Yearbook quotes for principal

Yearbook Quotes

2013.05.31 22:38 SpcK Yearbook Quotes

This subreddit is for funny or creative yearbook quotes found, or said by redditors. Suggestions for awesome quotes welcome.

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2024.05.18 11:31 Goth_Nightowl_09 Best ac7 quote to use for school yearbook (serious)

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2024.05.18 01:05 TheArstaInventor No friends my entire life so far, graduation from HS next week; The feeling of not being able to miss nor not care is worse than actually missing.

Graduation in about a week, traveled countries between elementary/middle/high school (pretty much my entire life thanks to my dad's work and immigration background), for which I am grateful for as such experience has helped me develop a lot personally as a person. But my friends network is pretty much 0 (I mean it, not even a single one), I always tried to get some friends, never worked as everyone knew each other well from before and I was never able to get any good friends.
Now just got an email from our school principal, congratulating on our journey so far and well wished with this quote; "You all are going to go down different paths, and our hope is that your time at (input school name) has prepared you to find success no matter what direction life takes you. Whatever path that you decide to embark on, one thing is for certain...you will ALWAYS be (school mascot)."
Reading things like that brings back a feeling inside me that is honestly unexplainable, most of you probably have had friends in high school, atleast over 1 and a lot of you are probably adults at this point in your lives and couldn't care less, (doesn't matter, I am here to get this off me), but to try and explain it, its a wierd sensation/feeling of insecurity, sadness, confusion and worry. What's ironic is the same me a year back would be dying to graduate and get off this place, especially due to my non-interesting high school/social life so far, but now that things are close, and the fact that after soo many years as a kid and a teen who just went to school everyday, I am now entering the last phase of my teens and what's even crazier is that my "school life" is over, I do plan on going to university/college to pursue engineering but that's a serious entry to adult life.
It's not that I miss high school itself, but perhaps it's familiar environment that I have grown up used to, the same I wished I could have escaped sooner if this was me months if not a year ago. I know the familiar faces and the routine of school will be coming to an end (or seeing my crush everyday in that one class,, it's not just that though), I will especially be moving to another city although same state, so I know for a fact that I will never be seeing anyone from HS, none of my classmates, my teachers, counselors or anybody, of course it was my decision to go to this other city and have a fresh start for my college life and I more than happily stand by it, but I can't shake this feeling off, and I believe it will only get severe until the very last moment of graduation, which I don't even know how it is going to go considering I have nobody to share these moments with, Ill just take photos of myself with my mom and dad......just like they have been the only human beings I have been close to and in touch with so far in my life.
Of course I am excited for college and the next phase of life, I always try to be very positive, but in a moment like this it has become inevitable for me to get this feeling. To anyone young reading this who is in a similar phase, or perhaps you are older in college and looking to get out of it and go to workforce, here is something I will tell you:
No matter in which phase of life you are, it is not permanent, nothing is, but in that very moment it feels like it is permanent, it feels like it is taking forever because you are looking at the negatives off it, wishing "oh when will this shit end!", but remember that every phase in your life has both positives and negatives, and if you keep looking at the negatives, it might be just as bad or even worse in the next phase of your life, learn to look for all the positives you have today, and enjoy every moment of your life because one day, all of this will pass away and the end for our whole journey will come for everyone one of us, and nobody for sure knows what happens after that, so be happy and enjoy with the journey you have right now at the moment.
Today at school, I didn't just stare at my phone and walked to my classes like I used to. I put my phone away and looked around the building, and the school, the people, the teachers, the environment and myself in that phase, saving my memory of this phase in life with the feeling of neither being able to miss it or not care about it.

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2024.05.17 21:53 UniversalSurvivalist What does MK Ultra, 'You'll own nothing and be happy' WEF slogan and Nicole Kidman have in common?

"There will be in the next generation or so a pharmacological method of making people love their servitude and producing dictatorship without tears, so to speak, producing a kind of painless concentration camp for entire societies so that people will in fact have their liberties taken away from them but will rather enjoy it."
Julian Huxley, brother of Aldous (best known for his 1932 novel 'Brave New World'), was the first director of the United Nations (UN) Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). He was also the President of the British Eugenics Society.
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is a set of international development goals from 2016 to 2030, which was adopted by the UN Sustainable Development Summit held in September 2015 which built on the success of Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
Sustainable Development = The Great Reset!
The Huxley's are one big satanic clan. Julian was one of the big promotors of transhumanism. Thomas Henry Huxley was one of Darwin's elite buddies, defending his satanic evolution theory hoax and was nicknamed 'Darwins Bulldog'.
In 1956, Julian Huxley’s relative and MKULTRA Australia coordinator, Leonard G.H. Huxley, was elected to the Council of the AAS and he became Vice-President the following year. During this time, the headquarters of ASSA were located on the grounds of the ANU in Canberra, which Leonard was the Chairman of. ASSA was also influenced by the Carnegie Corporation and the pro-eugenics UNESCO which Julian Huxley founded. The ASSA council met with the heads of UNESCO Australia in October, 1956 and worked together to decide the direction of their eugenics program in Australia.
Strehlow would go on to contribute the ‘Aborigines Project’ at ASSA with contributions from MKULTRA Doctors Ronald Taft and John Phillip Sutcliffe. The project was headed by Charles D. Rowley who was a founder and principal of the previously mentioned intelligence front, ASOPA.
Leonard G.H. Huxley also supported weaponized anthropology outside of the AAS. In 1965 Huxley was the head of the Australian Fulbright Scholarship program at USEFA, which transferred MKULTRA doctors between Australia and the USA. In that year, Huxley accepts an application for a Scholarship from Dr. John D. McCaffrey from Stanford University. One of McCaffrey’s references was Gregory Bateson, a founder of the CIA and Project MKULTRA.
McCaffrey’s proposed research outlined a visual approach where he would record feedback from Aborigines in the form of their artwork.[19] This study mirrored an unethical MKULTRA experiment by U.S. Military Doctor, Alexander H. Leighton at the Japanese War Relocation Center at Poston in the Mojave Desert.[20] Both studies aimed to learn about the concept of feedback which is important in understanding human personality. The role of feedback was discovered in a brainwashing experiment at McCaffrey’s Stanford University.
The Institute of Psychiatry at Maudlsey Hospital – A base of Australian MKULTRA operations.
In 1936, Julian Huxley’s friend Julian Treveleyan, took part in a mescaline study at the Institute of Psychiatry (IoP) at the Maudsley Hospital in London. Trevelyan’s son suggests Julian Huxley tipped him off about the experiment. Julian Huxley’s brother Aldous later wrote ‘The Doors of Perception’, which detailed his experiences after taking mescaline. Treveleyan and the Huxley’s were distantly related as he later married the great-granddaughter of Charles Darwin.
Much of the IoP’s pre-WW2 finance came from the Rockefeller Foundation which enabled an exchange of doctors between the Maudsley and Nazi Germany. The IoP was originally a competitor to the notorious Tavistock clinic until it came under Tavistock control when the British Army & Intelligence crowd, including Dr. John Rawlings Rees and Eric Trist, started operating out of here. Julian Huxley later promoted the work of Dr. Eliot Slater at the IoP. At this point in time, Slater was the Vice-Chair of the British Eugenics Society and had a long history of working closely with MKULTRA Doctor, William Sargant.
From the late 50’s onward, the IoP was the home of MKULTRA Sub-project 111, directed by Dr. Hans J. Eysenck. According to the book Undiscovered Paul Robeson: Quest for Freedom, Maudsley Hospital was the “staging ground for European and African MKULTRA operations”. There is evidence that strongly suggests it was also a staging ground for Australian operations.
As Dr. Peter W. Sheehan explained, Prof. John Sutcliffe was the driving force behind MKULTRA Hypnosis research coming to Australia at The University of Sydney through his connections with Martin Orne. Prior to this, Sutcliffe was in contact with Eysenck who was Director of Subproject 111 at the time. Eysenck was an influential member of the British Psychological Society and so was an Australian Army Psychologist, Donald W. McElwain, who had carried out psychological experiments at Maudsley in the early 50’s. It’s no coincidence that McElwain was the President of the Australian Branch of the British Psychological Society at this time (1958-1959).
While Eysenck had influence over Sutcliffe, Wendy A.F. Thorn was a student in Sutcliffe’s department studying hypnosis and multiple personality disorder with MKULTRA Sub-project 84 Doctor, Frederick J. Evans. She would later engage in research financed by the Australian Branch of the British Psychological Society (with assistance from Eysenck) at Leonard Huxley’s Australian National University, before travelling over to the IoP to begin research with Eysenck himself.
The funding that helped Martin Orne establish Sub-project 84 at The University of Sydney was recieved through the Human Ecology Fund, specifically under a project titled, ‘Attitude Formation, Decision Matrices’. Eysenck also recieved his Sub-project 111 finance under the same title. It seems that both Sub-projects 84 and 111 were related and both had influence over Australian operations.
In 1975, Dr. Martin Seligman went to the IoP at Maudsley on a ‘sabbatical’. It was here he was introduced to Eysenck and worked with IoP staff to study phobias and obsessions while developing his Learned Helplessness theory which later became the basis of the CIA’s 2001 torture program. Dr. Stanley Rachman was at the IoP at this time and he had published studies with Seligman that helped to develop his theory. Seligman’s work at the IoP was in the same year that Kidman was involved with Learned Helplessness research on sheep in Australia. In 1977, Eysenck gave a lecture at The University of Sydney on his Australian tour.
Other Australian Maudsley connections are apparent from William Sargant’s involvement at the hospital. It was Sargant that had influence over the serial killer and MKULTRA Doctor, Harry Bailey. Dr. Ardie Lubin was based at the IoP until he left to study with Dr. Jacqueline Goodnow at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research.[53][54] Shortly after these studies, Jacquline Goodnow and her husband Robert would be working with Dr. John Gittinger at Psychological Assessments Associates (PAA) – before coming back to Australia in 1972. Their official association with PAA didn’t end until 1974, around the same time Fiona Barnett alleges Gittinger was in Australia working with Dr. Antony Kidman.
Nicole Kidman recently created the ‘Dr. Antony Kidman Scholarship in Health Psychology’ at the IoP. This could only be a coincidence if you have your eyes wide shut…
In March this year, Nicole paid a visit to the IoP (now the IoPPN) to create the ‘Dr Antony Kidman Scholarship in Health Psychology’. This was made in memory of her father who died less than a month after MKULTRA Victim, Fiona Barnett, complained to the Australian Health Practitioners Regulatory Agency (AHPRA) about Antony’s abuse.
In that complaint, Fiona alleged that Antony Kidman and Australian Theater Legend, John Bell raped her at a party in 1984 at the Kidman Family House in North Sydney. Fiona also alleges that Nicole witnessed Antony physically assault her the morning after while shouting, “Do you remember, now?!” until Fiona said “No.”. Fiona suffered from Multiple Personality Disorder (or Dissociative Identity Disorder) as a result of abuse like this.
Possibly due to her real world experience, Nicole later played a psychologist in ‘Batman Forever’ who specializes in Multiple Personality Disorder.
Australian Positive Psychology & Buddhism conference has multiple links to the CIA.
Since 2006, a series of yearly conferences that jointly promote Buddhism and Positive Psychology have been held in Sydney. They’re called the ‘Happiness and It’s Causes’ conferences and the chief organizer is the Dalai Lama (via the Vajrayana Institute). The Dalai Lama is a well documented CIA asset with a long history of financial support from the agency.[60] Interestingly, the first conference was held in the Sydney Masonic Centre. The featured line up usually includes a mixture of Positive Psychology promoting psychologists, Buddhist scholars, monks and a few Australian Broadcasting Corporation employees. These journalists and media figures promote Positive Psychology, Buddhism and other attendees in their own time.
In 2008, CIA Doctors Seligman and Kidman attended the conference and gave talks which promoted Positive Psychology and its potential role in education.[63] School Principal of Geelong Grammar, Stephen Meek, was also in attendance and he was also selling the idea of ‘Positive Schools’. Meek was the first School Principal in Australia have approved the program. In 2015, Meek told the Child Abuse Royal Commission that he was more interested in protecting his schools reputation than exposing pedophiles existing within his school.
Two CIA assets promote Positive Psychology & Buddhism at a conference in Sydney.
Kidman’s emissary, Dr Sarah Edelman was there in 2007 with the Dalai Lama. (You can find Edelman’s meditation CD’s for sale at the Theosophical Society. Meditation can lead to mania, depression and psychosis.) Australian False Memory Association Advisor & Associate of Dr. Martin Orne, Dr. Graham Burrows, was also in attendance.
Another 2007 speaker was B. Alan Wallace who is an expert in Tibetan Buddhism from Stanford University. Wallace works on the on the Cultivating Emotional Balance project with CIA & Military psychologist Paul Ekman and his daughter Eve Ekman. The Dalai Lama is a strong supporter of this project, having played a crucial role in its creation in 2000. Another speaker to be at the conferences was Bob Carr, who is a previous attendee of the Bohemian Grove and a CIA supporter.
This years event headlined Eve Ekman.[78] She’s the daughter of former Chief Psychologist of the United States Army, Paul Ekman who owns the Paul Ekman Group, which has worked with the CIA and FBI. Eve works for her father’s group and so does an, ex-Secret Service, ex-Army Interrogation & PSYOP expert, Paul Kelly, as the Director of Law Enforcement and Security workshops in the USA.[81] Vice-President John Pearse is also connected with intelligence, working for the Anti-Terrorist Branch at New Scotland Yard in London and he has been responsible for the design and delivery of a number of counter-terrorism seminars.
In the late 1960’s, Paul Ekman worked alongside The University of Western Australia (UWA) on weaponized anthropology in Papua New Guinea.[83] At this time, UWA was a hub of MKULTRA research with Prof. Ronald Taft making use of his CIA money in similar studies. Interestingly, Ekman’s research was on the exact same tribe that Dr. Leonas Petrauskas, Dr. Vin Zigas and Dr. Carelton Gadjusek had focused their MKNAOMI linked research on. Ekman’s finance for this study came from the Advanced Projects Research Agency (ARPA) and the Air Force Office of Scientific Research.
Just a year after working with the Dalai Lama to create the CEB project, Ekman was approached to join the CIA’s torture program that started at Martin Seligman’s house. Ekman denies joining the program, however he does admit his research assists interrogators. The Ekman Group offers training to detect lies and analyse body language which becomes useful for interrogation and mind control purposes.
Could Positive Psychology be MKULTRA Mind Control?
The term ‘Positive Psychology’ was coined by MKULTRA doctor, Abraham Maslow to describe his work. Albert Ellis was the “unsung hero of positive psychology” and gave a seminar at the CIA’s Esalen Institute in the 60’s to demonstrate his original work. Albert Ellis was influential in the careers of CIA Doctors & Positive Psychology pioneers, Dr. Martin Seligman and Dr. Antony Kidman.
Dr. Aaron T. Beck is the father of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) which was developed with Ellis and helped to form Positive Psychology.Beck was a Military Psychologist at Walter Reed Army Hospital who also went on to influence Seligman and Kidman. Beck ended up on the Advisory Board of the CIA’s False Memory Syndrome Foundation, having been personally invited by the head of MKULTRA Sub-project 84, Dr. Martin T. Orne.
In 1998, Martin Seligman introduced Positive Psychology in his first address as President of the American Psychological Association with his fellow APA member, Dr. Antony Kidman in attendance. Three years later, Seligman would use his life’s research to develop the torture program with the CIA and SERE (Survival, Evasion and Resistance and Escape). SERE is an organisation which was developed using MKULTRA research from the Kubark Manual and the Phoenix Program.
Positive Psychology is continuing to make its way into the Australian School System. In the 2015 Keynote Address of the Positive Schools Conference, Toni Noble, an attendee of the Happiness & it’s Causes Conferences and a lead author of the pro-paedophile ‘Safe Schools Framework‘, quoted the current director of ASIO and his desired need for ‘greater social cohesion’ to combat ‘youth militant extremism’. Noble proposed that Positive Psychology was the best way to achieve this objective.
“American Soldiers Brainwashed with Positive Thinking.”
A major red-flag against the introduction of such a program into schools would be the fact that the U.S. Military paid Seligman over $30 million dollars to create the ‘Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Program’ in 2008. This program was a blatantly unethical research project that used the guise of a fitness program to hide its true intentions. It effectively threw away the soldiers right to informed consent and turned them into human-guinea pigs. In this experiment, soldiers were taught to how to think and respond more obediently with the aid of Positive Psychology, rather than use their own critical thinking. The U.S. Army admits the purpose of this was an attempt to make an ‘indomitable army’.
One component of the program was ‘Spiritual Fitness’. This inappropriately forced the idea that religion was essential to achieve better mental health. Positive Psychology promotes Buddhism from within its own core tenets and just like the conferences in Sydney, this seems to be an attempt to blur the lines between Eastern philosophy and Psychology.
In his criticism of Seligman’s Positive Psychology, Dr. Kirk J. Schneider has shown that high levels of positive thinking correlate with Positive Illusion, which distorts reality:
“What the researchers don’t help us to understand-and what will be essential to understand if we are ever to substantively broach human vitality-is how positivity ratios also appear to correlate with destructive human tendencies. For example, a growing body of research appears to suggest that what the researchers call high positivity-a disposition to pleasant, grateful, and upbeat feelings-is also correlative with a dimension called “positive illusion” (relative inaccuracy regarding reality); and that negativity (or what is generally characterized as mild to moderate depression) is correlated with relatively greater accuracy concerning reality. These findings, moreover, also appear to square with recent correlations between highly positive people and suppressed psychological growth, inability to self-reflect, and racial intolerance.”
When we have a thought and behaviour modification program being implemented into schools that was designed by an MKULTRA Doctor and used for the purposes of mind-control by the CIA and the U.S. Military – organizations which have both been behind the largest mind control operations in history to be used on innocent civilians – it seems obvious that it might not actually be trying to improve peoples lives. Positive Psychology and Positive Schools will only serve to further reduce the ability of people to critically think and understand reality. These negative effects are consistent with the goals of the eugenics project we know as MKULTRA.

