Sample statement of interest for a job

In hindsight, I should have known something was wrong with The Caeles Academy of Acting.
Maybe the fact that it doesn't exist to the outside world.
This place prided itself on famous alumni it didn't actually name, and a once in a lifetime opportunity to work with the best in the business.
It's what I wanted.
More than anything.
After enduring four years of high school with barely a semblance of a drama club (we met every month, and our teacher was an alcoholic), and countless failed auditions, I was ready to take my acting career seriously. I had one year.
According to my parents, I had one year to make a living from my passion.
If it didn't work out, I would be on the first plane back to Connecticut.
It's not like they didn't trust me. I think they were just scared I wouldn't be able to financially support myself. So, I got a job right out of high school and slipped a year. Drama schools are expensive, and college’s are cut-throat on who they take on. I found Caeles Academy by accident–or, I guess it found me?
After researching cheap drama classes, auditions, academy’s, literally anything to progress my career, an ad popped up.
Not exactly flashy.
Just a date, a time, and a promise that they only take the best. I ignored it, but throughout the week, I started getting more ads. Just the words, “IMPRESS US - - JOIN CAELES ACADEMY NOW.”
Followed by, “BE WITH THE BEST, AND BE THE BEST. JOIN THE S CLASS NOW.”
When I googled the academy, nothing came up.
I gave up, clicking on the ad, which sent me straight to an application form.
I filled in my details as more of a joke. But I wasn't expecting to get an email back. Again, it was a time, a date, and that exact same tagline: “Impress us.”
However, Caeles Academy was different from what I imagined.
I was expecting a university building, or at least some modern structure. Judging from their marketing and ads, I figured they could at least afford decent premises. Though I was mistaken. When I stepped out of the Uber, I found myself staring at what looked like an abandoned office tower, a red-brick monolith in the middle of nowhere.
Which was crazy, because I swore a girl wearing a bikini had strode through the doors, with nothing but her phone, and a coffee tucked under her elbow.
According to the text sent from the academy, the auditioning rooms were on the third floor.
Tipping my head back, the checkerboard of broken windows didn't exactly instil confidence. Neither did the clunky set of automatic doors that took a while to open. It was a summer's day, and the heat was already baking through my dress, sweat sticky on the back of my neck.
I wanted to make a good impression, but the heels were a little over the top.
Though I had also seen a girl casually walk in wearing a two piece bikini.
“Well?”
Freddie’s voice made me jump. I forgot I was on the phone to him. I was excited the whole car-ride, already high on five coffees, and now I was silent. If I perceived the ‘academy’ from an objective standpoint, it definitely looked like the perfect place to be brutally murdered. But my own personal opinion was it was.. okay.
“What's it like?”
I pretended not to see a rat scuttling under an old candy wrapper.
“It's… fine.”
“Just fine?”
I could hear the smirk in my friend’s tone. He couldn't wait to tell me it was a scam, and had been reminding me all week I was essentially willingly selling myself to the black market. I was stubborn, so, fine sounded better than my initial first impression. Which was to turn around, walk away, and completely block the place from my memory.
Unfortunately, at that moment, I valued my pride over my awareness.
“It's… okay.” I said, trying to find positives. I was staring at a looming grey building with shattered windows and a resident rat living near the door. I had a hard time figuring out how the girl from earlier had just casually strode inside, barefoot too. I glanced down at the ground, immediately regretting it.
Like there weren't bits of chewing gum and grime stuck to the concrete.
“Huh.” Freddie said, his tone creeping into teasing territory. “You're really selling it.”
“It just looks like a building,” I said, my gaze glued to the rat, who looked a little too comfortable. Maybe it was a pet.
I was getting progressively more infuriated the more I stared down this place. Judging from the decades old writing ingrained into the door, it used to be a dentist surgery. “What do you want me to say?” I wasn't even trying to hide the scorn from my voice. “It's a building that looks like an academy.”
“Can you send a picture?” Freddie asked, “Ooh, wait, I'll face-time you.”
“That's, uh, that’s not really necessary–”
I was cut off, suddenly, when a guy threw himself through the automatic doors, palms first. He took two stumbled steps forwards, one back, and lifted his head, half lidded eyes on the sky, before dropping to his knees and heaving up pinkish froth. I could see him trying to hold it in, slamming his hands over his mouth, only for it to splurge through his fingers, showering the ground in greyish pink froth.
Like he'd downed a bottle of Pepto Bismol.
Inching towards him, I realized it was Pepto Bismol.
The stink made my own stomach churn.
“Missy?”
I found my voice. “Uh, can I call you back later?”
Before my friend could answer, I ended the call, slipping my phone in my pocket.
The guy was still heaving, coughing up globules of pink.
“Are you okay?”
The sound of my heels click-clacking on concrete made me cringe. The guy noticed, flinching away. Closer, and I could see his scraggly blonde hair.
He was handsome.
Without the bile spewing down his chin.
Early twenties, wearing a fitted white shirt now covered in streaks of bright pink. Part of me wanted to make a half-hearted joke, but getting even closer, so close I could smell his pepto-breath, I noticed he was trembling, his hands clenched into fists.
When I attempted to awkwardly pat him on the shoulder, he twisted around, so fast, my morning coffee slithered its way back up my throat.
His eyes were wide, almost feral, studying me like a wild animal.
I noticed the whites of his pupils were red, like he'd burst a blood vessel.
Theatre kids were intense, though I had never met THIS kind of intense.
“Are you… going in there?” The guy’s voice was a child-like whimper I wasn't expecting.
It looked like he was slowly regaining clarity, staring down at his filthy shirt, his hands stained bright pink.
I nodded, uncertainly, offering him my water. “Yeah. Did you audition?”
He shoved it away, slapping himself in the face. “I… I don't know.”
“You… don’t know?”
Suddenly, it was like something had contorted in his expression, a switch being pulled. I wasn't expecting him to twist around so fast. The guy slowly cocked his head, his lips breaking into a grin. His eyes, however, stayed the same.
“Of course I've auditioned.” He said, with a laugh.
“It was the best experience of my life! His mouth formed an almost mocking frown.
“Unfortunately, I didn't make the cut. Which is a real shame. I'm sure Caeles would have benefited from my talents.”
What was weird, is that his mouth was moving, but he wasn't even looking at me, frenzied eyes caught in an oblivion I couldn't see.
When he did look at me, his expression crumpled all over again.
Pepto jumped to his feet, brushing himself down.
I couldn't take his over the top smile seriously, when his eyes were screaming, hollowed out caverns silently begging me to listen.
This guy was fucking crazy.
“Wait.” Pepto whispered, when I turned to walk away.
He pulled out his phone, tapping the screen before shoving it in my face.
“I HAD SO MUCH FUN AT THE CAELES ACADEMY AUDITIONS :)
When I could only stare at him in confusion, Pepto’s gaze flicked to his phone, swiping bile from his lips.
His eyes went cartoon wide, like he couldn't believe what he himself was typing.
“That… that's not what I was trying to say!” He tried retyping it, but the guy was just writing strings of emoji hearts.
I didn't know what to say. I had dealt with rejection before, but I had never gone this far. Pepto was having a full on mental breakdown, his body shuddering, teeth chattering, blinking eyes and lips parting as if to speak, but choking on his words. When he started clawing out his hair, I took the opportunity to make a quick getaway.
Before I could make it to the doors, though, Pepto jumped in front of me, waving his phone directly in my face.
“Just…” he pointed at the screen. “It won't let me…” Growing frustrated with himself, he let out a wet sounding sob, clawing his fingers through his hair. “Fuck, it won't let me…it won't let me type! It's not letting me type!”
By now, he had tufts of hair stuck between his fingernails. I don't know why his first reaction was to immediately try ripping his hair out.
A quick glance at my own phone reminded me of my own audition that was in five minutes.
Meanwhile, I was dealing with what I was pretty sure was delusion, denial, or a mixture of both.
I was considering pushing past him, when Pepto’s phone screen hit me in the face. Again.
This time, though, there was coherent writing.
“FIND LUKE.”
“Luke?” I said. “Who's that?”
“Luke!” The guy was bouncing on the heels of his feet. “He's my…” Pepto drifted off, his eyes going vacant, as if I could physically see his brain being plucked from his skull. Pepto dropped his phone, and I grabbed it before it could hit the ground. His hands went to his curls, clawing, scratching, until he was drawing blood across his forehead.
“I… I don't know! I can't… I can't remember. Luke. He was my… he was my… I don't know, I can't… I can't–”
I stumbled back when he let out a shriek, scratching at his face.
“Fuck!” He whimpered. “Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck!”
Pepto grabbed my shoulders, shaking me, his fingers digging into my skin.
“I don't know who he is.” He gritted out, pink froth pooling from his lips.
Pepto broke out into a sob. “I don't… I don't know who he is, but you can find him, right? You can… you can find…”
Again, he trailed off mid sentence, his hands going limp around my shoulders.
I managed to side step him, swallowing a cry.
“Yeah, I'll, um, I'll find him for you.”
Pepto backed away, suddenly, stumbling over himself.
His gaze found mine, vacant, like a baby deer.
“Find who?”
I didn't wait around to answer him, pushing through the doors and stepping inside.
The interior was unsurprisingly even worse than the exterior.
The elevator was broken, so I had to run up three flights of stairs.
I expected at least an attempt at an academy, even in the dregs of an old dentist surgery.
What I got, though, was a never ending staircase, obnoxious photos of teeth greeting me on every level.
The third floor was… less clinical.
I strode directly into a waiting room filled with college aged students, either sitting on plastic chairs, or standing around, rehearsing.
The room itself was cosy enough, a navy carpet and a TV playing a random Twitch stream.
Situated in the middle, was a desk with a bored looking woman behind it.
Her smile was fake. I could understand her pain. She was stuck in a room with theatre kids all day.
“Sign here.” She prodded a sheet of paper.
I was convinced her voice was AI.
While I was scribbling my details, I took a moment to notice the stark difference from the kids entering the room, to the ones leaving. The kids entering wore wide, confident smiles and were social butterflies, chatting amongst themselves.
The kids leaving reminded me of pod people.
They left the room silent, in an orderly line with dazed smiles on their faces, like they weren't sure where they were.
I watched one guy walk directly into the wall instead of taking a left toward the exit, and a girl straight up just toppled down the stairs.
The kids waiting with me named them rejects.
I wasn't convinced until I glimpsed an empty bottle of Pepto Bismol sitting on the floor by the window.
Thinking back to Pepto, that made a lot of sense.
I was still dazedly staring at the bottle, when my name was called.
Jumping to my feet, I did my best to calm myself down, straightening my ponytail. Pepto had really screwed with my head. I could barely even remember the lines I had been rehearsing for a week straight.
