This project took months since i originally conceived it in my head, to actually completing it, since i've been constantly putting it off. Back in January 2024, i started with buying the tablet that i wanted to use for my wall mounted Home Assistant dashboard. I was originally going to go with Lenovo M10 3rd gen model for about 170 euro, but after some digging around i have found a recommendation for another model that is kinda older but slimmer, with a much better looking screen and higher resolution. I went with the Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e that i found factory refurbished online on a French website Electro Depot for a price of 200 euros - it was in perfect condition, looked brand new when it arrived, kind of a steal for that price. The Super AMOLED screen on it is just amazing, such a nice contrast, black depth and great color rendition.
Since it originally launched in 2019, Android updates stopped, and the last version was kinda aged, so i slapped on a custom ROM on it - LineageOS 21 that runs Android 14. That end of business was fixed, all good to go. Next step was figuring out what wall mount i was going to go with. Having said that, the Galaxy S5e did not have alot of options, there were some VidaBox mounts, TabCare, TabLines etc, that all looked kinda bulky and hella expensive, that wasn't gonna cut it for me, i wanted something slim and sleek looking.
So, i started looking around for some 3D models of wall mounts for it - again, slim pickings. Not alot of people using the Galaxy S5e wall mounted i guess. The only one i found, and ended up using for testing purposes was one on Thingiverse from a dude named Cemera, the problem was, it was missing two upper pieces and not alot of style or a place to hide the USB cable behind. So i kept digging and eventually found a near perfect 3D model of a wall mount that checked all the boxes for me, the problem was - it was designed for a Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 10.5, that had all different physical dimensions compared to the S5e, ouch. So i grabbed the 3D files from this dude named MADSGADEBERG on Cults3D, and went to work. Having said that, i had almost zero experience doing modeling 3D stuff (if we don't count SketchUp floor plan design), so you can imagine the pain of going through the process of actually adapting the 3D model to fit my Galaxy Tab S5e, when the width, height, thickness, camera placement and even the speaker location that are all different.
Anyway, hours and hours went into the Fusion 360 that i grabbed previously with a free personal licence, rummaging through tutorials on YouTube, and finally i got the result that i wanted. I can't say that this was a slight modification of the original wall mount design for the Galaxy Tab A8, since i ended up changing a lot of stuff to it, including volume button notch, area around the usb port was hella sketchy on the original model, had to beef it all up since original one was just begging it to break. I have also remodeled the front cover design, playing with the bezel width, chamfer and fillet of corners, magnets depth etc, all to fit the Galaxy S5E as tight as possible, with really small tolerances. Even added the four openings on the sides for amazing sounding quad AKG speakers. My biggest gripe with all of this, was having to cut that beautiful design into two pieces, as most 3D printers (including my Bambu Lab X1C) do not have the big enough work area to print this in one piece, e.g the mount being all that slimmed up was still ~270mm long, and i had 256x256x256mm on my build plate to work with. Such a shame, but oh well.
Actually the biggest problem that was revolving about the wall mount design was getting a slim enough USB-C cable, actually slim enough connector part, and that was not easy as it sounds. So, you see, you USA guys had the cable i wanted on your Amazon, but living in Europe i resorted to finding something closer. AliExpress was also an option, but i did not have the patience to wait weeks getting it delivered from China. So, i actually found a dude on Etsy from the Netherlands that makes or rather modifies these cables, and it was perfectly sized for my wall mount project. Bingo, i had everything i needed for the wall mount part, except the magnets that i forgot to order - luckily the one day shipping from Amazon in France works like a charm - hurray.
Ok, having finished the wall mount part, i still needed to figure out how the hell i was going to power this on the wall. So, you see, in the USA, you guys have at least some solutions of buying a recessed box for the wall outlet. Here, in Europe, we don't do alot of drywalls, and we don't recess the outlets that much in the brick walls. Luckily, my place here in France is all drywalled up, but still zero solutions online for buying a deeper recessed wall box or media box that would fit my needs. So, as you might have guessed, i had to design and 3D print one up from scratch. As i was getting familiar with Fusion 360, that wasn't as much of a hassle compared to modifying the wall mount design. I had in mind of creating something sleek that would fit an outlet with USB-A and USB-C ports to actually power the tablet.
The problem is, i did not have power wires available right in the area that i was wanting to mount the tablet, but luckily on that wall i had a junction box near the floor. I bought some 2 metre wires, couple of electric connectors to borrow the neutral, live and ground wires from the junction box, cut up a square hole in the drywall and i was good to go. I had 10cm of clearance in the wall, so i used it up to the max, designing a box that is 6cm deep, leaving the 4cm for the round power outlet box. Good thing about this, i could use normal sized chargers in the actual outlet if i had the need to, since 6cm plus the length of the prongs that go into the holes in the outlet gives a nice depth to fit regular sized chargers.
Alright, i know that alot of people just do not care of estetics behind when the tablet and the mount are going to cover all the holes and drilling/cutting mess anyway, but i wanted to keep things clean, designing a cover for the recessed box to hide the cuts in the drywall. I also chose a cheap but nice looking outlet - i like to keep things clean and tidy, sue me. Instead of drilling all the stuff in the drywall and adding screws, i went with a less destructive method, adding a heavy duty double sided tape to everything, holds like a champ and i can peel it off if i ever decide to change the wall mount location.
So there you have it, a project that i wanted to do for years, all the way back when i started getting into Home Assistant, but i always kept delaying it thinking it was too much work - well it was, but having it done in the end, i learned alot of usefull stuff in the process. For instance, modeling in Fusion 360, it will help me alot with my 3D printing hobby, where i will actually design some future items instead of just printing the files that other people made. Also, i love being handy around the house, tinkering with home related projects, but i never have enough chance to do it, so routing that power wires and adding a power outlet to the wall felt nice to do.
For the dashboard part, I ended up going for WallPanel instead of FullyKiosk as a solution for the fullscreen HA, the screensaver, etc. Also, since my Galaxy S5E is rooted, i have added a charging control behavior for it via ACC (Advanced Charging Controller) Magisk module. I keep it charged up to 80%, and having it drop to 20% before starting to charge again. That way i know the battery stays healthy and is not going to swell up being kept at 100% all the time.
Thanks for reading up all the way to the end of my tablet wall mount project, if you have any questions i will gladly answer them in the comments. Check out the full photos that i took during the making of all the stuff in my Flickr album, as there are plenty. Most people add just a couple and i just keep wondering what stuff they did in the actual process, and how they did it. I can also share all the STL files if people want to recreate what i did. Take care guys, peace.

The HRRFY.
It’s the horror movie festival where something genuinely fucked happens every year. And I mean every year.
Like, there are some screenings that unleash hordes of bats while the movie is playing. You're free to leave whenever you want, but the movie will still play for 2 hours and 15 minutes.
Other screenings hire actors to turn at you and scream at some point in the movie. You have no idea when, or how many times.
It's a festival where the word "illegal" can't even begin to describe what occurs. You'd only attend if you were a young, stupid edgelord like me who was trying to prove he was hardcore to his friends.
Trust me. DO NOT GO.
You have nothing to prove to anyone. Don't be stupid.
Wait for the lamer film versions to come out streaming. That's what everyone else does. They're neutered edits but they're fine.
All they lack is the real gleaming thing everyone wants to see at HRRFY, but who cares. At least you don’t get traumatized. At least you’re not risking your life.
Anyway, if you really want to know what attending HRRFY is like. I’ll be quick and summarize the one screening I went to. It was the 20th anniversary, and I was lucky enough to get in.
***
I had signed up for the HRRFY mailing list, and joined the subreddit. Through a series of cryptic online emails I solved a sequence of riddles and was entered in the lottery for a HRRFY entry.
Lady Luck took a shine to me, because one day in my mailbox, I received a physical ticket. I had done it.
I was going.
The actual ‘ticket’ was a black USB key that announced the location of the festival the night before (which I won’t disclose here) and it did force me to pay for a very expensive flight in order for me to make it on time.
You see, to prevent getting shut down, the location of HRRFY changes every year. Some years the local police have managed to stop it, but for the most part, authorities have given up. What’s the point of arresting or charging anyone, if all the organizers and attendees actually want to be there?
Upon arrival, I had to pick between three participating theaters.
Based on title alone, I decided to go see “Many Drownings” (directed by Oleksander Gołański.) It was in the theater that was furthest away from the downtown core, which meant it was likely the one where the craziest shit was bound to happen.
That’s what I came here for right?
I lined up a solid two hours before the screening like everyone else. The entire line was jittering, just vibrating with excited twenty-somethings. Rumors flew left and right.
“I heard they’re going to force everyone to take acid.”
“I heard an actor’s gonna run in and shotgun the ceiling.”
“I heard they’re going to disappear like four more people this year. At this screening!”
Each year people disappeared. And each year the same people were ‘found.’ And yes this is the worst part, and why should never, ever, ever go to this event.
Again I will repeat myself. DO NOT GO.
No one has ever truly gone 'missing' at HRRFY in any legal or physical sense, because every missing person always shows up a day later, convinced that they are fine—refusing to elaborate further.
There are some small support groups for people who have family members who had gone to HRRFY, and came back irrevocably changed after being ‘found.’
These few unlucky people lose all semblance of personality. They don’t want interviews, or help, or therapy, or contact of any kind. And they never, ever want to talk about what they saw.
Some HRRFY fans think that these ‘found’ people were body-snatched. Cloned in a lab or replaced by a cyborg, or something stupid like that.
But I think there’s a far simpler explanation. The ‘found’ are still the same people. They're just terrified. They got shaken by something that shattered the foundation of their mind, body and soul. They got too scared.
They got HRRFY’d.
***
I should mention I had a cough the day I went. And I was worried my sickly appearance might give me trouble at the airport.
So I invested in an intense double N95 mask which I wore for the whole flight, and continued to wear even at the screening of “Many Drownings.”
It made my face hot and uncomfortable, but it still didn’t stop me from yelling “excuse me, excuse me!” as I ran to snag a seat in the back of the theater.
I always preferred sitting in the far back. You get a good view of the whole screen, and a good view of the whole audience.
Beside me sat a big dude named Sylvester, who apparently flew all the way from Australia to attend HRRFY.
“Worth the full Seventeen hours mate! It’s gonna be epic!” he dropped a massive camping backpack beside me, which I assume contained all of his luggage.
The lights dimmed, and the production company logos started to play.
The whispering, giggling and suspense all stacked upon each other to create an electric feeling in the air. I was giddy. It's like the entire audience was embarking on a massive roller coaster.
The anticipation was the best part for sure. It might have been the only good part.
Then the movie started.
It was a wide shot of a gray, stormy sea. The waves were massive, and the thunderclouds were looming. There was no land visible in any direction.
All we could hear was the sound of waves foaming, swirling, and crashing over and over. Lightning crackled. Rain poured. The camera held perfectly still over this storm as if it was mounted on a perfectly hovering drone. A drone so resilient that it didn’t waver at all.
I thought it had to be CGI.
The shot held like this for the next few moments. Everyone sat glued to their seats. Everyone was thinking the same thing.
What’s going to happen? How are they going to scare us?
People chuckled. People cheered. People wanted to tease whatever was going to happen—to happen already.
But nothing did.
Five, ten, maybe fifteen minutes went by without any change. People started snoring.
I looked beside me and saw that Sylvester—the most excited audience member of them all—had fallen totally asleep. The jet lag must’ve gotten to him.
Then I peered beyond the rest of the audience members and saw other people snoozing too. Heads were keeled over, some people were curled in their seats, some had even spilled out into the aisle and were dozing on the floor.
I looked above the bright screen, at the huge vents in the corner of the theater. I saw a faint white gas emerging from the vents.
Holy shit. What have we been breathing? I tightened the straps on my N95 mask, and made my breathing shallower.
The gas must have been pumping since the opening credits—because how else would an audience of two hundred people all fall asleep?
As I moved my hand through the air in front of me, I could sense the thickness. It was definitely hazier than usual. I took the scarf off my neck and wrapped it around my mouth as well.
Then I spotted movement in front of the screen.
It was a tall blonde man, wearing a black trenchcoat and military-grade gas mask. Beside him arrived six hazmat suits who started pointing at various audience members.
I slunk in my chair, pretending to sleep like everyone else.
Two hazmats walked over to the front row and picked out a sleeping guy in flannel. They lifted flannel up, under the armpits and by his ankles, carrying him between them both like a hammock.
The hazmats walked back up to the stage, where the blonde leader inspected the flannel man and tapped his head. Something was approved?
The hazmats began to swing flannel back and forth, as if they were getting ready to toss him. Despite their masks, I could hear a very muffled, very distant countdown.
“Three…”
“Two…”
“One…”
The flannel audience member was tossed into the screen.
I literally watched him fly into the image of stormy waves … andfallinto them. The flannel man sank into the gray water like a rock, leaving a few bubbles and foam. A wave came crashing down. All trace of him was gone.
What the fuck.
All six hazmats began grabbing more audience members with much more urgency. It became a minute-long process where they would pick the sleeping person up, bring them beside the screen, and then swing-toss them into it.
How was this possible?
I turned slightly to see if there was a projector above me, and realized there was none. Which meant maybe there was no screen on stage.
Which meant … maybe it was a portal?
I tried to wake Sylvester by shaking him. I pinched his leg and arm a bunch.
He was out cold.
The hazmats started grabbing audience members from the middle rows now. They were emptying the whole theater. What the hell was I supposed to do?
I waited until they grabbed another batch, only a few rows down from me. When all hazmats had their backs turned—I broke into a run.
With my left arm, I tightly gripped my mask and scarf against my face, while my right arm vaulted me over seat after seat.
I had never breathed so hard—through so much fabric—in my life.
The hazmats all turned to me. “Hey! Hey!” But their hands were full with their next victims.
I ran all the way down the aisle, to the big exit sign on the left. My heartbeat filled my head. My plan was to dropkick through the exit door.
I imagined myself breaking through like some flying gazelle.
I jumped.
I angled my kick.
It might as well have been a brick wall. I fell ass-first to the ground, followed by my head. Of course the door was locked.
Through a muffled mask I heard a sneering scoff.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
Above me stood the one wearing a trenchcoat. I could see his piercing gray eyes through his gas mask.
I rolled aside and tried to run by him. He lifted a foot and tripped me without effort.
My forehead bashed into an empty seat. It dazed me.
The blonde leader bent down and grabbed me by the neck, tearing away my scarf and mask.
“No! No!”
A sweet, ether-like smell filled my nostrils. I did my best to hold my breath, but I could already feel myself getting light-headed.
The other hazmats joined in, grabbing me from all sides. Even if I had the strength to struggle, there was no escape now.
Above me, all I could see was the dark theater ceiling, and some of the light behind me from the cinema screen.
“Three…”
“Two…”
“No. Please. Don’t do thi—”
SPLASH.
I was plunged deep into cold, wet chaos. My head was completely underwater.
Gagging. Bubbles. Spinning.
I fought for dear life, dog-paddling like a maniac.
Churning. Freezing. Panic.
For a second, my head popped above the water. I inhaled all the air my lungs could muster. I stared across a vast, violent ocean.
An enormous thirty foot wave came in my direction.
My whole body lifted higher and higher as the wave approached. I did my best to tread water. It seemed to be working.
Then a series of smaller waves arrived and smacked my chest.
SPLASH.
Spinning. Kicking. Flipping.
My view alternated between the pitch dark ocean beneath me, and the moonlit night sky above.
Again I swam to the surface, popped my head out. Ravenously sucked in air.
There was a small lull in the water.
Around me I now registered the other theater goers. Most of them were lying face-down or sinking … but a few were flapping about like me, fighting for their life.
And above all of us, a floating white shape.
It was painfully bright, I had to lift one hand to look at it.
My jaw dropped.
It was the movie screen, hanging completely still in the air. It showed a dark, empty theater. The exact same theater we all occupied moments ago.
It was tremendously high, above all of our heads. There was no way of reaching it.
Then I saw another thirty foot wave come our way. It grazed the bottom of the screen.
I knew what had to be done.
***
One of the theater goers happened to be on a college swim team. She was the first one able to traverse one of the giant waves and climb into the screen.
Once she was up there, she found a firehose in the theater and reeled it out to us like a rope.
One by one, we swam as hard as we could, praying to God we could reach the rope. Everyone’s energy was sapped. Your body can only sustain itself on adrenaline and fear for so long.
By some miracle, five of us got out.
I was the last.
I climbed the rope coughing and vomiting. I had swallowed so much water that my stomach felt swollen.
When I reached the top and they pulled me into the screen, I sobbed. I couldn’t stop crying.
My life had flashed countless times before my eyes. In bubbling, suffocating visions, I saw both my parents and my brother. I saw my highschool graduation. I saw my favorite Christmas from when I was six years old.
I had almost lost all of that. I had lost almost everything.
On the dirty, carpeted theater floor, I lay with my face down, savoring the fact that I now lay on a hard surface. God bless ground. God bless this filthy, popcorn-strewn ground.
Beside me I heard bantering, hugging, the wringing of wet clothes. Sylvester was the second last to be saved, and he was particularly vocal.
“Wooooooaaaaahh!” He came and drummed me on the back, lifted me up. “Oh my god dude! Holy shit!”
I sat on my knees, wiping the tears and snot off my mouth.
Sylvester clapped his hands, held his face and screamed some more.
“Holy shit dude! That was so fucking scary! Like literally people were dying beside us. Like I SAW people die!”
I nodded, shivering in my drenched clothes. “ I know it was—”
“—That was craaaaazy!”
He laughed and stood up, patting everyone on the back. He kept clapping his hands like this was some sports event.
“That was sick! That was siiiiiiiiick!”
He ruffled someone’s hair then ran up to me with an open palm.
“High five dude! WE MADE IT! High five!
“Don’t leave me hangin’ dude!”

hi everyone. this is my first time posting here and i'm not a person who frequents this sub so idk what to expect.
TLDR: i have a very close friend group of four years now (there are 8 of us) and i love them dearly. they are like my family and i adore every part of them. although i have no doubt that they value me, i struggle with feeling disappointment with them especially when they are consistently late/flakey/invalidating my feelings about it. i've expressed frustration before and yet it never changes. how do i get over it before it causes resentment?
okay here's the long version. my friends and i met in high school. we were all part of the same larger circles but it wasn't until covid that we created our group. during covid we talked constantly and met up safely outside, masked, and at a distance when cases in our area were low. it was important to us because a couple of us had immunocompromised parents. we were dedicated to each other and they changed my life. they were and still are my rocks.
another thing to note is that my own relationship with my family is not perfect and in general, we are not very close and do not spend a lot of time together. for the most part, this isn't true for my other friends and they get along quite well with their families. it makes me approach the friendship differently i think because they're kinda like my family and they don't really need a second family. i try not to let this cloud my judgement with them but sometimes it hurts extra hard when im stood up for their family.
as years have passed and we've all gone to school, things have changed in the group but i still consider myself close to the vast majority of them and we still see each other frequently (every break, have visited each other at school a couple times). however, i find myself growing more and more hurt and disappointed over things that were originally not a big deal.
most of my friends are chronically late. i am an extremely punctual person and it frustrates me when others are late because it feels disrespectful. i have told them individually about this and yet it continues to happen. sometimes its only 10 minutes and i just get mildly annoyed, other times its hours and im left stranded without a text or call. there are 2 that regularly are late in this way and i've told them about it and still it stays the same. in these moments i feel so hurt and disrespected yet it feels like i can't express this for fear of causing conflict or harping on stuff that we've already discussed. they just say "i know" and i'm expected to drop it.
other times they are extremely flakey. whether it's being hard to pin down which is just batted away with "im so busy!" or it's fully flaking on premade (and paid!) plans only minutes before, it's a consistent issue. when we all lived in the same place, it was okay because i knew i would see them again but now that we all live far away and dont see each other as much, plans are much more deliberate and when they flake, it hurts me a lot. a lot of the time they flake to spend time with family and while i know they have to split time, it can really hurt when we had plans and they decide to stay in instead especially since i can't just go to my parents and spend time with them like they always can.
the reason i'm writing this post is because today is my last day before i leave for 5 weeks and they flaked. this is our last summer before graduating college and therefore our last "free summer." we are all spread out around the country and will be back in our hometown at various points with some overlap but mostly we'll be doing our own thing. basically, it all feels very final. today my friends and i went swimming and hung out for 5 hours during the day. as we were saying goodbye, i asked if people would be around in the evening and if they wanted to hang out. i got a tepid affirmative from everyone and said we should text after dinner and maybe watch a movie and say a real goodbye before i leave tomorrow. its around 8pm and im waiting around for a text and no one is texting so finally i text. no one responds for an hour so i reach out separately to one friend to see if they're still having dinner and what time they would be free and they say they actually made plans with other friends but they'll swing by to say goodbye before. so i get a little upset but say goodbye to them. then i text one of the others and he says he isn't free anymore but he might say bye tomorrow which is a bit annoying because i told them i wouldn't really have time before the airport tomorrow because i need to get my phone fixed but i just text him to let me know his timing and i'll see if i can make it work. finally my other friend tells me she just woke up from an accidental nap and she's gonna eat and see if she's up for it. my other friends are unresponsive. basically, my night of fun before i leave and don't know when i'm going to see them again has turned into me alone, writing this and probably watching a movie. this isn't even the first time they've done this on my last day before leaving! it happened last summer and winter break the year before too. maybe im overreacting but this really hurts my feelings. i know we hang out a lot and we spent a lot of time together already today but it makes me really angry at them and makes me hold all of this resentment and i want advice on how not to get so angry or upset when things like this happen. is there anything i can do to just get over it? am i overreacting?