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2024.05.17 18:49 VisualPersonality350 AITBA for ignoring and yelling at my friend

I (13F) have been friends with this person who we'll call C(13F) for about 9 years. This year she was put in my class at school. Everything was fine for about a month. I then started to realise what she is actually like. Coughing directly in my face, stealing from the lost and found, pressuring this one kid into giving her his things everyday, not doing her work and copying mine, taking my things and so on. I haven’t really said much about it except the theft and pressuring but she didn’t listen.
About a month ago, my teacher gave my class an activity where we had to write all about ourselves. One of those sections we had to fill in was who our best friends were. Now, all of my friends know that I am besties with who we'll call TB and LB. So obviously that's who I wrote for my besties. C proceeded to grab my worksheet and look at who I wrote under besties. She then saw that I hadn't written her name down and got so upset because, I quote, "We've been friends for 9 years, I've known you longer than LB and TB. I should be your bestie." I've always been besties with LB and TB and like I said all my friends know that but I was really upset at her after that and I sort of ignored her because I feel it's not her choice who is my best friend.
About 2 weeks ago we were given a task where we had to make a video. The teacher allowed us to either be in a pair or do it individually. I wanted to do it by myself but C wanted to do it together, so i told her that I would like to do this task alone because we live so far away from each other but she was not happy with this answer. Everyday for about a week C would try and pressure me into doing it with her and everyday I would tell her no.
The next week C missed a day of school and we got a task ( this was an individual task). The next day when C was back she kept on asking me what she was supposed to do and I told her to ask the teacher because I was busy. C then said and I quote, “ Wow, so you’re just going to leave me to figure this out by myself. That’s not being a very good friend.” She said this in a very rude tone and the teacher had also explained it to her but she chose to not listen. I lost it with her, I said, “ Listen, I am not obligated to help you with this task. I have told you to ask the teacher if you are confused but you keep bothering me even though you can clearly see that I am busy.” She got up and left to sit with some other girls in my class and I haven’t spoken to her since.
Today we were in class and I was busy taking notes and C randomly comes and sits next to me. She then says, “What is your problem, why do you keep ignoring me.” I then tell her to talk to me later because I am busy. She then starts yelling at me and saying I’m stubborn, rude and shouldn’t have ignored her question. She then says that she won’t talk to me until I sort myself out and then stormed off to some other girls. I then heard her telling the girls how rude I was to her. I didn’t say anything.
Near the end of the school day, C is sitting next to me (she had to because she can’t change seats and she chose to sit next to me at the beginning of the year) She then starts asking the same question from earlier and let me also add that the principal was in class talking to our teacher and we have a rule (not sure if other schools also do this) if a teacher is talking to someone else, a teacher is teaching the lesson or the teacher is out of the classroom we are supposed to keep quiet. So of course I tell her to talk to me after the principal leaves. She then gets really mad and saying, I quote, “can’t you just answer my question. You are so rude and stubborn.” I ignored her.
The teacher then left the classroom and she again asked. I told her that we can’t talk when the teacher isn’t in class. She then gets extremely upset and says, I quote, “You know, you are actually so rude. You can’t even answer my question. You can’t just ignore me forever I am trying to solve the problem and you are just making it worse.” I told her, “We can’t talk now and if I’m making it worse you should just leave me alone.” She then got up and started gossiping about me to the girls in my class.
I haven’t told anyone this except my mum.
But I really need to know
Am I The Bad Apple ?
Edit: I also realised that C had a falling out with a friend about a year ago and all her friends now hate her and I am pretty much her only friend. I do also have other friends to go to but she doesn't and I don't really want to leave her without anyone but the way she is acting is really getting on my nerves. I'm not sure if this helps my case but I feel it could alter the decision.

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2024.05.17 18:34 Unusual-Substance-11 AITA for cutting off a friend because she sent videos of me smoking and getting my belly pierced to my principal?

I am a 16 year old girl and last year I was in the biggest friend group in my school, there wasn’t much that was kept secret and out of 8 of us , 7 of us wanted to go get our belly piercing without our parents knowing. The girl who didn’t come (let’s call her Bella)didn’t seem upset but she would always be in her own world. She was the friend of the group where she makes all the decisions and doesn’t allow us to do things she didn’t like . So me and my other friends went to go get them pierced . At the place we ended up smoking a little bit . Later that day we sent all the videos to the friend group and we’re having so much fun talking about it and how it was a great memory to have. This was all last year and last week I got called into the office. No one else , just me , my dad showed up and my principal sent the videos to him. I know it was a bad things to do without parents knowing but it’s not something you would send to everyone (my principal) I later confronted Bella but she said and I quote “it’s for good”. And that she still wanted to be friends . So I ended up cutting her off because she completely broke my trust . She called me immature and over reacting and the whole friend group is taking her side.
AITA?

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2024.05.17 07:21 CautiousWolf5747 What Ninjago quote should I use for my yearbook quote?

I'll pick the one with most upvotes in the comments.
https://preview.redd.it/9xbc2jyv8x0d1.jpg?width=330&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=84233a5b57289534bdb594dc8071649c0fced961

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2024.05.17 03:09 Run4theRoses2 " I strongly Believe Gps will achieve its End Point" Dr. Tsirigotis who treats nearly 10% of the actual Phase 3 trial patients, - Unblinded, FDA Registrational Trial Results are now Due

- Literally will be any day now.

Phase 3 Immunotherapy Trial Results Imminently Due - and we already know the outcome. The quote above, Jan 3rd 2024 from a doctor who treats nearly 10% of the imminently due phase 3 trial patients.
Current short, manipulated market cap: $57M. 65M shares float 100m all in.

A Fda greenlight for Gps immunotherapy, to treat 25,000 AML remission patients each year, is worth Multiple billions.
The Phase 3 Regal Steering Committee said the Unblinded Results are Imminent
Unblinded Phase 3 Fda registrational trial results are now due, the whole market, is about to find out what a few already know.

SLS began the GPs Immunotherapy Phase 3 REGAL Trial for Secondary AML Remission patients in Jan 2020, two months before the Global Pandemic closed every blood cancer clinic on the planet for 16 months. Covid cost SLS tons of time and money.
Then in Nov 2022, SlS disclosed trial results would be delayed another year because "patients were living 2 Fold Longer than projected", All pooled OS is about 16 months and more than double the required OS for Fda approval. Short interests have held a grip on SLS Share price knowing sls would need to raise cash. Their time is now up

It's been a Long Road and now at the Finish Line.

The chair of md andersons leukemia dept., leading the steering committee says to expect the p3 results any day now, based on data review cutoff March 1, 66 patients had discontinued treatment due to relapse or death, these patients who relapse refractory to AZA Ven, aka Best Available Treatment for the Control arm, have a Max Os of 2 to 3 months, its May 16th. The 60th Patient death triggers the unblinded analysis for statistical efficacy. Gps has built in Pre approval per the SAP, all Gps needs for the fda green light is 12.6 months of os - its close to 24.
Gps immunotherapy is about to get approval to treat 25,000 AML Remission patients. The CCo published $260K Per Patient Pricing Comps - a $6B TAM for this Sub 100M nanocap.
Gps Phase 3 Unblinded Results are now due - any day now - (along with 009 Phase 2 data Due in Q2 SLS's Second Asset) data that brings it up to the same point as $kura and $sndx are, both 2b companies, worth nearly 2B.
Imminently Due. This QUARTER
Jan 3rd, from Dr. Tsirigotis who treats nearly 10% of the Regal p3 patients

“REGAL study is for patients in second or beyond second remission and just to remind these patients have an extremely poor outcome because the median survival is in the order of 5 to 7 months... the majority of hematologist prefers to use as BAT the combination Aza/Ven which is a toxic combination and its administration is associated with negative consequences that I briefly mentioned before' And again...'GPS administration is very easy... “
“ I am not allowed to give you much more detail about the efficacy because of the confidentiality agreement, but I can say to you and I would like to thank Sellas, because I have enrolled personally more than 10 patients into this trial and I can say to you that GPS is an extremely safe drug and I did not see any systemic toxicity...our GPS patients have an excellent quality of life...l strongly believe that GPS will reach the primary end point of this study, but please allow me not to give anymore other details to you and finally I just want to say to you that if..., which I strongly believe and I eagerly await for the results, but if... and I believe so...if the GPS shows the expected survival advantage then you can imagine that it will revolutionize the field of AML treatment because then we have to anticipate that this drug will be used for cr1 and post stem cell."

18 months deep into the P3, Dr. Kantarjian, the Chair of MD Andersons Leukemia Dept., who's running the trial, and sees actual patients, requested Expanded Access to Gps for aml patients in primary aml.
Dr. Yair Levy, the Dir of Hematological Research at Baylor Medical, stated point blank, control patients on best available treatments have an os of only 6 months.
Dr Jamy, who also treats actual REGAL P3 patients stated os for control patients is only 6 months.
Assume these Drs are correct, Dr Jamy (look up his published papers ) control arm os of 6 months, Dr levy the Dir of hematological research at Baylor Med. said os for az ven cr2 is only 6 months, Dr. kantarjian the Chair of MD Andersons leukemia dept., running the global p3, treats actual patients requested expanded access to gps, and of course dr tsirigotis who treats almost 10% of the p3 patients, stated os for control arm patients is dismal, 5-7 months.
Assume they are correct - then Gps os is about 24 months - given we know all pooled os, control + Gps is about 16 from the Regal update.
I expect we will see multiple trading halts, in pre, and a gap up at the open into the 14.47 range -just about a billion in market value on the way to a 6-8b buyout.The fda green light just for the 10,000 aml patients in second remission opens up a $2.6BTAM - big pharmas trade at 4x price to sales -- this alone is worth 9/10b max value.
When the imminently due P3 result is announced - this quarter - in Q1 - its a binary result, 12.6 months of os for gps w bat at 8 and its a done deal. Gps is getting the fda green light, instantly adding billions in real market value for shareholders. It will be impossible for the short team to manipulate the share price when it's known beyond a doubt gps will be generating billions in revenue.
Very rare to have an Imminent phase 3 trial result and even more rare to already know the outcome.

The kol call is still linked in the jan 3rd corp update.(below) From the Dr. who treats nearly 10% of the Regal p3 patients “REGAL study is for patients in second or beyond second remission and just to remind these patients have an extremely poor outcome because the median survival is in the order of 5 to 7 months... the majority of hematologist prefers to use as BAT the combination Aza/Ven which is a toxic combination.."

Again for context: we know from the Nov 2022 Regal Update, all pooled phase 3 regal patients have an os of 16 months.
All pooled, meaning control arm on bat and Gps patients combined have a median os of 16 months. Dr. T just said his control arm patients have an os of 5-7, which means Gps patient os is about 24, close to the statistically significant P2 results and nearly double what is required for fda approval, per the nov sap.
2019 - Phase 2 Follow up results for AML Remission patients on Gps Immunotherapy achieved Statistically Significant Overall Survival of 21 months.
From the Phase 3 Trial Launch January 2020
“We are excited to begin this late-stage Phase 3 program with GPS in AML. Earlier studies have positioned this agent to be a potentially effective approach in prolonging survival by delaying or preventing recurrence in patients in complete remission, most of whom harbor measurable residual disease and have a poor prognosis if they are unable to undergo allotransplant. We are hopeful that this new immunotherapeutic vaccine approach will improve outcomes in this patient population, which is at a very high risk of leukemic relapse,” said Hagop M. Kantarjian, MD, Professor and Chair of the Department of Leukemia at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, and principal investigator of the upcoming Phase 3 AML clinical development program. "
Jan 3rd KOL Link Dr Tsirigotis
https://viavid.webcasts.com/vieweevent.jsp?ei=1647788&tp_key=4e93ad079f
https://www.sellaslifesciences.com/investors/news/News-Details/2024/SELLAS-Provides-Corporate-Updates-and-Highlights-Key-Upcoming-Milestones/default.aspx
https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/991927
https://preview.redd.it/fm6ks8iqzv0d1.png?width=2492&format=png&auto=webp&s=ee499fe5284a684bc1cce3023b785002576d95cd

submitted by Run4theRoses2 to sellaslifesciences [link] [comments]

2024.05.17 00:36 CheeseIsVeryYummy Am I ready to buy a home?

Hey all, I am relatively still relatively early in my current career (5 years in the industry) I’m doing some number crunching since I am eyeing on a standalone townhouse that is in a HCOL area. Bank estimates the total monthly payment (as of last week) is 4650/months (principal, interest, PMI, insurance, and taxes). My net income monthly is 7200. For the property, I expect there are some things that need to be done within the next couple of year, like replacing the roof (it looks worn), water heater replacement, and changing out the carpet. There are some moisture damage near the doors/sliding doors and the thermals in the skylight need replacing, but those shouldn't be deal breakers and are easily fixable. My rent is currently very low, which is why I am able to save so much.
Finances -
125k cash (I plan on using all of this for down payment)
110k in taxable brokerages (most are long term securities , roughly 50% in company stocks from RSUs)
Debt obligations:
I have a car loan-$431/mo. 42 payments remaining. 5% interest. Payoff quote is 16k, which I can totally pay off right now, but probably not best because of taxes — money is tied up in taxable brokerage accounts (see above). My parents have graciously offered to help me pay this monthly amount in the interim until I have more cash on hand to pay them back (like from yearly bonuses). They think I shouldn’t liquidate some of the brokerage accounts because stock will go up
Expenses (per month)

Gas -> roughly $120. Gas is fairly expensive here. Summer time is here so I expect to do a lot more driving. Maybe maximum 150. My car’s fuel efficiency is insanely good for the vehicle type
Groceries -> $250-300. I care a lot about what I eat. Nutrition is very important to me and I am not willing to skimp out on this unless it’s the last resort
Car Insurance -> $115. I’m due to renew the policy and I was quoted $691/6 mo.
Utilities (watesewage, garbage, gas, electricity, internet) -> probably $350. I currently pay about $170 a month, already split with a roommate. So I just doubled that to get a rough estimate
Car tab renewal $60 -> I have no idea?? - I think renewal would be $600-700 per year. It’s a new vehicle so I’ll find out when the time comes.

Please let me know if I have forgotten anything major here.
Total bare minimum expenses: $945/mo
So on top of the total payment for the property and the bare minimum expenses, that leaves me with $7200-$4700-$945 = $1555.
Take $1000 for general savings, leaving me with $555 to enjoy life. I can probably pull this off if I prioritize things that are important to me rather than being somewhat free for all currently haha
Questions for you fellow redditors:

Do you think my math checks out here? Am I overextending? I’m not sure if I will be “house poor”. Feels like the debt to income ratio is high here, but this would mean owning a property in a very lucrative area
I’m tempted to liquidate my most of the brokerage accounts. Since the securities I’m selling are long-term investments, I should be taxed at 0% rate, right? Research shows that it is 0% for up to 47,025. So I will liquidate that amount and move it over to a savings fund (essentially converting it to emergency fund - money market at 5%). Will likely do the rest in 2025. Is this smart idea? If I do that, then I plan on upping the down payment to 20% and avoid PMI
What’s the thought on decreasing 401k contribution to help with liquidity? My company has a generous match which is $0.50 for every $1 contributed, up to the maximum for traditional 401k. So when I decrease my contribution here, I’m essentially leaving out “free money” on the table here. It’s don’t know what’s better - build equity with property, or maybe miss out on the potential (compounded) gains with the decreased contribution?

Thanks all

submitted by CheeseIsVeryYummy to personalfinance [link] [comments]

2024.05.16 23:14 ghostunderthestairs YEARBOOK QUOTES??

GUYS HELP I ONLY JUST FOUND OUT TODAY WE'RE DOING YEARBOOK QUOTES I WANT SOME REALLY FUNNY ONES THAT BUT I HAVE NO CLUE
https://preview.redd.it/4ozor4mxtu0d1.png?width=842&format=png&auto=webp&s=6d92c7d841b0f28b5e82493593e8851bb5b2b02c

submitted by ghostunderthestairs to GCSE [link] [comments]

2024.05.16 20:30 Particular-Extent107 I struggle with ADHD and Autism: How can I approach advocating for my pay, benefits, and seniority?

