Ah, ah, Ah, ah”
“Sway together in the dark It's supposed to be
'Cause I want to know the end And you never ever need to fight
But you're fighting everyday And I don't know when your light will go out
Innocent crying child The heart of your enemy”
“Sway together in the dark It's supposed to be
'Cause I want to know the end And you never ever need to fight
But you're fighting everyday And I don't know when your light will go out
Innocent crying child The heart of your enemy”
“My heart to heart with the light And we always get along
Counting the stars in the sky Thinking why they have to die!
Just face to face we can hear A voice telling us it's wrong
Counting the stars in the sky It was like a lullaby….” The crowd cheered at the performance given to them. The performer bowed, smiling doing so. I was left speechless as the music made me feel so emotionally vulnerable. Yet it felt so good. It's a paradox. I then looked at Nau who was shedding tears at the performance. Right after this the music changed, and they started to march towards the final destination. Right now they were singing uptown funk and it started raining moonshine, and booze. The surrounding felt so funky, and lively whilst the song played. I took off my mask quickly, and gathered some drops of rain to taste. It literally tasted like beer, and a bit of moonshine.
Nau then pulled my arms, and followed the parade. Under the mask I smiled. I followed her. Whilst following the parade I saw one of the hatches of those spider mechanized units open only to see a person crawl off it. The person eerily looked like my father but the difference was his more grizzled face, and a scar on the left eye. He wore some sort of general or officer's uniform with a patch similar to those people wearing the torch insignia's. Looking closer the doppelganger had a more robotic body so it can't be him. He's probably just a look a like. Suddenly the person looked around, and eyed me directly. Looking surprised when he saw me. Suddenly his face turned to both anger, and pity. Like I just pissed him off like I reminded him of something. When our eyes locked at each other I could see his eyes burn with a fiery azure passion when he saw me. He then tried to pull something out of his pocket but stopped. Suddenly he muttered something. He then looked away, and crawled back into the unit.
After a while the parade finally arrived at the destination. The press gathered around the venue seemingly like someone important was going to make an appearance. Currently we were in front of an arena. But unlike your normal arena this one dwarved even the Olympic stadiums. It looks like some sort of simulation arena for wargames. Something akin to the tank triathlon which is held in large open fields where tank crews and commanders outmaneuver each other with their expertise, and tanks. NATO holds them, even the Northern Russian Artic Parliament (N.R.A.P) holds them.
“Hey! Nau! Over here!” Someone shouted amidst the crowd. I looked around only to be dragged by her. When she finally stopped someone greeted me.
“Well if isn't Kyruger. Long time no see.” A woman a little higher than Nau, and much more younger greeted me. She had light green hair, pristine almost gemstone looking skin that was almost transparent, with the same greenish eyes, but unlike her sister she was quite petite.
“Who are you?” I asked.
“Oh yeah you must've forgot. Well I'm Catherine. You used to hang out with my older sister back in the day. You're quite a lucky guy. Big sis over here wai-” suddenly Nau covered her mouth.
“Shut it.” Cath gulped, and slowly nodded seemingly afraid of her older sister.
“Well How long have you, and my sister been dating?” She asked, and suddenly Nau elbowed me in the side. Ow that hurt.
“Well… For 5 months before she brought me here.” I lied, and Nau smiled maliciously. Oddly enough I was turned on by that smile. A moment later the speakers roared to life as someone was trying to make a speech.
“Hello our galactic neighbors. Hello, I Am G-4 Able. I'm quite honored to talk to you today. It's our 57th year since we were able to colonize a place, and our debut as regional power and a year after the armistice between the coalition, and the initiative. As you know the current affairs in human controlled territory between the coalition, and the initiative has warmed up. This parade has shown despite our differences we can still arrive at an agreement. Although in recent times the directive of the initiative has slowly changed. From multiple Borsch reactor meltdowns in Kazakhstan, and some parts in the Caucasus due to governmental mismanagement. I hereby rewrite the main directive of the initiative. Alongside the coalition our main directive has changed. From protecting the veil, to protecting what normalcy is left. I know. I know.” The people around us talked seemingly enamored by the local geopolitics of humans. I was also interested since this was world charging news.
“Humanity has always tried to suppress the knowledge of the anomalous but right now there are pressing matters. Keeping the veil is useless especially in the current information age that we found ourselves in. You already know that considering the Serpent's Maw leaks information about the anomalous. Currently A.I can't stop the spread of information, and unfortunately it has caused widespread confusion, and chaos in Earth. The Artic Parliament has already started to show signs of collapse, and eastern Europe has already fallen to widespread protests calling for freedom of information acts. To the foreign dignitaries I must ask you all for assistance in speeding up Project Dawn. Currently Project Dawn is nearly complete but it would take 3 more months for the civilian ships are made. And the other G-11 council members are currently worried that if we tried evacuating some parts of earth using military craft it would cause widespread chaos. Essentially causing confusion, and riots as barely anyone knows what's happening causing more casualties than needed.” Suddenly more people around me started to get worried.
“Shit. That's a bad thing….. the more people killed the more likely another large scale rainfall event happens.” I heard one of the people on the crowd say.
The skies suddenly reddened, and an unnatural aurora borealis appeared amidst the former clear skies.
“SHIT! RAINFALL EVENT!” The crowd panicked, and a stampede happened. People pushed each other killing some civilians in order to hide themselves from this ‘Rainfall event’.
“ATTENTION ALL INITIATIVE PERSONNEL! ACTIVE RAINFALL EVENT HAS BEEN DETECTED. CULL THE SIRENS! I REPEAT CULL THE SIRENS!” G-4 shouted through the speakers.
Around me, people pushed each other, afraid of what's to come. Some kept shouting, others crying, whilst some were trampled to death. Nau, and her sis were separated from me, whilst I was trampled.
My consciousness started to fade as people trampled over my body. Faintly I could hear the faint breaths of those who are being trampled to death. Some gasped for help, some cursed at the people that trampled them.
“Remember. Don't try to let yourself be seen by the sirens. Hide. Don't make a sound. Remember. Daddy loves you…” Dad ruffled my hair, and quickly rushed outside to distract the monsters outside. Before he left he locked the attic trapdoor. Gunshots echoed through the air.
"COME AT ME YOU SUICIDAL ECHOES! FUCK YOU!” Dad shouted.
Outside my father tried to fight off the creature made of azure liquids. Outside the demonic sounds of tormented souls screeching echoed. I looked out at the attic window, only to see him being swarmed by the azure monsters. Gunshot after gunshot he tried to fight them off.
"KILLL UUSSSSSSS!!!! PLEAAAASSSSEEEEEE!!!” When the gun finally ran out of ammo he quickly ran to try, and divert the monsters away from the house. But right after he tried this, the monsters lunged at him, and pinned him down, bludgeoning him. After a minute of struggle dad’s body went limp. Right after that happened the monsters threw up a viscous blue liquid, and shoved it to his throat. The moment this happened, his body convulsed, and he woke up. But unlike how he normally is, his eyes looked so depressed. He then laughed, and started to smash his head on the pavement only for him to heal the wounds. Suddenly he made a guttural roar.
“GRAAAAAHHHHHH!” A monster in the shape of my father screamed. Suddenly the monster that was formerly my father noticed me from the window, and made a B line towards me. I pointed a gun at the trapdoor. Footsteps echoed through the house. I stayed my best to stay silent but was found. The trapdoor shook as something tried to forcibly open it up. After a while of loud shaking the trapdoor finally broke. A bloodied head came through the door. The thing that was once my father now looked at me with a homicidal gaze. Both of our eyes locked with each other. He then made a guttural screech.
“D-don't come closer!” I shouted, my hands trembling. My child like hands shook as I was afraid, and didn't know what was happening. The figure’s eyes locked on to me, smiling creepily. A moment later the creature lunged at me. I pulled the trigger multiple times but the creature still mauled me even if it had taken lethal amounts of damage.
“Help….. me…..” As I was nearing my death, azure liquids leaked from the roof, and some of the liquid dropped into my mouth. The last thing I heard was something akin to glass shattering. Right after that my mind blacked out.
“When humans doubt God, they are considered to have independent selves...but what happens when a doll doubts its manufacturer?” I looked directly at the CCTV maliciously smiling at the fact that when mom sees this she would be distraught. She deserves it. She deserves all of the pain…. It was agonizing having your soul recreated. It was like being put together, and broken again. Over, and over. In the span of months. I was nothing but a doll to her. A doll to relive her nostalgia of the past. To relive a tragedy…
My dad pointed a gun on my jaw as per my request.
“Pull it.” I smiled as he pulled the trigger. A gunshot rang through the air. The last thing I saw was dad running away. His Human yet robotic like visage ran farther and farther from me. Smiling as the nightmare finally ended.
“I should've killed that bitch when I had the chance. Tsk. I should've known this would happen.” I groggily opened my eyes only to see the doppelganger of my dad pointing a gun at my head. He looked like he was ready to pull the trigger. I quickly got up, and tried to disarm him only to get shot in the liver. The parts of the gas mask I was wearing fell to the ground as what was left essentially is shattered from the stampede.
To my surprise I didn't bleed. He quickly grabbed a knife from a compartment in his arm, and tried to stab me in the neck. What the fuck.
My body quickly moved by its own, and disarmed him. I then tried to dislocate his arm. His metallic prosthetic arm showing cracks as I forcefully elbowed the prosthetic. He frowns.
Suddenly a gunshot rang through the air, and his shoulder fragmented.
“WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU! WHY ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL A CIVILIAN?! THERE'S SUPPOSED TO BE A SIREN ATTACK! WHY ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL A CIVILIAN?!” I looked behind me only to see Nau holding a dragonov. She quickly fired another shot but was blocked by his knife.
“Tsk. You have nothing to do with this. Stop this foolishness.”
“What are you talking about?” He laughs. Whilst he was distracted I tried to get his gun but was quickly elbowed on the neck, numbing it, and making me feel nothing and unable to move. Nau clicked her tongue, and started to shoot him.
“Fine… I'll finish this later…”
“I'll free you from the nightmare….”
“Son.” He quickly ran away, but before he fully retreated he shot me in the left eye. Plastic, glass, and metal shattered, and scattered as the bullet ricochet. A large steel ding was heard because of this. Similar to that of a bullet hitting a steel target and ricocheting.
“Are you o-” she paused as she noticed the glass shards that shattered as my eyes were hit by the bullet fragments.
“I should've known…. Something wasn't right when I slipped some part of me inside of you.”
“Say what now?”
“Nothing.” She quickly tried to carry me but temporarily put me down to put the gun away. She quickly consumed the gun. Oddly enough I thought that was hot. I wish I was the gun….
God I'm starting to develop a vore fetish aren't I? Right after that she grabbed my shoulder, and piggyback carried me.
“Try your best to hang on to dear life, okay?” I faintly nodded. But as I nodded some sort of fluid flowed out of my left eye hole. Right after that my body started to heat up even more.
“Crap you're leaking coolant.” She quickly ripped part of her clothes and shoved those onto my left eye.
“Hang on. I'll try my best to get to a nearby evac zone.” Suddenly in the distance the same screams of the damned echoes through the air. She gritted her teeth, and started to run whilst carrying my body. Whilst she was running. I noticed it started to rain.
“Shit! Another rain!” She quickly threw something up, and grabbed it. Some sort of weapon’s case.
She continued running, but faintly you could almost hear the sound of flowing water akin to that of a flash flood.
“Crap!” She quickly let go of me, and opened the weapons case. When she opened it a giant slab of steel with a muzzle akin to that of a miniature railgun prototype I read about in some article by the BBC back in 2041. Out of her hand, a large cancerous growth appeared. A reddish growth that when it bursted, chunks of reddish mold, and liquid popped like a balloon covering me with what looks to be mucus or blood.

Dear Me,
I wanted to let you know that this “dumbass” mode you have been stuck on for some time now is over. I will be setting up some new jobs for you to work on and accomplish in the reasonable timely fashion that we have come to expect. Your productivity has slowed, like a dried turd wanting to free dive from a thousand feet. Don’t worry buddy, The team will get the work done to the quality we expect of too. So relax this weekend and enjoy some rest. Bright and early Monday though, and that “Dumbass” he can kick rocks cause he’s eating up all the snacks in the break room, I will Kick the Living fuck out “Dumbass” and that crazy Chinese Guy You will have to clean that mess up. I finds that It’s weird how he’s the janitor and hates clean. Anyways be ready bright and early Monday fucker.
Your buddy Myself!
P.S. Don’t be a “Dumbass”…..maybe try Jackass. Same hours is what H.R said.

