Venizier hadn’t been on the battlefield for a long time. He’d been in duels, sure, the other professors needed practice but there was a certain battlefield memory that he thought would never leave him, but, in the moment the woman had tired to stab him again, he realized he didn’t have it anymore.
He was immortal, but some part of him had died during his long years of penance . A part he was glad to be rid of.
Venizier snapped his fingers as his torso twisted completely around to let him face his attacker. The woman went wide eyed for a moment and then steeled herself in the face of the Lich’s impossible anatomy.
Only to get tackled by her old ally’s newly liberated skeleton.
As much as Venizier wanted to begin is lecture at this point, he didn’t have time. The leaders defiance had finally summoned courage in the Mage Hunters around Venizier.
The Lich brought his staff to bear as the woman tore his first minion in decades to pieces.
The first man to reach him was tall, using his reach to create a wicked arc with his axe. By the time it came down, Venizier had blinked from existence, only to reappear just as the man tried to recover his stance from his strike.
Two taps on staff runes. The grass of the courtyard twisted into vines that shot up and wrapped around the man’s arms at the elbow. A third rune command and they pulled, dislocating both with a sickening crack.
Venizier summoned a barrier, blocking a hail of manabane arrows from several hunters who had been clever enough to stay far away.
The bows were enchanted and almost unassailable. The strings weren’t.
A simple incantation, taught as practice to aspiring mages back in Venizier’s time, turned a simple string into a harmless snake. Venizier’s alterations to the standard spell changed the harmless snakes into basilisk spawn made of hate, who buried their petrifying fangs into each of the archers, spreading stone across their skin until it smothered their screams.
The next—
The woman was back up and at Venizier’s throat, this time her dagger found its mark, but it clashed against iron and cloth before reflecting off a hundred years of wards.
Venizier flashed from existence again, but this time appeared away from the woman, standing in the middle of the new statue garden he’d added to the school grounds.
The Lich looked down at his collar, at the tear in his robes. Had he gotten that sloppy over the years? In his prime anyone who walked into a room with him and lived was worthy of legendary ballads. Now a tenacious troublemaker had hit him twice.
It didn’t matter. He wasn’t a dark lord anymore. Professors were demonstrably more likely to get killed by daggers than Lich Demon Kings, but luckily, even if Venizier wasn’t as quick as his old self…
He was just as durable. And the woman, though tenacious, just didn’t have the firepower yet.
The leader got down closer to the ground, preparing herself for a sprint. Venizier centred himself letting the foot of his staff touch the grass of the courtyard. Then he spoke.
“As you may have noticed students. Despite Old Magic’s limitations within the runic system, and its preparation requirements, a prepared mage can match or exceed the flexibility of New Magic through dedicated study and understanding of their runic preparations and their interactions with on—“
“Are you ignoring me?” The woman hissed. The other mage hunters were getting their footing too, gathering courage after the last display. How many were left? Too many for a glancing count.
“I am continuing my lecture,” Venizier explained, “and ignoring a disruptive student.”
“I would never learn from you.”
Venizier missed having a mouth that could smirk. “You certainly seem incapable.”
The sky darkened as a sudden storm crashed upon the sky, clouding the sun and booming with thunder before the first droplets of water fell to the courtyard. Violet lightning streaked across the horizon and cut razor shadows across the face of each Mage Hunter.
The woman didn’t bother looking up. She kept her eyes on her mark.
She deserved her position at the head of these mage hunters, as block headed and tenacious as anyone still pursuing that career in this day and age needed to be.
“Once more students, now watch closely.”
The violet lightning arced again, but this time, in the last breath of its existence it twisted, carving a cursed scar across the sky as it arced toward Venizier.
The bolt struck with a cacophonic mixture of arcane shrieks and thundering booms. The campus flashed lilac, then grey as Venizier’s staff absorbed the colour, first the violet he’d summoned, and then everything life had to offer.
Lighting cracked above again, this time stark white against greyscale clouds.
The rain started.
The woman adjusted her grip on the dagger.
Venizier’s revealed arcane eye narrowed.
Lightning again, but this time erupting from the end of the staff. Bolts skittered along the ground, scattering in a thousand directions with a hundred forks.
The woman was fast enough. The other mage hunters didn’t know they were the target.
Venizier tapped two of the runes on his staff but before he could finish the incantation, the Lead Hunter’s hand slipped under his on the haft, blocking his fingers.
“Got you now Mageblood.”
Venizier didn’t waste time on banter, twisting their staff by snapping their skeletal forearm into impossible shapes. His wresting spin became a savage swipe in a single, smooth motion.
The woman leapt back. Two more mage hunters were already on the Lich with weapons drawn. Their blades found his core…
They stopped an inch away, held back by ancient magic that struck fear in the heart of metal, preventing it from touching Venizier.
The man on the right made a grab for the staff, but as he did, he put a hand on Venizier’s shoulder.
Lightning crashed from the sky and vaporized both mage hunters, leaving glittering shadows of arcane brilliance where they’d been standing.
Everyone on campus learned the sound of a screaming soul.
“Now class. Pardon the nature of the magic I’m using today. Old habits die hard.” Venizier finished his point by tapping his staff on the ground twice, leaving a splattering period in the mud. “My previous incantation connected these ruffians to me via an arcane link. Any contact with me competes the link and summons my lightning.”
The mage hunters for the first time, maybe truly understood the experience gap on display.
“This spell also strikes me, but my previously placed wards render me immune to this spell in particular. As I mentioned before, Old Magic is about planning and—“
“Are you done?” The woman asked.
“Are you?” Venizier leveled their staff at the woman. The other Mage Hunters took steps back. They’d lost their hope of hunting Venizier, and their will to continue the hopeless fight.
“You’re not dead yet, Mage.”
“So, this won’t end until one of us falls?” Venizier asked.
She nodded.
“I’m grateful that we live in an era in which I’m giving you the option of mercy. And I’m hopeful that I’ll live in an era where people like you accept it.”
“I’m hopeful you mages will pay for what you did.”
There were many things Venizier could say in response to that. It had been score of generations since he’d wreaked his havoc on the world. He could explain that these children had nothing to do with it. He could argue that the world was better now. He could argue that things were different.
Instead.
“I’m trying.”
The woman didn’t charge as much as she flashed forward, channelling all her speed to cut through the pouring rain, manabane dagger slashing through droplets on the way to Venizier’s mask.
He blocked with his staff. She pivoted and struck at his leg. Venizier’s knee buckled backward to dodge. She rolled to the side as lightning crackled from Venizier’s Staff of Ruin.
A breath.
Another strike, this time to Venizier’s hip. The Lich tapped two runes and the ground shot up in the Hunter’s way. Venizier’s skeletal fingers began another Runic Sequence, but the Huntress threw her weapon, knocking the staff off centre and causing a wrong input. Venizier stabbed their staff into the ground and cleansed the wild arcane energy into the earth before it lashed out at him.
The woman reclaimed her blade.
A breath.
A dagger toward the heart. It cut through cloth and into Venizier’s empty ribcage. The Lich twisted, using their bones to wrest the dagger from the Hunter’s hand. She let go, pulling on Venizier’s wrist and tearing the staff from his arcane grasp.
Manabane dagger and the Legendary Staff of Ruin splashed into the fresh puddles from the summoned storm.
“Not so tough without your staff. Are you God Butch—“
Venizier’s palm cut the woman off as he caught her by the face, rising to inhuman height to hold her off the ground. She wrapped her hands around his iron forearm, but the rainwater kept it too slick for her to find purchase.
A breath.
Venizier used his free hand to remove his mask, letting it fall to the ground beside the woman’s dagger. She stared into his arcane eyes, then between them. She kicked at Venizier’s ribs, but he didn’t flinch.
“I’m not the God Butcher anymore…”
Venizier tapped the three runes carved into his skull between his eyes. The last incantation a hundred heroes had seen just as they’d believed they’d won.
“It’s Professor Venizier.”
There was a flash so brilliant that nobody who saw it would ever see true darkness again.
-----
If Venizier could have frowned, he would have. He was never going to get used to this desk, was he? After decades in his old classroom, setting everything in the exact manner he wanted it, he was suddenly expected to adjust to the lecture hall?
Then again, he was supposed to be happy. He’d gotten the room due to the cascade of transfer requests that had come in for his class. It was blossoming interest in Old Magic. There were finally students checking Ruinic System books from the library! Their check out dates were no longer a sad history of Venizier’s boredom.
He was supposed to be happy, but as he felt a lecture hall of eyes waiting for him to find the blasted chalk in his desk, it was hard to be anything other than annoyed.
This was why students called him an old fart.
Venizier finally threw his hands up and swore in the old tongue. After a moment, his Staff of Ruin flew to his hands, having avoided oath based deconstruction thus far. After a quick sequence of runes, a small piece of chalk appeared in Venizier’s free hand.
It was red, but it would have to do.
The chalkboard was much larger than he was used to. A fact that he’d put to good use by pre-writing the basic runic shapes that his course would go over during the first weeks. Wall to ceiling decorations of arcane scribbling that had mostly intimidated the new students.
There was though, still a place in the middle of the massive wall of chalk writing for him to begin his practiced lecture, as he’d meant to do at the start of the month.
"Given the understood properties of the bounded system, or Old Magic, it's crucial to recognize when you should utilize these traditional methods as opposed to adhering to modern teachings." Venizier punctuated the last words with a sharp triple tap on the chalkboard, letting the chalk splinter and create a red splattering period. They turned back to the class. "That is why you are here in this classroom, with me. To understand a complex but powerful system of magic that has largely been eschewed by our contemporaries and what it can offer us as mages."
Venizier turned back to the class. No judgemental looks. Some intimidated ones, but most students were furiously taking notes as he spoke. An interesting development.
"And before anyone asks. Yes I was alive when Old Magic was simply referred to as 'Magic.' I have probably forgotten more about the Runic Method than any of you know about New Magic—“
Someone pounded on the door at the top of the lecture hall. All of the students turned the stare at the door.
Damn the gods. His lecture had been going so well. Venizier had bolted it at the beginning of the lecture to ensure that nobody would interrupt but the knocking was interruption enough.
The Lich waved his hand the door shot open. Penelope stumbled into the classroom. She looked up at the Professor, apologetic. A group of students filed in behind her.
“Penelope?”
“Sorry, Professor. Last minute transfers.”
Venizier stared at the incoming group, then grumbled. “Find a seat if there are any.” He’d been on a roll, and he didn’t think there were any seats left. Where were they going to put him next? Out in the courtyard?!
“While our new arrivals sort themselves out, I will continue…”
There was a hand up from a woman in the front row.
“Oh. A question on the first day. Yes Young Miss?”
“Um, Professor,” she started. The girl had bright eager eyes and had been taking notes of Venizier’s every word, “When will we be able to do the awesome stuff you did in the courtyard?”
He thought it was a strange question, but the murmurs of agreement around the hall told him it was a pressing one.
“Well, the incantations and combinations I preformed during the incident earlier this month are complex. It will candidly take the most dedicated of you years of training to preform those spells outside of a combat scenario.”
Venizier recognized the sound of collective disappointment from when he announced exam dates.
“The good news, my students, is if I do my job, you will be able to cast those spells one day.”
Venizier went over to the blasted new desk and rested the Staff of Ruin against it.
“And I do my job well, you’ll never have to.”

