To the Esteemed Residents of Fishman Island,
I hope this letter finds you in splendid health and high spirits, notwithstanding the delay in fulfilling a commitment that was promised under my name, Joyboy. It is with a heavy heart and a profound sense of responsibility that I pen this missive, keenly aware of the anticipation and trust you graciously extended towards me and my endeavors.
It is with the utmost respect and humility that I address the inhabitants of your illustrious island, a community renowned far and wide not only for its unique heritage and vibrant culture but also for the kindness and understanding of its people. It was with the intention of honoring this remarkable spirit and strengthening the bonds of friendship between us that I had earlier committed to a promise—a promise which, I am pained to acknowledge, remains unfulfilled as of this writing.
The task I had set for myself, though embarked upon with great enthusiasm and careful planning, encountered unforeseen complications. These obstacles were not in the nature of ordinary impediments, but rather a series of intricate challenges that unfolded in a manner most unexpected, thus thwarting every strategy deployed to surmount them. As I navigated these trials, it became increasingly clear that the path to fulfilling my promise was fraught with more complexities than initially anticipated.
Allow me to elucidate further on the specific difficulties encountered. The resources required to meet our agreed objectives, though secured with diligence and foresight, were compromised by a series of logistical setbacks. Moreover, the collaboration essential to the success of our project was intermittently strained by external pressures, which diverted focus and diluted efforts that should have remained directed towards our common goal.
Despite these setbacks, I wish to reassure you that my commitment to our cause remains unshaken. I am currently engaged in a thorough review of our project’s strategy, marshaling additional resources and consulting with a cadre of experts to devise a robust plan that will ensure the realization of our objectives with an efficiency and efficacy that both the mission and the people of Fishman Island deserve.
I seek not only your forgiveness but also your continued trust and patience. The delay, though regrettable, has provided us with critical insights and valuable lessons that will enhance the execution of our project henceforth. It is my fervent hope that you will view this not as a failure to honor my word, but as a testament to my unwavering resolve to do right by you, albeit in a timeframe revised by circumstance.
In conclusion, I extend my sincerest apologies for any disappointment or inconvenience my delay may have caused. I am deeply grateful for your understanding and benevolence, and I look forward to the day when I can report to you the successful completion of our project. Until then, I remain,
Yours sincerely,
Joyboy

>**What will you be doing with this PC? Be as specific as possible, and include specific games or programs you will be using.**
With this pc i plan on making/editing videos playing games like Call of duty, skyrim, and minecraft (the last two modded ofc) and emulating maybe even making my own game or mods.
>**What is your maximum budget before rebates/shipping/taxes?**
1,500 to 1,700 preferably between those two.
>**When do you plan on building/buying the PC? Note: beyond a week or two from today means any build you receive will be out of date when you want to buy.**
Uh Oh hopefully sometime this year or next………..
>**What, exactly, do you need included in the budget? (ToweOS/monitokeyboard/mouse/etc\)**
A tower and OS. i plan on using my tv to cut cost and my xbox controller
>**Which country (and state/province) will you be purchasing the parts in? If you're in US, do you have access to a Microcenter location?**
* the states and yes the closest micro center is 23 miles away
>**If reusing any parts (including monitor(s)/keyboard/mouse/etc), what parts will you be reusing? Brands and models are appreciated.**
* I am not reusing any parts
>**Will you be overclocking? If yes, are you interested in overclocking right away, or down the line? CPU and/or GPU?**
* Replace this text with answer.
>**Are there any specific features or items you want/need in the build? (ex: SSD, large amount of storage or a RAID setup, CUDA or OpenCL support, etc)**
Possibly a SSD but probably not
>**Do you have any specific case preferences (Size like ITX/microATX/mid-towefull-tower, styles, colors, window or not, LED lighting, etc), or a particular color theme preference for the components?**
I’d rather my parts be green if thats what you askin
>**Do you need a copy of Windows included in the budget? If you do need one included, do you have a preference?**
Yes I would like to include a copy. Preferably a Win 11.
>**Extra info or particulars:** TYSM