A: Anyway, I was drugged.
B: Baby me and you’ll be peeing through a catheter.
C: Come on, Scully, get those little legs moving!
D: Dear Diary, today my heart leapt when Agent Scully suggested spontaneous human combustion.
E: Even when the world was falling apart, you were my constant, my touchstone.
F: FEDERAL AGENT!
G: Good, because I put it back in that drawer with all those other videos that aren’t yours.
H: Her name is Bambi?
I: Imagine going through your whole life looking like that.
J: Just sing anything. Jeremiah was a bull frog. Was a good friend of mine. Never understood a word he said but I helped him drink his wine. Joy to the world…all the boys and girls. Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea. Joy to you and me.
K: Keep going, FBI woman.
L: Life... is like a box of chocolates. A cheap, thoughtless, perfunctory gift that nobody ever asks for. Unreturnable, because all you get back is another box of chocolates. You're stuck with this undefinable whipped-mint crap that you mindlessly wolf down when there's nothing else left to eat. Sure, once in a while, there's a peanut butter cup, or an English toffee. But they're gone too fast, the taste is fleeting. So you end up with nothing but broken bits, filled with hardened jelly and teeth-shattering nuts, and if you're desperate enough to eat those, all you've got left is a... is an empty box... filled with useless, brown paper wrappers.
M: Mulder, it’s me.
N: Now, if you don’t mind, I have to get an A.P.B out on a white male age 17 to 34, with or without a beard, maybe a tattoo…who’s impotent. Let’s go.
O: One of them was disguised as a woman, but wasn't pulling it off. Like, her hair was red but it was a little too red, you know? And the other one... the tall, lanky one... his face was so blank and expressionless. He didn't even seem human. I, I think he was a mandroid.
P: Please explain to me the scientific nature of the whammy.
Q: Queequeg, come back here! Queequeg? Queequeg! Quee— [sad, empty leash retracts]
R: Roswell! Roswell!
S: Sorry, no one down here except the FBI’s most unwanted.
T: Trust no one.
U: Unfortunately around this time of year I always develop a severe hemorrhoidal condition.
V: Venus was at its peak brilliance last night. You probably thought you saw something up in the sky other than Venus, but I assure you, it was Venus.
W: ________________

This years Nebulas are being awarded tomorrow night, so I thought I’d give my rankings of the Hugo and Nebula nominees. The Hugos are awarded on August 11th. Obligatory mention of how the Hugos appear to have been fixed last year, but that has been thoroughly discussed elsewhere, so I don’t really want to rehash it. And this year appears to be completely transparent, and I’m guessing and hoping will include efforts to prevent any similar corruption again.
For those who don’t like the Nebulas or Hugos, or don’t find them useful ways to find things you like to read, that’s certainly understandable. I’d love to hear your thoughts on any nominees you did read, or on works from 2023 that you enjoyed and feel are award worthy!
Notable things from this year: Martha Wells declined Murderbot nominations, a classy move for an already well awarded series. Lot’s of our usual nominees, while the only notable absence I caught was Seanan Mcguire’s Wayward Children novella, which is a bit of a shame as #8 is easily the best of the series, and it functions as a stand alone like all of the even numbered ones. But also, once you’re 8 books in, it does seem past due to start nominating other things. I’ll be curious to see if it was the Chinese works that edged it out.
A couple last things. Fantasy is doing their Hugo read, and it has some great commentary. u/brent_323 put out his rankings and comments on the Nebula novel nominees, and they differ from my somewhat if you want a different perspective. Lstly, I’ve added Goodreads ratings (out of 5 stars) for novels and novellas to give some context on how generally liked and how widely read each book is.

Best Novel

9: (Nebula Nominee) Shigidi and the Brass Head of Obalufon, Wole Talabi (DAW, Gollancz)
Stars: 3.70
Number of ratings: 633
Thematically, Shigidi is pretty similar to American Gods but with an emphasis on the Yoruba religion. My apologies in advance for any potential inaccuracies, my knowledge of Yoruba is based on this book, and some cursory Wikipedia reading. Different creators or gods have their own corporate structure, with minor sub-deities as employees. Olorun is the creator in Yoruba, with Orisha’s being lower level gods. One of these, Shigidi (a nightmare god in the book, although Wikipedia lists him as Guardian of Home and Environment), is trying to split from the Yoruba corporation and be an independent entity, along with his lover, the succubus Nneoma (based on Naamah, a demon from Jewish mysticism). To pay off his debt to the company, Shigidi has one last job.
It’s an interesting world, but despite the thematic American Gods comparisons, it feels nothing like that and has little else in common, and its structure ultimately makes it a much less successful book. Approximately a third of the book is the present day story, but most of that is in the second half of the book. The first half is brief tastes of the present in between longer chapters of background events. Those events are telling a single secondary story, just filling in the info you need to understand how we got to the present situation. Everytime we finally had some momentum, that thread would be done and I’d have to ‘get into’ the book all over again. If it wasn’t so broken up, I think I would have really enjoyed it, but as it is I was pretty done with the book by the time I got to where the bulk of the present day heist story was, and ended up skimming the last 50 to 100 pages.
8: (Nebula Nominee) The Terraformers, Annalee Newitz (Tor; Orbit UK)
Stars: 3.38
Number of ratings: 5,213
I loved The Future of Another Timeline, and on that alone will read any future Newitz novels, but so far nothing else of hers has come close to the same heights. The Terraformers is a set of 3 novellas set around 500 years apart, watching the terraforming of a planet over time through the eyes of the workers owned by the corporation terraforming the planet. Most of the plot is focused on terraforming, the corporation’s shenanigans, civil engineering, and civil rights, as the populace works to win the freedom to enjoy their home.
Very interesting, but it definitely drags at times. I loved the themes explored, although the civil engineering could be a bit much at times (said as a Kim Stanley Robinson fan). I did love the sentient buses, naked mole rats, and the cat reporter! Ultimately, more interesting than it was enjoyable.
7: (Hugo Nominee) Starter Villain by John Scalzi (Tor, Tor UK)
Stars: 4.18
Number of ratings: 43,367
I really enjoyed Starter Villain! There was some criticism of The Kaiju Preservation Society for being ‘light’, and that seems somewhat fair, although I likewise enjoyed it. People have leveled similar criticism at Starter Villain, but that seems less true. It’s quippy, a bit light hearted, but so are the other Scalzi books I’ve read (Redshirts, The Android’s Dream) it’s not exactly dealing with light topics despite that. It’s a critique of capitalism, and how wealth can become entrenched to both oppose what’s good for society, and oppose innovation. That said, I found the ‘villain’ idea pretty silly, as it’s essentially being used as a shorthand for disruptive technology, not for anything actually villainous or bad. I probably wouldn’t vote for it for a major award, but it was a fun and thoughtful novel.
6: (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) Witch King by Martha Wells (Tordotcom)
Stars: 3.71
Number of ratings: 16,432
While Martha Wells declined nominations for Murderbot, she did accept them for Witch King! It’s really imaginative and interesting world, and I’m hoping we get more of it (I hear she’s working on another book in the setting, so I trust we will). It has two narrative threads, the present day, where the main character Kai has been held prisoner during a pivotal political moment. The story focuses on his escape and the efforts to figure out what’s going on. The second thread tells the backstory of Kai’s life, and how the world came to the current situation.
I loved the world, and really enjoyed the book! It seems like quite a few of the people who didn’t disliked it because they thought the back story was a lot more interesting than the present day story, which I have to agree with, honestly. I wish they were told as two separate books, or in a way where splitting them contributed to the story. For example, a historian character that wheedled Kai about what has actually happened in the past could have been a vehicle for exploring the past events. Regardless of these qualms, I still enjoyed the book and look forward to more.
5: (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) Translation State by Ann Leckie (Orbit US, Orbit UK)
Stars: 4.11
Number of ratings: 9,848
Translation State is yet another book set in Leckie’s Raadchai universe. It’s not necessary to read the Ancillary books first, although I think it would help (and they’re awesome). Not sure how much Provenance relates, as I didn’t enjoy it and DNFed. Translation State is really good though, looking at the life and society of the Presger translators (as you might imagine), and giving some glimpses of what’s going on in the broader setting. I have enjoyed the books giving hints of that bigger picture, but would love one like Ancillary Justice where that’s more of a primary focus. I’d say this book is award worthy (as are all the ones I ranked higher), but I also feel like it’s linked enough to the setting that it’s fair to treat it more like a sequel, and I’m less inclined to award sequels major awards.
4: (Nebula Nominee) The Water Outlaws, S.L. Huang (Tordotcom; Solaris UK)
Stars: 3.82
Number of ratings: 2,326
The Water Outlaws is a queer, gender bent retelling of the Chinese classic Water Margin. And by classic, I mean in the sense that Don Quixote or Middlemarch is classic. It’s (probably) a 14th century novel, set around 1120 and following the rebellion of the outlaws at Mount Liang against the Northern Song dynasty. It is one of the 6 classics of pre-modern Chinese literature. At least, that’s what Wikipedia says, and it sounds like retellings and adaptations are pretty common.
I really enjoyed The Water Outlaws, and it’s the first that I would actually be happy to see win. It was fast paced and fun, but also had quite a bit of interesting insight into gender. It was also interesting to see how more Eastern values played into the story. I’m not necessarily very attuned to that, although it sounds like other readers can attest that it felt both like a Western and an Eastern novel. But I definitely noticed that the outlaws weren’t rebelling against the Emperor or the Empire really, just the corrupt people just under the top who were managing it. To me at least, it seemed to reflect the Eastern collectivism over Western individualism. S. L. Huang also has a great AMA on Fantasy from a month ago that’s worth checking out. This and the following novels are the ones I’m really hoping win.
3: (Hugo Nominee) The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty (Harper Voyager, Harper Voyager UK)
Stars: 4.28
Number of ratings: 44,645
A 12th century century Muslim lady pirate comes out of retirement for one last job. It’s fantastic! It’s also apparently set in the same world as Chakraborty’s Daevabad Trilogy, albeit some centuries earlier. I appreciated the obvious effort that went into research and world building, and writing that made it a lot of fun even when it was dealing with heavy subjects. And I loved when things finally got on the weird side, and supernatural entities took over the story. I also thought that it was pretty interesting to see how Chakraborty was able to incorporate quite a lot of diversity and modern ideals in a way that genuinely felt authentic and believable. Related, but perhaps a bit different, it was interesting to see Amina as a devout Muslim, despite not always being a great person (she is a pirate after all). So often, religion is portrayed in pretty uncompelling ways, either as bad or dumb (sometimes in ways that feel accurate and sometimes in ways that feel like caricatures), or in ways that are very pro-religion such that some big bias is showing. In Amina, it was a significant part of her life, but didn’t feel in your face. It felt lived in, if that makes sense, but well balanced with the other aspects of her life.
I’m very much looking forward to the next two books!
2: (Hugo Nominee) Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh (Tordotcom, Orbit UK)
Stars: 4.06
Number of ratings: 7,957
This book appears to be pretty well regarded, but also a bit divisive. The main character, Kyr, lives on Gaia Station, the last outpost of (real) humanity in the fight with the broader galactic society of aliens and their reality warping AI, the Wisdom. Despite losing the war and most other humans moving on and integrating with galactic society, Gaia Station is still fighting. The book is ultimately an exploration of indoctrination, how your upbringing and surroundings shape your worldview, and what can later shake you into new perspectives. It reminds me of a scene from the book, Touching Spirit Bear, where a counselor demonstrates that people change from slow, steady pressure that pushes them off the course they’re on, or by a single big push that jolts them out of their path. Some Desperate Glory is several of those large pushes. In some ways, that does make it feel a little less authentic, as we don’t see Kyr really change over time, just have some pretty abrupt shifts (the first of which very much was unexpected, although the second not so much), but it also makes those changes much more accessible, since that time could be pretty hard to show. Despite that, it’s a really interesting look at indoctrination and deprogramming. As someone who grew up in and subsequently left what could be called a ‘high demand religion’, albeit one that is much, much milder than Gaia in the book or Jonestown in real life on the cult-o-meter, there’s a lot of resonance.
It seems like the main reason people didn’t like the book is that Kyr is a pretty unlikeable character. To be honest, that isn’t a thing that normally affects me, at least not for main characters. I tend to be in their headspace, as that’s what’s presented, so I’m usually not seeing them as unlikeable. Some obvious exceptions if they’re really annoying, and of course it became pretty clear over time that Kyr wasn’t exactly a considerate or kind person, but Kyr’s growth throughout the book is pretty specifically the point, so that wouldn’t really bother me either, honestly. The other issue is a scene towards the end where Kyr is touching (with consent) an alien’s feathers as a show of acceptance that he’s a person too, but some people have felt it comes off racially coded and offensive. I feel like that is pretty clearly not the author’s intent, and it’s a bit overblown, but I’m also not from a group where that would be triggering. Someone on the publishing team definitely should have seen that this would come off wrong, and changed it to something else that got the idea across in a way that wouldn’t be offensive.
I do hope that we get more of the world. It’s an interesting setting, and I would love a book exploring how the Gaians integrate into society. And also looking at Kyr’s dynamics with her group now that she has a broader perspective, and isn’t always a well meaning asshole, as we didn’t get a whole lot of that once she had grown out of it.
1: (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) The Saint of Bright Doors by Vajra Chandrasekera (Tordotcom)
Stars: 3.71
Number of ratings: 2,056
My wife bought this for me as a birthday present, thinking I’d like it based on the description. And I did! He is now on my must read list, and I’m pretty excited for Rakesfall, which comes out this month. I had never heard of The Saint of Bright Doors, or Chandrasekera, but I absolutely loved it. Then I was surprised to see people periodically mentioning it on reddit, and then I was thrilled when it was nominated for both the Hugo and Nebula. This is easily the most daring and innovative book on this list, mostly because it’s pretty atypical. Honestly, the closest thing I can think of to it is Some Desperate Glory due to reality warping, but they’re mostly nothing alike. The Saint of Bright Doors follows Fetter, with a brief bit of his childhood, and then a jump to his 20’s or so. Fetter appears to be based on Rāhula, the son of Siddhārtha Gautama (the Buddha), with Rāhula meaning fetter, as he was a fetter on Gautama’s path to enlightenment. The book also appears to engage quite a bit with Sri Lankan politics, particularly surrounding Buddhism. I’m not super familiar with any of that, although some Wikipedia reading gives some clear parallels. Even without that added depth, the story was fascinating. The world is complicated and at times pretty opaque, and it has a tendency to shift and change as the story progresses. There’s a pretty deep sense of mystery with the bright doors, but they ultimately end up becoming just another part of the world for most people in the setting. Fetter ends up being part of a support group for ‘Unchosen Ones’ from different religions that, for whatever reason, were meant to be ‘Chosen’ but ultimately weren’t. Interestingly, each of the religions appears to be true. We don’t get nearly as much of the other members of the group as I would have liked, but maybe some day we’ll hear about their stories. I hope so.
The primary complaint I see is that the story meanders a lot and is quite aimless, and that’s mostly because Fetter doesn’t really act. He has little agency, and instead things just happen to him. When he does make choices, it’s pretty unclear why. That’s a pretty fair assessment, but again, not something that bothered me at all. I loved how I never knew where the book was going. I’d get comfortable with where it was at and what was happening, and then it’d shift pretty quickly. I can see why that could bother some, but it worked for me in this book, and kept me interested. The other aspect of that is how the story is told. There’s a big reveal towards the end that I won’t spoil here. We get a few hints of it along the way, some that if you catch it you definitely know something is going on, even though you don’t know what. But it goes a long way towards explaining why the story has jumps in time, why we don’t get much view into Fetter’s mind and decisions, and just how the story is told. The one downside is that the story ends a bit abruptly, and while it makes sense in context, it’s also less satisfying. But it makes me think about what I want from a story, and the place the storyteller has in it. Sometimes things being unsatisfying can stir more thought, and maybe that’s worth it. Should a storyteller always give us everything? It makes me think of a song from Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, The End of the Movie (some spoilers for that show). It captures some of the ambiguities in Bright Doors, but that ends up just adding to why I like it, whereas for some it definitely seemed to detract.