I was muttering my lines to myself, when I stepped through the door.
The door that apparently turned you into a pod-person on the way out.
For a moment, I thought I was blinded by stage lights.
It was so bright.
The glow bathing me was clinical, stabbing into my eyes.
When I blinked, I found myself standing in front of three shadows sitting in front of me.
Their chairs were made of leather, far different from the plastic ones in the waiting room.
So, they did have filthy cash.
I was looking at one man, and two women.
They were… average?
I expected them to be more glitzier, but they were just regular people.
The man was in his late twenties, maybe early thirties, a stiff looking brunette wearing a suit and tie, one leg crossed over the other. His eyes were narrowed slightly, lips curved into the start of a smile. Like I amused him.
The women were polar opposites.
One of them was my Mom’s age, grey hair and floral clothing. She took a sip of water, her gaze burning into me.
Google told me not to be intimidated by their stares, but it was impossible.
These people were carving holes into my skull.
Sitting next to her, a younger girl who seemed to own the color red.
Her hair simmered, blood red, while she herself was sculpted in a dress, perfect cherry lips spread in a wide smile.
With a little too many teeth.
They studied my face like I was already theirs, drinking in every inch of me.
Freddie said I had to find a weakness in their expression and use it to my advantage.
If I could find the prick of a genuine smile, I could become their favorite.
“Hi!” I said. My caffeine intake was starting to take effect.
I didn't realize I was bouncing up and down until I caught myself.
Red’s smile stretched wider.
Maybe they liked my eagerness.
“My name is Misa.” I introduced myself, staying casual, keeping my arms by my sides. “I'm twenty one years old–”
I choked on my next words when Red spoke up. “Impress us, Misa,” Her voice was a smooth, almost seductive rasp, and I felt myself fall into it, enveloped in sugar that was too sweet, and yet I couldn't stop myself. She folded her arms across her chest, her gaze challenging me to do something different. To make her want me.
“Show us something we have never seen before.” She stood up, cat-like eyes narrowing, “Show us how desperate you are to join this prestigious class.”
I nodded, and began.
I had planned a whole monologue, practised it over and over again, forcing Freddie to judge me with a none biassed opinion.
I was three lines in, when Red started laughing.
“Stop.”
I did, my cheeks heating up, and she started clapping.
“Sweetie, oh, stop, you're adorable!” She said, her lips curving into a cruel smirk.
She leaned forward, like I was something that entertained her, jostling her heeled foot. “We don't take amateurs. I think you need to go back to school.”
This woman was definitely a psychopath.
Empty eyes sparkling with a gleam that definitely enjoyed humiliating candidates, and a twisted smile that was a little too wide. Red made me want to crawl into the ground. She made me want to turn around, leave the room, and quit my dream. I was aware of my own fury, my embarrassment turning my cheeks crimson. I matched her.
Maybe that's what she wanted all along. To wear the color of her victims.
Taking a shaky step back, I started to nod, started to agree, my mouth choking with the words, “You're right. I'm sorry for wasting your time.” I had never received proper constructive criticism from a professional standpoint. Which meant I really did suck. But I didn't move. I didn't want to move, and Red continued laughing, her companions sitting in silence.
The man rolled his eyes with a loud, exaggerated sigh.
Like I was boring.
The older woman pulled out her phone.
“Misa, you are…cute.” Red said. “But you're not quite what we are looking for.”
I wasn't sure I could admit it right there, but she made me feel things.
Like I was ignited.
Like I was going to prove this crazy bitch wrong.
I found my voice, strong and confident, despite my hammering heart.
“Give me another chance.”
Red’s lips curled. “So cute, Misa. Oh, sugar bear, It would be better if you left the room. Unless you want to embarrass yourself further! In that case, be my guest!”
She turned her attention to her nails, nudging the guy.
“Dinner?” She hummed. “I'm thinking of Italian. You are quite the wine connoisseur, Nicholas. Why don't you introduce me to your favorite?”
“Hey.” I blurted.
They ignored me, getting a little too close.
I don't know why I continued, reading my lines, screaming them, so I would be heard. I read them perfectly, and tweaking the genre from drama to romance, and then to horror. I became three different characters, a high school girl struggling with cancer, a final girl, and a woman going through a divorce.
I was fucking perfect.
But they weren't listening to me, caught up in their own conversation.
I tried again.
And again.
And again.
By now, I was on my knees, my fingers ripping into my hair. I was seeing red.
“We want originality, Misa,” Red said, sucking her teeth.
Her voice crawling into my skull was enough.
She still wanted me.
The thought polluted the back of my mind, taking a strangling hold. She still wanted me. When I lifted my head, Red wasn't looking at me, her gaze on the table grains. “Show us something new.”
I got to my feet, panting, my breath in my throat.
I became a screaming, strangled mess, a woman who lost her baby.
Red’s interest was piqued. Only slightly. Through my fraying vision, she slowly turned in her chair. “Again.” She clapped her hands, “Come on, Misa! We want new! We want never been fucking done before! Are you deaf?”
I couldn't stop the sobs escaping my mouth.
They lost interest again, right in the middle of my reading.
“Why can't you look at me?” I found myself spluttering.
When the man pulled out a bottle of water, I pulled off my heel and lobbed it at his face.
“Look at me!”
He did. Slowly. His gaze found me, for perhaps the first time.
Not as an amateur, but as a potential candidate.
Around the twentieth attempt, I started to laugh. Never been done before? I could feel my fingernails already in my scalp, clawing chunks of my hair out.
Reality contorted, and I felt myself drop to my knees. I was still laughing, spluttering, sobbing. I could still hear her in my head. Never Been Done Before. I started slowly, dragging my fingernails down my face until I felt the harsh sting.
“Again.” Red said, and her voice led me to stare down at my hands, at pinkish flesh glued to my bones, fleshy mounds.
So easy to tear. I didn't even feel it.
Only the sudden, unbridled euphoria of biting into my own skin, locking in my jaw, and ripping into myself.
When I tore it from the bone, warmth filled my mouth, and I was choking, guzzling down my own flesh, mulling it in my mouth and swallowing.
I can't remember how I got so deep, and why I didn't stop.
Why I didn't fucking scream.
But it didn't matter.
Red was standing up. She was clapping, her lips spread into a grin.
Her applause filled me with stars.
So, I ripped my hair from my scalp, a hysterical giggle escaping my lips.
She loved me.
I could see her jumping up and down, clapping.
Louder, and louder.
Her applause controlled me, twisting and contorting me into hers.
I didn't even think. I wanted to impress her, and doing this was doing just that.
My fingers were delving into my right eye socket, clawing my eye out. It didn't even hurt. Not with her thundering applause that was deafening, beautiful, an orchestra in my ears.
When I was semi conscious, my eye was crushed in my hand, but my vision was still mine, almost too clear. I could see streaks of red blurred between my lashes. My hair was caught between my fingers. But I wanted to do more.
When I stumbled to my feet, Red’s smile was so beautiful.
The man, however, looked horrified.
“Someone bring in the one of the successes,” Red’s voice was a shrill giggle, “Bring him in!” she clapped her hands together, and I spat out a fleshy thing. “I want to see them together! I want to see the future in front of us!”
Footsteps coming towards me in slow, shuddery thumps. I looked up, and a shadow was dancing around me.
When I slowly rose to my feet, I half realized I’d bitten my toe off. The shadow had a face, a boy who was younger than me. I think he used to have hair, but half of it was gone, half of it was still stuck between his fists. When I found his eyes, I found twin caverns instead.
Eyes that were still physically there, and yet there was no life.
No spark.
I was staring at a dead body, a flesh puppet who had lost his strings.
When he grabbed my hands, pulling me into a waltz, I caught a smear of scarlet trickling down the back of his neck. When I followed it upwards, his head was covered, slick, dripping with red.
Like me, he matched her too.
And he was beautiful, she told me, her push, her thunderous applause, guiding me into a waltz.
His feet moved, perfecting every step, and my foggy mind couldn't understand why. He matched my every move, the two of us floating across the floor.
My feet knew the steps before my mind.
How could he dance? I thought, dizzily.
How could he dance, when smeared scarlet followed his twisting, and turning and pirouetting feet?
Because underneath that swimming clinical light, the back of the boy’s head had been carved away, a perfectly sculpted cavern where his brain should have been. I could see the severed stem, where it had cleanly plucked out.
His fingers cradled in mine were wet. Swimming in blood.
His own blood.
Spinning round and around, I imagined myself as a princess.
I saw an 18th century ballroom lit up around us. Glittering smiles and glasses of champagne, long, flowing ball gowns.
I blinked, and my head was tipped back, gliding in blood once again.
When he pulled me to his chest, I stumbled, and a name came to light.
Luke.
I had found him.
Our finishing spin left me hard to breathe.
My body was broken, ripped into, and yet somehow not.
By the time we were finished, the two of us bowing, my mind was full of fog.
Cotton candy.
“Congratulations!” Red’s smile was inhuman, stretching right off of her face.
“You're in the S class!”
I was led through a door that wasn't the one I entered from. Inside the room were a dozen or so students, kneeling on the floor. They were missing parts of themselves, like unfinished puzzle pieces.
I dropped onto my knees next to a girl without a head. I could only see her torso, but I knew she was smiling.
Looming over us, was the goddess Athena drenched in blood that was still wet.
Dripping, pooling from every crevice of her dress.
Looking closer, this statue was moving.
Something sickly crept into my mouth.
Her right eye was human, a twitching eyeball sandwiched inside the stone.
It didn't match her. It was wrong, horrifying, like a painting, a real human eye struggling to focus on us.
And then, my own gaze found the statues head, where a real human brain had been forced inside perfect white, pink, greyish mush dripping down the sculpted, slender neck.
I could see where it had been pushed, pulverised through the stone.
The statue’s singular eye found me.
Its dancing pupil jumped up and down.
Before it blinked.
Next to me, Luke was on his knees, as if in prayer.
I can't remember leaving the room.
I just remember running.
Back down the stairs, stumbling, staggering over myself.
I was screaming by the time I reached the doors.
They opened, as usual.
But I couldn't get through. I tried, but I was slamming into something I couldn't see.
Pepto was still waiting outside. The sky was dark.
When he saw me, he stumbled over, slamming his hands into the glass.
I couldn't even understand myself. I was just fucking screaming.
Pepto held up his phone.
“DID YOU FIND HIM?”
I shook my head.
“No.” I lied.
I can't tell him the truth. I don't even know what it is.
“I can't get out!”
Pepto nodded slowly, typing something and showing me his phone.
I'm getting you both out of there. I think I know how I can get inside.
It's been 3 days, and Pepto is yet to return.
I’ve tried multiple times to cry out for the H word. But it won't let me type it.
Please H me. I need to get out of this place.
Fuck. Get me OUT OF HERE.
Classes start tomorrow.