​

How to Study When You’re Sick of Studying

Whether studying for the MCAT or other prerequisite classes, maintaining consistent study habits can be challenging. For some, a lack of motivation causes you to spend hours scrolling endlessly through social media before getting started. Others may find themselves distracted or losing concentration after only putting in 15 minutes of work. Either way, a consistent study schedule is key for success on the MCAT. After analyzing hundreds of students who have created their Customized Study Plan, we have discovered that the students who log consistent hours outperform their peers. Here are 6 practical strategies that will best help you study when… you don’t feel like studying at all.
My name is Theo, and I took the MCAT in 2019 and got a perfect score! Having gone through the MCAT journey myself and now watching dozens of students do the same, there are two main problems I’ve seen that can decrease motivation when studying for the MCAT. The first problem is feeling like you aren’t doing enough. There is so much material in front of you and so many practice questions to get through, yet we often feel like we aren’t making any progress. Almost every time I tried to sit down to study, I ended up taking 30 minutes before I genuinely started to hit the books. The other problem that I and my students face is stress. Doing well on this exam is incredibly important for success in the medical school application process that you feel like the world is on your shoulders.
Therefore, your problems with studying are likely not due to a lack of motivation. If anything, we have too much motivation and too much pressure built up in our head to study effectively. Instead of trying to increase your motivation for MCAT studying, you need to remove distractions.

1. Put Your Phone Away

This simple step is the most important, and I’m sure I am not the first person to give this advice. We are addicted to our phones. While this advice is simple, it’s the hardest for me to follow. If I have access to my phone, it’s almost impossible for me to make it through a zoom class or study session without getting distracted. But I made a switch. Before studying, I try to charge my phone in another room. If I forget and feel my phone in my pocket (or even worse, in my hand), I’ve made a pact with myself to just throw my phone across the room. The key principle is that you should not be able to see or touch your phone from your chair. This phone addiction is linked to the convenience of having phones at our fingertips, so by making it more difficult to access our phones, we can slowly adjust to a new normal.
Pro tip: remove notifications, delete distracting apps, or take a social media detox for a week.

2. Block Distracting Websites

I use an awesome Google Chrome extension called BlockSite that allows you to block distracting websites and redirect you to a productive page for customizable hours. Similar extensions exist for every browser as well. This method takes advantage of another barrier to changing our behaviors: willpower is not enough. The more you can automate systems to work in your favor, the less you need to choose to follow them. I only had to choose to install BlockSite once, instead of choosing every minute to be productive instead of wasting time scrolling through Instagram. By reducing the number of times that you need to choose to be productive, you reduce decision fatigue. Then you have more mental energy to devote to your studies.

3. Start with a Daily Checklist

There are a million task managing apps and tools out there to help you prioritize your many commitments. I use Trello! Daily checklists are critical to MCAT productivity because they sustain momentum. Momentum can be important for succeeding in school and daily life, but it’s even more critical for the MCAT. The MCAT feels like an impossibly tall mountain to scale: there’s more content than you’ve ever had on one test and it’s spread out over months. If you can slowly chip away at that mountain and feel the accomplishment of working through the content, those students enter the MCAT Bootcamp with confidence and energy. Momentum on the micro-scale is just as important as momentum on the macro-scale. To take advantage of this in your daily routine, we recommend adding a very simple daily task to the beginning of your checklist. That way you can start the day knowing that you’ve already accomplished something. This is why you should always begin the day by making your bed.
Checklists also allow us to prioritize the tasks we hope to accomplish. For this reason, when you sit down to study for the MCAT or school, number your checklist from most to least important. Then, simply start with the most important task, no matter how hard it is. Most of us start with the easiest task first. However, this leads us to approach harder and more important tasks after we have expended lots of mental effort throughout the course of the day. Doing what’s important first ensures that you will never have to cram for a deadline or stress about being behind. It also sustains your momentum; if life gets in the way of your plans, at least you already accomplished the most important things that needed to get done.
Pro tip: Incorporate prioritization into your MCAT Study Plan. After doing the behavioral science modules, I recommend working through the remaining science modules from hardest first to easiest last. This way, if you are behind in your content studying, at least you can rush through the easiest content at the end.

4. Pomodoro Technique

One of the most popular methods for tricking your brain into studying when it doesn’t want to is the Pomodoro technique. The basic premise is that you set a timer for 25-minute intervals of study with 5-minute intervals of a break in between. In this way, you study for 50 minutes every hour with time to relax so that it never feels overwhelming. There are plenty of apps that can aid you in this method, as well as my personal favorite app: Forest. With Forest, you set a timer for the given amount of time that you want to study. In that time, a little seedling will start to grow and sprout. But if you look at your phone, the seedling dies! I don’t know why this works for me, but something about killing a cute animated tree makes me committed to not check my texts.
For those who have tried the Pomodoro technique and hated it (like me), try other methods of structured study! Knowing your own study style and what works for you is key to maximizing your effective study hours. I personally take a long time to get into a flow state. Getting in the groove is rare, so if I am in the mood to study I need to stay in it for as long as I can. Having breaks every 25 minutes is the worst for me, because those 5 minutes inevitably turn into an hour. So, I need to remove the amount of time that I take breaks as it gets me out of my rhythm. While I can’t study for 4 hours straight, I aspire to take longer, uninterrupted blocks of study, and then take longer breaks after. This way, during these longer breaks I can truly relax without checking how many minutes I have left before I need to dive back into the books.

