I originally upgraded from the M1 12.9 to the M4 13 on launch day for the new iPads. The reduction in weight was great...for a little bit. Unfortunately, the new weight and thinness doesn't fundamentally fix the awkward handling when trying to use the big iPad as a tablet. It still requires you to prop it up with a pillow or hold it with two hands endlessly. I didn't feel like I made much of an upgrade, so I returned the M4 13 + Magic Keyboard and picked up the M4 11 + Apple Pencil Pro.
HOLY CRAP this feels sooo much better. I can actually hold the tablet with one hand comfortably endlessly without needing to constantly prop it up! This was the reduction in weight that I originally wanted when upgrading. I don't use the Apple Pencil for drawing, it's purely for relaxed navigation. It's far much more chill sitting/laying on the couch casually poking at the screen instead of constantly having to stretch my hand everywhere or use the keyboard. The new "squeeze" function can be used with Apple shortcuts as well. That one little addition fixes a lot of my issues with the Apple Pencil from previous years!
The biggest surprise for me was actually enjoying the screen size reduction. I was wary of "downgrading" from using a 12.9 inch for years to a much smaller 11-inch tablet. I'm happy to be wrong on this, the 11-inch size feels like the perfect size for a tablet. I didn't realize before that the 12.9/13 inch is simply waaay too big. Unless you're sitting at a desk, the 13-inch feels "wrong" as a tablet. Everything just feels too spaced out, it requires far more effort to do basic touch navigation.
So if you're someone like me who uses the ipad more for reading, movie watching, light gaming, web browsing, etc. the 11-inch model I think is the right choice. I originally bought the M1 12.9 mainly for the mini led display (movies looked amazing on it.) However, now that both sizes have OLED displays, the 11-inch iPad feels like a no brainer for most people.

But not in an emotional vampire kind of way, I don't think. She herself acts very happy and joyful but she will not allow me to be happy or laugh (or have needs or wants for that matter).
For context I'm on a trip with my siblings so I'm kind of stuck with them right now. I was so looking forward to hanging out with them all, but now I'm at the end of the trip and I have no joy or happiness left in me. I haven't laughed all day whereas when we first got here on Friday I was bouncing off the walls with excitement.
It's little comments she constantly makes. "it's not that funny" when I'm laughing. Making sure we all know that she doesn't find my jokes funny. I try to tell a story or something and I get hit with "well actually...." It's like she's determined to make sure I know I'm wrong, she's right, she's the smart and funny one and I'm just annoying her with my presence. She straight up yelled at me when we were playing a game the other night and our other sister had to tell her to calm down. And I shouldn't dare assert any needs and wants, because then I'm too needy.
They wanted me on this trip. They asked me to come. It's not like I invited myself when I was unwanted. They were even disappointed that I couldn't stay for more than 5 nights. Then, I get here, and it's like she can't stand that I exist around her. One of my other sisters has even made feeble attempts to stand up for me ("y'all stop being so mean to her..." Etc).
Anyone know what this is called? I'm having a hard time putting into words how I feel. It's like I cannot take up an inch of space with any emotion, whether it's joy or frustration or anything. I've been kind of a shell all day just going along with them and not talking much. Kind of A LOT like I was when we were all kids. Barely existing because anything I did was a target for humiliation.
I am not looking for someone to tell me that my sister's horrible, because I don't think she's a bad person, just going through some kind of phase. I'm an easy target because I was the family's target as a kid (family scapegoat) which likely comes from me being autistic.
I am just looking for someone to help me clarify what exactly it is she's doing that's making me feel small and invisible. How do I put this into words? It would help me feel a lot more validated and it'd help me tell my therapist about it. Thanks.

In all my gaming years I've never had a true gaming rig. And I've only ever gamed on 1080p 60Hz TVs.
I have what I would say a mid range PC now with a 4060 in it (eventually want the best GPU possible just once before I die lol)
I've done my research and know a 4060 isn't really recommended for 1440p but I'd like to go ahead and get a 1440p monitor for heavy gaming and hopefully one day be able to put a nice GPU in my PC to take full advantage of it.
Problem is I only have a $200 budget(not including tax)
I would love a 32 inch and possible curved if in budget but not opposed to a 27 inch either.
I'm just confused on a few things.
I have watched several videos on different budget monitors and one video a guy was reviewing a 32 inch curved monitor. I believe it was a wide-screen. Not ultra wide though.
He said that it's basically just a 27 inch monitor that was stretched out wide. Is that true? And how do you tell if 32 inch monitors are really just 27 inches? I'm so confused by that.
I'm also confused as to why they are calling it a 32 wide-screen if it was just a 27 inch that was stretched.
I can't find that video to link what I am referring to. I've watched tons of videos on monitors so not sure which one it was. Apologies.
I would love my questions above answered as well as some good recommendations in my budget.
I've got a short list of some I've looked at that I will paste below and yall can tell me what you think:
LG UN650P 32 inch Ultra Gear QHD - $209 Walmart
Dell 2724D - $199 Dell.com
LG 32GN600-B 32 inch - $250 Amazon
AcerEl322QUR pbmiippx 31.5 1500R Curved WQHD - $199 Amazon
I've heard nothing but good things about that Dell 2724D from videos I've watched. Only negative for me is it has no USB hookups or anything like that. Which isn't a deal breaker but I've never had a monitor with anything like that on it before so it would be neat to experience.
For games I play I play tons of Ark Survival Ascended and Rocket League. MMOs. Racing games. Survival games. Will be playing Pax Dei as well in Early Access. And I stream and would like to watch American Football and some movies n TV shows on it too.
Sorry for the lengthy post but it'd a bit overwhelming and there's too many options. Plus I have no clue what's actually good or not and am so confused on the 32 inch wide screens actually being 27 inch wide screens.
Thanks in advance.

Hi everyone! I'm curious on some of you all's opinion on this! (I apologize for the bad english as we start since it's not my main language)
Long story short: I'm in my final year of high school and I really want to use macs for my work when I go to university. Anyways, right now I use my main desktop (Ryzen 9 7950x cpu and 4070Ti gpu, 32 Gb of ram and something like 6Tb of storage) both for work and gaming and I really really want to separate my workflows, gaming on windows, and work on macos.
I already have an "old" M1 MacBook pro 13 inch, but I would really like to either upgrade it to a better MacBook (currently debating M2 Pro vs M2 Max since 1. I've been hearing meh stuff about the M3 lineup 2. They are on sale right now), or just get a Mac Studio. I really don't know which one to go for!
What I plan to do with it: - make projects with the Microsoft Office lineup of programs like word, excel and powerpoint; - coding, I mainly use Code::Blocks (I DIDNT HAVE A CHOICE IT WAS FORCED UPPON ME, OK?) right now but I plan to switch to something else after high school; - watch media; - I also really need 2 monitors so... (I'll use the MacBook with a stand and a 2nd monitor attached if I'd have it, but I'd use 2 monitors with the Mac Studio)
My curent M1 MacBook Pro is *enough* right now I should say? But I don't know how it would hold up in the future, especially another 4 years of university. It's the 2020 base model and I have it since release afterall it's sort of showing it's age? 8gb of ram and 256gb of storage isnt really enough for me, but the battery still holds amazingly! 99% health and only 65~ ish battery cycles (can you tell I didnt rly use it much, I just couldnt get it to run Word or Powerpoint idk why and I gave up on it for a few years). But in recent times I find myself actually using it more and more and thats why I really wanted to ask the question:
Should I get the MacBook Pro with M2 Pro/Max or the M2 ultra MacStudio?