Best Novella

9. (Hugo Nominee) Rose/House by Arkady Martine (Subterranean)
Stars: 3.76
Number of ratings: 1,850
I really didn’t care for this story. I admittedly listened to it as an audiobook, rather than read it, and that isn’t usually as good an experience for close readings for me. Plus the only place I could find it was Hoopla, my least preferred app for audiobooks, because it’s pretty glitchy on the audio. My library has it on order, so I’ll give it another shot when I can do so in print, but all of that speaks to the larger issue that this novella was really hard to get a hold of, which is maybe not ideal if people are going to vote for it.
Anyways, on the story itself, it seemed a bit ambiguous. I couldn’t always tell what was going on, and on looking at reviews, that wasn’t just my listening experience, that was other people’s experiences as well. I didn’t feel like it added much to the AI discussion, although I did enjoy the house being convinced that a police detective was not in fact a person, but rather a police precinct. The story wasn’t all that interesting. All around, not a great read, with the above caveat on the listening experience, which is a shame since I loved the Teixcalaan books.
8. (Hugo Nominee) “Life Does Not Allow Us to Meet”, He Xi / 人生不相见, 何夕, translated by Alex Woodend (Adventures in Space: New Short stories by Chinese & English Science Fiction Writers)(Originally published in 2010)
This was a bit of a frustrating story. Some of the setting was interesting, but the insistence on both modifying humans to adapt them to other worlds, and that those modifications can’t be too much not human, because then they’re aliens, and humans can’t cultivate alien intelligences because they may at some point turn on us. The story is a bit more complicated than that, but it has quite a few things that just don’t make a lot of sense.
7. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) Thornhedge by T. Kingfisher (Tor, Titan UK)
Stars: 4.01
Number of ratings: 25,644
I loved What Moves the Dead and Nettle and Bone! As did many others, given the nominations they received. It’s starting to look like Kingfisher might join the ranks of the usually nominated at this point. And I definitely look forward to more of her work, with What Feasts at Night one of my next several reads. That said, Thornhedge was not my favorite. I loved Toadling, pretty much everything about her and her life, and the twist on Sleeping Beauty was interesting, but the story just doesn’t shine the way the others of hers that I’ve read do.
6. (Nebula Nominee) “Linghun,” Ai Jiang (Linghun)
Stars: 4.00
Number of ratings: 1,594
A thoughtful meditation on grief, and what it looks like if we could be haunted by those we’ve lost. In some ways it feels a little unrealistic, as people are more or less fighting to the death to get access to the houses where said hauntings can actually happen, but I can see how society might not have the will to ban such obviously harmful things if they also offered the chance to see your loved one again. The one and only reason this isn’t one of my top picks is because it falls apart in the last third. There’s a second story element that is introduced early on, but doesn’t take on much prominence until towards the end, and it doesn’t really fit. It’s another character whose story is relevant, and does add nuance to the themes, but it just feels like an insertion that distracts from the rest of what’s going on in the story. Linghun would ultimately work better if that character was stripped out.
5. (Nebula Nominee) The Crane Husband, Kelly Barnhill (Tordotcom)
Stars: 3.89
Number of ratings: 6,326
This is an odd book, to say the least. It's a retelling/subversion of the Japanese folktale, The Crane Wife. The main character is a 15 year old girl telling us the story years later. The setting is a pretty normal, slightly dystopian near future, with elements of magical realism when the girl's mother brings home a crane to be her new husband, and horror as that relationship turns (more) bizarre and abusive. It’s a symbolic exploration of both abuse and generational trauma, and it’s pretty interesting, but I’m still not sure how I feel about it. It definitely feels like the most ‘out there’ of the novella nominees, but this is the first I’d be happy to see win.
4. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Older (Tordotcom)
Stars: 3.64
Number of ratings: 5,689
I rather liked this story, and I'm pretty excited for when I get around to reading the sequel! While I've seen complaints about the language and style, that's a large part of what I like. More than almost any book I've read, besides ones by Gene Wolfe, every word Older uses feels specifically considered and used intentionally. And unlike in academic texts, the other main place that writing feels like this, this doesn't makes the meaning confusing or hard to sort through. Older uses complex, nuanced sentences with quite a bit of clauses and qualifiers, but it illuminates rather than obscures. It feels like the way I think (or at least the way I think I think), so I appreciate that. There's also a story and characters and such, and those are pretty nifty. One of the things I love on that front is how deftly words are used; without explicitly telling us things, the setting, characters, and world really come clear. While there is a story, the driving force really is the interactions between the two main characters, particularly as the viewpoint character deduces that thoughts and intents of the other main character through subtle signs. Anyways, more than any other element, the writing for this story really worked for me!
3. (Nebula Nominee) Untethered Sky, Fonda Lee (Tordotcom)
Stars: 3.90
Number of ratings: 8,153
Another book about birds, where the main character is a ruhker, someone who trains with rocs so they can be used to fight manticores. The book feels quiet, with the primary relationship being two humans who are both quiet introverts, and their birds who of course don’t talk. There’s action and violence and terror , but on the whole, it feels like a quiet meditation. This book is one of the reasons I’ve grown to love novellas. It could easily be a novel, but instead it just tells its story and is done. There’s a power in limiting your scope like that, a purity, and I feel like this book has that more so than any other novella on this list.
2. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) Mammoths at the Gates by Nghi Vo (Tordotcom)
Stars: 4.25
Number of ratings: 4,478
My comment from the Fantasy Hugo discussion of Mammoths at the Gates:
Each of the 4 books to date have Chih take on a greater role in the story.
In the 1st, they mostly seem like the context of the frame narrative, and not really a main character.
In the 2nd, the framing has its own story with the tigers that's as significant as the story being told by Chih and the tigers.
In the 3rd, the story told merges with the framing story, and they become one at the end.
In the 4th (Mammoths at the Gate), the framing story is the story, dealing with the grief of Cleric Thien passing, with the other smaller stories about him within adding or illuminating but never really being separate from the framing.
It seems that over time, it's shifting from Chih and Almost Brilliant being a means of telling different stories to Chih and Almost Brilliant being the story. It makes me curious what book 5 and beyond will be, because I can only imagine one more book of following that trend before I'm out of ideas on how they could be more of the story.
At the same time, it shifts the focus from what a story is and how we tell it, how we know what the 'right' version is, and makes it more and more personal. Book 1, the historical figures had different understandings of what was happening, to the detriment of the overthrown kingdom. Book 2, Chih and the tigers had different understandings, and together told a fuller story by sharing that. Book 3, the story becomes much more complicated when you actually meet the characters. Book 4, a person you know becomes more complicated and nuanced when you learn from others their experience with the person. There's more to the story of who a person is than your personal experience of them.
All that's super interesting to me. Each of the books really does function fine as a stand alone, and I'm not sure that there's a clear overarching storyline outside of Almost Brilliant's having a kid, but there's a thematic evolution that seems to be following a specific path. I'm pretty curious to see where it's headed. (In the Fantasy Hugo read along, u/tarvolon confirmed that book 5 is thoroughly The Adventures of Chih, so I guess that trend is accurate, and u/Nineteen_Adze thought that perhaps later books could have Chih hear stories where he featured as a main character, an idea I really like).
1. (Hugo Nominee) “Seeds of Mercury”, Wang Jinkang / 水星播种, 王晋康, translated by Alex Woodend (Adventures in Space: New Short stories by Chinese & English Science Fiction Writers)(Originally published in 2002)
This was ultimately my favorite of the stories. It’s about secretly seeding life on Mercury. Sometimes the language is clumsy, and I’m not sure if that’s the original writing or the translation, but ultimately it’s not too much of an issue. I loved the look at the alien life and their society!