5. Schedule your day with a calendar

Another powerful tool to get you to study when you don’t feel like studying is planning how long a task will take. Breaking up your day into manageable chunks simplifies your definition of success. Even if you’re easily distracted, you will still know exactly what you are supposed to do. I use Google Calendar to schedule everything, from MCAT tutoring to when I need to leave to catch the bus. A calendar is also a great way to set deadlines for yourself when they aren’t set by a professor or research administrator. When applying for medical school, I used calendars to keep track of every deadline and missing pieces of my application. This organization was a large contributor to getting accepted.

6. Create Your Own Study Plan

Getting and using the create-your-own Study Plan Course was the most important key to my MCAT success. Not only did it help me track my progress, but it also gave me daily accountability to myself to reach my goals. The method is simple, to improve your MCAT score, you need to put in the work to get there. Based on the difference between your current score and your goal score, the customized MCAT Self Prep algorithm will tell you roughly how many hours you need to study. This course helped me see that in order to be successful, I would need to set daily and weekly goals for the hours that I needed. I wanted to say that if I ended up being unhappy with my score, I had done my part. Therefore, I held myself accountable every week to study the amount of time that I promised myself on my study plan.
There are many, many days that I don’t feel like studying. But we’ve all made a goal to be component and compassionate doctors one day. The reality is, there is a massive amount of work that goes into becoming a great doctor. With these strategies, I hope you can chip away at the work to be done and together we can look back and be proud of all the work that we’ve accomplished.
Warm regards,
Theo
Theo scored a perfect score (528) on the MCAT and has been accepted at Harvard, UPenn, Columbia, UCLA, and other top 10 medical schools across the country.

Hi all, 36M here, started keto 4 months ago today. Started mostly for health benefits but also to lose some weight as a secondary objective. Started as "general" keto but with time I moved more and more towards the carnivore/ketovore side.
So far I've lost some noticeable amount of weight, I don't know how much exactly as I did not weigh myself before, but it is both visibly and functionally noticeable. For example a pair of jeans I had that I previously was not even able to close, now fit on me just fine and they don't even feel too tight. I still have some more to lose, but I am not too worried or focused on that.
I've noticed improvements in my sleep, mood and energy levels. Previously I've been struggling to get out of bed almost every weekday. Now it's common for me to wake up before the alarm clock feeling fully rested. I also had trouble falling asleep which now is significantly less frequent, and if I have to get less sleep then ideal I feel like I can function much better and I am in general less groggy during such days (even without coffee). This wasn't one of my expectations or goals but it is awesome to have. I still haven't turned into a morning person, but the mornings now don't seems as horrible as they did before.
Other things I noticed were that my gums were sometimes bleeding when I was brushing my teeth, this is now gone, by itself. Also I noticed I can tolerate the sun better. I don't know how and why but it did happen. As someone with fair skin who lives in a sunny and hot region of the world, being out in the sun always was such a pain for me, but now I not only can handle a lot more time in the sun without getting a burn, but I also started actually enjoying it.
I still have not figured out my skin issues. My skin in general looks better, and I feel like cuts and bruises heal faster now. But I also have acne that isn't showing signs of clearing up. It did look like maybe it's starting to improve a bit but then took a turn for the worse. Honestly it's not really bad, I don't have big breakout or anything like that, it's "mild" acne, but still, relative to me personally, my current acne is kinda bad (and annoying as heck). Part of it may be that previously my face was redder and with worse skin in general and now it is better so the acne parts stand out more. I don't know. My dandruff has improved a lot albeit slowly, and so are some other skin related conditions, so I'm hoping maybe just giving it more time and having some more patience will be enough to start seeing improvements on that front as well.
In general I am happy with what keto gave me and I do plan to continue with this and see how it will be in another 4 months...