I came to this forum for the first time nearly two years ago. I was a few months into dating, and being idealised by my ex. I wanted to know what this disorder she continuously mentioned was about. I read the forewarnings, scoffed at the thought that it couldn't be me, doubted the credibility of this place, thought that the people here were bitter incels and thus continued on my way.
I then returned here again at the beginning of last year, devastated, devalued and heartbroken. I didn't know then that I was inches away from being discarded, smeared and stalked - but I had a group of you people here; sharing, reading, and acknowledging my reality with open arms, relating to my feelings in a way that nobody else did.
This forum has saved my life. A year ago, I was pointed towards numerous books and resources, including none other than “Whole Again” by the late Jackson Mackenzie. It put into words all of the insanity I couldn't comprehend. It also forewarned me of the hate-filled hoovering and stalking that was to come. The people here led me home to myself. In my reality, I've made new friends, started new work, ran a marathon in a brilliant time, composed and performed music from my grief and dated new people. It’s been a year and a half, and I'm only now just starting to feel healed, just now starting to feel like I am emerging from the arduous final tunnel of depression. I'm learning and improving every day and I'm finally at a stage of moderate indifference.
For a long time, this place was a relief for me. I'd read the stories here and take solace in the fact that it wasn't all my fault, that something bigger was at play here, and duly, so many of you have shared the frighteningly similar experiences, evocative messages, and abusive stories as I. I’ve hung around for a while, attempting to pay it forward to the next lot, to write what I can to offer my grain of solace to the next survivor. I'm thankful that I'm finally at that stage where this place does more harm than good. It’s no longer a relief, it draws me back into the noticeable darkness of rumination, the mindfuck minefield that is dating a pwBPD.
I'll leave you with one final note of wisdom as I take my leave and wish my heartfelt gratitude to every single one of you here:
It’s not you. No matter what they say, no matter what you do. It was never you and it was never your fault. They are unwell, and it takes so long to truly grasp that fact, but once you interpret what these people are, there's no going back. You can forgive yourselves. They are perpetual victims and they cannot hear you.
Untreated individuals with Cluster B personality disorders only have the capacity for themselves. There’s no actual witnessing going on between two people. You’re staring at an absence. Their personified proclamations of ‘bad other’ need to be sustained for them to stay a victim.
Your role dies the minute you no longer serve that.

I play demanding games and am considering upgrading from my current 16-inch computer, although 18-inch models are quite expensive. A prime example of the games I play is Star Citizen. I'm questioning whether GPU upgrades are essential and if they will be long-lasting. The Omen 17 appears to be the best choice, unless it is determined that the 4090s are excessively powerful for the price increase.
Legion 5i 4070 or Predator Helios 16 4080 Is the GPU jump worth the extra $300? That's the only difference.
Omen 17 Seems like a killer deal. But are gpus above the 4080 actually worth the extra chunk? I am mainly between this one and the above 2.
Alienware M18 is the 7900m comparable to the 4090? for this laptop it's a significant price drop
Predator Helios 18 Just wanted to make sure that I should stay away. Seems overpriced and it's a 2024 which means it's overpriced

I think most asian teenager males worship white girls. But we have anxiety over the size of our penises. We watch porn with fascination and envy knowing that there will never be a asian male porn star.
I was 25 when I finally had a date with a white woman. She was an escort I hired from eros.com. I was so full of anxiety, my already small penis (1.5 inches) actually shrank. After a slow handjob, she was able to get me up to 2 inches. She literally held my penis with just her thumb and index finger.
When I tried to hump her, my penis kept slipping out of the condom. I started to panic which caused my penis to shrink again. My escort suggested that she gets on top, but that didn't work. I was too just too small. In the end, she let me jerk off on her butt and lick it off her.
I would see her many times over the next few years and our 'dates' pretty much end the same way each time. We would spice things up with BDSM play, but I never officially had sex with her.

Timestamp: https://imgur.com/a/5-21-2024-PEpmAqc
PLEASE DONT USE YOUR PANTS SIZE! DO NOT USE OTHER COMPANIES BELT SIZING!
All buckles are now Cerakoted black as standard. All my cut materials went into this batch so there's a bunch of belts. Also introducing Multicam and Multicam Black for those who want a little more drip. Camos are $48 since the Velcro was so much more expensive.
V2 has Velcro going almost end to end and a tapered tail, while V1 has 1 inch of bare webbing near the loop and a squares off tail. Comparisons can be seen in pics. Black/MC/MCB belts still uses the tan webbing, but now the Velcro loop goes almost end to end so only small parts show up.
$40 each for black/coyote or $48 each for camo shipped to your door. Buying multiple will knock $4 off since shipping is included. PayPal F&F or Venmo only. I am now completely out of materials, so if you fuck up your sizing and I don't have one in the right size, I won't be able to make a replacement for a long time. SO DONT MESS UP YOUR SIZING!
Do you hate how flimsy EDC belts are? Have you ever bought a belt marketed as "super rigid!" only to find it super floppy? Do you hate the $3 inner belt that shipped with your $200 battle belt? Are those cheap plastic loop buckles a pain while in the restroom? Well, boy do I have the thing for you!
This belt is made with a 6 layer Tegris reinforcement that goes the entire width of the belt, and anchored to heavy duty belt webbing. This means that your guns don't sag when carrying or during draws. An outside layer of loop Velcro means that you can throw your battle belt on in no time at all. The Cerakoted G-Hook is made from 304 stainless and makes taking a whizz and adjustment super easy.
These are sewn by me in Texas with materials that are all sourced from US manufacturers AND Berry compliant. Everything from the buckle down to the thread is American made.
I honestly believe this is the most rigid EDC belt out there. Like, no joke guys, this belt is stupid stiff. Like Mexican blue pill stiff.
HOW TO KNOW YOUR SIZING!
DO NOT USE YOUR PANTS SIZE! Pants sizes have too many variables, so use the actual measurement of your waist in inches. When measuring, include your holsters for your pistol and mags. If you're in between sizes but on the higher end, move up a size. For example, someone who is a 35" or 36" would get the 34"-38" belt.
If you don't have a measuring tape, wear your normal belt outside the loops and make a note of where the belt meets. Then measure it with your ruler to know your approximate size.
I am now out of materials, so if you fuck up your sizing and I don't have a replacement in your size, I won't be able to make a replacement for a long time. SO DONT MESS UP YOUR SIZING!
Sizes (in inches) are:
COYOTE ($40)
28"-32" x1
32"-36" x3
34"-38" x2
36"-40" x1
BLACK ($40)
30"-34" x1
32"-36" x3
34"-38" x3
36"-40" x1
MULTICAM ($48)
28"-32" x1
30"-34" x1
32"-36" x1
34"-38" x1
38"-42" x1 SPF
MULTICAM BLACK ($48)
28"-32" x1
30"-34" x1
32"-36" x1
34"-38" x1
36"-40" x1
38"-42" x1
The buckle and loop might be a bit stiff so here's a handy guide on the best way to put them on. It'll break in after getting the buckle on a few times.
https://imgur.com/a/zpJ11pj