Best Novelette

10. (Nebula Nominee) “Imagine: Purple-Haired Girl Shooting Down The Moon,” Angela Liu (Clarkesworld 6/23)
This is a weird story, and one I really didn’t care for. It deals with memory and how that shapes who we are, and quite a bit with people being used. Oh, and purpose haired girls. But if it was trying to say something in particular, I missed it.
9. (Nebula Nominee) “A Short Biography of a Conscious Chair,” Renan Bernardo (Samovar 2/23)
The story of a chair, as you might guess from the title, but just as much it’s the story of the family that owns the chair. It has an interesting family secret that’s eventually revealed and which hinges on the chair, but ultimately, this was a more interesting idea than story.
8. (Nebula Nominee) “Saturday’s Song,” Wole Talabi (Lightspeed 5/23)
This is the sequel to Wednesday’s Story. Like Talabi’s novel nominee this year, Saturday's Song features Shigidi as a nightmare god again, but also Hausa spirits. Both stories feature a frame narrative, with a story within a story similar to Vo’s Singing Hills noellas. I enjoyed it, and Saturday’s Song does tell you what you need to know from Wednesday’s Story, but it works better if you read them in order, as it functions more as a resolution than anything.
7. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) I AM AI by Ai Jiang (Shortwave)
This is a decent story, looking at capitalistic dystopias. Specifically, the pressure to be better while competing against AI, to the point where the main character is slowly morphing into a machine to catch up but in doing so loses what makes them unique and human. I don’t know that it adds a lot to the conversation exactly, but it makes some good points and summarizes some common concerns pretty well. I would have likely ranked it higher, but there were quite a bit of plausibility issues in the setting that I couldn’t really get past, and which made it much more dystopian than it would otherwise be.
6. (Hugo Nominee) “Ivy, Angelica, Bay” by C.L. Polk (Tor.com 8 December 2023)
This is a sequel to St. Valentine, St. Abigail, St. Brigid. And it was pretty good! I wouldn’t say there’s anything super special about it, but I enjoyed it. The lead of the previous story has grown up and taken on her role keeping her area of the city safe through small magics, but trouble is stirring. This story onwards are ones I’d feel comfortable voting for.
5. (Hugo Nominee) “One Man’s Treasure” by Sarah Pinsker (Uncanny Magazine, January-February 2023)
Our only Pinsker nominee this year! And while it’s pretty good, it doesn’t seem like a top contender to me. It reminds me of Wiswell's DIY from last year, thematically. It’s about several garbage collectors who remove magical items once a month, and the rich people who don’t particularly care about basic safety. Like DIY, it focuses on finding common person solutions since the rich don't care, something I can sympathize with. It’s a well told and interesting story, but that’s hardly a surprise from Pinsker.
4. (Nebula Nominee) “Six Versions of My Brother Found Under the Bridge,” Eugenia Triantafyllou (Uncanny 9-10/23)
This is a story about the bargains and sacrifices we make for grief, and how they can further harm and traumatize us. Also, it’s about how the devil exploits our grief and trauma to mess with us. It turns out when you go under the Devil’s bridge, you really ought not to make deals. This story and the following are the ones that I actually hope win.
3. (Hugo Nominee) “On the Fox Roads” by Nghi Vo (Tor.com 31 October 2023)
This story was pretty light on magical or sf elements, at least until the end, much like Vo’s other early to mid 1900s books (The Chosen and Beautiful, Siren Queen). This one is about finding yourself, and how relationships with others can help you do it. Even when those others start as complete strangers. Oh, and it’s about heists. I really enjoyed this one, and the ambiance Vo summons with her more real world settings.
2. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) “The Year Without Sunshine” by Naomi Kritzer (Uncanny Magazine, November-December 2023)
On the Fox Roads was pretty light on the magical elements, but they were there, and they were integral to the story. The Year Without Sunshine could pass as non-genre fiction just as well as it could as SF. The only element is an unspecified calamity that temporarily put a bunch of ash in to the air. THe story itself focuses on community working together when social safety nets are only semi functional, and resources become pretty scarce. I really enjoyed the the characters and how people worked together. It felt genuine and realistic, if optimistic, and seems much more helpful for real world disasters where things start to break down but aren’t post-apocalyptic. I would say it’s a very inspiring story.
1. (Hugo Nominee) “Introduction to 2181 Overture, Second Edition”, Gu Shi /〈2181序曲〉再版导言, 顾适 translated by Emily Jin (Clarkesworld, February 2023)(Originally published in 2020)
This is science fiction is the most classic sense, and done well, in that it looks at a technology (cryosleep) and extrapolates what kind of impact it would have on society. The closest comparison I can think of to it would be Stephen Baxter and Arthur C. Clarke’s The Light of Other Days. But of course, this is completely different in that it’s written as an introduction to a fictional nonfiction book, which gives Gu Shi a lot of freedom to tell the story in a unique way, with fictional quotes with commentary from fictional people who are important to the history of cryosleep. Towards the end, it gets into the personal story behind that history, the creator of the book, and the person writing the introduction, and that allows the technical and sociology exploration to add a really touching emotional component. While I don’t agree with all of the extrapolations (hardly a surprise for a story like this), this is easily the best of the translated nominees this year, and one of my absolute favorites overall from this year.

Best Short Story:

(Hugo Nominee) 美食三品 (“Tasting the Future Delicacy Three Times”), 宝树 / Baoshu (银河边缘013：黑域密室 / Galaxy’s Edge Vol. 13: Secret Room in the Black Domain)
Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to read this story. It appears to have only been translated into English for the Hugo voter packet. Since I’m not actually a member of the Hugos (maybe one day, if I can attend the actual convention), I don’t have the packet.
9. (Hugo Nominee) “Answerless Journey”, Han Song / 没有答案的航程, 韩松, translated by Alex Woodend (Adventures in Space: New Short stories by Chinese & English Science Fiction Writers)(Originally published in 1995)
Easily the worst of the translated fiction this year, or really just the worst nominee. The writing is stiff and clumsy, and it’s not just the translator as we have 2 other nominees to compare it with that were also translated by Alex Woodend. Minimal plot. The main character, who is human, is called ‘Creature’, presumably because amnesia has made him forget his name. It just doesn’t make a ton of sense all around.
8. (Hugo Nominee) “The Mausoleum’s Children” by Aliette de Bodard (Uncanny Magazine, May-June 2023)
This feels like an interesting story, except I can’t really tell what's going on. The setting isn't particularly clear, despite seeming pretty interesting. The story was ok outside of that, but not amazing, and it’s hard to come back from not really getting what’s happening.
7. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) “The Sound of Children Screaming” by Rachael K. Jones (Nightmare Magazine, October 2023)
This piece has some insightful comments on gun violence, but those make up approximately 2 or 3 paragraphs. It goes from a somewhat generalized description of a shooting to a specific one to a portal fantasy to a world with evil mice. Interesting, but it doesn't make a ton of sense and doesn't really all fit together.
6. (Nebula Nominee) “Bad Doors,” John Wiswell (Uncanny 1-2/23)
I didn’t care much for Wiswell on first reading him, with The House on Haunted Hill. I mean, I liked that and thought it was a cute story, but it wasn’t something I’d vote for. But his writing has grown on me, with each year getting better and better. Bad Doors breaks that trend though. It’s not a bad story, it just wasn’t that interesting to me. Not much happens besides a family falling out over political drama, and honestly that is a bit too much like real life to be worth reading unless it’s going to give some good insight or be really good.
5. (Nebula Nominee) “Window Boy,” Thomas Ha (Clarkesworld 8/23)
A strange story about the anxieties around the other, set mostly in post apocalyptic underground bunkers. It looks a lot at the relationship between the haves and the have nots, and the imbalance around friendships in that context. Are have nots always only friends to take advantage of the haves? Is that actually unreasonable if it is the case? But also maybe they have nots are actually weird 20 foot grackle bird things. The reality filters on the cameras to see outside the bunkers make it hard to tell.
4. (Hugo Nominee) “How to Raise a Kraken in Your Bathtub” by P. Djèlí Clark (Uncanny Magazine, January-February 2023)
This is where I’d really start voting for the nominees. How to Raise a Kraken is a funny story about an ambitious idiot who gets a newspaper ad kraken, one that is actually real, and the fall out from doing so. It addresses colonialism and hubris in a pretty amusing and satisfying way.
3. (Nebula Nominee) “Once Upon a Time at The Oakmont,” P.A. Cornell (Fantasy 10/23)
This is a thoughtful story about time. It’s set in an apartment building with tenants from different points in time going about their normal lives. Because of that, there are lots of rules to prevent info being transmitted to the past and to stop any harm from foreknowledge. The story centers on a lady from the present in a relationship with a man from the 1940's. It’s one of the more interesting ways of playing with time that I’ve seen.
2. (Nebula Nominee) “Tantie Merle and the Farmhand 4200,” R.S.A Garcia (Uncanny 7-8/23)
This is set in Tobago, with the local vernacular, and tells of a robotic farmhand trying to take care of an old lady's goat, and gaining further intelligence in the process. It’s a powerful, moving story. It’s occasionally a little unconvincing, in that the old lady used emojis in her youth but seems unfamiliar with what would be basic tech from her childhood, but also old people do frequently tend to struggle with technological things, so perhaps that’s unfair of me. It does a really good job looking at the social isolation of the elderly though. Tantie Merle and the following story are both the ones that I’d really hope win.
1. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) “Better Living Through Algorithms” by Naomi Kritzer (Clarkesworld May 2023)
The second Naomi Kritzer story, this one is about an AI app that directs people on what to do to make them happy. It’s a nifty idea, well executed, and something I could actually see lots of people being interested in in real life if it worked as described. It also has well written, interesting, and relatable characters. I’ve only read the CatNet books by Kritzer, and while I liked them, it didn’t have me searching her out. After Better Living and The Year Without Sunshine though, I’ll have to check out the rest of her work.

This years Nebulas are being awarded tomorrow night, so I thought I’d give my rankings of the Hugo and Nebula nominees. The Hugos are awarded on August 11th. Obligatory mention of how the Hugos appear to have been fixed last year, but that has been thoroughly discussed elsewhere, so I don’t really want to rehash it. And this year appears to be completely transparent, and I’m guessing and hoping will include efforts to prevent any similar corruption again.
For those who don’t like the Nebulas or Hugos, or don’t find them useful ways to find things you like to read, that’s certainly understandable. I’d love to hear your thoughts on any nominees you did read, or on works from 2023 that you enjoyed and feel are award worthy!
Notable things from this year: Martha Wells declined Murderbot nominations, a classy move for an already well awarded series. Lot’s of our usual nominees, while the only notable absence I caught was Seanan Mcguire’s Wayward Children novella, which is a bit of a shame as #8 is easily the best of the series, and it functions as a stand alone like all of the even numbered ones. But also, once you’re 8 books in, it does seem past due to start nominating other things. I’ll be curious to see if it was the Chinese works that edged it out.
A couple last things. Fantasy is doing their Hugo read, and it has some great commentary. u/brent_323 put out his rankings and comments on the Nebula novel nominees, and they differ from my somewhat if you want a different perspective. Lstly, I’ve added Goodreads ratings (out of 5 stars) for novels and novellas to give some context on how generally liked and how widely read each book is.