Some albums have grown on me, and others I really liked upon first listen but didn't end up sticking with me. I think I may have been overly harsh with the Nirvana album, which I have revisted since then. And while I thought happy monday's was awesome the first time I heard them, I feel almost no desire to listen to them now.
Worst to best
Oar - Alexender spence- 1
Can't help but feel this album made the list due to the mentally unstable- genius romanticism. But this isn't Brian Wilson making Smile.
There are moments that album show's some potential, but it is so half-assed in it's production and performance that it makes it very difficult to listen to.
I don't enjoy listening to someone having a mental breakdown, it's just sad
Cheap Thrills Big Brother & The Holding Company 2
Average sounding blues/rock band with a singer who stands out.
Listening to a song or 2 with can be enjoyable given the sheer power of Janis Joplin, but can't make up for songwriting and instrumentation which doesn't sound particularly good.
Listened to about half the album, before I got tired of it.
Cross Justice 2
Found this grating to listen to, was disappointed because I expected more from this album
The Bones Of What You Believe CHVRCHES 2
Catchy, well done pop.
The voice sounds so neutral, that it doesn't express any emotion at all to me, the music has it moments but tires fast as it doesn't swing. Ultimately it's well done but sounds sterile to me.
Dare! The Human League 2
Not offensive but not memorable, which I think is among the worst things an album can be. Other albums might be harder to listen to, but have interesting moments that stick with me.
Bat Out Of Hell Meat Loaf 2
I respect the ambition to create this, but don't enjoy listening to it
2. Rem Automatic For The People R.E.M. 2
While I really like some of REM's songs, I found to chord progressions to be relatively uninteresting, and the album doesn't have the attitude or transcendent performance to make up for it.
I have to admit though, that I don't think I gave it a deep listen, and that my opinion might change if I do
Siamese Dream The Smashing Pumpkins 2
Instantly recognizable as a band. They found their space in the scene and I understand their popularity. The songwriting is alright, and the band also sounds tight.But I just can't tune into their music, stylistically the production sounds too crisp. Corrigan's voice is grating and the songs don't stick with me. I appreciate the fact that the lyrical themes are dark, in a way that seems genuine. But it's easier to relate to that if you dig the music (which I experience when I listen to Alice in Chains)
The Colour Of Spring Talk Talk 3
Interesting elements, but couldn't really get into it
A Little Deeper Ms. Dynamite 3
Decent album, first artist I hadn't heard of at all from the generator. When I heard "Dy-Na-Mi-Tee" I thought I might be in for a banger of an album. But it turned out to be the best song on the album.Very of it's era, both in it's production/performance and lyrical themes.There are occasionally pretty original arrangements and Ms.Dynamite is a very good singer, I can understand why it resonated at the time it was released but can also understand why it isn't viewed as a classic album all these years.
The Village Green Preservation Society The Kinks 3
Global reviews
Good melodies and guitar-work, with at times clever lyrics.
Also interesting that each song is a character study.However this nostalgia for all things traditionally english (which I and most people can't relate to at all) , and it clearly taking place in it's time gives it character but also dates it.(The Beatles have kind of similar themes in songs like Penny Lane, but the visuals / story-telling and central themes are so good that it makes it universal and timeless)
To me the album is imaginative and upbeat but simply sounds kind of dated, and doesn't transcend in such a way that I feel really compelled to revisit it again beyond a couple songs.Would give it 3.5 stars as I thought it was pretty good, but not amazing
Hotel California Eagles 3
While the Eagles are one of the best selling bands of all time, it's notable that they aren't really loved by the younger generations. Certainly not at all the way Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin or of course The Beatles are
They do almost everything very well; they all are very strong instrumentalists, the harmonies are on point, they have good musical chemistry and occasionally can churn out a strong lyric. Morever if the rest of the album was as strong as the first two songs the album would merit a really high rating, but the album decreases in quality (mostly songwritingwise) after that. And exposes the fact that The Eagles can be cheesy and boring at times. Still "New kid in town" and particularly Hotel California are fantastic songs fully deserving of being classics. Try and love is alright as well.
25 Home Is Where The Music Is Hugh Masekela 3
I appreciate his influence in South Africa as a jazz pioneer, but I didn't find the album particularly inspiring. The playing is solid and grooves, and there are high moments but I don't have the feeling that this is something I have to revisit
From Elvis In Memphis Elvis Presley 3
By 1969, Elvis had lost a lot of his cultural relevancy. With the Beatles and psychedelia taking over.Just as Sinatra wasn't welcoming to Elvis, when Elvis became huge. Elvis put down the Beatles (remarking to Nixon that they were a bad influence)His move to las vegas where his act was once too risqué is an indication that he was no longer the cool rebel but rather a symbol of times past.Still Elvis, rather than change stylistically to keep with the times sticks with what he knows .Vocally he sounds fantastic and the backing band sounds great too.The album does drag a little bit though, and doesn't seem to acknowledge the incredibly interesting changes happening at the time in popular music. At times it swings but at others it sounds dated. The guitar's bass and drums sound earthy and great but the string arrangements sound cheesy.Rather than listening to the whole album, I might re-visit specific songs.
Daydream Nation Sonic Youth 3
I admit I went into this with a bias against Sonic Youth.
They seemed to me to be the definition of style over substance, and they seemed like they viewed themselves as the coolest people ever. (See their interview with Nardwuar) Already in the first song I could hear that they were pretty innovative, as they sound like a 90s band despite the fact the album was made in the 80s. I could hear how the instrumentation(particularly the guitars) influenced great bands and albums (Loveless, The Bends) I would say they sound like an assortment of important 90s bands, but in reality I guess many 90s bands sound like them. Despite that, listening to the album confirmed some of my prejudices; the spoken word sections are meaningless and pretentious. The social critiques (lyrically) sound really basic and the album is excessively long. Still there are really interesting moments musically, particularly in the instrumental sections. The music sounds raw and at the same time very clear and layered. It sounds DIY but sophisticated and even when it's noisy and wild they create an interesting atmosphere.
3.5/5 because while it's innovative and interesting, it has it's drawbacks and to my ear's doesn't have that much replay value.
MTV Unplugged In New York Nirvana 3
Was expecting more from this, based on the couple songs I had heard in the past.Part of the appeal of Nirvana is the fact that they combine really catchy almost pop-ish melodies with explosive instrumentation that has a genuine edge. Kurt Cobain can sing the living hell out of a song, and his voice has a yearning, an anger and delicateness which puts all of Nirvana's elements together.The issue I have with the unplugged, is that a lot of songs don't hold up as well in the acoustic format. Songs like "Come as you Are" "I'm on a plain" lose of all their thrill factor and don't hold up well enough as compositions to excel in that context. Others though, like "All Apologies and Something in the way" lend themselves better to an acoustic format. The stand out of the show is Leadbelly's "Where do you sleep at night" where Kurt Cobain delivers an incredibly heart-felt vocal.The album attained a legendary status, in part because seeing the top grunge icons of the day (especially one so punky) playing acoustic with a really beautiful setting was no doubt really interesting at the time, and Kurt Cobain's pre-mature death gives seeing such an intimate performance an added dimension.If you take out Nirvana's status as grunge legends and all the mystique that exists around them, what you have is a band with an exceptional singer that doesn't sound it's best in an acoustic format.
8 Pills 'n' Thrills And Bellyaches Happy Mondays 4
Very funky and original.Well performed and produced, even though its at times deeply layered you can hear every element clearly and it's never overloaded.The lyrics are fun and catchy too.Particularly excellent guitar playing and bass playing. Lastly, making good happy music isn't easy, and they really pull it off so there's that too
Gunfighter Ballads And Trail Songs Marty Robbins 4
Global reviews
Very good storyteller, the songs are basically like short stories.And the music is really enjoyable to listen too also
Third Portishead 4
A very hard album to rate.Full of dissonant chord changes and melodies, hypnotic arrangements/loops. The singer captures isolation and trauma almost uncomfortably well.
The lack of emotional diversity (it almost all sounds isolated/alienated to me) hurts the replay value of it, this is an album to listen to when in a specific mood. I also think it's a very good album to listen to in small doses. There's a ton of interesting ideas and arrangements and they certainly accomplish what it is they seemed to be going for (capturing said isolation)
3.5 stars for the many fresh interesting ideas, I don't feel good giving the album 3 stars (seems to low for such a well executed album) but 4 seems excessive given that I didn't enjoy listening to the whole album much.
Going to give it 4
Do check out individual songs though
Machine head, Nylon Smile, We Carry on
Surrealistic Pillow Jefferson Airplane 4
Somewhat inconsistent album, and sometimes to hippy-ish.
But the standout tracks are really amazing.
I love the poetry of Today and particularly of Comin Back to Me, just beautiful songwriting.
As well as the power of Grace Slick and catchiness of Somebody to Love.
Interesting production choices too, what an insane amount of reverb on the drums. Sounds like someone is playing far in the distance.
The band plays well, has two very good singers (who compliment each other perfectly) and the songwriting is at times amazing. That trascends any weaknessess the album may have
Joan Armatrading Joan Armatrading 4
Really good songwriting, which in my mind is one of the most valuable and hardest things to find in music.
Younger Than Yesterday The Byrds 4
A rare example of an album who's second half is much stronger than the first.
The Byrds are at their best when they go introspective and personal. Everybody's Been Burned is beautiful and mysterious song with a lyric that reflects on the nature of love. Crosby's odd phrasing works perfectly in the song making it sound like he has deeply meditated both emotionally/spiritually on whether it is worth it to become vulnerable in the face of love with inevitable brevity and pain that certainly comes with it. Mind Gardens is also a fantastic song with with reflects on coping mechanisms in a very fresh and different way. The song builds perfectly along with the lyric, holding you the whole time.
There are times where the Byrds can sound just pleasant and not particularly interesting or deep, but Crosby's compositions elevate the album and give it a different dimension. It's a shame the album consists mostly of other writer's compositions. Most of the album is a 3, but because it has a couple incredible songs I'm going to round up to 4
Best songs: (in order)
Everybody's been burned
Mind Gardens
My Back Pages
Renaissance Fair
Highway 61 Revisited Bob Dylan 4
Bob Dylan goes electric, with a fantastic backing band (The Band)
What's interesting about Bob Dylan (from a lyrical perspective) is how the lyrics seem at once polished while simultaneously seeming like a total stream of consciousness. The lyrics sound good, the story-telling is amazing (and at many times funny) and yet something about his delivery and perhaps his willingness of veer off course narratively (though he always finds his way back) make it seems fresh.It's an interesting contrast with Leonard Cohen, who's lyrics sound totally perfect and thought-out. Dylan instead comes across as kind of wild and unpredictable (Cohen can be unpredictable too in his words, but everything seems pre-meditated) While with Dylan it's like fuck it, "the sun's not yellow it's chicken!"
The first song is a masterpiece, just incredible story-telling. Every line is piercing, and often clever and devastating. You feel mixed about the once-rich main character who was fucked over by a diplomat with a siamese cat, yet was oblivious to inequality and suffering when they were well off.
Tombstone blues is fantastic too, so fun and stimulating.
Musically the album has it's high points but is less interesting than it's lyrics with some songs in my opinion being almost a little boring. The Band sounds better playing their own songs.
However the high points are awesome, so I think 4 stars make sense. 5 stars lyrically, 3 stars musically.
Vol. 4 Black Sabbath 4
Black Sabbath are one of the central pioneers in the metal genre, while
Beatle song's such as Helter Skelter or I want you or Jimi Hendrix's Manic depression were also very heavy it's Black Sabbath that puts the whole package together. The low end heavy and at times dissonant riffs, the iconic imagery, the often times dark lyrical themes. What sets Sabbath apart though from other metal icons is their versatility, the drummer's funkiness, the authentic vulnerability of Ozzy's lyrics on songs like changes. The riffage of Tony Iommi sometimes leading the way to beautiful almost celtic sounding ballads. This is pure metal, darkness explored in a way that is meaningful and real. Not the cartoonish "edgy-ness" of later bands, nor the dick-measuring contest of who can shred faster or play louder. Heavy, funky and at times beautiful
4.5 stars
Ellington at Newport Duke Ellington 5
The band sounds so crisp, sharp and sexy. So full of life, big band music at it's best
42 The Dark Side Of The Moon Pink Floyd 5
Pink Floyd's greatest album.
I also gave Exodus by Bob Marley a 5—
And didn’t review Sade- Diamond life but really liked it too.

