I've started a new project and plan to release it on June 6th on Royal Road.
This is my 6th try at writing a novel.
The last one was on all-category rising stars and is still there. I've decided to drop that one since the genre was very niche.
Let me know if you're interested. It's a dungeon-building tower-climbing system-apocalyptic dungeon core story.
You will get to read the chapters ahead of both Royal Road and Patreon.
Also, what do you think of the synopsis and the cover? Would you give it a go?
Synopsis:
Demons, otherwise called keepers, and Humans, otherwise recalled seekers, warred since the beginning of ages.
Kaniel, too, was once a human - a regular one. Yet after transmigrating from Earth, he became a demon, an irregular one at that.
Lawyer - XXX Dungeon Points
Linguist - XXX Dungeon Points
Lieutenant - XXX Dungeon Points…
He could summon no dwarves, no goblins, nor even mere slimes - humans only. And so begins the tale of the Human Lord, neither a demon nor a human - equally despised by all, his dungeon being hunted by both.
To prepare for resistance against the onslaught of the world before the pandemonium began, Kaniel started from humble origins - his first goal being to infiltrate the empire and climb the Flame Tower while challenging its floors in search of runes, resources, and relics.
Demons underestimated this demon. Humans underestimated his humans.
In the present, in presence, he was Obstruction - an unassuming dungeon master.
In the past, he was Kaniel - an unassuming adrenaline addict, a fighter, a gamer, and a part-time revolutionary.
And in the future, far, far away, he was hailed as…
The Demon Lord of Perseverance.

The Council released the 15 May Deloittes review of the Arts Centre's cash flow worries. The report raises more questions.

Excerpt:
Describing the risk as "real" in its financial review of 15 May, Deloittes has surmised that without a cash injection, the Arts Centre will go insolvent.
“Currently the Trust Board is working through an asset management planning process which will better define its future capital expenditure requirements but this is not currently known”.
Deloittes
On Friday, the Arts Centre said "The Deloitte reports vindicates the position of the Trust as presented in our Proposal for Funding and in our Submissions to Council".
On 2 May, in the council chamber, Arts Centre director Philip Aldridge and Board Chair Murray Dickinson had told councillors it “substantially” backed the Deloittes report.
As recalled, the Arts Centre has asked the Council to consider taking over its insurance policies, providing it with a rates remission or reduction or providing it with an annual operating grant of $1.83 to $2.5 million.
Until its 2023 audited accounts are released, the Deloittes report (released on Friday) could play a pivotal role in the councillors’ decision to provide a lifeline to the Arts Centre. However, the report comes with its shortcomings.
Deloittes has dismissed the Arts Centre's insurance and rates proposals as being no better economically than the provision of council heritage grants. But it forcasted the Arts Centre will become insolvent without outside assistance.
For more, go to -https://open.substack.com/pub/thewigram/p/deloittes-report-backs-arts-centre?r=1wegwa&utm\_campaign=post&utm\_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

So, I've never really been one to post on these kinds of forums but I just feel so lost and need to get this off my chest. My girlfriend of three years cheated on me, and I'm heartbroken. We've been through so much together, and I thought she was the one. We had talked about our future, about getting married, having kids, the whole shebang.
It started a few months ago when she started acting distant. I noticed she was spending more time on her phone, going out more often without me, and just generally being less affectionate. I tried to talk to her about it, but she always brushed it off, saying she was just stressed with work or needed some space. I wanted to believe her so badly that I ignored all the red flags.
Last week, I found out the truth. She left her phone unlocked on the couch, and I saw messages from a guy I'd never heard of. The texts were explicit, and it was clear they had been seeing each other for a while. My heart sank. I confronted her immediately, and she didn't even deny it. She said she didn't love me anymore and had been seeing this guy for the past six months. Six months! How did I not see it?
I'm devastated. I moved out of our apartment that night and have been staying with a friend. I feel like such an idiot for not realizing sooner, for trusting her so completely. The worst part is, I still love her. I hate myself for it, but I do. I'm struggling to understand how someone I thought I knew so well could do this to me.
I've been trying to focus on myself, going to the gym, hanging out with friends, but nothing seems to help. Every time I close my eyes, I see her with him. It feels like my whole world has collapsed, and I don't know how to rebuild it.
How do you move on from something like this? How do you trust someone again after being so completely betrayed? Any advice or words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for listening to my rant.

oh wow I detached so much from a past situation that i imagined them talking to someone that doesn't exist
and then I imagined myself talking to someone else I've been wanting to approach and others as well, but i don't exist, but they are still interacting with me like I do...
I'm a vessel that no longer exists, I am the non self that is as fleeting as everything within it.
I am genuinely so, so happy. I feel so light and free. I do not exist.
I am so happy, it's really late here and I don't have anyone to share this with, but I thought that sharing it here would be appropriate. I am so happy I can't stop smiling and giggling.
My practice has been working. I want to be like this forever.
wow :D
I can't wait for the future, I want to do so much!!!!!!!!!!!!!
but first I gotta sleep, goodnight everyone, I love you all!