Hey everyone, I’m sitting around bored 12 days post-op and thought I’d write about my injury and experience up to this point just in case it’d be helpful to anyone. I’m also a physical therapist, so I have experience on the other end assisting with the recovery process - but this is my first major injury for myself. Apologies in advance for the length!
My injury first occurred on March 16th, pushing off with my right foot to return a serve in a game of racquetball. It was the typical feeling of getting kicked in the back of the leg - to the point that I thought someone had dropped something from the spectator gallery (it was a tournament with an audience) and looked back expecting to see something on the court. Following that was the immediate realization that I had torn the Achilles. No significant pain, but a complete inability to actively plantar flex my right foot and a visible/palpable defect.
The ER visit started with two PAs agreeing with me that it’s a clear Achilles tear, and using my leg as a teaching tool for a new nurse. That confidence in the diagnosis was shaken though when the MRI came back negative. I was splinted in plantarflexion (PF) and anxiously awaited a visit with a podiatrist on Monday (injury was on Saturday). I also had a visit with an orthopedist (foot/ankle specialist) for that Friday just in case.
The podiatrist agreed that clinically everything lined up with an Achilles tear, but wanted to put me in a boot in neutral given the negative MRI. I was uncomfortable with that approach and rigged up my own heel lifts to stay in PF until I saw the ortho that Friday. The ortho was also a bit stumped, suspected a possible plantaris tear (maaaaybe showing on the MRI) and partial Achilles tear, and put me in a cast for 4 weeks. This was uneventful, just a boring month, so I’ll skip forward to my “big mistake”.
After a month in the cast I was put in a boot with heel lifts, planning to continue with a conservative approach and some physical therapy. I scheduled my first PT appointment for a week after getting out of the cast (6 weeks post-injury) and started my own PT at home with some light IER AROM, NMES for my calf, and other basic exercises. That Wednesday (April 24th) I was home with my 4 y/o daughter, using my knee scooter to get around. I was typically quite diligent in keeping my boot on, only taking it off to let my foot breathe when lying in bed or on the couch. In a moment that still lives rent free in my head, my daughter asked me for some strawberries and I decided that it was just a quick roll on the scooter to the kitchen and back. Somewhere between shutting the refrigerator door and turning my body to grab the strawberries off the counter the scooter tipped over. To my right side. And I came down with most of my weight on my right leg, without my boot on, forcing my foot into dorsiflexion. I felt a pop, immediate pain, and laid on the kitchen floor while my daughter helped me grab my phone so that I could call my wife.
What followed was a week of shame (beating myself up as I absolutely knew better than to move around without the boot), pain, and the awful realization that surgery was the next step. Diagnostic ultrasound showed a rupture with 2.7cm gap, and surgery was scheduled for Thursday, May 9th. The surgery itself went well, although the surgeon expressed to my wife that the tendon was “more shredded” than he expected. I was splinted with bandaging/ACE wrap holding it together. Showering has continued to be a pain, although two months into all of this I’m getting used to sitting down. I get the splint off tomorrow during my first post-op visit, likely moving to the boot next. Pain is fairly well managed, although I’m currently getting a fairly constant rotation of burning, aching, and spasms as my leg goes slowly through the healing process.
I’m nervous about the upcoming rehab process, likely the result of “knowing too much” and fearing the worst as I hope to get back to my prior level of function. I’m comforted knowing I have the tools at my disposal to maximize my rehab. It’s been great to read through other peoples’ posts on this forum, particularly getting some perspective on different experiences. For those that read this, I’m happy to answer any questions or update as I progress through my last weeks of lying around at home and finally start PT (in a few weeks).

(Overview at bottom)
Ticker PK is Park Hotels & Resorts Inc. Sitting at a 3 billion dollar market cap with average daily volume of a few million, it has come to my attention that this stock is completely undervalued!
Park is one of the largest publicly traded lodging (REITs) Real-Estate Investing Trusts with a very diverse portfolio. This portfolio has Waldorf histora hotel properties, Conrad hotel properties, Hilton hotel properties: Double Tree, Hampton, Embassy, and Garden. Did I forget to mention as well that it has a 4.31% divided yeild. Besides day trading the impact of current interest rates on hospitality estates, we are about to enter travel season with this upcoming summer which may be a catalyst for revenue growth YOY (year-over-year for the regards) given we just got out of quarantine 4 years ago and people are starting to look at Covid as a thing of the past. Moreover, it’s next earnings report is currently scheduled in the end June, and it’s last quarter report was a beat where the previous 2 quarters have been exactly what analysts expected. Robinhood analyst are expecting at growth of 10 cents per share at (estimate: 0.63) in comparison to its previous quarter of 0.53 cents per share. That’s a 19% revenue growth projection from an arguably reputable Brokerage.
Recent news
Last week PK had an overall gain of 1.87%, the stock price moved from 16.02 to 16.32, last week's high was 16.58, the low was 15.6850, and the cumulative volume was 10.87M.
Recent technical It is up 1% since last week as we kickstart summer. We see a bullish change in its Williams %R on the 15th of this month towards a bullish % indication. It crossed 21 day moving average the same day. And pumped past a bottom triangle wedge the same day as well.
Overview: Entry foundation: 4 short term technical indicators signaling bullish momentum Catalyst: short term revenue growth because we are entering travel season Ticker Choice: A Portfolio with reputable hospitality companies- did I mention hospitality is considered an evergreen niche given that people with never not love to travel.
Position: extremely bullish
Most recent trending article:
Park Hotels & Resorts Announces Final Results of Tender Offer
TYSONS, Va., May 16, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Park Hotels & Resorts Inc. ("Park") (NYSE: PK) announced today the expiration of and the final results for the previously announced offer to purchase for cash (the "Tender Offer") commenced by Park's subsidiaries, Park Intermediate Holdings LLC, a Delaware limited liability (the "Company"), PK Domestic Property LLC, a Delaware limited liability company, and PK Finance Co-Issuer Inc., a Delaware corporation (collectively, the "Issuers"), for any and all of their outstanding 7.500% Senior Notes due 2025 (the "Notes"). The Tender Offer expired at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on May 13, 2024 (the "Expiration Time").
On May 16, 2024, the Issuers purchased $311,473,000 in principal amount of the Notes that were validly tendered and not validly withdrawn or with respect to which a properly completed and duly executed Notice of Guaranteed Delivery was delivered at or prior to the Expiration Time.
According to information received from Global Bondholder Services Corporation, the Tender and Information Agent for the Tender Offer, the following table sets forth details regarding the total aggregate principal amount of the Notes validly tendered and not validly withdrawn or with respect to which a properly completed and duly executed Notice of Guaranteed Delivery was delivered at or prior to the Expiration Time and the principal amount of the Notes that will be accepted for purchase by the Issuers today:
Title of CUSIP Principal Principal Principal Security Numbers/ISINs: Amount Amount Amount to be Outstanding Tendered Accepted on 5/16/2024 7.500% Senior 144A: Notes due 70052LAA1 / $650,000,000 $311,473,000 $311,473,000 2025 US70052LAA17 Reg S: U7013LAA8 / USU7013LAA80
In addition, on May 16, 2024, the Issuers issued a notice of redemption for all of the Notes outstanding following the settlement of the Tender Offer at a redemption price of 100.000% of the principal amount thereof, plus accrued and unpaid interest to, but excluding, the redemption date (which is expected to be June 1, 2024) pursuant to the terms of the indenture governing the Notes. Following the redemption on the redemption date, the Issuers will no longer have any Notes outstanding.
Wells Fargo Securities, LLC served as Dealer Manager for the Tender Offer. Global Bondholder Services Corporation served as the Tender and Information Agent for the Tender Offer. Questions regarding the Tender Offer may be directed to Wells Fargo Securities, LLC at 550 South Tryon Street, 5th Floor, Charlotte, North Carolina 28202, Attn: Liability Management Group, (866) 309-6316 (toll-free), (704) 410-4759 (collect) or by email to liabilitymanagement@wellsfargo.com.
This press release is for informational purposes only and does not constitute an offer to purchase or the solicitation of an offer to sell any securities, including the Notes.
About Park Hotels & Resorts
Park is one of the largest publicly traded lodging REITs, with a diverse portfolio of iconic and market-leading hotels and resorts with significant underlying real estate value. Park's portfolio currently consists of 43 premium-branded hotels and resorts with over 26,000 rooms located in prime city center and resort locations.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements related to the effects of Park's decision to cease payments on its $725 million non-recourse CMBS loan secured by the 1,921-room Hilton San Francisco Union Square and the 1,024-room Parc 55 San Francisco -- a Hilton Hotel and the lender's exercise of its remedies, including placing such hotels into receivership, as well as Park's current expectations regarding the performance of its business, financial results, liquidity and capital resources, including anticipated repayment of certain of its indebtedness (including the Notes), the completion of capital allocation priorities, the expected repurchase of Park's stock, the impact from macroeconomic factors (including inflation, elevated interest rates, potential economic slowdown or a recession and geopolitical conflicts), the effects of competition, the effects of future legislation or regulations, the expected completion of anticipated dispositions, the declaration, payment and any change in amounts of future dividends and other non-historical statements. Forward-looking statements include all statements that are not historical facts, and in some cases, can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as the words "outlook," "believes," "expects," "potential," "continues," "may," "will," "should," "could," "seeks," "projects," "predicts," "intends," "plans," "estimates," "anticipates," "hopes" or the negative version of these words or other comparable words. You should not rely on forward-looking statements since they involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which are, in some cases, beyond Park's control and which could materially affect its results of operations, financial condition, cash flows, performance or future achievements or events.
All such forward-looking statements are based on current expectations of management and therefore involve estimates and assumptions that are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the results expressed in these forward-looking statements. You should not put undue reliance on any forward-looking statements and Park urges investors to carefully review the disclosures it makes concerning risks and uncertainties under "Risk Factors" and in Park's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, as such factors may be updated from time to time in its periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), which are accessible on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. Except as required by law, Park undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