Data-Miner Gego stared at the results of the analysis, still in disbelief that this wild theory had borne fruit and stood up to scrutiny again and again. But now, here before him in data as clear as even the youngest apprentice could see, was evidence, clear and unshakable:
Humans were not what they promised themselves to be.
Feeling slightly nauseous with anxiety, he keyed in a request to meet with the diplomat’s office as soon as possible.
As the diplomat looked over his latest treaty proposal, there was a faint sound of horns in harmonious blaring, signifying someone had requested permission to enter. Glad for any distraction from the monotonous paperwork, he activated the intercom, saying “You are recognized and accepted. Please enter.”
As the crouched and scrabbling shape stepped into the doorway, diplomat Hale-he mused again how interesting it would be if the if their ancestors could have heard such a magnificent call for a mere diplomat. Previously, such a grand instrumentation would have been reserved for a high chieftain or king, and yet here was Hale-he, a diplomat to be sure, but certainly no ruler of any stripe, heralded by a song that would bring envy even to high lords and minor rulers in ages past.
The individual sat before him, and Hale-he could tell by their coloration and the shape of their antenna they were a scientist or engineer, someone likely far more familiar with numbers than he was. Hale-he, while now taking on the rich purple hues of a diplomat, had the underlying color of brilliant crimson, a mark of his near-decade of study as a historical scholar and graduate before his appointment into diplomacy.
“What do you have for me? Gego, I believe?”
The other individual nodded, crossing his pinchers in a sign of deference and respect. “I am sorry to disturb your appointment, but I have important information regarding humans.”
“Ah yes, humans,” said Hale-he, feeling a degree of relaxation and comfort at the mention of the gregarious and affable people.
Humans had taken quite some time in venturing out to the stars, but their planet was located such that a number of major trade routes passed quite near to their system. Several species had reported contact with them before humans had in turn reached out and started to make contact of their own. But from all reports, they were kind, clever, and selfless to a fault, with no recent instances of conflict despite a very violent early history. They were renowned for having an impeccable record of interspecies relations.
“I'm actually in the process of framing a new trade treaty with some of their inner-system human colonies. I believe the primary planet in question is called Mars, but they also have gas refineries and extractors above their gas giants, and several mining operations set up on a number of moons and their asteroid belt.”
“Yes, I have seen the newscast about how much this treaty is expected to aid both species,” said Gego. There was an odd note of apprehension Hale-he could detect in their chittering voice. “There is some invaluable context that I believe needs to be put to light.”
“Context? What do you mean, ‘context?’”
“Well, you are aware that we, the Civicor, first met humanity when a trade ship fell off course and crashed upon Earth?”
“It is a well-known accident. Some manner of navigational mishap; Thankfully, our propulsion systems are far more accurate today.”
“This is true, but are you also aware the Bayons have a remarkably-similar story related to their first contact with humanity as well? A military scout vessel, intending to regroup with the bulk of their fleet and engaging the Dendite menace, and they were likewise drawn off course, spiraling to crash onto Earth as well.”
“I remember the stories that time hypothesized that it was Dendite sabotage, even though it was unlikely for such a minor and inconsequential vessel,” said Hale-he. “Other than that, I’m unfortunately not familiar with their own reports on it.”
“But our two species are but a few from over a dozen first-contact reports with humanity. All stemming from engine failures, navigation failures, and crashes or forced landings of ships that lost control and arrived on Earth.”
“Well,” said the diplomat, starting to see the shape of the data-miner’s point, “Warpspace travel.has always been an inexact science at times, and was even less accurate decades ago. It's possible you are reading too much into a handful of coincidences.”
The data-miner rubbed their eyestalks, feeling exhaustion creeping in for how much frantic effort they had put in over the past three-day cycle. “Yes, but to borrow an idiom for the humans, ‘Once is happenstance, twice is coincidence, but three times is a pattern,’ let alone a solid dozen instances within barely a fifty-year timespan. Even the most heavily-trafficked routes past the most dense or erratic planetoids have only achieved a third of that number.”
“You're asking me to disrupt peaceful and productive diplomatic ties with humans by suggesting they were responsible for these instances. Are you truly suggesting that this was intentional from humanity's part?”
“I am.”
“That may be, but we will require more proof than mere happenstance, unlikely though it may be.”
“I have additional data as well.” Gego was the most proud of this next part, and he carefully pulled up the diagrams and charting maps. A vibrant animation appeared onscreen of what appeared to be a rainbow-colored and spiked disc, surging and shaking on the screen. “This is the analysis of the gravitational field irregularities within a quarter of a solar year of Earth's primary star.”
The diplomat looked nonplussed at the diagram. “I would assume the fluctuations here are not ideal?”
“No indeed. They could be likened to a reef within a shallow sea, permitting transit in the calm regions but damaging and disrupting ships passing through a rough space. I have reached out to several of the shipping guilds for more details, but initial reports back support this theory, with several commenting that the route passing near to Earth is highly undesirable amongst experienced pilots due to the rough effects it has on engine stability and wear and tear.”
The diplomat looked over the diagram further before attempting to wave it away dismissively. “But who’s to say that this isn't a natural phenomena of Earth’s system? There are many regions of space that are disruptive or dangerous to travel through in warpspace, so what would make Earth's patch of turbulence unique?”
“The fact that they can turn it on and off at will.”
The diplomat coughed violently as the surprise dislodged the piece of fruit pulp he was eating out of his primary digestion sack and instead into the top of his gas exchange organ. “What in the three spheres do you mean they can turn it off?”
Gego grimaced this time as he keyed in some commands to the report. This time the disc figure that was pulled was much grainier and blocky, fine measurements now showing as wide swaths. “This was reverse-calculated from a series of gravimetric scans done across that entire arm of the galaxy.”
Even with the poor resolution, the diplomat could still see that this was a wildly chaotic and dangerous gravitational field. “It looks the same.”
The data-miner nodded. “Yes, but watch here: It's hard to tell, but this readout is actually playing in reverse, stepping backwards through time. We're about to hit 76 years ago.”
“What's so important about 76-” The diplomat cut off, words caught like fruit pulp in his throat as the image abruptly stilled. The disc depicting the gravitational field was now still and smooth as a windless pond.
“So it just started one day?”
“Indeed, Diplomat Hale-he. And furthermore, this beginning of the turbulence was a mere month before the first vessel lost controlI and was forced to make an emergency landing on Earth.”
The possibilities were rapidly narrowing, but Hale-he was still in favor of exploring whatever possible shred he could find to avoid confronting the dawning reality about humans.
“Well, while things of this nature are highly irregular, I presume, I'm still not convinced that this shows they can activate it at will.”
“I know, Gego said, “Which is why I wanted to show you that data before I show you this.”
The gravitational field display became the ragged tumultuous ocean of currents and surges, and this time in the higher detail that told Hale-he this was more recent readings. “I'm sure you saw the announcements a fortnight ago that humanity had tested their first faster than light engine they had made themselves, rather than trading for, and successfully made a jaunt out to the furthest planetoid in their star system and back without incident?”
“Yes?” the diplomat said cautiously.
“I received this data from a colleague, who was concerned there may have been an instrument malfunction to produce such data as I’m about to show you. She checked and validated it herself. It was fully accurate and reliable, which makes it all the more troubling. I don't think she realized the cause of what she was seeing, but unfortunately the timing of it adds up too perfectly.”
The data-miner continued quietly recalling “I believe at this point we're at 30 seconds to launch the human’s test flight.”
Hale-he let out an involuntary gasp of breath as the gravity field abruptly stilled again, perfectly smooth simultaneously across the entire spread of it.
Grimly, the data-miner said “Here we had the jump,” and after a short pause continued “-and the return.” A few seconds later and the field abruptly resumed its turbulence.
The diplomat was still in shock, staring at the gravimetric readout, when Gego said “That's also not the most concerning part, either. This was supposed to be humanity's first faster-than-light capability of their own they were testing here; Isn't that right?”
“Well of course,” replied Hale-he. “It was on all the new stations. A great achievement for a species that had been slow to achieve that milestone.”
“I would remind you then that the readout here is half a light-year in diameter.”
The diplomat scrunched his eyestalks in confused concentration, trying to understand what the other alien was implying, when suddenly it hit him. “Yet they were able to disrupt such a large region simultaneously, and stop it equally quickly?”
Gego nodded. “Whatever means they have at causing such a disruption is certainly faster-than-light, and immensely wide-ranging. If it was slower and confined to a small area, I might have some theories as to how it could be accomplished, but this size, this scale and the speed? I have no idea. It is beyond anything our sciences and technology can produce, or that of any other known species.”
The diplomat sat back, stunned. “By the Spheres.” He glanced up at Gego. “What do you propose we do with this information?”
The data-miner waved an arm. “Perhaps we can get to the bottom of this: Go to humanity with the information we have. Tell them we want the secrets of this technology and the power sources that feed it, as it far eclipses anything we can currently achieve. Tell them that we will expose these findings to the rest of the space-faring civilizations of the galaxy if they continue to hold back.”
The diplomat’s eyes widened, before after a long moment he said “I see. Well, I still need to get to my duties and figure out how to handle this. You are excused, and a reminder to keep the strictly confidential while I inform the appropriate other parties.”
Gego bowed in deference before leaving the office. After he left, Hale-he leaned back in his saddle chair and groaned. The idiot had uncovered humanity possessed the capability of affecting a wide chunk of space at a power and complexity unheard of among any other known species, and his first suggestion was to blackmail them? The diplomat rubbed his head trying to make the sudden headache go away.
A few thoughts were coming to mind, snippets that had been dismissed in the moment, but now he couldn't shake them as he was reminded of the first species that had ever encountered humanity, and the comments by their scientists. They had said that humans were curiously disinterested in their warpspace drivers, despite not having faster-than-light capabilities already.
Then the second species that encountered humanity had mentioned that a child of one of the diplomatic party had become separated from the group, and accidentally come in contact with and ingested some Earth flora. It wasn't something toxic or dangerous to humans, but the physiological makeup of that species reacted poorly with alkaloids in the flora and would have resulted in a swift and painful death if left untreated. But instead, the humans had administered a series of emetics and alkaloid-binding treatments, something they said was common in the case of an accidental poison ingestion, The diplomat remembered reading a footnote from the inhuman physician at the time that this particular blend of neutralizing agents was not something commonly found in human medical kits, and in fact was uniquely suited to their own species’ biology.
Both had been written off as flukes, interesting anecdotes at most, but now the diplomat began to see the greater shape of it, as a species that cared not for faster-than-light travel, for they'd doubtless already achieved it, mastered it, and discarded it as uninteresting at some point before. A species, who upon supposed first contact, had comprehensive medical and anatomical knowledge of their guests sufficient enough to save a child in mere minutes from otherwise certain death.
All this from a species that had befriended and gregariously hosted every alien ship that had come astray upon their planet, and offered nothing but support and friendship to both waylaid travelers and their subsequent diplomatic summits, despite seeming to lack the ability to travel outside of their own star system. A species that was confident, at a basal level that Hale-he was only just now beginning to truly understand.
He opened a communications missive, addressed to all the other diplomats of similar station amongst the other species humanity had made contact with.
”Greetings to my fellow ambassadors. * *I come bearing difficult news regarding humanity: * *They are not what they appear to be. * *Yet, I believe it is of the utmost importance that we continue to pretend that they are, * *For fear that otherwise, we will learn who, or what, they truly are…”
Enjoy this tale? Check out DarkPrinceLibrary for more of my stories like it!