So for context, I'm not from the US, but I've had the feeling for a long time that I can't really resonate with characters in newer American sitcoms.
In a sitcom such as Friends, while the characters are obviously heightened for comedic effect, they still feel like real adults with real jobs and real feelings. This is even the case with more overacted and heightened shows such as The Fresh Prince of Bel Air. The characters feel grounded, aside from the more goofy plotlines, and you can emphatise with them and see the world from their perspectives.
However with newer sitcoms, it feels like the characters are caricatures with the emotional capacity and restraint of children, all acting in these strange fake worlds. A couple of examples would be The US Office (esp after season 3), Parks and Recreation, Modern Family and How I Met Your Mother. While I do enjoy the humor in many of these shows, the characters don't feel at all relatable, and bear little resemblance to the actual people I know and interact with in my everyday life. This is only really the case for me with American sitcoms, as I can still resonate with characters in newer Danish, Norwegian and UK series.
I genuinely don't know whether this is the result of different styles, a different philosophy of acting or more overall shifts in American culture, but the feeling of "fakeness" is very much real to me. It might just be me, but I would be interested to hear if any of you have had similar feelings, and I would enjoy hearing perspectives from both non-Americans and Americans.

I'm writing this in a fog; I've been crying almost non-stop all day. Still, I had to tag this "humor", just because of how utterly ridiculous it is from start to finish.
I work at an urban Title 1 middle school, and there are some positives but in all honesty the bad outweighs the good. I've been on the recieving end of physical aggression on many occasions, and I deal daily with the usual disrespect, eloping, work avoidance, theft, fights, and admin indifference. But, some of the kids are awesome and I really like most of my coworkers. So I grin and bear it, even though I'm exhausted and depressed a great deal of the time.
Last fall, I happened to run into the mom of a former student, a woman who worked as an admin assistant at one of the highest performing high schools in our city (and the state). She mentioned there was going to be a job opening up for next year, and asked if I was interested. This school is known to be one of the most coveted for teachers in our area, and it's hard to get into because there's barely any turnover. So of course I said yes, and started dreaming of how great it'd be to work at a place with a happy staff and respectful hard-working kids.
But right from the start, there were issues. I applied in January-- but HR literally lost my application. Wasn't in the system anywhere. The principal said she couldn't interview me if I wasn't in the system, so naturally I tried to contact HR. I called the # on the website, but an answering machine directed me to send an email instead. So I sent an email, but it bounced back with instructions to open a Zendesk ticket. Tried that, no response. Etc etc etc.
Now it's February, and I guess the principal got tired of the hold-ups so she passed me off onto the dept. head to sort it out. Now I'm trying to coordinate with this guy, but he's flaky as all hell. For every email I send him, it's at least 2 weeks and a follow up email before he responds. Eventually he brings me in for an informal interview, with my application still missing-- in mid-March. During the interview I'm told for the 1st time that it's only a part-time position, with the possibility of leading to full-time if all goes well. Me and my bank account aren't thrilled about this, so I go to my current employer and propose dropping to part-time next year in order to free me up to work part-time at the other school. Surprisingly, they agree to it-- even they recognize what an amazing opportunity this is, and how it benefits them to have a member of that school's staff working for them.
Interview goes well. Dept Head says he'll find/process my missing application ASAP, which seems like a good sign they want to hire me-- but, not surprisingly, that doesn't happen. It's crickets from his end and HRs end. I'm now resorting to having the mom track people down for me to get answers, but even she's getting nowhere. Then about 3 weeks after my interview, I get a rushed email from Dept Head saying he still can't find my application but offering me the job anyway. I readily accept, and he says to expect HR to contact me within a couple of days to begin onboarding. Bet you can guess how that went...crickets, again.
In the middle of all this, my current employer is preparing next year's contracts. I try to hold them off, but they need to know my plans. They've offered to work around my new schedule, but nobody, including myself, knows what my new schedule even IS.
April passes, and then the 1st week of May, all the while I'm desperately trying to get answers from ANYONE about my onboarding, to no avail. I have no proof of a job other than one informal email from Dept Head that he never followed up on, and not a peep from HR. My current job can't wait any longer and they take the part-time offer off the table. They tell me I have to sign a full-time contract or nothing at all, and with nothing from the new job, I feel I have no other choice but to do it.
2 days after I sign my new contract, 5 months after I initially applied, and 2 months after I interviewed, both Dept Head and HR reach out. Miraculously, they've found my missing application, and they're ready to onboard me. I have to respond and tell them I'm no longer available. That the delays left me with no choice but to stay where I was, and it's just not feasible to quit a full-time job to work part-time. They apologize, kind of, and encourage me to try again in 2025. IF there's an opening.
So, I just signed up for another year of abuse. Another year of kids who can barely function and indifferent parents and admin. Another year in a crumbling building. Another year of exhaustion. I feel like an escape hatch opened up and right as I was about to step in, it closed. And the worst part is, absolutely none of it was my fault.
I'm worried I'm going to spend the next year resenting the hell out of every single person I see, feeling constantly upset that I have to be HERE instead of THERE where I belong. I'm also experiencing a burning rage toward HR and the Dept Head (who, to twist the knife a bit more, just announced that he's LEAVING at the end of the year! ) for creating this mess.
If you've read this far, thanks. May your HR people be more on top of their shit than these ones were.