My second playthrough of Stellaris.
Writing a story while playing improves the strongest part of this game: The role playing. I did it mostly for myself, but i guess it never hurts to share.
It's pretty long for a reddit post. (short compared to some other AARs tho).
I played the pre-defined Gorthikan race. Their origin is Overtuned Genetics. Democratic scavengers with mutagenic spas. Fanatic egalitarian materialist.
*SPOILER WARNING*
2200: We overthrew the shackles of mindless ravaging and tyranny with our bravery. We would not succumb to our animal like existence. Gene splicing gave us the answers. Life for everyone got easier. With all this pressure taken away from us, we would finally be able to create a Government. A place for every Gorthikan to be represented. Freedom would be our guide. Self improvement our Sword. To the stars!
2205: Our scientist informed us of our biosphere in danger. We would need to research catastrophic events on other planets. With only one planet, this is of major importance. We found one planet, but its not very habitable. The search goes on.
2208: We found a planet worth colonizing. Our colonist are on the way.
2210: Another alpine world found! A glorious day for all Grothikans. We have decided to improve fertility, but the genetic splicing made our species fragile. Leading positions are hard to fill, with leaders only serving for 10-15 years. This takes a huge toll on our unity as a species. Maybe more splicing has to be made, in order to increase the lifespan. For now, we must fill the stars with the abundance of our citizens.
2215: It turned out our recent splicing was a fatal mistake. With our populations life span toll, governing a galactic civilization would become impossible. Our latest leader served less than a year. We would fall into chaos if would not intervene immediately. Splicing had to be conducted NOW. Our scientist came up with a genius trait, which would automatically adjust citizens to their jobs. We needed to incorporate this in exchange for some reproduction, and gain a lot of lifespan in return. Sadly it took many years to modify our species. Only hope could carry us further from here.
2218: We encountered sentient alien life! They seem to be fungus in nature, but form a usual Space faring civilization. Fascinating.
2220: Early years of space colonization have been really rough for us. Still about 15 more years until the splice fixing would be complete. 2 great habitable worlds are locked in a system with what seems space amoeba. Those creatures are fending us off. With one fleet of corvettes destroyed, we had to realize that, our military technology would have to improve if we wanted to take that system.
2221: War has been declared on us. The first Alien nation we met is now trying to beat us into vassals. With our fleets weakened we have to scramble to not get overrun. Things looking more dire by the minute.
2222: With no fleets by the start of the war we were forced to accept submission. We lost a system and are now dominated by those fungal creatures. Our Agreements with them were dire. No further expansion and 15% tax on goods. We could only hope they would treat us with more respect later.
2228: After a few tough years we were able to negotiate the terms of our servant ship. We would be free to expand, and not taxed. Maybe there would be a chance for our civilization, if just a slim one. The stresses of galactic wars and resource shortages had taken their toll on the population. Unfortunately one of our planets started to rebel.
2232: The rebellion had long been quenched easily. Our genetic alterations finally commenced. New hopes were rising. Unfortunately climate changed completely on one of your planets, and it turned into an ocean world. Not quite habitable for our people, but it would have to suffice. Luckily we research robotics. That would make things a bit easier. It also turns out that our latest genetics program was a success. Our civilization is manageable now, since individuals can grow into significant personalities due to their increased lifespans.
2243: After a calm period of economic growth we decided it would be time to challenge our overlord. Enough oppression. Rally the fleets.
2246: We won! Finally free from their control, we decided to bide our time until we could return the favor. For now, we had gotten control of 2 of their systems as a bonus.
2248: Our improved robotics now allow for specialized robots. Finally, we have effective workers for our ocean planet. After a gradual replacement, we hope to resettle our real citizens to a more suitable planet. Habitable planets are much less common than anticipated. We still only possess 4 worlds, and they are getting crowded. Most of them are quite small. We decided we would try putting a colony on a tropical world. Not very habitable for us cold-loving creatures, but maybe our robots could do most of the work there.
2257: While we were preparing to vassalize our fungal neighbors, another empire to the south declared war on us. They wish to vassalize us. Traumatic memories come ashore. We discovered them about a year ago. They are reptilian. We don't have much more information. To war!
2263: We are close to victory over the cold-blooded snake-eyes. But our fleets are so far away from our old rival, the fungal fiends, that we decided to build a second fleet. We declared war to vassalize them and marched onwards with our secondary fleet.
2266: Our society had a breakthrough! With the combined might of the unity between us, we've gotten our society even more focused on what even united us in the first place. New fields of genetics lay before us. We would ascend.
2267: We have encountered quite a few space faring civilizations by now. A multitude of them proposed to create a galactic council. That sounds promising. Maybe it could get more peaceful around here.
2268: We have beaten the cold-blooded and gotten 6 systems in reparations, but the fungoids are proving hardy. With only a small fleet of ours in the northern conflict, we cannot win the war effectively even though we have the upper hand. We will settle on the status quo for now, still planning to return in a few years. Their atrocities of the first war still reverberate to this day.
2272: The scientific community proposed a technology to alter our species' habitability towards specific planets! In preparation, we would send colony ships to every planet we were able to reach. This news came at the right time. Our planets are bursting with populations.
2277: One more year until our truce with the snake-eyes ends. Shipyards are converting every alloy we have into fleets. 2282: We would have loved to attack the fungal menace in the north, but it's very far from the south, and down there, our truce with the snake-eyes would end. Our cunning plan: draw the snake-eyes into a quick war, with the intention of a quick truce. With the forced peace in the south, we could concentrate our fleets on the north without danger from below.
2283: Our scientists had a massive breakthrough! Genetics would now be possible almost without constraints. Ascension had come. Each and every citizen elevated to perfection for its purpose.
Modification template creation would start immediately. The masses of Gorthikans would be modified to either be shaped for dry, wet, or cold environments. But we would not stop there. Genetics had so much more to offer.
The generalist Gorthikans would live long lives, be happier, less unruly, and very efficient at industrious tasks. In addition, they would adapt to whatever task they picked up. Perfection.
The less common Gorthikans would be next. We only created them from clone vats, since we could control exactly where those would be needed, and they would not reproduce out of control, since there were never many jobs for such citizens anyway. We made them incredibly smart. Tests showed that they would be 50% smarter than their peers. Artists and bureaucrats were designed to live long, happy lives, with an urge for the betterment of other people's lives.
Lastly, in a fortunate coincidence, we managed to find gene samples for a species able to survive the harshest post-apocalyptic landscapes. We perfected those mammals to live on the huge tomb world that happened to be in our borders. They would be obedient and strong, perfect for lowly works.
From now on, robots would be obsolete. Sentient life was more than just superior.
With our new plan set in action, we needed tremendous amounts of biomass.
2292: What was supposed to be a quick stratagem, turned out to be a nail-biting war of attrition against the snake-eyes. We could barely whittle them down. But our prize was phenomenal. 6 star systems and 1 huge relic world. With those achievements behind us, we were looking northwards to our fungal rivals. It was time to settle this once and for all.
2293: Our fleets in position, there was a moment of calamity. In our early days of space fare, we were taught that the strong would get their way. Our magnificent creations, each and every one perfect, were threatened. Threatened by the imperfect. It was time we got our way. Perfection should rule over the galaxy. As we would make every life form flawless. Other empires would not see our plans with mistrust. We were preparing to bring our gift by force. From now on, other empires called us the Galactic Nemesis from then on.
2298: We learned some valuable lessons during this war. Our enemy would absolutely not surrender multiple systems to us and be our vassal. They would rather die. We are not at that point yet. Another offense at a later point will subjugate them. We are patient.
2302: The snake-eyes in the south kept cursing our way. It's only a matter of time until they declared war. We had to end it once and for all. Use the leftover specimens as genetic material. We started by paying raiders. Hiring a few mercenaries wouldn't hurt either. Our fleets were strong. So it begins. To war!
2313: With a last effort, the reptilians were able to muster out one last powerful fleet. We couldn't push further. But they lost 80% of their star systems. About half of them fell into our possession. Construction vessels were on the way to conquer the others. The snake-eyes would no longer pose a threat to us. Gorthikans could rest easier.
2320: The snake-eyes would prove sturdier than we thought. They formed alliances with multiple other empires. We set out to crush them again. This time supporting a rebellion from within them.
2321: Our species is divided. We gave them everything. Freedom. Perfect bodies. Great living standards. But we have always been rebels at heart. Seemingly even the best splicing could not get rid of that. Half of the population wanted to conquer the galaxy. The other half wanted to embrace peace and compassion for the alien nations. Overall unhappiness took hold in our empire. Rebellions sprung up from time to time. Enforcement and distractions were necessary to keep the population in check. Did we go too far? Our hatred was sparked by the attacks on us. Now we were the aggressors. Did we go too far?
2325: The wars on multiple fronts spread us too thin. We won against the snake-eyes, but the fungus managed to get away with a white peace status quo. Again. The fallen empires start threatening us and our citizens shake in fear. Frustration settles in. The once so great vision and unity is no more. Hatred within and without our nation. There is no turning back either. Everybody hates us and wants to see us dead. The economy is decent but cannot support our required fleet. We took every planet we could. Unemployment is still high.
2331: We had shifted our focus inwards. What worth is freedom if you have no choice? We created opportunities for our citizens. Theaters on every planet. An abundance of jobs. After all, if we were determined to bring our way to the universe, it'd better be worth it.
2332: We were finally able to construct hyper relays. The century-old problem of fleet logistics would become far less detrimental.
2334: Dormant empire threatened us for the third time. This time it was enough. Fleet production to the maximum.
2335: With no attack from the fallen ones, we decided to use our fleets to attack the cursed fungal people. Success came fast this time. We relied on our spacecraft until now. But the first breakthrough in this century-long conflict was achieved by our ground forces. Our gene-soldiers would make short work of planetary defenses. Perfection would prevail after all. With 4 planets full of new citizens taken from them, our researchers had lots to do in order to ascend them to perfection. They would be grateful after all. Free of inadequacies, free citizens in our egalitarian nation.
2336: Formation of the galactic council. We couldn't care less. The other empires were neither free nor perfect. We would bring it to them. No matter what they say.
2343: An all-out war with the lizard fiends was at full swing. The hatred between our species surged to new heights. Every Gorthikan could feel it. A mysterious connection. Our scientists said it came from the Shroud. Some raised their voices in question, asking if we had gone mad. Did our genetic splicing take its toll after all? Billions had died in our wake. There was no turning back.
2348: In an unforeseen event, the Panaxalan Horde united under a Khan. Their fleets were absolutely massive. All other wars had to be put to rest for now. We had made great land gains. We could come back later.
2358: Luckily, the horde was concentrating on other empires. We lost a few systems here and there, but the losses were acceptable. We decided it was time to level the playing field and erase some of the tiny empires in the area. With them removed, the big players in the area would not have to tread so carefully in the future.
2361: The horde started turning our way. We managed to destroy their second-biggest fleet and one of their flagships. Their biggest fleet wiped out our fighters shortly after. Mass production from all starports would hopefully suffice.
2364: The Great Khan's fleet was destroyed. The coward escaped through hyperspace. The war is not over. Our fleets shall push as fast as they can through their territory. Sadly, a vile necropolis kingdom declared war on us, and we had to spread our fleets thin.
2365: The Khan already had a second fleet assembled. Seems like he would not give up easily.
2366: We were able to bruise the necropolis kingdom hard enough to make them settle for a status quo. Just in time. Our forces needed to race to meet the Khan's second fleet. No time for repairs. Meanwhile, our eyes turned west. During all our fighting in the north and south, the Ruphaarian Hive was left unchecked for a century. Their unobtrusive looks were deceiving. Insignificant mammals at first glance, but connected via a fascinating connection, they acted as one individual. In either case, their empire was massive. They took the fungal people as vassals recently. Our fighting in the south and east needed to come to a conclusion soon.
2367: The Great Khan is dead! New, infighting empires were founded. With our fleets bordering one of them, we decided to subjugate the closest one. Such uprisings shall never happen again.
2370: The Galactic Community declared us an existential galactic threat. All we wanted was to bring freedom and perfection. Maybe our methods were not diplomatic, but our motives were good. Sacrifices had to be made. Billions so far. With everyone against us now, trillions to come. Probably. Maybe there was another way out. Our scientists proposed a new device: the Aetherophasic Engine. Combined with the immense star-eater ships, we could get closer to tapping into the shroud, the mysterious thing which connected all of us. We had to see it through.
2371: The onslaught from all sides was immense. When war was declared on us, our fleets were completely out of position. To our demise, the Ruhaarian Hive used a wormhole close to our home planet to bring in massive fleets. Our only hope was that our hyperlanes could get us into position fast enough. Due to a fatal error in miscommunication between our scientists and mega-facility team, our starbases were not upgraded to the citadel design, which was needed to produce further Star-Eaters. Who would have thought that the destruction of our species might come down to such an embarrassing error? Our only chance was to defend longer with our normal fleets.
2373: Defense was manageable. The other empires in the galaxy were no match for a conglomerate of perfected species after all. Attacks were still underway, but the surprise attack was defeated, and the brunt of their fleets shattered.
2385: Other empires had no fight left in them anymore. Our Star-Eaters left a wake of destruction. More than that, our neighboring empires glowed up in supernovae. Unusable star systems with nothing left except black holes remained. Our rivalry with the fungoids seemed so childish and innocent. The snake-eyes were about to meet the same fate. The citizens whom we integrated into our empire before the great star feast were all that was left of them.
2395: The galaxy started to change. Not in the visuals in the sky. Most systems were not connected to a hyperlane anyway. But the galactic map of charted systems did even more. Half the Ruphaarian Hives' worlds were devoured by black holes.
2398: Our hold on the shroud grew with every stage of the project. Soon not only our bodies would be perfect, but our minds as well. Perfect in every aspect.
2399: The fabric of space tore apart, the being of the void entered our space. We had no more mercy for them than for the other casualties of this war. The price had to be paid. But after all, a universe in flames was a sight to behold.
2409: The shroud is fighting with all its frenzy not to be invaded. Mad avatars pour into our dimension as it lies in anguish.
2418: The Aetherophasic Engine is brimming with the dark energy of countless stars. We would only have to activate it and ascend. Nothing of what has been could describe what would be. Perfected beings in a flawless new existence. The destruction of the whole galaxy was the price. As an inconceivable number of beings perished, we were taken somewhere, where those things don't have meaning anymore.

Introduction:

Hello, and welcome to the /hockey Pick em' Playoff Pick 'em Challenge! I'll be running the Playoff Challenge on a round-by-round basis, and I'll be making one thread per round. You'll be picking multiple variables for each series, with varying point values. This is the thread for the third round, the Conference Finals.

2nd Round Results:

1st Place: ghost_curse123 with 23 points.
2nd Place: kk451128 and Kroger453PredsFan with 22 points.
4th Place: ChopinBallades, lHansBrix, and Morderator94 with 21 points.
Second round results can be found here.

First Round Results:

These are only being announced now because of the first and second rounds overlapping.
1st Place: ajhockeystar with 30 points.
2nd Place: RedSlider18 with 28 points.
3rd Place: Kroger453PredsFan with 27 points.
First round results can be found here.

Overall Results:

1st Place: Kroger453PredsFan with 49 points.
2nd Place: ajhockeystar and Morderator94 with 46 points.
4th Place: ChopinBallades and kk451128 with 43 points.
Alphabetical overall results can be found here.

Round 3: Conference Finals

Here is what you'll be picking this round for each series:
6 Points:

• Pick the winner of the series.

4 Points:

• Pick the number of games played in the series.

2 Points:

• Pick one player from either team who will record a game winning goal for their team. There is only a possibility of one point for this, even if your player records more than one game winning goal.
  
• What will the total goal differential be between the two teams? (Ex: 5. You do not need to specify which team will have more goals)
  
• How many total overtime periods will be played in the series?
  
• What player will spend the most time on ice throughout the series? (This excludes goalies)
  

1 Point:

• Which team will have the better power play?
  
• Will the winning team touch the conference championship trophy during the trophy presentation?
  

Submitting Your Pick:

Picks can be submitted for all series that have yet to start. Once a series starts, those picks will be locked. If you decide to make a change in one of your picks, that's fine, just edit your post. However, picks for a series will be locked once the series starts (even if you make an edit).
Feel free to post your picks however you’d like, but feel free to use, or modify this simple table template:

Series Winner	Games	GWG	Goal Diff	OT	TOI	PP	Trophy Touch?
Rangers/Panthers	4/5/6/7	XXX	#	#	XXX	Rangers/Panthers	Yes/No
Stars/Oilers	4/5/6/7	XXX	#	#	XXX	Stars/Oilers	Yes/No

If you have any questions, please leave it in the comments below. More questions will be added as the rounds go on, and I am taking suggestions for a few additional (fair) prop picks. Thank you everyone and Good luck!
Live Standings can be found here. I will try to update as soon as I can, to make them as updated as possible.

Matchups & Lock times:

New York Rangers vs Florida Panthers
Series Preview Picks will lock on Wednesday May 22nd at 8:00 PM ET.
 
Dallas Stars vs Edmonton Oilers
Series Preview Picks will lock on Thursday May 23rd at 8:30 PM ET.

Hello again velo, It's me. The guy that rides uphill in Japan. On my last post I mentioned some differences in racing in Japan saying it was for another post. Well, there appeared to be some interest in me making that post. As I mentioned then... I tend to ramble. I'm an English teacher at a small high school which leaves me with a lot of free time. I enjoy spending that time researching anything from training methodology to obscure Japanese history. I decided to use some of that time to write about road racing in Japan and it turned into... well, whatever this is. It's (sort of) a guide to racing your bike over here. I've organized it into sections, so feel free to read it all or skip through them. At the end I've attached racing adjacent notes as well as a small bio.
If this post is not appropriate for this subreddit, I understand. And while I don't want to self-promote I spend most of my time reading about Japan not only because I live here, but also because my wife and I host a podcast. We mostly ramble about our lives here as foreigners. It's mostly cultural, but as long time competetive cyclists we often talk about bikes too. We host a website where I write random articles, which is where this is ultimately hosted, with photos. If you're curious you can google my username and find us.
I tried to think about things I've learned along the way and put it into writing for anyone in the future that might move to Japan and have an interest in racing. If you have any questions or see any information gaps, feel free to ask! In September we'll be moving to the Netherlands... so maybe I'll have to do this all over again then. Anyway, without further rambling, here it is.
Race License
There are actually quite a lot of road events throughout the country. However, many are marketed towards recreational cyclists. Going as far as incorporating anti-competition clauses in their rules. So what do you do if you want to race? For starters, you’ll head to the Japan Cycling Federation’s website and register for a license. It’s in Japanese, but with the magic of Google Translate it shouldn’t be too hard to navigate. This is also for those currently residing in Japan. I think otherwise you would need an international license issued from your country’s governing body.
While on their website you can check the calendar of events that are scheduled. But, it’s not as simple as where I am from (USA) where once you have a license you can register yourself for almost any event and just show up.
Race Organizers
In most cases while the JCF is the licensing body, they are not the event coordinator. Events are hosted by a number of different governing bodies within the country. There’s the Japan Intercollegiate Cycling Federation (JICF), Japan Cycling League (JCL), prefectural federations such as the Yamaguchi Cycling Federation and finally the Japan Bicyclist Club Federation (JBCF). There are a lot of Js, Cs and Fs in the acronym lexicon over here. In this post I’ll be focusing on the JBCF because it was sold to me as Japan’s premier race organizer and the highest level of racing in Japan. It also seems to have the most robust calendar of events.
Declaration of my bias and shortcoming: The JBCF is the only organizer I’ve had any meaningful experience with. No, they’re not paying me. However I have won a cool towel, a coffee cup and some bar tape at their events. Actually I’ve given them quite a bit of money…
Teams
So you’ve got your JCF license and like me you’ve decided to participate in the JBCF. What’s next? Register for a JBCF account, sign up for events, race your bike? Almost. You do need to register for an account. After that, you need to find a team. That’s right, you need to be registered with a JBCF team to participate in races. This was a surprise to me and also a barrier to entry at first. As a new resident of Japan I didn’t know anyone here let alone a team that would let a random foreigner join.
How’d I do it then? Well, the first team I joined was through a friend of a friend of a friend. My second and current team I ended up getting to know because I took a bunch of KOMs around my new home. I guess Strava KOMs are worth something after all. If you’re looking for a team you could start by asking local shops, they often have a club organization that you can sign up for. If you’re desperate you can also make your own team. It used to only require two people, but I think they increased that to three or four.
Costs
I’m writing this in May of 2024, so the costs will be current as of that month. The USD to JPY conversion is sitting around 1 USD = 155 JPY.
Your first cost will be the JCF license fee. In my case, an elite rider over 23 years old, it was 5,000y for an e-license and 6,300y for the physical one. My first year I used the e-license, but my second year I paid for the physical one as a cool souvenir.
Beyond the license. You’ll need a team kit (bibs & jersey) and you may also be required to pay the athlete registration fee. To join my E1 team in 2024 I paid 43,000 yen. That included one team kit and the registration fee plus some small accessories (gloves, bottle, etc.). In E1 I paid all my own entry fees, which were approximately 8,500y per race.
My JPT experience was a special case. I paid roughly $1,200 (usd). But I received two kits (jerseys & bibs), a speed suit (SS skinsuit), windbreaker, vest, socks, etc. I also had the benefit of the “pro” treatment at races with lots of assistance. Was it a cold rainy day? I could ask for embro and they’d oil me up with a little massage. Needed a bike wash, snacks, or a trainer to warm up on? All provided. And all of my entry fees were covered. I never paid those out of pocket. It was a really cool experience and honestly I think I got my money's worth just in the races that I attended, let alone all the extras. Plus the team was above and beyond hospitable. A really great bunch of people.
Categories
Once you’re on a team you’re good to go! So which category should you race in? The JBCF has 5 big categories: Japan Pro Tour (JPT), Japan Elite Tour (JET), Japan Feminin Tour (F), Japan Youth Tour (Y1 & Y2), and the Japan Masters Tour (M). JET is further broken down into E1, E2 & E3. The general idea is male riders start as E3 and through results they work their way up to E1. If they’re highly motivated they’ll target a placement on a JPT Team.
Unfortunately for the women, I believe there is only one lump “Female” category. But in one of my most recent races a woman lined up with us for our race start. So that may be an option. For the Youth there’s U19 & U17. Masters is similar to the women’s category and I believe there is simply one “Masters” event, without age ranges.
Using what I know (USA Cycling Categories) I’ll try to make a comparison. E3 is your Cat 4/5 or Novice rank. E2 is around Cat 3/4 and E1 is roughly one big P/1/2/3 field. JPT is something like the US’s Domestic Elite field. Some JPT teams (and even some E1 teams) are UCI Continental teams. Although, honestly, some JPT riders are probably equivalent to strong Cat 3s.
In America I raced as a Cat 2 on the road, albeit I was a pretty weak 2. My first year in Japan I raced JPT and was able to hang in the peloton and finish events. My second year I raced as an E1, where I was very competitive and able to fight for podium finishes. That’s my experience and my basis for the above comparisons.
Events
Once you’ve got all the above figured out, it’s time to finally race! The JBCF organizes the following events: Road, Criterium, Hill Climb, Time Trial and Track. Criterium, Time Trial & Track are pretty similar to what you’d find anywhere else in the world. So for this post I’ll really just focus on Road and Hill Climb.
It’s worth noting that except for track, all of these events take place on public roads. But, unlike the USA, it seems the general rule in Japan is that for a race to be a “race” the roads need to be closed to traffic. Sounds great, right? Right! Or, mostly. Japan is a beautiful country with incredible scenery and fantastic road riding. Unfortunately, the JBCF uses very little of this. I think to minimize inconveniencing locals, cut costs, and make their lives easier, most of these events will take place on already closed circuits or around agricultural land (where no one lives or drives anyway). In practice they are “public” roads, but they only need to shut down one or two entrances to close off the entire loop.
Many “road” events are just very long short circuit races. A popular venue that hosts multiple races throughout the season is the Gunma Cycle Sports Center. This is a defunct cycling theme park built in the 1980s with a paved 6 km circuit. Some of the races in the higher categories can be up to 150 km! That’s 25 laps! And, they’ll be pulling riders. When I was racing JPT it was often a big accomplishment just to finish a race. It was a common occurrence for a break to get established with the big teams represented and the rest of the field to sit up, inevitably getting pulled before being lapped. It’s not uncommon for well over half of the field to DNF early on in these longer races. Sometimes to add a little spice to your life, they’ll run the course in the opposite direction one weekend.
So, I’m biased, but that style of “road racing” wasn’t for me. That’s what led me to the Hill Climb. At first, I thought it was just an uphill TT. But, it's a mass start! The last one I did was Mt. Ontake HC which was a 17.7km race gaining 1,150 meters in elevation finishing at an altitude just under 2,200m. I finished in 51 minutes. It’s more like an uphill criterium. You might explode, but you won’t get pulled. It’s also, of course, point to point.
Good things to know about a Hill Climb are the controlled descent and luggage delivery. When you finish you’ll be waiting at the top of the climb for all other riders and categories to finish. Sometimes this means you’re waiting for an hour or more! Thankfully the morning of the race you can give a bag to the organizers and they will deliver it to the top of the mountain. This is a great way to make sure you have extra layers and snacks waiting for you. Just make sure it’s packed in a bag that you can then easily carry with you on the descent.
Be extra mindful of the forecast. At Ontake in 2024 we started at the base of the mountain in temperatures around 16 celsius. At the summit it was 7 degrees and it started to rain! Thankfully I had a teammate who had driven to the top (you must register your vehicle) and he gave me a lift back down. If you’re riding down, the descent will be done in waves which are chaperoned and controlled by officials on motorcycles.
Registering
I can only tell you my experience and I’m not certain that this is how it always works. When I was in the JPT, I never paid for an event. Each team could send six riders and the team manager made a selection based on which riders requested to go to which event, they would then register you to go. In my E1 team I haven’t run into any rider maximums (we only have a few E1 riders), and I pay for each event. I still tell the team’s manager which event I want to travel to, they register me, but then I pay them back.
The Day Of
The JBCF events have been very organized. The week before they will release a list of registered riders along with a technical guide. The technical guide will include information about the course, where to park, where to check in, how to pin your numbers and more. It’s only in Japanese. Google Translate will be your best friend. Or if you’re lucky you may have a teammate that can speak some English and help you out.
Usually the check in process begins a couple of hours before the start time. You’ll go to license control and pick up your numbers and timing chip. If you’re doing a hill climb and need to, this is also the period of time you drop off your luggage to be taken to the summit. Get kitted & pinned up, then go to the “vehicle control”. They will check your bike against a jig, kind of like what the UCI might use, as well as check the weight (take your bottles off the bike when you hand it to them) and make sure your numbers are pinned correctly. A keen eyed inspector may even look at your helmet to make sure it has the JCF certification sticker. You could possibly be told to change helmets if yours doesn’t have the sticker. When they tell you that everything is OK, you’ll go to the table and sign the box with your name.
There are also meetings that will be happening. But, you shouldn’t have to worry about that. If the team manager can’t be present they will send an “attendant”. This person is responsible for going to the meetings and reporting back to the riders.
Podiums & Prizes
Look how far you’ve come. After all that you’re headed to the podium, which in many events will be six deep. What should you expect? Maybe a cool trophy or a medal? It’s even better. How about a formal certificate signed and stamped by the JBCF President! That’s right, you’ll be receiving an A4 sheet of paper. And yes, when they hand it to you they’ll turn it to face you, use both hands to hand it over and bow. And yes, you should receive it with both hands and bow in return. I plan to frame and hang mine like some kind of college diploma. You’ll probably receive a prize as well. Something like what I mentioned earlier in this post, a towel, cup, umbrella, etc.
Where’s the money? If you want to hold a giant cheque with a big number (because it’s in yen) you’ll need to be racing in the top category, JPT. In this category the podium is only three deep. One time in a race I had a teammate finish 3rd and win some money. I never saw any of it, which was fair as I didn’t really contribute to his result. And I never podiumed myself. So I’m not sure how the payout actually works. Did he get to keep it all? Did the team take it? Who knows. I hope he kept it all, he’s a great guy.
Other Notes
Gachinko Cycle TV & Photo Galleries. Almost all JBCF events are live streamed & archived on YouTube! There’s a company called Gachinko Cycle TV that provides coverage. This includes camera motos as well as stationary cameras. A lot of photographers also come to the events and a photo gallery is posted on the JBCF website after the events take place.
Events & Categories. Not every event will be run for every category. A motivator for me to move from JPT to E1 was that not every hill climb has a JPT category, but they all seem to have E1. My first time racing at Ontake I was in the “Open” category and not eligible for any points or placement.
Outlier events. There are some events like the Niseko Classic (Gran Fondo World Championship Qualifier) and the Tour of Okinawa. These are one off events which are not part of the JBCF or any other federation I mentioned above. But, they are “real” road races on closed roads. There are also plenty of “cookie” rides. But be aware, like mentioned earlier, many of these explicitly say you shouldn’t come and try to ride for a certain time. I think it’s related to what I’ve been told about races having to take place on closed roads. These cookie rides likely have no traffic control. And instead of a cookie, you might get a bag of dry rice to cook later. Happened to me once.
The Hill Climb might be Japan’s most accessible event. There are actually quite a few of them around the country outside of the JBCF and they can be registered for on SportsEntry - I don’t think you need a JCF license.
What about other disciplines? I’ll toss this in here at the end because I think it’s worth mentioning. If you’re not racing Track, Cyclocross or Road… you’re not going to be doing much racing. Mountain biking is still very much in its infancy here in Japan. Despite its incredible landscape, there’s a shocking lack of good mountain biking. My wife and I moved here from Western North Carolina and she’s a former Age Group XC National Champion as well as podium finisher in events like the Pisgah Stage Race and Collegiate Nationals in STXC, XC & Omnium. So believe me, we have tried to find some good mountain biking here and it’s rough.
There are some lift-access downhill courses and we actually went to one for a “gravel” race which my wife won. This was held on what was essentially a non-technical STXC course. Disappointing is a bit of an understatement. There IS Grinduro Japan… but it’s insanely expensive and again, not really a race.
This honestly has had a big impact on our decision to ultimately move away from Japan. But, keep an eye out for developments in places like: https://www.minamialpsmtb.com/ https://namba.ngo/ https://www.nsd-hakuba.jp/iwatake_mtb_park/en/
Cyclocross has a big following in Japan and the calendar appears to be full of events throughout the season. If we were staying long term, I’d be buying a cross bike. Unfortunately I don’t have one, so I never got into that scene while living here.
Although this is mostly about racing in Japan, if you come here to race you’ll also (hopefully) be riding your bike for fun. Please be aware some laws work differently here. Although I’ve never personally run into trouble I’ve been told things like: bikes MUST use the crosswalk if turning across traffic (no turning like a car turns) & that bikes CANNOT exceed 30 km/h (a bike shop owner told me this). My wife and I have often talked about this as well… while in the USA drivers can be malicious towards cyclists, Japanese drivers are often blissfully ignorant towards them. Always ride defensively. Drivers will make eye contact with you and proceed to pull out in front of you expecting you to either not be traveling with speed or to stop for them. Even in “polite” Japan, the Car is King. I’ve had far more close calls with drivers here than I had in America. Having said that, it’s still a wonderful country to explore by bike.
Who Am I?
If you read all of this, thanks! I hope that you learned a little bit about road racing in Japan. But, who am I? I’m an American from Western North Carolina, now living in Japan. Ishikawa Prefecture to be specific. I’ve been a cyclist since 2011 when I bought my first road bike. In America I’m a Cat 2 on the road and an XC MTB Cat 1 with extensive experience training for and racing in a variety of disciplines. Road riding and racing is my true love and I honestly only got into MTB to hang out with my girlfriend. I guess it was worth it because the only National Championship medals I have are from Team Relay & Team Omnium. Oh, we ended up getting married too. So that was cool. I also got into the gravel craze thanks to the plethora of racing options in the South East. I’ve stood on multiple podiums with the internet’s favorite privateer, Dylan Johnson. And I’ve dabbled in bikepacking, bike touring & ultra endurance riding. Really, I’m just a guy that thinks about bikes too much.