Need advice ! Family owned agency decreasing benefits, pay, and over looking seniority.
I 24 have been working for a family owned agency for about 3 years. Started at 17 an hour with a matched 401k. Off weekends as a csr. found interest in getting licensed. The benefits at the time out weighted so I dived in.
We are an independent brokerage working with about 5 standard carriers and access to over 30 non standard carriers. We primarily handle P&C as well as all court ordered bonds. We have some goals I believe around 10k a month in premium. But they rarely do checkins or accountability.
Over time I was I given additional tasks outside of my original duties of answering the phone and servicing clients. Just before passing my insurance exam I was taking care of all of the service work for all of the agents that work in our agency (3) as well as essentially being a personal assistant to our agency principal from scheduling meetings, over seeing his schedule, and even attending networking meetings in his place. as well as handling the surety bonds billing, filing, and notating.
After a year I received a dollar raise to 18. Shortly after I was officially licensed in P&C. I was then beginning to receive lists of quotes from our agency principal and expected to completely quote renewals with explanation on the coverages and why I chose certain endorsements for “ practice and experience” but no compensation for helping. On top of all of the additional day to day work.
Eventually I began building my personal book of business and this was becoming impossible to juggle.
This carried on for months until October of 23 when our principal finally decided to hire in for my position and move me to a full time producer roll. ( there was only me handling all things insurance and bond related for almost 2 years)
Now I am building my book of business while still running quotes for my supervisor with no additional percentage for helping.
They have me networking twice a week.
Tuesdays and Wednesdays I spend 3 hours straight driving around and stopping into spaces to get leads. They tried to convince me that it’s better to claim the mileage on my taxes at the end of the year than to receive a stipend for gas. I am not sure what the standard is so I didn’t say anything
This move changed me to a salary and commissioned producer. This is where my issues really begin. I am salary but making less due to the consideration of commission. I was at about 1200 every two weeks and now I am about 800. Which has been tough because my commission isn’t stable. Also After switching and because I am being paid differently I was kicked from the 401k program.
No 401k and no insurance. They have been “ trying” to get things set up but that was back in October. It’s now may and I haven’t accrued any additional retirement.
They are additionally making changes to our vacation and personal time in our handbook. Bringing my vacation time down to only 5 days a year. also removing pay from personal time and only 3 sick days for a whole calendar year!
To top it all off they have hired in two additional part timers that start soon with raises after 6 months, starting at 22 dollars an hour. The one girl monitors the agency principals application work for him and the other part-time marketing cultivation sending out letters and making calls.
I am looking for additional opinions on how I should self advocate regarding my pay, workload , and time off.
I feel that it is long over due but because I struggle with ADHD and I am on the spectrum self advocating can be a huge challenge for me.
Outside of getting a percentage of commission for call ins. There doesn’t a seem to be many benefits staying with the agency.

submitted by Particular-Extent107 to careerguidance [link] [comments]

2024.05.16 19:41 MournfulWhispering elliott smith yearbook quote ideas

hello I’m graduating next month, so I was thinking of using “You can do what you want to, there’s no one to stop you.” as my yearbook quote, but I’m not sure if there’s other ones that are great for a yearbook quote like this one is since his songs are really sad

submitted by MournfulWhispering to elliottsmith [link] [comments]

2024.05.16 19:37 Particular-Extent107 Need advice ! Family owned agency decreasing benefits, pay, and over looking seniority.

Need advice ! Family owned agency decreasing benefits, pay, and over looking seniority.
I 24 have been working for a family owned agency for about 3 years. Started at 17 an hour with a matched 401k. Off weekends as a csr. found interest in getting licensed. The benefits at the time out weighted so I dived in.
We are an independent brokerage working with about 5 standard carriers and access to over 30 non standard carriers. We primarily handle P&C as well as all court ordered bonds. We have some goals I believe around 10k a month in premium. But they rarely do checkins or accountability.
Over time I was I given additional tasks outside of my original duties of answering the phone and servicing clients. Just before passing my insurance exam I was taking care of all of the service work for all of the agents that work in our agency (3) as well as essentially being a personal assistant to our agency principal from scheduling meetings, over seeing his schedule, and even attending networking meetings in his place. as well as handling the surety bonds billing, filing, and notating.
After a year I received a dollar raise to 18. Shortly after I was officially licensed in P&C. I was then beginning to receive lists of quotes from our agency principal and expected to completely quote renewals with explanation on the coverages and why I chose certain endorsements for “ practice and experience” but no compensation for helping. On top of all of the additional day to day work.
Eventually I began building my personal book of business and this was becoming impossible to juggle.
This carried on for months until October of 23 when our principal finally decided to hire in for my position and move me to a full time producer roll. ( there was only me handling all things insurance and bond related for almost 2 years)
Now I am building my book of business while still running quotes for my supervisor with no additional percentage for helping.
They have me networking twice a week.
Tuesdays and Wednesdays I spend 3 hours straight driving around and stopping into spaces to get leads. They tried to convince me that it’s better to claim the mileage on my taxes at the end of the year than to receive a stipend for gas. I am not sure what the standard is so I didn’t say anything
This move changed me to a salary and commissioned producer. This is where my issues really begin. I am salary but making less due to the consideration of commission. I was at about 1200 every two weeks and now I am about 800. Which has been tough because my commission isn’t stable. Also After switching and because I am being paid differently I was kicked from the 401k program.
No 401k and no insurance. They have been “ trying” to get things set up but that was back in October. It’s now may and I haven’t accrued any additional retirement.
They are additionally making changes to our vacation and personal time in our handbook. Bringing my vacation time down to only 5 days a year. also removing pay from personal time and only 3 sick days for a whole calendar year!
To top it all off they have hired in two additional part timers that start soon with raises after 6 months, starting at 22 dollars an hour. The one girl monitors the agency principals application work for him and the other part-time marketing cultivation sending out letters and making calls.
I am looking for additional opinions on how I should self advocate regarding my pay, workload , and time off. I feel that it is long over due but because I struggle with ADHD and I am on the spectrum self advocating can be a huge challenge for me.
Outside of getting a percentage of commission for call ins. There doesn’t a seem to be many benefits staying with the agency.

submitted by Particular-Extent107 to Insurance [link] [comments]

2024.05.16 18:22 Particular-Extent107 Need advice ! Family owned agency decreasing benefits, pay, and over looking seniority.

I 24 have been working for a family owned agency for about 3 years. Started at 17 an hour with a matched 401k. Off weekends as a csr. found interest in getting licensed. The benefits at the time out weighted so I dived in.
Over time I was I given additional tasks outside of my original duties of answering the phone and servicing clients. Just before passing my insurance exam I was taking care of all of the service work for all of the agents that work in our agency (3) as well as essentially being a personal assistant to our agency principal from scheduling meetings, over seeing his schedule, and even attending networking meetings in his place. as well as handling the surety bonds billing, filing, and notating.
After a year I received a dollar raise to 18. Shortly after I was officially licensed in P&C. I was then beginning to receive lists of quotes from our agency principal and expected to completely quote renewals with explanation on the coverages and why I chose certain endorsements for “ practice and experience” but no compensation for helping. On top of all of the additional day to day work.
Eventually I began building my personal book of business and this was becoming impossible to juggle.
This carried on for months until October of 23 when our principal finally decided to hire in for my position and move me to a full time producer roll. ( there was only me handling all things insurance and bond related for almost 2 years)
Now I am building my book of business while still running quotes for my supervisor with no additional percentage for helping.
They have me networking twice a week.
Tuesdays and Wednesdays I spend 3 hours straight driving around and stopping into spaces to get leads. They tried to convince me that it’s better to claim the mileage on my taxes at the end of the year than to receive a stipend for gas. I am not sure what the standard is so I didn’t say anything
This move changed me to a salary and commissioned producer. This is where my issues really begin. I am salary but making less due to the consideration of commission. I was at about 1200 every two weeks and now I am about 800. Which has been tough because my commission isn’t stable. Also After switching and because I am being paid differently I was kicked from the 401k program.
No 401k and no insurance. They have been “ trying” to get things set up but that was back in October. It’s now may and I haven’t accrued any additional retirement.
They are additionally making changes to our vacation and personal time in our handbook. Bringing my vacation time down to only 5 days a year. also removing pay from personal time and only 3 sick days for a whole calendar year!
To top it all off they have hired in two additional part timers that start soon with raises after 6 months, starting at 22 dollars an hour. The one girl monitors the agency principals application work for him and the other part-time marketing cultivation sending out letters and making calls.
I am looking for additional opinions on how I should self advocate regarding my pay, workload , and time off. I feel that it is long over due but because I struggle with ADHD and I am on the spectrum self advocating can be a huge challenge for me.
Outside of getting a percentage of commission for call ins. There doesn’t a seem to be many benefits staying with the agency.

submitted by Particular-Extent107 to InsuranceAgent [link] [comments]

2024.05.16 18:06 Serious-Respect-8065 Is AOR enough for next inland spousal sponsorship steps with QC government (MIFI)?

Hello everyone! I am the principal applicant in the spousal sponsorship (applied on 2024-04-27). My husband received the AOR today, 2024-05-16 (literally an email that states that IRCC received the application). There was no request for additional documents or modifications, thankfully.
As we are located in Quebec and the website says "When Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) informs you that you are eligible to sponsor a person, you must submit an undertaking application to the Ministère de l’Immigration, de la Francisation et de l’Intégration (Ministry). The application must be accompanied by a permanent selection application for the person you want to sponsor.", I'd like to ask if the AOR is basically the sponsor approval letter or we should wait for something else. We have to submit an additional application with MIFI here and I'd like to know if we can use the AOR for this purpose. Does anyone know?
Also, while I'm at it, I might as well ask another question. I specifically submitted the application to be INLAND, therefore Spouse in Canada Class, however the email says, quote: "This confirms that your application to Sponsor a Member of the Family Class has been received." Is this a generic expression for the fact that I'm his wife?
Finally... if anyone else has gone through the inland sponsorship process in Quebec, I would greatly appreciate it if you'd tell me a short list of the documents (forms) you sent out to MIFI. Some of them don't seem to apply for our case and I have found some conflicting information, such as if the sponsorship is outland you have to submit extensive financial documents whereas if it's inland, not really.
Thanks very much in advance for every response, I will greatly appreciate it. Please excuse my ignorance/bad spelling & grammar in case I made any mistakes.

submitted by Serious-Respect-8065 to ImmigrationCanada [link] [comments]

2024.05.16 17:22 haygurlhay123 “This Time, I Will Never Let You Go”: Cloud’s Mission and the Hidden Purpose of the Remake Trilogy - Literary and Musical Analysis of FFVII - Part 6

(continuation of part 5)
Post-OG Cloud ruminates on what he could have done to save Aerith. Had he not been so lost in his own mind —distracted by Sephiroth and Jenova, consumed by his need to fulfill the emptiness at the core of his identity—, would he have paid more attention to Aerith’s sadness and anticipated her plan to go to the Forgotten Capital alone? Could she have survived if not for his obsession with what tormented him at the time? Could he have figured it out and kept her by his side? He’s angry with himself in retrospect, drowning in guilt, just like in Advent Children.
Here are the choruses, which usually contain the thesis main message of a song:

“Shine bright once more
Guide me to you
Smile bright once more
This time I will never let you go”

“Hear me once more
Show me your smile
This time for sure
I'll see the truth hidden inside your tears
But I, I know
That you're long gone
But I, I will
Go on, howling and hollow”

In these choruses, Cloud asserts that he will get it right this time (“this time” referring to the second chance that is the Remake trilogy). He will make sure he saves Aerith and never lets her go. He knows she’s gone, but he will fight against time to get her back. He longs for her smile and her light again, and he cannot bear the guilt: so he doesn’t. Post-OG Cloud embarks on a new adventure: ”I want to go to a place where everything is new,” said Cloud to Wol and Echo in Eclipse Contact before facing his past and being launched into Remake. “Hollow” makes far more sense now, doesn’t it? It’s a song not only about Cloud’s loss, but also about his determination to save Aerith this time. Given that it’s the theme song of Remake, the fact that “Hollow” fits with our theory perfectly is a very good sign: a theme song is meant to reflect the main plot of a story, indicating as our theory states that Remake is principally, albeit secretly, about Cloud saving Aerith. Because of this hope being set up, I’m confident that they will be together in the end, reunited for good. My dear Clerith friends, this is the hidden purpose of the Remake trilogy. Cloud and Aerith will be reunited.
VI. e) ii. “No Promises to Keep” Lyrics
This is quite obvious. Aerith is resigned to her fate, but still harbors hope that she will meet Cloud again in a permanent reunion:

“Till the day that we meet again
Where or when?
I wish I could say
But believe, know that you'll find me
[…]
Till the day that we meet again
On our street, I want to believe
[…]
Till the day that we meet again
At our place, just let me believe
In the chance that you'll come
Take my hand and never let me go
Take my hand
And believe
We can be
Together evermore
[…]
Still I hope someday you'll come and find me
Still I know someday you'll come and find me”.

VI. f) The Theme of Reunion Explained?
The last point I want to hit on is the concept of reunion. In OG, this theme was pretty much dominated by the Jenova Reunion. To an OG fan back in 1997, “reunion” meant “Sephiroth and Jenova’s evil plan”. However, in the Remake trilogy, the theme is expanded into something more. The first time Cloud meets Aerith in Remake, she gives him a flower and tells him something she didn’t in OG:

“Lovers used to give these when they were reunited...”

In addition, we’ve already talked about how part 5 of “Aerith’s Theme - The Cetra” from the Remake OST tells the story of Cloud and Aerith’s reunion (see section “V. b) ii. 2)”).
Many moments exclusive to the Remake trilogy serve the same purpose: linking the theme of reunion to Aerith. This expansion of the theme is highly significant. Our theory is that the Remake trilogy exists to reunite Cloud and Aerith, so the fact that the trilogy would implement so many Clerith-centric references to reunion is great support for our theory.
VI. g) i. The Leslie-Cloud Parallel
Let’s consider another instance involving the reunion flower in Remake, more precisely, the chapter 14 subplot surrounding Leslie’s lost lover. In case you need a refresher, Leslie is one of Corneo’s lackeys, although he secretly plans to betray him. He once had a fiancée and things were looking up until she was selected as one of Corneo’s brides. The day before she disappeared (presumably taken by Corneo), his fiancée broke up with him with no explanation. It was confusing and left Leslie perplex. As she broke up with him, she returned a necklace to him, one with a flower pendant. Of course, that flower is the very same reunion flower Aerith gives Cloud in chapter 2.
Evidently, Leslie and Cloud are going through parallel situations. At this point in time, Aerith was just kidnapped by Shinra, and Cloud is on his way to get her back. Both their loved ones have been taken by tyrant rulers, one being slumlord Corneo and the other being the Shinra government. In fact, even Leslie and Cloud’s attitudes share similar disillusioned, cold and stoic qualities. Leslie’s fiancée would evidently be paralleled by Aerith.
The most obvious proof of the Leslie-Cloud parallel is written plainly on the list of Remake’s chapter 14 main scenario objectives. Objective 7, called “For the Reunion”, consists of receiving the grappling guns needed to reach topside and save Aerith. The description of the objective reads as follows:

“Leslie gives them grappling guns, and they wish each other luck in reuniting with their respective loved ones. Leslie walks off, and the three prepare to climb the wall.”

The grappling guns are “For the Reunion”, because evidently, the loved one Cloud wants to reunite with is Aerith.
All this is simple and apparent enough. Just the fact that the theme of reunion is linked to Clerith in this way is proof enough, but there’s another layer to the Leslie-Cloud parallel. Not only does Leslie’s situation reinforce the concept of a Clerith reunion, it also mirrors the specifics of our theory: namely that Cloud will save Aerith from specifically Sephiroth (represented in Leslie’s scenario by Corneo) and that Cloud will take the initiative to accomplish this reunion. These two specific aspects of our theory are reflected by Leslie’s circumstances, meaning the Leslie-Cloud parallel not only pushes the theme of reunion, but also supports our specific theory.
VI. g) i. 1) The Separators: Corneo and Sephiroth
I’ll first prove that Leslie’s scenario is not meant to echo Cloud’s separation from Aerith at the hands of Shinra —or at least not exclusively—, but rather Cloud’s separation from Aerith at the hands of Sephiroth. Corneo would therefore be paralleled by Sephiroth rather than the tyrannical Shinra government.
The first piece of proof for the Corneo-Seohiroth parallel lies within the way in which Leslie’s fiancée broke things off: by lying. Aerith also lies to Cloud to create distance between them, but not pertaining to her kidnapping— rather, pertaining to her fated death. Since Sephiroth is Aerith’s killer and not Shinra, Corneo’s role in the Leslie-Cloud parallel is analogous to Sephiroth’s rather than Shinra’s.
There are two pieces of evidence that the Corneo-Sephiroth comparison makes more sense than the Corneo-Shinra one. The first lies in the fact that Leslie’s breakup resembles Cloud’s resolution scene: the topic of Cloud’s resolution scene is Aerith’s fate at the hands of Sephiroth rather than her kidnapping by Shinra, meaning Corneo and Sephiroth are the antagonists of both heartbreaks.
Let’s examine Leslie’s breakup. Here is how his fiancée broke things off, taken from the English script of Remake’s chapter 14, with tone indicators added by me in bold:

“Fiancée: It was all just a dream, wasn't it[?]
Fiancée: (Hopefully) But one day…
(She trails off, then shakes her head and stops herself.)
Fiancée: (Sadly, hopelessly) — no. Time to wake up. And forget.
(She walks away.)”

Now, here is a more literal translation of this quote from the original Japanese (verified by me via DeepL), with tone indicators added by me in bold:

“Fiancée: It was only just a dream we had / We were only dreaming...
Fiancée: (Hopefully, as though as a hail Mary) In the language of the flowers...
(She trails off, then shakes her head and stops herself.)
Fiancée: (Sadly, hopelessly) — no. You should forget about me.
(She walks away.)”