34M in NYC here. Been on and off Hinge for 5 years. I'm an introvert, so meeting people IRL is tough, and Hinge has been really helpful. I have actually been more successful with Hinge than other apps, normally getting about 5-10 matches a week, and 1-2 leading to weekend dates.
Here’s my issue: I’m looking for something serious, but I’m stuck in a cycle. First, I meet a nice woman who is compatible and wants to become serious with me—cute, smart, stable jobs, but not the most physically attractive by my standards. I think they’d be great spouse material.
But during the initial 2-3 dates before it gets serious, I match with someone new who is more conventionally attractive (from my previous likes, for the lack of a better word "above my league"). I get curious, and the new match often leads to dates just until they’re not interested anymore. Then I can’t bring myself to go back to the first match without feeling like I’m compromising, so I move on. And this stupid cycle repeats. Fyi, I hate ghosting so I always let the previous date know I am no longer interested.
I just want to settle down with someone I can swoon over, but maybe I’m barking up the wrong trees and wasting my time. This cycle is frustrating and hurts my self-confidence as I feel like I’m not good enough for the "new matches." Perhaps to them, I’m just another average guy they pass on for more attractive matches?
When I’ve met someone naturally in my social circle, it’s been less of a problem. I’ve been more open-minded about their status and looks, and I focused more on chemistry. Most importantly, I didn’t feel like I was missing out on other options. But as I age, these real-life opportunities are happening less and less, especially with my introversion.
I keep myself busy and work out regularly to keep up with my confidence, but sometimes I get depressed by the app experience. Is it just me or anyone else dealing with this? Should I keep searching until I find the perfect match or reset my priorities and be more realistic with my expectations? How do I use the app better to break this cycle? Or should I go off the app...? I really want to find my person and settle down soon. Any advice is appreciated! Thank you.
TLDR: Stuck in a cycle on Hinge: ongoing dates always disrupted by other matches. How do I use the app better to meet my person? Need advice.

By David North
On April 25, 2024, Bogdan Syrotiuk, the 25-year-old leader of the Young Guard of Bolshevik-Leninists (the YGBL), a socialist-Trotskyist organization active in Ukraine, Russia and throughout the former USSR, was arrested by the notorious state security service of the fascistic Zelensky regime, the SBU. Bogdan is being held in atrocious conditions in a high security prison in the city of Nikolaev (Mykolaiv), which is located in southern Ukraine.
The International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI), the world Trotskyist movement with which the YGBL is politically affiliated, has finally obtained the actual documents in which the SBU presents its charges against Bogdan Syrotiuk. These documents, which form the basis of his detention, make absolutely clear that Bogdan is the victim of a monstrous state frame-up. The allegations concocted by the SBU are a crude combination of lies, obvious fabrications, and political absurdities.
Moreover, the documents submitted by the SBU are directed not only against Bogdan. They are nothing less than a declaration of war against all left-wing and socialist opposition to the Zelensky regime and, specifically, the International Committee of the Fourth International and its public organ, the World Socialist Web Site.
The central allegation leveled against Bogdan Syrotiuk is that he is guilty of high treason. The basis of this charge is that Bogdan has been for the past two years “engaged in the preparation of publications commissioned by representatives of a Russian propaganda and information agency, the World Socialist Web Site” [emphasis added.]
The World Socialist Web Site is denounced as an instrument of “an active information war against Ukraine” being waged by Russia, which

uses the so-called “left-wing” propagandists and their information platforms (websites, media and social platforms) to discredit the support of Ukraine by international partners, justify Russia’s armed aggression against Ukraine, accusing Western countries of creating conditions under which Russia was forced to launch the so-called special military operation, fomenting wars in Ukraine by providing it with weapons, etc. As a result, they are used by Russia to systematically convey pro-Kremlin narratives to the population of Ukraine and Ukraine’s allied countries…
Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the World Socialist Web Site “WSWS” has regularly published articles in various languages aimed at discrediting Ukraine and representatives of governments around the world for assisting Ukraine in its fight against the aggressor state.

The ICFI’s opposition to the US-NATO war in Ukraine is an essential element of its political program, deeply rooted in the socialist and internationalist principles of the Trotskyist movement. The attempt of the Ukrainian regime to portray this opposition as an instrument of Putin’s propaganda network is as viciously mendacious as it is politically absurd. The intransigent opposition of the International Committee of the Fourth International to the Putin regime—which emerged as a consequence of the Stalinist bureaucracy’s final betrayal of socialism and the restoration of capitalism in the former USSR—is a fundamental political fact that is substantiated not only in written texts numbering in the hundreds, but also in the exhaustively documented activity of the Trotskyist movement spanning decades.
True to its fascist character, the Ukrainian regime is operating on the basis of the well-known precept of Hitler and his propaganda minister, Joseph Goebbels: “The bigger the lie, the more readily it will be believed.”
In this particular case, the Zelensky regime seems to believe that the scale of the SBU lies are of such a magnitude that they will simply overwhelm the thinking public. It thus expects that public opinion will accept that the Putin regime is directing the work of the WSWS, which the SBU indictment describes as

an online publication of the world Trotskyist movement, the International Committee of the Fourth International and its affiliated sections in the Socialist Equality Parties around the world, which covers the main socio-political problems around the world from the position of revolutionary opposition to the capitalist market system, with the aim of establishing world socialism through socialist revolution.

At no point does the SBU attempt to explain the contradiction that wrecks its case against Bogdan, i.e., that the political principles that he upholds as a socialist and internationalist opponent of wars waged by the capitalist ruling class are irreconcilably hostile to the policies of the Putin regime, including its invasion of Ukraine.
It attempts to evade the contradiction by simply lying. The indictment claims that Bogdan’s activities, “acting on the instructions of a representative of the World Socialist Web Site,” consisted of “supporting and justifying the conduct of the Russian aggressive war on the territory of Ukraine…”
Every word is a lie. The opposition of the ICFI, its affiliated organizations, and the WSWS to the Russian invasion, in line with its hostility to the Putin regime, is a political fact that is documented in hundreds of articles that have been posted since the first day of the invasion.
On February 24, 2022, the day of the Russian invasion, the ICFI posted a statement on the WSWS titled: “Oppose the Putin government’s invasion of Ukraine and US-NATO warmongering! For the unity of Russian and Ukrainian workers!” It began:

The International Committee of the Fourth International and the World Socialist Web Site denounce the Russian military intervention in Ukraine. Despite the provocations and threats by the US and NATO powers, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine must be opposed by socialists and class-conscious workers. The catastrophe that was set in motion by the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 cannot be averted on the basis of Russian nationalism, a thoroughly reactionary ideology that serves the interests of the capitalist ruling class represented by Vladimir Putin.
What is required is not a return to the pre-1917 foreign policy of tsarism, but, rather, a revival, in Russia and throughout the world, of the socialist internationalism that inspired the October Revolution of 1917 and led to the creation of the Soviet Union as a workers state. The invasion of Ukraine, whatever the justifications given by the Putin regime, will serve only to divide the Russian and Ukrainian working class and, moreover, serve the interests of US and European imperialism.
In the two major statements that he has made during the past week, Putin has justified his actions by enumerating the provocations and crimes of the United States. There is, no question, much that is factually true in his denunciation of Washington’s hypocrisy. But the viciously anti-communist and xenophobic ideology that he invokes and the interests that he claims to be defending are thoroughly reactionary and incapable of appealing to the broad mass of the working class in Russia, let alone in Ukraine and throughout the world. A substantial section of the working class in Russia and Ukraine will be repelled by the cynicism of Putin’s glorification of the heroic struggle waged by the Soviet Union against Nazi Germany in World War II while denouncing the October Revolution and the existence of the USSR as a multi-national state.