WSB warriors, our $HOOD calls struck paydirt when we hit that sweet $20 strike last Friday! Did anyone else catch that 12.23% end-of-day rocket ride?
Now, I’m sitting on 4800 stocks and wondering – do we have more fuel in this rocket, or was that the peak before the drop? Who cashed out, and who’s riding this wave?
Let’s get those big brain moves going. Are we seeing a new era for $HOOD, or is it time to bail with our gains? Sound off below with your plays, predictions, and whether you think $HOOD’s got more surprises up its sleeve.
Remember, past performance ain’t indicative of future results, but hitting that strike has got me feeling some type of way. Let’s hear it, are you holding for another surge, or is it time to fold 'em?

Hi All,
Please can you help me clarify why reduplication can occur in both the perfect indicative and the present indicative? I am comfortable with the perfect indicative having reduplication, but I learned last night that reduplication can be a feature of the present stem of the verb in order to emphasise the continuing nature of the action.
This seems a little contradictory to me?
I ask because the Wikipedia article on Ancient Greek verbs explains that verbs which have a strong aorist form use the ‘true’ stem of the verb.
I understand that the present indicative will usually have a sequence of letters which indicates the continuing nature of the action, like sigma kappa, or reduplication of the first couple of letters.
Thanks in advance :)

Planning to build a new PC since like 8/10 years.. Been gaming on console for alot of years but missing the vibe and games on PC so I have been doing alot of research about my budget and what I can get.. I would like to share what my current build is and hope to get some suggestions where needed.
Is the AiO from nzxt good enough to cool the Ryzen 5? I have read some things about the nzxt 240 not cooling enough when overclocking the cpu. Haven't really been overclocking in the past but might want to try it out.
Budget is around €2000 euros, can be a little higher like 200-/+.
Is someone could add some suggestions for a decent budget mechanical keyboard that would be nice
PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 5 7600X 4.7 GHz 6-Core Processor	$168.49 @ Amazon
CPU Cooler	NZXT Kraken Elite 240 78.02 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler	$159.99 @ B&H
Motherboard	Gigabyte X670 GAMING X AX V2 ATX AM5 Motherboard	$209.99 @ Amazon
Memory	Corsair Vengeance RGB 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory	$124.99 @ Amazon
Storage	Kingston Fury Renegade 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive	$172.99 @ Amazon
Video Card	Gigabyte WINDFORCE OC GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER 16 GB Video Card	$833.02 @ Amazon
Case	NZXT H5 Elite ATX Mid Tower Case	$104.95 @ Amazon
Power Supply	NZXT C850 (2022) 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply	$99.99 @ Amazon
Monitor	LG UltraGear 27GR75Q-B 27.0" 2560 x 1440 165 Hz Monitor	$249.55 @ Amazon
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total	$2123.96
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-05-19 04:50 EDT-0400

Long story short: Tinder > IG > WA
A less than 1 minute videocall was had with never a frame of my face in the same shot as my lower body. Both her WA number and the scammers number were phillipene (+63). Once I saw the notifications of the threat coming in from that second number, I didn't even open it and blocked and reported them both. I didn't pay a dime and don't even know what amount the wanted. Went to work on putting my profiles on max privacy, changed my pfps, changed my usernames, ...
It's now been 1 week and almost 12 hours later. Nothing has happened in regards to anything being leaked. I have not heard anything from the scammer again, not with a new number or any other social channel. No friend or family member has contacted my about getting any video. Nothing for more than a week now.
The fact they're Philippine criminals did allow me to do lots of research since it's sadly typical for that country. Luckily this means that there are prison sentences starting from 7 years and fines of around 10.000 euros. These elements do make me believe that I might be through that experience without any harm following.
I have had some DMs with victims here, used a public help line to explain my story to a listening stranger and filed a complaint with local law enforcement. These and much more got me through the suicidal phase.
There are plenty of polls and stories that'll show you how unlikely it is for them to actually leak. The risk, time and money they have to invest is simply almost never worth it.
I feel like I wanna move on from this, leave the past behind but I think I'll need another week of being in the clear to do so. If you have gone through a longer period of being free or have tips, recommendations or advice for me in how to look at the future, please let me know. I'm always available here.
Finally, don't pay, block, report and put your channels on max privacy or remove them as long as you need.

I (30f) am in a LDR with my bf (30m) but might have fallen for local guy (34m). What to do in this case?
So me (30f) and my bf (30m) have been together for almost 3 years. We’ve been visiting each other 3-4 times per year and then spending a generous amount of time together. We’ve been on vacations together and are overall really happy. We chat and videochat daily. He’s very sweet and affectionate, he’s quite charming and good looking. English is not my first language but it is his, however even if I can speak English fairly well, he makes an effort to learn my language.
He plans to move to my country to be together, but in the past 1.5 years, little to no effort has been put into that thought by him. That discourages me a little. Also, he has been unemployed for years as he has been battling mental health problems. He does have a very small business going on but once he moves out of his country, that would be over. In our relationship, I would be the sole breadwinner, and even if I love him and am ready to do so, I am a bit afraid that I would grow resenting him at some point. The future scares me a bit, as I myself have been burned out at some point.
Now to my problem. A few weeks ago I met this guy, he’s from my town. He’s older, has an apartment, a really good job, works out, is very responsible and is interested in me. I went out with him twice, as friends. He’s funny, sweet, really smart, he’s also quite good looking but maybe less than my bf. We have a lot in common, and I enjoy his company. I find myself sometimes thinking that a relationship with him would actually be a better fit for me.
What should I do? I feel shitty to do this to my bf, but I also feel stressed because he doesn’t actively take steps to move here. Thinking about a future with him stresses me out because he cant provide for us.
Help?