Line Score - Game Over

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E	LOB
TEX	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	2	9	0	9
PHI	0	0	1	1	0	1	0	2		5	8	1	4

Box Score

PHI		AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	BA
DH	Schwarber	4	1	2	1	0	2	.220
C	Realmuto	4	1	2	0	0	0	.280
1B	Harper	3	2	2	1	1	0	.280
3B	Bohm	4	0	2	2	0	0	.333
SS	Stott	3	0	0	1	0	0	.273
RF	Castellanos, N	4	0	0	0	0	1	.202
2B	Clemens	3	0	0	0	0	3	.290
LF	Marsh	1	1	0	0	2	1	.252
CF	Rojas	3	0	0	0	0	0	.226

PHI	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	P-S	ERA
Suárez, R	7.0	5	1	1	2	10	108-70	1.36
Hoffman	0.2	3	1	1	0	1	14-9	1.31
Strahm	0.1	0	0	0	0	0	4-4	0.93
Alvarado	1.0	1	0	0	0	2	17-12	3.54

TEX		AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	BA
2B	Semien	5	0	1	1	0	2	.268
SS	Seager	5	1	1	1	0	4	.246
DH	Grossman	2	0	0	0	1	1	.184
DH	Jankowski	1	0	0	0	0	1	.250
C	Heim	4	0	2	0	0	0	.272
LF	Duran, E	4	0	1	0	0	2	.284
1B	Lowe, N	4	0	1	0	0	1	.272
3B	Smith	4	0	0	0	0	1	.276
RF	Hill, D	3	1	2	0	1	0	.667
CF	Taveras	4	0	1	0	0	1	.239

TEX	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	P-S	ERA
Gray, Jn	5.0	4	2	2	3	4	75-50	2.21
Latz	1.2	1	1	1	0	3	31-21	3.54
Winn	1.1	3	2	2	0	0	23-19	6.91

Scoring Plays

Inning	Event	Score
T3	Marcus Semien doubles (12) on a fly ball to left fielder Brandon Marsh. Derek Hill scores.	0-1
B3	Kyle Schwarber singles on a ground ball to right fielder Derek Hill. Brandon Marsh scores.	1-1
B4	Alec Bohm singles on a line drive to right fielder Derek Hill. Bryce Harper scores.	2-1
B6	Bryce Harper homers (11) on a fly ball to center field.	3-1
T8	Umpire reviewed (home run), call on the field was overturned: Corey Seager homers (7) on a fly ball to right center field.	3-2
B8	Alec Bohm doubles (19) on a line drive to left fielder Ezequiel Duran. Kyle Schwarber scores. J.T. Realmuto to 3rd.	4-2
B8	Bryson Stott out on a sacrifice fly to left fielder Ezequiel Duran. J.T. Realmuto scores. Alec Bohm to 3rd.	5-2

Highlights

Description	Length
Bullpen availability for Philadelphia, May 21 vs Rangers	0:07
Bullpen availability for Texas, May 21 vs Phillies	0:07
Bench availability for Philadelphia, May 21 vs Rangers	0:07
Fielding alignment for Philadelphia, May 21 vs Rangers	0:11
Breaking down Jon Gray's pitches	0:04
The distance behind Bryce Harper's home run	0:13
Jon Gray's outing against the Phillies	0:22
Analyzing Bryce Harper's home run through bat tracking	0:11
Ranger Suárez's outing against the Rangers	0:25
Analyzing Corey Seager's home run through bat tracking	0:11
Breaking down Ranger Suárez's pitches	0:04
Measuring the stats on Corey Seager's home run	0:07
[Marcus Semien's RBI double]()	0:18
Kyle Schwarber's RBI single	0:20
[Alec Bohm's RBI single]()	0:18
[Jon Gray strikes out Kody Clemens]()	0:07
Bryce Harper helps a Phillies fan with a promposal	1:21
Johan Rojas steals second base after review	0:42
Ezequiel Duran makes a great throw home	0:22
Bryce Harper's solo home run (11)	0:30
Field view of Ezequiel Duran's putout	0:14
Field view: Bryce Harper's home run	0:28
Ranger Suárez grabs his 10th strikeout	0:14
Ezequiel Duran's 98.7 mph throw to home plate	0:29
Corey Seager's solo home run (6)	0:18
Nathaniel Lowe lines out sharply to left fielder Brandon Marsh.	0:10
Ranger Suárez strikes out 10 across seven innings	1:27
Alec Bohm's RBI double	0:07
Bryson Stott out on a sacrifice fly to left fielder Ezequiel Duran. J.T. Realmuto scores. Alec Bohm to 3rd.	0:19
[Bryson Stott's sacrifice fly]()	0:19
Corey Seager hits a home run after review	0:53
Corey Seager strikes out swinging.	0:07

Decisions

Winning Pitcher	Losing Pitcher	Save
Suárez, R (9-0, 1.36 ERA)	Gray, Jn (2-2, 2.21 ERA)	Alvarado (9 SV, 3.54 ERA)

Game ended at 8:19 PM.

Rangers @ Phillies - Tue, May 21

Game Status: Final - Score: 5-2 Phillies

Links & Info

• MLB Gameday
• Game Graphs
• Savant Gamefeed

	Rangers Batters	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	K	LOB	AVG	OBP	SLG
1	Semien - 2B	5	0	1	1	0	2	3	.268	.316	.464
2	Seager - SS	5	1	1	1	0	4	4	.246	.335	.383
3	Grossman - DH	2	0	0	0	1	1	1	.184	.321	.230
	a-Jankowski - DH	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	.250	.294	.328
4	Heim - C	4	0	2	0	0	0	1	.272	.318	.392
5	Duran, E - LF	4	0	1	0	0	2	1	.284	.351	.307
6	Lowe, N - 1B	4	0	1	0	0	1	3	.272	.382	.379
7	Smith - 3B	4	0	0	0	0	1	2	.276	.364	.414
8	Hill, D - RF	3	1	2	0	1	0	0	.667	.750	.667
9	Taveras - CF	4	0	1	0	0	1	3	.239	.310	.368
	Totals	36	2	9	2	2	13	18

Rangers
a-Struck out for Grossman in the 8th.
BATTING: 2B: Semien (12, Suárez, R); Heim (4, Suárez, R). HR: Seager (7, 8th inning off Hoffman, 0 on, 1 out). TB: Duran, E; Heim 3; Hill, D 2; Lowe, N; Seager 4; Semien 2; Taveras. RBI: Seager (18); Semien (34). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Grossman; Lowe, N; Seager; Smith. GIDP: Smith. Team RISP: 1-for-10. Team LOB: 9.
FIELDING: Outfield assists: Duran, E (Marsh at home). DP: (Lowe, N).

	Phillies Batters	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	K	LOB	AVG	OBP	SLG
1	Schwarber - DH	4	1	2	1	0	2	1	.220	.343	.390
2	Realmuto - C	4	1	2	0	0	0	1	.280	.325	.427
3	Harper - 1B	3	2	2	1	1	0	2	.280	.388	.537
4	Bohm - 3B	4	0	2	2	0	0	1	.333	.391	.533
5	Stott - SS	3	0	0	1	0	0	1	.273	.384	.446
6	Castellanos, N - RF	4	0	0	0	0	1	2	.202	.269	.295
7	Clemens - 2B	3	0	0	0	0	3	1	.290	.313	.742
8	Marsh - LF	1	1	0	0	2	1	0	.252	.323	.424
9	Rojas - CF	3	0	0	0	0	0	2	.226	.270	.308
	Totals	29	5	8	5	3	7	11

Phillies
BATTING: 2B: Harper (9, Gray, Jn); Bohm (19, Winn). HR: Harper (11, 6th inning off Latz, 0 on, 0 out). TB: Bohm 3; Harper 6; Realmuto 2; Schwarber 2. RBI: Bohm 2 (44); Harper (36); Schwarber (29); Stott (30). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Clemens; Castellanos, N. SF: Stott. Team RISP: 4-for-7. Team LOB: 4.
FIELDING: E: Bohm (6, throw). DP: (Clemens-Stott-Harper).

Rangers Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	HR	P-S	ERA
Gray, Jn (L, 2-2)	5.0	4	2	2	3	4	0	75-50	2.21
Latz	1.2	1	1	1	0	3	1	31-21	3.54
Winn	1.1	3	2	2	0	0	0	23-19	6.91
Totals	8.0	8	5	5	3	7	1

Phillies Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	HR	P-S	ERA
Suárez, R (W, 9-0)	7.0	5	1	1	2	10	0	108-70	1.36
Hoffman (H, 6)	0.2	3	1	1	0	1	1	14-9	1.31
Strahm (H, 5)	0.1	0	0	0	0	0	0	4-4	0.93
Alvarado (S, 9)	1.0	1	0	0	0	2	0	17-12	3.54
Totals	9.0	9	2	2	2	13	1

Game Info
Pitch timer violations: Hoffman (pitcher).
Pitches-strikes: Gray, Jn 75-50; Latz 31-21; Winn 23-19; Suárez, R 108-70; Hoffman 14-9; Strahm 4-4; Alvarado 17-12.
Groundouts-flyouts: Gray, Jn 4-2; Latz 1-0; Winn 2-0; Suárez, R 5-3; Hoffman 1-0; Strahm 0-0; Alvarado 2-0.
Batters faced: Gray, Jn 20; Latz 6; Winn 7; Suárez, R 27; Hoffman 5; Strahm 1; Alvarado 5.
Inherited runners-scored: Strahm 2-0.
Umpires: HP: Ryan Blakney. 1B: Quinn Wolcott. 2B: Sean Barber. 3B: Alan Porter.
Weather: 81 degrees, Partly Cloudy.
Wind: 11 mph, Out To RF.
First pitch: 6:41 PM.
T: 2:36.
Att: 41,083.
Venue: Citizens Bank Park.
May 21, 2024

Inning	Scoring Play	Score
Top 3	Marcus Semien doubles (12) on a fly ball to left fielder Brandon Marsh. Derek Hill scores.	1-0 TEX
Bottom 3	Kyle Schwarber singles on a ground ball to right fielder Derek Hill. Brandon Marsh scores.	1-1
Bottom 4	Alec Bohm singles on a line drive to right fielder Derek Hill. Bryce Harper scores.	2-1 PHI
Bottom 6	Bryce Harper homers (11) on a fly ball to center field.	3-1 PHI
Top 8	Umpire reviewed (home run), call on the field was overturned: Corey Seager homers (7) on a fly ball to right center field.	3-2 PHI
Bottom 8	Alec Bohm doubles (19) on a line drive to left fielder Ezequiel Duran. Kyle Schwarber scores. J.T. Realmuto to 3rd.	4-2 PHI
Bottom 8	Bryson Stott out on a sacrifice fly to left fielder Ezequiel Duran. J.T. Realmuto scores. Alec Bohm to 3rd.	5-2 PHI

Team	Highlight
TEX	[Marcus Semien's RBI double (00:00:18)]()
PHI	Kyle Schwarber's RBI single (00:00:20)
PHI	[Alec Bohm's RBI single (00:00:18)]()
TEX	Ezequiel Duran makes a great throw home (00:00:22)
PHI	Bryce Harper's solo home run (11) (00:00:30)
PHI	Ranger Suárez grabs his 10th strikeout (00:00:14)
TEX	Corey Seager's solo home run (7) (00:00:29)
PHI	Ranger Suárez strikes out 10 across seven innings (00:01:27)
PHI	Alec Bohm's RBI double (00:00:24)
PHI	José Alvarado earns ninth save on his birthday (00:01:01)

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E	LOB
Rangers	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	0		2	9	0	9
Phillies	0	0	1	1	0	1	0	2			5	8	1	4

Decisions

• Winner: Ranger Suárez (9-0, 1.36)
• Loser: Jon Gray (2-2, 2.21)
• Save: José Alvarado (9, 3.54)

Division Scoreboard

NYM 6 @ CLE 7 - Final
MIL 7 @ MIA 5 - Final
MIN 10 @ WSH 0 - Final
ATL 3 @ CHC 3 - Top 7, 0 Outs
Next Phillies Game: Wed, May 22, 06:40 PM EDT vs. Rangers
^{Last Updated: 05/21/2024 09:59:32 PM EDT}

I am 25F. My dad is 65 and mom 60. I only have one sibling and she is 33. I was born in the US and raised in India. My parents were not rich but they raised me and my sister well. Never let us feel that we need to ask for anything. Lived luxuriously. I was always told as a kid that after highschool in India, I have to return to the US, get a degree start working and then I would file for my parents green card since when I was born in the US they only had a work visa and had to return to India. I came to the US when I was 17.5 years old. Got a nursing degree. Successful in my career and working full time as the assistant director of nursing in critical care. I am simultaneously in school full time to get my masters. When I first came in 2016, I lived in a rented room, my parents supported me and used to send Monday for rent. I used to work part time in library and support my food and any other needs like clothes etc. In 2020 when I got my first job, I started sending them money back and so far I am still sending. I did as I was told and I filed for my parents green card and now they are permanent residents. Their plan all along was to move in with me in United States and we would all live together again. During this Journey I met an amazing person who is now my significant other. We plan to get married. My parents dream of living with me is not going to fulfill and I see a huge change in their behavior towards me. I explained to them and apologized and said I know that it was your dream all along and followed every direction that you gave me but I am an adult now. I want to enjoy with my partner and live nuclear like my Parents did. I also said this doesn’t mean I will neglect them but instead of staying in the same house we will have a different arrangement. On the other hand my sister who is 8 years elder got married the same year to a guy who lived in the US and moved here in 2016 as well. I was supposed to go Kansas for an engineering degree instead of nursing but she made a comment regarding who will pick me up from the airport. I was supposed to live in the dorm but because my sister made that comment, I at the age of 17.5 changed plans and went to another state where I received grant and scholarship so my education was basically free for undergraduate. I have visited my sister and she has visited me. We haven’t met in the past two years and she thinks I have no interest in meeting her. We talk on the phone everyday and if I have any vacation days I go to see another country. Last to last year I went to Morocco because my partner lost his father. We went there. Last year I went to France and met my best friend there who was gonna get married in Jan this year. She has some issues which I do not understand. When she was my age she was living her life. I try not to hold any grudge against her when she did not help me in 2016. I explained to her let me enjoy with my partner for now. When I am getting older and married and settled, that’s when people seek out family and meet and stay connected. I told her since I am working so hard let me travel see new places now and she can definitely visit me. I do not have the budget to go see her and then go on a vacation. Now it’s been 2 weeks she is not talking to me and my parents have abruptly come to the US and working in a random motel. I don’t know what to think anymore. Even though I am the youngest in the family I feel the oldest.