Hiya!
Posting about myself again. Dating apps have not worked for me and actually have been more traumatizing than anything. I want a LTR and kids eventually but it's not going as expected. So hopefully you can change that.
About me:
• Multiracial
• 5' 3.5" (the half inch matters lol)
• Christian
• Master's degree
• No kids
• Into reality shows like LIB, 90 day fiancé, the ultimatum, etc
• Love all types of music but current preferences are UK rap (Dave, Stormzy, Central Cee), Raggaeton (Bad Bunny), and Country (Sam Hunt)
• Dual citizen with NL (Netherlands)
• avoidant attachment style
Looking for:
• Preferably in the USA
• 5'8 or taller (so I can wear my heels lol)
• Relatively decent shape physically
• Bachelor's degree or higher
• no children
• Christian/Catholic
• No criminal history
• Honest & loyal
• Doesn’t smoke weed/do dr*gs
If you think we'd be a good match, dm me a pic, where you live, and what about me made you interested.

The Quran claims that Muhammad is illiterate:

Those who follow the Messenger, the illiterate (ummi) prophet... S. 7:157

Definition of 'Illiterate':-

a person who is unable to read or write.

Therefore, if we find sufficient evidence from the Quran and the ahadith which demonstrate that Muhammad was literate, it would necessitate a reevaluation of the Quranic assertion of his illiteracy.
The prevailing belief among many Muslims is that the historical figure of Muhammad was illiterate and therefore incapable of producing the Quran. However, it is important to note that both the Quran and the ahadith provide evidence that Muhammad possessed the ability to read and write!

Evidence from the Quran

The following verses commanded Muhammad to read:

Read! (Iqra) In the Name of your Lord, Who has created (all that exists) … Read! (Iqra) And your Lord is the Most Generous, Who has taught (the writing) by the pen [the first person to write was Prophet Idrees (Enoch)], S. 96:1, 3-4

The mention of the pen clearly indicates that Muhammad was being directed to read a written text, rather than merely recite spoken words.
In fact, the Quran says that Allah will make Muhammad read the Quran so that he won’t forget it:

We shall make thee read (O Muhammad) so that thou shalt not forget S. 87:6

Other places where Muhammad is commanded to read the Quran include:

When you read the Quran, you shall seek refuge in GOD from Satan the rejected. S. 16:98
When you read the Quran, we place between you and those who do not believe in the Hereafter an invisible barrier. S. 17:45
A Quran that we have released slowly, in order for you to read it to the people over a long period, although we sent it down all at once. S. 17:106 And lo! It is a revelation of the Lord of the Worlds, Which the True Spirit hath brought down Upon thy heart, that thou mayst be (one) of the warners, In plain Arabic speech. And lo! it is in the Scriptures of the men of old. Is it not a token for them that the doctors of the Children of Israel know it? And if We had revealed it unto one of any other nation than the Arabs, And he had read it unto them, they would not have believed in it. S. 26:192-199
Your Lord knows that you meditate during two-thirds of the night, or half of it, or one-third of it, and so do some of those who believed with you. GOD has designed the night and the day, and He knows that you cannot always do this. He has pardoned you. Instead, you shall read what you can of the Quran. He knows that some of you may be ill, others may be traveling in pursuit of GOD's provisions, and others may be striving in the cause of GOD. You shall read what you can of it, and observe the contact prayers (Salat), give the obligatory charity (Zakat), and lend GOD a loan of righteousness. Whatever good you send ahead on behalf of your souls, you will find it at GOD far better and generously rewarded. And implore GOD for forgiveness. GOD is Forgiver, Most Merciful. 73:20
and, when the Koran is read to them, do not adore? S. 84:21

The evidence strongly suggests that Muhammad had access to a manuscript from which he could read to the people. Without access to such a manuscript, it raises the question of what he would have been reading from.
If a Muslim claims that the above texts do not necessarily mean that Muhammad was reading an actual book, because there was no Quranic manuscript for him to read, note what the following passage states:

Those who disbelieve say: "This (the Qur'an) is nothing but a lie that he (Muhammad SAW) has invented, and others have helped him at it, so that they have produced an unjust wrong (thing) and a lie." And they say: "Tales of the ancients, which he has written down, and they are dictated to him morning and afternoon." S. 25:4-5

Not only did Muhammad have the Quran written down, showing that he had access to an actual manuscript that he could read, the Quran even refers to pure pages that Muhammad was reading to the people:

A messenger from Allah, reading purified pages (yatlu suhufan mutahharatan) S. 98:1-2

The term suhuf refers to an actual scripture just as the following verse proves:

The Books (suhuf) of Abraham and Moses. S. 87:19

Therefore, we can now conclude that the Quran provides compelling evidence supporting the claim that Muhammad possessed the ability to read and write. A more in-depth examination of the ahadith is now necessary to further substantiate this assertion.