Hello future friend! We have started Konohaven Season 3 for the 1.20 release! Our main focus this season will be about taking on the game of Minecraft together (community neighborhood, build projects, challenges, events). So if you are tired of playing Minecraft alone on a multiplayer server, come give us a try this season and see if we are a good fit for you!
We launched Season 3 on June 10, but it is never too late to join as we plan to keep growing. Everyone can go at their own pace regardless of when they join.
​
Here are some basic info for our server:

• 1.20.2 Fabric
• Server located in the Eastern US
• Hard Difficulty
• Fire-Tick, Enderman Griefing, and Phantoms Disabled
• Single-Player Sleep
• Mostly vanilla (no fly, tp commands, etc.) with some quality of life mods.
• Live Map

Additional Details:
Shops - This season we will have minimal rules on shop themes or pricing of items. We welcome a friendly competitive environment. Only thing we ask of players is to keep things friendly... If there is a price war that starts to become toxic, then staff will intervene.
Events and Challenges - Plenty of events and challenges with unique rewards (ex. Custom Hats).
Community Neighborhoods - A majority of us will be building our houses at spawn this season. This is optional of course.Although our focus is playing together this season, you are more than welcome to play on the server solo if you like.
​
If you want to view our full guide about our server before joining, click below:
https://coda.io/@konohaven/konohaven-info-guide
​
How to whitelist:

1. Join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/ktkK42U3X9.
2. Read our most up to date rules, requirements, and policies here.
3. Click apply (in #apply-here channel under support) to start the whitelist application process. Generally, you must be 18+ to apply, but there are certain exceptions.

Hello future friend! We have started Konohaven Season 3 for the 1.20 release! Our main focus this season will be about taking on the game of Minecraft together (community neighborhood, build projects, challenges, events). So if you are tired of playing Minecraft alone on a multiplayer server, come give us a try this season and see if we are a good fit for you!
We launched Season 3 on June 10, but it is never too late to join as we plan to keep growing. Everyone can go at their own pace regardless of when they join.
​
Here are some basic info for our server:

• 1.20.2 Fabric
• Server located in the Eastern US
• Hard Difficulty
• Fire-Tick, Enderman Griefing, and Phantoms Disabled
• Single-Player Sleep
• Mostly vanilla (no fly, tp commands, etc.) with some quality of life mods.
• Live Map

Additional Details:
Shops - This season we will have minimal rules on shop themes or pricing of items. We welcome a friendly competitive environment. Only thing we ask of players is to keep things friendly... If there is a price war that starts to become toxic, then staff will intervene.
Events and Challenges - Plenty of events and challenges with unique rewards (ex. Custom Hats).
Community Neighborhoods - A majority of us will be building our houses at spawn this season. This is optional of course.Although our focus is playing together this season, you are more than welcome to play on the server solo if you like.
​
If you want to view our full guide about our server before joining, click below:
https://coda.io/@konohaven/konohaven-info-guide
​
How to whitelist:

1. Join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/ktkK42U3X9.
2. Read our most up to date rules, requirements, and policies here.
3. Click apply (in #apply-here channel under support) to start the whitelist application process. Generally, you must be 18+ to apply, but there are certain exceptions.

Hello everyone,
First let me explain a bit the situation. I'm a daca recipient who is married to a Mexican immigrant, we have 2 US citizen children under 6 years old. My dad just recently became a US citizen.
Now the question, is it possible to apply for an I130 for being related to my now US citizen dad, for me and wife?
The main reason is I want to be able to travel all together within the US, cause the past times my wife could not accompany us due to the immigration checkpoint since we live south in Texas.
Note: at the moment my plan is finish my engineering bachelor and have my employer sponsor us, but that still a few years in the future.
Any suggestions and information is greatly appreciated!