Stellaris at the moment is a game about a possible space future, inspired by our sci-fi pop culture.
Let's imagine the Stellaris future comes true and we are in the year 2400, where Paradox Interactive (surely a big slimy megacorp, hehe) is still active and designing a new Stellaris. What would it be like?
Would it be a sci-fi game set in 2600 with new, unthinkable mechanics, structures, and narratives, much like Stellaris 2024 is for us now? Is it even possible to have new sci-fi ideas in 2400 when we are already a well-established star nation? Are there new, unthinkable concepts like a Dyson sphere is to us now?
Or would it be like our Stellaris in 2024, but it is a history game because you play through our journey to our present in 2400?

Hello Redditors, I’m a 17 year old male from London, England and I’m tired of living in the UK, I barely have any friends here do to my friendship group falling apart plus I don’t really have a great relationship with my family so there’s nothing really trying me down here for when I finish my A levels.
I run an extremely successful e commerce business and all I have did for the past few months is save everything to prepare for a move.
So I am writing here today asking Reddit if they have any suggestions for places I can immigrate too I have a couple places in mind as of now, however I’m open to new suggestions. So far I have:
•In the USA I’m contemplating Houston/Austin-Texas, Los Angeles- California & Miami-Florida •Toronto- Canada •Sydney/Melbourne Australia
I would like to Go to University in said country so I will most likely go to uni in the city I want to move to. That way I can make some friends there and just have the university experience.
Whichever country I decide on moving too I will meet with an immigration lawyer during my summer holiday so I can begin the process a year early.
A little bit more about me for more personalised help:
•I am a black male so I would like somewhere with some diversity •after suffering with the weather in the UK I would like somewhere very hot (a bit contradictory considering Toronto is one of my options but it’s at the bottom of the list) •I don’t mind the cost of living of these places as I’m scaling the business now so I am prepared for any additional costs •I would like somewhere relatively safe
Thank you for any support you may provide!

My husband and I started dating during Covid. We are both gamers, and had met through my brother who is a long time friend of his. They met once before.
My attraction was his voice, his personality and eventually finding out he was very handsome didn’t hurt either. We connected right away and fell in love. A year and a bit of disappointment, the border finally opened and we met in person.
The chemistry has been undeniably strong. He fell hard and so did I. I began to get excited at the idea of marrying him. Starting a life together. The works!
I visited him afterwards and met his family. He lives at home as he’s saving money and helps his mom a lot around the house and overall. She’s older (65+) and needs help a lot. She’s energetic and light hearted but also has a wicked streak.
I never anticipated this. When I met she was super sweet. It was his sister that gave me a hard time at first, which was difficult but I persevered regardless. His mother started as supportive, but as soon as I started discussing future plans, everything began to change.
Suddenly I was rushing things, my husband, life , etc. I was 25 when we dated and he was 23. We were younger but not THAT young. We both eagerly discussed marriage since week 2 of dating. We dated a year and a bit when I first met his family.
Every conversation with his sister or mom during the first year or two of dating revolved around my lack of education. They’re a degree family (teachers at a elementary school and pre-K) and looked down on me because I didn’t have one, so I decided to open up about my trauma and childhood to help them understand why I’m where I’m at in life, and that it’s actually way better than I could ever imagine.
I have my own place. I make good money at a corporate job I’ve been at for several years, and I travel frequently. I have a full life of friends and family of my own. I don’t talk to my mom because she was physically abusive until I was 17 and worse. His mom knows this.
I explained that we need a marriage based visa approval before I can legally move to his country (USA) from mine (Canada). Student visa is pricey and not ideal for future plans. I went through the process and it all over 20 times in length. Trying to get everyone to understand it was the best option to get married. They fought it HARD. I cried so much, so many times.
I had no idea why they were soiling on our goals and on me. My husband was so excited to get married, he knew what we needed to do. They actively tried to convince him not to do it but then helped him plan my engagement decorations and cake. His sister was annoyed by this, since it was hard to watch her younger brother grow up and as her own marriage was rocky at the time.
After we got married his mom started making comments only to me about how we have to “wait and see how it all goes after a year” implying we wouldn’t last that long. She constantly says stuff like this. Especially when we’re alone in the kitchen having what I thought was an open conversation.
She’s accused me of marrying him for a green card, of trying to rush our marriage to have babies, and trap him.
I have explained countless times my plan and our plan to wait for kids. Yes I’m older than him but we have goals before kids come that we want to achieve. Pair her general comments with her mean remarks whenever we mention future kids, and I just see someone trying to tear me down.
The worst thing she said is that she thinks if I got pregnant and my relationship with him fails, that I’ll “take the baby to Canada”. And that if things don’t work out before kids, I’ll be alone out here. Yeah.
Despite all this, I have always helped her and been nice. Even too nice.
Today was the straw that broke my camels proverbial back. I had helped her while she was really sick with what we found out to be COVID, for 2 weeks while I am visiting my husband before we fly away for our 1 year Anniversary trip. I made her home made soup, I cleaned her house, I checked on her. I made a custom recipe book for my Mother’s Day gift to her. I got her whole family to sign it after.
We haven’t celebrated due to her being sick. We were supposed today. My husband and I came back from a day out and she starts ranting about our sex life to him, and I am overhearing this from his room. She was talking about it in the open dining room randomly.
I had a private talk with her when she was at the end of her sickness, as my husband and I had some tense talks and I wanted to get insight. I had mentioned in passing that my iud strings were cut during a precancer cell removal surgery. That I was being careful but still worry for us sometimes, but that I’m taking precautions.
She didn’t say much besides “ oh that’s good! I’m glad to hear that”. Then she brings it up today, 4 days later. In front of my husband who in already discussed this with. She’s lying and saying I sounded unsure and scared, that we’re being careless and that she’s praying we don’t get pregnant. She tells him he should take mint pills, get a temporary vasectomy, and that I should get checked / scanned. That she doesn’t know if we’re compatible if we have tense talks lately and we may find out after living together FT. She said she wishes she could twist his balls, that she had a nightmare I got pregnant and “someone got hurt” but didn’t elaborate so as not to “call it into existence “ We’re just standing there stunned. She plays it off like she cares, but she’s just being so negative.
I levelled with her, assuring her I would take precautions once again. That her concern is real. Well shortly after we went to his room feeling good about hearing her out while talking. But then I hear his mom gossiping to his older sister. She barely looked at me after when I walked in. She was noticeably cold to me.
His mom was syrupy sweet to me. Saying we (her son and i) should go on a walk to enjoy the sunnny day! I cried the whole time asking him why she’s so mean, why she can’t trust us to be adults.
I cried so hard I skipped lunch and dinner, I had an anxiety attack. I couldn’t breathe, I’m disbelief at what I saw and heard today. It’s like nothing I did in the past 4 years and 1 year of marriage almost, mattered to her or made any impact.
My husband went up and talked to her, for a long time. He came down and spoke on her behalf, detailing how concerned she was for me and my health “stuff” and that it holds heavy on her heart. She doesn’t want us to go through worse (baby is worse?) and wanted to get her point across. That she loves me and accepts me as her own.
Well after I stopped sobbing, I texted her saying I was sorry for today and why stress I caused her with my words.
She texts back giving me shit for not “coming to her directly” as she felt it was important i hear what she said to her son too. That if she didn’t care she wouldn’t bring it up to us. That we will figure it out as we’re adults. Night night with heart emoji.
I texted back a big paragraph (like this post) reminding her that she wasn’t direct with me as she was talking to my husband about making sure I was on birth control, insinuating I’m lying about my IUD being effective. If I didn’t walk in the chat never would have happened. That she can’t expect me to come upstairs and hash it out if I’m so upset I can’t stop crying. That it’s unfair to put that on me after i was the bigger person and apologized to her tonight. She never said sorry to me directly.
My poor husband is in the middle, especially as he’s the youngest (27). I told him it’s time to move out and detach from the emotionally toxic relationship with his mom. He agrees.
He’s tried to leave a few times but she guilts him into staying. Today was the first day he saw her true colours towards me, he hated it!
Any support is appreciated and advice is valued!
TLDR; MIL chastised us about our private issues like sex