The ICFI insisted that the socialist opposition to imperialism was incompatible with any form of national chauvinism, and, therefore, rejected all the justifications given by the Putin regime and its apologists for the invasion. Their invocation of “national defense” could not be accepted by socialists. The defeat of imperialism and its overthrow was possible only through the revolutionary struggle of the international working class. The ICFI statement cited the words of Trotsky: “Not to bind itself to the national state in time of war, to follow not the war map but the map of the class struggle, is possible only for that party that has already declared irreconcilable war on the national state in time of peace.”
The ICFI called “for an immediate end to the war,” and explained: “In opposing the invasion of Ukraine, we denounce the policies of US/NATO imperialism, whose claims to be defending democracy and human rights are blood-drenched with hypocrisy.”
This political declaration elaborated the principles and policy that have guided the work of the ICFI and WSWS since the war began.
On February 26, 2022 the International Committee held an international webinar, in which its opposition to the war was emphatically advanced. Among the speakers, in addition to myself, were Nick Beams, a longtime leader of the International Committee’s Australian section, Johannes Stern, a leader of the ICFI in Germany, Thomas Scripps, a leading member of the ICFI’s section in Britain, Joseph Kishore, the national secretary of the Socialist Equality Party in the United States, and Evan Blake, another leading member of the SEP (US).
The ICFI has never wavered from the principled opposition to the policies of NATO and Russia that it advanced in the first days of the war.
The relationship between the ICFI and the comrades of the YGBL coincided almost exactly with the outbreak of the war. They were attracted to the ICFI precisely because of its opposition to both the war and the national chauvinism of the Russian and Ukrainian regimes.
The SBU indictment charges that the World Socialist Web Site assigned to Bogdan “the task of preparing, writing, editing and publishing … both on the WSWS website and other communist-oriented media, articles, publications, comments, etc. aimed at spreading pro-Russian narratives related to the armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, which began on February 24, 2022, to which [Bogdan Syrotiuk] gave his voluntary consent.”
In support of this claim, the SBU references a YGBL statement titled, “For the organization of an international movement of workers and young people against war!” It claims that this document, posted on the World Socialist Web Site on October 12, 2022, includes “fragments, statements, sentences and phrases… which contain justification of the armed aggression of the Russian Federation, which began in 2014…”
The actual document clearly exposes this claim to be a lie. There is not a single sentence in the YGBL declaration that indicates support for the invasion of Ukraine. The SBU cites selectively from the document, including passages only from numbered paragraphs 4, 7, 8, 10 and 13. Paragraphs 4 through 8—the SBU interrupts the continuity of the YGBL’s analysis by leaving out paragraphs 5 and 6—provide a concise Marxist explanation of the objective capitalist crisis and political aims that underlay the instigation of the war by the United States and its NATO allies. They state:

1. The new world order that the United States wants to establish looks like this very possible picture: Russia and China are to be subordinated to imperialism and divided, if that is necessary to maintain direct control over their natural, industrial-technological and human resources.
   
2. The European imperialist powers support the United States for their own place in the new redivision of the world. At the same time, European imperialism, while placed on rations by the United States, sees a way out of its economic and geopolitical predicament only in a redivision of the world in which it can regain its former greatness.
   
3. Japan, South Korea and Australia support the US only as much as it suits their interests in the struggle against China in the Pacific region. These countries will support the US as long as it allows them to compete with China. The process of dividing spheres of influence will revive the contradictions between the Pacific capitalist powers, which are as much in limbo as Europe.
   
4. The crisis of 2008 revived class struggles around the world. The Arab Spring of the early 2010s is vivid evidence of this revival. It forced US and European imperialism to take more decisive measures. In 2014, they supported a coup d'état in Ukraine. Through this coup, the US was able to create all the conditions to build a bridgehead in a future war against Russia.
   
5. The Covid-19 pandemic that erupted in 2020 exacerbated the contradictions of capitalism and was the trigger for a more rapid expansion of US imperialism in preparation for war against Russia and China. The US embarked on a more provocative path of abandoning the “one-China” policy, and increasing its support for Ukraine, as expressed in the NATO summit in August 2021, which supported Zelensky’s “Crimean platform.”
   

Significantly, the SBU leaves out paragraph 9 of the YGBL declaration, which presents a scathing indictment of the Putin regime. That paragraph reads:

The reactionary regime of Vladimir Putin emerged from the treacherous dissolution of the Soviet Union by the Stalinist bureaucracy and the restoration of capitalism. The policies of Putin, in the final analysis, are aimed at safeguarding the wealth of the post-Soviet oligarchy against the pressure of Western imperialism from above and, even more critically, against the movement of the Russian working class from below.

The SBU does cite paragraph 10, which continues the critique of the Putin regime, stating:

Within this geopolitical and social context, Putin’s adventurist invasion of Ukraine on February 24 was the Russian oligarchy’s response to NATO’s relentless expansion to the east. The Putin regime’s main objective was to achieve through the pressure of its “Special Operation” a new round of talks with the US-NATO, since the last round ended up crossing “red lines” on the part of the US-NATO, which caused Putin’s invasion [emphasis added].

The characterization of Putin’s invasion as “adventurist” is in no way compatible with what the SBU claims to be a “pro-Russian narrative.” Obviously recognizing the fragility of its attempt to portray the YGBL statement as pro-Putin propaganda, the SBU decided against further citations from the document, leaving out the YGBL’s development of its denunciation of Putin’s policies in paragraphs 11 and 12, which assert:

1. The Russian bourgeoisie’s desire for an “equal partnership” with the West was one of the most utopian delusions. This delusion, historically derived from Stalin’s policy of “Popular Fronts” and then “peaceful coexistence,” developed among the fledgling class of Russian capitalists in the 1990s.
   
2. The Putin regime has not gotten rid of this utopian delusion. Its whole policy has been to maneuver and seek compromise with the West, with whom the Russian oligarchy wanted to be “on equal footing.” Except that Western imperialism, with its conquering ambitions for Russia, did not care about these conciliatory tones of Putin’s regime.
   

The SBU also chose not to cite paragraph 17 of the YGBL statement, which declares:

The course of the war after Putin’s invasion of Ukraine increasingly emphasizes the reactionary nature of this invasion. While claiming to be fighting for the independence of the Russian people from the threat of Western imperialism, Putin is in fact only defending the independence of the Russian oligarchy to exploit the Russian working class and the country’s raw material wealth.

Paragraph 18, which is also left uncited, further demolishes the SBU’s indictment of Bogdan, the YGBL and the WSWS as instruments of Russian propaganda. The paragraph asserts that

the Putin regime has no way out of the current crisis for Russian society. It will not have such a way out in the future. All of the military and political activities of the Putin regime will only contribute to the escalation of Western imperialism and the deterioration of conditions for the Russian, Ukrainian and international working class.

The SBU also failed to cite paragraphs 19 and 20, which presciently warned of the catastrophe to which the war could lead.

1. The prospects for the present war, when thought within the framework of the capitalist system, are very bleak. First, this war will take on a long-term character and will not only be fought between Ukraine and Russia. It is the first step in inflaming the world situation to the point that the threat of a third world war is simply inevitable. All countries of the world will take part in the future war.
   