Hello future friend! We have started Konohaven Season 3 for the 1.20 release! Our main focus this season will be about taking on the game of Minecraft together (community neighborhood, build projects, challenges, events). So if you are tired of playing Minecraft alone on a multiplayer server, come give us a try this season and see if we are a good fit for you!
We launched Season 3 on June 10, but it is never too late to join as we plan to keep growing. Everyone can go at their own pace regardless of when they join.
​
Here are some basic info for our server:

• 1.20.2 Fabric
• Server located in the Eastern US
• Hard Difficulty
• Fire-Tick, Enderman Griefing, and Phantoms Disabled
• Single-Player Sleep
• Mostly vanilla (no fly, tp commands, etc.) with some quality of life mods.
• Live Map

Additional Details:
Shops - This season we will have minimal rules on shop themes or pricing of items. We welcome a friendly competitive environment. Only thing we ask of players is to keep things friendly... If there is a price war that starts to become toxic, then staff will intervene.
Events and Challenges - Plenty of events and challenges with unique rewards (ex. Custom Hats).
Community Neighborhoods - A majority of us will be building our houses at spawn this season. This is optional of course.Although our focus is playing together this season, you are more than welcome to play on the server solo if you like.
​
If you want to view our full guide about our server before joining, click below:
https://coda.io/@konohaven/konohaven-info-guide
​
How to whitelist:

1. Join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/ktkK42U3X9.
2. Read our most up to date rules, requirements, and policies here.
3. Click apply (in #apply-here channel under support) to start the whitelist application process. Generally, you must be 18+ to apply, but there are certain exceptions.

Hey all, it's finally time for me to go get my very first toller after years of waitlists and talking with breeders. However I'm not entirely sure of his name yet, I pick him up at the end of the weekend and I already have a list, but I'm still not sure! Any suggestions? I've been thinking maybe some nature themes because I plan to have lots of hikes and outings with him. So far my list contains:
Whiskey Apollo Jet Ash Ace Lucky River Bandit Copper Monty
I love all these names but yet at the same time none have really jumped out from the rest.

Hello future friend! We have started Konohaven Season 3 for the 1.20 release! Our main focus this season will be about taking on the game of Minecraft together (community neighborhood, build projects, challenges, events). So if you are tired of playing Minecraft alone on a multiplayer server, come give us a try this season and see if we are a good fit for you!
We launched Season 3 on June 10, but it is never too late to join as we plan to keep growing. Everyone can go at their own pace regardless of when they join.
​
Here are some basic info for our server:

• 1.20.2 Fabric
• Server located in the Eastern US
• Hard Difficulty
• Fire-Tick, Enderman Griefing, and Phantoms Disabled
• Single-Player Sleep
• Mostly vanilla (no fly, tp commands, etc.) with some quality of life mods.
• Live Map

Additional Details:
Shops - This season we will have minimal rules on shop themes or pricing of items. We welcome a friendly competitive environment. Only thing we ask of players is to keep things friendly... If there is a price war that starts to become toxic, then staff will intervene.
Events and Challenges - Plenty of events and challenges with unique rewards (ex. Custom Hats).
Community Neighborhoods - A majority of us will be building our houses at spawn this season. This is optional of course.Although our focus is playing together this season, you are more than welcome to play on the server solo if you like.
​
If you want to view our full guide about our server before joining, click below:
https://coda.io/@konohaven/konohaven-info-guide
​
How to whitelist:

1. Join our Discord here: https://discord.gg/ktkK42U3X9.
2. Read our most up to date rules, requirements, and policies here.
3. Click apply (in #apply-here channel under support) to start the whitelist application process. Generally, you must be 18+ to apply, but there are certain exceptions.

I am a university student that is planning an event with the theme of "Childhood". All I can remember from my childhood is mostly food and snacks. Can you guys tell me what other stuff you guys did in your childhood in terms of games, toys and activities?