I 22F and my bf 25M are currently on a break for the week. I’m doing my uni finals at the moment, and I have been a bit stressed. I noticed my bf wasn’t really talking to me the way he normally would and I asked him what’s up. He sent me a really long text detailing now he thinks we are never on the same page (1), he keeps thinking about how I read his diary (2), I called him my ex’s name by acccident (3), and he is stressed because I am frustrated about my exams (4). I’ll detail these more now.

1. He wants kids. I met him online and told him in my profile I was strictly against kids. Recently, I have come around about that, but I am still unsure. I’m not against them but I have explained I would need to do what I want and live my life a bit and have a house and job before I could decide that. I am also a child of divorce and saw how that really affected my mum, and I explained to him how that also put me on the fence. He said he doesn’t want to be with someone for years and it feel like a “waste” if it doesn’t work out kids wise and he doesn’t wanna start dating in his 30s. Another thing is travel. I had told him I would perhaps like to travel after uni, but I am forgoing that. I said it would be nice to go away on holiday like his other friend couples do maybe once a year, but he thought that I was insinuating we MUST go this year. I explained that I wasn’t expecting him to, because he wants to save for a house (rent), and he can’t get any hols anyway. He was really silent after that as if we had “argued” and in his eyes that was an argument he brought up this week. I didn’t raise my voice at him or argue, rather said that wasn’t what I meant and explained further.
   
2. This one is bad, I know. I was in a really bad place mentally, and I thought that something was wrong with him since he sometimes suffered from anxiety and dealing with the future. I had only read the last entry he put in and immediately after I read it I told him as I felt so guilty betraying him. I’ve apologised profusely and I’ve been going to counselling to help my own anxiety and depression. I wanna note that I’m not like that around him, it’s mainly when I’m by myself so he doesn’t really see that side of me. In the moment I was genuinely worried for him. I know it still makes what I did bad.
   
3. This one really tears me up every day. We were playing around, and instead of saying his name in a playful annoyed way I said my exes. He immediately shut down and wouldn’t talk to me or hear me out. In fact, he kicked me out of his house. I get that what I said was not nice to hear, and upon talking to my counsellor she said it was a common thing to do, and doesn’t mean I was thinking about my ex. I wanna say that I DO NOT think about them and have blocked and deleted them from my life. In doing that however, I did begin to spend more time with my gay bestie who happens to have the same name as my ex and I happened to talk to on that day. I really believe it was a mistake and I thought he was trying to move past it but he keeps bringing it up.
   