Leslie’s fiancée is clearly breaking up with him to spare him the pain of blaming himself for not being able to protect her from Corneo, as she knows it’s too late for her to escape from the slumlord’s clutches. We know this because we understand that the pendant she gave back to him symbolizes a reunion (especially between lovers, as Aerith told Cloud in chapter 2). In fact, the Japanese version of the script reveals that the fiancée was about to reveal the meaning of the flower, perhaps in the hopes that they would find each other once more, but she lost her nerve at the last second. Notice that she tells Leslie two specific things. One: their love or their future together was only a dream, meaning that it wasn’t real. Two: he should forget about her, because the dream is over now and it’s time to wake up from it.
If you’re finding this familiar, then you might be ahead of me. Let’s take a look at what Aerith says to Cloud in his resolution scene, also in the English script of Remake’s chapter 14, with tone indicators added by me in bold:

“Aerith: […] you can’t fall in love with me. [It]’s not real […]. (With a sigh, as though from sadness or difficulty, but resolutely) It’s almost morning. Time to go.”

Now, here is a more literal translation of this quote from the original Japanese (verified by me via DeepL), with tone indicators added by me in bold:

“Aerith: You can’t let yourself fall in love with me. [It]’s only your imagination […]. (With a sigh, as though from sadness or difficulty, but resolutely) Looks like it’s already morning. Time for me to go.”

Just like Leslie’s fiancée, Aerith is rejecting or denying Cloud’s love for her in order to spare him from the pain of not having been able to be with her before her death, as she believes it is inevitable. Just like the fiancée, Aerith also tells Cloud two things. One: their love is imaginary or isn’t real. Two: it’s morning, and she has to go (she says this right before Cloud wakes from the pseudo-dream).
In both cases, the women know something about their fate that the men don’t and are hiding this impending tragedy from them. Just like Leslie’s fiancée, Aerith uses well-intentioned deception to protect her loved one from the pain that will come from her fate— the lie, of course, is that their love isn’t real. Both women are hopeless, and both men are initially clueless. Aerith’s resolution can’t be about her kidnapping, because Aerith thinks her rescue is anything but hopeless— she’s sure Cloud will come save her from Shinra. She says so herself in OG’s disk 1, chapter 8:

“Cloud: Aeris!? You safe?
Aeris: Yeah, I'm all right. I knew that [you] would come for me.”

What Aerith is so resigned about in Cloud’s resolution scene isn’t her kidnapping, but instead her fated death at the hands of Sephiroth. Nojima hints at this in FFVII Remake Ultimania:

“If you know Aerith’s fate, then this line would really pull at your heart strings […]” (section 08 “Secrets”, “Development Staff Interviews, Part 2: Tetsuya Nomura, Yoshinori Kitase, Yoshinori Kitase, Kazushige Nojima”, page 744).

Here is what codirector Toriyama had to say on Aerith’s words:

“[While] these words are intended for Cloud, I think Aerith is partly speaking them to herself. The contents of her request may be at odds with how she truly feels inside” (FFVII Remake Material Ultimania Plus, VA Script Notes, “A Dream Shown by Aerith”, “Scenario Staff Q&A - Answered by Motomu Toriyama”).

These two quotes by the devs show that Aerith is trying to protect Cloud from her death. Therefore, the Corneo-Sephiroth parallel is far more apt than the Corneo-Shinra parallel.
The second piece of evidence supporting my belief that Corneo mirrors Sephiroth and not Shinra in the Leslie-Cloud parallel is the inclusion of the theme of revenge that crops up in the following piece of dialogue:

“Tifa: Why did you wanna come down here?
Leslie: Revenge. I know I need to let go, but I can't. I need closure, 'cause without it... I'll never be able to move on” (Remake, chapter 14).

Leslie’s sentiment toward Corneo resembles Cloud’s feelings toward Sephiroth after Aerith’s death. Revenge links Cloud to Sephiroth, not to Shinra. Corneo and Sephiroth reflect each other in that, as a consequence of their actions toward a woman, the man who loves her desires revenge.
Additionally, it looks like Leslie’s obsession with revenge as a means to closure is the reason he didn’t bother trying to understand the message his fiancée left him with: he’s focused on his hate rather than his love, and it’s hindering him. He doesn’t succeed in killing Corneo either: his focus and energy are misplaced. Cloud’s desire for vengeance against Sephiroth is also depicted as an obstacle to accomplishing his goals (see how in section “III. c)” of my previous literary analysis). Once more, the Corneo-Sephiroth parallel fits far better than a Corneo-Shinra perspective.
VI. g) i. 2) The Reunion Seekers: Leslie and Cloud
The other aspect of the Leslie-Cloud parallel that supports our theory is that in both scenarios, they both take charge of the situation and decide to actively seek reunion with their respective lovers. The following dialogue excerpt, supplemented by the VA script notes, shows Leslie’s initiative:

“Tifa: [Your fiancée] could still be out there.
Barret: Can never be sure how much someone means to ya till they're gone. Don't give up on her yet.
Leslie: (Looks at the flower pendant, [recalling his lover’s words) A message in the language of flowers… I wonder what she meant by it.
[…]
Tifa: Reunion.
Leslie: Huh?
Tifa: In the language of flowers, it means ‘reunion.’
(Leslie shifts his gaze from Tifa to the pendant and stares at it for some time. At last he understands the words his lover left him. With that, as if his mind has been made up, he clutches the pendant and hangs it around his neck.)
Leslie: Then I guess I’ll just have to find her first” (FFVII Remake Material Ultimania Plus, VA Script Notes, “Other Notable Stage Directions - Chapters 14-16”).

Take note of Leslie’s final response and the determination with which he speaks: “Then I guess I’ll just have to find her first”. Remember that we’re searching for evidence that Cloud is going to be the one reaching out to Aerith in the Remake trilogy, and that it’s his turn to take his future into his hands. He must be more attentive, more active this time. And Leslie’s words of determination reflect this perfectly. Leslie must find his fiancée first, just like Cloud has to be the one to offer his hand to Aerith in the Remake trilogy and fight for her. This is exactly what our theory is all about.
VI. g) i. 3) Delayed Realizations
Interestingly, not only does Leslie’s determination mirror Cloud’s, but both men are depicted as realizing the truth too late. Just like Leslie only began searching for his fiancée six months after her disappearance, Cloud only realizes he loves Aerith in OG once she’s died. It took him this long to actually get somewhere in his mission to reunite with her— “somewhere” being the Remake trilogy.
Even Barret’s words highlight the lovers’ delay: “Can never be sure how much someone means to ya till they're gone”. Barret would know: he lost his wife Myrna, whom he loved dearly. The devs have Barret comment on the situation as a man whose lover died, mirroring Cloud’s situation in OG. Just as Barret says, Cloud only truly realized the strength of how he felt for Aerith in OG once she was gone. The gunman’s words apply to both Leslie and Cloud’s tardy initiatives. Regardless of this delay, both men are now determined to see their respective reunions through.
The degree to which the Leslie-Cloud parallel fits our theory is a great sign of its validity: even the details are lining up!
VI. g) ii. Reunion in the Theme Songs
Too easy: in our analysis of the lyrics of the theme songs, we covered how both texts include the theme of reunion. “No Promises to Keep” is especially relevant (see section “VI. e) ii.”), as the entire song is Aerith hoping against fate for a reunion with Cloud (even if you believe the song is about all her companions, that still includes Cloud).
On top of these reunion-themed lyrics, during Aerith’s in-game performance of “No Promises to Keep” at the Gold Saucer production of Loveless, her yellow blossoms signifying reunion bloom all around her as Cloud watches her, captivated.
Another great sign for our theory: the highly significant theme songs are on our side!
VI. g) iii. Waking Up Reunited
The thing I want to juxtapose to our theory is a small yet special moment in chapter 2 of Rebirth that stuck out to me like a sore thumb and got me really excited about sharing it with you. This moment occurs after the battle against the Midgardsormr. We’ll be comparing it to two other clips, describing all three in chronological order, and making deductions based on their similarities.
The first clip I want to address occurs in chapter 8 of Remake (1:32-2:12). There are a couple of things I want to point out in this scene. First, Aerith wakes Cloud from unconsciousness with a cute call of “Hello~?”. Second, despite pretending that he doesn’t, he immediately recognizes her. The VA script notes prove it:

“Aerith: Nice to meet you again.
Cloud actually remembers Aerith, but he pretends not to, perhaps wishing to make himself look cool.
Cloud: Again, huh?
Aerith: What? You don’t remember? How about…the flowers?
Cloud looks at the flowers at his feet and pretends as if he’s only just remembered.
Cloud: Oh, the flower seller” (FFVII Remake Material Ultimania Plus, VA script notes, “Reuniting with Aerith”).

So: she wakes him with a cute call, and he recognizes her. Also note that these two elements also apply to the OG church reunion scene.
Now onto the Rebirth chapter 2 scene that stuck out to me. After Cloud is saved from the Midgardsormr by Sephiroth, Cloud wakes from an unconsciousness spell with Aerith calling for him (7:20-7:34).
Once more, Aerith wakes him with a cute call (this time, it’s “Wakey, wakey!”), and Cloud recognizes her. In this Midgardsormr clip, unlike their reunion in the church, Cloud verbalizes that he remembers her. This time, there’s more: next, Aerith tells Cloud “おかえり, クラウド”, or “okaeri, Cloud”, which translates to “welcome back, Cloud”. “Okaeri” is what you say in Japanese when someone has returned home. In the third clip we will analyze, Aerith says “okaeri” to Cloud once more. But first, let’s break down this second clip.
I don’t know about you, but this cutscene felt extremely weird to me when I first encountered it. That is, it would have been, if not for the theory I’d begun formulating at that time.
You see, the devs could have chosen for Aerith to ask Cloud if he remembers his own name or where they are, if he’s okay, or check if he responds to his own name. In fact, asking someone who’s been hit on the head to say their own name is a much more common reaction to them finally waking up than asking them if they remember you. Even stranger is Cloud’s reaction: he could have answered “Yeah, you’re Aerith,” or “I remember everything, I’m fine”. Instead, he says her name with this airy and wonderstruck tone. He sounds like he’s opening his eyes to something mystic rather than his comrade leaning over him, like he’s seeing someone unexpectedly for the first time in a while… or rather like he’s waking from a trance of some kind— a trance in which he did not remember Aerith, and now he does. You may see where I’m going with this.
Let’s examine the third clip, wherein Aerith tells Cloud “okaeri” again. More specifically, in chapter 14, Aerith welcomes Cloud back when he snaps out of his zombified, Sephiroth-controlled state and runs toward her. Of course, it’s the sight of her and his memories of meeting her in chapter 2 of Remake that shake him awake (2:17:43-2:18:02).
For a third time, Aerith wakes Cloud. This time, she’s pulling him out of a trance and back to himself. And for a third time, Cloud remembers her. In fact, it’s remembering her that wakes him up. Cloud calls her name and Aerith says “okaeri” in both the post-Midgardsormr cutscene and this third clip. And in both scenes, not only does Cloud return to himself the way someone returns home (recall that “okaeri” is used to welcome someone back home), but he’s also returning to her, recognizing her as his home.
Now we’ve got three scenes lined up: the church reunion scene (both in OG and Remake), the Midgardsormr scene and the hand-reach scene. All three of these recognition scenes feature Cloud being woken up by Aerith and remembering who she is. The main difference is that, in the scenes among these three that are exclusive to Rebirth, Cloud’s return to Aerith is far more meaningful, as he already knows her name, and knows more about who she is to him. Evidently, in the OG church reunion scene, Cloud only remembers being sold a flower by this girl. In the Remake version, he remembers the same thing, plus the attack of the whispers. So there’s something much more weighty about the Rebirth recognition scenes: he remembers more, and he remembers deeper. These aren’t just recognition scenes, they’re also mini-reunions. Of course, as we’ve already analyzed pertaining to the hand-reaching scene, Cloud remembering Aerith is followed by him being the one to take action and run toward her, eager to save her, because she means the world to him. When you place the Midgardsormr scene between the church reunion scene and the hand-reach scene, an evolution of Cloud waking up and remembering Aerith is formed. Each mini-reunion scene adds a piece to the story: the church scene informs us that Cloud and Aerith are meeting again, the Midgardsormr scene tips us off that something mystic is going on from Cloud’s tone when he says Aerith’s name, and the hand reach scene tells us that as a consequence of remembering who Aerith is, Cloud saves her from falling to her death and saving her. “Meeting again”, “mystic”, and “saving Aerith”: these are the keywords of the mini-reunion scenes. They are also the keywords of our theory on Cloud’s mission to save Aerith. This time around Cloud knows more and is more conscious about how he feels for Aerith, just like he feels more when in the hand-reach scene in Rebirth compared to the church reunion scene in Remake. From the latter scene to the former, Cloud gradually wakes up and remembers his love for and loss of Aerith in the OG more and more. Each mini-reunion brings him closer to saving her when he blocks the masamune. This is why I am certain that in part 3, whether Cloud comes to his full senses or not, whether he remembers the events of OG or not, he will save Aerith this time. The Remake trilogy is centered around Aerith, after all. In fact, don’t take it from me, take it from Nojima:

“Aerith's the most important character in the remake so we paid special attention to her lines” (FFVII Remake Ultimania, section 08 “Secrets”, “Development Staff Interviews, Part 2: Tetsuya Nomura, Yoshinori Kitase, Kazushige Nojima”, page 744).

I have full confidence in this fact: one way or another, these two will have a happy ending. This is Cloud’s second chance, and as he swore in “Hollow”, he is not losing her again. That is why I don’t think you should fret, and that our Clerith hearts will be very happy to see these two together again for good in part 3.
VI. h) Zooming In
In fact, this zooming-in method of directing players’ attention to important narrative beats is far from new.
VI. h) i. Changing Fate
Let’s divert our attention to Nanaki’s Skywheel date (2:28-3:30). The dialogue goes like this: Nanaki brings us the Whispers and suggests the party might eventually forget about their existence, and Cloud says that frankly, if it’s impossible for them to change fate either way, then it would be better for them to forget to Whispers altogether.
This is a very clear message from the devs: “There would be no point in including the Whispers in the Remaketrilogy if we did not make use of their defeat”. They’re telling us through Cloud’s dialogue that they know it would be foul play and bad writing to introduce the theme of defying fate if it didn’t eventually pay off.
As if it weren’t clear enough what the devs are referring to, Nanaki brings up Aerith’s death directly after Cloud delivers the devs’ message to us. He actually makes Cloud promise to save her. This is pretty on the nose. By promising Nanaki he will protect Aerith, the devs are promising us the same. I’m certain that part 3 will deliver on this promise.
If you still aren’t sold, I’d like to direct your attention to the framing of the shot where Cloud says “If we can’t change [fate]” (2:49-2:51). There’s a zoom-in on his mouth, which is a visual cue that translates to “what this character is saying right now is important to the plot”. It’s very indiscreet in theory: the camera literally hones in on the invisible words as though the script has them highlighted, italicized triple-underlined and in bold.
VI. h) ii. Aerith’s Knowledge
We’ve seen the Remake trilogy use this camera framing at least twice so far. The first time occurs in Remake’s chapter 8, before it becomes clear that Aerith knows things from the OG game that she wouldn’t normally know if this were just a remastered version of the same 1997 plot. I’ll let Remake Ultimania‘s description of this moment speak for itself:

“When Cloud and Aerith return the rescued children to Oates, the man in the tattered black cloak shows up again at the hideout. The moment the man grasps Cloud’s arm, he’s overcome by another violent headache and sees a vision of Sephiroth. Cloud wonders if this man who supposedly died five years ago could possibly still be alive. When he says as much to Aerith, she gives him a vague reply” (FFVII Remake Ultimania, section 04: “Scenario”, “Chapter 8 Main Story Digest”, page 256).

Aerith’s “vague reply” is accentuated by a very deliberate zoom-in on her mouth (1:18:05-1:18:09), and therefore her words.
The framing of this shot indicates to us that what Aerith says provides an important hint as to the plot’s direction. Sure enough, with hindsight, it’s easy to see that’s true.
VI. h) iii. Tifa’s Question
Another time this framing is used is in chapter 1 of Rebirth, after Cloud recounts the Nibelheim incident. Tifa asks the group why Sephiroth is choosing to come back now, after five years (37:55-37:58).
Once more, we are being signaled that the reason Sephiroth chose to return at the moment he did is significant to the plot, but cannot be revealed explicitly yet. The reason why Sephiroth took five years to return is because that’s how long it took for Cloud to get back on his feet after the Nibelheim incident: Sephiroth wants and/or needs to manipulate Cloud in particular rather than all the other people with Jenova cells in them. It took five years for Cloud to not only go through Hojo’s experiments but also escape Shinra and make his way to Seventh Heaven, where Tifa nursed him back to health— therefore, it took five years until Sephiroth’s favorite pawn was available to be used. There are a few reasons why Cloud is the one Sephiroth wants to use, and all of them would be spoilers at this point in Rebirth to players who don’t know the OG plot. The devs can’t reveal any of them yet, but they do indicate via a close-up shot of Tifa’s mouth that her question is important.
VI. h) iv. The Takeaway
As you can see, this framing of characters’ mouths when they speak signals a plot-significant piece of dialogue. This means Cloud’s words on his gondola date with Nanaki can’t be brushed off as a red herring or an unimportant or throwaway line: it has narrative weight.