Thinking of making the move out to Florida. I currently hold an armed, unarmed and PPO license. (Texas level 2,3 and 4) I know I’ll have to get the Florida equivalent.
What is average pay for armed security around here? Any companies you’d pursue or avoid? What are the little nuances of the job in this area.
Thanks in advance. God bless and be safe.

Timestamp: https://imgur.com/a/QuGlimA
Serial Numbers: https://imgur.com/a/bBhD1WW
Zelle preferred. Prices are shipped and insured, dibs rules apply. Let me know if pricing is off.
Primary Arms Plxc 1-8 Griffin Mil fde
Trijicon RM06 RMR Bronze
Selling this as a kit. Lightly used plxc fde with a lightly used rm06 bronze. No box/papers with lpvo, but it has sunshade and throw lever. RM06 comes with the box. This has the griffin mil reticle, rmr is 3.25 moa.
$1500 for the combo, not separating at this time.
Parts:
Centurion Mk12 Mod 1 Kit
Brand new, unmolested 18” of heaven. Factory cerakote, mk12 gas block pin, and ops profile muzzle brake assembly. New Dd ris 2 barrel nut. I acquired a Kac ff ras so I will be going with another barrel. Centurion upper is thermal fit and brand new, extra centurion gas block with alignment pin. New centurion gas tube.
$815
Ballistic Advantage Mk12 Barrel/Midwest Free Float Quad Rail
Catch and release. Barrel is new, had a used muzzle device. Rail is basically new with some storage marks. Barrel is Ops Profile, 18”. Rail uses usgi barrel nut, and is 12”.
$240
Geissele Super Modular Rail Mk2 Rev C 13” rail/Geissele upper and Fde G$ super Charging handle
OG Geissele 13” rail, comes with original screws and barrel nut, as well as two side mounted smr rails. New Geissele square forge upper, new Geissele Charging handle in Fde.
$540
Red dots:
RM01 Type 2 RMR
Basically brand new, top mounted on an acog ecos I got recently. Glass is clear. Comes with battery.
$340
RMRcc 6.5 moa
Catch and release, I don’t have a slide for this anymore. Very good condition.
$340
Leupold DPP FDE NV
Used, glass is clear. Wear in the finish. Has a gouge in one of the screw holes, does not affect function, still holds zero. Previous owner did not mention this to me unfortunately. I have had it on a unity offset mount. Comes with 2 screws and battery.
$340

1. The Three Stooges -

Bibbidi.bobbidi.beard - Not fan friendly based on personal engagements - comes across as “Disney elitist”
Mike Moriarty (whatever the fuck his name) and my opinion he doesn’t meet the minimum criteria to even be considered a Disney creator or influencer
Will.I.Am.A.knockoff.Disney.retailer.travel agent.or.influencer? - Can’t be friends with EVERYONE and not expect people to compare notes - Danger and watch your back.

1. Suitelifeofjarrett - Begs for donations and holds paid “raffles”to buy himself an annual pass. Anyone get their prizes yet?
   
2. Tweedle Wes & Tweedle Jess - they are in the business of charging subscribers to view hard ticket events at Disney. Don’t fall for it. There is nothing you will see or learn with them Did Wes ever seek Therapy for his racist rants on Facebook? about Disney that you can’t see from another influencer that offers it for free. Did Wes ever seek Therapy for his racist rants on Facebook?
   
3. Tyson Bladder - obnoxious Disney elitist - how has this kid not been terminated yet? Uses internal cast member information and knowledge to try to gain Disney clout with the public.
   
4. Dapper Danielle - “facts” aren’t always so factual. However, no one dares to fact check her.
   

For context I workout 4 days a week, on an AB AB routine with two days rest at the end.
Im training for calisthenics skills and am about 6 months into my journey, (16M). I loosely made this routine based off what I saw online and what I am currently capable of, and what my goals are currently (pistol squat, front lever, muscle up and free standing handstand)
Is this bad (I’ve been following it for around 2 months). And any suggestions?
—————-
Upper Body day (A little more than an hour)
3 sets of diamond push-ups (8-10 reps
2 minute rest between sets
3 sets of decline push-ups (number changes week to week as I get stronger but currently around 15 reps),
2 minute rest between sets
3 ets of pull-ups, switch to 2 sets of chin ups (band assisted) 10-12 reps goes down as the sets progress.
2 minute rest between sets
3 sets Tuck Front lever Holds (20+ second)
2 minute rests between sets
3 sets Handstand on wall holds (30+ seconds)
————- Lower body day (Around 50 minutes to an hour)
5 sets of Bulgarian Split squats (low to no weight) within 3 reps of failure
2 minutes
Pistol squat negatives (3 sets) 10-12 reps
2 minutes
Jump Squats, light to no weight (10-15 reps) 3 sets
2 minutes
Superman (3 sets) 10-12 reps

16-minute read.

pro-West party leader says they met PM Pashinyan and discussed a referendum to solidify Armenia's shift to EU

KHZMALYAN (European Party of Armenia): The referendum is our suggestion and demand. We presented it to Pashinyan and expect a response within a reasonable timeframe. We advised making a public statement soon. A referendum would also make Pashinyan's job easier by allowing the people's will to decide Armenia's direction.
REPORTER: How did Pashinyan respond?
KHZMALYAN: He suggested the meeting be held in a closed format so I can't reveal all details. We hope that our voice, our offer, our demand, was heard. If we do not receive a positive response, we will take measures by employing the same methods currently used by anti-European forces [the ongoing protests led by pro-Russian ex-regime]. We will take to the streets and demand a referendum for Eurointegration if necessary.
REPORTER: How long are you ready to wait before taking action?
KHZMALYAN: A few months. Georgia will hold parliamentary elections in October, and Moldova will hold a similar Eurointegration referendum - also in October. The U.S. will hold presidential elections in November which will be important for Armenia's future. Even if the worst scenario unfolds in all three countries, Armenia must stand firm and not take a step back. Armenia could become the leader in democracy in all of Eastern Europe if you consider the situation in Georgia, Hungary, and Slovakia [pro-Russia populist leader]. Armenia could receive an unprecedented level of assistance from Europe under those circumstances.
REPORTER: Did Pashinyan say he plans to leave CSTO?
KHZMALYAN: We did not demand specific dates but we urged him to complete all these processes this year, preferably by November.
REPORTER: Did Pashinyan agree?
KHZMALYAN: The participants of the meeting are under the impression that we were able to present convincing arguments but time will show what actions he takes. The government functions very poorly but nevertheless, they are doing something, they are taking steps.
REPORTER: On May 9, Bagrat Galstanyan gave Pashinyan 1 hour to resign but it's May 21 and he is still here. Why wasn't the opposition able to remove him?
KHZMALYAN: The 3 former presidents and their surrogate forces, backed by 30 years of power, were unable to bring forward a figurehead, a single ideology, that could win the hearts of the people. They used various political technologies, they switched between black and white robes, and they extended the 1 hour to 7 days, but none of that helped because the Armenian people hate them more than they hate Nikol Pashinyan.
REPORTER: You used to be a lot harsher on Pashinyan but something appears to have changed in your tone after your recent meeting with him. What is the reason?
KHZMALYAN: We were able to present our demands and the timelines to accomplish them. Unlike the archbishop and the former regimes surrounding him, we did not give "one hour" for Pashinyan to accept our demands; we did not make ultimatums. We believe the current government is carrying out and will carry out the will of the people to overcome the status of a Russian colony and join the ranks of free nations. We did and do see steps [taken by the government] towards this; we cannot ignore this. We saw the Strassbourg, but also Moscow. We saw the [April 5 meeting in] Brussels, but also [the recent meeting between FMs in] Almaty. We are told this is an attempt to "balance" and we understand where they are coming from, but our factions speak on behalf of over 60% of Armenians who view Russia's policies as deadly for Armenia. We expect concrete actions and we have formed a platform to continue this work; there will be petitions and other actions from us. We are ready to assist Pashinyan, who may be constrained due to ongoing negotiations, by being the public voice and saying the things he cannot say. We will continue to work, to pressure, to influence, to demand. Our meetings also continue abroad. We will press on until we reach our goal - the Eurointegration of Armenia. //
Several prominent Western-oriented political parties recently formed an alliance to promote Armenia's Eurointegration.
video,

Pashinyan appoints a ruling party member as a deputy head of the newly formed Foreign Intelligence Service - the Armenian "CIA"

After the 2020 war, Pashinyan said Armenia will need a modern intel agency to gather information and analyze foreign threats, while the NSS -- described as historically a "pro-Russian" agency by many -- will focus on internal matters.
source,

Pashinyan met the deputy head of the United States CIA to discuss bilateral, international, and regional issues

A delegation led by David Cohen is in Yerevan. Cohen also met NatSec Armen Grigoryan.
source, source,

Armenia's Investigative Committee chief hosted U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs

Qyaramyan and Yoder discussed bilateral cooperation, the recent retraining for Armenian agents and technical assistance, cooperation between law enforcement agencies of Armenia and the United States, anti-narcotrafficking, and the fight against gender-based violence.
Yoder also met Armenia's Interior Minister Ghazaryan to discuss the ongoing police reforms and formation of new divisions, the fight against narco-trafficking, technical assistance for rescuers, and retraining courses. Yoder emphasized effective cooperation, noting that the achievements within the framework of sectorial reforms are exceptional. The US wants to expand the agenda of cooperation.
source, source,

Armenian army officers continue to take part in NATO exercises titled Regex 2024 held in Moldova

GOOGLE TRANSLATE: The exercise is organized with the support of the NATO Joint Forces Command in Naples, Italy, and aims to train the military according to Western standards for planning and conducting exercises, crisis management, strengthening and assessing the level of interoperability of forces in a multinational environment.
We remind you that the exercise "Regex 2024" consists of several workshops during the current year. The first workshop took place between February 16 and March 1, and the second between 22 − April 26, 2024. //
source, source,

NATO and Armenia strengthen cooperation in defense education

Armenia's defense ministry representatives recently visited NATO headquarters to discuss NATO’s Defence Education Enhancement Programme (DEEP) for Armenia.
NATO: The DEEP programme is an excellent tool to support Armenian military education system reforms and strengthen the country’s cooperation with NATO.
ARMENIA: With the support of DEEP experts we implemented major changes in all levels of our educational curriculum at Military Academy, starting from cadets up to the most senior levels. It helped us to establish cooperation with many international partner institutions.
source,

Armenia is an emerging destination for UK and global investors: Armenia's Ambassador to London Business Matters

👔 Armenia is committed to building a knowledge-based, export-oriented, and inclusive economy.
👔 Armenia is diversifying its growing economy with pioneering sectors, creating ample investment opportunities.
👔 Armenia’s investment legislation grants equal treatment to foreign investors
👔 There are no restrictions on remittances and repatriation of profits, free exchange of foreign currencies and no limitations on staff recruitment
👔 The country’s favorable business climate and ‘open-door’ policy is also reflected in international reputable rankings where Armenia is ranked one of the highest in the region.
👔 Although Armenia has a relatively modest internal market, it offers different models of economic cooperation and serves as a gateway to major world markets
👔 Armenia has maintained a high level of cooperation with the EU through CEPA
👔 Armenia and UK will soon have a CEPA-like agreement
full article, source,

Turkey modernizes an Azerbaijani Su-25ML jet with guided bombs and Teber missiles

It uses KGK laser guidance for missiles and increases the reach to 110 km.
source,

Pashinyan's Chief of Staff hosted the French Ambassador to discuss defense, economy, infrastructure, and humanitarian topics

... also the upcoming events dedicated to the 100th anniversary of Charles Aznavour.
source,

Parliament Speakers of Armenia and Ukraine discuss the situation in the South Caucasus and Ukraine

source,

Q&A with ruling party MP Vahagn Alexanyan about the ongoing protests led by pro-Russian opposition

REPORTER: You continue to criticize the "holy movement"...
ALEXANYAN: The what now?
REPORTER: ... the "holy movement", by calling it a "pagan" movement. What is the ruling party's stance and do you discuss this internally?
ALEXANYAN: Of course we do, although I don't think Kocharyan's decision to name this movement "holy" is helping them. It's comical.
REPORTER: Do you have proof that Bagrat srbazan is [tied with Kocharyan]?
ALEXANYAN: Bagrat Galstanyan is surrounded by the entire political team of Robert Koharyan, he was a member of Kocharyan's 2022 protests and gave similar speeches he gives today, he received a praise from Russian propagandists, and he was named by a Russian propagandist Aram Gabrielyanov as a potential candidate for a new protest movement just a few months prior to these events, so it's beyond reasonable doubt that Bagrat Galstanyan is part of Kocharyan's team.
REPORTER: You were earlier accusing Galstanyan of being a Russian agent, and now Kocharyan's agent?
ALEXANYAN: Same thing.
REPORTER: The opposition gathered many thousands of supporters on May 9. What does the size of the crowd indicate?
ALEXANYAN: It was similar to Kocharyan's final rally before the 2021 elections. And?
REPORTER: The opposition created a video of "Pashinyan's lies" and broken promises. Will you respond?
ALEXANYAN: The clip itself is a lie and manipulation. For example, one of the supposed lies was Pashinyan's promise of an amnesty for overdue fines and penalties. You are a journalist, you tell me, was there an amnesty or not?
REPORTER: Pashinyan had also said that POWs could wait "just a few more months" and that he wouldn't "sacrifice Armenia's sovereignty" in exchange for bringing them back sooner. Why aren't they back?
ALEXANYAN: Dozens of POWs returned home in December, and efforts continue to bring back the rest. Literally 1-2 days before the POWs' return, the opposition claimed that the POWs were "forgotten" by the government. "Ոչ մի բան չեք անում:"
REPORTER: What about the Nagorno-Karabakh leadership?
ALEXANYAN: There are efforts to return them as well.
REPORTER: Why did the police form a wall to block entry to village Kirants [for nonresidents]?
ALEXANYAN: I think the NSS said they had to take action to prevent interference with the border work. From what I can tell, the protest leader himself went there yesterday and returned only 15 minutes later so there wasn't a big desire to stay there apparently.
REPORTER: They plan to hold a big rally on May 26 where they might nominate Bagrat srbazan as the PM's candidate to replace Pashinyan.
ALEXANYAN: Why not go straight for [alleged narco baron] Mihran Poghosyan [who publicly praised the protests]?
REPORTER: There appears to be a consensus around Bagrat srbazan after a meeting between several forces.
ALEXANYAN: Consensus minus one, where "minus one" is the people. Or to be more precise, "minus two", because the Constitution also prohibits Bagrat from serving as a prime minister. Congratulations on an initiative that's dead on arrival. It's absurd. They suggested replacing the Constitution to allow a dual citizen to serve as PM. Okay... To get Canadian citizenship you have to take an oath to serve the best interests of Canada. To allow dual citizens to serve as PM in Armenia we have to accept for the PM to have loyalty towards another state. The alternative is for the candidate [Bagrat] to admit that his word [oath to Canada] wasn't worth a dime. Երևի մատերը խաչ արած ա երդվել։
REPORTER: But don't you think you are manipulating because Galstanyan received Canadian citizenship just to be able to serve in the church in Canada? He didn't go there to live or conduct business.
ALEXANYAN: It doesn't matter why he went to Canada. He is a citizen of Canada and took an oath. Even religious leaders with dual citizenship cannot become prime ministers. I don't have an issue with him being a dual citizen, but it limits his office options. He still hasn't renounced his Canadian citizenship even after all these talks about a possible nomination.
REPORTER: Galstanyan said he is ready to renounce it as soon as there is a need for it.
ALEXANYAN: In other words, he seeks "guarantees" that he will be the candidate in order to renounce it?
full,source, source,

opposition churchman Bagrat Galstanyan demands the Armenian government compensate the damage done to the church during USSR and "return" the properties "legally belonging" to the church

This was said as a response to the critics of the church leadership who accused the church of turning into a political party and suggested taxing the church like a business.
BAGRAT: We have 19th-century churches that were forcefully confiscated and turned into ruins. The properties of the Armenian church must be returned to the church. The area of Moscow Cinema belongs to the church, half of the Katoghike Church was demolished and belongs to the church, and part of the items in Matenadaran were taken away from the church. Instead of threatening us with taxes, they must think about how they plan to return our properties, fully renovated and ready for service.
source,

the church is actually paying taxes but they do have some exemptions

The church paid $1 million in income taxes last year.
There are tax exemptions to import certain goods deemed for charity. They also don't pay property tax, and taxes on income generated from the sales of ceremonial accessories. The latter two are the frequent targets of church critics.
source,

Armenia's Constitutional Court has a vacant seat. Pro-Russian opposition criticizes Pashinyan's ruling party for favoring a "George Soros-linked" judge who worked for U.S. State Department.