A long time ago I had a complete set of Discworld books. Then I had kids and they demanded things like a room and space, so I sent all of my 1000s of books (not just Discworld) to the charity shop to make the library into a playroom and I bought a kindle.
I kept the following paper books:
Soul Music (signed by Sir Terry)
Thud! (I thought the sacrifices made by the dad was appropriate)
Nightwatch (because it is awesome)
I Shall Wear Midnight (my face is on the cover)
(And Good Omens)
If you had to make the same sacrifice which books would you have kept?

I'm usually not one to slave away Meta-changes for Stratagems and Weapons, I typically want to make my loadout builds for fun or theming. But I do wish that the Shield Gen Relay would be stronger for the sake of fun and memorable moments.
I have rarely seen the FX-12 Shield Generator Relay ever make it to any mission. Even on the Terminid / Automaton elimination missions, where you're encouraged to stand your ground and face wave after wave of enemies, it rarely makes an appearance in my random matches.
The primary reasons I see it not showing up for most missions is:

1. It doesn't have enough health to survive patrols / Bot Drops / Bug Breaches
2. It doesn't last long enough to justify staying put in one place

The brief moment of safety is nice, but I feel as though some Helldivers may agree in the sentiment that a shield wall should encourage a "last-stand" moment. Everyone's stratagems are on cooldown, and all you have are your guns and your fists. Standing back to back with your fellow freedom deliverers should feel awesome if you're trapped within our fortification, trying to survive for just a little bit longer.
As a suggestion, to help alleviate the pain points from 1 and 2 above I would suggest the following changes:

1. For the health-issue to survive a long hold-out, remove the health-pool for the shield, and let it last it's full duration.
   • It feels disappointing seeing the shield fall almost immediately when heavy fire bombards you. I understand it's to balance out groups trying to cheese an invulnerable point or position, but I feel like that's only punishing players who are trying to coordinate a fun mission like dropping the 380MM and 120MM Bombardment on your position, and surviving in a small bubble with your team.
2. For the duration issue that doesn't justify staying in one place, reduce the Stratagem cooldown timer , so you're able to create safe zones of travel more often.
   • Even if the health of the Shield Gen was still the same, being able to call in more shields for more moments of breathing room would be more fun. It would help fulfill the engineer-class aesthetic where you're building fortification points and helping keep your team alive in moments of chaos. If for example, the Shield Gen lasts 30 seconds, let the cooldown timer be 45 seconds. It's not 100% uptime but at least it's less punishing and grants opportunities for one player to help keep their friends alive.
   • One thing especially I would want to see is it being called in during environmental disasters like meteor showers or fire-tornados more often.

These suggestions have probably been put on the subreddit over and over, but I do hope the Dev team understands these are more stat changes than actual aesthetic changes. They're doing a fantastic job adjusting the overall game to keep things fun as a live-service game, and I hope they continue their successes.
If there was space for an actual aesthetic or gameplay change for the Shield Gen Relay, I would love if they could do these changes:

1. The generator spawns with a Terminal, allowing a Helldiver to constantly refresh the shield or duration. This would create an engaging way for the players to have their last-stand, three firing into the hordes while one is fighting against the clock, trying their best to fill out long strings of inputs to refresh the timer or health.
2. Allow the Helldiver who brings the Stratagem to recall the Shield Gen, similar to how you can send Eagle-1 back to the Super Destroyer for early Stratagem reloads, so that you can call it in another location sooner. It could be a smaller zone, lasting as long as it's active in deployment, but you can only place one per map/mission. Only when you recall it, will you be able to call it in again in another location. That can help justify changes to the shield health or shield duration if needed, and it can help create this image of an engineering Helldiver who can control the flow of battle across the map, creating genuine points of safety.

That's all, let me know what you guys think. Continue fighting for Democracy!

This situation is a real doozy, and I'm hoping someone has good ideas on next steps.
I'm a man married to an awesome, healthy, emotionally-regulated woman who is a mother to a beautiful, light-filled 11-year old daughter whom I love (we also have another two children together). My wife doesn't use reddit, so I've written this with her input/approval (throwaway account).
My wife's mother (my MIL, referred to as “MIL” going forward) would likely be diagnosed with borderline if she ever got professional help. It is an absolute fucking miracle my wife is a healthy person after the childhood she had.
MIL is very broken from her own childhood trauma and manipulates others to keep them dependent on her. If you assert your independence or draw a boundary with her at all, she quickly becomes vengeful while posing as the victim (“all I want is to be close, but you clearly don’t care about my feelings…”)
My wife simultaneously lived in fear of crossing her parents and couldn't always see the subtle manipulation and control, so she maintained a quasi-relationship with MIL as an adult. After her divorce (to a man that MIL manipulated her into dating and ultimately marrying at a very young age), my wife let her daughter (my stepdaughter, referred to as “Stepdaughter” going forward) spend the night at MIL's house at least once a week.
MIL had a generous amount of time with Stepdaughter for several years. In hindsight my wife regrets this decision, but as a victim of MIL herself, it was hard to see at the time.
When my wife and I got engaged, we informed MIL that we didn't need her help as much. Around that time we also asked her very gently to stop buying Stepdaughter presents every week because it was sort of ruining Christmas and birthdays.
Our boundaries induced a series of raging tantrums (actual yelling in my face) that resulted in them skipping our wedding, circulating a slanderous letter to my wife’s extended family which resulted in all but one of them also skipping our wedding, and a baseless claim that I could be a child predator (I assure you, I am not).
We pretty much went no contact for several years after that incident. MIL tried to get back in our lives in various ways and even pretended to apologize (it wasn't an apology). She showed a few small signs of respect for our boundaries, so we did a 'probationary period' where we saw her on Christmas and let her come to kids’ sporting events as a public spectator.
Things were neutral...until my wife's ex husband started outsourcing his parenting time to MIL last year. Yes, my wife's ex-husband, who actually does know how toxic this woman is, started sending his daughter over to MIL's house for overnight on his parenting days.
At first we were unaware because they all kept it a secret. Then we found out it had been like 10+ nights over the course of a month and a half, including precious time around Christmas when we would have absolutely wanted Stepdaughter with us if offered.
My wife's ex husband and his new wife really don't seem interested in parenting at all. They do zero activities with their child and drag her around to their adult social activities, including late night adult drinking parties. They fight with each other constantly and yell at Stepdaughter. Most of Stepdaughter’s time is spent in her room alone with unsupervised screen time.
We asked my wife’s ex to stop using MIL as a babysitter and offered to help if they were having trouble taking care of her. They agreed to stop, but it kept happening and they would lie about it.
So, we hired a lawyer to revisit the custody arrangement and motion for a 'right of first refusal' clause that prohibits him from giving away his overnights to MIL (or anyone) without us getting first dibs.
The court motion went to a mediator, and the mediator (an old guy who's a "proud grandpa") literally told us "I don't think you have a case here, and I can't see any good reason why a doting grandmother shouldn't get the time she wants with her granddaughter."
Furthermore, this mediator (who's an attorney himself) informed my wife's ex during the mediation session that a right of first refusal clause wouldn't actually block them from sending stepdaughter to MIL's for casual/fun sleepovers; it would only require them to give us first dibs if they are "unable" to care for the child due to an emergency or work travel, etc.
We honestly believe MIL has been paying my wife’s ex to get access to stepdaughter. In the negotiation, quitting MIL was simply the one thing he would not budge on. We also found out that he and MIL secretly met at least once to talk about legal matters before the mediation session.
So, the overnights continue, but with a dark twist: MIL now knows we filed a court motion to thwart her efforts, and she is *pissed.* She is now actively weaponizing her granddaughter against us in a smear campaign.
Stepdaughter has been coming back to our house with bags full of new clothes/makeup/toys, and refusing to speak to us for the first hour... then screaming at us about how she hates us, how mean we're being to grandma, how she's going to move to grandma's house as soon as she's older, how she wishes grandma was her real mom, etc.
More concerning is that Stepdaughter seems to have fabricated a number of false memories about how awful our household is. According to Stepdaughter: my wife cries herself to sleep every night because I’m abusive, and I’m a creep who spies on her in the shower (neither of these is true). Last week Stepdaughter came home from school and literally was shielding her body from us, saying ‘you’re not safe parents’ and ‘when I grow up I’m going to abandon you just like you abandoned Grandma…’
When we went to her rec sports game last weekend (it wasn't our parenting week), stepdaughter showed up in MIL’s car and stepdaughter literally refused to speak to us or even look at us the entire time, like we were kidnappers trying to steal her away. She ran into the arms of MIL for comfort when we came to say hi and tell her we're proud of her.
The other day Stepdaughter randomly brought up Mother’s Day and said, ‘Don’t think Grandma told me to say this because she didn't, but good daughters love their mother’s no matter what and make sure to get them a gift for Mother’s day.’
It's obvious where she's getting these talking points.
Stepdaughter says that she is MIL's "therapist" because 'grandma tells me everything. Even before this recent smear campaign, we knew MIL shared a lot of child-inappropriate stuff with Stepdaughter, including adult news/gossip and comments about details/opinions about my wife's failed marriage with her ex.
All of this is impacting Stepdaughter. For the past couple months we have been living with a child who is constantly dysregulated in our home. Stepdaughter pushes us away, cries herself to sleep, and has made comments about hating her life and not wanting to live. She must be extremely confused about which direction is up – she has a dad who apparently doesn’t want to spend time with her, and a ‘loving’ grandmother who is constantly smearing us and telling her that her stepdad and mom are bad, unsafe person.
We do our best to support Stepdaughter unconditionally. We tell her that she isn't obligated to like us or have a relationship with us; our job is to protect her and support her being who she wants to be. We don't shit-talk MIL or my wife's ex.
We are looking for options to fight all of this, but there's that saying 'If you're going to shoot the King, you better not miss." We believe MIL is capable of doing anything to protect her interests when threatened. Example: during the middle of our no contact period with MIL, MIL tried to send a letter to my wife’s boss with embarrassing information in an attempt to ruin her careereputation (we snuffed it out, and the boss saw right through it!).
Y'all, this is bad. I pinky-promise I'm not exaggerating. MIL almost certainly believes she has a right to time with Stepdaughter and is smearing us to get what she wants. On the surface and on Facbeook, she looks like the model mom/grandma who loves showing her grandchild with gifts. Meanwhile, Stepdaughter is confused and suffering, caught in the middle of one-way adult warfare. My wife is traumatized all over again, basically reliving her childhood through this situation. And our court motion to stop the overnights didn't work.
Has anyone been in a situation like this? Could use some ideas, support, and input.