Best Novel

9: (Nebula Nominee) Shigidi and the Brass Head of Obalufon, Wole Talabi (DAW, Gollancz)
Stars: 3.70
Number of ratings: 633
Thematically, Shigidi is pretty similar to American Gods but with an emphasis on the Yoruba religion. My apologies in advance for any potential inaccuracies, my knowledge of Yoruba is based on this book, and some cursory Wikipedia reading. Different creators or gods have their own corporate structure, with minor sub-deities as employees. Olorun is the creator in Yoruba, with Orisha’s being lower level gods. One of these, Shigidi (a nightmare god in the book, although Wikipedia lists him as Guardian of Home and Environment), is trying to split from the Yoruba corporation and be an independent entity, along with his lover, the succubus Nneoma (based on Naamah, a demon from Jewish mysticism). To pay off his debt to the company, Shigidi has one last job.
It’s an interesting world, but despite the thematic American Gods comparisons, it feels nothing like that and has little else in common, and its structure ultimately makes it a much less successful book. Approximately a third of the book is the present day story, but most of that is in the second half of the book. The first half is brief tastes of the present in between longer chapters of background events. Those events are telling a single secondary story, just filling in the info you need to understand how we got to the present situation. Everytime we finally had some momentum, that thread would be done and I’d have to ‘get into’ the book all over again. If it wasn’t so broken up, I think I would have really enjoyed it, but as it is I was pretty done with the book by the time I got to where the bulk of the present day heist story was, and ended up skimming the last 50 to 100 pages.
8: (Nebula Nominee) The Terraformers, Annalee Newitz (Tor; Orbit UK)
Stars: 3.38
Number of ratings: 5,213
I loved The Future of Another Timeline, and on that alone will read any future Newitz novels, but so far nothing else of hers has come close to the same heights. The Terraformers is a set of 3 novellas set around 500 years apart, watching the terraforming of a planet over time through the eyes of the workers owned by the corporation terraforming the planet. Most of the plot is focused on terraforming, the corporation’s shenanigans, civil engineering, and civil rights, as the populace works to win the freedom to enjoy their home.
Very interesting, but it definitely drags at times. I loved the themes explored, although the civil engineering could be a bit much at times (said as a Kim Stanley Robinson fan). I did love the sentient buses, naked mole rats, and the cat reporter! Ultimately, more interesting than it was enjoyable.
7: (Hugo Nominee) Starter Villain by John Scalzi (Tor, Tor UK)
Stars: 4.18
Number of ratings: 43,367
I really enjoyed Starter Villain! There was some criticism of The Kaiju Preservation Society for being ‘light’, and that seems somewhat fair, although I likewise enjoyed it. People have leveled similar criticism at Starter Villain, but that seems less true. It’s quippy, a bit light hearted, but so are the other Scalzi books I’ve read (Redshirts, The Android’s Dream) it’s not exactly dealing with light topics despite that. It’s a critique of capitalism, and how wealth can become entrenched to both oppose what’s good for society, and oppose innovation. That said, I found the ‘villain’ idea pretty silly, as it’s essentially being used as a shorthand for disruptive technology, not for anything actually villainous or bad. I probably wouldn’t vote for it for a major award, but it was a fun and thoughtful novel.
6: (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) Witch King by Martha Wells (Tordotcom)
Stars: 3.71
Number of ratings: 16,432
While Martha Wells declined nominations for Murderbot, she did accept them for Witch King! It’s really imaginative and interesting world, and I’m hoping we get more of it (I hear she’s working on another book in the setting, so I trust we will). It has two narrative threads, the present day, where the main character Kai has been held prisoner during a pivotal political moment. The story focuses on his escape and the efforts to figure out what’s going on. The second thread tells the backstory of Kai’s life, and how the world came to the current situation.
I loved the world, and really enjoyed the book! It seems like quite a few of the people who didn’t disliked it because they thought the back story was a lot more interesting than the present day story, which I have to agree with, honestly. I wish they were told as two separate books, or in a way where splitting them contributed to the story. For example, a historian character that wheedled Kai about what has actually happened in the past could have been a vehicle for exploring the past events. Regardless of these qualms, I still enjoyed the book and look forward to more.
5: (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) Translation State by Ann Leckie (Orbit US, Orbit UK)
Stars: 4.11
Number of ratings: 9,848
Translation State is yet another book set in Leckie’s Raadchai universe. It’s not necessary to read the Ancillary books first, although I think it would help (and they’re awesome). Not sure how much Provenance relates, as I didn’t enjoy it and DNFed. Translation State is really good though, looking at the life and society of the Presger translators (as you might imagine), and giving some glimpses of what’s going on in the broader setting. I have enjoyed the books giving hints of that bigger picture, but would love one like Ancillary Justice where that’s more of a primary focus. I’d say this book is award worthy (as are all the ones I ranked higher), but I also feel like it’s linked enough to the setting that it’s fair to treat it more like a sequel, and I’m less inclined to award sequels major awards.
4: (Nebula Nominee) The Water Outlaws, S.L. Huang (Tordotcom; Solaris UK)
Stars: 3.82
Number of ratings: 2,326
The Water Outlaws is a queer, gender bent retelling of the Chinese classic Water Margin. And by classic, I mean in the sense that Don Quixote or Middlemarch is classic. It’s (probably) a 14th century novel, set around 1120 and following the rebellion of the outlaws at Mount Liang against the Northern Song dynasty. It is one of the 6 classics of pre-modern Chinese literature. At least, that’s what Wikipedia says, and it sounds like retellings and adaptations are pretty common.
I really enjoyed The Water Outlaws, and it’s the first that I would actually be happy to see win. It was fast paced and fun, but also had quite a bit of interesting insight into gender. It was also interesting to see how more Eastern values played into the story. I’m not necessarily very attuned to that, although it sounds like other readers can attest that it felt both like a Western and an Eastern novel. But I definitely noticed that the outlaws weren’t rebelling against the Emperor or the Empire really, just the corrupt people just under the top who were managing it. To me at least, it seemed to reflect the Eastern collectivism over Western individualism. S. L. Huang also has a great AMA on Fantasy from a month ago that’s worth checking out. This and the following novels are the ones I’m really hoping win.
3: (Hugo Nominee) The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty (Harper Voyager, Harper Voyager UK)
Stars: 4.28
Number of ratings: 44,645
A 12th century century Muslim lady pirate comes out of retirement for one last job. It’s fantastic! It’s also apparently set in the same world as Chakraborty’s Daevabad Trilogy, albeit some centuries earlier. I appreciated the obvious effort that went into research and world building, and writing that made it a lot of fun even when it was dealing with heavy subjects. And I loved when things finally got on the weird side, and supernatural entities took over the story. I also thought that it was pretty interesting to see how Chakraborty was able to incorporate quite a lot of diversity and modern ideals in a way that genuinely felt authentic and believable. Related, but perhaps a bit different, it was interesting to see Amina as a devout Muslim, despite not always being a great person (she is a pirate after all). So often, religion is portrayed in pretty uncompelling ways, either as bad or dumb (sometimes in ways that feel accurate and sometimes in ways that feel like caricatures), or in ways that are very pro-religion such that some big bias is showing. In Amina, it was a significant part of her life, but didn’t feel in your face. It felt lived in, if that makes sense, but well balanced with the other aspects of her life.
I’m very much looking forward to the next two books!
2: (Hugo Nominee) Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh (Tordotcom, Orbit UK)
Stars: 4.06
Number of ratings: 7,957
This book appears to be pretty well regarded, but also a bit divisive. The main character, Kyr, lives on Gaia Station, the last outpost of (real) humanity in the fight with the broader galactic society of aliens and their reality warping AI, the Wisdom. Despite losing the war and most other humans moving on and integrating with galactic society, Gaia Station is still fighting. The book is ultimately an exploration of indoctrination, how your upbringing and surroundings shape your worldview, and what can later shake you into new perspectives. It reminds me of a scene from the book, Touching Spirit Bear, where a counselor demonstrates that people change from slow, steady pressure that pushes them off the course they’re on, or by a single big push that jolts them out of their path. Some Desperate Glory is several of those large pushes. In some ways, that does make it feel a little less authentic, as we don’t see Kyr really change over time, just have some pretty abrupt shifts (the first of which very much was unexpected, although the second not so much), but it also makes those changes much more accessible, since that time could be pretty hard to show. Despite that, it’s a really interesting look at indoctrination and deprogramming. As someone who grew up in and subsequently left what could be called a ‘high demand religion’, albeit one that is much, much milder than Gaia in the book or Jonestown in real life on the cult-o-meter, there’s a lot of resonance.
It seems like the main reason people didn’t like the book is that Kyr is a pretty unlikeable character. To be honest, that isn’t a thing that normally affects me, at least not for main characters. I tend to be in their headspace, as that’s what’s presented, so I’m usually not seeing them as unlikeable. Some obvious exceptions if they’re really annoying, and of course it became pretty clear over time that Kyr wasn’t exactly a considerate or kind person, but Kyr’s growth throughout the book is pretty specifically the point, so that wouldn’t really bother me either, honestly. The other issue is a scene towards the end where Kyr is touching (with consent) an alien’s feathers as a show of acceptance that he’s a person too, but some people have felt it comes off racially coded and offensive. I feel like that is pretty clearly not the author’s intent, and it’s a bit overblown, but I’m also not from a group where that would be triggering. Someone on the publishing team definitely should have seen that this would come off wrong, and changed it to something else that got the idea across in a way that wouldn’t be offensive.
I do hope that we get more of the world. It’s an interesting setting, and I would love a book exploring how the Gaians integrate into society. And also looking at Kyr’s dynamics with her group now that she has a broader perspective, and isn’t always a well meaning asshole, as we didn’t get a whole lot of that once she had grown out of it.
1: (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) The Saint of Bright Doors by Vajra Chandrasekera (Tordotcom)
Stars: 3.71
Number of ratings: 2,056
My wife bought this for me as a birthday present, thinking I’d like it based on the description. And I did! He is now on my must read list, and I’m pretty excited for Rakesfall, which comes out this month. I had never heard of The Saint of Bright Doors, or Chandrasekera, but I absolutely loved it. Then I was surprised to see people periodically mentioning it on reddit, and then I was thrilled when it was nominated for both the Hugo and Nebula. This is easily the most daring and innovative book on this list, mostly because it’s pretty atypical. Honestly, the closest thing I can think of to it is Some Desperate Glory due to reality warping, but they’re mostly nothing alike. The Saint of Bright Doors follows Fetter, with a brief bit of his childhood, and then a jump to his 20’s or so. Fetter appears to be based on Rāhula, the son of Siddhārtha Gautama (the Buddha), with Rāhula meaning fetter, as he was a fetter on Gautama’s path to enlightenment. The book also appears to engage quite a bit with Sri Lankan politics, particularly surrounding Buddhism. I’m not super familiar with any of that, although some Wikipedia reading gives some clear parallels. Even without that added depth, the story was fascinating. The world is complicated and at times pretty opaque, and it has a tendency to shift and change as the story progresses. There’s a pretty deep sense of mystery with the bright doors, but they ultimately end up becoming just another part of the world for most people in the setting. Fetter ends up being part of a support group for ‘Unchosen Ones’ from different religions that, for whatever reason, were meant to be ‘Chosen’ but ultimately weren’t. Interestingly, each of the religions appears to be true. We don’t get nearly as much of the other members of the group as I would have liked, but maybe some day we’ll hear about their stories. I hope so.
The primary complaint I see is that the story meanders a lot and is quite aimless, and that’s mostly because Fetter doesn’t really act. He has little agency, and instead things just happen to him. When he does make choices, it’s pretty unclear why. That’s a pretty fair assessment, but again, not something that bothered me at all. I loved how I never knew where the book was going. I’d get comfortable with where it was at and what was happening, and then it’d shift pretty quickly. I can see why that could bother some, but it worked for me in this book, and kept me interested. The other aspect of that is how the story is told. There’s a big reveal towards the end that I won’t spoil here. We get a few hints of it along the way, some that if you catch it you definitely know something is going on, even though you don’t know what. But it goes a long way towards explaining why the story has jumps in time, why we don’t get much view into Fetter’s mind and decisions, and just how the story is told. The one downside is that the story ends a bit abruptly, and while it makes sense in context, it’s also less satisfying. But it makes me think about what I want from a story, and the place the storyteller has in it. Sometimes things being unsatisfying can stir more thought, and maybe that’s worth it. Should a storyteller always give us everything? It makes me think of a song from Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, The End of the Movie (some spoilers for that show). It captures some of the ambiguities in Bright Doors, but that ends up just adding to why I like it, whereas for some it definitely seemed to detract.