A Serj-era judge is leaving the Constitutional Court after receiving a job offer elsewhere so one seat is vacant. It is the judiciary's turn to nominate a CC judge, so hundreds of judges recently held a meeting and voted for Judge Balayan as their candidate. Balayan's father was a CC judge during Kocharyan's tenure. He was accused in the Wikileaks report of having inappropriate deals with President Kocharyan. Pashinyan's ruling party did not vote to approve Balayan. This led to a second gathering of hundreds of judges where they voted to nominate Judge Khachaturyan as their candidate. The parliament summoned him for Q&A on Tuesday.
SPEAKER: We invite the representative of the judiciary to present their nominee for CC.
JUDICIARY REP: 267 judges voted. Judge Davit Khachaturyan, a member of the Criminal Chamber of the Court of Cassation, won the majority votes.
2000-2005: [blah blah blah]
2003-2006: Legislative Assistance Project Manager at Southern Caucasus Anti-Drug (SCAD) Program, sponsored by European Union and implemented by United Nations Development Program
2006: Program Assistant at U.S. Embassy in Armenia, Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL)
2007-2013: U.S. Embassy in Armenia, U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Legal Specialist
2014: Academy of Justice of the Republic of Armenian-Russian, Vice-Rector and Lecturer
2015-2016: Council of Europe Office in Yerevan, Program “Strengthening Health Care and Human Rights Protection in Prisons in Armenia”, Legal Expert
2016: EU project “Development and Strategic Studies”, Expert on Judiciary and Human Rights field reforms
2015-2017: EU project “ENP Progress Reports and Assessment Reports on Armenia´s Compliance with GSP+ obligations”. Expert on Rule of Law/Justice.
2013–2020: Law Faculty of Yerevan State University. Lecturer. Development and teaching of courses for the Master Program: “European Standards for the human rights protection in criminal proceedings”, and “Professional Skills of a Lawyer”
etc.
OPPOSITION MP: The ruling faction earlier chose not to confirm the appointment of Judge Davit Balayan; they obviously prefer Davit Khachaturyan. Can you explain why you didn't mention that Khachaturyan served on the board of directors and later as the president of the board at George Soros's Armenia-based Open Society Foundations? How will this record impact his work at CC?
JUDICIARY REP: I presented parts of his professional activities available on the court's public platforms. You can ask the candidate directly.
OPPOSITION MP: The Soros Foundation publicly listed him as a member so I don't understand why it's being hidden now. In your opinion, how will his work at the Soros Foundation affect his impartiality?
JUDICIARY REP: The majority of judges chose him and it's up to Parliament whether to confirm or reject.
RULING MP: Was the voting held in a closed session or can you see how each judge voted?
JUDICIARY REP: It's a closed format. My duty here is to present the candidate. [basically, leave me alone I'm just doing my job]
RULING MP: Why not make the court voting and internal discussions more transparent for the public to see so we will have fewer conspiracy theories on why one judge was preferred over the other?
JUDICIARY REP: I share the view that it needs to be as public as possible but the majority of judges voted to keep the session closed to the press.
RULING MP: Just because the discussions and the vote were behind closed doors that doesn't mean it was anti-democratic, but still, it's better to publicize the process. We hope to see a change in this approach.
JUDICIARY REP: The ballot casting will always be secret and I think that's the right approach in order to allow judges to express themselves without constraints, but I agree that the discussions and speeches should be public. Either way whatever we discuss behind closed doors always reaches the press so in practice there isn't really a major transparency issue there.
CANDIDATE KHACHATURYAN: First, every part of my biography has always been public and part of public discussions. Second, I have always voted in favor of making internal discussions open to the press; it's the best way to avoid incorrect assumptions. Full speech here.
OPPOSITION MP: Congratulations. The ruling party intends to approve your candidacy just as they voted for you in the past for other positions. In all of those instances, you didn't mention your work at the Сорос Foundation. Now, a very interesting coincidence [drumroll... are you guys ready for this bombshell?], during the same time while you worked at Сорос foundation, in 2006-2013, you were also a U.S. Embassy employee [got 'em]. //
Nikol Pashinyan has resigned.
Tavush stretches all the way to Russia.
Bagrat srbazan becomes the Supreme Leader of Historical Soil & Water and the Generalissimos of Slow-Melting Candles... and of course removes the speed cameras from highways.
OPPOSITION MP (continues): With this biography, how do we know you are not an agent of foreign influence?
CANDIDATE KHACHATURYAN: I was not an "employee" at the Soros Foundations. Other famous figures have served on the Board [mentions a famous doctor]. Everyone who was part of the Board had duties but it was not really an "employment". As for my simultaneous work with the U.S. Justice Department, there was no conflict with my membership or presidency at the Board because the latter was fully a public activity and we were only given a symbolic sum to compensate for our expenses; we are talking about less than $100/mo. I will let you be the judge regarding an agent of influence. There is a lot that's missing from my biography that was read here [lists some boring constitutional research work, etc.].
OPPOSITION MP: You keep being "promoted" by the ruling party without having the chance to finish your terms. The longest job you've ever held was at the Сорос Foundation - 8 years. The brother of the head of the Anti-Corruption Committee, who is about to join the CC, cannot be impartial. Again, what guarantees can you present that you are not a [Western] agent?
CANDIDATE KHACHATURYAN: Your expectation for guarantees stems from the assumption that the [Open Society Foundations] were engaged in activities other than the ones they were actually engaged in. I won't present any "guarantees" because there is no "threat" to begin with. As I've said, that part of my biography has always been discussed publicly and the activities were public and covered by the press.
RULING MP: In your speech you spoke about the judiciary in the U.S. and brought examples. The U.S. doesn't have a Constitutional Court. Don't you think we should also merge the Constitutional and [Cassations Court] with the upcoming referendum to have one Supreme Court with corresponding chambers?
CANDIDATE KHACHATURYAN: I support having one unified body like in the U.S., or clarifying the duties to prevent each body from interfering with the other. Lengthy answer.
OPPOSITION MP: A person [in Kirants] received permission [from USSR] to build a house and live in it. Then the [Armenian] government told him there was a mistake [after the clarification of borders]. Some 50 years after this incident, what would your verdict be in this case?
CANDIDATE KHACHATURYAN: I understand the context. This issue is the task of the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister and we cannot interfere in each other's institutions. I assume there will be a peace agreement eventually that will be sent to the Constitutional Court for examination, therefore I will refrain from making prejudgments now in order to be allowed to take part in future processes.
full video, source, source,

anti-corruption: Armenian authorities conclude that luxury Dubai property belonging to former regime MP's relative was not obtained illegally by him therefore will not be seized as part of an asset forfeiture case

Mher Sedrakyan (Tokhmakhi Mher) is a Serj-era MP whose family is going through an asset forfeiture case worth ֏7.5 billion ($19.3 million) that includes 22 real estate properties, cars, and company shares registered under his name and the names of immediate family members.
Additionally, investigative journalists recently found a luxury property in Dubai registered under the ex-MP's relative. Authorities have concluded that he is not the true ownebeneficiary of this Dubai apartment, therefore it won't be seized.
source,

the army concludes exercises for commanders

Context in May 14 news digest. The defense ministry says they have noted improvements and deficiencies and will take steps to correct them.
source,

Defense Minister Papikyan visited the frontlines and the newly built fortifications: PHOTO

The army continues to dig, asphalt, and build.
source,

Armenia's Foreign Minister met the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency during an international forum

ROSSI: Effective cooperation has been established between Armenia and the IAEA. We discussed several issues on the bilateral agenda, oncology and radiation medicine, safety, and reliable operation of the Armenian NPP.
MIRZOYAN: We plan to extend the lifespan of Metsamor NPP until 2036 while exploring new opportunities.
source,

Armenian lawyers went on strike on Tuesday to protest a bill that would move them from a turnover tax-based system to a VAT-based taxation

Context on the gray economy and why the government wants to gradually abolish the turnover tax system in May 2 news digest.
A group of lawyers said on Tuesday that their 5% turnover tax [for annual turnover under ֏119M] will become 10% this year, and in 2025 they will be required to switch to a 20% VAT/18% profit tax. The cost of legal services for many clients could increase by over 38%, they warned.
The Ombudsman and the Justice Ministry reportedly oppose this bill by the Finance Ministry.
source, source, source, source,

video shows the new payment terminals in Yerevan subway station

They plan to replace all gates next month. The Soviet-era tokens (zheton) are being replaced with QR codes, an app, and later - bank cards.
All stations will have payment terminals to purchase QR tickets. It prints out a paper with QR. Telcell's app lets you buy a ticket and instantly get a QR on the phone's screen.
Seniors who can't use "high-tech" can approach the token sellers and get a QR paper instead of a token.
video,

Yerevan will host an exhibition on Charles Aznavour’s 100th anniversary

Hundreds of rare artifacts will present the life and legacy of the legendary artist.
Location: National Museum-Institute of Architecture
Date: May 22-July 22
source,

Germany wants to purchase an Armenian man

Dortmund Borussia is interested in the services of Armenian national Edward Spertsyan as a replacement for departing Marco Reus.
During this season, midfielder Spertsyan has played 32 matches, scored 11 goals, and made 7 assists. His ass is worth €18 million.
source,

I am currently taking paypal for games, you always go first and cover fees
For game trades, you always go first and message me, usually it takes me about 1-2 days to get back to you at the latest
My Rep Page has not been updated in about 5 years, but I have a lot of trades finished
Bolded items are just the ones I would like to consider keeping so don't feel as though you need to offer more for the game
Wants
Oneshot
Subnautica
Stellaris (and dlc)
Wishlist Items
Have
A Plague Tale: Innocence
ADOM (ANCIENT DOMAINS OF MYSTERY)
Bridge Constructor Portal
Chivalry 2 - Epic Edition
Deep Rock Galactic
Disco Elysium - The Final Cut
Doom Eternal
Elite Dangerous
Endless Space 2 - Digital Deluxe Edition
Ghostrunner
Honey I Joined a Cult
Lost Ruins
Mass Effect Legendary Edition (temporarily unavailable)
MONSTER TRAIN (FIRST CLASS - COLLECTORS EDITION)
OUTWARD + THE SOROBOREANS AND OUTWARD SOUNDTRACK
PATHFINDER: WRATH OF THE RIGHTEOUS
Rebel Inc: Escalation
REMNANT: FROM THE ASHES - COMPLETE EDITION
SCP:Secret Files
SHOTGUN KING: THE FINAL CHECKMATE
Songs of Conquest
Spyro™ Reignited Trilogy
Surviving Mars
THE OUTER WORLDS: SPACER'S CHOICE EDITION
Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales
VALKYRIA CHRONICLES 4 COMPLETE EDITION
Wasteland 3
Yakuza 4 Remastered
20XX
7 Grand Steps

observer (x3)

A Good Snowman is Hard to Build
A Juggler's Tale
A Mortician's Tale
A New Beginning - Final Cut
Aaero
Aces and Adventures
AER Memories of Old (x2)
Age of Wonders III
Ageless
Agents of Mayhem
AI War: Fleet Command
Alien Spidy
Aliens:Fireteam Elite
Alina of the Arena
All You Can Eat
Aragami 2
Arcade Paradise
Army Men RTS
Ashes of the Singularity: Escalation (x2)
Assassin's Creed® Origins
Assault Android Cactus
Atom RPG Trudograd
Atomicrops
AUTONAUTS VS PIRATEBOTS
Backbone
Bad End Theater
Banner Saga Trilogy - Deluxe Pack
Banners of Ruin
Bastion (x2)
Batman Arkham Origins (x2)
Battle Chef Brigade
Beacon Pines
Beat Hazard Ultra
Bee Simulator
Before Your Eyes
BEHIND THE FRAME: THE FINEST SCENERY
Beholder
BENDY AND THE DARK REVIVAL
Beneath Oresa
Between the Stars
Beyond a Steel Sky
Binary Domain
Bioshock Remastered
BioShock: The Collection
Biped
Black Book
Blade Assault
Blasphemous
Blazing Beaks
Bleed 2
Bloodstained®︎: Ritual of the Night
Bone - Episode 1 & Episode 2
Boomerang Fu (x3)
Borderlands 3 Super Deluxe
Boreal Blade
Boyfriend Dungeon
Broken Age (x2)
Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons
Brutal Legend
BUILDER SIMULATOR
Burly Men At Sea (x2)
Bury Me, My Love
Celeste
Chasm
Chicken Police
Children of Silentown
CHUCHEL Cherry Edition (x2)
CivCity: Rome
Coffee Talk
COMMAND & CONQUER REMASTERED COLLECTION
Company of Heroes 2 + Company of Heroes 2 - Whale and Dolphin Conservation Charity Pattern Pack
Conan Chop Chop
CONTROL STANDARD EDITION (Steam or Epic Games)
COOK, SERVE, DELICIOUS! 3
Coromon
Crowntakers
Crusader Kings Complete
Cultist Simulator (x2)
Curious Expedition
CURSE OF THE DEAD GODS
Cyber Hook
DARK PICTURES ANTHOLOGY: HOUSE OF ASHES
Darkside Detective
Darksiders Genesis
Darksiders II Deathinitive Edition (x2)
Darksiders Warmastered Edition
Dead In Bermuda
Deadly Days
Death Squared (x2)
Deathloop
Decieve Inc.
Deleveled
Desperados 3
Destroy All Humans!
Deus Ex: Mankind Divided
Disciples: Liberation
Distance
DISTRAINT 2 + Soundtrack
Distrust (x3)
Drawful 2
DUCATI - 90th Anniversary
Duke Nukem Forever
Duke Nukem Forever Hail to the Icons
Duke Nukem Forever The Doctor Who Cloned Me
Dungeons 3 (x2)
Dusty Revenge: Co-Op Edition
Dwarfs!?
EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1: Blood Storm + DLC
EarthNight
Eastside Hockey Manager
Elderborn
Eldest Souls
Elex
Ellipsis
Embr
Emily is Away <3
ENCASED: A SCI-FI POST-APOCALYPTIC RPG
Endless Space® - Collection (x2)
Epic Chef
Eternal Threads
Euro Truck Simulator 2
Europa Universalis IV
Evan's Remains
Evergarden
EVERSPACE™
Fahrenheit: Indigo Prophecy Remastered
Fallout 1
Family Man
Farmer's Dynasty
Fibbage XL
Fights in Tight Spaces
Figment
Finding Paradise
First Class Trouble
Five Dates
Fobia - St. Dinfna Hotel
Foretales
Fort Triumph
Founders' Fortune
Framed Collection
Framed Collection (x2)
Freddi Fish 2: The Case of the Haunted Schoolhouse
Freddi Fish 3: The Case of the Stolen Conch Shell
Freddi Fish 4: The Case of the Hogfish Rustlers of Briny Gulch
Freddi Fish 5: The Case of the Creature of Coral Cove
Freddi Fish and Luther's Maze Madness
Freddi Fish and Luther's Water Worries
Freedom Force
Freedom Force vs. The Third Reich
Friends Vs Friends
FTL
Full Metal Furies
Full Throttle Remastered (x2)
Fury Unleashed
Gas Station Simulator
Genesis Noir
Get In The Car, Loser!
Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy
God's Trigger
Golf Gang
Gonner
GRAV (Early Access)
Greedfall
GRID 2
Grime
Grow: Song of the Evertree
Growing Up
Guns of Icarus Online
Hacknet (x2) + Hacknet Labyrinths DLC (x1)
Haiku, the Robot
Hammerting
Hard Reset Redux
Hardspace: Shipbreaker
Heaven's Vault
Heavenly Bodies (x2)
Hell Let Loose
Hell Pie
Hello Neighbor Hide and Seek
Hellpoint
Hero Siege Complete + Cyberpunk Samurai + Demon Slayer Bundle + Extra slots & stash space + ClassShield Lancer + Shaman + Plague Doctor + Marauder + Amazon+Avenger Paladin DLCs
Heroes of Hammerwatch
Hexcells Complete Pack
Hidden & Dangerous 2: Courage Under Fire
Hidden & Dangerous: Action Pack
Hidden Folks
HITMAN™: THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON (x2)
HIVESWAP: Act 1
Hokko life
Hollow Knight
Hot Brass
Hot Wheels Unleashed
Hotshot Racing
Hyper Light Drifter
I am not a Monster: First Contact
I'm not a Monster
If Found...
Impostor Factory
In Between
In Sound Mind
Injustice Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition (x3)
INK Deluxe Edition
Iris and the Giant
Iron Harvest
Jack Move
JumpJet Rex
Jupiter Hell
Jurassic World Evolution - Deluxe Dinosaur Pack
Just Cause 3 XXL Edition
Kerbal Space Program
KeyWe
Kill it with Fire
KillSquad
Kingdom Classic
Kingdom Two Crowns
Kingdom: New Lands (x2)
Knights of Pen and Paper 2
Kraken Academy!!
Late Shift
Later Alligator
Lawn Mowing Simulator
Legend of Keepers
Legion TD2-MULTIPLAYER TOWER DEFENSE
LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham
LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham Premium Edition
LEGO DC Super-Villains Deluxe Edition
LEGO Ninjago Movie Video Game
LEGO® Batman 2 DC Super Heroes™
LEGO® Worlds
Let's Explore the Farm (Junior Field Trips)
Let's Explore the Jungle (Junior Field Trips)
Levelhead
Leviathan Warships
Life is Strange 2: Complete Season
Life is Strange: True Colors
Lone Fungus
Lords and Villeins
Lostwinds
Lovecraft's Untold Stories
Lumino City
Luna's Wandering Stars
Machinarium
Mad Max
Mafia: Definitive Edition
Mafia: Definitive Edition
Magicka
Maid of Sker
Majesty 2
Majesty Gold HD
Marooners
Masquerade: The Baubles of Doom
Massive Chalice
Meeple Station
Merchany of the Skies
Metal Hellsinger
Metro Exodus
Midnight Protocol
Mind Scanners
Mini Metro
MINIT (x2)
MirrorMoon EP
Monster Loves You
Monster Prom 2: Monster Camp
Moonlighter
Morbid: The Seven Acolytes
Morkredd
MOTHERGUNSHIP
Moving Out
Mr. Shifty
Mr.Prepper
Mushroom 11
My Memory of Us
My Time at Portia
Narita Boy
Naruto to Boruto: Shinobi Strikers
NBA 2K20
NEBUCHADNEZZAR
Necromunda: Hired Gun
Necronator: Dead Wrong (x2)
Neo Cab
Neon Abyss
Neon Drive (Steam)
Newt One
Niche (x3)
NICKELODEON ALL-STAR BRAWL
Nimbatus The Space Drone Constructor
Ninja Pizza Girl
No Time to Explain Remastered
No Time to Relax
Not For Broadcast
Not Tonight
Oaken
Offworld Trading Company + Jupiter's Forge Expansion Pack (x2)
Old Man's Journey
OlliOlli World - Rad edition
OlliOlli2: Welcome to Olliwood
Omno
One Step From Eden
Operation Flashpoint: Red River
OPERATION: TANGO
Opus Magnum
Orwell: Ignorance is Strength (x2)
Orwell: Keeping an Eye on You (x3)
Othercide
Otxo
Out of the Park Baseball 18
Overcooked! 2 - Surf 'n' Turf Pack
Overcooked! 2 - Too Many Cooks
Overgrowth
Overlord II
OZYMANDIAS: BRONZE AGE EMPIRE SIM
PAC-MAN™ CHAMPIONSHIP EDITION 2
Pajama Sam 2: Thunder And Lightning Aren't So Frightening
Pajama Sam 3: You Are What You Eat From Your Head To Your Feet
Pajama Sam's Lost & Found
Pajama Sam's Sock Works
Pajama Sam: Games to Play on Any Day
Pale Echoes
Panzer Corps 2
Paper Fire Rookie
Paperbark
Paradigm (x2)
Paradise Killer
Party Hard (x2)
Patch Quest
PayDay 2
Peaky Blinders: Mastermind
Pesterquest
Pesterquest
PGA TOUR 2K21
Pikuniku
Pinstripe (x2)
Plague Inc: Evolved
Planet of the Eyes
Planet Zoo
PlateUp! (x2)
Plunge
Police Stories
Police Stories
Portal Knights
Primal Carnage: Extinction
Prodeus
Project Highrise (x2)
Project Winter
Psychonauts
Putt-Putt® and Pep's Balloon-o-Rama
Putt-Putt® and Pep's Dog on a Stick
Putt-Putt® Enters the Race
Putt-Putt® Goes to the Moon
Putt-Putt® Joins the Circus
Putt-Putt® Joins the Parade
Putt-Putt® Travels Through Time
Putt-Putt®: Pep's Birthday Surprise
Puzzle Agent
Puzzle Agent 2
Q.U.B.E. 2
Q.U.B.E: Director's Cut
Quest of Dungeons
Quiplash
Railroad Corporation
Railroad Tycoon 3
Railroad Tycoon II Platinum
Rain World
Raji: An Ancient Epic
Rapture Rejects + Safari outfit
Realpolitiks
Rebel Cops
Rebuild 3: Gangs of Deadsville
RED SOLSTICE 2: SURVIVORS
Regency Solitaire
Regions of Ruin
Regular Human Basketball (x3)
Relicta
Remnants of Isolation
Resident Evil 0 HD REMASTER
Resident Evil 4
Resident Evil 5 Gold Edition
Resident Evil 6
Resident Evil HD REMASTER
Resident Evil Revelations (X2)
Resident Evil Revelations 2 Deluxe Edition
Retimed
Retro Game Crunch
Retrowave
Revita
Rime
Rise and Shine
Rising Dusk
Rituals
Road 96
Road to Ballhalla
Roadwarden
Robot Roller-Derby Disco Dodgeball
Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder™
Rocket Birds: Hardboiled Chicken
ROCKETSROCKETSROCKETS
Rogue Heroes:Ruins of Tasos
Roguebook
Rollerdrome
ROUNDS (x2)
Rustler
Rusty Lake Paradise
RÖKI
S.W.I.N.E. HD REMASTER
Saints Row: The Third
Sam & Max: Season 1
Sam & Max: Season 2
Satellite Reign (x2)
Scorn
Scourgebringer
Screencheat
Scribblenauts Unlimited (x2)
Secrets of Raetikon
Shadow Complex Remastered (Epic Games)
SHADOW TACTICS: AIKO'S CHOICE
Shady Part of Me
Shelter 2 (x3)
Shenmue I & II
shutshimi
Sid Meier's Railroads!
Sigma Theory: Global Cold War (x2)
SimplePlanes
SIMULACRA
Size Matters
Slipstream
Sniper Elite
Sniper Elite 3 (x2)
Sniper Elite V2
Snowtopia: Ski Resort Builder
Song of Horror
SOULCALIBUR VI
Souldiers
Speed Brawl
Spellcaster University
Spelunky
Spirit of the Island
Spirits
SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS: BATTLE FOR BIKINI BOTTOM - REHYDRATED
Spy Fox 2 "Some Assembly Required"
Spy Fox 3 "Operation Ozone"
Spy Fox in "Dry Cereal"
Spy Fox In: Hold the Mustard
Squad (Early Access)
StarCrossed
State of Mind
Staxel
Stealth 2: A Game of Clones
Stick Fight: The Game (x4)
Streamline Early Access
Streets of Rage
Stronghold Crusader 2
Subsurface Circular (x3)
Suchart:Genius Artist Simulator
Sudden Strike 4
Super Daryl Deluxe
Super Galaxy Squadron EX
Super Hexagon (x2)
Super House of Dead Ninjas: True Ninja Pack
Super House of the Dead Ninjas (x2)
Super Lesbian Animal RPG
Super Magbot
Super Time Force Ultra
SUPERHOT (x3)
Surgeon Simulator + Anniversary Ed. Content
Surviving the Aftermath
Swag and Sorcery
Sword Legacy Omen
SYNTHETIK: Legion Rising
System Shock 2
System Shock: Enhanced Edition
Tainted Grail: Conquest
Tales from the Borderlands
Tales of Berseria™
Tales of the Neon Sea
Tangledeep + Soundtrack
Tank Mechanic Simulator
Team Indie
Teleglitch: Die More Edition
Telltale Texas Hold'em
TemTem
The Adventure Pals
The Ambassador: Fractured Timelines
The Ascent
The Ball
The Battle of Polytopia
The Blackout Club
THE DARK PICTURES ANTHOLOGY: LITTLE HOPE
THE DARK PICTURES ANTHOLOGY: MAN OF MEDAN
The Dungeon of Naheulbeuk: The Amulet of Chaos + Goodies + OST
The Dwarves
The First Tree (x3)
The Forgotten City
The Gardens Between
The Henry Stickmin Collection
THE INVISIBLE HAND
The Journey Down: Chapter Three
The Legend of Tianding
The Life and Suffering of Sir Brante
The Quarry Deluxe Edition
The Red Lantern
The Serpent Rogue
The Stillness of the Wind
The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead - 400 Days
The Walking Dead: A New Frontier
The Walking Dead: Final Season
The Walking Dead: Michonne - A Telltale Miniseries
The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners
The Walking Dead: Season Two
The Walking Dead: The Telltale Definitive Series
The Wild Eight
The Witness (x2)
theHunter: Call of the Wild
Them and Us
There is No Light:Enhanced Edition
Think of the Children
Thirty Flights of Loving
This is the Police
This War of Mine
This War of Mine: Final Cut
Throne of Lies® The Online Game of Deceit (x3)
Tilt Brush
TIMEframe
Tin Can
Titan Quest Anniversary
Titan Quest Anniversary Edition
ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove (x2)
Tokyo 42
Tooth and Tail (x2)
Torment: Tides of Numenera
Total Tank Simulator (x2)
Tower of Guns (x2)
Train Simulator 2017 + Platform Clutter + Town Scenery
Train Station Renovation
Tribes of Midgard
Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince
Tropico 4
Turbo Gold Racing
Twin Mirror (x2)
Two Point Campus
Ultimate Chicken Horse (x3)
Undertale
Unmetal
Unpacking
Valfaris
Vampire: The Masquerade - Shadows of New York
Vane
Vault of the Void
Verdun
Vertiginous Golf
Vikings - Wolves of Midgard
Visage
Void Bastards
Volgarr the Viking
Wandersong
Wargroove
Waking Mars
WARHAMMER 40,000: CHAOS GATE - DAEMONHUNTERS
Warhammer: Chaosbane
Werewolf: The Apocalypse Heart of the Forest
West of Dead
Westerado: Double Barreled
Where the Water Tastes like Wine
WHO PRESSED MUTE ON UNCLE MARCUS
Wildfire
WINDJAMMERS 2
Windward
Wingspan
Wizard of Legend (x3)
World of Goo
Worms Revolution
WORMS RUMBLE + LEGENDS PACK DLC
Wuppo (x2)
WWE 2K Battlegrounds
WWE 2K Battlegrounds + Brawler Pass
WWE 2K23
XCOM: CHIMERA SQUAD
XCOM: ULTIMATE COLLECTION
Yes, Your Grace
Yooka-Laylee
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK HEADRUSH
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK SPORTS
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK TELEVISION
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 1 XL
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 2
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 3
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 4: The Ride
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 6 The Lost Gold
Ziggurat
Zombie Night Terror
Others GameMaker Studio Pro
Ashampoo BackUp Pro 14
Ashampoo Photo Optimizer 7
Ashampoo WinOptimizer 18
Battleborn Starter Skin Pack
Darkest Dungeon Shieldbreaker DLC
Double Fine Adventure Documentary
GWENT - Ultimate Starter Pack
Killing Floor - Community Weapon Pack 1 DLC
Killing Floor - Community Weapon Pack 2 DLC
Killing Floor - Community Weapon Pack 3 DLC
Mage and Minions - $10 In-Game Currency
Music Maker EDM Edition
Music Maker: Hip Hop Edition
PAYDAY 2: Sydney Mega Mask
Starfinder: Pact Worlds Campaign Setting
XCOM® 2: Reinforcement Pack
XCOM® 2: Resistance Warrior Pack
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK MOVIES