I finally had a chance to use the pistol outdoors and it was awesome. I've been asked about the sound level with the compact suppressor. Without any ear protection, it seems equivalent to the Tippman Arms M4 Micro Elite .22lr we were shooting at the same time. It certainly wasn't' a "pfft" but definitely not awful and way better than un-suppressed Walther 4.5" PDP. I guess If you consider a .22lr pretty hearing safe for plinking, you can expect the same form the compact suppressor. We were shooting CCI Blazer 124gr FMJ
The best part was that my wife was practicing for the unlikely scenario that she would have to defend herself at home. She hated shooting the PDP, way too much recoil and intimidating to her, but LOVED the APC9. It has really minimal recoil and with some practice at 10 feet and 15 feet (inside the home distance) she was had a really great grouping. She loved the "Donut of Death" from the Holosun 510c and since the pistol is sighted in at 25 yards, the shots are a couple inches low as you would expect.
We shot about 150 rounds and didn't notice any gas to the face and when I easily unscrewed the suppressor, the ports in the barrel were wide open, no fouling at all.
https://imgur.com/a/G4kVoxM

I have so many Raid ideas is there a way I can tell Plarium my ideas. 1. New gameplay- Choose through now which would be dubbed 3PRP-3rd perspective roleplay- and new 3PA- 3rd perspective Arcade looking like Mortal Kombat style game side to side against waves available 3PA mode to Doom Tower, Arena, Cursed City/ 2. Actual high quality and details into level design 3. More free to play ability of course this brings to No 4. 4. Weekend character sale- 12hr Saturday character sales bringing back limited edition and even primal and legendary to better common and uncommon characters for purchase for price of $2.00 to $5.00 depending on how the stats and character skills and skins. 5. better bundle- get an actual deal in the Saturday sale having a rare or legendary champion with 2 armoweapon sets and 25K silver including 15 energy for $12.00 or 3 armoweapon full sets, 15K silver, 15 energy/lightning bolt 2 common shards, 1 rare shard for $11.00 6. Game ports- Switch or Xbox honestly I don't see it taking on playstation and alot of mobile phone games make success as small or big game on switch and most from xbox get ported to mobile so why not put mobile on xbox with Raid. 7. Call of Arbiter animated Season 2- A new story perhaps with new and old characters story could be lore of Cursed City or Doom Tower. 8. New button mechanic- Add faster 3x speed and add effect to auto button when switching auto to manual the word changes when in auto button will say manual and when in manual button will say auto. 9. New Raid game- play like pokemon and collect cards or with random character mini-figures and training/setting board play with card or figures against players or have two players face another as one plays as the boss. Players by choice use cards or mini-figure they colllected and use different gear cards armor chest has knockack shield builds buff and defense boots deal 2+ damage weapon 5+ damage guantlet/gloves brings 2+ plus to user and 2- debuff to opponent. 10. Another Raid video game idea- raid comes to the fighting genre with 4 different factions holding 5 characters making 20 characters to choose from players go up against each other or cpu's immerse in cursed city, campaign, doom towers, and faction wars in all new way in MK style battle arenas have mechanics Dragons lair interact with torch or reach opponent to dragon for awesome interaction battle moments seeing them damaged by dragon or torch or battle in spiders den, orc sewer, Banner lord castle, outlands of Teleria, Hydra's lair, Ice Golem's peak each with different atmospheric scenery and ambience play with friends online or offline or in solo in Doom Tower reaching to highest strongest enemy, Raid exploring dungeons for new materials for upgrades or silver for shards to summon characters, Campaign exploring the story in a new way. Cursed City a side-story mode exploring the lore of the city. 11. Live Action Movie adaptation- Raid if done right can be more than animated series and new games if the first game this one gets better and more free to play ability a live action movie could bring more of an audience and show Raid to audience it can do right instead of being mocked for annoying sponsor ads. We could see lore and characters in all new way never before seen. 12. Comic adaptation- Raid has potential if done right if so we could at least see comics of the world seeing origins of our favorite main four beginning characters and next well known character of each faction making 16 comics and including the main four making 20 comics.

Welcome to my 1000 miles review of my new 2024 GTI Autobahn 380

My 2016 GTI Autobahn

My previous car was a 2016 GTI Autobahn. I already miss it... It had the DSG, a tighter rear sway bar, and a unitronic stage 1 tune. I owned and enjoyed that car for almost 5 years. It was a car that fulfilled its role for a young father who wanted to transport a family of 4 with a bit of oommpff. The GTI was the car that checked all boxes and yes it does work for a family of 4.
So, that brings me to today, with my 2024 GTI which accumulated a little over 1100 miles. Why did I change and how does it feel?

Motivation

The main reason why I wanted another car: I wanted the manual again.
At this point, I should state the obvious that the reasoning outlined in this post make no financial sense. Keeping the 2016 GTI or trading it in for a beige corolla would have pleased the PersonalFinance gods, but life is too short for that, and as far as where I am in life, I felt comfortable changing cars to what may be my last modern manual car with all the industry focus on EV and plug-ins hybrids. I'll likely have more manuals in the future but they'll be older project cars.
Back on topic: As awesome as the DSG is (and it truly is), I missed the engagement of the day to day driving with 3 pedals. All my previous cars were manual, and the GTI was my first automatic. I have zero regrets and I would do it again having the DSG, but every once in a while I was like "hmmm, would be nice to have a clutch in this car".
I considered other scenarios: Golf R, Civic Si, keeping the GTI, adding a ND Miata or Mustang RWD car, keeping the GTI and trading in my wife's car for a Golf R or Civic Si is another scenario I considered, but she loves her car so wasn't an option. I took my time to run through many scenarios, budgeting, space maintenance practicality. It was analysis paralysis to the max.
After all that, I went with my gut feeling and sticked with the GTI. Here's mine in dolphin grey! https://imgur.com/a/B4XoeYr