Best Novella

9. (Hugo Nominee) Rose/House by Arkady Martine (Subterranean)
Stars: 3.76
Number of ratings: 1,850
I really didn’t care for this story. I admittedly listened to it as an audiobook, rather than read it, and that isn’t usually as good an experience for close readings for me. Plus the only place I could find it was Hoopla, my least preferred app for audiobooks, because it’s pretty glitchy on the audio. My library has it on order, so I’ll give it another shot when I can do so in print, but all of that speaks to the larger issue that this novella was really hard to get a hold of, which is maybe not ideal if people are going to vote for it.
Anyways, on the story itself, it seemed a bit ambiguous. I couldn’t always tell what was going on, and on looking at reviews, that wasn’t just my listening experience, that was other people’s experiences as well. I didn’t feel like it added much to the AI discussion, although I did enjoy the house being convinced that a police detective was not in fact a person, but rather a police precinct. The story wasn’t all that interesting. All around, not a great read, with the above caveat on the listening experience, which is a shame since I loved the Teixcalaan books.
8. (Hugo Nominee) “Life Does Not Allow Us to Meet”, He Xi / 人生不相见, 何夕, translated by Alex Woodend (Adventures in Space: New Short stories by Chinese & English Science Fiction Writers)(Originally published in 2010)
This was a bit of a frustrating story. Some of the setting was interesting, but the insistence on both modifying humans to adapt them to other worlds, and that those modifications can’t be too much not human, because then they’re aliens, and humans can’t cultivate alien intelligences because they may at some point turn on us. The story is a bit more complicated than that, but it has quite a few things that just don’t make a lot of sense.
7. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) Thornhedge by T. Kingfisher (Tor, Titan UK)
Stars: 4.01
Number of ratings: 25,644
I loved What Moves the Dead and Nettle and Bone! As did many others, given the nominations they received. It’s starting to look like Kingfisher might join the ranks of the usually nominated at this point. And I definitely look forward to more of her work, with What Feasts at Night one of my next several reads. That said, Thornhedge was not my favorite. I loved Toadling, pretty much everything about her and her life, and the twist on Sleeping Beauty was interesting, but the story just doesn’t shine the way the others of hers that I’ve read do.
6. (Nebula Nominee) “Linghun,” Ai Jiang (Linghun)
Stars: 4.00
Number of ratings: 1,594
A thoughtful meditation on grief, and what it looks like if we could be haunted by those we’ve lost. In some ways it feels a little unrealistic, as people are more or less fighting to the death to get access to the houses where said hauntings can actually happen, but I can see how society might not have the will to ban such obviously harmful things if they also offered the chance to see your loved one again. The one and only reason this isn’t one of my top picks is because it falls apart in the last third. There’s a second story element that is introduced early on, but doesn’t take on much prominence until towards the end, and it doesn’t really fit. It’s another character whose story is relevant, and does add nuance to the themes, but it just feels like an insertion that distracts from the rest of what’s going on in the story. Linghun would ultimately work better if that character was stripped out.
5. (Nebula Nominee) The Crane Husband, Kelly Barnhill (Tordotcom)
Stars: 3.89
Number of ratings: 6,326
This is an odd book, to say the least. It's a retelling/subversion of the Japanese folktale, The Crane Wife. The main character is a 15 year old girl telling us the story years later. The setting is a pretty normal, slightly dystopian near future, with elements of magical realism when the girl's mother brings home a crane to be her new husband, and horror as that relationship turns (more) bizarre and abusive. It’s a symbolic exploration of both abuse and generational trauma, and it’s pretty interesting, but I’m still not sure how I feel about it. It definitely feels like the most ‘out there’ of the novella nominees, but this is the first I’d be happy to see win.
4. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Older (Tordotcom)
Stars: 3.64
Number of ratings: 5,689
I rather liked this story, and I'm pretty excited for when I get around to reading the sequel! While I've seen complaints about the language and style, that's a large part of what I like. More than almost any book I've read, besides ones by Gene Wolfe, every word Older uses feels specifically considered and used intentionally. And unlike in academic texts, the other main place that writing feels like this, this doesn't makes the meaning confusing or hard to sort through. Older uses complex, nuanced sentences with quite a bit of clauses and qualifiers, but it illuminates rather than obscures. It feels like the way I think (or at least the way I think I think), so I appreciate that. There's also a story and characters and such, and those are pretty nifty. One of the things I love on that front is how deftly words are used; without explicitly telling us things, the setting, characters, and world really come clear. While there is a story, the driving force really is the interactions between the two main characters, particularly as the viewpoint character deduces that thoughts and intents of the other main character through subtle signs. Anyways, more than any other element, the writing for this story really worked for me!
3. (Nebula Nominee) Untethered Sky, Fonda Lee (Tordotcom)
Stars: 3.90
Number of ratings: 8,153
Another book about birds, where the main character is a ruhker, someone who trains with rocs so they can be used to fight manticores. The book feels quiet, with the primary relationship being two humans who are both quiet introverts, and their birds who of course don’t talk. There’s action and violence and terror , but on the whole, it feels like a quiet meditation. This book is one of the reasons I’ve grown to love novellas. It could easily be a novel, but instead it just tells its story and is done. There’s a power in limiting your scope like that, a purity, and I feel like this book has that more so than any other novella on this list.
2. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) Mammoths at the Gates by Nghi Vo (Tordotcom)
Stars: 4.25
Number of ratings: 4,478
My comment from the Fantasy Hugo discussion of Mammoths at the Gates:
Each of the 4 books to date have Chih take on a greater role in the story.
In the 1st, they mostly seem like the context of the frame narrative, and not really a main character.
In the 2nd, the framing has its own story with the tigers that's as significant as the story being told by Chih and the tigers.
In the 3rd, the story told merges with the framing story, and they become one at the end.
In the 4th (Mammoths at the Gate), the framing story is the story, dealing with the grief of Cleric Thien passing, with the other smaller stories about him within adding or illuminating but never really being separate from the framing.
It seems that over time, it's shifting from Chih and Almost Brilliant being a means of telling different stories to Chih and Almost Brilliant being the story. It makes me curious what book 5 and beyond will be, because I can only imagine one more book of following that trend before I'm out of ideas on how they could be more of the story.
At the same time, it shifts the focus from what a story is and how we tell it, how we know what the 'right' version is, and makes it more and more personal. Book 1, the historical figures had different understandings of what was happening, to the detriment of the overthrown kingdom. Book 2, Chih and the tigers had different understandings, and together told a fuller story by sharing that. Book 3, the story becomes much more complicated when you actually meet the characters. Book 4, a person you know becomes more complicated and nuanced when you learn from others their experience with the person. There's more to the story of who a person is than your personal experience of them.
All that's super interesting to me. Each of the books really does function fine as a stand alone, and I'm not sure that there's a clear overarching storyline outside of Almost Brilliant's having a kid, but there's a thematic evolution that seems to be following a specific path. I'm pretty curious to see where it's headed. (In the Fantasy Hugo read along, u/tarvolon confirmed that book 5 is thoroughly The Adventures of Chih, so I guess that trend is accurate, and u/Nineteen_Adze thought that perhaps later books could have Chih hear stories where he featured as a main character, an idea I really like).
1. (Hugo Nominee) “Seeds of Mercury”, Wang Jinkang / 水星播种, 王晋康, translated by Alex Woodend (Adventures in Space: New Short stories by Chinese & English Science Fiction Writers)(Originally published in 2002)
This was ultimately my favorite of the stories. It’s about secretly seeding life on Mercury. Sometimes the language is clumsy, and I’m not sure if that’s the original writing or the translation, but ultimately it’s not too much of an issue. I loved the look at the alien life and their society!

Best Novelette

10. (Nebula Nominee) “Imagine: Purple-Haired Girl Shooting Down The Moon,” Angela Liu (Clarkesworld 6/23)
This is a weird story, and one I really didn’t care for. It deals with memory and how that shapes who we are, and quite a bit with people being used. Oh, and purpose haired girls. But if it was trying to say something in particular, I missed it.
9. (Nebula Nominee) “A Short Biography of a Conscious Chair,” Renan Bernardo (Samovar 2/23)
The story of a chair, as you might guess from the title, but just as much it’s the story of the family that owns the chair. It has an interesting family secret that’s eventually revealed and which hinges on the chair, but ultimately, this was a more interesting idea than story.
8. (Nebula Nominee) “Saturday’s Song,” Wole Talabi (Lightspeed 5/23)
This is the sequel to Wednesday’s Story. Like Talabi’s novel nominee this year, Saturday's Song features Shigidi as a nightmare god again, but also Hausa spirits. Both stories feature a frame narrative, with a story within a story similar to Vo’s Singing Hills noellas. I enjoyed it, and Saturday’s Song does tell you what you need to know from Wednesday’s Story, but it works better if you read them in order, as it functions more as a resolution than anything.
7. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) I AM AI by Ai Jiang (Shortwave)
This is a decent story, looking at capitalistic dystopias. Specifically, the pressure to be better while competing against AI, to the point where the main character is slowly morphing into a machine to catch up but in doing so loses what makes them unique and human. I don’t know that it adds a lot to the conversation exactly, but it makes some good points and summarizes some common concerns pretty well. I would have likely ranked it higher, but there were quite a bit of plausibility issues in the setting that I couldn’t really get past, and which made it much more dystopian than it would otherwise be.
6. (Hugo Nominee) “Ivy, Angelica, Bay” by C.L. Polk (Tor.com 8 December 2023)
This is a sequel to St. Valentine, St. Abigail, St. Brigid. And it was pretty good! I wouldn’t say there’s anything super special about it, but I enjoyed it. The lead of the previous story has grown up and taken on her role keeping her area of the city safe through small magics, but trouble is stirring. This story onwards are ones I’d feel comfortable voting for.
5. (Hugo Nominee) “One Man’s Treasure” by Sarah Pinsker (Uncanny Magazine, January-February 2023)
Our only Pinsker nominee this year! And while it’s pretty good, it doesn’t seem like a top contender to me. It reminds me of Wiswell's DIY from last year, thematically. It’s about several garbage collectors who remove magical items once a month, and the rich people who don’t particularly care about basic safety. Like DIY, it focuses on finding common person solutions since the rich don't care, something I can sympathize with. It’s a well told and interesting story, but that’s hardly a surprise from Pinsker.
4. (Nebula Nominee) “Six Versions of My Brother Found Under the Bridge,” Eugenia Triantafyllou (Uncanny 9-10/23)
This is a story about the bargains and sacrifices we make for grief, and how they can further harm and traumatize us. Also, it’s about how the devil exploits our grief and trauma to mess with us. It turns out when you go under the Devil’s bridge, you really ought not to make deals. This story and the following are the ones that I actually hope win.
3. (Hugo Nominee) “On the Fox Roads” by Nghi Vo (Tor.com 31 October 2023)
This story was pretty light on magical or sf elements, at least until the end, much like Vo’s other early to mid 1900s books (The Chosen and Beautiful, Siren Queen). This one is about finding yourself, and how relationships with others can help you do it. Even when those others start as complete strangers. Oh, and it’s about heists. I really enjoyed this one, and the ambiance Vo summons with her more real world settings.
2. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) “The Year Without Sunshine” by Naomi Kritzer (Uncanny Magazine, November-December 2023)
On the Fox Roads was pretty light on the magical elements, but they were there, and they were integral to the story. The Year Without Sunshine could pass as non-genre fiction just as well as it could as SF. The only element is an unspecified calamity that temporarily put a bunch of ash in to the air. THe story itself focuses on community working together when social safety nets are only semi functional, and resources become pretty scarce. I really enjoyed the the characters and how people worked together. It felt genuine and realistic, if optimistic, and seems much more helpful for real world disasters where things start to break down but aren’t post-apocalyptic. I would say it’s a very inspiring story.
1. (Hugo Nominee) “Introduction to 2181 Overture, Second Edition”, Gu Shi /〈2181序曲〉再版导言, 顾适 translated by Emily Jin (Clarkesworld, February 2023)(Originally published in 2020)
This is science fiction is the most classic sense, and done well, in that it looks at a technology (cryosleep) and extrapolates what kind of impact it would have on society. The closest comparison I can think of to it would be Stephen Baxter and Arthur C. Clarke’s The Light of Other Days. But of course, this is completely different in that it’s written as an introduction to a fictional nonfiction book, which gives Gu Shi a lot of freedom to tell the story in a unique way, with fictional quotes with commentary from fictional people who are important to the history of cryosleep. Towards the end, it gets into the personal story behind that history, the creator of the book, and the person writing the introduction, and that allows the technical and sociology exploration to add a really touching emotional component. While I don’t agree with all of the extrapolations (hardly a surprise for a story like this), this is easily the best of the translated nominees this year, and one of my absolute favorites overall from this year.