I’ve been supplying for a teacher who won’t be returning for the rest of the school year (they are in the process of looking for an LTO) for the last week and probably will be there next week too. I’ve been doing lesson planning, but should I also be assessing? I haven’t assessed any work so far but am second guessing if I should have been or should do some next week? Location - ON

I didn't see the miniatures from this box set available individually on Reaper's website. Does anyone have any information on whether or not Reaper eventually plans on selling them individually?
Also, here's to hoping for a Crypt of the Dwarf King part 2. I'd love to see them add on to this with more themed minis/terrain pieces to match the style of it.

I really felt the need to talk about the episode of Batman: The Animated Series I just watched, and my family does not care, so uh, you are getting it urbanplanning!
I have almost finished reading The Death and Life of Great American Cities by Jane Jacobs,* which is of course in large part a response to the "urban renewal" and slum clearing that occurred on a large scale in the mid 20th century that we are still dealing with today. I am also watching Batman: The Animated series for the first time since I was a child, and I was not expecting an episode to ALSO be a response to "urban renewal" and slum clearing!
For those who may not be familiar, Batman: TAS is an animated "kids'" television show that aired in the mid 90s. I put "kids'" in quotation marks, because watching it feels very little like children's programing with its dark aesthetic, complex plots/character motivations, and mature themes. Case in point, my 7 year old daughter got through a couple episodes with me, but at the conclusion of the body-horror filled Clayface-starring 2-parter, she bravely said "Daddy, I don't think I can watch this anymore," which I agreed with and felt bad for subjecting her to it!
An actor transforming into a giant shape-shifting poop monster (Clayface) might be frightening to a 7 year old, but government bureaucracy is what's scary to adults, and a zoning board's denial of a massive "slum clearing" operation and subsequent redevelopment is the subject of the episode "Appointment in Crime Alley," loosely based on Detective Comics #457. Here, ruthless real estate developer Roland Daggett plans to secretly blow up a section of a crime-ridden but formerly upscale neighborhood, taking matters into his own hands after his board appeal to demolish and "revitalize" the neighborhood through legal means is rejected.
This neighborhood, formerly known as upscale Park Row but now as the titular "Crime Alley," has its issues with crime and decay (and is in fact where Bruce Wayne's parents were murdered). But the writers make it clear that it is its diverse citizens' home, and is worth fighting for, especially through Park Row resident Leslie Thompkins (who was Wayne's mentor after his parents' death) and others who hold signs reading "Save Our Homes." Thompkins' support for her community as a longtime neighborhood resident mirrors Jacobs' for Greenwich Village in the face of its redevelopment threats.
Daggett is championed by the business community, being called a "force for progress." He gives a speech to the community prior to the planned explosion of the block where he says, "we cannot allow the underclass to hinder us from building a better tomorrow," which strikes me as one of those "quiet part out loud" moments. Batman senses his greedy intentions early, and accuses him of "running the people in the neighborhood out of their homes." He later comforts his mentor, Thompkins, at the end of the episode as she is expressing her disappointment in the state of her neighborhood as they walk down its streets, with Batman responding to her remark that "Good people used to live [in Crime Alley] once" with "Good people still live in Crime Alley," even as he lays a rose at the spot of his parent's death.
Ultimately, Daggett is successful in blowing up the neighborhood and in his cover-up (though Batman prevents the loss of life), and attempts to blame the neighborhood residents for the crime, saying to a news reporter, "you have to expect violence in Crime Alley. These people don't value human life like we do," which was an especially chilling line that rings true to the dehumanization that has occurred against minorities and marginalized communities in the US. Will Batman take him down later in the series? I guess we'll see!
I was just really impressed with the compassion that this episode showed towards the people of this run-down neighborhood, all while still being honest about the poor state of things and the need for improvement. Jacobs' chapter on "Slumming and Unslumming" felt very relevant here, as the neighborhood still had potential that needed to be gradually coaxed out and nourished, rather than taking it to the extreme of demolishing the neighborhood and displacing its people. TL;DR, watch this show, it's good!
*Wow it's incredible, I also desperately feel the need to talk about it book club style, because I know this is a very famous book but I don't see many people talking about it past "Jacobs was very important and she rallied against Robert Moses." I can't imagine reading this book in the 60's and seeing over and over again for decades that she was right about so much, as we continue to dig deeper into the hole. Also, the people that say her theories lead to gentrification clearly didn't read the chapter "Self-destruction of Diversity."