Review - Comparing it with the mk7

So, how does it compare to my 2016 so far? Here's some quick points. where I have a + sign means it's an upgrade/better to my mk7, - means inferiodowngrade, -/+ means can go either way.
[+] The exterior looks much better in person than on photo for those who have seen mk8's in person (most of us by now). rear end on photo looks like a van/SUV but not in person. Front-end looks aggressive and the lights at night do look neat when all lit up but not near as aggressive as the frontend of the mk7.5 (one of the best looking cars to me)
[+] Seats: I went with the plaid fabric compared to my previous leather seats. VERY comfortable. The fabric is easier to clean than I thought. I was scared of that being less practical to a point where I'll regret it, but the fabric is not like in other seats, feels definitely less fuzzy. I already had an occasion where I had to wash a spot away and that went well.
[-] Interior material quality: the plastic trims on the steering wheel and the piano black are a real letdown. These materials shouldn't be in this car, I mean seriously piano black? in 2024? The MK7 interior was top notch for what we pay for and the only piano black I had there was on the handbrake handle.
[-/+] steering wheel: I prefer the shape of the mk8 steering wheel, but the overall material and REAL buttons of the mk7 steering wheel is superior. Why I'm not certain if its an upgrade or downgrade here is because holding it with its slightly different shape feels really good, and the haptic feedback of the touch sensitive buttons helps a lot to mitigate the silliness that is touch buttons.
[-] center infotainment: No surprise here. it's "OK" at best. Honda learned from their mistakes and achieved what I think is the perfect balance of physical controls and touch with the 2024 Civic Si, and on top of that the Si has a very good manual transmission. It was a strong contender for me but it lacked torque and oompff, it wasn't a hatchback, and a few other reasons that made me come back to the VW family.
That being said! I'm fine with it, because navigating the infotainment isn't hard and it's actually lag-free even on cold winter days. Everything is one extra click away: Climate control, drive modes? One click away. Need android auto or apple carplay? Just enable bluetooth and it connects wirelessly, so you won't even touch the infotainment. This is why I think it's manageable and not as big of a deal as reviewers made it seem, you can mostly avoid it while driving.
[-/+] rear seats and cargo. As practical and good as the mk7. nothing more to add.
[+] the overall technology upgrade: Digital cluster, connected car that is traceable (geofencing, checking status of the doors, etc.), playing with ambient light, automatic braking, improved (bigger!) blindspot indicators on the side mirrors, all that is appreciated! I just wish it had some real buttons... Something as silly as foldable side mirrors when you lock the car is fun to own.

The drive

[++]
This right here is is what sold me. How is it to drive this car in manual? You can find my posts I was and am critical of the gearbox as being too slushy. I do feel the rows are a bit long and some gearshifts feel "odd" right now, such as going from 4 to 5 sometimes does not give me great confidence.
Not long ago I ordered myself a SportShifter GT2 knob that I can't wait to receive! Online, lots of folks say this alone will greatly improve the experience as it shortens the throws a bit and the extra weight helps a lot in removing some of that "buttery" numb'd feel of the shifts. I will see once I get it and post about it.
The accelerator pedal is lower than the brake and close enough that you can heel & toe during hard braking. The action of shifting itself brought my "old self" back again, and it feels good to drive while being in control again! That being said, I do miss moments of the DSG where those rapid shifts shoots the GTI like a rocket, mostly when you need to suddenly downshift and give it all, it zooms through and feels like a different car vs the manual GTI. Both are very satisfying but differently.
The center gauge cluster has many views, and they are all useless except for the tachometer view. That's the one you want! If you get the mk8 golf R, then you have an awesome tachometer view in that one, and you stick with that!
The suspensions are tight! My mk7 did not have the performance pack, so mechanically I gained a few goodies that are noticeable in the day to day: Bigger brakes, LSD, DCC, and while I have less power in this car than my tuned mk7, the handling and braking makes up for it.
DCC really does a good job at changing the behavior between the various modes. Comfort is the mode I use most of the time where the suspensions is comfortable for day to day driving. When switching in sport mode, you notice the suspensions sharpen and the exhaust will begin to fart and burble when letting go the gas at 3000-4000rpm. For those who are immature like me and love to see the disappointed face of their wifes/gf/bf/SO? priceless. Of course you can tune and modify any GTI to reproduce this, so this alone isn't selling it but the fact that this behavior comes stock is fun. A clubsport muffler is likely in the short term plans though to improve the exhaust note..
The summary here for me is that the the drive is fantastic, and it does compensate for the interior shenanigans which again are manageable. The reviewers are all unanimous and not wrong, the interior is a downgrade and less safe if you fiddle with it while driving. The way I manage it is to set everything I need from the get-go, and then I don't interact with it while driving. The steering wheel controls is what I mostly use when driving and thankfully theres haptic feedback for that.

The issues

Of course there has to be issues right with all the touch nonsense? Thankfully none persisted but one of them particularly made me swear at my car to a point where my daughter thought I had gone mad:

1. timezone changes from eastern to central. There's 2 days in my ownership of the car where this happened, and the manual date setting just did not work. The car kept reverting to the wrong timezone.... As a software engineer, I blame our own kind for this glitch. After that it never happened again, so likely a one time issue.
2. top light dome sometimes just doesn't want to light up because it also is a stupid touch activated gimmick (OF COURSE IT IS!). At first you touch it to open close the lights? works fine. Then give it 10-15 min of drive and try again? It sometimes works, it sometimes works in a delayed fashion where you touch and hold until it "clicks" and lights up, and sometimes it just doesn't acknowledge the existence of your finger. Happens a few times. There's a bunch of folks who reported this issue online and it all seems to be fixable with the replacement of that module at the dealer. If it continues, I'll go that route myself.
3. Android auto sometimes disconnects. I almost never experienced this in my mk7 although that was wired, here it supports wireless. Part of the blame probably falls on Google for this issue.
4. And last but not the least, the road assistance call feature that is located in the same center light dome? You can use that to call for assistance right? Or you can let your car randomly call it over and over and over, and if you try to cancel the call? It calls back! Every time I tried to cancel the call, it fucking redialed it. "Dude Stop it!" is what I kept telling the car. Had to shut off the car, then back on.... "rebooting" it like a computer fixed it ffs lol... If this happens again, same thing as the light dome, it's part of that module so it may need a replacement. I have a feeling this will happen if these moments reoccur.

yay? My objective is to hammer as many features as I can to find the recurring issues and get them fixed under warranty. Maybe in a few years we'll have retrofits available from future gens that have actual buttons?

Conclusion - tl;dr

Despite the downgrades in interior material quality and touch controls, the car delivers with its engaging manual transmission, overall exterior look, comfortable seats, precise handling and the drive overall really makes this I think a very solid upgrade from my mk7 non-PP.
I still think older gen GTIs have a lot to deliver to folks who are considering a used car, the aftermarket community is there for us to enhance whatever we want. Converting transmissions though is not one of those easy to do tasks like in older cars where this happened more frequently such as some older Toyota... You have to change cars, so think it through what transmission you want, drive both is what I still recommend.
Do not ignore the Civic Si especially if you're in Canada which is nicely optioned for us (makes no sense but that's another topic. I highly valued the hatchback and the extra power torque and handling of the GTI, but if a sedan works for you, do check it out, the interior ergonomics and shifter are top notch and I do still believe that.
Back to the VWs, the GTI DSG and manual feel like two different cars, each satisfying in their own way. Then the bigger brother Golf R is another beast on its own which again, DSG or manual feel differently. Both do not disappoint, it's all about what you want is how I see it. One is not "inferior" is what I'm trying to say.

Time spent playing the game:

• It takes longer to find a game 16 people of similair skill vs 8 people
• It takes longer to get into a game 2x as many people to afk/dodge in lobby
• It takes longer to load 2x chance someone takes a long time to load in
• Longer wait between rounds More teams to wait to finish

Scouting/Planning:

• With 3 other teams you could identify a hard to beat team and itemize for them (i.e. arnor, tenacity, etc.)
• With 7 other teams you kinda just pick whatever since you'll probably only face them once

Takeaways

• All of the other changes (maps, upgrades, etc.) are awesome!
• But I am failing to see what is better about the experience with 8 vs 4 teams.