VII. The Devs

I think it’s important to remember the devs and their commitment to the world of FFVII. They know best for this story, and they’ve proven it to be true many times over. There are many things about the devs’ intentions that the fandom don’t seem to know that I think would give you confidence to find out.
VII. a) Shifting Themes
Good storytellers don’t introduce themes as a way to pull the rug from under audiences’ feet by later rendering them completely irrelevant to the plot.
In other words, the devs would not have introduced the notion of fate as an antagonistic force in Remake, nor allowed the players to defeat it in chapter 18, had they planned for these themes not to pay off at all. Think of how good FFVII OG and FF stories in general are, how strong the writing is from a narrative point of view. Nothing is included for no reason or for a cheap reaction— especially not a central theme of a story. Fate and defeating it is a huge point of Remake, and not for no reason.
I mean, think about a storyline all about defying fate ending with a shrug and a “Oh well, we tried.” It would be ridiculous! The devs are better than that.
VII. b) What the Devs Want
The devs are well aware that fans of FFVII have been begging for Aerith’s resurrection since 1997. All those petitions, all those myths of a revival hack… SE knows about them all too well. They were even referenced by FF’s 30th anniversary expo, which partly promoted Remake:

“No one expected [Aerith’s death] in the middle of the story. Rumors of a secret way to revive Aerith spread, and it was clear players were having a hard time saying goodbye to her too. Even now, twenty years later, it still feels like a shocking turn of events” (Final Fantasy 30th Anniversary Exposition Pamphlet, page 36).

Hamaguchi, codirector of the Remake project, commented on these rumors:

“Interviewer: Do you have a favorite fake rumor about the original FFVII?

Hamaguchi: I hear a lot about Aerith coming back to life and that's something that's very interesting to hear” (Hamaguchi interview: “129 Rapid-Fire Questions Answered About Final Fantasy VII Rebirth”, by Game Informer).

The devs are also aware of how beloved Clerith is to the FFVII fandom, especially in Japan— in fact, the only FFVII ship name that is an official iOS search term on the Japanese Apple Store is Clerith’s (“クラエア” or “kuraea” in Japanese). Aerith herself is a widely beloved character, particularly, once more, in Japan. For instance, Famitsu and NHK’s recent polls on the best FF heroine and on the best FF character in general both resulted in Aerith ranking number 3, beaten only in the latter poll by Cloud at number 1 and FFX’s Yuna at number 2.
The devs know how well-loved both Clerith and Aerith are. And in fact, they love Aerith at least as much as we do:

“Cloud's feelings [of guilt] cannot be resolved by anyone other than Aerith. I tried to convey [that Aerith is saying to Cloud] ‘I'm still here for you’” (FFVII Reunion Files, Nojima’s note on Aerith’s character file, page 58).

“When I saw the finished product of [Aerith’s face in] CG, I thought, "Oh, isn’t she so cute?” (FFVII Reunion Files, Nomura’s note on Aerith’s character file, page 58).

"The idea of having Aeris die during the story had a great impact on all the dev staff," Toriyama explained, "and personally I decided to dedicate my efforts to depicting Aeris in as appealing a way as possible, so that she would become an irreplaceable character to the player in preparation for that moment" (Toriyama interview “Final Fantasy anniversary interview: Toriyama speaks” by VG247).

The devs care about Aerith, and they’re fully aware we do too.
I think a lot of people have it in their heads that the devs don’t want anything to change from the OG story, but there’s a lot of evidence that says otherwise. Codirector Toriyama spoke on this, stating the following about the production process of Remake:

“[…] there were times the original version became a hindrance. Specifically, staff members with a strong attachment to Final Fantasy VII would often hold themselves back for fear of deviating too much from the original. When we created the original game, we obviously didn’t feel bound in that way. We were passionate about creating a brand new Final Fantasy title, and so we dove in and embraced whatever seemed most interesting to us. We wanted to take that approach this time as well, so we made a special effort to liberate ourselves whenever we held back, remembering that it was okay to do the things we wanted to do” (FFVII Remake Ultimania, section 08 “Secrets”, “Development Staff Interviews, Part 1: Motomu Toriyama, Naoki Hamaguchi, Teruki Endo”, page 737).

Codirector Nomura said the following:

“When I asked Nojima if he’d write the scenario, I was clear about my demands up front. I said, ‘If we're going to remake Final Fantasy VII, I want it to be done like this.’ At that point, I was intent on making something more than just a remake. [Similarly to how] the battle system this time incorporates elements of the original game’s ATB mechanics [while] also been reborn using a real-time approach […], I wanted to make a story that players would feel is fundamentally Final Fantasy VII but also something new” (FFVII Remake Ultimania, section 08 “Secrets”, “Development Staff Interviews, Part 2: Tetsuya Nomura, Yoshinori Kitase, Kazushige Nojima”, page 745).

Clearly, the devs don’t want to be bogged down by the OG, and are making efforts to do things the way they want to rather than the way they were previously done. The newer generation of developers such as codirector Hamaguchi is also involved in these story changes:

“Interviewer: There are also drastically more scenes with Sephiroth than there were in the original game.
Nojima: We weren't planning on having him appear so much at first— the idea was only to hint at his presence. But we changed our approach partway through and became more proactive with having him appear, after which the number of scenes he features in rapidly increased.
Nomura: Hamaguchi [codirector Naoki Hamaguchi] came up to me one day and said in a mysterious tone, ‘I'd like to talk to you about something.’ He asked me about having there be a battle with Sephiroth in Midgar. In the original game, Sephiroth’s true body is located elsewhere, so he didn’t think I'd give in to the idea so easily. I think he even prepared materials to persuade me. But in the end I agreed readily [laughs]” (FFVII Remake Ultimania, section 08 “Secrets”, “Development Staff Interviews, Part 2: Tetsuya Nomura, Yoshinori Kitase, Kazushige Nojima”, page 746).

Kitase, the producer of the Remake trilogy, even says that after working on this project for so long, and after spending almost 30 years on the FFVII project and getting to know the characters, he has realized that:

“The more [he works] on it, the more [he wants] to make all these characters happy. [He wants] to give them a happy ending. The rest of the team’s opinions [obviously] also have to be taken into consideration, so it won't be all happiness and rainbows. But [he] just [wants] to make [the characters of FFVII] happy” (Kitase and Hamaguchi’s interview “Final Fantasy VII Rebirth’s Producer Just Wants 'the Characters to End Up Happy'”, by Vandal, translated by me).

Kitase is indeed only one developer, but he’s the producer of this project: that’s the very top position. He oversees everything and nothing goes without his approval. That counts for something. Of course, Kitase is fair and values the input of all the devs, so of course it won’t be “all happiness and rainbows”— but I sincerely believe there’s a big chance that Cloud and Aerith are heading toward their happy ending. Even if this theory is completely bogus, I want to have faith that the devs would not sacrifice good storytelling for nostalgia and a conservative attitude toward preserving the OG story, as that would be cheap of them, and we have not known them to be cheap. This game truly matters to them, so I think they deserve our faith.
(conclusion in

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2024.05.16 05:27 Jonboy_25 The Hebrew Prophets do not prophesy about Jesus, Christianity, or anything still to come in our time.

For thousands of years, and to this day, Christians of various kinds have tried to demonstrate the truth of Christianity by claiming that Jesus was prophesied about specifically in the Hebrew Scriptures. It is argued that Jesus fulfilled these prophecies about the Messiah in the OT and, therefore, is the promised one. Only Jesus could've fulfilled these Messianic prophecies, so they say. Additionally, Christian theology, building off the NT paradigm of quoting the OT, has claimed that the OT looks forward to the founding of Christianity and the formation of the Church.
What this post will argue is that this is anachronistic and that Christians are incorrect in their claims about the OT. The OT prophets do not look forward to a supposed Messiah figure who would arrive hundreds of years later in 1st century Roman Palestine or that this Messiah figure would crucified and raised from the dead. Nor do they prophesy the establishment of the Christian religion. Instead, the OT looks forward to an imminent, glorious, material restoration of ancient Israel meant to happen in their day, not centuries later when Christianity was founded. Nor is the OT looking forward to supposed events that have yet to happen, like the second coming of Jesus or a future restoration of the land of Israel. These were supposed to happen in ancient Israel but did not occur.
Before I begin, I would like to say that this is the consensus of biblical scholars and historians. This is not just my opinion or the opinion of secular skeptics. All critical scholars of the OT, including Jews, Christians, and non-religious ones, agree that OT needs to be understood in its ancient Israelite context. They agree that these texts and oracles are not about Jesus or the Church. If you want to read an excellent scholarly resource, I highly recommend John J. Collins, Introduction to the Hebrew Bible, 2018. He is a leading OT scholar at Yale and a Roman Catholic. The New Oxford Annotated Study Bible is also a beneficial resource, giving a critical scholarly introduction and notes to the Hebrew Bible.
For this post, I will look at some of the principal prophetic literature of the OT. I cannot analyze every single relevant passage.

Isaiah

The Book of Isaiah is among the most popular books in ancient Judaism and Christianity. I could be wrong, but I believe it is the most cited book in the NT after Psalms. This is relevant to this discussion because Christians cite many passages in Isaiah, believing them to be predictions about Jesus. This precedent is set in the NT, for example, in Matthew's or Luke's gospel. However, Jesus/Christianity is not prophesied in the book. Instead, Isaiah predicts the imminent restoration of the Kingdom of Israel and the gathering of the twelve tribes.
Let's examine Isaiah 7:14, a passage often misconstrued as a prophecy about Jesus. In reality, it's not a prophecy about the Messiah at all. The passage states, 'Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son and shall name him Immanuel.' This is not about a virgin giving a miraculous birth. The word used here is 'almah ', which simply means young woman. If Isaiah intended to convey that this woman was a virgin, there was a word for that, 'betulah '. Matthew's use of the Greek translation of Isaiah 7:14, which is a mistranslation of the Hebrew, as a prophecy about Jesus's virgin birth is a misinterpretation. The context of Isaiah 7 is an oracle of consolation given to King Ahaz, promising him a sign through the birth of a son that Jerusalem will be preserved from the Assyrian crisis.
'For before the child knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land before whose two kings you are in dread will be deserted. The Lord will bring on you and on your people and on your ancestral house such days as have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah—the king of Assyria. On that day the Lord will whistle for the fly that is at the sources of the streams of Egypt and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria. And they will all come and settle in the steep ravines and in the clefts of the rocks and on all the thornbushes and on all the watering holes. On that day the Lord will shave with a razor hired beyond the River—with the king of Assyria—the head and the hair of the feet, and it will take off the beard as well.'
So, Isaiah 7:14 refers to the Assyrian crisis in the 8th century BCE and the preservation of Jerusalem, not events that occurred hundreds of years later. Matthew's misquotation of the OT is a clear example of misinterpretation. It's quite ironic and even amusing that the most famous and well-known prophecy about Jesus's virgin birth, cited every year at Christmas, is quite literally not about that. This highlights the importance of understanding the historical context and the original intent of the texts.
There is a cluster of oracles in Isaiah 9-11 that Christians cite as a prophecy about Jesus. But when we look at the context of Isaiah 7-12, we see that these are about the restoration of Zion and the re-establishment of a Davidic king who would rule in the ancient Near East in Israel, not in 1st-century Judea.
Let's look at some of the famous passages.
'For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders, and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Great will be his authority, and there shall be endless peace for the throne of David and his kingdom. He will establish and uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time onward and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.' 9:6-7
This is not a prophecy about Jesus. The text presupposes that this son is already born and will fulfill this vision in Isaiah's day. Again, the passages surrounding this one set the historical context for fulfillment in the ANE. This Davidic King would preside over the physical restoration of a united Kingdom of Israel and the unification of the twelve tribes.
'On that day, the remnant of Israel and the survivors of the house of Jacob will no longer lean on the one who struck them but will lean on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, in truth. A remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God. For though your people, O Israel, were like the sand of the sea, only a remnant of them will return.' 10:20-22
'On that day, the root of Jesse shall stand as a signal to the peoples; the nations shall inquire of him, and his dwelling shall be glorious. On that day, the Lord will again raise his hand to recover the remnant that is left of his people from Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush, from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the coastlands of the sea.' 11:10-11
The King, through Yahweh, on that day will also,
'raise a signal for the nations and will assemble the outcasts of Israel and gather the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth. ¹³ The jealousy of Ephraim shall depart; the hostility of Judah shall be cut off; Ephraim shall not be jealous of Judah, and Judah shall not be hostile toward Ephraim. ¹⁴ But they shall swoop down on the backs of the Philistines in the west; together, they shall plunder the people of the east. They shall put forth their hand against Edom and Moab, and the Ammonites shall obey them.'
So, it's clear what these oracles were intending to describe. Isaiah predicted that after the Assyrian crisis of the 8th century BCE, Yahweh would raise up a Davidic ruler who would preside over a literal Israelite Kingdom that would become the dominant power of the ANE. This was expected to happen in the ancient world, but it did not occur. The historical context of Jesus and the first-century Church is not the fulfillment of these oracles. These oracles are failed. Isaiah's vision of an eternal, glorious Israelite Kingdom did not come to pass.

Jeremiah

There are two passages in Jeremiah I would like to discuss.
Jeremiah 29:10 promises that after 70 years, the Jews will return from the Babylonian exile, and God will restore Israel to its former glory.
'For thus says the Lord: Only when Babylon’s seventy years are completed will I visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope. Then, when you call upon me and come and pray to me, I will hear you. When you search for me, you will find me; if you seek me with all your heart, I will let you find me, says the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.'
This never happened historically. Yes, some of the Judeans in exile did return to Israel. Israel was rebuilt with the help of the Persians. But, this was not the glorious restoration predicted by the prophets. Israel would continue to be dominated by foreign powers until the establishment of the secular state of Israel in 1948, which, of course, has no relevance to this ancient oracle. Further, while some Judeans did return, this promise of a gathering of Jews from all the nations did not happen. After the Assyrian and Babylonian conquests, Jews have remained permanently dispersed in the diaspora. This is another failed oracle. It cannot be interpreted exegetically as being fulfilled in the 1st century with Jesus and Christianity.
More famously, however, is Jeremiah's prediction of the establishment of a 'New Covenant.' (31:31) Christians see this New Covenant as being fulfilled in the Church, and indeed, the New Testament frequently refers to the New Covenant being fulfilled in the Christian community and Jesus's work. However, the historical context of this passage is surrounded by a cluster of oracles in chapters 30-31 that were meant to be a consolation to ancient Israel. The passage itself is clear that this is not talking about Christianity or events hundreds of years later, but is a word of consolation to Jews who experienced the Babylonian conquest:
'The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah.' 31:31
What is the context?
'At that time, says the Lord, I will be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be my people.' 31:1
'The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when the city shall be rebuilt for the Lord from the tower of Hananel to the Corner Gate. And the measuring line shall go out farther, straight to the hill Gareb, and shall then turn to Goah. The whole valley of the dead bodies and the ashes and all the fields as far as the Wadi Kidron, to the corner of the Horse Gate toward the east, shall be sacred to the Lord. It shall never again be uprooted or overthrown.' 31:38-40
'For the days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will restore the fortunes of my people, Israel and Judah, says the Lord, and I will bring them back to the land that I gave to their ancestors, and they shall take possession of it' 30:3
Then, it is clear what prophesy about the New Covenant means. It's about the imminent restoration of the ancient Kingdom of Israel and its ascent into power and glory. Again, these oracles remained unfulfilled and precisely falsified.

Micah

There is one famous passage in Micah 5, quoted in Matthew and frequently cited by Christians as "proof" that Jesus's birth location was prophesied about hundreds of years prior. The idea that Jesus was born in Bethlehem is, of course, historically dubious. Matthew and Luke's accounts are contradictory and rife with historical problems. Mark and John assume Jesus has always been a native of Nazareth (Mk 6:2-3, Jn 1:46, 7:42). It seems then that Matthew and Luke invented their passages about Jesus being born in Bethlehem to give him more Davidic status. But this is beside the point, even if Jesus was born in Bethlehem. It is not a fulfillment of this passage.
'But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah, who is one of the little clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to rule in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days.' 5:2
What is the historical context of this oracle? Again, the context of the chapter and the book is Israel's restoration and the Israelite kingdom's imminent establishment.
'Then, the remnant of Jacob, surrounded by many peoples, shall be like dew from the Lord, like showers on the grass, which do not depend upon people or wait for any mortal. ⁸ And among the nations the remnant of Jacob, surrounded by many peoples, shall be like a lion among the animals of the forest, like a young lion among the flocks of sheep, which, when it goes through, treads down and tears in pieces, with no one to deliver. ⁹ Your hand shall be lifted up over your adversaries, and all your enemies shall be cut off.'
On that day, says the Lord, I will cut off your horses from among you and will destroy your chariots; ¹¹ and I will cut off the cities of your land and destroy all your strongholds; ¹² and I will cut off sorceries from your hand, and you shall have no more soothsayers; ¹³ and I will cut off your images and your pillars from among you, and you shall bow down no more to the work of your hands; ¹⁴ and I will uproot your sacred poles^\)g^\) from among you and destroy your towns. ¹⁵ And in anger and wrath I will execute vengeance on the nations that did not obey.
What about this future King? Again, I find it amusing that Christians cite this text to show that Jesus fulfilled it. It shows they have not read and understood the historical context of the oracle. The text goes on to say that this King will conquer the land of Assyria, the land of Nimrod.
Micah 5:5–6
'When the Assyrians come into our land and tread upon our soil, we will raise against them seven shepherds and eight rulers. They shall rule the land of Assyria with the sword and the land of Nimrod with the drawn sword; he shall rescue us from the Assyrians if they come into our land or tread within our border.'