Introduction

This is LONG, but I think I put some key things together and I'd absolutely love to hear your thoughts.
Anyone else think "I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can)" is about... ahem... a permanent fix?
I do. I'll get to that in a minute. But first, let's start with "The Bolter," because this intriguing post from today about the bridge of The Bolter discusses a possible reference the faceless men from Game of Thrones, who are essentially somewhat compassionate assassins. My analytical radar was pinged.
Could the protagonists in I Can Fix Him and The Bolter be the same?

The Bolter

Background: I think TTPD/the Anthology has an overarching theme of Taylor's experience with the music industry, leading to her feeling herself split into multiple selves, including closeting her queer self. (I have more analysis of that here.) I think The Manuscript provides a summary, with the key being an inappropriate relationship between a teen and an older man as a metaphor for music industry executives' mistreatment of Taylor and others, and listening "backward to move forward" provides a mostly chronological narrative.
Through that lens, The Bolter narrates Taylor's early experiences with the danger of fame. A near-drowning as a child leads the traumatized protagonist to chase the adrenaline of her near-death experience as she escapes from unhealthy relationships she seeks. The metaphor? The near-drowning is her breakthrough, and the relationships are record industry contracts.
TTPD is a horror story about what the music industry does to performers, so what better metaphor for breakthrough than a near death experience?
A little more line-by-line analysis:

And I can confirm she made A curious child, ever reviled By everyone except her own father

Everyone hated the protagonist except her father, and later the men she serially dates who are infatuated by her. Scott Swift acted as Taylor's agent as a child, and then she entered into a series of record contracts with different execs, each one promising bigger success.

He was a cad, wanted her bad Just like any good trophy hunter And she likes the way it tastes Taming a bear, making him care Watching him jump then pulling him under

These men are slimy, but she loves how it feels to charm them. She wants what they're selling.

That's when she sees the littlest leaks Down in the floorboards

Each time, though, the cracks appear, and she begins to sense danger.

But as she was leaving It felt like breathing All her fuckin' lives Flashed before her eyes It feels like the time She fell through the ice Then came out alive

Each new contract felt like the same dangerous song and dance, the same exhilaration of a new breakthrough. I don’t know all the details of Taylor's early record contracts, but I know there were changes and drama.
u/w00fbaderginsburg in the post I linked above does a beautiful job analyzing the bridge of The Bolter, with tarot references to aces and chariots signifying new beginnings and power (stated so much better than I can paraphrase) and brings in the possibility of the protagonist being "with men of many faces" meaning being part of a band of assassins, metaphorically. Which I love, because I didn't get that reference previously and felt like it was kind of a clunky rhyme, but Taylor is a goddamn poet and of course it has a precise reason for being there.
And the assassin metaphor brings me to:

I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can)

(Okay, first, I just cannot with all the articles about this song being straightforwardly about Matty Healy. It's some masterful TSwift first-person narrative storytelling, not a confessional. Anyway.)
So what happens when the serial teenage heartbreaker who casually mentions sharpening her skills with a band of assassins grows up?
Let's dive in; this part of the analysis is a straightforward, close reading of the text.
The music is foreboding. We're in a Western film. Taylor's using her lower register to talk-sing. Shit's about to go down.

The smoke cloud billows out his mouth Like a freight train through a small town The jokes that he told across the bar Were revolting and far too loud

Our narrator, an outsider in this small town bar, maybe acting as a prostitute but certainly here to seduce, spots her target. This is a bad guy. We don't know who he is or what his back story is. Maybe she's avenging something personal, maybe she's a mercenary who doesn't know either. But he's who she's come for.