I personally feel they should move it back to 4 teams, but interested to hear what others think

35M from northeast/midatlantic region of the US. Looking to meet a bro to chat casually with on here and be more open about things than I am with my current friend group. I have drifted away from them as I’ve gotten older, and am tiring a bit of all the judgment and toxic masculinity and honestly want to move on from a past I am not really happy with.
I am into watching basketball, football, and baseball. I am trying to get much more in shape myself, but struggle to find motivation sometimes. I played a few sports in HS and miss it. I really would like to distance run and play bball more often.
I love nature and the outdoors, I am bummed that my fiancé isn’t as passionate about this because I would love to go camping again. We hike a lot though and I like to fish.
An awesome day for me would be to get outside and do something physical. Shoot hoops or hike, walk through the woods looking for fishing holes, etc. Get back home and clean up, get stoned to the bone, get the grill fired up and do some cooking with some good music on.
I have gone through some pretty serious traumatic shit, so I find it near impossible to open up and be vulnerable with people irl. I am trying to work on it. I find it very easy to make platonic friends with women but am so closed off when it comes to dudes. I am not super keen on exchanging like face pics and social media right away, I am a very private (borderline reclusive?) person lol.
I work from home a lot so it’s cool to be able to take time away during the day to hop on here. If I’m not responsive it’s because my girl is home and we are hanging out or I am working or busy.
Anyway hmu if interested, just made this account today. Looking for similar types of dudes to chat with in Reddit and see where it goes.

Reposting because I just got pestered by spam bots and I’m desperate. 3 ideally, but any ticket would be awesome!! Will pay well above face value

I see RiverBeat Fest has reached the “Oh shit we’re flopping.… let’s give a bunch of tickets away to save face by padding our dismal attendance numbers” stage.
For those who haven’t been paying attention the last 5 years or so, the next step in the MRPP/RDC family playbook is denial:
George Abbott stand in for Forward Momentum: “We only over WANTED a lightly attended festival to provide a more intimate experience for our guests”
(background sounds of Forward Momentum hemorrhaging cash)
MRPP/RDC associated events will never see a dime of my money, and it shouldn’t see a dime of yours, either. 👊🏼
Check out Jazzfest or Bourbon and Beyond if you want to see a proper festival that delivers value to its attendees…. Or support awesome local venues like HiTone, Growlers, etc

Not sure if this is a build of the league for me, given this journey.

TL;DR

This build is NOT SSF friendly, NOT HC friendly and NOT League start viable
pob https://pobb.in__ailuro/zutp4rv4egpw
Average mapping: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCLkKU0om0c
Personal opinion: I wanted to check out new Circle of Ambition ring and Pragmatism chest at some point. Awesome skill. I absolutely love the versatility of it.

How it works

Damage scaling:

• +33 Tornado through Pragmatism chest (+8), Replica Dragonfang (+3), Woke Added Fire (+1) and Woke Elemental Focus (+1)
• 4 Heralds (Purity, Ice, Fire, Thunder)
• Endurance Charge stacking (converted to Brutal Charges via belt)
• Ralakesh for keeping Endurance Charge effects
• Inner Convition Timeless jewel for more spell damage per Power Charge
• Perandus Pact for +114% increased Physical Damage (merely +200k dps increase, not sure if worth)

Mediocre damage, but maybe replacing Herald of Thunder with Hatred or Anger would improve it slightly (I think we would need +10% mana reservation mod on helmet and +10% mana reservation mod on it's implicit)
Defensives:

• Freeze immune (ascendancy)
• Shock immune (Tempest Shield)
• 75%/75% attack & block chance
• 76%/80%/75%/75% max cold res (aegis shield for higher max cold res)
• 50k+ armour
• 60% crit damage reduction (100% if we include watcher eye's Determination mod)
• 90% phys damage reduction

Not ailment immune, but this can be easily fixed with Stormshroud jewel.

Biggest build costs (as of 05/02/2024)

Item	Cost	Notes
Watcher's Eye with Vitality mod	~6d	Honestly useless jewel. Not worth getting it.
Perandus Pact Jewel	~4d	~200k dps increase (10% of our damage) so meh, m
Medium Herald Cluster	~3d
Cluster (with useless double damage mod)	~2d	~ better to pick something for 20-30c instead
Timeless Jewel	~1d

Content

IMO not T17 viable; just because this build has 100k ehp doesn't mean it's that tanky;
If you are unlucky, you will get one shot and that whole recovery is useless. Degens are a nightmare - the only worst mod that obliterates you is Siphoning (the one with the lightning ring).
Not UbePinnacle viable (not enough damage but I think there is a decent amount of room to sacrifice some defenses in favour of damage)
Other than that, I believe all other content should be pretty alright (besides Legion, don't think there is enough coverage)
Scale definition
Easy - you smash the content while being distracted (netflix on second monitor)
Easy+ - you smash the content but there can be moments where you want to pay attention to
Medium - you smash the content but you want to pay attention
No-go - you smash the content but you won't have a fun time

Mechanic	Difficulty	Notes
Lab (including uber uber labs)	Easy+	You are not zoomy, but you can watch Netflix while you are doing it
Uber bossing	No-go	lack of chaos/phys/dot mitigation and mediocre damage
T17	No-go	As above - degens wreck the build and there is not enough damage for T17 bosses
Abyss	Easy+
Bestiary (including juiced up beasts)	Easy
Betrayal	Easy+
Beyond	Easy
Blight (in maps)	Easy+ / no-go	no-go (chaos/phys dmg is a weak link and some roided blight bosses will get your ass)
Blighted maps / Blighted Ravaged maps	Medium
Breach	Easy
Delirium	Easy+
Delirium (100% deli farming)	Medium / No-go	You can tank a lot of damage but the damage for 100% scale is off
Delirium (Simulacrum)	Medium	as above
Delve	Medium / no-go	if you fix chaos/phys/dot mitigation it should be alright up to I suppose 200-250 depth (never delved further so maybe even more)
Delve (deep delving)	no-go	https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nC_En939Ing In-depth Connor's documentary why this is a bad idea for this build:
Essence (including juice)	Medium	You can tank unless you get randomly one shot if the Essence is roided
Expedition (including juiced rares)	Easy+
Harbringer	Easy+
Harvest	Easy
Heist	Medium	You should be fine until random one shot, also you can't face tank the doors. You are also not that fast
Incursion	Easy
Legion (maps)	Medium / No-go	I don't think there is enough damage and coverage to farm Legions
Legion (5-way)	Medium / no-go	as above
Ritual	Easy+	Easy+ until Siphoner spawns on the edge and you get siphoned
Rogue Exiles + Torments	Medium	You should mitigate majority of the damage but I'm not sure if the damage is here for them
Ultimatum	Medium	Since you are slow, some Ultimatum mods can be rippy

1. AR-61 Tenderizer A real tentacle-tearer. This high calibre assault rifle has awesome stopping power but limited magazine size, so make each shot count. Unpatriotic “banter” shots are not advisable.
   
2. CW-4 Arctic Ranger Features a nifty utility belt boasting handy pockets that can be filled with any number of things – pocket knives, mementoes, interesting rocks, Terminid tentacles, bits of bots, etc.
   

Both entries make reference to Terminid tentacles. Do you think this is just referring to their tongue-like appendages (as seen on the stalker and hunter) or instead hinting at something else? With the TCS malfunction, there's been talk of mutations occurring. Could still potentially signal the return of the impaler from HD1?
For context, the impaler looked a lot like a charger, but had tentacles on its face that it would bury into the ground to attack Helldivers from range.

Hey all!
I've been using FaceIT for well over 5 years now and the service has always been awesome. Recently, I had a problem with my account and I contacted support 5 days ago. I even send a follow-up message yesterday, but to this day, no response.
Is this normal? Or did my ticket get lost?
Hope you can shed some light on this :)

I was thinking yesterday that this seems all too familiar but couldn't put my finger on it until recently. I have grown up watching and going for the Cincinnati Reds. Bought jerseys, hats and watched most of the games. Then last year the team president comes out and tells an upset fan base "where else are you gonna go".
Rightly so the fan base was more than upset. You are essentially telling all these people that have put time, energy and money into your franchise because it's something they love to take part in that it doesn't matter. Go somewhere else if you don't like how it's run.
The are a lot of similarities. We are upset that nothing was said before the MLC kicked off that it would be harder than usual then when it gets to the last week something is finally said but in a way that is like a slap in the face. More or less we don't care complain somewhere else. Even content creators say if you dont like just don't play. That's easy for someone to just say but if you've been playing for years with an awesome faction and have fun with it most of the time wtf.
Sorry this is so long. Shit just sucks.