Best Short Story:

(Hugo Nominee) 美食三品 (“Tasting the Future Delicacy Three Times”), 宝树 / Baoshu (银河边缘013：黑域密室 / Galaxy’s Edge Vol. 13: Secret Room in the Black Domain)
Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to read this story. It appears to have only been translated into English for the Hugo voter packet. Since I’m not actually a member of the Hugos (maybe one day, if I can attend the actual convention), I don’t have the packet.
9. (Hugo Nominee) “Answerless Journey”, Han Song / 没有答案的航程, 韩松, translated by Alex Woodend (Adventures in Space: New Short stories by Chinese & English Science Fiction Writers)(Originally published in 1995)
Easily the worst of the translated fiction this year, or really just the worst nominee. The writing is stiff and clumsy, and it’s not just the translator as we have 2 other nominees to compare it with that were also translated by Alex Woodend. Minimal plot. The main character, who is human, is called ‘Creature’, presumably because amnesia has made him forget his name. It just doesn’t make a ton of sense all around.
8. (Hugo Nominee) “The Mausoleum’s Children” by Aliette de Bodard (Uncanny Magazine, May-June 2023)
This feels like an interesting story, except I can’t really tell what's going on. The setting isn't particularly clear, despite seeming pretty interesting. The story was ok outside of that, but not amazing, and it’s hard to come back from not really getting what’s happening.
7. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) “The Sound of Children Screaming” by Rachael K. Jones (Nightmare Magazine, October 2023)
This piece has some insightful comments on gun violence, but those make up approximately 2 or 3 paragraphs. It goes from a somewhat generalized description of a shooting to a specific one to a portal fantasy to a world with evil mice. Interesting, but it doesn't make a ton of sense and doesn't really all fit together.
6. (Nebula Nominee) “Bad Doors,” John Wiswell (Uncanny 1-2/23)
I didn’t care much for Wiswell on first reading him, with The House on Haunted Hill. I mean, I liked that and thought it was a cute story, but it wasn’t something I’d vote for. But his writing has grown on me, with each year getting better and better. Bad Doors breaks that trend though. It’s not a bad story, it just wasn’t that interesting to me. Not much happens besides a family falling out over political drama, and honestly that is a bit too much like real life to be worth reading unless it’s going to give some good insight or be really good.
5. (Nebula Nominee) “Window Boy,” Thomas Ha (Clarkesworld 8/23)
A strange story about the anxieties around the other, set mostly in post apocalyptic underground bunkers. It looks a lot at the relationship between the haves and the have nots, and the imbalance around friendships in that context. Are have nots always only friends to take advantage of the haves? Is that actually unreasonable if it is the case? But also maybe they have nots are actually weird 20 foot grackle bird things. The reality filters on the cameras to see outside the bunkers make it hard to tell.
4. (Hugo Nominee) “How to Raise a Kraken in Your Bathtub” by P. Djèlí Clark (Uncanny Magazine, January-February 2023)
This is where I’d really start voting for the nominees. How to Raise a Kraken is a funny story about an ambitious idiot who gets a newspaper ad kraken, one that is actually real, and the fall out from doing so. It addresses colonialism and hubris in a pretty amusing and satisfying way.
3. (Nebula Nominee) “Once Upon a Time at The Oakmont,” P.A. Cornell (Fantasy 10/23)
This is a thoughtful story about time. It’s set in an apartment building with tenants from different points in time going about their normal lives. Because of that, there are lots of rules to prevent info being transmitted to the past and to stop any harm from foreknowledge. The story centers on a lady from the present in a relationship with a man from the 1940's. It’s one of the more interesting ways of playing with time that I’ve seen.
2. (Nebula Nominee) “Tantie Merle and the Farmhand 4200,” R.S.A Garcia (Uncanny 7-8/23)
This is set in Tobago, with the local vernacular, and tells of a robotic farmhand trying to take care of an old lady's goat, and gaining further intelligence in the process. It’s a powerful, moving story. It’s occasionally a little unconvincing, in that the old lady used emojis in her youth but seems unfamiliar with what would be basic tech from her childhood, but also old people do frequently tend to struggle with technological things, so perhaps that’s unfair of me. It does a really good job looking at the social isolation of the elderly though. Tantie Merle and the following story are both the ones that I’d really hope win.
1. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) “Better Living Through Algorithms” by Naomi Kritzer (Clarkesworld May 2023)
The second Naomi Kritzer story, this one is about an AI app that directs people on what to do to make them happy. It’s a nifty idea, well executed, and something I could actually see lots of people being interested in in real life if it worked as described. It also has well written, interesting, and relatable characters. I’ve only read the CatNet books by Kritzer, and while I liked them, it didn’t have me searching her out. After Better Living and The Year Without Sunshine though, I’ll have to check out the rest of her work.

As you can see, my timeline consist of two different shade of grey. So I've been working on a video and suddenly my timeline become like the photo shown and I am unable to add any audio or video into the timeline that is in darker grey unless I create another new Tracks. I probably click something but i couldn't figure it out
https://preview.redd.it/dq6o9b1cn85d1.png?width=2560&format=png&auto=webp&s=f070a36f47d5a2af87bf43576680159d11755dba

Tattoos and piercings. We took that sh!t to the next level didn’t we gang? At this point there’s nothing new you could do. Cock ring! Anyone here got their junk bolted, studded or spiked? It’s old school. Cock n clit rings are like mullets or knitted sweaters now. For the aged.
I wanna do something a little different. Something special. Unique. Pierce my lungs maybe. Make a statement.
I figured it out. I’m getting my skeleton etched. Just have Chinese calligraphy carved into my femur. That I was told is my name in mandarin but actually says “gotcha!”
The smart asses are asking “so how will anyone ever see this etching huh?
X-ray chain!
Yes sir. You get the X-Ray of the etched bone printed and hung on a gold chain. wear it around my neck. So you can know immediately, Just peering straight through my soul
This is someone I must never pursue a conversation with.

Hi Everyone, later this month I will be 7 years out of my Glioblastoma diagnosis. I was 30 years old when I was diagnosed and am 37 years old now. Over the last 6+ years, I have been put in contact with many people battling the same diagnosis and decided to create a Word document titled "Health & Happiness", which details all of the things I have incorporated into my healing journey. Everyone is different and I am simply sharing what has worked for me. Neither me or my wife are in the medical field however we have spent a lot of time researching things to integrate into my day-to-day life which we believe are keeping me healthy. For the first 5 years of my journey I received MRI's every 8 weeks; now that I am more than 5 years out I get MRI's every 12 weeks. Below is a copy and paste of the document:
*Below there are some discount codes that I have not affiliation with and found them through IG or marketing emails and they might be outdated*
My Neurosurgeon:
Dr. Mitchel Berger - UCSF
My Neuro Oncologist:
Dr. Timothy Cloughesy - UCLA
My Naturopathic Doctor:
· Christian Gonzalez, ND
o Check out his podcast, “Heal Thy Self” – This podcast has been life-changing for my wife and I. It has provided us with assurance about the path that we have been on to keep me healthy and has opened our eyes to so many things that we thought were “good” and “healthy” when in fact we were grossly misled to a technique called “Green Washing” that a lot of companies and products use in their marketing efforts.
· Below are two links where you can find a ND in your area.
o Naturopath Oncologist Database - https://oncanp.org/directory/
o General Naturopath Doctor Database - https://www.naturopathic.org/AF_MemberDirectory.asp?version=2
CBD/THC Extracts - Cancer Protocols:
· I went through CT's full 90 day protocol back in 2017 in conjunction with radiation and chemo (Temodar). I am on CT's "maintenance" program and have been since I finished the 90 day protocol.
o https://www.constancetherapeutics.com/
o https://www.forbes.com/sites/abbierosne2019/01/24/constance-finleys-midlife-detour-to-cannabis-extraction-connoisseu#456c41bc35c6
§ The article above is from Forbes magazine on Constance and how she got started.
Books and Documentaries:
· Radical Remission. This book was the first book I read when I was diagnosed and gave me knowledge and motivation to not look at my diagnosis as a death sentence. One of the most powerful cancer books I have read and I highly recommend it for anyone that has cancer or knows someone that has cancer. 😊
· What the Health: Netflix
· Heal: Netflix
o Here are a couple ‘extras’ from “Heal” that we found very powerful and inspiring.
§ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7sxmK8A-Kco&list=PLmcZvnvGDkToo9nYIX3ugcgyLCll0NLLc&utm_content=b080891cf2ccb1c272c432873d52f9cd&utm_campaign=Don%27t+believe+you+can+change+your+destiny%3F+This+video+could+help+you+change+your+mind.&utm_source=Robly.com&utm_medium=email

§ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EeQjNRahxrw&feature=youtu.be&utm_content=eadbd6e0e0dff2d44d28e6515fa4c2a1&utm_campaign=Rob+Wergin+use+his+incredible+and+unique+gifts&utm_source=Robly.com&utm_medium=email

o The Documentary “Heal”, did so well they wrote a book as well.
· The Game Changers – A documentary on Netflix.
· Forks Over Knives - Netflix
· Cowspiracy – Netflix
· The China Study – Book outlining the most comprehensive study done on nutrition, and the links the standard American diet has to all types of diseases including cancer.
· Being In Balance - Book
· You The Healer – Book
· The Power of Now – Book
· The Celestine Prophecy – Book
· How Not To Die – Book
· The Truth About Cancer – Documentary


Supplements I am taking:
· Maca Root
· Vitamin B12
· Gaia – “Liver Health”
· Bladderwrack & Sea Moss
o We purchase these from- https://alkalineveganshop.com/
· Mushroom Supplements: Chaga, Turkey Tail, Maitake, Reishi, Cordyceps & Lion’s Mane (Real Mushrooms is the company we use.) See video and article below about the health benefits of mushrooms.
o https://www.realmushrooms.com/
o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuL_faveAnw
o https://www.drweil.com/health-wellness/body-mind-spirit/canceturkey-tail-mushrooms-for-cancer-treatment/
o Paul Stamets is the CEO of Host Defense and his mother was diagnosed with Stage Four Breast Cancer. He gives a lot of credit to her remission from the mushroom supplements. https://hostdefense.com/also has a 10% off first time order. We order from Vitacost.com though due to their sales and free shipping.
· Agaricus Mushroom – I take it at night with my Essiac Tea (See Below)
· Kelp
· Vitamin D3
· Graviola/Soursop – (can be taken as a supplement or in Tea form)
· Ashwagandha –Benefits and study links below. In the first link below, each number found in the article is a hyper link showcasing different studies that have been conducted proving the benefits listed.
o https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/12-proven-ashwagandha-benefits#section3
o https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26650066
· Vitamin B2
· Boswellia (Frankincense)
· Melatonin
· CoQ10
[· X-R Shield by LifeExtension – My ND prescribed me to take these 5 days prior to air travel, during travel and 5 days after air travel. When flying, you’re exposed to high amounts of radiation and this supplement helps to protect cell DNA damage]()
· Chaparral
o We purchase these from- https://alkalineveganshop.com/
· Liposomal Glutathione – Quicksilver Scientific
· NAC (N-Acetyl-L-Cysteine, Free-Form)
· Co-E1 NADH
· Probiotic – Klaire Labs, Ther-Biotic Complete
· Life Cykel Mushroom Tinctures
o https://us.lifecykel.com/?rfsn=3953957.f0c203&utm_source=refersion&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_campaign=3953957.f0c203
o Discount code: 0DCB4626
o Chaga, Turkey Tail, Reishi, Lions Maine, Cordyceps, Shitake
o All of the above mushrooms are harnessed in Kakadu Plum juice which is the most Vitamin C dense fruit in the world.
· We get most of our supplements from http://www.vitacost.com . They have sales all the time and free 2-day shipping.

Teas:
· Senna Tea - I drank this on the nights I took Temodar (Chemo) to prevent constipation, it's a lot easier on your body than any OTC medication.
· Essiac Tea - I drink 4 oz. of this every night before bed. People who have defeated cancer give a lot of credit to Essiac Tea.
o We purchase it in loose leaf form from https://www.starwest-botanicals.com/
· Moringa
· Dandelion
· Teas with Turmeric
[· Pique Tea – Organic, ceremonial grade, triple screened for heavy metals, mold toxins and pesticides. This is the only tea that we have been able to find that has a triple screening process for heavy metals. “Organic” does not mean free of heavy metals.]()
o Discount Code: GREENFIELD 15% off!