I am currently taking paypal for games, you always go first and cover fees
For game trades, you always go first and message me, usually it takes me about 1-2 days to get back to you at the latest
My Rep Page has not been updated in about 5 years, but I have a lot of trades finished
Bolded items are just the ones I would like to consider keeping so don't feel as though you need to offer more for the game
Wants
Oneshot
Subnautica
Stellaris (and dlc)
Wishlist Items
Have
A Plague Tale: Innocence
ADOM (ANCIENT DOMAINS OF MYSTERY)
Bridge Constructor Portal
Chivalry 2 - Epic Edition
Deep Rock Galactic
Disco Elysium - The Final Cut
Doom Eternal
Elite Dangerous
Endless Space 2 - Digital Deluxe Edition
Ghostrunner
Honey I Joined a Cult
Lost Ruins
Mass Effect Legendary Edition (temporarily unavailable)
MONSTER TRAIN (FIRST CLASS - COLLECTORS EDITION)
OUTWARD + THE SOROBOREANS AND OUTWARD SOUNDTRACK
PATHFINDER: WRATH OF THE RIGHTEOUS
Rebel Inc: Escalation
REMNANT: FROM THE ASHES - COMPLETE EDITION
SCP:Secret Files
SHOTGUN KING: THE FINAL CHECKMATE
Songs of Conquest
Spyro™ Reignited Trilogy
Surviving Mars
THE OUTER WORLDS: SPACER'S CHOICE EDITION
Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales
VALKYRIA CHRONICLES 4 COMPLETE EDITION
Wasteland 3
Yakuza 4 Remastered
20XX
7 Grand Steps

observer (x3)

A Good Snowman is Hard to Build
A Juggler's Tale
A Mortician's Tale
A New Beginning - Final Cut
Aaero
Aces and Adventures
AER Memories of Old (x2)
Age of Wonders III
Ageless
Agents of Mayhem
AI War: Fleet Command
Alien Spidy
Aliens:Fireteam Elite
Alina of the Arena
All You Can Eat
Aragami 2
Arcade Paradise
Army Men RTS
Ashes of the Singularity: Escalation (x2)
Assassin's Creed® Origins
Assault Android Cactus
Atom RPG Trudograd
Atomicrops
AUTONAUTS VS PIRATEBOTS
Backbone
Bad End Theater
Banner Saga Trilogy - Deluxe Pack
Banners of Ruin
Bastion (x2)
Batman Arkham Origins (x2)
Battle Chef Brigade
Beacon Pines
Beat Hazard Ultra
Bee Simulator
Before Your Eyes
BEHIND THE FRAME: THE FINEST SCENERY
Beholder
BENDY AND THE DARK REVIVAL
Beneath Oresa
Between the Stars
Beyond a Steel Sky
Binary Domain
Bioshock Remastered
BioShock: The Collection
Biped
Black Book
Blade Assault
Blasphemous
Blazing Beaks
Bleed 2
Bloodstained®︎: Ritual of the Night
Bone - Episode 1 & Episode 2
Boomerang Fu (x3)
Borderlands 3 Super Deluxe
Boreal Blade
Boyfriend Dungeon
Broken Age (x2)
Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons
Brutal Legend
BUILDER SIMULATOR
Burly Men At Sea (x2)
Bury Me, My Love
Celeste
Chasm
Chicken Police
Children of Silentown
CHUCHEL Cherry Edition (x2)
CivCity: Rome
Coffee Talk
COMMAND & CONQUER REMASTERED COLLECTION
Company of Heroes 2 + Company of Heroes 2 - Whale and Dolphin Conservation Charity Pattern Pack
Conan Chop Chop
CONTROL STANDARD EDITION (Steam or Epic Games)
COOK, SERVE, DELICIOUS! 3
Coromon
Crowntakers
Crusader Kings Complete
Cultist Simulator (x2)
Curious Expedition
CURSE OF THE DEAD GODS
Cyber Hook
DARK PICTURES ANTHOLOGY: HOUSE OF ASHES
Darkside Detective
Darksiders Genesis
Darksiders II Deathinitive Edition (x2)
Darksiders Warmastered Edition
Dead In Bermuda
Deadly Days
Death Squared (x2)
Deathloop
Decieve Inc.
Deleveled
Desperados 3
Destroy All Humans!
Deus Ex: Mankind Divided
Disciples: Liberation
Distance
DISTRAINT 2 + Soundtrack
Distrust (x3)
Drawful 2
DUCATI - 90th Anniversary
Duke Nukem Forever
Duke Nukem Forever Hail to the Icons
Duke Nukem Forever The Doctor Who Cloned Me
Dungeons 3 (x2)
Dusty Revenge: Co-Op Edition
Dwarfs!?
EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1: Blood Storm + DLC
EarthNight
Eastside Hockey Manager
Elderborn
Eldest Souls
Elex
Ellipsis
Embr
Emily is Away <3
ENCASED: A SCI-FI POST-APOCALYPTIC RPG
Endless Space® - Collection (x2)
Epic Chef
Eternal Threads
Euro Truck Simulator 2
Europa Universalis IV
Evan's Remains
Evergarden
EVERSPACE™
Fahrenheit: Indigo Prophecy Remastered
Fallout 1
Family Man
Farmer's Dynasty
Fibbage XL
Fights in Tight Spaces
Figment
Finding Paradise
First Class Trouble
Five Dates
Fobia - St. Dinfna Hotel
Foretales
Fort Triumph
Founders' Fortune
Framed Collection
Framed Collection (x2)
Freddi Fish 2: The Case of the Haunted Schoolhouse
Freddi Fish 3: The Case of the Stolen Conch Shell
Freddi Fish 4: The Case of the Hogfish Rustlers of Briny Gulch
Freddi Fish 5: The Case of the Creature of Coral Cove
Freddi Fish and Luther's Maze Madness
Freddi Fish and Luther's Water Worries
Freedom Force
Freedom Force vs. The Third Reich
Friends Vs Friends
FTL
Full Metal Furies
Full Throttle Remastered (x2)
Fury Unleashed
Gas Station Simulator
Genesis Noir
Get In The Car, Loser!
Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy
God's Trigger
Golf Gang
Gonner
GRAV (Early Access)
Greedfall
GRID 2
Grime
Grow: Song of the Evertree
Growing Up
Guns of Icarus Online
Hacknet (x2) + Hacknet Labyrinths DLC (x1)
Haiku, the Robot
Hammerting
Hard Reset Redux
Hardspace: Shipbreaker
Heaven's Vault
Heavenly Bodies (x2)
Hell Let Loose
Hell Pie
Hello Neighbor Hide and Seek
Hellpoint
Hero Siege Complete + Cyberpunk Samurai + Demon Slayer Bundle + Extra slots & stash space + ClassShield Lancer + Shaman + Plague Doctor + Marauder + Amazon+Avenger Paladin DLCs
Heroes of Hammerwatch
Hexcells Complete Pack
Hidden & Dangerous 2: Courage Under Fire
Hidden & Dangerous: Action Pack
Hidden Folks
HITMAN™: THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON (x2)
HIVESWAP: Act 1
Hokko life
Hollow Knight
Hot Brass
Hot Wheels Unleashed
Hotshot Racing
Hyper Light Drifter
I am not a Monster: First Contact
I'm not a Monster
If Found...
Impostor Factory
In Between
In Sound Mind
Injustice Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition (x3)
INK Deluxe Edition
Iris and the Giant
Iron Harvest
Jack Move
JumpJet Rex
Jupiter Hell
Jurassic World Evolution - Deluxe Dinosaur Pack
Just Cause 3 XXL Edition
Kerbal Space Program
KeyWe
Kill it with Fire
KillSquad
Kingdom Classic
Kingdom Two Crowns
Kingdom: New Lands (x2)
Knights of Pen and Paper 2
Kraken Academy!!
Late Shift
Later Alligator
Lawn Mowing Simulator
Legend of Keepers
Legion TD2-MULTIPLAYER TOWER DEFENSE
LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham
LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham Premium Edition
LEGO DC Super-Villains Deluxe Edition
LEGO Ninjago Movie Video Game
LEGO® Batman 2 DC Super Heroes™
LEGO® Worlds
Let's Explore the Farm (Junior Field Trips)
Let's Explore the Jungle (Junior Field Trips)
Levelhead
Leviathan Warships
Life is Strange 2: Complete Season
Life is Strange: True Colors
Lone Fungus
Lords and Villeins
Lostwinds
Lovecraft's Untold Stories
Lumino City
Luna's Wandering Stars
Machinarium
Mad Max
Mafia: Definitive Edition
Mafia: Definitive Edition
Magicka
Maid of Sker
Majesty 2
Majesty Gold HD
Marooners
Masquerade: The Baubles of Doom
Massive Chalice
Meeple Station
Merchany of the Skies
Metal Hellsinger
Metro Exodus
Midnight Protocol
Mind Scanners
Mini Metro
MINIT (x2)
MirrorMoon EP
Monster Loves You
Monster Prom 2: Monster Camp
Moonlighter
Morbid: The Seven Acolytes
Morkredd
MOTHERGUNSHIP
Moving Out
Mr. Shifty
Mr.Prepper
Mushroom 11
My Memory of Us
My Time at Portia
Narita Boy
Naruto to Boruto: Shinobi Strikers
NBA 2K20
NEBUCHADNEZZAR
Necromunda: Hired Gun
Necronator: Dead Wrong (x2)
Neo Cab
Neon Abyss
Neon Drive (Steam)
Newt One
Niche (x3)
NICKELODEON ALL-STAR BRAWL
Nimbatus The Space Drone Constructor
Ninja Pizza Girl
No Time to Explain Remastered
No Time to Relax
Not For Broadcast
Not Tonight
Oaken
Offworld Trading Company + Jupiter's Forge Expansion Pack (x2)
Old Man's Journey
OlliOlli World - Rad edition
OlliOlli2: Welcome to Olliwood
Omno
One Step From Eden
Operation Flashpoint: Red River
OPERATION: TANGO
Opus Magnum
Orwell: Ignorance is Strength (x2)
Orwell: Keeping an Eye on You (x3)
Othercide
Otxo
Out of the Park Baseball 18
Overcooked! 2 - Surf 'n' Turf Pack
Overcooked! 2 - Too Many Cooks
Overgrowth
Overlord II
OZYMANDIAS: BRONZE AGE EMPIRE SIM
PAC-MAN™ CHAMPIONSHIP EDITION 2
Pajama Sam 2: Thunder And Lightning Aren't So Frightening
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Pajama Sam: Games to Play on Any Day
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Panzer Corps 2
Paper Fire Rookie
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Patch Quest
PayDay 2
Peaky Blinders: Mastermind
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PGA TOUR 2K21
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Raji: An Ancient Epic
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Secrets of Raetikon
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YOU DON'T KNOW JACK MOVIES