2. Secondly, the nature of the war will be determined by the policies of the ruling classes, which now stand on a blatantly anti-human position. The ruling classes are recklessly moving toward the use of nuclear weapons in the conflict, thereby creating the real possibility of a nuclear Armageddon. The specter of planetary destruction arises from the insane policies of imperialist and capitalist governments. The recklessness of the ruling capitalist elite compels young people to ask whether they will be allowed any future at all.
   

The SBU specifically cites this document as proof of Bogdan Syrotiuk’s treasonable activity. But the text of this document conclusively refutes the charge that Bogdan and the YGBL are advancing a pro-Putin narrative.
Moreover, and most decisive, the Ukrainian regime does not present a scintilla of evidence to substantiate its absurd and lying claim that the World Socialist Web Site is a “Russian propaganda and information agency.” With this filthy slander, the Zelensky regime betrays—notwithstanding the ongoing war with Russia—the lingering influence of Stalinism’s rabid hatred of Trotskyism. As in Russia, the transfer of power in Ukraine from Stalinist bureaucrats to capitalist oligarchs has not required any change in the methodology of the political police. The same techniques of fabrication and slander, utilized by the Stalinist regime against Trotskyists in the era of the Moscow Trials and the terror of 1936-39, remain operative in Kiev.
Bogdan Syrotiuk stands accused of treason and faces the threat of a life-long prison term that is the equivalent of a death sentence. But the allegations against Bogdan are based entirely on articles and speeches he has posted on the World Socialist Web Site, in which he has declared his opposition, as a socialist internationalist, to the capitalist regimes of Zelensky and Putin and the ongoing war that has cost hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian and Russian lives.
The SBU indicts Bogdan for advancing in his speeches and writings posted on the World Socialist Web Site “which are accessible to everyone in the world, including citizens of Ukraine” information that exposes the reactionary character of the Ukrainian regime and the war.
The SBU declares that Bogdan’s “criminal actions were stopped only with the intervention of a law enforcement agency.” What a devastating self-exposure of the claims that the US-NATO proxy war is being waged to defend democracy in Ukraine.
The reality is that Ukraine is a fascistic dictatorship, which applies police methods to stop the expression of popular opposition to the policies that have brought untold suffering and death to the people.
The arrest of Bogdan Syrotiuk comes precisely at a point of mounting popular opposition to the Zelensky regime. On May 18, a new and vastly unpopular mobilization law that will vastly expand the recruitment dragnet of Ukrainian military goes into effect. Even the New York Times has expressed doubts about Zelensky’s ability “to find new troops to relieve a weary, often demoralized force.”
In an article posted on the World Socialist Web Site on April 30, Maxim Goldarb, a Ukrainian socialist who has been persecuted by the Zelensky regime, reported: “More and more Ukrainian men are desperately trying to flee the country, unwilling to die for someone else’s selfish purposes.”
He added:

It is not the rich minority, but the poor majority—the unemployed, workers, peasants, teachers, doctors, office workers—that will be sent into the bloody meat grinder. Now, with the adoption of the new law, the number of men deprived of basic human rights, who will be captured and hunted down like animals and sent to the front, will increase many times over.
The profits of those who benefit from this war will also increase many times over … These huge profits will be divided up between the military-industrial complex, its lobbyists in the American and European establishment, and the Ukrainian oligarchic top brass.

Bogdan Syrotiuk’s life is in danger. In the environment of terror that exists within Ukraine, he is deprived of all means to defend himself. Efforts to obtain competent legal representation have been undermined by government threats against defense lawyers. No less than five attorneys have declined to represent Bogdan because to do so would expose them to significant physical danger.
The significance of the fight to defend Bogdan and secure his freedom extends beyond Ukraine. His incarceration is yet another example of the growing international assault on democratic rights as imperialism escalates its military operations throughout the world. The political conspiracy to destroy Julian Assange set into motion a process that is replicated throughout the world.
Those who oppose and expose the crimes of the imperialist regimes are targeted for persecution by the state. The assault on basic democratic rights—first and foremost, freedom of thought and speech—is always justified on the basis of lies.
The opponents of Israel’s genocidal war against Gazans are denounced as anti-Semites, even when the protesters are Jewish. In the denunciation of Bogdan Syrotiuk as an agent of Russia for opposing the proxy war in Ukraine, the same lying method is at work.
The real reason for the arrest and persecution of Bogdan Syrotiuk is that he is fighting for the unity of the Ukrainian, Russian and international working class against the ruling capitalist elites of all countries. As Comrade Andrei Ritsky of the Russian branch of the Young Guard of Bolshevik Leninists explained so eloquently in a speech delivered at the May Day 2024 celebration held by the International Committee:

The only “crime” that Bogdan committed was his conviction that Ukraine can become truly free only through the independent struggle of the Ukrainian working class, acting together with the international working class against imperialism and war. He advanced a principled political position based on a Marxist understanding of the war, opposed to the fanatical worship of Ukrainian nationalism as well as the reactionary Russian nationalism of the Putin regime. Like our entire movement, he has fought for the unification of workers in Russia and Ukraine with the workers in the imperialist countries, to put an end to a fratricidal war that has claimed the lives of at least half a million Ukrainians and tens of thousands of Russians.

He concluded his remarks with a declaration of the fundamental perspective that underlies the work of the Fourth International:

No bourgeois regime is capable of resolving the crisis other than through war and destruction, because any other way would be contrary to its fundamental capitalist interests. The contradictions of capitalism cannot be resolved within national borders and on the basis of a defense of private property. Only the international working class armed with the program of world socialist revolution will be able to put an end to the wars and resolve the fundamental crisis. To do so, however, it must fight for its unity with its brothers and sisters around the world.

The International Committee of the Fourth International calls for a global campaign to demand the immediate release of Bogdan Syrotiuk from prison. The fight for Bogdan’s freedom must be taken up by workers, students and all those who are committed to the defense of democratic rights and opposed to the escalation of imperialist wars that, unless stopped, threaten humanity with a nuclear catastrophe.
Join the fight to Free Bogdan. Circulate this statement as widely as possible on social media. Bring this case to the attention of co-workers, fellow students, and friends. To sign a petition demanding Bogdan’s release, contribute funds toward the defense campaign, and become personally active in the fight for his freedom, go to wsws.org/freebogdan.

Hi y’all. In an effort to meet better people, there’s a vouched dating site in my area where women vouch for dudes and say how great they are. I (29f) have been talking to a guy (27m) for a couple of weeks, but he doesn’t communicate consistently and express interest clearly.
Today I communicated that I wish him the best of luck finding his person, but I don’t think it’s a good fit because I’m seeking a different level of interest and communication. Basically, I just want to find someone who is excited to go out with me and someone whom I’m also excited to go out with (really the bare minimum).
Now, he’s messaging saying he’s super interested and he doesn’t know how to date or communicate with others, but I find that hard to believe. Maybe I should give him another shot? I don’t know. I don’t want to be too harsh, but I’d rather be alone than be with someone who isn’t treating me how I want to be treated. It’s not my job to teach others, it’s my job to leave if it’s not what I want.
What do you all think? Is this normal now?

TimeStamp would like to sell all these items so i can buy more keyboard things :D! PM if interested or have any question. Thank you. I will try to ship same day if not then definitely the next day. i will try to ship everything the best that i can to prevent any damage to the item. Comment before PM and no chat please.