Other things I do:
· Meditation – Every day for 20 minute – I started off with the app called “Headspace” other people use “Calm”. Its personal preference.
o I am looking into taking a TM class (Transcendental Meditation) and will let you know once I do.
[· Minimizing EMF exposure as much as possible]()
o Sleeping with our phones in airplane mode and away from us, ideally in another room
o Turning off Wi-Fi at night, and even when not in use
o Covering Wi-Fi router and Digital Electricity Meter (outside of house) with EMF guards
§ These can be found here: https://smartmeterguard.com/
o Keeping cell phones away from our bodies as much as possible
o Not using anything wireless near our heads. This includes cell phones (always talk on speaker phone or a wired ear pod connection), air pods or any type of Bluetooth headphones, this includes Bluetooth in the car.
o Hardwiring my office so there is no need for Wi-Fi.
· When we fly, we have these blankets that we wrap around our body. This company has a lot of great products that protect you from EMF exposure.
o https://www.defendershield.com/emf-radiation-protection-blanket
· We also wear these when we fly, they are a company out of Australia
o https://radiasmart.com/emf-hat-hood/
o This is what we have: RS EMF radiation protection hood, blocking RF, EMF- Brian Coat
· Here is another company that is popular, we were not aware of it at the time of buying the other products above.
o https://getlambs.com/products/emf-proof-beanie
· Positive attitude and mindset in everything I do- link below to article explaining how thoughts can benefit or hinder your body
o https://www.huffpost.com/entry/how-your-thoughts-change-your-brain-cells-and-genes_b_9516176
· Eliminate as much stress as I possibly can from my everyday life
· Be present in my mind
· Yoga
· Spin
· Writing down 3 things that I am grateful for each night before bed
· Using Frankincense oil on my feet and pillow, every night, before bed
· Morning Routine: Body Scan Meditation, Drink a liter of water when you wake up (Your body is most dehydrated after a full night’s sleep), stretch or some type of quick 10 minute workout to get your body moving in the morning, “I Am” affirmations (I will usually do this right after I finish my morning stretching, I will typically say 5-10 things out loud to myself, for example (I am healthy, I am a loving husband, I am kind, etc…), statements of gratitude (I will mix this in with my “I Am” affirmations, for example, I am grateful for my bed, I am grateful for my home, I am grateful to have access to organic produce, etc…) I try to focus on this that I have in my life instead of things that I want, rubbing a 1-2 drops of any organic essential oil that you like in your hands in the morning and taking 4-5 deep breaths with your hands over your mouth and nose (this is very helpful in awakening your sensory functions), lastly, I listen to music when getting ready for work in the morning. Soft music in the morning taps into the creative side of your brain and research has shown that individuals that listen to soft music in the morning are more creative and productive throughout the day than those who don’t.
· Taking a walk every day to get fresh air and disconnect, normally with the dogs J
· Circuit Training
· Acupuncture / Energy Healing
· Energy Healer – Steve Montoya – Let me know if you would like his contact info. He travels all over the world healing people. He is in the LA/OC area once a quarter or so.
o https://ramonashealingjourney.wordpress.com/2015/11/04/you-shall-know-them-by-their-love/
· Keeping my body warm at all times. We learned from Traditional Chinese Medicine, that keeping the body warm protects the kidneys, which means all of the other organs can do their job and the body can heal. Also, just for example, when you have a fever, it’s your body’s way of protecting all of your vital organs so that they can do their job, as well as preventing any proliferation of bacteria and viruses.
o http://aprilcrowell.com/asian-medicine/warm-to-the-core/
· John of God – Brazil. Lauren’s cousin went down to visit him during the 4th quarter of 2018 and took a head shot of myself as well as a two-page letter sharing my story. He is a spiritual healer that helped a young man get to a state of meditation where his brain tumor shrunk to nothing. He sent back two bottles of Herbs (Ground Up Passion Flower Leaves – Actual Name: Passiflora) for me to take. There is a large portion about him in the book “Radical Remission” and he is featured in “Heal” as well.
· I brush my teeth with my less dominant hand once a day and then with my dominant hand the other two times.
o This helps stimulate parts of the brain that are not in use often. You can do this with many things, brushing your hair, using your less dominant foot in sports, washing your body with soap while showering.
· Drinking and eating out of glass vs. plastic. It’s having an effect on both men and women’s endocrine systems (hormones, fertility, etc…)
o https://www.plasticpollutioncoalition.org/pft/2017/7/26/new-endocrine-disrupting-chemicals-are-undermining-male-fertility
· This may sound like something so simple but it’s quite challenging: When moving/changing physical positions I am always present. For example, every time I sit, I tell myself I am sitting, every time I stand to walk, I tell myself I am standing. This helps me to bring my mind into a present state and focus less on the future or past.
o This was a recommendation during one of my guided meditations.
· Laughing, loving and hugging every day. This was a big take away for Lauren and I from reading the book Radical Remission. It’s important to laugh every day, love every day and receive and give hugs to people every day. I know, I know, it sounds crazy but it has worked on other folks, we practice it every day. We try to watch more comedies if we are going to watch a movie on the weekend, an easy way to incorporate laughter into your life.
· We recently added air purifiers into our home. I also have one in my office. We purchased the Molekule, but through research we found that the Air Doctor is another good option (and I believe also a little less expensive). Here is a discount code for $100 off a Molekule: MetroMD100
· IR Sauna (Infrared Saunas)
o These are great for detoxifying the body, especially after air travel. I go to Perspire (https://perspiresaunastudio.com/) here in Orange County.
· Epsom Salt Baths – Especially after air or any long car travel as well.
· Grounding/Earthing – Walk around barefoot on your backyard grass or anywhere there is a plot of “Earth”. Feel the grass between your toes or if you are at the beach, be aware of the sand between your toes. We are all energy and Earth contains energy, manifest the energy from the Earth into your body for increased healing, awareness, presence and mindfulness. I do this for about 10-15 minutes.
· Cold Showers (as cold as the shower can get) every morning and Ice Plunges. Look up the “Wim Hof Method”
o https://www.wimhofmethod.com/

Diet:
· For the past 6+ years we have followed a whole food plant-based diet (vegan without the junk food). Cancer cells feed off of Glucose (Sugar) firstly, but can also utilize glutamate as a second source of fuel (which is in all animal protein, land and sea). I have also cut out all artificial sugars from my diet. Dairy is also extremely inflammatory for your body and has been linked to cancer in many research studies.
· White Carbs and Gluten - We have eliminated these from our diet as much as we possibly can. Even for people who do not have a ‘gluten intolerance,’ gluten is very hard on the body’s digestive system. Excessive consumption can lead to a leaky gut, which causes toxins to seep out of the digestive tract into the body/blood making it hard for your immune system to work at its peak. Also, most gluten products have high levels of glyphosate, which they’ve linked to cancer. Glyphosate acts like an antibiotic to your gut (not in a good way), wiping out all of the beneficial gut flora which are there to keep your immune system working efficiently.
· Alkaline Foods and Water - Cancer cells cannot grow in an alkaline environment; we drink water with a PH level of 9.5. We recently invested in a Kangen water machine for our home. A level of 7 PH is balanced and anything below 7 is acidic. Cancer cells thrive in an acidic environment. Things that make your body acidic are alcohol, dairy, meat, processed and artificial sugars and gluten.
· I drink warm lemon water with apple cider vinegar every morning, which also helps alkalize the body and keep stomach acid levels at a great pH for food absorption.
· We practice intermittent fasting, which allows the body to not worry about processing food for a large portion of the day but rather allow its immune system to be working at its peak ability. We started out by only eating from 12 PM - 8 PM and are working toward 12 PM - 6 PM. Intermittent fasting is really important when taking Temodar (or any chemotherapy). It allows the body to protect the healthy cells while targeting cancer cells. There is so much research showing the benefits of intermittent fasting for cancer patients.
· This is a really interesting article citing a lot of different sources regarding a plant-based diet and fighting/preventing cancer:
o https://www.vivahealth.org.uk/veganhealth/dont-feed-cancer

Other Things to Research:
· Dr. Sebi – He is the doctor who put a full-page ad in the NY Post and was sued to take it down. When he went to his court hearing the judge asked him if he could prove that he healed anyone, and he furnished 70 patients of his that were healed by his treatment and the Judge declared “not guilty” on all the charges that were brought against him by the State of New York.
o The link below is a quick rundown of his life. I believe the pharmaceutical companies were heavily involved with his death in while he was imprisoned in Honduras.
o https://wakeup-world.com/2015/08/28/dr-sebi-the-man-who-cures-aids-cancer-diabetes-and-more/
· Radiation Stickers for your cell phone and laptop:
o https://www.amazon.com/Radiation-Protection-Labobbon-Household-Appliances/dp/B078SSD6QC
· We also try to use the ‘cleanest’ hygiene products we can find. There are many harmful chemicals in our everyday toothpastes, shampoos, deodorants, etc. Chemicals to avoid in hygiene products below:
o Shampoo – Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, basically any ‘sulfate,’ Parabens, Sodium Benzoate. Brands that we like are: 100% Pure, Acure, Alaffia
o Toothpaste – Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, basically any ‘sulfate’, fluoride, triclosan, DEA, Propylene Glycol, Microbeads. One of the worst toothpaste brands out there is Colgate. We use Himalaya Botanique & Nature’s Gate as well as Dr. Bronner’s All-In-One toothpaste.
o Deodorant – Aluminum, Parabens, Triclosan, DEA, Propylene Glycol. We have been testing out natural deodorants for years and our favorite (although not vegan) is from a company called Primally Pure. We’ve also started to use a brand called Joyous Organics with clean (and minimal) ingredients.
o A great website to reference for beauty product ingredients and their safety is https://www.ewg.org/
§ Skin Deep Database – This is where you will find clean products to put on your body.
· https://www.ewg.org/skindeep/

· The Clean Fifteen and Dirty Dozen
o The EWG, each year, comes out with an updated list of produce that we should be buying organic 100% of the time (Dirty Dozen), especially people like you and I who have had cancer. The Clean fifteen can be purchased conventionally if you can’t find them in an organic form and conventional is the only option
o https://www.ewg.org/foodnews/clean-fifteen.php
o https://www.ewg.org/foodnews/dirty-dozen.php

· The link below is a good read on Monsanto’s Glyphosate and the timeline for removal in home use:
o https://www.ewg.org/news-insights/news-release/2021/07/bayer-end-residential-sales-cancer-causing-weedkiller-glyphosate?utm_source=newsletter&utm_campaign=202108News&utm_medium=email&emci=9a939839-bef6-eb11-b563-501ac57b8fa7&emdi=4d3bfe91-dbf7-eb11-b563-501ac57b8fa7&ceid=2210188
These are things that we have done and have found to be successful so far with my body, and hopefully, they are helpful for you as well. I have also included some images below that show how damaging the effects of Wi-Fi radiation (and all of the radiation coming from electronics) can be.

Just clocked in for a 12 hour shift someone help me pass the time!
Hi, I’m Em! I’m a 20 y.o. female from Louisiana. I love all animals, nature, trinkets, cute clothes/accessories/purses. I work as a caregiver. I’m into tattoos and piercings. Right now I have 4 earrings, and a smiley. Used to have a bridge piercing and my nostrils done and I’m thinking about repiercing them :0 I’m 5’3, 210 lbs and have brown eyes with curly brown hair. Hut hut 1, hut hut 2. Big titties,big butt too. (Nicki Minaj lyric)(but also true)🤣I smoke ouid. I have two dogs, who are my absolute BABIES. I love music, especially R&B and “pretty sounding” music. I enjoy going to the shooting range and breaking down and cleaning my piece. Love going for rides whether it be in the car or on a fourwheeledirtbike. I wanna get my endorsement and get a crotch rocket so bad lol. I enjoy texting and I enjoy phone calls even more. Sometimes I literally do not stfu and sometimes I have absolutely nothing to say. Not sure what else to say😅 I’m horrible at describing myself. Message me to learn more! :P

In ancient Chinese dramas certain people such as immortals or gods have a symbol inbetween their eyebrows and I don’t know what it means. I have an idea but I’m not sure. I would like to get one tattooed but I don’t want to get something I don’t know the meaning to. If it even has one. Does anyone know anything on the topic? Or is it just a symbol representing that person?