Evidence from the Ahadith

Narrated Anas bin Malik: Once the Prophet wrote a letter or had an idea of writing a letter. The Prophet was told that they (rulers) would not read letters unless they were sealed. So the Prophet got a silver ring made with "Muhammad Allah's Apostle" engraved on it. As if I were just observing its white glitter in the hand of the Prophet… (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 1, Book 3, Number 65)
Narrated Anas bin Malik: When the Prophet (ﷺ) intended to write to the Byzantines, it was said to him, "Those people do not read your letter unless it is stamped." So the Prophet (ﷺ) took a silver ring and got 'Muhammad, the Apostle of Allah' engraved on it .... as if I am now looking at its glitter in his hand. (Sahih Al Bukhari, Volume 7, Book 72, Number 764)
Narrated Anas bin Malik: When the Prophet (ﷺ) intended to write to the Byzantines, the people said, "They do not read a letter unless it is sealed (stamped)." Therefore the Prophet (ﷺ) took a silver ring----as if I am looking at its glitter now----and its engraving was: 'Muhammad, Apostle of Allah'. (Sahih Al Bukhari, Volume 9, Book 89, Number 276)
Narrated 'Ursa: The Prophet wrote the (marriage contract) with 'Aisha while she was six years old and consummated his marriage with her while she was nine years old and she remained with him for nine years (i.e. till his death). (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 7, Book 62, Number 88)
Narrated 'Ubaidullah bin 'Abdullah: Ibn 'Abbas said, "When the ailment of the Prophet became worse, he said, 'Bring for me (writing) paper and I will write for you a statement after which you will not go astray.' But 'Umar said, 'The Prophet is seriously ill, and we have got Allah's Book with us and that is sufficient for us.' But the companions of the Prophet differed about this and there was a hue and cry. On that the Prophet said to them, 'Go away (and leave me alone). It is not right that you should quarrel in front of me." Ibn 'Abbas came out saying, ""It was most unfortunate (a great disaster) that Allah's Apostle was prevented from writing that statement for them because of their disagreement and noise. (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 1, Book 3, Number 114)
Narrated Ibn `Abbas: When the time of the death of the Prophet (ﷺ) approached while there were some men in the house, and among them was Umar bin Al-Khatttab, the Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Come near let me write for you a writing after which you will never go astray."Umar said, "The Prophet (ﷺ) is seriously ill, and you have the Qur'an, so Allah's Book is sufficient for us." The people in the house differed and disputed. Some of them said, "Come near so that Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) may write for you a writing after which you will not go astray," while some of them said what Umar said. When they made much noise and differed greatly before the Prophet, he said to them, "Go away and leave me." IbnAbbas used to say, "It was a great disaster that their difference and noise prevented Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) from writing that writing for them. (Sahih Al Bukhari, Volume 9, Book 92, Number 468)
Narrated Yazid ibn Abdullah: We were at Mirbad. A man with dishevelled hair and holding a piece of red skin in his hand came. We said: You appear to be a bedouin. He said: Yes. We said: Give us this piece of skin in your hand. He then gave it to us and we read it. It contained the text: "From Muhammad, Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), to Banu Zuhayr ibn Uqaysh. If you bear witness that there is no god but Allah, and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, offer prayer, pay zakat, pay the fifth from the booty, and the portion of the Prophet (ﷺ) and his special portion (safi), you will be under by the protection of Allah and His Apostle." We then asked: Who wrote this document for you? He replied: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). (Sunan Abi Dawud Book 19, Number 2993)
Narrated Al-Bara' bin 'Azib (RA):The Prophet (ﷺ) sent 'Ali to Yemen. The narrator mentioned the complete Hadith. He said, "Ali sent a letter regarding their (the people of Yemen) acceptance of Islam. When Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) read the letter, he prostrated in gratitude to Allah the Most High for that." [Reported by al-Baihaqi].

Muhammad also had access to Syriac books. He also commanded Zaid Bin Thabit to learn the Syriac Language and the book of the Jews:

Ibn Hajar said in Al-Fath: It can be made that he learned their language, reading and writing, because he used to read their books to him and write to them if he wanted to write to them. This is indicated by Al-Tirmidhi’s classification of this hadith by saying: Chapter on what was mentioned in teaching the Syriacs, and in it he mentioned another narration that says In it Zaid: The Messenger of God, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, commanded me to learn Syriac, and in Sunan Abu Dawud: Zaid bin Thabit - may God be pleased with him - said: The Messenger of God, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him and his family, commanded me to learn the book of the Jews for him, and he said: By God, no Jews believed in my book. So I learned it, and only half a month passed before I mastered it. I would write to him when he wrote, and I would read to him when he wrote to him.
The author of Awn al-Ma’boud said: The Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, commanded me, that is, to learn the book of the Jews, so I learned for him, that is, for the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace. He said, meaning, the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, is a conjunction of my command to explain the reason for the matter. The Jews did not believe in my book, that is, I fear if I commanded a Jew. By writing a book to the Jews, or reading a book that the Jews had come to add or subtract from, so I learned it, i.e., a Jewish book, until I mastered it with the dictionary dhāl and waqf, meaning I knew it, mastered it, and taught it, so I used to write for him, i.e., for the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, whenever he wrote, i.e., if he wanted to write.

Al-Tahawi said in Al-Mu’tasir:

It was narrated from Zaid Bin Thabbit, that he said:
The Messenger (PBUH) said: “Do you know Syriac well? I receive Syriac books.” Zaid said: “No.” The Messenger (PBUH) said: “Learn it (Syriac Language).” Zaid said: “So I learned it in seventeen days.”
https://islamweb.net/afatwa/161555/

The evidence from additional hadiths (links given below) attributed to Muhammad strongly indicates his ability to write.
https://sunnah.com/bukhari:2699
https://sunnah.com/mishkat:4049
https://sunnah.com/muslim:1637b
https://sunnah.com/muslim:1637c
https://sunnah.com/nasai:3101
https://sunnah.com/bukhari:3053
https://sunnah.com/bukhari:4431
https://sunnah.com/bukhari:7366
https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5669
https://sunnah.com/bukhari:114
https://sunnah.com/bukhari:4432
https://sunnah.com/muslim:2387
https://sunnah.com/abudawud:4505
https://sunnah.com/abudawud:3649
https://sunnah.com/tirmidhi:2667
https://sunnah.com/bukhari:6880
https://sunnah.com/muslim:1355a
https://sunnah.com/abudawud:4214
https://sunnah.com/bukhari:2938
https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5875
https://sunnah.com/bukhari:7162
https://sunnah.com/nasai:5201
https://sunnah.com/muslim:2092d
https://sunnah.com/muslim:2092e
https://sunnah.com/bukhari:65
https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5872
https://sunnah.com/shamail:89
https://sunnah.com/muslim:2092c
https://sunnah.com/tirmidhi:2715
https://sunnah.com/bukhari:2377
https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5158

Muhammad's Literacy in the Sirat(s)

Muhammad could read and write as we read in Sirat Ibn Ishaq, Kitab at-Tabaqat al-Kabir' by Abu 'Abdullah Muhammad ibn Sa'd, and Al Sira Al Nabawiyya by Ibn Kathir:
Sirat Ibn Ishaq
https://archive.org/details/TheLifeOfMohammedGuillaume
Page 106, about the cave of Hira revelation:

So I (Muhammad) read it, and he departed from me.