They shake their heads saying, "God, help her" When I tell them he's my man But your good Lord doesn't need to lift a finger I can fix him, no, really I can And only I can

She deceives the townspeople in the bar, acts the part, seduces him. She's good, and she knows it. And the Lord is not going to decide what happens to this guy, she is.

The dopamine races through his brain On a six-lane Texas highway His hand so calloused from his pistol Softly traces hearts on my face

They leave the bar, head off together. He's taking the bait, falling for her seduction, and he's so aroused he has no idea what's coming.

And I could see it from a mile away A perfect case for my certain skillset

She has a certain skillset which allows bad men to find their halos. Makes them into angels. There's a double entendre here. She tells him to his face that she's going to "show him heaven," and he won't realize that she doesn't mean sex until it's too late.

They shook their heads saying, "God, help her" When I told them he's my man (I told them he's my man) But your good Lord didn't need to lift a finger I can fix him, no, really I can (no, really I can) Whoa, maybe I can't

And then - something suddenly happened. Whoa, maybe I can't. Now we're in the past tense. The good Lord didn't need to lift a finger. Was she in over her head - did the assassin get assassinated? Did he turn her weapon on her? Did he escape? We're left not knowing. But...

Look backward to move forward.

The very next song (in reverse) is Who's Afraid of Little Old Me, which begins:

The who's who of "Who's that?" is poised for the attack But my bare hands paved their paths You don't get to tell me about sad

If you wanted me dead, you should've just said Nothing makes me feel more alive
So I leap from the gallows and I levitate down your street...

IMO, WAOLOM is the climax of the album. It's a big sound, it's creepy, and it's CLEAR. It's not a deep metaphor buried in romantic storytelling, it's peak Taylor Swift Horror. Nobody is misinterpreting that one. The silk gloves are off. Who's afraid of little old me? YOU SHOULD BE.

Let's analyze.

If the Bolter is about a young woman's breakthrough and early record contracts, I Can Fix Him is a grown woman who has been through some things. In between the Bolter and I Can Fix Him is a lot of narrative about the various ways our protagonist has been tortured by the industry, lost herself, and started to heal. Her queer identity started making its way back into her. She's the albatross, sweeping in to rescue herself. She made a comeback. She can do it with a broken heart.
She's a powerful seductress-assassin, confident in her unique skillset, who comes in to kill a notoriously dangerous man... and suddenly, whoa, maybe she can't.
There's a surprise attack she was entirely unprepared for, and they kill her.
But nothing makes her feel more alive, and now she's free to be as unhinged as she wants, say what she wants, do what she wants.

What now?

[ETA: If you like this analysis, what do you think the surprise attack was? It could certainly be the masters heist, but if this is a reverse chronological narrative like I think, it may have been within the last few years - I think Cassandra covers both Kimye and the masters heist and the Alchemy refers to the comeback - the beginning of the rerecording project and planning the Eras tour.]

This is one of my favorite things to tack onto my crime- and rebellion-themed classes, especially my rioter and bomber. It sounds pretty obvious, and it is, but it really just requires you to look at this feature in a different perspective.
OK, SO.
The Firefighter big quest requires you to extinguish fires caused by NPC arsonists that randomly spawn around you (rather, it turns random NPCs into arsonists by giving them molotov cocktails). So, what I like to do is take that big quest, and then not take any way of putting out the fires. What does this do?
Well, it means that every floor, you'll encounter one or more NPCs randomly deciding to cause destruction around you and light shit on fire! Free of charge! They don't even target you, they target other buildings and property! Hell yeah!
This is, first, thematically awesome - because I love the idea that I inspire random people to take up the timeless, honorable tradition of arson. AND, it's mechanically useful! The fires and chaos these arsonists cause often works as a perfect distraction when you need patrols to change or specific NPCs to look away for juuust a second to make your grand plan work!
If you finish the floor before they've burned enough stuff, you can still get XP for completing the big quest objective on that floor, so you're not totally sacrificing that XP, either.