4. He doesn’t like to be around me when I’m stressed. When I’m frustrated, I’m not angry at him or raise my voice at him or be passive aggressive, it’s more so internalised at myself. He was offering me advice this year and feels like because I didn’t stick to a schedule to complete my uni tasks, I was ignoring him. I work last minute, it’s how I have always worked and I get great result. Not to mention, in his final uni year he was the same as me. I dont really get this argument to be honest.
   

I also wanna note that he told me he wasn’t sure if this is the “real” me or if I was on my best behaviour at the start of the relationship. Everything was great at the start, but in my first week of uni my grandmother does, I then had to have surgery 2 months later to remove breast tumours (non cancerous), and I guess that and uni stress really caught up with me. He saw that I was doing better by going to the gym and feeling better about myself, but said that I snap back at times and don’t like myself. I think this is normal as some people have off days but I think he’s annoyed by it.
Also, at the start of our relationship he was really anxious about us, and I helped him through it. He was also stressed about jobs, and I had helped him prep and make a new cv as I’m good at that stuff and he got job offers. In fact at one point he said to me that he thought I was with him for money. I had more in savings than him at that point and paid for things/went 50/50. I am also lined up for a higher earning job than him when I’m out of uni. So, I guess I’m asking what should I do about this? I genuinely love him but my parents have said he’s not treating me nicely, and my friends have said the only thing that I have done wrong is read his diary.

Personally, I am not a fan the "excessive profit" tax policy because it seems like a half-baked proposal that fails to get to the core of the problem. However, this is nothing new as the NDP constantly puts forth half measures and band-aid solutions.
Why is the current proposal a half measure? Because the "excess profits" are generated by the oligopolistic market structure. That is, the grocery corporations have monopolized to the point where they have so much market power that they can raise their prices without much of a fear of losing customers / market share due to an lack of competition within the industry.
Unfortunately, oligopolistic market structures, such as the one which enables big grocers to accumulate monopoly profits, have now become widespread and pervasive. While we should take notice of the behemoth corporations that sprouted out of the last four and half decades of globalization, it is fundamentally our neoliberal political paradigm that brought these circumstances about by annihilating our protectionist policies to allow the free movement of capital and commodities, by privatizing our national industry, and by ensuing an abundance of labor so that real wages in most industries would never rise (or, as in the case of the grocers, be driven right down to minimum wage).
In short, we need to start focusing more on our contemporary economic conditions and forms of market structure (including the labor and housing market) because these have been organized in a way by neoliberal politicians to facilitate an increasing concentration of capital / worsening economic stratification. That is, both our economy and the global economy have been intentionally structured to vastly enrich a small minority of capitalists and speculators while, on the other hand, intensifying the immiseration of the working class.
In reaction to such oppressive and exploitative economic circumstances, Jagmeet is absolutely right to call out monopolists and threaten them with additional taxes if their quarterly profits are deemed by (at least progressive) politicians to be excessively high. However, while increasing taxation on these corporations would undoubtably be beneficial, I do not believe it gets to the deep core of the problem.
I think it is clear to everyone that Jagmeet is a sweet-hearted guy who undoubtedly deserves credit on his cultural inclusiveness. He constantly makes us proud when he rallies to the defense of marginalized populations. However, it is also evident that Jagmeet is not a visionary. That is, he does not have a bold vision of a post-(neo)liberal social order in which we overcome the current afflictions of late capitalism.
Unfortunately, such a lack of futural vision seems to run throughout the entire NDP.. we have still not overcome the sentiment of resignation that impelled us to relinquish the term "socialist", and such an impotent stance is causing us to lose disillusioned working class voters to (absurd as it is) Poilievre. Even as the liberal party implodes and widespread social discontentment intensifies, the NDP fail to make gains.
In order to face the encountered challenge, the NDP needs to recognize that at this present moment in history we are facing multiple, overlapping crises in which our current institutions and ideational convictions are unable to resolve. In other words, our current institutions are slow collapsing under the weight of the numerous contradictions plaguing contemporary society. Such a bleak situation is engulfing the country in a cloud of despair, fueling reactionary populism, and leading us down a path of disaster.
Thus, to move us out of such a deadlock, the NDP and its leadership need to be visionaries who espouse a bold eco-socialist form of society by which we can overcome the malaise of late capitalism. The populace demands real solutions to real problems, and if the NDP could muster up the courage and insight to deliver this to them, we would once again experience a much needed taste of hope.