Page 649, about correspondence with Musaylima

Musaylima had written to the apostle: ‘From Musaylima the apostle of God to Muhammad the apostle of God. Peace upon you. I have been made partner with you in authority. To us belongs half the land and to Quraysh half, but Quraysh are a hostile people.’ Two messengers brought this letter. A shaykh of Ashja’ told me on the authority of Salama b. Nu’aym b. Mas’ud al-Ashja’I from his father Nu’aym: I heard the apostle saying to them when he read his letter ‘What do you say about it?’ They said that they said the same as Musaylima. He replied, ‘By God, were it not that heralds are not to be killed I would behead the pair of you !’ Then he wrote to Musaylima: ‘From Muhammad the apostle of God to Musaylima the liar. Peace be upon him who follows the guidance. The earth is God’s. He lets whom He will of His creatures inherit it and the result is to the pious. This was at the end of the year 10.

Page 256

The apostle wrote to the Jews of Khaybar according to what a freedman of the family of Zayd b. Thabit told me from ‘Ikrima or from Sa‘id b. Jubayr from Ibn ‘Abbas: “In the name of God the compassionate the merciful from Muhammad the apostle of God friend and brother of Moses who confirms what Moses brought…”

• KITAB AT-TABAQAT AL-KABIR' by **Abu 'Abdullah Muhammad ibn Sa'd, one of the most important and earliest surviving collections of biographical details of the early Muslims, spanning just over the first two centuries of Islam** https://religion.antropo.es/libros/fuentes-islamicas/Ibn-Sad_Kitab-al-tabaqat-al-kabir.pdf

Volume 1, Parts II.73.2

He (Ibn Sa'd) said: Al-Haytham Ibn 'Adi al-Ta'i informed us; he said: Mujàlid Ibn Sa'id and Zakariyá Ibn Abi Zà'idah informed us on the authority of al-Sha'bi; he said: The Apostle of Allah, may Allah bless him, used to write after the style of the Quraysh: In Thy name, 0 Allah! Then the verse, "Embark therein! In the name of Allah be its course and its mooring," (Qur'an, 11:41) was revealed, **and he began to write: In the name of Allah.**Then the verse, "Cry unto Allah or cry unto the Beneficent" (Qur'an, 17:110) was revealed, and he began to write; In the name of Allah the Beneficent. Then the verse, "Lo ! it is from Solomon, and Lo ! it is: In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful" (Qur'an, 27: 30) was revealed, and he began to write: In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.

Volume 1, Parts II.73.3

He (Ibn Sa'd) said: Al-Haytham Ibn 'Adi informed us; Dalham Ibn Salih and Abu Bakr al-Hudhali informed us on the authority of 'Abd Allah Ibn Buraydah, he on the authority of his father, Buraydah Ibn al-Husayb alAslami; (second chain) he (Ibn Sa'd) said: Muhammad Ibn Ishaq related to us on the authority of Yazid Ibn Rumàn and al-Zuhri; (third chain) he (Ibn Sa'd) said: Al-Hasan Ibn 'Umàrah related to us on the authority of Firas, he on the authority of al-Sha'bi; their narrations are mixed up: He (Ibn Sa'd) said: The Apostle of Allah, may Allah bless him, wrote [P.20] an epistle to the people of Yaman detailing in it the regulations of Islam and duties on animals and properties. He directed them to treat his Companions and messengers well, and his messengers were Mu'adh Ibn Jabal and Malik Ibn Murarah. He informed them about the coming of their messengers to him and acknowledged the message which he had received from them. They said: The Apostle of Allah, may Allah bless him,wrote personal letters to several persons of Yaman; the names of some of them are, alHarith Ibn 'Abd Kulál, Shurayh Ibn 'Abd Kulal, Nu'aym Ibn 'Abd Kulál, Nu'man the prince of Dhu Yazan, Ma'àfir and Hamdan and Zur'ah of Ru'ayn; and the last was the first of Himyarites to embrace Islam... The Apostle of Alláh, may Allah bless him, wrote to them that Malik Ibn Murárah had delivered the message and defended their right in absentia. They said: The Apostle of Allah, may Allah bless him, wrote to Musaylimah, the liar, may Allah damn him, inviting him to join the fold of Islam, and sent it through 'Amr Ibn Ummayyah [P. 26] al-Damri. Musaylimah wrote a reply to his epistle saying that he (Musaylimah) was a prophet like him, and asked him to divide the Earth; he also added that the Quraysh were not just. The Apostle of Allah, may Allah bless him, said: Curse him; Allah has also cursed him. The Prophet wrote to him: your letter (full of) falsehood and fabrications against Allah has reached me... They said: The Apostle of Allah, may Allah bless him, wrote a similar epistle to Bang Mu'awiyah, a branch of Kindah.

• Volume 1, Parts II.74.83

'Ath'ath Ibn Zahr and Anas lbn Mudrik waited on the Apostle of Allah, may Allah bless him, with the members of the Khath'am after Jarir Ibn 'Abd Allah had broken Dhua'l-Khalasah and had slain those of Khath'am whom he had slain. Then they said: We believe in Allah, His Apostle and what was revealed by Allah. (They said) write a document for us so that we may follow what might be written therein. Thereupon he wrote a document for him and Jarir Ibn 'Abd Allah and those present testified to it.

THERE ARE MORE EVIDENCES BUT I WILL NOT PROVIDE ALL
AL SIRA AL NABAWIYYA by Ibn Kathir (4 Volumes)
https://archive.org/details/AlSiraAlNabawiyyaByIbnKathirAllVolumesInOnePdf

• Volume I P33

when the Messenger of God (SAAS) wrote to Chosroe inviting him to accept Islam, he became enraged, tore up the letter and then wrote his own instructions

• Volume I P234

the Messenger of God (SAAS) wrote to the Jews of Khaybar as follows, “In the name of God the most merciful and beneficent, from Muhammad, the Messenger of God, …”

• Volume I P267

He wrote a document for us as follows: “In the name of God, the most Merciful and most Beneficent; this is from Muhammad, the Messenger of God, …”

• Volume I P273

Amr b. Murra and those others of his people who had accepted Islam then went to the Prophet (SAAS). He welcomed and honoured them and wrote for them a document, the text of which was as follows, 'In the name of God, the most Merciful, the most Beneficent, this document is from God through the tongue of the Messenger of God and is a trustworthy document…”

• Volume II P122

… the Messenger of God (SAAS) wrote to Mus'ab b. Umayr telling him to establish the Friday prayer

• Volume II P 212

… the Prophet (SAAS)__** wrote up a contract between the Emigrants saying that they would respect one another's strongholds, that they would treat with kindness those in distress and bring peace between the Muslims.**
The sahih collection of Muslim quotes Jabir as saying, "The Messenger of God (SAAS) wrote an aqula, a blood-wit pact, for each sub-tribe." Muhammad b. Ishaq stated, "The Messenger of God (SAAS) wrote a contract between the Emigrants and the Helpers…”

• Volume II P242

…the Messenger of God (SAAS) sent forth 'Abd All& b. Jahsh b. Ri'ab al-Asadi along with eight Emigrants; … He wrote a letter for 'Abd All& b. Jahsh…

• Volume IV P72

They asked them, “Uthman and Abd al-Rahman, your Prophet wrote us a letter and we have come in response to it…”

• Volume IV P73

When they went to him next day,** he wrote for them the following document, 'In the name of God, the most Merciful, the most Beneficent. This is written by Muhammad, the Prophet, the untutored, the Messenger of God, to Najran…”**

• Volume IV P75

The bishop, Abu al-Harith, went to the Messenger of God (SAAS), along with al-Sayyid, al-Aqib and important persons from their people…. He wrote the document for the bishop and those bishops to come after him: 'In the name of God, the most Merciful, the most Beneficent. From.Muhammad, the Prophet,…”

• Volume IV P100

The Messenger of God (SAAS) then wrote a letter to this Mutarrif…

• Volume IV P101

The Messenger of God (SAAS) wrote them the following document…

• Volume IV P103

“The following is the letter we have that the Messenger of God (SAAS) wrote for 'Amr b. Hazam…”

• Volume IV P113

”He then wrote a document appointing me their leader … He then wrote me another document.”