Jris65 - $140 shipped obo	Hotswap PCB/ Pom Plate	white top/ black bottom/ pvd black weight	brand new sealed
NCR80 - $200 shipped obo	EC Niz kit	lubed housing / silencing rings / lubed stabs	used for about a week / does not include keycaps
Acrylic TKL - $70 shipped obo	Soldered pcb with gat milky blacks	Lubed staebies/ lubed milky blacks	used for about a week
Geon Frog TKL (Scuffed) - $140 Shipped obo	red cem3 mil maxed pcb/ Alu plate	lubed staebies / comes with a case / has scratches/dings/dents on the case	used as my daily/ does not come with switches or keycaps
Gmk Bleached - $80 shipped obo	did not use as much	do not see signs of shine/ texture loss/ or yellowing	does not come with storage cases
Break in machine by bitter island 4x4 - $55 shipped 2 available obo	used often for about a yea does a great job in breaking in switches/ (con)the motors tend to die quite fast i would average 4-5 days at 80% speed per motor	comes with 2 extra motors/ spacers/ keycaps for off center actuations	i upgraded to a $200 break in machine that i hardly use lol
SP Star Meteor whites x90 L/F - $60 shipped obo	lubed with 205g0 on stem/ 105 on spring/ deskey filmed	very smooth switches loved these on my geon f1	Used regularly

Good day, Exiles!
Here is quick story of me losing a little of my sanity.
I've been self sustaining my maps by running t17s with map scarabs and then farming my 8 mod t16s (can't do t17 reliably yet).
I ended up with a bunch of 8 mod t16s that didn't fit my regex and I couldn't be bothered selling them, so I figured I'll throw them in the map device and fish for Divine/Divine conversion lantern.
While doing so, I figured "hey, why not fish all the maps I have, will definitely get lucky".
I did not get lucky.
https://imgur.com/jw6iJNk
I started with t16s and worked my way down the tiers. Around 500 maps in I wanted to quit, but I am obsessive and the job had to be finished, so I kept going. When I hit yellow maps, I couldn't be bothered running any of the conversions I found. as I didn't want to shop for lower level allflames and I felt that I had a reasonable amount of chaos orbs already.
Divine card conversions were underwhelming, only notable cards were 2x Divine Beauty, 1x Enlightened and 1x Fortunate.
Scarab conversions were pretty sad too, but I did get 1x Curation, so there is that.
Nameless Seer was rare and also extremely underwhelming, with only item of value being Defiance of Destiny and all other selections being at 1-20c.
Some of the chaos conversions were extra juicy, with double currency altars and a lot of rogues, I managed to finish some maps with 220-240 chaos. The lowest I got in a t16 was 68c, while the average was around 120c-140c per map.
I did get one Orb of Annulment conversion and walked away with 118 annuls.
The whole ordeal took me around 7-8 hours over two days, including preparing and running the maps.
I ran all the maps rare, with alch+scour for my regex.
I probably could have sold all the maps for more than what I have made, but I don't like selling maps and I doubt that anyone would have any interested in more than half of them.
As for now, I need to do something really exciting and high octane, so if anyone needs me, I'll be running 30 Simulacrums.
Stay sane, Exiles!

I'm in a transition period. Have been in corporate administration 20+ years, ranging from HR to office manager to quality control. Looking for a change and hoping to explore some interesting lesser-known careers that pay over $75k and that might be viable for the next 15-20 years.
Have a bachelor's, not opposed to more schooling, just not another 4+ years of study. No 40hr office jobs (my carpal tunnel among other things) & nothing physically or mentally dangerous.
I'm moderately intelligent, coachable, curious and adaptable. My out of work interests include lifestyle related topics, community events, new local businesses, natural living and arts & crafts.
I'm great at negative self-talk and have plenty of "good luck, lady, that ain't gonna work" in my head. Looking to redditors for positive suggestions with possibilities. Thanks.

Hey everyone,
I'm an 18-year-old guy, and I've been thinking a lot lately about the way our society and economic systems are structured, and I can't help but feel like we're being scammed. Hear me out:

1. Education System: We're told to spend years in school, accumulating massive debt, with no guarantee of a job that pays enough to cover that debt. Is the education system setting us up for success or for financial enslavement?
2. Job Market: Many people work long hours in jobs they don't like, with little to no job security, just to make ends meet. Meanwhile, the wealth gap keeps growing, and it seems like the system is designed to benefit a select few.
3. Housing Market: The dream of owning a home is becoming increasingly unattainable for many, with sky-high prices and interest rates. Are we being set up to be lifetime renters, funneling our hard-earned money into someone else's pocket?
4. Healthcare System: In many countries, healthcare is a massive financial burden. People go bankrupt over medical bills, and it seems like the system prioritizes profit over people's well-being.
5. Government and Taxes: We're taxed heavily, yet essential services like infrastructure, education, and healthcare are often underfunded. Are our taxes being used effectively, or are they lining the pockets of the wealthy and powerful?
6. Investment and Savings: Traditional investment vehicles often have high fees and low returns for the average person, while the wealthy have access to more lucrative opportunities. Are we being scammed out of our financial growth?

I know these are broad strokes, and there are many nuances to each issue, but it feels like the system is rigged against the average person. As someone who's just starting out in life, I don't want to be stuck in this system my entire life.
I'm reaching out to older folks here who have more life experience—what advice do you have for someone like me? How can I find an alternative path to avoid being trapped in this system? Looking forward to hearing your thoughts and experiences.

I know a lot of people complain that they did not like the show after Stabler left but honestly I was still enjoying it after that. I can not pinpoint exactly what season i started to get bored but I do know some things that have made it boring for me:
I miss the investigation! I feel like the squad is always in the the squad room and then POOF here comes a clue out of no where. I'm watching an episode right now and I have hardly seen detectives with the accused in the interrogation room, we've barely seen a crime scene, no talking to witnesses or family, no Melinda, none of the people with that cool "blue light" stuff they used to do. I've just watched 3 episodes in a row and nobody died??? Apparently, they solved the case but i couldn't tell you how, and I wouldn't remember it in the next 10 mins even if i could because it was more than likely extremely forgettable.
There used to be some real progression from crime to investigation to court case. That was the best parts of the show for me. Now its like we know who did it in the first 10 mins and the rest of the episode is just about proving they are guilty. Was seeing how they got the evidence not the best part? Especially with all the twist and turns. It was even better when you saw some recurring attorneys for the defense and you just knew they always put up a good fight. There is just a lot more personal life involved with some crime sprinkled in and then at some point we just end up in a court room.
The dialogue. I know everyone cant be as funny as Munch but wow the conversations are so bland. I know they are doing a hard job but there used to be some humor in that squad room while still relating to the work. The coworker banter made them human. Sometimes I cant even tell if these people like each other. And when the episode is incorporating current (sometimes controversial) events i feel like I'm watching the news. They used to do that in a more "this is still a show" way and put a better SVU spin on it that made it very interesting and often taught me something. Now they just throw it out there and cue the angry mob outside the courthouse.
I have other complaints like Carisi as ADA. Or the topics being bland. Where is the DV, child abuse, teen dating violence, elderly abuse, helping victims that can not speak or defend themselves, the victims with the messed up past but I'll save that.

I am currently an upper sophomore who is about to be a junior in the Fall 2024 semester of college. I am interested in software development/web development and wish to learn how to code. I am thinking of signing up for coding bootcamps and getting certified to put on my resume. I have no job experience and little coding experience. A few questions that I have are: (1) Are there any internships for students who don't have much experience with programming languages? If so, how can I get them? (2) Is there any way I can learn coding during the summer so I can start preparing for internships in my junior year next semester?

I live and work in a foreign country but return at home for vacation, weddings, and other occasions. I am planning to return permanently back home in few months (roughly in 3 months) to start a new job in my home town.
I have known a girl on social media for a long time but never exchanged a message (except liking some of her photos). In my home country she lives in a different city not far away from where I am originally (45 min drive). She is originally from my home town and her cousin is a close friend.
I was recently at a party where she was too and I took the chance to talk to her. We discussed about the city she lives in, my job and her job. I am not sure if I am good at picking up vibes, but I felt she may have liked that I talked to her (but not sure if she was just kind).
I am leaving in 5 days back to where I am currently at before I return permanently in 3 months. I wonder if I should send her a message and invite her to go out of drinks to initiate (or get rejected) a closer relationship. I feel sending a cold message like that would be weird and needy. On the other hand, if I show no interest now I may lose the chance to initiate a date later.

I am currently an upper sophomore who is about to be a junior in the Fall 2024 semester of college. I am interested in software development/web development and wish to learn how to code. I am thinking of signing up for coding bootcamps and getting certified to put on my resume. I have no job experience and little coding experience. A few questions that I have are: (1) Are there any internships for students who don't have much experience with programming languages? If so, how can I get them? (2) Is there any way I can learn coding during the summer so I can start preparing for internships in my junior year next semester?