Conclusion

I've, of course, been very selective. There are many more examples of this that could've been pulled from. I hope you will see what I've briefly tried to show. The Prophets of the OT predicted that in their own time, they would see the salvation of Yahweh as their God. A Davidic King would be raised, and Israel would be restored to glory after the Assyrian crisis in the case of Isaiah or the Babylonian crisis in the case of Jeremiah and Micah. The same goes for the other prophets. My thesis, then, is that historically understood, not only did these oracles fail in their prediction, but they are demonstrably not about events in 1st century Roman Palestine or the wider Greco-Roman world. They're not about establishing the Church or a dying and rising messiah figure who brings spiritual salvation. Yes, the NT does interpret passages in the OT as being fulfilled in Jesus. But they are taken out of their historical context. The NT and early Christians were not novel in this practice. This was standard Jewish exegesis of the OT. Because Christians and Jews believed that the OT writings were sacred scripture that couldn't be wrong, they reinterpreted them in the light of their situations. The Essenes at Qumran, like the early Christians, also thought that their community and Teacher of Righteousness was the fulfillment of the bible prophecy, and the Rabbis in the Rabbinic literature frequently apply ancient scripture to their community.

submitted by Jonboy_25 to DebateAChristian [link] [comments]

2024.05.15 23:36 Jonboy_25 The Hebrew Prophets do not prophesy about Jesus, Christianity, or anything still to come in our time.

Isaiah

Jeremiah

Micah

There is one famous passage in Micah 5, quoted in Matthew and frequently cited by Christians as "proof" that Jesus's birth location was prophesied about hundreds of years prior. The idea that Jesus was born in Bethlehem is, of course, historically dubious. Matthew and Luke's accounts are contradictory and rife with historical problems. Mark and John assume Jesus has always been a native of Nazareth (Mk 6:2-3, Jn 1:46, 7:42). It seems then that Matthew and Luke invented their passages about Jesus being born in Bethlehem to give him more Davidic status. But this is beside the point, even if Jesus was born in Bethlehem. It is not a fulfillment of this passage.
'But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah, who is one of the little clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to rule in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days.' 5:2
What is the historical context of this oracle? Again, the context of the chapter and the book is Israel's restoration and the Israelite kingdom's imminent establishment.
'Then, the remnant of Jacob, surrounded by many peoples, shall be like dew from the Lord, like showers on the grass, which do not depend upon people or wait for any mortal. ⁸ And among the nations the remnant of Jacob, surrounded by many peoples, shall be like a lion among the animals of the forest, like a young lion among the flocks of sheep, which, when it goes through, treads down and tears in pieces, with no one to deliver. ⁹ Your hand shall be lifted up over your adversaries, and all your enemies shall be cut off.'
On that day, says the Lord, I will cut off your horses from among you and will destroy your chariots; ¹¹ and I will cut off the cities of your land and destroy all your strongholds; ¹² and I will cut off sorceries from your hand, and you shall have no more soothsayers; ¹³ and I will cut off your images and your pillars from among you, and you shall bow down no more to the work of your hands; ¹⁴ and I will uproot your sacred poles^\)^g^\) from among you and destroy your towns. ¹⁵ And in anger and wrath I will execute vengeance on the nations that did not obey.
What about this future King? Again, I find it amusing that Christians cite this text to show that Jesus fulfilled it. It shows they have not read and understood the historical context of the oracle. The text goes on to say that this King will conquer the land of Assyria, the land of Nimrod.
Micah 5:5–6
'When the Assyrians come into our land and tread upon our soil, we will raise against them seven shepherds and eight rulers. They shall rule the land of Assyria with the sword and the land of Nimrod with the drawn sword; he shall rescue us from the Assyrians if they come into our land or tread within our border.'

Conclusion

submitted by Jonboy_25 to DebateReligion [link] [comments]

2024.05.15 22:25 Jiinxx10 How do I deal with a language barrier with a new coworker when communication is practically the whole job?

I am in a team of a total of four people, working at an elementary school cafeteria where I am constantly communicating with everyone. I am what you call the "head" person in the cafeteria. I collaborate with all teachers, students, principal etc. I'm basically the person everyone comes to for things. When my old coworker had to leave, I was part of the interview process for finding a new coworker. We interviewed several people and I had no concerns with any of the other candidates. But they decided to hire the ONE person I said was going to be hard to communicate with because they speak broken English. I had already voiced my concern heavily about this before they hired them because this job is very fast paced and I wanted someone who could communicate with the kids. Admin said they'd check her references to make sure she'll be okay, well..... I've been working with her and it's not okay.
You're constantly having to talk to people all the time, dealing with kid's issues, talking to the teachers, counselors, parents etc. Don't get me wrong, this person is very sweet and I have nothing against them, but it's making my job (and my other two coworker's job) stressful and she's refusing to do certain things and will let things slide because she, and I quote, "doesn't understand." Everyday it's always "I don't understand you deal with this. I didn't understand them. I don't know what they are saying," and she will come get me to do the job for her, or ask the same question three times because she doesn't understand.
I've been in my job for four years now and I hate to leave, but I don't know how to go about bringing this up with anyone. I'm at a loss on what to do, because part of me knows she can't help it, but on the other hand... she can't do the job correctly because she doesn't understand, even if it's explained several times. I worked with someone last year who could speak two languages, but their English was wonderful. I've never been in a situation like this where I can't communicate with a coworker because they don't know enough English.

submitted by Jiinxx10 to careeradvice [link] [comments]

2024.05.15 21:32 No-Pangolin-7571 Ready to Quit

I am so tired of my job and it's taken every ounce of self-control to not just resign without any other job lined up. I just feel so disrespected and undervalued as an attorney.
The following are some of my biggest gripes with my firm:

I am required to work in person everyday of the week despite the fact that the principal attorney teleworks everyday from 6 states over. We only do transactional work so there's no need to be in person... like... ever. All of our clients live in various states across the country. My boss says that this is because he pays good money for our office in [large legal market city] and wants it to be put to good use.
My boss is constantly cutting my billable hours because he says "they're too much" for certain clients despite constantly complaining that we need to get billables up.
I was baited and switched regarding my salary from the getgo. During my interviews, I was told one salary and now I'm being paid $5,000 less than originally quoted. (I'm not the only one this happened to, our secretary had to get a second job because he was told he would get a substantial raise, which he relied upon, and then now barely has enough to pay his rent. This also happened to the other attorneys in the office)
My boss gave me less than one week notice to write a legal journal article to submit for consideration for a legal symposium, forgot to submit it on time, and then never acknowledged my work. Once we got a submission extension, the article got first place prize (along with some prize money) at the symposium and will be getting published in the symposium's journal. Still... not a word of praise and I will certainly not be seeing a dime of the prize money. My name was also excluded from the article despite the fact that I wrote the entire thing myself. My boss just slapped his and the firm's name on it and ran with it.
My coworkers are incredibly cliquey. I somehow think they think I'm too dumb to notice the complete tone switch that occurs when they talk to each other versus when I talk to them. It's as if I'm some kind of annoying idiot, so they only tolerate me. I dread the thought that they talk behind my back when I'm not there.
I NEVER get feedback on any of the projects I work on. I have no idea whether it's garbage or good. So... definitely little to no professional development happening here. Regarding the legal symposium paper, I had to ask whether it was utter garbage because I never heard anything back regarding it, only to be told that it was never submitted.
I never get to interact with clients, I'm left out of client meetings, and any work I do goes to a senior attorney. Makes me feel like I'm a law clerk all over again, except for the fact that I was given way more responsibility in talking with clients as a law clerk at other firms.
My boss never calls or emails me, only delegates tasks to another attorney to give to me. It makes me feel like I'm completely useless garbage, not even worthy of acknowledgement.

All of this has started taking a toll on my mental health, making me feel like trash. Like I'm a completely dispensable, useless law clerk, who's only here to help net some extra billable hours for the firm. Worse yet, I've vented to one of my attorney friends who said "it sounds like you're not even a real attorney." It hurts a lot to spend so much time and money getting a degree, time and money studying for the bar, only to be treated like an underpaid, underappreciated law clerk.
And to answer the inevitable question: Yes. I'm aggressively looking for other positions.

submitted by No-Pangolin-7571 to Lawyertalk [link] [comments]

2024.05.15 20:53 sookfong A Week In Vancouver Island on a $92,000 Salary (Original Submission)