For background context, I’m 33, gayer than christmas, and a nervous wreck.
Since 2019, I’ve experienced the death of (In order) my Step Dad, Grandmother, Sister, Mom, older Brother, and Step Mom. After my Grandmother passed, a sizable Family Trust was set up for me and my Dad. After my Mom passed, the state gave me custody of my little brother, so I used some of that money for a down payment for a nice house in a nice area— I wanted to get something stable and safe-feeling for my brother after such a tumultuous early childhood.
My husband has always tried to be supportive, or so I thought. I keep looking back though, and all I can remember are the times he’d give me shit for going to visit my grandmothemom when they were fighting their cancer battles. At one point, he even tried convincing me that my Mom was faking her illness, I think because he just didn’t like the area she lived in— a fairly ‘rough’ trailer park. He’s never had a job. I’ve tried here and there, but my depression always sucks me back underwater, and the Trust has effectively cut me off which lead to a wonderful case of ch 13 bankruptcy.
A year ago, I worked up the courage to try and file for divorce. Talked to an attorney, paid the retainer…. And then his dad (a family attorney himself) started listing all the ways he could have my little brother removed. I caved. I can’t lose my brother. I told myself that I was the problem somehow, and dropped the whole thing.
This past Tuesday, I woke up in crippling abdominal pain. Told the husband, who said he needed a shower. I waited ten minutes before I just grabbed my keys and left with a quick text on the way to urgentcare. I stumble into the waiting room and promptly pass out, night-night style. I guess they werent equipped to deal with that kind of thing because I then woke up in an ambulance (with the HOTTEST ems, I stg) being taken to a hospital. My phone is dead. Car is left at urgentcare. No idea where tf I’m being taken. Get rushed into a room and then get left for 30 minutes alone, bawling my eyes out with the thought that the cancer that took half my family has finally come for me. A nurse is kind enough to lend me her charger. My phone turns on… no calls or texts. Nothing. I call the husband who is asleep, irritated that I left without him, and that I woke him up. I don’t fight, I just tell him whats happening and where I am. A few agonizing hours later, I hobble out waiting for him. The last of my phone juice goes to the location I send him, and then I wait. And wait. And wait for two more hours (The hospital is 15 miles from our house).
I am a broken human being. Each death of my family chipped a little away, and on top of having to financially support myself, my teenage brother (who is a BLACK HOLE OF FOOD), and my… I gotta say it, my deadbeat husband… Underneath all of that, its hard to find the energy for.. anything, really. I just want to be happy again. I just want to feel like I have the freedom to heal. But I dont know where to find the strength to start. Therapy only goes so far, and meds only do so much. It takes action on my part, but I have no action left in me. I’m so tired. I miss my family.

If there were an option to hide health bars before engaging in battle the game would lean a lot more into importance of gambits beforehand. think about how much more you'd have to rely on strats if you could only look at what enemies were present and have to adapt on the fly vs just tinkering to change health bar sizes.
maybe it could be an option in a future patch if enough people recommend it.