Welcome to the "Essay Help by Pros" community group! Writing a great essay can be challenging, but with the right approach, anyone can produce a high-quality piece. Here are some points to follow to write a great essay:

1. Understand the assignment: Before you start writing, make sure you understand the requirements of the essay. Read the instructions carefully, and take note of the topic, format, word count, and any specific guidelines that are provided.
2. Choose a topic: Select a topic that interests you (if this is an option given) and that you have some knowledge about. You'll be more motivated to write, and you'll be able to draw on your existing knowledge to develop your ideas.
3. Research your topic: Conduct thorough research on your topic, using a range of sources. Take notes on your findings and make sure you keep track of your sources so you can properly cite them later.
4. Develop a thesis statement: Your thesis statement is the central idea of your essay. It should be a clear and concise statement that summarizes the main point you want to make in your essay.
5. Create an outline: An outline is a roadmap that helps you organize your thoughts and ideas. It should include an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion, and each section should have a clear focus.
6. Write your essay: Use your outline to guide your writing. Make sure each paragraph has a clear topic sentence, and that all your ideas are well-supported with evidence.
7. Edit and proofread: Once you've completed your essay, take the time to edit and proofread it. Check for spelling and grammar errors, and make sure your writing is clear and concise.

By following these points, you'll be well on your way to writing a great essay. If you have any questions or need further assistance, feel free to reach out to the community for help!

Hey, I'm a senior in the graduating class of 2024, and I'm going to be graduating in a month. I wasn't exactly sure where or who to address this to, so I decided to just post it online to whoever may see it. Throughout these last four years of high school, many of my teachers were the sole influence that inspired me to stay in school.
Throughout the entirety of middle and high school, my social life has been absolutely atrocious. I have very few friends, used to get bullied every day, didn't go to many school events/activities, skipped prom/ball, etc. To be completely honest, I hated the high school experience, and I'm so glad I never have to do it again. However, the one part of high school that made going bearable was all of the interesting and inspiring teachers that I got to talk to every day. My favorite part of the day was dropping by my favorite teachers' classes during study hall and just bullshitting with them for the entire period.
Alot of the teachers I've had are very passionate and enthusiastic about their jobs and students. I kinda feel bad, because alot of my peers don't care to return that enthusiasm, or even care to show up most of the time. I also sympathize with teachers when they have to put up with ridiculous shit as per student action/request. Just last week my gym coach had to hand out detentions because my peers didnt know that ripping doors off lockers and throwing stuff at glass windows isn't appropriate behavior.
I've always been a straight-edged student, holding As and Bs in most classes, and rarely getting into trouble. Even when the class got difficult, I always went to my teachers for extra help. I hate that most of my classmates immediately shut down and stop putting effort in the moment they see a concept that is confusing or otherwise unclear, aka, lacking critical thinking skills. My teachers never gave up on me, so I never gave up on them. Like every other occupation out there, there are some lazy/disconnected teachers out there, but I have confidence that most teachers are as passionate about teaching and their classroom as I am about going to see them.
Without making this post much longer than it is, I simply want to thank, not only mine, but many other teachers in America for their persistence and dedication towards making the classroom a better and more enjoyable place. When your job gets difficult, always remember that there are students out there that love and depend on you. When I take the walk on the graduation stage in a few weeks, I will keep my teachers in my thoughts, as they were the ones that got me to this point.

Everyone I spend time with my friend it feel so wonderful. Is it still love after all this time?
I miss her so much every time I leave after a visit.More of a story and a question. I really don’t even know where to start. You need to how painfully confusing this friendship was from the start. Met in grad school 2017, was taken with my friend quite quickly, and she expressed interest and when I followed up on her invites she wasn’t interested. So, I avoided her because I didn’t want to get involved. However, she ended up running into me all the time and something changed. One night right around Christmas at dinner, she just blurted out she’s polyamorous and a few other things. I didn’t know how to react and by the time I knew what the hell was going I, I didn’t know if I wanted to get involved, thought I might get hurt.
There were a number of nights at 3AM when she asked me to come back for coffee or whatever(that I remember), and I wasn’t sure of anything. However, we ended up living close together and then spent way too much time together during the pandemic going on trips alone, with her other partner. I felt myself falling for her again, but then she moved away and my life fell apart. But it didn’t end.
I need to clarify. My life falling apart wasn’t her fault. The pandemic pidgeon-holed me in a toxic job and then both my older parents had health incidents which required that I move back and start taking care of them and 80% of the household items and transitioning them to a smaller house. Couple that with my own health problems which are a result of all this stress and I feel like I’ve lost who I really learned to be.
I know I should be out doing things and looking elsewhere, but I have no time. I waste 2.5 hrs commuting to work, errands after work for my parents, come home cooking, scrape the remnants of myself together, take a sleeping pill (because the tv is never off) and go to bed. This isn’t relevant except to say I hope I’m not simply clinging to my friend for the wrong reasons.
I’ve withdrawn into myself, am nervous and generally don’t feel like dealing with people. Every other aspect of my life is so taxing right now.
Back to my friend. Knowing her changed me. Although I was confused, she still taught me how fulfilling it can be to make someone happy, communicate emotionally with someone and just feel content and happy being with them. Simple things like telling them unabashedly how something small they did made me happy, being more demonstrative with me affection, and how reciprocating is so fulfilling. The constant making fun of me always helped too. I think that I wouldn’t really have these feelings if she didn’t keep doing as much for me as I try to do for her. I don’t know why I feel embarrassed, but I feel content and so much more when I’m with her.
She gave me so much confidence and energy.
A couple months ago, we met up in NYC for four days and just spent time together. When I went pick up my car at the valet service, we hugged, said goodbye and (it sounds stupid) she said she wanted to wait with me. So we sat down on the bench, and she put her head on my shoulder. It just touched me. There’s a quote that always stuck with me from a young age, but it never really meant that much until I met her. It is “Find someone to sit with you, none of us are strong enough to do it alone.” I held it together until I drove away. I know it’s a reflection of how I’m struggling right now, but the time I spent with her, made me perk back up, be myself more.
Then last week we met up again. I drove 8 hours to spend 10 hours with her and a few friends. It made it clear to me how much time spent with her makes me feel more like my ‘actual self’ if that makes sense. She kept up bringing things up she wanted to do, and had already planned another trip.
Yes, I’m pretty sure she knows how I feel. When she moved away, I told her that she means so much to me and all the time we spent together meant the world. She stopped her car, ran back out and just squeezed me so hard. It felt like a stupid Casablanca moment. I’ve probably drunkenly said something I don’t quite remember too. To be clear, I don’t ever expect anything ‘more’. I cherish having her as a friend.
There’s always a part of me that hopes one of us won’t follow up. More often than not she asks me right before I leave if I’d like to do ‘something else’ with her that she’s already started thinking about. Or I’ll get a call right when I get home. I don’t ever say no.
Part of this post is me trying to understand me feelings. I know I want her in my life more, but that won’t work now or possibly ever. What does more mean for me? I don’t know. I get so much energy when I see her, I’m motivated to do so much with her. Seeing her giggle and have fun give me a wonderful feeling. The other 90%of my life is filled with constant stress, and indifference bordering on hate for my parents. And why does she make me feel like a more complete person? I don’t know.

What job would suit me If I graduated from the faculty lf economics and political science major economics, I got high grades, but I wasn’t interested in joining this faculty my bad grades at school got me to pay for college and that’s the one my parents chose. Now I’m nearly 25 I graduated in 2021. I didn’t work for a year because I’m Egyptian and I’m not living in Cairo, I’m in ismailia city and there is bo job opportunities hear. Then I moved to cairo and worked for as an inbound call center agent at a bank (outsourced). And I left them for another opportunity, but unfortunately the opportunity got canceled or they told me that they don’t want anyone anymore. I moved back to ismailia and we discovered mom has cancer, I was applying for other jobs, but after that I decided to stay with her for ger treatment. Three months passed and I applied for an online English instructor for beginners vacancy at two companies, one of them accepted me. I’m working for them now. They don’t take national holidays and they work six days a week. I decorated to shift for part time and make it four days a week. But then my mom’s treatment needed us to travel between cities so I told them I will not continue for a while after finishing the current groups. Then I started to make the groups enter gradually, but now I feel like I’m not doing anything. First of all my internet connection sucks and the students are complaining and I’m afraid that might lead the company to fire me. Second of all I don’t feel qualified, they take anyone and my english level is B1 only and it’s not even good enough. I don’t feel like I’m doing anything in my life and I’m so depressed. I don’t even know any other teachers they make us deal with the admin of the whatsapp groups and the supervisor only and sometimes the boss. I don’t know if I should continue academically even though I got rejected before. Pr should I continue in research or maybe I’m not qualified for that. Or should I shift to any career that is not realted and start over I’m really lost I even tried career coaching but it was so costy and I felt like it’s a scam. Can you suggest what would be the best for me based on what I’ve said?