Hello! I have a ~2 year old Texas rat snake named chino that I got in February. We just moved (him included obviously). Unfortunately the day before we moved I wanted to take him out for a bit of handling thinking that he digested his rat that I fed him 2 days before hand, and that he would be okay because he had pooped in his enclosure, but when I put him back in about 5 mins after he regurgitated the rat. I felt so freaking bad like sick to my stomach because I knew I fked up. Fast forward 2 weeks and I’ve noticed his eyes have turned a little foggy (likely shedding time?). I’ve tried feeding him 1 times since we moved in and he didn’t want anything to do with it. All he does now is sit in his hide and I feel horrible. I haven’t bothered him for the past week or so, just looking in the hide to see if it is a shed or not. I plan on trying to feed him next week. Any input is highly appreciated

I’m currently a little over 9 weeks with my third and I’m going downhill quickly. I was very sick with my first pregnancy, but never went off the rails. With my second, I had HG with 2 hospital stays and an eventual picc line.
I’ve been trying to hard to avoid that and had convinced myself I had more control. My OB has been great and we have started on medication sooner and with all my lessons learned from my previous two pregnancies, I was in a decent rhythm where I was managing. I had hope!
Basically, nausea/vomiting gets worse throughout the day so I was getting my eating & drinking done early part of the day. But, my window kept getting shorter and shorter and now it’s gone all together. Have only kept one tiny muffin down since Tuesday AM. Fluids have been very hard as well.
Went in to get fluids today and that helped some, but I’ve been throwing up all afternoon/evening since then. Plan is to get a picc line put in, but we are trying to avoid a hospital stay so waiting on some moving pieces to get it done outpatient. Last I heard, the hope was to get it on Monday.
I’m feeling so discouraged and helpless because I’m so early on and there’s so much more to go. And I have a 2.5yr old and a 1 year old so I’m not a present parent right now. My OB offered to admit me yesterday, and I’d already have the picc line if I agreed and it’s feeling like I made a mistake. I felt like I wasn’t miserable enough to warrant that — because I’ve been worse before. And I’m worried about how far I’m going to deteriorate before I can get the picc line in.
I’m not sure the point of this post. I guess I’m feeling down about it all right now and looking for some support. I thought I would be able to manage it a lot better this round.