The old family home stood at the edge of town, its once grand facade now weathered and worn by time. The town's whispers about the house had reached my ears many times throughout my childhood, but I had never given them much thought. Now, standing before the creaking gate that led to the overgrown path, I felt an inexplicable urge to discover the truth.
I had inherited the house after my great-uncle Nathaniel passed away, a man I barely knew but whose presence seemed to linger in every corner. The dusty heirlooms and musty bookshelves hinted at a long and storied history. It was a history I intended to uncover.
The first few days were uneventful. I spent my time clearing out cobwebs and sorting through old papers, most of which were mundane—bills, letters, old photographs. But then, tucked away in a hidden compartment of Nathaniel's desk, I found a bundle of letters tied with a faded red ribbon. The letters were old, the paper yellowed and brittle. They were addressed to my great-grandmother, Beatrice, from someone named Arthur.
The letters spoke of forbidden love, betrayal, and a pact made in desperation. Arthur's words grew increasingly frantic as he described a dark secret shared by the family—a secret that, if revealed, would bring ruin upon them all. My curiosity piqued, I read on, unable to tear myself away.
One letter in particular stood out. Dated December 3, 1923, it detailed a horrific event: a fire that had claimed the lives of several townspeople. Arthur confessed to starting the fire, claiming it was necessary to protect the family from something far worse. He mentioned a cult, dark rituals, and a promise made to an entity he referred to only as "the Shadow."
The more I read, the more I felt an unsettling presence in the house. Shadows seemed to move on their own, and whispers echoed through the halls at night. Determined to understand, I ventured into the basement, where Nathaniel's journals hinted at more hidden secrets.
The basement was damp and cold, the air thick with mildew. Shelves lined with jars of strange substances and dusty books filled the room. At the far end, behind an old trunk, I found a small door. It creaked open to reveal a narrow staircase leading further down into darkness.
With a flashlight in hand, I descended, my heart pounding in my chest. The air grew colder with each step, and a sense of dread settled over me. At the bottom, I found a chamber filled with symbols carved into the stone walls. In the center was an altar, stained with what I could only hope was old wax.
As I examined the room, I found more letters, these from Nathaniel to someone named Margaret. They described rituals performed to keep the Shadow at bay, sacrifices made to ensure the family's prosperity. Nathaniel's last entry was a chilling plea for forgiveness, confessing that he had failed to uphold the pact and that the Shadow was coming for him.
Suddenly, the flashlight flickered and went out. Panic set in as I fumbled to turn it back on. When the light returned, I saw them—figures standing in the shadows, their eyes glowing with an unnatural light. They whispered in unison, a low chant that sent shivers down my spine.
"Blood of the betrayer," they intoned. "Blood of the guilty."
I tried to run, but my legs felt like lead. The figures closed in, their hands cold as ice as they grabbed me. I struggled, but it was no use. They dragged me to the altar, their chanting growing louder.
As they forced me down, I realized the truth: my family had been protecting a dark secret for generations, a secret that had now claimed me. The last thing I saw was a figure stepping out of the shadows, its eyes filled with malevolent glee.
The pain was sudden and all-consuming. My scream echoed through the chamber, blending with the chants. And then, there was nothing but darkness.
The house stood silent once more, its secrets buried deep within its walls. The townspeople still whispered about the old family home, but no one dared to venture inside. They said the shadows moved on their own, and at night, if you listened closely, you could still hear the whispers of the past.
Years passed, and the house remained untouched, a dark mark on the edge of town. Then, one evening, a young couple, unaware of the house’s history, moved in. They had bought the property cheaply, charmed by its antique allure.
Their first night in the house was uneventful. They laughed, unpacked, and made plans to renovate. But as the clock struck midnight, the atmosphere changed. The house seemed to come alive with a malevolent energy. The husband, Peter, heard a faint whispering. At first, he dismissed it as the wind, but the whispers grew louder, forming words.
"Blood of the betrayer... Blood of the guilty..."
He followed the sound to the basement, where the narrow door stood ajar. Against his better judgment, he descended the stairs. The flashlight flickered, casting eerie shadows on the walls. The chamber at the bottom was as I had left it, but now there was something new—a fresh inscription on the altar: "He who seeks shall find."
Peter turned to leave, but the shadows moved. Figures emerged, their eyes glowing with the same unnatural light. He screamed for help, but the basement door slammed shut, trapping him inside.
Upstairs, his wife, Emily, heard his screams and rushed to the basement door, but it wouldn't budge. She pounded on it, calling his name, but the house seemed to swallow her cries. Desperation set in, and she ran to the phone, dialing the police.
The police arrived quickly, but as they approached the house, they felt an unnatural chill. Inside, they found Emily, frantic and pale. She led them to the basement, but when they opened the door, the chamber was empty. There was no sign of Peter.
Days turned into weeks, and Peter was never found. Emily moved out, leaving the house abandoned once more. The townspeople spoke of the curse, of the family’s dark past, and warned newcomers to stay away.
But the house never stayed empty for long. Curiosity drew people in, and one by one, they disappeared, claimed by the shadows. The whispers continued, a never-ending chant of betrayal and guilt.
One stormy night, a group of ghost hunters arrived, eager to uncover the house's secrets. They set up their equipment, cameras rolling, as they ventured into the basement. The air was thick with tension, the shadows seemed to watch, waiting.
As they explored the chamber, the leader of the group, Sam, found the old letters. He read them aloud, his voice trembling. The whispers grew louder, the shadows closing in.
"Blood of the betrayer... Blood of the guilty..."
The cameras captured everything—the figures emerging from the darkness, the screams, the terror. But when the footage was reviewed, all that was visible was the empty basement, silent and still. The hunters were never seen again.
Years passed, and the house remained a dark legend. No one dared to enter, the whispers and shadows a constant warning. And yet, on moonless nights, the townspeople could see faint lights flickering in the windows, hear the faint whispers carried on the wind.
It was said that the house was a gateway, a place where the past and present intertwined, where the sins of the ancestors demanded atonement. Those who entered were lost, their souls trapped in a never-ending cycle of horror.
Then, one day, a young historian named James arrived in town. He was fascinated by the stories and determined to uncover the truth. Despite the warnings, he entered the house, armed with his knowledge and a sense of purpose.
He found the letters, the journals, the hidden chamber. But as he delved deeper, he uncovered something no one had seen before—a final letter from Nathaniel, hidden behind a loose brick. It spoke of a ritual to break the curse, to free the trapped souls.
With renewed hope, James prepared for the ritual, following the instructions meticulously. As he began, the house seemed to tremble, the shadows stirring violently. The whispers grew to a deafening roar, but he pressed on.
The final step required a sacrifice, a willing soul to take the place of the cursed. As James completed the ritual, he felt a searing pain. The shadows enveloped him, but he continued to chant the final words.
Suddenly, the whispers stopped. The shadows receded, and the house fell silent. The townspeople, watching from a distance, saw the lights go out and heard a final, blood-curdling scream.
The next morning, they found the house empty. The letters and journals were gone, the chamber sealed. James was never seen again, but the curse seemed to have lifted. The house stood silent, no longer a source of fear.
Years later, the house was sold and renovated. Families moved in and out, but the dark history remained a distant memory. The whispers and shadows were gone, but on stormy nights, the faint echoes of the past could still be heard, a reminder of the darkness that once lurked within.
And so, the legend of the old family home became a story told to children, a cautionary tale of curiosity and the consequences of uncovering secrets best left buried. But some say that on the darkest nights, if you listen closely, you can still hear the faint whisper: "Blood of the betrayer... Blood of the guilty..."

Hello FFIE People!!!!
I am all in on this stock...Did not sell on Friday. Actually bought more.
Own 35k shares...So I have real Interest on where we go from here. Monday is going to be nuts!
Below are my questions. Would like help from people who are doing homework on the company?
This is a High End EV Company started in 2014 and the Cars look amazing but, where are they going. It will be so much easier to evaluate the stock price knowing more info?
- There is no real financial info available in the past year. Scarry. They finally announced an earnings release/call for 2023. on May 28th at 5PM. Up until this its been super secret/dark on where they are going.
- They have only sold 10 cars to date (these are for the top executives or big investors). Pre-sales numbers are not shown anywhere...Any Idea of what they are? or how many cars are in production this year? And how much does a car cost? 200k? its gotta be big?
- How much money have they raised? I see 1-3 billion in articles posted....no clue how accurate?
- So whats their actual debt? 2022 balance sheet lists 68 million.
- How much cash do they have? 2022 cash flow lists -506 million
I could go on and on with these questions but, I am going to end here. The point is they just announced earnings release on 5/28. They are finally making cars and will be releasing projected revenue. So for 10 years they have made nothing......and now they are producing cars...possibly selling to Dubai/China super wealthy....the stock went from 4k a share years ago to .04 cents and now we have the potential squeeze going...Might be really easy after the release to show they are finally generating revenue and could easily justify $5 per share.... maybe 10, 20, 50 ------100...who knows...but its not $1.00 a share ....timing is everything!!! 1000 cars at 200k a car = 200 million in revenue
TELL me your thoughts