• Volume IV P123

The Messenger of God (SAAS) wrote a document to this effect, as follows, "In the name of God, the most Merciful and Beneficent. This records what Muhammad, Messenger of God, has given to Rabi, Mutrif and Anas…”

• Volume IV P134

The Messenger of God (SAAS) wrote back to him as follows…

• Volume IV P135

He wrote him a document specifying his charge and his orders to him.

• Volume IV P318

…the Messenger of God (SAAS) wrote to him and he restored it to them.

• Volume IV P496

The Prophet (SAAS) **wrote a letter to those of Banu Jurash who accepted Islam,**ordering them to peform the prayer, pay the zakat, and to donate one-fifth of the booty they took.

THERE ARE MORE EVIDENCES BUT I WILL NOT PROVIDE ALL because I am too lazy.
The evidence presented in this post strongly supports the claim that Muhammad was literate and not illiterate, as claimed by the Quran and the Muslims! So, the answer to the question in the title is a BIG NO.

I (14F) am absolutely SICK and TIRED of my mom(38F) and her boyfriend(54M) and his kids. (18F, 22F, 21M)
Growing up, my mother always had a boyfriend. It was like she couldn't live with one. One of her boyfriends the father of my little brother(6M) even sexually assaulted (touched TWICE) my older sister, "CC"(20F). This happened at least 6-7 years ago. But CC tried to tell my mom the first time it happened, and you wanna know what my mom did? SHE DIDN'T EVEN BELIEVE CC. It had to happen a second time for my mom to actually care and notice.
Now, present time, with my mom's boyfriend, we'll call him "Road". At first, I liked him and I saw him as a father.
For context, my father had been in jail for 4-5 years because of drugs and he touched me as a child. When my father was in a past marriage, he slept with his stepdaughter. His now ex-wife got a restraining order and his stepdaughter visited him again, when she was an adult. I'm not allowed to speak to my father at all.
Now road wasn't as bad as the boyfriends were to CC or to me, but that doesn't make him great.
You see, he is mentally abusive. He calls me and my little brother, who we'll call Cam, "special" and other horrible and vulger names to where "special" is theost appropriate compared to everything else. We do one bad thing, "special". And sometimes, he even laughs about it. He also threatens to punch us into a wall, smack us stupid(his words), and basically threats to abuse us severely when we just mess up.
I've tried to talk to my mom about this, but she doesn't talk to Road about his behavior towards us, even when she says she will.
His kids? Well, 18F, "A", she'll do anything for a man... If you know what I mean. She lost her V card while trunk and even did "things" with an 18 year old in the band room while she was 15. And Road was talking crap about his other daughter, 22F, "D" a whore for doing the exact same thing. A started crying when she heard this, because she did the same thing D did, but Road doesn't know that A did the exact same thing as D. D even has a child from someone she met online, and Everytime she gets broken up with, she comes to what was originally MY HOME, and trashes it completely! Leaves being her food, Tupperware, clothes, and basically all of her objects. Road's son, (21M) B, is dating CC. Weird, right? My sister and my mom's boyfriends son dating. They're completely toxic for each other. They cheat on each other, abuse each other physically, emotionally, and mentally. They're always arguing over who cheated, who smoked the last weed(they're like junkies from how much they smoke and fight over it.), and who did what last. So you can imagine why I don't talk with them much over this thing. Only person who I could talk to was A, but she told one of my secrets, and I haven't trusted her since.
Road dies have his good moments, where he lets me talk to him, he buys us food and other necessities, and other things that would make you smile. I've broken my collarbone(like, it snapped in half, completely, and we were worried I might have to get surgery, luckily I don't, my bone is going to reconnect again. One bone is on the other at least an inch or two, but it'll grow weirdly), did did last Thursday, and ever since, he's been super caring and super loving. But I feel like he should be this way all the time and not just when I'm injured.
That's mostly it. I would like to know other POVs and if I'm in the wrong.
Sorry if this doesn't make any sense or spelling is wrong. This is my first story.

It’s honestly unsettling how close I felt to you despite our actual distance. You kept me near… you often insinuated an invitation… but you stay locked up in your tower.
A King. The true ruler of our narrative, roleplaying as a peasant in your boredom.
You’re hypnotizing as you play with your pawns. You got me caught up, maybe unintentionally, making me feel special, bearing gifts, praising me, guiding me, claiming me as your queen, your goddess, etc.
When I felt I could come a little closer, merely suggesting to enter your castle, you panicked and swiftly reminded me of my place on the ground with the other peasants.
I was sorely mistaken but I should’ve known… What business does a girl like me even have with a King?
I didn’t want to play with you anymore and I didn’t mean to confuse it for reality either… but make-believe… isn’t it so fun?
It was all just so fun for you, wasn’t it?
You’re so good at playing these games, I wish it were real because I’ve never been special before but we all have to stop playing at some point, right?
We often lose our toys due to carelessness… I wonder if you ever miss me or if you’ve simply replaced me already… though you never seemed like the type.
I guess this was just a similar trope disguised in another book that I managed to pick up… I can’t be upset since I fully ignored the description.
I’ve been scarred quite a few times in the past so I really miss you… but honestly, I’m beginning to miss myself more.
I miss me.

My brother's school principal bought a small laser engraver that is 3 x 3 inches (75 x 75 mm) and it works I think ok with the gears and platform. I have not been able to get the laser to actually burn anything, but it moves around fine. Runs on exe file that has English and Chinese versions with just basic patterns. The laser produces a bright blue dot on the cardboard in there. He didn't give me power supply or the tacky backing to prevent parts moving around on platform, so it was close to getting trashed probably.
Before I do anything stupid, how do you protect your eyes when the box is open on all sides? I am sensitive to blue light due to dry eye, so I can't really look at it directly due to reflections. I built cardboard sides around it, but then I noticed the fan isn't spinning above laser, so the thing might already be dead if heat is an issue. The software is not obvious on how to use as it is bare bones, so I just click around and eventually get motion. If other software might work with the provided USB driver, then that would definitely be better.
Should I just take it to the garage with a laptop and try to see what it can engrave if anything? If not, is it garbage or can you replace laser with a different laser?

I'm using a 50 inch TV as my monitor, have my desktop set to 4k, but the video resolution looks terrible, or at least barely better than 720p. If I take the same 4k video and plug it directly into my tv, it looks 4k. Using windows 11 and HDR on/off doesnt seem to matter. Anyone know a fix for this? I can play games and youtube on my computer and it actually looks 4k.