Please note this is the original submission I sent Refinery29. In the current post,they have given me a second credit card with a 100$ balance, as well as generational trauma from World War II and cut context for other things. I am trying to get that fixed.
Per previous discussion in comments here: The espresso machine is a Bezzera, which ranges from 2-5K. We got ours on sale for 1.7K, it’s a work house and we use it everyday, still hurts that we spent that money on a coffee maker.
I do understand mortgage is debt but when you compare it to rent to a lesser value condo in Vancouver it feels like not debt at all, which is how I tend to think of it. Yes I owe my mortgage but also I get my house instead of renting-which may not have become clear.
Please see in full the diary, below (edit for formatting via mobile)
Occupation: Sr Business Analyst
Industry: Tech
Age: 30
Location: Vancouver Island, BC
Salary: 92,000$ (Spouse makes 60,000$ for a combined income of 152,000$ before tax)
Net Worth: ~ 1.2 Million ( house is valued at 989,000$ currently, we have a combined 150,000 in pension, and ~60,000 in various company stocks, and GICs)
Debt: 3,000$ in a zero interest credit card for a 10 month period. We balanced transferred and pay 400$/month. Debt was acquired in Q4 2023 when we had to buy Snow Tires, and do a full break replacement as well as Christmas. 480,000$ in a mortgage, we refinanced in September 2023 for five years fixed rate at accelerated biweekly, however I don’t consider our mortgage debt due to the equity we are gaining, and that our mortgage for a five bedroom, 3 bath single family home is less than rent for a two bedroom condo in Vancouver
Paycheck Amount (Every 2 Weeks): 2,555$ after taxes. (Just mine). Spouse makes 2,308$ after taxes. Our pay periods are alternating.
Pronouns: She/her
Monthly Expenses Mortgage: 1450$ biweekly (100$ extra to the principal).
Utilities: ~200$ (includes water [paid quarterly], hydro [paid bimonthly], gas, sewetrash [paid quarterly] phone [highly discounted due to work plans for spouse and myself] and car gas) Loan Payments: 400$/Credit Card
Car Insurance: 84$
Life Insurance: 167$ combined (67$ me, 100$ spouse)
Health & Dental Insurance: 60$ deducted from pay (coverage for myself and spouse from my employer. Spouse also has coverage for both of us deducted from pay)
Retirement Contribution: 400$ (Employee matches me), (Spouse has a defined pension through work and contributes ~200$ month)
Union fees: 70$ Spouse
Subscriptions: Crave 22$/month (Recent splurge for Binge watching the Rookie), Playstation Plus 100$ (annual bought on Black Friday Deal), Amazon Prime 80$ (Annual), BCAA 120$ (annual) Gym 30$/month (we both have one so 15$/pp)
Note: My spouse and I have completely commingled finances. I will be tracking both as it’s essentially I spent whatever they spent
Was there an expectation for you to attend higher education? Did you participate in any form of higher education? If yes, how did you pay for it?
There was always the expectation. My father was very clear, we were very smart. There was no way we’d be wasting our potential. He wanted me to be a lawyer, but unlike other immigrant parents, I got to choose my major and went into social sciences and got my masters in history. I deferred my PhD too much so I got dropped by the program.
I chose my university by where I got a full first year scholarship and then after that took about 15k in student loans for my undergraduate. My parents paid my rent and I got a part time job for food.
For my masters, I had a student line of credit and 5 k student loans otherwise it was all my savings and scholarships. With the line of credit, I had a total of 30K in student loans and paid it off in about four years.
Growing up, what kind of conversations did you have about money? Did your parent(s)/guardian(s) educate you about finances?
Save. We talked about how you get a dollar allowance and half of it goes into long term saving with 25% in short term and 25% in spend.
Investing came after I was eighteen. Family would like us to invest in property, however I don’t really want to be a landlord, but also we wouldn’t get to really enjoy profit of owning a rental property due to other family circumstances.
What was your first job and why did you get it?
Ice cream parlour I was twelve and my parents made me get it for responsibility. I lasted three weeks because I hated it.
Did you worry about money growing up?
I grew up thinking we were not rich, because we didn’t get big plane vacations (I didn’t count flying from Toronto to Vancouver every summer as a vacation since we were just seeing family but staying in a house my parents owned) and I had only been to Disney twice.
But we had a big new build house in the rich end of town, my mom stayed home to raise all of us. We had to work for things (like going to see a movie opening night or a new CD) but we always had money and got what we wanted. In retrospect, my family was/is fairly well off.
Both my parents grew up poor, with parents working multiple jobs and different shifts to make ends meet, the strive/drive to not have that childhood, and for my father to be able to retire his parents really impacted mine and my siblings and cousins lives. My father showed me the apartment he grew up in Chinatown a few years back. It’s light years away from the house my grandparents owned when I was a kid and how I grew up.
Do you worry about money now?
Of course. Inflation is real and we are actively planning a wedding for the next year, as well as a baby in the next few years. We also need to buy a second car, so we’re saving for that.
At what age did you become financially responsible for yourself and do you have a financial safety net?
Fully financially responsible? Twenty five. I lived in a family property where I didn’t pay rent in one of the most expensive cities in Canada, so even though I paid all my bills (food and phone), I didn’t have to pay rent. I in fact made money, as I rented rooms out and used the income for house utilities, and paying my student loans down faster. When I moved in with my spouse, I just paid condo fees until we bought our house two years ago which gave me plenty of time to save.
Our financial safety net is family, and our savings. I know my family would bail us out. My spouse’s father would as well. Conversely, we are my spouse’s mother's safety net and we have to keep all our plans in mind that we will be subsidising her.
Do you or have you ever received passive or inherited income? If yes, please explain. Yes, I received 50K from my parents once they sold my childhood home, as did both of my siblings. I have also received 10K from one set of grandparents which paid off my car and part of my student loans when I was 21. I will be receiving another inheritance when probate is done for around ~100K. My spouse also has received inheritance which allowed them to buy their first condo in their early twenties when the market was much better. That condo, 50k, and the subsequent upgrading helped us afford our house.
Day 1
10 AM: I drive to the pharmacy to pick up a prescription. Not how I want to start my Sunday morning but y’know. Normally I’d walk since it’s about 20 minutes but I have a UTI. I’m “lucky” that despite not having a dr because of the health care shortage, my work pays for the Maple app so I could get a dr to write the prescription and order the lab work at 1 am. I’ll do the lab work later this week when I can get an appointment but will take the relief now. Insurance makes the antibiotics free, but I also buy hydrogen peroxide because we’re out and we have a dog that thinks everything is meant to be in her mouth. We’ll buy a bigger one at Costco later. I also bought some oral wound mouthwash because we were out. I come home and my spouse made us breakfast.
Total: 15.90$ paid with debit.
1-2:30 PM: We do our taxes. I have a mini meltdown when I realize the part time bakery job I had for a few months didn’t take off income tax last year, so I owe 800$. Luckily, my partner is getting a refund so we net out positive 400$. The bakery took off income tax in 2022, so unsure why they didn’t in 2023. I made us lunch.
3-6:30 PM: We walk the dog, and watch the Rookie. Some time during that time period, a venue emails us back and is surprisingly affordable at 3k. I also get told that the tattoo artist I want to book with, has not chosen me.
6:30-7:30 PM: I explain what lazy girl dinner is to my spouse and make a lazy girl dinner. After not really grocery shopping since Feb for things besides fresh veg, we need to do a big pantry shop and neither of us want that. We debate about buying a food saver and if we should wait for a sale. My spouse is more frugal than me and has determined we should.
8-9:30 PM: We start season 3 of The Rookie, and then after two episodes we go to bed
Day One Total: 15.90$
Day Two
5:45-8 AM: Wake up and start work. I get up to date with what’s happened on the weekend and check that my automated reports. Sometime before 6:30, I get the kettle on for my spouse’s pour over before I go back to my meetings. There’s a twenty minute gap where I get changed and do my skin care and brush my teeth. I’d love to be a skin care person but honestly I’ve spent too much money on product that I don’t use and that just goes bad. Washing my face and using sun screen is a win.
I also make sure that Spouse’s lunch is in his bag and I get our travel mugs ready. Before, we used to go to Starbucks every day. Starbucks used to do free refills on coffee and tea if you were a rewards member if you bought a coffee or tea so it would cost us $5/day (2.5/pp), and we could get refills all day. While that’s 20$/week, 80$/a month and yes, we could have saved it but back then, that 80$ wasn’t turning the dial anywhere significantly for us—a privileged view.
But now, after COVID where I stopped drinking tea after one day working from home having like 10 cups and thinking I was dying, and Spouse has bought a good grinder and we recently splurged on a stupidly expensive espresso machine we call his Engagement Espresso since it costs the same price as my stupidly expensive ring, we bring our coffees.
8-8:30 AM: We drive to work. Prior to buying our house, we were both work from home and lived in a city with amazing transit. We only needed the one car. Since buying the house and moving to a city where public transit is a joke (the one bus goes past our house every 1.5h), Spouse changed jobs and is in office every day and I have to go in 3 days a week. We need a second car or the e-bike rebate to come through. We debate this in the car, since I’m done at 1 pm, and Spouse works normal hours, I either have to take the bus home, or go to the gym for three hours. Today though, I drop Spouse off. I will pick him up later as he has a half day because of the dentist
8:30-12:30 AM/PM: Work. I find a tech manager and ask them to get me more triple a batteries. Work won’t provide or let me expense batteries for my mouse, despite them replacing my usb mouse with a battery one. The poor admin had to tell me the decision is that we’ll all supply our own batteries. Luckily the tech managers have to have batteries on hand and give them out freely.
I ask my boss how the work from home tax forms work, and he is going to find out.
I run more meetings and work on a request for a dashboard and a business case for a new feature that I have to convince leadership to spend money on.
12:30-1 PM: I drive back to my Spouse because he has a dentist appointment.
While I wait for a spouse, I am incredibly hungry. I’m usually not hungry/don’t eat a proper meal until around 1 in the afternoon and my two granola bars I already ate at the office. I go to the bakery by Spouse’s work and buy a cheese bun for me (3.65$), and an apple pie scone (2.55$) for Spouse as a snack. Spouse points out he won’t be able to eat until after his appointment.
Total: 6.20$ debit
1-1:30 PM: I drop Spouse off, and the car stops working. The engine won’t catch. I try multiple times and then run into the dentist to dramatically announce to Spouse and the receptionists that the car won’t start. Spouse asks me what he wants me to do about this, since he’s about to go into an appointment. A very kind receptionist tells me it might be the alternator. I don’t know what that is.
I go back to the car to Facetime my father. He also asks what I think he can do to help since he lives 3000 km away. Weirdly, and sexistly, I thought a man who grew up at race tracks, in a racing family, or the man who has collected and worked on sports cars for forty years might be able to help.
Spouse texts me to remind me we have BCAA while my father also tells me that. I finally get the engine to catch and drive the very long way home, going the speed limit and getting stuck in traffic, construction and a bus. It takes me 20 minutes to get home instead of 10.
1:30-2:30 PM: I walk the dog, mail a (late) birthday card and then start researching what an alternator is. The car is over a decade old and until the house, the most expensive thing I ever bought at 12K back in 2015. We have the funds for the cost, but it’s my first car and the fact it might be the end of its life is scary.
Alternators can cost between 400-800$ repair with labour, so that’s fun.
My dad calls me back and apologises for asking me what he could do away. He advises me that there’s probably a bald spot on the alternator and advises me to go to the mechanic to check or replace it, if the car doesn’t start again.
I call the mechanic to book an appointment, and to also get the snow tires off and to buy new rims for the snow tires. The mechanic lets me know that the alternator part is 500$, and an hour of labour so with taxes we’re looking at around 700$
That future appointment next week (we’re going down a highway this weekend which requires snow tires) will cost ~1.5K, assuming we replace the alternator.
I make lunch and sigh.
2:30 PM: The car starts thankfully. I drive incredibly slow. I pick up Spouse by idling the car. We get an email back from a venue saying they cost 75,000$ minimum. The timing is hysterical.
Due to the nature of the dentist, Spouse owes 618$, as they haven’t flipped it under my insurance. They split it in half, as he has a follow up in two weeks. After the next appointment they will flip the whole amount under me and we’ll get reimbursed for the whole amount.
Total 309$/credit card.
3-10 PM: We walk the dog, make dinner (Spouse makes white sauce pasta, with chicken and peas) and watch The Rookie. There are thirteen episodes in season three, and we will be busy every night this week besides Friday and Sunday, and I would like to finish season three so we can start season 4 next Monday. I don’t want to pay for more than one month of Crave. We have five episodes left
Day Two Total: 315.2$
Day Three
1 AM: 100$ is automatically transferred from our account to the credit card debit. We have an auto transfer of 100$/every Tuesday to a Visa where we balance transferred both our cards. We have an offer for 0 interest for 10 months, so we did that for some of the bigger expenses (snow tires, break replacement and general Christmas) and are on track to pay it back within the next 6 months. That visa is our emergency card that we just have in the back end and utilise for promos like this. It allows us to keep our two cards balances manageable and lets us pay in an easier way than taking big chunks out of our various savings.
Total: 100$/direct deposit
5:45-9 AM: Work. Meetings, reports, trying to convince a colleague that the process does include them and refusal to follow it means that their requests won’t be done. Spouse has another half day so I can go into the office at my leisure—if the car starts
9-9:20 AM: The car starts, I get into the office and refresh a data flow before a meeting with a new stake holder. It takes longer to drive into work today because the tourists are starting to come and their van builds or campers are not exactly highway speed and with a two lane highway, if you don’t merge over fast enough you’re stuck.
10:05-10:20 AM: Meeting done, car starts again and I drive home for more meetings. The least amount of time in the office is preferable for me.
10:30-11AM : Meeting with my manager where we discuss future salary and promotion. I am due for a promotion in the start of Q2, which would push me to six figures. I’ll believe it when I see it but, I’m really excited at that possibility for my family.
11:15 AM: Spouse leaves for work, we discuss what groceries are needed, as well if he’ll go to Home Depot tonight to buy more clover seeds for the yard, as we need to reseed before it starts raining. I eat a muffin and my dog and cat decide to try and eat each other.
11:15-1:30 PM: Work runs late. There’s some issues with the data and we can’t figure it out. We call it a night, and I’ll record the video presentations tomorrow, once we fix the data.
1:30-4 PM: Nap time! It’s bad for me, but honestly I don’t sleep well during the night so naps are what keep me alive.
4-6 PM I prep dinner (smash burgers and fries), and get chores done and walk the dog.
6-7:30 PM: Spouse comes home, we eat dinner. Groceries come to 96.83 for two 7 pound pork loins, two packs of bacon, chicken nuggets, coffee, pop, 8 pack of peppers, milk, tomato, pickles, rice, avocado, mushrooms, sour cream and lettuce.
Not too bad, we average about 300$/month in groceries because we can buy bulk and have a second freezer.
For the month of March we are currently at 123.61$ for groceries and there is twelve days left. We went on a small weekend away, so we ate out a fair bit but even then our current food budget is 272.27$ today.
Total: 96.83/ debit
7:30-10 PM: Spouse makes a coffee and plays video games with his friends. They do it every week. I have a shower, fold and put away laundry and read in bed.
Day Three Total: 196.83
Day Four
1AM: Our biweekly accelerated mortgage payment comes out of 1450$. I’m tracking it here to be honest on our spending but I tend not to think of it as money spent because in my head it’s already money gone. To pay for a house equivalent in Vancouver, the mortgage would be over 6k. Renting a two bedroom condo would be 3K. It feels like the mortgage is just cheaper rent, even though each time I own more of my house.
5:45-9 AM: Work. I find out the limits of how many people I can invite to a Teams Meeting as well as that the Thursday before Good Friday is a catholic holiday when a few people ask me to reschedule a training forum for over a thousand people. Sometime in there I make us coffee, make sure Spouse has lunch packed (leftovers). Spouse has walked the dog and has the recycling and compost out for pick up. I drop Spouse off at work.
10-11:45 AM: I leave the office for home and more meetings. I walk the dog and go record training videos. I get an email that Amazon is doing their big spring sale. I send a link to a robot mop and vaccum that’s on a big discount to Spouse. We want one, but I’m not in charge of the research on it. I send links to play grounds to my friends with toddlers
11:45-12:30 PM : I shove lunch in my mouth, last night’s left overs. I’m running late, and decide to get myself later by collecting all the random dishes and mugs that just show up places and start the dishwasher. I get to the lab ten minutes early but need to buy gas on the way home.
I tell my team I’ll be MIA for a bit and leave the work phone in the car.
I buy 15.6L of gas for 30$ at 1.879/l it sucks. I don’t fill up because we’re going to my in laws this weekend and there’s a Costco Gas Bar there.
Total: 30$/credit card
12:30-1:30 PM: Work goes long again.
1:30-2:30 PM: Nap!
2:30-4:30 PM: Walk the dog and drive to the gym. I usually go three times a week but with last week’s weekend away and this week’s weird half days from Spouse, today’s the only day. I make it up by doing both upper and lower body and a 30 minute circuit.
4:30-7:30 PM: I pick up Spouse and we go to Costco. We pick up nachos, ham, cheese buns and some other items. We debate buying our friend’s kid a toddler set of clothes and decide no. We end up buying work pants for Spouse, and a garden hose. It comes out to 116.90
I order our Costco dinner of hot dogs and fries for a grand total date night of 6.41$
Total: 123.31/ credit card
8-9 PM: Dance class! We bought a series of six lessons of introduction to ballroom back in December for a new date night idea. We paid 60$/pp and this is the fifth lesson tonight.
9 pm: We’re home, we let the dog out. Spouse spends an undetermined amount of time watching ballroom videos while I sleep.
Day Four Total: 1603.31$ or 153.31 excluding the mortgage payment.
Day Five
5:45-9 AM: Work. All the meetings. Thursday is the meeting day. I debate with a friend what’s the earliest call we’ve had. 4:30 am still wins. I pack lunch for Spouse and his coffee and he leaves. I end up cleaning up cat puke as the cat decides to drink milk from Spouse’s cereal and vomit it up on camera in a meeting.
9-9:30 AM: I make myself a matcha and walk the dog.
9:30-1 PM: Work and I treat myself to a lunch of a cheese bun and ham sandwhich. We used to eat it every Sunday while growing up but the cost of ham has been outrageous. The deal at Costco yesterday was 1.5$/100 g which is really good.
1-1:30 PM: I seal the wooden deer Christmas decoration we bought last year. It sits outside our front door and needs to be weather proofed, and I’ve been putting it off for five months. But the weather is good and we have newspapers. We have left over wood sealer after the sign we bought a year ago so I use that. The dog and the cat both don’t like my wooden deer.
1:30-4 PM: Nap!
4-5 PM: I basically just watch youtube and drink a root beer. I have no energy.
5-6:30 PM: Spouse comes home, we walk the dog and I make dinner (Kraft Dinner and nuggets–I swear we eat veggies but today is not that day). We discuss the possibility of our dog at our wedding as a flower girl, and if she’ll be in a tutu or a cheongsam like me. I am now researching if they make dog cheongsams and if she can match us. The cat, despite all my heart wanting it, won’t physically be there because he will have an anxiety attack and probably die.
6:30-10:30 PM: Board game night! We go to a friend’s to repeat the same scenario we’ve lost two weeks in a row.
10:30-11 PM: I pack Spouse’s breakfast (oatmeal and frozen berries), lunch (spicy tuna and mayo) since he’s trying to go to the gym before work, and feed the animals before we go to bed.
Day Five Total: 0$
Day Six Friday
5:45-9 AM: Work. I have a deep focus block which means I can get the script for the training I have to run. Public speaking is not my strong suit and it’s a group of a thousand people so I’m not looking forward to it. Spouse almost makes it to the gym. I get an email that my new work phone has shipped. I’m surprised because they wouldn’t order us any for the past four years, but I guess my new iPhone will show up next week. I might give my old work phone to my mother in law, since she smashed the camera on the phone we bought her last year.
9-9:30 AM: I walk the dog, make a matcha and make a todo list for what we have to get done before we leave to my in laws tomorrow. I text my mother in law happy birthday, and hope that she got the card in time. She did.
9:30-11:30 AM: My last meeting for the week ends and I’m debating calling it a day so I can nap. Instead I make lunch (cheese bun and ham), text my other mother in law our plan for Saturday, and unload and reload the dishwasher and go back to work for at least another hour.
12:30-1 PM: I shower and do skin care
1-3 PM: Nap! Somewhere in this time FedEx comes and since I’m sleeping, we have to pick up on Monday. I’m not too sure what it is, I assume it’s our custom address stamp from Etsy because that’s the only thing I’ve bought recently but not too sure. I just realized in retrospect, this might be my new work phone.
3-5 PM: I prep dinner (nachos), unload the dishwasher, pack my overnight bag and confirm all our venue tours by email. I start a load of laundry and do a quick clean. I feel like this is not the best image of our diet. I swear we generally eat healthy but we both have been feeling really blah over the past two weeks so have been going for quick and easy over healthy and balanced. I do have three whole peppers and two whole avocados in the nachos though.
5-7 PM: Spouse comes home, we walk the dog, have dinner, and plan out next week. We have a big Wednesday next week (mechanic, I have a nails appointment, dance class), and we are having our friends over for Easter so we need to prep for that. We pack the car so tomorrow is a very easy start.
Spouse also gets paid today. We’re lucky that we’re on alternating pay periods, we used to be on the same and it always felt stressful. Spouse also lets me know his union has secured a 3% cost of living raise to start in Q3. I really like his union for negotiating a base 2% year of cost of living raise, with potential addition raises depending on inflation. It’s a bit away but that’s still good news.
7:30-10:30 PM: We finish The Rookie Season 3 and head to bed. Crave reminds me that I have 10 days until I’m charged again. Sadly, I think we’ll have to pay for 2 months.
Day Six Total: 0
Day Seven Saturday
8:30-9:30 AM: Wake up. No one (except the dog) slept well so we’re not in a morning mood. Spouse makes coffee and walks the dog, while I finish packing the car and give the cat a lot of attention. Our first venue tour is at 11 and the one that is the most expensive (8-10K), but also the one we probably want the most. We live about an hour away but the highway is two lanes and one accident can back everything up for hours.
10:40-1 PM: We visit our dream venue. We stay way longer than expected. Basically if the quote is under 10K, we’ll get it. Just waiting now.
1-2 PM: We get to our in-laws and have a lunch of egg salad sandwhichs. We need to buy gas. My in laws drive us to a pottery painting store.
2-4 PM: We paint pottery. My mother in law only wanted to do this for her birthday. They’ll pick it up in a week after it’s been thrown. I paint a vase (28$), Spouse paints an Easter egg (18$), father in law paints a mug (30$), and mother in law paints a plate (50$)
Total:143.36/credit card
4-5 Pm: We see another venue. It’s an instant no. My in laws decide they want to try Korean fried chicken. We call ahead for take out to get two fries and 16 pieces of half and half. It comes to 50.83$ that my in laws pay for.
5-10 PM: We come back and see that our dog has pooped in their house and also has gotten into their pantry and eaten an entire bag of dog food. It is not a fun night.
We spend the night drinking wine and discussing the wedding and watching TV.
10PM: We go to bed. That’s the end of this week, but tomorrow we will be buying gas and probably lunch for my other mother in law as we will be touring another venue.
Day Seven Total: 143.36$

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2024.05.15 17:10 Chen_Geller Tolkien Begginings: the antecedents of Peter Jackson's (and others) Middle-earth

I still sit sometimes and chuckle, thinking "When Ralph Bakshi started animating The Lord of the Rings in 1976, did he know what he was going to unleash on the world?" There was also the Rankin/Bass TV special, being developed concurrently, but its the Bakshi film that, in 1979, Peter Jackson saw, and this young Photoengraver would later direct six (!) live-action Tolkien films and, between himself and co-producer Philippa Boyens, are hard to work producing three more such films. Other adaptations since - namely, The Rings of Power (especially Season One) but also games from The Shadow of Mordor to Return to Moria - have at the very least taken cues from Jackson's films. All because a Kiwi photoengraver saw a cartoon....
But the relationship between these properties is not so clear-cut as it may seem. I ednumbered the similarities and dissimilarities between Jacksons' films and The Rings of Power elsewhere. Now I want to delve deeper into the similarities and dissimilarities between Jackson and previous adaptations of Tolkien.