I went through a really traumatic event at the end of last year and prior I got referred to EMDR althought the waiting list is really long, I've realised I have PTSD and from analysing my behaviours and past C-PTSD seems very likely.
Whilst in trapped in this traumatic situation I got into a relationship with someone in my friend group but I knew her for only a short period. It was a really good period and they helped me a lot with the initial processing of my trauma. She was a really good person however I think she had her own issues and my codependency and her future plans didn't align with god knows what I wanted to do. We broke up at the end of March and I was devastated.
I was then processing this whilst the traumatic incident. We had the same friend group and one of them I realise now because they have a fulltime job, live around the corner from my ex and were best friends longer that we were, always met up with my ex. But at the time I didn't see as rationally like I do now. They never got into contact with me first or invited me to things but I guess that's a friend group with a breakup in the middle. I heard incidents of my ex sleeping with people almost every weekend after the breakup which hurt to my core cause she said she didnt think about sex much when we were together. I guess I kind of felt like everything was a lie? But we weren't together anymore so whilst my hurt was valid it's not like it was any of my business so it was just what it was and hurt.
I got invited to one thing because I'd pushed to try hang out with my friend who's hers too. Whilst I was asleep on the couch at hers, she brought someone in and slept with them and I was awake. This hurt to my core.
I ended up speaking up about it and had a talk about it. I was really upset over it still but it was what it was. I don't think I had processed it properly at this point and still had hurt.
After this they all hung out and I would see this but not be invited to any of them. I felt completetly abandoned by them both, especially with them knowing the trauma I had encountered and initially being there for me, I think I had a traumatic bond with them as a new support system. And it felt like my whole world was crumbling away.
I created my final Uni project about my trauma processing, and posted online about it as it was a film I made and a screening. I saw this as a celebration of how far I'd come because I initally was on the verge of dropping out at the start of the year with everything, but I perservered. Our mutual friend didn't reply to any of these and it really hurt because I saw the film as a celebration and liberation from this trauma. I felt thrown away and forgotten about. I was fighting suicidal thoughts everyday and my mental health was not there at all. My ex had actually replied saying yes, but I wasn't sure how I felt about this because of all the old stuff with hearing them sleep with people.
I then met some other friends. I had all this hurt inside me but decided not to talk about it. Until one of them asked me what had happened between me and my ex. I explained everything from my perspective and my devastation about how abandoned I felt after this trauma. I feel bad because I should have kept some things like the sex life private but I was unloading so much hurt, I had no support system and looked at these guys thinking "yes these friends can be my new people, I can explain this and get their opinion cause I don't know what to do about the film thing". She got into my head saying my ex had lied about one of the things not being consensual and I got really in my head about this and upset because I thought "she might have lied about that to my face after knowing everything I had went through",
I ended up holding the film thing and neither my ex or friend came, I cried all morning of this. Then the people I talked about the devastation with who said they'd come, didn't show up either. They had gone to a house party to drink instead. Hurting more to the core. I spent time with myself after this focusing on my work and realised how bad these abandonment soul wounds had warped into this feeling of utter abandonment when maybe at the time I should have reached out to my inital friend group. I journalled about CPTSD and realised a lot of past things that contributed to the intense emotions I felt.
Then it comes to the friend who was friends with my ex's birthday. I decided to get them some gifts and gave them to them as I didn't want to ruin a connection that helped me so much at the start of the year. It was a nice chat and I realised everything had been in my head and I should have reached out to this initial support system whilst I was undergoing these abandonment thoughts.
They held celebrations and I didn't get invited to any of them because they said they had anxiety of something happened (probably because I had spoke up about the sleeping with someone whilst I was in the house) but the person who didn't show up to the film to drink attended.
I'm pretty sure they talked about me and my ramble and expression of all this hurt but it was warped in a way that made me just look like I was chatting shit rather than suffering with abandonment wounds and hurt by feeling like they didn't care for me at all now I was irrelvant to my ex.
Ever since they've been off with me, I sent a message to our group chat to say I was anxious about anything being tarnished post the breakup because of all the emotions I was facing. I am off their close friends list and messages ignored. I think they hate me. Which hurts so much because I kind of just brought to reality what I had already felt without realising. I feel exhiled and I feel really empty. I've faced so much loss for so long and helpless. I've been completely alone with no proper support system. I feel really horrible because I never have any malice. I loved everyone so deeply and this hurt me and my soul wounds.
I don't know what to do, I'm trying my hard to get on with my life and focus on myself, but I wake up feeling dread and empty everyday - only staying alive for my family. I'm trying to create a better life for myself and have gotten myself out of the house, reading, a new job, making art but my soul feels so torn up. I am trying to get therapy but I went in very suicidal last week and got told the typical things like take a bath, have a tea etc. The EMDR is 2yrs and I can't afford private therapy at the minute.
I guess posting on here I just want someone to hear my story and thoughts and offer any guidance or support, because I don't know what to do anymore. I'm really hurt to my core.
Thank you for reading my story.