Is there a trick to very precisely adjusting parafocal rings to properly homofocalize a set of eyepieces ? The way I've currently done it is to very minutely move the piece by hand until the focus is just right, then instantly screw in the ring with the allen key already in place and waiting. I'm pretty satisfied with the result I have now, was just wondering if there was something a little less finnicky.
If it helps, here is my current setup. I have the 20, 9, and 5mm APM XWA eyepieces. The 9 and 5mm can have their bottom removed to go from 2 inch to 1.25 inch pieces. Rather than directly homofocalize them, I actually have my different "setups" parafocalized. So with my rings, the following 3 setups are parafocal :

• GSO coma corrector + 2 inch extender + 20mm APM XWA.
• Filter wheel + t2 to 1.25 inch adapter + 9 or 5mm piece in 1.25 inch mode.
• 2 inch extender + 9 or 5mm in 2 inch mode.

I can't put the 20mm on my filter wheel as that eats up too much backfocus, even without the coma corrector.
I'm very happy with my parafocalization for the 20 and 9mm pieces. I think the 5mm is pretty good too but I haven't had a night with great seeing yet so even at perfect focus stars are less pinpoint like, and in particular at that magnification my tweaking of the eyepiece position causes slight wobbling which is enough for my reference star (Polaris for obvious reasons) to shake pretty wildly. So again, if there's a less finnicky method out there I'd love to hear it.

I honestly was hoping to see a bit more of the Joker (being the ruler of Borderland) but we only got like 2 pages of him. Is it hinting at another game (the Joker game) but that game is the game of life and if you lose (die) you actually die?

Intro: As I alluded to over the weekend, I ordered & got in my FV SP mower, though I got it a day early, and decided to mow the lawn yesterday to test it out. I'm coming from the non self propelled version of the Gen 2 mower, which was a bit anemic, but got the job done for 3.5 seasons. My caveats here are that I haven't used a gas mower in 20 years, and I've never used a self propelled mower in my life, so I have nothing to compapre against here.
Mowinig Performance:
Overall the mower is really powerful, I mowed most of the lawn bagging, some of it side discharging and some of it mulching. The bagging performance was really good, compared to the Gen 2 mower. It was consistently filling the bag to around 90% full whereas the gen2 was filling it to about 20 or 30% which was annoying. This allowed me to mow almost the hole lawn bagging, which I never realistically would have done on my gen2. The mulching performance was pretty good as well. Sure it left clippings on the lawn, however the grass was wet, and the patch I set up last week to test this by not mowing it was almost 8 inches tall. So this was a bit of a torture test. The mower didn't bog down, nor did it seem really to care that I was asking it to chew through a bunch of stuff. I was even able to cold start the mower while it was in the grass, something I wouldn't have been able to do with my gen 2. The rear - side discharge capability was okay it didn't seem to clog as much as the gen2's side discharge would. The clippings were consistently spread across the lawn, and wasn't patchy as it was coming out.
Consistently filled about 90% of the bag before needing emptying.
Some of this was side discharged, and it was spread well enough that you can't even tell.
The mulching patch I used as a stress test. Almost all of this was 4/5 load with some dips to 5 but no bogging down.
Runtime & discharge:
Overall I would say that while I'm not impressed by the runtime, I'm not disappointed, which is really what matters. I went through one worn and two relatively new DCB609s and one full dcb612 which is roughly the same amount of power -- about is 20v equivalent 36 AH, or 12 AH at 60v accounting for battery wear on my older batteries -- as I would have gone through on my Gen2. The difference is that it went through them faster. This mow would have taken me about 2 and a half hours to do with the gen 2 because I would have had to go over the back yard twice. It's really thick and in need of dethatching, plus I noticed halfway through the mow that I wasn't mowing at the same level as I usually do because I misread the height gauge. All in all I went through all of that battery in about 1 hour 40 while mowing wet grass at a lower setting than my gen2 would have been able to do, so overall it's okay. Only subsequennt mows where I'm not trying to torture the mower will really tell. But I'll happily trade additional battery burn for saving an hour in these circumstances.
Unlike the gen 2 though, when the mower cuts out due to the battery, it's not going again. My batteries still ran the string trimmer after the mower refused to use them anymore, so I think the mower just refuses to run when the voltage coming from the battery gets too low. Both of my DCB609s stopped powering the mower with what I guess to be about 10% remaining. Just a thing I noticed. This mower is asking a lot out of its batteries and overall I'm pretty happy how it used them. The batteries weren't even warm when I took them out and that's with the mower operating at over the 3/5's load bar almost the entire time.
Ease of use:
There are some things that I noticed remain true from Project For Alls review of the 20v mower. (Go check it out on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h\_dU8CoTXDw&t=5s) I did agree that the thumb paddles were slightly awkward, though nothing I'm sure I can't get used to. They're very light action so I'm sure part of it was pushing more firmly on them than I needed to. I can't see how they'd be worse than EGO's SP buttons, they seem like they'd be about the same to me, it really didn't take much effort to depress them. I did also experience the thing he did as well where the drive wheels take a second to disengage so it's hard to back it up, however it's less than half a second on my mower so I'm sure some of that is just me needing to get used to using it. I wouldn't categorize this as a real complaint from my side, just a thing I noted. The main complaint I have about the mower is that it's very rear heavy to the front can bounce a bit more than you'd otherwise like, even more than the gen2. This also has a fun side effect of making the mower very wheelie happy, which is just another thing to get used to, again not really a problem, you just don't want to be pushing downward on the bar when you engage the self drive. One random thing to note, my power button has a cracked plastic retaining latch so if I push to the side, it won't properly reset, I'll probably just fix it I don't think that requires a fully warranty service. I'll probably just 3d print something. It's honestly probably a shipping defect because of how the mower is packaged things could it that area. Am I disappointed, yes, do I really care. No. It's not worth a whole new mowever over a button that still ultimately works. I might tweet them just to let them know, but it's honestly no big deal.
I'm actually not sure if it will fit a 615, however if anyone has one, and can measure the tip of the terminal to the back of the battery I can probably check when I get back home tomorrow. The battery doesn't sit all the way in, so i think the far side of the terminal to the back of the battery is the measurement I need and I didn't see that online.
You can absolutely stow a spare battery with you so that you don't have to go to the garage to get another one. :p
https://preview.redd.it/3yh8fasqbu1d1.jpg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=48c2a4ad24942a9be25654f23eaf2b3893882bbf
https://preview.redd.it/bdy0swupbu1d1.jpg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=df9ea36d9c993d4c8fdf219071b72182eca42b48
https://preview.redd.it/w3wartjpbu1d1.jpg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e923f7acbd6e13b44e39da89f3419848bfa70d58
https://preview.redd.it/0ikxavapbu1d1.jpg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f1fb7bd6cfb0e17d425e9969c17db6487ed87958
TL;DR:
The mower has oodles and oodles of power, if you have ever used the full FlexVolt 60v Circular saw, it's that feeling that I'm talking about. It just doesn't care about load. It takes a lot to bog this mower down. Is it an EGO? No. Is it class leading? I'm not sure. It is however a good fit for me because I have FV batteries already from my woodworking tools. So overall I'm happy with this. I would recommend this mower for anyone with a bunch of FV like I do. (I have about 21AH at 60v worth of FV batteries) I'm happy with it, and it saved me about an hour of mowing overmy gen 2. As I said in the intro, I've not used a gas mower, nor ever used a self propelled so I don't have anything to compare this to. What I can say is my lawn is really thick so I was able to validate that this mower has "get up and go" power, and I overall liked the self propel functionality, and that's all that really matters right? It doesn't have to be the literal best to be good. I enjoyed using it, it saved me time, and that's what mattered. I'm happy with it and would recommend it.
Edit: Reddit claimed my first post never posted, and was consistently giving me issues with the post. (I then found out through notifications it went up.) I have deleted the original, sorry for any of you that are seeing a duplicate of this. This one is newer and more thorough, so I'm leaving this one up. I deleted the original. Also, found a few typos.