Hi Mark! Cheeky Ginger here again. Another HOA story for you.
You'd think I would learn not to get involved with an HOA again after my other post of being stalked by 55+ creepy guy. So, this one is about 5-ish so years after that. I was in my early-mid 20s with my ex, I'll call Brad. We were engaged at this point. He and I went searching for our own place with MIL the realtor and found a great townhouse, great price, all renovated. Came with some awesome giant pots for plants and I wanted to prove I had a green thumb. After so much searching, we settled on this townhouse and turned out… HOA! Yes, I was disappointed, but the cost was pretty low compared to other areas, they were a business type of HOA with an office and managed other places. I thought, cool… more safe that way.
Ohhhh no. By golly, no.
I've long since moved decades ago, so I'll say this place was in Florida, USofA. (Side note, with homeowners insurance, you have to get flood insurance separately. Pretty much everywhere required flood insurance so I was unhappy of the extra, but whatever… my other post I did slightly mention about fishing from my patio. I'll get to that.)
If you know Florida… hurricanes, afternoon rains, all that fun stuff. Our townhome backed to one of these ‘reservoir’ type of things to filter out rain water and there was a drain that led to a local canal. Okay, seen It before, no biggie. We'd get heavy rain, drains out or takes a day to drain, fine. Lots of places newly built were like that. We also had a few trees around the playground that was behind our building, tall ones, and helped with afternoon sun when the pup, Brad, and I would hang out back.
One day we had some massive rain come down. Wasn't the first time but this almost made it to our patio. The depth down to the drain up to our patio was maybe 5 feet. Guessing, since it varied on areas. We got hit with a ton of rain and I'm watching as it gets to the roots of the trees lining the walkway where the playground was out to the street. One tree started slipping and tilted. I took photos and told the HOA about it. Luckily the trees weren't tall enough to hit our building so I was okay with that. I just wanted them to know that the roots were failing and the tree is probably going to go down.
We were hit by a lot of rain at that time. The pup wasn't happy since he couldn't go roll around in the grass since the water was nearing our patio. Due to the rain and the drain went out to the closest canal, it backed up. The fish from the canal were swimming through and in our backyard. Me with my fishing pole, decided why not, I'll fish since I can't enjoy the space with the pup. A couple neighbors looked at me strange, but whatever, it's Florida. Did that a few times. Well, that one tree slipped down the embankment and tilted over. I told HOA, took photos, and advised it needed to get resolved. “Okay, we'll get it evaluated by someone and get back to you.”
More and more rain. Another tree with a strange angle started to slip and eventually fell completely over in the ‘pond’ of water, roots facing the playground. I take more photos and let them know it needs to be resolved. “We're on it. We have other communities seeing the same.” They acknowledged. I'm watching these 2 trees, I'm putting down sprays and traps for insects and rodents so they don't get in the home. 1 month goes by. “We have someone coming out this week to look at it.”
3 weeks later, I saw a guy stand on the sidewalk by the playground to take photos. He didn't write anything down. I yelled over “are you evaluating the trees?” He responds “the company wanted me to take photos to see how bad it was.” Hm… okay. I already sent photos but get a ‘professional’ to do it.
Nothing was happening. At all. My correspondence went silent.
Hey, I got a new job and guess who one of my customers were? My HOA! Here we go. My photos, other photos from other residents, other testimonies, parents in the neighborhood won't let their kids at the playground because of the roots on the sidewalk. Okay, learned my lesson, it's on. I head over to their business to work on something of theirs and mentioned my neighborhood. “We have a place that's going to take care of it next week and remove the trees.” Nice! It's been a little over a month.
Skip to 5 months later and I have been sending correspondence every single week, going to their business every 2 weeks, and phone calls about the same. When a few of us on the same block were fed up, we announced at an HOA meeting we will refuse to pay our fee until it's all removed. They brought the City in on that threat. I also had the City as a customer and made some connections within there. Once the City saw my documentation (thank you ex MIL for teaching me so well) along with the neighbors, they started to fine the HOA. They responded by trying to raise our fees. I know this may sound unreal, but I also had the County as a customer. (My job wasn't spectacular, it was just normal business related things and I made friends. My job dealt with a lot of government places.)
After speaking with City and County, who also had a meeting, they went to HOA and advised if they didn't resolve the issue, they would be fined a crap ton of money daily until resolved. Also they had to pay themselves, not out of HOA funding, to resolve the poor dying trees.
Within 2 weeks, trees were removed, a nasty letter sent out to everyone about going “over their heads” and not allowing them to “evaluate the situation” before being threatened by officials, we could see an uptick on our HOA fees. I took that letter to the City Manager and… she wasn't thrilled. She and I didn't get along well but, she didn't want County officials down on her. She contacted the HOA, fined them for the months that nothing was taken care of, advised they need to submit a reason for updating fees (I guess there's rules on back end. I hate HOAs so I leave them alone), and then our fees stayed the same.
When I would be there as a vendor for them, they treated me like utter crap. So, petty me would make them wait for me on my schedule until they complained. They were literally half a mile up the road where I lived, but I still made them wait. I'm a fiery redhead.
In the end, all other complaints made by any resident were taken seriously and resolved quickly.
I will say, since then, never lived in an HOA again. I plan on never again. My ignorance thinking a business with appointed HOA members would be better than shady 55+ authority lovers stealing money were better was stupid. Eventually, that place changed HOA, rates went down, they kept up with everything but I was starting out the door to my next adventure. I'm far, far, far away from them.
I still hate HOAs lol.

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