Before I write the options I considered, I want to detail the reasons that convinced me that I need a refresher on the series.
First of all, aside from translating the games that didn't receive a localization in my language, it's been a few years since I last played them, and I always followed the release order... excluding PLvsPWAA which I never got out of my way to finish
Second, I've always been a bit biased in favor of Takumi written games. I guess I liked the atmosphere, cast and stories better. Not to disparage Yamazaki games necessarily, Investigations 2 is peak, but I still prefer TGAA2R and consider it on par with T&T; that said, the problem lies in what is now known as the Apollo Justice Trilogy: I'm not going to start a discourse on whether or not the title is earned or not (it is), what I'm trying to say is that AJ:AA suffered from needing to keep Phoenix relevant, DD went for a sequel that doesn't follow enough on the unresolved AJ:AA plotlines, feels like Danganronpa and ends up being boring, final and DLC case aside, and SoJ was good, but has some decisions that end up burying it below JfA for me. And while I have my opinions on these games, I'm seeing a resurgence of DD and SoJ fans, praising those two games especially as the golden standards, the peak of Ace Attorney, and it doesn't sit right with me. Call it petty, call it toxic, call it hating, it is what it is. But that's the second reason: I want to give all the games equal chances to impress me, freeing myself from any bias and preconceptions. Hints and tips on that are welcome
Third, and what sealed the deal, a few months ago I played the DLC cases of DD and SoJ with my now ex, since she hadn't, and while I confirmed that DD-DLC is a banger, I was pleasantly surprised by SoJ-DLC, which I used to consider boring nostalgia-pandering
After a long long preamble, I was considering the following play orders: - Original western release date for all the games - Mainline, then spin-offs - PWT, spin-off(s), AJT spin-off(s) - Chronological (TGAAC, PW, JfA, PLvsPWAA, T&T, AAI1&2, AJ, DD, SOJ)
Plus, a couple questions: - Should I hold off on DLC cases until after I finish the main games (so Rise from the Ashes, Reclaimed and Time Travel after the rest of the series) or play them with the game the cases are in (so Rfta after Goodbyes, Reclaimed after Monstrous and Time Travel after Revolution)? - what order should I play the spin offs, if not AAI1&2, PLvsPWAA and TGAAC?
Feel free to give me hints, tips and suggestions, to yell at me for not liking the AJ games as much as other ones or to do whatever

As a brief introduction, I decided to brainstorm a metaphor for how moving on normally looks like for people. I always notice when people create these metaphors, they rarely mention that everyone makes mistakes when moving on, we’re emotional creatures and we do things out of jealousy, anger, spite and sadness that can really hurt us. I wanted to make a metaphor that showcases the fact that everyone makes mistakes, and whilst moving on seems like the most difficult task you can go through, in reality, with some self care and self reflection, you can make the task much, much easier. Feel free to leave any thoughts or different views that could be added in below this post and I hope this can help a few of you guys out!
Imagine you are in a pit, on the side of a cliff. You look up and you can see the summit of the cliff, it seems light years away from you, a truly daunting cliff to climb. In front of you, there are 2 ladders. To the left is your ladder and to the right is your ex’s ladder.
The break up: You have just been broken up with, your ex has sat and thought about this decision for the past weeks or months and has finally followed through with it. You are now alone, at the bottom of this pit, with only a ladder in front of you to help you get back to the summit you were once on. However, you have been broken up with, you are emotional, you don’t even want to look at the summit, looking at the summit is daunting, you know how much work you have to do, but thats hard, you want what is easy, you just want your ex back, you want to them to be in the pit with you and help you, but doing that will leave you both at the bottom, you have to go your separate ways to reach the summit. Your brain will not accept this reality, at least for now.
Pre contemplation of climbing: You’ve wallowed in sadness and despair, you have weeped and cried and all along your ex has been making progress up their ladder, they’ve been doing this before they even broke up with you. For the first time, you look up, you’ve accepted that you need to start climbing and you can’t isolate yourself any longer. However, as your eyes align with the summit, a small figure can be seen on the other ladder, they seem so far away yet you can see them so clearly. You can see them clearly progressing so much quicker than you, they seem happier and to you, this all seems unbelievably unfair. You start to question, how could they leave me here? In this pit all alone, how could someone who said they cared about me just allow me to be here without trying to help? The first emotion you experience? Anger. More anger than you’ve experienced in your life. You can’t fathom why someone would do this to you, so what do you do?
Climbing the ladder (poorly): You race up the ladder, the best way to get over them, would be to catch up to where they are on the ladder quickly, right? I mean, they can’t hurt you if youre in the same position as them. Well, not exactly. You’ll do everything in your power to get up the ladder as fast as humanly possible, you’ll go out and party, you’ll get with other people, you’ll just generally be reckless and its reflected in the way your climbing the ladder. The entire time your climbing, you’re not even looking at each step on the ladder, you’re looking directly at your ex, youre hyper fixated on them. Some days you shoot miles up the ladder, then stump yourself by trying to shout at your ex when you get close to them, your hand slips and you fall back to where you started that day. You’re beginning to lose focus of what matters, you’re putting too much focus on your ex’s progress because you believe if you catch up to them they wont hurt you anymore. They will always hurt you if you’re on the ladder, even if you’re ahead of them. This is an incredibly confusing time, you think to yourself that you should be making progress, when in reality, you’re almost back to the start. The inconsistency is eating away at you, you begin to realise that your new life of empty fulfilment isn’t actually helping you, so what do you do?
Taking time to reflect: You step away from the ladder one day to reconsider your approach. You begin to realise that hating them will get you nowhere, focusing on your own ladder and taking your time with each step will allow you to progress in a way that doesn’t hurt you or cause you to fall. If you haven’t been doing no contact to this point, this is normally where absolute no contact would begin. Behind you in the pit, your memories with them flash up, you look at them one last time and smile knowing the amazing experience you shared with this special person, you turn around, knowing that at one point, you were deeply in love and so were they. Never ever doubt if they were in love with you or not, they wouldn’t have stuck around if they weren’t, they will also always hold some form of love for you, even if it isn’t romantic, you were special to them, just like they were to you. You realise that if they can make it that far up the ladder, so can you. It was tough for them too, they made similar mistakes to you and also fell, but they went through this process, they reflected and they started to climb too. So what do you do?
Climbing the ladder (the correct way): You decide that when climbing the ladder, you’re not going to look up anymore, you’re going to look at every step and you’re going to climb each and every single step one at a time. You’re focused, you’re determined and you’re ready to progress. You take time to reconnect with the things you loved, giving you an extra boost up the ladder. You take time to reconnect with old friends who you may have neglected during the relationship, whilst also forming new connections with new people, giving you an extra boost up the ladder. You do things that fulfil you and make you genuinely proud of yourself boosting your confidence and giving you an extra boost up the ladder. Before you know it, you’re at the summit. You did it! You didn’t even know you were close to the summit, but now, you just get to walk forward on the new path you’ve found to follow. Whether your ex is there on that path or not, you don’t mind, you know that the path your on will lead you somewhere great and you will hope that their path leads them to somewhere similar.
Moving on is never easy, if it was, Taylor Swift wouldn’t be a successful musician, but understanding the fundamentals of moving on and knowing that making mistakes is okay is what leads to true change, true growth and true happiness. If you read all this, thank you! I’m currently going through a break up and writing this has allowed me to remember what helped me move forward in other break ups. The concept of the ladder is simple, I feel as though you can apply many situations to it to somewhat showcase how much progression is being made by you and how your behaviour is affecting your progress. Also just as a side note, if you’re one of the people who want your ex back, just remember that you can’t get them back if you’re on the ladder, you simply cannot reach them whilst you’re on it. If you’re ever going to get them back, they’ll be there waiting at your path on the summit.

So here we are at last. Hurrah. (In pirates voice )The end. Part 4. As it were. (Laugh at them) I'm just sayin I'm insane!
If I can even think i can change anything at this stage of the game, I must be insane. And yet I do believe. Because I believe in the goodness of us. And the reason I believe in the goodness of you, is because even within a world wot currently, externally, places so little value, on goodness, I still observe, the goodness shared between friends and good strangers alike. 100 times a day. More, if I pay closer attention.
And so by mine own eyes, the whitless witness, I believe in the goodness, I see in you, pretty much all o' you. But every day. And because I believe wot I see, so yet I have hope for us. So yea, that's me insane then! Ho hey, hey ho. And on we go.
So, dearly beloved we are gathered here today to confront the spaces we have allowed to grow between us.
To confront the void, from which our current sense of hopelessness, wot we are all stuck in together, but feeling alone with, eminates.
Look at them seriously Stevie.... challenge them to think about it with just your eyes.
The truths waiting in t'wings to be rediscovered to replace the bollockshit lies we have come to believe about each other, on t'other side. And each other, of course, is just another, way, of saying ourselves? Right?
For no matter how much, both sides doth protest of each other too much
We only are, ourselves. Together.
Just us lot. Making it up as we go along, and trying to not let on, together.
Right?
For better or worse.
Because only together can we rediscover and so reconnect with the common ground that we hadn't even realised was at stake, at the time, ways back when, which it woz. And which we then lost; gave up, infact. We had to; couldn't hold the common ground and prove each other wrong, so away we all trouped, and we didn't stop, until either side could no longer hear t'others poisoned lies.
And so our problem right now, is found within the truth of the words ’we can only do this together. And we certainly can't do this against each other. Because the truth of the this is only to be found listening to the words of each other. The thing we can only do together. Upon our common ground. Cumon. It's time to find our way back. Try to remember.
I told you before. Remember! Trust me, its going to get harder, but then you will Remember. Just stick with it a little longer. It will get better.
A moment in time for us to shine approaches..... Become stronger.
Cuz these strange days is the time of EitheOr. Transition Time, and we've been here before. Many times in fact. The only time in fact, to heal, the break, whilst it's actually a'breakin, round us. And us! Cuz once the spirit of our goodness is crushed, once we no longer feel reciprocation within our wider world, so we are forced into darkness to reset, allowing the break to go unfixed and the faulty cycle to complete, and so we are then forced to repeat, these crazy times again. And again. And again. Just Cuz we didn't learn the lesson in time, in time. This time around.
This bit in which we find ourselves right ere right now in fact, this bit in which we can't see the woods for the trees.... But still. I tell you buddy, woods are just full'o trees. Cumon. It's become time to remind yerself to think clearly again.
You are it's measure. We are, together. The measure of this bit, our time, these days, right now.
Just sayin
And this journey we all have to choose to take, to achieve all of this, can only begin when you start to believe in the goodness of enough of us again, and really I mean, when you choose to see, that just as on your side, some of those on t'other side of your particular divide, are gooduns too. Some notsomuch. Ja mais vu. But this is the truth that unites all sides, the truth that for us, will ever be, our humanity. (Dah dah dahhh) (Start rubbing head) And that journey can only begin after you have confronted the void buddy. A moment deep down, in some ways, some of us have always known would be waiting, didn't we. Haven't we. Known. That at some point in our future. A moment...... Just like this one.......
Well your future has arrived buddy. All of our futures have. Cuz Its time.
But you can do this. I believe in you.
REWRITE So firstly buddy we have to see what we have come to see. You and me. To first peer, into the void, and then you have to choose to steer, into the void. To first feel what its oppresivity has allowed us to become to each other. Because this is what we do to each other, when we are blinded by fear, surrounded by darkness, and feeling so alone, so desperately alone, that we allow ourselves to be forced to conform by contorting to fit the faulty framework. Which secondly is just a fancy rhyming pants way o'sayin, when our fear gets our better, and drives us to hide, alone, but actually all together, huddled inside, the void.
(Master you) Too much (tap head)
So we're going to choose to confront the void, and then we are going to choose to go into the void, and then we're going to pull ourselves out.
And you are going to resist.
So you have to be the strong one in all this.
But trust me. I promise, with my love, I won't let you go.
Breathe. Even if you do feel silly, please, do it for a buddy, buddy. Breathe. And..... then breathe again. This time just a lil deeper, a lil slower. Breathe comfortably once more and you may notice that whereas at times in our recent past, you may have found yourself struggling for breath, so now just notice how easy your breathing is.....see. You're looking for your old rhythm now... Remember, before the anxiety set in ... Try to Remember what it felt like, when you breathed freely.
To breathe normally.
And breathe.
Normanly!
And as you settle into your old groove, then take a few more comfortable breaths, just because, you know, you can again....
And breathe.
Now, with yer focus on yer Eupnea, yer trying to look fer, the sliver of a moment bein the bit after y'exhale has ended, but before y'inhale begins. (Do it here) That one teeny tiny point which exists for just a tiny instant, but again and again, within us, moment by moment, breath by breath, each turn of your own lifecycle: all of us connected, by this shared moment, wether we choose to believe it or no, by this thinest delicatist moment we are all connected by , right up til our penultimate breath. Just sayin.Just notice it, as you reach it, each time, in time, its time comes around. (Here)The individual lustre of a moment between moments when everything hangs in the balance....
Without rushing your comfortable breathing, when its time comes round, this is the moment you now aim for each time it comes around. (HERE)
And now Notice it's depth, even as it all too briefly fleets past, you can yet perceive great depth, within the slither. (Here)

And now next time, or maybe the next time after your breathing reaches this moment, cast your minds eye , like a fisherman casts their fly, aiming into the very heart of that fleeting moment each time it passes by. (Here) Again and again each time it's time comes, you cast, until more often than not your aim meets it's mark. (Here) Until eventually you feel confident enough with your aim, in that fleeting moment inside, so to try, to flip your view from micro to macro. So still tho a fleeting moment, you begins to discern it's brilliance, each time, from within. And so now as this moment appears, each time within your own personal timeline: rush to reach deep inside it to look for and then to find the tiny seed of peace, deep within the heart between each moment. Each and every time, between each and every breath now you look for this moment and you find it. Let its momentary cyclical pulse of sweet peace become familiar to you. It is, after all, a part of the cycle of you. And so now as you continue to comfortably breathe, Anticipate it..... This beautiful moment between breaths, between times, you are trying to elongate it.. to stretch it out, and now not this time, but maybe the next time, or maybe the next next time, anticipate that beautiful moment, then experience that beautiful moment, and then take an extra moment, elongate that moment: hold time in your mind as you hold your breath for just a slight moment lond itger, (HERE) and then without really you thinking about it, as you then get picked up by the cycle of time again, you just become uncoupled. And so now you are ready. Just simply drop out of time. It's ok. Let go. I've got you. 

(Here, or not) Booof!
There you go. Just for a minute. Just you and me buddy. Connected by just our love. And how amazing is that! And I promise I won't let go.
Ive brought you here cuz you needs to feel what it does to you buddy. Cuz wot it does, is why we then allow ourselves to do, wot we then do, to each other, and the kiddies. Why it makes us bring out the worst in each other. So we can realise how to stop bringing out the worst in each other. And to confront it we needs to understand what its oppressive hopeless energy feels like, discrete from our own personal burdens. Which is why you needs to confront it out of time. See. You need to learn it's discrete burden so then you know what it is you need to choose to ignore, when this moment ends and you go back to feeling it all. So that it can then begin to heal for us all. So we all can..... Before we all can, move on .......or at least just enough of us. I hope that makes sense. I wish I had better words for it to make better sense.
All the pain you feel in your heart right now, out of time, is just the void.
You can feel it, can't you. Good. That's just what it feels like when we are in needing of healing is all. The thing we can only do for each other, with our love.
And now we've found this space outside of time together. It's time, together, to steer into the void. A trick I learnt from an organisation I'm passionate about. A long time ago. To see, wot we needs to see.
REWRITE Do you remember that seed of imagination we set loose and slowly sent way down, until It slipped from memory, at the beginning of part 1? And if you don't, and I'm right, then it doesn't actually matter anyways. Hey ho. The dreams worth of hope we set loose to plumb our depths. Well hopefully it has now fulfilled it's purpose. Because now all you needs to do is just follow it's trail, that starts exactly where you stopped thinking bout it, in your mind, as deep as you stuck with the thought, begin your search there and once you find its end, just simply allow yerself ter zoom along it's length like data along a fibre optic cable - and then popping out the end. And if you didn't do the thing in part 1, it's ok, then just pretend 😁
Booof!
And if you did do the thing in part one. when you arrive, if you notice a bloke with a unicorn, don't worry about it.
And so we have arrived, now, you and I, but now you have to choose to steer Into your own personal deepest darkness. The place only you know exists inside of you, where your own lil bit of our void resides. Turn to face it, and then just start Pushin through in your mind. The resistance, with the fear, will pass.
Keep pushing through the fear, and when it subsides, allow yourself to chill out for a while whilst you adjust to this deeper darkness. And then so acclimatised. in your mind, just keep pushin on. And what feels so close around you, all around you, suffocatingly so, is just the pain of the void.
Keep calm and you will acclimatise to it's cyclical waves of intensity. The sickness feeling will pass, hopefully.
Try to think It's like entering lake water
Breathe comfortably still. Remember. I'm here too.
And when you feel the resistance subside and so the moment of panic passes, you have arrived, close both your actual eyes and your minds eyes, and then just use your love to probe around in the darknes, to discover where it hurts the most. And once you are confident it's truly the most hurty place, then simply hold your hands out, open your eyes and look down and you will see yourself. The scared you. The afraid you. Be strong, I've got you two. They/you reach up with grateful eyes, and desperate hands and with tears in your own, take theirs, and lift them up, reach around to support them - they are weak, but you will grow stronger. And then reunited again, shuffle round, 180 degrees like really bad salsa dancers, on your heels, in your mind and then facing away from the pain, take one purposeful step, together, back out of the void.
Not a giant step. But a confident step. Nonchalantly, and with just a touch of swagger if you can manage it😁
Cuz fuck it. You know.
See I knew I was right about the time thing.
We all know that time is the key that unlocks the future, but it can also be used to seal the past. But only once enough of us are ready to give enough of us a second chance. Which really just means a new path. A new perspective, and all that really means is are you ready to move on? To create an anchor point in time, together, from which to pivot our path, and so then to face what wos always going to becoming our ways anyways, our generations veritable ecological destiny, from the very start of time. Think about that! But now think about it, together.
And so finally, before time notices we are AWOL, and so before this moment passes, (leaving you to wonder if it ever really happened....long pause, look at em all)
There's just time for a quick sandbox reality experiment!
Imagine yerself a world, a facimily of this one, but yer made-up world is made up of good folks, who thanks to a reality flash realised, together, that the only true value to their continued existence was to be found in the community of each other. All of em, together. Or not at all.
Eitheor.
Just that.
And these good folks, not dissimilar to ourselves infact, realised that if they could help each other get their shit together, they could change their future together, and if they came up with a good enough framework, framework 2.0 as it were, that that change, could be, forever.
And because they did, so they did.
In your sandbox reality, Imagine what it feels like, being the good folks who achieved all that, in our near future, and then all you needs to do , is just take here, now, today as your starting point, and then just work out how to become them. And that's the journey just enough of us have to take, if we want things to go differently from this, for us. From now on.
I don't make the rules, and you get to choose your own path. But know, that whether you realised this moment as a choice or no, in these changing times, a choice, by us all, will be made.
And as time finally looses patience with us, so our moment out of time, as all moments, in and out of time, must, transitions.
So finally.... There is a moment in our future where all this has already happened. I know this, because I have been there and I have felt what it feels like to be apart of. Its beautiful beyond my megre words, like turds, will ever be able to express.
And every generation that comes after those heroes of humanity, blesses the very day, the very hour, minute and second that their forebares finally chose to choose. Better. for each other, and all I'm sayin is why not us. Why not here, why not now, today. The moment when humanity finally realised the truth of the words; that it doesn't have to be this way.
StevieP Mar- apr 2021 and then April onwards 2022. Re picked up apr 24 I watched kid goats frolicking, a long time ago now, with a friend, at a farm. Happy memories indeed!
And now another year has gone by, and here I am again, believing that Ive given my very best, hoping it will become enough and eagerly awaiting the chance to try to begin our Summer Of Love 2022.
Well May 24 today and that shit didn't happen! Heya ho. And on we go. Onwards and upwards. And once more with pasta.
That doesn't sound right.