The Rankin/Bass TV Specials

Side-by-side video comparisons between Jackson's films and the two Rankin/Bass TV Specials do not reveal any similarities that don't come from the fact that they're adapting the same books. This is an important point: Jackson is NOT trying to make some post-modern "collage" Hollywood film. He's only tipping his hat to those adaptations of Tolkien that he had seen growing up and that influenced him personally.¹
Due to copyright, the Rankin/Bass specials probably didn't air in New Zealand at all, and although it seems Jackson got a hold of the Rankin/Bass The Hobbit before embarking on The Lord of the Rings, he had not seen their Return of the King, certainly before 1999, and neither he nor his close collaborators have made comments about either of the two Specials. By contrast, the (American!) showrunners of The Rings of Power had referenced the Rankin/Bass Specials, and seemingly tipped their hat to it in a set design for season two.²

The Ralph Bakshi film

As I said, Jackson went to see the Bakshi film. He had enjoyed some of Bakshi's previous film, including the Tolkien-esque Wizards, released the previous year, and went to see his latest. At the time he hadn't read the books, making Bakshi's film his first exposure to Tolkien, but he does admit he "heard the name" of the book beforehand. His biography suggests he saw it in late 1978, when it first premiered, but surely it would have arrived at New Zealand in early 1979. Jackson does acknowledge that he may well have never made his films had he not seen Bakshi's.³
The connection between the two films had been played up, unsurprisingly, by Ralph Bakshi himself. A leonine, grandiose man, Bakshi is anything but a reliable narrator. His own suggestion that he hadn't actually seen the films - only trailers, he claims - sounds believable enough and certainy understandable.⁴ But, then, if he didn't watch them, it makes his critique of them as deriviative of his films all the more dubious, even without actually looking at the specifics of what he said:

Look at his Lothlorien. Look at my backgrounds of Lothlorien. Take a look! He had much more to see than I did, and if you don't think he lifted it over and over again, you're wrong. I mean, how did he design a knife in Lord of the Rings? How did he design a sword? How did he design the dwarf with his axe? How did he design the fur around him? Why did Peter Jackson put fur around the dwarf? Because I put fur around the dwarf! Why would the dwarf have fur naturally? You see, I could give you a billion little things. I wish I had a movie to look at.⁵

These are truly some confused claims, for the most part. The most credible part here is the Hobbits hiding under the branch from the Ringwraiths, a shot composition later to also be replicated in season one of the Rings of Power, and which we'll get to later.
Another claim of Bakshi's that cannot be dismissed out of hand is that, however big or small a debt Jackson owes to his film, he said that Jackson didn't publically acknowledge the influence and felt that it was only appropriate to have welcomed him to visit the set or something: by comparison, Jackson invited Rick Baker, who played King Kong in the 1978 version, to cameo in his King Kong.⁶
Jackson actually did mention the Bakshi filming in passing in the making-ofs. Then again, he entirely fails to mention the radio serial, either. Ultimately, Jackson possibly in cahoots with New Line Cinema, must have felt it unwise to point to a previous adaptation that had only achieved mixed success, at the outset of his own enterprise. He did talk more about the Bakshi film, and more fondly, in the director's commentary to The Fellowship of the Ring and in a couple of later interviews, which are significant gestures, but he clearly wasn't going to trumpet the influence Bakshi's film had on him off of every rooftop.⁷
In his 2006 biography, Jackson actually briefly reviews the Bakshi film:

I liked the early part – it had some quaint sequences in Hobbiton, a creepy encounter with the Black Rider on the road, and a few quite good battle scenes – but then, about half way through, the storytelling became very disjointed and disorientating and I really didn’t understand what was going on. However, what it did do was to make me want to read the book – if only to find out what happened!⁸

This is a complementary but admittedly mixed review, and Jackson had made similar comments since, calling it "brave and ambitious" but consistently decrying the hokum of the film's second half.⁹ Now, it is true that artists can be influenced by a work of art in spite of themselves, but lets see if we can try and quantify the influence.
From the outset, in the audio commentary, Jackson remarks that "our film stylistically is very different and the design is different," which is apposite: Bakshi swore a debt to Howard Pyle, which certainly leaves its mark of the gorgeous natural bakcdrops, but a source closer at hand (especially considering his follow-up fantasy film, Fire and Ice) is the most popular fantasy illustrator of his day, Frank Frazetta: Bakshi's Witch King is practically ripped from Frazetta's famous "Dark Rider" illustration.¹⁰
Jackson's approach, however, was steeped in a kind of romantic realism that by and large eschewed the heightened work of Frazetta, opening a yawning stylistic gulf between his film and Bakshi's on a general level. Bakshi's Hobbit-holes have overhanging roofs that give the impression of fairies living under mushrooms (which they in fact had in his previous film, Wizards) and the interiors of Bag End are earthen, more of a rabbit-hole than Jackson's English countryside villa. There are some similarities, like the Hobbits having similarly-clipped pants, but its hard to say costume designer Ngilla Dickson had Bakshi in mind for that look.
There's the basic structure of the narrative: both films leave some of the same plot beats out - Tom Bombadil, most notably - both intercut the Frodo and Aragorn storylines throughout (as per the appendices rather than the body of the text), and both open with a prologue. However, many of these are common-sense approaches that, if one were to put 100 screenwriters in a room, a good 90 of which would choose to pursue: in fact, Sir John Boorman's earlier Lord of the Rings script had likewise intercut the stories and redacted many of the same episodes as both Bakshi and Jackson, and similar approaches were taken in the 1958 Morton Zimmerman treatment. Certainly, in the case of the choice to pursue a prologue, a precedent closer at hand exists in the form in the 1981 radio serial, a point made all the stronger by the fact that when Jackson first concieved of and sketched the prologue, he hadn't seen Bakshi's film in 20 years.¹¹
Bakshi did claim that New Line were screening his film repeatedly, but author Ian Nathan says that was never the case. Miramax did screen the film for Jackson in 1997, after he'd written the treatment. Jackson's treatment included Glorfindel and Erkenbrand, who in subsequent drafts are replaced by Arwen (Legolas in Bakshi's film) and Eomer, but still I find that it falls more into the realm of common-sense screenwriting decisions than anything that could be tied to Bakshi in a clear way, especially the latter which happens at the end of Bakshi film, a part of the film Jackson admits to have found incoherent.¹²
Rather, the place to look for similarities between the two projects is in the opening leg of The Fellowship of the Ring. Jackson actually, in the director's commentary, points out the shot of Odo Proudfoot calling "Proudfeet!" as a deliberate homage to Bakshi's shot, "which I thought was great." He doesn't acknowledge a couple - only a couple - of other shots that are quite similar: one is the evocative shot of the Ring tumbling over the rocks in Gollum's cave just before Bilbo finds it. Another still is an entire sequence of shots which misdirect us into thinking the Ringwraiths killed the Hobbits in their beds. Both are a little TOO similar to be waved away as coincidental.¹³
The Ringwraith shot is a more special case: It was nominally based off of a John Howe illustration, ostensibly of the Bakshi scene. But Jackson - who's quoted review of the Bakshi film mentions this scene - could hardly not notice the similarity to the Bakshi scene, especially since the scene doesn't at all play like this in the novel. What's more, the scene was first storyboared only shortly after Jackson say Bakshi's film for the second time, and shot not too long after that being that it was the first scene filmed. So its only fair to cite Bakshi as an influence on that shot.¹⁴
https://preview.redd.it/9mbqqm4zul0d1.png?width=550&format=png&auto=webp&s=a45cdd06543d70200e3eacf150f14d03d222203b
There are other bits and pieces: did Jackson have Bakshi in mind when he added a scene of Saruman rallying up the Uruk-hai before the siege of Helm's Deep? Its hard to say. An even more elusive case is made by Bakshi: "I'm glad Peter Jackson had a movie to look at—I never did. And certainly there's a lot to learn from watching any movie, both its mistakes and when it works." In other words, Bakshi here suggests his film influenced Jackson in terms of what NOT to do. To his credit, Jackson does remember that the design process for Treebeard was in part motivated by trying to divorce him from the Bakshi version, which both him and Dame Fran Walsh remember as being "like a walking carrot." But when we start getting into that level, it all becomes very tenuous. There were a lot of things about the fantasy genre in general - Conan the Barbarian and Willow are oft-cited by Jackson - that he tried to avoid.¹⁵
Ultimately, I have to judge that the similarities between the two versions amount to a handful of rather insignificant beats, all in the first hour of Fellowship of the Ring. To hyperbolically play up the similarities between the two projects is to give in to Bakshi's hyperbolic rhetoric.

Tolkien illustrations

Jackson's first and, at the time, only copy of The Lord of the Rings was a tie-in to the Bakshi film. This would mean he hadn't gotten into the world of Tolkien illustrations until developing his own films, when he suggests he went on a detail-exhaustive search for Tolkien art. He had seen Tolkien's own illustrations, but decided that they're "not very helpful in terms of the lighting and the mood."¹⁶
The most acclaimed illustrators of the previous era of Tolkien were Pauline Bayens (whose Minas Tirith is reproduced in the Rankin/Bass Return of the King) and the Brothers Hildebrandt, whose bestial Balrog presents a precursor both to Bakshi's but also to the Minotaur-like Balrog of John Howe.¹⁷
Howe was one of a trifecta of Tolkien illustrators, along with Ted Nasmith and Alan Lee, to enjoy great vogue at the time when Jackson was developing his films. Of the three, Lee is often deemed the most celebrated and certainly made the biggest impact on Jackson, whose next copy of the book was to be an Alan Lee illustrated edition. But he also noticed Howe through is work on Tolkien calendars, and later also purchased some originals of Ted Nasmith. All three were approached to participate in concept design for the films, although Nasmith sadly had to decline.¹⁸
In many places, Jackson precisely copied designs of Lee's and Howe's existing paintings, and in some places carbon copied their lighting and composition for shots, as well as grading the films (before the advent of the latest remaster) somewhat along the lines established in their paintings. But the majority of Lee and Howe's work for Jackson was in producing NEW concept art to his specifications, and so its wrong to look at Jackson's films as being a part of the Lee-Howe ouevure, as such.

The 1981 Radio Serial

A less touted influence on Jackson's film is the superlative 1981 BBC radio serial. Where Jackson hadn't reread the book nor revisited Bakshi's film between 1979 and 1997, he had spent much of the that time listening on-and-off to a tape of the radio serial, usually while working in his garage on special effects.¹⁹
The most obvious similarity is the casting of Sir Ian Holm, who had voiced Frodo in the radio serial, as Bilbo. Holm was apparently at the top of Jackson's casting wishlist, partially for this reason. A particularly striking moment occurs when Holm's Frodo quotes Bilbo's "Its a dangerous business Frodo, going out your door: you step on to the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to", a line again given to Holm - now as Bilbo - in voiceover at the same spot in Jackson's film.²⁰
Again, many of the similar structural choices here are similar to Jackson, adding a prologue, contracting the early stages of Frodo's quest and intercutting the Aragorn and Frodo's stories throughout. Brian Sibley admits to have modelled his prologue on Bakshi's own, but Jackson is unlikely to have known it at the time, and when we start thinking in terms of second-hand influences we're again into very tenuous territory. Otherwise, the influence doesn't seem all too great, although Sibley remembers that Walsh, perhaps half-jokingly, told him "we stole your ending" in the way that they did the Grey Havens and then a quick segue to Sam's return home, basically along the lines of the book.²¹
A young, and already Tolkien-devotee, Sir Ian Holm recording Bilbo
Sibley had recruited his cast from the BBC's company of actors, which is also the troupe Bakshi turned to, meaning that Sibley ended-up with Bakshi's Boromir (Michael Graham Cox) and, notably, his Gollum (Peter Woodthorpe). In spite of Woodthorpe's evocative performance of Gollum's voice in both the Bakshi and Sibley versions, its influence on Andrew Serkis' performance of Gollum is nonexistent, as Serkis had developed the voice before having heard Woodthorpe rendition, having only read The Hobbit prior to being cast.²²

Other fantasy films

Jackson had seen pretty much all the fantasy films of the 1980s, and while they were important in terms of establishing the genre, they hadn't left much of an impression on Jackson. The most succesful - George Lucas' Star Wars - was more space-fantasy, undoubtedly impressed Jackson but didn't much influence his films: to this day, he professes to not be a huge Star Wars fan, in spite of the amiacable manner he and Lucas took with each other in later years, and admits that he sees the influence of Lucas more "in what he did for the industry, not in terms of the actual films that he made."²³
The first major high-fantasy film, Sir John Boorman's Excalibur, was a little closer to Jackson's heart, but isn't much of an influence on his films either. Its true that Jackson's films feature a lot of plate armour, but that's indebted primarily to John Howe's abiding love of late Medieval armour, and at any rate is quite different to the Enlightement-era suits of armour one finds in Boorman's film. Willow, produced by George Lucas, was a big shot to the arm of New Zealand's fledgling film industry, and like Star Wars is much indebted to The Hobbit, but left a bad impression on Jackson.²⁴
The Clockmaker's Cottage in Sir Ridley Scott's Legend
Two exceptions are to be cited; Ray Harryhousen's stop-motion fantasy films from the 1950s were huge favourites of Jackson's, although their more Graeco-Roman subject matters were a genre apart from Jackson's films. He is also a big fan of Sir Ridley Scott, and while he joins the consensus of deriding William Hjortsberg notorious screenplay, had taken some cues from his Legend (1986): there's something of the Clockmaker's cottage in Rhosgobel, and Jackson referenced some of the features of Tim Curry's devilish "Lord of Darkness" for the Wargs sinewy faces.²⁵

Other films

Jackson took influence from paintings of old battles and landscapes, but surely his biggest influences are other films: Zulu and Saving Private Ryan had been referenced for Helm's Deep, and there's a touch of Terrence Malick's The Thin Red Line, which Jackson had watched before principal photography, to the atmospheric shots that close the Fellowship prologue. Jackson admitted to rewatching mostly Scorsese films while shooting, and certainly the energy of his moving cameras find a closer kin in Scorsese's films than in anyone else's. There's something of David Lean's Lawrence of Arabia to Jackson's intention to make living, breathing people out of his fantasy characters.²⁶
Surely the inspiration for the shot of Aragorn arriving at Helm's Deep
But there's one film that looms largest in Jackson's films, overshadowing any influence we're looked at so far: Mel Gibson's latest spectacular, Braveheart. Along with other films of this kind like Dances with Wolves and Rob Roy (Gladiator came too late to much influence Jackson's films) it is of crucial importance to the overall cinematic style of Jackson's films, having come out just as Jackson first started thinking of making an original fantasy film, and winning the academy award for Best Picture before any sustained work was done to develop The Lord of the Rings.²⁷

Footnotes

Matt Skuta, "The Hobbit Side-by-Side: Rankin/Bass ('77) & Peter Jackson ('12-'14)" and "Return of the King Side-by-Side: Rankin/Bass ('80) & Peter Jackson ('03)," YouTube, 15 February 2018.
The Rankin/Bass Specials were only made exploiting a loophole in the publication of Tolkien's books that temporarily made them public domain States-side, but meant that their airing was limited to the US, and subsequent a legal agreement with the Tolkien Estate, Canada. Jackson says he hadn't seen their Return of the King in an interview from late 1998. Eric Vespe, “ 20 QUESTIONS WITH PETER JACKSON – PART 2 Ain’t It Cool News,” , 30 December 1998.
Brian Sibley, Peter Jackson: A Filmmaker's Journey (London: Harper Collins, 2006), pp. 107-111.
Kyle, ""Legends of Film: Ralph Bakshi," Nashville Public Library, 29 April 2013.
Emru Townsend, "INTERVIEW: Ralph Bakshi", Frames Per Second, 2 July 2004.
Ken P., "Interview with Ralph Bakshi," IGN, May 25, 2004. Broadway, Clifford Q., "The Bakshi Interview: Uncloaking a Legacy". The One Ring, 20 April 2015.
Anonymous, "From Book to Script," and Peter Jackson et al, "Director's Commentary," both in Peter Jackson, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (New Line: 2002). Also Anonymous, "Peter Jackson interview". Explorations (Barnes & Noble, November 2001). Peter Jackson interview at the Egyptian Theater, 6 February 2004.
Sibley, pp. 109 ff.
Director's Commentary.
Ned Raggett, "The Trouble With Ralph Bakshi’s The Lord Of The Rings & Other Tolkien Misadventures", The Quietus, 19 November 2018
Ian Nathan, Everything You Can Imagine: Peter Jackson and the Making of Middle-earth (London: HarperCollins, 2017), p. 138.
Peter Jackson et al, The Lord of the Rings, quoted in Sibley, pp. 109, 704, 751.
Director's Commentary.
Celedor, "10 Things You Know About The LOTR Movies (That Aren’t True)," TheOneRing, 11 June 2013.
"Interview with Ralph Bakshi."
Sibley, p. 738-744. Exeter College, Oxford, "Sir Peter Jackson in conversation: Exeter College Oxford Eighth Century Lecture Series", YouTube, 30 July 2015.
Howe admits to the influence of the Hildebrandts, and in turn his own bestial Balrog would influence those of Alan Lee and Ted Nasmith. This would be popularised by Jackson, and finally emulated by Rings of Power. John Howe, "First Thing's First," John-Howe, 6 January 2012.
"Sir Peter Jackson in conversation", Sibley, 738-744. The One Ring, "Peter Jackson MISSED OUT! Talking Tolkien with Renowned Artist Ted Nasmith," YouTube, 11 July 2023.
Nathan, p. 123, NB 1008.
Nathan, p. 258.
Nerd of the Rings, "Brian Sibley, writer, BBC's The Lord of the Rings (1981) - Interview," YouTube, 20 April 2021.
Nathan, pp. 621 ff
"Sir Peter Jackson in conversation"
“20 QUESTIONS WITH PETER JACKSON – PART 2"
Ibid.
Nathan, pp. 158, 393, 645.
u/Chen_Geller, "How Masterpieces beget Masterpieces: Braveheart and The Lord of the Rings," Reddit, 23 June 2021.

Conclusions

Any notion that Jackson's films are derivative of previous Tolkien adaptations - namely, Bakshi's - are very much hyperbolic, and stem more from adopting an inflated rhetoric taken by the likes of Bakshi. As an adaptation, Jackson's works are based soley on Tolkien's books, and merely tip their hat occasionally to previous adaptations - and not all previous adaptations, either. Cinematically, they draw rather from other sources: less from other adaptations of Tolkien or other fantasy film (Tolkien-esque or not) and more from historical epics, both from the 1960s but also and especially from the time in which Jackson first started developing his films.

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2024.05.15 01:53 skydiverjean Manulife One for principal + rental?

I have a home and a rental home in a large city in Central Ontario. My mortgages were fixed in the 3's, and are coming up for renewal.
I am considering M1 to free up cash flow. But will it? I don't plan on paying off my mortgages. I plan to sell the rental house once it has enough equity to cover my the mortgage on my principal residence. My timeline for this is 5-10 years, I need to accrue around 150k more equity in the rental to do so. Time will tell, but that's my bet.
Most of my debt is mortgage debt. I have a moderate LOC and a moderate car payment between my wife and I. I'm worried about the higher interest rates quoted for M1, since now most of my debt will now have a higher interest rate.
But once again, I am looking for cash flow. Will M1 help?

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